My First Comic Book by Marc Charles

10_33 AM


Hi Gang:

I published my first comic book boys and girls.

Save the reviews......its my first attempt.

Ill send you a copy free of charge (PDF) if you ask.

Its on Amazon and soon BN and elsewhere.

Pen name of course:  Charles Schulte. Get it? 

http://tinyurl.com/mk7toj7

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Kids Love Comics at the 2014 Baltimore Comic Con!

Baltimore Comic-Con Offers Interactive Kids Comics Area with cartoonists, comic creation, capes, and light saber training!

 BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - August 6, 2014 - Kids 10 and under get in free at the Baltimore Comic-Con September 5-7, 2014 at the Baltimore Convention Center -- and show organizers are once again presenting a kid-friendly comics area, full of all-ages comics, as well as the artists and writers who make them. Creators from such companies as Archie, Scholastic, Disney, Simon & Schuster, First Second, Marvel, and DC will be on hand to sketch, say hi, and help to teach young ones about the magic of comics through mini-How-Tos through the weekend, right at the Kids Comics Pavilion! Plus, kids can take part in comic crafts, game shows, and more!



 Activities in this super cool section of the show include:
 * Interactive Comics Talks from some of Kids Comics top creators, such as Ben Hatke (Zita the Spacegirl), Andy Runton (Owly), Mike Maihack (Cleopatra in Space), and more!
* Design your own super hero cape and mask
* Doodle Scribble Draw! Kids Drawing Gameshow!
* Creator sketches and autographs
* Kid-Safe Star Wars Light Saber Training
* Puppet making with Chris O>Matic! 

"The Baltimore Comic-Con has always been a welcoming, family-friendly show, and every year, we aim to make the Kids Love Comics Pavilion inspiring to young comic fans. Not only do we want kids to read comics, we show them how they can create their own! I wish there was an event like this when I was a kid," said Mark Mariano, creator of the Happyloo graphic novel series, and co-organizer (with John Gallagher) of the kids section. "Its so cool that I bring my own family here every year," added Gallagher.

 Heres a rundown of the Kids Love Comics Pavilion Creators:

 Harold Buchholz - Archie Comics archiecomics.com

 Frank Cammuso - Salem Hyde, Ottos Backwards Day, Knights of the Lunch Table cammuso.com

 Jamie Cosley (Saturday only) - Cody the Cavalier, Zucchini
Tyler Cosley (Saturday only) - AlakaZach, Ninja Squirrel jamiecosley.com

 Franco (Appearing Saturday and Sunday) - Aw Yeah Comics!, Tiny Titans, Itty Bitty Hellboy awyeahcomics.com

 Jay Fosgitt - Bodie Troll jayfosgitt.com

 John Gallagher - Zoey and Ketchup, Buzzboy, Roboy Red
Katie Gallagher -Zoey and Ketchup skydogcomics.com

 SL Gallant - GI JOE slgallant.com

 Chris Giarrusso - G-Man, Mini-Marvels chrisgcomics.com

 Jimmy Gownley - The Dumbest Idea Ever!, Amelia Rules! jimmygownley.com

 Ben Hatke - Zita the Spacegirl, Julias House for Lost Creatures benhatke.com

 Jason Horn - Ninjasaur ninjasaur.com

 Jamal Igle - Molly Danger, Supergirl, Firestorm jamaligle.com 

 Lora Innes - The Dreamer thedreamercomic.com

 Mike Maihack - Cleopatra in Space cowshell.com 

 Mark Mariano - The Other Side of Hugless Hill, Happyloo, Flabbergast mypalmark.com

 Mark McKenna - Banana Tail, Star Wars, Marvel, DC markmckennaart.com Jamar Nicholas - Leon: Protector of the Playground jamarnicholas.com

 Chris O>Matic - The Chris O>Matic Show! omatics.net 

 Chris Otto and Ben Taylor - A Dogs Life adogslifecomic.com 

 Dan Parent - Archie, Kevin Keller danparent.com 

 Andy Runton - Owly owly.com

 Gregg Schigiel - Spongebob Squarepants Comics, Pix hatterentertainment.com 

 Jeff Schultz - Archie Comics archiecomics.com 


 Kids Love Comics joins our previously announced guests, including: Eddy Barrows (Earth 2); Marty Baumann (Pixar artist); Jeremy Bastian (Cursed Pirate Girl); Marguerite Bennett (Batgirl); Christina Blanch (The Damnation of Charlie Wormwood); Mark Buckingham (Fables); Dave Bullock (Batman Black and White); Jim Calafiore (Leaving Megalapolis); Darrenn Canton (Tunnels & Trolls); Greg Capullo (Batman); Richard Case (Sandman); John Cassaday (Doc Savage); Bernard Chang (Green Lantern Corps); Jo Chen (Buffy the Vampire Slayer); Sean Chen (Amazing Spider-Man); Jimmy Cheung (Infinity); Cliff Chiang (Wonder Woman); Frank Cho (X-Men: Battle of the Atom); Amy Chu (Girls Night Out); Richard Clark (House of Gold & Bones); Steve Conley (Bloop); Mike Curtis (Dick Tracy); Jeremy Dale (Skyward); Alan Davis (Wolverine); Rachel Deering (In the Dark); Todd Dezago (Tellos); Tommy Lee Edwards (Star Wars); Garth Ennis (Preacher, The Boys); Ray Fawkes (Constantine); Tom Feister (G.I. Joe); David Finch (Forever Evil); Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (All-Star Western); Gerhard (Cerebus the Aardvark); Dave Gibbons (Watchmen); Keith Giffen (The New 52: Futures End); Bryan JL Glass (Mice Templar); Michael Golden (The Ravagers); Allan Gross (Road Song); Cully Hamner (Animal Man); Dean Haspiel (The Fox); Fred Hembeck (Garfield); Marc Hempel (Sandman: The Kindly Ones); Adam Hughes (Before Watchmen: Dr. Manhattan); Justin Jordan (Luther Strode, Green Lantern: New Guardians); Dan Jurgens (The New 52: Futures End); Chris Kemple (Red Vengeance); Denis Kitchen (Al Capp: A Life to the Contrary); Barry Kitson (Empire); Aaron Kuder (Action Comics); Norman Lee (Iron Man Special); David Mack (Shadowman); Kevin Maguire (Guardians of the Galaxy); Pop Mhan (All New X-Factor); Alex Maleev (Moon Knight); Billy Martin (Vitriol, The Hunter); Ron Marz (Witchblade); Mike McKone (Ultimate FF); Bob McLeod (X-Men: Gold); Tradd Moore (Deadpool Annual); Mark Morales (New Avengers); Dan Parent (Archie, Veronica, Kevin Keller); David Peterson (Mouse Guard); Joe Prado (Justice League); Brian Pulido (Lady Death); Ron Randall (Trekker in Dark Horse Presents); Tom Raney (Incredible Hulk); Ivan Reis (Aquaman and The Others); Budd Root (Cavewoman); Don Rosa (Donald Duck); Craig Rousseau (Perhapanauts); Joe Rubinstein (The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe); Andy Runton (Owly); Alex Saviuk (Web of Spider-Man); Louise Simonson (Power Pack); Walter Simonson (Thor); Andy Smith (Superman #23.1: Bizarro); Allison Sohn (sketch card artist); Charles Soule (Thunderbolts); Jim Starlin (Thanos: The Infinity Revelation); Joe Staton (Dick Tracy); Paul D. Storrie (Sheena, Queen of the Jungle); Ben Templesmith (The Memory Collectors); Robert Tinnell (The Wicked West); Peter Tomasi (Batman and Two-Face); John Totleben (Swamp Thing); Herb Trimpe (GI Joe: A Real American Hero); Billy Tucci (Shi); Rick Veitch (Saga of the Swamp Thing); Mike Vosburg (Lori Lovecraft); Mark Waid (Daredevil); Lee Weeks (Daredevil); Mark Wheatley (Frankenstein Mobster); Bill Willingham (Fables); Renee Witterstaetter (Joe Jusko: Maelstrom); Rich Woodall (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles); Kelly Yates (Amber Atoms); Thom Zahler (My Little Pony); and Mike Zeck (Secret Wars).

 Tickets General Admission and VIP Package tickets for Weekend, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday are now on sale! Visit www.baltimorecomiccon.com/tickets/ for more information and to purchase your advanced tickets now! In the coming weeks, look for more announcements from the Baltimore Comic-Con. We are looking forward to highlighting our guests, the Harvey Awards, industry exclusives, and programming. The latest developments can always be found on our website, Twitter, and Facebook pages.

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Can a Person REALLY Live “Off the Grid” by Marc Charles

Can a Person REALLY Live “Off the Grid”? 

Is This Type of Lifestyle Really Feasible?

6:27 AM
Greetings:

Living “off the grid” can be a tremendous reward for anyone involved in business and making money. 

It has been for me.

So this is a great question!

First of all…..I’d like to define “off the grid”. 

I’ve lived “off the grid” four times over the last 30 years or so in places like New Mexico, Minnesota, Maine, and Mexico. 

I’ve also lived on a luxury house boat on the St Croix River is Wisconsin. Everything was powered with a diesel generator….and in those days we grabbed TV signals out of the air and used radio telephones.

To me “off the grid” means no connection to the conventional “grid” of electricity, telephone, water, government sewage systems, the Internet and cable TV networks….which is where the term derived.

It’s harder to live this way than you might think.
But it can be an adventure and there are a ton of other benefits too.

In my experience, the two greatest benefits was the satisfaction of being self sufficient, and an appreciation for real things and values.

Watch the movie “Into the Wild” by Sean Penn….it’s a classic.

Richard Zimmerman, also known as the "Salmon River Caveman," lived an “off the grid” lifestyle. Richard lived almost entirely off the land, in a cave along the Salmon River in Idaho.

And get this….

Some of Richard’s caves were 60 feet deep. He earned extra money by renting out adjacent caves for $2 a night. Most people only spent a night or two; but others chose the $25 monthly rate and stayed for months or even years.

I’ve explored caves in New Mexico that were 30-40 feet high, and up to 100 feet wide! The temperature remains a pleasant 60-70 degrees year round.

Granted, living in a cave, in a tree house or on an iceberg may not be your idea of “the high life”.

But it can be an exciting adventure…..and it may you a new perspective to life, business and making money.

If you’ve dreamed of living “off the grid” I’ve enclosed some details for doing it in this week’s issue.

What Do You Need to Live “Off the Grid”?

Here’s a revised list I used when I lived off the grid in New Mexico:

  Access to clean water

2Access to a legitimate food source or be able to easily transport food to your location (hunting and fishing are not always

3Shelter. Building a shelter while getting established is not realistic so I rented a hunting cabin.

4High-quality laminated topographic maps. Understand how to use a map and a compass before you go.

5Firearms. Forget about bows and arrows, snags and traps. Bring a gun.

6
 Most animals are not your friends. Living off the grid is not a cartoon. I was stalked for several days by a mountain lion until an old timer showed me a secret: always try to appear larger than you are if confronted by one! Animals do not want problems.

Let someone know your exact location. Today with Google Maps and Geo-tags it’s easy.

Make friends in the surrounding area. You’ll need them. I made friends will an old man, who was a 35-year Navy veteran (designed ships).

 Invest in a state of the art first aid and survival kit (even if you’re Rambo) One of the best is QuakeKare.

CASH. Cash always works wonders when you’re in the middle of nowhere. Store cash in zip lock bags outside of your shelter, like under a large rock.

“Yeah, But Is This Really Feasible? What About Making Money?”

My focus each week is on legitimate business and money making opportunities.
So….”living off the grid” might sound like a contradiction.

If you haven’t made enough cash to retire on a deserted island, in a cave, in a tree house or somewhere else remote, then maybe you could build “living off the grid” into your lifestyle as a hobby or on a part time or seasonal basis.

My suggestion before setting off into the wilderness with a backpack, shotgun and trail mix is to try a couple of weekends “off the grid” first.

Then you could try it for a week or a month at a time. This should give you a great feel for the lifestyle.

Another option is sailing on the ocean. 

Many entrepreneurs I know used sailing as a motivation to build successful businesses and money making empires. 

In some ways, sailing is the ultimate “off the grid” lifestyle.

These days I prefer having Internet access, a cell phone and other niceties. This keeps me semi-attached to the “grid”, so I can monitor businesses and money making ventures.

My kids have been bugging me to rent a tree house for a week or two for our next vacation. We’re seriously considering it. I think two weeks in a rainforest tree house could be worth more than a year in a public school (we homeschool our kids so it’s not an issue).

Anyway, an “off the grid” lifestyle is feasible and you can make it a reality.
There are several ways to approach an “off the grid” lifestyle.

You could build a self sustained camp or cottage “off the grid” in hundreds of locations. 

My preferences are places with reasonable climate. 

But some locations are great for “seasonal off grid living” such as Maine (especially northern and the islands), Montana, New Mexico, Central Mexico and some parts of South America. 

I also like the Pacific Islands but these can be tricky (finding remote locations or islands with access to food and water).

It’s fun to think about living “off the grid”.

In today’s world it might become a necessity.

Please write to me with your thoughts and ideas for “living off the grid”.

Marc Charles

“The King of Business Opportunities”

(Ed Note:  Marc Charles is referred to as "The King of Business Opportunities" ....and for good reason. He should be known as "The King of Legitimate Business Opportunities"...because hes launched, bought, sold reviewed and advised on hundreds of businesses and money making opportunities. He understands legitimate opportunities)

******* Valuable Resources ********

Off the Grid News

Prepared Planet

Off Grid Survival

Living Off the Grid

Your Online Survival Kit

Reason Magazine

Homestead.org

Frugal Zeitgeist

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A curious trend in appendectomies by residents

Some experts are worried that laparoscopic cholecystectomy is so prevalent that future surgeons may have difficulty doing open cases. I was going to blog about the possibility that open appendectomy would become the next operation that next generation surgeon might have trouble with. But while looking at some data [link added 12/4/15] collected by the RRC for Surgery, I was struck by something else.

Since 1999, the total number of appendectomies (open and laparoscopic) performed by surgical residents who completed 5 years of training has risen by 65.1% compared to the total number of appendectomies done in the US, which has increased only 16.4%. Here are the numbers:

Except for the academic year ending in 2006, the average total appendectomy rate per resident has risen every year since 2000. The chart below displays that change and the changes in the numbers of open and laparoscopic appendectomies.

Click on chart to enlarge

The difference in the average combined number of appendectomies between the two academic years ending 2000 and 2014 is significant, p < 0.0001.

The population of the US rose from 279 million in 1999 to 318.9 million in 2014, an increase of 14.3%. The number of appendectomies done in the US for those years was about 281,000 vs. about 327,000 respectively, a 16.4% increase. The appendectomy rate increase does not significantly differ from the increase in population.

The difference between the total number of appendectomies done in the US and the total done by residents at teaching hospitals was significant, p < 0.0001.

What is going on here? Why is the increase in the rate of appendectomies being done by residents significantly higher than the rise in the rate of appendectomy for the entire country?

I posed this question on Twitter and got a number of replies.

Could the difference be due to more appendectomies being referred to teaching hospitals? It is possible, but except for a few anecdotes, a pattern of has not emerged. For example, the change in total numbers of cholecystectomies has been much more modest. In 1999-2000, graduating residents did 99.5 cholecystectomies and in 2013-14, they did 120.9, an increase of only 21.5% which is significantly lower than the increase in appendectomies, p < 0.0001.

Have academic centers increased their catchment areas? I dont think catchment areas have changed much in 15 years.

Are attending surgeons lazier than they were in 1999-2000? Thats not likely. For most cases, they had to be present in the OR anyway in both eras.

Are surgeons doing more appendectomies to increase their incomes? If that were so, the number of normal appendices (that is, appendices that were judged to be not inflamed by pathologists) would be higher than it was in 99-00. In fact, the reverse is true. The rate of normals has fallen drastically over the years.

Residents might not have logged all their appendectomies in the past or maybe they are inflating their numbers now. Those are interesting theories both of which cannot be proven.

Could it be because of increased use of CT scans? In a recent New England Journal paper, Dr. David Flum suggests the CT scan that just about every patient with right lower abdominal pain now gets may be too sensitive. This could lead to the overdiagnosis of mild cases of appendicitis that might have resolved without any intervention.

However if the issues is CT scan overdiagnosis, the rate of appendectomy nationwide would be as high as the rate in teaching hospitals.

Im out of ideas. Can you explain the appendectomy mystery?

By the way—in case you missed it in the table above—over the 15-year period, open appendectomies have decreased 68% and laparoscopic appendectomies have increased 546%.

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Live tweeting from ACSCC15

As many of you know, I have not been a fan of live tweeting conferences. I blogged about the issue last year (here and here) and received a lot of feedback about the posts, most of it strongly opposing my views.

Vigorous live tweeting from the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress (#ACSCC15) in Chicago is underway. Here are a couple of examples of tweets from that meeting. Twitter handles are blocked to protect the innocent (or guilty).

First, the good. Here is a nice montage showing what surgical program directors are looking for in residency applicants.

The photos are in focus and well-positioned. Anyone not in the audience for the talk can get something useful from this tweet. My one complaint -- we do not know who the speaker is. That information may have been provided in an earlier tweet, but this retweet is the only one I saw.

Now, the bad. The slide below probably contained some valuable information. Only the live audience knows for sure.

Since I havent seen all of the live tweets from #ACSCC15, I cant say which type is prevalent.

I can only hope its the former.

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Importing Fortunes 2015 LIVE by Marc Charles

9:02 AM

Hi Guys:

A quick note about my new program Importing Fortunes 2015.

I review hundreds of programs, businesses and ventures every year.

But when I develop a program for making money you know itll be good.

If you want to make money "on the side", part time or even as a full time business, check out my new program......

Marc

------

Alarm clocks … footie pajamas …
maternity lingerie …

You Can Import a Fortune
from Right there at Home …

And Fund a Live-Anywhere,
Travel-Anytime Life

If you have an internet connection – you can use
the same simple formula as the world’s largest retailer
to create your own money-making business …
and do it from anywhere on the planet …

Read More!

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Product Review Costumes Live Belly Dancer Outfit

This beautiful Blue V-Neck Viscose Womens Belly Dancer Outfit, which is currently listed on costumeslive.com, is perfect for any belly dancer to perform in or cosplayer looking to bring Princess Jasmine to life. Priced at $29.99, this three piece set comes with a top, pants and belt.  

The item arrived nicely packaged in a large box and was easy to open. It included a thank you card to the costumer. Inside the card there are two sheets of paper. One has all of the information regarding your order including your name, order number, size, item name and order time. The second paper states their return policy and instructions on sending an item back if you are not satisfied.  This costume is available in a generic One Size Fits All however the exact measurements are available on the website and are as follows:

Bust: 32 1/1 inches

Waist: 25 1/2-37 1/2 inches

Hips: 51 1/4 inches

Length: 39 1/4 inches

 The costume is made of rayon fabric and is delicate. It features many golden beads and trim. The shade of blue is very beautiful and will compliment any skin tone. I added some personal touches and created a Princess Jasmine look. The pants fit me very well. The belt is adjustable so you may make it as long or as tight as you like. The top was too big for my frame but was easily adjustable.

This costume would be ideal for any belly dancer performer or cosplayer. The costume is both beautiful, affordable and highly detailed. To view a listing and to purchase this item, CLICK HERE. Costumes Live ships to over 170 countries worldwide. Processing take up to 6 business days. Shipping takes 3-7 business days. Enjoy! 

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Solotab Business Plan by Marc Charles

7:38 AM

Greetings:

Ive enclosed a business plan I wrote for a young entrepeneur in CA.

He sells low cost tablets online.

Its pretty cool.

Marc

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Business Plan

Name[MCS1] 

Andrew Francis – Founder

Solotab Inc.

316 Olive Ave Unit 535

Huntington Beach CA 92648

http://www.solotab.com

Executive Summary

Solotab Inc. (the Company) is a tablet PC sales company that provides consumers and businesses a low priced alternative for Android based tablets

Products and Service

Solotab Inc. offers high speed dual core and quad core processors, dual cameras, and the latest Android OS, at a price range of $50-100

Market[MCS2] 

The tablet PC market is one of the fastest growing sectors in the computer market. The value of the market is expected to exceed $2 billion annually by 2015 according Forrester Research, a leading market research firm

Competition

The tablet PC market is a hot rising trend, and therefore attracts vibrant competition. The Company is positioned to leverage the market opportunity. Solotab Inc. has identified four primary competitors:

Zeepad

Kocaso

Google

Samsung

Competitive Edge[MCS3] 

Solotab Inc. enjoys several competitive advantages. The Company’s primary competitive edge is their online sales expertise with regards to low priced Android tablets

Financials[MCS4] 

Management
[MCS5] Andrew Francis – Founder

Marketing Strategy[MCS6] 

The Company leverages social media, e-mail marketing, and direct mail to qualified prospects and buyers. The Company also utilizes search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) techniques in order to appear prominently in the primary Internet search engines, and this drive targeted traffic to the Company’s website

Capital Requirements[MCS7] 

Solotab Inc. seeks a $100,000 investment, loan or business grant, at market rates, with a four-year note. The Company shall provide security and collateral as required

---

 [MCS1]You can insert your name, title, company, address, phone, URL and email here

 [MCS2]You can insert your market stats here. I found these on Google. But I was unable to find facts or stats with regards to your particular model. You will need to research your market to find the appropriate figures

 [MCS3]You will need to determine why your company is unique, special or better than the competition.  I do not have this information or insight. But I wrote an example

 [MCS4]You can insert financial information here. It doesn’t need to be extensive, and especially for a startup. But it is usually good to list assets, liabilities and operating expenses.

 [MCS5]You can insert your name and a short bio here. If you have other people helping you or managers you can insert his or her names here as well. The bios should be short and emphasize expertise as it relates to THIS venture.

 [MCS6]You can insert your marketing strategy here. Most entrepreneurs wait until the last minute to address marketing issues and strategies. I think it’s the FIRST thing that needs to be addressed. You can work on your marketing strategy. But I wrote an example.

 [MCS7]If you are seeking investors, financing or business grants you can insert your requirements here. It is best to round off amounts, and show investors or banks how and when notes will be repaid. I wrote an example.

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