Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 4:59pm

Stocks are up! Time to show a little leg

Yesterday the Dow passed 13,000 for the first time since May of 2008.

But... If you were paying attention to New York Fashion Week, this would be no surprise.

Philip Lim at New York Fashion Week 2011 and 2012

Some economists think that SKIRT LENGTH reflects economic health. This phenomenon is called the "Hemline Indicator." The shorter the skirts on ladies, the higher the stock prices on Wall Street.

(For example--Miniskirts were popular in the '20s, '60s and '90s, when our economy was booming, whereas maxi-dresses came into vogue after big Wall Street crashes).

Business Insider did a study of 25 designers' collections, looking at over 2,000 looks, and compared the year-to-year change in hemline length.

2012 registered almost 10 points higher on the "Hemline Index" than 2011.

So...If you trust Marc Jacobs and Diane von Furstenberg as your financial analysts, now might be a good time to invest.

--Producer Libby Denkmann

Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 1:54pm

Live Alone? You're Not Alone! Solo Living Is The New Normal

By Rachel Belle

Listen to Feature: Live Alone? You're Not Alone! Solo Living is the New Normal

I have lived alone for a decade. No roommates, no spouse, not even a cat. Sixty years ago I might have been labeled a lonely, old maid, but today, I'd probably be called an independent, single woman. There are more solo dwellers in the United States than ever before, and single living has been on the rise in places like Europe and Japan for even longer.

Eric Klinenberg has a new book called "Going Solo: The Extraordinary Rise and Surprising Appeal of Living Alone."

"As a species, we had never done this before 50 or 60 years ago. Literally, for the first 200,000 years of the human species, there was no society, in our history, that sustained large numbers of people living alone. Today, it's completely common. "

He says the change is astronomical. In 1950, about four million Americans lived alone, accounting for 9% of all households. Today, about 32 million Americans live alone, and they represent about 28% of American households. Older people might see solo dwellers as lonely creatures, who camp out in front of the TV, depressed, just waiting for the phone to ring.

"There's a strong history of concern about isolation in American life. But what I discovered, to my great surprise, is that people who live alone today are actually more likely to socialize with friends and neighbors than are people who are married. Conventional marriages today can be selfish, they're greedy marriages, which means they pull people into the home and out of the public."

I completely agree. I am out and about all the time, motivated to leave the house if I want to be social. When I come home, I'm so happy to have some quiet, alone time. I also don't miss having roommates: fighting about bills and fretting over someone's dirty dishes in the sink.

"Let's face it, we live in a time when we are over connected. We're hyper connected. We're constantly working or on our cell phone or on Facebook, chattering all the time. It can be so nice to come home to a place of your own, get off the grid, decompress a little bit. That doesn't mean you're being anti-social, it just means you get some control over your time and your space."

Klinenberg says all of us single person households are good for the local economy.

"Cities like Seattle benefit from the incredible spike in people living alone because people who go solo tend to go out at night. They spend time in bars and cafes and restaurants. They spend their money too; they tend to have more disposable income than other people. The rise of singles, and people living alone, has been a boost to American cities everywhere."

I think companies should be appealing even more to single people: my biggest complaint is at the grocery store. All I want is to buy a half a loaf of bread! Products are often sold in large amounts, with suburban families in mind.

Oh, and for the record, Klinenberg does not live alone. He says this is not a book about urging people to live alone and he doesn't have an agenda. He's merely providing the facts.

Eric Klinenberg is doing a book event at Town Hall in Seattle on February 29th at 7:30.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012 @ 7:07pm

Avalanche survivor describes tragic scene

Listen to Megan Michelson, Free Skiing editor at ESPN.com

Megan Michelson was a part of the large group near Stevens Pass when four of her friends were caught up in an avalanche and three of them tragically passed away.

"There was a horrible tragic accident and I don't know if there was anything we could have done other than not be there that day," Michelson told 97.3 KIRO FM's Ron & Don Show. The only thing she wish they would have done differently that day is split up into a smaller group.

She said that from her perspective it was a safe space, and they were prepared. "We knew everyone was equipped [...] it was definitely a topic that we talked about."

The expert skiers wasted no time after the avalanche hit and swept their friends down the steep slope. They immediately turned their emergency beacons to search mode and began searching for signs of life.

Statistics show that 93 percent of avalanche victims can be recovered alive if dug out within 15 minutes, but survival rates drop quickly as time passes, according to the Utah Avalanche Center. After 45 minutes, only 20 to 30 percent of victims are alive. After two hours, few survive. People die because their carbon dioxide builds up in the snow around their mouth and they quickly die from carbon dioxide poisoning.

"Nothing is predictable [backcountry skiing.]"

She describes the men that passed away, Jim Jack, Chris Rudolph and Johnny Brenan incredible, passionate skiers and members of their communities.

Read more:

Survivor: Deadly avalanche a 'horror story'

Q&A: Meteorologist Rich Marriott analyzes fatal avalanche

Tuesday, February 21, 2012 @ 2:52pm

Help: Missing Spanaway Man

By Rachel Belle

18 year old Chris Virdell has been missing since February 9th, when he was on his way to catch a Pierce Transit bus to get to his job at the South Hill Safeway in Spanaway. He never showed up for work, and his family says he's never disappeared before.

If you have any information, please contact the Pierce County Sheriff's office at 253-200-7856 or 253-798-4721.

Chris' friend emailed me about a candle light vigil on Wednesday, February 22nd at the Safeway on 136th and Meridian. He says Chris worked there for almost 3 years and never once missed a day of work.

Friday, February 17, 2012 @ 3:26pm

When did it go wrong? Ask your ex without seeming like a stalker

Has a relationship ever ended in your life, and you realize that you aren't quite sure what went wrong?

Being given the cold shoulder or the fade out that leads to the inevitable break up can often be confusing for the dump-ee. Demanding an answer to why someone never called you again can seem needy. It could even be called stalker-like, if you demand an answer just one-too-many times.

So, what should the dumped do? In New Zealand, a new website, WotWentWrong.com, has been developed to take the stalker-ness out of finding what went wrong in your previous relationship.

(Hint: The relationship might have ended because you're the type of needy person that had to do something like, find out the particulars of why your relationship ended.)

For everyone else, they might learn a little something about themselves through the feedback they get. The creators say that there is an emphasis on being "nice" but also, in offering closure.

Go ahead, ask your ex what went wrong here.

Posted by Alyssa

Thursday, February 16, 2012 @ 2:36pm

Today in Adele news: Photoshop and heartbreakers

Fans are MAD that curvaceous Adele was photoshopped on the new issue of Vogue.

Adele fanatics have been writing to Vogue and taking to their blogs with concerns that, despite an interview that speaks volumes about the larger-than-life personality of Adele, that it looks like her photo on the cover has been at best "airbrushed" and at worst, extremely modified with Photoshop.

Here is what Adele looked like at the Grammys:

Meanwhile, rumors are flying that THIS is the guy that broke Adele's heart and inspired the music behind the album 21:

A source told the New York Post that it's Slinky Winfield, or "Slinky Sunbeam," a musician who clearly hasn't garnered the same success as the pop chart's favorite songstress.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012 @ 2:26pm

Crime Stoppers buys plots to prevent Josh Powell from being buried near slain boys

The man who killed his two sons in an explosive house fire in Washington state will not be buried in the same cemetery as the children, his family said Thursday.

Kirk Graves, the brother-in-law of Josh Powell, told The Associated Press that his mother has decided to give up a plot tentatively reserved at Woodbine Cemetery overlooking the boys' final resting place.

"We felt very strongly that it wasn't appropriate to put him anywhere near the boys, and we did our best over the last 48 hours to convince her to do something different," he said. "It wasn't that hard to convince her, she just got started off on the wrong path."

In an effort to keep Josh Powell away from his children for all of eternity, Crime Stoppers Tacoma-Pierce County has purchased two burial plots near the boys.

"The bottom line is, Josh Powell will not be near those two boys," Pierce County Sheriff's Sgt. Ed Troyer said in an exclusive interview with the Ron and Don Show on 97.3 KIRO FM.

Puyallup's city manager said on Wednesday Powell's surviving family members visited the public Woodbine Cemetery and selected a plot near the boys.

They haven't paid for it yet, and any sale is being put on hold because the parents of Powell's missing wife promised legal action. But that might not be necessary.

Troyer and Sheriff Paul Pastor used their own money and funds from Crime Stoppers Tacoma-Pierce County to buy plots two and four. The boys are buried together in number three.

If you want to help pay back Crime Stoppers Tacoma-Pierce County and be part of the plots purchase, you're encouraged to donate to Crime Stoppers. You can send a check directly to Crime Stoppers of Tacoma-Pierce County at 6824 19th St. W. #139 in University Place, WA 98466.

Thank you for your donations

"This would keep that which is unacceptable from taking place," said Pastor. He added that he'll personally be sending out thank-you notes to anyone who donates, letting them know about the important role they've played in keeping Powell away from Charlie and Braden.

Troyer said the cost of the plots and plaques they plan to erect is about $4,000 to $5,000.

"We weren't too worried about the price. We know people will step up and donate toward it," Troyer said.

He added that if the boys' missing mother, Susan Powell, is found dead, they will gladly give up a plot so she will be forever near her sons.

Attorney Anne Bremner, who represents Susan Powell's parents, Charles and Judy Cox, has thanked everyone donating to Crime Stoppers.

"It's so important to stand up for what's right here and not let Josh Powell anywhere near those boys that he murdered, that he coaxed in there, and that he said 'I have a surprise for you.' Well here's a surprise for his family, you can't do this anymore. You can't make every day worse than the last for this family and those boys."

Listen to Anne Bremner

Powell was a suspect in Susan Powell's 2009 disappearance from their home in West Valley City, Utah. He attacked his sons with a hatchet and exploded his house in a gas-fueled blaze, killing himself and the two boys on Feb. 5.

The boys were laid to rest in a single casket at Woodbine on Saturday, with more than 1,000 mourners in attendance, and the Coxes hope to bury Susan Powell there too if her remains are ever found.

Steve Downing, another attorney for the Coxes, said his office received a series of anonymous calls Tuesday afternoon reporting that Josh Powell's relatives had visited the cemetery. Concerned, he emailed the city of Puyallup on Tuesday night and asked to be notified of any plans to bury Josh Powell there.

"Same cemetery, different destinations," was what he initially told his clients about the matter. But after speaking with the Coxes further, he said, they feared "they couldn't go see their daughter or their grandsons with any peace at all" if Powell's remains were nearby.

Josh Powell had always claimed that he didn't know what happened to his wife. He took the boys _ then 2 and 4 _ on a midnight camping trip in freezing weather in the Utah desert, he said, and when he returned home the next day authorities were at the house looking for her.

Weeks later, he moved the boys to his father Steve's home in Puyallup. After Steve's arrest on voyeurism and child pornography charges last fall, the boys were removed from the house and turned over to the Coxes.

On Feb. 5, a social worker brought them to Josh Powell's rental home for what was supposed to be a court-sanctioned supervised visit. Powell let the boys inside, locked the social worker out, and killed them. A judge had recently ordered that Powell undergo a psycho-sexual evaluation if he hoped to regain custody, and in a last-minute message to his sister he said he couldn't live without his boys.

Steve Powell remains in custody, and authorities are interested in knowing whether he has information about Susan Powell's fate. On Tuesday, he filed a written notice in Pierce County Superior Court asserting his constitutional right to remain silent and not discuss any matters with Utah, Washington or federal law enforcement.

By Stephanie Klein, MyNorthwest.com Editor
The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012 @ 1:44pm

Thank you for your donations to Crime Stoppers

Det. Ed Troyer with the Pierce County Sheriff's Department says the extra money (beyond buying the plots) will go towards a memorial for the boys, according to the Cox family's wishes, and to help other crime victims through Crime Stoppers of Tacoma/Pierce County.

Listen to The Nation responds to calls for help buying Powell burial plots

Dena Murray: Check is written, envelope addressed, and $50 in the mail today!

Walter Andres Cruz-caro: Dude count me in for 20 bucks, I wish I could give more, 10 bucks for each boy, I am doing it because I am a father of a 4 years old boy and a little princess that is on the way.

Rita McKendrick: Check is going in the mail for $50.00.

Shelley English: ‎$50

Stephanie Sangston: I'm sending in $100 because I have an 8 yr. old son who means the world to me. We'd like to do our small part to help the Cox family start to heal.

Anne Marie Reynolds: Sending $50

Danielle Wilson: My husband and I will send $25!

Michele Ann Millage: I'm sending Crime Stoppers $250.00. Way to go Crime Stoppers, Sheriff T and of course Ron and Don.

Corey Craig: ‎$30

Kim Renninger: Put me down for $100

Jae Hill: ‎$25 CrimeStoppers rocks!

Denise Bendiksen: Put me down for $50!

Marcy Fomin: I am a social worker for CPS in King county - and I am still heartbroken over this news. I am sending $100.00 toward this purchase knowing in some small way it helps the healing along. I challenge other social workers to donate as well.

Maranatha Anderson: We're sending $40

Katie Hilliker: Put me down for $50 !! God Bless the boys and the Cox family!

Cheryl Landis: Thank you so much for letting us know about this abhorent action by his family. Put me down for $100.

Suzy Guttormson: Put my family down for $25, wish we could do more. God Bless you Pierce County!

We apologize if you've donated and you're not named here in the blog. It does not mean we don't appreciate it. It's all about doing what's right and letting the Powell boys rest in peace.