Hey Hazel - remember the story of the astronaut, Lisa Nowak, who wore adult diapers so she wouldn’t have to stop for bathroom breaks while on her journey to stalk the woman she felt stole her boyfriend? The authorities found weapons and disguises in her car. She denied planning to kill the other woman, but the evidence sure suggests that she had something more than a harmless chat on her mind.

Just look at those two photos above - Crime sure doesn’t pay when it comes to someone’s looks, does it?

When I first heard that story about the diapers, all I could think of is that it doesn’t take THAT long to stop for a bathroom break. To wear diapers?! Yuk! Someone would HAVE to be a little mentally off to do that.

There’s a new transcript of an interview in which she tells her side. Here’s the story:

‘I Need to Know Where She Stands’
New Transcript Sheds Light on Ex-Astronaut’s Plan for Rival
By MIKE SCHNEIDER,AP
ORLANDO, Fla. (July 9) - Former astronaut Lisa Nowak told a detective she came to Orlando to meet her rival for the affections of a fellow astronaut because she wanted to know where she stood in the bizarre love triangle, according to a police interview made public Monday.

A 72-page transcript of the interview conducted after her February arrest, with portions redacted, was released by the State Attorney’s Office.

In it, Orlando Police Detective Chris Becton asks Nowak about why she wanted to meet Air Force Capt. Colleen Shipman in a parking lot at the Orlando International Airport.

“I need to know where she stands, if she even had any idea that I fit in or not,” Nowak said. When asked whether she intended to kill Shipman if she didn’t talk, Nowak said no.

Nowak, 44, is accused of attacking Shipman with pepper spray directed through the window of her car and trying to jump into the vehicle. In a duffel bag she was carrying, police officers found a steel mallet, a 4-inch knife and a BB gun. They also recovered a wig and a trench coat which they believe Nowak used as a disguise.

She has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted kidnapping, battery and burglary with assault. She told the detective she only wanted to scare Shipman with the weapons.

During the interview, Nowak repeatedly asked to speak to Shipman and asked the detective whether Shipman, who was interviewed before Nowak, knew who she was.

Nowak told Becton she wanted to tell Shipman of her involvement with Bill Oefelein, a colleague who told detectives he had a two-year relationship with Nowak but ended it some time after he started a relationship with Shipman.

She acted surprised when the detective told her that Shipman knew her only as Oefelein’s colleague, not as someone with whom he had had a relationship.

Nowak suggested that her relationship with Oefelein was romantic but platonic since she “wouldn’t go beyond a certain point” while in the process of separating from her husband. She indicated that she was holding out for a possible future with Oefelein.

“I just needed to know if she was aware,” Nowak said. “He picked me up from the airport two weeks ago. I mean, I mean, you just don’t do that for anybody.”

At another point, Nowak was asked by the detective whether it would have been acceptable for Oefelein to date both of them. She responded, “as long as everybody knows that that’s the case.”

She also said it was her husband, not Oefelein, who hurt her.

“My husband is the only person who broke my heart … over the years, I guess,” she said. “It happened over time.”

An attorney for Nowak, Donald Lykkebak, asked a judge last month to seal the transcript, but the judge took no action. Lykkebak also asked that the interview not be introduced as evidence during Nowak’s trial, claiming she wasn’t properly advised of her constitutional rights.

A hearing on that motion and another to suppress evidence found in Nowak’s car is scheduled for the end of the month.

“The prosecution’s pattern of trickling out information in this case is nothing new,” Lykkebak said in a statement released by his spokeswoman, Marti Mackenzie. “The expected result has been to keep Lisa Nowak’s case in the headlines. We disapprove of this tactic.”

The transcript indicates that Becton told her she had the right to remain silent, the right to an attorney and that what she said could be used against her in court.

A lawyer for Shipman called Nowak’s claim that she didn’t intend to harm Shipman “laughable.”

“It shows her consciousness of guilt,” said attorney Kepler Funk. “It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know what was in her head.”

Nowak was dismissed from the astronaut corps a month after her arrest. Her trial is set for September. Oefelein was dismissed from the corps at the beginning of June.

Here are some of the items found in her car:

Lisa in happier days with her husband and two children - Just look at her. She was pretty and vivacious. She didn’t need to stalk someone. She’s gotta be crazy:

Amy Polumbo barely had her crown on her head as the new Miss New Jersey when she got initiated into the world of celebrity blackmail.

Last week Polumbo, her family and officials in the Miss New Jersey Education Foundation received packages with captioned pictures of her and friends that she may have posted years ago on a social networking site, along with a demand that she resign by Friday.

At a press conference Friday, Polumbo’s lawyer, Anthony Caruso, said the beauty queen was more troubled by the “disgusting” captions that he said would make one look at the pictures “in an entirely different light” than the images themselves, The Associated Press reported.

Caruso told The Associated Press that the 22-year-old pageant star received a second package Saturday, with a threatening letter and what may be new photographs of Polumbo.

I just saw Ms. Polumbo interviewed on television a few minutes ago. She says the pictures are nothing more than her goofing around with some of her college friends. My first thought was ‘what’s the big deal then?’. Giving it a second thought, however, I thought she is wise to make the public. This way she is diluting whatever effect that these pictures have once they do become public.

The emphasis was placed on whatever caption was put on the photos which she and her lawyer say were disgusting and put an entirely different twist on what they referred to as innocent pictures.

Then again, her platform is internet security. If I wanted to be completely cynical I could mention that no one would have heard of Amy Polumbo without these yet unseen innocent photos. Also, she says they were taken off a social website on which she had posted them, giving her more of a platform from which to speak about the need of internet security.

But then, I’m not really that cynical.

Rumors abound that Rachael Ray’s marriage is ending in divorce although her reps deny the rumors. Other sources aren’t so sure, though. This photo definitely looks Photoshopped, but I loved it anyway.

Here’s the story:

Rachael Ray’s Rep Denies Divorce Rumors
AOL
(July 9) - In the past, Rachael Ray has shrugged off persisting rumors of a troubled marriage. But looking at the past few days of tabloid headlines might even wipe the permanent smile from the TV host’s face.

Last week, PerezHilton.com said a source of the Web site confirmed that Ray’s two-year marriage to John Cusimano was in trouble.

Monday’s edition of Page Six went one step further, with a source close to the couple saying that they were in the midst of a breakup and that “her mother is in town from Lake George to help Rachael find an apartment.” The source also told Page Six that Ray had been flirting with her TV co-host, Colby Richardson (a ‘Survivor’ Season Two contestant).

Ray’s representative Charlie Dougiello countered the rumors, saying “Rachael and John are happier than ever … There is no truth to reports they are about to get divorced.” Her rep also spoke to Us Magazine, declaring “It’s a non-item. Rachael and John are happily enjoying the holiday week up at their cabin.”

Ray was candid about her marriage in a PEOPLE interview in May, explaining why her marriage to entertainment laywer Cusimano worked. “I can’t give a man an enormous amount of attention,” Ray said. “And John is totally down with that. When men I have dated over the years whined about, ‘Oh, you make no time for me’ - see ya! I just dumped them. I don’t need that pressure in my life.”

As for rumors of Cusimano’s infidelity with two different women, Ray replied: “I’ve known where he is every night since we’ve been married.”

That last statement doesn’t mean anything. She could have known he was with Mistress A one night and Mistress B another night. I like Rachael Ray, and I wish her lots of luck. I’ve been in that “finding an apartment” situation a couple times myself. It’s not a good place to be.

One thing about Rachael. Now we ALL know what EVOO is.

Here are a couple more pics:

Jim Morrison died 36 years ago in the bathtub of his apartment in Paris. Or did he?

The Daily Mail is reporting that there is a possibility the case will be reopened after a nightclub owner claims the lead signer for The Doors was killed by a heroin overdose and died in the toilet of his nightclub. He alleges that drug dealers moved Morrison’s body to cover-up the crime.

According to Sam Bernett, Morrison died of a massive heroin overdose in the toilet of a nightclub he was managing, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Circus on the French capital’s fabled Left Bank.

Bernett, 62, a French-born former New York Times journalist, claims the death was then covered up by two drug dealers who transferred Morrison’s body from the club to the singer’s apartment and dumped it in the bath.

Bernett was then warned by the club’s owners never to tell anybody about what he had seen.

This extraordinary testament is contained in Bernett’s forthcoming book “The End - Jim Morrison” soon to be published in France.

The allegations are being taken so seriously that they are being examined by the French authorities and may lead to the investigation into Morrison’s death being reopened.

Jim Morrison’s flamboyant lifestyle and drug abuse were no secret at the time. When the 27-year-old rock superstar died, it was generally assumed he had died of an overdose. His death certificate cited that he died of ‘natural causes’ and there was not an investigation into his death, giving birth to endless speculation as to the causes of his early death. Jim Morrison became a legend.

Bernett says he wanted to get the truth out there to rid himself of the burden of carrying the secret all these years. He wanted the truth exposed so that it can be discussed and investigated.

In the early hours of 3 July 1971, the underground disco was heaving with 500 revellers, including 24-year-old British siren Marianne Faithfull who had recently split up with Mick Jagger. Morrison, who was living in Paris with his girlfriend Pamela Courson, arrived at about 1am.

“I greeted Jim as I always did,” recalled Bernett from his home in Paris.

“He didn’t look in great form, and immediately went to his usual spot at the bar and ordered a bottle of vodka. He was also drinking beers.

“I was used to talking about everything with him - from Janice Joplin to the beatniks - but that night it was just a bit of small talk.

“He’d come in to pick up heroin for Pam. He was always collecting drugs for her and the club was full of dealers.”

Jim Morrison with long-time girlfriend Pamela Courson

According to Bernett, Morrison bought the heroin from two men working for Jean de Breteuil, a French playboy and drug dealer.

“The dealers who Jim was talking to were well known,” said Bernett.

“Both were French guys in their 20s. I knew what they were up to, and kept an eye out for Jim. He disappeared to the toilets at around 2am.

“Then, about half an hour later, a cloakroom attendant came up to me and told me someone was locked in one of the cubicles and wasn’t coming out. It was then that I got a bouncer to smash the door down.’

Bernett was met by the sight of Morrison’s body, slumped on the toilet.

In his book, he writes: “I recognized the US Army combat jacket and the riding boots from the Camargue region of France which he never took off. It was Jim Morrison, with his head between his knees, his arms dangling.

“For a few seconds our eyes were glued to the unmoving corpse. We were mesmerised by the baffling spectacle.

“The flamboyant singer of The Doors, the cool and good-looking Californian guy, was now a collapsed and inert lump lying in a nightclub toilet.

“Seeing Jim in such a bad way was pretty awful. We were certain he’d been snorting heroin because there was foam coming out of his lips as well as blood. He was scared of needles so never injected drugs. He just snorted them.”

Bernett’s first reaction was to send for one of his regular customers, a doctor. The medic, who Bernett refuses to name, “recognised Morrison but kept his cool. Very calmly, and expertly, he examined the body for a few seconds.

“He pushed Jim’s head back, lifted his eyelids, opened his mouth, and fixed his ear to his chest to listen to his heartbeat. He looked for marks and bruises on the body and the arms.

“It was a quick and professional examination. His diagnosis was very confident: ‘This man is dead. Apparently the victim of a cardiac arrest.’ The doctor was not stupid and spoke of a lethal overdose.”

In the meantime, Morrison’s two “friends” from the bar who had sold him the heroin had arrived. Ignoring the doctor’s verdict, they insisted the singer ‘had just fainted’ and they would take care of him.

Then, according to Bernett, they lifted Morrison’s body out of the toilets and along a corridor that linked the Circus with Alcazar, the club next door which still exists today.

That was the last Bernett saw of the body but, from Alcazar, he says it would have been easy to place Morrison in a car or van waiting in the small side street outside, and then take the body to the singer’s apartment across the river in Rue Beautreillis.

You can read the rest of Bernett’s story at The Daily Mail. The story seems plausible to me and it’s reasonable to think that Bernett is ready to get this secret off his chest.

I always had a crush of Jim Morrison. Yeah, I know he’s dead and he’s been dead most of my life, but still, look at him and listen to his music and poetry! So many died so young from drug abuse, especially during that era.

My, but wasn’t Jim Morrison a beautiful poet.

click on images to enlarge

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Trackposted to Outside the Beltway, Perri Nelson’s Website, Right Truth, Big Dog’s Weblog, Stuck On Stupid, Leaning Straight Up, The Amboy Times, third world county, Woman Honor Thyself, Stageleft, stikNstein… has no mercy, Pirate’s Cove, Dumb Ox Daily News, Right Voices, Church and State, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, 123beta, DeMediacratic Nation, On the Horizon, Webloggin, The Bullwinkle Blog, Cao’s Blog, , Conservative Cat, Diary of the Mad Pigeon, Faultline USA, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, The World According to Carl, Blue Star Chronicles, and The Yankee Sailor, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

Officials in Nepal have begun the process of looking for a replacement for Living Goddess, Sajani Shakya. Sajani had her status as a Living Goddess revoked because she left the country to help promote a British documentary about the centuries old tradition. As one of the countries top three Living Goddesses she is forbidden to leave the country.

Ishbel Whitaker, director of the film “Living Goddess” said she was shocked and saddened by this news and would make sure the girl’s education was provided for. “The rule of not being able to leave was never a rule before…. Nobody ever said the Kumari can’t travel” she said by telephone from London.

Whitaker said they filmed in Bhaktapur for a year. “We had been speaking with people we felt were authorities, and now these others are claiming they are,” she said.

The film crew consulted anthropologists, the head priests of Sajani’s temple and her parents, the director said. And she said the Nepalese Embassy helped arrange Sajani’s trip to the U.S.

The girls who serve as Living Goddesses or Kumari are chosen between the ages of 2 and 4 years. They are worshiped by both Hindus and Buddhists. The main Kumari is sequestered in a temple and is only allowed outside a few times a year for festivals. She only has select playmates. The other Kumari are allowed to live at home.

They are required to have perfect skin, hair, eyes and teeth, they shouldn’t have scars or wounds, and shouldn’t be afraid of the dark. They always wear red, pin up their hair in topknots and a “third eye” is painted on their forehead.

Devotees touch the girls’ feet with their foreheads, the highest sign of respect among Hindus in Nepal.

During religious festivals the girls are wheeled around on a chariot pulled by devotees. Living goddesses usually keep their title until their first menstruation.

The problem is that once they are no longer Kumari they generally have a hard life because folklore holds that men who marry a former Kumari die young.

I have no idea if having the title taken away from her means that Sajani will have her husband die young or not.

source

Trackposted to Outside the Beltway, Perri Nelson’s Website, Right Truth, Big Dog’s Weblog, Stuck On Stupid, Leaning Straight Up, The Amboy Times, Pursuing Holiness, Right Celebrity, third world county, Wake Up America, stikNstein… has no mercy, Pirate’s Cove, Dumb Ox Daily News, Right Pundits, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, DeMediacratic Nation, 123beta, Maggie’s Notebook, On the Horizon, Webloggin, The Bullwinkle Blog, Cao’s Blog, Conservative Cat, Diary of the Mad Pigeon, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, The World According to Carl, Blue Star Chronicles, Planck’s Constant, High Desert Wanderer, The Yankee Sailor, and Gone Hollywood, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

I’ve always felt that eating two or three hot dogs was rather piggish - even without the buns. However, in food-eating contests, three - ten - twenty - even fifty hot dogs WITH buns isn’t enough to win. I don’t know how they do it. This is definitely not a stop-and-smell-the-roses activity. It’s all about cramming as much food into your mouth and down your throat as fast as possible. No time to appreciate taste or worry about table manners.

Here’s the winner - Joey Chestnut - showing off his trophy:

And a food-eating competition is not a pretty sight. Just take a look at Chestnut’s opponent - previous winner, Takeru Kobayashi. And this is not even one of the more disgusting photos.

Here’s the story:

American Captures Hot-Dog-Eating Crown
Chestnut Sets World Record as He Beats Defending Champ Kobayashi
Posted: 2007-07-04 16:26:18
Filed Under: More Sports
NEW YORK (July 4) - In a gut-busting showdown that combined drama, daring and indigestion, Joey Chestnut emerged Wednesday as the world’s hot-dog-eating champion, knocking off six-time winner Takeru Kobayashi in a rousing yet repulsive triumph.
Chestnut, the great red, white and blue hope in the annual Fourth of July competition, broke his own world record by inhaling 66 hot dogs in 12 minutes - a staggering one every 10.9 seconds before a screaming crowd in Coney Island.

“If I needed to eat another one right now, I could,” the 23-year-old Californian said after receiving the mustard yellow belt emblematic of hot-dog-eating supremacy.

Kobayashi, the Japanese eating machine, recently had a wisdom tooth extracted and received chiropractic treatment due to a sore jaw. But the winner of every Nathan’s hot dog competition from 2001 to 2006 showed no ill effects as he stayed with Chestnut frank-for-frank until the very end of the 12-minute competition.

Kobayashi finished with 63 HDBs - hot dogs and buns eaten - in his best performance ever. His previous high in the annual competition was 53 1/2. The all-time record before Wednesday’s remarkable contest was Chestnut’s 59 1/2, set just last month.

The two gustatory gladiators quickly distanced themselves from the rest of the 17 competitors, processing more beef than a slaughterhouse within the first few minutes. The two had each downed 60 hot dogs with 60 seconds to go when Chestnut - the veins on his forehead extended - put away the final franks to end Kobayashi’s reign.

Hazel, I don’t know how this works, but HOW do their stomachs hold so much food? Do they throw it up after the contest ends - or can they throw up during the contest? And WHO would want to be in such a contest.

Adeline, I hate to say this, by my husband was watching this contest earlier today. It was really gross towards the end. The funniest thing to me was the announcer who really got into it. You’d have thought he was announcing a horse race. He made comments like, ‘this is the most important win in an American sport in …. ‘ I can’t remember how long he said, but I think he was indulging in just a little bit of hyperbole!

Mom and Dad Gore must surely be proud. . . not. It seems that 24-year old Al Gore III was stopped for going 100 mph in California - and the cops subsequently found a smorgasbord of drugs when they searched the car. No prescriptions for them either. Here’s the story:

Al Gore’s Son Arrested on Drug Charge

AP
LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. (July 4) — Al Gore’s son was arrested early Wednesday on suspicion of possessing marijuana and prescription drugs after deputies pulled him over for speeding, authorities said.Al Gore III, 24, was driving a blue Toyota Prius about 100 mph on the San Diego Freeway when he was pulled over at about 2:15 a.m., Sheriff’s Department spokesman Jim Amormino said.

The deputies said they smelled marijuana and searched the car, Amormino said. They found less than an ounce of marijuana along with Xanax, Valium, Vicodin and Adderall, which is used for attention deficit disorder, he said.

“He does not have a prescription for any of those drugs,” Amormino said.

Gore was being held in the men’s central jail in Santa Ana on $20,000 bail.

Kalee Kreider, a spokeswoman for his parents, did not immediately return phone messages to The Associated Press on Wednesday.

The son of the former vice president and Democratic presidential nominee also was pulled over and arrested for pot possession in December 2003, in Bethesda, Md., while he was a student at Harvard University.

He completed substance abuse counseling as part of a pretrial diversion program to settle those charges.

The youngest of Al and Tipper Gore’s four children and their only son, Gore lives in Los Angeles and is an associate publisher of GOOD, a magazine about philanthropy aimed at young people.

TMZ is reporting that Lindsay Lohan had alcohol and cocaine in her system when she crashed her car Memorial Day.

According to multiple law enforcement sources, toxicology reports conclude that Lohan, 20, had “nearly twice the legal limit” of alcohol and traces of blow in her bloodstream when she crashed her 2005 Mercedes SL-65 convertible into a curb on Sunset Blvd. around 5:30 AM on May 26. In California, drivers with a .08 or higher are legally drunk.

I know, it’s hard to believe. Even shocking!

A case against Lohan could be presented to the Los Angeles District Attorney by the Beverly Hills Police Department within the next few days.

h/t: NewToob

Pictured below are Chris Benoit with his son Daniel at a 2004 event honoring Chris Benoit.

Chris Benoit murdered his wife and his son, Daniel last weekend. He then hung himself.

This tragedy is continuing to unfold. WWE officials continue to deny steroids might have contributed to the problem. Benoit’s doctor’s office was raided and shut down. It turns out he has something of a shady past.

Another interesting development that came to light today is that someone posted an announcement of Chris Benoit’s wife, Nancy, on Wikipedia 14 hours prior to the bodies being discovered by the police.

There seem to be more and more layers to this tragedy.

h/t: TMZ

Related: The Tragedy of Chris Benoit

Should a prisoner get a sex-change operation at the taxpayers’ expense? In a word - NO! That doesn’t stop ‘em from trying, though. You can go HERE for the whole story. I’ve selected some highlights:

Prisoner Seeks Sex-Change Operation
Massachusetts Case Tied Up Over Question of Who Pays for Surgery

By DENISE LAVOIE,AP

BOSTON (June 27) - A trial that opened more than a year ago has become bogged down in Boston federal court. There have been hundreds of hours of testimony from witnesses, including 10 medical specialists paid tens of thousands of dollars. The judge himself even hired an expert to help him make sense of it all.

The question at the center of the case: Should a murderer serving life in prison get a sex-change operation at taxpayer expense?

The case of Michelle - formerly Robert - Kosilek is being closely watched across the country by advocates for other inmates who want to undergo a sex change. Transgender inmates in other states have sued prison officials, and not one has succeeded in persuading a judge to order a sex-change operation.

The Massachusetts Correction Department is vigorously fighting Kosilek ’s request for surgery, saying it would create a security nightmare and make Kosilek a target for sexual assault.

An Associated Press review of the case, including figures obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests and interviews, found that the Correction Department and its outside health care provider have spent more than $52,000 on experts to testify about an operation that would cost about $20,000.

The duration and expense of the case have outraged some lawmakers who insist that taxpayers should not have to pay for inmates to have surgery that most private insurers reject as elective.

But advocates say in some cases - such as that of Kosilek , who has twice attempted suicide - sex-change surgery is as much a medical necessity as treatment for diabetes or high blood pressure. (emphasis mine)

. . . . Kosilek , 58, was convicted of strangling his wife in 1990. He claimed he killed her in self-defense after she spilled boiling tea on his genitals.

Robert Kosilek legally changed his name to Michelle in 1993, and has sued the Correction Department twice, arguing that its refusal to allow a sex-change operation violates the Eighth Amendment protection against cruel and unusual punishment.

In 2002, U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf ruled that Kosilek was entitled to medical treatment for gender identity disorder, but stopped short of ordering the surgery. Kosilek sued again in 2005, arguing that the hormone treatments, laser hair removal and psychotherapy she has received since Wolf’s ruling have not relieved her anxiety and depression.

“I would not want to continue existing like this,” Kosilek testified.

Kosilek ’s second trial, which began in May 2006, has featured expert testimony from 10 doctors, psychiatrists and psychotherapists. Wolf has not indicated when he will rule.

. . . . Those who argue against allowing the surgery say it could open the floodgates to other inmates who want sex-change operations or other treatments considered elective.

In Massachusetts, 10 inmates have been diagnosed with gender identity disorder and are receiving hormone treatments. Two other inmates besides Kosilek have asked for sex-change surgery.

. . . . Dennehy also said prison officials cannot be influenced by Kosilek ’s talk of suicide.

“The department does not negotiate or respond to threats of harm or suicide in an effort to barter,” she said. “You couldn’t run a prison with that kind of leveraging going on.”

I guess if they have their own money, they can pay to have the surgery done, but for the taxpayers’ to pay for it is ridiculous. I’m sure there are law-abiding folks out there who would like to have the surgery, but they can’t afford it. If it’s done for a prisoner, then all anyone would have to do is break the law, get put in prison and insist on the surgery.