Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/122231
NEWS OF THE WEIRD by CHUCK SHEPPARD Wait ... What? A startup company in Austin, Texas, also serving San Francisco, promises to take its customers' incoming U.S. mail three times a week, photograph it and deliver it back to the customers via mobile phone app, for $4.99 a month. The company, Outbox, provides some value-added services, removing the customer from junk-mail lists and paying bills. Still, Outbox's unorthodox business model assumes that a growing number of people absolutely hate opening, filing or discarding pieces of paper. Co-founder Will Davis told CNN in February that at least he does not fear competition: "No one is crazy enough to do what we're doing." [CNN, 2-26-2013] Oops! College basketball player Shanteona Keys makes free throws at a 78 percent rate for her career, but on Feb. 16, she weakly shanked one of those 15-foot shots, causing it to thud to the floor about eight feet short of the rim — the worst collegiate free-throw attempt of all time, according to several sports commentators who viewed the video. Keys explained to Deadspin. com that she always brings the ball close to her face when she shoots, "and my fingernail got caught on my nose, Chuck Sheppard so I couldn't follow through correctly." Her Georgia College (Milledgeville, Ga.) team lost to rival Columbus State, 70-60. [Deadspin.com, 2-19-2013] Research Hurts: Between 2002 and 2010, according to the March BJU International (formerly British Journal of Urology), an estimated 17,600 patients came to U.S. hospital emergency rooms reporting genital injuries from trouser zippers (presumably by accident, but researchers took no position on that). Seven authors (six from University of California, San Francisco) took credit for the report, funded by a National Institutes of Health grant, and found that "zip" wounds were only about onefifth of emergency penile injuries. [BJUI, 3-13-2013] Family Values Rachel Hope and Parker Williams, both apparently intelligent and attractive, decided to procreate and fully raise a child together — even though neither has romantic intentions toward the other. Their relationship is likened to a business one, according to a February New York Times profile, in which they do their respective biological duties, separately, and then each basically outsources half the subsequent child-rearing to the other. Said another parent in a similar relationship: "When you think about the concept of the village, and how the village was part of child-rearing for so many cultures ... it makes total sense." [New York Times, 2-16-2013] COPYRIGHT 2011 CHUCK SHEPHERD WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM WEEKLY HOROSCOPES BY HOLIDAY For the Week of April 21, 2013 ARIES (March 21-April 19) In the past, it seemed that your success in a certain endeavor was determined by factors beyond your control. You now realize that success can be achieved with the right efforts. You'll get busy figuring out what you need to do and how often. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) When you feel like you're out on a limb, return to the routines, habits and traditions that have long held you in good stead. Time rolls forward, and you will roll with it. But right now there is comfort, strength and value in honoring what has always worked for you. TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Understanding that "right" is overrated, you'll take the route of curiosity, fun and surprise. Your open-minded approach leads to learning and being correct more often, too. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21) You can be as social and lively as anyone, but a few hours to yourself doing what comes naturally without having to think of another person is a basic need, too. Your need for solitude and peace will be even greater this week, so make time for you. GEMINI (May 21-June 21) The symmetry and grace of a spider's web seems artistic, and yet most would agree that the spider spins it for the practical reason of catching her next meal. Stay aware of the lovely, sticky designs that could very well be meant to capture more than your interest. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) There's a serious side to the work you take on this week. The survival instincts and strategies you'll apply this week do not have to do with actual survival, but rather with your position and longevity in a social group or a game. CANCER (June 22-July 22) You're a learner. You are motivated by the sheer pleasure of adding to your knowledge, skills and understanding. You commit to the projects that will make you a better, stronger, smarter and wiser person. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Centuries later, the advice of your sign mate Ben Franklin can still be applied to make your life better. In essence, get to bed early and wake up early. This week's accomplishments absolutely depend on this kind of simple, effective scheduling. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) It's comforting to see a clear cause and effect between what you do and the results you get, but this week's process is too mysterious and complex to allow for that. There is a pattern, but it's not a simple one. Keep the faith. If you do what's right, your efforts won't be in vain. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Seeing things differently can make life difficult, but it's part of the magic of you. Those who don't have as much creativity at their disposal (which is to say most people you meet this week) will be impressed by the very same gifts you sometimes consider to be the most challenging aspects of your personality. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Some people are excited by the idea of going somewhere pleasant and enjoying themselves for hours on end. Others are daunted by pressures of "having fun," unsure of exactly how and why such a thing should be accomplished. You'll be a guide for those in the second category. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) If your confidence is a little low, it could actually be a good thing for you this week. Those who think they already have the full package will not make the extra effort to be remarkable. You will succeed where the overconfident fail. Your success comes because you're competent and willing to put in the effort. By Holiday Mathis Good Morning Fayetteville with Goldy & Jim W Weekday Mornings 6-10 a.m. Talk Line: 910-864-6400 Local News, Weather, Traffic & Sports ADVICE GODDESS Dark Clouds On The Verizon I work 9 to 5, and my girlfriend of two years is retired and pretty much free all day. I've asked that we treat dinner as our special time to reconnect and ignore incoming phone calls. Sadly, instead of embracing this request, she has resisted me with full force. Whenever the phone rings during dinner, she answers and stays on as long as the call takes. We don't get urgent calls. She counters that if the phone rings, you answer it, and that it could be some problem she can just address and be done with. She deems my request "controlling," yet I've never made a demand or thrown a tantrum. I've just explained that I'd appreciate it if we could carve out 30 minutes of together-time. I've also asked her to ignore the phone when we're in bed, but her tendency is to answer it — even if we're having sex. I've explained how unwanted this phone thing makes me feel, but she doesn't seem to get it. — Ignored It's possible that Amy Alkon she isn't entirely conscious of why she's treating you this way. She may fear getting closer and then getting dumped or think you'll value her more if she makes you feel like less and less. It's possible she is punishing you for something or is trying to abuse you into leaving. What is clear is who's the controlling one here — the self-appointed dowager countess of the relationship, making the unilateral decision that the phone will be answered no matter what. As for you, her significant serf, keep quiet and eat your gruel while milady has a nice chat with Rachel from Cardmember Services. It must get hard to parse whether you're in a relationship or a call center. Perhaps you, like many people, assume that being in a relationship means having a partner who loves you and cares about your happiness. Your girlfriend does seem to — as long as it doesn't mean having to call somebody back after dinner. Even if she doesn't fully understand what's motivating her behavior, if she does love you, she can behave lovingly while she figures it out and stop answering the phone like she's one of the town's two sober volunteer firemen. Telling her how unwanted you feel obviously isn't enough; you also have to have standards for how you'll be treated and be willing to walk if they aren't met — ideally, into the arms of a woman whose screams of passion in bed don't include "Who's calling, please?" Amy Alkon all rights reserved. APRIL 17-23, 2013 UCW 27