November 16, 2009

FIVE WEIRD WAYS TO BEAT A COLD:

Everyone knows that if you're starting to feel sick, you should drink lots of liquids, overdose on vitamin C, and get plenty of rest. But there are also some WEIRDER ways to beat a cold. Here are five of them . . .

#1.) WALK FAST. New research shows that a brisk walk can help you beat a cold by boosting your immunity. But don't run. You'll get sick if you overexert yourself. And if you have anything more than a runny nose, it's best to just stay in bed.

#2.) BLOW YOUR NOSE THE RIGHT WAY. When you're stuffed up, blowing both nostrils at the same time can fill your sinuses with mucus and give you a sinus infection. So take a decongestant and only blow one nostril at a time. It'll keep your cold from getting worse.

#3.) USE A SAUNA. According to an Australian study, warm, moist air gives your body the same detoxifying benefits that drinking lots of liquids does. Researchers had one group of volunteers use saunas regularly for six months, while another group didn't use them at all. --And the people who DID use saunas got half as many colds as the people who didn't.

#4.) HAVE A HOT FRUIT DRINK. It might sound old-fashioned, but according to a 2008 study by a university in Britain, drinking a cup of hot apple cider or black currant juice can relieve a cough, sore throat, runny nose, and fatigue. --They're not sure yet if ANY hot drink works, but hot FRUITY drinks definitely do.

#5.) EAT PEPPERS. It's basically been proven that vitamin C reduces the length and severity of cold and flu symptoms. And pound for pound, red bell peppers have more vitamin C than most fruits and vegetables . . . including oranges. (Glamour Magazine)

TWO BURGLARS HEATED UP A BOTTLE FOR A CRYING BABY WHILE THEY WERE ROBBING A HOUSE:

And now, here it is . . . the most bizarre crime you'll hear about all week.

On Friday morning, two armed thieves forced their way into the home of 22-year-old Morgan Adams and his married friend, 43-year-old Ronnell Griffie of Indianapolis, Indiana. --Once they got inside, the robbers pistol-whipped Morgan, knocked him unconscious, and tied him up along with Ronnell, and Ronnell's 15-year-old son. But listen to this . . .

While the thieves were robbing the place, Ronnell's baby, Jaylin, started crying. So Ronnell asked the robbers if they would untie his teenage son, so that he could go feed the baby. --Not only did one of the thieves untie Ronnell's son, he actually stopped what he was doing to heat up Jaylin's bottle himself.

Ronnell says, quote, "First I thought we were dead. Then I thought, 'Okay, he's a nice guy, he even warms up a bottle for my child.' I don't know what to think of these gentlemen. I don't have the slightest clue what to think of them." --As of last night, the burglars still hadn't been arrested. (Indianapolis Star / WISH News 8 - Indianapolis)

NOW YOU CAN GO TO CHURCH OVER THE INTERNET:

If you're in need of spiritual fulfillment, but you're too sick or lazy to get off your butt and go to church in person, I've got good news for you .

--There's a website called LifeChurch.tv, which allows users to attend a VIRTUAL CHURCH SERVICE just by going online. --Now, obviously viewing a church service over the Internet isn't exactly the same as going to church in person, but it's pretty close. In fact, LifeChurch.tv allows visitors to actually take part in church services in three ways:

#1.) You can send in prayer requests over instant message.

#2.) You can share and discuss sermons in message board forums.

#3.) You can even click a link during worship to "raise your hand" and publicly commit to Christ (???)

--Craig Groeschel is the senior pastor at LifeChurch.tv. He says, quote, "We were blown away at how people could actually worship along.

--"The whole family will gather around the computer, and they'll sing and they'll worship together. Instead of trying to get people to come to a church, we feel like we can take a church to them." (CNN) (--You can link to the Life Church website here . . .)

http://www.lifechurch.tv/

HERE ARE SEVEN TRICKS TO HELP YOU GET THE TABLE YOU WANT AT ANY RESTAURANT:

How many times has this happened? You've got a big date and you want everything to be perfect. So you make a reservation at the best restaurant in town . . . only to be seated at the worst table in the whole place. --Now, you could make the best of the situation. But you don't have to. With that in mind, here are seven tricks from a website called TheFrisky.com that can help you get the table you want at just about any restaurant:

#1.) Be your own personal assistant: Instead of making the reservation for yourself, pretend you're your own personal assistant calling on behalf of "your boss." It'll make you seem important, which will cue the reservationist to give you a good table.

#2.) Be a regular: This isn't a "tip" so much as common sense. If you're a regular at a restaurant, your loyalty will probably be rewarded.

#3.) Bribe: If you've got some extra cash burning a hole in your pocket, it never hurts to slip the host a few bucks. But you should never attempt this move with less than $10, and you should never be obvious about what you're doing.

#4.) Be on time: Again, this one's a no-brainer. What you should really keep in mind is that if you're more than 15 minutes late at a really popular place, there's a good chance your reserved table will disappear.

#5.) Look sharp: Let's say there are two couples that both want a table at the front of the restaurant. One couple is dressed to the nines, while the other is wearing sweats. Which couple would you seat at the good table? I rest my case.

#6.) Say it's a special occasion: It's probably not the best idea to lie and say it's your birthday or anniversary if it's not. But it never hurts to tell the host it's a special night.

#7.) Send yourself champagne: Before you show up, call ahead and send your table a bottle of champagne or wine as if you're NOT one of the people actually attending the dinner. Why? --Because it will make you seem popular and influential, which restaurant managers love. The only catch is that when the bottle arrives, you have to act surprised . . . but not too surprised. Because, hey, this happens to you all the time, right? (CNN)

HOLLYWOOD DIRT OVERFLOW

RIHANNA AND CHRIS BROWN HAVE NEW VIDEOS OUT:

RIHANNA has released the video for "Russian Roulette" . . . and it's dark. -There aren't any overt references to the CHRIS BROWN assault, but there are a few shots of a mysterious car . . . that at one point appears to run her over . . . and it's hard NOT to make a connection to what happened back in February. (--Watch it, here . . .) http://rihannanow.com/videos.htm

CHRIS BROWN has also released a video . . . it's for his song, "Crawl". It doesn't invite more references to RIHANNA than the lyrics already do, but it does co-star a woman with a Rihanna-like, partially shaved-head hairstyle.

(--You can check out Chris' video, here . . .) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQvOp9H6wUA

-By the way, Chris also unleashed another song off his upcoming album, "Graffiti". It's called "Sing Like Me", and you can listen to it at his website. (--Here . . .) http://www.chrisbrownworld.com/news/%E2%80%9Csing-like-me%E2%80%9D

A FAN JUMPED ON STAGE DURING A JONAS BROTHERS CONCERT IN SPAIN:

Last week, the JONAS BROTHERS were performing a show in Madrid, when some nutcase ran up onstage. He jumped around . . . and then led the band's security team on a brief, yet AWESOMELY ZANY chase around the stage. --They eventually caught the guy and dragged him offstage. For the most part, the Jonas Brothers continued performing throughout all this. (--You can watch a fan-shot video at the link below. The dude comes onstage just after the 1:13 mark.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iu8WLf4TM7s

(--This video's even funnier when you plug it into 'The Benny Hill-ifier,' and watch security chase this idiot while the Benny Hill music plays. Unfortunately, you can't fast forward to the chase scene, but it's still worth it. Check it out here . . .) http://james.nerdiphythesoul.com/bennyhillifier/?id=Iu8WLf4TM7s

DJ AM'S FAMILY NOW SAYS THE 2008 PLANE CRASH HE WAS INVOLVED IN CAUSED HIS DEATH:

We all know that ADAM GOLDSTEIN . . . the celebrity club jockey better known as DJ AM . . . died of an accidental drug overdose back in August. But now, his family says it's not his fault. -They're blaming several companies involved in the plane crash that almost killed Goldstein and BLINK-182 drummer TRAVIS BARKER back in September of 2008. --Those companies in question include Clay Lacy Aviation, Global Exec Aviation, Inter Travel and Services, Goodyear Tire and LearJet.

Before his death, Goldstein had sued all of them . . . as well as the estates of the two pilots . . . for negligence, among other things. --And now, his family has amended the lawsuit to include WRONGFUL DEATH. The suit now states that, quote, "The crash ultimately caused Adam Goldstein's death at a later date." --They say Goldstein was successfully recovering from drug addiction until the crash. Afterward, he was forced to start taking pills again to cope with the pain and anxiety.

OPPSS!!

On Friday night, BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN and the E STREET BAND were performing in Detroit . . . but apparently, Bruce still thought they were in Ohio, where they had played earlier in the week. --Bruce mentioned Ohio three times . . . and on the last time, guitarist STEVE VAN ZANDT had to remind him they were actually in Michigan. (--Here's video of Bruce's last slip, where he immediately corrects himself . . .) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EW-x2kUSX00

UFC CHAMP BROCK LESNAR IS SERIOUSLY ILL:

UFC heavyweight champion . . . (--and former WWE superstar) . . . BROCK LESNAR has been hospitalized with some kind of serious illness. --Lesnar had already been forced to back out of a title fight this coming Saturday due to mono . . . but now UFC President DANA WHITE says that Lesnar has some other kind of problem on top of that, and it's really bad. --He says, quote, "He's in a hospital up in North Dakota somewhere right now. He went to Canada and some bad stuff happened to him, so we've got to figure it out.

"He doesn't want to talk about it publicly, but he's in bad shape. He's not well and he's not going to be getting well anytime soon." --White knows what the problem is, but he's not saying. But he did reveal that it's NOT cancer or AIDS . . . as some Internet rumors have suggested. --He said, quote, "I am worried about it. You know, I can't really talk about it right now, but he's in rough shape. He's in really bad shape . . . and we're going to have to do some stuff to take care of this guy. He is not well and he's not getting any better.

"We're going to have to send him to the Mayo Clinic or to Scripps, or one of those really good hospitals to figure out what's wrong with this guy." (--As for the heavyweight title, White says there'll have to be an interim title fight at some point.)

KEVIN FEDERLINE APPEARS IN THE NEW "AMERICAN PIE" MOVIE:

You probably had no idea, but they're still making those "American Pie" movies. And EUGENE LEVY is still shamelessly collecting paychecks for appearing in them. --But this time, some other recognizable names are shamelessly collecting paychecks, too . . . including KEVIN FEDERLINE.

He's among a group of so-called "stars" making cameos in "American Pie Presents: The Book Of Love" . . . which rockets straight to DVD on December 22nd. --Others include Poison singer Bret Michaels, Rosanna Arquette, Christopher "Peter Brady" Knight and C. Thomas Howell . . . --Plus DUSTIN "SCREECH" DIAMOND and CURTIS ARMSTRONG . . . who played Booger in the "Revenge of the Nerds" movies. (--Obviously, this movie's going to suck. But if you're interested, here's the trailer . . .) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3fTa1A4JYY

JON GOSSELIN WILL APPEAR ON THE SERIES FINALE OF "JON AND KATE PLUS EIGHT" NEXT WEEK:

TLC will wrap up "Jon and Kate Plus Eight" next Monday night. --According to the "New York Post", the episode will feature JON and KATE GOSSELIN sitting down to discuss, quote, "what the future holds for them and their eight children." It's unclear when the footage featuring Jon was shot.

There will also be a montage . . . with clips pulled from the show's five-season run. --The "Post" also says TLC has scrapped plans for a spin-off called "Kate Plus Eight" . . . at least as a regular series. However, they may air "occasional specials" under that title at some point in the future. --Instead, they are working on a new show with Kate, but there aren't any details on what the show will be about . . . or if it'll feature her kids. --It's probably a good bet that TLC won't finalize any future plans with Kate . . . or any "Kate Plus Eight" specials . . . until their legal mess with Jon is sorted out.

The following Monday, November 30th, TLC will replace "Jon and Kate" with one of their other popular shows . . . "Cake Boss". (--That show's second season kicked off three weeks ago. It's been averaging 2 million viewers per episode.)

JON GOSSELIN HAS COUNTERSUED TLC FOR $5 MILLION:

JON GOSSELIN has filed a countersuit against TLC . . . for $5 million . . . on the grounds that the network still owes him money, and that they've tarnished his image. --Last month, TLC sued Jon for breach of contract . . . not for blocking production on "Jon and Kate Plus Eight", but for doing all kinds of TV interviews without their consent. TLC claims that this violates an exclusivity clause in their contract with Jon. --But Jon says that TLC breached their contract with him . . . and he claims they owe him $175,000.

In the lawsuit, Jon argues that TLC contacted networks that Jon was trying to work with . . . to persuade them not to do anything with him. --He also claims that he didn't have an attorney present when he signed his contract with TLC . . . and that the network has, quote, "harmed his reputation." --Part of the lawsuit reads, quote, "Because of the enormous Media interest . . . and public interest, it makes it impossible to carry on normal daily activities, let alone find, secure and maintain a job with an employer who is willing to be exposed to the daily media intrusions that has impeded my life." --A hearing in the case has been set for December 14th.