The Taylor Swift Connection

[Deleted]

[Deleted]

Thanks for this gift Jeffery!!!

[Deleted]

Just had to share this...here!

(While I never use FB to talk about myself, I noticed that today is officially labeled as 'World Cerebral Palsy Day" and thus I wanted to say something about it)
---
Cerebral Palsy, the very nature of the two words used together in a sentence, (medically speaking) say that I am 'Permanently Disabled', which at 1st glance brings a certain sadness to those who read those words in correlation with one another. Realistically, the condition itself on the surface doesn't leave much in the way of hope either, as the mere mention of Cerebral Palsy is grim being that the standard hopes of a 'normal life' are almost instantly eradicated and replaced by the fears of how bad will it become? The unnerving wait and see game begins.
Specifically for myself, I cannot walk or stand at all, nor is it likely that I ever will be able too* my speech is occasionally slurred, and I have constant pain throughout the day as my body. As I'm often caught in the mental tug of war of what I want to do as opposed to what my body will allow me to do.
Yet, I do not view my struggle as a curse and I am in fact extremely lucky. Despite all the difficulties I have and what I cannot do, I've trained myself to focus more on what I can do and the gifts I have been given. The mental capacity to think, speak, and see life for myself, as well as an opportunity to prove that life with a disability or any other struggle for that matter is not a definition of who you are or what you can become. You are more than your diagnosis or struggle your up against.
You too have infinite potential at your fingertips. My advice, To anyone who's ever been judged because of something that makes you different (whether that be a disability or otherwise). You are more than the struggles you may face past or present, the scars on your body/in your heart.. don't tell a story of shame, but serve as a mark signifying your survival and the bullying you have endured? You didn't deserve. Never let anyone tell you otherwise. You are here on this Earth because you deserve to live.. your existence matters to all, of us.

[Deleted]

Taylor Swift Goes Back To Country Roots With Keith Urban Concert Duet


Y’all, look what we have here! Taylor Swift went back to her country roots with a stunning performance alongside Keith Urban during the Canadian leg of her ‘1989’ world tour on Oct. 2. Click to WATCH!

Yeehaw! Taylor Swift, 25, showed that despite conquering the pop world, she hasn’t forgotten where she started and where she came from after an awesome country duet with Keith Urban, 47, at her Oct. 2 concert in Toronto, Canada. And, thankfully, there’s video for you to relive the performance!

The “Bad Blood” beauty, who originally hails from Nashville, Tenn., wowed audiences singing two songs with the New Zealand singer-songwriter at the downtown Rogers Centre. Keith’s number one hit “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” got everyone really fired up and came complete with some stage pyrotechnics for added effect.

The pair also sang his other hit, “Somebody Like You,” together. The audience went wild and cheered them on from beginning to end. Taylor looked every inch the rock star wearing a figure-hugging leather romper for her latest show.

Is this Taylor's best duet yet?

Earlier in the day, Taylor gave fans a glimpse of what was to come by sharing a snap of her and Keith rehearsing during the sound check.

Taylor will soon be back in the U.S. after strutting her stuff in Canada to commence her 1989 world tour. Fans can expect more star names to join her as she continues to show why she’s the number one pop star in the world at the moment. In fact, her latest tour is said to have grossed almost $130 million in ticket sales. Insane!

During her shows, Taylor has been joined by a host of her “Bad Blood” video co-stars, as well as pals she’s sang duets with, including Selena Gomez, Steven Tyler, Mick Jagger, Little Big Town and Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons.

[Deleted]

‘Scream Queens’ Spoofs Taylor Swift’s Gift Giving With Hilarious Halloween Video



‘Scream Queens’ is taking a cue from Taylor Swift this Halloween! In honor of the spooky holiday, the show released a new promo video, starring Chanel Oberlin, who hilariously parodies Tay’s end-of-2014 ‘Swiftmas’ gift giving mission, albeit with a MUCH creepier vibe. Watch it here!

Remember when Taylor Swift, 25, surprised a number of her biggest fans by sending them presents for Christmas in 2014 and then documented the whole thing in an adorable “Swiftmas” video? Of course, you do. Well, get ready, because for Halloween, the “Bad Blood” singer’s heartwarming video is getting a very creepy makeover, courtesy of Fox’s Scream Queens. The hit show released a new promo for its upcoming Halloween episodes, in which Chanel Oberlin (played by Emma Roberts, 24) hilariously parodies Tay’s video with her own eerie rendition.

We don’t know whether to laugh or be really creeped out by this Swift parody. The clip chronicles Chanel’s Halloween-inspired quest — aptly called “Chanel-o-Ween” — to bring fear and her signature brand of morbid joy to the girls who idolize her and would literally kill for a severed leg and a handwritten note from the fabulous president of the Wallace University chapter of Kappa Kappa Tau.

The video is perfect, and captures every part of Tay’s original video from the opening typewriter text — “2015 was an amazing year for Chanel Oberlin and her 752 Instagram fans” — to the sequence of Chanel’s less fortunate fans unwrapping her spooky gifts — think razor apples and severed heads — and freaking out over her handwritten cards. At one point in the spoof, Chanel can even be seen driving around in a child’s toy car while holding hands with one lucky recipient, which basically solidifies its position as our new favorite video!

[Deleted]

'People might need a break from me' Taylor Swift hints at hiatus after 1989 world tour

AFTER her chart-topping success with fifth studio album 1989 and the end of her world tour on the horizon, Taylor Swift has teased a possible One Direction-style hiatus.




Perhaps the record-breaking pop star is letting her fears get the better of her, as she admitted that she's paranoid that the world is waiting for her to mess up.

"I'm in the news every single day for multiple different reasons," she said.

"And it can feel, at times, if you let your anxiety get the better of you, like everybody's waiting for you to really mess up - and then you'll be done."

The Bad Blood hitmaker confessed that she relies on phone calls to her mother Andrea to keep her anxiety under control.




"A lot of the time I need to call my mum and talk for a really long time, just to remind myself of all the things that are great and all the things that matter," said Taylor.

The former country crooner, who is known for her acts of generosity including a recent £32,650 donation to the nephew of her backing dancer who is suffering from cancer, also said she struggled with her squeaky clean image.

"It's not about trying to be perfect," she said.

"Not to try and sound like the good witch in The Wizard Of Oz or something, but I really do want to do good things with what I have, and that's it."

"I don't think my brain could cook up very shocking things for the sake of being shocking," she added.

[youneverknow]

The world would be sad if Taylor took a break but I can see why she needs time away from touring to recharge.

Plus, then when she does come back with new music, later, it's all the more sweeter. : )

Michael...as a sidenote...I was just reading this morning that Ted Koppel has a new book that you might be interested in.

[Deleted]

Great read Jo...I kinda wish that the lights would go out... at least for awhile.

Seems that windows 10 has relinquished all my privacy...

I may have to go back to pencil and paper to talk about my family and friends.

I simply want to talk behind their backs not have them snoop at my snipes.

Any old ways I will be posting soon... as soon as I put out some fires.

[Deleted]

[Deleted]

[Deleted]

[Deleted]

[youneverknow]

Michael,

I'm sorry to hear you are having privacy issues. I hope it gets better for you very soon.

[Deleted]

Oct 14, 2015 11:13:04 GMT -5 youneverknow said:

Michael,

I'm sorry to hear you are having privacy issues. I hope it gets better for you very soon.

Thanks Jo...I see icons on my Fire where folks I don't even know are having a conversation...so I eavesdrop.

It is a very strange society that we are now entering I suppose...I guess it is time to get off or open the book.

I believe that computers will be our country's downfall...and pretty soon I would like to add!

[Deleted]

.


Biography


Taylor Swift is that rarest of pop phenomenona: a superstar who managed to completely cross over from country to the mainstream. Other singers performed similar moves -- notably, Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson both became enduring mainstream icons based on their '70s work -- but Swift shed her country roots like they were a second skin; it was a necessary molting to reveal she was perhaps the sharpest, savviest, populist singer/songwriter of her generation, one who could harness the zeitgeist and turn it personal and, just as impressively, perform the reverse. These skills were evident on her earliest hits, especially the neo-tribute "Tim McGraw," but her second album, 2008's Fearless, showcased a songwriter discovering who she was and, in the process, finding a mass audience. Fearless wound up having considerable legs not only in the U.S., where it racked up six platinum singles on the strength of the Top 10 hits "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me," but throughout the world, performing particularly well in the U.K., Canada, and Australia. Speak Now, delivered almost two years later in the autumn of 2010, consolidated that success and Swift moved into the stratosphere of superstardom, with her popularity only increasing on 2012's Red and 2014's 1989, a pair of records that found her moving assuredly from country into a pop realm where she already belonged. This sense of confidence had been apparent in Taylor Swift since the beginning. The daughter of two bankers -- her father, Scott Kingsley Swift, works at Merrill Lynch; her mother Andrea spent time as a mutual fund marketing executive -- Swift was born in Reading, Pennsylvania and raised in its suburb Wyomissing. She began to show interest in music at the age of nine and Shania Twain wound up as her biggest formative influence. Swift started to work regularly at local talent contests, eventually winning a chance to open for Charlie Daniels. Soon, she learned how to play guitar and began writing songs, signing a music management deal with Dan Dymtrow; her family relocated to Nashville with the intent of furthering her music career. She was just 14 years old but on the radar of the music industry, signing a development deal with RCA Records in 2004. Swift sharpened her skills with a variety of professional songwriters, forming the strongest connections with Liz Rose. Taylor's original songs earned her a deal with Sony/ATV publishing but not long after that 2004 deal, she parted ways with Dymtrow and RCA, all with the intent of launching her recording career now, not later. Things started moving swiftly once Swift came to the attention of Scott Borchetta, a former DreamWorks Records exec about to launch Big Machine Records. Borchetta saw Swift perform at a songwriters showcase at the Bluebird Cafe and he signed her to Big Machine in 2005; shortly afterward, she started work on her debut with producer Nathan Chapman, who'd previously helmed demos for Taylor. Boasting original song credits on every one of the record's 11 songs (she penned three on her own), Taylor Swift appeared in October 2006 to strong reviews and Swift made sure to work the album hard, appearing at every radio or television event offered and marshalling a burgeoning fan base through use of MySpace. "Tim McGraw," the first song from the album, did well but "Teardrops on My Guitar" and "Our Song" did better on both the pop charts and country, where she racked up five consecutive Top 10 singles. Other successes followed in the wake of the debut -- a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist (she lost to Amy Winehouse), stopgap EPs of Christmas songs -- but Swift concentrated on delivering her sophomore set, Fearless. Appearing in November 2008, Fearless was certified Gold by the RIAA in its first week of release and the record gained momentum throughout 2009, earning several platinum certifications as "Love Story," "White Horse," "You Belong with Me," "Fifteen," and "Fearless" all scaled the upper reaches of the country charts while "You Belong with Me" nearly topped Billboard's Top 100. Along with the success came some headlines, first in the form of an infamous appearance at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards where her acceptance speech was interrupted by Kanye West, who burst on-stage to declare that Swift's rival Beyonce deserved the award more, but her romances also started gaining attention, notably a liaison with Twilight star Taylor Lautner, who appeared with the singer in the 2009 film Valentine Day. Her flirtation with the silver screen proved brief, as she then poured herself into her third album, Speak Now. Released in October 2010, Speak Now was another massive first-week smash that refused to lose momentum. Hit singles like "Mine" and "Mean," which won two Grammys, played a big factor in its success not just on the country charts but on pop radio, as well. Following a 2011 live album called World Tour Live: Speak Now, Swift turned toward following a pop path on her fourth album, hiring such mainstream musicians as Dan Wilson, Butch Walker, and Britney Spears producer Max Martin. This mainstream pulse was evident on "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together," the first single from Red. Upon its October 2012 release, Red shattered expectations by selling over a million copies in its first week, a notable achievement that was doubly impressive in an era of declining sales. Once again, Swift's album had legs: it was certified platinum four times in the U.S. and its international sales outstripped those of Speak Now. She supported Red with an international tour in 2013 and more hits came, including "I Knew You Were Trouble" and "22." As she geared up for the release of her fifth album in 2014, she made it clear that 1989 was designed as her first "documented, official" pop album and that there would be no country marketing push for this record. "Shake It Off," an ebullient dance-pop throwback, hit number one upon its August 2014 release. When 1989 appeared in late October 2014, it once again shot to number one and shattered all expectations, nearly matching the first-week sales of Red and offering proof that Swift was indeed the decade's biggest pop star. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine