Foreign Bloggers Could Benefit From This Link!

For nearly 4 years, I have been getting requests from other bloggers to read, comment, and "like" their blogs. I try to accommodate those bloggers. Sometimes, however, the request is not only difficult to grant, but also downright impossible to provide.

Why? Because I can't understand anything written in the blog. Whatever translation program they use falls far short of relaying the message they are trying to convey. Sentences are so jumbled I feel as if I am trying to solve a puzzle with 1,000 pieces from 1,000 different puzzles.

What foreign-speaking bloggers need, in addition to perhaps some English classes, is an interpreter, or, at the very least, a good translation program.

I'll be honest, if you're looking for an English-speaking audience and your English is written in a nearly impossible to understand mess, most of us won't bother reading your blog. And isn't that the point of writing a blog – to have it read?

Well, what if I told you about IAFL Translation & Interpretation Services? India's leading interpretation company since 1989, IAFL responds to 95% of all emails received within 1 hour! So if you speak Arabic, Farsi, or even English, IAFL will provide you with a free quote in a more than reasonable amount of time.

Don't rely on just any translator program that changes your language into a jumbled mess. Use the translator several Fortune 500 corporations already use – IAFL's services. IAFL provides high quality translation for numerous languages. Click on any of the the links in this blog for more information about the services IAFL offers to you or to your company.

Celebrate Achievements with Awards

Whether you are a corporation that wants to recognize employee achievements, a teacher who wants to recognize student performance, or a parent who wants to honor a child's accomplishments, consider awarding Able Trophies.

You don't have to be to a corporation or an employer to give an award. Imagine setting up an award system for your children or even your blog readers. After assigning a number of tasks, and after those tasks are completed, reward your child, blog reader, or even your mom and dad on Mother's Day and Father's Day with exquisite Crystal Awards, specially designed by you. Those uniquely crafted custom designed Crystal Trophies will be treasured by everyone who receives them.

Able Trophies, "the leading recognition source of crystal and glass awards, crystal corporate recognition trophies, recognition and donor plaques, retirement and service trophies, engraved paperweights, desktop gifts, crystal bowls and vases, golf trophies, patriotic trophies, clocks, custom award projects," furnishes numerous companies whose names you might recognize: Bank of America, the 4H Club, National Geographic, Verizon, Wells Fargo, Southwest.com, NASA, Boeing, and even McDonalds (among others). 

Able Trophies offers free digital artwork proofs and exquisite custom copyright awards. You can order securely online from an award-winning customer service representative, and you can expect your product in a timely fashion. Choose from 7500 products or design your own. 

What's more, Able Trophies offers free etching and engraving.

For your next personalized gift or promotional product, consider Able Trophies. In business for over thirty-five years, Able Trophies offers unmatched beauty, elegance, and recognition as "North America's Premier Supplier of Fine Crystal, Marble, and Glass Awards."

Who deserves an award in your life?

All quotes are taken from the Able Trophies web site. 

Touched by a Blogger – Granny Gee

On the first day of January, 2013, I received a message from Bloggers telling me I had a new follower for one of my other blogs. Her name was Granny Gee. Her small blurb on Bloggers, part of which appears below, had me nearly crying and I decided to check out her blog.

"… the caller ID showed Tommy was calling! I answered it, my mind became confused as I realized it wasn't Tommy, but.. a strange man's voice saying, 'I have a man lying here on the beach, he's not breathing!'" 

Tommy was Granny Gee's son.

Despite her grief and despite her sorrow, Granny Gee manages to bring joy into her blog, Happy Colors and Granny Gee. The sincerity, the warmth, and the STORIES – my goodness, the stories this woman has to relate – are so fascinating, I had to force myself to stop reading them so I could get on with the rest of my day. 

Here's just a glimpse into one of her blogs:

"There was a woman driver who drove solo, she delivered at the place we would go to.  We would get a laugh (not in an ugly way!) because she would reach her destination, which was where we were, too.

She would go into her sleeper... change into a dress, and high heels!  It would be funny because... we knew what to expect next.  We'd watch for the door to open... and I would watch for her foot to show beneath the door.... with a high heel shoe on!

I would be thinking 'oh, my God!  I don't believe this woman is stepping out onto the steps to come out of a tractor-trailer.  She had to do it very easy so, as not to get her heels stuck in the little holes in the steps!

I would watch, feeling as if I was going to burst out laughing... I didn't want her to see me do that!  I don't make it a habit to make fun of people... who am I to do that!?  But, I have to tell you something!  Don't think bad of me... it's the truth, and I'm just saying…."

You'll have to read the rest of her blog to find out what Granny Gee says next. Click From High Heels To ... Driving A Tractor-Trailer for one of the most honest and revealing blogs I've ever read.  

Check out her artwork, too, in the lower right portion of her blog.

Granny Gee, you have a new follower – me. Thank you for sharing your grief with the rest of the world.

If you have a blog or web site you'd like me to showcase, please contact me at writingcreatively@cheerful.com

The Gift of FUDGE!

Looking for a truly unique gift this year? How about the gift of fudge. Oh, Fudge is a website devoted only to fudge in all kinds of fudgy flavors.

Like peanut butter fudge? It's there! How about cheese fudge? They can make it. As a matter of fact, what makes this fudge site so remarkable is that they will make whatever type of fudge you crave – within reason – alcohol across state borders would probably require a license, so they take precautions.

Strawberry, raspberry, walnuts, pecans, CARAMEL (my favorite) – add whatever sweet or salty ingredient bathes your palate in ecstasy, and you can enjoy uniquely created fudges.

Not sure what type of fudge you'd like to try? Check out their fudge sampler pack, and if you already know which kinds of fudge (from their selection) that you'd like to try, customize your order at no extra charge.

Boxes are $17.00 (as of 12.12.12), so if your budget calls for a $20 gift, and you want that gift to be something memorable and delicious, visit the Oh, Fudge website and friend Oh, Fudge on FaceBook, where they are known as fudgeygoodness! 

Why Switch to Solar Power?

Energy in all forms seems to be the ever-sustaining focus in our lives lately. We all crave more energy. We consume energy drinks, we use energy to light our homes, we exercise to increase our energy, and we pay exorbitant prices to use energy. How high is your electric bill?

You don't have to spend half a week's pay to use electricity. You can use green energy to power your home or office at very little cost. Green energy is renewable energy, energy that will be around for our children and for our children's children, and solar energy is one form of sustainable energy worth investigating.

Though the sun hides behind clouds at times, the sun is always present and always radiating waves, waves that could provide all your electric needs if only you could harness its energy. And you can! If you installed a solar electricity system, you could cut your energy budget like this:

(graphic provided by Baker Electric Solar, located in San Diego) 

Solar energy is a clean and efficient energy solution, and the government offers taxpayers incentive packages for using it. 

If only solar companies would investigate the use of solar panels on automobiles to decrease our driving expenses and help eliminate gas fumes while also decreasing our reliance on foreign oil. Just a thought.

Nerdy Parents – Satisfy Your Nerdy Needs!

FINALLY – a community has been created just for YOU! If you are a Nerd who is just beginning a family, Nerdy With Children will satisfy all your nerdy needs!

Nerdy With Children launched on August 7, 2012. Nick Veneris and David Gorcey, through their company – Endemic – decided to "remove stereotypical labels like hipster, goth and computer geek and build a community that celebrates 'non-mainstream' diversity (all quotes attributed to Nick)." Nerdy With Children offers parents under 45 who are pregnant or who have children under the age of 13 non-traditional products that appeal specifically to the nerdy parent.

According to Nick, "There's been an explosion in recent years of 'non-traditional' products for kids under 12. From Etsy to the kids sections on Think Geek and Sourpussclothing.com. Unfortunately, no one is really aggregating or curating those products. We thought this would be the perfect foundation to building a 'nerdy' community."

Nerdy parents obsessed with one or more of the following, "art, science, math, computer programming, board/video games, goth, rock n roll, punk,sci-fi, fantasy and things of that nature," will find Nerdy With Children an exciting place to browse nerdy products and to communicate with other like-minded nerds through the Nerdy With Children Forum.

Nerdy With Children isn't for parents only though. Grandparents who are looking for that perfect gift for their grandchildren, "will find the product descriptions quite useful as a gift buying guide." So Grandma and Grandpa, if you have grandchildren interested in gaming, sci-fi, fantasy, artsy-type or music-related items, or even techie stuff, click any of the links in this blog.

After you join the forum, follow Nerdy With Children on Twitter and friend Nerdy With Children on Facebook.

Final words from Nick: "No matter where you live or what piece of nerdy sub-culture you are into there's a whole community waiting for you at nerdywithchildren.com."

Menopausal Mother Speaks!

Marcia Kester Doyle started her Menopausal Mother blog the last Saturday of August, 2011, thirty years after she received her Creative Writing degree. Why the vast span of years? Marcia was raising children!

Marcia states that she was a nervous wreck putting her work out for the world to read, so much so, in fact, that she had to calm her nerves with a glass of Pinot Grigio. She had published a lot of poetry but never had any luck publishing prose. The thought of writing nonfiction never entered her mind – until her kids grew up. With all that pent-up creative energy, blogging seemed to be a welcome outlet, especially since that particular venue offered instant feedback! And, WOW! Wait until you see how many followers she has!

The majority of people who read Marcia's blog are middle-aged women who are probably going through menopause themselves, but as Marcia relates, "I do have a surprising number of male readers/followers who leave terrific comments on my site. I think the blog attracts men because I do use some 'bathroom' humor and I'm not afraid to talk about personal habits, or body 'malfunctions'. Guys always seem to get a kick out of that kind of humor! The middle-aged women are there because everything I write is so relatable to them. I also have several young girls who read and follow my blog-–they actually share the posts with their mothers and they understand my brand of humor."

Marcia's original intentions when she started blogging was to educate women on menopausal symptoms and to provide statistics, but after finding numerous blogs all over the Internet already discussing that topic, she decided to take a different approach – humor.

As Marcia states, "Menopause is a difficult transition time for most women--half the time we feel like we are alone in this and losing our mind. My blog, although it makes light of the situation, also validates those feelings. We are NOT alone and we are NOT losing our minds--these are all NORMAL symptoms of menopause. Although medications can help, there are some aspects of menopause that can not be controlled, so it is a matter of acceptance and learning to deal with it by focusing on the humorous side of it. There IS a light at the end of the tunnel----it won't last forever (and thank God, no more periods!!).

In that sense, I think my blog is very beneficial to my female audience--it teaches them to look at the lighter side of this phase in life. If nothing else, I (hopefully) start off their day with a chuckle when they read one of my blog posts.  As far as benefits to my male readers, several have claimed that my blog gave them new insights as to what their wives were going through and thanked me for helping them.  I will admit though, my favorite responses (comments on the blog) are the ones where people tell me they spit out their drink because they were laughing so hard when they read a post. THAT is the real reason I am writing this blog!"

Although the topic of the blog is menopause, her blog is relatable to all kinds of women – and men. It's funny, warm, engaging, and light. She keeps her language clean, she doesn't discuss religion or politics, and she offers her readers sprinkles of pixie dust as her heart follows you down the path of her blog. (You'll have to read Menopausal Mother to see what I'm talking about.)   

Word of caution: Liquids have a way of spurting forth from the mouths of Menopausal Mother's readers, splattering over keyboards everywhere. Don't drink and read at the same time!