Ladies and gentlemen, good evening. Before I start talking about the genius and talent of Martin Luca, I want to share a piece of good news. For the past fifty years, MOD Magazine has shaped and molded the trends and fads of the average woman. From the ends of their hair to the tips of their toes, editors, designers, contributors, writers, models and every single member of the staff didn’t tire from being the backbone of what women from all walks of life wear. That’s why it is always delightful to know that one of them takes pride in stepping forward to something more. Although it is a great deal of loss for the magazine, this person, with all certainty, will continue to be a generous altruist to the fashion industry. Beloved guests, let us give a warm round of applause to Karl Lagerfeld’s new International Division Chief, Jacqueline Saks.
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Showing posts with label intermediate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label intermediate. Show all posts
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Are You Going For Dogs? Or Cats?
"A dog is man's best friend." That common saying may contain some truth, but dogs are not the only animal friend whose companionship people enjoy. For many people, a cat is their best friend. Despite what dog lovers may believe, cats make excellent housepets.
In the first place, people enjoy the companionship of cats. Many cats are affectionate. They will snuggle up and ask to be petted, or scratched under the chin. Who can resist a purring cat? If they're not feeling affectionate, cats are generally quite playful. They love to chase balls and feathers, or just about anything dangling from a string. They especially enjoy playing when their owners are participating in the game. Contrary to popular opinion, cats can be trained. Using rewards and punishments, just like with a dog, a cat can be trained to avoid unwanted behavior or perform tricks. Cats will even fetch!
In the second place, cats are civilized members of the household. Unlike dogs, cats do not bark or make other loud noises. Most cats don't even meow very often. They generally lead a quiet existence. Cats also don't often have "accidents." Mother cats train their kittens to use the litter box, and most cats will use it without fail from that time on. Even stray cats usually understand the concept when shown the box and will use it regularly. Cats do have claws, and owners must make provision for this. A tall scratching post in a favorite cat area of the house will often keep the cat content to leave the furniture alone. As a last resort, of course, cats can be declawed.
Lastly, one of the most attractive features of cats as housepets is their ease of care. Cats do not have to be walked. They get plenty of exercise in the house as they play, and they do their business in the litter box. Cleaning a litter box is a quick, painless procedure. Cats also take care of their own grooming. Bathing a cat is almost never necessary because under ordinary circumstances cats clean themselves. Cats are more particular about personal cleanliness than people are. In addition, cats can be left home alone for a few hours without fear. Unlike some pets, most cats will not destroy the furnishings when left alone. They are content to go about their usual activities until their owners return.
Cats are low maintenance, civilized companions. People who have small living quarters or less time for pet care should appreciate these characteristics of cats. However, many people who have plenty of space and time still opt to have a cat because they love the cat personality. In many ways, cats are the ideal house pet.
Source: http://members.tripod.com/~lklivingston/essay/sample.html
Did you like this article? Click here to learn more!
In the first place, people enjoy the companionship of cats. Many cats are affectionate. They will snuggle up and ask to be petted, or scratched under the chin. Who can resist a purring cat? If they're not feeling affectionate, cats are generally quite playful. They love to chase balls and feathers, or just about anything dangling from a string. They especially enjoy playing when their owners are participating in the game. Contrary to popular opinion, cats can be trained. Using rewards and punishments, just like with a dog, a cat can be trained to avoid unwanted behavior or perform tricks. Cats will even fetch!
In the second place, cats are civilized members of the household. Unlike dogs, cats do not bark or make other loud noises. Most cats don't even meow very often. They generally lead a quiet existence. Cats also don't often have "accidents." Mother cats train their kittens to use the litter box, and most cats will use it without fail from that time on. Even stray cats usually understand the concept when shown the box and will use it regularly. Cats do have claws, and owners must make provision for this. A tall scratching post in a favorite cat area of the house will often keep the cat content to leave the furniture alone. As a last resort, of course, cats can be declawed.
Lastly, one of the most attractive features of cats as housepets is their ease of care. Cats do not have to be walked. They get plenty of exercise in the house as they play, and they do their business in the litter box. Cleaning a litter box is a quick, painless procedure. Cats also take care of their own grooming. Bathing a cat is almost never necessary because under ordinary circumstances cats clean themselves. Cats are more particular about personal cleanliness than people are. In addition, cats can be left home alone for a few hours without fear. Unlike some pets, most cats will not destroy the furnishings when left alone. They are content to go about their usual activities until their owners return.
Cats are low maintenance, civilized companions. People who have small living quarters or less time for pet care should appreciate these characteristics of cats. However, many people who have plenty of space and time still opt to have a cat because they love the cat personality. In many ways, cats are the ideal house pet.
Source: http://members.tripod.com/~lklivingston/essay/sample.html
Did you like this article? Click here to learn more!
Meryl Streep
Considered by many movie reviewers to be the greatest living film actress, Meryl Streep has been nominated for the Academy Award an astonishing 14 times, and has won it twice. Born Mary Louise Streep in 1949 in Summit, New Jersey, Meryl's early performing ambitions leaned toward the opera. She became interested in acting while a student at Vassar and upon graduation she enrolled in the Yale School of Drama. She gave an outstanding performance in her first film role, Julia (1977), and the next year she was nominated for her first Oscar for her role in The Deer Hunter (1978). She went on to win the Academy Award for her performances in Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) and Sophie's Choice (1982), in which she gave a heart-wrenching portrayal of an inmate mother in a Nazi death camp.
A perfectionist in her craft and meticulous and painstaking in her preparation for her roles, Meryl turned out a string of highly acclaimed performances over the next 10 years in great films like Silkwood (1983); Out of Africa (1985); Ironweed (1987); and Evil Angels (1988). Her career declined slightly in the early 1990s as a result of her inability to find suitable parts, but she shot back to the top in 1995 with her performance as Clint Eastwood's married lover in The Bridges of Madison County (1995) and as the prodigal daughter in Marvin's Room (1996). In 1998 she made her first venture into the area of producing, and was the executive producer for the moving ...First Do No Harm (1997) in television. A realist when she talks about her future years in film, she remarked that "...no matter what happens, my work will stand..."
Source: http://www.imdb.com/
A perfectionist in her craft and meticulous and painstaking in her preparation for her roles, Meryl turned out a string of highly acclaimed performances over the next 10 years in great films like Silkwood (1983); Out of Africa (1985); Ironweed (1987); and Evil Angels (1988). Her career declined slightly in the early 1990s as a result of her inability to find suitable parts, but she shot back to the top in 1995 with her performance as Clint Eastwood's married lover in The Bridges of Madison County (1995) and as the prodigal daughter in Marvin's Room (1996). In 1998 she made her first venture into the area of producing, and was the executive producer for the moving ...First Do No Harm (1997) in television. A realist when she talks about her future years in film, she remarked that "...no matter what happens, my work will stand..."
Source: http://www.imdb.com/
2007 Biggest Celebrity Breakdowns
From Lindsay Lohan to Britney Spears, Hollywood teems with stars and their dust-ups. But today's Tinseltown may not have more scandal, just more cameras.
The reality is this: Hollywood has long been home to mishaps from drugs to marital affairs, but its stars never before faced the kind of media scrutiny they do today. With six celebrity weeklies, five national nightly entertainment shows and a blogosphere heavy on celebrity content, the roller coaster lives of the A-list have morphed into a can't-miss soap opera for a massive audience.
Harvey Levin, managing editor of Time Warner's entertainment news Web site, TMZ.com, says Hollywood is basically the same as it was 50 years ago when it comes to scandal. He says the difference between then and now is that before nobody was really paying attention.
"For so long, people never got a glimpse of stars in real life," he says of a media that largely steered clear of life outside of award shows and press junkets. "It looked as though these stars basically lived in limos and on red carpets, and it was almost unreal to see them outside of their perfectly manufactured pose or scene."
That's hardly so anymore. In today's celebrity media, stars are just as likely to be photographed at a gas station as they are the red carpet. And it's this sort of access that enables their audience to follow celebrities' lives as if they were neighbors. Says Sarah Ivens, editor in chief of OK! Magazine: "We now have that same kind of intimacy, or we think we do, with A-listers."
The result: The wall between what is public and private is gone for today's stars. According to veteran publicist Howard Bragman, who most recently mopped up the mess of Grey's Anatomy cast-off Isaiah Washington, celebrities must know and accept that the concept of privacy is not guaranteed anymore.
But rather than fault the pesky paparazzi and the outlets that publish their work, Eric Dezenhall, a Washington, D.C.-based crisis management specialist and author of "Damage Control," points a finger at the attention-seeking stars. The way he sees it, the paparazzi doesn't chase them, they chase the paparazzi.
"You don't get the kind of coverage Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton get if you don't want it," he says of the tabloid fixtures whose past year include DUIs (Lohan) and a jail term (Hilton). "These antics are designed to get media attention."
And no one got more attention in 2007 than Lohan, Hilton and Spears.
A former Mouseketeer, Spears filled her year with heavy partying, questionable mothering and a slew of courtroom battles (and head shaving, and a live meltdown on MTV, and attacking the paparazzi, etc.). In spite of it all, the troubled starlet, who lost both her kids and much of her credibility, still churns out chart-topping tunes.
Hilton violated the terms of her drunk-driving probation, and was sentenced to a 45-day jail term, later cut in half for good behavior. With much fanfare surrounding her entrance and exit, the celebutant served the sentence this past spring at a Los Angeles County jail. For her part, she claimed she was not aware her license had been suspended.
After rising to stardom with lead roles in "Freaky Friday" and "Mean Girls," struggling starlet Lohan now grabs more headlines for her hard partying ways than her box office performances. Her year included a couple of DUI charges and two stints in rehab. Still, she managed to remain working and will appear in 2008's "Dare to Love Me," a biopic about tango legend Carlos Gardel.
For these and other stars, it's not simply a matter of what they're doing--be it drinking, driving or doing drugs--but also where they're doing it. Rather than move away from the flashbulbs of Los Angeles, they continue to turn up in and around Hollywood hot spots where their picture is bound to be snapped.
The good news for the troubled set: Hollywood is a very forgiving place. With few exceptions, the media and its audience are willing to forgive and forget if a star offers an apology--and talent.
Let disgraced stars of the past serve as proof: Eddie Murphy was once found with a transvestite prostitute; Winona Ryder was once caught shoplifting; and Russell Crowe was once charged with assault when he threw a phone at a hotel concierge.
The way Ivens, a veteran of several U.K. publications, including Tatler, Daily Mail and the British OK!, sees it, America--unlike her native British audience--loves a comeback story. While British readers have more of a "build people up to knock them down" mentality and react better to a negative slant, she says cover stories with happy endings work best in the U.S. market.
"They love to follow the soap opera," she says of American readers, "but at the end of the day, they want a happy ending." How lucky for Lohan, Spears and their meltdown-tarred cohorts.
Source: http://omg.yahoo.com/
The reality is this: Hollywood has long been home to mishaps from drugs to marital affairs, but its stars never before faced the kind of media scrutiny they do today. With six celebrity weeklies, five national nightly entertainment shows and a blogosphere heavy on celebrity content, the roller coaster lives of the A-list have morphed into a can't-miss soap opera for a massive audience.
Harvey Levin, managing editor of Time Warner's entertainment news Web site, TMZ.com, says Hollywood is basically the same as it was 50 years ago when it comes to scandal. He says the difference between then and now is that before nobody was really paying attention.
"For so long, people never got a glimpse of stars in real life," he says of a media that largely steered clear of life outside of award shows and press junkets. "It looked as though these stars basically lived in limos and on red carpets, and it was almost unreal to see them outside of their perfectly manufactured pose or scene."
That's hardly so anymore. In today's celebrity media, stars are just as likely to be photographed at a gas station as they are the red carpet. And it's this sort of access that enables their audience to follow celebrities' lives as if they were neighbors. Says Sarah Ivens, editor in chief of OK! Magazine: "We now have that same kind of intimacy, or we think we do, with A-listers."
The result: The wall between what is public and private is gone for today's stars. According to veteran publicist Howard Bragman, who most recently mopped up the mess of Grey's Anatomy cast-off Isaiah Washington, celebrities must know and accept that the concept of privacy is not guaranteed anymore.
But rather than fault the pesky paparazzi and the outlets that publish their work, Eric Dezenhall, a Washington, D.C.-based crisis management specialist and author of "Damage Control," points a finger at the attention-seeking stars. The way he sees it, the paparazzi doesn't chase them, they chase the paparazzi.
"You don't get the kind of coverage Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton get if you don't want it," he says of the tabloid fixtures whose past year include DUIs (Lohan) and a jail term (Hilton). "These antics are designed to get media attention."
And no one got more attention in 2007 than Lohan, Hilton and Spears.
A former Mouseketeer, Spears filled her year with heavy partying, questionable mothering and a slew of courtroom battles (and head shaving, and a live meltdown on MTV, and attacking the paparazzi, etc.). In spite of it all, the troubled starlet, who lost both her kids and much of her credibility, still churns out chart-topping tunes.
Hilton violated the terms of her drunk-driving probation, and was sentenced to a 45-day jail term, later cut in half for good behavior. With much fanfare surrounding her entrance and exit, the celebutant served the sentence this past spring at a Los Angeles County jail. For her part, she claimed she was not aware her license had been suspended.
After rising to stardom with lead roles in "Freaky Friday" and "Mean Girls," struggling starlet Lohan now grabs more headlines for her hard partying ways than her box office performances. Her year included a couple of DUI charges and two stints in rehab. Still, she managed to remain working and will appear in 2008's "Dare to Love Me," a biopic about tango legend Carlos Gardel.
For these and other stars, it's not simply a matter of what they're doing--be it drinking, driving or doing drugs--but also where they're doing it. Rather than move away from the flashbulbs of Los Angeles, they continue to turn up in and around Hollywood hot spots where their picture is bound to be snapped.
The good news for the troubled set: Hollywood is a very forgiving place. With few exceptions, the media and its audience are willing to forgive and forget if a star offers an apology--and talent.
Let disgraced stars of the past serve as proof: Eddie Murphy was once found with a transvestite prostitute; Winona Ryder was once caught shoplifting; and Russell Crowe was once charged with assault when he threw a phone at a hotel concierge.
The way Ivens, a veteran of several U.K. publications, including Tatler, Daily Mail and the British OK!, sees it, America--unlike her native British audience--loves a comeback story. While British readers have more of a "build people up to knock them down" mentality and react better to a negative slant, she says cover stories with happy endings work best in the U.S. market.
"They love to follow the soap opera," she says of American readers, "but at the end of the day, they want a happy ending." How lucky for Lohan, Spears and their meltdown-tarred cohorts.
Source: http://omg.yahoo.com/
Catherine Zeta-Jones
Catherine Zeta-Jones was born on 25 September 1969, in Swansea, West Glamorgan, Wales, UK, the daughter of Dai Jones, who formerly worked for a candy factory, and Pat Jones. Her brother David Jones (b. 1967) is a development executive and brother Lyndon Jones (b.1972) works at her production company. Catherine showed an interest early on in entertainment. She starred on stage in "Annie", "Bugsy Malone" and "The Pajama Game". At 15 she had the lead in the British revival of "42nd Street". She was originally cast as the second understudy for the lead role in the musical but when the star and first understudy became sick the night the play's producer was in the audience, she was given the lead for the rest of the musical's production. She first made a name for herself in the early 1990s when she starred in the Yorkshire Television comedy/drama series "The Darling Buds of May" (1991). The show was a smash hit and made her one of the United Kingdom's most popular television actresses. She subsequently played supporting roles in several films including Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992), the miniseries Catherine the Great (1995) (TV) and a larger part as the seductive Sala in The Phantom (1996) before landing her breakthrough role playing the fiery Elena opposite Anthony Hopkins and Antonio Banderas in The Mask of Zorro (1998). She starred in many big-budget blockbusters like Entrapment (1999), The Haunting (1999) and Traffic (2000), for which many believed she was robbed of an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress. In November 2000 she married actor Michael Douglas. She gave birth to their son Dylan Michael in August 2000.
Source: http://www.imdb.com/
Source: http://www.imdb.com/
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Cocktails
A cocktail is a style of mixed drink. However, not all mixed drinks are cocktails. A cocktail usually contains one or more types of liquor and flavorings and one or more liqueurs, fruit juices, sauces, honey, milk, cream or spices, etc. The cocktail became popular with Prohibition in the United States. During Prohibition the art of mixing drinks became more and more important to mask the taste of bootlegged alcohol. The bartenders at a speakeasy would mix it with other ingredients, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. After the repeal of Prohibition, the skills developed in illegal bars became widespread and heralded the golden era of the cocktail, the 1930s. One of the oldest known cocktails, the Cognac-based Sazerac, dates from 1850s New Orleans, as many as 70 years prior to Prohibition.
Until the 1970s, cocktails were made predominantly with gin, whiskey or rum, and less commonly vodka. From the 1970s on, the popularity of vodka increased dramatically, and by the 1980s it was the predominant base for mixed drinks. Many cocktails traditionally made with gin, such as the gimlet, or the martini, may now be served by default with vodka.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/
Until the 1970s, cocktails were made predominantly with gin, whiskey or rum, and less commonly vodka. From the 1970s on, the popularity of vodka increased dramatically, and by the 1980s it was the predominant base for mixed drinks. Many cocktails traditionally made with gin, such as the gimlet, or the martini, may now be served by default with vodka.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/
Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron was born in Benoni, a little farming community outside Johannesburg, South Africa on August 7th, 1975. Her mother, Gerda, is German, while her late father, Charles, was French.
Charlize began her modeling career in 1991 aged 16 when she won a local modeling contest. She started modeling in Europe and came to New York a year later. She didn't like being a model though, and decided to try her luck with ballet, which had been her biggest passion as a child. Unfortunately, a knee injury prevented her from dancing. Her mother bought her a one-way ticket to Los Angeles in 1994 and Charlize started visiting all of the agents on Hollywood Boulevard but without any luck. She went to the bank to cash a check for $500 she'd got from her mother and became furious when she learned that the bank could not cash her check because it was an out-state check. She made a scene and an agent gave her his card, in exchange that she learn the language, which she did by watching soap operas on TV. Her first role was as a young mother in a park in a B-film in 1995, but it was a non-speaking role with three seconds of screen time. Her next role was as Helga in 2 Days in the Valley (1996), which landed her the role of Tina in That Thing You Do! (1996). Since then, she has starred in movies like The Devil's Advocate (1997); Mighty Joe Young (1998); The Cider House Rules (1999); The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000) and The Italian Job (2003). An important day in her life was February 29th, 2004 when she was awarded with her first Academy Award for her performance in Monster (2003).
Source: http://www.imdb.com/
Charlize began her modeling career in 1991 aged 16 when she won a local modeling contest. She started modeling in Europe and came to New York a year later. She didn't like being a model though, and decided to try her luck with ballet, which had been her biggest passion as a child. Unfortunately, a knee injury prevented her from dancing. Her mother bought her a one-way ticket to Los Angeles in 1994 and Charlize started visiting all of the agents on Hollywood Boulevard but without any luck. She went to the bank to cash a check for $500 she'd got from her mother and became furious when she learned that the bank could not cash her check because it was an out-state check. She made a scene and an agent gave her his card, in exchange that she learn the language, which she did by watching soap operas on TV. Her first role was as a young mother in a park in a B-film in 1995, but it was a non-speaking role with three seconds of screen time. Her next role was as Helga in 2 Days in the Valley (1996), which landed her the role of Tina in That Thing You Do! (1996). Since then, she has starred in movies like The Devil's Advocate (1997); Mighty Joe Young (1998); The Cider House Rules (1999); The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000) and The Italian Job (2003). An important day in her life was February 29th, 2004 when she was awarded with her first Academy Award for her performance in Monster (2003).
Source: http://www.imdb.com/
In Good Company
Intermediate
Eugene : Thanks for the Laker tickets.
Dan : You bet.
Eugene : Seats were terrific. But I'm still not going to advertise in the magazine. My son-in-law tells me that people don't read much any more. Too much effort moving eyes back and forth. So we're gonna put most of our budget into television, radio, internet.
Dan : Okay.
Eugene : Okay? What does that mean?
Dan : I'm not gonna try to sell you.
Eugene : Why the hell not? You're a salesman.
Dan : Yeah. Just not a very good one, that's all.
Eugene : I'll say.
Dan : But I am going to ask you one favor.
Eugene : Oh, yeah?
Dan : I'm gonna leave you an issue of the magazine and I'm personnally gonna send you a new one every week. Now, I'll call you in a few weeks, and if you want to we'll talk. There's a great article in there comparing today's quarterbacks with Johnny United.
Eugene : United would kick their butts. So this is your sales pitch?
Dan : I've been with the magazine for 20 years. I believe in it.
Source: http://www.imdb.com/
Eugene : Thanks for the Laker tickets.
Dan : You bet.
Eugene : Seats were terrific. But I'm still not going to advertise in the magazine. My son-in-law tells me that people don't read much any more. Too much effort moving eyes back and forth. So we're gonna put most of our budget into television, radio, internet.
Dan : Okay.
Eugene : Okay? What does that mean?
Dan : I'm not gonna try to sell you.
Eugene : Why the hell not? You're a salesman.
Dan : Yeah. Just not a very good one, that's all.
Eugene : I'll say.
Dan : But I am going to ask you one favor.
Eugene : Oh, yeah?
Dan : I'm gonna leave you an issue of the magazine and I'm personnally gonna send you a new one every week. Now, I'll call you in a few weeks, and if you want to we'll talk. There's a great article in there comparing today's quarterbacks with Johnny United.
Eugene : United would kick their butts. So this is your sales pitch?
Dan : I've been with the magazine for 20 years. I believe in it.
Source: http://www.imdb.com/
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