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I take back every bad thing I ever said about the Apple Watch (AAPL)

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Matt DeBord Apple Watch

  • Ever since the Apple Watch was introduced, I've criticized Apple's wearable device.
  • My habit was to contrast the Apple Watch with "real" watches.
  • But after buying and wearing an Apple Watch Series 3 for months, I've completely changed my mind.

I've been a relatively steadfast critic of the Apple Watch. Ever since the Cupertino giant introduced its first wearable gadget, my reaction had generally been a reliable "Why?" You can consider my skepticism here. Or here. Or here.

Admittedly, I didn't entirely dislike the idea of the Apple Watch as a timepiece — I actually pledged to buy a first-generation version, in stainless with a steel bracelet, once the prices dropped. And in the grand scheme of things, I was more excited about the Apple Watch, pre-launch, than any other device in the company's history.

When the Watch landed, however, I wasn't thrilled, and I mounted something of an Apple Watch resistance. 

But then I experienced a moment of what one might call weakness. My iPhone conked out on me right before I had to head off to Detroit and California in succession to attend the Detroit Auto Show and undertake some Tesla coverage, respectively. The phone was under warranty, so I went to my friendly neighborhood Verizon store and obtained a new one — and gave into the salesperson's convincing pitch to add an Apple Watch Series 3 to my plan.

"What the heck?" I figured. I like watches, and the serious watch world has been passing judgment on the Apple Watch since day one. The LTE version of the Apple Watch Series 3 also benefits from true wireless capability, meaning that you can leave your iPhone at home.

I was curious, but I also felt that the Verizon salesperson was, well, an excellent salesperson. Plus, I've been with Verizon for almost two decades. Sometimes, if you're that deep in a relationship, you go with the flow.

Apple Watch DeBord

Nine months with the Apple Watch Series 3

I've owned the Apple Watch Series 3 for roughly nine months at this point, and although I haven't really even scratched the surface of its many capabilities (I just discovered nightstand mode, which lets you use your watch like a bedside clock, a few weeks ago), I'm ready to admit that everything I formerly thought about the device was wrong.

For starters, the watch has three key factors in its favor.

First, it's an excellent and versatile watch, a worthy addition to any collection. Second, it's quite robust. Third, it's among the most comfortable watches I've ever worn, and I'm very big on watches being comfortable to wear (in my previous criticism of the watch, I've said it wasn't comfy to wear, but I hadn't worn it for very long, and as a result I was very much mistaken).

I have the 42 millimeter version in Space Gray, distinguished as an Apple Watch Series 3 with LTE by its red crown. I prefer the watch in Space Gray versus stainless steel, because it makes the piece wear a bit more discreetly, and gives it a high-tech, sporty-yet-serious vibe that transfers nicely from workouts to wearing with professional clothing.

I don't like to have a lot of watches in rotation, and my modest collection supports that. At the moment, I have three automatics and two quartz pieces, with one of the quartz watches mainly serving weekend duty.

For the first few months, I didn't really get the Apple Watch and wore it infrequently. But then I figured I should submit it to a proper test, so I basically forced myself to wear it almost every day. 

The rest of my collection immediately suffered, and it got worse when I bought a second strap. The Apple Watch comes with a fluoroelastomer band — a type of synthetic rubber — and it's extremely well-executed, sturdy, and comfy. I got sort of bored with it, however, and started looking for a number two. After sifting through the wide, wide world of aftermarket bands and straps, I decided to stick with the mothership and bought a Midnight Blue leather loop.

Apple Watch DeBord

At $149, this is a pricey strap. It's also one of the nicest leather straps I've ever enjoyed; it put the Apple Watch right over the top for me.

For the record, changing straps on the Apple Watch is bliss. With most watches, you need to use a special tool to swap straps (or do your best with a pocketknife), which can be a fiddly operation. On top of that, I don't really like to switch straps, unlike many watch lovers. 

But on the Apple Watch, two small buttons on the underside of the watch enable you to swap straps in seconds. The leather loop is also rather innovative in its design: thin, high-grade leather is combined with an embedded magnetic-closure system to deliver an impressively precise fit. The upshot is a really good-looking package.

The 'one watch' scenario

So good-looking, in fact, that the Apple Watch can induce a sort of crisis.

Once I started wearing it regularly, it created the infamous "one watch" scenario. Some watch aficionados, despite having amassed big collections, often wonder whether they could simply wear one watch and call it a day. Others argue that you need two, a sport watch/everyday wearer, and a dress watch. 

I know a few one-watch people, and they tend to have chosen well: Rolex Submariners or GMT Masters, Panerai Luminors, Cartier Tanks. Other folks haven't spent as much coin but have still happily donned TAG Heuers on a daily basis. These are lifetime pieces and they can go anywhere, but essentially, they do one thing and do it well: tell time.

The Apple Watch obviously goes miles and miles beyond simply telling time. It also does this while offering fantastic build quality — my $399 Space Gray model has an aluminum case, ceramic back, and something called Ion-X glass on the face —  and a substantial wrist presence.

It can hang aesthetically with high-end luxury watches that clock in at upwards of $10,000, and although the materials and the made-in-China horology won't impress watch snobs, the Apple Watch is a truly significant piece of California industrial design that makes a strong case for itself as "the Rolex of smartwatches."

Apple Watch DeBord

A technological learning curve

There is a learning curve, and I'm still on it. But I have gotten pretty skilled at changing the watch's faces (Mickey Mouse in black-and-white, the chronograph, and the Utility, Explorer, and Kaleidoscope faces get the most use), giving me the option of thinking about the Apple Watch as half a dozen or more distinct timepieces.

Personally, I'd like to have a roman-numeral face that makes use of the the watch's squareness for a sort of Cartier Santos vibe, but I'll leave that one to Apple's designers to think about  (if you're willing to pay a premium for the Hermès edition of the watch, you can get an exclusive roman-numeral face).

The fitness tracker is superb. I switched to a standing desk at my home office, and I delight in the fact that I hit my Apple-watch measured standing goal every day. Exercise and movement are also tracked, using a complete-the-wheel, close-the-circle, highly motivating, multicolored design. If you hit your mark during the day, the Apple Watch will alert you.

Seiko Diver

I haven't tried swimming yet with the watch, but in this third configuration, it's supposed to be able to handle that tricky activity using a nifty water ejection feature. My go-to pool watch is my Seiko Diver SKX009, a dedicated dive watch that's designed to function underwater and live to tell the tale. Apple's assurances aside, the notion of an electric gadget without gaskets and a screw-down crown being subjected to the natural enemy of Apple devices strikes me as risky. I also wouldn't take it into salt water, and I'd avoid the steam and heat of a shower. If I give the Series 3 a test, I should probably do it while it's under warranty.

Beyond faces and fitness, I've used the watch to query Siri about the weather, buy stuff at Starbucks, and make calls. The flashlight feature has also gotten a lot of use. 

And yes, I've frequently left my iPhone at home and gone watch-only, a liberating experience that vastly reduces the amount of time I spend pointlessly staring at an iPhone screen. That's all thanks to the Watch 3's cellular connection. Throw in some Bluetooth earbuds and you can go smartphone-free.

In terms of battery life, a full charge gets me through about a day and a half.

Apple Watch DeBord

As for toughness ... it's hard to tell at this point, but I've played a decent amount of tennis while wearing the Apple Watch, and the jarring aspects of that sport haven't had any apparent negative effects.

Obviously, apart from some cool design touches — such as calling micro-apps "complications" and using a sweeping second hand for its faces — the Apple Watch is utterly unlike a potentially fragile mechanical timepiece. You wouldn't expect it to be wimpier than a Timex Ironman (although I haven't dropped it yet, so the jury is still out on the durability of the glass face).

The vicious upgrade cycle

The Apple Watch Series 4 has just arrived, adding a goodly measure of new features to the device, as well as slightly revamped design. Some early evaluations from reliable watch outlets, such as Hodinkee, have been quite positive. So if you want to take the plunge on the latest iteration, it's your call. I'm content with the Series 3 and haven't even scratched the surface of its capabilities.

The real question to ask as Apple continues to upgrade the watch is, "Can you justify spending $400 to update your timepiece every few years?"

Four upgrades equals a $1,600 layout, and for just about $600, you could obtain the Montblanc Heritage Chronométrie pictured above — a rather lovely and affordable Swiss automatic watch that, with proper care, would give you decades (if not a lifetime) of service. Two decades of Apple Watches and you could have a Rolex. I figured I didn't have to worry about this, back when I didn't care for the Apple Watch. Now that I do, it's an issue. 

I haven't made up my mind yet, but it should be clear that everything I thought about the Apple Watch before I was enlightened was, to be completely honest, totally wrong. I take it all back.

Sorry, Apple.

SEE ALSO: I have 3 major problems with the Apple Watch

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: 11 Apple Watch tips and tricks


7 Democratic women to watch in 2020

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If she runs, Sen. Elizabeth Warren would be a front-runner for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination.

  • The enthusiasm behind Democratic women running for office could help launch a female candidate to the top of the party's ticket in 2020. 
  • The potential contenders include progressive firebrands like Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris and moderates like Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo. 

Democratic women are running for office — and winning — in unprecedented numbers this year.

And the enthusiasm behind women candidates could help launch a female candidate to the top of the Democratic ticket in 2020. 

They're being fueled by women voters, particularly college-educated women, who are leading a national backlash against President Donald Trump, spurred in part by the #MeToo movement against sexual assault and harassment.

And some pollsters say there's evidence that female candidates in Democratic primaries are benefiting from an intense desire among Democratic voters to elect women.

In May, Dave Wasserman of the non-partisan Cook Political Report looked at the 65 House Democratic primaries (without incumbents) that featured at least one man and one woman and found that the female candidates defeated their male opponents in 45 of those races. Wasserman chalked this up to a 15% "gender bonus."

"2018 might be remembered as the 'Year of the Angry College-Educated Female,'" he wrote.

Here are seven Democratic women to look out for in 2020:

SEE ALSO: Protesters heckled Ted Cruz and his wife out of a DC restaurant, and Beto O'Rourke has come to his opponent's defense

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren

The former law professor would likely be the Democratic frontrunner should she launch a 2020 bid. She's a national leader of the progressive left-wing of the party with a strong fundraising operation — and she'll likely win reelection to the Senate this fall in a landslide.

During a September event in Holyoke, Massachusetts, Warren gave her clearest indication yet that she'll run in 2020. 

"It's time for women to go to Washington and fix our broken government and that includes a woman at the top. So here's what I promise: after November 6, I will take a hard look at running for president," she said to an extended standing ovation.

But the senator must also contend with what her constituents want her to do. Recent polling in Warren's home state found that a majority of Massachusetts voters don't want her to run for the presidency, despite approving of her work in the Senate.



California Sen. Kamala Harris

The freshman California senator — the second black woman ever elected to the US Senate —has gained notoriety since she was elected in 2016 as a tough opponent of the Trump administration. Clips of her grilling Trump administration officials, including Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, have helped her build a national following. 

But while Harris has embraced the party's leftward shift on issues like single-payer healthcare and reforming the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency, the former California attorney general is is viewed as too cozy with the establishment for some on the left.



New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand

The former centrist congresswoman from upstate New York was appointed to replace Hillary Clinton in the Senate in 2009 and has since been reelected by wide margins on a deeply progressive platform.  

Gillibrand has consistently been one of the first national Democrats to sign on to populist progressive policies like a federal jobs guarantee, Medicare-for-all, and abolishing ICE. 

A longtime champion of victims of sexual assault and harassment, Gillibrand made headlines last year when she led the charge in pressuring Sen. Al Franken, the Minnesota Democrat accused by multiple women of groping and other sexual misconduct, to retire from the Senate. She has since become one of Washington's most influential advocates for the #MeToo movement. 

While Gillibrand is one of the party's strongest fundraisers, her ideological evolution from a more conservative congresswomen to the most liberal senator in Washington could hurt her in a presidential race.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Tech's diversity problem is even bigger than we realized — here's why that's so bad for the next generation of startups

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23andMe Co-Founder and CEO Anne Wojcicki speaks onstage during TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2017 at Pier 48 on September 19, 2017 in San Francisco, California.

  • Silicon Valley has long had a diversity problem.
  • Women, African-Americans, and Latinos are underrepresented in the tech industry and tend to be paid less than their white male counterparts.
  • But the diversity problem is even worse than that; a new study found that the gender disparity in equity — or stock ownership — held by tech workers and founders is even worse than the pay gap.
  • In Silicon Valley, stock holdings can be much more important and valuable than salaries.
  • The disparity is important, because Silicon Valley's ecosystem centers around startup founders who cash in their shares when their companies go public or are acquired.

It's no surprise that the tech industry has a diversity problem.

But it turns out that the problem is much bigger than people in Silicon Valley and beyond may have realized.

It's well known that women, blacks, and Latinos are underrepresented in tech companies, particularly in the upper ranks. It's also well known that they tend to get paid less in salary for the same jobs than their white male counterparts. But the tech industry has a far larger divide that's been mostly kept secret until now, having to do with the ownership of companies.

Much of the payoff that tech workers get from working in the industry comes in the form of ownership stakes in their companies, whether in the form of founders' shares or stock options or restricted stock. It turns out that distribution of those shares is even more titled in favor of men than pay or representation within companies, a recent study from Carta found. And the underlying value of the shares is even more weighted in favor of men.

"It was even worse than we expected," said Chloe Sladden, a member of the #Angels investing group, whose February blog post inspired Carta's study.

Women hold just 9% of the wealth linked to shares in tech startups

Carta offers an online service that helps companies manage their employee-owned shares and options. For its study, it looked at the private, venture-backed companies in its database. It didn't have direct information on employees' gender, but inferred it from their names, excluding those that were ambiguous. By definition, all the people included in the study held some sort of ownership stake in their companies; employees that don't have options or shares in their companies aren't in Carta's database.

Chloe-SladdenWomen comprised 33% of the people in the study; in other words, they made up about a third of all employee shareholders. But their shares were worth just 9% of the total value held by all employee owners in the study. Of the $42.6 billion held by the startup founders or workers included in Carta's study, just $4 billion was held by women.

Much of that imbalance is due to the paucity of venture-backed female founders and the value of the firms they lead. Women represent just 13% of all the founders in Carta's database. And their share of the total value of founder-held shares is only 6%.

"There's just a disproportionately low amount of capital going to back women," said Jana Messerschmidt, another member of the #Angels group.

Women do better as employees than as founders, but they still are getting a raw deal when it comes to equity stakes in their companies. Some 35% of non-founder employees in Carta's database are women. But their shares are worth just 20% of the total value held by such employees.

Put another way, women tech workers hold about 47 cents worth of equity for every dollar held by their male counterparts.

Startups don't tend to bring on women until later

Women lag behind men in part because they tend to be a small minority of the early employees at tech companies. At firms with 20 or fewer equity-holding employees, just 29% are women, on average. Even at companies with 101 to 400 equity employees, women make up just 35% to 36% of those workers. It's not until firms get to more than 400 workers that their portion of employee-owners who are women goes north of 40%.

By comparison, women comprise some 47% of workers in the total private US workforce.

Their low representation at early-stage startups is important. Early workers tend to get more valuable share grants than later workers, in part because they get in on the ground floor, when the company is usually worth very little.

Additionally, a disproportionate portion of the early hires at startups are engineers or developers, workers who are typically seen as vital to the startups' success and often paid accordingly. Women tend to be dramatically underrepresented in such positions.

Startups generally wait until later in their development to fill out the departments where women are more prominent, such as marketing, human resources, and sales — and they tend to award them with fewer and less valuable shares.

"The amount of equity that's given to employees decays over time," said Henry Ward, Carta's CEO.

The study had some notable shortcomings. Carta's database doesn't actually include equity holders' gender. The company inferred gender from the holders' names, excluding those from its study that were ambiguous. So the equity disparity could be somewhat bigger or smaller than what Carta found.

Additionally, the database doesn't include any data about holders' race or ethnicity. So, Carta wasn't able to look at the equity differences among different groups. Those too are likely to be significant. African-Americans and Latinos have long been grossly underrepresented in the tech industry. And a recent study indicates that members of those groups tend to be in lower-paying positions on average than their white counterparts and, even accounting for that, tend to be paid less than whites in comparable positions.

This is more than just a problem for the 1%

To be sure, compared with other inequality problems the US faces, disparity in equity compensation and holdings may seem rather trivial. Many workers — particular those in lower-skilled jobs — don't get health care benefits or sick days, much less stock options.

Carta, Henry WardTech workers, meanwhile, are generally well compensated overall, regardless of how many options they get. And when you're talking about founders, you're often talking about people in the top 1% of income earners.

But the disparity does matter, at least in terms of its downstream consequences. Much of Silicon Valley's ecosystem is built around the equity held by successful startup founders. Those founders often take their payouts when their firms are acquired or go public and use them to create other firms or to fund other entrepreneurs through so-called angel investments.

Many also join venture capital firms, where they help determine which of the next generation of startups get funding, or sit on tech company boards, where they help shape the composition of executive teams. They also often use their startup payouts to set up foundations that give out money to their preferred charities.

Silicon Valley is a clubby place. Founders tend to hire people who look like them, went to college with them, or run in the same social circles. VCs tend to invest in companies with founders that either look like them or look like founders who succeeded in the past. In both cases, the people who get funding or top positions tend to be male and white or, to some extent, Asian.

And that's become something of a cycle. White male VCs fund startups run by white men who, when they cash out, become VCs who fund the next generation of white male entrepreneurs.

So the disparity in equity in Silicon Valley doesn't just affect who's seeing the big bucks when a company goes public, it also affects who gets funded the next time around, who gets hired, what products and services are developed, and what communities see investments.

"In Silicon Valley, money from a successful exit is about more than just wealth," said Sladden. "It's the power to shape and choose the products and institutions that shape Silicon Valley the for next generation."

SEE ALSO: Silicon Valley's MeToo moment is changing the venture capital industry — but many wonder if it will last

SEE ALSO: This Stanford grad went from living in motels to working in VC — here's his unusual path and how he wants to help others like him

SEE ALSO: This female founder went from teaching middle schoolers to mentoring tech entrepreneurs — here's her unusual path and how she plans to help others succeed in Silicon Valley

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: British Airways has a $13 million flight simulator that taught us how to take off, fly, and land an airplane

A new luxury world cruise will take you to 62 ports over 146 days. Here's a look at the ship, where rooms go for $67,000 per person.

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Seabourn Sojourn

  • The luxury cruise line Seabourn plans to take 450 or so guests on a round-the-world tour in 2020.
  • The Seabourn's flagship Sojourn liner is set to visit five continents in 146 days.
  • The ship is scheduled to depart from Miami in January 2020 and conclude its journey in San Francisco in May.

Would you embark on a 146-day cruise around the world?

That's exactly what Seabourn, a luxury cruise line, has in mind for its upcoming "Extraordinary Destinations" cruise. The line's flagship, the Seabourn Sojourn, is set to visit five continents and 62 ports in 146 days in 2020.

According to Seabourn, this marks the line's first world cruise in six years. The Sojourn is scheduled to cast off from Miami in January 2020 and reach its final destination, San Francisco, in May.

Here's a look inside the luxury cruise ship where passengers will reside during their voyage:

SEE ALSO: 17 historical photos that show how the wealthy once traveled on ships just like the Titanic

DON'T MISS: Carnival’s president spent a year traveling the world to meet some of her 43,000 employees — here are the 3 questions she asked them

READ MORE: A day in the life of a Disneyland manager who's worked there for 23 years, walks 5 miles daily around the park, and has a 'long-distance' marriage with his wife

The 650-foot Sojourn is registered in the Bahamas and can hold 458 passengers. Its fastest speed is 19 knots.

Source: Seabourn



In total, the ship will make stops in 26 countries.

Source: Seabourn



Some of the "Extraordinary Destinations" on the Sojourn's itinerary include Sydney, Australia ...

Source: Seabourn



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Forget teaching 2nd languages — wealthy New Yorkers now want their kids' nannies to do their hair, drive Zambonis, and give them massages

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couples massage

  • New Yorkers are apparently no longer satisfied with nannies who can teach their kids languages like Mandarin.
  • Now, according to an article in the New York Post, some wealthy parents want their nannies to do their hair, give them massages, teach family yoga classes, and even drive Zambonis on their private ice-skating rinks.
  • A president of a household-staffing agency told the Post that these families often pay an extra $10 an hour on top of the typical $20 hourly rate — but some New York City nannies earn up to $185,000 a year.

Not long ago, wealthy parents sought nannies who could teach their children languages like Mandarin and cook quinoa.

But now, these parents are paying extra for their nannies to go above and beyond.

Wealthy parents now want their nannies to perform a wider range of tasks, including giving them massages, styling their hair, teaching the whole family yoga, and even driving Zambonis, according to an article in the New York Post published over the weekend.

"Wealthy families have a certain way of looking at things," Seth Norman Greenberg, the vice president of the Pavillion Agency, a domestic-staffing company in Manhattan, told the Post. "They realize when interviewing people that they might be able to get a lot more than what their basic needs are."

A Manhattan father told the Post he got a 90-minute massage from his children's nanny twice a week.

A mother of four in Greenwich, Connecticut — who has a nanny for her two sons and a separate nanny for her two daughters — has her daughters' nanny blow out her hair each day in addition to caring for her daughters and doing their hair, according to the Post.

For the additional services, these families often pay an extra $10 an hour on top of the typical $20 hourly rate, Erin Maloney-Winder, the president of the household-staffing company Abigail Madison, told the newspaper. But nannies for wealthy families in New York City can make much more than that, with some earning up to $185,000 a year, according to David Youdovin, the CEO of Hire Society, a recruitment firm that helps high-net-worth people and families in New York City, the Hamptons, and Palm Beach staff their homes and businesses.

Sometimes the services families ask for go far beyond typical domestic tasks.

Greenberg said he found a nanny who could drive a Zamboni for a New Jersey family who wanted help maintaining their private ice-skating rink.

He said another family who lived in the Midwest wanted him to find a "New York-savvy nanny" who would use a gun to fire blank cartridges to scare off bears — but that proved too steep a request.

The rise of these so-called super nannies points to the fact that some people are willing to pay more for a little bit of extra time, luxury, or privacy.

At a New York City napping lounge, people pay up to $250 a month to nap in dark, private pods at any time of day.

A company called Mirror is selling a $1,500 interactive mirror that streams live workout classes straight into your living room.

And people who like camping only in theory can spend up to $700 a night to go "glamping" in luxury tents with 1,500-thread-count linens, electricity, and WiFi.

SEE ALSO: Rich families are paying up to a year's tuition at a time to do college tours by private jet

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: What happens when you sleep in your contacts

I skipped breakfast and worked out 2 hours a day like Gwyneth Paltrow — and it helped me break some of my worst habits

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Gwyneth Paltrow

• Actress and Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow spoke with Net-a-Porter about her diet and exercise routine.

• She said she exercised for two hours a day and usually skips breakfast and eats a low-carb lunch.

• I decided to tackle her habits for a week.



I tried to live like Gwyneth Paltrow for a week, and it didn't quite work out the way I'd planned.

Paltrow famously leads an intense life. In terms of exercise, she used to do an hour of cardio and an hour of weights six days of the week. Her lifestyle brand Goop also hawks all sorts of hardcore detoxes and cleanses.

But all that doesn't really reflect Paltrow's current reality. She recently told Net-a-Porter that she doesn't have the time or energy to tackle that grueling schedule anymore: "I'm getting old, my back hurts! It's depressing. Some days, the gym gives me this rush of energy and I feel amazing, but then my body's like 'f--- you.'"

She also doesn't stick to any Goop cleanses for a long amount of time. She told Net-a-Porter she passes on breakfast and eats a low-carb lunch "so my energy levels don't peak and valley through the day." Then, for dinner, she typically decides to "loosen the reins."

I decided to follow her diet as best I could, as well as take up her previous exercise routine. Here are the rules I was determined to follow for a week:

• Skip breakfast.

• Have a low-carb lunch.

• Put in an hour of cardio exercise.

• Go for an hour of weights-based exercise.

• Eat a dinner along the lines of her typical evening meal: "A glass of wine, maybe a baguette dripping in cheese, some fries."

I didn't prepare at all for this. I just jumped into it, sparking concerns among the people I know. "You're going to die," several coworkers told me when I described my plan. Family members predicted I would "seriously injure" myself and expressed concerns about my shambling running style.

All of this just bolstered my determination to rise to the occasion.

The experiment itself left me somewhat surprised. On the one hand, some of Paltrow's dietary habits were easier to tackle than I thought. On the other, I ended up pulling my shoulder.

Here's a look at what happened when I tried to live like Gwyneth Paltrow for a week:

WATCH: More of my experiment here

Before this Gwyneth Paltrow challenge, bagels were my go-to morning meal. I'd often grab one — poppy seed with cream cheese or butter — before heading into the office.



But, like some other celebrities, Paltrow skips breakfast altogether. So I had to kick the habit. Instead of stopping by the bagel shop, I'd just hop on the train and head to work.



Truth be told, this wasn't particularly challenging for me. Back in college, I rarely ate breakfast. It may or may not be the most important meal of the day, but I've never had a problem skipping it.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

'Soda,' 'pop,' or 'coke': More than 400,000 Americans weighed in, and a map of their answers is exactly what you'd expect

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pop vs. soda

  • Americans have different words for soft drink depending on which region of the United States they're from.
  • The three most popular terms are soda, pop, and coke, according to data collected by the site Pop Vs. Soda.
  • Linguists have noted other terms people from certain regions use for soft drinks, including tonic and cocola.


People in the United States have different ways of saying things from region to region, from what they call the night before Halloween to how they pronounce the word "crayon."

One of the things Americans can never seem to agree on is what to call fizzy, carbonated beverages: soda, pop, or coke?

That's exactly the question cartographer Alan McConchie sought to answer with his web project, the aptly named Pop Vs. Soda. The site invites visitors to fill out a brief questionnaire asking where they are from and which term they use for soft drinks. To date, more than 400,000 users have submitted answers.

The resulting maps illustrate what linguists have long known:

  • Soda is the preferred term in the Northeast, most of Florida, California, and pockets in the Midwest around Milwaukee and St. Louis
  • Pop is what people say in most of the Midwest and West
  • And coke, even if it's not Coca-Cola brand, is what people call it in the South

Previous research reveals even more regional divides. According to Jason Katz, the graphic artist who wrote "Speaking American: How Y'all, Youse, and You Guys Talk," there are even more regionalisms that most Americans may not have heard of. Among them:

  • A solid 6% of Americans simply call them soft drinks, especially in Louisiana and North Carolina
  • In small pockets of the Deep South, cocola is the preferred term
  • And in Boston, tonic is what a decent amount of older residents grew up saying, although that term is quickly falling out of favor

Whether you call it pop, soda, coke, or something else entirely, there's no question that Americans won't be agreeing on its name any time soon.

SEE ALSO: 27 fascinating maps that show how Americans speak English differently across the US

DON'T MISS: 9 words and phrases people think are wrong, but are actually correct

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: What happens when you sleep in your contacts

KAVANAUGH IS CONFIRMED: Embattled Supreme Court nominee secures 50 votes in the Senate, is sworn in as justice

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brett kavanaugh

  • Judge Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court the votes of 50 senators, bringing to a close weeks of bitter partisan fights and protests over the nominee, who faced multiple allegations of sexual misconduct and doubts about his truthfulness under oath. 
  • A conservative who served in President George W. Bush's White House, Kavanaugh will replace the court's swing vote, Justice Anthony Kennedy, and will likely move the court to the right for decades to come. 

Judge Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court in a narrow 50-48 vote in the Senate on Saturday afternoon, bringing to a close the most divisive high court confirmation battle since the 1990s.

Protesters — many of them women and sexual assault survivors — flooded Capitol Hill on Saturday, continuing weeks of mass protests against a nominee whose alleged history of sexual misconduct transformed a partisan debate over ideology into a cultural battle fueled by the #MeToo movement. Republicans condemned the demonstrators, some of whom interrupted the final vote with shouts as they were dragged out of the chamber, characterizing them as a special interest-funded "mob."

Kavanaugh was sworn in Saturday evening in a private ceremony, replacing Justice Anthony Kennedy, the court's swing vote on critical issues including same-sex marriage, abortion, and campaign finance. A 53-year-old former aide to President George W. Bush who's spent the last 12 years on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, Kavanaugh will cement a conservative majority on the court likely for decades to come. 

Trump, who campaigned in 2016 on stacking the Supreme Court with staunch conservatives, celebrated the vote on Saturday, tweeting, "I applaud and congratulate the U.S. Senate for confirming our GREAT NOMINEE, Judge Brett Kavanaugh, to the United States Supreme Court."

Democrats quickly expressed their fury as some lawmakers joined the protesters gathered outside the court, already indicating how the party intends to use Kavanaugh's confirmation to drive an energized base to the polls in November.

"Right, forever vigilant is always stronger than wrong, temporarily victorious," Sen. Cory Booker, a New Jersey Democrat, tweeted shortly after the vote. "May our outrage get us out working."

After just under two months of protests and bitter partisan battles, Kavanaugh's confirmation was assured on Friday when the two remaining undecided senators — Susan Collins, a moderate Maine Republican, and Joe Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat — announced they would vote to send the judge to the nation's highest court. 

In a 45-minute address from the Senate floor on Friday, Collins lamented the divisiveness of the process, hoping that it had "finally hit rock bottom." The senator both defended Kavanaugh's judicial record and insisted that he should be presumed innocent of misconduct charges until proven guilty.

Manchin announced he would vote with the Republican majority as Collins concluded her floor speech, all but assuring the judge's confirmation.  

In a symbol of the deep division over Kavanaugh, Collins' closest colleague and the only other remaining Republican centrist in the Senate, Lisa Murkowski, bucked her party and voted against advancing Kavanaugh's nomination on Friday. The pro-choice Republican remained undecided until the day of the cloture vote, but concluded that Kavanaugh's confirmation would undermine the public's confidence in the court. 

On Saturday, Murkowski paired her vote with that of Republican Sen. Steve Daines of Montana, who intended to vote "yes" on Kavanaugh but missed the proceedings while he attended his daughter's wedding. Murkowski asked that her vote instead be marked as "present," leaving the final outcome unchanged.

Protestors rally against Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh in the atrium of the Hart Senate Office Building on Thursday.

A bitter and tumultuous confirmation battle

Kavanaugh's nomination was protested since the beginning by Democrats and liberal activists who oppose the judge's conservative record on key issues including abortion, environmental protection, and presidential powers. But the fight escalated dramatically after three women came forward to publicly accuse Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct last month.

In her riveting appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee, research psychologist Christine Blasey Ford delivered testimony that came close to derailing Kavanaugh's confirmation. And Democrats have maintained that the FBI's investigation into the misconduct claims against Kavanaugh was overly limited by the White House. 

Democrats have also accused the nominee of lying under oath, pointing to instances in which the judge appeared to either mislead or make false statements to the Judiciary Committee about a range of issues, including his drinking habits and social life in high school and college and his work in the Bush White House. 

Kavanaugh, who denied all of the misconduct allegations, called the attacks on his nomination a "calculated and orchestrated political hit" devised by Democrats in combative and emotional testimony that made many, including even some Republicans, question his temperament and political impartiality. 

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell

Concerns about public confidence in the court

Experts across the political spectrum worry that Kavanaugh's confirmation to the court will further undermine public confidence in the institution, as the court loses its swing vote and the conservative majority includes two men credibly accused of sexual misconduct. 

Alicia Bannon, senior counsel in the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, called the likely erosion of trust in the judicial branch "dangerous and damaging" to democracy. 

"It's vitally important that the people who are on the losing side of a case still accept that they have to follow that decision," Bannon told Business Insider. "It's been important that you haven't had a dynamic where on every issue the court was ruling in a 5-4 decision in a conservative direction — you had a legitimate swing justice." 

Both Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan recently voiced concern about the politicization of the high court and the implications for public trust in its authority. 

"Part of the court's strength and part of the court's legitimacy depends on people not seeing the court in the way that people see the rest of the governing structures of this country now," Kagan told an audience at Princeton University on Friday. 

SEE ALSO: Here are all the times Kavanaugh is suspected of misleading the Senate

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How 'the Forrest Gump of Republican politics' Brett Kavanaugh became the Supreme Court's most embattled justice in decades, after controversy over sexual misconduct allegations

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brett kavanaugh

  • The Senate voted 50-48 on Saturday to confirm President Donald Trump's nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, to the Supreme Court.
  • Kavanaugh's nomination appeared to be in jeopardy for weeks, after multiple women came forward to publicly accuse him of sexual misconduct in high school and college. Kavanaugh has denied the allegations in statements and testimony.
  • But several key senators on Friday announced they intended to vote for him on Saturday regardless, paving the way for his confirmation.

After several tumultuous weeks of uncertainty, Judge Brett Kavanaugh has been confirmed to the Supreme Court on Saturday.

The Senate voted 50-48 on Saturday to confirm Kavanaugh, after several days of speculation over how key senators viewed as "swing votes" would decide. Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia were pivotal in confirming Kavanaugh, voting "yes," while Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski opposed his confirmation.

But the multiple sexual misconduct allegations lodged against Kavanaugh in recent weeks still hangs over Saturday's news, prompting furious backlash from the protesters who for weeks lobbied Collins, Manchin, and other senators to vote against Kavanaugh's confirmation.

Christine Blasey Ford, 51, accused a teenaged Kavanaugh of forcing himself on her at a high school party in the early 1980s. Deborah Ramirez, a former Yale University classmate of Kavanaugh's, said Kavanaugh exposed himself to her without her consent at a dorm-room party during his freshman 1983-84 school year.

Kavanaugh categorically denied Ford and Ramirez's accounts in separate statements before delivering a fiery testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee. An additional FBI background check into the allegations concluded less than a week later with no corroboration for the accounts.

Kavanaugh was born and bred in the Washington, DC area and has a long history in conservative circles. Top Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin once called Kavanaugh the "Forrest Gump of Republican politics," because he was present for so many key moments in modern political history.

As the final vote for Kavanaugh's confirmation approaches, here's a look at how the born-and-bred conservative rose to become the court's most pivotal nomination in decades:

SEE ALSO: Here are all the sexual misconduct allegations against Brett Kavanaugh

DON'T MISS: Here's an evolving count of which senators are voting for Trump's Supreme Court pick

Brett Kavanaugh was born Feb. 12, 1965, in Washington, DC.

Source: NPR



He attended Georgetown Preparatory School, an all-boys school in Rockville, Maryland. He was staff for the school newspaper, played on the school's varsity football team, and was captain of the basketball team.

Source: Washingtonian



Trump's first Supreme Court nominee, Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch, also attended Georgetown Prep and graduated two years before Kavanaugh.

Sources: Washingtonian, Business Insider



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Protests erupt outside the Supreme Court and Capitol as Brett Kavanaugh is sworn in

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kavanaugh protests

  • Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court on Saturday by 50-48 votes in the Senate. He was sworn in that evening in a private ceremony.
  • Before, during, and after the vote, protesters and activists flooded the areas outside the Supreme Court and the US Capitol to oppose his confirmation.
  • Kavanaugh's confirmation process has been marred by controversy following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh was narrowly confirmed to the Supreme Court on Saturday, after the Senate voted 50-48.

Protesters and activists came out in droves before, during, and after the vote to voice their opposition to Kavanaugh's confirmation, which comes following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct and heated testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Kavanaugh was sworn in Saturday evening in a private ceremony, as the crowds of protesters flooded the steps leading up to the Supreme Court, even knocking on the front doors.

After Kavanaugh's first accuser, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, came forward with her accusations, polls showed that Americans' opinions of Kavanaugh plummeted, and according to numerous polls, Kavanaugh has lost the most support from women and Democrats.

Scroll down for photos of the tumultuous protests taking place ahead of his confirmation:

The protests began early Saturday, hours before the final vote is set to take place.



Demonstrators congregated outside the steps of the Supreme Court and the US Capitol building. Several held signs depicting Ford, who says a drunken Kavanaugh assaulted her when they were teenagers.



Kavanaugh's expected confirmation comes after sexual-assault survivors across the nation came out swinging against the judge's nomination in light of the allegations against him.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Trump says he's 'a hundred percent' certain that Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford named the wrong person

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  • President Donald Trump told reporters Saturday he was "a hundred percent" certain that Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh's accuser named the wrong man.
  • Christine Blasey Ford testified before the Senate that she was certain Kavanaugh was her alleged attacker.
  • Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court on Saturday by a razor-thin margin, and was sworn in as an associate justice later that evening.

President Donald Trump told reporters on Saturday he was "a hundred percent" certain that Christine Blasey Ford, who accused Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault, had got the wrong man.

Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court by a razor-thin margin Saturday afternoon, securing 50 votes in the Senate. He was sworn in later that evening in a private ceremony.

"This is one of the reasons I chose him is because there is no one with a squeaky clean past like Brett Kavanaugh. He is an outstanding person and I'm very honored to have chosen him," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to a campaign rally in Topeka, Kansas.

The notion that Ford had mistaken Kavanaugh for a different attacker has been a common one among conservative circles.

Weeks ago, Ed Whelan, a former law clerk to Justice Antonin Scalia and former Justice Department official, floated the idea in a widely panned and since-deleted Twitter thread that Ford may have mixed up Kavanaugh with one of his classmates.

He later apologized for identifying the classmate, calling his tweets "an appalling and inexcusable mistake of judgment."

Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican who provided a critical "yes" vote for Kavanaugh on Saturday, also endorsed the mistaken-identity theory.

"I do not believe that Brett Kavanaugh was her assailant," Collins told CNN's Dana Bash in an interview that will air Sunday. "I do believe that she was assaulted. I don't know by whom. I'm not certain when."

Ford has attempted to shoot down that theory multiple times. During her testimony before the Senate more than a week ago, Ford told Sen. Dianne Feinstein she was certain Kavanaugh was her attacker in "the same way that I'm sure that I'm talking to you right now."

She also told The Washington Post there was "zero chance" she had confused Kavanaugh with his classmate.

SEE ALSO: Protests erupt outside the Supreme Court and Capitol as Brett Kavanaugh is sworn in

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The humbling of Fan Bingbing is a warning shot from China to anyone who thinks they can defy them

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  • Prominent Chinese actress Fan Bingbing disappeared for three months amid tax evasion allegations, and broke her silence earlier this week to confess and apologize.
  • Roderic Wye, a former British diplomat in Beijing, said Fan's humbling was a powerful warning from China that "nobody can escape government scrutiny."
  • He added that high-profile disappearances are "often a sign that someone has got into trouble" in Chinese politics.
  • Fan's career can still be revived, he said.

Fan Bingbing, one of China's most famous actresses, mysteriously disappeared for three months after being accused of tax evasion. On Wednesday she broke her silence, offering a simpering apology to Beijing and swearing to change her ways.

Her fall from grace serves as a powerful warning shot from China to show that nobody can escape their scrutiny.

Tax authorities in China's Jiangsu province on Sunday found that the 37-year-old actress and her companies evaded 248 million yuan ($34 million/£28 million) in taxes, but gave no further details on the companies or this figure.

The state-run Xinhua News agency, a prominent mouthpiece for the Chinese Communist Party, reported that tax authorities fined the star $129 million in unpaid tax and fines, citing government tax officials.

Almost straight afterward, they ran a separate story entitled: "Fan Bingbing's case is a warning to the literary and entertainment industries to follow the law."

fan bingbing

"Nobody is too high" for the Chinese government

Roderic Wye, an associate fellow at Chatham House and former first secretary in the British Embassy in Beijing, said that Fan is being made an example of, to prove that the state can come for anybody.

China is grappling with tax evasion cases both within and beyond the entertainment industry, and Fan's disappearance and punishment shows Beijing's eagerness to crack down.

China's message is that "nobody is too high, nobody is above, nobody can escape government scrutiny," Wye told Business Insider.

He said that Fan's humbling is "partly a periodic [drive] to crack down on high-level earners, but more importantly it's part and parcel of the [national campaign] for a new, modest patriot serving the national cause, instead of private gain."

"That's one of the messages put across by the [Communist Party] and it helps to have a high-profile example like Fan Bingbing, who people know," he said.

Wye added that public disappearances such as Fan's was not unusual, especially in politics.

"It is often a sign that someone has got into trouble if they fail to appear in public doing their normal duties for a period of time in," the former diplomat said.

Xi Jinping

Will Fan's humbling work?

Wye said that Fan's case would likely scare other people in the entertainment industry into making sure they file their taxes properly, but said it was unlikely to tackle the problem entirely.

"High earners in the entertainment industry and [beyond], I suspect, would be looking to their tax returns and make sure they conduct themselves fully in accordance with China's message," Wye said, which says that "people should be properly respectful of the law and properly respectful of the new morality in China."

But he added: "Tax evasion happens all the time, and if China becomes richer and richer, and more and more money sloshes around the system, there will be more and more opportunities for people and businesses to divert it into non-government-approved channels.

"I think it is inevitable under those circumstances that there will be examples of tax evasion and examples of corruption in the government."

"I don't see this [Fan's punishment] as a revenue raising measure, but more of a political social measure to ensure conformity with a behavior of norms that the government wants people to follow," he added.

fan bingbing

Fan's financial punishment was "determined by the people's will and hearts, and helps promote the healthy development of literature and art in the new era," the state news agency Xinhua reported earlier this week.

Such moralistic language is not uncommon in China, which relies on similar discourse to justify its policies and make sure nobody defies it.

The country ranks its citizens with a social credit system, which aims to reinforce the idea that "keeping trust is glorious and breaking trust is is disgraceful," according to a government document.

Fan is not the first prominent celebrity to be publicly humiliated and fined over tax evasion in China.

In 2002, actress Liu Xiaoqing was jailed for about a year and forced to pay 7.1 million yuan ($1 million/£790,000) after being charged with tax vasion, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported at the time.

She was accused of evading nearly 6.68 million yuan ($970,000/£750,000) in taxes from 1996 to 2001, Xinhua said.

After her imprisonment, Liu re-emerged in movies and TV shows in China, and even wrote a book about her time in jail, titled "Rise from the Ashes."

fan bingbing

Fan's career could also be revived when her tax evasion nightmare is over. She could avoid criminal charges if she repays the money in time, Xinhua reported this week.

Australian vitamin brand Swisse, British diamond company De Beers, and French beauty company Guerlain stopped using Fan's face on their ad campaigns during her disappearance, the South China Morning Post reported.

"Maybe she will find work in Chinese films, and maybe international companies will still be willing to offer her jobs," Wye said. "I don't think it's necessarily the end of her career."

SEE ALSO: Fan Bingbing was reportedly detained in a luxury holiday resort before China fined her $129 million for tax evasion

SEE ALSO: Barging into your home, threatening your family, or making you disappear: Here's what China does to people who speak out against them

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This is why you should always decant your wine — Champagne included

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Winery Image_33

  • Maximilian Riedel, CEO of glassware company Riedel, believes every wine should be decanted — even Champagne.
  • For old wines, this is because sediment settles at the bottom of the bottle.
  • For new wines, decanting helps to naturally age the wine.
  • It doesn't need to be done hours before — decanting your wine right before you drink it can still make a difference.

When it comes to wine, what you drink it from can be just as important as what you're drinking.

From swapping a narrow Champagne flute for a tulip-shaped one to picking the right glass for your Bordeaux, sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, and pinot noir, there's plenty to learn about the world of glassware.

But one thing many people don't realise is that what you do before you drink it is also key to getting the most from your wine.

Maximilian Riedel, CEO of glassware company Riedel, told Business Insider that he believes every wine should be decanted before you drink it — even Champagne.

"I am a firm believer that every wine must be decanted," he said. "When I say every wine, I truly mean sparkling and still."

A family run Austrian company that was established in 1756, Riedel is one of the world's most well-known producers of wine glasses — so Riedel himself knows a thing or two about what's best for your bottle.

Decanting started with Champagne

wealthy couple drink champagne

He explained that the concept of decanting actually started with Champagne.

"Champagne is, thanks to the second fermentation through the yeast in the bottle, the ageing process, one of those wines that in the old times had to be decanted to split the wine from the yeast," he said. With modern Champagne, however, it's done with a machine.

"The yeast over time moves into the neck of the bottle. There it gets, nowadays, frozen, and you remove it, then you refill it with a special liqueur. Every Champagne house does this, but this is a very modern technique to remove the yeast.

"In the old days, you bought the Champagne, took it home, then you had to gently decant it to keep the yeast in the base of the bottle."

max riedel

He said that despite the fact Champagne is "the most ancient thing to do," for most people it seems like something new.

"Everyone is afraid that if you decant Champagne that you lose the bubbles, but the difference between Prosecco and Champagne, in Champagne the bubble are binded, it's not artificial. The bubbles grew up, they were bred in the bottle of Champagne, through the fermentation. With Prosecco you're just adding CO2."

Old wines need to be decanted to get rid of sediment...

It's well understood that wine tastes better as it ages. However, Riedel explained that with old wines, over time, sediment settles in the bottom of the bottle, so they need to be decanted.

"People don't like the feel or taste of sediment," he said.

Decanter_2007 01_Sommeliers_Black_Tie_4100 00

...But young wines need to be aged

However, he said that nowadays "nobody can afford to drink these old wines, [so] at most restaurants the wines on average are very young.

"Storing wine for time [also] needs space, and space has become very expensive, especially in the big cities."

That means people are drinking young wine — and it also needs to be decanted, but for different reasons.

"Young wine must be decanted because young wine is like a young person — they have yet to settle, they're all over the place. The only way to mature them is through time, the ageing process."

You should even decant rosé

rose wine

"I am the guy who decants Champagne, white wine, red wine, and rosé wine," he said. "When I posted once on social media me decanting rose, I had a lot of questions, a lot of doubters. But people who love rose like I do know that sometimes you still have a lot of the gas that they use to kill germs etc. in wine, that sometimes the sulfate is still notable on the nose, and the only way to really get rid of it and enjoy wine that young is by decanting it."

It doesn't need to take hours

While he's obviously a proponent of decanting, Riedel added that you don't need to use a decanter if you have time to open a bottle of wine five to eight hours before drinking it.

"Then you would not need a decanter because there's enough oxygen exchange with the bottle," he said.

However, if you don't have the time to plan out your day, decanting right before you drink it will still make a difference.

"If I now open a fresh bottle of wine and pour it into a glass, and the other one I pour into the decanter then into the glass, you, and everybody else, would notice a difference, in smell and in taste," he said. "After five hours open in the bottle, in the glass, and in the decanter, it tastes the same."

In busy restaurants, Riedel added that the most simple way to decant is from one bottle to another. "It's very similar," he said.

You need to pick the right one

1950_09 Eve Decanters come in all different shapes and sizes.

"For me when it stands on its own it's like a piece of art," Riedeil said. "There are very few art pieces you can actually use on a daily basis."

He said that a small decanter is good for white wines, because it can fit into an ice bucket to keep the temperature.

Meanwhile, a big decanter like his "Eve" design exists to stretch a young wine.

"In particular wines that have power in the fruit, high in alcohol, the decanter stretches the wine and naturally matures it," he said. He explained that as the wine flows through the decanter, it "naturally ages, gets rounded, softer, brings forward the primary aroma in the wine."

He said the more you rotate the wine through the decanter, the more oxygen you're pumping into it — which means you're naturally ageing it.

Meanwhile, he said a decanter like this might "rip apart" an old wine.

If you're not sure where to start, Riedel says you can even try a flower vase that has the shape of a decanter "just to try it."

"If you really fall in love with the concept and believe it makes a different, then you can start investing money," he said. "You can go for affordable to very expensive."

The lowest-end decanter from Riedel — its machine-made single bottle size — costs £40, while the Eve design will set you back a whopping £495.

They're not that hard to wash

Riedel — who is a proponent of putting wine glasses in the dishwasher — said there's nothing wrong with your decanter looking used.

In order to wash it, however, he recommends filling the inside two to three times with warm water, then leaving it overnight to absorb the colour pixels.

"If you want to try to avoid water stains, use a hairdryer," he added. "It sucks out the humidity."

SEE ALSO: A wine expert says you shouldn't drink Champagne from a traditional flute — here's the glass you should use instead

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'Putin is very proud of me' — Khabib Nurmagomedov talks to press after the wild brawl that followed his submission win over Conor McGregor

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Khabib Nurmagomedov reaction, UFC 229

  • Khabib Nurmagomedov has said Vladimir Putin called him to congratulate him.
  • Nurmagomedov had just beaten UFC 229 opponent Conor McGregor. He submitted the Irishman in the fourth round of a thrilling fight on October 6 in Las Vegas.
  • But Nurmagomedov's victory was marred when he jumped over the fence and reportedly charged at one of McGregor's cageside friends.
  • Wild scenes ensued when brawls broke out in the stands and in the cage itself.
  • Russia president Vladimir Putin is "very proud" of Nurmagomedov, the fighter says.
  • Read all of Business Insider's UFC 229 coverage here.

Khabib Nurmagomedov said Russian president Vladimir Putin personally called him to offer his congratulations after he submitted Conor McGregor in the fourth round of a thrilling fight at UFC 229 on October 6.

The 30-year-old wrestler, now unbeaten in 27 bouts, dominated McGregor. But even after he forced the Irishman to tap because of a tight neck crank, Nurmagomedov jumped the octagon fence and reportedly attacked one of McGregor's cageside friends, Dillon Danis, according to ESPN journalist Chamatkar Sandhu. The incident led to wild scenes as brawls broke out in the stands, and in the cage itself.

UFC boss Dana White refused to give Nurmagomedov his UFC lightweight world championship belt in the octagon itself as he feared what the angry crowd would do, so the Russian left the arena surrounded by security and members of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police department.

When Nurmagomedov addressed the media at the official UFC 229 press conference, he said Putin was "very proud" of him.

Nurmagomedov, refusing to directly answer any questions, said: "'Sup guys, how are you? First of all, I want to say sorry to Athletic Commission in Nevada and to Vegas. This is not my best side. I am a human being."

He then explained the chain of events that led to UFC 229, which included McGregor's attack on a UFC team bus that Nurmagomedov himself was on, and about McGregor's antics in the build-up to UFC 229 itself.

"I can't understand how people talk about how I jump on the cage," Nurmagomedov said. "What about he talk about my religion, my country, my father. He come to Brooklyn and he broke bus and he almost kill a couple people. What about his s---? Why talk about I jump on the cage. I don't understand.

"My father teach me, 'Hey, always be respectful.' Everybody know who I am. Everybody who know me."

Khabib Nurmagomedov's grip on Conor McGregor's neck, UFC 229

In the fight, Nurmagomedov frequently forced McGregor out of his comfort zone, onto the mat, where he used his strength and wrestling skills to grind out the victory.

That victory arrived in the fourth round, when referee Herb Dean had to pry Nurmagomedov's tight grip off of McGregor's neck. McGregor tapped, and the fight was over. Nurmagomedov won.

"I told you, these guys, not only him, his whole team and him, they tap machines," he said. "When you put him wrong way, he gonna tap. Today, he tap."

Nurmagomedov then said he wants to change the game. He said he opposes the trash-talking element that is associated with combat sports, and says people "cannot talk" about religion and nationality.

"This is respect sport, not a trash-talking sport. I want to change the game. People talk shit about opponents, father, religion. You cannot talk about religion, nation. You cannot talk about this stuff. For me, this is very important."

He then left the conference without answering a question, but not before acknowledging he may take a beating from his father, "I know my father going to smash me."

He then said Putin had called. "Putin just called me to say he is very proud of me, I win, and he says congratulation."

SEE ALSO: Conor McGregor taps to a tight Khabib Nurmagomedov neck crank, who jumps the cage and nearly incites a riot after his victory

DON'T MISS: 3 arrests have reportedly been made after a post-fight brawl marred Khabib Nurmagomedov's massive victory over Conor McGregor

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Trump says he mocked Christine Blasey Ford at a rally to 'even the playing field' for Kavanaugh

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  • President Donald Trump told Fox News' Jeanine Pirro on Saturday that he mocked Christine Blasey Ford to "even the playing field" for then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
  • During a rally in Mississippi last week, Trump had mimicked Ford's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, in which she told lawmakers there were details of the alleged sexual assault she couldn't remember.
  • Kavanaugh, who denied Ford's allegations, was confirmed by the US Senate on Saturday and was sworn in to the Supreme Court.

President Donald Trump said Saturday that he mocked Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who accused Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault, to "even the playing field."

Trump made the remarks in an interview with Fox News' Jeanine Pirro, who noted that Trump had largely avoided criticizing Ford in public until he let loose at a Mississippi campaign rally last week.

"Some people said you were extremely unkind to Christine Ford. But what was it that got you to pivot from your restraint about her, and to fight for Kavanaugh at that point?" Pirro asked.

Trump responded that he believed Kavanaugh had been in "a very unfair situation," and that his decision to criticize Ford's testimony caused Kavanaugh's nomination to "sail through."

"Well, there were a lot of things happening that weren't correct, they weren't true, and there were a lot of things that were left unsaid," Trump told Pirro. "I thought I had to even the playing field, because it was very unfair to the judge."

Trump had been widely denouncedeven among some conservatives— for his public disparagement of Ford.

Christine Blasey Ford testimony

In front of the Mississippi audience, Trump had mimicked Ford's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, including the moment where she explained that there were certain details of the alleged sexual assault she couldn't remember.

"How did you get home? I don't remember. How'd you get there? I don't remember. Where is the place? I don't remember," Trump said, as the audience laughed and cheered. "I don't know. I don't know. What neighborhood was it? I don't know. Where's the house? I don't know. Upstairs? Downstairs? Where was it — I don't know. But I had one beer, that's the only thing I remember."

The White House has denied that Trump was mocking Ford — press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters last week that Trump was merely "stating the facts."

Kavanaugh, who denied Ford's allegations, was confirmed by the Senate on Saturday with a razor-thin 50-48 vote. He was sworn in as the country's 114th Supreme Court justice later that evening.

Watch Trump's Mississippi remarks below:

 

SEE ALSO: Trump says he's 'a hundred percent' certain that Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford named the wrong person

DON'T MISS: Protests erupt outside the Supreme Court and Capitol as Brett Kavanaugh is sworn in

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NOW WATCH: Inside the Trump 'MAGA' hat factory


We drove a $46,000 Subaru Ascent SUV to see if it's ready to challenge Honda, Toyota, and Ford — here's the verdict

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  • The Subaru Ascent mid-size crossover SUV is all-new for 2019.
  • The Ascent is Subaru's first attempt at a mid-size SUV since the disappointing Tribeca was discontinued in 2014.
  • Subaru's new SUV will take on industry leaders like the Toyota Highlander and Ford Explorer. 
  • The base 2019 Subaru Ascent starts at $31,995, while our top-of-the-line Ascent Touring starts at $44,695. With fees, our car carried an as-test price of $45,670.
  • We were impressed by the Ascent's comfortable cabin, bountiful safety features, solid driving dynamics, and powerful turbocharged engine.
  • However, the Ascent's somewhat anonymous styling and lethargic transmission were a bit disappointing. 

Subaru has been on a roll in the US. The long-time purveyor of Japanese all-wheel-drive motors has reported nearly seven years worth of consecutive month over month sales growth.

Its Outback, Forester, and Crosstrek crossovers have become a popular alternative to the more mainstream offerings from Toyota, Ford, Honda, and Nissan. 

But, success in the midsize SUV segment has eluded Subaru over the years. It tried in 2005 with the B9 Tribeca. Unfortunately, the Tribeca's odd styling, diminutive size, and tepid performance prevented it from gaining traction in the market. Even a 2008 facelift and the addition of a more powerful engine couldn't save the Tribeca that soldiered on for nearly a decade before Subaru pulled the plug on the SUV in 2014.

For 2019, Subaru is back with an all-new midsize SUV called the Ascent. Unlike the Tribeca, the Ascent is larger with room for up to eight passengers and is packed with a bevy of state-of-the-art tech features. 

The Ascent is slated to slot in above the Outback wagon in Subaru's lineup and will be its most expensive offering. 

Recently, Business Insider had the chance to spend a week with a new Magnetite Gray Metallic Subaru Ascent Touring.

The base 2019 Subaru Ascent starts at $31,995, while our top-of-the-line Ascent Touring starts at $44,695. With fees, our car carried an as-test price of $45,670.

SEE ALSO: We drove a $40,000 Jeep Cherokee SUV to see if the American icon is still one of the best money can buy — here's the verdict

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The Ascent is Subaru's first attempt to crack the mid-size SUV market since the failed...



...B9 Tribeca that sold from 2005 to 2014.



At 196.8 inches long, the Ascent is nearly half a foot longer than the Tribeca.



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The officer who fatally shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice has been hired by another police department

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tamir rice protest

  • Timothy Loehmann, who fatally shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014, has been hired as a police officer in another department.
  • Bellaire Police Chief Richard Flanagan said Loehmann deserves "a second chance."
  • Rice's mother, Samaria Rice, believes "Loehmann doesn't belong on any police force anywhere & shouldn't be foisted upon the citizenry anywhere," according to the Rice family's attorney.

The police officer who fatally gunned down 12-year-old Tamir Rice in Cleveland four years ago has been hired by another police department in rural Ohio.

Timothy Loehmann will work as a cop in the Village of Bellaire, which has a population of roughly 4,000, Police Chief Richard Flanagan announced.

"He's not quitting on being a police officer. He made a decision that's going to stay with him the rest of his life," Flanagan told CNN affiliate WTOV-TV. "Like anybody else, if you make a mistake, someone's got to give you a second chance, give someone opportunity. There is no worry, I stand behind this officer."

Loehmann fatally shot Rice in November 2014 after he and his partner, Frank Garmback, were called to a Cleveland recreation center. They had received a report that a person with a gun was outside, but the 911 dispatcher did not tell the officers that the caller had said the gun was "probably fake" and that its owner was most likely a juvenile.

Security footage from outside the recreation center showed Loehmann and Garmback's police cruiser skidding to a halt near Rice, at which point Loehmann opened the car door and began firing at Rice within seconds.

Only after the shooting did it emerge that Rice was 12 and had been playing with a plastic pellet gun that had its orange safety tip removed.

A grand jury declined in 2015 to indict both officers in Rice's death. Loehmann was fired from the police department in May 2017, after working on desk duty pending an administrative review since the 2014 shooting.

Both Rice's shooting and the lack of prosecutorial action against Loehmann prompted national outrage and protests over police use of force and racial bias in the criminal-justice system.

Rice's family attorney, Subodh Chandra, condemned Loehmann's hiring in a tweet. She said Rice's mother, Samaria Rice, believes "Loehmann doesn't belong on any police force anywhere & shouldn't be foisted upon the citizenry anywhere."

SEE ALSO: Jury convicts white Chicago police officer of 2nd-degree murder in 2014 shooting death of black teenager Laquan McDonald

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I spent the weekend with a homeless community in New York to see what it's really like to live on the streets

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new york city homelessnessTake a walk through any borough of New York City and you’re likely to encounter people living on the street.

Homelessness is on the rise in the city, up 39% from 2016. And even more are opting to live in the city’s streets, parks, and alleys than shelters — nearly 4,000 as of July, the most since 2005.

There’s a vast diversity to the people living without secure housing, and the various situations they find themselves in.

In central Brooklyn, a flashpoint of gentrification in the city, we met Moustafa, a 48-year-old mechanic who lost his shop and his home three years ago.

Moustafa now lives nearby in a community of about a dozen homeless mechanics who live out of their vehicles and try to get work when they can. He invited us to spend the day and night with him to get a glimpse into what it’s really like to be homeless in New York.

Here's what we saw:

SEE ALSO: I covered murders during Chicago's deadliest year in decades – here's what I saw

When we first met Moustafa, he was changing the the brakes on a car in the parking lot he lived in for a seemingly affluent customer. The area is full of industrial parking lots full of diesel trucks and small buses. He and his fellow homeless mechanics often do work for customers in them.

 

 

 



Some other people were hanging around the lot, but weren't interested in talking.



The lot had a number of small buses and vans parked in it that Moustafa said many of the homeless in the area lived in. Some people had built out patio areas in front of their vehicles with plants, flowers, and equipment for work.



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Collins defends her vote for Kavanaugh despite Christine Blasey Ford's allegations: 'I do not believe that Brett Kavanaugh was her assailant'

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State of the Union With Jake Tapper susan collins

  • Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, defended her support for newly confirmed Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh on Sunday.
  • She said she found no corroborating evidence for Christine Blasey Ford's accusations of sexual assault. 
  • Collins, who provided a critical "yes" vote for Kavanaugh's confirmation Saturday, said when other lawmakers took issue with the judge's emotional denial of the allegations, she put herself "in his shoes."
  • Democratic lawmakers, organizations, and activists have spoken out to denounce the centrists' support for Kavanaugh. 

Sen. Susan Collins defended her support for newly confirmed Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and said she found no corroborating evidence for Christine Blasey Ford's accusations of sexual assault. 

"I do not believe that Brett Kavanaugh was her assailant," Collins said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I do believe that she was assaulted. I don't know by whom and I'm not certain when."

Ford said Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her at a small house party when the two were teenagers, and detailed her allegations under oath before the Senate Judiciary Committee. 

Host Dana Bash pressed Collins, adding that Ford had testified that she was "100 percent" certain that Kavanaugh was the person who assaulted her.

Collins said though Ford's testimony was "very compelling and painful," she had asked herself whether it was "more likely than not" Kavanaugh assaulted Ford.

A number of conservatives, including President Donald Trump, have said they found Ford's testimony convincing, but doubted that she had identified the correct man as her alleged attacker.

Collins, a Republican, who provided a critical "yes" vote to confirm Kavanaugh, rebuked lawmakers' disapproval of Kavanaugh's testimony. She said at times he had "stepped over the line," but his emotional testimony was understandable.

"I put myself in his shoes," Collins said. "He is coming forth and answering an allegation that includes he was involved in gang raping and doping girls. That is so devastating."

Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court in a narrow 50-48 vote in the Senate on Saturday afternoon after one of the most contentious nominations in decades. 

Ahead of Saturday's vote, eyes were also on three other key swing votes, one of whom denounced Kavanaugh in a Friday floor speech. Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska broke with her party that day to vote against advancing Kavanaugh's confirmation, and took aim at parts of Kavanaugh's testimony she said displayed inappropriate partisan interest and a short temper.

Collins' continued support for Kavanaugh throughout the confirmation process earned the ire of organizations like the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, which tweeted ahead of the vote that Collins "can no longer call herself a women's rights champion" after she "sided with those who disbelieved, disrespected, and even mocked survivors."

Collins shot back that the suggestion was "just plain untrue."

Collins also shrugged off Bash's mention that her support for Kavanaugh had drawn more than $3 million in funding for her opponent in 2020 and a public challenge from former President Barack Obama's national security adviser.

"I have to do what I think is right," Collins said. "Over the years the people of Maine have trusted me to exercise my best judgment, and that's what I did in this case."

SEE ALSO: How 'the Forrest Gump of Republican politics' Brett Kavanaugh became the Supreme Court's most embattled justice in decades, after controversy over sexual misconduct allegations

DON'T MISS: Trump says he mocked Christine Blasey Ford at a rally to 'even the playing field' for Kavanaugh

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'Venom' has the biggest box office opening weekend ever for an October release (SNE)

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Venom Sony

  • "Venom" broke the best opening weekend ever for a movie released in October with an estimated $80 million take, domestically.
  • "A Star Is Born" also had an impressive opening, earning $42.6 million.

 

Look out Spider-Man — Sony has found a new Marvel character that can score it big box office coin.

Over the weekend, "Venom" defied the critics and outperformed industry projections by earning an estimated $80 million at the domestic box office.

Now, for comic book movie standards that's not a huge number, but for October openings it's huge. The "Venom" opening is the best ever for the month, easily passing 2013's "Gravity" ($55.78 million).

The dark comedic tone of the movie turned off most critics, as going into the weekend "Venom" had a 28% Rotten Tomatoes score (it's currently at 31%), but it turned out general audiences were totally into Tom Hardy's tater-tot-loving, lobster-tank-diving interpretation of the Eddie Brock character.

The movie, which has a $205 million global take, has an 89% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes and earned four out of five stars from audience exit polls, leading to a B+ Cinemascore.

Things looked good for Sony and the Symbiote on Thursday, when the movie earned an October record $10 million in Thursday previews. The movie then earned a strong $32.8 million on Friday followed by only a 17% drop of $27.2 million on Saturday.

A Star Is Born 2 Warner Bros

But that's not the only title having a strong weekend.

Warner Bros.' major Oscar contender, "A Star Is Born," with Lady Gaga starring in the rags-to-riches role played by Barbra Streisand and Judy Garland in the past, took in a strong $42.6 million (that counts special screenings earlier in the week). Bradley Cooper stars alongside Gaga and also directed the movie. The star power, combined with rave reviews from critics and the Oscar buzz, will fuel the box office for this release the rest of the year.

It will be interesting to see if "Venom" will have similar staying power, or if the unique comedic take on the character will lead to sour word-of-mouth going forward.

SEE ALSO: "Venom" is a darkly comedic Marvel movie you will either love or hate

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