The Language of Appalachia

Imagine my surprise when I went to Jamaica a few years ago and learned that I do, indeed, have an accent. You see, unlike my paternal grandmother, I don't stretch the word "cornbread" into four syllables. She might say, "Here. Have ye some co-orn-bray-ed;" whereas I might say, "You want some corn-bread?" See? Two syllables on the cornbread; "you" rather than "ye."

Unlike my maternal grandmother, I say "carrion" rather than "kyarn." In fact, I had no idea what she was talking about until recently when I mentioned the word to my husband. I told him, "Grandmother used to say, 'That stinks like kyarn.' I never figured out what 'kyarn' was." He said, "Road kill." My jaw dropped. "You mean, carrion? Kyarn is carrion?" "Yeah," he said. "Put the Appalachian accent to it." It made sense.

Unlike my mother-in-law, I say "they fought," not "they fit."

Thus, I concluded that I have no accent. After all, I'm fairly well educated. I studied French for three years, and I did some self-study of German and Greek. Plus, I'm well read, and I've authored several books. Ain't I the berries? I couldn't possibly have a hillbilly, Appalachian accent. And, yet, in Jamaica, everyone I met asked, "What part of the South are you from?"

So, I did a little research and learned that the Appalachian region has its own language. Linguists call it "Appalachian English." The Scots-Irish settled the entire region known as Appalachia (all of West Virginia and portions of Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia) in the mid-1700's. At the time, physical boundaries kept modernization out. Then in the 1940's, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was created; and that brought tourists to the area. By the 1950's, highways and telephones were more prevalent throughout Appalachia, bringing the modern world another step closer to its rural inhabitants.

Now, I don't want you to think we in Appalachia are a bunch of snobs. We realize that the same immigrants who settled here settled land elsewhere, but the linguists tell us that our speech patterns will not be found in any other dialect to the extent that they are in Appalachia. In addition, we Appalachians use variants of our own speech patterns. Just because I don't use the same words as my grandmothers doesn't mean that I don't have an Appalachian accent. In fact, the linguists say that each region has its own speech patterns and that most of us allow our situations to govern our speech. For example, when I'm talking with my family, I'm liable to let down my guard a little--use a bit more Appalachian English and a bit less Standard American English. In a more formal situation, I'll try to employ a lot less Appalachian English. Even though I know from personal experience that most Appalachians are not "dumb hillbillies," I'm afraid that others might see me that way if I use the language I naturally use. And yet, some phonological differences are so inbred, that I can't not use them.

Did you know that the t at the end of slept is not silent? You might say, "I slept in this morning." I would say, "I slep in." To me, that "t" just doesn't feel right. It reminds me of an episode of "All in The Family" where Edith met a Jewish baker and he called her "Edit." She told him, "My name's Edith! Th!" So then he called her "Edit-th." To me, "slep-t" would be every bit as awkward.

Do you say "exactly" or "exackly"? And how about ten? I've actually heard people say "ten" with a short e sound--like in the word "bed." How weird is that? Tin and ten are words with the "exack" same sound but different meanings.

The linguists also point out some lexical differences in Appalachian English. For example, the Standard American English word might be faucet, but the Appalachian English version would be spigot. If somebody looks sick, we might say, "he's peaked" (that's peek-ed). Did you hurt your finger? Then we might say you "stoved it up." I once knew a man who substituted "for" for "because." He'd say, "I need to go to the store, for I'm out of milk." My brother would substitute the entire remainder of our family with the word "nim." He'd ask me, "Did Mama and nim go to the store?" Some people say "knowed" rather than "knew." We're famous for our double negatives. "I don't have none of that." Our present perfect tense has raised some eyebrows, too. "He's done done it now!"

This little foray into my Appalachian heritage has given me new insight. We might chop off some of our "-ings"; we might "reckon" rather than "guess" sometimes; and we might have places with such outlandish names as "Lick Skillet," "Frog Holler" and "Sugar Loaf," but we have a rich history. We know where we came from and, for the most part, where we're going. And if anyone thinks we're a bunch of ignorant hillbillies, then you ought to come and get to know us a little better. If you stay long enough, we might be able to teach you how to talk right.

Winter Sidewalk Maintenance

Slipping and falling can be the root cause for several extremely painful injuries, ranging from serious fractures to worrisome cuts and lacerations. In harsh winters, these problems can become commonplace if vendors and communities do not do their part in cleaning ice off of sidewalks and drive-ways. While consumers and other pedestrians may be trying to enjoy their day or getting to and from work, their expectation is to find that important walkways have been cleaned off and are ready for foot traffic. There are some simple solutions to reduce ice and snow on sidewalks.

The most commonly used solution to clear off a sidewalk, and streets, for that matter, is salt. Larger grains of salt are capable of reducing the temperature at which snow and ice will melt, making it possible for the water to turn into a liquid state and run off. While this solution is certainly widespread and effective at most winter temperatures, it does have its drawbacks.

Ecologically, salt in large amounts can alter the concentration of nearby streams and rivers, making them too salty for smaller organisms or plants to live. As these organisms die, the food chain is strained and, occasionally, broken. Additionally, does cosmetic damages, such as ruining the appearance of shoes and pants, and occasionally painfully lodging into dogs' paws.

Beyond salt, there are a few alternative solutions. One remedy, although rare and expensive, can be to heat the sidewalk under the concrete. Using this technique, the snow melts from below, making the more dangerous ice the first thing to melt. However, this is rarely used, as power and construction prices make it a relatively prohibitive solution when compared to the cheapness of salt. Other home solutions can include spreading coffee grounds around icy and snowy areas. Sand and gravel, although occasionally messy, are other ecological solutions.

Forums: What They Are And WHY They're Essential For Anyone Considering Starting An Online Business

Well... first off, let's define exactly what a Forum is so that you'll be able to relate to what I'm about to explain within this article.

The simple definition of a Forum is... it's a online community with a open discussion that allows you to 'Post' questions or queries related to a specific topic.

You can find Forums online related to any topic under the sun, so it doesn't matter what the question is that you might have because there's a Forum out there with hundreds, if not, thousands of members ready and willing to give you helpful Tips and Advice to the questions you have making your life and decision making that much easier.

I can't stress this enough, especially if you're New to Internet and the Internet marketing scene.

Now, for the last segment of this article on want to focus on WHY forums are essential for Anyone who is considering starting an online business.

Well, the main reason is this... Forums are a great way to research your market you are considering developing a Product or Service for.

Why, you ask?

Simply because this is where people go to post there questions about a certain problem they're dealing with and the 'Rule Of Thumb' is... when creating a Product or Service (no matter what kind of product or service it is) make sure it solves a -- Problem.

This is the KEY ingredient to the success of your Product or Service.

Seriously, take a look at all the Posts from the members and note which ones share the most common threads.

If you see a lot of common treads, that means there's potential for a Product or Service to be developed.

By doing this simple task it will save you Time and more importantly... MONEY, because who would spend the Time and Money researching and developing a Product or Service if there was NO demand for it. Right?

You see how this works.

It Pays to do a little research.

And Research is the KEY ingredient for a successful Product or Service and Forums are simply a great place to get started, especially for anyone considering starting an online business.

Now, with that said, what you need to do now is figure out what you would ENJOY doing as a online business and draft up a business plan from there.

This is a VERY important step.

Then, go to your favorite search engine and search out a few forums within the area of business your interests lie and become a member.

Take notice to the main topics and write them down on a notepad so you can look over them later to see if there's any potential.(Remember, the most common threads)

It's that simple.

I truly hope this article helped you and opened up your mind up to the endless possibilities that await you online, no matter what business your considering.

We all need Answers and Forums are simply the BEST place to get them answered.

MCSA Exam - 70-290 Managing and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Environment

After you study your text books it is important to test your newly acquired knowledge and see just how well you have absorbed the material. Practice exams....

* Reinforces what you learnt - fill in the gaps of what you missed

* Gets you used to answering questions to build confidence and familiarity

Here are 10 Multiple choice exams questions for you to practice on:

______________________________

Question 1# - You are the network administrator for ABC.com. You have recently transferred 200 employees from one office to another.

You need to move the user accounts for these users from one Organizational Unit to another in the most efficient manner within your Windows Server 2003 Active Directory network. In order to perform this task from the command line, what is the correct command that you will need to use?

A. dsmod

B. dsmove

C. dsget

D. dsput

_____________________

Question 2# - You are the network administrator for ABC.com. The network consists of a single Active Directory domain abc.com. All network servers run Windows Server 2003.

Your network includes a shared folder named projectDocs. This folder must not be visible in a browse list. However, users report that they can see projectDocs when they browse for shared folders. How should you solve this problem?

A. Modify the share permissions to remove the All - Read permission on projectDocs from the Users group.

B. Modify the NTFS permissions to remove the Allow - Read permissions on projectDocs from the Users group.

C. Change the share name to Sales Resources#.

D. Change the share name to Sales Resources$.

_____________________

Question 3# - You are the systems administrator for a small company that has only 1 printer. The HR department only uses the printer on Monday to print paychecks that are due on Tuesday, however, while the checks are printing the printer is tied up and nobody else can print. Which of the following is the easiest and most efficient solution to this problem?

A. Create another printer and assign a priority of 99 to it and instruct the HR department to send the paychecks to this newly created printer

B. Configure each of the drivers to print directly to the printer

C. Add another printer in the Add Printer Wizard that points to the same print device. Make this printer available between the hours of 5pm and 5am. Instruct the HR Department to use this printer for printing checks

_____________________

Question 4# - Out of the following, identify a feature of basic disk.

A. Enables you to set aside space to arrange data

B. Allows you to configure unlimited number of volumes per disk

C. Enables you to combine noncontiguous unallocated space into one partition

D. Enables you to create fault-tolerant disks

_____________________

Question 5# - You want to perform multiple backups of only those files that are modified since the last normal backup. You also want to ensure that the backed up files use minimum amount of media. In this case, you will take a:

A. Normal backup

B. Differential backup

C. Incremental backup

D. Copy backup

_____________________

Question 6# - Special permissions can be reached by using the Advanced Tab on the Permissions Property sheets. What does the special permission 'Delete Subfolders and Files' include? Choose all that apply

A. Full Control

B. Modify

C. Read and Execute

D. List Folder Contents

E. Read

F. Write

_____________________

Question 7# - The System Monitor interface provides the ability to monitor system performance using which of the following methods? Choose all that apply

A. Graphs

B. Logs

C. Alerts

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Question 8# - A volume spans multiple disks on a Windows Server 2003 computer named Server1. A hardware failure has occurred and you need to allow access to the volume while Server1 is being repaired. In this situation, it is most appropriate to:

A. use the Disk Management utility to recover the volume on Server1

B. move all the dynamic disks containing parts of the volume to another Windows Server 2003 computer and import the disks in the disk group on the target computer

C. import some of the dynamic disks of the volume into another disk group on Server1.

D. move some of the disks containing parts of the volume to another computer and delete the volume on Server1

_____________________

Question 9# - you assign a user a quota of 50mb on the company server. Th user attemps to copy a compressed folder containing 40mb of compressed data to the partition on the server. The operation will not complete and the user receives an error message that he has run out of disk space. How do you correct this problem while maintaining a limit for the user?

A. Disk quotas and compression are incompatible. The user must uncompress his files before copying them to the server

B. Disable the Deny Disk Space to users exceeding quota limit option

C. Find out the size of his data when it is uncompressed and increase his quota to that amount

_____________________

Question 10# - the Disk Management MMC snap-in interface allows...

A. Disk initialization

B. Formatting of volumes (NTFS and FAT)

C. The creation of fault-tolerant disk systems

D. All the above

_____________________

ANSWERS

MCSA Question 1# - Correct Answers: A

MCSA Question 2# - Correct Answers: D

MCSA Question 3# - Correct Answers: C

MCSA Question 4# - Correct Answers: A

MCSA Question 5# - Correct Answers: C

MCSA Question 6# - Correct Answers: A

MCSA Question 7# - Correct Answers: A,B,C

MCSA Question 8# - Correct Answers: B

MCSA Question 9# - Correct Answers: C

MCSA Question 10# - Correct Answers: D

Commercial Liability Insurance Explained

Commercial liability insurance is designed to coverage legal fees and any damages that might be awarded to the plaintiff if the company is sued for personal injury, advertising injury or property damage. In some cases, this coverage is bundled with a standard business owner's policy (BOP), but the amount of coverage within a BOP is usually rather limited; so most medium size and large business purchase liability insurance as a separate plan.

For a small firm with only a few employees, a business owner's policy might be adequate. A BOP's specific contents will vary, but a typical policy will include property insurance, business interruption insurance, business contents insurance, and commercial liability insurance.

The amount of coverage a company needs to purchase will depend largely on the location of the business and the type of business. The location can make a huge difference in premiums, since some cities and states are statistically more litigious than others.

Some industries are inherently high risk, like food and construction, compared to industries with less risk of liability suits, like publishing. But even ostensibly low-risk business can run into unexpected lawsuits, such as those for advertising injury (e.g. trademark and copyright infringement). Don't underestimate the potential for customers and rivals to find grounds for mounting injury claims.

One probably with standard commercial liability insurance, even when purchased as a standalone policy, is that the coverage limit per occurrence may fall short of whatever lawsuit a company might face. The policy might cover $1 million per occurrence, but the company might be sued for $1.5 million; and the company would be on the hook for the difference.

To overcome this limitation, most companies purchase umbrella liability insurance, which pays the balance between the original policy's limit and the amount awarded in a settlement or judgment. The umbrella policyholder would only have to pay the deductible of that balance, which is usually 25 to 30 percent. For any company who works in a high risk industry, adding an umbrella policy is the best way to augment their Commercial Liability Insurance.

Does Your Home Make You Sick? Home Health Hazards

Although Americans spend nearly 40 billion dollars a year on lawn upkeep, the fact is that they actually spend nearly 90 percent of their time indoors. It may be an interesting paradox, but all that time spent indoors increases their chances of being injured or made sick by the various health hazards that exist in many American homes. A report by the Healthy Homes Partnership (HHP), which is a joint collaboration between the U.S. Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the University of Wisconsin Extension, estimates that more than 6.5 million Americans were injured by accidents in their homes. In other cases, people are being made sick by the very factors that make their homes energy efficient. According to the HHP website, http://www.uwex.edu/healthyhome/consumers.html, the HHP study discovered that a number of the most serious health problems found in children (especially young children) actually had their beginnings at home. The site asks questions about lead in the home, the safety of the home's tap water, the types of household chemicals being used, and many others in an attempt to offer parents clues as to possible danger areas. Another watchdog group, the Alliance for Healthy Homes (AFHH), has joined in the call for increased prevention of home hazards, offering further information about potential household dangers on their website, http://www.afhh.org/index.htm. According to the site, there is evidence that a number of household factors can cause or contribute to childhood asthma, including mold, dust, and various chemicals such as pesticides, asbestos, carbon monoxide, and radon.There is evidence that the efforts of such groups are beginning to pay off, since more and more homes are being built without the use of certain glues that are known to produce harmful fumes, plastics, and various laminates. These types of products were initially introduced to make products more useful, durable, and efficient, but many of them have inadvertently caused health problems in unintended ways.For instance, homes have been made so that the interior is kept at a relatively constant temperature with very few pollutants in the air year round. However, there is evidence to show that such homes may actually contribute to colds and allergies, since the inhabitants of the home aren't exposed to temperature variances and a certain amount of naturally-occurring organic materials that are in the air during any given season.Certain chemical additives have made the wood, paint, paper, and composite materials used in home construction much more durable, but a number of those additives are suspected of contributing to various health problems if inhabitants are exposed to them for a length of time. If you or your family seems to be experiencing chronic health problems or an unusual frequency of illness, it may be your home that's the major contributing factor. In any case, you'll find it worth your while to visit the HHP and AFHH websites listed above to gather more details about the possible health dangers that may exist in your home. Copyright © 2006 Jeanette J. Fisher

Plan To Coaching Children Properly

Taking the time to plan, teach and coach your kids in the early childhood stages is not something to be taken lightly.

The childhood years are the best times to learn. The Child's comprehension is at its peak during this time. Parents who take advantage of those precious learning years will help to ingrain the values of life in their children till adulthood.

It is said that children learn best by our examples. Parents who set positive habits will teach their kids to know and see the beauty that life has to offer. They will be more enthusiastic about life. You will instill into their hearts and minds all the wonders and magnificence of being alive. By living life to its fullest, you are indeed coaching them in the most positive way.

Children who learns through self-discovery and proper guidance makes a world of difference. So what's the difference between self-discovery and self-discovery with proper guidance?

Let suppose you let your children learn through self-discovery. To a certain extent it will help develop independence and self-reliance. However, the learning process may be little slow. In a sense, it is like trial and error. They will separate the good from the bad or what they like and don't like. It's most likely they will like the activities that come easy to them or the ones that they enjoy the most. However the ones that they most enjoy might not necessarily be the good ones. Without proper guidance or coaching, what they like and enjoy the most might actually be hurting them and they won't even be aware of it. Usually people (let alone kids) don't realize they have made the wrong choices until it's too late.

This is where coaching your children properly comes into play. Self-discovery with proper guidance will leave room for your children to develop independence and self-reliance but at the same time, show them what is right and wrong too.

The best way to explain why something may not be good for them is to cite instances or examples based on true-to-life events to make them more convincing and realistic. The more realistic something is, the more easily the children are convinced.

A real effective way to coach and to guide is by being friendly and humorous. Children are more attentive and eager to learn when all is in an easy mood. You will know and feel their eagerness to learn through the sparkle in their eyes and by the way they answer your questions. You can be sure that what they learn from you is acceptable to them and will stay with them. That is why, as a parent, you must show enthusiasm in life to your children.

One of the best ways to learn and broaden your children's knowledge about life is by traveling. The world with its varied people, places, and cultures, has a lot of information to offer. It is perhaps as important as the conventional classroom. If you are financially able, traveling is one of the best educational experiences you can give your children. Look for world fairs and exhibits to take your children to. If you are not able, books are the next best things. It's traveling by reading.

You can't go wrong by filling your children with thoughts of self-importance, confidence, and positive attitude so that there will be no room for negative thinking. More importantly, you can fill their world with love, laughter, and understanding!

Terry http://inspirationallifeplancoaching.com/

Charter a Private Jet - Learn More About How to Rent a Private Jet

Chartering a private jet could be the answer to your needs whether it be vacation or an emergency. Picture this, a situation no one wants to be in. There is an emergency and you are hundreds or even thousands of miles away. You could spend hours on the phone, waiting at the airport, even a day or more for a flight to your destination or you can charter a private jet to get you there. It doesn't take much, simply call up a service, tell them what you need and you could be on your way in less time than it takes to locate a flight, get to the airport and go through security. There is no waiting for a flight, or worrying about delays due to malfunctions, or crews getting stuck in customs coming in from a different flight.

It is true that renting does not come cheap and it will cost you significantly more than a commercial flight but in times of emergency when you need to get to a far away place quickly it can be a fast, and less frustrating alternative.

If you want to really enjoy a totally stress free vacation consider renting a private jet to take you to your destination. While it may seem like an extravagant expense if you truly want to kick back and relax and not have to worry about things like security, delays, waiting in lines, the jumble of people rushing from one location to another at one or more than one airports as you move from location to location. Not to mention lost baggage or if you are into hunting ending up spending extra time while people go though you bags and you may end up with your gear arriving at a different time than you do. This can get your vacation off to a bad start but with a chartered private jet, you do not have to worry about anything other than enjoying yourself.

Whether it is just for business, for pleasure or for an emergency a chartered private jet can be a great way to get to your destination quickly, and with the least amount of frustration and hassles.

Where to Learn Sequence and New Vogue Dancing

The first time is always the hardest and even though private instruction is just that, private, group classes are not really that intimidating. Most people you'll find in these sorts of groups are extremely encouraging and friendly. However if you're really shy then private instruction is the way to go. With all the TV coverage it's really got people saying I want to do that.

Sequence and New Vogue dancing is easy to learn. You start with easy ones and then progress to the more difficult amalgamations. Since the exposure of dance in the media dancing in all types and styles has really taken off. Classes have increased dramatically and people want more. There are over one hundred sequence dances and more are being created and published via the UK, finally reaching the Australian shores. Here in Australia we have tended to take on British dancing from our early origins and have taken their dance styles through to today. Sequence dancing has taken on the same rhythms from the ballroom such as Waltz, Foxtrot, Tango, Quickstep, Viennese Waltz, Rumba, Cha Cha, Samba, Jive or Swing. Some of the sequences dances to name, just a few, Georgella Blues, Saunter Together, Glen Roy Foxtrot, Georgella Blues, Mayfair Quickstep, Melody Foxtrot, Ragtime Swing, Rumba One.

There are many places around Australia to learn all these dances many of these are non-profit organizations and have been going now for more than 30 years or more. They are successful in promoting the events and most attended sequence balls. Many couples drive long distances to enjoy great nights out and spend the weekends away in these beautiful cities and towns (like Ulladulla), and catching up with all their friends from Canberra, Sydney Melbourne, Brisbane Adelaide and Perth. All areas offer recreational activities and these friendly people make it a great get away for dancers to visit for the weekend after they dance their feet off at this fabulous dance balls. Other activities may include a Friday night class before their big events, this gives many people time to catch up on there busy lives before the major functions. The attendance at these events have been stronger than ever, with great music from a great bands and organized with the best leadup work, which is why so many people repeatedly book every year.

You can scout around in all cities for dance studios that teach these styles, your local area may have a studio. They may also include other styles of dance and this is quite common because of the variety people demand. Every studio may offer different styles so it's best to contact them before making any commitments, each business will have different priced dance programs. Enjoy!