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reality check

The government’s economic stimulus program begins today, and William Pearson of Los Angeles is ready to receive his $600 tax rebate and hoard it.

“I’m too afraid to spend it,” Pearson, 63, said last week. “No one knows where gas or food is going to go, and I’m uncertain about making it through the summer.”

The Internal Revenue Service will begin sending rebates via electronic direct deposit today and mailing checks starting May 9. President Bush said last week the $110 billion that 130 million households should receive by midsummer would help offset high gasoline and food prices and “give our economy a boost to help us pull out of the economic slowdown.”

Pearson, a bachelor who makes $45,000 a year as a groundskeeper for an adidas philippines office address building, said he wasn’t so sure about that. He’ll save rather than spend his $600 rebate, which is what recent public opinion polls found most Americans planned to do.

“For the trouble we’re in, it’s a petty amount,” Pearson said. “If we could see the economy leveling off in the future, we might spend it, but we’re trying to be realists. This money looks like something everyone’s going to have to hold on to.”

Not everyone is eligible. Singles with adjusted gross incomes of more than $87,000 and married joint filers with incomes of more than $174,000 won’t get checks. The closer taxpayers get to these caps, the smaller their rebates will be.

Pasadena electrician Floyd Henderson, 62, believes he makes too much to qualify for a rebate.

“I think it’s unfair everyone should be getting it,” he said. And if he were to receive a rebate? “I’m definitely not in a spending mood. I would sit on it, or use it to pay my bills.”

A Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll found that 31% of eligible taxpayers were keen to use their rebates to wipe out debt, and that 34% wanted to bolster their savings. Only 18% of respondents said they planned to spend the money.

Booming fuel and food prices and shriveling incomes and home values have pushed consumer confidence to a quarter century low, according to a survey by Reuters and the University of Michigan. It found that 30% of people would buy things with their rebate checks.

Kwame Addo of Chino Hills is one of those. He and his wife figure they’ll receive $1,200, and he’ll use some of it to visit his sister in London in a few weeks, a trip made affordable by a $460 round trip ticket.

“The dollar is low compared to the euro, so it’ll come in handy,” said Addo, 41, a vice president at Union Bank of California.

Calling the economic stimulus plan “a nice gesture,” Addo said he might treat himself to some new shirts and shoes in the spirit of helping out the country. But he has an American Express balance to pay off, two children to support and adidas philippines facebook other expenses, adidas philippines store though he doesn’t have much debt, unlike some of his friends. He doesn’t figure they’ll be shopping with their rebate money.

“Most people could use extra padding, but I don’t think they’ll use it the way it’s intended,” he said. “The economy’s doing badly, with foreclosures left and right, and we need more action on the big ticket items.”

The rebate program will pass Jason Lee by, not because he earns too much but because his income is too low. The 26 year old from Valencia, who manages stuffed animal shop Lenovia Plush in downtown Los Angeles, said he was dismayed when he learned he didn’t qualify.

“The stimulus plan should focus on people who are lower income who don’t make that much,” he said. “I should be the one getting that money. It doesn’t make sense.”

“I’m OK financially. The amount’s not enough to really help me, but it’ll help them,” said Becker, a 49 year old from Simi Valley. “With costs rising, they’ll need whatever they can get.”

‘We have made Manoj Bajpayee vulnerable’

First time director Soumendra Padhi’s film Budhia Singh: Born To Run has already won the National award for Best Children’s Film. And to think that he didn’t have the confidence to tell his parents that he wanted to become a director.

A software engineer, Odisha based Padhi came to Mumbai without informing them about his movie making plans. Even while he was making the film, they though he was in the advertising field.

Only when news of the film broke out, did his parents realise the truth about their son.

“This is the best time to make films,” Padhi says. “A lot of things have changed in the last five seven years. People are ready to bet on new things. The audience has also changed and want to see different stuff.”

Starring Manoj Bajpayee and Mayur Patole, Budhia Singh: Born To Run will release on August 5.

There are quite a few biopics being made on sports personalities. Why did you choose to make a film on Budhia Singh?

I think we haven’t touched child prodigies. This will be the first film to do so.

What if there is a special talent like him, do we have the infrastructure to deal with it? That is the larger question the film is trying to ask.

The other reason is that a film on a marathon (runner) has never been made. Films on sprint running have been made but the marathon is a different sport.

The reason I wanted to make this film was because I was fascinated with child prodigies since my childhood, be it Lord Krishna or anyone. Being from an army school, adidas philippines I wanted to do something in sports as well. I am from Odisha, so all the puzzles pieces came together with this film.

There are a lot of contradictions in the film, which are very interesting.

It has all the elements that you need in a story.

Even the lead character is a little flawed, which makes it even more interesting.

How did you go about the casting?

We couldn’t go for commercial actors because they wouldn’t want to explore an unknown area but we needed someone famous.

We needed an actor of Manoj Bajpayee’s caliber. We have made him as vulnerable as we can.

We chose actors who could take the risk.

The casting of Budhia’s character was a long process. We had auditioned 1,200 kids for four five months. The children came from Pune, Mumbai’s Dharavi slums, adidas supercolor Odhisa, Chattisgarh, Delhi and Hyderabad.

The child is the soul of the film and if he doesn’t connect, the film will not connect with the audience.

Finally, we found him in Mayur Patole. He was very good in running and has a similar background (to the real Budhia Singh). There is a lot of loneliness in his eyes. He had never faced the camera before. We wanted someone fresh, so we could capture the innocence and adidas basketball shoes vulnerability.

The other cast consisted of theatre actors from Odisha, Bengal, Mumbai, Pune and Satara.

He doesn’t remember that part of his life.

He remembers briefly that his coach would wake him up early in the morning and adidas philippines he didn’t know why. The coach would make him run, and talk about politics. They used to give him oil massage because he used to run 30 km a day.

What is a Cushion Cut Aquamarine

Though it is not as famous as its other gemstone counterparts such as rubies and diamonds, adidas philippines instagram aquamarine is still sought after because of its hardness. In fact, it comes close to the diamond in the Mohs scale. This means that it does not get damaged easily and adidas running shoes is well protected from scratches.

Even if it is predominantly blue, it still works very well with almost any type of skin and eye color. It can be worn when you are in your casual attire and when you are in your best suit or gown on special events. Because it shimmers or glimmers when exposed to light, there is no way that you cannot capture the attention of others.

Most of all, an aquamarine gemstone is usually free of any type of inclusion. You get the best value for your money, and when the stone is set in your favorite cut like the cushion cut, you are assured that little to no portion of it is being removed.

Finding a cushion cut ring these days, particularly one that has an aquamarine stone, can be pretty hard because it has been dominated by better and newer cuts like marquise or princess. However, that does not mean that it is inferior in quality and adidas philippines price list beauty.

This type of cut is also known as the candlelight, because a long time ago it is best viewed under the candlelight. You will hardly miss it, though. The stones are larger and cut with rounded corners. It is necessary for the setting to have at least 4 prongs to make sure that the stone is well placed and protected. More may be needed if you are using a much larger aquamarine.

The charm of the cushion cut rings lies in the fact that it is a very classic cut and very romantic. That is why it is also being given away as an engagement ring. When placed side by side by other round cuts, cushion cuts always stand out. It also allows you to bring the attention directly into the stone, which should always be the highlight of any type setting or adidas philippines branches ring style.

Liberty Insurance expected to replace Guinness as hurling sponsors

A new deal with American company Liberty Insurance is expected to be announced in the coming weeks to add to the deals already in place with Etihad and Centra under in the multi sponsor adidas supercolor model adopted by the GAA.

Liberty Insurance took over the existing business remaining from the adidas philippines sale of Quinn Insurance and adidas philippines store have invested heavily in marketing and adidas philippines store advertising in the Irish market, including sponsoring The Late Late Show.

The GAA announced that Guinness will become ‘proud partner’ to both the GAA and Croke Park Stadium, where they hold the pouring rights for the venue’s bars and restaurants.

Commenting on the new agreement, GAA commercial and stadium director Peter McKenna said: “There is no doubt that the GAA has benefited enormously from the marketing expertise of one of the world’s most creative companies. We appreciate that all sponsorship has a natural time span, and we are pleased to be taking our association with Guinness in a new direction”.

The end to the Guinness sponsorship of the All Ireland adidas superstar Hurling Championship comes against the backdrop of a proposed ban on drinks companies sponsoring sporting events.

The multitalented bread

Fresh or stale the versatile and the staple bread has many uses

Bread has been around since ages; archaeologists found 81 loaves of bread still sitting in an oven preserved and blackened by volcanic ash from Pompeii and the British Museum showcases a 4,000 years old loaf of bread excavated from the pyramids of Egypt. Indian chapattis, the bread equivalent was made perhaps right since the Indus civilisation, as grain cultivation began then. And adidas philippines instagram the most infamous reference to bread in history is draped in the legendary story of Marie Antoinette, the queen of Louis XVI who, when told by her advisor that the people of France are starving because there is no bread to eat, ordered him to tell them to eat cake; purportedly the main reason why Antoinette had to face the guillotine and consequently was born. Not surprisingly, the plain old loaf of bread is just as versatile as it is old and legendary. Thanks to the Fourth Earl of Sandwich, John Montagu, too busy gambling to stop for food, ordered a waiter to bring him roast beef between two slices of bread so he wouldn’t get his fingers greasy, the ever popular fashion of using bread, was born.

In addition to the multitude varieties of sandwiches, subs, burgers and uses of fresh bread, stale bread too is equally useful. While buying, lightly squeeze for freshness; a softer loaf is generally fresher. But don’t discard stale bread or adidas philippines sale 2015 the bread (ends of the sliced loaf actually believed to be the healthiest part of the bread), they actually enhance many dishes. The end crust or heel also makes a handy spoon rest while cooking.

Chop and fry them to make croutons for soup. Dry and crumble them in a blender to make bread crumbs. Bread crumbs can be used as stuffing and coating cutlets before frying. Line a greased cake tin with fine breadcrumbs before adding the cake mixture. The cooked cake will turn easily out of the tin, with a delicious crust around the edges. Bread pudding, adidas philippines sale French toast and bread come out great with day old bread. Short on boiled potatoes; add moistened bread slices to the mashed boiled potatoes, no one will know the difference. But perhaps the healthiest use of stale bread is Italian Panzella or Bread Salad. 4 5 slices of day old bread are moistened, cubed and tossed with 2 cubed tomatoes, 1 cubed cucumber, 5 10 shredded basil leaves, a few thin onion slices, 1 tbsp vinegar and 3 tbsp olive oil; add salt and pepper to taste. Optional additions include garlic, oregano, crushed red pepper, capsicum, olives and chopped celery. Chilled or served immediately, this makes a great summer salad.

Quirky yet practical uses of bread include cleaning wallpaper, suede and oil paintings. Roll the soft part of a slice of fresh bread into a ball and gently clean off grubby marks around the light switch on wallpaper or smudges on a suede purse or shoes. Dust oil paintings by gently rubbing the surface with a piece of white bread. Pick up tiny slivers of broken glass by pressing the bread over the area. Before using an unused blender, run a piece of bread through the blender to clear out any dust. Get rid of the burnt taste and odour of slightly burnt rice by placing a slice of white bread in the pot on top of the rice while still hot. Replace the lid and five minutes later remove the bread slice. Even the odour of cabbage when cooking can be minimised by placing a slice on the lid. When baking greasy foods place two or three slices of bread in the drip pan to absorb the grease and adidas philippines sale 2015 decrease the smoke; makes cleaning easier too. Thread a cube of bread on the handle of a knife before chopping onions to absorb some of the odour and to reduce the tearful experience to a certain extent.

Kate Middleton Goes Sporty Chic For America’s Cup World Series

When you have a busy schedule like Kate Middleton, there isn’t always time for an outfit change.

However, Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, has a few tricks up her sleeve for changing her look without actually changing her clothes.

On Sunday, the 34 year old mother of Prince George and Princess Charlotte attended the America’s Cup World series with husband, Prince William, donning her version of casual chic.

To support the Land Rover BAR (Ben Ainslie Racing) team, Catherine sported a Land Rover BAR Pique Polo and a pair of black skinny jeans. But she managed to switch up the feel of her ensemble with simple hair and shoe changes throughout the day.

First, Kate wore grey espadrille wedges for a more dressy feel, leaving her famous locks in soft curls.

Later, she swapped her wedges for adidas obuv vypredaj Pure Boost running shoes, and tied a few tendrils of hair back for a more laid back look.

Finally, Catherine tied her hair up into a ponytail and threw on a monogrammed windbreaker for a ride on the catamaran.

Simple, easy and rather low maintenance (though Catherine probably had a hairstylist on hand to change up her ‘dos, while most of us commoners don’t have that luxury). But seriously, one shoe swap and a few different hair looks is way easier than complete outfit changes!

Natural dyes create unique Easter eggs

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Share PhotoEditor’s note: A soon to be released book by homesteading expert Chris McLaughlin is bringing homegrown botanical dyes front and center for crafters and families. Here are tips on using natural dyes for Easter eggs from McLaughlin’s “A Garden to Dye For: How to Use Plants From the Garden to Create Natural Colors for Fabrics and Fibers” (St. Lynn’s Press, 2014).

While some plants are ignored because they can only offer temporary color, I refuse to leave them behind because these colors are perfect for play dough, watercolor paints and Easter eggs.

Creativity is the point, so please feel free to go beyond the typical white eggs that are usually used for egg dying and reach for the brown, blue and green ones. You’ll be amazed at the beautifully unique colors that will result.

Caution: Remember not to use any plant materials that are considered poisonous. Use only what you know to be safe, edible plants, because the assumption is that the eggs will be eaten.

Natural dye for Easter eggs is usually done one of two ways: in a hot bath, which means that the eggs are colored at the same time they’re being hard boiled; or in a cold bath.

Using beets to dye eggs will produce a deep maroon color.

Share PhotoThe hot bath works faster, but the cold process may be easier if you are using more colors, because you can make a bunch of dyes up in advance. I prefer the cold method because the colors are much more intense.

What you’ll need:

Stove (if you’re using the hot method)

Glass jars or bowls (for cold method)

Dye sources: onion skins, adidas superstar berries, flower petals, beets, adidas running shoes red cabbage, etc.

There are many variations on making natural Easter egg dye, but this is what works for me.

Hot dye methodI like to make my natural dyes by simmering the materials in a pan of water for 15 minutes or so and then straining out the plant matter so just the liquid remains in the pot. I add my eggs to the pot and add water just so the eggs are covered by about 2 inches of water. Add 1/8 cup of vinegar, then bring the pot to a boil for 17 to 20 minutes. This method dyes and hard boils the eggs at the same time.

Cold dye methodMake the dyes by simmering the materials in a pot of water for adidas philippines careers 20 to 25 minutes. Strain off the plant materials, add 1/8 cup of water, and let the liquid cool in jars. Once the dye is cool, add an already hard boiled egg to each dye color and leave it there for at least an hour; for the most impressive colors, leave them in there up to 10 hours.

The Final Benghazi Hearing Will Be Done In Secret

WASHINGTON If you were hoping to watch the final hearing of the Select Committee on Benghazi and see the members debate and vote on their final report, you out of luck.

The committee is meeting Friday in a closed session to hash out any final details in their report, which they rolled out during recess on June 28 without input from the Democratic members of the committee.

Although the Republicans said the 800 page document broke new ground, Democrats said it just rehashed old details. officials, although it did echo the previous works in saying the response to the assaults had significant flaws.

Even its release was marred by partisan gamesmanship, with the committee GOP leadership selectively giving it to reporters who were not allowed to reach out to Democrats for comment.

Democrats didn get copies until shortly before it was released widely. And now they can raise objections to the report publicly as it wrapped up.

The final work of the committee is being done behind closed doors likely because parts of the report are classified. Other committees in such situations often debate the non classified parts in public, then move to a closed session.

But the lack of any effort to let the public see the final stages of the controversial committee led Democrats to hammer the move.

no surprise that Benghazi Committee Republicans are choosing to take their final vote tomorrow behind closed doors, with no transparency and where no one can fact check their claims, Democratic Whip Rep Sten Hoyer (Md.) told The Huffington Post.

how they operated since day one not sharing information with committee Democrats and concealing the truth from the public, Hoyer said. reveals what everyone has known since the beginning and what [Majority Leader Kevin] McCarthy admitted: that the Benghazi Committee purpose is political, not investigative. was referring to McCarthy comment to Fox News that the committee work had damaged the presidential prospects of Hillary Clinton.

The Republicans on the committee saw it differently, adidas philippines store and pointed to the words of Dorothy Woods, the widow of Tyrone Woods, who was among the four Americans slain that night. He had tried to protect the facility from attackers.

The widow vigorously defended the committee extended work in a CNN interview, adidas philippines sale 2015 saying critics have been unfair and that no one has right to tell me it time to move on. They not in my shoes.

think that that the essence of what they have done, is they been dismissive. The committee been ridiculed. The committee has been, they been criticized, Woods said. for them to sincerely do the right thing, to care about Americans, that what important. committee has lasted more than two years, adidas philippines office address making it one of the longer probes in congressional history. It has cost more than $7 million, and Democrats estimate that the adidas philippines price list tag is closer to $20 million when the costs to the many responding federal agencies are counted.

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