As an aside, I love the picture of the man and woman having wine at their cafe table. They look like they have surf boards rammed up the back of their shirts. I’m all for good posture, but they have to be kidding. Wouldn’t you just love to write a story about them? Mr. and Mrs. Uptight… okay, so they probably need the vacation.

It appears that they cater to more high-end vacations, so if you’re looking to set your novel in a seedy coastal town somewhere, this isn’t the place to start looking.

Where do you do your research for setting? Do you insist on having to visit the place yourself, or do you do your research and “wing it” when you start writing?

Simmons, Jannace & Stagg is a LLP that practices in New York, Connecticut and New Jersey. I wonder about the reasons why a law firm would buy link advertising. Does a law firm need to boost their search engine rankings? I guess in the internet age, everyone does.
They practice a wide variety of law, in the states mentioned above, and count among their clients Home Depot U.S.A., Inc., Bank of America Corp., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Kmart Holding Corp., Best Buy Co. Inc. and several others.

One of their “selling points” is that they think outside the box. Lawyers are widely seen in internet culture as being a little (or a lot) out of touch, so it’s refreshing to see that they at least claim to be different.

I had hoped for more photos — at least it would have been a handy reference for writing scenes if that had been the case. Personally, I like to use pictures of rooms, houses, etc. to help me remember what some of my scenes look like. If I’m writing a scene that’s heavily dependent on the surroundings, then having pictures is particularly helpful. There’s nothing more frustrating when writing than having to stop and think about what I’ve already written about a setting.

I had hoped for something similar here, but alas, few pictures.

Still, you know there’s a handful of people out there with a chest full of gold coins stashed in the attic or the back of a closet. Maybe they pull them out and drool over them sometimes, or worry that someone will find them when they go out. Doesn’t that give you the most interesting ideas for your next greedy miser? Or how about moving in to a place and finding something like that? Cha-ching!

Peter Belisi’s story is interesting. He started off as a bartender in Palm Beach and got noticed by collecting and wearing unique and trendsetting ties. He began designing for celebrities, and here’s the interesting part, also contributes to socially conscious causes with every purchase.

Some of the handbags are pretty attractive; they’re not the bizarre fare that you sometimes see from big-time designers.

I could see how this site might be a good research tool if you’re looking to outfit a character who’s chic or fashionable. I know I’d need some research help in that department.

My first job was working for a trucking company as a teenager, and I can relate to some of the things that they recommend. One that comes to mind is the advice to never treat a truck as if it can stop as quickly as a car can. It was described to me this way “A truck has several tons pushing it down the highway, and there’s no way you’re going to stop that fast.” As a teen, I’d have never realized that had I not worked where I did.
Geico’s materials on teens and safe driving is located at http://www.geico.com/auto/safety. If you have a teen driving, or nearing driving age, this is something you may want to look at together. It’s been a long time, but I know my driver’s education classes didn’t include this!