Arts & Entertainment ? Leah Corbett

I am by no means a?connoisseur of art, and I am only partially interested in art in museums. I do like good art and photography of nature and architecture. I? love black and white photos of waterside cafe?s. I stare and wonder what all the patrons might talk about, and their stories of travel?and adventure.I have no use for abstract or modern art and really dislike the disjointed weirdness of picasso. Art should be something you can stare at and wonder. Picasso makes me furrow my brow and walk away in a disappointed huff.I recently took up painting, and I pretty much paint tropical scenes, and i?ve gotten pretty good at palm trees.Here?s some of my work. LeahArt I?m a percussionist. Quite amateur, but I love playing. I own a pearl white Tama Swingstar jazz set. ?There?s nothing like bangin the hell outta something at the end of the day, to relieve tension while getting your groove on.

I?d like to learn to sing. Well, I already sing, just not well enough to allow others to hear me. If I could emulate anyone? it?d be KD Lang, Christina Aguillera, Anastacia, Diana Ross, Pat Benetar.

Now that I?m part of a band, I?ve been taking vocal lessons and I think i?ve improved. I am not ready for public yet, but someday.

Music is very important in life. It affects your mood, disposition and deeper psyche. I listen to hard rock while I drive and lift weights, disco while I clean the house and burn some calories, Beethoven while I write my books, and a variety of other stuff depending on my constantly changing mood.

Some of my all time favorite movies:

• Living Out Loud
• The Full Monty
• The Count of Monte Cristo
• The Hunger
• Fight Club
• Beetlejuice
• Shawshank
• Serenity
• Plains, Trains, Autos
• (parts)

?

Some Movies I consider utter SHIT.

Some of my all time favorite TV Shows:

• Firefly
• Ally McBeal
• Star Trek Next Gen
• Family Guy
• Boston Legal
• United States of Tara
• Are you being Served

I?m a dancer. (not a pole dancer) I love to dance. ?I?m great at it, too. I?m pretty damn groovy, and rhythmic as hell. ?I?m not wild about dancing at clubs anymore.?I?ve also learned to belly dance, which is awesome.*HISTORY NOTE: In highscool, I used to climb on the speakers at the wildcat house and groove, with my best friend, Susan. The camera was on us half the time, and we were on that 14 foot projection screen.

Now, I mostly crank my stereo and dance on my coffee table. ?Sometimes I let people watch, but that?s after lots of alcohol. I love to watch people dance, even if they suck or just generally look stupid. People dance when they feel free and happy, and that?s a good thing. If you don?t or can?t dance, try anyhow, let loose. You might like it.

Source: http://leahcorbett.com/arts-entertainment/

sunspots pac 12 tournament sun storm tri international criminal court ios 5.1 apple tv update

Thursday in politics: Rival votes on sequester plans in Senate

Republicans and Democrats in the Senate have drafted alternative measures to replace the $85 billion in spending cuts ? aka the sequester ? set to begin phasing in Friday.

Votes on the measures are expected Thursday and both are expected to fail. The strategy, as the Associated Press reports, is avoiding public blame for any inconvenience or disruption in government services.

What?s next regarding sequestration? The House and the Senate are set to send their members home Thursday afternoon, and President Barack Obama is expected to meet Friday with Republican House Speaker John Boehner, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

Secretary of State John Kerry will meet on Thursday with leaders of Syria's opposition council, and the outcome of that meeting is expected to move the United States towards more direct involvement in the nation's conflict, ABC OTUS News reports.

Also worth noting on Thursday: The House will vote on the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act, and first lady Michelle Obama continues her national tour marking the third anniversary of 'Let's Move!' with a stop in Chicago to announce a plan to bring physical activity back to schools.

And then there is this: The Senate Judiciary Committee plans an executive business meeting Thursday, and gun safety bills are expected to be on the agenda.

Sources: Yahoo News? The Ticket, ABC OTUS News, Associated Press and Reuters.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/thursday-politics-rival-sequester-votes-expected-senate-more-111858508--politics.html

oakland pinnacle airlines kansas vs kentucky joe posnanski michael kidd gilchrist national championship calipari

Horse meat found in Taco Bell products in UK

By Rosalba O'Brien, Reuters

LONDON -- Britain's food regulator said horse meat had been found in beef products at Taco Bell fast food outlets, the first time it has been discovered on sale in British restaurants since the scandal broke in January.

The Food Standards Agency said Friday that it had conducted 1,797 tests over the past seven days, over 99 percent of which had come back negative for horse meat levels at or above 1 percent.

However, four tests were positive, it said. These included Birds Eye ready meals and Brakes skewers, already withdrawn from sale.

It added that no tests to date on samples containing horse DNA had found the veterinary medicine phenylbutazone, or "bute."

Tex-Mex fast-food chain Taco Bell, owned by U.S. firm Yum Brands Inc., has three outlets in the U.K.

"Some batches of ground beef supplied to us from one supplier in Europe tested positive for horse meat," Taco Bell U.K. said in a statement.

"We immediately withdrew ground beef from sale in our restaurants, discontinued purchase of that meat, and contacted the Food Standards Agency with this information," it added.

The news is awkward timing for Yum, which on Monday said it was moving to tighten food safety and reverse a sharp drop in business at its KFC restaurants in China after a scare over contaminated chicken.

Related:

'Fraud on a massive scale': Horse meat scandal keeps growing

Hamburgers pulled from UK supermarket shelves over horse meat

Burger King axes UK supplier in wake of horse meat scandal

?

Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/01/17147069-horse-meat-found-in-taco-bell-products-in-uk?lite

chuck pagano A Gay Lesbian daylight savings time 2012 Where To Vote james harden breeders cup Mitch Lucker

James Brown Estate: South Carolina Supreme Court Nixes Estate Settlement

COLUMBIA, S.C. ? The South Carolina Supreme Court on Wednesday overturned a settlement divvying up the multimillion-dollar estate of James Brown, saying a former attorney general didn't follow the late soul singer's wishes in putting together the deal.

Attorney General Henry McMaster brokered a settlement in 2009 that split Brown's estate, giving nearly half to a charitable trust, a quarter to his widow, Tomi Rae Hynie, and leaving the rest to be split among his adult children.

But the justices ruled that the deal ignored Brown's wishes for most of his money to go to charity. The court also ruled the Godfather of Soul was of sound mind when he made his will before dying of heart failure on Christmas Day 2006 at age 73.

The court sent the estate back to a lower court to be reconsidered.

The justices did agree with the lower court's decision to remove Brown's original trustees. Members of Brown's family said they wanted them gone because the trustees mismanaged the estate until it was almost broke.

The court said it had no idea what the estate was worth, giving an estimate of $5 million to more than $100 million.

The justices harshly criticized McMaster, who stepped in to broker the settlement after the estate floundered in court for years. Under McMaster's deal, a professional manager took control of Brown's assets from the estate's trustees, wiping out crushing debt ? more than $20 million Brown had borrowed for a European comeback tour ? and opening the way for needy students to receive college scholarships. The plan allowed a financial manager to cut lucrative deals that put Brown's music on national and international commercials for products such as Chanel perfume and Gatorade.

Chief Justice Jean Toal suggested Wednesday that, if the settlement was allowed to stand, it could discourage people from leaving most of their estate to charity for fear their wishes could easily be overturned.

The dispute came to the court after the ousted trustees sued.

"The compromise orchestrated by the AG in this case destroys the estate plan Brown had established in favor of an arrangement overseen virtually exclusively by the AG," giving large sums of money to relatives even though they were given little or no control in the singer's original will, Associate Justice John Kittredge wrote.

The fight over Brown's estate even spilled over into what to do with his body. Family members fought over the remains for more than two months, leaving Brown's body, still inside a gold casket, sitting in cold storage in a funeral home. Brown was eventually buried in Beech Island, S.C., at the home of one of his daughters. The family wanted to turn the home into a shrine for Brown similar to Elvis Presley's Graceland, but that idea has not gotten off the ground.

An attorney for Adele Pope ? one of the trustees who appealed ? commended the court for its ruling, which he said would more accurately fulfill Brown's wishes.

"James Brown was certainly devoted to the cause of education," James Richardson said. "Today's decision means that the bulk of his fortune will go to the cause of educating needy children."

McMaster, who left office in 2010, did not immediately comment on the ruling. However, he said in 2011 that "the settlement was a very good one for ... the education of the poor children, because there was a danger that they would get nothing."

Current Attorney General Alan Wilson said he respected the court's decision but felt McMaster had acted legally.

___

Reach Kinnard at http://www.twitter.com/MegKinnardAP

Related on HuffPost:

"; var coords = [-5, -72]; // display fb-bubble FloatingPrompt.embed(this, html, undefined, 'top', {fp_intersects:1, timeout_remove:2000,ignore_arrow: true, width:236, add_xy:coords, class_name: 'clear-overlay'}); });

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/27/james-brown-south-carolina-supreme-court-estate-settlement_n_2774055.html

cotton bowl Fiscal cliff deal kathy griffin jadeveon clowney orange bowl Rose Parade 2013 rex ryan

Holly Madison to Eat Placenta After Giving Birth

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/02/holly-madison-to-eat-placenta-after-giving-birth/

silent house nfl mock draft project m colts colts big ten tournament 2012 dennis quaid

3 farmer's markets in March, classes & other events | Food and Dining

Posted on 27 February 2013.

Davidson Farmer?s Market is back again Saturday for the first of three winter tailgate markets during March, including an extra market added at the month?s end. Meanwhile, the dining calendar is busy in March, with wine dinners, beer tastings and live music at Ass Clown Brewery, a Russian food and music festival at Davidson College, and a big two-day St. Patrick?s Day celebration at Galway Hooker. Read on for the details.

WINTER FARMER?S MARKETS

Davidson Farmer?s Market will have another in its series of winter tailgate markets this Saturday, March 2, from 9am to noon next to Town Hall in downtown Davidson. The market also is open March 16, and they?ve added a third date this month, March 30.

This weekend, farmers and other vendors will have a variety of seasonal vegetables and foods, including kale, spinach, carrots, potatoes, butternut squash, collards, mustard greens, sweet potatoes, farm-fresh eggs, goat and cow cheeses, butter, honey, flowers, pastured beef and chicken, chicken sausage, pork, and NC seafood. There also will be baked goods, including donuts, artisan breads, sweets, croissants, brioche and empanadas, and locally made soaps.
soaps.

Meanwhile, the market needs volunteers to help with setup and takedown of tents and tables. Are you available to help out? Set up starts at 7:45am, and takedown is at noon. To sign up, visit http://www.signupgenius.com/go/volunteers1071? Find our more about the market at davidsonfarmersmarket.org

CLASS: A HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN SIX GLASSES

Have you heard about DavidsonLearns? The lifelong learning program is accepting registration through March 11 for a variety of classes, including this one for lovers of food and drink: ?A History of the World in Six Glasses.? Davidson resident and DavidsonLearns president Joey Schnople will teach this course based on the book of the same name by Tom Standage.

Here?s how the author describes the idea: ?Just as archaeologists divide history into different periods based on the use of different materials ? the stone age, the bronze age, the iron age, and so on ? it is also possible to divide world history into periods dominated by different drinks. Six drinks in particular ? beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and cola ? chart the flow of world history. Three contain alcohol and three contain caffeine, but what they all have in common is that each drink was the defining drink during a pivotal historical period, from antiquity to the present day.?

The course will meet Wednesdays from 7-8:30pm, on March 27, April 3, 10, 17, 24 and May 1. It has a maximum enrollment of 20 students, and registration is $72. You can learn more about the course and the instructor and register at www.davidsonlearns.org.

DINING CALENDAR

• Wine Dinners at Lake Norman Cottage, Friday-Saturday, March 1-2, 6-9pm, Lake Norman Cottage, 200 A North Harbor Place, Davidson ? If you haven?t been to one of these wine dinners, it?s worth a visit. Cost is $25 per person includes a light 3-course meal. Friday night will feature wines from Argentina, Oregon, and California. Saturday night wines are from California, Germany and Washington State. Call for a reservation: 704-237-3629.
• Lake Norman Bar Crawl, Friday, March 1, registration 6:30-7:30pm at Harvey?s Bar and Grill, 19707 Liverpool Parkway, Cornelius ? The Lake Norman Bar Crawl offers party bus transportation to five locations around Cornelius. Free beer on the bus, plus drink specials, no cover charges and giveaways. Tickets $10 per person, or $15 for two. Information and tickets at lknfun.com
• Beer and live music at Ass Clown Brewery, Saturday, March 2, 6-9pm, Ass Clown Brewery, 10620 Bailey Road, Suite E, Cornelius ? The local brewery?s tasting room is open with live music by Carolina Bound. Info: www.assclownbrewery.com or 704-995-7767.
• Russian Food & Music Festival, Wednesday, March 13, 5-7:15pm, Davidson College Vail Commons dining hall ? Russian Maslenitsa Food & Music Festival, a festival of Russian food, trivia with prizes, live dancing and music by guitar virtuoso Vadim Kolpakov. Free for students on the meal plan, $12.25 for others. For more information, email amewington@davidson.edu.
• St. Paddy?s Day at Galway Hooker, Saturday-Sunday, March 16-17, 11am until ?? Galway Hooker Irish Pub, 17044 Kenton Drive, Kenton Place, Cornelius ? Galway Hooker presents a two-day celebration of St. Patrick?s Day, with music, food and drink. Eight bars inside and out, bagpipers and dancers and other live bands, drawings and games. Saturday lineup: Thistledown Tinkers, Natty Boh, and Joystick. Sunday: Early Ray, Lipstick on a Pig. Info: galwayhookerpub.com
• DavidsonNews.net and CorneliusNews.net will host a Davidson Beer Crawl on Saturday afternoon, March 23, at five venues in Davidson. Cost is $35 per person, including a beer glass and tastings. If you?d like an invitation with details, send an email to David Boraks at editor@corneliusnews.net.

BAD DADDY?S ADDS AN EDAMAME CASHEW BURGER

Bad Daddy?s Burger Bar restaurants in the Charlotte area have added a new veggie option to their menus: the Edamame Cashew Burger. Bad Daddy?s owner Frank Scibelli says: ?We have a lot of vegetarians at our restaurant and we?re always looking at new proteins for our customers. We started with edamame and added the cashews for a nutritional crunch, then created the homemade Greek yogurt tzatziki sauce to add creaminess.? Other menu additions recently include Irish Nachos, Bacon Blue Cheese Fries, Truffle Parmesan Fries, Salt & Vinegar Fries and a Strawberry Greek Yogurt Crunch Shake. Founded in 2007 by Mr. Scibelli and Dennis Thompson, Bad Daddy?s has locations on East Boulevard in Charlotte, Ballantyne, Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Birkdale in Huntersville.

COOKING CLASSES AT WOODEN STONE

Wooden Stone Gallery and the Town of Davidson are offering another series of hands-on cooking classes in April, one focusing on Indian food and the other Thai food. Whether you?re a beginner or a seasoned pro, you?ll have fun in these 2 1/2 hour Sunday classes. Participants will help prepare five to six dishes, then sit down and enjoy a meal with a glass of wine. Classes are for ages 18 and up and require pre-registration.

• Trip to India, Sunday, April 14, 2-4:30pm, Wooden Stone Gallery, 445 S. Main St., Davidson ? Menu includes Potato Samosas, Butternut Squash Jasmine Rice, Spinach with Paneer (Saag Paneer), Indian Vegetable Stew, Chicken Tikka Masala, Indian Ground Beef with Peas, and (Kheema), Mango Lassi. Register: https://townofdavidson.recdesk.com/recdeskportal/
• Tasty Thai, Sunday, April 28, 2-4pm, Wooden Stone Gallery, 445 S. Main St., Davidson ? Menu includes Vegetable & Black Bean Egg Rolls; Hot & Sour Vegetable Salad; Tom Yum Soup with Fish; Thai Tofu, Swiss Chard, and Sweet Potato Curry; Green Pork Stir-Fry with Noodles & Peanuts; Red Chicken Curry. Register: https://townofdavidson.recdesk.com/recdeskportal/

HAVE NEWS?

Have restaurant or dining news? Send listings to editor@corneliusnews.net. Dining News appears occasionally on this page, on DavidsonNews.net and CorneliusNews.net.

Source: http://corneliusnews.net/foodanddining/2013/02/27/3-farmers-markets-in-march-food-classes-and-other-events/

kansas ohio state wrestlemania results womens final four josh hutcherson google april fools office space shell houston open

Stone Temple Pilots fire singer Scott Weiland

FILE - This April 30, 2010 file photo shows the Stone Temple Pilots, from left, Dean Deleo, Eric Kretz, Robert Deleo, and Scott Weiland from the band Stone Temple Pilots, pose for a portrait in Santa Monica, Calif. In a one-sentence news release on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, publicist Kymm Britton said: "Stone Temple Pilots have announced they have officially terminated Scott Weiland." No other information was provided. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, file)

FILE - This April 30, 2010 file photo shows the Stone Temple Pilots, from left, Dean Deleo, Eric Kretz, Robert Deleo, and Scott Weiland from the band Stone Temple Pilots, pose for a portrait in Santa Monica, Calif. In a one-sentence news release on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013, publicist Kymm Britton said: "Stone Temple Pilots have announced they have officially terminated Scott Weiland." No other information was provided. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, file)

NEW YORK (AP) ? The Stone Temple Pilots have fired singer Scott Weiland (WY'-land).

In a one-sentence news release Wednesday, publicist Kymm Britton said: "Stone Temple Pilots have announced they have officially terminated Scott Weiland." No other information was provided.

The Associated Press was attempting to reach Weiland for comment.

The band's 1992 debut, "Core," has sold more than 8 million units in the United States. Their hits include "Vasoline," ''Interstate Love Song" and "Plush," which won a Grammy in 1993 for best hard rock performance with vocal.

Weiland was also in the supergroup Velvet Revolver with Slash and other musicians. The 45-year-old has dealt with drug addiction, run-ins with the law and two failed marriages. He released his memoir, "Not Dead & Not for Sale," in 2011.

The Stone Temple Pilots' latest album is their self-titled 2010 release.

___

Online:

http://www.stonetemplepilots.com/

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-02-27-Music-Stone%20Temple%20Pilots/id-ef3dd18bf06247cc901a6bdc9b8acad1

Kitty Wells Marissa Mayer Jon Lord Colorado shootings dark knight rises Aurora shooting James Eagan Holmes