S.C. Bar Young Lawyers collect formal gowns for Cinderella Project

There are only a few Cinderella’s in Aiken. However, the Young Lawyers Decision of the South Carolina Bar believes that you and some friends may be able to help them so Cinderella can get to the ball at the High School Prom.

The S.C. Bar Young Lawyers Division is sponsoring its annual Cinderella Project, which provides gently worn formal, bridesmaid and prom dresses for young women who lack the financial resources to buy a gown for their high school prom.

This unique project is also being held in Anderson, Columbia, Greenville, Greenwood and Orangeburg.

Clean dresses in all sizes, as well as evening bags, jewelry, shoes and other accessories, are needed. Donations are being accepted until March 2 and can be dropped off at either of the following Maxwell Law Firm locations in 225 Chesterfield St., NW, Aiken, 516 West Ave., N. Augusta

A boutique will be held on March 17 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon at the Maxwell Law Firm in Aiken to give the girls an opportunity to shop for dresses at no cost. Girls from all area schools are invited to attend and must bring their student ID.

For more information, visit www.scbar.org/cinderella or contact Christy Tyner at (803) 641-6700. The YLD includes all members of the S.C. Bar under age 36 and those with less than five years membership.

The South Carolina Bar, which has a membership of more than 14,000 lawyers, is dedicated to advancing justice, professionalism and understanding of the law.

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We take pictures as a way to remember. We want to remember the way that something or someone looked, acted, or achieved around Aiken. We take them to show others something that we witnessed firsthand and pass along the experience. If you want to take better pictures of your memories, then read this article and the tips contained within.

Toy around with taking pictures in nature – there are so many things in our local area. Take pictures of the landscape, sunset, landmarks, animals, anything that takes your fancy. Take interesting shots and see what photo gems you come up with. Nature provides many wonderful and beautiful scenes. Try going on a nature walk with your camera a few times, and take shots to make a portfolio.

Familiarity with your camera is important if you want to shoot the best pictures possible. Make sure that you take some time to study your particular camera. This doesn’t mean just reading the manual and snapping a few photos. You really want to become familiar with everything your camera’s capable of. I have a Canon 7d and a range of amazing lenses, but The more I learn about the camera, the better the shots I capture.

One of the things that you can do when you are taking pictures is to lean on something to achieve better balance. The more balance that you have, the less movement the camera will make, which can improve the sharpness of your shots. Multiple connection points are important too. Try a monopod or a shoulder brace, or even tighten up the strap. Anything you do to stabilize the camera is a good thing. Maintain your balance and add another stabilization point if you desire optimal photographs.

Pay attention to natural lighting. You might need to use your flash feature or install additional sources of light, but you can use natural lighting to create interesting effects with light and shadow. Position your subject accordingly. Make sure the photograph is not too dark or too bright. Learn to use the histogram feature. if you have it, to make sure there isn’t too much light, or too much dark.

Select a subject and focus on it. Point your camera towards this subject or object and use the auto focus feature if necessary. If you don’t do this, your picture will look blurry. Play with conventions and select an unusual point of focus if you want original pictures. I always check the focus of someone’s eyes – zoom right in and see if they are crisp or blurred – that is my wife’s tip.

Always be early when you’re planning on shooting a sunset or a sunrise. This will give you ample time to compose the perfect shot. You don’t want to get there and be forced to take lousy shots because you ran out of time. I am guilty of this!

In the beginning, I talked about the reasons that we take pictures and their roles in our lives. Taking great photos means you have a wonderful visual for a story that you are telling. I hope I’ve given you some useful tips to take better photos around Aiken.

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Bank of America consumers clinched victory over the $5 monthly fee for using debit cards.

Bank of America co-chief operating officer David Darnell announced foregoing the monthly debit card fees last November 1 after irate consumer Molly Katchpole of Washington, DC started an online petition calling for the bank to cease its unnecessary monthly charges.

America’s largest bank had to cancel the additional $5 charge when more than 300,000 consumers supported Katchpole’s petition on www.change.org calling to “reject any claims that this latest fee is somehow necessary.”

“The American people bailed out Bank of America during a financial crisis. You paid zero dollars in federal income tax last year. And now your bank is profiting, raking in $2 billion in profits last quarter alone,” Katchpole reminded Bank of America officials.

“How can you justify squeezing another $60 billion a year from your debit card customers? This is despicable,” Katchpole added.

Katchpole’s petition snowballed and Bank of America’s extra $5 fee for debit card usage was short-lived, which was first implemented late in September.

“We have listened to our customers very closely over the last few weeks and recognized their concern with our proposed debit usage fee,” Darnell said in a statement.

“Our customers’ voices are most important to us. As a result, we are not currently charging the fee and will not be moving forward with any additional plans to do so,” Darnell added.

Bank of America earlier defended its new policy.  It claimed that the minimal $5 fee will help regain revenue loses with the passage of the Dodd-Frank Financial Regulation Bill, where its revenues in debit-swipe transactions were cut in half.

The vigilance of Katchpole and the more than 300,000 consumers online finally ended new bank policy that was also supposed to be replicated by Wells Fargo & Co. and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

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You may not know it, but your bank may be charging you a monthly fee for using your own debit card.

Bank of America has already started charging its debit card users $5 monthly fee since September while Wells Fargo & Co., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. are also thinking of following suit.

Financial analysts explain the extra fee is designed to regain lost revenues due to new federal regulation, where it slashes half the amount of money banks gain from debit-swipe transactions.

The Dodd-Frank Financial Regulation Bill is only applicable to banks with assets exceeding $10 billion and the banks are estimated to lose $6.6 billion in revenues per year.

If you’re not too sure if you’re bank is charging hidden fees for debit card services, check with your local bank manager to find out.

If indeed your bank is charging you, analysts suggest looking for an alternative in smaller thrift banks that are not affected by the new federal regulation.  There are still smaller thrift banks that offer the services for free.

Debit cards have long been the alternative against drowning in debt with credit card usage.  But with this new scheme, it practically defeats the purpose while adding more financial burden on your part.

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Online banking with Citibank is now accessible in your own iPad.

The recent launching of Citibank for iPad^® has raised the benchmark for online banking with fast, reliable, and secured way of tracking and analyzing your finances.

With Citibank for iPad^®, gone are the days of the old-fashioned style of ledger banking.  In this first-ever app of a major American bank, a visual and graphical interface of your finances is at your fingertips.

You can easily check your account balances, transfer money, control cash flow, pay bills, acquire rewards, or find the nearest Citibank branch and ATM booths.

What differentiates Citibank for iPad^® from other banking apps is that it maximizes the tablet interface of iPad with its fresh and visually striking graphics as well as an interactive approach to online banking.

Unlike other banking apps for iPad that mirror the PC or mobile phone interface, the Citibank app takes advantage of the unique tablet experience to provide users with a visually revealing, insightful interface along with a host of interactive new features.

Citibank for iPad^® is the by-product of Citibank listening to your online banking needs.

“We want this to be more engaging and dynamic—beyond the standard static tables you find with other iPad apps,” said Tracey Weber of serves as the chief of the Internet and Mobile Banking for North America Consumer Banking.

Citibank for iPad^® offers these unique features:

• Interactive chart of past and future cash outflows
• Auto-generated chart of personal spending habits
• Consumer databank for comparing personal spending habits by age and income brackets, location, and types of purchases

With Citibank for iPad^®, you also have access to exclusive services including Citi Personal Wealth Management and Women & Co. and real-time customer service.

Banking with Citibank has never been this easy.

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Technology-savvy clients of Verizon Wireless in Aiken are now enjoying the benefits of surfing the web, downloading files and sharing music and photos 10 times faster than before.

These changes are the result of the innovative 4G LTE network which has enhanced the system of communications in primary urban hubs that include Aiken and Augusta.

This means that users of 4G LTE can now experience regular rates from 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) on the downlink and 2 to 5 megabits on the uplink. Consumers from Aiken will be rewarded with the amazing speed of the world’s first extensive system in 4G technology. By the end of 2013, Verizon hopes to complete its expansion plans that will benefit more than 100 million Americans.

The company is also collaborating closely with rural communications firms to build and operate a 4G network in more remote areas making use of sophisticated equipment like the premium 700 MHz spectrum.

Some 10 rural carriers have already made known their participation in the LTE in Rural America program. These areas, which span 72,000 square miles, are home to approximately 2.1 million people.

In case customers take a trip to places beyond the 4G coverage area, the devices automatically connect to Verizon Wireless’ 3G network, enabling customers to stay connected from coast to coast.

The Verizon Wireless’ 3G system is considered the most reliable network in the country. It enables clients with laptops, tablets and smart phones to download and use cool apps, from mobile social networking platforms to GPS-enabled maps

In Aiken you can also browse the web without difficulty to keep up with news, sports, stock quotes and scoops about Hollywood celebrities. Likewise, you get fast file sharing as well as stream must-see video footage and customized radio stations.

“We are proud to help lead the Garden City into the 4G LTE wireless broadband world, helping residents, small businesses and local government connect faster and more fully with each other and those outside our community.”
– Jeff Mango, president of Verizon wireless Georgia and Alabama regions

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Droughts and storms are set to cause problems with crops, and fuel prices are playing havoc with anything that has to be transported. World demand is rising.

Economists say this will cause a 3-4% increase in food prices, but it seems that food has already increased more than that already.

If these were the only problems, it would be bad enough, but the government is still printing money like there’s no tomorrow and that is likely to cause much more severe problems in the second half of the year.

The postandcourier.com has an interesting story on this subject.

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Boeing  has selected Leading Edge Aviation Services to paint 787 Dreamliners assembled at Boeing’s new North Charleston, S.C., final assembly and delivery facility.

Leading Edge will perform the work at its Amarillo, Texas facility where other wide-body airplanes are painted. The company, which specializes in commercial and military aircraft painting, will apply final paint and customer livery to all 787 Dreamliners delivered from the Boeing South Carolina facility.

“Leading Edge is a well-respected company when it comes to painting airplanes,” said David Palmer, director of Boeing’s South Carolina Delivery Center. “The company shares our values of quality, safety and excellence and we look forward to our relationship with them.”

“We began our search for a paint subcontractor soon after we broke ground on our facility, knowing the experience and capacity to paint large commercial airplanes didn’t currently exist geographically close by,” said Marco Cavazzoni, vice president and general manager, Boeing South Carolina Final Assembly and Delivery. “Leading Edge brought immediate capability and capacity and is located within a manageable flying distance from our new facility.”

As 787 Dreamliners complete final assembly and prepare for delivery, the airplanes will make the 1,250-mile (2,000-kilometer) flight from North Charleston to Amarillo to be painted. The airplanes will then return to South Carolina for final delivery to customers from around the world.

“This paint process is the only difference customers will experience in 787 Dreamliner deliveries from South Carolina. Airplanes built and delivered from both Everett, Wash., and North Charleston, S.C., will be identical, as both sites use common quality management and production systems and meet the same U.S. Federal Aviation Administration requirements,” said Cavazzoni.

Production in the new South Carolina 787 Dreamliner facility is on schedule to begin mid-2011, with first delivery scheduled for 2012.

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Fifty-thousand dollars is the bond of Aiken’s own 41 year old Daniel Johnson, who is charged with reckless homicide after the death of a soldier out of Fort Gordon.

He was arrested Monday and charged after U.S. Army major Dr. Matthew Burke died from injuries he sustained in the October 1 accident in which the bicycle he was riding on was hit by Johnson.

An autopsy shows that the 37 year old died of massive head trauma from the accident. He was riding with a group of cyclists based in Augusta, Georgia on Beech Island Road when a Dodge Durango barreled towards them from behind and struck the group. Four from the group sustained injuries and were taken to local hospitals. They were all wearing reflective clothing and wore safety gear, and the sun was still up, as the incident occurred at around 6:30 p.m.

Johnson was uninjured and immediately taken into custody on the scene.

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There was a laundry room fire at the Aiken SPCA Friday night, forcing the evacuation of around 100 animals and threatens to close the shelter for some time. Luckily, no animals or humans were hurt in the blaze.

The displaced animals were moved to the city annex building and to the Aiken County animal shelter by many volunteers and officers.

The laundry room set off a fire alarm at around 7 p.m. which was picked up by public safety officers and the Aiken fire department. The swift response by the officials and fire department led to the safe exit of the animals, whose only problem may be minor smoke inhalation, but no burns. A ruptured water line above the laundry room also helped douse the flames somewhat.

It is unknown at this time what caused the small blaze.

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