Top Picks: Songs of Christmas cheer, Jeremy Renner as The Bourne Legacy, and more

Two e-readers work well with little lighting, the 'Charlie Brown Christmas' soundtrack is the perfect accompaniment to any holiday, and more top picks.

By Staff / December 14, 2012

"Back to the Beginning" with foreign correspondent Christiane Amanpour.

ABC

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Mapping Cultures

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Foreign correspondent Christiane Amanpour travels throughout the Middle East to explore the origins of three of the world's great religions: Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. Back to the Beginning, a two-part, four-hour series, airs on ABC Dec. 21 and Dec. 28. Half a world away, PBS examines nearly a million Iranians living in the United States ? from diplomats to educators and even comedians. The Iranian Americans airs Dec. 18 at 9 p.m.

Songs of Christmas cheer

Don't feel like caroling in the snow? Stay indoors and sing along to Rufus Wainwright and Sharon Van Etten's duet of "Baby, It's Cold Outside." You'll find their exquisite version on Holidays Rule, a compilation of seasonal songs by the likes of Paul McCartney, The Shins, The Civil Wars, and Calexico. Best of all, Jon Russell and Charity Thielen of The Head and the Heart sound as if they're singing "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" beneath the mistletoe.

Agent on the run

Jeremy Renner takes center stage in The Bourne Legacy, the newest installment in the Bourne series that comes to DVD and Blu-ray Dec. 11. With Matt Damon having bowed out of his role as an agent on the run, Renner teams up with Rachel Weisz, who plays geneticist Dr. Marta Shearing. "Director and co-writer Tony Gilroy is good at scenes of high-level nastiness," says Monitor film critic Peter Rainer.

E-read with ease

E-readers often stumble in low-light situations, such as a half-lit bedroom. Without a strong light source, e-ink screens are nearly illegible. The Amazon Kindle Paperwhite solves this issue with a soft backlight that illuminates words without lighting up a room. If you're a Nook household, check out the Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight, which features a similar luminescent screen but without Amazon's online library. They both cost about $120.

not just 'peanuts'

One of the most delightful albums of holiday music ever made accompanied an animated TV special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, in 1965. The beloved special still airs every season, and the music ? independent of its original setting ? has become a bona fide Christmas classic, right up there with Nat King Cole and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Composer Vince Guaraldi's jazzy, buoyant score is at once touching, toe-tapping, and perfectly suited to the holidays. A newly remastered version includes alternate takes, cleaned-up sound, and Guaraldi's themes from the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving and Halloween specials, too.

Less is more

If the mood of the season turns your thoughts toward Scandinavian climes (reindeer, anyone?), you may appreciate Wabi Sabi Scandinavian Design (wabisabi-style.blogspot.com). Curated in English by a Swedish designer, the site showcases muted tones, teak furniture, and lots of sheepskin. The selection of Christmas-themed decorations include a fir tree made of cardboard triangles, white porcelain stars with rawhide strings, and ornaments made from natural materials.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/kvoP5xAO048/Top-Picks-Songs-of-Christmas-cheer-Jeremy-Renner-as-The-Bourne-Legacy-and-more

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Egyptians vote on Islamist-backed constitution

CAIRO (AP) ? With their nation's future at stake, Egyptians lined up Saturday to vote on a draft constitution after weeks of turmoil that have left them deeply divided between Islamist supporters of the charter and those who fear it will usher in religious rule.

The referendum caps a nearly two-year struggle over the post-revolutionary identity of Egypt after the ouster of Hosni Mubarak's authoritarian regime.

Activists on both sides describe it as a battle over Egypt's post-revolutionary identity: whether it will move toward a religious state under President Mohammed Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood and ultraconservative Salafi allies, with Islamic principles limiting rights and clerics have a say over legislation, or one that retains secular traditions and an Islamic character. But many Egyptians said they were mainly looking for stability.

Monitors from opposition parties and rights groups have so far reported a wide range of irregularities in Saturday's vote. They have not reported any systematic countrywide fraud but reports of violations increased as night fell. In one stark example in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, some 1,500 Egyptian women from a liberal-leaning district blocked a main road claiming a judge prevented them from voting.

Election authorities also extended voting by two hours, to 11 p.m. (2100 GMT, 4 p.m. EST) because of continued long lines and delays at the polling stations.

Morsi's supporters say the constitution will help end the political instability that has roiled Egypt since the autocratic Mubarak was overthrown. Some proponents say the draft limits presidential powers and protects against torture and police abuse but others, including clerics preaching from the pulpits of mosques, have taken a more strident line, describing it as a document that champions Islam and denouncing its opponents as nonbelievers.

The president's opponents say minority concerns have been ignored and the charter is full of obscurely worded clauses that could allow the ruling Islamists to restrict civil liberties, ignore women's rights and undermine labor unions.

Many also fear the newly empowered Muslim Brotherhood and more ultraconservative Islamists are taking advantage of their current political dominance to adopt a charter that will be nearly impossible to amend.

According to the draft, articles 217 and 218 state that the president and parliament have the right to make a "request" to "amend an article or more," then parliament must discuss the request within 30 days. Two thirds of parliament members are needed to pass the request. Then parliament has 60 days to finalize the amended articles, and a third of parliament is needed to pass the final text before putting them to a national referendum.

Highlighting the tension in the run-up to the vote, nearly 120,000 army troops were deployed on Saturday to protect polling stations. Clashes between Morsi's supporters and opponents over the past three weeks have left at least 10 people dead and about 1,000 wounded.

"I read parts of the constitution and saw no reason to vote against it," said Rania Wafik as she held her newborn baby while waiting in line in Cairo. "We need to move on and I just see no reason to vote against the constitution."

"I am definitely voting no," said Habiba el-Sayed, a 49-year-old house wife who wears the Muslim veil, or hijab, said in Alexandria. "Morsi took wrong decisions and there is no stability. They (Islamists) are going around calling people infidels. How can there be stability?"

Another female voter in Alexandria, 22-year-old English teacher Yomna Hesham, said she was voting 'no' because the draft is "vague" and ignores women's rights.

"I don't know why we have become so divided ... Now no one wants to look in the other's face," said Hesham, who also wears the hijab, after voting. "This will not end well either way. It is so sad that we have come to this."

Morsi, whose narrow win in June made him Egypt's first freely elected president, cast his ballot at a school in the upscale Heliopolis district. He did not speak to reporters, but waved to dozens of supporters who were chanting his name outside.

In Cairo's crowded Sayedah Zeinab district, home to a revered Muslim shrine, 23-year-old engineer Mohammed Gamal said he was voting "yes" although he felt the proposed constitution needed more, not less, Islamic content.

"Islam has to be a part of everything," said Gamal, who wore the mustache-less beard that is a hallmark of hard-line Salafi Muslims. "All laws have to be in line with Shariah," he said, referring to Islamic law.

Critics are questioning the charter's legitimacy after the majority of judges said they would not supervise the vote. Rights groups have also warned of opportunities for widespread fraud, and the opposition says a decision to hold the vote on two separate days to make up for the shortage of judges leaves the door open for initial results to sway voter opinion.

The shortage of judges was reflected in the chaos engulfing some polling stations, which by early afternoon had led the election commission to extend voting by two hours until 9 p.m.

The violations reported by monitors included polling centers without judges to oversee the process, civil employees illegally replacing the judges, ballot papers not officially stamped as per regulations, campaigning inside polling stations and Christian voters being turned away.

The protesting women in Alexandria claimed that the supervising judge stalled voting because he suspected that most of the polling station's estimated 7,000 registered voters were "no" voters on the basis of of the district's liberal elections record.

Nada Abdel-Azem, a 23-year-old-teacher, said that the judge "took two hours to pray, another hour to pray and talk on the phone. He tried to make people get fed up so we leave. He even asked one woman what is she voting for. Then he closed the door and left women outside."

Another protesting woman Amira Abdel-Azem, a hospital manager, said the judge was only allowing women wearing a niqab, a veil that covers everything but the eyes, to cast ballots. It was not possible to immediately verify her account or speak to the judge.

Alexandria about 220 kilometers (135 miles) north of Cairo, is a stronghold of ultraconservative Islamists known as Salafis but gave comparatively few votes to Morsi during presidential elections. It has witnessed streets clashes over the disputed charter and it is perceived as one of Egypt's most rebellious cities.

Mohammed Ahmed, a retired army officer from Cairo, said bearded men he suspects of being Muslim Brotherhood members were whispering "vote yes" to men standing in line outside a polling center in Cairo's poor district of Arab el-Maadi.

"The Brotherhood wants to turn Egypt into its own fiefdom," he said. "I have no confidence in the whole process and I know they will be able to forge the results," he said.

In another Cairo district of Darb el-Ahmar, judge Mohammed Ibrahim appeared overwhelmed with the flow of voters, many of whom had to wait for close to two hours to cast their ballots. "I'm trying hard here, but responsibilities could have been better distributed," he said.

Egypt has 51 million eligible voters, half of whom are supposed to cast their ballots Saturday in 10 provinces and the rest next week.

Egypt's latest crisis, the worst since Mubarak was ousted in a popular uprising in February 2011, began when Morsi issued a decree on Nov. 22 giving himself and the assembly writing the draft immunity from judicial oversight so the document could be finalized before an expected court ruling dissolving the panel.

On Nov. 30, the document was passed by an assembly composed mostly of Islamists, in a marathon session despite a walkout by secular activists and Christians from the 100-member panel.

If the constitution is approved by a simple majority of voters, the Islamists empowered when Mubarak was ousted would likely gain even more clout. The current upper house of parliament, dominated by Islamists, would be given the authority to legislate until a new parliament is elected.

If it is defeated, elections would be held within three months for a new panel to write a new constitution. In the meantime, legislative powers would remain with Morsi.

___

El Deeb reported from Alexandria, Egypt. Associated Press writer Maggie Michael in Cairo contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/egyptians-vote-islamist-backed-constitution-061522606.html

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PFT: Ravens fire OC Cameron, promote Caldwell

25th Annual Super Bowl BreakfastGetty Images

His decision to part ways with offensive coordinator Cam Cameron is surprising at several levels, and Ravens coach John Harbaugh said the personal part was tough for him.

?There is a very human side to this,? Harbaugh said in a statement issued by the team. ?Cam is my friend, he taught me a lot about coaching, and he is an outstanding coach. Personally, this is the hardest thing I?ve ever had to do as a coach. Cam has been a significant contributor to all of our successes over the past four, almost five, seasons.? Deservedly, he is highly-regarded, and we owe thanks to him for what he did for the Ravens.

?It?s not about fair or unfair, right or wrong. My responsibility is to the whole team and what?s best for them right now. We need a change. Our plan and our goals are to win games, win our division and get to the playoffs.

?We have a lot of work to do, and we have the coaches and players in place to achieve our goals this season. We are working on that right now. I?m excited about where we are and where we are going.?

Installing Jim Caldwell as Cameron?s replacement seems like a simple case of the guy in the next chair moving up one. But Caldwell hasn?t called plays at the NFL level.

He is widely regarded as good and decent human being and a valued position coach (when he got to work with some guy named Peyton Manning, which helps make you look smart). But it?s not as if he was a rising star in the business. He wasn?t a superstar coach in college either, leading a pretty forgettable era of Wake Forest football, which is saying something.

This move either points to internal problems, or simple desperation. Neither would be a good sign for a team which looked like a heavyweight not all that long ago.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/12/10/ravens-fire-cam-cameron-promote-jim-caldwell/related/

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Meatless Monday: Kale pita wraps

Warm pita wraps filled with saut?ed greens, tofu, mushrooms, and onions make for a satisfying meal with umami flavors.

By Christina Masters,?The Rowdy Chowgirl / December 9, 2012

Fill warm pita wraps with kale or other greens, tofu, mushrooms, and onions for a satisfying vegetarian meal.

The Rowdy Chowgirl

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Yesterday I worked in a room with daylight coming through the window, until twilight and then dark closed in.? I hardly noticed the cold evening outside until I finally got up from my computer, stretched, and drew the curtains.? As soon as I closed the curtains I was struck by how much warmer the room suddenly felt.? The night was shut out, the lamplight seemed brighter and more golden, the room was now a cozy haven from the world outside.? I have pulled those curtains countless times, but in that brief moment I felt the pleasure of it and was grateful.

Skip to next paragraph Christina Masters

The Rowdy Chowgirl

Christina Masters is a Seattle-based food blogger. As The Rowdy Chowgirl, she writes about recipes, gardening, restaurants, food ethics, feeding the hungry, and more. She believes that food is never just food ? it is always part of a larger story that includes context, community and connections. An enthusiastic home cook, she favors local, seasonal ingredients prepared in simple, flavorful ways

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Whenever I have a run of several rich, complicated meals in a row, I start to hunger for something quick, simple and vegetal. These kale wraps, which could just as well be made with chard or other greens, were created in response to that need for contrast. They are warm and filling and surprisingly umami?for such a simple set of ingredients.

Kale Pita Wraps
Makes 5-6 servings?

1 12-ounce container of firm tofu

1 bunch kale, remove spines and tear into pieces

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon olive oil

8-9 sliced mushrooms

1/2 cup diced onion

1 glove garlic, crushed

Pita slices

Hummus, to taste

Drain tofu and cut into sticks (about 1/4-inch wide).

Lightly coat a sheet pan with oil.?

Place tofu sticks in a single layer on pan and put under broiler for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown.? Turn tofu with a spatula and return to broiler for a few more minutes ? just until lightly browned.

Wash kale, remove rigid spines, and tear into pieces. In a large saut? pan or wok, place kale and about 1/2 cup water over medium-high heat and cover.? Steam for about 5 minutes, or until limp. Take off lid and let any remaining water evaporate. Remove kale and heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in wok. Saut? several (8 or 9, or whatever you?ve got) sliced mushrooms along with about 1/4 cup diced onion. Return kale to wok. Add 1 clove of crushed garlic. Add tofu sticks.? Stir gently until combined. Salt to taste.

Serve a heap of the kale mixture on a warmed pita that has been smeared with hummus.

The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of food bloggers. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by The Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own and they are responsible for the content of their blogs and their recipes. All readers are free to make ingredient substitutions to satisfy their dietary preferences, including not using wine (or substituting cooking wine) when a recipe calls for it. To contact us about a blogger, click here.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/_0uGZtSzwZk/Meatless-Monday-Kale-pita-wraps

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'Lincoln' leads Critics' Choice Awards nominees

FILE - This undated publicity photo released by DreamWorks and Twentieth Century Fox, shows Daniel Day-Lewis, center rear, as Abraham Lincoln, in a scene from the film, "Lincoln." The historical drama earned a record-breaking 13 nominations for the Critics' Choice Movie Awards. The Broadcast Film Critics Association announced the nominees for its 18th annual awards ceremony Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/DreamWorks, Twentieth Century Fox, David James, File)

FILE - This undated publicity photo released by DreamWorks and Twentieth Century Fox, shows Daniel Day-Lewis, center rear, as Abraham Lincoln, in a scene from the film, "Lincoln." The historical drama earned a record-breaking 13 nominations for the Critics' Choice Movie Awards. The Broadcast Film Critics Association announced the nominees for its 18th annual awards ceremony Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/DreamWorks, Twentieth Century Fox, David James, File)

(AP) ? Film critics love "Lincoln." The historical drama earned a record-breaking 13 nominations for the Critics' Choice Movie Awards.

The Broadcast Film Critics Association announced the nominees for its 18th annual awards ceremony Tuesday in Los Angeles.

"Lincoln" beat the 12 nods earned by 2010's "Black Swan" with bids for director Steven Spielberg, star Daniel Day-Lewis and supporting actors Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones, as well as cinematography, adapted screenplay, costume design, makeup, editing, art direction, score and acting ensemble.

"Les Miserables" follows with 11 nominations and "Silver Linings Playbook" has 10. "Life of Pi" earned nine nods. "Argo," ''Skyfall" and "The Master" each have seven.

Winners will be announced Jan. 10, 2013, at a ceremony set to be broadcast live on the CW network.

___

Online:

www.criticschoice.com

Associated Press

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AUD/USD: Australian Dollar losing ground as Chinese trade data ...

GCI Forex News - AUD/USD: Australian Dollar losing ground as Chinese trade data disappoints AUD USD

AUDUSD Movement

For the 24 hours to 23:00 GMT, AUD strengthened 0.14% against the USD to close at 1.0488.

LME Copper prices declined 0.7% or $55.0/MT to $7965.3/MT. Aluminium prices declined 1.5% or $31.5/MT to $2077.8/MT.

In the Asian session, at GMT0400, the pair is trading at 1.0472, with the AUD trading 0.15% lower from Friday?s close, after Chinese trade balance data trailed economists? forecasts, dampening sentiment towards the Aussie.

The trade surplus in China has narrowed to $19.6 billion in November, more than market forecasts and compared to a $32.0 billion surplus recorded in October. The annual consumer price inflation in China has climbed to 2.0% in November, while the producer price index in China has dropped more-than-expected by 2.2% (YoY) in November. Separately, industrial production in China has jumped 10.1% (YoY) in November, while retail sales in China have risen more-than-forecast by 14.9% (YoY) in November.

The pair is expected to find support at 1.0455, and a fall through could take it to the next support level of 1.0439. The pair is expected to find its first resistance at 1.0492, and a rise through could take it to the next resistance level of 1.0513.

The currency pair is trading just below its 20 Hr and 50 Hr moving averages.

This entry was posted in AUD/USD. Bookmark the permalink.

Source: http://forexnews.gcitrading.com/currencies/audusd/audusd-australian-dollar-losing-ground-as-chinese-trade-data-disappoints.htm

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Jenni Rivera, soulful, troubled Mexican music star

FILE - In this Jan. 22, 2012, file photo, Jenni Rivera, from the film "Filly Brown," poses for a portrait during the 2012 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The wreckage of a small plane believed to be carrying Mexican-American music superstar Jenni Rivera was found in northern Mexico on Sunday, Dec. 9, 2012, and there are no apparent survivors, authorities said. (AP Photo/Victoria Will, file)

FILE - In this Jan. 22, 2012, file photo, Jenni Rivera, from the film "Filly Brown," poses for a portrait during the 2012 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The wreckage of a small plane believed to be carrying Mexican-American music superstar Jenni Rivera was found in northern Mexico on Sunday, Dec. 9, 2012, and there are no apparent survivors, authorities said. (AP Photo/Victoria Will, file)

In this picture taken March 8, 2012, Mexican-American singer and reality TV star Jenni Rivera poses during an interview in Los Angeles. The California-born singer who rose through personal adversity to become a superstar adored by millions in a male-dominated genre of Mexican-American music, was confirmed dead in a plane crash in northern Mexico, the National Transportation Safety Board confirmed Monday, Dec. 10, 2012. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

In this picture taken March 8, 2012, Mexican-American singer and reality TV star Jenni Rivera poses during an interview in Los Angeles. The California-born singer who rose through personal adversity to become a superstar adored by millions in a male-dominated genre of Mexican-American music, was confirmed dead in a plane crash in northern Mexico, the National Transportation Safety Board confirmed Monday, Dec. 10, 2012. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

(AP) ? Jenni Rivera launched her career hawking cassette recordings of her songs at flea markets, but a powerful voice, soulful singing style and frank discussion of personal troubles powered her to the heights of a male-dominated industry, transforming her into the one of the biggest stars of the genre known as grupero.

Her life was cut short at its peak on Sunday by an airplane crash in northern Mexico that also killed six friends and co-workers.

The 43-year-old mother of five and grandmother of two became a symbol of resilience for millions of fans on both sides of the U.S.-Mexican border. Her fame grew as she branched out into acting, appearing in independent film, reality TV and the televised singing competition "La Voz Mexico."

She had recently filed for divorce from her third husband, was once detained at a Mexico City airport with tens of thousands of dollars in cash, and publicly apologized after her brother assaulted a drunken fan who verbally attacked her in 2011.

"I am the same as the public, as my fans," she told The Associated Press in an interview last March.

Rivera sold more than 15 million copies of her 12 major-label albums and won a string of Latin music awards. Her shows filled both the Staples Center in Los Angeles and Mexico's National Auditorium, a feat few male singers in her industry achieved.

Many of her songs dealt with themes of dignity in the face of heartbreak, and her shows were known for their festive atmosphere and her intimate interactions with her fans. She would fill song requests from fans who had suffered heartbreak and setbacks, and would often pull women and girls onto stage to personally tell them to keep moving forward.

The plane, being flown by two pilots, was taking her and her publicist, Arturo Rivera, her makeup artist, Jacob Yebale, and two friends, one named Mario Macias and another who was also identified as Gerardo, to the central Mexican city of Toluca after a Saturday night concert before thousands in the northern city of Monterrey. All were killed.

After the concert she gave a press conference during which she spoke of her emotional state following her recent move to divorce former Major League Baseball pitcher Esteban Loaiza, who played for teams including the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Rivera announced in October that she was divorcing Loaiza after two years of marriage.

"I can't get caught up in the negative because that destroys you. Perhaps trying to move away from my problems and focus on the positive is the best I can do. I am a woman like any other and ugly things happen to me like any other woman," she said Saturday night. "The number of times I have fallen down is the number of times I have gotten up."

Rivera's parents migrated from Mexico to California and founded the label that also propelled two of her five brothers, Lupillo and Juan Rivera, to careers as well-known singers of grupero music.

Born on July 2, 1969 in Los Angeles, California, Dolores Janney Rivera Savedra studied business administration and often said with pride that she started her singing career in flea markets in the Los Angeles area, selling cassette tapes to fans.

She formally debuted on the music scene in 1995 with the release of her album "Chacalosa".

That successful album was followed with two other independent albums, one a tribute to slain Mexican-American singer Selena that helped Rivera expand her following. By the end of the 90s, she won a major-label contract, and built a loyal following that knew her as the "Diva de la Banda."

At the end of the 1990s, Rivera was signed by Sony Music and released two more albums, "If You Want to See Me Crying," and "Queen of Queens."

In 2002, she received her first Latin Grammy nomination, for best album in the band music category.

Even more widespread success came when she joined Fonovisa and released her 2005 album titled "Partier, Rebellious and Daring," which positioned her as one of the most renowned grupero singers and songwriters.

She was also nominated for Latin Grammys in 2008 and 2011.

She was also an actress, appearing in the indie film "Filly Brown," which was shown at the Sundance Film Festival, as the incarcerated mother of character Filly Brown.

"Though she'll be remembered as an iconic singer, she was also a powerful actress whose full range of talents the world was just beginning to discover," the directors, producers, cast and crew of "Filly Brown" said in a statement.

Her most recent album, "Joyas Prestadas," or "Borrowed Jewels," won widespread praise and awards and helped cement her status as one of the brightest stars of Mexican-American music.

She was also filming the third season of "I Love Jenni," which followed her as she interacted with her family and toured through Mexico and the United States. She also played a key role in the reality shows: "Jenni Rivera Presents: Chiquis and Raq-C" and her daughter's "Chiquis 'n Control."

In 2009, she was detained at the Mexico City airport when she declared $20,000 in cash but was really carrying $52,167. She was taken into custody. She said it was an innocent mistake and authorities gave her the benefit of the doubt and released her.

In 2011, her brother Juan assaulted a drunken fan at a popular fair in Guanajuato. In the face of heavy criticism among her fans and on social networks, Rivera publicly apologized for the incident during a concert in Mexico City, telling her fans: "Thank you for accepting me as I am, with my virtues and defects."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-12-10-Mexico-Obit-Rivera/id-9e227cb882a04dc4bd17f4ebcfd88509

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Enhance Your Existence Using These Wonderful Self-help ...

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Go to China, top architect tells Scots graduates

ARCHITECTURE graduates are stacking supermarket shelves because there is ?nothing for them here? and it is easier to find work in China, according to a leading member of the profession.

Glasgow-based Alan Dunlop said a stagnant building sector, lack of commercial projects and red tape meant small Scottish firms had a better chance of winning contracts in the Far East than at home.

Dunlop is part of a British team short-listed to design a ?219 million tourist resort on a 150-hectare site on the South China Sea coast. His previous work includes the award- winning Hazelwood School in Glasgow for blind and deaf children and the city?s iconic Radisson SAS hotel.

Dunlop, a visiting professor at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, now spends much of his time in China.

He said: ?I?m telling all my students that the moment they qualify, get out to China because that is where the work is happening. There?s nothing ?really for them here.

?These students are leaving after seven years of architectural education and they?re not able to find a job, they?re stacking shelves in supermarkets.?

Dunlop said a lack of commercial building meant the only work available in Scotland was for big public projects, but that stifling industry rules put off small firms such as his from ?applying for them.

?To qualify for public projects you have to satisfy the pre-qualification questionnaire [PQQ], then you have to have ?10 million indemnity insurance and things like that, and this prohibits small firms like this one, despite my 25 years of experience, from ?competing for big projects. It is absurd. It?s as much to do with box ticking and, frankly, covering your backside, as it is about making sure you have got the right architect to do the job. It is really bizarre.

?But it?s not the same in ?China. They don?t require the same PQQ requirements and form filling. I can use the expertise and experience I have and then team up with a firm of architects based in China and compete for these huge ?international contracts.? Neil Baxter, secretary of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland, blamed the lack of opportunities here on misinterpretation of European laws on public procurement.

?People are so risk averse and so lacking in knowledge about what is required under European law, that they go way overboard with the stipulations and requirements, and they fundamentally get it wrong,? he said.

?They get it wrong in a way that is bad for the public purse and is very bad for private practice.?

Baxter said procurement ?experts might ask a firm applying to design a school in Scotland to show it had designed several others in the past five years. ?Very few practices have done that, so it ends up going to big practices, usually ones outside Scotland,? he said.

?Alan is right, China is a much more relaxed regime. Things are decided by diktat and effectively they can still design on the basis of a pure quality decision. It is a nonsense, but China is an easier place for Scots designers to work than Scotland.?

He added: ?You end up pushing people out and effectively disallowing small practices. You could say it?s beneficial internationalisation, or you could say it?s a shame we?re not using local talent ?locally. That?s not sustainable.?

Dunlop is collaborating with the China office of Scottish firm John Thompson and Partners (JTP) and London-based Gillespie?s on the tourism ?resort project. Shanghai-based JTP partner Alan Stewart said: ?Five years ago we began working in ?China following an invitation by a local private developer to join a design competition for a settlement south-west of Shanghai.

?More work was to follow and soon we were faced with the problem of managing ?client relations 6,000 miles from home base. The strain on those working on Chinese projects and travelling to and within China proved unsustainable so we decided to take the plunge and establish a subsidiary China studio in 2012.?

Admitting that setting up a business there had involved negotiating a maze of employment and resident visas, as well as dealing with tax and ?licencing issues ? a process he described as draining ? ?Stewart said companies had to be fully committed to achieve success in China. He said: ?Chinese people prefer to do business with people they know and trust. ?Guanxi? is the term given to the networks of influence that pervades business culture. In practise it means building the relationship between client or business partners over time.?

Dunlop is also an external examiner at a new school of architecture in Suzhou, near Shanghai, where he hopes to help the English-speaking faculty become the first Chinese institution to gain full Royal Institute of British Architects accreditation. He said UK firms had a lot offer China.

?The education system in China has less emphasis on critical engagement and conceptual thinking, so that is a service architects in the UK are providing,? he said. Dunlop, JTP and Gillespie?s has reached the final three bids for the resort in the Dapeng Peninsula of Guangdong, from 39 initial submissions. The winner is to be announced ?early next year.

Twitter: @sloan1874

Source: http://www.scotsman.com/go-to-china-top-architect-tells-scots-graduates-1-2682396

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1966 Ford F100 - Charlotte NC

This 1966 Ford F100 is a cool mix of basic truck goodness and very slick custom. The bodywork is amazingly good, done to a much higher standard than the typical truck restoration, and the thundering 427 cubic inch dual-quad engine under the hood suggests something very special is going on with this one. Go try to find an F100 as nice as this; they simply don\'t exist. Before trucks were cool, these were used up and thrown away, but somehow, somewhere, these guys found an awfully nice one and gave it a show-quality facelift. Look how well that character line traces from the hood, through the doors, then down along the bed sides. It\'s as straight as a ruler. Note how flush the doors fit, and how nicely the bed tucks up behind the cab. That doesn\'t just happen, that\'s the result of hours of tedious hand work. Then put on a correct Rangoon Red finish that looks totally perfect for the mid-60s, and hit the road in style with chrome bed rails. Try to find a straight bumper or a perfect grille for one of these, too-talk about scarce! Although finished several years ago, this one has been meticulously maintained since complete - mostly driven to the local car shows and cruise-ins. Of course, they didn\'t forget that this was still a truck, so while the bed is as nicely finished as the body, it\'s still ready, willing, and able to work. Just on first glance, this truck is a slam-dunk. That vibe extends inside where it has been artfully updated to create a comfortable and stylish driving environment. The original bench seat has been recontoured so you fit better behind the wheel, and then covered in black velvet that\'s actually quite comfortable. The original door panels have been finished to match, and the original dash was painted to match the body, then wrapped in black vinyl to match the seat sides. A modern HVAC system was fitted under the dash in a way that makes it look like a period-correct dealer-installed accessory, and with R134a refrigerant it blows cold and will be easy to service in the future. There\'s also the original AM radio, which is a nice piece of nostalgia in the old truck, and with tinted windows, it looks cool and stays cool on hot days. Ford\'s workhorse 352 cubic inch V8 engine is long gone, but you won\'t miss it once you see the monstrous 427 they stuffed in there instead. Combined with a C6 automatic transmission and a 9-inch axle out back, it\'s a rugged powertrain that will always get you where you need to go. Topped with dual quads, it looks like a Thunderbolt engine found its way under the hood. Power steering and power brakes mean you can cruise without breaking a sweat, and there\'s just no sign of rust or neglect anywhere on this truck. The chassis is relatively stock, making this one heck of a sleeper, although the rumbling dual exhaust system might give you away at stop lights. 15-inch aluminum wheels look good but don\'t show off, so your secret is safe unless they notice the 427 badges on the flanks. Oh, and those fat 275/60/15 Goodyears definitely help hook it up. This is a very cool truck that you won\'t see at every show. Nicely finished with a metric ton of performance, it proves that good taste never goes out of style. Call today! This vehicle is located in our Atlanta showroom. For more information, please call (678) 279-1609 or toll free (877) 367-1835.

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