3rd Quarter 2012Week 36

Sept 2 – Sept 8Page 1

TABLE OF CONTENTSISSUE 2012.36

“AS SEEN ON TV”pages 1-4

FAMOUS LANDMARKS:Sunset Boulevard

pages 5-6

SOFA SHOPPINGpages 7-8

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“AS SEEN ON TV”by Blue Sullivan

America is a country full of would-be inventors. For most, it’s as simple as discovering a problem that no one’s ever solved and coming up with a creative and inexpensive solution. Here are just a few of the countless TV marvels that have been advertised on our sets since this phenomenon be-gan. •A good example of the whole “discover a

problem, discover a solution” method of inventingisthe“Snap-ItScrew.”It’samethodof replacing the tiny, and difficult to handle,screws that hold eyeglasses together.

•The“Snap-ItScrew”wasinventedbyNancyTedeschi.“Theoldsayingthatnecessityisthemother of inventions is what inspired [it],” saidTedeschi.Shemeantitliterally,asitwasher own mother who inspired the invention’s creation.

• Tedeschi’s mother was overseas doingvolunteer work when a hinge screw in her glasses broke. Left with no other immediate remedy, Tedeschi’s mother pulled the pin out of one of her earrings and placed it where the former hinge had been.

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Fifteen presumptive illnesses are now covered for those who served at Camp Lejeune, N.C.The problem at Camp Lejeune was the drinking water. From the 1950s to the 1980s, the water contained vola-tile organic solvents (trichloroethylene, or TCE; tetra-chloroethylene, or PCE; vinyl chloride) and benzene (a component of fuel), which are carcinogens. For years the Department of Veterans Affairs denied claims for subsequent cancers and other illnesses. For a short time, claims were decided on a case-by-case basis, but getting benefits wasn’t easy because it required proving the link between drinking the water so long ago and illness. Now not only will veterans be covered, but their fami-lies will as well.

Easing Arthritis Pain Without Medicines

The devil is in the details, however. Family members will only be eligible for reimbursement for previous care after they have “exhausted without success all claims ... against a third party.”Veterans who served at Camp Lejeune for not less than 30 days are covered for the following illnesses: esopha-geal cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, bladder cancer, kidney cancer, leukemia, multiple myeloma, myleo-dysplasic syndromes, renal toxicity, hepatic steatosis, female infertility, miscarriage, scleroderma, neurobe-havioral effects and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.Sen. Leahy of Vermont, chairman of the Senate Judi-ciary Committee, has released 8,000 documents related to the water contamination at Camp Lejeune. The link to those documents is: www.judiciary.senate.gov/CampLe-jeuneIndex.htm. Your best bet is to read them side by side with an excel-lent explanatory page done by Mike Partain for The Few, The Proud, The Forgotten website: tftptf.com, then click MCBLC Timeline of Events, then scroll to Partain’s link.You’ll be dismayed by what you read. However, the good news is that we now have benefits for presumptive illnesses caused by service at Camp Lejeune. The shame of it all is that the government has known for many years that those wells were contaminated.

Camp Lejeune Claims Get Green Light

“As Seen on TV” (continued):• “She wore this dangling bead from the hinge of her glasses for about a year. She traveled to several foreign countries with it in, and people would literally stop her on the streets and ask her where she got this charm,” said Tedeschi. “My mom came to me and said, ‘You have to invent charms for glasses.’”• For Tedeschi, inventing the “Snap-It Screw” was the easy part. The difficult part was doing all the things necessary to produce and market her new inven-tion. She had to set up patents all over the world. She had to set up a factory in China and a warehouse in Seattle, Washington. She had to spend countless hours marketing her idea to retailers. Today, the “Snap-It Screw” is a success, and Tedeschi says that despite all the hard work, she wouldn’t change a thing. • “Bling To Go” was invented by Abby Appelt during a period where she was forced to use crutches. She felt the dull metal could use a little pizzazz. So she created some decorative wrap-on decals to give her crutches some personality, and her invention was born.• Appelt said, “When I wore my crutch décor, I had people stop me, literally ev-erywhere I went, complimenting me on how awesome my crutches were!”• As Appelt notes, people decorate a million different things with stickers, so it made sense to do likewise with crutches.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My 88-year-old relative has high blood pressure and atrial fibrillation, both of which are well-controlled by medication. She is mentally sharp but has developed arthritis in various joints. She’s been told that she can’t take any medi-cine for pain because it would interfere with her med-icines for blood pressure and atrial fib. I know she could have a better quality of life with less pain. Is there something she can take? -- A.H.

ANSWER: I have to presume your relative has osteo-arthritis, the kind of arthritis almost all older people develop. Cushioning cartilage in joints crumbles and eventually becomes functionless. Bone rubs against bone, and that is painful and stiffens joints.Your relative ought to try heat in the form of hot baths, hot packs or heating pads. Heat lessens joint pain. If heat doesn’t do the trick for her, she should try ice packs. Heat can be left on a joint for 15 minutes; ice for 10. If she has hip, knee or foot arthritis, padded shoes or padded shoe inserts lessen the force generated in leg joints when the foot hits the ground.An exercise program supervised by a physical ther-apist will strengthen muscles around the affected joints, provide them protection and give the joints a greater range of motion.

Occupational therapists devise splints or braces that protect joints and mitigate pain. They also can suggest devices that make the tasks of daily living much less troublesome.Has she tried anti-inflammatory medicines applied to the skin directly over an affected joint? Pennsaid lo-tion is one example. Some of the medicine does get into the blood, so she’ll need to have her doctor’s ap-proval for it. It is a prescription medicine. The amount of medicine that gets into the blood is less than the amount she’d get from an oral medicine, yet a suf-ficient amount reaches the joint.The arthritis booklet presents the details of the differ-ent kinds of arthritis and their treatment. Readers can obtain a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue -- No. 301W, Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Enclose a check or money order (no cash) for $4.75 U.S./$6 Canada with the recipient’s printed name and address. Please allow four weeks for delivery.***DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I just learned that my niece has basal cell cancer on her scalp. The doctor told her not to worry. Her mother is concerned. I’d never heard of it. Is this something to worry about? -- A.P.

ANSWER: Basal cell cancer is the most common kind of skin cancer. It’s quite treatable and most often completely curable. Up to 2 million new cases of it occur yearly in the United States. Sunlight and a ten-dency for the person to sunburn easily have a hand in its occurrence. Basal cell cancers almost never spread to other body locations.They can be dried with an electric current and then scraped off. They can be treated with a laser, frozen or removed with 5-fluorouracil cream applied by the patient. And this is only a small sample of the ways to treat them. Your niece, her mother and you can all relax.

To Your Good Health By Paul G Donohue M.D.

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The days are getting shorter, and that means one thing: Cold weather is coming. Before winter sets in, plan what you and your family will do for entertainment when the nights are long and you’re stuck indoors. The key is to not spend much money.--Board games and cards: check charity shops for games in good condition. Open the boxes and count the pieces to be sure noth-ing is missing. Look for jigsaw puzzles that have a note attached saying all the pieces are there. Avoid games that take batteries. Bor-row a card-game book from the library, or

see Pagat.com for international games.--Take your children to the library after school one day a week to check out books.--Have an Art Night. Before all the school supplies are gone from stores, stock up on crayons, paints and markers at low prices. Add stacks of construction paper and glue for the younger ones. Check craft and fabric stores for modeling clay that can be baked in the oven, and create holiday ornaments or pottery gifts. Make wallets from duct tape. Create holiday cards out of last year’s cards and construction paper.--Make one night a week Kids Cooking Night. Look online or at the library for easy recipes. Have them plan in advance what they’ll fix, and be sure the ingredients are on hand. Bake bread together and freeze the extra.--Learn a new language: DVDs and tapes from the library (or found at a thrift store) can

make learning fun if you all do it together for 15 minutes a night. Or check online at Live Mocha [livemocha.com] for free basic instruction in any of its 38 languages.--Start a post card, stamp or coin collection.--Have a camp-in on the living-room floor, complete with hot dogs, S’mores and ghost stories by flashlight.--Make puppets from fabric you have on hand and give plays, learn to dance, do magic tricks or fold origami. (All of these and more can be found on YouTube.com videos.) --Write poetry and short stories.--Set up a home photo studio, take pictures of the family and print out the best ones for gifts.The idea is to stay busy -- and not spend much money -- when cold weather keeps you indoors.

Long, Cold Nights Not Short on Fun

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1. Is the book of Job in the Old or New Testament or neither?2. What did the crowds repeat dur-ing Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jeru-salem? Hallelujah, Hosanna, Amen, Messiah3. From Mark 7, what did Jesus put into the deaf man’s ear, healing him? Mud, Straw, Finger, Light4. Upon what mountain did Abra-ham offer to sacrifice his son Isaac? Moriah, Aravat, Hor, Seir5. In Acts 13:8, who/what was Ely-mas? River, Fisherman, Sorcerer, Well6. From Ruth 4:13 who was her mate? Samuel, Boaz, Xerxes, Jacob

Cute Zucchini Meatloaf Muffins

Even if the men in your family aren’t wild about zucchini, they’ll go wild over these cute muffin meatloaves.

16 ounces extra-lean ground turkey or beef1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon dried fine breadcrumbs1/4 cup finely chopped onion3/4 cup shredded unpeeled zucchini2 teaspoons Italian seasoning 1 cup (one 8-ounce can) tomato sauceSugar substitute suitable for baking to equal 1 table-spoon sugar1/3 cup shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray a 6-well muffin pan with olive oil-flavored cooking spray.2. In a large bowl, combine meat, breadcrumbs, onion, zucchini, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning and 1/2 cup tomato sauce. Mix well to combine. Evenly divide meat mixture between prepared muffin cups and make indentation in the center of each.3. In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/2 cup to-mato sauce, sugar substitute and remaining 1 tea-spoon Italian seasoning. Stir in mozzarella cheese. Evenly spoon about 1 tablespoon sauce mixture over top of each “muffin.”4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Place muffin pan on wire rack and let set for 5 minutes. Remove “muf-fins” from pan and serve at once. Freezes well. Serves 6.

„ Each serving equals: 188 calories, 8g fat, 17g pro-tein, 12g carb., 457mg sodium, 1g fiber; Diabetic Exchanges: 2 Meat, 1 Vegetable, 1/2 Starch.

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Colfer’s Kurt, and Kate Hudson will play a nemesis of sorts for Lea Michele’s Rachel.***Q: Will I ever get to see Amanda Bynes on anything other than a police blotter? It seems she’s always in the news for things other than acting. -- Darren D., via e-mailA: The young starlet is hopefully not following in the self-destructive footprints of Lindsay Lohan, but so far, it’s not looking good. Amanda was recently in her fourth car accident of the past six months -- add that to her recent DUI and hit-and-runs, and her flight from a cop who pulled her over for talking on her cell phone. Here’s hoping the “Easy A” actress gets her head on straight soon.

1. MATH: What is the Arabic equivalent of the Roman numerals MLXVI?2. CHEMISTRY: What is the chemical symbol for copper?3. TELEVISION: What was the name of the company that employed the title characters in “Laverne and Shirley”?4. MUSIC: What rock band composed the soundtrack to the 1984 movie “Dune”?5. ENTERTAINERS: What was comedian/ac-tor Bob Hope’s theme song?6. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE: What is the nick-name for Georgetown University’s sports teams?7. LITERATURE: Who wrote the novel “Brides-head Revisited”?8. MEDICAL TERMS: What is a common name for bruxism?9. GEOGRAPHY: What modern country en-compasses most of the area once known as Asia Minor?10. MEASUREMENTS: What is a quintal equivalent to?

A: I had the chance to speak with the lovely Brit recently, and she gave me the scoop on what her new show will be about.“My topics are all of life’s dramas,” Trisha explained. “You know, happy, sad, humor too -- the whole gamut of relationships. On my show in England, we had on older people who wanted to find out, ‘Is this my sister, my cousin?’ or ‘Is it really my parent?’ as an adult. And obvi-ously there’s a lot invested in that if you’ve been brought up to believe that somebody was your parent and isn’t. We’ll also cover the universal issues that everyone has: trust, betrayal, happiness, joy and identity.”And when celebrities appear on the show, it won’t be as window dressing, or to promote their new movie. “A celebrity will be there for what they’re going through and what experience they can bring to the show rather than for the celebrity’s sake. Again, that’s what I did on my show in England. It catches on with the celebrities who are inter-ested in being real.”***Q: When will “Glee” be back? -- Tommy H., Charlotte, N.C.A: “Glee” returns to Fox for its 22-epsiode fourth season on Sept. 13 at 9/8c, and it promises some big-name guest stars to get the show rolling. Sarah Jessica Parker plays the kooky online editor for “Vogue” and mentor for Chris

Q: I’ve been hearing rumors that Michael J. Fox is returning to series television. Is it true? -- Jessica B., MiamiA: Rumors had been floating around for weeks, and NBC recently confirmed that Michael will coming back to series TV more than a decade after he left to concentrate on fighting Parkinson’s disease. His new comedy series, which will be loosely based on his life, will premiere in fall 2013 and has a 22-episode commitment from the network. Michael will play a husband and father of three from New York City who is dealing with family, career and challenges that include Parkinson’s. ***Q: I loved watching Trisha Goddard when she guest-hosted for Maury Povich, and I recently saw a com-mercial for her own talk show. Can you tell me a bit about it? -- Deena W., via e-mail

¥ On Sept. 13, 1814, Francis Scott Key pens a poem, which is later set to the music of a popular English drinking tune called “To Anacreon in Heaven.” In 1931 the song becomes America’s national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

¥ On Sept. 10, 1897, a 25-year-old London taxi driver named George Smith becomes the first person ever ar-rested for drunk driving. A true breath test didn’t come along until 1931 with a device called the Drunkome-ter. It involved a blow-up balloon and a tube filled with a purple fluid (potassium permanganate and sul-furic acid). Alcohol on a person’s breath changed the color of the fluid from purple to yellow; the quicker the change, the drunker the person.

¥ On Sept. 14, 1927, dancer Isadora Duncan is stran-gled in Nice, France, when the enormous silk scarf she is wearing gets tangled in the rear hubcaps of her open car. The scarf wound around the axle, tightening around Duncan’s neck and dragging her from the car.

¥ On Sept. 16, 1940, the first peacetime draft in the history of the United States is imposed. Registration of men between the ages of 21 and 36 began exactly one month later. There were some 20 million eligible young men -- 50 percent were rejected in the first year for health reasons or illiteracy.

¥ On Sept. 12, 1953, Massachusetts Sen. John F. Ken-nedy, the future 35th president of the United States, marries Jacqueline Bouvier in Newport, R.I. Seven years later, the couple would become the youngest president and first lady in American history.

¥ On Sept. 15, 1978, boxer Muhammad Ali defeats Leon Spinks at the Louisiana Superdome in New Or-leans to win the world heavyweight boxing title for the third time in his career, the first fighter ever to do so. Ali left the sport permanently in 1981.

¥ On Sept. 11, 1985, Cincinnati Reds player-manager Pete Rose gets the 4,192nd hit of his career, break-ing Ty Cobb’s major league record for career hits. Rose was a folk hero in Cincinnati, a homegrown tal-ent known as “Charlie Hustle” for his relentless work ethic.

“As Seen on TV” (continued):• “Bling To Go” works on crutches, canes, walkers and bed poles. It’s a medical grade product that can be sanitized and cleaned, so it presents no health hazard to the user. The com-pany’s slogan is “express your health,” and they back up their words by being active contribu-tors to several physical and emotional health charities.• Perhaps one of the more peculiar and innovative creations making the invention cir-cuit is the “Bogdon Bass.” It’s a standing bass guitar whose main component is a cardboard box!• The “Bogdon Bass” is literally a large cardboard box sealed with tape, with a wooden neck and vinyl strings. It can be played with or without an amplifier. Because of the use of these materials, it is lightweight, inexpensive and recyclable.• This peculiar instrument was invented by a man named Chris Badynee. He named the instrument after his father, Bogdon. • “The inspiration to make my Bogdon Box Bass was that I had the desire to own something that I couldn’t afford, so I made one myself,” explained Badynee. “All I wanted was a natural-sounding upright bass for my own home recordings of songs I wrote.”• After assembling what he thought was just a silly idea only he’d use, Badynee was shocked by how good the makeshift instrument sounded. “[It] sounded so fantastic that I had to tell someone. So I filmed a 60-second video and posted it on the web. I got 1,000 hits on Youtube in less than a day.”

• The video became a bit of a viral sensa-tion, and Badynee was asked by “Good Morn-ing, America” for the right to show the video on their program.• Almost immediately after the video was shown on television, Badynee received requests to buy a “Bogdon Box.” He brought in his uncle and a couple of acoustic technicians to help him perfect it. Once they got the instrument exactly right, they began selling it on Ebay to a huge response. Hundreds were sold, almost as quickly as they could turn them out.• Badynee took the profits from those sales to protect and patent his invention. Eventually, his belief in his invention paid off in praise, when his bass was given a rave review in “Bass Player Magazine.” • A well-known invention marketed via television infomercials is the Snuggie. This blan-ket with sleeves solved a problem most people didn’t even know they had. • Since it covers your entire body but keeps your hands free thanks to its armholes, Snuggie wearers stay warm while still retaining the ability to take sip of their drink, change the channel or turn the page of a book.• The Snuggie was introduced in 2008 and was an instant success. By 2009, 20 million Snuggies had been sold. But there was actually a similar product already on the market, The Slanket, invented by Gary Clegg when he was a college freshman. • Because it is difficult to patent a textile product, Clegg had not patented The Slanket, so the makers of the Snuggie were able to make and market their product legally.• Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it’s a safe bet that Clegg felt something other than pride when he first saw the Snuggie.

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The problem, of course, is finding one of these near you.These days, the Internet is a great resource for locating announcements for low-cost clinics. However, not everyone has access to the Internet. And sometimes, the agencies or institutions sponsoring those clinics can’t advertise widely, or are hard to locate in an Internet search.In these cases, your best bet is to regularly check locally published newspapers and magazines that focus on your community for announcements about upcoming clinics. Another way is to call the local shelters, or the city or county government, to find out if any such clinics will be held in the near future.I’ll do my best to list upcoming clinics in as many locations as possible at www.pawscorner.com. In the meantime, keep checking with your local government or animal shelter for the next dates, times and locations of their low-cost clinics.

DEAR PAW’S CORNER: Being a retiree trying to make ends meet, it’s been hard to pay for health care for my two Corgis. Are there free clinics in my area where I can get my dogs’ shots more cheaply? -- Francis H., Oklahoma City, Okla.

DEAR FRANCIS: Low-cost and sometimes free vaccination clinics for pets are available at different times of the year across the country. These are held by public service agencies (such as county or city shelters), though some are privately sponsored. The clinics typically offer the immunizations required of dogs and cats (and sometimes other animals like ferrets) and license tags. Some also offer services like health checks and microchipping. Prices range from $5 to $25, on average.

Finding Affordable Pet Health Care

By Samantha Mazzotta

FAMOUS LANDMARKS OF THE WORLD:SUNSET BOULEVARD

As one of Los Angeles’ most popular entertain-ment districts and tourist destinations, Sunset Boulevard is home to a variety of trendy restau-rants, nightclubs, attractions, shopping spots and much more.• Sunset Boulevard is an approximately 22-mile-long, immensely famous street begin-ning in downtown Los Angeles and continuing west toward the Pacific. It eventually becomes Sunset Strip as it runs through Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Santa Monica and ends at the ocean.• The boulevard is a direct link between the lower-income areas of Hollywood and the lush, incredibly upscale ones. As the road con-tinues west, it undergoes several transforma-tions. It gives tourists the ability to experience both sides of Hollywood and is rich with sights and attractions all along the way.• It encompasses a surplus of must-see sites including Echo Park, Hollywood Memorial Park, Paramount Studios, KTLA Studios, Fox Net-work, Columbia Square and the iconic Sunset Grill made famous by Don Henley’s song.• It is at least four lanes its entire dura-tion, and thanks to its curvy, winding route and frequent traffic congestion, car accidents are prevalent. • It is sometimes referred to as “Guitar Row,” as it is home to a wide selection of guitar stores and music-industry-related buildings.• One of the most famous nightclubs in the ‘40s and ‘50s was the glamorous Earl Carroll Theatre on Sunset, said to host the most beauti-ful girls in the world. After it was sold, it func-tioned as Moulin Rouge for a number of years.• Hollywood High School, built in 1904, is on Sunset Boulevard and has a reputation for being one of the most beautiful schools in the state. Many famous entertainment personalities are among its graduates.

Some of us have to wait until our grandchildren show up to teach us how to use a new high-tech device or navigate a social-media site online. But we could learn it for ourselves with a bit of instruction.

With that in mind, AARP has created a series of how-to books to lead us step by step through some of the things that interest us. Here is a sample of what they offer for seniors:

iPad: Tech to Connect, Pinterest for Dummies, Genealogy Online, Facebook, Tablets, Excel 2010, Outlook 2010, Laptops for Dummies, Word 2010, e-Readers and more. If you want to look at all the books, go online to bookstore.aarp.org. Click on a topic of interest, but look at Technology to learn more about the books above. Other categories include food and cooking, money, health, travel, self-help and some excellent home and family selections.

You’ll find e-books, if you prefer, if you have a Kindle or Nook, print books and even free downloads. You don’t order the books through AARP -- instead they come from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million or Indie Bound.

Another site with technology books for seniors is Visual Steps [www.visualsteps.com]. Here is a small sample of what it offers: iPad for Seniors, Social Media for Seniors, Google for Seniors, Internet and Email with Windows 7, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Microsoft office 2010 and 2007, Photo and Video Editing and so much more.

Senior Sleuth Guides [www.sleuthguides.com] has a free book that’s worth reading, “The Senior Sleuth’s Guide to Technology.” It covers topics such as home computers, the Internet, health and medication, independent living, communication and travel. It provides a good overview if you want a place to start learning more.

High-Tech Learning

• The iconic thoroughfare inspired the popular 1950s feature film “Sunset Bou-levard,” starring William Holden and Gloria Swanson. There was also a 1993 musical named “Sunset Boulevard” that starred Glen Close.• Sunset Boulevard has been high-lighted on TV shows, album covers and in song names, including the 1960s TV series “77 Sunset Strip” and the 1990s’ “Below Sunset.”• The best known section of Sunset Boulevard is Sunset Strip, which before its glory days, was nothing more than scattered buildings and nurseries. Once the movie in-dustry took off, studios and glamorous houses began popping up everywhere. It was once called Beverly Boulevard.• Sunset Strip is about 1.5 miles long. It got its name because many Los Angeles County workers referred to it as “that strip” for years.• Sunset Boulevard can brag that it has hosted most of the early motion picture companies; the area near the intersection of Gower Street was famous for the many West-erns made there. However, this section was also known as “Poverty Row,” as many of the films made there failed.• Although many film companies popped up, the smaller ones tended to end quickly — some of them included California Film Co., Century Film Co., H. Paulis Studio and Francis Ford Studio.• A few film companies were able to survive; some of these include Warner Broth-ers Studios, Christie Film Co. and Columbia Studios. • Today, visitors from all over the world come to Sunset Boulevard to get a glimpse of what makes Tinsel Town glitter and glow.

Matt Kenseth’s Roush Fenway Racing team-mate, Greg Biffle, won the Pure Michigan 400. Everything went right for Biffle. Kenseth finished 17th, the same number as his Ford Fusion. The same could not be said for him.“We just didn’t really pit for fuel at the right time,” Kenseth said, “but Greg (Biffle) was on the same strategy and won the race. We kept getting stuck in the wrong lane on re-starts, had some subpar pit stops and had a flat tire, and just couldn’t recover from that.”Kenseth, who won the last Cup (it was Win-ston then) before the implementation of the Chase format, has a shot this year. He ranks second to Biffle in the point standings and began the season by winning his second Daytona 500.This also is the final season at Roush Fenway Racing for Kenseth, who debuted in Cup on Sept. 20, 1998, in Dover, Del., finishing sixth in his very first race while substituting for Bill

Elliott. He joined the circuit full-time two years later and won for the first time in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 28, 2000.Kenseth’s future plans are yet to be announced, but most observers would be flabbergasted if Kenseth didn’t wind up driving a Toyota next year for Joe Gibbs Racing.Kenseth, who is a native of Cambridge, Wis., turned 40 earlier this year. He has won 22 times at the Cup level. He is tied for 29h place all-time with Terry Labonte, one shy of Ricky Rudd and two behind both Busch brothers, Kurt and Kyle.Biffle’s victory was the first for a Ford driver since his win at Texas Motor Speedway on April 14.“There are a ton of reasons why guys don’t win races,” Kenseth said. “There’s a lot of competi-tion and great teams out there. I’ve tried as hard as I could to win every race I’ve entered in my entire life. It isn’t easy.“We have to get our cars running a little faster, and I have to do a better job finishing some of them off.”

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SOFA SHOPPINGHaving provided some fun facts about those marvelous inventions sold on TV, it makes sense to share a little interest-ing information about the evolution of home shopping. For anyone who has ever enjoyed the luxury of finding a good deal from the comfort of their couch, here’s how it all came about.• The first example of “home shop-ping” as we know it was offered by The Home Shopping Network (or HSN). HSN started with humble beginnings in 1977 in Clearwater, Florida, by selling 112 electronic can openers on an AM radio station. This turned into a regular radio shopping show called “Suncoast Bar-gaineers.” • In 1981, the televised “Home Shopping Channel” was launched as a Tampa Bay local access cable channel. In 1985, it began broadcasting nationwide, 24-hours a day on cable and local TV.• Today, The Home Shopping Net-work is a $3 billion retailer that stretches across multiple channels and includes online, mobile, catalog and brick and mortar stores. It offers products 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 364 days a year.• HSN now reaches 96 million homes, and its online site is one of the top 10 e-commerce sites on the web. Its catalog division, Cornerstone, distrib-utes 275 million catalogs a year. That’s a lot of postage!

• In 2010, legendary rocker Rod Stewart was the first popular performer to debut a new album on a shopping channel. He debuted his CD “Fly Me To The Moon” with a live, one-hour concert on HSN. It was the highest viewed pro-gram in the history of the network and broke all its music sales records.

• The other prominent shopping channel is QVC. It was founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel, founder of the Franklin Mint. Seasoned viewers of late-night TV commercials will recognize the Franklin Mint as the seller of commemorative plates, figurines, painted coins and other collect-ible items. • QVC’s first live broadcast was shot in a studio in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The com-pany broke American business records for sales by a new public company. Part of its early success came through an exclusive agreement with Sears to sell their products on the air.• Showing the influence of home shop-ping as more than just niche programming, QVC reported record sales of T-shirts heralding “Dallas Cowboys 1994 Super Bowl Champs.” The network sold over 6,000 shirts in just the first few seconds after the game ended!• In 1995, QVC’s success in home shopping was expressed by a few remarkable landmarks. In March of that year, they recorded over 250,000 phone calls in a single day. • It also shipped its 200 millionth package during March of that year, the equivalent of one package for every person in America at the time. In August of that year, QVC held a “Klondike Gold Rush Day,” where revenues topped $19 million dollars in 24 hours.• Today, QVC receives more than 181 mil-lion calls in the United States per year, and it ships about 166 million packages worldwide. Its reach is to more than 166 million homes, and sales recently topped $7 billion in a single year.

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“Put Tidbits In The Subject Line”

Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton helped to found this country, but that wasn’t all they had in common; they were also all big fans of eating ice cream.

¥ If you ever hear an orangutan belch, you’d better watch out. That’s a warning sign that you’re encroaching on his territory.

¥ When Andrew Jackson was running for president in 1828, an opponent called him a jackass. Instead of being offended, Jackson embraced the epithet, using the image of a donkey in campaign materials to represent his stubborn refusal to knuckle under to big business. Later, Thomas Nash, a political cartoonist in New York, started using the donkey to represent the Democratic Party as a whole.

¥ If you’re a well-traveled person, you might have noticed that the average woman in Scandinavia is taller than the average man in Asia.

¥ Only 12 people have walked on the surface of the moon.

¥ The framework for the Statue of Liberty was built by Gustave Eiffel, who later became famous for building Paris’ iconic tower.

¥ If you’re stopping at a fast-food restaurant for lunch today, you might want to consider the following: It takes a whopping 1,500 gallons of water to produce an average fast-food meal.

¥ It was William E. Vaughan who made the following sage observation: “To err is human, but to really foul things up you need a computer.”

¥ Those who study such things say that your brain can store 100 times as much information as a typical desktop computer.

¥ In 1930, United Airlines began using the aviation industry’s first stewardesses. To qualify for the position, applicants had to be registered nurses.

¥ George Washington, Dolley Madison, Thomas

The Greater Birmingham Humane Society, found-ed in 1883, is the largest and oldest humane soci-ety in Alabama. Over the course of our history we have witnessed the changes in our community and yet have never left the original mission of Dr. Phil-lips “to promote respect for life through education and prevention of cruelty to animals and people”

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The Greater Birmingham Humane Society (GBHS) is a nonprofit in Birmingham, Alabama that has been serving abused and abandoned pets in Birmingham since 1883. The Greater Birmingham Humane Society was one of the first humane societies in the United States. Today the GBHS cares for nearly 9,000 animals a year and serves pets and people through their various programs which include, but are not limited to, pet adoptions, animal cruelty prevention, and humane education.

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