Archives for October 2013

Tony Award Winner “Once” Opens Kimmel Center Broadway Philadelphia Series

The Kimmel Broadway Philadelphia series kicks off the season this week with ONCE, Winner of eight 2012 Tony Awards® including Best Musical.

Featuring an impressive ensemble of actors/musicians who play their own instruments on stage, Once tells the enchanting tale of a Dublin street musician who’s about to give up on his dream when a beautiful young woman takes a sudden interest in his haunting love songs.

As the chemistry between them grows, his music soars to powerful new heights…but their unlikely connection turns out to be deeper and more complex than your everyday romance. Emotionally captivating and theatrically breathtaking, Once draws you in from the very first note and never lets go. It’s an unforgettable story about going for your dreams…not living in fear…and the power of music to connect all of us.

 

Kimmel Center Once

Flex Packages are now available for the full Broadway series: Purchase tickets to five or more shows and you’ll save up to 10% on single ticket prices.*

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Tension is Mounting on The Good Wife – Season Five: Which Team Are You On?

goodwife team florrick

 

The Good Wife is one of the few shows that continues to surprise and delight with delicious twists and turns. I have watched the show from the beginning and now that it is in its fifth season — just when you think you’ve seen it all, this coming episode on Sunday, October 27th, brings another explosive plot twist.

Alicia Florrick (played by Julianna Margulies) has decided it is time to leave her current position in the firm Lockhart Gardner and start a new firm for herself. When to do it is another question and when to tell firm partner Will Gardner is even more complicated. This coming episode will show what happens when you-know-what hits the fan and Will learns of Alicia’s plans to leave him high and dry.

Alicia is about to make one of the biggest moves of her life and go out on her own. I say – “DO IT!” I am totally on Team Florrick Agos, which means I would love to see Alicia team up with Cary Agos to start their own business. Cary is young and excited and eager to make new things happen. Will is old news and Alicia’s old fling. It’s over, dude. Get used to it. Alicia is back with her husband and ready to get out of a very toxic environment.

 

Hitting the FanABOUT THE SHOW:

THE GOOD WIFE stars Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Julianna Margulies as Alicia Florrick, a wife and mother who reinvents her life following her husband’s sex and political corruption scandal. Four years into her tenure at the law firm of Lockhart/Gardner, Alicia accepts a prestigious partner offer from her bosses, Diane Lockhart, Will Gardner and David Lee. However, a mutual attraction with Will leaves Alicia conflicted after she agrees to renew her vows with her husband, Peter, who has won the gubernatorial election with the help of campaign manager Eli Gold. After much thought, Alicia agrees to leave Lockhart/Gardner to start a new firm with her colleague, Cary Agos, who is unable to convince investigator Kalinda Sharma to join them. Now, Alicia must find a way to balance her evolving career, her new position as First Lady of Illinois and her roles as a wife and mother to her teenage children, Zach and Grace. Emboldened by the prospect of taking control of her future, Alicia bravely ventures into unknown territory.

“The Good Wife” began its fifth season Sunday, Sept. 29, 2013 on the CBS Television Network

ON AIR: Sundays (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT)

“Hitting The Fan” – Alicia and Cary’s plans to depart Lockhart/Gardner are suddenly exposed and a desperate battle to retain clients ensues, on THE GOOD WIFE, Sunday, Oct. 27 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

Follow the hashtag #TheGoodWife  on Twitter to share what team you are behind: Lockhart/Gardner or Florrick/Agos.

Follow The Good Wife on Facebook to see  more comments.

(Will is not looking too happy below. Lovely face, huh?):

(Disclosure: Sponsored by the Role Mommy Writer’s Network. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)

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My 2 Broke Girls Story

The show 2 Broke Girls, showing at a NEW TIME on Mondays at 8:30/7:30 c on CBS, brings up many memories of my years in college and graduate school when you find yourself excited by the discovery that Ramen noodles and spaghetti sauce actually taste good together and that you can make a meal out of it. And, then there’s mac and cheese with tuna – a complete dish. I know, ugh…

College years are typically when the fun stories really come out. You are on your own, usually no one else to feed, and you need to make decisions on how to make your money last and your food stretch – especially during formal season when you would rather be buying a pretty dress and new heels than eating. I lived for two years in a house of 10 girls and getting that many young women to decide on the temperature in the house is a whole ‘nother story! Up – down- up – down. Oops, who broke the controller? Okay, who is locking the controller? Who didn’t pay the gas bill now that it’s 2 am in the middle of winter with snow on the ground and the gas tank is empty? I was honestly appalled when two girls called their dads and woke them up hours way. I’m like – get off the phone and call the gas man, are you crazy?

Life and finances definitely became more challenging when I moved ten hours from home to go to graduate school far, far away. Other graduate students my age were learning about saving money and being thrifty too. At one point, two students and I took over the rent in a older home in a part of Philadelphia where the houses were still roomy and beautiful inside but the neighborhood was prone to break-ins and characters coming in and out of the rehab facility down the street.

We loved our big spacious house. I was out of the house (cobbling together finances between being a nanny and a babysitter and a secretary in the graduate office) when men broke in during the night. My roommates were in the house at the time and it was scary to hear about the strangers pawing their way through our things while the other girls slept.

It’s not a funny story at all about being broke but where you live is pretty much determined by what you can afford to pay and sometimes being young and innocent doesn’t serve you well in choosing housing. I was engaged and soon on my way to  little apartment in the burbs but my roommates moved out soon after that and found safer housing. It’s a shame since it was such a pretty little part of Philly at one point. Times do change places.

And, now about the show 2 Broke Girls which has the advantage of writers making life appear a lot funnier than it might be sometimes when money is tight and stress is high. Humor is a good thing in all cases.

ABOUT 2 BROKE GIRLS

2 BROKE GIRLS is a comedy about the unlikely friendship that develops between two very different young women who meet waitressing at a diner in trendy Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and form a bond over their dream of one day owning their own successful cupcake business. Only one thing stands in their way – they’re broke. Sarcastic, street-smart Max Black met the sophisticated, school-smart Caroline Channing when the uptown trust fund princess was having a run of bad luck due to her father’s Wall Street scandal, which caused her to lose all her money and forced her to give waitressing a shot. At first, Max sees Caroline as an entitled rich girl, but she’s surprised to find that Caroline has as much substance as she does style. When Caroline discovers Max’s knack for baking amazing cupcakes, she visualizes a lucrative future for them and they begin to save money to reach their start-up money goal of $250,000. As the girls’ cupcake tally expands week-to-week, they become closer to their goal and to each other.

Follow conversation about the show by using & searching the hashtag #2brokegirls

CRONUT EPISODE:

MAX & CAROLINE

Here’s a sneak peek: 2 BROKE GIRLS

 

 

(Disclosure: Those post is sponsored by the Role Mommy Writer’s Network. All thoughts opinions and stories are my own.)

 

 

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Goodwill PSAs for Job Creation: Donate Stuff Create Jobs

Goodwill DonateGoodwill recently released new public service announcements highlighting their job creation programs and an emphasis on the direct correlation between homes cleaning out their closets and the jobs the stuff creates.

Here is the fun animated PSA about the program:

You can also access the donation impact calculator which shows you approximately how many jobs you may be creating when you donate your used stuff that to be honest, you really don’t need.

If you don’t know about a store or donation drop near you, you can always check the store locator on the website to find somewhere close or you can call 1- (800) – GOODWILL.

Follow on Twitter: @GoodwillIntl and @GoodwillCapHill, and find goodwill on Facebook: GoodwillIntl.

REMEMBER: Donate stuff – create jobs!

 

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BOOK REVIEW: Office 2013 for Dummies

office for dummiesRecently, I received the book Office 2013 For Dummies
by Wallace Wang for review. I gave it to our office assistant to look over. I didn’t want to offend her by the “dummies” title so I made sure she knew it was for a review.

Office 2013 for Dummies includes chapters on Getting Started with Office 2013, Working with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Access, and additional tips.

What our office assistant found was that some of the information was so basic she already knew it and other information didn’t apply to our office – such as using Outlook or Access. Powerpoint was of interest but at the time she didn’t have a specific reason to use it so it was hard to apply the information but I am giving the book back to her after this review to have as a resource when the need arises.

I guess the title of “dummies” is off-putting when giving it to an employee but the information covers all the basics and with the plethora of “dummies” books out there I would hope that most people don’t take offense but instead use the information the book covers – which is a lot.

Personally, I see keeping the book as a resource for the basic Excel formulas which are incredibly useful when crunching numbers and creating charts for presentations from your information.

This book is also available in the Kindle edition.

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5 Mobile Marketing Tools to Reach Busy Consumers

Mobile MarketingWith 80 percent of customers using their mobile device to shop, a marketing strategy that does not account for mobile is foolish at best and self-sabotaging at worst. More customers comparison shop online, make retail purchases and use their mobile device to review businesses. These decisions affect their brick and mortar shopping habits and follow the businesses they support to receive promotions and deals, which is why mobile marketing initiatives are more vital than ever. Overhaul your mobile strategy and improve your ROI with these five tools.

Red Stamp

Red Stamp lets small businesses build their own set of stationary or use templates and send messages on the go from a mobile device. Red Stamp customers have used the app to send customized thank you’s after pitch meetings, exchange business cards with clients and format real-time convos for sharing on social media networks. With templates for the first day or school, bar mitzvah, congratulations, Memorial Day and everything in between, staying in touch has never been easier. Some companies have used these templates to advertise new or one of a kind products to customers, increasing sales and maintaining top of mind awareness.

Swipely

This app puts customer loyalty cards on smartphones, making the loyalty program more attractive to busy customers who don’t want another plastic card for their wallet. Customers text to join, realizing benefits instantly. Swipely also processes online payments. The customer loyalty application is free to existing Swipely customers and provides a simple way to capture customer email data and market directly to customers.

Address Verification Software

Address verification software checks addresses entered into e-commerce websites and customer signup forms, reducing the amount of bad data entered. Whether entered by mistake or entered purposefully to avoid direct marketing, bad addresses cost you money when you send direct mailings. Enterprise address software automates the error checking process and cuts down on waste.

QR Functionality

QR codes allow on-the-go users to check out your latest promotion, event or product, connect with your business and even convert. To be mobile-friendly, your print messaging, promotional content, brochures and other non-electronic media should include QR codes. Mobile device users can simply scan the QR code to retrieve more information in a manner that’s easy to read on the go. Already digital content, like emails and websites, do not need QR codes because users are online already. However, that print flyer or promotional bookmark would benefit from a QR code and can reinforce your mobile marketing.

Qualaroo

The behavioral insight app has your back when it comes to mobile marketing efforts: Qualaroo for Mobile delivers a mobile survey that can help you craft your mobile website, Red Stamp messages and other mobile marketing messages. Draw on Qualaroo’s library to ask targeted questions such as “what is preventing you from converting right now?” or “what feature is most important to you?” When you understand what visitors do and why they do it, you have a leg up on your competition and can better incentivize customers to convert. The Qualaroo app integrates with KISSmetrics and Google Analytics, delivering actionable insights that can help improve your mobile presence and your market share.

 

Guest Post by Marc Reese

Marc is a young dad and mobile Web designer. When he’s not writing about how technology and business co-exist, he’s teaching his 2-year-old how to shout “YES” during NFL football games.

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