OFF THE TOP

Inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 16:19:00 +0000

I believe that there comes a time in every one's life in which the past slaps them right in the face. All the good, all the bad, and all the things we wish we could go back and change. When that moment arrives...it never leaves. It lasts a week, then a month, until we finally we realize that it will be there everyday for the rest of our lives...it is our past. The past is gone and there is nothing we can do about it. We can not get it back, we can not change it and it will grow with every waking hour.

Everyone will handle that moment differently. Some of us will try to forget and move on. Some of us will thank god for all the gifts they have received thus far. Many of us learn from our mistakes and try to do better. I think most people, including myself, will do all of the above.

I look at the past knowing that I made mistakes. I look at the past and ask why? But mostly I look at the past knowing that it is what will pave the way for the future. The good, the bad, every memory...they are there for a reason. They are now tools that can be used to make a better future.

My mother always said... "It doesn't matter what other people think or say about you, Tyla...as long as you know, in your heart, how you have lived your life and that you have done right by others...that's all that matters." She was right. I know how I have lived my life and I am not ashamed. I know how I have treated others and still I am not ashamed. I have made mistakes...but we all have. Lord knows how many times I have been knocked down...but I've always fought to get back up. I have been used by others, lied to, lied about and had my heart broken more than once, yet through it all, my mind remains open and my heart is still as big as the sun.

The past is a book waiting to be finished. How we choose to use those experiences will determine each chapter in our 'Book of Life'. Embrace the past, for it will guide you to a better future...and eventually a happy ending.

Put Illinois to Work

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Wed, 26 May 2010 14:47:00 +0000

The Put Illinois to Work program is designed to match employers with Illinois residents who are legally present in the United States, authorized to work and are seeking employment. Qualified applicants must be between the ages of 18-21 or be the custodial or non-custodial parent of a minor child. Applicants may not have an income that is above 200% of the federal poverty level.

This is an excellent opportunity for all employers (public, private and non-profit) to find workers suited for their needs and train them for a possible permanent position. All payroll is provided through the program, including the cost of workers comp and Social Security, therefore no financial loss is accrued by employers if they do not find the right individuals to suit their needs.

The program is funded by the State of Illinois and federal funding made available in the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families Emergency Contingency Fund created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The Emergency Contingency Fund expires on September 30, 2010. Therefore all subsidized employment placements must end by that date.

The hourly wage for employees is $10 per hour and is paid for through the Put Illinois to Work program. Employers are encouraged, but not obligated to provide permanent positions after the funding expires September 30, 2010.

Employers, and those looking for work, should visit the DHS website and sign-up today.

GDI Scam Exposed

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 19:53:00 +0000

Global Domains International, or GDI, is a company who's main focus is selling .ws domain names to customers. That seems reasonable right? But the problem is the various affiliate programs they use to lure customers into the $10 per month domain purchase. Most of the affiliate programs are matrix schemes that do not even disclose their affiliation with GDI.

There are several of these get rich quick websites on the Internet. Once you join or buy into one of these programs they send your own website to promote. And guess what, after you have invested in the program, that same program will ask you to join the .ws Global Domains International program. You will receive emails asking you why you haven't joined GDI.

Most people who buy into these so called affiliate programs, use traffic exchanges in an attempt to get others to sign up for the program. Most of the programs promise you monetary gain when you get others to sign up. Now here is where the scam comes in. The affiliate program sent you a nice, ready made website to promote. You are clicking away in traffic exchanges trying to get sign ups for the program, while all along, the site you are sending traffic too is actually a sign up page for GDI.

Here is how I figured this out. I signed up for the $5 Magic program. It is a snail mail program that works similar to a chain letter. They sent me a website in which my name was listed in the number 4 position. So, I though, all I needed to do is get three others to sign up, then I would be in the #1 position. The site then listing my name in position #1 would generate more sign-ups and the $5 bills would start rolling into the mailbox.

After following the instructions given I received my website via email. I used several manual traffic exchanges attempting to get others to sign up as well. I really thought this was a cool idea. Then BAM! In one of the traffic exchanges I notice that the thumbnail generated for my promotional website was not promoting my $5 magic program...it was promoting GDI. This is a bait and switch maneuver an is illegal. Obviously there must be a code within the .html website they send that opens as $5 magic when viewed by myself, at my IP address, but when opened by others it is a sign-up page for GDI.

MyEzyBiz is an example of another affiliate program linked to GDI. They advetise free pre-launch and throw you a couple sign-ups, but when you do not sign up for GDI, communication from MyEzyBiz stops and you are left out in the cold and probably out a bit of money as well.

Most matrix programs are legal in the United States, but these affiliate programs are only generating profits for those already positioned within the GDI corporation. Major players in the matrix are generating money through these affiliate programs with actual legitimate websites...no hidden code. All the money generated from these money making scams goes straight up to GDI. Then some of the profits trickle down to those who are already positioned within the GDI corporation. That pool of individuals at the bottom buying into these programs generally never receive a cent.

Do not buy into these programs. By doing so you are allowing GDI to generate income which allows them to create more bogus programs and prey on those faced with bad economic times and are desperate to make money. GDI is ranked #37 in the top 500 fastest growing private companies...and they are not even selling legitimate products.

Do yourself a favor and do not invest any more money or generate any more traffic to programs affiliated with Global Domains International. You are getting ripped off.

Tim Urban Eliminated From Idol

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 17:26:00 +0000

Tim Urban, 20, from Duncanville, TX smiled for the last time on the big Idol stage Wednesday night. Tim, who was first cut from the show, then asked to return, took a beating from most of the judges every week. He earned the nickname Teflon Tim because no matter critique he received from the judges, he kept on smiling.

Urban leaves the show with a positive attitude stating "I love music, that's what I love, but I've always had a desire to act and just be in that side of the entertainment industry, so I would be really excited if I got the chance to be on that side as well. I'm really just excited about the whole thing."

Good luck, Tim. I'm sure your great personality and smile will take you far in life.

Idol Gives Back 2010

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 19:51:00 +0000

American Idol presented it's fifth annual "Idol Gives Back" show last night. The show managed to raise a staggering $15 million dollars during the two hours in which it aired. The money raised will benefit the following charities: The Children's Health Fund, Feeding America, Malaria No More, Save The Children and The United Nations Foundation.

The show featured musical artists include Alicia Keys, Carrie Underwood, The Black Eyed Peas, Annie Lennox, Mary J. Blige, Jeff Beck & Joss Stone. As always, Underwood gave a perfect and heart felt live performance. Alicia Keys, however, sounded nothing like her recordings and the performance left much to be desired. Using the show and the judges as subject matter for their acts, comedian's George Lopez and Wanda Sykes had me "busting a gut" during their guest spots on the show.

I am thrilled that Idol Gives Back focused a bit more on the problems within the United States considering one in five children live in poverty within this country. After all, it is Americans that watch, vote and donate. All of which have made the show an astounding success. DONATE

GLEE Tributes Madonna

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 13:23:00 +0000

WATCH 'GLEE' - VOGUE VIDEO

The hit series 'GLEE' aired on Fox network last night. The show focused on empowering women, and who better to showcase "girl power" than Madonna. The show featured several hits by Madonna including: 'Like a Virgin, 'Open Your Heart', 'Like A Prayer' and 'Express Yourself.

Jane Lynch, who plays the part of Sue, cheerleader coach for the 'Cheerios', is featured in the video link above. The video is a rendition of Madonna's 1990 hit 'Vogue'. The video features Lynch as Madonna. "I am so very proud of that video" Lynch said.

Lynch's character brings many laughs to the show with her "tell it like it is" attitude". I have been a fan of 'GLEE' since the first episode and am thrilled the show depicts the importance music and teamwork can bring to our youths.

There Are Lives In The Balance

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 22:43:00 +0000

What if it were your Brother, Sister, Son, Daughter, Father, Mother, Best Friend? I found this video to be realistic and touching. The sad thing is that this video is 5 years old and the war is still destroying lives. Our lives are still in the balance.

Idol Judges Save Michael Lynche

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 15:16:00 +0000

American Idol Season 9 judges decided to use the first ever 'save' last night. The 'save' is a new addition to the show this season. The judges can use this new rule to save a contestant that has received the lowest number of votes...which in the past would mean they would be sent home. Instead that person sings once again for the judges. If all judges agree to save the contestant, he/she remains on the show. The 'save' can only be used once per season and it has to be used before the final five contestants are voted in.

With a total of nine contestants remaining the judges decided to save Michael Lynche from elimination last night. 'Big Mike' will get another shot at being the next American Idol.

Although Lynche has a technically superb voice, he's definitely no Chris Daughtry or Alex Lambert. I just can not see where his skills would do justice to a million dollar recording contract. The genre he continues to choose to sing seems to be more appealing to a mature/older audience. Sorry, but that audience just does not consist of thousands of album buying music fans.

Furthermore, there are 6 guys and and only 3 girls left on the show. I think it would have been wise to just let this one go. He didn't even act appreciative after the judges used the save. He just gave these hand signs like..."I'm the man!" What a waste!

American Idol 9 Falls Flat

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:43:00 +0000

I am a huge American Idol fan, but as much as I hate to admit it, the past few weeks have been like watching a High School talent show. Where is the creativity and pizazz?

Tim Urban creeps me out with those big 'ol eyes always peering directly into the camera. Lee DeWyze is always so tense it literally makes me uncomfortable watching him. I love Mike Lynches' voice, but he went from being a potentially great solo artist to being a Vegas/Wedding singer act.

Don't get me wrong, there is great talent on the show. Crystal Bowersox and Siobhan Magnus are both unique and have tremendous voices. Casey James is awesome with the electric guitar and he chooses songs that make you want to get up and dance. Aaron Kelly has a great voice if he could get over the nerves...but at this point, I'm honestly more entertained by Ellen DeGeneres and Simon Cowell versus the performances by the contestants.

Didi Benami was the last contestant with a totally unique sounding voice. I truly enjoyed her performances even if she did get a bit emotional. It's unfortunate that one bad performance got her eliminated. I voted for her every week, except the week she got eliminated. My bad.

I just find it hard to believe that out of all the artists that auditioned for the show...this is the end result. Maby next season they should use a different approach in selecting talent.

Freedom of the Independent Voter

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 12:57:00 +0000

The Presidential election of 1992 was the first election in which I was of legal voting age. Bill Clinton, George H. W. Bush and Ross Perot were the three major candidates. I knew my Presidential pick was Ross Perot, but there were other candidates, both democrats and republicans, that I was prepared to vote for. I was quite disappointed when I received my "one punch" ballot. I left the building wondering, "who else did I vote for?". I believed then and I believe now, that Americans should be allowed to vote based on a candidates agenda and beliefs regardless of their political party.

After leaving the voting booth apprehensive, in 1992, I remained leery over the years of the whole voting experience. If I did not particularly care for the Presidential candidates, I didn't vote. Judging a person based on their political party went against my belief system. I had never stereotyped individuals and up until then I had never been asked to choose between groups that played such a vital roll in the future of my country.

Everyone has their own way of determining whether a person is good, bad or a combination of both. When I meet someone, they have a clean slate. In time, the persons actions, in how they treat others and their belief system, allows me to form an opinion of that individual. But when it comes to picking a politician I feel will best serve the needs of the American citizens, I use a different approach and I my instincts do the rest.

A couple months before the 2008 Presidential election, a friend asked me if I was going to vote. I told them I really wanted to vote, but that I would not be forced to vote for one whole political group, just to cast my vote for Barack Obama. They told me I could vote on an 'Independent Ticket' which would allow me vote for candidates in all the parties. "Finally" I thought to myself.

The day of the election, a friend and I were the first people at the voting site. We walked right in. A lady at the table checked my friends name from a list of voters, then asked her "Democrat or Republican?", they handed her a ballot. Then they found my name on the voters list. "Democrat or Republican?" the lady at the table asked. "I'm an Independent" I told her. "No, no" she said "you have to choose one or the other". "Oh, well I'm sorry then, I will not be voting today" I told her. She just looked at me and shrugged her shoulders. The kind gentlemen to her right asked me why I was refusing to vote. I explained to him that forcing me to vote for one party or group is discriminatory and goes against my beliefs. If I can not pick and choose the candidates from all parties...I will not vote. "Well" he said "It just so happens I have a whole box of Independent tickets right here." My eyes lit up as if I had just won the lottery.

Voting as an Independent allows Americans to research the candidates running for certain offices. We can vote for the person best qualified for the job regardless of their political affiliation. This is a huge opportunity for Americans to regain some freedom and control over the government. Vote on an Independent ballot and let freedom ring!

Strain of Swine Flu Man-Made?

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 19:55:00 +0000

Is the Swine Flu a man-made strain? This video defends the pig farmers and says the swine flue appears to be a man-made strain of bacteria. The video is too cute, but I actually believe it to be true.

National Debt = $12,670,749,966,933

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 16:24:00 +0000

During President Obama's campaign for President of the United States, he not only promised to provide jobs and health care for all Americans, but he repeatedly said he wanted to re-build America from the ground up. Instead, Obama's took an ass-backwards approach which has left the economy extremely vulnerable.

Job growth and a stable economy are the foundation in which this country stands. The President should have distributed the 'free stimulus money' to create more manufacturing jobs in the US. Not all Americans are cut out for careers that require a college education. They just want to work, get paid a decent wage and take care for their families.

Reforming the trade agreements would have been a great way to stabilize the economy. Wal- mart imports billions of dollars worth of good from China every year. Putting a cap on this amount would force Wal-Mart to buy more products manufactured in the United States. We have the technology to build 'clean air' factories, but instead Obama continues to spent millions on short term, meaningless projects.

The national debt has increased by more than 2 trillion dollars since Obama was inaugurated on January 20, 2009. Unemployment rates remain predominantly the same and the outstanding public debt as of today is a staggering 12.6 trillion dollars. The estimated population of the United States is 308,067,083 therefore each citizen's share of this debt is $41,129.38.

Obama's 1.5 trillion dollar 'Stimulus Package' and 940 billion dollar 'Healthcare Reform Bill" have put this country so far in debt my 10 year old son will probably not outlive this financial disaster.

Land Of The Freebies

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 14:25:00 +0000

President Obama, the man I voted for, has proved to be a great disappointment in my eyes. The excitement I once felt in the belief that he would be different and bring about change, in favor of the greater good, now feels more like a sunken ship.

His use of underhanded techniques, to pass his 'Healthcare Reform Bill', supports my theory that Obama has a hidden agenda not beneficial to American citizens. I have sifted through this bill and can theoretically say that our healthcare facilities will become more like an assembly line. The number of Foreign doctors will skyrocket, as they will be the only doctors willing to provide services for such low fees. Furthermore, how are we supposed to communicate with doctors that can not speak English fluently enough for everyone to understand? If you have ever had a phone conversation with someone who's English is not polished, I'm sure you know exactly what I mean.

Making health insurance mandatory only benefits the insurance companies. Low income families have access to Medicaid through the state. High income families generally have insurance through their employment. But middle class Americans are the ones that will most likely have to pay for their own health insurance as they, in most cases, will not have access to either. The IRS will be enforcing this law. Why is the burden of healthcare forced upon Americans and not the employers? Why aren't large corporations, like Wal-Mart, forced to employ a certain number of full-time employees and provide them with healthcare?

Forcing insurance companies to allow families to keep their children insured until they are 26 years old scares the hell out of me. This tells me that Obama does not believe the economy will allow many of our children to obtain jobs ,that will provide them health insurance, before reaching this age. I have never heard an American say "I wish I could keep my children on my insurance until they turn 26". This is absurd. We want our children to be independent, proud and on a career path before they reach this age and Obama should be helping Americans insure that happens.

Article I, Amendment XIV: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

Why did congress go against the voice of the American people and pass the healthcare bill? Do they think we are uneducated and therefore do not know what privileges we want enforced? It boils down to the fact that there were more democrats than republicans in the House of Representatives. Therefore, what democrats believe is in our best interest, is now forced upon all Americans. How can any vote be constitutional when the parties are not equal? I do not believe they can.

I have defended this country the majority of my life, but right now I'm not so sure I'm proud to be an American. I demand the right to choose. I take comfort in knowing there are a lot more flag loving Americans out there. I am confident that we will not let another administration run the country, so many died to defend, into the ground again. If we do not stop the 'United States of Obama ' we will eventually become the 'Land of the Freebies' instead of the "Land of the Free".

Remove XP Internet Security 2010

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 15:36:00 +0000

Did XP Internet Security 2010 suddenly appear on your computer? Did it turn off your firewall and virus protection? Well, it happened to me and as it turns out this is a fraudulent program that tells you your computer is infected with many high risk viruses in an attempt to get you to buy the program. I followed the following steps to remove the program and it worked perfectly.

Click Start, Run. Type command and press Enter. Type notepad and press Enter.
Notepad opens. Copy all the text below into Notepad.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[-HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\.exe] [-HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\secfile] [-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\secfile] [-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe\shell\open\command]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open\command] @="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe] @="exefile" "Content Type"="application/x-msdownload"

Save this as fix.reg to your Desktop (remember to select Save as file type: All files in Notepad.)
Double Click fix.reg and click YES for confirm.
Reboot your computer.

Casey James - American Idol

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 14:22:00 +0000

(CLICK TITLE ABOVE TO VIEW CASEY JAMES PERFORMANCE OF "HEAVEN")

Casey James, a 27 year old from Fort Worth, Texas, won over the judges of American Idol Season 9 with his audition in Denver. Casey started playing guitar very young and has been a full time musician for the past ten years. He is the lead singer and guitarist for the Casey James band, whose other members are his brother Billy James and Jacy McCann.

At his first audition, in which he sang "Slow Dancing In the Burning Room" by John Mayer and received his golden ticket to Hollywood, Simon thought he lacked charisma. But during last night's performance of "Heaven", originally recorded by Brian Adams, charisma and star quality exuberated from this talented and adoring musician.

Casey James is the first American Idol contestant to win me over this early in the game. I truly enjoy artists that have evolved their gift through experience and soul rather than vocal coaching. I even picked up the phone and voted. I have to admit I got lost in his eyes for a moment towards the end of the performance, but my vote was for the whole package.

Casey, you have my vote and my heart! Good Luck!!!

My Apologies

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:36:00 +0000

I would like to apologize for the inaccuracy of my math regarding the amount of dollars per person for Haiti and The Dominican Republic in reference to my article "Donations Equal 11 Million Dollars Per Person For Haiti". I did however state in the article that Math was not one of my better subjects.

I want it to be known that my intentions were never to prevent aid from those in need but instead to bring to light the dire need of the middle and lower income families of America.

Again I apologies and intend to triple check my math equations in the future.

Sincerely,

Tyla McClanahan
http://off2thetop.blogspot.com

Obama With Too Many Troops Deployed?

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 18:17:00 +0000

President Barack Obama gave a speech today at the Vermont Avenue Baptist Church in Washington. He delivered his speech making reference to the late and great Martin Luther King, in lieu of the fact that the national holiday is not until tomorrow. The presidents speech led me to believe he would be in search of more donations for Haiti on Monday instead.

Obama said, towards the end of his speech, that we need to rebuild America from the ground up. My interpretation of that remark would be that our country is in dire straits and he is well aware of the situation. Yet, his heart reaches out to Haitians instead of Americans, which is quite contradictory to the "Oath of Office" in which he is bound. Our president remains stagnant in accelerating economic growth in this country and in doing so he is jeopardizing the foundation on which we stand.

There are 1,454,515 people on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces. The words people and troops can mean two very different things in terms of the military. The number I have given is based on one count per individual. A troop is defined as a military unit containing more than one soldier. So when President Obama makes statements regarding the number of troops, that may be deployed, civilians have no way of knowing exactly how many soldiers are in each troop.

There are currently an estimated 371,564 troops deployed outside of the United States. This number does not include additional military Obama sent to Haiti, which I'm assuming Congress approved. Given this high number of troops outside of the U.S., even if 1 troop = 3 soldiers , that means that over half of our military is stationed in countries other than our own. In doing so he is jeopardizing the safety of this nation. If, god forbid, there were a major natural disaster or another country engaged war against us, could the troops that are deployed, in reality, return home in time to save the country they vowed to protect?

President Obama, the man I voted for, has proved to be a great disappointment in my eyes. The excitement I once felt in the belief that he would be different and bring about change now feels more like a sunken ship.

On the brighter side, I am still proud to be an American and I take comfort in knowing there are alot more flag loving Americans out there. I am confident that we will not let another administration run the country, so many died to defend, into the ground again. I have lost count of how many times President Obama has said "I am confident". The difference is, that when I say it, I mean it.

Donations Equal 11 Million Dollars Per Person For Haiti

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 20:25:00 +0000

Math is not one of my better subjects, but all the resources I have access to show that the conversion of square kilometers into square miles is a simple equation. You just take the number of square kilometers and multiply it by .386 which should equal total square miles.

The cia.gov website calculates the total land mass of Haiti and The Dominican Republic is 76,070 square kilometers. So all we have to do is multiply that number by .386 in order to convert it into square miles. The equation seems simple, but after multiplying a compound series of numbers (ones divided by comma's) by a decimal series of numbers (ones divided by decimal's) what position does the comma and decimal hold at that point? I think I'm going to leave that one to the mathematicians of the world, but I did however figure out the following equation (I know you could of too).

The cia.gov website shows the total population for Haite and The Dominican Republic (both of which reside on Hispaniola island) to be 18,685,590. In researching reports from several news and web resources there is over 208 million dollars in aid being sent to this island. That number does not include supplies, food or other assistance being provided throughout the World. Well, if you divide the number of dollars sent to Haiti by the population listed above (which includes The Dominican Republic) it equal 11 million dollars per person.

I find this staggering! 80% of Americans will never earn 11 million dollars in a lifetime and they actually work for a living. What the heck is going on? If I could afford the plane ticket I would move to Haiti right now. At least I wouldn't have to worry about how I'm going to put food on the table every month. The weather looks superb and I'd have no problem living under a tent for a year with the knowledge that 11 million dollars was set aside for my new life. This a gross injustice to our society!

Blogger Questions Validity Of Haiti Earthquake

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 13:28:00 +0000

View Larger Map

Haite and The Dominican Republic both populate and island known as Hispaniola. I began researching the history of the island of Hispaniola after news that an alleged 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated the people of Haiti (located on the island of Hispaniola) on January 12, 2010. During my research I was unable to find answers to certain questions using online resources. I also found that much of the information online contradictory from site to site . I would like to share my concerns in the hopes that the outstanding scientists of this great nation may read this article and find the answers in which I could not.

1. Studies would speculate that Hispaniola island was once connected to Cuba, but broke off due to global climate changes and other natural phenomenons. The photo above shows how Hispaniola island would fit into Cuba like a piece of a puzzle.

2. If Hispaniola was once a piece of Cuba, but broke off many years ago due to environmental elements, what is the distance between the bottom of the island Hispaniola and the floor of the North Atlantic Ocean in which is resides.

3. The only information I could find regarding the land density of Haiti is that it is only 150 ft. below sea level(that information may or may not be correct). The greatest known depth in the Caribbean Sea is between Cuba and Jamaica and is estimated at 25,216ft. Can an earthquake supposedly registering 7.0 on the Richter scale occur on an island that is not connected to a continent or to the earths core and is 25,066 ft. above the oceans floor?

4. Wikipedia online states that Hispaniola island ( which Haiti and The Dominican Republic reside) is the second largest island in the Caribbean and that it has an area of 76,480 km2(square kilometers). 76,480 km2 converted into miles is 29.3437 mi2(miles squared). That would mean that the island's area is only 29 square miles in size. This document link http://www.jstor.org/pss/142118 gives measurements in square miles that show a comma after the number 29 instead of a decimal point and therefore do not match my findings. The document further indicates that the total population(Haiti and The Dominican Republic combined)is 5,233,056 squared. Are my calculations incorrect? If Hispaniola island only has an area of 29mi2 is it really possible for it to be occupied by that many people.

5. We have been taught that Columbus discovered American in 1492. There are numerous accounts online claiming that Hispaniola was discovered by Columbus in 1492 as well. Given their means of transportation in 1492 I find this to be impossible.

These question, which should be so easily answered, are leading me to question the validity of this natural disaster in Haiti. The loss of any human life is tragic regardless of the circumstances, race, age or nationality. But if it is found that this situation is fraudulent in any way, in my eyes, that would be the biggest tragedy of all time.

$100 Million In Aid For Haiti…U.S. 12 Trillion Dollars In Debt

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 18:04:00 +0000

I would like to know why the President of the United States, Barack Obama, pledged $100 million dollars in relief aid for Haiti, knowing that this country is over 12 trillion dollars in debt. The news of this generous aid from the United States is released AFTER the following aid has been offered and intended for delivery by the following countries and organizations.

These facts are based on my research and are not categorized in any order of importance. All of the following are offering relief for Haiti and their people.

Chile - sending 20 doctors, a rescue team, 12 tons of medical and food supplies plus 3 tons of medicine

Jolie-Pitt Foundation - pledges $1 million to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières

Iceland - sending 37 man search & rescue team

World Bank - promises $100 million in emergency funding for recovery and reconstruction

Cuba - sends 30 doctors plus medical supplies

World Food Program - Air lifting 86 metric tons of food from their emergency hub

Spain - pledges $4.3 million (amount calculated into US dollars)and 3 plane loads of aid

AmeriCares - $3 million in medical supplies

China - sends a 50 member team (geez, thanks a bunch)

Israel - sends 4 member rescue team followed by 2 more jets carrying a field hospital and 220 rescue and hospital workers

Samaritan's Purse - has charter planes loaded with supplies awaiting landing

Spanish Aid - Humanitarian aid and rescue plus medical personnel

Virgina, US - sends Fairfax County Search and Rescue Team

This is a list of the World aid I have knowledge of, but am certain there are others that I am not yet aware of.

Hillary Clinton, who has pledged nothing to help Haiti, cancels her job related plans (at the cost of the taxpayers) and the following occurred:

At 8:31 am Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the United States is providing a communications network to shore up the battered Haitian government infrastructure. "Once we can get communications up so we can tell people where to go, what kind of help they can expect, we'll be able to better manage the crisis," Clinton said on CNN's "American Morning."

Well, I would like to tell Hillary Clinton where she can go. I ask Americans to keep theirs eyes and ears open and that they demand every cent of the $100 million President Obama pledged to be documented and accounted for.

Idol Kicks Off Season 9 In Boston

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 13:20:00 +0000

American Idol kicked off Season 9 last night with the Boston, Massachusetts auditions. Fox Network premiered the show in it's usual exciting fashion with host Ryan Seacrest and judges Randy Jackson, Simon Cowell, Kara Dioguardi and guest judge Victoria Beckham, better known as Posh Spice of the "Spice Girls".

9,000 folks showed up for the event on day one seeking that golden ticket to Hollywood. Maddy Curtis, age 16 from Bluemont, Virginia received the first golden ticket of Season 9. Quite an honor in itself. Maddy earned the golden ticket by impressing the judges with her own version of "Hallelujah" in the style of Leonard Cohen.

Luke Shaffer and Benjamin Bright, both of whom I believe will go far in the competition, bounced away with their golden tickets along with Ashley Rodriguez, Tyler Grady, Mike Davis, Katie Stevens and Leah Laurent. A total of fifty talented singers left the Boston auditions with a smile on their face and a golden ticket to Hollywood in hand.

Andrew "Angry" Fenlon pinched a nerve in all the judges with his cocky remarks and arrogant attitude. Fenlon claimed he was tired from the three hour wait for his audition. "There are people that would wait years to do so" Kara Dioguardi stated, seeming to find him particularly annoying. Upon Fenlon leaving the audition she also stated "I feel like I need to go home and take a shower after that". I totally agree with Kara. The look in his eyes alone puts him on my "Creepiest Idol Audition Ever" list. Gross.

I was pleased to see the judges invest in some talent that is not yet perfectly polished and am excited to see how these individuals grow throughout the competition. I truly enjoyed judges Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson. They always makes me laugh, which is sometimes not an easy task. The nice look and nice face critiques by Kara and Victoria did get tiring toward the end of the show. "Victoria seems to find the good in everybody" Ryan stated. That's nice and all Victoria, but really...American Idol is not a beauty contest.

Part two of the Season Premiere airs tonight on Fox.

Illinois Lottery Sales Skyrocket...Schools Deteriorate

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 15:35:00 +0000

It is no secret that I am not a supporter of the legalization of slot machines in Illinois. I have however supported the lottery, due to the fact, that "we the people" were guaranteed the legislatation would ensure that a large percentage of the revenue generated from the Illinois Lottery would go towards school funding and better education for our children. So why are our schools being forced to concolidate...and why are our children fed school lunches that look like military rations?

The Illinois Lottery was founded in 1974, as a state agency and currently only employs 153 people. According to my research from 2002-2007 total sales generated from the Illinois lottery equals $1,066,000,000,000. Thats right...over 1 Trillion dollars within a 5 year period in Illinois alone. The Illinois Lottery reports revenue of 2.078 billion for the 2008 fiscal year alone. The highest single year sales in the history of the lottery.

So where does the percentage of that revenue Americans were promised for educational end up? It is deposited into what is called the "Common School Fund". Illinois 105 ILCS 5/Article 18 describes the manner in which funds are distributed to the schools. I have read the article fully and there is no mention of the Illinois State Lottery let alone increased funds for schools due to the escalating rise in Lottery sales. And where does all the unclaimed prize money end up? That is a question I can not answer, but think Lottery officials should.

The Illinois Lottery pats themselves on the back for, what they call donating, over 14 billion to the Common School Fund since it was founded in 1974. That is a drop in the bucket in comparison to the 1 trillion dollars generated in 5 years alone, not to mention the fact that our schools are worse now than in 1974.

I am appalled at viewing these facts. The only school in our district that still actually cooks a meal for students is the High School. The state is inflicting enormous taxes on cookies, cereal, soda etc. (what they call the "junk food tax") not to mention the new tax on personal hygiene products, yet our school children K-8 are not even fed what is considered a nutritious meal. The school books for various subjects are far from new and our art and music programs are struggling to stay alive.

How can these officials in charge of this "Common School Fund" sleep comfortably at night in their $500,000 homes knowing that school children are eating bagged and packaged food for lunch. And what is worse is the fact that, for some children, it is the best meal they will have that day. Mr. President...please help!

Airlines Not The Only Target For Terrorists

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 15:02:00 +0000

For the past couple of weeks the president and the media have zoomed in, once again, on the level of security used by airline companies and are re-evaluating the protocol used for passengers boarding these jet airliners. Obviously we could have done more to protect our airlines, given our technology, but even after losing almost three thousand lives in the devastating terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, our country still chose to save a buck rather a life.

With no disrespect to the victims of 9/11, the fact remains that the idea of using our own airplanes against us, as weapons of mas destruction, was quite genius. Only someone with a diabolical mind for violence would ever manifest such a scenario. But what is scarier is the amount of time spent by these criminals researching and calculating every move down to the significance of the event date, now know as 911.

These criminals were in our libraries gathering information that was later used against our country. I call this infiltration. I believe that there are moles within many aspect of American living...and they are not there for our protection. I feel we would be naive to think otherwise.

Our government must begin extensive background checks on all those in positions of power. Those who work in the medical industry should be examined first. I believe the next step our enemies will take is the use of biological attacks. Biological warfare is the deliberate distribution of germs or bacteria, that can be contracted through skin contact or from airborne particles. We must ensure that all of our medical personnel have the safety of Americans in mind and not that of our enemies.

The next step would be to evaluate all those who handle our children and their achievement test scores. Our enemies do not want to see this country succeed, thus targeting our future geniuses would be of interest to them. If we allow anyone in this country to leak information regarding student who have exceptional SAT scores, those individuals become targets for terrorism.

In conclusion, the government must better monitor those who occupy this country, and make sure that those in positions of power have clean backgrounds and proper credentials. Our airlines are not the only target for terrorists. It is time to focus on the bigger picture and get rid of those who are not worthy of the title "American".

The Heart of a Blogger-Rant

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 22:25:00 +0000

I would like to start off by saying that I have great admiration for sites such as "TechCrunch", "The Huffington Post", "Gizmodo" and many other blogs that started from the ground up. They spent years perfecting their image and gaining followers. Some have even managed to make a decent living after their long road to success. But the fact is that very few bloggers make it to the top or even make any significant amount of money in the process.

I started this blog in January of 2008, with the intention of using it as a tool to connect with my karaoke followers and post pictures of recent gigs. But as it turned out, I just couldn't keep myself from writing about all the things that were in my head...hence "Off the Top". I later placed ad's on the site, not because I thought I would get rich, but because they made the site look more professional and pleasing to the eye. Sure, I make a penny here and there, Whoopee!

It is no surprise to me that there are some spelling and tense errors in my published posts. I do try to be as grammatically correct as possible, but my main goal is to get my opinions and/or facts across to the reader. In reality the research, that is portrayed in my articles, should speak for itself. So you can imagine my surprise when a now former Facebook friend, who pointed out flaws in my posts on a daily basis, accused me of caring more about clicks and making money than the articles I write. They also wrote that I am not a high achiever and that the younger generation has lower standards in writing, but that I shouldn't take any of that personally.

Don't take it personally? Is this person for real? I cannot imagine a blogger who would not take those remarks personally. Thanks to the grand design of Facebook I was able to un-friend this person so they could no longer suck the fun out of my online routine. And for the record, I would like to make it clear that my writing is very important to me. I just want my opinions to be heard the same as most other bloggers. I generate as much traffic as possible in order to rank higher in the search results so my articles can be found by people all over the world. As for the individual who turned a few spelling errors into a personal attack, I would like to say, in the words of Chef Gordon Ramsay..."Piss Off!"

New 2010 Driving Laws

noreply@blogger.com (grafikgirl) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 16:34:00 +0000

I would like to notify my Illinois friends that Governor Pat Quinn signed into law House Bill 71 and House Bill 72 on August 6, 2009. The new laws, effective January 1, 2010, ban motorists from sending text messages while driving in Illinois and also make it illegal to talk on a cell phone while driving through a highway construction zone or school zone.

If caught texting in any of the above situations the driver may be ticked $75. In addition to this, law enforcement can also subpoena phone records if you are involved in an automobile accident. If it is found that texting has played a part in the accident the fines may be increased.

Sorry all you text junkies, guess you will have to get a navigation system to play with instead. They are still legal.