Mediation Logos

As I said in my previous blog, today everyone wants a logo.  In my last blog I Goggled Divorce logo. Now I have Goggled Mediation logo.  I thought it would be interesting to see the difference between Divorce and Mediation Logos.  You can see the results of my full search at http://tiny.cc/cdmlogo2.  Below are some of my favorites.   As expected Mediation logos emphasized peace and working together and not broken hearts and controversy.    

As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ CDM (261) 11/18/12

 

Divorce Logos

Today everyone wants a logo.  I thought it would be interesting to Google Divorce Logos and see what I found.  You can see the results of my full search http://tiny.cc/cdmlogo .  Below are some of my favorites.  Broken hearts seems to be a popular theme.  I like the more abstract which seem to include something symbolic.  My favorite is the Divaroo because I like kangaroos and want to visit Australia. Also like the divorce superheroes.   I am going to do a search for Mediation Logos next.
As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ CDM (260) 11/1/12

 

Divorce Pill

When I first saw the web site for the Divorce pill at http://www.thedivorcepill.com/, my reaction was it was a pill you could take to get divorced.  I thought that was a great concept. I have often had clients come to me in such distress that I they wish I could wave a magic wand and they would be divorced.  Unfortunately or not the pill does not do this but is rather a way to deal with the stress of divorce.  Some of the representations on the web site are

How the Divorce Pill Works

The Divorce Pill was specifically created to raise serotonin levels in the brain.

By using a special blend of herbs including

•        St. John's Wart-to promote a positive mood,

•        5-HTP- a precursor of serotonin

•        Korean Ginseng- to enhance mental vitality and physical endurance

•        Valerian Root- supports feelings of calmness and lowers stress levels.

•        Passion Flower- encourages relaxation and Serenity

Cutting edge herbal technology, specifically blended to ease the physical and psychologically induced trauma of divorce

•        Live your life to the fullest

•        The Divorce Pill is perfect for people suffering from depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, and loneliness.

•        Buy One Get One FREE

The Divorce Pill is perfect for people suffering from depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, and loneliness.

"The single most powerful predictor of stress-related physical, as well as emotional illness is marital disruption." National Institute of Mental Health

"The divorced or widowed are 20% more likely to have heart disease, diabetes, cancer, or other chronic conditions" Dr Mark Hayward PHD, University of Texas

"Divorce is a traumatic life event that can trigger significant symptoms of depression" The Surgeon General

"Long-term stress before, during, and after a divorce may accelerate the biologic processes that lead to cardiovascular disease and possibly other chronic diseases" Web MD

I guess we will have to continue to use the tried and true ways of getting a divorce.

As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ WM (259) 7/8/12

The Maltese Divorce

As promised in my December 26, 2011 blog, I am returning to the topic of Divorce in Malta. Malta now allows divorce and the only two countries left that don’t are the Philippines and Vatican City. See article about Philippines in June 17, 2011 New York Times by Carlos H. Conde at http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/18/world/asia/18iht-philippines18.html entitled “Philippines Stands All but Alone in Banning Divorce.”  Wikipedia now says, “Legislation introducing divorce came into effect in October 2011 following the result of a referendum on the subject earlier in the year. It provides for no-fault divorce, with the marriage being dissolved through a Court judgment following the request of one of the parties, provided the couple has lived apart for at least four years out of the previous five and adequate alimony is being paid or is guaranteed. The same law made a number of important changes regarding alimony, notably through extending it to children born of marriage who are still in full-time education or are disabled and through protecting alimony even after the Court pronounces a divorce.”  It is no surprise that Maltese divorce attorneys (not Maltese Falcons) are now advertising on the internet!
The following is from the web site of EMD Advocates at http://www.emd.com.mt/advocates/en-us/family-law.aspx?gclid=CMbd_uPp57ACFQ5rhwodnm1X0w

“By virtue of the recent amendments to the Maltese Civil Code, brought about by Act XIV of 2011, divorce in Malta was introduced as a legal remedy which may now be claimed before the Courts of Malta. Heavily influenced by the ‘Irish model’ of divorce legislation, such amendments, in effect, carry with them a number of underlying legal implications stemming from their strategic placement within what is, essentially, a litigious-based personal separation system. Indeed, by virtue of these amendments, the legislative provisions regulating personal separation and divorce would now appear to be inextricably interlinked, with separation proceedings, possibly, serving as a prelude to the initiation of divorce proceedings in Malta.

Under the new Maltese divorce legislation, an aggrieved spouse may file an application before the Maltese Courts, asking for a judicial pronouncement of divorce if the spouses in question have been legally separated for at least four years or have lived apart for a period of, or periods that amount to, at least four years out of the immediately preceding five years. Alternatively, the spouses may file a joint demand for divorce after having reached a consensual agreement that their marriage is to be dissolved. In these circumstances, the Maltese Court must be satisfied that there exists no reasonable prospect of reconciliation between the spouses and that all of their children are, as a matter of fact, receiving adequate maintenance. The new divorce legislation in Malta also caters for the conversion of separation suits into divorce proceedings, subject to proof relating to satisfaction of the necessary preconditions associated with the pronouncement of divorce. Within this context, mediation proceedings would appear to play a more prominent role in relation to attempts at reconciling spouses who are not already legally separated, or who are not parties to a suit of personal separation, thus, also acting as the appropriate forum for negotiations conducive to the pronouncement of divorce on the basis of an agreement entered into voluntarily by the parties.

In this vein, the intricacies surrounding the regulation of maintenance awards, as well as their possible conditioning of the Maltese divorce proceedings as a whole will, undoubtedly, provide fertile ground for the gradual judicial development of structured principles apt to provide greater consistency and stability. Within this context, specialized legal advice is clearly of the essence in choosing between the carefully-constructed routes now available under Maltese law.

Our legal team enjoys vast experience in dealing with contentious family law matters and, while embracing the challenges brought about by the recent legislative amendments regarding divorce in Malta, looks forward to providing the necessary individual attention essential to the fulfillment of each client’s personal expectations.”

In particular I like when they say,”… mediation proceedings would appear to play a more prominent role in relation to attempts at reconciling spouses who are not already legally separated, or who are not parties to a suit of personal separation, thus, also acting as the appropriate forum for negotiations conducive to the pronouncement of divorce on the basis of an agreement entered into voluntarily by the parties.”

As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ WM (257) 7/1/12

Judith S. Wallerstein

I don’t usually reference obituary’s in our blog but I could not let the passing of Judith S. Wallerstein go without mention. See obituary in New York Times at http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/21/health/research/judith-s-wallerstein-psychologist-who-analyzed-divorce-dies-at-90.html?smid=pl-share  Judith S. Wallerstein is must reading for anyone in the divorce field. Her books are all classics.  They are not only informative but thought provoking and challenged all of us to analyze what we think and what we do.  Her works include:

Second Chances: Men, Women and Children a Decade After Divorce
The Good Marriage: How and Why Love Lasts
Second Chances: Men, Women and Children a Decade After Divorce
Surviving The Breakup: How Children And Parents Cope With Divorce
The Unexpected Legacy of Divorce: A 25-Year Landmark Study

As the New York Times said Judith Wallerstein was “an expert on divorce whose analysis ignited a national debate over its effect on children.”

As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ WM (258) 7/27/12

Make Your Own Wedding Ring

I have always been art and crafts oriented.  I make walking sticks and wine bottle stoppers.  I taught arts and crafts at a day camp.  My wife and I each made each other wedding gifts – a necklace from melon seeds and wine glasses from Michelob bottles.  When I saw an article on make your own wedding rings, I was very interested.  The Web site for New York Wedding Ring is http://www.newyorkweddingring.com/?gclid=CKu8r6vk57ACFWIGRQodT3GC2A

They say on their home page:

“Join us for a romantic and rewarding experience as you make your own wedding rings or engagement ring, by hand, in our fine jewelry studios in New York City and San Francisco.

Our one-on-one professional jewelry classes enable couples to make meaningful custom wedding rings in one day under the guidance of a professional goldsmith. We offer 99% recycled metals: gold, platinum, palladium, and mokume gane.

Most of the wedding and engagement rings pictured on this site were handmade in by clients with no prior metal-arts experience. Wedding rings usually take one session while you can make your own engagement ring in 1-2 day workshops. Browse the links above to learn more about New York Wedding Ring's unique attitude towards custom jewelry”

As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ WM (256) 6/24/12

Divorce, Marriage, and the Presidents – Part 5 – Infidelity

WARNING.  THIS BLOG IS A SURVEY OF WHAT IS REPORTED ON THE INTERNET ON PRESIDENTIAL INFIDELITY.  THE BLOG IS MEANT TO REPORT THIS CONTENT AND IN NO WAY REPRESENTS THAT THE MATERIAL IS CORRECT. WHERE THE MATERIAL IS MORE QUESTIONABLE, I HAVE USED RANDOM LETTERS AND NOT FULL NAMES.Is it part of being President that you need to be loved by everyone?  As researched on the internet, “Human nature has not changed at all since the first man was born—let alone since the first president was elected. Indeed, presidential love affairs are almost as old as the profession itself. Many former presidents had affairs before and during their presidencies. In their day, though, most Americans and the rest of the world did not know about what went on—for various or obvious reasons. Following are some alleged relationships of some of the Presidents.
Jefferson promised his dying wife would not marry but had a relationship with wife’s half sister Sally Hemmings and perhaps Maria Cosway in France.   Jefferson became the first to claim “executive privilege”—a term that has acquired a number of different meanings in the life of the republic. It includes numerous liberties for the president that go beyond the bill of rights including “unique sexual rights

Jackson’s extramarital affair appeared to be a mistake. He married wife Rachel Donelson Robards at 24, not knowing her divorce from first husband Lewis Robards remained unsettled.

Van Buren after the death of his wife in 1818, proposed to Ellen Randolph, a granddaughter of Thomas Jefferson, before she married in 1825. In his memoirs, he refers to her as “a very interesting young lady...and my warm friend.”

Garfield according to one biographer, had a brief affair with a Mrs. X in New York City in 1862. His wife discovered the truth and charged him with yielding to “lawless passion”. He later asked Calhoun to return his love letters and then destroyed them.

As previously blogged, before Cleveland’s presidency, 33-year-old Maria C. Halpin moved to Buffalo where she kept company with various men, including the young Cleveland. In 1874, she gave birth to a son, whom she named Oscar Folsom Cleveland. Cleveland, never sure the child was his, provided financial support but refused to marry her.

Wilson married in 1885 and he and his beloved Wife Ellen had three daughters. While vacationing alone in Bermuda one year, Wilson met and became involved in an extramarital affair with Mrs. X. They continued meeting secretly in various places.

As previously  blogged, Harding for 15 years saw X, wife of a Harding friend. Nan Britton while a teenager in Ohio developed a crush on Harding. In 1919, the year before Harding’s run for President, Britton gave birth to a baby girl. She said it was Harding’s.

Eleanor Roosevelt hired Lucy Page Mercer as her social secretary. She unveiled Mercer and her husband’s affair in 1918. She threatened divorce if he did not end the relationship. He agreed, but, despite his promise, resumed the affair later, and Mercer frequently visited the white house and was with Roosevelt when he died in Warm Springs, Georgia.

Kay Summersby was assigned to drive then General Eisenhower during a visit to London. She had been engaged, but her fiancée had died in combat, after which she became Eisenhower’s personal secretary and military aid.

Correspondence between the two later came to light and soon afterward disappeared. In the letter Eisenhower announced his intention to divorce his wife and marry Summersby. He never divorced his wife, and after the war he never saw Kay Summersby again.

Kennedy is rumored to have had affairs with stripper X, painter Y, mafia wife Judith Campbell Exner and—most famous of them all—actress and sex symbol Marilyn Monroe.  Just recently, White House intern Mimi Alford also disclosed her relationship with Kennedy

One biographer claims that Johnson had a longtime love affair with T. Interestly, she is said to have broken off the relationship because she opposed the Vietnam War.

One of his many sexual partners became pregnant in 1950, prior to him being in the white house. Her name was G and she gave birth to LBJ's son.. Johnson did take care of G and his son financially, both before and after G was born. The illicit affair lasted for 21 years and Johnson set her up in an apartment for their discreet rendezvous.

Clinton:  Monica and many allegedly.  No need to say more.

Interestingly, I  have not been able to find any reference to first lady affairs.

As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ WM (253) 6/17/12