Posted by admin on Nov 21, 2009 in
Uncategorized We all know Hollywood celebrities have been wearing uggs on sale for years and now their children are also sporting the super comfortable casual UGG boot such as the classic short and classic tall.
‘You cannot live your life in the elitist world of fashion and not step out or you’re disconnected. You have to realize that fashion is not the endgame. I started wearing Uggs two years ago. It’s a cozy shoe. Also, they’re only $98.’ In fact, at home, he wears ‘Juicy Couture shorts a Ralph Lauren polo shirt and ugg classic tall sale. But don’t expect him to wear Crocs. ‘I draw the line at ugg classic tall cheap.’
I recently spotted Sheree Whitfield of the ‘Real Housewives Of Atlanta’ wearing a pair of Classic Tall Chestnut boots during one of the episodes. They looked cool and casual with her green velour lounging outfit.
No matter how you think they look, ugg classic tall boots sale are not a fad and are here to stay.
Posted by admin on Nov 21, 2009 in
Uncategorized Four-year-old Mark Blinder couldn’t resist. A football was being thrown, and he wanted to play. He didn’t know the other kids, but within minutes he was zig-zagging back and forth across the playground, outrunning the others with the ball clutched to his chest.
As he played on a recent afternoon at his older brother’s school — Fairmeadow Elementary in Palo Alto — it was hard to imagine that just a few months ago Mark was barely able move because he felt so sick from chemotherapy. And as he caught the gently thrown football, there was no indication that, as Mark says, his right arm is “special.”
Mark, who lives in Palo Alto, was diagnosed last year with Ewing’s sarcoma, a malignant tumor that had spread throughout his entire upper arm bone. He could have undergone radiation, which would prevent his arm from growing properly, or had the arm amputated. Instead, his parents chose an alternative approach — replacing his entire bone with a prosthesis that can be extended to grow along with him.
Doctors who treated Mark at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital say they believe it’s the first time someone so young has had an entire upper arm bone replaced with a prosthesis. It’s rare for a 3-year-old to develop a cancer like Mark’s, and it’s also uncommon for it to impact the whole bone, said his orthopaedic surgeon, Dr. Lawrence Rinsky.
“They don’t make the parts for anybody that small, they’ve just never been made before,”
Rinsky said.
Around April 2008, Mark began having fevers. His family thought it was the flu, but he stopped using his right hand and said his arm hurt. He was diagnosed in July with Ewing’s Sarcoma and began chemotherapy.
But to eliminate the cancer completely, Mark’s parents had to choose between radiation, amputation or a prosthesis. After many hours of discussion and research, they decided to opt for the untried surgery.
“We decided, if there is a chance to save his arm, we’ll save his arm,” said his mother, Alla Ostrovskaya.
Doctors then worked with Indiana-based manufacturer Biomet to design the artificial bone. Rinsky remembered debating with the company’s engineers in an effort to find the right balance between strength and size.
“It has to be small enough to fit in, and sturdy enough to last for hopefully a lifetime, and it has to be elongating,” Rinsky said.
On Dec. 4, Mark was ready for surgery. The doctors had to remove his cancerous bone without touching it, carving it out within a layer of soft tissue to avoid spreading cancerous cells. Since the prosthesis was replacing an entire bone, doctors also had to find a way to sew it to soft tissue.
Ostrovskaya remembered anxiously walking around Stanford Shopping Center for hours, getting occasional updates from the doctors. Finally, Rinsky called and said they should come back to the hospital, where he told them that everything went fine.
After several months of chemotherapy, it appears the cancer is gone. As he grows, Mark will have a few minor surgeries so doctors can lengthen his artificial bone with a twist of a screwdriver.
Mark still goes to physical therapy once a week. He can’t lift his arm above his shoulder, and likely won’t be able to write with his right hand. His artificial bone can only be extended so far, and his right arm will always be a bit shorter than the other.
But he can run and play, and loves soccer and swimming, his parents said.
“I think it was the right decision, but it was a difficult decision,” said his father, Gene Blinder.
“He’s almost back to himself,” Ostrovskaya said.
Posted by admin on Nov 21, 2009 in
Uncategorized WATSONVILLE — A year ago this week, Veva Virgil allegedly smothered her 3½-year-old daughter in a Watsonville motel room.
But before Isabella Grace Martinez died, Virgil, her new husband Richard Sullens and the little girl were building a new life together.
Virgil, who has a history of mental illness, had voluntarily given up her daughter to a foster home in 2007. But she completed the requirements to regain custody of her daughter — including being drug-fee — in 2007 and she and Sullens had wed in August of that year. They moved into a mobile home with a deck and a picket fence not far from Aptos High School.
In a short time, though, the family’s fresh start fell apart and now both Virgil and Sullens are behind bars.
To celebrate Virgil’s birthday a year ago, the couple went on a four-day methamphetamine binge that ended Nov. 13, 2008, according to court records about what Virgil later told police.
That also was Kelly Collier’s birthday. Collier, a friend of Virgil who had been Isabella’s foster mother, said she had tried to call Virgil several times Nov. 13, a Thursday, but got no answer.
That evening, Virgil fled her Aptos mobile home with Isabella. She told police she took off because she was afraid Sullens would hurt one of them, according to testimony from police during Virgil’s preliminary hearing in March. No evidence was presented to show he was a threat.
Sullens searched for her and, once, found her but Virgil refused to come home, according to court records. Isabella was found dead Nov. 16. Her mother was arrested hours later and has been jailed since on one count of murder.
“She could have came to us. And the fact she tortured Isabella, it just kills me,” said Collier of Sunnyvale.
According to statements Virgil made to police, she smothered the girl with a pillow but the girl fought back and pulled Virgil’s hair, which angered her. She lifted the pillow off her daughter’s face, yanked out a clump of her hair, then put the pillow back down on her head, police testified during Virgil’s preliminary hearing in March.
Sullens, who was not Isabella’s biological father, had been Virgil’s constant supporter at court appearances. But he was noticeably missing when Virgil pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity at her last court date, Oct. 6.
After being arrested at least three times since April, Sullens pleaded no contest this fall to charges stemming from a string of burglaries in Santa Cruz and Santa Clara counties.
An ex-con who has done time for drug and property crimes charges in the past, Sullens currently is serving a sentence no less than eight months for at least six burglaries, possessing stolen property and possessing methamphetamine, according to Nick Muyo, spokesman for the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
“I think he self-destructed over it,” Collier said.
Isabella’s death has also had a dramatic impact on Collier.
Collier stood by Virgil for months because she knew her friend had been abused in the past. But after the preliminary hearing revealed alleged drug use and details of Isabella’s death — Virgil reportedly told police she could save her young daughter from the world and send her to heaven by killing her — Collier said she decided she would only attend court appearances to honor the girl’s memory.
Virgil returns to court Dec. 11, when doctors will be appointed to assess her mental health and determine if she can stand trial.
“I gave her the benefit of the doubt, but after reading the transcripts it just made me realize that Veva made a choice,” Collier said. “She made a choice to go back to her old lifestyle.” Collier said the past 12 months have been the hardest year of her life, but the tragedy has given her a new direction. She plans to petition for more rights for foster care parents.
“It’s going to be my life mission now,” she said. “I feel very, very sad that I didn’t have more power to help Isabella.”
