Superb Day

We have all heard the jokes and negative comments surrounding lawyers but have you ever wondered how it all got started. Just as with any profession, there is bad and good. Are there unethical, incompetent attorneys? Of course! Just as there are unethical, incompetent plumbers, physicians, and restaurant workers. However, for some inexplicable reason, it seems lawyers have had more than their fair share of “bad”. The complexity of the law and the demand for legal services from the boardroom to the coat room validate that the profession does have value, so why the bad press?

Well let’s begin with fees. The hourly bill may just have been the beginning of the end for the legal profession. No one is in a good mood when an hourly meter is running, particularly when you can’t control the number of hours that you purchase! Traditionally, Lawyers have relied on the hourly rate, as their standard for billing. With this billing arrangement, the law firm would maintain a record of everything done for you to include phone calls, written letters, court appearances, consultations, etc. You are then billed an agreed upon hourly fee for all of the time that was spent working on your behalf. In addition, you could also incur additional expenses such as transportation, document fees, even phone calls. While this practice is standard in many professions, many consumers believe that attorneys inflate expenses in an effort to make additional profit.

In truth, most service providers use an hourly rate to calculate a fee. In example, an accountant might quote you a fee of $250.00 to review your taxes. The fee is not out of line with your geographic area and the accountant comes highly recommended so you opt to hire him/her at this rate. What you may not realize is that the $250 flat fee may be based on the accountant’s knowledge that the review will take 2.5 hours of time at $100 per hour.

Many attorneys have become a bit more market savvy and offer alternative billing arrangements. Rather than hourly bills and separate expense charges, they may offer case rates, retainer agreements and other solutions. The key is in providing value for the dollar charged, and creating long term relationships.

Another area that has eroded the reputation of lawyers is the unfortunate lapses in ethical behavior. While most attorneys do in fact adhere to the standards of law, the few bad apples have made it difficult for the public to trust lawyers. For example, in the state of South Carolina a young man was on trial for a murder that most believe he never committed. His family sold their home, cars, and gathered all the cash possible to hire a good defense lawyer. Believing their son was in the best hands possible, they discovered that the prosecuting attorney was married to their lawyer’s sister and that pertinent information had been shared, resulting in a mistrial. As you can imagine, this put a black mark against those attorneys, as well as others who were innocent but within the same community.

Personal injury law has been another source of questionable ethics. Billboard and commercial advertisements abound with the promise of high dollar settlements for your case. This marketing tactic only adds to the negative perception of the legal profession, as it makes them appear as ethical as snake oil salesmen.

Additionally, most of us have heard the horror stories about attorneys collaborating back room deals with physicians. In this instance, an attorney wanting to win a case involving a car accident or injury on the job might send his client to a “special” doctor that will validate and even overemphasize the level of injury. The doctor testifies in court in support of the plaintiff, giving the attorney and case strong credibility. Again, these practices are not standard for all personal injury lawyers but unfortunately the actions of a minority have significantly impacted the majority.

The attorneys that engage in unethical practices deserve to be drummed right out of the profession. Sadly, it is unlikely to happen because just as there is a market for competent, ethical law practitioners there is also a market for the legal underbelly. People that desire to bring forward fraudulent lawsuits, illegal adoptions or even illegal immigrations will turn to attorneys who are willing to work around the established rules of law.

Most attorneys are honest, hard-working individuals who take their work very seriously. Because of this, we see a number of law firms working to change public opinion. There are dishonest “professionals” in any field. We can look to education for current examples. There seems to be a spate of sex scandals involving schoolteachers, yet, the four cases that have been highlighted in the news within the past year does not mean all schoolteachers are sex offenders.

The same is true with lawyers. Yes, we have seen cases in which some are not honest and sadly, those are the cases exploited through the media. What you do not hear much of are stories about the reputable attorneys that solve cases and help improve or even change lives. While the public may not be quite ready to elevate lawyers to hero status maybe, just maybe we can start a kinder, gentler trend of being a little nicer.

Richard A. Hall is founder and President/CEO of LexTech, Inc., a legal information consulting company. Mr. Hall has a unique breadth of experience which has enabled him to meld technology and sophisticated statistical analysis to produce a technology driven analytical model of the practice of law. As a busy civil trial attorney, he was responsible for the design and implementation of a LAN based litigation database and fully automated document production system for a mid-sized civil defense firm. He developed a task based billing model built on extensive statistical analysis of hundreds of litigated civil matters. In 1994, Mr. Hall invented linguistic modeling software which automatically reads, applies budget codes, budget codes and analyzes legal bill content. He also served as California Director and lecturer for a nationwide bar review. Mr. Hall continues to practice law and perform pro bono services for several Northern California judicial districts.

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Occasionally - just occasionally - there comes along a TV personality whose enthusiasm and charisma engenders almost universal affection with audiences. Environmentalist, naturalist and documentarist Steve Irwin - known the world over as the Crocodile Hunter - was one of those rare personalities.

Born Steven Robert Irwin on 22 September, 1962 in Melbourne, Australia, Steve Irwin was the owner and manager of the Australia Zoo in Beerwah, Queensland. The zoo, originally called the Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park, belonged to his parents, Bob and Lyn.

As a young man Irwin worked as a crocodile trapper in Queensland, catching and removing crocs from populated areas. While he didn’t draw a salary, he worked on the condition that he could keep the crocodiles he captured for his parents’ zoo.

After taking over management of the zoo in 1991 Irwin met his future wife, American-born veterinarian Terri Raines. Following a whirlwind romance the couple married, and the video footage of their crocodile-trapping honeymoon was aired as the first episode of The Crocodile Hunter, the series that made Irwin an international celebrity.

The success of The Crocodile Hunter led the Discovery Channel and Animal Planet to commission several wildlife series from Irwin, including The Croc Files, The Crocodile Hunter Diaries and New Breed Vets. Known for his expansive personality and boundless enthusiasm, Irwin’s documentaries made him an Australian icon - often ridiculed, but just as often praised for his idiosyncrasies.

What made Irwin such a popular figure with audiences the world over was his fearless attitude to wild animals. Often seen chasing snakes, crocs and all sorts of dangerous creatures, audiences tuned in not so much to see the animals as to see Irwin’s unbelievable feats of courage and fearlessness. His documentaries gained such a huge audience that they were adapted to the 2002 movie The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course.

Irwin’s enthusiasm for his subject matter, however, occasionally got the better of him, and his career was fraught with controversy. In an incident in 2004 he took his infant son Bob into the crocodile enclosure during a public show at the Australia Zoo, holding him in one arm while feeding a croc with the other. Irwin, however, refused to apologise for the stunt, insisting that the child was never in any real danger.

Again in 2004 Irwin caused controversy during a trip to Antarctica, facing allegations that he disturbed whales, seals and penguins while filming a documentary.

Irwin’s life came to a tragic end on the morning of September 4th, 2006 while filming an documentary on the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Queensland, Australia. While filming a stingray he approached too close and was hit in the chest by a barb, causing a fatal injury, and was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 44.

Steve Irwin is survived by his wife Terri and his two young children, Bindi Sue and Robert Clarence.

While Irwin always lived life on the edge, we never really expected him to be killed. There was just something about the confidence with which he handled dangerous creatures that made us think that he was invulnerable. His antics weren’t quite real - if they had been, we may not have been so quick to laugh.

It came as a surprise, then, for us to wake up to the news that he had been killed. Even more so, considering the manner of his death. After all, Irwin was only the third person to be killed by a stingray in Australia. Rays are usually considered to be relatively docile, and it’s even possible to feed them by hand under the right conditions.

Irwin’s death, though tragic, can perhaps be viewed as one final act of showmanship. He won our hearts with his death-defying stunts and it seems fitting that he should go out with a bang. While it would be crass to make light of his death, it could perhaps be argued that this is the way he would have wanted to go, while living right on the edge. Maybe that could come as some small consolation for the family of a man who died before his time.

In life, as well as in death, Steve Irwin was an Australian icon: a modern day, real life Crocodile Dundee. He was everything we think of as typically Australian: rugged, adventurous and dangerous, though not without a sense of humor. While Australians were often embarrassed by his antics, thinking of him as a caricature of Australian stereotypes, that’s exactly why the rest of the world adored him.

Steve Irwin was a passionate advocate for the environment, a tireless promoter of his country, a great entertainer and a loving husband and father. Often controversial, always entertaining, there will always be a place in our hearts for the Crocodile Hunter. The world is poorer for his absence.

James Shenton is a popular celebrity gossip writer based in New York.

AP - The Food and Drug Administration has ordered Merck & Co. to correct numerous manufacturing deficiencies at its main vaccine plant, the latest in a string of setbacks for the drugmaker.

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Disneyland and Disney World promise magical wonders to the young, and the young-at-heart. With Disney timeshares, it is possible to enjoy your little corner of the Happiest Place on Earth for years to come, at today’s prices.

Investing in a Disney timeshare allows you, your family and friends to relive a dream vacation year after year, instead of once in a lifetime. Finding your magical getaway is easy with seven Disney timeshare options available in the United States.

* Disney Vacation Club at Walt Disney World–Lake Buena Vista, Florida

This popular timeshare is conveniently located in the very heart of the entire Lake Buena Vista Disney Resort. Guests enjoy the feeling of being in older Key West, with Victorian style tin-roofed vacation units surrounded by palm trees. The resort offers a boating marina, launching lake, outdoor swimming pool, whirlpool and hot tub, tennis courts and a restaurant. This Disney timeshare is about one hour from Atlantic coast beaches and the Kennedy Space Center.

* Disney’s Villas at Wilderness Lodge–Lake Buena Vista, Florida

When you buy Disney timeshare for a vacation at Disney’s Villas at Wilderness Lodge in Lake Buena Vista, you’ll feel as though you’ve just stepped back to the 19th century railroad. The woodland-inspired villas offer serenity with all the amenities you’d expect from a Disney resort. Enjoy a full or mini kitchen, washer and dryer, wet bar and cable TV. Wilderness Lodge boasts a country store, outdoor swimming pool, health club and the Iron Spike room, famous for its railroad memorabilia and artifacts. This resort also features Disney World itself.

* Disney’s Boardwalk Villas–Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Also located in Lake Buena Vista, Disney’s Boardwalk Villas bring to life the excitement of 1930’s mid-Atlantic coast. Just a short walk from Walt Disney World, Disney’s Boardwalk Villas features one or two bedroom units in beautiful surroundings. This timeshare property includes playgrounds, outdoor swimming pool, tennis court, restaurants and complete child care services.

* Disney’s Old Key West Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Buying a trip down memory lane is made possible with a timeshare at Disney’s Old Key West Resort in Lake Buena Vista. Relive Key West in the 1900’s in residential-style villas with beautiful views of waterways, woodlands and fairways. Play all day at the outdoor swimming pool, golf courses, playgrounds and tennis courts. Situated near Walt Disney World, Disney’s Old Key West Resort also offers a general store, full-service restaurant and more vacation conveniences.

* Disney’s Beach Club Villas–Orlando, Florida

A vacation like no other! Disney’s Beach Club Villas provide the casual elegance of resort units lining the northeastern coast of the United States. Your timeshare will offer comfort and charm in spacious villas complete with air conditioning, bar and cocktail lounge, boating marina, lake, fishing area and conference facilities. Other amenities include an exercise center, outdoor swimming pool, tennis court, game room, restaurant, childcare services and cable television.

* Disney’s Vero Beach Resort in Vero, Florida

This season timeshare resort features air-conditioned villas with first-class accommodations and amenities. Your family can relax and enjoy the kids’ camp, tennis court and play area. Disney’s Vero Beach Resort also features a pool bar and grill, cocktail lounge, restaurants and a general store.

* Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort in South Carolina

Those who prefer a South Carolina vacation should consider a timeshare at Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort. Here, your family will relax at cottage style villas under a canopy of oak trees. The perfect location overlooks a view of the island and the Atlantic Ocean, with easy access to the oceanfront beach house, swimming pool, arcade, snack bar and other amenities. There are many activities for your family to enjoy at Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort, with convenient amenities including air conditioning, laundry facilities, restaurants and playgrounds.

Create the perfect family vacation complete with full privileges and conveniences at your choice of seven magical Disney resorts. Invest in a Disney timeshare at today’s prices, and your family can enjoy the Happiest Place on Earth for years to come.

Mary Miller writes for several online magazines, including lerse.com http://lerse.com and nugot.com http://nugot.com

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If you’ve ever called your own child spoiled rotten, you should be ashamed of yourself. Call someone else’s kid that, no problem, but not your own. Why? Because all we can see of someone else’s child is a result, and it may be disturbing. Whereas in your own case, the child is the ’spoilee’ and you are the ’spoiler’. OK, perhaps your spouse, but you both have some responsibility in it.

Your child is like a dry sponge, with thousands of little cavities waiting to be filled up. And around the child is a world bursting with candy, toys, activities, snacks, TV and computer games all eager to pounce. And who is in the middle? You, the gatekeeper. The key master. The valve.

Now, if you think about it, a sponge works so so when it is bone dry. It actually works a little better when slightly damp, but if the valve is broken, the sponge will fill to capacity quickly and become useless.

Granted, you can point a finger at your mate. He or she is the one who gives Bobby everything he wants. You’ve even argued about it from time to time, and the same thing is said every time. Come on, it’s just until 11:00 , or think of how happy it will make him , or I never got one of these when I was a kid , or OK, but just this once . Sound familiar?

Almost everyone is guilty of this lack of will power to some degree. Unfortunately, if a parent lacks will power, the child will lack even more. This will develop to the point that the child will have no reason to deny him or herself anything. The notion was never passed down from the previous generation. Exercise a little restraint, can’t ya?

OK, why should anyone deprive themselves of anything? Seems like a reasonable question. Well, for starters, if, in the extreme case, you got everything you asked for, you would never get to the point of truly wanting for something. However, without wanting something you can’t have, at least right away, you don’t set goals. And without goals you don’t get anywhere. You are simply a full, soggy, sponge.

In addition, the spoiled rotten trait delivers a one-two punch. The spoiled individual may have little concept of the value of something. And worse still, the idea of having to save up for it and buy it on their own can seem ridiculous. Then there is the issue of generosity. How often is a spoiled individual truly generous? These and more negative characteristics can be attributed to someone who is spoiled rotten.

So my point is that as the guardian of all that is innocent and pure, being your child, you have the responsibility to think about such things and teach yourself how to control that which, if left unchecked, might put your child’s life out of balance. If discussions with your spouse are called for and may cause some short term distress, better that than passing a bad apple down to your children to make them spoiled rotten.

I heard a remarkable phrase recently that I’d like to relate here. It had to do with ecology, global warming etc. We did not inherit the earth from our parents, we are borrowing it from our children . And, in a way, I see this fitting in that we are the keepers of (their) childhood so that we can give it back healthy and strong.

Phil Girouard is a father, coach and published author of several artcles on parenting. His light hearted, almost tongue in cheek, approach helps ease young parents into guiding their gradeschoolers through the many trials of growing up. Phil operates www.short-stories-help-children.com http://www.short-stories-help-children.com

AP - State police have removed three children from an apocalyptic church whose leader claims to be the Messiah and acknowledges having sex with some of his followers.

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Healthy Halloween! These two words don’t traditionally go together. Boo! Trick or Treat! Those are the usual words we’ll be hearing on Halloween, as our little witches, superheroes, and vampires knock on the neighbor’s doors for treats. Treats are a part of the tradition, but for many parents the most frightening thing about Halloween is how to deal with the avalanche of candy that comes into the home on Halloween.

Here are some simple strategies to use before and after trick-or-treating.

- Make sure children eat a meal or snack before going trick-or-treating so they won’t be tempted to dig into their bag of goodies before they get home.

- When children get home, check the treats and keep only the treats that are in their original wrappers.

- Eat trick-or-treat candy over several days as a substitute for dessert or a few pieces along with a healthy snack.

- Keep holiday candy until the next holiday, such as Thanksgiving.

- Ration the amount of Halloween candy a child eats at one time.

- Place a small amount of candy in a plastic bag for a special treat.

- Freeze the chocolate bars to save them for later. Frozen chocolate takes longer to eat, so children can’t eat them so quickly.

- Trade candy bars or certain amount of candy for small trinkets, Halloween toys and novelties, Barrettes, hair bows, ribbons, jewelry, Action figures, or for a movie or video.

- Make an art project with your Halloween candy. Paint sturdy paper plate and use glue and leftover candy to decorate the plate. This makes a great art piece. Visit www.kidssoup.com for more ideas.

- For small children - Leave it for the Great Jack-O ‘Lantern. Tell a story of the Great Jack-O ‘Lantern and pour all the excess and unwanted candy in a special Jack-O ‘Lantern and leave it outside for the Great Jack-O ‘Lantern to take and share with all the poor children that didn’t get candy on Halloween.

What has been a nutritional and dental nightmare can, with a little creativity and planning, remain one of the favorite celebrations of children and parents alike. Have a Healthy Happy Halloween! I’ll trade you a tootsie roll for a periwinkle barrette.

Jolanda Garcia is a former teacher and educational content designer. Her goal is to give parents and teachers great resources to increase their children’s development and creativity through crafts and activities. Visit her websites at: www.kidssoup.com/ http://www.kidssoup.com/ .

AP - Scientists at the University of Nevada, Reno are scrutinizing seismic readings and studying damage at residents’ homes to try to figure out what’s happening beneath the earth’s surface under a northwest Reno neighborhood rocked by a seemingly endless string of earthquakes.

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A book publisher is a group or person who is responsible for bringing the book to the public for reading purposes. The book publisher is involved in the major steps of developing, marketing, producing, printing, and distributing the book. The book publisher negotiates with authors over intellectual property rights, rights to distribute, and rights to change the book. The publisher also offers the author a bonus, royalties, or a percentage of sales. See self-publishing-steps.com for the steps required to publish a book yourself.

Book publishers must go through an initial process of negotiation with the author. Intellectual rights must be negotiated. The intellectual rights laws for every country is different, so the author must demonstrate which countries he/she would like to market the book in, and what his/her desires are for the rights of the book in each country. If there is a digital printing of the book, the author would also discuss which rights would be allowed with the internet. There have been many issues of download copyright protected material from the internet, however this is a complicated issue, as many countries have not yet passed laws against this act, or do not enforce already present legislation on downloading copyrighted material from the internet.

The book publisher also deals with the editorial phase of book creation. This phase involves utilizing a large staff of editors, artists, copyeditors, writers, and other members to change and alter the book to the chief executive editor’s preferences, as well as the author’s preferences. The amount of editing that takes place, as well as the different levels of editing depends on how large the book publisher is. Larger publishers may go through several rounds of editing before the book is finally released, and there is more of a lengthy process involved. The more clout that an author has, the less that the editor can alter the book.

Finally, the book publisher will produce and distribute the book. The production process is the process of physically creating the book. This process may be accomplished using onsite facilities, or the publisher may go to a third party production company to fulfill this need. The book is then wrapped and shipped to a variety of bookstores where it is displayed to the public. The publisher usually has negotiated some kind of deal with the bookstore to get their books displayed.

Russell Clark owns and operates self-publishing-steps.com http://self-publishing-steps.com .

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San Jose Schools Join San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies in Birthday Celebration

San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies and the San Jose Jewish Film Festival have teamed up with the San Jose Schools in an event to celebrate the San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies twenty first year. The celebration event also includes the premiere of the film “Beethoven’s Hair” at the San Jose Jewish Film Festival. This will be an event for the whole community held in downtown San Jose in October.

The 2006 San Jose Jewish Film Festival will be the central event and is where the film “Beethoven’s Hair” will be shown. This film follows the perilous journey across 179 and two continents of a lock of Beethoven’s hair. In 1827, a lock of hair was clipped from Beethoven on his deathbed. This lock of hair can now be found in the San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies. The film “Beethoven’s Hair” examines how the lock of hair was passed from generation to generation and how it survived the Holocaust and World War II.

The San Jose Jewish Film Festival will host a fundraiser and celebration event near the end of October. At this event, which will be held at the Martin Luther King Jr. library, all participants will screen a private viewing of the film “Beethoven’s Hair” and meet the director Larry Weinstein for a question and answer discussion about the film. The author of the original book “Beethoven’s Hair”, the source for the film, will also be in attendance. Russell Martin will sign complimentary copies of his book and speak at the event. Everyone at this event will receive a private tour of the San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies, which has in its collection numerous personal letters and musical compositions written by Beethoven along with the previously mentioned lock of hair clipped right from his head.

San Jose Schools Beethoven Essay Contest

For its part in the birthday celebration event, the San Jose Schools have created a special essay competition. The person behind the essay contest is the Assistant Superintendent of San Jose Schools, Dr. Dr. Bill Erlendson. Dr. Erlendson believes that music appreciation is an important facet in the education of all San Jose Schools’ students. The essay contest will be open to almost 30,000 students in grades fourth through twelfth. The main idea behind the essay is that Beethoven had a huge impact on the musical world and hopefully this essay contest will help to raise the students’ awareness about the importance of music in their lives.

For the San Jose Schools’ Beethoven Essay Contest participating students must write at least 250 words about one of four topics. The four choices are:

1. What important lessons did Beethoven’s life teach us?
2. How did Beethoven change music history?
3. How was Beethoven’s life different from/the same as Mozart’s?
4. Beethoven was inspired by nature and social events. What things inspire you to do a better job?

The Beethoven essays are due September 29, 2006. One grand prize winner, from each level of elementary, middle and high school, will attended the private screening of “Beethoven’s Hair”. While the five first place winners will receive tickets to the public screenings at the 2006 San Jose Jewish Film Festival.

Stacy Andell is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. Stacy has a nose for research and writes stimulating news and views on school issues. For more information on San Jose schools visit www.schoolsk-12.com/california/san-jose/index.html http://www.schoolsk-12.com/california/san-jose/index.html

The Nation - The Nation — That’s how many pledged delegates Hillary Clinton gained after her “big win” in Pennsylvania, according to delegate projections released by the Obama campaign. Most news outlets forecast a similar margin, ranging from a nine to twelve delegate pickup for Clinton.

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Scary, scary, scary stuff!!!! My daughter is almost ten, and it was time for The Talk. Truth be told, I was nervous, although I had been planning for The Talk for over a year. Actually, what happened was that I planned on having The Talk last summer, and I chickened out. So, I’ll just euphemistically say that I’ve been planning this for a year.

Let me clarify that by The Talk I mean the information about the physical changes going on in my daughter’s body, especially as it relates to the menstrual cycle. You see, I had my first period when I was eleven, and knowing that girls mature earlier, I was horror-stricken by the thought that Kathryn might start her period before I could explain what was happening. Still, I couldn’t make myself do it last year, but I had no choice as the ten-year birthday loomed closer.

Now, my husband and I have two daughters, and he has gleefully passed on any responsibility for having The Talk to me. Yippee. However, he didn’t completely absolve himself of all responsibility. He helped me pick out books for us to read and for Kathryn to read, and he spent a few hours doing research on the best books.

We bought a mix of books (look over in the sidebar for our favorite resources): books for Chris and me to read (that weren’t for Kathryn’s eyes - yet), and books for Kathryn herself. I wanted to know what was in Kathryn’s books so that I would be prepared for any questions she brought me. I also had my own set of books so that I could brush up on the physiological terms of the female body as well as get a feel for how extensive our Talk could/might be.

The Day of The Talk approached. Chris took our other daughter Anastasia out to lunch and on some errands, and Kathryn and I had the house to ourselves.

While I won’t go into the details of our two-hour Talk (two hours!!!), I will point out some highlights:

Yes, it was two hours, but the time flew!

When I started talking to Kathryn about the changes in her body, she looked a little embarrassed. However, I didn’t let that embarrass me, and she soon got over it and entered into the conversation quite enthusiastically.

I was honest with her and told her that if at times I sounded embarrassed, it was because I had never done this before, and I sometimes had to figure out what to say. It was so endearing how understanding and sympathetic she was. Well, sure, Mommy. I’m your first daughter.

I didn’t have a plan for the whole Talk, but I did know how I wanted to begin the conversation. We started with a picture of a woman’s uterus, and we went from there. The conversation flowed naturally,

I used the books extensively. Kathryn and I alternately flipped through them and stopped at various points to discuss.

I made sure she understood that although her daddy was male and not female, she could always go to him with any questions she had.

We talked about a variety of topics, some of which I didn’t expect. Yes, of course, there was the whole menstrual cycle, but I didn’t predict that I’d be opening a tampon to show her what it looked like. We discussed body image and how one should be happy with her body. That discussion topic led us to talking about how we are bombarded with images of skinny women, and how we really need to accept ourselves and not try to reach some ideal absurdly-skinny weight.

The biggest surprise? That afterwards, instead of mourning the loss of my little girl, I felt a sense of camaraderie. For years I had been doing my best to draw no attention to my own menstrual cycle, and so chose not to share with my girls why I was taking Advil every four hours or why I might be a little grumpy (or why when they were really little they couldn’t go into the ladies’ room with me). Now, it feels weird, yes, but also liberating to have a commonality with my daughter and a shared language.

That brings up something else. Kathryn and I talked about celebrating her first period with a special dinner or maybe a special piece of jewelry. With some of the research I had done, I wanted to make sure I presented the idea of the menstrual cycle as a positive thing, not a cross to bear or a curse. For years, I’ve really hated my menstrual cycle, but in preparing to talk about it with Kathryn, I started to look at it a little differently as something to celebrate and honor. We talked about how it’s a 28-day cycle, just like the moon cycle and, wow, isn’t that cool! While not mysterious, I did want her to see the wonder in our bodies’ intricate and complex system that can actually grow another living being.

Did the dreaded question of how does the male sperm get into the uterus come up? Yep, and I had already decided ahead of time that if she asked, I would give her an honest answer. She asked, and I gave her a fairly technical explanation. She asked a few more questions, and I answered those as well, honestly and as completely as I felt she could handle.

I guess maybe I did do some planning after all, more than I might have thought. I read the books, I decided ahead of time what was appropriate reading material for Kathryn, and I also tried to anticipate what questions she would have and how I would answer them.

Kathryn took two of the books I’d selected for her and trotted off to her room. She read through them both cover to cover that evening. I haven’t gotten any additional questions yet, but I’m sure they’ll come. And someday, hopefully not too soon, she’ll be ready for the next edition of The Talk.

Dawn Goldberg is a Certified Virtual Assistant, COO of Assist University, mother, community leader, and former teacher. Her vision is to create a resource that helps parents find ways to enjoy valuable, constructive time with their children every day. Contact her at support@afterschoolsnacks.com support@afterschoolsnacks.com or visit www.afterschoolsnacks.com http://www.afterschoolsnacks.com .

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I Love NASCAR, what is behind this crazed movement? For those who don’t understand NASCAR’s unprecedented explosion in popularity, they would ask…What is the big deal about NASCAR?… Well…you have to love fast cars…and who doesn’t love fast cars? Once you have become infected with the fast-car bug, you have to see a race, and not just on television. Attending a NASCAR race is a total-body sports’ fan experience. Engines roaring! Cars zooming! Adrenaline pumping!

There is a huge thrill in trying to pick out your favorite driver as the field of cars zoom past your range of sight at 180mph! NASCAR racing is also more than just fast cars going around in circles. It is about common folk, getting together as friends and family, and sharing exciting memories…every weekend! …And that is why racing fans all say I love NASCAR! And then there is the NASCAR drivers, the most fan-friendly sports stars of any sport!… They take time out of every race, every weekend to talk to fans, sign autographs and take pictures.

The drivers all come to the races with their families in tow, and camp out in trailers…just like the commoners… And that is also why racing fans all say ‘I love NASCAR!’ On the track, drivers have 2 goals..win points and win the race. Like the skillful warriors they are, they defend their positions and play every advantage that presents itself. NASCAR drivers’ ability to use the draft from cars in front of him to gain more speed takes great skill and feeling. In races where it is difficult to pass, drivers will attempt to cause the car in front of him to get loose by positioning himself so close to that car that he steals the air , causing that car to wobble and allowing him to pass.

These kinds of skills are almost beyond comprehension! In the pit area, crews are constantly working and moving, preparing for the next pit stop. During each pit stop every person has his place and job to do. If they work together well, their performance will have serviced the car, filled the tank with gas and changed tires in 14 remarkable seconds or less. The crew chief and technicians determine precise calculations throughout the race to determine if fuel mileage will be a factor in winning… This is why racing fans all say ‘I love NASCAR!’

The NASCAR recipe is one that no other spectator sport matches. Weekly, the top teams (drivers) are competing directly against each other. Unlike, for instance the NBA, where you may have to wait weeks for that big contest, at a NASCAR race, you can follow number 1 battling number 2 every week. It’s almost like having the Championship of this sport each and every week. There’s simply nothing like the excitement of a live NASCAR race. The sights, earth shattering sounds and gritty smell of burned rubber and gasoline will leave a strong and lasting impression on even the most casual sports fan… and for most saying ‘I love NASCAR!’

This article was written by Dan Dydyk sponsored by 1. www.nascar-memorabilia.com/ http://www.nascar-memorabilia.com/ . Searching for unique quality NASCAR memorabilia and apparel? Shop marqueeprosports…the only game in town and the web for authentic, licensed pro sports memorabilia and apparel www.marqueeprosports.com/ http://www.marqueeprosports.com/ .

HealthDay - MONDAY, April 28 (HealthDay News) — Obese people who underwent surgerythat reduced the amount of food they could ingest not only lost weight,they also lost some of their lower back pain, according to a new report.

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There are hundreds of different baby play mats available, so you shouldn’t be ashamed of your confusion when you try to find a good one. Here are some good tips for choosing the right baby play mat for your child.

You have to make sure that the play mat is safe, so your baby doesn’t hurt herself when she lie on it. The blanket have to be thick enough, the arches must be well secured and you must make sure nothing can get loose and be swallowed.

You should also consider if your baby would enjoy lying on the play mat. Most babies are happy if the play mat is colorful and has some bars or arches that she can look at while she is lying on her back. Baby play mats without bars and arches should be avoided, since there will be nothing to look at for your baby unless she lies on her stomach.

It’s good if the play mat has some hanging toys that your baby can touch. It’s helps development her hand-eye coordination and also make it more fun to lie there. It’s especially good if the toys can be detached and given to your baby to play with.

When you look at the blanket and the hanging toys, you should check if there are any built-in sounds or music. Babies love it when their toys make some kind of sounds and it also stimulates their development. You can for example find baby play mats that play several minutes of Mozart when your baby touches somewhere on her play mat.

Finally, you may want to check if the play mat fits inside your baby’s playpen. You should also look at a bumper, so you baby doesn’t hurt herself if you put her play mat inside a playpen.

Mads Petersson has a www.goodbabytoys.com http://www.goodbabytoys.com where he give advice, answer questions and review exciting baby play mats and other baby things. His website is written from one parent to another, so it’s a the place to go for some good advice about baby things.

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