Ladies Feel Over The Hill At 29

A new study purports to show that women start feeling old at 29. But take it with a grain of salt — the study was commissioned by funeral home.

According to the New York Daily News, a British company called Avalon Funeral Plans polled 1,000 people on their website. On average, women said they started feeling old at 29 (the Daily News reports this finding as, "29 is when women don't have 'it' anymore," which sounds sort of sinister). And they gauged their horrifying senescence by outward markers like gray hairs, sagging skin, and "assets heading south." Meanwhile, the average male respondent started feeling old at 58, and was more likely to cite behavioral markers of aging like finding music too loud or experiencing erectile dysfunction.

Read more here...

Indiana, 1818. Moonlight falls through the dense woods that surround a one-room cabin, where a nine-year-old Abraham Lincoln kneels at his suffering mother's bedside. She's been stricken with something the old-timers call "Milk Sickness."

"My baby boy..." she whispers before dying.

Only later will the grieving Abe learn that his mother's fatal affliction was actually the work of a vampire.

When the truth becomes known to young Lincoln, he writes in his journal, "henceforth my life shall be one of rigorous study and devotion. I shall become a master of mind and body. And this mastery shall have but one purpose..." Gifted with his legendary height, strength, and skill with an ax, Abe sets out on a path of vengeance that will lead him all the way to the White House.

While Abraham Lincoln is widely lauded for saving a Union and freeing millions of slaves, his valiant fight against the forces of the undead has remained in the shadows for hundreds of years. That is, until Seth Grahame-Smith stumbled upon The Secret Journal of Abraham Lincoln, and became the first living person to lay eyes on it in more than 140 years.

Last Day!

February 18th was the last day for the coffee shop inside the Borders Bookstore on St. Charles Avenue. The long front porch was one of the best places in uptown New Orleans to have a cup of coffee and watch the world go by, along with the occasional streetcar.

March 29th was the last day the store was officially "open", though there was not much merchandise inside except for the bookshelves that were purchased and being picked up by customers.

The bookstore itself was unique for a big chain store - and rumored to be haunted - since it was located in a former funeral home. Good-bye big clearance sale and great lunch break escape!

Local uptown book shops will likely benefit from the closure. An estimated third of the nation's Borders sites will be closed since Borders filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The closest Borders not on the chopping block is the Baton Rouge store.

European Killjoys

Controllers at several European channels have banned episodes of The Simpsons that contain jokes about nuclear meltdown. They want to stop the hit cartoon poking fun at nuclear danger during the battle to save the tsunami-hit Fukushima plant, reports the Daily Star. Bungling Homer Simpson works at disaster-prone Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, run by money-grabbing Mr Burns, in the hit show. It is a running joke that safety at the plant, that has blown up or come close to meltdown several times, is notoriously slack. Beer-swilling Homer is a Nuclear Safety Inspector, but repeatedly puts the town at risk by neglecting his duties and falling asleep. He even casually tosses away a radioactive rod he finds in his clothes during the hit show's title sequence. The PC plonkers have been blasted for failing to separate fact from fiction. German channel Pro7 was the first to stop the fun. ORF in Austria and SF in Switzerland were quick to follow suit. The Austrian channel is thought to have taken the most extreme action, banning eight episodes until a review next month. The censored shows include one that features scientists Marie and Pierre Curie dying of radiation poisoning and another, which contains jokes about a nuclear meltdown. However, critics of the European killjoys insist the show is harmless and cannot be compared to the situation in Japan.

P.S. I think it's silly if people compare this cartoon to real life. I mean, come on, can you really base reaility on The Simpsons?

Romantic for a History Lover

200-year-old love letter found in chair

“A 200-year-old love letter has been found in the arm of a chair at a furniture upholsterers in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England. The note, written in French, was in the chair bought in a house clearance in France. “‘When I started to work on the arm”, said Graham Simpson of Theocus Furniture, “I could see a small note, tightly folded up, about the size of a penny. When I opened it, to my amazement it was a note written in pencil, in old French.”

“The style of language suggests the letter was composed about 200 years ago. It was written from a man to a woman and sent from the town of Mercurol in the Alps:

“The translated letter: “‘My dear small love, do not be worried, do you seriously believe I would tell anything to these people, who don’t understand anything about love?

“‘If someone insists that I say something, it will be anything but the dear love acquired by you, which is the great treasure hidden in my heart.

“‘I didn’t tell you to come yesterday because I didn’t have the opportunity, but do come every Tuesday around 5:30, and Fridays as well; I count/hope on you tomorrow.

“‘At the moment I write this letter, I can hear my aunt yelling, who else annoys us all day long, today and tomorrow.

“”My dear, I cover you with kisses and caresses until… I need you in this moment of desire. I love you.”

Man Up For Japan

Japan has been good to all of us present and previous ALTs. It has given us a home, many new friends and more opportunities than we can possibly count. And the country needs ...our help now, so please 'MAN UP FOR JAPAN'

Cheers!

Cat Survived Earthquake and Reunited with Family

A woman returned to her house that was devastated by the earthquake and tsunami to look for her cat.

She was shocked by the damage in the house as she was rummaging through the rubble. While she was talking to the reporter, a miracle happened. Her cat came out from the stairs and started meowing. Non-non the cat was hiding upstairs when the tsunami hit. The little one survived. Though the kitty was still a little shaking and overwhelmed by the whole disaster and afraid to come back downstairs, it was absolutely heart-warming and hopeful to know that Non-non made it safe. Rough Translation: Woman told the reporter “That’s my house.” She was wondering where her cat is. The reporter followed her into the house. They saw a large tree trunk in the room through the window. Later the reporter heard the woman saying “The cat is alive!” She said that she heard the cat meowing upstairs. Her cat’s name is Non-non.

Gaga's wristband raises $250,000 for Japan victims

Pop star Lady Gaga has collected $250,000 from the sales of a wristband she designed to raise money for Japan's earthquake victims. 'Monsters (fans): in just 48 hrs you've raised a quarter of a million dollars for Japan Relief. It's important we help. X (sic),' Gaga posted on her Twitter page. The singer urged her twitter followers to buy the $5 red and white accessory, which has a message 'We pray for Japan' both in English and Japanese. Japan suffered widespread devastation as a result of the 9.0 magnitude earthquake on March11. Gaga is among many stars to raise donations through the social networking website.

NOLA Irish Parade

Marching in its 62nd year, the Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Committee boasted a record participation for 2011, with more than 1,400 members.

Amid the roaming face-painters and cotton-candy vendors, the crowd of thousands presented a proud blur of green. Whether displayed by a hat, a wig, a crown, body paint or an entire elaborate costume, the Irish spirit was out in full force.

Cheered on by the sunshine and pleasant breeze of a perfect March day, the streets along the Irish Channel St. Patrick's Day Parade route provided evidence Saturday that, even though Mardi Gras was just four days earlier, New Orleans most definitely had one more parade left in it.

And those who stayed home this year because they had worn themselves out during Carnival can take heart in knowing that Mardi Gras will not fall this close to St. Patrick’s Day again until 2038, when Fat Tuesday is on March 9.

Annual parade route is along Magazine St. around New Orleans' Irish Channel.

Parade goers will be able to grab cabbages and other vegetables from Mardi Gras-style floats and trucks, as well as beads and flowers.

Lady Gaga's Japan Earthquake Relief Wristband

I DONATED!!

Show your support for Japan with this "We Pray For Japan" wristband! Choose your price to add an additional donation with your wristband. All proceeds go directly to Japan relief efforts.

6.6 in Niigata

Powerful Quakes Hit Japan's Nagano Prefecture

Two powerful earthquakes hit an inland area northwest of Tokyo early Saturday, each measuring 6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in Nagano Prefecture, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. The agency did not issue a tsunami warning. The 3:59 a.m. and 4:32 a.m. quakes, with preliminary magnitudes of 6.6 and 5.8 respectively, hit areas including Niigata Prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast, which is far from the Pacific coastal area jolted by a magnitude 8.8 quake the previous day. The focus of both predawn quakes was in central Niigata at a depth of 10 kilometers, the agency said. The first quake measured lower 6 in Niigata but Tokyo Electric Power Co. said it was continuing to operate its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in the prefecture. Niigata police said they have received a report of mudslide in Tokamachi city as well as avalanches in Tokamachi and Tsunan town, following the early morning quakes.

Magnitude 8.9 Offshore Quake

The quake was the largest ever to hit Japan, the fifth strongest tremor worldwide since 1900 and the seventh strongest in history, according to the US Geological Survey and Japanese seismologists.

The biggest earthquake to hit Japan in 140 years struck the northeast coast, triggering a 33-foot tsunami that swept away everything in its path, including houses, cars and farm buildings. Dozens of cities and villages along a 1,300-mile (2,100-kilometer) stretch of coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached as far away as Tokyo, hundreds of miles (kilometers) from the epicenter. Luckily my friends seem to be doing okay since no one was hurt, but homes are another factor right now. Until better communication open ups and the chaos of it all begins to settle, we'll have to wait a bit to get a clearer image of this tragic disaster.

My heart goes out to Japan!!!

Until Next Year . . .

Massive Mardi Gras mop-up in New Orleans

Happy Mardi Gras

By the King Himself

If you can read this . . .

Bacchus Party w/ Rebirth

My Post from their 2009 House Party

Krewe of Muses 2011