McDonalds baby!

Here’s the continuation I was talking about in my other blog!
In 1968 McDonald’s restaurants began serving the Big Mac, a two-patty burger that became the company’s flagship product. The company launched its highly successful “You deserve a break today” advertising campaign in 1970. By 1972 McDonald’s had 2,000 restaurants and $1 billion in annual sales.
McDonald’s also began to establish high-profile charities. The company opened the first Ronald McDonald House in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1974. Ronald McDonald Houses provide temporary housing near hospitals for the families of seriously ill children. Today, Ronald McDonald House Charities operate more than 170 Ronald McDonald Houses in 32 countries.
Although McDonald’s remained dedicated to its established format, the company introduced a number of new products and services in the 1970s and 1980s. Many of these innovations proved startlingly successful. McDonald’s began serving breakfast in 1973. By the late 1980s, one-fourth of Americans who ate breakfast away from home did so at McDonald’s. In 1975 McDonald’s introduced drive-through window service, enabling motorists to make purchases without leaving their cars. By the mid-1990s, drive-through business accounted for about half of all McDonald’s sales in the United States. In 1983 the company introduced Chicken McNuggets, bite-sized fried chicken morsels accompanied by dipping sauces. Within a few months McDonald’s ranked as the world’s second largest retailer of chicken.
International expansion also became an important part of the company’s business strategy. McDonald’s opened its first restaurant outside the United States in 1967. In 1988 McDonald’s operated 2,600 stores outside the United States, generating $1.8 billion in annual revenues. By 1994 the company had 4,700 international franchises, producing $3.4 billion in annual revenues. The first McDonald’s in Moscow, Russia, served more than 30,000 customers on its first day of operation in 1990, setting the record for the most people served by one restaurant in a single day. In 1992 McDonald’s opened a restaurant in Beijing, China. The Beijing McDonald’s—-which featured 700 seats, 2 kitchens, 29 cash registers, and 850 employees—is the company’s largest. The Beijing McDonald’s attracted 40,000 customers on its first day, breaking the record established by the Moscow McDonald’s two years earlier.
McDonald’s has attempted to accommodate increasing customer demand for healthier food. In 1986 McDonald’s began offering nutritional information about the items on its menu. The company also began to offer lighter entrées, such as salads and frozen yogurt. McDonald’s Arch Deluxe, a hamburger marketed to adults, generated disappointing sales when it was introduced in 1996.
In the mid-1990s the company earned about $1.4 billion a year in profits on $30 billion in sales and opened a new restaurant every three hours. The company has continued to grow in the United States by opening new restaurants in urban areas and establishing smaller outlets in hospitals, zoos, airports, and many other locations. In 1993 McDonald’s began opening outlets in Wal-Mart Stores throughout the United States. In 1996 McDonald’s signed a 10-year agreement with The Walt Disney Company. Under the terms of the agreement, McDonald’s will operate restaurants at Disney theme parks, and Disney will promote its films through McDonald’s. In 1997 McDonald’s announced a campaign to increase sales at its restaurants by cutting prices.

our enemies

About 8 in 10 preteens and teens have acne, along with many adults. In fact, about 17 million people in the United States have acne. Acne is so common that it's considered a normal part of growing from a kid to an adult.
But knowing that doesn't make it easier when you look in the mirror and see a big pimple on your chin! The good news is that learning about acne and taking some simple steps can help you feel better about your face.
Acne is a skin condition that shows up as different types of bumps. They include whiteheads, blackheads, red bumps (pimples), and bumps that are filled with pus (cysts). What causes these annoying bumps? Well, your skin is covered with tiny holes called hair follicles, or pores. Pores contain sebaceous (say: suh-bay-shus) glands (also called oil glands) that make sebum (say: see-bum), an oil that moistens your hair and skin.(yeah, I did my research baby!)
Most of the time the glands make the right amount of sebum, and the pores are fine. But sometimes a pore gets clogged up with too much sebum, dead skin cells, and germs called bacteria. This can cause acne.
If a pore gets clogged up, closes, and bulges out from the skin, that's a whitehead. If a pore clogs up but stays open, the top surface can get dark and you're left with a blackhead. Sometimes the walls of the pore are broken, allowing sebum, bacteria, and dead skin cells to get under the skin. This causes a small, red infection called a pimple. Clogged-up pores that open up deep in the skin can lead to bigger infections known as cysts. A lot of kids and teens get a type of acne called acne vulgaris. It usually appears on the face, neck, shoulders, upper back, and chest. Teens and kids get acne because of the hormone changes that come with puberty. As you grow up and your body begins to develop, these hormones stimulate the sebaceous glands to make more sebum, and the glands can become overactive. When there is too much sebum, that oil clogs the pores and leads to acne.
No matter what you've heard, acne isn't caused by eating greasy foods like french fries or pizza, munching on chocolate, or drinking soda. It isn't necessarily caused by wearing makeup, either, especially if the makeup label says "oil-free," "non-Comedogenic" (say: non-ka-mee-doh-jen-ick, which means it won't clog pores), or "non-Acnegenic" (which means it doesn't cause acne). Yap, I have foundation that’s non-Comedogenic by VMV Hypoallergenics “Nutmeg”. *screetch* anyway, back to the min topic!
If your parent had acne as a teen, it's likely that you will, too. Stress may make acne worse, because when you're stressed, your pores may make more sebum. Luckily, for most people, acne gets better by the time they are in their twenties.
If you're worried about acne, there are things you can do to keep those pimples away:
1.)To help prevent the oil buildup that can lead to acne, wash your face twice a day with warm water and a mild soap or cleanser. 2.) Don't scrub your face. Scrubbing can actually make acne worse by irritating the skin. Wash gently, using your hands instead of a washcloth. 3.) If you wear makeup, moisturizer, or sunscreen, make sure they are "oil-free," "non-Comedogenic," or "non-Acnegenic." 4.) When you wash your face, take the time to remove all of your makeup. 5.) If you use hair sprays or gels, try to keep them away from your face because they can clog pores. 6.) If you have long hair, keep it away from your face and wash it regularly to reduce oil. 7.) Baseball caps and other hats can cause pimples along the hairline. Avoid them if you think they are worsening your acne. 8.) Wash your face after you've been exercising and sweating a lot. 9.) Try not to touch your face. 10.) Don't pick, squeeze, or pop pimples. I know, sometimes this could be hard not to do, but just resist the temptation and avoid looking at yourself at the mirror!
Many lotions and creams are sold at drugstores to help prevent acne and clear it up. You can try different ones to see which helps. Products with benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid in them are usually pretty helpful for treating acne. Benzoyl peroxide kills the bacteria that can lead to acne and it also can reduce swelling (puffiness) of pimples. I’ve used this and, yep, it does work! Salicylic acid is another acne-fighting ingredient. It causes skin to dry out and peel, which can help get rid of pimples, too.

the love of my stomach

This is all about the restaurant I would want to own. But If I can’t have its franchise, then I would want to have a restaurant LIKE it!! It is the love of my life and the love of my stomach. I would die if I wouldn’t get a taste of their food, seriously. I used to eat here almost everyday, but always ended up getting broke at the end of the week. So, I had to stop my terrible habit! Who has seen Super Size Me? My parents encouraged me to watch it and I think their point for that was to stop me from indulging in all the glory! But it had no effect. I didn’t stop at all, just kept going back to my paradise and ordering things I wanted, especially the Coke float, since it was one of their affordable products, which helped with keeping my mind out off our really hot weather. Oh my gosh. If only these kinds of food were healthy! So here’s a really cute quote that involves this amazing fast food restaurant, the love of my life, McDonald’s!!

“No two countries that both have a McDonald's have ever fought a war against each other.”

McDonald’s Corporation is a fast-food restaurant company based in Oak Brook, Illinois. Since the 1950s, McDonald’s family-oriented restaurants have revolutionized the fast-food business and the company has become one of the best known in the world. Tens of thousands of McDonald's restaurants worldwide serve millions of customers a day. McDonald’s restaurants, which offer toy promotions and often feature playgrounds, are especially popular with children.
In 1948 brothers Dick and Mac McDonald remodeled their McDonald’s drive-in restaurant in San Bernardino, California, creating the prototype for the modern fast-food restaurant. The menu was limited to nine items: hamburgers, cheeseburgers, three types of soft drinks, milk, coffee, potato chips, and pies. French fries and milkshakes were soon added. By focusing on efficient production and service, McDonald’s cut the price of their hamburgers from 30 cents to 15 cents.
By the mid-1950s the original McDonald’s generated $350,000 a year in revenues. In 1954 Ray Kroc, then a 52-year-old salesman of milkshake machines, visited the restaurant and became convinced that its concept could work in other cities. The McDonald brothers agreed to let Kroc sell McDonald’s franchises (the right to market the company’s products within a certain area). In 1955 Kroc established a franchising company known as McDonald’s Systems, Inc. and opened a second McDonald’s restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois. Within its first four years, the company had opened 228 restaurants, which generated $37.6 million in annual sales. In 1961 Kroc bought out the McDonald brothers for $2.7 million.
During the 1960s, McDonald’s began to mount aggressive advertising and marketing campaigns. In 1962 the company adopted the golden arches as its trademark. Ronald McDonald, the familiar clown that serves as McDonald’s mascot, was introduced in 1963. That year, signs at McDonald’s restaurants announced that the company had sold more than 1 billion hamburgers.
I’ll continue about this in another blog because I got to go. Peace!

are you a stick or a bootylicious babe?

When are the designers ever going to realize that EVERYONE is not a perfect size 6...or lower. More than two thirds of the world population is either overweight or underweight. Unfortunately it's the poor young girls who see these waifs in the magazines that suffer the most. They starve themselves or throw up what little they do eat to become these unrealistic idols they watch and admire. Many of these skinny girls are not naturally thin, but are virtually starving themselves to keep the weight down. The girls reading the magazines try to look like them, and end up trying the same tricks, and potentially get into the same problems with eating. Go to any club, the guys don't go for the skinny girls, they go for the girls with the hour glass figure. Look at the beautiful women that you see every day, and I'd say less than 5% have that stick insect shape the young models have. It makes me sad - and angry. Women should be encouraged to look healthy, be fit and to be confident, no matter what size or shape they are. I feel that current fashions should be available for every woman. Let the models be anything that their purveyors want them to be. Ordinary people should be less gullible than to believe that that is the only way to be. I think, models should be of all sizes, not just stick thin, because big women are pretty and they like to dress up and look nice too. Everybody should have a right to enjoy fashion whether they are a size 8 or a size 20. Designers do not sell clothes only to skeleton looking people. These skinny models look like they are dead-alive and it is not attractive. Clothes look good on others just like they do on skinny models. Sometimes, clothes look even better on thicker women than skinny ones. Now the Fashion industry is still looking for a Skin and Bone model. They should go out and walk around and see that the average person are not like that and maybe then they could start to re-think this concept. By using all shapes and sizes designers would be able to show if they have any real talent, and it may help in the battle against eating disorders.I get fed up with this idea of "normal" shape. I'm sure all the skinny people out there must be most offended by being told they're "abnormal". It's just personal preference and the way people are made, and designers should take more notice of this. When are people going to realize that a happy woman is far sexier than any shape or size. Women are 'queer cattle' (so John Buchan wrote) therefore, shouldn't we judge them with a more abstract yardstick than a tape measure! A few people in the fashion industry earn big money dressing up skeletons in ridiculous clothes. The media earns big money selling images of the skeletons. The public pays big money to look at the skeletons, says how ridiculous they look and then tries to emulate them. I admit, it’s a nice feeling being light and fat-less! But if it makes you so stressed, I say quit the suffering and enjoy food. But if you don’t really enjoy eating, or if you do but your stomach can only take in a few, then don’t force yourself. We just have to enjoy what we have, you know. We don’t know when we’ll leave this world, so we better enjoy life before we’re gone. It’s all dong things that make us happy, right? *grin*
Surely everyone realizes now that skeletal models on the catwalks promote a "look" which, if emulated, results in the Posh Spice head-on-a-stick mentality. I have one piece of advice for my female friends (and a reminder for myself!!): EAT! Bones are not meant to be seen, they are supposed to support the rest of you!

Skimbording

Skimboarding is a sport similar to surfing which takes place near the shore. The skimboarder stands about twenty feet from the ocean with skimboard in hand and waits for a wave. When they see a wave they run towards it with their skimboard still in hand. Upon reaching the wet sand they drop the board and jump onto it as quickly as possible. Once on the board, the skimmer must remain as stable as possible and prepare to make the transition to the ocean. The skimmer then (hopefully) glides out into the ocean toward the oncoming wave, banks off of it, and rides it back into shore. There are many possibilities for riding the waves and this is where skimboarding gets really interesting. The most important part of skimboarding is picking the right wave. 1.)Without good wave judgment, even the best skimboarder will have problems. When first learning to skim it is best to choose a flat beach like the one pictured. The best time to begin running for a wave is right after the wave breaks. If the skimmer does not run at the right time, they will have trouble once they get on their board. 2.) Once the skimmer reaches the water or the wet sand, they throw down the board so they can jump on it. This is the first physically challenging obstacle to beginners. It is more difficult then it looks at first and many people don't stick with skimboarding because this step is too hard. However, with persistence, and patience, even the most uncoordinated person can learn to skimboard. Everyone takes a 'few' bruises learning how to get on the board. 3.) Once on the board, the skimmer must be equally careful not to fall off! They must keep their weight centered over the board and keep the board pointed towards the ocean. It is common to accelerate too quickly and lose control so it important not to run too fast. The skimmer must also prepare for the wave. When the skimboard meets the ocean, the riders weight must be on their back foot so the nose of the board does not catch on the water. Notice how the pictured rider has all of his weight on his back foot so he can glide up over the water instead of plowing through it. 4.) If all of the previous steps are completed flawlessly, the rider might have the opportunity to actually ride a wave. Depending on if the rider has enough speed, balance and ability to turn, the rider can do various maneuvers while banking off the wave and riding towards the shore. Unlike surfing, skimboarding allows for the ability to spin, greatly increasing the possibilities.
Skimboarding has a rich history. What started over 60 years ago on round wood boards has evolved into a highly competitive water sport. Most people know skimboarding as "that thing you do on the sand," and while this is true, skimboarding has become so much more than that. Modern skimboarding has evolved into a "real" sport where the limits are being tested by some of the best board riders on the planet. We have to be really careful when we board though since you could fall and not only bruise yourself but also sprain or fracture a one. *laugh* like my cousin!
Modern skimboards are made out of fiberglass or carbon fiber and high density foam to serve as a core. The fiberglass/carbon fiber is a fabric which becomes stiff when saturated with resin and left to cure. When this fiberglass or carbon fiber is laid over a shaped piece of foam, saturated with resin and left to cure, a skimboard is made. Skimboards vaguely resemble surfboards, they are about half the length, half the thickness, and slightly wider. Unlike surfboards, skimboards have no skegs (fins on the bottom of the board used for controlling direction). They are much less stable and require a lot of practice to be able to control. Because they are less stable and specifically because they lack skegs, many things can be done on a skimboard that cannot be done on a surfboard.

Duff Puff?

When Hilary Duff lost a noticeable amount of weight two years ago, she chalked it up to healthier eating habits. But now, the singer-actress, 19, admits she felt pressure from the media to get thin. "I did get skinny," she tells Britain's Mail on Sunday. "I've felt that pressure like everyone else in my position. When a newspaper comes out that says 'Duff Puff – she must have gained 15 pounds' or something like that, how would any normal person react?" She continues, "It's so mean, but everyone keeps buying that stuff and talking about it, so it's not going to go away." Duff, whose 2½-year relationship with rocker Joel Madden ended in November, tells the magazine: "I felt like we were great together, and being on my own is great too." After a trip to Europe to promote her new album Dignity, Duff is now back home with her sister Haylie, 22. The two live together in Los Angeles in a house they shared until recently with their mom, Susan – who just moved down the street, much to her daughter's chagrin. "It was her idea," Duff says. "She said, 'I want to give you guys more freedom,' and I'm like, 'I don't want that. I want you here.' So I call her every day and I still always consult her before any big decision."

Hilary Duff says she and ex-boyfriend Joel Madden still speak to each other – but that she's excited to start playing the field and jump into dating. Appearing on Ryan Seacrest's L.A. radio show Thursday morning, the now single actress and singer said dating "is fun. I kind of feel like a guy, like I can do it now." She added, laughing, "But I feel kind of wrong at the same time." She also revealed that she'd recently been on a date with an unnamed suitor, which she said was a unique experience for her. "I've never gotten to (date) before, so it's kind of exciting," she said. "I've always just had a boyfriend, you know? I'm young!" Duff, 19, said her breakup with Madden, the lead singer of Good Charlotte, late last year, after two and half years together, wasn't bitter. "There was nothing – no fight, no 'He did this, I did this,' " she said. "It was just time for people to move on and do different things." They still keep in touch, she added. "I had a really great relationship with him, and we still have a great relationship, which is really good and unusual. He's a good person, and I always will care about him." Asked how long she might go before getting into another serious relationship, she wouldn't say. "What if I meet someone that I really am into, and they're really into me, and I'm feeling it and I'm going for it?" she said. Duff was on the KIIS-FM program to debut the song "With Love" from her upcoming record, Dignity. She said the title for the record came from her experience living the showbiz life. "I feel like dignity is something that you can't just have, you know, you have to work on having," she said. "And I feel like I have it a little. ... The album is so personal and talks about so many experiences I've had – good ones and bad ones – and (dignity) is something I always hope to have and strive to have." The album, which has not yet been completed, is due in stores April 3.
I can’t believe I used to make fun of her. I actually find her a good role model, unlike Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears who love to waste their life on alcohol. Hilary seems true to herself. I love that about her. I may not like how she acts really but I like how she was brought up and how she has all her values.

Fergalicious and her man!

How does Black Eyed Peas frontwoman Fergie keep her body in tip-top shape? The ultra-fit singer credits "being onstage with the guys and jumping around." But she also throws in some real legwork – on a treadmill. "That's what I like to do," she says of exercising on an incline, "because you can really do some isolation behind the legs and the booty." Next up for Fergie: working on her upcoming solo album. "It's my lifetime project," she told as at a recent party for trendy label Heatherette's Fall 2005 collection at New York City's Henri Bendel store. "It'll include songs from all the different phases of my life. The album will be a lot more intimate than my persona in the Black Eyed Peas. I've been working on it forever." But it's not all work and no play when Fergie has her beau, Las Vegas star Josh Duhamel, around. "Everything is good," she says of their relationship. "It's great." We're glad to hear it. Big Pimpin'While Beyonce is touring with Destiny's Child, boyfriend Jay-Z is keeping busy on the social scene. The hip-hop heavyweight recently partied solo at Miami hot spot Mansion, where he sat at a table on the dance floor and watched partygoers groove. Wearing white shorts and an open blue button-down shirt over a tank top, Jay-Z looked like he was fresh off the yacht from his "Big Pimpin'" video. The following night, the rapper hooked up with fellow rhyme-maker Kanye West. Wearing their shades, the two partied together in the hip-hop room at Miami club Prive and danced on the couches in the jam-packed VIP area. Both sang along when the deejay played "Golddiggers," West's new song featuring Jamie Foxx. Expect more revelry when the two converge on Miami again for the MTV Video Music Awards on Aug. 28.

How do Fergie and Josh Duhamel's keep their relationship strong? Fishing, cooking and karaoke. Yep, cute, right!? So simple yet cute. "We always do quirky romantic things," Fergie, 31, told PEOPLE Saturday at the 5th Annual Cadillac Super Bowl Grand Prix, where the singer, Duhamel, 34, and other stars raced go-karts for charity in Miami. "It's not just Valentine's Day. Like we went to Cabo San Lucas, and we took a cooking class and we went fishing for marlin and mahi mahi." And she's not the only one who can belt out a tune. "We sing karaoke. At his house, he has a karaoke machine," she said. So I guess he can sing."Sometimes we'll sing really corny duets together when a couple of our friends are over. He does 'Total Eclipse of the Heart,' which is amazing. You've never seen anything like it. He gets into it. He's pretty good. He's better than you would think!" Duhamel, who is about to wrap the fourth season of NBC's Las Vegas, added that they've figured out how to avoid the pitfalls of a high-profile relationship. "We just genuinely love each other," he said. "We stay out of the spotlight as much as we can. So many times people are too in the spotlight, which puts too much pressure on things." That doesn't mean they don't pay attention to what the media is saying about them. Last week, Fergie denied reports that they were getting married. "We get a kick out of it," Fergie told PEOPLE. "Every other week, we hear we're engaged." At the go-kart race, Duhamel, last year's defending champion, was excited about taking on Fergie, who was racing for the first time. See!*sigh* they’re such a cute pair, seriously. (And the fact that they don’t like to be in the spotlight is just so amazing, because most Hollywood stars would just love that.)"I'm looking forward to beating my girlfriend," he said. "She's been talking smack all week. She wants a trophy of her own." "I'm just hoping my natural abilities will come into fruition during the race," Fergie joked. "We get a little competitive sometimes. We had a lasagna cook-off one time and basically I was the better bluffer. He won the contest because mine ended up soggy." Unfortunately for the "Fergalicious" singer, she was defeated in the first round of the three-round race, which also included Nick Lachey, Queen Latifah, Paul Rudd, Terrence Howard, Venus Williams, Melina Kanakaredes and quarterback Matt Leinart. Duhamel made it to the final round, along with Lachey and TV personalities Leann Tweedon and Tony Potts. (Tweedon won the race – and a check for $10,000, which she donated to the charity Wounded Warrior. Lachey donated his $5,000 second place prize to the Make-a-Wish Foundation and Potts gave his third-place prize of $2,000 to Haven Hills.) Lachey was there without his girlfriend, Vanessa Minnillo. "She bailed on me," he joked before the race. "She doesn't want to see me get thrown into a bail of hay."