MOBILE, Alabama -- Centenarian Alice Lee -- the oldest lawyer still practicing in Alabama -- was featured Monday night in a PBS documentary about her famous sister, "To Kill a Mockingbird" author Harper Lee.
She also gave an interview that is online at The Daily Beast website. She talked to writer Mary McDonagh Murphy about topics including Truman Capote, her sister Nelle Harper Lee and life in Monroeville, Alabama.
"To Kill a Mockingbird," Harper Lee's only novel, is widely regarded as a classic. Set in a town she called Maycomb, the story of Atticus Finch, Scout and Tom Robinson illustrates the racial politics of the 1930s.
Alice Lee told Murphy that that Nelle Harper "grew up quite the little tomboy" and later became a novelist who "did not think that a writer needed to be recognized in person and it bothered her when she became too familiar."
Read the complete article on The Daily Beast website.
Last year, Alice Lee also granted an interview to the Press-Register's Ben Raines, and his article about her is online at al.com.
Harper Lee (The Birmingham News/Linda Stelter)
While Nelle Harper has long shunned attention, Miss Alice, as she her older sister is known to everyone in Monroeville, has enjoyed the spotlight in her role in the documentary, “Hey Boo.” The documentary -- which aired on PBS as part of the "American Masters" series -- premiering last summer at the Crescent Theater on Dauphin Street in Mobile.
In the film, Miss Alice explains that her sister retreated from public life in the 1960s because "as time went on, she said reporters began taking too many liberties with what she said."
Alice Lee told Raines, "Everybody who comes to Monroeville wants to visit with Nelle, and she’s not up to that. So we have to cut it off and say she’s not available. She sees her good friends and her family."
http://blog.al.com
marți, 3 aprilie 2012
Kansas was selling its national championship T-shirt hours before the title game
"Congratulations to Kansas, the 2012 men's basketball national champions," is what the school's official website would have said today if official websites could talk.
[ Watch: KU fans go crazy after beating Ohio State ]
A T-shirt proclaiming the Jayhawks as national champs was briefly put up for sale on KUstore.com on Monday afternoon, hours before the team's title-game clash with the Kentucky Wildcats. According to CBS St. Louis, the shirt was selling for $19.99 before it was taken down.
via @bryanagraham
This sort of stuff happens all too often before big games. The New York Giants website prematurely declared the team Super Bowl champions in February and the Philadelphia Inquirer ran an advertisement congratulating the team on a 2009 World Series win that never came. Mistakes are understandable. That this specific mistake gets made so often is a bit curious.
Both Kansas and Kentucky should have pre-made pages celebrating their respective national championships. That's just good business sense. Fans will flood to those websites in the minutes after the game looking for as much title swag as they can purchase. The ability to put those items up for sale instantly is a financial imperative.
But why/how does someone keep hitting publish on these ready-to-go pages? Every news organization has pre-written obituaries and video montages for major or at-risk celebrities but you don't hear about Betty White dying twice a year.
Yahoo sports
[ Watch: KU fans go crazy after beating Ohio State ]
A T-shirt proclaiming the Jayhawks as national champs was briefly put up for sale on KUstore.com on Monday afternoon, hours before the team's title-game clash with the Kentucky Wildcats. According to CBS St. Louis, the shirt was selling for $19.99 before it was taken down.
via @bryanagraham
This sort of stuff happens all too often before big games. The New York Giants website prematurely declared the team Super Bowl champions in February and the Philadelphia Inquirer ran an advertisement congratulating the team on a 2009 World Series win that never came. Mistakes are understandable. That this specific mistake gets made so often is a bit curious.
Both Kansas and Kentucky should have pre-made pages celebrating their respective national championships. That's just good business sense. Fans will flood to those websites in the minutes after the game looking for as much title swag as they can purchase. The ability to put those items up for sale instantly is a financial imperative.
But why/how does someone keep hitting publish on these ready-to-go pages? Every news organization has pre-written obituaries and video montages for major or at-risk celebrities but you don't hear about Betty White dying twice a year.
Yahoo sports
duminică, 1 aprilie 2012
Unemployment rates fall in 29 US states
Unemployment rates fell last month in most U.S. states, including in some hit hardest during the recession.
The Labor Department said Friday that unemployment rates declined in 29 states and rose in 8. Rates were unchanged in 13 states and Washington, D.C. The improvement was broader last month: rates fell in 45 states in January.
Still, job growth was more widespread than in previous months. Employers added jobs in 42 states, the most in almost a year. Ohio, Texas and New York reported the biggest job gains.
Nationwide, the economy added 227,000 net jobs in February and has averaged 245,000 jobs per month since December. That's helped lower the unemployment to 8.3 percent, the lowest level in three years.
The economy is expanding only modestly. But economists expect the stronger job market will help lift growth later this year.
And fresh data released Friday suggest that may already be happening. Consumer spending rose 0.8 percent in February, the Commerce Department said. That's the best gain in seven months.
Even some of the worst-hit states are seeing progress. Michigan's unemployment rate fell to 8.8 percent in February. That's down from a peak of 14.2 percent in August 2009. Many there are benefiting from the recovery in the auto industry, which has boosted job creation.
The rebound in auto sales has also helped South Carolina, where Mercedes and BMW both have manufacturing plants. The state's unemployment rate fell to 9.1 percent in February from 11.5 percent a year earlier. South Carolina has gained jobs in manufacturing, leisure and hospitality, and education and health care.
Many of the states hit hardest by the housing bust are also showing signs of health. Florida's unemployment rate has fallen to 9.4 percent from 10.8 percent a year earlier. California's rate is still painfully high at 10.9 percent. But it has dropped from 12 percent a year ago, a sign of progress.
Nevada has the nation's highest unemployment rate, at 12.3 percent. The state lost 12,800 jobs last month, the most of all states. That was also the biggest percentage job loss of any state.
Rhode Island's unemployment was the second highest, at 11 percent, up slightly from the previous month. Its rate hasn't improved much, declining only 0.3 percentage points in the past year.
North Dakota continued to report the lowest unemployment rate, at 3.1 percent, followed by Nebraska, at 4 percent.
http://www.businessweek.com/
The Labor Department said Friday that unemployment rates declined in 29 states and rose in 8. Rates were unchanged in 13 states and Washington, D.C. The improvement was broader last month: rates fell in 45 states in January.
Still, job growth was more widespread than in previous months. Employers added jobs in 42 states, the most in almost a year. Ohio, Texas and New York reported the biggest job gains.
Nationwide, the economy added 227,000 net jobs in February and has averaged 245,000 jobs per month since December. That's helped lower the unemployment to 8.3 percent, the lowest level in three years.
The economy is expanding only modestly. But economists expect the stronger job market will help lift growth later this year.
And fresh data released Friday suggest that may already be happening. Consumer spending rose 0.8 percent in February, the Commerce Department said. That's the best gain in seven months.
Even some of the worst-hit states are seeing progress. Michigan's unemployment rate fell to 8.8 percent in February. That's down from a peak of 14.2 percent in August 2009. Many there are benefiting from the recovery in the auto industry, which has boosted job creation.
The rebound in auto sales has also helped South Carolina, where Mercedes and BMW both have manufacturing plants. The state's unemployment rate fell to 9.1 percent in February from 11.5 percent a year earlier. South Carolina has gained jobs in manufacturing, leisure and hospitality, and education and health care.
Many of the states hit hardest by the housing bust are also showing signs of health. Florida's unemployment rate has fallen to 9.4 percent from 10.8 percent a year earlier. California's rate is still painfully high at 10.9 percent. But it has dropped from 12 percent a year ago, a sign of progress.
Nevada has the nation's highest unemployment rate, at 12.3 percent. The state lost 12,800 jobs last month, the most of all states. That was also the biggest percentage job loss of any state.
Rhode Island's unemployment was the second highest, at 11 percent, up slightly from the previous month. Its rate hasn't improved much, declining only 0.3 percentage points in the past year.
North Dakota continued to report the lowest unemployment rate, at 3.1 percent, followed by Nebraska, at 4 percent.
http://www.businessweek.com/
Best 5 Easy April Fools' Day Pranks
April showers may bring May flowers but April 1 brings the jokes! Although the day, also called All Fools' Day, has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures, its exact origins remain a mystery, according to History.com.
No matter the origins, it has become a beloved tradition for hoaxters, pranksters or anyone who likes a good laugh and Patch has five ways for our readers get in the spirit.
1. Keep the kids occupied with a word search puzzle. Although it looks like a normal word search, none of the words listed are actually in the puzzle. Your victim will search endlessly for the words while you egg them on to keep searching. The puzzle, created by Aprilfoolzone.com, conveniently includes spring time words like basket, bunny and garden to throw your victim off the trail. To download the word search, click here.
2. Take one of your old jewelry boxes—the kind jewelry comes in—and give your loved one or spouse an unexpected gift. Cut a hole in the bottom big enough to fit your finger in. For this trick the index, middle or ring fingers work best. Then decorate your hand with make-up, paint or lipstick to look like a bloody finger. Stick your finger through the hole, making sure to add tissue paper or some other decorative bedding. Then present the victim with your “gift.” Be as sweet and romantic as possible, opening it for them.
3. For cellphone users, there’s an app for that! There are many a free applications available in the Android and iPhone markets that can help you fool your friends. For example, the Android app "Scary Zombies” allows you to scare your friends. This free app allows you to set a timer with the alarm being a graphic photo of a zombie of your choosing. Set the timer and have your friends use your phone to get directions or play a game. What they get instead will have you laughing for the rest of the day. For those more gullible, download the "Fingerprint Lock" app. It’s a lock screen that allows your friends to think it can scan fingerprints. While this app responds to touch, the victim won’t know it!
4. This one is for all the mayonnaise, Miracle Whip, yogurt, or sour cream lovers. Switch any of these for another of the same consistency and your victim will get a spoon full of something they aren’t expecting.
5. If you work on April Fool's day, prank your co-workers with a stale joke suggested by AprilFoolZone.com. Purchase a box of donuts the day before before and leave them in your fridge with the top open. On April 1, put the donuts in the break room so all can “enjoy.”
Fun Fact:
On April 1, 1957, the British news show Panorama broadcast a three-minute segment about a bumper spaghetti harvest in southern Switzerland, according to Museumofhoaxes.com. The success of the crop was attributed both to an unusually mild winter and to the "virtual disappearance of the spaghetti weevil." The audience heard Richard Dimbleby, the show's highly respected anchor, discussing the details of the spaghetti crop as they watched video footage of a Swiss family pulling pasta off spaghetti trees and placing it into baskets. The segment concluded with the assurance that, "For those who love this dish, there's nothing like real, home-grown spaghetti." The Swiss Spaghetti Harvest hoax generated an enormous response. Hundreds of people phoned the BBC wanting to know how they could grow their own spaghetti tree. To this query the BBC diplomatically replied, "Place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best." Museumofhoaxes.com states “to this day the Panorama broadcast remains one of the most famous and popular April Fool's Day hoaxes of all time. It is also believed to be the first time the medium of television was used to stage an April fool’s Day hoax.”
http://northfield.patch.com
No matter the origins, it has become a beloved tradition for hoaxters, pranksters or anyone who likes a good laugh and Patch has five ways for our readers get in the spirit.
1. Keep the kids occupied with a word search puzzle. Although it looks like a normal word search, none of the words listed are actually in the puzzle. Your victim will search endlessly for the words while you egg them on to keep searching. The puzzle, created by Aprilfoolzone.com, conveniently includes spring time words like basket, bunny and garden to throw your victim off the trail. To download the word search, click here.
2. Take one of your old jewelry boxes—the kind jewelry comes in—and give your loved one or spouse an unexpected gift. Cut a hole in the bottom big enough to fit your finger in. For this trick the index, middle or ring fingers work best. Then decorate your hand with make-up, paint or lipstick to look like a bloody finger. Stick your finger through the hole, making sure to add tissue paper or some other decorative bedding. Then present the victim with your “gift.” Be as sweet and romantic as possible, opening it for them.
3. For cellphone users, there’s an app for that! There are many a free applications available in the Android and iPhone markets that can help you fool your friends. For example, the Android app "Scary Zombies” allows you to scare your friends. This free app allows you to set a timer with the alarm being a graphic photo of a zombie of your choosing. Set the timer and have your friends use your phone to get directions or play a game. What they get instead will have you laughing for the rest of the day. For those more gullible, download the "Fingerprint Lock" app. It’s a lock screen that allows your friends to think it can scan fingerprints. While this app responds to touch, the victim won’t know it!
4. This one is for all the mayonnaise, Miracle Whip, yogurt, or sour cream lovers. Switch any of these for another of the same consistency and your victim will get a spoon full of something they aren’t expecting.
5. If you work on April Fool's day, prank your co-workers with a stale joke suggested by AprilFoolZone.com. Purchase a box of donuts the day before before and leave them in your fridge with the top open. On April 1, put the donuts in the break room so all can “enjoy.”
Fun Fact:
On April 1, 1957, the British news show Panorama broadcast a three-minute segment about a bumper spaghetti harvest in southern Switzerland, according to Museumofhoaxes.com. The success of the crop was attributed both to an unusually mild winter and to the "virtual disappearance of the spaghetti weevil." The audience heard Richard Dimbleby, the show's highly respected anchor, discussing the details of the spaghetti crop as they watched video footage of a Swiss family pulling pasta off spaghetti trees and placing it into baskets. The segment concluded with the assurance that, "For those who love this dish, there's nothing like real, home-grown spaghetti." The Swiss Spaghetti Harvest hoax generated an enormous response. Hundreds of people phoned the BBC wanting to know how they could grow their own spaghetti tree. To this query the BBC diplomatically replied, "Place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best." Museumofhoaxes.com states “to this day the Panorama broadcast remains one of the most famous and popular April Fool's Day hoaxes of all time. It is also believed to be the first time the medium of television was used to stage an April fool’s Day hoax.”
http://northfield.patch.com
ULTRA-MARATHON runner Micah True, missing for four days in the rugged wilderness of New Mexico, was found dead on Saturday, police said.
Nicknamed "Caballo Blanco," or White Horse, True became a celebrity after he was featured in the best-selling book Born to Run by Christopher McDougall.
The body was discovered in a remote area of the Gila Wilderness, state police spokesman Lt. Robert McDonald said.
The cause of death was still unknown, but there were no signs of trauma, incident commander Tom Bemis said.
"It's too early to say, there was nothing obvious," he told the Boulder Daily Camera.
True, 58, whose extreme-distance running prowess is detailed in the book Born to Run by Christopher McDougall, set out on what -- for him -- would have been a routine 20km run on Tuesday from The Wilderness Lodge and Hot Springs, where he was staying. He left his dog at the lodge and never returned. A search began the next day after.
Lodge co-owner Dean Bruemmer, who helped with the search, said he last saw his friend at breakfast. He said True gave no indication of a specific route, which made the search more difficult.
"There are a lot of trailheads up the road," said Bruemmer, whose lodge is about 6km from the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument.
Though daytime temperatures in southwest New Mexico have been mild of late, nights are chilly. True left for his run wearing only shorts and a T-shirt and carrying a water bottle.
Fourteen search teams that were scouring the area yesterday were supplemented with additional volunteer teams from across the state on Saturday morning, McDonald said. Teams were hiking and on horseback and trail bikes. They also used dogs and employed a helicopter and plane in the search.
True, who had been friends with Bruemmer and his wife, Jane, for 10 years, would often visit their lodge while travelling between Mexico and his Boulder, Colorodo, home. As a result, Bruemmer said, True certainly knew the trail system well -- which made his disappearance all the more mystifying to everyone.
Michael Sandrock, a columnist who writes about running for The Daily Camera newspaper in Boulder, knew True for at least 20 years and had run with him. He called True a pioneer of the sport of ultrarunning, which involves running extreme distances, often on gruelling terrain and many kilometres longer than a traditional 42km marathon.
True, he said, had a rebellious spirit but never sought to draw attention to himself even as he became legendary for his talents, which included "just going up and running for hours and hours at a time."
"He's just authentic and genuine. ... Micah is a guy who follows his bliss," Sandrock said.
True was the race director of The Copper Canyon Ultra Marathon, an 80km extreme race that took place in Urique, Mexico, on March 4.
He was featured in articles in running magazines and was a central character -- known by his nickname, "Caballo Blanco" -- in Christopher McDougall's nonfiction best-seller Born to Run.
"He's such an integral part of the fabric of the ultra community," Sandrock said. "He's one of the stars .... the Caballo Blanco, he's a legend."
http://www.heraldsun.com.au
Easy April Fools’ Day Pranks
Today is April Fools’ Day, the one day of the year when playing tricks on others is not only expected, but also somewhat encouraged. And it's not just an American tradition – in France and Italy children celebrate "Poisson d'Avril" or "Pesce d'Aprile," respectively, by taping pictures of fish to each other's backs.
Are you planning to prank someone on April 1? Tell us in the comments.
If you are planning to prank a family, friend or co-worker, please play nice and consider some of these relatively harmless ideas:
Tape magnets to the bottom of an empty coffee cup, and attach it to the top of your car. Laugh at all the people who frantically try to get your attention as you drive by. – April Fool Zone
Superglue some coins to the sidewalk or any spot that gets a lot of traffic. Make sure it's an appropriate place, then watch people try to get the coins. – Kidz World
“Foil” a co-worker - Instructables
Guyism offers several April Fools’ Day suggestions:
Borrow someone’s cell phone and change the language setting to a foreign language, or change the language on their Google home page to "Klingon." (Google itself gets into the fun every year – today, I'm guessing Google Racing, with its self-driving car, is probably not really going anywhere)
Add several odd appointments with alarms set to go off during the day to a co-worker’s Outlook calendar.
Hide all of the desktop icons on someone’s computer and replace the monitor’s wallpaper with a screen-shot of their desktop.
Place a small piece of Post-it note over the ball under someone’s computer mouse so that it won’t work.
Other ideas from Patch Columnist Heather Kempskie:
Toilet messaging. Write a message on a few sheets of toilet paper with permanent marker and place it in the toilet bowl. Some message ideas: "Who goes there?" and "The joke’s on poo!"
Problems with the pipes. Hopkinton mom Julie Capello used colored bath tablets to trick her kids. “We put them in the bathroom and kitchen sink pipes and tricked the family!” It’s easy to do: Unscrew the rim of the bathroom faucet and place an Easter Egg Dying tablet in there.
Mom and/or Dad have lost their minds. When the kids were young I came downstairs dressed in my husband’s work shirt and tie. He came down wearing make-up. The kids were completely confused and equally delighted.
The shoe doesn’t fit. Bunch up toilet paper and stuff it in the toe of the victim's shoes. They'll wonder why their shoes suddenly don't fit.
Surprise door. Blow up some balloons and place them over the top of a door with the door slightly closed. Your little one will walk in and release a colorful balloon surprise.
Hit the sock drawer. Use large safety pins to string together several pairs of socks. When your son or daughter goes to retrieve their socks in the morning they’ll get more than they bargained for.
http://medfield.patch.com/
Are you planning to prank someone on April 1? Tell us in the comments.
If you are planning to prank a family, friend or co-worker, please play nice and consider some of these relatively harmless ideas:
Tape magnets to the bottom of an empty coffee cup, and attach it to the top of your car. Laugh at all the people who frantically try to get your attention as you drive by. – April Fool Zone
Superglue some coins to the sidewalk or any spot that gets a lot of traffic. Make sure it's an appropriate place, then watch people try to get the coins. – Kidz World
“Foil” a co-worker - Instructables
Guyism offers several April Fools’ Day suggestions:
Borrow someone’s cell phone and change the language setting to a foreign language, or change the language on their Google home page to "Klingon." (Google itself gets into the fun every year – today, I'm guessing Google Racing, with its self-driving car, is probably not really going anywhere)
Add several odd appointments with alarms set to go off during the day to a co-worker’s Outlook calendar.
Hide all of the desktop icons on someone’s computer and replace the monitor’s wallpaper with a screen-shot of their desktop.
Place a small piece of Post-it note over the ball under someone’s computer mouse so that it won’t work.
Other ideas from Patch Columnist Heather Kempskie:
Toilet messaging. Write a message on a few sheets of toilet paper with permanent marker and place it in the toilet bowl. Some message ideas: "Who goes there?" and "The joke’s on poo!"
Problems with the pipes. Hopkinton mom Julie Capello used colored bath tablets to trick her kids. “We put them in the bathroom and kitchen sink pipes and tricked the family!” It’s easy to do: Unscrew the rim of the bathroom faucet and place an Easter Egg Dying tablet in there.
Mom and/or Dad have lost their minds. When the kids were young I came downstairs dressed in my husband’s work shirt and tie. He came down wearing make-up. The kids were completely confused and equally delighted.
The shoe doesn’t fit. Bunch up toilet paper and stuff it in the toe of the victim's shoes. They'll wonder why their shoes suddenly don't fit.
Surprise door. Blow up some balloons and place them over the top of a door with the door slightly closed. Your little one will walk in and release a colorful balloon surprise.
Hit the sock drawer. Use large safety pins to string together several pairs of socks. When your son or daughter goes to retrieve their socks in the morning they’ll get more than they bargained for.
http://medfield.patch.com/
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