| Fast rail offering hip personalised travel
E-TICKETS, on-board DVD rentals, events, and even new encounters French rail's new iDTGV trains are testing a new way of travel. Music blares from a speaker in a bustling bar and conversations get louder as customers just out of Paris meetings trickle in, settle down and order drinks. The barman hands over a beer, spilling a little as the brightly-coloured buffet car on the top deck of a customised high-speed TGV train rolls into its three-hour journey to the Mediterranean port city of Marseille. Joined to a regular TGV train, this iDTGV, playing on the French word "idee" or "idea", is operated privately, but owned by the national SNCF rail company and designed as a laboratory for future rail travel. Planned party train on the way The iDTGV was launched in December 2004 and offers cheaper tickets, internet reservations, and services aimed at pleasing passengers, including a soon-to-be launched party train, to help the SNCF better compete with low cost airlines.
Bridal Bargains
Soon-to-be brides packed the Friends Center of Southern Ohio Medical Center on Sunday looking for bargains and wedding ideas at the 2008 Bridal Expo.Rhonda Ballengee, of By Design Floral and Bridal in Sciotoville, is chair of the committee that hosts the annual event - along with Tammy Wagner, of Party On Rentals in Wheelersburg, as treasurer. She said it started at the Ramada Inn about 12 years ago, but her committee took over the show about six years ago.During the show, retailers like Ballengee and Wagner can setup displays for interested brides-to-be to browse through. Wagner said it was a great way for local shops to get their names out to the public.Along with Party On Rentals were displays for event planners, caterers, photographers, disc jockeys, videographers, limousine services and much more.
Teaching skills to frisky felines far from easy
The tricks relied on positive methods, conditioned response training using treats as a reward.The "Show Biz" book provided all the justification I needed.Training strengthens the bond between owner and pet and helps keep house cats from getting bored, according to the author."Neither animals nor people should live a life of complacent routine, devoid of any learning experiences," Gordon wrote.I needed no further encouragement. To improve my odds - because I hadn't tackled such a complicated experiment since my grade-school science fair - I also checked out "50 Ways to Train Your Cat" and "The Educated Cat."Some might brand the whole idea of teaching obedience commands to cats as an affront to the feline nature. But the Show Biz book quelled my doubts."First, understand that you will never get a cat to do something it does not want to do," the author wrote."Second, the fact is that all animals, including cats, learn many behaviors that are not instinctive but instead unique to their environments, mainly through conditioned response.
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