What hiring managers really want to see

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><b><i><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></i></b></span><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal arial, helvetica;"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" id="tblContent"><tbody><tr id="trContent"><td align="center" class="cb_style tcContent" id="tcContent" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: center;"><div class="cbArticleWrapper" style="background-color: white; text-align: left; width: 750px;"><div class="cbArticleContentWrapper" style="margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 15px; margin-right: 15px; margin-top: 15px; width: 750px;"><div class="cbArticleRight" style="width: 560px;"><div class="RXart" style="padding-right: 20px;"><div class="ArticleHeadline" style="margin-top: -30px;"><div class="cbmsnArticleImage" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" src="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/cp/ar5l7rc69vrg62cpdscp.gif?time=8/21/2011%2011:35:34%20am" /></div><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">Alina Dizik, Special to CareerBuilder</span></b> </div><br /><div class="ArticleContent"><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">When you're job searching, simply getting the attention of potential employers can be a challenge. Of course, there are always a few tricks to keep employers intrigued, no matter what job you're eager to land. Wondering what hiring managers want to see? Here, job-search experts weigh in on what makes job applicants irresistible:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Presenting a stable work history</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Employers need to see consistency on a résumé. "Many companies these days are not interested in people who have changed jobs every few years," says Joseph Kotlinski, a partner at Winter, Wyman & Co, a recruiting firm. "If you were out of work for a number of months, show a prospective employer that you stayed busy by taking classes [or] volunteering."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Make the résumé come to life</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">These days, simply handing over a one-sheet résumé is not enough. Most employers are eager to see an online showcase of your work. "While résumés are static, a link to an online portfolio can give it new life and meaning," explains Nathan Parcells, <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/executive/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">chief executive</a> of InternMatch.com, a service that matches employers with <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/intern/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">interns</a>.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"<a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/marketing/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">Marketers</a> that include a link to their blog or <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/engineer/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">engineers</a> that include a link to their GitHub profile help prove that they are more than just words on paper and leave a lasting impact on employers."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Showcase awards on your résumé</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Don't let notable awards be an afterthought, says Dawn Rasmussen, <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/president/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">president</a> of Pathfinder Writing and Career Services. Instead, list any achievements in the top third of your résumé because employers want to find people who are publicly recognized for their work.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"The types of things to put in this section include industry, peer, supervisor, subordinate or partner recognition awards (not financial incentives), speaking engagements, relevant industry presentations, any articles in industry publications that you might have authored [and] patents." she says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Demonstrate listening skills</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Show that you are really listening," says Jennifer Kahnweiler, author of "The Introverted Leader." "You can get so focused on crafting the next right response that you may miss out on what is most important to your potential employer." To demonstrate your listening skills, take advantage of any opportunities that ask you to paraphrase what your interviewer has shared.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Understand company initiatives</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">It's not enough to quickly browse the company's website an hour before your first interview.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Demonstrate your dedication and interest in the company," says Jessica Miller-Merrell, chief executive of Xceptional Human Resources. To gain an insider perspective, browse LinkedIn and industry publications and look for news interviews with key executives. Learning as much as you can about the company also helps when it comes time to discuss compensation or work-life balance, she says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Explain what you can do for them</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">A sure bet to get hiring managers to pay attention is by delving into how your experience can benefit the company. Career coach Malcolm Munro suggests describing two aspects: "How your experience can help the company solve its problems, and how your experience can help the company make money." Before each interview, take time to tailor your response.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Ask the right questions during the interview</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">The flow of the interview shouldn't be a rigid question and answer session. Instead, end the interview by discussing a few well-thought-out questions with the interviewer. "Two invaluable questions for the person who might be your future boss are: What keeps you up at night? And, how will you measure success?" Kahnweiler says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Don't forget the follow-up</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Sending a thank you email or card should never be an afterthought. Forgetting to do so or simply running out of time can prevent you from advancing to the next round of interviews. Not all employers abide by that principle, but many are eager to see that you're dedicated to landing the position. "Dropping a handwritten thank-you note into the mail immediately after an interview can make all the difference in getting hired or not," Parcells says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Alina Dizik researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues for CareerBuilder. Follow @Careerbuilder on Twitter.</i></div></div></div></div></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>

What hiring managers really want to see

Alina Dizik, Special to CareerBuilder   When you're job searching, simply getting the attention of potential employers can be a challeng...

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Dear God, please let me have a break

Thank you for all your kind comments on my last post. Each and every one of them touched my heart. Especially as I read them while sitting by my sister's side as she slept. They meant a lot to me.<br /><br />I'm home. It was the most intense and emotional twelve days of my entire life. I've never cried so hard nor felt so much emotional pain. Even losing my mother six years ago wasn't this difficult.<br /><br /><br />My beautiful, vibrant and very active sister had what was originally a mild stroke two weeks ago and then later classified as a catastrophic event. She's completely paralyzed on the right side, unable to walk, read, write or speak anything other than mutterings that no one can understand. Yet she is still completely cognizant of everything that's happening, can answer yes/no questions and has use of her right side.<br /><br />She's given up and is refusing all food. I had a lot of good visits with her before I left on Sunday, but I knew it was most likely the last time I'd see her. My niece said my sister is not only shaking her head no when offered food, but now she's covering her mouth with her left hand. Yet she still drinks water so this will probably go on for weeks.<br /><br />My one niece and her husband have moved into my sister's house with her and plan on staying with her for at least the next three weeks. Since she's becoming weaker each day, this probably won't last three weeks.<br /><br />Sadly there was a lot of family drama due to another very close relative that was going through some sort of mental breakdown before this happened, and during the past week they spun out of control. I've never been in the presence of someone suffering with mentally illness. It was another nightmare on top of the nightmare my sister was going through.<br /><br />Even though it was horrible seeing my sister so disabled and knowing her choice to slowly commit suicide by starving herself to death, I will always value those wonderful moments with her. Often it was just the two of us and we laughed ourselves silly. We had a really good time together, especially when it was just the two of us. Some people couldn't bare to be in the room with her, I couldn't bare to not be in the room with her. <br /><br />Three of my family members called me yesterday and told me they were diagnosed with strep throat. I've had a sore throat, terrible stomach pains, and the worse headaches of my life during the last four days. I thought it was all stress induced. As today progressed, I continued to feel worse. Finally at 4pm I went to the urgent care clinic and yes, I have strep throat too. I have a horse-sized bottle of Amoxicillin.<br /><br />The only positive thing I can say is my weight is 173.4. The truth is that I really don't care about my weight right now. Everything I was so worried about, my weight, my clothes, my hair -- in the scheme of life it's all a bunch of trivial crap. <br /><br />When I got home Sunday night I decided to stop taking Ambien. The last two nights I've been rewarded with some of the worst nightmares of my life. Full of death and violence. Both nights I woke myself up screaming (and my husband). I don't know if this is some sort of Ambien withdrawal or if it's from those twelve days of hell in Fairbanks. Whatever it is, it's scaring me and really interrupting much needed sleep.

Dear God, please let me have a break

Thank you for all your kind comments on my last post. Each and every one of them touched my heart. Especially as I read them while sitting ...

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CORPORATOCRACY

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">SPREADING THE WORD  </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">One does not need to be an economist to see that LATIN AMERICAS economy is booming, much to the “dislike” of the IMF and WORLD BANK, especially when it comes to issues concerning ARGENTINA it seems. The reason of which is obvious.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">After ARGENTINA’S default in 2001, which many argue was caused to a large extend by the IMF, ARGENTINA was austere from the world financial markets, which as it turns out was not so bad after all. First ARGENTINA took the bold initiative to pay back its dept with the IMF in order not to be hostage to their policies, thus giving them leverage on dealing with their crisis independently.  Being band from the international financial system and thanks to the commodity boom ARGENTINA could “freely maneuver” in “niche markets”, without needing to adhere to international financial doctrines.  Focusing on ASIA rather than the US also helped, despite its large trade volume with the USA.</span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="266" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rpkGhy7BxXw?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="320"></iframe></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Needles to say, this independence is something the USA and its “CORPORATOCRACY” (See: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporatocracy">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporatocracy</a>) are desperate to undermine, thus they do not miss a chance to use their influence to lobby to promote bias media coverage in order to spread bleak economic outlook for LATIN AMERICAN and its politics. Especially since most of LATIN AMERICA has shifted from US friendly governments to political independent ones.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>SHARE OF THE COMMODITY CAKE </b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Geo politically as well as strategically the current manipulative tactics by organizations such as the IMF and the WORLD BANK and governments of the developed world are of significance, because LATIN AMERICA is a major supplier of food commodities, natural resources and in the not too distant future also water commodities. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">(See <a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2011/06/water-golden-commodity-of-future.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2011/06/water-golden-commodity-of-future.html</a>). </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Naturally the 1^st world are showing keen interest in the region and use all means in order to gain economic as well as political influence. (The latter of which is becomes increasingly difficult) World leading food producers such as the influential and controversial MONSANTO Corporation, CARGILL, to name but a few all have keen interest to obtain control over LATAM food commodities and subsequently governments in order to control world food markets and societies. (See </span><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto#Criticism">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto#Criticism</a> )</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>CORPORATOCRACY – ENRON - AZURIX SOUTHERN WATER PLUNGE  </b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Thus it becomes evident why for example WASHINGTON voted against loans for ARGENTINA from multilateral development banks. Allegedly the AZURIX Corporation, (See: </span><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azurix">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azurix</a> </span><span style="font-size: large;">) which says ARGENTINA refuses to honor a ruling by the WORLD BANK arbitration tribunal to compensate it for prematurely eliminating a <u>30 year water concession</u> during the countries devastating <b>2001</b> economic crisis, pressured WASHINGTON to take actions against ARGENTINA. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The visionary move by ARGENTINA, to reinstate government control over its water resources caused dismay among US corporations for they lost a lifetime opportunity in future investment, for those who control water will feed the world.  What further cause’s annoyance among US political as well corporate establishments is that the US loan hurdle will not affect ARGENTINES funding for 2012. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">(See <a href="http://en.mercopress.com/2011/09/29/us-decision-to-vote-against-loans-for-argentina-will-not-affect-funding-for-2012?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss&utm_content=argentina&utm_campaign=rss">http://en.mercopress.com/2011/09/29/us-decision-to-vote-against-loans-for-argentina-will-not-affect-funding-for-2012?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss&utm_content=argentina&utm_campaign=rss</a> )</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Looking more closely at AZURIX it seems even more ludicrous that this company, which was part of the ENRON Corporation (See </span><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enron_Corporation">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enron_Corporation</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enron_scandal">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enron_scandal</a> </span><span style="font-size: large;">) which filed for bankruptcy protection in <b><u>2001</u></b> amides one of the biggest and most complex bankruptcy cases in U.S. history <b>due to mismanagement</b>, demands of ARGENTINA to honor a deal set up during the pressure of financial collapse (also in 2001) which would have benefited AZURIX to a great extend and control basically ARGENTINES water resources, making  ARGENTINA totally dependent on a foreign entity.  </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>“PSY OPS” </b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">In military term one refers to PSY OPS (Psychological Operations) when deliberately spreading misinformation in order to gain strategic advantages. In today’s global eco-political stage, governments which are facing stagnating economic growth use similar tactics by spreading negative economic outlooks on countries that do not fit within their strategic agenda or are dogging conservative economic and financial doctrines imposed upon them by the so called developed world. This has been the case in recent past regarding LATAM, particularly BRAZIL and ARGENTINA, whose economies are thriving. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">(See </span><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_Operations_%28United_States%29">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_Operations_%28United_States%29</a> </span><span style="font-size: large;">) </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Thus the IMF and the WORD BANK periodically keep spreading word through its loyal media outlets such as THE ECONOMIST, on the dangers of BRAZILS and ARGENTINES Economies overheating, being fully aware that such comments cause turmoil in the markets. What apparently plays into ARGENTINA’S favor is its ban from the international financial market, much to the discontent of the developed world, because it seems that this helps the county to avoid the casino finance vultures homing in on its markets. Thus the country can grow economically without worrying about economic market trends.   (See </span><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://en.mercopress.com/2011/09/23/argentine-central-bank-dismisses-imf-warning-on-risk-of-overheating-economies">http://en.mercopress.com/2011/09/23/argentine-central-bank-dismisses-imf-warning-on-risk-of-overheating-economies</a> )</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The problem is that those countries who themselves face financial turmoil and are at the brink of default try to dictate financial and economic terms to emerging markets without realizing that the geopolitical landscape is shifting. When the WORLD BANK tries to impose financial terms and conditions on ARGENTINA one should not forget that such moves are politically motivated. The UK for example is a major shareholder of the WORLD BANK as is the US, thus the UK as well as the USA use their influence within the WORLD BANK, IMF and the PARIS CLUB to achieve their geo strategic objective. A recent example is BRITAIN’S oil exploration near the MALVINAS Islands (FALKLAND Islands), which prompted a “war of words” between ARGENTINA and BRITAIN, the latter of which went to war over the islands dispute in 1982.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">(See:  </span><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://en.mercopress.com/2011/09/29/why-support-argentina-financially-when-the-country-threatens-falklands">http://en.mercopress.com/2011/09/29/why-support-argentina-financially-when-the-country-threatens-falklands</a> )</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>LOOKING EAST</b>,…….. <b>A BLESSING OR CURSE?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The fact that LATAM is increasing its trade with China is not well seen by the World Bank as it threatens to undermine economic doctrines developed by the World Bank, IMF and the Paris Club (all 3 entities are predominantly under control of the USA and Europe ) in order to control the markets. Thus the World Bank was quick to voice its concerns over LATAM relying too much on trade with China and that this strategy could backfire. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The office of the Chief Economist for the Latin America and Caribbean Region of the World Bank indicated it its SEMIANNUAL REPORT that the LAC (Latin American and Caribbean) region has made tremendous advances in the last 10 years and that sovereign debt default risk of several LATAM counties, including CHILE, COLOMBIA and PERU is lower than that of FRANCE. Needless to say CHILE COLOMBIA and to some extend PERU have close eco - political ties with the USA, thus it is clear why the report left out BRAZIL and URUGUAY.   </span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">The report warns that the “CHINA CONNECTION” must be monitored sharply for though it has nurtured rapid growth, the partnership also has the potential to collapse.  What the report neglects however is the fact that the world population will always be in need of food and thus countries with vast amount of food commodities and other natural resource will most likely continue to grow economically.  </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="texto1" style="font-size: large;">"There is little evidence that CHINA can play a role in fostering productivity growth for LATIN AMERICA," the WORLD BANK'S chief economist for the region, Augusto DE LA TORRE, stated in a press conference.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Now why would he make this comment? Is it genuine or politically motivated? Don’t forget that the WORLD BANK is de facto run by the USA, UK and EUROPEAN entities, all of which are struggling with their financial crisis and stagnating economy.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"> D</span><span class="texto1" style="font-size: large;">E LA TORRE further cited that</span><span class="texto1" style="font-size: large;"> "In the context of the lackluster economic performance in the U.S. and EUROPE, the key question is whether LAC can leverage its connection with CHINA and turn it into an [independent] source of long-term growth." </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: justify;"><span class="texto1" style="font-size: large;">In my opinion, and for reasons I mentioned in numerous articles on this blog, LATAM will be able to turn into a source of long-term growth, provided it does not solely focus on CHINA but includes other countries in the FAR EAST. Despite the complex structure of today’s economy and close ties to politics one should not only rely on casino financial market indicators but also on common senses and logic. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="texto1" style="font-size: large;">Interesting reading:</span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_303433764">http://www.examiner.com/conservative-in-san-francisco/china-argentina-using-economical-strategies-obama-u-s-politicians-ignoring</a></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div>

CORPORATOCRACY

SPREADING THE WORD   One does not need to be an economist to see that LATIN AMERICAS economy is booming, much to the “dislike” of the IMF an...

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Traveling + Eating Healthy = Not Happening

I'm in Philadelphia this week for work, hence the lack of a post until now!  The days have been long, starting training at 7:30 AM and ending around 6 PM.  By the time I'm out of the training, and I do my gym workout and shower, it's already 7:30 PM.  I was pretty tired last night and could not muster the energy to write a post, much less even pick up the computer.<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="http://www.metafever.com/wp-content/uploads/Philadelphia-skyline.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://www.metafever.com/wp-content/uploads/Philadelphia-skyline.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hello City of Brotherly Love!</td></tr></tbody></table>Like most days, my morning on Monday started off on the right foot.  I ate conscientiously for breakfast, but by the time lunch rolled around, I was ravenous and hungry and ready to consume everything in site.  Lunch was buffet style and I had a small piece of chorizo sausage, about half of a chicken breast, and some (I estimate a cup to a cup and a half) tortellini in vodka sauce.  Then I had a cannolli.  And then I had cookies on our afternoon break.  And the day continued to unravel just. like. that.  <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.thecrimson.com/media/photos/2006/10/27/130558_1203066_300x356.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.thecrimson.com/media/photos/2006/10/27/130558_1203066_300x356.jpg" width="269" /></a></div><br />My first problem was I didn't have smart snacks.  I bought 2 items in the hotel snack area which weren't terrible (peanut butter crackers that were 5 Points+ and a Glenny's fruit/nut bar), but they weren't enough for me - I wanted more because I felt hungry, but then by afternoon I just wanted to plain eat out of boredom, and naturally I wanted sweets. <br /><br />Though yesterday wasn't a total wash in the health realm.  If I can't get it together with eating right, then I can most <i>definitely </i>get in some exercise without an excuse!  So I headed to the workout room and did 32 minutes on the elliptical and then the last week in Stage 1 of the NROLFW.  I was really proud of myself for not making excuses while on travel to <i>not </i>exercise.  I needed it - the day was long and full of sitting!   I also made sure to drink plenty of water yesterday and today.  I know that a year ago, I would not have even considered exercising while on travel.  <br /><br />Today, despite good intentions and better snacks (I made a trip to Target last night), I still managed to bomb.  Again, I started off well, and I even maneuvered lunch time a lot better - resisting 3 enticing desserts, 2 of which were chocolate.  Still, I got bored and I ate.  I actually left the session an hour early today - many of us did - we were just a little annoyed and burnt out from the long days.  So, I went to the gym and did the elliptical for just over 50 minutes.  <br /><br />Tomorrow I go home, but the challenges don't end there.  Wednesday is Joel's birthday, and we are going out for dinner to the Cheesecake Factory.  Then Friday we leave for a wedding in Charlotte, NC. <br /><br />I've had enough "eating out" for awhile.  I just want a nice, healthy, home-cooked meal that falls within my Points+ range comfortably.  <br /><br />What are your healthy eating strategies when traveling?<br /><br />

Weight Loss Challenges Traveling + Eating Healthy = Not Happening

I'm in Philadelphia this week for work, hence the lack of a post until now!  The days have been long, starting training at 7:30 AM and e...

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Listening To The Heartbeat

“You look happy,” she said. She was the cashier at Maxi’s Café across from the B gates in the Reno airport. It was Sunday afternoon and I was buying a tuna and caper half sandwich when she said, “You look happy.”<br /><br />“I am happy,” I said. I was happy. But I was surprised that anyone should say I looked happy, especially at the airport where my usually dour demeanor descends to anxious and morose. But I was so happy that it showed and I knew why. All weekend long, I had been listening to the heartbeat of the Church.<br /><br />It started as I was “leaving Las Vegas” Thursday afternoon. I’d just finished a speaking engagement on Faith and the Practice of Law at the UNLV Law School. Things were swirling in the diocesan office and among various people in the city. They were scrambling to put together an evangelism booth at the Pure Aloha Festival to be held in the Silverton Casino the following week. We wanted to use this event to publicize our new Filipino/ Pacific Islander ministries which will kick off in January. Ellie was revising the diocesan evangelism brochure to focus on F/ PI evangelism. She was calling our people to find out how to translate Aloha into Tagalog and Igarot. The replies were coming with proposals to add floral designs. She added floral designs. More languages of the Pacific were suggested. <br /><br />People at different congregations, people who three days ago had never heard of each other, were e mailing back and forth several times a day to coordinate the staffing of our booth which will be open all hours for four days. They were Filipino (Tagalog), Filipino (Igarot), Guamese, Anglo, Cuban, Mexican-American. It was a flurry of trying to do the impossible in too little time. But they were doing it with joy.<br /><br />Context: we were already in full tilt panic getting ready for convention when Tom Walsh said, “What about the Pure Aloha Festival?” Within a day, we had rented what may be the first evangelism booth in a Las Vegas casino. But, hey, we are the 9th Island. Of course it’s impossible, but what would Eddie Aikau do? (If you don’t know, it’s only because you are not from Hawaii. Google Eddie Aikau). As a thousand bumper stickers say in Hawaii, “Eddie would go for it.”<br /><br />Arriving in Reno, I drove straight to the Grove for the Empty Bowls Benefit to raise money for the St. Paul’s Community Food Pantry. Donning my “Bishy D” apron, I served bread, cookies, and ice cream. The place was packed. Many beautiful bowls were purchased. I bought one. A film described St. Paul’s efforts to combat hunger in Reno and Sparks. What the St. Paul’s congregation does each week is an incredible level of ministry driven by an inspiring degree of dedication.<br /><br />Fast forward to Friday morning: I made my way through the line of people waiting to receive food at St. Paul’s, Sparks. Inside, I found Fr. Kirk and his son Cooper who had just come back from a night sleeping on the streets in cardboard boxes. It was an experience of solidarity with the homeless and also another fundraiser. They had sponsors like in a marathon benefit. By acting in solidarity with the homeless, they raised money for ministry to the homeless.<br /><br />Then it was Saturday night. Off to Carson City (arriving late) for the Bristlecone Mass at the Brewery Arts Center. I swear half the town was there to see St. Peter’s performance of a jazz mass written by one of their own members. It was a composition with profound liturgical theology. It went from the words of institution “Do this in remembrance of me” to a song about Jesus being present as a homeless person pushing his shopping cart in the streets, pulling his coat together against the cold. This Mass understood what the incarnation that happens in the Mass means. It concluded with the eschatological welcome song “Come on in.” Along with music by a top class jazz trio and excellent solos supported by the Sagebrush Chorale, there were dancers (square, ballet, interpretive), mimes, and a juggler. The only place I have seen anything remotely comparable to the Bristlecone Mass is at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. This was missional music from a missional church whose Circles of Support program provides a comprehensive array of services to families transitioning from homelessness.<br /><br />Sunday morning I was at our newest free-standing congregation (the Latino ministries are hosted by existing congregations), St. Catherine’s, Reno. At 9 a.m., they had a Family Eucharist – 25 people present – almost all young parents and their children. They were a lively, joyful group singing “Shine, Jesus, Shine.” At 11, the larger congregation came to support three youngsters for their Confirmation. Among them, it was my privilege to confirm the great grandniece of the Rev. Jean Orr who served Christ Church, Pioche so well, so faithfully, and so long. All three of the confirmands were completely engaged and delighted to take this step in the Christian life.<br /><br />All the while, the calls and e mails about the Pure Aloha Festival evangelism booth kept flying. The Evangelism Team was burning the candle at both ends to roll out our new evangelism logo which is still top secret in Nevada but Bishop Katharine and the communications people at 815 are cheering loudly and demanding t shirts. <br /><br />So how was I “listening to the heartbeat of the Church?” Those words are a paraphrase of Philip Newell’s book on Celtic Christianity, Listening to the Heartbeat of God. And they refer to the end of one of Bishop Katharine’s best sermons. At the end she said, “The heartbeat of the Church is ‘mission, mission, mission.’”

Listening To The Heartbeat

“You look happy,” she said. She was the cashier at Maxi’s Café across from the B gates in the Reno airport. It was Sunday afternoon and I wa...

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3 words that will kill your job search

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><b><i><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></i></b></span><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal arial, helvetica;"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" id="tblContent"><tbody><tr id="trContent"><td align="center" class="cb_style tcContent" id="tcContent" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: center;"><div class="cbArticleWrapper" style="background-color: white; text-align: left; width: 750px;"><div class="cbArticleContentWrapper" style="margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 15px; margin-right: 15px; margin-top: 15px; width: 750px;"><div class="cbArticleRight" style="width: 560px;"><div class="RXart" style="padding-right: 20px;"><div class="ArticleHeadline" style="margin-top: -30px;"><div class="cbmsnArticleImage" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" src="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/n4/ar5l55t67yp1b7cw39n4.gif?time=8/21/2011%2011:15:10%20am" /></div><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">Beth Braccio Hering, Special to CareerBuilder</span></b> </div><br /><div class="ArticleContent"><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">It's not unusual for job seekers to reach a point in their searches when they stop hoping to land a coveted job and resign themselves to considering<i>any</i> position. In theory, this "I'll take anything" attitude sounds promising: Less selectivity means greater possibilities, right?</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Not so fast. Before spending precious time applying to jobs for which you're not qualified, consider these ways that a cast-your-net-everywhere tactic can backfire:</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>1. Employers don't care if you're desperate.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Hiring managers are looking for one thing: a good match between the job and the applicant," says Catherine Jewell, author of "New Résumé New Career." "Employers want to know that you will fit in and feel comfortable with their culture. The more you sound like them the better."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">So just because you're willing to settle for anything, don't assume your value has increased. If you aren't well-versed in the field, your inexperience is bound to be noticed either on paper or in conversation. Conversely, shooting too low in a job search reeks of neediness – never an attractive quality – and raises red flags as to whether you'd be happy in the position or are simply buying time until you can bolt to a more suitable job.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>2. Untargeted applications aren't going to be noticed.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">When quantity starts taking precedence over quality, the product is going to suffer. A general résumé that could fit any position at any company is simply not going to make a hiring manager choose to interview you over countless others.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"The targeted application helps you stand out from the talented pool of applicants," says Joel Garfinkle, founder of DreamJobCoaching.com. "You can highlight specific experiences that relate to what is outlined in the job description, and the employer can easily see how your qualifications fit what he desires." Garfinkle also recommends learning as much as possible about the company before submitting an application in order to tailor your application to its needs.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>3. Busy work takes away from profitable actions.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Most candidates have a certain amount of time and energy they can devote to job searching. If they waste it on generic mass mailings, less is left for activities that could generate good leads.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">"Focus on the positions you really want instead of applying for something you don't want," says Richard Deems, co-author of "Make Job Loss Work for You." "Use the same amount of time to network for introductions into organizations that hire people who do what you want to do. Research companies of interest. Find out their unmet needs, think of how you can meet those unmet needs and then present yourself."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>4. People may see you as wishy-washy.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Networking means reaching out to others and letting them know what you have to offer. An elevator pitch of "Help! I need a job" is unlikely to convince anyone that your skills are worth remembering. Likewise, contacts may be less inclined to think of you or to offer a recommendation if they are unsure what type of job you actually want.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">While you may view yourself as flexible by trying to get a foot in any door at places you'd like to work, others may think differently. "If you apply for just 'anything,' you are wearing out your welcome with that employer," Jewell cautions. "It's tricky to present one image -- say, <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/marketing/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">marketing</a> -- one day, then turn around and present yourself for another opportunity -- such as <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/customer+service/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">customer service</a> -- the next week. It leaves the impression that you don't know who you are and what you are about."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>5. The strategy can create deceptive hope.</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Finally, be aware that churning out applications can do a number on your mind. Initially, the boost in productivity may make you feel as if you're gaining more chances in the job-hunt lottery, but if most of what you've sent out is destined for somebody's wastebasket because it lacks the qualities needed for genuine consideration, your odds of success have not improved.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Garfinkle notes that constantly applying for a job may make you look impressive on the surface. "At the end of the day, your spouse will ask you, 'How's the job search?' and you can respond, 'I sent out 10 résumés today,'" Garfinkle says. "This provides a false sense of feeling good about yourself and the progress you are making on this job search."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Worse yet, the corresponding rejection can damage your self-worth. As Deems warns, "For every 100 you send, you'll only hear from five to seven of them, if that many. And for every one you send that you don't hear from, you'll get a bit more depressed."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">So look for opportunities that offer real hope and put in the effort needed to be a viable candidate. True satisfaction comes from landing a job -- not counting the number of attempts you made.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Beth Braccio Hering researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues for CareerBuilder. Follow @Careerbuilder on Twitter.</i></div></div></div></div></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>

3 words that will kill your job search

Beth Braccio Hering, Special to CareerBuilder   It's not unusual for job seekers to reach a point in their searches when they stop hopin...

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The Dick Van Dyke Show Blogathon: Wandering Down Memory Lane

<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEDhAQZhqPAK_qxS41-xNDYVcgpHEqNER9jOPb8_Q8t2p4L5AdEMElQjDq00BfhaP7VswzuM2VDie7_YnZZb-fgRGJhYtA_EPV_Vu_5twZKA0Tu8NtAWEuDGl_y3A1gUWO4rtCeiDhIEbV/s1600/dick+van+dyke+show.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEDhAQZhqPAK_qxS41-xNDYVcgpHEqNER9jOPb8_Q8t2p4L5AdEMElQjDq00BfhaP7VswzuM2VDie7_YnZZb-fgRGJhYtA_EPV_Vu_5twZKA0Tu8NtAWEuDGl_y3A1gUWO4rtCeiDhIEbV/s1600/dick+van+dyke+show.jpg" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Today marks the 50th anniversary of the premiere of The Dick Van Dyke Show and this post is my contribution to the tribute blogathon hosted by <b>Thrilling Days of Yesteryear</b>. <b style="color: #cc0000;"><a href="http://thrillingdaysofyesteryear.blogspot.com/2011/10/did-you-bring-me-anything-daddy.html">Click here</a> </b>for more on participating blogs...</span></i></span><br /><a name='more'></a><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">In 1991, <i>Nick at Night</i> acquired and began airing <i>The Dick Van Dyke Show</i>, that sitcom über-classic originally shown on CBS from 1961 -1966. Thrilled to be able to once again watch a favorite series I hadn’t seen in 25 years, I was ready to celebrate "our television heritage” with <i>Nick at Nite</i>...</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0gnbtFN4oXI" width="420"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">To hear that tune and see those faces again was uplifting. <i>The Dick Van Dyke Show</i> lost none of its charm over the years. It sparkled still with that trademark mix of sophistication and slapstick ingeniously created by Carl Reiner, written by Bill Persky and Sam Denoff and performed by an unparalleled cast comprised of old pros and newcomers.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><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/AVvXsEhuRGxRelxngaFjTKCnUxsSzcpb50zJ4wRflOTT1nXUPGtjxExAFHm069iuoRSRuQWQDaqSaj5tbt5HZcQ2CNfLteISUJkCcDpeNWuPiAkkoXLXRoSUzpHzmbPFIKuh2OcFR25s_b2H64w7/s1600/laura+petrie+mtm+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuRGxRelxngaFjTKCnUxsSzcpb50zJ4wRflOTT1nXUPGtjxExAFHm069iuoRSRuQWQDaqSaj5tbt5HZcQ2CNfLteISUJkCcDpeNWuPiAkkoXLXRoSUzpHzmbPFIKuh2OcFR25s_b2H64w7/s200/laura+petrie+mtm+2.jpg" width="166" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">TV's first lady</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/AVvXsEiy_Dr250mvcVTaTHQ_sYf9lbZhfKlaxGlaAUfHAratgeRy3OGaOuqLtY6Tn8vJkFdDWKAuDdNcauqdhLxo8Uwu6gXHamoFvVJ3Y-Vk8zuFPrrh9heROSGjVHirvFDfMXH_hH-gflD4im3M/s1600/jacqueline-kennedy-onassis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy_Dr250mvcVTaTHQ_sYf9lbZhfKlaxGlaAUfHAratgeRy3OGaOuqLtY6Tn8vJkFdDWKAuDdNcauqdhLxo8Uwu6gXHamoFvVJ3Y-Vk8zuFPrrh9heROSGjVHirvFDfMXH_hH-gflD4im3M/s200/jacqueline-kennedy-onassis.jpg" width="169" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">America's first lady</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Of course, I noticed a thing or two about the show that I hadn't long, long ago. One thing that caught my eye was that Rob and Laura Petrie (Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore) resembled nothing so much as a loosened-up, middle-class (and very funny) rendition of John F. and Jackie Kennedy, who were in the White House when <i>Dick Van Dyke </i>premiered and through its early years. Later I learned that on the day JFK delivered his famous inaugural address ("...ask not what your country can do for you..."),  the cast and crew of <i>The Dick Van Dyke Show </i>were filming the show's first episode. Who knew that two New Frontiers would open on the same day...</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Laura Petrie was a perkier sort of of Jackie Kennedy. She was a cooking, cleaning, singing, dancing, housebound helpmate whereas the first lady masterminded state dinners, kept up with the arts, treasured all things French and spent weekends riding</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> horses. But both ladies were fashion trendsetters. Beautiful Jackie popularized not just pillbox hats but an overall look of elegant simplicity. Meanwhile, New Rochelle's lovely Laura Petrie started a fashion craze of her own when she wore Capri pants...</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/g6Fydn69Hl8" width="420"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: small;">CBS at first objected when Mary Tyler Moore began wearing pants on the show. For the most part TV housewives of that time were usually seen puttering about their homes in dresses (and, in June Cleaver's case, pearls and heels), and Laura-in-pants made the network nervous. Moore and producer Carl Reiner had agreed that since her character spent so much time at home, it made sense for her to dress casually. Within a few short years <i>Time Magazine </i>was proclaiming that Moore had "helped make Capri pants the biggest trend in US casual attire." </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: small;">In the early '90s, as I watched Laura whip up a cake (or was she frying liver?) on <i>Nick at Nite</i>, I felt a sudden wave of nostalgia for the age of single-income families and stay-at-home moms.  Laura's life seemed so simple. She had most of her day to herself. While Rob was at work and Ritchie in school, all she had to do was keep the house and clothes clean, make sure there were groceries in the kitchen and food on the table. Rob probably even handled the bills! I didn't take this line of forbidden thinking very seriously for very long - but it gave me pause as I recalled my youthful scorn for the world of the housewife.</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> A few years after <i>The Dick Van Dyke Show</i> ended, Mary Tyler Moore moved on to her own show. No longer a housewife on the New Frontier, she resurfaced as that beyond-iconic single working woman, Mary Richards of WJM-TV, Minneapolis. As I write this it occurs that, like Mary, I (eventually) became a single woman working for a local TV station - hadn't really thought about it before! Time to toss my hat in the air...</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: small;">The first episode of <i>The Dick Van Dyke Show</i> aired 50 years ago tonight (2600 weeks ago tomorrow night at 8:00) - here's what viewers saw when they tuned in:</span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TIn8mPy5_jA" width="420"></iframe></div>

Bill Persky Carl Reiner Dick Van Dyke Mary Tyler Moore Morey Amsterdam Nick at Nite Rose Marie Sam Denoff The Dick Van Dyke Show The Lady Eve (author) The Dick Van Dyke Show Blogathon: Wandering Down Memory Lane

Today marks the 50th anniversary of the premiere of The Dick Van Dyke Show and this post is my contribution to the tribute blogathon hosted ...

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34 ideas for a classroom blog

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />Classroom blogging is one of the most exciting ventures for a classroom teacher to embark on. It opens a door of possibilities and makes the way for making a host of new friends around the world. Apart from that it gives parents an opportunity to take a peek into the classroom and see what is happening. I love blogging!<br /><br />This weekend I presented a workshop entitled ‘Blogging for teachers’ at the EdTechConference at Elkanah House in Cape Town. I started off with the ideas that follow in the slide-share presentation below as a source of inspiration. Then we did the workshop part where the inexperienced bloggers worked from an e-book to create their new blogs, the educators with blogs used one of the inspirational ideas to develop their blog, and I walked around helping whoever needed help.   I also invited the participants who already had blogs to demonstrate their blogs to the rest of the class.  <br /><div id="__ss_9470769" style="width: 425px;"><strong style="display: block; margin: 12px 0px 4px;"><a href="http://www.slideshare.net/fionabeal/34-ideas-for-a-classroom-blog" target="_blank" title="34 ideas for a classroom blog">34 ideas for a classroom blog</a></strong> <iframe frameborder="0" height="355" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/9470769" width="425"></iframe> <br /><div style="padding: 5px 0px 12px;">View more <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/" target="_blank">presentations</a> from <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/fionabeal" target="_blank">fionabeal</a> </div></div></div>

Blogging 34 ideas for a classroom blog

Classroom blogging is one of the most exciting ventures for a classroom teacher to embark on. It opens a door of possibilities and makes the...

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The latest (2011–2012) iEARN project book has been released

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />Are you perhaps wanting to start a collaborative project with a class but you don’t quite know where to start? Omashani Naidoo who is the <i>Operations Manager </i>at SchoolNetSA brings our attention to the latest 2011-2012 iEARN Project Description Book which is now available on the web at: <a href="http://www.iearn.org/iearn-project-book">http://www.iearn.org/iearn-project-book</a>. This book is full of project ideas where the originators of the projects are looking for a class to collaborate with. Why not take a look? (Please note that there will be new iEARN projects continually developing.  You can visit <a href="http://media.iearn.org/projects">http://media.iearn.org/projects</a> for the most up to date project list.)   <br /><br /><br /><div id="__ss_9510270" style="width: 477px;"><strong style="display: block; margin: 12px 0px 4px;"><a href="http://www.slideshare.net/fionabeal/2011-2012%20i-EARNprojectbook" title="2011-2012 iEARN-projectbook">2011-2012 <br />iEARN-projectbook</a></strong><object height="510" id="__sse9510270" width="477"><param name="movie" value="http://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/doc_player.swf?doc=2011-2012iearnprojectbook-111002115052-phpapp02&stripped_title=2011-2012i-earnprojectbook&userName=fionabeal" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"/><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"/><embed name="__sse9510270" src="http://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/doc_player.swf?doc=2011-2012iearnprojectbook-111002115052-phpapp02&stripped_title=2011-2012i-earnprojectbook&userName=fionabeal" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="477" height="510"></embed></object><br /><div style="padding: 5px 0px 12px;">View more <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/">documents</a> from <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/fionabeal">fionabeal</a>.</div></div></div>

Collaboration Project-based learning The latest (2011–2012) iEARN project book has been released

Are you perhaps wanting to start a collaborative project with a class but you don’t quite know where to start? Omashani Naidoo who is the Op...

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Evaluating the impact of technology integration at St Cyprians School in Cape Town

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div align="left"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>This is a guest post written by Nina Adams who is Head of ICT at St Cyprians in Cape Town. She plans, implements and manages all things ICT, from infrastructure to staff training.  She also heads up the Microsoft Innovative Schools programme which means she is responsible for researching, implementing and documenting best practice in the areas of innovation and ICT integration. St Cyprians is passionate about technology and innovation, and its impact on 21st century teaching and learning. Nina has recently evaluated their move to technology integration and has allowed us to use this post she posted on the St Cyprian’s Blog that she is responsible for maintaining -</em> </span><a href="http://techblog.stcyprians.net/" title="http://techblog.stcyprians.net/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">http://techblog.stcyprians.net/</span></a> <br /><br /></div>In an effort to evaluate the impact of ICT integration into our school curriculum, we recently conducted an informal case study consisting of student and teacher interviews. These interviews are based on seven projects with ICT components, ranging from Grade 4 to Grade 10 students, across a range of subjects, and were conducted by a representative from SchoolNet South Africa. (All projects have been posted on our school blog.) Although our initial findings are by no means conclusive or irrefutable, the responses from students and teachers highlighted the following interesting trends:<br /><ul><li>Many students who usually achieve average to below average marks in ‘traditional’ projects such as essays or posters have shown significant improvement with the inclusion of an ICT component for e.g. Movie Maker or Glogster. They ascribed this to the fact that different types of projects engaged different learning styles, as not all students are good at writing or exam-taking. They also reported an overall increase in confidence and interest due to their higher marks and additional creative elements of the project.<br /></li><li>Students who usually achieve relatively high marks for ‘traditional’ assessment projects, such as essays, tests or exams, reported that they found the integration of ICT quite challenging. They felt this was due to the fact that these projects often included a high degree of collaboration with students of mixed level abilities. That meant that they had to learn patience and team work, both important 21st century skills.</li></ul><ul><li>Teachers have reported that students with special learning needs also benefit from ICT tools, for e.g. Mouse Mischief, reading software tools and others. In many cases, collaborating in groups with their peers has given students the opportunity to learn from and assist each other, with some amazing results. </li></ul><b>From the interview responses, we have learned some important lessons:</b><br /><ul><li><b>Technology should not be the driver: </b>ICT integration often overemphasises the need for digital literacy skills whilst ignoring important basic skills, such as reading, writing and maths. We have found that successful ICT integration involves a balance; technology should enhance and support teaching and learning, rather than drive it.<br /></li><li><b>Separating ICT from other subjects:</b> In the past, ICT has usually been viewed as a separate subject, often taught in separate IT labs. Teachers have reported increased engagement and interest in their subjects by integrating ICT as a supportive mechanism or creative addition to a project, rather than as a separate learning outcome. We have also piloted mini ‘break-away’ labs in classrooms with increasing success; teachers can then access computers during class instead of booking an IT lab which often breaks the flow of a class.<br /></li><li><b>The best project ideas are usually the simplest ideas:</b> In the case of our award-winning Grade 4 project, students still had to complete a creative reading and writing assignment as they usually would. Then one new element was added, which in this case was the creation of a multi-media movie based on their written stories. In the case of the Grade 10 book blogs, traditional book logs simply evolved to an electronic blog version, allowing increased visibility and the ability to comment on each other’s work.<br /></li><li><b>Some of the best ICT tools are free: </b>Find out more under the ‘Resources’ section of the school blog.<br /></li><li><b>Rapid technology changes:</b> We often worry about rapid changes in technology and are therefore constantly looking ahead at the ‘next best thing’. In our experience, there is value in concentrating on what you already have and making the most of it before moving on to something new.<br /></li><li><b>Teacher collaboration and sharing is essential for success:</b> This can be through teacher show ‘n tell, by sharing lessons during staff meetings or by joining online learning communities. We cannot encourage 21st century skills in students if we don't practise them ourselves and we have found teacher collaboration to be a wonderful source of ideas, lesson plans and inspiration.<br /></li><li><b>Teacher training and support is key: </b>Professional development needs to be part of school culture. With the right training, support and encouragement, even resistant staff can be motivated to try new methods or technologies.</li></ul>Here is a movie in which some of the students and a teacher at St Cyprians are interviewed about the AIDS awareness project they completed using Windows Movie Maker.<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/PcN_hf5wESc" width="420"></iframe></div>

Guest post Evaluating the impact of technology integration at St Cyprians School in Cape Town

This is a guest post written by Nina Adams who is Head of ICT at St Cyprians in Cape Town. She plans, implements and manages all things ICT,...

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Show Me, Don't Tell Me

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><b><i><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></i></b></span><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal arial, helvetica;"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" id="tblContent"><tbody><tr id="trContent"><td align="center" class="cb_style tcContent" id="tcContent" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: center;"><div class="cbArticleWrapper" style="background-color: white; text-align: left; width: 750px;"><div class="cbArticleContentWrapper" style="margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 15px; margin-right: 15px; margin-top: 15px; width: 750px;"><div class="cbArticleRight" style="width: 560px;"><div class="RXart" style="padding-right: 20px;"><div class="ArticleHeadline" style="margin-top: -30px;"><div class="cbmsnArticleImage" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/n4/ar5f4jh673jv6vpjqtn4.gif" /></div><b><span id="cbArticle_lblByLine">Frances Cole Jones, author of "How to Wow"</span></b> </div><br /><div class="ArticleContent"><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">As you may know, the first rule of writing good fiction is, "Show me, don't tell me." The idea being that you can't say a character is resilient, thoughtful, or brave you need to <i>show</i> the reader that he or she are these things.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Somehow this idea has not translated into our other writing, particularly in the context of applying for jobs. For example, how many of us have seen cover letters in which a candidate describes him or herself as "a real go getter," only to have that résumé collecting dust on our desk three weeks later -- three weeks during which that "go-getter" of a candidate didn't pick up the phone?</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">How else might a go-getter distinguish him or herself from the pack? Well, recently I walked out of Grand Central Station to find two young people dressed in business suits standing on the sidewalk handing out copies of their résumés. What were their stated objectives? Entry-level jobs in <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/finance/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">finance</a>and <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/marketing/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">marketing</a>. Their qualifications? The usual for people just starting out: captain of the swim team, internship at local <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/retail/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">retail</a> store, a summer at the local copy shop. In addition to hard copies of their résumé, however, they had also blown each up to a poster-board size and created video résumés and posted them on YouTube -- the URL for these was at the top of their CVs. Seeing these actions told me more than any video: they were creative, gutsy, and self-confident. You can bet that if I had been at a financial or marketing firm with -- or without -- an opening, they would have been hired on the spot. They brought being a "go-getter" to life.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Another gap in candidates' descriptions of themselves is often revealed via a technique I recently heard <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/human+resources/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">HR</a> professionals are using to weed out those who are truly committed to working for a particular firm, from those who are not: what they do is stop the interview halfway through and says "I just don't think you're the right fit for us" -- regardless of the candidate's experience. One of the HR professionals with whom I spoke says it's amazing how many people actually say, "I actually didn't think so either, but I just thought I'd come in ... "</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Um ... how not to wow.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">How do I recommend you handle this situation, should you encounter it? First, make sure you don't look down, lean back ... reveal your discomfort through your body in any way. Smile. Inhale. Speak on an exhalation. Say, "I understand how you may think that, given my lack of experience with X/my checkered past/how long I've been freelancing, but I think you've underestimated how committed I am to working for your firm. If I may, I'll take you through my thinking one more time." A response that, both physically and verbally, should reassure the most hardboiled of HR professionals.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Another misstep I heard about was the story of a candidate who touted his laser focus/unparalleled dedication throughout his lunch interview, only to take out his PDA and begin returning calls as his host paid the check. My guess is that he was either uncomfortable with sitting in silence, or wished to convey his busyness or importance. What I can tell you is that his choice backfired -- instead causing the HR director to move him from the top slot to the bottom of the list.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Albert Schweitzer, the famed theologian, philosopher and <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/physician/" style="color: #3300cc; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">physician</a> said, "Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing." Nowhere is this truer than in a job interview scenario -- where what isn't said is often far more important than what is.</div></div></div></div></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>

Show Me, Don't Tell Me

Frances Cole Jones, author of "How to Wow"   As you may know, the first rule of writing good fiction is, "Show me, don't ...

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Nuanced Terror: Jack Clayton's The Innocents

<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/AVvXsEicH-e8mFI_SW9POdM0_GT7X6mWo6WqaqbL4BpSwtZRhPTiJ2WiG_tWkjzgAqt1mr_eXT16CAT2joJ5xgtkNsqEUMhMa6zDPivQ8NRdvvXXY0azay_5MiLsM-9VWc1vSOey6-Bo05thaPXe/s1600/innocents+2+b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicH-e8mFI_SW9POdM0_GT7X6mWo6WqaqbL4BpSwtZRhPTiJ2WiG_tWkjzgAqt1mr_eXT16CAT2joJ5xgtkNsqEUMhMa6zDPivQ8NRdvvXXY0azay_5MiLsM-9VWc1vSOey6-Bo05thaPXe/s1600/innocents+2+b.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Light and shadow flicker across the screen. Sobs are heard as a pair of praying hands, clasping and unclasping, appear. The sobbing continues.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">A woman’s suffering face appears above the tortured hands. Birds twitter…her distraught voice whispers…</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">All I want to do is save the children not destroy them. More than anything I love children. More than anything they need affection, love, someone who will belong to them and to whom they will belong.</span></i><br /><a name='more'></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">And then, as a man’s voice asks, “Do you have an imagination?,” the screen suddenly focuses on a well-appointed office, an elegant gentleman and the woman whose face we have already seen…who now sits in a chair and speaks animatedly with this man as he continues to ask questions and explain the situation he offers. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><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/AVvXsEiMvU7f_2Yyk4vviHoRnzhqUyeJd2MVgPxn4Sh6gTtwN9W7An7lbbx_leT3BXlfzGqRdh4S43Az0LU7FxbMsZiRuqpY6QNX2qJifvwoR1HcMxTlycLV_hT6_ppID1Dew0yvK4sUrhT5dxNw/s1600/innocents+clayton.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMvU7f_2Yyk4vviHoRnzhqUyeJd2MVgPxn4Sh6gTtwN9W7An7lbbx_leT3BXlfzGqRdh4S43Az0LU7FxbMsZiRuqpY6QNX2qJifvwoR1HcMxTlycLV_hT6_ppID1Dew0yvK4sUrhT5dxNw/s1600/innocents+clayton.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Director Jack Clayton</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">These first moments of Jack Clayton’s masterful 1961 film, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Innocents</i>, set the stage for a chilling and absorbing tale of bewitchment. Deborah Kerr stars as Miss Giddens, an anxious, fragile-seeming young woman who begins her first assignment as a governess for two orphaned children on a remote estate. Michael Redgrave briefly portrays the gentleman, Miss Giddens’ employer, whose questions and revelations prime and subtly spook her before she sets foot in the stately home where events will unfold.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The story intensifies when Miss Giddens arrives at Bly, a magnificent manor that far exceeds her expectations in its grandeur and beauty. She is “very excited, indeed” to be there and her two “angelic” and precocious charges easily charm her. An earthy housekeeper, Mrs. Grose (Megs Jenkins), serves to ground the excitable governess whose journey proceeds from enchantment to confusion, to torment and disintegration.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">American novelist Henry James wrote <u>The Turn of the Screw</u>, the basis for this film, in 1898 while living in England in a large rambling mansion. James has recorded that the story was suggested to him by an anecdote he heard from the Archbishop of Canterbury. This scrap of a tale concerned young children haunted by the malevolent ghosts of a pair of servants who tried, again and again, to lure them to their deaths.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><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/AVvXsEhvzcB0zbEi-q79brohDO5nlIrXslCo08XgZNntlEbdag-S_019xhst6Mb2gPWjHCbNbk0x_noXWX3Te7wfhLEe0rZ67R5Ep5gWDFbtsIsfKRy0qdNXe_FjRlytbXVQzFFRuKz5PVGyW2pb/s1600/innocents+james.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvzcB0zbEi-q79brohDO5nlIrXslCo08XgZNntlEbdag-S_019xhst6Mb2gPWjHCbNbk0x_noXWX3Te7wfhLEe0rZ67R5Ep5gWDFbtsIsfKRy0qdNXe_FjRlytbXVQzFFRuKz5PVGyW2pb/s320/innocents+james.jpg" width="258" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Novelist Henry James</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The James novella depicts a young governess on her first assignment, the care of two children living in a grand mansion on a sprawling estate. The plot deepens when the young woman, daughter of a vicar, begins to suspect the presence of the evil spirits of two deceased servants.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">It was several years after James’ book was published before critics began to wrangle in earnest over the interpretation of the story. By the 1920s several had proposed that <u>The Turn of the Screw</u> was less a ghost story and more the tale of inexperienced and high-strung governess who succumbed to hallucinations and madness. A 1934 essay by prominent critic Edmund Wilson dramatically advanced this view.  Henry James himself was equivocal about his intentions, and statements he made on the subject have been cited to support both <i>apparitionist</i> and <i>non-apparitionist</i> views. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Fascination with <u>The Turn of the Screw</u> failed to wane over the years and it has been adapted from the page to other mediums including opera, the stage and TV as well as film. In February 1950, Peter Cookson’s production of William Archibald’s stage adaption of the James novella debuted on Broadway as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Innocents</i>; Oscar-winner Beatrice Straight (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Network</i>) starred as the governess.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Eleven years later the play was adapted to film by British director, Jack Clayton (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Room at the Top</i>). Though William Archibald was involved, it was Truman Capote who was </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">primarily responsible for the polished screenplay. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Capote endeavored to maintain the story’s ambiguity as he felt Henry James had originally conceived it by artfully dodging the central question: Are the ghosts real or are they the fantasies of a governess gone mad? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglBZH7FCz9oM7ojgn1FtMMtr0gAHA3aaNH6kfICmL_hWMDA4cMBuZWUK1G2ELcHWrLIEh8rHcTd335bHOIIZ4ZUWlVP-PdRz5WT5WJRSANT7-yuvoiYAbaJrUi3yqduO6RWEL_pvN0rcGI/s1600/innocents+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglBZH7FCz9oM7ojgn1FtMMtr0gAHA3aaNH6kfICmL_hWMDA4cMBuZWUK1G2ELcHWrLIEh8rHcTd335bHOIIZ4ZUWlVP-PdRz5WT5WJRSANT7-yuvoiYAbaJrUi3yqduO6RWEL_pvN0rcGI/s400/innocents+1.jpg" width="293" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Taking the modern view, it’s not difficult to interpret <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Innocents</i> as an intricately staged reflection on an unstable woman’s descent into madness: the film closely follows the increasingly erratic behavior and visible deterioration of the omnipresent governess; no one but the governess actually “sees” the ghosts she claims are present; by the film’s end, even the sensible and supportive housekeeper is at odds with the hysterical young woman…and there are many visual clues that the governess may be projecting her own imaginings onto her surroundings. It is no stretch these days to believe that a deranged governess would be capable of terrifying a frightened child to death.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">But, viewed from another perspective, the tale can also be read as the story of an inexperienced but well-meaning young woman confronted with the supernatural in the form of malicious spirits. Her fervid determination to save the children from possession could explain her unorthodox behavior. And that is what most people believed when <u>The Turn of the Screw</u> was first published. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Enigmatic and haunting, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Innocents</i> leaves the audience to its own conclusions. A luminous turn by Deborah Kerr (in her own favorite film performance), Freddie Francis’ atmospheric cinematography, the script of Archibald and Capote and Georges Auric’s original music all mesh under Jack Clayton’s sure hand to create the acknowledged masterpiece among the many adaptations of <u>The Turn of the Screw</u>. </span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/FVEu8wV1QIA" width="560"></iframe></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><br /><span style="color: #990000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><b>Waitin' on a Sunny Day</b> is hosting a <b>Deborah Kerr Blogathon</b> in celebration of the 90th anniversary of the actress's birth...<a href="http://sophie-waitinonasunnyday.blogspot.com/2011/09/darling-deborah-blogathon-posts.html"><b>Click here</b></a> for more on participating blogs.</span><br /><br /><div style="color: black;"><i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The Innocents </span></i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">airs today (1:45pm Eastern/10:45am Pacific) on <b>Turner Classic Movies</b> as part of its morning/afternoon spotlight on the films of Deborah Kerr. Here's the full schedule (all times Eastern/Pacific):</span></div><div style="color: black;"><br /></div><div style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">6:00am/3:00am <i>Count Your Blessings</i> (1959), co-starring Rossano Brazzi</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">8:00am/5:00am <i>If Winter Comes </i>(1947), co-starring Walter Pidgeon</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">10:00am/7:00am <i>Black Narcissus</i> (1947), a masterwork from Powell & Pressburger</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">11:45am/8:45am <i>The End of the Affair </i>(1955), co-starring Van Johnson</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">1:45pm/10:45am <i>The Innocents </i>(1961), reviewed here...with Michael Redgrave</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">3:30pm/12:30pm <i>The Journey </i>(1959), co-starring Yul Brynner</span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">5:45pm/2:45pm <i>The Sundowners</i> (1960), co-starring Robert Mitchum </span></div><div style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span></div></div>

Deborah Kerr Freddie Francis Georges Auric Henry James Jack Clayton Meg Jenkins Michael Redgrave The Innocents The Lady Eve (author) The Turn of the Screw Nuanced Terror: Jack Clayton's The Innocents

Light and shadow flicker across the screen. Sobs are heard as a pair of praying hands, clasping and unclasping, appear. The sobbing continue...

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Why Do You Want to Lose Weight?

<a href="http://123glitter.com/comments-graphics/file/7888.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://123glitter.com/comments-graphics/file/7888.jpg" width="185" /></a>I have come across 2 situations this week where I was reminded of that question yet again.  I mean, I think about being heavy ALL the time, but this question was kind of spelled out in black and white on 2 separate occasions for me this week.<br /><br />First, it was at the Weight Watchers meeting on Wednesday night.  When asked that question, most members said they wanted to lose weight for health reasons. <br /><br />As part of the Beck Diet Solution, one of the first items we are tasked with is to come up with our reasons for wanting to lose weight. <br /><br />Here are 17 of mine in no particular order:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">1. Get to wear nicer, age appropriate clothes</div><div style="text-align: center;">2. More confidence, especially at work</div><div style="text-align: center;">3. Healthier - not so sore in the muscles</div><div style="text-align: center;">4. More comfortable in the summer - less sweating</div><div style="text-align: center;">5. Can fit more comfortably in chairs</div><div style="text-align: center;">6. Can do more social activities</div><div style="text-align: center;">7. Joel could pick me up</div><div style="text-align: center;">8. Feel pretty</div><div style="text-align: center;">9. Feel more in control</div><div style="text-align: center;">10. Overall happiness</div><div style="text-align: center;">11. Improved love life</div><div style="text-align: center;">12. Not being self-conscious in a bathing suit</div><div style="text-align: center;">13. Exercise without embarassment</div><div style="text-align: center;">14. More assertive</div><div style="text-align: center;">15. I'll feel that I've accomplished something great</div><div style="text-align: center;">16. Make Joel proud</div><div style="text-align: center;">17. Doing what is right by God - not being gluttonous</div><br />Then I came across <a href="http://www.itsuxtobefat.com/weight-loss/100-reasons-thinner-is-better.html">Jennifer's post on 100 Reasons Thinner is Better</a>.  She has lost close to 100 lbs!  Many of her reasons for why being thinner is better coincide with my reasons for wanting to get rid of these 89 lbs. I especially loved these:<br /> <br /><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" src="data:image/png;base64,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" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" src="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAQIAAAAZCAIAAABVS7frAAADCklEQVR4nO1Z0XXDIAzsTmzDMqyiVRiFSeiHjRFIEGGctnm9+8hzHKMTQieB85UB4N/j67cdAIDfB2QAAJABAEAGAJAhAwDIkAEAZMgAAPJQBom8C7H97pxzzlOyGe4taHeWhr8ViSjmRIHSz1AvccTAw57Iu3bsaaz/IQbnApWFY/CUJqvTXKhEnKDAOBmdpb1YsPL6oRhMRjUZnNOrw6utdkXWXP3hzF7BIYBIlPLfk0EMIYQa9bMisdFNJpUHO4b5195IlYFOlE+RRfaDKS8mSf+0DHKOIcTj4yV6GcTgnPMUOZFRUa9c5Xeu7nLEMpFv1pk5kMh7oiCLTqlFPgQvlqCzP7MjKPUgX6WP59kChfC5SahxRT1CE6sOZJVjDl/J2dermzIYEYnxzQpym3xuvH2U26clFoQ+T3gerkRvQQWWTVGzuo9sitga1YbO7vCunchfrGxcvYxBeCXtD+2YPO8SzVO6RdH6LGKhelUCU7Ox0Mk7lSSKpLwtA5XIVI5HITJfqIEfRG+zhdtk0BY886ZIQq2yTT84L14EpatRE5/Kk8MaM5275XkrhVpX+U1FB3Vu14M8CFoKHIHv3VVkMFgdJfKCyJ4GoxAty2AUvcuPW3uWAms3KHM2Hw5eJRNrkDyyhWweFLmJEi4p9ndkoE16jUJMX2zAJE2XrT1LXzIms9voBgqRvr9dWYVVGajR63dZa9LksLwpYhvTZ2TAjlfNdpN1861uoNl/uBvcoFjvBu3MhsqJb5eBIJLjZWJMQ/RYN9jYCTGYXpg2u8P9N0X9PE+LR1lhX2a5NTsbqPZ3ZNAVRiePcSaK1bNBIt+YOJZB3968WwaCqAv76irM6GogEtuP3zlZmWH830Ccx+eZpD7Q5ZI89TNJGEpscSmQlKZif0sGPAKNaBcpyiDTu45eBfX42z7Jc2VIvS8DnWhy6lNX+bh3qrl9L3T9VAd6oq4JjKM3eFNsw+f/i3xr2gDA8aEy4IVooxcCQM75Y2UAAE8CMgAAyAAAIAMAyJABAGTIAAByzt+cPOt7nAV3GgAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" src="data:image/png;base64,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" /> </div><br />Why do you want to remove the weight?

goals Inspiration Weight Loss Weight Loss Challenges Weight Watchers Why Do You Want to Lose Weight?

I have come across 2 situations this week where I was reminded of that question yet again.  I mean, I think about being heavy ALL the time, ...

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Is it time to reassess your job search plan?

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><b><i><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana; font-size: medium;"></span></i></b></span><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal arial, helvetica;"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" id="tblContent"><tbody><tr id="trContent"><td align="center" class="cb_style tcContent" id="tcContent" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: center;"><div class="cbArticleWrapper" style="background-color: white; text-align: left; width: 750px;"><div class="cbArticleContentWrapper" style="margin-bottom: 15px; margin-left: 15px; margin-right: 15px; margin-top: 15px; width: 750px;"><div class="cbArticleRight" style="width: 560px;"><div class="RXart" style="padding-right: 20px;"><div class="ArticleHeadline" style="margin-top: -30px;"><div style="color: #333333; font: italic normal normal 16px/normal arial, helvetica;"><span id="cbArticle_lblHeadline2">Telltale signs that your search tactics need a makeover</span></div><b><span id="cbArticle_lblByLine">Alina Dizik, Special to CareerBuilder</span></b><br /></div><br /><div class="ArticleContent"><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">It's easy to get frustrated with your job search, especially if you've been searching for a while. But not making headway can mean that you need to reassess your approach. Not sure if your job seeking process needs a makeover? Here are eight telltale signs that it's time to rethink your job search approach.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>You're not hearing back from employers</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">If you've spent months applying and aren't hearing back from employers, it's time to reassess. Most likely, you're not tailoring your résumé and cover letters enough to warrant a response, explains Heather Huhman, founder of Come Recommended, a career consultancy. Also, check for other errors, such as spelling, in your documents.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>You're landing interviews but no offers</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Not getting an offer means your interviewing techniques could be out of date. Do your due diligence to find out what interviewing skills you're lacking. "Identify your weaknesses during interviews and improve upon them," Huhman says. "Do this by practicing interview questions with a friend or family member, attending mock interview sessions at a career center or videotaping yourself answering questions."</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>You're reaching too high</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">While it's always recommended to go for your dream job, those dreams must be realistic. Applying for jobs "without the necessary qualifications" can be a waste of time, unless you're willing to take time and build that experience, Huhman explains.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>You're focusing on job roles not companies</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Instead of conducting a broad search based on function, tailor your search to specific firms where you'd really like to work. "Focusing on five to ten specific companies of interest in your desired location allows for a much more focused job search," Huhman says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>You're depressed</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">A job search is never fun, but if you find yourself getting sadder each day, it's a sign that you need a new approach, says Dawn Rasmussen, founder of Pathfinder Writing and Career Services. "If you start to feel down, try volunteering in industry organizations to help increase your visibility, make yourself a known entity, and help build skills during a job search," she adds.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>You're unaware of your web presence</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">If you've never paid attention to how your name appears online, it's time to start. "Nearly every HR professional now will check Google and Facebook to research potential candidate," Huhman says. Complete your LinkedIn profile, check privacy settings for Facebook and Twitter and make sure any other online forums you've involved in are appropriate for a professional audience.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>You're not circling back with contacts</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Whether it's a thank-you note after the interview or a simple email to check in with someone in your network, it's important to keep an open channel of communication with those who've been helping you with your search. "No one wants to feel used, so disregarding new contacts after the initial contact is a huge problem that many people don't realize is killing their job search," Rasmussen says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>Your network is not helpful</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Just because you're spending your time talking to contacts, doesn't mean these are people that can actually be useful in your search. Instead, reassess your network and find contacts that are a match for the industry and position you're trying to pursue -- even if it means approaching well-regarded experts. "Swallow your fear and pursue meaningful connections with contacts relevant to your area," Rasmussen says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>You're ready to take any job available</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Even if you're desperate, announcing that you're looking for any paying job can actually hurt your chances. Take time to figure out the specifics of your job search and ask for assistance based on these requirements. Even those closest to you who would really like to help feel lost without any direction, Rasmussen explains. "Many job seekers fail to understand this basic rule of asking for help: Specifics get you farther in terms of assistance from your network than vague <a href="" name="_GoBack" style="color: #000099; font-family: Arial; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;"></a>generalities," she says.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>Alina Dizik researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues for CareerBuilder. Follow @Careerbuilder on Twitter</i></div></div></div></div></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table>

Is it time to reassess your job search plan?

Telltale signs that your search tactics need a makeover Alina Dizik, Special to CareerBuilder It's easy to get frustrated with your job ...

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