I'm just not a caveman

I tried to do the Whole 30 this past week, on and off. Actually, more off than on. I have issues with it. It made me feel awful. Maybe it wasn't the diet, maybe I was coming down with something, but I felt yukky all week.<br /><br />Deleting entire food groups from my diet didn't feel right. Milk, grains, legumes. Bad for me? The thoughts on how and when to exercise also concern me.<br /><br />There are good things about eating like a caveman. Eating real food, eating organic when  possible makes sense. Deleting dairy and grains doesn't make sense.  <br /><br />I know the primal/paleo diet works for a lot of people. I know this because I read it on their blogs. As much as I wanted to embrace the Whole 30, I just don't think it's a good fit for me.<br /><br />That being said, what is my plan? I don't know. I'm still trying to figure it out. Who knew that at almost 57 years old I still wouldn't have this figured out.<br /><br />My weight this morning, 216.4. Talk about feeling yukky. As my sister used to say right after her stroke (when she could still talk a little), I--am--mis--er--a--ble. <br /><br />Today was my first day at making an honest effort of eating carefully, getting in 30 minutes of exercise (walked at lunch and it was painful), and logging my food. Lots of water.<br /><br />I wore my BodyMedia all day. I was surprised it said I was active one hour and 45 minutes (how did that happen?), and had burned 2471 calories by 8pm. Calorie consumption 1675 (and I weighed and measured everything I ate today).<br /><br />Well, it's late and I have a book to read for a book club thing I'm doing tomorrow at work. Not sure how I got talked into it, but I said I'd go to the first meeting. Downloaded the book to my Kindle, but guess I actually have to read it now.  <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hotel-Corner-Bitter-Sweet-Jamie/dp/0345505344/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341984214&sr=8-1&keywords=hotel+on+the+corner+of+bitter+and+sweet" target="_blank">Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet</a> by Jamie Ford. No idea what it's about, only that I have to read it. <sigh><br /></sigh><br /><br />

I'm just not a caveman

I tried to do the Whole 30 this past week, on and off. Actually, more off than on. I have issues with it. It made me feel awful. Maybe it wa...

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WHO IS KOFI ANNAN?

<br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; line-height: normal;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfacLN9rkiB3-blCZU47fCayE8kAeF5hy66GNlO_Yg6JcxwOR1RzPJWWq-1K2UJQd_0RnrgZHyPALoZyTkZGZHUzxEMPPPrZi_tow7Ssl-NRL2S3AT_e6eUfwmx8X9cVG6m5t32Uah_8qr/s1600/photo_1341005889691-7-0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfacLN9rkiB3-blCZU47fCayE8kAeF5hy66GNlO_Yg6JcxwOR1RzPJWWq-1K2UJQd_0RnrgZHyPALoZyTkZGZHUzxEMPPPrZi_tow7Ssl-NRL2S3AT_e6eUfwmx8X9cVG6m5t32Uah_8qr/s400/photo_1341005889691-7-0.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #3d85c6; line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">  </span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">THE UNITED NATIONS “PEACEKEEPER”, HANDPICKED BY THE US INTELLIGENCE SERVICES</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">?</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">b</span><span style="font-size: x-small;">y Thierry Meyssan </span></span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">via Voltaire Network</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: large;">PEACE NEGOTIATOR FOR SYRIA ..... THE RIGHT CHOICE? </span><span style="color: #0b5394;"> </span></span></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span style="color: #0b5394;"> </span> </span></b></span><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><br /></span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Although <b>Kofi Annan’s</b> track record at the UN is an indisputable success in terms of management and efficiency, he has been sharply criticized for his political shortcomings. As Secretary General, he aspired to bring the Organization into line with the unipolar world and the globalization of U.S. hegemony. He called into question the ideological foundations of the UN and undermined its ability to prevent conflicts. Notwithstanding, he is today in charge of resolving the SYRIAN crisis.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Former UN Secretary General and Nobel Peace Prize, <b>Kofi Annan</b>, has been designated by <b>Ban Ki-moon</b> and <b>Nabil El Arabi</b> as joint special envoy to negotiate a peaceful solution to the SYRIAN crisis. With <b>Annan’s</b> extraordinary experience and shiny brand image, his appointment was welcomed by all.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">What does this top international official really represent? Who propelled him to the highest-ranking positions? What were his political choices, and what are his current commitments? These questions are met with a discreet silence, as if his previous functions were in themselves a guarantee of neutrality.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">HANDPICKED AND TRAINED BY THE FORD FOUNDATION AND THE CIA?</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">His former colleagues praise him for his thoughtfulness, his intelligence and subtlety. A very charismatic personality, <b>Kofi Annan</b> left a strong imprint behind him because he did not behave simply as the “secretary” of the UN, but more like its “general,” by taking initiatives that revivified an organization that was mired in bureaucracy. All that is known and has been repeated <i>ad nauseam</i>. His exceptional professional qualities earned him the Nobel Peace Prize, although this honor in theory should have been bestowed for personal political commitment, not a management career.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Kofi and his twin sister Efua Atta were born on 8 April 1938, into an aristocratic family of the BRITISH colony of the GOLD COAST. His father was the tribal chief of the <b>Fante </b>people and the elected governor of <b>Asante</b> province. Although he opposed BRITISH rule, he was a faithful servant of the Crown. With other notables, he took part in the first decolonization movement, but looked upon the revolutionary fervor of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwame_Nkrumah" target="_blank">Kwame Nkrumah</a> with suspicion and anxiety.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In any event, <b>Nkrumah’s </b>efforts led to the independence of the country in 1957 under the name of GHANA. <b>Kofi </b>was then 19 years old. Though not involved in the revolution, he became vice-president of the new National Student Association. It was then that he was spotted by a headhunter from the <b>Ford Foundation</b>who incorporated him into a program for “<i>young leaders</i>.” From there, he was invited to follow a summer course at <b>Harvard University</b>. Having noticed his enthusiasm for the UNITED STATES, the <b>Ford Foundation</b> offered to sponsor his complete studies, first in economics at <b>Macalester College</b> in Minnesota, followed by international relations at the Graduate Institute of International Studies in <b>Geneva.</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">FORD FOUNDATION, FACED FOR US INTELLIGENCE SERVICES?</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">After the Second World War, the <b>Ford Foundation</b>, created by famous industrialist Henry Ford, became an unofficial instrument of U.S. foreign policy, providing a respectable facade for the activities of the CIA .</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Kofi Annan’s</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">overseas study period (1959-1961) coincided with the most difficult years of the AFRICAN-AMERICAN civil rights movement (the start of <b>Martin Luther King’s Birmingham</b> campaign). He saw it as an extension of the decolonization he had witnessed in GHANA, but once again did not get involved.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Impressed with <b>Annan’s</b> academic achievements and political discretion, his U.S. mentors opened for him the doors of the <b>World Health Organization</b>, where he landed his first job. After three years at WHO headquarters in Geneva, he was appointed to the Economic Commission for AFRICA based in <b>Addis Ababa</b>. However, not sufficiently qualified to pursue a career at the UN, he returned to the UNITED STATES to take up management studies at the <b>Massachusetts Institute of Technology</b> (MIT) (1971-1972). He then attempted a comeback in his home country as director of tourism development, but found himself perpetually at odds with the military government of <b>General Acheampong</b>; he gave up and returned to the United Nations in 1976.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">A SUCCESSFUL CAREER DESPITE TRAGIC FAILURES</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">There, he held various positions, initially within UNEF II (the peacekeeping emergency force established to supervise the cease fire between EGYPT and ISRAEL at the end of the October 1973 war), then as Director of personnel at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). It was at this time that he met and married Nane Lagergren Master, his second wife. The SWEDISH lawyer is the niece of Raoul Wallenberg, SWEDEN’S special envoy in <b>Budapest</b> during World War II. Wallenberg is famous for having saved hundreds of persecuted Jews by issuing them protective passports. He also worked for the OSS (forerunner of today’s CIA) as a liaison with the HUNGARIAN resistance. He disappeared at the end of the war, when the SOVIETS allegedly captured him to stem US influence in the country. In any event, <b>Kofi Annan’s</b> successful marriage opened the doors that he could not have passed through on his own, especially those of Jewish organizations.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Secretary-General <b>Javier Perez de Cuellar</b> chose <b>Kofi Annan</b> as Assistant Secretary-General in charge of human resources management and staff safety and security (1987-90). With the annexation of KUWAIT by IRAQ, 900 UN employees remained stranded in that country. <b>Kofi Annan</b> was able to negotiate their release with <b>Saddam Hussein</b>, a feat that boosted his prestige within the Organization. He was then successively put in charge of the budget (1990-92) and peacekeeping operations under Secretary-General <b>Boutros Boutros-Ghali</b> (1993-96), with a brief interlude as a special envoy for YUGOSLAVIA.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">According to Canadian General <b>Romeo Dallaire</b>, commander of the UN peacekeeping force in RWANDA, <b>Kofi Annan</b>failed to respond to his many appeals and carries the primary responsibility for UN inaction during the genocide (800,000 dead, mainly <b>Tutsis,</b> but also <b>Hutu</b>opponents) .</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">A similar scenario was repeated in BOSNIA, where 400 peacekeepers were taken hostage by BOSNIAN SERB forces. <b>Kofi Annan</b> remained deaf to the calls of General <b>Bernard Janvier</b> and allowed the perpetration of predictable massacres.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In late 1996, the UNITED STATES vetoed the reappointment of the EGYPTIAN <b>Boutros Boutros-Ghali </b>as Secretary General, regarded as dangerously <b>Francophile</b>. They succeeded in imposing their candidate: a senior official from within the international organization itself, <b>Kofi Annan</b>. Far from playing against him, his failures in RWANDA and BOSNIA blossomed into assets after he candidly confessed to them and promised to reform the system so that they wouldn’t recur. He was elected on this basis and took office on 1 January 1997.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">United Nations Secretary General <b>Kofi Annan</b>immediately set up an annual two-day seminar behind closed doors for fifteen UN ambassadors. This “retreat” (sic) was generously hosted by the <b>Rockefeller Brothers Fund</b> at the <b>Pocantico Conference Center</b> (upstate New York). There, outside the official framework of the United Nations, the Secretary General discussed the reform of the Organization with the representatives of the States whose support he knew he could count on.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In this context, he reallocated the expenditures of the UN in line with political priorities and significantly reduced the budget of the General Secretariat. He reorganized the administrative functioning around four objectives (peace and security, development, economic and social affairs, humanitarian affairs). He created a post of deputy secretary-general to stand in for him and endowed himself with a real cabinet capable of acting promptly on the decisions of the Security Council and General Assembly.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">GLOBAL COMPACT CONCEPT – EMBRACED ONLY BY ANGLO AMERICAN ENTITIES</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUm9j7kwc8ZFcDk3Bl_K8vpqr3lhOokoc-JYmuYNZmk68i_4DCi8hxYMRuvfNK8f3ehW9N6F9Uxj6oBPUY4vLGOqKIIMXjXdG1BWfR6DYwKQV8FZGM_F7Xn01a4uFm-abH1Af4Jz9HlHsR/s1600/globalcompact_logo(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUm9j7kwc8ZFcDk3Bl_K8vpqr3lhOokoc-JYmuYNZmk68i_4DCi8hxYMRuvfNK8f3ehW9N6F9Uxj6oBPUY4vLGOqKIIMXjXdG1BWfR6DYwKQV8FZGM_F7Xn01a4uFm-abH1Af4Jz9HlHsR/s320/globalcompact_logo(2).jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Kofi Annan’s</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">landmark initiative was the <b>Global Compact</b>, the mobilization of civil society for a better world. On the basis of a voluntary dialogue, businesses, unions and NGOs were brought together to discuss and commit to respect human rights, labor standards and the environment.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In practice, the <b>Global Compact</b> did not yield the desired effect on the ground. On the contrary, it deeply distorted the nature of the UN by playing down the power of nation-states and emphasizing that of transnational corporations and of associations which are “non-governmental” only in name and which are covertly funded by the great powers. By promoting lobbies as partners of the United Nations, <b>Kofi Annan</b> buried the spirit of the San Francisco Charter. It is no longer a question of saving mankind from the scourge of war by recognizing the legal equality of nations large and small, but of improving the human condition by supporting the convergence between private interests.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The <b>Global Compact</b> is a deviation from the nearly universally accepted logic that international law serves the common good, to a logic embraced only by the ANGLO-AMERICANS for whom the common good is a chimera and good governance consists in bringing together the largest number of special interests. Ultimately, the <b>Global Compact</b> has had the same effect as the charity galas in the U.S.: to give oneself a good conscience by launching high-profile initiatives while condoning structural injustices.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR DEMOCRACY (NED) AN AGENCY THAT AIMS TO CARRY FORWARD SUBVERSIVE ACTIONS OF US INTELLIGENCE SERVICES </span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghXT6qvHFzdK1KmhJKkfJYmjLaI8YQL3mNGrcMQCaMRFiSJx0liOtDAB0_BDfC4tVqnARykHVBkZLdyD87nF7dsMXLU2cCWvxHeGShnCo6xuW_ppMkz93hhy7jrJzPdMsjSfCRPxCL8WqP/s1600/ned1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghXT6qvHFzdK1KmhJKkfJYmjLaI8YQL3mNGrcMQCaMRFiSJx0liOtDAB0_BDfC4tVqnARykHVBkZLdyD87nF7dsMXLU2cCWvxHeGShnCo6xuW_ppMkz93hhy7jrJzPdMsjSfCRPxCL8WqP/s320/ned1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In that sense, the terms of <b>Kofi Annan</b> (1997-2006) reflect the reality of the historical period, that of a unipolar world subjected to the globalization of U.S. hegemony at the expense of nation-states and the peoples that they represent.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">This strategy is in line with the device set up by Washington in the 1980’s involving the <b>National Endowment for Democracy</b>, an agency that, contrary to its title, aims to carry forward the subversive action of the CIA by manipulating the democratic process. <b>The NED subsidizes, legally or not, employers’ organizations, labor unions and associations of all kinds. In return, the beneficiaries participate in the Global Compact, thereby bending the positions of the Nation-States which lack the means to fund their own lobbies.</b> Peace has stopped being a concern for the UN since the unipolar world has its own policeman, the U.S.; thus the organization can concentrate instead on absorbing all forms of protest to better corroborate the global disorder and justify the progressive global expansion of U.S. hegemony.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The soothing rhetoric of <b>Kofi Annan</b> reached its zenith at the <b>Millennium Summit</b>. 147 heads of state and government pledged to eradicate poverty and solve major health problems worldwide, including AIDS, in fifteen years. Universal happiness can dispense with political reform, provided everyone makes an effort and chips in. Why didn’t anyone think of this earlier? But alas, the Millennium remained wishful thinking; injustice was not eradicated and continues to nurture war and misery.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In the same vein, Secretary-General <b>Kofi Annan’s</b> 20 September 1999 speech to the General Assembly outlined what has been termed the “Annan doctrine.” Using his own impotence in RWANDA and BOSNIA as an excuse, he argued that in both cases the States had failed in their duty to protect their own people. He therefore concluded that the sovereignty of States, guiding principle of the UN Charter, constitutes an obstacle to human rights protection. The AFRICAN Union adopted this view under the name of “Responsibility to Protect;” the UN followed suit in 2005 during the World Summit responsible for the follow-up of the Millennium Summit. The Annan doctrine is nothing more than the reincarnation of the right to intervene invoked by the BRITISH to wage war against the OTTOMAN EMPIRE and, more recently, updated by Bernard Kouchner. The new concept has been used explicitly for the first time to legalize the colonial operation against LIBYA .</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">“OIL-FOR-FOOD” PROGRAME, BECAME AN INSTRUMENT IN THE HANDS OF THE USA AND THE UK TO BLEED IRAQ</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwq-H2OQWQO2-TT852DP_HORYAQ4acGBnE3LROx2GHDJsfvbVGVUgloq5kDv3fZwjEMTkVbseoqKWlBOOlj1MMctgOejDSyREmzYk-3FCtsXvqNU3wEfmgx-IE_HpEK2mjDprebGwBaihn/s1600/UN_Emblem_'Oil-for-Food'.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwq-H2OQWQO2-TT852DP_HORYAQ4acGBnE3LROx2GHDJsfvbVGVUgloq5kDv3fZwjEMTkVbseoqKWlBOOlj1MMctgOejDSyREmzYk-3FCtsXvqNU3wEfmgx-IE_HpEK2mjDprebGwBaihn/s320/UN_Emblem_'Oil-for-Food'.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In addition, <b>Kofi Annan’s</b> terms as UN Secretary-General were marked by the “Oil-for-Food” programme which was devised by the Security Council in 1991, but was effective only from 1996 to 2003. It was originally intended to ensure that IRAQ’S oil revenues would be used exclusively to meet the needs of the IRAQI people and not to finance new military adventures. However, in the context of the international embargo and under the personal supervision of <b>Kofi Annan</b>, this program became an instrument in the hands of the U.S. and the UK to bleed IRAQ while they occupied the “no-fly zone” (<b>which corresponds roughly to the current autonomous KURDISTAN region</b>) until the outbreak of the aggression against and destruction of the country. For years, the population was undernourished and deprived of life-saving medicines. Several international officials who were in charge of that program qualified it as a “war crime” and even resigned after refusing to apply it. Among them, the UN Assistant Secretary-General <b>Hans von Sponeck</b> and UN Humanitarian Coordinator <b>Denis Halliday</b> considered that this program brought about the genocide of 1, 5 million IRAQIS, including at least 500,000 children.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">It was not until the invasion and destruction of IRAQ that <b>Kofi Annan</b>finally rebelled and denounced those who had paid for his education, propelled his rise to Secretary-General of the UN, and awarded him the <b>Nobel Peace Prize</b>. He described the attack on IRAQ as illegal and voiced public concern that this precedent would eviscerate International Law Washington responded brutally with a spying operation against <b>Kofi Annan</b>, his cabinet, his family and even against his friends. The Secretary-General’s son, <b>Kojo Annan</b>, was accused of embezzling “oil for food” program funds with his father’s blessing. The prosecution did not manage to convince UN member states and, on the contrary, consolidated the authority of the Secretary-General However, during the last two years of his mandate, <b>Kofi Annan</b> was paralyzed and forced to toe the line.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">BACK TO SQUARE ONE</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">After 10 years as Secretary-General, <b>Kofi Annan</b> continued his career in several more or less private foundations.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In December 2007, elections in KENYA degenerated into conflict. President <b>Mwai Kibaki</b> appeared to have defeated the candidate backed by Washington, <b>Raila Odinga</b>, reportedly a cousin of then-<b>Senator Barack Obama</b>. U.S. Senator <b>John McCain</b> challenged the election results and called for revolution as waves of anonymous SMS exacerbated inter-ethnic differences. Within days, riots left more than 1,000 dead and 300,000 displaced. <b>Madeleine Albright</b> proposed the mediation of the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights. The institute sent two mediators: former Norwegian Prime Minister <b>Kjell Magne Bondevik</b> and former UN Secretary-General <b>Kofi Annan</b>, both members of the Board of Administration.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">As a result of that “mediation,” President <b>Kibaki </b>was forced to bow to U.S. wishes. He was able to stay in office, but first had to accept a constitutional reform that stripped him of his powers in favor of the Prime Minister and to agree to the choice of Odinga as Prime Minister. In his role as wise old African, <b>Kofi Annan</b> helped to give a veneer of legitimacy to a regime change imposed by Washington.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Kofi Annan</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">currently exercises two key responsibilities. First, he chairs the <b>Africa Progress Panel,</b> an organization created by <b>Tony Blair</b> after the G8 summit held in Gleeneagles for the purpose of ensuring media coverage of the actions of the BRITISH Ministry of Cooperation (DFID). Unfortunately, like the Millennium Summit, the G8 promises were not fulfilled and the activity of the AFRICA Progress Panel is negligible.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">SOLVING THE FOOD PROBLEMS OF THE BLACK CONTINENT THROUGH BIOTECHNOLOGY</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">He also serves as chair of the <b>Alliance for a Green Revolution</b> in AFRICA (AGRA), which aims to solve the food problems of the black continent through biotechnology. In fact, AGRA is a lobby funded by the <b>Bill Gates</b> and <b>Rockefeller Foundations</b> to promote the dissemination of GMO’s produced by <b>Monsanto, DuPont, Dow, Syngenta</b> and others. Most independent experts agree that, beyond the issue of their environmental impact, the use of non-reproductible GMO crops keeps farmers under the thumb of their suppliers and introduces a new form of human exploitation.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Regarding Monsanto See also</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">: </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/02/monsanto-global-monster-corporation.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/02/monsanto-global-monster-corporation.html</a></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/02/monsanto-part-2.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/02/monsanto-part-2.html</a></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">KOFI ANNAN IN SYRIA</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvyNh0b-McnCp_qEfiY2JC69XZiNVsNKa0VNP0qrNjA29jeX0jlfvCwjnM5dpCRBr2TaZSArzvsOTxsr3GFlNWPBMdmzfhyphenhypheniegwC40BNISksVwo7J2TypTIpxMbAS1vr9BWmSCKRkFlq5p/s1600/16186561.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvyNh0b-McnCp_qEfiY2JC69XZiNVsNKa0VNP0qrNjA29jeX0jlfvCwjnM5dpCRBr2TaZSArzvsOTxsr3GFlNWPBMdmzfhyphenhypheniegwC40BNISksVwo7J2TypTIpxMbAS1vr9BWmSCKRkFlq5p/s400/16186561.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">So what has this former high-ranking international official come to SYRIA for? In the first place, his appointment suggests that the current UN Secretary-General <b>Ban Ki Moon</b>, whose image has been tarnished by his kowtowing to the UNITED STATES and by a string of corruption scandals was not up to the task, while <b>Kofi Annan</b>, despite his balance sheet, still enjoys a positive image.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Secondly, a mediator can succeed only to the extent that he has been selected by the parts in the conflict. But this is not the case. <b>Kofi Annan</b>represents the Secretary-General of the UN and his <b>Arab League</b> counterpart. He defends the honor and reputation of both institutions in the absence of clear political instructions.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">If the appointment of Mr <b>Annan</b> was approved <i>de facto</i> by the members of the Security Council and those of the <b>Arab League</b>, it is because it satisfies conflicting expectations. For some, the joint special envoy is not intended to broker peace, but to clad a peace that has already been negotiated between the great powers so that everyone can stand tall. Others expect him to repeat the KENYAN script and bring about regime change without further violence.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">DEMAND BY SAUDI ARABI AND QATAR VIA KOFI ANNAN: PRESIDENT AL-ASSAD SHOULD STEP DOWN BECAUSE HE IS AN ALAWITE AND THAT POWER BE TRANSFERRED TO THE VICE PRESIDENT FOR BEING A SUNNI</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Over the past months, the action of <b>Kofi Annan</b> has been to present his own plan, an amended version of the one developed by RUSSIAN Foreign Minister <b>Sergey Lavrov</b>. In doing so, he has rendered the plan palatable for Washington and its allies. In addition, Mr. Annan has intentionally introduced an element of confusion by suggesting that he had convinced President <b>al-Assad</b>to appoint one of his vice presidents, <b>Farouk al-Shara</b>, to negotiate with the opposition. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">This is portrayed as a concession made by SYRIA to the GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL. In fact, Vice President <b>al-Shara</b> has been in charge of these negotiations for a year and the demand made by SAUDI ARABIA and QATAR is totally different: that President al-<b>Assad</b> should step down because he is an <b>Alawite</b> and that power be transferred to the Vice President for being a <b>Sunni.</b> It would thus seem that the joint special envoy is engineering a way out for those states that have attacked SYRIA and invented the fable of a democratic revolution crushed in blood.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">However, the doublespeak of Kofi Annan, who when in Damascus was satisfied with his meeting with President al-Assad but expressed disappointed once back in Geneva, has not raised any questions about his true intentions.</span></b></span></div>

WHO IS KOFI ANNAN?

  THE UNITED NATIONS “PEACEKEEPER”, HANDPICKED BY THE US INTELLIGENCE SERVICES ? b y Thierry Meyssan  via Voltaire Network PEACE NEGOTIATOR ...

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Weight Loss Rewards

It's been since February that I've reached a weight loss goal.  In fact, I've digressed quite a bit (this shouldn't be news!).  Well, the other day I was in Target and I found these super cute rose gold bangles that I <i>want</i>.<br /><br />Naturally, I cannot find a picture of them anywhere to share.  I <i>have </i>to have them.  Rose gold is my <i>color</i>.  They would go perfectly with that <a href="http://the-big-weight.blogspot.com/2012/04/happy-28th-birthday.html" target="_blank">new watch</a> Joel gave me for my 28th birthday, or my <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVXjtFX_i_UOyMly-Uj1_FaaKTgHH7e6d3YGddK9Go-cnhIde9rFd6RAOgYlEd_KZUv3DkIks2pNlQUO0MjQYH6b2_qf0odVMa2ZHU8MzjzIt9zslRDqbK5eqNH2Cd7OZ9FJGWrytXjdU/s1600/053_53+%282%29.JPG" target="_blank">wedding rings</a>, or my cross necklace!<br /><br />Can you sense the urgency through your computer screen for how much I desire those bracelets??  Well, they will be mine tomorrow if I have a loss - <i>any </i>loss (well, more than a pound)!<br /><br />If there is no loss, then I will reward myself next week if there is a loss.  I haven't been perfect all week, given the travel to Pennsylvania and various opportunities to eat out with the holiday.  However, I feel that I still had a fairly decent week overall, especially with the lack of sweet treats.  <br /><br />I am going to get back to my next <a href="http://the-big-weight.blogspot.com/p/goals.html" target="_blank">real goal</a> soon.  I am. <br /><br />I will lose another 30 lbs by March 2013.  I will.  <br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #351c75;">*************************************</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Yesterday, our wedding license came in the mail!  I am so excited to get to the Social Security Office and get my name legally changed once and for all.  It's no fun still signing my maiden name on everything.  I think marriage will feel even more real once the legal stuff is done.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>Then</i>, Joel surprised me with a wedding gift!  He couldn't wait until I had his gift ready (which hasn't even shipped yet), he just <i>had </i>to give me mine :).  </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><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/AVvXsEiXwzDZZxhxrQ6oT8kChkartle8wr4uNJwZC-CcEBKOJZ81-RYi_12Pt9ca4o9Lx4Ce8JWxKiqQb03bICuSTFcG_2VzeYLgX-2AD2TOEyWUXAojfQNHGjVpjKecX1jZb4uMRvIY1u6i2hI/s1600/kindle+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXwzDZZxhxrQ6oT8kChkartle8wr4uNJwZC-CcEBKOJZ81-RYi_12Pt9ca4o9Lx4Ce8JWxKiqQb03bICuSTFcG_2VzeYLgX-2AD2TOEyWUXAojfQNHGjVpjKecX1jZb4uMRvIY1u6i2hI/s400/kindle+1.jpg" width="298" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kindle Fire!</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">This could not be any more of a perfect gift for this girl.  First, I <b>love </b>reading,  Second, I love technology gadgets!  While we already have the iPad2, it is technically Joel's that I often like to pretend is mine :).  Now, I have my very own reader!  But the glory is, it's not just a reader - it can do almost everything the iPad can do, just in a smaller size!  </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I never thought I would want an eReader, until we got the iPad and I installed the Kindle app.  I always enjoy the smell of a new book.  Though I have to admit, it was pretty nice not having to balance the crease of a book between your thumb.  </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Naturally, I had to go out and buy a cover for it straight away :).  I pretty much ran to the closest Vera Bradley retailer for this.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8jYtBpsJlU8Xt8YcugWKH7N10rrCLmwGggP93PHm6kNGSZdK_psW-CY3Jrcl0SyJnwzr61eybEKpMCPUe6W1-8sU7iKLAUW8-1GkW8lbjl6HO3N6iR_Meb1rO-elEWQRx0Y7Yq781xFs/s1600/kindle+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8jYtBpsJlU8Xt8YcugWKH7N10rrCLmwGggP93PHm6kNGSZdK_psW-CY3Jrcl0SyJnwzr61eybEKpMCPUe6W1-8sU7iKLAUW8-1GkW8lbjl6HO3N6iR_Meb1rO-elEWQRx0Y7Yq781xFs/s400/kindle+2.jpg" width="298" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">This is one of VB's newest colors (Indigo Pop) for the Fall 2012 collection.  It's my favorite from this collection.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><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/AVvXsEh4ONX5ET_cr1xj2cFJkASx5u7sIaA-AqINrgpqx2PO_d8gZHqdDVXfz_z7XeHgaODuSs8QfdHsV-utRjChRtR3CvqKp4FCzExibYY8UpXRlph1xdyELduc2iMexi8EJnnG4gdLbpcHe7Y/s1600/kindle+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4ONX5ET_cr1xj2cFJkASx5u7sIaA-AqINrgpqx2PO_d8gZHqdDVXfz_z7XeHgaODuSs8QfdHsV-utRjChRtR3CvqKp4FCzExibYY8UpXRlph1xdyELduc2iMexi8EJnnG4gdLbpcHe7Y/s400/kindle+3.jpg" width="298" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">droopy Droid pics</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">It also happens to be the perfect size for the Kindle (as well as other eReaders).</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbzIjEfFhKIC6shKpIdA_qvPC3NiOyssNkxT2sIuFUW2cNI23jq4sbhyphenhyphen9ubQP6Zsogjy4YMSh2mF51XPqWRK5M4chySCt1Fp7Bh9xX13rvEK3J9_xoH15QqG8F5WnV7V_bQPvj5YLeMyQ/s1600/kindle+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbzIjEfFhKIC6shKpIdA_qvPC3NiOyssNkxT2sIuFUW2cNI23jq4sbhyphenhyphen9ubQP6Zsogjy4YMSh2mF51XPqWRK5M4chySCt1Fp7Bh9xX13rvEK3J9_xoH15QqG8F5WnV7V_bQPvj5YLeMyQ/s400/kindle+4.jpg" width="298" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>I. LOVE. IT. </b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">While I still have this to dive through...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><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/AVvXsEgoybCa8J2IUHqGbTyuvnELsgFc69QIgLRBUXQQTJ0IYcVC22ag07gKA4Qov03eB8YYm789gjMLiQHyQsF64k5RKIkUnF8Dt1r1U1OFEwpgp7Izi2njhdmka0oWIc4h7I1wtZg19L4GIVU/s1600/NYE+2012+006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoybCa8J2IUHqGbTyuvnELsgFc69QIgLRBUXQQTJ0IYcVC22ag07gKA4Qov03eB8YYm789gjMLiQHyQsF64k5RKIkUnF8Dt1r1U1OFEwpgp7Izi2njhdmka0oWIc4h7I1wtZg19L4GIVU/s400/NYE+2012+006.JPG" width="266" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ALL of these are unread!</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;">I plan to alternate between the Kindle and my bookshelf from now til those books are done!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="color: #351c75; text-align: left;"><b>Do you have an eReader?  What do you think of eReaders? </b> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Thank you my darling Joel for the lovely wedding gift!  You sure do know the key to my heart :).</div>

goals wedding Weight Loss Rewards Weight Loss Rewards

It's been since February that I've reached a weight loss goal.  In fact, I've digressed quite a bit (this shouldn't be news!...

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Children’s Services Assistant - Case Memorial Library

<b>Children’s Services Assistant -</b> <span style="color: #48286d;"><b>Case Memorial Library</b></span> in <span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"> Orange, CT, is seeking an enthusiastic professional for a part-time position in our busy Children’s Department. Applicants must have a Master’s Degree in Library Science or a Bachelor’s Degree and experience working in a public or school library or an equivalent combination of education and experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Interested candidates should have excellent customer service skills, knowledge of children’s and teen literature, and an enjoyment of working with children, teens and adults. This is a 29.5 hour per week union position with benefits. Some evening hours and a Friday/Saturday rotation are required. To apply, please submit a cover letter, resume and the names of three professional references to First Selectman James M. Zeoli,</span> 617 Orange Center Road, Orange, CT 06477 or <a _fcksavedurl="mailto:jzeoli@orange-ct.gov" href="mailto:jzeoli@orange-ct.gov">jzeoli@orange-ct.gov</a> by 4:30 p.m. <span style="color: red;">Friday, July 27, 2012</span>. EOE.

Children’s Services Assistant - Case Memorial Library

Children’s Services Assistant - Case Memorial Library in  Orange, CT, is seeking an enthusiastic professional for a part-time position in...

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pinterest challenge - dipped in gold

<span style="background-color: white;">I made a promise to myself the last time I saw the <a href="http://www.bowerpowerblog.com/2012/03/pinterest-challenge-watercoloring/" target="_blank">Pinterest Challenge</a>, that the next time it came around I would join in the fun.</span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;">So when <a href="http://www.bowerpowerblog.com/" target="_blank">Katie</a>, <a href="http://www.younghouselove.com/" target="_blank">Sherry</a>, <a href="http://www.centsationalgirl.com/" target="_blank">Kate</a> and <a href="http://www.tenjuneblog.com/" target="_blank">Michelle</a> told me it was that time of year I did a little happy jig. But my dancing stopped when the hubs pointed out that I was "already in the middle of 4 other big projects. Do you really want to add another one?" </span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;">Must he always be so practical? </span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;">I did see his point though. But hey, not everything on <a href="http://pinterest.com/ladybaum/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a> needs to be big. So I decided I'd do something that I could tackle during craft time with my daughter. </span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;">Resume happy jig.</span><br /><br />The goal, for me, was to pick something very different. Something that made me say 'I love it' and 'that is nothing like anything I have in my house'.<br /><br />So when I saw this fab mason jar turned disco vase by <a href="http://theknottybride.com/32012" style="background-color: white;" target="_blank">The Knotty Bride</a><span style="background-color: white;"> I knew I'd found my project. </span><span style="background-color: white;"> And how thrilled would my 4-year-old, Amelia, be to help me with glue and glitter?! Mom of the Month club, are you reading this?</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1jRQpYVX1sq6CxfN5RN9j6MtheZcPaZOYHYJ7VQ7Ry3evBz3uk9M0n1WqpxYB8o3309A14U7kKTYpSZWmSQGrBI0ld-pTDyGQfP4-InGWjWIEPyEejTACcma1XRRaLKiB9pgr_qXL9qZ/s1600/5-Glitter-Vase-DIY.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="337" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1jRQpYVX1sq6CxfN5RN9j6MtheZcPaZOYHYJ7VQ7Ry3evBz3uk9M0n1WqpxYB8o3309A14U7kKTYpSZWmSQGrBI0ld-pTDyGQfP4-InGWjWIEPyEejTACcma1XRRaLKiB9pgr_qXL9qZ/s400/5-Glitter-Vase-DIY.png" width="400" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white;">The </span><span style="background-color: white;">tutorial</span><span style="background-color: white;"> is simple and straightforward, perfect for the likes of me. </span><br /><br />I got my supplies and used a leftover glass vase from <a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2012/02/very-first-birthday.html" target="_blank">Eve's birthday party</a> as my test subject.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuB9U8AqKJDAJNn2eS_UHpIbv2bCuTxWHs6gn2GddahhOQsLEZYjmk7AUXbMEnqMRode09bpMQtSJFhR2uyUwPJwhxpAMl0Qv4u3FIe9caPoskrnby6f3IQcACK1MMHJZgd2AWMUvPaPK-/s1600/Glitterbefore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="614" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuB9U8AqKJDAJNn2eS_UHpIbv2bCuTxWHs6gn2GddahhOQsLEZYjmk7AUXbMEnqMRode09bpMQtSJFhR2uyUwPJwhxpAMl0Qv4u3FIe9caPoskrnby6f3IQcACK1MMHJZgd2AWMUvPaPK-/s640/Glitterbefore.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white;">Everything went swimmingly until the glue brush broke and fell onto the table and then into my lap, slopping glue all over everything. This would never happen to a serial craft person I'm sure. </span><span style="background-color: white;">You are lucky I love you Martha, otherwise I would have thrown some of my cussing in your direction.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvkf3OMSd__LCgWzjib2HkeiqzBjdyXCr3WOPMAyu8gmbqGoal60zxmmP649BjB3CgXDDbv06bmNRYQv-_0vaBrAEsHN8niuxz0ezx3sOC6eASqR2xhdmJ1CnpaYGSllleDQrxMBImi8rL/s1600/Glue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvkf3OMSd__LCgWzjib2HkeiqzBjdyXCr3WOPMAyu8gmbqGoal60zxmmP649BjB3CgXDDbv06bmNRYQv-_0vaBrAEsHN8niuxz0ezx3sOC6eASqR2xhdmJ1CnpaYGSllleDQrxMBImi8rL/s640/Glue.jpg" width="612" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white;">With glue all over the jar, the table and myself, we got to the fun part, the glitter. I used the left over cake box from my birthday to contain the glitterness. </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz-eWgsWoss_Z0ZrsZC_D8PZDzC-k4RZKQSTxUHhwoZeem-9rD-ybczkOBqKJ7raCNzwmIdqHtp4bdTSN0uQiS4y9rLfZgT63SVotrk82Oeb49bHWsRepmqLXk4SXBTBKyyDOSOpaVPR7o/s1600/GlueDip.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz-eWgsWoss_Z0ZrsZC_D8PZDzC-k4RZKQSTxUHhwoZeem-9rD-ybczkOBqKJ7raCNzwmIdqHtp4bdTSN0uQiS4y9rLfZgT63SVotrk82Oeb49bHWsRepmqLXk4SXBTBKyyDOSOpaVPR7o/s640/GlueDip.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white;">We rolled and rolled until we got this.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4JKSUai5KFz2aw7m6ERV6Cj64A-IhPFSk1VHt-42UvxWen0n58SsJtmWxrnIVOQgNJfHFaB-Mvc2LoHxxW4oXD8jjikouYO-fXzLaEeE7Gq8TRVajIypEE_bVCPGLRUa_oPR6SOmhJbb9/s1600/GlitterTest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4JKSUai5KFz2aw7m6ERV6Cj64A-IhPFSk1VHt-42UvxWen0n58SsJtmWxrnIVOQgNJfHFaB-Mvc2LoHxxW4oXD8jjikouYO-fXzLaEeE7Gq8TRVajIypEE_bVCPGLRUa_oPR6SOmhJbb9/s640/GlitterTest.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white;">It worked! And it was fun and messy and quick. Amelia quickly claimed it as 'hers' so I decided to do another using my very favorite bottle. </span><br /><br />I save these bottles from a bar that the hubs and I always visit on date night. They make a blissful G&T. And the bottles are a perfect shape for a single flower. Win win.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGfseyZkwhYYb66AG-xC208j6kx9iNRR2T4B9vZCqQgKNMqOmRV9TrhYiTgH28cWydZLpuw4MhIeNrArQnDuj04TmMULOqFHFAKF9pAF90eAkttnHzVnNPfne-JU1QU2t6znlUtB4Pfi6Q/s1600/glitterbottlebefore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGfseyZkwhYYb66AG-xC208j6kx9iNRR2T4B9vZCqQgKNMqOmRV9TrhYiTgH28cWydZLpuw4MhIeNrArQnDuj04TmMULOqFHFAKF9pAF90eAkttnHzVnNPfne-JU1QU2t6znlUtB4Pfi6Q/s640/glitterbottlebefore.jpg" width="404" /></a></div>Lather. Rinse. Repeat. And I have a lovely glitter tonic bottle.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW3GbyI2rU4hU2gxlWWPTQXTHw7nhnI9gscMNI1kzfF89lgCvnOo9TDAwqv2ow2UPb55Z3JFBIfsYF7MVe3iMeBnpVY28vB3FgAfopAkxe1gRN77I9tROH-U9ofDCPXjWLalx3Wreao_rA/s1600/GlitterAfter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW3GbyI2rU4hU2gxlWWPTQXTHw7nhnI9gscMNI1kzfF89lgCvnOo9TDAwqv2ow2UPb55Z3JFBIfsYF7MVe3iMeBnpVY28vB3FgAfopAkxe1gRN77I9tROH-U9ofDCPXjWLalx3Wreao_rA/s640/GlitterAfter.jpg" width="540" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white;">A perfect way to honor my favorite drink and event - date night. </span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;">When we finished Amelia said "oh mommy - they are the most pretty gold dancing balls!". (I think she means disco ball. Don't even get me started on how proud I am that she knows what a disco ball is.)</span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;">It was a fun afternoon. And I now have something funky and different from anything else in my house. It also brings out the gold in <a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2012/06/need-vs-want-summer-edition.html" target="_blank">Mary Katherine Gallagher the Owl </a>. I love it.</span><br /><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><span style="background-color: white;">And how can you argue with the sparkle it gives when the sun catches it.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7x2KKt108TFoA0qSWRBAC-hqVDeVXSEkwzh_iwoYKIoIucH-9MhrYgGRBAd5shy3ps2ioE3wItcSTypk6-DkjNrTY1jMPhYeoCLBR1yx_soJDawpqI-AawKvHuiaDyq1Cjkb2jMf4u4Ml/s1600/GlitterGlow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7x2KKt108TFoA0qSWRBAC-hqVDeVXSEkwzh_iwoYKIoIucH-9MhrYgGRBAd5shy3ps2ioE3wItcSTypk6-DkjNrTY1jMPhYeoCLBR1yx_soJDawpqI-AawKvHuiaDyq1Cjkb2jMf4u4Ml/s640/GlitterGlow.jpg" width="372" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white;">Disco.</span><br /><br />Thanks ladies, for encouraging me to get my craft on!<br /><br />Be sure to visit all of the Pinterest Challenge hosts today and see all of the great projects inspired by the <strike>time sucker</strike> good friend we call <a href="http://pinterest.com/ladybaum/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.tenjuneblog.com/" target="_blank">Ten June</a><br /><a href="http://www.younghouselove.com/" target="_blank">Young House Love</a><br /><a href="http://www.bowerpowerblog.com/" target="_blank">Bower Power</a><br /><a href="http://www.centsationalgirl.com/" target="_blank">Centsational Girl</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRuyHHsyj0n0leMwBrl1uVN3IaPUeHmES_VMUtBk-iJJs9bdkhRjZXSfTv7OVPFlafENFxlRk2x0BzA8iym0AayCwpH583HhZW5o08SR5SNJfrNYsf5Nhc_BFp5_nmW0l1nFSyVufRGhfB/s1600/Pinterest+Challenge+banner+1+summer.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRuyHHsyj0n0leMwBrl1uVN3IaPUeHmES_VMUtBk-iJJs9bdkhRjZXSfTv7OVPFlafENFxlRk2x0BzA8iym0AayCwpH583HhZW5o08SR5SNJfrNYsf5Nhc_BFp5_nmW0l1nFSyVufRGhfB/s640/Pinterest+Challenge+banner+1+summer.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>

pinterest challenge - dipped in gold

I made a promise to myself the last time I saw the Pinterest Challenge , that the next time it came around I would join in the fun. So when ...

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Updates

Happy Tuesday friends! I have a few things to update ya'll on. I didn't make my goal of being 165lbs by Adelyn's 1st birthday. I made it to 171lbs, so close! Her birthday was a turning point, something changed in me and I got lazy {again}. The scale has gradually been creeping up over the weeks, but now with the inspiration of my husband I'm back in the game!<br /><br />Monday was day 1 {again} for me! I have set my goal. I want to be 150lbs by November 1st. Currently I am 176lbs. Do the math: that's 26lbs in 16 weeks, average of 1.62lbs/week. Doable? I think so! A tough goal to meet? Absolutely! <u>I'm going to push myself</u>. I finished nursing Adelyn last month, so I don't have to worry that I'm taking in enough calories to produce enough milk for her. <br /><br />I set a few goals to keep me focused this month. Check 'em out!<br /><h3>July Goals</h3><div class="widget-content">1. workout 5 days/week </div><div class="widget-content">2. attend every WW meeting </div><div class="widget-content">3. Try 2 new recipes </div><div class="widget-content">4. weigh 167 by 7.31.12 {lose 9 lbs}</div><div class="widget-content"><br /></div><div class="widget-content">I looked back at when I first started the blog. I was so strict with myself, I took pictures of my eats, I worked out all the time, and I lost 23.5lbs in 2 months! Now I know at that point I'm sure it came off faster because I had much more to lose, but still that is amazing! I'm going to do it again!</div><div class="widget-content"><br /></div><div class="widget-content">Here's where you guys come in! Looking back when I lost weight the first time ya'll were such an encouragement and inspiration to me. The blog world was and still is such an integral piece of my success. Will you do me a favor and support me in this goal {again}?</div>

Updates

Happy Tuesday friends! I have a few things to update ya'll on. I didn't make my goal of being 165lbs by Adelyn's 1st birthday. I...

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30 days of Web Tools:#5: Create your own multimedia Qwiki

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /><div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQNqT-xI37zucwb4AIIfXMS_Ae4yk5uz_OV26-2xRwi18neAg40BuyCV-dt" /></div><br /><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I first read about this tool (</span><a href="http://www.qwiki.com/">http://www.qwiki.com/</a>) <span style="font-size: small;">on the blog of <a href="http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Educational Technology Guy,</a> who found out about it at a Teacheet in the USA. That is how news spreads! This tool looks really great for students to use to create informative, interactive multimedia presentations very easily. </span></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br />Qwiki encyclopaedia</b></span> </div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I have always known Qwiki as a visual encyclopaedia with over 3 million entries but somehow I can’t find a way of getting there directly unless I add a URL that I already know. From there the other resources can be accessed. For example I clicked on this URL about Ancient Egypt (</span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><a href="http://www.qwiki.com/q/Ancient_Egypt" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://www.qwiki.com/q/Ancient_Egypt</a>) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">and came up with the search site button seen on the top right of this image below.</span><a href="http://www.qwiki.com/q/Ancient_Egypt" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsKBe3DT06GU2AKOJzLe0mKt33O71D1OpFH19DHLrHImlOeBwdFw-11xBCSVy1o6c7-FBT6hUKrEWlnpc1-GVhiCiRGTSeidOj1ff3uWKMBqk9LfDLhVxgumkR4QYsFdU9zp9N35jIpp4/s1600-h/image%25255B3%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="345" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkfjfOZQGkGMfnI8Ef-EGw7Ob9aDjGFd63n9NRGawJXUkPaLum4iK2XP3TarMd9NWGj5ntYrKiIPPEikwe6Sh3gQPDALWBbAEoGZ3hCLAC0i4mPOsVPsX_lgBYIktZzs-IvhmPIF91W1Y/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>What exactly is a Qwiki made using Qwiki creator?</b></span> </div><br /><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Now Qwiki has added a Qwiki creator. This Qwiki creator is a type of a search engine that aids you in creating a lovely multimedia presentation on a topic of your choice. It doesn’t give you links but rather creates a multimedia presentation around your search item. Consequently it creates a story consisting of images, text, audio and video on your subject. You can add narration or use their digital voices. The recording above gives the idea of how a Qwiki multimedia presentation plays.  You’ll notice a film strip that appears below which enables you to ski to another part of the presentation.The site provided a demo video </span></div><div class="qwiki-embed" id="OiJp80-6CaEEW"><a href="http://www.qwiki.com/AboutUs?q=6CaEEW" target="_blank">Play the Qwiki: Qwiki Demo & Background</a></div><script async="" class="qwiki-embedder" id="OiJp80-6CaEEW" src="http://s1.ikiwq.com/embed/2.5/embed.min.js"></script> <br />  <br /><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">How to make your own Qwiki </span></b></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">1. Sign up to the site. <br />2. Once you have signed up it will be a good idea to watch their introductory video that tells you all the steps. I have embedded it below. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="qwiki-embed" id="ZRpLql-TVD2ZV"><a href="http://www.qwiki.com/Tutorial?q=TVD2ZV" target="_blank">Play the Qwiki: The Qwiki Creator</a></div><script async="" class="qwiki-embedder" id="ZRpLql-TVD2ZV" src="http://s1.ikiwq.com/embed/2.5/embed.min.js"></script> <br />  <br /><br /><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">3. Upload your content or link references in the exact order that you wish everything to appear. This necessitates careful planning. Voice recordings are limited to 20 seconds. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">4. Caption your content. You are presented with a grid to caption your all your content. This is where you insert your links. </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><br />When you sign in it seems that everything is clearly indication at the place where you create your Qwiki.  </span></div><br /><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Qwiki in the classroom</span></b></div><br /><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">1. I haven’t actually created my own Qwiki yet, but plan to! It seems to be a great way to get students creating a multimedia presentation for a project. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">2. Students could also use the Qwiki encyclopaedia site to learn information from their 3 million plus entries.  </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">3. Teachers could also create great resources for their classess using Qwiki. </span></div></div>

30 days of web tools Qwiki Web tools 30 days of Web Tools:#5: Create your own multimedia Qwiki

I first read about this tool ( http://www.qwiki.com/ ) on the blog of The Educational Technology Guy, who found out about it at a Teacheet ...

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Review: PointsPlus Fitness Series

I am so proud to report that I have been consistently working out for almost a year and a half now... quickly approaching 2 years in November.  I have not consistently stuck to working out this long ever in my life.  Sure, I might be a 230ish pound female, but I work out every week!  Clearly, I have that part of my healthiness journey down.  Consistency with eating well is lacking, but I'm <a href="http://the-big-weight.blogspot.com/search/label/No%20Sugar%20Challenge" target="_blank">working on improving it</a>.<br /><br />Over the last several weeks, Weight Watchers has been sponsoring a get-active event called LiveLifeActive.  Beginning in June, if you record your activity within eTools, somehow you're eligible to win prizes.  They've also offered discounts on all of their fitness products, for which I took full advantage. <i> (Sidenote: Last year WW hosted a 5K walk called the Weight Watchers Walk-it Day Challenge - I thought this was soooo much better!)</i><br /><br />While I'm not a huge yogi - I'm not opposed to it - I do enjoy my <a href="http://www.gaiam.com/product/am-pm+yoga+conditioning+for+weight+loss+dvd.do" target="_blank">Gaiam Yoga for Weight Loss</a> DVD.  I've never had a yoga mat before so I picked up the WW version, which boasts a bit larger size than your average yoga mat.  I also purchased the WW activity DVD that offers 5 DVDs with 5 different styles of workouts. <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/AVvXsEgGBtn4XYGZK1N_Ilg49G_Ma9ud4sbwig-TmGysn6i_2w69QHiQcSMGYr-vid_mfPcbvu5pdzM52y6ZwLJHqZq5O_Jnzpyv7mYRcsTJKoCHBNFjNoHjkUNoJxo-FBQ2WWtc6lMhLsf5-GU/s1600/jennifer+cohen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGBtn4XYGZK1N_Ilg49G_Ma9ud4sbwig-TmGysn6i_2w69QHiQcSMGYr-vid_mfPcbvu5pdzM52y6ZwLJHqZq5O_Jnzpyv7mYRcsTJKoCHBNFjNoHjkUNoJxo-FBQ2WWtc6lMhLsf5-GU/s320/jennifer+cohen.jpg" width="237" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/weight-watchers-points-plus-fitness-series-dvd-set-geared-for-all-fitness-levels" target="_blank">Source</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />I mistakenly thought that because these were WW workout DVDs, the intensity of them would probably be on the low side.  Well, I'm sure they're no comparison to Jillian's Shred, but these DVDs are tough!  So far I've done them all at least once, but have done the Core Cardio DVD twice.  Every single time I have walked away sore.  The length of the workouts range from 30 min to just under 40 minutes.  Each of them offer an express workout option as well. <br /><br />The 5 workouts are:<br /><br /><ol><li>Total Body Cardio Stretch: yoga-like</li><li>Upper Body Boot Camp: lots of weight moves</li><li>Lower Body Interval Training</li><li>Core Cardio</li><li>Cardio Basic </li></ol>This is the basic layout of every DVD.  Imagine a little timer bar in the lower right corner of the screen.  The girl on our right is always doing the lower intensity modifications.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz590_cblf0AssjabDC8pFghfBEg3XAMEDv4lU7oB-PNhcte2j5ckpT7d2vKV-rvg9A5oAGI2pQZCO0R4uTvfASIXjkoFCyJjUDgL3oCoihWuh_spCDRQRJgD6iMrSNd8JwMSAHbR3Ss0/s1600/DVD+Jen+Cohen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz590_cblf0AssjabDC8pFghfBEg3XAMEDv4lU7oB-PNhcte2j5ckpT7d2vKV-rvg9A5oAGI2pQZCO0R4uTvfASIXjkoFCyJjUDgL3oCoihWuh_spCDRQRJgD6iMrSNd8JwMSAHbR3Ss0/s320/DVD+Jen+Cohen.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />The things I enjoy about these workouts are:<br /><ul><li>Cool little timer bar that runs across the bottom, showing you how long you have left.</li><li>The modifications of the workouts that tailor to someone who is more advanced to someone just beginning.</li><li>The length of the total workout.</li><li>The soreness afterward!</li><li>The moves are not difficult to grasp.  So, if you don't feel very coordinated, like myself, the moves are not complex and are easy to follow along with.</li></ul>The things I <i>don't</i> enjoy about these workouts:<br /><ul><li>The moves are too repetitive.  For example, you might be lunging for 2-3 solid minutes on the same leg before you switch.  I find that's a long time to remain with the same exercise, especially if you're trying to keep up with them - I get really tired.  Not only that, but it gets boring.  Now, since results are what we're going for, the challenge is appreciated.  However, it does make me dread the workouts a bit because I know I'll be doing lunges (or whatever exercise) for what seems an endless amount of time.  Other exercise DVDs are really great about keeping things moving (The Wave, for example).</li><li>One particular move in some of the DVD's is sort of like a plank, but you walk yourself into a plank position.  These are extremely tough!  I also get very lightheaded when doing them, so I only do one and try to do a different move while the trainers proceed with those moves.  </li></ul><b style="color: #351c75;">What's your favorite workout DVD and why? </b>

Exercise Fitness DVDs Weight Watchers Review: PointsPlus Fitness Series

I am so proud to report that I have been consistently working out for almost a year and a half now... quickly approaching 2 years in Novembe...

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COLOMBIA and the UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

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font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style><![endif]--> <br /><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/AVvXsEgSXk5cOlU2ww9OQ66b5wFkSwxYOPLT3RfdNcAHsY3NwPcDIZooFz5dP0Blnk_ZODCpknMbeeq51-dIE5o_Vy_t-uoZzkPs0taRhiYPQ5NoJugR9IEM5Beo-TS-iXEEGfhS22_KQHyirCdr/s1600/Flag-Pins-Colombia-United-Arab-Emirates.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSXk5cOlU2ww9OQ66b5wFkSwxYOPLT3RfdNcAHsY3NwPcDIZooFz5dP0Blnk_ZODCpknMbeeq51-dIE5o_Vy_t-uoZzkPs0taRhiYPQ5NoJugR9IEM5Beo-TS-iXEEGfhS22_KQHyirCdr/s320/Flag-Pins-Colombia-United-Arab-Emirates.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; color: red; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">ARMED FORCES MANPOWER “OUTSOURCING”</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">If enlisting “foreign” soldiers, not mercenaries, in one’s own armed forces becomes a trend setter, as it seems to be in certain regions of the globe, it will have a consequence on the outcome of future conflicts, because it will change the way current armies are structured and run. It will also bear challenges for the intercultural communication within the armed forces. New evolving geopolitical scenarios will require armies to change their current attitudes towards recruiting criteria which traditionally focus on citizens without immigrant background as well as men and women who are of the predominant faith of the country. Even ISRAEL is currently debating of drafting orthodox Jews as well as ARAB ISRAELIS for compulsory military service. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrk4AY0L-7o1tJbyBLQ8V69cHCBSp80F4GrINIy8zm7W1wgy4B9CgtQjNcvFt8nfwIuc03KIEtMuLsJMPrF5sI5DcjrlOiT0ANo-pT9ffqHhCJPp2vdBQuc0XlAoM2EwT_qdXOtsr2Ukm9/s1600/Dubai-Bogota-flight-path.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrk4AY0L-7o1tJbyBLQ8V69cHCBSp80F4GrINIy8zm7W1wgy4B9CgtQjNcvFt8nfwIuc03KIEtMuLsJMPrF5sI5DcjrlOiT0ANo-pT9ffqHhCJPp2vdBQuc0XlAoM2EwT_qdXOtsr2Ukm9/s400/Dubai-Bogota-flight-path.gif" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b style="color: blue;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES </span></b><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">is seeking to enlist 3,000 COLOMBIAN soldiers in the oil-rich ARAB country's armed forces, <a href="http://www.semana.com/nacion/exmilitares-patria-emiratos-arabes/179892-3.aspx" target="_blank">weekly Semana reported Sunday</a>.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">According to the weekly, 842 COLOMBIAN soldiers and retired soldiers have already joined the UAE army which is paying salaries up to ten times what the COLOMBIAN state pays the members of its armed forces.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; color: blue; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">HIGHER SALARIES ABROAD ARE DRAINING THE ARMY OF ITS BEST MEN AND WOMEN</span></b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The transfer of soldiers to the foreign army is causing unease among COLOMBIA’S military commanders because the military fears the higher salaries abroad are draining the army of its best men and women.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">"They have recruited soldiers with a lot of combat experience, valuable men with years of service in which the Army invested a lot in terms of training," an anonymous general told Semana.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">"Without a doubt, this is a loss for the army, but there isn't much we can do because it is by no means illegal," the military official added.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; color: blue; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">NOT BLACKWATER MERCENARIES - DIRECT CONTRACT WITH THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UAE</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">According to the weekly, the COLOMBIANS are making in between $2,800 and $18,000 in the UAE depending on the rank. In COLOMBIA, a soldier earns $530 a month on average.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The <b>New York Times</b> reported in May 2011 that the <a href="http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/16267-colombian-mercenaries-active-in-united-arab-emirates-nyt.html" target="_self">UAE hired Colombian soldiers as mercenaries</a> through a company <a href="http://www.academi.com/"></a>, led by <b>Erik Prince</b>, the founder of controversial private security company <b>Blackwater</b>. Note by Geopolitical Analysis and Monitoring: The company in question is called </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">ACADEMI <a href="http://www.academi.com/">http://www.academi.com</a></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><a href="http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/12/9393006-former-blackwater-security-firm-changes-name-again?lite">http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/12/9393006-former-blackwater-security-firm-changes-name-again?lite</a></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">According to a COLOMBIAN former colonel -- now in charge of recruiting compatriots for the UAE Army -- the 800 Colombians currently active in the ARAB peninsula are not part of a mercenary army, but hired directly by the armed forces.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">"What is happening now is different than before. We are no mercenaries. The contract of the people who travel is directly with the government of the [UNITED] ARAB EMIRATES," the anonymous colonel said.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The COLOMBIAN ex-official said the UAE are investing in their military defence because the government "noticed that several threats have made them vulnerable."</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; color: blue; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITIES: POSSIBLE BORDER CONFLICT WITH IRAN</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">According to the former colonel, the COLOMBIANS' responsibilities "range from urban defence against terrorist attacks to the control of civil uprisings and even being prepared for a possible border conflict with IRAN."</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; line-height: normal; margin: 11.25pt 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The UNITED ARAB EMIRATES is one of the few countries in the MIDDLE EAST that has not been affected by the "ARAB SPRING," a wave of revolutionary social unrest that forced four rulers in the region from power.</span></span></div>

COLOMBIA and the UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

ARMED FORCES MANPOWER “OUTSOURCING” If enlisting “foreign” soldiers, not mercenaries, in one’s own armed forces becomes a trend setter, as ...

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