13th Annual Holiday Stroll | Ridgefield Art & Entertainment, Fairs ...

The library, in a historic building on Main Street, is home to more than 132,000 volumes. There is an entire section just for children and another for adult fiction, a reference librarian station on the ground floor, and a small reading room by the original, circa 1903 main entrance.

The library offers free wireless internet access.

The library also offers constant programs for all age groups, including ongoing book clubs, art openings, creative writing groups and children's sleepovers, called Camp Snooze.

?

Source: http://ridgefield.patch.com/events/13th-annual-holiday-stroll-5eb47d6b

cesar chavez winning lotto numbers lottery tickets mega lottery sag aftra mega mill power ball

Empire State Building surprises NY with new lights

NEW YORK (AP) ? In the middle of the night, as most of New York slept, something big and bright lit up the Manhattan skyline for just seconds ? a tightly kept secret to all but a handful of people.

It was a tiny test for the huge public surprise four days later: the flipping of a switch at the Empire State Building to turn on its dancing new LED lights. They burst from the skyscraper while synchronized with R&B star Alicia Keys singing "Empire State of Mind" on nationwide radio.

The LED system has "16.7 million color possibilities, in digital combinations of ripples, sparkles, sweeps and strobes," says Phil O'Donnell, of Burlington, Mass.-based Philips Color Kinetics that's responsible for the system and worked with a resident lighting designer. "It's the sum of all possibilities ? a huge palette."

The old lights came in only 10 colors.

From Manhattan and the Bronx to Staten Island and even New Jersey, "there were hundreds of thousands of people on the streets looking up, filming and videoing, clustered on street corners," when the new lights came on, said Anthony Malkin, whose family controls the iconic Art Deco building.

In an interview with The Associated Press at his office, he glowed with pleasure describing Monday night's inaugural light show.

Keys also sang "Girl On Fire" from her new CD.

After all, the 102-story skyscraper "has always been a symbol of what's possible in New York, and all the dreams that can come true in this city that never sleeps," Keys, a New York native, said before her performance, which was ready on tracks while she watched from a Manhattan studio.

Malkin and his technical team wanted to test the new lighting system with as few people noticing as possible and chose early Thanksgiving morning.

Good luck, in the middle of Manhattan, with people walking around even at 2:30 a.m.

That seemed the best moment, after most bars close and before dawn.

"We decided to do it facing west, in very short bursts between 2:30 a.m. and 3 a.m., because we knew we didn't have a camera trained on us from there," Malkin said.

Apparently, the secret test worked. No images of the Empire State Building alight that night appeared anywhere, as far as Malkin knows.

To stage the show, he worked with Clear Channel radio, which has 239 million monthly listeners in the United States.

The lights are part of a larger effort to modernize the 81-year-old edifice that is undergoing a more than half a billion-dollar renovation that includes making it "green." The computerized LED system will cut energy consumption by more than half, while delivering light and vibrancy superior to the old floodlights, which have huge timpani drum-size lenses that had to be changed every so often, O'Donnell said.

They may still have nostalgic value to some who watched them light up New York City for every special occasion from Christmas to the Fourth of July.

They were part of "the grande dame of the New York skyline, now state-of-the-art, but still stately," says Malkin, adding that the light show was "a gift we gave to the world, these lights. We don't get paid for this."

On a sunny Wednesday afternoon, with a spectacular view of the new World Trade Center and New York Harbor, a vacant space under reconstruction on the building's 72nd floor was filled with the retired floodlights, sitting side by side in long lines, veterans of years of New York weather. What will be done with them is also a secret ? for now.

One old light will not be discarded in favor of a 21st century novelty: a red beacon ? "half the size of a Volkswagen Beetle," as Malkin puts it ? that serves as a warning signal for aircraft constantly flying over New York City.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/empire-state-building-surprises-ny-lights-074333318--finance.html

davey jones dead monsanto boston weather dr seuss birthday jennifer garner jennifer garner romney michigan

NJ spruce lights up as Rockefeller Center tree

NEW YORK (AP) ? An 80-foot Norway spruce that made it through Superstorm Sandy was transformed into a beacon of shimmering glory Wednesday when New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and others turned its lights on at Rockefeller Center.

Thousands of onlookers crowded behind barricades on the streets that surrounded the center during the traditional tree-lighting ceremony for the Christmas holiday season. A video screen projected an image of the tree for those who did not have a direct line of sight.

"It makes me want to sing and dance," said Zuri Young, who came several hours early with her boyfriend to watch the lighting for the first time.

"I've heard a lot about it. I was kind of sick of staying home and watching it on television," the 19-year-old nursing student from Queens said.

Illuminated by more than 30,000 lights, the tree from the Mount Olive, N.J., home of Joe Balku was topped by a Swarovski star. The 10-ton tree had been at the homestead for years, measuring about 22-feet tall in 1973 when Balku bought the house. Wednesday, its girth reached about 50 feet in diameter.

"It's an experience that I cannot get back home," said Freyja Shairp, a 22-year-old from Sydney, Australia, who is working in the U.S. temporarily. She said she hadn't planned to come, but was in the neighborhood.

Standing next to her was Donna D'Agostino, 48, and her 17-year-old daughter. She said she lived in New York City her whole life and decided this was the year she was going to see the lighting.

"It's a bucket list item," said D'Agostino. "I think it starts the whole season."

Balku lost power and other trees during the Oct. 29 storm at his residence about an hour outside of Manhattan. The spruce survived, and Erik Pauze, the head gardener at Tishman Speyer, one of the owners of Rockefeller Center, picked out the tree. He said he found it by accident when he got lost while returning to the city on a tree hunting expedition.

"It wasn't even on our list. It was a good find," Pauze said.

Pauze said workers prepared for Superstorm Sandy by bracing the tree with cables to secure and protect it. It was moved in November.

Officials turned on the lights just before 9 p.m. Wednesday in the 80th annual celebration. Prior to that, the tree-lighting event include performances from Rod Stewart, CeeLo Green, Scotty McCreery, Il Volo, Victoria Justice, Brooke White, Mariah Carey, Trace Adkins and Tony Bennett, along with appearances by Billy Crystal and Bette Midler.

The tradition of a Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center started in 1931, when workers building the center put up the first one. No tree was put up the following year, and in 1933, the first tree-lighting ceremony took place.

People will be able to view the tree until Jan. 7. After its stint in the spotlight, it will be turned into lumber for Habitat for Humanity.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/nj-spruce-lights-rockefeller-center-tree-073429313.html

drew peterson Art Modell Frank Ocean Gay scarlett johansson bill clinton andy roddick Costa Rica Earthquake

US auto market showing signs of recovery

14 hrs.

Paul A. Eisenstein , The Detroit Bureau

It?s been the little engine that could, driving along an economy long struggling to avert a double-dip recession. And now, amid growing signs that the U.S. economy is clearly on the mend, industry leaders are increasingly confident the auto industry is heading in fast-forward toward some extremely good ? though probably not record ? years.

As manufacturers get set to report extremely strong numbers for October, Toyota?s top American executive, Jim Lentz said he expects to see 2012 end with sales of 14.3 million ? about 1 million more than a year before and a roughly 40 percent increase from the depths of the recession.

?And the forecast ahead looks even better,? Lentz said as he opened his keynote remarks at the opening of the annual LA Auto Show. ?Analysts expect we will reach 16 million in just a few short years.?

That optimism was clearly echoed by other industry leaders gathering for the first of two days of media previews. The Los Angeles show has been something of a bellwether? for the industry ? and the economy.? During the depths of the recession, there was a sharp cutback in the number of new products on display. Chrysler, then plunging into bankruptcy, went so far as to shut off the spotlights at its 2008 exhibit to save cash.

This year, that maker?s lights are back on ? and it has more than a half-dozen new products to debut if one includes its Italian partner Fiat.? In fact, there are expected to be around 50 new models introduced at the LA Convention Center during the media gathering, half of them making their global debuts, the others appearing for the first time in the U.S.

Horsepower and fuel economy
Another key product on display is the 2014 Ford Fiesta, the remake of the maker?s smallest North American offering.? The Fiesta is one of a fast-growing number of small, so-called B- and C-segment models targeting both buyers on a budget and others who simply want to downsize to reduce their fuel bills.

That market segment has grown from about 13 percent of overall U.S. car sales to 24?percent?since 2004, notes Jim Farley, Ford?s global marketing chief.

Significantly, buyers don?t necessarily have to sacrifice room and performance to boost mileage, industry executives stress ? pointing to the mix of new hybrids, plug-ins, battery cars and advanced conventional gasoline-powered vehicles.? New technologies, such as Direct Injection and turbocharging are accomplishing what once seemed impossible: boosting performance as well as mileage.

The new Porsche Cayman sports coupe, which debuted Wednesday, delivers an extra 10 horsepower, for example, and about 15 percent?better fuel economy.

Whether talking about entry-level econoboxes or luxury cars like the Porsche Cayman, ?Mileage is top of mind? for just about all buyers, asserted Mark Fields, who will officially become the maker?s new Chief Operating Officer this week.

And the significant improvements in mileage are luring buyers back to showrooms, industry officials uniformly agreed. But there are other factors driving a demand surge.? Auto loan interest rates are at or near historical lows, for one thing. Then there?s the issue of pent-up demand.

Aging US automobiles
Auto sales have fallen at least 10 million below the trendline since the start of the recession and several recent studies show that this means the current U.S. fleet is older than ever, the majority of vehicles now in service for around a decade ? and about 20 percent at least 16 years old.

The recession pushed many buyer groups out of the market, especially young motorists who have suffered a higher unemployment rate ? and who may have been struggling to pay off hefty student loans.? But in recent months, noted Toyota?s Lentz, ?Younger buyers have returned to the market at a faster rate than any other segment.?

The revival of the youth market is clearly helping drive the current demand surge. Ironically, so is the rebuilding effort in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.? By various estimates, the disaster may have ultimately cost the loss of 100,000 or more vehicles, many of which will be replaced by new products. According to Ford?s Fields, the industry is already seeing a sharp rise in sales in the greater New York area, where storm damage was most severe.

As a result, the Ford COO said he ?wouldn?t be surprised? if November?s final figures came in at an annualized rate of around 15 million or more, which would be the industry?s best pace in nearly a decade.

There are some potential pitfalls.? As the economy recovers, there are signs that fuel prices could once again spike. A modest upturn might actually increase demand for high-mileage models, though a major spike like the one seen last spring could choke off the U.S. recover, observers warn.

So might a failure by Congress and the White House to avert the so-called fiscal cliff, the need to work out new policies on taxing and spending. Ford Chairman Bill Ford recently warned this could also choke off a recovery, though a study by the University of Michigan was less worried about the impact on the auto industry.

Barring such setbacks, ?We would expect the market to improve,? Fields concluded.

That?s particularly good news even though few expect to see peak sales during the current cycle reach the 17 million-plus numbers seen early in the new millennium.? During the recession, most makers ? and especially the struggling Detroit Big Three ? took unprecedented steps to trim operating costs so even without reaching new sales records industry profitability could run substantially beyond anything ever seen in past auto sales boom years.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/us-auto-market-showing-signs-recovery-1C7316259

grenada Sikh andy reid Sanya Richards Ross decathlon Honey Boo Boo Child marilyn monroe

Video: Wealthy Cliff-Proofing Cash

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/cnbc/50014450/

Electoral College obama chuck pagano A Gay Lesbian daylight savings time 2012 Where To Vote james harden

Online personal training startup Wello packs a punch with $1 million ...

Wello

Some impressive investors including Mayo Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Mohr Davidow and Aberdare Ventures have thrown $1 million in seed money behind an ambitious Rock Health fitness startup by the name of Wello.

The startup has created an online marketplace that connects physical trainers with clients and enables live, online personal training via video chat.

The seed round, which also saw contributions from Morado Ventures, S-Cubed Capital, PhilQuo Ventures and angel investors, will propel the startup as it readies to launch a new offering early next year.

Right now, Wello facilitates personalized, one-on-one training sessions between consumers and more than 150 certified physical trainers. The next step is to launch fitness classes led by those trainers so that users can do joint sessions with family or friends in different places, or join a structured class with others who are interested in the same activity and are available at the same time. That would bring down the cost of a session, co-founder Leslie Silverglide noted, which ranges from $35 to $199 per hour depending on the trainer.

For consumers, the value proposition is obvious: more motivation to work out and help from someone who knows what they?re doing, without having to leave home. The site lets users search for trainers based on style and specialty. For trainers, Wello provides an additional revenue stream and the potential to fill typically unbooked hours during the day with appointments. Trainers are screened by the company?s on-staff personal trainer and must take a class on how to train through video.

Wello takes a part of the per-session payment, but not nearly as much as the up-to-80 percent that gyms take from trainers? fees, Silverglide said. That enables trainers to charge less for a session.

Silverglide and co-founder Ann Scott Plante met as business students at Stanford University and started working on the site at the beginning of 2011. They launched it in a private beta mode in March of this year and publicly in July.

They won?t say just how many people are using the site, but they will say that those that use it tend to return. ?Two-thirds of people that try a session once will come on and try it again,? Plante said, adding that some customers have already done up to 50 sessions in the four months the site has been live.

As far as competition goes, the closest thing to Wello appears to be HealthFleet Inc., a Connecticut e-coaching startup for weight loss. But Wello is probably tapping into the same pool of people who would use services or mobile tools that track and personalize health recommendations like FitKit, Healthrageous and Enforcer eCoaching.

Although the founders are spending their time in Rock Health?s incubator program developing and preparing to launch the new features next year, they aren?t planning on stopping there. ?Ultimately we hope to connect people with experts in nutrition, sports therapy, etc.,? Silverglide said.

[Image courtesy Wello]

Copyright 2012 MedCity News. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://medcitynews.com/2012/11/online-personal-training-startup-wello-packs-a-punch-with-1-million-seed-round/

facebook buys instagram kevin systrom fibonacci sequence maryland lottery grand jury ozzie guillen fidel castro darvish

No more government contracts for BP

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government banned BP Plc on Wednesday from new federal contracts over its "lack of business integrity" in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, possibly imperiling the company's role as a top U.S. offshore oil and gas producer and the No. 1 military fuel supplier.

The suspension, announced by the Environmental Protection Agency, comes on the heels of BP's November 15 agreement with the U.S. government to plead guilty to criminal misconduct in the Gulf of Mexico disaster, the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history. The British energy giant agreed to pay $4.5 billion in penalties, including a record $1.256 billion criminal fine.

BP and its affiliates are barred from new federal contracts until they demonstrate they can meet federal business standards, the EPA said. The suspension is "standard practice" and BP's existing U.S. government contracts are not affected, it said.

The EPA acted hours before a government auction of offshore tracts in the Gulf of Mexico, a region where BP is the largest investor and lease-holder of deep-water tracts and hopes for further growth. BP is also the top fuel supplier to the U.S. military, the largest single buyer of oil in the world.

Suspension of contracts could give the government leverage to pressure BP to settle federal and state civil litigation that could top $20 billion if a court finds BP was grossly negligent in the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

An EPA official said government-wide suspensions generally do not exceed 18 months, but can continue longer if there are ongoing legal cases.

In a statement, BP said it has been in "regular dialogue" with the EPA, and that the agency has informed BP that it is preparing an agreement that "would effectively resolve and lift this temporary suspension." The EPA has notified BP that the draft agreement will be available soon, BP said.

U.S. operations accounted for more than 30 percent of BP's pre-tax profits in the third quarter, and the United States accounts for about a fifth of BP's global oil production.

The U.S. military has been a reliable customer of BP's jet fuel and other refined products. As recently as September, BP affiliates won two military fuel contracts worth as much as $1.37 billion, according to a website that tracks U.S. military contracts.

The EPA's action is a sign that all federal contractors will be held to high standards, said Scott Amey, general counsel for the Project on Government Oversight, a private watchdog group.

"BP had years to improve its business ethics and is paying the price for its inaction," Amey said.

On November 15, BP Finance Director Brian Gilvary told investors on a conference call that any blanket ban could force the company to rethink its entire U.S. business.

The Justice Department says it intends to prove in a court case set to get underway in February 2013 that BP was grossly negligent under the Clean Water Act, a claim the company has adamantly denied.

"The critical question is whether this a shot across BP's bows to get settlement, or a more sustained stance, in which case the importance of the context is underlined" by Gilvary's comments, said Peter Hutton, an analyst with RBC Capital Markets.

The EPA's suspension will not impair BP's ability to produce oil and gas from existing U.S. assets, said Pavel Molchanov, an analyst with Raymond James & Associates Inc in Houston.

"BP's supply contract of fuels to the Pentagon might be at risk, but of course BP could supply other customers if this supply contract is not renewed," Molchanov said in a research note.

BP and the U.S. government likely worked out a deal on the timing of the suspension before BP agreed to sign off on the November 15 criminal plea deal, said Samuel Buell, a Duke University Law School professor and former federal prosecutor.

"It's just inconceivable to me that BP's lawyers ... would have entered into that agreement last week without the issue of a suspension or debarment having been addressed," Buell said.

BP did not participate in Wednesday's federal auction of 20 million acres (8 million hectares) of drilling tracts in the Gulf of Mexico, one of BP's biggest oil production regions globally.

One long-time critic of BP applauded the decision.

"After pleading guilty to such reckless behavior that killed men and constituted a crime against the environment, suspending BP's access to contracts with our government is the right thing to do," U.S. Rep. Edward Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, said in a statement.

BP's U.S.-traded shares closed flat, while London-traded shares were down less than 1 percent at 427 pence.

(Additional reporting by Andrew Callus in London, Ayesha Rascoe in Washington, Joshua Schneyer in New York and Kristen Hays in Houston; Writing by Chris Baltimore; Editing by John Wallace, Grant McCool, Andrew Hay and Marguerita Choy)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/epa-temporarily-suspends-bp-u-federal-government-contracts-135930995--finance.html

mls draft mark davis marine urination video cadillac ats bain capital marines urinating haley barbour

Rev. Run Weight Loss: Hip-Hop Legend Drops 22 Pounds In Effort ...

At 48, Joseph "Rev. Run" Simmons is finally hitting his stride with a healthy diet and exercise routine that he says is on par with achieving the kind of physique he'll need to keep up with his Run-D.M.C. group mate Darryl "D.M.C" McDaniels.

"I just did a concert with D.M.C. after 13 years, and after losing some pounds for that, I felt really good," Simmons told The Huffington Post. "We got good reviews for having lots of energy on stage and I realized that if I?m going to continue to do shows ... I gotta be in Mick Jagger-type of condition."

But aesthetic goals (and criticism from the public) aside, Simmons says his new healthy-living routine is rooted in something far more serious -- combating his higher-than-average risk for Type 2 diabetes.

"I found out that [my father] had diabetes in his older age and as I was moving along in my life ... I realized that I had to start losing weight," he said, explaining how he's taken up walking and recently dusted off his treadmill in an effort to stay the course during the chillier winter months. "[It was] for many reasons, but the number one reason was for health."

And while family history factors in to why Simmons needs to get his health in check, diabetes educator Jeannette Jordan said it's a myth many people need to dispel.

"One of the biggest [misconceptions] out there is people feel like diabetes runs in [their] family, so it?s inevitable that they?re going to get it," Jordan said, touting her employer Novo Nordisk's "Ask. Screen. Know." campaign, for which Simmons is now an ambassador. "The message that we?re trying to get out is that it doesn?t have to happen to you the same way. Yes, family history is a risk factor, but it doesn?t mean that because this happened to your mom it has to happen to you.

A diabetes diagnosis also doesn't mean life-altering changes, Jordan said. "What we need to do is not that difficult ... moderation is actually the key. We don?t take away everything that you love, it?s just how much we eat," Jordan said, stressing the importance of knowing which foods turn into sugar, forgoing sweetened soft drinks, and realizing that you can limit yourself to just one cheddar biscuit from Red Lobster and still enjoy your meal.

"The myth is that life is going to change so drastically, '[I'm] not going to be happy with my dining anymore', and that?s not true. You can live well with diabetes if you have it. But the first thing is, you have to be screened, you have to know if you have it. Ask yourself if you?re at risk and then do something about that," Jordan said.

Simmons agrees that knowing is the key -- even if you are the picture of perfect health. "My dad had diabetes, so it doesn?t mean just because Russell stands on his head and does yoga, and Angela?s in perfect health that they don?t have it," he said, referring to his yoga-promoting brother Russell Simmons and his daughter Angela Simmons, who showed off a svelte new figure earlier this year.

And just ahead of the holidays Simmons said he's relying on them for support. "They?re right there for me; they know what I?m doing to keep my weight under control ... and [during the holiday season] I believe in being proactive instead of reactive," Simmons said. "I have all types of things set up so I know, this is what I?m going to eat when this sweet tooth moment comes, this is what I?m going to eat when dinner comes around. And no, I?m not going to wait until the big dinner. [For Thanksgiving], I didn?t wait for the one big moment, I had already eaten twice, the right way, before dinner, so when dinner came, I wasn?t starved."

Related on HuffPost:

"; var coords = [-5, -72]; // display fb-bubble FloatingPrompt.embed(this, html, undefined, 'top', {fp_intersects:1, timeout_remove:2000,ignore_arrow: true, width:236, add_xy:coords, class_name: 'clear-overlay'}); });

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/27/rev-run-weight-loss-lower-diabetes-risk_n_2198731.html

apple announcement indianapolis colts joseph kony joseph kony ipad 3 release date apple store down apple live blog

Gabriel Aubry-Olivier Martinez Brawl Deemed "Mutual Combat"; Criminal Charges Unlikely

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/11/gabriel-aubry-slash-olivier-martinez-brawl-deemed-mutual-combat/

lake havasu halo 4 jewel san francisco earthquake san francisco earthquake terminator salvation terminator salvation

High-Tech 'Granny Pods' Provide Alternative Housing to Nursing ...

As seniors age, it becomes increasingly difficult for family members to care for them. Many opt to place their loved ones in a nursing home, but a new, more high-tech option is now available.

Informally known as ?granny pods,? the MEDCottage is a ?mobile, modular medical home? that is temporarily placed on a caregiver?s property to provide rehabilitation and extended care for seniors in need, according to its official website.

SEE ALSO: Older Americans Love New Tech But Hate to Admit It [STUDY]

Described as a ?state-of-the-art hospital room,? the MEDCottage is equipped with sensors that alert caregivers to problems and medication reminders via computers, the website said. Using ?smart robotic features,? it can also remotely monitor vital signs, filter the air for contaminants and communicate with the outside world.

The 288-square-foot unit includes electricity and water connected directly to the homeowner?s utilities, a kitchen with a small refrigerator, microwave and medication dispenser, a bedroom and extra accommodation for visitors, and a handicapped-accessible bathroom.

How does the MEDCottage compare to a nursing home? Discuss in the comments below.

Image courtesy of Flickr, Big Dubya

Source: http://mashable.com/2012/11/27/granny-pods-medcottage/

tony blankley charles barkley beyonce troy polamalu james harrison james harrison falcons

Will Fiscal Cliff Deal Harm 401k Investors?

Are Congress and the Obama administration getting ready to balance the budget on the backs of the nation?s retirees? If history, a bipartisan report and the rumblings of Washington are any indication, then workers across America better be prepared from some sad news.

According to Brian Graff, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA), ?Already we have Simpson-Bowles proposing to cut retirement plan deductions by 60%. In addition, there?s talk of placing a cap on all deductions, including those associated with retirement plans.? Graff fears if Washington turns this talk into action, it can have dire consequences on America?s workers. ?The single most important factor in determining if a worker is saving for retirement is whether or not there is a plan at work,? he says, ?Last time Congress took up tax reform in 1986, employees? 401k plans were cut by 70%, resulting in a mass termination of plans.?

Increasing taxes, both directly through higher rates and indirectly through deduction reduction, acts as a double edged sword. ?An increase in marginal tax rates on 401k withdrawals during retirement will immediately reduce the purchasing power of the investor?s existing 401k balance,? says Adam Cufr, Principal at Fourth Dimension Financial Group in Perrysburg, Ohio. Likewise, he adds, ?A proposed reduction in the allowable contribution amounts would result in investors needing to seek out investment alternatives to their 401k plan, causing many investors to lose the tax deduction on those dollars redirected from their plan (unless they qualify for a tax-deductible IRA).?

Worse, still, is the talk of changing the tax code. Such talk only increases uncertainty, and that, by itself, has repercussions. Clark Kendall, President and Founder of Kendall Capital Management in Rockville, Maryland, says, ?Investors/employees do not know what their income tax rate will be next year. Employees do not if it?s better to contribute to a retirement plan with before tax dollars or to a Roth with after tax dollars. Investors do not know if it is better to sell their appreciated Apple stock before the end of the year at a capital gains rate of 15% and contribute to a retirement plan next year with an income offset deduction of 15, 25, 28 or 35%.?

But not all feel changing tax rates will have any real impact on 401k savings. Although he would ?personally and professionally? oppose cutting retirement plan contribution limits, Dustin TenBroeck, Co-Founder of Poole & TenBroeck Wealth Management in Del Mar, California, is among those who believe it doesn?t matter. ?I am unsure of what affect it would have on 401k participants,? he says. ?On one hand, you can look to the statistics which site that 95% of baby boomers have not saved enough money for retirement and 55% of all Americans did not save even one penny in 2011. This would indicate that the government should be doing more to incentivize our citizens to save for when they can no longer work, especially if we foresee cuts to social programs in the future. Conversely, you may look at these statistics and suggest that most Americans would be unaffected by these changes in tax law.?

The New York Times added its opinion to the debate in its November 25, 2012 article ?Study Questions Tax Breaks? Effect on Retirement Savings.? The article states a study, based on Denmark data, concludes, like other similar European studies, people save more when they?re forced to. The article then goes on further to claim tax deductions do not provide an adequate incentive to save in retirement plans.

Graff, whose organization, an umbrella group of plan service providers, is promoting a ?Save My 401k? campaign, believes the Times article, if not the study itself, ?has nothing to do with reality.? He says the article is ?yet another example of misinformation,? pointing out, contrary to assertions made by the Times reporter, ?there actually is research on American taxpayers that you can rely on. An ICI study says 83% of those who contribute to their 401k plan oppose any reductions in the tax deduction.?

A November 26, 2012 ASPPA press release promoting the ?Save My 401k? effort references data from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) that says more than 70% of workers earning from $30,000 to $50,000 participate in their employer 401k plans, compared with only 5% who save for retirement without a plan at work. Moreover, these plans have grown more important. When families have a retirement savings account, those savings represent more than 65% of their financial assets.

?We understand Congress needs to reduce the debt and raise revenue but raiding the tax incentives for 401k plans will put American workers? retirement security at risk. Tens of millions of Americans participate in these retirement plans, and 80% of them earn less than $100,000 per year. This is a battle that American workers simply can?t afford to lose,? said Graff.

Financial professionals tend to agree lowering the retirement plan contribution limits would likely damage America?s already fragile retirement system. Rather than do anything that might discourage more savings, they feel Congress and the White House need to focus on policies that encourage more savings. One area that has been spoken of is legislation broadening the eligibility for plans to participate in Multiple Employer Plans (MEPs).

Tenbroeck notes when the DOL last year issued ?Advisory Opinion 2012-04A [it] eliminated many of the benefits that employers gain with an MEP. Each plan must be subject to a separate Form 5500 filing, when needed an annual audit requirement, and a separate Form 8955-SSA with the IRS.? He believes that ?if ?open? MEPs can be treated as a single plan, then small businesses would see cost savings as the third party administer can perform the functions which are currently a burden of the company.? Tenbroeck is hopeful ?we will get legislation that is required for MEPs to act as a single employer plan for ERISA?s tax reporting and fiduciary requirements.?

Cufr concurs, adding ?Allowing plans to pool through an MEP makes incredible sense to smaller plans. Not only are there gains in plan administrative cost efficiencies, the plan sponsors are able to reduce, if not eliminate, their personal fiduciary liability ? a responsibility most small plan sponsors have no idea they are shouldering.?

Washington does have the opportunity to do well by retirement plan investors, but not by tampering with the tax code. Just ask any of those closest to the action and you?ll see.

Interested in learning more about this and other important topics confronting 401k fiduciaries? Explore Mr. Carosa?s book 401(k) Fiduciary Solutions and discover how to solve those hidden traps that often pop up in 401k plans.

Source: http://fiduciarynews.com/2012/11/will-fiscal-cliff-deal-harm-401k-investors/

selena lamichael james lamichael james derrick rose acl earthquake los angeles unemployment

Sharp's first 4K 32-inch IGZO LCD is destined for Japanese workstations

We've been waiting to enjoy the promised extra detail and low power consumption of IGZO-based LCD panels for a few years now, and they're finally starting to appear. The latest on the docket is Sharp's new PN-K321 monitor, built for professional use with 4K resolution (3,840 x 2,160) plus HDMI and DisplayPort inputs, and what Sharp claims is the industry's thinnest frame at just 35mm thick. With an expected price of 450,000 yen or so (about $5,500 US) when it debuts in February 2013 it's still too pricey for our desks but if you're doing CAD work you may be able to design a budget it can fit into. We're seeing them in phones, tablets and now monitors overseas, here's hoping we'll see plenty of these high pixel density yet power-sipping panels with US release dates at CES in January.

Filed under: Displays, HD

Comments

Source: Sharp Japan

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/tl28UA5h660/

brandon rios oklahoma news nascar news doppler radar colorado rockies moonshine news channel 4

Austrlian Capital Territory ? Sports & Recreation | www ...

Leading the Sport and Recreation Industry
As the peak body representing state sporting associations in the Canberra Region, ACTSPORT represents the views of more than 100,000 people or one third of the ACT population
? The Key Functions of ACTSPORT are;
? To represent Canberra region Sport & Recreation Industry
? To provide a forum for the exchange of knowledge and ideas
? To assist with the coordination of strategic planning for sport in the ACT
? To influence policy development
? To be a service provider to the industry
? To deliver disability sport opportunities to the community
? To deliver training opportunites for the industry and wider community
ACT Sports House
Address: 100 Maitland Street, Hackett ACT, 2602
Phone: 02 6247 0260
Fax: 02 6257 3018

?

?

Sport and Recreation Services
Sport and Recreation is a vital part of the ACT community.? The ACT is Australia?s most physically active community, home to many successful elite athletes and sporting teams and an abundance of sport and recreation facilities that provide physical activity opportunities around almost every corner.
Postal Address: GPO Box 158 Canberra ACT 2601
Street Address: Level 2 Telstra House, 490 Northbourne Avenue Dickson ACT 2602
Phone: Canberra Connect 13 22 81 (+61 International)
Fax: (02) 6207 0123 (+61 International)

If you?re 35 or older and would like to play rugby in Canberra, join us every three weeks (or so) for a friendly game at Portsea Oval, RMC Duntroon and post-match social drink at Olims Hotel.
Email:? enquiries@actvetsrugby.org.au

The ACT Cricket Association began in 1922 as the Federal Territory Cricket Association and changed to the Federal Capital Territory Cricket Association in 1928. It wasn?t until 1940 that we became the Australian Capital Territory Cricket Association (ACTCA).
Physical Address: Level 2, Sir Donald Bradman Stand, Manuka Oval, Manuka ACT 2603
Postal Address: PO Box 3379, Manuka ACT 2603
Phone: (02) 6239 6002
Fax: (02) 6295 7135

Indoor cricket is a dynamic form of cricket played inside an enclosed, netted arena. With a long and storied history, the sport in Canberra and the surrounding region is active, and well developed, with thousands of people participating at all ages and skill levels each week.
Indoor Cricket A.C.T. is the peak body for indoor cricket in the region. Working with Cricket ACT and Cricket Australia, ICACT aims to provide for the development and enhancement of the sport, and all of its participants and officials.

Football in Australia is governed at the highest level by Football Federation Australia (FFA).? Registered as Capital Football, the A.C.T. Football Federation is the Member Federation governing body for the A.C.T. and surrounding region, one of nine governing bodies under their auspices.
Postal: PO Box 50 Curtin, ACT 2605
Office: Football House Unit 2/3 Phipps Close Deakin, ACT 2600
Phone: +61 (02) 6260 4000
Fax: +61 (02) 6260 4999
Email: general@capitalfootball.com.au

Basketball ACT provides a range of opportunities for all levels of participation including competitions, entry level Aussie Hoops program, representative programs, development programs right through to the top elite programs in the Canberra Gunners and Canberra Capitals.
Belconnen Basketball & Sports Centre
42 Oatley Court Belconnen ACT 2617
Phone: (02) 6253 3066
Fax: (02) 6253 3060
Email: Admin@act.basketball.net.au

Location: 7 Lonsdale St. Braddon, Canberra
Phone: 02 6257 7566
Email: info@straightlineskishop.com

AMF Bowling has 43 centres across Australia, all with bowling, arcade games, caf? and bar facilities and state of the art sound systems.? Selected AMF Bowling centres now have M9 Laser Skirmish for even more action!

INDEPTH SCUBA specialises in scuba diver training, dive travel, dive equipment sales, dive equipment servicing and gear hire. Our staff are all highly trained professionals, knowledgeable and dedicated to bringing you excellent service in all areas of diving.
We have now been teaching PADI scuba diving courses in the Canberra region since 1998. With over 20 years diving experience, our staff are trained to PADI?s highest standards, to ensure your diving experience is safe, fun and memorable.
Canberra Store
Phone: 02 6251 2011
Email: info@indepthscuba.com.au
Shop Address: Canberra International Sports & Aquatics Centre
100 Eastern Valley Way Belconnen, ACT 2617

Source: http://toowheelsadventures.com/index.php/act-sports-recreations/

andy williams Lady Gaga New Girl Avalanna Gigi Chao Jimmy Hoffa Ed Hochuli

Source: http://leifpruitt.typepad.com/blog/2012/11/austrlian-capital-territory-sports-recreation-www.html

joseph kony 2012 arian foster dennis kucinich apple ipad kony kony 2012 jim irsay

Source: http://pregryfaa.posterous.com/austrlian-capital-territory-sports-recreation

chicago news chicago news golden girls robert e lee golden globe winners the express zappos hacked

Source: http://ysarepebo.posterous.com/austrlian-capital-territory-sports-recreation

marie colvin cm punk cm punk lint buenos aires train crash argentina train crash nancy pelosi

Source: http://fumigaracyr.posterous.com/austrlian-capital-territory-sports-recreation

free pancakes at ihop martina navratilova high school shooting daytona 500 national pancake day ohio school shooting sean young arrested

U.S. declines to name China currency manipulator

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration said on Tuesday that China's currency remained "significantly undervalued," but stopped short of labeling the world's second-biggest economy a currency manipulator.

Although Beijing controls the pace at which the yuan can rise, the U.S. Treasury said in a congressionally mandated semi-annual report that China did not meet the legal requirements to be deemed a currency manipulator.

The label is largely symbolic, but would require Washington to open discussions with Beijing on adjusting the yuan's value.

It has been 18 years since the U.S. Treasury has designated any country a manipulator. China was labeled a manipulator between 1992 and 1994.

The latest report reflected both the administration's desire to maintain good relations with its top creditor and an attempt to keep up pressure for changes in China that could benefit the U.S. economy and mollify domestic critics.

The report noted that the yuan, also known as the renminbi, had risen 12.6 percent against the U.S. dollar in inflation-adjusted terms since June 2010. An official said it was up 9.7 percent on a nominal basis through Tuesday, when it closed at a record high.

The Treasury also said China had "substantially" reduced its intervention in foreign exchange markets since the third quarter of 2011 and had loosened capital controls.

"In light of these developments, Treasury has concluded that the standards ... have not been met with respect to China," it said. "Nonetheless, the available evidence suggests the renminbi remains significantly undervalued," the report added, echoing the Treasury's last assessment in May.

Ted Truman, a Treasury official under former President Bill Clinton, said it was important to keep a watchful eye on China's currency policy.

"We have the aftermath of 10 years of misbehavior," said Truman, who is now with the Peterson Institute for International Economics. "It would probably be unwise and too soon to declare victory."

During the U.S. presidential campaign, Republican candidate Mitt Romney pledged to label China a manipulator on his first day in office to show he would be tougher on the chief U.S. economic competitor than President Barack Obama.

Many U.S. businesses and lawmakers complain that Beijing keeps the value of its currency artificially low to gain an advantage in trade at the expense of American jobs.

But an international consensus is growing that the yuan is closing in on its fair value after about a decade at an artificially weak level. The International Monetary Fund softened its language on the yuan in July.

YUAN AT RECORD HIGH

Signs of a recovery in the Chinese economy and a new round of quantitative easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve have led traders to push the yuan higher.

But China's central bank has kept a lid on the move. The central bank allows the yuan to rise or fall by only 1 percent from whatever rate it sets each day.

Charles Schumer, the No. 3 Democrat in the U.S. Senate and a longtime critic of China's yuan policy, said the Treasury passed up an opportunity to level the trade playing field.

"It's time for the Obama administration to rip off the band-aid, and force China to play by the same rules as all other countries," the New York senator said in a statement.

But the U.S.-China Business Council, which represents U.S. companies that do business with China, applauded the decision.

"The exchange rate has little to do with the U.S. trade balance or employment," council President John Frisbie said. "We need to move on to more important issues with China, such as removing market access barriers and improving intellectual property protection."

The Treasury said further appreciation of the yuan would help China balance its economy toward consumption by giving households greater purchasing power.

It called on China to reduce its "exceptionally high" foreign exchange reserves and publish data about its intervention in currency markets.

The Obama administration also used the currency report to keep pressure on South Korea to limit its foreign exchange intervention.

South Korea says it intervenes to smooth the volatility of its won currency, but it has gone into the market throughout 2012, the Treasury report said. In July, the IMF said the won was undervalued by up to 10 percent.

"We will continue to press the Korean authorities to limit their foreign exchange interventions to the exceptional circumstances of disorderly market conditions," the report said.

(Reporting by Anna Yukhananov, additional reporting by Doug Palmer and Lesley Wroughton; Editing by James Dalgleish, Dan Grebler and Andre Grenon)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-declines-name-china-currency-manipulator-003153427--business.html

texas relays meniscus the colony kids choice awards ncaa final four 2012 texas chainsaw massacre uk vs louisville

How social media link building is beneficial? Several Reasons are ...

The sturdy great things about social media link building have become liked more now however, many webmaster are but to begin with getting the most out of these types of exclusive sites. During these sites, you can now openly bookmark and part fascinating webpages online websites around the web. If you had been saving some curiosity websites as you look at web, you might have remarked that often, you will find must repeat such websites. Using social media link building opens the door that you should share such websites, so you sometimes, part some interesting sites of the blog or website generally in most from the social bookmarking websites.

Social bookmarking tools link building can be done because as soon as your webpages sites in to the societal links and part, you?re actually doing over sharing them sites online websites since you can be gathering the needed a proven way social media link building to your website on your own webpage simultaneously.

This is economic, if someone makes technique keywords you will be targeting in your web pages to describe backlinks of your site or weblog pages through social media link building. These kinds of search phrases can help your bookmarked pages to prepare classify upper within the search engines? result pages so the links in your sites or community forums becomes much more visible inside the outcome sites.

There are numerous possibilities that are included with social media link building as it will be one certain method of making one?s website or blog sites extremely popular in the internet. When the sites you bookmarked are interesting or contained value data, there?s every opportunity that a number of other bookmarkers would eagerly share it along the net along with some could even share the bookmarked pages in other website marketing mass media such as twitter and fb. This may have sturdy stream of traffic effects about the hyperlink interest in such webpage.

Should you actually need your internet site or weblog to get more stature through social media link building, it is crucial which you barely bookmark your internet site inside the social bookmarking sites. This can make sure that you make appropriate utilization of certain focused upon search phrases to describe the many gages of one?s internet sites however, this can consequently lead to more no-cost traffic and rank visibility. The stream of traffic options that come with the different social bookmarking sites makes it crucial that you sufficiently bookmark your sites so that you will check out the best from your time. Your business will get instant exposure just in case you manage the social bookmarking tools hyperlink building properly.

There are numerous webmasters which were playing different social media link building for while nonetheless they will not do specific factors right. Among the right items you need to do is as simple as being aware of the proven fact that your search phrases are necessary in case your social bookmarking hyperlink building gives your website the greater exposure it will take. You don?t have to reason using the proven fact that hyperlink constructing could be one strong way of pushing one?s how do people the very best degree of Google along with other major engines like google though the results will only stay consistent unless you quit your link constructing halfway.

If you want to increase visibility of your website then you must need Good Links for Better Web Presence.

Good Links for Better Web Presence Traffic Secrets

Source: http://traffic-secrets.org/how-social-media-link-building-is-beneficial-several-reasons-are-supporting-it-why

phoenix coyotes bruce irvin charlie st cloud celtics josh hamilton nba playoffs rosario dawson

Recent College Grads Launch A Real Estate ... - Business Insider

Courtesy of The Next Step Realty

Belton Baker (left) and Blair Brandt (right)

Some 40,000 college graduates descend on New York City every year, and most of them need a place to live.

The Next Step Realty plans to dominate that untapped market of renters by focusing on them exclusively. The company, which soft-launched in May 2010, works with agents in 30 cities in the U.S. and Europe, with a focus on New York City.

Founders Blair Brandt, 24, and Belton Baker, 23, started the agency after hearing complaints from their friends and classmates who had already secured good jobs in metropolitan cities but didn't know how to find the right apartment.

"College grads were unfamiliar with conditions of the market and needed to be pointed in right direction," Brandt said. "So this way they don't make mistakes wasting time, money, and energy."

Before launching the company, Brandt worked at?Christian Angle Real Estate in Palm Beach, Fla. and struggled to find clients. He found that most potential sellers and buyers already had established relationships with brokers and didn't want to betray them, he said.

But that wasn't a problem with recent college graduates, most of whom had never dealt with real estate before. They lived in dorms, sorority or fraternity houses, or off-campus housing that was well-known and passed down through groups of friends.

"We heard the complaints and we saw this as a mutually beneficial relationship for the broker and the graduate," Brandt said. "The brokers get in early and start making long-term relationships with clients, and the graduates get some guiding help."

Brandt and his partner were also in a good position to deal with the young demographic because they were both recent college graduates themselves, Brandt from the University of Richmond and Baker from UNC-Chapel Hill.

The Next Step Realty spread the word about their service by sending an email to 1,000 friends and acquaintances. They put a tracking link on their URL, and within a month 100,000 people had visited their website. The clients started coming to them.

Brandt said the first two years were about working out the kinks, and in 2013 he wants the agency to make a push toward quality and not necessarily quantity. The majority of the company's efforts will focus on New York, where it plans to use about 20 brokers to cover the market.

Brandt expects each broker to have three appointments a day during the busy season (May through November), and to close on two of those three appointments. He's tough on his agents, generally starting with 50 at the beginning of the busy season and cutting the group to 25 or even 10 if they aren't up to par.

In addition to building a client base in New York City, The Next Step Realty just acquired former competitor Post Graduate Apartments, which focused on housing for the post-business and law school set. The agency is also going through a round of fundraising with angels, private equity investors, and some friends and family. And its new website launches at the end of this week.

"We're still building our clientele and trying to grab a larger portion of the graduating class each year," Brandt said. "But we've already had some graduates from 2010 come back to us when looking for their second apartment because they were satisfied with our product the first time around."

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-next-step-realty-for-college-grads-2012-11

neurofibromatosis steve jobs fbi file suge knight obama birth control mortgage settlement macauly culkin joe namath

McCain to GOP: Leave Abortion Alone

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said on Sunday that the Republican Party needs to do a better job appealing to female voters, and part of that starts with how it communicates its stance on abortion.

?I can state my position on abortion,? McCain said on Fox News Sunday. ?Other than that, leave the issue alone.?

Later, he added, ?I'm proud of my pro-life position and record and if someone disagrees with me, I respect your views.?

McCain also said the GOP needs to reach out to Latino voters. To do so, he said, Republicans should champion immigration reform.

?I think we have to have a bigger tent,? he said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/mccain-gop-leave-abortion-alone-114800304--politics.html

tomb of the unknown soldier tomb of the unknown soldier HMS Bounty dominion power nbc news Heather Clem Con Edison

Your Best Defense Against Relapse while Fighting Addiction

Yesterday we looked at the optimal timeline of success in addiction recovery. Today we want to look at what your best defense is against relapse while you are fighting addiction or alcoholism.

In my experience the best defense against relapse in recovery starts with a strong foundation of sobriety. For me this meant that I had to go to inpatient rehab. I had tried in the past to get clean and sober without going to treatment and it had never worked for me (for example, I attended counseling on an outpatient basis but continued to self medicate).

Early recovery and inpatient rehab

One of the most obvious principles that come into play with inpatient rehab is that you get an ?early win? no matter what. For the time that you are in treatment, you stay clean and sober without much effort. This is exactly one half of the entire point of inpatient treatment. The other half is that they attempt to teach you relapse prevention in some form or another?whether that is a 12 step program, a religious based approach, or whatever. But most folks who are experienced in treating addiction agree that inpatient rehab is the best way to start.

When you go to inpatient rehab you start building a foundation. First of all you stay clean and sober while you are in the facility as it is a tightly controlled environment. Second of all they attempt to educate you as to how you might stay clean and sober once you leave rehab and are back on your own again. Both of these things are attempting to build a foundation for you in early recovery.

I went to short term rehab twice and immediately relapsed upon leaving. Therefore I figured out at some point (based on what the counselors were telling me as well) that I needed long term treatment. This may not be the case for everyone but it was definitely the case for me. I needed more help than what 28 days or less could provide for me. Instead of a one month long foundation in recovery I needed a two year long foundation in recovery. Looking back this was the best decision I ever made?to live in long term rehab. Not everyone will need this but if you repeatedly fail after attending short term rehab (like I did) then you might consider it at some point.

There are very few effective alternatives to inpatient rehab. How else might you build a foundation in early recovery? You could try to detox yourself (unsafe in many cases) or you might just try to attend 12 step meetings every day (not reliable or consistent enough). None of the possible alternatives are nearly as effective as actually staying at an inpatient facility for several days or weeks. This is not to say that inpatient rehab is the only thing that could possibly work, it just means that inpatient rehab is likely to build the strongest foundation for you.

Living recovery and finding support when you leave rehab

How many people do you think leave inpatient rehab, only to relapse and fall flat on their face almost immediately?

The numbers on this are staggering. It is so intimidating that it might almost seem like going to inpatient rehab is not worth it at all.

But you have to remember what treatment is: a foundation. Without it your recovery will be much more difficult. But just having built this foundation does not mean that you are home free. Not by a long shot. In fact, the real test in recovery begins when you first leave the safe environment that inpatient provides and have to make decisions on your own suddenly. This is your first real test in recovery. In comparison, being in inpatient treatment for 28 days is a walk in the park.

This is why they encourage you to find and use support while you are in treatment. For example, they will typically suggest that upon leaving treatment you:

* Attend 12 step meetings every single day.
* Follow up with either counseling or outpatient treatment on a regular and consistent basis.
* Get phone numbers of your peers in recovery so that you can call on them for support or in times of trouble.

Obviously support is important in early recovery. If you leave out of inpatient rehab and you have formed no new contacts with people in recovery then it will be very difficult to maintain sobriety.

They say that in recovery you ?only have to change one thing, and that is EVERYTHING.? This cliche is undoubtedly true, and anyone who has made the transition into successful recovery can look back say ?yes, that is accurate?.I really did change everything!?

This changing starts with people and support. Before you came to rehab you obviously had zero support in terms of recovery. You were not associating with healthy people in recovery at that time. Now that you have been detoxed and left inpatient rehab you need to start associating with ?the right people? every single day.

The easiest way to do this is to immerse yourself in AA or NA meetings. When I say ?immerse yourself? what I mean is:

* Attend a meeting every single day no matter what, and possible more than one meeting if you feel it necessary.
* Get involved with your peers in the 12 step program and start spending time with them outside of the meetings.
* Find a sponsor quickly in recovery and start talking with them every single day and start working through the steps with that person immediately.

If you just want to do one of these things but not the others then I believe you are missing the point. You want ?full immersion? in this new life of recovery and so therefore you need to go all out when pursuing recovery. Don?t hold back. Put a 100 percent effort into this.

Now you may also note that I do not normally advocate for strong 12 step involvement on this website. My philosophy of recovery does not generally depend on programs, meetings, or sponsors. However, I think it is important to realize how crucial the timing is in all of this. If you are in your first 2 years of recovery (approximately) then you need all of the help and support that you can get. Keep in mind that I actually had a lot MORE support during the first two years than what I describe here. I was living in rehab for two years, attending meetings, having a sponsor, etc. Later on in my recovery I reduced these dependencies (on outside support) and found a way to depend more on myself for my recovery efforts. But I think it is important to recognize the need for support in early recovery.

Tactics versus strategy in recovery

Most of the suggestions listed above are tactical in nature. Go to meetings. Get a sponsor.

The overall strategy that dictates those actions is essentially: ?Immerse yourself fully in recovery.?

You can follow a strategy without necessarily knowing all of the tactics. So long as you know what your strategy is (live and breathe recovery every moment of every day) then you can sort of ?fill in the gaps? as you go along and figure out which tactics will plug into your life.

I think it is important to think about strategy much more than what is typically taught in addiction recovery. If you go to a dozen 12 step meetings you will probably hear people talk about tactical approaches 99 percent of the time. Maybe 1 percent of the information you hear will be a suggestion that speaks of strategy in recovery.

Your strategy is important because it dictates your long term outcomes. Your strategy tells you WHY you are going to meetings, not just that you need to go to meetings. Therefore it is more powerful than blindly following suggestions that people give you.

I took issue with this in early recovery because people were basically telling me to ignore strategy. They were saying ?stop thinking so hard about this recovery thing and just do what you are told to do! You will only screw it up if you try to over think it!? Indeed, strategic thinking is discouraged in early recovery. ?Don?t drink and go to meetings.? I was told many times that I should ?not try to figure this recovery thing out,? but to ?just do it and have faith.?

This approach may be good enough for some people, but it did not sit well with me. Basically what I was told was that I should blindly use the tactics I was being given (go to meetings, get a sponsor, etc.) but not WHY I was using those tactics (the overall guiding strategy of recovery). Sure, people could give their opinion as to the ?why? we used certain tactics in recovery, but no one could tie it all together with a unifying strategy that made sense.

There are some advantages to this: Early recovery benefits greatly from a tactical approach rather than a strategic approach. The old timers were basically right: Shut up and do what you are told! This works well in early recovery because addicts and alcoholics tend to over think and complicate things if left to their own devices.

The problem comes in when you have this mentality of ?shut and follow our directions? that is extending into long term recovery. If you have 4 years or more of sobriety and you cannot improvise and think on your own two feet in life then something is wrong. If you need a sponsor to get through a craving or trigger situation after several years of recovery then something is wrong. So really what I am cautioning about here is the long term reliance on tactics.

You should not be relying on tactics in long term recovery. Instead you should develop a recovery strategy that is flexible and resilient enough to keep you clean and sober for the rest of your life. You don?t get such a strategy by simply following directions and taking orders blindly.

At some point, you have to transition into long term recovery. There are people in ?the program? who refuse to do this. They want to ?stick to the basics? and rely on a tactical approach to recovery forever. This is the weaker path.

The stronger path is to develop your own recovery strategy. Find the tactics that work for you and then fit them into a framework that makes sense. Test your conclusion by experimenting and pursuing more growth and learning. Refine your strategy as you use it to guide yourself in recovery.

How to develop your own recovery strategy

Begin with foundation knowledge. Early recovery is not the time for deep thinking. Attend treatment and take advice, follow orders, do what you are told. This is not to punish yourself or belittle yourself in any way. You are simply learning the basics of discipline and self control in a totally new way. Allow yourself to do this. Let go of the need for control. You can even let go of the idea that you want to develop your own recovery strategy.

You don?t need a recovery strategy in early sobriety, you need to follow orders. I know that sounds harsh but it is the truth. If you could get away without having to take some direction then you would not be in trouble in the first place. Suck it up and do what the counselors, therapists, and sponsors suggest in early recovery. Build your foundation.

Your strategy in recovery will build on this foundation of action. In early recovery you will do things that are suggested to you. Some of these things will be highly effective for you and other things will not do much for you. For example, I had suggestions in my early recovery to both exercise and meditate. I tried both. Eventually I became a regular jogger and looking back I can see that this replaces and fulfills the ?meditation requirement.? I could not have known this going into recovery, but instead had to discover it after taking suggestions and experimenting.

When I say that you should ?take orders in early recovery? I am not saying that you become a doormat. What I am saying is that you take action and try new things, new ideas that come from other people. This is critical. As you do this you will keep the effective actions and discard the useless ones.

After you do this for a few months or years (take suggestions and experiment with new ideas) you will slowly start to develop your own recovery strategy.

It may be the case that everyone?s recovery strategy is the same; I am not actually sure on this yet. I just know that my personal strategy is to ?pursue health and personal growth.? I want to be as healthy as possible and also become the best person that I can be. This is what my strategy has become and because I have taken the time to so thoroughly refine this strategy I no longer need to think or worry about individual tactics.

Your best defense against relapse is personal growth

Your best defense against relapse in the long run is a strategy of personal growth.

As I said this might not be the exact strategy for everyone but I believe most people will have to have some element of learning and growth in their long term strategy for recovery.

Having a strategy of personal growth means that you:

* Will always be willing and eager to learn more about yourself and what you might be able to improve in your life.
* Will always be building self esteem based on personal achievement and growth (this is huge for protecting against relapse).
* Will be reducing stress and building more contentment into life by making constant incremental improvements in the way that you live and do things.
* Will be healthier and happier in the long run based on a strategy that equates personal growth with improved health. This fits in with the holistic health approach as well and being aware of health in all areas of your life.

Anyone who ignores such a strategy of personal growth and holistic health is likely to stray into dangerous territory. They will essentially be relying on tactics to get them to do the right thing rather than being able to use these principles to guide them.

Keep in mind that this is a long term strategy in recovery. You can use these concepts to help dictate your actions in the short run, but the long term effects are what motivate your decisions in most cases. This is why you will intuitively want to quit smoking cigarettes some day in recovery?because you know it is the right thing to do for your long term health in recovery. The same strategy can lead you to physical exercise, meditation, or whatever seems to work well for you in terms of increasing your health.

Long term recovery never ends ? how to fight complacency

People who relapse in long term sobriety do so only after becoming complacent. They get lazy. They stop growing and learning.

Therefore your long term strategy should include the ideas of continuous learning and continuous growth. Thus you can naturally prevent relapse in your journey by being aware of complacency and taking a pro-active strategy against it. Anyone might become lazy in recovery but if you plan for it and intend to keep yourself motivated to make new growth on a regular basis then your strategy can help protect you from this threat.

I do this by taking on ?growth projects? and attempting to push myself to learn and try new things. This is not as easy as it might sound. Why would you want to leave your comfort zone in recovery if everything seems to be going good for you? Yet this is the sort of risk that you have to take in order to pro-actively fight against complacency. It is only by continuously challenging yourself that you can make new growth in your life. You don?t reach new milestones in life by playing it safe and being boring. You have to try new things, learn new things, and take some healthy risks. When I say ?risk? I do not mean trying to jump over canyons with a motorcycle. I am talking about the risk that you feel when you try to learn something totally new and feel that you might look foolish or stupid. I am talking about the risk that you take when you want to explore meditation but know absolutely nothing about it and are afraid to ask people.

In a way this is like returning to the innocence of early recovery. Find a new direction in which you might learn and start asking questions again. Pretend you are new in recovery all over again and find a new path of growth to explore. This can be uncomfortable for people and it can feel like it is a risk. But if you want to keep growing in your recovery and protect yourself from relapse then this is actually the strongest path. It feels weak because you have to make yourself vulnerable at times in order to embrace new ideas and learn new things, but it is actually the strongest approach to long term recovery and continuous growth.

Recommended Reading

866-211-5538

24 Hour Treatment

Source: http://www.spiritualriver.com/your-best-defense-against-relapse-while-fighting-addiction/

Griselda Blanco Michelle Obama Speech eva longoria Rihanna wiz khalifa Michael Clarke Duncan Nazanin Boniadi

Hand and Wrist Pain | - Health and Fitness Media - Typepad

I am often surprised that folks don?t contemplate chiropractic look after hand and wrist pain. We do extra than simply low again and neck pain. We are taught to deal with the spine and most different joints of the physique together with the hand and wrist.

Hand and wrist ache for the sake of this article isn?t about carpal tunnel syndrome. That?s one other topic for an additional day. In addition to which, most carpal tunnel syndromes contain the neck. Hand and wrist pain will be independent of the neck.

What are the a number of the extra common hand and wrist pain cases that a typical chiropractor would treatall For one, overuse or repetitive pressure syndromes that may manifest either as hand/wrist or elbow pain. The typical situations could be sports accidents, falling and catching oneself with the hand prolonged, weight lifting or lifting heavy items (resembling with a recent move to another home). Even repetitive actions such as knitting, crocheting, laptop usage can add to repetitive strain. Massage therapists also are in danger for repetitive strains with the heavy utilization of their arms, forearms and elbows.

Ache alongside the thumb (normally of the dominant hand) is another typical pain syndrome seen by chiropractors. This is often an inflammation of the extensor hallicus longus tendon ? translation: irritation of the tendon that goes to the thumb. This is normally of a power nature. Problem writing, choosing up objects, performing advantageous motor abilities with the thumb may be painful. The joint the place the thumb attaches to the hand is the most commonly degenerative joint within the hand. That tells us we use our thumbs a lot. Over time the damage and tear stress upon that joint makes is vulnerable to degenerative or arthritic changes.

Finger ache reveals up now and then. Usually, the finger does not bend all the way. The ache is normally not disabling however annoying. I had a affected person with such a case. He had low grade finger ache for over 20 years. He thought there was no cure. Simply on a whim he ventured to ask if anything could possibly be finished for it. One treatment and the ache was completely gone and hasn?t returned since.

A typical therapy protocol for hand and wrist ache is in fact chiropractic adjustments. I take advantage of the Activator (hand held gadget) which pinpoints the joint accurately. I also use the ?speeder board? which is like a mini-drop table. This helps to jog loose the joint that perhaps stuck. Mushy tissue work can also be helpful to scale back irritation, break up adhesions, reduce muscle spasm, enhance vascularity to the tissues and most significantly scale back pain. Checking other associated buildings can ferret out contributing causes to the pain. Sometimes, the elbow, shoulder and neck are the same old suspects.

In additional advanced circumstances, testing for lack of power and different orthopedic tests to rule out nerve entrapment syndromes, carpal tunnel syndrome, and thoracic outlet syndrome may be necessary.

The point of this text is to speak up to your chiropractor about any hand or wrist pain that you may be having. You may be surprised.

No related posts.

Hello, my name Asep, I live in Jakarta with is the state capital of Indonesia. I am the fourth of seven children, I worked in a private company engaged in contracting and my job now is Project Manager, I also own pioneering efforts along with my wife, which I own is a civil engineering degree and my wife is a graduate of architecture, and we cooperation each other in the field of engineering. I love to write, I try to pour in an article in the hope of representing and sharing experiences of my hearts burst of expression, This here I liked the design of the house and the challenge will be to their owners. Satisfaction of an owner is a satisfaction, freshness and happiness of countless ...

Source: http://www.friedenforbes.com/2012/11/23/hand-and-wrist-pain/

nicki minaj beez in the trap video food network good friday f/a 18 f 18 crash virginia tenebrae the lake house

Source: http://sammieguerra454.typepad.com/blog/2012/11/hand-and-wrist-pain-health-and-fitness-media.html

recruiting rankings san onofre paula deen birth control recall nick carter leslie carter aaron carter sister