Miami’s book fair ‘Evening With…’ series ends on easy note

A bit of fiction and a bit of philosophy, both seasoned with a touch of the historical, rounded out the final night of Miami Book Fair International’s “Evenings With…” programs Friday.

Emma Donoghue read from her Astray, new book of short stories inspired by old newspaper accounts, and historian Alan Ryan talked about his weighty new two-volume work On Politics: A History of Political Thought: From Herodotus to the Present (told you it was weighty).

“I feel like I should say, ‘Hello, Miami!’ ” joked Donoghue when she took the stage. Earlier, the Canadian author expressed wonder at the fact she was swimming in the Biltmore poolon a November afternoon before her appearance. “I don’t usually stay in places like that,” she said, laughing.

But Donoghue, author of the novel Room, is no stranger to new experiences: She’s a two-time emigrant from Dublin, once from Ireland to England, then on to Ontario.

“The Irish are obsessed with immigration,” she told the audience. Even when the economy’s good there, she said, the Irish look to other countries. “It’s still a small island,” she joked. “A lot of us have felt the need to fly that particular coop.”

Fitting then, that Astray features characters on the verge of moving on or struggling in their new surroundings. Donoghue read the amusing story The Widow’s Cruse and fielded questions about Room, a harrowing novel about a little boy being raised in a tiny shed by his kidnapped mother. Disturbing to be sure. But in case you wonder, Donoghue has no pressing childhood traumas of her own to inspire her to such a dark premise.

“I grew up in Dublin in a bookish household,” she said. “I was allowed to read all the time. . . There’s something to be said for a happy childhood that leaves you feeling confident.”

Ryan, who was in conversation with Robert Weil, editor-in-chief of W.W. Norton’s Liveright & Co., talked about his comprehensive study of political philosophy. Or, as his daughter (a biology professor) describes his profession: “He does dead philosophers.”

Ryan did mention a few of those worthy gentleman — Plato, St. Augustine and John Stuart Mill, for example — but still managed to elicit a laugh when discussing Americans’ adoration of a Constitution they’ve never read and continually confuse with the Declaration of Independence.

“The Constitution is revered, and it is at least worth knowing,” he said.

The fair continues this weekend with a full schedule of authors Saturday and Sunday.

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Honey Boo Boo Gets Trashy and Some Really Cute Dumb Ways to Die

We realize there’s only so much time one can spend in a day watching new trailers, viral video clips, and shaky cell phone footage of people arguing on live television. This is why every day The Atlantic Wire highlights the videos that truly earn your five minutes (or less) of attention. Today:

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So, we’re not quite sure what kind of spirit moved artist Jason Mecier to create a Honey Boo Boo portrait from 25 pounds of trash. But it did. And we’re thankful (sort of?): 

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And thank god for YouTube. Besides going to America’s shopping malls, how else would we find terrible parents and gullible children? And how else would we know that we were entertained by these fascinating creatures? 

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Now that the Dark Knight trilogy is over, aren’t you in the mood for something lighter? Another prequel? How about a fan-made video (which we’re guessing took hours and hours and footage from the 90s and beyond) which imagines all Dark Knight‘s characters in high school?

OMGosh Melbourne Metro this is like the cutest video on earth! You guys are adorable, like we’re talking totes adorable squeeeee—Oh wait. We take that back. We take all of it back. 

Wireless News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Buzzmakers: Lindsay Lohan Comes Clean & Janeane Marries

What had ET readers buzzing this week?

1. Janeane Garofalo: I Didn't Know I was Married!

Sometimes what happens in Vegas actually does stay in Vegas -- at least for two decades. Funny girl Janeane Garofalo is claiming she's been married for 20 years, and didn't even know it!

The Reality Bites actress told the New York Post that she and Big Bang Theory producer Rob Cohen decided to wed at a Las Vegas drive-thru chapel but never thought it would stick. "Rob and I got married, for real, which we had to have a notary dissolve not 30 minutes before we got here tonight," Garofalo said at the New York Comedy Festival reunion for The Ben Stiller Show. "We were married for 20 years until this evening."

Garofalo, 48, further explained, "We got married drunk in Vegas. ... We dated for a year, and we got married at a drive-through chapel in a cab. [We thought], 'You have to go down to the courthouse and sign papers and stuff.' So, who knew? We were married, and apparently now that [Rob] is getting married for real, his lawyer dug up something." Cohen, 63, joked, "I'm gonna get all of that Reality Bites money!"

2. Miley Cyrus: My Dad Knows Nothing

In speaking with ET's Christina McLarty, Miley Cyrus cleared up rumors that she and fiance Liam Hemsworth were planning multiple weddings, started by her dad.

According to Miley, she hasn't even set one wedding date, let alone the three ceremonies that Billy Ray told Us Weekly were going to take place.

"My dad knows nothing," Miley says, pointblank. "I think he's getting cabin fever from [Superstorm Sandy]. He got stuck in his hotel and now he's making up crazy things." Billy Ray has been in NYC, performing in a Broadway production of Chicago.

The 19-year-old singer/actress goes on to admit that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

"He does what I do: When he's sitting in a press thing, he's like, 'Let's make this fun. Let's make some stuff up,'" Miley says.

Even with this recent flub, Miley does thank her parents for doing a good job of raising her, saying, "My parents have never been super strict, and people could think that's bad or good, but people that judge me or say that I'm, like, crazy -- they don't know half the stuff their kids are doing."

3. Stephanie Bongiovi Drug Charges Dropped

Stephanie Bongiovi, Jon Bon Jovi's 19-year-old daughter, will not be charged after reportedly overdosing on heroin in her dorm at Hamilton College in New York.

According to a statement from the Kirkland Town Police Department, a female [presumably Bongiovi] was found unresponsive by an ambulance crew sent to the college early Wednesday, after a report that a female had apparently overdosed in the school's largest dorm.

Although Bongiovi and 21-year-old Ian Grant were charged with drug possession, the charges have now been dropped.

Citing section 220.78 titled "Witness or victim of drug or alcohol overdose" of New York State Penal Law -- which states that a person who seeks health care for someone who is experiencing a drug or alcohol overdose or other life threatening medical emergency, as well as the individual who has overdosed or who was experiencing such life threatening medical emergency, can't be prosecuted for the possession of heroin weighing less than 8 ounces or possession of any amount of marijuana -- police said that neither Bongiovi or Grant can be charged.

There has been no statement from Jon Bon Jovi at this time.

4. Dina Lohan Addresses Cocaine Accusation

Did Lindsay Lohan lie about her mother having an alleged cocaine problem? Dina Lohan sets the record straight for ET's Christina McLarty.

"Absolutely lied. We were having an argument, it escalated," explains Dina of their October altercation which was recorded by her father, Michael Lohan. "She just wanted to hurt me at that moment. You know, mothers [and] daughters, we fight."

Dina tells Christina that it pained her to see that private family moment "go public and viral." As for accusations that she uses cocaine, Dina replies, "I hate cocaine. I don't do cocaine."

After Lindsay proclaimed that she was not being truthful about her accusations against her mother about cocaine use, Dina says, "I'm so proud of her for telling the truth because it destroyed me. I mean, I cried for weeks. It just hurt me so bad and she knew how horrible that was, and she came clean and told the truth that she lied. I'm very proud of her for that, which is very difficult to have to do."

Dina adds, "There's so much more to the story than the public sees, and it takes its toll on my children and myself, and we're just trying to move forward." Watch ET for more with our exclusive Dina Lohan interview.

5. Big Bang Cast Leads Call Me Maybe Flash Mob

Fans of The Big Bang Theory might logically assume that the cast of the hit CBS comedy has as many laughs on-screen as off. But now there is concrete proof as Kaley Cuoco just revealed in this clip of cast and crew members surprising showrunners with a flash mob of Carly Rae Jepsen's viral hit Call Me Maybe!

Kaley explains on The Big Bang Theory's Facebook page that the idea was hers and that she recruited her sister Bri to choreograph the impromptu number, which occurred during a taping on October 23 in front of a live audience.

The clip shows how the prank was carried out with secrecy and precision, with the cast re-assembling on the set immediately after the flash mob to resume taping and to hear star Jim Parsons sum up the event with one of his character Sheldon Cooper's favorite words, "Bazinga!"

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B'klyn man dies after starting a fire while smoking in bed

A man was killed in a Brooklyn blaze early today, authorities said.

The 39-year-old accidentally started the fire while smoking in bed at a second-floor Midwood residence on Ocean Avenue near Avenue I, police sources said.

Sixty firefighters rushed to the scene, extinguishing the flames shortly before 1:15 a.m., according to an FDNY spokesman.

The man, whose name was not yet released, died at Kings County Hospital, after EMS rushed him there in critical condition.

Fire marshals don’t believe the fire is suspicious after a preliminary investigation, authorities added.

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Jolly holiday shopping season already underway

Lilian Stoppa and Renata Rosa stepped out of Target in Midtown Miami with a cart piled high with holiday gifts.

Landing in Miami on Thursday morning for a five-day shopping spree, they already had spent $800 by mid-afternoon on presents for family members: toys for Rosa’s daughter, beauty items for Stoppa’s mother, plus lots of other stuff.

“This is just the start,” giggled Stoppa, 30, who works with Rosa, also 30, at a Sao Paulo telecom company. Their next stops: Sawgrass Mills, Aventura Mall and Bal Harbour Shops, if their money holds out. “We came to Miami to shop because it’s very much cheaper than in Brazil.”

Tourists like Stoppa and Rosa are exactly the reason retail experts predict Florida’s holiday shopping season will see its highest increase since the recession.

Across South Florida, stores are getting a head start on the holidays in hopes of cashing in. Sales are already underway everywhere from Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom, to Macy’s, Toys“R”Us and Anthropologie.

The Florida Retail Federation forecasts that Florida will see a 5.2 percent jump in holiday spending from $55 billion in 2011 to $58 billion this year, marking the highest percentage growth predicted since the economic slump began. Pre-recession, retail sales peaked at $54.3 billion in 2006.

“All of the indicators point to what we believe will be a very robust holiday shopping season,” said Florida Retail Federation President and Chief Executive Rick McAllister.

That also translates into more than 42,000 new retail jobs, he said.

Buoyed in large part by tourists and snowbirds, Florida is expected to outpace the nation in spending for the holiday season, as it did before the recession.

This year, the National Retail Federation is predicting holiday spending nationwide to rise 4.1 percent. On average, consumers are expected to spend about $750 each.

Economists point to strong consumer confidence as a major factor contributing to a stronger shopping season.

“By and large the consumer is very confident right now, and that usually leads to spending,” McAllister said.

Other indicators also point to a healthy season. ICSC, a trade association for the shopping center industry, this week released its ICSC-Goldman Sachs 2012 Holiday Spending Intentions Survey, which found that 19 percent of consumers plan to spend more, and 5 percent substantially more, on holiday gifts this year versus last year. It was the highest percentage of consumers reporting they intend to increase spending over the previous holiday season since ICSC began asking the question in 2004.

Retailers like West Elm are ready, beckoning gift givers. Stores are decked out with sparkly, eye-catching displays of items like candlesticks, ornaments and crystal paperweights.

“We’ve had lots of people shopping early, for several weeks,” said Ana Meza, an assistant manager at West Elm in Midtown Miami.

Without question, the holiday season is critical for retailers, a period when they typically generate 20 percent to 40 percent of the full year’s revenue.

This year brings an added bonus. With Thanksgiving falling early, the shopping season is stretched to 32 days, giving retailers more valuable time to rack up sales.

Shoppers like Jose Hernandez aren’t waiting for the last minute. Hernandez, who works as a civilian supervisor at the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Gulfport, Miss., and spends every other three months home in Miami, started his holiday shopping this week. He figures he spent $2,000 at Carter’s, GUESS, Marshalls and Target in Midtown, and plans to spend a total of $5,000 — up 40 percent from last year — before Christmas Day.

“The economy is going up,” said Hernandez, 44.

Yet experts say that many holiday revelers will avoid the stores all together, opting instead for online purchases.

Retail experts expect e-commerce to continue to post a dramatic increase this holiday season, up 15 percent. Though it still represents only about 5 percent of all shopping, online buying is the fastest-growing segment of the retail industry, McAllister said.

Many online sites are offering percentage discounts starting this weekend. Disney Store will offer a selection of “Magical Friday” deals on sale beginning Monday, at DisneyStore.com. Kohl’s is letting customers shop more than 500 “Early Bird specials” on Kohls.com starting Wednesday.

While apparel is expected to be the top category for purchases, gift cards are again projected to outsell any single article of merchandise. The National Retail Federation’s 2012 holiday consumer spending survey showed that 81.1 percent of shoppers will purchase at least one gift card, spending an average of $156.86 on them.

“Gift cards are the best invention ever,” said Jennifer Mayer, 44, a drug representative who has three daughters and lives in Miami Beach. “It’s not for everyone, but it’s great for those you don’t intimately know.”

This year, Mayer plans to buy gift cards at places like Starbucks, H&M, Forever 21 and Barnes & Noble.

“They’re great for bosses. They’re great for teenagers,” she said. “They’re a lifesaver.”

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Weather alert: Cool temperatures will stay into the weekend

Mild temperatures will continue into the weekend, with highs in the low-80s and lows in the mid-60s.

The weekend will remain partly cloudy, with a low chance of showers at 20 percent.

No advisories have been announced and wind will be low at 10 to 15 miles per hour each day.

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Final On the Road Trailer

Beatnik author Jack Kerouac's acclaimed novel On the Road comes to life on the big screen Dec. 21, and in the final trailer for the highly anticipated film we see Twilight leading lady Kristen Stewart in some compromising positions.

Taking on the role of Dean Moriarty's wife Marylou, the trailer shows KStew sharing quite a few kisses with her co-stars Garett Hedlund (Dean) and Sam Riley (Sal Paradise). Hedlund, Riley and Kirsten Dunst, who plays another love interest to Dean, also boast stand-out performances in the film as they maneuver through an array of emotional situations.

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If you're unfamiliar with On the Road, the novel is based on Kerouac's real-life adventures with his friend Neal Cassady, who the author is said to have modeled Dean after. The book and movie follow the guys as they travel across the country, meeting a mix of "mad" people who each impact their journey.

After watching the trailer, what's your review of the film? Will it do the book justice?

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Earth-destroying asteroids could be stopped with paintball guns

The next time a giant asteroid is hurtling toward Earth, we shouldn’t expect Bruce Willis and his nukes from “Armageddon” to save us.

Instead, we should call the pocket-protector wearing scientists at MIT and their paintball guns.

According to a new paper, the scientists and their paintball guns would blast an earth-bound asteroid with a ton of paintball pellets turning the rock blindingly white whereupon it would reflect enough sunlight to push it off its course of destruction.

Shockingly, this technique is not the work of science fiction but is instead the real life work of MIT graduate student Sung Wook Paek, who won the United Nation's “2012 Move an Asteroid Technical Paper Competition,” according to MIT.edu.

Paintball guns could stop an Earth destroying asteroid.

Other competitors suggested sci-fi like methods for deflecting an Earth-destroying asteroid like launching spaceships or projectiles to knock the rock off course while others threw out the “Armageddon” solution by detonating nuclear bombs, but Paek’s idea won because of its novelty and feasibility.

The paintballs would start moving the asteroid with the initial jolt created by the mass of paintballs hitting the space rock. After that, the freshly painted planetoid would slowly keep moving off course because of solar radiation pressure -- the pressure exerted on objects by light from the sun.

Paek suggested turning the asteroid ultra bright white because the closer an object is to white the more solar radiation pressure it feels -- a phenomenon that has been observed when satellites were thrown out of orbit and has been used to create sails for spacecrafts, much in the same way that boat sails work.

The only problems with Paek’s paintball method were getting the paintballs into space intact and the amount of time it would take to actually deflect the asteroid.

To solve the first problem Paek suggested creating a paintball factory on something like the International Space Station while the second problem would be solved by long-term planning because it could take up to twenty years to move an asteroid capable of destroying Earth using the paintball method.

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South Florida’s hiring comeback hits a setback

Shrinking government payrolls slammed hiring in South Florida last month, with Broward losing jobs overall and Miami-Dade expanding payrolls at the slowest pace in more than two years.

The anemic job-growth figures are preliminary, and could turn around in a moment if next month’s revisions find more hiring in Florida’s largest regional economy. But they also could signal the start of a new and more dismal chapter in South Florida’s slow recovery on the hiring front.

Statewide, one side of the employment picture looked positive for October. Florida’s unemployment rate dropped from 8.7 percent in September to 8.5 percent in October, even as the pool of job seekers grew. Florida’s labor pool increased by 40,000 people, but the number of people listed as employed in the monthly household survey increased at a faster rate, to 60,000 people. When both numbers are increasing, that’s generally a sign of real improvement in hiring.

The state’s labor agency said businesses and governments added almost 15,000 jobs in Florida, most of them in the private sector.

Florida’s unemployment rate is adjusted for seasonal fluctuations in the economy, so it’s considered more accurate than the raw unemployment rate, which dropped to 8.2 percent. Seasonally adjusted rates were not available for Broward or Miami-Dade. In Broward, the raw unemployment rate fell from 7.6 percent in September to 7.1 percent in October. For Miami-Dade, the raw unemployment rate inched up slightly from 8.8 percent to 8.9 percent.

Payroll counts come from a separate survey — this one of businesses, not households. Locally, those surveys showed overall hiring increased by only 800 positions in Miami-Dade. That’s paltry compared to the 24,000 jobs Miami-Dade employers were adding as recently as March and marked the worst month for hiring in Miami-Dade since June 2010. All of the losses came from the public sector, since private employers added a still-paltry 5,200 jobs from a year ago.

Broward saw a loss of 1,100 jobs over the past 12 months. Broward has not enjoyed the same kind of strong economic rebound that Miami-Dade has, and October is the second month of 2012 to show an overall decline in payroll slots in Broward. Government hiring also accounted for all of the employment losses in Broward, with the county’s private sector eking out a 700-job gain.

Combining both counties’ totals, October was the first month since June 2010 that the region lost jobs in the payroll survey. For both Broward and Miami-Dade, the bulk of the government jobs were lost at the local level. That category includes public hospitals and school systems.

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Coral Gables firemen grow moustaches to raise money for cancer research

Keep a look out for the Mo-Bros around town. These are the guys of the Coral Gables Firefighter’s Benevolent Association who are competing to grow the best moustache, or “Mo.” It is the international month of “Movember” again and the local men are raising funds for prostate cancer research and men’s health awareness.

“Last month we participated in October’s Breast Cancer Awareness month and this month we continue our efforts and the fight against cancer by participating in Movember” said CGFBA Movember Organizer and Fire Fighter Sergio Morejon.

The men started the month clean-shaven with a $10 donation to compete. As their moustaches grow they must groom, trim and wax to be ready for the final assessment.

And every day the Mo Bros become walking, talking billboards to help prompt private and public conversation about the often-ignored issue of men’s health, specifically prostate and testicular cancer. To raise even more Movember money, they can seek out sponsorships for their growing efforts.

At the end of the month CGFBA members will select a winner and all funds collected will be donated to programs run directly by Movember, the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the LIVESTRONG Foundation. The group also plans to make an additional contribution to increase the amount raised by the individual competitors.

Since its small beginnings in Melbourne, Australia, Movember has grown to become a global movement. More than 1.9 million men are participating around the world with formal drives in Australia, New Zealand, the U.S., Canada, the UK, South Africa, Ireland, Finland, the Netherlands, Spain, Denmark, Norway, Belgium and the Czech Republic.

The men are supported by their Mo-Sistas, the women in their lives, and even some of these pop up with a ‘stache as Fire Fighter Mary K. Magrath did at a recent Coral Gables station photo-op.

To get your organization involved or to make a donation to the cause visit www.us.movember.com and follow the mission to “change the face of men’s health.”

FREE FAMILY CONCERT

Before you get started on the turkey, sides and pies, relax at a holiday concert presented by Orchestra Miami. “Tough Turkey in the Big City: A Thanksgiving Odyssey,” by Bruce Adolphe and Louise Gikow, is perfect for the attention spans of young audience members and their families. The free, fun and engaging program will last about 45 minutes.

Two concerts are planned. The first starts at 7 p.m., Nov. 16 at the Miami Shores Presbyterian Church, 602 NE 96th St. The second is at 1:30 p.m., Nov. 17 at the North Dade Regional Library, 2455 NW 183rd St. Performances are sponsored in part by the Miami-Dade Public Library System.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, children are asked to bring canned goods that will be donated to local food banks. Orchestra Miami is celebrating its sixth season of bringing world-class quality symphonic music to all South Floridians. For more visit www.OrchestraMiami.org or call 305-274-2103.

GOLF TOURNAMENT

Hemophilia is one of the most expensive chronic health disorders in the United States. Each year the Swing for the Kids Golf Tournament for Hemophilia helps raise funds to support programs for people with bleeding disorders.

The 23rd annual tournament starts with registration at 10:30 a.m. on Dec. 10 at Lago Mar Country Club, 500 NW 127th Ave. in Plantation. Golf Pro Perry Parker will give a free video swing analysis before the shotgun start at 12:15 p.m. Each participant will receive a round of golf, range balls, golf shirt, goody bag, lunch and dinner. The awards dinner, including a raffle and silent auction, will begin at 5:30 p.m. Cost for a foursome is $800. An individual golfer can play for $225.

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