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A woman celebrating her 105th birthday says that celibacy and staying single has been the key to her long life. Clara Meadmore, a retired secretary, who still has her own hair, teeth, and sharp wit, never had time for a family and lived alone until going into care. She said: "I've always had lots of platonic friendships with men but never felt the need to go further than that or marry." "When I was a girl you only had sex with your husband and I never married. I grew up in an era where little girls were to be seen...

- In Sweden that is. All the same, if various experts are right, the Nordic countries are not only the richest part of the world, but also global leaders in the domain of QUALITY of life. Therefore, living in this part of Stockholm is probably as good as life gets, or? The article: "The Stockholm suburb of Danderyd is the best municipality in which to live, according to a new ranking by the magazine Fokus. Lund and nearby Lomma in southern Sweden follow closely behind. Ljusnarsberg municipality in the Bergslagen region of central Sweden ended up in last place. The...

Despite being the finest people in the world, we Americans have a very short attention span – and even a shorter memory. We continuously have to complain, with the aid of cheap politicians, about “excessive” corporate profits. When we see someone making more money than we think they “deserve,” we are distraught and call for the government to “control” these profits. In essence, we forget about the massive good that a minimally regulated market has done to our quality of life, and point to these “unnecessary” profits to justify our skepticism about capitalism and appeal for increased government intervention. Oh...

My husband and I are getting ready to do what many couples in these brink-of-recessionary times would consider unthinkable. No, we're not buying a Martha's Vineyard retreat or planning a month in St. Bart's or eco-decorating our house. We're planning to have a third child. What shocks people, when we tell them, isn't the thought of hauling three kids onto a place for a vacation, or even the idea of coming home every night to a houseful of runny noses and homework assignments. What gets them is the sheer financial audacity. Raising kids today costs a fortune. Last month, the...

We’re starting what’s become an annual conversation about the price of gas a bit early this year. Seems like every summer, there’s lots of talk of how the price of gasoline has set new records, and a new set of circumstances that’s causing it. The plain fact that we apparently haven’t quite grasped yet is that the days of cheap gasoline are over. Oh, it’s something people might acknowledge if you really put it to them, but not in a way that suggests that anyone thinks it means anything more than paying more at the pump when getting from Point...

Danes have always loved the US as a travel destination. But with the dollar at its lowest point in 30 years, residents are now gobbling up the many discount offers being pitched by the nation's travel companies. Several travel bureaus are reporting increases of up to 140 percent on sales of trips to the states, where Danes can feel like wealthy plantation barons. In the past two years, the dollar has fallen from a value of 6.4 kroner to a shocking 4.8 kroner today - its lowest point since 1977. Weekend trips to New York City have been a hot...

For the fourth consecutive year, New Hampshire was named the nation’s Most Livable State by Morgan Quitno Press, which determined its 17th annual award from its just released reference book "State Rankings 2007." At the other end of the spectrum, statistics returned Mississippi at the bottom of the scale for the ninth time in the past 10 years. Louisiana, which ranked No. 50 last year, is No. 49. “ New Hampshire does an outstanding job in a number of quality of life areas,” said Scott Morgan, president of Morgan Quitno Press. “The state has the lowest crime and poverty rates...

RETROSEXUAL CODE A Retrosexual, no matter what the women insists, PAYS FOR THE DATE. A Retrosexual opens doors for a lady. Even for the ones that fit that term only because they are female. A Retrosexual DEALS with IT, be it a flat tire, break-in into your home, or a natural disaster, you DEAL WITH IT. A Retrosexual not only eats red meat, he often kills it himself. A Retrosexual doesn't worry about living to be 90. It's not how long you live, but how well. If you're 90 years old and still smoking cigars and drinking, I salute you....

In bars, restaurants and homes across Sweden champagne is flowing in abundance as Swedes enjoy a seemingly endless thirst for the bubbly beverage, spurred by a gastronomic "revolution" and a rosy economy. Champagne sales at stores run by the alcohol distribution monopoly Systembolaget are expected to hit an all-time high of one million bottles this year, excluding sales in bars and restaurants. That figure can be compared to 738,000 bottles sold last year and 287,000 a decade ago. "Drinking champagne is usual now and it's common not only at the weekend or to celebrate a special event, it's an everyday...

Sultan of Brunei lets slip his £4bn lifestyle By Andrew Pierce Last Updated: 1:46am BST 25/10/2007 The Sultan of Brunei, who is embroiled in the most expensive family feud in legal history, transferred $8 billion (£3.9 billion) of state funds into his personal bank account to help fund his lavish lifestyle, The Daily Telegraph can reveal. The Sultan of Brunei and his wife, Queen Hajah Mariam, is the world’s wealthiest monarch, with a £10 billion fortune The sultan, one of the world's richest men, has been forced to disclose his personal finances in a court case at the Privy Council...

Scandinavia has been rated as the best place to live, that’s according to a ranking by Reader’s Digest. Using a range of environmental and social indicators based in part on the UN’s Human Development Index, the survey rates countries on care of the environment and quality of life for their citizens. Finland tops the 141-nation list, followed by Nordic neighbours Iceland and Norway, with Sweden coming in at fourth place. And the Swedish capital comes top of the Reader’s Digest ranking of 72 world cities when it comes to quality of life. Cities were rated according to quality of public...

(Sweden:) An unusual feud has soured relations between two neighbours in Norrtälje as a woman battles for the right to retain her outdoor jacuzzi. Ever since the 51-year-old woman bought the hot tub last year, her journalist neighbour has complained about the noise of the motor. The 62-year-old jazz journalist has a writer's den close to her garden and has been finding it impossible to work. The journalist has primarily struggled to understand why his neighbour needs to have the jacuzzi turned on all year round and for more than ten minutes every hour, Norrtelje Tidning reports. She in turn...

Should biblical churches host gay-glorifying funerals? Should evangelical politics move leftward? Many news organs give us one answer: Yes! The lead of an Aug. 11 Associated Press story seemed to expose a clear case of homophobia: "A megachurch canceled a memorial service for a Navy veteran 24 hours before it was to start because the deceased was gay." The story stated that officials at High Point Church in Arlington, Texas, offered to host the service for a gay janitor who wasn't a church member but had worked there -- only to say no when his obituary listed a life partner....

A married couple in Kinda in the south east of Sweden have lost a court bid to retain their current level of welfare payments. For almost ten years the husband and wife pair have asserted their right to opt out of the rat race and live on a combination of state support and their own crops. Östergötland county court disagreed however, ruling that there were no health issues preventing the pair from taking up employment and that their benefits should therefore be reduced, Corren.se reports. In a letter to the county court, the husband had argued for a reversal of...

Storm-battered and abandoned in winter, Sweden’s harbor-side restaurants come alive in the summer. But two million boat lovers’ thirst for good food and seaside relaxation means tough work for the seasonal restaurant owners.

No longer content to offer consumers Swedish meatballs and self-assembly shelves, Ikea in Norway is now offering weary shoppers the chance to sleep over in one of its Oslo showrooms free of charge. From July 23 to July 27, the public will be able to spend the night in special rooms set up in the store, with a choice of bridal suite, complete with hanging chandelier and a round bed, or a luxury suite that includes breakfast in bed. Others can share a bunk in the dormitory, while parents and children can join in the fun in one of Ikea's...

Vaesteraas, Sweden - Thousands of mint-condition Chevrolets, Cadillacs and Oldsmobiles from the 1950's boulevard-cruise with Brylcreemed greasers draped over the steering wheel and rock 'n roll hits blaring on their radios. You might think you've been transported back a half-century to small-town America but, no, this is a scene found in any number of towns across Sweden where the early days of the US car culture never went out of style.

This weekend over 10,000 classic cars will converge on Västerås at the Power Big Meet as car enthusiasts from Sweden, Europe and as far afield as Russia, Israel and Australia make their annual pilgrimage to the biggest Classic car event in the world. For Sweden’s Raggare, the Power Big Meet is more than just a car show - it’s a celebration of a way of life that is peculiarly Swedish, despite being entrenched in the fashions, music and motor cars of Americana. Since the 1950s, a version of the American Dream has been embraced with an enthusiasm that has endured...

A Swedish heavy metal fan has had his musical preferences officially classified as a disability. The results of a psychological analysis enable the metal lover to supplement his income with state benefits. Roger Tullgren, 42, from Hässleholm in southern Sweden has just got part time work as a dishwasher at a local restaurant. Because heavy metal dominates so many aspects of his life, the Employment Service has agreed to pay part of Tullgren's salary. His new boss meanwhile has given him a special dispensation to play loud music at work. "I have been trying for ten years to get this...

State Senate boss Don Perata throws impressive parties, and this one was a doozy. The guests, some of Perata's best donors among them, feasted on buttery Dungeness crab and sipped California Chardonnay. Then they settled into their plush luxury box seats to watch the Oakland Raiders play the New York Jets in a game with playoff implications. It was mid-December 2000, and the state senator had just dropped $43,600 on an oversize luxury suite at the Oakland Coliseum for a single afternoon of festivities. At the time he said he was trying to convince East Bay business leaders to buy...

Sweden will open the first 'diplomatic representation' in the virtual reality of web-based Second Life, a fantasy world inhabited by computer-generated residents, on May 30, the Swedish Institute said Friday. "The Second House of Sweden, the world's first virtual embassy in Second Life will be inaugurated on May 30," the institute said in a statement. Related Articles Swedish taxman sets sights on Second Life 31st January 2007 Sweden to set up embassy in Second Life 26th January 2007 Article Options Send to a friend Printable version Submit to Digg.com Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt and Director General of the Swedish...

As France goes to the polls many agree that change is vital to tackle the slowing economy and growing public debt. But they also want to keep the best of what makes the country so distinctive... so French. Earlier this spring, I found myself in the small sleepy Burgundy town of Donzy at one o'clock and very much looking forward to a solid French lunch. The pale sunshine beat down on the main square, giving the honey-coloured stone a golden tinge. On the narrow cobbled main street was a host of cafes, their blinds shading the tables outside. For once,...

Singer George Michael denied he has been forced to call off his "wedding" to his long-term partner after being caught cruising for sex with strangers. The former Wham! star insisted that his partner Kenny Goss had no problem with him being with other men.

<p>MEGA-RICH pop superstar George Michael this week sank to new levels of depravity—trawling for illegal gay sex thrills in a London park.</p> <p>News of the World investigators caught the singer red-handed and red-faced as he emerged from the bushes after cavorting with a pot-bellied, 58-year-old, jobless van driver.</p>

A new WSJ.com/Harris health-care poll indicates growing U.S. support for charging higher insurance premiums or out-of-pockets medical costs to people with unhealthy lifestyles. The online survey of 2,325 U.S. adults found that 53% of Americans think it is fair to ask people with unhealthy lifestyles to pay higher insurance premiums than people with healthy lifestyles, while 32% said it would be unfair. When asked the same question in 2003, 37% said it would be fair, while 45% said it would be unfair. Healthy lifestyles were described as not smoking, exercising frequently and controlling one's weight.

Lifestyle centers, more likely to resemble pretty main streets than malls, are rising in number as owners seek to attract today's shoppers. Retail real estate investment trusts, which helped start the lifestyle trend, now want a stronger foothold on its cobblestones. "Lifestyle centers are popular today because shoppers are looking for a sense of place," said Cliff Goldstein, J.H. Snyder's senior partner for leasing and acquisition. "Bella Terra is a place for people to go who don't necessarily know what they want to do when they get there." There are 144 lifestyle shopping centers scattered across the U.S.,according to the...

Immortality is within our grasp . . . In Fantastic Voyage, high-tech visionary Ray Kurzweil teams up with life-extension expert Terry Grossman, M.D., to consider the awesome benefits to human health and longevity promised by the leading edge of medical science--and what you can do today to take full advantage of these startling advances. Citing extensive research findings that sound as radical as the most speculative science fiction, Kurzweil and Grossman offer a program designed to slow aging and disease processes to such a degree that you should be in good health and good spirits when the more extreme...

A tax accountant embezzled $10 million from a client, then used it to fund a lavish lifestyle that included a $2.2 million California mansion, a $74,000 bat mitzvah for his daughter and the production of three horror movies, authorities said Tuesday. Prosecutors said Denis I. Shusterman blew through the $10 million over eight years, spending about half on the three B movies. They said he also wrote off many of his good times as business expenses when he filed his income taxes. As Shusterman's embezzlement and fraud trial opened in federal court, prosecutors also said he gave $495,000 to one...

Dave Givens knew a seven-hour roundtrip commute to and from Mariposa to Cisco's San Jose headquarters wasn't normal, but he didn't think it exceptionally unusual. Then Midas called. The auto repair firm this week handed Givens its "America's Longest Commute" award for his daily 372 mile trek. Givens had entered the contest on a coworker's suggestion and never expected to win. Now, the electrical engineer is giving the massive commute a rethink. "I was thinking that a few people would have a commute like this," he told us. "I really didn't think I had the longest one. "I am totally...

[SNIP] It is also serious because less than one fifth of the local population are nationals. That means for four fifths of the population Dubai is not home. It is an option. At any time the majority of the city's workers can say "Ma'salamaa" and as fast as they can get the visa head for Hong Kong, Singapore or Qatar. The UAE will no doubt remember that as it sets, for example, the level of VAT. Human capital is a critical part of an economy. It needs you to stay. It is also important for you to remember that while...

3/8/2006 - DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. (AFPN) -- In 2005, he ran the New York City Marathon and skied down the Rockies. The fact he has one leg isn’t slowing him down. Tech. Sgt. Matthew Profitt is an active sportsman -- the 38-year-old reservist plays racquetball, bobsleds, canoes, cycles and runs. But, three years ago the 512th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron guidance and control section technician wasn’t sure he’d be alive today. Deadly Diagnosis In June 2003, while activated a second year to support the war on terrorism, Sergeant Profitt said he noticed an ulcer on his right shin. “It...

The following was written by Boysie Bollinger, who is the CEO of one of the state's largest shipyard operations, and a widely regarded civic leader. An interesting look at the times of New Orleans. "There's not a working clock in this entire city. This morning I went on mywalk and the big clock by St. Patrick's Church on Camp said it was 2:30; asI walked on, the Whitney clock said it was 11:15, and by the time I hit theFrench Quarter a clock there told me quite firmly that it was 6:00 o'clock. "I'm not really surprised at this -...

A Permanent Deathstyle By James Pinkerton Published 12/01/2005 E-Mail Bookmark Print Save TCS Here's the formula for the AIDS epidemic: First, start with a deadly contagious virus. Second, take no serious measures as dangerous behavior patterns multiply. Third, ignore the obvious lessons of epidemiological and medical history -- try demagoguery instead. Fourth, apply copious amounts of sentiment and red-ribbon artistry to the issue, substituting, in effect, sentiment for science. Fifth, stand back and watch tens of millions of people die. Repeat these five steps for as long as you wish. If you do so, you will find that AIDS is...

PALMDALE - In a giant hangar at Air Force Plant 42 where strategic nuclear bombers were built to win the Cold War, computer giant Microsoft has staked its future in the gaming industry, an $8 billion global market. An Internet underground marketing campaign brought 3,000 dedicated players from around the world to the Antelope Valley for Microsoft's North American launch of its newest game system. "It's basically a 30-hour party. There's never been anything like this," said Ricardo Torres, a senior editor at GameSpot.com, an online entertainment forum. In the virtual reality world of computer gaming, the giant from Seattle...

...Americans had good reason for not wanting the cost of private precautions against terrorism to become a giant tax on the economy out of rational proportion to the threat. See what this has done in the sad exceptional case of the airlines: Security hassles have made flying even more of a drag while piling up costly overhead on struggling carriers. But the last thing we need is to subsidize a similar indifference to natural disasters.... You would be rightly surprised to learn that normally disputatious climate scientists are in considerable agreement about the growing destructiveness of hurricanes seen over the...

Allstate has fired a manager because he expressed his Christian beliefs concerning homosexuality. Matt Barber was a manager in Allstate's Corporate Security Division. On his own time, and without identifying himself as an employee of Allstate, he wrote a column posted on several websites which was critical of same-sex marriage. An outside homosexual group complained to Allstate about the column. Because of their support for the homosexual agenda, Barber was immediately fired and ushered off company property. The message is clear: To work for Allstate one must not publicly express their Christian belief in the Bible's teaching on homosexuality. Barber...

Sometimes our efforts to stand up for the less fortunate actually can grease their slide backward into even less fortune. That's what I thought of the verbal sucker punch with which August Wilson, the distinguished black playwright, walloped Bill Cosby, the distinguished black comedian. When Time magazine asked Wilson what he thought of Cosby's controversial criticisms of black parenting, the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright was dismissive: "A billionaire attacking poor people for being poor," he said. "Bill Cosby is a clown. What do you expect? I thought it was unfair of him." I, by contrast, think Wilson is being unfair...

Man gets 35 years for murdering 15-year-old lover May 4, 2005 BY STEFANO ESPOSITO Staff Reporter A Chicago man who murdered a teenage boy he was having sex with was sentenced to 35 years in prison Tuesday. Cook County Judge Rickey Jones handed down the sentence the same day William Gaston, 34, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of 15-year-old Marquie Davis. In September 2001, Gaston had been having a relationship with Davis for several months, prosecutors said. At some point, Davis said he wanted to date other people, and the two argued about it. Shot in face...

Gov. John Baldacci's gay rights legislation awaited only his signature Wednesday evening to complete the anti-discrimination bill's rapid journey through the Legislature this week. "This one signature will wipe out at least a decade of intolerance," Baldacci aide Lee Umphrey said as the bill made its final, procedural stops in the House and Senate, both of which had strongly endorsed the measure in earlier votes.  The final House vote on Wednesday evening was 91-58 in favor of the bill. The Senate took its final vote at about 8 p.m., approving the measure 25-10.  Baldacci's signature, expected this morning, will also...

by Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D. Other Articles by Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D. The Danger of Spiritual Sloth 01/31/05 Jesus’s “Sermon on the Mount” is probably the most famous sermon of all time. And the opening lines of that sermon are equally famous — for 2,000 years they’ve been known as “the Beatitudes.” In nine short verses, Jesus lays out the character sketch of the spiritually successful person who is truly blest, fortunate, positioned to experience perfect happiness and the fullness of joy. This is what “beatitude” means. Now the very first qualification takes us back a bit. “Blessed are the poor in spirit.”...

The Burden of Sex For the first time, researchers have compiled a comprehensive tally of the health problems caused by sexual behavior in the United States, and it's not a pretty picture. Overall, they report that sexual behavior results in 3 times more premature death and disability in the U.S. compared to other wealthy countries. Epidemiologists have assessed the disability and death caused by sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in the past, but that's only one part of the picture, says Shahul Ebrahim of the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. STD infections can also increase the likelihood of...

Diabetes, high cholesterol, smoking may damage brainCrossword puzzles and memory games aren't enough to ward off Alzheimer's disease when some middle-aged couch potatoes get older. A new study finds that people in their early 40s who smoke or have diabetes and high cholesterol or have hypertension are at greater risk to develop Alzheimer's in their late 60s. But those risk factors can be mitigated through treatment and exercise, the study suggests. Alzheimer's can spring from heart and artery trouble, not just from neurological damage, said neurologist Rachel Whitmer, who led the study of 8,500 Kaiser Permanente patients. "Blood pressure, hypertension,...

The Canadian government is about to push through parliament, same-sex marriange. This issue has been allowed by the Supreme Court.

Immediately before Christmas I had an emergency root canal. Something went wrong and my Christmas weekend was spent popping vicodin and Motrin like M& M's. The entertaining of my children was left to my wife. I stayed in bed, emerging every couple hours to get something to drink and TO CHECK MY EMAIL! Clearly, I have a problem and I need help! My head was ready to explode and still I had to sign on to the Internet. Hello. My name is Joseph and I am a tech-aholic. I marvel at how intertwined all the Gizmos I have around the...

It's just an odd curiosity that I can't shake. If you know a true liberal -do you know what do they do to recognize Thanksgiving? -OR DO THEY? If so, what do they eat? It seems that they are required to shun tradition and eat things like ToeFugh or something... do they avoid mentions of thanks to a higher power and wear odd and special pierced ornaments...do they stop for a moment to say a word of best wishes for whales, salamanders, owls and ragweed? I just can't help but wonder.

Chicago, IL (LifeNews.com) -- A Chicago Tribune columnist is catching fire for recommending that a mother take her 22-year-old daughter to an office of Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion operation. Advice guru Amy Dickinson went so far as to suggest that the mother drive her adult daughter to Planned Parenthood and stay in the waiting room during her consultation. The daughter has a two-year-old son and recently miscarried another child. Dickinson wrote, “I think that a young woman who at 22 has already had at least one unplanned pregnancy needs to reassess her behavior -- and her birth-control method."...

Political donors' demographics reveal variety of lifestyle differences Saturday, October 30, 2004 Want to know your neighbor's political leanings? Check out what he drinks.Kerry's biggest supporters favor imported beers and ales; Bush's prefer bourbon, domestic white wine and low-alcohol beer.At The Record's request, a leading market research firm overlaid New Jersey's political contributors with its own data on the nation's purchasing habits. Working at the ZIP+4 level, Claritas tracked donors by their addresses and cross-tabulated that with consumption patterns in their neighborhoods and others like it.We looked for towns that tilted most strongly one way or another, rather than...

After talking with some left-wing friends this weekend, I realized now more than ever that the question of whether to vote for Bush or Kerry truly boils down to another question, “A war for our lives, or a nuisance to our lifestyle?” The later question was asked on Friday by eminent historian Victor David Hanson. He answers it with honesty and erudition, but leaves out a very important point: the fear factor. Hanson correctly identifies Kerry et al’s penchant for wanting to solve our foreign policy disputes through diplomatic bureaucracy ad nauseum -- e.g., the United Nations. He hints at...

A number of nations — such as Hong Kong, Israel, Puerto Rico, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Germany and Taiwan — do require paid vacation time. There's a growing movement of people advocating "simplified lifestyles" to try to get the United States more in line with the rest of the world. "We're sacrificing on the altar of productivity and gross domestic product all sorts of values: health, where we're not doing well in this area, longevity, physical fitness and obesity — all sorts of factors that rank the United States in last place among industrialized countries," said John de Graaf, the Seattle-based...

Traditional Values Coalition has launched a media effort called the “Homosexual Urban Legend Series.” This informational service is designed to provide reporters, editors, and other opinion leaders with accurate information on the relationship between homosexuality and the molestation of children. It will also expose and debunk dozens of factually inaccurate urban legends created by homosexual activist groups to promote their political and social agenda.Please share this website with others. urban legendn. An apocryphal story involving incidents of the recent past, often including elements of humor and horror, that spreads quickly and is popularly believed to be true. Source: The...