Katie Melua on learning to re-love her breakthrough hit Closest Thing To Crazy

Katie Melua on learning to re-love her breakthrough hit Closest Thing To Crazy

Katie Melua has said she grew tired of performing the "hit" songs from earlier in her career and that some of her lyrics were irrelevant to her younger self.

Katie burst onto the music scene in 2003 with her debut album, which spawned popular singles Closest Thing To Crazy and title track Call Off The Search, while her follow-up record Piece By Piece was known for top five hit Nine Million Bicycles.

The Georgian-British singer-songwriter, 32, said her early songs made more sense to her now.

She told the Press Association: "I went through a period where I would find it frustrating to play the hits, but I have to say now, like when I was playing Closest Thing To Crazy on my latest tour, it actually felt incredible, because I feel like I'm growing into that song.

"I think an 18, 19-year-old singing that song, where the line is, 'Feeling 22, acting 17´, it doesn't actually match.

"Whereas now I'm over 30, and even when I'm older, I feel like that song's going to become more potent and powerful.

"If anything I become more and more fond of it as the years have gone on. It's becoming more and more real."

Katie praised Georgian polyphonic choir, the Gori Women's Choir - with whom she collaborated on her latest record, In Winter - with helping to refresh her attitude towards music, particularly her own body of work.

She said: "I really appreciate everything, these experiences that I've had and I do think it's partly because of this latest project and working with this choir, and the attitude in Georgia which is so excited and fresh about the potential and what people can be capable of doing."

Katie spoke of the new nationwide attitude towards the arts, culture and music in Georgia after years of its people feeling "hopeless" following conflict in the 1990s after she received the Order of Honour in her home country.

During the final night of her 28-date European tour on Tuesday, she performed with the choir in the capital Tbilisi.

The head of the administration of the president of Georgia, Giorgi Abashishvili, on behalf of President Giorgi Margvelashvili, awarded her the prestigious accolade for her "fruitful activities and personal contribution in promoting Georgian culture abroad".

Although a well-known name globally and as such an important talent to emerge from Georgia, Katie insisted she did not see herself as a celebrity and that she could not abide musicians being put up on a pedestal.

She said: "I don't really believe in the myth of me being that well-known and that famous.

"All it is is, there are things I've done, music I've made that has resonated with people and I feel like the only reason I am where I am, is because of the songs, because of the work."

She has "become completely tired of the whole iconic-obsessed culture" in which the star is "celebrated and elevated to this supernatural level".

Katie said: "Famous people and brilliant musicians aren't any more than any other human being, they just happen to do work and they happen to work - and magical work, I think music and songs do have those incredible transformative abilities to the listener - and so it creates the illusion of some kind of superior status.

"But I'm really against it personally, I just don't think it's healthy.

"I don't even think about it too much, in terms of being a name or being a VIP or any of that stuff.

"I think it isolates you from the rest of your culture and society."

She said: "I went down a bit of a rabbit hole in the past with actually believing some of that hype and I got pretty sick, so I don't buy into it nowadays."

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Ask SAM_ NORAD's Santa tracker

Ask SAM_ NORAD's Santa tracker

Q: When did NORAD start tracking Santa Claus on Christmas Eve?

T.P.

Answer: NORAD — the North American Aerospace Defense Command — has been keeping track of St. Nick since even before there was a NORAD.

The air defense group uses satellites, radar and a ground-based sensor system to monitor the North American airspace for signs of rockets, missiles, planes — anything that flies.

The tradition of Santa-watching started with NORAD’s predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command, or CONAD, back in 1955, when, as NORAD’s website puts it, “A Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. advertisement for children to call Santa misprinted the telephone number.”

Part of the ad copy read:

“Hey Kiddies! Call me Direct... Call me on my private phone and I will talk to you personally any time day or night, or come in and visit me at Sears Toyland — Santa Claus”

Instead of reaching Santa, the phone number put kids through to the CONAD commander-in-chief’s operations hotline. The operations director at the time, Col. Harry Shoup, had his staff check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole. Children who called were given updates on his location, and a tradition was born. NORAD replaced CONAD in 1958 and took over the tradition. Shoup, who died in 2009, was designated “NORAD’s First Santa Tracker.”

No government money is used for the Santa-tracking operation, according to NORAD’s website. The tracking is done with the help of volunteers and corporate partners who cover expenses. The tracking headquarters is Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado.

The website www.noradsanta. org keeps track of Santa’s progress around the world on Christmas Eve. NORAD also offers official mobile tracking apps through links on that website.

There has been some controversy in the past when NORAD showed two fighter jets escorting Santa, which some people felt was adding a violent message. NORAD disagreed, with a spokesman saying that “we really do feel strongly that it’s something that is safe and non-threatening” and pointing out that it had been depicting jets accompanying Santa and his reindeer since the 1960s.

On its website, NORAD points out that although it tracks Santa, only Santa knows his exact route, so they cannot predict when he will arrive at a specific house.

“We do, however, know from history that it appears he arrives only when children are asleep,” according to the website. “In most countries, it seems Santa arrives between 9:00 p.m. and midnight on December 24th. If children are still awake when Santa arrives, he moves on to other houses. He returns later … but only when the children are asleep!”

Q. Can I put wrapping paper and gift boxes in the curbside recycling containers?

E.B.

Answer: Yes for plain boxes but no for gift wrap.

People should not burn wrapping paper in the fireplace. A lot of the coloring on the paper comes from lead, copper and other metals, and burning the paper can release toxic gases.

Gift boxes that have foil decoration on the top but a white bottom should be separated, with the plain paper put into the recycling bin and the colored tops into the trash bin

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FESTIVUS_The Origins of Festivus, the Festival For the Rest of Us

The Origins of Festivus, the Festival For the Rest of Us

Seinfeld is just the beginning of this unique holiday

Happy Festivus! Have you aired your grievances or demonstrated your feats of strength around the pole yet? If that sentence made no sense to you, allow us to explain why every year on December 23rd, the internet is taken over with odes to Festivus, the festival for the rest of us.

The holiday drew national attention thanks to Seinfeld. In a 1997 episode titled “The Strike”, which aired during the show’s ninth season, George Costanza’s father, Frank (Jerry Stiller), decided he was staging a one-man war on Christmas. In lieu of celebrating a crassly commercialized holiday, Frank was going to start his own tradition—Festivus. “Many Christmases ago, I went to buy a doll for my son,” explained Frank in the show. “I reached for the last one they had, but so did another man. As I rained blows upon him, I realized there had to be another way.” With that, Festivus was born.

The holiday is celebrated on December 23rd, because Frank wanted “to get a leg up on Christmas.” To mark the occasion, an aluminum pole is set up in the living room or backyard—the Festivus pole, which “requires no decoration,” according to Frank. After a Festivus meal, celebrants must air their grievances with each other and engage in feats of strength, like wrestling.

While most people know the holiday from Seinfeld, it’s origins actually go back much further to the family history of a member of the show's staff. Writer Dan O’Keefe’s father invented the holiday when O’Keefe was about eight years old. He grew up celebrating Festivus, complete with feats of strength and the airing of grievances, but no Festivus pole, which was an addition invented by the show.

According to an interview with O’Keefe in Mother Jones, he didn’t really want to include his family’s secrets on TV, but when some of the other writers found out about Festivus, they forced him to work it into an episode and share its brilliant weirdness with the world. He finally agreed, including both the traditions and the holiday’s tagline, “a Festival for the Rest of Us. “[That] was an actual family Festivus motto,” O’Keefe explained in an interview with the Washington Post. “Referring initially to those remaining after the death of my father’s mother, and then coming to mean in general a forward-looking focus on life and the living, i.e. ‘Let the dead bury the dead’. ”

After the episode aired and Festivus started to be celebrated outside of the O’Keefe family, its inventor was awestruck. “Have we accidentally invented a cult?” he wondered to the New York Times. Nowadays, Festivus is celebrated from coast to coast and, in particular, on the internet.

For more information about the origins of Festivus, check out O’Keefe’s book, The Real Festivus.

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Carrie Fisher_Actress Carrie Fisher is in critical condition after a cardiac episode on flight from London to L.A.

Actress Carrie Fisher is in critical condition after a cardiac episode on flight from London to L.A.

Star Wars” actress Carrie Fisher was in critical condition Friday after suffering a “cardiac episode” during a flight from London to Los Angeles, according to airline and emergency officials.

Fisher, 60, was rushed to UCLA Medical Center by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics shortly after noon, after her 11-hour flight touched down at LAX.

A source who was not authorized to discuss the incident said the actress was “in a lot of distress on the flight.”

A statement released by United Airlines said that medical personnel met Flight 935 from London on arrival after the crew reported a passenger was unresponsive. 

“Our thoughts are with our customer at this time,” the statement read.

Just prior to arrival, a pilot told the control tower that passengers who were nurses were attending to an “unresponsive” passenger.

“So they’re working on her right now,” the pilot said in a public recording of the conversation on Liveatc.net.

According to the LAX Police Department, officers responded to Terminal 7 around 12:15 p.m., for a call of a female passenger in cardiac arrest. On arrival, they found paramedics performing CPR on the victim, according to Officer Alicia Hernandez.

Todd Fisher, Carrie’s brother, told the Associated Press that his sister had been stabilized at the hospital but did not provide further details.

Fisher, who rose to stardom as Princess Leia, recently published an autobiography titled the “Princess Diarist,” her eighth book.

She is the daughter of famous Hollywood couple Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher.

Carrie Fisher,  who has written and spoken openly about her struggles in Hollywood, is considered Hollywood royalty. She took on her prickly relationship with her mother in the book-to-movie "Postcards From the Edge.” She’s also been outspoken about her mental health issues and the solution she found — radical-sounding electroshock therapy.

News of Fisher’s condition sparked an outpouring of support and sympathy on social media. 

Peter Mayhew, the actor who played Chewbacca, tweeted “thoughts and prayers for our friend and everyone's favorite princess right now.”

Actor Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker, also took to Twitter: “as if 2016 couldn't get any worse... sending all our love to @carrieffisher”

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'TIS THIS SEASON BEING A CRAZY?

'TIS THIS SEASON BEING A CRAZY?

Are all liberals crazy? Probably not, but it seems that way these days. Pretty much every post I write is about liberals behaving not just badly, but bizarrely. Perhaps that is good, if, like me, you want leftism to be discredited forever. But the process is painful.

There is a garden store in Minnesota called Gertens. Its hallmark is that it is really, really big. This time of year, the store sells thousands of ornaments and holiday decorations. That’s the problem: liberals discovered–surprisingly, a few liberals apparently shop at garden stores–that Gertens had this ornament for sale:

I see some American flags in that photo, too. Those are heretical, but the left'S anger has focused on the irreproachable sentiment that all lives matter:

An ornament for sale at Gertens is at the center of a firestorm of backlash on Facebook.

A shopper browsing the ornament section Wednesday night at the Inver Grove Heights store spotted a black rectangle ornament with the words “All Lives Matter” written on it in white.

The horror! Only a liberal could twist herself into ideological knots so as to be able to claim that “all lives matter” is somehow an inappropriate sentiment.

The shopper posted a photo of the ornament in a private Facebook group, itself an offshoot of Pantsuit Nation, a larger group that sprung up ahead of the election in support of Hillary Clinton.

That helps to identify the zone of insanity–Hillary Clinton supporters.

Since the photo was posted, people have been leaving negative reviews on Gertens’ Facebook page.

“Any store that carries an ‘all lives matter’ Christmas ornament has their priorities in the wrong place. How insulting and insensitive of them,” Katrina Hannemann wrote on Gertens’ public page.

Here is another one, by Regina Edmisten:

Usually I am a loyal customer as I live in the community and love supporting local places but just now saw an ornament you are carrying this year. The “all lives matter” ornament is not what I have come to know and love about your buisness and it certainly sends a clear message to the community and not a good one. Please do better.

Another, from Stephen Arne Keeler:

“All Lives Matter” is a blatantly divisive term meant to belittle and downplay the legitimate concerns of black and brown folks in this country. Gertens selling an “All Lives Matter” ornament is tone deaf at best. Do better.

And here is one by Vicki Serreno:

I was headed to Gerten’s this afternoon for a few last-minute holiday items but after seeing the “All Lives Matter” ornament pictured in the Star Tribune I’ll be headed to Bachmann’s instead. How incredibly tone-deaf can you be, Gerten’s?

So Katrina, Regina, Stephen and Vicki believe that some lives matter more than others. There used to be a name for that kind of thinking.

Very few companies have the courage to stand up against pervasive liberal bullying. When a garden store stocks ornaments, the last thing it looks for is controversy. So, even though the left-wing bigots who complain represent a tiny minority, the easiest solution is to cave in to their demands. How much could Gertens make by selling a few ornaments? $20 or $30 maybe? It’s a no-brainer: give in to the wacky liberals and they will go away.

This is an apt microcosm of our politics as 2016 draws to a close. Liberals, unable to convince their fellow citizens by argument, resort, everywhere and always, to bullying.

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Ivanka Trump_Passenger removed from flight after confrontation with Ivanka Trump

Ivanka Trump_Passenger removed from flight after confrontation with Ivanka Trump

AJet Blue airline passenger, who media outlets and a witness described as making angry remarks at the sight of Ivanka Trump on his flight, was removed from the plane on Thursday by the airline.

JetBlue Airways Corp (JBLU.O) confirmed in a statement that a passenger had been removed from a flight set to depart from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, bound for San Francisco, but provided no other information about the incident.Another passenger on the flight, Marc Scheff, said that, when the man saw U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka, he "did a double take and said 'Oh my God. This is a nightmare!'"

JetBlue said in a statement: "The decision to remove a customer from a flight is not taken lightly. In this instance, our team worked to re-accommodate the party on the next available flight."

Reuters was not able to identify the passenger who was removed. Matthew Lasner, a Twitter user cited by TMZ, said his husband was going to confront Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, at the airport.

"Ivanka and Jared at JFK T5, flying commercial," Matthew Lasner (@mattlasner) wrote in a tweet, which has since been deleted. "My husband chasing them down to harass them. #banalityofevil."

Lasner, a professor at New York's Hunter College, did not respond to requests for comment directed to his Twitter account, which has since been taken offline, or to messages left at his office or sent to his Facebook account.

"To do that to a woman who was on there with her children, I don’t care what your political background is or what your thoughts are, that’s not the way we as Americans need to act," Trump spokesman Sean Spicer said on Fox News.

Scheff, 40, who told Reuters he was sitting in the row in front of Ivanka Trump on the flight, said the passenger who was later removed from the flight "started shaking."

He said that after JetBlue staff approached the man to "make sure he was calm," the passenger said: "They ruin our country, now try (to) ruin our flight!"

Scheff said the passenger was "clearly agitated" but did not "scream or yell."

Ivanka Trump was en route to Hawaii for a vacation with her family, according to ABC News.

Donald Trump and his family are spending the Christmas holidays at his resort in Palm Beach, Florida.

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Valerie Fairman a drug overdose

16 And Pregnant star Valerie Fairman is 'found dead of an overdose' aged just 23

Valerie Fairman was found dead on Wednesday after what is believed to be a drug overdose.The mother of one was just 23 and starred on MTV's hit show in 2010.

Friends and family confirmed the reality star's death on social media Thursday.

Valerie leaves behind seven-year-old Nevaeh - Heaven spelled backwards - who was in the care of the late star's adoptive mom.

Dailymail.com also understands that the former reality star was engaged, to local musician Russ Bosi.

MTV, the network behind Valerie's show, also confirmed her passing in a statement: 'We are saddened by the news of Valerie Fairman's passing. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family at this time.'

The Ashley was the first to report the MTV star's death after numerous family members took to social media to express their grief.

Valerie had long struggled with substance abuse issues.

The 16 And Pregnant star's mother told TMZ that on Wednesday Valerie was at a friend's house in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, when her pal became concerned she had not returned from the bathroom.

When the friend broke down the door, they found the 23-year-old unresponsive.

In audio of the paramedics dispatch, obtained by TMZ, EMS were sent to a possible 'cardiac arrest' and someone was doing CPR on scene.

However, the dispatcher changed the call to a 'possible DOA [Dead On Arrival]'and told paramedics they would need containers for needles.

While overdose is suspected, her exact cause of death will not be known until after an autopsy.

Valerie has struggled with drugs for some time and despite a reported rehab stay, had also found herself in trouble with the law.

In recent years, she had been arrested for assaulting her mother and prostitution.

Last Wednesday, the 23-year-old was arrested for resisting arrest and making a false identification to law enforcement.

According to the Parkesburg Borough Police Department, officers conducted a traffic stop and during the stop, Valerie provided a false name.

When police officers questioned this and identified her as Valerie, officers said she attempted to flee on foot. 

'After a brief foot pursuit, Valerie Fairman, of Oxford, was taken into custody for resisting arrest and providing false identification to law enforcement. Valerie was arraigned in front of the Honorable Nancy Gill and released on $1,500 unsecured bail,' the report concluded.

Following her death, a woman identified as one of Valerie's sisters, took to Instagram to speak of her sad loss.

'My baby sister, my heart, my blood! Valerie you will forever be missed. I love you baby girl and I will always.'

David Pryce - who has previously said he is Valerie's ex and also the uncle of her child's father - took to Facebook to tell people, especially those who sell drugs, to change their ways.

He wrote: 'I will always miss you Valerie and I am want to tell anyone who is selling s**t to people to stop. 

'We have lost too many loved ones to what you are doing and I am going to start taking care of it.'

Teen Mom stars - who were also on Valerie's second season of 16 And Pregnant - expressed their sadness after hearing news of her passing.

Jenelle Evans, who has also struggled with drug dependency, tweeted: 'Oh my god. I just spoke to her a couple months ago and told her I'm proud of her and looks like she's doing good.

'This really upsets me... I told her to stay on track.'

Chelsea Houska tweeted, 'How incredibly sad. My heart goes out to her daughter and family. '

Valarie starred on MTV's 16 And Pregnant in 2010 after falling pregnant at just 15 to her then boyfriend Matt.

Their volatile relationship was followed during the second season of the series with Matt often claiming to not be the father of Valerie's daughter.

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