Famous Trends

Golden State Warriors

2011-12-26T10:55:00.002+05:00

Golden State Warriors

Chicago is coming off a thrilling road victory against the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday, capped by league MVP Derrick Rose's game-winner with 4.8 seconds left. ... The Bulls were held to 32 second-half points and missed 17 of their first 18 attempts in the fourth quarter. ... Recently acquired Richard Hamilton -- who signed a three-year, $15 million deal after being bought out by Detroit -- had just six points on 3-for-8 shooting and five fouls in his Chicago debut.

Warriors update: Golden State's offense struggled to score Sunday against the Los Angeles Clippers. The starting back court missed 17 of its first 24 shots. As a team, the Warriors missed 12 of their first 14 attempts from 3-point range. ... Coach Mark Jackson's rotation went pretty much eight deep in the opener. Brandon Rush, Ekpe Udoh and rookie Klay Thompson got the most minutes among the reserves. Ish Smith, Kwame Brown and Dominic McGuire also saw action.

49ers

2011-12-20T13:45:00.000+05:00

49ers

Ben Roethlisberger threw a few extra passes in near darkness after the lights went out at Candlestick Park.

The additional throws were all for naught. Big Ben never found his groove playing on a bum ankle — and the San Francisco 49ers' top-ranked defense wasn't about to let the most unique of home-field advantages get away in a 20-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday night.

"Just wondering how this happens at a professional stadium," Roethlisberger said of not one but two blackouts.

Monday Night Football nearly became a Monday Night Fiasco.

San Francisco's lights-out return to prime time helped salvage what could have been an embarrassing evening for everyone involved on the NFL's biggest stage after a pair of power outages delayed the game for close to 35 minutes in all.

"I just feel like San Francisco took a big step to show the NFL and to show the state of California that they need a new stadium," Steelers safety Ryan Clark said. "I think it was a very strategic move, and Candlestick may be no more."

Pearl Harbor Day

2011-12-07T20:33:00.000+05:00

Pearl Harbor Day

President Obama has issued a statement on the anniversary of the 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, triggering the U.S. entry into World War II."Seventy years ago today, a bright Sunday morning was darkened by the unprovoked attack on Pearl Harbor," Obama said."Today," he added, "Michelle and I join the American people in honoring the memory of the more than 2,400 American patriots -- military and civilian, men, women and children -- who gave their lives in our first battle of the Second World War."

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families for whom this day is deeply personal -- the spouses, brothers and sisters, and sons and daughters who have known seven decades without a loved one but who have kept their legacy alive for future generations."

Steve Jobs Death

2011-10-07T13:01:00.000+05:00

Steve Jobs Death

Steve Jobs introducing the iPhone 4 last year.

Steve Jobs, from his early days of tinkering with electronics to today's groundbreaking designs of the iPhone and iPad, never wavered from his vision. An iconoclast who changed the way we do everything, from how we listen to music and watch movies to how we teach our children, Jobs died today. He was 56.
"Steve's brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives," Apple said in a statement. "The world is immeasurably better because of Steve."
Jobs, an Apple co-founder and most recently chairman of the company, had been suffering from various health issues following the seventh anniversary of his surgery for a rare form of pancreatic cancer in August 2004. Apple announced in January that he would be taking an indeterminate medical leave of absence, with Jobs then stepping down from his role as CEO in late August.
Jobs had undergone a liver transplant in April 2009 during an earlier planned six-month leave of absence. He returned to work for a year and a half before his health forced him to take more time off. He told his employees in August, "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come."

Flags fly at half-staff at Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, Calif.

One of the most legendary businessmen in American history, Jobs turned three separate industries on their head in the 35 years he was involved in the technology industry.

Personal computing was invented with the launch of the Apple II in 1977. Legal digital music recordings were brought into the mainstream with the iPod and iTunes in the early 2000s, and mobile phones were never the same after the 2007 debut of the iPhone. Jobs played an instrumental role in the development of all three, and managed to find time to transform the art of computer-generated movie-making on the side.
The invention of the iPad in 2010, a touch-screen tablet computer his competitors flocked to reproduce, was the capstone of his career as a technologist. A conceptual hybrid of a touch-screen iPod and a slate computer, the 10-inch mobile device was Jobs' vision for a more personal computing device.

Jobs was considered brilliant yet brash. He valued elegance in design yet was almost never seen in public wearing anything but a black mock turtleneck, blue jeans, and a few days worth of stubble. A master salesman who considered himself an artist at heart, Jobs inspired both reverence and fear in those who worked for him and against him, and was adored by an army of loyal Apple customers who almost saw him as superhuman.
Jobs was born in San Francisco in 1955 to young parents who gave him up for adoption. Paul and Clara Jobs gave him his name, and moved out of the city in 1960 to the Santa Clara Valley, later to be known as Silicon Valley. Jobs grew up in Mountain View and Cupertino, where Apple's headquarters is located.
He attended Reed College in Oregon for a year but dropped out, although he sat in on some classes that interested him, such as calligraphy. After a brief stint at Atari working on video games, he spent time backpacking around India, furthering teenage experiments with psychedelic drugs and developing an interest in Buddhism, all of which would shape his work at Apple.
Back in California, Jobs' friend Steve Wozniak was learning the skills that would change both their lives. When Jobs discovered that Wozniak had been assembling relatively (for the time) small computers, he struck a partnership, and Apple Computer was founded in 1976 in the usual Silicon Valley fashion: setting up shop in the garage of one of the founder's parents.
Wozniak handled the technical end, creating the Apple I, while Jobs ran sales and distribution. The company sold a few hundred Apple Is, but found much greater success with the Apple II, which put the company on the map and is largely credited as having proven that regular people wanted computers.

Flowers sit near a sign at Apple headquarters in Cupertino, Calif.

It also made Jobs and Wozniak rich. Apple went public in 1980, and Jobs was well on his way to becoming one of the first tech industry celebrities, earning a reputation for brilliance, arrogance, and the sheer force of his will and persuasion, often jokingly referred to as his "reality-distortion field."
The debut of the Macintosh in 1984 left no doubt that Apple was a serious player in the computer industry, but Jobs only had a little more than a year left at the company he founded when the Mac was released in January 1984.
By 1985 Apple CEO John Sculley--who Jobs had convinced to leave Pepsi in 1983 and run Apple with the legendary line, "Do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water or do you want a chance to change the world?"--had developed his own ideas for the future of the company, and they differed from Jobs'. He removed Jobs from his position leading the Macintosh team, and Apple's board backed Sculley.

Jobs resigned from the company, later telling an audience of Stanford University graduates "what had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating." He would get the last laugh. He went on to found NeXT, which set about making the next computer in Jobs' eyes. NeXT was never the commercial success that Apple was, but during those years, Jobs found three things that would help him architect his return.
The first was Pixar. Jobs snapped up the graphic-arts division of Lucasfilm in 1986, which would go on to produce "Toy Story" in 1995 and set the standard for computer-graphics films. After making a fortune from Pixar's IPO in 1995, Jobs eventually sold the company to Disney in 2006.
The second was object-oriented software development. NeXT chose this development model for its software operating systems, and it proved to be more advanced and more nimble than the operating system developments Apple was working on without Jobs.
The third was Laurene Powell, a Stanford MBA student who attended a talk on entrepreneurialism given by Jobs in 1989 at the university. The two wed in 1991 and eventually had three children; Reed, born in 1991, Erin, born in 1995, and Eve, born in 1998. Jobs has another daughter, Lisa, who was born in 1978, but Jobs refused to acknowledge he was her father for the first few years of her life, eventually reconciling with Lisa and her mother, his high-school girlfriend Chris-Ann Brennan.
Jobs returned to Apple in 1996, having convinced then-CEO Gil Amelio to adopt NeXTStep as the future of Apple's operating system development. Apple was in a shambles at the time, losing money, market share, and key employees.

By 1997, Jobs was once again in charge of Apple. He immediately brought buzz back to the company, which pared down and reacquired a penchant for showstoppers, such as the 1998 introduction of the iMac; perhaps the first "Stevenote." His presentation skills at events such as Macworld would become legendary examples of showmanship and star power in the tech industry.
Jobs also set the company on the path to becoming a consumer-electronics powerhouse, creating and improving products such as the iPod, iTunes, and later, the iPhone and iPad. Apple is the most valuable publicly-traded company in the world, surpassing ExxonMobil's market capitalization in August. He did so in his own fashion, imposing his ideas and beliefs on his employees and their products in ways that left many a career in tatters. Jobs enforced a culture of secrecy at Apple and was an extremely demanding leader, terrorizing Apple employees when he returned to the company in the late 1990s with summary firings if he didn't like the answers they gave when questioned.
Jobs was an intensely private person. That quality put him and Apple at odds with government regulators and stockholders who demanded to know details about his ongoing health problems and his prognosis as the leader and alter ego of his company. It spurred a 2009 SEC probe into whether Apple's board had made misleading statements about his health.
In the years before he fell ill in 2008, Jobs seemed to soften a bit, perhaps due to his bout with a rare form of pancreatic cancer in 2004.
In 2005, his remarks to Stanford graduates included this line: "Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything--all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure--these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important."
Later, in 2007, he appeared onstage at the D: All Things Digital conference for a lengthy interview with bitter rival Bill Gates, exchanging mutual praise and prophetically quoting the Beatles: "You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead."
Jobs leaves behind his wife, four children, two sisters, and 49,000 Apple employees.

For More Information Visit: http://news.cnet.com/

Republican Debate

2011-08-12T10:37:00.000+05:00

Republican Debate

Tonight, the Republican candidates for the presidential nomination — most of them, anyway — square off for a televised debate in Ames, Iowa, from the Stephens Auditorium at Iowa State University. I will be in the media “spin room,” along with our partner in blogging Tina Korbe and our Townhall brother Guy Benson. The debate starts at 9 pm ET/8 pm local time here in Iowa, and Fox News Channel’s Bret Baier will moderate the event. We’re looking forward to a lively debate, and I’d expect some elbow throwing and sharp barbs between the contenders, along with a few shots at the absent Rick Perry.

Since live blogging has become a little passé in the age of Twitter (is it possible to feel like an old blogger? Yes, we can!), our friends at Townhall came up with this widget that will track our tweets, along with our Townhall colleagues Katie Pavlich, Erika Johnsen, and the indispensable Allahpundit. Be sure to follow along, and perhaps open this post in two tabs — one to follow the Twitter feeds, and one for comment posting.

Tina, Guy, and I will capture some of the spin in the room after the show, so be sure to stay right here at Hot Air after the debate ….

so you think you can dance winner

2011-08-12T10:27:00.000+05:00

so you think you can dance winner

Who will be crowned America’s favorite dancer?

Judging from the comments here and the rest of the blogosphere, people seem to have little doubt that it’s going to be Melanie.

There’s an opening group number to “Wanna Get Hype” by District 78. They’re in bondage/futuristic looking outfits and big hair and leap around a lot. It is kind of interesting when they crawl on their heads. That blond has got to be Ryan, I recognize the grin. And it’s the top 20.

Cat comes out in a short red shiny dress and just long hair.

And a Sonya Tayeh number, which explains a lot.

There’s a big panel of judges for tonight, I’m not sure why as we’re supposed to have voted already, including Lil’ C, in a sort of silver tux, Pussycat Dolls founder Robin Antin, Tyce DiOrio (oh well), Sonya Hayeh, whom Cat calls “fabulously weird” ( love her lion necklace and matching earrings), Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Mary Murphy in a sort of cocktail-ish black/silver number and the “beautifully coiffured” (meaning his hair is feathered back!) Nigel Lythgoe. Cat points out the rest of the choreographers sitting in the audience.

In addition to letting us know who is the winner tonight, the Finale reprises favorite routines picked by the judges. I wish we could have voted for those, too, but I suppose it would be sort of unwieldy. Most of the judges will pick routines involving the top 4, and mostly recent routines, but there are a few outliers.

The four finalists come on, all in their futuristic warrior bondage wear.

The judges talk to them. They talk about victory and overcoming and surviving and how proud they are, and personhood and other summer camp autograph book kind of things. Jesse is funny saying dance your heart out and hopefully America will vote—oh wait they’ve already voted. Then he too goes into the whole “win or lose, you’re all winners” thing and really, those words were actually part of the Tuskarora alma mater from Camp Red Wing (color war). Nigel takes the opportunity to say he was insensitive to tell the guys last night that they wouldn’t win. I think he is reading tweets! And the blogosphere! He apologizes!

We get see a review of the auditions including people who didn’t make it to the top 20 like Irish dancer Mary Kate Sheehan. And the Ringo Starr impersonator again, which is just sad, and the San Francisco stripper. And then clips from the shows throughout the seasons, and some judges. We get to see Lady Gaga cry again. It’s a nicely edited video.

Now for the routines. Mary Murphy picks “Fool of Me” by Sasha and Kent, choreographed by Tyce DiOrio. That’s the one they did with a wall. Well, yes, that was great. And the best one Tyce did the whole season, I think.

There’s a promo for the Gatorade prize again. I didn’t pay attention.

Cat tells us the real romance was on the judging panel, so we see a lot of clips of Nigel and Mary. Cat says she is scarred for life.

Cat segues into the routine that started out the whole kissing thing, and Nigel says it was Marko—and his wonderful partner, Melanie.

The routine is “I Got You,” choreographed by NappyTabs. This is the :guy jilted at the wedding and realizing he loves his best friend” routine, with Melanie in the ugliest costume ever. It has not improved with age, it’s still zebra striped with rose. I get that she’s a bridesmaid but really. The plot is really still silly, but they sell it, and I love Melanie’s happy leap into his arms.

Mary’s on her feet, and Nigel’s hugging Jesse. Cat orders Nigel to get off Jesse’s lap. It all reminds me of the fakey banter on local news.

Robin’s favorite routine is Tadd and Lauren dancing to Mandy’s Moore’s choreography in “Another One Bites the Dust.” She loved the use of the rock band too. I wasn’t expecting that, but this dance about the was it jewel thieves? Bank robbers? is cute. And shows off some of Tadd’s tricks nicely.

Cat reminds us of all the characters the dancers had to play, and we see a video montage of waste management technicians, sea creatures, a prince, singers in the rat pack. I like the way it’s edited so that it looks as silly as it was.

C picked a routine with characters. He says “within the faculty of adjudicators” (th rest of us would say “panel of judges,” but OK). he is the Hip Hop representative. He picked a routine by NappyTabs with Robert and Miranda, “Break Ya Neck,” the woodpecker dance. Oh Miranda, you really were robbed.

Cat has picked a routine—that made her cry—the top 8 circus routine by Tyce DiOrio. I also thought this was gorgeous too. I especially love its slow ending, and Jess in his red tails. All right, I concede

The current UK champion, Matt Flint, performs, accompanied by Jess and Nick. Part of his prize was to perform here. And Jess taps. Did we ever get to see him do that? And Nick’s amazing pirouettes. Oh, Nick. You were robbed, robbed, robbed!

Wow, they were all so good, I hardly knew where to look. That was really wonderful. They tap offstage (although in all honesty, I I were Mr. Flint and performing were part of my prize, I might be annoyed at having to split my spotlight in three; it’s not as if solo tapping is not fun to watch!)

Nigel interrupts to say it was one of the most exciting tap routines he had ever seen. It was amazing. Does that mean you might invite Nick back? Routines like that, I’d consider catching the tour. Note how it had no story, just three boys in taps.

Mary picks Mandy Moore’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” with Melanie and Neil, and its great big leap. It is still a beautiful emotional dance and that leap is still amazing. And when she pulls him down to her she seems to mean it.

All the judges are on their feet. “All the girls swoon,” says Cat, for shirtless, pretty blond Neil.

But I’m still thinking about that great tap, and rewound to watch it on the commercial. That Mr. Flint is easy on the eyes, too.

Jesse loves that the dancers had to stretch when paired with the All-Stars. Marko and Alison’s number, “I Know It’s Over,” choreographed by Sonya Tayeh made everyone cry, “even the fly on Lady Gaga’s hat”. It is lovely but I don’t feel like crying. Maybe it looks better in person. Everybody’s on their feet again.

I’m still thinking about that tap number. Loved the woodpecker Hip-Hop too. I have a limited tolerance for the emota-dance.

Tyce also chose a number by Sonya Tayeh—the geishas, with the top 10 girls. Wow, I must have completely blocked this from my memory. It’s cute. Actually, it’s cutesy. But there are some energetic leaps.

Everybody’s on their feet again. And Cat says “it’s no wonder no one went home that first week,” reminding us of when it was (Of course, since all 10 girls were there, it had to be the first week).

Now we see clips of what happened last night, with some clips of the judges talking, and the dancers being interviewed. Clearly they really have a lot of time to fill.

They got over 11.5 million votes last night, Cat tells us. And the one who came in fourth was Tadd. He gets a farewell montage.

When she says hes risen to every challenge he says even though hes only 5’4… so how short was Jess?

C picks a routine by Spencer Liff for Chris and Ashley, the “Please Mr. Jailer” number. Spencer Liff’s choreography is so creative here, and both of them really do look terrific.

Everyone on their feet again.

And there’s a Glee crossover, as the top four go into the studio and see three cast members from Glee. They get told they’ll be singing and dancing, but then that they’re just kidding. They’re handed tickets to the Glee movie premiere and that’s the extent of the visit. It’s their first movie premiere, and we see them on the red carpet. And then some clips of the movie. Oh well, So You Think You Can Dance has never been known for subtle product placement. The movie opens tomorrow.

Nigel picks a routine by choreographer Chris Scott, the one with All-Star Twitch and Sasha to “Misty Blue.” This is the one Nigel calls the “soggy cornflakes” routine. Cat said she watched it 5 times. I’m with her. There’s so much emotion and intention in it, and the song is so unexpected here and works so well. I love when she just throws her glasses off.

Sonya asks to see the 10 guys in Chris Scott’s Hip-Hop piece to “Velocity.” The one with lots of doors. And I strongly suspect that we had to see the top 10 guys and the top 10 girls to make sure everybody had a chance to dance. It’s moody and kind of sci-fi.

Jesse picks Miriam and Leonardo’s tango for Caitlynn and Pasha, exchanging some fast repartee with Cat that you kind of had to be there for. This Argentine tango was fun. Caitlynn’s hair is not in her face, and Pasha. Just saying. Pasha.

I’m going to stop telling you the judges are on their feet from now on. But they are. Just imagine me hitting cut and paste.

Mary says the next number worked in the first ten seconds, and she picked Marko and Melanie, Travis Wall’s contemporary piece, “Turn to Stone.” And again I have to agree this was a gorgeous number, one of the few times that the story made sense, and really worked with the music. When they hit their breakout leaps together as living statues it is exciting.

We’re going to get the next results, and Sasha comes up. And the dancer in third place is Marko. No surprise there, it was pretty much pre-ordained to be between the two girls. We watch his video montage from audition through clips.

Before they announce the winner, there’s one more judges’ pick. First Nigel thanks the lighting designer and the director. Nigel hopes that the routine he picked shames the people who thought the dancers would never work in NY. It’s another Sonya Tayeh piece, “Game On,” or, as Cat calls it, “our two beasts.”

OK. I am officially sad that nobody picked Jess and Clarice’s dance in the park by Justin Giles on July 6. Still my favorite routine on the show. I want to see that one again. I wish we’d seen more from Justin Giles.

In fairness, the routines the judges pick show what the season was like—mostly contemporary or lyrical Hip Hop.

There’s a video montage of the two girls before we find the results. The girls brush away tears and hold hands while they wait.

The second place dancer got over 32% of the vote, but the champion got over 47%, says Cat.

And America’s favorite dancer is: MELANIE!

Are you shocked? Are you happy?

The ladies hug as confetti goes flying. She’s America’s favorite dancer! And we already see her in the G series ads! Hanging up above the audience!

All the top 20 go running onstage and hoist her up.

pga championship

2011-08-11T22:15:00.000+05:00

pga championship

Steve Stricker has never won one of golf's biggest championships, and the Americans are mired in their longest drought of the modern era.

Maybe the 44-year-old Stricker will take care of both in one week.

Stricker got off to a brilliant start at the PGA Championship on Thursday, posting a 5-under 30 on the tough back side after teeing off at the 10th. He made another birdie right after the turn to stretch his lead to three strokes.

Jerry Kelly and Alexander Noren are at 3 under, while those at 2 under includes young Italian Matteo Manassero.

Tiger Woods was actually tied for the lead after birdies on three of his first five holes. But a tee shot into the water at the 15th led to a double bogey, and he's fallen apart since then: 4 over through 14 holes.

gene simmons family jewels

2011-07-27T10:25:00.000+05:00

gene simmons family jewels

Check out this exclusive clip from the Season 6 finale of "Gene Simmons Family Jewels," in which KISS rocker Simmons proposes to longtime girlfriend Shannon Tweed.

http://extratv.warnerbros.com/2011/07/sneak_peek_season_finale_of_gene_simmons_family_jewels.php

cbse

2011-07-26T10:58:00.000+05:00

cbse

CBSE Results 2011 will be announced. CBSE Results 2011 can easily be downloaded from following links. It is very easy to see CBSE Results 2011. Yes guys CBSE Results 2011 announced soon. You can see your CBSE Results 2011 here. Just feed your roll no. here and get your CBSE Results 2011.Best Of Luck !!!

For Further details of CBSE Results 2011 you can check out websites :-

1. CBSE Results 2011
2. CBSE Results 2011

entourage

2011-07-25T10:32:00.000+05:00

entourage

“Entourage” began its eighth and final season with a bang Sunday night. Creator/writer Doug Ellin has established a web of compelling new story lines.

Vince is getting out of rehab for his substance-abuse addiction. Johnny Drama is freaking out and sweeping the house of all traces of drugs, even Advil, and steering Vince (Adrian Grenier) clear of Tic-Tacs. Drama wants to throw Vince a sober-only party to welcome him home. “Do you know any sober people?” he asks the guys.

Ari is freaked because Vince wants to direct his own feel-good movie, which Ari belittles as a Lifetime cable knockoff. Drama warns the guys not to disillusion Vince even though, clearly, nobody is pleased at the prospect.

As ever, Ari is still dumping on Eric, Drama and Turtle. When Vince, who is easing back to civilization, asks the guys what’s new, Ari cuts him off by muttering that nothing is new with them. In the best line of the episode, Ari (Jeremy Piven) snarls: “They’ve been frozen like Ted Williams!”

Ari is desperate to reconcile with his beloved Mrs. Ari, following their traumatic split at the end of last season. But she stuns him when she says: “I’ve been seeing someone.” He storms out of her house.

Meanwhile, Sloan hates Eric (Kevin Connolly) and their wedding plans are in tatters. She even returns his $30,000 engagement ring — through the U.S. mail, no less.

At least, Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) is wearing his beloved New York Yankees cap, so all is right in the world.

E gets no relief anywhere. He is perturbed that Vince called all the guys, but not him, to pick him up when he gets out of rehab. Eric and his business partner Scott at the agency have picked up right where they left off last year. Scott is irritating Eric by trying to win over Vince, E’s best friend and his meal ticket.

The high points center on Johnny Drama, whether he is chewing out the guys or a thoroughly sober Billy Walsh. Drama is insecure that his new co-star on the animated television show “Johnny Bananas” is upstaging him. Kevin Dillon, who plays Drama, can do more with a grimace than most TV actors can do with a page full of dialogue.

kristin cavallari

2011-07-25T10:23:00.000+05:00

kristin cavallari

MTV reality star Kristin Cavallari and Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutlerhave called off their engagement, according to published reports.Cutler proposed to the Laguna Beachand The Hills star in April as they vacationed in Mexico. The couple, who had been dating since last fall, were said to be planning a spring wedding.As recently as last week Cavallari tweeted about her recent engagement party.

The couple also had recently completed their wedding registry.

"Thx to all my amazing friends for making my engagement party a blast last night!" she wrote.

People reported that the break-up came as a shock to Cavallari, who had planned to move to Chicago for the upcoming football season.

blush

2011-07-22T12:55:00.000+05:00

blush

An Allegheny County Court’s Common Pleas Judge has denied the request to stop the expansion of Blush strip club on Thursday; the club is located nearby Pittsburgh’s Public School and Cultural trust. The residents, Public School Administration and Cultural Centre Administration appealed against the decision of Zoning Board of Adjustment to allow the club to expand its business building.

The residents of Ninth Street and Pen Avenue and ration of the Public School and Cultural Trust argued that the strip club is a kind of adult entertainment club, which will perform stripteases, erotic and exotic dances especially at night times, ultimately it will be functioning as night bar. These kinds of foul and filthy performances will be adverse to residents of this area, particularly students and children futures will be spoiled if it is allowed to expand its business here.

So the resident representatives and agencies of the Public School and Cultural Centre appealed to Allegheny County Court t against the Zoning Board of Adjustment approval to Blush Strip club expansion two weeks ago. The final hearing on the appeals was slated on Thursday in Allegheny County’s Common Pleas Court.

The Common Pleas Court Judge, Joseph M James has taken the appeals on yesterday for hearing, and finally announced that the appeal is pending in this court and asked the Blush club to expand its club at the corner of the Ninth Street and Pen Avenue vacant buildings at present. However the Judge warned the owner of the club Albert Bortz, you can go ahead with new building on your own risks, if the appeals by the Public School, Cultural Trust upheld in future by the court, The expansion of the strip club will be dismantled.

Mr. Kamin, Lawyer of Club, said “Adult entertainment club has been functioning here since 1961, but no dishonest event has been complained against us so far. But we are disappointed by the appeals and the decision by the court to expand our business in an vacant building in a corner. We are not going to occupy the 100,000 square feet to construct new building but only 3000 square feet.”

spanx

2011-07-20T20:50:00.000+05:00

spanx

WITH her fabulous bikini body, shiny hair and new mum glow, Patsy Palmer has changed so much since playing downtrodden EastEnders character Bianca Jackson.

Gone are the dowdy clothes, scraped-back hairstyle and the anguished expression that came with her character’s famous catchphrase “Rickaaaay!”

Since the birth of her fourth baby, Bertie, just seven months ago, she is happier and healthier than ever.

Most women pushing 40 would dread the thought of slipping into their swimwear after having four children.

But, looking fabulous in a Liz Hurley bikini, Patsy confesses she’s now completely at ease with her new “womanly curves” and size 12 body – even though she can’t get back into her old jeans yet.

“I’m not bothered,” she says. “In fact I love being pregnant because you’re creating a little miracle.

“I’m not one of those stars who wanted to snap back to a size zero in a couple of weeks. I can’t stand the pressure it puts on women to lose weight after birth.

“I’m a mum and a real woman, and you have to accept that after having kids your body will change and never quite be the same. I’m much curvier than I was.

“My hips are wider, my boobs are bigger and I still can’t fit into some of my old clothes. Even my feet have changed! But I like the shape I am and I’m proud of my body. As you get older it’s nice to have some curves. It’s natural and womanly.

“I just wish more women would celebrate the amazing things that happen to their bodies and not feel so much pressure to snap back to a size six.

SKINNY

“Most women who look in the mirror and don’t look stick-thin think it’s wrong. But thin is not necessarily healthy.

“I used to be naturally skinny as a kid. Now I’m wearing a size 12-14, my stomach’s a little loose and I’ve got stretch marks. But so what? I’m not worried because I look at what I’ve got – four wonderful children – and it doesn’t really matter.”

Patsy, speaking during a sunshine break with her children and cab driver husband Richard Merkell at the exclusive La Manga Club resort in Murcia, Spain, adds: “I put on over two-and-a-half stone during my pregnancy and I’ve lost about one- and-a-half stone. But I’m not stressing about it and I’m not desperate to lose more weight.

“When you have a baby it’s about you, your baby and your family, not about getting your jeans back on!

“Many new mothers feel like they are competing with celebrities to see how quickly they can lose weight after having a baby and put unrealistic pressure on themselves. But that’s rubbish.

“It takes a good year and sometimes longer for your body, bones and muscles to recover. That’s normal.

“It’s crazy what some women do to get thin. In fact, I find it quite disturbing. When I had my other kids I snapped back into shape without any effort at all but I admit this time it’s been more difficult.

“I’m older and I had another caesarean birth, my third, so I’m catching up with Posh and all this takes its toll on your body.”

Patsy shot to fame in 1993 as fiery EastEnder Bianca – whose henpecked hubby Ricky Butcher (Sid Owen) often felt the sharp end of her tongue.

Patsy battled drink and drug problems during her time on the soap and knows how lucky she is to be fit and healthy. “I’m just grateful that I feel so good – especially after what I’ve put my body through over the years,” she reflects. “I’m a different person now. I’ve found what I was looking for: peace, inner happiness and a wonderful husband and family.”

The actress, who also has three other children Charley, 19 (from a previous relationship), Fenton, 11, and 10-year-old Emilia, has stepped up her fitness routine, fitting walking and training sessions on her Power Plate in between feeds and nappies.

She says: “I’m currently following a healthy eating plan called Dr Khan’s Lifestyle Programme, which consists of lots of fruit salads, vegetables, fish and meat.

“I still don’t deprive myself. If I fancy something I will have it but I don’t stuff my face and I think twice before eating too many doughnuts.”

Patsy admits juggling family life with looking good isn’t always easy: “Yeah, it’s hard to feel sexy and glam during the first six months, when dirty nappies are piling up and you haven’t had a good night’s sleep.

“You feel saggy and fat, especially when you can’t get into your old clothes. But a spray tan and some Spanx body shaping tights always work wonders for me. They are my lifesavers.”

macbook air

2011-07-20T20:35:00.000+05:00

macbook air

Later this week, Apple will officially launch their new MacBook Air line. We previously detailedthat these new MacBook Airs will include Thunderbolt ports, i5 and i7 processor options, and a design with little to no changes from the current models. Now, thanks to our source Mr. X, we have all the specifications of the brand-new MacBook Air line.

11.6 inch models:

The base model will include a 1.6 GHz processor, 2 GB of RAM, and 64GB of flash storage.
The more expensive standard configuration also includes a 1.6 GHz processor but upgrades the RAM to 4GB and the storage space to 128 GB.
A built to order model will also be available from the online store. This option includes a 1.8 GHz processor (first for an 11.6 inch MacBook Air), 4GB of RAM, and for the first time in an 11.6 inch MacBook Air, 256 GB of flash storage.

13.3 inch models:

The base standard configuration includes a 1.7 GHz processor, 4GB of RAM, and 128 GB of flash storage
The more expensive standard configuration also includes a 1.7 GHz processor, 4GB of RAM, but upgrades the storage to 256 GB.
A built to order option will also be available and this includes a 1.8 GHz chip, 4GB of RAM, and 256 GB of flash storage

These specifications put the unreliable reports of 4GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage as standard (across the line) options to rest. OS X Lion launches tomorrow, so it is possible that these new ultraportables will, too, but that is unconfirmed. Apple will also release a new Mac mini, as we just revealed, later this week.

harry potter and the deathly hallows part 2 reviews

2011-07-15T13:55:00.000+05:00

harry potter and the deathly hallows part 2 reviews

Over the course of 10 years, eight films and £4billion taken at the box office, JK Rowling’s characters have become part of our lives.

So as the most successful film franchise in history reached the end of the road, we weren’t just at the screening to watch a movie, but also to say goodbye to some dear friends.

After a quick recap of the events in Part 1, we rejoin the young wizard (Daniel Radcliffe) and pals Hermione and Ron (Emma Watson and Rupert Grint) who are still holed up in their seaside hideout. These are desperate times with Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) having found the Elder Wand, one of the three Deathly Hallows which will make him all-powerful.

With Hogwarts now run by the wicked Severus Snape (Alan Rickman), all that stands in Voldemort’s way are the three pals who must find the Horcruxes that contain parts of his soul which could destroy him.

If the last film was a touch heavy on dialogue, the follow-up eschews the chat in favour of action set-pieces, making it perhaps the most exciting instalment of all.

From a daring attempt to raid a goblin bank containing the vault of Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter) to a dragon ride over London and Harry’s showdown with Voldemort, the thrills never let up.

And while David Yates (directing his fourth Potter film) replicates the lurking menace of Part 1, this is a movie brimming with emotion, particularly a surprise revelation about Snape.

Niggles? Well, it’s only the cheap-looking 3D that fails to impress, adding to the growing suspicion that this once-hailed technology has become a cynical ploy to raise ticket prices.

Not that I heard anyone complaining. As the screen faded to black, there was an eruption of applause and more than a few tears.

So long, Harry. It’s been magic.

roger clemens

2011-07-15T13:50:00.000+05:00

roger clemens

Prosecutors said Wednesday needles and cotton balls Roger Clemens' former trainer says he used to inject the star pitcher tested positive for Clemens' DNA and anabolic steroids — evidence defense attorneys said was faked.

Assistant U.S. attorney Steven Durham revealed the results during opening arguments in Clemens' trial on charges of lying to Congress about using performance-enhancing drugs. Clemens' attorney Rusty Hardin responded he won't dispute the needles contain Clemens' DNA and steroids, but accused the trainer Brian McNamee of "mixing" it up.

"He manufactured this stuff," Hardin told jurors. "Roger Clemens' only crime was having the poor judgment to stay connected with Brian McNamee."

Hardin said steroids would have been so "incredibly inconsistent with his career and beliefs that there's no way he would have done it."

Clemens has said the only things McNamee ever injected him with were the common local anesthetic lidocaine for his joints and vitamin B-12 to ward off flu viruses and stay healthy.

But, Durham said neither substance was found on the needles or cotton swabbed with his blood.

Hardin told the jury the government is "horribly wrong" in charging his client with perjury, false statements and obstruction of Congress.

Clad in a dark suit, Clemens watched silently from the defense table with a clenched jaw.

"There was a rush to judgment on Roger that has made it impossible for him to be fairly heard until he got here," Hardin said in the federal courthouse just a couple blocks from the congressional hearing room where he testified three years ago.

Hardin showed the jury an enlarged photo of the country with all the sites where federal agents investigated the case.

"They still didn't find anything to connect him with steroids except Brian McNamee," Hardin said.

Durham, however, said about 45 witnesses, including several of Clemens' former teammates, will help make the case Clemens used banned substances.

For More Detail: http://www.deseretnews.com

Emmy Nominations

2011-07-15T13:41:00.000+05:00

Emmy Nominations

There's something about "Mildred Pierce."

The period melodrama about a self-made woman with a spoiled, backstabbing daughter earned Joan Crawford her first and only Oscar for the 1945 film version of the James M. Cain novel. And on Thursday, HBO's lavish remake earned the 63rd annual Primetime Emmy Awards' highest number of nominations — 21 — including those for miniseries or movie, lead actress for Kate Winslet and director for Todd Haynes.

That capped a morning in which HBO earned a stunning 104 nods. Besides "Mildred Pierce," the premium cable channel's two freshman series, "Game of Thrones" and "Boardwalk Empire," captured multiple nominations, as did the movies "Cinema Verite" and "Too Big to Fail."

There wasn't even a close second. CBS followed in the nomination count with 50, then NBC with 46. HBO's rival,Showtime, had 21. The series with the largest number of nominations were "Mad Men" with 19, "Boardwalk Empire" with 18, "Modern Family" with 17, "Saturday Night Live" with 16 and "Game of Thrones" with 13.

Nominated in the drama series category are "Mad Men," which has won this prize three years in a row, as well as"Dexter," "The Good Wife," "Game of Thrones," "Boardwalk Empire" and "Friday Night Lights." The nod for "Friday Night Lights" comes just one day before the series ends its critically lauded run.

"After five seasons, it just feels incredible to have the show recognized," said actress Connie Britton, who was nominated along with costar Kyle Chandler. "It was long deserved, I think."

Comedy series nominations went to "Glee," "Modern Family,""The Office" and "30 Rock," and to two newcomers in the category: CBS' "The Big Bang Theory," which earned this nod in its fourth season, and NBC's quirky comedy "Parks and Recreation."

"We've had an interesting road," said "Parks and Recreation" star and producer Amy Poehler, "so I guess this is a sort of validation."

In the lead actor in a drama series category, the nominees areSteve Buscemi for "Boardwalk Empire," Chandler for "Friday Night Lights," Michael C. Hall for "Dexter," Hugh Laurie for"House," Jon Hamm for "Mad Men" and Timothy Olyphantfor "Justified."

Lead actress nominees in a drama series are Kathy Bates for"Harry's Law," Britton for "Friday Night Lights," Mariska Hargitay for "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," Julianna Margulies for "The Good Wife" Elisabeth Moss for "Mad Men" and Mireille Enos for the new AMC thriller "The Killing."

Enos joked that if she won, Emmy host Jane Lynch could find plenty of joke material in the somber character she plays. "She probably could talk about my [character's] terrible wardrobe," said Enos. "Or the fact that I never smile."

Steve Carell is a sentimental favorite for lead actor in a comedy series for his final season on "The Office," but he will be competing against Matt LeBlanc for "Episodes," Alec Baldwin for "30 Rock," Louis C.K. for "Louie," Johnny Galecki for "The Big Bang Theory" and last year's winner, Jim Parsons, also for "The Big Bang Theory."

Vying for lead actress in a comedy series are Edie Falco, last year's winner, for "Nurse Jackie"; Laura Linney in "The Big C," Tina Fey for "30 Rock," Melissa McCarthy for "Mike & Molly" and Poehler for "Parks & Recreation."

Two octogenarians — Betty White and Cloris Leachman — also earned nominations in comedy series categories, White for supporting actress and Leachman for guest actress. White ("Hot in Cleveland") received her 17th Emmy nomination, and Leachman ("Raising Hope") picked up her 22nd nomination.

"I'm still in shock — I'm so thrilled I can't see straight!" White said Thursday morning. "I was in bed with the golden retriever. My agent called. He said congratulations — I'd totally forgotten. So I said out loud, I said, 'Waaiiiitt.' The dog thought something wonderful had happened."

Among the day's many surprises were the 10 nominations announced for ReelzChannel's controversial miniseries "The Kennedys," including movie or miniseries, as well as nominations for stars Greg Kinnear and Barry Pepper, who play John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy, respectively.

PBS earned 43 nominations Thursday, including 11 for its lavish "Masterpiece" miniseries about the British aristocracy, "Downton Abbey," which was nominated for miniseries or movie and lead actress in a movie or miniseries for Elizabeth McGovern. The reboot of the classic "Upstairs Downstairs" earned six nominations, including one for Jean Marsh for lead actress in a miniseries or movie. It's déjà vu for Marsh: She was nominated three years in a row for her performance as the maid Rose in the series when it originally aired in the 1970s. Rounding out the miniseries or movie category are "Cinema Verite," "Too Big to Fail" and "The Pillars of the Earth."

"Saturday Night Live" continues its record run of Emmy nominations, with a nod for variety, music or comedy series. Cast member Kristen Wiig secured a spot in the comedy supporting actress category, and Justin Timberlake scored three nominations Thursday as guest actor on a comedy series for his hosting duties on "Saturday Night Live," as well as co-writing two songs from that episode.

all star game

2011-07-13T13:38:00.000+05:00

all star game

Absent from the endless discussions about how to improve baseball's All-Star game was the one that would solve all the problems immediately.

End it.

Seriously. Would anyone other than Bud Selig notice? Or care? And just imagine if the idea gets traction across the sports spectrum. If the pro leagues really want to do something for fans, other than pick their pockets, keep the breaks in midseason and have the players perform community service — e.g., stage sports clinics in their hometowns.

For one thing, they might be better attended than the All-Star game. Almost a fifth of the players named to baseball's two squads had already voted no with their feet, electing to park them somewhere besides Phoenix on Tuesday night, rendering the National League's 5-1 win an even more meaningless exercise than usual. And the problem wasn't just a lack of quantity, but quality.

Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter might be the face of baseball, but his body was already in R&R mode. He sneaked off to Florida with girlfriend Minka Kelly, enraging all those commentators who exhausted their store of superlatives praising him over the weekend, the TV executives at FOX who spent hours dreaming up all those promotional tie-ins, and who knows how many of the 4 million who penciled Jeter into the AL starting lineup.

brian wilson

2011-07-13T10:47:00.000+05:00

brian wilson

Heavily bearded Giants pitcher Brian Wilson, who earlier this year had the honor of fulfilling a lifelong dream of becoming a NYT crossword clue, knows his way around the S.F. food scene as well as he does around a Will Shortz puzzle. Last night on the MLB Network, during the All-Star Game, he chatted with hosts Chris Rose and Kevin Millar about a recent dinner he treated them to at Gary Danko. To wit: "It's a fourteen-star restaurant. It's got everything you could possibly want. The lobster risotto... if there was another word for excellent... and I can't think of it right now."

russia

2011-07-12T20:15:00.000+05:00

Russia

Happy 450th birthday to Russia's national symbol, St Basil's Cathedral in Red Square – and it's a good time to step back and consider what a fantastically, psychedelically bizarre symbol it is. That's not a cathedral, it's a fairytale palace made of sweets! It's a stage set for The Nutcracker!

It was particularly hilarious during the cold war. There was Khrushchev or Brezhnev gazing on sternly from a Kremlin balcony at the synchronised marching and Soviet military hardware scrolling past below, but the whole deadly solemn communist pomp was undercut by that garish chunk of Disneyland architecture sitting in the corner, screaming "yoo hoo!". St Basil's was like a clown's nose on the face of the evil empire.

No wonder Stalin wanted to destroy it. He succeeded with other Moscowchurches, such as the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, which was rebuilt in 1990, but his order to demolish St Basil's was fortunately thwarted by a conservation architect named Pyotr Baranovsky. According to the legend, Baranovsky sent Stalin a telegram saying he would rather kill himself. He got five years in the gulag for his troubles. St Basil's also offended Napoleon's architectural sensibilities a century earlier. Having stabled his horses in it, he then tried to dynamite it on his way out of Russia, but rain put out the fuses.

Was it St Basil's symbolic power that led to its persecution, or simply its comedy aesthetics? Even without the garish candy colour scheme (it was originally white), it's an odd-looking pile-up of onion domes, polygonal towers, blank arches and sharp spires and extremes of architectural vocabulary. Little is known about its architect, Postnik Yakovlev. Perhaps he was a children's entertainer whom Ivan the Terrible enlisted in a rare moment of levity. Ivan's predecessor, Ivan III, had imported an Italian Renaissance architect, Aristotele Fioravanti, to design his Cathedral of the Dormition at the Kremlin (not that it really shows), but historians have scrabbled around to find a precedent for St Basil's.

Despite appearances, St Basil's is actually pretty orderly, especially if you look at it on plan. It is one central church surrounded by a symmetrical star of eight chapels, four major and four minor, aligned to the points of the compass. What ruins the order is the irregular shape of the central church, and the addition of a ninth chapel, built for St Basil himself – a holy fool who apparently wore no clothes and championed the poor. Ivan the Terrible allegedly carried his coffin.

It is a religious building, after all. It is said to have been inspired by Jerusalem, both the abstract and the literal. Perhaps it was a sort of optical illusion of "the kingdom of heaven", the post-apocalypse New Jerusalem described in the Book of Revelation as well as an approximation of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem,according to travellers' accounts. Either that, or someone put something in the architect's unleavened bread.

The Christian significance is all but lost today. St Basil's is now a building that belongs inside snow globes, on T-shirts, commemorative plates, and in Hollywood spy movies as a quick signifier of "Moscow". Perhaps its garishness fits better with today's oligarch-stuffed, ostentatious Russia than it has done with previous eras. Could it have influenced the likes of Gaudi, or even Gehry? Whichever way you look at it, take a good look at it: St Basil's is the craziest national monument around.

iphone 4g

2011-07-12T20:03:00.000+05:00

iphone 4g

The typical iPhone hardware refresh that Apple (AAPL) used to offer in June hasn’t come. Many now expect the next-generation iPhone to arrive in September. There’s debate over what the handset will look like, but we already know it will run on iOS 5, which adds notable new features that even an Android owner can appreciate. What we don’t know is if the newest iPhone will be available in a single model that supports various 4G networks.

Research firm iSuppli recently ripped apart the HTC (2498:TT) Thunderbolt, an LTE handset that runs Google (GOOG)‘s Android platform on Verizon’s network. What does that have to do with the next iPhone? Quite a bit, actually: ISuppli figures that adding LTE support to an iPhone wouldboost the cost of the electronics inside the phone by 23.2 percent over what the current iPhone 4 costs Apple. This assumes Apple would use the same networking solution chosen by HTC for the Thunderbolt, which isn’t a good solution.

Aside from the materials-cost bump, the Thunderbolt has separate chips for the 3G and 4G radios, which can drain the battery faster than a chip that integrates all the radios, for example. More radios mean the phone could run hotter and also require more space. Apple has been shrinking the circuit boards in the iPhone line over time and isn’t likely to make the next iPhone bigger by using multiple radio chips. It’s rare that Apple adds a feature to hardware that isn’t fully baked, so I don’t expect LTE support in the next iPhone.

Depending on your definition of 4G, I would expect the next iPhone to have faster mobile broadband speeds, due to the use of HSPA+ technology. T-Mobile currently uses HSPA+ that offers theoretical network speeds of up to 42 Mbps. AT&T is in the process of upgrading its network to support faster HSPA+ speeds, although not at 42 Mbps. So it’s logical to expect a bump in the mobile broadband capabilities of the new iPhone, not to mention a dual-core processor for faster response. The A5 chip with two processing cores used in the iPad is likely to find a home in Apple’s newest handset.

Need another reason? Widespread LTE networks aren’t yet available in the U.S. Verizon is leading the way with LTE coverage in around 75 markets, with plans to light up a total of 145 regions by the end of this year. AT&T (T) however, expects to launch LTE in just five markets this summer and in an additional 10 by yearend, covering an estimated 70 million people. The amount of LTE network coverage simply doesn’t warrant Apple moving the iPhone to LTE yet. And unlike HSPA, a 3G technology used in the current iPhone, not all LTE networks around the world use the same 700 MHz frequency that Verizon and AT&T have built their networks on. In contrast, the iPhone works on the majority of UMTS/HSPA networks that use frequencies of 850, 900, 1900, and 2100 MHz. LTE frequencies are always likely to be an issue, but the short story here is: LTE is still maturing and evolving.

Given the network situation, it seems far more likely to me that the new iPhone will take the iPhone 4S name since it would mainly add a speed bump in the processor. When LTE becomes more widespread and easier to support with integrated chipsets, an iPhone 4GS would likely follow, just as the iPhone 3GS followed the 3G (although the model with faster network support arrived before the phone gained much processing power).

Here’s the caveat to this line of reasoning: What if the new iPhone were delayed from its yearly refresh to give Apple a little more time to work out efficient LTE support? Will Strauss at Forward Concepts doesn’t think the timing would work: Baseband chipmakers are still too far behind, unless they’ve made greater progress than we know.

Even then, the network-coverage problem would still exist, though it would disappear over time as Verizon and AT&T continue to build out the infrastructure for fast 4G support. And Apple’s iPhone would already be ready to take advantage of the faster speed. I thus consider it unlikely. We’ll know in the next six-to-eight weeks—unless someone leaves a test unit of the new iPhone in a bar.

a dance with dragons

2011-07-12T19:50:00.000+05:00

a dance with dragons

The wait is over for the latest installment of George R.R. Martin's best-selling fantasy saga, "A Song of Ice and Fire." The fifth book, "A Dance with Dragons," arrives in bookstores Tuesday.

It comes six years after the release of the fourth volume, and a month after the season 1 finale of HBO's hit "Game of Throne," which is adapted from the first book.

So what did the critics think of Martin's much-anticipated follow-up?

"The real power of Martin's work arises from his extraordinary skill as a plotter," Time magazine's Lev Grossman wrote. "A Dance with Dragons" follows, by my count, 11 major story lines, as well as assorted minor ones, each with its own rhythm, written in its own voice, and each playing off all the others."

Grossman adds: "He [Martin] raises and raises the stakes, long past when any other writer would have walked away from the table, and just when you think he's done, he goes all in."

Salon.com's Andrew Leonard was similarly impressed.

"By the fifth volume of "A Song of Ice and Fire," Martin has unimpeachably established his street cred as the most ruthless writer of popular fantasy alive," Leonard wrote. "Martin, we know, with a sick feeling in our stomachs, has no qualms about killing off major characters, or twisting narrative arcs from glory into degradation."

Chicago Weather

2011-07-11T20:18:00.000+05:00

Chicago Weather

Chicago - Severe thunderstorms swept through the Chicago area Monday morning, pelting commuters rushing to get to work and leaving more than 615,000 Commonwealth Edison without power.

Watch: Live Radar
FOX Chicago News Weather

The heavy rain, hail and winds downed wires throughout the city and sent trees into streets.

As of 9:15 a.m, more than 615,000 ComEd customers were without power after the storms, a spokesman said. The hardest hit region was in the northern suburbs, where 280,000 were without power.

In the west suburbs, 156,000 were without power and in Chicago and Maywood, 108,000 customers were affected the spokesman said. In the south suburbs, 80,000 customers are without power Monday morning.

Meanwhile, flights in and out of O'Hare International Airport are experiencing 45 minute delays. More than 100 flights have been canceled, the Dept. of Aviation said.

At Midway International Airport, some airlines are experiencing delays averaging 50 minutes for in and inbound flights, with one cancellation reported, the, the department said.

Trains were either halted or delayed during the heavy storms, according to both the CTA and Metra.

On Metra, due to weather related high winds, Union Pacific North Line, Northwest Line and West Line trains were stopped, according to Metra spokesman Michael Gillis.

Trains were back on the move by about 8:50 a.m., he said.

On the BNSF Railway line, trains were traveling at a reduced speed due to the winds, Gillis said. All other lines were operating normally.

Meanwhile, the CTA issued a customer alert noting all CTA trains were experiencing major delays due to the severe weather.

Downed trees on tracks near the Morris station temporarily stopped Purple Line train service. Yellow Line service has also been suspended. Meanwhile, a CTA commuter indicated the downed tree had also stopped Red Line trains near the area.

At 8:40 a.m, the National Weather Service Doppler Radar indicated a line of severe thunderstorms capable of producing damaging winds in excess of 60 mph. Those storms were found along a line extending from 37 miles east of Winthrop Harbor to 32 miles north of Long Beach to 18 miles north of Long Beach to Portage to Beecher. That storm was moving east at 65 mph.

The storms moved past the Chicago area into northwest Indiana.

Midway and O'Hare Airports also stopped all flights during the duration of the storms.

htc hd7

2011-07-11T14:14:00.000+05:00

htc hd7

T-Mobile is one of the largest mobile networks in USA and they are offering number of good devices. They recently launched HTC Sensation 4G which is their new flagship device, it’s really a good device and a tough competitor to Samsung Galaxy S II. It would be great if you get a chance to get Sensation for free on contract and guess what? T-Mobile is offering this amazing device for free on a 2-yr contract, it’s a limited time offer and it will be ending tonight at 3:00 AM PT. T-Mo is not only offering Sensation for free, they are also offering HTC HD7 and MyTouch 4G along with it, so you can also get HTC HD7 or MyTouch 4G for free. You have to sign a new two year contract or open a new line if you are interested in any of the following phones. It’s a Web Only offer, so you can get it only on T-Mobile website, don’t make a mistake of visiting nearby T-Mo store.

HTC HD7 is probably the best WP7 device you can get from T-Mobile, whereas MyTouch 4G is now an old device and its successor known as MyTouch 4G Slide is coming out later this month, so I would suggest you to wait for it. But if you are thinking about Sensation, then grab it because at the moment, it’s the best Android device you can get from T-Mobile.

cyprus

2011-07-11T13:59:00.000+05:00

cyprus

An explosion on the coast of Cyprus that may have killed at least eight people was caused by a fire at a power station that spread to a munitions dump at a naval base, state radio CyBC reported.

The blast in Zygi on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean island happened after the fire spread to two containers loaded with munitions that were seized in 2009 from a ship, CyBC said. Eight people were killed, CyBC reported, citing the Cyprus News Agency. Cyprus Fire Department authorities couldn’t immediately confirm the number of casualties.

Fifty firefighters and 10 fire trucks are battling the blaze, said a fire official, who declined to be identified by name.

The Cyprus Power Authority, the island’s state-run electricity company, asked consumers to reduce power usage and not use air conditioners after the fire damaged the distribution network, according to an e-mailed statement.

The munitions that exploded may have come from the Russian- owned, Cypriot-flagged vessel Monchegorsk that was intercepted by Cyprus in 2009. The U.S., Britain and France said at the time that the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines chartered the vessel to send weapons-related material, including what they described as “bullet shells” and anti-tank munitions, toSyria. Iran said the seizure of the arms shipment was illegal.