4.30.2008

Help With Microsoft Office

Microsoft made something quite useful in this website that gives daily tips and advice on how to use Microsoft Word as well as a directory of often asked questions:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-ca/default.aspx

4.28.2008

Quote of the Day

If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

4.26.2008

Happy Birthday to me!

Today is my Golden birthday!!!


(One's golden birthday, also called a champagne birthday, is the day when the age one turns and the date of birth coincide (e.g. someone turning 26 on April 26th celebrates her golden birthday). - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday)


In celebration I was going to have a big 'ol children's party for all my friends and make them play ridiculous games and dress up in stuffy party clothes, but because we are renovating the house and it is still in much disarray I am postponing the party 'til when the pool is open so it can be that much more fun!


I did have a good day despite the lack of party. I had a few friends over and we played board games (as the weather was too bad to go out and play) and then they cooked me a fabulous supper! We ended the day with cake & hot tubbing! My only regret is the lack of champagne, although I'm sure I can get some before the party so I can still have my champagne toast for my b-day! :-)

Happy Birthday to me!

Today was my 26th birthday and since it's on the 26th it was my Golden Birthday!


(One's golden birthday, also called a champagne birthday, is the day when the age one turns and the date of birth coincide (e.g. someone turning 26 on April 26th celebrates her golden birthday). - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday)


It didn't turn out as I had expected, we are renovating the basement and since we are still deep in the middle of renovations I wasn't really able to have a party today, even thought it was a Saturday. I'm going to try for one in late May or early June as then I can have a pool party. I did have some friends come over and play board games with me (it was too rainy to go out and play) and then they cooked me a fabulous supper! Sadly there was no champagne, but I'm sure I can get some for the party and that's good enough for me. :-)


4.25.2008

Word of the Day

The word for April 25 is Homing from Work
Using work time and resources for personal tasks.

See reverse telecommuting, work from home
Busey: Steve, did you download those episodes of Entourage I told you about?

Myers: I told you Gary, my home Internet connection sucks ass. I am going to download and burn them at the office while I am homing from work.

4.21.2008

Song of the Week

"Apologize" - Timbland

I'm holding on your rope,
Got me ten feet off the ground
I'm hearin what you say but I just can't make a sound
You tell me that you need me
Then you go and cut me down, but wait
You tell me that you're sorry
Didn't think I'd turn around, and say...

It's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late

I'd take another chance, take a fall
Take a shot for you
[ Apologize lyrics found on http://www.completealbumlyrics.com ]
And I need you like a heart needs a beat
But it's nothin new - yeah yeah
I loved you with a fire red-
Now it's turning blue, and you say...
"Sorry" like the angel heaven let me think was you
But I'm afraid...

It's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late

It's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late
It's too late to apologize, yeah
I said it's too late to apologize, yeah-
I'm holdin on your rope, got me ten feet off the ground...

Word of the Day

(I on the other hand am the complete opposite of this, I share WAY too much online! LOL)

Urban Word of the Day
www.urbandictionary.com
April 21, 2008: web shy

http://web-shy.urbanup.com/3012421

Unwillingness to expose one's thoughts, feelings or identity on the web, knowing that doing so means freaknobs from Baton Rouge to Bangladesh will know everything about you.

"Jeez, Paul--you need to get with it! You should create your own web site, post your picture, do some blogging about your beliefs, and generally trumpet yourself and your innermost thoughts via that there Internet."

"You kidding me? I am waaaaaaaay too web shy for any of that!"

4.20.2008

Word of the Day

(I love modern day old-timey slang!)

Urban Word of the Day
www.urbandictionary.com

April 20, 2008: bogart

http://bogart.urbanup.com/247418

(slang verb) To keep something all for oneself, thus depriving anyone else of having any. A slang term derived from the last name of famous actor Humphrey Bogart because he often kept a cigarette in the corner of his mouth, seemingly never actually drawing on it or smoking it. Often used with weed or joints but can be applied to anything.

"Don't bogart that blunt man, pass that over here!"

4.16.2008

Generations

22, 2008 edition, the Quebec City newspaper, Le Soleil, had a topic about generations by age group.

Generations are grouped as follows:
- The Silent generation, people born before 1945
.
- The Baby Boomers, people born between 1945 and 1961.

- Generation X, people born between 1962 and 1976.

- Generation Y
, people born between 1977 and 1989.

4.15.2008

Ways to Live Your Life Cancer Free

(I don't think this is a realistic solution for everyone, but a good read none the less)

John Hopkins Article re: Cancer

I THINK EVERYONE WILL FIND THIS VERY INFORMATIVE. I ONLY WISH IT WAS AS
EASY TO FOLLOW AS IT IS TO UNDERSTAND.

AFTER YEARS OF TELLING PEOPLE CHEMOTHERAPY IS THE ONLY WAY TO TRY
('TRY', BEING THE KEY WORD) TO ELIMINATE CANCER, JOHNS HOPKINS IS FINALLY
STARTING TO TELL YOU THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE WAY.

Cancer Update from Johns Hopkins:

1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer cells do not
show up in the standard tests until they have multiplied to a few billion.
When doctors tell cancer patients that there are no more cancer cells in
their bodies after treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect
the cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable size.

2. Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a person's
lifetime.

3. When the person's immune system is strong the cancer cells will be
destroyed and prevented from multiplying and forming tumors.

4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has multiple
nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic, environmental, food
and lifestyle factors.

5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing diet and
including supplements will strengthen the immune system.

6.. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing cancer cells and
also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells in the bone marrow,
gastrointestinal tract etc, and can cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys,
heart, lungs etc.

7.. Radiation while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars and
damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.

8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often reduce
tumor size. However prolonged use of chemotherapy and radiation do not
result in more tumor destruction.

9. When the body has too much toxic burden from chemotherapy and
radiation the immune system is either compromised or destroyed, hence the
person can succumb to various kinds of infections and complications.

10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to mutate and
become resistant and difficult to destroy. Surgery can also cause cancer
cells to spread to other sites.

11. An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer cells by
not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply.

CANCER CELLS FEED ON:

a. Sugar is a cancer-feeder. By cutting off sugar it cuts off one
important food supply to the cancer cells. Sugar substitutes like
NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc. are made with Aspartame and it is harmful.
A better natural substitute would be Manuka honey or molasses but only in
very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in
color. Better alternative is Bragg's aminos or sea salt.

b. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the
gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and
substituting with unsweetened soy milk cancer cells are being starved.

c. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is
acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little chicken rather than beef or
pork. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth hormones and
parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer.

d. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds,
nuts and a little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment.
About 20% can be from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices
provide live enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular
levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells. To
obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable
juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw vegetables 2
or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at temperatures of 104 degrees F (40
degrees C).

e. Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high caffeine. Green tea
is a better alternative and has cancer fighting properties. Water-best to
drink purified water, or filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in
tap water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it.

12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive
enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the intestines become putrified and
leads to more toxic buildup.

13. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from
or eating less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of
cancer cells and allows the body's killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.


14. Some supplements build up the immune system (IP6, Flor-ssence,
Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, EFAs etc.) to enable the body's
own killer cells to destroy cancer cells. Other supplements like vitamin E
are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body's normal
method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells.

15. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit. A proactive and
positive spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor. Anger,
unforgiveness and bitterness put the body into a stressful and acidic
environment. Learn to have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and
enjoy life.

16. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercising
daily, and deep breathing help to get more oxygen down to the cellular
level. Oxygen therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer cells.

1. No plastic containers in micro.
2. No water bottles in freezer.
3. No plastic wrap in microwave.

Johns Hopkins has recently sent this out in its newsletters. This
information is being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as well.
Dioxin chemicals causes cancer, especially breast cancer. Dioxins are highly
poisonous to the cells of our bodies. Don't freeze your plastic bottles with
water in them as this releases dioxins from the plastic. Recently, Dr.
Edward Fujimoto, Wellness Program Manager at Castle Hospital , was on a TV
program to explain this health hazard. He talked about dioxins and how bad
they are for us. He said that we should not be heating our food in the
microwave using plastic containers. This especially applies to foods that
contain fat. He said that the combination of fat, high heat, and plastics
releases dioxin into the food and ultimately into the cells of the body.
Instead, he recommends using glass, such as Corning Ware, Pyrex or ceramic
containers for heating food. You get the same results, only without the
dioxin.. So such things as TV dinners, instant ramen and soups, etc., should
be removed from the container and heated in something else. Paper isn't bad
but you don't know what is in the paper. It's just safer to use tempered
glass, Corning Ware, etc. He reminded us that a while ago some of the fast
food restaurants moved away from the foam containers to paper. The dioxin
problem is one of the reasons.

Also, he pointed out that plastic wrap, such as Saran, is just as
dangerous when placed over foods to be cooked in the microwave. As the food
is nuked, the high heat causes poisonous toxins to actually melt out of the
plastic wrap and drip into the food. Cover food with a paper towel instead.

This is an article that should be sent to anyone important in your life

4.14.2008

Shrinky Dinks

These are fun and the best thing is the Dollarama sometimes has them or the special plastic to make them


"The very first SHRINKY DINKS were sold on October 17, 1973 at Brookfield Square Shopping Mall in Brookfield Wisconsin. Since that time there has been over 250 different Toy Activity and Craft Kits created and marketed. 

SHRINKY DINKS SHRINK to approximately 1/3rd their original size and actually become 9 times thicker. Simply place the SHRINKY DINKS piece you created into a Home Oven or Toaster Oven for 2 magic minutes. Watch as your creation gets smaller and smaller. 
It's "MAGICAL" and it's so quick and easy to do! "


4.13.2008

Dirty Disney

Everyones heard about Disney having hidden "dirty" things in thier movies. Here are some examples:

Aladdin - when Aladin was looking in Jasmines window, and Genie was flying around him, Aladin says "Take your clothes off"

In the Jungle Book..Baloo is singing "Bear Necessities". There's a pause in the middle when he's looking for a tree to scratch his back with. He says it fast but he DOES say "s h i t I got to find myself a tree". 

On the cover of the Little Mermaid movie..smack dab in the middle of all the golden spires of Atlantis was a big honkin' penis.

Here's some confirmations and denials on Snopes:


4.12.2008

The Costs of Smoking

This is an article I found about anti-smoking... I don't smoke, thank goodness, but a lot of my loved ones do so it is a great concern of mine. Please read the article if you smoke or know someone who does so that you can make them aware of the risks they are taking.

Costs of smoking

As with other forms of addiction, smokers are often unaware of the full price they are paying for their drug dependence.

Of all the drug addictions known, smoking addiction is, in some ways, the worst. The cancer-causing chemicals in cigarette smoke kill half its dependent users. More people die from cigarettes than from car accidents, plane crashes, alcohol, and illicit drugs combined! Compared to heroin, cocaine, or alcohol, the chances of quitting and staying quit are poorer.

Tobacco smoke does most of its damage in the digestive, respiratory, and cardiovascular systems. Smokers also suffer from a wide variety of other medical, psychiatric, and social consequences from their use of tobacco. As with other forms of addiction, the smoker is often unaware of the full price they are paying for their drug dependence.

Although 20% to 35% of our population now smokes, this proportion has decreased. A shift in attitude is occurring making smoking far less socially acceptable.

Health consequences of smoked tobacco

Inhaling a drug provides the most rapid pathway to the brain, faster even than an intravenous injection. The faster the delivery system, the stronger the compulsion and craving once addiction has occurred. That's why it is so difficult to toss cigarettes away for good - smokers crave that "hit" that smoking gives them.

Combustion of dried plant material produces hundreds of toxic and many carcinogenic compounds. Inhaling cigarette smoke delivers this toxic mix directly to the delicate tissues lining the air pathways, including the mouth, nose, and bronchi as well as the lungs themselves. Although nicotine, when given by other routes, has been shown to cause cardiovascular problems, compared to the hazards associated with the carcinogens and other toxins in smoked tobacco, the health consequences of nicotine are significantly less.

Health consequences of smoking include:
cancers of the lips, mouth, throat, bronchial tubes, and lungs
cancer of the bowel, kidney, bladder, and breast
chronic bronchitis, asthma, and emphysema
coronary artery disease and heart attacks
peripheral vascular disease (decreased blood flow to the extremities, which can be painful and lead to serious complications such as gangrene)
increased clotting of blood, which may cause stroke or blood clots in the lungs
disordered sleep
anxiety, irritability, and depression
vitamin and nutritional deficiencies
bone conditions such as osteoporosis and fractures
peptic ulcer disease, irritable bowel, and high blood pressure
decreased fertility
decrease in fetal size
sudden infant death syndrome

Why put yourself at risk, when there are many treatments available to help you quit? Talk to your doctor or pharmacist today. You certainly don't have to do it alone.

Source(s): © McNeil Consumer Healthcare, division of Johnson & Johnson Inc. 2008


4.11.2008

HasDoneIt

From HasDoneIt.com we want to invite you to use our service totally free.

HasDoneIt.com helps you to detect all your contacts that have deleted or blocked you from their list.

This way, you can:
-Know if you are important for a contact.
-Delete from your MSN the contacts who don't want to talk to you.

You can also:
-Recover deleted contacts.
-Check who has you and you don't have.

Check it here: www.HasDoneIt.com

4.10.2008

NoodleTools

This is a great site to help you research things. This site takes top search engines and breaks them down into categories of what they actually do, so it helps you search smarter for what you actually are looking for! In addiction the site has a lot helpful information on researching in general, tools to help make the process easier and helps on formatting information found for bibliogarphies.



An article on services offered pertaining specifically to searching:

4.09.2008

Weather Lore

Old-time weather indicators you might find interesting from a book called "Country Wisdom":

"When the farm animals became restless and bellowed and clamored, everyone was prepared to batten down the hatches. The pig was the best weather sage of all. It was said that pigs are the only creatures that "see the wind." According to myth, when pigs squeal in winter, there will be a blizzard. When pigs carry sticks it will rain, and when they lie in the mud, there will be a dry spell.

When the cat sat by the fire more than usual or licked its feet, some people expected rain. When dogs began to dig holes, howled when someone went out, ate grass or refused meat, that, too, was a sign that rain was on the way.

Did you know that geese honk before it storms, woodpeckers peck more furiously, "rain crows" call for rain, and robins stay close to their nests?

Insects are the most consistent of God's creatures. You might call the cricket "the poor man's thermometer." If you count the chirps a cricket makes in 25 seconds, then add 37 to that number, you will get the correct temperature in degrees Fahrenheit.

Ants, too, foretell the weather. Expect stormy weather if they travel in lines and fair weather if they scatter. And watch the spiders. If they spin their webs in the morning, you can expect a fair day. If they destroy the webs, a storm will soon follow."

4.08.2008

Ending Procrastination

Here's an interesting article from Psychology Today about overcoming procrastination.

Ending Procrastination
By: Hara Estroff Marano

Twenty percent of people identify themselves as chronic procrastinators. They don't pay their bills on time and leave Christmas shopping until Christmas Eve. This is a learned behavior and therefore can be unlearned.

Maybe you tell yourself you perform better under pressure. Or that the work you do when you're not feeling in the mood to work isn't very good. Or you think that you can't do anything well unless you're feeling at the top of your form.

Uh-oh, you've got the earmarks of a procrastinator. Of course, you've got lots of company. Twenty percent of people identify themselves as chronic procrastinators. These are people who don't pay their bills on time, who miss opportunities for buying tickets to concerts, who leave Christmas shopping until Christmas Eve. Let's not even talk about income taxes!

College seems to bring out the procrastination in people. In the college setting, up to 70 percent of students identify themselves as procrastinators.

Of course, it won't help you get things done any faster to know that procrastination isn't good for your health. But putting things off creates higher levels of stress and sends all those stress hormones coursing through your body, wearing it out faster. And it puts you at risk for poor health because you're just as likely to delay seeking treatment for medical problems as you are to delay everything else.

Procrastination actually weakens your immune system. It keeps you awake at night. And it doesn't do a thing for your relationships either. It makes loved ones resentful, because it shifts the burden of responsibilities onto them.

Procrastinators are born and not made. That's both the good news and the bad news. Good because it's a learned response, and what's learned can be unlearned. The bad news is that while it's possible to change, it takes a lot of psychic energy and you don't necessarily feel transformed internally.

You should know that some people who think of themselves as procrastinators really aren't. In a world of unending deadlines, they just put too many things on their "To Do" list. They're not avoiding tasks, the mark of a bona fide procrastinator; they're getting things done, just not as many as they would like.

It's easy to tell whether you're a real procrastinator. According to Joseph Ferrari, Ph.D., associate professor of psychology at De Paul University in Chicago, real procrastinators tell themselves five lies:

• They overestimate the time they have left to perform tasks.

• They underestimate the time it takes to complete tasks.

• They overestimate how motivated they will feel the next day, the next week, the next month -- whenever they are putting things off to.

• They mistakenly think that succeeding at a task requires that they feel like doing it.

• They mistakenly believe that working when not in the mood is suboptimal.

Procrastinators also actively look for distractions, especially ones that don't take heavy-duty commitment on their part. Checking e-mail is just about tailor-made for this purpose. The dirty little secret is that procrastinators distract themselves as a way of regulating their own emotions, such as fear of failure.

So face it. Some tasks are never going to be thigh-slappers no matter how long they marinate on your desk. You've got to do them now.

How to tackle procrastination? Dr. Ferrari recommends these strategies for reducing procrastination:

1. Make a list of everything you have to do.

2. Write a statement of intention.

3. Set realistic goals.

4. Break it down into specific tasks.

5. Make your task meaningful.

6. Promise yourself a reward.

7. Eliminate tasks you never plan to do. Be honest!

8. Estimate the amount of time you think it will take you to complete a task. Then increase the amount by 100%.


Psychology Today Magazine, Oct 28, 2003
Last Reviewed 30 Jun 2005
Article ID: 3103

4.07.2008

Quote of the Day

Work like you don't need the money.

Love like you've never been hurt.

Dance like nobody's watching..

Sing like nobody's listening.

Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

4.06.2008

Getting Over Writer's Block

This is an interesting article I found in my Questia newsletter: http://www.questia.com/newsletter/?CRID=nullCRnull&OFFID=news20080316w It's all about overcoming writer's block.

"Writer's Block/ Writer's Anxiety
This resource was written by Purdue OWL.
Last full revision by Sean M. Conrey.
Last edited by Allen Brizee on November 29th 2007 at 3:46PM

Summary: Help in overcoming writer's block and a short series of exercises to get you writing.

Symptoms and Cures for Writer's Block
Because writers have various ways of writing, a variety of things can cause a writer to experience anxiety, and sometimes this anxiety leads to writer's block. Often a solution can be found by speaking with your instructor (if you are in school), or a writing tutor. There are some common causes of writer's block, however, and when you are blocked, consider these causes and try the strategies that sound most promising:

Symptom
You have attempted to begin a paper without doing any preliminary work such as brainstorming or outlining...

Possible Cures
Use invention strategies suggested by a tutor or teacher
Write down all the primary ideas you'd like to express and then fill in each with the smaller ideas that make up each primary idea. This can easily be converted into an outline
Symptom
You have chosen or been assigned a topic which bores you....

Possible Cures
Choose a particular aspect of the topic you are interested in (if the writing situation will allow it...i.e. if the goal of your writing can be adjusted and is not given to you specifically, or if the teacher or project coordinator will allow it)
Talk to a tutor about how you can personalize a topic to make it more interesting
Symptom
You don't want to spend time writing or don't understand the assignment...

Possible Cures
Resign yourself to the fact that you have to write
Find out what is expected of you (consult a teacher, textbook, student, tutor, or project coordinator)
Look at some of the strategies for writing anxiety listed below
Symptom
You are anxious about writing the paper...

Possible Cures
Focus your energy by rehearsing the task in your head.
Consciously stop the non-productive comments running through your head by replacing them with productive ones.
If you have some "rituals" for writing success (chewing gum, listening to jazz etc.), use them.
Symptom
You are so stressed out you can't seem to put a word on the page...

Possible Cures
Stretch! If you can't stand up, stretch as many muscle groups as possible while staying seated.
Try tensing and releasing various muscle groups. Starting from your toes, tense up for perhaps five to ten seconds and then let go. Relax and then go on to another muscle group.
Breathe deeply. Close your eyes; then, fill your chest cavity slowly by taking four of five short deep breaths. Hold each breath until it hurts, and then let it out slowly.
Use a calming word or mental image to focus on while relaxing. If you choose a word, be careful not to use an imperative. Don't command yourself to "Calm down!" or "Relax!"
Symptom
You're self-conscious about your writing, you may have trouble getting started. So, if you're preoccupied with the idea that you have to write about a subject and feel you probably won't express yourself well...

Possible Cures
Talk over the subject with a friend or tutor.
Assure yourself that the first draft doesn't have to be a work of genius, it is something to work with.
Force yourself to write down something, however poorly worded, that approximates your thought (you can revise this later) and go on with the next idea.
Break the task up into steps. Meet the general purpose first, and then flesh out the more specific aspects later.

Try one of the strategies on the next page of this resource.

Other Strategies for Getting Over Writer's Block
If you have tried the other strategies and are still having problems, try some of these general techniques for getting over writer's block. These strategies will prove more helpful when you're drafting your writing.

Begin in the Middle
Start writing at whatever point you like. If you want to begin in the middle, fine. Leave the introduction or first section until later. The reader will never know that you wrote the paper "backwards." Besides, some writers routinely save the introduction until later when they have a clearer idea of what the main idea and purpose of the piece will be.

Talk Out the Paper
Talking feels less artificial than writing to some people. Talk about what you want to write someone—your teacher, a friend, a roommate, or a tutor. Just pick someone who's willing to give you fifteen to thirty minutes to talk about the topic and whose main aim is to help you start writing. Have the person take notes while you talk or tape your conversation. Talking will be helpful because you'll probably be more natural and spontaneous in speech than in writing. Your listener can ask questions and guide you as you speak, and you'll be more likely to relax and say something unpredictable than if that you were sitting and forcing yourself to write.

Tape the Paper
Talk into a tape recorder, imagining your audience sitting in front of you. Then, transcribe the tape-recorded material. You'll at least have some ideas written down to work with and move around.

Change the Audience
Pretend that you're writing to a child, to a close friend, to a parent, to a person who sharply disagrees with you, or to someone who's new to the subject and needs to have you explain your paper's topic slowly and clearly. Changing the audience can clarify your purpose and can also make you feel more comfortable and help you write more easily.

Play a Role
Pretend you are someone else writing the paper. For instance, if you have been asked to write about sexist advertising, assume you are the president of the National Organization of Women. Or, pretend you are the president of a major oil company asked to defend the high price of oil. Consider being someone in another time period, or someone with a wildly different perspective from your own. Pulling yourself out of your usual perspective can help you see things that are otherwise invisible or difficult to articulate, and your writing will be stronger for it.

(Many of these ideas are from Peter Elbow's Writing with Power, [Ch. 8; 59-77] and Mack Skjei's Overcoming Writing Blocks.)"

4.05.2008

Christian Music Retail Finder

This is a great site to find Christian bookstores nearby that sell up and coming Canadian artist music CD's

4.04.2008

Awesome Shirts

Some of the funniest shirts I've ever seen have come from this company: http://www.splitreason.com/

They're mostly geeky/nerdy/dorky/gamer type novelty shirts, but as I find that kinda stuff funny... :-D

Here's some examples:













Oh and this ROFL



In addition this is the site that you can buy the ctrl+alt+delete (http://www.ctrlaltdel-online.com/) hardcover comics books from.

4.03.2008

Fortune Cookies

A really interesting article on the origin of the fortune cookie and how they are weirdly absent from China...

Solving a Riddle Wrapped in a Mystery Inside a Cookie

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/16/dining/16fort.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

4.01.2008

Word of the Day

Urban Word of the Day
www.urbandictionary.com

April 01, 2008: gullible

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=gullible&defid=338459

The only word that is not in the [dictionary].

Go look. I swear, [gullible] is not there.


(good one urban dictionary... happy april fool's to you too!)