The Beautiful and Bald Barbie is finally becoming a reality. A bustling Facebook campaign urged toymaker Mattel to create a doll that appeals to kids undergoing cancer treatments or suffering diseases such as Alopecia, and after receiving 150,000 “likes” in under four months, Mattel will soon put the bald doll into production.
Mattel spokesperson Alan Hilowitz told CBS News’ HealthPop that the doll will be created as “friend” of Barbie. She’ll come complete with wigs, hats, scarves and other accessories, with the option of going fully bald.
While many of the 152,000-plus fans that the movement has garnered will be clamoring to get their hands on one of the dolls (this writer included), Mattel said that the bald Barbies will not be sold in stores. Instead, the dolls will be donated to children’s hospitals, as well as the National Alopecia Areata Foundation.
(MORE: Cancer Campaigners Push for a Bald Barbie Doll)
The company explained this decision via a statement on their Facebook page: “Through a thoughtful approach, we made the decision not to sell these dolls at retail stores, but rather get the dolls directly into the hands of children who can most benefit from the unique play experience.”
The campaign for the “Bald and Beautiful Barbie” was started in January by Jane Bingham and Rebecca Sypin, both of whom have daughters who lost their hair due to cancer treatment. Sypin told MSNBC in January that she thought the bald Barbie would be therapeutic, and would help baldness become “normal.”
(PHOTOS: If Barbie Trashed Her Dream House)
After the campaign gained nationwide attention, Mattel invited Sypin and Bingham to their headquarters to discuss their ideas in detail. They were told that a bald doll would go into production at a later date.
Despite the victory in having the doll produced, Bingham told HealthPop that she still hopes to see the Bald and Beautiful Barbie on stores shelves one day. “[We want girls to know] they’re not dependent on their hair for their self-worth and their beauty. Women and children, it’s looked down upon that you would go out without your hair. People would automatically assume that you’re sick and you should stay at home in bed,” Bingham told HealthPop. “We wanted to change this stigma.”
PHOTOS: Barbie Turns 50
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Mattel Agrees to Produce Bald Barbie After Viral Facebook Campaign | NewsFeed
Real Life '21 Jump Street': Undercover Cop Returns to High School | ABC News Blogs - Yahoo!
The comedy duo in the movie " 21 Jump Street," Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, made a joke out of their undercover assignment. But real-life police officer Alex Salinas, 22, spent the last eight months pretending to be a student to bust a major high school drug ring in Central California.
Using the alias Johnny Ramirez, Salinas enrolled in classes at Exeter Union High School, southeast of Fresno. He says he looked young enough to pass for a student.
"My first day I almost introduced myself as Alex to a few people and I had to catch myself," Salinas told ABC News.
He did everything to fit in, even his homework. He told his schoolmates he had to leave at lunch every day to help his uncle at work. But in this case, his "uncle" was an investigator at the narcotics lab.
"In the beginning of the year I left at lunch and supposedly went to work with my uncle, but I was really going back to the narcotics office and doing homework and reports. It was a shock. I'm a cop and now I'm doing homework?" Salinas said.
Salinas was hand-picked by Exeter Police Chief Cliff Bush to be a part of this undercover mission.
Bush had been thinking about it for years, after complaints from parents and students of increased drug sales and narcotic use on campus- but he needed the right person in order to pull off an operation usually found in a Hollywood script.
Finally, Chief Bush found his man, or young man, telling ABC News Salinas "looks 17, and the braces add to the effect," Bush said.
Yes, Salinas even has braces.
Once he approached Salinas, Bush said that "it didn't take much convincing," to get the brand new police academy grad to sign on.
"I took it in a heartbeat," Salinas laughed.
After three weeks of training with the local narcotics unit, Salinas put on jeans, grabbed his backpack and went back to school. Salinas says he was always on his toes, so he wouldn't blow his cover. He recalled that during one class a teacher randomly called out to "Johnny Ramirez," and joked to the class that he was an undercover officer.
"Out of nowhere he made a joke that I was an undercover narcotics agent. He told them he was joking - but he had no idea that I actually was. I just play it off and laugh about it. When he found out, he was pretty shocked," Salinas told ABC News.
Although they controlled some of his social interactions, Salinas even attended some football games. He was like any regular high school senior - except he wasn't worried about finding a date to the prom. Instead, he was trying to find the students responsible for the increase in drug traffic on campus.
The same week "21 Jump Street" premiered in Hollywood, Salinas, wearing his police uniform, helped arrest 12 students and two non-students in the drug ring. The students ranged in age from 15 to 19 and were charged with selling marijuana, prescription pills and cocaine. Salinas told ABC News there were drug deals going on inside classrooms.
"Any opportunity that came to me (to buy drugs), I took full advantage," Salinas told ABC News.
Exeter City Manager Randy Groom and Chief Bush said they were unaware that the movie was even coming out the same week as the bust, and that it was all just a coincidence.
Exeter has a population of just over 10,000, and most people know one another. Salinas has been out on patrol as an officer for just one week and has already come into contact with his former "classmates."
"I have run into some of the students while I'm driving around. I haven't contacted them, but I'll be driving in my patrol car and they will wave hi to me. Many of them were appreciative of what I did," Salinas said.
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Friday, March 30, 2012
Liesha Petrovich | LinkedIn
Liesha Petrovich
Seeking Online Adjunct Position in Business, Marketing & Entrepreneurship - Online Learning Professional
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- Norway, Maine
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6-Traits Resources 6-traits.blogspot.com
Throughout the year, have your students choose e-portfolio samples that document student progress Use the NWREL 6-Traits database of student work. Zoom word processed text or switch to a larger font to see the words in a...
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Liesha Petrovich
This is the place where you can find samples of my work that highlight my experience as a:
- Online Higher Education Professional
- Leader in Higher Education
- Experienced Business Professional
- Instructional/web designer
- Small Business Educator
Please understand that this portfolio contains only selected samples. To view the complete portfolio, please contact me as each page is password-protected.
Thank you for stopping by! Enjoy!
Liesha Petrovich
This is the place where you can find samples of my work that highlight my experience as a:
- Online Higher Education Professional
- Leader in Higher Education
- Experienced Business Professional
- Instructional/web designer
- Small Business Educator
Please understand that this portfolio contains only selected samples. To view the complete portfolio, please contact me as each page is password-protected.
Thank you for stopping by! Enjoy!
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Prom Dress Rules: High Schools Ban Sexy Gowns | Fashion - Yahoo! Shine
Prom is supposed to be a fairy tale evening, and some teenage girls (and boys) spend their entire senior year dreaming about it. It really would be an unforgettable night if you were turned away at the door for wearing an unacceptable dress.
Related: Best Prom Styles for Under $100
The Wall Street Journal reports that high schools across the country are tightening their rules about what constitutes overly provocative prom clothing in response to more and more girls pushing the envelope with micro-minis, cut outs, and plunging necklines such as the ones seen in our slideshow.
Trend watchers attribute the upsurge in revealing gowns to television shows such as "Dancing with the Stars" and Hollywood stars' sexy red carpet looks.
"It seems kind of petty," Cindi Lee, an Algebra teacher at Southmore High School outside Oklahoma City, told the Journal, "but we really do want them to understand we are holding them to a high standard." Administrators at the school have put together a twelve-page power-point presentation with close-cropped images to show students exactly what the rules are. "Words don't mean much to them," says Lee. Other schools are using posters and illustrated handouts.
Typical prom dress fails include gowns that are shorter than three inches above the knee, have low backs, are sheer, or have thigh-bearing slits.
Chaperones will be on the lookout for sneaky teens trying to skirt the regulations. Ginger Lawrence an assistant principal in Lee County High School in Leesburg, Georgia, plans to bring a ruler and ask girls to measure themselves if their hemline appears to be cut too high above the knee. Sunnyvale High School, which is located outside of Dallas, Texas, enforces a dress code that clearly states that fabric inserts may not be sewn or pinned on a gown-since girls are known to rip them out once they make it into the dance.
Boys aren't off the hook either. The Journal reports that most schools ban jeans, baggy pants, hats, and sneakers at prom.
What do the kids think? "It's not like they are asking you to dress like a nun or anything," says Ellison Garrett, a junior at Lee County High School.
Should schools ban prom gowns they deem too provocative? Let us know in the comments below.
Also on Shine:
THE THREAD: Celebrity Inspired Prom Dresses
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About Liesha Petrovich | Effective Marketing 101
There are two things I’m passionate about in my professional career: small business marketing and higher education.
I’ve been a small business owner for 17 years. In that time, I’ve also earned a BS in Marketing, a Master’s in Higher Education and I’m working on my MBA as we speak. I know how hard it is to run a small business and I also know that small businesses need specific education.
You don’t need to understand Corporate Finance, Human Resources or even Corporate Marketing. If you’re reading this, you need education for your small business now. Something that’s effective, affordable and not time-consuming.
And that’s where I come in. I’m dedicated to helping small businesses succeed in their marketing efforts. You can view my Linkedin Profile or my personal website.
Here’s to your success!
Liesha Petrovich
Liesha Petrovich
This is the place where you can find samples of my work that highlight my experience as a:
- Online Higher Education Professional
- Leader in Higher Education
- Experienced Business Professional
- Instructional/web designer
- Small Business Educator
Please understand that this portfolio contains only selected samples. To view the complete portfolio, please contact me as each page is password-protected.
Thank you for stopping by! Enjoy!
Saturday, March 24, 2012
15-year-old Living Doll is YouTube's Controversial New Star | Parenting - Yahoo! Shine
At 15, Venus Palermo has grown into her doll obsession rather than out of it. Under the screen name Venus Angelic, the London based teenager posts beauty tutorials on YouTube for fans who want to look like her. But that's not why she's the latest viral video star. It's because she looks like a living doll.According to Palermo, you too could be a ball-jointed doll (or BJD as she calls it) with the right over-sized pupil contacts, plastic-sheen-effect powder and pure white eye shadow. Based on her 5 million viewers and the legions of lookalike fans on her Facebook page, people are taking her advice.
Video: father's extreme parenting goes viral
The modern ball-jointed doll is widely popular in Japan, a country both she and her mother are obsessed with. "Mommy cooks Japanese, thinks Japanese, goes to Japan with me," writes Palermo on her blog. "Because we like it. Liking something, is soooooo GREAT!" Palermo is actually Austrian, Swiss and Hungarian but she's been studying Japanese along with several other languages. Her multilingual background is how she explains her accent, which sounds close to the Midwestern Harajuku-obsessed college kids satirized on Saturday Night Live.
Palermo's obsession, however, isn't taken as lightly. Her videos have been labeled "bizarre" and "disturbing" in the media. Her uncanny appearance is sounding off alarm bells for concerned critics. Modern Asian ball joint dolls have become increasingly more life-like, with a line of human-sized, physically mature dolls recently released for the kind of consumer you don't want anywhere near your teenager.
Related: when parents turn their kids into online superstars
The perverse comments on the 15-year-old's videos is proof she's attracting some unsavory fans. So is the occasional grown man dappling the list of Palermo's Facebook fans. But the teenager's mom doesn't appear to be intervening in her daughter's risky hobby. Mom serves as host of Q&A chats between teenager and fans. In one video posted last year, she sat by while the teenager had an uncomfortable conversation with a 24-year-old male caller who professed his love and then proceeded to belittle her.In text under that video, posted to VenusAngelic's channel, Palermo refers to her fans as "lovers." The title of the video is "Insane Guy in Love."
"The case of Venus Angelic is uncomfortably exploitative, as there is clearly a sexual undertone to what she is doing," says Hilary Levey Friedman, PhD, a Harvard sociologist who has written extensively about child exploitation in media.
"In general, young girls on YouTube is a disturbing, growing trend," she says noting the recent trend of pre-teen girls asking viewers if they're pretty.
In many cases, parents are unaware of their child's webcam usage, until their uploads go viral. But in other instances, the parents are facilitators.
"Remember, Justin Bieber got his start on YouTube with the help of his mother," says Levey Friedman.
Levey Friedman wonders whether Palermo's mom has similar aspirations for her daughter. The YouTube stage parent is relatively new concept. Most kids have risen to viral fame for just being kids, and if a parent profits off of that they're immediately criticized. The rare performing prodigy, like Bieber, is an exception. But Palermo doesn't fall into either category. She may be bringing a Japanese trend to Western teenagers, but she's also attracting a largely unwanted fan-base.
The question then for a parent is whether it's better to support a child's passion or protect her from what could come of it. "I'd hate to rob a kid of her blissful ignorance but I guess the fact is, at 15 years old, innocence is a luxury teens can't really afford," argues The Stir's Jacqueline Burt after watching Palermo's videos. "I guess it's our job to tell our kids when something they're doing could be misinterpreted and why."
Better a parent than an "insane guy in love."
Related stories:
Dangerous new trend: 'Am I pretty?' videos
Friday, March 23, 2012
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Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Ecuador Seen as New Retirement Hot Spot - Yahoo! Finance
When Connie and Mark Pombo decided in 2010 to retire abroad, they searched for locations online. Ecuador seemed to have everything they wanted, so Mark, who had recently retired from the United Parcel Service, flew south to visit.
He was impressed. Three months later, the couple sold their Lancaster, Pennsylvania, home and packed their suitcases. Two years later, the Pombos live on a $600 monthly budget, which includes their $200 two-bedroom rental overlooking the Tomebamba River in Cuenca, a town in the sierra of the Andes Mountains.
They love their scenic and affordable lifestyle. "I could never go back to the U.S.," says Connie, 56, a semi-retired freelance writer. "The prices just rattle my brain."
In the last five years, the South American country, sometimes known for its shamanic healing, has become the top hot spot for bargain-seeking retirees like the Pombos, according to International Living magazine's 2012 Global Retirement Index.
[Related: America's comeback cities, 2012]
The warm weather, cheap housing, and inexpensive healthcare are a draw, especially for baby boomers with eroded nest eggs and a sense of adventure.
The State Department estimates that some 6.3 million Americans are living abroad, and expat sites have put the number of retirees doing that as high as 1.5 million. Those numbers could swell as baby boomers hit their retirement years ready for new adventures.
For retirees, leaving the United States often means a more affordable way of life, including low-cost healthcare, real estate and even gasoline prices. Cherry-picking a warm weather spot can offer another perk. Some expatriate retirees also point to the social benefits that accrue when they become part of a tight knit community. That is especially important for those who feel isolated back home, says Mary Beckman, 55, who plans to retire to Ecuador with her husband, Steve, 60 this year.
She visited the country for the first time last month and plans to permanently move to Cuenca this year. "Everybody seems to be in the same stage in life," says Beckman, who blogs about her experiences at SouthofZero.com. "People are just open arms and very friendly."
NOT PURE PARADISE
Moving abroad -- even to an affordable tropical paradise -- has its headaches.
"Ecuador is still in the infancy stage in terms of attracting ... the infrastructure is still not as strong as other places like Costa Rica," says Nicholas Crowder, author of "Culture Shock! Ecuador: A Guide to Customs & Etiquette." He estimates 5,000 to 10,000 expats live in the country. "Many Americans are not prepared for the language and the culture."
Real estate scams are common and can include hidden fees, says realtor Amy Prisco, 40, a former New Yorker who sells coastal properties in Salinas. "It's unregulated and nobody is enforcing the laws," she says.
Ecuador has recently seen an increase in long-term home rentals, which can be a good alternative to buying, she adds. Negotiating a two or three-year lease can halve monthly payments. For example, a three-bedroom, waterfront condo can rent for $700 with a multiyear lease.
Unexpected living expenses also add up. When travel industry veteran Gary Sisk, 63, retired to Cuenca last December he was surprised at the cost of furniture, appliances and electronics, which can sell for up to three times what he once paid in the United States. Western-sized clothing can be especially difficult to find, Sisk says, "Americans tend to be a lot bigger."
Like other retired expats, Sisk is required by the U.S. government to pay taxes, even if residing abroad.
Despite the unforeseen set-up costs, prices are still low. Sisk's monthly budget is $800 per month, which includes renting a $280 per month two-bedroom two-bath apartment in a popular expat area.
Logistics like health insurance and banking have been surprisingly easy, says Connie Pombo. The Pombos pay $85 per month for comprehensive health insurance with Nova Ecuador, a national insurer.
Pombo says most retirees prefer to simply pay out of pocket for doctor visits, which are less than $20 per appointment.
[Related: The 10 Best Places to Retire]
The family gets Mark's $1,300 monthly retirement check in their U.S. bank account and uses an ATM for monthly cash withdrawals for all expenses including rent. Getting around by bus is only 12 cents for seniors; taxis cost anywhere from $1 to $3, Pombo adds. Gasoline is subsidized by the government and is under $2 per gallon.
The quality and efficiency of places like hospitals, banks, stores and restaurants throughout Ecuador may not be what immigrants are used to. "A lot of people think it's just like the U.S. but cheaper -- it's not, it's a developing country," says Leigh Frost, 55, a retiree who owns a small rental business in coastal town of Olon, Ecuador.
Crowder also cautions Americans thinking of retiring abroad to not be overly trusting. White-collar crime is becoming a concern for some retirees in Ecuador. "Gated communities have these big austere looking fronts, but a lot of crime is committed by insider jobs," says Crowder who owns a home in Ecuador. He warns against an increasing number of expat criminals who establish trust with retirees by speaking fluent English. Expect to be bombarded with ways to part with your money from locals too.
Before you take the leap, get acquainted with the locale, suggest folks who have been there. "I always tell people to take one trip in high season and then come in off season when it's chilly and overcast," says Prisco, who lives on the coast. A local attorney can help start the year-long residency process and specify which notarized documents are necessary before leaving the United States. Brushing up on Spanish and learning about the Ecuadorian language and culture is a must.
But nothing can prepare new expats for the country's different way of doing things. Embracing the laid-back culture is a must, says Gary Phillips, 65, who moved to Cotacachi, Ecuador, in 2006 and runs the expat site Pro-Ecuador.com. He always shares one piece of advice with the country's retirees: "Things happen much slower here than they do in the States. Ecuadorians say mañana but mañana doesn't mean 'tomorrow' it just means 'not today.'"
(Editing by Jilian Mincer, Linda Stern and Steve Orlofsky)
Monday, March 12, 2012
About Us | Western Maine Art Group
The Western Maine Art Group provides for resources for artists to:
- Exhibit and market their work
- Teach their art or craft
- Network within the Arts Community of Western Maine and beyond
- Find creative economic opportunities
The WMAG facilitates exhibits for member artists at a variety of locations including:
- The Lajos Matolcsy Arts Center
- Historic Schoolhouse Gallery, Norway ME
- 13 north-facing Main Street windows of the Norway Savings Bank Ops. Cntr.
- Stephens Memorial Hospital, Norway ME
- McLaughlin Garden, South Paris, ME
- The Child Health Center, Oxford, ME
- The WMAG Hosts a variety of Art and Heritage Crafts Classes including:
- Adult and Child Drawing I, II, III
- Illustration
- Life Drawing
- Beginning to Advanced Oil & Watercolor Painting
- Children’s Cartooning & Illustration
- Multi-Media
- Encaustics Pigmented Wax
- Painting Heritage Rug Hooking
The WMAG provides community access to the arts in creative ways by partnering with other including:
- Maine School Administrative District #17
- Big Brother/Big Sisters
- The Oxford Fair Association
- The Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce
- The Western Maine Cultural Alliance
- The Mahoosuc Arts Council
- Norway Arts Festival
- The Norway Business Association
About WMAG:
The WMAG was founded as a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization in 1962, by Hungarian fine artist Professor Lajos Matolcsy and his students Lee Bean and Ellie Viles, for the purpose of providing opportunities for Western Maine artists and artisans to learn, exhibit and teach, while providing broad community access to original arts.
The Mission of WMAG:
To provide opportunities for artists and artisans, and to provide broad community access to the arts, while partnering with others to create a prosperous cultural environment in Western Maine.
Finding Us:
Western Maine Art GroupP.O. Box 122, Norway, ME 04268Gallery: Lajos Matolcsy Arts Center, 480 Main St. Norway, METel: 207-739-6161Mobile: 303-579-9033
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Western Maine Art Group
Welcome to The Western Maine Art Group!
WMAG Mission:
Our mission is to provide opportunities for artists and artisans, and to provide broad community access to original arts while partnering with others to create a prosperous cultural environment in Western Maine.
Our art gallery is open to the public and we welcome you to visit us and see our current exhibit. The Western Maine Art Group is headquatered in the Lajos Matolcsy Arts Center and shows award winning artists of the Western Maine and more. Medias represented are etchings, oils, watercolors, pastels, and photography. The gallery is housed in the original primary school house building 480 Main Street,Norway, Maine in the historic village of Norway.
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western maine art group, wmag, art classes norway maine, art classes oxford hills, oxford hills painting classes, norway arts festival
