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Numerous services also offer software that permits you to transfer the movie to a disc so that you can view it on your television set. Watching motion pictures while cuddled up on the sofa in front of your Television is much more appealing than sitting in front of a computer monitor. Make sure that the website provides that if it is crucial to you. Below are some of the best films of all time. Pick a great motion picture to view today.

Red Sun – East meets West in this unexpected tale of a samurai fighter chasing a expensive Japanese sword stolen from a train crossing the American West. Cast includes Charles Bronson, Ursula Andress, Toshiro Mifune, Alain Delon, and Capucine. (112 minutes, 1972)

On Guard – A steadfast swordsman saves a child princess from the evil grasp of her malicious opponent. The child’s dad was also the swordsman’s guru. A enjoyably old-styled popcorn motion picture that is full of action and set in the France of Louis XIV. Cast includes Daniel Auteuil, Fabrice Luchini, Vincent Perez, Marie Gillain, Yann Collette, Didier Pang, and Philippe Noiret. (128 minutes, 1997)

Ivan the Terrible – Continuation of the fable of King Ivan IV, in which he takes on the boyars in a conflict for power. Extraordinary dvd is just a hint underneath its predecessor, Forbidden by Stalin due to arguable illustration of Ivan’s secret patrol, and not released till 1958. Cast includes Nikolai Cherkassov; Serafima Birman, Mikhail Nazvanov, Pavel Kadochnikov, and Andrei Abrikosov. (88 minutes, 1946)

Basic – While things go askew throughout an armed forces work out, base captain Daly brings in Travolta, the best interrogator he ever had, to question the surviving members of the squad, whose tales do not add up. In reality a whodunit, this motion picture keeps us guessing, as a good intrigue should. Cast includes John Travolta, Connie Nielsen, Samuel L. Jackson, Giovanni Ribisi, Tim Daly, Roselyn Sanchez, and Harry Connick. (2003 minutes, 1995)

Faces – Very personal drama in regards to many infidelities is one of the few Cassel films to become a big hit. Here is a commanding film with grand action, particularly by Carlin and Cassel. Cast includes John Marley, Gena Rowlands, Lynn Carlin, Seymour Cassel, Fred Draper, and Val Avery. (130 minutes, 1968)

China Nine Liberty 37 – This is a mystifying Western in which railroad tycoons show mercy to a man from gallows in trade for killing another gunfighter. The gunfighter’s girl falls for the killer and helps do his evil work. Title refers to the road sign giving distance to two nearby towns. Cast includes Warren Oates, Fabio Testi, Jenny Agutter, and Sam Peckinpah. (102 minutes, 1978)

Sexy Beast – A retired British criminal, living the life in Spain, is visited by a violent gangster who wants him to work one more heist. Trendy, aggressive, current day gangster’s film has exceptional acting containing a special performance by Kingsley as the malicious perpetrator. Cast includes Ray Winstune, Ben Kingsley, Ian McShane, Cavan Kendall, Julianne White, Alvaro Monje, and James Fox. (88 minutes, 2001)

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Jamey Lee
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Bundled service packages have now become a very hot way for the service provides of telecommunications products to market their services and for buyers to improve deals and more convenience with the services that they subscribe to. Having said that, there is something you should be conscious of before you join the 1st bundled service package deal that you come across : they don’t always deliver on what they promise. Some services are poorly supported and some are poor values that are masked by the idea of the bundle. Comcast is a fine example of a company that does bundled services the right way!

Bundled services from Comcast are a fine example of the sort of bundle that you should look for because of many different key features of the services. First of all, Comcast keeps all of the services that it offers in house. This means that if you enroll in telephone service with Comcast, you’ll get a telephone service that’s's provided and administered by Comcast. Against this, when you sign up for a high speed Internet connection through a satellite television company, you won’t be getting that high speed Internet connection through the satellite TV company. Satellite TV companies simply are not set up to provide high speed Internet, so they have got a contract with a phone company or a satellite Internet company to provide the Internet access for them.

Satellite TV corporations simply are not set up to provide high speed Internet, so they have a contract with a telephone company or a satellite Internet company to provide the Internet access for them. The end effect of this is that when you have an issue with your high speed Internet when you get it through a satellite television company, you will have to go through another company to get it fixed. This can be highly inconvenient- especially in the event the the companies involved all claim that it’s another company’s responsibility to fix the problem! This simply can’t occur with Comcast due to the fact that it keeps all of its services under the same roof.

Another thing that you should watch out for when looking at bundled services is the chance the individual service themselves are not up to a decent standard. This may occur with services aside from those provided through the use of cable technology. For example, when you get your high speed Internet service from a company that deals in other kinds of technology, you most likely won’t be getting the bandwidth that you deserve and you definitely will not be getting the highest value. That is due to the fact that high speed Internet offered by the phone company is invariably DSL, which is delivered over phone lines. Phone lines simply aren’t able to transmit as much information as quickly as the type of cables that Comcast uses. Satellite Internet is far worse as it’s as slow as DSL and it’s got a enormous built in lag time thanks to the distance the signals have to travel from the outside of the Earth to the satellites and back. This time lag makes satellite Internet useless for a lot of different types of applications that work best in real time like VoIP and multiplayer video gaming!

These are the things that you should be on the look out for when buying bundled services and Comcast can serve as an example for what you need to look for.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Micheal Vincent
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Balance Explained: Balance is an abstract, and some might think an obscure, concept so it might be good to demonstrate what is actually meant by it in the case of newsletters before talking about how to achieve it. In the real world we know that, in order to accomplish balance, a weight must be countered by an opposing weight. In publishing, it means something similar but it depends, to an extent, on whether we are discussing the physical aspects of a publication (how it looks) or the ‘editorial’ side (the content). Editorial and lead articles set the flavour for a publication and consideration of ‘counterweights’ necessarily start there. Be cautious though. Whilst trying to introduce balance it can sometimes be only too easy to unknowingly change the tone of the entire newsletter.

Visual Balance: In visual terms it is relatively easy to ensure balance. An abundance of text in a small, cramped typeface cries out to be balanced by ‘white space’. You can also use pullquotes to break up an article and experiment with different sized headlines. A sidebar can add a new dimension to a page. The inclusion of clipart or other well-placed pictorial matter can add variety to a publication and even little known typefaces can sometimes be very effective contributors to the overall balance. Color is another consideration. However, important though these things can be when used as balancing elements (and always in moderation, of course) they are all basic design features and therefore outside the scope of this article.

Content Balance: In terms of the newsletter content, sober matter needs to be balanced by an opposing amount of light matter; ‘one-off’ items can be balanced by serialized material, instructional or ‘how-to’ articles by question and answer features etc. It is much more of a ‘balancing act’ though, than is the case with the visual aspects, because there is no way of measuring whether or not you have got the ‘mix’ right. It’s the reader’s perception that matters and the publisher needs to employ a little empathy, coupled with her own instinct and experience.

A Lighter Vein: The most popular way to introduce a lighter vein into a newsletter or similar publication is to use wittiness. This can be done by the inclusion of jokes, cartoons, funny stories, nonsense verses such as limericks-even simple clipart caricatures incorporated into article headings. Obviously, gratuitous humor is nowhere near as effective as topic-focused humor. A cartoon that gives an amusing slant to the main topic on the page, even if the association is somewhat tenuous, tends to be far more ‘balancing’ than one that does not seem to have any obvious link to the subject matter at all. Sometimes it might even unbalance things. Another word of caution too, especially if you write your own material; make sure that anything you include because of its humor value cannot be mistaken as simply facetious comment. If your sense of humor tends towards the quirky and you’re unsure whether everyone will ‘get the joke’, err on the side of prudence and leave it out.

Pastime Fillers: One great way of furnishing balanced content is by means of puzzles and quizzes. These can be particularly useful when employed as regular features, such as a monthly crossword or quiz. Readers, at least many of them, tend to look forward to each new edition just for the regular features. That way, they not only assist with balance, but they enhance readership loyalty at the same time. Obviously, like all other forms of editorial content, they work best when they are related in one way or another to the main focus of the newsletter. Conversely, they tend to lose their effectiveness the more irrelevant they seem to be.

Giving Advice: Any kind of ‘advice’ items can improve newsletter balance. The best types are usually of the regular ‘tips’ variety. ‘This Month’s Car Tips’, ‘The Weight Loss Column’, ‘Household Hints’, are all instances of the types of titles that might be used. Included as part of this genre would be astrological prognostications or ‘What the Stars Say’. Admittedly, these would be entirely inapplicable for many newsletters; they would need to have very specific readership profiles for them to be considered desirable. But, for the right type of readers, they could prove a very popular addition. Recipes and similar items are also forms of ‘advice’ fillers but, popular though they might sometimes be, the same reservations apply for them as they do for astrology columns.

Tags: Writing & Speaking by Alec James
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The first Star Wars movie came out in 1977 and became an instant hit. Star Wars merchandise followed quickly and also became a huge hit. Being a sudden and unexpected hit, Star Wars toys were hard to come buy at first. These days, you can buy all kinds of Star Wars merchandise, including Lego Star Wars figures. Most diehard fans have been collecting them since they first came on the market. Even those that are not diehard fans love these figures.

Lego Star Wars figures are the most collected of all of the Lego figures. Those that love Star Wars normally collect and own all of the Lego figures. Most are very diligent about tracking which ones they have and which ones they do not have.

The first Lego Star Wars series was introduced in 1999 with more being added every year since. The first Star Wars Legos were figures and vehicles from the trilogy. There have since been new ones introduced for the prequel trilogy.

While the figures are mostly in the same shapes as the original lego figures, some have been altered to look more like the figures that they represent. Lego made special molds for some of the characters, like Darth Vader. They also are sold with light sabers.

The Lego Star Wars sets that have come out include vehicles and figures. Each set is different and come from one of the movies. The Millennium Falcom, for instance, comes with over 5,000 pieces and that makes it the hugest Lego set ever to come into the market. This set, of course, is the best selling and the most expensive Lego set to come out.

The Star Wars figures have become so popular that there have been two video games that have come out for the fans. They are based on each of the two trilogies. These games have inspired many other Lego video games that are based on other movies, like Indiana Jones.

If you are a diehard fan, then you most likely have the Lego figures already. If you are a new fan then and are looking for them, then you should try the internet. This is your best bet since the stores normally run out of them quickly. They are always in demand and a lot of time they are very hard to find. Every true fan needs to own them, though.

Tags: Games by Petre Williams
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Something I’ve noticed on many occasions is the fact that so many students tend to use awkward fingering when they play the piano. Of course I don’t for a minute doubt that this is something which interests many beginners as well as those in the intermediate range.

Contrary to what you may believe, this is actually quite a controversial subject.

Just as there are many who believe in free-style fingering, there are also many who advocate strict fingering.

So, let me go ahead and discuss how I feel about this issue.

Though the length of fingers differ from person to person, we all have thumbs that are shorter than the rest of our fingers.

Also, the thumb is usually the most powerful finger we have, followed by the index finger and middle finger, and it’s these three figures which are the most used when it comes to playing piano.

Below you will to find a 4 fingering tips which I have put together as general rules, and which you may want to take into consideration:

1. The thumb should never be used for playing a black key. The only exception to this rule is when you: a) Play a musical piece which only has black notes. b) When you play a piece where they are black and white keys.

Because the thumbs are relatively short, they are simply not meant to be used for playing the black keys. As a general rule, it’s the second and third fingers which are used for playing black notes. If for example you are playing a piece that starts with a black key, you will use your second and third fingers to play the first note rather than the thumb.

2. When playing melody with the right hand, if there are keys that are out of reach, you may move the hand to play the note. If the key is only a couple steps down from the thumb, you may use the thumb as an anchor and cross the second finger over to reach the note on the left side of the thumb. You do not need to move the hand. Only move the second finger over.

You’ll notice that as soon as the second finger has played the key, the thumb will automatically follow across to play the next note to the left of the key. The best way to familiarize yourself with regards to what finger should follow, is to practice the scale regularly.

3. Same rule applies to left hand.

4. Whenever you have an opportunity you should watch experienced players, and you should pay particular attention to their fingering. Ideally, you should try to watch those who have plenty of experience in playing classical music; because you can be rest assured that they’ve spent several years going through the necessary repertoires. Of course, you should also try to imitate their finger movements.

Important note: The purpose of good fingering is to guarantee “smoothness” in musical passages.

This is especially important in the piano work of Bach (prelude, fugues, and others) and many Classical composers. Very often, a slight change in piano fingering could cause a disruption of the whole phrasing. For improvisational and accompaniment pieces, strict piano fingering becomes less critical. In fact, every time I improvise I use different fingering combination. This is because my mood and rhythm change when I improvise, this also affects the combination of fingers I use.

If you pay attention to musical pieces edited by different editors, you will notice a change of fingering as well. I have noticed that the same “Sonatina” piece composed by Clementi have different fingering suggestions under different editors. Some editors use the 2nd finger more often, while others choose the 3rd finger.

In conclusion: if you are improvising, pay less attention to which finger you are using. As long as you abide by the above rules and ensure a smooth flow of musical passage, you are fine.

Bear in mind that if you become too critical with regards to your fingering, you’ll probably noticed that it will interfere with your musical line of thought, as well as the flow of the music. Piano playing can get rather complicated, particularly when you’re trying to balance both your hands while as the same time maintaining a steady rhythm. Also, you need to make sure you’re pressing the pedals at the correct time. Lastly but not least, listen to the music.

Tags: Music by Michelle Edward
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Right here are a few of the best films of all time. Choose one to watch today! In Enemy Country – So-so designer of WW2 enthrall, set in France and England, filmed on a back-lot. Not especially persuading. Cast includes Tony Franciosa, Anjanette Comer, Guy Stockwell, Paul Hubschmid, Tom Bell, and Emile Genest. (107 minutes, 1968)

Black like Me – Mighty drama based on real history of a reporter who took drugs that permitted him to pass for black so he might undergo racial prejudice first hand. Some facets of presentation are outdated, although topics are still pertinent. Cast includes James Whitmore, Roscoe Lee Browne, Lenka Petersen, Sorrell Booke, Will Geer, Al Freeman, and Raymond Jacques. (107 minutes, 1964)

Only You – Pleasant confection in reference to a youthful girl who invests her entire life looking for her perfect mate whose name was summoned up on a Ouija board. Cast includes Marisa Tomei, Robert Downey, Jr., Bonnie Seek, Joaquim De Almeida, Fisher Stevens, and Phyllis Newman. (108 minutes, 1994)

After Life – This is a beautifully crafted premise of case workers at a train station between the heavens who assist the recently departed to decide on a lone minute from their pasts to live inside evermore. This is a calm, poetic measure of life, death, and memory, filled with soft humor and blessedly free of some feel-good platitudes. Cast includes Aarata, Erika Oda, Susuma Terajirna, Taketoshi Naito, Kyoko Kagawa, Kei Tani, Takashi Naito, and Yusuke lseya. (118 minutes, 1998)

Adam’s Apples – This movie is a strange sinister comedy about two very dissimilar men who have a fight of wills. It is a recently developed religious fanatic versus a hard core neo-Nazi villain. The battle of good against evil is on. The main stars are Ulrich Thomsen, Mads Mikkelsen, Nicolas Brom, and Paprika Steen. (German-Danish-comedy directed by Anders Thomas Jensen)

The Leading Man – British backstage show romance in regards to an American film superstar who seduces a playwright’s depressed wife and his leading-woman mistress. When it might not make up its mind whether it is a comedy tirade or a light thriller, it is still exceptionally amusing stuff. Bon Jovi is excellent as the foolhardy, dishonorable Yankee, and Galiena and Newton are fetching as the females snared in his web. Cast includes Jon Bon Jovi, Anna Galiena, Lambert Wilson, Thandie Newton, Barry Humphries, and David Warner. (100 minutes, 1997)

The Ploughman’s Lunch – Complex, cynical disapproval of British behaviors, ethics and affairs of state, focusing on the maneuvers of absolutely egotistical journalist (Pryce) and others throughout the Falklands battle. The film is rather perceptive, within the restraints of its outlook. Cast includes Jonathan Pryce, Tim Curry, Rosemary Harris, Blunt Finlay, and Charlie Dore. (100 minutes, 1983)

Borderline – Peculiar thriller comedy in which L.A. police officer Trevor tries to assemble proof contrary to cunning drug smuggler Burr when mixing with hard gentleman MacMurray in Mexico. Starts out hopefully, although eventually slows down in ridiculousness. Burr makes a lucid scoundrel.The cast includes Fred MacMurray, Claire Trevor, Raymond Burr, Jose Torvay, Morris Ankrum, and Roy Roberts. (88 minutes, 1950)

The Iron Horse – Mythical, quiet film in reference to producing of the transcontinental railroad, intertwined with expected human interest subplots engaging surveyor O’Brien, darling Bellamy, deserter Kohler, etc. Might appear trite this present day; but it is crucial to note that this movie fashioned what later was identified as stereotypes. Cast includes George O’Brien, Cyril Chadwick, and Fred Kohler. Gladys Hulette, J. Farrell MacDonald. (119 minutes, 1924)

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Chasity Strong
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Online games offer people the chance to be something else, be somewhere else. They are growing in number and include science-fiction based games like EVE Online. If you’re interested in playing this particular game, you may want to look through at least one EVE Online guide before starting play.

First, the game of EVE Online is more intense than people who aren’t familiar with it might think. The game came out in North America in May of 2003. It was quickly a success among multi-massive online gaming, or MMO’s.

Set in a futuristic realm of space travel, in the game EVE Online players spend the majority of their time piloting space ships. There are over 7500 star systems to explore and utilize, made up of moons, planets, asteroids as well as wormholes. People travel from one system to another via a stargate. With the help of an actual EVE Online guide, the new player can start navigating this universe without fear.

Mining and hunting take up the majority of a player’s time. There are also agent missions to fall back on but the average EVE Online guide will tell new players not to rely on this as a source of income or resources. Mining is the best way and if that isn’t successful, hunting other miners and stealing their loot is the next best way to succeed.

One of the more common tips you’ll find in an EVE Online guide is that in order to succeed, players should try to have at least three separate accounts. Each account requires its own subscription fee, so this could get expensive. However, with three accounts, a player can easily defend their own mining plots or ransack the plots of others. This is definitely a fun way to succeed.

Joining a corporation is also highly advised in any EVE Online guide. A corporation is the equivalent of a guild or a clan in other games. They are groups of players with a ranking system, that work together to gain prestige, power over resources and intimidate other player corporations enough to offer a lot of protection to members. Usually the players in a corporation are friendly and helpful, with lots of solutions to any EVE Online questions or challenges.

Making ISK in this game is very important. Some real life companies spend a great deal of time harvesting ISK to sell to people for actual dollars in the real world. With the right amount of ISK, a player is able to advance using the best skills, weapons and ships as well as important modifications to each. At least part of each EVE Online guide is dedicated to talking about how to make up to sixty million ISK in an hour. The faster a person can make it, the better their time is spent in the game.

Even after such a long running, EVE Online continues to see growing numbers joining up. Sundays are reportedly the day that the game breaks its previous records of how many accounts are logged in simultaneously. Of course these accounts are not all individual players, but still the impact is obvious. An EVE Online guide could be the best way to become one of the elite, rather than just forever spend one’s life as a newbie.

Tags: Games by Dana Goldberg
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Some of the best motion pictures of all time are the golden oldies. If you wish to watch a excellent film tonight, here is some information on some of the best movies you may have never heard of. Check them out. Bear in mind you can download them more or less immediately to your own computer in the coziness of your own home.

The Reward was released in 1965. Pledging premise and wonderful cast led astray in stagnant Western – group of reward hunters turn on each other, as desire for larger share of prize money motivates them into clash. Cast includes Max von Sydow, Yvette Mimieux, Efrem Zimbalist, Gilbert Roland, Emilio Fernandez, Henry Silva, and Rodolfo Acosta.

Afurika Monogatari started hitting theaters in 1988. Guide Sayer crashes his aircraft in wilds of Africa and comes upon a game conserve. Even old Jimmy is dreary. The film was filmed in Kenya. Cast includes James Stewart, Philip Sayer, Eleanora Vallone, and Heekura Simba.

Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Small town band hits it huge, in an endeavor to link songs from The Beatles’ memorable album into some kind of a storyline. As to The Bee Gees performing capacity, well let us just proclaim that they are not the Beatles. Cast includes Peter Frampton, The Bee Gees, George Bums, Sandy Farina, and Steve Martin.

1997 was the year that The Leading Man came out. British backstage show romance in regards to an American film megastar who seduces a playwright’s lonely wife and his leading-woman mistress. When it might not make up its mind whether it’s a comedy tirade or a light thriller, it’s still very funny stuff. Bon Jovi is excellent as the foolhardy, unethical Yankee, and Galiena and Newton are attractive as the females snared in his web. Cast includes Jon Bon Jovi, Anna Galiena, Lambert Wilson, Thandie Newton, Barry Humphries, and David Warner.

Alfie came out in 1966. Well redone version of Bill Naughton play he additionally wrote. Caine is splendid as philandering Cockney playboy who is put in a very difficult situation. Cast includes Michael Caine, Shelley Winters, Millicent Marin, Julia Foster, Jane Asher, Shirley Anne Field, Graham Stark, and Murray Melvin.

Borderline was released in 1950. Unusual thriller comedy in which L.A. policeman Trevor tries to assemble proof contrary to cunning drug smuggler Burr when mixing with hard gentleman MacMurray in Mexico. Starts out favorably, although eventually slows down in ridiculousness. Burr makes a articulate scoundrel.The cast includes Fred MacMurray, Claire Trevor, Raymond Burr, Jose Torvay, Morris Ankrum, and Roy Roberts.

1953 was the year for South Sea Women. Gloomy isle story of love and dishonesty with Cadet Lancaster kindling the fire with Mayo. Cast includes Burt Lancaster, Virginia Mayo, Chuck Connors, Arthur Guards, and Paul Burke.

Sawdust and Tinsel came out in 1953. Kindles soar in this beautiful, allegorical movie set in a small-time carnival and focusing on the relation between carnival owner Gronberg and his oversexed mistress (Andersson). Cast includes Harriet Andersson, Ake Gronberg, Anders Ek, Gudrun Brost, Hasse Ekman, and Annika Tretow.

Seaside Players, Cast includes John Leyton, Mike Same, Freddie and The Dreamers, Ron Moody, and Liz Fraser. Group of adolescents performing at seaside resort dispose for a talent competition which is to be the highlight of the summer season.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Rachel Flowers
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If you have been racking your brain for gift ideas for people during the holiday season or other special occasion then you should look in to buying them a magazine subscription. Below is a discussion about some of the many reasons why a subscription to a magazine is the perfect gift idea for all of your friends and family.

t doesn’t matter what the gift recipient is interested in, there will be a magazine out there that suits their interests. Take for instance, that special main in your life, a subscription to sports magazine might be perfect. For a woman, lifestyle and fashion magazines are often great choices. And for the children in your life, comic books are always fun. As you can see, no matter who you are shopping for their is some type of magazine that will suit them perfectly.

It doesn’t matter what kind of budget you are on either, there is always a subscription out there that you will be able to afford. You can choose a few months or even a few years for the length of time the magazines will be delivered to your mailbox. If someone is already buying that same magazine on a regular basis, why not save some money by purchasing a subscription?

Magazine subscriptions usually come with big discounts too and when you purchase them online that discount can get even bigger. Sometimes you can even find deals that offer some free issues with the purchase of a years worth of delivery.

Can you even think of a better gift than one that provides entertainment? One magazine can keep a person fully entertained with a countless number of things. You can find things like celebrity interviews, contests, recipes, puzzles, real life stories, craft projects and gardening advice.

If the person you are buying for is already paying for the same magazine anyway, they will love the fact that you thought enough of them to buy them a subscription for it.

This is also a gift that gives for months to come. You aren’t just giving them a one time present, but instead you are giving them one that keeps on coming for a long time.

Isn’t it obvious that if you are looking for a great present for someone or just looking to save a little this holiday season, a magazine subscription is the perfect choice. All you do is pay now and the magazine gets delivered for you, month after month.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Milrika Ekilski
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This is an editorial about neighbors. My husband and I, as well as our toddler son, have lived in our condo complex for just under three years now. We have had our ups and down of getting along with various neighbors here and there. Some have been more friendly than others, and some interactions started out friendly only to turn into hostile situations later on. Over all, I would say we have had your typically average American experience in terms of the friendliness, and sometimes unfriendliness, in our neighborhood.

Now we are planning on moving out in a few weeks. We will be renting our condo out to another young family while we upgrade into a full sized home. Now what do you think happened when we let the word get out that we are leaving?

People coming out left and right to express to us how much they are going to miss us and how they are so sad to see us go. My husband and I were at a loss with the sudden apparent friendliness we were receiving when we had been living in that area just shy of three years. We asked ourselves, why is it people are suddenly so caring about our welfare right when we are about to leave them behind and move one with our lives?

I believe that the answer lies within the very question. For some of the more hostile neighbors, I think they are probably having a secret party to celebrate our departure and they will probably pray that the people taking our place will be the complete opposite of us.

However, this cynical little scenario only applies to a small percentage of the people around us. So what about the majority of our other neighbors who are all of a sudden being so nice now that we are going? I do not think it has anything to do with how they feel about us personally. No, my theory is simply called “the effort factor”. I believe this theory applies to almost anyone in our American society today.

What I mean when I call it the effort factor is this: people want to be nice and decent human beings. We all want to think that we’re making a worthwhile contribution to society. But things can get in the way of our intentions. People work hard, have their families to raise, and their own extended families to keep in touch with, and have a select amount of friends that they want to see on a regular basis.

Therefore, the effort factor of going out and visiting with other neighbors they do not know as well does not enter their minds as often as they’d like to think. But when someone announces that they are moving, it is the perfect opportunity to suddenly give of oneself without having to maintain that effort throughout the future. All you have to do is show your regret that you did not get to know that neighbor very well, make them a little treat to say “goodbye”, and then they go and you are off the hook! Hardly any effort has been put into you being a nice person.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Adrienne Monson
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