Company Fun at the Ballgame

We are just back from a uscity.net company outing! We went to Jackie Robinson stadium in Daytona Beach for a barbecue, ballgame and fireworks afterwards. It was very nice getting together with everyone. The weather was a warm, but we had a little breeze from the river and once the sun went down, it was nice. It was Dr. Carithers’ (who is one of our biggest fans and one of our favorite people) birthday, and we had a birthday cake along with the hot dogs, hamburgers and pulled pork.

And, the best surprise of the night was Koda Crawford, who came walking up (no wheelchair, no cane - just her newly healed hip and her adorable little legs!). Way to go Koda! She was walking slowly but she WAS WALKING!

Her Dad sent us the photo of her super-woman hip!
I enjoyed getting to know Linda better and sitting with Kristina, who is a blast to go anywhere with.

The ballgame was between the minor league Daytona Cubs, who lost and... I can’t remember the name of the other team, but remember that it shared a name with a Florida county (was it the Brevards?). The employees’ kids had fun playing games and entering contests all night long. We really enjoyed the fireworks afterwards, which were longer and bigger and much LOUDER than I expected.

Everyone I have talked to had a great time and are looking forward to getting together again soon.

Migrant Missions

Here's the group after beachfront worship one night

In case you’re wondering why June had so few blog entries, with help from many, I arranged and took the New Smyrna Beach United Church of Christ’s Senior High youth group (Teens in Action) on two mission trips this month.

The first trip was to an area in southwestern Florida called Immokalee, where we helped repair a roof for a very sweet lady whose roof had been damaged in Hurricane Wilma (2005). Her roof had been repaired by a friend, but has been leaking for two years. We were joined by 35 youth from United Church of Christ Churches from all over Florida. She was living in a suburb of Immokalee. The trip into Immokalee was an eye-opener for me; we saw terrible living conditions - the farm- workers were living together in very old, small, sometimes rusting trailers and paying $50 a week each. There were reports of some trailers housing up to 12 men at a time. Some of the workers are documented and some are not. All the workers I talked to were here to work and they are not afraid of hard labor. Almost every one of the single men were working here to send money back home to their families. Hearing their stories was heartbreaking. Most were not aware of what they would find once they got here. Some saved up for years to pay someone to bring them across the border. One lady who had paid to come to America, tells of once getting here, being sold. Some came, went back and then went through proper channels to become citizens. One man I talked with told the story of coming to Florida for a vacation after graduating high school. He was able to attend school because of the money his father was sending home. While visiting his father, he came and worked a week (since that was the only way to spend time with him), went back home – found conditions in his village worse than here and came back.
IMMOKALEE GROUP (MINUS CHRIS AND MARTHA)!
Immokalee is a town that fluctuates between 200 and 1000 residents depending on where the ripened fruits and vegetables are. In Immokalee, farmworkers pick tomatoes, watermelons, citrus fruit, squash, hot peppers and more. It is a very fertile area of Florida, near the Everglades.

And it is HOT! I was so proud of the kids who were up on the roof with no shade and no complaints (and I am talking about teenagers here!). After our first day of work, there was rainstorm that evening and Margarita, the mother, told me that her little girl (going into 3rd grade), got out her Barbie doll and waited for the bowl in the living room to fill up so she could play with Barbie in the pool – she was disappointed but Margarita was ecstatic. It felt good to help someone who was in need. Margarita works at a nursing home and her husband was on the road picking. She has five children, three of them live at home and after work each day, she baby-sits her grandson so her son and daughter-in-law can go to work at night.

We stayed the First Baptist Church in Immokalee and along with some members of the community, staff from area farmworker ministries and staff of the UCC, we spent a day learning about the lives of workers and residents of Immokalee. We saw and heard from people whose children had been born deformed and with disabilities becausethe farms are using pesticides - some that are illegal. We picked oranges off of the ground and tried to lift the bags the workers carry up and down 10-20 foot ladders – very few could lift the “medium” bag which holds up to 90 pounds. The workers who picked the oranges and grapefruit were very proud of their skill at picking the right fruit, knowing how to hold the bags, their strength and their abilities to climb a ladder, pick the fruit and place it in the bins so that they will not get bruised. It was heartbreaking to think of the lack of pride so many Americans have in their jobs and see these people making less than $10,000 a year so proud of their work.

We also visited the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, who has been instrumental in getting big corporations to pay 1 cent more per pound to the farmworkers for tomatoes. The workers have not had a raise in pay in 20 years. With boycotts, letter writing campaigns and meetings with corporations, many big companies have agreed to pay 1½ cents more per pound with 1 cent going to the workers and the ½ cent to the grower to cover taxes. One cent per pound does not sound like a lot, but in most cases, it doubled their income.

We had a community party – complete with piñatas, Spanish beans, rice, chicken, cactus salad (mmm, good) and the most delicious burritos I have ever eaten. About six families attended with the cutest, happiest children in tow. It was here we met families, workers, volunteers and residents of Immokalee. I sat with a man who had been a life long resident of Immokalee, a member of the CIW, a volunteer from AmeriCorps and an undocumented immigrant. We talked with the Spanish speaking through interpreters.
As bad as conditions were here, most of the immigrants I talked to said it was better here than in their villages and back home, where there were no jobs available. I went around the room to ask these people what we could do as Americans for them. And some of the answers I got were: “pray for us”, “vote for immigration reform”, “tell people about us”. I was changed, I had always been aware that we needed to help the immigrants, but was more of a “let’s help the workers who come here legally and send the others back with instructions on how to get here legally”. Not any more! I am convinced after meeting the wonderful people of Immokalee that we are in dire need of a pathway to citizenship or some kind of legal status for the farmworkers. They do not report employee abuses for fear of being deported – and this is not just the undocumented workers who live in fear. Those who are American citizens, fear for their grandparents or parents or friends and are afraid to draw any attention from authorities to their families.

Two blocks from where we stood in a “trailer park” where the men were crammed in like sardines, there had been a conviction of human slavery just two weeks ago. 10 men were chained to their trailers at night and only let loose to pick. And all of this goes on one exit away from Naples, the richest city in America. I asked why people in Naples didn’t help and was told that while there are several from there who are involved with the farmworkers plight, most of Naples wanted Immokalee gone – they wanted the farmlands for developing and expansion for the multi-million dollar homes and stores that are so desperately needed by the richest among us.

On our second mission trip, we went to an area near Ruskin (also in southwestern Florida) called Wimauma. We worked at the Beth-El Farmworkers Mission and La Estanzia Apartments (also called the forgotten community. At Beth-El we dug ditches, landscaped, helped in the food pantry and gave out 275 bags of staples, organized a huge tool shed and painted playgrounds and office buildings. Beth-El is a huge ministry - besides the food pantry, they hold classes on computer use; GED classes; Bible classes in Spanish; sponsor a K-8 school with private funds so that anyone can attend; they ride out to area towns and cities to minister to the migrant communities by bringing food and coffee to the workers who get up at 4:30 a.m. to get the parking lots where the busses come to load workers up and take them to the fields; they provide hot meals, respect and love.

On our last day of work, we held a water party for the children of the La Estanzia Apartments – the kids attend a day care center in the community. This is provided by Redlands Christian Migrant Association. The day care center is staffed by volunteers and most children go home around 1 p.m. We bought two kiddie pools, one with a slide and numerous water guns – we let the kids chase us and get us wet and they were sooo happy. These kids are precious – giggling and running around, hollering "more water, more water”. We worked there last year and it was wonderful to see how some had grown and many had learned to speak better English. We can all be proud of the teens and how they loved, cared for and played with the children.


Lots of Love!

Lots of Hugs!

Lots of Fun!






The second trip was also very spiritual with worship services every night which were put on by college students, complete with contemporary music, personal testimonies and prayer. On the last night, we were asked to throw our earthly burdens in the well and accept the living water of Jesus. These kids are dedicated to making our world a better place and I believe they will! It was very moving and uplifting. I am so proud of all ten of our teens for their hard work, their best behavior and their hearts full of love.

What can we do to help? The problem is so overwhelming that I am not sure – there are so many needs. The few decisions I have made are to honor the boycotts from the CIW, pray for the immigrants, donate money to the organizations that help and definitely find out how the people who I help elect feel about immigration reform.

Successful Surgery!

Come Home Soon!
Hooray!! Koda Crawford's hip surgery was successful this morning. We all wish her a speedy recovery and hope she gets home soon to take care of her new little puppy. Koda is the 12 year old child of Rusty and Mary from uscity.net. We love you Koda!

My Jamaican Cruise

It was that time of the year, my family has caught the cruising bug. That’s right, we had so much fun on the last cruise that we can not go through the entire year without a week on a really big boat. Like the past five or six cruises I have journeyed, this one was no different when it comes to fun and excitement. I truly believe that every experience is about the people you surround yourself with.

The cruise was a Christmas present from my grand-mother (with me in photo to the right) that she gave to everyone in my extended family. We had 20 family members, and like many, my family is loud, kind of “out there”, and crazy; but crazy fun! We had a great time. Everyone got involved in the “Fun Ship” Festivities. We had a representative for every game: Survivor, Fear Factor, the Pool Games, the Staged Trivia Games, etc. I was the proud winner of Survivor (second year in a row)! The games were fun, but that is only part of it.

The food was amazing; I love buffets. Although I was supposed to be accompanied to the gym on a daily basis, it didn’t quite happen. Intentions were good, but were not followed by action.

Also, the cruise ports were fun. We went to the beach in the Grand Cayman Islands, where I did some snorkeling with my dad, uncle and youngest sister. We also five of us rented 15 minutes of the banana boat ride; it was the most pain-filled fun amusement I have ever encountered. Note: If you ever get the chance to ride on of these, know that you will tip over at 20 to 30 mph and when you hit the water, it WILL HURT. It felt as if I had run full speed into a concrete wall.

The Grand Caymans was fabulous but we also stopped in Jamaica. There we decided to do horse-back riding through the cruise line. Thankfully it was booked through the cruise line because otherwise a few of us would still be stuck in Jamaica cleaning up horse poo! Ewwwww! The horses where fun, and although our trip back to the boat was slightly scary. Traffic laws in Jamaica are more like recommendations. The boat had to wait for us to return before leaving, but we booked it out of there once all the passengers were counted for.

USCITY.NET's Mother Daughter Act Having Fun!
Overall the cruise was yet another success. I can not wait until the next. In fact, before departing on the last day, we were talking about the next cruise. Until then, my name is Kristina and cruising is what I do. (;

Back from Blue Spring

I just came back from a wonderful, relaxing, rejuvenating few days at a cabin in Blue Spring State Park. I got to hike in the woods, swim and float down the stream from the spring. And had a really magical moment with my husband at dusk one day after the park closed to day visitors - we were walking down a path in the woods and to our right and left there was what looked like a carpet of blinking lights - almost like fairies playing in the woods. They were fireflies, but none of them were above ankle height.

There were two manatees there who had recently been released from Sea World and did not migrate out of Blue Spring with the rest of the manatees this spring (the manatees stay in blue spring during the cold months until the river water heats up), so the rangers had their hands full keeping people away from them. Rocket and Annie are always together. They are so adorable.


You can see their floating transmitters in the photo above – the rangers are hopeful that people will keep their distance, even though Annie will approach YOU – she loves people and has been in captivity most of her life. Rocket is a little more leery of us humans.

Annie was an orphan picked up in the Halifax River near Port Orange in August 2005. And Rocket was rescued as an orphan from Blue Spring in March 2006. Annie was only 70 pounds at the time. Rocket weighed 170 pounds. After recuperating at Sea World, they were released at the park in February. By that time, they had gained just a bit of weight! Annie was about 1,055 pounds, and Rocket weighed 745 pounds on the day of their release.

We are hoping that Annie and Rocket will survive us humans and maybe join with their own kind next year. And for now, back to work - I hope everyone gets to have a little time off this year to refresh and re-energize!

Happy Days Are Here Again

Lynda and Family

Happy Valentine's Day from Lynda and Family!

Be Kinder Than Necessary

"Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle."

From Sue

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Wishing You Love ... ALWAYS!
From Pam, Carol, Karen and Friends!
(Three of us work here... Can you guess who?!?)

2007 in a Nutshell

Before we start looking back, I would like to explain a little bit about the employees here at uscity.net - we are co-workers, but we are also family – sometimes a slightly dysfunctional family but one that is always bonded by making our directory the best it can be and by trying to help each other. Most of our work-related communication is done through phone calls and emails. Most of us reside in Florida and see each other regularly. Some don’t. One of our employees, Lynda, lives in Michigan and hasn’t met most of us here. She is coming to Florida for a vacation next week and we are all excited about meeting her. I feel as though I already know her, we chat about her kids, her Mom, her grandkids (ESPECIALLY the grandkids – LOL), our health, our families, etc. Oh, yes, we also discuss work…

So, with that said, I would have to say the biggest thing to happen here this year has nothing at all to do with our directory – it was the birth of our second uscity.net baby, Camdyn. You can read about Camdyn’s birth at our Camdyn is Home blog.

And here is a photo of both “our” babies - that's Tiona holding Camdyn.
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Some of what we have done in 2007 includes a lot of behind the scenes stuff, like our innovative programming by Tyson that makes all of our lives easier. Continuous upgrading and adding servers to make us faster, overseen by our network engineer, Bill. Of course, of all of this is done under the direction of Rusty, our fearless leader!

If you received an iPhone as gift, head over to http://www.uscity.net/iphone - our new iPhone interface. All content is being re-formatted to fit your iPhone. New features will be added as they are developed. There are loads of features already working. Free phone number lookup nationwide is available now as well as access to millions of G-rated quality links.


In keeping up with the times, we have added some new categories to our directory. Below is a list of some of the major ones:
Go Green - NLP - Hypnosis - Wiki - Jobs

Besides the Go Green category, we added two more that we hope will help make a difference in the lives of visitors to our site and those they choose to help - Giving and Hospice.

Note that each of these categories is in every state. Our directory is set up for national and local websites, so if you are looking for a business or service that is in a certain state, click on that state directory from our front page.

We did some major re-organizing of our Wellness, Marketing and Health categories too.

One exciting new addition to our directory and one that has proven to be very popular is our new streaming news videos. We also upgraded our weather information page – TWICE!.

Shea created a great new updated front page design, which we carried over to our state pages.

If you would like a little more info on our employees go to one of their blog entires:

A New Look - Spotlight on Shea
Proud of Our Students
Lacey’s A Whole New Life
Delanie Crawford
Kristina’s A Babysitter’s View of Cruising
My View of How We Began

All the people I supervise have made my job as easy as possible and I am very proud of all of them. I thank all of you for your hard work and dedication to uscity.net. I have to add a special thank you to Carol, my assistant – who is a joy to work with and I love her very much! I really don’t know what I would do without her.

There are always so many new things happening around here, we are constantly changing, morphing, keeping up with the times, but these are the things that I believe were the highlights of 2007.

Pam

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Camdyn's First Ever Christmas

Shea's Christmas Card

Merry Christmas from Shea and uscity.net

http://www.uscity.net/xmas07/

What Going Green Means to USCity.Net

USCITY.NET has just added a new category that we hope will help us all. “Go Green” is the new category and it is listed on all of our state pages. I gave the job of researching the category to Carol. She decided on the category name, content and any subcategories we might need. Carol tells me she learned from this and she says: “What I do to go green is recycle, ride my bike to the store, shop on the internet (at uscity.net, of course) and turn off lights and open window to conserve energy.”

After I gave her the project, I sent out an informal survey, mostly to our employees, I asked them “What do you think of when you hear “Go Green” and what does it mean to you?” Here are a few of the answers I received.

From Our Seniors:

Going Green.... for me is beginning the process of eliminating products we use that might be harmful to the elements or to ourselves and our families. It is a little more difficult as a senior to “let go” of all the “tried and true” products that we have used for over a 1/2 century, but we are doing it. Probably the older population will be the “foot draggers” in this new environmentally safe era.

When I think of someone that has “gone green”, I figure the products they use probably don’t work as good as the “non green” but are safer. I know that’s not a good attitude, but it’s honest. I am slowly, “going green”. What it means to me is that the entire world is going to be in agreement on at least one thing, we need to clean things up for our grandchildren and their children!!!

From the Boomers:

When I think of go green I think of how happy I am that I bought my Prius two years ago, long before the gas got to this point. I also think of recycling, which I do and conserving energy in other ways - but definitely the number one thought is my Prius.

I think it means doing stuff instead of owning stuff! And doing stuff without using Earth’s resources – like biking, hiking, swimming.

Solar Power and recycling are the first things that I think of when I hear “go green”. My biggest heartbreak is what we have done to nature, in particular the waters – like the ocean and the lakes and springs and the piney forests (I’m a Florida girl).

I visited Denmark a year ago and it looked like half of their population was riding bikes instead of taking cars. That was going green to me.

From the Young Adults:

From a recent college grad: I think of the green recycling bin that I'm going to have to put out to the road when I move back home. I enjoy recycling items such as the grocery bags at Publix, but when it comes to recycling bottles and boxes at home I don't necessary do it. It is something you forget to do after you live in a dorm, or apartments for a few years.

I think about not buying stuff that has a lot of packaging – even though it makes my life easier – I am using fewer paper plates, napkins and frozen dinners. I am eating more fresh vegetables and fruit and that is healthier too!

I think about how I am riding my bike more and driving less. Going Green to me means hybrid cars, recycling and of course “We have got to save the planet for our children’s children’s children.” (This may have been a little tongue-in-cheek, I am pretty sure he was mimicking me!)

Online Shopping

Before writing this blog, I decided to do an informal survey of why and if people shop online. I say informal, because I emailed friends and family to do this survey. The survey consists of men, women and teens ages 13 to 89. The people that answered the survey come from all walks of life and varied incomes - families, retirees, newlyweds, parents, couples and singles; professionals, blue collar workers and students.

I emailed approximately 60 people and 49 responded.

REASONS TO SHOP ONLINE:

#1 Reason – (no shock to me) – I don’t have to leave home!

#2 Reason – It is easier to compare prices and items, you can compare items from different stores without traveling to each store or calling on the phone. The prices are generally lower than store shopping. A lot of respondents say that sometimes when in the store, they will ‘settle’ just so they can get on with their lives.

#3 Reason – It’s faster – no standing in lines, no traveling, faster checkout. As one new Mom put it “I can take my time to shop rather than be rushed everywhere by my kid or my man”. I can remember times when I had to deal with that too, kids want to got the toy department, teens want to go to electronics, men want to go look at tools or some other department and all I need is some bath towels!!! Shop from home and you are simply shopping for what YOU want.

#4 Reason – You don’t have to deal with grumpy customers and cashiers and pushy salespeople.

#5 Reason – It’s easier to find out information on the products you want. "In the store all you have to go on is the information on the box or - if you are lucky – a salesperson who knows about what they are selling without the pressure of a commission.

One of the retirees said:

I like shopping online because they just don’t send the big catalogs home anymore and I loved shopping like that when my family was younger. Now I go online to Sears.

One of my friends who lives up north said:

Living in the "snow and cold" just sitting in my recliner Christmas Shopping for the family, is "Hog Heaven" for me!! I try to shop smart and combine orders so I often times can get "Free Shipping" if over a certain amount. I also comparison shop and will often times open 3 or 4 screens with different "stores" on each one.

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Out of the 49 people responding, six prefer shopping in the store and their reasons were:

1 - I can’t buy clothes without trying them on.
2 - I like interacting with people at the store.
3 - I don’t like using a computer.
4 - I’ve been burned buying online before.

I must say I am on the side of the 43 who prefer shopping online and agree with all the reasons they gave. However, I am not that picky about clothes and I get plenty of interaction with people in my daily live. I also have NO problem sitting at a computer. Another reason I have that no one else mentioned, was that when I go into a store, I usually come out with more than I went in for, and that makes shopping online much more economical for me.

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Dealing with the last reason for buying in a store, here are some tips to help you have a happy online buying experience:

Do your homework on the website you are thinking about purchasing from. Make sure it is a legitimate business, one you know of. It’s not a good idea to buy from a business that does not provide contact information and I like seeing a physical address. One exception to that, for me, is Amazon.com – I have dealt with them for years and have had very good experiences with them.

Make sure the website is secure – look for “https:” at the beginning of the URL or look for the little padlock icon that symbolizes (but doesn’t guarantee) a higher level of security.

Be VERY CAREFUL if you are responding to an offer coming from an unsolicited email or do like I do, and ignore them ALL.

Also, make sure your computer has a firewall and the latest anti-virus software. And NEVER, EVER open unknown e-mail attachments, including those contained in what appears to be a company you do business with.

If you think you have been scammed, you can go online and file a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center run by the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center. You can also file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and contact your local police. I would also file a complaint directly with the company you did business with.

Since part of our business here at uscity.net is online shopping, we want everyone to have a safe and happy shopping experience. If anyone has any other ideas to make our online shopping safer or happier, just leave us a comment below.

Happy Thanksgiving

Today is a day to share food with friends and family, and to find ways for sharing our love, friendship and food with those around us.

We should remember that food did not just magically appear and gives thanks for the farmers and farm workers who plant and harvest, and for the workers who package, transport and sell it to us.

Food and the sharing of food is the work of many people. Today, before we eat, we should think of new ways to share our prosperity with all who labor. We need to be a people of sharing and thanksgiving everyday.

peace, love and blessings!
pam

Happy Thanksgiving

We wish all of you a wonderful Thanksgiving. Remember to be thankful and eenjoy those you are close to. Always remember, we have No Day But Today!

Namaste and lots of love to you all from Mary and Rusty!

Proud of Our Students

USCITY.NET is proud of our college students and we are very supportive of their education. We are happy to be able to work around their school schedules and wish all of them the best of luck. Here is a little bit about them and their schoolwork:

LACEY in her own words:
Currently, I am attending DBCC and enrolled half-time just taking prerequisites. This semester is almost over but I'm taking Psychology and Art Appreciation. Next semester I'm taking Intro to Health and Oral Communications. I intentionally wanted to pursue a degree in radiography to be an x-ray tech, which is still my ultimate goal, but due to some circumstances, that is put on hold for right now. I was supposed to start the program in January; however they only accept 10 students each year. The program required 40 hours of school a week for 2 1/2 years, with some odd hours, and I'm definitely not ready to put my 14-month-old in daycare.



Tiona

Luckily right now I can work online (thanks to uscity.net) and do most of my school online also, which I'm enjoying each day while it lasts. So in turn, I changed my degree temporarily so I can get a career under my belt and be in a position to support my daughter and I. I applied for the dental assistant program, which starts in June and only lasts 10 months. I figure that I'll stay in the dental field for a little while and who knows, maybe I'll really like that and go on to pursue a degree to be a hygienist. But if not, then I can always go back to be an x-ray tech. I'm still young and I have plenty of time to experience and chose the best career path. A main thing to keep in mind is trying to think of something to keep my family financially stable.

DAVID:
David is studying "Digital Media & Graphic - Design" and next semester will be taking Web Design I, Typography, and Graphic Design Studio I & II. David says, “Hopefully when done with school, I can find a good designer job somewhere, and maybe someday run my own legit Graphic/Web/Media design studio.”

WADE:
Wade is taking general classes and working towards and AA degree at the Daytona Beach Community College. He’s not sure what he wants to do, but knows that a college degree will be helpful, if not necessary in his life. Wade is hoping that something will “grab him” while in college and he can steer his college education in that direction. Wade adds: “Too bad there is no Doctorate in Surfing…”


Wade Surfing

KRISTINA:
I am a recent graduate of Florida State University with a degree in Exercise Physiology. Even after graduation, I am still taking classes at FSU: Biochemistry and Organic Chemistry Lab, in preparation for medical school. It would be ideal for me to matriculate into a medical school beginning in 2008, but it is a competitive field, and so I may have to take a year off. In the mean time, I continue to work part time with Uscity.net, and volunteer in a medical setting.

Last January, I was offered the opportunity to get training and certification as a medical assistant; I will complete the class in less than a month in December. If I am unable to get into medical school for the 2008 year, I hope to get a part-time job as a medical assistant. I triage patients meaning I take their weight, blood pressure, heart rate, respirations, and get their reasons for their visit; I love interacting with patients. I also give immunizations, and injections, EKG’s, call patients, and anything else the doctor may require. It’s good experience toward the medical field and the career I ultimately want to have.

Happy Veterans Day

We, here at uscity.net want to wish all veterans, veterans' families, loved ones, those who pray for them, those who send letters and packages to them and everyone who keep them in their thoughts a HAPPY VETERANS DAY!

The guys and gals who serve our country do not do it for the medals or the glory and they choose to serve (unlike some other countries around the world). The do their job to the best of their ability they are all heroes.

To all our veterans from whatever era, thank you for your service and we wish you a Happy Veterans Day!

Here is some military humor sent to me by a colleague that I hope will bring a smile to your faces!

Never forget that your weapon was made by the lowest bidder.

The enemy invariably attacks on two occasions:
a. When they're ready.
b. When you're not.

If at first you don't succeed, then bomb disposal probably isn't for you.

"Aim towards the Enemy" — instruction printed on US rocket launcher.

When the pin is pulled, Mr. Grenade is no longer our friend.

Cluster bombing from B-52s is very, very accurate. The bombs always hit the ground.

If your attack is going too well, you are walking into an ambush.

We hope you enjoy your day!

Halloween Bumble Bee

Lacey's daughter, Tiona - Halloween 2007

Hit This Like

All of our employees have a great sense of humor and some are very creative - one of the creative ones is our Lead Graphic Artist. Shea and his buddies, Danny and John are launching a new TV show “Hit This Like”. Click here - http://hitthislike.com/ to take a peek at some funny video and see why you should NEVER, EVER TAPE BREAD TO YOUR DOOR!!

Happy Halloween!

We here at uscity.net wish all of you a very Happy Halloween. Here are some tips for making tonight a treat for all of us:

If you are driving:
1. Watch for children darting out from between parked cars.
2. Watch for children walking on roadways, medians and curbs.
3. Enter and exit driveways and alleys carefully.
4. At twilight and later in the evening, watch for children in dark clothing.

If you are a parent or guardian:
1. Make sure that an adult or an older responsible youth will be supervising the outing for children under age 12.
2. Plan and discuss the route trick-or-treaters intend to follow. Know the names of older children's companions.
3. Instruct your children to travel only in familiar areas and along an established route.
4. Teach your children to stop only at houses or apartment buildings that are well-lit and never to enter a stranger's home.
5. Establish a return time.
6. Tell your youngsters not to eat any treat until they return home.
7. Review all appropriate trick-or-treat safety precautions, including pedestrian/traffic safety rules.
8. Pin a slip of paper with the child's name, address and phone number inside a pocket in case the youngster gets separated from the group.

The Costume:
1. Costumes should be loose so warm clothes can be worn underneath.
2. Costumes should not be so long that they are a tripping hazard. (Falls are the leading cause of unintentional injuries on Halloween.)
3. If children are allowed out after dark, outfits should be made with light colored materials. Strips of retroreflective tape should be used to make children visible.
4. Face Design Masks can obstruct a child's vision. Use facial make-up instead.
5. When buying special Halloween makeup, check for packages containing ingredients that are labeled "Made with U.S. Approved Color Additives," "Laboratory Tested," Meets Federal Standards for Cosmetics," or "Non-Toxic." Follow manufacturer's instruction for application.
6. If masks are worn, they should have nose and mouth openings and large eye holes.
7. Accessories Knives, swords and other accessories should be made from cardboard or flexible materials. Do not allow children to carry sharp objects.
8. Bags or sacks carried by youngsters should be light-colored or trimmed with retro-reflective tape if children are allowed out after dark.
9. Carrying flashlights will help children see better and be seen more clearly.


What the kids should know:
1. Do not enter homes or apartments without adult supervision.
2. Walk, do not run, from house to house. Do not cross yards and lawns where unseen objects or the uneven terrain can present tripping hazards.
3. Walk on sidewalks, not in the street.
4. Walk on the left side of the road, facing traffic if there are no sidewalks.

Before and After:
1. Give children an early meal before going out.
2. Insist that treats be brought home for inspection before anything is eaten.
3. Wash fruit and slice into small pieces.
4. When in doubt, throw it out.

BOO!

Our Babies...

Tiona Holding Camdyn

Camdyn is Home!!

We have a new baby!! After a much anticipated arrival and a little later than planned, Camdyn Michael Crawford-Irvine made his debut Sunday, October 14 at 8:23 p.m. Camdyn weighed 8 lbs, 15 ounces and was 20 inches long. He had a huge crowd there to meet him, including Mom (Delanie), Dad (Colin), Gamma (Mary), Gampa (Rusty), Mimi, Papa, Aunt Koda, Aunt Kyra, Uncle Shea and Cousin Jackie Lee. First time Gamma tells us that he was very aware and quite awake as soon as he made his arrival. And she might have mentioned once or twice that he was BEAUTIFUL too!

Camdyn got to come home on Tuesday afternoon to his new home with Mom, Dad and Baby-Dog. Everyone is doing great and we are all very happy for the entire family. Rusty, Mary and Delanie are all part of our family here at uscity.net, and so all her honorary aunts and uncles here are just as pleased as could be.

Our other”uscity.net baby” - Tiona - just turned one year old recently. Perhaps we can have one every year!!

Personal note to the Crawford-Irvine family: I am so happy for you all, sending you blessings, peace and love and I can’t wait to see Camdyn in person.

Here is a poem I have had tucked away for a few years, not sure who wrote it but I think it’s appropriate for today:

Babies are Angels that fly to the earth,

their wings disappear at the time of their birth

one look in their eyes and we're never the same

they're part of us now and that part has a name

that part is your heart and a bond that won't sever

our Babies are Angels, we love them forever.

Love to all,
Pam

Upgrading USCITY.NET Servers and Security

We have completed our server upgrades to make our site work even faster. According to an international statistics site, we are “VERY FAST” – in the top 5% of internet sites for loading time. We often get positive feedback about our speed. That goes along with our motto: “Find What You Are Looking For – Fast and Easy!”

And now we are faster than ever - thanks to our networking/programming departments, and of course, Rusty (our resident genius)!

Updating our security measures is an ongoing process here at uscity.net.

Why we need to continually upgrade our security measures is something that has always bugged me. I supposed that we were trying to stop people from hacking us. So, I went online to find out why people do this. A few things I found out were that the way I was using the word “hacking” and the meaning of hacker is different. The main definition for hacker (in a computer related sense) is: “Computer Slang. a. a computer enthusiast. - b. a microcomputer user who attempts to gain unauthorized access to proprietary computer systems.” [dictionary.com]

I also found out that the ‘good’ hackers call these other people crackers. I guess because they try to crack the code to get into another person’s computer.

What irks me, besides taking up valuable time from people who are trying to make a living, enhance people’s internet experiences, etc. is this: if you are smart enough to hack into a system, why not just get a job programming or networking, do something worthwhile and get paid for it?!?

Well, that’s my rant for now!

Our wish is for everyone who uses uscity.net to have a good experience and we want you to let us know how we can make your use of our directory better. If you ever have any comments or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to let us know. Just leave us a comment below.

Our reciprocal link program is doing very well and we have also upgraded our sign up system to make it easier for everyone. We really do want our site to be faster and easier for everyone. These are not hollow words like some company mottos.

We hope you will find our site easier and faster to use now.

Have a great day all!

Pam
USCITY.NET

Server Upgrades

As we strive to keep up with our growth and make everyone’s experience with USCITY.NET easier and faster, server and cluster upgrades are needed periodically. Our recent upgrades may have brought about some technical issues that possibly caused your listing to be accidentally delayed or incorrect i.e. no city listed.

Please manually check (it must be manually checked, because automated queries are not allowed) your listing(s) for accuracy and let us know – contact@uscity.net – if you have any corrections to make. If you cannot find your link, please resubmit your listing.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused to anyone.

- From the entire USCITY.NET Team

Delanie Crawford

Hi Everyone! Well, my Dad (and my boss) and Aunt Pam (another employee) came up with the idea that I will be doing blogs about everything that has being going on, and that is going on, here at Uscity.net headquarters. For those out there reading this who do not know me, I'm Delanie Crawford, Mary and Rusty Crawford’s eldest daughter.

The biggest news in my life is that I have recently found out that by the end of this year I am going to be a mommy. YAY! So that makes two young employees for this company with little ones. No offense to the other mommy's though.

Like Lacey once blogged about, we used to be neighbors, and her mom has always worked with us and for us. But back then, we could have NEVER imagined that what was once just a dream would become such a hit. And I give high congrats to my father for being such a genius. Anyways, back to the blogging project. My most recent success and goal was the "State Info" Pages. Soo below is a little update about what went on with that: As you all know, Uscity.net hosts the 50 states, and all the information you could ever need to know about them. If you’ve never taken the chance to look, each state has a "State Info" page, telling you about capitals, state icons, annual weather, and so on. Since it was time to update all the information, we decided to also make the pages more attractive. My Dad made a template for me to work with, so that what I did was go into each state, add all the information, and make sure each state had an updated seal. Doesn't sound like much, but boy it was more than you could have imagined. It would probably take a regular employee a couple days to do it, but since I am new to this, it dragged on. I finally finished after running to the bathroom maybe 100 times (I have BAD morning/night sickness), going dizzy from looking at the screen for too long, and getting side tracked by all the things my little sisters wanted me to do for them (like science projects and taking them to the movies).

But now the new state informational pages are done and you can access information for each state on population, size, the day it was admitted to the USA, whether it was the 21st state to be admitted or the 50th, major cities, and updated weather. For instance, did you know that Alaska is the largest state? Or that Colorado is bigger then Florida? Even though Florida's population is almost three times the amount of Colorado's population? Well hey, now on the page you can find that all out! Sooo, make sure you go and check it out. Just click on the state of choice, when the directory comes up look for the link "state info", click and Voila - there you have it!



Love to All,


Delanie

A Whole New Life ...

My name is Lacey and I'm attending DBCC. I am majoring in radiography, so by the time I'm 22 I will have my career in the palm of my hand. I'm a new, proud mommy of a five month old baby girl, Tiona! She is my pride and joy and the most beautiful thing in this world, and of course my whole life revolves around her now. I only want the best for her, even though in this world these days, that's going to be pretty hard, but I'm am going to try my absolute hardest. When she was three months old I tried to go back to work at a local pizza parlor, I like to waitress and it is good money. Since I'm breastfeeding, it didn't work out; she couldn't be away from me for that long and would NOT take a bottle. So within the first week I had to quit. I needed some kind of work so I turned to Rusty and Mary Crawford, hoping they could give me something. And they did! I currently work with USCity.net, thankfully, which is the most PERFECT job for me. I can make my own schedule around my daughter and school, and it's fun, educational and entertaining.

I get to surf the web and look for helpful sites, check sites for accuracy and make sure we are the best directory we possibly can be. I'm also the Volusia.com calendar administrator which lists information on daily activities in our county. I also get to do other interesting jobs that pop up from time to time. I work 30 hours a week, go to school three days and two nights, and just being a full time mommy for now! Which is the best of the best. So I definitely stay busy all the time.

It's ironic how it all started though... The Crawfords lived two houses away from me for many years. I grew up playing with their four kids; Shea, Delanie, Kyra and Koda. Meanwhile, my mother was working for them. I was too young then to understand what she was doing, and little did I know I would be working for them when I got older too. I think it's pretty cool how the site works... so much information and helpful links, like the phone number lookups on the front page (it is so much easier to use than a bulky printed one), and the weather information. I think it is cool that my Mom was there from the beginning and now I am working for them.

And, FINALLY, we are now buying a house (my boyfriend and I that is). After renting for a year and a half, we can actually call the place our home. It's a very nice house with my absolute dream kitchen! So we'll officially be starting our real family journey together.

My life has completely evolved into something entirely "new", and only for the better, and I'm so thankful for everyone that has helped me get to where I am now.

Happy New Year!

Blogging... Retirement... Friends... Me...

I have to admit I am a total "dunce" when it comes to the "blog thing". I want to learn and I will, but right now I really don't know what I'm doing!!! So I will just do some "blah blah" and see where it goes from here.

Every morning when I get out of bed, I slide the window open, no matter how cold it is, and take a deep breath to see what the day is going to smell like. I immediately feel grateful for my good health (just the fact alone that I am able to breath is wonderful!!) and the beauty of nature. I started this routine without even realizing it and as I have grown older I have become much more aware of how lucky I am to have all that I have. To many folks it would seem like not much, I'm not rich, or beautiful or shapley or brilliant. But I am soooo lucky to have myself as my own best friend. I take the best care of myself that I can, I pat myself on the back when I do good and yell at myself (very gently and in private, that is) when I don't do so good. I watch for danger for myself as well as those around me, I try to take care of people that seem to need me to take care of them, I try to help those that need some help and respect the privacy of those that don't.

When I began my "so called" retirement several years ago, I felt like I had given all that was necessary to the world out there. I was ready for a rest!!! Then I found myself trying to find ways to make a little extra $$. I worked on Ebay, I crocheted and sold my works, always trying to make a little extra. My son put me in touch with a friend of our family and from there it's history. I work for a great group of folks who have organized themselves into an outstanding "National Internet Business Directory" called USCity.net and it's been history for me!!! Keeps me current and got me to the "blog place" too.

I don't do politics. I hate arguing and put the TV on mute if someone starts. I make my own decisions about who is right and who is full of it, and try not to push those opinions on those around me.

Road Rage scares me, infuriates me and disgusts me. To me it's the easiest way to get killed, either by crashing or sending your blood pressure off the charts.

I fell in "one sided" love a couple of times in my life. You know the kind where you can't eat or else you’re eating the wallpaper off the walls!!! Both of them turned out very bad. One of them I married, the other I didn't. I will never fall in love like that again. Very painful.

I love my "quiet time", my "alone time" and my "private time". I'm very protective of it and cannot help my irritation when it's disturbed, especially when I have been doing way more than necessary for the people around me. I like my own company, probably more than I should.

Friends. Wow, have I had some friends/pals/buds/sisters in my life!!! I could tell you stories that would make you think that we probably should all be institutionalized. My friends have been the one true joy in my life that rarely ever failed me. Years later, even though we have parted ways and live in different places, when we talk we laugh. Always a "belly laugh", always!!! Always a shoulder to cry on, and an ear to bend, someone who understands!! My gal pals have, many times, been a life line for me while I was going through the labors of living.

Some time I would like to write about being a parent. It won't be "gushy" and "wonderous", but it will be factual and very scary. It's been many years and it still scares me to death!!!! I'd also like to write about my mom. How she helped to bury her son. How strong she is, even though she would like the world to think she is totally helpless!! I'd love to write about my grandson too, but that would definitely bore anyone and everyone, as he is wonderful, perfect, handsome, brilliant, blah blah blah!!!

So it goes for now!!!
Hugs, Lynda

Be Thankful You Can Make A Difference

Hi Happy Thankgiving to everyone from

all of us here at uscity.net!

I am getting excited about having a lot of my family around me tomorrow. My son works at a restaurant, so he will be working a double shift and one each - niece and nephew - will be working at Disney. But I should be surrounded by lots of love and fun. My sister-in-law and nieces and nephews on my hubby's side are busy taking care of my newest grand-niece, "Cami" a beautiful, dark haired beauty who arrived yesterday! So they will be staying 'down south' this year.

Just wanted to share some "thankfulness thoughts" with you all.

I am thankful for all the love I have in my life - from family, friends and people I don't even know.

If you haven't said "I love you" to someone today, do it! (If you have... do it again!)

I am thankful that I CAN make a difference - and so can YOU.

Not only that but you have an obligation to make that difference, even if it as simple as volunteering once a month or smiling at someone lonely.

I am thankful for leaders who can remain focused with their eyes on social justice; those who motivate people and orchestrate programs to help others less fortunate than ourselves.

Let somone who motivates you know they are appreciated.

I am thankful for everyone who has helpled me in trying times and for those that have led me in the right direction.

Thank someone special in your life.

I am thankful that, unlike most of the people of the world, I have so much: a safe place to sleep at night, a car to drive, all the modern conveniences such as refrigerators, stoves, air conditioning, access to health care, computers, sound systems - things that we often take for granted.

Stop for a minute and think about all the people all over the world that do not have these things.

Traditionally, Thanksgiving is a day in which we gather to reflect on our bountiful blessings.

This year, perhaps we should begin the celebration by reflecting on those things that might not be so obvious because, ironically, they are sometimes too obvious to see.

Love to all,
Pam

USCity.net Employee Blogger Returns

OK – Yeah I know I have been very negligent in keeping my blog up and apparently from what I have seen, good bloggers blog at least once a week and some of them do it every day. So I am not the best blogger in the world, but here are my reasons (read ‘excuses’): I work 40+ hours a week. I am on the Community Thanksgiving Committee. I am helping to try and start a homeless coalition in our area. I run a youth group that meets once a week and does community service and fundraisers on weekends. I am married with child. I help with the care of my mom (Doctor’s appointments, banking, etc.) and my mother-in-law. I teach Sunday School... well, you get the idea.

My boss just sent me a link to another blog that mentioned uscity.net, and I am not sure but I think it was a subtle hint. Like “where are the blogs you were going to do every week?” He is too nice to come right and say “You dropped the ball” but I did. And I apologize. ‘My bad’ as my 18 year old son would say. Of course, I have also asked other employees to help out – but so far only two have responded! (not so subtle hint to Mary, Rusty, Carol and Sue!)

So what has been going on around here and in my life for the last month, you want to know?!? Right?

At USCITY.NET things are going along pretty much as usual, we are working right now on weeding out some dead and nearly dead links. We have added some great new categories:

Camcorder - Career:Training - DSL - Loans:Student

- MP3 Players - Special Event -

Our reciprocal program has really taken off and keeping Kristina busy. We seem to be on an uphill swing as far as new signups are concerned, so our marketing department is happy.

Also, I just got back from a WOW (Women On Waves) cruise with some of my friends to celebrate my fiftieth birthday! More about that later...

I would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving, too!