The 10 Craziest Lawsuits of 2012

To a black ESPN sports analyst, this is the critical question: Is Robert Griffin III, aka RG III, the black rookie sensation Washington Redskins quarterback, "a brother, or is he a cornball brother?" What has RG III done or said to raise a suspicion about his bona fides as a black person? More importantly, what does this have to do with appreciating ? or choosing not to appreciate ? Griffin as an athlete?

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/10-craziest-lawsuits-2012-152835298.html

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Teens Facebook Their Way Through Class, Study Finds

Paying attention? A new study finds that 94 percent of Israeli high school students surf social media sites during class. ?

The students are accessing these sites through their cell phones, according to the study conducted by University of Haifa researchers, and only 4 percent said they never pulled their phones out during class.

"Based on our findings, there is almost no moment during any class when some pupil isn't using their cell phone," the researchers said in a statement.

Smartphones in school

The majority of Israeli teens have cell phones, according to political science professor Itali Beeri and pre-doctoral student Dana Daniel, who conducted the study. In the United States, smartphone use is also high: 31 percent of 14- to 17-year-olds have their own smartphone, according to a 2012 Pew Research Center Report.

Likewise, teens the world over love social media. Nearly three-quarters, or 73 percent, of teens who use the Internet have at least one social network account such as Facebook or Twitter, according to a 2010 Pew survey. ?

The new Israeli study surveyed 591 students in grades nine through 12 at three different high schools. In addition, 144 teachers answered questions about their students' mobile phone use during class.

The vast majority of students, 94 percent, said they accessed social media or file-sharing sites "from time to time" or more frequently during class. About 95 percent said they use their phones to make recordings or take pictures during class for non-schoolwork-related purposes, and 94 percent emailed or texted during lectures. About 93 percent of the students said they listened to music on their phones during class, and 91 percent talked on the phone. [10 Technologies That Will Transform Your Life]

Education or distraction?

The researchers assessed the frequency of these mobile phone distractions and found that the average pupil uses a cell phone in 60 percent of his or her classes. Contrary to expectation, cell phone use was actually higher in classes where the teacher used a strict discipline style than in classes with permissive teachers.

Boredom or apathy could be behind the rampant cell phone use, as higher-level classrooms had less cell phone use. High school seniors also buckled down, using their phones during class less often than 10th graders.

While cell phone use is a real concern among educators given the potential distractions, some schools have tried to embrace technology. In 2009, 53 fifth-grade students at Trinity Meadows Intermediate School in Keller, Tex., were given phones pre-loaded with educational software in an attempt to engage them in their lessons.

Follow Stephanie Pappas on Twitter @sipappas?or LiveScience @livescience. We're also on Facebook?& Google+.

Copyright 2012 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/teens-facebook-way-class-study-finds-193715141.html

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Fees undermine fliers' ability to compare fares

FILE - This Dec. 21, 2012 file photo shows travelers walking to a ticketing desk at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. For many passengers, air travel is only about finding the cheapest fare. But as airlines offer a proliferating list of add-on services, from early boarding to premium seating and baggage fees, the ability to comparison-shop for the lowest total fare is eroding. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

FILE - This Dec. 21, 2012 file photo shows travelers walking to a ticketing desk at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. For many passengers, air travel is only about finding the cheapest fare. But as airlines offer a proliferating list of add-on services, from early boarding to premium seating and baggage fees, the ability to comparison-shop for the lowest total fare is eroding. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

(AP) ? For many passengers, air travel is only about finding the cheapest fare.

But as airlines offer a proliferating list of add-on services, from early boarding to premium seating and baggage fees, the ability to comparison-shop for the lowest total fare is eroding.

Global distribution systems that supply flight and fare data to travel agents and online ticketing services like Orbitz and Expedia, accounting for half of all U.S. airline tickets, complain that airlines won't provide fee information in a way that lets them make it handy for consumers trying to find the best deal.

"What other industry can you think of where a person buying a product doesn't know how much it's going to cost even after he's done at the checkout counter?" said Simon Gros, chairman of the Travel Technology Association, which represents the global distribution services and online travel industries.

The harder airlines make it for consumers to compare, "the greater opportunity you have to get to higher prices," said Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition, whose members include corporate travel managers.

Now the Obama administration is wading into the issue. The Department of Transportation is considering whether to require airlines to provide fee information to everyone with whom they have agreements to sell their tickets. A decision originally scheduled for next month has been postponed to May, as regulators struggle with a deluge of information from airlines opposed to regulating fee information, and from the travel industry and consumer groups that support such a requirement.

Meanwhile, Spirit Airlines, Allegiant Air and Southwest Airlines ? with backing from industry trade associations ? are asking the Supreme Court to reverse an appeals court ruling forcing them to include taxes in their advertised fares. The appeals court upheld a Transportation Department rule that went in effect nearly a year ago that ended airlines' leeway to advertise a base airfare and show the taxes separately, often in smaller print. Airlines say the regulations violate their free-speech rights.

At the heart of the debate is a desire by airlines to move to a new marketing model in which customers don't buy tickets based on price alone. Instead, following the well-worn path of other consumer companies, airlines want to mine personal data about customers in order to sell them tailored services. You like to sit on the aisle and to ski, so how would you like to fly to Aspen with an aisle seat and a movie, no extra baggage charge for your skis, and have a hotel room and a pair of lift tickets waiting for you, all for one price? You're a frequent business traveler. How about priority boarding, extra legroom, Internet access and a rental car when you arrive?

"Technology is changing rapidly. We are going to be part of the change," said Sharon Pinkerton, vice president of Airlines for America, which represents most U.S. carriers. "We want to be able to offer our customers a product that's useful to them, that's customized to meet their needs, and we don't think (the Transportation Department) needs to step in."

If airlines have their way, passengers looking for ticket prices may have to reveal a lot more information about themselves, such as their age, marital status, gender, nationality, travel history and whether they're flying for business or leisure. The International Air Transport Association, whose 240 member airlines cover 84 percent of global airline traffic, adopted standards at a meeting earlier this month in Geneva for such information gathering by airlines as well as by travel agents and ticketing services that would relay the data to airlines and receive customized fares in return.

"Airlines want, and expect, their (ticket) distribution partners to offer passengers helpful contextual information to make well-informed purchase decisions, reducing the number of reservations made based primarily or exclusively on price," said a study commissioned by the association.

Consumer advocates question how airlines would safeguard the personal information they gather, and they worry that comparison shopping for the cheapest air fares will no longer be feasible.

"It's like going to a supermarket where before you get the price, they ask you to swipe your driver's license that shows them you live in a rich zip code, you drive a BMW, et cetera," Mitchell said. "All this personal information on you is going out to all these carriers with no controls over what they do with it, who sees it and so on."

The airline association said consumers who choose not to supply personal information would still be able to see fares and purchase tickets, though consumer advocates said those fares would probably be at the "rack rate" ? the travel industry's term for full price, before any discounts.

It's up to individual airlines whether they price fares differently for travelers who don't provide personal information, said Perry Flint, a spokesman for the international airline association.

The stakes, of course, are enormous. Since 2000, U.S. airlines have lost money for more years than they've made profits. Fee revenue has made a big difference in their bottom lines. Globally, airlines raked in an estimated $36 billion this year in ancillary revenue, which includes baggage fees and other a la carte services as well as sales of frequent flyer points and commissions on hotel bookings, according to a study by Amadeus, a global distribution service, and the IdeaWorksCompany, a U.S. firm that helps airlines raise ancillary revenue. U.S. airlines reported collecting nearly $3.4 billion in baggage fees alone in 2011.

One expense airlines would like to eliminate is the $7 billion a year they pay global distribution systems to supply flight and fare information to travel agents and online booking agents like Expedia. Airlines want to deal more directly with online ticket sellers and travel agents, who dominate the lucrative business travel market. Justice Department officials have acknowledged an investigation is underway into possible anti-trust violations by distribution companies.

Airlines also have been cracking down on websites that help travelers manage their frequent flier accounts. The sites use travelers' frequent flier passwords to obtain balances and mileage expiration dates, and then display the information in a way that makes it easier for travelers to figure out when it makes more sense to buy a ticket or to use miles.

"What the airlines are trying to do right now is reinvent the wheel so they can hold all their information close to their chest," said Charles Leocha, founder of the Consumer Travel Alliance. "As we move forward in a world of IT, the ownership of passenger data is like gold to these people."

By withholding information like fee prices, he said, "we are forced to go see them, and then we are spoon-fed what they want to feed us."

___

Airlines for America http://www.airlines.org

Travel Technology Association http://www.traveltechnologyassociation.org

Business Travel Coalition http://businesstravelcoalition.com/

___

Follow Joan Lowy at http://www.twitter.com/AP_Joan_Lowy

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-12-26-US-Airline-Fees/id-7b3d88cf1c664c75b8838cb9d5361560

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Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office east bank crime report, Dec. 24 ...

This information reflects initial calls for service reported by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office for the east bank of Jefferson Parish. Locations are approximate due to automated location methods and address inconsistencies, the Sheriff's Office says. Burglar alarm calls are excluded.
3100 block of 1 - Dec. 24, 5:36 p.m., disturbing the peace.
17th Street and Taft Pk - Dec. 24, 2:14 a.m., suspicious person.
18th Street and Division Street - Dec. 24, 1:43 p.m., vehicle wreck.
6th Street and North Causeway Boulevard - Dec. 24, 9:40 a.m., vehicle wreck.
3500 block of Airline Drive - Dec. 24, 2:37 p.m., theft.
6200 block of Airline Drive - Dec. 24, 8:22 a.m., criminal damage.
Airline Drive and Hickory Avenue - Dec. 24, 12:10 p.m., suspicious person.
Airline Drive and North Lester Avenue - Dec. 24, 3:23 p.m., vehicle wreck.
300 block of Bengal Road - Dec. 24, 5:31 p.m., suspicious person.
Bengal Road and Newton Street - Dec. 24, 1:21 p.m., suspicious person.
4200 block of Bissonet Drive - Dec. 24, 10:53 a.m., battery.
Bissonet Drive and West Esplanade Avenue - Dec. 24, 6:03 a.m., suspicious person.
1900 block of Blk Houma Boulevard - Dec. 24, 2:28 p.m., suspicious person.
3600 block of Blk West Metairie Avenue North - Dec. 24, 8:31 p.m., suspicious person.
800 block of Bonnabel Boulevard - Dec. 24, 7:11 a.m., vehicle wreck.
Carrollton Avenue and Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 6:35 p.m., vehicle wreck.
1000 block of North Causeway Boulevard - Dec. 24, 8:07 a.m., auto theft.
2200 block of North Causeway Boulevard - Dec. 24, 4:11 a.m., drug law violation.
North Causeway Boulevard and Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 11:18 a.m., vehicle wreck.
North Causeway Boulevard and Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 11:47 a.m., vehicle wreck.
700 block of Central Avenue - Dec. 24, 2:43 p.m., vehicle wreck.
700 block of Central Avenue - Dec. 24, 3:40 p.m., disturbing the peace.
Civic Street and Manson Avenue - Dec. 24, 8:41 p.m., suspicious person.
Civic Street and Manson Avenue - Dec. 24, 9:09 p.m., suspicious person.
1200 block of South Clearview Parkway - Dec. 24, 11:20 a.m., theft.
1200 block of South Clearview Parkway - Dec. 24, 3:13 p.m., disturbing the peace.
700 block of Clearview Parkway - Dec. 24, 6:18 p.m., theft.
South Clearview Parkway and Airline Drive - Dec. 24, 6:26 p.m., suspicious person.
2100 block of Cleary Avenue - Dec. 24, 4:24 p.m., vehicle wreck.
2900 block of Cleary Avenue - Dec. 24, 5:13 p.m., disturbing the peace.
3000 block of Cleary Avenue - Dec. 24, 6:27 p.m., vehicle wreck.
3100 block of Cleary Avenue - Dec. 24, 3:12 p.m., battery.
David Drive and Power Boulevard - Dec. 24, 1:06 p.m., disturbing the peace.
4000 block of Durand Street - Dec. 24, 6:08 p.m., battery.
4500 block of West Esplanade Avenue - Dec. 24, 1:03 p.m., vehicle wreck.
West Esplanade Avenue and Conlin Street - Dec. 24, 9:05 p.m., vehicle wreck.
4400 block of Ferran Drive - Dec. 24, 1:09 p.m., vehicle wreck.
Focis Street and Chrysanthemum Street - Dec. 24, 10:42 a.m., vehicle wreck.
1800 block of Giuffrias Avenue - Dec. 24, 8:18 p.m., criminal damage.
2200 block of Giuffrias Avenue - Dec. 24, 10:56 a.m., criminal damage.
2500 block of Houma Boulevard - Dec. 24, 6:34 a.m., criminal damage.
2800 block of Houma Boulevard - Dec. 24, 12:19 a.m., disturbing the peace.
3800 block of Houma Boulevard - Dec. 24, 8:18 p.m., disturbing the peace.
3900 block of North Interstate 10 Service Road West - Dec. 24, 12:42 a.m., suspicious person.
3900 block of South Interstate 10 Service Road West - Dec. 24, 10:57 a.m., suspicious person.
10000 block of Jefferson Highway - Dec. 24, 8:38 a.m., vehicle burglary.
10900 block of Jefferson Highway - Dec. 24, 8:57 a.m., disturbing the peace.
1500 block of Jefferson Highway - Dec. 24, 9:36 a.m., battery.
5100 block of Jefferson Highway - Dec. 24, 1:14 p.m., theft.
Kawanee Avenue and Academy Drive - Dec. 24, 8:55 a.m., vehicle wreck.
Kent Avenue and Rye Street - Dec. 24, 11:29 p.m., suspicious person.
4400 block of Lefkoe Street - Dec. 24, 9:31 a.m., residence burglary.
3800 block of Leila Place - Dec. 24, 2:13 p.m., suspicious person.
6800 block of Madewood Drive - Dec. 24, 7:43 p.m., vehicle wreck.
1300 block of Mason Smith Avenue - Dec. 24, 6:34 p.m., theft.
4200 block of West Metairie Avenue - Dec. 24, 10:18 p.m., residence burglary.
4400 block of Newlands Street - Dec. 24, 11:17 p.m., vehicle burglary.
3700 block of Pontiac Street - Dec. 24, 8:22 p.m., disturbing the peace.
Power Boulevard and Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 11:13 a.m., vehicle wreck.
2400 block of Richland Avenue - Dec. 24, 3:13 a.m., suspicious person.
6200 block of Riverside Drive - Dec. 24, 3:02 a.m., disturbing the peace.
6300 block of Riverside Drive - Dec. 24, 7:27 p.m., suspicious person.
1900 block of Severn Avenue - Dec. 24, 7:44 p.m., suspicious person.
Severn Avenue and Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 2:48 p.m., vehicle wreck.
4400 block of Tabony Street - Dec. 24, 10:23 p.m., suspicious person.
600 block of Terrace Street - Dec. 24, 12:13 p.m., residence burglary.
Trudeau Drive and Airline Drive - Dec. 24, 1:05 a.m., suspicious person.
2800 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 3:26 p.m., theft.
2800 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 4:50 p.m., theft.
2900 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 5:04 p.m., disturbing the peace.
3300 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 11:16 a.m., suspicious person.
3300 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 4:05 p.m., disturbing the peace.
3300 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 4:26 p.m., theft.
3300 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 4:39 p.m., drug law violation.
4200 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 6:40 p.m., vehicle wreck.
4300 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 4:54 a.m., battery.
4600 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 7:30 p.m., disturbing the peace.
4700 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 7:48 p.m., suspicious person.
4800 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 7:45 p.m., suspicious person.
6200 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 1:00 p.m., theft.
700 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 2:36 p.m., theft.
7000 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 12:41 p.m., theft.
8900 block of Veterans Memorial Boulevard - Dec. 24, 12:41 p.m., vehicle burglary.
Veterans Memorial Boulevard and Bonnabel Boulevard - Dec. 24, 2:09 p.m., vehicle wreck.
Veterans Memorial Boulevard and Cleary Avenue - Dec. 24, 1:14 p.m., vehicle wreck.
Veterans Memorial Boulevard and Mississippi Avenue - Dec. 24, 1:08 p.m., battery.
Wilker Neal Avenue and Jefferson Highway - Dec. 24, 11:40 a.m., vehicle wreck.
800 block of North Woodlawn Avenue - Dec. 24, 4:39 a.m., vehicle wreck.
4800 block of York Street - Dec. 24, 11:30 a.m., vehicle burglary.
4800 block of York Street - Dec. 24, 12:27 p.m., vehicle burglary.

Source: http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2012/12/jefferson_parish_sheriffs_offi_1229.html

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Kaffeine Communications: Rubik Snake | Ads of the World?

May your puzzles all be solved in upcoming 2013.

Advertising Agency: Kaffeine, Kiev, Ukraine
Creative Directors: Dima Tsapko, Anze Jereb
Art Directors: Dima Tsapko, Roman Davydyuk
Designer: Roman Davydyuk
Copywriter: Nadya Skrynnyk
Published: December 2012

Source: http://adsoftheworld.com/media/print/kaffeine_communications_rubik_snake

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Home prices rose in October, survey shows

10 hrs.

Single-family home prices rose in October for nine months in a row, reinforcing the view the domestic real estate market is improving and should bolster the economy in 2013, a closely watched survey showed on Wednesday.?

The S&P/Case Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas gained 0.7 percent in October on a seasonally adjusted basis, stronger than the 0.5 percent rise forecast by economists polled by Reuters.?

"Looking over this report, and considering other data on housing starts and sales, it is clear that the housing recovery is gathering strength," David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at Standard & Poor's, said in a statement.?

While record low mortgage rates and modest job growth should keep the housing recovery on track, analysts cautioned home prices face downward pressure from a likely pickup in the sales of foreclosed and distressed properties and reduced buying investors and speculators.?

Prices in the 20 cities rose 4.3 percent year over year, beating expectations for a rise of 4.0 percent.?

Las Vegas posted the biggest monthly rise on a seasonally adjusted basis at 2.4 percent, followed by a 1.7 percent increase in San Diego, the latest Case-Shiller data showed.?

"Higher year-over-year price gains plus strong performances in the Southwest and California, regions that suffered during the housing bust, confirm that housing is now contributing to the economy," Blitzer said.?

Housing contributed 10 percent to the overall U.S. economic growth in the third quarter, while the sector represented less than 3 percent of gross domestic product, he said.?

Last week, the government said U.S. GDP expanded at a stronger-than-expected 3.1 percent annualized pace in the third quarter.?

Excluding seasonal factors, however, home prices in 12 of the 20 cities fell in October from September as home values tend to decline in fall and winter, Blitzer said.?

Chicago experienced the largest non-seasonally adjusted decline at 1.5 percent, followed by a 1.4 percent fall in Boston.?

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/economywatch/home-prices-rose-october-survey-shows-1C7659315

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Calgary widow's videos offer glimpse into diabetes epidemic (with ...

CALGARY ? On the night of Sept. 15, 2012, Jim and Judy Wilkie were having a rare disagreement.

?He wanted to stay,? says the 62-year-old Calgary native. ?He was in a lot of pain and I knew he was only hanging on for me.?

The next evening, Wilkie?s husband of 44 years closed his eyes for the last time, his passing a peaceful conclusion to years of severe discomfort and deterioration from the myriad complications that can accompany Type 2 diabetes.

Before he died, though, Jim had made sure he left a legacy for the world, one in which he gave a graphic, no-holds-barred depiction of what it was like to live, and die, with the disease. With the help of his wife, who videotaped their sessions together, the two created hours worth of video so that others might learn from his ordeal.

?Diabetes is an epidemic, there are many more families that will find themselves in our situation,? says Wilkie of Type 2 diabetes, which currently afflicts more than three million Canadians, a number expected to rise to 3.7 million by 2020. ?Someone has to speak up about what it?s like to go through this.?

Type 1 diabetes, most commonly diagnosed in people before age 30, is due to the pancreas not being able to produce insulin. It is not preventable, and its cause is still unknown.

Type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, is largely blamed on a sedentary lifestyle, bad nutrition and smoking. Numerous studies have shown that by increasing physical activity, keeping a healthy weight and eating well, many of the symptoms can either be prevented entirely or managed.

The explosion in obesity rates in North America have resulted in more than 26 million people, an increasing number of them under the age of 45, being diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes.

Jim Wilkie wasn?t obese; he didn?t smoke and rarely drank alcohol. What the nearly 20-year employee of the Coca-Cola Company?s Calgary bottling plant did do was rely on soda pop to keep him fuelled throughout the day; frequent stops to fast-food restaurants were also part of his daily routine.

?That was our demise,? says Judy Wilkie of the all-too-common combination of sugary soda drinks and prepared foods. ?There is too much fructose and sugar everywhere, it?s one of the big reasons why there are so many more people today being diagnosed.?

His last years of struggle were in stark contrast to the vibrant life Jim Wilkie lived for 66 years.

?He was such a beautiful person, so full of heart and energy,? says Wilkie of the man she fell in love with when she was just 16 years old.

Jim, who was 20, was in the military and had just moved to Calgary from Nova Scotia to train at Canadian Forces Base Calgary (the base was closed in 1998). The pair met at a house party just a few blocks from the base as he was preparing for a tour in Cyprus.

?From that moment on, we were in our own world together,? says Judy, adding that they eloped to Moscow, Idaho, when she turned 18. ?My parents wanted me to marry a lawyer, not a soldier,? she says with a chuckle.

The young couple settled in southwest Calgary, where Judy juggled a successful catering business with raising two active boys.

When he wasn?t busy with his job at Coca-Cola, Jim played football with his boys and golf with his best friends. Son Bob took to the game of hockey, playing for the Detroit Red Wings and Philadelphia Flyers.

?We had the ultimate lifestyle,? says Judy of those years. ?Life was so good.?

Things began to change as Jim entered his mid-50s. He started feeling lethargic, experiencing occasional numbness in his feet. At his wife?s urging, he finally went to a doctor. ?It?s such a silent disease, so internal,? says Judy. ?The doctor told him he had high blood pressure and that the diabetes had already done a lot of damage.?

Over the next decade, Jim?s condition would steadily worsen. After years of infections and mobility issues, he woke up one morning to find his left foot had turned black. ?He had a toe and a piece of foot amputated,? says Judy.

That crisis would be followed by ever more serious ones. He had his right leg amputated just below the knee; his condition was also resulting in troubles with both his eyesight and hearing.

?Then his kidneys gave out,? says Judy, who then accepted the offer by their son Bob to move her and Jim into the country home he shared with his wife and two kids. ?He needed dialysis three times a week.?

Spending the past two years in their eldest son?s home, with a view of the Rockies and everyday contact with the grandkids, says Judy, ?was the greatest gift we could have received.?

This past August, Jim?s condition worsened to the point he had to be hospitalized. ?We decided to start videotaping his story,? she says.

Once she gets through her first Christmas without her beloved husband, Judy says she plans to start a non-profit organization called Sweet Ripple of Change, with a website that will include a blog, information on resources for diabetics and Jim?s final videos.

?Our experience will be lived by millions of people,? she says of the videos that include heartbreaking descriptions by her husband about the trauma of losing a limb.

?I hope we can create the same kind of awareness about diabetes as others have done about smoking.?

vfortney@calgaryherald.comTwitter.com/ValFortney

Source: http://www.calgaryherald.com/health/Fortney+Widow+videos+offer+glimpse+into+diabetes+epidemic/7739205/story.html

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Holiday music stops at Irving Berlin's NY door

NEW YORK (AP) ? A caroling group that for 35 years has performed the Irving Berlin classic "White Christmas" on Christmas Eve outside the New York City home where he lived has cancelled the tradition.

A group spokesman says the plans were abruptly cancelled last week for lack of space at the Manhattan home, which now serves as the Luxembourg consulate.

The tradition started in the late 1970s with one cabaret singer outside the home. In 1983, Berlin invited the singers inside for cocoa and cookies.

Berlin died in 1989 at age 99.

Luxembourg Consul-General Jean-Claude Knebeler tells the New York Post the ballroom where the group performed is filled with office equipment because the consulate expanded. He says he hopes the tradition resumes in another year in the consulate's library.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-12-24-Irving%20Berlin-Carolers/id-9a4e28d1e344425395dc40f38b2c264d

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