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Melanie Brown aka Mel B has reigned supreme as the spiciest of her bandmates since bursting onto the entertainment scene as Scary Spice in 1996 with the group’s #1 hit Wannabe. With her wild hair, piercings and a raucous personality to match, she instantly began making headlines, and she never stopped. Her tempestuous marriages and some romantic near misses, including her split from Eddie Murphy heard ‘round the world, have at times overshadowed her on-camera talent on hit shows like UK’s X Factor and America’s Got Talent. By Allison Kugel For years, rumors swirled about drug use and a party girl image cultivated during her marriage to ex-husband Stephen Belafonte. What few knew was the house of horrors that existed behind closed doors that Melanie’s oldest daughter, nineteen-year-old Phoenix, and Melanie’s mother, Andrea, both attest to in great and excruciating detail in Melanie’s recently released memoir, Brutally Honest. Brutally honest it is, as the outspoken girl from Leeds, England, with the heavy Yorkshire accent (her most charming quality) recalls everything from growing up of mixed-race heritage during a time when it was anything but the norm, to Spice Girls fame, drugs, bisexuality, and a ten year marriage that she claims was so abusive that it drove her to attempt suicide in 2014. Four years after that horrific episode which left her with organ damage and a lot of bruised pride, Melanie slowly rebuilt her strength, finally filing for divorce from Belafonte in 2017. The two remain embroiled in a bitter legal battle, but Melanie takes solace in spreading her message about domestic abuse and domestic violence. Along with promoting her book, she is advocating for others who have experienced various forms of intimate or domestic partner abuse as a part of her daily work with UK’s Women’s Aid, along with motherhood and preparing to hit the road in 2019 with the Spice Girls. After getting to know Melanie, I feel compelled to add that despite some reports associated with her recent fall and subsequent rib and hand injuries, she insists that she is now substance-free, and I believe her. Allison Kugel: How are your spirits these days? Mel B: Obviously, I’m still on my healing path and it’s going to be an ongoing thing. Just taking care of myself, meditating, doing my reiki and eating well. I actually couldn’t be happier right now. I know there are more happier times to come, but right now I’m in a really good place and it’s taken me a long time to even get to this place, so I’m thankful. Allison Kugel: Let’s go back a bit so people can get the big picture. What did the Spice Girls fame and hysteria of the 1990s feel like at the nucleus of it, from the inside looking out? Mel B: It was tiring, but we really didn’t care because it was five girls together who all had each other, living our dream life. We were living in England, struggling financially, not having much to eat, convincing people to let us borrow their recording studios so that we could sit down and write and [record] our music. There was a phase of a couple of years where it was really, really tough. When we got to release our first single, Wannabe, and we signed with a record company and got Simon Fuller involved to manage us, it was really good, happy times that all five of us had dreamt of, and we were actually living that life. We were traveling the world, singing, performing, dancing, writing music and making a movie. It was a really beautiful few years. Of course, we were tired, because we didn’t allow ourselves any time off. But we were in control of what we did and when we did it, and we knew that we had to soar through life like a big tornado and strike while the iron was hot. Allison Kugel: What do you feel you came into this life as Melanie Brown to learn? Mel B: Well, I think the number one thing is that I come from a white mother and a black father. Back in the 1970s when they got together and had me, that was seen as something that wasn’t really done. They had a lot of things that they had to overcome in bringing me into the world and raising me in an area of England, four hours outside of London, where there weren’t any other mixed-race girls. That was one thing I had to find, was my own identity. Apart from the likes of Neneh Cherry and maybe Tracy Chapman, there really wasn’t anybody that I could look up to where I felt like I belonged, or anyone who I felt like I even looked like. For me, it was all about creating a path where hopefully other mixed-race girls, and other mixed-race kids could actually follow. For example, I never had my hair braided. I always wore my hair out. I’m very opinionated, but for the right reasons; not just to cause a ruckus. I do believe that I am here, somewhat, to make it okay to be in the skin that you’re in and the color that you are. Allison Kugel: My next question was going to be, what are you here to teach? But I think you answered it. Mel B: Yes, that is definitely a part of it, but I am here to learn, of course. One thing that is an ongoing thread in my life since I’ve been very young, like 2 or 3 years old, is being very honest. Kids are very honest, and they’re not sidetracked by their surroundings. They say exactly what they feel. That’s one of my things that I stick by and swear by, which is being completely transparent and honest. It’s not to offend or intimidate anybody. It comes from a good place and I have good intentions, but it is an ongoing thread in my life. Allison Kugel: I always say that none of us are so fallible that we have nothing to teach, and even the wisest among us are also here to learn. We are all students, and we are all teachers. Mel B: Sure. We can’t know everything, and knowledge is power. I wasn’t very educated when it comes to schooling or on paper. I’ve experienced more education through life’s experiences, through traveling, and through getting myself into certain situations, whether it be through work and dealing with contracts or from talking to the man down the street who’s waiting for his bus. Allison Kugel: Obviously, the situation with your most recent ex, Stephen Belafonte is extremely contentious. But in general, how are you navigating co-parenting with three different fathers in the picture? Mel B: My oldest is nineteen, so I had to do every other weekend and certain weekdays for eighteen years, and there’s a point where your fourteen or fifteen year old doesn’t want to go to her father and that’s a difficult task. I’ve never said a bad word about any of their fathers to my daughters. Angel’s eleven years old and she sees her dad (Eddie Murphy) on a regular basis. She’s actually going to his house next week to do the family Christmas card, which is really lovely. My seven-year-old, Madison, that’s all happening through the court, so that is kind of out of my hands. One thing I do with all my three girls, is I make sure they know that they’re loved, and that they came from a place of a loving relationship. Even though they didn’t quite work out, and me and their dads didn’t stay together, they all know that they came from a lot of love. One thing that is mandatory is that I always make it a very exciting thing when I send them off to their fathers. Angel is different, because me and her dad don’t have any problems with each other. With Madison (Brown’s seven-year-old daughter with ex-husband, Stephen Belafonte), they take everything in, so I try to make it exciting for her, even though I obviously have huge issues with her father. Click below to launch slideshow > Allison Kugel: Are you frightened for Madison when you send her off to see Stephen? Based on the abuse you’ve described in your book, aren’t you frightened for her to be around her father? Mel B: I don’t think it’s fair for me to say that. All I can say is that I fought through the courts for her to have mandatory therapy every Saturday with a specialized therapist who is very aware of the situation. If there was anything for the therapist to be concerned about she would be able to flag it, based on the kind of intense therapy that she is doing with Madison. I have to trust and believe that if there was anything that I should be majorly concerned about, I’ve got a professional right there that can spot it before I do. Allison Kugel: I would imagine it took courage to keep a lot of these passages in the book. What was the hardest part, not just to write, but to keep in the final draft of the book? Mel B: Everything that is out there now is pretty salacious, and I know it seems so random about the sex and the drugs. The physical and emotional abuse had already kind of been out there, whether it be just a journalist presuming or whether it be my ex getting a story out there somehow. I just wanted to make sure that I clarified and made my puzzle understandable. When you read my book, you do understand that certain things were due to coping mechanisms, which are very common with somebody that’s in an abusive relationship. The book addresses things like why it took me so long to leave. It’s because you’re trapped, and you don’t have friends and family because you’ve been isolated due to how your abuser does things. That’s why in the back of my book, I put the 15 warning signs of what an abusive relationship looks like. Sometimes we don’t know until it is too late, and you’re heavily in it. In my book, I address an array of points and situations that hopefully make the reader understand everything that I’ve been through. There are certain things I did leave out due to legal reasons. I didn’t want it to be a legal war. I wanted my book to be more of an education and insight into what it looks like to be in an abusive relationship. Allison Kugel: You paint a picture of a wide range of abusive behaviors that you experienced. Mel B: Right, because abuse isn’t just physical. It can be verbal, it can be emotional. It’s a broad spectrum. And usually an abuser doesn’t just do one type of abuse. They get you on every single level, eventually. Allison Kugel: I hear everything you’re saying, but here is the piece I don’t quite understand. From reading your book, I got the impression that even after everything that went on, your parents remained steadfast in their support of you as their child. I got the impression that at any time you could have flown home for refuge and you would have been met with open arms. Mel B: No way. How could I do that? How could I book a flight when he had my credit cards and my phone? I’m not allowed to leave the house, I don’t have a front door key. I’m working 24 hours. I didn’t even have a holiday. And your every move is being monitored by your abuser. Every phone call, every text message. Allison Kugel: How about from work? Even a phone call from work? Mel B: I wasn’t allowed to take my phone to work. And like I said, this doesn’t just happen overnight. They chip away at you, so you wind up going, “Oh, he took my phone because he wanted to get it fixed for me, or he’s going to put a new app on there.” It’s all done in a very controlling, obvious, yet un-obvious way. That’s the part that you don’t want to believe is happening. You still want to believe that they love you. It’s like, “Oh, I’ll go see the accountant because you’re working today.” You think, “Oh, that’s really nice,” when they’re actually going behind your back taking your credit cards and changing the name on the accounts to their name. When you’re in an abusive relationship, everyone is isolated from you, and they’re scared to call you. They’re scared to get in contact with you, because they too have been verbally abused by your abuser. You end up walking around going, “Why hasn’t my mom called?” Or “Why is my friend being really strange with me?” You don’t really know why, but now looking back, I know exactly why. Allison Kugel: I get what you’re saying, but I know that I could literally go to my mother at any time. I could go to a police station and call her if I had to. Mel B: How could I when I’m only allowed to be driven by him, or a driver that is one of his friends? And all I did was work-come home; work-come home. Allison Kugel: It’s good to gain this deeper understanding from you, because people will think, she’s not your average Jane. She has all the resources in the world. Mel B: It’s like having everything and nothing. And on the flip side, you’re not ready to admit anything to anyone else. If I were to call my mom up and say, “Mom, I’m being abused,” she’ll go, “What?!” You don’t want to admit to anybody and have to explain, because there is an element of no one’s going to believe you, which is what the abuser will put into your head, “No one’s going to believe you. You’re just fat and ugly. If you leave, I’m going to expose you on this level and that level. And even if you said anything to anybody, no one’s going to believe you because you’re full of shit,” kind of thing. Allison Kugel: Your self-esteem is in the gutter and you stop believing in yourself. It becomes a mental prison, is what you’re saying. Mel B: When I was at work, I did believe in myself, because he couldn’t get to me at work. Nobody wanted to see him. They wanted to see me on camera. I’m very experienced and I’m very confident in what I say, so that was actually my savior, going to work. It was coming home that I dreaded, because I didn’t know what I was going to be experiencing that night. Allison Kugel: You spent a decade walking on eggshells. Mel B: Yeah, basically. Having spoken to a lot of these women who are in [shelters], and that are essentially in hiding from their abuser, they have exactly the same story that I have. They’re controlled, they’re captured, they’re abused on many different levels, they’re embarrassed and ashamed, and they don’t want anyone to know. Allison Kugel: Your oldest daughter, Phoenix, who is nineteen, is obviously old enough to understand the full scope of the situation. I am assuming she read your book cover to cover… Mel B: Oh yeah. She is the one who pushed me to write it, along with my friend who wrote it with me, Louise Gannon, because this story is bigger than just me. I’m just a voice that happens to be yelling about it right now. It happens to many hundreds of thousands of women, and men. It doesn’t matter if you have no money, or if you live in a mansion with servants. It can happen to anyone. When you’re in this situation, you think it’s only happening to you. It’s only when you get out and get to safety that you realize how bad this relationship was, how wrong it was. These abusers, they’re very smart and you don’t find them, they find you. They find women like me, who were in a vulnerable situation, and they latch onto you like Prince Charming, making you believe they are going to give you everything you need. Allison Kugel: My takeaway from your book was, do not go into a new relationship when you are feeling depleted, because you’re likely not going to make empowering choices. Mel B: But sometimes you may think that you’re over your ex, or you’re over the drama of having a baby with somebody and then breaking up; you think that you do feel fine. Sometimes it’s the kind of thing where you say, “I’m just going to smile, because the more I smile, the more I feel good.” And you’re thinking that you do feel good. There is no set time as to when you definitely feel at your most confident, or your vulnerability is gone. We’re women. We’re always going to have that little bit of self-doubt or that moment where before our period we feel a bit bloated and a bit frumpy. Women are very emotional, so there’s no set rule as to whether an abuser can come into your life. They don’t show up and go, “I’m an abuser. I’m going to do this and that to you.” No. They gaslight you. They make you feel like a princess one day, and then they make you feel like you’re a fat, ugly, unworthy cow the next day. And like I said, they find you, you don’t find them. Allison Kugel: As a parent, knowing how difficult certain conversations can be between parent and child, I have to ask, how do you have a conversation with your teenage daughter about some of the more explicit things in your book? In your book, you’re talking about cocaine use, about threesomes and Phoenix read all of this. What does that conversation even look like? Mel B: It’s not like I said, “Let’s sit down and talk about cocaine.” Allison Kugel: But Melanie, how could that stuff not come up? Mel B: I’m very, very open. I sit down with her and have a conversation with her in a way that’s relatable and understandable. I’ll let her know that if she wants to be sexually active or if she is sexually active, number one is to be safe. And if you want to experiment with a girl, or if you want to experiment with, let’s say, a threesome, make sure it’s consensual and make sure you actually feel safe. It is a conversation that you need to have. I’ll always say to her, “Why do you want to do this?” and “If you do that, how do you think it’s going to make you feel?” Because you never want to encourage your kids to go out there and try everything and anything; there’s always a reason. Some kids, they don’t need to try that kind of stuff. They don’t need to try anything sexually, apart from just to be with one person. They may not need to try lots of drugs, even though their friends [are doing it] or they’re around it. Luckily, I’ve got a good, solid nineteen-year-old that has seen a lot and been around a lot. She knows, morally, what she feels comfortable with, and her morals are solid. She isn’t one of those teenagers running around, up to no good. Allison Kugel: She didn’t express any disappointment, that you, her role model, fell from grace in terms of the drug use? Mel B: No, if anything I’m a hero that got out alive and I’m eloquent enough to be able to speak about my story without too much pain in my voice, even though there is a lot of pain. She’s very proud of me. She’s encouraging me to talk more about it. That is why she, along with my mother, wrote a passage in the book. Allison Kugel: Are you clean and sober today? Mel B: Yeah. I haven’t taken a drug since the day I left him (ex-husband, Stephen Belafonte). What you’ll find in these abusive relationships is that the abuser is the one that provides you with all your alcohol and all your drugs. I’ve never had an addictive personality. I’m addicted to loving life, but that’s about it. Allison Kugel: In a recent interview your daughter Phoenix gave about your marriage to Stephen, she describes walking halfway up the stairs one night and witnessing a rape in progress, and then running back downstairs to her room. Mel B: I’ve always had houses where my bedroom is at the top of the house away from the family rooms, the kids’ rooms, everything. I guess one time she snuck up[stairs] because she heard me screaming or crying. She jutted the door open a little bit and she witnessed that, which I didn’t even know she’d witnessed until after I’d left him two years ago and started writing the book. She was adamant about that story going in the book. That story didn’t go in the book, but it actually went into an interview that she did, and she was adamant to talk about it. I did say to her at the time, “Are you sure about that?” She said, “Well, yeah mom, it’s important, because when you’re in an abusive relationship mom it doesn’t just effect you. It effects your kids, your friends and your family.” She said, “I want to talk about it.” Allison Kugel: Do you pray? And who or what do you pray to? Mel B: I meditate. I became a reiki master at nineteen. I’m all about affirmations and meditation, and just being mindful and thoughtful. I do go to church. I go to the Agape Church which is very spiritual. I go there two or three times a month with my kids, and it’s very uplifting. Allison Kugel: Why make a public declaration that Eddie Murphy is the love of your life? Mel B: It wasn’t really a public declaration. Don’t forget that when I started writing the book with my friend, there was no contract between me and my friend, there was no book publishing deal; there was nothing. I was writing it for self-healing; just for me kind of a thing. The more we researched, the more we learned that it didn’t just happen to me. It happened to many, many women, and we realized we needed to get this story out. We decided to delve deeply into all of the issues that people don’t talk about. I’m very much a source of information when it comes to coercive behavior and abuse, because I’ve lived it for ten years. Allison Kugel: But what was the connection to speaking about how you still feel about Eddie? Mel B: Oh yeah, back to that (laughs)! Allison Kugel: (Laughs) Minor detail. Mel B: One of the parts of the book that my friend couldn’t quite piece together was… why was I at my most vulnerable when my abuser came into my life. I’d just had Angel. She was two months old and then the monster came into my life. My friend and co-writer, Louise, was trying to figure out why I was feeling so vulnerable. Then it became, “Oh, you felt vulnerable because of the Eddie situation, so let’s talk about that.” I wanted to be able to talk about it and express it. I didn’t even fully understand it when we started talking about it; what went wrong and how it all kind of fell apart. It was important for me to put it all down on paper and do it from my recollection, to remind myself that I do know what a loving, respectful relationship is, because I had that and much more with Eddie. It was so important for me to put pen to paper with that, because I also had never spoken about it. I wanted people to know, and I wanted my daughter to know that it wasn’t just a wham, bam, thank you ma’am, and let’s move on to the next. It was a very loving courtship. It didn’t end well, but it was a major love story that was one of the biggest love stories of my life. Allison Kugel: And your mom is, of course, back in your life… Mel B: Yes, and she’s actually just about to drop the kids off at school now. Allison Kugel: You guys are totally back on track again with your relationship? Mel B: Yes. When my dad died, even though those circumstances were horrendous, and it was heartbreaking… my dad was at the point of no return. He was going to die and that was that. His death brought my whole entire family and my friends back together again. It was quite a serendipitous time, because it brought us all back together in a way that was sad, but really happy in the fact that we could all be in the same room together. For my mom, it’s been very healing. She, like my nineteen -year-old, wanted to write her own chapter in my book. And they both did the audio for my book. My mom and my daughter both really wanted to be a part of this. Allison Kugel: You’re about to run off to a Spice Girls meeting later. Can you share? Mel B: It’s about the tour. We put six shows up for grabs and we ended up doing thirteen because they sold out. We’re going to be talking about staging, choreography and our dancers. It will be all of us on tour, but without Victoria. She sends all of us her blessing, but she has always been adamant that performing is not really her thing. She’s busy with her family and her fashion empire. I still have hope that at some point she joins us, but as of right now she’s not. Allison Kugel: The Scary Spice of twenty years ago was brash and bold, and very tell it like it is. You were the tough girl. After everything you’ve been through so publicly with heartbreak and abuse and people seeing that you are quite vulnerable, now who will Scary Spice be as you head out on the road in 2019? Mel B: I’m still the same. A little more educated and more aware, and I would say more honest which could be misinterpreted as being even more brash and even more loud (laughs). Allison Kugel: What qualities will you now look for at some point when you want to find love again? Mel B: I don’t even want to think about that! It’s not on my radar. I’m very happy being single. I’m raising three kids, I’m on my own healing journey and I’m busy with work. I’m the only one paying my bills, and I’m paying the monster’s bills also every month and the lawyer’s bills. I’m focusing on the time I have off from work, just being with my kids. I’ve just put up the Christmas tree two days ago and I’m putting decorations all over the house, and it’s nice. Allison Kugel: What is the rainbow or silver lining in the cloud for you? Mel B: It would have to be my kids. They’re the ones that I wake up to every morning and I go to sleep with every night. It’s reassuring for me that they’re happy, they’re on track academically, they’re on track with me as far as our mother/daughter relationships goes. I’m so very, very proud of them. Also, what has been eye opening and reassuring for me is the fact that Women’s Aid (https://www.womensaid.org.uk/) had made me a Patron of their federation. They deal with these kinds of abusive relationships. They find you help, they find you refuge, they help you get educated, they help you if you need help through the legal system. They reassure you that you are not alone, that this happens a lot, and they make you feel safe. If you or someone you care about is currently in an abusive relationship, and in need of assistance, please contact https://www.womensaid.org.uk/ in the UK or The National Domestic Violence Hotline at https://www.thehotline.org/ in the U.S. for help and resources. Photo Credits: Courtesy of Melanie Brown/Hardie Grant Publishing Brutally Honest by Melanie Brown with Louise Gannon is available in bookstores and on Amazon. Download the audible version of Melanie’s book exclusively through Audible.com. Allison Kugel is a syndicated entertainment columnist, and author of the book, Journaling Fame: A memoir of a life unhinged and on the record available on Amazon. Follow her on Instagram @theallisonkugel and at AllisonKugel.com.

For the spring-summer 2020 ready-to-wear collection, the starring role once goes to nature once again, in light of contemporary challenges. This celebration of diversity flourishes both in the show’s set as well as in the lush creativity of the silhouettes. Maria Grazia Chiuri paid poetic homage to this passion for her latest Haute Couture collection, through to the show’s set, creating a lush rose garden, like a secret garden and a “refuge of the marvelous”, inside the iconic salons of 30 Avenue Montaigne, the House’s vibrant and historic heart. Click below to view larger image > By Miami Living, Images by Dior

Whenever Florida's COVID-19 quarantine ends, Miami Living brings you some great products for this Spring and Summer. Wilson Clash Racket Made by: Wilson Sporting Goods Price: $249 Where to Buy: www.Wilson.com Two new technologies comprise Clash rackets. The first is the brand’s patent-pending FreeFlex™ technology, which is a carbon mapping system that unifies carbon at unconventional angles throughout the rackets’ frame for a higher degree of flexibility both vertically and horizontally. This system allows the rackets to bend with any swing style to better pocket a tennis ball and control the release of the ball as a player follows through with their swing. StableSmart™, a new frame geometry that provides stability and power to these flexible frames, complements FreeFlex technology. The combined effect of FreeFlex and StableSmart gives a player the opportunity to control the directional accuracy and depth of a shot, giving them more confidence throughout every swing. The Clash collection carries forward the minimalistic product design DNA that Wilson previously introduced, with an evolved, bold, three-part colorway. The matte black finish of each frame features gray accents at the three and nine o’clock positions. The twelve o’clock position of the racket, the fastest point of the racket, carries a pop of modern infrared. This element of vibrant color creates a streak of infrared as the rackets move through the air, giving the design a sense of motion. The new Wilson Clash collection includes the Clash 100, Clash 100 Tour, Clash 98, Clash 100L and Clash 108. D7 Irons Made by: Wilson Sporting Goods Price: $699.00 (Graphite); $599.00 (Steel) Where to Buy: www.Wilson.com With the “D” in D7 standing for distance, the new line of irons integrates Wilson’s RE-AKT technology to provide golfers power where it is needed most. Featuring three rows of Power Holes in the long irons (4-7) and Wilson’s thinnest club face ever, the D7 irons ensure golfers get maximum distance due to the greater responsiveness off the club face. Long irons feature three rows of Power Holes and a thinner, more responsive face for maximum distance. Fewer Power Holes combine with optimal weighting and extreme feel in the shorter irons for the most precise distance control. Progressive Power Holes: Long irons have three rows of Power Holes for maximum distance. Shorter irons have fewer Power Holes with optimized weighting for maximum feel and precision. Ultra-Thin Face: Hot, responsive face for longer shots and better feel. Performance Iron Aesthetic: With straighter lines, a cleaner top line and improved weighting, D7 combines the look of a player's iron with the benefits of Super Game Improvement Technology. Bushnell Pro XE Made By: Bushnell Golf, the industry leader in high-performance sports optics Price: $549.99 Where to Buy: www.bushnellgolf.com The Pro XE will set the industry standard with the development of a new “Slope” Algorithm. The improved “Slope” takes into account the most updated ball flight measures giving a much sharper angle of descent over the previous algorithm. Bushnell provides the only compensated “Play As” distance that takes actual ball flight into account, whereas competitors use simple geometry, which is easy to calculate, but not nearly as accurate. Bushnell prides itself on providing trustworthy and accurate distances to all golfers. TRX HOME2 SYSTEM Made By: TRX Training, all in one suspension training system Price: $199.95 Where to Buy: Exclusive at www.TRXTraining.com This Suspension Trainer takes functional training to the next level with adjustable foot cradles, a new sleek design and one-year subscription to the dynamic TRX app, which features dynamic in-ear audio coaching and cueing for the ultimate gym in a box. The state-of-the-art dynamic TRX app works with popular wearables and features 80+ workouts across a wide breadth of modalities, including Suspension Training, Cycling, Running, Yoga and High Intensity Interval Training(HIIT). The TRX App acts as a fitness tracker and uses biometric data, audio coaching and cueing to actually listen, adapt and interact with the individual user, providing a truly personalized fitness experience.

As South Florida moves towards its “new normal” during the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of Miami Beach is beginning its phased approach with the reopening of many parks and recreational amenities. The revised Declaration of Emergency Measures, effective Wednesday, April 29, 2020, specifies the facilities that will be reopened subject to the restrictions in Miami-Dade County Emergency Order 21-20 and any other applicable State, County or City Emergency Order. PARKS & GREEN SPACES Click here for a full listing of open parks and recreational facilities, including the Flamingo Park track, the batting cages at North Shore Park, neighborhood tennis courts and more. Hours of operation for any Parks and Recreation facilities permitted to remain open are as follows: Park Hours: 7 AM to 7 PM Boat Ramp Hours: 6 AM to 8 PM Golf Course Hours: 7 AM to 8 PM Tennis Center Hours: 7:30 AM to 7 PM Parking in municipal parking lots located at city parks will be restricted to Miami Beach residents who are registered with the city’s residential parking program ONLY.  The following Parks and Recreational facilities will remain CLOSED: Beach View Park | 5301 Collins Avenue Collins Canal Park | 2100 Washington Avenue Pride Park | 1800 Convention Center Drive Scott Rakow Youth Center | 2700 Sheridan Avenue 20 Street Pocket Park | 2001 North Bay Road Indian Beach Park | 4621 Collins Avenue LaGorce Park | 6421 Alton Road 82 Street Skate Park | 8200 Collins Avenue 35 Street/Pancoast Park | 13 35 Street Washington Dog Park | 225 Washington Avenue Washington Park Annex | 210 2 Street Additionally, the following facilities will also remain CLOSED or are subject to the following restrictions: All park restrooms will remain closed, except for restrooms at the golf courses and tennis centers, which shall be subject to the following restrictions: (1) an attendant shall be provided for each restroom; (2) restrooms shall be cleaned no less than once every two hours with CDC approved products; and (3) restroom use shall be limited to one person or one family at a time. All basketball and volleyball courts will remain closed South Pointe Park Pier and the fishing pier at Maurice Gibb Memorial Park will remain closed Indoor four-walled racquetball courts, football bleachers, baseball stadium, and soccer cage at Flamingo Park will remain closed The stadium and track at Flamingo Park will have a maximum occupancy not to exceed 30 people at any given time. While the city’s beaches will continue to remain CLOSED, the beachwalks and baywalks remain OPEN. Use of the city’s beachwalks and baywalks continue to be limited to pedestrians ONLY prior to 9 a.m. and after 5 p.m. each day. Bicycles, scooters, skateboarding, in-line skating, roller skating, motorized means of transportation, and any other mobility devices (except for wheelchairs and other motorized means of transportation used by disabled persons) are PROHIBITED on the city’s beachwalks and baywalks prior to 9 a.m. and after 5 p.m. each day. Facial coverings must be worn on the beachwalk and baywalk, except by children under the age of 2, persons who have trouble breathing due to a chronic pre-existing condition, or persons engaged in strenuous physical activity or exercise. Any violation of these emergency measures shall subject the individual, operator, business entity, or organization to arrest and criminal prosecution pursuant to Section 26-36 and Section 1-14 of the City Code. By The City of Miami Beach

Charles Darwin popularized the concept of survival of the fittest as a mechanism underlying the natural selection that drives the evolution of life. Organisms with genes better suited to the environment are selected for survival and pass them to the next generation. Thus, when a new infection that the world has never seen before erupts, the process of natural selection starts all over again. In the context of the coronavirus pandemic, who is the “fittest”? This is a challenging question. But as immunology researchers at the University of South Carolina, we can say one thing is clear: With no effective treatment options, survival against the coronavirus infection depends completely on the patient’s immune response. We have been working on how the immune response is a double-edged sword – on one hand helping the host to fight infections, while on the other hand causing significant damage in the form of autoimmune diseases. The two phases of the immune response The immune response is like a car. To reach a destination safely, you need both an accelerator (phase 1) and a brake (phase 2) that are functioning well. Failure in either can have significant consequences. An effective immune response against an infectious agent rests in the delicate balance of two phases of action. When an infectious agent attacks, the body begins phase 1, which promotes inflammation – a state in which a variety of immune cells gather at the site of infection to destroy the pathogen. This is followed by phase 2, during which immune cells called regulatory T cells suppress inflammation so that the infected tissues can completely heal. A deficiency in the first phase can allow uncontrolled growth of the infectious agent, such as a virus or bacteria. A defect in the second phase can trigger massive inflammation, tissue damage and death. The coronavirus infects cells by attaching to a receptor called the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), which is present in many tissues throughout the body, including the respiratory tract and cardiovascular system. This infection triggers a phase 1 immune response, in which the antibody-producing B-cells pump out neutralizing antibodies that can bind to the virus and prevent it from attaching to ACE2. This inhibits the virus from infecting more cells. During phase 1, the immune cells also produce cytokines, a group of proteins that recruit other immune cells as well as fight infection. Also joining the fight are killer T cells that destroy the virus-infected cells, preventing the virus from replicating. If the immune system is compromised and works poorly during phase 1, the virus can replicate rapidly. People with compromised immune systems include the elderly, organ transplant recipients, patients with autoimmune diseases, cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and individuals who are born with immunodeficiency diseases. Many of these individuals may not produce enough antibodies or killer T cells to counter the virus, which allows the virus to multiply unchecked and cause a severe infection. Molecular model of a coronavirus spike (S) protein (red) bound to an angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor (blue) on a human cell. Once inside the cell, the virus uses the cells’ machinery to make more copies of itself. Image by Juan Gaertner, Science Photo Library Lung injury resulting from inflammation Increased replication of SARS-CoV-2 triggers additional complications in the lungs and other organs. Normally, there is a wide range of microorganisms, both harmful and benign, that live in harmony in the lungs. However, as the coronavirus spreads, it is likely that the infection and the inflammation that ensues will disrupt this balance, allowing harmful bacteria present in the lungs to dominate. This leads to development of pneumonia, in which the lungs’ air sacs, called alveoli, get filled with fluid or pus, making it difficult to breathe. When the alveoli, the location where oxygen is absorbed and carbon dioxide is expelled, is filled with liquid there is less space to absorb oxygen. Image by ttsz, Getty Images This triggers additional inflammation in the lungs, leading to Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), which is seen in a third of COVID-19 patients. The immune system, unable to control viral infection and other emerging pathogens in the lungs, mounts an even stronger inflammatory response by releasing more cytokines, a condition known as “cytokine storm.” At this stage, it is also likely that the phase 2 immune response aimed at suppressing inflammation fails and can’t control the cytokine storm. Such cytokine storms can trigger friendly fire – destructive, corrosive chemicals meant to destroy infected cells that are released by the body’s immune cells which can lead to severe damage to the lungs and other organs. Also, because ACE2 is present throughout the body, the killer T cells from phase 1 can destroy virus-infected cells across multiple organs, causing more widespread destruction. Thus, patients that produce excessive cytokines and T cells can die from injury not only to the lungs but also to other organs such as the heart and kidneys. The immune system’s balancing act The above scenario raises several questions regarding prevention and treatment of COVID-19. Because the majority of people recover from coronavirus infection, it is likely that a vaccine that triggers neutralizing antibodies and T cells to block the virus from getting into the cells and replicate is likely to be successful. The key to an effective vaccine is that it doesn’t trigger excessive inflammation. Additionally, in patients who transition to a more severe form such as ARDS and cytokine storm, which is often lethal, there is an urgent need for novel anti-inflammatory drugs. These drugs can broadly suppress the cytokine storm without causing excessive suppression of immune response, thereby enabling the patients to clear the coronavirus without damage to the lung and other tissues. There may be only a narrow window of opportunity during which these immunosuppressive agents can be effectively used. Such agents should not be started at an early stage of infection when the patient needs the immune system to fight the infection, but it cannot be delayed too long after ARDS development, when the massive inflammation is uncontrollable. This window of anti-inflammatory treatment can be determined by monitoring the antibody and cytokine levels in patients. With COVID-19, then, the “fittest” are individuals who mount a normal phase 1 and phase 2 immune response. This means a strong immune response in phase 1 to clear the primary coronavirus infection and inhibit its spread in the lungs. Then this should be followed by an optimum phase 2 response to prevent excessive inflammation in the form of “cytokine storm.” Vaccines and anti-inflammatory treatments need to carefully manage this delicate balancing act to be successful. With this coronavirus, it isn’t easy to know who are the fittest individuals. It isn’t necessarily the youngest, strongest or most athletic individuals who are guaranteed to survive this coronavirus. The fittest are those with the “right” immune response who can clear the infection rapidly without mounting excessive inflammation, which can be deadly. Words by Prakash Nagarkatti Vice President for Research and Carolina Distinguished Professor, University of South Carolina and Mitzi Nagarkatti SmartState Endowed Chair of Center for Cancer Drug Discovery, Carolina Distinguished Professor and Chair, Dept. of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, University of South Carolina. Special thanks to The Conversation for this story. You can support the independent network which provides news by donating today

Introducing the special 488 Pista Spider Series, the 50th open-top model produced by Ferrari. It has a record power-to-weight ratio of 1.92 kg/hp. It combines the finest race-developed technological solutions with the joy of plain air driving to deliver an exhilarating experience behind the wheel. The model’s engine, dynamics, and aerodynamics are derived from two track cars: the 488 Challenge and the 488 GTE. The latter won the GT class of the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2017, thus giving Ferrari a total of five GT Manufacturers’ titles since the championship’s inception in 2012. Aerodynamic demands guided the work of the Ferrari Design Centre team. The 488 Pista Spider’s forms have been meticulously sculpted to ensure they are more performance-oriented than ever, with huge attention lavished on ensuring that while aerodynamic demands were met, the Maranello marque’s signature styling elements and aesthetic canons were respected. Click to view larger image > The Ferrari 488 Spider is powered by a 3.9-liter twin-turbo V8 with 661hp and 561 lb-ft of torque. Reach 60 mph in 3 seconds in any gear with the top speed of 203 mph. It comes with a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, Carbon ceramic brakes, rear parking sensors, leather sports seats. Customization is also available from a titanium exhaust system to multiple paint colors.  MSRP: From $280,900 Horsepower: 660 hp Curb weight: 3,362 lbs Dimensions: 180″ L x 77″ W x 48″ H Engine: 3.9 L V8 MPG: 15 city / 22 highway For more info, visit: www.ferrari.com/en-US By Miami Living Staff, Images courtesy of Ferrari

If you were to ask any director who's worked with the legendary Pam Grier they would likely tell you that having Pam on their set is a game changer. She knows what she wants and what she brings to the table. Just stand back and watch the force that is Pam. Throughout our conversation she made it clear that clinging to her perfectly proportioned black Barbie superhero past doesn't interest her. It's a lovely time capsule that will be well documented in biopic about her life based on her autobiography Foxy (Grand Central Publishing) that is currently in pre-production. These days Pam is focused on roles that represent mature, well rounded women living their authentic lives and not hiding behind a veneer of glam. Even stripped down to the studs, Pam Grier still exudes sensuality that leads men of all ages to her like the Pied Piper. In her first network sitcom role in Bless This Mess (ABC, 9:30/8:30c), Grier plays Constance, the local fix-it-all and know-it-all in small town Nebraska. She is the brilliant and funny foil to Dax Shepard and Lake Bell's transplanted Manhattanite characters, Mike and Rio. We witness Shepard and Bell's characters stumble and bumble through middle-American culture and country life through the eyes of Grier's amusement, as Ed Begley Jr.'s character, Rudy, tirelessly pursues her. Grier will also appear on the big screen alongside Diane Keaton and Rhea Perlman in Poms (out May 10th), a comedy about a group of women in a retirement community who reclaim their vigor and spice through starting a cheerleading squad. Allison Kugel: Let's talk about your new show, Bless This Mess. Is this your first time doing a network sitcom? Pam Grier: Let's see… yes, I do believe so. There was one with Michael J. Fox that was short lived, but I think this was the first one where it allows me to work with creatives like [the show's creator] Elizabeth Meriwether and [actress and co-creator] Lake Bell. I said to them, "Out here as country women, we take our Spanx off." I took my Spanx off and I did some chores before I came in to see them [for the role]. I was a little dusty and I smelled of barn and John Deere fuel. I smelled the part, so that helped (laughs). Allison Kugel: People don't know that about you. You're a country western girl. That's how you live when you're not working. Pam Grier: My upbringing had been military, rural and urban. It was the best of all worlds. I've learned from each aspect of my culture and I see the world through women who were offered the opportunity to be equals. My grandfather was the first feminist in my life. He was from Wyoming. He was my mom's dad, and his mom had a sugar beet farm. She was a single mom and they had a hotel for African- Americans, Native Americans and other people of color to stay in. He was accustomed to seeing independent women learn how to do things. He taught all his granddaughters how to be self-sufficient. Allison Kugel: What are some of the most notable things your grandfather taught you? Pam Grier: He taught all of us to hunt, fish, shoot, drive the tractor, bring the boat in, change tires and spark plugs… you name it. That way you could always survive, without waiting for someone to take care of you. Since I've been in film, since the seventies, this is something that's prepared me. When you're working in film, and then you're not working and you are home, how can you maximize taking care of your home and taking care of yourself, your family, your animals? I've had that and I bring that energy and information to my character, Constance, on this show. And my character wears a lot of hats. Allison Kugel: You're not known for comedy. Did they think you could be funny? Pam Grier: Yes, but Lake was talking about how she was afraid of cows. I said, "Cows won't hurt you, but if you come at a cow with a knife and a fork, you might have a problem (laughs). I would tell stories about things I would do if there's a mountain lion outside attacking my chicken coop and stuff like that. I would tell people not to go for long country walks in the night if there is no light. This is Jurassic Park for real. But what they really wanted to know about was the concept of inclusion, which is what this show is really about. My character is a sheriff, she owns the vehicle lumber yard, the hardware store; she's the theatre director, she sings, she knows everyone's business, she's the referee. Sometimes she has to pull people out of a ditch with her truck. Allison Kugel: How do you feel Bless This Mess handles inclusion, as far as steering clear of urban stereotypes of middle America? Pam Grier: I mentioned to Lake [Bell], when they didn't have a script and they had no idea what they might do or write. I said to her, "There is one thing I must implore you, and that is not to make fun of the heartland." People go to the heartland to find their hearts. I believe that the farmer is the hero or heroine of the day. They should be in every magazine, all the time. I'm a member of the Farmland Trust, and we try to keep people aware that farming should be organic, across the board. In Canada they know how to successfully do that. Here in the U.S., they have kept the subsidies and the information for the farmers away from them. Click to view larger image > Allison Kugel: Ed Begley Jr. plays your love interest. How's the chemistry between you too when you are working together? Pam Grier: He can sing, he can dance… he's got a bag of tricks! He and his wife Rachelle had me over to their home the first week, for dinner. Ed did a lot of the cooking, and he is exceptional. They are just two peas in a pod. The nicest people; they finish each other's sentences. He is so informative. You want to sit at his feet like he is Yoda. Ed is sustainable, he's a mad scientist, and he can teach you. We were talking about farming and growing and dirt and moisture and oxidization and nutrients in the soil to create a great bed for plants. We really enjoy that aspect of our relationship. Allison Kugel: Your career has done a 180. You're playing this quirky country role in Bless This Mess, and this month you are also in the film Poms with Diane Keaton and Rhea Perlman where you are poking fun at getting older. As someone who was an icon of sex appeal and glamour, how did that play a role, not just in your earlier career, but in your life? And how are you now processing going through the different stages of life? Pam Grier: I've always controlled my image for political, religious and spiritual purposes, and I've embraced aging. When I met Robert De Niro with his first wife, Diahnne Abbott, he was gaining weight in order to play Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull. We were in his kitchen talking and I said to him, "I would like to gain weight for my roles." Because as a woman, society responds differently to your weight and to your appearance, and your sex appeal. I guess in certain cultures if you are not a standard size 4 or 6 you're not considered attractive. There are psychological aspects towards that. The younger, slimmer and more youthful looking you are, the better for child bearing and maybe you're thought to be more sexual or whatever. I love the fact that people do respond differently when I am a size twelve than when I am a size four; completely different dynamic and really interesting to me. Allison Kugel: People perceive that the more attractive you are considered by society, the easier that opportunities and good things will come your way. Why would you want to forfeit that? Pam Grier: When I did the play Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune and I gained weight to play that role, I wanted to do that role and the producer said you should see Kathy Bates play this role. When I went to see her and I saw that she had this beautiful weight on her, which is very normal in certain cultures, while in other cultures not as acceptable, I just thought she was so stunningly beautiful. It brought a certain element and richness to her character. I don't know what it was, but I just felt this couple in love [in the show]. It was amazing. I thought, "If I can just reach half the energy she portrayed, I would be grateful. At the time I thought, "I'm really skinny. I run seven miles a day. How do I do this." Allison Kugel: You were known and celebrated for being beautiful, fit and strong. Pam Grier: Well, Robert De Niro had said it would be different for me as a woman. He said to me, "You'll lose your attractiveness in society." I said, "You know what? I'm controlling it. This is my work. This is my dream." I put on forty pounds. My body changed, and people reacted to me differently than when you're young and skinny. But you know what? When you have a little more weight on, yet you are still attractive, your skin is clear and your hair is well groomed, you're still going to get some doors opened for you. Allison Kugel: Are you comfortable in your skin at any weight? Pam Grier: At any weight. I can gain weight and lose weight, if I have to, for whatever reason. I remember when I was meeting with Spike Lee for a role while I was still doing Frankie and Johnny. When he saw me with weight on, he said, "Wow! You're a little bit heavier than I thought. Are you okay? Are you sick?" He didn't know I was doing a play. I told him it was appropriate for the character, and that it's working. I didn’t want people to come and see someone skinny and exotic looking and have them not see and hear [my] work. Allison Kugel: I am truly surprised by your point of view. It makes me wonder if people really knew you at the height of your fame. Pam Grier: I don’t know if it's psychological or just human nature, but people are used to seeing certain imagery in advertising continuously, so that's their filter. If I didn't gain the weight, I wouldn't have gotten that job. And women in this business won't gain weight because they're afraid of not working. They want to be attractive and have that value. I'm a person that doesn't look at weight and judge what's beautiful and what's not. I do know that these heavier actors and actresses are always working. Their work is fantastic, and you see this wisdom, you see this value. I know there is a designation within society about who is going to be wise and who isn't; who is going to be stupid. But let me tell you, maybe because I've had a sexuality and I still do now, it's kind of interesting that these young men in their forties are attempting to court me. Allison Kugel: This morning, someone said to me, "Tell her I love her. Tell her I think she is amazing." I said, "Take a number!" Pam Grier: (Laughs) Way back when women had weight on them, they were zaftig and Rubenesque, and very appealing to a lot of men. A lot of rugged, handsome men would have a woman that would be very zaftig, and not thin. They didn't believe thin women could do anything, and they would be hungry all the time. If a woman can do something, a man will have more respect for her. Maybe when I was younger, men assumed that I just went shopping and sat around by the pool and didn’t do much. Then they'd be shocked to see me changing my tire, fixing screens, putting the fence up, pushing manure and rock. Sometimes I would say to men, "What do you need? Don't have me have to fix this for you." Allison Kugel: Is that how you are in relationships? Are you the kind of woman who likes to do everything for herself? Pam Grier: Oh, no. I'm a partner. Whoever can do it for me, I'm game and I'm a listener. I love to listen. I am a researcher, but if you know more, then by all means share it. I don't have to do everything. But if it is life and death, I'm the person. At home, in all my fields, I have fire extinguishers because people flick their cigarettes out, and in a time of global warming fires are starting on the side of the road and burning up entire communities. Allison Kugel: They could have used you in California. Pam Grier: People have sprinklers on the inside of their homes. They should have them on the outside of their homes. Turn them on, wet down your property and leave. At least it will be so wet that the embers won't land on your house or around your house and burn it down. At the very least, it's a retardant. It will slow it down, if it won't completely stop it. I live in a forest and I am responsible for six animals. I'm responsible for not starting a fire and burning down everyone else's home and killing people. Aside from the comedy, that's also what our show is about. Having fun, enjoying and respecting our naturally occurring resources. Allison Kugel: And having a sense of responsibility for the earth, our ecosystem, our land and other people. Pam Grier: People are fear-based because they have given up a lot of their own confidence and strength to other people. "Here, handle my politics, do my taxes, you take care of me." And then when other people mess up, they feel victimized by the person they gave their power over to. People don't even realize how much power they have. They have acquiesced; they've given it away. I'm around people here in Colorado (where Grier lives most of the year) who've never flown before. They've only seen black people on television. When they meet me, they go, "Oh, she's just like us." It's astonishing. I can't criticize them, but they are so glad to meet me and to know that everything's going to be alright, that I'm not gonna open up a meth lab down the road. When they get to know me, it shifts for them in an instant. They realize that whoever told them, or whatever perception they had that was negative about other cultures, is now gone. Allison Kugel: You've been in show business now for about 50 years? Pam Grier: Fifty years, plus. My career is older than you! Allison Kugel: (Laughs) How do you want your body of work to be studied? Because it will be studied in years to come? Pam Grier: It already is studied, and they always tell me I'm a master class or thesis, and I'm going, "Whoa. Oh boy!" I'll tell you this, when I started doing stunts, that I'm feeling the pain from now, I didn't have a sports bra and it was a lot harder to be very physical and authentic. I don't want to be remembers as being perfect. I want to be remembered as being real. Allison Kugel: You are thought to be the first African- American female to headline action films. Where are your successors? Where is the next Pam Grier? Pam Grier: They're probably out there limping, as I did. They got hurt and said, "Don't wanna do that again!" I was a gymnast and I skied; I ran track. Anything to keep from doing the dishes, I loved. You have to have a little bit of that in your nature to be that physical. Not everyone is, or can be. You might be able to act the part, but If they didn't have that in their upbringing, they may not be following in my footsteps. Right now I see some white actresses like Charlize Theron and Rachel Weisz, who I never thought would do martial arts and stunts and action movies, who really enjoy them. But they did say they got a couple of "ow-ies," and they don't know if they will do it again. Not everybody is rushing into doing that kind of physical work. Allison Kugel: Is there any type of role you wouldn't take on, because it's not in your wheelhouse? Pam Grier: I was sexually attacked and raped at the age of 6, and then again at 18 in college, and then there was a third attack that I fought off. I couldn't believe what was happening. I didn't understand it. But I know that I cannot portray that in a movie, because I don't want to revisit those moments and emotions. A lot of actresses who will be up for the casting to play me in the film of my life, many of them may have had those same experiences and won't be able to re-live them, okay? Not everyone can do that; not everyone wants to re-visit that. If they can, it will be fantastic, but I know that I have had to turn down roles that have those kinds of attacks, because I couldn't do it. I had to pass. There were major directors and producers through the years, where they didn't know why I was passing, but I just passed. I knew I might snap. I don't know if I can go there. Not every actor can play every role, and there is a reason, and it may be private. Allison Kugel: But you are enjoying having audiences get to know the part of you that shines as Constance on Bless This Mess. Pam Grier: I'm sharing my rural side, my military side, my pragmatic side and my sexy side in this wonderful role that has been bestowed upon me by actress and co-creator Lake Bell and [co-creator] Elizabeth Meriwether; and ABC and Fox and Disney. They support me greatly, they listen to me, and they laugh at some of the funny things I do. Even the way I came into my initial meeting with them, all stinky from doing chores. Who does that? Allison Kugel: That's not so much method acting as it is the real Pam Grier! You're a roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty kind of woman. Pam Grier: That's right. For fifty years of my career, I would commute. I would come off the plane ready to work, in character, and I was very serious about my work. I couldn't do all the roles because I'm tall. For example, I couldn't play Tina Turner, because I was 5'9" and she's 5'1". I'm not going to get roles where the characters are diminutive. I was always asked why I didn't play Tina Turner. I'm actually, like, a foot taller than Tina. I'd be the tallest Tina Turner in the world. Like Geena Davis and a lot of my peers who are tall, we don't get a lot of the roles with husbands and love stories, because of our height and the perception that the husband should be taller than the woman. Allison Kugel: This interview reminds me of how film directors will say that sometimes they'll have an actor on set, and they know the best thing they can do is get out of their way and just let them do their thing. With this interview, I couldn't direct you. You directed the interview, but I learned a whole lot and I thank you! Pam Grier: Well, I love to share and I love to teach. I've got a PhD. from the University of Maryland in the Humanities, and an honorary degree in Science from Langston University in Agriculture. It's who I am. Watch "Bless This Mess," starring Lake Bell, Dax Shepard, Pam Grier and Ed Begley Jr. on ABC, Tuesdays at 9:30/8:30c. Pam will also star in "Poms" with Diane Keaton and Rhea Perlman, in theatres Friday, May 10th. Follow her on Twitter @PamGrier Interview and words by Allison Kugel. Allison Kugel is a syndicated entertainment columnist, and author of the book, Journaling Fame: A memoir of a life unhinged and on the record available on Amazon and owner of Full Scale Media. Follow her on Instagram @theallisonkugel and at AllisonKugel.com. Photo credits: BLESS THIS MESS - ABC/John Fleenor © 2018-2019 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All rights reserved.

Moët & Chandon is one of the world's largest champagne producers and a prominent champagne house. Moët et Chandon was established in 1743 by Claude Moët, and today owns 1,190 hectares (2,900 acres) of vineyards, and annually produces approximately 28,000,000 bottles of champagne. History Moët et Chandon began as Moët et Cie (meaning "Moët & Co."), established by Épernay wine trader Claude Moët in 1743, and began shipping his wine from Champagne to Paris. The reign of King Louis XV coincided with increased demand for sparkling wine. Soon after its foundation, and after son Claude-Louis joined Moët et Cie, the winery's clientele included nobles and aristocrats. In 1833, the company was renamed Moët et Chandon after Pierre-Gabriel Chandon de Briailles, Remy Moët's son-in-law, joined the company as a partner of Jean-Remy Moët, Claude Moët's grandson. Following the introduction of the concept of a vintage champagne in 1840, Moët marketed its first vintage in 1842. Their best-selling brand, Brut Imperial, was introduced in the 1860s. Their best known label, Dom Perignon, is named for the Benedictine monk remembered in legend as the "Father of Champagne". Moët & Chandon merged with Hennessy Cognac in 1971 and with Louis Vuitton in 1987 to become LVMH (Louis-Vuitton-Moët-Hennessy), the largest luxury group in the world, netting over 16 billion euros in fiscal 2004. Moët & Chandon holds a royal warrant as supplier of champagne to Queen Elizabeth II. In 2006, Moët et Chandon Brut Impérial issued an extremely limited bottling of its champagne named "Be Fabulous", a special release of its original bottle with decorative Swarovski crystals, marking the elegance of Moët et Chandon. production Around 5 million bottles are produced in each vintage. The wine is 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot noir, with 6 g/l dosage. According to Tom Stevenson, "All vintages need at least 12 years ageing to nurture Dom Pérignon's signature silky mousse". As of 2008, the current release of Dom Pérignon is from the 2000 vintage and the current release of Dom Pérignon Rosé is from the 1998 vintage. As of 2017 the senior winemaker was Richard Geoffroy, who has been chef de cave for Dom Pérignon since 1990. Domaine Chandon In 1973, the then Moët-Hennessy company founded Domaine Chandon, an outpost winery in the Napa Valley. It was the first French-owned sparkling wine venture in the United States. The fine dining restaurant étoile was situated at the winery, closing in December 2014. Chandon had already founded an outpost in Argentina in 1959, and was doing the same in the southern city of Garibaldi in Brazil in 1973. Domaine Chandon was later established in 1986 in Australia in Coldstream, Victoria, in the Ningxia region in China in 2013 and India's Nashik region in 2014. Moët & Chandon is thrilled to announce the launch of a new advertising campaign that signals a new communication platform for the French champagne house whose 275-year-old heritage and pioneering vision have, since 1743, redefined the art of celebrating life’s most memorable moments. For more information visit moet.com. Special thanks for Wikipedia for textual inserts. To ensure that Wikipedia continues to ensure that everyone has the right to free and open knowledge, please donate.

For the last 15 years, Terra has focused on creating sustainable, design-oriented communities that enhance both urban and suburban neighborhoods in South Florida. Our most recent residential endeavors have been focused in Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, Weston, and Doral. At the forefront are the Bjarke Ingels-designed Grove at Grand Bay and the Rem Koolhaas/OMA-designed Park Grove, two new luxury condos that are breathing new life into Miami’s oldest, authentic neighborhood, Coconut Grove. In Miami Beach, Terra recently completed Glass, a 10-unit condo designed in collaboration with Rene Gonzalez in the SoFi district; and we’re starting construction at Eighty Seven Park, Renzo Piano’s rst residential building in the United States suspended above the lush urban oasis’ of North Beach along the Atlantic Ocean. Our commercial portfolio embraces areas like Doral and Pembroke Pines with projects like Doral Commons, our newest mixed-use development in Doral bringing 140,000 square-feet of retail with 319 single-family homes, and Pines City Center, a master-planned development set to feature a mix of retail space and multifamily units. With the urbanization phenomenon rising as a dominant force in U.S. real estate, the country is seeing an influx of residents transitioning from homes to high-rises. Rest assured, moving into an apartment or condo doesn’t necessarily mean sacrificing the elements that make a home feel like “home.” To win over buyers accustomed to large, spread-out homes, we are incorporating high ceilings, expansive floor plans, outdoor green spaces, and even private garages to create new residential retreats. Conventional wisdom tells us urban areas are swelling as working professionals prioritize factors like location and access to jobs over the sheer size of their home, however the appeal of city living is growing amongst retirees and empty nesters. In a recent study conducted by the AARP, half of adults 45 or older said living in a walkable area during retirement is important. With land in metro areas becoming scarce, developers are taking to the skies to meet housing demands in urban neighborhoods – especially when it comes to catering to buyers 50 and up, which are projected to control 70 percent of the nation’s disposable wealth in a few years. Click to view larger image > Additionally, advances in architecture and construction are also dramatically improving the way developers design and build their projects. Factor in the lifestyle advantages found in many urban neighborhoods – including a tight-knit sense of community that converts strangers into neighbors – and you begin to see how high-rise living can mean heightened quality of life and added convenience. While international media has characterized South Florida’s real estate market as being dominated by extravagant condos owned by absentee buyers, more than half of the buyers at Grove at Grand Bay, for instance, are end users who will spend all or part of their time here – blatantly dispelling that notion. There’s this perception that our market is one-dimensional due to the sheer number of high-rise condos that have risen over the last decade, but today there are thriving single family home and apartment communities underway in neighborhoods like Doral, Weston, Pembroke Pines, and even in and around downtown. The neighborhoods are dynamic, the interest is alive, the residents are here, and these are the buyers we’re building for. For more information, visit: www.terragroup.com Words by David Martin David Martin / President, Co-Founder As the President of Miami-based development firm Terra, David Martin has cultivated a portfolio of more than five million square feet of residential and commercial real estate valued in excess of $8 billion.

Wearing a fitness tracking device could earn you cash from your health insurance company. At first, this sounds lucrative for the people who participate, and good for the companies, who want healthier insurance customers. But it’s not quite so simple. Under the program, people who have certain health insurance coverage plans with UnitedHealthcare can elect to wear a Fitbit activity tracker and share their data with the insurance company. The data would be analyzed by Qualcomm Life, a company that processes medical data from wireless sensors for doctors, hospitals and insurance companies. Depending on how active participants are, as measured by the Fitbit, they could earn as much as US$1,500 toward health care services each year. Interest in wearable fitness trackers is booming. More than half of people who already own one believe their devices will help them increase their life expectancy by 10 years – even though it’s impossible to actually know that because the clinical trials necessary would take at least a decade. Adding free money to the mix only makes the devices seem more attractive. Before we celebrate this new partnership, though, it’s important to consider potential costs to the patients. We are not far from days when wearable health devices will be able to diagnose illnesses. While this is not legal now, if Obamacare were repealed, as Republicans have vowed to do, corporate partnerships like this one with UnitedHealthcare and Fitbit could pave the way for insurance companies to use fitness tracker data to deny coverage or hike up rates for consumers. Diagnosis by device There are positive elements to pairing wearable fitness trackers with health data. An existing flu treatment medication works best when administered within 24 hours of onset of symptoms. But it’s difficult to catch the flu so quickly. A Fitbit could make that much easier. If the device measures a sudden decrease in the number of steps the person takes per day, plus perhaps an elevated resting heart rate, that could signal the presence of a virus. If an insurance company has access to those data, it could send a message to the patient. If the person really was feeling poorly (rather than just having decided to watch TV all day or gotten snowed in), she could be directed to go to her doctor or an urgent care clinic. The person could see a health professional quickly, get an effective treatment and be on the mend sooner – thanks to her Fitbit data. This ability will only increase in the future. There are more than 20 clinical trials using Fitbits underway, studying the role of activity in treating pediatric obesity and cystic fibrosis, and even how it can boost chemotherapy’s effectiveness and speed in recovery from surgery. As those studies are published in the coming years, researchers and doctors will get even better at identifying signals of specific diseases in wearable devices’ data. Beyond the Fitbit Similar efforts include one to detect influenza with a portable heart-rate monitor. Other researchers are analyzing voice and speech patterns to reveal neurological disorders and other diseases – and are using calls to a health insurance company as a data source. Even eye-tracking software could measure cognitive understanding, which could identify signs of dementia. Detecting symptoms earlier through Fitbit data could allow faster, more effective treatment. The biggest push, though, is coming from Qualcomm, which has offered a $10 million prize to the team who can develop a specific type of multifunction medical device. Without involving a health care worker or facility, the device must be able to accurately diagnose 13 health conditions, including pneumonia and diabetes. It must also be able to capture in real time five vital signs, such as heart rate and breathing rate, and process the data locally. The global competition is down to finalists; the winner will be announced early this year. That could bring wearables’ insights to doctors – and insurance companies – much sooner than we might think. Cause for concern Wearables’ data can definitely be used to help patients. But it could also be used to harm them, particularly in light of recent political developments. With the Affordable Care Act (also called Obamacare), insurance companies were barred from denying coverage to customers who had preexisting medical conditions at the time they signed up for insurance. If that rule is lifted by Republicans in Congress, insurers might look to wearable devices for evidence they could use to refuse to pay for patients’ health care. This development would have enormous consequences. According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, as many as half of all Americans have some sort of condition that could be used to exclude them from coverage, such as asthma, cancer or mental illness. Might insurance companies ask prospective customers for their Fitbit data, in addition to – or even in lieu of – a physical exam or laboratory tests? If that provision of Obamacare were repealed, could insurance companies set rates based on what those data show – or deny coverage entirely? Car insurance companies are already using similar methods. Some insurers provide their customers with devices to install in their cars, measuring drivers’ behavior and calculating the risk involved – and the rate they pay for coverage. Assembling the data At the moment, the algorithms connecting activity tracker data and health conditions are still under development. But the biggest thing UnitedHealthcare would need is a large data set of customer Fitbit measurements, so it can link them to insurance claims. Its new cash-for-data program will begin to assemble that information. As insurance customers signed up to use a Fitbit and get some extra cash for sharing their data, United would be able to match their Fitbit measurements with any health conditions identified in their medical records. Over time, the company could build up enough information from, say, people with asthma and people without it to be able to tell asthma patients apart by looking just at their data. The company could do this for other common diseases, too, or even adapt the algorithms from the contestants in the Qualcomm competition. It’s unclear what the company would do with what it learned. But one possibility is that when evaluating a prospective customer, the company could look at his data and know all about any preexisting conditions. That might mean a person doesn’t get insurance, or has to pay more for coverage. Making coverage decisions The financial power of the health insurance industry is enormous. Not only are there many large companies, but they have the ability to determine whether a sick person gets well or doesn’t – and whether the cost is ruinous or merely expensive. Would people feel able to object if insurance companies required customers to wear fitness trackers or other monitoring devices? Would new patients provide access to past data a Fitbit collected? Could an insurance company consider it fraud if a user didn’t wear the device? If used – and regulated – well, the devices can help individual patients change their daily habits to become healthier, saving insurance companies money, and passing some of those savings along to customers. Alternatively, the devices could provide justification for denying coverage to the inactive or unhealthy, or boosting their insurance rates. Consumers should not assume their insurance companies will use their data only to improve patient care. With millions of dollars on the line, insurers will be sorely tempted. With the legal landscape around preexisting conditions in flux, people should think twice before signing up. Words by Andrew Boyd, Assistant Professor, Biomedical and Health Information Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago. Image by Kamil S, Unsplash. Special thanks to The Conversation for this story. You can support the independent network which provides news by donating today

According to TheKnot's 2019 Real Wedding Study, “The average cost of a wedding in 2019 was $33,900 (including the engagement ring, ceremony and reception).” This is a median price tag for the entire United States, with even higher numbers in large cultural hubs like Miami, which has traditionally seen higher household incomes and more extravagant celebrations than other parts of the U.S. With Miami being hit especially hard as nightclubs, restaurants, hotels and other hospitality and tourism services shutdown, couples looking to tie the knot during fall and winter 2020 and into the early months of 2021 will likely seek out nuptials that are romantic and memorable, but more modestly priced. One of the most popular wedding destinations in the world, Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada, is a great option for South Floridians who want to ditch the east coast tropics for the mythical desert setting of the southwest. Before you start thinking Las Vegas strip, drive through chapels and Elvis impersonators, we're talking about Las Vegas' picturesque surrounding mountains, desert and canyon terrain and all of their breathtaking beauty as the backdrop to a more affordable destination wedding celebration. Some of these natural locations around Las Vegas allow couples to take their wedding vows surrounded by million-dollar views in intimate settings, and for nominal rates that will be more fitting to the economy we will all be facing going into the autumn months and beyond. “With the toll that this coronavirus pandemic is taking on our economy, once this crisis passes, many couples will simply not be in a position to spend tens of thousands of dollars on their weddings. They’ll be looking for alternatives that are just as special, but for more modest rates,” says Las Vegas destination wedding and elopement expert, McKenzi Taylor. McKenzi’s company, Cactus Collective Weddings, is in the unique position of offering all-inclusive micro-wedding and elopement packages around Las Vegas’ iconic natural outdoor settings that range in price from $1,870 to $3,300. The company has access to these remote locations at some of Las Vegas' most famous outdoor natural wonders through exclusive arrangements with the city of Las Vegas which allows them to obtain permits for these wedding locations. To help couples who will be reeling financially in the coming months, but who wish to marry at the end of 2020 and into the beginning of 2021, McKenzi Taylor and her team are making wedding packages that much sweeter by offering couples credits towards their transportation and bridal hair and makeup. In addition, McKenzi adds that “getting married in an outdoor, natural setting is kinder to the environment, and we can all use a bit more of that right now. If nothing else, I hope what we are collectively going through will make us all want to be better stewards of our planet.” Natural outdoor settings mean less need for artificial decorations that get thrown away after a wedding, and less use of energy, from lighting design to air conditioning and heating. It reduces waste down to almost nothing. From locations with names like Valley of Fire, Red Rock Canyon, Cactus Joe’s Blue Diamond Nursery and Floyd Lamb Park, to name a few, this unique experience offers a seductive combination of earthy, adventure-filled, romantic serenity. According to McKenzi, “It’s bringing things back to nature, and the focus is 100% on the two people who are getting married. What’s more romantic than that?” Dream Las Vegas Wedding Destinations Valley of Fire is ninety minutes from the Las Vegas Strip and boasts a myriad of stunning red rocks that gives the desert a fiery glow at sunset, hence its name, Valley of Fire. The dramatic Red Rock Canyon landscape in the famous Mojave Desert, just 20 minutes from Las Vegas, is breathtaking and powerful with its unique red rock formations created millions of years ago. There are even historic dinosaur tracks left behind. Click below to launch slideshow > Local, original and romantic, Cactus Joe’s Blue Diamond Nursery is one of the largest cacti nurseries in the region and offers a quaint, hand-built pink chapel and a beautifully landscaped desert garden. Floyd Lamb Park at Tules Spring is a unique wedding location for couples seeking tranquility and a park setting where ducks, geese and peacocks roam free. Gorgeous lakeside views surround the park, with shady trees with lush greenery throughout. There is also a gazebo for an outdoor ceremony and amazing views of the sheep and Spring Mountain Ranges. “We’re happy to provide a beautiful alternative for couples who won’t be able to plunk down $30,000+ for their wedding a few months from now. Let’s all get back to simplicity.” Cactus Collective Weddings is moving forward with a flexible approach to booking Las Vegas destination weddings and elopements, allowing couples to reserve their weddings now, while allowing them to wait until the month of June to commit to their wedding date. You can learn more Cactus Collective Weddings Las Vegas destination wedding and elopement packages at Cactus-Collective.com. Story by Allison Kugel

Sole’ on the Ocean is centrally located within the popular communities of Golden Beach, Bal Harbour, and Aventura, and only minutes from the culture and night life of South Beach and the Art Deco District. Overlooking the shimmering sand and turquoise Atlantic waters, Solé on the Ocean sits midway between Miami and Fort Lauderdale on picturesque Sunny Isles Beach. Amenities include an award-winning restaurant, an ocean- side pool, a private beach club, and a fitness center. Guests are invited to get swept-away in enchanting interiors and ocean views via floor-to-ceiling windows and outdoor dining terraces overlooking white sand beaches. Global from the ground up, interior design firm Dupoux Design pulled inspiration from the nearby Caribbean islands’ elegant European identity. With hints of maritime influences as well as neo-Victorian architecture, the suites and guestrooms at Sole’ on the Ocean are wildly popular. BALEENkitchen, located at Sole’, is a beloved Miami destination that has returned to Sunny Isles. Worth the decade-long wait, BALEENkitchen reintroduced itself to the city of Miami as a globally-inspired, locally- sourced dining outpost. The restaurant offers fresh takes on dishes highlighting the land and sea. Many are fused with exotic flavors and local produce, further paired with a robust list of craft cocktails and exotic takes on the classic Moscow Mule. Visitors and locals alike have found a new favorite in BALEENkitchen. Click below to launch slideshow > Solé on the Ocean is located at 17315 Collins Avenue, Sunny Isles Beach, FL, 33160. For more information, visit www.soleontheocean.com or call 786-923-9300. For more information on BALEENkitchen at Sole on the Ocean, call 786-923-9388 or visit www.soleontheocean.com/baleen-kitchen. By Miami Living, Images by Noble House