stories from an ordinary life …
Gas prices continue to climb across Texas
— reported by the Houston Chronicle
Gasoline pump prices increased this week for an eighth week in a row in Texas.The average price of regular-grade gasoline in 11 Texas cities rose 6 cents to $2.49 per gallon, according to the weekly AAA Texas gasoline price survey released today. Nationally, the average increase was 5 cents to $2.62 per gallon.
[snip]
I’m not adding my comments to the blogosphere’s reaction to Kathy Sierra receiving online threats serious enough that she has altered her offline life. I’m not qualified to do anything but express my outrage.
But in view of the online buzz, I thought it was interesting to find an article at CyberJournalist.net about how newspapers are dealing with negative comments and backlash on their online articles. An interesting read that just makes me wonder if anonymity is, in fact, a bad thing.
According to an article in BBC News, the United States has lost its edge as “the world’s primary engine of technology innovation.” They’re reporting that we’re now ranked seventh in the world, at least in terms of impact of technology.
A deterioration of the political and regulatory environment in the US prompted the fall, the report said.
Who ranked higher? Singapore, Denmark, Sweden… but not in that order.
The only good news I saw in the article was that India was ranked 44 and China 59.
SiteProNews has an article listing the pros of hiring a professional PR specialist or PR firm. Amongst the things included is a breakdown of fees at a PR firm:
- Interns/Junior Executives – bill at $75 / hour (Very little, if any professional experience)
- Account Executives – bill at $100 – $125 / hour (1-3 years of professional experience)
- Senior Account Executives – bill at $125 – $200 / hour (Multiple years of professional experience. Agency decision makers.)
It also includes a listing of major benefits:
The most important piece of advice:
If you have the time, tools and talent to launch and maintain your own campaign, you should definitely do so. If not – there are a number of public relations/publicity firms, specialists and services out there. Research to find the one whose services and fees match your business plan. Once business owners, entrepreneurs, and inventors learn more about their options when it comes to launching a PR campaign — many find that they can’t afford NOT to have one.
Good info.
I always worry about niece, especially as she grows older. I see myself in her so much and I see that my sister is intent on creating distance between them. I had a good relationship with my mother, she was always available to help me deal with all my stuff. My sister isn’t creating that relationship with my niece.
Girls today as under so much stress. They are encouraged to do everything, expected to do everything well, and be happy about it. They have to be popular, do community service, get good grades, be involved in sports, and be hip and pretty as well. And if they achieve all of this, it’s just them living up to their potential, not doing anything extraordinary.
It’s very frightening.
The New York Times has a wonderful inside look at the lives of the “Amazing girls”:
Girls by the dozen who are high achieving, ambitious and confident (if not immune to the usual adolescent insecurities and meltdowns). Girls who do everything: Varsity sports. Student government. Theater. Community service. Girls who have grown up learning they can do anything a boy can do, which is anything they want to do.
The look into the pressures they are under, the expectations and the tools and business that thrive on perpetuating the stresses is daunting. It makes me wonder how any of them survive the pressure.
Resources:
Found via Weblogg-ed.