Cookie girls redux

Those nasty teenagers--they should stick to driving 100 mph in school zones, boozing it up, and keeping the toilet paper industry going by their creative artistic expressions in maple trees ;) Notice that they offered to pay this woman's med. bills, and she turned 'em down, then sued 'em for med. bill payment.

This is an older article than the one I posted a few minutes ago.

Teens' cookie deliveries crumble into $900 lawsuit
A neighbor says an anxiety attack sent her to the hospital after two girls dropped treats on her porch.
By Electa Draper The Denver Post

Durango, Colo. -- Two teenage girls trying to perform an act of kindness for their neighbors ended up being slapped with a medical bill for $900 after one neighbor suffered an anxiety attack when they knocked on her door at 10:30 p.m. delivering homemade cookies.

The incident began July 31, 2004, when the girls, Taylor Ostergaard, 17, and Lindsey Jo Zellitti, 18, decided to skip a dance and stay home and bake cookies for their neighbors.

Big mistake.

They were successfully sued for an unauthorized cookie drop on one porch. The deliveries consisted of half a dozen chocolate chip and sugar cookies accompanied by big hearts cut out of red or pink construction paper with the message: "Have a great night." The notes were signed, "Love, The T and L Club," code for Taylor and Lindsey.

At one of the nine scattered rural homes south of Durango where they delivered cookies that night, a 49-year-old woman became so terrified by the knocks on her door around 10:30 p.m. that she called the sheriff's department. Deputies determined that no crime had been committed.

But Wanita Renea Young ended up in the hospital emergency room the next day after suffering a severe anxiety attack she thought might be a heart attack.

A Durango judge Thursday awarded Young almost $900 to recoup her medical bills. She received nothing for pain and suffering.

"The victory wasn't sweet," Young said Thursday afternoon. "I'm not gloating about it. I just hope the girls learned a lesson."

Taylor's mother, Jill Ostergaard, said her daughter "cried and cried" after Judge Doug Walker handed down his decision in La Plata County Small Claims Court.

"She felt she was being punished for doing something nice," Jill Ostergaard said.

The judge said he didn't think the girls acted maliciously, but it was pretty late at night for them to be out. He didn't award any punitive damages.

Taylor and Lindsey declined to comment Thursday, saying only that they didn't want to say anything hurtful. Young said the girls showed "very poor judgment."

Just as dusk arrived a little after 9 p.m., Taylor and Lindsey began their deliveries. They didn't stop at houses that were dark. But where lights shone, the girls figured people were awake and in need of cookies. A kitchen light was on at Young's home.

Court records contain half a dozen letters from neighbors who said they enjoyed the unexpected treats. But Young, at home with her 18-year-old daughter and elderly mother, said she saw shadowy figures who banged and banged at her door. She thought they were burglars or some neighbors she had tangled with in the past, she said.

The girls wrote letters of apology to Young, with Taylor saying in part, "I just wanted you to know that someone cared about you and your family."

The families had offered to pay Young's medical bills if she would agree to indemnify the families against future claims. Young wouldn't sign the agreement. She said the families' apologies rang false and weren't delivered in person, so she brought the matter to court.

Colorado's cookie girls

This is a local story that made national headlines--I can't help but be on the side of the girls, and I wonder how the "victim's" anxiety attacks are doing now that she's getting hate mail. Jeez, at 49, grow up already, honey. They're just cookies, not bombs. Hey, maybe I can sue the next "religious" group that bangs on my door for giving me anxiety! Or the U.P.S. guy who knocks on the door! Or the mailman who obviously needs something signed--gasp!--because here he comes to knock on my--gasp!--door. Some people, I swear...Ain't there enough to worry about for real on this planet than a couple of teenage girls being--gasp!--nice?

Cookie girls get big hand
KOA listeners pony up $4,000 to pay legal fees for bakers-turned-celebrities
By Felix Doligosa Jr., Rocky Mountain NewsFebruary 11, 2005

The last crumbs of the cookie case have been picked up.

Radio personalities Dave Logan and Scott Hastings of KOA-AM (850) gave $930 to Lindsey Zellitti and Taylor Ostergaard during their afternoon program Thursday. It was the amount the Durango teens were ordered to pay after being sued for a making an anonymous nighttime cookie delivery to a neighbor.

"Just to know people love and gave touched our hearts," said Ostergaard as she held back tears.

"It's been a rough experience, but we're not going to stop delivering cookies."

Wanita Renea Young, 49, sued the girls after they delivered two batches of cookies to her house last summer. The chocolate chip and sugar cookies each came with a note: "Have a great night" and "Love, The T and L Club."

Young said she suffered an anxiety attack after the delivery and a judge awarded her $930 for medical bills.

Her husband, Herb, said Thursday the couple has received "horrendous phone calls, tons of hate mail, threats to our life."

"It's horrible; nobody has heard our side," he said. "I don't believe the girls meant for this to happen. But they could have prevented it from happening if they had just shut their mouths when they came out of (small claims) court.

"Now they are caught in something they can't control."

The two 18-year-olds said they wanted only to do something nice for their neighbors when they decided to use a modified Betty Crocker recipe to make cookies.

"We felt really surprised when we were sued," said Zellitti, a freshman at Colby Community College in Kansas. "We didn't mean to harm her. We're glad to put it in the past."

The girls' story garnered widespread attention when they appeared on Good Morning America and were asked to be interviewed on several other national television shows. The Otis Spunkmeyer cookie company also named a cookie in their honor - calling it the "Kindness Cookie" - and the girls will determine the flavor of the treat.

"We're surround by cows and pigs," said Ostergaard, a senior at Durango High School. "We're not used to it (media attention). It's out of our element and it's been challenging."

When KOA heard about the case, it raised $4,000 from callers to help pay for the teens' legal expenses. The rest of the money was donated in their names to the Never Forgotten Fund, a scholarship fund for students in honor of those who died at Columbine High School in 1999.

The two girls plan to continue baking cookies, cakes and desserts for friends and strangers.

"We're not big on cooking," Ostergaard said. "Just enough to make people happy and full."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

"Mommy, why is the ocean blue?"

This is cool!

Scientists Zero In on True Color of the Sea
Fri Feb 11, 7:55 AM ET
Top Stories - Los Angeles Times
By Kenneth R. Weiss Times Staff Writer

How blue is the ocean? How green is the sea?

The color of seawater, a key measure of ocean health, is coming into sharper focus due to a breakthrough in analyzing satellite images.

A group of NASA and university scientists on Thursday announced it had figured how to measure the hue and brightness of ocean coloration that, in turn, reflects changes in the tiny plants that provide the base of the ocean food chain and supply half of the world's oxygen.

The new techniques, scientists say, hold great promise in helping measure changes in ocean plankton, which besides being the undersea lungs of the planet also help determine how many fish are produced.

Phytoplankton exhale life-giving oxygen and are consumed as food by zooplankton and small fish, which, in turn, are eaten by larger fish.

Using earlier versions of the satellite imagery, other scientists from NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have noted a worrisome decline of phytoplankton over the last 20 years, possibly a result of global warming.

Michael Behrenfeld, a biological oceanographer at Oregon State University, said the new techniques should eventually result in a much more precise picture of phytoplankton, the ocean's basic biological building block.

Increased clarity will help determine how well ocean health is holding up under stresses such as pollution and global warming.

"We haven't made it to Oz yet," Behrenfeld said, who recently left NASA. "But today we are announcing we have found the Yellow Brick Road."

Scientists say the importance of phytoplankton cannot be overestimated.

These single-cell plants, too tiny to be seen without magnification, are so numerous that their collective weight would be more than all of the trees and shrubs and other terrestrial plants.
They absorb nearly half of the world's human-produced carbon dioxide, lessening the effect of this primary greenhouse gas linked to global warming. For two decades, scientists have used satellites to study plankton on a global scale by measuring the color of the oceans.

Seawater changes from blue to green as the abundance of phytoplankton increases, and researchers have used this color to determine the overall quantity of plankton.

But this was only half of the picture. The other half was how fast these plankton are growing, an important factor given how quickly phytoplankton bloom and die or are consumed — usually within six days.

Using a new analytical formula, scientists can measure how green the hue, and this "greenness" provides an indication of how fast plankton are growing.

Phytoplankton, like other plants, shed pigment, or chlorophyll, from their cells, and quit growing when stressed by changes in temperature, light or nutrients.

One of the trickiest parts of measuring this, said David Siegel, a UC Santa Barbara geology professor, was correcting for brighter light bouncing back from land and the atmosphere. "The ocean isn't the brightest target," he said.

Siegel likened the project, which is being published by the journal Global Biogeochemical Cycles, to fiddling with the settings for color and brightness on a television set.

In this case, the new mathematical formula to achieve those settings took a decade to perfect.

How can I get mining rights?

I wanna be an astronaut now ;)

I Come from Planet Tiffany....
Tue Feb 8, 8:39 AM ET
Oddly Enough - Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Some planets in our galaxy could harbor an unexpected treasure: a thick layer of diamonds hiding under the surface, astronomers reported on Monday.

No diamond planet exists in our solar system, but some planets orbiting other stars in the Milky Way might have enough carbon to produce a diamond layer, Princeton University astronomer Marc Kuchner said in a telephone news conference.

That kind of planet would have to develop differently from Earth, Mars and Venus, so-called silicate planets made up mostly of silicon-oxygen compounds.

Carbon planets might form more like some meteorites than like Earth, which is believed to have condensed from a disk of gas orbiting the sun.

In gas with extra carbon or too little oxygen, carbon compounds like carbides and graphite could form instead of silicates, Kuchner said at a conference on extrasolar planets in Aspen, Colorado.

Any condensed graphite would change into diamond under the high pressures inside carbon planets, potentially forming diamond layers inside the planets many miles thick.

Carbon planets would be made mostly of carbides, although they might have iron cores and atmospheres. Carbides are a kind of ceramic used to line the cylinders of motorcycle engines among other things, Kuchner said.

Planets orbiting the pulsar PSR 1257+12 may be carbon planets, possibly forming from the disruption of a star that produced carbon as it aged, he said.

Other good candidates for carbon planets might be those located near the galaxy's center, where stars have more carbon than the sun. In fact, the galaxy as a whole is becoming richer in carbon as it gets older, raising the possibility all planets in the future may be carbon planets, Kuchner said.

Hope diamond from French crown

I wonder if they'll ask for it back? One of the Hope's owners, Evelyn Walsh McLean, lived in my home state of Colorado at one time. This is a cool story:

Study Finds Hope Diamond From French Crown
Wed Feb 9, 9:04 PM ET
Science - AP
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Researchers using computer analysis have traced the origin of the famed Hope Diamond, concluding that it was cut from a larger stone that was once part of the crown jewels of France.

A French connection had been suspected for the Hope, but the new study shows just how it would have fit inside the larger French Blue Diamond and how that gem was cut, Smithsonian gem curator Jeffrey Post explained.

The deep blue Hope Diamond is the centerpiece of the gem collection at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, famed for its claimed history of bad luck for its owners. It's been good fortune for the museum, though, drawing millions of visitors.

Post said the new analysis of the diamond took a year, with researchers using sketches from pre-Revolutionary France, scientific studies of the French crown jewels and computer models.

"This new Hope Diamond research would not have been possible 10 years ago," said Post. "What is exciting is that we are constantly learning new information about our collections as we apply new high-tech research methods. Even the Hope Diamond is grudgingly giving up some of its secrets."

The research helps confirm the Hope Diamond as originating with a 115-carat stone found in India in 1668. That stone was sold to King Louis XIV of France who had it cut into the 69-carat French Blue. The French Blue was stolen during the French Revolution.

Just over twenty years later, after the statute of limitations expired, a large blue diamond was quietly put up for sale in London, and eventually Henry Philip Hope purchased it.

Finally donated to the Smithsonian by jeweler Harry Winston, the now 45.52 carat stone is the world's largest blue diamond.

The team of researchers led by Post and Steven Attaway, engineer and gem cutter; as well as Scott Sucher and Nancy Attaway, gem cutting experts, compiled the new analysis.

While the French Blue no longer exists, Post said the sketches of it from France were quite detailed and allowed preparation of a computer model of that stone.

In 1700, French scientists had also studied several stones from the royal collection, determining their specific gravity and other details.

Their analysis of other stones that still exist was quite accurate, Post said in a telephone interview, so the researchers felt the data on the French Blue was also probably accurate.

After using the sketches and analysis to make the computer model of the French Blue, and at the same time measuring the Hope Diamond and entering that data into the computer, the researchers "virtually placed the Hope back inside the French Blue" Post said.

"It turns out it actually fits perfectly in only one way, but at that orientation, when you saw how it fit, you could see why it was cut the way it is," Post said.

"They cut he corners off the French Blue, changed slightly the angle of the bottom facets, and that produced the Hope Diamond," he said.

Indeed, some of the facets of the current diamond may even be left over from the French Blue.

On the Net:
National Museum of Natural History: http://www.si.edu

Blech

Prince Charles is going to marry that sorry-looking horse-faced tramp he's been shtupping for decades. Blech. Blech. Blech. Even thinking about this...thing...being called "Princess" anything makes me sick. Blech. Just goes to show that you can be an adulterer for years, and top that off by lying about it and being a complete and total shit to said wife--and still become King of England--sanctioned by the Church of England, who now apparently don't see adultery as being anything wrong in the least when it comes to the throne--with the miserable nasty whore you cheated with by your side. And of course since your Mummy loathed said wife in the first place, you can also rest assured that Mummy will give the new wife an actual freakin' title. In America, we have problems with our elected folks, but we know that we can and will get rid of them eventually (after all, Presidents can only serve a max of 8 years). In England, maybe, just maybe, it's time for a change.

Prince Charles to marry Camilla

The ceremony will be held at Windsor Castle and Mrs Parker Bowles will take the title HRH the Duchess of Cornwall.

When the Prince of Wales, 56, becomes King, Camilla, 57, will not be known as Queen Camilla but as the Princess Consort, Clarence House added.

Charles said he and his wife-to-be were "absolutely delighted" at the engagement.

The move will end years of speculation on a relationship which has spanned the decades since they first met in 1971.

The wedding will be a civil ceremony, which will be followed by a service of prayer and dedication in St George's Chapel at which the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, will preside.

"The Duke of Edinburgh and I are very happy that the Prince of Wales and Mrs Parker Bowles are to marry," said the Queen, in a statement issued on her behalf by Buckingham Palace.

Charles was married to Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in a car crash in Paris in 1997.

The princess famously referred to Mrs Parker Bowles as one of the contributing factors in the breakdown of her marriage to Charles.

The couple, who had two sons - princes William and Harry - had divorced when Diana died.

A spokeswoman for Princess Diana's brother, Earl Spencer, said he would not be making any comment on the wedding announcement.

Religious reaction?

Conservative leader Michael Howard said he was "delighted" at the news, but Downing Street has refused to comment until a full statement is released by Clarence House.

The marriage is likely to be a sensitive issue because Mrs Parker Bowles is divorced and her former husband is still alive.

If he became king, Charles would be the supreme governor of the Church of England and some Anglicans remain opposed to the remarriage of divorcees.

The Archbishop of Canterbury said: "I am pleased that Prince Charles and Mrs Camilla Parker Bowles have decided to take this important step."

He added that he hoped the marriage would be "a source of comfort and strength" to the couple and those close to them.

BBC Royal Correspondent Nicholas Witchell said: "This is a step not without considerable risk by the Royal Family.

"They will be watching very carefully to see how public opinion unfolds."

Public opinion

Last year, a poll indicated that more Britons support Prince Charles marrying Camilla Parker Bowles than oppose it.

Of those who responded to a Populus poll, 32% said they would support Charles if he remarried, while 29% were opposed.

However, most people - 38% - said they did not care, while 2% had no opinion.

Mrs Parker Bowles has joined the Prince at numerous engagements in recent years - mostly at evening events for The Prince's Trust.

Clarence House staff were at pains to point out that she attended these events in a private capacity.

But the impending wedding will now allow her to be at the Prince's side full-time in an official capacity.

Neat facts

These are from my youngest daughter, and I haven't checked them for accuracy, but they're cool!

If you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee.

If you farted consistently for 6 years and 9 months, enough gas is produced to create the energy of an atomic bomb.

A cockroach will live nine days without its head before it starves to death.

Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories an hour. (Do not try this)

The flea can jump 350 times its body length. It's like a human jumping the length of a football field.

A catfish has over 27,000 taste buds.

Some lions mate over 50 times a daay.

Butterflies taste with their feet.

The strongest muscle in the body is the tongue.

Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people.

Elephants are the only animals that cannot jump.

A cat's urine glows under a black light.

An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.

Starfish have no brains.

Polar bears are left-handed.