Simple Sparrow

Didier Drogba leaves Chelsea on highest note

Didier Drogba: Whenever the topic of football comes to play, it’s inevitable to hear the word Didier Drogba being mentioned. He currently plays for Chelsea in the center forward position and has proved to be one of the world’s best player in this position. He is ranked as the forth best highest goal scorer in Chelsea and with an inevitable promise of beating the record next season. Having his roots in West Africa (Ivory Coast), Drogba has risen to be a champion to reckon with in the football arena.

He started his career at a tender age under the influence of his uncle who was a football coach. He moved from Ivory Coast to France where he joined Dunkirk in 1988 to pursue his career. Things didn’t work as he expected and he moved to various clubs in such of greener pastures. However it wasn’t long before he joined Guingamp that he came to the limelight after scrolling a maximum of 17 goals. After this he was recruited by Marseille and his prowess was further discovered and it was during this time that Chelsea’s Jose Mourinho came hunting for him offering a deal worth £24 million. This was the year 2004; little did he know that Chelsea was to be his home to date. Chelsea’s achievements can be credited to Didier Drogba.

Having seen Chelsea win over Bayern Munich on Saturday news are that this was probably his last final game for the Blues as he has intentions of renewing his contract with the club which expires on June 30th. Drogba made history after helping Chelsea win two consecutive premier league titles in 2006. During this time he also won the African footballer of the year award after seeing the Elephants to the finals. This was the peak of his career.

Drogba has left Chelsea just days after an epic Champions League final where on the final play of the game, he scored a penalty to win. It is probably better to leave in this manner than to age and wonder about playing time.

Where can I sell my diamonds?

I recently stumbled upon a box in my attic which was just loaded with jewelery and gem stones. In this box I found loose diamonds, an engagement ring, a solitaire ring, a diamond wedding ring and an eternity ring. I was shocked to find all of this available which is from some family collections. Obviously the rings have the sentimental value while the loose diamonds were like piles of cash sitting in front of my face asking me now what next? 

From the loose diamonds they were all sorts of quality ranges from a nice D color ranging to some shoddy looking ones of O+ which you can say are just broken diamonds in bad condition. With diamonds like these if you want to simply reuse them for something special you can get them enhanced which means they won't be the real deal but they will look super nice and not many people will be able to see the difference unless a gemologist happens to be looking at your jewels. 

So at this point is where I got stuck and felt a bit trapped. I want to know the true value of these diamonds and also find a recommended and trusted diamond buyer that will give me a good deal but also have a fast turnaround so I can put the money in my bank account immediately. I know the loose diamonds will be not so special for the shoddy ones but the other ones that have a nice cut and color to it I'm really hoping for the best in this department. 

It isn't easy finding a good diamond buyer that will give you the fairest price and not cheat you on the inspection and grading of the diamond either.  

Next week we will update you on the number of stores we find both online and we'll be going to a special shop in New York City to get a gemologist to have a detailed look at our collection and tell us what we should be asking for in terms of selling these.

UFC 145 odds Jones vs Evans

UFC 145 Odds featuring the main event Jones vs. Evans

The main event features Jon 'Bones' Jones versus Rashad Evans for the UFC light heavyweight championship. Jones has dominated all of his opponents and making it seem he is invincible. That is why the odds are heavily stacked against Evans. Jones will most likely win this fight but with 4.2 odds for Evans, this is worth the risk knowing that Evans would have trained his hardest for this fight to get another chance at the title, perhaps his last chance. The fighters have bad blood and the key to an Evans victory would be by knockout. Jones probably has the wrestling advantage and striking with kicks but we have already seen what Rashad can do with his fists so expect him to want to get inside Jones to be able to use his fists. 

All of the other cards are nowhere near as exciting as the main event but there could be some fireworks and highlight reel knockouts. One fighter you should not bet on is John Makdessi. His clear weakness is his ground game and was humiliated in his last fight. Easy money to pick Anthony Njokuani at 1.45 odds. 

UFC / MAA - UFC 145
Rashad Evans v Jon Jones Odds	midnight
Rashad Evans	4.20
Jon Jones	1.22
Maximo Blanco v Marcus Brimage Odds	19:00
Maximo Blanco	1.33
Marcus Brimage	3.25
Chris Clements v Keith Wisniewski Odds	19:25
Chris Clements	1.45
Keith Wisniewski	2.70
Efrain Escudero v Mac Danzig Odds	20:10
Efrain Escudero	2.55
Mac Danzig	1.51
Anthony Njokuani v John Makdessi Odds	20:35
Anthony Njokuani	1.45
John Makdessi	2.70
Matt Brown v Stephen Thompson Odds	21:00
Matt Brown	3.10
Stephen Thompson	1.36
Chad Griggs v Travis Browne Odds	21:25
Chad Griggs	3.10
Travis Browne	1.36
John Alessio v Mark Bocek Odds	22:10
John Alessio	3.50
Mark Bocek	1.29
Eddie Yagin v Mark Hominick Odds	22:335
Eddie Yagin	5.00
Mark Hominick	1.17
Michael McDonald v Miguel Angel Torres Odds	22:55
Michael McDonald	1.95
Miguel Angel Torres	1.80
Ben Rothwell v Brendan Schaub Odds	23:20
Ben Rothwell	3.25
Brendan Schaub	1.33
Che Mills v Rory MacDonald Odds	23:45
Che Mills	5.00
Rory MacDonald	1.17

A Manchester Race For The Title

A Manchester Race For The Title

With nine rounds left in the Premier League, the battle for the title will be between two rivals, two neighbors, two teams from Manchester: Manchester United and Manchester City.

Currently with 73 points the Red Devils are enjoying the top spot, with three points lead to Manchester City, who have recently stepped down on spot two. And while Manchester United has won 12 title since the creation of Premier League, with the most recent one, last season, Manchester City hasn’t won one since season 1967-68, or over 54 years.

City’s defensive midfielder Patrick Vieira had called United, ‘desperate’ last week from bringing Paul Scholes out of retirement and back to the team. Of course manager Alex Ferguson’s response was just as teasing, replying that he doubts that brining the best midfielder in Premier League back is desperate, but bringing back a suspended player (Carlos Tevez) after 5 months of punishment is.

This is just the beginning of what’s coming up, and perhaps all ends on April 30^th 2012, when Manchester City will meet Manchester United on Etihad Stadium, and the title will most likely be decided there, if both teams continue to win match after match.

Manchester United Advantages: Best attack in the league with 74 scored goals. Wayne Rooney in exceptional shape with 21 goals in the season so far. The best visitor in Premier League with 36 points so far.

Manchester City Advantages: Best defense in the league so far with only 22 conceded goals in 30 games. Almost as good attack as United, with 72 goals scored. Sergio Aguero has a great season with 17 goals scored in the league so far.

Manchester United Disadvantages: Problems with injured defensive players. Naïve mistake from goalkeeper De Gea, could cause problems for the team.

Manchester City Disadvantages: Lack of creativity in the second half of the season. The performance drop of David Silva is noticeable, and has an impact on the overall game.

Both teams are out of all tournaments at this point, as both teams dropped out of Champions League, after the group stage, and out of Europa League in the elimination stage. In addition both teams were knocked out of FA Cup and Carling Cup.

However one of these teams will call it a season, and will triumph with the title.

Got a favorite or a hunch on who is going to win this season? Choose from a variety of free bets and back your winner today. Visit e-sportbets.org that has information on how to get your Betfair free bet to bet on the matches. 

Meanwhile get the lastest news on bbc football here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/

Michael Schumacher one last title push

Michael Schumacher burst on to the Formula One scene in 1991, making an immediate impression. In his F1 debut as a replacement driver with the Jordan team he equaled the team's season-best qualifying position with seventh place, but was forced to retire from the actual race in the first lap. The qualifying performance was enough to make Benetton sit up and take notice. Benetton essentially poached Schumacher from Jordan after that first race, starting a huge legal battle, which was ultimately worth it for the team.

It was with the Benetton team that Michael won the first of his seven world titles in 1994, following up with another championship the next season. At the end of the 1995 season, however, he made the decision to leave for a new challenge with Formula One's most historic team, Ferrari. The team had been experiencing several seasons of poor performances, but it took Schumacher just one season to have them back to competitive ways. It takes him until 2000 before he brought the driver's championship title to Ferrari and then went on to win the next four seasons with pure dominance.

In 2005 and 2006 his performances waned, leaving him in third and second place in the drivers' standings, respectively. Having been knocked off the top of the mountain by younger drivers, he decided it was time to retire and left at the end of 2006. Schumacher remained with Ferrari in a consultant capacity for the next few years though, so he didn't really leave the sport.

The lure of the sport eventually coaxed him back into the car in 2010, with a drive in the Mercedes team. Previously known as Braun-Mercedes, the team had won the 2009 season impressively, so Michael may be forgiven for thinking he would be coming back with a top-flight team. This was not the case, as Mercedes performed badly in 2010 and Schumacher could not recapture the magic.

In 2011, Mercedes improved and Michael Schumacher produced several impressive performances to remind the field that he is one of the greatest of all time. The question now remains: will Schumacher, in what could be one of, if not the last seasons of his career, win the title one more time? Michael undoubtedly has the experience and the skill to beat any driver in the field. At 42, however, he is one of the oldest drivers in the field and does not have the same fitness he had when he was at his prime. Mercedes finished fourth in the constructor's championship in 2011 and Michael was seventh in the drivers' standings. 

It will take a serious improvement from both the car and Schumacher to overcome the top three teams and the six men who beat him last season. Of those six drivers ahead of him, four are themselves former champions. Until the first wheel is turned in anger no one can say for sure how well Michael will do, but every driver in the field knows that he is a legend and should never be counted out of contention.

Source: f1-bettings.com via f1admin on Pinterest

UFC Rashad Evans vs Jon Bones Jones

The next light heavyweight title fight will be exciting for many reasons including the feud between these 2 fighters that used to train with each other: Rashad Evans and Jon Jones. 

Rashad Evans is the former UFC light heavyweight champion but the title has since been tossed around like a hot potato until Jon Jones destroyed Shogun Rua and has defended the title with ease against Lyoto Machida and Rampage Jackson. Rashad left his training camp probably because Jon Jones wasn't going anywhere else. For those that don't know, Rashad was due to fight for the title but was injured and Jones was the replacement fighter meaning if Jones wins, he would have to fight his training partner. Rashad has never liked the move but how can anybody blame Jones? Is this guy just supposed to wait for his next chance which could never happen? Time is now and Jones is no idiot.

Jon Bones Jones. This young man has dominated everyone he has fought and it is starting to look like nobody is going to dethrone him anytime soon and we could be looking at the best light heavyweight fighter of all time. He is simply too big, too strong and has too long of a reach for punching and kicking. He looks better suited for heavyweight and maybe if he puts on 20-40 more pounds he could certainly fight in that class without any problems. 

These 2 fight April 21st, it should be fireworks.

 

Lewis Hamilton focused in 2012

Lewis Hamilton in 2012

Lewis Hamilton expressed his mentally preparedness for the coming Formula 1 racing in 2012 after analyzing his mistakes in previous years event. This announcement of this English Formula 1 racer aims on generating an atmosphere which can support him to perform with extra potentiality than 2011. 

The 27 years old Formula 1 racer, Lewis Hamilton, who won the world champion title in 2008, further told that he is in good state of mind and tried his best to recoup from the mistakes done in previous session and he had adopted several good tactics with a focus to win the world championship race in the forth coming event. 

Hamilton’s team was announced last Wednesday to include Didier Coton, ex-associate to two time winner of championship Mika Hakkinen, which was declared as a step towards the assured win of the race as he was confident for that. The main reason of last year’s poor performance is supposed to be the inclusion of wrong people in his team which disturbed the mindset of the racer, Hamilton.

On the inclusion of Didier in his team Hamilton commented as the associate need not be the expert in Formula 1 race but he must be someone with whom he could feel relaxed. It was the main thing which he was lacking in previous year’s event. he was confidant to make his win sure as he had succeeded in having Didier as his associate in the grand prix 2012. 

Hamilton further declared that he was in friendship with Didier since several years and he knew that his association in F1 race as his team will be beneficial for him due to his experience. He was confident about Didier to be available every time at the time of need during the Formula 1 race and for that reason he included him in his team. 

He was convinced of his form at the testing session of the present years of F 1 race at McLaren on day one. On first day Hamilton stood fourth position when he was a bit behind the last year’s champion Red Bull from Sebastian Vettel. Nico Rosberg ended at the first position at his 2011 model of Mercedes and Romain Grosjean, a novice F 1 racer, stood second in his new Lotus in this testing session. Hamilton is supposed to cover up his position on the track on the last day, Friday, of this testing session. 

Premier League race: Man U, Man City and Tottenham

Right now only 3 teams matter in the Premier League: Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur. These teams are separated by just 3 points with Manchester City leading the other two by 3 points. Tottenham are a surprise team but when you look at their squad they are strong and are getting key goals by Gareth Bale. 

Tottenham have been consistently good all season up until now to get to 45 points with 20 games played. Manchester United have been inconsistent first starting the season strong then dropping key points while Man City was pulling away with the title. Now Man U are playing consistent football while Manchester City is taking their turn on the stumbling block. 

 

Two teams people thought would matter but haven't are Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea. These teams have had problems this season and everyone expects Chelsea to do better than this but either you can blame the manager Villas-Boas or you could ask why 60 million euros doesn't get you more goals, cough cough Fernando Torres. Liverpool have to deal with Suarez missing games for being a racist. 

If you are a Thierry Henry fan then you'll love his return back to the Arsenal FC as he scores the only goal in the 4th round FA cup match against Leeds. 

Who will win the league?

Prediction: Manchester City

They have too much scoring power and the real threat to a title this season is with Manchester United but they are dealing with so many injuries that Paul Scholes has come out of retirement to help the team. The injuries will add up in the middle of the season and cost them some games.

Customized puppet videos

If you are looking for a great gift idea you should consider getting your own customized puppet videos.  But not just any ordinary puppet video but from Professor Puppet!  You can hire him for longer video projects that are more detailed or if you are on a budget you can check out his Fiverr.com profile page here:

http://fiverr.com/professorpuppet

He has over 1000 satisfied customers and not a single complaint! That is one of the best fiverr ratings ever. 

At fiverr they have over 5 different types of orders including Christmas orders. If you want to see a sample of these puppet videos just visit their youtube channel and we have embedded one of their funny outtake videos. After doing over 1000 videos there is bound to be some bloopers. Well here are the blooper videos featuring lots of swearing.

 

The videos they produced for us were for Christmas and everyone loved them! Actually people begged me to share where I got them from so I decided to do a post to share where Professor Puppet is hiding on the internet. 

You can buy their videos, buy special tshirts from Cafe Press or to contact just add Professor Hons Von Puppet on facebook. 

 

Christmas Cookies from the 1940s

Great Aunt Patty’s Ranger Cookies from the 1940s There were dark days in Europe and Asia during the 1940’s as ideologies clashed around the globe during World War II. A bright moment did occur from time to time as American soldiers received what was called “care” packages from their sweethearts back home. Along with windows and porch railings reflecting the patriotic homemade banners of Service Stars, an American tradition that began during World War I, another homemade idea was being prepared in American kitchens. It was Christmas time and the girls were getting together to send their boys in uniform what they called Ranger Cookies.

On a radio filled with glowing tubes they listened to the Bugle Boy of Company B, Little Brown Jug and many other swing bands of that era as they lovingly prepared the Ranger Cookies in Christmas packages. That’s the history that Great Aunt Patty passed down and here’s the recipe to go with it. Great Aunt Patty’s Ranger Cookies from the 1940s 1 Cup butter or Crisco, 1 Cup White Sugar and 1 Cup Brown Sugar. Mix these three ingredients well. Then add three beaten eggs, ½ teaspoon vanilla, two cups sifted flour, one teaspoon baking soda, a dash of salt, ½ teaspoon baking powder and mix the ingredients well.

Then you need to add one cup chopped walnuts, one cup chocolate chips, one cup grated coconut, and two cups fine oatmeal. Mix all ingredients well. Then stir in two cups Rice Krispies. Drop by teaspoon onto a cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes at 350 degrees. Truly these cookies will bring on smiles and happy faces today just as they did to many soldiers over 70 years ago.

Happy Holidays everyone and have a Merry Christmas.