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Melanie Avalon: the Biohacker and Business Woman Defining Success on Her Terms

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

Los Angeles is arguably home to some of the world’s most creative and ambitious minds. Among them is Melanie Avalon: a name you don’t want to miss. At 17, Melanie was accepted into the early entrance program at the University of Southern California, from which she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a double BA in film and theatre.Melanie’s dreams of becoming a successful Hollywood actress began manifesting after graduation when she immediately booked a role on the Biography Channel’s Deadly Wives. This was followed by numerous other film and television projects, and entrance into SAG-AFTRA. Little did she know, the start of her success story would evolve into something greater, beyond the entertainment industry.While at USC, Melanie harbored a searing desire to understand the science of maintaining a camera-ready body, as well as the “why” behind diets. As she explored the human body’s complexities, it became evident a one-size-fits-all solution did n...

Happy Hollow opens doors early to seniors — including Danny the Dragon

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

Both San Jose’s Happy Hollow Park & Zoo and its mascot, Danny the Dragon, turn 62 this year — which would qualify Danny for Social Security benefits. But since dragons don’t pay into the system, Danny got the next best thing Thursday morning: A giant AARP lifetime membership.Don’t worry, neither Danny nor the train ride of the same name will be retiring anytime soon. Sophie Horiuchi-Forrester, AARP’s regional director, delivered the membership card to kick off National Older Americans Month and launch Happy Hollow’s Senior Safari events.On the fourth Thursday of the month between May and October, visitors age 50 and up can enjoy Happy Hollow for an hour before it opens to the general public — before it’s overrun with kids, in other words. This is the ninth year the park has offered the free excursion, and hundreds of people showed up Thursday morning, ready to walk around, meet the zoo animals, chat with zookeepers and enjoy other ...

San Jose couple charged in allegedly unlicensed “med spa” operation

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

SAN JOSE — A San Jose couple was arraigned earlier this month in connection to a “med spa” business operated out of their East San Jose home in which they performed injections of Botox and fillers without a license, the Santa Clara County Office of the District Attorney said.Monica Canales, 45, and James Carey, 48, were arraigned May 9; the couple faces a total of 13 felony charges for the unlicensed practice of medicine for performing Botox injections, lip fillers and other beauty treatments from their home between August 2020 and September 2021, according to court documents.Deputy District Attorney Ann Huntley told Bay Area News Group that no injuries were reported by any of the six victims attached to the court case.“Everybody is really damn lucky that nothing worse … occurred,” Huntley said. “When you go to someone that’s not licensed and not trained, you have no idea what’s being injected into you.”Canales also faces a felony char...

Elizabeth Holmes’ new prison worry: Being secretly photographed in custody

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

As Elizabeth Holmes prepares to surrender to a federal prison Tuesday, she should be devastated about saying good-bye to her two small children and filled with anxiety about spending the next 11 years incarcerated, an experience that Martha Stewart once described as “horrifying.”Jen Shah, another celebrity who preceded Holmes to federal prison, may have given the disgraced Theranos founder something else to worry about: The possibility that a member of the prison staff or a fellow prisoner, in possession of a contraband cell phone, could secretly photograph her and get those images leaked to the media.That’s what Shah, the former star of “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City,” thinks happened to her, according to TMZ. She has demanded an investigation into how photos of her behind bars made it to the outside world earlier this month. The photos showed the reality TV star walking in the prison yard of the minimum-security federal prison camp in Bryan, T...

Wagner group reportedly pulling forces from Bahkmut

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

By Susie Blann and Elise Morton | Associated PressKYIV, Ukraine — The head of the Russian private military contractor Wagner claimed Thursday that his forces have started pulling out of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine and handing over control to the Russian military, days after he said Wagner troops had captured the ruined city.Yevgeny Prigozhin, a convicted criminal and Wagner’s millionaire owner with longtime links to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said in a video published on Telegram that the handover would be completed by June 1. Russia’s Defense Ministry didn’t confirm this and it wasn’t possible independently to verify whether Wagner’s pullout from the bombed-out city has begun after a nine-month battle that killed tens of thousands of people. Prigozhin said his troops would now rest in camps, repair equipment and await further orders.Ukraine’s deputy defense minister, Hanna Maliar, said Thursday that regular Russian troops had replaced Wagne...

The seven most expensive homes that reported sold in Los Gatos the week of May 15

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

A house in Los Gatos that sold for $4.1 million tops the list of the most expensive residential real estate sales in Los Gatos in the past week.In total, seven residential real estate sales were recorded in the area during the past week, with an average price of $2.8 million, $1,371 per square foot.The prices in the list below concern real estate sales where the title was recorded during the week of May 15 even if the property may have been sold earlier.7. $1.6 million, single-family home in the 200 block of Thurston StreetThe sale of the detached house in the 200 block of Thurston Street, Los Gatos, has been finalized. The price was $1,595,000, and the new owners took over the house in May. The house was built in 1954 and has a living area of 773 square feet. The price per square foot was $2,063. The house features two bedrooms and one bathrooms.Thurston Street6. $1.8 million, single-family residence in the 24000 block of Summit Woods DriveA sale has been finalized for the single-f...

Kurtenbach: LeBron James to the Warriors is a fun but terrible trade idea

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

LeBron James to the Warriors?I‘ve heard worse suggestions than the Warriors bypassing the half-measures and going all-in on old guys.But that doesn’t mean it should — or will — happen.Even if the Warriors are keen to trade Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, and Jonathan Kuminga for James — and that’s what it would take — Golden State would need to know how much James could play for them.Two years?One season?Intermittently at best?That last option seems most likely.Time waits for no man — not even the self-proclaimed king.James reportedly played the season’s final three months with a torn tendon in his foot. Anyone who watched him in the playoffs could see his left foot causing him problems. James even wore a 2005 edition of his signature Nike shoes — the LeBron II — in the Lakers’ series against the Warriors, as it undoubtedly provided more support and protection than the minimalist LeBron 20 sneakers Nike designed for him this past season.LeBron wears his t...

Want an authentic home? Channel grandma

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

This week I came down with a severe case of nostalgia. The word, from the Greek nostos (return home) and algos (pain), perfectly captures the bittersweet agony we feel when we long to return to the place we grew up. And can’t.What tripped this recent bout was a series of exercises design psychologist Toby Israel recommends in her new book “Designing-Women’s Lives: Transforming Place and Self” (ORO Editions, $30). Notably, Israel believes you can go home again — by design. If we want to channel the best from the past and not repeat the worst, we should reflect on the homes we knew growing up.“Everyone accepts that our family of origin influences the partners we choose and how we parent,” she explains over the phone, “but no one talks about how the physical home environment affects us. There again, we either model what we grew up with or do the reverse because we didn’t like it.” Minimalists are often the product of cluttered homes.Soon I am following her exercises, writin...

Jasper Wu murder case: Only 2 defendants will go on trial

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

(KRON) -- One of three men accused of killing 1-year-old Jasper Wu will not be put on trial for murder. An Alameda County judge ruled on Wednesday that there was insufficient evidence compiled against defendant Johnny Jackson Jr. Jackson, 28, will only face one charge -- being a felon in possession of a firearm.Prosecutors said Jackson was one of four men involved in a rolling gun battle between rival San Francisco gangs on an Oakland freeway. Jasper, who was riding in his family's car, was killed in the crossfire on Interstate-880 on the afternoon of Nov. 6, 2021.Former district attorney Nancy O’Malley charged Trevor Green, Ivory Bivins, and Johnny Jackson with murder, as well as gang and street terrorism enhancements. The fourth man, Keison Lee, was killed in a separate gang shooting before investigators could arrest him.Jasper WuAll but one charge filed against Jackson was "discharged" by Judge Scott Patton on Wednesday following after a 13-day preliminary hearing, his defen...

Man arrested after stabbing on SF Muni bus Wednesday evening

Published Tue, 04 Mar 2025 12:00:55 GMT

A man was detained after allegedly stabbing another man on a Muni bus in San Francisco's Excelsior District on Wednesday evening, according to police. The 18-year-old suspect was arrested after the stabbing reported around 6:35 p.m. in the area of Geneva Avenue and Stoneridge Lane. His name was not immediately available Thursday. Tensions boil over as Banko Brown funeral begins The 46-year-old victim was taken to a hospital to be treated for his injuries, which are considered life-threatening, police said. No other details about the stabbing were released. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the San Francisco police tip line at (415) 575-4444 or to send a tip by text message to TIP411 with "SFPD" at the start of the message. Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.