In the third quarter, business productivity grew at the fastest pace in six years. That is at a 9.5% annual rate. Companies have been squeezing more output from a smaller labor pool in order to cut their costs. Hopefully no one is being forced to work TOO hard! Analysts do not see much more room for more cuts and feel that this, coupled with the economy’s recent growth in the third quarter, may cause companies to start increasing salaries. As it stands, compensation per hour has jumped at a 3.8 percent pace.

Also good is that claims for unemployment aid fell to a 10-month low, just last week. The number of claims dropped 20,000 down to 512,000. This is the lowest since January.

The Federal Reserve also expressed optimism that an economic recovery is on the heels. The U.S. Central Bank left its benchmark overnight lending rate unchanged near zero and pledged to keep it there for an extended period, just to play it safe.

Furthermore, U.S. stock index futures added to gains after the economic data. Big thanks for this recovery will be due to the government’s stimulus package.

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That is because we see this number a lot in nature:
G-D Created the world in seven days, the Menorah in the Holy Temple had seven branches, there are seven seas, seven colors in the rainbow, seven notes in a music scale, etc. etc.

So while seven is indeed a very Holy number, eight is symbolic of the aspect of Divinity which is one step beyond nature; that which defies reason or logic and we cannot fully comprehend as human beings.

Jewish baby boys are circumcised when they are eight days old. That this tradition seems to have no logical justification, except for the Divine commandment, the number eight explains the missing puzzle piece.

Miraculously after Judah and the Maccabbees defeated the Greeks, there was just enough olive oil found in the Temple to burn for one night, instead it lasted eight! EIGHT, the miracle number! When the greatly outnumbered Jews chose to rebel against their Hellenist foes, it was irrational, almost silly – the miracle is that they were victorious.

This is why on Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, the Menorah has eight branches! Have a great holiday and don’t forget MostOriginal.com for Hanukkah Gifts.

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During the holiday of Hanukkah, every Jewish home has a special Menorah with nine branches. Eight of the branches represent each day of the Miracle of the olive oil, which took place in the Temple at the time of the Maccabean Revolt in the 2nd century BCE; and the ninth branch is called the Shamash, and is used to light the others.

Aside from the historical significance of this tradition there is a spiritual significance which is handed down to us in the form of many ancient Kabbalistic secrets that most people do not know.

Here is one of the spiritual secrets of the Menorah:

When you look closely at one of the burning candles, you will see that the flame has two colors. There is a bright radiance on the top and underneath there is a darker radiance. Each color of the flame represents a part of the soul. The brighter part is our enthusiasm in serving the Divine out of love. This part of the flame, you will notice, constantly dances higher and higher, as if reaching for a higher spiritual level. The purer the oil used, the brighter the top of the flame. The bottom part, which is the darker part of the flame, represents the love of the Divine Spirit, which exists naturally in our hearts and our brains, but is often a struggle to make manifest. This is why the flame, on the bottom is darker, but as it touches the higher flame which dances towards greater spiritual levels, it becomes brighter and brighter.

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Heidi Klum showed up at the Annual Emmy Awards, alongside her hubby Seal, in a stunning black Marchesa dress which made her look beautiful, even with a large pregnant belly. Her hand was the picture of hipness, bearing funky cocktail rings of ruby, amethyst and a snake ring.

Amy Poehler and Will Arnett were in all black. The 38-year-old funny lady had on a strapless Reem Acra gown, Stuart Weitzman shoes, a Judith Leiber clutch and beautiful diamond cluster earrings by Chopard. She was styled by Duo.

Drew Barrymore showed off a head of up swept hair and wore a strapless beige, Oscar de la Renta gown. The grown-up teen Hollywood heartthrob had on lovely, yet modest pearl earrings.

Kate Walsh was also dressed to impress. She had on a pale gray J Mendel gown and flaunted a flair unmistakably “recessionista”, by toting an ALDO clutch.

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Nicole appeared before the committee as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). Her goal: to push the International Violence Against Women Act.

During the conference, Dana Rohrabacher a Republican Representative from California asked Kidman if the movie industry has “played a bad role?” To which the movie-star replied, “Probably” she then made sure to clear her own name, “I can’t be responsible for all of Hollywood but I can certainly be responsible for my own career.” She continued, “In the real world, the laws go unenforced and impunity is the norm.” She made the case clear that the organization desperately, “needs the money.”

In the past, the legislation over this matter has been known to stall. However, Representative, Bill Delahunt, a Democrat from Massachusetts said that he and others are planning on reintroducing a bill very soon.

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There are two main cultural influences in analyzing Halloween costume trends. One is Hollywood and the other, the news.

Last year, with the release of The Dark Knight, a lot of kids going around dressed up as Heath Ledger’s The Joker. Another popular costume last year was the talented but troubled British Diva, Amy Winehouse.

This year retailers report selling a lot of Michael Jackson and Bernie Madoff costumes to some daring boys and ghouls.

Popular Costumes for Girls:
Minnie Mouse, Princess Leia, Hannah Montana, Dorothy Gale, Padme Amadala, Supergirl, Batgirl and Alice in Wonderland.

Popular Costumes for Boys:
GI Joe, Storm Tropper, Transformer, Indiana Jones, Iron Man, Incredible Hulk, Spiderman, Superman, Yoda, Wolverine and Pikachu.

Popular Costumes for Older Kids:
Characters from Scream, Texas Chainsaw Massacre’s Leatherface, Yoda, Jason from Friday the 13th, and Elvira Mistress of the Dark.

Popular Costumes for Pets:
Super Dog, Under Dog, Batman, Elvis, Batman, Yoda, Toto. (I would love to see an Elvis cat ringing my doorbell – that’d be fantastic!)

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Recently I was visiting my in-law’s in Providence, Rhode Island, and they showed me a cute antique shop. There, for under $100 dollars, I was able to find enough fascinating used books to decorate my bookshelf, a Civil War era handgun and an excellent quality acoustic guitar. It was then that I became convinced of the valuable secret of being a garbage collector.

On October 18th 2009, I wrote about a man who bought a “German School 19th Century” piece at a Christie’s auction for $19,000, in 1998, which changed hands a few times and finally it became discovered that the piece was actually a Leonardo Da Vinci original, worth $160,000,000!

Well I was reminded of this today when I read in the news today about a woman named Teisha Mcneil. Teisha lives in a Shreveport, Louisiana trailer park and attended her neighbor, Edith Parker’s garage sale. Along with a handful of other items, McNeil bought a colorful painting in a cheap frame for just $2. On the painting was written the name Picasso. So she imagined that it was a fun imitation. Upon doing some internet research, she learned that it resembled a “missing” Picasso piece, worth $2,000,000. Thinking that it may be stolen, she then turned it over to the FBI do to an analysis. The final call is still pending, but it looks as if the woman has become a very lucky shopper.

In other freakish stroke of luck, a long-haul truck driver named Terry Horton, picked up an interesting abstract painting at a thrift store, for $5. Though still waiting to be authenticated, it seems as though the painting which she purchased with a five dollar bill is actually a Jackson Pollack original, worth $50,000,000!

In another similar case, in 2007, a man bought an original copy of the Declaration of Independence, for $2.48, at a Tennessee thrift store.

So the next time that you tell your young one to not be a garbage collector, think twice. You never know what kind of valuable items you have hanging around the house, or that you just might happen to chance upon. And NEVER NEVER NEVER, pass up the opportunity to check out what is available at a thrift store, low-priced antique sale, garage or yard sale!

Good luck shoppers! See you next time…

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The latest photos were taken by Vanity Fair photographer, Annie Leibovitz. Leibovitz is noted for her work capturing the images of rock stars and Hollywood elites as well as for her multimillion-dollar fortune’s recent collapse. The portrait was snapped in the Green Room of the White House on September 1st.

The list of top fashion designers who have custom made the First Lady’s apparel is impressive: Isabel Toledo did her Inaugural dress and Jason Wu designed the dress which she wore to the Inaugural Ball. Cuban-born Toledo, who has been designing for 25 years and worked for a time at Anne Klein, is known in fashion circles as a “designer’s designer.” Toledo works out of her Manhattan studio on Broadway and 28th Street, along with her husband, fashion illustrator Ruben Toledo. The Obamas discovered Toledo’s work through retailer Ikram Goldman, who owns a Chicago specialty store, which the First Lady frequents.

The fashionable Mrs. Obama has been in the news quite a bit this week. On Wednesday she hosted a “healthy kids fair” for about 100 Washington D.C. school children on the White House’s Southern Lawn. It was part of her ongoing campaign to educate children about the importance of proper diet and exercise; there the first lady impressed the crowd by swiveling a Hula-Hoop 142 times, successfully before letting it hit the ground.

Also a brand new USA Today Gallup poll shows that Michelle is more popular among the American people than her husband Barack or VP Joe Biden.

The president’s approval numbers have been sliding slightly over the last month. Obama is favored by 55% of respondents, which is down from the 68%, polled right after the election.

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Terry Bollea, otherwise known as Hulk Hogan, seriously contemplated committing suicide after the breakup with his wife of 23 years, Linda.

At the same time he was trying to fight off a divorce, his son Nick was convicted after losing control of Hogan’s car and permanently injuring a friend. It was the combination of the two that led him to rock bottom.

Luckily, he had some caring co-stars who intervened at just the right time to save his life. The woman credited with it – Laila Ali, daughter of boxing great Mohammad Ali, who also changed his name from Casius Clay, by the way. But that was more of a religious thing than a publicity stunt. (Unless Hoganism is a religion. You never really know for sure…)

In the book, Hogan reveals how he tried to prevent the divorce:

“I practically begged her, ‘Please, don’t file.’ Our son’s just had this accident — if we do this now, it’ll make us look like the Britney Spears family. Please, don’t file for divorce.’”

He couldn’t stop it, but he did pick himself up eventually. Hogan said Ali prevented him from suicide after he had downed a cocktail of Xanax and Rum. In the book, he said that he had his finger on the trigger when she called.

I wish Hogan a full emotional recovery. He’s one of the good, sane celebrities it seems.

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The camera is worn around the neck and records every moment. It takes automatic pictures as often as every 30 seconds, but the auto-shot may be altered. It uses an accelerometer and light sensors which automatically snap new shots, any time that a person enters a new environment. It also features an infrared sensor to take a picture when it detects the body heat of another person in the vicinity of the wearer. The camera can hold up to 30,000 low-resolution images, in its memory capacity of 1-gigabyte.

The gadget stands to be launched at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in Chicago, this weekend, in conjunction with a conference on research about using the product.

Vicon, a company based in Oxfork, England, which specializes in motion-capture technology for the movie industry, licensed the technology for the camera, from the original Microsoft prototype, they intend to put it into mass-scale production. So far only 500 have been made, but a consumer version will be released in 2010. Vicon will retail the camera for £500 (about $820), and market to researchers.

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