Macon

Pierced or non-pierced ears

Many people have their ears pierced because:

• they cant find earrings with unpierced fittings
• they find clip or screw fittings uncomfortable
• they find pierced earrings more secure.
• they prefer the way it looks.

For most, this works reasonably. Some people wear sleepers (when not wearing earrings) to keep the holes open.

However, some cant manage with piercings, either:

• because the holes heal amazingly quickly, or
• allergies mean that they have a reaction/infection when they are in intimate contact with various metals/finishes
• cannot manage with most pierced fittings as they find them
• dont like pierced ears

Looking at earring fittings

There are an amazing number of ear fittings about, some you see everywhere, some very common in particular areas, some are around but arent always easy to find and some are about as rare as hens teeth!

Options for pierced ears

Very common:

• Fish Hook This is, is made in one piece with a loop at the front with coil and ball, then curves over in a u shape and the long curved tail behind the ear. There are modified versions: Shepherds Crook without the ball or coil, or Balian Hook (wonderful to dance in) which has a longer back wire. These are comfortable so long as the wire is not too thin and the drop is not too heavy. Some versions have a flattened area above the coil. These can be uncomfortable because of the weight is distributed at the top point of the curve, or insecure (badly designed weight-wise) and need a butterfly/scroll/earnut to secure them.
• Ear Posts which come with a butterfly/scroll. These are a straight bar with a ball at the front and usually a loop hanging below the ball. They are considered by their devotees to be more comfortable because they are thicker wire and the weight is evenly distributed across the inside of the ear lobe, and secure because they come with the butterfly.
• Kidney Safety wires come with a loop at the front and a hook that wraps around the straight back wire. Very secure, but still have the pressure point from the weight at the top of the wire.
• Earhoops (which thread through the ear) these are much favoured by many, but can be difficult or painful to thread if the end of the narrower wire is sharp. With the earhoops, particularly the larger ones, as with all big earrings, there is the danger of clothing catching in them, and the earlobes getting ripped.

Less common:

• The Lever Back has a loop at the front with a lever behind it. The whole makes a fat oval shape the back coming down to fit inside the lever behind the ear Not a quick job to put them in very fiddly but a very secure fitting and more comfortable than a fish hook.
• The Creole is a smaller heavier hoop with a thin top loop with a hinge at one side and a groove or hollow to fit into at the other side. A fiddly design to put on, not as comfortable as a Shepherds Crook, but secure when on.
• The Ear chains or Ear threads, which are either: a fine chain, or a chain with a u shaped wire attached to the middle of the chain, or a u shaped wire attached to one end of the chain. All have a straight wire thread attached to one end and a loop to the other end . These thread from the straight end and rest with the u wire, or chain, in the ear, and any drops on the loop. The threading wire can also go through multiple piercings with a bead hung from each piece of looped chain. For balance the drops or beads have to be light, hence the ear chain is comfortable, but a bit of a performance to insert.

Options for ears that are not pierced

For those who want non-pierced fittings it is important to have the fit secure and comfortable. If the adjustment is done properly you can even bellydance in any of these fittings!

• Ear clips are hinged at the base with a loop at the front and an angled back. They come in a variety of forms and sizes.

  With a loop there are light small clips, clips with a small pressure point at both front and back, clips with a narrow pressure point at the front and a wide spread behind, and clips with large pressure points front and back. The comfort of each of these varies dependent on the make, but the softer metal clips can be gently eased or tightened with small pliers to get a comfortable fit. The hard metal clips are fine if immediately comfortable, but a pain (sometimes literally) if difficult or impossible to adjust. Try to discuss this with your retailer, it should be possible to get the clips sorted out. At our website designed for you (http://www.designed-4-you.com) we try to ensure that all clips are comfortable or adjusted for comfort.

  Without a loop are clips with a pad or claw fit for stones or cabochons to be fitted to. These can come in a variety of styles, from plain modern to Victoriana, the former being the common versions to find. The comments above as to fit also apply to these.

• Ear Screws are an u shaped fixed size into which the ear lobe is eased, then the screw is tightened behind the ear until a comfortable fit is found. Finding the comfortable fit takes practise, but is possible.
• Ear screws with a hinge are perhaps the best of the ear fittings for unpierced ears. The hinge is opened to fit the earring, closed then screwed to the best fit. The advantage of this fitting is that to take the earrings off the hinge is opened and the comfortable position is maintained for the next time the earrings are worn. These are as easy as clips to put on, and have the advantage of fine adjustment.

Earring fittings what are they made of?

Many countries, certainly all those in the EU are required to follow the EU Nickel directive which bans nickel from coming into intimate body contact including earrings for pierced ears.

So now, generally earwires and pierced fittings are made from silver or gold plated brass.

• Some are given an antique finish
• Some are coloured gunmetal or antique copper.

For those who have difficulties with brass plated earrings there are other choices:

• Sterling Silver (92.5% Silver),
• Vermeil 24 carat gold plated over Sterling Silver,
• 9 carat Gold (37.5% Gold),
• Rolled Gold - brass and gold pressed and rolled together at high heat,
• Surgical Steel considered hypoallergenic,
• Titanium for those intolerant to metal fittings,

Which can be obtained at reasonable prices (some are only available as Shepherds Crook fittings).

Less common and at more expense:

• 18 carat Gold
• 24 carat Gold
• Pure Silver

can be found, and in some countries gold-filled ear wires are available.

There is usually less choice for non-pierced earring fittings.

Commonly available are:

• Gold and silver plated brass fittings
• Nickel ear fittings (still available for non-pierced ears)
• Sterling silver ear screws can be found at a price
• 9 carat gold ear screws are even more costly
• Sometimes antique silver plated and gold plated brass can be found.

To date we have been unable to find more variety for non-pierced ear fittings but we continue to look.

Conclusion

There is then a reasonable choice in ear fittings, and there are some of us around who try to make that choice available.

Marriage is more than a piece of paper. It confers numerous benefits, such as health, disability and life insurance, pension funds and tax refunds for spouses. Many gay couples desire to marry to be able to share these benefits but have been denied this right. Should gay couples be denied the right to marry?According to some individuals, America is the greatest country in the world. It is supposedly filled with opportunities for everyone, not just financially but an opportunity to live one life as exactly as one wants. This is not true. Everyday, millions of people are denied a right many take for grant. Gay couples in most states cannot marry because it is illegal to marry someone of the same sex and that is not fair.

Marriage is a legal commitment between two consenting adults. It is about sharing, love, trust, and legal status. Two adults who make this private personal choice to form a life-long commitment should not be denied the right to marry just because they are gay or lesbian. It is illegal to discriminate against gay seeking employment, education or housing. Gays keep communities safe as firefighters and police officers, staff hospitals, and pay taxes. Denying gay couples the right to legally marry takes away legal right in employee benefits, government benefits, and other benefits that heterosexual couples enjoy.

A person's sexuality should not be an obstacle to whether he or she wants to marry someone of the same sex. A gay person has the same needs and desires as a heterosexual individual. The only difference is the way he or she has sex. If two individuals fall in love and wants the same economic advantages that marriage offers heterosexual couples, they should not be denied that right based on their sexuality.

Although American society denies the right to marriage to gays, it glorifies heterosexuals who make a mockery out of marriage by marrying and divorcing a succession of partners. This practice is called "Serial Monogamy" and it is sickening and very hypocritical of American society to stand judgment on gays for their lifestyles but sanctions heterosexuals who do not have good judgment or morals. Most people who are opposed to gay marriage often bring up the Bible, saying that the Bible does not condone the gay lifestyle and that marriage is strictly between a man and woman.

However, these same individuals are often involved in extra-marital affairs, are cohabitating without the benefit of marriage or are gay themselves, hiding behind pious words of morality. Gays are just like anyone else and they deserve to partake in the economic advantages that marriage has to offer. Instead of denying the right to marriage to gays, American society should concentrate on fixing the widening economic gap between the wealthy and the poor and figuring out why America and its society is the laughing stock of the world.

Wow! Things sure have changed over the last few years and really decades as to how consumers spend, their loyalty and the ability that advertising drives really can have. In the 1950s studies show that around 66% of shoppers were considered to be loyal and at that time, advertising only had to drive 1 out of every three shoppers. Today with very little loyalty estimated at around only 12% that can be a good thing or bad thing depending on how you are looking at. With those numbers todays advertising drives as much as 7 out of every 8 shoppers. Thats stunning when you stop to think about it. We could go into all of the reasons that todays shoppers differ from the past, but that wouldnt help your next advertising drive.

Focusing on what is and how we can use that to our advantage, lets look at a few ideas that might just jump-start your next radio or TV spot. In some ways it is definitely harder, but in some other ways, its easier for the smaller guy to make an in and grab a percentage of the customer base.

What can you do? What forms of advertising should you use and how much should you be spending on your advertising? Great questions. While Im not sure that anyone can answer most if not all of those questions without knowing your sales history, product and where you would like to see your numbers grow to, we can at least look at some ideas that will definitely improve your next marketing campaign.

Firstly in order to compete in this market you have got to be unique So many shoppers have mentioned that they dont realize where a store is after going by it time after time, because it looks just like every other store within that market. Secondly, your message has got to be rememberable. What are you currently doing in your advertising that creates a connection between you and your customer? Customers do buy out of loyalty, even though the loyalty numbers are significantly different than years gone by.

Remember this point if you remember nothing else 98% of customers buy from who they think of first. Do they think of you first? Great music and production can go miles beyond the average and most of the time in-house voice over and production guy at the radio and cable companies. The in-house production uses low-cost production music that everyone else uses how different and unique are you really going to be not very. We always strive to create productions that everyone can sing and remember and that ultimately will boost your sales numbers. Dont get trapped into thinking that cheap is going to get it because in this economy, it usually doesnt.

Remember that 98% of customers purchase from who they think of first Are they thinking about you and your company?

Mr Gauger is an accomplished TV and radio writer with too many credits to list here. You may contact the author at tgauger@reelmusicianpro.com or 615-300-5030. You may visit the author's website at http://www.reelmusicianpro.com This author works with small business to national brand names.

We have seen the new Mclaren MP4-21 formula one car in testing for a little while now. We knew that Mclaren would deliver a striking car. But now it has been seen in full colours and livery there is only one word for it; stunning, sorry two words, absolutely stunning. The press have dubbed previous Mclaren cars as the silver arrow but the new 2006 MP4-21 car has a sheen that makes the silver almost look like chrome plate. Some of the familiar sponsorship has also gone, with a well know whiskey brand now more prominent, although the official pictures do not yet show any advertising on their rear wings, which are now a striking red colour.

Of course it will take more than a good-looking car to win races and Mclaren have not been short of their technical problems during this winters preparation. It appears that Mercedes who provide the engines for Mclaren have struggled with reliability problems with their new V8 engine and have admitted they are not where they would like to be so near to the start of the season, with the first race in Bahrain. It would not be the first time that Mclaren have suffered reliability problems at the beginning of the season. Just last season reliability problems reduced Kimis points well below what was expected early on, however as the season progressed the Mclaren car, then clearly became the fastest on the grid. Had the reliability been there during the early races, chances are it would not have been Alonso taking the world championship but a silver arrow driver.

One thing you can be certain of is that Mercedes will be working around the clock to iron out these issues and will continue working until the package is competitive or even unbeatable. Alonso the current world champion has already signed for Mclaren for 2007 and will want to beat them this season, but will also be hoping the car is competitive and lessons learnt in time for his showing in 2007. They say beauty is only skin deep, but lets hope in this case the beauty can extend to what is under the car, to give the spectators a season to remember.

Mark is webmaster for Cheap Breakdown Cover Offers and Ultimate Track Racing Days and Direct Line Insurance