How to get a flat tummy in four days

By Daily Mail Reporter

Yesterday the Mail brought you the first part of our exclusive two-day Flat Belly Diet series, a scientifically-proven programme that promises to help you lose up to 7lb and more than five inches in just FOUR DAYS.

The super-fast anti-bloat programme promises a thinner, lighter you in days by abolishing the foods, drinks and triggers that lead to a post-Christmas paunch.

Today, we explain how stress, emotions and sleep patterns each contribute to bloating and bring you day three and four of our meal planners...

Banish 'emotional' eating: Here's how to think your way to a better body

The four-day Anti-Bloat diet has been created for the very specific purpose of eliminating wind, excess fluid and bulky foods which are hard to digest. Providing you follow the daily menus, you should soon look and feel lighter. But there are also several lifestyle factors you need to be aware of. . .

STRESS

Stress triggers a complex sequence of hormonal fluctuations that raise blood pressure and divert blood to your extremities.

This 'fight or flight' process allows you to run faster or lift more weight, but it also causes your digestive system to slow down, which means your last meal may hang around in your intestine, causing bloating.

One of the best ways to help keep stress at bay is to get moving - every day.

More...

• Part one: Banish that belly: How to get a flat tummy in four days

Studies show that just ten minutes of physical activity will help reduce levels of the stress hormone cortisol in the bloodstream.

Cortisol has been shown to increase appetite and induces cravings for sugar and fat - which is why, when you're stressed, you're more likely to reach for a tub of ice-cream than a nice, crisp apple.

Exercise also triggers the brain to produce beta-endorphins, chemicals that calm you down. So next time you feel like screaming or reaching for the crisps, take a bike ride or a walk.

LACK OF FLUID

You need about eight glasses of water a day - more if you're active.

Drinking water and eating 'watery' foods such as melon helps to ward off fatigue, maintain your body's fluid balance and guard against water retention and constipation.

During this diet, be sure to drink two litres of our Sassy Water (see below) every day.

Avoid gassy drinks and acidic beverages such as coffee, tea and fruit juices, all of which can irritate your gut and cause bloating. Substitute these with cups of herbal tea.

TO SLEEP BETTER

• Slip on some socks. The instant warm-up widens blood vessels and allows your body to transfer heat from its core to the extremities, cooling you slightly. This induces sleep, says Dr Phyllis Zee, director of sleep disorders at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in the U.S.

• Stick to a schedule. People who follow regular daily routines report fewer sleep problems than those with more unpredictable lifestyles, according to a study from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Recurring time cues - such as a regular bed time - will synchronise your body rhythms.

• Turn off the lights. Any light will signal the brain to wake up, but 'blue light' from your mobile phone or your clock's digital display is the worst offender.

• Walk more. As well as helping to control stress, it will also help you to get a sound night's sleep.

For more tips, take a look at the British Sleep Society's website at www.sleeping.org.uk

CONQUER EMOTIONAL EATING

Physiologically speaking, your appetite is controlled by biochemical signals that tell your brain when you're full up. The problem is, we've all learned to override those signals.

We eat not only when we're hungry but also when we're happy or sad, relaxed or anxious.

To get a handle on emotional eating, you need to understand why you do it.

For one thing, many of us have been conditioned to believe that food can bring comfort (remember getting a lollipop after an injection at the doctor's?). And it does, at least in the short term.

As adults, many of us turn to food to relieve stress. Snacking is a common response to boredom, anxiety, anger and, yes, loneliness.

Many of us have to relearn what actual hunger feels like. Although we often don't recognise it, the line between emotional hunger and true hunger is quite clear.

U.S. research has found five ways to differentiate between the two:

1 Hunger is felt below the neck (growling stomach), while emotional hunger is felt above the neck (a craving for ice cream).

2 Physical hunger is felt below the neck (growling stomach), while emotional hunger is felt above the neck (a craving for ice cream).

3 When only a certain food like pizza or chocolate will meet your need, your 'hunger' is born of emotion. When your body requires fuel, you're more open to other food options.

4 Emotional hunger wants to be satisfied instantly. Physical hunger can wait.

5 Emotional hunger leaves guilt in its wake. Physical hunger doesn't.

Recognising these signals can help you distinguish an emotional need for food from a physical one.

The next time a craving strikes, try this: ignore the signals coming from the neck up.

Are you physically hungry? Ask yourself what you're feeling emotionally and how you can meet these mental (versus physical) needs.

The real cure for emotional eating is developing coping strategies, not just seeking out distractions.

Here's an example: when you're sad and craving ice cream, cleaning out your cupboards may direct you away from the freezer, but it won't get rid of that melancholy feeling.

Too often, we fail to take the important steps of first identifying the emotions we're experiencing and, second, feeling them.

If you're feeling sad, watch a tearjerker instead and allow yourself to cry. Or phone a friend who's good at listening. Addressing the emotion is the best way to release yourself from the desire to eat.

THE FLAT TUMMY RULES

1 Eat four meals a day (including one smoothie). Little and often helps your body to digest food more easily - avoiding bloating. The foods recommended on this programme have been specifically chosen for their anti-bloat qualities.

2 Take a quick five-minute after-meal walk. Moving your body helps release air trapped in your gastrointestinal tract.

3 Drink two litres of Sassy Water daily. Devised by nutrition director Cynthia Sassy, the ingredients in her water aren't just for flavour: the ginger will help to calm and soothe your GI tract. You can also drink 100 per cent pure herbal teas such as camomile.

SASSY WATER

• 2 litres/3½ pints water
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• 1 medium cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 medium lemon, thinly sliced
• 12 mint leaves
  

Combine all ingredients in a large jug, chill in the refrigerator and let the flavours blend overnight.

4 Eat slowly. Often, when you eat quickly, you take in large gulps of air which gets trapped in your digestive system and causes bloating.

Extracted from The Flat Belly Diet by Liz Vaccariello, published by Macmillan on January 9 at £12.99. © Liz Vaccariello 2009. To order a copy (p&p free), call 0845 155 0720.

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Source:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1102778/Part-How-flat-tummy-days.html

AFI's Hunter Burgan NOT Engaged

Despite reports to the contrary, AFI bassist Hunter Burgan is not engaged to actress and She & Him frontwoman Zooey Deschanel.



In Touch Weekly ran the following story on Dec. 29 morning but it looks like someone didn't fact check:

Yes Man actress Zooey Deschanel, 28, and musician Hunter Burgan are engaged! According to a source, Zooey said yes over the weekend of December 20. The couple has been together for nearly a year and a friend of the stars confides, “she is so excited.”

When we went back to see the original link, someone had changed "Hunter Burgan" to "Ben Gibbard." WTF? Sure, we heard rumors that Deschanel was dating the Death Cab For Cutie singer, but who knows. That said, we can officially confirm via Bergen's Facebook that he is not about derail AFI recording in order to to plan a wedding. Whew!



Who makes the cuter couple, though? Zooey Deschanel + Hunter Burgan or Zooey Deschanel + Ben Gibbard?

Source:
http://www.buzznet.com/musicnews/afis-hunter-burgan-not-engaged-j3558841/

ufc 92 results

Pre-event thoughts

Good evening fight fans and welcome to the Detroit Free Press’ live blog of UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008.

Tonight’s card is perhaps the most anticipated of the year, featuring two title fights and a third grudge match between MMA superstars Wanderlei Silva and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.

In one of the title fights, Michigan State University’s own former wrestling star Rashad Evans will go for the light heavyweight crown against defending champion Forrest Griffin.

The other title fight features Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira against Frank Mir for the interim heavyweight title and the right to fight Brock Lesnar for the true heavyweight title down the line.

Yes, the UFC has come a long way from the old days of no gloves, hair pulling, and brutal elimination tournaments with no time limits.

It is now a legitimate sport and one that has proven to be safer than boxing with a bright future ahead of it.

The first fight is between heavyweights Cheick Kongo and Mustapha Al-Turk.

Cheick Kongo vs. Mustapha Al-Turk

The Frenchman Kongo is…well, he basically looks like some kind of cyborg, and he fights like one, too. But his ground game is suspect and Al-Turk, a British submission specialist who was born in Beirut, Lebanon, will test him there.

Al-Turk is rocked by a straight punch from Kongo and beckons Kongo to the ground with him but he refuses to follow.

He comes in and clinches while Kongo gets in some solid shots.

An inadvertent Al-Turk knee catches Kongo in the, ahem, nether regions, and the fight is stopped as Kongo winces in pain. This is an unfortunate side effect of close quarters combat but usually fighters manage to walk it off. Kongo doesn’t seem to be recovering too well, however.

Al-Turk misses haymaker and shoots in for a single leg takedown. He stays with it and tries to dig out the leg.

After some more tussling, Kongo returns the favor and throws a knee that lands in the groin area of Al-Turk.

“I hope that was an accident,” says referee Steve Mazzagatti.

Kongo has some history in this department, as he got in some questionable low blows against Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic in their past fight.

Al-Turk continues and Kongo lands a straight shot and then bails to ground.

Kongo leans in and gets into Al-Turk’s guard before raining a flurry of elbows.

He follows it up with hammer fists and opens up big cut above the right eye of Al-Turk. Al-Turk can’t defend himself, and Mazzagatti calls the fight at 4:37 of the first round.

A solid, workmanlike performance by Kongo in this one as he inches closer to a future title shot.

Wanderlei Silva vs. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson

This is the fight everyone’s been waiting for, even though there isn’t a title on the line. This fight, between two former PRIDE Fighting legends (Japan’s now-defunct answer to the UFC) is for, well, pride.

The UFC is full of manufactured drama that borders on the level of WWE-style hype at times, but there is a strong, healthy dislike between these two light heavyweights.

Silva won both of their earlier fights but Jackson is a vastly improved fighter since their last bout in 2004. Silva is just 5-5 in his last ten fights but he still is one of the most feared fighters in the world.

Both fighters look calm and businesslike tonight, and this has the potential to be one of the best fights in UFC history, at least the UFC hopes so in order to boost future DVD sales. Too bad this one will only be three rounds maximum.

Wanderlei wiggles the gloves like usual, the staredown goes off without a hitch, and the atmosphere is now officially electric.

No glove touching in this one and Rampage leads with a massive haymaker that maybe grazes Silva a bit.

Silva lands one of his trademark rapid-fire, not-so-technical punch combos that still manage to be quite effective yet again.

Silva has landed three leg kicks thus far and Jackson will need to check them or he might suffer the same fate he did against Forrest Griffin.

Silva throws in a right leg kick that was the most brutal of the bunch so far.

Rampage throws another big blow and knocks Silva back.

Jackson then lands a solid jab.

Silva comes back with a jab as does Jackson.

Jackson ducks and uncorks a massive, lightning-fast left hook that lands square on the left side of Silva’s chin, and the Brazilian crumples straight to the mat before Jackson rushes in and lands a three quick punches on his downed opponent just to be on the safe side.

The fight doctors rush in and this one is “allllllllllllll ovvvverr!” as announcer Mike Goldberg exclaims. Jackson finally has his revenge and a brutal highlight-reel knockout to match the ones Silva gave him in 2003 and 2004.

“One punch put him completely to sleep,” says color analyst Joe Rogan.

“Last time I fought him it wasn’t right,” says Jackson. “I came to England with the Wolf’s Lair (his new training camp), got my wolf on, and now it’s right. Rampage is back!”

A title shot should be coming soon, perhaps against the winner of Evans-Griffin.

The fight ended at 3:21 of the first round, and Silva appears to be okay.

Other Results at UFC 92

Pat Berry defeated Dan Evenson at 2:36 of the first round after a knee injury from low kicks forced Evenson to quit.

Brad Blackburn defeated Ryo Chonan by a score of 29-28 on all judges’ cards.

Matt Hamill defeated Reese Andy at 2:19 of round two by TKO after taking Andy’s back and raining punches.

Antoni Hardonk defeated Mike Wessel by TKO after gaining full mount and landing multiple punches.

Yushin Okami defeated Dean Lister by a score of 30-27 on all judges’ scorecards.

Mike Massenzio vs. C.B. Dollaway

Two former Division I wrestlers who faced each other in college (with Dollaway, the former Ultimate Fighter runner-up, coming out on top) will go at it in this middleweight bout.

Dollaway lands a solid right body kick. Massenzio comes in and Dollaway wraps his hands around him, landing some knees before whiffing and falling to the mat.

Dollaway gets rocked by a right and stumbles around looking to get his bearings.

Massenzio takes advantage and gets a fairly deep guillotine as Dollaway almost appears to tap. Dollaway manages to work his way out, however. He works his way to the top position and Massenzio pulls guard.

Dollaway passes guard and takes side control while going for a mount. He gets it and works his way forward before going for elbows.

Massenzio tries to roll out and gets flattened out, and now he’s in deep trouble.

Dollaway peppers him with looping punches that look almost casual, as he knows he has this fight locked up. Massenzio can’t defend himself while laying face down on the mat.

“The Doberman” takes this one at 3:01 in the first round, showing marked improvement in the ground game after compared with his back-to-back losses on The Ultimate Fighter to Amir Sadollah by arm-bar.

Dollaway appears to have a lot of potential but he’ll need to clean up a few aspects of his game before he can become a serious contender.

Interim Heavyweight Title Bout: Frank Mir vs. Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira

Current UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar makes an appearance and tells Goldberg and Rogan he’s rooting for Mir to win the interim title so he can have a rematch with the man who gave him his only UFC loss.

Nogueira is the favorite in this match but fortunes cans shift quickly in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and both fighters are among the elite grapplers in the world with the ability to win by submission in the blink of an eye.

The interim belt is up for grabs because Nogueira holds it after beating Tim Sylvia in a period during which the champion at the time, Randy Couture, was in a contract dispute with the UFC.

Now, the belt will be unified as the winner of tonight’s bout will take on Lesnar at a future date.

Mir comes out to “Hate Me Now” by Nas looking focused and Nogueira comes out to “Gimme Shelter” by the Rolling Stones, looking relaxed as usual.

Both fighters have overcome tremendous odds to become two of the best fighters in the world. Mir was hit by a car at 50 mph on his motorcycle in 2004 and suffered a badly broken leg while Nogeuira was run over by a truck as a child and suffered damage to his lungs and liver.

Mir comes out fighting southpaw after the fighters and the former Ultimate Fighter TV show coaches refuse to touch gloves.

Mir throws a head kick that is checked by Nogueira.

He then lands a straight right and goes in for the takedown.

Nogueira lands a solid punch from his back.

Mir walks away from Nogueira as he lays on his back and tries to turn the fight into a ground war as predicted. Mir wants to keep this fight standing against Nogueira, who trains boxing with the Cuban national team.

Mir looks much quicker than in the past and he is the more aggressive of the two fighters. He’s also in perhaps the best shape of his career and he’s putting together solid punch and kick combinations.

Mir sneaks in a right uppercut that just catches Nogueira a bit.

Nogueira is rocked and goes down before inviting Mir to the ground and successfully defending Mir’s punches.

Mir lands another right uppercut off of a combination and adds a knee in a clinch.

Nogeuria lands a straight right jab but he doesn’t look very energetic tonight.

At the end of the first round, Mir rocks Nogueira with a big right hand.

“That is the definition of a 10-8 round right there,” says Goldberg. Nogeuira appears to be sleepwalking through this one.

Round two

Mir continues to throw a dizzying array of combinations, pushing the pace of the fight despite not landing many of them.

Mir ducks and lands a powerful left hook, then comes back with an even more devastating left hook to knock down Nogueira. He pounces on him and the punches come fast and furious. Nogueira stumbles to his feet, surprised that he has finally been knocked out for the first time in his legendary career. It appears as if the attrition of fighting for so many years has caught to Nogueira much like what the crowd saw from Wanderlei Silva earlier tonight.

Mir points at Lesnar in the crowd and it appears as if the UFC now has itself a big-time rematch to peddle. Mir looked better than ever before in this fight, his confidence finally restored from the devastating broken leg injury.

“If I was a betting man, I wasn’t on Mir’s side tonight,” says the emotional Mir.

Mir predicts that Lesnar won’t get out of the first round in their rematch, and Lesnar flashes a sly grin to the camera.

The Mir win came 1:54 in the second round for those scoring at home.

Rashad Evans vs. Forrest Griffin

The former Spartan Evans, winner of The Ultimate Fighter TV show’s second season, will take on Griffin, winner of the show’s first season, for right to be called the Light Heavyweight Champion of the World.

Some interesting fight stats: Griffin has landed 72% of his leg kicks in his career while Evans’ wrestling skills have allowed him to succeed on 60% of his takedown attempts.

Evans has also never attempted a submission in his career, specializing in the ground-and-pound game and boxing.

Evans does a bear crawl into the octagon™ (for those of you planning to build one in your backyards, beware that the term is trademarked), a nod to his wrestling roots. “Sugar” looks relaxed as he does a little dance on the mat.

Griffin, perhaps the hairiest (and toughest?) man in the UFC, looks businesslike as usual.

Evans throws a lunging punch and ducks in. He’s very cautious as usual as he backs out, and Griffin throws a sweeping high kick that looks impressive but misses.

Evans narrowly misses on what could have been a replay of his knockout over Chuck Liddell.

Griffin has landed a couple of solid leg kicks, his specialty.

Evans responds with a swift leg kick of his own. He dodges a shot and lands a lunging right on Griffin.

Griffin lands a lunging left hand and both fighters look aggressive and confident.

If Evans can get his timing down, he might be able to land a knockout shot. He’s teeing it up, that’s for sure.

Griffin lands another leg kick but Evans lands one in response.

Griffin lands yet another leg kick that staggers Rashad much like what Griffin did to Jackson.

There’s about a minute left in the first round and this one is pretty even so far.

Rashad throws a jab-hook combo as the second part connects. Time is running down in the round as Griffin goes for another leg kick that doesn’t quite have the same impact as the previous ones.

Evans has checked several high kicks in this fight. Thus far, this fight has been a purist’s dream and an even match.

ROUND 2

Evans loses track of his location as he backs up and accidentally runs into the cage before slipping but Griffin is too far away to take advantage.

Evans catches Griffin with a close jab and Griffin blocks another big one a bit later.

Forrest lands a solid right and adds a leg kick. Forrest is looking quicker than ever in this one and they’re both swinging for the fences now.

Rashad backs up a bit, stares at Griffin, and flashes a big smile.

But Griffin looks a bit stronger right now and is winning on points in this round. Perhaps Evans needs to fall back on his wrestling skills to change the momentum a bit in this one.

Evans lands a solid, hard right.

The two fighters touch gloves after an inadvertent low blow to Griffin.

Evans lands another solid right as Griffin goes for a huge head kick that is again checked.

Evans continues to put his faith in his boxing skills. He checks a low leg kick from Griffin and then lets his guard down before getting drilled with a right in the face to end the round. The fight docs are going to work on a small cut in above Evans’ left eye.

ROUND 3

Griffin continues to throw a barrage of leg kicks.

But Griffin throws one too many and Rashad catches a kick before blasting Griffin with the vaunted “Superman” punch.

He pounces and goes all out in an effort to finish off Griffin but Forrest manages to keep him at bay after eating some solid punches.

Evans is looking to pass guard as the crowd chants “Forrest! Forrest!”

Perhaps we will finally see whether or not Evans’ jiu-jitsu game is championship level tonight.

Griffin continues to throw a barrage of leg kicks.

But Griffin throws one too many and Rashad catches a kick before blasting Griffin with the vaunted “Superman” punch.

He pounces and goes all out in an effort to finish off Griffin but Forrest manages to keep him at bay after eating some solid punches.

Evans is looking to pass guard as the crowd chants “Forrest! Forrest!”

Perhaps we will finally see whether or not Evans’ jiu-jitsu game is championship level tonight.

Griffin appears to be a bit tired but he’s working several submission attempts.

Evans is undaunted and he wades in further. Evans postures up and gets behind his punches full force, landing right after right as Griffin’s head bounces off the mat.

The referee has no choice but stop the action as Griffin appears to tap, and with that, former Michigan State Spartan Rashad Evans is your new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion.

“How does that sound?” asks Joe Rogan.

“It sounds real good, man,” replies Evans. “It was a great fight and it took a while for me to get warmed up, but I got there.”

It appears as if no one will underestimate Evans, a slight underdog coming into the fight, again, at least not in the near future. Evans moves to a nearly unprecedented 18-0-1 in his MMA career.

Evans was asked about his thoughts as he attempted to finish the downed Griffin.

“He kept smiling, so I didn’t know if he was hurt or not. They kept letting me hit him so I just said ‘Alright.’”

The soft-spoken Evans is gracious in victory and wishes his mom a happy birthday.

Griffin seems okay as he pops up and stands in for an interview on camera about the last moments of the fight.

“I was flailing, no tapping done at that point, it was just his punches giving my body motion,” says Griffin with his typical brand of self-deprecating humor.

“I remember waking up like ‘It’s okay, Forrest, then I was like yep, it kind of sucks, actually.”

The time of Evans’ win was 2:46 in the third round.

UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008 Final Thoughts

Upset of the Night-Frank Mir over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Many thought a Nogueira win was a foregone conclusion but Nogueira suddenly looked about ten years older in this fight and Mir came out in the best shape of his life.

Now Nogueira has to hope he doesn’t go the way of a battered NFL running back, as he has the potential to fall right off the map. It will be interesting to see if he can come back and make another run at the heavyweight title or if he will begin to fade away.

Fight of the Night-Evans’ win over Griffin. This fight didn’t receive nearly the attention that the Wanderlei Silva-Quinton Jackson fight did going in despite being a title fight, in part because many fans thought that Evans and Griffin weren’t title-worthy.

But both fighters looked remarkably quick, confident, and well-prepared in what could be called one of the best UFC fights of all-time when people look back on it in a year or so. Griffin’s kicks are now almost Lyoto Machida-quality while Evans has perhaps the quickest hands in the sport.

Knockout of the Night: Jackson’s devastating left hook on Silva. It wasn’t quite as brutal as the knees Silva knocked Jackson out with in their first two fights but it probably felt just as sweet for Jackson.

Best Possible Future Match-up as a Result of UFC 92: Lesnar-Mir II will be intriguing to say the least, especially considering how good Mir looked.

But a possible Rashad Evans-Quinton Jackson fight could be an absolute classic and a showcase for perhaps the two quickest fighters and best boxers in the UFC. It would be a landmark fight,showing off the evolution of the elite athletes that now populate what just might be the fastest-growing sport in the world.

And with that, it’s time to sign off for the night. The Detroit Lions may be farther away from a Super Bowl Title than any franchise in NFL history, but at least one title is coming back to Michigan thanks to Evans, who should receive a hero’s welcome in East Lansing.

Source:

http://www.freep.com/article/20081227/SPORTS18/81227055/?imw=Y

Stolen 850-pound emerald recovered December 27, 2008

LOS ANGELES COUNTY

850-pound emerald recovered

The Sheriff's Department has recovered a stolen 850-pound emerald worth an estimated $370 million, officials said Friday.

The stone, known as the Bahia Emerald, was unearthed in Brazil and is believed to be the second-largest stone of its kind, according to the Sheriff's Department. The gem, once auctioned on EBay, has also been the focus of numerous lawsuits.

The gem was stolen from a secured vault in South El Monte in September and later warehoused in Las Vegas, said Lt. Thomas Grubb of the Major Crimes Bureau.

"The way it was stolen was through falsification of paperwork," Grubb said. "They flimflammed some papers and were able to get it released from the vault."

The investigation led sheriff's officials to Idaho and Las Vegas. When the suspects learned that deputies were hot on their trail, they agreed to hand over the gem. On Dec. 19, sheriff's investigators arrived in Las Vegas with a court order and took possession of the stone. No arrests were made.

The emerald has since been returned to L.A. County and will remain in the custody of the Sheriff's Department until ownership is resolved.

"A judge is going to have to rule on who the rightful owner is," Grubb said.

"We got one side telling us it belongs to them, and another side saying no, it belongs to us."

-- Monte Morin OAKLAND

Remains are missing student's

Authorities say the human remains found behind a city high school last month are those of an 18-year-old former student.

The remains of Johnikka Jackson were found near a crude shelter made of wood and sheets in a canyon behind Skyline High School. Some students found the bones Nov. 7 and took them to the principal's office.

It is still unclear how Jackson died. Police say they are still trying to determine if foul play was involved.

Jackson's father, John Jackson of San Francisco, said he filed a missing person's report after not hearing from her over the summer.

The teen was living with an aunt while attending Skyline but left before graduation and had been taking classes at Laney College.

-- associated press SACRAMENTO

Gov., lawmakers find no accord

Hopes by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic lawmakers that they would strike a budget deal by week's end fizzled Friday, with both sides saying they will try again next week.

They are trying to agree on the details of a tax-and-cut package worth $18 billion that is needed to close a growing gap between state spending and revenue.

Republican lawmakers have been left out of the discussions because they refuse to sign on to any deal that includes a tax increase. Democrats and Schwarzenegger say the size of the deficit is so large that spending cuts alone will not be enough.

California's deficit is projected to hit $42 billion over the next 18 months.

-- associated press FRESNO

Treatment center may be closed

Fresno County leaders are set to meet next month to consider closing the region's only 24-hour psychiatric treatment center.

County health officials say the closure would save the county $2.5 million as its mental health department faces a budget shortfall.

With no similar urgent care centers in neighboring counties, family members of the mentally ill say the closure would leave them with few options. They say the burden would shift to police and hospital emergency room staff, who lack adequate training for psychiatric emergencies.

The center would be replaced by a mobile crisis team, a new 16-bed inpatient unit and a detoxification program for substance abusers.

The county Board of Supervisors is scheduled to consider the closure in January.

-- associated press

Source:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-briefs27-2008dec27,0,1916544.story

After-Christmas shopping unlikely to save season

By SARAH SKIDMORE

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — There's holiday joy and post-holiday blues, but for the nation's retailers it's all been one big downer.

The holiday shopping season was one of the most dismal in years and even the after-Christmas period, when consumers normally rush to stores to use gift cards and seize on big sales, isn't expected to be enough to save retailers from a terrible year.

Holiday sales typically account for 30 percent to 50 percent of a retailer's annual total. But shoppers cut back their spending this year as they struggled with job cuts, home foreclosures, portfolio losses and other economic woes.

Analysts have kept slashing their holiday estimates. Michael P. Niemira, chief economist at the International Council of Shopping Centers, now expects that sales at established stores for November and December will fall 1.5 percent to 2 percent — which would make it the weakest holiday season since at least 1969, when the index began.

According to preliminary data from SpendingPulse — a division of MasterCard Advisors that tracks total sales paid for by credit card, checks and cash — retail sales fell between 5.5 percent and 8 percent during the holiday season compared with last year. Excluding auto and gas sales, retail sales fell between 2 percent and 4 percent, according to SpendingPulse.

A better indicator of how retailers fared won't arrive until Jan. 8, when major stores report same-store sales, or sales at locations open at least a year, for December.

Retailers are still trying to entice consumers with big markdowns, extended hours and other perks.

"It has a Black Friday feel to it," said Tom Aiello, a spokesman for Sears and Kmart, likening the post-Christmas promotions to those found the day after Thanksgiving.

Sears stores are opening several hours early and offering doorbuster deals through noon. Shoppers can get jeans for less than $10 or special financing on exercise equipment to help keep their New Year's resolutions.

Kmart is cutting in half prices on necessities, such as fall and winter clothes for the family, and offering deals on seasonal decor.

Although gift cards sales overall are predicted to be down, Aiello said Sears and Kmart have not seen that and are expecting strong redemption. Retailers cannot record a sale on gift cards until they are redeemed.

Toys R Us said it is cutting prices by 60 percent on some brands the day after Christmas. And kids who didn't get the Hannah Montana doll they wanted may be able to find it for half off.

Other retailers such as Target are pushing online deals, rather than in-store promotions, more heavily in the post-holiday period. Target said it is putting thousands of items on clearance and making them eligible for free shipping the day after Christmas.

Others, like Wal-Mart Stores, are waiting until the weekend to make markdowns on items such as televisions, office and home goods but say they will continue in-store promotions of the week.

Several retailers said they will continue or add new promotions in January, as experts predict the recession will carry into 2009.

Source:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gjMKBGIg_Z20DaMKTqzDslm1t_ZwD95A757O0

Military center tracking Santa's sleigh ride

By IVAN MORENO – 4 hours ago

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Who says Santa Claus doesn't exist?

The military personnel charged with being the eyes in the sky are certainly acting like he does — and they've been joined on the Internet by millions of believers.

Even doubters have reason to pause when they hear the North American Aerospace Defense Command — or NORAD, which monitors air and space threats against the U.S. and Canada — is in charge of the annual Christmas mission to keep children informed of Santa's worldwide journey to their homes.

"They challenge it, but only to a point," said Senior Master Sgt. Sharon Ryder-Platts, 49, who for five years has been a Santa tracker, taking calls from those wanting to know the location of jolly old St. Nick.

According to NORAD, Santa began his latest flight early Wednesday at the International Date Line in the Pacific Ocean. Historically, Santa visits the South Pacific first, then New Zealand and Australia. NORAD points out that only Santa knows his route.

Last year, NORAD's Santa tracking center answered 94,000 calls and responded to 10,000 e-mails. About 10.6 million visitors went to the Web site, which can be viewed in English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Japanese and Chinese.

NORAD's holiday tradition can by traced to 1955, when a Colorado Springs newspaper printed a Sears, Roebuck & Co. ad telling children of a phone number to talk to Santa. The number was one digit off, and the first child to get through reached the Continental Air Defense Command, NORAD's predecessor.

Col. Harry W. Shoup answered.

Shoup's daughter, Terri Van Keuren, said her dad, now 91, was surprised to hear that the little voice on the other end thought he was Santa.

"Dad thought, `What the heck? This must be some kind of code,'" said Van Keuren, 59.

Shoup, described by his daughter as "just a nut about Christmas," didn't want to break the boy's heart, so he sounded a booming "Ho, ho, ho!" and pretended to be Santa Claus.

Enough calls followed that Shoup assigned an officer to answer them while the problem was fixed. But Shoup and the staff he was directing to "locate" Santa on radar ended up embracing the idea. NORAD picked up the tradition when it was formed 50 years ago.

"If we didn't do it, truly I don't know who else would track Santa," Maj. Stacia Reddish said.

The task that began with no computers and only a 60-by-80-foot glass map of North America now includes two big screens on a wall showing the world and information on each country Santa Claus visits. It took off with the Web site's 1997 launch, Reddish said.

Now, curious youngsters can follow Santa's path online with a Google two-dimensional map or in 3D using Google Earth, where he can be seen flying through different landscapes in his sleigh.

NORAD officials are hesitant to list all the potential sites Santa will visit with certainty.

"Historically, Santa has loved the Great Wall of China. He loves the (Space) Needle in Seattle. He of course loves the Eiffel Tower," Reddish said. "But his path is completely unpredictable, so we won't know."

Ryder-Platts, 49, who has a 17-year-old son, said taking calls from children helps her keep her Christmas spirit.

"For someone like myself, my son is older, you know it just keeps you in touch with the spirit of Santa Claus," she said. "I miss out on that at home so this keeps me close to Santa. I believe! It keeps me in touch with other believers."

On the Net:

• http://www.noradsanta.org

Source:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hSs7pZAO0zEW8EwGcGSwMN5yQuCwD95926EG0

Most Wanted: Manuel Benitez Known As Child Star Mark Everett Killed In A Shootout

by Mitch Marconi

One of America's most wanted men was found and killed at strip mall by the police. Manuel Benitez was shot to death by the Los Angeles County officers. Apparently he was held up in a restaurant where he was holding his 7-year-old son hostage according to the AP.

The police reportedly threw a flashbang grenade which most likely blinded Benitez, and after exchanging some shots they were able to kill him and save the boy. There was a $20,000 reward on this man if reported to the police anything that led them to him. Benitez was orginially looked for by the police after he reportedly killed ex girlfriend Stephanie Spears with a dumbbell four years ago.

Benitez was killed in a Chinese restaurant in El Monte strip mall. Benitez was also a child actor who went by the name of Mark Everett. He starred in hit movie Pee Wee's Big Adventure. Its been four years he was looked for, it's good to seem him finally caught. (c) tPC

Source:

http://www.postchronicle.com/news/original/article_212195497.shtml

Moore music for the new year

'Purlie' star Melba Moore comes to the Rrazz Room

Published 12/25/2008

by Robert Sokol

	Stage star Melba Moore.

One afternoon in the late 60s, a 20-something Melba Moore was working a recording gig. "These two hippies, who didn't have sense enough to put on shoes even though they were in a recording studio in New York City, walked in and asked me if I wanted to do Hair . I said, 'Excuse me, but I did not get a Bachelor's Degree in Music to do nobody's hair.'" She laughs long and hard. "I was an educated fool!"

Moore opens at the Rrazz Room at Hotel Nikko this Saturday, and is ringing in the New Year with sistah diva Darlene Love.

Yes, she did the then-infamous Hair nude scene. "I was there when it was created, and it was fun and exciting. We were past previews, and someone on the creative team came up with the idea. At first, it caused something of a breach with the cast. Here we are doing this show about freedom, then we're told we have to do something that we might not like." When the costume-dropping was made optional, the concept was embraced. "As it turned out, eventually most everybody wanted to do it, to experience it, for various reasons."

She stayed with the show for 18 months, eventually inheriting the role of Sheila from an Annie Hall-bound Diane Keaton. "Before Hair, I wasn't really into Broadway. I saw a few shows, but it wasn't a dream for me." A castmate in the show suggested she start auditioning for other shows, if not for the roles, at least for the experience, and told her of an open call for a new show. "That's the spirit in which I went up for Purlie. I didn't know the language – stage right, stage left, nothing – and I got the part!" As Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins, Moore stopped the show nightly with the joyous "I Feel Love," and picked up a slew of that season's awards, including a Tony for Featured Actress in a Musical.

Flush with success, Moore returned to her first love and launched a recording career that saw multiple Grammy nominations throughout the 70s. She returned to Broadway in Geoffrey Holder's visually exotic but troubled production of Timbuktu! On her co-star Eartha Kitt, Moore demurs. "Let's just say I have better memories of Eartha after the show closed. She was going through some problems, and basically was not a nice person to be around at the time. It was a beautiful show and should have toured and been recorded, but Eartha really slam-dunked it. She killed it. I hope somebody does it again someday."

For her current gig, she's definitely feeling the Love. "We started having fun from the first rehearsal!" she beams. Though this gig marks their duo debut, the ladies have followed a parallel path of early success, a long and painful intermission, and a solid second act. In Moore's case, a sudden divorce left her financially destitute and questioning her future. She is retrospectively pragmatic about that time. "It was the process of going from the mailroom to the CEO position of my life. I have bloomed because I am in control now. You have to be willing to start over again, again and again. I've become a great student."

She's also become a writer and producer, hard at work on the development of Still Standing, an autobiographical musical. "We're taking it on a tour of 13 historically black colleges in Arkansas as a showcase," she says, and is actively seeking collaborators with an eye toward a New York production.

Looking far younger than her 63 years, Moore gives thanks to God, but not without humor. "God has been good to me for a long time," she acknowledges. "He's given me a second chance. He's coming back, you know, and he told me he doesn't want any raggedy, wrinkled-up, nasty-looking divas," she says with a hearty chuckle. A born-again Christian, Moore holds her faith close. "He owns the whole planet. It all belongs to him," she says, the use of personal pronouns emphasizing the intimate relationship she feels. "Those of us who have been given gifts, whatever they may be, are really responsible for doing good things with them. Those of us who have made him first and last make that a [life] study, and we speak about it. With that as my focus, I can go wherever he allows me to go." She admits that showbiz does not frequently create sacred spaces, and reconciling her personal and professional lives can be a challenge. "We have to be the thing that bring sacredness into it, and that's not always religion. We just have to be his emissaries wherever we go."

Melba Moore & Darlene Love at the Rrazz Room, Hotel Nikko, Dec. 27-Jan. 4. Tickets: $50. Two shows New Year's Eve ($75-$175) with champagne and Midnight buffet. Info: (866) 468-3399 or www.therrazzroom.com.

Source:

http://www.ebar.com/arts/art_article.php?sec=music&article=567

Child porn investigation catches California lawyer

(CNN) -- A lawyer who served in the Clinton administration and more recently was an advisor to California's lieutenant governor pleaded guilty to a child porn charge in a San Diego federal court Monday.

Wade Rowland Sanders admitted to having 600 images of minors on his computer, including a video depicting "several prepubescent females engaged in sexual conduct with an adult male and performing oral sex on one another," according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Karen Hewitt.

FBI agents raided Sanders' home last May after they suspected his home Internet service account was used to download several pictures and a video showing underage girls having sex with adult men, according to an investigator's sworn statement.

"Sanders admitted that he had downloaded child pornography using the program Limewire but that he deleted the files once he noticed that they had been downloaded," FBI Special Agent John Caruthers said.
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A search of Sanders' computer found the child porn files saved on his hard drive in two "My Documents" folders, Caruthers said.

At least one of the young girls in the photos was identified and is a "known victim," the investigator said.

When Sanders, 67, is sentenced on March 30, he could get up to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay a $250,000 fine. The minimum sentence for the charge is five years with supervised release for his lifetime and registration as a sex offender, the prosecutor said.

FBI agents discovered the illegal downloads as part of a nationwide initiative called Project Safe Childhood. The multi-agency program, which began in 2006, is "designed to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse," the U.S. Attorney's statement said.

Sanders was a U.S. Navy Swift boat captain during the Vietnam War, where he earned the Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Heart. He retired from the U.S. Navy as a captain.

Sanders was chosen by fellow Swift boat veteran John Kerry to introduce him at the 2004 Democratic Convention, when the senator accepted the presidential nomination.

He briefly entered the 2000 congressional race in a San Diego district, but withdrew citing lack of funding. He ran as a Democrat.

Sanders served as the senior advisor to California Lt. Gov. John Garamendi for Veterans and Military Affairs until the time of his arrest, according to the U.S. Attorney's office. He was also in the Clinton administration as a deputy assistant secretary of the Navy.

When Garamendi's office announced Sanders' appointment in July 2007, it said he was a practicing lawyer and a community activist.

"He is a member of the San Diego Police Department Senior Oversight Committee and has served on many non-profit boards," the lieutenant governor's office said.
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Source:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/12/23/porn.conviction/

Thanks for CNN for this news

Our advice for last minute holiday shopping

By Shay Quillen

Mercury News
Posted: 12/19/2008 12:00:00 AM PST


Holiday Guide
• Celebrate the season with gift, food, travel, decoration ideas and more
Why am I writing the last-minute gift guide? Because I never got around to coming up with an idea for the regular gift guide, of course.
So why are you depending on me for advice? I have no idea, but don't worry, we'll get through this together.
The good news: As you read this, Christmas is still four days away, an eternity for a true last-minute shopper. You've got time to go to a store and buy anything you want, even if some assembly is required, then sit around for a couple of days drinking eggnog before calmly wrapping it Christmas Eve as the gentle sounds of Johnny Mathis' "Merry Christmas" waft around your abode. A piece of cake or, should I say, a piece of fruitcake.
If your loved one doesn't live in the area, no problem. At Amazon.com, you can get two-day shipping, guaranteed to arrive on Christmas Eve, as late as 3 p.m. Monday (Pacific time) for some items. For one-day shipping, you can go as late as 3 p.m. Tuesday.
But let's say you really, really, really push your luck and you're truly coming down to the wire. Let's say TNT has already started its 24 hours of "A Christmas Story" and Santa and the reindeer are taxiing for takeoff. What will you do? What will you do?
Stay cool, Frosty. Here are a few ideas:
• Walgreens. The 24-hour Walgreens locations in the South Bay will be open all night and all day, as usual, on Christmas Eve and Christmas, so you can even pick up all your
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presents on the way to your holiday gathering — say Celine Dion's Belong perfume for Mom, a Jim Beam barbecue set for Dad and a remote-control car for Junior. Buy a Santa hat for yourself while you're there so you can make a grand entrance. Ho, ho, ho!
• Tickets. Head to www.ticketmaster.com and find a good show, hand over your credit card digits and print out your tickets from your computer. Stick 'em inside a nice Christmas card (or not) and — voilà! — an instant present, perfectly suited for your loved one's taste, whether it's the San Francisco Symphony playing Tchaikovsky (Jan. 16 at the Flint Center in Cupertino, $40-$67), Smokey Robinson crooning "Being With You" (Jan. 24 at the Paramount Theatre in Oakland, $39.50-$85), or Disturbed belting out "Down With the Sickness" (Jan. 27 at San Jose State University Event Center, $37.50).
• A mix CD. Note: Burning a copy of "Tha Carter III" is not acceptable. Nor is recycling a mix you made for an ex-girlfriend two years ago. You must assemble a disc from the heart, specifically for this recipient at this time. Then add punny title, cool packaging and heartfelt sentiments to taste, depending on your time available and level of artsiness. Shouldn't take more than a few hours, depending on how obsessive you are.
Of course, this gift requires having a computer with a burner and some blank CDs (available at Walgreens, natch). But even if you've got no tools, can't make it out of the house and don't want to spend any money, you've still got one good option left ...
• Poetry. Some people say the gift of yourself is worth more than some material gift like, for instance, an iPhone 3G or "Rock Band 2." Here's a good way to put that preposterous theory to the ultimate test: Write a poem. If you start on Christmas Eve, you've got enough time to crank out a villanelle or a halfway-decent sonnet. But even if you wait till Christmas morning, you can still bust out a haiku in a matter of minutes.
Tip: Write neatly and use decent paper. Even Masaoka Shiki himself wouldn't impress anybody if he sloppily scrawled his 17 syllables on the back of a Comcast bill.
Last word: Don't toss out those Sunday comics; they make a dandy substitute for wrapping paper! Merry Christmas, everyone!

Source:
http://www.mercurynews.com/letters/ci_11273798
Thanks for this great article!

Next on councilman's agenda: active retirement

By J. Harry Jones

UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

December 7, 2008

POWAY – Last week, Bob Emery, one final time, cast a series of votes in his role as a member of the Poway City Council.

“It will be a change to go from somebody with status to somebody with none,” Emery said later.

But Emery, 67, a former middle school teacher who has been a member of the City Council since Poway incorporated in 1980, will always have status in the city he has had so much influence in shaping.

He moved with his wife, Suzanne, to Poway in 1967, and was a member of a county planning advisory committee beginning in 1970. Its members were sick and tired of county planners ignoring their suggestions and allowing Poway to develop haphazardly.

In 1980, Emery and many other community leaders backed a ballot measure calling for Poway to incorporate as a city. Twenty-seven people ran for positions on a new City Council that wouldn't exist if the measure failed.

It passed 52 percent to 48 percent, and Emery was the top vote-getter for one of five seats. And there he stayed, easily winning re-election again and again.

At the council's meeting Tuesday night, Emery will step down from his seat in the council chambers, which were named after him in a vote last month. He chose not to seek an eighth term.

It will be the end of 38 years of continual service to Poway, although Emery still will be a volunteer reserve park ranger, a program he brought before the council in 1992.

Jan Goldsmith, elected San Diego City Attorney on Nov. 4, was mayor of Poway for a short time in the early 1990s.

“He is indeed Mr. Poway. He's always put Poway first,” Goldsmith said of Emery. “I love the guy.”

The original council had a vision for the city. Three years after incorporation, it developed a general plan that called for keeping “The City in the Country,” as Poway calls itself, as rural as possible while dealing with inevitable growth.

Today that plan is intact.

“If you were in the space shuttle looking down on Poway, you would see that the plan adopted in 1983 is almost identical to what the city looks like now,” said Jim Bowersox, Poway's first city manager, who retired in 2005. “Bob has steadfastly defended that plan.”

Poway has long enjoyed a reputation in the county as a well-run and financially healthy city. Emery and Bowersox are two of the reasons why.

“There are only two things that have happened that I wouldn't have expected on the day we incorporated,” Emery said in a recent interview.

The first was the creation of the Poway Business Park in the southern part of the city, which has brought 20,000 jobs and about $3 million annually in sales taxes to the city. The park was conceived a few years after incorporation, “and was the smartest thing we ever did,” Emery said.

The second, Emery said, is the way northern Poway has developed. The city always envisioned large lots where people could build bigger houses and keep horses. But north Poway became a wealthy area filled with “incredible mansions,” many built behind gates, Emery said.

“None of us saw that coming,” he said.

There were a few mistakes made early on, Emery said.

Shortly after incorporation, the council, thinking it had all its legal i's dotted and t's crossed, ordered five large billboards removed from Poway Road.

That led to a lawsuit, during which a judge threatened to jail the entire council.

“They worked it out, and the billboards are gone and Poway Road is much better for it,” Emery said.

The other was a “rather Draconian” council decision in the early 1980s restricting development in various floodplain areas. The ordinance had the effect of denying many landowners the ability to build on their property, and residents made it clear they were unhappy.

“We turned that one around real quick,” Emery said.

Emery is proud of the council he has served on. He takes pleasure in the fact that unlike the factionalism and infighting evident in some other cities – with council majorities that seize power and silence minority members – Poway has largely avoided that.

“It hasn't always been a bed of roses, but when the crunch came everybody has always voted for what is best for Poway,” he said. “Everybody I've served with on the council has had the best interest of the city at heart.”

Bowersox first met Emery in 1981 during his second interview for the city manager's job. It was Emery who called Bowersox to let him know he had been hired.

“How do you summarize a guy whose been around for 28 years?” Bowersox said. “I have a lot of respect for him and consider him not just to be a former boss but a good friend, too.”

Don Higginson, who has served on the council since 1986 and will now become its longest-serving member, said that if you were to cut Emery's vein open, “little P's for Poway would come out.”

“Bob is as consistent as you can get,” Higginson said. “You know how Bob philosophically feels about anything and everything and he never varies. He's big on personal property rights and zoning and planning.

“He's been a great comrade up there.”

Source from:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/northcounty/20081207-9999-1mc7emery.html