Groovy pad for the old gang

WE USED to be as thick as thieves, embarking on camping adventures or heading off to films with the nonchalance of single gals who have loads of free time and the luxury of spontaneity.Now, with six kids between us and "the girls" fleeing Sydney to raise their families in the Blue Mountains and Newcastle, catching up is a once-a-year event.It requires meticulous planning and logistics - and a funky Sydney hotel as our base camp for the night, where we can chew over our lives and hear the city roaring outside. Countless emails, three date changes and a few babysitting favours later and we're sitting in the bar of the new Mercure Potts Point ordering three glasses of brut.Mission accomplished. UGG Boots Outlet The Mercure chain might not feature on many dream honeymoon destination lists but it ticks all the boxes for us.It's clean, smart, functional, reasonably priced and has enough dash to avoid being dull.The Mercure Potts Point, formerly the Crest, has just been refitted and relaunched to the tune of $30 million. And don't be fooled by the location name. This hotel is smack in the heart of Kings Cross.The Coke sign is blinking at us, Porky's and the El Alamein Fountain are down the road and Saturday night traffic is choking William Street outside the hotel's windows.We are loving the city buzz, though we're all sleep-deprived women, too, so we're concerned the street buzz is going to impinge on our precious shut-eye. Happily, our rooms are on the 12th floor and the traffic is a muted current of sound far beneath, with the occasional piercing siren.The fresh-air freaks are delighted to find small windows that push open. And did I mention the views? They stretch from St Mary's Cathedral to the Opera House. The room is smartly furnished, referencing the neo-baroque trend with brocade cushions and a decorative triptych panel behind the bed. The black and brown colour scheme is a bit dark for my taste but the effect is stylish and it won't offend anyone's sensibilities. UGG Argyle Knit Boots The linen is quality and the mattress comfortable. The pillows are too high and bouncy but that's a constant hotel gripe for me and I'll admit I'm addicted to my feather-down pillow at home. I've got a spa bath in my room, which I don't use, but the shower looking out to views of the city is a very rare treat indeed.Down at the hotel's bar, we clink our glasses and start the massive task of catching up on a year's worth of living. On the agenda: work, men, children, gossip, clothes and other important sundry items. The bar is in a cosy nook, softly lit and staffed by a friendly Scandinavian.Champagne downed, we move on to the restaurant to try the hotel's "wine flight" tasting plate, matched with NSW wines. All blond wood and mirrors and with a big plasma television, the restaurant has a cafeteria-like cold efficiency. It doesn't help the ambience that we're the only customers, though in this case we are so absorbed in conversation it doesn't matter. The canape plate, while a bit slow coming, is delicious and we gobble it up.But I can't help thinking that any hotel trying to provide a restaurant and bar in these parts is brave, like a lone juggler trying to compete with a three-ring circus. UGG Classic Short Inevitably, we farewell the lovely and attentive staff and step outside to see that circus for ourselves. Kings Cross on Saturday night never disappoints and we are content to stroll around the Cross, Darlinghurst and Potts Point, checking out the new bars and the street life. Girls hobble on platform stilettos wearing tight and tiny dresses.There's a queue outside the Soho Bar. A couple argue outside a club - "I didn't do it, I swear," she pleads. Cops patrol the streets. And we enjoy the whole merry bazaar, chomping on slices of pepperoni pizza while standing on a street corner. The next morning, we are conversationally sated and our breakfast talk is more a series of relaxed riffs on life as we tuck into eggs Benedict at a nearby cafe. Same time next year, girls?

Black birch tea as good as aspirin

Drinking black birch tea everyday can lower your risk of a heart attack just as effectively as low-dose aspirin, but without the side effects of taking a pill, a naturalist has suggested.The twig of the black birch, which tastes like spearmint is used in muscles to relieve pain.Self-taught naturalist Steve Brill showed the Medicine Hunter Chris Kilham, the twig also known as betula lenta, and asked him to give it a try. UGG Classic Tall 5815 “It has these leaves with these teeth, (and) it has these cones,” Fox News quoted Brill as saying.“You chew on the twig, and tell me what you taste.”Kilham said that the twig tasted like spearmint and reminded him of the compound methyl salicylate, which is used in muscles to relieve pain.“And it relieves pain,” Brill said.“The Native Americans discovered (this). It actually tastes like wintergreen. Oil of Wintergreen is the common name. And this is a classic compound from which aspirin was derived. They actually used the willow tree, not the black birch,” he added.

15-minute workout can keep you fit

A 15-minute workout at the gym helps keep you young as well as fit, according to a study. Researchers found that brief vigorous exercise tends to slow the ageing process. Just 15 minutes of energetic activity a day reduces stress and prevents the deterioration of vital cells which lead to us feeling and looking older, reports express.co.uk. UGG Classic Cardy Even if we are stressed, which tends to speed up the ageing process, we can hold time at bay by working up a sweat. Psychologist Eli Puterman, who led the groundbreaking research, said the study is built on previous work that showed how changes in DNA result in ageing. "We have extended those findings to show that, in fact, there are things we can do about it," said Puterman. "If we maintain the levels of physical activity recommended by public health bodies we can prevent the damage that psychological stress may have on our body," he added.

Feature of developed societies?

Such elderly abuse in Asia appears to be more keenly felt in developed societies such as Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan.“Before, people were more traditional and there was more respect for elderly people. Now, they are less tightly-knit, people no longer observe traditions as strongly and there is less respect for the elderly,” Foo said.“There is now more psychological and financial abuse due to a loss of traditional culture.” UGG Argyle Knit Boots David Dai of the Hong Kong Alzheimer’s Disease Association said: “In richer societies, there is an increasing trend of disputes. There are plenty of people with assets who die intestate. Because there is no one to execute their will, they (family members) take it to guardianship.”“In developing countries… they are more traditional and united and they look after their old. There are less medical interventions to keep people alive and they are less litigious.”In Singapore, growing disputes and fraud involving assets of elderly people with Alzheimer’s disease became serious enough for Parliament to enact a “Mental Capacity Act” in 2008, much like the one Britain created in 2005.“The Act created a new instrument called ‘lasting power of attorney’ allowing people to appoint a deputy while they are still of sound mind” said Patrick Tan, a practising lawyer in Singapore at the forefront of a campaign to raise awareness of legal protection for the elderly.“If one becomes mentally incapacitated, the appointed deputy can step forward and manage affairs without spending extra money and going to court,” he told Reuters.Nearly every day, small teams of lawyers in Singapore give free advice at a few grassroots centres, educating people on the need to nominate a “deputy” to safeguard their assets. Deputies make decisions covering the older person’s welfare and assets, pre-empting any attempts by other people to exploit the person’s deteriorating mental faculties.In Australia, people are advised upon entering an aged care home to make wills, “end of life wishes” and name a power-of-attorney to manage their assets when they become mentally incapacitated.“End of life wishes” is an instruction on whether to resuscitate a person after a cardiac or respiratory arrest.

More soap opera drama: Brian Frons out at ABC

Brian Frons, the longtime president of ABC Daytime, is leaving the network amid its high-stakes transition from soap operas to lower-cost talk and lifestyle shows. In recent months, there have been rumblings about Frons' own future as ABC canceled two of its three long-running soap operas --"All My Children" and "One Life To Live." Frons joined the network in 2002 to oversee soap operas and other daytime programming. But the once lucrative soap opera genre has steadily lost viewers, and the shows are no longer profitable. Ugg Boots Sale The Walt Disney Co.-owned network will plug its daytime programming block with lower-cost shows like "The Chew," about food, and upcoming "The Revolution," a makeover show. Frons -- who began his television career at CBS in 1978 -- had less experience with those formats. He will stay on until his contract ends in January. ABC said Vicki Dummer, who joined ABC in 1996 and oversees specials and established prime-time shows, would replace Frons. ABC also said Friday that it was creating Times Square Studios, which it described as an "integrated current entertainment programming and development division." The new studio will oversee the production of such daytime shows as "The View," "The Chew" and "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." Dummer, whose new title is executive vice president of Times Square Studios, Current Series and Specials, will retain some of her responsibilities in prime-time. Dummer helped develop such ABC hits as "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" and "Dharma & Greg." She will report to ABC Entertainment Group President Paul Lee. The move sets up a new, more streamlined, management structure.

Hurricane-force Santa Ana winds: Another sign of global warming?

The unseasonably strong Santa Ana winds that have pounded southern California during the past two days have left hundreds of thousands of residents without power, not to mention closed schools and businesses. Many counties are on emergency footing and even Griffith Park, one of the nation’s largest urban parks, has closed as crews struggle to clear fallen trees and debris away from power lines and off roads. But the extreme winds – the strongest in at least a decade – have also raised the familiar question: Are they one more indication of global warming's larger trend toward extreme weather? The answer is no. Extreme weather events are an important signal bell for the rest of society, even if they're not tied to Ugg Boots Sale climate change, says Villanova University assistant professor of geography and the environment Keith Henderson. “Extreme events naturally attract a lot of attention, especially from the public,” he writes in an e-mail. “The impact of extreme events, both real and perceived, makes it important that we study climate variability as much as climate change. We need to better understand the frequency, intensity, and patterns of extremes to better understand how weather and climate affect society.” The need for longer-term forecasting models is growing, adds Mr. Plavan. While forecasting specific events is difficult, using decades of previous years' data can help project probabilities. For instance, if experts can produce data that show a city is 40 percent more likely to have a major heat wave over a certain time frame, Plavan says, “Then the city can plan from a longer-range perspective, rather than doing the equivalent of buying a snow shovel no matter the cost when the heavy snow starts to fall.”

Restricted Competition

Pfizer’s medication missing obvious security in the U.S. last night. Watson Medication Inc. (WPI) started providing a content of Lipitor in the U.S. last night under an deal with New York- centered Pfizer, the globe's most significant drugmaker. Watson’s edition do not need FDA room because Pfizer is offering the medication to provide without the model product in come back for a talk about of the income.As the first commonly used to obstacle Pfizer’s obvious, Ranbaxy is granted six weeks under a 1984 law before other commonly used variations can come that you can buy.Mylan Inc. of Canonsburg, Pennsylvania; Teva; and Dr. Reddy’s Labs Ltd. of Hyderabad, Indian, are among generic-drug manufacturers searching for UGG Boots Outlet FDA acceptance to provide Lipitor reports after Ranbaxy’s six-month exclusivity comes to an end, according to U.S. courtroom filings.The U.S. administration activities against Ranbaxy, India’s greatest drugmaker, started in 2008 when the FDA offered developing problems at two of the changeable vegetation in Indian and therefore prohibited the business from publishing about 30 different medication. The following season, the bureau said one of those vegetation, in Paonta Sahib, Indian, falsified information used in medication programs.