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How to Detect Lies - body language, reactions, speech patterns
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Eye Movement and Lying - How to detect lies
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
My Daily Domestic Clips 08/01/2010 (a.m.)
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Friday, July 30, 2010
My Daily Domestic Clips 07/31/2010 (a.m.)
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ROI: Why Chelsea Clinton Is Setting a Bad Example - WSJ.com - Annotated
Excellent advice about paying for a wedding.
A year or so ago Calvin's girlfriend said she thought a back yard BBQ would be a fun wedding. Have I ever mentioned how much I like that girl?- 2. Spending a fortune on a wedding is a choice, not a necessity. Chelsea's wedding is likely to cost $2 million to $3 million, says Ms. Roney. But first daughter Jenna Bush managed to hold a somewhat quieter affair for a lot less when she got married two years ago. She invited about 200 guests and held the wedding on her parents' ranch in Texas. It was hardly cheap, but at $100,000, the tab wasn't even in the same ballpark.
- 3. Spend what you can afford. Sure, the Clintons are spending a lot, but they are rich. Their net worth was estimated at $35 million not long ago. Chelsea is their only child. And Bill gets paid about $250,000 a speech. After taxes, that's about $160,000. So he could clear a $3 million tab for Chelsea's big day with 19 speeches. Even at one speech a day, that's three weeks' work. The average family maybe earns $3,000 in three weeks. Yet they spend about $17,500 on a wedding.
- 5. The lifetime cost is off the map. People get angry when I point this out. But if your money earns, say, 4% a year above inflation, every dollar you save at age 20 will grow to about $6 by the time you retire. So that $17,500 will grow to about $100,000. If you're financially secure, maybe it doesn't matter so much. But most middle-class Americans are in a far more precarious situation than they realize. They have saved little, if anything, for their retirement, and they are deeply in debt. (Household debts are about twice what they were a decade ago.) And we've seen what can happen to jobs and wages in a slump. In these circumstances, saving money instead of spending it matters very much.
- 7. How do you cut costs and still have a great wedding? Avoid Saturdays and peak seasons, says Ms. Roney. Avoid fancy venues and big cities. Make it more casual: A lot of the money goes toward those big formal dinners. And invite fewer guests. Five hundred people is going to cost you, even if they're not famous.
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Living Gracefully- prayers for Melanie Pritchard - C-section with complications - Annotated
- UPDATED AT 8:15PM AZ TIME, 7/29/10
Melanie Pritchard, Catholic speaker, Pro-Life Educator, Chastity speaker, and a true woman of God is in critical condition after giving birth to her second child. During labor there were complications and Melanie was rushed into an emergency C-section. During the C-section Melanie’s heart stopped beating. The baby was born and is doing great. But Melanie’s condition is very serious. She has now had surgery on her heart and while she is stable on machines, is not recovering well. They are now transporting her to the …
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Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Haven't done a blog quiz in a while.
You are 90% on the ball!
Wow! You can give the Pope a run for his money. Just memorize every saint and you will have nothing left to learn.
Catholic Quiz Bowl
Take More Quizzes
HT - Father V!
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Divine Office - Liturgy of the Hours - Breviary - Free Audio - Bible - Prayer
Words that stood out for me today in the Office of Readings
Divine Office - Liturgy of the Hours - Breviary - Free Audio - Bible - Prayer: "Sin speaks to the sinner
in the depths of his heart.
There is no fear of God
before his eyes.
He so flatters himself in his mind
that he knows not his guilt.
In his mouth are mischief and deceit.
All wisdom is gone.
He plots the defeat of goodness
as he lies on his bed.
He has set his foot on evil ways,
he clings to what is evil.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
25 things to get done before the new homeschooling school year!
It is the last week of July!! It seems we just get into the swing of summertime and it's time to start getting ready for fall. But our neighbors and friends aren't the only ones facing the "back to school" phenomenon. Homeschoolers must do it too.
So here are 25 things that I need to get accomplished before we start homeschooling.
1. Wrap up last year's portfolios and buy brand new ones for the 2010/2011 school year.
2. Get our portfolios evaluated next month.
3. Stock up on pencils, pens, paper etc.
4. Get my homeschool blog up to date.
5. Get my notification done to the school district.
6. Sign Sam up for ACT test.
7. Purchase Explore test for Gabe and Noah.
8. Get my own personal morning routine set in stone including exercise and prayer time.
9. Lose 8 pounds. Then can be more gradual working on the rest.
10. Make sure I have all the curriculum I need.
11. Make a book list for Rosie - kindergarten!!
12. Make a plan and book list for Gabe - first year of high school!
13. Get the kids into a writing habit while it's still summer time.
14. Get at least one big field trip done this summer. Maybe Gettysburg?
15. Set some goals for elementary science.
16. Set some goals for Gabe and Noah transitioning into high school science.
17. Work out a piano practice schedule for everyone.
18. Make sure the classroom is clean and organized.
19. Purge unused and unwanted items from class room.
20. Get the laundry room handled.
21. Get the rest of my mom's things put away, given away or pitched.
22. Organize my office and business papers.
23. Give the kitchen one big scrub down before the end of summer. Organize pantry, food stocks and menus.
24. Finish listening to the great talks I downloaded from Cindy Rushton's Online Homeschool Convention.
25. Get Sam's transcript reviewed one more time.
My Daily Domestic Clips 07/28/2010 (a.m.)
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She's Working Out but Gaining Weight - MSN Health & Fitness - Weight Loss - Annotated
- Until you are at the point where you are exercising for 60 to 90 minutes per day on most days of the week, be vigilant about calorie control. You may not need to diet, but you should keep a check on whether you overeat so that you don't cancel out the calorie burn of your new exercise regimen.
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Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Simple Woman
Outside my window...
just about right temperature wise!
This is how the little Cuyahoga River looked on Sunday.
I am thinking...
how quickly the summer is passing.
The thrill of victory to the agony of defeat...well maybe not THAT dramatic.
Sunday I had a rehearsal with one of the groups I play for. I was sight reading a piece of music and the end went up to a very slow, soft, beautiful high E and I absolutely nailed it. My adrenaline was surging, my heart was pumping, everyone was quiet and the musical director was just standing there pointing at me as if to say, "That's how it's done!" It was really great!! Every musician should get a moment like that!
Reality check the next day when the groom for the wedding I was supposed to play for on September 4 called to fire me. They are getting a string quartet instead.
It is good to remain humble.
I am thankful ...
for my family's good health.
From the learning rooms...
Everyone does math and reading. Izzy, Noah and Rosie and I are reading next set of Melissa Wiley's Little house series
. We have two more states to cover this week and some history.And I am pushing Sam hard on American History 2 for CLEP.We are also hitting the War of 1812 pretty hard this week with my other kidsFrom the kitchen...
I'm trying some recipes from the Campbell's Kitchen for summer recipes!
I am wearing...
Black capris, maroon T-shirt.
I am creating...
Turkey pasta salad! Yum!
I am going...
to continue exercising. Did Complete Aerobics and Weight Training today
I am concentrating on a lot of heavy cardio and abs.
I have been downloading the Divine Office onto my MP3 player(and I'm super impressed with myself that I was able to figure THAT out!) and then Mr. Pete and I can pray the office together. I'm learning to follow the actual prayer book pretty well.
What I have learned though is that if I am going to really get decent and exercise and prayer done in the morning. I am absolutely going to have to get out of bed earlier, which means going to bed earlier. That's the challenge!
I am reading...
A Simple Guide to the Spiritual Life which is a good read by the way.
I am hoping...
to get to Lake Erie next weekend!
I am hearing...
the humm of the air conditioner. Unfortunately the insect buzzing that happens around here during the summer is EXACTLY what I hear in my head most of the time. The bugs just amplify it. It's really annoying.
Around the house...
would it be possible to finish this last pile of stuff from Mom... sigh... Thinking I should blindfold myself and just put everything in a bag and pitch!
A picture I am sharing:
Gabe LOVED that musical birthday card!
Monday, July 26, 2010
My Daily Domestic Clips 07/27/2010 (a.m.)
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Opinion: Want to Create a Nation of Savers? Start at Birth - Annotated
- (July 23) -- Without much fanfare, savings disappeared from the national economy, replaced by rising levels of debt used to finance ever-expanding consumption.
It's an unsustainable path, and one that contributed to the Great Recession we are still struggling to overcome. And while turning us into a nation of savers isn't going to happen overnight, we have to start somewhere.
And a good place to start is where savings habits are formed -- with our children.
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Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Scrutinies: ACTUAL CONTEST: Domestic Church Photo Pool
Scrutinies: ACTUAL CONTEST: Domestic Church Photo Pool: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Feast of St. Anne and St. Joachim
Feast of St. Joachim and St. Ann! Grandparents to Baby Jesus!
Remember your grandparents on the Feast of St. Joachim and St. Anne!
From Mary Reed Newland's "The Year and Our Children"
St. Anne is the patroness of old clothes dealers, seamstresses, laceworkes, housekeepers, carpenters, turners, cabinetmakers, stablemen, and broommakers, and she is invoked against poverty and to find lost objects. Although the martyrology doesn't say so, she must be the patronness of Grandmothers, and we love her for that because she we could never get along without our grandmothers. The children love to recall that if she was still there when the Christ Child learned to talk, He called her Grandmother. The nicest of her symbols we think is a cradle with the infant Virgin Mary in it.
From the Saint of the Day!
This is the “feast of grandparents.” It reminds grandparents of their responsibility to establish a tone for generations to come: They must make the traditions live and offer them as a promise to little children. But the feast has a message for the younger generation as well. It reminds the young that older people’s greater perspective, depth of experience and appreciation of life’s profound rhythms are all part of a wisdom not to be taken lightly or ignored.
We think the best way to honor the feast of St. Joachim and St. Anne is to do something lovely for grandparents. Little girls might dress their best dolls as the tiny Mary this day and lay them in flower bedecked cradles.
Under Her Starry Mantle has done a wonderful job of preparing for the feast day.
My St. Anne links on del.icio.us.
We included grandma in our St. Anne feast days in the past. Last year we entombed her ashes as close to the feast day as we could. This year we will take some flowers to the cemetery and a green ribbon. I also plan to make some red and green cupcakes today.
Scenes from past year's Feast of St. Anne with my mother.
My Daily Domestic Clips 07/25/2010 (p.m.)
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Obama Administration OKs First Tax-Funded Abortions Under Health Care Law - Annotated
- -- The Obama administration has officially approved
the first instance of taxpayer funded abortions under the new national
government-run health care program. This is the kind of abortion funding
the pro-life movement warned about when Congress considered the bill.
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the u.s. middle class is being wiped out here's the stats to prove it: Tech Ticker, Yahoo! Finance - Annotated
Hope and change?
- 83 percent of all U.S. stocks are in the hands of 1 percent of the people.
•
61 percent of Americans "always or usually" live paycheck to paycheck,
which was up from 49 percent in 2008 and 43 percent in 2007.
• 66 percent of the income growth between 2001 and 2007 went to the top 1% of all Americans.
• 36 percent of Americans say that they don't contribute anything to retirement savings.
• A staggering 43 percent of Americans have less than $10,000 saved up for retirement.
• 24 percent of American workers say that they have postponed their planned retirement age in the past year.
• Over 1.4 million Americans filed for personal bankruptcy in 2009, which represented a 32 percent increase over 2008.
•
Only the top 5 percent of U.S. households have earned enough additional
income to match the rise in housing costs since 1975.
• For the
first time in U.S. history, banks own a greater share of residential
housing net worth in the United States than all individual Americans
put together.
• In 1950, the ratio of the average executive's
paycheck to the average worker's paycheck was about 30 to 1. Since the
year 2000, that ratio has exploded to between 300 to 500 to one.
• As of 2007, the bottom 80 percent of American households held about 7% of the liquid financial assets.
•
The bottom 50 percent of income earners in the United States now
collectively own less than 1 percent of the nation’s wealth.
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Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
My Daily Domestic Clips 07/25/2010 (a.m.)
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Karl Rove: The Bad News About ObamaCare Keeps Piling Up - WSJ.com - Annotated
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In his brilliant exposition of why sweeping policy changes often have unintended consequences, the late sociologist Robert K. Merton wrote that leaders get things wrong when their "paramount concern with the foreseen immediate consequences excludes the consideration of further or other consequences" of their proposals. This leads policy makers to assert things that are false, wishing them to be true.
Which brings us to President Obama's many claims about his health-care reform. Take his oft-expressed statement that if you like the coverage you have, you can keep it. That sounds good—but perverse incentives in his new law will cause most Americans to lose their existing insurance.
This was brought home to me when I asked the CEO of a major restaurant chain about health reform's effect on his company, which now spends $25 million a year on employee health insurance. That will jump to at least $90 million a year once the new law is phased in. It will be cheaper, he told me, for the company to dump its coverage and pay a fine—$2,000 for each full-time worker—and make sure that no part-time employee accidentally worked 31 hours and thereby incurred the fine.
Associated Press
This reality is settling in at businesses across America. A Midwestern contractor told me he pays $588,000 for health insurance for 70 employees, contributing up to $8,400 a year for a family's coverage. If he stops providing health insurance, he'll pay $2,000 per employee in fines, and the first 40 employees are exempt from fines altogether.
It's also dawning on employees that they will lose their coverage. Some will blame management; many more will blame those who wrote this terrible legislation.
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Either Mr. Obama was stunningly blind to these perverse effects when he promised people could keep their coverage, or he felt that admitting his plan would collapse employer-provided health coverage could keep it from passing. Either way—self-deception or deliberate deceit—health reform is going to turn out far differently than was promised. And because more workers will be dumped into subsidized coverage, taxpayers are likely to pay much more than the $1 trillion-plus price tag claimed by ObamaCare advocates for its first 10 years.
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Obamacare…more unintended consequences | Radio Vice Online - Annotated
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Today, the cost of providing insurance is about $8500 per employee. And, the employee does not pay any income tax on the value of that insurance. Should AT&T drop their group coverage, and, should they decide to use the savings to increase salaries, each employee would receive approximately $6400 in increased wages. However, unlike insurance benefits, increased wages are taxable. When the Bush tax cuts expire at the beginning of 2011, the lowest income tax bracket will rise from 10% to 15%. So, of the $6400 pay raise you get, approximately $950 will have to be used to pay federal income taxes. This will leave you with approximately $5450 in your pocket to buy insurance. Not only will you not be able to afford the type of coverage AT&T provided without digging further into your own pocket, but, the CBO estimates that by 2016, as a result of Obamacare, the yearly premium for health insurance will rise to approximately $15,000 for a family of four.
Of course, no employer would use the entire “savings” on employee wage increases. So, the picture becomes even bleaker. Once again, this administration is encouraging the wrong behavior. And, as in the past, it’s middle class America that will have to pay for it.
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Some insurers stop writing new coverage for kids - Yahoo! Finance - Annotated
more of that hopey changey thing
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WASHINGTON (AP) -- Some major health insurance companies will no longer issue certain types of policies for children, an unintended consequence of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul law, state officials said Friday.
Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty said several big insurers in his state will stop issuing new policies that cover children individually. Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland said a couple of local insurers in her state are doing likewise.
In Florida, Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Aetna, and Golden Rule -- a subsidiary of UnitedHealthcare -- notified the insurance commissioner that they will stop issuing individual policies for children, said Jack McDermott, a spokesman for McCarty.
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The major types of coverage for children -- employer plans and government programs -- are not be affected by the disruption. But a subset of policies -- those that cover children as individuals -- may run into problems. Even so, insurers are not canceling children's coverage already issued, but refusing to write new policies.
The administration reacted sharply to the pullback. "We're disappointed that a small number of insurance companies are taking this unwarranted and unnecessary step," said Jessica Santillo, a spokeswoman for the Health and Human Services department.
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Our national debt would horrify the Founders | Washington Examiner - Annotated
- In the period spanning the final year of George W. Bush's second term in the White House and President Obama's tenure to date, the national debt has exploded from $9.1 trillion to nearly $13.2 trillion, reaching 90 percent of the gross domestic product. On a graph, the direction of the national debt for this period is almost straight up, recalling what fighter pilots mean when they "go vertical" in a dogfight. We are accumulating a debt so massive that our children and grandchildren will still be paying it off decades hence.
- There is no doubt that George Washington, our first president, Alexander Hamilton, our first secretary of the treasury, and Thomas Jefferson, drafter of the Declaration of Independence and our third president, would be horrified by the present financial condition of the federal government. Public debt was anathema for Washington, who in his Farewell Address admonished us to "cherish public credit," noting that "one method of preserving it, is to use it sparingly ... avoiding likewise the accumulation of debt." Washington warned that one generation could spend itself into great debt, then "not ungenerously throwing upon posterity the burthen. ..."
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Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Gut Check - a review
"Success in life and business begins by focusing on death."
That is the first sentence in the book Gut Check: Confronting Love, Work and Manhood in Your Twenties.
written by Tarek Saab, college graduate, business professional and former contestant on The Apprentice! When I read it I figured that there must be a lot of wisdom in someone so young to have already discovered that key fact of life. I first heard about this book on Catholic Radio where it was recommended as a great summer read. Considering the title and the fact that I have a 21-year-old son, I thought this might make an appropriate birthday gift for him, but I wanted to read it first.
And I was glad I did. Mr. Saab takes us on a journey from a drunken, rowdy college student (unfortunately at a Catholic College) to lonely albeit prosperous business professional. Through the years from college student to independent business man Saab describes what it was like to be with the crowd, doing the "normal" activities for "kids" his age and yet feeling alone, empty, and unfulfilled, and especially frustrated and confused about his role as a man in relationship to women.
I don't want to give too much away but a few things stood out for me. Despite the lost morality of his college years, Saab does have a some brief spiritual and religious experiences that help to anchor him and at least keep him somewhat in touch with his Catholic faith. A brief encounter and wise words of wisdom for a priest on the campus was life changing.
Saab also writes a list of goals and ideals that he wants to strive for particularly in his spiritual life. The rest of the book is pretty much about losing focus and then coming back to these goals again.
I think anyone in their 20s (or 30s or 40s and perhaps 50s) could see a bit of themselves in Tarek Saab's experiences, but I think the main audience 20-something men may find it particularly inspiring and encouraging. I'll let you know what Calvin thinks of it - if I can get him to read it! (He's getting it for his birthday celebration tomorrow!)
Friday, July 23, 2010
Highlights from Jul 23, Office of Readings for Friday of the 16th week of Ordinary Time
Words that stood out for me today in the Office of Readings
Sin speaks to the sinner
in the depths of his heart.
There is no fear of God
before his eyes.
He so flatters himself in his mind
that he knows not his guilt.
In his mouth are mischief and deceit.
All wisdom is gone.
He plots the defeat of goodness
as he lies on his bed.
He has set his foot on evil ways,
he clings to what is evil.
READING Tobit 4:15a. 16a. 18a. 19
Do to no one what you yourself dislike. Give to the hungry some of your bread, and to the naked some of your clothing. Seek counsel from every wise man. At all times bless the Lord God, and ask him to make all your paths straight and to grant success to all your endeavors and plans.
Jul 23, Office of Readings for Friday of the 16th week of Ordinary Time
My God, do not reject my cry for help, assailed as I am by the wicked
If this had been done by an enemy
I could bear his taunts.
If a rival had risen against me,
I could hide from him.
But it is you, my own companion,
my intimate friend!
How close was the friendship between us.
We walked together in harmony
in the house of God.
Entrust your cares to the Lord
and he will support you.
He will never allow
the just man to stumble.
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