RSS Feed Twitter

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Shania Twain Is Married

Posted by Jamshaid Yousaf at 1/01/2011 09:41:00 PM
Shania Twain & Frederic Thiébaud at the Swiss Red Cross Ball
Shania Twain has gotten hitched!

The country superstar and Frédéric Thiébaud got married in Puerto Rico on New Year's Day, her rep.

"They were married at sunset in Rincon, Puerto Rico, in front of 40 of their closest family and friends," says the rep.

The couple, who confirmed their engagement last month, became romantically involved in 2009, finding solace with each other after their spouses allegedly had an affair, breaking up both marriages.

In a letter to fans she posted on her Web site in December, Twain wrote, "In the last two and a half years of adjusting to life after separation and divorce, I needed to lean on others more often than I was accustomed to. These people have been gifts, and I am fortunate to have so many of these beautiful people – friends, family and beloved fans, [whose] support I cherish more deeply with each day that passes."

"Talking about love," she continued, "I am excited to share some personal news with you; I'm in love! Frédéric Nicolas Thiébaud has been a true gift to me as a compassionate, understanding friend and over time, an amazing love has blossomed from this precious friendship."

See what other readers have to say about this story – or leave a comment of your own
More about this programme: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00gtn49

London's spectacular midnight fireworks display, welcoming in 2011. Happy New Year!


NEW YORK (AP) -- Oprah Winfrey's network has begun not with a bang but with redeclared purpose by the Queen of Daytime for her new round-the-clock cable channel venture.

After years in the planning and months of hype, the moment of launch on Saturday at 12 noon EST was rather quiet.

Buried in the middle of a holiday weekend (though boasting the numerically catchy date 1-1-11), The Oprah Winfrey Network, or OWN for short, arrived free of glitz with a one-hour preview special hosted by Winfrey, host of the syndicated "The Oprah Winfrey Show." She offered a hearty overview of the live-your-best-life fare she will curate across the network's schedule in the days ahead and further down the line.

The strategy seemed that of a soft opening, aimed at whetting viewers' appetites so they regularly come back and sample the network's expanding menu of new shows as they roll out.

"I wanted to take the ideals of great television that we've established on the 'Oprah' show and bring them to you through a variety of new shows 24/7," Winfrey said. "Every minute of this network has been hand-selected by me for you, the viewers."

This spring, Winfrey ends her wildly successful weekday syndicated show after 25 years. But premiering Saturday night on OWN, "Behind the Scenes: The Oprah Show Final Season" is a 25-episode reality series that will give viewers an intimate look at "Oprah" as it draws to a close.

In her OWN preview special, Winfrey also touted "Master Class," a series that will spotlight prominent people who include Diane Sawyer, Simon Cowell, Jay-Z and Condoleezza Rice. The show airs Sunday.

"In the Bedroom with Dr. Laura Berman" provides counseling to couples to help them repair their sex lives. It airs Monday.

Read more »
First off, winning a house for free, and a absolutely stunning house one at that, is pretty much the best thing ever. And there are plenty of amazing things about the HGTV & Frontdoor.com/sweepstakes where you can win a mountain lodge home in Stowe Vermont. What are the 5 best things about the HGTV Dream Home that is up for winning?

• The HGTV home comes totally furnished, and it’s decorated in a lovely style too. All you have to do is show up!

• The home features – along with the master bedroom and the guest quarters – a ski dorm so you can invite a whole bunch of your pals up to enjoy your lodge.

• If you like to cook, the kitchen is wonderfully appointed suitable for any chef. It features products from the likes of Wolf and SubZero,

• Along with the home you also get $500,000. And that’s a pretty epic prize in itself.

• Plus you also win a car in the deal, a 2011 GMC Acadia Denali.

To enter just go here or here.

And check out a video about the home right here.


JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Chris Relf threw three touchdown passes, Vick Ballard ran for three scores and No. 21 Mississippi State overwhelmed Michigan 52-14 Saturday in the Gator Bowl.

The 38-point drubbing was the worst bowl loss in Michigan's storied history and may have sealed the fate of Wolverines coach Rich Rodriguez. His three-year tenure has been tainted by consecutive losing seasons, NCAA sanctions and late-season slides.

Michigan (7-6) was out of this game early, done in again by a defense that made a middle-of-the-pack Southeastern Conference offense look like a juggernaut.

Relf and Ballard posed problems all day. Relf completed 18 of 23 passes for 281 yards, and added 49 yards on the ground. Ballard ran for 77 yards. The Bulldogs (9-4) finished with 485 yards and punted twice.

Read more »
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) -- From torture in a dictatorship-era jail cell to the helm of Latin America's largest nation, it's been an unlikely political rise for President Dilma Rousseff, a former Marxist rebel turned career technocrat who claimed Brazil's seat of power Saturday.

In becoming the country's 36th president, Rousseff pulled off a feat nearly unthinkable a year ago when the relative unknown was tapped by then-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to be the ruling Workers Party candidate.

She swept into office on the back of Silva's near universal adoration in Brazil.

"I am going to consolidate the transformative work done by President Lula," said Rousseff, 63, during a 40-minute inaugural address. "He changed the way the government is run and led the people to trust in themselves."

Silva left office as the nation's most popular president, with an approval rating that hit 87 percent in his last week. Rousseff served during both of his four-year terms, first as energy minister and then as chief of staff.

After signing the oath of office in Congress, Rousseff traveled to the presidential palace, where Silva removed his sash and placed it over her head as thousands of onlookers cheered. Silva, always emotional, hugged several ministers and aides as he left by car to begin the journey to civilian life at his private home near Sao Paulo.

Silva, who broke barriers by becoming Brazil's first working-class president, could not resist one last dive into the crowds. He was unable to hold back sobs as his wife, Marisa, tried in vain to comb his hair for photos.

Read more »
REPORTS from the quarter-finals of the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

The £1 million tournament heads towards its conclusion at Alexandra Palace, with the last eight players returning to fight for places in Sunday's semi-finals.

Watch Live!
Coverage is live on Sky Sports HD throughout the event, with the semi-finals and final also in 3D.
PDCtv International Pass subscribers can also watch live (excluding UK, Ireland & Holland).
Highlights & Live Audio Commentary are also available for all PDCtv Subscribers.

Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship
Quarter-Finals
Afternoon Session
Wes Newton 4-5 Terry Jenkins
Adrian Lewis 5-2 Vincent van der Voort

Evening Session (7.30pm)
Gary Anderson v Raymond van Barneveld
Phil Taylor v Mark Webster

TERRY JENKINS 5-4 WES NEWTON
(3-0, 0-3, 1-3, 3-2, 3-2, 0-3, 2-3, 3-1, 3-1)
TERRY JENKINS came from 4-3 down to defeat Wes Newton a nine-set thriller in the quarter-finals of the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

Newton was left to regret missed doubles in the heart of the game, as he saw a 2-1 lead turned around with wasted chances to take the next two sets.

He hit back to lead 4-3, but Jenkins hit a 170 finish in taking six of the next eight legs to reach his first ever World Championship semi-final, where he will face either Raymond van Barneveld or Gary Anderson on Sunday.

Read more »
NEW YORK -- College football conquered one of baseball's most cherished cathedrals on Thursday, providing an alien atmosphere complete with shirtless fans ignoring the frigid conditions to spell out the name of their alma mater.

Syracuse and Kansas State had the honor of playing in the inaugural Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium, and their rabid cheering sections flooded the iconic venue's stands with orange and purple. Snow lined the sidelines and the area behind the near end zone for the first bowl game in the new Yankee Stadium and the first in New York City in nearly 50 years.

And the game -- played on a field that stretched from the normal location of home plate out to center field -- lived up to the environment. Both teams emptied their playbook, using such gadget plays as flea-flickers, halfback option passes and a fake field goal in an attempt to win, and Syracuse did enough things right to wind up with a narrow, 36-34 victory.

Read more »
According to multiple users expressing their frustration through Twitter, come New Years 2011 (where ever you are) your iPhone alarm clock won’t function correctly. You may recall a similar bug in iOS when daylight savings time switched on but this is exactly the opposite. This New Year’s 2011 iPhone alarm clock bug shows its face to users without recurring alarms.

This means that anybody who sets an alarm just for tomorrow won’t be woken up by the iPhone’s built-in alarm clock application. To avoid this issue you need to set a recurring alarm by tapping repeat to select the days you want the alarm to go off on. Apple is yet to say anything and it is still unknown whether this is iOS 4.2.1 only or if it affects past system versions too. Be sure to tell everyone you know with iPhones! (via Engadget)

Update: We just ran a few tests and the above iPhone alarm clock issue fixes itself on January 3rd. You should follow our steps to avoid the issue above until then. Reader Aaron F. has let us know that the issue is occurring on his iOS 4.1 iPhone 4 as well (iOS 4.0.2 t00). Let us know if you see the issue on anything earlier. The issue does not appear to be present on iOS 3.x devices.

Earlier this year, Brendan Francis Newnam, co-host of American Public Media's Dinner Party Download podcast, predicted that one of the big food trends of 2010 would be food trends, as "more and more people get into the business of predicting what is going to be popular in food." It seems fair to say, as I wade through a sea of year-end food trend listage, that this is one prediction that has come true.

Newnam then went on to interview Kara Nielson, a food trendologist with the Center for Culinary Development, who shared some insights into the methodology of trendology as she explained her prediction that coconut is going to be big in 2011:

First I saw coconut in an organic green tea, then I started seeing coconut in a lot of the simmer sauces from South-East Asia, and then I was seeing traditional coconut in more of a confection place, as well as chocolate-covered coconut peel as a snack. So pretty soon I'm thinking, "OK, that's a trend." If it's too small, it's not a trend. If it's just happening in one place, if it hasn't really expanded yet, then it's something that interesting to watch. But when it starts appearing in different forms in different places, then you know you've got a trend on your hands.
Read more »

HAPPY NEW YEAR!
 
As we kick off 2011 this fine Saturday, there's no better time to reflect on the year passed and to make some predictions as to what the coming year may hold. In what's become a bit of a tradition here at Inhabitat, we asked some of our favorite movers and shakers in the green design space to share their forecasts for what 2011 may mean for sustainable design, architecture and the natural and social environment. From the proliferation of share programs and bike culture, to eco-innovations in technology to make building and energy management easier — read on what some of the most eminent minds in the green design world have to say about 2011.

William McDonough - Designer/Thought Leader, Founder McDonough Consulting, MBDC, and William McDonough + Partners

For more than 30 years, I have been lucky to learn a great deal. As I continue to collaborate with German chemist Dr. Michael Braungart, with whom I co-developed the Cradle to Cradle philosophy, we are seeing broader and deeper understanding that less bad will never be enough. Moving forward, I predict that the pace of change will quicken and that Cradle to Cradle ripples will widen. What a delightful journey—toward abundance for all—we are on together.

The past year was an eventful one for the world of social networking. Facebook went on an acquisition spree. Twitter started growing up. And MySpace? Well it’s the same old story over there.

In 2010, we predicted that Facebook would conquer the web. We just didn’t know the social network would do it so convincingly. We’re not oracles, though, and we did miss on some of our acquisition picks. Well, time for round two.

Now that FacebookFacebookFacebook is clearly king, what is going to happen to the rest of the world’s social networks? What will happen to BeboBeboBebo? What’s next for MySpaceMySpaceMySpace? And will Facebook finally hold that IPO?

Here are my predictions for what will happen in the world of social networking in 2011:

1. Google’s Social Networking Efforts Flop Spectacularly
Google (Google) dominates search. It has nailed mobile. Oh, and it owns YouTube (YouTube), the web’s biggest video property. So why the heck does it fail so miserably at social?

Until this year, Google’s had middling success in social — YouTube, Gmail (gmail), Gtalk (Gtalk), Blogger (blogger) and Orkut (Orkut) have all had varying levels of success. This year though, Google Wave was shut down, Google Buzz (Google Buzz) flopped and Google’s big social initiative has been delayed due to in-fighting and a lack of clarity and purpose.

Here’s my first prediction of the year: Google’s social media efforts will be spectacular failures. TechCrunch nabbed a screenshot of the “Google +1″ social toolbar, one big component of Google’s social plan, we’ve been told. We remain unimpressed, though. As Buzz demonstrated, sticking something social on a page doesn’t mean people will instantly use it.

More importantly, Google as a company is built for speed and efficiency, neither of which are critical to the success of a social network. That’s why we predict another horrendous year for the search giant in the social realm.

Read more »
How we engage with the people, places and things around us is ever-changing thanks to rapid improvements in mobile and web technologies. The speed at which this evolution takes place will only continue to accelerate in 2011 with the help of fledgling startups who will push the boundaries around geolocation, mobile photos, entertainment services, community and physical-to-digital connections.

What follows is an exploration of five significant startup markets that will grow in significance in 2011. Some of these specialized categories are ripe for disruption and innovation, while others have already produced early leaders that will be difficult to best.

Regardless, the startups iterating in these newly invented product categories will capture our imagination in the year ahead and transform the way we use technology in our daily lives.

Read on for five major trends that will hit startups in 2011, and let us know your own predictions in the comments below.

Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Charlie Weis is being targeted by the Florida Gators to become the offensive coordinator under new coach Will Muschamp, two sources confirmed to ESPN.

Weis is expected to take the job, but no firm agreement is in place.

Muschamp contacted the Chiefs this week for permission to talk to Weis, with the full intention of hiring the Chiefs' offensive coordinator and former Notre Dame coach, sources said. A Florida source said Weis would continue to coach the Chiefs into the AFC playoffs. Another source reiterated that Weis is expected to accept the job.

Muschamp has been focused on hiring an NFL offensive coordinator to install a pro-style offense and to assist with attracting pro-style quarterbacks and receivers to the Gators' program, sources said.

Pat Dooley of the Gainesville Sun first said that Weis was the leading candidate for the Gators' offensive coordinator position.

Chiefs coach Todd Haley said Friday that he was "unaware of anything" regarding Weis and Florida.

Read more »
LOS ANGELES — Three hundred fifty-seven.

Three hundred forty-six.
Three hundred thirty-eight.
Three hundred twenty-nine.
Two hundred seventy-eight.

If you were to guess that those are the weights of the five Wisconsin starting offensive linemen, you'd be wrong.

Close, but wrong.

Those are actually the five best rushing totals this season for the Badgers' potent, powerful, punishing running game, the biggest factor in Wisconsin being able to outrun and defeat every opponent but one this season.

The fourth-ranked Badgers (11-1) were outrushed only once, 175 yards to 165 in a 34-24 loss at Michigan State.

So third-ranked TCU (12-0), playing in its first Rose Bowl, knows what the No. 1 order of business will be Saturday in The Granddaddy of Them All in Pasadena, Calif.

Who does Wisconsin and its old-school, straight-ahead running game remind TCU defensive coordinator Dick Bumpas of?

He laughs.

"Probably the Green Bay Packers back in their heyday," he says.

Only bigger.

A lot bigger.

Read more »
We're not exactly sure of the cause of this fancy new issue affecting Apple's super cool iPhone line of cellphones, but apparently you've got trouble come 1/1/2011. According to an explosive stream of frustration-filled tweets on the Twitter microblogging service, when the clock strikes midnight, one off alarms will cease to sing out. The issue sounds eerily similar to recent Daylight Savings Time trouble we witnessed back in November, although we saw both repeating alarm and single alarm failures.

So how can you fix this potentially life-ruining problem? Well until Apple patches its OS -- and it's currently unclear if this is just iOS 4.2.1 or earlier versions as well -- you can simply create a recurring alarm at the time you need to be woken up, and then disable it once your dreams are completely ruined. We're taking a deeper look into the issue and have contacted Apple -- if we get more news, you guys will be the first to know. In the meantime, feel free to commiserate in comments, and... happy new year?

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) -- Chris Sisemore kept his eyes open as a rare but deadly winter tornado plucked him from his rural Arkansas home and flung him across the street.

"I wanted to see the end coming. You're only going to see it one time and I thought that was it," he said, hours after surviving the twister. "It takes more than a tornado to get me."

At least six people were killed and dozens injured as tornadoes fueled by unusually warm air pummeled the South and Midwest on Friday and early Saturday.

Three people died in the northwestern Arkansas hamlet of Cincinnati when a tornado touched down just before sunrise Friday, and three others died when a storm spawned by the same weather system ripped up the Missouri countryside near Rolla. Early Saturday, two people were injured in central Mississippi and several homes were damaged by a storm in Attala County. Tornado watches were in effect for parts of Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana on Saturday morning as the system continued moving east.

Sisemore, who lives in Cincinnati, had bumps and bruises but no serious injures.

"It sucked me out of my house and carried me across the road and dropped me," he said. "I was Superman for a while. ... You're just free-floating through the air. Trees are knocking you and smacking you down."

In south-central Missouri, 21-year-old Megan Ross and her 64-year-old grandmother Loretta Anderson died at a Lecoma farm where their family lived among three mobile homes and two frame houses, Dent County Emergency Management Coordinator Brad Nash said. The National Weather Service determined the home was hit by a weak tornado that was 50 yards wide and traveled less than a mile.

Read more »
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) -- Two U.S. missile strikes about two hours apart killed at least 14 men near the Afghan border in northwest Pakistan on Saturday, two Pakistani intelligence officials said.

At least nine people were killed in the first strike when missiles destroyed a moving vehicle in the Spin Wam area of the North Waziristan tribal region, the officials said.

Two hours later drones fired more missiles at people who had gathered to retrieve the bodies, killing five, they said.

The identities and nationalities of the 14 slain men was not immediately known, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters on the record.

U.S. authorities often target militants and militants' facilities in the region. The latest strikes came a day after four missiles struck a convoy of militants in the town of Ghulam Khan in North Waziristan, killing eight suspected militants.

More than 110 such strikes, carried out by unmanned drones, were launched in 2010 in the northwest border region - more than double the number in 2009. Nearly all have hit North Waziristan, a hide-out for local and foreign insurgents who target U.S. and NATO troops in neighboring Afghanistan.

Pakistan's government and the country's opposition protest the missile strikes, saying they violate the country's sovereignty and anger tribesmen whose support is needed to fend off extremists. But Islamabad is widely believed to secretly support the attacks and provide intelligence for at least some of them.

U.S. officials rarely discuss the covert, CIA-run missile program. Privately, however, they say it is a crucial tool and has killed several top militant leaders. They also say the drone-fired strikes are very accurate and usually kill militants while limiting civilian deaths.

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)
Twitter Delicious Facebook Digg Stumbleupon Favorites More