We Interrupt Death With a FIGHT TO LIVE

While the world mourns the beloved Lux Interior, tonight, Detroit will be fighting along side Jim Shaw in his battle against cancer. That benefit concert is TONIGHT, February 7 at the Magic Stick in the Motor City. As you can see from the flyer, there's no shortage of talent to entertain and uplift Jim & Sandy's spirits. Following is info from their Facebook page, peppered of course, with photos of related persons...As many of you have likely heard, Jim Shaw was recently diagnosed with cancer. What at first seemed like a semi-manageable diagnosis has, unfortunately, become considerably more dire. That being said, both he and his wife Sandy Kramer Shaw are staying positive and they are going to FIGHT. We should too.On Saturday, Feb. 7 Jim's brothers will host a fundraiser at the Magic Stick (4120 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-833-9700) There will great bands and an art auction. Please come and support one of the kindest, most generous souls Detroit has ever known.Event details include:Saturday, Feb. 7thThe Magic Stick (4120 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-833-9700)$10 minimum donation at the door6 p.m. - Doors & Gallery Reception @ CPOP GALLERY (See below for list of participating artists)8 p.m. - Rare unseen 16 mm short film of THE MC5 and THE STOOGES (shown at Magic Stick). This is a must-see if you are a fan of rock 'n roll. Wayne Kramer and Michael Davis of the MC5BANDS9 p.m. -THE FONDAS9:20 p.m. -THE GO9:40 p.m. -THE PIZAZZThe Pizazz circa 200510 p.m. -GARDENS10:20 p.m. -HUMAN EYEBill Hafer & Timmy Vulgar, Human Eye 200510:40 p.m. THE SPACE HEATERS11 p.m. -DRUID PERFUME11:20p.m. -TYVEK11:40 p.m. -SMASHED WINDOWSMid -GREG CARTWRIGHTGreg CartwrightLet me say this about the amazing Greg Cartwright: if not for Greg, I would not know Jim or Sandy. Their friendship has enriched my life beyond words, and I have Greg to thank for making that possible. Oh, and he is an awesome singer, songwriter, musician and all-around cool dude.12:40 p.m. -THE DIAL TONES1 a.m.-DAN KROHA* Rad RnR Raffle & Sale! *ART SALE AND AUCTION ~ ~ AT THE CPOP GALLERY!Silent Auction from 6 - 9 PMCash & Carry at Auction's closeBeer from Motor City BreweryLight refreshements servedNiagaraSteve ShawSpeedcultMichael SegalKristin BeaverGlenn BarrTim CaldwellTheresa KereakesBrian Victor C.Mel SchriddeKeith JacksonTracee MillerGlass Action!Steve NawaraGwen JoyRoe PeterhansAndy KriegerGreg SiemaszDave KriegerDoug CoombeWendy CaseAran RuthJR / Atomic CustomsSK YoungONLINE EBAY STORE:DUE TO THE OVERWHELMING AMOUNT OF MEMORABILIA, EQUIPMENT, COLLECTIBLES THAT HAVE BEEN DONATED, THERE WILL BE AN EBAY STORE SET UP IN JIM'S NAME. DONATIONS INCLUDE SIGNED MEMORABILIA DONATED BY MARY WEISS OF THE SHANGRI-LAS, AND THE DRUM KIT USED IN THE "HARDEST BUTTON TO BUTTON" VIDEO, DONATED BY JACK AND MEG WHITE OF THE WHITE STRIPES.I have donated a print of the Iggy Pop image below.Its printed on metallic paper. I like to think of it as an old Jim (Osterberg - Iggy's birth name) coming to the aid of a newer Jim, Shaw.Also - if you want to help Jim Shaw by buying my art work, I will donate to the Shaws my portion of the proceeds from sales of Iggy Pop images that I have on exhibit at Metropolis, the gallery in Lancaster, PA that represents my work and where I made my last stop on the Unguarded Moments: Backstage and Beyond tour.Everybody wins!

Gaze tracking system keeps an eye on CCTV operators

In his analysis of control systems, William S. Burroughs once noted that as they become larger, so do the opportunities for evasion increase. Sure, you can have CCTV cameras at (nearly) every intersection in your sleepy village, but someone has to watch all those things. What do you do when the sheer number of displays becomes too much for our poor Big Brother? Researchers at the Gebze Institute of Technology in Turkey have developed a gaze tracking system that trains cameras on the irises of the CCTV operator -- noting which video sequences he or she views on the shift, and producing a summary of video sequences they've overlooked. If that weren't enough, the system uses an algorithm that discards frames with no people or moving vehicles in them, leaving only a few key frames for each scene of interest. According to New Scientist, this all runs on a standard PC and processes and catalogs images in real time. Now, if only there were a system that let us watch Two And A Half Men and Becker at the same time -- that would be sweet.

Fit For a Dog

Whenever Angelina gives birth, beauty publicists launch a thousand goodie bags to her people, hoping that their luxury products will make it somewhere near the baby's tush. So I can just imagine that The First Dog's arrival has sparked a similar frenzy among pet-product publicists, who were likely stuffing bags all weekend and paying through the nose to have their wares overnighted to Obama's camp. While there isn't an official report on what swag was sent, for Bo's sake, I'm hoping that it included some of these top-shelf doggie beauty lines, according to those in the know ... Stylish Celebrity Pets Wearing matching outfits isn't enough for lovebirds Nick Cannon and Mariah Carey, the duo got their dog in on the white action while vacationing in Aspen. FAME PICTURES Tinkerbell may be Paris Hilton's most famous pet but she certainly isn't her only animal. The heiress owns 17 dogs and is so fond of dressing them up she created her own line of dog clothing called Little Lily by Paris Hilton. FAME PICTURES It's complementing hair colors and outfits for Britney Spears and her reportedly $3,000 Yorkie. FAME PICTURES Jessica Biel keeps her pit bull's attire low maintenance. M. Phillips, Getty Images Perez Hilton's dog Teddy is the only subject the blogger loves more than starlets without underwear. Charley Gallay, Getty Images A trendy leash is all fashionista Rachel Bilson's pup needs to look stylin'. Bauer-Griffin Ashley Tisdale keeps her little guy warm in this bright camp blanket. Bauer-Griffin Before Tori Spelling's pug passed away in the summer of 1998 the actress frequently dressed up her pooch. Maury Phillips, WireImage Aubrey O'Day's doggie is one of the most styled pets in Hollywood but that doesn't mean the pup is chic! Here the pink-eared pup sports a t-shirt printed with a photo of O'Day from her Playboy spread. Michael Loccisano, Getty Images No doubt 6-month-old Bo will be subjected to all kinds of outfits at the hands of his new owners Malia and Sasha Obama.

Alcoholic Neuropathy: Signs and Symptoms

Alcoholic Neuropathy: SymptomsExcessive drinking, usually over years, can lead to nerve damage. The first sign of nerve damage may be in numbness or tingling in the hands, legs and feet. Ulcers or sores may develop on the legs and feet. There may be pain or burning sensations in the feet, or cramps in the calf muscles. The leg muscles may waste, leading to leg weakness and frail ankles. Alcoholic neuropathy often shows up first as clumsiness and uncoordinated movement.
Furthermore, there may be confusion, memory loss, speech slurring or incoherence, even when sober.
Nerve damage can be anywhere in the body. It may lead to incontinence or male impotence. In some cases, there is damage to the autonomic nervous system, which, among other things, affects heart rate and breathing.
If he or she is a heavy drinker, it is irrelevant whether he is a functioning alcoholic or a skid-row alcoholic. Symptoms of alcoholic neuropathy in a heavy drinker are also signs and symptoms of advanced alcoholism.
CautionDiabetic neuropathy has some of the same symptoms as alcoholic neuropathy. Furthermore, alcoholics have an increased risk of diabetes. Only your medical doctor has the knowledge and skills to make the differential diagnosis and make a referral to a specialist for a neurological exam. Your doctor may detect signs of neuropathy, which the patient cannot.

You’re Married to an Alcoholic: What To Do? What To Do?

"My Partner is a Functioning Alcoholic"Being married to a functioning alcoholic can cause many problems in a family. Tens of thousands of families in North America alone are struggling with this issue.
A drinking problem can begin in many ways. For some people it begins with social drinking. Social drinking can gradually deteriorate into alcohol abuse and eventually into alcohol dependence. The drinking became a habit and the habit became alcohol dependence or alcoholism. It matters not whether the alcohol is in the form of beer, wine or hard liquor. Alcohol is alcohol in any shape or form.
Now your partner has shifted from enjoying a drink to compulsively needing alcohol to feel okay. And you may have shifted from being giving and caring to being addicted to your partner's care. Compulsive caretaking often grows alongside the deteriorating self-care of the compulsive drinker.
If the alcoholic has more or less continued to hold down a job, he is politely called a "functioning alcoholic." But he is an alcoholic nonetheless. He works a great deal below his potential, he neglects or abuses his family and he may not live very long if he continues the self-abuse.
Like all addicts, he lies (bold faced lies, lies of omission, cover-ups, and minimization), he makes excuses, he blames others for his drinking, and he continues to seek out and use alcohol despite the consequences.
If there are children present, they copy the lying, justifying, blaming behavior which they see modeled. They also learn to keep family secrets and to cover for their alcoholic parent. In other words they join in the "dance of alcohol" and participate with their parents, learning how to be alcoholics or how to live with them when they grow up.

If you are an alcoholic and you are in a marriage, you may have to leave your drinking behind completely in order to gain any hope of reversing the progressive damage your alcoholism is inflicting on yourself and your family.
If you are living with a functioning alcoholic, there are steps you can take too. Perhaps more importantly at first, there are things you can learn to avoid so that you don't further your partner's alcoholism. Making excuses for him, for example, only makes things worse. You don't want to be an enabler or a rescuer.
The Alcoholism TestOver the years in my psychology practice many women have started their first session with "My husband is a functioning alcoholic." In the last few days alone two more women took the Alcoholism Test and left a comment opening with "My husband is a functioning alcoholic." I seldom see or hear the statement without also sensing an undertone of desperation and frustration, as if to say, I didn't bargain for this when we got married.

Philippine fisherman catch and eat a megamouth shark

Philippine fishermen catch megamouth shark
Butcher it, cook meat in coconut milk

A MEGAMOUTH shark, one of the world's most elusive species, was caught, carved up and eaten by fishermen from a town in the Philippines, the environmental conservation group WWF said today.
So rare are megamouth shark sightings that each find is given a number - this one, caught by fishermen from the coastal town of Donsol - was the 41st ever seen or captured in the world.
But Elson Aca, a Donsol WWF representative, said it was butchered and its meat sauteed in coconut milk as a local delicacy, against the organisation's device.
The 4m, half-tonne megamouth was snared by fishermen trawling for mackerel off the Bicol peninsula on Luzon island.

Obsession with high heels lasts more than 50 years

A woman will wear high heels over 51 years of her life, according to a study which links stilettos to the female psyche.The average woman puts on her first pair at 12 and takes off her last at 63,


It reveals that the heel height worn by women begins to rise in early teens, increasing rapidly from 2.5cm to a whopping 13.5 cms by the age of 23.Walking tall continues to be the order of the day through a woman's late 20s and 30s, only beginning to decline slightly by the age of 35 - possibly due to childbirth, Debenhams figures show.High heels continue to feature prominently in her wardrobe through her late 30s and up until her mid 40s - the period when many women are building a successful career.The first real dip in heel height only occurs in a woman's late 40s and early 50s, when the average height drops to 4.5 cms. And a final drop to 2.5 cms - virtually a normal height heel - occurs from 63 onwards.Said Ed Watson: 'These results show that a woman's entire life can be mapped out according to the height of the heel she wears. After a meteoric rise, through youth and early adulthood, they begin to settle down before dropping back gracefully to a comfortable old age.

A Time to Break Silence

I come to this magnificent house of worship tonight because my conscience leaves me no other choice.
I join you in this meeting because I am in deepest agreement with the aims and work of the organization which has brought us together: Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam.
The recent statements of your executive committee are the sentiments of my own heart, and I found myself in full accord when I read its opening lines: "A time comes when silence is betrayal."