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By now, you've read many articles and seen several statistics about why social media is important to your business.
There's no question about it – it is important. The real question is what are you going to do with that information to grow your blog?
Before we dive into the ConvertKit social media workflow process, let's lay a few things out in the open.
There are three different social media camps:
- The Social Snobs – This person loves every social platform and preaches from the mountain tops why it's crucial for online growth (I'm in this camp, with a large tent firmly in the ground)
- The Free Birds – This person shows sporadic interest in different social mediums, often jumping from platform to platform lacking consistency in content and posting (majority of bloggers live here)
- The Feet Draggers – This person knows social media is important but lack the interest or knowledge to commit to using it (mom and pop shops)
Which one are you?
ConvertKit's Social Platforms
One of the most common mistakes people make (including myself) is that we think we need to be on every platform. That strategy might work for some, but those people/companies most likely have a team of people behind them managing each medium. My biggest piece of advice is to find two or three platforms that not only work best for you, but also platforms where your audience already is.
If you're selling a physical product and your demographic is a twenty something female, dive into Instagram. It's a strong, visual platform with 55% of it's users between the ages of 18-29.
If you're a podcaster, interviewing social influencers about their craft and you want to share snippets of the interview to entice people to listen, Twitter is a great platform to entice people to read/listen more.
At ConvertKit, we use Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. We've dabbled with Pinterest, putting us in The Free Bird camp with that platform, unable to fully commit due to the lack of visible ROTI (return on time invested).
Finding the Right Platforms
If you're wondering, how do I know which platform to spend my time on, start with Google Analytics. Adding Google Analytics to your website allows you to track and monitor the growth of your blog, as well as know where your traffic is coming from and which blog posts are most popular.
In this case, we are looking to see which platforms are referring the most traffic to the ConvertKit website. Start by logging in to your Google Analytics account and click Audience Overview. This shows you how many sessions, unique visits, and pageviews you have.
To narrow down your search, select a time frame to measure your growth. I recommend a growth time frame of one month. This allows you to set realistic growth goals and measure them over a 30 day time period. In the top right of the Audience Overview window, click the drop down arrow to the right of the dates selection. This allows you to select your preferred date range.
Once you've selected that, on the main menu, switch your view to Acquisition Overview. This view allows you to see where your views are being acquired from. You can see our fourth top channel is social media bringing in 95,766 sessions in the 30 day range I selected. To take a closer look, under the Acquisition tab, click the drop down menu for Social and click on Overview.
This will bring you to window that highlights specifically which social networks are referring the most traffic to your website. As you can see Facebook is our top platform, and behind it is Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter. There is also a window showing how many total sessions, sessions via social referral, and conversion information.
Researching the data behind each platform and the traffic it brings to your business adds authority to why social is important in the first place while also adding validity to which platforms you should spend your time on. This is the easy part. Then comes creating a strategy for your content and scheduling that works best for your business.
Content Calendars
Creating a solid content calendar with effective tools helps with knowing what to post and when. Once you have that nailed down, it's time to schedule your content. Getting ahead and scheduling your social media weeks in advance allows you to focus on important day to day tasks like running your business.
Here is our workflow for each platform.
Twitter + Facebook Scheduling Workflow
There are several scheduling tools out there. For Twitter and Facebook, we use Buffer. I've used Hootsuite before too. It's a great tool that can be utilized for free for up to three platforms. Personally, I like the layout of Buffer better and Buffer also allows you to "Re-Buffer" popular content back into your queue, which helps save time.
Our workflow is split into three different sections: Strategy, Content, and Scheduling.
Twitter and Facebook are very different platforms. However, our strategies for both are similar.
Our goal is to always have at least two weeks of content scheduled in advance. Long term, we are working on building up to a full month of scheduled content. Taking the time up front to schedule social media, allows my day to day time to be spent generating leads, managing demo calls, and engaging with our customers online.
By batching the work in one sitting, I save so much time that can then be spent on other important tasks. The same applies to you and your business.
On both Facebook and Twitter, we post six times a day. This hits all hours of peak traffic time. To find out more on when to post, look at the Analytics for each platform.
For example, within the Insights Section of your Facebook Business Page, click on posts and it will show you the specific times of day with the most traffic/engagement to your page.
At this time, Twitter doesn't have these analytics built out yet. For more insights on when to post on each platform, check out this resourceful article from HubSpot.
Within the Buffer app, you can specify which days and times you'd like to post. There is also an option for Buffer to choose the exact posting time for you based on the optimal posting times for that platform.
By selecting which times you are going to post every day ahead of time saves you more time and energy by not having to think about it. What's most important is the content you share.
There are two different types of content we share. Content we created and content we curate. Created content is just that, resources, blogs, and podcasts created by us. Curated content is anything not created by us, but relevant to our audience.
With this being said, you might ask yourself, "Why would I share other people's work on my social platforms when the entire reason to be one social media is to grow my brand awareness and sell more product?"
Great question.
The answer is that no one wants to constantly hear you toot your own horn. By sharing resourceful content from other people shows our audience we care enough about them to share good content, regardless of who created it.
Also, Facebook recognizes when you did this and it's algorithm shows that post more because it doesn't link back to your website. Yeah that's right – Facebook basically penalizes you for always posting your own content by never showing your post to your audience. Unless you put ad money behind it, there's a smaller chance your audience will see posts linking back to your website.
So within those six posts a day on both Twitter and Facebook, we post three pieces of content created by us and three articles created by other stellar platforms.
Looking like:
- ConvertKit Content
- Curated
- ConvertKit Content
- Curated
- ConvertKit Content
- Curated
This is our strategy and it by know means needs to be yours. It's all about finding what works best for you and the time you allot to schedule your content.
Here is the dashboard for Buffer. There is a list view (which is my favorite view) and a calendar view that can be selected in the top right corner by the "add a post" content bar.
List view
Calendar View
To add an post, just click the blank content box. Two more reasons I'm a big Buffer fan:
- Links automatically get shortened by Buffer as soon as you paste it in the content box without you even clicking a button.
- Images auto-populate, allowing you to choose which image you want to post with the content. This is a big time saver.
We also have RSS feeds connected to our Buffer which syncs with those selected websites to automatically add their new articles to the top of our "Content Inbox". By simply clicking "Add", I can add that post to the bottom of our queue.
There are so many features to Buffer than allow you to save time and push out relevant and popular content. But for the sake of time and your attention, here is my last feature!
Within the Analytics tab, I click the "Posts" subtab to see which posts had the highest engagement. Disclaimer: I don't always re-buffer popular content because it's important to push out fresh content. However, if a post performed well, I will wait about two weeks and re-buffer it.
Instagram Workflow
That's right! ConvertKit is now on Instagram! Personally, Instagram is my favorite platform. I love how visual it is and how easy it is to engage with your audience.
Our content strategy on Instagram is to use as much community generated content as we can. We try to follow as many of our customer as we can and highlight their work. I also mix in a few stock photos depending on what message I'm wanting to post.
Currently, we aren't using any scheduling tools for Instagram, but if you are looking to do this for yourself, I recommend Later or Planoly. You can schedule your images with captions weeks in advance while also managing the visual look of your Instagram feed.
We post at least once a day and plan to build out our strategy on this platform more in the coming months. If you are on Instagram, give us a follow and say hello!
Werk Werk Werkflow
Social media is work. A lot of work. But with scheduling in advance and a really good game plan (hopefully you have that now!), the work can be really fun and help you grow your audience and maximize your blog content.
With a firm strategy and the right tools, all that work becomes so much easier. I hope by sharing our workflow with you, it turned on a few lightbulbs or reiterated what you are currently doing. There are, of course, several things I didn't cover in respect for your time and attention (you're welcome). Would you like to hear more of what was left out? Let me know in the comments below!
What aspects of this workflow post spoke to you the most? What was your biggest takeaway? I'd love to hear your replies and how you'll approach social media moving forward.


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Understanding the rental housing crisis and solutions to end it
The current rental landscape is changing, and changing fast. Highlighting data on rental housing from a variety of sources, the Social Planning and Research Council of Hamilton is publishing a series of bulletins to bring attention to Hamilton's renters, the buildings they live in, the rents they pay, and the difficulties they face in this challenging housing market.
For additional context, also see the SPRC's 2018 report
Out of Control: Ontario's acute rental housing crisis – Lessons from Hamilton and Quebec City
Join the SPRC e-newsletter in the box on the left of this page to receive in your inbox all bulletins as they are released over the next few weeks.
Introduction and Executive Summary
Rising Rents and Evictions in Hamilton and Beyond
· Rents and affordability in Hamilton and Ontario
· Rents in Hamilton's neighbourhoods
· Rising eviction rates threatening tenants and affordable housing
Trends in Hamilton's rental stock
· Growth in Hamilton's Renter Households
· Primary private rental stock in Hamilton
Causes & Impacts of Hamilton's Rental Housing Crisis (coming soon…)
· Contributors to Hamilton's Rental Crisis
· Housing discrimination
· Health Impacts of Hamilton's Rental Crisis
· Community Impacts of changes in rental housing
· Impacts on young people, newcomers and single renters in Hamilton
Solutions for Improving Hamilton's Rental Market (coming soon…)
· What Is Affordable Housing?
· Tenant Protections as a tool to protect affordable housing
· Portable Housing Benefit: A Form of Basic Income?
· Housing Supply solutions to the rental housing crisis
· Individual & Community Actions to help address the rental housing crisis

subset: commoncrawl


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Halong Bay, the World Heritage Site recognized by UNESCO, is like "an extremely lively giant picture", a priceless gift that nature bestowed on Quang Ninh in particular and Vietnam in general. Adventure Indochina travel
Time to travel
Ha Long has two distinct seasons, you should go into the period from April to June, when the weather is cool, not too hot. It facilitates some outdoor activities such as bathing and sightseeing. Do not go to Halong in September because there are usually storms or cyclones during this time and winter will be more fog and cold.
How to get to Halong
Trains from Hanoi to Ha Long: You can choose the tourist train departs from Gia Lam station, which takes about 5 hours to Halong and the ticket price is about 100.000VND / way / person.
Cars: The cars to Halong often concentrate at the My Dinh and Luong Yen station in Hanoi. Buses space approximately 5-15 minutes.
Motorcycles: From Hanoi to Halong you can move in two routes:
Route 1: From Hanoi, you can go along no.5 street to come to Bac Ninh then follow No.18 street through Pha Lai – Chi Linh – Dong Trieu – Uong Bi – Halong. The total route is of about 155km.
Route 2: Noi Bai Airport – Bac Ninh – Highway 18A through Pha Lai – Sao Do – Dong Trieu – Uong Bi – Halong which is about 160 km.
In Ha Long, there have several restaurants ranging from budget to premium basing on which options you choose. Being a coastal area, Halong is famous for seafood dishes including: Cu Ky, Be Be, Sa Sung, steamed oyster, baked oyster which are very nutritious and delicious. Specifically, it would be a mistake if we do not mention fried squid, a speciality of Halong which you can buy at any local market. Also, you should enjoy fried with squid sticky rice, sea crab, nem chua or rice wine.
Shopping and prices
Overall, shopping at Halong is very comfortable since its price level is fairly affordable. Most tourists often buy Halong seafood as a gift for their friends and relatives. When you buy something fresh, you should pay careful attention to the preservation. This is one of the most interesting travel experiences in Halong.
Attractive destinations
Here in Halong, there are many beautiful islands, especially the islands with different shapes like the hovering dragon – Hon Rong; two chickens are playing with each other on the waves – Hon Trong Mai; an old man is fishing – Hon La Vong.
Bai Chay resort situated along Halong Bay is suitable for bathing and rest. Co To Island with beautiful coral reefs still retains the wild character and peace.
Tuan Chau Island is considered the most beautiful islands in the bay and also has highest number of local residents. Here, you can stroll and participate in some very interesting water games. Alova Gold cruise Halong Bay
Being the center of the World Heritage Ha Long Bay, Sung Sot Cave, which is located on Bo Hon Island, are stalactites with rich variety of shapes.
If you would like to go to church the you should visit Yen Tu Pagoda, where the system of pagodas and towers blend with the natural surroundings to create a pure and tranquil scenery of a bustling Halong.
Some notes for guests to travel Ha Long
- Be careful to check the quality and quantity of goods that you bought.
- If you want to have an overnight on boat then you should not bring any food or drinks because you will be subject to a service fee which is very expensive.
- Do not leave litter at tourist destinations.
The compliance with the provisions of Halong tourist destination along with the travel experience will surely give you a safe – and – fun trip and it promises many surprises.
See more:
Travel Lovers


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Many times since 2003 when I began the Tioga and George Blog, people have asked me for advice getting readership. I do not know how to answer questions like these. Because, I do not know for sure why people read my blog!
One of my long time readers commented in ShoutBox that my blog is getting boring. What am I to do about that? I can only write about things that are happening. Or things that come up in my life. I am almost 75 years old now, and do not run around searching for adventure as I used to do years ago.
I am able to share with you one thing for sure. Having an audience of people following my life is a terrific thing! I get feed back from readers. And that feed back has turned out to be very important to me. Thru their interest in my life, suggestions and encouragement, readers have changed me into a better person.
8AM - Phones
A few days ago I visited Telcel customer service to find out why my cell phone service was not working right. Telcel sold me a new chip for my cell phone that has a number that is local for my present location.
So, what has happened since then? I have been receiving sales calls from the USA! This has got me to wondering why I need a cell phone? A cell phone can be very convenient at times. But most of the time for me, a cell phone is a pain in the butt.
If relatives and friends want to communicate with me, email is the best method. I am going to turn my cell phone off.
11AM - Information at my beck and call
If I were asked what is the greatest invention, it would have to be the internet. Here I am on the Pacific Coast of Mexico. Yet, from this somewhat remote place, I am able to tap into the infinite depths of information.
This morning I was browsing around in YouTube and stumbled across an interview with Stephen Hawking where the famous physicist discusses the origin of the Universe.
Then I tuned into interviews of Stephen King where this author talks about how he goes about creating his stories.
What a remarkable thing this is for me. With only a computer, an internet connection, some electricity, etc., I am able to plumb the depths of the world of information.
Partly cloudy
Partly cloudy
Location: El Chaco RV Park
Elevation: 15 meters


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Electrical Repair Services in Minor
Your #1 choice for electrical repair in Minor, Seattle, WA
Over 10,000 five-star reviews can't be wrong: Fixer is your best choice for electrical repair services in Minor.
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You Request a Fixer
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Real people, not actors:
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much will it cost?
Fixer changes a simple hourly rate, prorated to the minute after the first hour of service. Our rate even discounts if we need to shop for special materials.
Can I get a free estimate first?
When your visit in comfirmed, you'll receive a link to the details, including a ballpark estimate. The first thing your Fixer does upon arrival is confirm it!
What kinds of things can my Fixer fix?
Every Fixer is cross-trained on plumbing, electrical, doors, windows, walls, smart home technologies, weatherization, and more. That means they can knock out your whole list in just one visit!
Can I pick my Fixer?
If you're worked with Fixer before, you're welcome to request them again. Otherwise we recommend relying on our team to match you with the best Fixer for your project
Check out what your neighbors are requesting:
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September 30th, 2009
Join Dr. Gupta and Fit Nation on the road
By Matt Sloane
There are few things that excite me more in my job than a run of Fit Nation Tour events, and that's exactly what we're kicking off this weekend! It's not the travel so much that I'm excited about, but the opportunity to meet thousands of people who are eager to hear the latest information about obesity, losing weight and healthy living.
I've written these numbers over and over again: 66 percent of Americans are either overweight or obese; 33 percent of children fall into this same category. This is NOT OK! So, we've partnered with the YMCA – a fantastic community organization – to get kids moving again. We've taken a page from the YMCA of Cleveland's book and modified a program called "We Run This City" – where kids run 25 miles of a "marathon" over the course of two months, and run the final 1.2 miles during their city's big marathon. Once they cross the finish line, they receive a medal, a certificate and a sense of confidence – a feeling, that they CAN stay healthy and have fun.
This Sunday, we'll hit the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon in St. Paul, Minnesota, followed by Chicago on Sunday, October 11. We'll also be at the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, October 25th. If you're in one of these cities, come out and visit! Dr. Sanjay Gupta will be joining us in Minneapolis and Chicago, and he'll be signing advance copies of his new book: "Cheating Death."
To learn more about the Fit Nation Tour, and for tips and tricks to help you get fit, plus stories of how other people have conquered the battle of the bulge, go to CNN.com/Fitnation.
September 28th, 2009
Pushing ahead with multiple sclerosis therapies
By Georgiann Caruso
When I first heard about the possibility of a pill for multiple sclerosis (MS), I exlaimed, "No way!" As a person living with MS, I know that this would be a enormous advance for the MS community. The option of a pill instead of needles sounds incredible, making it so much easier for many people to stay on their therapies since currently they all involve needles. Delving into this further, I realized that several drugs in trials seemed to hold great promise, and they are not light years off.
But things aren't as simple as they first appeared.
First off, an explainer for those unfamiliar with the disease who might be curious, because chances are you know someone affected by MS. The National Multiple Sclerosis Society defines it as a "chronic, often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system (CNS), which is made up of the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves." The cause isn't yet known and there is no cure. What happens is the myelin - the covering of the nerves - is destroyed by the immune system. The result is scar tissue; therefore nerve impulses, or messages, are slowed down leaving people with any number of symptoms including balance, speech, vision and memory problems as well as fatigue and heat sensitivity, to name a few.
Currently, there are five potential first-line disease-modifying therapies on the market, which became available starting in the early 1990s. Four are injectibles, and vary from being given once a day to once a week. Then a few years ago, the drug Tysabri was introduced, offering a new option for people with MS as it is given intravenously once every four weeks. The choice is up to the patient and the provider.
The drugs are intended to reduce the frequency and severity of MS attacks and slow the progression of the disease. Depending on the therapy, clinical relapses can be reduced by between 1/3 and 2/3.
But the FDA has yet to approve a therapy that can be taken orally. That may soon change.
Scientists from the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) just wrapped up a meeting in Düsseldorf, Germany where they discussed this and other exciting developments in the MS community. So what does this mean for the more than 400,000 people in the U.S. - and the more than two million people worldwide –that have this debilitating neurological condition? And what does it mean for their families, friends and caregivers?
I posed that question to Dr. John Richert, Executive VP, Research & Clinical Programs of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, who emphasized that this is a very exciting time in the MS community.
He brought back news of the emerging trends discussed at the conference:
– The first oral symptom-management drug designed to improve nerve conduction, Fampridine, is already before the FDA for review. Fampridine has been shown to improve walking speed, but may also prove to help with other symptoms of the disease (which are less easy to quantify.) Expected to follow soon are the oral disease-modifying therapies Cladribine and Fingolimod. It's important to note though, these new drugs may well carry different risks than some of the currently available options. So while the method of taking them may be easier, they will not come without their own set of possible side effects and, as Richert suggests, there will be some unchartered territory as more people take the drugs.
-Therapies with infrequent dosing (such as once a year) are being studied.
-Stem cells hold promise for new MS treatments. Of particular interest are adult bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. According to Richert, it's a bit too early yet to know whether this approach will prove safe and beneficial, or how exactly the therapy will work.
-Within the next year or two, most of the common genes that predispose people to develop the disease will be identified. This is important not only for prevention, but for treatment as well. However, further research is needed about environmental triggers to see how genes and the environment interact to cause MS.
MS is a complicated disease and varies among individuals. What is your realistic hope for the disease and research? Now or 5-10 years down the road? We'd like to hear from you.
Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.
September 25th, 2009
Nick Jonas shares his diabetes journey
By Leslie Wade
I had the pleasure of meeting pop star Nick Jonas when he and his band were touring in Atlanta, Georgia, in late August. I know he's had media training and been in front of cameras for years, but I was impressed with his composure as he told me about his journey with a disease that affects one in 300 teens.
Four years ago Nick, the youngest member of the Jonas Brothers band, spent three days in the hospital. He'd lost 15 pounds in the previous three weeks and he and his family knew something was terribly wrong. Nick had developed type 1 diabetes - his body was no longer producing insulin, a hormone needed to convert sugar into energy for our bodies.
Nick made a promise to himself that day. "My commitment to myself, when I was on my way to the hospital, was that I would not let this slow me down. And I didn't," said Nick.
Nick and his family jumped into action, learning all about diabetes and how to treat the disease. "I was devastated. I didn't know anything about diabetes, had no knowledge," said Nick's mother, Denise Jonas. "I knew he was very ill just by looking at him."
"We had to take steps to have everyone in our family and my brother, who toured with the boys on a regular basis, trained on how to care for Nick. How to monitor him, how to administer his insulin shots, how to test his blood, how to give him a glucose shot if for some reason he passed out and went into a diabetic coma. It's a lot of work," said Denise.
After leaving the hospital, Nick was determined to write a song about his experience. But the piece didn't come together for another 2½ years. "I was having one of those days where it [the blood sugar] was out of range, things were not where I wanted them to be with my diabetes. I sat down at the piano and wrote the song and it came out in 15 minutes," explained Nick.
His song "A Little Bit Longer" seems to touch a chord in teens with diabetes, some of whom feel stigmatized and ashamed to have the disease. "He's had a great voice in helping encourage children and teenagers with type 1… to let other people know they have it," said Denise Jonas. "I didn't realize how much of the population was ashamed."
Nick's doctor, pediatric endocrinologist Francine Kaufman of Children's Hospital in Los Angeles, California, also knows about the concerns of teens. "The real driving force for a teen is to be just like every other teen, so having anything different - and particularly a chronic illness - sets you apart and many, many of these teenagers feel it, " explained Dr. Kaufman.
Nick is trying to raise awareness and money for diabetes through the band's Change for the Children Foundation. (He's also a paid spokesperson for Bayer, which makes a device to monitor blood glucose levels.)
Nick checks his blood sugar 10 to 12 times a day and his doctor says he takes his disease seriously. "Nick does what somebody with diabetes needs to do: wears an insulin pump, worries about how much insulin he's taking, monitors his blood sugar, stays healthy and gets exercise," says Dr. Kaufman.
But if the demands of his schedule mean a skipped meal before show time his brothers sometimes have to improvise. "I just give them a look and tell them to cover for me while I go off stage and take care of some stuff," says Nick. Which usually means grabbing a little apple juice, orange juice or a bit of food to normalize his blood sugar before heading back out on stage. "All of the crew on the tour are aware that I'm diabetic and they all know how to react in case of an emergency or a situation where I may need assistance," says Nick.
And fortunately those times are rare - a testament to his promise to himself four years ago: Nick, now 17, has not let diabetes keep him from sharing his craft and living his dream. "I'm just thankful to be able to be out here doing what I love with diabetes... and if there is something that I can do personally to inspire and encourage somebody that means the world to me, " says Nick.
Question: Do you or anyone you know struggle with telling others about diabetes? Tell us your story.
Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.
September 24th, 2009
Do I need the H1N1 vaccine if I think I already had the virus?
As a regular feature of CNNhealth.com, our team of expert doctors answers readers' questions. Here's a question for Dr. Gupta.
From Birgitta in Newcastle, Washington:
I think I already had the swine flu but do not know for sure if it was swine flu, do I take the vaccination anyway? Is it safe to take if I suspect that the flu I had was swine flu?
Tens of thousands of people right now, like Birgitta, are suffering from or getting over the H1N1 virus. Those numbers will continue to swell as the flu season wears on, and these questions will inevitably come up over and over again.
Incidentally, I can relate. I contracted the H1N1 virus recently while reporting on the war in Afghanistan, and I was miserable for days. I got my immunity to H1N1 the hard way, so I can take a pass on the vaccine this year. But what about people who are not as sure, like Birgitta?
The bottom line is, unless you got a laboratory test confirming it, you cannot be sure that you actually got the H1N1 virus. There are several strains of influenza floating around out there this season, two of which are H1N1 and seasonal influenza. There are a handful of other strains you could have contracted.
The old adage, "Better to be safe than sorry," may apply here. Unless you're sure you had H1N1, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that you get vaccinated. Even if you did, in theory, get H1N1 the CDC reports no evidence that subsequently getting the H1N1 vaccine would cause problems for you.
You can think about your vaccination like an insurance policy. If you did have H1N1 during your recent illness, then you're protected. If you did not, you're also protected.
If you're wondering when the vaccine will be available, the largest shipment of H1N1 vaccine is scheduled for mid-October. By then, the first 45 million doses of the vaccine will be ready, with another 20 million doses shipped out each week until December.
And don't forget, the CDC recommends that you get the seasonal flu vaccine as well.
September 23rd, 2009
I went to Afghanistan and all I got was H1N1
By Dr. Sanjay Gupta
It started as a cough. It wasn't the kind of cough where something is temporarily stuck in your throat. It wasn't the kind of cough where simply clearing your throat would've been adequate. This was the kind of cough that hurts when you do it. A stinging pain that makes you wince and guard and hope that you don't have to cough again any time soon. I thought I might have a fever, but of course, I was in the middle of covering a war in Afghanistan, and the conditions were… well, hot. So, maybe it was that. Problem was, the next day I wasn't feeling any better – in fact, I was worse. I woke up in my dusty desert tent and tried to step out of my sleeping bag. Two steps later, I almost hit the deck. Incoming. Except this wasn't due to any sirens going off, this was due to my own body simply being unable to hold myself up. I was lightheaded and freezing cold – even though it was over 100 degrees outside at that early hour of the morning.
I was nauseated and my entire body hurt. I tried to explain away my symptoms with lots of different excuses. You don't sleep much while covering a war. My bulletproof jacket didn't fit perfectly and was very heavy. There was a lot of dust and dirt, and maybe I had what the Marines referred to as the Kandahar Krud. It turned out to be none of those things.
I remember looking over at my camera man, Scottie McWhinnie. He looked absolutely awful. He was wearing a scarf on his head, and it was completely drenched in sweat. He was coughing so loudly and frequently that I was really starting to worry about him – and about myself. We each had it, whatever "it" was. I made a command decision. As a physician reporter in a war zone, I was going to get us medical care. That prompted our visit to a battlefield hospital, not as reporters this time, but as patients.
It is worth pointing out the irony of a medical reporter getting influenza type A, which was then ultimately confirmed as H1N1. (The term swine flu is a misnomer, as this strain is made up of several different components, including swine, but also avian parts.) It really didn't matter if I got tested, as my doctor told me. It was the only flu strain circulating and I had it, and so did Scottie. We both had high fevers, the lack of appetite, terrible sinus congestion, body aches, and yes – that hacking, come out of the blue.
I am not someone who gets sick, really ever. And this was the sickest I have ever been. I would've much preferred my own bed with all the comforts of home – including a wife who would've taken great pity on me and allowed me lots of rest and relaxation. Still, I am here to blog about it, after taking the requisite few days to stay at home and not spread my gift from Afghanistan to all my colleagues at work. In case you are curious, there wasn't much the doctors could really do for me. Some Tylenol and a sinus decongestant (the same my wife would've given me). We also got IV fluids, given our inability to keep anything down. Within a couple days, I felt a lot better, and a few days after that – I was back to normal. It was a lot like… the flu – with a different name. A lot of people will get the exact symptoms I described above, and for most people, it will simply mean a few miserable days, hopefully spent in your home – and not in a war zone.
September 21st, 2009
Health care in the real world: duct tape won't suffice
By Ashley J. WennersHerron
Come May 2010, I may be forced to trade in my health insurance for my college diploma. The results of the ongoing health care reform debate may determine what happens.
My current insurance carrier, TriCare Standard, is common for military families. I am coverd by them until I'm 23 years old, or until I can no longer classify myself as a full-time student. If I continue through graduate school, I can keep my health insurance for two more years. The problem is that when I finish graduate school, I'll have to work to pay off any loans. With the current job market, my chances for finding long-term work that provides healthcare coverage, are slim to none. Not only will I have to worry about loan payments, I will also carry the extra concern of finding and paying for a health insurance plan.
My predicament is a familiar one for most college students. About 20 percent of us are uninsured, according to a report conducted by the U.S. Government Accountability Office. For the 80 percent of us with coverage, our insurance will turn to dust soon after we flip our tassels to the right side of our mortarboards in May.
However, we can protect ourselves. We must learn the details of our current plans, and our options for the future. Insurance regulations vary state to state, meaning a plan based out of Virginia may strip me of insurance the day after graduation, but the same plan in Florida may allow me to keep my insurance until the age of 30, as long as no one becomes dependent on me.
President Obama's health care plan calls for a national age limit of 25 years old before a person is removed from his or her family's insurance plan, which would provide the time necessary to find a job and make a dent in loan repayments. Students and recent graduates might also consider short-term coverage plans with catastrophic caps, to be used for unforeseeable health emergencies. It's something, but that type of plan doesn't provide for the every-day possibility of minor injuries or common illnesses.
Consider moving out of the college dorms the day after graduation: You can accidentally cut your hand with the scissors you are using to cut tape. That's an out of pocket expense for stitches. You could drop a heavy box on your foot. That's another expense. The dust you inhale from under your bed may induce an asthma attack. There's the possibility of an ambulance ride and a hospital stay, none of which is covered in a short-term plan, because it's a pre-existing condition.
Are you a college student, or a parent of a college student, worried about your future health care insurance options? Are you a recent graduate who can't find a job that offers health care?
Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.
September 18th, 2009
Soldier: "Do they realize we're still over here?"
By Danielle Dellorto
I remember shuffling through moondust up to my knees in Helmand Province when a U.S. Army combat medic turned to me and said, "If I ask you something, do you promise you'll be honest?" I nodded yes. "Do people back home still think about us? Do they realize we're still over here?"
Truth is, while most of America might know that 62,000 U.S. military personnel are in theater, they apparently aren't happy about it. A recent CNN/Opinion Research poll found support of the war in Afghanistan has hit a new low. Only 39 percent favor U.S. military action in Afghanistan.
But does supporting the overall mission go hand-in-hand with supporting the troops?
Dr. Sanjay Gupta and I recently embedded with U.S. Army combat medics in Afghanistan. I slept where they slept, ate what they ate, and followed them day in and day out. Their job is to rescue and triage injured soldiers at a moment's notice. They are always ready. They even slept with their shoes on.
So as I looked in the eyes of that U.S. soldier – the one who feared America might have forgotten about him – I realized my job is to not only report on the medical military operations but also to highlight the courageous stories of those risking their own lives to save others in Afghanistan.
I am back home now…and I still think about them.
September 17th, 2009
Are there new treatments available for lupus?
As a regular feature of CNNhealth.com, our team of expert doctors answers readers' questions. Here's a question for Dr. Gupta.
From Carolyn in Goliad, Texas:
What is the latest treatment or drug that is showing success in treating lupus?
Thanks for your question Carolyn. Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease which seems to affect mainly women. Essentially your body's immune system begins to attack not only foreign invaders, like viruses, but your own tissues and organs. There are four types of the disease but the most common is called systemic lupus erythematosus. Doctors don't know the cause, but they believe it's a combination of family history and environmental triggers. Those triggers can be something like an infection or even sunlight.
Lupus can cause inflammation in just about any organ or tissue in the body, from your skin and your lungs to your kidneys. Your doctor will determine your best treatment depending on what type of lupus you have, your signs and symptoms and their severity. This is a disease of flare-ups and periods of remissions so your medication may also change depending on what stage you're experiencing. Plus, it can take months to nail down the most effective combination of treatments to best control your symptoms. The three most common medications are nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories, corticosteroids and antimalarial drugs.
There are currently more than 200 lupus clinical trials testing hormones, immune suppressives, stem cell transplants and biologics. But Carolyn, after getting your email we put a call into the Lupus Foundation to find out what they considered to be the most promising. They said lupus is difficult because patients with the same symptoms on the same medication can have different outcomes, so they consider targeted therapies the best hope – specifically biologics. Biologics are compounds that block or interfere with your body's immune system response. They gave us a heads up about a large clinical trial ending in November on one such drug that they hope will help patients looking for new treatments. Granted even if this drug is shown to be beneficial it will still have to go through the FDA review process so it will be some time before it's available in your doctor's office.
September 16th, 2009
Secrets for aging gracefully
By Leslie Wade
This may sound corny, but I really enjoy spending time with my Mom. In August she turned 80 and could probably beat me in an arm wrestling match - no kidding, and I'm not exactly a weakling.
Mom is healthy and strong because she has truly taken care of herself physically, mentally and emotionally. You know all of the nagging you get each time you see your doctor for your annual check up? All the talk about not being a couch potato and eating yummy things like raw broccoli? Well, Mom actually listened and followed instructions.
Having Mom around means the world to me. Being around for your family or loved ones may be a gift worth considering. Here are some of Mom's health secrets, so perhaps we can all make it to 80 and beyond.
Back in the 60s Mom hosted a half hour TV show. One morning she interviewed an exercise instructor who was so impressive, Mom decided it was time to get back in shape. She's been exercising virtually every week since then. Unless she's sick, she gets some sort of weekly exercise: she walks, bikes, takes aerobics classes, swims laps in the pool and hits the ski slopes in the winter. From mid May to late September she rises with the sun and swims in the ocean off the Carolina coast: 400 strokes out from the beach and 400 strokes back, for a total of about 45 minutes. Exercising consistently for more than 45 years has a lot to do with her good posture, strong hand shake and brisk stride, but it's also a key component to her longevity.
We all know the benefits of exercise but let me remind you of a few. Consistent aerobic exercise strengthens the heart and keeps our blood vessels flexible and healthy. Exercise also helps keep cholesterol numbers, as well as blood pressure readings, in the healthy range - all good things when trying to keep heart disease at bay. Exercise is good for brain health, perhaps making us sharper mentally and reducing the risk for dementia and stroke. Exercise helps enhance our moods and may have a positive effect on our sex lives.
Good nutrition is about as important to Mom as exercise. She started cooking at age 13, when her mom went off to work in the factories during World War II, and has never stopped. She reads books about nutrition, has notebooks and cookbooks filled with healthy recipes and subscribes to health newsletters. Even during vacation and holidays, Mom eats a balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables. She eats meat, but not every day, and the cuts are always lean. You rarely find fatty hamburger or fried chicken on her table and I don't think she's ever bought chips or soda except when having a party.
How can eating right help all of us stay healthy? Low fat meals filled with fruits, vegetables and whole grains can help lower our risk for heart disease, certain cancers, type 2 diabetes and keep our waistlines trim. I know it's tempting to eat fast food and high-fat meals, especially when on the run, but eating right may help keep your heart pumping longer, your blood vessels coursing more smoothly and your cholesterol down.
There is no doubt that having a good marriage can reduce stress. Having my dad around for the last 50+ years has not only been entertaining for Mom - he's a very funny fellow - but his kindness and love are like a balm to her, plus he forgives easily. Studies show that reducing our stress level is good for our bodies and minds. When we're stressed out we release chemicals that doctors believe play a role in forming plaques that clog blood vessels in our brains (making us more prone to losing mental capacity as we age) and around our hearts (leading to coronary artery disease). Stress has been linked to high blood pressure, heart disease and depression. So good marriage or not, reducing stress should be a priority.
No one can predict the future of course, but it wouldn't surprise me if the family gathered to celebrate mom's 100th birthday in 20 years. She's going strong and showing few signs of slowing down. Her bones are as strong as someone in their 20s, her cholesterol and blood pressure numbers are low and her resting heart rate matches that of many a seasoned athlete. She has lived life wisely by eating well, exercising often and keeping an eye on her stress levels. I for one plan to take a page from her playbook: I may not be able to beat my kids in an arm wrestling match when I'm 80 but I sure hope I'm around to give it a try.
What helps motivate you to exercise and stay healthy. How do you stay on course?
Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.
September 14th, 2009
When words fail you
By Andrea Kane
September is National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. Each year in the U.S. about 21,500 women are told they have it; approximately 14,600 die of it. Detected early, it has a five-year survival rate of almost 94 percent, according to the National Cancer Institute. Unfortunately, only 15 percent of ovarian cancers are found when the disease is still localized.
A good friend of mine died of ovarian cancer six years ago. She was only 41. We weren't talk-to-you-every-day best friends, but when we saw each other, we connected.
After I had a baby, we had less time to spend together. Still, she faithfully came out to visit the baby and me.
In 2000, shortly after my daughter turned 1 and my friend turned 39, her doctor found an ovarian cyst. Unfortunately, in the Russian roulette game of health and disease, she lost: Her cyst contained a malignant tumor – a one-in-a-hundred chance, she was told. The good news was that it was "only" stage 2 (In stage 1, the cancer is still contained in the ovary; stage 4 is considered terminal). But even stage 2 was not good enough.
Everyone agrees that ovarian cancer needs to be found earlier, but the question is how? Part of the problem is, the symptoms of ovarian cancer– bloating, increased abdominal size, changes in bladder and bowel function and a feeling of pelvic fullness or pain - can be also caused by a number of other maladies. And there is no accurate blood test.
For my friend, surgery was followed by chemotherapy, and more chemotherapy. Still, she found time to visit my daughter and me, and we found time to talk about motherhood, religion, relationships, life. Our parallel but sometimes intersecting lives went on.
At the end of 2001 I had a second daughter, and her cancer returned. I drove her to a couple of chemo appointments; she had more surgery and some radiation. We talked about dying, but only in the abstract – because neither one of us wanted to think it would happen to her.
But her worsening condition cracked our carefully constructed illusion. The drugs made her terribly sick — not that they were actually helping - and surgery was just a temporary fix. She knew her options were limited; she desperately looked to get into a trial for a new drug.
The last time she came to visit me, she told me that she recently had realized that this thing could actually kill her. But she still held some hope.
Then, before she could go into remission again, the complications started in earnest.
Her parents arrived from Florida to take care of her. The morphine made her sleep 20 hours a day. She stopped communicating with all but a very small group of friends; they gave the rest of us e-mail updates.
I desperately - and selfishly - wanted to see her, to talk to her one last time. And then I got my chance: My husband prepared some legal documents for her that required signatures. He asked her parents whether I could be the one to drop off the documents. They obliged.
I was nervous before seeing her; I didn't know what to expect. On the appointed day, I headed over with my younger daughter.
Seeing her wasn't exactly a shock, but she didn't look like her old self: Her skin was yellow, her face looked gaunt and she sported a feeding tube. She didn't smile – not even once. She and her mother both looked exhausted. I tried to be cheerful enough for the two of us.
After she signed the documents, we all sat on her back porch and chit-chatted about trivial matters: my daughter's sandals, her nap schedule, my other daughter. Blah, blah, blah. We talked about everything except the pink elephant in the room. What I really wanted to ask was how she was doing emotionally: Was she afraid? Bitter? Angry? Or had she come to terms with dying? Was she at peace? I could not tell.
Impulsively, I asked her mother to take a photograph of us with a camera I saw sitting on the nearby table. Her mother snapped two photos and then my daughter and I left. The visit had lasted 15 minutes.
Maybe I couldn't talk to her about the things that mattered most because her mother was there, or maybe because I didn't want to upset her by openly acknowledging something she never had: She was dying. In any case, I will always feel that I missed my last chance to talk to her honestly and openly, to hold her close to me and whisper "Goodbye, I love you."
Two weeks later Jennifer Lisa Bertoni died.
A while later I received an envelope in the mail: the two photos. As it turns out, they were the last ones taken of her. Surprisingly, in both of them, she gazes back at me, smiling.
Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.
About this blog
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love.


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D'Amato: How a tragic death elevated MATC basketball
Will Kellerman played in just two games for MATC's men's basketball team before he died in a rollover crash near Madison in November, just hours after he'd scored a game-high 23 points in a loss to Rochester Community and Technical College.
Two games. A couple dozen practices. That was it.
Given his short time in the program, his legacy and its impact on student-athletes at MATC, now and in the future, is nothing short of amazing.
Because of Kellerman, because of the foundation that was launched in his name, the men's and women's basketball programs are about to move from Division III to Division II of the National Junior College Athletic Association.
That means for the first time in his 10 years as men's head coach, Randy Casey will be able to offer scholarships to players. For the first time, the Stormers have a chance to make up ground on perennial North Central Community College Conference power Triton College, which won the NJCAA Division II national championship this year.
And it's all possible because Will's parents, Brian and Kristin Kellerman, set out to raise a little money in Will's name to fund a small scholarship at Verona Area High School, their son's alma mater.
"You see all the time, 'in lieu of flowers, please make a donation to' …" Kristin said. "My husband and I were like, 'Let's just do a scholarship for Will's high school. Maybe we'll raise $5,000 and we can cut a $150 check every senior awards night, and that'll be nice.' "
They decided to call the fund Opportunity 34 – Will's jersey number. Within a few days of their son's funeral service, Opportunity 34 had raised $52,000. Not quite six months later, the Opportunity 34 Foundation has a board of directors, has applied for 501c3 status … and has raised $194,000.
"The fund by far has exceeded our expectations and original intentions," Kristin said. "I don't really know what happened. It's obvious that Will's impact knew no boundaries."
The Kellermans have given $40,000 to MATC through the school's foundation, with the only stipulation that some scholarship money be given to Will's teammates. Hence, the Stormers' move to Division II, because scholarships are not allowed in Division III.
"As we were being overwhelmed by the outpouring of donations, we just thought the first scholarship needs to go to the last place Will played," Kristin said. "It's just a love gift. Because even though Will was only there for a few short months, it was obvious he impacted people but he was also impacted by Coach (Casey), particularly, and then also by his teammates.
"We all know what student debt does to kids so it's such an honor to be part of a scholarship like this."
Casey, 47, also MATC's athletic director, was nearly at a loss for words when asked what the money would mean to his program.
"It will help draw more student-athletes to our institution," he said. "Most definitely, we can get a better player. It's just a different level. I will be forever grateful to the Kellermans. They could have done many different things with that money."
The Opportunity 34 Foundation also is funding $5,000 scholarships that will be given to two Verona Area High School students.
"The shock has kind of worn off and now we recognize we've been given the foundation to continue Will's legacy," Kristin said. "We don't know exactly where that's going to go, but this is a great start."
Coincidentally, MATC is adding men's and women's tennis at the NJCAA Division I level, starting in the 2018-'19 academic year. Scholarship monies will come from a third party, the Al Hurvis / ADAMM Education Foundation Inc.
That brings to nine the number of sports offered by MATC. Baseball, softball, women's volleyball and men's and women's soccer will remain at the Division III level for now, but with the school now able to secure sponsors and donations for a scholarship program, Casey said the goal was for all sports to eventually be elevated to Division II.
Will Kellerman died barely nine months after another MATC basketball player, D'Andre Morehouse, was shot and killed. Casey, the assistant coaches and players, the school and the extended Stormers family have had to deal with unspeakable grief.
Out of the dark clouds, though, came a shining light. Opportunity 34. Kellerman's legacy.
"We touched a chord somehow," Kristin Kellerman said. "It's not for me to over-analyze it. I'm just going with the flow. It's the one thing that's getting me out of bed, that's all I can say."


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Christmas 3 Tier Cake for the
Faith Presbyterian Child Development Center
It's been a long time since I've made a 3 tier cake. Recently I wanted to really challenge myself and the holidays gave me many options for donating a large cake. My mother-in-law is the director of the Faith Presbyterian Child Development Center and every year they have a Christmas celebration for all the kids and parents. This was my best shot at feeding a lot of people for the sake of my skill development.
This cake had many opportunities for learning ... stuff professionals whip out every day, but for a hobbyist with little free time, these were big milestones. This cake was about 20 hours of work and cost about $50 in materials. For the last 3 nights in a row I worked on it from 10 PM until 2 AM. In the end, it was 20" tall and weighed 20 lbs. Sit back, this is a long post ...
- 6"x4" and 8"x5" vanilla round cakes
- 10"x3" chocolate round cake
- tiers iced and filled with white and chocolate ganache buttercream
- tiers covered with marshmallow fondant mixed with modeling chocolate
- Satin Ice fondant + Tylose bow
- fondant + modeling chocolate accents and borders
- 12" square foam drum
Servings (based on a 1"x2"x4" industry standard serving size):
Let's start at the top! The bow, of course. This was made and assembled a few days before the cake, in case I needed the time to for a complete "do over".
- 6" x 4" round: 113.09 cubic inches / 8 cubic inches = 14.14 servings
- 8" x 5" round: 251.32 cubic inches / 8 cubic inches = 31.42 servings
- 10" x 3" round: 235.61 cubic inches / 8 cubic inches = 29.45 servings
- grand total of about 75 servings
I've never successfully made a loopy fondant bow before. Last time I made my loops too narrow, too long, and too few of them. This time I made some paper templates to get an idea how big each strand should be.
Since my top tier was a 6" round, I made 6 1/2" x 3/4" loops so the bow would fill most of the area. After arranging my paper templates, I figured I'd need about 20 loops for a full bow. Using some red Satin Ice mixed with Tylose powder, I rolled and textured strips with a fabric pattern roller. It's a pretty subtle texture, but it was nice to finally have a good reason to try out this little tool.
For some reason I got the idea in my head that I needed wires in the loops. I thought the wires needed to be attached to each other and stuck into the cake. These are completely unnecessary and in the end I cut them off. I also made a drying rack out of a 1" diameter PVC pipe covered with cling wrap. This wasn't really necessary either. I left some loops out to dry on their side; the strips were narrow and stiff enough to maintain a good shape as they dried. The rack was nice to have them all consistently the same shape, but it was also nice to have some loops that were more circular for the center pieces.
What I did NOT do that was pretty necessary was trim the ends of the loops to a point so they would have more room to overlap when assembled. Luckily after drying, the fondant was still flexible enough for me to trim off the corners with scissors without doing any damage.
I didn't really know how to attach all the loops together, so I wet some wads of fondant and sandwiched the pieces in layers. While drying, I used some foil to cup the bow together and some bunches of paper towel pieces to support the loops that weren't lying on their side.
Once on top of the tier, I tried to smoosh in some red royal icing in between the loops for more security. Using a paintbrush, I mashed the icing into what crevices I could manage to get it into and it seemed pretty sturdy afterward. All in all, it was a successful bow except for the pieces of wire that I couldn't remove. I informed my mother-in-law that the bow was not edible and needed to be removed during service. She e-mailed me later and said that they ended up saving the bow after cutting the cake and had brought it home with them!
Now for the top tier.
My 6" round pans are only 2" tall, but the rest of my round pans are 3" tall. I was shooting for all 4" tall tiers, but quickly decided that, in the interest of saving time, mismatched tier heights were ok. After torting, filling, and icing, my top tier came out to about 4" tall.
The top tier didn't get as much attention when icing as the rest of the tiers, and it shows in the fondant. I used a thicker layer of icing and did not take the time to make it very smooth or level. The result are less-than-crisp edges and lumpy sides.
For the ribbon accents, I made the major mistake of not properly measuring my red fondant strips. I came up short on one side (visible in the full cake photo at the top of the post), but refused to re-do it. It was getting late, and I was in "screw-it-all" mode. They were also not centered very well ... I was getting pretty upset and frustrated at the cake ... but that could have been because my toddler was supposed to be in bed but instead she was screaming about not wanting to go to sleep. I had to stop caking completely so I could help her take a 15 minute potty break which was probably just her excuse to get me to sit with her so she wouldn't have to go to sleep. I asked hubby to take over so I could get back to wrecking my cake. Once she settled down, and I got the bow on top, the cake looked ok and I felt much better.
The middle tier ...
I wanted to try wrapping the cake in fondant pieces. Above is just the top covered in fondant with the edges trimmed off with a paring knife.
I rolled and trimmed a large rectangular strip for the sides on to freezer paper. When ready, I cut the freezer paper closer to the size of the fondant. This let me handle it easier as I wrapped the cake with it.
I don't think the result was really worth the effort, but it was good practice if I ever use a medium that requires this method (e.g. marzipan or modeling chocolate). I used my quilt texture sheet to make some diamond impressions, then I deepened the lines with a wooden clay modeling tool.
In the line intersections, I piped a dot of red royal icing and patted down the points with a damp paintbrush. Cute, huh? I sure thought so, until about 20 minutes later I noticed ...
aaaaiiiieeee!!! redrum! redrum!
My paintbrush must have been too damp. The moisture in each dot had built up and began to drip. I was able to wipe away some of the worst drips with a damp paper towel, but I didn't touch up every single one. I had always used a damp paintbrush to pat down my royal icing tips before, but that was on cookies that were lying flat. Next time I do it vertically I'll be more cautious.
Another disappointing issue was how the beginning and end of the impression mat lines eventually crashed into each other. Not sure if this is avoidable, or if I'll always have a "back of the cake" when quilting.
The bottom tier.
Mmm, chocolate. I put 2 Betty Crocker Super Moist (pudding included) Chocolate Fudge cake mixes in my 10"x3" round pan and it came out perfect; no leveling required. I mixed a 3:1 semi-sweet chocolate to cream ganache to some American buttercream for the filling and icing. This was a nice medium to work with because it became pretty solid in little time. I could have spent hours perfecting and smoothing the icing.
It was a little frustrating covering it in fondant since it was a large tier. I had to roll out a circle of fondant at least 16" wide. Since my mat was too short and my tabletop has creases in it, I rolled the fondant out on freezer paper taped down to the table. On my first try, I placed the fondant too short on one side and couldn't correct it, so I peeled it off. I had to keep telling myself, "It's ok; you almost had it. You almost had it. You can do it on the second try. You can do it." Once the rage was soothed, the fondant was re-kneaded, and I tried again with better placement. I was pretty pleased with the final fondant covering, pretty crisp and smooth.
Now for some words on structure.
My local cake supply store, Make It Sweet, had some nice, thick, pre-cut foam boards to be used as drums/bases. I bought a 12" square board for $3.65. Since this cake would not be refrigerated all day and traveling a good distance (first the commute to work, then across town during my lunch break), I wanted to try a plate and pillar support system. I bought the Wilton smooth edge plates (6" for $2.99, 8" for $3.99) and 2 sets of 4 hidden pillars ($3.19 each). Even with my 10% cake club member discount, my support system cost $16.58!
I piped some royal icing to my drum and plopped the 10" tier on top. I used the 8" plate to indent markings on where the columns should go when centered. Using a wooden skewer, I measured the height of the cake. After some thought, I ended up hammering in 4 wooden skewers where the pillars would go to make sure the bottom was firmly attached to the drum. This cake was going nowhere!
I wasn't sure what order to put things together, so I attached the pillars to the plate, then pushed the whole thing down into the 10" tier. I don't think all the legs went down straight, but it wasn't too bad.
I repeated the process for the 8" tier with the 6" plate, but apparently I didn't trim the columns short enough.
There was a noticeable gap between the tiers. These plates are pretty darn thick. It's good that they're sturdy, but they are probably too thick. I needed to come up with a way to help hide the pillar game, the plate thickness, plus my cakeboard height.
I ended up piping some white royal icing into the gaps and smoothing it out with a paintbrush, then covered the royal with a fondant bead border. I developed an easy way to use the Wilton baroque silicon mold that I can write a tutorial on later. Above you can see that even the bead border wasn't tall enough in some areas to hide the icing.
Once assembled, I needed to remove some extra powdered sugar that showed on the bow, tiers, and borders. I reached up for the Everclear above my fridge and pulled down an almost empty bottle. I turned to my husband and said, "Really?" He said, "What?" I said, "I did NOT use all of the Everclear just on cake." I need to get him his own booze! There was enough left for me to brush on and remove the excess powder.
A long time ago I read that a wedding cake should look good from 10 feet away, because that's how far away most people would view it. This cake could do at least that, so I'm pretty proud of myself. It was tall and impressive for a non-wedding event. Since it was an event mostly for kids and parents, I wasn't terribly concerned with achieving heights in taste. My focus was on decorating and stability, so my media was well suited for that. The cake was about 20" tall (just 1 inch shy of fitting in my mini fridge!!!) and weighed 20 lbs. I had to remove a shelf from my big fridge so it could sit there overnight. I managed to find a nice cardboard box from work that the cake could fit in. We had to cover the open top of the box with plastic wrap because it was raining that day. The cake sat in my trunk while worked for a few hours because it was colder in the parking garage than inside my office. It traveled well. Hubby carried it for me because I'm in my third trimester of pregnancy and am carrying enough weight as is! My mother-in-law e-mailed me and said everyone loved it, even the taste. I'm glad it's over and my kitchen and life have been restored to normality.
- Scratch materials should have been made and prepared more in advance. I could have made my fondant, buttercream, and kneaded my modeling chocolate many days ahead of time, but didn't. Poor time management and lack of preparation makes for a sleepy mom/wife/employee.
- I should have taken the time to measure my fondant correctly. I had a flexible measuring tape on the table, but was too lazy to use it.
- Don't get royal icing too wet!
- I learned how to make a loopy bow!
- Plate and pillar systems makes for peace of mind. In the future I might invest in official SPS materials. I hear the plates in that system are much thinner.
- My first molded bead border turned out great with little effort.
Get all that? Thanks for sticking with me! Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!


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A.S. Face 0240: Joy
I am a face of Ankylosing Spondylitis. Funny thing about this disease, it takes a different path in almost everyone who is diagnosed with it. My diagnosis came in March of 1989. I had been having repeated flare-ups of iritis, and lower back and cervical pain. It took 5 years of doctor hopping before I finally found a doc who figured out was going on. On repeated visits to the ophthalmologist (for treatment of iritis) he always asked me if I had been to a medical doctor. Also, when I didn't respond to the normal therapy for back and neck pain, my PT suspected AS. And my mother, who is a BSN, noticed my inability to turn my head and also suspected AS. All I needed now was a rheumy to
confirm their diagnosis. We did eventually find one-at Barnes Hospital , associated with Washington University Medical school in St. Louis, MO, my hometown. I still remember the day that the rheumy handed my husband a brochure about AS. He skimmed through and said, "this is all about you". Unfortunately after several years of wonderful care from a dedicated rheumy, he died of a brain tumor in 1997. I am grateful that he lived long enough to make a diagnosis that several other doctors couldn't. Today I am cared for by another Internist/Rheumatologist associated with St. Luke's Hospital in Chesterfield, MO. Like almost all AS patients my AS has seen times when its ok and times when it is extremely painful. My cervical vertebrae are fused due to AS. I survive on dosed of Celebrex, Azulfidene and Enbrel, supplemented by Tramadol when the pain is really unbearable. I am also grateful to the SAA and all the other people , especially Cookie, who go out of their way to put a face on this disease.
Missouri United States of America
3 Responses to "A.S. Face 0240: Joy"
Thank you for sharing your story!!
Thanks for sharing your battle! Isn't that the truth, you find a great doctor then something happens to them. Keep up the fight and make cherishable memories!
Deborah Faces 1770.


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December 28, 2006, - 12:04 pm
"Living With Ed": New HGTV Show on Nightmares of Living w/an Enviro-Freak
By Debbie Schlussel
Based on USA Today's description, it sounds like the most amusing new TV show of 2007 will be "Living with Ed"–an HGTV reality show on the life of left-wing enviro-freak actor Ed Begley, Jr. and his wife, Rachelle Carson.
It looks like the show will portray how ridiculous these enviro-freaks are. And how impossible it is to live with them. And how joyless, to boot. It sounds hilarious:
Actor Ed Begley Jr., 57, has long been eco-obsessed. He has driven an electric car for decades. He recycles. He uses solar energy.
But his wife, Rachelle Carson, 46, gets a little tired of the unconventional lifestyle. Waiting for him to power the toaster by riding a stationary bike, for example, is frustrating. . . .
In the yard, for example, she'd like to pull that weed, but then she's not sure if it's a weed or something Ed planted that might be edible. . . .
In the series, Ed clocks Rachelle's shower with a stopwatch, taunting her outside the bathroom door about how many gallons of water she's wasting.
Claims Begley, Jr.:
I'm a perfect husband. Women in America are going to see it that way.
You keep telling yourself that, Ed. He would be the perfect husband . . . in the Stone Age. Or the Amazon Jungle.
This show reminds me of President Jimmy Carter's speech to America telling them to ride their bicycles to work in the sweltering hot summer in coat and tie, sweating themselves to a drench, in order to conserve energy. Come to think of it, Begley is sort of like the actor version of Jimmuh Carter, minus the Southern accent and specious, anti-Semitic books.
And it reminds me of "Curb Your Enthusiasm"/"Seinfeld" actor Larry David's lamentations about how his whacked-out environmental activist wife Laurie David makes him separate the plies of toilet paper and other absurdities, all in the name of conservation and environmentalism. Their life, too, would make a hilarious show into the absurdity of the She Greens/He's Normal lifestyle.
I'm already looking forward to the follow-up season spin-off of this show: "Divorcing Ed." I can almost guarantee there won't be a fight over who gets the stationary bike-powered toaster.
The show begins with a sneak preview on HGTV at 1:00 p.m. Eastern New Year's Day, and starts in its regular Sunday Night slot on January 7th, at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
Tags: actor, Amazon Jungle, America, Claims Begley, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Debbie Schlussel, Ed Begley, Ed Begley Jr, electric car, energy, Jimmy Carter, Jr., Larry David, Laurie David, left-wing enviro-freak actor, Living With Ed, New Year's Day, President, Rachelle Carson, Seinfeld, solar energy, USA Today


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Cycling is always a ride in time. For me it´s a great movement in style and performance. If you want to see what´s coming next you have to screen the bike messangers around the world. There you can see what´s next.
In 2015 I lost my fun in cycling after decades. The whole scene was mainstream and the improvement of the bikes were boring. It was just a discussion of the length of the bars, should it be a 27er or a 29er. That sounds not like a big move. Lots of my friends go back to race bikes and there was more style in between and after a deep look you can see that there were more and more crossbikes.
That was the moment for me in which I knew what I need. I talk to a colleague (THX to Urs at that Point) of mine who is an expert in bikes and after a few days, a lot links and discussions I saw the RITTE Crossberg and I felt in love. That was my magic moment and I get in contact with RITTE to find that bycicle frame in Germany. That wasn´t so easy. At least they gave me a adress nearby Munich in Rosenheim in a shop called RadSyndicat. The guys there have a good mindset and we build it up over a view weeks. The result is amazing. It´s really a signature bike. My first rides where impressive. The 1×11 was very new for me. Especially the twist of the chain is looks unusual. All in all my firts ride was an incredible experience. The bike is very agile and responds very fast. On the other hand it does not forgive any mistakes. It´s a little bit like catamaran sailing.
I´m lucky about the whole package. The Radsyndikat in Rosenheim made a good job. The only thing which I think about is the cockpit. Perhaps my handlebar stern is too short. I´m still thinkig about it. Above that the ankle of the SRAM Rival switchgear unit is quite high. The ankle of the Shimano 105 is lower. But there´s nothing we can do and planet earth is blue.
All in all it´s another milestone in my cycle heritage and I´m keen for it.


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Developed by Top Deck, the Watershed Deck System's signature design guides water off the deck surface. Water does not stand, or run through the deck, allowing you to create a living space under the deck without the need for expensive under-deck systems. We have the only solid watershed deck board with an interior drain channel.
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text: Alaris Aerospace provides service solutions for airlines and corporate operators by allowing them to remain focused on their core talents while Alaris fulfills all necessary support services. Alaris can locate the best MRO to carry out major maintenance, modifications or lease returns on their aircraft. Our technical support team can help operators resolve technical issues relating to maintenance, repair, and modification by coordinating with the OEM's and other third-party maintenance providers.


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Video games have been condemned by almost every parent and news organization around the world, claims like it increases violence in children, wastes time, causes vision problems, and many other claims. Some of these claims may be true, but this does not negate the fact that video games have many benefits. First, before I get into the benefits, let me mention the age range that you play video games and see what kinds of problems these people may encounter and how video games can help solve them. From what I have seen in my own experiences and listening to others, the age group that plays video games could start from 9 years old to the late 40's. This is a very large age group, and each group has its own problems and problems, from addictions (smoking, drugs, and alcohol) to the stress of day-to-day activities, which I think is a flaw in most age groups. Well, after doing some research, I found out that a very easy and cheap cure compared to drugs is video games. According to research conducted at various universities, video games could help reduce stress, improve weight loss and social status, I will give a brief synopsis on each benefit.
These days stress and depression are known to be the "disease of the century," where prescription pills reached 2008 market sales of nearly $ 11 billion (http://www.wikinvest.com) and I don't know. I would be surprised if this sales volume at least doubled until 2012, but unfortunately I don't have this volume. Of course, some cases can only be treated with prescription drugs, but I am sure that many cases could be solved with video games alone. Studies have shown that video games have the same effect as antidepressant medications on the part of the brain that produces dopamine, which is responsible for the mood swings that occur after taking antidepressant medications. Now you get the same result and without the addictive side effects of these drugs. Being engrossed in a game can distract your mind from all pain and discomfort, which can help your brain develop a tolerance for pain much easier; Hospitals are beginning to encourage children to play video games after suffering a painful injury.
As for video game consoles such as the Nintendo Wii and the Microsoft Xbox 360, they have taken video games to a new level, where the user does not stay on the couch and seems like the stereotype of a lazy gamer; but it has committed the user to get up, move and jump to win and be able to play. These consoles have become very popular and the demand for more active games has increased daily. Now, many of the games for these consoles are aimed at exercise routines and deviate from the typical "game over" style games, it is an exercise that could be done on a daily basis and a motivator for people who have time constraints to do. exercise. the gym or sports club.
Some people face some problems making new friends and some lack the social skills to be part of a group. But in the vast world of online gaming, these problems no longer exist. You can join any network and instantly play online with your friends and new ones. You don't have to be handsome or charming, you just need to know how to play and the rest will follow. From my own experience, I have made friends through gaming networks all over the world, people that I would never have met except online and would never have had the connection that we have today unless we were playing these games. The concept is not to be online, but before we say a word to each other, we already have something in common that we like to play this exact game; so you already have a minor base in your friendship.
Finally, due to the word limit, I couldn't talk about all the other benefits that come from playing video games, but I'm sure people will start to realize the importance of these games in a child's education and if they are controlled they could improve your life. significantly.


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Your Eco-Friendly Dentist in San Luis Obispo, CA
Meet Dr. Eric J. Walters
''"I treat patients just as I would treat my own family. I'll do everything in my power to provide your family with exceptional and gentle care."
Here are a few highlights about Dr. Walters:Learn more about our dentist
Learn more about the life-changing impact our dentist can bring to your oral health.
A beautiful office with a very personable service. Dr. Walters and his staff were very helpful. I would highly recommend Islay Hill Dentistry Co.!
Phil S. (Islay Hill Patient)
As well as caring for the environment, our unique team cares about your well-being and desires for you achieve renewed health in the most comfortable setting possible. Therefore, our office is equipped with boutique-style amenities:
- High-end leather dental chairs
- Neck warmers
- Ceiling mounted TVs with Netflix
- Noise-cancelling headphones
Patient satisfaction is at the top of our agenda everytime you visit. We want you to enjoy your experience so we offer five-star service, which includes:
- An array of quality dental services
- Your own personal team
- Cosmetic treatments
- State-of-the-art technology
4472 Broad Street, Suite 160
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
Monday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Tuesday: CLOSED
Wednesday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Thursday: CLOSED
Friday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM


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Hi Lovies, another Monday has come and gone. All week I am going to be sharing last minute holiday ideas.. outfits, recipes, gift guides, and more! I am so busy unpacking and wrapping, they will be short posts but as usual you can shop the outfits at the end! Did you know you can also have my looks emailed to you by signing up HERE & liking my instagrams or get my blog posts emailed to you by subscribing HERE (or bonus points for both! YAY!)
I bought this feather skirt last December as part of my NYE outfit and it was the perfect investment. I was a little hestitant to purchase it at first because I figured I would never wear it again but I couldn't pass up feathers. I love feathers (& glitter & sequins, the list goes on and on). I was so wrong though. I never realized how versatile statement skirts can be! Pairing this one with a simple sweater really changed up the fancy look, perfect for a holiday party or a Friday night. Stay tuned I'm sharing more ways to 'dress down' a statement skirt late this week!
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e-Builder, a Trimble Company, Trimble ProjectSight and Dodge Data & Analytics partnered on a SmartMarket Brief, allowing owners and contractors to report on their current project processes and where each saw room for improvement.
This study demonstrates the high level of satisfaction owners and contractors have for the Construction Project Management Information Systems they each currently use and the degree to which they feel that an increase in data connectedness would help them achieve better project results.
Download this report for your chance to see a snapshot of the industry – from both perspectives – about what is going right, what could be better, and how the use of a single connected platform to facilitate data sharing is just good for business.


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Written by McKenna Kelley | Photos by Gabriel Burgos
As the cranes slowly begin rising, it cannot be denied: Tampa is growing, and we are looking to our leaders now more than ever for guidance and vision. This year, we sat down with 10 of Tampa's leaders from nearly every industry, all of whom will play a distinct and crucial role in the city's growth, to get their perspective on the innovations to come and to learn a thing or two about giving back. Read on to be motivated and inspired.