Wage the Fight will be from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sept. 2 at the hotel,tiffany cuff Links clearance, featuring the classic rock sounds of local band Minimum Wage. The event will include con]]> Candlewood Suites will help fight cancer with a free outdoor benefit concert.,buy tiffany rings

Wage the Fight will be from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sept. 2 at the hotel,tiffany cuff Links clearance, featuring the classic rock sounds of local band Minimum Wage. The event will include concessions from WhaBah Steakhouse and Culver’s, an inflatable bounce house, a speed-pitch game and an appearance by Bowling Green Hot Rods mascots Axle and Roscoe. There will also be a corn hole tournament for $10 a person and a silent auction with items including a $500 Body Works Chiropractic gift card, $500 gold earrings from Jewelry Barn, a single Bowling Green Hot Rods game suite rental during the 2011 season, makeup from Mary Kay Cosmetics, artwork by local artist Misha Ambrosia, $200 in products and grooming services from Pet Shop, a $100 gift certificate to Trent Bedding and more.

Proceeds will benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, which, according to its website at www.leukemia-lymphoma.org, is a national voluntary health agency dedicated to curing leukemia,discount tiffany necklaces, lymphoma and myeloma, and to improving the quality of life of patients and their families.

Organizers got the idea for the event because local Candlewood Suites general manager Kacie Hood has a 27-year-old sister, Lindsay Rushman, who is in remission and receiving chemotherapy, said hotel director of sales Dianna Fuda.

"She was diagnosed two months ago with leukemia,buy tiffany Pendants," she said. "We’re hoping Lindsay will be able to make it (to the concert)."

Fuda said she hopes a lot of people attend the concert.

"We want to reach out to the entire community in hopes that they come out and support it,thanksgiving gifts," she said. "We want to raise awareness to what the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is doing every day."

– For more information, call 270-320-2429 or search for the free benefit concert under Candlewood Suites Bowling Green on Facebook.

Credit: Daily News, Bowling Green, Ky.

In fact, he will quit the auto business entirely, BMW says.

He is perhaps best known for the furor he created with the ra]]> Christopher Bangle, one of the auto industry’s most influential and controversial designers,discount tiffany earrings, is leaving his longtime post as BMW’s top designer at the end of the month.

In fact, he will quit the auto business entirely, BMW says.

He is perhaps best known for the furor he created with the raised, bustle-like trunk lid he first applied to the redesigned 7 Series BMW in 2002 and carried on to the German automaker’s other models as those were redesigned. The look quickly became known as the "Bangle Bustle,tiffany," in addition to some stronger labels.

Even though it was widely panned at the time, other automakers adopted it. The look, toned down for mainstream tastes — but still having the practical effect of increasing trunk volume — has spread throughout the car business. Toyota, for instance, uses the style to distinguish its mainstream Camry sedan and its big Avalon.

While acknowledging that the rear-end styling wasn’t greeted with universal enthusiasm,key rings, BMW U.S. spokesman Thomas Salkowsky said that nevertheless, "He moved the industry."

BMW said that Bangle,tiffany earring, 52,tiffany Pendants clearance, will "pursue his own design-related endeavors beyond the auto industry," beginning "a new phase in his life while maintaining strong ties with the BMW Group."

"If you talk to Chris over a beer, he talks about epiphany. He’s big on epiphanies. One has to assume that he had an epiphany" about moving on, Thomas Baloga, BMW U.S. engineering vice president, commented Tuesday on the sidelines of the Washington, D.C., auto show.

Bangle — remarkable as an American running a German automaker’s design operation — has been head of BMW Group Design Development since October 1992, the automaker said.

He studied at the University of Wisconsin and the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, Calif., then moved to Germany where he worked for Opel. He also worked for Fiat before joining BMW in Munich.

SYDNEY, July 29 AAP - To many, The Bangles were one of the original girl groups, but the reformed 80s band doesn't want to be lumped into the same category as the Spice Girls or the Pussycat Dolls.

The band, who are famous for chart-topping songs like Eternal Flame and Walk Like An Egyptian,]]> By Alyssa Braithwaite, National Entertainment Writer

SYDNEY, July 29 AAP – To many, The Bangles were one of the original girl groups, but the reformed 80s band doesn’t want to be lumped into the same category as the Spice Girls or the Pussycat Dolls.

The band, who are famous for chart-topping songs like Eternal Flame and Walk Like An Egyptian,tiffany jewellery, are back together, writing new music and touring the world, including Australia this October.

The three original members – Susanna Hoffs and sisters Debbi and Vicki Peterson (minus fourth Bangle Michael Steele) – are winning over a new generation of fans with their infectious pop sound.

The music industry has changed a lot since The Bangles were at the height of their fame, but unfortunately the lack of all-women bands hasn’t, according to Peterson.

"I think it is harder for women to break through, because it is still pretty male-dominated," she told AAP from Los Angeles.

Peterson doesn’t count in that group manufactured girl groups who don’t play instruments or write their own songs, such as the Spice Girls, the Pussycat Dolls or Girls Aloud.

Nor does she consider them as following in The Bangles’ footsteps.

"They always called them girl bands but they’re not bands, they have singing and dancing fools," Peterson said.

"I don’t really listen to a lot of that stuff because it seems so manufactured to me.

"I prefer to hear other girl bands who are actually musicians, and there have been a few who have come and gone.

"I kind of would like to hear more of them."

When The Bangles broke up in 1989, Peterson said they all needed some time on their own after such intense years together.

For years they resisted offers to make quick money with a reunion tour.

Peterson said when they eventually re-formed in 1999 to record the song Get the Girl for the Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me soundtrack, it was for the right reasons.

"We did it slowly, we did it because we wanted to, we didn’t have somebody behind the desk with a big cigar saying ‘girls, I’m going to make you a million dollars if you do this tour with this band’,tiffany earrings on sale," she said.

"We want to play together again, we want to make new music again,cuff Links, and just tour again.

"We thought, OK let’s try it again, let’s just don’t do it the way we did it."

Peterson said the group is having more fun than ever this time around.

"We’ve just been doing it and having fun, and there are great audiences basically everywhere we’ve played," she said.

"We’re seeing a lot more younger fans these days."

Some of their youngest fans are their children,tiffany bracelet, particularly Peterson’s 11-year-old son.

"My son is like, ‘mum, you’re my favourite band’,tiffany bracelets sale," she said.

"He’s really cute with his friends – he’s like, ‘My mum, yep, she’s in The Bangles’. It’s cool."

In its new 7 Series sedan, BMW AG is abandoning some of the striking design elements that characterized the previous model -- and turned off some lovers of the luxury brand.

The new model, which comes as the conservatively styled Lexus LS has outsold BMW in the top-end luxury-sedan segment, will hit showrooms in 2009. Breaking with a look introduced in a controversial model unveiled in 2001, the 7 Series is returni]]>  

In its new 7 Series sedan, BMW AG is abandoning some of the striking design elements that characterized the previous model — and turned off some lovers of the luxury brand.

The new model, which comes as the conservatively styled Lexus LS has outsold BMW in the top-end luxury-sedan segment, will hit showrooms in 2009. Breaking with a look introduced in a controversial model unveiled in 2001, the 7 Series is returning to simple,tiffany cuff Links on sale, sleek lines. It no longer has a bulging trunk lid (dubbed the "Bangle butt" after its designer, Christopher E. Bangle) or headlights often described as "tearful," with accentuated curves on the lower lid.

The latest 7 Series, unveiled last week, combines elements of the German auto maker’s 3 Series coupe and the 5 Series, which have a more traditional look. BMW hopes to woo customers with radical innovations under the skin, such as a thermal imaging camera that spots stray pedestrians at night, Internet access and four-wheel steering, which reduces the turning radius of the car.

Although the car hasn’t yet hit showrooms, online photos and video of the new look are sparking comments around the globe. James Dills, the 33-year-old executive manager of a Big 5 Sporting Goods store in Sacramento, Calif., calls the new design a "definite improvement." Mr. Dills, who is shopping for a used 5 Series, prefers the pre-2001 design to the current one but thinks the new design has BMW "heading in the right direction."

The launch of the 7 Series is a critical step for BMW as it seeks to boost sagging profit margins. The luxury sedan is one of the few vehicle categories where margins are robust, thanks to well-heeled,tiffany Pendants sale, status-conscious buyers who tend to order vehicles with expensive options such as metallic paint, electric heated seats, navigation systems and entertainment systems.

When the current 7 Series was launched in 2001, it represented a radical break from the Munich-based firm’s traditional conservative styling. BMW at the time wanted to broaden its appeal beyond the German firm’s traditional customer base. It also aimed to help customers distinguish between the designs of its 3 Series, 5 Series and 7 Series sedans, which to some had become the same car in small, medium and large.

But some BMW fans disliked the design and launched an Internet petition calling for BMW’s top designer, Mr. Bangle, to be fired. More than 14,000 people signed the petition. BMW toned down some of the extreme design details in a 2005 reworking of the car. Mr. Bangle is now director of design at BMW Group,thanksgiving jewelry, which includes Rolls-Royce and the Mini brand.

In designing the new car, BMW placed as much emphasis on making the new 7 Series "elegant" as on making it "distinctive," Chief Executive Norbert Reithofer said at a presentation in Munich last week.

Mr. Reithofer said the final design of the new model is the product of an exhaustive evaluation process that started out with six potential designs submitted by competing teams. "The entire management board was involved in weeding out designs that were deemed unsuitable," Mr. Reithofer said.

Although the current 7 Series is the most successful 7 Series ever in terms of unit sales, it hasn’t kept pace with its main competitors. Sales of the current model, despite the 2005 reworking, never managed to overtake the market-leading Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Last year, Mercedes-Benz sold 85,500 S-Class cars, helped by the fact that it presented a new generation in 2005. In 2007, BMW sold fewer than 50,000 7 Series.

Perhaps more troublesome for BMW, sales of the 7 Series were overtaken by the conservatively styled Lexus LS in 2007. Lexus boosted sales of its LS to 71,760 sedans in 2007 — nearly double the previous year’s 34,833 — after introducing a new generation in 2006. BMW aims to increase sales of its 7 Series with the new model, which is known as the fifth generation.

Adrian Van Hooydonk, director of design at BMW automobiles, who styled the exterior of the new 7-series, says the car is distinctive and designed to reflect "authenticity and engineering precision." The new BMW now has a "stance and proportion" to express "power and dynamics," Mr. Van Hooydonk said.

Mr. Van Hooydonk, a Dutchman, said BMW kept to its custom of not polling customers before putting it into production. "We don’t use customer clinics," Mr. Van Hooydonk said. "They will be judging it based on the world today. Design needs to look good in eight years’ time. You can’t ask a customer whether he will like the design of the car in 2018." BMW does spend a lot of time researching customer needs before designing a car, Mr. Van Hooydonk said.

BMW is also keeping its i-Drive system,tiffany earrings for sale, a button mounted near the armrest with which to control the vehicle’s suspension system, climate control,buy tiffany key rings, satellite navigation and entertainment systems. Like a computer’s mouse, it can be used to point and click through menus on an in-dash display. The system — which was quickly dubbed "why-Drive" or "iDunno" when it was introduced in 2001 — has since been copied by rivals Audi and Mercedes-Benz.

Analysts at HSBC say the global premium-car market has grown by 20% since 2003. Volume growth in the global premium-car market is set to rise 24% between 2007 and 2013, HSBC said in a research report last month. Competition is getting more intense in this segment of the market. Audi’s A8 is connecting with drivers, as sales rise, while Infiniti, the premium brand owned by Nissan, will launch a raft of new cars in Europe this year.

Separately, BMW on Tuesday said it’s exploring a cooperation deal with Fiat SpA of Italy to jointly develop components for Mini and Alfa Romeo vehicles. Both companies declined to divulge details of the possible collaboration.

Heedless of the heat,tiffany bangles on sale, men armed with steel rods, the tips glowing, walk to and fro thrusting the ends into the furnace, wrapp]]> A deep rumble, like the steady snores of a sleeping giant, envelops the factory. The temperature is nearly 75 degree celsius near the furnace, the surface temperature being around 300 degree celsius.

Heedless of the heat,tiffany bangles on sale, men armed with steel rods, the tips glowing, walk to and fro thrusting the ends into the furnace, wrapping gleaming molten glass around the rods.

Near the entrance at the Express Glass Works in Firozabad, Uttar Pradesh, the end product lies waiting: glass bangles, their hue that of the deepest red.

The colour is a speciality of this factory, says Mohammed Islam Khan, the owner; a secret family recipe handed down over generations.

At 70, the commerce post-graduate from Aligarh Muslim University is a pioneer of sorts in this city that, according to The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) figures, supplies around 50 million bangles to the country every day.

For years, since his grandfather set up the factory in 1914,shop for tiffany Pendants, open pot coal or wood furnaces were used to manufacture bangles.

In December 1996, the Supreme Court ordered 292 coal-based factories around the Taj Trapezium Zone, including Firozabad pot-furnace units, to either switch to cleaner, alternative fuels, relocate or shut down.

For Khan, the court ruling was akin to a death knell. His was a small-scale industry that wouldn’t have survived relocation and there was no technical know-how available on alternative fuel. Shutting down wasn’t an option either, he says. Khan opted for natural gas, but the costs hit the roof.

It was around this time, that TERI, with the support of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), was developing clean, energy-efficient technologies based on natural gas for pot furnaces.

Their model cut energy consumption by nearly 30 per cent compared to the other retro-fitted gas-fired pot furnaces. The challenge, however, was getting the factory owners involved.

The owners would come for the meetings, but weren’t interested, says TERI spokesperson Rajiv Chibber. The reason, says Khan, was the cost.

The old coal furnace cost owners between Rs 1-2 lakh but the TERI furnace came for Rs 30-40 lakh. If the technology flopped, my factory would shut down. But the reward was greater if it worked,tiffany key ring, says Khan.

Persuasion finally worked. Khan was the first one to take the plunge. TERI and SDC agreed to bear hardware and construction costs as well as production expenses during the trial run while Khan agreed to bear production costs once the furnace was stabilised and to buy it back, at a concession, after a successful demonstration.

Now, standing near the TERI furnace, Khan barks out instructions to his workers. It’s close to 11 a.m. and there’s a cool breeze outside.

But inside, next to the furnace, it feels like a hot afternoon in the Sahara desert. Khan wipes the sweat off his face, as he monitors his workers even as he reminicises the trials of a new technology at work. It took nearly two years for the problems to be ironed out.

But the one challenge that gave him many sleepless nights was the colour of the bangles. His factory is known for the deepest red colour called Lal Anju a recipe that was given by a stranger to his grandfather Bhooray Khan.

The new furnace was giving problems on this front. Once problems of clarity had been worked out, Khan realised there was inconsistency in the colour. Red is the most sensitive hue in glassmaking, he says. In a report released this year,

TERI’s Girish Sethi, who headed the project, notes, The entire Firozabad glass industry was looking eagerly at us. The technology that we were demonstrating had not been tried out anywhere else in the world. But Khan didn’t give up. After experimenting on various chemical combinations, he finally managed to get the colour right.

And while Khan may have looked towards the future of a cleaner fuel and lower costs, the others were still apprehensive. It was in 2004 that Lalitesh Kumar Agarwal,cheap tiffany money clips, owner of Bapu Glass Industries, spoke to Khan about shrinking profits.

Khan gave a demonstration of the TERI furnace to Agarwal, who reluctantly got one installed. It was a noticeable change. Earlier, if you walked into the factory in a white shirt, you’d come out all blackened. Now,necklaces, the air is cleaner, my workers are healthier, says Agarwal who went on to install three more TERI furnaces.

Since 2000, 40 out of the around 80 glass bangle factories in Firozabad have adopted the TERI furnace and there are more in installation stages. Some units have even drawn upon the model to develop their own energy efficient, heat recovery devices.

The Firozabad glass bangle factory initiative has become a flagship project, says Chhibber, for the ongoing TERI project Competence Network for Small and Micro Learning Enterprises (COSMILE).

And while the Firozabad experience has become an important case study for TERI, Khan is busy reaping its rewards. Do you know one bangle passes through 45 hands, he says.

Make it 45 hands plus one innovative piece of technology that brought life back into the glass bangle industry.

Mexico's most celebrated athlete, along with other business and community luminaries, will mark the opening of the one-of-]]> After months of anticipation,buy tiffany bangles, six-time world boxing champion and Mexican icon Julio Cesar Chavez is opening Julio Cesar Chavez Campeones (Champions), a one-of-a-kind boxing-themed restaurant and entertainment venue on November 10.

Mexico’s most celebrated athlete, along with other business and community luminaries, will mark the opening of the one-of-a-kind entertainment venue with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 6 p.m. Other grand opening festivities will include live music; boxing inside a full-size ring in the restaurant; opportunities to win prizes; karaoke; and fun and entertainment for the entire family.

"The grand opening of Julio Cesar Chavez Campeones is a special moment for me," said Julio Cesar Chavez. "It’s very gratifying to have the opportunity to open a place that the Hispanic community can be proud of. I hope that all my fellow countrymen and everyone else will join me at this event."

Located in Mesa, Ariz., Campeones is a 30,000-square-foot venue featuring authentic Mexican food, a full sports bar, arcade games and a World Boxing Council (WBC) Legends of Boxing Museum. In addition, the venue has the Bud Light Doce (12) Events Center for concerts, boxing matches,tiffany bracelets sale, quinceaneras and community events. The center will be able to accommodate about 1,700 people, with capacity for another 850 visitors in the restaurant, sports bar and arcade areas.

Campeones will provide a shot in the arm to the local economy. Brian Weymouth,discount tiffany necklaces, Chavez’s agent and business partner in Julio Cesar Chavez Campeones, and team have hired 80 people for the opening, and the venue is projecting revenues of $7-$10 million for the first year of business, which will be a boost for the city of Mesa. Campeones will be a major attraction for the local Hispanic community as well as for visitors from across the U.S. and Mexico.

"We’ve received enormous support from everyone in the community for this type of entertainment venue. Julio, one of the world’s greatest boxing champions, believes that the incredible number of dedicated fans in the Valley makes Mesa a perfect market for launching Campeones," said Weymouth.

In total, more than $4.5 million has been invested in creating Julio Cesar Chavez Campeones. Key investors include Weymouth, Chavez, Dan Wergin and Brian Day O’ Connor. Weymouth is best known for opening Alice Cooper’stown in downtown Phoenix with rock star, Alice Cooper, in the late-90s. He has also worked with sports stars,discount tiffany key rings, Randy Johnson,money clips, Mark Grace and Dan Majerle. Wergin has a background in the wind energy industry and real estate development and Day O’ Connor is a veteran in the commercial real estate industry.

The boxing-themed restaurant and entertainment venue was built with the Hispanic consumer in mind. Weymouth said that Campeones will rival and best the impact Hard Rock or the ESPNZone created with the Anglo community.

Chavez’s boxing career spanned 25 years. He is ranked as one of ESPN’s 50 greatest boxers of all time and went 90 straight fights without a loss. Chavez retired from professional boxing in 2005. His two sons, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Omar Chavez, now carry on their father’s legacy in the ring.

Those two names may as well be one, because Mike Kopp and Central Catholic girls basketball are forever intertwined.

Kopp is in the early stages of his 30th season coaching the Vikettes. They have done nothing but win during his tenure.

The 2008-09 season saw Kopp and Central Catholic continuing to collec]]> When Allen coach Tom Gallagher thinks of Lehigh Valley basketball, two names come to his mind.

Those two names may as well be one, because Mike Kopp and Central Catholic girls basketball are forever intertwined.

Kopp is in the early stages of his 30th season coaching the Vikettes. They have done nothing but win during his tenure.

The 2008-09 season saw Kopp and Central Catholic continuing to collect trophies. The Vikettes reached their 24th straight District 11 title game and won their 10th straight District 11 Class 3A title. They captured a league title for the eighth time in 10 seasons and reached the PIAA Class 3A state quarterfinals.

Kopp also became Pennsylvania’s winningest girls basketball coach in February, a feat that earned him the nod as The Morning Call’s male Sportsperson of the Year for 2009.

"I think everybody tries to copy what Central Catholic and Mike does," said Gallagher, who just enjoyed a great two-year run of his own in taking Allen to back-to-back Class 4A state playoff appearances, including a berth in the state semifinals in 2007-08. "I have the utmost respect for him, and I think most people in the Valley do also.

"He gets accused of recruiting, and that’s a bunch of [garbage]. Good kids come to good programs. To me, he is Pennsylvania’s No. 1 coach."

Kopp has never cared about numbers. He long ago moved past being bothered by what people outside his program think of him.

What has remained important to Kopp is giving his players a chance to enjoy all aspects of high school. While some coaches demand a 12-month commitment from players,shop for tiffany money clips, he continues to encourage his girls to take time away from basketball.

"I just think it’s the right thing to do," he said. "These are high school kids that want to have a great high school career, and I’m not just talking about winning a lot of championships. I couldn’t imagine someone telling me,tiffany rings for sale, ‘If you want to play this sport, you have to do this all year round.’

"We want them to experience as many things as possible. Kids have to be kids. We’ve always promoted that here at Central."

Kopp’s demeanor and attitude are not lost on his players, past and present. Becky Guman, a Lehigh freshman who was a co-captain on Central Catholic’s 2008-09 team,shop for tiffany necklaces, credited Kopp’s calming presence for helping the Vikettes sustain their success.

"He just knows how to handle the girls,tiffany money clips on sale," Guman said. "He knows how to mix in fun with a competitive attitude."

Central Catholic’s success shows no signs of ending this season. The Vikettes own a 5-0 record after winning in Maryland on Tuesday and have Kopp two victories away from 800 in his career. He went into Wednesday’s game with a 798-182 overall record, including a 724-158 mark at Central Catholic.

Gallagher, who is going through some rebuilding this year at Allen, marvels at what Central Catholic has done. Kopp has been the one constant through it all.

"It really is a true testament to him,tiffany bangle," Gallagher said. "He really does an outstanding job, and he does it being a gentleman."

stephen.miller@mcall.com, 610-820-6750

COMING FRIDAY: Keith Groller looks ahead to the new year and new decade in sports.