Archive for December, 2011

Obama hits popular snorkeling spot during vacation

1 day ago 

HONOLULU (AP) — President Barack Obama and his family spent a warm and sunny afternoon at one of the most popular snorkeling spots on the island of Oahu, where they released four green sea turtles into the water.

The Obamas arrived at Hanauma Bay Park on Tuesday after a scenic, 40-minute drive from their multimillion-dollar rented vacation home on Kailua Beach. The park is a favorite destination for the Obamas, who make an annual trip there during their Christmas holiday in Hawaii — always on Tuesdays, when the park is closed to the public for maintenance.

This year, the president and his family released four green sea turtles into the bay’s clear blue water. The 18-month-old turtles were born at Sea Life Park, a nearby marine sanctuary and aquarium that boasts of being the only place in the U.S. that raises green sea turtles in captivity.

The president and his daughters, Malia and Sasha, enjoyed their turtle experience so much that they decided to make a stop at Sea Life Park later in the day. The president appeared briefly before cameras as he left the park, climbed into a waiting SUV and headed back to his vacation rental.

The president has stayed largely out of the spotlight since arriving Friday evening in Hawaii, the state where he was born and mostly raised. He spent a low-key holiday with his family, attended Christmas church services and visited service members stationed at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, near Honolulu.

Obama also has hit the golf course, worked out at the gym on the Marine base and taken wife Michelle Obama out to dinner.

Behind the scenes, the president is being briefed by a small cadre of traveling staff on domestic and international developments, including his administration’s debate over whether to allow Yemen’s outgoing leader to come to the U.S. for medical treatment. Obama also announced two nominees to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors on Tuesday.

Obama has no public events planned during his vacation, which is expected to last until shortly after New Year’s Day.

Associated Press writer Audrey McAvoy contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Experience The Fairmont Orchid Hawaii in 2012 With Exceptional Vacation Packages

KOHALA COAST, HI, Dec 27, 2011 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) –
The Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii — a luxury AAA Four Diamond resort
located on the Kohala Coast of the Island of Hawaii — is pleased to
offer a variety of Hawaii vacation packages for travelers seeking a
luxury stay in paradise in 2012. With a minimum five night stay, the
resort’s signature Orchid Experience Package* offers daily breakfast
for two, $100 food and beverage credit, $50 Spa credit to be enjoyed
at the award winning Spa Without Walls, complimentary self parking,
in addition to complimentary Internet access.

For couples planning an extended weekend escape, our Just the Two of
Us Romance Package* includes champagne for two, daily breakfast for
two and dinner for two at the award-winning Brown’s Beach House,
Norio’s Japanese Restaurant and Sushi Bar, or Hale Kai Restaurant.

Families planning a minimum four night stay during Spring Break will
enjoy our Family Package*, which includes daily breakfast for two per
room, 50% discount off of our Keiki Aloha program, as well as two Fun
& Sun Keiki Activity passes. Additionally, families who book rooms in
the Garden and Partial Ocean View categories may enjoy connecting
rooms.

For those travelers looking to reward themselves at our Hawaii
resort’s award winning Spa Without Walls, the Spa Sense Package*
includes daily breakfast for two, a spa amenity and a Hiwahiwa or
Kane Hawaiian body treatment for two.

If golf is your game, this Hawaii resort is delighted to offer the
Ultimate Hawaii Golf Package* which includes daily golf for two at
either of the two Mauna Lani golf courses, and daily breakfast for
two.

And last but certainly not least, is the ever popular 5th Night Free
with Breakfast*. Rise and shine leisurely in your spacious guestroom,
then meander down to The Orchid Court to extend the morning with
traditional favorites, such as made-to-order omelets, and local
flavors like macadamia nut waffles and sticky buns.

To make Hawaii hotel reservations at The Fairmont Orchid, call
800-845-9905.

*Terms and conditions apply. To view package details, including rates
and expirations dates, visit the hotel’s website.

ABOUT THE FAIRMONT ORCHID
The Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii on the Island
of Hawai’i is a AAA Four Diamond luxury destination resort on 32
oceanfront acres offering 538 guestrooms on the island’s northwestern
coast. Inspired by Culture, Well-Being and Genuine Aloha, The
Fairmont Orchid’s facilities and services include the
Hawaiian-inspired Spa Without Walls with 10 waterfall hale (hut) and
5 oceanside cabanas, authentically local daily beach and cultural
activities, golf, tennis and water sports, year-round children’s
program, six delectable restaurants and expansive indoor and outdoor
meeting facilities all surrounded by service with Aloha.

ABOUT FAIRMONT HOTELS & RESORTS
With more than 60 destinations
around the globe, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is a celebrated
collection of landmark luxury hotels. For more information or
reservations, please call 1-800-441-1414 or visit
www.fairmont.com .

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SOURCE: The Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii

Copyright 2011 Marketwire, Inc., All rights reserved.

Google talks social enterprise focus for 2012

Googles ready to kick off 2012 with a renewed interest in the social enterprise market, which means the Google+ upgrades will be fast and furious.

Google can be a difficult thing to define. The company has its hands in numerous marketsmobile, operating systems, social, searchbut above all, Google is an ad company; make no mistake about that. When it comes to its many, many products, it has a tendency to dip its toes in nearly every digital industry imaginable, a move that has been criticized.

When Facebook debuted its Skype integration, CEO Mark Zuckerberg notably pointed out that Facebook wanted to be the best at social and let other companies be the best at products that correspond nicely with its product. Google has taken a noticeably different route, an in-home approach if you will. And part of the consequence (or benefit, depending on your perspective) of this is that there’s a lot of ground to cover.

But some recent comments from the Google team suggest that the company will be exercising a little focus–at least for 2012. VP of Google Enterprise Amit Singh says cloud, mobile, and social will dominate 2012 and the team will invest in “fast, lightweight applications that [make] it easier to work with others from anywhere. Those are the areas driving our investments for 2012.”

This means social-meets-corporate solutions platforms have been put on notice. WebEx, Yammer, and even the likes of the venerable Salesforce are likely listening with bended ear. Google Apps have continued to pick up steam in the enterprise industry and their integration with new social elements is supposed to help tip considering business over the edge. Of course, Google+ has had a notoriously stifled membership rate. But this year, the way this platform works (and the amount of attention the company invests in this area) with Google Apps could change things. 

Here are some of the concrete product upgrades we can expect to see in 2012. 

  • Faster, more seamless access to Apps via the cloud. 
  • It will be easier to build your own Web apps. 
  • Google Apps access and abilities will improve for mobile. 
  • Google+ will be undergoing tons of improvements and integration with Web apps. This will be a major focus, turning the site into a more attractive platform for the enterprise. 

Czech Republic – Factors To Watch on Dec 27

PRAGUE Dec 27 (Reuters) – Here are news stories,
press reports and events to watch which may affect Czech
financial markets on Tuesday.

ALL TIMES GMT (Czech Republic: GMT + 1 hours)

=========================ECONOMIC DATA=========================

Real-time economic data releases……………….

Previous stories on Czech data…………

Overview of economic data and forecasts………

Updates on CEE currencies………………………
============================TOP NEWS============================

LEADERS BID FAREWELL TO HAVEL: International leaders bade
farewell on Friday to former Czech President Vaclav Havel, the
anti-communist dissident who led the peaceful Velvet
Revolution and inspired human rights campaigners around the
world.

Story: Related news:

CEZ TAKES CONTROL OF TRMICE PLANT: Czech power firm CEZ
said on Friday it had exercised an option to take a
15 percent stake in heating plant Teplarna Trmice from Dalkia
, raising its holding to 100 percent.

Story: Related news:

CEE MARKETS: Hungarys forint was stable in thin pre-holiday
trade on Friday as the country approved controversial laws that
may expose Budapest to further market turbulence if its
stand-off with international lenders goes unresolved.

Story: Related news:

CEE POWER: Czech power for Monday rose slightly as forecasts
for a fall in wind output outweighed lower demand, while the
front-year contract edged higher as oil prices were firm,
traders said on Friday.

Story: Related news:

————————PRESS DIGEST————————-

LENDING: There is a concern that Czech banks will become
reluctant to lend, following instructions of their parent euro
zone banks, Patria Finance analyst David Marek said.

The volume of all loans in the Czech economy rose by 5
percent in the first nine months of the year to 2.3 trillion.
The volume of non-performing loans stagnated at around 6 percent
in the period.

Hospodarske Noviny, page 16

GOLDMAN ON CZECH ECON: Economic performance next year will
be aggravated by reduced volume of lending by Czech banks, most
of which are units of euro zone banks that are scrambling to
boost their capital buffers, international advisor for Goldman
Sachs Vladimir Dlouhy said.

A collapse of debt financing in the euro zone cannot be
excluded, he said, which could lead to the end of the common
currency.

He said the Czech economy would contract by 0.5 percent next
year and grow by around 2.5 percent in 2013. He said a second
recession in three years would lead to a contraction of the
countrys potential output.

The crown will weaken against the euro until the
euro zone is stabilised and the rate can get to 27.00 per euro
(from 25.790 on Tuesday) next year. It will probably return to
around 25.00 in 2013.

Hospodarske Noviny, page 11

Reuters has not verified the media reports, nor does it
vouch for their accuracy.

For Instant Views of key economic data click on
For summary of economic data and forecasts
For diary of forthcoming Czech events
For calendar of east European economic indicators
TOP NEWS — Emerging markets
TOP NEWS — Convergence watch

For an economic indicator diary for the euro zone, the United
States and other Group of Seven countries see

For real-time stock market index quotes click in brackets:
Warsaw WIG20 Budapest BUX Prague PX

News editor of the day: Jan Lopatka on +420 224 190 474

E-mail: prague.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com

(Reporting by Prague Newsroom)

Campaign to secure home for Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle

A campaign has been launched to secure a permanent home in London for the current artwork on Trafalgar Squares Fourth Plinth.

The Art Fund is working to make Nelsons Ship in a Bottle a free-to-view exhibit outside the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.

The public is being asked to help raise £362,500 to pay the artist Yinka Shonibares studio fee.

The artwork will be removed in January after a 18-month stint on the plinth.

Nelsons Ship in a Bottle was commissioned by the mayor of London and unveiled as the new occupant of the Fourth Plinth in May 2010.

Freely accessible

The Art Fund, which helps UK museums and galleries acquire and display great works of art, has contributed £50,000 to the campaign.

Together with the National Maritime Museum it is appealing for people to donate the remainder of the money required so the ship can become part of the museums collection.

Under the plans the artwork would stand outside the new Sammy Ofer Wing where it would be freely accessible to all.

Stephen Deuchar, Art Fund director, said the piece had delighted millions of people in the last year-and-a-half and in a new permanent site outside the National Maritime Museum will continue to do so for many years to come.

Kevin Fewster, from the National Maritime Museum, said: We feel that Greenwich would be the perfect home for this outstanding piece of work, which chimes so brilliantly with the stories we tell through our museums unique collections.

Artist Yinka Shonibare said the location and the National Maritime Museum collection were the perfect future home for this work.

His work is a scaled down direct replica of HMS Victory, the ship captained by Nelson.

The 2.35m (7.7ft) high ship inside a specially-made glass bottle is a 1:29 scale replica of the original vessel.

Mark Zuckerberg’s Amazing Race Luxury Vacation Revealed

What do you when you have more money than Christ and an appetite for fried foods? You head to Red Vietnam for a getaway replete with lavish meals, private yachts, helicopters, and goat-catching. We have Mark Zuckerbergs exclusive holiday itinerary.

After being chauffeured through Hanoi for a few days via private convoy, Zuckerberg, his quasi-wife Priscilla Chan, and a team of private security skipped town for beautiful Sapa and Halong Bay, where they enjoyed a Christmas morning junk boat cruisewith a miniature decorated tree onboardthrough some local islands.

Once the boating was over, the couple took a private helicopter to their hotel, the cushy Topas Ecolodge, and nearby hiking grounds. But the physical gauntlet wasnt over! The next day centered around an Amazing Race-style competition with the ZuckChan Clan and their best friends.

You know youre rich as balls when you can recreate reality television shows for personal amusement.

The pals, divided into teams, partook in traditional Tet holiday fun like blindfolded goat-catching, pole-climbing, and other feats of dominance. And now, close your eyes and imagine Mark Zuckerberg trying to catch a Vietnamese goat while blindfolded.

The trip ended with more hiking, where Zuck didnt even need to hunt down local wildlife to kill and eat, because his entire trip was restricted to the finest vegetarian fare in the 3rd world:

Dinners

Grilled Fillet With Coconut With Barbecue Sauce
Fried Tofu With Tomato Sauce
Fried Egg With Sapa Mushroom
Sapa trout carpaccio with shallot and lemon oil
Grilled pork and apple skewers with Sapa honey (Dont touch that, Mark!)
Sapa mushroom risotto
Eggplant, tomato and onion gratin

Lunch
Cucumber Salad
Fried Shrimp vegetable
Fried Channa Maculata Fish
Potato with Cheese

Desserts
Baked pear and cinnamon crumble
Creme caramel
Gingerbread pudding
Rice pudding with Strawberry sauce

Why vegetarian food, served to a man renowned for this locavore bloodlust? Our sources tell us Zuck and Priscilla had a bet that he couldnt pull it off. And nobody beats Mark Zuckerberg, a man who unites animal wrasslin and carpaccio, at anything.

Now you know what all of those ads are paying for.

Boys & Girls Club offer vacation prgm’s

HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP) – Some students dont have to travel far to have big fun during the holiday vacation week.

Youngsters participating in the Boys and Girls Club in Holyoke are very busy having a good time.

While parents are working, these kids get organized activities and meals in an atmosphere of learning and fun.

Jacksiel Colon, a seventh grader, says he not only comes during school vacation, but participates after school and during the summer. There are many things to do and I like coming here a lot. I like hanging out with the staff, going on the computer, playing pool, the gym, swimming, X-box.

The Boys and Girls Clubs throughout the Pioneer Valley offer vacation programs designed to keep children safe and busy at a reasonable price.

CAVM Falls 5%: Cuts Q4 View on Enterprise, Telco Weakness

By Tiernan Ray

Shares of network processor maker Cavium (CAVM) were halted this afternoon, and are now down $1.49, or 5%, at $26.99, after the company warned its revenue this quarter will fall below its initial expectation, and will miss analysts&’ estimates.

The company sees revenue in Q4 in a range of $56 million to $57 million, worse than what the company predicted back in October might be a drop of 8% to 10% from last quarter&’s $67.7 million. The company&’s Q3 revenue had slightly missed estimates at the time.

Analysts had been expecting $61.6 million.

The company said revenue was hurt by shortfalls in products for the enterprise market and for service providers as well, and by weakness in the consumer and broadband markets. The problem was made worse by &“a larger than expected impact of a hub transition at one of its major customers,&” Cavium said, perhaps a reference to Cisco Systems (CSCO).

Gross margin will come in lower than expected by one percentage point, it said.

Cavium shares are down 2 cents at $28.46 in late trading.

News of Brockton Rox’ demise hits ex-skipper Nottle hard

Jun 25, 2002; BROCKTON, MA, USA; J. KIELY JR./THE ENTERPRISE — Brockton Rox manager Ed Nottle smiles back towards the stands as his team held a 2 run lead in the 7th inning in the midst of the Brockton Rox second consecutive victory over the Berkshire Black Bears with a 4-2 score in 9 innings at Brocktons Campanelli Stadium Tuesday night.

BeBevCo: Enters Distribution Partnership for KOMA UNWIND With S & S Roadrunner …

STATESVILLE, NC, Dec. 14, 2011 — /PRNewswire/ –#xA0;Bebida Beverage Company (OTCmarkets: BBDA) (BeBevCo), a developer, manufacturer and marketer of relaxation and energy drinks, announced today that the Company has signed a distribution deal and partnership with S S Roadrunner Sales Company in North Dakota. This adds yet another state to the distribution list for the Companys flagship product, the KOMA UNWIND Relaxation products. S S Roadrunner Sales Company is a family owned North Dakota Company. Since 1986 they have specialized in the wholesale distribution of many fine food products.

One by one, we will put Koma Unwind into every state in the union and then every country in the world. We are delighted to have finalized the agreement with S S Roadrunner Sales, said Brian Weber, CEO of BeBevCo. Seemingly everyone in this country, no matter where you live, has to cope with stress. Why not forego the drugs and pick up a Koma Unwind, relax and get a great nights sleep? added Weber.

It has been a fantastic year for KOMA UNWIND, so many#xA0;forward-thinking and progressive distributors and retailers are joining the Relaxation Revolution to bring these great tasting and truly functional products to the millions of Americans that suffer from stress, anxiety and sleep issues, offered COO Daisy Ramirez.

About BeBevCo

BeBevCo (Bebida Beverage Company) develops, manufactures and markets beverages#xA0;including relaxation drinks Koma Unwind Chillaxation Drink#x2122;, Koma Unwind Sugar-free Chillaxation Drink#x2122; and Koma Unwind Chillaxation Shot#x2122; as well as Potencia Energy Drink, Potencia BLAST energy shot and Piranha Water.

Safe Harbor Statement

Except for historic information contained in this release, the statements in this news release are forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the Safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause a companys actual results in the future to differ materially from forecasted results. These risks and uncertainties include, among other#xA0;things, the companys ability to attract qualified management, raise sufficient capital to execute its business plan, and effectively compete against similar companies.

Contact: (704) 660-0226 ext 5

Investorrelations@BeBevCo.com

www.BeBevCo.com

SOURCE Bebida Beverage Company