NC FUNERAL HOME LEFT BODY IN HEARSE

The David B. Lawson funeral home located in Graham, NC is under investigation by the NC Board of Funeral Services for violating the main ethic of care; leaving a corpse in a hearse.

The victim, Linda Walton died last week and her body was removed by the Lawson firm after being released by local police. After removing the body, owner David Lawson admitted that he left the victim in the hearse for approximately 3 days because legally he could not process the body until the next of kin was informed of the death. After being informed that there was no next of kin, Lawson then sent the body to the crematory but it was returned after a day and a half due to the smell of the corpse.

N.C. Board of Funeral Services representative Paul Harris said that the firm is under investigation as they decide whether "responsibility of care and custody to treat bodies with respect at all times" was followed by the firm. The disciplinary committee will meet on September 8, 2010 to decide what discipline should be applied to the David B. Lawson funeral home at that point.

It's a shame when even after death you cannot receive respect by those employed to take care of your remains....even when you have no next of kin. I hope that the committee comes down hard on this guy as this is just unacceptable. With the lawsuits that can be filed from this offense I bet there will be some family to come to the surface and file a suit in the upcoming days.

GERMAN POPSTAR FAILED TO DISCLOSE HIV STATUS NOW FACES JAIL TIME

What happens when you have unprotected sex with various men and do not tell them that you are  HIV positive? In the UK they arrest you and make sure that you answer to the lay of the law and to your alleged victims. UK popstar Nadja Benaissa has found that out the hard way as she now finds herself in the midst of a legal battle that may have her jailed for up to a maximum of ten years.

Benaissa, who became a member of the German band, No Angels, after she won top prize on the UK American Idol-model television show POPSTARS, faces a total of six (6) felony charges. Five (5) counts of Attempted Grievous Bodily Harm, for sleeping with partners without protection and one (1) count of Grievous Bodily Harm for infecting one man whom she dated briefly in 2004 with the HIV virus. The partner has stated to officials that he did not have any knowledge that Benaissa was carrying the disease until her Aunt asked him if he knew in 2007.

Court documents show that the singer dated three men from 2000-2004 and did not inform any of them about her medical condition. Benaissa has said “I was careless during those days!” “I am sorry with all my heart and the last thing I wanted was for my partners to get infected!” Benaissa first became aware that she was HIV positive when she was informed at a doctors visit for a regular pregnancy checkup in 1999 when the singer was sixteen (16) years old. Benaissa has said she was told by her doctors that her risk of passing the virus to her partners was “practically zero.” She further states “Therefore I also concealed the fact that I was infected to my acquaintances. I did not want my daughter to be branded by this. I told the band members because I trusted them. I never made it public because I thought that would mean the end of the band."

The trial is underway this week and looks to last for approximately five days after all evidence is presented. 

Feel free to contact me at zmorganII@gmail.com & on twitter @zmorgan

A.J. BLAKE FIRED OFFICIALLY FOR SECOND TIME BY CITY OF GREENSBORO

In what seems to be a never ending saga involving former Greensboro police officer, A.J. Blake, there has been another development handed down this afternoon. Blake has been relieved from duty, yet again by the City of Greensboro, for the second time in just over one year. Blake, who has been embattled in legal issues with the City since he first joined the lawsuit filed on behalf of a group of Officers citing discrimination by the former administration of ex-Chief David Wray, has been on the losing end of yet another legal decision so we will see what his teams next chess-move shall be. Blake had hinted recently that if the decision today was for him to be fired, then he would file a lawsuit against the City. He has 10 days to appeal the ruling which seems to be inevitable as he and his advisors are going to exhaust all legal remedies available. 

The complete story with reference of how Blake has ended up in the position he currently is at the following link: 

http://www.news-record.com/content/2010/08/16/article/aj_blake_fired_from_greensboro_police

(photo courtesy of Jerry Wolford-N&R)

RYAN DEISS PERPETUAL TRAFFIC INTERNET SCAMS!

You know as a blogger I am online all day everyday and I enjoy 90% of the information that I am able to run across. There is a plethora of information on the net, much more than there was in the 70's when there was no "internets" for us writers and laymen that weren't friends of Bill Gates and other technology forward brainiacs. Various sights will tell you that they have the "white-rabbit-way" of making money online. But as you go online you always run the risk of hitting the scam wall as there are always individuals out there that make the net a scary place as they attempt to defraud others.

I wish to make money just like the next man so I am on the hunt for advice from other bloggers and such that may have some information as to how this has or can be done. Recently I came across the Ryan Deiss Perpetual Traffic Formula and couldn't help but laugh. This gig alleges that for a mere $2,000.00 he will ensure that you make boatloads of money from your site after reading his expensive formula. 2 GRAND?! FOR REALS!! Dude, if I had 2g's just sitting around gaining interest in the bank or dust under my mattress then I wouldn't be worried about making money on the internet, I would be more concerned about what vacation or silly purchase I am going to spend that 2g's thats burning a hole in my pocket on! I read the information and was all the more disgusted as I delved deeper and the words started to resonate in my mind like I was having a biscuit and cheap cup of coffee while listening to a time-share pitch on a dreary Saturday morning in a smoke-smell-stained conference room at the local ran down Radisson! Why must they do it to us?

Bloggers please don't fall victim to any scams. They are prevalent and are popping up every minute but we have to be vigilant as writers and owners of our own virtual businesses so that we can pass the knowledge on. Bloggers, if you run across any scams such as the aforementioned Ryan Deiss Perpetual Traffic Formula, pass it on to others so that the less informed become the MORE informed and are on the same playing field as we are. It's a damn shame that there are people that are in business just to take advantage of others but if they didn't exist then we wouldn't have anything to rant and rave about. Watch out for yourselves and others and keep everyone in the know, BLOGGER-FAMILY!

SH-COOL SCHOOL!!

The calendars almost state that it is time for classes to begin so there are many updates and last minute sprucing being done to the campuses and surrounding areas. At the school crossing for Southern Guilford, here in Greensboro, NC, there was a surprise! After a local contractor was hired to complete a painting at a student crossing, they soon discovered a problem.

Ohhhhh nooooooooo!!!! SHCOOL!!!

After school officials noticed the error they reached out to the contractor and had his team come back out and repaint the error. Of course, the contractor claimed he had no knowledge of the error and trusted his staff that he sent out. Ahh,, the NC educators must be proud!!

SLOW-COOKED BAR-B-Q RIBS

This recipe is one that I have prepared on numerous occasions and have always had very positive feedback from. The prep is very simple, as is the sauce that will be spread on the racks. This recipe is perfect for either grilling or baking in the oven. Although this recipe shows the oven process you follow the same for grilling. It is a slow process but one that is worth the wait. Below you will find the step by step process complete with pictures. 

Ingredients:

2 Racks of Beef or Pork Ribs

Salt

Pepper

Garlic

1/2 Cup Budweiser Barbecue Sauce

1/3 Cup Brown Sugar

1/2 Tsp. Cayenne Pepper

1/2 Tsp. Tabasco Sauce (Habernero Flavor)

Our first step will be to give the rack of ribs a dry rub. Start by taking a garlic clove and after shelling, simply rub onto the top and bottom of the ribs. You can rub the garlic rather liberally or if you are like I am, a garlic-nut, you will want to rub the garlic on rather thick. Next add sat and pepper evenly to both bottom and top of ribs making sure that you have covered the entire portion so that there are no unseasoned spots. Lightly sprinkle cayenne pepper on both sides and with hands rub the seasoning mx into the meat vigorously. Once done, place on baking rack let sit for 30-minutes to an 1 hour covered in non-stick foil. 

While the ribs are setting, grab a glass bowl and mix the following. 1/2 cup of Budweiser bar-b-cue sauce, 1/3 cup of brown sugar, 1/2 tsp. of cayenne pepper and 1/2 tsp of Tabasco Sauce. With a whisk, mix all the ingredients together until they have all married together and thickened. Depending on the consistency and taste that you desire you may leave as is for a nice thick savory sauce or add more brown sugar to sweeten and/or add ketchup to loosen the texture. I like the sauce to be thick so that it soaks into the ribs and makes each bite full of sauce so I leave as is, but it is up to the cook.

Place the baking rack with the ribs on it onto a baking sheet and fill the baking sheet under the rack with water (this helps to steam the ribs while cooking) and set the oven temperature to 250 degrees. Place the ribs in the oven covered and let cook for 1 hour. Once they are removed they should be similar to the picture below.

After the hour of cooking raise the temperature of the oven to 300 degrees, remove the foil and allow the rack of ribs to cook for the next 1.5 to 2 hours (use a timer). 

After 30 minutes check the ribs by pulling them out and using a knife or fork to check the tenderness of the meat. At this point the meat should be browning and ready for the sauce to be added. Take the sauce that you mixed earlier and using a brush, dip the brush into the sauce and liberally coat the racks with the sauce. 

Replace the racks back into the oven and repeat the process every 30 minutes for the duration of the time left until you have allowed the sauce to marinate and penetrate the meat and then coat the outside of the racks. When the timer sounds, turn off the oven, open the oven door and simply coat the ribs once more with the remaining sauce. Allow the racks to cool (approximately 20-30 minutes) and then remove from the oven and from the racks. At this point cut the ribs individually or in pairs and plate them for presentation to table ( see below). 

Happy eating and should you have any questions or concerns about the process or ingredients feel free to contact me at zmorganII@gmail.com or at twitter @zmorganII.

CLUB THER-RO-P!!

So a couple of nights ago I went out to The UnderGround, a very happening piano and sofa bar in town. The bar is a mix of patrons and ages and is one place that you can either kick back against the old brick style cutouts, post up at the bar, get ya dance on while grooving on the raised platform stage or grab a sofa and drink and watch the varied flat-screens displaying the sports news of the day. As I interacted with others and in the ambiance of the club I noticed a few things that REALLY caught my fancy. Noticing these things brought me to ponder the different groups that are present. Clubs normally have the dancers, the drinkers, the pick-up artists at the bar and the wallflowers in attendance. When you go to the club it is the one place of leisure that all of them can go and be totally open and free? One of the best ways to free yourself...Dancing!

I noticed many dancers come in with a sort of passive attitude but when their favorite song was played by the D.J. they lost all track of where they were and scurried to the dance floor like Tom (from Tom & Jerry) as he tried to escape the Bulldog!  Musicians are powerful motivators to the end of the "shy" personality whether their song is two months old and climbing Billboards Top 100 or ten years old and hasn't been heard by the masses unless they were lucky enough to hear it on their Pandora QuickMix while exercising or mowing the yard. Witnessing the rush to the dance floor when "The Cha-Cha Slide" came on and the formations that were formed on the dance floor to the direction of Mr. C The Slide Man

To the right now

To the left

Take it back now y'all

      One hop this time, one hop this time

Right foot two stomps

Left foot two stomps

 Slide to the left

   Slide to the right

             Criss cross, criss cross

         Cha cha real smooth

as ladies knew exactly which way to slide & cross before the suggestion was even played! It's an amazing sight as the disco-lights dance to the beat transitioning thru the rainbow of available colors, casting light off of each dancer as their gyrating bodies seem to be spotlighted in their own secretive romance with the bass that is beating against the walls. 

At that moment I realized that these people that are dancing and enjoying themselves and have no regrets. They don't care about the people that are watching, they don't care if they are ON the beat or not and they certainly don't care what opinion anyone has of them as they dance! They will leave the floor when the song is over, go right back and try it again and do as the Drinkers do.

The Drinkers are the individuals that come to the bar to throw back some shots of Jägermeister, Patron and the occasional deadly Tequila shot to end the night (as we all know that the night is over when the Tequila comes to the table)! The drinkers table resembles the table seen in many an Irish bar filled with an overflow of shot glasses, empty beer steins, leftovers that have been picked over for the last five hours and the stack of napkins that have sopped up spilled drinks throughout the night. This is the table that the  barkeep loathes clearing when they leave but loves the tips they provide as well as the jovial-drunken conversation they receive every-time they visit the table with another platter of rounds!  The drinkers much like the dancers just want to have a good time and enjoy the atmosphere as they occasionally crack a playful joke at the bloke that just had a full shot thrown in his face! This club-goer is known as the PUA!

The Pick-Up Artists, PUA, is usually positioned at the best point of contact, which normally is the bar! What better place to be when a potential dance mate appears than the bar because at some point of the night all persons visit this base. The PUA can be male or female (don't be fooled, women have just as much pick-up game as men do) so don't be alarmed when you hear a clever one-liner and turn and they are wearing 6-inch heels and fire-engine red lipstick instead of Jos A. Banks finest. The PUA is a master at their craft because they have decided that whether I get turned down or accepted, I'm still going to have fun! Many PUA's only rock this role for the pure adrenaline rush that comes along with the chase, much like the Dancer gets on the dance-floor and the Drinker gets from playing a high-stakes game of quarters. I find the PUA to be extremely entertaining because they could actually take their show on the road and perform stand up comedy! It takes a lot of heart and self-esteem to be this role as it can get quite physical from thrown drinks, constant rejection and the occasional unexpected acceptance. But on Monday morning the PUA can go back to their accountant, teacher or clerk position and revel in the weekend that they enjoyed when they let it all hang out for 48 hours as they wondered why the people standing up against the wall weren't following suit.

Standing against a wall and making it look good is an art in itself! Think about it, how cool can the average person look just standing around on the lean? Well let me tell you, the Wallflower achieves it like none other. The Wallflower is that trio of guys (yes they travel in threes because guys don't use the bathroom together so when one has to go they have one left to chat it up with) that are Abercromied-down, complete with pressed slacks with a crease that could put your eye out. They like to take in the sights of the club and watch the others dance and drink and bar-talk. The Wallflowers are persons that simply enjoy being in the club for the therapy of being out of the office, out of school and/or out of the house! The therapy of the music, the smells, the drinks and the people present give them the fix that they need to enjoy where they are. They aren't interested in hooking up or being loud as they just want to fade into the background and enjoy the scene. You will see them crack the occasional joke amongst their trio but for the most part they nurse their $4.95 Heineken until it's gone as they catch up on the latest headlines being ran by ESPN or the occasional "all-important" text or email received on their smart phone. They enjoy the wall and wouldn't have it any other way because just like everyone else they are enjoying what they are doing.

How awesome of a mental place to be!! When you don't care as long as you are enjoying yourself!!! Throwing all caution to the wind seems to be the attire to donn when one takes in the club atmosphere.

 Many people I know and interact with have issues with their appearance and/or what someone has said or is going to say about them. Regardless the age, it seems to still be a personality trait that needs to be abandoned! When you worry about what others say or may say about you simply visit your club of choice and look around at the dancers, the drinkers, the pick-up artists at the bar and the wallflowers standing guard at the nearest doorway. Pay attention to the uninhibitedness that they display in their different roles and how comfortable they are in them. They don't care who is watching because they are there to have fun and enjoy their time out with friends or simply enjoy letting their hair down and dance...OUTLOUD!! That is true club Therapy that needs to be employed by all of us. Life is short, WAY too short to add the stresses of what others may say about you because of how you dress, how you talk, how good/bad your body looks, how weaved or not your hair is, how tall/short you are or how bad of a person your are! Live your life like you are always dancing on stage under the dark lights and bass driven heat of life and I bet cha when it comes time to take that last breath, you will not regret it in the least bit.

Feel free to leave your comments below and contact me at zmorganII@gmail.com and via twitter @zmorganII