Summary:

Do you want to keep your brain in shape? Why not have some fun exercising it with classic mind games.

Keywords:

mind games,brainpower,mind,mind power,lateral thinking puzzles

Article Body:

Want a fun way to tune up your brain? Why not use some classic mind games to help you increase your brainpower and get you out of your thinking "ruts." Good mind games habituate you to using creative problem solving as a normal part of thinking about things.

One lateral thinking puzzle you can try right now involves nine dots, layed out three by three. You have to connect them all with four straight lines, and without lifting the pen or pencil from the paper. Figure this one out and you'll appreciate the expression "thinking outside of the box."

Mind Games For Groups

Some group mind games are especially good for long trips in a car. For example, someone looks out the window and randomly chooses an object. Everyone in the car then tries to imagine a new way to make money with it. Street signs become places to advertise, trees are sold with names, and a truck becomes a traveling grocery store.

The "change of perspective" technique can be used as a problem-solving game. Pick any topic, and see who can come up with the most unique new perspective. Could there be a world where jobs weren't necessary? How would a virus define morality if it was conscious?

Another creative game for a group uses a specific technique, called "concept combination." Simply combine random concepts or things in interesting ways, and see who has the best idea. A chair and a microwave? Maybe an easy-chair with a built-in cooler, microwave and television, or microwavable "couch potatoes" - a potato snack in the shape of a couch.

More Mind Games

Some lateral-thinking puzzles use a scenario, real or imagined, with a selection of things you have to use to accomplish something. Imagine a ping-pong ball in an iron pipe that's set in cement. The pipe sticks up two-feet high, and has almost the same diameter as the ball. With only a box of frosted-flakes, and a t-shirt, how many ways can you find to get the ball out of the pipe? You could also set this up for real, to know if a proposed solution will really work.

Riddles are just mind games or lateral-thinking puzzles. You move laterally in your mind, away from your usual line of thought, to solve a riddle. What did his friends do when the canibal was late for dinner? Gave him the cold shoulder. Keeping your brain in shape doesn't have to be a matter of serious study, does it?

Summary:

Nominated for 39 Emmys and 8 Golden Globes, including 3 (and one win) for Best TV Series - Drama, Six Feet Under is widely considered one of the best dramas currently on television. Creator Alan Ball, Oscar-winning screenwriter for American Beauty, introduces a series known for its darkly comical portrayal of a typical dysfunctional American family attempting to live their lives while running a business that thrives on death. Boasting a catchy main title theme song composed b...

Keywords:

six feet under dvd review

Article Body:

Nominated for 39 Emmys and 8 Golden Globes, including 3 (and one win) for Best TV Series - Drama, Six Feet Under is widely considered one of the best dramas currently on television. Creator Alan Ball, Oscar-winning screenwriter for American Beauty, introduces a series known for its darkly comical portrayal of a typical dysfunctional American family attempting to live their lives while running a business that thrives on death. Boasting a catchy main title theme song composed by Thomas Newman (brains behind the scores of Real Genius, Shawshank Redemption, American Beauty, Finding Nemo, and many others), Six Feet Under continues the long-running string of critically and popularly acclaimed original drama series created by HBO, following in the footsteps of Oz (1997), Sex And The City (1998), and The Sopranos (1999). Premiering in mid-summer 2001, the series takes a unique look at the highs and lows of life and death, sporting the tagline, "Your whole life is leading up to this…"

Six Feet Under follows the lives of a hardworking American family in Pasadena, California as they deal with the everyday rigors of running their family business - an independent funeral home. Nate and Ruth Fisher (Frances Conroy of The Aviator) operate the business on a daily basis with the aid of their youngest son David (Michael C. Hall), while their daughter Claire (Lauren Ambrose) deals the tribulations of high school life and their eldest son Nate Jr. (Peter Krause) works in an organic grocery store in Seattle. But family affairs take a turn for the worse when Nate Jr.'s latest visit is marked by the tragic death of his father. With the family in mourning, it's soon revealed that the late patriarch left the funeral home to be owned and run jointly by David and Nate Jr. With a massive corporation hounding the family to sell out, coupled with their own personal problems, the Fishers must learn to deal with their grief as well as each other. Well-written and well-cast, Six Feet Under continues to offer some of the most entertaining drama on TV today…

The Six Feet Under DVD features a number of dramatic episodes including the series premiere in which viewers learn of the death of Fisher family patriarch Nathaniel Fisher in a tragic auto accident. Eldest son Nate Jr. returns home to help out, while David, who is struggling to deal with his homosexuality, faces difficulty heading up the business. Meanwhile, teenage daughter Claire is searching for her own identity, and Ruth grapples with feelings of guilt over her long-running affair with her hairdresser… Other notable episodes from Season one include "An Open Book" in which David attempts to become deacon at the family church, and "The New Person" in which the Fisher brothers hire a replacement for Rico, the outspoken and unpredictable Angela…

Below is a list of episodes included on the Six Feet Under (Season 1) DVD:

Episode 1 (Pilot) Air Date: 06-03-2001

Episode 2 (The Will) Air Date: 06-10-2001

Episode 3 (The Foot) Air Date: 06-17-2001

Episode 4 (Familia) Air Date: 06-24-2001

Episode 5 (An Open Book) Air Date: 07-01-2001

Episode 6 (The Room) Air Date: 07-08-2001

Episode 7 (Brotherhood) Air Date: 07-15-2001

Episode 8 (Crossroads) Air Date: 07-22-2001

Episode 9 (Life's Too Short) Air Date: 07-29-2001

Episode 10 (The New Person) Air Date: 08-05-2001

Episode 11 (The Trip) Air Date: 08-12-2001

Episode 12 (A Private Life) Air Date: 08-19-2001

Episode 13 (Knock, Knock) Air Date: 08-19-2001

Have you decided that you would like to host a Thanksgiving party this year? If so, what type of Thanksgiving party do you plan on having? If you are a parent, there is a good chance that your Thanksgiving party may be designed for children and children alone. These types of Thanksgiving parties are often referred to as kids’ only Thanksgiving parties.

Although you might assume that it is relatively easy to host a kids’ only Thanksgiving party, you may soon realize that it isn’t as easy as you may think. The reason for that, most of the time, is that kids are often more difficult to please, when compared to adults. For that reason, there is a fairly large amount of planning and preparation that may need to go into your next Thanksgiving party.

Perhaps, the first thing that you should do, when planning a kids’ only Thanksgiving party, is invite the guests. Depending on the age of your own child or children, this may be a little bit difficult. Some young children and teenagers may be able to invite their own party guests, but others may be unable to. Whether your child is a toddler or a little bit older, if may be a good idea if you create a Thanksgiving party guest list all on your own. When doing so, it is advised that you invite children that are around the same age as your own. It may be a good idea to invite other children that are in your child’s class, attend the same daycare, live in the same neighborhood, or are related to your child.

Once you have taken care of the party invites, you may want to change your focus a little bit. You will want to start focusing on the actual party. One of the many things that you may want to plan out is the food, snacks, and drinks that you will have available. In most cases, you will find that you do not need to go all out and cook a Thanksgiving dinner for a kids’ only party; snacks would be more than enough. However, as a parent, you likely already know that kids can be picky when it comes to their food. That is why you are advised to have a wide array of snacks and drinks on hand. You will not only want to make sure that, at least, some of your foods are healthy, but also that they are kid friendly.

Whether it is a Thanksgiving party, a Christmas party, or a birthday party, kids’ parties are nothing without games. That is why you will want to pick out party games for everyone to play. Since you will be hosting a Thanksgiving party for kids, you may want to choose holiday games to play; however, it is not necessary. You can easily find a number of holiday party game ideas online, with a standard internet search. In addition to the internet, you should also be able to purchase a number of fun, kid friendly party games online or from your local department store. While it is fun to have your party games all planned out and ready to go, be sure to leave room for suggestions. Depending on the age of your party guests, there is a good chance that they may want to play other games or offer their own suggestions.

When planning a kids’ only Thanksgiving party, it is important to remember one thing; kids may not be your only guests. As a parent, you likely know how some parents, maybe even you, just don’t want to part with their children, even for a few hours. That is why there is a good chance that some of your party guests’ parents may wish to stay. If this is the case, you should let them. In addition to receiving assistance with your kids’ only Thanksgiving party, there is a good chance that you may enjoy the extra company. If other parents will be staying with their kids, it is advised that you also have a few adult snacks on hand.

MTV's Big Change

By Lindsay Robertson | Tuesday, February 9, 2010, 5:37 PM

The original MTV logo and the updated version

Courtesy MTV

MTV is embracing change. In nearly three decades on the air, almost everything about the cable network -- from its programming, to its focus, to its place in popular culture -- has changed with the times, except for its famous tagline, "Music television." Recently, the network quietly unveiled a new logo which has dropped the tagline entirely, indicating that MTV itself is leaving its original mission of an all-music channel in the dust.

The new logo is meant to put the focus on MTV's current slate of talent -- the stars of mostly reality shows like "Jersey Shore," "Teen Mom," and "The Buried Life." Since the logo (which seems to have a shorter "M" than the original) is also available in a see-through model, it can change when new stars come into the fold. Tina Exarhos, a spokesperson for MTV's marketing team, explained the change to "The New York Daily News": "If you watch the channel, you've seen that it's definitely going in a new direction. We really wanted to see the logo featured in a new way, and this was really meant to be able to house all the great things that are happening at MTV at any given time."

When MTV first revolutionized television in 1981, it was based on the idea of one network devoted entirely to music, a central hub where fans could watch music videos, see interviews with their favorite recording artists, and even get their news from a music fan's point of view. The channel was also a valuable promotional tool for the music industry itself, which no longer had to depend mainly on radio to get its product on an audience's radar. But over the years, MTV morphed into a channel that focused less on any one theme and more on targeting a specific teen and young-adult audience, ditching its music roots to deliver whatever the network perceived that audience wanted.

And, clearly, that audience is more into shows like "Jersey Shore" than old-school music video blocks like "120 Minutes."

"The MTV brand, to me, stands for such an irreverent groundbreaking brand, and unfortunately I feel a little underwhelmed when I look at this," Hamish McLennan, global chairman-CEO of advertising powerhouse Young & Rubicam, told Ad Age.

The new logo and its focus on the personalities that drive the channel is based on recent show successes like "Jersey Shore," which turned its stars into celebrities overnight. According to Ad Age, MTV is looking into developing a new tagline to match its new logo. Any suggestions?