Planning To Succeed

Last night was the first time I saw GossipGirl. I got pulled into the mix of blogging, mobile life and decadence. It was quite by accident. When I do watch TV on Mondays, it seems that it's "How I Met Your Mother" that I'll get comfortable with. CBS has this irrestible folksy-charm formula that still works on me. CBS has been using it for decades.

I actually don't know what day "How I Met Your Mom" comes on. Last night's channel surfing ruled out "Gladiators," "Antique Roadshow" and 'Your Mother.'

About GossipGirl, it slipped through the radar. September 2007 was its first season and last night was a special episode called GossipGirl Revealed. The title is meant to draw regulars in because the big thing about the show is noone knows who's GossipGirl. The characters check into her blog throughout the day but can't figure out is she one of them or is she a terrific spy. She shoots candid closeups and her entries sound so familiar.

The January 28 airing of GossipGirl Revealed introduced me to Serena van der Woodsen, Chuck Bass, Blair Waldorf, Dan Humpfrey, Rufus Humpfrey and Lily van der Woodsen. While it's the usual night time soap escapades, the parents--Rufus and Lily--look great. They're examples of what it is to be glorious 40--give or take emotional depth. Blair, the brunette, has the usual insecurity around blonde Serena. When will media ever get off these stereotypes? Blondes don't have more fun than other hair colors.

Being the techhead that I am, I did a search on GossipGirl to find out there are a series of nine teen novels written by Cecily von Ziegesar. Folks can't seem to get enough of these rich brats. A visit to CW 11-TV's Web site brought me to some great high tech fun. You can watch full episodes online by Saturday. 'Live the Life' let's your avatar experience the cushy, decadent life of the upper eastside. There are so many ways that CW 11 and series sponsors sell product. You learn what makeup is used and how to apply it; Old Navy has branded this entertainment and the featured music is downloaded from this Web site.

Keeping it real and concerned, global warming reduction tips are sponsored by Free 2 Be Green and to counter all the sex in the show, Stay Teen.org, a teen pregnancy prevention cause has a button and short video on the site.

Tip: Anyone who fancies herself a sho 'nuff videographer ought to log onto CW 11's site and craft a video using CW Lab, using mash ups. Video duration is 30 minutes. Hey you never know; that's how careers get started.

Inside the Circle is a kinetically inspiring documentary about the world of b-boys and “breaking” as lived through three young Texans, Josh, Omar and Romeo. This film is a testament to the cultural staying power of break dancing, which originated in 1970’s The Bronx, New York. It screened during the 2008 Dance on Camera film festival at Lincoln Center’s Walter Reade Theater, January 6 and 11.

Fast forward to present day Austin, Texas to find the dance form in the loving hands of Latinos, Euro-Americans and the world-at-large. Romeo Navaroo, past b-boy-turned-event promoter, says, “B-boying is an explosion of who you are.” Romeo plans and promotes semiannual dance competitions called B-Boy City in Austin. Underfunded, Romeo consistently draws crowds of b-boys and b-girls, DJs spinning the latest sounds, graffiti artists, and rappers. The camera stays focused on the circle to document the physical and artistic prowess of young men. B-boying is quite strenuous where people spin on the their hands, knees, heads and elbows. Josh is a rare white American youth who’s been taken in by the Masterz of Mayhem crew. Josh remembers when people wouldn’t take him seriously because he was white. B-boys discounted his power and rhythm. When he proved he had both, he received and kept his props.

Josh’s best friend is Omar. The film shows the friendship in its bloom to high emotional competition to a level of reconciliation. While Omar experiences international fame, flying frequently to places like Singapore, Russia, Mexico and Europe, Josh deals with family tensions and the criminal justice system. It appears that Josh will be lost in the system until he connects with a counselor at Youth Advocates. Romeo contends with such production issues as flyer distribution, t-shirts and quality flooring. Romeo considers ending the B-Boy City competition due to strong audience outrage at one event. He hangs in there, though.

‘Ever said to yourself, “If I could get a hold of $10 million, I’d solve world hunger, the energy crisis, or a disease?” What about $15 million dollars to provide safe and affordable outer space travel? The X Prize Foundation is doing just that. Teaming with Google Corp, the X Prize Foundation offers a $30 million cash award to the first two privately funded teams to land and rove a robotic craft on the moon’s surface. This competition is the Google Lunar X Prize. Private firms, nonprofits, and schools around the globe are encouraged to apply through the Google Lunar X Prize Web site. The prize was announced September 13, 2007. On December 7, 2007, Odyssey Moon became the first team to register for the competition.

Santa Monica-based X Prize Foundation was formed in 1995 with the belief that individuals and private entities can solve major issues affecting humankind without government involvement. Though necessary, bureaucracy tends to slow progress. Rather, the foundation advances “revolution through competition’ to find solutions to accessing space, solving health compromises, transportation, education and energy sources and generation. The foundation is a kind of think tank with bank. Its board of trustees, major donors and management team analyze major global quality-of-life issues that are caught up in bureaucratic quagmires, misperception or lack of attention. People like MIT’s Jeffrey Shames, Google’s Larry Page and movie producer Robert Weiss populate the board.

Google Lunar X Prize follows a 2004 space travel competition called Ansari X Prize. The Ansari competition resulted in advancement in personal space flight where price and risk are lowered but speed improved. Google Lunar X promises travel to and industrial development of the moon. By industrial development it’s meant getting the moon’s natural resources and using them to generate energy—solar power collectors made from lunar material—or drive space missions throughout our solar system and beyond. The Google Lunar X competition runs through December 31, 2014.

The world will watch the launch, landing and roving of the future competition winners through the Web site www.googlelunarxprize.org. The Web site is fascinating. Go online to watch the Moon 2.0 video; register a team; get competition guidelines; and join online forums. Teams may connect with preferred partners like Universal Space Network, Seti Institute and SpaceX who offer significant discounts on communication and vehicles.

Did you know there’s Lunar Legacy promotion attached to this X Prize? People upload their digital photos and messages to a gallery. Much later, these items will be on the rover that travels on the moon to be left on the moon. Is this legacy or waste? What do you think of space travel or excavating the moon for its natural resources?

The exhibitors were set up in the usual rows. If you're not certain of your destination or the kind of experience sought, it may at first seem daunting. Everyone is welcoming and ready to describe their brand of "moments that really do last a lifetime." Each day, bands featuring the musical flavors of the Earth's regions perform and beg for you to dance. Saturday, travel raconteur Arthur Frommer held court on fantastic budget trips and tips. Hands on adventure activities like scuba diving and rock climbing were enjoyed by many.

Adventures in Travel Expo's thrust was opening travelers--families, groups, and singles--to experiencing the world beyond the conventional cruise or all inclusive hotel experience. Rather, think spa & wellness, volunteer activity, ecotouring, cultural immersion, biking or safari. Ashish Sanghrajka of Big Five Tours and Expedition presented "How to Plan the Perfect Journey to Africa and Beyond." His knowledge base is solidly in East Africa's bush and plains. A Kenyan national, Ashish coaxed the crowd to begin travel plans by simply dreaming. Write the dreams down or as he said, "List what you want to do, even if it's exhaustive." Dream first and then think about your budget. He believes that the vacation should be "an amazing life-changing experience." He calmed listeners' concerns about political unrest in Kenya by explaining that "roads, parks and stores were open." Elections tended to be dramatic in the developing world.

While it was interesting to think of safari routes in terms of "animals following the rains," it was noticeable that meeting people and visiting cities weren't promoted. In fact, Ashish believes only South Africa's tourism infrastructure can support that type of travel experience. Has he visited Lome, Togo, Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, Dakar in Senegal or Casablanca in Morocco? Does he know Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, is the home of the biennial international film festival called FESPACO? Fortunately, African destinations were promoted by such groups as CC Africa, Earthwatch Institute, Ethiopia Journeys, Sylvia's Children and Africa Travel Associations.

In sum, the exposition evenly covered all parts of the globe and had people think about travel and adventure in a different way. Visitors considered budget levels and risk levels. Visitors considered climates, helping others or indulging their passions. The 2008 Directory is a keeper. If you missed the New York event, there's Chicago, Long Beach and Washington DC events to look forward to. To get the dates for these shows visit http://www.adventureexpo.com/.

Just as multilevel schemes, once called pyramids, come and go, there's an ebb and flow for the search for grants by small businesses. Over the holiday, I heard two people talking about needing a hedge for retirement. One person was retired from the federal government--USPS--and saw her funds shrinking monthly. She was in her 70's. If she continued to live, her pension would not be her sustenance. She spoke about a business seminar she attended where it was explained how to make money on the Internet. I entered their conversation to ask whether the presenters talked about search engine optimization or search engine marketing. If you're doing e-commerce you needed the methods for driving traffic to your site. The elder said that they weren't discussed.

They resumed their conversation. The retiree was alerted to government grants for businesses. There are no grants for businesses. There are loans, lines of credit, investment pools, business plan competitions and investors but there aren't federal grants. I entered the conversation again to explain grants are possibilities for incorporated nonprofits with IRS recognition. The elder did have a connection with an existing nonprofit. Would they solve her shrinking nest egg?It is in her best interest to secure alternate streams of income. A part time job or a business with which she has familiarity are feasible. Vending merchandise might be the answer. If she has any excess funds, she ought to consider emerging portfolio management firms. These are the smaller investment houses and brokerages that have fire in the belly. There was a breakfast meeting called "Access Capital" Monday, January 7, 2008 at Rainbow Push Coalition's Annual Wall Street Project Economic Summit. The name is long but the heart of it is these smaller firms--many minority-owned--have the talent and knowledge to grow your money. Stacked up against S & P, according to Larry Jones, executive vice president for Northern Trust, the smallest firms' returns were 1.46 to 1.33 times higher. Joseph Haslip, assistant NYC comptroller for pensions, stated his office allocates millions of dollars into these emerging managing programs because of good returns.

Rather than search for business grants, search for a job, a business, or a fund manager. To learn what the feds offer to small businesses visit http://www.sba.gov/. If you reside in New York State, visit http://www.nylovessmallbiz.com/