The 10 Unhealthiest Places In America

That's what publisher CQ Press reveals in its 16th annual list. Twenty-one factors from infant mortality to obesity to cancer rates are compiled for the rankings.

No. 1: Mississippi
Topping the list as the most unhealthy state in America, the Magnolia State has stolen the dubious honor from last year's "winner," Louisiana.Its title is well-earned: Mississippi has the highest rate of teenage births in the nation, the highest age-adjusted death rate, the highest infant mortality rate and the highest rate of sexually transmitted diseases. It also has the largest precentage of obese adults and adults who do not exercise.

No. 2: Louisiana
The Pelican State may no longer be the most unhealthy state in the nation, but it's pretty close at No. 2.Louisiana has the second-highest age-adjusted death rate, the second-highest infant mortality rate and the worst access to primary care.

No. 3: New Mexico
Not living up to its nickname as the Land of Enchantment, New Mexico has seen its health care situation continually decline since 1998.It has the third-highest teenage birth rate, poor prenatal care, high rates of suicide and poor health insurance coverage. The availability of hospital beds and primary care is also poor.

No. 4: Nevada
For the fourth year in a row, the Silver State remains in the No. 4 spot.It is the No. 1 worst state for prenatal care and has the second-highest suicide rate in America.

No. 5: Florida
The Sunshine State remains as the fifth most unhealthy state for the second year in a row.The percentage of its population not covered by health insurance is one of the worst in the country. It also ranks fourth for new cancer cases and third for new AIDS cases.

No. 6: Georgia
Things aren't peachy in the Peach State when it comes to health. Just 10 years ago, Georgia ranked as the 30th most unhealthy state. Fastforward to today, where it nearly makes the top five.It ranks fourth for the number of new AIDS cases reported and fifth for the number of sexually transmitted diseases. On the plus side, it has one of the best rates of child immunization.

No. 7: South Carolina
For the eleventh year in a row, the Palmetto State has fallen into the top ten unhealthy states.Contributing to its rank are its high percentage of low birthweight babies, high infant mortality rate, high number of new AIDS cases and high rate of sexually transmitted diseases.




No. 8: Oklahoma
The health outlook wasn't always so poor in the Sooner State. In 1993, Oklahoma was in the middle of the pack, instead of topping the list.Its high teenage birth rate, poor prenatal care, high age-adjusted death rate and high percentage of people not covered by health insurance are just some of the factors keeping it there.

No. 9: Alabama
Moving two spots up the list, the Yellowhammer State is just a smidge more unhealthy this year, compared to last year's rankings.Alabama is in the top five for low birthweight babies, age-adjusted death rate, infant mortality, sexually transmitted diseases, poor primary care access, obesity and non-exercising adults.

No. 10: Delaware
The First State rejoins the top 10 since its last visit in 2004.Helping to bring Delaware down are its percentage of mothers receiving late or no prenatal care, its high infant mortality rate, high rate of new AIDS cases and sexually transmitted diseases.

Via AOL

Revisiting Boston

Being in Boston always feels like home, specially since I lived in Bean Town for almost as many years as Rihanna is alive. It was nice to be back and be able to view it through the eyes of an outsider again, rediscovering sites & sights that - because of their familiarity - you end up taking for granted once you see it on a daily basis. This same thing happened to me in Rio and it made me appreciate and endear myself even more to the places that were "always there".

Boston is an easy city to move about. You can pretty much walk to most of it's famous spots of interest or simply hop on the T, USA's oldest subway system, and get to wherever you need to be in a matter of a few stops. Many of America's most significant historical moments were set in Boston, and still are to this day. Gay marriage, anyone?

Though through the eyes of most New Yorker's Boston is just too "sleepy" and boring of a college town, the city's lifestyle and lay-out allows to to have a small-town feeling with all the amenities of a major city. The restaurants here are amazing, great cultural life, international grade high-end shopping and excellent quality of living. Oh well, nightlife does suck here, I have to agree, but for how long do you really want to club-hop? You can just jump on an Amtrack and be in NYC in under 4 hours, get your club fix, and return to a where home is. The weather is another set back, specially if the idea of shovelling snow is not your cup of tea. Rents here are almost as high as NYC but at least our trash cans are not year-round displayed in front of our buildings. Apples & oranges, right?

I was glad to be back for a few days but other shores await me...

Autumn in Boston

Though it's officially Fall I must admit that it feels more like summer weather to me. I remember spending many chilly Autumns in New England and cannot recall temperatures as warm as the ones we've had these past few days. I spent a few days in Boston visiting friends and had the luck not to have to lug a jacket around, as a short sleeve tee was more than sufficient during the day. Boston, my hometown for many years, remains as beautiful as I remember and the nice sunny days allowed me to stroll around quite a bit. I snapped a few (corny) pictures around Copley Square, as they also have a small farmer's market in the afternoons. The sunflowers were screaming "Take my picture!" and I had to oblige, though I am not a "flower photographer" kind of guy. Nothing against flowers or any threat to my masculinity, but it's such a cliche subject that has no appeal to me unless they are fake and meant to look it, then I love it. The colorful chairs were displayed in front of Auntie Sadie's, a charming home-goods store in the South End neighborhood. They were so "picture-ready" that it almost looked like a photo prop.

I have a few more great images of my trip to Boston that I'll post here during the week.

Ms Olympia 2007

The Ms Olympia contest was held in Las Vegas this past weekend crowning Iris Kyle as the 2007 winner. Say what you may say, the 15 contestants must be commended on their dedication and perseverance to achieve such unimaginable physics. I can't even commit to a 5-time-per-week gym schedule or low-carb regimen, so anyone that devotes that much effort and time to any physical activity gets my kudos. But they still look freaky...

Via Iron Man Magazine

The Work of Patrick Nagel

Patrick Nagel embodies the look of 1980's America. It's hard not to look of his images and not envision the times of Miami Vice and leg-warmers. His pin-ups were super glamazons, ready to devour you, full of power and not afraid to face the Gordon Gekko-Wall Street years.
Nagel first put his talents to work as a freelance artist in 1971 and by 1976 hebegan contributing regularly to Playboy, which extended the exposure and popularity of "the Nagel Woman" to a huge and loyal audience. In 1978, he created his first poster image for Mirage Editions. He also painted the cover of rock group Duran Duran's Rio album, which became the number one album in the world. The feeling of Nagel's work is reminiscent of Japanese woodblock prints as well as of Art Deco styling, yet it is completely contemporary and universal in appeal. Starting from a photograph, he would create a simplified drawing, the translate the drawing to a painting. Bold, dark lines shape perspective out of flat, cool colours and stark white spaces; the result is what some have described as "fantasy realism." Patrick Nagel died of a heart attack in 1984 at the age of 38.

The Saggy Jeans Debate

Some American counties are outlawing those oversized saggy jeans, often worn bellow the buttocks with the underwear on display.

A style popularized in the early 1990s by hip-hop artists, are becoming a criminal offense in a growing number of communities, specially in the racially dived American South. Starting in Louisiana, an intensifying push by lawmakers has decided that pants worn low enough to expose underwear poses a threat to the public, and they have enacted indecency ordinances to stop it. Behind the indecency laws may be the real issue - the hip-hop style itself, which critics say is worn as a badge of delinquency, with its distinctive walk conveying thuggish swagger and a disrespect for authority. Also at work are the larger issue of freedom of expression and the questions raised when fashion moves from being merely objectionable to illegal.
Sagging began in American prisons, where oversized uniforms were issued without belts to prevent suicide and the use of belts as weapons. The style spread by way of rappers and music videos, from the ghetto to the suburbs and around the world.

According to Andrew Bolton, the curator at the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, fashions tend to be decried when they "challenge the conservative morality of a society." Like past fashion bans, the prohibitions on sagging are seen by some as racially motivated because the wearers are young, predominantly African-American men.

Personally, I deeply dislike the whole look but I am strongly opposed to any type of censorship at the same time. When I was younger dressing-up was an insintric part of who I was. This "personal statement" was what I stood for and what I didn't want to be associated with, at least in the mind of an young man. The idea of a court ordinance prohibiting my fashion choices seems too dictatorial and old-hat. If politicians can decide what you can or cannot wear, where will it stop?

I see the image below as "threatening to society" as saggy jeans. Where are the ordinances against that?

Via International Herald Tribune

Bush - A Pornographic Portrait in History

Artist Jonathen Yeo has created a collage portrait of US President George W. Bush by cutting up porn magazines. The Bush portrait, currently on display in London, has attracted the wrath of Republicans.

British artist Jonathan Yeo had every reason to be offended. The Bush Library in Texas had yet again rescinded a commission it had given him to paint a portrait of United States President George W. Bush. In the end, though, the artist decided to go ahead with his artistic portrayal of the 43rd president, even if he wasn't getting paid for it -- and created a portrait of Bush using a collage of pornographic images.
The tribute has not gone over well with Bush's supporters. A spokesman for Republicans Abroad International described the portrait as a "cheap stunt" in an interview with the British tabloid The Sun. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Republican Party in Bush's home state of Texas didn't find much humor in the portrait either. "This picture is very distasteful," he told the paper, adding angrily, "Why would anyone want to make a picture of our president from pornographic material?"

For his part, artist Yeo has reacted calmly to the furore over the smutty visage. "I did it for fun, not to offend," he told the paper, adding that he was "pleased with it."
The artwork, titled "Bush 2007," is currently being shown as part of an exhibition at London's Lazarides Gallery and is available in a limited edition run of 150 prints, each measuring 86 by 56 centimeters. Via Spiegel Online.

Road Trip - (Part 3) - South Of The Border

This is the final chapter of my road trip saga and it will be dedicated to a roadside "distraction" called South of The Border. On day-two of my driving drama, as I left lovely Emporia, VA on the wee hours of the morning (actually 8 AM), I kept seeing these colorful billboards mile after mile on I-95 South. I must have driven by 40 of them at least, no exaggeration. They were all very colorful, with a sassy sombrero-wearing Mexican cartoon guy as mascot, announcing different attractions for this place that I couldn't make out what it was. The signs were done in 1950's style and would state: "(Miniature golf, Camping, Barbecue, Arcade, Accommodations, etc) at South of The Border, in (50, 47, 44, 41, etc) miles!" What was it? I thought it was an amusement park at first, then a restaurant, but how come they had EVERYTHING there!? I just had to check it out as I very intrigued and already fascinated by the Mexican dude. I could tell the place had to be very kitschy and camp by the way the ads were done. I love all that Americana stuff and was dieing to buy a T-shirt or a souvenir there.

SoTB is located in Dilon, South Carolina, a 350 acre roadside attraction with 20 shops, 6 theme restaurants, a motel, 2 gas stations, convention center and dozens of really weird concrete statues, including a collection of Pedros, the cartoon mascot with the sombrero. The statues were amazingly odd, but in a cool I-wanna-hug-you way. It was mix of dinosaurs, flamingos, African animals, giant golf balls and sea creatures. And some were done as a blue rhinoceros or a green horned-rabbit, not much connection to reality. Love that stuff! I was only disappointed by the shops that missed their niche clientele (me) as the stuff they sold was not too cool. They need a good graphic artist to design some hip T-shirts and some take-me-home tchotchka. I found a cool Pedro coin bank but at $15.00 or so was not worth the price. They also had a pet-rest room, a fenced in area with a mock dog house, for the puppies. As Booboo was with me he got to enjoy the stop as well. It was still early in the day and the place was not mobbed yet so I got to walk around and take some pictures. I wished I had more time to explore but I still had many more hours driving to get to Miami and had to leave.

By the way, there are 175 billboards in total, from Philadelphia all the way to Daytona, Fl passing through Virginia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia. There is no way you'd miss them on the road!

Road Trip (part 1) and (part 2) can be found here.

Road Trip (Part 2) - Reste Motel

A few images of the oh-so-lovely Reste Motel in Emporia, Virginia, right off 495 South. Just to freshen up your mind I had mentioned it here before on part 1 of my road saga. These pictures illustrate a bit of the charming surroundings of my road side accommodations. You can see the rusty sign with it's vague hint of 1960's Americana and the door of my room, # 132, all red gloss like a cheap hooker. Love the missing tip of the number 3! To top it off I included a photo of my fancy paper bath mat, with it's sophisticated swan motif. Swans mate for life but at the Reste Motel they mate for the night (or by the hour). I am glad that there was a warning not to use the paper mats in the shower or bathtub, otherwise I would never have guessed it. If you are planning a vacation in Emporia I highly recommend the Reste (US$22.95 a night!!) and I even included some info for your ease. Enjoy!

Reste' Motel, 3190 Sussex Dr, Emporia, VA 23847 (804-535-8505)

Road Trip (Part 1)

This past October I took a torturous road trip from Boston to Miami, along with my pal Booboo. This treacherous drive that was supposed to take 18 hours turned out to be a never ending driving nightmare. I believe I drove over 26 hours to get there, getting stuck in every single major traffic jam on the East coast. After the first 12 hours or so I had to get some rest and ended up at the not-so-lovely and restful Reste Motel somewhere in Virginia. Keep it in mind that I needed pet-friendly accommodations because of the pooch and I couldn't be so choosy. The place was a dump and I felt like a character in one of those American road movies that you drive up to your room door. I did peek through the shades several times through the night whenever I got spooked by a weird noise, waiting for the serial killer to show up or the hit man with the silencer on his gun. I recalled that betrayal movie "Grifters" with Annette Bening, Anjelica Huston and John Cusack and wasn't really the greatest image to have in mind at that particular place. "Pulp Fiction" also had some bloody shooting death at a road side motel just like the Reste. I double locked the door and propped a chair against it, just in case. Flipping through the TV channels I almost choked coming across hardcore porn on my screen. I am not a prude, believe me, but that was not what I expected to see so readily available. The motel attendant either just assumed I wanted to watch porn & masturbate or couldn't care less about it to have it blocked. Keep it in mind that the following morning I saw kids and families leaving the motel on their way back to the long highways. I hope their porn channels were not live too. All pictures taken at the Reste Motel, October 10 2006.