Jun. 12 Sexual assault: I
was reading in the Metro on Jun. 10,
2014 that a 19 yr old student was sexually assaulted in Egypt
during the inauguration of the country’s new president in Cairo’s
Tahrir Square. Police pulled her out. She was naked, and bloody. They’re investigating 27 complaints about
sexual harassment.
There’s video footage on social
media.
Boko Haram: I was reading in
the Metro on Jun. 10, 2014
that Boko Haram’s gunmen kidnapped 20 women from north- east Nigeria.
India
rape: I was reading in the Metro on Jun.
2, 2014 that 2 teenaged girls were gang-raped and hung from a mango
tree in northern India. Three men did confess to it. Indian television showed villagers sitting
under the tree and the girl’s bodies, and they demanded they will leave when
the police find the attackers.
Unicef and Star Wars: I was
reading in the Metro on May 23, 2014. Neil Morton wrote:
“May the Force (for Change) be with
you. Donate $10 and you could have the
chance to appear in JJ Abrams Star Wars: Episode VII
sci-fi sequel. This is part of a new
charity campaign run by Disney called Star Wars: Force for Change, and the
proceeds got to Unicef’s Innovation Labs.
Great idea that more movies and TV shows should embrace and offer
fans.”
Justin Beiber charity: I was
reading in the Edmonton Journal on May
26, 2014 “Beiber goes big for AIDs research.” At the Canne’s Film Festival, he donated
$545,000 to AMFAR, a charity that raises money for AIDs research.
Deer/
car accident: I was reading in the Metro on
May
29, 2014 about Heidi Conner was
driving in her car with her 4 kids in Chicago. A 90 kg deer leapt
from an overpass and onto their minivan.
The van was totally wrecked, and there were minor injuries. The deer died.
My
opinion: That reminded me of The
Simpsons. The family was driving in
the car, and then this big fish falls on top of them. The family screams. It turns out the fish fell from a Russian
spaceship. Homer and Bart then start
being con men to pay for the car to be fixed.
Lizzie Velasquez: I was reading this Edmonton Journal
article “Inner beauty trumps ugly cyber bullying” by Enrique Lopetegui on May 26, 2014. This is a very inspirational article about
how a woman who has a rare disease where she can’t gain weight and is blind in
one eye. She overcomes adversity with
the love and support of her family and her inner strength. Here are some excerpts:
In December 2013, she inspired millions with her TED Talk. Now Lizzie
Velasquez, once called "the world's ugliest woman," hopes to reach an
even wider audience through an anti-bullying documentary about her story.
"I know what it is to be bullied and what is to be bullied online, and
I want to be the protector of those who think it won't get better," said
Velasquez, 25, who has a rare disease that makes it impossible for her to gain
weight. She has never weighed more than 29 kilograms (64 pounds) and is blind
in one eye.
"The idea is that they see the documentary and realize that, yes, it is
possible to overcome everything," she told The Associated Press.
"Instead of just taking shelter of my tears, I chose to be happy and
realize this syndrome is not a problem but a blessing that allows me to improve
myself and inspire other people," said Velasquez.
In the years since she saw the video, Velasquez graduated from college,
wrote three self-help books (the third, Choosing Happiness, will be published
in August) and gained tens of thousands of followers on Facebook, Twitter and
YouTube. She's been interviewed by Katie Couric and ABC's The View, where she
met Barbara Walters and Whoopi Goldberg.
Velasquez credits her strength to her parents, who have always loved her the
same way they love her siblings, Marina and Chris, neither of whom suffer from
the syndrome.
"They're the best parents in the entire world," said Velasquez.
"From the moment I was born they showered me with love. And they didn't
just raise me. They raised my brother and sister in the exact same way."
Velasquez was born four weeks premature. Doctors used a photo to show her to
her mom for the first time.
"I started crying inconsolably, but I asked them to bring her to me
nevertheless," said Rita Velasquez. "I wanted to see her, hold her
and love her."
Her father said Lizzie realized she was different on her first day of
kindergarten, when other kids didn't want to play with her. "We told her
about the syndrome and, ever since, (Lizzie) showed great signs of
maturity," he said.
"Lizzie has such an inner strength and sense of humour that anyone can
relate to her," said Sara Bordo, a first-time director working with
Velasquez on the film project. "We all have difficulties in life, but
nothing compared to what she has been through. Her positive attitude elevates
the spirit of any person in the world."
Velasquez says she's not interested in a possible cure.
"No, there is no way, I wouldn't even consider it," she said.
"If you had asked me that question when I was 13, I'd probably have said
yes. But if you ask me that now, I've learned and I've come such a long way to
be able to accept who I am and own who I am that, if I changed anything about
me I wouldn't be Lizzie, I wouldn't be true to myself."
Jun. 20 Wedding dress revenge: I found this on Yahoo
news:
“Don't know what to do after you discover your wife of two
years cheated on you with a best friend?
Well one Sydney Gumtree user, Dan, has chosen to advertise his heartache on
the local classifieds site.
"Due to be married soon? Not planning on staying faithful? Want to
sleep with one of your soon-to-be husband's closest friends? Then THIS is the
wedding dress for you!" Dan proclaims in his post.
"This stunning, tuille swathed, ivory bridal gown has a proven track
record of producing an adulterous, deceitful, double-crossing and traitorous
"soulmate".”
My opinion: I saw something like this on Jay Leno
about Ebay ads they found. Is it sold or
not sold? A man was selling his
ex-fiance’s dress and it was sold.
Burlap prom dress: Here’s a story about a teen girl
who made a prom dress out of burlap and donated the rest of the money she could
have spent on a dress to charity:
“Courtney Barich looked stunning strutting around the prom in her burlap
dress, happy to have saved money that could be put to better use, like helping
those orphans in the Philippines.
We should all take a page from this young philanthropist’s book and realize
it’s not always about the price tag.
Barich, having raised $7,500 so far, plans to return to the orphanage to
visit in September. She’s hoping by then to raise the full $10,000.
Click here to see Barich’s beautiful burlap prom dress in some
of her Facebook photos.”
A comment:
Atrista: For all the people wondering how burlap manages to
be attractive and comfortable.....Burlap is not limited to the stuff of potato
or feed bags. It comes in different weights and even colors just like other
types fabric; from a coarse, loose weave to a fine, almost linen-like texture.
Stop Seattle
shooter: Here’s some good news:
“Jon Meis became an instant icon of courage on Thursday when he
and fellow students helped subdue a gunman who was on a rampage inside Seattle
Pacific University.
It turns out that the 22-year-old is also planning to get married. His
newfound fans discovered
the
student’s wedding registry and have been buying up presents for Meis and
his future wife.”
Jul.1 Surviving Evil:
Charisma Carpenter: On Jun. 30, 2014, I was reading in the Globe and
Mail about the new Investigation Discovery Channel docu-series called Surving
Evil. It’s on Slice at 9pm starting Jul. 4, 2014. The
episode will be hosted by Buffy and Angel star Charisma Carpenter
who played Cordelia on the show. It said
she survived an experience when a gun man attacked her and her 2 friends in
1991. She was 21 back then.
The show is where they re-enact true- life stories where
women experienced this and survived it.
Here’s the article and they actually re-enact Carpenter’s experience. It’s intense to read. She talks about after it happened, she
didn’t really deal with it. Then she
went to counseling.
Debbie Puglisi: In the Globe article, it
talked about the new Surviving Evil episode about this woman Puglisi who’s
husband was murdered and then kidnapped for 5 days. The police thought she killed her husband.
Here’s the article:
Here’s her personal website:
