Joey Feek has faced her terminal cancer battle with "big smiles" and determination since she and her husband announced they were stopping treatment last month.
The country star posted a sweet photo with her 1-year-old daughter Indiana on Thursday with the caption, "the mail lady delivered big smiles to us today....hand-sewn hats, made with love."
Joey and Rory Feek have been giving interviews and posting messages to fans during the 40-year-old"s battle with cancer. In October, the couple decided to stop treatment, so she could spend her remaining weeks at her childhood home in Alexandria, Ind., with friends and family.
In an interview last week with The Tennessean, Feek said she is "at peace."
"G*d decided for me that my job of singing for people down here is my legacy, and he needs me singing up there. Thats how I look at it," she told the paper. "I pray that one morning I just dont wake up. But I dont fear anything because Im so close to G*d and weve talked about it so many times. I know hes close. And I know he loves me. Im really at peace. I still believe theres healing in prayer.
Feek has been battling stage 4 cervical cancer since 2014 and stopped treatments in late October after they were found to be ineffective.
The Big Short | Clip: "Wrong Number" | Paramount Pictures International
Ryan Gosling on The Big Short, finding the humor in the financial meltdown, and why h**l probably never wear a wig again.
Adam McKays The Big Short the subject of this weeks Vulture cover story stars Ryan Gosling as a version of Greg Lippmann, a slick Deutsche Bank trader (he also gives some interstitial, direct-to-camera informative narration). We spoke with him about how to play a guy who bets against the American economy, how to order drinks like a Tony Robbins on His Day Off, and the importance of his hairpiece.
Were you an Adam McKay fan before this?I am a huge fan. His movies arent even like movies, theyre more like friends of mine. Like it feels like you have to check in with Step Brothers every once in a while, just to see how its doing. Adam sent along the script, and I was just really impressed by it. I knew that he was freakishly smart. But the fact that he was tackling this subject matter, in this way, was just really interesting to me.
Was the subject matter something you were familiar with?No, I wasnt. I mean, obviously I was aware that something happened. But like most people who will see the film, I felt like it was something I would never completely understand. But Adams perspective was unique in that he believed it was accessible, and he was trying to explain it in a way that was entertaining. The films point of view is that the language of high finance feels alienating because its designed to alienate you, to make you feel like you cant understand it, so that basically you wont ask too many questions. And this was like, Lets pull the curtain back on that whole machine.
Tell me about your character, Jared Venet.I like to pronounce itVenay. He wears many hats in the film. Hes the narrator and the tour guide of that world, the high finance world, but hes also a character in the present of the movie. I thought it was a really smart device on Adams part. It knows that its a movie, and we are actors, playing real people, and that this happened, or didnt quite happen like this, and I think it makes it more entertaining and engaging, and its a way to sort of earn the audience"s trust, its not trying to fool you, it knows what it is and what its doing, and you should trust it when it tells you something is important.
The character is based on Greg Lippmann, a Deustche Bank salesman who sold insurance on mortgage-backed securities to the hedge funds in the movie, who, in real life, as in the movie, didnt find him particularly trustworthy. (Though at one point, one of the characters says, Hes so transparent in his self-interest, I cant help but trust him.) What do you think? Is this character a good guy or a bad guy?Jareds job is to make money for his bank. He didnt create the system. He didnt invent the idea of the CDO, and he hasnt been going to the ratings agencies and having them rate things dishonestly. He has never been a party of that system. Unlike his peers, he had that instinct, that things were too good to be true, and he understood the genius of these credit-default swaps betting on this system to fail, and he went to his bosses and told them the payoff was much bigger than the risk. And in doing so, he took on a lot of humiliation. He was known among his peers as Bubble Boy and Chicken Little because he stood by this idea when it was unpopular. Whats difficult is all of these characters are sort of walking a morally ambiguous road. But the film is not walking a morally ambiguous road. It doesnt celebrate the heist of it all. It never celebrates their financial successes. My favorite part of the film is a line Brad says to two of the characters, where he tells them, You just bet against the American economy, and if you win, hardworking people will suffer, so try not to celebrate.
Though you do see Jared/Greg smoothing out his $47 million check at the end, after the collapse. You had dinner with the actual Lippmann, who didnt want his name used in the film. What was that like?He was very helpful, in a way, in sort of helping me to understand as much as is possible the sort of financial lay of the land at the time. He understood the character was loosely based on him, and his purpose in the film was to educate the audience on the overall story. And he was helpful in sort of adding flavor to the character so that he wasnt just a narrator. Unfortunately, I ended up looking more like Dustin Diamond than the real guy.
Yes, tell me about your look. Did you go on a special diet? How did you achieve that sickly pallor?It was really just powered by the wig. It was a hair-fueled performance. Its really like a Samson kind of a story. It took about a half-hour to put on every morning. It was kind of a nice way to start the day. I have never really worked much in that way, you know, in terms of, like ... altering my appearance.
You mean, no one has ever hired you to be ugly before?Uhhh. I just remember, the first time I stepped out of the trailer in makeup, Steve Carell was there, and he looked at me and very seriously said, Never do this again. Do it for this, but never, ever do this again.
I know you got to do some ad-libbing. When I was on set, during the scene in the casino, when youre at the bar with the guys from Front Point, at one point, you asked the bartender for a Matt Lauer, no strawberry.There was also an Andre the Giant With a Tractor Pull. And a Tony Robbins on His Day Off. They didnt make the cut.
You cant be too funny in a movie about the financial crisis, I guess.That was something we were all aware of. We knew this wasnt one of Adams comedies, and he wasnt making it because it was funny. At the same time, he cant help but have a sense of humor, and everything gets sort of filtered through that, and he encourages everybody to improvise within the realm of who that character is. And then he keeps mostly what he wrote, but he leaves some things to keep it feeling spontaneous.
Did anything else get cut that you were bummed about?We played a lot with the idea of Jared wanting to be very clear with the audience about the differentiations between real life and the story, and what he did and didnt say, him being aware that hes in a movie and the story has to be condensed, and getting more and more vexed by the process over the course of the film. But in the end, there was so much ground to cover, that was a layer that didnt end up serving the story. So that was too bad. Also, the Tony Robbins on His Day Off. But I think we should all try to order that and see what happens.
David Edelstein: The best film of the year? Possibly...
The Vikings rantheir preseason winning streak to eight games going back to 2013 with a 20-13 winover the Oakland Raiders on Saturday night.
Lightning in the area caused a 65 minute delay with 6:45 left in the second quarter. The Vikings took the lead for good right before halftime, and controlled the second half by forcing three turnovers to keep their exhibition streak alive.
One Vikings player who will want to burn the game tape is kicker Blair Walsh. In addition to missing an extra point, Walsh was 0-for-3 on field goal attempts. Walsh also struggled last season, going 26-for-35 on field goals.
The Raiders got a big play from rookie Amari Cooper, but struggled to stay on the field by going 5-for-14 on third downs.
Check below forhighlights of the game.
Latavius Murray Scored a Touchdown to Give the Raiders a 6-0 Lead
After several possessions where defenses held firm, the Raiders got on the board first with 3:22 left in the first quarter. Derek Carr hit Amari Cooper for a 40-yard gain, and Latavius Murray would score from two yards out for the games first points. Murray tried to convert the 2-point conversion, but was stopped short of the goal line.
Teddy Bridgewater Threw his 1st Touchdown Pass of the Preseason
The Vikings responded to the Raiders touchdown drive with one of their own, with Teddy Bridgewater hitting Charles Johnson for a 10-yard score. Blair Walsh missed the extended extra point, and the game was tied at 6-6.
Lightning Halted Play in the 2nd Quarter
With 6:45 left in the second quarter, a storm front came in and caused a delay for lightning near the field.
Chase Ford Caught a 4-Yard Touchdown Pass Before Halftime
After the lightning delay, the Raiders took a 9-6 lead with a field goal before the Vikings struck back. Shaun Hill threw his third touchdown pass in two games, this time to Chase Ford. Walsh made the PAT this time to give the Vikings a 13-9 lead at halftime.
Blake Renaud Scored a 1-Yard Touchdown to Increase Vikings Lead to 20-12
TOUCHDOWN!!!Blake Renaud takes the handoff and finds the end zone to give the #Vikings a 20-12 lead.
Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) August 23, 2015
Vikings linebacker Brian Peters intercepted Matt McGloin and almost returned it to the house, but three plays later Blake Renaud scored from a yard out to get the seven points.
Preview:Raiders, Vikings Meet at TCF Bank Stadium
The Raiders held the Rams to 285 yards and three points last week. (Getty)
A pair of proud franchises who have not enjoyed recent success in the last decade will meet in preseason action on Saturday. The Vikings and Raiders met in Super Bowl XI, but have been shut out of the big game since the Raiders made it to the Super Bowl in 2003.
Oaklands Derek Carr and Minnesotas Teddy Bridgewater are providing fans hope after solid rookie seasons that they may be on the way back to being contenders. Bridgewater has completed 12-of-14passes for 130 yards in two preseason games, while Carr and rookie wideout Amari Cooper connected on several passes against the Rams last week.
Vikings right tackle Phil Loadholt was lost for the season last week when he tore his Achilles, leaving fourth round rookie T.J. Clemmings to earn the spot. Second-year linebackerAnthony Barris expected tomake his preseason debut.
The teams will also meet in Week 10 at the O.Co Coliseum. Oakland leads the all-time regular season series 10-4.
Editors note: Heavys partners at DraftKings are gearing up for another football season. Sign up now with DraftKings promo code HEAVY and get a $600 deposit bonus with no season-long commitment.
FIFA 16: OMG RECORD BREAKER JAMIE VARDY (DEUTSCH) - FIFA 16 ULTIMATE TEAM [NO VARDY NO PARTY!!]
Jamie Vardy broke Ruud van Nistelrooy"s scoring record but Leicester had to settle for a draw against Manchester United despite yet another thrilling display from Claudio Ranieri"s side.
Vardy became the first player to score in 11 straight Premier League matches - beating Van Nistelrooy"s record from 2003 - when he stroked home Christian Fuchs" slide-rule pass.
The Foxes blitzed United with wave after wave of attack in search of a second goal, but had to settle for a 1-1 draw after Bastian Schweinsteiger headed home an equaliser in first-half injury time.
The draw meant Leicester were unable to reclaim top spot, but Ranieri will not be too disheartened.
Although they failed to grab all three points, this performance showed they are capable of challenging for a top-four place at the end of the season.
But who was the star man? Scroll through our gallery to see the ratings:
Barry Sanders, Christian McCaffrey bring pro pedigree to Stanford"s backfield
Notre Dame has made it to the final week of its regular season with just one loss, a two-point defeat at Clemson.
The Tigers just happen to be the No. 1 team in the College Football Playoff rankings.
The Irish (10-1) have two wins against teams currently in the top 25, beating No. 15 Navy and No. 25 Temple. They close the regular season against another ranked team, No. 9 Stanford (9-2).
Does Notre Dame believe a win against the Cardinal would be enough to secure one of the four playoff spots?
"Yeah, we do," Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said earlier this week. "But again, we don"t control that. There"s a committee that makes those decisions. All we can do is control the way we perform and the way we prepare.
"And they know that. Our guys clearly understand what they have to do in their preparation and then their performance on Saturday. And that"s it. The rest is up to a committee, and we knew that coming into the season. We"ll take care of what we can take care of."
Kelly"s comments came before the Irish dropped two spots to No. 6 in the rankings. But the sentiment remains. Notre Dame"s hopes for a playoff berth could come down to stopping Stanford"s Christian McCaffrey.
The sophomore running back has become a factor in the Heisman race.
"He"s a guy that can influence the game in special teams, catching the ball out of the backfield, certainly running the football," Kelly said. "Special, special player and deserving of all the accolades he"s gotten. We"ve got our hands full there."
McCaffrey has 1,546 rushing yards and seven touchdowns this season. He"s caught 34 passes for 416 yards and three TDs. And he"s returned 26 kicks for 813 yards and one TD.
"What he did against UCLA, what he did against Cal, what he did a couple of games earlier in the year, he took over the game," Stanford coach David Shaw said. "It"s amazing to see."
McCaffrey set a Stanford record with 389 all-purpose yards last week in a win against California. He"s rushed for at least 100 yards for nine straight games, including a school-record 243 yards against UCLA on Oct 15.
"Every time we needed something, he was the guy," Shaw said. "That"s what big-time players do. You run out of adjectives to describe him. You sit there and say "wow." He"s that good that he can take over any game we play."
Notre Dame is calling on its veterans to do likewise Saturday.
"I need to remind them that in big games, the great players rise to the occasion," Kelly said. "And so (receiver) Will Fuller has to play great. (Linebacker) Jaylon Smith"s got to play great. (Defensive lineman) Sheldon Day has got to play great. (Offensive lineman) Ronnie (Stanley) has got to play great.
"The great players have to step up. And for us to win, they"ll have to play great. If they do, we will. If they don"t, we won"t. It"s that simple."
Jamie Vardy Goal - Leicester vs Manchester United 1-1 (Premier League) 28/11/2015
19:53Live update
Recap: Vardy makes history but United earn point
Louis van Gaal has just spoken to Sky after the game.
After the disappointment against PSV, we dominated the game, he said.
But this kind of match you have to win.
Jamie Vardy made history by scoring in his 11th straight Premier League game, but United recovered to earn a point.
You can read Adrian Kajumbas analysis here and the player ratings here.
19:37Key event
Player ratings
Vardy will hog the back pages tomorrow, but there were plenty of other impressive displays out there today.
Think about Wes Morgan, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Wayne Rooney. That last one was a joke.
Anyway, Adrian Kajumba was at the King Power and rated all the players.
Have a read here.
19:32Joshua Evans
What did we learn at the King Power Stadium?
Jamie Vardy wrote his name in Premier League history at the King Power Stadium.
The 28-year-old forwards goal gave the hosts the lead and the Foxes were a constant threat throughout.
But what did we actually learn from this evenings clash?
19:23Joshua Evans
Record-breaking day
So, it finishes all square at the King Power Stadium - and it was probably a fair reflection of what unfolded.
United enjoyed the bulk of possession, but it was the hosts who had the cutting edge.
However, when this game is recalled in years to come, it will all be about Jamie Vardy, who secured his place in the record books.
19:21Minute by minute
That will do it from the King Power Stadium as the spoils are shared between Leicester City and Manchester United. Vardy scored in an unprecedented 11th straight Premier League game to give the hosts the lead, but Schweinsteiger drew them level on the stroke of half-time with a header. United dominated the ball in the second half, but neither side could find the winner, meaning that City stay top of the league. That"s all from us as well, thanks for joining our live commentary!
19:1990+2 minsMinute by minute
Darmianwhacks an ambitious attempt into the sky and that may just be that.
19:18Stats
Overall Possession Ratio
LeicesterKey color for Leicester
Man UtdKey color for Man Utd
19:1890+1 minsMinute by minute
Vardy and Ulloa play an expansive one-two which ends with the former having the step on Smalling momentarily and a lot of green space to run into. However, he can"t drive centrally and is pushed out to the right, where his cross fails to pick out a teammate.
19:1790 minsMinute by minute
Drinkwaterblasts a decent shooting chance off target from the edge of the area as Leicester try to steal a late winner. They"ve seen precious little of the ball in the second-half - which has two minutes of added time tacked onto it by the fourth official.
19:1489 minsMinute by minute
Smalling does well to keep tabs on Schlupp down the left, and he not only prevents the substitute from getting a cross in, but manages to to win the ball back as well. Time fast running out here, is there going to be a winner?
19:1287 minsMinute by minute
Morgan and Huth have been their usual physical and committed selves all game when the ball has been on the floor. They"ve ruffled the feathers of Rooney, Mata and Martial all game and have protected Schmeichel well.
19:1185 minsMinute by minute
OVER THE BAR FROM MEMPHIS! Darmian wins a header excellently to put Memphis on goal inside the area, but Morgan is on his back and does enough to put him off his finish, which is sliced well over the top.
19:1084 minsMinute by minute
It"s been United in control of possession for the last little while, but they"re struggling to get much change out of the Leicester defence - which has consistently looked a lot more assured from open play than from dead b***s.
19:09Joshua Evans
Tick-tock, tick-tock...
United found a last-minute winner in their most recent Premier League fixture against Watford.
Can they do it again? Truthfully, it doesnt look likely - but you never know.
Time is ebbing away.
19:0982 minsMinute by minute
Memphis sprays the ball down the right for Darmian, who has the time and space to pick out a cross, but sends the ball sailing out for a goal-kick. That just about sums up his performance, as he"s been below-par this evening.
19:0680 minsSubstitution
Ranieri pulls the trigger on his final change with about 10 minutes remaining. It"s one former Manchester United player for another as the hardworking Simpson jogs off to be replaced by De Laet.
19:0680 minsMinute by minute
Huth and Smalling are both fine to continue and United launch a dangerous attack. Memphis glides away from Drinkwater, and finds Mata at the back post. The Spaniard tries to lash a low effort for the corner, but a block from a defender halts that one.
19:0578 minsMinute by minute
Manchester United win an eighth corner, but Blind"s delivery is crashed away by Huth. However, both sets of players immediately appeal for the referee to stop play as the German defender was involved in a clash of heads with Smalling.
19:0476 minsMinute by minute
The top of the table beckons. A goal for either side to win this game will send them to the summit of the league ahead of current incumbents Manchester City. Can any of them rise to the occasion? Just under a quarter of an hour to go.
19:02Stats
Overall Possession Ratio
LeicesterKey color for Leicester
Man UtdKey color for Man Utd
19:0174 minsMinute by minute
Ulloaaccepts possession at the top of the box and does well to spin and face goal with the ball on his left foot. He shapes to shoot for the top corner, but gets it all wrong, firing well over the bar. He looked like he rushed that one.
19:0072 minsMinute by minute
Both managers introduced attacking options in their recent substitutions, which tells you that they aren"t looking to settle for a point any time soon. The second-half has struggled at times to burst into life but as both goals so far have proven, a breakthrough can come out of nowhere.
18:58Joshua Evans
Rooney substitution
The Manchester United and England striker seemed a little annoyed at being subbed, but in truth, he can have few complaints.
Rooney was underwhelming once again, and his slump in form shows no signs of easing.
Memphis, by the way, appears to have lined up on the left side of Uniteds attack.
18:5869 minsMinute by minute
Will Leicester come to rue that missed opportunity? It was a fantastic break led by the impressive Mahrez, and Ulloa will really feel that he could have finished better after doing so well to create the space for his shot.
18:5770 minsSubstitution
Albrightonsees his number held up on the sidelines and departs forSchlupp. He"s put in a tireless shift tonight, although his defensive contributions have been more notable than his attacking exploits.
18:5468 minsSubstitution
Rooney hasn"t really been at his top level tonight, and Van Gaal has thrown on Memphis in his place to find another breakthrough,
18:5367 minsMinute by minute
DE GEA WITH A CRUCIAL SAVE! Mahrez led a break for Leicester, and the ball is worked from the right to the centre for Ulloa, who side-steps his marker but can"t beat the Spanish goalkeeper with his low finish from close range!
18:5266 minsMinute by minute
Magnificent defensive work from Albrighton, who gets back to help out against Martial. He was isolated against the Frenchman but his initial challenge didn"t get the ball away far enough. However, as Martial attempted to try again, he charged in with an authoritative tackle to end the move once and for all.
18:5164 minsMinute by minute
United are dominating the ball but failing to provide a cutting edge to all their sequences in possession. It"s been a similar story during many of their games this season, and it looks like Van Gaal is readying a sub in a bid to freshen things up.
18:50Joshua Evans
Time to make a change?
The away side have barely posed a threat in open play, which suggests a change may be in order.
Memphis is, perhaps, the most obvious option - and hed certainly add some pace to the United attack.
At the moment, though, Louis van Gaal is happy to sit tight.
Spanish retailer giant Zara was forced to fire two employees from a Parisian branch on November 18 after social media outrage over a woman being denied entry for wearing a hijab.
It is unclear when the incident took place but the clip was uploaded on November 14, a day after the Paris terror attacks.
The 26 seconds video immediately prompted Muslims and civil right campaigners around the world to call for a boycott of the clothes shop, the hashag #boycottZara quickly trended on twitter.
This is not okay. Share this with all your followers and encourage them to boycott Zara. #REPOST #boycottZara. tweeted Wisconsin, USA based Asmaa.
Texas based Tara said, #BoycottZARA Since no one should be stopped from entering merely because they wear a hijab. Stop the discrimination and stop Islamophobia.
In Bradford, England, Muhammad Ali tweeted #BoycottZARA seems Zara dont like Muslims money cause they choose to cover-up.
In a statement Zara said: We would like to sincerely apologise for what has happened. Our Country Head in France has personally contacted this customer to apologise for the incident and to express our utter disagreement with such actions, which are completely opposite to the principles of our Company. Both the security staff and the store manager have been sanctioned. Once again, we are deeply sorry about this.
Respect for diversity is the fundamental pillar on which Inditex (Zaras parent company) was founded, with more than 140,000 employees worldwide representing a rich multitude of cultures and religions, Zara said in a statement.
Meanwhile Jean-Jacques Salaun, head of Zaras French stores, said, This type of mentality is unheard of at Zara and there have never been instructions given out to act this way.
Salaun said he offered the woman a full apology as soon as he heard about the incident.
Salaun said a security guard at the store in Plaisir, west of Paris, asked the woman to remove her headscarf. When the woman refused, she was not allowed to enter.
In the video, the staff member is heard telling the unidentified woman that people whose heads are covered with caps, hats, beanies, hoods and hooded veils cant enter the store.
The woman is heard asking him if she cant enter store wearing a hiab.
The man responds, If things change, theyll change but I dont make the rules.
Tennessee"s one of the top 10 states for Black Friday fights.(Photo: Estately Blog)
MEMPHIS, TN (WMC) - Arkansas and Tennessee top the list for Black Friday fights.
Estately blog ranked the top ten states where people are most likely to get into fights over discounted deals.
Arkansas tops the list at number one, followed by Tennessee and Alabama. Missouri ranks in at number 5.
Shoppers love saving money, but when it comes to Black Friday, some Midsoutherners go to extreme measuresto get those hot items. Experts said there is a way to save money while staying safe.
You may remember the fight that happened in a West Memphis, AR Walmart in 2013. It wasn"t caught on camera and no one was hurt, but there was an increased police presence.
Additionally, mall madness turned violent on Thanksgiving Day in 2012 when a customer claimed her busted lip and black eye came from a fist fight at a Germantown Dollar Tree.
"Too many people do pushing, shoving a lot and that"s not good," shopper Kyetra Mann said.
"It"s pointless. I mean, it"s not like...when you died. It"s not like you can take it with you," shopper Travis Sherrill said.
Experts said the best way to avoid a confrontation is to be courteous to employees and other shoppers. Additionally, you should plan ahead to shop for the hot ticket items so you won"t fight over the last one. Another option is avoiding lines all together.
"It"s more or less like getting online and not getting out because there"s road rage and people that are just fighting for things. I"d rather like spend my Black Friday...drinking a Blood Mary," shopper Denise Morse said.
An increased police presence is definitely something you can expect Thursday night going into Friday morning.
Many stores have already planned on upping security and say they don"t expect anything out of the ordinary to happen.
"I don"t like how it"s always packed inside of every mall that you go into. Then, like, you say you try to find something you like, you got disputes, arguments, etc. It"s not my thing," Sherrill said.
This story originally ran on WMCAction5News.com
Read or Share this story: http://on.wbir.com/1joKTgY
The holiday season is upon us, and that means consumers across the country are already scouring the internet and shopping malls in search of the best deals. While there are lots of great offerings at this time of year, money-savvy shoppers know a secret for saving big bucks: free samples.
Whether you"re shopping online or in stores, the free sample tricks listed below can help you save money at places like Sephora and Target while preventing you from buying full-size products you might not end up liking. As an added bonus, you might just find a few stocking stuffers along the way. Take a look at these tips to score free samples with few or no strings attached. Happy sampling!
1. Sephora and ULTABeauty products can cost a fortune, especially when money is wasted because you don"t realize until after you"ve purchased a product that it fails to meet your needs. Luckily, many beauty retailers, such as Sephora and ULTA, offer free samples through loyalty programs and online promotion codes.
When you shop online at Sephora.com, you will receive three free samples with each purchase. The site also offers beauty deals, including limited-time markdowns, free products and exclusive offers with the use of promotion codes at checkout. To take advantage of even more free samples, register to become a Beauty Insider and receive free deluxe samples, gifts on your birthday and more. You will also earn points for each purchase and can eventually use those points to receive larger samples and even full-sized products, depending on how many you accumulate.
When you are shopping in-store at Sephora, ask for samples of products you are interested in so that you can try them before you buy. This benefit allows you to test products for allergic reactions and personal preference before committing to a full-size purchase.
Like Sephora, beauty retailer ULTA allows customers to add free samples when making online purchases. You can sign-up for ULTA"s email list to receive special offers, a free birthday gift and bonus point rewards, as well.
2. Target and WalmartOf course, beauty retailers aren"t the only stores that provide their customers with special deals. Marcy Bonebright, a features writer at the daily deal and coupon site DealNews, said that finding free samples at Target and Walmart requires a bit more patience.
"Generally, you"ll have to fill out a short form about your shopping habits, and then wait three to five weeks for delivery. We typically see samples for grocery and medical items from these stores, so you might have to sift through offers you"re not interested in," Bonebright said.
According to Target"s Sample Spot page, offerings are usually scooped up quickly, and customers will need to check back often to avoid missing out. To receive a sample, you will have to fill out a survey and provide information about yourself. Examples of free samples available from Target include personal care products, food freebies and cleaning supplies.
Like Target, Walmart requires customers to think fast to score samples. To nab free samples from Walmart, visit the retailer"s Free Samples and Savings page, where you will find the items being offered while supplies last. Examples of free samples from Walmart include cosmetics and personal care products, coffee, food, diapers, greeting cards and medicine.
3. Macy"s and NordstromDepartment stores like Macy"s and Nordstrom often give out free samples with purchases, especially for cosmetics, fragrances and other beauty products, and particularly around holidays like Christmas, Valentine"s Day and Mother"s Day.
When visiting a department store beauty counter, don"t forget to ask the sales associate or makeup artist for free samples of the products you wish to try. Usually, the salesperson will give you two to three days" worth of products to try out so you can test for allergic reactions and suitability.
To find free giveaways at Macy"s, visit the department store"s online Deals and Promotions webpage. To find freebies at Nordstrom, visit the retailer"s Gifts with Purchase webpage.
4. Proctor and Gamble, L"Oral, Gillette and GarnierBecome a Proctor & Gamble BzzAgent to receive and review products and find out what samples are available through the P&G Samples by Mail program. As a BzzAgent or participant in the Samples by Mail program, you will receive free products from P&G brands like Olay, Oral-B, Tide, Pampers, Duracell, Swiffer, Old Spice, Clairol and more, all delivered straight to your mailbox. Several other brands, including Gillette, L"Oral and Garnier Fructis, have similar free sample and giveaway programs.
Small samples of this type make perfect travel companions. Keep your stash in a clear Ziploc bag and bring it with you the next time you go on vacation. You"ll save time and money by not having to buy the travel-size products needed to meet TSA regulations at the airport.
5. Grocery Stores and Wholesale RetailersIf you"re on your lunch break, consider taking a stroll through grocery stores like Trader Joe"s and Whole Foods. Along with wholesale retailers such as Costco and Sam"s Club, many grocery stores offer free food samples that are perfect for times when you need a snack.
Trader Joe"s usually has a demo station set up for you to taste-test a promoted beverage, and Whole Foods will allow you to try any prepared food just ask a store associate. Wholesale retailers Sam"s Club and Costco, along with certain grocery stores, have stations set up throughout the store for customers to taste all kinds of food, from sausages to pre-packaged cookies and gourmet cheeses.
Just don"t go overboard in 2010, a man in Minnesota was arrested in a grocery store for violating "societal norms and common customer understanding regarding free-sample practices," according to The Atlantic.
Ask for Free Samples at Any StoreIf your favorite store or brand wasn"t mentioned on this list, don"t fret. Many retailers offer free samples and, in most cases, all you have to do is ask. Jonathan Ceballos, marketing assistant at USB Memory Direct, said his company gives away free samples to customers who request them.
"We"ve seen it really helps with closing sales, and it gives our customers ease of mind to know exactly what they"re buying," Ceballos said. "You"ll be surprised how many stores and brands will give you a free sample of their product. They might not advertise that they do, but it doesn"t mean they"re not able to. Some of the best free samples and products you can receive can come from directly contacting a company, too."
If you"re more of an online shopper, don"t hesitate to use your favorite web retailer"s search function to locate great samples. You can also find free offerings online at websites like All You, Freebies and Sample A Day. All it takes is a little research to start making your free sample dreams realities and your holiday shopping that much simpler.
From GoBankingRates.com:How to score free samples at stores like Sephora and Target
Alshon Jeffery remembers the last time the Chicago Bears went to Lambeau Field and it was a trip he would like to forget.
On Nov. 9, 2014 the Bears took on the Packers at Lambeau Field and they came into the game with a 3-5 record. The Packers, who had a 5-3 record, poured it on the Bears and won 55-14.
Jeffery, who has six receptions for 63 yards in the loss, did not like the way the Packers ran up the score against the Bears. Heres what he had to say about the game on Tuesday.
RELATED: Matt Forte expected to play vs. Packers
Alshon Jeffery with some strong comments on last years 55-14 loss at Lambeau: pic.twitter.com/yoe1OFyxCe
Adam Hoge (@AdamHoge) November 24, 2015
Theres a chance it could be another blowout loss for the Bears because the Packers come into the game as a nine-point favorite. If the Bears do have another loss to the Packers like they did last year, the playoffs dreams are done.
Mera Target (Cameraman Gangatho Rambabu) 2015 Full Hindi Dubbed Movie | Pawan Kalyan Updated Nov. 26, 2015 8:09 p.m. ET
As thousands of shoppers waited outside Target Corp. TGT 0.37 % stores on Thanksgiving Day to buy toys, electronics and kitchen gadgets, workers inside were getting ready to send some of those very items out the door.
The Minneapolis-based retailer enlisted small teams of workers in about one-quarter of its 1,800 U.S. stores to pack up some of the orders placed through Target.com earlier in the day. The employees worked in shifts, in a few cases starting up to 10 hours before the official 6 p.m. store opening, navigating dimly lighted aisles and picking items to mail to customers who pounced on Web deals hours before shoppers could in a store.
The strategy is a new twist on the Black Friday weekend. What for decades had been a purely in-store shopping frenzy has ceded much ground to the Internet. A Deloitte LLP survey found shoppers expect to spend 59% of their money online for the four days starting Thursday, compared with 36% in stores. The remaining 5% is spent on catalogs.
The growth in online spending is affecting how one of the nations largest retailers operates on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year. The change is born out of a need to cut down on delivery time and shipping costs to keep pace with Amazon.com Inc., AMZN 0.62 % and to put inventory sitting on store shelves to better use by using it to fulfill orders coming from the Internet.
With the shift online, youve got to take advantage of the inventory where it is and when you can, says Rodney Sides, a vice chairman at the consultancy Deloitte.
Target still has much to prove in its online business, which is less than 3% of overall sales. Targets online sales were up 20% in the third quarter, but the retailer fell short of its own goal of 30% growth in the period. CEO Brian Cornell has targeted 40% online sales growth in the next five years, but hasnt reached that in any quarter since laying out the goal earlier this year.
Mr. Cornell says shipping from store, even on Thanksgiving, is a more efficient way to get orders to customers for that last stretch, especially in lieu of heavily investing to open dozens of additional online shipping centers. Well be able to have product in their doorstep in a couple of days, he said in an interview Thursday at the Jersey City, N.J., Target store. If it shows up Saturday afternoon, well see a lot of smiles.
Physical retailers have long grappled with managing the logistics of selling online. The problem stems from a legacy that includes hundreds of stores that must be filled with millions of pieces of inventory and manned by thousands of employees. Layered on top of that is a network of online fulfillment centers.
Amazon and other pure-play online retailers dont have that complexity. They can spread out inventory at a smaller number of locationsAmazon says it has more than 50 distribution centersand focus on shipping packages.
The online giant is compressing shipping times further, with same-day delivery available in 16 metro areas free for members of its Prime service, and offering to deliver orders in as little as an hour in some markets.
Retailers call their answer omnichannel, a strategy that views all inventory the same and uses algorithms to calculate whether it makes more sense to ship online orders from a distribution center or a store. In some cases, customers want the order ready at a store to pick up.
Shipping from stores is a big part of the plan. The National Retail Federation says nearly one-third of retailers are working on shipping products from stores. However, many take a pause during the busiest times of the year, and none is taking it as far as Target this year. Best Buy Co. BBY 1.33 % , Macys Inc. M 1.89 % and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. WMT 0.53 % all were open Thanksgiving, but suspended efforts to ship items from stores.
Its just a very busy time, says Dan Toporek, a spokesman for Wal-Mart, which plans to ship nearly all online orders from distribution centers in the 48 hours around Black Friday. We want to make sure were delivering the best experience in stores for customers.
One shopper missing a sit-down dinner was Rafael Gonzalez. The 28-year-old liquor distributor was third in line at a Vauxhall, N.J., Target after arriving around 11 a.m. on Thursday. He was waiting for the chance to buy a 40-inch Samsung SSNHZ 0.00 % television while his wife was at the adjacent Best Buy, staking out a place in line to buy a larger 50-inch TV.
He knew that the TV was also available online earlier in the day, but he decided to wait in line. I usually come to get first dibs on the cheap items, Mr. Gonzalez says. Its also the excitement. Mr. Gonzalez estimated he and his wife would spend around $900 in stores Thursday. He was holding out for Cyber Monday to shop online.
While the logistics of shipping from stores before the rush of Thanksgiving shoppers can make sensestores will be empty, orders will be easy to find before the crowds mess up thingsthe financials can be a challenge. The biggest cost of shipping from store is labor, analysts say, and holiday-pay rates mean it costs at least 1.5-times more than normal. Ship from store can turn the model upside down if youre not careful, Mr. Sides says.
Retailers face additional margin pressures from shoppers, who dont want to pay shipping fees. Best Buy and Target have eliminated shipping charges on all orders for the holidays. Wal-Mart, meanwhile, has a $50 threshold to eliminate the charge.
There is also the incongruity of whittling your inventory on one of the few appointment shopping days of the year. All of your efforts have been toward driving traffic to stores, says Nikki Baird, managing partner at Retail Systems Research, a research firm. Why would you then ship from stores to meet demand thats coming from online?
Target isnt shipping out of stores some of the most heavily advertised items. The prime deals$249 55-inch televisions and $395 drones with high-definition camerasare reserved for shoppers in stores, says Eddie Baeb, a spokesman. Anyone who bought those items on Target.com on Thursday, where the same deals were available, will get them from distribution centers.
Target has 462 stores around the country shipping items from stores. Most were expected to have workers arrive two to four hours before Thursdays opening. Forty-four stores meanwhile have souped up shipping operations with expanded backrooms for packing up to 1,500 orders a day.
Robert DeMarino arrived at the Jersey City, N.J., Target store he manages around 7:30 a.m. Thursday to oversee a team of 10 workers on the ship-from-store team. Plenty of the orders were concentrated in the toy and electronics sections, he says. By mid-morning, the store was well on its way toward hitting its goal of shipping 900 orders, up from 500 on normal days, and getting most of it done before shoppers start to stream in.
This is nice for one day to just not have any distractions, he says. We want to make sure that come 6 oclock, were ahead of the game and helping our guests with anything they need in the store.
The strategy is also part necessity. Target has nine online fulfillment centers and some of them will churn out eight-times the number of orders on Friday versus a normal day. But that isnt enough, and they need the stores to help with the sheer volume. Target expects stores to process one million online orders in storewhether shipping them out or holding for pickupbetween Thursday and Sunday.
The torrid pace will continue throughout the holidays. For the quarter, Target expects 40% of orders to be shipping from stores, up from 25% normally.
Drew FitzGerald, Suzanne Kapner and Sarah Nassauer contributed to this article.
We pause to give thanks Sarah Josepha Hale, the 74-year-old magazine editor who wrote a letter to Abraham Lincoln on September 28, 1863, urging him to have the day of our annual Thanksgiving made a National and fixed Union Festival. She explained, You may have observed that, for some years past, there has been an increasing interest felt in our land to have the Thanksgiving held on the same day, in all the States; it now needs National recognition and authoritive fixation, only, to become permanently, an American custom and institution.
On October 3, 1863, Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise. According to the April 1, 1864, letter from Lincoln assistant John Nicolay, the proclamation was written by Secretary of State William Seward, and the original was in his handwriting. A year later the manuscript was sold to benefit Union troops.
In his 1863 proclamation, President Lincoln recognized that for which we too have to give thanks: The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty G*d.
Best wishes for a happy Thanksgiving to all our readers.
Drawn from the Proclamation of Thanksgiving at Abraham Lincoln Online. More background in Barbara Maranzanis Abraham Lincoln and the mother of Thanksgiving."
Jimmy Fallon, Adele & The Roots Sing "Hello" (w/Classroom Instruments)
Sure, youve heard Hello (everyone has by now). But youve never heard it played like this.
Adele took time out from her historic sales week to unwind for a performance with Jimmy Fallon and the Rootsand a room full of classroom instruments.
Adele"s "25" First-Week U.S. Sales Forecast Increases to 3 Million
The British pop singer and her hosts tackled the global hit with an array of percussion instruments, a ukulele and even a flip phone (hello!).
The "classroom instruments"segment aired Tuesday night on The Tonight Show, a full 24-hours after Adele shone with a performance of Water Under the Bridge and stuck around to play Box of Lies.
"Hello" andWater Under the Bridge are lifted from Adele"s smash third album release 25, which is cruisingtoward threemillion first-week sales in the U.S., where its now holds the single-week record.It"salso on track for thebest-ever opening sales week for any album in the U.K.
Watch Adele"s "classroom instruments" performance of "Hello."
Pretty Little Liars | Season 6B First Four Minutes | Premieres January 12 at 8pm/7c on ABC Family!
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American Experience 8 p.m., PBS We owe more than the Thanksgiving holiday to the group of English settlers who crossed the ocean on the Mayflower in 1620. As Pilgrims, tonights episode of PBSs U.S. history series declares, the landing of the colonists in what is now Massachusetts would come to be seen as the true founding moment of America.
The story of how a tiny cult of religious refugees teamed up with a group of adventurers men the Pilgrims disdained as strangers to found a lasting colony with just 102 people, a third of them children, is a fascinating one.
It is also steeped in myth, and filmmaker Ric Burns (brother of Ken) does his best to wipe away the legend in this retelling. The core character is William Bradford, played by the late actor Roger Rees, the colonys governor whose memoir serves as the primary first-hand account. Interviews with historians are mixed with re-enactments to create an engaging tale of fortitude and good fortune.
Verdict: Watch this
WATCH THIS
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving 8 p.m., ABC The Peanuts specials were faltering when the 10th one rolled around in 1973 to give the series a welcome boost. While this does not reach the heights of A Charlie Brown Christmas or Its the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, its still nostalgic fun. And it isnt really Thanksgiving without a meal of toast, popcorn, jelly beans and pretzel sticks.
SKIP THAT
Pretty Little Liars: Five Years Forward 8 p.m., ABC Family With its teenage stars pushing 30, Pretty Little Liars deserves a reboot; it just seems about three years too late. After beating the original storyline senseless over five seasons, we wonder if there is a show left to save. Tonights special previews the coming season, which arrives with real episodes in January.
Contact the writer: 714-796-7724 or mhewitt@ocregister.com or @WatcherofTV on Twitter or The Watcher on Facebook.
November 23, 2015 / Steve Carr/Chandler Unified School District / Stories by You
Hamilton High School is one of more than 600 schools worldwide to implement AP Capstone, an innovative diploma program that allows students to develop the skills that matter most for their future college success: research, collaboration, and communication.
The program includes a two-course sequence: AP Seminar and AP Research. Developed in direct response to feedback from higher education faculty and college admission officers, AP Capstone complements the in-depth, subject-specific rigor of Advanced Placement courses and exams.
AP students working on a project in the AP Capstone program. Photo courtesy The College Boards Advanced Placement program
Students completing AP Seminar and AP Research with scores of 3 or higher, and receiving scores of 3 or higher on four AP Exams in subjects of their choosing, will receive the AP Capstone Diploma.
Students earning scores of 3 or higher on the two AP Capstone exams but do not take or earn qualifying scores on four additional AP Exams will receive the AP Seminar and Research Certificate.
The program will be taught by Debbie Nipar Ed Anderson and Phyllis Carr, 2015 Chandler Unified School District Teacher of the Year.
This innovative program prepares a broader, more diverse student population for college and career success, and also provides our teachers with flexibility in the curriculum to expand access to challenging course work and the development of important skills, said Hamilton High School Principal Ken James. The application process to be awarded the program is intense, but we knew the value of the program to our students.
The AP Seminar course, typically taken in 10th or 11th grade, will equip students with the power to explore academic and real-world issues from multiple perspectives. Through a variety of materials from articles and research studies to foundational and philosophical texts students will be challenged to explore complex questions; understand and evaluate opposing viewpoints; interpret and synthesize information; and develop, communicate, and defend evidence-based arguments. Teachers have the flexibility of choosing themes based on student interests, whether they are local, regional, national, or global in nature.
Samples of themes that can be covered in the AP Seminar course include education, innovation, sustainability, and technology. By tapping into students personal interests, AP Capstone gives a broader array of students an entry point into challenging course work. Students are assessed through both an individual project and a team project completed during the year and a year-end written exam.
Video: AP Capstone: A Paradigm Shift from Content to Skills
The subsequent AP Research course will allow students to design, plan, and conduct a yearlong investigation on a topic of their choosing with support from experts at the university level or in the community. Students will build on the skills learned in the AP Seminar course by using research methodology; employing ethical research practices; and accessing, analyzing, and synthesizing information to present an argument. At the end of the course students have the confidence to present and orally defend their own scholarly academic research.
We are proud to offer AP Capstone, which enables students and teachers to focus on topics of their choice in great depth, said Trevor Packer, senior vice president for AP and Instruction at the College Board. This provides terrific opportunities for students to develop the ability to write and present their work effectively, individually, and in groups the very skills college professors want their students to possess.
By responding to and partnering with the higher education community, the College Board developed AP Capstone to allow students to practice the important skills that colleges want. The program will prepare more students for the rigors of college and for success in future careers.
AP Capstone is a unique program that teaches skills we think are very valuable not only for college but life, said John Barnhill, assistant vice president for enrollment management, Florida State University. The ability to analyze, to critically think, to present information is really wonderful, and I think both courses do a great job of preparing the student for the rest of their lives.
For more information, please contact:
Ken James, Principal, Hamilton High School, (480) 883-500
Steve Carr, The Kur Carr Group, Inc., (602) 317-3040
The College Board, 212-713-8052; communications@collegeboard.org
About the Advanced Placement Program
The College Boards Advanced Placement Program (AP) enables willing and academically prepared students to pursue college-level studies with the opportunity to earn college credit, advanced placement, or both while still in high school. Through AP courses in 34 subjects, each culminating in a rigorous exam, students learn to think critically, construct solid arguments, and see many sides of an issue skills that prepare them for college and beyond. Taking AP courses demonstrates to college admission officers that students have sought the most rigorous curriculum available to them, and research indicates that students who score a 3 or higher on an AP Exam typically experience greater academic success in college and are more likely to earn a college degree than non-AP students. Each AP teachers syllabus is evaluated and approved by faculty from some of the nations leading colleges and universities, and AP Exams are developed and scored by college faculty and experienced AP teachers. Most four-year colleges and universities in the United States grant credit, advanced placement, or both on the basis of successful AP Exam scores more than 3,800 institutions worldwide annually receive AP scores. In the last decade AP participation and performance rates have nearly doubled. In May 2014, 2.3 million students representing more than 19,000 schools around the world, both public and nonpublic, took over 4 million AP Exams.
About the College Board
The College Board is a mission-driven not-for-profit organization that connects students to college success and opportunity. Founded in 1900, the College Board was created to expand access to higher education. Today, the membership association is made up of over 6,000 of the worlds leading educational institutions and is dedicated to promoting excellence and equity in education. Each year, the College Board helps more than seven million students prepare for a successful transition to college through programs and services in college readiness and college success including the SAT and the Advanced Placement Program. The organization also serves the education community through research and advocacy on behalf of students, educators, and schools. For further information, visit www.collegeboard.org.
Charlie Puth -- Meghan Trainor Makeout Was Real and Spectacular
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Meghan Trainor looked fabulous at the 2015 AMAs. Not only did she look amazing in her black gown, her manicure was so cool and glamorous! Thankfully, Meghans manicurist gave us instructions to get her exact look!
Meghan Trainor, 21, looked absolutely amazing at the 2015 American Music Awards. It was such a big night for the songstress as she won awards and had amazing performances. What caught our eye, though, was her glitzy and glamorous manicure. Luckily, her celeb manicurist dished on exactly what she did to get that color! Get Meghans look here.
Celebrity Manicurist, Michelle Saunders, did an unbelievable job on Meghans nails and luckily for us, she told us exactly how to get Meghans dazzling manicure, just in time for Mani Monday! Meghans mani was the perfect shade of metallic and sparkle, but wasnt too overboard. So we are dying to know what her manicurist did so that we can try it this upcoming holiday season!
Michelle described her inspiration behind the manicure she gave. The lyrics in one of Meghans hit songs inspired her glitzy nail look I found myself dreaming in silver and gold. I started with essies penny talk for the base and then dipped each nail tip in a glitter mixture of three essie luxeffects shades, including: a cut above, set in stones and rock at the top. Ultimately it made for the perfect stand-out, sparkly combination. Are you kidding me that is amazing!
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It is so much fun to layer on different color polishes to give you a cool effect, but we didnt know that four different polishes could give you such a cool finish!
We are obsessed with this manicure and cannot wait to try it for our next holiday party or vacation.
What do you guys think of Meghans mani? Do you love it as much as we do?
NASCAR Victory Lane: Jeff Gordon - Martinsville 2015
Jeff Gordon"s parents, Carol (left) and John Bickford, will have an emotional finale, too, as the driver retires.(Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
HOMESTEAD, Fla. Now it all makes sense. Wonder Boy, as Jeff Gordon was often called in his early NASCAR days, was a product of Wonder Bread.
Seem silly? Trace the steps.
Gordons mother, Carol, was no more than 12 years old, maybe 13, when her father, Pat, worked for the Continental Baking Company in Vallejo, Calif. Pat delivered bread Wonder Bread, mostly to various businesses in the community, most without fanfare, but one captured Carols attention.
The house phone would ring on a Saturday night, with something ofa food emergency on the line. Vallejo Speedway, which featured the racing of hard-top cars as they were still called in the 1950s, would be so crammed with race fans that it would run short on hot dogs and hamburgers, and it needed help. Buns, specifically.
Off Pat would go, Carol in tow.
Carol freely admits she wasnt much help because she was mesmerized by the action at what was billed as the fastest quarter mile in the West. The cars were loud, fast and while not necessarily sleek, they had a beauty about them, and she was smitten.
I loved going out there, she said, reminiscing this week.
Which sets the scene for what happens Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m., WTHR-13, NBCSN) when Jeff Gordon goes for another Sprint Cup Series championship in his final stock car race.
Years later, as a divorced mother of two young children, Carol agreed to a date with colleague John Bickford, the designer at the hospital supply company where they worked. On the side, John was a builder of race cars and a crew chief,and their first date was at that same Vallejo dirt track at Solano County Fairgrounds.
Carol had again found love in that noisy, dusty place.
A footnote to the date was that Carols children, Kim and Jeff, were in tow. Jeff doesnt remember it he wasnt yet 2 years old but there was something symbolic of his first night with John. They would have many, many, many more in racing in the years to come. John is the longtime president of Jeff Gordon Inc., responsible for everything involving Jeff, including the Italian-made inscribed gifts Jeff on Saturday gaveto every other driverin Sunday"sSprint Cup Series field.
The rest, of course, is motor sports history. John and Carol married, and soon after Jeff learned to walk, he learnedto ride a bike at Johns side. By age 4, Jeff was racing boys twice his age in BMX, and before long it was time for the quarter-midget racers John brought home for the kids.
Were talking the mid-1970s here, which speaks to the amount of time and energythe family has invested in racing.
Truly, all these years our lives have been planned around a race, or the race, or around people coming to town to see Jeff race, Carol said. People would stay with us when we moved to Indiana. They went to sprint car races with us. They scraped mud off the side of race cars.
She laughs.
When he came down here (to NASCAR), we didnt have to scrape mud anymore, she said.
Jeff has gone on to become one of the most successful race car drivers in U.S. history, winning four Cup championships and collecting93 race wins, including three Daytona 500s and a record five Brickyard 400s. He has won millions of dollars in prize money and collected countless more in salary and endorsements. His first year in Cup, when he wasnt yet 22 years old and still looked like a student attending Tri-West High School in Lizton, he was paid $1 million by Hendrick Motorsports.
Its fair to say Gordon has been stock car racings most recognizable face since Dale Earnhardt was killed in 2001. He has been admired and adored, and the cameras will be focused on him throughout the Ford 400. He starts fifth.
Carol knows how big this moment is she still goes to the grocery store after all, and his face adorns magazine covers at checkout lines.
I told him the other day,"Ive seen a lot of you lately," she said.
The move to Pittsboro
John has received so much of the credit for Jeffs success, and rightly so. He guided his stepson through the earliest days, all the way up to through that first Cup championship. But Jeffs sister gets some credit, too.
Kim graduated from high school in Vallejo just as Jeff was showing significant signs of becoming a legitimate race car driver. She chose to attend San Diego State, which obviously wasnt close to the familys home northeast of San Francisco.
For any suspicion that John pushed for a family move to the Midwest, where Jeff could race sprint cars at an earlier age, Carol said Kim had an influential voice. Kim could see the opportunity available to her kid brother of four years, and it wasnt like she was going to be home much anyway. Go for it, she suggested.
They say timing in life is everything, right? Carol said.
Jeff had raced one summer in Ohio, but because the family had racing friends in Indiana the Osbornes and Easts, to name a few the decision was made to make that their new base. Appropriately, John and Jeff were off racing that 1986 season when Carol flew to Indianapolis to select and purchasewhat became their new Hendricks County home southwestof Pittsboro.
As crazy as it sounds," Carol said of the transition,"it made sense."
As crazy as this sounds, Carol wasn"t even present for Jeff"s first big racing achievement. She was inSan Diego visiting Kim when Jeff won the 1989 Night Before the 500 midget race at Indianapolis Raceway Park. That race was a first for Jeff on so many levels his first time in a midget, his first pavement race, his first drive for car owner Rollie Helmling but it was also something of a first for Carol.
She didnt know anything about the Night Before the 500, ashort-track racingjeweltelevised by ESPN.
I was like, Oh, thats great, she said of the winning news delivered by telephone. He was excited, and I was excited for him, so that was enough.
So many more nights like that were to come, of course.
Buy Photo
Jeff Gordon with his wife, Ingrid Vandebosch, and their children Ella and Leo met with Ron Howard in 2012, the year he drove the pace car for the Brickyard 400 at The Indianapolis Motor Speedway.(Photo: Kristin Enzor/ For The Star)
It was about this time last year that Jeff decided he wanted to quit driving stockcars to spend more time with his wife, Ingrid, and their children, Ella and Leo.That set in motion a series of activities building toward Sundays green flag. One of those was knee replacement surgery for Carol; she had it after the Brickyard 400 in order not to miss hometown races at Sonoma Raceway (in June) and Indianapolis Motor Speedway (in July).
Jeffs retirement also meant the familys last official race at their latest home track, Charlotte Motor Speedway. They had watched so many of his Cup races overlooking Turn 1in a condominium owned by Ken Barbie, the man who owned the apparel company first outfitting the would-be champion.
Barbie had long vowed to sell the condominium when Jeff retired, so at last months race, the friends went through the necessary festivities, goodbyes included.
I cant imagine why I would go back, Carol said. Ill be watching (on TV), probably watching races forever, but I wont go. Why would I?
John has a reason, maybe several. For one, Jeffs 2016 retirement tour will require the attention of various business endeavors, so John will oversee them.John also has a nephew, 17-year-old James Bickford of Napa, Calif., who is a promising young race car driver, having won two races in NASCARs K&N Pro Series West series.
He looks really good, so Ill help him where I can, John said of James. Plus, I get a lot of calls from moms and dads who want to see their children do this.
But John acknowledges changes are coming for those who have been with Jeffall these years.
Its been a h**l of a trip, he said, exhaling. But the rides not over.
Follow Curt Cavin on Facebook and Twitter: @curtcavin
SNL Host Matthew McConaughey Tells Adele and Cecily a Quick Story
A weak monologue was followed by one of the seasons strongest hosting performances
Matthew McConaughey said in his opening monologue on Saturday Night Live that it had been 14 years since the last time he was on the show. This isnt true. He hosted in 2003, and the last time we checked, that was only 12 years ago. But that was about the only thing that McConaughey did wrong Saturday evening.
The cold open began with the old reliable Fox and Friends. Sure, its formulaic, but since were living in a news cycle that has forced us into election season way too early, its refreshing to see Taran Killam, Vanessa Bayer, and Bobby Moynihan skewer the extreme right. Best lines from the sketch included Bayers Elizabeth Hasselback angry about Black Friday: All Fridays matter! Also noteworthy was Jay Pharoahs Ben Carson: Im like a koala bear. On the outside I seem nice, but on the inside, Ive never held elective office.
McConaugheys monologue was a recapping of how he first came to utter the alright, alright, alright that has been his catchphrase since his screen debut in Dazed and Confused. He told the story without many laughs, but with the engagement of a guy that youre a few beers deep with at the bar. Not that funny, but it was entertaining just the same.
Also Read: "SNL" Pays Tribute to Paris After Deadly Terror Attacks (Video)
The first sketch after the monologue will be the one that everybody is passing around for the next week. It was a pre-taped vignette of a Thanksgiving meal where the different generations clashed in their political views and lifestyle choices, but just as things started to get really heated, a young girl pressed play on a boombox. As soon as Adeles Hello came through the speakers, everybody at the table became lost in the moment, singing, growing totally enraptured and slowly becoming Adele. Jay Pharoah for the win again as he held his painted nails to his face with his long, silky hair blowing in the sepia-toned wind.
Next up was Kenan Thompson leading a band at Charlies Blues Shack. McConaughey played an out-of-tune bluesman sitting in with a New Orleans house band whose blues dont go much deeper than having a sucky fantasy football team. The game was established early, and they did a good job heightening it, but they werent able to take it beyond soft laughs.
Cecily Strong set up the next sketch, leading a presentation about a company called Bio-Print, which figured out how to use a 3D printer to create a human man. She invited audience members to guess which of the three men onstage is not a real human. Without giving away too much, this sketch is full of some of the most quotable SNL lines since the 90s, with the character who may or may not be the 3D printing of a man saying things like youre making a sunglasses guy like me laugh hard from my face.
Also Read: Olivia Wilde"s Childhood Chris Farley Story Will Warm Your Heart (Video)
The highlight of the show was a pre-taped bit with J.J. Abrams introducing screen tests for the new Star Wars. Its an easy joke, and one SNL has done before, most magnificently with Kevin Spacey playing Christopher Walken reading for the part of Han Solo. This one was just as funny, with Cecily Strong killing it as Sophia Vergara and Aidy Bryant nailing a highly improbable audition from Wynona Judd. Famous cameos abounded, most notably Jon Hamm, saying hes reading for the part of Hamm Solo.
Adeles musical performance was as amazing as the world needs it to be right now, as evidenced from the first filmed sketch of the evening. At this point in the show, we were still hoping that shed also do a comedy cameo, as more than 11 million have already seen what she did with Graham Norton earlier this week.
Weekend Update focused mostly on American politicians hypocrisy for refusing to allow Syrian refugees into the States, especially timely given the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. The best lines included Michael Che saying, my ancestors werent exactly immigrants. We were more like invited guests and Colin Jost saying, Do you know how easy it is to lie about being Christian? I do it every time I go home for Christmas. Che and Josts biggest asset is also their biggest downfall: They always seem like theyre performing primarily for each other. Cameos from Vanessa Bayer as an aspiring Update anchor and Kenan Thompson as David Ortiz helped minimize this though.
Also Read: Larry David Hasn"t Collected $5,000 Reward for Calling Donald Trump Racist on "SNL"
The game show medium is hit or miss on SNL, and this one was kind of a miss. It was a good premise; a game show called Should You Chime In On This? Again the focus was American ignorance, where participants gave their opinions on matters they have no knowledge about. Not even Kate McKinnon as Hillary Clinton could save this though.
Kate McKinnon dis indeed save the next sketch though. It was Bright Side of the Bed, where Strong and Taran Killam play married morning talk show hosts. McConaughey played Buster Little, a hirsute creole cook who tells jokes he doesnt even get. This bit is moderately funny, but Killams character cops too much of his persona from Dana Carveys Lyle the Effeminate Heterosexual. But it was McKinnons Ed Sheeran impersonation that tied this installment together.
Adeles second song was flawless. It really is great to be living in an age where a contemporary singer is still releasing her best material.
The show closed with one of the funnier moments. McConaughey played a character at a small town meeting who speaks out and gets hung up on what everybody else has that he doesnt have (a college education, shoes, a real hand etc.). His performance here almost made up for the fact that he didnt do a True Detective parody. Almost.
We joined current and former cast members, hosts and other Saturday Night Live mainstays for Sundays bonanza celebrating 40 years of the NBC sketch comedy show
"SNL 40": Dave Chappelle, Adam Sandler, Sarah Palin Reminisce Over Favorite Moments, Chris Farley
MADDEN 16 GAUNTLET MODE CHAMP | HIGHEST SCORE EVER | VS SEAHAWKS ALL MADDEN
The Arizona Cardinals went off script. As a result, they walked away from Sunday night"s showdown against the Seattle Seahawks with a 39-32 victory and a three-game lead in the NFC West.
It wasn"t supposed to go that way for the two-time defending NFC champions, especially after they battled back from an early 19-0 deficit and took the lead in the fourth quarter with two consecutive strip-sacks of Carson Palmer that led to touchdowns. The defense was flying around and creating turnovers, the "12s" in CenturyLink Field were roaring and everything was going according to plan.
Then Palmer, Andre Ellington and the Arizona offense punched back with two straight touchdown drives of their own to stake their claim as the best team in the division and perhaps the entire conference.
Palmer hit tight end Jermaine Gresham for a touchdown to take the lead in the final quarter, and Ellington sent the Seattle fans home with a 48-yard scamper on third down with less than two minutes remaining. Rich Eisen of NFL Network noted it was heartbreak as usual for Seahawks fans this season:
ESPN Stats & Info emphasized how the Cardinals are the one team that doesn"t seem to be intimidated by the venue or moment in the Pacific Northwest:
Despite the back-and-forth second half, the Cardinals controlled the early proceedings and jumped out to a 19-0 lead. While the offense did plenty of work in the opening two quarters, the defense established the initial momentum with a safety, as the NFL shared:
From there, Palmer hit Michael Floyd with two touchdown passes, one from 27 yards out and one from 35 yards out. The Arizona Cardinals passed along the first connection:
Bill Barnwell of ESPN highlighted theanomalous nature of the Seattle deficit:
The Seahawks bounced back with a touchdown late in the second quarter when fullback Will Tukuafu scored from a yard out. John Boyle of Seahawks.com reacted to the play:
The Cardinals added a field goal as time expired in the second quarter to take a 22-7 lead into the locker rooms, but the scariest moment of the first 30 minutes came when Arizona guard Mike Iupati was taken off the field in an ambulance.Sports Illustrateddescribed the development: "Iupati slammed his head into Kam Chancellor"s shoulder. Went down right away. Sending most positive thoughts for his recovery."
The Cardinals said the guard went to the hospital with a neck injury and had feeling in his extremities, while Tony Softli of Sports Radio 950 KJR in Seattle shared the scene:
The Seahawks went uptempo to start the second half and drove into the red zone with relative ease. However, the Cardinals forced a field goal to keep the lead at 22-10.
Seattle"s momentum came to a halt on its next possession when Russell Wilson overthrew an open Doug Baldwin and Arizona safety Tyrann Mathieu picked off the pass. The Cardinals took advantage with a field goal to open up a 25-10 advantage, and Matt Bowen of ESPN praised the defensive back who made it happen:
Interception or not, the Wilson-Baldwin duo was far from done. The two connected for a 32-yard touchdown on the ensuing drive to help cut the lead to 25-17.
Sports Illustratedanalyzed the drive:"Wilson had two clean pockets and two big pass plays on that drive. This is not a coincidence."
Gregg Bell of the News Tribunepointed to the unfortunate turn of events for the visiting Cardinals:
Seattle got the ball back and elected to go for a critical fourth down in Arizona territory. Tukuafu converted, but Cardinals coach Bruce Arians used his final challenge on the spot. The play stood, although Adam Green of ArizonaSports.com thought Arians had a case:
The Seahawks kept possession, but Arizona held strong after the conversion and forced a punt, taking the ball and the eight-point lead into the fourth quarter.
However, picking up that first down on the challenge allowed Seattle to pin Arizona back on its ensuing punt. Cliff Avril sacked Palmer and forced a fumble on the ensuing drive, and K.J. Wright scooped it up to set the Seahawks up at the 3-yard line.
Jayson Jenks of theSeattle Timesimplied it was business as usual for Avril:
Marshawn Lynch ran it in for a touchdown, but the Seahawks failed on the two-point conversion and still found themselves trailing 25-23. Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com harkedback to the first half and Arizona"s failure to secure a significant lead before the stretch run:
Things continued to tumble downhill for Palmer and the Cardinals offense on the next possession. Wright sacked Palmer and forced another fumble, and Bobby Wagner ran it in for a touchdown. The Seahawks once again couldn"t connect on the two-point conversion, but they were suddenly ahead 29-25. The NFL shared the play:
Jenks highlighted the biggest issue for the Cardinals:
To Arizona"s credit, it marched down the field following the consecutive strip-sacks and finished an 83-yard drive with the 14-yard scoring strike from Palmer to Gresham. Just like that, the Cardinals held a 32-29 lead. The NFL passed along the most important throw of the night for the USC product, even though he tallied 363 passing yards and three scores:
Ian Furness of Sports Radio 950 KJR pointed to a crucial illegal-contact penalty on Wagner that kept the drive alive:
Arizona managed a defensive stop on the next possession and faced a 3rd-and-4 with just more than two minutes left. Rather than going for a first down with a short throw at the sticks, the Cardinals ran a draw with Ellington.All he did was take it 48 yards to the house to bust open the game at 39-29.
Doug Farrar ofSports Illustratednoted the play call set the stage for the dramatic score:
Art Thiel ofSportspress Northwestdid not paint a pretty picture for the Seahawks" immediate future:
Seattle added a field goal with 58 seconds remaining to trim the lead to 39-32, but it failed to recover the onside kick and left the stadium with a three-game deficit in the division and a stunning head-to-head loss against the team it is chasing.
What"s Next?
The Seahawks still haven"t been over .500 all season, and they are running out of time if they plan on making a playoff run down the stretch after reaching the Super Bowl two years in a row. The good news is that the schedule becomes more manageable with four more home games in the last seven, including winnable contests against the San Francisco 49ers and Cleveland Browns within the next five weeks.
The Seahawks also travel to the 2-7 Baltimore Ravens later in the season. The opportunities will be there, but this team is 4-5 and hasn"t looked anywhere near the dominant force it has been over the past few seasons.
As for the Cardinals, they are in the driver"s seat in the division at 7-2 and still have the rematch against Seattle at home in the final regular-season contest. However, Palmer and Co. face the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals next and still play the 7-2 Minnesota Vikings and 6-3 Green Bay Packers.
The Cardinals also have difficult road games against the St. Louis Rams and Philadelphia Eagles, which underscores why Sunday"s victory was critical in terms of creating breathing room in the playoff race. Even with a difficult slate, it would take a collapse at this point for Arizona to miss the postseason.
Postgame Reaction
There were a number of concerns from Seattles perspective after the game, including the slow start, the sheer number of penalties and the teams inability to get off the field when it mattered most.
Carroll summed up the start of the game in simple terms, per Liz Mathews of 710 ESPN Seattle: We did terrible in the first half.
To Seattles credit, it battled back, but the 14 penalties for 131 yards proved too much to overcome. Carroll said, "We didn"t play that game the way we wanted to because of all of the penalties, per the Seahawks.
Carroll at least made sure to point out that readiness was not an issue for his club, per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times: Our guys were jacked. They were so fired up to play this game.
The Seahawks may have been fired up, but the defense appeared to lose its will in the final minutes when Arizona bled the clock away before Ellington busted loose for the decisive score. Part of the issue was the time of possession, which the Cardinals won 38:52 to 21:08.
Avril put it bluntly when asked about the defense being on the field for nearly 40 minutes, per Condotta: That sucked.
As for the Cardinals, they deserve plenty of praise for overcoming the emotional roller coaster of blowing their early lead. They came back and earned recognition from Arians, per Peter King of Sports Illustrated: Never been prouder of a group of guys, to weather the kind of storm they weathered.
The Ellington run was the biggest play of a back-and-forth contest, and Mathieu commented on it in the aftermath, per Kyle Odegard of AZCardinals.com: That play that Andre made? Amazing.
The play was amazing, but so was Arizonas ability to overcome a hostile crowd and beat the two-time defending NFC champions the way it did.
Solid chat today. Some coach talk. SomeFrank Beamertalk. An unscriptedM.C. Hammerappearance. Read a replay at the bottom of this post.
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