Writing Introductions That Increase Views of Articles and Blogs

Here is an article that focuses on creating an introduction that will captivate viewers.  This article talks about key phrases, key words, teasers, sentences, length of introduction, quotations, SEO, etc. Although the article is focused on introductions to articles published on Yahoo, the same techniques can be applied to an introduction to a blog.

The title of the article is 'Essentials For Writing Stronger Introductions.'  It was written and published by a free lance writer Sabah Karimi.

http://contributor.yahoo.com/blogpost/115/guest_post_essentials_for_writing_stronger.html

Pennsylvania Sued For Axing Low Income Health Plan

Issues like this one will become more prevalent in the near future.   States cutting health coverage for our poor will become a common trend.

I hope the three affected residents win the law suit against the state of Pennsylvania and the adultBasic insurance is restored. And I hope all politicians involved in this shameful act of depriving over 40,000 poor people of health insurance are voted out of public office.  For details, click on the link at the bottom of this blog.

Governor Tom Corbett is a member of the Republican Party. The Republican politicians advocate the unthinkable act of cutting off our poor from health care.

If Romney is able to implement his plan to turn Medicare coverage over to the states,  there will be many drastic cuts in Medicare leaving our poor in a lurch.  Many families will have to give up a significant part of their income so that their elderly can be cared for at home instead of in a nursing home. The cost of such care will be prohibitive and will eat up the family's savings and home. 

Instead of placing the blame where it belongs (reducing government funds while increasing spending), the Republicans choose to lay the complete burden of the debt on our poor.

Republicans claim it is the responsibility of charity organizations and religious organizations to care for our poor when they know full well that these organizations do not have the resources to provide health care for our poor.  

Yes, they are our poor. Our nation is a nation of all people, by all people and for all people. That includes our poor.  It's sad that the Republicans are not for all the people.

http://newsandinsight.thomsonreuters.com/Legal/News/2011/03_-_March/Pennsylvania_sued_for_axing_low-income_health_plan/

Confessions of a Nintendo Hand Held Video Game Player

I originally published on Yahoo Contributor Network under my pen name John Mario. The article was authored by my wife Joyce and is re-published here with her explicit permission.

I have owned a Nintendo hand held gaming console since the first Game Boy was introduced to the USA market sometime in the late 80s. It had a small black and grey screen with no backlight and could only be played under a good table light or really bright over head lights. It played games that were on 2 x3 inch cartridges and there were lots of them to play. I loved it.

My next upgrade was to trade in my black and grey screened Game Boy for the much improved Game Boy Color and the Colors were grand; but still no back light. The same restrictions existed on game play under a light or play in under bright over head lights. Lots of new games and backward compatibility to the old black and grey screen games made me love this one even more.

When the Game Boy Advance came out with new smaller game cartridges and still had backward compatibility to the Older Game Boy color games and the even older grey screen Game Boy games, I had to have one! I was nearly in heaven. Almost! It had no back light but it nearly did everything else. . They sold over the screen lights for all of the older Game Boys but they gave only a slight advantage since they glared on the screen and could very well give you a headache.

Not too long after the GBA came out rumors of a new Hand held console leaked out; a hand held with a back light and it would be a flip open and closed game system making it look a bit like a computer with the screen that stood up and the control pad in your hand: The Game Boy SP. I ran out and got my new GAMEBOY SP, hot off the shelf the day after it came out. It came with color, a back light and loads of games. It had back ward compatibility so all my old games worked and the backlight that made it possible to play even in a dimly lit car seat or anywhere else. OH JOY! I actually thought I had hit hand held gamming Nirvana. I played this system for literally years and loved every heart pounding, backlit game I could find. I thought it could not get better. I was of course wrong. When the Nintendo DS came out, I was at first flabbergasted! Could it actually be better than my beloved SP? It did still have some measure of backward compatibility because it could still play the GBA smaller cartridges (but not the still older larger GB or GBC cartridges.) I was a bit let down but then again I could always keep my beloved SP for those.

The DS was a wonder! It had backward compatibility and the great new DS games that came on little SD size chips. WOW! The new DS chips had even better graphics then the old GBA carts and were even easier to store. The back light was now on a larger better colored double gamming screen. Would there be no end to technical advancements? The double screen made hand held gaming something totally different than before. Was this the best there would ever be? No not quite!

Next came the DS lite a smaller console with an even larger screen. Would wonders never cease? NOPE!!!!!

Let me tell you when the DSI came out, I was floored. It had a camera. It could go online. It could do so much more than the DS lite. But I resisted because even the DS Lite still had backward compatibility to the older Game Boy advance cartridges. The DSI was a disappointment to me. I could not use my older cartridge games, only DS chips. Even though DSI screen was larger, I held out!

Finally Nintendo must have known I was holding out and added one I could not pass up. Even if it could not play my older games, the DSI XL now had absolutely 'huge' screens, two cameras and easy access to WIFI. That convinced me. I rebought a used SP for my older games. I put my 149.99 on the counter and purchased a DSI XL from my local game shop. I immediately started downloading games off the internet. I now own only one DS chip game: Animal Crossing Wild World. I eventually sold my newly acquired used SP and all my cartridge games. Can you believe that? Now I only download my games.

Yes after all that Nintendo cartridge madness I sold my beloved SP and all its games and nary shed a tear. How could that be? I had owned my newly acquired SP for less than 2 weeks after I got my XL. 'Why?' you ask. I wanted more download games from the DSI Shop online. Also, downloading games makes each game less than half the cost of chip games. A bargain I could not resist.

I am now hooked on downloads and playing my DSI XL online. Oh well, times change, but I still play Nintendo hand held games. And even at age 60 I am a video game fan. Guess I always will be!

Written and published by my wife Joyce Gentile.

Trapped

 A Science Fiction Thriller

The dog whined and barked while digging with both paws.

"Tiger! No!" Joe yelled as he yanked the leash and pulled the dog toward him.

His mom had just planted the grass seed several weeks ago.  She spent a lot of time working in the back yard and Joe knew she would be very angry if the dog ruined it.

Tiger was pulling trying to get back to the spot of interest. He kept barking and barking.

"Ya think he buried a bone there?" asked his brother, Fred, as he walked into the yard from the side of the house.

"Not while I've been out here with him."  Joe gave the leash to Fred, "Hold him."

Joe walked up to the spot and looked at the small area that had been dug up.  After inspecting the area, he filled it back in by moving the dirt with his foot.

Fred opened up the back door
.
"Fred, did Tiger bury something out here?"

Fred walked in the back door, turned around and shrugged his shoulders.  "Ain't got time to watch that dumb dog!"

"Great." said Joe, "Just great."

Fred shook his head in disgust.

Tiger kept whining and barking.

"Quiet!" Joe grabbed the leash and entered the back door. He pulled the barking dog inside.  Then he closed the back door, took the leash off the dog and went up the stairs into his bedroom.

 Tiger whined and started scratching at the back door with his paws.

In the backyard, the dirt was being thrown to the side.  Something popped its head out of the hole and looked around.

Tiger started growling. Then the dog yelped once.

Silence.

"Oh crap!" said Joe as he came rushing down the stairs.

The back door was wide open.

"Who opened the door?" Joe peered into the back yard. "Dang it!" He said as he saw the hole in the lawn.

The yard was fenced in.  Joe searched all over the house for Tiger.  "Where the heck did he go?" Joe asked himself.

Fred approached Joe, "See? You don't watch the dog either."

Joe resented the snotty remark.  "Where could Tiger have disappeared to?  He's never jumped the fence."

"There's always a first time."  Fred paused as he heard a car pull into the driveway, "Mom's home. Now you're in real trouble."

"Did you leave this door open?"

"No, I thought you did."

"I closed it."

They heard mom's voice, "Fred, Joe. Come on out and help me with the groceries."

As Joe closed the door, he realized that there were more two holes in the back yard.

"Joe!" yelled mom, "Get over here!"

'I'm coming." Joe walked through the back hallway passed the cellar door and through the kitchen.  He walked through the living room and opened the front door.  The back of his mom's car was sticking out of the garage.

They brought the groceries inside and laid them on the table. Mom started putting the groceries away.
Fred and Joe looked out the living room window.

"Mom," yelled Fred, "There's six holes in the front lawn!"

Mom came running.  "We need help."

She got on the phone in her bedroom and called police. Then they all gathered in the kitchen as she prepared sandwiches and soda. Suddenly they felt a vibration as the wall cracked from ceiling to baseboard.  They ran to the front door as the house shook and all walls began to crack.  Mom tried to open the front door but it was stuck.  She heard something chewing on the wood in the attic. Suddenly a large chunk of ceiling crashed down on the kitchen table.  Holes appeared in the living room wall and the creatures revealed their heads. They looked like rats except for their sharp claws. Mom screamed and they ran through the kitchen into the back hallway and tried to open the back door without success. The house rumbled again and all the windows shattered. Then the kitchen floor collapsed into the cellar and they saw hundreds of creatures in the cellar.

When the police arrived, the complete front lawn had collapsed into the ground. The creatures had been digging deep underground tunnels all around the house. Then the sidewalk leading to the back of the house collapsed. Hundreds of creatures appeared in the huge hole in the front lawn.

The police phoned for help. Mom had managed to grab a broom and was poking the creatures with the broom to keep them away. Another chunk of ceiling fell down in mom's bedroom.  A joist came crashing down and landed on her bed.  In the kid's room the same was happening.

The creatures had all three trapped against the wall in the back hallway.  They could not get to the back door and there were no windows. Behind one wall were the stairway to the attic and the stairway to the cellar. Behind the other wall were the kitchen pantry and the bathroom.  The creatures curiously stared at Joe, Fred and Mom.

They heard the sounds of numerous gun shots followed by a police officer screaming in pain.  Joe and Fred hugged their mom.

There was the sound of a low flying plane followed by an explosion that shook the house.  Then they heard a voice.

"What'd you say?" yelled mom.

"Are you away from the back door?"

"Yes." yelled mom.

"Good. Say clear of it. We're coming in."

They heard a rumbling sound out back and a loud bang as something hit the back door. The back door was ripped off its hinges and came crashing down on the hallway floor, crushing the creatures.  And there, backing away from the door was an army tank.

Soldiers came in and guided mom and the kids out the back door.  The whole ceiling collapsed to the floor.  The surviving creatures scattered.

On the side of the house, the sidewalk had collapsed. On the other side there was a big hole in the lawn and the fence had collapsed from front to back.

The house frame was being destroyed by the creatures. A crowd gathered to watch as the whole house collapsed.  Then there was a rumbling so loud that people had to clog their ears.  Windows on other homes shattered.  People were screaming as the symptoms of a small localized earthquake shook and cracked the road in several places.  Water spouted out of one of the cracks causing people to panic and run.
The garage collapsed.  The ruins of the home started moving toward the street clearing the way for the surfacing of a large round object
.
Joe, Fred and mom ran down the street looking for a place to sit and recuperate from their experience.  It was hard to believe that their home was destroyed.  They found a small diner, sat down and ordered their meals and then asked the owner to turn on the local news on his radio.

Joe leaned his head against his mom. Tears were rolling down his cheeks as he realized that . . . the dog was gone.

While waiting for their meal, Fred and Joe got up and looked out the window. The alien space ship shaped like a flying saucer zoomed across the sky.  When the space ship was over open water a large tubular object appeared in the opposite corner of the sky. Its destination was moving toward it.  The aliens in the space ship realize that they were on a collision course and tried to avoid the tubular object.  But the tubular object's computerized radar system was locked on the space ship. The space ship climbed into the sky with the tubular object right behind it and closing in.

Then space ship made a sharp U-turn.  A second tubular object appeared. This one was traveling at a low altitude.  Both guided missiles hit the space ship at the same time.  The sky light up with a huge explosion. Fragments of the space ship fell to the water.

"In Joyful Service" Sketch

Joyce sketched this on plain paper.  One day, as Joyce sat in the church waiting for Mass to begin; the Deacon's young grandson, Rocky, brought the chalice from the Sacristy.  His joyful demeanor in being able to assist his grandfather before the Mass struck a chord in Joyce's heart.

Joyce and I originally published this sketch on our websites at www.art-forgodsglory.com and www.mtgent101.com. Joyce also published this on the Yahoo Contributor Network. This sketch is published here with the explicit permission of my wife Joyce.

Our Vulgar Bird Crackers

Warning: This blog contains some vulgar language.

We bought the cocketiel from a bird shop. The owner hand-fed the bird.  The bird accepted food from Joyce's hand too.  We bought a big cage for the cocketiel  and provided the bird with plenty of toys, food and water. We named the cocketiel Crackers. Eventually Crackers learned a few short phrases.

Every time my wife Joyce figured out what was wrong with something, she would say "Well, no wonder!"  One day Crackers was looking in his mirror and said "Well, no wonder!"

When I get frustrated, I emphatically use the word shit. Well guess what. One day -- while we were sitting on the couch watching TV, Crackers started violently shaking his head up and down saying "Shit shit shit . . ."  We were laughing so hard.

The other phrase I often used in my angry moments was a word that rhymed with "Muck!" One day . .While I was putting the cover over his cage I heard Crackers say "Well! ?uck you!"

I always say "Good night, Crackers" when I cover the cage. Sometimes Crackers echoes me. "Good night, Crackers" He also says "Crazy Crackers" and "Pretty Bird."

I often talk to Crackers. I say to him, "Crackers, you're not all you're cracked up to be!"

If I try to change his food or water late at night, Crackers hisses at me. So I decided to hiss back. We spent about two minutes hissing at each other.

On Saturday nights, my cousin would come over and sit in the chair beside the bird cage. If he ignored Crackers, Crackers would splash water on him.

Crackers is 19 years old now.  When he's angry at me he stares at me with his head held low.  If I had a chance to do it all over again, I'd buy the same bird.  Just hope he doesn't repeat any vulgar phrases while the priest who married us is here.

St Francis of Assisi Sketch

This is Joyce's graphite sketch of St Francis of Assisi on plain paper. In the background is the town of Assisi. St Francis sports a slight smile as he holds a dove close. This is the patron saint of animals and those who love them. Francis often sang of the joy of creation and the sorrow of the cross.

This was published on Yahoo Contributor Network by my wife Joyce Gentile and is published here with her explicit permission. It was also published on our website www.mtgent101.com