Today at Target, if you buy a copy of Super Smash Bros. on Wii U, they’ll throw in a $15 gift card. That’s the best deal we’ve seen advertised on Smash this holiday season, and likely the best you’ll see before the new year. NO CONTEST! [ Super Smash Bros. + $15 Gift Card]
If we’re to protect our planet for future generations, it’s paramount that governments invest in renewable sources of energy. Scotland appears to have turned that corner, after government figures revealed it’s now generating more power from “clean” t…
High-end audio enthusiasts love FLAC since it promises to preserve everything just as it was heard in the studio. Unfortunately, it isn’t the most widely-supported of formats, but it appears as if it’s going to get a warm embrace in Windows 10. Gabri…
Time flies when you’re having fun — and we’ve had plenty of fun this year!
Over the past 11 months we’ve celebrated tons of style news including the presence of more curvy models, awesome new designers to covet and who can forget Solange’s stunning wedding! We’ve had a number of personal moments we’re grateful like landing our dream jobs, giving birth to beautiful babies and having the opportunity to share special farewells with loved ones we’ve lost.
So, in the spirit of giving thanks the HuffPost Style team has listed a few things we’re thankful for in 2014. Check it out — and make sure to let us know what you’re thankful for in the comments section below. Happy Thanksgiving!
Julee Wilson, Fashion & Beauty Editor
I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with my natural hair. However, I’m thankful that this year I’ve truly dropped the hate and have learned to fully embrace my mane. Plus, I got the opportunity of having Johnny Wright, aka Michelle Obama’s hairstylist, transform my tresses (see below)!
I’m thankful for Solange Knowles’ EPIC wedding. I can’t stop staring at the photos! I truly hope rocking a jumpsuit and an Afro at the altar becomes more common.
Most importantly — I’m thankful for my baby boy Orion. Giving birth to this little angel in July has been a life affirming and truly magical experience. #Wombfire
Jamie Feldman, Associate Style Editor
As an only child and an only grandchild, I am extremely close to my tiny family. This year, my Nana had a pretty serious health scare and had to undergo major surgery. I am so thankful to the doctors and nurses who were patient with us and took such great care of her. I’m also thankful and proud to say that after 60 years, she finally quit smoking.
I am also thankful that more gorgeous, curvy women are making waves in the fashion industry. This year we saw IMG sign five new models to their regular roster, a slew of fashionable options in a range of sizes and more and more instances of body love and acceptance. I am so happy to say that through this progress, I have become more in tune and comfortable with my own body, as well.
Finally, I am so thankful for the incredible opportunities I have had over the past year working at HuffPost. I never imagined three years ago when I started my little fashion blog that I would work my way up & actually have a career doing something I love to do. As someone who has long been fashion-obsessed, I can confidently say I feel like the luckiest person in the world coming to work everyday.
Dana Oliver, Executive Fashion & Beauty Editor
I’m thankful that Queen Bey gives me LIFE through her many, many hairstyles. #BringBackThePixie
Thank the soul music gods that Jhene Aiko blessed us with her “Souled Out” album. I keep records like “Lyin King,” “It’s Cool” and “Blue Dream” in heavy rotation. Jhene be knowin’ my heart!
And while losing my grandmother Annie Ruth was one of the hardest things I experienced this year, I was blessed to do her final manicure in OPI Samoan Sand.
Michelle Persad, Fashion Editor
I’m thankful that slides made a major comeback this year. As a tall girl who loves flat, comfortable footwear, the fashion gods were really smiling down on me with this trend.
While I’m not thankful that George Clooney is now taken, I am thankful for his stylish Mrs. If you look up the definition of “the perfect outfit,” I’m pretty sure you’ll see a picture of Amal’s white two-piece Stella McCartney suit.
I’m thankful that fashion is embracing new, emerging talent and giving them the space to create new trends and visions. From Ji Oh to Rosie Assoulin to Louisa and Pookie Burch of Trademark — there is so much to be excited about for 2015!
Megan Mayer, Associate Style Editor
Surprisingly enough, I’m thankful for this winter weather! My coat hoarding is in beast-mode.
I’m thankful for learning my TRUE bra size, after 6 years of wearing undergarments that were too small.
And of course, thankful for my #bawse of a manager (aka Dana Oliver — seen here as Janelle Monae on Halloween).
Chanel Parks, Associate Style Editor
I am thankful for taking another big chop in life for the sake of healthy hair. And a huge thanks to Anthony Dickey at Hair Rules!
This year I took another big step in realizing I could wear whatever I want, which helped me wear one of my best outfits in 2K14. Praise sunshine-yellow and tight silhouettes!
Finally, I’m thankful that Hollywood and the small screen have integrated beauties like Lupita Nyong’o, Viola Davis, Dascha Polanco and Laverne Cox into the mainstream game, because it shows that beauty isn’t a standard, but a spectrum.
Ah, Thanksgiving. A time of pie and petty squabbling, of turnips and togetherness. When you gather together with our nearest and dearest, break out one of these five verses during the inevitable awkward silences.
“The Pumpkin” by John Greenleaf Whittier
Whittier, an American poet who spent most of his life working a farm, wrote this poem in praise of everyone’s favorite decorative gourd in 1850. The stanza below is particularly appropriate for the dessert course:
Ah! on Thanksgiving day, when from East and from West,
From North and from South comes the pilgrim and guest;
When the gray-haired New Englander sees round his board
The old broken links of affection restored,
When the care-wearied man seeks his mother once more,
And the worn matron smiles where the girl smiled before,
What moistens the lip and what brightens the eye?
What calls back the past, like the rich Pumpkin pie?
“Simple Gifts” by Joseph Brackett
A traditional Shaker hymn, popularized by Aaron Copeland’s Appalachian Spring ballet, “Simple Gifts” is a timeless ode to the uncomplicated pleasures of life. You’ve no doubt heard the melody before, but the words are very uplifting–especially if you need a reminder that Thanksgiving is supposed to be a time of joyful fellowship.
‘Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free,
‘Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
‘Twill be in the valley of love and delight.
“Family Reunion” by Maxine Kumin
This poem perfectly captures the conflicted feelings of a mother preparing a lavish
Thanksgiving for her adult children.
Benign and dozy from our gluttonies,
the candles down to stubs, defenses down,
love leaking out unguarded the way
juice dribbles from the fence when grounded
by grass stalks or a forgotten hoe,
how eloquent, how beautiful you seem!
“The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus
This famous sonnet is engraved at the base of the Statue of Liberty. We also think it’s a good mission statement for this year’s hosts and hostesses of Thanksgiving dinner.
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!
“Thanksgiving” by Edgar Albert Guest
Guest’s folksy verses recall the charm of an old-fashioned Thanksgiving, the kind that only ever existed in a Norman Rockwell painting or a Hallmark movie.
Bring all the wanderers home to the nest,
Let me sit down with the ones I love best,
Hear the old voices still ringin’ with song,
See the old faces unblemished by wrong,
See the old table with all of its chairs
An’ I’ll put soul in my Thanksgivin’ prayers.
All of us here are Grammarly want to wish all of our Huffington Post readers a happy Thanksgiving! We’re thankful for each and every one of you.
___________________
Also on The Huffington Post:
It may be better to give than to receive, but it sure can be hard to give sometimes when it comes to a spouse you’ve been married to for a long, long time. And that’s exactly why we’ve come up with a list of unusual gift ideas to help you surprise your partner with something extra special this holiday season. Have any gift ideas of your own? Feel free to mention them in the comments section below. Happy shopping!
Thanks to this amazing planet for giving us all living things. This planet was given to us with clean air, clean water and rich earth. We need to raise our voices and return these gifts. There is another gift “peace.”
I can’t remember a single Thanksgiving in all my 91 years, when we were at peace. Shame on us. What happened to giving thanks for peace? Giving thanks for unconditional love? Thanks for the privilege of living on this planet? And thanks for not destroying it?
How dare us say “Thanksgiving.” We are not giving. We are taking and taking and taking. Is it not possible to live in a world with no hatred? No anger, no racism, no guns and no genocide? I want to believe it’s possible. Then I will celebrate every day, not just Thanksgiving. So many of us celebrate this day being together with family and friends, but it’s hard to celebrate, when thousands are protecting this country and are far from celebrating anything, but staying alive.
When we start saving this planet, preserving the wild life, forests and oceans, then we can truthfully say thanks for giving us this bountiful planet. We humans do every thing possible to lengthen, strengthen and preserve our lives. How about doing something about the God-given air we breathe. Isn’t it ironic we purposely are destroying the one thing we cannot live without?
It’s all about money and oil. Wind and sun are even cheaper and easier to harness than fossil, fuel and fracking. And the money for these destructive forces comes from donations to the government and the people who are running it and who you and I elected. This information is scientific and available not only to Americans, but the entire world.
I love my family and every thing that goes with the celebration of “Thanksgiving.”How incredibly fortunate I am, but deep in my heart I have to remember, respond and take responsibility for millions who live in poverty, who are homeless, and hungry and who lack the energy and passion to raise their voices.
So let’s do something about compassion, loving and giving on this thankful holiday and yes all the other 364 days. I’m as guilty as every other non-vocal protester. So I say shame on me.
Let’s do something about the condition of this planet and lets do something to encourage the coming generations. We know the vital importance of eating and breathing. Without which we would not be here.
It’s the corporations and the government who will prevent a healthy living, thriving planet and a reason to celebrate. I love where I live, how I live and the way I live and I think it’s too early to live on Mars. So I’m going to celebrate this giving holiday with unconditional love, friendship, and the belief that things will change because I’m a complete optimist and know we all, “us humans”, will do the right thing by this planet.
This is not a game we are playing. It is a game in which we are playing for big stakes. Let us be lucky and hit the four cherries. Let us celebrate give love to this planet and all living things. Then we will have peace, clean air and a real Thanksgiving.
Are you with me? Because if you are then all the future Thanksgivings will thank you for giving. It will be worth all the effort, work and love given to make this a living planet.
I’m going to say “Happy Thanksgiving” and mean it, but I want something in return. It’s a promise that one day maybe in my lifetime, all living things will have clean energy, live and breathe clean air.
Think I hear applause?
Earlier on Huff/Post50:
From a distance, the 350 pounds Jim Bowen packs into his thick, muscular frame appear menacing. A shaved skull and elongated Van Dyke beard edged with the first trimmings of grey only add to the suggestion that he must be a bouncer at an edgy Daytona Beach bar.
As Jim approached my wife’s Aunt Annette, he pulled open the passenger door and reached in to extricate her from the passenger seat. She looked up at him, reached immediately for her inhaler and prepared herself. Sharp, relentlessly combative and attractive despite a series of medical misfortunes, Annette knows the routine. The long-ago Miss Otis Air Force Base turned world-roaming travel agent has been widowed for more years than she cares to count and, equally challenging, now requires daily living assistance thanks to a shattered hip too dangerous to replace.
Jim gently wedged his thick hands under her arms and waited for her to move her legs to the side before slowly lifting her from the car and carefully spinning her into a waiting wheelchair. It was my first trip to visit Aunt Annette since she lost her ability to live independently, a tough adjustment for such a strong-willed woman.
That Annette is accepting the adjustment is partially a testament to Jim. Through several years of physical turmoil that have turned even more troubling in recent months, Jim has been her protector, her friend, her handyman and, more recently, her escape from confinement.
In many ways, they are opposites:
• Jim dwarfs the petite Annette in physical stature.
• At 51, Jim is youthful and vigorous. A lifetime of battling Lupus never slowed 74-year-old Annette in the way recent challenges have confined her.
• Since moving from Upstate New York to the Atlantic Coast of Florida as a child, Jim has rarely departed the area other than during his six years of Air Force service. Annette enjoyed decades of world travel with Uncle Ed. She set off to Antarctica not long after his passing, never afraid of overseas adventure.
The unlikely relationship between Jim and Annette formed initially at the Moose Family Center, a lodge dedicated to raising money for the Mooseheart Child City outside of Chicago and Moosehaven retirement community near Jacksonville, Florida. A regular at the Moose Lodge who has taken on leadership roles at times, Jim worried when Annette hadn’t been around for too many days.
One of Jim’s checks found Annette in the midst of a serious medical emergency. In stubborn fashion typical for her lineage, Annette refused to allow an ambulance to take her to the hospital. Jim drove her instead. In the years since, he’s taken on a substantial role for Annette’s physical wellbeing, along with simply being her friend.
During the day, Jim toils at his single-man construction and handyman business. Several times each week, though, he turns into driver, bill payer, confidant, care provider and personal shopper (with coffee-flavored Haagen Dazs ice cream her clear priority based on my freezer check).
Annette’s handful of blood relatives reside 800 or more miles away and are able to visit only infrequently, as are several other relatives connected through her departed husband. Her nuclear family is too small and spread out to provide the assistance that close-knit, extended families deliver in difficult times.
Through a series of challenges, Jim’s concern and attention has helped save Annette’s life and, just as importantly, her mental health. The men and women at Kist Assisted Living who rotate in to help Aunt Annette with her daily needs do incredible work (including, in small world fashion, the sister of a man my wife has worked with for more than a decade). Even so, their attention is split among multiple patients. Jim’s visits are dedicated to her.
Jim doesn’t need to do this. There’s no family connection, no sense of religious obligation, no commitment to remuneration though Aunt Annette certainly tries to return his generosity when possible. He sacrifices some of his infrequent leisure time, a valuable asset for a single man, in order to take care of his friend Annette. He is gentle, patient and able to endure the routine needling from her that is traditional to family encounters. It turns out, he’s also well prepared, having worked for several years at an assisted living center before the heartache of losing too many residents who became his friends weighed so heavily on him that he decided to pursue a new path.
As nuclear families shrink and spread out, it’s relationships built on true friendship borne out of chance encounters that increasingly sustain people in times of need.
When I joined my wife and in-laws in a recent visit to Aunt Annette to spend time with her and share stories of times past, it was my first chance to meet Jim. It’s reassuring to see in Jim a gentle giant of a man who cares and worries more frequently than we ever could from our distance.
Jim Bowen is a difference maker in this world, making life better one person at a time. It turns out that he’s the antithesis of menacing. Thank you, Jim.
Earlier on Huff/Post50:
No one wants to make arrangements for the death of a terminally -ill friend or family member. It’s painful to think about any loved one’s eventual passing, but it’s important to make the arrangements sooner rather than later. In fact, it’s best to do it when you first learn your loved one has a terminal diagnosis. Why? Because once you have taken care of all the plans, you can just relax and enjoy spending whatever precious time you have left together.
There are other reasons as well. One is that you’ll save yourself untold stress when your loved one does pass away. When you’re grieving and not functioning at your best, you won’t have to rush around making a multitude of arrangements, gathering needed documents and information, making important decisions, and performing a whole host of other tasks, many of which have to be completed quickly.
More importantly, you’ll have time to visit with your closest friends and family at the time of the death. These persons will be critical providers of emotional support for you. If you haven’t made the needed arrangements, you’ll be so busy you won’t have much time to spend with them.
Although you can’t arrange everything in advance there are several tasks you can complete. You may want to include your loved one in the planning, but if you don’t you should find a friend or family member who can help you. That will make it a little less daunting.
Medical/Legal Issues: Hopefully your loved one will already have a living will, power of attorney and durable power of attorney for healthcare. If they don’t you should encourage them to execute these documents as soon as possible. This will guarantee that their wishes regarding their end-of-life care will be carried out. The documents will provide instructions as to whether they want heroic measures taken to extend their life, whether they want a Do Not Resuscitate order and other issues.
If you’re the parent or guardian of a terminally-ill minor you won’t need these documents. For a mentally disabled adult who can’t execute the documents, however – such as a person with dementia or severe mental illness – you may have to go to court to gain guardianship of the person, especially when family members don’t agree on what to do.
Call List: One of the first things you will have to do when the person dies is inform family members and friends. This can be immensely draining. It’s a good idea to prepare a list, including phone numbers, of people who will have to be notified. You don’t have to call all of the people yourself. You can indicate on the list which friends and family members you’d like to make each specific call on your behalf. That way you can reduce your burden by calling only those few people who are closest to you.
Obituary: Obituaries need to be sent to newspapers promptly. You can write it or have someone else prepare it. Start by collecting all the needed information. This will include important dates and other information about the person’s life ,such as what years they were in the military (if applicable), the specific years they worked at a particular company, the year they married, the spelling of any names you might not know, and any other details you’d like to include.
Also, select a photograph if you want to have one displayed in the obituary. Finally, record the phone number of the newspaper(s) where you want the obituary to appear. You can always make any needed changes later.
Eulogy: It takes time to prepare a thoughtful, well-written eulogy. The first step is to determine whom you’d like to deliver it and then ask them if they will do it. Have the person write as much as possible in advance. They will probably need you to supply some details about your loved one’s life. If you want to deliver the eulogy yourself go ahead and prepare it, getting any help you may need from a friend or family member who is a gifted writer. This document, too, can always be revised later if need be.
Funeral: Go to a funeral home and make (and pay for) all the needed arrangements so when the time comes all you have to do is place one call to them. Also, if you want to make any remarks at the funeral, prepare them now. Give some thought to other people you may want to speak and ask them in advance. This is also a good time to select the music you want played and investigate potential performer(s) if you want live music. Other tasks include designating pall bearers, selecting any prayers you want read, making up the official program, selecting the person you want to officiate, and choosing a religious speaker if you want one.
Reception after the Funeral: If you plan to have some sort of reception or meal after the funeral, figure out where you want to have it. If it will be in someone’s home, pick out a caterer unless you will ask your guests to each bring a dish.
Memorial Service (If you plan to have one): Think about where you’d like for it to be held. Prepare a framed photograph if you plan to display one at the service. Other tasks are the same as those for a funeral service.
Burial Location: If you’re planning to have a traditional burial and your loved one doesn’t have a plot, select a cemetery and purchase one. You can also look into headstones at this time.
Disposition of Cremains: If the person will be cremated, determine where you want the cremains to be placed. And when you’re making those arrangements, which it’s best to pay for in advance, and select an urn. This can be an especially gruesome task that’s best dealt with before the time of need.
Making final arrangements for a disabled terminally-ill loved one who is still living can be very stressful and may feel macabre, but it will not be as agonizing as having to do it at the time of their death.
Marie Marley is the author of the award-winning memoir, Come Back Early Today: A Memoir of Love, Alzheimer’s and Joy. Her website has a wealth of information for Alzheimer’s caregivers.n
Every woman’s favorite edition of People magazine is back! This year’s “Sexiest Man Alive” issue features Australian hunk Chris Hemsworth of Thor and The Avengers, looking every bit the heartthrob with his ice blue eyes and bulging biceps. But long before young pups such as Bradley Cooper, Adam Levine and Channing Tatum received the honor, hunky leading men — real men’s men — such as George Clooney, Sean Connery (1989) and Denzel Washington (1996) — graced the cover. Many who have received the coveted, blush-worthy title have gone on to A-list level status, but their paths there have been unique.
Does Chris Hemsworth stand up to these powerhouse predecessors?
George Clooney, 53, has been busy in the years since he claimed the title in 1997 and 2006, both when he was the world’s most sought-after bachelor. His movies are now few and far between, but he’s still frequently in the headlines. Thanks to his previous serial dating and now marriage to human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin (who is tall, thin, beautiful, and smart, naturally), he’s stayed in the news and close to our hearts. (Well, mine at least!)
Ben Affleck, meanwhile, is currently enjoying a career high like never before, with his success in recent projects Argo and Gone Girl, and suiting up as the next Batman. He scored his sexy title way back in 2002, and like a fine wine, just keeps getting better with age. (He’s now 42.) And frankly, I didn’t know he had it in him. Maybe Chris will find similar successes in his future.
Like Clooney, the eccentric, yet smoldering, Johnny Depp has been crowned “Sexiest Man Alive” twice — in 2003 and 2009. At 51, he’s still playing dynamic parts while maintaining his rugged, bad boy sex appeal by pairing up with bombshell Amber Heard, 28. Ladies do have a thing for bad boys. But Chris sure is precious with his gorgeous blond wife, Elsa Pataky, and three children.
Because when it comes to the “Sexiest Men Alive”, those with legendary love lives have fared well, too, tugging at the heartstrings of us romantics. In that camp, witness 50-year-old Brad Pitt and 52-year-old Tom Cruise. Other lovebirds include Pierce Brosnan (a newlywed in 2001) and Richard Gere (1999 — and 1993 with then-wife Cindy Crawford, the only time a couple was awarded).
Then there are the legends gone too soon — John F. Kennedy, Jr (1988) and Patrick Swayze (1991). Plus Harrison Ford (1998), who just wrapped the latest Star Wars sequel — at 72! — and my personal fave, Mark Harmon (1986), breaking hearts every week on NCIS. I have no doubt Hemsworth will one day be a silver fox, too, but I hope he can live up to these legends.
He’s got some big shoes to fill. At least he has the muscles.
Read more about money and lifestyle issues targeted for Americans 50+ at http://nowitcounts.com
Earlier on Huff/Post50:
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