CMJ Office Blog

For those of you doing genealogical research, here is a list of the 2008 Top 50 research websites. This is a great list and great information for everyone that loves genealogy. An article is scheduled soon in the “Digital Genealogist.”

Follow the link and enjoy the read. http://www.progenealogists.com/top50genealogy2008.htm

Colleen M. Johnson, CMJ Office

The essay entry is up and running. To vote for my mom, please click on the flower link over to your right side. The flower button that says, “Vote for My Mom”, will take you right to the voting page for my mom, Mary Degnan. You need to register to vote. It only takes a minute to vote and you can vote every day. In fact, if you vote every day for my mom, it will increase her chances of winning.

Thanks.

Remember it will be broadcast on Mother’s Day evening at 7 p.m. EST/6 p.m. CST on NBC. Donny and Marie Osmond will be hosting the event.

Colleen M. Johnson, CMJ Office

Vote for My Mom! I’m jumping on board a little late in the contest. I hope that ‘Better late than never’ applies.

If you’d like to vote for my mom, her name is Mary Degnan. In case that there is more than one, she lives in Rotonda West, Florida. Hopefully, my entry will be posted soon. If it isn’t there when you go to the site, please check again later. I just submitted and it takes a bit for the essay to be accepted.

Thanks for the vote. We need to say thank you to our moms more often. You will need to register to vote. It only takes a minute. Click on the website link and it will take you to the contest page http://www.americasfavoritemom.com/. It is scheduled to be broadcast on NBC Mother’s Day at 7/6c and hosted by Donny & Marie Osmond. I love them!

My mom might be a little embarrassed but I’m also going to include her picture. Just in case you need to recognize her.

I’m sure she’s going to be thrilled with all of this publicity! HA!

Colleen M. Johnson, CMJ Office

Well, I had an incredible week here at CMJ Office. I’ve been very busy with several projects and a client waiting in the wings. It’s exciting. I’m glad that I took last week to rejuvenate.

I recently came back from visiting family in southwestern Florida. It was enjoyable. Of course, I had my laptop with me but it still was a mini-vacation. It was hysterical watching my 3 year old son stepping through the sand the first day at the beach. He kept taking these slow giant steps. Then, very slowly, he looked up at me and said, “Mommy, I have sand in my shoes.” I’m assuming he thought that I would rid him of this sand. It did not take him long to get used to the beach or swimming in the pool. I could have won some serious money on America’s Funniest Videos if the camera had been running when he put his head down on the dinner table. He fell asleep while eating. This child never stops. Florida zonked him.

Oh, the glorious beach and sun is breathtaking there. At one point, we hit upon what seemed to be a prehistoric goldmine. Englewood and Venice Beaches are packed with prehistoric shark teeth. We now have a baggy full of these teeth. The kids had so much fun digging for them. It was exciting and I highly recommend it.

Of course, I now have to deal with rain here in Virginia. It’s been very gloomy and gray lately. I am waiting for the dogwood trees to bloom. That is always cheerful. All the children are begging for us to move to Florida. It’s funny. Is the economy improving yet?

Colleen M. Johnson, CMJ Office

As promised in a previous post, here are the final 5 tips for proofreading success.

6. Come to the table fresh. Do not start proofing your copy at midnight. Keep distractions to a minimum. Turn the TV, music, or cell phone off. Proofreading does require focus and concentration. Make sure your lighting is adequate. Dim and flickering lighting should be avoided.

7. Check formatting. Format errors are those little mistakes you find that involve fonts, spaces, extra tabs, page numbering, headers and footers, inactive links and the like. These errors can creep up on you.

8. Double check facts. Check important information within your copy. Make sure your information is the most current and accurate.

9. Read backwards. Reading backwards can help you focus on the words and not get distracted by meaning. Start from the last sentence and read until you reach your first sentence.

10. Tackle tables separately. Check your index or table of contents one by one to avoid missing typos in these vital areas.

These tips should help any business owner with their proofreading skills. It pays to use your time and energy wisely when proofing business material. If you don’t, you could be confronted with an embarrassing situation or a waste of money. Proofreading effectively can save your business image. Have you ever embarrassed your business image with a proofreading error?

Colleen M. Johnson, CMJ Office