A Quebec woman on long-term sick leave is fighting to have her benefits reinstated after her employer’s insurance company cut them, she says, because of photos posted on Facebook.
Nathalie Blanchard, shown here on a beach holiday during her sick leave. (Facebook)
Nathalie Blanchard, 29, has been on leave from her job at IBM in Bromont, Que., for the last year and a half after she was diagnosed with major depression.
The Eastern Townships woman was receiving monthly sick-leave benefits from Manulife, her insurance company, but the payments dried up this fall.
When Blanchard called Manulife, the company said that “I’m available to work, because of Facebook,” she told CBC News this week.
She said her insurance agent described several pictures Blanchard posted on the popular social networking site, including ones showing her having a good time at a Chippendales bar show, at her birthday party and on a sun holiday ? evidence that she is no longer depressed, Manulife said.
Blanchard said she notified Manulife that she was taking a trip, and she’s shocked the company would investigate her in such a manner and interpret her photos that way.
“In the moment I’m happy, but before and after I have the same problems” as before, she said.
Blanchard said that on her doctor’s advice, she tried to have fun, including nights out at her local bar with friends and short getaways to sun destinations, as a way to forget her problems.
She also doesn?t understand how Manulife accessed her photos because her Facebook profile is locked and only people she approves can look at what she posts.
Insurer confirms it uses Facebook
Her lawyer Tom Lavin said Manulife’s investigation was inappropriate.
“I don’t think for judging a mental state that Facebook is a very good tool,” he said, adding that he has requested another psychiatric evaluation for Blanchard.
“It’s not as if somebody had a broken back and there was a picture of them carrying with a load of bricks,” Lavin said. “My client was diagnosed with a major depression. And there were pictures of her on Facebook, in a party or having a good time. It could be that she was just trying to escape.”
Manulife wouldn’t comment on Blanchard’s case, but in a written statement sent to CBC News, the insurer said: “We would not deny or terminate a valid claim solely based on information published on websites such as Facebook.” It confirmed that it uses the popular social networking site to investigate clients.
Insurance companies must weigh information found on such sites, said Claude Distasio, a spokeswoman for the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association.
“We can’t ignore it, wherever the source of the information is,” she said. “We can’t ignore it.”
Blanchard estimated she?s lost thousands of dollars in benefits since Manulife changed her claim.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2009/11/19/quebec-facebook-sick-leave-benefits.html
Now I teach Pilates and Yoga so that means I am pro both of those forms of exercises. I have my own studio with a reformer and love Pilates. I’ve trained with Stott here in North Vancouver. But\xA0it is a really long process to get back\xA0to the Pilates. You HAVE to have your doctor’s permission. Let’s face it. You do not want to wreck your surgery and you can do that in a flash. You need to be at least 8 weeks post surgery before you even think about it. And move slowly. Feel every moment, perform it with caution. And the usual caveat – none of this is ever meant to take the place of consulting your caregivers like your physio, surgeon and family doctor. Listen to them. See a physiotherpist that has Pilates training and/or uses a reformer in her therapy. I trained with lots of them so they are around.
The Reformer: If you stick to the basics and by that I mean no Short Spine and exercises from the essential level, you might be okay. The Footwork is going to put pressure on your spine from the anchor at the shoulder rest to the foot. It’s a closed chain exercise. Depending on the condition of the rest of your spine you might be okay. Use LIGHT weight. Whatever you used before the surgery cut it in half. Watch Second Position laterally. In single leg work you need to keep your hands on your hips and make sure there isn’t any rotation. Half the weight. With the Bicycle you need to watch that you don’t hike up the hip as you bring the knee in and that you stay level when you lengthen the leg out. Go slowly. The Single Heel is a good exercise if your core is strong enough. You’ve got that isometric contraction of the extended leg which is good. The Midback Series is okay. I use a ball between my knees to activate the adductors and help connect to the pelvic floor.
You really have to watch the the Back Rowing with flexion – the Plow, Open Elbows\xA0and the Bicep Curls seated upright are okay. Stay neutral and don’t let your thorax spine pop forward because your lower back is going with it. Obliques and Bicep Curls with flexion isn’t any good. The\xA0Front Rowing Triceps is not okay because you have to tilt forward from the base of your spine and keep a neutral back.
The Stomach Massage is out and careful on the Elephant with Round Back and Knee Stretches with Round Back. I would do NOT them without a doctor’s permission. Bring a picture of the exercise. The Straight Backs are okay as long as you don’t overdo the hip extension. You have got to get stability while you are building your core. There can’t be any slips or imbalances. The Hip Lift is okay for me because you aren’t articulating up. The Hip Roll is another story. Some flexion is okay but you can’t even think about it until at least 8 weeks after your surgery with your doc’s permission. You are rolling up your spine from the base – is that a good thing. You’re going to squeeze those gluts like there’s no tomorrow if you do decide to do it.
The Long Box is okay if you only come to that long straight line. No articulating up. Too many people get into their lower backs and it’s not worth the risk. You are strengthening your upper back and arms. So the Plow, Airplane and Triceps do a good job of that.
The Short Box is a place to stay away from. The only exercise that could be considered initially is the Straight Back and you have to a strong enough core before you do that. Leave it till later. The Round Back is going to put too much pressure on the discs. And even though they don’t belong in this section – no Mermaids. We are combining flexion and rotation and that’s not a good thing. You want to strengthen your obliques safely? Lie on your back with a toning ball in each hand. (2 pounds is more than enough). Legs can go in table top with your spine imprinted. Extend one leg and the opposite arm and switch for up to 2 minutes. Keep your head on the mat. The Tree is too difficult for most people. Stretch your hamstrings lying on the floor with a strap around your foot. I’ve seen way too many healthy people go into lower back flexion when they are trying to do the Tree because their hamstrings are too tight. And people that have a problem with L5/S1 all have one thing in common. Yup. Tight hamstrings.
The Front Thigh Stretch with a foot on the ground is better than with the foot on the footbar. It’s too easy for the hips to twist. And you should not go into extension when you come forward. That means you aren’t going to look up. Look down. We’re stretching the hip flexors. If you keep the shape and come all the way into the footbar, you are going into lumbar extension. Not now.
The last two exercise called the Side Splits are okay. Neutral spine. Do not let your tailbone move behind you. Use light weight and then you are going to find the Abbuction hard because of the surgery. 1 spring is more than enough. The Adduction could also be difficult. Focus on bringing the legs together with the exhale on 1/2 spring. Keep your hands on your hips to make sure they don’t move.
That’s enough for now. I’ll cover Matwork in another posting. Yoga in another and I’ll also cover what exercises you can add from the intermediate levels.
The folks at American Road magazine have just published their “Rhythm and Cruise” issue, in which they’ve listed the “Best American Road Songs” of the past century.
Here are the Rules of the Road for the song listings:
1) The song must have been written about an American road, street, or destination. That is, songs like “Electric Avenue,” inspired by a London thoroughfare, do not qualify. Neither do songs that have been “retrofitted” like “I’ve Been Everywhere.” (That song was originally written about places in Australia. Only later was an American version recorded that replaced the Australian cities and towns with those in the United States.)
2) Writer(s) and/or performer(s) themselves need not be American as long as the subject of the song is American. Songs like the Kinks’ “Celluloid Heroes” — about a walk down Hollywood Boulevard, California — and Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi” — inspired by a parking lot in Hawaii — can be considered.
3) Thought was given to a song’s popularity and musical innovation, but also to its overall influence on history and/or popular culture. For example, in the category called “Best Song About Road Racing,” the contenders were “Maybellene,” “Hot Rod Lincoln,” and “Deadman’s Curve.” All three songs are fun and famous road race tunes. But “Maybellene,” the award winner, is roundly considered a watershed song credited with helping to bridge the transition from rhythm and blues to rock and roll.
I think the “retrofitting” rule is overly picky. Popular music, by its very nature, is retrofitted from earlier sources. To disqualify an obvious American highway song like Hank Snow’s “I’ve Been Everywhere,” just because it has obscure Australian roots, seems overly restrictive.
Here is the magazine’s top songs by category:
Best Traveling Anthem
- In My Car (The Beach Boys)
- King of the Road (Roger Miller)
- On the Road Again (Willie Nelson)*Best Song About a US Highway
- (Get Your Kicks on) Route 66 (Nat King Cole)*
- Highway 40 Blues (Ricky Skaggs)
- Highway 61 Revisited (Bob Dylan)Best Song About a Car
- Ol’ 55 (Tom Waits)
- One Piece at a Time (Johnny Cash)
- Rocket 88 (Ike Turner)*Best Song About Riding a Bus
- America (Simon and Garfunkel)*
- Promised Land (Chuck Berry)
- The Load-Out (Jackson Browne)Best Song About a City Street
- Celluloid Heroes (The Kinks)
- Lake Shore Drive (Alliotta, Haynes & Jeremiah)
- Mainstreet (Bob Seger)*
- South Street (Orlons)Best Cruising Song
- Cruisin’ (Smokey Robinson)
- Low Rider (War)
- Pink Cadillac (Bruce Springsteen)*Best Song About Trucking
- Convoy (C.W. McCall)
- Six Days on the Road (Dave Dudley)*
- Truckin’ (The Grateful Dead)Best Song About Parking
- Chevy Van (Sammy Johns)
- Little Red Corvette (Prince)
- Paradise by the Dashboard Light (Meat Loaf)*Best Song About Road Racing
- Deadman’s Curve (Jan and Dean)
- Hot Rod Lincoln (Charlie Ryan)
- Maybellene (Chuck Berry)*Best Song About Motorcycling
- Born to Be Wild (Steppenwolf)*
- Born to Run (Bruce Springsteen)
- The Motorcycle Song (Arlo Guthrie)Best Song About Hitchhiking
- Me and Bobby McGee (Janis Joplin)*
- Phantom 309 (Red Sovine)
- Sweet Hitch-Hiker (Creedence Clearwater Revival)Best Song About a Taxi
- Big Yellow Taxi (Joni Mitchell)*
- Cab (Train)
- Taxi (Harry Chapin)
Songs with asterisks are those that are winners in each category. And I’ll take Prince over Meat Loaf in the parking song category, thank you.
I’m sure American Road’s lists will start a few arguments. It already has here.
NewTeeVee is one of the best sites for getting a business perspective on new media business from YouTube and beyond. They report that Britney Spears is holding a mash up contest of YouTube videos from the greatest moments of Britney online.
MyKateModern TV of Beebo will be playing on Virgin American flights. Now people can watch this and BoingBoingTV.
Tay Zanday’s goes from Chocolate Rain to Chocolate pimp in his most recent viral video. The first was no low budget video. Dancing women, hip hop singers, chocolate luxury, and Tay the king thrive off of cherry Dr. Pepper in this video. The filming and spectacle reminds me of the Britney Spears Pepsi commercial “The Joy of Pepsi” they called one of their most popular commercials.
Myspace’s most popular musician, Tila Tequila gets her own show on MTV and it’s already going to be the most popular series. Myspace is still more popular than Facebook and Tila shows that off. Her days of Internet fame have translated to Television fame as she has successfully taken a big step up. Let’s just hope she has more success from here on out. Watch more video about it here.
Tech Crunch reports that Jakob Lodwick and AIC chief Barry Diller had a head to head and Jakob got fired from Vimeo. The couple, Jakob and Julia Allison, talk to each other about the breakup via their blogs. He posted a picture blog post response saying he would miss everyone. The picture is of him holding and smoking out of a bong. He took it down from his blog hours after posting it, but too late- everyone else had republished by that time.
Speaking of Tech Crunch, PerkettPR sends me this video of me talking at the end about what I think of Tech Crunch. This video was taken before my post from yesterday. See, I can prove my sentiments are genuine: I said all that before anything has been released. Re Michael Arrington: “Update: Well, she shut the site down.” this isn’t true. I’m talking with mogulus to make mogulus.com/popsnap set to private shows and chats so that they are not on the closed alpha list. That is why the content has temporarily been removed from the site.
iJustine embeds Ustream.tv player and chat on iJustine.tv that launched Thursday. She’s still on Justin.tv, but why the sudden transition to ustream?
banlieu-nhf.skyblog.com : Des mecs qui font des roues, des billets, des BM, des Mercedes, avez-vous devinez la cat\xE9gorie ?
Christopher Barrios is being laid to rest\xA0today at 2:00 p.m. While most of us followed his story awaiting the outcome, George Edenfield allegedly confessed to the crime within hours of the murder. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s crime laboratory has conducted an autopsy\xA0but the results have not\xA0been released.
The Brunswick News \xA0(free registration) has much more on the case including details of the indictment. According to copies of search warrants it obtained from local court records:
- George Edenfield told police March 8 ? just hours after Christopher disappeared ? that he killed the boy. He later said he choked Christopher.
- Peggy Edenfield told police March 12 that George Edenfield, her son, confessed to her that he had killed Christopher.
- Peggy Edenfield witnessed her son and David Edenfield, George’s father and Peggy Edenfield’s husband, choke Christopher until he was dead.
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News4Jax is also reporting several of the details the Edenfield’s are accused of prior to Christopher’s death among them how he allegedly was murdered:
The indictment contains grim details about the case that police and prosecutors had not previously revealed. It says Christopher died from asphyxiation March 8 — the day he was reported missing — after the suspects choked him while “ignoring his complaints that they were hurting him.”
Who knows what possesses someone to take anyone else’s life. Part of the answers may\xA0lie in this 2006 Child Abduction Murder Study\xA0 what is an unusual twist is the\xA0alleged involvement of\xA0the parents.\xA0For a more detailed account of the Edenfields involvement visit the blog “Eheavenlygads” here.
- The average killer of abducted children is 27 years old
- 85 percent are unmarried
- 50 percent are unemployed
- 51 percent live either alone or with their parents
- 61 percent have prior arrests for violent crimes
- 66 percent have a legitimate reason to be in the area where the abduction takes place
Source: Attorney General of Washington State, U.S. Department of Justice
Read more click here
Note: Several people have inquired about donating to the family. There are apparently two\xA0 three funds setup, one is for a recently established Foundation for harsher sexual predator laws.
Suntrust Bank. The account number is 1000048852254 or you can ask to donate to the Justice for Christopher Foundation.
Bank Of America (any branch) C/O Christopher Barrios Relief Fund or C/O Glynn Angels of Southeast Georgia fund according to this article from WTOC11\xA0in Savannah\xA0is a fund to assist with moving expenses.
Unless you are giving just to give, prior to donating to any Charity or Foundation you can click on the tab above “Missing Child Resources”. There you can click on links to verify whether they are tax exempt, what percentage of donations are used for the intended purpose and compare them with other similar Charities or Foundations.
A convicted child molester and his parents pleaded not guilty Friday to charges they kidnapped, sexually assaulted and murdered a 6-year-old boy whose body was found last month wrapped in a trash bag and dumped by a roadside.
Are sex offender laws tough enough? What if the victim were only 3-years-older then Christopher and she wasn’t murdered but gave birth.
Update: May 2007 CBS video interview with Chrisopher’s father.
Update: June 2008\xA0 Man admits lying to police in Ga. boy’s death
Dale was ordered to spend up to three months in jail in addition to the 15 months he’s served since the boy was killed. He will spend most of the next 3 1/2 years on probation at a state home for the mentally disabled.
Update: Oct 31, 2007 Florida Times Union
A picture of Christopher Barrios Jr., slain in 2007, was used in a cable show.
A photograph of the slain kindergarten student was used in an episode of General Hospital: Night Shift broadcast nationwide Oct. 14 on the SOAPnet cable television network. In the episode, the photo depicted the abandoned young son of a character portrayed by actor Billy Dee Williams.
You might wonder why it took two weeks for the media to report the story.
Update 02-05-09: First trial date set for Barrios murder case
SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) – A trial date has been set for the first of three suspects charged with abducting, sexual assaulting and murdering a 6-year-old Brunswick boy.
Jury selection for David Edenfield will begin on April 20 and is expected to take two weeks. The trial is scheduled to start on May 4.
Update 03-12-09: Money Crunch Delays Edenfield Murder Trial
BRUNSWICK, Ga. — The first trial resulting from the death of 6-year-old abducted, raped and killed in 2007 has been postponed until the next fiscal year because of a shortage of state funds to pay the expenses of the defense.
David Edenfield, his wife and his son are charged with first-degree murder in the death of Christopher Barrios Jr. Jury selection was scheduled for April 20, with the trial expected to begin two weeks later.
The Glynn County Superior Court Clerk’s office told Channel 4 on Thursday that the first trial — that of David Edenfield — was pushed back to September to ensure that defense would have adequate state funding to pay for experts and investigators in the case.
This post lists my Top 5 movies by my third favorite actor, Will Ferrell.
1. Blades of Glory
2. Elf
3. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy
4. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
5. A Night at the Roxbury
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I’ll keep this one good and simple. ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE. He is a looker. I’m not sure about the name Coco for a boy but that can always be changed 
He’s about 6 months old, great with everyone and other dogs, healthy and happy, EXCEPT, he needs a home and his own family. Coco is one of the cutest pups I’ve laid eyes on. Take a look at the attachment. Please forward and let’s try to help Coco find a happy ending.. \xA0Please contact Jillian @ judelson1@bellsouth.net \xA0Thanks -Linda
Hi everyone, \xA0\xA0\xA0I have a sweet, young lab mix that has been stuck at Dearborn since mid-summer. Please send this message on to anyone you think may be interested in him or might be able to help. He’s such a great dog, I have no idea why I’ve had no interest in him. Thanks everyone for your help! ~Jillian
– Sweet, young yellow Labrador mix needs a loving home! Coco was abandoned by his owner at Dearborn Animal Hospital after he received lifesaving surgery to remove a part of his intestine that had died. Happy and healthy, Coco was suddenly without a home. We have neutered him, brought him up to date on shots, and put him on heartworm preventative. He is very sweet, smart, and would make a wonderful family pet. He gets along well with other dogs and enjoys treats, long walks (on or off the beach) and cuddles. Coco is around 6 months old. Please help this great dog get a great home! Please contact Jillian at judelson1@bellsouth.net for more information on Coco. There is a $150 adoption fee to help cover his vetting costs and an application is required. Applications are available online at dearbornanimalhospital.petfinder.com.
The decision is downright difficult. It is a difficult task to choose a path (if you start to understand what sort of business or if) you are working from home or talk about work in an office. How do you know what the most sense?
Everyone wants to have money. The key is to figure out a way to earn money and do something you enjoy at the same time. It does not seem like work if you really enjoy. The problem is: How can I find outAvenue to take in order to produce income for my family and still fit into my values and goals?
My decision making only after months. Yours does not need more than a few minutes thanks to some awesome free software, but I'm just ahead of me. I declare the decision-making software in a bit. I've nothing to me in deciding what to do to help, so I laboriously weighed about lists to decide the pros and cons and trying for weeks and weeks, fightingwhat to do.
In the end I decided to start my own website. It is a rewarding experience and a money-maker too, but it took me almost always get to the point where a decision. Fortunately, you have to use another business tool to help you make your decisions much faster. It's called choose and it was only released in early May. I'll tell you after I learn more about the shares of more decision-making nightmare I experienced.
Back to my new business: When Idecided what I wanted to do, then I realized what subjects focused their attention put on my site. Gardening has always been a passion of mine, and I am a master gardener, so it seemed like a perfect topic. At the same time, but I love to help others and have worked in human resource crisis. I wondered how I could incorporate that into a business model.
If I had access to vote for her, when I started this whole process, my decision would have been so much faster and away. facilitate While the selection of IT concept is simple, the software is really powerful.
It does not matter if you want something as simple as wearing what for the day, or if you buy something as complex as the new car, this software can handle it be decided to be questioned. Not only that, but it's as simple as answering a few questions.
"Choose" is a one-of-a-kind program. There's nothing like it available. More than that, it's free. Since it was only recentlylaunched, the people that was created that people the possibility to use it for no cost. I really do not know whether it will ever be sold or whether it will always be free. I just found out about it myself a week ago.
They have a great opportunity to use this software to help you make your own decisions. It is unlike anything you've ever seen or used before. Try it and see whether or not it make your life easier. Tip: Choose and make your decisionProcess more productive and less time consuming.
Also, if you are trying to decide what business in going to or whether you are trying to make sense in your daily routine, you can choose to contribute. Try it out.
Related : baby-outerwear coffee-people AIG Company Education Park
