Book Review: Angels + Demons

On to something a little different.  When I first started blogging, I wrote at <a href="http://prittygoodbooks.blogspot.com/">Pritty Story to Tell</a>, where I did simple book reviews.  Once I began The Big Weight, that blog fell to the wayside.  I enjoy recapping the books I've read and so I'm just making it a small extension of this blog... adding a tab at the top.  Feel free to ignore the rest of this post or future book posts if you'd like :).<br /><br />I'm a little behind the book reading trend.  Angels & Demons was popular about 2-3 years ago and I'm just now getting around to reading it.  You can see why:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5CO4Z64LapHXifr0YdXk4GDHgA2uHOwpvrDm4S244ywcqRKblIyqhvrq1ehDRAVbRLJ2_yfmv1__eQBiJdUzL7bi7g-xvQ2MetW99xmj4kUgFc_jg9bZL36J4C0VswqmqP3pMMnIoWgA/s1600/NYE+2012+006.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5CO4Z64LapHXifr0YdXk4GDHgA2uHOwpvrDm4S244ywcqRKblIyqhvrq1ehDRAVbRLJ2_yfmv1__eQBiJdUzL7bi7g-xvQ2MetW99xmj4kUgFc_jg9bZL36J4C0VswqmqP3pMMnIoWgA/s400/NYE+2012+006.JPG" width="266" /></a></div><br />Those are all of my UNREAD books!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD2AkP9w7Pf39d9eTfICQCuhpNDWsap4DM-sS92yFx8cXxwDGkB2gjPtn3QbvZVax5y0vj6yrclgY97EKvnJfgH861hoXV0p9bX4wy2aJf6e3xSvt17D3MPGuE7gKP6ZCC8ai-6aw-2es/s1600/NYE+2012+008.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD2AkP9w7Pf39d9eTfICQCuhpNDWsap4DM-sS92yFx8cXxwDGkB2gjPtn3QbvZVax5y0vj6yrclgY97EKvnJfgH861hoXV0p9bX4wy2aJf6e3xSvt17D3MPGuE7gKP6ZCC8ai-6aw-2es/s400/NYE+2012+008.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />A tragedy I know.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTA_zlZX-Qp8qs815zz4a11KdXAgETfDCsDMhuDEPJj2VuhjOdLiBTnp0h1b-geTP2lxIGhvGlObkQEAGmqLGrUk6hkatCpQ2rQKXdv1FL_re7z09TOJj3L6q9sILXfuYmWhyJRYVH9oA/s1600/NYE+2012+011.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTA_zlZX-Qp8qs815zz4a11KdXAgETfDCsDMhuDEPJj2VuhjOdLiBTnp0h1b-geTP2lxIGhvGlObkQEAGmqLGrUk6hkatCpQ2rQKXdv1FL_re7z09TOJj3L6q9sILXfuYmWhyJRYVH9oA/s400/NYE+2012+011.JPG" width="248" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">seagull wine glass while reading? yes please!</td></tr></tbody></table>I'm such a slow reader, and I'm also addicted to buying books.  Two problems that need rectified in 2012.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivRn8Enui6y0qxfl_nD2xQ6X61joPGdga8c60brP_vW2OFY4C592dzxCukxVeTTdvHZ9i-uEH3Yaip3jcra1r6NczynyrKAOtY92coqwKXdLlTy_IovET_wTdI46fn3mmbxehyphenhyphenIXRLzCZd/s1600/914-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivRn8Enui6y0qxfl_nD2xQ6X61joPGdga8c60brP_vW2OFY4C592dzxCukxVeTTdvHZ9i-uEH3Yaip3jcra1r6NczynyrKAOtY92coqwKXdLlTy_IovET_wTdI46fn3mmbxehyphenhyphenIXRLzCZd/s200/914-1.jpg" width="109" /></a></div>I finally decided to dust off the cover and crack open this book, after having toted it around for 2 moves now.  I have put it off because I wasn't a fan of Brown's Da Vinci Code.  I liked his other books, but the Da Vinci Code took me FOREVER to get through. I mean months and months.  I struggled.  I was concerned that A&D would be the same.<br /><br />Well, I do like Dan's style of short chapters that keep the pages turning, but that's about where it stops for me and this series.  I can't quite pinpoint why I'm not a fan of these books, but I'm just not.<br /><br />In short, for those who haven't read it, the gist of the book is that two scientists in Europe create this highly explosive chemical-like substance called antimatter.  If handled incorrectly, it will vaporize an entire city in a split second.  Well, this antimatter substance is stolen by the infamous Illuminati (or is it???).  Harvard symbology professor Robert Langdon is recruited to help crack the code behind the mysterious Illuminati, all the while saving Vatican City (where the antimatter resides after its confiscation).  Of course, the antimatter must be found in less than 24 hours, or Vatican City and it's surrounding area will be no more.  Almost 700 pages are devoted to hunting down the Illuminati and the antimatter with Langdon leading the way, beside scientist and antimatter creator Vittoria Vetra, the Swiss guards, and the "sit in Pope".<br /><br />I jumped at the chance to rent A&D from Redbox when I saw it in my local kiosk a few weeks ago.  It was just what I needed to get me through the remainder of the book.  I stayed up until 10:45 PM Monday night to hull my butt through it.  I did not want to get too far into this year reading a book I clearly wanted to finish ASAP.<br /><br />So, have you read Angels & Demons?  What did you think?<br /><br />The third and final book in this series is The Lost Symbol, which I already own and plan to read later this year.  I am one of <i>those </i>people... once I start something I have to finish it!<br /><br />By the way, this is my book list for 2012.... what are you reading this year?<br /><br /><style media="screen" type="text/css"> .gr_grid_container { /* customize grid container div here. eg: width: 500px; */ } .gr_grid_book_container { /* customize book cover container div here */ float: left; width: 98px; height: 160px; padding: 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; } </style> <br /><div id="gr_grid_widget_1325694252"><h2> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/222778-hilary?shelf=2012-books&utm_medium=api&utm_source=grid_widget" style="text-decoration: none;">2012 Book Montage</a> </h2><div class="gr_grid_container"><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13143.Pop_Goes_the_Weasel_Alex_Cross_5_" title="Pop Goes the Weasel (Alex Cross, #5) "><img alt="Pop Goes the Weasel (Alex Cross, #5)" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166543086m/13143.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/79378.Roses_Are_Red" title="Roses Are Red (Alex Cross, #6)"><img alt="Roses Are Red" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170966297m/79378.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/63033.The_Savage_Detectives" title="The Savage Detectives"><img alt="The Savage Detectives" border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51GHi0vZnRL._SX106_.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/71776.At_Home_in_Mitford" title="At Home in Mitford (Mitford Years, #1)"><img alt="At Home in Mitford" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170790148m/71776.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/112872.A_Light_in_the_Window" title="A Light in the Window (Mitford Years #2)"><img alt="A Light in the Window" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171663777m/112872.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/112874.These_High_Green_Hills" title="These High, Green Hills (Mitford Years #3)"><img alt="These High, Green Hills" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171663787m/112874.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8905140-made-to-crave" title="Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire With God, Not Food"><img alt="Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire With God, Not Food" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1308973987m/8905140.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6411961-the-lost-symbol" title="The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon, #3)"><img alt="The Lost Symbol" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1303391374m/6411961.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2807199-american-wife" title="American Wife"><img alt="American Wife" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320446676m/2807199.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6314655-flowers-on-main" title="Flowers On Main (Chesapeake Shores #2)"><img alt="Flowers On Main" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255636550m/6314655.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4185796-love-your-life" title="Love Your Life: Living Happy, Healthy, and Whole"><img alt="Love Your Life: Living Happy, Healthy, and Whole" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266572347m/4185796.jpg" /></a></div><div class="gr_grid_book_container"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7089888-big-girl" title="Big Girl"><img alt="Big Girl" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320474668m/7089888.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><a class="gr_grid_branding" href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/222778-hilary" style="clear: both; color: #382110; float: right; font-size: .9em; text-decoration: none;">Hilary's favorite books »</a> <noscript>&lt;br/&gt;Share &lt;a href="http://www.goodreads.com"&gt;book reviews&lt;/a&gt; and ratings with Hilary, and even join a &lt;a href="http://www.goodreads.com/group/"&gt;book club&lt;/a&gt; on Goodreads.</noscript> </div>} </div><script charset="utf-8" src="http://www.goodreads.com/review/grid_widget/222778.2012%20Book%20Montage?cover_size=medium&hide_link=&hide_title=&num_books=20&order=a&shelf=2012-books&sort=position&widget_id=1325694252" type="text/javascript"></script>

Books Book Review: Angels + Demons

On to something a little different.  When I first started blogging, I wrote at Pritty Story to Tell , where I did simple book reviews.  Onc...

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How to fit a wide YouTube video into a blog post

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I have found that sometimes a YouTube video spreads over to the side bar in a blog, so if you occasionally have that problem and don't know what to do about it, please read on. I am going to explain how to change the width of the video so that it fits in to the body of the blog. <br /><br />1. Open up the YouTube video that you wish to embed, and click on '<i>Share</i>' and then '<i>Embed</i>' <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg74tPXPXqph1i89kbPiVBXt_qjLSVDQMhJMzp5H3tx6qxjtUSmtHQ3kTnwunKVh7_nkc7aSQXZJVPXRU_FXZyQEL1wANpTke8San2QtyhmmchkjIqMS58Ae0QcQadO-rQoQXqGA8WUJPM/s1600/Change+your+embed+code1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg74tPXPXqph1i89kbPiVBXt_qjLSVDQMhJMzp5H3tx6qxjtUSmtHQ3kTnwunKVh7_nkc7aSQXZJVPXRU_FXZyQEL1wANpTke8San2QtyhmmchkjIqMS58Ae0QcQadO-rQoQXqGA8WUJPM/s400/Change+your+embed+code1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> 2. Copy the embed code but when you have put it into your blog post (in the HTML part), change the width of '560' to '420'. Don't change anything else.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjktU1xBnGv_iHPJhwjOr5S30CDQvWG_fYj6x8VsxOkilrNt7FS69hDCC9FR4gmhxsTXPLzhaIIQIIZYfTmwn1vbjnBFIOxUixuyfrmxxirkNM72wghFIk_RTgm7QYjmcKkPmHkk6T0K_Y/s1600/Change+your+embed+code2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjktU1xBnGv_iHPJhwjOr5S30CDQvWG_fYj6x8VsxOkilrNt7FS69hDCC9FR4gmhxsTXPLzhaIIQIIZYfTmwn1vbjnBFIOxUixuyfrmxxirkNM72wghFIk_RTgm7QYjmcKkPmHkk6T0K_Y/s400/Change+your+embed+code2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />3. You'll see that it now fits in perfectly. Save and publish your post. <br /><br /><br />Here is the link if you want to print or download this information:<br /><a href="http://www.box.com/s/sefbs6gvzofu7mexiaq5">http://www.box.com/s/sefbs6gvzofu7mexiaq5</a><br /><br /><br /></div><br /></div>

Tutorials videos How to fit a wide YouTube video into a blog post

I have found that sometimes a YouTube video spreads over to the side bar in a blog, so if you occasionally have that problem and don't k...

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Free e-book on mobile learning - looks useful!

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">This free e-book on Mobile Learning, written by Jackie Gerstein (@jackiegerstein, <a href="https://usergeneratededucation.wordpress.com/">https://usergeneratededucation.wordpress.com/</a>), was brought to my attention by a post on the Free Technology for Teachers blog. It could be a great read for South African teachers where students frequently have cell phones that could be tapped into because other technology resources are non-existent. Take a read to see if it could benefit you. You’ll find eighty pages of useful information. You can also download your own copy of this free book by clicking <a href="http://issuu.com/jackiegerstein/docs/mobile_learning#download">here</a>:<br /><br /><div><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="afcc4b4a-b091-ab12-6aa0-744b81171ce1" style="height: 298px; width: 420px;"><param name="movie" value="http://static.issuu.com/webembed/viewers/style1/v2/IssuuReader.swf?mode=mini&backgroundColor=%23222222&documentId=120103211401-d30cc084464340aca29a91cd0037b216" /><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"/><param name="menu" value="false"/><param name="wmode" value="transparent"/><embed src="http://static.issuu.com/webembed/viewers/style1/v2/IssuuReader.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" menu="false" wmode="transparent" style="width:420px;height:298px" flashvars="mode=mini&backgroundColor=%23222222&documentId=120103211401-d30cc084464340aca29a91cd0037b216" /></object><br /><div style="text-align: left; width: 420px;"><a href="http://issuu.com/jackiegerstein/docs/mobile_learning?mode=window&backgroundColor=%23222222" target="_blank">Open publication</a> - Free <a href="http://issuu.com/" target="_blank">publishing</a> - <a href="http://issuu.com/search?q=engagement" target="_blank">More engagement</a></div></div><br /></div>

e-books Web tools Free e-book on mobile learning - looks useful!

This free e-book on Mobile Learning, written by Jackie Gerstein (@jackiegerstein, https://usergeneratededucation.wordpress.com/ ), was broug...

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Executive Director - Wilton Library

<strong>Executive Director</strong> - <span style="color: #48286d;"><strong>Wilton (CT) Library</strong></span>. Wilton Library - the Center for Discovery in the Heart of the Community - seeks an Executive Director to help continue and enhance the Library’s successful role as the creative, cultural, and intellectual destination of the community. The <a href="http://www.wiltonlibrary.org/" target="_blank">Wilton Library</a>, a non-profit Association Library located in the center of the town of Wilton, CT, serves a community of 18,200 residents. The Library circulated 365,123 items in FY2011 and is ranked #4 among comparably sized towns in <em>Connecticut Magazine</em>. In addition to providing traditional library services, the Wilton Library successfully transitioned to its mission of providing the Wilton community with outstanding adult and children’s programming, vital teen services, and public fine arts and performing arts spaces. The Library collaborates with local government and businesses and has become the “go to” place for local history knowledge, meeting room spaces and digital connections (as seen during the recent significant power outages in Fall 2011). Consisting of a single facility (50,384 sq. ft. building with a new addition completed in 2006), the Library is poised to move forward building on its successes. The new Executive Director will work with a committed staff (31 FTEs), an energetic core of volunteers, an established donor group, a dedicated community and a $3.3 million budget to deliver quality services. The challenge for the next Executive Director will be to move forward on the Library's new strategic plan (currently under development) leveraging strong community relationships and partnerships while developing alternate funding streams to continue the outstanding levels of service and programs. <a href="http://www.wiltonct.org/" target="_blank">Wilton</a> is nestled in the Norwalk River Valley in western Connecticut. Wilton is 55 miles from midtown Manhattan and is within easy driving distance from Westchester County, New York. The Town is accessible from routes 7, 33, 106, and 107. Wilton is only one hour from Grand Central Station on the New Haven Line Danbury branch of <a href="http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/mnr/" target="_blank">Metro-North Railroad</a>, which runs daily commuter service. Additional information on the Library, Wilton, and the surrounding area can be found at <a href="http://www.gossagesager.com/Wiltonlinks.htm" target="_blank">Wilton Links</a>. Responsibilities. The Executive Director reports to a 24-member Library Board of Trustees and works with the Board, staff, and major stakeholders to establish the strategic vision for the Library aligning the Library’s mission, goals and objectives with the community’s needs and priorities. The Executive Director’s primary responsibilities are to maintain an outstanding library that anticipates and fulfills the needs of its community utilizing all resources available. The Executive Director is responsible for every phase of library operations including programs, collections and services, personnel, technology, public relations and outreach, marketing, buildings, grounds, equipment, budget, donor relations, and fundraising. For the detailed job description, see <a href="http://www.gossagesager.com/Wiltondirector.pdf" target="_blank">Executive Director</a>. <img alt="PDF icon" src="http://www.ctlibrarians.org/associations/10663/files/pdf.jpg" /> Qualifications. A master’s degree in library science from an ALA accredited program and a minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in library administration and staff supervision, including supervision of a major public library department or as a director or assistant director of a public library. A combination of education and experience that demonstrates the ability to successfully meet the requirements of the position may be considered. Essential attributes and skills include: vision, creativity, energy and enthusiasm; superior written and oral communications skills; demonstrated success in effectively promoting library services to the community; political acumen; collaborative and consensus-building skills; experience in recruiting, mentoring, evaluating and retaining an excellent staff; and a thorough knowledge of current trends and “best practices” for library service. Proven success working effectively with a policy-making board is desirable. Compensation. A starting salary range of $110,000-125,000 (with final placement dependent upon experience and qualifications) with an attractive benefits package. For further information, contact Bradbury Associates/Gossage Sager Associates via email or call 816-531-2468. Apply via email with a meaningful cover letter and your resume as Word or pdf attachments to <a href="mailto:DanBradbury@gossagesager.com">DanBradbury@gossagesager.com</a> or <a href="mailto:JobethBradbury@gossagesager.com">JobethBradbury@gossagesager.com</a>. The position closes <span style="color: red;">February 26, 2012</span>.

Executive Director - Wilton Library

Executive Director - Wilton (CT) Library . Wilton Library - the Center for Discovery in the Heart of the Community - seeks an Executive D...

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Bernard Herrmann - Composer Of Haunting Music and Treacherous Dreams

<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>by guest contributor Whistlingypsy </i></div><br /><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOzF0A5oQmKbye4S5l40RMzi1S22tRf1tKR3yQT52Z3GC3cYEUP853Rq1rdK8G3xerqvqv_NWIKqarXh9DhWrgjyBeOspMPJ0Aq8LZX-JHp3tPM5Ntvj66wSFa-Mck6sTkKueGRM5MhtA/s1600/1aABernardHerrmann1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692811207392367874" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOzF0A5oQmKbye4S5l40RMzi1S22tRf1tKR3yQT52Z3GC3cYEUP853Rq1rdK8G3xerqvqv_NWIKqarXh9DhWrgjyBeOspMPJ0Aq8LZX-JHp3tPM5Ntvj66wSFa-Mck6sTkKueGRM5MhtA/s320/1aABernardHerrmann1.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 320px; margin: 0 12px 12px 0; width: 309px;" /></a><br /><i>Just as my fingers on these keys</i></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Make music, so the self-same sounds</i></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>On my spirit make a music, too.</i></div><div style="text-align: right;">~ <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">excerpt from </span><i style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Peter Quince at the Clavier</i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> by Wallace Stevens</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>"I don’t think Mozart’s going to help at all."</i></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: right;">~ Midge in <i>Vertigo</i></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">British composer Ralph Vaughn Williams, who greatly influenced young Bernard Herrmann and for whom he had a great admiration, took the subject of film score composition seriously and in encouraging his contemporaries to do the same said, “I believe that the film contains potentialities for the combination of all the arts such as Wagner never dreamed of, and I would therefore urge those distinguished musicians who have entered the world of the cinema to realize their responsibility in helping to take the film out of the realm of hack work and make it a subject of a real composer.” Music constitutes an essential part of the film experience, yet we often fail to acknowledge its importance to the way we perceive film. This is not to say that music is comprehensible only to those who have formal training; to the contrary the ability to appreciate music is a capacity we all share. The often overlooked genius of composing for film in general, and of Bernard Herrmann specifically, is an ability to work within the parameters of music theory while exploiting the viewer's instinctive knowledge of musical conventions, creating a lush musical landscape perfectly suited to the emotional content of the image captured on film.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /><a name='more'></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Composer and conductor Bernard Herrmann was born on June 29, 1911 at New York City’s Lying In Hospital, the eldest of three children born to Abraham and Ida Herrmann. Benny, as he was known to his family, suffered a major health crisis at an early age in the form of St. Vitus’s Dance, which he barely survived. He spent much of his time as a boy and a young man reading biographies of artists and composers, learning musical works through his father’s collection of 78rpm recordings <img alt="" border="0" height="320" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692811316891839074" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUE6eqeSxpgDsBTEF1yAjFU36TuyqAOhiRy2vGILKV9T8JsBZwGsHVfLKFxSuPG-y_Oxgrf-KmgEzapDH9fxkWGoamGitHo2kQDmsioITBVQ0X8wu02CseB3poB38gmusuDx7kElumNPA/s320/1aABernardHerrmann2.jpg" style="float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0pt 0pt 12px 12px; width: 152px;" width="243" />and attending live performances of the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall. His literary discoveries through the New York Public Library included the <i>Treatise on Orchestration</i> by Hector Beriloz (he was familiar with the composer’s <span style="font-style: italic;">Symphonie Fantastique</span> and later claimed the book convinced him to become a composer). Herrmann wrote many small-scale works as a teenager, most of which remain unpublished. He studied music at the Juilliard Graduate School, and at the age of twenty he formed the New Chamber Orchestra of New York.<br /><br />He joined the Columbia Broadcasting System in 1934 where David Ross, CBS’s top announcer, asked Herrmann to compose music for his poetry reading series. Herrmann’s setting for <span style="font-style: italic;">La B</span><span style="font-style: italic;">elle Dame Sans Merci</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> </span>(a favorite poem at the time) so impressed CBS executives that he was given a job conducting and six years later became Chief Conductor of the CBS Symphony Orchestra. Through his many and diverse projects for CBS, in 1938 Herrmann was selected composer-conductor for <i>The Mercury Theatre on the Air</i>, which brought him to the attention of Orson Welles. The young director left no room for negotiation in his meetings with RKO executives concerning his choice to score his film, and he insisted Herrmann should receive a competitive salary despite his inexperience, “If he’s good enough to do my score, he’s good enough to get the best price.”<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK1FRrJz3Ksir3QtIA2enzRqsqbptADjyDaA0Q30b9ysUftxO5IEw4z0QtNW5qD1_1DI6ntxGYSWBDtUtNpOGSAxu_oLT-3gmkRr1uQ4YWHhm-39U4NFfmp6k7ESmdoIMBGVFpOv4imyM/s1600/Welles+and+Herrmann+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK1FRrJz3Ksir3QtIA2enzRqsqbptADjyDaA0Q30b9ysUftxO5IEw4z0QtNW5qD1_1DI6ntxGYSWBDtUtNpOGSAxu_oLT-3gmkRr1uQ4YWHhm-39U4NFfmp6k7ESmdoIMBGVFpOv4imyM/s320/Welles+and+Herrmann+2.jpg" width="276" /></a></div>Herrmann was no snob about cinema, he was familiar not only with American films and composers but also with their European counterparts, but he was well aware of the obstacles in composing for film. A film composer often completed scores in as little as two or three weeks, rarely had time to do his own orchestration, and once the music was written and conducted had little to say about the sound levels or dynamics of the score in the finished film. Herrmann was confident, however, that working with Welles would be different and it was with no small excitement that he announced his leave of absence to go to Hollywood. His career as a composer for film was demanding and rewarding, in addition to his outstanding scores for <i>Citizen Kane</i> (1941) and <i>The Magnificent Ambersons </i>(1942), he earned his reputation for glorious music on films such as <i>Jane Eyre</i> (1943), <i>Hangover Square</i> (1945) and <i>The Ghost and Mrs. Muir</i> (1947), all of which were about to bring him to the attention of another Hollywood genius, Alfred Hitchcock.<br /><br />The sometimes variable nature of film composition often left the composer without work and Herrmann wrote the score, the first of two "television operas," for a 1954 television adaption of Dickens's classic holiday story. His original compositions for television also included <i>The Twilight Zone</i><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span>from 1959 through 1964, for which he composed the original theme as well as scores for seven episodes (at least three of which were included as part of the Syfy Channel's New Year's Day marathon). His work for <i>The Alfred Hitchcock Hour</i> from 1963 through 1965 included original compositions for seventeen episodes.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><object height="359" width="485"><param name="movie" value="https://www.youtube.com/v/H6W_MSxnPAw?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="https://www.youtube.com/v/H6W_MSxnPAw?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="359" width="485"></embed></object></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Bernard Herrmann's "Concerto Macabre," <i>Hangover Square</i></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />Much has been written regarding the turbulent end to the collaboration between Bernard Herrmann and Alfred Hitchcock, both from the composer’s and the director’s perspective. Herrmann and Hitchcock were, for most of their eleven years of collaboration, friends as well as associates and Steven C. Smith, author of <u>A Heart At Fire’s Center</u>, observes, “The rapport between the two was strong from the start.” The Hitchcocks often played host to the Herrmanns; Benny and Lucy were invited to spend the weekend at Hitchcock’s secluded Bel Air home, where days were spent in leisurely conversation and evenings spent enjoying Alma’s superb cooking.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiHR5I1R3U9pf-KFcUE8CswIgi4S9qfkvljaXvo2gqRx4OReNcZ5I3o3fFp1TohTW2ENDYZ9D0Rla-JuYbbt7tHReDkSb3xASAmHbhyZft_Ihnr_9ThkPXn8how6kCmi_vRsJTYWJswck/s1600/hitchcock+and+herrmann+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiHR5I1R3U9pf-KFcUE8CswIgi4S9qfkvljaXvo2gqRx4OReNcZ5I3o3fFp1TohTW2ENDYZ9D0Rla-JuYbbt7tHReDkSb3xASAmHbhyZft_Ihnr_9ThkPXn8how6kCmi_vRsJTYWJswck/s320/hitchcock+and+herrmann+2.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>Jack Sullivan, author of <u>Hitchcock’s Music</u>, suggests the director’s relationships with his composers were often passionate, and as often troubled, in part because the director was "intoxicated by and knowledgeable about music.” Hitchcock's music and sound notes for <i>Vertigo</i> were more specific than on past projects, but what finally emerged as Herrmann’s film score is very different from what Hitchcock had planned. The film’s original title, <span style="font-style: italic;">From Among The Dead</span>, was a reference to the French novel on which the story is based, and Herrmann’s composition was to be supplemented by passages from a lost score that had haunted the director for decades.<br /><br />Hitchcock had seen <span style="font-style: italic;">Mary Rose</span>, a dramatic tale of lost love regained written by J. M. Barrie, during the play’s London run in 1920 and became enthralled by the music of Norman O'Neill.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGO28CkdNePKhUtOI7YTTv0KY1qsCRoqqGkml6ocOHQ59SQanPQDF-2es2Yfio9KW82Am6nkw8s3j5hjEj6Cr7qzj9U53QOSlec40v8G25MnVg12LUDA3NUd0mN89thuqo0pkk3tZ5J6c/s1600/herrmann+conducts+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGO28CkdNePKhUtOI7YTTv0KY1qsCRoqqGkml6ocOHQ59SQanPQDF-2es2Yfio9KW82Am6nkw8s3j5hjEj6Cr7qzj9U53QOSlec40v8G25MnVg12LUDA3NUd0mN89thuqo0pkk3tZ5J6c/s320/herrmann+conducts+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><i>The Musical Times and Singing Class Circular,</i><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> </span>Volume 62 dated March 1, 1921, described the composer and his work for <i>Mary Rose</i> as follows: “A dreamer of dreams and a mystic, Norman O’Neill has the power of expressing in his music the ethereal world in which he dwells. His flights of fancy, intangible though they are, touch a responsive chord in the hearts of the imaginative. . . .The ‘Mary Rose’ call continued to haunt the ear with gentle insistence long after it had reached echo-land.” Hitchcock was especially struck by 'the Call' connected with the heroine's disappearance, he later remembered the sensation as "celestial voices, like Debussy's <i>Sirenes nocturne</i>." Hitchcock twice failed to uncover the music, which he had also intended to use as part of the <i>Rebecca</i> film score, and as usual he deferred to Herrmann with memos and notes reflecting his confidence in the composer, "Mr. Herrmann may have something to say here" and "All of this will naturally depend upon what music Mr. Herrmann puts over this sequence."</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div face="Verdana,sans-serif" style="text-align: center;"><object height="359" width="485"><param name="movie" value="https://www.youtube.com/v/E5Y7mbfS5r8?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="https://www.youtube.com/v/E5Y7mbfS5r8?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="359" width="485"></embed></object></div><div face="Verdana,sans-serif" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Debussy's "Sirenes nocturne"</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />If there is truth in the notion that music is the language of the inexpressible; Bernard Herrmann’s film score for <i>Vertigo</i> has given a voice to an ordinary man who finds himself in extraordinary circumstances. Herrmann’s main title sequence intentionally avoids an identifiable melody, exploits unpredictable rhythmic changes and flirts with tonal ambiguity. Kathryn Kalinak, author of <u>Settling The Score</u> observed, "The combination of violins and tubas played in alternately ascending and descending arpeggiated chords (played in succession rather than simultaneously)" and moving in contrary motion creates an asymmetry (if you will) of sound keeping the viewer continually off guard musically. Herrmann's main title music is heard first, but the musical effect in combination with Saul Bass's visual imagery in the opening credits reinforces the feeling of vertigo. The visual acts as counterpoint to the music; the spiraling images create a visual vortex in the same manner the music creates a spatial vortex and the viewer enters the world of the film suspended between two possibilities. Film criticism often invites the amateur “to see into” the life of a film, which results in as many interpretations of dramatic themes and visual cues as there are viewers. Film music makes a distinction between the life experienced by the characters and the life viewed by the audience.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span id="goog_150159566"></span><span id="goog_150159567"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgffgMiJHmdpQq54wolT32s51Bn9jSEmVfZO_yWlGXRk0-fiktrDIPjOah_lXEu7CeZLPIrT7TdVAIyT8lGpftU3U1tjdlPabNCb5H1sWunRbuqI0o1VkLyks0RVq4oswX4ATZfQaWEshA/s1600/Stewart+hangs+b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgffgMiJHmdpQq54wolT32s51Bn9jSEmVfZO_yWlGXRk0-fiktrDIPjOah_lXEu7CeZLPIrT7TdVAIyT8lGpftU3U1tjdlPabNCb5H1sWunRbuqI0o1VkLyks0RVq4oswX4ATZfQaWEshA/s1600/Stewart+hangs+b.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />The classical film score can often combine <span style="font-style: italic;">nondiegetic</span> music, music heard by the audience but not experienced by the characters, and <span style="font-style: italic;">diegetic</span> music, music heard as part of the world in which the characters move and live. The two instances in which diegetic or “live” music occur in <i>Vertigo</i> are scenes of emotional significance for Midge and Scottie. The first occurs after a bit of magical thinking on the part of Hitchcock, when Scottie is inexplicably delivered from hanging precariously between life and death. The scene opens on a cozy domestic setting, the man and woman could be husband and wife, could be brother and sister. We learn about both through their comfortable exchanges and through the use of music. John-O, as she calls him, and Midge share a past but appear uncomfortable in their present relationship. Her choice of music, an <span style="font-style: italic;">Overture by </span><span style="font-style: italic;">J. C. Bach</span>, and her taste in contemporary furniture slyly hint that she is comfortable making brief visits to the past while living very much in the present. He is uncomfortable sitting in her Eames style chair and tells her the music is the cause of his vertigo (all important cues in the events that will soon engulf Scottie). The second, and perhaps more significant, occurs in the use of <i><span style="font-style: italic;">Mozart’s 34th Symphony</span> </i>as “a rope from heaven” to draw Scottie from his abyss of acute melancholia with guilt complex.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcKULmIfmVoPicvrIXw_WcbMqmiYxCFSYEE1Gt42zSWDtYbu-TGnQdAyWrciWknlv3yMMUOW4QfDzNAj_tNq-w1dnzLUQYdbTVbRdbfr9uAUJlMj9v1rjDiMDx-NA2gUPall7xmilkhYE/s1600/midge+and+scottie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcKULmIfmVoPicvrIXw_WcbMqmiYxCFSYEE1Gt42zSWDtYbu-TGnQdAyWrciWknlv3yMMUOW4QfDzNAj_tNq-w1dnzLUQYdbTVbRdbfr9uAUJlMj9v1rjDiMDx-NA2gUPall7xmilkhYE/s400/midge+and+scottie.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Musical therapy was first used after World War I in an attempt to reach veterans suffering from profound mental trauma, and Scottie's musical therapist has told Midge that Mozart is the boy for him (Author and physician Oliver Sacks relates in <span style="font-style: italic;">Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain</span> not only is music haunting, irresistible and unforgettable, but "music occupies more areas of our brain than language does and humans are essentially a musical species"). Scottie responds to Midge, following her with his eyes and turning his head in her direction, but we can't help but agree with Midge that Mozart isn't going to help at all.<br /><br />James Stewart’s Scottie is half enthralled to possibility, but remains half captive to reality. A man no longer content with his passivity in the face of life’s acting on him; he is trapped in a sort of tenacious, immaterial fantasy rendering him incapable of action. In his ability to capture the ineffable quality of this character’s waking nightmare, Herrmann essentially created a film score that can be heard on two levels simultaneously. His use of leitmotifs reminiscent of both Wagner’s <span style="font-style: italic;">Tristan and Isolde</span> and Berlioz’s<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="font-style: italic;">Symphonie Fantastique</span>, share thematic similarities but are by no means derivative. Herrmann is here demonstrating his comprehension that some members of his audience will recognize the reference to these musical passages, while all will understand the emotional content of his music (an equivalent can be found in the screenwriter who includes lines of poetry by John Keats which reference the Romantic era against which the film is set. Those familiar with Keats’s life will understand the specific reference; those unfamiliar with Keats’s life will hear the beauty of the poet’s words).<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqLDczLa6WhX3ggvxkXTVyD3HQz6L4lhEX3TAn32awLWaRWOZ8UTD7i4naxhr85CAc8FaUsSXMuRr2cAE8EaXGe3gB2ptjqgpjEjUiAfnLUxqrUK_ixIbTHdZ8zqonPsfg_OhHvDbT5s/s1600/scottie+and+madeleine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqLDczLa6WhX3ggvxkXTVyD3HQz6L4lhEX3TAn32awLWaRWOZ8UTD7i4naxhr85CAc8FaUsSXMuRr2cAE8EaXGe3gB2ptjqgpjEjUiAfnLUxqrUK_ixIbTHdZ8zqonPsfg_OhHvDbT5s/s400/scottie+and+madeleine.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Bernard Herrmann has been called "Hitchcock's Maestro," and while he might have been uniquely suited to capture the spirit of the dark and troubling tales the director brought to the screen, his work before the famed collaboration would establish his reputation. His affinity for the Romantic era, equally the composers as the poets, his "pastoral poetic gloom" and artful mourning of that which is irrevocably lost can all be heard in the hauntingly similar <span style="font-style: italic;">Portrait of Jennie</span> (1948) for which he composed the theme song but was not credited. An observation regarding <i>Vertigo</i> highlights the intrinsic nature of Herrmann's score in the film's storytelling: close your eyes and listen to any passage and be immediately transported to locations and scenes in the film. The true power of Herrmann's score is in the music's ability to be heard independently from Hitchcock's images (the dream fades, the music lingers). Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, recognized the art of Bernard Herrmann's film music, performing and recording many of Herrmann's compositions. <span style="font-style: italic;">Scene D’Amour</span> is the moving heart of a poignant film portrayal of a man suspended between action and despair, death and life, love and obsession, themes worthy of any Romantic era composer.<br /><br /><i>In spite of myself, the insidious mastery of song</i><br /><i> Betrays me back, till the heart of me weeps to belong</i><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span>~ excerpt from <i>Piano</i> by D. H. Lawrence.</div><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><object height="359" width="485"><param name="movie" value="https://www.youtube.com/v/_naJH44Lk3I?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="https://www.youtube.com/v/_naJH44Lk3I?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="359" width="485"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, "Scene D'Amour" from <i>Vertigo</i></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><br />~</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9vyqpnmvdPbpAmXB30r_oEdlFzZy-ouKK40C0laQ3fzQhg_Hw4nqLCkk-3zos_Lx6iCUb2XcABgSGtForp04NuaUbp78yuhNoYpAtzOiRp9h_Y_SyY1-jd4sCOcFkEIfLRu5h1HSkop4/s1600/Whistlingypsy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9vyqpnmvdPbpAmXB30r_oEdlFzZy-ouKK40C0laQ3fzQhg_Hw4nqLCkk-3zos_Lx6iCUb2XcABgSGtForp04NuaUbp78yuhNoYpAtzOiRp9h_Y_SyY1-jd4sCOcFkEIfLRu5h1HSkop4/s200/Whistlingypsy.jpg" width="147" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /><i><b>Whistlingypsy</b>/aka/Karin of </i><a href="http://distant-voicesandflickering-shadows.blogspot.com/" style="color: #990000;">Distant Voices and Flickering Shadows</a><i> is a technical writer working on a contract/freelance basis who lives in the beautiful Hill Country of Texas. She was inspired by The Lady Eve (the blogger not the movie) to begin a blog and share her fascination for Jazz Age music and Silent Era films. She considers herself an enthusiastic amateur with an interest in films, music and writing.</i><i><br /></i></div>

A Month of Vertigo Alfred Hitchcock Barbara Bel Geddes Bernard Herrmann James Stewart Kim Novak Vertigo Whistlingypsy (author) Bernard Herrmann - Composer Of Haunting Music and Treacherous Dreams

by guest contributor Whistlingypsy Just as my fingers on these keys Make music, so the self-same sounds On my spirit make a music, too. ~ ex...

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Los economistas lamentan el Periodismo

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcJjd7BE1O4dMc8K6L-C0jHVuM7SbvSmUDC9RhP34rHddv1LhNhUwd7ffsDOF-1U7XXvZN4MzYcFfTJKsgBcA1XKrVCqG6IUnttMlYY1cljCTn_LD6RlD_m2hARMbJl5oVneO9f_JZIaY/s1600/EconomistOrPropagandist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcJjd7BE1O4dMc8K6L-C0jHVuM7SbvSmUDC9RhP34rHddv1LhNhUwd7ffsDOF-1U7XXvZN4MzYcFfTJKsgBcA1XKrVCqG6IUnttMlYY1cljCTn_LD6RlD_m2hARMbJl5oVneO9f_JZIaY/s400/EconomistOrPropagandist.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><b>Spanish Version of original article posted on 28 Dec 2011</b><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">EL CASTIGO A ARGENTINA</span></b><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Leyendo  "The Economist"  se debe creer que sus artículos son de alta calidad y objetividad. Desafortunadamente este no es el caso cuando se trata de temas relacionados con la Argentina. Durante años, "The Economist" ha hecho un hábito de llevar a cabo "ataques a la Argentina". Cada artículo sobre la Argentina es negativo, carece de objetividad y distorsiona los hechos.<br /><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Mirando más de cerca a la verdadera agenda  de "The Economist", se hace evidente que sigue una causa política, influenciado y dirigido por poderosas entidades políticas que están descontentos con la política argentina y el éxito económico posterior desafiando las doctrinas económicas internacionales. Esto claramente molesta a las cupulas poderosas, ya que pone en peligro sus agendas geopolíticas y económicas de la región.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"><br />Debido a su estancamiento de la economía del Reino Unido está desesperado por aventurarse en "nuevos territorios", por lo que la disputa en  curso con Argentina, tema : Malvinas (Falkland) y las posibilidades de las grandes petroleras y los hallazgos de gas alrededor de las islas en disputa, así como tener un pie en la puerta a la Antártida, una vez que las exploraciones de los recursos naturales está a punto de comenzar. Así, la causa se hace evidente por qué los medios de comunicación corporativos, como la cobertura de "The Economist" manipulan opiniones y rechazan noticias imparciales.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"><br />"The Economist" es la voz de influyentes entidades Anglo American, por lo que sus artículos se centran en temas de libre mercado y el único negocio en el contexto más amplio de las potencias occidentales militar y económica. La necesidad de control del Estado en todos los asuntos, y la regulación especial, es un fundamento de cualquier comentario Economist. Esto se debe a ciertos poderosos eco - entidades políticas desean el crecimiento de los Estados-nación y la democracia reglamentarias a fin de sentar las bases para alcanzar hasta una solución eco-política de control.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"><br />El artículo más reciente de “The Economist” referido a la Argentina es un ejemplo perfecto de la predisposición de la revista   cuando se trata de temas relacionados con Argentina. (Observaciones sobre el artículo se han escrito en azul debajo de cada párrafo.)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">El 17 de diciembre de 2011 la revista The Economist escribió:<br /> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">El presidente de Argentina<br />Cristina se prepara para desafiar la gravedad</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"><br />El presidente comienza su segundo mandato frente a una desaceleración de la economía. Ella va a cumplir con una mezcla de retórica, control y austeridad</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">El título</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">en sí mismo</span> <span class="hps">es la hipocresía</span> <span class="hps">en su mejor momento</span>. <span class="hps">¿Cómo puede el</span> <span class="hps">economista</span> <span class="hps">saber cómo  el Gobierno</span> <span class="hps">argentino</span> actuará <span class="hps">frente a</span> <span class="hps">la desaceleración</span> <span class="hps">económica</span> <span class="hps">alegada</span>?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Debe su</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">aplastante victoria</span> <span class="hps">en las elecciones presidenciales</span> <span class="hps">en octubre a</span> <span class="hps">un crecimiento vigoroso</span> <span class="hps">de la economía y</span> <span class="hps">la simpatía del público</span> <span class="hps">por la muerte</span> <span class="hps">repentina</span> <span class="hps">el año pasado</span> <span class="hps">de</span> <span class="hps">su esposo y antecesor</span>, <span class="hps">Néstor</span> <span class="hps">Kirchner</span>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Alegando que el presidente debe su victoria a la simpatía del público por la muerte de su marido muestra cómo el artículo carece de objetividad y deliberadamente intenta manipular opiniones. ¿Podría ser que la abrumadora victoria fue porque el gobierno inició un programa de asistencia social que beneficiaron a la clase de trabajadores pobres en todo el país? Naturalmente, tales hechos no son dignos de mención para el economista, porque altera su eco - doctrina geopolítica!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Cristina</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">Fernández</span> <span class="hps">inauguró su</span> <span class="hps">segundo mandato como presidente</span> <span class="hps">el 10 de diciembre</span> <span class="hps">aún</span> <span class="hps">vestido de negro y</span> <span class="hps">glorificando</span> <span class="hps">el nombre de</span> <span class="hps">su marido</span> <span class="hps">casi como</span> <span class="hps">una deidad</span>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Para una revista de noticias de renombre, como The Economist dice ser, centrarse en qué y por qué el presidente está usando luto parece patético y muestra sólo la forma en que la revista es prejuiciosa. El periodismo profesional y objetivo no tiene que centrarse en banalidades, aunque la revista no sea partidaria del gobierno o del país.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Su mensaje fue</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">triunfalista</span>. <span class="hps">Contrastando</span> <span class="hps">Argentina</span> <span class="hps">con Europa y</span> <span class="hps">los Estados Unidos</span>, ella <span class="hps">cacareó</span>: <span class="hps">"</span>Ellos gobiernan <span class="hps">con</span> <span class="hps">los objetivos de crecimiento</span> <span class="hps">para el sector financiero</span>...<span class="hps"> y nosotros</span> <span class="hps">gobernamos con</span> <span class="hps">los objetivos de crecimiento</span> <span class="hps">para el trabajo y</span> <span class="hps">el empleo".</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Tiene que ser un trago amargo para la élite poderosa finaciera Anglo Americana, de lo contrario el economista faltaría el respeto con una terminología como "cacareó". Esto demuestra que el periodismo objetivo no es un bastión de la revista! Es evidente que los objetivos de crecimiento para el trabajo y el empleo no están en el interés de los medios de comunicación social de la que el economista, obviamente, es parte!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Esas palabras pueden volver a perseguirla.La Sra. Fernández está comenzando su segundo mandato en circunstancias muy diferentes de la parte primera, allá en 2007. El crecimiento frenético de la Argentina se construyó sobre una moneda débil (un legado del default y la devaluación en 2002), la demanda mundial en auge por sus productos agrícolas, el fuerte crecimiento en el vecino Brasil, y un enorme aumento del gasto público. Los vientos de cola han desaparecido, o corren el riesgo de hacerlo. Los precios mundiales de los productos ya no están en aumento. La economía de Brasil se ha estancado. Después de años de alta inflación en el país el peso ya no es débil, y los subsidios extravagantes significa que hay pocas posibilidades o ninguna de estímulo fiscal.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Hace unos 4 años el economista también predijo que el gobierno se enfrentaba a dificultades debido a la disminución de la demanda de productos agrícolas. El documento también critica al gobierno por no reducir los subsidios, ahora que el gobierno implementó recortes de subsidios, el economista ha iniciado una encuesta en línea, el cuestionamiento del gobierno argentino, y la aplicación de los recortes de subsidios, por considerar que no se apliquen adecuadamente !!!!! No hace falta decir que The Economist publicó un artículo sobre la causa de los sujetos, antes de la encuesta! Periodismo manipulador diría!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">El gobierno sigue negando que la inflación sea un problema. Durante años jugueteó los números: oficialmente, la inflación está por debajo del 10%, pero economistas independientes lo puso más cerca de un 25%, a pesar de que muchos de las tarifas de energía y de transporte público han sido congeladas. Sra. Fernández admitió que Argentina tiene un "problema de competitividad". Pero la solución del gobierno parece ser una retirada hacia el mercantilismo, sobrio con toques de realismo.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">El tema de</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">la inflación</span> <span class="hps">de</span> <span class="hps">Argentina</span> <span class="hps">es sin duda</span> <span class="hps">un tema que</span> <span class="hps">debe abordarse</span>, pero “The Economist”  <span class="hps">se olvida de mirar</span> <span class="hps">en su</span> <span class="hps">propia</span> <span class="hps">puertas</span>, donde la inflación se cita como  <span class="hps">en el 5,4%</span>, <span class="hps">según la Oficina</span> <span class="hps">Nacional</span> <span class="hps">de</span> <span class="hps">Estadísticas</span> <span class="hps">!!!!,</span> <span class="hps">por lo</span> <span class="hps">probablemente</span> <span class="hps">hay que añadir</span> <span class="hps">un  pequeño %</span> <span class="hps">a la cifra</span> <span class="hps">así</span>. <span class="hps">actual de la deuda</span> <span class="hps">pública</span> actual de <span class="hps">Argentina</span> <span class="hps">como porcentaje del PIB</span> <span class="hps">es igual a</span> <span class="hps">41,53</span>% en comparación con <span class="hps">la del Reino Unido</span> <span class="hps">de</span> <span class="hps">83,70</span>%. <span class="hps">La deuda externa</span> <span class="hps">como porcentaje del PIB</span>: <span class="hps">ARG</span> <span class="hps">36.75</span>% frente a <span class="hps">la del Reino Unido</span> <span class="hps">de</span> <span class="hps">472,92</span>%. <span class="hps">Fuente:</span> <span class="hps">(</span>http://www.usdebtclock.org/world-debt-clock.html <span class="hps">#)</span><br /><span class="hps">Este año, la</span> <span class="hps">carga de la deuda</span> <span class="hps">UKs</span> <span class="hps">crecerá</span> <span class="hps">por</span> <span class="hps">£ 167 900 000 000</span>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">En</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">noviembre, funcionarios</span> <span class="hps">anunciaron</span> <span class="hps">tímidos pasos</span> <span class="hps">para reducir los subsidios</span> <span class="hps">que</span> <span class="hps">ascienden</span> <span class="hps">al 4,2%</span> <span class="hps">del PIB.</span> <span class="hps">Algunas grandes empresas</span>, junto con <span class="hps">los hogares más ricos</span>, <span class="hps">tienen que pagar ahora</span> <span class="hps">más cerca del</span> <span class="hps">verdadero costo</span> <span class="hps">de la energía</span>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Suposición anterior</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">no</span> <span class="hps">refleja con claridad</span> <span class="hps">toda la verdad</span>. <span class="hps">Bajo y Medio</span> <span class="hps">hogares de clase</span> <span class="hps">no</span> <span class="hps">se ven afectados por</span> <span class="hps">los recortes de subsidios</span>. <span class="hps">Las pequeñas empresas</span> <span class="hps">vieron</span> <span class="hps">un aumento mínimo en</span> <span class="hps">sus cuentas de electricidad</span>, <span class="hps">no</span> <span class="hps">afecta</span> <span class="hps">su presupuesto</span>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Aún así, para equilibrar sus cuentas, el gobierno tendrá que recurrir a los mercados de dinero durante el año 2012, cree que Miguel Kiguel de Econviews, una empresa de consultoría. Una señal de que está preparando el camino es el nombramiento de Fernández de Hernán Lorenzino, que es respetado en los mercados financieros, como el Ministro de economía, estos pasos se han visto ensombrecidos por un endurecimiento de los controles para frenar la fuga de capitales. En octubre, el gobierno ordenó a las empresas mineras y de energía repatriar todos sus dólares de exportación y a los ciudadanos justificar la compra de cada moneda extranjera. Los inspectores fiscales fueron puestos en las oficinas de cambio de divisas.<br />Guillermo Moreno, el secretario de matones para el comercio interno, que ha perseguido a los economistas independientes de sus estimaciones de inflación, se ha puesto en carga total del comercio exterior también. Algunos importadores ya han sido obligados a convertirse en exportadores y si quieren hacerse con dólares.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">El tema de la</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">fuga de capitales</span> <span class="hps">no es un fenómeno</span> <span class="hps">argentino</span> <span class="hps">entero,</span> <span class="hps">y ocurre en</span> <span class="hps">muchas partes del</span> <span class="hps">mundo, como</span> <span class="hps">es el proteccionismo</span>. <span class="hps">Periodismo objetivo</span> <span class="hps">sería</span> <span class="hps">tratar de utilizar</span> <span class="hps">expresiones</span> <span class="hps">neutrales</span> <span class="hps">y no de "</span>matones", <span class="hps">al comentar</span> <span class="hps">en una</span> <span class="hps">figura pública</span>, <span class="hps">no importa cuánto</span> <span class="hps">uno</span> <span class="hps">está en desacuerdo con</span> <span class="hps">las obras de la</span> <span class="hps">persona</span>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">El menor crecimiento</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"> <span class="hps">probablemente</span> <span class="hps">se puede vender a</span> <span class="hps">los argentinos</span>, siempre que <span class="hps">otros países están haciendo</span> <span class="hps">peor.</span> <span class="hps">La oposición</span> <span class="hps">es débil</span>, dividido o <span class="hps">cooptados.</span> <span class="hps">Sin embargo,</span> <span class="hps">la austeridad,</span> <span class="hps">si llega,</span> <span class="hps">será necesario</span> que <span class="hps">la Sra.</span> <span class="hps">Fernández</span> <span class="hps"> ajuste</span> <span class="hps">sus</span> <span class="hps">alianzas políticas</span>. <span class="hps">Los sindicatos</span> <span class="hps">han</span> <span class="hps">advertido</span> <span class="hps">que las demandas de</span> <span class="hps">aumentos salariales</span> <span class="hps">grandes</span> <span class="hps">serán recibidos por</span> <span class="hps">los bordillos</span> <span class="hps">en el</span> <span class="hps">derecho de huelga.</span> <span class="hps">Sra.</span> <span class="hps">Fernández</span> <span class="hps">recordó a</span> <span class="hps">las empresas privadas</span> <span class="hps">que</span> <span class="hps">han hecho muy bien</span> <span class="hps">en los últimos años</span>, <span class="hps">y</span> <span class="hps">les advirtió de no</span> <span class="hps">"escupir</span> <span class="hps">al cielo</span>". <span class="hps">Habiendo recuperado</span> <span class="hps">la mayoría parlamentaria</span> <span class="hps">en las elecciones</span>, <span class="hps">el gobierno está</span> <span class="hps">empujando a través de</span> <span class="hps">una medida</span> <span class="hps">para regular el</span> <span class="hps">papel de periódico,</span> <span class="hps">que despierta</span> <span class="hps">temores</span> <span class="hps">en los periódicos que</span> <span class="hps">han sido críticos</span> <span class="hps">de los Kirchner.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span class="hps" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The Economist</span></span><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">, al parecer, <span class="hps">es también el</span> <span class="hps">portavoz de</span> <span class="hps">la oposición</span> <span class="hps">política argentina</span>, así como <span class="hps">algunos medios de comunicación</span>, ya que <span class="hps">arremete en</span> <span class="hps">todas las direcciones posibles</span>. <span class="hps">Si el artículo</span> <span class="hps">se hubiera escrito</span> <span class="hps">de una manera</span> <span class="hps">imparcial y objetiva</span>, el periodista <span class="hps">tendría</span> <span class="hps">el informe de la</span> <span class="hps">verdadera razón detrás de</span> <span class="hps">las medidas</span> <span class="hps">reglamentarias relativas a</span> <span class="hps">proyecto de ley</span> <span class="hps">de medios.</span> <span class="hps">Se</span> <span class="hps">deja de mencionar que</span> <span class="hps">el Grupo Clarín</span>, junto <span class="hps">con La Nación</span>, <span class="hps">celebran una</span> <span class="hps">gran mayoría</span> <span class="hps">sobre</span> <span class="hps">"</span>Papel Prensa". <span class="hps">Además, el</span> <span class="hps">"</span>Grupo <span class="hps">Clarín</span>" <span class="hps">es dueño de una</span> <span class="hps">TV</span> <span class="hps">de gran alcance</span> <span class="hps">y el imperio</span> <span class="hps">de Internet, que</span> <span class="hps">da</span> <span class="hps">al grupo un</span> <span class="hps">cuasi</span> <span class="hps">monopolio de los medios</span> <span class="hps">en el país.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">En 2008, cuando la producción de Argentina se redujo brevemente, el gobierno equilibro sus libros por la nacionalización de las pensiones privadas. ¿Qué podría tomar? Los objetivos potenciales son ni tan fácil ni tan rico. El riesgo ahora es que la inflación y un aumento de déficit en cuenta corriente disparará una carrera para comprar dólares y una espiral de devaluación y que los precios suban como en la década de 1970 y 80. El gobierno de Fernández  tendrá la esperanza de que sus controles puede evitar que fuera, al menos hasta que nuevos descubrimientos de petróleo de esquisto y de gas pueden ser desarrollados. Pero de una manera u otra, las cosas probablemente se pondrán más ásperos en la Argentina.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Conclusión:</span><br /><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"><br />En pocas palabras se podría llamar la visión de “The Economist”  desesperada "proyeccionismo" e ilusiones (malo). Demanda de materias primas agrícolas, muy probablemente será algo menor que en el pasado reciente, pero de nuevo hay que tener en cuenta que el mundo necesita ser alimentado, por lo tanto la necesidad de los productos agrícolas no cesará, con lo que Argentina, cuenta con un activo valioso para el suministro mundial de alimentos y esto es exactamente por qué el economista y político mundial eco-entidades de poder están dispuestos a representar a la Argentina como una muestra de malas medidas económicas, en la Argentina ha desafiado el sistema monetario internacional y aún así le sucedió en "eco-económico" prevalecer en medio de la actual eco - turbulencias financieras, por lo tanto los medios corporativos como The Economist no perderá la oportunidad de retratar a la Argentina en forma negativa. En su último párrafo, el economista reveló su verdadera causa, es decir, lo que he afirmado muchas veces, los intereses del Reino Unido en los recursos naturales Conos Sur!<br />Argentina, la tierra de los productos básicos agrícolas, grandes extensiones de tierras fértiles, recursos de agua dulce (el producto del futuro) y el aceite y los resultados posibles de gas en el sur son el motivo por el Reino Unido y otras entidades (FMI, Banco Mundial, etc ) están desesperados por ganar influencia política ecológica en la región con el fin de imponer a Argentina sus doctrinas políticas ecológicas y, posteriormente, obtener de los países los recursos naturales.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Aquí hay algunos comentarios de lectores sobre el artículo anterior:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;"><br />Si es que hay elementos de este artículo que apuntan a legitimar macroeconómica Argentina se refiere a las caras, vale la pena mirar hacia atrás en la cobertura de la revista The Economist en los últimos 8 años. Esta publicación ha preanunciado el fin del mundo en el país más o menos desde 2004. ¿Por qué? El país no sigue las recetas de austeridad y la financiarización de que The Economist ha estado recomendando desde hace años, cuyos resultados están a la vista en Europa y los EE.UU. de hoy. Francamente, toda la visión del mundo de esta revista ha sido tan profundamente desacreditado que me sorprende que nadie se lo toma en serio, particularmente aquellos con inversiones globales.<br />De acuerdo, las personas que pagan por esta revista no parecen ser demasiado inteligentes. La base de clientes objetivo de los economistas son aspirantes IQ100 +.<br />Si equiparamos el crecimiento total de la Argentina en los últimos 8 años frente al crecimiento esperado economista, entonces esta revista debe responder por una diferencia de 70%.<br /><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">La gente de The Economist, si te equivocas una vez que está bien,<br />dos veces ... tal vez,<br />tres veces .. espera un minuto<br />4 veces .. tal vez debería revisar su metodología<br />5 veces ... que nos mienten y lo saben<br />6 veces ... usted sabe que está mintiendo y lo hace porque tiene una agenda<br />7 veces ... que tienen una agenda y que se les paga para hacer mentir a pesar de todo la vergüenza.<br />8 veces ... todo lo anterior además de que no tienen un gran respeto por sus lectores.<br /><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">The Economist no tiene una explicación para el éxito de la Argentina, por lo que The Economist niega el éxito argentino.<br /><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Tal vez las personas que trabajan para esta revista deben ver cosas como esta<br />http://www.usdebtclock.org/world-debt-clock.html #<br /><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">O mejor aún, ver la siguiente: http://www.debtbombshell.com/<br /><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span lang="ES" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large;">Lo que usted dice es absolutamente cierto. Sin embargo, las empresas, personas y países no dejan de pagar la deuda como un capricho. o como política. Es el resultado de intentar todo lo posible para evitarlo hasta que no haya otra salida. Otro método de control por omisión o por defecto es devaluar la moneda de su país en una escala masiva, como lo hizo el Reino Unido a finales de 1950 y principios de 1940 cuando Argentina debía por lo menos $ 2 mil millones de USD. Por supuesto que no lo hizo para ajustar un “tornillo de Argentina", pero el hecho es que debe haber intentado todo lo posible para evitar la quiebra, y por desgracia en el mundo de la economía, son pocos los países que han evitado la cesación de pagos o quiebra, pero en un costo tan grande que puede haber sido más barato que hacerlo - como American Airlines la semana pasada. La economía del Reino Unido está vivo sólo de nombre, debido a la industria bancaria que atrae a los depositantes de todo el mundo. Casi todos venden bien allí se hace en China, y su déficit por cuenta corriente está cubierto sólo por el endeudamiento masivo, que un día tienen que ser reembolsados. Es sólo cuestión de tiempo antes de que el Reino Unido y los EE.UU. tendrán que admitir que con el desempleo masivo, la industria disminuyó, y los beneficios de no productivos comercio especulativo no será suficiente para sostener sus economías en el largo plazo. Doy el Reino Unido 5 años como máximo antes de la próxima crisis los golpea como el actual en los EE.UU..</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div>

Los economistas lamentan el Periodismo

Spanish Version of original article posted on 28 Dec 2011 EL CASTIGO A ARGENTINA   Leyendo  "The Economist"  se debe creer que sus...

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Take a look at the Edublogs Awards winners 2011

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I always look forward in anticipation to the Edublogs Awards every year to see their choice of best blogs, wikis, podcasts, webinar series, social networks, Web tools, individual tweeters  and group twitter hashtags. Initially potential winners from the categories are nominated, and then everyone votes. This is a big affair!<br /><br />Took a look at the winners from around the world.  It is a great way of keeping in touch with what is happening on the social networking scene.   (By the way, with reference to blogs, for your blog to be nominated for the Edublogs Awards it can be part of any platform and not necessarily an Edublogs' blog).<br /><br />I am embedding the winners document below so that you can see the categories, but please visit the actual Google Doc mentioned under <b>a)</b>, or visit the Edublogs Awards site mentioned under<b> b)</b> so that you can actually visit the various links. They are fantastic!<br /><br /><embed allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" height="400" src="http://www.box.com/embed/b0dtf82gkabxof2.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="466" wmode="opaque"></embed><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>a) Their embedded Google Doc:</b></span><br /><br /><a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?hl=en_US&hl=en_US&key=0AlhMhHCqHvgvdERrVTVpZ1NhNmF2b2xvUm1UTFM1Z2c&single=true&gid=0&output=html">https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?hl=en_US&hl=en_US&key=0AlhMhHCqHvgvdERrVTVpZ1NhNmF2b2xvUm1UTFM1Z2c&single=true&gid=0&output=html</a><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>b) Their Edublogs Award website:</b></span><br /><br /><a href="http://edublogawards.com/">http://edublogawards.com/</a> </div><br /></div>

Blogging Competitions Take a look at the Edublogs Awards winners 2011

I always look forward in anticipation to the Edublogs Awards every year to see their choice of best blogs, wikis, podcasts, webinar series, ...

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Wedding Update

First off, let me just say how <b>awesome </b>you all are who commented <a href="http://the-big-weight.blogspot.com/2012/01/needing-advice.html">yesterday</a>.  When I finally read all of the posts, I cried.  The main reason why I cried is because you helped validate my sanity.  I know that Joel often thinks I'm nuts because I cannot come to terms with living here.  Sometimes I think he must be right!<br /><br />He's said it before: "It's just a land mass Hilary, what difference does it make where you live".  But Joel has never lived anywhere else, and I've lived a lot of places.  It's hard living somewhere that you hate.   I'm lucky enough that despite how he feels, he's willing to put his wants aside to make me feel better, even if that does mean sticking it out another year and a half. <br /><br />After I wrote yesterday's post, I decided to email my landlord to find out our options.  You might wonder why I didn't just do this in the first place before worrying about all that I wrote yesterday.  The thing is, I hate to inconvenience other people on my behalf.  I figured that by asking her to accommodate our needs (meaning extend our lease just 6 months, instead of the traditional year...long enough to get us through the wedding), she would most likely say no.  I mean, she lives in Puerto Rico, and I'm sure she'd rather have someone committed to living another year over just 6 months.  I couldn't blame her at all for this.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKGXmvWhegAYYTcLld4YSpnvttBziUrVDL4adRSaDkkIBIuRJ3ajX1pajzPw9YVuZYsdbXNysOZLbrilTkhj7VHyPaFZHwagzvEg9P75YwcGAr0IdbZbFvHGO-VUcB8tkiDdTEWVwaP6c/s1600/charles+cat+loaf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKGXmvWhegAYYTcLld4YSpnvttBziUrVDL4adRSaDkkIBIuRJ3ajX1pajzPw9YVuZYsdbXNysOZLbrilTkhj7VHyPaFZHwagzvEg9P75YwcGAr0IdbZbFvHGO-VUcB8tkiDdTEWVwaP6c/s400/charles+cat+loaf.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Side note: I'm long winded. I'm sorry. I know it's annoying.</i></td></tr></tbody></table>Our landlord responded with a really nice email basically stating that she would be more than happy to work with us on the lease... and would basically do the 6 month extension with no problem. HUGE weight lifted off of my shoulders!!  Would I love to move in June? Yes.  BUT, I am more than willing to stick it out through October to have the wedding I want, and still leave here in less than a year.  I am absolutely <i>giddy</i> with excitement knowing that this will hopefully be my last year living here!  <br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br />Your advice is/was much appreciated!</div>

Miscellaneous wedding Wedding Update

First off, let me just say how awesome you all are who commented yesterday .  When I finally read all of the posts, I cried.  The main reaso...

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YouTube for Schools is introduced

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: inherit;">First there was YouTube, then came YouTube for Educators, and now we have YouTube for Schools. Things are definitely getting better for education. I think many parents will be happier knowing there is a YouTube that is just for schools. </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For one thing YouTube for Schools lets you browse YouTube without any related videos on show, or any comments to wade through.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> This gives an uncluttered feel. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">If you have access to a data projector or an interactive whiteboard in your classroom, an occasional YouTube clip can really bring home a concept to your students. </span><br /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here is some </span>information<span style="font-family: inherit;"> about YouTube for Schools.</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NegRGfGYOwQ" width="420"></iframe></span><br /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span> <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><b style="font-size: x-large;">Classroom application for YouTube for Schools</b></span></span><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Introduce your lesson with a video clip related to your lesson that will engage the students' attention. </span></li><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><li>When your students make their own videos as part of a project, these can safely be uploaded to your YouTube for Schools channel.</li><li>Videos will appeal to the learning style of the visual learners.</li><li>Record instructions and directions using a screencasting programme (such as Screencast-o-matic) and upload this to your YouTube for Schools channel so that you don't have to repeat yourself continually. </li><li>The students can continue learning at home by exploring videos that you recommend on your topic. </li><li>You might be able to access videos from other teachers. Equally, you may be able to share your lessons with students around the world.</li></span></ul><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;">There is so much one can do with access to YouTube for Schools in the classroom. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Why not read more in this excellent post: </span><a href="http://edudemic.com/2011/12/youtube-for-schools/" style="font-family: inherit;">http://edudemic.com/2011/12/youtube-for-schools/</a></span></div>

videos Web tools YouTube for Schools is introduced

First there was YouTube, then came YouTube for Educators, and now we have YouTube for Schools. Things are definitely getting better for educ...

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etsy pillows

There is no better pick me up (is that a hyphenated word? I can never remember) on a hectic first day back to work than going out to get the mail at lunch and finding an Etsy package at your feet. I love working from home! Let me stop for a minute so you can ewww and ahhhh.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrWtMqhol_YLOH_0kQoivwQc-bfqhYBOhjkV8KuACclAcLnsUOd9KtP0MTluL5fnRlCIrIrQxm1fDerPgksZK-9ZfE4exLLI05nED6MqJBm6ollBZNTDKIaY0EeQ7fkFCkaav3qXuxVsoJ/s1600/P1032944.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrWtMqhol_YLOH_0kQoivwQc-bfqhYBOhjkV8KuACclAcLnsUOd9KtP0MTluL5fnRlCIrIrQxm1fDerPgksZK-9ZfE4exLLI05nED6MqJBm6ollBZNTDKIaY0EeQ7fkFCkaav3qXuxVsoJ/s320/P1032944.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">happy new pillows</td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw32ptSyu1poxQ0ZyeOTh8G19JS_c9ie2M2SIbmzSm3wsDuf5kYNxY5s0-dMpPVdXdetQlvnCUaUjlCUh-E1tk0CgCS7ywynBhPdu29ErC5nvsNS2O76tYUYU2Oqs7t2Tzyz0BregKNpQS/s1600/P1032938.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw32ptSyu1poxQ0ZyeOTh8G19JS_c9ie2M2SIbmzSm3wsDuf5kYNxY5s0-dMpPVdXdetQlvnCUaUjlCUh-E1tk0CgCS7ywynBhPdu29ErC5nvsNS2O76tYUYU2Oqs7t2Tzyz0BregKNpQS/s320/P1032938.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">wonderful pattern front</td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsqyn7G2FYnmFANo0TAuNWkR3z5yWmFl9Xf3IYzJNElk7C0OtiBgkDbP5I3J_Q0Y3R6oDA9RV4wBSGsIM0Hy4NmmwI1NPoCZ_HG7rc4hjxTj9L_Dd0wwFvhhT4Fto4KAGpfs7FgDd2Y457/s1600/P1032942.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsqyn7G2FYnmFANo0TAuNWkR3z5yWmFl9Xf3IYzJNElk7C0OtiBgkDbP5I3J_Q0Y3R6oDA9RV4wBSGsIM0Hy4NmmwI1NPoCZ_HG7rc4hjxTj9L_Dd0wwFvhhT4Fto4KAGpfs7FgDd2Y457/s320/P1032942.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">pretty velvet back</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Aren't they pretty?! Awesome pattern in the front...yummy velvet in the back. Like a really awesome mullet. OK, an oxymoron, but you know what I'm getting at. These suckers are stellar!<br /><br />"Oh yes Elizabeth, they are fab! Where did you get them?"<br /><br />Well I'm so glad you asked. Katie Peters, from <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/RadianceFromRuins" target="_blank">Radiance From Ruins</a>, is her name. (I have many of her pillows saved to my favorites) And on top of the wonderful work she does, she is just about the nicest person I've encountered on Etsy so far.<br /><br />Thanks Katie for perking up my day, and my living room.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHqrgildU7Clx4muDMvw8WrVjNAdybEHChQixCuiDhrCSV4kERhqscjR6pPHcrmuzsHShL6PJszcXy8la5ig0kzvj3QaauhArtlIAQZky-Eg4vK8o2CiwSH7YireIZKoGaQuQlDqHHApX3/s1600/P1032939.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHqrgildU7Clx4muDMvw8WrVjNAdybEHChQixCuiDhrCSV4kERhqscjR6pPHcrmuzsHShL6PJszcXy8la5ig0kzvj3QaauhArtlIAQZky-Eg4vK8o2CiwSH7YireIZKoGaQuQlDqHHApX3/s320/P1032939.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">happy in their new home</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />

etsy pillows

There is no better pick me up (is that a hyphenated word? I can never remember) on a hectic first day back to work than going out to get the...

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DO FAT CELLS GO AWAY?

You can always tell when someone really understands what they are talking about. The first sign is by how humbled they are by the astronomically large amount of information we don't quite understand yet. The more they know, the more they realize they know very little. These individuals want to know more, want a deeper understanding, and are willing to dig deeper for information to questions unanswered.<br /><br />On the other hand, there are others who think they know everything, have no desire to seek new information and continue to believe there is nothing more to learn. The less they know, the more they think there is nothing else to learn. They only discuss the superficial information, and never go deeper to understand the human body. In this case, because they know very little they are naive to how complex the body really is, so they can't go deeper than memorized statements. The more you know, the more complex the body becomes, and the more information you seek to learn.<br /><br />Here's an example. How many "experts" profess that once you have a fat cell they only shrink, and will never go away? This is one of the most naive, and quite sad, claims about the body. Once a cell loses it's function, it will go through natural cell death, or apoptosis. When fatty acids are depleted from an adipocyte, the cell has lost it's primary function and will go away. This is a "use it or lose it" situation. In the case of hCG, does hCG "unlock the hypothalamus"? Does hCG convert fat into energy? No. Not at all. <br /><br />This was written in Dr. Simeons' "Pounds & Inches" in 1967. Let's get updated into 2012. You'd think that by now, self proclaimed  hCG protocol "experts" would have looked deeper into the human body, but because most people selling hCG products or programs don't really know that much about human physiology, they continue to proclaim Dr. Simeons' theories as fact. Without thought to the idea that we understand the human body more profoundly than we did in 1967.  These protocol experts don't realize that they look naive and superficially motivated to others who study the human body and physiology. <br /><br />The most interesting observation I've made is that I've yet to meet a doctor or physiologist who wasn't interested in a modern hypothesis. These doctors may have written books, workbooks, and created an entire program based around Simeons' theories, and yet they still were thrilled to know the modern science that might relevantly explained why hCG prevents starvation. Where have a met resistance? Self-proclaimed experts who don't understand human physiology. People who don't have the education or understanding of the human body to a level that is necessary in order to comprehend the complexity of the endocrine system, and the hormonal influence on energy homeostasis would rather repeat Simeons' theories. The more the listener knows about the human body the more they appreciate the profound explanation. The less the listener knows, the less valuable a complex explanation is.<br /><br />In writing a hypothesis for why hCG prevents starvation, I did the best I could with what I could understand. My hope is that another person who may have a deeper understanding than myself, will take what I've started and will describe it to an even deeper level. I look naive to a micro-cell biologist, similar to how others seem naive to me. Why am I writing this? Because the standard "expert" in the hCG diet industry doesn't really know much at all. Really? Fat cells don't go away? Now that's naive.<br /><br />It's time we set the bar quite a few levels higher and it's time for many of these "experts" to go back to school. Until then, the hCG diet industry will continue to look naive, stupid, and money hungry, just like the rest of the diet industry.

DO FAT CELLS GO AWAY?

You can always tell when someone really understands what they are talking about. The first sign is by how humbled they are by the astronomic...

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Needing Advice

I need some advice today, and it's actually not related to my weight loss journey at all.  Well, it <i>kind of</i> is but... just bare with me if you can.<br /><br />I've lived in the DC area for the past 5 1/2 years.  I hate it here.  I <i>have </i>hated it here for 4 1/2 of those years.  The basic reason why I hate it is that I'm not a city person.  I enjoy smaller towns and smaller cities and the slower way of life.  Of course, it goes much deeper than this but that is the gist. <br /><br />The only thing that has kept me here so long is my relationship with Joel.  We began dating after I had lived here for just a year.  Joel also grew up in a suburb of the city, so he isn't much bothered by this way of life.  However, I've been wanting to leave badly since about the last 3 years.  It never seems to be the right time to make the move though.  There is always some excuse as to why we need to continue living here longer. <br /><br />Today that excuse is the wedding - we have to stay in the area for at least another year and a half in order to pay for it.  While October is less than a year away, our lease is up June 2012, and it's hard to find a place that will allow a 6 month lease (for a reasonable price).  Plus neither one of us want to move AGAIN just for 6 months to then move again (I have a hate HATE relationship with moving - I've moved 12 times in the last 10 years.)<br /><br />So... with every "new year" that rolls around, it's another reminder that I'm still not in the place in my life that I'd like to be.  I cannot bear the thought of having to live here and work in my current job (which is another thing I strongly dislike) for another year and a half.  Believe me, my hatred and sadness go very deep with this place.  I'm actually to the point where I don't even like going on out of town trips because I cannot deal with how sad I am when we return... and the sadness goes on for days afterward. <br /><br />Joel and I have discussed some options:<br /><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Option 1 - Stay</b><br /> We'll stay the year and a half and then plan to move in June 2013.  That way we will be able to afford the wedding that we both would like to have.  This also means that I will be stuck working at my current job for the next year and a half and living in this area that I hate.  This also means that Joel will put his career plans on hold as well.  He wants to be a police officer and doesn't want to apply to places locally if we're just going to move in a year and a half.  He's not getting any younger.  I'm not getting any younger... and the thought of trying to muddle through another year here makes my heart hurt.<br /><br /><b>Option 2 - Leave</b><br />We would make it our goal to have jobs by June 2012, and move out of the area.  This is where it becomes complicated with the wedding part.  I know that the places we are considering moving to will not provide me with a job where I am making anywhere close to what I make now.  That means we won't be able to pay for the wedding that we are currently planning, which means we'd have to try to plan something else.  Perhaps we would then have to have a very small ceremony within the next 3-4 months and that would be it.  It would be small because we just don't have the money saved right now to afford the same size wedding in 3-4 months that we are planning for October.  This isn't what I really want for our wedding, mainly because I really want to have a considerable amount of weight off before the planned October wedding.  There's no way I can drop 60 lbs in 3-4 months.. at least not in a healthy way.  I don't really want to wait until after we've moved to start wedding planning either.  It's been hard enough to secure a wedding site looking 11 months in advance of a wedding, much less 4-5 months in advance of one.  We want to be married in 2012... preferably on or before October 6.         </blockquote><br />Ugh... it's just not so cut and dry as you can see.  Life never is, this I know.  Joel is leaning strongly toward Option 1, and I am stuck between the 2.  As I said early on, there are always excuses as to why we cannot move.  What will happen in a year and a half?   What will be the excuse then?  I also think of it like this: we only get to do life one time.  Why waste it being miserable?  Weddings are really supposed to be about God and two becoming one, and all the religious aspects (at least this is how I feel)... not about a big lavish affair.<br /><br />So I need your advice.  Have you been in a similar situation?  What would you do?  Please, PLEASE I welcome any advice you have!! 

Miscellaneous Needing Advice

I need some advice today, and it's actually not related to my weight loss journey at all.  Well, it kind of is but... just bare with me...

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How to calm job interview jitters

<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/fc/ar5l4176zxvzrpybs7fc.gif?time=6/7/2011%2011:49:48%20am" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/fc/ar5l4176zxvzrpybs7fc.gif?time=6/7/2011%2011:49:48%20am" /></a></div><div class="ArticleHeadline" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; margin-top: -30px;"><div class="hdr_org_bld" style="color: #ff6600; font: normal normal bold 18px/normal arial, helvetica;"><h1 id="articleHeadline" style="color: #ff7700; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br /></h1></div><b><span id="cbArticle_lblByLine">Larry Buhl, Special to CareerBuilder</span></b><br /><br /><div class="cbmsnArticleImage">Interviews can strike fear in the hearts of the most seasoned job seekers. If you don't have a lot of experience interviewing, it's not unusual to feel mild jitters or even outright terror at the thought of sitting down with a potential employer. But you don't have to let emotions turn that important hiring hurdle into a horror show. Experts offer several tips for preventing anxiety from torpedoing your chances of landing the job.</div></div><div class="ArticleContent" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Put yourself in the interviewer's shoes.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Interviewers are not trying to make your life miserable. Really. In fact, they are hoping you are "the one." They need to fill the job with the best person, and if they don't succeed their jobs could be on the line. Just keeping that in perspective can help calm your jitters.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Prepare, prepare, prepare.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Preparation is 90 percent of success in job interviews," says Dr. Linda Smith-Gaston, career advisor at <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/california/los+angeles/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">Los Angeles</a> Trade Technical College. Smith-Gaston encourages role-playing with a friend before the interview and anticipating the questions you'll likely hear. Typical interview questions include:</div><ul><br /><li>Why are you the best person for the job?</li><br /><li>Tell me about yourself.</li><br /><li>What are your best/worst traits?</li><br /><li>Why do you want to work here?</li><br /><li>What did you learn in school (or at an internship) that prepares you for this job?</li></ul><br /><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"You should always know what the company actually does before the interview," Smith-Gaston adds. Finding out could be as simple as a two-minute Internet search.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Plan your day around the interview.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Running late will stress you out. Avoid rushing by mapping out the directions to the interview site and allowing more time than you think you'll need. Budget for traffic jams, parking snafus, bad weather, road closures and just getting lost. Make sure you budget enough time off from your current job or school, so you don't feel like you have to run out of the interview if it runs longer than you anticipated. Hiring managers, like doctors, can sometimes keep you waiting.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>De-stress before the interview.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">After you check in with the <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/receptionist/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">receptionist </a>-- being pleasant and professional when you do this -- try some relaxation techniques, recommends Smith-Gaston. This could be as simple as closing your eyes or doing a few deep breathing exercises. But beware: If your idea of relaxation is kick-boxing or a yoga routine, do those at home. "You want to be memorable to the employer, but not for making a scene in the waiting room," Smith-Gaston says. And don't even think about taking a drink or using substances to calm down; that should be obvious, but for some it isn't.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Listen, think, speak</b>.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Whether your interview is in person or over the phone, it is important to listen to what the interviewer has to say, and then think before responding, according to Paul Bailo, author of "The Official Phone Interview Handbook." "Take a few seconds to understand the question, and then prepare a quality answer before simply blurting out something less intelligent," he says. "Focusing on the interviewer will take your mind off your own jitters and actually help calm you down."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Prepare your own questions.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">You'll know the interview is almost over when the interviewer asks whether you have any questions about the job or the company. When you hear this, don't say "no," and bolt for the door. Use this opportunity to solidify the good impression you've made. "Well-thought-out questions show you're really interested in the company and the job," Bailo says. Also, if you have sent in your résumé, have a copy in front of you (and make sure it's the same version). Always wait until the interviewer has finished asking about you and your background before launching into your own questions.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">The day after the interview, send a thank you note to the interviewer. "Use the thank-you note to add something new, like an award or a small honor you received," Smith-Gaston says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Larry Buhl researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues for CareerBuilder.com. Follow @CareerBuilder on Twitter.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div></div>

How to calm job interview jitters

Larry Buhl, Special to CareerBuilder Interviews can strike fear in the hearts of the most seasoned job seekers. If you don't have a lot ...

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