WIN 50 Blog Explosion Credits

WIN 50 Blog Explosion Credits just for checking out my new website for Empowered Women

Please visit my new website when you get a moment.
www.womensempowerment.info . Here you will find valuable information about women's health issues, career choices, financial information, ideas for single moms, what to do if you are in an abusive situation and many resources to help you become an empowered woman!

There are many interesting articles and also a feature book section. This month's featured book is: "Develop Irresistible Attraction", written by Connie Domino, MPH, RN.

Stop by and browse the website, then come back and leave a comment here about what you thought of the site. If you look hard enough you will find a FREE ebook offer on the site, "How to Reduce the Stress in Your Life!" No strings attached, it's my FREE GIFT to you.

Find the FREE ebook, download it and read it. I hope you enjoy it and benefit from it.

I am looking for feedback on this new site. So here's the deal. If you are a Blog Explosion member, I will pick a random person from all the comments left here about my new website and award 50 Blog Explosion Credits to one lucky winner. So check it out...then leave a comment. If you are not a member of Blog Explosion, simply click on the logo and join...it's FREE to join!

24 Finally Gets Emmy!

24 Finally Gets Emmy!

I have to say the Emmy show really sucked last night! Boring is the word that comes to mind. In the first place, I cannot stand Conan O'Brien; I wish they had someone else as a host. Most of the speeches made by the winners were terrible, and some of the Emmy winners were sorry choices. (AP Photo/ Chris Carlson)

The highlight of the show for me was 24 winning three Emmys. After being snubbed for several years, it's about time that 24 was recognized. I think it's the best show on TV! You go Kiefer! The action drama won for best drama series and Keifer Sutherland picked up an Emmy for best actor. 24 also received an award for direction.

Looking for Pussy Cat Dolls

Looking for Pussy Cat Dolls

The search is on! If you are 18 years of age or older and think you have what it takes to be the next Pussy Cat Doll, then go to http://www.cwtv.com/pcd.html to apply and for more information.

Here is a list of places for upcoming open auditions.

• LOS ANGELES OPEN CALL AUDITIONS
Friday, September 8TH, 12 pm – 6 pm
LOCATION TBD


• HOUSTON OPEN CALL AUDITIONS
Friday, September 15th, 12 pm – 6 pm
LOCATION TBD


• ATLANTA OPEN CALL AUDITIONS
Wednesday, September 20th, 4 pm – 8 pm
LOCATION TBD


• CHICAGO OPEN CALL AUDITIONS
Saturday, September 23rd, 4 pm – 8 pm
LOCATION TBD


• MIAMI OPEN CALL AUDITIONS
Saturday, September 30th, 12 pm – 6 pm
LOCATION TBD

Visit The Pussy Cat Doll website.

How to Reduce the Stress in Your Life!

How to Reduce the Stress in Your Life!

I couldn't think of anything to write about today...so I thought I would just give you a FREE GIFT instead. Here is a great e-book for you. No strings attached, just a FREE book for you.

This book will detail what stress is, how to determine where the stress is in your life and how to alleviate it. It's chock full of ideas and tips to help you reduce and eliminate the amount of stress you have. It will also show you techniques and exercises to reduce stress in your life on an everyday basis - for the rest of your life.

This E-Book is my FREE GIFT to you. Download Here enjoy it.

.Crazy North Carolina Drivers

Crazy North Carolina Drivers

OK...here's something that drives me crazy about North Carolina drivers! They do not seem to know what an on-ramp is for on the highway!

The object of the on-ramp is to allow you to merge into the traffic flow on the highway. This means that you should look over your shoulder and adjust your speed accordingly as you merge onto the highway.

It DOES NOT mean that you should stop at the end of the on-ramp and wait for an opening! What part of merge do we not understand? If you stop at the end of the ramp and the person behind you is looking over their shoulder and speeding up there is going to be a big problem!

This is only one of the many things that bug me about North Carolina drivers...more to follow in upcoming posts. Please leave a comment about the crazy drivers in your area.

The Little Guy Lost

The Little Guy Lost

It seems like we are always picking on the little guy. Here's an update on a previous post. Poor Pluto lost its fight to retain its status as a planet. Ever since 1930, Pluto has been the ninth planet. It had a weird orbit unlike any of the other planets and Pluto was the little guy on the block!

Now the vote is in, and Pluto is no longer a planet after seventy six years, it has been demoted to a drawf planet...poor Pluto. To show your support for the little, guy go here and get a bumper sticker. Show that you care.

http://www.cafepress.com/bringplutoback

Would You Let Your Daughter Dress Like This?

Would You Let Your Daughter Dress Like This?

I guess we live in a world of double standards? Take this picture of Christina Aguilera for example. As a man, I love it -- very hot and sexy! However, if my daughter tried to leave the house dressed like that, she would never make it out the door! Totally unacceptable attire!

I would like to hear comments from both men and women on this subject.

Women: why do you dress like that? Just to drive us men crazy?

Men: you know you love it -- so I guess I already know what you think!

How to Drive Traffic to Your Website

Here is an article from my latest website design newsletter. You can view the entire newsletter here.

How to Drive Traffic to Your Website
By: Mike Marinaro


Everyone wants more people to visit their website. My clients are always asking me how to accomplish this. Well, I can answer that question in just one word -- ARTICLES!

More and more people are using articles to generate traffic directly to their website and it works great! The secret is to provide something interesting and closely related to your website. For example, if you are selling insurance, you could write an article explaining the difference between term life and whole life insurance and the benefits of each.

Make sure your article is well-written, grammatically correct and free of spelling errors before you submit it. You should provide links in your article pointing to your website, and most importantly, there should be a resource box at the end of the article. A resource box tells people a little bit about you; directs them to your website; and gives others permission to reprint your article as long they include the resource box.

Okay, now you have a well written article; what's next, where do you submit the article? There are many places to submit articles, just google "free articles" and you will get millions of links.

Here are just a few of the ones that I use:

http://www.isnare.com
http://www.goarticles.com
http://www.ezinearticles.com

Another great place to submit articles is in your own newsletter. If you have a newsletter that is mailed or e-mailed you should also be writing articles there that link to your website. It’s a good idea to also archive your articles on your website so they can be read over and over again. This also increases the chance of another publisher picking up your article for use on their own site.

Your own articles also make great fillers for your newsletters when you need to fill that white space. The best way to use articles in an e-newsletter is to just have the first paragraph or two as a teaser then include a link to your website where readers can get the full content of the article. What are you waiting for, start writing your articles and watch your website traffic begin to increase!

---

You are free to republish this article as long as this resource box is used and the entire article is published unchanged.

About the Author

Mike Marinaro designs websites and e-zines, he specializes in affordable Christian website design. You can visit his site at http://www.webdesign4him.com/.
To contact Mike e-mail cmmdtp@gmail.com.

---

In Memory of My Sister

In Memory of My Sister

Yesterday makes three-years since my sister died. Joan Ellen Marinaro was a Special Education Teacher and all of her students loved her dearly. I never realized how much Joan enjoyed teaching until after she was gone and I heard her fellow teachers and students say so many wonderful things about her.

Joan passed away suddenly at the young age of 50. Only a few months earlier we had held a surprise 50th birthday party for her and she seemed to be just fine. Life is short, and we never know when it will be our time to go. We should cherish every moment we have here on earth and take the time to enjoy our friends and family. Don't let silly things get the best of you and put you in a bad mood or distance you from your loved ones.

You can read more about Joan on my family website. Joan loved the ocean and she asked to have her ashes scattered there. Here is a poem she wrote 26-years ago.

I Love The Ocean

I love the ocean
Because of her soothing calm,
Mindless rages,
Dogged persistence,
Endless patience,
And everlasting mystery.

She lets you know who is master:
Not a petty supervisor,
Scolding parents,
Impatient mate,
Or ignorant stranger -
But the knowledge, total honesty,
And eternity of nature at its best.

Joan Ellen Marinaro
10/20/1980

This poem is part of a book of poetry by Joan Marinaro, "The Teacher Wore Purple", and may not be reproduced.

Copyright 2006 Marinaro Enterprises

Please leave a comment

John Mark Karr - Murderer or Liar?

John Mark Karr - Murderer or Liar?

What do you think? Is this guy really the killer of JonBenet Ramsey or just some nut case looking for his 15-minutes of fame? Now I hear that he also confessed to Natalie Holloway's murder!

Karr is also wanted as a fugitive on child pornography charges, so he does have a checkered past. According to reports, some details of his confession seem out of line with circumstances of the case.

Let me know what you think about this. Murderer or Liar? Please leave a comment.

Bed & Breakfast Experiences

Bed & Breakfast Experiences

Since this is prime vacation time, I have to put in a plug here for my other blog, Bed & Breakfast Experiences. If you have never visited this blog, please take a few minutes to check it out. If you have never stayed at a Bed & Breakfast, you owe it to yourself to try the experience...you will never go back to a hotel/motel again!
You may also want to check out the Bed & Breakfast Tours page at BnBFinder.com, what a wonderful idea for a vacation. Here are the tours they have listed right now on their website.

Wind Down the Pacific Coast Highway Bed & Breakfast Tour( California )

Escape to New England - A Bed & Breakfast Tour( Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont )

Tour Canada: The Rideau Canal Waterway B&B Getaway( Ontario )

200 Years of History Along the Historic National Road:Wake Up Someplace Special B&B Tour( Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia )

Please visit my Bed & Breakfast Experiences blog and leave a comment.

Isn't there anything better to report about?

Isn't There Anything Better to Report About?

Give me a break...I turned on the news this morning and the big story was all about Boy George sweeping up the streets of New York. Who really cares! The picture here is of Boy George in his hay-day when he was with "The Culture Club". His big hit was "Karma Chameleon".

It seems that the singer got into a bit of trouble a while back and was sentenced to community service. Back in March Boy George falsely reported a burglary at his apartment in Manhatten and when the police came to check it out they found cocaine there. (You think that if you were going to report a fake robbery, you would at least have enough sense to stash your dope out of sight!)

When he tried to go to work and sweep up this morning, he was swarmed by the media. Then he swept dirt and leaves into the cameras and ended up being re-assigned to a gated area where the media was kept at bay!

With all that is going on in the world today, you think there would be more important issues to report about. It's a shame to waste valuable air time on something like this.

When Is A Planet Not A Planet?

When Is A Planet Not A Planet?

That is the question that is being asked as by "The International Astronomical Union", which meets in Prague this week. They will decide the fate of Pluto, the smallest of our nine planets.

You can see by the picture above that Pluto is the smallest kid on the block as far as the planets go. Discovered in 1930 by Cylde Tombaugh, in Flagstaff, Arizona; Pluto is the only planet to be discovered by the United States.

It seems that there is this thing called the Kuiper Belt, a region beyond Neptune, where there are many small icy bodies that orbit the sun. Professor Mike Brown and colleaques at Caltech discovered 2003 UB313 (nicknamed Xena after the warrior princess). They feel that Xena should be promoted to the status of a planet since it is larger than Pluto.

If Pluto is out and Xena is in, then that would open the door for a whole bunch of new planets to make the list. I'm not sure how this will change my life, but I thought it was pretty interesting. Let me know what you think about the dilemma of Pluto. Please leave a comment.

Mindlessly Surfing the Internet

Mindlessly Surfing the Internet

Here I sit at 2:00 am, mindlessly surfing the web! I really have a lot of work to do, but I get so easily distracted. Hang on a minute...a little icon just popped up in the bottom corner of my screen, I'll be back in a minute, just have to check my e-mail!

I don't know what I did before Google. Anytime I have a question all I have to do is Google it and there's my answer...it's amazing! Come on now admit it people -- how many of you have Googled yourself? Just type your own name in the search box and you will be amazed how many results pop up.

I have several websites that I have to update for clients, blog entries to write, a novel to finish, and countless other projects to attend to; yet I just can't stop myself from participating in the Battle of the Blogs. I'm in the lifetime top 50...gotta keep battling!

Maybe I should think about getting some sleep, but I'm afraid I might miss something important. Oh, what the heck...I guess the Internet will still be here tomorrow when I wake up. See you later.

Please leave a comment.

Robin Williams Seeks Treatment for Alcoholism

Robin Williams Seeks Treatment
for Alcoholism
(AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

According to his publicist, Mara Buxbaum, the 55-year-old Oscar winner has been sober for 20 years but is now is seeking treatment for alcoholism. Williams, "found himself drinking again and has decided to take proactive measures to deal with this for his own well-being and the well-being of his family," she said in a statement. "He looks forward to returning to work this fall to support his upcoming film releases."

Robin Williams is one of my favorite actors and I think he is the best comedian ever! I used to watch him years ago on "Mork and Mindy" and have seen just about every film he has ever made. In fact he was here in the Raleigh area not too long ago to make the movie "Patch Adams" and my wife landed a part as an extra in that movie and even managed to get a kiss from Robin during a break in the filming!

I'm glad he is seeking help and wish Robin and his family all the best.

Please leave your comments.

World Trade Center

World Trade Center

Who can forget that horrific day, five-years ago when the World Trade Center was destroyed! It is one of those events that will forever be etched in our memories and years from now you will recall exactly where you were and what you were doing when you heard the news.

It was only a matter of time before Hollywood released a movie about it. What do you think, is it too soon for the movie; should there even be a movie made about this subject; are you going to go see the movie? Please leave a comment on how you feel about this.

I probably will see the movie eventually, maybe when it comes out on DVD. It is not on my must see list. I beleive that it's okay to make the movie as long as the facts are correct. Oliver Stone is a brilliant film maker and I'm sure he will do a great job.

The film is being released today, August 9, 2006. You can see a trailer at
www.wtcmovie.com

The movie, directed by Oliver Stone; featuring Nicolas Cage, Michael Pena, Maggie Gyllenhaaland Maria Bello looks like it will be a great movie. From what I have read about it, this is not a movie about conspiracy theories or political finger pointing. Instead, it is the story about two New York City Transit Authority Policemen, John McLoughlin (Nicholas Cage) and Will Jimeno (Michael Pena), who are entombed in the rubble and eventually rescued.

Please leave your comments.

Develop Irresistible Attraction

Develop Irresistible Attraction
In Five Easy Steps!

by: Connie Domino, MPH, RN

Stop struggling to achieve success & happiness ... learn how to ATTRACT people, things & opportunities you want in your life! In this book, learn the secrets to becoming Irresistibly Attractive. We're always attracting "stuff" into our lives, so why not use the Law of Attraction to attract the "stuff" we really want in all areas of our life?

LEARN how in five simple steps to achieve in as little as two weeks such dreams as ...

* More Money
* New Romantic Relationships
* Improved Family Relationships
* New Jobs
* Job Promotions
* Increased Sales
* More Customers
* Make the Life you Dream about a Reality!

Sometimes our thinking, feelings and strategies only need fine tuning a fraction of an inch for our grandest goals and dreams to come true. Through the familiar structure of goal setting, Connie Domino teaches you the all important "How" to word your goals. She'll show you how to fine tune your thinking, feelings and self-talk for very quick results.

cdomino22@aol.com

www.conniedomino.com

How to tell if you are driving too fast

How to tell if you are driving too fast

This picture says it all -- no need for me to write anything in this post. I received this in an e-mail today, I don't know where the photo originated from so I can't give the proper credits. It's a great picture -- if your dog looks like this, you need to SLOW DOWN!

Drive-In Theater - a thing of the past

Drive-In Theater - a thing of the past

My daughter has never seen a drive-in theater; what a shame. There are probably many of you younger folks reading this blog that also have never had the pleasure of going to a drive-in movie!

In their hey-day, there were over 3,000 drive-in theaters in the United States. Now, according to www.driveintheater.com, there are slightly over 500. It's too bad that the drive-in has vanished. I have many wonderful memories of sitting under the stars and watching great movies.

For those of you youngsters who don't have any idea what I am talking about, let me explain. The drive-in theater was a weekly adventure for us when we were kids. Mom & Dad would lay out blankets and pillows in the back of the family station wagon and my two sisters and I would be in our pajamas as we piled in the car.

The thing about drive-ins was that the movie couldn't start until it was dark so we usually ended up falling asleep in the back of the car. Before the movie we would play on the playground in front of the big screen and get some snacks from the concession stand.

Usually there were a couple of cartoons that came on before the feature movie and sometimes there were even two movies! You parked your car next to a pole with a speaker that you would attach to your window, and enjoy the movie from the comfort of your car. Some folks layed blankets out on the hood of their cars and watched the movie like that.

As we got older and started driving ourselves, the drive-in was a great date place. (Making out place, is more like it!) The car windows would be all steamed up and I don't think we even knew what movie we went to.

They charged by the carload, so we would pile as many people into a car as we could and sometimes even stashed a few friends in the trunk! AHHH, those were the good-ole-days!

If you have memories of a drive-in theater, or if you just want to say, "I never heard of drive-in," please leave a comment.

Cindy Sheehan Back in the News

Cindy Sheehan Back in the News

I don't think this welcome sign applies to the newest land owner in Crawford. Apparently, Cindy Sheehan is attempting to get back into the spotlight once again! Now she has purchased a piece of property just a few miles away from President Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas.

The media-darling Sheehan, used a supporter, Gerry Fonseca, to buy the 5-acre parcel for a little more than $52,000. Fonseca admitted he lied and did not tell the property owner who the land was for; however, he did mention that he had lost his home in Hurricane Katrina.

Sheehan said she used part of her son's life insurance money to pay for the land and she intends to use the property until Bush either resigns or is impeached!

Crawford, Texas is a small town with a population of 700. Most of the townfolk are upset over the protesters. According to the AP one resident said, "I wish she'd stay away. Crawford's a Republican town, and she's a dumb Democrat."

I am sorry that Cindy Sheenan's son was killed in the service, but she really needs to give it a rest! Her son was there because it was his choice and he gave his live serving our country. She should be proud of him instead of waisting her time protesting against President Bush!

Your comments are welcome.