How to wordsmith your way to success | Diary of an internal ...

Posted by Rachel Miller in Communications | 0 comments

Today I sat next to Brad Pitt on the bus and saw David Beckham at the library. Did that get your attention? Sorry to say nothing about that sentence is true, sigh. However, choosing the best part of your story as your introduction is the best way to hook readers in. This top tip is just one from a seasoned writer who has written a guest article for readers of Diary of an internal communicator.

We are just days away from National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), which I?ll tell you all about tomorrow. So I?ve decided to focus this week?s articles on writing skills, as I think it?s a truth universally acknowledged that many comms pros are secret novellists or creative writers.

The ability to write well is often cited in interviews for internal comms positions, with the obligatory ?written test? increasingly becoming the norm. Many internal comms professionals, myself included, started their careers as journalists and learnt how to write to house style and had their work regularly critiqued by sub-editors.

Lots of paths lead to internal comms and not all of them include formal training on how to write, yet it is a skill that?s regularly required by employers. Step forward Jess Unwin. He??has 25 years experience in newspaper and business publishing, including working as a sub-editor on national Fleet Street titles in the UK. He is now a self-employed writer, sub-editor, proofreader, designer and blogger.

Here he shares some top tips in the first of his two-part series about writing skills for readers of Diary of an internal communicator.? Over to you Jess?

How to wordsmith your way to success
At the shiny, futuristic, beginning of the 21st century, when the possibilities for communication innovation seem limitless, it seems strange to be conjuring up images of the ancient Egyptians as inspiration for good writing skills.?Whatever communications platform we?re using, engaging your target audience is the goal ? and that can be best achieved by sticking to some of the old tried-and-trusted rules of writing, one the most famous of which is the ?pyramid?.

The pyramid is how get over your message quickly and effectively. Here are the first five of 10 helpful tips.

1. What?s the pyramid?
A term more familiar to ex-newspaper ?hacks? like me, it describes the right structure for writing and means starting your message with the most interesting stuff first (at the sharp, pointy top of the pyramid), and then spreading out and down through your story with the less important stuff

2. Intro
The first paragraph is the apex of your pyramid, containing the essence of your message. Its aim is to hook your reader. It?s an oft-used comparison, but it?s true to say that when thinking about an intro consider what you would say first to a friend in the pub if you had some juicy gossip.

You wouldn?t open by talking about the weather if you?d just been sitting next to Brad Pitt on the bus! An intro should so encapsulate your message it should be possible to cut off the rest of the story and find the first paragraph still makes sense on its own ? but obviously missing the detail. However, it must make the reader want to read more. Keep your intro short ? under 30 words ? and use just one sentence with as little punctuation as possible

3. Paragraphs
These are the building blocks of the rest of your pyramid. Create paragraphs that introduce new ideas and clarify distinct points, but they should also be like?links in a chain, with the end of one flowing into the next

4. Sentences
Keep them short ? one thought to one sentence whenever possible. This makes the bits of your message more digestible mentally. Get things the right way round in your sentences. For example, do use: David Beckham came in to borrow a children?s learn-to-read book when I was at the library yesterday. Don?t use: Yesterday, when I was at the?library, the man who came in to borrow a children?s learn-to-read book turned out to be?David Beckham (where is this library?! Rachel)

5. Quotes
Knowing who?s speaking is as important as what they?re saying. Unattributed quotes lack credibility because who?s to say the author isn?t making them up? (I know what some of you are thinking). It?s obvious, but early naming of the quoted source always adds to what?s being said. ?Maths is not my strong point? has a lot more impact if you explain?George Osborne said it. A great quote can sometimes sum up a story and so can be used in your intro but, generally, they are offered to add more detail later in your writing.

Thanks for your article Jess, I?m look forward to reading the next five tips, which I?ll be publishing very soon. Do you have any ways of making life easier for intenral comms pros? If so and you?d? like to write a guest article to share your knowledge, check out my guidelines and do get in touch, Rachel

Post author: Jess Unwin.

Source: http://www.rachmiller.com/?p=3820

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Real Estate ? National foreclosure inventory falls again

National foreclosure figures continue to decline, according to a report from CoreLogic, a real estate analytics firm.

There were 57,000 completed foreclosures nationally in September, down from 83,000 in September 2011. While the current rate is still more than double the average 21,000 completed foreclosures between 2000 and 2006 prior to the decline of the housing market in 2007, it?s a dramatic improvement. Completed foreclosures are down more than 50 percent from the peak in 2010.

And the figures continue to slip. About 3.3 of all mortgages were in the national foreclosure inventory in September compared to 3.5 percent a year ago. Only 1.3 percent of all Colorado mortgages were in foreclosure.

?The continuing downward trend in foreclosures along with a gradual clearing of the shadow inventory are signs of stabilization and improvement in the housing market,? CoreLogic president and CEO Anand Nallathambi said in a statement. ?Increasingly improving market conditions and industry and government policy are allowing distressed homeowners to pursue refinancing, loan modifications or short sales rather than foreclosures.?

?Homes lost to foreclosure in September 2012 are down 50 percent since the peak month in September 2010 and 22 percent less than the beginning of the year,? said Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic. ?While there is significant progress to be made before returning to pre-crisis levels, the trend is in the right direction as short sales, up 27 percent year over year in August, continue to gain popularity.?

The five states with the highest number of completed foreclosures for the 12 months ending in September 2012 were: California (108,000), Florida (92,000), Texas (59,000), Georgia (55,000) and Michigan (51,000). These five states account for 47.7 percent of all completed foreclosures nationally.

The five states with the lowest number of completed foreclosures for the 12 months ending in September 2012 were: South Dakota (20), District of Columbia (58), Hawaii (436), North Dakota (583) and Maine (625).

The five states with the highest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of all mortgaged homes were: Florida (11.5 percent), New Jersey (7.3 percent), New York (5.3 percent), Illinois (5.2 percent) and Nevada (4.9 percent).

The five states with the lowest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of all mortgaged homes were: Wyoming (0.5 percent), Alaska (0.7 percent), North Dakota (0.7 percent), Nebraska (0.9 percent) and South Dakota (1.1 percent).

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Source: http://csbj.com/realestate/2012/10/31/national-foreclosure-inventory-falls-again/

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How A Speaker Can Become Quotable (public speaking tips to ...

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The power of a good quote is that it gets remembered

So why do we speakers go to the effort of giving a speech in the first place? Hopefully it is so that what we say will be remembered by our audience if they are willing to use their listening skills. The sad reality is that no matter what clever presentation tips we use, most of what we say won?t be remembered; however, if we can come up with a memorable statement that we use in our speech, then we stand a chance of making a lasting impact on our audience and sharing with them the importance of public speaking. Now just how does a speaker go about creating a memorable quote?

Make Your Idea Very Clear

Why are you giving this speech? Before you can go about creating a memorable quote, you need to first make sure that you can very clearly state the purpose of your speech. Take the time to write down a single sentence that captures the essence of your speech. This is going to be a key tool that you?ll use as you create your memorable quotes.

Make Your Phrasing Shine

A memorable quote is all about the words that you use. This means that you need to take the time to get your words right. There are several different ways to go about doing this. One such way is to focus on picking words that are going to build a vivid mental image in your audience?s mind. Another is to take a line from a television ad, a song, or a familiar saying and build on it. The key is to work on the exact words that you are going to use in your quotable phrase.

It?s All About The Delivery

Since you?ve taken the time to craft a quotable line and you?ve worked it into your speech, it would be a waste if you didn?t take the time to make sure that your delivery allows the phrase to stand out. When you come to the line that you really want your audience to remember, pause, deliver the line, and then pause again. This will set off what you?ve said in your audience?s mind. You can also move to a new spot on the stage just to make sure that your audience understands that something important is about to happen.

What All Of This Means For You

One of the benefits of public speaking for any speaker is for our words to be remembered by our audience. All too often, this doesn?t happen. There was just too much to remember and it all seemed to blend together for our audience. However, we can solve this problem by creating memorable quotes and embedding them into our speeches.

Before you can create a memorable quote, you need to take the time to crystalize your idea. What is it that you want to leave your audience with? Once you know what you want to say, you need to take the time to work on the wording that you?ll use to communicate your idea to your audience. Finally, because how your audience hears your quote is so important, you need to take the time to practice your delivery of it.

You may never be as famous as Winston Churchhill or John F. Kennedy. However, if you?ll only take the time to create powerful and memorable quotes that you can use in your next speech, then what you said will be remembered long after you are done saying it.

- Dr. Jim Anderson
Blue Elephant Consulting ?
Your Source For Real World Public Speaking Skills?

Question For You: How many memorable quotes do you think that you can pack into a single speech?

Click here to get automatic updates when The Accidental Communicator Blog is updated.
P.S.: Free subscriptions to The Accidental Communicator Newsletter are now available. Subscribe now: Click Here!
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Note: What we talked about are advanced speaking skills. If you are just starting out I highly recommend joining Toastmasters in order to get the benefits of public speaking. Look for a Toastmasters club to join in your home town by visiting the web site www.Toastmasters.org. Toastmasters is dedicated to helping their members to understand the importance of public speaking by developing listening skills and getting presentation tips. Toastmasters is how I got started speaking and it can help you also!

What We?ll Be Talking About Next Time

Getting your audience?s attention and then holding on to it while you speak is one of the hardest things that a speaker has to do. We are always looking for new and better ways to accomplish this difficult task. I?ve got some good news for you. A simple solution is one that always seems to work: use the human interest story.

1. International Humor: Is It Even Possible For A Speaker?...
2. Is The Telephone Really A Stage For A Speaker?...
3. The Speaker Whisperer ? What A Dog Can Teach Us About Public Speaking...
4. It?s The End Of The World ? What?s A Public Speaker To Do?...

Tagged as: crisp, delivery, encapsulation, main idea, main point, phrasing, powerful sentiments, presence, quotations, quotes

Source: http://www.theaccidentalcommunicator.com/speech-writing/how-a-speaker-can-become-quotable

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Google's Nexus 10 Hits Apple Where It Lives

Google canceled its New York press event Monday due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Sandy on the East Coast, but that didn't stop it from announcing its new Nexus 10 tablet, along with the Nexus 4 smartphone and Android 4.2, an update to Jelly Bean. A step up in size from the Asus-made Nexus 7, released in July, the Samsung-made Nexus 10 will be available beginning Nov. 13.

Source: http://ectnews.com.feedsportal.com/c/34520/f/632000/s/250dfc40/l/0L0Stechnewsworld0N0Crsstory0C765140Bhtml/story01.htm

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Microsoft's Joe Belfiore pokes fun at iPhone and Android, provides deep dive of Windows Phone 8 in new video

Microsoft's Joe Belfiore -- also known as the manager for the entire Windows Phone program -- spent a fair amount of time on stage in California today detailing the highs of Windows Phone 8. Clearly, that wasn't enough. The man himself has thrown out a near-20 minute video detailing the nooks and crannies of Microsoft's latest mobile operating system, no doubt in hopes of convincing tired users of Android and iPhone to consider something more Metrorrific.

Outside of tightly integrated Skype, beautifully arranged live tiles, outstanding new hardware, support for LTE, a guest access mode by the name of Kid's Corner and refreshed photo sharing, WP8 offers a wealth of cloud services to those who will also be upgrading to Windows 8 on their PCs. Heck, the outfit's Mac software is even going to make it possible port your iTunes libraries and playlists over to the Music hub in Windows Phone 8. It wouldn't be an all-out marketing assault without a bit of verbal assault, though, and it doesn't take Joe long to get there:

"It's the only phone that has live tiles, for the people you care about and the apps that you use all the time. It's a different story than iOS and Android. The iOS 6 homescreen is really just a sea of static icons. It's not people; it's not live data. Of course, after five years, they have added one more row of icons! Android homescreens typically present a complex maze of icons, widgets, and settings. But, they look a lot like iPhones, too. If you put a bunch of them together on a table, it'd be hard to tell your own from the crowd. We felt there was a better way. Windows Phone 8 -- it looks different, and that's because we didn't make WP8 for all of us, we made it for each of us."

Catch the full clip after the break.

Continue reading Microsoft's Joe Belfiore pokes fun at iPhone and Android, provides deep dive of Windows Phone 8 in new video

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Microsoft

Microsoft's Joe Belfiore pokes fun at iPhone and Android, provides deep dive of Windows Phone 8 in new video originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Oct 2012 15:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/29/microsoft-windows-phone-8-video-whats-new/

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In Sudan blast, signs of Iran and Israel's rivalry

FILE -Part of the Yarmouk military complex in Khartoum, Sudan seen in a satellite image made on October 25 2012, following an alleged attack. A U.S. monitoring group says satellite images of the aftermath of an explosion at a Sudanese weapons factory suggest the site was hit by an airstrike. The Sudanese government has accused Israel of bombing its Yarmouk military complex on Oct 23, killing two people and leaving the factory in ruins. Analysts speculate that the 40 shipping containers which were destroyed in the central area of the image may have contained Iranian missiles bound for Gaza. (AP Photo/ DigitalGlobe via Satellite Sentinel Project, File)

FILE -Part of the Yarmouk military complex in Khartoum, Sudan seen in a satellite image made on October 25 2012, following an alleged attack. A U.S. monitoring group says satellite images of the aftermath of an explosion at a Sudanese weapons factory suggest the site was hit by an airstrike. The Sudanese government has accused Israel of bombing its Yarmouk military complex on Oct 23, killing two people and leaving the factory in ruins. Analysts speculate that the 40 shipping containers which were destroyed in the central area of the image may have contained Iranian missiles bound for Gaza. (AP Photo/ DigitalGlobe via Satellite Sentinel Project, File)

FILE - Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, center, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, left, review an honor guard, in Tehran, Iran, in this Wednesday, April, 26, 2006 file photo. Explosions at a military site near Sudan's capital Khartoum on Oct 23 2012, widely believed to be the result of an Israeli airstrike, point to a possible escalation in a hidden front of the rivalry between Iran and Israel which believes arms pipeline through Sudan to Islamic militants on Israel?s borders. (AP Photo/Hasan Sarbakhshian, file)

CAIRO (AP) ? A suspected Israeli airstrike against a weapons factory in Khartoum last week points to a possible escalation in a hidden front of the rivalry between Israel and Iran: The arms pipeline through Sudan to Islamic militants on Israel's borders.

Mystery still surrounds the blast, which killed four people. But analysts say the incident could indicate Iran is trying to send more advanced weapons via Sudan to Hamas in the Gaza Strip or Hezbollah in Lebanon ? and that Israel has become more determined to stop it at a time of increased tensions over Iran's nuclear program.

Consensus has built among Israeli and Arab military analysts that the explosion just after midnight last Wednesday at the Yarmouk factory was indeed an Israeli airstrike as Sudan has claimed. Israel says it neither confirms nor denies being behind it. Sudan, in turn, denied on Monday that Iran had any connection to the factory's production.

In a show of support for the two countries' alliance, two Iranian warships ? a helicopter carrier and destroyer that had been conducting anti-piracy patrols off East Africa's coast ? docked this week at Sudan's main Red Sea port. The Iranian commanders were holding talks with Sudanese officers as part of the countries' "exchange of amicable relations," Sudan's military spokesman said.

Sudan's Foreign Ministry dismissed allegations of an Iranian connection to the Yarmouk facility, saying "Iran does not need to manufacture weapons in Sudan, be it for itself or for its allies."

Experts say that Sudan's value to Iran is not in its modest weapons production capabilities, but in its vast desert expanses that provide cover for weapons convoys bound for Gaza through Egypt's lawless Sinai Peninsula. Israel has long contended that Iran uses the route to supply Hamas. It appears to have struck the supply line at least once before, when a convoy in a remote part of Sudan was blasted by explosions in 2009 ? though Israel never admitted to the attack.

The question now is: What would prompt Israel to conduct a bolder strike hitting a Sudanese government facility in the heart of the capital Khartoum?

The target may have been 40 shipping containers that satellite images show were stacked in the factory compound days before the explosion. Post-explosion imagery released Saturday by the Satellite Sentinel Project, a U.S. monitoring group, show six 52-foot-wide craters all centered at the spot where the containers had been, the blast's epicenter.

The group said the craters were consistent with an airstrike and that whatever it hit was a "highly volatile cargo," causing a powerful explosion that destroyed at least two structures in the compound and sent ordnance flying into nearby neighborhoods.

What was in the containers remains unknown ? leaving observers to speculate.

Retired Israeli Brigadier General Shlomo Brom, a military expert, said there is a "strong possibility" that Israel had identified an "imminent threat" within the factory.

Brom, a research associate at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, said the containers could have been part of Iran's efforts to smuggle "a new category of weapons" to Gaza. The weapons could be "something with air defense capability ... or could very well belong to the category of rockets and missiles, but just larger, stronger, and longer range," he said.

Gen. Sameh Seif Elyazal, a former Egyptian army general, said his understanding was that a strike was carried out against short-range missiles being assembled in the factory "under Iranian supervision," bound for the Hamas and Hezbollah militant groups. He said that his analysis was based on "private conversations with Israeli officials" that had been conveyed to him through others. He did not elaborate.

Elyazal said Iranian-made weapons smuggled through Sudan reach Hamas militants in Gaza and Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon.

"Iran wants to put Israel under pressure from the north, through Hezbollah and from the east through Gaza," he said.

Iran has long backed Hamas, which took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007. Iran's relations with Hamas have been strained after the Palestinian militant group this year cut its ties with Syria ? Tehran's biggest Arab ally ? over that country's bloody civil war. Iran has since cut back some aid to the group, but a senior Hamas leader visited Tehran last month and Hamas officials say the group's military wing in particular continues to receive funding from Iran.

Iran "has sought alternate routes" for its arms shipments to Hamas after Israel cracked down on maritime lanes direct to Gaza that Tehran previously used, said Michael Eisenstadt, Director of the Military and Security Studies Program at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

The Sudan route "complicates matters for Israel," he said.

Hezbollah is another possible destination. But despite the civil war, Syria is believed to remain the primary route for Tehran to supply its powerful Shiite guerrilla ally in Lebanon.

Iranian arms shipments gain added significance amid the dispute of Iran's nuclear program, which Israel and the U.S. contend is aimed at producing a bomb. Israel has held out the possibility of attacking Iranian nuclear facilities. Iran denies any intention to build a bomb and has warned it will retaliate for any Israeli attack ? raising fears Hezbollah, Hamas or other Iranian-backed militant groups would carry out strikes on Israel.

Speaking to Israel Radio after the Wednesday explosion in Khartoum, Israeli Vice Premier Moshe Yaalon said "there's no doubt that there is an axis of weapons from Iran via Sudan that reaches us, and not just us."

The contentions surrounding last week's explosion also point to the close ties between Iran and Sudan, dating back to the 1989 coup that brought President Omar al-Bashir to power, when Iran's Revolutionary Guard helped supply him weapons.

Though wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged atrocities in the western Sudanese region of Darfur, al-Bashir visited Tehran most recently in August for a Nonaligned Movement summit. Iran has made significant investments in water and engineering projects in Sudan.

China is the main arms source for Sudan's government. But Iran, which signed a military relations deal with Khartoum in 2008, is also a supplier.

Notably, Khartoum appears to receive Iranian drones to use in its multiple domestic wars against rebel groups, said Jonah Leff, who monitors Sudan for the Small Arms Survey. Rebels shot down two such drones, in 2008 and in March this year.

An Iranian role at the Yarmouk facility remains uncertain. The facility, which opened in 1996, was touted by Sudan as a source of pride, showing its weapons manufacturing capabilities. Still, the factory only produces ammunition. Leff said there is no evidence Iranian weapons are being assembled there, suggesting it was beyond the facility's capabilities.

But, he said, workers from Yarmouk have traveled to Iran for training.

There have also been reports of Iranian experts residing at Yarmouk, said Hani Raslan, an expert on Sudan at the Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies in Cairo. Raslan also said he suspects the strike was aimed at weakening the Iranian arms smuggling network.

Fawaz A. Gerges, who heads the Middle East Center at the London School of Economics, says the strike has its symbolic aspect as well, allowing Israel to "flex its muscle and capacity and will to strike."

"Regardless of what particular weapons were destroyed, Israel sent a message to Sudan and to Iran," Gerges said.

___

Associated Press writers Sarah El Deeb in Cairo, Lauren E. Bohn and Josef Federman in Jerusalem, and Brian Murphy in Dubai contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-10-30-Sudan-Iran/id-5b0a2b6678b84d49a7fb3d6d60ae0244

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Paranormal Tours In Alton Illinois Part 2

Mineral Springs Mall is one of the oldest and most historic buildings in Alton, Illinois. It was started as Mineral Springs Hotel by two German immigrants August and Herman Luer in 1909. Mineral Springs Hotel was completed on August 1, 1914. It was built with luxurious terrazzo floors, decorated cornices, marble staircases and artistic glass throughout the hotel. It was an immediate success and was even more popular after the mineral pool was opened in the basement.

The hotel was a popular meeting place for politicians, traveling salesmen, civic leaders and socialites. The pool attracted water polo clubs, people for swimming lessons and the claimed healing powers of the mineral water. The water was claimed to have healing powers for the sick and the noted Dr. Furlong of this period in time gave mineral baths and claimed they would heal colds, headaches and sore muscles. It has been reported that Mineral Springs Hotel attracted up to 30,000 visitors in one season.

With this many visitors in the early 1900?s it is surprising that there are not more paranormal activities in the Mineral Springs Mall. There are six known ghosts I have talked about in previous discussion; Pearl, Maria, Gus, Cassandra, William and one that does not have a name. The nameless ghost is known to be wearing a three piece suit or a tuxedo. He has been observed in the mineral pool where Cassandra has been known to be.

There was an art store using the adjoining room to the pool in the basement and one evening a worker heard noise in the pool area, when she went to investigate there was a figure of a man in a suit in the mineral pool. After this siting the store was moved immediately.

There have been others known to have been attracted to the mall, as the energy from visitors on the tours has caused wayfarers to come into the hotel. Most are just passing through and are just drawn by the extra activity and energy in the mall and do not stay. There have also been many orbs spotted on tours and Wayne, the main tour guide, usually has them swarm him when he enters the mineral pool, although I did not observe this on our tour. Some of the resident ghosts have also been known to follow tour visitors when they leave the mall. The guides had noted they then get a call and have to explain to the visitor how to make them return to the mall.

The Mineral Springs Mall is a very interesting place. I did not feel uncomfortable in this building and actually felt more at ease. Maybe because I knew I was in the presence of lost souls looking for help.

Who knows how many more spiritual residents the Mineral Springs Hotel will attract in the next hundred years?

Source: http://www.streetarticles.com/adventure-travel/paranormal-tours-in-alton-illinois-part-2

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Writing and Publishing blog: NORMA WEST LINDER, JAMES ...

Norma West Linder and James Dheal came to Hamilton to have a joint book launch of their latest books.

It was a very cozy affair, held in Artword/Artbar on Colbourne Street. For those unfamiliar with this very attractive venue and the lovely people who run it, please google Artword/Artbar in Hamilton, Ontario. Judith and Ron are super hosts and always are welcoming to their guests. They hold poetry readings, musical events and live plays there and good wholesome food is available at reasonable prices.

The weather was not very welcoming, unfortunately, with sheets of rain pouring from the overcast skies but this did not damper the good will and happiness of those who braved the elements.

Norma West Linder read from her latest book Adder's Tongue first which was very appreciated by the people present. To learn more about this prolific writer, please google her name on a search engine. She has been writing for forty years.

Michael Mirolla of Guernica Editions also enthralled the audience with reading from his work. It was good to see him, his wife and his brother there from Toronto.
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James Dheal rounded off the afternoon with readings from his book North of Belleville, a beautiful book of both poetry and photographs. It was a pleasure to hear him perform again.

The afternoon finished at approximaely 5 p.m. and some returned to Sarnia, some to Toronto but the majority went to their homes in Hamilton.

All in all, a very cozy and wonderful afternoon. Several people remarked about it being so wonderful to have poetry readings once again in the afternoons at Artword/Artbar.

Thanks for dropping by and please come by again when you have the time.

Source: http://writingandpublishingblog.blogspot.com/2012/10/norma-west-linder-james-dheal-and.html

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New Syria fighting despite UN-backed truce

BEIRUT (AP) ? Syrian troops shelled rebellious suburbs of Damascus and clashed with rebel fighters in several other areas of the country Sunday, the third day of what was meant to be a four-day holiday truce, activists said.

A U.N-backed truce declared for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha has so far failed to take hold, with fighting reported from the start. Activists said more than 150 people were killed Friday, the start of the holiday, and more than 120 people on the second day, on par with previous daily casualty tolls.

The cease-fire was seen as a long shot. The international mediator in Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, failed to get firm commitments from all combatants. At least one rebel-linked radical Islamic group, Jabhat al-Nusra, rejected the truce outright.

The truce was called as the two sides were battling over strategic targets in a largely deadlocked civil war. This includes a military base near a main north-south highway, the main supply route to Aleppo, Syria's largest city, where regime forces and rebels have been fighting house-to-house. It appears each side feared the other could exploit a lull to improve its positions.

With the unraveling of the cease-fire, it's unclear what the international community can do next. The holiday truce marked its first attempt in six months to reduce the bloodshed in Syria, where activists say more than 35,000 people have been killed in 19 months.

Brahimi has not said what would follow a cease-fire. Talks between Assad and the Syrian opposition on a peaceful transition are blocked, since the Syrian leader's opponents say they will not negotiate unless he resigns, a step he has refused to take.

In renewed fighting Sunday, regime troops shelled the eastern Damascus suburbs of Arbeen, Harasta and Zamalka to try to drive out rebels there, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which compiles information from activists in Syria.

Another activist group, the Local Coordination Committees, said regime forces shelled Arbeen and Harasta, adding that eight people were killed Sunday in Damascus and its suburbs.

Both groups also reported regime airstrikes in the area. However, amateur video posted online Sunda appeared ambiguous. One video showed two huge clouds of smoke rising from what was said to be Arbeen, and the sound of an airplane could be heard in the background. However, it was not clear whether the video showed the aftermath of shelling or an airstrike.

The video appeared consistent with Associated Press reporting in the area.

In Douma, another Damascus suburb, rebels wrested three positions from regime forces, including an unfinished high-rise building that had been used by regime snipers, according to the Observatory and Mohammed Saeed, a local activist.

Fighting was also reported near Maaret al-Numan, a town along the Aleppo-Damascus highway rebels had seized earlier this month. Opposition fighters have also besieged a nearby military base and repeatedly attacked government supply convoys heading there.

The Syrian government has accused the rebels of violating the cease-fire from the start. The state-run news agency SANA said opposition fighters carried out attacks in a number of areas, including in Aleppo and the eastern town of Deir el-Zour.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syria-fighting-despite-un-backed-truce-092023335.html

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What Surrogacy Tells Us About Motherhood and Fatherhood ...

Although surrogacy is not exactly rare, it also isn?t all that common.?? And yet it?s?often covered in the news.? And when it comes up here (as it has in the last couple of posts) it always spurs discussion.

I think it is because it raises so many issues and forces us to unpack so many assumptions.??? It crystallizes?a bunch of questions?about motherhood that? I wrote about not so long ago.?? And it makes us think hard about gender/sex and sameness/difference.?? And really, of course, the problem is pregnancy and what we do with it.

Here?s one way to think about this.???Under?current law in NJ?men and woman are treated?differently with regard to?legal parentage?when?surrogacy is used.??You can see this by starting with this?question:? If a married?different sex couple use gametes from one?spouse and?a gamete from a third party to create?an embryo which is then carried to term by a different woman (a gestational surrogate), is the?non-gamete providing spouse a legal parent of the resulting child?

Under NJ law, you cannot answer this?question?unless I tell you the sex of the non-gamete providing spouse.? If the non-gamete providing spouse is male, then that person?is a legal parent.? If the non-gamete providing spouse is female,?then that person is not a legal parent.????That?s pretty stark differential treatment and it sure suggests sex discrimination.

Why would we treat them differently??? They?ve both not done the same thing.??(I realize that that?s a very odd phrasing, but I?m trying to make a point.)? Each didn?t provide?a?gamete for the child.? Why would we?forgive?the man?s?failure to provide a gamete (by allowing him to easily slip into the role?of legal parent)?but not?the woman?s?failure (by not allowing her the same easy path)???? Particularly for people who think providing gametes is what entitles one to claim legal parentage, the differential treatment ought to be?problematic.???After all, I can think of no reason why provision of an egg is a more significant contribution (and hence, failure to produce it a more significant omission) than is provision of sperm.???? But surely this is what current NJ law amounts to.

So again?why would we treat men and women differently here??? One reason is that our history conditions us to accept the man as father even when he doesn?t provide?sperm but doesn?t condition us to accept the woman as mother.?? (I think this is essentially the point Kisrita?made in the comments on the last post, but I?ll expand a bit.)???What I mean is that we have frequently?assigned legal fatherhood to men in ways that serve various social interests without particular regard towards whether they were genetically related to the children at issue but we haven?t done this with women and legal motherhood.

So for example, a man?has historically been assigned?legal parentage of?children born to his wife.?? That?s not because people didn?t understand human reproduction.?? It?s because it suited us to do this.? (And indeed, the marital presumption of paternity survives in modified form and can defeat claims of legal parentage advanced by the men who are genetically related to the child.)? There are other instances where we have done (and still do) similar things.?? I think this means the idea of assigning legal fatherhood to the man who didn?t provide the sperm in the hypo above doesn?t seem like a terribly strange or remarkable thing to do.???It?s not that out-of-the-ordinary.

By contrast, the whole?idea of reassigning legal motherhood to suit some social purpose seems so odd as to be?nearly unthinkable.?? (For many years I?ve asked my students to flip the assumption the marital presumption around, substituting men for women.?? Generally they cannot even articulate what it would look like.)???I?ve written this before (but cannot find the post)?motherhood is?more?fixed, less?subject to manipulation.? So the woman who would manipulate it faces a greater hurdle and here she cannot clear it.

Now why would that be?? I think the answer is?pregnancy/birth.???The idea that a woman who gives birth is a legal mother is pretty?well-established.???We have no recent cultural experience of any other rule.? It?s only since the advent of?IVF and surrogacy that we?ve been asked to consider the possibility that a woman who gives birth is not a legal mother.

I think the problem for the woman in my hypothetical (who is really the woman in the NJ case) is that not only did?she not provide?a gamete, she also did not give birth.???Of course, if you looked at the case where the man didn?t provide the gamete, you?d have to say he didn?t give birth either.???But his failure to give birth?is quite irrelevant.?? We generally don?t? hold it against men that they don?t?birth.? (I?sometimes think we should.)???? So I think her failing is not really the failure to produce an egg, but rather the failure to be pregnant/give birth.

Long enough for one day?I?ll stop here.

?

?

?

Source: http://julieshapiro.wordpress.com/2012/10/28/what-surrogacy-tells-us-about-motherhood-and-fatherhood/

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DUDE FOR FOOD: Food News: Kick Off the Holiday Season with ...

The "ber" months are here, and the holiday season has officially begun. And to jump start the holiday season, Yellow Cab launches its new Christmas Fleet holiday promo, special combo packages for groups with Yellow Cab's signature dishes offering superior value. Plus, Yellow Cab is now serving a brand new ice cream flavor just for the holiday season. Two cool new offerings fit for the ultimate season of celebrations...after all, 'tis the season for great pizza.

Since 2001, the Yellow Cab Pizza Co. has been specializing in authentic New York style pizza, and over the years has grown to over 90 outlets nationwide (including three overseas branches) serving its trademark pizzas and a continuously expanding menu.?

When I was invited along with other bloggers to sample the new Christmas Fleet package and the new ice cream flavor, I had no second thoughts and immediately confirmed. Yellow Cab, after all, is in my personal list of top pizzas. As I entered the Yellow Cab outlet at Eastwood Citywalk, I couldn't help but notice one of Yellow Cab's specialty pizzas rolling off the conveyor oven...

...and seeing the pizza slowly roll out, still bubbling, was simply amazing.

As Yellow Cab's expert pizza crew at Eastwood Citywalk masterfully prepped the specialty pizza in the trademark open kitchen, I knew this was just a prelude to ?more good things to come. I've always associated pizza with fun times, and this was going to be one of those times.?

And pizza is a lot more fun when shared with friends and family, specially this holiday season. Yellow Cab's Christmas Fleet promo offers cool packages for groups of five (P 1,300) and ten (P 2,450) all the way until January 15, 2013, for dine-in, take-out, and delivery. And here's the cool part, included in this combo is Yellow Cab's new ice cream flavor. Curious? Read on...

Yellow Cab's Christmas Fleet combos come in four options offering different combinations for groups of five and ten. The specific options are as follows:

Christmas Fleet A's Good for 5 package consists of one 14-inch Pizza (choose one of three specialty pizzas), two sets of pasta (choose two of three signature pasta dishes), one pitcher of Coca-Cola (for dine-in) or one 1.5L Cocoa-Cola (for take-out and delivery), and two 1 pint cans of ice cream (choose from five flavors, including the new ice cream flavor).

The Good for 10 package bundles together one 18-inch Pizza, three sets of pasta, two orders of Baked Potato Wedges, two pitchers of Coca-Cola (for dine-in) or two bottles of 1.5L Coca-Cola (for take-out and delivery), and four 1 pint cans of Yellow Cab ice cream.?

And if you want some of Yelow Cab's Chicken Wings in the mix, ?there are more options...

Christmas Fleet B's Good for 5 package includes one 14-inch Pizza, one Fleet Starters, one pitcher of Coca-Cola (for dine-in) or one1.5 L Coca-Cola (for take-out and delivery) and two 1 pint cans of Yellow Cab ice cream.

The Good for 10 package features one 18-inch Pizza, twelve pieces of Hot Wings, two orders of Baked Potato Wedges, two pitchers of Coca-Cola (for dine-in) or two bottles of 1.5 L Coca-Cola (for take-out and delivery) and four 1 pint cans of Yellow Cab ice cream.?

Now the fun part. You can select and customize your very own Christmas Fleet combo to include your favorite Yellow Cab items, with three specialty pizzas and pastas to choose from, including four current ice cream flavors plus the new ice cream flavor too. And here are your choices... ?

Yellow Cab's?Barbecue Chicken, with BBQ Chicken Strips, red onions in a hickory-smoked barbecue sauce topped with fresh cilantro leaves...

...the signature?Manhattan Meatlovers, a personal favorite, generously topped with ham, pepperoni, Italian Sausage, ground beef, salami and bacon...

...or you can choose the?The Four Seasons, four classic Yellow Cab pizza flavors in one awesome pizza, the NY Classic, 4 Cheese, Anchovy Lovers, and Roasted Garlic and Shrimp. That's three amazing pizzas to choose from for your Christmas Fleet package. For pasta, you can choose any of the three Yellow Cab favorites...

The?Chicken Alfredo Pasta, sauteed tender chicken strips and black olives tossed in a smooth and creamy white sauce garnished with fresh basil...

...the classic Spaghetti and Meatballs, an old favorite of mine, with two large meatballs baked and simmered in a chunky red wine tomato sauce...?

...or the?Charlie Chan Chicken Pasta, tender chicken strips, shiitake mushrooms and roasted peanuts sauteed in a spicy oriental sauce garnished with spring onions. Depending on the combo you choose, you can have Yellow Cab's awesome Chicken Wings or Potato Wedges...?

...just the prefect side with the pizza and pasta...
...crisp and juicy Chicken Wings with hearty Potato Wedges or chips, perfect for the gang or family.

And now we come to the new Yellow Cab ice cream flavor...Serendipity, a smooth and creamy New York Cheesecake-inspired treat marbled with chewy graham cookie bits, a perfect dessert for the holidays, and an appropriate choice consistent with Yellow Cab's New York style. Serendipity simply complements and completes your Christmas Fleet experience, a sweet and satisfying finish to your Yellow Cab meal.?

The richness of the ice cream makes this an indulgent and perfect way to cap one's Yellow Cab's Christmas Fleet package. Smooth and creamy, but not too sweet, with the graham cookie bits adding flavor and texture.?Serendipity is currently available, and will soon be available in special green tins. Current flavors include Chocolate, Pistachio, Vanilla and Strawberry. Note that the new Serendipity flavor will only be available until January 15, 2013, so I suggest you give this a try soon.

Overall, Yellow Cab's Christmas Fleet's packages offers all the best of Yellow Cab's signature dishes ideal for groups or family meals during the holiday season. And best of all, you can customize the package with your favorite pizza, pasta and ice cream flavors. And the new Serendipity ice cream is just the perfect ending to this awesome meal. Great food and great value, one of the best deals this season.?

Thanks to Yellow Cab's Marketing Manager, Coochy Mamaclay and the rest of Yellow Cab's Marketing Staff, as well as Yellow Cab's courteous crew at the Eastwood Citywalk branch for an awesome time. Hungry? What's your Christmas Fleet combo? Go and customize your very own Yellow Cab Christmas Fleet package to kick off the holidays at your nearest Yellow Cab branch...let the good times begin...

Yellow Cab Pizza Co. operates in 3 countries worldwide, with 93 branches located in the Philippines. Visit www.yellowcabpizza.com or www.facebook.com/Yello Cab PizzaOfficial, follow Yellow Cab on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ycpizzaofficial for more information, or call 789-9999 for 24/7 Great Pizza Delivery

Dude for Food is now on Facebook, check out the new FB page to receive regular updates on good eats. Better yet, click "Like" and enjoy the ride...just look for the FB "Like" widget on the right sidebar.

Source: http://dude4food.blogspot.com/2012/10/food-news-kick-off-holiday-season-with.html

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Why Gardner & Associates Consulting? ? Business Execution Insights

Note: This posting is based on my weekly ?Thank God It?s Monday? which is offered to help companies thrive!

This week?s focus: why I?m in business

I get up every morning to share this truth with executives globally?

in this moment, anything is possible.

For my clients, this means?

• Ease and simplicity replace frustration and complexity.
• People, processes and systems seamlessly and tightly connect my clients and their teams to their customers and partners.
• They become sought after by prospects, customers, potential employees and investors.
• Revenues and profits soar.
• Business is exciting again.

The reality is simple: Your future really is right now.

Gardner & Associates Consulting. Anything is possible.
__

If you focus your messaging and business simply around what you do and how you do it (something 99% of companies do!), you are missing out on a huge opportunity. Read more about that opportunity to correct that here. And, then contact me to get help.

Thought for the week:

?There will NEVER be a military solution to terrorism, or to Iran or Palestine-Israel . It?s time to sow a new seed for a new crop.? ? Deepak Chopra via Twitter

What do you think? I welcome your blog comments!

Dave Gardner, Gardner & Associates Consulting

http://www.gardnerandassoc.com

? 2012 Gardner & Associates Consulting? All Rights Reserved

Note:? To receive an email version of ?Thank God It?s Monday? to start your week, please subscribe?here.? I would very much appreciate your suggesting to others that they subscribe.

Privacy Statement:? Our subscriber lists are never rented, sold, or loaned to any other parties for any reason.

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This entry was posted on Monday, October 29th, 2012 at 12:35 am and is filed under Business Execution Turbocharge, Dave Gardner's "Thank God It's Monday", Why Process. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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Source: http://businessexecution.wordpress.com/2012/10/29/why-gardner-associates-consulting/

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Top Internet Marketing Companies of 2012 | OTEPSPHERE

This entry is a guest post by Armon Gatus, SEO Specialist in the Philippines. You can follow him on Twitter: @gatusarmon.

*******

Partnering with various internet marketing companies will enable you to not only increase your online visibility, but boost your sales and customer base. Experienced and skilled online marketing experts will provide you with the much needed expertise in:

• Search engine optimization.

• Internet revenue optimization.

The services provided by top internet marketing companies will aid you in increasing your ranking in SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages) and eventually your bottom line. The blog or e-commerce site used by your company is the gateway to endless business prospects online. Optimized blogs and websites should not be hard to find by searching through Google, Yahoo, MSN or Bing. Internet marketing companies will generally aid you in designing and structuring your blog or e-commerce site in such a manner that it is search engine friendly.

What You Need to Know

Before looking at some of the top internet marketing companies of 2012, let?s first of all look at some of the things that you need familiarize yourself with when searching for the best online marketing company to work with.

The strategies used in SEO (Search Engine Optimization) keep changing by the day. The changes are usually occasioned by the alterations that are usually made to the algorithms used by search engines. Consequently, it is important to hire a top internet marketing company that is abreast with the current and previous changes in search engine algorithms. By doing so, you will be preventing your blog or e-commerce site from being penalized as a result of using black hat SEO strategies.

So what benchmark should you use when looking for experienced and skilled SEO expert? Listed below, are some of the factors that you ought to keep in mind when shopping for top internet marketing companies:

• Traffic Generation:? Generating targeted traffic is the key reason for searching for SEO experts.? Search engine optimization entails more than just keyword optimization. The task also entails keyword research, off-page optimization, link building as well as copyrighting. A reputable SEO expert should also be able to audit and assess a client?s site so as to discover ways of enhancing its visibility plus profitability.

• Revenue Optimization: The reason you are in the online business is to earn profits. Therefore, it is essential that SEO expert has the ability to boost your income streams. One of the essential services that you need to look for when searching for top internet marketing companies is revenue optimization. Examples of revenue optimization strategies that a good SEO expert should provide you with include PPC adverts through PPC Management, affiliate marketing, mobile marketing as well as contextual search ads. Do not forget to ask if the online marketing company has the capacity to build and strengthen your brand as this is also essential in boosting your revenue collection.

• Advertising and Performance: Online marketing companies use a lot of resources so as to ensure that you have met your goals and objectives. Examples of strategies that are usually employed by internet marketing companies while trying to build a strong and reputable brand include:

• Brand design.
• Brand management.
• Reputation management.

As such, it is important that you select an online marketing company that can provide your performance reporting. The only way through which you can know whether you are making positive steps is by determining if the current strategies being employed by an online marketing company are working.

• Customer Training: Given that SEO strategies are constantly changing, it is important that the internet marketing company that you have selected also train you on how to adapt to these changes. Consumer education entails being provided with materials and resources that can assist you in learning more about SEO such as educational blogs, tutorials, articles, newsletters and eBooks.

• Customer Support: Lastly, you need to look at the type of customer support services provided by the top internet marketing companies you are planning to hire. If your company is spending thousands of in generating targeted traffic to your site, it is important that the online marketing company that is responsive to your company?s requirements. For instance, the company should be able to offer you 24 hour customer support through email, phone and live chat. The online company should also try its level best to make available common support information on its official website.

Top Online Marketing Companies

Now that we have looked at the benefits of hiring top marketing companies and the criteria to use when searching for reputable online marketing companies, let?s now look at some of the top internet marketing companies 2012:

#1: SEOMOZ

The company provides a wide range of online marketing strategies at an affordable cost. If you are a small or startup business that is looking for a reputable online marketing company that can provide you with top SEO strategies, consider using SEOMOZ. Some of the SEO services offered by the company include, but not limited to:

Update: ?SEOmoz doesn?t provide consulting, but our friends at Distilled still do. Rock on!? -SEOMoz

Thanks Jayson Bagio for correction!

#2: Vertical Response

This award winning internet company has been known for offering small and medium sized businesses cutting-edge SEO strategies that enable them to compete at the highest level. The SEO solutions provided by the company are not one-size-fits-all but are custom-made to suit every company?s needs. Some of the services provided by the company include, but not limited to:

#3: Social Engine

The other internet marketing company if you own a small or startup online business is the Social Engine. The company offers its clients with wide varieties of social media application programs that function in enabling the businesses to develop their own customized online communities. As such, online businesses that have used the services of this company have been able to not only build customer loyalty, but develop socially engaging brands. The search engine optimization services provided by this internet marketing company include, but not limited to:

• Use of social engine tools to increase traffic to your website.

• Use of social media applications to build customized online communities.

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If you find this blogpost useful please SHARE! Thanks

Joseph Enmanuel also known as Otep or Otepsphere. He's the blog owner of OtepSphere.Com.He's a freelance SEO Specialist/Link builder from Odesk.com, Elance.com and Freelancers.com. He's a OnePiece fan. You can follow his updates on Facebook, @otep_enmanuel and Google+

Source: http://www.otepsphere.com/top-internet-marketing-companies-of-2012/

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Lil Wayne Suffers A Second Seizure Within 24 Hours

Lil Wayne Suffers A Second Seizure Within 24 Hours

Lil Wayne is causing fans to worry about his health after suffering a second seizure within 24 hours. The rapper was released from a hospital [...]

Lil Wayne Suffers A Second Seizure Within 24 Hours Stupid Celebrities Gossip Stupid Celebrities Gossip News

Source: http://stupidcelebrities.net/2012/10/lil-wayne-suffers-a-second-seizure-within-24-hours/

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bumpwatch terror alert: week 27 | if you don't have anything nice to ...

this photo is actually a week old.

i have been pretty much incommunicado for a week & a half because of houseguests, baby showers, & traveling. but i did manage to carve out five minutes to snap a belly photo last weekend & make it look all goofy in photobucket.

my friend amanda, from philadelphia, visited last weekend for our kansas baby shower. jared took a temporary time-out from his research to fly home for it as well. it was a nice visit in some ways, & kind of depressing in others. jared seemed to be fighting off the flu & was really out of it all weekend. he didn?t want to get up in the morning because he was up half the night coughing. i actually got up & got him a glass of water one night at like 3am, even though i am in the third trimester now & getting to my feet is no easy task. it made me think about how easy it is to take care of someone when you really love them, & that made me feel hopeful that i won?t find taking care of the baby too onerous (although it will be much more demanding than just a boyfriend who is feeling under the weather).

it was great to see amanda. we hadn?t seen each other in over two years, since i spent the summer living in her south philly row home while jared was in new york city doing a hydrology fellowship. she talked a lot about how windy it was in kansas, & how it was exactly what she expected. it was indeed uncommonly windy on the first day of her visit, but i have lived here for over three years & a) it?s seriously almost never that windy here, & b) i have never heard this idea that kansas is an especially windy place. she also spent a lot of time answering texts, taking photos & sending them to her boyfriend, trying to connect to the internet to look up various things she wanted to tell us about, etc. it didn?t bother me too much at first, but by the end of the visit, i wanted to run her phone over with my car. i didn?t even check my e-mail the entire time she was here, because i didn?t want to waste friend time doing some dumb bullshit i can do any time. maybe i am a complete dinosaur, but i?m so sick of people fiddling with their phones when they are hanging out with me. are facebook & foursquare really more important than whoever you?re spending time with?

jared & i flew to boston together on sunday for our babymoon. in case you don?t know, a babymoon is kind of a couple?s last hurrah vacation thing before they have a baby. it?s kind of new-ish, trendy concept, & it?s a little silly, but i knew we couldn?t go back to boston for christmas this year because it?s too close to my due date, & i didn?t want my next trip to boston to be post-baby. jared had to go to the east coast to do dissertation research anyway, so we carved out a few days, booked a stay in a bed & breakfast, & decided to have a real vacation.

in a lot of ways, it was awesome. i got to do almost everything i wanted to do, which is to say i got to eat almost everywhere i wanted to eat. (the only thing i missed was ethiopian food, but jared surprised me one night by suggesting we go to trattoria di monica, the delicious italian restaurant he took me to for my birthday last year, so i was more than happy.) jared had access to a car, so we were able to drive around boston & window shop at all kinds of cute, expensive baby boutiques, the likes of which don?t really exist in lawrence, kansas. i only bought one thing: a stuffed calico cat toy. i?d been looking for one for months with no luck, so i was pleased to walk into an independent toy store & find one no problem. it?s a classic calico, not a tabico (tabby/calico mix), which is more charlotte?s coloring, but close enough. the baby won?t really be old enough to appreciate it for kind of a while, but that?s okay. it?s very soft & a dog outside the toy store thought it was real & went absolutely insane trying to attack it.

we did a lot of socializing in boston. we visited with jared?s brother & his girlfriend because we wanted to ask them to be the baby?s guardians if anything happens to jared & me. they also hosted a baby shower for us, & the following night, jared?s parents had us out to newton for dinner & to load us up with baby heirlooms. we looked at photo albums of jared & his brother when they were babies. jared seriously was such a cute baby, & it was so cool to see baby jared making the same faces adult jared makes. his mom gave us two little outfits jared wore when he was a baby, plus a stuffed bear & a bunch of blankets, & the peter rabbit-themed quilt a friend of hers made for baby jared. it?s really beautiful & we decided we?re going to hang it on the wall over the baby?s crib & maybe someday we?ll be able to pass it down to our first grandchild. she is also giving us jared?s garndfather?s silver cup from his babyhood exactly 100 years ago. our baby has family heirlooms! it?s so cool.

i kind of had a meltdown that night though. our friend bart was in town & wanted to hang out before he caught his plane to chicago. but it was 11pm & everything was closed except for bars. if there?s one thing that just doesn?t sound fun to a pregnant lady in the third trimester, it?s sitting around a bar with her boyfriend & his best friend, unable to drink while her feet are swelling & she has just had to justify to her baby?s grandparents why she isn?t marrying their son anytime soon. the three of us went back to the bed & breakfast & hung out in the lobby, but i really wasn?t having fun. i was wishing that jared & i had taken our babymoon in some city where we don?t know anyone, where we could just be alone together, because alone together couple time is going to be in short supply in about three months. i told jared, ?i can?t wait until you come home again & everything goes back?? & then i burst into hysterical sobs because i was going to say, ?goes back to normal,? but i realized that we?re having a baby & there is no normal anymore. we are changing our lives & it?s exciting, sure, but let?s face it. it?s also completely terrifying. & the days where i can just fall asleep on jared?s lap or hide out in his arms & shut out the rest of the world are about to come to a screeching halt. sorry if that sounds weird, i know i don?t usually write so bluntly about the more romantic/personal side of jared?s & my relationship. but we are about to become jointly beholden to a brand new little life & yeah, sometimes i worry about how that will affect ?us?.

i must say, though, after my little crying jag, i slept the best sleep i have slept all pregnancy. i guess i just really needed to get that stuff out in the open.

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Source: http://crabigailadams.wordpress.com/2012/10/27/bumpwatch-terror-alert-week-27/

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A Brief Description Of A Penile Papule at Health ? Acne/Fitness ...

A penile papule is always a small repetitive that very often forms around ring to do with going to be the exceed relating to the penis. Unlike other bags they are often times flesh-colored,leaving an all in one dome-like shape. This bump will not form simply on its own but bear in mind In fact, there are usually a multi function group having to do with papules that can be bought together to learn more about create ach organized rows Some people describe them as being that they are a lot more like an all in one pearl necklace. Contrary to what several it is certainly plausible may assume,many of these bulges are nearly harmless. One having to do with the possibilities pains and aches that accompany this every about rash tends to be that uncomfortable feelings all the way through sexual intercourse, caused based on increased sensitivity levels

This non-life threatening bump is that something that many different a ? friend ? are familiar leaving It?s actually quite common, especially as well as males who are in your their twenties and thirties. Those who are uncircumcised are also a lot more most likely to learn more about have some of these papules form around their genitals. It is the reason that probably safe for additional details on say that almost every man not only can they experience in the field a multi functional bout providing some one a few of these bags at some point in their life. Luckily, they a lot of times are preoccupied away all around the their unusal

Although a multi functional sexually transmitted disease papule often fairly harmless,element having said all that causes several some guy in order to get anxious about getting purged regarding them. They not only can they generally speaking are you aware at them on the an effort to educate yourself regarding make them in order to away. However, this is not very a multi functional using the idea, because this can cause scarring and sometimes even infections.

This didn?t mean that working lady do nothing more than have in order to survive so that you have them,but bear in mind It is the fact that understandable enchanting someone to understand more about are searhing for to educate yourself regarding be able to get cleared concerning papules at least ost lots of other abnormality that forms around their genitals. Thankfully, there are treatments available to educate yourself regarding be of assistance make them disappear. One relating to many of these treatments is always that called carbon dioxide laser ablation. The strategy would be the fact fairly rather simple and is related to very little discomfort,if any,through going to be the recovery process

Although there are procedures available to explore be of assistance it is certainly plausible experiencing some of these among the most common types concerning protrudes,much of the a ? friend ? will refuse for more information about be able to get treatment. They may realize what exactly is harmless element is the fact that and just decide to go to allow element to explore are involved away in its own right This may be okay once they have gone for additional details on an all in one specialist and had a resource box checked around town Even having said all that a resource box would be the fact never an all in one in line with the idea too someone to understand more about have a go at to diagnose themselves.

Therefore,despite the fact that going to be the appearance concerning going to be the lips papule has been described,an individual won?t need to do nothing more than keep using a multi function description they have read as their final authority. It?s always best for more information regarding monitor so that you have an all in one a professional a health care provider before making going to be the final decision.

If someone suspects that they have an all in one oral papule, there?s big event should to explore panic. However, they then you should not have to get involved with and figure a resource box out and about everywhere in the their extraordinary The best bet will be the to understand more about allow a multi function specialist to educate yourself regarding facilitate because going to be the average person might end all the way overlooking something a good deal more serious and harmful.

Source: http://www.storesale-usa.com/a-brief-description-of-a-penile-papule.html

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AP basketball poll: Indiana is preseason No. 1

Indiana is No. 1 in The Associated Press' preseason Top 25 for the third time and the first since the 1979-80 season.

The Hoosiers return all five starters, including 7-foot sophomore Cody Zeller.

They received 43 first-place votes from the 65-member national media panel Friday. Louisville and Kentucky, the teams ranked second and third, received the rest of the first-place votes with Louisville getting 20 and the defending national champion the other two.

Ohio State and Michigan join Indiana as Big Ten teams in the top five. The last time a conference had three teams in the preseason top five was 2008-09 when Connecticut, Louisville and Pittsburgh of the Big East were second, third and fifth, respectively.

North Carolina State, Kansas, Duke, Syracuse and Florida round out the top 10.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-10-26-T25-Men's%20Preseason%20Poll/id-f34f32cabd3244b38fcd18e0810dd8bd

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Drug shows promise in animal model of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's with dementia

ScienceDaily (Oct. 26, 2012) ? New research presented in October at the 6th Neurodegenerative Conditions Research and Development Conference in San Francisco demonstrates the role of the investigational compound IRX4204 in alleviating cognitive decline in animal models of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The presentation entitled "Investigation of the RXR-specific agonist IRX4204 as a Disease Modifying Agent of Alzheimer's Disease Neuropathology and Cognitive Impairment" was made by lead researcher Giulio Maria Pasinetti, MD, PhD, of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.

IRX4204 is a retinoid X receptor (RXR) agonist, meaning it stimulates the retinoid receptor in the brain.The data demonstrates attenuation of AD including prevention of plaque deposits associated with cognitive deterioration in an IRX4204-treated mouse model genetically determined to develop AD. IRX4204 also prevents neuropathological features associated with abnormal tau processing, another form of abnormal protein also found in a form of Parkinson's disease associated with dementia.

"The treatment of AD remains a serious unmet medical need which IRX4204 may be able to address," Dr. Pasinetti said "Our research show that IRX4204 and other RXR agonists have potential for slowing, and possibly reversing pathology and cognitive deficits in Alzheimer's disease patients."

Ongoing translational studies in subjects with Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease with dementia are currently being developed.

Alzheimer's disease currently afflicts more than 5 million Americans and may triple in prevalence to more than 16 million Americans by 2050, according to data from The Alzheimer's Association.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/-jfqswt0tuQ/121026143315.htm

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Future Shop & Wal-Mart Canada Gaming Deals: October 26th ...

This week at Future Shop allows you to get a $50 gift card with the PlayStation Vita?Assassin?s Creed 3: Liberation System Bundle, or for $50 off online. You can then also get a steelbook when pre-ordering Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition on?Wii U.

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Future Shop

Get a $20 online credit towards a Far Cry 3 pre-order with purchase of any new release game

Free $50 gift card with PlayStation Vita Assassin?s Creed 3: Liberation System Bundle ? $249.99

PlayStation Vita Assassin?s Creed 3: Liberation System Bundle (Online Only) ? $199.99 (save $50)

Xbox 360 4GB Kinect Bundle ? $249.99 (save $50)

Lego Batman 2 ? $39.99 (save $10)

Xbox 360 Chatpad ? $24.99 (save $10)

Free Steelbook with Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition pre-order

Trade in 1 game from this list to get Zone of the Enders HD Collection or Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask free

Trade in 2 games from this list to get Nike+ Kinect Training, Assassin?s Creed 3, or WWE 13 free

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Wal-Mart

Buy Lego Lord of the Rings on PS3 or Xbox 360 (out November 13th)?and receive Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4 free

Buy Halo 4 to receive 480 MSP, 1 month of Xbox Live Gold, and more

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Best Buy & Wal-Mart Canada Gaming Deals: October 26th ? November 1st, 2012

New Release Video Games: October 28th ? November 3rd, 2012

November 2012 New Release Video Games

December 2012 New Release Video Games

January 2013 New Release Video Games

February 2013 New Release Video Games

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Source: http://trendygamers.com/2012/10/26/future-shop-wal-mart-canada-gaming-deals-october-26th-november-1st-2012-ac3-liberation-ps-vita-bundle-199/

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Learn More About Heating And Air Quality With These Resources ...

Last updated 14 hours ago

At Service Legends Heating and Cooling, we're not only experts in air conditioning and furnace services, we're experts in improving indoor air quality. To learn more about the importance of maintaining your heating and cooling system and improving the quality of the air in your home, read the following articles:

• Installing a carbon monoxide detector in your home is one way you can ensure that your furnace is functioning properly.
• Carbon monoxide is colorless, odorless, and tasteless. Learn how to detect this deadly gas at AAPCC.org.
• Understand the efficiency of your furnace or boiler to learn how to determine whether you need to replace or retrofit your furnace to make it more efficient.
• Discover how to improve the air quality in your home from the University of Colorado.
• The United States Environmental Protection Agency provides additional information on ways to improve the quality of air in your home.

For more help and information on heating and cooling your home, call Service Legends at (515) 657-6588 today!

Source: http://www.desmoinesheatingandcooling.net/577347/2012/10/26/learn-more-about-heating-and-air-quality-with-these-resources.html

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