CNK Socail: 12/11/14

Thursday, December 11, 2014

A bible, a toothbrush and family portrait: The pitiful possessions found on the skeletal remains of migrants who died trying to cross into the US and were left to rot in the desert

Each year, hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants cross into the United States via the Mexican border desperate for opportunity. Some are caught and deported while others are successful, but at the cost of never being able to travel freely again.

An even more unfortunate group never survive the journey, and die on the border - their new life in America just within reach.

Their remains, and the personal items they left behind, are discovered by border patrol officers and local ranchers.

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Left behind: The crucifix of a broken rosary and coins that belonged to a person whose skeletal remains were found in the Arizona desert on September 12, 2014

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Belongings: Each year, the Pima County Medical Examiner's Office receives about 176 remains recovered from the desert, most of which belong to undocumented immigrants who died of dehydration trying to cross into the U.S. Above, a bible, chapstick and lighter found on a body discovered June 19, 2014

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Prized possession: Forensic anthropologists try to identify the bodies, and return them to their home countries, along with personal items. Others are cremated. Above, a ring found on an identified woman's remains

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Family: Currency from Mexico and Honduras, a bracelet and a child's portrait are among the items found on this body, recovered from the Arizona desert on June 10, 2014

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Unidentified: The Pima County Medical Examiner's Office currently has 90 unidentified remains at their center, which they are currently trying to identify

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Casualties: Forensic technician Kristine Clor handles human remains in the refrigerated morgue of the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner on December 9, 2014 in Tucson, Arizona

Each year, Arizona's Pima County Medical Examiner's Office receives about 176 bodies recovered from the border.

Currently, the remains of 90 bodies are stored at the center, where forensic anthropologists try to identify the remains, which usually belong to undocumented immigrants who died of dehydration trying to cross into the U.S.

If they are able to identify the remains, they are repatriated back to the deceased's home country, along with their personal items. Others are cremated.

Some of the items are common: a box of matches, chapstick and change. Things you'd find in almost anyone's pocket.

Others tell a story of what that person was doing they died. A letter to a loved one, a piece of paper with U.S. phone numbers, and a list of items not to forget on their journey across the border. Water tops the list.

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Be prepared: A list of items to bring, along with Mexican money, are kept in a sealed bag of personal effects, after they were found on skeletal remains in the Arizona desert on June 1, 2014

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Contacts: A list of American phone numbers was among the items found on a body in the Arizona desert

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Photo: A fading picture is preserved next to toiletries and a cellphone among one person's personal items

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Bills: American and Mexican money is kept in a sealed bag of personal effects at the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner on December 9, 2014 in Tucson, Arizona

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Sick: The personal items of this deceased person show that he or she might have been sick at the time of death, since they were carrying Vick's VapoRub. Their body was discovered in the Arizona desert on September 23, 2014

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Last words: A letter to a loved one was found among money and other personal items on this unidentified person. Their body was discovered in the Arizona desert on October 9, 2014

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All that remains: A comb, change and a Mexican identification are kept in a sealed bag of personal effects at the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner on December 9, 2014 in Tucson, Arizona. The items were with the decomposed remains of a Mexican male, 25, found in the Arizona desert on August 1, 2014

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'We have to win': A wallet which reads in Spanish reads Tenemos Que Ganar or We Have To Win in English, is kept in a sealed bag of personal effects at the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner on December 9, 2014 in Tucson, Arizona. The items were with the skeletal remains of a person found in the Arizona desert on July 5, 2014

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Flame: On the left, a lighter which reads 'Vatos Forever' meaning 'Dudes Forever' and a belt buckle which appears to have the design of marijuana leaves

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Who were they? Forensic anthropologist Tracy Van Deest takes an inventory of skeletal bones at the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner on December 9, 2014 in Tucson, Arizona

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Mystery: Van Deest takes notes on the remains, which she jots down on a sheet of paper on December 9, 2014 in Tucson, Arizona

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Resting place: Above, some of the human remains stored in the refreigerated morgue at the Pima County Office

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Meanwhile on the U.S-Mexico border: A border patrol agent rides near the Nogales, Arizona. With increase manpower, the patrol has seen the number of illegal crossings and apprehensions drop in the Tucson area

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Watchful eye: Border Patrol agent Nicole Ballistrea looks through the border fence in Nogales

Taylor Swift And Kendall Jenner Deck The Walls Of Gigi Hadid’s Apartment For Christmas

Taylor Swift and Kendall Jenner illuminated a room together when they hung up Christmas lights at their friend Gigi Hadid‘s NYC digs Wednesday night.

The model and female love interest of Miguel’s “Simple Things” music video captioned the time-lapse video as “First day of snow that sticks means TIME TO PUT UP LIGHTS @emmasittig !!!! Big hugs and candy-cane cookies to our helper-elves @kendalljenner & @taylorswift.”

There isn’t evidence of these cookies, but what is apparent is that there wasn’t any awkwardness between the “Blank Space” singer and the newest Chanel runway model, who both share an ex-boyfriend (*cough* Harry Styles *cough*). As a matter of fact, the two of them are helping each other. Nothing but fun, as Taylor puts it:

To quell any doubts that the two are totally cool with each other, earlier in the day Kendall and supermodel Cara Delevingne, who was also romantically linked to the One Directioner, were spotted leaving Taylor’s apartment.

Kendall Jenner and Cara Delevingne leave Taylor Swift's apartment in NYC

247PapsTV/Corbis Images

Why can’t they all be friends?

Taylor, Kendall, Gigi and her roommate celebrated their hard work with a group hug after they finished decorating the apartment. After all, the holidays are about coming together.

Look at what they all accomplished.

How horndog celebs model-shop at the Victoria’s Secret show

There’s nothing angelic about the guys who go model shopping at the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, where hunting season for lingerie-clad lovelies hits its peak. Among the men on the make for Victoria’s models such as Candice Swanepoel (left) are Adam Levine (top right, with model and former flame Anne Vyalitsyna at the 2011 show in New York) and Justin Bieber (bottom right).Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images; REUTERS/Lucas Jackson; We Dem Boyz / Splash News

When fashion photographer Nigel Barker gets a certain coveted invitation every fall, his phone blows up with randy requests from pals jockeying to scoop up his plus-one.

“Whenever I get invited to a Victoria’s Secret show . . . my male friends all [pop] up out of nowhere wanting to come to the show,” says Barker, the suave snapper who starred alongside former Victoria’s Secret Angel Tyra Banks on “America’s Next Top Model.”

“And they’re very pleased with themselves if they get picked to come.”

The annual underwear extravaganza — which Barker likens to a “sporting event” — airs Tuesday at 10 p.m. on CBS.

It features a gang of gorgeous models known as Angels parading down a runway wearing nothing but bejeweled bras and skimpy skivvies — the Holy Grail of invites for straight men looking to land a babe.

“It’s high-energy, and it’s almost like a football-stadium scenario. It’s not like a regular fashion show,” explains Barker. “There are like 30 rows of seats going high to

the ceiling. It’s like a Greek amphitheater.”

Only here, the sport is model hunting. And the players include rock stars, Hollywood leading men, monied executives and men lucky enough to work with the brand in some capacity.

“Guys absolutely go to the show and afterparty thinking they are going to score with a model,” says a nightlife source who attends the show every year when it is held in New York and spoke on the condition of anonymity. “Guys are looking at each other, smiling and thinking about the possibilities.”

On Nov. 30, English actor Ed Westwick, who played WASP-y lothario Chuck Bass on “Gossip Girl,” took to Twitter to publicly beg Victoria’s Secret for an invite.

Show producer Ed Razek happily obliged, and Westwick has been posting pictures of himself — including one with a trio of Angels — ever since last week’s show, which was held in London’s Earls Court Exhibition Centre.

Not everyone is as lucky: “Every year, Vince Offer, the ShamWow! guy, wants to go,” says one modeling-world snitch of the slick infomercial king. “[Victoria’s Secret] always says no, but he did get into the afterparty about five years ago.”

Another show insider, who declined to be named for professional reasons, says he’s been offered bribes of thousands of dollars from deep-pocketed men desperate to get past the pearly gates: “It got to the point where serious money was offered,” he says.

But tickets aren’t for sale. Rather, seats are given to influencers and friends of the brand.

At the top of the guest list is perennial modelizer Adam Levine, 35, who last year sat front row and blew kisses to Angel Behati Prinsloo, whom he married in July. In 2011, while performing onstage, he smooched model Anne V, whom he was dating at the time.

Left: Levine with Angel hottie Behati Prinsloo, whom he married in July. Right: Prinsloo walks the runway at the 2014 show in London.Photo: Marion Curtis/Starpix; Karwai Tang/WireImage

In 2012, Justin Bieber, then 18, reportedly flirted and partied late into the night with Miranda Kerr, who was then married to Orlando Bloom. It’s still a sore point: Bloom and Bieber came to blows this summer in Ibiza over the incident.

The Canadian pop star also sparked romance rumors when he was photographed with Hungarian model Barbara Palvin at the 2012 show and later attended a Broadway show with the beauty. (Both women denied any hanky-panky.)

And then there’s Angel addict Leonardo DiCaprio, 40, who was spied ogling Karlie Kloss at a 2011 Victoria’s Secret afterparty at the Dream Downtown and has been romantically linked to VS models Toni Garrn, Erin Heatherton and Gisele Bündchen.

Leonardo DiCaprio (center) has been linked to models Erin Heatherton (left) and Toni Garrn (right), among others.Photo: Andres Otero/Everett Collection; Steve Granitz/WireImage; Bryan Bedder/Getty Images

“The afterparty is where the real action is,” explains the nightlife source. “All of the Angels are there, the booze is flowing, and the room has been carefully curated. You have to imagine that the women know these men are all there for a reason, whether they’re connected to the brand, are a celebrity, or it’s a case of pay-to-play. It’s definitely not amateur hour.”

The company likes to foster these tabloid-ready matchups, according to one former Victoria’s Secret model, who wrote a tell-all book about her experience of walking in the show after winning a contest in 2009.

In her 2013 memoir “I’m No Angel,” Kylie Bisutti alleges that the company’s bigwigs tried to hook her up with an unnamed boldfacer she met during an afterparty at an unnamed downtown nightclub, even though she was married.

“Apparently one of the celebrities at the afterparty thought I was his type,” writes Bisutti. “And this exec wanted to know if it was okay for him to pass along my phone number so we could ‘get together.’

“I had heard that the owners encouraged the Angels to date celebrities because of the extra publicity it provided . . . but since I was happily married, I assumed they realized I was off the market.”

After the book was published, Victoria’s Secret claimed Bisutti made “numerous fabrications and misstatements.”

After checking out the ladies on the catwalk (left) in 2012, Justin Bieber reportedly spent time with Miranda Kerr. In her 2013 memoir “I’m No Angel,” former Victoria’s Secret model Kylie Bisutti (right, at the 2009 show in New York) claims that “the owners encouraged the Angels to date celebrities because of the extra publicity it provided.”Photo: Carlo Allegri / Reuters; Scott Gries/PictureGroup/AP

“We invite media and VIPs, as well as brand and fashion-show partners and vendors. There is no male-to-female ratio involved,” says a representative for Victoria’s Secret, who declined to elaborate on the company’s invitation process.

Robert Tuchman, founder of Goviva, which organizes exclusive experiences for monied clients, says he receives a lot of requests for tickets to the Victoria’s Secret show.

“It’s probably one of the most sought-after celebrity fashion events to try and gain access to,” he says. “Most of the requests are from middle-aged men in corporate America who are willing to pretty much pay anything to gain access to their events.

“There is no doubt they have built a brand experience that people want to be part of. The fact that they have kept it private has only added to the allure of the event.”

But a fat bank account won’t always get you into the land of milk and honey, says Steve Edo, CEO of Pure Entertainment Group, a Toronto-based experiential company.

“You can’t buy tickets,” says Edo, who will only put in a request if a client fits a certain profile. “It’s about what you do and who you are. It’s not just about money.”

Couple with 32 YEAR age gap who defied their families to marry, celebrate their 18th wedding anniversary and groom says his 76-year-old wife is his 'life-long obsession'

A couple who defied their families wishes to marry because the bride, at 59, was 32 years older than her husband-to-be, are preparing to celebrate 18 years together.

In 1996 Li Yuchen married his older love Ma Yuqin, from north east China's Liaoning Province, after falling in love when he was a child and she was a famous local actress.

Despite strong opposition from relatives, friends and neighbours, and Li's father renouncing him publicly, the age-gap lovers risked becoming social outcasts to wed.

Li Yucheng, now 44, defied family and friends to marry his older love Ma Yuqin, now 76, nearly 18 years ago

Li's father publicly disowned him when the 27-year-old announced his intention to marry Ma Yuqin, 59

Li, now 44, said: 'Nobody believed our marriage would last long but we have proved them wrong with a loving relationship that has lasted almost 18 years.'

Li was born in 1969, when Ma, then 32, was a well-known performer with a family of her own.

Yet when as an eight-year-old he first saw her act, Li fell head over heels for the older beauty

'I was smitten, and it was a life-long obsession that I never lost, even now,' he said. 'I adore Ma and remember her as if it were yesterday when she came for a performance in my primary school.'

When Li's father told his son that he had been at school with Ma, Li ran up to the actress calling her 'auntie'.

Ma, now 76, said: 'He was a cheeky little chap and I really felt a warm spot for him, but never dreamed that we would end up married.

Ma remembers a 'cheeky little chap' who was smitten with the well known local actress from the age of eight

Since marrying the couple have overcome the 32-year age gap and enjoyed almost 18 years together

'He was just the son of a school friend to me back then. I was stunned after years of knowing him when he proposed and told me he loved me.

'It was then that I realised that I actually had grown very fond of him too.'

Li said: 'From the age of 20, my parents introduced many girls to me but I refused all of the girls with different excuses. In fact, Ma Yuqin had been my idol all the time, and no others could hold a candle to her.

The pair have appeared on television programs to tell their story of forbidden love

Li describes his feelings towards his wife, a divorcee with a family of her own, as 'a life-long obsession'

'Wherever Ma went to give performance, I would go to watch. It was at these performances that we got close, we would go for dinner afterwards or chat in bars.'

When he was 27, Li joined Ma on stage and the pair began to perform together. After their first season - and undaunted by the age gap, Li proposed to the object of his affections, who was then 59.

Li's parents were so horrified by their son's unlikely match that they told him he should be ashamed and that he must abandon his mature fiancee, who was also a divorced mother-of-two.

Ma, now 76, said of their unconventional relationship: 'I hope it goes on for many more years'

Li's father threw him out of the house and announced publicly that he disowned his son.

Ma's two sons also lashed out at their mother's relationship, while Li says neighbours laughed at the pair.

Li's mother died in 2006, reportedly weakened by her son's bizarre love match.

Despite this opposition, the unlikely lovers said their vows and have defied the odds by living a happy life together.

Ma said: 'I hope it goes on for many more years.'

'Actors want sex, pharmacists need love': New research claims your relationship needs are influenced by your career - but scientists can't explain how or why

If you are an actor or an engineer, you are more likely to be looking for casual sex than a long-term relationship, according to new research published by dating app Clover.

The newly-published survey, which polled more than 33,000 of the app’s users, aged between 18 and 60, on their relationship requirements, revealed that the majority of professionals fall into clear career stereotypes when it comes to their sexual desires - and states exactly which industries tend to be focused on friendship and romance, and which are more interested in quick flings and one-night stands.

While accountants, psychologists and nurses were deemed to be more likely to seek out long-term relationships, the app claims that actors and engineers aren’t often looking for anything more serious than a brief romantic encounter.

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Looking for love: Nurses (pictured in a stock photo) are seeking a long-term relationship, according to a new survey conducted by the dating app Clover

Other professions in the market for lasting love include pharmacists, designers and programmers.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the majority of doctors and lawyers, many of whom have commit to extensive training before even qualifying, included in the survey said they were only looking for friends.

The most popular category to span the majority of professions was singles in search of a more casual relationship, with the majority of journalists, police officers, teachers, publicists, scientists, advertising professionals, construction workers and musicians, all falling under that same label.

But despite the clear evidence proving that our relationships are influenced by our career choices, Clover CEO Isaac Raichyk told MailOnline that the app's researchers haven't come up with any concrete theories to explain the results.

'But we feel how much free time you have and income might play a role,' he said. 'The fact that a lot of users seem to choose the casual intention might also be a way of playing it safe in order to ensure the best odds of meeting the most people.'

A second spokesperson for the app added that Clover's user base is 70per cent male and 30per cent female, and that respondents likely reflect that breakdown, though more specific demographics are unavailable.

In an effort to gather more information on whether people's jobs might affect their dating preference, Clover has asked its Twitter followers to share their thoughts.

Whitney Leigh Young echoed the poll's findings, tweeting: 'I'm an actor/journalist. And I'm looking for a casual hook-up.'

Caitlin Mooney, who identifies herself as a 'writer and quintessential PR girl', meanwhile, noted that she has a boyfriend despite having a job in the 'casual' category, writing: 'Hahah @mikeyryan23 we defied the odds.'

Clover, which launched in April, is a location-based dating app similar to Tinder in that users scroll through matches and indicate whether they're interested - but unlike Tinder, it allows users to revisit potential connections at a later time.

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