miss universe 2012

 

first American in 15 years to win coveted title

• Olivia Culpo, a 20-year-old from Rhode Island, wins Miss Universe
• First American to win the crown at Donald Trump's event since 1997
• Miss Culpo's brother describes her as 'chubby and sort of weird' when she was younger

By Associated Press
PUBLISHED: 07:23 GMT, 20 December 2012 | UPDATED: 08:57 GMT, 28 December 2012            

 

A 20-year-old Boston University sophomore and a self-described 'cellist-nerd' brought the Miss Universe crown back to the U.S. for the first time in more than a decade when she won the televised contest on Wednesday.
Olivia Culpo beat 88 other beauty queens to take the title from Leila Lopes of Angola during the two-hour competition at the Planet Hollywood casino on the Las Vegas Strip.
In a refreshing change, the Miss Universe title, which makes Olivia unequivocally one of the world's most beautiful women, appears to have been bestowed on a girl with a healthy streak of normality.

Crowning achievement: Miss USA, Olivia Culpo reacts after being named Miss Universe 2012 beside last year's winner Leila Lopes of Angola, right, during the Miss Universe Pageant at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas

Swarmed: Miss Culpo is surrounded by contestants after being crowned Miss Universe 2012

Costume change: Miss Culpo went from sexy to elegant as she switched from the swimsuit portion of the night to the evening gown competition

Following the win, her brother told CBS that she was 'really chubby and sort of weird when she was younger' while her father said Olivia was the 'nerdiest' of his five children.
Family pictures show Olivia goofing around with friends as she gets pushed along in a shopping cart and playing with her siblings Peter, Gus, Sophia and Aurora. 
Indeed, her family appears to be taken back by her decision to enter the world of pageants, something they knew nothing about. 
Olivia won Miss Rhode Island last year while wearing a $20 rental dress. She then became the first Miss USA winner from Rhode Island when she took the national crown in Las Vegas in June.
She grew up in Cranston as the middle child of five with two professional musicians for parents, Susan and Peter Culpo.
She graduated from St Mary Academy Bay View in 2010 and is a member of the National Honor Society. Her love of Italian led her to spend two summers studying in Milan. 
The 20-year-old has played the cello alongside world-renowned classical musician Yo-Yo Ma and performed at Carnegie Hall.

Shop til you drop: Miss Universe Olivia Culpo larks around in a shopping cart

Genetically blessed: Olivia Culpo with her mother Susan at home

Happy holidays: Olivia (left), Aurora and their brother Peter on holiday in Italy when they were young

An American had not won the right to be called Miss Universe since Brook Lee won the title in 1997.
Culpo wore a tight navy blue mini-dress with a sequined bodice as she walked on stage for the competition's opening number.
Later in the night, she strutted in a purple and blue bikini, and donned a wintery red velvet gown with a plunging neckline. Culpo's coronation ends a long losing spell for the U.S. in the competition co-owned by Donald Trump and NBC.

 

More...

• Thinking of signing her up early? Holly Madison shows off her growing baby bump at Miss Universe pageant
• Beauty queen resigns her title after causing four-car pile-up while 'drunk-driving' (but doesn't she look lovely in her mug shot)
• Two of the guns found at the scene of shootout between Mexican drug cartel and state officials were linked to Fast and Furious scandal

Culpo was good enough during preliminary competitions to be chosen as one of 16 semifinalists who moved on to compete in the pageant's finale.
Her bid lasted through swimsuit, evening wear, and interview competitions that saw cuts after each round. She won over the judges, even after tripping slightly during the evening gown competition. Telecasters pointed it out but also noted her poised recovery.
She told the Today show on Thursday that with the heels and gown she was wearing it was inevitable she tripped and was lucky not to 'fall flat on her face'.
She also said that in her new role as Miss Universe, she would be using her ability to travel internationally to raise awareness of HIV/Aids.

Hosts with the most: Andy Cohen and Giuliana Rancic co-hosted the event, but who can forget the larger-than-life personality who owns the competition - Donald Trump

You're hired! Donald Trump and Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo

Crowned: Olivia Culpo elevated her status from Miss USA to Miss Universe last night in Sin City

Minutes before Miss Culpo was crowned on Wednesday night, she was asked whether she had she had ever done something she regretted.
'I'd like to start off by saying that every experience no matter what it is, good or bad, you'll learn from it.
'That's just life,' she said. 'But something I've done I've regretted is probably picking on my siblings growing up, because you appreciate them so much more as you grow older.'
Miss Philippines, Janine Tugonon, came in second, while Miss Venezuela, Irene Sofia Esser Quintero, placed third.
All the contestants spent the past two weeks in Sin City, where they posed in hardhats at a hotel groundbreaking, took a painting lesson, and played pranks on hotel guests by hiding in their rooms.

Walk this way: 20-year-old Culpo competes in the swimwear section of the competition

Sister act: Olivia (left) with her siblings Aurora and Sophia (right)

Beauty queen-in-the-making: Olivia Culpo on her 18th birthday

On her Miss Universe page, she said she hopes to pursue a career in film or television, and cites Audrey Hepburn as a role model because of her 'generosity, intelligence and grace'.
With Culpo's promotion, Miss Maryland Nana Meriwether becomes the new Miss USA.
The Miss Universe pageant was back in Las Vegas this year after being held in Sao Paulo in 2011. It aired live on NBC and was streamed to more than 100 countries.

Friends to the end: Miss Philippines, Janine Tugonon, left, holds hands with Miss USA Olivia Culpo before the decision was announced

On display: Miss Brazil, Gabriela Markus, left, and Miss Peru, Nicole Faveron, right, grace the stage

Keep smiling! Miss USA 2012, Olivia Culpo, Miss Australia 2012, Renae Ayris, and Miss Philippines 2012, Janine Tugonon, appear on stage after being named as top five finalists following the evening gown competition

Organizers had considered holding the 61st annual Miss Universe in the popular Dominican Republic tourist city of Punta Cana, but Miss Universe Organization President Paula Shugart said that country's financial crisis proved to be too much of an obstacle.
The panel of ten judges included singer Cee Lo Green, Iron Chef star Masaharu Morimoto and Pablo Sandoval of the San Francisco Giants.
Asked on the red carpet whether he found playing in the World Series or judging the beauty pageant to be more difficult, Sandoval said both were hard.
Sharply dressed women and men, including a large contingent from South America, held banners and cheered on their favorite contestants.

Glamour: Miss Hungary Agnes Konkoly, left, and Miss Australia, Renae Ayris, right, wear similar two-pieces during the swimsuit competition

Glamor: The finalists of Miss Universe line up on the stage at the competition on the Las Vegas strip

The pageant started as a local revue in Long Beach, California, organized by Catalina Swimwear.
It is not affiliated with the Miss America pageant and unlike that contest, does not include a talent section.
Contestants in the pageant cannot have been married or have children. They must be younger than 27 and older than 18 by February 1 of the competition year.
As Miss Universe, Culpo will receive an undisclosed salary, a wardrobe fit for a queen, a limitless supply of beauty products, and a luxury apartment in New York City.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2250920/Miss-Universe-2012-winner-Olivia-Culpo-Miss-USA-15-years-win-coveted-title.html#ixzz2pO5EUvHw
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FINALLY SWEET SEVENTEEN

Today marked the day Yona turned seventeen. She had actually been talking about this day since a week ago. We did not planned to celebrate anything big as Andrew was not going to be around.

It was a week holiday for all secondary students due to PMR exams but she had tuitions on two of those days including today.
Her friends had planned going down town to celebrate the occassion at Mc Donald's together with another classmate who shared the same birthdate with her

As usual with any 'in house' celebration, we only  ordered pizzas.

A first time blowing candles on a pizza

Peace signs by the birthday girl

I have loved and cared for you since the day you were born.

I have watched you through out the years, laugh, cry and grow...

into a beautiful and wonderful young woman.
It 's a hard realization to know, that my little girl is not so little anymore.

 

 

 

 

Happy seventeen youngesters

 

Her  mocha cheese cake bought by her daddy the day after

 

Drawings by her loving sister Tisha

Sent all the way from Kuching along with her other presents

 

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE GOOD LOOKING

Everything that comes out of the 'good book'  applies nothing but towards being 'goodness'

Nothing in the world—indeed nothing even beyond the world—can possibly be conceived which could be called good without qualification except a good will.

BUILD WISELY

I saw this parable on a friend 's FB wall and find its worth sharing

 An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer - contractor of his plans to leave the house-building business, to live a more leisurely life with his wife and enjoy his extended family. He would miss the paycheck each week, but he wanted to retire. They could get by.
The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go & asked if he could build just one more house as a p...ersonal favor. The carpenter said yes, but over time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated career.

When the carpenter finished his work, his employer came to inspect the house. Then he handed the front-door key to the carpenter and said, "This is your house ... my gift to you."

The carpenter was shocked!
What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently.
So it is with us. We build our lives, a day at a time, often putting less than our best into the building. Then, with a shock, we realize we have to live in the house we have built. If we could do it over, we would do it much differently.
But, you cannot go back. You are the carpenter, and every day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Someone once said, "Life is a do-it-yourself project." Your attitude, and the choices you make today, help build the "house" you will live in tomorrow ... Therefore, Build wisely


Thank you Tshering Dolkar for this wonderful sharing which carries an important message in life

 

 

LIVING LIFE AS IN ALL OF US...

When one of those 'depressing days' comes attacking ,  I like to read this chain letter that I had received and kept for a long time.

I like what is in the message about living life and growing old....er :) 

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend. I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.

I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.

Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 50's, 60's &70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.

They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important things.
Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face.

So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore.
I've even earned the right to be wrong.

So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever,but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day(if I feel like it).

MAY OUR FRIENDSHIP NEVER COME APART ESPECIALLY WHEN IT'S STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART!

If you keep feeling down, you just gotta smile more often. The first step in changing how you feel is changing your mindset. So, let loose a little, and smile more often for no apparent reason. Let happiness slowly seep into the dark cracks of your life and you'll find life so must easier to bear

*****************************************

 

 

 

THE FINALE..2012 UNDUK NGADAU (2)

 

 

Winner -Melinda Louis, Telupid
1st runner up -Fenney Doimis, Kota Kinabalu
2nd runner up-Meryl Foster Paladius, Tambunan

***million thanks to the owners of the photographs I used here which by the way I uploaded from the net

All smiles - top three winners of the state Unduk Ngadau 2012

The final seven
7th - Raemma Justim, Tuaran
6th-  Milviana Madrigal, Kota Belud
5th- Samantha Sharon C.E. Laujang, Penampang
4th- Vanessa Samantha Manih, Tanjung Aru

COUNTDOWN TO THE FINALE....2012 UNDUK NGADAU (1)

****Thank you to all owners whose photographs I have randomly taken online .....special thanks to David Aramaitii for his photographs I  used here.
Top 15
***********
Likas
 Inanam
Banggi
 KotaMarudu
KKinabalu
 Telupid
Tambunan
Ranau
Kota Belud
 Tuaran
KualaPenyu
 Penampang
TanjungAru
 Pagalungan
KlangValley

*I got nine here correctly
TOP 7
**************
Thanks to DAVID ARAMAITII for his beautiful photographs
- his hp no is shown on his pictures...call him if you ever need his professional photography service :)