CAROLINA NATURALLY

Friday, August 26, 2011

The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:

If you feel in the dark about a current project, step back from the action and get a new outlook.

This may seem counterintuitive.

After all, if you want to be more involved, why would you step back?

But the key is perspective -- when you're deep in the thick of things, you can't see the situation from every angle (and it's easier to get confused).

But when you move outside, everything is much clearer.

And once you see it, you can dive back in at a much more advantageous spot.

Some of our readers today have been in:

Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Ipswich, Queensland, Australia
Rome, Lazio, Italy
London, England, United Kingdom
As, Akerhus, Norway
Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland
Canberra, Australian, Capital Territory, Australia
Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
Amserfoort, Utrecht, Netherlands
Berlin, Berlin, Germany
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Napoli, Campania, Italy
Ankara, Ankara, Turkey
Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia
Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

as well as Slovakia, Malta, Bulgaria, Israel, Finland, Austria, Norway, Georgia, Mexico, Peru, Kuwait, Serbia, Bangladesh, Latvia, Greece, Scotland, Hong Kong, Denmark, Wales, Iran, Singapore, Poland, Taiwan, Sweden, Afghanistan, Belgium, Tibet, Croatia, Pakistan, Romania, Paraguay, Sudan, Vietnam, Argentina, Cambodia, Egypt, France, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Maldives, Qatar, Brazil, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates, Slovenia, China, Iraq, Ecuador, Nigeria, Colombia, Chile, Honduras, Paupa New Guinea, Moldova, Venezuela, Germany, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Czech Republic, Vietnam, Norway, Finland

and in cities across the United States such as Hothouse, Silva, Cullowhee, Brevard and more.

Today is:

Today is Friday, August 26, the 238th day of 2011.

There are 127 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holidays or celebrations are:

Daffodil Day
and
National Dog Day.

Don't forget to visit our sister blog!

Redneck Etiquette

GENERAL

1. Never take a beer to a job interview.
2. Always identify people in your yard before shooting at them.
3. It’s considered tacky to take a cooler to church.
4. If you have to vacuum the bed, it is time to change the sheets.
5. Even if you’re certain that you are included in the will, it is still considered tacky to drive a U-Haul to the funeral home.

DINING OUT

1. When decanting wine, make sure that you tilt the paper cup, and pour slowly so as not to “bruise” the fruit of the vine.
2. If drinking directly from the bottle, always hold it with your fingers covering the label.

ENTERTAINING IN YOUR HOME

1. A centerpiece for the table should never be anything prepared by a taxidermist.
2. Do not allow the dog to eat at the table … no matter how good his manners are.

PERSONAL HYGIENE

1. While ears need to be cleaned regularly, this is a job that should be done in private using one’s OWN truck keys.
2. Proper use of toiletries can forestall bathing for several days. However, if you live alone, deodorant is a waste of good money.
3. Dirt and grease under the fingernails is a social no-no, as they tend to detract from a woman’s jewelry and alter the taste of finger foods.

DATING (Outside the Family)

1. Always offer to bait your date’s hook, especially on the first date.
2. Be aggressive. Let her know you’re interested: “I’ve been wanting to go out with you since I read that stuff on the bathroom wall two years ago.”
3. Establish with her parents what time she is expected back. Some will say 10:00 PM; Others might say “Monday.” If the latter is the answer, it is the man’s responsibility to get her to school on time.

THEATER ETIQUETTE

1. Crying babies should be taken to the lobby and picked up immediately after the movie has ended.
2. Refrain from talking to characters on the screen. Tests have proven they can’t hear you.

WEDDINGS

1. Livestock, usually, is a poor choice for a wedding gift.
2. Kissing the bride for more than 5 seconds may get you shot.
3. For the groom, at least, rent a tux. A leisure suit with a cummerbund and a clean bowling shirt can create a tacky appearance.
4. Though uncomfortable, say “yes” to socks and shoes for this special occasion.

DRIVING ETIQUETTE

1. Dim your headlights for approaching vehicles; Even if the gun is loaded, and the deer is in sight.
2. When approaching a four-way stop, the vehicle with the largest tires always has the right of way.
3. Never tow another car using panty hose and duct tape.
4. When sending your wife down the road with a gas can, it is impolite to ask her to bring back beer.
5. Do not lay rubber while traveling in a funeral procession.

Non Sequitur

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Job-search moves to avoid

Ten job-search moves you should avoid

Eager candidates often make these giant blunders without even knowing it.

Thank-you note can be an epic fail

Also:

Giving up on the working man

Employers giving up on the working man

Corporate cost cutting and mechanized jobs have become a painful one-two punch.

What could turn things around

Also:

Workplace Drama Can Damage Your Home Life

When our colleagues don't invite us to lunch, gossip about us, are condescending or otherwise rude to us at work, the impact can be so intense that we take our problems home, affecting our families and partners who in turn may also take the stress to their workplaces.

Workplace Drama Can Damage Your Home Life

Local economic powerhouses

Local economies set to take off

These places will defy the struggling national economy by focusing on growth fields.

Where the jobs likely will be

Also:

Next recession will differ

How the next recession will be different

The unemployment rate could hit 11%, but a few industries may escape largely unscathed.

Cities to be hurt most

Also:

Buffett pumps up BofA

Buffett gives big boost to banking giant

The billionaire's huge investment in Bank of America shores up the firm and sends a signal.

One-man bailout machine

Also:

We laugh while we cry

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Clique Warfare

Projection is of course the dominant mode of thought amongst the repugicans. Deep down they understand what they are and rather than go mad with guilt they project that knowledge onto their opponents.
So when the repugicans are accusing progressives of 'class warfare' what they are really thinking about is the massive diversion of resources from the poor and middle class to the wealthiest of the wealthy that is at the core of modern repugican policy.

What the repugicans are really about is preserving and furthering the interests of a tiny narrow clique made up of their family, friends and major investor-donors. The repugicans are engaged in clique warfare, not class warfare. The base of the repugican party is thus the clique whose interest the party serves plus the much wider group of people who live vicariously through them plus whatever rubes it can motivate through hate and fear mongering.

The truth be told

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France raises taxes for high earners

Earlier this week the ultra rich of France asked for a tax increase to help fix the budget problems. Last night the government approved a new tax. It was a message of solidarity. This morning, the sun still came up and the world didn't end.

BBC News:

The French government is to impose an extra tax of 3% on annual income above 500,000 euros (£440,000; $721,000).

It is part of a package of measures to try to cut the country's deficit by 12bn euros over two years.

The tax increase came after some of France's wealthiest people had called on the government to tackle its deficit by raising taxes on the rich.

Political donation boycott grows

Boycott of political donations grows

More than 100 companies join a plan by the Starbucks CEO to resolve the debt ceiling debate.

Blasts partisan agendas

Also:

Ziggy

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Growth careers in health care

Five growing careers in health care

It generally takes only one year to complete a program for one of these positions.

Which degrees are best

Also:

Analysis of the captured gases found more than 25 volatile organic compounds, including seven hazardous air pollutants, coming out of the vents. Of those, two chemicals -- acetaldehyde and benzene -- are classified by the Environmental Protection Agency as carcinogens, for which the agency has established no safe exposure level.
"These products can affect not only personal health, but also public and environmental health. The chemicals can go into the air, down the drain and into water bodies," Steinemann said.
The researchers estimate that in the Seattle area, where the study was conducted, acetaldehyde emissions from this brand of laundry detergent would be equivalent to 3 percent of the total acetaldehyde emissions coming from automobiles. Emissions from the top five brands, they estimate, would constitute about 6 percent of automobiles' acetaldehyde emissions.

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