Taylor Swift Grows Up Just Slightly On “Mine”

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That’s the motto almost everybody’s favorite country-crossover darling, Taylor Swift, is following on her new single, “Mine.”

The layout is of the guitar-kissed tune is pretty much the same as all of the songs that made Swift a Grammy-winning superstar — starts calmly  and amps up (as much as a country song can get amped) as the story about boy meeting girl and girl going gaga progresses — but her lyrics strike a somewhat more mature note. The relationship she sings about isn’t just a crush and puppy love. Taylor dives into an adult relationship, mentioning “we’ve got bills to pay” and she’s got trust issues stemming from the mess her parents made of their relationship. But the country princess has found her prince, as she sings “you’re the best thing that’s ever been mine.”

For more information see Taylor Swift Grows Up Just Slightly on Mine by JT 

Building Your Contact List with LinkedIn

A Rolodex on steroids. To me, that’s the essence and impact of LinkedIn.com, a business-oriented social networking site that connects professionals to more than 75 million affluent, ambitious and influential fellow professionals around Columbia and around the world.
LinkedIn gives you a way to maintain a contact list of people you know and trust in business. You can then use those connections to build a network by getting introduced to people your contacts know and trust.
Don’t let the term “social networking” scare you off. Designed specifically for business, this site is, well, more “businesslike” than its more well-known cousin, Facebook. It allows you to keep your personal and business lives separate in a way that many users appreciate.

HOW LINKEDIN WORKS

LinkedIn is built around the concept of connections — people you know (your direct connections), the people your connections know (called second-degree connections) and the people your second-degree connections know (third-degree connections). You make connections to people you don’t already know by requesting introductions from someone you do know. This “gate-access” approach is intended to build trust.
If you’ve ever participated in a business networking group such as BNI or the Show Me Business Network, you’ll grasp the concept that a referral from someone you know and respect is much more valuable than a cold lead.
LinkedIn offers several levels of membership: Free, Business ($24.95/month), Business Plus ($49.95/month) and Executive ($99.95/month). The premium accounts allow you to make more direct contacts (InMail), see more profiles, do more in-depth searches and organize profiles and notes within LinkedIn itself. You can do a lot with the free version though, so I don’t suggest upgrading until you’re sure you’ll use it.

LINKEDIN FEATURES

LinkedIn allows you to define yourself to other professionals — to manage information that’s publicly available about your work and accomplishments. You can find and be introduced to potential clients and partners, service providers and even headhunters at competing companies.
Members create profiles (mini-resumes) that highlight work history, education, accomplishments, etc. You can add recommendations from others to your profile page, upload your blog to it and post status updates.
The ability to search profiles — and actually see enough information to figure out whether it’s Bob Smith from Microsoft or Bob Smith from Smith Taxidermy — is quite comprehensive. You can filter searches by geography, company, profession, status, company size, industry and many more criteria (some require premium membership).
In addition to your profile, you can use LinkedIn to ask and answer questions. These questions are asked by people in your extended network, and participating in these exchanges is a great way to gain trust and build your reputation.
You can further refine the people you connect with by joining and creating groups. For example, there are groups for Missouri lawyers, Mizzou spirit and a group for the Columbia Chamber of Commerce.
LinkedIn also is a godsend to job seekers; you can post job openings and search for jobs by job title, keywords or company name. (Hmmm, this one’s interesting — I could own a Sears store!).

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Deja Vu for Perdue's Robbie Hummel - Out for the 2010-2011 Season

Robbie Hummel, Purdue star forward, will miss the upcoming season after injuring his right knee again.

In practice on Saturday he tore his anterior cruciate ligament. This is the same knee he hurt against Minnesota on Feb 24 that knocked him out for the rest of last season. He had surgery in March and was hopeful that he would be ready for his senior season.

This is the second time in 2010 that Hummel has suffered a torn ACL. Hummel has been one of the best players in the Big Ten while healthy throughout his collegiate career, but the senior has suffered a rash of injuries that have limited his playing time.

Hummel is Purdue's most versatile player.He averaged 15.7 points and 6.9 rebounds a game last season. The Boilermakers were ranked No. 3 in the nation when he was hurt. They struggled at first without him before recovering to reach the round of 16 in the NCAA tournament.

The Boilermakers had defensive stopper Chris Kramer on that team, too. Kramer was a senior, so now the Boilers have to replace two of the most important pieces of last season’s title contender.

“When I heard it this morning, it brought tears to my eyes,’’ said Minnesota coach Tubby Smith. “He tore up his knee here last year. He’s such a sweet kid, a special young man. He’s got so much going for him. I just feel bad for him and his teammates. Purdue was as good a team as any in the country.’’

The Boilermakers had the total package to compete for the title with Hummel.

“They had JaJuan who could block shots, E’Twaun Moore as good a perimeter player as anyone and Robbie Hummel, who was like the kid [Butler’s Gordon] Hayward,’’ Smith said. “I thought he was better than the kid from Butler.’’

Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, who chairs the USA Basketball junior national teams,had selected Hummel to the World University Games team that won a bronze medal in July 2009. The team was coached by Wisconsin’s Bo Ryan. Naturally, the reaction from Boeheim and Ryan was similar to Smith’s.

“It’s such a horrific thing because that kid has worked so hard to get back,’’ Boeheim said. “Obviously I feel bad for Purdue, but it’s devastating for the kid. He is a tremendous player, an all-American that could be a first-team all-American. Purdue is a preseason top four or five team. He played for his country and for this to happen to him two years in a row is just an awful thing. It’s hard to describe.’’

Boeheim said Hummel made the Boilermakers a national title contender.

“In a second, things change,’’ Boeheim said. “We lost a key guy before the tournament [Arinze Onuaku] and so did Purdue [with Hummel], so who knows what would have happened for us and for them if we were healthy. I feel bad for him because it’s so hard to come back from that. It’s a tough surgery and then six to seven months of tough rehab.’’

Ryan echoed those thoughts.

“He has done all the right things and it just goes to show how unfair things are at times,’’ he said. “If anybody though can handle the adversity it is him. He’s such a tough-minded young man. He loves the game so much. He’s been good to the game.’’

Wisconsin, like the Gophers, will benefit from Hummel’s absence in the Big Ten race. Michigan State will now be the clear front-runner for the Big Ten title with Ohio State, Illinois in contention while Purdue, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Northwestern possibly compete for a top-five finish.


Even without Hummel, Purdue is one of a number of teams that could win the national title and no one should discount the Boilermakers’ chances.