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It was late afternoon and we were wheeling along on 72 east of Honolulu, bound for Sandy Beach. We had just passed Koko Head when a long-repressed thought sprung to mind. I had Nebra turn off into the parking lot at the Halona Blowhole. There was something I had to see 58 years after the fact.
I wanted to see Halona Cove Beach, the beach where a famous kiss had taken place in the 1953 film From Here to Eternity. The scene depicted the stars, Deborah Kerr and Burt Lancaster, lying in the sand in swimsuits, embracing and kissing as the surf rushed over them. The kiss itself lasted only a few seconds, but was so wonderfully set up by the script that it became super-charged with eroticism and ultimately an iconic moment in film history. Even if you've never seen Eternity, chances are you've seen a still photo of the kiss or one of the many cheap imitations, like in the Brando Mutiny on the Bounty.
Without the brilliant script from screenwriter Daniel Taradash, there would have been no kiss, probably no beach scene and perhaps no movie.
Harry Cohn, president of Columbia Pictures, acquired film rights to James Jones's best-selling novel of 1952 by the same title for $82,000. The movie industry scoffed. The book was too long, 850 pages, and couldn't be boiled down into a 2-hour movie, as Cohn demanded, not to mention being loaded with such risqué subjects as adultery, prostitution, sadism and, say some, homosexuality. Also, set as it was in the days leading up to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Jones took dead-aim at a U.S. military flush with corruption and inhumane treatment of its soldiers. Not good karma for a director, Fred Zinnemann, who wanted to shoot on location at Schofield Barracks and needed the Army's permission. For those controversial reasons, the project was known around Hollywood as "Cohn's folly."
But Taradash, a 40-year-old with only one screen credit to his resume, came to the rescue. He toned down the controversy, covered up the nudity and compacted the novel into a script of 1 hour, 58 minutes, all without compromising the author's message.
The kiss is only a small but integral part of the important and electric beach scene, as created by Taradash. The scene begins 33 minutes and 45 seconds into the film, by the DVD version I saw, and continues for 5 minutes and 47 seconds. It starts with the two illicit lovers, Karen Holmes (Kerr) and Sgt. Milt Warden (Lancaster), easing down to the beach over black lava rock. Karen is unhappily married to Capt. Dana Holmes (Philip Ober), who is Warden's commanding officer at Schofield. The captain is an irresponsible philanderer who has more interest in building up his unit's boxing team than he has in his wife. Karen has a reputation as being as sexually loose as her husband.
What makes the beach scene so captivating is the viewers' sudden realization that this is no tawdry romance after all, that the hard-bitten Milt and the cynical Karen are beginning to fall in love. There first liaison, at Holmes's house, is all lust and hurry-up. On the beach we begin to see tenderness, understanding and deep affection taking over. Milt lifts Karen carefully down onto the little "secret" beach and for a moment, as Milt strips down to his swim suit, Karen looks at him almost in awe. I had to shake myself back to reality, thinking for that flicker of time I was looking at a near-perfect likeness of the vulnerable Marilyn Monroe. It was uncanny.
It was the casting of Kerr (pronounced Car) that made the beach scene such a success. Kerr, a reserved Scottish actress, had played nothing but admirable and, as she put it, "lady-like roles" up until then. Cohn at first railed at the idea of Kerr as Karen Holmes, calling her "that virgin from Metro (MGM)." Cohn wanted to type-cast the sultry and brash Joan Crawford. Reluctantly he gave in to the wishes of Zinnemann and producer Buddy Adler. It was Kerr's aura of respectability that heightened the moment on the beach for viewers with the touch of naughtiness.
It is Karen who first dashes playfully into the ocean with the athletic Milt following her. A quick dip and then the kiss. According to Zinnemann's son, Tim, it was not the kiss itself that upset the censors at the so-called Breen Office. It was "the surging water" as the kiss continued, a symbol, I assume, of sexual intercourse and climax. The censors insisted the kiss on the surf could not be used in advertising.
The rest of the beach scene is much more important. "I never knew it could be like this," Karen says to Milt. "Nobody ever kissed me the way you do." That leads to the rising jealousy in Milt. He asks how many lovers she has had before him. A spat develops in which Karen tells the story of her marriage: A drunken husband who passed out and left her to miscarry their son and ruin her chances at motherhood. The "confession" leads to an even stronger bond between the two.
All of the beach scene was Taradash, not the novelist Jones. In the book, the beach scene, or "moonlight swim" is a farce. The two lovers are nude, not in swimsuits, and a chilled Karen rushes out of the sea to wrap up in the blanket. She is miserable and blames herself. Milt thinks coming to the beach was a mistake. Nothing happens. No kiss, no love-making. And they leave the beach separately as they had come.
In fact, the novel's beach scene does not actually take place but appears as a memory Milt has one day at the Barracks while he looks at a photo of Karen on the captain's desk. And there was no miscarriage for Karen. At the time of her affair with Milt Warden, she had a 9-year-old son. Her husband had given her a venereal disease which ultimately put a bitter end to her child-bearing life.
You may forget a lot about this film classic but you never forget the beach scene. It is one of those infrequent times when the movie version is better than the book's. And that scene had stayed with me all these years, and now I was going to see for the first time the actual beach where the scene was filmed.
A group had gathered around the railing near the Blowhole. It was a bad day for watching the plume of water come up through the lava tubes and rise high in the air. Low tide, perhaps. And if nothing else near perfect imagery for the mounting impotence of a great film's hold on the public.
I walked alone by the railing over to the right side of the Blowhole parking lot and peered down onto a very small beach between two outcroppings of black rock. A make-shift path came down from the highway to the white sand where a handful of sunbathers were stretched out on blankets. I wondered if I would see a couple stretched out there in the small spit of sand that touches the sea, mimicking the Eternity kiss, someone with a camera catching the moment as the surf surges in. But I was disappointed. A young man stood by himself at almost the exact spot of the kiss, staring out at the vast Pacific.
There was a time, Zinnemann wrote in his autobiography, "A Life in the Movies," when tour buses stopped at the beach "to let people admire the spot where Burt and Deborah made love in the waves." But I saw no bus, no indication the little beach was anything more than that, a little hidden beach by the Blowhole.
`What was sensational and extremely provocative a mere 25 years ago," Zinnemann wrote, "seems harmless and friendly by today's standards." The beach scene out-lived its stars. Kerr passed awayin 2007 and Lancaster in 1994.
Eternity was filmed in an amazing 41 days, half of it on Oahu. It was a cast with many stars. Frank Sinatra, Montgomery Clift and Donna Reed to name a few. It garnered 13 Oscar nomination and won eight of them. My guess is that few under the age of 30 know anything about the film or the most famous wet kiss in history.
As I turned away I thought of the little beach as a ghost of a place. And soon, I suspect, as the older generations die off, it will not even be that for there can be no ghost for something that never existed in the minds of the living.
The beach scene was a memorable moment only to those who grew up in a time of prudery, repression and hypocrisy in 1950s America. If Eternity helped in any way to end those dreary gray days, I'm satisfied to let it go at that. I had seen enough. Sandy Beach beckoned.


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Hi Dolls,
A couple of weeks ago on February 18 I was invited by Mariana Davelaar of MnM-PR Agency to see the new collection of the brand she represents. Here are a few pictures of the amazing collection of AXARA PARIS
Models with Representative of Axara, Mariana Davelaar of MnM-Pr Agency. The show was held at Werf221 at Utrecht.
The fabrics of Axara are very beautiful...
|Fellow Blogger Wendy Van Soest of FabulousstyleWS and I...
I want to thank Mariana Davelaar and MnM-PR for inviting me to this event, it was very inspiring and the clothes are beautiful.
The Style HQ
The Style HQ

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Baku, Azerbaijan, April 14
By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:
Turkey intends to privatize most of its coal fields, Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Taner Yildiz said, Turkish TRT Haber TV channel reported on April 14.
Yildiz said some 16 coal fields operate in Turkey and they are expected to be put up for privatization. Nevertheless, the minister didn't specify the timeframe of the privatization.
The minister also pointed out that the revenues from the privatization of the coal fields will contribute to the economic growth and will be spent on the development of economic spheres.
The idea of privatization of coal fields is not new for Turkey, according to Yildiz.
Turkey's revenues from the privatization increased by 25.3 percent and reached 60 billion Turkish liras in 2013 compared to 47.9 billion liras in 2012.
Some 18 companies were put up for the privatization in the country in 2013. Over 100 investors from 20 countries were involved in the privatization of facilities and companies in Turkey in 2013.
Turkey's total income from privatization that started in 1985 amounted to $57.8 billion.
The plant for sugar production, two bridges and a number of main roads are expected to be privatized in Turkey in the next two years.
Since the denationalization in Turkey, some 270 public organizations, eight main roads, two bridges and six ports have been privatized.
Earlier, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that currently, Turkey is outdoing almost all EU countries in the sphere of privatization.
"The privatization in the country is aimed at the development of the private sector," he added.
Some 38 state facilities were privatized in Turkey in 2013, the Turkish Privatization Agency reported.
It is expected to bring in some $887.45 million of revenue from the privatization of 13 state facilities that are currently awaiting approval.
Ski resorts, as well as several bridges and roads are among the privatized facilities.
The official exchange rate on April 14 is 2.1177 TRY/USD.
Translated by L.Z.
Edited by C.N.
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text:
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By Wouter Pors
After almost 40 years of preparation, Europe will finally get a unitary patent and a unified court to enforce it. This will allow for one patent application, resulting in a uniform right throughout Europe, which can be enforced through a brand new court at the European level.The relevant Regulations were adopted by the European Parliament in first reading on 11 December 2012, whereas the agreement that will set up the court system will be signed on 18 February 2013. Provided the agreement will be ratified by at least 13 states in time, unitary patents and their enforcement will become available early 2014. The new system will create a unitary patent that will be granted by the European Patent Office (EPO). It has a simplified language system and no longer requires registration in individual countries. The system provides for a new Unified Patent Court, which will be mandatory for the enforcement of the new Unitary Patents and for a transitional period optional for the enforcement of European Patents. The court will have local divisions in at least those countries that are experienced in handling patent litigation, regional divisions for other countries and also a central division. There will be one Court of Appeal. The role of the Court of Justice of the European Union has been limited as far as possible.Of course, national patents will remain an option even after the transitional period and those will remain subject to the jurisdiction of the national courts. Thus, patentees will need to make careful decisions regarding their prosecution strategy. Bird & Bird can provide strategic advice at an increasing level of detail as the implementation progresses in the course of 2013.This newsflash will give a first overview of the relevant aspects of the new system, in as far as these are available now. We will follow up with updates on further developments. There will be a series of seminars dealing with all relevant aspects in detail, as well as additional white papers. Finally, we have developed and will further develop the tools for tailor-made strategic advice to clients on how to best use the options that will become available with the introduction of this new system, both with regard to prosecution, litigation and logistics.A new system for Europe, creating uniform patent protectionEuropean patents have been around since 1970, but the system has its flaws. Although it allows for filing a single application for Europe and centralized prosecution until grant, it results in a patent that needs to be registered in each European country separately. The costs involved cause many patentees to register in a limited number of countries, only to find out years later that their business or the business of their competitors has expanded to countries where they do not have protection. After grant, the European patent in fact is not a unitary right, but a right that is subject to national patent law in each country of registration.Since the European patent was introduced, the European Union managed to create several unitary intellectual property rights, namely the Community Trademark and Community Design Right. Creating a unitary patent however was not as simple, language issues being one of the main problems. Industry preferred a single language for patents throughout Europe, or at least a limited number of languages, but most of the 27 EU Member States insisted on the prerogative of using their national languages.In addition, there was no single system to enforce a European patent or litigate its validity. This was governed by national laws in each of the EU Member States and actions had to be brought before the national courts. Although many disputes are settled after a limited number of court actions, in theory the parties would need to go to court in a large number of countries. This does not reflect the increasing globalisation of trade and innovation and it puts Europe at a disadvantage compared to other regions of comparable scale, such as the US or – increasingly important – China.After many attempts to solve the problem at European Union level, a number of countries decided to take a different approach some two years ago. They opted for a multilateral solution amongst themselves, at the same time bringing the solution as closely to an EU solution as possible. To this end, the option of a so-called enhanced cooperation among EU member States was employed for the first time in EU history. This turned out to be a fruitful approach, in which 25 of the 27 Member States will participate. Italy and Spain will not participate in the Unitary Patent, but it seems that Italy will take part in the Unified Patent Court (UPC).The new solution, which comprises three elements, should be fully operational in spring 2014. In order to achieve this, the participating states will not only sign the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (UPC Agreement) in Brussels on 18 February, but also a Declaration on the Preparations, in which they undertake a large number of obligations aimed at the implementation of the system, ranging from making premises available and setting up an ICT system to the education and training of judges. This preparatory work will be picked up immediately, under the management of a Preparatory Committee. The agenda for the Preparatory Committee is already developed and deals with the legal framework, IT, financial aspects and human resources and training. This is also the agenda for the implementation by the member states.Unitary Patent RegulationThe Unitary Patent Regulation provides for the grant of so-called Unitary Patents – officially named "European Patent with Unitary Effect" – which will have effect throughout the EU, for now with the exception of Italy and Spain. The prosecution of the applications will be handled by the EPO. The prosecution is the same as for the current European patents, the only additional requirement is a request to register in the Register for unitary patent protection, which will be kept by the EPO. Such Unitary Patent shall have a unitary character, it shall provide uniform protection and shall have equal effect in all the 25 participating Member States.Scope of protectionThe scope of protection of the Unitary Patents is not governed by the Regulation itself. Through a complex legal instrument, the scope of protection is governed by the UPC Agreement. The purpose of this solution is to offer uniform protection throughout Europe, separate from the quirks of national law, but with the exclusion of the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). This was a crucial demand from both industry and patent law professionals, given the extremely poor track record of the CJEU in intellectual property matters, especially in relation to trademarks and design rights. The CJEU simply does not comprise intellectual property professionals, since its members are mainly selected for their knowledge of constitutional law, competition law and other specialism that are important to the functioning of the EU. Due to the achieved solution, unitary patents will be adjudicated by judges specialised in patent law. Whether the CJEU will be effectively kept out of the system completely remains to be seen. It will of course retain jurisdiction for EU instruments of law, such as the Biotech Directive.CharacteristicsProperty rights concerning Unitary Patents are governed by the national law of the place of residence or place of business of the patentee. For patentees outside the EU German law will apply, as this is the law of the EPO headquarters. The Regulation also provides an option to submit a declaration of willingness to license under FRAND conditions with the EPO, which is a first result of the laws on standard essential patents that the European Commission intends to develop.The fees involved in obtaining and maintaining a Unitary Patent still have to be established, but the intention is that these should be considerably lower than for European Patents. An important advantage of course is that only one renewal fee has to be paid each year to the EPO, instead of the national renewal fess that are due for European Patents.Thus, industry will have the option of applying for a Unitary Patent for all 25 Member States, a European patent - and subsequent registration in a selected number of European countries – or national patents. National patents are enforced in the national courts. Unitary Patents are enforced in the Unified Patent Court. European patents are in principle enforced in the UPC too, but can be enforced in national courts on the basis of an opt-out declaration for the first 7 years, which period will almost certainly be extended for at least another 7 years.Regulation on applicable translation arrangementsThe second instrument is the Regulation on applicable translation arrangements, also an instrument of enhanced cooperation between 25 Member States, in which Italy and Spain will not participate (for now).Language regimeApplications for Unitary Patents and European patents are filed and prosecuted in one of the three official languages of the European Patent Convention, namely English, German or French. For a transitional period of at least 6 years, a translation into English shall be submitted along with applications in German and French, and a translation into German or French shall be submitted along with an application in English. The Regulation on applicable translation arrangements provides that no further translations of a Unitary Patent are required after grant, until a dispute arises.In case of a dispute, the patentee will have to provide, upon request by the alleged infringer, a full translation of the Unitary Patent into an official language of either the participating Member State in which the alleged infringement took place or the Member State in which the alleged infringer is domiciled. A court handling a patent case may also request a translation into the language of that court. The language regime for European patents is not affected.Stray provision on damagesThis regulation also contains a totally unrelated provision, which stipulates that courts shall take into account whether an infringement on a Unitary Patent was made knowingly, when assessing a claim for damages against an SME, a natural person or a non-profit organisation, a university or a public research organisation.Agreement on a Unified Patent CourtThe third and probably most important instrument is the UPC Agreement itself, which will introduce a single litigation system at European level, which will hold hearings in many cities throughout Europe. The big advantage is that it is a single court with a single set of rules on jurisdiction and procedure. However, the organisation of the court and the rules are quite complicated. In addition, the rules are drafted to allow for maximum flexibility to maintain a certain "couleur locale" in patent litigation. Within that flexibility, litigation in the United Kingdom may comprise cross-examination of expert witnesses as the London courts are used to, litigation in Germany may comprise bifurcation of infringement and validity claims as the German courts apply and many other variations from country to country, some small, some major may occur.Thus, the new system will still allow for forum shopping and litigation strategy within the UPC and will thus call for a considerable amount of expertise – including cross-border expertise – of the advocates involved. The expectation of the Member States is that the Court of Appeal will develop best practices in due time, which will limit local variations, but this will take time to create and will probably never result in complete uniformity. Litigation in the UPC will provide a one stop shop – or two stops in case of bifurcation of infringement and validity – for enforcement in Europe, but it will be crucial which entrance to the shop is taken. Bird & Bird is particularly experienced in developing such strategies and is at the forefront of developing such strategies tailored to the essentials of the UPC.
Organisation of the Unified Patent CourtThe Unified Patent Court will consist of a Court of First Instance (CFI) and a Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal will be in Luxemburg and all hearings will be held in Luxemburg. This guarantees a uniform approach at the appeals level and thus allows the Court of Appeal to develop uniform best practices that will need to be applied by the CFI.The CFI will consist of a central division, regional divisions and local divisions. The central division will hear electronics cases in Paris, life sciences cases in London and mechanical engineering cases (including automotive) in Munich. The headquarters of the central division will be in Paris.The participating countries will have to decide in the coming months whether they want to set up a local division of their own, join forces in a regional division or refer all their cases to the central division. However, it is clear that the currently most experienced countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Belgium, France and Italy will have local divisions. The Italian local division will of course only handle litigation on European patents, since Italy for now is not joining the Unitary Patent.In addition to this there may be up to several regional divisions. Those are the ones that will need to develop an approach of their own, since there will be no tradition to rely on at the division level and often not even much of a detailed tradition at the level of the participating countries. Some of these countries do not have a pool of experienced judges or even patent litigators. Of course, Bird & Bird will have local teams ready to do the litigation in all those divisions and those teams will ensure that they have full knowledge of the peculiarities of the division at hand.Cases are heard by multinational panels of 3 judges. In local divisions, 2 out of those 3 judges will be local in countries that on average handled 50 or more patent cases in the 3 years prior to the start of the UPC. Otherwise, only 1 judge on the panel will be local. This means that the local divisions in countries that are experienced in handling patent litigation will indeed be able to maintain their "couleur locale". A technically qualified judge may be added to the panel upon request of one of the parties.
Jurisdiction of the UPC divisionsInfringement actions, including for declarations of non-infringement, shall be brought before the local or regional division of the place of infringement or domicile of the defendant. Actions against defendants who have no domicile or place of business in Europe may be brought before the local or regional division of the place of infringement or before the central division. The division first seized shall handle all cases on the same patent. This will allow for quite a bit of forum shopping. Actions for a declaration of non-infringement and validity actions shall be brought before the central division. However, if an infringement action is pending in a local or regional division, a validity action or a declaration of non-infringement may only be brought before that same division. That division may then (1) keep both the infringement action and the validity action, (2) refer both to the central division or (3) bifurcate, meaning that the validity action is referred to the central division, but the infringement action is kept at the local or regional level, although it may be suspended awaiting the outcome on validity.Finally, if an action is pending before a regional division where the alleged infringement has occurred in the territories of 3 or more of such regional divisions, the defendant can demand a referral to the central division. This way he can prevent the bifurcation of such a case and also – and maybe even more importantly – that a complex major multi-jurisdictional case is heard by an inexperienced regional division. The threshold however is rather high and the rule does not apply to local divisions, which means that the German local divisions will remain fully free to bifurcate as they are used to.Of course, parties may also agree on a division of their choice. This is particularly interesting if an action would otherwise end up in an inexperienced division. It is clear that these jurisdiction rules call for a carefully developed litigation strategy.Litigation languageThe litigation before a local or regional CFI division shall be conducted in any of the official languages of the participating countries, which may be the language of the defendant, but does not need to be. However, each country may in addition designate English, German or French as a litigation language and the parties may then agree to use that language. If the panel refuses to follow that choice, the parties may request referral to the central division. The CFI itself may also propose to use the language of the patent and if a party contests that proposal, the President of the CFI can take a binding decision. Litigation at the central division shall be done in the language of the patent, while litigation on appeal shall basically be done in the language used in first instance.The participating countries will have to decide in the coming months whether they will designate English, German or French in addition to their national languages. The Netherlands will designate English.ProcedureThe type of procedure for the UPC will of course be a blend of what is customary in the participating countries, but it will be an independent regime of its own. The agreement provides that it will include a written, an interim and an oral procedure, organized in a flexible and balanced manner. Technically qualified judges may be added and the court may appoint experts. Access to confidential information can be restricted by the court. Basically all instruments available to the various national courts in Europe will also be available to the UPC, including provisional and protective measures and orders to preserve evidence and inspect premises.An extensive set of rules of procedure has already been developed by a drafting committee. The most recent version was established on 29 November and will be subject to a consultation that starts in February.Bird & Bird will provide more detailed updates on the rules of procedure and on the implementation in the coming months, but all companies interested in patent law should now start considering the effects this new system will have on their business. Of course, we are ready to assist in the process.
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text:
City newsagent GT News has been sold to the owners of Bargain Booze for £6 million.
Conviviality Retail Plc snapped up all 37 stores across Sheffield, Yorkshire and the East Midlands.
It acquired the entire share capital of GT News (Holdings)and the deal comes after the recent acquisition of Rhythm and Booze. The firm says it will help improve "store density" making logistics and marketing more efficient.
Diana Hunter, Conviviality Retail chief executive, said: "The acquisition of 37 stores from GT News is in line with our aim to grow our business into areas which are underserved by our brands.
"Yorkshire and the East Midlands are two such areas and will provide a significant growth opportunity. Customers will get even better value for money across all the brands and ranges that they currently buy as well as the additional benefit of a much stronger range of beers, wines and spirits."
For the year ended June 30, 2014, GT News generated revenues of £57m and profit after tax of £400,000.
It had net assets of £2m, of which £1.8m related to property.


text:
Made of 100% recycled cardboard, the 20 inch Graypants Disc Pendant Lampshade will make a statement in any interior. Featuring a beautiful, ribbed shape, the lampshade is made of laser-cut rings of cardboard which have been layered and glued together. Designed in a way that light falls through the design to cast shadows on the wall, the semi-transparent pendant is treated to be fire-resistant. - L.M.
- 20 inch Graypants Disc Pendant Lampshade
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- 2m cord
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- Requires 1 x screw bulb (max 60W) - not included
- Dimensions: H:230 x Dia:500mm


text: Roll over image to zoom in Color Coated Gem Cut Slant Dome Paperweight Optical Crystal | Sandblast Etch Size SKU Approx. H × W × D Shipping Wt. Qty Price NA 102030 2" x 3" x 3" 1.1 $59.00 Please specify the quantity of product(s). We do not have sufficient stock quantity for your order. Please Live Chat or Call us at 1-888-779-8803 for assistance. Print Add to Wishlist ADD TO CART & PERSONALIZE VIEW FULL DETAILS X


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Welcome to a FORCE workshop arranged by the Geophysical Methods and the SedStrat network.
The workshop is held in Måltidets Hus, right across the street from NPD offices.
THIS SEMINAR IS NOW FULLY BOOKED. If you did not get a seat and would like to put your name on the waiting list, please send an email to email@example.com
The program and abstracts can be downladed here.
Participant fee
Please find registration box at the top of the page.
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Payment is now made by credit card. Please note that no refunds will be given after you have signed up. If you for any reason can not attend the seminar, you are welcome to send a representative, just inform Tone Helene Mydland as soon as there are changes.
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Organising committee:Ryan Paton, BP - ChairmanMark Ackers, Centrica EnergiSamme Brough, Premier OilCharles Jourdan, MaerskLucy Ramsey, BG NorgeLutz Seiffert, TotalIrmgard Trummer, MaerskTone Helene Mydland, NPD


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Friday, January 16, 2009
The things I want to DIY
10 comments:
- LauraAnn said...
I love your idea for the mason jar with people's wedding pictures in them!!! Very cute!!!
- January 16, 2009 at 9:14 AM
- Julia Remix said...
I think you can do it. But make sure you prioritize and have a backup plan in case you get tired of the DIY!
I can't wait to see how you do the shoes!
- January 16, 2009 at 9:18 AM
- Adrienne said...
Love your ideas and yes these are very doable! I was just going over my ever growing DIY list last night, and the fiance thinks I am crazy as well..haha.
- January 16, 2009 at 10:42 AM
- Heather from the bar said...
mmm a popcorn bar!!! that is a great idea!!!! And you can totally do it all. If anything I would say get the flowers done by a friend or by a professional since that has to be done a day or two before the wedding and can't be pre-prepped. But from what I know about you through working together, I am confident you can do anything you set your mind to!
- January 16, 2009 at 12:01 PM
- ~Mrs. Guru~ said...
Sounds like so much fun! You have your work cut out for you!
- January 16, 2009 at 7:43 PM
- Anne @ Pink Galoshes said...
Love the idea of a popcorn bar. Yum! And we love your blog. So, we nominated you. See the link here:
- January 16, 2009 at 8:20 PM
- Jules said...
That flower bouquet is absolutely beautiful. I love the fiddlehead fern in it.
The popcorn bar is a great idea. We did a candy bar like everyone else, but this is so much different and unique.
- January 16, 2009 at 10:14 PM
- Mother*Loaded said...
Love all your DIY ideas...So much more special when you do it your self...Don't forget about herbs for your fiance...I had a friend use all herbs for her fall wedding and it was so gorgeous, unique, and yummy smelling tooo!!! Look forward to seeing what else you come up with!!!
- January 17, 2009 at 5:15 PM
- April {April Foster Events} said...
So, I just found your blog and as soon as a read that you love vodka/ grapefruit, I knew that I had to add you to my blog reader! I can't wait to hear more about your wedding journey!
- January 19, 2009 at 9:03 PM
- TJLoop85 said...
These look like some great DIY projects for your wedding.
Definitely attainable and money savers if you can do it yourself.
Also, your wedding website looks great and is packed with a lot of useful wedding information!
- January 22, 2009 at 4:20 PM


text: van de Wijgert Janneke; Fullem, Andrew; Kelly, Clifton; Mehendale, Sanjay; Rugpao, Sungwal; Kumwenda, Newton; Chirenje, Zvavahera; Joshi, Smita; Taha, Taha; Padian, Nancy; Bollinger, Robert; Nelson, KenradJAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes: January 1st, 2001 Articles: PDF Only Abstract Aim:To evaluate the safety of BufferGel (ReProtect LLC, Baltimore, MD), a spermicidal microbicide that acidifies semen and maintains the protective acidity of the vagina, in a high-dose tolerance trial. Methods:HIV/STD negative, sexually abstinent, and sexually active women in India, Thailand, Malawi, and Zimbabwe were asked to insert one applicator (˜5 ml) of BufferGel vaginally twice per day for 14 days. Sexually active women agreed to have sex (while using BufferGel and nonlubricated condoms) at least twice per week. Results:In total, 98 women (30 sexually abstinent and 68 sexually active) were enrolled. Overall compliance with product use was 93%. Epithelial abnormalities detected by pelvic examination or colposcopy were uncommon (8 cases in 271 examinations). Irritation was reported by approximately one quarter of the women (0.58 events per woman-week) but was generally mild and of short duration. The prevalence of bacterial vaginosis (BV) fell significantly, from 30% at enrollment to 6% at one week, and 7% at two weeks of BufferGel use. Thirty-two women acquired microscopically detectable yeast during BufferGel exposure, but only 3 developed symptomatic vaginitis. Conclusion:BufferGel appears to be safe and well tolerated by the cervicovaginal epithelium. Its effect on BV and yeasts merits further study. Janneke van de Wijgert is currently affiliated with the Population Council, New York City, New York, U.S.A. Andrew Fullem is currently affiliated with the Massachusetts Department of Health, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Janneke van de Wijgert, Population Council, International Programs Division, One Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, New York City, NY 10017 U.S.A.; e-mail: email@example.com Manuscript received August 14, 2000; accepted October 20, 2000. © 2001 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc.


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Although most remodelers will be inconvenienced at best by any mold problems they encounter, the concerns about mold hazards present opportunities for remodelers to expand their services as well.
|Turning mold to his advantage, Greg Mitchell carved out a niche for himself and his business: waterproofing crawl spaces. Photos courtesy of A Better Crawlspace Inc.
"The companies that do the demolition work for a mold-remediation project aren't very good at replacing and resealing the home afterward," says Dan Bawden of Legal Eagle Contractors in Houston. "Remodelers can create a nice niche by going to market as reconstruction contractors after remediation is finished."
A typical remediation leaves drywall cut to about 4 feet high in the affected area, with cabinets and baseboards torn out, insulation removed, and electrical and painting to be done. That represents a significant amount of work just to return the home to its original condition.
Others are finding niches in handling the problem at its source before it gets too unwieldy. Greg Mitchell, president of A Better Crawlspace Inc. in Lombard, Ill., expanded his waterproofing business about four years ago when he began to see the inadequate ways crawl spaces were waterproofed. "Drain tiles, pea gravel and sump pumps still leave behind an inherent amount of moisture in the air and the space that could cause problems," he says. That dampness is a significant source of mold problems that develop in homes, he notes.
To address that concern, he added a concrete service. The company ensures watertightness in the crawl space and then pumps in about 4 inches of concrete and adds a float finish. Business is booming. "Awareness is high for mold concerns now," Mitchell says, "and this approach alleviates any worries about dampness remaining to allow it to grow."
He receives many calls from people who have just moved into homes. "The new homeowners find problems that the previous owners didn't see or were less sensitive to." With about 30% of the homes in his area having a clay or gravel crawl space, he expects this work will continue to grow.


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ROCKLAND COUNTY, N.Y. -- Heroin and football aren't usually two words that go together.
But for Clarkstown North High School senior Ryan Cox, Section 1 All-Section, All-League, Linebacker of the Year, and USA Football's Heart of a Giant nominee, for years the young star football player thought it was "normal."
"My birth mother and brothers and sisters and step-father are all heroin and drug addicts and it was normal to find my mother overdosing in the bathtub or to have everyone high all the time," Cox said.
That's not how Cox's life started. He was the youngest of three with his father and mother before she began using drugs, and life was pretty normal. Then his mother became addicted to drugs when he was a toddler.
And that's when his life turned upside down. His parents divorced and he moved to California with his father. The next six years were steady and pretty normal for the little boy. Then one day his mother, who had never visited, written or seen the boy in years, decided she wanted custody and unbelievably, won in court.
Soon, the small child found himself standing in a parking lot holding his father's hand asking if each woman that pulled up if that was his mommy.
"It was heartbreaking and a shock," said his father Thomas Cox, a sergeant investigator with the Corrections Department.
The move back to New York to live with his mother and step-father and his brothers and sisters was like stepping into another world. A world of heroin and pills and pot, Ryan Cox said.
It's also when his father began the long fight to win custody of his son.
"I walked away from my home and life in California and came to New York and started over and began the long fight to get Ryan back and to make sure that he was safe," he said.
That fight took until Ryan was in the sixth grade. By then he had been exposed to years of living with drug addicts and the uncertainty and fear that creates. When he first moved back with his father he was shocked and afraid and didn't understand that life could be, well, "normal," he said.
But looking back, the young man who excels at everything from academics to wrestling to football, is so thankful that his father fought for him and he works every day to make his father, and his step-mother, Dr. Kimberly Collica-Cox proud.
"She's my real mother, she was there for me every day," Ryan said. "She made life what I have today and I'm so thankful to her and to my father for saving me."
But the really amazing thing about Ryan, who heads to college next year to study dentistry and has been accepted by Pace University and has interest from several others, is that none of his classmates or friends knew his life story.
"I didn't really hang out with any clicks, I was just friends with everyone and when I was nominated for this award and had to tell my story on video I was a little worried that people would judge me," Ryan said.
So was his family.
"I was unsure about putting all of this out to the public," Thomas Cox said. "I work in law enforcement so it's embarrassing. But the country is fighting a national epidemic and it was right for Ryan to tell people that good can come from a hard life if you work at it."
But the exact opposite happened, Ryan Cox said.
"The whole school came out behind me and has supported me and voted for me and helped me make it to the final six in the award," he said.
But he's also worked, and worked hard to get where he is. He's played through numerous injuries and kept going, always with his eye on being a team player and winning and making his parents proud.
"I'm just so honored and humbled and really, I'm on top of the world right now and can't wait to see what else the future brings."
The winner of the annual USA Football Heart of a Giant Award will be announced on Dec. 11. To learn more about the award and other nominees, click here.
Click here to sign up for Daily Voice's free daily emails and news alerts.


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LIS-S 634 Metadata
3 credits
Prerequisites: LIS S500 and LIS S503
Metadata is essential in designing and developing effective knowledge systems; it facilitates resource discovery, database documentation, and recording digital documents' textual and conceptual histories. This course introduces principles supporting the development and implementation of metadata schemes, focusing on issues of interoperability, internal and external standardization, and evaluation.
Course Delivery
- Online


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To the list of ambitious names hoping to make an impact at the Conservative party conference, add a few more: those of LK Bennett, Reiss and Jigsaw.
The past five years have seen a startling surge of interest in the clothes worn by female politicians and the wives of male politicians, driven in part by the stardust around the stylish and daring wardrobe of Michelle Obama. The phenomenon is at its height during party conference season, when speeches and staged family photocalls are now seen as fair game for fashion critique.
For a certain type of fashion label – smart but not showy; age-appropriate for the working fortysomething woman; carefully shaped for enough vim to work on camera but never too short, tight or revealing – party conference season has become a catwalk. Stores that have little hope of dressing Cara Delevingne for a night at The Box have found more modestly lucrative mannequins in Samantha Cameron and her fellow women in the political class, as they smile for their windswept annual autumn photocalls.
LK Bennett, long best known as a destination for pretty-but-practical shoes, is the name to watch this conference season. Justine Miliband chose a £245 LK Bennett dress to watch the leader's speech at the Labour conference on Tuesday. She acknowledged in advance her choice would be scrutinised, telling a Young Labour meeting that "If I don't say anything to you guys tonight probably all you'll know about me this year is the make of the dress I wear for Ed's speech".
A spokesman for LK Bennett confirmed on Thursday that the brand has been chosen by a number of both politicians and politicians' wives including Samantha Cameron, Sarah Brown, Theresa May and Justine Miliband. The Miliband dress, which had been available in all sizes at the beginning of the week, is now either sold out or close to sold out in most sizes, according to the company website.
The exposure could hardly come at a more useful moment for LK Bennett, whose owners are looking for a buyer willing to pay about £100 million for the business. The company began as a single shoe store in Wimbledon, opened by Linda Kristin Bennett. Since Bennett sold 70% of the brand to private equity groups in 2007, it has raised its sights. Innovations have included a more upscale Black Ribbon range, and alignments with fashionable women such as actress Rosamund Pike, who has designed handbags and starred in an advertising campaign, and fashion industry face Caroline Issa, who designed a range of shoes. But doubtless the most significant factor in the rise of LK Bennett, which saw a spike in profits to £9.3 million in the year to July 2012, has been the patronage of the Duchess of Cambridge, who is frequently photographed in the brand's beige Sledge platform courts and wore a teal dress and matching jacket by the label for the first day of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Her endorsements make it a safe choice for women in the political arena, who are aiming not to set trends but to win approval ratings.
Samantha Cameron has learned from experience that her outfits at party conference will be appraised by a public who care more about the price tag of an outfit than they do about its patriotic intent. Since being criticised for wearing a £749 Paul Smith dress for her first conference as the prime minister's wife in 2010, Cameron has been careful to choose high street or mid-market labels for subsequent conference appearances. Reiss and Jigsaw, whose clothes are neither offputtingly expensive nor so cheap as to raise questions about the factories in which they were made, have become Cameron favourites. During the 2011 conference she was photographed in a £75 top from Whistles with a skirt from a suit she had worn several times before worn with shoes from LK Bennett, and on several occasions in a pair of £39.99 trousers from Zara. Last autumn, she wore a £345 blue dress from Joseph – and, once again, grey LK Bennett shoes. However, the price tag can tell only half the story. At the 2009 Conservative conference she was widely applauded for an M&S dress that cost only £65. It was later revealed, it had sold out and had been made bespoke.


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I was hoping that this year, writing would be easy. That it would break me out of the funk I've been feeling, the sense of despair and discouragement, the feeling of being convinced that I screw everything up, that I can't do anything right.
That I disappoint people.
I was hoping that, for this one month, this could be one thing I did right.
That's a lot of pressure, folks. Let me just fix my whole life, my whole psychological profile of issues, with a blogging challenge. Let me just redefine my relationship to myself and to everyone around me by tapping on my keyboard a little bit each day. Let me just do this thing and then everything will be better.
I'm going to fail.
I'm not going to write anything good.
I disappoint people.
I disappoint people.
I disappoint people.
And it doesn't seem to matter how many times I tell myself that the point is writing, not good writing. It doesn't seem to matter how many times I tell myself that the simple act of showing up is enough, that I don't need approval or congratulations to have worth as a human being. It doesn't matter how many times my friends tell me they care about me. I'm always going to find the evidence to prove that I, that my words, that my blog, that showing up doesn't matter at all.
I want to matter.
I said this yesterday and I'm going to say it again today, and I'm probably going to have to keep saying it again and again until I believe it. Or maybe I won't ever believe it.
I want to show up, even if it doesn't "do" anything. I want to be here because here is the place I belong. I want to do this just to do it, not to get anywhere or accomplish anything.
And it's true. And it isn't.
And that's okay.


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Erik Lamela believes that he is ready to finally make an impression at Tottenham after a difficult start to his life at White Hart Lane.
Lamela became the club's most expensive ever signing in the summer but the Argentina international is still adapting to a new country and new language as he attempts to recreate the form that made him a star for Roma last season.
Villas-Boas admitted that adapting to England would take time for the 21-year-old but Lamela says that he is working hard in training to make sure he will be at his best when his opportunity to shine arises.
"My moment will come and I will make the difference," Lamela told the London Evening Standard. "You always train thinking that you're going to play. Sooner or later, my moment will arrive and I have to be ready. That is the way I am looking at it.
"I get on very well with Andre Villas-Boas. He is a great guy who clearly thinks about the future. Because of this, coming to Tottenham is a great step for me and in the future, we'll see why.
"Of course, it's also important for me to get into the Argentina squad for the World Cup, but I'm confident I'll play here. We are involved in four competitions so there are many games ahead."
Villas-Boas revealed this week that Lamela is still trying to learn the language and insisted that it would take time for the youngster to fully adapt to Premier League football.
And Lamela agreed with this sentiment, explaining: "I think I need a bit of time.
"I feel good here, although getting used to life here in every sense is a completely different thing. I've barely been here two months, so time is maybe what I need.
"I need training, a bit of rhythm, some games. English football is very different from the game in Italy - much more physical, whereas Serie A is more tactical.
"It's not necessarily more difficult, but it's just different. This is a style of football I like very much, though, and I think, with the way I play, it will be very suited to my game."


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I'm angry. I'm sure you've heard about the scandal involving Lululemon Athletica, an extremely popular yoga-inspired, athletic wear retailer. Last Spring, Lululemon had produced a batch of their supposedly magical, pricey yoga pants that were overly sheer and therefore exposing the bums of a select group of customers who were unlucky enough to buy pants … Continue reading
Monthly Archives: November 2013
Un-Memorizing the "Silence is Sexy" Date Script
"In essence, what she said was, "Women are not given enough opportunities to say 'yes.'" via Un-Memorizing the \"Silence is Sexy\" Date Script. Continue reading
Calling Films out on their Gender Bias
Heard of the Bechdel Test? It requires two things in a film: For the film to have two or more women For the two women in the film to talk to each other about something besides a man Seems simple enough, but try applying it to a range of your favorite films and you'll see … Continue reading
Why "Anti-Rape Underwear" isn't the Solution
Possibly you've heard about the new anti-rape underwear, and while the idea behind the product is a cause we can all get behind, here is an article explaining the faults in this product. http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/11/05/2889411/anti-rape-underwear-sexual-assault/ Continue reading
Women at Harvard Law: an exhibition, and an anecdote
The Harvard Law School Library has just announced their newest exhibit, titled "Women at HLS: 60 Years of Transformation." From the announcement: Since women were first admitted to HLS in 1950, they have transformed the Law School, the legal profession, and public life. A special library exhibit, Women at HLS — coinciding with the upcoming … Continue reading
Changing the Conversation on Sex
"I'm not the guard who locks you in the tower. Ideally, I am my daughter's safe space, a garden to return to when the world has proved a little too cruel, a place where she can recuperate and reflect upon past mistakes and know that here, there is someone who loves her wholeheartedly and will … Continue reading
Equality or GTFO!!!!
Tomorrow Night at Boston University: "The Boston University Feminist Collective and Video Game Society invite you to join us for a discussion about the gendered minefield that is the online world. We are fortunate enough to have feminist and media critic, Anita Sarkeesian, join us to facilitate the discussion and speak to her own experiences … Continue reading


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I spend nearly every Saturday rolling out of bed, into my gym clothes and out the door to a spin class. I'd like to think it always progresses that smoothly. Often it doesn't.
After I adjust my seat and handlebars to their proper-for-me height and begin pedalling to warm up, I survey the class and its cast of characters.
Like, Old Guy. He smugly announced he's taking the class to get himself back into the shape he was last spring. I'm sure he shows up at least 20 minutes early to start spinning and ends about 20 minutes after the rest of us leave. He may be better known as Smug Old Guy.
Or, Uber-Fit Girl. She furiously pumps her arms whenever she's seated upright and not holding the handlebars. UFG also makes the most of every over-heated opportunity to lift enough of her shirt to reveal her chiseled six-pack. Ugh.
Then there's Surprisingly Sporty Lady who shows up faithfully each week. Sometimes she's accompanied by her significant other, Mildly Leering Husband. He got that name because I see him sneaking peeks when Uber-Fit Girl partially lifts her shirt.
But, my favorite attendee in all the spin classes I've attended?
Asian Narcissistic Pre-Pubescent.
His name, though bulky, was easy to create because
- He's Asian.
- He spends much of the class watching himself in all the mirrors. Sometimes, like Mildly Leering Husband, he's ogling the ladies. But, most of the time, he looks at himself. Every so often he contorts his face in such a way that proves this to be a fact.
- He approached me at the end of a class and tried to start a conversation with "I guess I should've worn a bra" while pointing to his white shirt, which was nearly translucent as a result of the copious amount of fluid he sweat out during class. It didn't work. I was speechless, trying to choke back laughter and hide my horrified expression.
Permanent note to everyone (including myself): Reconsider oversharing. Although the awkward moments can easily be moved past, they may forever be commemorated on someone's blog.


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Protection against statelessness : trends and regulations in Europe
Title: Protection against statelessness : trends and regulations in Europe
Date: 2013
Series/Number: [GLOBALCIT]; EUDO Citizenship Observatory; Country Reports; 2013/01
This report presents the normative background, analytical frame and key findings of the Database on Protection Against Statelessness in Europe, developed by the EUDO CITIZENSHIP Observatory in partnership with the UNHCR Statelessness Unit. The database, which was launched in March 2013, includes information on the extent to which citizenship laws in 36 European states provide sufficient protection against statelessness, in light of the most important international standards. The database is organized around a comprehensive typology of modes of protection against statelessness which outlines, in a systematic way, 17 categories of persons that are at risk of being or becoming stateless. The database is unique in its systematic comparative approach, its comprehensive geographical scope and its interactive search functionality. The database allows users to view all relevant regulations within one country or to compare different regulations across 36 European countries. For each regulation we provide precise information on provisions in national legislation, including hyperlinks to relevant laws, as well as a critical assessment, against the normative background of established international norms.
Type of Access: openAccess
Published version: http://hdl.handle.net/1814/30180
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Cable TV lost 1 million subscribers recently, surprised Wall Street, but not Antennas Direct, whose Terrestrial Digital antenna sales tripled during the same period, because of tremendous improvements in their Off-Air antenna technology and design.
Contact: Michael Sherman FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tel. 662 -893 -8360
Cell Phone: 901 -351 -9861
Email: email@example.com
Sales Increased 220% 3Q 2007 Over 3Q 2006
As Cable TV Looses 1.1 Million Subscribers
December 3, 2007, St. Louis, MO -The cable industry has lost over one million subscribers this year, suggesting a year ending with a 2 percent loss of market share, as reported recently in several newspapers, trade magazines and Internet newsletters. Some of the declines actually surprised Wall Street. But they didn't surprise Richard Schneider, President of Antennas Direct, whose new Terrestrial Digital brand of antenna sales tripled during the same period. Schneider said "Because of the tremendous improvements in our Off -Air antenna technology and design that have taken place in the last few years, along with changing customer attitudes and needs in the new and highly competitive digital TV and HD era, we've found ourselves right in the middle of a thriving resurgence of Over -The -Air (OTA) antennas. Research projects that 15 percent of TV households and 23 percent of TV sets in U.S. homes don't receive cable or satellite TV. That represents more than 70 million TV sets that only receive OTA broadcast television. It's no wonder our phones are ringing off the hook."
Schneider continued "Two of the reasons suggested by most business reporters for the decline in cable numbers are TV subscribers switching to Satellite (DBS) and the emergence of telco TV. While partially true, telco numbers are much too small to be a significant factor, but a meaningful percentage of these cable TV losses come from unhappy cable customers switching to OTA antennas and dumping cable's hundreds of unwatched channels in favor of getting all their favorite local broadcasts FREE. Cable companies are stumping with penetration percentages hitting a 17 -year low. A significant number of cable subscribers are finally getting enough of cable TV's higher costs, billing add -ons, service outages, contact difficulties and aggravating half -day in -home service waits, resulting in lost customers, while our business is doubling about every 180 days"
On November 29, 2007, The Bridge Data Group reported overall "customer satisfaction" with DBS at 72% and cable at only 58% and the "likelihood to switch" for both at 10%. These numbers might have accounted recently for the "attack" on a Comcast payment center in Virginia by a 75 year -old hammer wielding grandmother.
And it's not only problems with Cable (and Satellite) providers that have caused this dramatic OTA antenna sales increase. The benefits of Off -Air antennas are compelling and numerous. There is only so much room on cable or satellite bandwidth in which to squeeze signal, so data is compressed to fit, resulting in a somewhat 'soft' picture. An OTA signal is the gold standard in digital reception because it's completely uncompressed and also FREE; good news for the millions of homes not using cable or satellite. But what about those cable or satellite subscribers that want access to all their local broadcasts or all available HD local broadcasts, but can't get them from their present provider.
Local digital TV broadcasts are everywhere. And how hot is HD? High Definition Televisions bumped digital cameras out of the top spot for the most desired CE product for 2007. But bandwidth limitations mean that cable and satellite providers may not carry all local channels in many areas, or may not offer all of them in high definition. Contract disagreements between local cable operators and local broadcasters can mean that major networks may not be available via cable TV in several areas. DISH Network® offers local HD coverage to about 47 percent of U.S. markets, while DIRECTV® reaches about 65 percent for an additional monthly fee.
"What about those other millions of viewers who want to see their favorite local shows and in HD" asks Schneider? "The answer is to add an OTA antenna to other signal reception sources". This not only gives a viewer the ability to receive all their local stations, but, with the right Terrestrial Digital antenna, some viewers may even be able to receive out -of -town channels, which may carry blacked out sports programs or network broadcasts not available in their home town. For lower income families, an OTA antenna may be the only alternative. As an added benefit, an OTA antenna provides back -up reception options for local cable or satellite signal loss due to equipment failure or rain, snow and ice fade and to smaller TVs and second sets in homes not wired for whole -house signal distribution.
The Consumer Electronics Association, which does not track antenna sales, puts antennas in their accessory category. Accessory? Try getting an OTA broadcast signal without one.
If you'd like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview with Richard Schneider, please call Michael Sherman at 662 -893 -8360 or send an email to email@example.com.
About Antennas Direct and Terrestrial Digital
Antennas Direct is a St. Louis based manufacturer and distributor of Over -The -Air antennas. The company was founded by Richard Schneider in 2003, and has since been widely recognized for superior product design and performance by a number of industry publications and main stream media outlets. Having invested major resources into the discovery and implementation of the first new technological advances in television antenna design in decades, Antennas Direct launched its unique new Terrestrial Digital brand of OTA antennas in 2006.
The Terrestrial Digital line of OTA antennas are designed to tune to the frequencies where most DTV broadcasts occur, doing a better job of rejecting interference (Multi -path). The results of the new designs have allowed them to produce smaller, more powerful antennas that combine optimized performance with a streamlined appearance, providing the best of both worlds. They continue to constantly test and modify antenna designs, raising the bar by which antenna performance and appearance are measured. For additional information on Antennas Direct, visit http://www.antennasdirect.com/index.html and for Terrestrial Digital, visit www.terrestrial -digital.com.
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You asked, we listened! Music lovers that want to enjoy their tunes everywhere - yes, everywhere! - now have a high-tech, easy-to-use option that upgrades the look and functionality of any home or office. The I600 In-Wall Digital Stereo Music System is a music distribution system that provides enhanced usability and delivers mind-blowing stereo quality sound. With touch screen controls, Bluetooth connectivity, and several music source options, the I600 turns your surroundings into an amazing music entertainment experience.


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Seth Kinman's annual Leonid party becomes exciting when an apparent meteorite strikes a nearby pond.
Seth, his girlfriend, Kara, and Danny, the young son of one of Seth's friends, find what they believe to be meteorite shards in the form of oval rocks.
What happens next will be the surprise of their livesif they manage to survive it...
Jane Toombs is a snowbird who spends cold weather in sunny mid-Florida, and warm weather in Michigan's beautiful Upper Peninsula, along with the Viking from her past and their calico cat, Kinko. She's been writing most of her life, taking time out to raise five children, two stepchildren and work as a registerd nurse. Jane has been published in book-length fiction in most of the genres--historical romance, Regencies, contemporary romance, mystery, suspense, gothics,fantasy/paranormal and horror. She also writes short stories and novellas in these genres for various anthologies and has (with co-author Janet Lane Walters) one award-winning non-fiction book on writing currently available.
Jane has been a finalist twice in RWA's Rita, won a Prism Award for dark fantasy, a Bookrak Award for best-selling series book, won two Eppie Awards and also was a finalist. Several of her novellas have finaled in contests. She belongs to Romance Writers of America, Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Electronically Published Internet Connection and far too many Internet writing lists.
Jane enjoys walking around the many lakes where she lives in mid-Florida and along Lake Superior's south shore in Michigan's Upper Peninusula with her Significant Other. Kinko prefers to hunt mice in Michigan, but settles for chasing lizards in Florida.
Three Stars
"...well developed (characters)... learn...their lives are now shared with a symbiote. This complex, well-plotted book explains how the aliens survive and multiply. Book two should prove interesting."Romantic Times
Seth Kinman's annual November Leonid party at Nine Chimneys in New York's Catskills was winding down, no doubt about it. It was well after midnight and most of the guests had taken their leave. The weather had been cool rather than cold, but as meteor showers go, it had been no more than a fair display. Kara Adams, sitting across from Seth on the closed-in porch overlooking the night sky, put her hand over her mouth to conceal a yawn.
Like Kara, the three others on the porch were house guests: Otis Reddinger, Phil Hanes and his thirteen-year-old son Danny. Phil's wife had gone to bed some time ago. She'd arrived from California tired and two days later claimed she still was.
"Think Danny and I will turn in," Phil said.
"Aw, please, Dad, just a few more minutes," Danny begged. "I got a hunch."
Phil shook his head. "You and your hunches. It's way past my bedtime, not to mention yours."
As Phil rose from his chair, a ball of fire, larger and more brilliant than anything Seth had ever seen, burst into view. It streaked by so close that Kara flinched and muttered, "Good grief, I can almost feel the heat."
"Told you," Danny crowed, springing up and heading for the outside door. "Come on, let's go track it."
As if to punctuate his words, a loud crash shook the house, the rumble echoing from the taller peaks of the Catskills, bringing them all to their feet.
"Close is right," Seth agreed. He nodded toward the table where a number of flashlights lay. "Grab one and your jackets. We'll go out and take a look around."
"Maybe it's an alien spaceship," Danny said, detouring to pick up a flashlight. "I heard people see lots of flying saucers up here in the Catskills."
"Proves all the nuts don't live in California with us," Phil commented. "Be lucky if we find anything."
"Meteorites are valuable," Otis put in. "Worth a lot of money."
"You don't think there's another like it waiting to follow that fireball down, do you?" Kara asked. "It could be dangerous out there."
"Million to one shot," Seth said.
Convinced or not, Kara followed the rest of them out. Seth took the lead, his two Dobermans at his heels. "Sounded like it hit over by the pond. That's about half a mile from the house."
"If we find anything," Otis said, "we could all be rich."
"I'm gonna keep anything I find," Danny insisted. "I hope it's an alien."
"If that crash we heard was any indication, it'd be a dead alien," Phil told his son. "What we saw was a meteor fireball, kid, no alien spaceship. If it didn't all burn up by the time it landed, we might be lucky enough to find some bits of a meteorite."
"Actually we're supposed to notify the authorities if we find anything at all," Kara reminded them.
"Fat chance," Otis muttered. "We get first pick."
"I smell something," Kara said.
After a minute or two, so did Seth, an odor he couldn't quite identify. Like something unpleasant cooking.
As they neared the pond, he grew aware of debris in the path. The beam of his flashlight showed him a mangled fish and charred chunks of aquatic growth.
"Whoa, man," Otis said from behind him. "I just stepped on a squashed frog. The damn fireball must've fell in the pond."
Danny darted ahead of them all, flashing his light erratically about and shouting, "Awesome!"
As the rest caught up, the bizarre scene ahead of them slowed their pace. Steam rose from the normally ice-cold spring-fed pond, now half-empty. Tattered aquatic plants and creatures littered its rim, some of the debris many feet away from the pond itself. Several inches of water covered the grass and weeds. The dogs hung back, whining."Stay away from the pond!" Phil called to Danny who, Seth saw, was bending down.
"I found something," Danny called back. "It's a funny-looking rock."
They crowded around to look at his find.
"It's shaped like an egg," Kara said.
Her words excited Danny. "Whoa, maybe there's an alien inside waiting to hatch."
"No egg could have survived that red-hot entry and the crash," his father pointed out.
"I never saw a rock that looked like this," Danny insisted. "And it's warm."
Neither had Seth, who was an amateur rock hound. The rock wasn't much to look at-ovoid-shaped, gray and relatively smooth. "The warmth's from the heat of entry," he said absently, looking around to see if there were more rocks like the one Danny held.
Spotting what looked like another several feet away, he hurried to retrieve it, Kara at his heels. When he lifted the gray ovoid, which was about the size of an extra-large chicken egg, but heavier, he saw it had concealed another just like it, partially buried in the mud. Kara freed the buried one and gingerly picked the thing up.
"It is warm," she said.
Comparing his rock with hers, he decided they looked identical, which was odd. Matching rocks weren't the norm. On the other hand, maybe he'd just never found any before.
"You know these things could have been at the bottom of the pond," he said, thinking aloud. "When the meteorite hit it could've flung them out here. They could be warm from the heated water."
"Hey, Seth, can I keep mine?" Danny asked.
"Sure, be my guest."
Though they slogged through the mud and water searching, no more ovoids were spotted.
"I'll come back and take another look first thing in the morning," Otis said finally. "Maybe fish for whatever's in the pond."
"You do need to notify the authorities," Kara reminded Seth.
"Not until I get my chance at it," Otis insisted.
"Tomorrow's soon enough," Seth said.
Back at the house, they settled in the kitchen to hash over what had happened. Seth offered a choice of tea, coffee or hot chocolate, but only Danny took him up on it, choosing the chocolate.
"I think my rock came from the meteor," Danny said as he sipped his drink. "Unless it might have been some kind of capsule from a space ship. So just maybe-"
His dad picked up the ovoid. "It's a rock, not an alien's egg, kid. But it could've come from a meteor." He glanced at Seth. "Right?"
"Or from the bottom of the pond, who knows?" Seth said. "They're unusual all right-three identical rocks."
Danny plucked the rock from his father's hand. "I get to keep it, no matter what?"
Seth grinned at him. "Gave you my word as a man of honor. Kara gets to keep hers, too."
"Thanks-I think," she said.
Finally they broke up, heading for their own bedrooms. Seth stopped in what had been the library in his grandfather's day and placed the rock on the mantel next to where Isis, his Siamese cat, had left a toy mouse. The mantel was a favorite daytime perch for her. By now she was probably upstairs, sleeping at the foot of his bed.
Isis had been his mother's pet, hardly more than a kitten when his mother died. Seth hadn't the heart to get rid of the cat and, over the five years since then, had gotten fond of her-something he rarely admitted. Fond or not, he'd much rather have Kara waiting in his bed for him than Isis. She wouldn't be, though. In their on-again, off-again relationship, this was one of the off times, he wasn't sure why. The relationship was difficult enough anyway with her living in Manhattan and him up here in the Catskills. He knew she didn't approve of him not working.
"Thirty-seven is far too young to retire," she'd insisted.
He didn't agree. He'd gone through law school and passed the bar exam to please his father, but didn't like lawyering and had enough inherited money so he didn't need to do it. He'd made his decision to quit soon after his father's death and didn't regret it. Kara, on the other hand, was a workaholic.
He sighed, turned off the downstairs lights and went up to bed, careful to leave his door ajar so the cat could get out.
As usual, Seth woke early. Also, as usual, Isis was gone from the bed and the room. He showered and dressed. Downstairs, he could hear Marge Jones, the housekeeper, a woman from the nearby village of Boskill who didn't live in, puttering around in the kitchen. He headed there, pausing when he saw Abel Smith, his handyman, who took care of all the troublesome odds and ends around the place as well as the grounds. The handyman was laying the makings of a fire in the library fireplace, one of nine in the house, most unused.
"Gonna be a cold snap tonight, yes sirree," Abel said. "Thought I'd get you ready for it. That there fancy furnace your ma had put in a few years back don't quite do the job."
He'd heard these words from Abel before. "Big rooms, high ceilings," Seth said, using the same words he usually responded with.
"Yep. Makes it hard to heat. 'Specially this one and the living room. I'll take care of that, too." He sat back on his heels and looked at Seth. "That there meteor last night must've been something. Woke me and the kid up when it hit."
"Went in the pond," Seth told him. "Made a big mess."
"Guess I'll hike over and take a look when I get done in here."
Seth went on and, to his surprise, Marge wasn't alone in the kitchen. Kara sat at the table drinking coffee, Isis in her lap.
"I was telling Marge about our fireball," she said.
Marge nodded. "Saw it from the village. Lit up the whole sky. Sounded like thunder when it hit. My Frank said he figured it might be on Kinman property."
"He was right." Seth poured himself a mug of coffee and settled into a chair across from Kara. "Hit the pond."
"That so? I'll tell Frank. Gonna be pancakes for breakfast, We still got some maple syrup. You want sausages or bacon with 'em?"
Marge nodded. "Gonna need some food that'll stick to you. Hear tell heavy frost's coming tonight. I been thinking we been too lucky so far this November. Next thing you know it'll be snow." She turned away from them, heading for the pantry.
"You're up early," Seth said to Kara.
"Something woke me." she lowered her voice as though not wanting Marge to hear. "I don't know whether to blame that damn rock or not."
He thought at first she must be joking, but her frown argued otherwise.
Picking up his mug of coffee, he rose and said. "Let's not disturb Marge's culinary efforts. We can sit in the library."
Kara followed him from the kitchen, leaving her mug behind. Abel had finished and was no longer in the library. As soon as they entered the room, Kara said, "I wish I hadn't found the thing."
Seth shrugged. "Give it to Otis. He was in a sulk last night because he didn't find one."
"You don't understand. I can't give it away. The rock is mine, no one else's, whether I want it or not."
He raised his eyebrows. "I don't have a clue what you mean."
Isis, who'd lost her lap to sit in, had trailed them. Now she leaped onto the back of the loveseat by the fireplace and from there to the mantel where she posed regally.
Looking at the mantel, Kara said, "I see you left your rock in here. Maybe the solution is not to keep it in the room where you sleep."
"Do that if the thing bothers you. I still don't understand why."
"It's like I'm bonded to that rock, which is a stupid thing to think, but..." Her words trailed off.
"One of your psychic flashes?"
She scowled at him. Even scowling she was one of the most attractive women he'd ever met. Brown eyes the color of Godiva chocolate and hair he knew was naturally blond. Slim, trim, yet with curves in the right places.
"Don't mention those," she snapped. "You know how I hate having them." "Well, is it one?"
"Who knows? Whatever, it's left me edgy."
Isis chose that moment to bat her toy mouse off the mantel. It fell onto the top of the screen around the fireplace, bounced off and landed on Kara's left shoe. She jumped, letting out a startled squeak.
Edgy was the operative word, all right, Seth decided. Which was unlike her. Kara prided herself on being always in control.
She sighed. "I want to go home."
"With or without the rock?"
"Haven't you heard anything I said? We're bonded. Where I go, it goes. I wish I hadn't ridden up here with Otis. He probably won't want to leave till tomorrow."
"I wish you hadn't, too. I was planning on trying to talk you into a longer stay so we could spend some time together after the others left."
"Why don't you come to Manhattan and visit me?"
"You know how I hate the city. I'm a rural boy at heart."
"Don't give me that farm boy business. You always have a good time when you visit me."
Seth grinned at her. "That has more to do with you than the city."
She gave him a reluctant smile.
He'd started to reach for her when the phone rang. Swearing under his breath, he answered. "Seth Kinman."
"This is Deputy Jones. Pa says Ma told him that fireball landed in your pond."Obviously Marge hadn't wasted any time calling her husband about the meteor. "That's right," Seth told the deputy.
"Reason I asked is, a couple of them professor fellas from SUNY asked at the station did we know where the thing hit."
So State University of New York scientists were already in the area, Seth thought. That meant he wouldn't have to notify anyone.
"I told 'em where Nine Chimneys was," the deputy added. "Thought I'd let you know they're on their way."
"I appreciate it." Seth hung up. Looking at Kara, he said, "SUNY's homing in on the pond."
"Otis was planning to search it this morning. He's going to be upset."
Seth shrugged. "The early bird gets the worm."
"I never liked that saying." She grimaced. "Who wants a worm?"
"Speaking of breakfast, I don't intend to miss it. Come on, let's get some pancakes in us before we're inundated with the science types. I'll have to tell Abel to make sure the dogs are chained."
Isis jumped down from the mantel and followed them out.
Later, after the helicopter the SUNY guys ordered landed in a field, bringing them gear for dredging what was left of the pond, Seth and his guests stood around watching. The spring-fed pond was higher than last night, already filling up again.
Abel and his fifteen-year-old son, Carl, joined the spectators, standing apart from them. Carl, shy of strangers, half-hid behind his father.
"There's the retardo," Otis, out-of-sorts, muttered. "Thought I might be lucky enough to miss him this trip."
Kara threw Otis a scathing look. "Carl may be intellectually challenged," she said in a low tone, "but he never bothers anyone, including you."
"Looking at him bothers me," Otis insisted.
"Danny, get back from the edge of the pond," Joanne, his mother, called. "You're going to slip on that mud and fall in."
Danny paid no attention, obviously fascinated with the dredging operation.
"Do something, Phil," Joanne ordered.
"The mud's pretty well frozen," Phil told her. "He's not going to slip."
"Want to bet they're not going to find anything?" Otis said. "There's nothing left of that damn fireball, it's all burnt to hell up. Unless those stones came from it."
Frowning, Seth caught Otis' eye and shook his head, not wanting any discussion of the stones where the SUNY people could hear. Or Abel, for that matter. The one he had belonged to him and he meant to keep it.
Staring at him, Otis said, "Three stones alike. I'd say-"
He shut up when Seth drew his finger across his throat.
"So, okay," Otis muttered.
Otis had been Seth and Phil's roommate in college, which entitled him to a lifetime friendship, but the intervening years had seemed to sour him.
As it turned out, Otis' predication had been right. The dredging operation turned up no sign of any meteorite remains.
"We'll take another crack at it tomorrow morning," one of the scientists told Seth as afternoon shadows grew long. "There may be some fragments in the debris around the pond."
The Hanes family had a plane to catch for L.A. and took off early the next day in their rental car for Stewart Field. The stay in New York hadn't seemed to rest Phil's wife, she still looked tired and drawn. As they pulled away, Danny rolled down his window and called, "Thanks for the rock."
Otis and Kara were next to leave. "I mean it, come for a visit," Kara told Seth as she got in the car. "Soon."
He nodded and watched the car go down the drive. He caught a glimpse of someone waving from the front of what used to be the gatekeeper's lodge, now where Abel lived. Seth smiled ruefully, figuring the last thing Otis wanted or needed was to see poor Carl waving goodbye to him.
In the house again, Seth entered the library. Abel had lit the fire earlier, and leaping flames surrounded the ash logs. He examined his rock, noticing how comfortable it felt in his hand. But bonded? He shook his head, replacing it on the mantel. Isis leaped up to sit beside the rock. Though she'd seemed to ignore it before, now she sniffed it and growled.
"Come on, cat," he told her. "It's just a rock."
Feeling at loose ends with everyone gone, he decided to pay another visit to the pond to see what, if anything, the SUNY guys had turned up.
"We did find a few fragments in the debris of what looks as though it may be metallic," one told him. "We'll know more when we have it analyzed. We'd like to finish this before the snow storm predicted for the weekend."
Seth watched them for awhile, then trotted back to the house to warm up.
Metallic fragments? He smiled, remembering Danny's alien spaceship, but more than likely the fragments came from the bottom of the pond. He wandered into the library to catch up on a few bills and stopped short, staring at the mantel, frowning. Isis was gone. So was the rock.
Thinking she must have knocked it off the way she did her toy mouse, he searched around the outside of the fireplace, finding nothing but the faint trace of a strange odor, one he couldn't identify. He'd never modernized any of the nine fireplaces so none had glass doors, just free-standing screens to block flying sparks. Was it possible the rock had bounced into the fire? If so, it should be in the ashes when the fire died down. He'd look.
He looked up to see Marge in the doorway. "Something sure scared the gall right out of that cat," she told him. "She flew into the kitchen with a big tail and her fur all standing up straight as straw. She's still hiding in the pantry."
Seth managed to coax Isis from her hidey-hole, but when he tried to carry her into the library, she growled and spit, leaping from his arms, once more heading for the pantry. Shaking his head, he left her to it.
That night Isis didn't join him in his bed. In fact, he couldn't even coax her up the stairs. She certainly was behaving oddly, maybe he'd better take her to the vet in the morning. Before he fell asleep, Abel called him from the gatekeeper's lodge.
"Something got both the dogs," he said. "Nothing much left of them."
"Both dogs are dead?" Seth asked, unable to believe what he heard.
"Didn't hear nothing, no fuss, neither. They're out by the old ruins in case you want to take a look before I bury what's left of 'em."
Seth threw on some clothes, grabbed a jacket and headed for the ruins, flashlight in hand. When he reached the site, he stared down at the bloody mess, the taste of bile in his throat. He'd been fond of his dogs.
"A bear, you think?" he asked Abel who stood by, shovel in hand.
"Ain't been any around I know of. Don't think one'd get both dogs, anyhow."
"But what else could have? I never heard of mountain lions up here."
"Ain't none. I just plain don't know what happened. Looked around, no sign of what's been here and done this. Don't like it. They was good dogs, good fighters."
Disturbed, and mourning the loss, Seth strode back to the house. No explanation left him adrift, a feeling that made him uneasy. Cause and effect, he understood, that was the way the world went round. With no cause evident, things were askew. He wouldn't be able to rest until he knew the reason, knew what had killed his Dobermans, dogs who weren't afraid of anything.
As Abel had said, good fighters. What on earth could kill both dogs so fast neither had a chance to fight back?
And why wouldn't that damn cat sleep with him as she usually did?


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Marketing is all about getting your company noticed or putting your company in front of people, preferably people who might be a prospective client, and making sure that the message is clear, enlightening, poignant, and relevant without turning people off. Sales is the follow up to marketing. It's the reason we market. It's simply the act of selling your services or products once you have successfully made contact with your client prospect. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, it isn't.
More companies fail at simple marketing than in any other aspect of their business. I read more garbage emails and posts on marketing that just simply fails to spark an ounce of interest. Forbes Magazine had a good article outlining some key points marketing should NOT involve:
- Stop making everything all about you. Put the audience, the prospect, first and foremost on any marketing efforts.
- Stop making everything complicated. It's just plain simple. Don't make it so hard and realize that your prospect doesn't care about all the details, just the results.
- Stop acting like a robot. People are almost lost on the Internet. That's probably why social media is making such headway. It's personal.
- Stop speaking to yourself. Get out of the office and meet some prospects face to face. It's personal.
- Stop focusing on tasks and activities. What's the result, not how many emails were sent out. Are you getting results is all that matters. The Key Performance Indicator (KPI) is what we need to know. More on that below.
- Stop being anti-social. The way things are going, we may not talk to each other at all in a few years. Let's keep the conversation going. Talk to people instead of just texting or emailing. You'll get better results.
- Stop holding on to the past. There's nothing worse than talking about the "good old days" when things were ramping up to impossible standards. It's NOW, not then.
That all being said, don't keep doing the same old thing. It's not working or you wouldn't be reading this. Start trying something new. Especially if it's uncomfortable. If it's comfortable, then it's probably not working. You are at where you are at because of what you've done and you've done what you've done because of where you were at. Try some new tactics and measure the results with analytics so you can judge the KPI.
The KPI and Keys to Sales Success
It's all about the Key Performance Indicator (KPI). Go to the trusty source of all things these days, Wikipedia, and you'll find the following: organizations may use KPIs to evaluate success, or to evaluate the success of a particular activity in which it is engaged. Sometimes success is defined in terms of making progress toward strategic goals, but often success is simply the repeated, periodic achievement of some level of operational goal.
Once the marketing has been achieved to the satisfaction of the prospect, the sales aspect looms large. Sales tactics are all over the board and can be found on the Internet and in life in regular intervals. But, some of the things we see missing in many sales people is the ability to simply understand what the client's or prospect's needs are. The following are some Key Points from a recent Google Engage moderated webinar that we found useful:
Key 1: Emotional vs. Logical Needs – people and businesses buy emotionally, but rationalize with logic. Discover what the client or prospect finds emotionally stimulating but also realize what they need to rationalize their purchase from what is the emotional AND logical needs.
Key 2: Listen to Understand vs. Listen to Respond – this is a delicate balance between understanding their comments or objections and responding to them. Listening to understand what they are saying and their needs versus listening to respond to their objections or questions is an important differentiation.
Key 3: Discovery – what are their expectations of you as a potential partner. People don't ask enough questions but jump to the solution. Are you discovering as you discuss or are you just telling them? Discover what the client wants and what their short and long term goals are. What is the KPI for them? Every client thinks they have a unique situation and have a unique offering.
Key 4: Answering the Major 8 Objections
- Cost – the biggest objection and easiest to define.
- Terms & Conditions – the proposal might have some issues, so find out what they are and fix them.
- No Need – they just don't see a need for what you are offering and work with us on their advertising.
- Think About It – is it a true objection? Maybe they are just putting you off to get you out of their face.
- Hassle Factor – is it too much trouble to go through with what you are offering versus their perceived benefit from this.
- Experience – do we have the experience to handle the job.
- Have to Talk to a Colleague, Boss, or Spouse – a potential indicator that they are putting you off or maybe that you are not talking to the right person.
- A Previous Bad Experience – it may be that they have tried it before and it didn't work. If so, they are going to need reassurances.
People hate to be sold but enjoy buying. Everyone needs and wants something different in the sales process. You need to create a non-confrontational process for selling whereby you are just the harbinger of good news for them and you are working with them to find the best solution for them.
Key 5: The Process –
- Clarify and Listen – try to understand what their objection is and listen to the answers. Don't sound confrontational in response. Sound supportive and use the correct voice tone. Don't argue or confront them.
- Restate and Cushion – restate the question and support it with final cushioning to ensure you understand and show them that you understand.
- Draw it out – ask them if there are more objections. If one of their objections is that they have to go to a partner or boss or spouse, what might their objections also be? Find out what they might object to?
- Isolate – try to isolate the issues they have so that you can break it down to handling one objection at the time. Which objection should we talk about? That's the main one, so resolve it and the others might go away.
- Respond – only after you have determined all the others do you respond to any of them. You need some evidence to support your response. If they have a specific objection, then provide some evidence or previous experience that might help overcome that objection.
- Trial Close – tie down the objections and see if they are interested in closing by asking some simple questions like "so, does that make sense?" Are they ready to close, or have you not answered all their objections?
The process should help reduce the resistance and make them more receptive. You need to become their consultant or assistant and not a salesman. You must show interest in their company and how it can best help their company.
If you are looking to get noticed on the Internet but don't know where to begin, let PTC Computer Solutions help you get started or help improve your current website and website marketing plan. We can plan a full budget for your company and complete any web marketing efforts you wish to achieve to deliver a consistent and effective message to your prospects. Contact David W. B. Parker (when you think of "W. B." think of WeB) at email@example.com or go to www.ptccomputersolutions.com for more information.
By David W. B. Parker
PTC Computer Solutions