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NBey6's Blog

  • NBey6's Blog has 2,111 entries (55 private) and has been viewed 351,327 times.
  • Lottery Post members have made 1960 comments in NBey6's Blog.
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March 8, 2010, 3:42 pmMeditation Numbers

Monday 3-8-10

441, 439, 455, 205, 217, 191, 651, 095, 873

593, 362, 657, 073, 792, 906, 148, 507, 333

Meditate

Entry #2,096
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March 8, 2010, 3:40 pmBrittney Griner's punch on Jordan Barncastle

Is that really a girl...............I'm just saying?

Entry #2,095
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March 8, 2010, 3:26 pmAnd you thought Kanye's moment was bad?!

Entry #2,094
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March 8, 2010, 3:21 pmWhy small film 'Hurt Locker' blew away giant 'Avatar'

Why small film 'Hurt Locker' blew away giant 'Avatar'

  • By LOU LUMENICK Post Movie Critic
  • Last Updated: 11:51 AM, March 8, 2010
  • Posted: 3:49 AM, March 8, 2010

 

This isn't exactly the kind of Blue Monday that disappointed "Avatar" fans were expecting.

 

Oscar voters passed over the top-grossing film of all time, and instead gave Best Picture to "The Hurt Locker," which sold the fewest tickets of any Best Picture winner in academy history.

 

The academy also made history by choosing Kathryn Bigelow of "The Hurt Locker" as the first woman ever to win the Oscar for Best Director -- over her ex-husband, "Avatar" director James Cameron.

 

"Avatar" and Cameron seemed unbeatable in January after winning at the Golden Globes and becoming a genuine international cultural phenomenon.

 

But experts say the film's Oscar campaign failed to capitalize on its momentum and allowed the flick to get swamped in the inevitable backlash.

 

"Avatar" was widely mocked by the chattering classes for being derivative ("Dances With Smurfs"). A lightly revised script for the Disney cartoon "Pocahontas," underlining the similarities between the two films, circulated through the blogosphere.

 

Meanwhile, the film's campaigners pushed unsuccessfully to get a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Zoe Saldana, who appears in the film only in animated form.

 

"The campaign was overly defensive, focusing too much on convincing the voters that the motion-capture performances were real acting," says a veteran Oscar consultant.

 

"Instead, they should have emphasized on what a game-changer 'Avatar' is for the way movies will be made."

 

It probably didn't help that many Oscar voters still remember Cameron's boastful "king of the world" speech from the night when his "Titanic" won 11 Oscars in 1998.

 

So Oscar voters continued the recent trend of embracing small, art-house flicks such as "The Hurt Locker."

Last Edited: March 8, 2010, 3:22 pm

Entry #2,093
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March 8, 2010, 1:02 pmDid you know that on March 8, 1973

1973, Paul McCartney was fined £100 ($170) for growing cannabis at his farm in Campbeltown, Scotland. McCartney claimed some fans gave the seeds to him and that he didn’t know what they would grow.

http://www.thisdayinmusic.com/

Entry #2,092
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March 8, 2010, 12:56 pmOldest person in US dies at 114

Oldest person in US dies in NH at age 114

1 hr 44 mins ago

WESTMORELAND, N.H. – Mary Josephine Ray, the New Hampshire woman who was certified as the oldest person living in the United States, has died at age 114 years, 294 days.

She died Sunday at a nursing home in Westmoreland but was active until about two weeks before her death, her granddaughter Katherine Ray said.

"She just enjoyed life. She never thought of dying at all," Katherine Ray said. "She was planning for her birthday party."

Even with her recent decline, Ray managed an interview with a reporter last week, her granddaughter said.

The Gerontology Research Group says that Ray was the oldest person in the United States and the second-oldest in the world. She was also recorded as the oldest person ever to live in New Hampshire.

The oldest living American is now Neva Morris, of Ames, Iowa, at age 114 years, 216 days. The oldest person in the world is Japan's Kama Chinen at age 114 years, 301 days.

Ray was born May 17, 1895, in Bloomfield, Prince Edward Island, Canada. She moved to the United States at age 3.

She lived for 60 years in Anson, Maine. She lived in Florida, Massachusetts and elsewhere in New Hampshire before she moved to Westmoreland in 2002 to be near her children.

Ray's husband, Walter, died in 1967. Survivors include two sons, eight grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and five great-great grandchildren.

Entry #2,091
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March 8, 2010, 12:22 pmNC/SC Wildcard

Midday & Evening

** until 3-12-10 **

976, 087, 198, 209, 310, 421, 532, 643, 754, 865, 333, 888

6590, 6591, 6592, 6953, 6594, 6595, 6596, 6597, 6598, 6599

Lurking

Entry #2,090
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March 8, 2010, 8:58 amQuote of the Day

"It's not enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what's required."

- Winston Churchill -

Entry #2,088
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March 7, 2010, 1:36 pmMeditation Numbers

Helios' Day 3-7-10

082, 162, 407, 056, 372, 362, 052, 482, 498

332, 572, 702, 322, 152, 942, 472, 962, 182

000, 555, 1886, 1228, 6138, 2180, 6948, 8943

Sun Smiley

Entry #2,087
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March 6, 2010, 6:38 amJulius Peppers, Chicago Bears finalize $91.5M deal

Friday, March 5, 2010
Peppers, Bears finalize deal


By John Clayton
ESPN.com


Julius Peppers and the Chicago Bears agreed on a six-year deal to bring the top free agent to Chicago.

 

The contract is worth $91.5 million with $42 million guaranteed. Peppers will make $40.5 million over the first three years. The number could increase if he makes the Pro Bowl, records a certain number of sacks or is defensive player of the year.

"It's one thing to play football in this league and make a living, but it's a totally different thing to come to a place with a rich tradition like the Bears," Peppers said.

 

Peppers and his representatives believe his contract compares favorably with the seven-year, $100 million contract Albert Haynesworth received last year from the Washington Redskins.

 

Peppers received $18.2 million from the Carolina Panthers last season. He turned down a four-year, $54 million contract offer from the Panthers last year.

 

Peppers has the potential to make close to $110 million in the seven-year period between 2009 and 2016.

 

"The guy's a monster, he's an animal," Bears defensive end Alex Brown said Thursday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "He's the biggest guy and fastest guy I think I've ever seen.

 

"He's as gifted as [linebacker Brian] Urlacher, I think. He's just about 30 pounds heavier. He's unbelievable."

 

The 6-foot-7 Peppers brings uncanny athletic ability but questionable consistency, along with the 81 sacks he collected in eight seasons with Carolina -- 10½ last year. In Chicago, he'll get to play alongside Lance Briggs, Urlacher and Tommie Harris and give a much-needed boost to a defense that ranked 17th overall and tied for 13th in sacks with 35. And maybe, he'll shoot down a reputation for taking plays off, one that he feels is unwarranted.

 

"Sometimes, you're on the field, you get tired," he said. "If I'm not playing as hard on play 66 as I was on play No. 1, then ... come on."  "It's one thing to play football in this league and make a living, but it's a totally different thing to come to a place with a rich tradition like the Bears," Peppers said.

 

Peppers and his representatives believe his contract compares favorably with the seven-year, $100 million contract Albert Haynesworth received last year from the Washington Redskins.

 

Peppers received $18.2 million from the Carolina Panthers last season. He turned down a four-year, $54 million contract offer from the Panthers last year.

 

Peppers has the potential to make close to $110 million in the seven-year period between 2009 and 2016.

 

"The guy's a monster, he's an animal," Bears defensive end Alex Brown said Thursday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "He's the biggest guy and fastest guy I think I've ever seen.

 

"He's as gifted as [linebacker Brian] Urlacher, I think. He's just about 30 pounds heavier. He's unbelievable."

 

The 6-foot-7 Peppers brings uncanny athletic ability but questionable consistency, along with the 81 sacks he collected in eight seasons with Carolina -- 10½ last year. In Chicago, he'll get to play alongside Lance Briggs, Urlacher and Tommie Harris and give a much-needed boost to a defense that ranked 17th overall and tied for 13th in sacks with 35. And maybe, he'll shoot down a reputation for taking plays off, one that he feels is unwarranted.

 

"Sometimes, you're on the field, you get tired," he said. "If I'm not playing as hard on play 66 as I was on play No. 1, then ... come on."

Entry #2,086
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March 6, 2010, 6:33 amHigh cost of McCourts' divorce: $19 million in fees

High cost of McCourts' divorce: $19 million in fees

  • Dodgers' case could be one of the most expensive in California history. Even other high-profile divorce attorneys are surprised.

By Bill Shaikin

latimes.com

6:16 PM PST, March 5, 2010

 

Frank and Jamie McCourt's divorce could become one of the costliest splits in California history, with attorneys and accountants commanding as much as $19 million in fees — more than the Dodgers will spend on their starting infield this season.

Frank McCourt has estimated his "divorce-related expenses" at $5 million to $10 million, according to court filings. Jamie McCourt has estimated her expenses at $9 million — and asked that her estranged husband be ordered to pay them.

Although records of salaries and statistics are omnipresent in baseball, specific information about divorce costs is largely unavailable. The Times consulted with several family law experts, none of whom could recall a divorce costing $19 million.

"I'm pretty sure there's not been any litigation in a California divorce where they've spent so much on attorneys' fees," said Lynn Soodik, a Santa Monica family law attorney who represented Meg Ryan in her divorce from Dennis Quaid.

Soodik said it was "very unusual" that each of the McCourts has retained multiple law firms. Seven lawyers appeared in court last month for a hearing on whether to postpone the trial date, on the same day other lawyers in the case were said to be conducting a deposition of Jamie McCourt.

Connolly Oyler, another Santa Monica attorney with experience in celebrity divorces, said a total cost of $5 million would be "consistent with most high-profile cases."

Jamie McCourt has asked that Frank pay $8.5 million to two law firms and another $500,000 to the accountants retained to unravel the couple's finances. In a deposition filed last month, Jeff Ingram, the chief operating officer of the McCourt Group, testified that Frank McCourt could need $5 million to $10 million to pay the lawyers and accountants working on his behalf.

Marshall Grossman, the attorney representing the Dodgers, said fans should not be concerned that the high cost of the divorce would affect player payroll decisions.

"The Dodgers are a solid organization," Grossman said. "This team will still win and make the fans of Los Angeles proud."

The Dodgers did not offer salary arbitration to All-Star second baseman Orlando Hudson, who earned $7.6 million last season. The candidates to start at second base this season include Jamey Carroll ($1.05 million), Ronnie Belliard ($850,000) and Blake DeWitt (about $420,000).

The other infield positions should be manned by shortstop Rafael Furcal ($8.5 million), third baseman Casey Blake ($6 million) and first baseman James Loney ($3.1 million).

In December, Grossman said that Frank McCourt does not "meet the payroll out of his own bank account any more than any other shareholder of any other company does." In his deposition, Ingram said McCourt planned to seek "a simple personal loan" to cover the expenses of the court case.

If the McCourts reach a settlement rather than proceed to trial, they could save millions in legal costs, Soodik said, although significant work to prepare for a trial — depositions, document exchanges and investigative accounting included — is long since underway.

The costs of a divorce can vary widely. Kathleen Dixon, who runs the self-help legal assistance offices in Los Angeles Superior Court, said a couple who agree on how to split their assets and have no child custody issues can file a divorce petition with the court for $355, with fee waivers available.

Divorce lawyers generally charge from $250 to $750 per hour in the Southland, according to Sharon Hulse, executive director of the Levitt and Quinn Family Law Center in Los Angeles. She said a "simple" divorce could cost $10,000.

The Britney Spears-Kevin Federline divorce cost $835,000, The Times reported last year. Former NFL quarterback Bernie Kosar told the Miami Herald last year he spent more than $4 million on attorney fees — at $600 an hour — on his divorce.

Charlotte Goldberg, who teaches family law and marital property law at Loyola Law School, said costs in the McCourt case appear to be extraordinarily high.

"Millions of dollars in a family law case — even in a high-profile one — is unusual," she said. "It's hard to imagine what issues are so complex as to entail such high attorneys' fees."

Marc Seltzer, an attorney for Frank McCourt, declined to comment.

Dennis Wasser, an attorney for Jamie McCourt, said in a court hearing last month that he already had received over 100,000 pages in documents from Frank McCourt's lawyers, in part trying to account for what he said were the "over 30 entities that Mr. McCourt controls."

"I've been practicing law in California for 42 years," Wasser said. "I've never seen the kind of factual data that's involved in this case."

The ownership of the Dodgers — and the core issue for trial — revolves around the validity of a post-nuptial agreement that specifies Frank McCourt is the sole owner of the team and other business assets and Jamie McCourt is the sole owner of the couple's residential properties.

Wasser told the court he had identified as many as 18 possible witnesses that could testify about the 10-page agreement. Sorrell Trope, an attorney for Frank McCourt, told the court he would not summon all of those potential witnesses and doubted Wasser would, because some had merely provided basic information about the agreement.

Raoul Felder, who has represented such clients as Rudolph Giuliani, Robin Givens and the estranged spouses of Elizabeth Taylor and Liza Minnelli in divorce cases, said he could not recall any of his cases costing $19 million.

"That's high," Felder said from his New York office. "But there's a lot of responsibility in these cases. You can't really be cavalier and say it's too much.

"The fact they're both in the same ballpark leads me to believe they're right on target."

Entry #2,085
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March 6, 2010, 5:38 amMeditation Numbers

Saturday 3-6-10

430, 384, 606, 248, 917, 370, 305, 049

047, 683, 097, 923, 613, 111, 555, 666

Smash

Entry #2,084
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March 6, 2010, 5:14 am2010 WTA Tour Rankings

As of March 1, 2010

Curr Prev Name DOB Nation Rank pts Tours
1 1 Williams, Serena 26/09/81 USA 8645 18
2 2 Safina, Dinara 27/04/86 RUS 6480 18
3 3 Kuznetsova, Svetlana 27/06/85 RUS 5930 19
4 4 Wozniacki, Caroline 11/07/90 DEN 5925 24
5 5 Williams, Venus 17/06/80 USA 5626 17
6 6 Azarenka, Victoria 31/07/89 BLR 5300 17
7 7 Dementieva, Elena 15/10/81 RUS 4855 20
8 8 Radwanska, Agnieszka 06/03/89 POL 3880 23
9 9 Jankovic, Jelena 28/02/85 SRB 3770 20
10 10 Li, Na 26/02/82 CHN 3665 20
Entry #2,083
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March 6, 2010, 5:08 am2010 ATP Tour Rankings

As of March 1, 2010

 

Rank Name & Nationality Points Position Moved Tournaments Played
1 Federer, Roger (SUI) 11,350 0 19
2 Djokovic, Novak (SRB) 8,310 0 21
3 Nadal, Rafael (ESP) 7,520 0 18
4 Murray, Andy (GBR) 7,255 0 17
5 Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG) 6,265 0 20
6 Davydenko, Nikolay (RUS) 5,290 0 27
7 Soderling, Robin (SWE) 3,855 0 27
8 Roddick, Andy (USA) 3,720 0 21
9 Cilic, Marin (CRO) 2,970 0 23
10 Gonzalez, Fernando (CHI) 2,890 2 19

Last Edited: March 6, 2010, 5:18 am

Entry #2,082
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March 6, 2010, 2:06 amThought of the Day

"The ideal man bears the accidents of life with dignity and grace, making the best of circumstances."

- Aristotle -

Entry #2,081
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