Archive for February, 2009
In the back of my mind, I probably knew that somewhere, someone holds the record for the longest fingernails in the world. I just didn’t really pay attention to it – who does? I am sure that the woman who holds that record does, however!
Lee Redmond, the woman who holds the record for the world’s longest fingernails – held the record would probably be the better term now – was involved in a car accident early in February. The Associate Press reported that she suffered from serious injuries. She seems to be doing fine however as they were not life threatening.
This is what the Guinness World Records has written about her:
Lee Redmond (USA), who has not cut her nails since 1979, has grown and carefully manicured them to reach a total length of 8.65 m (28 ft 4.5 in) as measured on the set of Lo show dei record in Madrid, Spain, on 23 February 2008.
The longest nail is the right thumb: 90 cm (2 ft 11 in).
After the accident, however, Redmond’s reign as the queen of fingernails was cut short. Lt. Don Hutson, from the Salt Lake County Sheriff. No specific information has been released as to how long – or short – her fingernails are now. Do take a look at that picture, though. I cannot even begin to imagine how she can carry on with her daily life with those fingernails! Perhaps, since she is not the record holder anymore, at least she can live a more normal life?
Sometimes, when people try to pull off a scam, they do not pay much attention to the details, do they? Take this latest scam which borders on the ridiculous. Someone, somewhere out there, stole the identity of a man who has long passed away; created a credit card account in that man’s name, and then managed to charge over a $1,000 in phone sex bills.
Unfortunately – or fortunately, as the case may be – the bill went to the widow of the “card holder.” Arlene Hald, 86 years old, received a credit card bill from Preferred Platinum Plan. The bill was addressed to her husband Sylvester, who passed away about 20 years ago. Hald declares that they never had a credit card.
Naturally, the family took action and contacted Preferred Platinum Plan. To be fair to them, they immediately agreed to “remove the charges.” Then again, there should be no question about that, right? The company was probably still non-existent when Sylvester passed away!
Peggy Rytych, Arlene Hald’s daughter has stated that it was probably a case of ID theft and she may very well be right. While they were satisfied that the phone sex bill incident was taken care of, they had another surprise coming. Not long after that matter was resolved, another bill arrived – this time for $70.
These companies do not seem to get it, do they? I think that it is time for someone to take a closer look into this Preferred Platinum Plan entity. You would think that they were stricter on these things.
Newspapers all over the world – both online and offline – exploded with all sorts of stories when a picture of Michael Phelps holding a bong was released. The picture was supposedly taken in November at a college party in South Carolina. The photo released to the world was of Michael holding the bong. Although nothing concrete could be seen from the picture, the swimming superstar admitted to smoking from it.
The results were obviously devastating to this person whom everyone held in high regard. He already has had several endorsement deals cancelled because of the incident. On the legal end, however, Michael Phelps has nothing to worry about now. According to the sheriff’s department of Richland County, South Carolina, where the photo was taken, there is no physical evidence that any law has been broken.
While the Olympic medalist admitted to “inappropriate behavior,” there was no mention of marijuana or any other illegal substance use. As such, no charges can be filed – and none will be filed. Phelps’s statement prior to this announcement was:
I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner that people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public — it will not happen again.
He has not gotten off totally free though. He has been suspended by USA Swimming from competition for 3 months starting February 6. Kellogg Co. will not renew its deal with Phelps.
Still, it seems that the swimmer continues to be a hero for many. In Sheriff Leon Lott’s words, “Michael Phelps is truly an American hero. But even with his star status, he is obligated to obey the laws of our state.”
News about the woman giving birth to octuplets made the headlines about a week ago. Since then, people have been giving their own points of view regarding the matter. There have been supportive people while there have been people who criticized the woman for choosing be artificially inseminated with so many babies at once – especially since she already has 6 children. No matter how much noise was made about the multiple births, the mother kept mum for a while.
Now, she has come out into the open and spoken her piece. Nadya Suleman, the mother of 8 newborns and 6 other children, was interviewed today by Ann Curry of NBC. In the interview, she acknowledged that she had 6 embryos implanted – more than the standard recommendations of the fertility industry. However, she said that she was aware that multiple births were a possibility and that she wanted them all.
Nadya, together with the medical professionals involved, has been severely criticized for her decision. This is taking into consideration the fact that she is a single mother and unemployed at that. She stands by her decision however, and said that it has always been her dream to have a HUGE family, being an only child. She also said that her childhood was pretty dysfunctional and that she has always wanted to become a mom.
Octuplets being born – and living this long – are very very rare. In fact, multiple births are considered a rarity and usually attract a lot of attention, including sponsorships.
Photo courtesy of www.blahmerica.com/
Brain cancer cases are on the rise and the search for a cure is one of the most pressing undertakings of our generation. We have grown by leaps and bounds in our quest to understand the human brain and how it functions but it is still not enough to answer all our questions. Some of the best sources of information might be the most unlikely ones for as individual we are as our fingerprints, so does the manifestation of the disease and the best defense is access to the latest news and developments. Technology has greatly improved our access to information, through our computers, mobiles and portable computers we have with us each and everyday. On the road, we can get the latest information on diseases other news by simply logging into our preferred sites handing us information where ever, whenever you need it. You get the latest news about just about anything, even as you wait in line for the bus. Need the latest news on just about anything anywhere, then the internet is the place to go, so log on and start searching.
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