Your Moment is Now

Hugh Laurie has become very well known in the United States for the character of Dr. Gregory House he plays on the TV show “House”. His quick witted humor is tinged with a bit of sarcasm and sometimes, he’s just downright rude. His character is a temperamental genius, an artist in the world of medicine with his life saving realizations seeming to come out of nowhere. And he almost always solves the medical mystery. But where did this actor come from? Unless some people watch the video of him on You Tube they may not realize that his American accent, is not his real accent, as he was born and raised in Oxford, England. And while watching him on You Tube, you might want to check out the corporate youtube channel of financial organizations to help you with your own Oxford, or other university degree.

Hugh Laurie received his degree in Anthropology from Cambridge University. He was a rower, and…the president of the theatre group called the Footlights Revue. His first co-stars are none other than the respected actors, Emma Thompson and Stephen Fry. All three appeared at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe held in Scotland, in 1981 in a show that he himself produced called “The Cellar Tapes”. At that festival, the show won the coveted Perrier Award, and suddenly the three of them were embarking on many groundbreaking shows for television. Some of which included the hilarious “Jeeves and Wooster” and “Black Adder”.

His movie credits are extensive. In the States he has shared the screen with actors such as Catherine Keener, James Broadbent, Reese Witherspoon, Jessica Lange, Kenneth Branagh and Forest Whitaker. He is equally versed in comedy as well as gritty drama, and has even provided the voice for animated feature films. As well as voice-overs for the wildly popular TV shows “The Simpsons” and “Family Guy”.

Not only that…he sings and dances as well. Many episodes of his hit show “House” have him seated at the piano or playing the harmonica. And in the episodes where he was in the insane asylum, there were song and dance numbers. His scripts for “A Bit of Fry and Laurie” have been published, as well as has his first novel. The novel is titled “The Gun Seller, has been published here in the States as well as in his home country of the United Kingdom. Recently it was adapted into a screenplay.

Some celebrities become spokespeople for various companies, such as moneymutualreviews.com , and Laurie is no different. He is the spokesman for L’Oreal Paris Men. But he’s more than a spokesperson. He has garnered many awards for his performances over the years, including six Outstanding Lead Actor nominations for the Emmy Awards, 2 Golden Globe Awards, and best performance awards from the Screen Actors Guild . With all that behind him, one can only imagine what this next season of “House” will bring, and what these coming years of the incredible Hugh Laurie will bring…on the small screen, as well as the big screen. Whatever that may be, it will be exciting and new…maybe funny, and always raw and true.

When it comes to selecting psychologists and psychiatrists, many people are confused. This is not surprising since both of these healthcare professionals treat a broad range of conditions from depression and anxiety to schizophrenia and other, more severe types of mental illness. In fact, many people suffering from mental illness see both types of practitioners in order to achieve the full scope of treatment. However, you should be aware that these two do have differences and it’s important to know which you need. As always, make sure that you are open and communicate with your primary healthcare provider to make sure that you receive the proper care.

Psychiatrists are considered medical doctors and psychologists are not. Psychiatrists start in medical school and once they complete their degree, they attend four years of mental healthcare residency. Typically this is done in a hospital’s psychiatric department. Many can go on to receive in more specific treatment to deal with children, adolescents and teens or other specific groups. Psychiatrists are licensed practitioners that can prescribe medication to their clients.

Unlike psychiatrists, psychologists complete up to seven years of graduate study, ending in a doctorate degree. They may complete their studies and graduate with a PsyD or PhD. Licensing requirements for psychologists vary from state to state but all must be licensed before practicing.

Many people believe that psychiatrists only treat very severe forms of mental illness such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. This is not the case.  In fact, many individuals with moderate depression must see psychiatrists in order to receive medication that helps them work through the symptoms of their condition. Again, it’s important to know your diagnosis and work with these mental healthcare providers to make sure you are receiving the appropriate medication and treatment.

Many individuals will actually see a psychiatrist for their medications and to make sure that they are taking the proper dosage for their condition and also see a psychologist to work through cognitive behavioral therapy or talk therapy. Most psychiatrists are now focusing most of their time on the medication component of treatment and work together with partnering psychologists for their patients. Psychologists focus on psychotherapy which refers to the practice of sitting down with a patient and work in a variety of forms—often cognitive behavioral therapy—to help the individual establish more positive internal thought processes that will help them, in addition to medication, overcome their illness and manage the symptoms associated with their condition.

If you are experiencing symptoms associated to mental health conditions, it’s important to talk to your doctor immediately. Any medical professional will be able to help refer you to the most appropriate doctor for your symptoms. Remember that unlike physical conditions, it’s important to be patient and cooperate with practitioners—whether they are psychologists or psychiatrists—to find the treatment options that work best for you. Often psychiatrists must try different types of medication before finding the one that works best. This is because mental health medications work differently on different people. Similarly, it may take trying different psychotherapy forms before finding one that works best for you and your particular condition. Keep an open mind and always be honest with your doctor throughout the entire process. Once taking medication or treatment, make sure to let your friends and family know so that they can help you monitor your emotions and behavior.

In summary, determining whether or not to seek a psychologist or psychiatrist should be a conversation had between you and your primary healthcare provider. Several insurance companies—although not all—require referrals as these practitioners are considered specialists.

If you hear the names Annette Funicello, Teri Garr, and Lena Horne, and think that they have a lot in common, you’re right.  They’re strong role models who have had time in the limelight, and garnered the love and admiration of millions.  They also have M.S.  You’ll also find that Chrissy Amphlett, the lead singer of the Divinyls, the drummer for Iron Maiden, and the recently deceased Captain Beefheart are also on the list.

It’s very extensive, and there are many more celebrities and very accomplished people, many who would doubtlessly be rather surprising.  Changes in treatments in the recent years have made it possible for people to lead pretty full lives with the illness.  There are also more resources available now, with bulletin boards on msworld.org that can connect those who have it with others, so that they can share experiences.  Some alternative treatments are showing some promise, and places like prohealth.com offer supplements that might work to alleviate some of the related symptoms.

There are some studies on therapies with substances such as methylcobalamin which are also promising.  The complexity and severity of the illness does make it much more reasonable to maintain the recommended treatment very closely, but there are always new products and new scientific achievements that might suggest that it’s not as ominous a diagnosis as it once was.  This is, in very large part, due to the activism and example set by the people who are living full lives with Multiple Sclerosis.  They do prove that one does not have to stop enjoying life, even when the disease is in its more chronic and active stages.

Like anything that might be unfamiliar to a general public, the challenges here have to do with communication and information.  In the case of M.S., the challenges might be a little bit more extreme, because it is such a misunderstood illness.  A generation ago, the medical community at large was fairly baffled, and misdiagnoses were very common.  What are only now coming to light as related symptoms were one considered to be entirely unrelated, and this left a lot of sufferers in the dark, wondering if they might be suffering from something else as well.  Now, because of the increase in information, the more common issues, such as unexplainable fatigue, or slurred speech, are on the table, or at least making their way into public consciousness.  This could go a long way toward helping those who suffer from it, as well as those around them, as the challenges become a burden which everyone can begin to share.

Without a doubt, taxes are one of the guaranteed things that will whip people into a passionate political frenzy around election time. The lines are often drawn between people based on which tax bracket they’re in. Of course the wealthiest of the citizens in a country will more than likely want to have more tax cuts and breaks for the rich. The working class people will loudly protest that the rich should pay more because they make more. The lines are drawn and it is hard to get one side to agree with the point of view of the other side. This has long been the case and probably will continue to be so, so long as there are taxes and politicians controlling them. Another thing that divides people on taxes is what they are spent on.

A lot of people oppose their tax money being used to fund more military operations or wars, at the expense of things like public education. A lot of art, music and drama programs have been cut over the past few years, which has upset a lot of people. Sports programs were cut in some places too, denying many would be athletes the chance to be a part of a school team, or even worse, the chance at a higher education that they now may never get. If a young athlete cannot play sports, he or she can not be recruited and given a scholarship, after all. This is the nature of the beast when it comes to dealing with taxes and the finances of an entire nation. There are a lot of very different people with a lot of very different priorities and concerns. Just remember that whatever side of the lines you are on, be sure to file your taxes on time, either with the new IRS e-file or the old school paper forms.

You don’t have to wait until you are famous in your field or a rich celebrity to chronicle your life. In fact, more and more individuals are writing their autobiography , or the biography of their family, as a way to better understand themselves and their place in the world. These types of biography are not about proving how important or significant the subject is, but rather a way to gain deeper insight into a life or a web of relationships.

The internet age has made it easier than ever to create a biography or autobiography. There are websites and blog templates that anyone with a computer can use to build their own page in a matter of minutes. This gives you a place to put your autobiography where you can share it with friends and family or, if you feel confident enough, with the entire world. Some sites will even give you the option of keeping a blog completely private so that only you can read it.

Perhaps one of the best features of the web is the ability to utilize multiple forms of media in crafting a biographical site or blog. For example, many publishing sites have tie-ins with photo sharing or video sites. This means that you can take the photos of important milestones that you’ve stored on flickr and link them directly to your web bio. Likewise, you can embed video clips from sharing sites like vimeo or youtube as well as music files. If you’ve stored artwork, slideshows, or any other type of media, it should be a snap to include it as a way to enhance your life story.

When crafting such an online bio, you want to take into consideration just who will have access to the contents and what purpose the document might serve. Giving your children or grandchilden insight into what it was like to grow up in a past era is a great motivation. So is sharing the story of how you and your spouse met and fell in love. Some family biographies serve as a testament and memorial to family members who have passed away. These types of bios will have a very different tone than business or professional ones. They will also have different content.

If you feel you might use your web bio as a way of promoting yourself to future employers or even political life, then you want to be doubly careful as to what content and media you share. Remember, if you’re a real estate guy like Daniel Drimmer , you need the bio to instill confidence in potential clients or tenants. You would most likely emphasize your business qualifications and professional accomplishments and include photos and videos that support that image.

Whatever the purpose, creating a web bio can be a fun way to look back at your life to date and give you an excuse to stroll down memory lane and sort through all those old photos. Have fun!

image courtesy creative commons license

How many people out there believe that William Shakespeare actually wrote the plays that are attributed to him? Along with that question, deeper conspiracy theories question the reality of his existence as a human in the first place. For many people that might be taking the concept too far, however, for logical and educated academics, practitioners and even fans, the entire idea is about as far out as is the idea of aliens having come down to interbreed with the Neanderthal to create humans. Well, there are some interesting theories in both categories, though neither one has any valid historic or scientific base. With this in mind, which category do you fall into? Surely you don’t believe Ben Johnson or Christopher Marlowe penned such works as Hamlet or King Lear? And while that might sound like a slight to either of those writers, it simply isn’t. Though no one compares to Shakespeare, both were significant to their time period as well as to today.

One of the things that is interesting regarding the works of Shakespeare is related to copyrights and legal aspects. There are no licensing right laws that affect a company’s right to produce his plays. However, if he were living today, he would most definitely be more inclined to sign his name to the script and protect his property and financial interests. There are lawyers who specialize in copyright and licensing laws and you can be sure that Shakespeare would make an acquaintance with at least one of these professionals if he were writing today. There are plenty of Los Angeles law firms that would be more than happy to protect not only the rights of any writer, but to have a client like William Shakespeare is almost going to guarantee their own successful career. Interestingly enough, identity theft, which is the most appropriate phrase regarding pretenders to the bard’s crown, protection that is essential to everyone today, would go a long way in protecting Shakespeare’s legacy. And if he were working today, you can be sure that he would have at least dabbled in film too, but most likely would have become an Academy Award winning screenwriter, or maybe even director. And every lawyers in reno would love to represent him, whether it’s for his artistic protection, or defending him for stealing cows. So, it might be true that there would be no room for questioning the source of Shakespeare’s plays had he written them today, but then that would take away the fun of his mystery. Wait, he would likely be writing those too.

Although it is not at all uncommon for someone’s earlier years to be filled with a certain sense of experimentation, for artists, these experiments can go to much further extremes.  In the case of Peter Sellers, it’s more extreme than most, suggesting that great artistry can go hand in hand with great eccentricity.  This isn’t to suggest that any of the things that characterized his life were in themselves eccentric or extreme, but taken together they form an eclectic and entirely fascinating portrait. 

For the young Sellers, finding the perfect methodologies through which to channel his talents was not an easy task.  It wasn’t as simple as finding the perfect fit for his acting ability, like buying cooper tires online to match one’s car.  In Seller’s case, he was the vehicle and the contents, and there was never a solid and stable nature to either.  He was like a volatile chemical reaction, always on the verge of something dangerous, and this is what made watching him so terrifically compelling.

It has been noted widely that he was initiated as a Freemason, but not so widely that he was never what one could consider a member in good-standing.  After a few moments of attendance, it seemed to have dropped out of his life altogether.  He was following a familial tradition, to be sure, but it seems to have fit his acting persona about as well as big rims on a subcompact car.  It could work, but only for a very short while, and better if no one is around to see it happening.

Instead, Sellers seems to have invented a kind of wonderful blend of methods.  His work is as esoteric and complex as any of the hidden sciences, and it does not require a deep knowledge to catch a glimpse of its mystery.  His mystery did run deep, and it was apparent to those viewers who only saw the surface, as well as to those who knew him very well.  Whatever Freemasonry did or didn’t do for him, there were tenets that combined with an interest in color vibrations, an ability to enter trance states for performance, and a particularly deft capacity for the mechanics of acting.  The results of this alchemical combination were absolutely genius.  On a profound level, his work speaks to the initiated, with a complexity that is almost Kabalic.  However, on a more base level, his work speaks directly to the gut.  He is simply a very funny man, and his work and life bear repeated consideration.

William Shakespeare is frequently recognized to be the greatest writer, in the Western world, to have ever existed. He continues to be so famous and respected that he is still the number one produced dramatist in the world and universities all have multiple classes devoted to his work. The Globe remains the most famous theatre, and any other building that he is associated with enjoys great interest and pilgrimage. Property companies such as TransGlobe Beaverbrook and numerous others enjoy the prospect of famous, and iconic residents. And when there’s an element of intrigue into that figure’s life, the interest skyrockets. Interestingly, Shakespeare is one of those great historic figures whose actual identity is often put to question and or disputed. This might seem like a subject for conspiracy oriented individuals or groups, though the subject has also received valid academic attention.

With all of this intrigue potential in mind, it is almost universally, or at least widely, recognized that William Shakespeare, the glove maker’s son from Stratford, is actually responsible for writing the plays that have been attributed to his name. For most academics or historians in the field this is a simply solved puzzle simply based on some of his references, colloquialisms in dialogue and other biographical associations to his poetry. There is a lot more that goes into the study of authorship identity, though these are some of the standard recognized elements of Shakespeare’s work that are often recognized as his trademarks and are used in analytic discussions of his writing. His style, alterations between prose and verse, invention of character and language, and unmatchable style are also hallmarks of his genius, and for true Shakespearean scholars, there is no question of his identity.

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Meanwhile, everyone loves a good mystery, and there is also a large percentage of the population who will succumb to the temptation of various conspiracy theories. This is not intended to imply that major conspiracies have, and do not exist throughout the world and have played a major role in history, it’s simply stating that conspiracies in general captivate that mystery and suspense mindset and it can be incredibly alluring for some people.

One of the standard arguments that the person who was William Shakespeare could not have written such great tragedies like Hamlet, Othello, and Macbeth, is his simple background and upbringing. Shakespeare never attended university, like his contemporary Christopher Marlowe, who also happens to be one of the standard contenders for the true writer of Shakespeare’s plays. However, the immense brilliance of Shakespeare simply could not be taught. His amazing insight and use of language are just not products of a university education. If that were the case, every Cambridge, Harvard , Yale, and other great university graduate would be cranking out work that is comparable to or even surpassing that of Shakespeare. And we all know that’s not happening. So, if we pull back the blinds on and the mystery of Shakespeare, the Globe, and the lure of Stratford on Avon, we realize that the true mystery is the enormous gift of this man. It is not the question of his identity. And just as the Next Day Blinds let just the right amount of light and shadow enter a room, the legend of Shakespeare sheds the same illumination on examinations of his work.

The delineation between amateur and professional sports is much clearer in some sports than in others. No one would confuse the regulations and players in high school basketball with those of the professional league. However, in tennis these lines are a bit more blurred, especially since the open era of tennis took hold in the late 1960s.

Prior to that time, amateur and professional competition were kept separate. Players were either professional champs or they were amateur champs . All this changed when that larger tournaments began allowing both types of players to compete in the same event. The idea was to let players to make a living from the sport while elevating the level of the game. Today almost all non-collegiate tournaments are open, as designated by the names of the events, like the US Open and the Australian Open.

The very first official open tournament was held in England at the West Hants Club. It was played on April 28, 1968. A month later, french open tennis followed suit. On May 27, 1968 the first Grand slam event to allow both professional and amateur competitors was held at Roland Garros. After the French Open led the way, the other Grand Slam events quickly became open tournaments as did much of the rest of the tennis circuit.