Muscle-Toning Shoes

Coming off an injury that basically destroyed my calf-muscle (yeah, tearing it plus a fractured tibia can do that), I've been on physical therapy since mid-soccer season. This started right after the injury occured, and was mostly massages and stretching with no actual work involved. This of course led to my muscle becoming a wet noodle, and me freaking out over the fact that I couldn't run or play sports the rest of junior year. Now I'm doing more work with it in physical therapy, but I still don't think I can get it back to how it was after hell week of soccer in August.

Now, there are all these advertisements, of shoes that will tone and do all this cool stuff for your body, by just walking in them. Not running, just walking. To me, this sounds rediculous, because there are always shoes that are said to be great fro running and working out, and then aren't. (Ahem Nike Shox) (Yes I own a pair but leave me alone they match my gym clothes) These new shoes, such as EasyTone from Adidas, Shape-Ups from Sketchers, and "Fit Flops" from who knows where, are being introduced the consumers and well, Consumers are buying them.

Officials from Reebok, a unit of Adidas, say the EasyTone is the company’s most successful new product in at least five years.Shape-Ups from Skechers USA are designed to improve posture and muscle tone and promote weight loss. The FitFlop brand has been engineered to increase leg, calf and gluteal muscle activity, giving the wearer “a workout while you walk.”

These shoes have all different sorts of developments such as "balance pods" and curved soles that "make" posture better, and tone all sorts of leg muscles. But the biggest attraction of these shoes is of course, the fact that they'll shape your butt.

When in fact, a lot of this research has been put out there, only to be proven by a small number of people. Most of it is psychological, because when people think they're getting a better work out when they walk, they'll walk more, therefore they'll be more in shape.

I just think it's funny, America ever being in shape.

Mary Arnott rocks

Nothing ever exciting happens here at Calhoun, you know, except for the really classy girls who set fires in bathrooms that are MADE OUT OF TILE. It's a pretty boring town, no big disasters, no real famous celebrities that come visit (sorry Lindsay, you don't count, ever).

Now St. Peter's Girls High School in Staten Island, is definately where the party's at. Just recently, a woman named Mary Arnott, graduated and finally recieved her diploma. Now, I know I may not have mentioned this, but Mary Arnott...is 100 years old. Arnott was forced to drop out and care for her siblings after her mother died, and the former New Yorker never got the chance to graduate, until now.

Arnott went to night school and later worked for 12 years as a secretary in Manhatten. She left the city for Toronto after getting married in 1940. She survived scarlet fever, lost her husband and 30-year-old son within a few months and traveled the world - Arnott always regretted not earning a diploma.

Then her granddaughter Allison contacted St. Peter's.

"Her life story more than made up for the months she didn't spend in school,"

said Mary Haugen, the school's assistant principal and president of the alumni association.

Haugen sent the diploma with a picture of what would have been Arnott's graduating class circa-1925. The surprise gift was the highlight of Arnott's birthday party a few months ago. The diploma hangs proudly above her bed atop certificates from universities attended by members of her family.

Arnott remains healthy and active, swimming twice a week and enjoying the occasional glass of wine.

So basically, Mary Arnott, rocks.

American Music Awards

Last night, airing on ABC were the American Music Awards. I don't usually watch these things, but last nights performers were all musicians I liked, and wanted to see live, some of them for the first time.

A line up of 17, yes, 17 performers including acts ranging from; R&B acts like Whitney Houston,Pop acts Jay-Z (no I do not count him as a rap act when Alicia Keys is in the song) and Rihanna, (Alternative) Rock acts such as Green Day and Daughtry, even country acts like Keith Urban and Carrie Underwood wowed the crowd with what seemed like a never-ending list of performances. (see full list of performers here)

Some memorable acts were the "returns" of both Rihanna and Jennifer Lopez, who in my opinion was one of the best performances of the night, debuting her new song "Louboutins".

(Even though she literally fell down, she managed to keep her cool and continue on with her "comeback performance".)

Rihanna on the other hand played a collaboration of songs off her new album called "Rated R". This was her first performance after the Chris Brown incident, and she came back strong with a powerful pairing of new songs.
(Plus her super cool jacket that reflected the strobe and laser lights, was actually the sickest thing i've ever seen.)

The only part of the show that really bothered me, out of all the performers and nominees, was the fact that Taylor Swift won Artist of the Year over Michael Jackson, it's true that he wouldn have won it because he died, but his death did have an enormous impact on the musical world. Swift was intelligent enough to mention the Jackson's in her acceptance speech (via video-feed from London), which consoled me a little bit.

After that, Adam Lambert, who some say went too far, closed the show in his break-out performance also, which was of his new single "For Your Entertainment". I say it was brilliance and confidence, and that's awesome to have at the beginning of his sure to be fantastic career, following the footsteps of the sucessful post-American Idol artists.

Sarah Palin

Everybody knows who Sarah Palin is, running mate of John McCain in the most recent Presidential election. Obviously McCain lost the election to Barack Obama in somewhat of a landslide victory of sorts. Sarah Palin, McCain's intelligent attempt at winning back over Hillary Clinton's women supporters, ran for Vice President.

Palin hasn't been the most, educated nor professional political persona, stating pretty...dumb things during her campaign, that voters and people all over the world took note of. Aside from saying things, she's also been involved now in all sorts of drama involving her teenage-daughter-mother-lady Bristol Palin and ex-boyfriend / ex-fiancee Levi Johnston drama. The feud between the two obviously getting major negative press attention, causing Palin representatives so say things such as,

"It is unfortunate that Levi finds it more appealing to exploit his previous relationship with Bristol than to contribute to the well-being of the child"

and

"We're disappointed that Levi and his family, in a quest for fame, attention and fortune, are engaging in flat-out lies, gross exaggeration and even distortion of their relationship".

These types of statements causing the Johnston family to fight back, and for it to lower Palin's actual credibility even more.

With all this going on and being a subject of the media, one would think Sarah Palin would lay off a bit, maybe relax.
Not a chance.

As seen here, Palin posed for a cover of Newsweek, with "thoughts" of it only being displayed in Runner's World magazine. Nothing ever goes that smoothly Mrs. Palin. Especially not with you. The former governer (she stepped down, by the way) of Alaska seems to just keep herself out there, no matter if it's negative or positive, and if it's political, or not.

Extra Credit Blog - Civil Liberties

This spring, civil liberties groups and internet companies became extremely concerned when a US Senate Bill proposed that the White House would be able to disconnect and somewhat control private computers from the internet. Even with this bill already starting drama, Senator Jay Rockafeller of West Virginia and his aides have been revising the bill behind closed doors since this whole thing began.

The new version being drafted would allow the president to "declare a cybersecurity emergency" relating to computer networks not involving the government and do what's necessary to respond and react to the threat. Other sections of this new proposal include a government certification program for "cybersecurity professionals," and a requirement that some private computer systems and networks in be managed by people who have that liscense.

Does this new possible bill interfere with our rights? Does the government, no, should the government have the ability to control the internet? A place where words fly and opinions are expressed through every type of media possibly known to man. When the bill was introduced in april, supporters of passing it claimed it was to "protect national cybersecurity".

Lee Tien, a senior staff attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco.

"As soon as you're saying that the federal government is going to be exercising
this kind of power over private networks, it's going to be a really big issue,"

he says.

Why should buisnesses be private in the first place, if the government can all of a sudden propose and revise a bill giving them power to basically de-privatize the system. This bill impedes on our civil liberties, and impedes on the rights of the people.

Thanksgiving >< Christmas

So now that Halloween has passed, the next holiday coming up is Thanksgiving correct? Correct. Now why is it that all the stores completely surpass this holiday? We go from seeing jack-o-lanterns and pumpkins used to decorate every store, to all of a sudden Christmas trees, snow-men and holiday lights? It's ridiculous that Thanksgiving is completely skipped, and all this Christmas stuff is coming out way too early for my liking.

I understand the preparations for Black Friday, arguably the most intense shopping day of the year, being taken by Wal-Mart, to be taken relatively early. Considering it's when a majority of sales-driven customers do their "power Christmas shopping", but I don't understand the fact that stores are lining the aisles with Christmas decorations! It's only November!

I think what really annoys me most is when Christmas songs are being played on the radio. The other day I was literally on my way home around 3pm, and Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas" began pounding through my mom's speakers. This made her start ranting but then again she's a mother so she does that anyway. Thanksgiving is completely overshadowed by early Christmas celebration and decoration, and to me is being turned into more of an obligation than a holiday.

School fundraisers and food drives are what Thanksgiving is now representing, there are rarely any turkey decorations in stores, any autumn themed town cheer, it's just everybody getting ready for a holiday that's over 40 days away. Thanksgiving isn't supposed to be about the obligation, it's supposed to be about spending time with one's family and being grateful for the things you have. Not getting extra points for bringing in a can, or better yet having 5 year old Justin Bieber come to your school to squeal, I mean, sing, for you.

We're losing the meaning of Thanksgiving, and it's all because of Early Christmas.

Gustavo Zamora

This week I came across an article that absolutely blew my mind. That was an exaggeration, so yeah just kidding but it came up on AOL with the headline reading: Snatched 55 Kids Around the World. I clicked it thinking he would be in jail, or suffering these horrible consquences, because the words make it seem like a kidnapper or a child abducter. What I read was the complete opposite.

A man named Gustavo Zamora, Gus, for short, has gone around the world "re-claiming" children from custody battle "losers". What this means is, if a couple gets divorced with children involved, therefore leading to a custody battle, the losing parent sometimes (I know, shocking) will take the child and flee the country, with no destination and no information on where they're going. Gus, and his associates, conveniently named Zamora & Associates make it their duty to find the child and bring him/her/them back home to the rightfully custodied parent.

You might be thinking, how is this possibly legal, but keep in mind the custody-losing parent in all reality as harsh as it may sound, is a kidnapper, even though it is their child. Zamora makes sure that he reviews the cases to make sure his clients are within their rights.

As a last resort, Zamora said, he will grab the child and run. "That's when you've run out of other options," he said. Zamora will go through all means necessary, facing opposing governments, using threats if necessary, for when things don't go peacefully, which is his preference.

Gustavo Zamora is not just some hard-ass former army ranger who re-steals children for a living, he recognizes in a quote from his website that,"I wish the system worked, but the fact that it doesn't works means I'll be working" he recognizes that these children are in horrible situations either way, but the government and the "winning" parent, need to be shown justice.