| Shortage puts barber grads in demand
VICTORVILLE � Some people thinking about a college have put the word �barber� in front of it. After all, it takes 1,500 hours over 13 months to earn a barber/stylist license, said Dave Barnicoat, owner of Mojave Barber College. He said there is a shortage of barbers and most states are begging for them. Branicoat said people are more familiar with beauty schools than they are with barber colleges. �It�s like a very mysterious field out there, nobody knows anything about it, but they all know about cosmetology, but very few people know about barbering and most people think its the same, and it isn�t,� Branicoat said. The income potential for a barber/stylist can be at least comparable to a college graduate. �A barber after five years should be making at least between $50,000 and a $100,000 a year, at least in that ballpark.
Living out the golden years
Tables and chairs have been pushed to the wall inside the SilverStarlight Lounge at RainbowVision Santa Fe. It's Friday night, and women of various ages gyrate together to Justin Timberlake's "SexyBack." Soon enough, the Pussycat Dolls tease "Don't cha wish your girlfriend was hot like me?" A 20-something sidles up to the bar, clad in a white bra and denim shorts, a tattoo between her shoulder blades. Two floors above the lounge, 81-year-old Gloria Donadello slumbers through the throb and thump. The juxtaposition of the octogenarian and the girl-party below conjures an alternative lyric: "Don't cha wish your retirement was hot like this?" RainbowVision Santa Fe is the nation's first planned enclave for aging gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people — as well as, say its founders, anyone else who wants to join the party.
Escape hustle and bustle at Gwinganna
Farewell, rowdy football teams piling into mini-buses at Coolangatta airport, beers in hand, cheering to passers-by. Revving up for an end-of-year celebration at the glitzy Gold Coast. My mum and I couldn't have been happier to wave them off, turn in the opposite direction, and head toward the hinterland for a completely different type of weekend. Our mission was relaxation, organic food, a peaceful environment, exercise and sharing some precious mother-daughter moments together. We were just as excited as the lads about our weekend at the Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat. And we would certainly look and feel a lot better by the end of it. The thought of no alcohol, no caffeine, no newspapers, no television and no kids was heaven.
Islanders hot on ice and full of surprise
A year ago at this time, after their 0-3 start was compounded by an injury to goaltender Rick DiPietro, it felt as though the Islanders were fighting an uphill battle to get into playoff contention. After an offseason makeover that eliminated virtually half their playoff roster of last season, many forecasts placed the Islanders near the bottom of the Eastern Conference, but once again, they look like the NHL's surprise team under coach Ted Nolan after a 9-4 start and four straight wins.
They took advantage of a favorable early schedule that had them at home for nine of their first 13 games, but it hasn't been a cakewalk. Long breaks between games made it difficult to maintain game shape, but the Islanders have been at their best when it counted, as reflected by their 8-0 record against playoff teams and their 5-1 mark against Atlantic Division opposition.
Silicon Alleys
LAST WEEK, I wrote about the "Treasures from the Archives Competition," inviting SJSU students and alumni to submit a description and explanation of a "treasure" item found in one of the university's four special collections on the fifth floor. Contestants are invited to pen a 2,000-word essay on why their find is interesting and fascinating, and to submit it to Reed magazine, the university's literary periodical, in hope that it will win publication in that magazine as well as a $50 prize. I raided the collections in the California Room as well as the Special Collections room next door for examples of crackpot curiosities that folks can write about. The two collections remaining are the Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies and the Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies, both of which contain stockpiles of treasure that anyone with a creative bone in his or her body could write about.
Liberia: Montserrado County Wins Miss Liberia 2007/2008
Ms. Bendu Tita Parker of Montserrado County has emerged as winner of the Miss Liberia Beauty Pageant 2007/2008. The pageant under the theme "Beauty with a Purpose", was organized by Miss Boss Lady Entertainment International in collaboration with the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism. .
Some 'Enchanted' evening
Surely this was inevitable. After years of watching the monstrously successful "Shrek" franchise parody everything beloved about those classic animated Disney movies, Disney is showing a sense of humor and making fun of itself. "Enchanted" has a song in its heart and a tongue in its cheek -- both in animated and live-action forms -- with an infectious energy that helps overcome the script's contrivances. "Enchanted" has a song in its heart and a tongue in its cheek -- both in animated and live-action forms -- with an infectious energy that helps overcome the script's contrivances. Wide-eyed, would-be princess Giselle (the irresistible Amy Adams) is banished by the wicked Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon) from her idyllic cartoon playland to the harsh reality of Times Square before she can marry her one true love, Prince Edward (James Marsden).
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