Nails

You choose: Rubber chicken and a generic dance band or a bed of nails to lie on. Undecided? OK, bed of nails, a simulated 6.4 earthquake and a build-your-own Martian rover to play with. Play, indeed, edutainment-style, is what the Discovery Science Center is offering to turn the usual hotel-ballroom holiday party, awards dinner or prom night into virtual Earth, air and space exploration.

Handling the hammer like a veteran carpenter, 14-year-old Karen Clark offers a no-nonsense lesson in how to pound nails. "It's all in the wrist," she says matter-of-factly at a Pacoima construction site. "Look, you move your whole arm and your arm gets tired. You might miss the nail and hit your thumb. Use your wrist and you can hammer all day long." During the past three weeks, Clark has learned a few things about building houses: how to erect scaffolding, caulk a joint and earthquake-proof a home.

I had just returned to bed. Suddenly thunder sounded, announcing the collapse of the Northridge Meadows apartment complex as it "sat down on itself" . . . and on me. I was to remain buried underneath this complex for nearly six hours. Six hours of darkness, of pain, of hearing the rescuers hard at work--all around me. Then came that dreadful moment. The drilling stopped. The rescuers were leaving! That nails from the structure had pierced my abdomen meant nothing in that moment--I would learn later that the heavy beams pressing down upon my legs actually prevented me from bleeding to death!

Nearly every practice ends with Lakers guard Ramon Sessions performing 20 push-ups. It means he just lost a shooting contest once again to Pau Gasol, leaving Sessions with the same frustrated feeling the Denver Nuggets have felt this first-round series when the 7-foot forward nails mid-range jumpers with deadly accuracy. But Sessions had other concerns after finally beating Gasol after Thursday's practice. Gasol boasted to Sessions that he'll also try to record 10 assists in a game at some point.

The Republican Party has been doing a lot of hand-wringing and finger-pointing since the presidential election. Half the conservative columnists and bloggers say the GOP lost because it overemphasized social issues such as abortion and gay marriage. The other half says the party didn't emphasize them enough. And everyone denounces Project ORCA, the campaign's attempt to turn out voters via technology. But I've got a suggestion for cutting short the GOP angst: Sarah Palin for president in 2016.

A flagstone patio is attractive, practical and creates a bridge between your house and the outdoors. It is best built on a level or gently sloping site. When designing it, consider shade, privacy and access from the house. Avoid placing it where an overhanging roof will drip water on it as heavy rains can cause the stones to settle unevenly. Flagstones come in many sizes, starting at a nominal 12-inch stone and increasing by 6-inch increments to 36 inches and occasionally 42 inches.

Are you planning to watch HBO's "Phil Spector"? Then step into my cubicle. We need to talk. I'm just a reporter, so my opinions about film aesthetics don't add up to much, but as one of the only journalists to cover both of Spector's murder trials, I can tell you that this movie, which premieres Sunday, is a bomb factually. And in an era when millions depend on "The Daily Show" for their news and best picture nominees for their history lessons, that scares me. Most viewers will know very little about the Spector case, and when the program is over, their understanding will be deeply flawed.

You could say Backpage.com is a page nearly everyone wants to rip out of the Internet, crumple up and throw away. Last week, two legal cases out of Washington state illustrated how the popular website, known for its promotion of adult escort services, has to cling by its nails to the generosity of American law to survive. On Friday, three girls - two 13 and one 15  at the time they ran away from home - filed suit in Pierce County Superior Court against Backpage.com, alleging it allowed them to be bought and sold over the site for sex by the pimps who captured them.

Good grooming extends beyond (and below) the neckline, and one of the most important ? and overlooked ? things a guy can do is take decent care of his own two hands. And it is more than just vanity. "There's a real health benefit in it for men," says Beverly Hills dermatologist Dr. Harold Lancer. "Because men use their hands in a lot of places women would never go" ? like under car hoods. "So cuticle care, especially, is an important way to protect against infection. " We know what you're probably thinking, but in reality, a manual overhaul doesn't require darkening the doorstep of a nail salon.

Home sales are setting a rapid pace in most cities. With mortgage interest rates continuing to stay low, the traditional peak spring home-buying season promises to be an excellent time to be a buyer or seller. But a confusing aspect of home sales involves determining what is and is not included in the sale. Bitter fights between residence buyers, sellers and sometimes even their real estate agents too frequently erupt over what items automatically go along with the property.