tagged w/ How Sweet
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SAQQARA, Egypt – A pair of 4,300-year-old pharaonic tombs discovered at Saqqara indicate that the sprawling necropolis south of Cairo is even larger than previously thought, Egypt's top archaeologist said Monday. The rock-cut tombs were built for high officials — one responsible for the quarries used to build the nearby pyramids and another for a woman in charge of procuring entertainers for the pharaohs.
"We announce today a major, important discovery at Saqqara, the discovery of two new tombs dating back to 4,300 years ago," said Zahi Hawass, as he showed reporters around the site Monday. "The discovery of the two tombs are the beginning of a big, large cemetery."
The discovery indicates that there is even more to the vast necropolis of Saqqara, located 12 miles south of the capital, Cairo, he added.
In the past, excavations have focused on just one side of the two nearby pyramids — the Step Pyramid of King Djoser and that of Unas, the last king of the 5th Dynasty. The area where the two tombs were found, to the southwest, has been largely untouched.
"This means the royal cemetery is bigger than we thought," said Saleh Suleiman, the archaeologist responsible for the excavation of the two tombs.
Supplying entertainment for Pharaoh Good. Premature mummification Bad.SAQQARA, Egypt – A pair of 4,300-year-old pharaonic tombs discovered at Saqqara... more
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President-elect Barack Obama's team had "no inappropriate discussions" with Illinois governor Rod
Blagojevich, according to an internal review.
But his Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel talked to Mr Blagojevich about who should fill Mr Obama's senate seat.
Mr Blagojevich has been accused of attempting to "sell" the seat, but says he is not guilty of any wrongdoing.
The review reveals that the US Attorney leading the Blagojevich probe spoke to Mr Obama as part of his investigation.
Patrick Fitzgerald also questioned Mr Emanuel, and Obama aide Valerie Jarrett last week about their contacts with Mr Blagojevich.
No quid pro quo
The internal review was conducted by Greg Craig, a legal adviser to Mr Obama.
He concluded that Mr Emanuel had indeed discussed potential successors to Mr Obama with Mr Blagojevich and his Chief of Staff John Harris, but that at no time had anyone from the Blagojevich camp made "any effort to extract a personal benefit for the governor" from him, or from anyone else on the Obama team.
Mr Craig revealed that Ms Jarrett, who at one stage had beenPresident-elect Barack Obama's team had "no inappropriate discussions"... more
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ISTANBUL (AFP) – The maker of the shoes that an Iraqi journalist hurled at US President George W. Bush has had to take on 100 extra staff to cope with a surge in demand for his footwear, he said on Monday.
"Between the day of the incident and 1:00 pm today we have received orders totalling 370,000 pairs", Istanbul-based Serkan Turk, head of sales at Baydan Shoes, told AFP.
Normally the firm sold only 15,000 pairs a year of the model that Muntazer al-Zaidi threw at the US president at a press conference in Baghdad on December 14 to become an instant hero across the Arab world, he said.
Turk said orders had initially flooded in from Iraq, followed by other Middle East countries and finally from the rest of the world, including for 19,000 pairs from the United States.
Formerly prosaically dubbed Model 271, the black polyurethane-soled shoes have been renamed Bush Shoes, he said.
Turk insisted the company was not profiting from the soaring demand to up the factory price from the 27 dollars (19.30 euros) it had been charging, while adding that it was "delighted from all points of view" at its unexpected success.
Throwing shoes is considered a grave insult in the Arab world, but Turk indicated that they would probably not have done Bush much harm had they hit him.
"They look heavier than they are," he said. "They only weigh 300 grammes (10 ounces)."
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Last night after playing on Current for a while I wrote President BUSH a letter, in this letter I ask him to forgive his would be attacker and to call the President of Iraq and see if he would pardon the man which tossed the shoes at him. I'll guess we will see if he listened. I think President Bush should be the bigger man , show some compassion, and truly get some Christmas spirit. I mean a pair of Hush Puppies is hardly a I.E.D. What do my esteemed comrads on Current think?ISTANBUL (AFP) – The maker of the shoes that an Iraqi journalist hurled at US... more
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Not perhaps since John F. Kennedy's own beach photos has a nation been so stirred to seek out revealing images of the incoming commander-in-chief. Searches are soaring for "obama pictures" and, in a realm normally reserved for prepubescent idols, "obama shirtless." Yes, the man so far designated to stimulate the economy, restore American dignity abroad, and save the planet from global warming, has inspired lookups more befitting a, dare we say, heartthrob.
Reassuringly, other recent Obama searches do dwell on the more relevant issues at hand ("obama inauguration," "obama cabinet picks"). The photo exposé, however, once again underscores the celebritization of Obama (as a John McCain ad once famously pointed out).
The latest act of online voyeurism comes from a confluence of three recent pictorial events: Two include Barack Obama's return to Time magazine's cover as Man of the Year and the release of never-before-seen college photos, in which the future No. 44 posed in a Panama hat, leather jacket, and occasionally with a cigarette for a hopeful photographer's portfolio. That momentous puff induced a teacup-sized tempest as people zeroed in on the "obama smoking" pic.
The third event is his holiday trip back to his home state. The president-elect did what any red-blooded American would do in a tropical isle: He stripped down to his swimming trunks and dove right into the winter surf. The ABC video showed a fleeting rear view of Obama descending into the water, but that was enough to trigger the buzz for "obama hawaii" (+130%), "obama vacation" (+113%) and, of course, the aforementioned shirtless queries.
To those who would defend the dignity of the Oval Office and all its inhabitants, will their brains eventually soften with four years of headlines like the New York Post's "O, My Bod!" (with yet another name twist in paragraph one: "Just call him 'Ab'-bama.'"). Forget tabloids—the Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported regular citizens turning into paparazzi packs. Meanwhile, a true paparazzo snuck a shot, and the hosting site was promptly overwhelmed by political oglers.
His photogenic vim and vigor have long evoked comparisons to the charismatic Kennedy, who similarly inspired a brouhaha over his beach photo. Former Vanity Fair magazine editor Tina Brown, in a CNN interview about Obama's enormous star power, claimed that Obama is aware of his appeal and "he deliberately dials back on his charisma" to spare the masses. (Brown by the way once ventured on Greek God territory and called Obama "Apollonian.")Not perhaps since John F. Kennedy's own beach photos has a nation been so stirred... more
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What would you do with approximately 250 bottles of nail polish? Why, painstakingly paint a giant colorful quilt on your car, of course.
According to The Maryland Gazette that's just what Urbana resident Jill Bell did. After finding a dent in her car's hood, she cleverly painted a Band-Aid over the unsightly bump. Chuckle. She liked the idea so much, she decided to paint her entire car with nail polish! I'm guessing (and hoping) she didn't use one of those $30-a-pop lacquers from Chanel's Moscow Collection.
Nope. What she did use? The help of others. "Lots of ladies in my church donated nail polish, and lots of ladies at Weight Watchers, too," she told the newspaper. Bell estimates that 100-250 bottles of nail polish were used to accomplish this feat — a feat that took 13 months to finish. Whoa.
More like 600 bottles, and 3 eight balls.What would you do with approximately 250 bottles of nail polish? Why, painstakingly... more
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