This couple from China has a combined total weight of 400 kilograms and they're in love. They want to have children but it's impossible due to their size at the moment. That's why the couple is talking about having gastric bypass surgery so that they can lose the weight and gain a happy bundle of joy.
quarta-feira, dezembro 02, 2015
»doves over the sarthe at solesmes« by stephen bann
»doves over the sarthe at solesmes« by stephen bann
70 Years Later This Couple Recreated Their Wedding Day (7 pics)
Chinese couple Cao Yuehua and Wang Deyi decided that it's never too late for a little romance. They spent their 70th wedding anniversary recreating their original wedding day and it was adorable.
8 Reasons Why You Should Start Eating Asparagus!
One of the earliest signs of a new growing season is the presence of asparagus at the supermarket. Asparagus is a tall plant from the lily family whose shoots are edible and considered a health vegetable that is perfect for almost any diet. There are many reasons why everyone should be eating asparagus. Let’s take a look at exactly why you should make this tasty vegetable a part of your diet.
1. Asparagus is Loaded With Nutrients
Asparagus is loaded with nutrients your body needs such as fiber, folate, vitamins A, C, E and K. It also contains chromium, a mineral that helps improve insulin’s ability to remove glucose from the body’s cells, meaning it is great for diabetics.
2. It Will Keep You Regular
All jokes about the smell of your urine after you eat asparagus aside, this little veggie is a natural diuretic due to the presence of the amino acid asparagine. This increased urination will help your body shed excess salts, which is particular beneficial for anyone that retains too much fluid in their bodies.
3. Asparagus Can Help You Shed Excess Weight
At only 3 calories per spear, asparagus is a great vegetable to add to any diet, and especially good for those that are looking to lose weight. You can easily snack on these at any time without having to worry about the extra calories. Just think of it as a guilt-free snack.
4. It Helps Prevent Cancer
Asparagus is a great source for glutathione, a known agent that can help your body break down and remove carcinogens from your body. This means that it, in effect, can help prevent cancer from forming and growing in your body.
5. Naturally Organic
Asparagus is one of the fastest growing of all the spring vegetables. Because of this fact, there is very little need to continually spray them with pesticides to protect the crops. While some are still used, asparagus has some of the lowest concentrations of any non-organic crop on the market. Of course, you can still buy organic to support the cause, but you have less to worry about it when you purchase asparagus.
6. Great Food for Bacteria
Remember, not all bacteria are bad. In fact, there are many types of bacteria living inside each and every one of us as we speak, and without them we couldn’t survive. Asparagus contains a unique carbohydrate known as Inunlin. This carb is great for those bacteria living inside you as it promotes healthy growth and activity of these bacteria.
7. Natural Aphrodisiac
Admittedly, more research needs to be done in this area, but it is a long held belief that asparagus is an aphrodisiac. Whether you are male or female, there is a long held belief that it can help improve your sex drive and it has even been used to increase pregnancy chances and to treat many of the symptoms of menopause.
8. It Tastes Great
I admit, taste is a rather subjective subject. However, when it is prepared correctly, asparagus tastes great and can compliment almost any meal. There are many ways you can prepare it. You can steam it, roast it and even grill it. No matter which method you choose, you will have a wonderful side dish perfect for almost any meal.
To steam asparagus, place a steamer basket in a saucepan and add water filling the saucepan to just below the basket. Bring the water to a boil. Add the asparagus to the basket, reduce the heat and let it simmer for 3 to 5 minutes covered until the asparagus is somewhat tender yet crisp.
Who Should Eat It
With very few downsides to asparagus, it is really a great vegetable for everyone to enjoy. When you do eat it, make sure you cut off the very bottom of each of the stalks, as they tend to be difficult to chew. Some people who are following a strict diet for other health reasons should always consult with their physician before adding asparagus to their diet.
Conclusion
Asparagus is a great tasting vegetable that is good for your health in many ways, making it the perfect side dish for any meal or even a great snack idea to help get you through those hungry times. With all its health benefits and its great taste, it’s perfect for anyone looking to live a healthier life. So why not steam some asparagus today and start reaping all the benefits it has to offer.
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Star Wars Films: May The Power Of Money Be With You
The Halloween costumes made a huge comeback in 2015, the toys are in the stores for Christmas, the anticipation is growing. After a 10-year hiatus, episode VII of Star Wars is about to strike movie theatres worldwide – On December 18. With a combined production and marketing budget of $423 million, Disney is banking on a long run for “The Force Awakens,” and it may not be disappointed. Already, there are predictions that profits may indeed exceed $1 billion and that it will have a longer run than Avatar.
The Money
Of course, every episode of Star Wars films has been incredibly profitable, but it is intriguing to take a look at the comparative profits. This infographic will do just that. Now, you can see exactly how much money was poured into production, vs. the amount of profit made. These numbers have been gathered by GrabMyEssay and Venngage using the most credible sources, the links to which are provided at the end of the infographic, and more than one source was used for each episode, in order to verify the information.
Financial information is provided in two ways. First, the actual figures of budget and profit are listed. It’s pretty amazing that Episode IV, which was actually the first episode produced, had a budget of $11 million, and 30 years later, Episode VII has a projected budget of $200 million.
The second way that this infographic demonstrates budget vs. profit is probably far clearer, and you don’t have to do the math at all. The pie graphs represented for each episode show the “piece” spent on production vs. the profit. Again, Episode IV wins. Not only was it the lowest budgeted of all episodes, but its production cost was tiny compared to gross profits. It will certainly be interesting, once the future figures are available for Episode VII, to see how it stacks up in comparison to the others.
What’s your prediction?
Featured photo credit: Star Wars Logo via upload.wikimedia.org
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5 Companies With the Worst Customer Service of 2015
In this modern age, companies like Yelp and Trip Advisor have made local businesses accountable for their customer experience. Search engines like Google have started to display search results using factors such as the number of positive reviews and feedback. However in 2015, monopolistic corporations are still getting away with treating their customers poorly. Here are 5 companies with some of the worst customer experience in 2015 backed by real customer horror stories and personal experiences.
1. Electronic Arts
When I started conducting polls to see which companies sported the worst customer service, Electronic Arts was one of the most mentioned companies. While many claimed that their live chat support doesn’t answer, I personally actually was able to get speaking with someone in 5 minutes. However, I didn’t have an actual issue to diagnose so it’s hard to say if the problem would have been resolved. One customer, Deb McAlister, explained they ignored her over several forms of communications such as live chat, emails or direct messages on Twitter. Another customer, who goes by the username, The gray fox 77, stated, “why is it so difficult to get any actual help from a live body?”
2. Teamviewer
For those who never heard of Teamviewer, Teamviewer is a remote control desktop software which allows others or yourself to remotely control a computer. This is a handy little tool, especially for hackers. After waking up one morning on October 22, I was greeted with a message that a Teamviewer session had completed, although I never gave access to anyone. My desktop background read “Your documents, photos, databases and other important files have been encrypted with strongest encryption and unique key, generated for this computer. Private decryption key is stored on a secret Internet server and nobody can decrypt your files until you pay and obtain the private key.” I had fallen victim to ransomware. All of my files were locked until I paid the $450 ransom, that’s if they decide to unlock my files after or if they ask for more money.
The first thing I wanted to do was get ahold of Teamviewer to get information on who connected. I sent them an email on October 24th, and then 2 messages on Facebook reminding them that I needed a response to my ticket ASAP. After contacting their press department explaining several times how bad this makes their company look, they finally responded on November 3rd requesting me to send log files. My first question is, why don’t they have log files on their end so a hacker just can’t delete the log files? On November 6th, I received a response explaining 2 IP addresses with the times of the connections. In the end, the IPs led to nowhere and I was left with nothing but a bad customer experience.
3. Comcast
It’s a typical story, you have a problem with your Comcast internet or cable, you give them a call and they schedule a technician to stop by sometime between the hours of dawn and dusk and you pretty much have to write off your day to have someone to stick around to see if they show. The Comcast Xfinity forums are full of complaints of overcharges and completely ignoring vacation requests where services are supposed to be put on hold and charged a lower rate until the user is back from vacation. There are even cases where Comcast has blocked customer’s fax numbers to prohibit them from sending in legal documents proving their overcharges. Lastly, it has also been said that Comcast employees have been caught trying to bend FCC regulations.
4. Toshiba
Toshiba is one of those stocks that dropped with the markets in 2008 but never really recovered. They’ve been dying out for years, and by that, I mean losing money. The worst part about buying from Toshiba is they don’t have a customer service email. Your only option is to call, which is not always the optimal way of contacting, especially if you rather send in photos or screenshots of the issue. Not only do you have to call, but you only receive phone support if you bought the computer recently. Your free phone support does expire and at some point in time, they’ll leave you out to dry. The amount of complaints like this out there are endless. Shay from Rogers, AK said it best, “Before buying ANY electronic, I suggest you try reaching their customer service line. If they don’t have one, there’s a reason for it.”
5. Skype
Skype was acquired by Microsoft in May 2011 and the company has been downgrading it’s user experience ever since. Take a look at the complaint in their support forums. Skype has allowed hackers to login to one user’s account, use the credit card associated with the account without verification to purchase local calling far outside of the account location, then allow the hacker to permanently change the email communications to Chinese just for the sake of prohibiting the owner of the account from understanding what exactly is going on with account purchases. As stated in the forum thread, after waiting a long time to be connected to Skype live chat, and reassuring that a higher level staff member of Skype would resolve this, Skype failed to reach out to resolve this. Even after opening a chargeback through the bank, they made no attempt to contact the customer.
While government agencies like the DMV and IRS are certainly top contenders in the list of worst customer support, the list was kept strictly to corporations. Hopefully these horror stories will make you think twice before working with these 5 companies in 2016.
Featured photo credit: Josh MacDonald via joshmacdonald.net
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10 Quotes From Jane Austen’s Emma That Can Teach Us About Life
For much of this year, bookworms worldwide have been celebrating the 200th anniversary of the publication of Jane Austen’s Emma, first published in December 1815. Possibly one of the most beloved of Austen’s six novels next to Pride and Prejudice, Emma is a wonderfully witty comedy of manners in which the fun-loving, slightly spoiled, but ultimately kind-hearted Emma Woodhouse sets herself up as a matchmaker for her friends and acquaintances while, perhaps predictably, failing to listen to the yearnings of her own heart until it’s almost too late. The novel has spawned numerous retellings and adaptations, and its hero, Mr. Knightley, stands second only to Mr. Darcy in the eyes of Austenites. In honor of the novel’s bicentennial, here are 10 quotes from Emma that can teach us how to love, how to laugh, and how to live happily ever after.
1. “I may have lost my heart, but not my self-control.”- Emma Woodhouse
After discovering that Frank Churchill has been secretly engaged to Jane Fairfax while blatantly flirting with Emma, Emma smiles, brushes herself off, and maintains as much dignity and self-composure as she can. The takeaway here is simple: sometimes you’re going to have your heart broken and your emotions toyed with. It’s not unnatural to feel wounded, but be sensible about it and don’t wallow.
2. “I always deserve the best treatment, because I never put up with any other.”- Emma Woodhouse
Again, our heroine puts it succinctly; never settle for anything less than the best you feel you deserve in life, whether in your friendships, your workplace relationships, or your romantic partnerships.
3. “If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more.”- Mr. Knightley
Not altogether unlike Mr. Darcy, Mr. Knightley is a man of actions, not words, when it comes to expressing love. Anyone with eyes in their head—anyone except Emma, of course—can see how tenderly he loves her and holds her in high regard, even if he never says quite as much until the last possible moment. The kindest of words can sometimes be the most insincere if not accompanied by an action meant from the heart. (Frank Churchill, anyone?)
4. “Men of sense, whatever you may choose to say, do not want silly wives.”- Mr. Knightley
Though Mr. Knightley offers these words to Emma as a caveat against puffing her friend Harriet Smith up above her station in life as the illegitimate daughter of, well, someone or other, his words here nonetheless encapsulate what we love most about Austen heroes: that they love and cherish women of good sense whom they can value as their equals rather than as playthings.
5. “I lay it down as a general rule, Harriet, that if a woman doubts as to whether she should accept a man or not, she certainly ought to refuse him.”- Emma Woodhouse
While Emma offers this advice to Harriet simply because she thinks the gentleman farmer Robert Martin beneath Harriet’s notice, Emma raises a fair point here; if it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t, and the truth is that if Harriet—young and impressionable as she is—can’t make up her own mind about her feelings without consulting Emma, she isn’t quite ready to commit herself yet. Removed from Emma’s influence, she eventually comes, on her own, to discover that she still loves Mr. Martin and takes her happiness into her own hands. The salient point here, then, is quite simply, to look before you leap. If anything gives you pause, trust your instinct.
6. “If things are going untowardly one month, they are sure to mend the next.”- Mr. Weston
Ah, good old Mr. Weston, ever-cheerful, ever-hopeful, always sure that Frank will come to visit, even when he doesn’t. Nothing dampens his spirits, and however exhausting we might sometimes find his relentless good humor, it reminds us that however bad things seem, they do eventually get better.
7. “Never could I expect to be so truly beloved and important; so always first and always right in any man’s eyes as I am in my father’s.”- Emma Woodhouse
Emma might be spoiled; she might be her father’s pet, but, say what you will, she devotes herself to his care and is rewarded with the highest regard, and until she recognizes a deeper love in Mr. Knightley, she need be content with nothing else. Sometimes we would do well to remember that no one can love us as our parents do, with all of our flaws.
8. “How often is happiness destroyed by preparation, foolish preparation!”- Frank Churchill
Frank might be impetuous and a bit of a rake, but sometimes, we need to grab our pleasures where and when we find them and live in the moment because no one wants to live with the regret of having squandered an opportunity.
9. “A woman is not to marry a man merely because she is asked, or because he is attached to her, and can write a tolerable letter.”- Emma Woodhouse
This, like so much of Austen’s advice, is shot straight from the hip. The women of Austen’s world had perhaps fewer choices than women in the 21st century do, but she still recognized a key point in exercising agency in one’s own life; seizing an opportunity simply because someone places it in front of you isn’t choosing. It’s settling. Women in the 21st century do have choices, and marriage is just one of those choices. Societal pressure, or the fear of dying alone and being eaten by wild dogs or stray cats should never force your hand into something you don’t want.
10. “Miss Bates had never boasted either beauty or cleverness. Her youth had passed without distinction, and her middle of life was devoted to the care of a failing mother, and the endeavor to make a small income go as far as possible. And yet she was a happy woman, and a woman whom no one named without good will.”- The Narrator
This description of the good-natured, exhaustively chatty spinster Miss Bates at once amuses and inspires. Relentlessly cheerful despite her reduced circumstances, Miss Bates counts herself supremely blessed with the good fortune of kind friends and neighbors who love her and see to her comfort, and this, in truth, is what we ought to value most in life.
Featured photo credit: Emma by Jane Austen via amazon.com
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7 Tips for Writing Words of Condolence in the Digital Age
I just learned this morning that two friends of mine (sisters) lost their father to suicide yesterday. He was about to turn 80.
The younger sister posted their sad announcement on Facebook along with a photo of her dad titled, “My dad’s first and last selfie.”
They are profoundly bereaved and completely bewildered. He was both loved and loving. Since they saw no warning signs, their minds are consumed with trying to seek answers to their many questions.
The reaction to her post has been of course voluminous. Within minutes she began receiving condolence messages from friends, neighbors, and colleagues.
Yet, after reading through them, I had to wonder if these posts provided any of the comfort their authors surely meant to offer.
“Our thoughts are with you.”
“So sorry to hear of your dad’s passing.”
“Praying for you and your family during this difficult time.”
In light of the enormity of their loss, these short phrases ended up sounding unintentionally hollow.
And then I realized: they just didn’t know what to say.
This is not, of course, a new problem in our culture. We have a long history of being uncomfortable and unfamiliar with knowing what to say to, and how to act around, those who are experiencing a tragedy.
And these days, there is an additional complication: we are often learning of these losses from people we never physically see anymore, whose lives (if truth be told) we know very little about. Sometimes, as is the case with these two sisters and me, the gap is decades.
The challenge is how to successfully provide messages of genuine comfort across the digital miles and expanse of time, through nothing more than words on a public page.
I’ve counseled hundreds of bereaved people over the years. The losses ranged from pets to parents, homes to health…and everything in between. I’ve listened to their stories of how loving words of kindness and generosity brought them peace and comfort, and I’ve learned along the way what touches their broken hearts.
The next time you want to offer some online words of comfort, follow these 7 guidelines for soothing the bereaved:
1. Use their name
There’s a big difference emotionally between “I was so sorry to hear of your great loss!” and “Oh Margaret, I was so sorry to hear of your great loss!” It instantly personalizes your note and expresses more emotion. In this two-dimensional, impersonal space, connection is the goal.
2. Say more than one sentence
Offer a bit more of your time and thought than just 4-5 safe words of condolence. Move past your discomfort and add a few more lines. It will stand out among the one-liners and have a bigger impact on your friend.
3. Keep your comments simple in format
Shock, grief, horror, trauma…these emotional states slam the brain with tremendous power. The brain responds by shutting down several areas of what usually constitutes normal thinking. For instance, sometimes people experiencing these highly challenging emotions and states have trouble following complex stories or lines of reasoning. So don’t write a lengthy essay about grief and loss and the power of human connection. They need simple but sincere words. Try to include some of these phrases instead:
“I think of you every day and wish I could do something to make life easier for you.”
“We can’t imagine how difficult things must be for you right now, but you are a strong and loving soul who will somehow make it through this ordeal.”
“I imagine you are just trying to get through the hours and days right now. I’ll call you in a week to see how you are and offer my love and support more personally.”
4. Avoid (like the plague) saying any version of this being “God’s will”
Even devout people can hear this very differently than it is intended when they are deeply bereaved. Remember that they are somewhere between being in a state of shock and having heightened emotions, so they may hear this as “God wanted it this way.” If the bereaved say this, you can go with it, because they’ve set the precedent–the fact that they’re saying it indicates that this concept comforts them, so you’ll know it’s safe to agree. But saying it yourself puts you at risk of making a hurtful assumption.
5. Clichés are worse than saying nothing
As mentioned earlier, they can come off as hollow when you are trying to be sincere. Stick with phrases like, “I wish I could say something that would ease your anguish,” “We’ll keep checking back with you to see how you’re doing–we love you,” and “I’m always up at (5am or 11pm, etc.) in case you want to talk” are honest and supportive without being syrupy sweet. People appreciate that.
6. Avoid telling your story
Strike any comment that starts with “I know how you feel.” You don’t. You can’t. Every loss is an utterly unique situation. There are contexts we know nothing about that change the nuances of everyone’s story. Maybe the flood that hit their house swept away the ashes of their 6 month old baby that died 2 years ago. Maybe the heart attack that the family says killed their son was actually a drug overdose. It only heightens their pain when you try to compare what happened to you with what’s happening to them. The best thing you can do is offer unconditional, nonjudgemental lovingkindness. Don’t try to compare your loss with theirs.
7. Be mindful of their grief as time passes
Big losses—divorce, devastating illness or injury, fire, death—leave deep wounds of sorrow that can last for years. Everyone else moves on, leaving the bereaved feeling quite alone. Reach out during the holiday season. Drop a little note on days of significance (for my friends, it would be Fathers Day, for instance, or in a year, the date of their dad’s death.) Tell them you’re thinking of them that day. Those notes can help your friend make it through the tough times.
If you use these guidelines the next time you’ve learned about a loss through social media, you’ll know your words of comfort are balm to your friend’s soul.
Featured Photo credit: ID 1654808 © Pixelcitizen | Dreamstime.com
Featured photo credit: Pixelcitizen via dreamstime.com
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