Calendar 2012

2012 Calendar

“An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.”

~ Bill Vaughn 


“ The New Year, like an Infant Heir to the whole world, was waited for, with welcomes, presents, and rejoicings.”

~ Charles Dickens


“ For last year's words belong to last year's language And next year's words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning."

~ T.S. Eliot


“ Be at war with your vices; at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man.”
 

~ Benjamin Franklin

“ The new year begins in a snow-storm of white vows.”

~  George William Curtis

“Another fresh new year is here . . .
Another year to live!
To banish worry, doubt, and fear,
To love and laugh and give!

This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest . . .
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!

I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs!”

~ William Arthur Ward

“ With a new year, comes bigger challenges and opportunities. Beat the challenges and grab the opportunities, with an equal zeal. Happy New Year.”

~ Blogging Prince

Hilary Erhard Duff

Hilary Erhard Duff (born September 28, 1987) is an American actress, singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, and author. After working in local theater plays and television commercials in her childhood, she achieved fame playing the title role in the Disney Channel television series Lizzie McGuire. She also reprised her role in the The Lizzie McGuire Movie. With the success of the Lizzie McGuire franchise, she established herself as a teen idol. Duff subsequently ventured into motion pictures and has appeared in many successful films, including Agent Cody Banks, Cheaper by the Dozen, A Cinderella Story and Cheaper by the Dozen 2.

Duff has expanded her repertoire to include pop music and has released three RIAA-certified platinum albums. Metamorphosis, her debut studio album, was certified triple platinum. She followed it up with two more albums, Hilary Duff and Most Wanted, which were also certified platinum. In 2007, Duff released her third studio album, Dignity, which was certified gold and spawned her highest charting US single to date, "With Love". Best of Hilary Duff, a compilation of her greatest hits, was released in the last quarter of 2008. Duff has sold over thirteen million records worldwide.

She has also made a foray into the fashion industry by launching her own clothing lines, Stuff by Hilary Duff and Femme for DKNY Jeans. She has also signed with IMG Models and released two exclusive perfume collections with Elizabeth Arden. Her other business ventures include writing a young adult novel, Elixir, and working as an executive producer for According to Greta and as a producer for Material Girls and Beauty & the Briefcase.

Music career

Hilary Duff at the MuchMusic Video Awards in 2007

In 2002, Duff recorded a cover version of Brooke McClymont's "I Can't Wait" for the Lizzie McGuire soundtrack, and "The Tiki Tiki Tiki Room" for the first DisneyMania compilation album. She also released her first album, titled Santa Claus Lane which was a collection of Christmas songs which included duets with her sister, Haylie, Lil' Romeo, and Christina Milian. Accompanied by the Disney Channel-only single "Tell Me a Story (About the Night Before)", the album peaked at 154 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart and was certified gold.

Duff's second studio album, Metamorphosis (2003), reached number one on the U.S. and Canadian charts and sold over 3.9 million copies in the U.S by January 2007. The lead single, "So Yesterday" was a top ten hit in several countries; its follow-up was the Laguna Beach theme song "Come Clean". The third single, "Little Voice", was not released in the U.S. and was a minor hit in Australia. In late 2003, Duff embarked on her first concert tour, the "Metamorphosis" tour, and later the "Most Wanted" tour. Most shows scheduled in the major cities were sold out.

Duff's third studio album was the self-titled Hilary Duff, for which she co-wrote some songs. It was released on her seventeenth birthday (in September 2004) and debuted at #2 in the U.S. and at #1 in Canada.

 The album sold over 1.8 million copies in the U.S. Most Wanted, her first compilation album, was released in August 2005. Most Wanted included songs from her previous two albums, remixes and three new songs which included "Wake Up" written by Joel Madden and his brother, Benji, both members of Good Charlotte. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and became her third number one debut in Canada. It sold over two hundred thousand copies within its first week of release and was certified platinum by the RIAA a month after its release. In 2006, an Italy-only compilation, 4Ever was released. Duff also recorded a cover version of Madonna's "Material Girl" with her sister for their movie, Material Girls.

Duff co-wrote the material for her fourth studio album Dignity, along with Kara DioGuardi, who co-produced the album with Rhett Lawrence, Tim & Bob, and Richard Vission. She stated that compared to her previous music, it was "more dancey" and made use of more real instruments. She said, "I don't know exactly how to explain what we're doing, but it's fun and funky and different, something new for me. It's really cool". In November 2008, Duff's first greatest hits album, Best of Hilary Duff was released and the album's first single "Reach Out", which samples Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus", was released in the preceding month. The song became Duff's third #1 dance hit. She then parted ways with Hollywood Records after six years of service and then announced to MTV that she would begin work on her new album in December 2008. In October 2011, Duff mentioned plans of a possible new album to E! Online

How to make vodka cocktails for delicious drink..?

The following are a few cocktails that taste best with Absolut Vodka..They also go fine with other vodka but I prefer them with Absolut or Blue Smirnoff

#Moscow Mule

60ml Vodka

30ml Fresh Lime

Ginger Beer

Build ingredients over ice into a Collins glass

#Vespa

50ml Absolut Vodka

25ml Banana Liqueur

Top up with Ginger Ale

Stir with ic e in a tall glass

#Somthing Wonderful!!!

3 ounces of Vodka

1 Teaspoon Sugar

3-4 Mint Leaves

1 ounce of water

Shaker Full of Ice

#Salty Dog

60ml Vodka

125ml Grapefruit juice

Build ingredients over ice into a salt rimmed glass

#Watermelon Martini

60ml Absolut Vodka

A dash of sugar syrup

A slice of Fresh Watermelon

Muddle the watermelon with the sugar syrup in the bottom of the shaker

Add the Vodka and ice then shake and strain into a frozen Martini glass

Garnish with a small wedge of Watermelon

#Sex on the Beach

60ml Absolut Vodka

30ml Peach Schnapps

200ml Fresh Cranberry juice

100ml Orange Juice

Shake ingredients with ice and strain into a tumbler filled with fresh ice

Garnish with orange and lime slices

#Madras

60ml Vodka

200ml Cranberry juice

100ml Fresh orange juice

Shake with ice and strain into a highball filled with ice

Garnish with an orange slice

# Vodka apple

Ingredients

30 ml vodka

8 tsp apple cider

# Vodka and Tonic

Ingredients

30 ml Vodka

60 ml tonic

1lime wedge

Pour the vodka in a high glass with ice, add the glass with tonic add the lime wedge as garnish.

# Vodka collins

Ingredients

30 ml vodka

juice of ½ lemon

1 tsp sugar

8 tsp club soda

1 orange slice

1 lemon slice

Combine everything but club soda in a shaker and add ice , shake well, pour in a high glass with ice, fill the glass with club soda and add the lemon and orange as garnish.

# Vodka Daisy

In gredients

30 ml Vodka

juice of ½ lemon

½ tsp sugar

1 tsp grenadine

Combine everything into a shaker with ice and pour in a high glass.

# Vodka Orange Punch

Ingredients

3 liters Vodka

36 tsp frozen orange juice concentrate

16 tsp cointreau

3 sliced oranges

Combine everything in a punch bowl. Stir well and serve.

#Vodka Paralyzer

Ingredients

6 tsp milk

1 tsp Vodka

1 tsp Kahlua

6 tsp Coke

Combine everything in a high glass in the order given above.

# Vodka Sling

Ingredients

30 ml Vodka

juice of ½ lemon

1 tsp water

1 tsp sugar

Orange twist

Combine the lemon juice, water and sugar in a glass, stir until sugar dissolves add ice and the vodka. Use the orange twist as garnish.

Identify Your Generation

Generations X,Y, Z and the Others.


Post-War Cohort
Born: 1928-1945
Coming of Age: 1946-1963
Age in 2004: 59 to 76
Current Population: 41 million (declining)
This generation had significant opportunities in jobs and education as the War ended and a post-war economic boom struck America. However, the growth in Cold War tensions, the potential for nuclear war and other never before seen threats led to levels of discomfort and uncertainty throughout the generation. Members of this group value security, comfort, and familiar, known activities and environments.
Boomers I or The Baby Boomers
Born: 1946-1954
Coming of Age: 1963-1972
Age in 2004: 50-58
Current Population: 33 million
For a long time the Baby Boomers were defined as those born between 1945 and 1964. That would make the generation huge (71 million) and encompass people who were 20 years apart in age. It didn’t compute to have those born in 1964 compared with those born in 1946. Life experiences were completely different. Attitudes, behaviors and society were vastly different. In effect, all the elements that help to define a cohort were violated by the broad span of years originally included in the concept of the Baby Boomers. The first Boomer segment is bounded by the Kennedy and Martin Luther King assassinations, the Civil Rights movements and the Vietnam War. Boomers I were in or protested the War. Boomers 2 or the Jones Generation missed the whole thing.
Boomers I had good economic opportunities and were largely optimistic about the potential for America and their own lives, the Vietnam War notwithstanding.
Boomers II or Generation Jones
Born: 1955-1965
Coming of Age: 1973-1983
Age in 2004: 39 to 49
Current Population: 49 million
This first post-Watergate generation lost much of its trust in government and optimistic views the Boomers I maintained. Economic struggles including the oil embargo of 1979 reinforced a sense of “I’m out for me” and narcissism and a focus on self-help and skepticism over media and institutions is representative of attitudes of this cohort. While Boomers I had Vietnam, Boomers II had AIDS as part of their rites of passage.
The youngest members of the Boomer II generation in fact did not have the benefits of the Boomer I class as many of the best jobs, opportunities, housing etc. were taken by the larger and earlier group. Both Gen X and Boomer II s suffer from this long shadow cast by Boomers I. 


Generation X
Born: 1966-1976
Coming of Age: 1988-1994
Age in 2004: 28 to 38
Current Population: 41 million
Sometimes referred to as the “lost” generation, this was the first generation of “latchkey” kids, exposed to lots of daycare and divorce. Known as the generation with the lowest voting participation rate of any generation, Gen Xers were quoted by Newsweek as “the generation that dropped out without ever turning on the news or tuning in to the social issues around them.”
Gen X is often characterized by high levels of skepticism, “what’s in it for me” attitudes and a reputation for some of the worst music to ever gain popularity. Now, moving into adulthood William Morrow (Generations) cited the childhood divorce of many Gen Xers as “one of the most decisive experiences influencing how Gen Xers will shape their own families”.
Gen Xers are arguably the best educated generation with 29% obtaining a bachelor’s degree or higher (6% higher than the previous cohort). And, with that education and a growing maturity they are starting to form families with a higher level of caution and pragmatism than their parents demonstrated. Concerns run high over avoiding broken homes, kids growing up without a parent around and financial planning.

Generation Y, Echo Boomers or Millenniums
Born: 1977-1994
Coming of Age: 1998-2006
Age in 2004: 10 to 22
Current Population: 71 million
The largest cohort since the Baby Boomers, their high numbers reflect their births as that of their parent generation..the last of the Boomer Is and most of the Boomer II s. Gen Y kids are known as incredibly sophisticated, technology wise, immune to most traditional marketing and sales pitches...as they not only grew up with it all, they’ve seen it all and been exposed to it all since early childhood.
Gen Y members are much more racially and ethnically diverse and they are much more segmented as an audience aided by the rapid expansion in Cable TV channels, satellite radio, the Internet, e-zines, etc.
Gen Y are less brand loyal and the speed of the Internet has led the cohort to be similarly flexible and changing in its fashion, style consciousness and where and how it is communicated with.
Gen Y kids often raised in dual income or single parent families have been more involved in family purchases...everything from groceries to new cars. One in nine Gen Yers has a credit card co-signed by a parent.
Generation Z
Born: 1995-2012
Coming of Age: 2013-2020
Age in 2004: 0-9
Current Population: 23 million and growing rapidly
While we don’t know much about Gen Z yet...we know a lot about the environment they are growing up in. This highly diverse environment will make the grade schools of the next generation the most diverse ever. Higher levels of technology will make significant inroads in academics allowing for customized instruction, data mining of student histories to enable pinpoint diagnostics and remediation or accelerated achievement opportunities.
Gen Z kids will grow up with a highly sophisticated media and computer environment and will be more Internet savvy and expert than their Gen Y forerunners. More to come on Gen Z...stay tuned.
Next time we will start to take a more in-depth look at the most significant and impactful of the generational cohorts and what implications there might be for libraries and librarians.

Good Habit or Bad Habit

Habits are to your life pretty much what gas is to your car. They keep you moving along – but whether they carry you to a better place or not depends entirely on the habit.

Bad habits can hold talented people back while good habits carry less talented people on ahead.

Many, many posts can be written on bad habits (in fact, they have), but essentially, we’ll get rid of our bad habits when we’ve finally had enough of them. I don’t want to spend too terribly much time with bad habits in this post, I’d rather approach habits with another tactic.

How about this? Let’s apopt so many great habits that we put the squeeze play on bad habits. I’m thinking that if we add about 10, that’ll leave less room for the bad crowd. I remember a television special about healthy eating that aired a few years ago. A nutritionist pointed out that if you fill your plate up with healthy vegetables and fruit, you actually get to eat more food. All you have to do is replace the unhealthy food with healthier alternatives – and you almost always get to enjoy more of the healthy food.

The good squeezes out the bad, so you’re left with a double-sided win: You get rid of things that are bad for you and you make room for things that are good for you.

So what sort of healthy habits could we bring to our life’s plate? Below’s a buffet of suggestions, I know you’ll be able to come up with more. Come up with as many as you want, of course, but remember that “bite-sized” portions are always easiest to handle. Don’t put more on your plate than you’ll actually be able to eat!

1. Start getting up a little earlier.  I realize that when the weather’s cool it’s really tough to start getting up earlier.  The body wants to sleep later, for crying out loud!  But, I’ve been on both sides of the 6:00 am, and I can say without hesitation that every corner of your day will be better if you get a running start at it.  Also, the quiet hours of the morning are the perfect way to glide into your day.  Rushing around after being summoned by a hateful alarm clock isn’t good for the psyche.  Mornings just weren’t meant to be so hectic.
2. Read more.  When you open a book, you open your mind and literally pour knowledge into it.  Knowledge is power.  Knowledge is power.  Knowledge is power.
3. Laugh more.  Laughter is great for you – body and soul.  It doesn’t matter if anyone laughs with you, it doesn’t matter if anyone laughs at you.   Just laugh! 
4. Complain less.  Starting tomorrow, do a little self improvement exercise:  Each time you feel tempted to say something negative, make yourself say something positive instead.  I’ve never understood why anyone would want to spread misery and gloominess.  I always wonder, “Do they hate life that much?” 
5. Drink more water.  I read a lot of articles and books about health and there are several things they all agree on (the other is right on this one’s heels at #6!).  One of the things every physician, health expert, nutritionist, and great aunt tells us is this:  Drink more water.  There has to be something to it.   
6. Get at least 30 minutes of activity each day.  Bronchitis has had me in a choke hold for weeks, but I was feeling a lot better today. So I did some intense work around the house.  I expected to feel like I’d been hit by a bus afterwards, but I feel great.  I’ve been sitting and sipping soup for so long I’d forgotten how good it feels to be active.
7. Stop assuming people know how you feel.  Even if they have an idea, do you know how much it will mean to them if you tell them?   Most of us can recall certain things that our loved ones have said to us that meant the world.  In fact, the words meant so much that we still carry them around with us today.  Maybe it was a dad saying, “I’m SO proud of you.”  Maybe it was a mother telling us that we’re just the daughter/son she’d always hoped for.  Why is it that so often it’s when we’re in the middle of altercations that these sentiments come out?  Then, they’re often followed with a “But…”  Any sentiment followed by a but isn’t much of a sentiment!  This tactic is simply the art of putting conditions on the words.  They certainly aren’t the sentiments we carry with us.  It’s the ones that come out of the blue – not as a prerequisite to what all we’re doing wrong and not to soften any blows.  If you love someone, tell them every single day.  If you’re proud of them, tell them – WITHOUT BUTS!
8. Put yourself in time-out.   In the same way we put children in “time out” when they show signs of being stressed out or overly tired, we could benefit just as much.  Last week, my husband did something that I thought was pretty cute.  Our daughters and I were gathering in the living room to watch Survivor – a Thursday night ritual we’ve enjoyed for years.  I make the special snacks, then we all watch a show that never disappoints.  However, my husband had had a week from hell and a particularly long, stressful day – so he opted out.  He put himself in a sort of “time out” in our home office in a chair in front of baseball.  He sat quietly in his pajamas, reminding me of a 2 year old boy who was trying to calm down!  I thought about telling him that, but I just headed to the living room. (I wasn’t born yesterday.)  Sometimes our nerves just need to unravel and they can do that better when there isn’t a lot going on.
9. Become a more aware and cautious driver.   My poor guardian angel must be a basketcase.  Not only am I accident prone, I’m one of the most ridiculous drivers on earth.  But, years ago, I began to slow down and drive oh so much more carefully when I looked around me to see my vehicle surrounded by future drivers.  They’re watching.  What do they see?  Even if there aren’t future drivers with you, paying attention to what’s going on around you can save lives at best, headaches at worst.  Texting while driving, speeding, road rage, playing mind games (“Oh, yeah, if you want to get on my bumper, I’ll just slow down… You wanna hit me? Why, you can just buy me a new car, sucker…”) - these are all things that can get you killed, hurt, ticketed, or arrested.  I don’t think we’re interested in any of those, are we?
10. Be thankful.  People are filled to their eyeballs with negative thoughts and words lately – but we still have it amazingly good.  I know I don’t have to tell you that – but I’m pretty sure we all need a reminder every now and again.  I remember a shallow little wake up call I got one time while we were living in Florida.  I had put on a tank top and shorts and was complaining to one of my daughters (oh, heck to anyone who’d listen) about my arms.  They weren’t “tank top arms…” etc.  I was cutting them up pretty good.  Then we walked over to the beach and the first person I saw made me, literally, cry with shame.  She was around 20 and only had one arm.  I’ve never forgotten that day.  And I honestly don’t believe I’ve complained about my arms since.  Either of them.