Barbie And Ken Drama

I don’t know about you…but, I grew up with Barbie and Ken.  You know…of the plastic doll fame, Ken and Barbie?  They were allegedly introduced to one another on the beach in Malibu back in 1961.  They have been through it as a couple.  For most of 43 years they were an item.  Then, back in 2004 after all of those years together…another man caught Barbies eye.  Talk about drama.  Well, last night the drama of Barbie and Ken escalated as they have chosen to reunite in a very public way…through the world of media.  Can we say ick? Continue reading here: Write Where You Are

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Alpha Inventions-Have You Heard About Them Yet?

         Alpha Inventions, I wondered if you have heard of them yet?  I discovered them the other day when they made an appearance on my stat counter on my blog site.  I wondered who are they and; how, and why are they referring so many visitors to my blog.  Not that I minded the traffic; in fact, it was quite wonderful.  However, sometimes sites connect to your site that you wish had never heard of you; you know what I mean?  Some of them bring traffic that i don’t want associated with my blog.

         Anyway, i did a little sleuthing and found out it is a site that is relatively new.  From what i understand…it is a site that brings exposure to a multitude of sites-in real time.  So, as soon as you post to your site/blog others can see it at that moment.  In doing so, they are current on what information or products you are trying to bring to the world wide web.  I don’t understand all of the ins and outs of their algorithms…but, thankfully, it isn’t my job to understand it.  I am benefitting from someone else’s brillance.  That is ok with me.  In return, i hope that my blog brings something to them as well.

          Interesting though when you stop to think about the name.  Alpha Inventions…when I looked it up there were many definitions for Alpha.  Of course, we all know about the Alphabets…a listing of letters that begins with the letter A.  Then, there is the definition of Alpha as first or beginning-beta (as in beta testing).  Then, there is the definition of top of the line or dominant. And finally, to be the most prominent, talented or aggressive.  Congrats to Alpha Inventions for thinking outside of the box.  Think of it as free media publicity for your writings or your business/marketing site.  It is another tool to use to bring attention to your goals that you are trying to accomplish on your site.

            When you stop and think about it…all of those terms apply to http://www.alphainventions.com .  It is an experiment in transition i think.  However, a brilliant one…I think it will be fine tuned and will catch on like wildfire.  Like any invention…it will go through several phases of development.  In the meantime, enjoy the extra traffic that they send you…you won’t be sorry.

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Less Direct Marketing-Happier Me!

      This is interesting news to me; and, not altogether unhappy news, it has come to my attention that as a direct result of the financial crisis in this country…we are all going to be receiving less junk mail in our mail boxes!  Isn’t that wonderful?  It is just sad that it took something of this nature to reduce all of these unwanted solicitations. 

       Now, I have to admit, i hate junk mail.  It piles up and seems to breed when I am not looking, before I can dispose of it.  I could build a miniature high rise building with the stacks of envelopes that I get each week.  It is frustrating, as my shredder is broken; and, many of those envelopes are attempts to get me to sign up for credit cards, home equity loans; and or, other means of putting me further and further in debt. 

       Hello people, where is the common sense here?  I hate getting those pieces of mail; because, if you open them up…they have multiple spots on the applications with personal name & address information.  As I said, without a shredder…i must hand tear them into small pieces so that no one else can activate them if they come across the applications.  That is highly annoying to have to go through all of that extra work because of no fault of my own.  However, it is necessary with all of those warnings that we all hear about on the news programs of identity theft.  It is too easy for someone with ulterior motives to make use of that private, and personal information they find inside of those envelopes that everyone tosses away.

        It also goes against my growing sense of green living.  There is no reason to slaughter thousands of trees a year just to bombard people with mail that they don’t want or need; which only ends up in landfills anyway.  I want to protect the environment and be a good steward of the world that we live in.   Let’s take a moment and compliment those companies that are cutting back on wasting trees and money by curbing the direct marketing sales envelopes that we all receive.  Thank you for cutting back, I want to encourage you to continue this practice even when the economy improves!   I admire your leadership in this area of your business (yes, i know you are mainly doing it to save money…that is ok…we both benefit).

         Of course, we all want the financial world to get back on it’s feet.  Let this small step of reducing unwanted mail be the first positive step in the right direction, as far as using common sense, in the business world.  I believe that the impact is far reaching.  I for one, appreciate the fact that I will get less unwanted mail.  How do you feel about the matter?  Will you respect a company for taking this step?

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Foreclosure of American Family Mint Farm-Help By Buying American

        Here is a story that illustrates the breakdown of American business.  Jim Crosby and his sister Linette are in a fierce and immediate battle to save their family owned mint farm business.  They are to be foreclosed on, any day now…they need to sell bottles of mint oil to save their business.  They are located in St. Johns, Michigan.  Michigan is one of the hardest hit states when it comes to the economy.  People here are struggling to hang on to the most basic necessities of life…this family only wants to be able to continue to provide a service to their customers…both old and NEW!  It is their dream to be able to continue marketing their mint oil.

         Their business has been owned by their family members since the early nineteen hundreds.  This is their legacy…and it needs an influx of cash, today.  You can visit their website ( http://www.getmint.com)  and help, to try to save an American owned business.   In a day and age where American business owners are moving out of the country left and right, to get cheaper labor and make more of a profit; it is nice to be able to support a company that has stayed in America while producing their product.  If you use mint oil for cooking, baking, tea, health aid, air freshner…or any other use…please buy from this company and help them stay in business…but, don’t dawdle…they need cash now to stay in business.  The bank that is planning to foreclose on them…could take their bottles of oil and they could take the equipment needed to continue producing the oil…thereby, putting them out of business.

         We have to make a stand for some kind of return to common sense…producing in America, selling in America and buying in America…this is how we build a strong infrastructure in the country once again.  You can build up business, jobs, and housing markets by keeping American’s working.  You want to strenthen the economy?  Stop buying everything from other countries (because it’s cheaper) and start supporting American owned and operated business that produce quality products.  The job or business that you save just might be your own!

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High Traffic Scores

       Yahoo… I am so excited.  I did a little test on this blog site on www.HubSpot.com.   I got a score of 48…which they say means that, out of the hundreds of thousands of sites that they have tested, my blog scores higher than 48% of them in terms of marketing effectiveness.   Whoooooo Hooo. 

         But, i am a bit confused.  I am not a marketer.  I just write a blog on all kinds of interesting subjects (at least they are interesting to me).  However, I have written on so many subjects…that evidently, i have hit upon enough various subjects to be effective! 🙂  Cool Beans, I say. 

         Technorati has given me a rank of 372,003 which puts it in the top 0.53% of blogs that they track.  Yes…but, how can this be?  I am not a very technological person.  I only started blogging about 16 months ago.  There are things that I have discovered, which would now cause me to do a few things differently were I to start up another blog…but, that is how I know that I am growing and learning.  That is alright…that knowledge can be applied to future projects.   There is so much more to learn.  It is interesting…but learning new things leads a person to discover new passions.  Before long, you start accumulating large amounts of information that crosses over into other projects or areas of interest in your life.

         If we knew everything when we started out trying something new…would we ever push ourselves to go a little farther?  Probably not, human nature wants to be on familiar ground…to feel confident and comfortable in what we do.  However, the most personal and professional growth comes from pushing yourself to test your mettle…doing something that you do not think you are capable of doing.  I never thought i could do something like write a blog; and have someone come to it, and be interested in what i wrote.  But, i discovered when i gave myself permission to do it for myself…then, i was able to follow through. 

         Everyone tells me that it is simply because of content…regular, consistent postings that the blog is growing.  Writing is fun, reading the interactions in the comment section is rewarding to me.  Touching on subjects that can inform, or, share information is exciting.  Getting to know regular readers is the best part; because, they start to share who they are and what is important to them.  Some of the readers even post things that make a difference in someone else’s life…such as the comments on triple negative cancer…or, suicide prevention; or, some other post that affects people in a real personal way.

         It is a challenge to find something in everyday life that gives a small glimpse into what is happening in the world at that time…trying to make sense of how it affects me or others, that I care about.  Still…reading the report on the rankings of the blog…was eye opening to me.  That is because that isn’t why I started to write the blog; however, it is encouraging to learn as i go… and find ways to improve what i do.

        On top of that…my blog received a Google page rank of 4; but, now that i know it has room for improvement…i want to make it better.   A four is not too shabby.  But, what really excited me was that in the area of traffic…the blog was in the top 4.61% of all websites. 

        This, is like winning some kind of award; such as an Emmy, or an Oscar…maybe a Tony; Is there some kind of award for someone addicted to blogging?  hahahah.  Ahhhhemmmm, I would like to thank my mom, and my dad, and my teachers, and my bus drivers, and anyone else who NEVER let me talk when i felt the need (just kidding) ….LOL     Blogging is fun….Go check out your website rating on www.HubSpot.com.  It is a great tool to work with; if you are in the hopes of improving your site and making it more effective by reaching the people you most want to communicate with.  Find out what you are doing right…and, oh by the way, did you find out anything that you could improve from testing your site on Hub Spot?

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What Are You Going to Accomplish Today?

        Are you living your life fully or are you going through the motions just waiting for something to happen to change the way things are?  Do you have long term and short term goals in place?  Are you focussed on enjoying today while planning for tomorrow?  Life is an interesting mix of failures, accomplishments, goals; each has their place in your life to enable you to be successful in your personal and professional life.

         Have you ever heard how people answer questions about their life?  Anyone ever said to you…it is just another day?  That my friend, is a life that is un-fulfilled.  That is a person who isn’t engaged with their purpose in life.  Maybe they don’t know that they live and breathe for a reason.  Every person has gifts, ideas, experiences, talents, and knowledge that is meant to move them and others through life in a positive way.  Sitting on those  qualities and hoarding them without using them to improve life is a one way trip to no-where.

          Do you know anyone who has to learn life the hard way?  Are they condemned to experience life through failure?  Or , are they equipped to live and learn from the mistakes and the successes of others…saving themselves time and enabling them to succeed more quickly and efficiently?

           I want to tell you about an opportunity to experience something that has never been done before.  There is going to be a life changing seminar in Long Beach, California Sept 26-28th put on by Brendon Burchard, author, life coach, businessman and motivational speaker.   Brendon wrote the book, Life’s Golden Ticket last year and made a huge impact on those who have read it.  It was published by Harper Collins.  He has put together a program that is going to address personal and professional growth as well as wealth building.  Can you use any help in those areas?

           This is an affordable event.  It is not going to be held in a traditional hotel environment where they present you with recycled information and then grab your money.  This experience is going to include, music, business advice, life changing information on gathering business partners, personal growth experts, the power of impact, and learning how to build upon what you have and the contacts in your life.  If any of this interests you…you may want to click on this link to find out how you can be there to see this extra-ordinary event unfold.  It will make history as it takes place under a big top tent.  Nothing boring here 🙂  Here is your link to more information…and some free audio snippets of an interview:  http://www.lifesgoldenticket.com/preview 

            Also at this event, you will see the results of Ken McArthur’s Boot Camp Impact Action Team and what they were able to accomplish in their teamwork by joining together to make a positive impact in an area of life that touches so many.  It is important to support the Impact Action Team and the work that they are doing!  Check out the person that was chosen to receive the benefit of their impact here:  http://speakupsavelives.org/  Meet Deremiah CPE…see how you can help impact the world.

             Find a way to get there…and discover what your purpose in life is; and, how you can nurture that purpose, and allow it to blossom.  You will understand how to take the promise of the seeds in your life and turn them into the amazing life that they were meant to be!  Are you up to the challenge, are you willing to enjoy each day to the fullest, living your life with purpose and clarity, achieving all that you are meant to achieve; and, spreading the message that we are all here to encourage and lift each other up?  Life is too short to spend it wishing for more, accepting less and resenting those who understand how to make things happen in a positive way, Don’t you think so too?  Come on, check it out:  http://www.lifesgoldenticket.com/preview  If you don’t listen to anything else, listen to the last audio…where he talks about his amazing un-precedented money back guarantee!  He sounds pretty confident to me that you will not leave the event un-changed or un-happy!

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Doing Something New Is Scary!

        I don’t know about you…but, doing something new is more than a little bit scary.  I don’t know if you are like this or not…but sometimes, I stop myself from doing things just because I get a little bit intimidated or fearful.  I also had a slight case of a fear of failure…and even worse…a fear of success!  Yep, I am definately my own worse enemy at times.  How many things in life do i miss out on, because the voice in my head has cautioned me to step lightly or turn around and go back to the same old status quo; just because it feels familiar and safe?  How many times have I cheated myself out of something wonderful and positive?

         Geez, I just bet I can’t count that high, LOL.   I think about this blog in particular…when I was moved in my soul to start disciplining myself and write on a regular basis; I knew it was something that I needed to do.  Yet, can you believe I almost talked myself out of it? 

           If I had allowed myself to continue to doubt…then, I would not have had the pleasure of helping supply information to so many people about triple negative breast cancer and have had the impact on lives that had not heard about the disease.  There were people who contacted me on that subject who were going through scary times and needed support.  There were other readers who had experience with TNBC and were able to be a support to others, through my blog.  Then, a subject i hold near and dear to my heart which is fetal alcohol spectrum disorders has had an impact on lives because of the information in that post.  I consider it an honor to have the priviledge to  possibly steer someone away from picking up an alcoholic beverage while pregnant; and maybe, preventing someone’s child from having a lifetime of disabilities that could have been avoided.  That is the power of positive impact.

           That very first post was so very intimidating that I sat and worked on it for hours…hours I tell you!  🙂  Finally, i confessed that it was intimidating and just jumped in with both feet and did it.  Scary, yes…am I glad that I took the chance and have since been blessed by the experience…YES!

            Tonight, I did something else that I wasn’t sure I could do.  I got on a live tele-seminar and spoke with businessman Michael Penland.  He had more than 100 people on that call, listening to his guests speak.  You can hear a replay of that call here:  http://instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=3926631   The listeners on that call were hungry for information on how to build their businesses and their websites; so that their dreams can come true.  Sometimes, it just takes a little encouragement for people to believe in themselves.  

            Michael is a special person who goes out of his way to help others succeed in their own businesses.  He helped my husband get started in marketing over a year and a half ago.  He helped to build my husband’s confidence and opened new doors for him.  Now my husband is a respected marketer who has helped to encourage and mentor so very many others in ways that have changed their lives for the better.   It is like a chain reaction when people set out to make a positive impact on the lives of others.

            Michael has a live seminar coming up in Orlando, Florida on Sept 19th-21st.  Check him out and see what he can do for you!  http://www.instantcashmarketing.com/jeff.html   The speakers at this event are powerful and have the skill to teach you how to achieve your dreams in a way that will open your eyes to the talents and skills you already own inside of yourself.  You may recognize some of the marketers by name, there is Willie Crawford, Matt Bacak, Brad Fallon, Dr. Mike Woo Ming, Howie Schwartz, Joe Sugarman, Debra Thompson, Jason Pearson, Frank Garon, Keith Wellman, Jeff Wellman, Dale Calvert, Alan Bechtold, Drew Miles, and Jeff Herring and of course, Michael Penland.  

            The title of the seminar is Magic 17-Billion Dollar Marketing Dream Team.  You will learn things at this live event that you may never have another opportunity to experience.  Do yourself a favor and click on this link and see how you can get yourself going in the right direction.  Empower yourself to do what you have always wanted to do; you can do it if you only dare, to not be intimidated or doubt yourself; I know you can!  http://www.instantcashmarketing.com/jeff.html

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What’s Little Ol’ Me Doing on a call with a Billion Dollar Marketing Dream Team?

          What’s little ol me doing on a call with a Billion Dollar Marketing Dream Team?  I remember starting out with a lot of self-doubt and I pushed myself to take a risk to either fail or succeed.  The only thing i can figure about my being asked to join the call is; that each one of those people started out with a goal, an idea or a dream.  They built up their businesses by learning and growing in their area of expertise.  They each had mentors, role models, and experts that they were smart enough to connect with.  This helped them with their goals and helped them to build up their accomplishments allowing them to live the life of their choosing. 

           The call is a free tele-seminar that i was asked to join, by businessman Michael Penland.  This call is for small business owners and internet marketers who want to grow their business larger and aren’t quite sure how to go about it or want to discover what they are missing.  Learning how to make extra money is never a bad thing when you are willing to work towards your goals.

            I am not a business-person.  I am a wife,mother, daughter and blogger.  I sure do wish to grow my blog; i would love for it to be bigger and better.  Michael Penland knows how to attract people who are good at what they do.  I would like to learn as much as the next person.  Michael heard about my blog and asked me to join on the call.  I am a bit nervous, as I am not sure where he will go with the short interview…there are others on the call who will have much to say; and, are very accomplished in what they do.  Let the call be an encouragement to your future; commit to the call by registering for free.

             If you have a business or website that you would like to grow…you might want to join the call tonight at 9pm eastern time.  It is free after all; and, if it helps you to discover how to make your dreams come true…then, it is worth sacrificing a little time on a tele-seminar.  Here is a link to register…there are only 200 lines open so hurry.  http://tinyurl.com/6k3tpr   Is your dream worth a little time on a call?

             

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Good Girl Barbie Teaches Bratz A Lesson

       Ok, here we go…a few months ago, i heard about a lawsuit on one of the ABC news programs between Mattel, the makers of the Barbie doll empire, and MGA Entertainment, Inc the makers of the Bratz doll line.  The issue seemed to spring from Mattel’s allegation that the designer Carter Bryant was working for them when he came up with the concept for the Bratz doll line; and therefore, they felt that it infringed upon their copyright since he was under contract to them at the time of the design; the jury seemed to agree.

         The jury awarded Mattel $100 million dollars in compensation today.  Wowie…that would pay for a whole lot of Barbie cars, Barbie swimming pools and certainly alot of Barbie mansions.   Now that $100 million, was nowhere near the amount that Mattel was seeking; it was more in the area of $1Billion dollars that they felt MGA should owe them with the success of the Bratz dolls,  toys and other assorted items MGA endorsed with the Bratz line. 

          I don’t know if you have ever seen the Bratz dolls but their heads are large…and they wear exceedingly seductive outfits and they have long hair and heavy makeup on these dolls.  They are very sensualized dolls that have been marketed to young girls and preteen girls as the heighth of fashion dolls.  In comparison, Barbie has been a mainstay in the toy market for years..but, since the sales began on the Bratz line…Barbie sales have fallen.  The competition seemed to pit the “good girl image” with the “bad girl image”…what image do you think young girls in a hurry to grow up wanted mom and dad to buy them?  Their choices are influenced by the things they see in our culture as “grown up”.   With growing concerns about body image and a healthy attitude towards their self concept…we need to understand the connection that takes place in a child’s world view and how that affects their emotional development! 

           Teaching young girls to value their bodies as something more than window dressing to get attention used to be the norm; that is no longer true.  Experts have been dealing with an increased awareness that young women are not happy with their bodies and will go to extremes to try to achieve the “look” that is in vogue.  We have young women (and young men) who are tortured with anorexia, who are struggling with obesity, who pay for plastic surgery to get their bodies to fit a certain mold, putting foreign substances such as botox into their bodies, breast augmentation, etc.   Educating them to the truth that the images they see in magazines and on television are adjusted with the magic of photo retouching and airbrushing techniques…that no-one has a perfect face or figure.  It is time to stop and teach young people the importance of self acceptance.  Stop allowing them to think that they don’t measure up to someone else’s standards of what is the ideal.

           We really need to examine the culture that we expose our children to from magazine articles, to television shows, to media advertising, to fashionable clothing lines that seem to say it is ok to dress our young girls in clothing meant for older teens or young adult women.  Everything is sexualized or sensual in it’s design…this marketing technique needs to be addressed.  We are allowing this, when we purchase these types of products for our children and then wonder why behaviors seem so out of synch with the type of behaviors that should be appropriate to their ages.

           Parents are the ultimate stop gap for their children…it is their money, for the most part, which purchases these items.  If we raise the bar on what we expose our children to…then, the industries that our dollars support will have to adapt to the demand for a more traditional age appropriate level of decency in the children’s clothing, toys, accessories, music, television programing, advertising, etc. 

            In an age where we try to protect our children from predators on the streets, in our schools and in every other area of life; we need to understand that if we send the children mixed messages about what is appropriate role modeling; how can we expect them to know when someone inappropriately crosses the line in their conduct?  Children learn their boundaries from the adults in their lives who set limits…so we need to re-examine how we condition our children by the choices that we make. 

            Children may still want the Bratz dolls over the Barbie dolls…who knows…children don’t always know what is in their best interests; however, the adults who care for them should know…shouldn’t they?

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Memories For Sale-Cheap…Clinton, Flowers, Jones

      I am a little bit surprised by the timing of the announcement, as it seems to me that these ladies would have gotten more mileage out of launching their website during the high point of Hillary’s historic campaign.   There is a new website that is offering to tell you all sorts of memories of Gennifer Flowers and Paula Jones.   They are putting on video, memories of their times with Bill Clinton.  Their website is offering an opportunity for paying customers to listen to what they want us to know about the Clintons; and, their memories of their times together, for a cheap, bargain price of 1 dollar and 99 cents. 

         What is a shame, is that what should be, upon self-reflection, a time of acknowledging a personal low, in the area of accomplishments and deeds; instead, has become a celebration of those sorrowful experiences with financial perks.

        The sheer marketing genius of selling cheap memories for a cheap price is astounding.  Sad but true, there is always a market for such things that exploit the sensational aspects of life.  I am sure there will be no lack of paying customers…but like most things of this nature; it won’t last, and then what?  Isn’t it time to move on?

         Now, I realize that over the years that both Paula and Gennifer have tried other venues to get their thoughts, feelings and points across…but, let’s reflect a little here on the various ways they have expressed their rejection, humiliation, sadness, anger, and low self-esteem, in my opinion.  

            Let’s see… there was a dramatic  (sexual harassment) lawsuit in 1994 by Paula Jones against Bill, there have been media- driven news announcements, television shows, interviews, a book that was written by Gennifer Flowers about her alleged 12 year affair with Bill, musical tours, speaking engagements, nude photos in men’s magazines, boxing matches, offering up recorded conversations to the highest bidder, and last but not least, financial settlements.

         I guess…in my opinion…the circumstances of each woman’s relationship with Bill Clinton was sad enough in it’s very roots.  But the full growth, of each of their sordid stories, has been nurtured and fertilized by their need to have us all feed off of the fruit, of their in your face, here, is what happened to me situations. 

          I am afraid that this whole thing leaves a bad taste.  After all, by charging for your memories of those times…you have validated Bill’s low opinion of you…women he could use (or attempt to use for his own pleasure) and then discard when it no longer suited his needs.  Then, when confronted, he denied his connections to you…he devalued your worth as women.  Now, all of those who said that you had little class will feel justified in their opinions.  Once again, there will be ridicule instead of people understanding your version of past events.

          By capitalizing financially; and, seeking attention, for more fame and publicity….it seems that you’ve succeeded in taken self-destruction to a whole new level by willing jumping into the pool of degradation, after having been coaxed into it by Bill Clinton; and, his political foes and cronies over the years.

          Paula Jones has allegedly said that this website is a way of getting their words out there without someone else’s interpetations or corrections.  However, i think it has only opened them both up to more media attention and public opinion….therefore, more criticism.  It is at times like this, that your mother’s wisdom is best heeded; if you don’t have anything nice to say…it is better to say nothing at all.   Let’s just end this with the thought, that it is always best to respect yourself; so that others, will afford you the same courtesy. 

         

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