Jamie Lynn Spears Tears Up as She Shares Heartbreaking Details About Daughter Maddie’s ATV Accident
“There’s nothing worse than looking at your child and just feeling that you’ve failed her,” the singer and actress said.
Jamie Lynn Spears is opening up about her daughter’s near-death experience.
The country music singer and actress, 29, shared terrifying details about her 11-year-old daughter Maddie’s 2017 ATV accident during Thursday’s episode of Better Together with Maria Menounos.
Speaking candidly about the harrowing incident, Spears got emotional as she recalled how things were “not looking good” when Maddie was admitted to the hospital, revealing that a priest was in the middle of reading her child’s last rites when Maddie suddenly became responsive again.
“My oldest daughter was in a really bad accident,” she began, explaining that Maddie was riding on an ATV near her family “with every safety measure that could be taken” when she “somehow or another, drove into the water.”
“We dove in and we were able to rescue her,” she said. “When we were finally able to get her out of the water … and the first responders took from me, we thought she was gone. We thought we lost our daughter.”
“That moment, I felt everything that you can feel, I think, as far as the worst,” the mom, who also shares 2-year-old daughter Ivey Joan with husband Jamie Watson, continued. “There’s nothing worse than looking at your child and just feeling that you’ve failed her. And I didn’t want her to think that I couldn’t save her.”
Spears said a firefighter was finally able to get a pulse, though Maddie’s condition looked grim at the time and the young girl had to be airlifted to a nearby hospital.
“She wasn’t responding to anything and so it was not looking good for us,” she recalled, telling host Maria Menounos that she remembers asking for a priest to be let into the intensive care unit to pray for her daughter in what she described as a “worse case scenario.”
“He went to put the oil on her and read the rites and she sat up and started kicking, and her hands started grabbing at all the things,” Spears said. “That was our first sign that she was there.”
The Zoey 101 alum said “everything changed” for her as a parent in that moment.
“I’ve faced my worst fear now. What else can I mess up or do wrong that will be as horrible as that? Nothing. There’s nothing,” she shared. “God gave me the blessing of giving me my daughter back. I lost her and I got her back.”
“So I don’t get to make any excuses. I’ve been given the best, biggest blessing you can be given,” Spears added. “I’m not allowed to waste a day on this earth complaining or being ungrateful.”
The mother of two commemorated the “miracle anniversary” of the accident in February, writing on her Instagram: “3 years ago today, Super Bowl Sunday fell on February 5th, and I’ll never forget that, because it was the day my whole world stopped.”
“It started like most Sundays, going to church, visiting family, to suddenly trying to save my daughter’s life, to them taking her away, to us believing we had lost her forever, and it literally felt like the world stood still around me,” she wrote. “I have never spoken fully in detail about that day, and the events that followed, but what I will share is that God blessed us with a true miracle. Maddie not only stayed here with us, but she made a full recovery.”
Sharing photos of Maddie on her hospital bed after the accident, Spears said in the post, “I know so many of you prayed so hard for us, so I will never let this day pass without thanking each of you for every single prayer you said for us, and I hope you all know we do not take this huge blessing we were given for granted, because most are not as fortunate, and we are fully aware of that horrible and unfair fact.”
“I am filled with gratitude today, and everyday [sic], even on the bad days, because even those days are a gift, that so many others would give anything for just to have their loved ones back,” the star added.
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“Let’s all be thankful for the tiny miracles in our lives every day, that we may take for granted, because it could all change in a second. Thank y’all for always being there for me and my family, we appreciate you and love you so much. #MiracleAnniversary.”
Article via People
Criminal group that hacked law firm threatens to release Trump documents
A known criminal enterprise released a large set of stolen files, at least some of which appeared legitimate.
A cybercriminal gang that hacked a major entertainment law firm claims it will release information on President Donald Trump if it doesn’t receive $42 million in ransom.
The group, a known criminal enterprise, didn’t offer any proof it had information compromising to Trump. It did, however, release a large set of stolen files from the law firm, Grubman Shire Meiselas & Sacks. NBC News reviewed some of the documents and they appear legitimate.
The group uses ransomware — a type of malicious software — to break into a victim’s networks and encrypt them, demanding a fee to unlock them. If the victim doesn’t pay up, the group slowly leaks out unencrypted versions of files stolen from those networks to prompt payment.
The criminal group posted on its blog a threat to publish files related to Trump.
“The next person we’ll be publishing is Donald Trump. There’s an election race going on, and we found a ton of dirty laundry on time,” the group wrote, giving a one week deadline. “And to you voters, we can let you know that after such a publication, you certainly don’t want to see him as president.”
Though the gang tends to release legitimately hacked files, they left no clue of whether they actually had compromising information on Trump, or whether this was a ploy to put more pressure on the law firm to pay.
“On the one hand, I think it’s bulls—,” said Brett Callow, who studies ransomware gangs at the antivirus company Emsisoft. “But on the other hand, getting a rep for bluffing isn’t helpful to extortionists. They need their victims to believe that their threats are real and will be carried through.”
The law firm did not respond to a request for comment, but told Rolling Stone: “Despite our substantial investment in state-of-the-art technology security, foreign cyberterrorists have hacked into our network and are demanding $42 million as ransom.”
The White House declined to comment.
Ransomware gangs have become a persistent threat to the U.S. in recent years, and law enforcement has had difficulty stopping them. In many cases, these groups operate out of Russia, which doesn’t extradite its citizens.
“We’re pretty sure these guys operate in Russia’s ‘locus of control,’” said Allan Liska, who tracks the gang for the cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.
But threatening to release files about Trump, who enjoys a cordial relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, might be a step too far, Liska said.
“If they release this stuff, it is possible they will have both U.S. Cyber Command and FSB targeting them,” Liska said, referring to Russia’s Federal Security Service. “Most Russian leadership leaves them alone as long as they don’t target Russian citizens. This would probably be an exception.”
Article via NBCNews
Drag Race Sneak Peek, Virtual Reunion and Finale Details Confirmed
The final challenge of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 12 has arrived, and the remaining queens are feeling the Jantasy nostalgia.
Gigi Goode, Jaida Essence Hall, Crystal Methyd, Jackie Cox and Sherry Pie prepare to hit the runway for their Las Vegas-themed Rusical in TVLine’s exclusive sneak peek from tonight’s episode (VH1, 8/7c), taking the opportunity to reflect on how far everyone — but especially Crystal — has come in the competition.
In other Drag Race news, VH1 has unveiled its plans for the final two episodes of Season 12, beginning with the May 22 reunion (8/7c). According to the network, this season’s contestants — minus Sherry, who was disqualified before she even debuted — will come together for a “virtual slumber party hosted by RuPaul to kiki about everything that’s happened this season.” In addition to discussing how the queens have been handling quarantine, the group will also tackle “this season’s shadiest moments and most shocking eliminations.” The reunion will wrap with a round of fan questions.
The May 29 season finale (8/7c) will also be filmed virtually, though VH1 promises “innovative technology that highlights the creativity of the queens.” The finalists will compete in a “revolutionary lip-sync battle for the crown,” and one will receive it from reigning winner Yvie Oddly. Nina West will also return to crown this season’s Miss Congeniality, and other “special celebrity guests” are expected to make appearances throughout the night.
Article via TVLine
Colorado cops looking for man who wore KKK hood in market
Colorado cops are searching for a man who wore a Ku Klux Klan hood to go grocery shopping — the second time this month that someone in the US has pulled the hateful stunt.
The man walked into the City Market in Dillon on Thursday and proceeded to shop until he was asked to leave, which he refused to do. An employee at the store then called the cops, the Summit Daily News reports.
The man fled before officers arrived, but cops are working to identify him and his vehicle using surveillance footage, the newspaper reports.
“Right now, they’re trying to identify him, contact him and take it from there,” a spokeswoman for the grocery store told the newspaper. “Obviously, we take this kind of action very seriously.”
Video of the incident obtained by KUSA shows the man apparently chatting it up with other customers while holding a basket and a container of milk. He stands near three other shoppers before one of them apparently said something about his hood, prompting him to shrug his shoulders and walk away.
The man then argued with customers and workers who approached him until he left the store. In a statement to the station, the grocery chain said it values “diversity and inclusion,” as well as respect for every customer.
“We ask our customers to respect these values as well when in our stores,” the statement read. “Our store leaders are empowered to swiftly and respectfully address anyone who disregards these values, which includes blatant symbols of hate and intolerance.”
Another man was spotted wearing a KKK hood while buying groceries earlier this month in Santee, California. He ultimately took off the hood while shopping May 4 at a Von supermarket after being asked several times by clerks and a supervisor.
Article via NYPost
How Billionaire Rich Kids Look Under Quarantine
This to me is disgusting. They could take their billions and donated to charity and your food banks to help the less fortunate during this time of World wide crisis
Young QC sentenced to 99 years for paying hitman to kill his mother – told hitman “make sure the b—h is dead.”
A Chicago man was sentenced Friday to 99 years behind bars for paying a hitman to murder his own mother in 2012.
Qaw’mane Wilson, an aspiring rapper who used the moniker Young QC, was found guilty of murder last March in connection with the death of his mom, Yolanda Holmes, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
“The word is ‘matricide,’ meaning murder of one’s own mother,” said Stanley Sacks, a Cook County judge.
Wilson was accused of hiring Eugene Spencer to kill Holmes. Spencer allegedly shot Holmes in 2012 inside her apartment in the Uptown neighborhood and left her boyfriend unconscious, according to the newspaper. He also reportedly stabbed Holmes after Wilson told her over the phone to “make sure the b—h is dead.”
Spencer — who was also found guilty of murder in March — was ordered to 100 years behind bars.
Following his mother’s death, Wilson allegedly took money out of her bank accounts.
“Whatever he wanted, his mother gave to him,” Sacks said Friday. “A car. A job. One could say he was spoiled. She gave Qaw’mane life, and it was his choice to take it way from her.”
On Friday, Wilson told the court that “nobody loved my mother more than me.”
Wilson is now 30. He was 23 at the time of his mother’s death.
He is accused of using the money he removed from his mother’s bank account to add custom features to a Mustang car that his mother had bought for him.
A YouTube video showing Wilson giving out money to his fans, meanwhile, was reportedly played for the jury.
Photo Credit: Chicago Police Department
113-year-old woman is world’s oldest person to beat the coronavirus
She lived through both world wars and the Spanish Civil War. Now she’s become the world’s oldest reported person to ever survive the coronavirus at 113.
Maria Branyas, who is allegedly also Spain’s oldest living person, beat COVID-19 after being diagnosed with the disease in April. She self-isolated at the Santa Maria del Tura care home in the eastern city of Olot, Spain and later tested negative, reports Newsflash.
Spain currently boasts the second-highest number of coronavirus cases in the world with 269,520.
Despite simultaneously suffering from a urine infection, the great-grandmother of 13 was virtually asymptomatic, according to her daughter, Rosa Moret, who calls her mom a strong and positive person.
“Now she is fine, she is willing to talk, to explain, to think, she is herself again,” wrote Moret on a Twitter account that she had set up for Branyas. She added that her mom is currently healthy, aside from some small pains, and is grateful to the nursing home staff for their care.
The supercentenarian survivor is lucky. The coronavirus predominantly kills older people, including 17 in one day at her own nursing facility last month, according to the Olive Press.
Branyas’ survival story marks yet another inspiring episode in her long and incredible life. Born in San Francisco on March 4, 1907, she eventually moved to Spain in 1915 because of her father’s work as a journalist. He tragically passed away from tuberculosis during the boat trip, and his body was thrown overboard.
After settling in her new home, Branyas eventually married local doctor Joan Moret in 1931 and had three children, 11 grandchildren — one of whom is 70 years old — and 13 great-grandchildren.
A near-lifetime resident of Spain, the centenarian has lived in Barcelona, Banyoles, Girona, Sant Antoni de Calogne and Palol de Revardit. She has resided at her current nursing home for the past 20 years.
If that wasn’t impressive enough, the hardy Branyas is the oldest person living in Catalonia, Spain, according to the Gerontology Research Group, a global group of researchers in various fields which tracks and documents people over 110.
The supersenior’s victory over the coronavirus places her firmly at the top of an impressive list of centenarian COVID-19 survivors. The former titleholder is Holland’s Cornelia Ras, who bested the disease at age 107.
Branyas’ family eagerly awaits visiting her once she’s out of isolation.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/05/12/113-year-old-woman-is-worlds-oldest-person-to-beat-the-coronavirus/
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Restaurant slammed for ‘COVID-19 surcharge’ on meal
The owners of a Missouri restaurant are pleading with people online to stop harassing their employees after a customer posted a photo of their receipt that showed she was charged a “Covid 19 surcharge” for a meal.
The customer posted the photo of the receipt from Kiko Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Lounge in West Plains on May 11, writing: “Scuse me … what? A covid surcharge…?”
The tweet went viral, and Twitter users began hurling insults at the staff of the restaurant for the surcharge, the steakhouse wrote in a Facebook post.
They wrote that the surcharge was applied because of an increase in the price of meat and poultry because of the coronavirus outbreak.
“Please understand we are not doing this to take advantage of you guys!” the restaurant wrote in the Facebook post.
“We are doing this hoping we can adjust the surcharge weekly rather than just raise all of our prices on our menu due to increase prices from our supplier on meat, poultry, seafood & produce,” they added.
Meat prices in the US have shot up in recent weeks, increasing more than 8 percent in April.
In response to the backlash, the restaurant said it would take the surcharge off and instead raise their prices across the board. However, it added that it would be offering a “good promo deal” so customers can “enjoy our meal with a low cost.”
via: https://nypost.com/2020/05/14/restaurant-slammed-for-covid-19-surcharge-on-meal/
Photo Credit: twitter
Scientists spot ‘one in a million’ super-Earth
Toward the center of our galaxy, in a star system far away, is a planet with features that remind us of home.
Astronomers at New Zealand’s University of Canterbury (UC) discovered a particularly rare super-Earth. “The new planet is among only a handful of extra-solar planets that have been detected with both sizes and orbits close to that of Earth,” said UC in a release on Monday.
“Extra-solar planet” is another term for exoplanet, which describes a planet located outside our solar system. We only have artists’ impressions of what these planets might look like, but they continue to fuel our curiosity as we seek out distant worlds that feel familiar.
The newly spotted exoplanet’s year lasts about 617 days and it travels around a much less massive star than the sun. It’s located near the Milky Way’s central bulge of stars. For scale, Earth is about 25,000 light-years away from the galactic center.
The researchers published their findings in The Astronomical Journal this month.
The super-Earth discovery was a fortuitous event that UC described as “one in a million.”
The astronomers used a gravitational microlensing technique to spot the planet. “The combined gravity of the planet and its host star caused the light from a more distant background star to be magnified in a particular way. We used telescopes distributed around the world to measure the light-bending effect,” said UC astronomer Antonio Herrera Martin.
There’s a lot of hope wrapped up in a term like “super-Earth,” but there are no guarantees a planet in this category will look anything like our own. NASA describes super-Earths as “up to 10 times more massive than Earth,” but says they may vary in composition from water worlds to icy planets to ones made mainly of gas.
NASA has racked up some intriguing super-Earth discoveries in recent years, including the potentially habitable Kepler 62f.
Article via CNET