AUGUST 2010
INSIDE:
• MOVIES TO WATCH FOR! • NEW TEXTING LAWS • HOW TO EASE BACK PAIN
Advice from oXYGen Financial!
LAUREL OAKS
THE W3 LIFESTYLE M I N I Z I N E
COMMUNITY INFO - W3 LIFESTYLE 2
Laurel Oaks Community Manager Yakov Belousov Assistant Community Manager Carey Chandler
Letter from the Community An apartment community cannot “buy” their status as a W3 Lifestyle designated community. As a W3 Lifestyle community they have been identified as being the Best of The Best by providing Superior Resident Services and Superior Product Quality for apartment dwellers. As a W3 Lifestyle designated community they receive a variety of services from us to support their commitment in being the absolute Best of The Best. For example, a customized community newsletter which is called the Minizine due to its Magazine quality design and size, consistent monthly resident events, resident appreciation programs, and so much more. This allows W3 Lifestyle communities to save thousands of dollars which then can be committed to other areas of the community to enhance resident services and general community appeal. If a community does not hold the W3 Lifestyle designation, then it simply is not the Best of The Best under our terms and expectations... or at least they will not “commit” to consistently being the Best of The Best. Either way, if we were you - it is a W3 Lifestyle designated community that has committed to providing YOU with the absolutely best place to live...and therefore is the only thing to be looking for in your next apartment home. Many “say” they are the best, but ONLY the communities that truly “mean” it have committed to it with receiving our W3 Lifestyle designation.
Leasing Consultant Jenna McAlister Maintenance Manager
Leasing Technician
Phone (919) 782-6062 Fax (919) 782-1093 Email laureloaks@pegasusresidential.com Web www.PegasusResidential.com
Newsletter Advertising Inquiries Marci Alt 404-377-4297 marci@carmaproductions.com Have a Review You Would Like to Share?
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Share with us your experience with a Movie, Restaurant, Night Club, or anything else you think your neighbors could benefit from. Email Your Review to: review@w3lifestyle.com Once your review is emailed it becomes property of W3 Lifestyle, LLC and may be published.
what it means to be W3 Lifestyle Designated!
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3 Lifestyle began with one goal in mind - give apartment renters a place to go to find the absolute best in the apartment industry. No more “hoping” you find the best or trying to “guess” who is the best based on those huge publications.
apartment renters to go to in order to find the best apartment communities - the W3 Lifestyle concept was born. Our team is comprised of creative individuals who are always looking for new resident programs to enhance their lifestyles.
What does it mean to be a W3 Lifestyle If a community holds the W3 Lifestyle community? It means not only having a designation they have proven to be the physical amenity package, but also having Best of The Best a lifestyle amenity package. We support and committed to “No more ‘hoping’ our communities by offering customized superior service, monthly Newsletters to our W3 Lifestyle you find the best. It’s superior product communities as well as consistent about knowing. ” quality, superior Community Events. We also provide a living environments full package of other programs such as and the overall best place you could our Resident Appreciation program, the possibly live. Much like other designations customized Community Social Networks, such as “Good Housekeeping,” “Energy Star,” our Resident Touch program, and so much etc., the W3 Lifestyle designation is one of more. top quality. So here is a question - with the above Obtaining the W3 Lifestyle designation is programs and services being offered to our not something that can be bought. Only W3 Lifestyle communities free of charge communities that have been invited can why would any community NOT be a W3 brag about being a W3 Lifestyle community. Lifestyle community? They either were not invited, or were invited but did not want to So who are we? Our company was founded commit to our standards. That said, where by someone that came from the Property would you want to live? If it is not a W3 Management industry. Frustrated with Lifestyle community, it simply isn’t worth the fact that there was no good place for living at! LETTER FROM W3 - W3 LIFESTYLE 3
5 Financial Questions to Ask Yourself Right Now
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ith a roller coaster economy, high job unemployment, and increasing federal debt, this is the time to take stock and ask yourself some important financial questions to make sure you keep your financial house in order. Here are 5 important questions to ask yourself now?
the past year? You should be asking yourself questions such as how far your money may go down before you exit the stock market, or how much it needs to make before you might take some profit off the table. Learn from the ups and downs you saw in the early 2000’s and in 2007/2008.
1. Do I have an exit strategy with 2. Do I have enough of a cash my investments? If reserve? With job market “ I would recommend uncertainty, you want to the stock market has doubling your cash another free fall or make sure you beef up your company stock your cash reserve for at reserve.” takes a dive, how will least three months more you put some sort of cushion to secure than you would normally have. If you those assets which have grown over are used to having 3 months in a cash 4 W3 LIFESTYLE - oXYGen Financial
reserve, than I would recommend doubling it to 6 months to be more safe.
up to date? With many people entering into second and third marriages with both spouses perhaps having kids from prior marriages, it is important to 3. Do I have a spending plan or make sure you review your beneficiary budget in place? If your income begins designations. I often find that people to expand again over the next couple don’t review these until it is too late. of years, I think As more and more people “ By really examining it is critical that your budget now, you can get their financial homes in you keep your determine your wants vs. order, asking yourself these spending plan in five questions can help you your needs.” check. Make sure run your family finances to save at least 10% of your income, like a business. with the real target being 20% of your total income. By really examining your budget now, you can determine your wants versus your needs. It is certainly a good idea to reward yourself from time to time, but staying away from any unnecessary major purchases that are not in your budget will be a key to building wealth during the next up economic cycle. Arthur Benz 4. Are my insurance coverage’s in Vice President, oXYGen Financial, Inc. place? Even though the health care President, oXYGen Financial bill passed recently, it is important to Insurance, Inc. review your insurance coverage’s from Request a FREE Financial consultation: what you have at work to the personal abenz@oxygenfinancial.net or insurance you currently carry. If you (678) 551-7945 lose your job or decide to leave, many coverage’s such as disability insurance go unnoticed until it is too late. 5.
Are my beneficiary designations oXYGen Financial - W3 LIFESTYLE 5
Building Relationships: 10 Ways to Get the Most Out of Social Networking Sites
BY DUSTIN WAX
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he Internet has changed the way we relate to each other, as business partners, as clients, as friends, as family, even as lovers. Not only has it become easier to stay in touch with people we already know, it has become easier to find and connect with people we’ve never met before — and might not ever meet at all!
network sites as toys and networking as “just for fun” (though it can be fun, too). Have a clear purpose: Know what you’re using a social networking site for. While it’s ok to have a profile somewhere that’s just for “hanging out”, you need to know that hanging out is its purpose. If you are using a social networking site to try to build an audience, connect with other Whether you’re looking for new customers, professionals, or meet your next wife, a new audience, a new business partner, it should be focused on achieving that a new vendor, new friends, or a new one end. Don’t muddy the waters by trying to night stand, you can advertise your dog-walking “ Know what you’re using maximize your use of the service, pick up dates for Internet and the wave of a social networking site the weekend, post pictures social networking sites of the company picnic, and for.” that have cropped up build an audience for your to help us connect. Doing even a few of homebrew science fiction video series. these things will set you apart from the vast majority of people who view social Complete your profile: You’d be surprised 6 W3 LIFESTYLE - COVER
how many people never do this. Yet it’s the first thing people want to know about you. Most people check all the boxes (I’m a Virgo, in a relationship… done!) but don’t do much with the real “meat” of their profile, the About Me section. Put some thought into what you want people to know about you and why people should care. Don’t follow the leader: It can be tempting to sit back and wait for people to contact you, for people to leave comments, for people to suggest installing some new application — rousing yourself only to respond to whatever prompts come your way. Take the initiative and add people, select a handful of apps you like and stick with them, and update on a semi-regular basis (or a regular basis; schedule 30 minutes a week to update your profile, if it’s an important part of your public image). Accept everyone: There are two schools of thought on this: create an inner circle of close colleagues, comrades, or companions; or create a huge body of followers, fans, or ex-girl- and boyfriends. I fall into the second camp — anyone who has taken the effort to “friend” me gets added. Those are the people who are willing to invest their attention in what you’re doing, who have given you permission to “broadcast” your life to them. Welcome them. Add everyone you know, no matter how little: Most services these days will scan your address book and tell you if there’s anyone you might already know onboard. Some will also recommend people a on people you already know, places you’ve worked, or interests you’ve highlighted
Which of these do you use? A couple or all? Which do you prefer?
COVER - W3 LIFESTYLE 7
(LinkedIn) is scarily good at this! If you come across someone you actually know in “real life”, no matter how distantly, add them. That is, after all, the point of social networking — to leverage the often-invisible connections that exist between us and other people. The worst that can happen is that they say “no” — this has never happened to me. Pick one or two networks and work them: It can be tempting to sign up for dozens of social networking sites, especially when different contacts turn up on different sites. But it’s nearly impossible to make use of a dozen different sites, unless you figure out how to make a career of it. Instead, pick one or two sites and focus all your energies on creating useful, meaningful connections there. Send messages: Find a reason to connect with the people in your network, and send them a message once in a while. Since the main point of this is to keep a channel of communication open, it doesn’t have to be profound — a “happy birthday” is good, if the site reveals birthdays. Don’t, though, make it all about you — that is, don’t post a message to everyone in your list every time you update a picture, go to work, or leave your house. (You laugh — I’ve had friends that did this!) Have something to say: Let people know why you’re there, what your purpose is, and what makes you, you. Give people a reason to pay attention to you. Although most people in your circle will stay in your circle indefinitely if you don’t do anything at all, having connections because they’ve forgotten you’re there is hardly the best use of a social network! Post something to 8 W3 LIFESTYLE - COVER
your front page, blog, wall, or whatever it is every now and then, so that people learn something about you. Avoid clutter: Remember when MySpace pages were awful and Facebook pages were clean and simple. No more — now it takes about 8 minutes for your profile anywhere to get covered with junk. If your page is so full of junk that nobody can tell anything important about you, you might as well not have a page. Limit yourself to only 3 or 4 extras, and either stick with the default theme or try to find one that’s clean and simple. Firewall your personal with business lives: This might not apply to everyone, but for most people, once you’ve decided to use a social networking site for business purposes, don’t use it at all for nonbusiness communication — and vice versa. Remember that the story about you, the goat, and the magnum of champagne is going out to everyone you’ve allowed to see your profile. That’s not something you want to share with potential business partners. If necessary, create two profiles on the same site, one for your business persona, the other for your personal life; instead of denying friend requests from friends and family, you can just refer them to the other profile. Social networking sites have a reputation as being huge time wasters, and for most people, they are. If you can afford that luxury, more power to you; for the rest of you, really think about what social networking can do for you and focus your energies to making that work.
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Drinking Water Benefits Why Drink Water and How Much Water is Enough?
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hose trying to manage their weight may have heard how drinking water benefits the metabolism. However, dieters who find drinking water unbearable, perhaps because of taste, scheduling, or personal preference, may need added incentive. Are there other benefits to drinking water? The answer is a resounding yes. For non-water drinkers, fed up with hearing they need to drink eight glasses of water per day, the good news is that some foods have significant high water content and some beverages, not purely water, count too. Why is Water Drinking Important? The only element more important for sustaining life than water is air. The wonders of water are numerous; for example, providing liquid solvency for internal chemical reactions, circulating nutrients around the body, regulating body temperature, and joint lubrication. Inadequate water intake can result in dehydration, which may lead to abnormalities in metabolism and other functions, such as gastro-intestinal circulation. Chronic or severe dehydration can affect the body’s vital functions. When taking medications, it is especially important to maintain or increase water drinking, along with such nutrients as potassium and sodium. Some drugs, such as antidepressants and corticosteroids, affect the balance of fluid and minerals in
the body’s cells; if you are taking such medications, be sure to discuss with your doctor. How Much Water to Drink? The Food and Nutrition Board, Institute of Medicine has established dietary reference intakes for water and other nutrients. Their latest report “did not specify exact requirements for water, but set general recommendations for women at approximately 2.7 liters (91 ounces) of total water -- from all beverages and foods -- each day, and men an average of approximately 3.7 liters (125 ounces daily) of total water.” Those who don’t like water are probably thinking, “But 91 oz is over 11 cups of water!” Note that about 20% of total water intake comes from food, so the liquid recommendation would be reduced to 74 oz for women and 101 oz. for men. Still seems overwhelming? Here’s the good news: The Food and Nutrition Board includes caffeinated beverages in the recommended water intake. According to Staci Nix’ 2009 Edition of “Williams’ Basic Nutrition & Diet Therapy,” “though coffee has typically been considered a diuretic, recent studies evaluating hydration status in individuals consuming caffeinated and noncaffeinated beverages did not differ, indicating that caffeine did not negatively affect total water balance when consumed in moderation.” Most experts seem to agree that about three cups of coffee per day would be considered moderate. HEALTH - W3 LIFESTYLE 11
Confetti Ice Cream Pops Nutritional Information (per serving)
Ingredients: 8 piece(s) (1 1/2-inch) soft-centered candy bars, (like Milky Way or Snickers) 1 pint(s) vanilla custardstyle ice cream, slightly softened 3/4 cup(s) assortedcolor candy confetti or sprinkles
Calories 215 Total Fat 10g Saturated Fat -Cholesterol 13mg Sodium 55mg Total Carbohydrate 33g Dietary Fiber 1g Sugars -Protein 1g Calcium --
Directions: 1.Insert a wooden Popsicle stick into 12 W3 LIFESTYLE - FOOD RECIPE
Cool down with these yummy treats to beat the heat! one end of each candy bar and set aside. Place 1 tablespoon of ice cream in the bottom of a 3-ounce paper cup. Place candy in center of the cup, surround with 3 tablespoons ice cream, and smooth over the top.
2.Transfer cup to a baking sheet, repeat with remaining cups, and freeze until solid. Pour confetti or sprinkles into a shallow bowl and set aside. Peel the cup from each ice cream pop and roll in the decorations to cover completely. Store in freezer for up to 3 days.
www.MBUSA.com
Movies and More By: Sierra Bennett
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egarded as one of the best movies of the summer, “Inception” is directed by “Dark Knight” and stars Leonardo DiCaprio and “Juno’s” Ellen Page. When I first saw the trailor I was instantly intrigued, it was action packed and full of mystery.
New TV Lineup
The movie is about a theif in a technological world who specializes in stealing the deepest secrets from the subconscious of others. He and his team are given a Our own local bridal chance to redeem themselves by commiting the perfect boutique, Bridals By Lori will be coming to TLC on heist: create an idea in someone’s subconscious. It’s dark August 6th with “Yes to the and keeps my attention. Not to mention the handsome Dress Atlanta” I’m definantly Leonardo DiCaprio gives a worthy performance as usual. looking foward to this “Inception” really shows off his skill. This is a movie that show because I recently went to the store with my keeps you thinking and keeps your attention. Also, as roommate who’s engaged. a fan of Stanley Kubrick this movie brings me back to The experience was great his style of dramatic images with the dreams that are however they put her into a shown. dress above her price point I was impressed with the visual and storyline detail that “Inception” brought to the table. According to the Box Office rankings, I’m not the only one who enjoyed this comlex story. It’s in it’s third week as number one and the second highest grossing science fiction movie just behind “Avatar.” I give it 5 STARS! 16 W3 LIFESTYLE - MOVIE REVIEW
that she fell in love with so I’m eager to see what shenanigans they will pull on the show. They also seem a little more sassy than the original “Say Yes to the Dress” in New York.
Let Them Eat Cake! or at least faint on the Antoinette Fainting Chair. BY: Sierra Bennett
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have a new obsession: Urban Outiffitters. Since I first stepped into the store earlier this year, I have been visiting their website online and checking out the new deals. Lucky for me they happen to have deals daily. Urban Outfitters upon arrival is filled with clothes, books, trinkets and music. It’s a hipster’s thrift store boutique. The style is modern vintage wrapped with boho chic. Urban Outfitters has men and women clothing, shoes, bags/ wallets and accersories. However their store doesn’t end at clothing, they also have really cool and fun apartment stuff. The Antoinette Fainting Chair is my newest crush. Urban Outfitters is also reasonably priced especially compared to their
sister store Anthropologie. Here you can actually afford to buy what you see versus just lust after a piece of furniture or a new cardigan. They impressed me recently by mailing my new bedding in 3 days. That was standard shipping! I’m not saying that it happens everytime but I was really excited to get it in 3 days versus the standard 5 to 7 days. My roommate also experienced the same results when she ordered a bathing suit and it came before she went out of town. The quality of their products is also great. So my next adventure in shopping: to purchase that Antoinette Fainting Chair! It will go perfect with the amazing bedding I bought from Urban Outfitters. SHOPPING - W3 LIFESTYLE 19
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here are a number of websites promoting DVDs that sell do it yourself exercises on how to manage back pain. While this may be normal and aimed to improving the general health of the population, some of these products may have been prepared by untrained nonprofessionals.
How to Ease Back Pain
Safe and Effective Excercises By Humayun Altaf, ezinearticles.com
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Exercises to ease back pain can be categorized as among those that are highly risky. If not properly executed, it may lead to greater loses. Therefore, in choosing exercises to ease back pain, it is essentially important to select only those that are safe and efficient. Below are a couple of exercises that are considered to be both safe and effective.
Check them out: Yoga Classes: This meridian treatment is based on time long alternative therapy that is able to heal the body through encouraging positive energy. It involves taking some simple exercises on regular and almost religious intervals. It may often be accompanied by meditation. By participating in yoga and meditation, one is provided with information that will enable one to reduce stress immensely. Exercises that You Enjoy: These are exercises that you would often do on your own. For example, a tummy stretch is an exercise that you can conduct while staying at home. Sit-ups are also simple exercises that can be done at home.
Simple but Regular: You need not to strain in performing exercises to ease back pain. This is because it might create dangerous moves that may further complicate a hurting back. The secret is in doing one simple but regular exercise.
“Excercising helps ease back pain versus just resting.” Physiotherapy E x e r c i s e s : A physiotherapist is one such person, who is trained on how to refocus certain muscles and make them work normally. This is the person, who will be best placed to advice you on how to manage a severe back pain. This can often be managed in combination with tables or pills that either reduce pain or
increase the cartilage formation. Regularmassage using aromatherapy or herbal remedies have also been shown to be effective exercises to ease back pain. These can be purchased from online shops and they often come with compete manuals on how to use them. The ultimate goal of the exercises is to increase blood flow to these back muscles or the lumbar. Moreover, this results in faster bone formation and reduction in pain. Where the exercises do not seem to improve the condition, then you may need to visit an expert, who might help you out.
WELLNESS - W3 LIFESTYLE 21
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