Elan Sassoon, what are you doing around here in icy New England? You’re an LA dude, reared on coolness, sunshine and beach parties. You’re the son of Vidal Sassoon. Yeah, Vidal. As in: “If you don’t look good, we don’t look good.” As in: You graduated from Beverly Hills High. As in: Your neighbor was Bob Dylan and his son, Jakob, your best bud. As in: What the hell are you doing here?
But here you are! You’re opening a swishy new salon, Mizu, in an even swishier new hotel, the Mandarin Oriental—tomorrow! You’ve bought space on Commonwealth Avenue to build the world’s first school of hair design and skincare, the Academy of Aesthetics by Elan Sassoon. You moved your wife and two children here to be freezing with the rest of us.
Welcome, guy! You’ll fit in. You have that Yankee work ethic, for sure. How could you not? Your dad was sent to an orphanage in England, just doors away from his mother, who sent him there because she could not afford to feed him. When he was 14, she took him to a neighborhood barbershop to get a job. “We don’t have any jobs,” the owner said. “Thank you, sir,” young Vidal replied. “I understand.” After which he took his mother’s hand, opened the door for her and escorted her. “Wait.” The owner said. “I like your manners. I think we can find work for you here.”
And so begat the gazillionaire empire of Vidal Sassoon, a collection of international salons, products and the infamous geometric “bob.” Vidal bore four children but only took one of them on industry trips to fashion weeks and shows—you. And despite the mansion and trappings of new money, your father insisted his kids work. Hard. You and your brother David worked construction, pouring cement in the summer. You were expected to earn their own money to buy things.
After graduating from American University, you chased Hollywood. You produced nine films, starring actors such as Sam Gallagher and Lara Flynn Boyle, and were nominated for an award at Cannes (losing to Ed Burns “The Brothers McMullen.”) But you couldn’t leave your roots behind, could you, Elan? Hair. You had a thing for hair.
So tomorrow is a big deal for you. It comes after years working in the beauty-care industry (you headed up Louis Vuitton’s salons, and started and sold a product line with your mom, Beverly). And it comes with great pride. It’s not just that you’re continuing the work your dad began. You have plans for eight more schools and a product line. It’s that you’re doing it on your own. We’re glad to have you with us, Elan. Now maybe you can convince your pal Jakob to move here, too.
Mizu
Mandarin Oriental Hotel
776 Boylston Street
Boston
(617) 585-MIZU www.Mizuboston.com
So arson is not really your thing and you don’t feel like reading over hundreds of essay entries. How else are you going to unload that house? One option is joining the thousands of people looking into house swaps. We’ve discussed temporary house swaps for vacation purposes, but a growing number of people are choosing to make those swaps permanent.
The Wall Street Journal recently published an article outlining just how popular this has become. We’re talking 16,000 listings as a combined total between house swap sites like GoSwap.org, OnlineHouseTrading.com, DaytonaHomeTrader.com and DomuSwap.com. Popular free online classified ads site Craigslist saw a 56-percent increase in “home swap” ads during 2007 with 7,392 such ads listed, according to WSJ.
These house swaps are working over short or long distances, usually with realtors or some type of transaction manager involved. It is recommended that a clause be included in the terms and agreements of each contract that final sale is pending on the same-day closing of both houses. This prevents either homeowner from getting snowed and coming up short-handed.
GoSwap.org has a fairly comprehensive Frequently Asked Questions section that briefly outlines some of the tax implications of swapping houses. If ineligible for a tax-deferred 1031 exchange, the homeowners may want to reasonably adjust the home’s asking price – say, by relying on the lowest of several home appraisers’ reports – and thus reducing their capital gains tax obligation. Obviously, the “asking price” of the home can be tweaked (within reason) because it is of little consequence in a housing swap.
The benefits of swapping houses are many. In addition to tax benefits, it can allow homeowners to skirt around broker’s fees – typically 4% to 7%. Still, roughly 13% of the listings on DomuSwap.com were listed and handled by brokers. Housing swaps also make it more possible for people to move up to bigger living quarters, provided they can find someone with a bigger house who is wanting to downsize. Under current market conditions, it may not be terribly difficult to find someone who meets that criteria but has been unable to find a buyer. House swapping is an innovative new trend that seems to provide a win-win scenario for all involved.
Kelli Clifton and her 14-month-old daughter, McKenzie, stand outside their lake home in Ortonville, Mich., June 20, 2007. Clifton and her husband are looking to swap their three-bedroom ranch for a larger home near good schools by putting their house up for swap on Craigslist. (AP/C.V. Tines, Detroit News)
In-depth features on U.S. markets, taxes, employment and the Federal Reserve.
A tough real estate market that has seen homes languish with for-sale signs in their yards has pushed some Michigan homeowners to try to swap their residences.
Home swaps more typically are used by vacationers, who arrange to temporarily exchange homes. But owners looking for bigger — or even smaller homes — are trying to set up permanent swaps, The Detroit News reported Saturday.
Rob and Kelli Clifton want to swap their three-bedroom ranch on Lake Louise in Ortonville, about 37 miles northwest of Detroit, for a larger home near good schools. The home offers with 55 feet of private shoreline, a big backyard and a new kitchen.
“It’s not like we haven’t tried our best to sell this house,” said Kelli Clifton, whose home also remains for sale on the traditional market. “We’ve offered everything, dropped the price. If this does the trick, that’s fine by us.”
U.S. home prices fell for a fourth consecutive month in April, with all regions showing the effect of the housing slowdown, according to the most recent figures in a housing index released Tuesday by Standard & Poor’s.
Boston, Detroit, Phoenix, San Diego and Washington, D.C., showed the greatest year-over-year declines in prices. Meanwhile, prices rose in Charlotte, N.C., Seattle and Portland, Ore., versus last year but those increases were moderating.
Elaine and Allen Putvin, of Macomb County’s Shelby Township, are ready to downsize. They want to trade their four-bedroom colonial where they raised three children for a smaller home closer to Allen Putvin’s job.
The Putvins also still have their home for sale on the traditional market. But like the Cliftons, they put their house up for swap on the Craigslist community Web site with details of what they hope to get.
In May, the Detroit-area’s Craigslist had one or two swap listings each week. As of Friday, 13 such ads had been posted in the past week. On Saturday, the “Housing Swap” section had at least five more posted.
A swap would work with both sides agreeing on a price and cutting checks to each other. But the owners can avoid the chance of getting stuck with two mortgages as well as real estate commissions.
Real estate agents, however, note that swapping limits the choice of houses to buy. And while the homeowners may save money on commissions, they often spend money on an attorney to help close the deal.
HUMAN PAPILLOMA VIRUS (HPV) *HPV infection is a sexually transmitted viral disease effecting primarily the cervix, but also the male genitalia, oral cavity, and esophagus D’Souza G, 2007). Viral changes in cervical cells can often be detected on routine Pap tests. The virus is more commonly seen in anemic younger women (>30 years old), contraceptive hormone users, smokers, alcohol users, the poor, during late pregnancy, and in periods of low immunity (Moreno V, 2002, Santos C, 2001, Broker TR, 2001, Thomson SW, 2000). *HPV has been found in association with low folic acidand antioxidant micronutrient status (Hernandez BY, 2003, Kwasniewska A, 2002 & 1997, Harper JM, 1994). Folic acid has been shown to have a protective effect against the development of HPV, and improving folate status in people at risk of getting infected or who are already infected may have a beneficial impact in the prevention of cervical cancer (Piyathilake CJ, 2004). *Many cases of HPV resolve on their own but certain strains, such as HPV-16, 18, 30, 33, and 45, are considered more aggressive and may lead to cervical cancer. HPV-DNA testing has shown that virtually all cervical cancers test positive for HPV with over 90% of them testing positive for HPV-16, 18, and 45(Munoz N, 2003, Ngelangel C, 1998). Women who are HIV positive are particularly vulnerable to HPV and often have unrelenting reoccurrences that quickly progress to invasive cervical cancer (Lee YC, 2000). HPV is so common in HIV positive women, it is now listed as an AID’s defining illness. HPV is at epidemic proportions, although early detection through Pap tests is helping to reduce its occurrence and deaths from cervical cancer worldwide (Lambert EC, 2001). Cervical cancer kills approximately 300,000 women worldwide. Recent studies have also strongly linked certain strains of HPV, especially HPV-16, with the pathogenesis of squamous cell carcinoma of the throat in both men and women (D’Souza G, 2007). *A major breakthrough in the prevention of cervical cancer has recently been made as there are now two approved vaccines, Gardasil and Cervarix, that will provide substantial protection against the most common high risk types of HPV (HPV16 and 18, which cause about 70% of cervical cancers, and HPV 6 and 11, which cause approximately 90% of genital warts) in girls and young women (9-26 years of age) who have not yet been exposed to the virus. While the vaccines provide almost 100% protection against the above four HPV strains, they may increase the risk of developing lesions that lead to cervical cancer in women already exposed to the virus. Therefore, the vaccines are not recommended for women who test positive for HPV-DNA. Furthermore, the vaccines do not protect against less common strains of HPV that may lead to cervical cancer such as HPV-30 and HPV-33 so regular Pap tests will still be required to detect precancerous changes in the cervix to allow treatment. The effectiveness of the vaccines are thought to be only for about 3 1/2 years so a booster may be required after that time. It has been estimated that the full effect of these vaccines against HPV in the general population will probably take about three decades to accomplish. Makers of the vaccines are also working on a version for boys and young men (WP Report , FDA Report) who harbor the virus and test positive for HPV-DNA at about equal rates to that of women and who can spread the virus as well. Vaccinating not only girls, but also boys, will help boost protect against not only cervical cancer but also oral cancer. Currently, some countries, such as Scotland, are offering the HPV vaccine to school girls as part of their government immunization program (Lyndsay M, 2007). The vaccine has been shown to be almost 100% effective in providing immunity to the most common forms of the virus that can lead to cervical cancer. A more recent development is a blood test for cancer causing strains of HPV. It is now patented and waiting additional approval for use (see Grant Life Sciences, 2007). *Hallmark cellular changes in epithelial cells of the cervix are mild to moderate dysplasia with koilocytotic atypia (a peculiar wide clearing of the cytoplasm around the nucleus). Koilocytotic atypia is pathognomonic of HPV. Identification of HPV on Pap tests is always given an abnormal interpretation. Frequent repeat smears and other follow-up tests are often recommended for several years after an HPV lesion is initially diagnosed. A new study published in the British Journal of Medicine in October, 2007 found the risk of cervical cancer after initial detection of a high grade HPV lesion still remains high 25 years after treatment. In this study the risk of cervical cancer was shown to have increased since the 1960s and to be pronounced in women over age 50 (Strander B, 2007). It should be noted that starting in the 1960’s significant use of and exposure to synthetic steroid hormones (estrogen and progesterone) began in women of developed countries starting with DES in-utero exposure, then birth control pills, and finally hormone replacement therapy. Various estrogen or estrogen and progesterone combinations were also given liberally to many of these women to stop lactation after child birth (estrogen) and for ovarian and menstrual disorders (The Pill).
THE HPV VIRUS hits males and females of all ages but is most commonly found in the 15-24 age group. In women, the highest and deadliest form of the virus can lead to cervical cancer and thousands of needless deaths each year. (Photos are generic representations of age groups more susceptible to the virus and are notactual victims.)
Before the year is over, approximately 288,000 women worldwide will die unnecessarily from the genital Human Papillomavirus (HPV). We know these women. Some of them are our mothers, sisters, cousins, and best friends. Even you could be a potential victim of this prevalent, yet preventable genital virus.
The HPV is easily contracted by a male/female who carries this disease through any type of genital skin-to-skin contact. Condoms and other forms of birth control won’t prevent or reduce the spread of this virus.
During the course of the HPV’s lengthy history, a recent discovery linked the virus with other sexually transmitted diseases. In 2005, alarming statistics revealed that up to 20 million people carried this virus at any given time and many unknowingly passed it on to their partner, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By getting to the root of this problem, we are finding out how to prevent more deaths from occurring and disease from spreading.
Over the 100 different types of the HPV (varying in severity), about 30 strains of this disease are sexually transmitted. These 30 strains are broken down into two categories of low and high risk. For women, the highest and deadliest form of this virus can lead to cervical cancer.
This cancer is almost always caused by the HPV infection, which is predominately in those with an immune disorder. For others infected, this virus can cause genital disease, developing into pre-cancerous legions. For men and women, this virus can turn into genital warts (a low- risk strain).
Some HPV strains are harmless and for most people infected the virus eventually goes away, especially in women under 30. Yet there are still repercussions in having this virus, so why even take the risk?
The incubation period of the HPV is from the beginning of infection until any symptoms appear. This incubation period may be anywhere from a few weeks to a full year. Because there are no obvious symptoms of the HPV (except visible genital warts), the virus goes unnoticed in some women until it is too late.
Is that possibly why the HPV spreads rapidly, because it is sometimes overlooked and underestimated? Whatever the answer is, 5,000 women in the United States are still dying annually as a result. Cervical cancer is the second leading cause of death in women; and “HPV is the cause of virtually all cancers of the cervix, about 80 percent of vaginal cancers, 50 percent of penile cancers and a majority of anal cancers,” states the American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology.
Although there is no cure for HPV, one of the best solutions for women over 30 years old who have the virus is the same for women who are unaware of what HPV is: visit the OB/GYN to schedule a Pap test and HPV DNA test. Studies prove that scheduling both tests are the complete, and accurate way to find out if one has HPV, and to reduce further risks.
A Pap test is a screening to search for abnormal cell changes in the cervix while the HPV DNA test looks for the specific DNA of the HPV inside the cells and can check for high-risk HPV types related to cervical cancer.
For younger women 15-24 years old, about 70 percent of them make up approximately the six million new cases of genital HPV every year in the United States. These staggering numbers reveal that we need solutions and HPV vaccination options available to the young people; the same goes for girls 9-13 years old.
Some of our children are growing up too fast, experiencing too much and there is not one answer to solve all the problems we may be facing.
But one of the best ways to prevent future exposure of the HPV in young girls and boys is to consult with a health care provider about vaccination treatments at the parents’ discretion.
Aside from these examinations and consultations, the real prevention methods start with knowledge.
Realizing that abstinence is the ideal method for avoiding the HPV altogether, taking precautionary methods means preventing the further spreading of disease, such as scheduling regular doctor visits and maintaining a clean lifestyle while being aware that the wide spread of HPV is real and, for some, fatal.
Before any more deaths occur, we can put an end to this virus. Instead of spreading the HPV, let’s spread the word that this virus exists and hopefully end this deadly cycle.
Gardasil, the vaccine designed to protect against the cervical cancer-causing HPV virus, is responsible for the deaths of 10 adolescent girls and 140 reports of serious side effects this year in the USA.
The vaccine has been given routinely to adolescent girls when they are 12 and 13 for several years now in America, and the pattern of deaths and side effects is now starting to be repeated in other countries, such as the UK, which have only recently introduced the vaccine.
Judicial Watch, an American public watchdog group, has recently issued the latest figures on the vaccine’s safety. Of the 140 adverse events this year, several have included miscarriage and onset of Guillain-Barre syndrome, a nervous system disease that causes weakness and tingling in the arms and legs.
The vaccine has also loomed large in the public’s consciousness with the story of 13-year-old Jenny Tetlock who is now almost completely paralyzed after being given the vaccine.
Meanwhile, undeterred by these worrying stories, the UK government is widening the availability of its own HPV vaccine to include teenage girls aged between 17 and 18.
Mary Jane Blige (surname pronounced: /blaɪʒ/) (born January 11, 1971) is an Americansinger-songwriter, rapper, record producer, and actress who has sold more than forty million albums worldwide. Blige is a Golden Globe nominated singer and grammy award winning R&B superstar. She has received over twenty-six Grammy Award nominations for her work, winning eight, and has been awarded the World Music Legends Award for combining hip hop and soul together like no one else during the early 1990s.
Music career
In 1988, Blige recorded an impromptu cover of [[Anita Baker’s “Caught Up In the Rapture” at a recording booth in a local mall. Her mother’s boyfriend at the time later played the cassette for Jeff Redd, a recording artist and A&R runner for Uptown Records. Redd then sent it to the president and CEO of the label, Andre Harrell. Harrell met with Blige and, in 1989, she was signed to the label; becoming the company’s youngest and first female artist.
Upon signing to Uptown, Blige’s early years there were dormant, as the label continued to focus most of its attention on its more established acts. During this time, Blige occasionally did session work as a background singer for her label mates. In 1990, she was introduced as a background singer for Redd, during a performance at the Apollo Theatre. The same year she also sang the hook on “I’ll Do 4 U” by rapper and label mate Father MC, appearing in the concert-themed music video of the same name; In 1991, she was spotted on the syndicatedshow, Showtime at the Apollo, singing back up for Jeff Redd. In early Fall of 1992, Blige guest spotted with Grand Puba with his single, Check It Out. Blige’s first national debut appearance was in the summer of 1992 when she appeared on MTV‘s Yo! MTV Raps performing “What’s the 411?” (the title track) with Grand Puba. Mary has a 4 octave vocal range and can hit notes in the baritone range.
Vacina contra câncer do intestino se mostra promissora
NEW YORK – Uma vacina experimental contra o câncer de cólon pode ajudar a tratar muitos pacientes que já desenvolveram a doença, segundo um novo estudo.Em um estudo anterior, esta vacina não pareceu melhorar as chances de cura dos pacientes. Mas a vacina oferece vantagens para algumas pessoas, segundo o Dr. Jules Harris, de Chicago.No subgrupo de pacientes que apresentou a maior resposta imune à vacina, 85% deles sobreviveu por mais de 5 anos, contra 45% dos que apresentaram resposta moderada à vacina. “Nós achamos que vacinações repetidas podem ser mais eficientes,” ele diz.O Dr. Harris e seus colaboradores escolheram 412 pacientes americanos entre 1986 e 1993 que tinham câncer de cólon que havia se espalhado para os linfonodos e tecidos adjacentes mas não para outros órgãos do corpo.
Os médicos operaram todos os pacientes, retirando os tumores. Em aproximadamente metade destes pacientes, os médicos retiraram uma porção do tumor do paciente, trataram estas células com irradiação, e fizeram uma vacina contra o tumor do próprio paciente.
Estes pacientes receberam três doses desta vacina em intervalos, começando 3 a 4 semanas após a cirurgia. Os pesquisadores monitoraram estes pacientes por 8 anos.
Entre os pacientes que reagiram à vacina, apresentando reação no local da injeção, as taxas de sobrevida variaram de acordo com o tamanho da reação. Entre aqueles com reação menor que o diâmetro de um lápis, 45% sobreviveu por menos de 5 anos, enquanto 85% daqueles que mostraram uma cicatriz do tamanho de uma moeda sobreviveram este tempo ou mais.
O Dr. Harris disse à Reuters Health que a cicatriz se tornou uma forma de avaliar o prognóstico do paciente, sendo que os que tiverem maior cicatriz terão chance de evoluir melhor.
Tentativas de melhorar a qualidade das vacinas também podem melhorar a reação à esta, de acordo com os pesquisadores.
FONTE: Journal of Clinical Oncology 2000;18:148-157.
Publicado em Bibliomed Saúde
Siedah Garrett is letting the world know what industry insiders have known for too long. She’s the best known unknown! Just ask Michael Jackson. When he was looking for songs for his smash LP, Bad, his producer, Quincy Jones, played him a song that Garrett had co-written with songwriter/producer, Glen Ballard. That song was “Man In The Mirror”. Jackson loved the song, and was also so impressed with the voice of the girl singing the demo, he decided that he had to meet her. When Jackson and Garrett met, they quickly hit it off. “Man In The Mirror” went on to become the third 1 single from the multi-platinum BAD album, and one of Jackson’s all-time favorite songs. But aside from singing background vocals on “Man In The Mirror,” Jackson decided Garrett was the natural choice for the duet, “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You,” which was to be the album’s first single. Not surprisingly, the result was a 1 smash, which sold over a million copies worldwide. Garrett toured with Jackson for almost two years, singing their duet as well as background vocals for his Dangerous World Tour. Garrett has also had the privilege co-written a song with Michael, entitled “Keep The Faith”, which is featured on the Dangerous CD.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, in the 70’s, it was apparent early on that Garrett was blessed with many talents. Her early influences were Chaka Kahn, Stevie Wonder and of course, The Jackson Five. Since Garrett blew on to the scene via an open audition for Quincy Jones, she has done a multitude of background vocal session work with everyone from Johnny Mathis to Donna Summer, Wayne Newton to Quincy Jones, The Pointer Sisters to The Starship, Kenny Loggins to RuPaul, Al Jarreau to Al B. Sure!. Garrett was responsible for contracting background vocal sessions for such prestigious pop, dance and urban contemporary artists such as Madonna, on the multi-platinum True Blue album, The Commodores, on the smash LP, Nightshift, and many others. Songs co-penned by Garrett have turned up on such hit album projects such as Paula Abdul’s Forever Your Girl, and Quincy Jones’ Back On The Block.
Garrett has enjoyed tremendous success as a songwriter, co-penning songs for everyone from the King of Pop, to the Queen of Soul, and many, many artists in between, but she’s also had some amazing successes as a recording artist in her own right. Garrett first 1 solo single, “Do You Want It Right Now”, a 1 dance hit and club anthem exploded onto the national scene. Garrett also sang the demo for a song that was meant to be a duet featuring Chaka Kahn and Dennis Edwards, but producer, Dennis Lambert thought that the vocal blend between Garrett and Edwards was magical. The result was the 1 smash R&B classic, “Don’t Look Any Further.”
Garrett was commissioned to write songs with and for, “The Brand New Heavies”, a popular British neo-soul band. After having co-written more than half of their latest CD, entitled Shelter, Garrett was invited to become a full member of the band, living and working in London, replacing departed lead singer, N’Dea Davenport. The Shelter album went gold in the United Kingdom, and has sold over half a million CDs worldwide.
Garrett was featured on Quincy Jones’ latest release entitled “From Q, With Love. The first single from this CD, is a duet featuring Garrett and El Debarge, entitled “I’m Yours”. Garrett is also the featured vocalist on the newest release from saxophonist, Richard Elliott, entitled “This Could Be Real”, also co-penned by Garrett. Garrett has also co-written and co-produced songs for Vanessa L. Williams and Tatianna Ali on the Grammy Award Winning soundtrack from the full feature film, “The Adventures of Elmo In Grouchland”.
And how many people do you know that have sung for The Pope? Well Garrett, along with a small group of American singers, combined with singers from Florence and Rome, calling themselves “The Millennium Choir”, converged on the ancient city to perform for Pope John Paul in Vatican City on Christmas Day 1999. It was a performance of a lifetime.
On July 4th, 2000, Garrett was in Paris to participate in a history making performance with mentor, Quincy Jones along with the entire French National Orchestra. The performance was in honor of would have been Duke Ellington’s 100th birthday. The entire event was filmed by “Bravo”, as part of a biography piece on Jones. Performing along with Garrett was singer/songwriter Phil Collins, Duke Ellington’s blues crooner Milt Grayson, harmonica aficionado Toots Tillman, songwriter Michele LeGrand, and French national treasure, Henry Salvadore.
In the fall of 2007, Garrett, along with Quincy Jones, was invited by the Chinese government to co-write the theme song for the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics, held in Shanghai, China.
Most recently, Garrett was nominated for an Oscar, as well as a Grammy for having co-penned, “Love You, I Do,” sung by Oscar winning actress, Jennifer Hudson, in the hit film, “Dreamgirls”.
The stage is set and, after her groundbreaking collaborations and contributions on history making albums, Garrett has proven herself a force to be reckoned with. The most rare of all offerings, she’s an enormous talent that encompasses her gift as an incredible vocalist and her true craft as a successful songwriter. Siedah Garrett, the quintessential recording artist/singer/songwriter, is a true Renaissance woman.
ADRIANA SASSOON 