Host a Harry Potter party
For years, my little sister and I talked about hosting a Harry Potter party—or even a marathon of the films—just for fun. We are huge fans and went to a midnight party for the release of the final book, which was incredibly fun. I’ll always remember that party; she dressed as Tonks, and I went as a Sirius Black groupie. We spent the entire day and night in a Harry Potter induced haze, and then read into the next day. We even read the first chapter on the way home out loud to one another.
This weekend, my sister threw such a party at her home. It was a lot of fun, despite the fact that we had to leave early. Here are a few tips you can take for your similar party from my sister.
Use HP themed beverages and treats. My sister cooked us some Butterbeer from a recipe used in the HP cookbook; you can also look them up online. She also made polyjuice potion (punch) and other goodies.
Decorate with House items. She had napkins, mugs, and lots of other house-based decorations. She even had a ceramic Halloween hat in which she placed the house names so people could be sorted. You can imagine my displeasure at being sorted into Hufflepuff; at least my daughter was, too. My husband, on the other hand, was sorted into Slytherin, which leads me to…
Give out Dark Marks. You don’t have to have a real tattoo artist on the premises! Our cousin, who has studied beauty, provided a stencil and airbrushed Dark Marks onto our arms. After my daughter received one, I figured I had to get one too, dressed as a Gryffindor or not!
Dress up. Ask people to come as their favorite characters. Last night I ran into Luna Lovegood, Tonks, Harry Potter himself, and even a Cornish Pixie. My husband and I were Molly and Arthur Weasley, while our daughter was Crookshanks. Be as elaborate as you like, but feel free to just get a hat or scarf to wear.
Provide games. My sister had several themed games—such as Clue and trivia—ready for us to play, as well as a Quidditch game going in one room on a game station.
Play the movie. We didn’t do this, but if you have a younger audience—or simply want some background noise going—feel free to play one or more of the movies during the party.
China’s plans for stabilizing Syria
The conflict in Syria has been going on for more than a year-and-a-half now and the toll in lives has reached into the tens-of-thousands. In addition, millions of Syrians find themselves in danger with a large percentage of these looking to flee the country. With no end in site, China is finally stepping forward to suggest a plan of their own that they hope will put an end to this terrible tragedy.
In the past, China has taken a stand-offish approach to this conflict. The have preferred not to get involved and urged others to do the same, letting Syria decide for itself what’s best. They’ve also been generally supportive of the Assad regime, despite most of the international community insisting that he needs to be forcibly removed from power.
Now, they’ve changed their stance a bit. The Chinese government recently proposed a plan as to how the war in Syria can be ended. They wish to negotiate a slow cease-fire, implemented region-by-region, followed by assigning representatives to handle the political situation and establish some sort of transitional government. They have also sent out the call for more international help with regards to humanitarian aid for the victims of the war.
In general, the stance they hold is still similar to their original position. They do not state that Assad should be removed nor do they insist that the old regime’s politicians be taken down. They aim for a compromise approach between the two warring factions and some sort of hybrid government composed of members from both camps. And they still stand with Russia in stating that they will act defensively against any direct foreign military intervention in the crisis.
While their sentiments may be in the right place, slowly changing to realize the importance of international influence on the conflict, what they suggest is probably not the most realistic of approaches. Considering the hatred between the two factions and the countless human rights violations perpetrated by the Assad regime, it is unlikely that the rebels will accept him or any of his cronies in their new government. Assad and his, for their part, no doubt feel the same way. Still, China is coming one step closer to joining the rest of the world in condemning the war. If everyone can sit down and agree on something, there may be an end to the bloodshed once and for all.
Stampede at Steve Aoki's Madrid show
As of Saturday morning, four women have died after being trampled in a stampede at Steve Aoki’s Halloween show in Madrid, Spain. As a result of the incident, the DJ/producer canceled the following night’s show that would have been held in Bilbao. Aoki has stated that the cancellation is out of respect for those who had died in the Madrid show.
Aoki was performing at the Madrid Arena before a crowd of 20,000, however the venue was only approved for 10,800. In a statement released after the show, the concert’s promoter has denied that the venue was over capacity. The event was titled Thriller Music Park with a theme that involved the concertgoers dressing in costumes from the Michael Jackson Thriller music video.
The event’s promoter has also released an explanation of the events that led to the tragedy. A staff member set off a flare within the arena panicking the crowd and causing them to rush for the exits. The trampling occurred because of a bottleneck at one of the venue’s 11 exits.
The blockage was reportedly due to people lying on the floor and vomiting in the hallway. Because the stampede was localized to just one of the exits, many of the other concertgoers were unaware that that the stampede had occurred. Paramedics arrived to find five people needing help, with two of them in cardiac arrest.
Attempts to resuscitate two them failed and the third died shortly after arriving at a hospital. The fourth died two days later, early Saturday morning. Aoki has released a statement offering his condolences and stating that he would have canceled the show immediately had he known that his fans were in danger.
How to trade bonds like a pro
Before deciding the liquidity of a bond or its credit spread, investors need a bond trading brokerage account. tradeMONSTER is a fairly sophisticated trading platform that enables traders to trade around 30,000 bonds.
The best way to trade bonds is to do it like bond traders do sans the advanced equipment of course: juggle bond price watching with studying the market for any news that will affect it.
The bond market can be nothing short of bewildering at times and it is important to keep your sanity in the highs and lows of bond trading. It is necessary to keep it simple to be most effective.
There arbitrage opportunities that come about when an astute trade identifies a bond with a higher yield than usual or a similar scenario. I guess the easy thing to do is to look at what Morgan Stanley, UBS, Credit Suisse, BNP Paribas, etc are doing with their bond trades. In addition, look at smaller shops too such as the Goshen, Indiana based Everence Financial and foreign banks like the French Credit Agricole Securities.
As always, when I touch on these 'How to' topics, I never forget to leave a certain something for people aspiring to pursue it as a career to peruse. Being a bond trader, enables you to be well compensated in a hard to enter field which requires a quantitative background and a prestigious degree from a top ranked university.
Also, get on LinkedIn and Mashable and see what sort of skills (software, technical, etc) it requires to have a successful bond trading career.
49ers during first half of NFL season
The San Francisco 49ers start of 6-2 has stopped short of being the amazing Super Bowl run that we in the Bay Area expect, but they have definitely got the job done. Speaking to the great defense that the fans have witnessed, the Niners have defended so brilliantly that four of their last five opponents (including Arizona) have been unable to score a touchdown.
On the offensive side, their next opponent - the St. Louis Rams - pose a threat to the Alex Smith scoring machine with their tough secondary. Talk about QB Alex Smith, he had a great game last Monday night with three TDs and 18 of 19 passing attempts. Jim Harbaugh's offensive scheme and the confidence he has instilled in Smith have paid off and made the QB a stellar performer despite the odds that were stacked against him.
However, it is really the running game led by Frank Gore and the top ranked defense that have been responsible for the resurgence in Bay Area football. I see the Niners representing the NFC in Super Bowl XLVII.
The wide outs are playing really great: Moss and Crabtree have got their act together this season. Although, praised by Coach Harbaugh for his work ethic in the offseason and his teamwork during the season so far, Moss had yet to really make his mark in a Niners game. What better way than a 47-yard touchdown in Monday Night Football game against the Arizona Cardinals to seal victory for the 49ers.
Slam dunking your work-at-home career
There is a wealth of information on this site to go out and get started making extra money on the side working at home. What I want to do with this post is to give more and hopefully new information about the gold mine that working at home is becoming. Working at home is best pursued part-time as it is great additional income to a day job.
Furthermore, people who desire more money can make bank in the weekend too. The advantage is that you are never unemployed even if you get laid off because you can simply step up your working at home game. It has great benefits for employers too. The online workplaces that I am about to introduce to you are the same as Elance and oDesk.
Freelancer.com
Out of the 2.3 million projects that have been posted on the site, the most popular ones are copywriting, website design, SEO and graphic design. There have been other skills that have been demanded from time to time such as biotechnology, industrial design, aerospace engineering and astrophysics.
VWorker
Considering that 54 percent of traditional office workers "sleepwalk" during their work day, it makes sense for employers to go to VWorker to get their work done productively. There is so much more businesses, workers and the country as a whole will save on because of sites like VWorker.
Guru.com
You are not alone in your search for a lucrative work at home career. Guru.com was created to help out the approximately 25 million Americans who work as independent professionals. Moreover, companies love these free agents as they increase the chance of profitability. Guru.com will add dimensions to the work at home business model with its version of the 'water cooler' and job matching among other thing.
Step up to the plate and be a part of the wave of the future!
Keebler Vienna Fingers Cookies: Six Pack for $19.07
Get 6, 14-count Keelber Vienna Fingers Original Cookies packages for just $19.03 at Amazon.com. Offer includes FREE shipping when used in conjunction with an order of $25 or more for Super Saver Shipping orders.
Lane Bryant: Site-wide BOGO Offer
Shop at Lane Bryant and get a buy one, get one offer on your clothing item of choice. Just enter the code "NOVBOGOLB" at checkout. Blouses, ponchos, sweaters, and more are included, as are clearance items.
iPod Touch: $179 at Walmart
Get an iPod Touch for $179 at Walmart today. Other deals include $1 off Yoplait Yogurt, children's pajamas for $12.88, video game bundles for $30.