Mail; Charleston, W.V. – Let color, comfort and value on the patio cheer you up

Let color, comfort and value on the patio cheer you up

0 Comments | Sunday Gazette – Mail; Charleston, W.V., May 2, 2010 | by Jean Patteson

The makers of outdoor furniture are very much in tune with the uncertain economic times.

Their collections for spring and summer focus on “dazzling color to brighten our moods, plush comfort to ease our tension and increased value to minimize the impact on our wallets,” said Jackie Hirschhaut, spokeswoman for the American Home Furnishings Alliance in High Point, N.C.

Cheerful reds and yellows are key colors for 2010, along with calming shades of leaf green and watery blue.

“And the season’s most vivid fabrics provide a dramatic contrast to new bright-white frames that are adding a contemporary twist to traditional styling,” said Hirschhaut.

Comfort features include deep cushioning with outdoor foams that resist damp and mildew, along with rocking and reclining options. New synthetics that look like natural materials add durability to many products.

Lightweight, non-rusting aluminum frames are teamed with materials that look like wood or wicker, but are much tougher.

And several new sofa, bench and swing designs offer “individualized” seats, where each seat can be independently operated to rock, recline or remain upright and stationary.

There is also a trend away from large, traditional pieces, said Greg Donelson, sales and operations manager for Robb & Stucky’s patio division.

As more homeowners move into smaller houses and condos, designers of outdoor furniture are responding to the downsizing movement.

“Sectionals are not so overbearing. Styling is more contemporary, with a smaller scale and cleaner lines,” said Donelson.

For homeowners wanting to splurge on a single item, he predicts daybeds with canopies will be popular for their “wow factor.” Some include a variety of reclining options and even a built-in massage function – along with solar panels to recharge the battery that operates the mechanisms.

Those on tighter budgets may postpone purchasing entire sets of patio furniture, opting instead for a few new accessories – outdoor floor and table lamps, planters, silk plants, wall art, shatterproof tableware and pillows.

The quick, affordable way to make an old set of outdoor furniture look fresh, he said, “is with a splash of colorful new pillows.”

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2010
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SoundBite Communications Launches SoundBite 5.0 for Financial Services

SoundBite Communications Launches SoundBite 5.0 for Financial Services

Business Wire, Oct 26, 2004

BURLINGTON, Mass. — Proven Technology and Industry Best Practices Improve Call Center Efficiency and Deliver Significant ROI on Customer Communications Campaigns

SoundBite Communications, the leading provider of OnDemand Customer Communications(TM) solutions, today announced the availability of SoundBite(R) 5.0 for Financial Services, a Web-hosted solution built on SoundBite’s proven interactive voice messaging (IVM) technology platform and designed specifically for financial services professionals. Since 2000, SoundBite has provided financial services companies with unique solutions for communicating with their customers. SoundBite 5.0 for Financial Services allows these organizations to rapidly reach their customers with timely, personalized communications and empowers those customers to respond immediately. SoundBite’s new features include OnDemand Blended Suppression, OnDemand Enterprise Support and OnDemand Campaign Management, which enhance the real-time execution and administration capabilities for all interactive campaigns within an organization. In addition, companies benefit from “pay as you go” use; no hardware or software installation; automated, real-time access; rapid campaign implementations; high response rates; and SoundBite’s in-depth industry expertise.

SoundBite has a deep understanding of campaigns specific to financial services organizations, and has delivered millions of customer calls each month for a variety of campaigns, including fraud alerts, payment reminders, renewals and collections calls, balance transfers, new credit card activations, quote and inquiry follow ups, disaster alerts, among others. SoundBite leverages this experience to provide industry best practices, calling strategies and professional services to ensure high customer response rates and a significant return on clients’ campaign investments.

“To remain competitive and to build long-term customer loyalty, financial services companies depend on effective customer communications. SoundBite 5.0 for Financial Service is built on our established technology platform and our best practices in the industry,” said Peter Shields, president and CEO of SoundBite Communications. “The new features that we incorporated in SoundBite 5.0 for Financial Services provide financial services companies with an even greater ability to improve their customer satisfaction, increase revenues and reduce costs.”

SoundBite 5.0 for Financial Services Features

Specific new features of SoundBite’s technology platform include an OnDemand Blended Suppression feature that can prevent a phone number or a group of phone numbers from being called during a campaign. The OnDemand Enterprise Support feature gives organizations the ability to create, manage and report on their SoundBite campaigns on a company-wide basis. The OnDemand Campaign Management feature gives organizations the ability to manage even the most complex campaigns over the Web, in real time.

The platform also includes industry-leading answering machine detection, which eliminates hang-ups on a live person and clipped messages on answering machines. The Direct Connect feature gives call recipients the option to connect directly to a live agent, and the Load Balancing(TM) feature allows outbound calls to be automatically adjusted to control the influx of inbound calls to the call center.

SoundBite 5.0 for Financial Services enhances companies’ call center effectiveness, by automatically capturing information to complete transactions, and enabling screen-pop and whisper functionality to improve agent efficiency. This helps make the most productive use of agents’ time by delivering qualified inbound leads to the agent. As an OnDemand, Web-based platform, it can also integrate seamlessly with existing call center infrastructure such as Automatic Call Distributors (ACDs), customer relationship management (CRM), and workforce optimization systems to create an end-to-end customer interaction management solution.

About SoundBite Communications

SoundBite Communications is a leading provider of OnDemand Customer Communications solutions. SoundBite enhances the way organizations communicate with their customers through professionally recorded interactive voice messages. Hundreds of Global 2000 companies are rapidly increasing collections, improving customer retention, and cross-selling new services leveraging SoundBite’s ASP platform. SoundBite is headquartered in Burlington, Massachusetts
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2010
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And that?s no fun

And that?s no fun for him or you. The more consistent you can stay with your dog?s cuisine, the better.

Soft dog foods may be an option for some of the breeds who have?well?a somewhat funny looking face (Pugs, Bulldogs, Pomeranians). Breeds like these tend to have an overbite or an underbite making dry food somewhat of a problem to chew. It?s not their fault really, but you should be aware. The same rules apply though. If they are puppies, get something high in protein.

And finally?to feed or not to feed your dog table scraps. A question for the ages. Every dog owner in history has come across those soulful, sad eyes staring at you while eating dinner. It?s hard for most of us to hold out for any length of time and eventually we succumb to the whiny, cute little face resting on our leg.
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And also He surfed almost each and

And also He surfed almost each and every site on hair, hair dressing, coloring, Styling etc and use to read interviews of top hair stylists of the world. He use to sit on net for hours and use to learn different tips and techniques and use to practice on his client.

Nadeem Says “It’s been 7 years I have learnt everything from structure of hair to hair cutting to hair Coloring and Still learning. Hair dressing has become my passion” He even did hair coloring diploma from L’Oreal and Schwarzkopf. Also have attended & participated in different hair cutting Competition (in 2000 organized at World Trade Centre) & Seminars in Mumbai. He have been attending various workshops and seminars to be in touch with existing latest styles, trends and always in pace with the trends & lifestyles.

“Frankly, I was never interested in becoming a hairstylist. I planned on taking up Engineering and for that, I even did computer diploma and stuff. However, somewhere down the line I changed my mind and started working on hair.
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THE WISH LIST; Our pick of the week’s most desirable things – and they could all be yours

THE WISH LIST; Our pick of the week’s most desirable things – and they could all be yours

0 Comments | Daily Mail (London, England), The, Nov 21, 2009

Byline: Flora Stubbs

www.greenshoes.co.uk For a gift that’s as virtuous as it is beautiful, pick up this leather cuff – it’s hand-made from ethically sourced materials, [pounds sterling]20 www.theworldofcreatures.com Creatures is a new range of products for babies made from Rooibos – treasured for its healing properties by South Africa’s tribal peoples, from [pounds sterling]8.50 Heal’s celebrates 200 years of stylish interiors with a stunning limited-edition book featuring all of its most iconic designs, [pounds sterling]25, tel: 020 7896 7555 www.porscheradios.com Get some Formula 1 styling in your living room with this Porsche design DAB radio and iPod/ iPhone dock from Eton, [pounds sterling]299 This solid perfume cocktail ring, filled with Very Hollywood by Michael Kors, could well be the most fabulous thing we’ve ever seen, [pounds sterling]39.15, tel: 0870 034 2566 [pounds sterling]39.15, www.jesire.net Make sure your party dress isn’t let down by a dreary coat this Christmas. Check out this elegant powder-blue number by Jesire, [pounds sterling]155 www.stardustkids.co.uk Sick of trawling through the same catalogue fare for children’s Christmas presents? Stardust Kids’ has a more original selection, including this half-size electric guitar, [pounds sterling]65 Check out Gail Berry’s gorgeous new boutique on London’s King’s Road for finds like these exclusively designed pumps by Pretty Ballerinas, [pounds sterling]109, tel: 020 7731 3774

NOW WIN EVERYTHING ! SEE NEXT PAGE FOR DETAILSEton Porsche Design P9123 iPod dock, [pounds sterling]299; gold cascade cuff by Green

Shoes, [pounds sterling]20; Jesire Venus dress coat, in sizes 6-16, [pounds sterling]155; Very Hollywood by

Michael Kors solid perfume cocktail ring, [pounds sterling]39.15; Creatures gift box for babies or toddlers, [pounds sterling]35; child’s electric guitar by Stardust Kids in pink, blue or red, [pounds sterling]65; Heal’s 200 Years Of Design & Inspiration book, [pounds sterling]25;

Pretty Ballerinas pumps, in sizes 37-42, [pounds sterling]107 . For your chance to win, text

WISH, followed by your first name and postcode to 65700, call 0905 197 0039 and leave your name and daytime number or email the same details to wishlist@dmail.entries.co.uk. The winner will be the first entry drawn at random after the competition closes at 23:59pm on Friday 27 November. Usual rules apply, see www.dailymail.co.uk/promotions for details. Texts cost 50p plus your standard network rate. Calls cost 30p from a BT landline
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This will help eliminate

This will help eliminate the craving for sweets!
8) Try sugar-free chewing gum for dessert. This option will satisfy your sweet tooth while protecting your waistline!

9) If dining in a restaurant, try ordering just one dessert and splitting it. You’ll save 1/2 the calories, 1/2 the fat, and 1/2 the money!

10) As a last ditch attempt to resist dessert, tell yourself that you WILL have that dessert – right after you complete a 1/2 hour walk. Right after dinner go out for a 1/2 hour walk. If you still feel like eating dessert when you return, then you can do so knowing that at least you’ve had some good exercise!

* Copyright 2005 Pick Up The Pace. Permission is not required for the distribution of Pick Up The Pace articles as long as they are used in their entirety, are properly credited to Pick Up The Pace, and are accompanied by our website link: www.letspickupthepace.com.

* The information in this article and on this site is for general reference purposes only and not intended to address specific medical conditions.
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This student really wasn’t having problems getting

This student really wasn’t having problems getting the technical aspects down, i.e., chords. The problem was she didn’t think she could do it!

It was all attitude

.

I then had a lightbulb moment. If the basic problem with most adult students is not technique but attitude, then I had to come up with a different approach to reach them. And that approach turned out to be mentoring.

Listen, what people really need is to believe in themselves. If this aspect is missing, no amount of technique or theory will help. In order for me to be helpful, I had to act as a therapist so to speak… gently guiding students to believe in themselves

!

Once they could do this, the rest was a piece of cake. Look at it this way, if you don’t believe or have the slightest faith in your own abilities in anything be it writing, painting, whatever, your chances for success are slim indeed!

What I did to help these “shaky” students was basically a two-fold procedure.

First, they needed to relax and not worry so much about what was coming out of them.
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Some bath products, which

Some bath products, which are found in the marketplace, may contain harsh ingredients that could irritate the skin. However, by purchasing bath salts carefully or making them yourself, you will have the peace of mind in knowing that your bath salts are perfectly safe to use.

Start with a large mixing bowl and a spoon or other utensil. Add 3 cups of epsom salt, 2 cups of baking soda and 1 cup of table salt into the bowl. When all ingredients are added, begin mixing them with your hand or a spoon. Next, slowly add food coloring of your choice to the mixture. Regular food coloring will work perfectly and should be added according to the color that you desire. If you want a dark color, continue to add drops until the color is achieved. If you want a lighter hue, add fewer drops. If, on the other hand, you need to combine multiple colors to achieve the desired tone, mix them prior to adding them to the bowl. Otherwise, you may end up with multi-colored salts.

Finally, after your coloring is added and mixed evenly using a spoon or other utensil, begin to add essential oils until the desired scent is achieved.
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Working moms' woes

Working moms’ woes

0 Comments | Buffalo News, Jul 25, 2010 | by Sharon Lerner

When it comes to paid maternity leave, the United States is in the postpartum dark ages.

One hundred and seventy-seven nations — including Djibouti, Haiti and Afghanistan — have laws on the books requiring that all women, and in some cases men, receive both income and job- protected time off after the birth of a child. But here, the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 provides only unpaid leave, and most working mothers don’t get to stay home with their newborns for the 12 weeks allowed by the law. Many aren’t covered by the act; others can’t afford to take unpaid time off. Some go back to work a few weeks after giving birth, and some go back after mere days.

The century-long battle for maternity leave in America is a story of missed opportunities and historical accidents, further slowed by activists’ miscalculations and some well-funded opposition. In other words: It didn’t have to be this way.

As far back as 1919, when the Model T was switching from a crank to an electric starter, the U.S. government came close to signing on to an International Labor Organization agreement, supported by 33 countries, that said women workers should receive cash benefits in addition to job-protected leave for 12 weeks in the period surrounding childbirth.

That same year Julia Lathrop, chief of the Labor Department’s children’s bureau, issued a report on international maternity leave policy in which she decried the United States as “one of the few great countries which as yet have no system of state or national assistance in maternity.” She had recently returned from Europe, where paid-leave laws had been in place for decades in Germany and France.

But this first real drive for maternity leave fell victim to petty infighting. Though many members of a key labor group wanted to include “maternity insurance” in its recommendations to Congress and President Woodrow Wilson, it was omitted after an internal dispute over who would be covered. Other early proponents of maternity benefits got tripped up by whether to insist that protections and income for pregnant women be part of national health coverage (which, sadly, they seemed to think was around the corner).

At other times, history has intervened. When women flooded the work force during World War II, the Labor Department’s women’s bureau recommended that women get six weeks of prenatal leave plus two months following childbirth. Then, just as pressure for change was mounting, the war ended, men returned home to reclaim their jobs and the drive fizzled.

Politics have posed an even bigger obstacle. The debate over maternity leave has long served as a proxy for tensions surrounding the presence of women in the workplace. Remember that, until 1978, it was legal in most states to fire women for becoming pregnant; some conservatives defended the practice as a way to encourage women to return to the home.

But even some feminists objected to giving women job-protected time off around birth because they felt that their gains were too precarious, and their determination to ascend from the pit of sex discrimination was too great, to risk drawing further attention to maternity. So it wasn’t entirely surprising that when Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., spearheaded a national proposal for leave in 1984, it encountered the same resistance.

“Influential feminist activists in Washington opposed maternity leave because it wasn’t treating women the same as men,” said Joan Williams, director of the Center for Work Life Law at the University of California at Hastings. “They said: ‘No, no, no. We don’t want national maternity leave. We want to fold maternity into other medical needs.’ ”

And that is what ultimately happened. During the decade or so when advocates pushed for what would become the Family and Medical Leave Act, their working definition of what leave should include shifted
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They are our heritage. Westerns

They are our heritage. Westerns like

Adventures of Kit Carson

,

Nine Lives of Elfego Baca

,

The Lone Ranger. All these are based on
the real life activities in the wild west.

Take railroad westerns like

The Iron Horse

and

Casey Jones. In
fact, take Casey Jones as an example. This tv show was based on a real life
railroad engineer who was actually called Casey Jones.

Quizzes, drama, variety – even more fanciful tv shows like

The Man from
U.N.C.L.E.

– have their roots in the human existence.

There is an excellent forum at

www.bygonetv.com

Why not get
involved. These antiques could be worth quite a lot in a few years!

If you are old enough, you can reminisce about about old tv shows from the
beginning of tv through 1970 at

http://www.bygonetv.com

For those that are a little younger, discover some of the stuff that your folks
were watching all those years ago..
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2010
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