Posted by: Nicole Brende
on Feb 5, 2010
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Posted by: Nicole Brende
on Feb 5, 2010
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Posted by: Nicole Brende
on Feb 4, 2010
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For Valentine’s gifts, it’s not just the women who obsess over their appearance and desire improvement. Utopia Plastic Surgery and MedSpa offers Valentine’s procedures specifically for men. Yes! Men need to maintain too!
Men have become increasingly aware of the effects of aging on their face and bodies. For years, female consumers have dominated the market on anti aging, but, now men are becoming more aware of their own image.
Posted by: Jen Roosth
on Feb 4, 2010
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Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston - Tapestry Gala Kick Off Reception – Sunday Afternoon, Jan 31, 2010 in Kemah, Texas honoring Jan and Dan Duncan.
Bill (Chairman of the Board) and Melissa King invited Houston notables for a fabulous afternoon at their historic Somerset Estate (a John Staub design originally owned by Albert Fay), to kick off the 2010 Tapestry Gala benefiting the Interfaith Ministries of Greater Houston. Amongst the gathering were 2010 Tapestry honorees: Jan and Dan Duncan, Tapestry Gala Chairs: Philamena and Arthur Baird, Lily and Charles Foster, Honorary Chairs: Peggy and Bill Barnett, Lilly and Thurmon Andress, Amy and Rob Pierce, Paula Sutton and Bill Gross, and representing presenting Sponsor, Chevron was Joni Baird. The 2010 Tapestry Gala will take place May 6th at Hilton Americas. For more info: www.imgh.org.
(Pictured: Arthur and Philamena Baird, Bill and Melissa King, Dan and Jan Duncan)
The Tapestry Award recognizes community leaders who have shown remarkable dignity through tangible work for the betterment of Houston and the world. The Interfaith Ministries brings people of diverse faith together for dialogue, collaboration, and service; and represents the great religious and cultural diversity in Houston. IM believes that this diversity is one of Houston’s most valued assets.
Interfaith Ministries works with 10 communities of Faith in Houston, including Bahá'i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jain, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Unitarian Universalist and Zoroastrian.
Interfaith Ministries manifests the strength of its shared beliefs through 4 main areas of service to the Houston Community: Meals on Wheels, Refugee Services, Office of Disaster Preparedness and Response, and Interfaith Relations.
Posted by: Jen Roosth
on Feb 4, 2010
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A crowd of more than two hundred, including city officials, arts organization leaders and business representatives, attended Thursday evening's Arts Reception in the Founder's Room at Hobby Center. The event provided an excellent opportunity for a diverse cross-section of Houston's arts-vested community to meet and mingle.
(In the pic: Jonathon Glus, CEO, Houston Arts Alliance; Fabené Welch, Chair, Houston Arts Alliance Board of Directors; Houston Mayor Annise D. Parker; Houston Controller Ronald C. Green.)
After introductions by Houston Arts Alliance Board Chair Fabené Welch, Mayor Annise Parker spoke. Mayor Parker firmly stated her belief that the arts are good for business, that they bring in visitors, stimulate cultural tourism, and provide an environment to attract business and students to Houston. She also iterated the need to get this message out, that the arts boost the bottom line. Mayor Parker complimented HAA on making the arts funding process clear and transparent, especially in a time when arts funding is under attack. In closing, she challenged the attendees to recommit to civic engagement, because the city is all in this together.
Posted by: Michelle Wenz
on Feb 4, 2010
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What's the grown-up version of those little candy hearts? Perhaps a little bottle (or, heck, a BIG bottle!) of dessert wine. Dessert wines add a sweet touch for Valentine's Day.
Sweet wines don't get the same sort of press as the big guns such as Chardonnay and Cabernet. But they have a place at the table, especially at this time of year when romance is in the air. And you don't necessarily have to wait for dessert - as an aperitif, I love it with blue cheese, or having it with lobster is a wonderful treat too.
Dessert wines come in various styles. Many are late harvest wines, which means the grapes are left on the vine until the sugar levels increase dramatically, then the grapes are pressed and fermented to produce a wine with residual sugar, hence the sweetness. Some involve allowing a particular kind of mold, known as botrytis, to develop. This further concentrates the grape sugars and flavors. It is a labor-intensive and tricky process. You have to have just the right amount of rain - it doesn't happen every year, but it did this harvest -- followed by painstaking picking; sometimes only a few grapes are selected from a cluster. The result is a golden, silky wine with notes of pineapple and caramel. The wine is rich enough that a little goes a long way. It is something that is sublime and has a very lengthy texture on the palate and you want to be able to enjoy that. Port also falls into the category of dessert wines. Here the sweetness comes from adding a spirit, often brandy. These are usually higher in alcohol content than regular wines, around 18 to 19%, and are a traditional way to end a meal. Ports also happen to be good with dark chocolate, a plus for Valentine's Day.
So go forth my dear readers! Live – Love – Eat this Valentine’s Holiday!
Posted by: Nicole Brende
on Feb 3, 2010
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Thursday January 28th the Houston Country Club ballroom made for the perfect setting for the 2010 Deep In Our Hearts In Texas gala benefiting the Tourette Syndrome Association of Texas. Honorary Chairman Elizabeth Farish opened up the lovely evening honoring guests Melissa Binstock, Rocky Franzen, Carlos Guerra Jr, M.D., and Keith Seilhan. On the menu featured Hill Country BBQ shrimp, Texas blackened rib eye steak, and chocolate praline pecan tart for dessert.
In between a great meal and a lively auction hosted by Auctioneer Renee Jones, Author Melissa Binstock shared her touching story with the patrons. She wrote a book called “Nourishment: When My Body Betrayed Me”, a memoir about her struggle to overcome Tourette’s syndrome, obsessive compulsive disorder, attention deficit disorder, anorexia nervosa and dyslexia. Melissa is truly an inspiration for us all.
I had an opportunity to meet Ethan Brister, son of board members Daryl and Barbara Brister. Ethan was diagnosed with Tourette's at the early age of six. He and his brother both are living with this disorder. Ethan says his family moved to Houston because of the amazing doctors. He also says the Tourette Syndrome Association of Texas has allowed him to go camping, to swimming parties, and it has helped him improve his overall daily life.
(Event photos are at the end of this story)
Posted by: Jen Roosth
on Feb 2, 2010
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Let’s Get Ready for Some Football!!
Super Bowl XLIV will kickoff at 6:30 p.m EST at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, Florida on February 7, 2010. The American Football Conference (AFL) champion Indianapolis Colts are pitted against the National Football Conference (NFL) champion New Orleans Saints to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion the 2009 Season. The game features the Saints' first Super Bowl appearance since their founding in 1967, while it is the fourth time a Colts franchise team has appeared, since their founding 1953 as the “Baltimore Colts”. In their three previous Super Bowl appearances (all also in Miami) the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts lost once (1x) in 1969, and won twice (2x) in 1971 and 2007.
Posted by: Jen Roosth
on Feb 2, 2010
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We Missed You
Ruggles Grill, located at 903 Westheimer @ Montrose held a grand reopening celebration, after being closed for over a year due to damages from Hurricane Ike. Chef Bruce Molzan, founder of Ruggles Grill, which is famous for serving creative American Bistro style cuisine in a fun and innovative environment, is elated to be back in his flagship restaurant. (Check out the event photos in our picture gallery!) Ruggles Grill has been a Houston landmark for over twenty years. It is owned by Molzan Inc. and Randy Bower. Classic Ruggles Grill favorites like spicy shrimp pasta, pan seared crab cake, Ruggles goat cheese salad, angel hair shrimp pasta are still on the menu, as well as the famous, mouth watering dessert tray. Hours of operation are 5pm to 10pm weekdays, 5pm to 11pm weekends. Ruggles Grill is closed on Mondays. The Grill can be reached at www.rugglesgrill.com.
Posted by: Jen Roosth
on Feb 1, 2010
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January 22nd, George Clooney, Wyclef Jean, and Anderson Cooper all joined forces to host a telethon event “Hope for Haiti Now” to raise funds for the victims of the earthquake in Haiti. The final tally of money raised was $57 Million!
The event started with a performance by Alicia Keys as images of the victims of the earthquake flashed a background screen. George Clooney then explained details of the catastrophe that took place in the Caribbean island on January 12. At the same time, rapper Wyclef Jean (Haitian born) joined the event live from New York and recounted his experiences in the disaster hit nation. CNN’s Anderson Cooper participated in the telethon live from the city of Port-au-Prince, which is reeling under the onslaught of devastation.
Other performers included Madonna, Rihanna, Bono, Sting, Beyonce and Coldplay; and an album of the event is available. The “Hope for Haiti Now” album has become the biggest one-day album pre-order in iTunes history, and currently sits at No. 1 on iTunes' album chart in 18 countries.
