But me, I only had eyes for Nerf.

That’s Nerf as in the Nerf Armor, an iPod touch case coated with the same spongy polyurethane material used in countless footballs, darts, and other unbreakable toys from my childhood. The Nerf Armor fits the fourth-generation iPod touch that Apple first released in 2010 and continues to sell now.

The Nerf Armor is a two-piece case that snaps into place around the iPod touch. Plastic tabs let you operate the volume and power buttons. Openings in the case let you access both the dock connector port and the rear-facing camera. There’s no protection for the iPod touch’s face, but a ridge around the front of the case keeps the screen from coming into direct contact with any surfaces, should you ever set your iPod touch facedown on a tabletop.

Gripping the Nerf material that surrounds the back and sides of the Nerf Armor makes me feel like I’m holding my old Nerf football from back in the day. I just have to remember not to spike my iPod touch and break into a Billy “White Shoes” Johnson-style celebration the way I used to with the Nerf football.

The Nerf Armor cases costs $35 and comes in blue, green, or orange colors.

Expo Notes: For iPod touch protection, turn to Nerf

The Scream outfit is the scary costume for everyone. there is something about this costume that attracts people of all ages; the kids want it as a play tool; the teenagers use it for peer bonding; and the parents wear it to build rapport with their children. The Scream outfit has that agonized ghost face that attracts onlookers and the hooded robe suggests that it must be from another world. Perhaps this is the source of the attraction. The design of the mask is unique and distinctively stands out when seen in costume parties.

The Scream outfit first made its way into the costumes market in 1991 and for two decades has captured the imagination of children all over the country. in every costume party, the Scream costume is always a favorite of the celebrators. The costume was used in the movie Scream that was released in 1996 and it was from that time that the outfit became recognizable as a costume and became one of the most popular outfits for different parties. Grown-ups will not have any problem using the outfit since there are always the Scream outfit for adults, which is available in all sizes. there are also Scream outfit for kids which novelties since the outfit is usually identified with teenagers.

Market analysts are intrigued by the popularity of the Scream costume and have proposed many theories about how it attracts the public. many agree that that the four versions of the Scream movies are some of the reasons for the costume’s popularity. but if one asked teenagers why they like using the Scream outfit, their answers are the same – mainly, that it is fun and can be used by everyone. Fun is the key for the attractiveness of the outfit. in the Scream movies where the teenage serial killer used the costume to hide his identity, the audience is terrified because it is hard to predict who the user of the Scream costume is or to point out who the next victim will be. The unpredictability in the movie plot thrilled the audiences of the four Scream movies released so far since 1996.

When the Scream outfit is used as a costume during Holloweens, the same thrilling effect felt in the movies is experienced once more in real life but the outcome is already predictable since every guest knows the identity of the perpetrator behind the mask.

The Scream Outfit – The Costume That Means Fun for Everyone

Ben Flajnik may have been smitten with Courtney Robertson’s heartfelt faux wedding vows on Monday’s episode of The Bachelor, but little did he know, those words had been spoken previously…by none other than Sex and the City’s Sarah Jessica Parker!

RECAP: What you missed on Monday’s episode

Taking Flajnik, 29, home to meet her parents in Scottsdale, Ariz., during a hometown date, the 28-year-old model set up an elaborate mock wedding ceremony at a local park and coaxed Flajnik into writing his own vows.

Making a big show of finally telling Flajnik she loved him on The Bachelor, Robertson failed to note that her vows came courtesy of Sex and the City writer/director Michael Patrick King.

VIDEO: Courtney and Ben plan their faux ceremony

“I’m looking for love. Real, passionate, can’t-live-without-each-other-love. When I look at you from across the room, I know that the key to your happiness is the key to mine. Ben, I want to love you and treat you right. Every day and every night,” Robertson told him during their “rustic” outdoor ceremony, complete with a stand-in officiant. “I hope you know I’m 100% ready for marriage and so happy I found you. I want you to know that I’m in love with you.”

PHOTOS: Reality TV’s most shocking love stories

The first line of Robinson’s heartfelt monologue should sound familiar to the SATC diehards, who will recognize it from a scene where Carrie Bradshaw (Parker) broke up with then-boyfriend Alexander in the episode titled “An American Girl in Paris (Part Deux).”

“I am someone who is looking for love. Real love. Ridiculous, inconvenient, consuming, can’t-live-without-each-other-love,” the actress told Alexander (Mikhail Baryshnikov) in the heartfelt scene that took place in a Paris hotel room.

VIDEO: Bachelorettes warn Ben to “tread lightly” around Courtney

Duping Flajnik with her faux vows, Robertson — who also went braless on a date and begged him to skinny dip with her in Panama — is willing to do whatever it takes to be the last woman standing on The Bachelor.

VIDEO: Courtney flashes her boobs in Panama

“Courtney is like a black widow,” a source tells Us Weekly. “She enjoys getting the prize and moving on. she doesn’t care how bad she looks.”

The Bachelor’s Courtney Steals Sex and the City Lines for Faux Wedding Vows

The library’s not just for borrowing books – this communitygathering-place also offers activities that both educate andentertain. Here’s a look at what’s coming up at the FriendswoodLibrary.

Help with e-books and audio books

Did you receive an eBook reader, tablet, 3G or 4G phone,computer, MP3 player, Apple iPod, or Apple iPad for Christmas? Comelearn how to checkout and download using OverDrive to access freeeBooks and audiobooks on these devices. Bring your device.Overdrive is a licensed product that provides patrons free accessto eBooks, audiobooks, and videos through the Friendswood PublicLibrary.

Sessions are available at the following times:

Monday, February 27 at 5:00pm

Tuesday, March 20 at 7:30pm

Did you receive an eBook reader, tablet, 3G or 4G phone,computer, MP3 player, Apple iPod, or Apple iPad for Christmas? Comelearn how to checkout and download using OverDrive to access freeeBooks and audiobooks on these devices. Bring your device.Overdrive is a licensed product that provides patrons free accessto eBooks, audiobooks, and videos through the Friendswood PublicLibrary.

Author Visit

Wednesday, February 22nd at 6pm

Author Visit – Mark Long is a video game designer and producerliving in Seattle. His graphic novel The Silence of Our Friends isbased on his childhood experiences with the civil rights movementin suburban Houston, Texas.

Computer class

Thursday, February 23rd at 6:30pm

Computer Class: Beginner’s Microsoft Excel

Workshop

Monday, February 27th at 6:30pm

Early Literacy Workshop – Talkers: Two and three Years. Free forparents, teachers & caregivers. each person attending willreceive a certificate for 2 clock hours for professionaldevelopment. see or call Children’s desk to register.281-482-7135.

Readings

Wednesday, February 29th at 7pm

Personal Essay Readings with featured essayists Barbara Carle,Kay Cox, Diana Dettling Buckley, and Nanci Engle. Visit from theReference Desk found from the Friendswood Public Library’s websiteto read essays by these authors.

Friendswood Public Library is located at 416 S. FriendswoodDrive. for more information, call 281-472-7135.

Check out these upcoming programs for adults at Friendswood Public Library – Your Houston News: News

When Apple released their new iPhone 4 a few months back, it was as though a temporary insanity descended on the country, with people sleeping outside stores to get their hands on the latest offering from the tech giant. Apple has a cult-like following and everyone from computer support guys to trendy musicians are willing to throw up their hands and say ‘I’m a Mac’. but what is so special about the iPhone 4 anyway? why all the fuss? Is the hyped-up launch of new iPhones nothing more than a clever marketing strategy or is there something about the new model that means we simply have to have it? Here are a few features the iPhone 4 has that its predecessors did not. decide for yourself whether you think it’s worth the buzz.

Retina Display

For all those budding photographers out there or people who are looking for a very sharp focus in their screen, the iPhone 4’s ‘retina display’ might grab your interest. Basically, the screen of the Phone 4 is the same size as other models, but has 4 times as many mega-pixels squeezed into the area. This means far sharper images, brighter colours and better photo display. Basically, everything you do will be clearer. Steve Jobs has said there’s a magic number around 300dpi, if you hold something about 10-12 inches away from your eye, it’s the limit of the human retina to distinguish pixels which sounds very impressive–and is–but basically is a sophisticated and marketing-y way of saying the screen and visibility are better.

Better Camera

In the age of instant happy-snaps and uploading, a good-quality phone camera is becoming an increasingly important feature to look for. the camera on the iPhone 3 experienced some poor reviews in consumer forums, especially in relation to the cost of the phone. the camera on the iPhone 4 is 5 mega-pixels and has the capacity to record movies in HD. In addition to this the iPhone 4 has video calling (on wifi) which is pretty cool in and of itself.

Sleeker, Slimmer Design

In this thin-obsessed world we live in it seems that even phones can be forced to lose weight which is what Apple have done with their new model. the iPhone 4 has a slimline style to make a supermodel jealous and is lighter than before. the design has caused some reception issues which is a flaw that people are talking about, so if you haven’t the time for computer repairs or reception issues when it comes to your technology this could count as a tick against it.

Whether you love or hate the iPhone 4, there’s no denying that Apple certainly put a lot of work into developing the new model, and perhaps even more work into telling everyone about it. the best thing to do if you’re considering upgrading is to list all the qualities you want in a phone as well as all the things you’d like to see improved on, and see if the iPhone 4 matches up.

The iPhone 4 – What’s So Great About It?

A significant date in the secular world will converge with a significant date in the religious world to give me significant pause. April 15th stamps the due date for tax collection and March 1 will mark–literally–those of us who honor Ash Wednesday.

As my husband and I completed our tax returns over the winter break (believe me, it was not because we couldn’t think of anything funner to do.), we were forced to examine–in the absolute light of day–where exactly, the resources with which we’ve been entrusted went. The process is not a particularly appealing one to us creative types; pulling out receipts and lining up invoices in perfect little piles pales in comparison to putting oil to canvas, needle to linen or voice to song.

My left-brained hubby, by contrast, gets a veritable kick out of creating Excel sheets, affixing percentages to line items and developing beautifully-colored pie charts in an effort to show me visually where every single penny is spent.

Amazing that these two types of people can happily co-exist, huh?

But as it usually turns out, the experience of examining one’s stewardship over financial resources provides valuable clues into the very essence of how well–or not–one’s life is lived. When one can clearly see the percentage going to charity versus entertainment, for example, or for increased lifestyle, one grasps a fuller understanding of where priorities really lie.

Combined with the significant upcoming event of Ash Wednesday, where Christians around the world grapple with the mystery of sacrifice, I have been forced to squarely deal with the stuff of our family. With how much we earn and how much we spend, versus how much we save and donate to those facing less prosperous life circumstances. Throw on top of that this week’s Rocket Mom Society meeting in my home where our topic will be Getting Your Act Together: The Stuff of Your Life and the recipe cooking up in my kitchen casts a heavily scented aroma of introspection.

So how do you grapple with stewardship and sacrifice?

I have come to this understanding through years working in investments, as a former stockbroker married to a former stockbroker, as well as teaching and counsel from people in my life whose input I value. you may profoundly disagree with my perspective, and of course I respect the fact that yours may be quite different from mine. but as I look at the stuff of life: how to acquire it, manage it, share it and leave it, I grapple with a few basic principles. Sensing the timeliness of these matters, given that March 1 and April 15 are just around the corner, perhaps you are grappling with them, too.

1) we do not own resources; we merely exert stewardship over them.

We did not create the beauty of the universe; our Creator did. He can do with it whatever He chooses. He has entrusted our universe to us in the best hopes that we will take care of it wisely. Our financial resources are not really ours, either. they have been provided to us through God’s grace with the hopes that we will use them wisely, too. so I don’t think of the things in my life as my stuff. It’s certainly stuff–and it may reside in my home–but I merely exert stewardship over it while I’m on this earth. I will leave it exactly as I entered it: utterly naked.

2) Resources come and resources go; we need to be content with both much and with little.

My family has had much at some points in our lives and we have had little at other times. I like it better when we have more. I’m human. but there are always lessons to be learned in leanness. and our family has made a concerted decision to become leaner. it will have its own rewards.

3) at some point, stuff simply becomes fluff.

It’s no longer a needed pair of shoes; it’s a luxury pair added to the other luxury pairs lining our closet floors. How much do we really need, after all? I read that tennis great Serena Williams owns at least fifty tank tops. she has an affinity for them. obviously. I admit to having an affinity for certain things, too. and I have made a conscious decision to stop my affinity. How much do I really need? at some point, we need to rationalize a freeze to spending. To freeze lifestyle. Your freezing point may have a different degree than mine. but it’s a question worth asking.

4) Sacrifice always feels better than self-indulgence.

While indulging in occasional whims is gratifying and permissible on almost all counts, it never provides long-lasting satisfaction. Sacrifice, on the other hand, requires personal denial, and leaves one feeling like a positive legacy has been cast as a direct result. I highly encourage everyone to sacrifice one tenth of their resources to those less fortunate, whether you believe you are able to do so or not. Begin slowly, if you must. and work up to any amount over and above a ten percent benchmark. When we sought counsel from one of our ministers at to a before- tax or after-tax ten percent, his response was simple: do you want before-tax or after-tax blessings?

5) Give thanks for each and every blessing and count them often.

Take nothing for granted. not your health nor your strength nor your relationships nor your home nor your job nor your leisure. it all comes from above and needs to be acknowledged as such.

As you sift and sort through the receipts and bank statements that in many ways define how you are living your life, I hope that you take some time to think of how you can become an even better steward.and of ways in which personal sacrifice will lead you to a more saint-like existence.

Stuff really does become fluff when too much stuff occupies your everyday spaces, your everyday finances and your everyday thoughts. That’s when it’s truly Fluff the Magic Dragon. Don’t let its fire breathe too heavily down your neck.

Fluff the Magic Dragon

Nothing stirs the heart of a patriot in the United States like fireworks accompanied by a rousing rendition of God Bless America. The top songs of America are some of the most easily recognized pieces of music in the Western world. America the Beautiful, The Battle Hymn of the Republic, The Star Spangled Banner and God Bless America are well-known and well-loved songs. they all have histories as rich and colorful as the nation they praise.

The words for America the Beautiful were written in 1893 by an English professor from Wellesley College named Katharine Lee Bates on a train trip to Colorado Springs. she was inspired by the sights outside her window, and she put her thoughts down on paper. It was published two years later in commemoration of the Fourth of July. The poem caught the public’s attention, and the words were adapted to a tune from composer Samuel A. Ward, which was written in 1882. The song attained great popularity during the first two decades of the 20th century.

The tune of The Battle Hymn of the Republic was written in approximately 1855 by William Steffe. The lyrics were different, and it was used as a campfire spiritual. an early version of the lyrics were written by Thomas Bishop around 1860, and they were used as a walking song entitled John Brown’s Body by the Massachusetts Infantry during the Civil War. Julia Ward Howe heard the song and changed the lyrics to the ones widely known today. It was originally published in The Atlantic Monthly in February 1862.

God Bless America was written by Irving Berlin in 1918. Berlin revised the song in 1938, and it then became a signature song of vocalist Kate Smith. He revived the song as World War II loomed on the horizon in the hopes of building national morale. Berlin wrote the song while serving in the U.S. Army at Camp Upton in new York. The song inspired Woody Guthrie to write another classic American anthem, This Land is Your Land, in 1940.

Many other patriotic songs are popular, but The Star Spangled Banner is the official national anthem of the United States of America. The lyrics were written in 1814 by Francis Scott Key as Royal Navy ships bombed Fort McHenry in Maryland during the War of 1812. The tune comes from a popular British drinking song called To Anacreon in Heaven. It was composed by John Stafford Smith for the Anacreontic Society, a popular social club in London. It was recognized for official use by the Navy in 1889. Hail, Columbia and various other songs previously served as the national anthem over the years, but they all paled in comparison to this moving tune. The song was officially designated as the national anthem by a congressional resolution on March 3, 1931, which was then signed by President Herbert Hoover. It is often sung at the beginning of sporting event, holidays and official state events.

Patriotic songs are as much a part of the rich tapestry of America as apple pie and baseball games. In fact, they often go hand in hand.

America’s Patriotic Songbook – Songs For the 4th of July

At the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, where the Oscars will be staged next Sunday, every entrance is decked with a sign that warns unauthorized people to keep out.

This year, the closed doors are not just a security measure. They’re a strategy.

Breaking with recent precedent, Brian Grazer and Don Mischer, who are producing the Academy Awards ceremony for broadcast on ABC, have been assembling their show without engaging in a public conversation about it. They have been conspicuously silent on its themes, challenges and the presumably fresh approach they will take to the annual display of movie glamour and gratitude.

Weeks ago a spokesman for Grazer explained that the producers’ idea was to preserve a bit of mystery: to know what’s in the show, you’ll have to watch it.

Billy Crystal, the evening’s host, will be featured in just one preshow interview, with Entertainment Weekly, according to his publicist

Their silence is in line with a belief that is deeply ingrained in traditional movie types: Entertainment is best manufactured behind studio walls. "never let them see you sweat," runs the maxim.

But reticence carries risk in an era when social media, the amateur camera and the brazen exhibitionism of reality television have made the sweat of process an expected part of the show. last year the Oscar ceremony, which was produced by Mischer and Bruce Cohen, made a bow in that direction with a series of digital ploys and backstage encounters, some of which worked better than others.

A "You’re Invited" fan participation campaign, devised in part by the marketing company Omelet, included an Oscar iPhone app and offered a multiscreen experience by streaming preshow interviews from the "green room." The mothers of nominees — "mominees," they were called — were even invited to chime in via Twitter.

With the very senior Christopher Plummer and Max von Sydow in the running for acting awards this year, a "mominees" approach would face limits. But the Oscars app is back, and a digital "Celebrate the Movies" exhibition asks fans to share their impressions of movies such as "The Exorcist" and "Apollo 13."

Some in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences had pressed for even deeper change after last year’s show drew soft ratings and took a critical drubbing. One line of thinking, according to people who were briefed on the discussions but insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to speak for the academy, proposed throwing the Oscar process wide open to a public that has been trained by "American Idol," TMZ and an endless feed of Internet moments to expect some grit with their glamour.

Among the suggestions: nominees using smartphones to photograph themselves in the run-up to the show. or bringing Oscar followers into the backstage hubbub in the press room, or to off-site parties like the annual Vanity Fair extravaganza, where stars who didn’t make the cut comment on those who did.

Some such elements could surface among the surprises still being promised for this year’s show.

But stuff happened. The academy first hired Brett Ratner, a bad-boy film director, to help produce. he then resigned in a storm over crude public comments. Eddie Murphy, his planned host, quickly followed him out the door. By the time Grazer, a veteran film producer, and Crystal, in his ninth turn as host, joined in November, the Oscar enterprise was looking for safe havens.

Mostly, though, Grazer appears to be digging for roots. The Kodak, he has said in one of his few public comments, will be decorated to resemble "a timeless movie theater."

The idea, Grazer explained at the recent Oscar nominees luncheon in Beverly Hills, is to demonstrate the power of a theater to magnify entertainment at a time when media such as video on demand are quickly pushing us toward smaller, more private viewings of film.

The decor will certainly match the nostalgic tone of three best-picture nominees — "The Artist," "Hugo" and "Midnight in Paris" — which are tributes to the art and literature of the early 20th century, when movies were just coming into their own.

Whether it also suits the mood of a contemporary audience that likes to peek behind the curtain remains to be seen.

Treat Your Sweetheart!

If you’ve been in New Orleans for carnival season, or if you’re lucky enough to taste a cake that has arrived in the mail from there, there’s a pretty good chance that yes, there is a plastic baby that comes with your cake.

The baby, meant to represent Jesus, has become a fixture of the king cake (galette des rois in France or rosca de reyes as it’s called in Mexico). It’s a frosted yeast dough cake that New Orleans bakeries churn out between King’s Day, January 6th, and fat Tuesday, the last day of indulgence before Lent.

But just how that baby got in the cake is a strange tale – featuring a mysterious traveling salesman — that’s worthy of the best Mardi Gras lore and ritual.

First, let’s talk a little king cake history. The custom of eating a wreath-shaped or oval cake on January 6th to honor the Three Kings goes back to Old World Europe, most notably France and Spain. Then the French and the Spanish brought the cake to the Americas, where it seems to have been most heartily adopted in New Orleans, Mexico and some other parts of Latin America.

Early king cakes were simple, dusted with a bit of sugar, and eaten at home with the family.

But historians say that sometime in the late 19th century, the Twelfth Night Revelers, a New Orleans social group that hosted the first Mardi Gras ball of the season, began hiding a bean (which was later replaced by a pecan or a jeweled ring) inside the cake. according to the Times-Picayune Creole Cookbook, the lucky finder of the treasure would then be crowned king or queen of the ball.

Poppy Tooker, a preeminent New Orleans food expert and host of Louisiana Eats on NPR member station WWNO, tells The Salt that the big king cake revolution came along in the 1940s, thanks to a baker named Donald Entringer and a chance encounter.

His bakery, McKenzie’s, was one of biggest and most famous commercial bakeries in 20th century New Orleans. By1950, king cake had become such a fixture of the Mardi Gras season, served over and over between King Day and fat Tuesday, that people increasingly turned to commercial bakeries like McKenzie’s to source their cakes.

One day Entringer was approached by a traveling salesman who had with him little porcelain dolls from France of a size that would fit in a dollhouse. “He had a big overrun on them, and so he said to Entringer, ‘how about using these in a king cake,” says Tooker. “That sort of entranced them, and he began baking these porcelain dolls into the king cake.”

Entringer got permission from the health department to bake the dolls into the cakes, the Times Picayune reports.

After a while, Tooker says, Entringer ran out of porcelain dolls. So he went down to the French Quarter, where he “found the little plastic king cake baby that we know today from some importer. And so little plastic babies became the absolute positive rule.”

The babies are ubiquitous now, and come in a rainbow of colors, from somewhat realistic pink and brown, to green, purple and gold (the colors of the season).

But recently bakeries have stopped baking the baby into the cake, leaving it in the center of the oval for revelers to insert discreetly before serving. (Apparently, the idea of baking a piece of plastic in food doesn’t go over as well anymore.)

Indeed, the cake we ordered in the mail from Sucre bakery – called the 21st century king cake because of its untraditional laquered silvery frosting — last week had a gold plastic baby rattling around inside the package for the trip from New Orleans to Washington.

Tooker sees this is as a small tragedy. “We’ve become such a litigious society that nobody will put the baby inside the king cake anymore. That’s really kind of sad.”

Yet in an intriguing reversal, one New Orleans woman has revived the tradition of using a porcelain baby. Alberta Lewis sells porcelain figurines to Haydel’s bakery, and comes up with a new design every year. And we’re told by a friend in Mexico City, where plastic babies have remained a fixture of the rosca de reyes tradition, that porcelain is making a comeback there too.

King cakes are so symbolic of Louisiana cuisine that they can be found as far away as Berlin, as this NPR story reports.

Whatever form the baby takes shouldn’t diminish from the festivities that king cake helps mark — the sugary crown for a sweet season.

Is That A Plastic Baby Jesus In My Cake? : The Salt : NPR

Team heads to Daytona this week with defending champ of Shootout Published: Monday, February 13, 2012 at 4:53 a.m. last Modified: Monday, February 13, 2012 at 4:53 a.m.

The guys at Phoenix Racing in Spartanburg, S.C., are giddy heading into Speedweeks at Daytona.

It’s hard to blame them, seeing as how their new driver, Kurt Busch, is the defending champion of the Bud Shootout.

“We’re excited to have such a high-profile driver like Kurt. We leave Wednesday for Daytona, and we’re ready to roll,” Steve Barkdoll, general manager of Phoenix Racing, said on Friday night.

Busch, who won the Cup title in 2004, parted ways with Penske Racing at the end of the 2011 season after he got in several arguments with his crewmembers and also got in a much-publicized altercation with an ESPN reporter.

Just four days before Christmas, he signed a one-year deal with Phoenix Racing, and so far, things have been running smoothly.

“I know we’re really just in the honeymoon stage of this deal, but we are seeing a different Kurt Busch than what the media has been representing,” Barkdoll said. “Since Jan. 2, I can say that he’s spent at least 14 days in our shop, and that’s a lot more than any other driver we’ve ever had. We see that he wants to make an impact on us, and we see that he genuinely cares for what goes on in the shop.”

With the signing of Busch, the team had to part ways with driver Landon Cassill, but it was a harmonious split.

“Landon has secured a ride for next year with the no. 83 team, and we were all so happy to see that. He’s got a ride, and he’s also locked in for the Daytona 500,” Barkdoll said. “Landon helped us get prepared for this year by running a full season with us last year. being a fellow Iowa native, I wanted to make sure Landon was taken care of when he left us, and he is.”

A rookie last year, Cassill’s best finish was 12th at Michigan in 32 races.

The mood at the garage has shifted from grooming a newcomer to welcoming a proven winner. in the past eight seasons, Busch has qualified for six Chases and finished in the top 10 in points three times, and in his career, he’s won 24 races. The last two seasons, he’s finished in 11th in the points standings.

Now instead of wanting just to have a decent finish at each race, the Phoenix Racing men have their sights set much higher.

“Kurt’s record speaks for itself. He’s a former Cup champion. We all know we’re going to have to step up our game,” Barkdoll said. “Our goal is to make the Chase this year, and we’ve got the driver to do it. If we can get five top fives and 10 top 10s, we’ll make it. We think we’ve got a very good shot at it.”

It all begins in less than two weeks on Feb. 26 with the Daytona 500, a race Busch has yet to win. last year he started third and finished fifth, which was his fifth top-five finish at the 500. He’s also finished runner-up at the 500 three times in 2003, 2005 and 2008.

“He won the Bud Shootout and also the Gatorade Duel race last year, so he knows how to get around that track. after the Shootout on (Feb. 18), we will qualify for the 500 on that Sunday and just see how everything goes from there. We’ve also proven that we can run well on superpeedways, so we’re looking forward to it,” Barkdoll said.

Phoenix Racing excited to have Busch behind wheel

Another day and another news regarding the iPhone 4 unlock 4.11.08, but this time we have some good news for those waiting for the unlock. Applenberry has updated us that they are in the final testing stage for unlocking the iPhone on iOS 5. this has got to be a great news as it shows that they “might” have finally developed the new Gevey SIM to unlock the infamous 4.11.08.

Gevey SIM which has been at the forefront for unlocking iPhone 4 baseband 4.11.08 seems to be taking shape as today Appleneberry mentioned that they are in the testing stages for unlocking 4.11.08, but like previous other updates there has been no mention of a release date.

updates..updates…I thought I made it clear, but I guess there are some miscommunications. Good news, we are in the testing stage.bad news, I don’t want to promise anyone and get flame. It is very difficult to not offend anyone.

The iPhone 4 unlocking saga continues to remain with many so-called developers claiming to have unlocked the iPhone 4 on iOS 5, but as it has turned out that non so far can actually unlock 4.11.08 baseband.

A promising recent guide shown by Hamzah Akram was proven fake by iPhone dev team leader Musclenerd and baseband hacker Sherif Hashim. So far there is no word regarding the software baseband unlock Ultrasnow which is to developed by iPhone dev team and Sherif Hashim, so people are waiting for Gevey to release their SIM for unlocking iPhone 4.

As Gevey is in the final testing stage, we can expect it to be released soon for unlocking iPhone but Appleneberry has mentioned they are still not providing a release date for the new Gevey SIM.

Like always Maypalo will be at the forefront on providing you the latest news regarding unlocking iPhone 4 baseband 4.11.08. So make sure you stay connected to us!

Stay tuned at Maypalo and follow us on Twitter or join our Facebook Fanpage to keep yourself updated on all the latest News!

Gevey SIM To Unlock iPhone 4 BB 4.11.08 In Final Testing Stage!

February 16, 2012 · 3:23 PM

Sports, Hollywood VIPs arrive for Muhammad Ali 70th birthday salute

by Robin Leach

Photo: Las Vegas News Bureau

Three days of rehearsals start today after three days of TV equipment and stage sets load-in for the most ambitious star-studded gala tribute ever planned for Las Vegas, and even Fighter of the Decade Manny Pacquiao — said to be on the verge of retirement — is flying in from the Philippines to attend the 70th birthday salute to Muhammad Ali at MGM Grand Garden Arena on Saturday night.

Las Vegas fight promoter Bob Arum, who used to promote Ali, is promising that George Foreman, Ken Norton, Leon Spinks, Chuck Wepner, George Chuvalo, Sugar Ray Leonard, Tommy “Hitman” Hearns and Roberto Duran also will attend. They’ll be staged under the spotlight in two boxing rings facing Ali. Rumors are rampant that Evander Holyfield, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, Earnie Shavers, Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather Jr. might also join the festivities.

Manny, interestingly, sits Friday here for his defamation deposition against Mayweather. He’s using the U.S. trip for a three-city promo tour for his next welterweight title fight June 9 against Timothy Bradley and meets with new new York Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin in new York next Wednesday. Manny says he will start four weeks of training in Manila and then move to Freddie Roach’s gym in L.a. until fight week when it’s rumored that he will announce his retirement after that bout.

Here’s our own Vegas DeLuxe salute to Ali through the years — thanks to our photographer friends at Las Vegas News Bureau for compiling this photo gallery of The Greatest’s local appearances. Check out additional Ali coverage in the Kats Report in the Las Vegas Sun by Senior Editor John Katsilometes.

Additionally, here’s the latest Royal Robin Rundown of superstars appearing at the Keep Memory Alive Gala for our Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health. Larry King will officially welcome the gala guests, with Quincy Jones expected to start the introduction to Ali’s wife, Lonnie.

After a four-course gourmet dinner from chefs Wolfgang Puck, Michael Mina, Scott Conant and Tom Colicchio, my voice will boom out for the live auction, with David Copperfield, Andre Agassi and Steffi Graff, Cee Lo Green, Lenny Kravitz, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Brad Garrett, Steve Schirripa, Nobu Matsuhisa and Eric Ripert helping hammer the gavel onstage. David Beckham, Jim Brown, Randy Couture, Chazz Palminteri and James Gandolfini also are expected.

Samuel L. Jackson will then kick off a near two-hour lineup of entertainment, starting with Kravitz and continuing with “The Hangover” star Ken Jeong, Snoop Dogg, Kelly Rowland, Sammy Hagar, Joe Perry and Raphael Saadiq. Ali’s daughters Rashida and Laila will introduce John Legend, which will lead into Common, Chris Cornell, Terence Howard, LL Cool J and Cee Lo Green. Sugar Ray Leonard will introduce Slash and Haley Reinhart before will Smith’s video salute to Ali.

The night will end with Diddy joining the entire group onstage for Stevie Wonder’s “Keep our love Alive.” Ali will be onstage as a birthday cake is wheeled in for the group to sing the Martin Luther King Jr. version of “Happy Birthday.” The five-hour festivities will end with Kelly Rowland, Dave Koz and Stevie performing the late Whitney Houston’s “The Greatest love of All” to Ali as confetti guns explode over the stage and the 1,800 dinner guests.

Photo: Las Vegas News Bureau

Keep Memory Alive Chairman Larry Ruvo, who gave Ali a nearly three-hour tour of the downtown brain center in November, said: “Having met and been with him through the years, I felt no one single individual could bring attention to our program more than Ali. This year’s Power of love Gala will bring attention and funds to the important work being done on a whole new scale. It’s a great opportunity to shed light on the fight to knock out neurocognitive disorders.”

An inspirational video of Muhammad and Loni discussing their joint efforts to research and cure Parkinson’s gets its world premiere at the gala. Kravitz also will host an additional Keep Memory Alive fundraising performance at MGM Grand on Sunday with Lil Jon, Kid Cudi, Slash, Cee Lo and Raphael.

Larry added: “I lost my father Lou Ruvo to Alzheimer’s Disease 18 years ago. Two years after Dad’s passing, my wife Camille and I hosted an intimate memorial dinner, which turned into our first Keep Memory Alive fundraiser — just 100 people. Every person who has attended our fundraisers ever since over the past 16 years is responsible for Keep Memory Alive’s many successes.

“During the first 10 years of Keep Memory Alive, all donations collected were allocated to research and to funding programs. in 2004, our board of directors decided Keep Memory Alive could offer to the medical community not a better medical model, but a completely different model. we broke the paradigm for early diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases, created an excellent care-giving program and refocused on ever-important research clinical trials.

Photo: Las Vegas News Bureau

“So in less than eight years, and it could only happen that fast in Las Vegas, we collaborated with Frank Gehry to create the most iconic Center for Brain Health in the world. we partnered with the Cleveland Clinic and brought together the greatest neurological medical minds under the Cleveland Clinic umbrella.

“We made enormous strides with our research programs to include more than 20 clinical trial programs and were highlighted in 212 countries around the world with Larry King’s TV special ‘Unthinkable: the Alzheimer’s Epidemic.’ our grandparents protected us from the scourge of polio, and it is now our responsibility to rid the world of the devastation and grief caused by brain diseases for our children and grandchildren.

“Muhammad Ali is The Greatest of all time and has changed the world both in and out of the ring. our gala will let many experience that history and his legacy. I remain relentless in my mission to find a cure for these horrific brain diseases.”

Vegas DeLuxe will have full photo, video and report coverage here Sunday, plus I will tweet from backstage and in the TV truck (@robin_leach) where I also will be handling announcing duties. The two-hour special from Saturday night’s gala will be broadcast on ABC and ESPN2 on Feb. 25.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter at Twitter.com/Robin_Leach.

Follow Vegas DeLuxe on Twitter at Twitter.com/vegasdeluxe.

Follow VDLX Editor Don Chareunsy on Twitter at Twitter.com/VDLXEditorDon.

“Sports, Hollywood VIPs arrive for Muhammad Ali 70th birthday salute ” by Robin Leach: Luxe Life – Las Vegas Weekly

In an interview today with NBC’s Andrea Mitchell, he revealed a way of looking at birth control that is playing economical with reality.

“this contraceptive thing, my gosh it’s so inexpensive. Back in my days, they used Bayer asperin for contraception. the gals put it between their knees and it wasn’t that costly.”

Friess made his fortune in mutual funds and, according to the New York Times, he has given the Red, White and Blue Fund more than $300K as of December 31, 2011, and has since given more. “He would not say how much, or how much more he may give in the future, joking, ‘if my wife finds out how much I put into the campaign and Santorum doesn’t win, you’re basically talking suicide.’”

Candidate Santorum personally opposes contraception to the point that he believes states have the right to outlaw it. if elected, he has also pledged to lecture women on the dangers of birth control. Presumably, that would include Friess’ aspirin method.

Santorum Backer: Most Cost-Effective Birth Control? Keep Your Legs Closed

Tazo Tea is a brand of tea that is best known for being the brand of tea associated with Starbucks Coffee. Indeed, the Tazo tea company is owned by the Starbucks corporation. But Tazo tea is also available in some supermarkets, other stores, and other coffee shops. although Tazo sells a few bottled teas, this article focuses on Tazo’s tea bags.

Reviews of Tazo Tea:

• Tazo Calm – this is without a doubt my favorite of Tazo’s offerings. Tazo calm is a distinctive herbal blend, combining chamomile, rose petals, and a number of other herbs. Unlike some chamomile blends, it is not dominated by the chamomile, but rather, the various aromas of the different herbs blend together seemlessly, producing a balanced blend. I also like the way this herbal tea makes me feel: it’s not as strongly relaxing as a number of other products on the market, but I find that it is very pleasing to drink at any time of day. It leaves a clean, fresh taste in the mouth as well.




• Tazo China green tips – this green tea originates in China’s Zhejiang province. I like typical green teas from this province, as they often have a briskness and a pleasing hint of smokiness to balance the familiar grassy qualities characteristic of green teas. although this tea will not impress loose-leaf connoisseurs, it is definitely a notch up from most boxed green tea bags available in a typical supermarket. I think Tazo could do better, but this is still a drinkable and pleasant tea.




• Tazo Awake – Tazo awake is Tazo’s strong black breakfast tea. I find it to be somewhat atypical among black teas marketed as breakfast teas: it has some malty qualities as well as some lighter qualities characteristic of high-grown tea, but I also found it to be rather sour, and leave a harsh astringency on the palate.




• Tazo Passion – this herbal tea grabs people’s attention with its deep purple color, which is reflected equally in the packaging as in the brewed cup. I absolutely love the aroma of this tea, which is hard to describe, but has a pleasing floral and fruity quality, balanced by some light herbaceous tones. However, I find this tea to be so sour as to be undrinkable — reflecting the fact that Tazo has added citric acid to the blend. Fortunately, citric acid is highly water soluble, and a brief rinse of 10 seconds or so of this tea under cold water will remove nearly all the sourness, allowing people such as myself who prefer a more purely aromatic cup to enjoy the aroma of Tazo passion in a cup with a milder, smoother flavor.

In Summary?

I like Tazo tea quite a lot, and am always content to drink it whenever it’s available among a mix of the mainstream tea brands. It definitely is one of the mainstream tea companies that gets my attention. But when I’m at home, I drink almost exclusively loose-leaf teas; I think that serious tea enthusiasts will do well to branch out and explore other teas, even if they do enjoy Tazo tea.

Tazo Tea Reviews – My Reviews of Calm, Awake, Passion, And Other Teas From Tazo

Raised in sunny Florida, Kate Upton, the newest model to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit issue, is no stranger to a bikini.

“in Florida, people walk around in their flip-flops, bikinis and jean shorts, so I’m very comfortable in a bathing suit,” she said in a telephone interview before the cover was revealed Monday night on the “Late show with David Letterman” on CBS.

On the cover, Upton is seen sporting a tiny red-and-brown, sparkle-covered string bikini with a view of the waters of Australia behind her.

Photo released by Sports Illusrated parent company Time inc. Credit Sports Illustrated

“that was one of the first photos from the first shoot,” the 19-year-old Upton said. “It was my favorite swimsuit. … I felt sexy in it but confident.”

This is Upton’s second time appearing in the annual SI issue. last year, when Irina Shayk was on the cover, Upton was chosen as rookie of the year.

“I have had a great year,” she said. “For me, this is groundbreaking.”

Check out this video of the SI swimsuit models announcing “The top Ten Reasons The 2012 Swimsuit Issue is The Best Ever.”

(TM and © Copyright 2012 CBS Radio inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS Radio and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting inc. used under license. All Rights Reserved. this material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

SI Swimsuit Edition Cover: Kate Upton

Although Sports Illustrated is an extremely popular magazine (primarily with a male readership) these days, there were similar magazines called Sports Illustrated which failed before the current incarnation of the magazine that arrives on news stands and in mailboxes across the country. Hard as it may be to believe, sports journalism was once considered beneath other forms of writing. That was before writers like Frank Deford, Robert Creamer and others came along and proved that writing about sports could grab readers and have them debating the pros and cons of various aspects of basketball, football and..yes.. even swimsuit models. Reporting on the Olympic Games was also in demand and some of those covers featuring Olympic athletes have become collector’s issues.

Ironically, an early publisher of the magazine, Henry Luce, was not even an avid sports fan. He could probably be called lukewarm (at best). still, he managed to ignore those who scoffed at the idea of a magazine focused only on sports reporting and photos. his instincts served him in good stead and Sports Illustrated was ready to take off.

Of course, timing is everything. It didn’t hurt that television was about to help Americans sit in the comfort of their dens or living or family rooms and watch a baseball or other game. It was a natural move to buy a magazine to read during the commercials and Sports Illustrated filled the bill. If there was any question about a particular batting average, the magazine could be consulted. besides, it was just plain fun to read – and it only became better through the years.

Sports Illustrated was responsible for many innovations in sports reporting. their noted Sportsman of the Year was popular from the start. Everyone loves a good competition so readers were eager to see who’d grace the cover each year – and why. Winners have accomplished such feats as breaking the four minute mile (Roger Bannister) or some other athletic feat. If the covers are representative of the popularity of specific sports, then Major League Baseball seems to be the most popular sport, followed by Pro Football and Pro Basketball.

It would be impossible to mention the magazine without mentioning the infamous and sometimes controversial swimsuit issue. The first one was published in 1964 and men found photos of supermodels posing in often very skimpy, barely there swimsuits impossible to resist ( a fair share of women bought the swimsuit issues, too, perhaps to see how they measured up in comparison with the models). while the swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated flies off the magazine shelves, there are some readers who write protest letter or even cancel their subscriptions yearly – all because of this issue.

It isn’t only athletes or swimsuit models who have graced the cover of Sports Illustrated. Famous celebrities have been used to promote sports. These include Ed Sullivan, Arnold Schwarzenegger and even Big Bird. Sports Illustrated has even spun off a special edition of the magazine for children, Sports Illustrated Kids.

Since sports has its share of controversy and a wide mixture of athletes, there have been some who have been featured in the magazine for sad reasons. Sports Illustrated even has had memorial covers. Ted Williams was featured after he died of a heart attack. Pat Tillman, who played for the Arizona Cardinals, appeared on the cover after he died in Afghanistan.

Even with the advent of sports television stations like ESPN, Sports Illustrated remains popular. Close to 20 percent of American males read it. Articles from the magazine form the basis for spirited debates at parties, work and home. It seems to have become a part of American life.

Sports Illustrated Magazine