text:
Some music is damn scary stuff. I'm not talking about the mostly juvenile Satanisms of Black Sabbath or Slayer or the "gargling vomit" histrionics of death metal. That kind of music is all about effect and atmosphere; it can be mighty enjoyable if you like that kind of thing, in the same way as a horror film or a good gothic novel, but I have the constant overriding feeling that it is all a performance. "Angel Of Death" is a brutally effective evocation of Auschwitz and the abominable deeds of Joseph Mengele, from the screaming insanity of the dueling guitar solos to the pummeling double bass drums, but it is essentially just that – a musical rendition of a terrible historical event. It is an act.
Nor I do not include distinctly sepulchral albums like Nirvana's Unplugged, or aggressively bleak albums like The Wall or Lou Reed's Berlin. In the former case, Unplugged, while funereal, is often elegiac, seeming to welcome death. A case can be made for In Utero being a more frightening album (the unraveling second half now feels to be more meaningful: at the time of release it felt lazy, now it feels like a metaphor for Kurt Cobain's entire life), but it too has patches of warmth and heart, as in "Pennyroyal Tea" and the lovely "All Apologies". The Wall seems to me to be almost autistically bitter, and unpleasant to listen to apart from the well-known highlights, while Berlin is Lou Reed's chameleonic exploration of psychic areas: here he mines a grim and bitter seam, but his eye is dispassionate, not involved. No: for true fear, you've got to have a sense of artistic and personal involvement. Thomas Hardy said the role of the poet is to move the reader's heart by showing his own: Reed, oddly enough for a poet of a rock n' roller, rarely does this (except perhaps in "Street Hassle" and much of the New York album. Ellen Willis notes in her magnificent essay on the Velvet Underground how even standout tracks like "Venus In Furs" and "Sister Ray" are dramatisations rather than self-projections. Reed was always keen to let others sing his words: lyrics were not confessionals to him but literary creations).
The real horror, as good writers in the genre know, is within. The scariest music is that which evokes human feelings and situations. No supernatural bogeymen or monsters are necessary. While I have a vivid imagination and can get the fear like anyone else, the most terrible, scariest, times in my life have had little external cause – it's all been internal. This is what truly frightening music evokes: mental landscapes of anguish, dread, angst, and even terror.
Joy Division Closer
While Unknown Pleasures often gets greater plaudits, this is the Joy Division album I find most unsettling. It is clearly the sound of a man (singer/lyricist Ian Curtis, of course) at the end of his tether. Unknown Pleasures is ferociously, even glossily, bleak – "Day Of Lords" is magnificent in its darkness (that staggering cry of "Where will it end?!"), while the increasing echo and reverb in "She's Lost Control" give mind to being lost in a hall of mirrors– but Closer is the sound of painful acceptance. There is no light; there never will be. Even the most uptempo tune in the album, "Isolation", rings out with a glacial synthesizer, suggesting an utter cutting off of all social relations, all warmth, all humanity. Quieter, dragging tunes like "Passover", "Decades" and "Heart And Soul" meanwhile evoke not the furious night of Unknown Pleasures but the bleak quiet dawn as suicide beckons. Perhaps the most affecting track is "The Eternal" which is clearly a funeral march. "Procession moves gone, the shouting is over", as Curtis' opening line has it. It's all over; nothing more to fight for.
If all this is true, then why listen to it? What enjoyment can you derive from hearing a man prepare to kill himself? Tough question. Art to me is the conveying of feeling and emotion. Closer does that with unerring skill. To appreciate it, all you need is humanity and empathy. But that does not mean that the album grows any less somber a listen.
The scale of its achievement grows as the years roll by. Here is a literal musical suicide note. It is horrifying, bleak and grim. But it is brave, and true.
Manic Street Preachers The Holy Bible
The Manics weren't really taken seriously when they first popped up in the early 90s, with their heavy Clash borrowings, silly interview edginess, eyeliner and agitprop sloganeering. Their first album (a double, no less) is often transparently derivative, but has some nice hooks and big harmonies, even some sly humour. Their next, Gold Against The Soul, saw them chasing LA rock when it was obviously heading up the arse of Guns N' Roses. (Still, "La Tristessa Durera" is a very good song). All of this led to guitarist Richey Edwards being asked if they were "for real". In response, the self-cutting Edwards carved (not cut, but carved) "4 REAL" into his arm. Red flags and alarm bells aplenty there.
The Manics' third album was perhaps even more shocking. The Holy Bible is a trawl through the charnel house of history and the screams of disturbed minds. It examines (with intense and apt musical accompaniment) the Holocaust, serial killers (imploring they be killed too – "Give them the respect they deserve!"), and the abuse of American imperial power ("Grenada, Haiti, Poland, Nicaragua"). But more disturbing are the songs on body horror, depression and self-destruction. Few albums can have opened with such disturbing song as "Yes", with its bleak and bitter portrait of prostitution ("He's a boy, you want a girl so cut off his cock", "I hurt myself to get pain out"). There's just an overwhelming feeling of disgust and despair. "Of Walking Abortion" is a stunning feral howl – not the poignant cry that "I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all", but a raging scream at the ugliness and bitterness of the world ("Everyone is guilty / Fucked up, don't know why? You poor little boy"), and an violent recognition that we are all walking abortions. Grotesque cynicism like this had not been heard since maybe prime-era Throbbing Gristle. With its pounding rock beats and vicious intent, The Holy Bible is an exhausting, disgusted trawl through the ugly festering pile of humanity. It is a not so much a glimpse into the abyss, but a jump headfirst into it. Just six months after recording, its prime creative source and lyricist Richy Edwards' car was found at the Severn service station, a popular suicide spot. He has not been seen since.
Nico The Marble Index
Nico's first album was produced by Tom Wilson, who also "produced" the first Velvet Underground album (i.e. the one "& Nico"). Chelsea Girls is relatively melodic, matching Nico's Germanic singing with folky, European arrangements. Only the atonal guitar/viola scrapings and melismatic caterwauling of central track "It Was A Pleasure Then" reminds the listener of the Velvets, being somewhere between "European Son" and "Heroin". Nico wasn't overly pleased by Wilson's arrangements, saying:
I still cannot listen to it, because everything I wanted for that record, they took it away. I asked for drums, they said no. I asked for more guitars, they said no. And I asked for simplicity, and they covered it in flutes! […] They added strings, and— I didn't like them, but I could live with them. But the flute! The first time I heard the album, I cried and it was all because of the flute.
Her second album, The Marble Index, does not feature any flute. Instead, pulsating harmonium and glacial strings are the order of the day. In "Lawns Of Dawn", Nico's vocals and the harmonium create a weird, incantatory atmosphere, which often recurs (as on "Facing The Wind" and "Frozen Warnings"). Soundscapes, rather than songs, evoke a grim, bleak, joyless emotional atmosphere. The skill is compelling (John Cale did much of the instrumentation) in precise evocation, though the audience must surely be limited (though Siouxsie Sioux and Robert Smith evidently had close listens).
In the album, Nico gives a sense of her being deeply emotionally damaged, and seeking the cold comfort of isolation. It is no surprise to learn that she was addicted to heroin for a long spell in the 1970s and 1980s.
(The funny thing is, as bleak as The Marble Index is, Nico's cover of "The End" on a later album is even more unsettling).
Radiohead Kid A
I guess Radiohead have the mantle of the modern kings of gloom. (To be fair, later albums like In Rainbows do seem to admit a little tenderness). While The Bends married tales of loss and woe to anthemic (god, how I hate the word "anthems"!) indie rock, and OK Computer went further into alt rock and condemnation of modern life, Kid A was a revelation (to me at least). Marrying an overwhelming sense of despair at not just modern life but existence itself to cold electronics and the discordances of post-Coltrane jazz, Kid A is an album of overwhelming can't-take-more-of-this anguish. This is best seen in the song "The National Anthem". I described it in another blogpost (I don't think I can convey it any better) as:
unlike anything I have ever heard, apart perhaps from John Coltrane's almost violent explorations of atonality (in Live At The Village Vanguard… Again! for example). Thom Yorke's tinny voice, the malevolent parping of the atonal brass, the insistent obligatto of the bass, the overwhelming atmosphere of mounting despair and horror, completed by the crushing final chord.
"Everything In Its Right Place" is a ominous opener – is it just me or does the album cover suggest it? – with its bleak, icy atmosphere and cutting winds. It's not all great – "Optimistic" is essentially Radiohead by numbers, and "Idioteque" is a leaden, boring pastiche of drum and bass and an easy lyrical target. But songs like "National Anthem", "Morning Bell", "Kid A", How To Disappear Completely" and "Everything" add up to one of the most viscerally bleak and musically astute albums I've ever heard.


text:
Potter Drilling, which is partly funded by Google.org, is developing a novel drill which uses heat, rather than abrasion, to break through rock.
Rocks do not expand uniformly when they get hot. This creates stress between the grains of the mineral sand that causes them to break apart. According to Jared Potter, chief executive of Potter Drilling, "The key is to heat it very quickly".
The idea was developed in the 1950s using hot air, effectively fired from a jet engine, to split rocks. But this only worked close to the surface in applications such as quarrying. The Potter drill uses super-heated water rather than air and is expected to work at great depths.
In a traditional drilling rig, most of the energy is wasted in friction and other inefficiencies. Drill bits wear out frequently – in certain types of rock, it may only be possible to drill for 30 metres before they need to be replaced. Jared Potter explained that "Our technology doesn't have a bit, can drill continuously and we can drill 3-5 times faster than they can. .. And we're not taking the bit in and out of the hole. Our energy is right at the rock face."
In the past 18 months, the company has drilled test holes of 2.5 to 10 centimetres in diameter through hard rocks. In August this year, the company will, for the first time, drill a 10 centimetre hole to a depth of 300 metres. Jared Potter said that "A realistic target for this type of intermediate development would be 5 kilometres. Eventually our goal is to be able to drill to 10km."
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has estimated that tapping just 2% of the potential of enhanced geothermal ("hot rock") energy between 3 and 10 kilometres below the surface of the continental USA could supply more than 2,500 times the country's total annual energy use.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Jacky gold Moonstone bracelet
The Jacky gold Moonstone bracelet is a thin hand crochet bracelet of brass beads with a pendant of a Moonstone gemstone. The Moonstone stands for: clarity, balance and stimulates female wisdom.
Availability: Out of stock
- Sku
- Producer
- Beads for life
- Type
- Bracelet
- Color
- White
- Material
- Brass, Gemstone
- Gemstone
- Moonstone
Shipping costs
Netherlands € 1,95
Outside EU €9,95
Netherlands 1-3 working days
Europe 3-6 working days
Outside Europe 6+ working days
In case you have any questions or concerns about your delivery, don't hesitate to contact our Customer service
change & return
Change or return within 14 days is possible.
For more information check Terms and conditions


text:
Crean consoles IU beginner Bryant after detriment to UNC – WISH
Published: Mar 26, 2016, 2:12 pm
Published: Mar 26, 2016, 2:12 pm
(WISH photo)
PHILADELPHIA (WISH) – The deteriorate came to an finish for a IU Men's Basketball group Friday night in Philadelphia in a Sweet 16 of a NCAA Tournament.
The Hoosiers fell 101-86 to Roy Williams and a University of North Carolina Tar Heels. Some members of a group took a detriment generally hard.
The fulfilment that a deteriorate had come to an finish ravaged IU's Thomas Bryant.
Moments after a game, IU conduct manager Tom Crean consoled a freshman.
Bryant finished with 12 points and 8 rebounds in a season-ending detriment Friday evening.
Share this:
Like this:
This entrance upheld by a Full-Text RSS use – if this is your calm and you're reading it on someone else's site, greatfully review a FAQ during fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.


text:
If I was a parent sending his kid to Rutgers I'd consider asking for my money back. Because the students' idea of "inclusion and diversity" is pretty odd indeed.
Protesters were out in full force Tuesday night during Milo Yiannopoulis' "Most Dangerous Faggot Tour" stop at Rutgers University, which brought in about 450 students.
Student protesters, reportedly from the group RU Speak Out and other organizations, stood up in the middle of Milo's speech after one protester screamed, "This man represents hatred!" and then started smearing fake blood all over themselves.
"[Rutgers groups] should not be inviting anyone like Yiannopoulos because what we stand for is inclusion and diversity," student activist Nyuma Waggeh told The Daily Targum. "If a speaker makes someone feel unsafe or uncomfortable, then they should not come to campus."
I don't think "student activist" Nyuma Waggeh understands the definition of the word "inclusion." She's probably too busy protesting to attend English class.
But on the plus side, any potential employer who Googles this knucklehead will quickly come to the realization she's job candidate kryptonite. Of course it's likely she's majoring in something useless that ends in "Studies" so the lack of job prospects is already built in, but why take the chance?


text:
A shopper looks over the items in the bakery section at DeCicco's Family Market in New City. Photo by Tania Savayan/lohud.
We've all got that special product for which we will take a special trip to a specific store.
I took to Facebook and asked for yours. Turns out, lots of people have a food fetish.
Unsurprisingly, a few of the better-known gourmet chains carry some favorites. Trader Joe's, long known for their excellent house brand, stocks several cult products: readers and staff go there for almonds (dried, roasted, unsalted or adorned with chocolate and sea salt), pretzel rolls, creamy Toscano cheese, Sun Butter, coconut strips, lemongrass chicken sticks, mini chocolate ice cream cones and dairy-free coconut ice cream.
Fairway Market is a favorite for salsa, frozen pizza from Italy and Magic Pop Chips. According to readers, Stew Leonard's is the place to go for fresh fish — especially lobster chunks (perfect for lobster rolls) and shrimp — as well as chicken pot pie from The American Pie Company.
Whole Foods is the go-to place for sweet dried mango and fresh salmon (though maybe not together). DeCicco's has a lot to offer, but it's especially great for beer.
While it may seem like one major chain is much the same as another, some chains — and even specific locations — carry certain products others don't. One reader makes special trips to Stop & Shop in Nanuet for Folger's Stomach Friendly Blend coffee and to ShopRite in Pearl River for The Baker bread. Another swears by C-Town in Tarrytown for basa stuffed with crabmeat and stuffed grape leaves.
It's not just the big stores: plenty of people visit smaller, specialty stores for specific items. H-Mart is the spot for Korean marinated meats and marinades. Old World Food Market in Nyack carries a dizzying array of fine cheeses. Mountain Olive Oil in Tarrytown has a chocolate balsamic vinegar that's apparently "incredible on vanilla ice cream." Harvest Field Market has a great selection of produce and bags of roasted, shelled chestnuts.
Not every favorite product is consistently available. One person will grab bags and bags of Herrs Cheese Puffs wherever she can find them — "perfect with a glass (or bottle) of Chardonnay!" (she sometimes finds them at ShopRite in Orangeburg). Another reader wishes she could find Old Chatham Sheepherding Co.'s Black Sheep Yogurt, especially the ginger variety, more easily. She'll sometimes find it at Organica in Northvale, N.J. but will otherwise pick some up at Murray's Cheese in Grand Central Market on her way to work. Another reader — himself a fan of Big Island Pineapple from online retailer NatureBox — recalls fetching a dozen bags of chips from a grocery store in Pennsylvania for a friend. A local Texas native fills her carry-on with a specific brand of smoked sausage on every visit home.
Of course, sometimes the store itself is the fetish property. Lohud's own Betsy Lombardi says, "I'd drive to Wegmans for the Wegmans at Wegmans. Ahhh, Wegmans!" (Rocklanders: there's one opening soon in nearby Montvale, N.J.)


text:
Cra-Z-Loom Refill Pack Yellow
Code: AA2595
- In stock
Cra-Z-Loom Refill Pack
Now you can make even more funky bracelets, necklaces, rings and other cool accessories with the Cra-z-loom refill pack. Each pack contains 300 solid colour rubber bands plus 6 's' hooks to finish off your creations. Suitable for ages 6 years and up.


text:
Sometimes I wonder why it takes me so long to get anything done. And then I remember…
Executive function is opening the jar before poking the spoon at the jam.
Executive function is boiling the kettle before trying to pour water onto the coffee grounds.
Executive function is pants, socks, shorts and running shoes … in that order.
Executive function is what lets you make dinner on the fly, without arranging all the ingredients first in order of use, neatly lined up across the countertop. Executive function is what saves 15 minutes for the oven to heat up; what gets dinner to the table on time. Executive function is being able to decide what to eat of an evening without having a plan in advance.
Executive function is being able to start a new task without rehearsing it over and over in your mind beforehand.
Executive function is stripping the bed before starting the wash into which the bedclothes were supposed to go!
Reduced executive function is why autistics need time to plan ahead for new activities.
Reduced executive function is why we can shy away from commitments or, despite our best intentions, may fail to follow through.
Reduced executive function is why we need to know miles beforehand about even the smallest changes in routine.
Reduced executive function is why so many struggle without the proper support to make it through school; to hold down a job; to manage our own homes and lives.
Reduced executive function is one of the main things that holds us back from achieving our potential.
Despite reduced executive function, thanks to careful planning, I am enjoying a unexpected flurry of wintertime productivity at work.
Despite reduced executive function, I have signed up for a frightening number of non-routine seasonal activities, artfully placed for maximum disruption to eating routines – and so far am on track to follow through on all of them!
Despite reduced executive function, with cards sent and presents waiting only to be wrapped, I am almost ready for Christmas.
With foreknowledge, we can achieve. Given control, our differences are strengths.
Happy Christmas everyone!


text:
The ABCs To Successful Trading In The Forex Market
Say hello to the worldwide foreign exchange currency markets! There is a lot for you to explore here, with wide variety in the kinds of strategies and trades available. It might seem impossible to identify the specific things that will serve you well, given what a cut throat and competitive environment this is. The advice below can give you great suggestions and lead you to success.
Always learn as much as you can about the currencies you trade, and read any financial reports or news that you can get your hands on. Speculation has a heavy hand in driving the direction of currency, and the news is usually responsible for speculative diatribe. To help you stay on top of the news, subscribe to text or email alerts related to your markets.
Choose a single currency pair and spend time studying it. If you take the time to learn all the different possible pairs, you will spend all your time learning with no hands on practice. Select one currency pair to learn about and examine it's volatility and forecasting. Keep it simple.
Note that there are always up and down markets, but one will always be dominant. It is fairly easy to identify entry and exit points in a strong, upward-trending market. Choose the trades you make based on trends.
Don't use information from other traders to place your trades — do your own research. Most people never want to bring up the failures that they have endured. Even if a trader is an expert, he can still make mistakes. Follow your own plan and not that of someone else.
When you issue an equity stop order it will eliminate some potential risks. This can help you manage risk by pulling out immediately after a certain amount has been lost.
If you are working with forex, you need to ensure you have a trustworthy broker. You should look for a brokerage firm that has been established for several years with a good track record.
When you lose money, take things into perspective and never trade immediately if you feel upset. An important tool for any forex trader is a level head. Keeping calm and focused will prevent you from making emotional mistakes with your money.
Forex should be taken seriously, and not thought of as a game. If you want to be thrilled by forex, stay away. You should just go to the casino and blow your money.
Map out a strategy with clearly defined goals, and then follow this plan consistently. When you begin trading on the Forex market, have a set number in your head about how much money you want to make and how you plan to accomplish it. All beginners will make mistakes. Don't beat yourself up over them. Additionally, it helps to ascertain the amount of time you have to invest in your trading venture, including the hours required to perform essential research.
Using stop-loss orders properly isn't a hard science and requires some finesse. As a trader, it is up to you to learn the proper balance by combining the technical aspects with your gut instinct. To properly use stop loss, you need to to be experienced.
Canadian dollars are a very safe, stable investment. If you are going to trade in a foreign currency, you want to stick with one that you can easily track. The dollar in Canada tends to go up and down at the same rate as the U. S. This makes the currency pair a safe bet.
In the world of forex, there are many techniques that you have at your disposal to make better trades. The world of forex has a little something for everyone, but what works for one person may not for another. Hopefully, these tips have given you a starting point for your own strategy.…


text:
Facility Managers
Photo: Pixabay
Inaugural 2.5-day event will convene 125+ leading AEC women in Dana Point, Calif., November 9-11,...read more
The redeveloped Central Terminal B at New York's LaGuardia Airport will have 35 gates. Construction of this $4 billion project started officially on June 1, as its public-private development partnership signed a long-term lease with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Rendering: LaGuardia Gateway Partners
The development consortium has secured financing for the $4 billion project, and signed an operat...read more
The Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral, with the 3737 Chestnut building in the background. Courtesy BLT Architects. Click here to enlarge.
The Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral capitalizes on hot property to help fund much needed upgrade...read more
UCSD Medical Center Central Plant in La Jolla, Calif. Photo: Kevin Turner. Click here to enlarge.
An undulating roof, floor-to-ceiling glass, and façade scheme give visual appeal to a plant that...read more
The new John J. Hemmingson Center's "main street" features several dining options, including a Starbucks. Photo: Christian Columbres. Click here to enlarge.
Retail mall features, comfortable furniture, and floor-to-ceiling glass add vibrancy to the new J...read more
A mock environment at the NYC Police Training Academy mimics a subway station, minus the grime. Photo: Eric Laignel/Eric Laignel Photography. Click here to enlarge.
The Police Training Academy in Queens, N.Y., consists of a 480,000-sf academic/administration bui...read more
Floor-to-ceiling glass floods the interior spaces with daylight and provides scenic views of the wooded areas that surround the property. Photo: Warren Patterson Photography. Click here to enlarge.
Lean construction techniques were used to build 275 Wyman Street during a winter that brought mor...read more
The clinic's vibrant exterior is reflective of the staff's energy for its patients. Colorful tilt-up concrete construction was used for its durability and low cost. Photo: Donald Satterlee, Satterlee Photodesign. Click here to enlarge.
The 38,000-sf, two-level John & Susan Sobrato Campus in Palo Alto is expected to serve 25,000...read more
Perforated panels and purple photovoltaic assemblies distinguish the building from the surrounding urban concrete during the day. LED "stripes" and a glowing lantern make the facility pop at night. Photo: Chang Kim Photography. Click here to enlarge.
The Building Team for the MTA Division 13 Bus Operations and Maintenance Facility fit 12 acres' w...read more
A berm in left field provides a picnic-like setting for up to 1,000 fans at CHS Field. Brick warehouses highlight the setting in the Lowertown arts district. Photo: Paul Crosby Photography/Courtesy Snow Kreilich Architects. Click here to enlarge.
Solar arrays, a public art courtyard, and a picnic-friendly "park within a park" make the 7,210-s...read more
Vertical fins provide essential shading for the pebble-shaped library, which is wrapped in glass curtain wall to maximize views and natural light. Photo: Jon Miller, Hedrich Blessing. Click here to enlarge.
The 16,000-sf, pebble-shaped Chinatown Branch Library was built at the intersection of new and ol...read more
The 53-foot-diameter oculus looms over the grand atrium. Suspended under tension within the conical atrium is the "Sky Reflector-Net," by James Carpenter Design Associates, Grimshaw Architects, and Arup. The artwork is composed of 112 tensioned cables, 224 high-strength rods, and nearly 10,000 stainless steel components; 952 aluminum panels distribute sunlight down to the lowest levels of the station. Photo: Jon Ortner/Ortner Photography.
Fulton Center, which handles 85% of the riders coming to Lower Manhattan, is like no other statio...read more
SushiSamba's 14,000-sf restaurant in Las Vegas is distinguished by a colorful, arching interior design. iCrave was the designer, PWI Construction the GC. Courtesy Forté Specialty Contractors. Click here to enlarge.
Restaurants are more than just places to eat. They are comprising town centers and playing into t...read more
Navigant Research estimates that global demand for data integration technologies for buildings will increase nearly tenford over the next 10 years. Image: Pixabay
A Navigant Research report takes a deeper dive to examine where demand will be strongest by regio...read more
Is the U.S. in an innovative funk, or is this just the calm before the storm?
Federal Center South Building 1202 in Seattle. The building, designed by ZGF Architects LLP, was a COTE Top Ten Green Project in 2013. Photo: Benjamin Benschneider
"Lessons from the Leading Edge" is a study of the 200 Committee on the Environment (COTE) Top Ten...read more
This AIA CES Discovery course discusses the six elements of an EIFS wall assembly; common EIFS fa...read more
Ollie at Carmel Place in New York offers its renters furnished apartments and a host of hospitality services. Photo courtesy Ollie
The co-living platform Ollie is leasing its initial building, in New York, with housekeeping and...read more
Courtesy Pixabay
Recent research suggests that women face yet another career impediment: the confidence gap.
Modules for a data center for one of Skanska's telecommunications clients were built in an offsite factory. Callison was the architect. Cosentini Associates provided engineering. Photo: Adam Friedberg
Data centers account for 2% of the nation's electricity consumption and about 30% of the power us...read more
The 777,100-sf development by Landbank Investment on Central & Wolfe in Sunnyvale, Calif., is just five miles from Apple's current Cupertino headquarters.
The project has been dubbed as another "spaceship," referencing the nickname for the loop-shaped...read more
JetBlue's Terminal 5 at New York's JFK International gives passengers a sense of place with its new rooftop garden. Photo: @Paul Rivera
Nimble designs, and technology that humanizes the passenger experience, are letting airports conc...read more
Image depicts a brick veneer exterior that has expanded and pulled away from the window. Image: Hoffmann Architects
With so many diverse components contributing to building envelope assemblies, it can be challengi...read more
Courtesy Foursquare
Case's bldgs = data conference highlighted how collecting data about personal activities can info...read more
Eric Salard via Flickr
Several surveys gauge passenger satisfaction with airports, as flyers and airlines weigh in on te...read more
Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport by Art davis via Wikimedia Commons
Small and regional airports are in a dogfight for survival. Airlines have either cut routes to no...read more
Logan Airport Rental Car Center, Boston. Photo: Arnold Reinhold via Wikimedia Commons
AEC teams have found fertile ground in building or expanding consolidated rental car facilities,...read more
Dan Shouse via Flickr Creative Commons
In February 2015, engineering giant Arup conducted a "salon" in San Francisco on the future of av...read more
Glass enclosed work stations between patient rooms provides staff touch down areas with full view of patients without imposing upon their respite @ MaineGeneral Hospital in Augusta, Me. Photo: Anton Grassl/Esto, courtesy TRO Jung
The newly revised guidelines from the Facilities Guidelines Institute touch on six factors that a...read more
In-board placement of bathrooms buffers corridor noise for birthing rooms at MaineGeneral Hospital in Augusta, Me. Photo: Anton Grassl/Esto
Every hospital has its own "culture" of loudness and quiet. Jacobs' Chris Kay offers steps to a t...read more


text:
Sloppy Joe Tacos with a hit of Sanctuary Dip, a side of crudités, and more dip. Really, anything and everything is good in a taco.
Aunt Elise's Sloppy Joes Vegan-styled:
1 package frozen Boca Crumbles
1 8 oz can tomato sauce (Hunt's)
2 TBL ketchup
1 TBL chili powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1.5 TBL brown sugar
1 tsp mustard
1 chopped onion
Heat a little a oil in a pan, saute onion and Boca crumbles.
Mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl.
Add mustard, ketchup, and tomato sauce. Stir well.
Pour sauce into the pan with the crumbles/onion. Simmer on low for 35-45 minutes, with the lid cracked.
Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
Serve on corn tortillas for tasty tacos, or good old burger buns for a more "traditional" dish. Top with Dip, or possibly a vegan cheese slice, or other goodies.


text:
Donna Munro is the marketing publicist for Zeus Publications and has been with the company for almost four years. She came from a desktop publishing, graphics, marketing, sales and writing background.
Donna has created this blog as a strategy to help all authors get their profile out there. She believes every author should create a blog or website, network, link and build a web presence that enables them to sell more books.
She also believes that writers should always be endeavouring to improve their craft. This means writing often, researching, taking workshops, reading reference books, networking, reading the genres you want to write – and we stress again – writing often.
If you have any suggestions for this blog or would like to feature please email Donna at: firstname.lastname@example.com.
If you would like her to write a post on your blog all you have to do is ask. If any reviewers would like to review Zeus Publications book they are available on solicited requests only. See all the titles at: www.zeus-publications.com
"Have your book with you wherever you go. You never know who you might meet and they may be able to help your book soar."


text:
Archive for the 'exercise' Category
Lose Your Fear!
Posted January 21, 2012on:
- In: exercise | fitness
- Leave a Comment
Hey, you guys!
When's the last time you had FUN working out? Be honest, now……
Have you tried a gym class? (OK, I'm biased. I teach these gym classes, and most times I'm in front of a group, I truly am having fun leading the group!)
When I talk to people at the gym about the classes, one of the top reasons I hear for not trying a certain type of class is….. FEAR. Fear of not doing it right. Fear of feeling too tired. Fear of looking like a complete idiot.
Well, for one… there's a reason I don't teach Zumba! (I dance like a white girl. I got rhythm, but…… believe me, my hips don't got the moves.) But–I've gone to a few Zumba classes! And I'm not afraid. Because people aren't looking at you. People are focused on themselves, and they're focused on having a good time! So, don't think that all eyes will be turned in your direction!
OK, so now that your first fear is out of the way, what if you can't do it? That's why the instructor is there to help! Just come a few minutes early to class and talk to the instructor. Tell him or her that you've never been to this sort of class before, and ask how they can help! Ask how the more challenging moves can be modified, if necessary. Build a relationship with the instructor–we love this! Take breaks during the class if things get too rough, and there's no harm in leaving early if you need to. Start with 30 minutes the first class, 35 minutes the next week, and within a few weeks–you've built up to making it through the entire class! Go, you!
Now for fear number three: what if you can't do it? OK, y'all: look at any group fitness class. Is it full of perfect people, executing each move perfectly? 99% of the time… NO! So, unless you're injuring yourself (and, hopefully your pre-class discussion with the instructor has eliminated this possibility) who cares if you look like you belong in So You Think You Can Dance? Just do your thang! Keep on moving–your calories don't care if you have the choreography 100% perfect, they'll still burn!
So hopefully I've inspired you to run, walk, ambulate in some fashion… to a new group exercise class. Try it out, bring a friend…
And if you've had a spectacularly fun experience, talk about it below!
- In: exercise | fitness | food | recipes
- 4 Comments
Good busy news from me! I'm running about 12-15 miles per week, I have one more class to go to make 9 fitness classes taught this week, and… while I'm a bit exhausted, everything seems to be in working order! Go, me!
So, I've been trying to find recipes that aren't too challenging (yeah, I really don't feel like standing up in the kitchen for hours this week, nor do I feel like cleaning a ton of stuff) but provide a lot of nutrition. A quick web search led me to this veggie-filled recipe, which I tweaked in several places.
This is one of those recipes where it's tough to figure out a name, since it's full of so much stuff! It also contains spinach, onions, garlic, a few seasonings…. wait, don't run away! There isn't a long ingredient list, don't worry.
I cut back on the amount of liquid in the soup (this was based on the comments at the end) and it ends up giving you more of a stew, not much broth. If you want more broth, increase the amount that you add. THe original recipe calls for 5 cups of broth, and I probably wouldn't go quite that high.
White Bean, Fennel, and Tomato Soup
based on an All Recipes recipe
1 large onion, chopped
1 fennel bulb, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
3 c veggie broth (more if desired)
1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste)
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 bay leaf
4 c shredded fresh spinach
1. Saute onion, garlic, and fennel in oil over medium-low heat about 5 minutes, until starting to soften.
2. Add broth, beans, tomatoes, thyme, pepper, salt, red pepper, and bay leaf and bring to boil, Reduce heat to simmer, cover, and let simmer another 30 minutes or until fennel is tender. Remove bay leaf.
3. Add spinach and cook another ~3 minutes or until spinach is wilted. Adjust seasonings and serve!
The weather is wonderfully sunny outside, so I'm going to take advantage with a longer run in a few minutes! (I did see one of the news stations predict a low of 17 degrees today, though–hopefully that's passed! Brrrr!!!) Go and make it a great weekend, whatever it is you're doing!
I'm back!
Posted December 28, 2011on:
- In: exercise | fitness | food | goalsetting | Pilates | Uncategorized | vacation
- Leave a Comment
Hey, gang! I've returned from my holiday adventure, and I want to share it with you all! We went to Germany, Belgium, France, and Luxembourg to check out their Christmas markets. Though the weather could have cooperated a bit more (maybe 9 hours of sun on the whole trip), it was a really great adventure, and we ate a lot of good food. I did manage several Pilates sessions, and further explored exercises that I can accomplish all while not lying on a questionable hotel floor! (So–Pilates while standing, Pilates on a bed…)
I blogged about the trip, and there are many pictures, so take your time to peruse. You can check it all out at
I'm getting back into my daily routine–even teaching two spin classes tonight–and glad to say that the knee strain from a few weeks before the trip disappeared shortly after we started… hooray! So, I'll see what kind of running I'm able to do once I shake the rest of this respiratory infection.
Start thinking of your 2012 goals… I'll be back with a recipe on Friday, and the new year is just around the corner!
Hola, Amigos!
I hope those in the Southwest and the Northeast are doing OK! It seems that once we finally got our perfect weather, the rest of the country started going to shambles. Be careful, OK?
As for me, I've been playing around with different workout routines (why not…) and started experimenting with a Jamie Eason lifting routine this week. It's supposed to give me a "whole new body", but I imagine the "new body" would appear more quickly if I were to follow the nutrition plan (too regimented for me). Anyway, the lifting has been different and challenging–good stuff!
Also, a few home improvement projects this week… but that leaves me wondering: is today's hamstring strain from 1. more weight lifting, 2. two rounds of pressure washing, 3. back-to-back spin classes and working the second one extra hard (I know, baaaadddd…), or 4. using a Peak reformer (heavier springs) to do Pilates last night? Toooo many variables.
Today's recipe involves changing only one variable in a recipe I've made several times previously–yielding entirely different flavor! Fortuitously, I'd run out of quinoa, so–what the heck–try it with bulgur and see what happens!
The result was a sensory illusion–almost creaminess, despite no dairy at all in the recipe!
So, here's my rough translation of what I did.
Warm Bulgur, Roasted Corn, and Caramelized Onion Salad
very loosely based on a Mark Bittman recipe
2 c bulgur
2 c mushroom broth
canola oil
2 onions, peeled and sliced into half-moons
1 c corn (either fresh if you can get it, or thawed from frozen)
salt and fresh-ground pepper to taste
1. Place the bulgur in a large bowl. Warm the mushroom broth (not to boiling) and pour over the bulgur. Stir, and allow the bulgur to sit for 20-30 minutes until chewy (it will soak up the liquid).
2. Meanwhile, roast the corn: in a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp canola oil on medium-high heat. When hot, add (thawed) corn, Cook/roast, stirring frequently, until some spots of brown appear on the outside and corn is fragrant, ~7 minutes. (Don't let it burn!) This should smell good!
3. Also meanwhile, caramelize the two onions using the best caramelized onions technique. Triple multi-task!!! (These things don't need constant stirring, so it's easy.) **If you use oil and not butter in the onions, you can keep the dish vegan!
4. When the bulgur is hydrated to your level of doneness, pour off any extra liquid (push it through a strainer so you don't lose any precious bulgur!). Place it back in the bowl, and stir in the roasted corn and caramelized onions. Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve warm.
I just finished off what was leftover of this to fuel our day's hike! Go, complex carbs!
So, we'll see how the hamstring does during the hike… and Sunday, in honor of those who can't, I'm going to try to (run a minute or two–yikes!) for the first time on my post-op hip and leg. I promise not to do anything stupid… but at the same time, wish me luck!
Tuesday's Things
Posted August 16, 2011on:
- In: exercise | fitness | funny | Pilates | recipes | rehabilitation | strength training
- 6 Comments
Tuesday Tuesday……. so it was just last week that I wrote that "I'm going to save the world despite my current limitations" post. I have been doing a lot of writing toward the Big Goal, true.
But… deep sigh. I've been getting conflicting advice on how to deal with my medical issue (and I'm definitely out of time to save my college teaching job for the fall). Adding to that, just a few hours ago, I found out that what I thought was "just an old crown falling off an old root canal" is really a tooth that needs an implant. (I'm not that old, yet!!! And I won't tell you how much it costs, since I'm still in denial.)
I'm just having so much trouble letting all of this sink in…. productivity, while not a standstill, isn't too great. Sometimes I just need to be in the backyard and pluck weeds. Don't we all?
Meanwhile, why not kick back for a few laughs and good things to think about:
1. When I'm in charge of the world, I'm going to paste this sign on doors everywhere.
2. This one's hilarious!!! Batman!
3. 20 ice cream recipes. One of them is the easy and healthy frozen banana puree–I can vouch that it tastes fantastic!
4. Have trouble motivating yourself to exercise? Here are 5 ways to exercise even if you don't like to exercise.
5. A push in the right direction for our educational system?
On a better note, today, I took a Bodypump class for the first time since my second hip surgery. I held up great! The lunges were the only thing that bothered me a tiny bit, and I just eased up. I'm going to try and add this to my weekly routine! This, plus two spin classes, plus swimming once a week, plus a short hike once a week… wait, wasn't it just a month ago that I could only handle easy cardio and upper body weights? I have made big-time progress in recovering my body!
If you're a Pilates diehard like me, and you're on Facebook, search for the event 30 Day Challenge. It's led by Mo Wolfe of Evolution Pilates on Long Island (in Bruce's hometown!)–she's challenging us to do some Pilates every day for the month of August. We're a little over halfway there–come join us, if you can!
See you Friday with a yummy recipe!
Obstacles Into Triumphs
Posted August 10, 2011on:
- In: career | exercise | fitness | goalsetting | rehabilitation | Uncategorized
- 4 Comments
Hi, Friends.
I'm typically not much of a Wednesday poster, but inspiration struck (duck and cover!) and I totally felt the need to get this out to you.
While driving yesterday, I realized how much time I'd lost this past week wallowing over this freak vocal cord nerve injury. And before that, I'd probably done the same over the hip surgery that didn't go well (in 2010) and had to be redone, plus some.
But why waste time crying over things out of our control? None of us are getting any younger.
It's fine to feel sorry for ourselves, true. And I've found that sometimes, the current path just seems so unbearable that I just can't find focus and have to chill out. But either to ourselves or others, it just becomes the broken record after a while. And just like a broken record, it continues on the same useless pathway. At some point, we have to pack up and move on as best we can.
Which is what I have done and have continued to do. And you know what? This approach has shown me opportunities I never would've imagined, if I'd been left to continue along my same road.
OK, so the Leprechaun of Ideas doesn't jump onto your shoulder at 2pm every afternoon. (I wish! But then, we'd all be rich.) This takes some brainpower. But think of it this way: you're developing awesome critical thinking skills!
Case In Point 1: prior to my first hip surgery (April 2010), I was running a fitness business with two corporate clients and a few private clients as well as teaching fitness classes for 4-5 gyms. I wanted to expand my business, but I didn't have time to think about how to do that, or to do it at all… despite being married to an MBA in marketing. Surgery #1 led to complications and Surgery #2. After the requisite feeling sorry for myself, I got going and put my brain to work. I talked to other instructors. I did some marketing (and learned what does and doesn't work in this area and field). I hired more contractors. I expanded my business to include other types of classes. I even tried a second business (which… didn't work, but it was a great learning experience!). I now proudly call myself a small business owner!
When I was getting ready to teach again (that is, working for others), I almost didn't want to let previous employers know I was available. I preferred having the time to strategize for myself! (Though, gotta say that I do like the steady income stream that I get from bigger companies.)
Case In Point 2: My current struggle. Just when I literally got my feet under me to teach again (and also got a college class to teach in the fall), I have a timeline of potentially three months until I can talk again. This hit me from out of nowhere–I didn't anticipate this sort of limitation when I was dreaming up projects to take me into the end of the year and going forward.
But life has a way of throwing us curveballs, doesn't it? And again… we can't stand still while it blows past us. To me, that just isn't living!
So, during the next few (loooonnngggg) months, other than non-work-related stuff such as improving my piano playing and cleaning up the jungle that is my backyard, I've come up with four work-related projects that don't require speaking:
1. Getting my body back to the strength that it was before Hip Surgery #1 (which was the best shape of my life other than torn hip cartilage)
2. Make a new trifold brochure for my business, now that I offer Zumba classes, which may get me more corporate business (and plan a guerrilla marketing attack for the beginning of the year!!!)
3. Keep going on the….. (book) that I write in spurts. Since I'm oh-so-experienced in rehab (plus 500-hour Pilates certified), I've been working on a… document, in laymans' terms, to help people recover from injury using Pilates-based exercise. I need to redouble efforts.
4. Lower priority, but script videos. I intend to create a YouTube channel of short videos that, once again, use Pilates-based exercise to help people reduce pain in various parts of their body. Big goal of mine in life is to help the world feel better without pharmaceuticals! (Ironic, given my masters' degree in pharmaceutical chemistry…)
See? It takes a little bit of the gerbil running in that mental wheel, but you can come up with some fruitful projects that will get you toward your life/career goals, despite current limitations. (Try to make your projects meaningful, rather than, say, learning Swahili. Unless you are absolutely taken by the Swahili language, and by all means, go for it!)
Maybe by the end of allllll of this… I won't need or want to go back to working for the man at all. Now, wouldn't that be a hoot? Having had illnesses and injuries that supposedly take me out of work for a combined few years, but during that time, I end up generating a successful income stream. That would be amazing, and it's my goal.
I encourage all of you to share this with anyone who's going through a rough time in life! Any rough patch can be turned around… and can lead you into more exciting territory!!
- In: dessert | exercise | fitness | food | fun projects | healthy habits | recipes
- Leave a Comment
Hi hi!
Good to see you guys again! Last week, I mentioned that it was time for my monthly swimsuit shot post, with my weight loss progress. Well…. (here come the excuses) I didn't post last week, since my right leg was covered with nasty bruises from a household renovation project. (I guess I could've just shown you my left side.) Now that the bruises have started to fade, I'm looking puffier from a round of prednisone that I had to take, for the month-long bout of laryngitis. (Which is still continuing. Back to the doctor today. Think good thoughts. And loud thoughts. This is too long to be nonfunctional.)
In any case, I have a bruised right side and a thick midsection, even though I'm now working out more, and harder, than the Initial Plan outlined in the first note. Siiiiigh. What to do but keep pressing on, and have faith that things will all work out in the end, right?
Right. So, for now, here are a few fun things to keep you entertained this fine Tuesday!
1. Poor Cookie Monster.
2. A comic on the importance of exercise.
3. Very cute! Decorate your food with vegetable flowers.
4. Make some glow stick lanterns for your end of summer outdoor parties!
5. This looks tasty and easy (and good finger food for gatherings): Cinnamon-Sugar Pretzels
6. Very pretty apples with cream cheese dip!
That's it for the day, y'all–happy August, and I hope you have fun plans for the month! Friday is my birthday, and we're still putting together some interesting shenanigans. I'll try to squeeze in a recipe before the end of the week–maybe homemade mustard!


text:
India: Reviving Old Hemp History by Making Way for New Hemp Industry
International hemp production is at an estimated $1.5 trillion per year and is currently dominated by China, France and Germany.... Read full article
Italy: Food | Clothing | Shelter, and anything you can think of - Hemproject
"Hemp has always been present in human history and have always produced a lot of products. But the most important thing is, it is a fundamental resource for environmental sustainability."... Read full article
4 Affordable CBD Oils That Even Non Cannabis Users Will Appreciate
We hope this will help you in your search for affordable CBD!... Read full article
Philippines: Newly appointed Health Secretary Duque OK's Medical Cannabis
He said that strict safeguards and a narrow applicability must be in placed and that Medical cannabis must be strictly regulated to ensure that it will not be prone to abuse. ... Read full article
Israel: The Epicenter Of Medical Cannabis
While importing cannabis into the United States remains illegal under federal law, companies can still import from Israel by acquiring drug approval from the FDA by meeting the agency's requirement for drug approval.... Read full article
China: A New Frontier For The Green Rush
With offices in the United States and plans to branch out into Canada, Israel, Japan and Europe, Tang said the company was taking the plant to all member countries in China's "Belt and Road Initiative", an infrastructure scheme to link China with the... Read full article
How One 12 Year Old Girl Is Suing General Jeff Sessions Because of Medical Cannabis
How can one child change general Session's mind? ... Read full article
The Big Grant That Lead These Florida Researchers to Start Investigating Marijuana In HIV
Cannabis has always been the forefront of medical patients with cases such as cancer, epilepsy, anxiety, inflammatory, high blood pressure, insomnia and much more. It's only natural that it be a viable medication for HIV patients.... Read full article
Gallup Poll: 64% of Americans Are Voting To Support The Legalization of Marijuana
The votes are at 64%, which is higher than it ever has been. After analyzing the results, the majority of the votes are Democrats. ... Read full article
Senator Sotto: Let us stand up against legalization of marijuana now
Sotto said that according to the Office of National Drug Control Policy of the United States of America, Tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, a major component of the marijuana plant, has many "negative effects"... Read full article


text:
This tag was number ten of a series of 12 tags in the December issue of the Norwegian magazine - "Ett trykk". I wanted to show different styles and techniques. This is an example of vintage
The original tag is made is a dies from Tim Holtz Sizzix Die TAG & BOOKPLATES Movers And Shapers. The paper is from Prima – Fairy Belle Collection – Firefly. The kids are from Minnehjørnet.


text:
Many times the family of a gay partner in a marriage believes they have the right to inherit all of his or her belongings, but in most cases the inheritance is awarded to the marriage partner.
El Paso, Texas (PRWEB) September 09, 2013
Susan Eisen, author of "The Million-Dollar Dishrag: An Effective and Powerful Plan to Avoid a Family Inheritance Battle After You Die" and authority on avoiding inheritance squabbles within families, finds potential new trouble areas for same-sex couples in the selection of an executor of a will.
When the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act on June 26, 2013, thereby giving federal recognition to same-sex marriages, the decision set into motion transformative legal changes in estate planning, inheritance, and heirloom distribution.
However, one important area that has not received as much attention is estate planning for same-sex or gay couples is the distribution of heirlooms such as art, jewelry, coins, antiques, and other collections. According to Susan Eisen, author of "The Million-Dollar Dishrag: An Effective and Powerful Plan to Avoid a Family Inheritance Battle After You Die," it's never too early for committed couples of any gender to broach the subject of what happens to an individual's heirlooms in the event of death or divorce. "Family inheritance issues and potential family battles with survivors are not unique to same-sex unions," Eisen notes, "but the same concerns that can arise among siblings over parents' estates can be even more problematic with heirs in what many families see as non-traditional or gay and controversial marriages." Many times the family of a gay partner in a marriage may believe they have the right to inherit all of his or her belongings, but in most cases the inheritance is awarded to the partner in marriage. This can cause great strain to the families involved and bitter battles may ensue. For that reason, careful inheritance advising and planning is necessary for the same-sex couple.
Eisen recommends in her various speaking engagements to groups that couples be very clear with each other and with each other's families – parents, siblings, and in some cases, ex-spouses and children – about their wishes for not only estate planning and financial holdings, but also for treasured items such as jewelry, artwork, collections, antiques, and heirlooms. "Among the first decisions to discuss is the selection of an executor in the will for the estate," she advises. "While you are in good health and long before such a person is needed, think about what you wish to happen to your belongings and who you wish to appoint as your executor. Discuss your wishes with your partner, who may end up being your designated executor, and family members from both sides of the families."
While many same-sex or gay unions have children, most do not, a situation that can make appointing an executor more complicated. Your partner may be your first choice as an executor – or may not. An executor has a variety of legal responsibilities in the division of an estate, but also has to remain sensitive and supportive of survivors as a will is processed. The selection of an appropriate executor is one of the most important elements of estate planning and many neglect to treat it as such. Eisen, a jewelry, art, and collectible appraiser recommends that the executor be impartial, and be someone who is accepting of the same-sex relationship and who will not change their position upon the death of a loved one. As an inheritance advisor, Eisen recommends outside professional help can make the choice easier and trouble free.
Whether an individual is leaving behind a fortune or a modest estate, everyone needs to make a choice for an executor: his or her partner, a trust officer, an attorney or other trusted professional or a family member. Eisen recommends first consulting professionals in estate planning, such as a trusted attorney and accountant, to help in the selection of an executor for a couple. The choice of an executor could still end up being a close friend or relative. But whoever you choose, be sure that the person is committed to do what's best for the deceased and their family and is not looking out for their own personal interest.
About Susan Eisen
Since launching her art and jewelry gallery and appraisal practice in the early 1980's and sharing her desire for inheritances to become a positive family event, Ms. Eisen has become a sought after advisor for attorneys, CPAs, bankers, estate planners, private collectors and consumers for the valuation and distribution of family heirlooms. She has worked with thousands of clients on their collections of jewelry, gemstones, silver, fine art, coins, and other precious treasures and has helped hundreds of clients avoid having once-loving family relationships turn into fierce family inheritance battles. She is credentialed with many appraisal organizations including the American Society of Appraisers, the International Society of Appraisers, the American Gem Society, the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers, and the Accredited Gemologists Association and is a consultant, speaker, advisor, and expert witness in her industry. She has been interviewed and quoted in over 160 articles in national magazines and is a respected inheritance expert to her clients who live all over the world.


text:
08/16/2010 // US // TiffNews10 // News Desk
U.S. – Men who make less than their female partners may be more likely to be unfaithful in a relationship according to a recent study. As reported by HealthDay News, researchers found that income may have an effect on infidelity, not only with men, but also with women who make more money than their male partners.
Study author Christin Munsch is quoted in the report as stating of the research findings, "With women, they were less likely to engage in infidelity the less money they make relative to their husband… But for men, the less money you make relative to your spouse, the more likely you are to engage in infidelity."
The research findings were reportedly released at the recent annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in Atlanta.
The latest in Health News
Media Information:
Phone: ——–
Url: http://TiffNews10.visionsmartnews.com/lower-income-of-male-partner-makes-infidelity-more-likely_1916.html


text:
What's the Best Way to Get Your Website Noticed?
Congratulations!!! You now have a new website. Your next biggest goal is to figure out what's the best way to get your website noticed. You don't want your site to be noticed by only your relatives and friends. You want a website that attracts visitors that appreciate the information you bring to them because you help them find answers to their problems.
The purpose of this article is to show you how to attract visitors and make them eager to come back for even more. Note, however, that not all of these suggestions pertain to your website, but are ways to get visitors to notice your website.
Make Your Content Sensational
As you have traveled the internet, you may have noticed fluffy content that doesn't actually inspire anyone; content that reads like a university textbook or lacks enough pertinent information as to cause visitors to click away from your pages.
You have also noticed content that makes you share it with your friends, content that moves you to bookmark it so that you can come back to it again. This is the type of content your website should have.
Tips for Sensational Content
• Write new and captivating content – It is important to keep your content up-to-date and always archive your articles so visitors can refer back to it if they need to.
• Create compelling headlines — Your content needs to have awesome headlines. Include powerful emotional phrases. To check how strong your headline is, use a great headline analyzer called CoSchedule.
• Write for your target market – Keep in mind that you should always be writing for your target audience. Don't try to please everyone. Your target audience should always be your number one concern.
• Giveaways – Don't give away the entire storeroom, but try to give away some of your great work. Give some of your best creative information away as a bonus and persuade people to share the information with their associates. Some examples are:
A free report or an e-book that has loads of helpful information
A sequence of tutorials
Special Discounts
Free Newsletter
• Guest Blogging – This is a fantastic and most effective method for us to get noticed by the people you are trying to connect with. By blogging on popular sites you get a backlink to your website. If you produce a great offer you could possibly get a lot of new subscribers every time you do a guest post.
• Listen to your visitors – You can get feedback from your visitors via a comment section on your pages and posts, direct email (with permission, not spam), include live chat on your website. Doing this will create a connection with your visitors so you can figure out exactly what they are looking for. Make sure you actively monitor and respond to their feedback.
• Participate in others' online community sections – Make comments on an article that was of interest to you and leave your name, the link to your website and your email address. Become a participating member of a pertinent forum.
• Sign up to directories – There are a lot of directories that at local, national and even global that you can sign up to. Check out DMOZ.org first. Submit your website to the directories that specialize in your site's industry as well as the local directories.
• Email Signatures – Be certain to include your URL at the end of every single email you send. It would look something like this:
John Doe
• Create and run contests – As a way to get activity on your site, you could run contests for such things as coming up with a domain name or a name for a product you create or a logo/favicon design. It could also be as simple as letting your visitors select the topic for your next article or two.
Of course, you will have to come up with a bonus for the winner. You may be able to do first, second and third prize winners. Doing this will give you a chance to attract more visitors and allows you to give something back in return.
• Social networking – This is the perfect venue to get your content noticed because you can get it out there in front of millions of people globally. Use the major social networks to post free reports, infographics, videos, and articles.
Incorporate Search Engine Optimization
If you think that visitors are just going to fall on your website, you should probably think again. People conduct online searches because they have a need for information.
Use low competition keywords in the appropriate places within your content. This will allow your content to show for the searches made by your target audience. Using the best keywords to help your pages get ranked in the SERP (Search Engine Result Page) will result in your pages being more visible.
Links play a big part of getting your website noticed by via search engine rankings. The links I am talking about are internal links, external links, and backlinks. These links are referred to as either on-site links or off-site links.
On-Site Links
• Internal Links – These are on-site links that link from a specific content on your site to another content page within your website. This kind of link can improve the bounce rate on your pages/posts as well as increase the time that visitors are staying on your site.
• Deep Links – These links will go to sub-pages. For instance, your navigation tab has a page called "Build a Website". Then that tab has a drop down that shows two other pages called "Choose a Niche" and "Create Traffic". These two articles are considered sub-pages. If you link to either of these two articles from within your website, this would be considered a "deep link". Deep links are better for search engine optimization (SEO).
• External Links – These are links from your website to pages to other website pages. Although Google likes to see these kinds of links because it shows that you are confident in the authority of your own website to like to another website. Even so, you should not overdo these kinds of links since they take visitors away from your site.
Off-Site Links
• Back Links – These are off-site links that are links coming from other websites that point back to pages on your website. As much as possible, you should always try to get backlinks from websites pages that rank high. These links are known as "High PR (Page Rank)". However, you can still get link juice from another website page that isn't ranking high but is still part of the website that is ranking high.
Make sure the connection from the high ranked page is a "do follow" connection to the page on the same website with your link. This may be hard to do. A way around that is to link to pages with next to no page rank as long as the page has ranked on the first page of the SERP (Search Engine Report Page). It's not just about the individual ranking of the page, but also about the authority of the domain itself.
Visual Enhancement
Looking at a page with nothing but sentence after sentence isn't very appealing. It is actually very boring to look at! Spice your content up with pertinent images. Try to have the right combination of text and images.
By nature, people are visual creatures. Images can offer your visitors another kind of experience that they may not get from words alone. Using infographics is the best new method of providing your audience with an easier way to process a lot of information.
Since images are a lot more interesting, visitors are inclined to share the articles more with their friends and associates.
The suggestions that I have made in this article are intended to give your online presence a little enhancement that will help get your website noticed by your target audience and the search engines. All of these suggestions may not work for every niche website, but it is important that you try many different techniques.
Don't just try them. Make sure you also analyze the techniques you use so you can determine which methods actually work and work the best. It may take some time to develop a solid visitor base, but you will be happy when it happens.
Now that you have taken up residence on the internet and understand what's the best way to get your website noticed, you can begin the next step. Your next great challenge is to get your website noticed by your target audience and establish your online presence with them. Do this by making yourself stand out from the competition. Work on applying the suggestion into your content creation to begin to see how your website gets noticed more readily.
Please feel free to contact me if you need help with anything. Just make a comment below or you can always get in touch with me through wealthyaffiliate.com (here is a link to my profile).
Founder of Mom's Trusted Affiliate
email: email@example.com


text:
Taking care of a child is never easy–it truly does take a village to raise one, and raising a child with special needs is no different. In New York City, there are several villages to help with each need of any individual child. Here are a few resources to help get you started.
Resources for Medical Information
Center for Children with Special Needs barnabashealth.org
The Early Childhood Direction Center (ECDC) p12.nysed.gov
Easter Seals New York easterseals.com
Marina Pediatrics marinapediatrics.com
Schools Specializing in IEP
Aaron School (Private) aaronschool.org
Gillen Brewer School (Private) gillenbrewer.com
The Heartshare School heartshare.org
New York Center for Autism Charter School (Public) nycautismcharterschool.org
Reece School (Private) reeceschool.org
Stephen Gaynor School (Private) stephengaynor.org
PS 35 schools.nyc.gov
PS 79 Horan School (Public) schools.nyc.gov
PS 226 psis226.com
PS 811 Mickey Mantle School schools.nyc.gov
All About Kids allaboutkidsny.com
Big City Tutoring bigcitytutoring.com
EBL Coaching eblcoaching.com
The Evolved Education Company evolveded.com
HB Academics hbacademics.org
New York Public Library Enrichment Zone Afterschool Program nypl.org
The Study Shack thestudyshack.com
The Tutoring Collective thetutoringcollective.com
The Varsity Pen thevarsitypen.com
WHEDCO Education and Youth Development whedco.org
WyzAnt wyzant.com
Wiz + Kid Tutoring wizkidsedu.com
Afterschool Programs for IEPs
AHRC After School Programs ahrcnyc.org
Association of Metroarea Autistic Children (AMAC) amac.org
Block Institute blockinstitute.org
Center for Family Support cfsny.org
Elmy's Special Services elmysspecialservices.org
Esperanza Center esperanzacenter.com
Heaven's Hands Community Services hhcsny.org
INCLUDEnyc includenyc.org
Kings Bay YM-YWHA kingsbayy.org
OHEL Bais Ezra ohelfamily.org
Family and Individual Support Groups
Autism Society of America autism-society.org
Center for Family Support cfsny.org
Eihab Children's Services eihab.org
Heartshare Human Services heartshare.org
Manhattan Mothers and Others yai.org
Parent to Parent of New York State parenttoparentnys.org
Sports and Performing Arts Classes/ Therapy
Adaptive Climbing adaptiveclimbinggroup.org
Brooklyn Conservatory of Music bkcm.org
Kicking the Spectrum kickingthespectrum.com
Literature at Play nycchildrenstheater.org
Mark Morris Dance Group markmorrisdancegroup.org
Nordoff – Robbins Center for Music Therapy at NYU steinhardt.nyu.edu
Prospect Park Tennis Center prospectpark.org
SwimJim swimjim.com
Swim Works swimworksnyc.com
Yoga for the Special Child specialyoga.com


text:
Controversial religious firebrand Matthew Fox details his ideas for a New Religious Reformation in this lecture delivered at Cody's Books. When he found himself expelled from the Dominican Order by the man would become the latest pope, Matthew Fox emerged to become one of the most visible proponents of the Creation Spirituality movement. Drawing from a deep knowledge of theological history and taking Martin Luther's example to heart, Fox envisions a modern religious shakeup that will acknowledge a more varied society while remaining true to religious truth. A must for anyone interested on how religion is coping with new 21st century challenges. This talk is available on streaming video from FORA.tv.
A New Reformation: Creation Spirituality and the Transformation of Christianity
With 24 books in print, including the bestseller "Original Blessing and "Creativity: Where the Divine and Human Meet", perhaps no one is more qualified than Matthew Fox to offer a curriculum on using the power of prayer to change our world. In a major publishing event, this passionate speaker and writer presents "Radical Prayer", his audio opus on prayer--the "utterance of our hearts." This compelling 6-session course covers: what prayer is, and why it works; recovering the sacred masculine and feminine; exploring the "dark night of the soul"; "deep ecumenism"--lessons from history's great mystics in every tradition, and more.
Available on MP3 Download.
Listen to a free sample of: Radical Prayer
Joel Osteen is the American author of myriad self-help books describing how Christians can live up to the Bible's ideals. The senior pastor of Houston Texas' Lakewood Church, Osteen is also a prominent televangelist whose broadcasts are viewed by over seven million people throughout the world.
Osteen's father was the founder of Lakewood Church and a Baptist pastor himself. In 1999, Osteen's father died, leaving Joel to take over as pastor, though he had delivered only one sermon in his lifetime. Despite his inexperience, Osteen excelled at preaching and his ministry continued to grow. He began writing books based on his teaching and his first book, Your Best Life Now: 7 Steps to Living at Your Full Potential, was published in 2004.
Osteen's preaching style, which focuses on God's love rather than the effects of sin, has been heavily criticized by the Evangelical community. He has also changed his position on whether a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven, sparking criticism from Michael Horton who remarked that Osteen's teachings were Christian heresy. Despite the criticism, Osteen and his ministry have achieved worldwide success. He was named the Most Influential Christian in America by The Church Report and continues to broadcast and publish his views of Christianity.
For an inspiring Christian motivational manual, try Daily Readings from Your Best Life Now, available on audio download. Also available on MP3 format is It's Your Time, Osteen's manual on raising expectations and your hope for a better future. Finally, there is Your Best Life Now, available as an audiobook on download or CD, which shows readers how to reach their life goals and lead a more rewarding life.
Feel free to browse all the sections within Kids.LearnOutLoud.com:
Contact Information
email: email@example.com
phone: 1-800-550-6070
web: http://www.learnoutloud.com


text:
Click here if you are having trouble viewing this gallery on a mobile device.
Eight Frank Lloyd Wright buildings have been added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites. More than 1,000 sites are on the list, which spans 167 countries. The sites can be natural or man-made.
The World Heritage Committee cited Wright's strong impact on modern architecture in Europe, as well as each building's "innovative solutions to the needs for housing, worship, work or leisure."
Not shown is the final building on the list, the Herbert and Katherine Jacobs House in Madison, Wisconsin.


text:
Teeth: Total Dental Make-Over
Hollywood smile
A total dental makeover, also called 'change your smile aesthetics' is a popular treatment at the Wellness Kliniek. This is because we always offer the highest quality treatment at the best possible price.
Our goal is to achieve a natural-looking result, a beautiful smile and a satisfied patient.
Beautiful teeth: a confident smile makes a great first impression!
A radiant smile is heart-warming
Your mouth, your teeth and your smile are the first things people notice about you.
You can have a gorgeous hairstyle, even more expensive make-up and clothes: but a confident bright smile completes your image.
Our dental specialists can help you achieve this.
We have a tailor-made solution for every cosmetic problem. The aim of aesthetic dentistry is to achieve a natural-looking result.
Celebrity and Hollywood teeth
The Wellness Kliniek specialises in Total Smile Make-Over
A perfect, confident smile. American stars have it all and their teeth look so real!
How do they do it? Until recently a complete dental makeover with individual crowns was only possible for millionaires, Hollywood stars and celebrities. The material used for those Hollywood teeth is incredibly thin and lets light shine through. The teeth fit perfectly flush with the gums. The form and surface structure of each tooth perfectly matches their personality and image.
Procera teeth: the teeth of the stars; each tooth is individually made using computer-aided technology and coloured by hand. Wellness Kliniek dentistry is particularly specialised in complete dental makeovers.
Now you too can have that perfect, natural-looking Hollywood smile.
You can choose from:
- Crowns fitted on to dental implants.
- Replacing a few or a complete set of teeth with Procera crowns.
- Replacing all your incisors with crowns.
- Replacing your complete set of teeth with individual crowns.
- Replacing your complete set of teeth with a beautiful set of click dentures.
A beautiful set of teeth gives you self-confidence
The new trend for men and women that want to look their best
- The colour and shape of your teeth play a vital role.
- Colour choices and shape analysis are meticulously examined before the start of each treatment.
A treatment including just all the front teeth often provides a great result
Treatment plan: 'change your smile' concept
Invest in your appearance
In order to obtain a beautiful smile, you must not only have white teeth, but also the correct shape, healthy condition and proportion of the gums and a comfortable and correct bite. Our primary goal is to improve and enhance your teeth.
Our 'Change-Your-Smile' concept includes all of these components in one efficient treatment plan.
This patient underwent a gingivoplasty to correct her asymmetric gums. She also received six porcelain veneers.
Prices - cost
Our philosophy consists of providing the best materials and services at the lowest price.
We strive to make Total Make-Over treatments accessible to a larger share of the population. This is why many of our patients come from abroad. We offer a special service for patients that have a considerable distance to travel: Next-Day-Surgery Service.
DentistryDoctor who performed the treatment: Tandarts Jan van DijckThe dentist Dr. Van Dyck and his staff are amazing. My smile enhancement treatments were without pain. It was a very personal and comfortable experience. I cannot thank them enough. They did a wonderful job at affordable cost. Wellness Kliniek is the place to be if you wish to go for quality cosmetic dental surgery.
Your appointment for a complete makeover
To make an appointment it is best to contact us by phone.
We try to keep our waiting lists as short as possible. We can usually see you within 4-6 weeks for aesthetic dentistry. Following the intake consultation we will compile your treatment plan and provide you with a cost estimate.


text:
The HFR System
You need a sophisticated system to play back digital HFR 3-D data onto a movie screen. This system comprises three fundamental parts, including a storage device, media block and a digitalcinema projector.
Usually, a server computer stores all of the movie content on a hard drive. The data streams from the server to the media block via a high-definition serial digital interface (HD-SDI) cable. The media block plays a vital role, decrypting and decoding the data into a format that works with the projector.
Because of the massive amount of data involved with HFR 3-D, a cable interface is often too slow, strangling the data flow and affecting image quality. So some newer systems integrate the server and media block into a compact piece of hardware that's installed directly into the projector.
After the media block unlocks the data for playback, the final piece of the system is the digital cinema projector. A vast majority of theaters use Texas Instruments' DLP Cinema technology, which can display 3-D content with a single projector.
And that leads us back to frame rates. 3-D movies shot in 24 fps often seem blurrier, especially in fast-moving action scenes. In these instances, the images never seem to meld, leaving your eyes confused and, potentially, your stomach lurching. This is where 48 fps HFR 3-D proves its value. Action sequences seem much smoother and more vivid.
At 48 fps, 3-D movies have much less stuttering and flickering. Audiences see each individual frame of the movie twice per second (called double-flashing), which means each eye sees 96 fps – altogether, both of your eyes are absorbing 192 fps.
Director Peter Jackson's series of "The Hobbit" was the first major release of a high frame rate movie in history. "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" was released in 2012. It was followed by "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" in 2013 and "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" in 2014.
All three movies were shot at 48 fps and in 3-D. They were also converted to 24 fps, 2-D versions for audiences that didn't want to see 3-D and also for theaters not equipped to project high frame rate 3-D movies.
Shooting at 48 fps is one thing. Playing back the content is another. For example, if you shoot a movie at a high frame rate, you need a projection system capable of displaying high frame rates, too, otherwise your high-speed video is pointless. Not many theaters have high-speed projectors, but they're coming.


text:
When Data Wins the Case: Legal Analytics
It's not what you wanted, but it's happened anyway; you got served. No, not like that. Served. For real. With legal papers. Appear in court or else… As you desperately try to process everything, your mind is already telling you what you need to...Learn more


text:
Polly Dolby Case Clerk
Polly's spirited personality is a breath of fresh air for the attorneys, paralegals, and client relations specialists she works with. She supports our criminal prosecution practice, while also helping cases move forward by fielding calls and organizing files. Outside of work, you may find her riding her scooter around town or hanging out with husband and two daughters.


text:
Prather joins DWD Technology Group as MAS 90 Consultant
DWD Technology Group is pleased to announce that Brad Prather, CPA has joined our team as a MAS 90 Consultant. He will be based out of Indianapolis. Brad comes to us with over 20 years of experience in accounting and over nine years in MAS 90 consulting. The addition of Brad to the DWD team will allow us the opportunity to further expand our MAS 90 consulting practice and provide enhanced software support resources.
DWD Technology Group, with offices located in Fort Wayne and Indianapolis, Indiana and Toledo, Ohio, specializes in the evaluation, selection, implementation and support of accounting and business management systems including Sage 100 ERP (formerly MAS 90/200), BusinessWorks, Sage 50 (formerly Peachtree), Sage ACT!, Sage CRM, Abila (Sage) MIP Fund Accounting and Abila (Sage) Fundraising 50. DWD strives to implement the best technology solutions for the specific needs of your business.


text:
The LA Auto Show this year has kicked off with a bang and the media attention that this event has stirred is unbelievable! It has been packed and intense. As media journalists from all over the world gather together at each manufacturer's section to witness the unveiling of over 50 vehicles being introduced to the consumer market in the coming year, it is apparent that the current state of the economy has its effects but the wheels keep rolling.
Impressive car manufacturers that lead in sales are Hyundai and Kia and their press conferences were over-the-top as their executives spoke with confidence when they introduced their car lines for 2012. Not to mention, the big three from Detroit, MI such as GM, Chrysler, and Ford were also in attendance, and they all showcased a product line that keeps each of them strong and competitive. Each automaker has brought their A-game to the table with their interior and exterior features including engines that are fuel efficient and environmentally savvy.
Tomorrow (Thursday, Nov. 17) will be a unique and interesting day when Nintendo shows their presence by unveiling a unique project that they have collaborated on with West Coast Customs. Integrating gaming with a "pimped out" vehicle should definitely bring many inquiring eyes to their press conference. This is the first time Nintendo will participate in an auto show to unveil their new "galactic" concept and that is definitely worth checking out to see WhatItDo!
-Article Written by: Elizabeth Lavulo


text:
Every Irish lad will be able to relate to this one.
The latest video from the Windup Merchantz looks at how the men of our nation deal with having to reply to "I love you" on the phone.
Spoiler: it's badly.
READ NEXT: PIC: Liam Neeson Gave An Irish-Owned New York Pub The Perfect Prop From One Of His Movies


text:
July 24, 2013
And the voting has begun!
If you haven't taken the time to download a free preview copy of Eighth Day Genesis yet, there's still time! Just follow the link and click Read to get your free copy.
And then, if you like what you've read, please, please click Vote and select Eighth Day Genesis as your first choice for "Best RPG Related Product"!
Eighth Day Genesis isn't just for gamers, though. It's for anyone who's looking to build a world in speculative fiction, be it fantasy, science fiction, paranormal or any of the subgenres of the above. Check out a copy – and forward the link to anyone else you know who might be interested in some great "how to" articles!
July 17, 2013
Eighth Day Genesis Preview
Thank you to everyone who clicked Like on my last post! Here's the flyer advertising the free preview of Eighth Day Genesis – enjoy!
Eighth Day Genesis: A Worldbuilding Codex for Writers and Creatives
Hi Followers!
As we all know, I suck at updating my blog. So much so, in fact, that I neglected to advertise my latest publication "Eighth Day Genesis", which was published last year by Alliteration Ink. It was nominated for an Origins Award in 2013, and is now up for an ENnie at GenCon!
Want a free preview? Alliteration Ink is, for a limited time, offering a .pdf containing three of the articles from the book. Just follow the link http://bit.ly/8thdaygen to request your free copy! If you'd rather read the whole book, you can order it there as well, as well as through Amazon.
Then, y'know, go and vote!
November 3, 2011
Virginia and Doug hit the Big Time!
From Amazon:
The winter holidays are a special time of year – even if you're on a planet that doesn't have winter.
Spec The Halls looks at the winter holidays – both real and fictional – from a speculative fiction point of view. Fantasy, horror, and science fiction take turns showing us this time of year from a slightly different point of view.
This year's anthology includes stories by Kelly Swails, Alethea Kontis, T. Lee Harris, Laura Resnick, Steven Saus, Chanté McCoy, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Kerrie Hughes, Marian Allen, Patrick M. Tracy, Risa Wolf, Jess Hartley, Graham Storrs, Donald J. Bingle, R.T. Kaelin, and Sue Penkivech.
The proceeds of every sale will go to Heifer International. Act quickly – this eBook will only be available for a limited time!
In other words, a great anthology to benefit a great cause, and fun with zombies! How can you pass up a deal like that?
You can't? Great! Click the link and order now! http://www.amazon.com/Spec-The-Halls-2011-ebook/dp/B0062PXHPM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1320275194&sr=8-2
June 17, 2011
The Fae in YA Literature
Check out Fae Awareness Month, created by KV Taylor and featuring a review article by yours truly!
January 28, 2010
Juvenile/YA Book Reviews, Pt. 2
Dead is the New Black and sequels) by Marlene Perez
Can't get enough of Twilight? Check out the Dead is a New Black series. No traditional vamps so far – but it's got werewolves aplenty, a ghost, dopplegangers, and an energy vamp – and a mystery in each book, which psychic Daisy Giordano and her sisters have to solve. This is what Twilight could've been – action and adventure mingled in between the romance. You don't want to miss it!
Recommended: Middle and High School aged girls, but content appropriate for lower ages as well.
Fever, 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
This one was recommended to me this week by one of my fifth graders, and is a great book for historic fiction fans. Mattie Cook lives in Philadelphia in the late 1700's, during the yellow fever epidemic which decimated the city. The book begins with one of Mattie's friends dying of the fever, which everyone considers a fluke – until more and more people fall ill and die as well. I was fascinated by the accounts of quarantine, of then-contemporary medical treatments, of the death carts reminiscent of the black plague in Europe – and by Mattie's story and how she tries to keep up hope, even as life as she knows it disintegrates.
Recommended: 4-8 grades. Despite the female protagonist, boys might just like this one as well.
Bobby vs Girls (Accidentally) by Lisa Yee
Poor Bobby. Being in fourth grade is tough – especially when your best friend is a girl (and is starting to act like one!), your father's a former football star turned stay-at-home Dad (who calls himself a PTA mom and who insists on baking inedible cupcakes for your bake sale) and your sister sets your hair with rollers while you're on a nebulizer (petting that dog was not a good idea) and you can't escape.
It only gets worse when your best friend comes in while you're being tortured with curlers – and tells one of her friends.
Who tells all her friends.
This means one thing. War.
Unfortunately, the war escalates into a full blown battle of the sexes, with Bobby and Holly caught in the middle. Will one of them cross the lines and save their friendship? Only time – and a class president election – will tell.
Recommended: 3-5 graders, both sexes. Wonderful, amusing story of friendship and misunderstandings – and overcoming the latter when the former's at stake.
January 26, 2010
Juvenile/YA Book Reviews
It's been a long time since I did one of these posts, but thanks to the third grade at our school and a reading contest that requires me to tie-dye my hair if they outread me, I'm on a roll with the books! So, without further ado…
Shredderman: Secret Identity by Wendelin Van Draanen
Shredderman tells the story of Nolan, a 5th grade boy who's better known as "Nerd" thanks to Bubba, the class bully. He gets an assignment to do a project on something he feels strongly about – positive or negative. After weighing a few options, he decides to do it on Bubba.
Unfortunately, Nolan realizes that if he turns it in as his project, he's going to be exposed as the one who Did it – which will only result in more abuse. So he adopts the identity of "Shredderman" and creates his own website – complete with pictures and videos he took with a hidden camera in his backpack.
Creating Shredderman.com not only gives Nolan the confidence to stick up for himself, it's a huge hit with his classmates – who gain the confidence to defend themselves as well. Moreover, the school officials finally have evidence of the bully's activities. While Bubba Bixby doesn't change his ways, he no longer has the same amount of power over the school that he did. All thanks to the amazing Shredderman.
Recommended: Wonderful book for 4th – 6th grade boys (girls too!) It's an easy read, only 138 pages long, but Nolan is easy to identify with and the attitudes of his classmates are pretty much dead-on for the age group.
The Dog Days of Charlotte Hayes by Marlane Kennedy
Charlotte isn't a dog person. She likes dogs – doesn't run from them, doesn't mind if they come up to her, isn't allergic – but she's just not a huge fan.
Unfortunately, she's stuck taking care of the St. Bernard her dad brought home and then lost interest in.
Unpredictably, this isn't a "dog book" – it's not the touching story of a girl who decides she loves the dog and convinces her family to do the same. It's about a girl who realizes that maybe they aren't the best family to be taking care of Beauregard, and earns the money to buy the dog from her father; not because she wants to keep him, but because she wants to give him to a rescue group so he'll be placed in a better home. In the process, she learns a lot about responsibility – and ultimately realizes that while a St. Bernard might not be the best choice for their family, a different dog might be.
Recommended: 4th – 6th grade girls. It's not brilliant, but it's a good story.
Confetti Girl by Diana Lopez
Since Lina's mother died the previous year, life just hasn't been the same. Her father, a high school English teacher, has buried himself in his books. Lina's grades have dropped, at least partially because instead of reading Watership Down she's using the chapter tests as a creative outlet and writing a story of her life using rabbits as characters. Her best friend's more interested in her boyfriend than she is in her – and her friend's mother is having difficulty with her recent divorce and pouring all her energy into making confetti eggs.
Confetti Girl tells Lina's story, and how she comes to realize that while maybe things won't ever be quite the same, with a little effort on everyone's part they just might be ok. Great story about the grieving process and how it affects different people in different ways.
Recommended: 4th – 8th grade girls, or anyone who's recently lost a loved one.
And finally…
Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
What do you get when you combine a dystopian future, gladiator games, and reality tv?
No, the answer isn't Gladiator Meets American Idol – though that would be interesting. It's the world of the Hunger Games series.
Seventy four years ago, in what was once the United States, thirteen districts rose up against a corrupt central government. After the fighting was over, twelve districts remained – and the Capitol decided to make sure they never rebelled again.
And so, each year, each downtrodden district must pick by lottery a boy and a girl between 13 and 18 to go to the Hunger Games, a reality tv show broadcast nation-wide. If one of the contestants from their district wins, the district is given everything they'll need to survive another year. If they lose – well, it's a fight to the death.
Sixteen year old Katniss isn't chosen this year for the games. Her thirteen year old sister is. Knowing that the kindhearted Prim doesn't stand a chance, Katniss volunteers to take her place, despite knowing that no one from District 12 has won in nearly 25 years.
Sounds dark, right? It is, and it's not. The focus isn't on a bunch of kids killing each other; it's on Katniss's reaction to the situation, the alliances and relationships she forms, and the points where, despite knowing she's risking it all, she says, "This is wrong, I won't do this."
And, because Katniss dares to take a stand, other people do, too.
Recommendation: Wonderful book series for middle and high schoolers, both boys and girls – and their parents. Like Harry Potter, this isn't a series just for kids; it's a well thought out universe that will appeal to anyone who enjoys a fantasy setting and spectacular characterization. While romance is present, it's understated; there's nothing that'll jump out and scream "Girls' book!" to male readers, whose interest will be piqued by the non-stop action and fast-paced story line.
January 14, 2010
I've been reviewed!
Check out this awesome review of "Zombie Elves" by KV Taylor, in her monthly "Spec Fic Reviews"!
Thanks Katey!
December 26, 2009
Zombie Elves, Revisited!
Thanks to everyone who stopped by to read Zombie Elves, an adventure of the Multiversal Time Protection Unit! Much to my surprise, Zombie Elves was selected as the winner of the 2009 Spec the Halls contest!
Watch for more Virginia/Doug adventures in the future!
December 19, 2009
Zombie Elves
This story is a part of the Spec the Halls contest for speculative winter holiday-themed fiction, artwork, and poetry. You may find guidelines and links to other entries at http://www.aswiebe.com/specthehalls.html
The entire story is available at the above link – or order the full anthology at http://www.amazon.com/Spec-The-Halls-2011-ebook/dp/B0062PXHPM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1320275194&sr=8-2


text:
Teron-Gorfiend became the latest player to qualify for the Tournament of Champions taking place at the Warcraft 2 Festival VII this July by winning the Kaboom BNE tournament. There will be plenty more mini 8 player tournamets to qualify so be sure to practice the upcoming maps that you can view in the forum topic.
[TD]Medivh took home the win in tk[as]'s GOW 1vs1 Tournament on Sunday keeping hold of his master tag.