Woody Harrelson does a lot of work for charitable causes and, as he told David Letterman on "Late Show" (Weeknights, 11:35 p.m. EST on CBS) that includes playing the occasional game of soccer.
In 2010 Harrelson was part of the "Rest of the World" team playing England in a pro-celebrity match for British charity Soccer Aid.
Although he's an avid cyclist and generally super-fit guy, Harrelson said he's a pretty bad soccer player, so when his team was involved in a celebrity-only penalty shoot-out at the end, he was the last person they wanted to take a penalty kick.
However, after all the good players on his team -- including Michael Sheen (Wales), Mike Myers (Canada), Simon Baker (Australia) and Gordon Ramsay (Scotland) -- had taken penalties, the score was still tied at six. So Harrelson was put on the spot in the "sudden death" part of the shoot-out.
Luckily for the team Harrelson was able to use some of his actorly mind tricks to psych-out the opposing team's goalkeeper, English television presenter Jamie Theakston. He had already saved four penalties, including a shot from former pro soccer player Ramsay, so was on a high.
Harrelson used his acting skills to make Theakston think he was aiming in one direction but actually shot in the oppposite direction. By the time the confused goalie realized which way the ball was headed it was already in the back of the net.
TV Replay scours the vast television landscape to find the most interesting, amusing, and, on a good day, amazing moments, and delivers them right to your browser.
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MONDAY, JANUARY 30: "Gossip Girl"
1? of ?22
"Gossip Girl" (8 p.m. EST on The CW) The stylish soap hits 100 episodes this week, featuring an elaborate musical dream sequence involving Serena, Blair and all the men in their lives. Also, while Chuck wrestles with the reality that Blair is about to walk down the aisle with Prince Louis (guest star Hugo Becker), the return of Georgina Sparks (guest star Michelle Trachtenberg) might make the royal affair a royal disaster. "Gossip Girl" (8 p.m. EST on The CW) The stylish soap hits 100 episodes this week, featuring an elaborate musical dream sequence involving Serena, Blair and all the men in their lives. Also, while Chuck wrestles with the reality that Blair is about to walk down the aisle with Prince Louis (guest star Hugo Becker), the return of Georgina Sparks (guest star Michelle Trachtenberg) might make the royal affair a royal disaster.
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MONDAY, JANUARY 30: "Gossip Girl"
"Gossip Girl" (8 p.m. EST on The CW) The stylish soap hits 100 episodes this week, featuring an elaborate musical dream sequence involving Serena, Blair and all the men in their lives. Also, while Chuck wrestles with the reality that Blair is about to walk down the aisle with Prince Louis (guest star Hugo Becker), the return of Georgina Sparks (guest star Michelle Trachtenberg) might make the royal affair a royal disaster. "; 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'}); });
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Before you get to the end of this sentence, most of you will stop reading.
Some of you will be outraged by my opinions on spirituality, or weary of?how I always go on about cats/cake/money, or just plain uninterested in the things I write about.
Some of you will be looking for an article about spider monkeys or a picture of plum blossom, or will be gasping for a cup of coffee.
I?m not affected by those in the second category but, in vulnerable moments, I worry about the first.
You might also worry about speaking up ? at work, to your friends and family, in your spiritual/political/social groups.
These are the things that help me to keep launching words into the world:
*?I remember that, even if every single one of my posts said ?you?re lovely?, some people would get annoyed. We can NEVER keep all the people happy all the time, and neither should we try to.
* Some (all?) of those people who stop reading are better off doing so. We all have ideal audiences, and it can take a while to find the people who are interested in what we have to say. Chris Guillebeau sometimes sends out newsletters that are extra-Chris-Guillebeauy, just to winnow out the people who will never appreciate his offerings.
* Sometimes I will upset people with the things I write/say. That?s fine too. I?ll listen to feedback and either stand by what I said despite it causing harm, or acknowledge that I made a mistake and?learn from it. I?ll know that I?m human. I?ll forgive myself.
Stand by what I said despite causing harm? Yup. Sometimes hurt or stirred-up-feelings are necessary, in order for something to be learnt or something to heal. You don?t always have to like what I say. What you do with your reaction to what I write?is up to you. It?s none of my business.
It?s always a risk to speak up.?Writers are speaking up whenever they send words out into the world. You are speaking up whenever you open your mouth and make sounds. Even before you make the sounds.
?Don?t try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It?s the one and only thing you have to offer.?
~Barbara Kingsolver
This is what I have to say today.
*
Plum blossom by noe via Creative Commons with gratitude.
Incorrect source, offensive, or found a typo? Want to write?
Kaspa & Fiona?s eyes met across a crowded room in 2010. They decided to: a) get married & spend their rest of our lives together, & b) pool their passions & talents to give birth to Writing Our Way Home. Their mission of helping people to connect with the world through writing. They offer a smorgasbord of writing e-courses, & run a thriving community. Read more about their mindful writing practice, small stones, and meet Lorrie in Fiona?s free ebook. / Fiona is a published novelist, therapist, creativity coach, & is very fond of earl grey and home-made cake. Kaspa is a Buddhist priest, writer, therapist, drama enthusiast, & is still learning to play the ukulele.
He saved a young Cassius Clay when he was in trouble in England, convinced Sugar Ray Leonard that he could somehow overcome the fearsome Tommy Hearns. Angelo Dundee worked thousands of corners, and had just as many stories about fighters and the games they played in the ring.
The best work of his life, though, may have been selling a sport that was often tough to sell.
"He spread good will for a sport that often doesn't have a lot of good will," said retired AP boxing writer Ed Schuyler Jr. "What he did to promote boxing is his greatest contribution to the sport."
Dundee, who died Wednesday in Tampa, Fla., at the age of 90, was a master motivator who shared the world stage with the greatest fighters of his time. But it was his 53-year relationship with The Greatest and the way they shocked the world together that will always be his legacy.
Muhammad Ali didn't need anyone to tell him how to box. He came by it so naturally that there wasn't much Dundee was going to teach him in the ring to help him become a legendary fighter.
What he needed was someone in his corner shouting motivation, someone in his corner who always had his back.
Someone like Angelo Dundee.
"There was a time you couldn't tell Ali anything, but Angelo knew how to motivate Ali," promoter Bob Arum said. "Without Angelo, Ali doesn't get out of the "Thrilla in Manila." Without Angelo I think Joe Frazier destroys him. He needed someone like that in his corner."
So did Leonard, who was taking a beating in his epic first fight with Hearns in 1981. His face was swollen by the thunderous right hands landed by Hearns and he seemed baffled when Hearns began boxing him from the outside instead of trying to slug it out as he had in the early rounds.
After the end of the 12th round, Leonard came back to his corner, exhausted.
Leonard would rally in the 13th round before finally stopping Hearns in the 14th round of a fight he was trailing on all three ringside scorecards. It was a masterful performance by a great fighter, but without Dundee in his face many believe Leonard would have come up short.
"He really knew how to motivate a guy," Arum said. "He was a good trainer, but he was a great, great cornerman. He was the greatest cornerman I've ever seen."
It wasn't all just motivation, though. Dundee wasn't above resorting to a few tricks in the ring if that was what it took to help his guy win.
British fight fans still talk about the night at London's Wembley Stadium in June 1963 when their great hope, Henry Cooper, floored Ali ? who had yet to change his name from Clay ? in the final seconds of the fourth round with a devastating left hook. Dundee managed to get his fighter to the corner when the bell rang, but Ali still didn't know where he was. Thinking fast, Dundee pointed out a small split in Ali's glove to the referee, sending British boxing officials in search of new gloves and gaining enough time for Ali to recover and stop Cooper in the next round.
Cooper would later become one of Dundee's good friends. Of course, Dundee had many good friends.
"The guy didn't have an enemy in the world," said matchmaker Bruce Trampler, who went to work for Dundee in Miami in 1971. "He was everyone's best friend."
Dundee traveled the world with Ali, and in the racially charged `60s was often the only white face in an otherwise black entourage. Ali felt secure with him in his corner, though he didn't often take his advice.
He may have changed the course of boxing history in Ali's first fight against Sonny Liston in 1964 when he refused Ali's demands after the fourth round to cut off his boxing gloves and let him quit because something on Liston's gloves was causing his eyes to burn terribly. He calmed down a frantic Ali, who came back to stop Liston at the end of the sixth round and become heavyweight champion for the first time.
Dundee, though, couldn't claim credit for Ali's greatest strategic move in the ring, when he used the "rope-a-dope" to stop George Foreman in the "Rumble in the Jungle." Though popular lore was that Dundee had the ring ropes loosened so Ali could lay against them and make Foreman tire himself out, Dundee had actually gotten the ropes tightened just before the fight began and was screaming at Ali to get off the ropes as Foreman unloaded punch after punch before finally running out of gas.
Dundee was still in relatively good health when he traveled with his son, Jimmy, to Louisville, Ky., last month for Ali's 70th birthday party. The aging fighter and his elderly trainer talked and posed for pictures, and Dundee reminisced about the past.
"I've had a lot of great fighters and a lot of great times," Dundee said then. "But the greatest time of my life was with Muhammad Ali."
Jimmy Dundee said the visit meant everything to his father, who was hospitalized with a blood clot shortly after returning home. He was later released and seemed to be recovering before having trouble breathing. He died surrounded by his children and grandchildren, a peaceful end to a life well lived.
"He had a ball. He lived his life and he had a good time," Jimmy Dundee said. "I'm so glad we went. It meant so much for him to see Muhammad again."
Dundee will be forever linked to Ali, and his death ? which followed by just a few months the passing of Frazier ? erases another link to an era long gone. Though Dundee will be remembered as Ali's trainer and cornerman, his son said he would also like him to be known as something else:
In the often brutal and cutthroat world of boxing, he stood out as an extraordinary ambassador for the sport. Anyone who met him was his friend, whether they were in his corner or across the ring.
To those who wondered why, Dundee always had the same reply:
BGR was given screenshots from sources who claim to have access to the iPad 3, indicating it will come packed with a quad-core A6 chip and support LTE speeds.
'With the music, it's a whole new avenue we done opened up for kids and for people to look up to,' Khalifa tells MTV News. By Rob Markman
Wiz Khalifa Photo: MTV News
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's hip-hop roots run deep. Wu-Tang Clan's RZA once called the Steel City home, and mid-1990s Death Row Records MC/producer Sam Sneed held the city down as did Dr. Dre's production affiliate Mel-Man. Still, when Wiz Khalifa put the 'Burgh on his back with his 2010 hometown ode "Black & Yellow," the city had officially arrived as a hip-hop hot spot.
"Everybody's hardworking and it's not like a big music scene out there, so when you got somethin', you just go with it," emerging Pittsburgh MC Chevy Woods said in a December interview. "Everybody sees the light that shines on [Khalifa] and Mac [Miller] and now it's trickling down to everybody else."
After Wiz blew the doors off, Mac Miller came next. Though both rappers are signed to Rostrum Records, a local label, they came up separately. Khalifa has his Taylor Gang crew, while Miller has the Most Dope collective.
"With the music, it's a whole new avenue we done opened up for kids and for people to look up to," Khalifa said of how he helped shine a spotlight on the 'Burgh, paving the way for future MCs. "It's a reality now out there, so it's really important for us to just embrace 'em and motivate 'em and push 'em forward."
As a kid, Wiz moved around a bit but began to call the 'Burgh home at an early age — particularly the rough-and-tumble Hazelwood section. "You really won't get it if you're not from there," Wiz said of his hometown. "Just growing up in Pittsburgh and knowing different neighborhoods, having family there and just loving it, it's like no other place."
As far as Pennsylvania goes, Philadelphia has churned out the most rap talent. From Schoolly D to Will Smith to Beanie Sigel's State Property and now Maybach Music's Meek Mill, Philly has had no shortage of rap representation. While they sit within the same state lines, Pittsburgh and Illadelph couldn't be more different.
"We always had love for Philly. It was harder for Philly to embrace us because we're a little bit slower to them or to more East Coast towns," Wiz said. "Philly is more East Coast than Pittsburgh. It's closer to New Jersey and New York, so the vibe is way more fast-paced. Pittsburgh, it's just laid-back ... Midwest almost on some country stuff."
Stick with MTV News all week as Mac Miller takes us back to the 'Burgh and spotlights the city's vibrant hip-hop scene. Then tune in to "RapFix Live" on Wednesday at 4 p.m. on MTV.com for exclusive behind-the-scenes footage from Mac's hometown shows.
Cynthia Nixon, who shaved her head for her new Broadway role, is now clarifying her earlier statement that she believed being gay is a choice.
Cynthia Nixon is backtracking on her controversial "being gay is a choice" interview, which landed her in hot water with the gay community last week.
The "Sex and the Cit"y alum issued a new statement to the Advocate today after recently telling the New York Times Magazine that, for her, homosexuality "is a choice."
MORE from E!: Cynthia Nixon and Girlfriend Have a Baby!
"My recent comments in The New York Times were about me and my personal story of being gay," Nixon told the Advocate. "I believe we all have different ways we came to the gay community and we can't and shouldn't be pigeon-holed into one cultural narrative which can be uninclusive and disempowering. However, to the extent that anyone wishes to interpret my words in a strictly legal context I would like to clarify:
"While I don't often use the word, the technically precise term for my orientation is bisexual. I believe bisexuality is not a choice, it is a fact. What I have 'chosen' is to be in a gay relationship.
"As I said in the Times and will say again here, I do, however, believe that most members of our community -- as well as the majority of heterosexuals -- cannot and do not choose the gender of the persons with whom they seek to have intimate relationships because, unlike me, they are only attracted to one sex.
"Our community is not a monolith, thank goodness, any more than America itself is. I look forward to and will continue to work toward the day when America recognizes all of us as full and equal citizens."
MORE from E!: Cynthia Nixon on Gay Rights: "People Have a Lot of Fear"
Nixon and her partner, Christine Marinoni are parents to 11-month-old Max Ellington.
The couple began dating in 2004, after the newly cemented Broadway star broke off her long-term relationship with photographer Danny Mozes, with whom she has two children.
Pairing masks and hand washing could drastically slow spread of pandemic fluPublic release date: 31-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Laura Bailey baileylm@umich.edu 734-647-1848 University of Michigan
ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Masks and hand hygiene could cut the spread of flu-like symptoms up to 75 percent, a University of Michigan study found.
A new report shows the second-year results (2007-2008) of the ground-breaking U-M M-Flu study found up to a 75 percent reduction in flu-like illness over the study period when using hand hygiene and wearing surgical masks in residence halls, said Allison Aiello, associate professor of epidemiology in the U-M School of Public Health. Aiello and Dr. Arnold Monto, SPH professor of epidemiology, are co-principal investigators of the M-Flu study.
While the study also showed a 43 percent reduction in the rate of flu, it wasn't statistically significant. Students were more likely to report influenza-like symptoms than to provide laboratory samples for confirmed cases, Aiello said. "This might have impacted our power for detecting significant differences in confirmed flu," she said.
The results from both years found no significant reduction in symptoms in mask use alone, which suggests masks and hand hygiene should be used together, she said.
At the beginning of a pandemic, vaccines probably won't be available immediately so one of the first lines of defense to stop the spread of illness will be non-pharmaceutical interventions like hand hygiene and face masks. The M-Flu results bode well for these types of non-pharmaceutical interventions in the community setting for pandemic preparedness, Aiello said.
"This means masks and hand hygiene may be a good measure for preventing transmissions in crowded living quarters," said Aiello. "In a pandemic situation where compliance may be significantly higher than in controlled studies, masks and hand hygiene together may have even higher preventative implications."
The M-Flu study was the first of its kind and received international exposure when launched in 2006. The team of M-Flu researchers recruited more than 1,000 students in U-M residence halls. The students were assigned to groups who wore masks, wore masks and practiced hand hygiene, or did neither. They were monitored for the presence of flu symptoms or the flu.
The study was the first to test the effectiveness of these measures for primary prevention before people become sick or exhibited symptoms in the university setting, Monto said.
"Ultimately, this research could help the development of national policies for pandemic preparedness," Monto said.
The goal of M-Flu was to estimate the reduction in rate of flu infection and illness attributed to masks and hand sanitizers, and masks alone during two flu seasons. The results in year two were similar to year one with substantial reductions in flu-like symptoms. Students in both studies were asked to wear masks in the residence halls for six hours per day and clean their hands with an alcohol based hand sanitizer in addition to soap and water hand washing.
The group is planning another study involving campus residence halls, this time to evaluate the effect of voluntary sequestration on the flu in residence halls. Details and a timeline for that study are not available yet.
The M-Flu study was a collaboration among the School of Public Health, University of Michigan Housing and the University Health Service. In addition to Aiello and Monto, authors include current students or graduates of the U-M SPH: Rebecca Coulborn, Brian Davis, and Vanessa Perez; and a colleague at Wayne State University, Monica Uddin. The paper, "Facemasks hand hygiene and influenza among young adults: A randomized intervention trial" is scheduled to appear in PLoS ONE on Jan. 25
###
To read the paper when embargo lifts: http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0029744.
For more on Aiello: http://www.sph.umich.edu/iscr/faculty/profile.cfm?uniqname=aielloa
Monto: http://www.sph.umich.edu/iscr/faculty/profile.cfm?uniqname=asmonto
The Department of Epidemiology: http://www.sph.umich.edu/epid/
M-Flu: http://www.sph.umich.edu/mflu/
EDITORS: An image of Allison Aiello and study participants in mask is available at: http://ns.umich.edu/index_nr.html?Releases/2010/Mar10/aiello
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Pairing masks and hand washing could drastically slow spread of pandemic fluPublic release date: 31-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Laura Bailey baileylm@umich.edu 734-647-1848 University of Michigan
ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Masks and hand hygiene could cut the spread of flu-like symptoms up to 75 percent, a University of Michigan study found.
A new report shows the second-year results (2007-2008) of the ground-breaking U-M M-Flu study found up to a 75 percent reduction in flu-like illness over the study period when using hand hygiene and wearing surgical masks in residence halls, said Allison Aiello, associate professor of epidemiology in the U-M School of Public Health. Aiello and Dr. Arnold Monto, SPH professor of epidemiology, are co-principal investigators of the M-Flu study.
While the study also showed a 43 percent reduction in the rate of flu, it wasn't statistically significant. Students were more likely to report influenza-like symptoms than to provide laboratory samples for confirmed cases, Aiello said. "This might have impacted our power for detecting significant differences in confirmed flu," she said.
The results from both years found no significant reduction in symptoms in mask use alone, which suggests masks and hand hygiene should be used together, she said.
At the beginning of a pandemic, vaccines probably won't be available immediately so one of the first lines of defense to stop the spread of illness will be non-pharmaceutical interventions like hand hygiene and face masks. The M-Flu results bode well for these types of non-pharmaceutical interventions in the community setting for pandemic preparedness, Aiello said.
"This means masks and hand hygiene may be a good measure for preventing transmissions in crowded living quarters," said Aiello. "In a pandemic situation where compliance may be significantly higher than in controlled studies, masks and hand hygiene together may have even higher preventative implications."
The M-Flu study was the first of its kind and received international exposure when launched in 2006. The team of M-Flu researchers recruited more than 1,000 students in U-M residence halls. The students were assigned to groups who wore masks, wore masks and practiced hand hygiene, or did neither. They were monitored for the presence of flu symptoms or the flu.
The study was the first to test the effectiveness of these measures for primary prevention before people become sick or exhibited symptoms in the university setting, Monto said.
"Ultimately, this research could help the development of national policies for pandemic preparedness," Monto said.
The goal of M-Flu was to estimate the reduction in rate of flu infection and illness attributed to masks and hand sanitizers, and masks alone during two flu seasons. The results in year two were similar to year one with substantial reductions in flu-like symptoms. Students in both studies were asked to wear masks in the residence halls for six hours per day and clean their hands with an alcohol based hand sanitizer in addition to soap and water hand washing.
The group is planning another study involving campus residence halls, this time to evaluate the effect of voluntary sequestration on the flu in residence halls. Details and a timeline for that study are not available yet.
The M-Flu study was a collaboration among the School of Public Health, University of Michigan Housing and the University Health Service. In addition to Aiello and Monto, authors include current students or graduates of the U-M SPH: Rebecca Coulborn, Brian Davis, and Vanessa Perez; and a colleague at Wayne State University, Monica Uddin. The paper, "Facemasks hand hygiene and influenza among young adults: A randomized intervention trial" is scheduled to appear in PLoS ONE on Jan. 25
###
To read the paper when embargo lifts: http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0029744.
For more on Aiello: http://www.sph.umich.edu/iscr/faculty/profile.cfm?uniqname=aielloa
Monto: http://www.sph.umich.edu/iscr/faculty/profile.cfm?uniqname=asmonto
The Department of Epidemiology: http://www.sph.umich.edu/epid/
M-Flu: http://www.sph.umich.edu/mflu/
EDITORS: An image of Allison Aiello and study participants in mask is available at: http://ns.umich.edu/index_nr.html?Releases/2010/Mar10/aiello
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Before you get to the end of this sentence, most of you will stop reading.
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Public release date: 31-Jan-2012
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