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Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Barack Obama appoints Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston ???

Obama appoints Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston to his ‘team of rivals’

President-elect Barack Obama today appointed Peter Orszag as his budget director, and Robert Nabors as his budget deputy director and vowed to act swiftly and boldly on the economy, saying that he’ll hit the ground running according to AP.

As he collects the finest minds in America to fix the collapsing economy, he also continued to announce new members to his ‘team of rivals’. ‘Team of rivals’ is a reference to a biography about Lincoln who liked to work with difficult, opposing and argumentative politicians. And politicians who had run against him for President. Obama is doing the same: Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates…

Today I read on comedian Andy Borowitz’s blogpost that Obama is now appointing Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston to key cabinet positions.

Continuing in his quest to assemble a so-called “team of rivals,” President-elect Barack Obama today announced that he would name Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston to key Cabinet positions.

The two actresses, who have been perennial tabloid fodder as a result of their longstanding feud over actor Brad Pitt, were surprise choices for Mr. Obama’s Cabinet, since neither of them has been a government official or even portrayed one in a movie.

But in his weekly Internet address, the President-elect explained his rationale for choosing the sworn enemies to his Cabinet: “I chose Jennifer and Angelina for the same reason I have chosen every other Cabinet member: they clearly despise each other with a passion.”

(And just for the record yesterday, Obama officially named Timothy Geithner as treasury secretary and Lawrence Summers as director of the National Economic Council. He also appointed Melody Barnes as director of the Domestic Policy Council, and Heather Higginbottom as the council’s deputy director.)

Obama names budget director, promotes restraint

President-elect Barack Obama named Peter Orszag as his budget director on Tuesday and said his job will be to conduct a thorough review of federal spending programs, "eliminating those programs we don't need and insisting that those we do need operate in a cost-effective way."

With the economy in crisis, Obama said, "Budget reform is not an option. It's a necessity."

Echoing Abraham Lincoln, Obama added, "I will ask my economic team to think anew and act anew."

Orszag is the director of the Congressional Budget Office, a man who the president-elect said "knows where the bodies are buried."

Obama's focus on careful federal spending marked something of a contrast from Monday, when he declared that restoring the economy to health took priority over the budget deficit. He called on Congress to prepare an economic stimulus program for him to sign as soon after Inauguration day as possible. Estimates of the measure range from $500 billion to $700 billion over two years.

"We are going to have to jump-start the economy ... but we have to make sure that those investments are wise. We have to make sure we are not wasting money in every area," he said Tuesday, defining the two objectives that will guide his economic program.

Elected in an Electoral College landslide, Obama claimed "a mandate to move the country in a new direction and not continue the same old practices that have gotten us into the fix we are in."

At the same time, he said, after gaining only 53 percent of the popular vote," we enter into the administration with a sense of humility and a recognition that wisdom is not the monopoly of any political party."

He added, "I think what the American people want more than anything is just commonsense, smart government. They don't want ideology, they don't want bickering."

Along with Orszag, Obama named Robert Nabors as deputy budget director. Nabors has been the top staff aide on the House Appropriations Committee, which prepares spending legislation.

The president-elect said he would have additional appointments to his economic team in the coming days.

At first glance, his roster of economic officials so far embodies what seem to be mutually exclusive goals. Timothy Geithner, Obama's choice for treasury secretary, Lawrence Summers, who will head the National Economic Council, and Orszag all have links to Robert Rubin, who as President Clinton's treasury secretary pushed for a balanced budget.

But all three will also be part of an administration that will drive deficits to new heights with an economic plan designed to save or create 2.5 million jobs and redirect the economy over the next two years. Economists from across the political spectrum, including some who have served as informal advisers to Obama, have put the size of an economic recovery package as high as $700 billion over those two years.

Obama summed up the challenge Monday.

"The way to think about it is short term, we've got to focus on boosting the economy and creating 2.5 million jobs, but part and parcel of that is a plan for a sustainable fiscal situation long-term, and that's going to require some reforms in Washington," he said during a news conference in Chicago to introduce Geithner and Summers.

"To make the investments we need," he said at another point, "we'll have to scour our federal budget, line by line, and make meaningful cuts and sacrifices, as well, something I'll be discussing further tomorrow."

Obama is already starting in the red. The federal government reported a record deficit of $237.2 billion in October, which reflected only a portion of the $700 billion Congress approved last month to rescue the financial markets. The government's red ink has been rising over the past eight years, reversing a surplus achieved during the Clinton administration.

Leonard Burman, director of the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, said Geithner and Summers reflect both the need for a large-scale stimulus to the economy and for fiscal restraint once the economy shows signs of improvement.

"What's good about the appointments that Obama has made is that it suggests, in ways that his campaign never did, that he really understands this," Burman said.

Sunday, November 23, 2008

American Music Awards 2008

R&B star Chris Brown sweeps American Music Awards

R&B singer Chris Brown swept the American Music Awards on Sunday, winning three prizes including artist of the year.

The 19-year-old star, famed for his on-stage athleticism, overshadowed Alicia Keys, who led the field with five nominations, and ended up with a pair of statuettes.

Alicia Keys

Brown was clearly shocked when his name was announced for artist of the year, the ceremony's final award.

"I probably was shocked like everybody else," Brown told reporters backstage at the Nokia Theater. "I know everybody was like, 'Huh?' I thought Coldplay should have genuinely won that award, but I'll take it!"

Chris Brown

He was also named favorite male artist in both the soul/R&B and pop/rock categories. His girlfriend, Rihanna, won those categories for the women, beating Keys in both races.

Rihanna

Keys' awards were for her chart-topping disc, "As I Am," which was named favorite album in the soul/R&B and pop/rock categories.

Behind Keys in the nominees list were British rock band Coldplay and American country-rock veterans the Eagles, who both went home empty-handed.

Other multiple winners included outspoken rapper Kanye West, who has never been afraid to express his dismay when he is overlooked at awards shows. He won the first two American Music Awards of his career, but said he would give one of them away to fellow nominee, Lil Wayne.

"If it was last year, this would have been my award," he said of the favorite male rap/hip-hop category. "This year, it's Wayne's award. We'll see what happens next year."

Earlier, he won for the statuette for favorite rap/hip-hop album with "Graduation." West challenged musicians of all genres to push each other, and to reclaim the spirit of artists like the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin. In his case, he declared, "I wanna be Elvis!"

But host Jimmy Kimmel retorted a little later, "Elvis died on the toilet with half a jelly donut in his mouth, so you might want to rethink that one."

Kimmel also took a dig at addiction-plagued rocker Scott Weiland, who had to struggle to introduce a performer. Kimmel suggested that Disney starlet Miley Cyrus, who turned 16 on Sunday, would now be able to drive him home.

Among the first-time winners were Taylor Swift, current holder of the No. 1 spot on the U.S. pop album chart with her album "Fearless." She appeared to be the only shocked person in the Nokia Theater room when she was named favorite female country singer.

"It's an honor that you even care about the songs I wrote in my bedroom," said the 18-year-old star.

Another country star, Brad Paisley, was also a first-time winner, in the genre's favorite male artist category.

"I have always, always wanted to win an American Music Award," he said, pausing to survey the bottom of his perspex statuette. "Made in China?"

For the second year, winners were determined by online voting. They used to be decided by a poll of 20,000 music buyers, but producers decided to make the event more inclusive in the wake of slumping ratings. The move seemed to work, with last year's show attracting 11.8 million viewers, up from 10.9 million the year before.

The performance-heavy event spanned the generations, from Cyrus to former Eurythmics singer Annie Lennox, who earned a standing ovation with her heartfelt piano ballad "Why."

The Scottish rocker received a lifetime achievement award and said, "I never thought that I would live to see the day that I would be 53 years old standing on the stage."

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Sarah Palin Pardons Turkey

Palin Pardons a Turkey in the Name of “Peace and Harmony.” Let the Slaughter Begin !!!

Yet again, my Governor, Sarah Palin has left me speechless. Today, in her home town of Wasilla, she decided to pardon a turkey. To my knowledge, this has not happened before, and I wonder if it might be the only thing left that made her feel “Presidential.”

That aside, she arrived at the turkey farm, with temperatures in the single digits in a short black skirt, and high heels. Then, she stood in the turkey shed, and read her statement.

Within the first 10 seconds I expected a lightning bolt to blow a hole in the roof of the turkey barn and strike her dead, leaving a little black pile of ashes with a pair of stylish glasses frames resting on top. Had I been there in person, they’d have seen me literally dive for cover.

Now, Sarah Palin actually advocates the death penalty, but I figured if the “friend to all creatures great and small” line didn’t get a lightning bolt, we were safe for now.

But the worst was yet to come. As she took advantage of the media opportunity after the magnanimous pardon, business as usual was going on at the turkey farm. And it was going on right behind Palin, and on camera.

Yes, that’s right. Sarah Palin actually said the campaign trail was “pretty brutal” while some guy behind her was slitting the throat of a turkey and draining it in the cone of death, right in front of the cameras. Turkey #2 met its demise while the reporter asked what programs in the upcoming budget might be “on the chopping block.”

When asked why she came out to pardon the turkey, Palin responded, “For one, you need a little levity in this job,” and went on to say that it was nice to do something that wasn’t so “heavy-handed politics, that invites criticism. Certainly we’ll probably invite criticism for even doin’ this too.” A correct prediction from our Governor as she stood there on Channel 2 News, with a backdrop of blood-soaked snow and dying birds.

Before you believe that maybe Sarah Palin didn’t know about this, or was horrified when she realized sitting in front of the TV later that night what had happened, remember that when a photographer asked her if she wanted the turkey slaughter as a backdrop, the “friend to all creatures great and small” said, “No worries!”

Sarah Palin Turkey Death Interview Video

Sarah Palin stands in front of a bird slaughtering machine being interviewed by a news crew as a farm hand awkwardly undertakes his work.
Sarah Palin Turkey Death video below....


She may have returned back to the upper 1, to her Gubernatorial duties in the state of Alaska, but the comedy hits just keep rolling in from Sarah Louise Palin.

The governor was being interviewed by a local Anchorage television news station while the work of the Triple-D Farm and Hatchery continued.

Palin was at the Turkey farm for a pardoning of the Turkey ceremony, a token gesture leading up to Thanks Giving where Governors and Presidents pardon a turkey from the chopping block, it makes for great TV vision.

What turned into a basic publicity stunt for Sarah Palin turned into a comedy classic for the YouTube ages.

Being interviewed by KTUU TV, an NBC affiliate in Alaska, Palin stood directly in front of a Turkey slaughtering machine where all the action was taking place. Despite the camera man apparently telling Sarah what was being captured by the lense, the Governor continued on her regual bullshitting rants.

A farm worker sheepishly began his day job killing Turkeys ready for Thanks Giving night, Palin mumbled on about "greatly falling" oil prices and the role of limited cheques in the mail Alaskan government.

The results can either be interpreted as excruciatingly hilarious, or simply disturbing television.



Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Hugh Jackman - The Sexiest Man Alive ???

Hugh Jackman named People's Sexiest Man Alive

NEW YORK (AP) - Hugh Jackman has been named People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive.

The magazine's executive editor, Jess Cagle, tells NBC's "Today" show that Huge Jackman is a "surprising choice," but he'd been on the editors' minds "for a long time and it seemed like this was the year to do him."

Cagle points out that not only is Jackman's career at its peak, with the "X-Men" movies and his upcoming epic with Nicole Kidman "Australia," but he's "built like a tank."

Nicoel Kidman throws her 2 cents in, telling People that "women's jaws drop when Hugh walks in a room."

Hugh Jackman named People's "Sexiest Man Alive"

Wolverine Hugh Jackman has been named People's "Sexiest Man Alive." The 40-year-old Australian actor took home the much sought-after title for the first time ever. Fellow Aussie Nicole Kidman says "Women's jaws drop when Hugh walks into a room."

Last year's winner, Matt Damon, is now officially ugly.

Hugh Jackman told the magazine that, on hearing the news, his wife joked: "Obviously, Brad wasn't available this year."

Jackman's movie credits include the X-Men franchise, The Prestige, The Fountain, and Van Helsing. His next film is the new Baz Luhrmann epic, Australia, which co-stars Kidman. Whether or not the title of world's sexiest man helps ticket sales remains to be seen. It certainly didn't help Jude Law's career.

Monday, November 17, 2008

What’s Mamma.com ???

That’s one of the first questions coming up in today’s news, reported by the WSJ’s Kara Scannell, that Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban faces insider-trading charges related to the site.

Mamma.com is a Canadian search engine that merged with Copernic Technologies, which also offers search software and online advertising services, in December 2005. It now trades under Copernic’s ticker, CNIC.

Marketed as a “metasearch” engine, Mamma displays results from other sites like Ask and About.com, which it says provides more comprehensive search results. It also sells paid-search listings, which appear above the standard results.

It received 669,000 unique visits in September, down 66% from the 2 million it got a year earlier, according to comScore.

Like many tech companies of late, Copernic has been streamlining operations in the weak economy. Last week it said it would close its Montreal office and that its marketing VP wouldn’t be staying on past the end of the year.

Its third-quarter loss narrowed to $621,677 from $974,716 a year ago, though its revenue shrank 10% to $1.7 million over the same period.

Mr. Cuban has mentioned Mamma.com as far back as 2004, when he blogged about investing in it despite its obscurity.

“I invested in mamma.com for the same reason I invested in Netidentity.com back when it was known as mailbank.com. I love businesses with low overhead, that don’t need to be technology leaders to succeed, that generate cash that they can put in the bank, and at some point, hopefully payout to shareholders.

I think mamma.com has that potential,” he wrote. “It’s not Google or Yahoo, nor will it be a top 5 search engine anytime soon. But it is a good metasearch tool that I use and have used. Google and Yahoo have become carbon copies of each other, and for me, other than usenet and news searches, it’s too big. I like the way Mamma.com organizes websearches, and I use it for picture searches.”

A year later, he wrote that he’d changed his mind because of financing concerns: “Im glad I sold my
stock.”

Mark Cuban charged with insider trading

The breaking news is that the SEC is charging Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, with insider trading related to sales of shares in Mamma.com, Inc., now Copernic, Inc. (NASDAQ: CNIC). The entrepreneur billionaire allegedly dumped 600,000 shares in the Internet search engine company when he found out it was raising money by selling shares in a private offering. This information was not publicly known.

The SEC filed its complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, saying that in June, 2004, Cuban was invited to participate in the stock offering after he agreed to keep the information confidential. Knowing the offering would be conducted at a discount, Cuban then sold his entire 6% ownership within a few hours after he learned about it. When the financing was announced the next day, the company's shares dropped more than 10% due to dilution concerns. Cuban thus avoided more than $750,000 in losses.

If these allegations are true, this is a classic case of insider trading. The public had no way of knowing the stock price would drop, while Cuban and other insiders did. The SEC release didn't mention what other insiders did, but it seems, for now at least, that only Cuban acted on the information.

I've had about all the news of corruption I can take. Of course, I don't mean to sound accusatory, or find Mark Cuban guilty before he has been properly tried, but it's just the timing of it. When the world is swirling into a global recession based on greed, and probably at least a little bit of corruption, these news items are definitely ones I can do without.

Related Post :

Mark Cuban - Charged with insider trading

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Hillary Clinton - Secretary of State ???

There are numerous reports tonight that Hillary Clinton may be under consideration for Secretary of State in the Obama administration.

From the Washington Post:

There's increasing chatter in political circles that the Obama camp is not overly happy with the usual suspects for secretary of state these days and that the field might be expanding somewhat beyond Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Gov. Bill Richardson (D-N.M.Bold), Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) and maybe former Democratic senator Sam Nunn of Georgia.


There's talk, indeed, that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) may now be under consideration for the post. Her office referred any questions to the Obama transition; Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor declined to comment.

And NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports:

Two Obama advisers have told NBC News that Hillary Clinton is under consideration to be secretary of state. Would she be interested? Those who know Clinton say possibly. But her office says that any decisions about the transition are up to the president-elect and his team.


Clinton was seen taking a flight to Chicago today, but an adviser says it was on personal business. It is unknown whether she had any meeting or conversation with Obama while there.

According to CNN:

One source close to Hillary Clinton tells CNN that as of early yesterday, Senator Clinton had not been contacted by the transition team about a possible cabinet appointment. This same source tells CNN that Senator Clinton would not necessarily dismiss such an offer.


A spokesman for Hillary Clinton, Philippe Reines, tells CNN "Any speculation about cabinet or other administration appointments is really for President-Elect Obama's transition team to address."

On Monday night, while walking into an awards ceremony in New York, Senator Clinton was asked if she would consider taking a post in the Obama administration. She replied, "I am happy being a Senator from New York, I love this state and this city. I am looking at the long list of things I have to catch up on and do. But I want to be a good partner and I want to do everything I can to make sure his agenda is going to be successful."

And sources tell ABC News that discussions about Clinton being asked to accept the post are "very serious."

Hillary Clinton's name mentioned as possible Secretary of State

Two sources close to the Obama transition team tell CNN that Senator Hillary Clinton’s name has been mentioned as a possible candidate for Secretary of State.

One source close to Hillary Clinton tells CNN that as of early yesterday, Senator Clinton had not been contacted by the transition team about a possible cabinet appointment. This same source tells CNN that Senator Clinton would not necessarily dismiss such an offer.

A spokesman for Hillary Clinton, Philippe Reines, tells CNN “Any speculation about cabinet or other administration appointments is really for President-Elect Obama's transition team to address.”

On Monday night, while walking into an awards ceremony in New York, Senator Clinton was asked if she would consider taking a post in the Obama administration. She replied, "I am happy being a Senator from New York, I love this state and this city. I am looking at the long list of things I have to catch up on and do. But I want to be a good partner and I want to do everything I can to make sure his agenda is going to be successful."

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Paula Goodspeed - Found Dead Near Paula Abdul’s Home

Woman Found Dead Near Paula Abdul’s Home Was Former ‘Idol’ Contestant

The woman who was found dead in a car parked near Paula Abdul’s Sherman Oaks, Calif., home last night has been identified as Paula Goodspeed, 30, a former contestant on “American Idol’s” Season 5.

Goodspeed was found shortly after 6 PM on Tuesday, after the Los Angeles Police Department received a tip from a neighboring agency, according to LAPD spokesperson Officer Karen Smith.

“Our Van Nuys division did receive a call from the Ventura County’s Sheriff. A woman’s parents reported her missing and they thought that she may be at Paula Abdul’s house,” Smith told Access Hollywood on Tuesday night.

The parents of the woman reportedly believed their daughter was nearby Abdul’s home as she was reportedly “a big fan” of the “Idol” judge, Officer Smith told Access.

When authorities arrived, the unidentified woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

Authorities are awaiting a coroner’s report to verify the cause of death.

Footage of a car parked on the street where the incident occurred, and shown on Fox News 11 in Los Angeles, who first reported the story, showed Paula Abdul laminates dangling from the rearview mirror.

Goodspeed was shown auditioning for the FOX reality show in February 2006.

Dressed in pink, and with a mouth full of braces, she claimed, “You have to have a certain personality to pull my look off.” She also claimed to be a major Paula Abdul fan.

“I really like Paula Abdul a lot,” Goodspeed said on the show. “ She’s really cool. I’m like, a really big fan. And I made life-sized drawings of Paula. I’ve been drawing ever since I was a little kid and my first drawing was of Paula Abdul.”

After performing “Proud Mary” for the judging panel, she left Abdul surprised.

“Well, Paula, I’m speechless,” Abdul said. “Don’t know what to say.”

“Is that good or bad,” Goodspeed asked.

“It’s not a great thing,” Abdul said.

After being told she wouldn’t make it through to the Hollywood round of the competition, Goodspeed vowed to continue her dream of being a singer.

“It’s not over. I’m not going to stop singing just because you don’t like my voice,” she said.

Abdul was not home at the time of Tuesday’s incident. Her spokesperson told KTTV Fox News 11 that the judge was out Tuesday evening taping a session for the upcoming season of “American Idol.”

On Wednesday, Abdul released a statement regarding the incident to Access Hollywood.

“I am deeply shocked and saddened about what transpired yesterday,” Abdul’s statement read. “My heart and prayers go out to her family.”


Paula Goodspeed is Paula Abdul’s Fan

She was a former American Idol contestant on the show, who was found dead outside of Paula Abdul’s home on the evening of November 11th 2008, apparently from a suicide. It is unknown if she was stalking Paula or the reason for her presence.


Paula Goodspeed Biography

As a biography, she first came on the radar at American Idol because of her Austin, Texas audition for the show in 2005. See that video below. She wore an interesting pink outfit and declared herself a fan of Paula Abdul. Apparently she was not kidding.

Ms. Goodspeed reportedly has a history of mental illness which caused her family concern for her safety.

On her MySpace page profile, she describes herself as 28 years old, originally born in Jamaica. Other media sources have described her as 30 years old from Thousand Oaks, California, which is where she now resides. She also self-describes herself as a Wiccan who seems to have an affinity for the Wizard of Oz movie. This is not the same Paula Goodspeed who is a real estate agent in San Bernadino County.

During the audition, Ms. Goodspeed gave her own rendition of “Proud Mary,” which was once sung by Paula. Simon made a seering comment in his usual style about her braces that was not forgotten: “How did she get through the metal detector?”

She writes about the post-audition trauma and that specific comment in one of her blog entries:

It’s very hard reading such awful things being written about yourself…..or hearing things being said….. not like alot of people would understand what it’s like having so many haters , just because I made the mistake of trying out for a singing competition before I was even ready vocally, emotionally and physically.

I have to believe there is something good about me…..

Simon made that comment about my braces 5 months ago in Sept. 05 and now …since the show aired this month (Feb. 06), theres been soo many people bashing me for having braces, as if “I am the only person on national television that wears braces”!!!!!!

I think some people just need to grow up…or save that kind of stuff for the playground.

Soo, thats my story!! Better luck next time, I guess……

Google Flu - Google search engine flags flu activity


Search engine giant Google launched a new tool on Tuesday that will help U.S. federal health experts track the annual flu epidemic.

Google Flu Trends uses search terms that people put into the Web-based search engine to figure out where influenza is heating up, and notify the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in real time.

"We've discovered that certain search terms are good indicators of flu activity," Google said in a statement.

"What this does is it takes Google search terms of influenza-like illness and influenza and it emulates a signal that tells us how much influenza activity there was," Dr. Lyn Finelli, chief of influenza surveillance at the CDC, said in a telephone interview.

Studies indicate that between 35 and 40 percent of all visits to the Internet are begun by people looking for health information. When people are sick, they tend to look up their symptoms.

Google is keeping the search terms it uses private, but influenza-like illnesses include symptoms such as fever, muscle aches and cough. Sneezing usually occurs with other viruses such as rhinoviruses.

Currently, the CDC relies on centers that report on people coming to their doctors with flu-like symptoms, and lab tests that confirm whether a patient has influenza.

But many people with flu never visit a doctor and most doctors treat based on symptoms, rarely giving a flu test.

Either way, the CDC's surveillance data is about two weeks behind.

The Google tool will track flu activity in near real time, the company said.

EARLY WARNING

"One thing we found last year when we validated this model is it tended to predict surveillance data," Finelli said.

"The data are really, really timely. They were able to tell us on a day-to-day basis the relative direction of flu activity for a given area. They were about a week ahead of us. They could be used ... as early warning signal for flu activity."

Then the CDC can get the word out to hospitals, clinics and doctors offices so they can stock up on flu tests, antiviral drugs and antibiotics for people who get what are known as co-infections -- bacterial infections that worsen a bout of flu.

Two weeks warning also allows people to get vaccinated before flu reaches their community.

Google Uses Searches to Track Flu’s Spread

Now it seems Big Brother will know you're sick even before you do.

Google has launched a function called Google Flu Trends, which will track which areas of the country are punching in flu-related search terms in a bid to track the spread of the disease.

"Our team found that certain aggregated search queries tend to be very common during flu season each year," the Web site posted on its official blog.

Terms such as "flu symptoms" or "muscle aches" are some common examples.

"We compared these aggregated queries against data provided by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and we found that there's a very close relationship between the frequency of these search queries and the number of people who are experiencing flu-like symptoms each week," the company said.

The flu season has not yet gotten under way. Most states are reporting low flu activity, except for Nevada and Texas, where the activity is deemed minimal. Flu cases typically spike in mid-December and again in February.

The search engine touts its new data page as "an early warning system for outbreaks," making it "an exciting development" for epidemiologists.

"Our up-to-date influenza estimates may enable public health officials and health professionals to better respond to seasonal epidemics and - though we hope never to find out - pandemics," the company said.

As part of a test to measure how accurate the data they had collected is, Google researchers passed their results to the CDC throughout last winter's flu season.

They found that the search terms had a very "strong correlation" to what health officials were seeing, except that their data was coming in sooner. That provided the possibility to detect outbreaks as they were happening.

So far, however, Google acknowledges the patterning is preliminary and experimental.

"Our system is still very experimental, so anything is possible, but we're hoping to see similar correlations in the coming year," Google said.

Google also promised the search patterns would never be connected to personal data.

Adrienne Bailon News ???

Cheetah Girl Adrienne Bailon Pictures!

PHOTOS! Here are those pictures of Cheetah Girl Adrienne Bailon. But who is Adrienne Bailon? And with the photo scandal hitting Cheetah Girls, why yet again another Disney star?

Bailon appeared in a minor role in the film “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2.”

So what did Bailon want to do as a girl before … she found the wonders of using a laptop?

She wanted to be a obstetrician, she told the Daily News in July this year.

In an article called “Cheetah Girl Adrienne Bailon is on a fast career track”, Bailon was described as a hot new Disney property, starting as a movie for its cable channel, then CDs, then a c oncert tour. Bailon filmed in India here most recent film “The Cheetah Girls One World” Her description of herself for the film was reportedly the following: “It was a dream come true,”

Bailon says. “We’re such adventurous girls in real life.” Does Bailon’s whole saga u nfolding since Sunday seems all too ironic? She’s engaged to the brother of Kim Kardashian who herself successful channeled her own notoriety with Ray J into a reality tv show following the end of the Simple Life on E! And what about that laptop?

Adrienne Bailon this October reported the robbery of her laptop that led to this latest scandal. In fact, it was Kim Kardashian one year ago this month on November 8, 2007 who also reported a robbery of her laptop from the same airport. While Kardashian claimed the robbery as true, the New York Post reportedly questioned otherwise.

Semi-Nak*d Pics of Cheetah Girl Stolen

Hear what she told momlogic about being a good role model.

Adrienne Bailon reportedly took the racy photos as a gift for her boyfriend Robert Kardashian ... but then her laptop was stolen, and the pics landed on the web faster than you can say Cheetah-Licious.

TMZ reports Bailon was at JFK airport in late October and noticed her laptop computer was missing from her luggage cart. She filed a report with the NY Port Authority -- but later that day her record label received an anonymous phone call from a man saying he had her laptop and would return it for $1000.

A meeting was set up at JFK with the anonymous man, where he was given the money and in turn gave up Bailon's missing laptop. But several semi-nud* photos of Bailon were missing.

"The photos that have surfaced of Adrienne Bailon were stolen from her laptop over a week ago at an airport in NY and sent to several media outlets," Adrienne's representative Jonathan Jaxson said. "These photos were taken in private. Adrienne will be pursuing legal action against the person or persons sending these private photos out. Adrienne is deeply sorry for any pain this may have caused to her fans."

Adrienne Bailon joins a long line of Disney stars such as Vanessa Hudgens and Miley Cyrus who have had racy photos leak on the web. If your kids happen to see the pics online, what do you say? Rosanne Tobey, L.P.C. says it's key to help kids distinguish between the character and the real person. "Put her actions in context," Tobey says. "Point out that she obviously made a mistake. She didn't have maturity to make the right choice. Kids need to know that although her character is a role model, she is not." In other words, Bailon is a real person and real people, unlike heroes, are not perfect.

You could also use this as a teachable moment about the dangers of taking racy digital photos or posting questionable pics on the 'net, says Tobey.

By the time your private business has gone public, you can't take it away. "I think this is a perfect example parents can use to illustrate why NOT to take or post pics you don't want the entire world to see," Rosanne says. "Even though you think the pics will never get out, there's no guarantee. All it takes is one click of a button. And once it's out there, it's essentially impossible to get it back."

Kids must understand the permanence of the actions they take. "Teens tend to be so savvy, yet they sometimes have a hard time realizing the reach that the web might have," Rosanne says. "If a racy pic is up somewhere with your name attached, and a future employer Googles you and finds it, it can really come back to haunt you."

Even if you trust your teen, they can still make bad decisions. "Talk to your kids about this, even if you think they'd never do something like this in a million years," says Rosanne. "It's not so much that your teen's not trustworthy -- this is just typical behavior of their age."

In light of these new pics, is Cheetah Girl Adrienne Bailon still kid-friendly?

See related story about Adrienne Bailon.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Adrienne Bailon - Cheetah Girl Racy Photos Hit the Internet ???

Disney does it again! One of their top stars - Cheetah Girl Adrienne Bailon - has had nud* pics stolen from her laptop. It all started when Bailon was at JFK airport in late October, and noticed her laptop computer was missing from her bell cart. She filed a report with the Port Authority — but later that day her record label received an anonymous phone call from a man saying he had her laptop and would return it for $1000.

A meeting was set up at JFK with the anonymous man, where he was given the money, and in turn gave up Bailon’s missing laptop … except one minor thing was missing — several semi-nud* photos of Bailon she had taken as an anniversary present for BF Robert Kardashian.

Publicity stunt or the real deal? Who knows!

Adrienne Bailon Photos From Laptop Have Surfaced!

Adrienne Bailon from “The Cheetah Girls” have sexy photos all over the internet. The photos came out after Adrienne Bailon’s laptop was stolen at an airport. The laptop was returned but the pictures of her were already copied and too soon reached the internet.
Adrienne Bailon wore sexy clothes in the pictures. Accordingly the pictures were for her boyfriend Rob Kardashian.

Adrienne Bailon Pictures


The rumored Adrienne Bailon pictures that were not intended to see the light of day, have started to surface. We’ve included the first pic above and will post others below as they come in.

For those of you who don’t know the story, Adrienne Bailon is from the The Cheetah Girls and her laptop was stolen at the airport. It was eventually returned, but obviously the pics were copied. Apparently these photos were intended for her fiancee, Rob Kardashian. Too bad. There out now.


Sunday, November 9, 2008

Ilana Blitzer

Ilana Michelle Blitzer, the daughter of Lynn Blitzer and Wolf Blitzer, the television news anchor, of Bethesda, Md., was married Saturday evening to Joseph Orrin Gendelman, a son of Lori and Bruce Gendelman of Palm Beach, Fla. Rabbi Jonathan Schnitzer officiated at the Mandarin Oriental in Washington, with Cantor Josh Perlman taking part.



The bride, 27, works in New York as the beauty editor of Family Circle. She graduated from Emory.

Her mother is a personal shopper at the Saks Fifth Avenue store in Chevy Chase, Md. Her father works from Washington as the anchor of two CNN shows, “The Situation Room” and “Late Edition With Wolf Blitzer.”

The bridegroom, 29, is the president of Bruce Gendelman Insurance Services, a property and casualty insurance agency based in Palm Beach and Milwaukee; his father is the chairman. The bridegroom also graduated from Emory.

The road that would eventually lead Ms. Blitzer to Mr. Gendelman began near a hotel hot tub in Aspen, Colo., in July 2001. While on vacation there, Ms. Blitzer and her mother met Mr. Gendelman’s father and Jordan, a younger brother of the bridegroom. After hanging out poolside, the Blitzers and Gendelmans decided to meet for dinner that evening. By the end of the night, the families had become friends.

Over the next few years, Mr. and Mrs. Blitzer and Mr. and Mrs. Gendelman continued to see one another on summer vacations in Aspen. In July 2004, while the parents dined, their conversation turned to Ilana Blitzer’s search for a New York apartment.

As it turned out, Jordan Gendelman was moving out of his Upper West Side apartment, so they suggested Ms. Blitzer take a look.

Jordan’s father, who was convinced that Joseph Gendelman, his eldest son, and Ms. Blitzer were meant for each other, jokingly told Ms. Blitzer’s mother, “I’ll put on a beautiful rehearsal dinner, if you put on the wedding.”

Although they had attended the same university, Joseph and Ilana had never met.

Ms. Blitzer liked the apartment well enough to take it, in September 2004. At that time, Mr. and Mrs. Gendelman were visiting New York, and took Ms. Blitzer out for lunch, where Mr. Gendelman snapped a few pictures of Ms. Blitzer, telling her, “These are for Joseph,” he recalled.

He immediately e-mailed them to Joseph, who then lived in Miami. Joseph eventually sent Ms. Blitzer a friendly text message on her phone.

“Did you see the pictures?” she wrote back.

He responded, “Why do you think I’m writing?”

The two stayed in touch by e-mail and phone until they agreed they should meet for a formal date.

When Mr. Gendelman arrived at Ms. Blitzer’s apartment, she opened the door — and fainted.

“I was just so nervous, I forgot to eat,” she explained.

In October 2007, Ms. Blitzer returned from work to that same apartment, only to find Mr. Gendelman and a strange-looking contraption on the counter.

“What is that thing?” she asked.

Mr. Gendelman warned, “It’s a breathing machine — you might need that.”

Then, in the exact spot where she had fainted, he handed her an engagement ring.

Friday, November 7, 2008

Sarah Palin in a Towel ???

Sarah Palin in a Towel? Clueless on Africa? Wasilla Hillbillies?


Sarah Palin Winks Lasciviously at the Crowds. Because you know thats just how people like her are, all trailer trash and slutzy. And her ultra-hot MILFness is supposed to turn conservative voters off. Huh.


Milquetoast conservatives bring out the long knives for Sarah Palin while the left continue to be angry, hostile, and remarkably ungracious winners. Other people are documenting right-wingers being sore losers, so I ain’t going to bother on that.

Although, I will note they are predicting the GOP is going to self-destruct. How long had pundits on each side predicted the other party was going to self-destruct? Or that their party was going to enjoy a permanent majority? You know what, it almost never happens. Historically, I think the 40-year one-party rule of the Democrat house is going to turn out to have been a fluke. The Whitehouse changes party hands, on average, about every eight years. Pick up a history book, you goobers.

But back to Sarah Palin. Male McCain staffers got to enjoy Sarah Palin coming out in a towel and their complaining? Not only should they be fired, they should be stripped of any claims they had to supposed “manhood”.

Here is a Dramatic Re-Enactment of Sarah Palin Coming Out, Wrapped in Towel. McCain staffers are apparently not only self-loathing and America-hating left-of-center moderates, they’re also nuetered, desexualized eunuchs or something.


Sarah Palin doesn’t know Africa is a continent? Didn’t know what countries were part of NAFTA? Bullshizzle and bullshizzle. In fact, that sounds like folks tried to trap her. They set her up with Charlie Gibson. They set her up with Katie Couric. She spent some, but not nearly enough, time on friendly media. She was set up by losers in the McCain camp, and now they’re trying to make her out to be the problem when, in fact, they were.

I don’t mean to be ungracious, but I hope they all choke on pretzels.

Ben France on the Bullshizzle Palin Smears. Way to go Ben. Take on these retarded mofos who think we’re all as stupid as they claim Palin is.

McCain aids let loose on “Wasilla Hillbillies”. Someone needs to let loose on “McCain’s Loser Campaign Staff that Ran a Losing Campaign and Should Never Be Employed By Anyone Running a Political Campain, Unless they want to Lose–Again”.

Fortunately, Sarah Palin aides are firing back. Toldya, they ain’t going nowhere. Youbetcha.

Nicolle Wallace, who would know, defends Sarah Palin and–get this!–does it publically, and uses her real name and everything. Unlike the “anonymous” staffers who are throwing rocks at Palin’s care from the bridge, the running away as fast as their fat little legs can carry them. Campbell Brown on the falseness of the Palin smears. The Provocateur knows the Sarah Palin smears are bunk. More good points from a Marketplace of Ideas.

Will it work? We shall see. But, I think those folks are full of it, and as long as Republicans want to take their advice on how to campaign and who to nominate in our primaries, Republicans will lose those elections. Bottom line.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Ashley Alexandra Dupre - No charges for ex-NY governor in prostitution case



Federal prosecutors said Thursday that they will not bring criminal charges against Eliot Spitzer for his role in a prostitution scandal, removing a legal cloud that has surrounded the former New York governor since his epic downfall eight months ago.

U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia said investigators found no evidence that Eliot Spitzer or his office misused public or campaign funds for prostitution. Investigators found that Eliot Spitzer solicited high-priced call girls, but federal prosecutors typically do not prosecute clients of prostitution rings.

"After a thorough investigation, this office has uncovered no evidence of misuse of public or campaign funds," Garcia said. "We have concluded that the public interest would not be further advanced by filing criminal charges in this matter."

The announcement by Garcia signals the end of the bombshell investigation of Emperors Club VIP and means that nine other men described in an indictment as clients of the lucrative prostitution service also have escaped charges. Those clients were never identified.

Legal experts said that local authorities technically could still charge Eliot Spitzer as a john, but that it would be highly unlikely.

A remorseful Eliot Spitzer issued a statement in which he expressed relief that he will not face charges.

"I appreciate the impartiality and thoroughness of the investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office, and I acknowledge and accept responsibility for the conduct it disclosed," he said. "I resigned my position as Governor because I recognized that conduct was unworthy of an elected official. I once again apologize for my actions."

Spitzer was out of town and unavailable for further comment.

He resigned in March after it was disclosed he was referred to in court papers as "Client-9," who spent thousands of dollars on a call girl at a swanky Washington, D.C., hotel on the night before Valentine's Day.

Garcia said that Eliot Spitzer later revealed to investigators that on multiple occasions he arranged for women to travel from one state to another state to engage in prostitution.

The scandal ruined a promising political career for Eliot Spitzer, who won a landslide election in 2006 with a vow to clean up corruption. He has remained out of the spotlight since his shocking resignation, spending time with his wife and three daughters, working for his father's real estate business and occasionally being photographed running in Central Park.

He also assembled a high-powered team of lawyers who made an intense behind-the-scenes lobbying effort with the U.S. attorney's public corruption unit. His legal team included former prosecutors.

But prosecutors' options were limited once they found he didn't violate campaign finance rules.

Authorities could have charged Eliot Spitzer with violating the Mann Act, a federal law that bans carrying women or girls across state lines for "prostitution or debauchery, or for any other immoral purpose." But the legal experts say the law is rarely used to prosecute johns.

"I would have been more surprised had he been charged," said Elkan Abramowitz, chief of the criminal division in the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan in the 1970s. "Once they determined that he didn't use state or campaign money but apparently must have only used his personal money, I am not surprised they decided not to prosecute."

Another former federal prosecutor, Brad Simon, said other factors, including lobbying by Spitzers' attorneys, might have influenced the decision.

Prosecutors "have discretion, and they used it," Simon said.

The lawyer for Ashley Alexandra Dupre, the former call girl whose tryst with Spitzer sparked the investigation, said she's glad the matter is resolved.

"She's going to move on with her life," attorney Don D. Buchwald said.

Four people pleaded guilty in recent months to running the prostitution operation that led to Spitzer's political demise.

Michael C. Farkas, the lawyer one of the escort service's booking agents, blasted the decision not to prosecute Spitzer. His client, 36-year-old Tanya Hollander, pleaded guilty and admitted to helping run the ring, and she is scheduled to be sentenced this month.

"She still faces a jail sentence, while some other more infamous actors in this matter do not. It would be a sad injustice if that were to occur," Farkas said.

Murray Richman, lawyer for the 62-year-old operator of the escort service, Mark Brener, said prosecutors "did the proper thing." He said he could not "perceive how Spitzer was involved in any criminal conduct," noting that the governor did pay a price for his choices.

The lesson of the case "is that if you're a public official, you can't be a private person," he said.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Michelle Obama’s Dress - election night dress ???


Last night not only marked the historic election of Barack Obama, but also his wife Michelle Obama taking on the role of First Lady. We’ve already seen her refined sense of style on the campaign trail, and Michelle upped the style quotient with a fashion-forward Narciso Rodriguez sheath for her husband’s acceptance speech last night. We applaud Michelle’s support for a top American designer and admire her ability to pull off high style with ease. But we want to know what you thought of her dress!

Michelle Obama’s Election Day Dress, The Lob, And Target’s New Designer

Such a historic night! Such an inspiring speech!

And -- sorry, but we have to say it -- such a disasterous dress.

The fashion community is almost speechless about our soon-to-be First Lady Michelle Obama's strange red and black dress.

Blame it on Narciso Rodriquez, a New York fashion designer, who made the bizarre dress that looked more like a Halloween costume than an election night frock.

It's from his spring '09 collection and is described as a red and black sleeveless sheath with a criss-crossed black satin cummerbund.

So that's what that thing is called? Good to know. Now we will avoid dresses with cummerbunds at all cost.

It was great for Michelle to support an American designer. She's been doing that a lot during the campaign, wearing J. Crew, Thakoon, Isabel Toledo and Maria Pinto.

But surely one look in a full-length mirror would have told her that this dress was not flattering.

However, it did match well with her daughters' red and black choices.


Where can you buy Michelle Obama’s election night dress?

For I’m sure Michelle Obama’s election night dress will sell even better than that black and white store dress she wore on The View.

Just digging around, I’ve found the Narcisco Rodriguez collection on Berdorf Goodman, and more here at Neiman Marcus, but I’m still looking for the specific dress Michelle Obama wore.

I also see that Michelle Obama’s dress was part of Narcisco Rodriguez’ Spring 2009 Ready to Wear collection, and seeing as though I’ve never purchased a pret-a-porte dress — that I can think of — I want to know how to find this dress.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Election News : Voting Results

Dixville Notch Voting Results


Dixville Notch has been the first to post voting results since 1960. Every time (other than when Nixon ran) the town has gone Republican, seems even small town real Americans are looking for a change.

McCain: 6

Obama: 15


Obama leads in dash for cash

We knew this was going to be an expensive election when Federal Election Commission officials argued that for any candidate to be taken seriously in the 2008 election, he or she would have to have raised at least $100 million US by the end of 2007.

Now, after candidates, particularly on the Democratic side, have continuously broken fundraising records, the combined amount raised and spent has broken the $1 billion US mark. Here’s a look at
who got what and where it went:

ELECTION: Virginia voting at a record pace

The executive secretary of the State Board of Elections said at a briefing in Richmond that 30 percent to 40 percent of the state's more than 5 million registered voters had cast ballots this morning.

Nancy Rodrigues said that typically the turnout is about one-half of that pace.

She estimated that more than 75 percent of Virginia's registered voters will have cast ballots by the time the polls close at 7 p.m.

While Rodrigues acknowledged long lines at the polls and some problems with voting machines, she said it is not extraordinary given the historic nature of this vote.

Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain have heavily courted Virginia, a battleground state in the presidential election.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Sexy candy corn, Jesse Jane, hosts Halloween at Prive


Jessejane11307_2 A newer Vegas tradition has become the mixture of adult film stars and Halloween costume contests for resort nightclub events. This year Jesse Jane, an adult performer who gets a lot of attention from mainstream media, is hosting a naughtiest costume party at Prive at Planet Hollywood.
(Also, Tao at the Venetian has Tera Patrick as host for its celebration.)

I have interviewed Jane a few times before, at the annual adult convention and film awards that takes place each January at the Venetian and Mandalay Bay. Jane is very friendly and has a bubbly persona that sticks with her in interviews. Most of her answers begin or end in giggles, sometimes both. It is often only when I type up my interviews that I notice how articulate she can be between giggles. In the interview bellow, for example, look at her answer about the connection between porn star hosts, Vegas and Halloween. It was delivered with so many laughs from Jane, I had not realized how insightful her comment was until I read it without the giggles. We talked about her hosting gig tomorrow and some of her other Vegas experiences.

Richard Abowitz: Have you hosted before at a Vegas nightclub?
Jesse Jane: Yes. It has been great. Everyone wants to come to a party in Vegas, and everyone wants to have a good time, and everyone wants to get crazy in Vegas. I threw a party at Cathouse [in the Luxor] a few months ago and we packed the place and everyone had a good time.
Q: What is your Halloween costume going to be?
A: I am going to be a candy corn, a sexy candy corn.
Q: I did not know there were sexy candy corns.
A: Neither did I until I saw it. I have never seen anybody be a candy corn. But then I saw the costume. It has a little skirt with orange, yellow and white stripes. And, there is a sexy bikini top. It is really cute.
Q: What is it about Halloween that you think has Vegas nightclubs in recent years reaching out to porn stars to host?
A: Fantasy. Everyone wants to be in a fantasy. Fantasy is what Halloween is about and that is what adult stars are about. The truth is that we are what a lot of adults fantasize about. The thing about getting an adult star to host a Halloween party in Vegas is that the holiday and Vegas encourage people to let their inhibitions loose. So, when an adult star hosts a party in Vegas on Halloween it creates a chance for people to almost role play by dressing up in sexy costumes, and having fun in a totally comfortable way where no one will judge you. That is why I am there. Everyone wants to be sexy and have fun. And, especially in Vegas, a porn star helps make that environment feel like you are inside the fantasy.
Q: A decade ago hosting an event at a resort would be very unusual for someone in your line of work. I wonder if hosting at a nightclub in Vegas as a mainstream paying gig surprises you and how you enjoy it?
A: It is actually really cool that the doors have opened for us to do this. It is great exposure, and it is a good experience. I also have to tell you that it is very easy. They pay us to come and have fun. You show up, you talk on the microphone to the crowd. It is really refreshing, really relaxing and honestly just cool to be paid to hang out in Vegas.

Katmandu - Walton Among First to Skydive at Everest

Alan Walton, right, stands at the drop zone in Nepal with Nigel Gifford, founder of High & Wild. (Contributed photo)

More than 55 years ago, the first climbers reached the summit of Mt. Everest, the highest peak on the planet. Earlier this month, another milestone was reached when the first people to skydive at Mt. Everest soared in front of the mountain. Westport resident Alan Walton was a participant.

"The jump wasn't all that difficult," said 72-year-old Walton. "Getting there was the problem."

Walton, chairman of the Oxford Bioscience Corp., had been skydiving since he was 57. He first got the notion of skydiving as a professor when a student told him it was of the most terrifying experiences he had even been through.

The trip was organized by High & Wild, a U.K.-based company dedicated to providing "adventure holidays," according to its Web site.

Walton got a call from the founder, Nigel Gifford, who asked if he was interested. He certainly was, but as Walton said, the jump was the easy part.

A plane couldn't simply be taken from Katmandu, the capital of Nepal, and then drop the divers off from the top of the mountain. From Katmandu, Walton had to a take a plane to Lukla Airport, which could be considered more of an airstrip rather than an airport. It's known as one of the most dangerous airports in the world because of weather around Mt. Everest.

"If you saw it, you'd say, 'My god, nobody in their right mind would ever land here,' " Walton said. The next flight after his return crashed on Oct. 8 and killed 18 people. Only the pilot survived.

Walton and the other clients were now 9,000 feet above sea level.

In total, 32 people paid around $24,000 for the experience. Still, the jump couldn't begin just yet. Some of the other jumpers were unaccustomed to the thin air, so they suffered severe altitude sickness. Some of the symptoms include nausea, dehydration and fatigue.

Walton was accustomed to high altitudes since he had been to Mt. Kilimanjaro. Also, being in the sky seems like a natural fit for Walton, who used to fly in the British Royal Air Force Reserves and has taken up piloting jet fighters as a hobby.

As many of the jumpers suffered from altitude sickness, they spent a few days getting acclimated and trekking in the high altitudes. Conditions were rough, especially when nauseous.

Walton gets the thumbs up from, on left, Dave Wood, a professional skydiver and chief instructor at the Cornish Parachute Club, and Tom Noonan, Strong Enterprises tandem director and a tandem jumpmaster. (Contributed photo)
Walton opted to rent a helicopter with his son, Kier, to take them to the drop zone. Kier came along the trip as an observer.

The drop zone is where the plane with the jumpers would take off. Walton explained that 150 sherpas spent a month creating an 1,100-foot landing strip nearly 13,000 feet above sea level.

With such a small margin of error for piloting the aircraft, weather conditions had to be perfect to take off. Unfortunately, they often weren't ideal and this delayed the jumps.

"The weather was the biggest factor," Walton said. "It was misty nearly every day."

Eventually there was a break in the poor weather, so a group of several jumpers were able to get on the small Swiss Pilatus aircraft. The trio jumped at about 29,000 feet. Walton wasn't able to go just yet.

Unfortunately, the weather never totally cleared up so Walton couldn't jump from the same height as the first group. After four days at the drop zone, he was able to do a low-level tandem skydive on Oct.

Everest, the highest peak in the world, in all its heavenly glory. (Contributed photo)
4. In a tandem there are two skydivers connected by a harness.

His jump was 8,000 feet compared to the 17,000 foot drop the first group went through.

"The surrounding views are spectacular when the weather was clear," he said. "When the sun came out it was breathtaking, even on a low-level jump."

Walton was disappointed that he didn't get to do the jump he set out for, so he is contemplating trying again next year.

"I don't know if at 73 I'll be in good enough shape," he said.

For now, he is slated to go much higher than Mt. Everest. Walton was one of the first people signed up to go into space through Virgin Galactic. The company is still working on the technology, but the first flight, which has already been delayed, is planned for 2010.

Alan Walton said that not all of his vacations are quite as epic.

"In between doing crazy things I go on a couple cruises," he said. "I also do old people things like [playing] bridge."