Catha For Council Blog

What is civil partnership?

Civil Partnership is a new legal relationship, giving two people
of the same sex similar rights to married couples. These rights
and responsibilities include:

* A duty to provide reasonable maintenance for your civil
partner and any children of the family

* Ability to apply for parental responsibility for your civil
partner’s child

* Equitable treatment for assessment of child support, life
assurance, tax, employment and pension benefits.

* Recognition under intestacy rules

* Recognition for immigration and nationality purposes

* Next of kin rights

Who is eligible?

The couple must both be of the same sex, be 16 years of age or
older, not already be in a civil partnership or marriage and not
be related to each other. In England, Northern Ireland and
Wales, 16 and 17 year olds will need their parents’ consent. In
Scotland, they won’t.

How do you register?

To register a civil partnership, you must first give formal
notice to your local authority. You’ll be able to do this from
December 5, but some authorities (such as Brighton and Hove,
Liverpool, Sheffield) are already taking provisional
bookings.

Where can I register my civil partnership?

Anywhere already approved for marriages, such as a register
office or licensed wedding venue.

How long do I have to wait?

Once each person has given notice of intention to register,
there is a 15-day waiting period before the civil partnership
can be registered. In exceptional circumstances, the 15-day
period can be reduced - for example where someone is seriously
ill and not expected to recover.

What time of day can a civil partnership be
registered?

Civil partnerships can only be registered between 8am and 6pm
(as is the case for marriage). However, where one of the couple
is seriously ill and not expected to recover, then the civil
partnership may be formed at any time.

What happens at a civil partnership registration?

The couple sign a civil partnership document in the presence of
the registrar and two witnesses. Civil partnership registration
is an entirely secular process and the Civil Partnership Act
prevents any religious service from taking place during the
statutory steps leading to the formation of a civil
partnership.

Can we have a ceremony?

Yes. You can have a ceremony in addition to the signing of the
legal documentation, but it is not required under the Act.

How much will it cost?

The cost of giving notice in advance of forming a civil
partnership is £30.00 per person. Forming a civil partnership at
a register office will cost £40.00. The local registration
authority set the cost for attendance by a civil partnership
registrar and a further charge is likely to be made by the
owners of the building for the use of the premises.

What happens if the relationship breaks down?

A civil partnership can only be ended by formal dissolution or
annulment, or on the death of one of the parties. The process
for dissolution will be court-based and the person applying for
the partnership to be dissolved will have to show that it has
broken down irretrievably.

Will the UK recognise civil partnership schemes from other
countries?

If you have already entered into a civil partnership in another
country (countries which already allow civil partnerships
include Belgium, Denmark, Finland and Canada), you won’t have to
register again here. From 5 December, your partnership will be
recognised in the UK.

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Routers are not perfect. For that matter, nothing is. So if somebody wants to give a router more than it can handle there is a way to do this. We’re going to take a look at what are called denial of service attacks.

A router can only handle so much information coming into it at one time. Every machine has its limits and routers are no exceptions. Well, when the nasty trend of denial of service attacks started early this century, routers were unprepared for them. As they began to understand what was happening they began to compensate for the problem. But there was still a way around it. To understand this we first have to understand what a denial of service attack is.

A denial of service attack is just as it sounds. It is when someone prevents the router or routers from servicing the network. The question is, how do they do this? As previously stated, a router can only handle so much information coming into it to be routed at a time. If too much information starts coming in then the router gets overloaded and can’t forward the information fast enough. Ultimately, what happens is this slows the network down to the point where nobody can access it. In a denial of service attack, which is a deliberate attempt to cause this problem, a person will send an enormous amount of information from one computer to the router at one time. Eventually this will effectively shut down the network. The reason is because of the trickle down effect. Once the main routers start to get overloaded they start to send messages to the rest of the network that the connection is full. These messages start to cascade through the entire network until all the pathways in the network are full and nobody can communicate with any server on the network.

When companies and web sites began to understand what was happening then started to put safeguards in place. They would put checks in the router software to see if a large amount of information was coming from one IP address. If so, then it simply discarded the information and didn’t attempt to pass it on. It seemed that the problem was solved. Not so.

Hackers began to figure out that if they send this enormous amount of information from multiple computers or IP addresses, the routers would have no way of knowing that a denial of service attack was in progress because it would see all this information coming in from multiple locations. Ultimately again, the network would effectively be shut down.

In response to this, manufacturers of routers have placed additional safeguards into their routers to simply check for unusual traffic. The problem with this is that in some cases there is a large amount of traffic that is normal, like in the case of a news site being hit with an overload because a major breaking story hits the airwaves.

It remains to be seen if the hackers or the router manufacturers are going to win this war.

Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Routers

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To paraphrase a song, “Are you doing it more, but enjoying it less?”

An ongoing debate has it, that women, according to men, are choosing to be harder and harder to please; complaining of more headaches than ever before; and taking in their stride any tokens of affection offered by men. Oh, sure, they will add, a woman might play the part of a responsive partner before she gets the wedding ring, but once the legal contract is in her hot little hand, it’s, “Stop pestering me. I do have a life of my own, you know!”

Poor old Valentino, that heart throb of days gone by, found this to be only too true.

On the very first night of his honeymoon, before getting a chance to show his prowess, the new Mrs. Valentino locked him out of her bedroom and kept him out till the formal dissolution of their marriage came through.

What her problem was is hard to determine. But seeing some of the grooms finishing the wedding reception under the bridal table, one can’t help feeling that grooms sometimes show a tremendous lack of common sense. Even if he wakes up in time to go to the honeymoon suite, the bride is unlikely to welcome him with open arms, despite his blustering that alcohol doesn’t affect him at all.

On their side, women have it, that despite the knee-jerking to the emergence of the new sensitive guy, men never see women as anything but bed playmates - selfish, self-centred brutes that they are.

Trouble seems to be that almost everything we do is in response to what we have learned from the past.

Take the idea that presenting her with a bunch of flowers or a box of chocolate is going to make a woman go weak at the knees. This might have been the case when access to either was not available to everyone. Today, when for a few dollars anyone can go out and buy both, such gifts are beginning to seem very much token gifts.

In the end, wishing to please a wife is less about gifts, than the husband’s need to find out who his wife is.

I’m reminded of that famous, often copied beach scene from “From Here to Eternity” with waves crashing over the half-naked bodies of Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr, and all that it implied.

How did he manage to overcome the scruples of a woman whose body and mind had been scarred by a brute of a husband, and who viewed men very much like a fox views a blood-hound?

By extraordinary gentleness and kindness that probably the man himself didn’t know he possessed, but had intuited by his genuine feelings for her.

Vlady Peters, who is a Civil Marriage Celebrant, is an author of three books, “The Complete Book of Australian Weddings”, “The Small Organisation Handbook”, and an ebook, “Honeymoon! A Sizzle or a Fizzle?’ which you can see on her website http://www.vlady-celebrant.com

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The biggest problem long-distance spouses often face is how
to keep emotional intimacy alive when they are separated.
If you are in a long-distance marriage, you are probably already using email and the telephone as much as possible to stay in touch. But what else can you do to stay connected with your partner and not lose that special bond between you?

One suggestion is to take the extra time to also send “snail
mail” greeting cards, letters, and postcards when possible.
Buy an assortment of cards when you have a chance, and that
will make it easier to send out one or two cards each week.
Vary the type of cards that you send–some romantic, some
funny. You could also send postcards to add variety and show scenes of the geographic area where you are working.

In your letters and emails, don’t only talk about what activities you’ve been involved in, but be sure to share your feelings about what’s going on in your life. Ask feeling-related questions, such as “Do you ever worry that one day we’ll have been married 20 years and we’ll discover that we don’t really know each other?” Also share memories and experiences from childhood and the years before you met.

Write your spouse a letter telling her (or him)what you love about her,what attracted you to her, what you admire about her, and why you want to stay married to her. Before you send it to her, make a copy for yourself and read it once a day to remind
yourself of all the positives about your spouse. Ask her to do
the same for you.

Look for ways to create reminders that will trigger thoughts of
each other when you’re apart. For example, you might
consider naming a star for your spouse at the International Star Registry (www.starregistry.com). Then, each starry night, you will both feel connected as you look for “your star.”

You might come up with some other symbols to trigger your
thoughts, such as agreeing to think of each other every time
you see a certain type of bird. Or pick a car with special
meaning and think of each other every time you see a red
Camaro, for example. Perhaps you will both agree to listen to
a certain song on a CD before you go to sleep each night,
knowing the other person is doing the same thing.

Brainstorm about ways you can feel connected even when
you’re not talking on the phone or emailing each other. Mail
your husband (or wife) a tape of yourself reading a love poem or sweet letter you have written to him. Send small surprise gifts when you can. They don’t have to be expensive; they just need to show that you’re thinking of him.

You could order gifts of gourmet candy, nuts, popcorn,
flowers, or other items from the Internet. Or you could give a
magazine subscription to your spouse so she (or he) will think of you each time the publication arrives. Another idea is to send her a new CD that you think she’ll like or a paperback book.

Consider creating your own web site where you can post
photos you both take with a digital camera. The pictures could
show scenes from your life apart and also pictures from the
times you are together. Over time, this would document your
history as well as your current life as a couple. One site that
provides free web hosting for family web sites is
www.myfamily.com.

Other ideas include having a print shop like Kinko’s put a
photograph of you and your spouse on coffee mugs, or having a
photograph put on a T-shirt or sweatshirt for each of you. If
you have some common interests in reading or listening to
audio books, pick a book to read or listen to at the same time
and then discuss it as you go along.

Put on your creative thinking cap and experiment to see what
works best for the two of you. By using your imagination, you
can deepen your emotional connection with your spouse, even
though you’re physically separated by thousands of miles.

Nancy J. Wasson, Ph.D., is co-author of Keep Your Marriage: What to Do When Your Spouse Says “I don’t love you anymore!” The e-book is available at http://www.KeepYourMarriage.com , where you can also sign up for the free Keep Your Marriage Internet Magazine. Contact Nancy at Nancy@KeepYourMarriage.com.

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To find paid surveys the internet makes it easy. You may earn some prizes, a little cash that for certain will put you in a good mood. It is always wise to be extra careful when a website is offering you wages for various types of online work you can do on your home computer. Nevertheless, there are many advantages to earning money on your own terms out of your house and you should keep these positive factors in mind and not be easily deterred from pursuing genuine survey opportunities. Getting Getting Paid For Surveys is simple. Different companies offer free paid surveys, read on more about Getting Paid For Surveys. Rest assured not all places are like that. Also see Paid Surveys Cacada. This is the way that a lot of paid surveys pay you and it will make it faster to get your money.

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It is quite normal for there to be tears at the wedding. It is a moving experience that can touch even the most jaded hearts. The more magical the wedding, the faster the hankies come out.

Actually, everyone cries at weddings. There have been times where the bride sobs her way to the altar. The groom may be so awed by the sight of his intended that he’ll shed a few tears too.

Expect that the bride’s parents will shed some tears as they watch their beloved daughter marry her chosen mate. They are seeing the culmination of years of care blossom into the radiant bride standing at the altar. Some may feel a great reluctance to let go of their child, but know that they cannot hold her back. If you can’t imagine it, watch the movie “Father of the Bride” starring Steve Martin.

Of course, there may also be some sad tears from the crowd. Weddings for the single people can be a goal and watching someone else at the altar makes them misty eyed with longing. The guests, the ones who are married, may be remembering their own nuptials and are reliving their special moment as they watch the happy couple say their vows.

If you think you are likely to have lots of waterworks… I mean guests, crying at the wedding, why not have some tissue prepared in packages matching your theme. That would be a thoughtful gift that your guests will appreciate and remember. Just don’t forget to have some ready for you and your fiance/e, just in case you get overcome by your happiness as well.

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With so many ways to ask your closest friends and family members to be a part of your big day, it’s tough to know how to strike a balance between creativity, cost and convenience. Sure, you can opt for the boring standards like monogrammed stationery, handkerchiefs and jewelry—and be like every other bride on the block. Or, you can send flowers with Beyond Blossoms to help make your “ask” as unique as you are with its Beaming Bridesmaid Package.

Each of your prospective bridesmaids will receive a custom-arranged bouquet of fresh flowers delivered to her door. The flowers are a pretty bouquet consisting of roses, carnations, sweet smelling stock, and frilly Queen Anne’s lace. The flowers are sent farm fresh and ready to bloom. Accompanying the flowers is a card featuring the photography of celebrated wedding photographer Cheryl Richards, asking your loved one to stand up for you as a bridesmaid on the most important day of your life. No extensive shopping hunts, no searching online forever, no gift-wrapping required…with just a quick visit to www.beyondblossoms.com you can send flowers to impress your friends with a sentimental bridesmaid gift that sets you apart from the soon-to-be-married masses. The flower package costs $39.95.

Beyond Blossoms is an online florist whose mission is to send fresh flowers at low prices, ensuring a thoughtfully beautiful gift for the recipient every time. The company spreads the joy of flowers, one blossom at a time. Farm fresh flowers, available both in single variety collections as well as European style, hand-tied bouquets, are shipped nationwide in specially-designed insulated gift boxes. The company differs from other online florists because the flowers come fresh from growers around the world, the recipient does not have to be home for delivery, and the prices are lower than traditional florists. With a few clicks, the joy of fresh flowers is easier to spread than ever.

Josh Grossman is co-owner of http://www.beyondblossoms.com. Send flowers in the US that are farm fresh. We offer low prices on fresh flowers such as roses, lilies, carnations, sunflowers, and more.

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1. Learn about diamonds

Sometimes, I just can’t help myself but to keep on emphasizing this to anyone who wants to buy a diamond online: LEARN SOMETHING ABOUT DIAMONDS! Sorry, I don’t mean to shout. But in reality, many people are still very ignorant about diamond.

Believe it a not, there are jewelers who are unable to differentiate a diamond cut from a diamond shape. Everyone is so hyped up about the carat weight and has totally forgotten about the other 3 characteristics of a diamond.

It won’t take you years or months to learn something about diamond. There are plenty of articles and information on the 4C of a diamond. Spend some useful time in the library or internet and learn about diamonds. Who knows, you may become an expert in diamonds.

2. Prioritize the 4 characteristics

There are much more about diamonds than just the 4Cs. But at the end of the day, the 4Cs are still the major factors influencing the quality and price of a diamond.

Before you start prioritizing the 4Cs, you got to know what your girl actually likes about a diamond. If she like big one, go for a diamond with big carat weight but with poorer quality in terms of color, cut or clarity. If she likes the brilliance of a diamond and doesn’t mind the size, choose one with excellent cut and clarity. Whichever the case is, prioritizing the 4Cs will give you a better idea of what diamonds will suit her taste as well as your budget.

3. Do a price research

With your list, do some price research at some of the online jewelry stores (Here are some of the top online jewelry stores). Based on your list, you should have a rough estimate of the market price of the diamond you are looking for. If the price is out of your budget, try going for a grade lower than your expectation and you may eventually find one that suits you well.

4. Do some background research on the jewelry stores

If you have been doing researching, you would have come across information on cubic zirconium diamonds. These synthetic diamonds are D-color graded, flawless and cut to perfection. In short, a CZ diamond is a ‘perfect’ diamond. It is brilliant, flawless and yet cheap. Their prices do not increase exponentially with their quality unlike diamonds.

And there are also some natural diamonds which have undergone treatments to reduce its blemishes thus enhanced its appearance. It is still a low grade diamond and dishonest dealers may try to pass it off as a good graded diamond and sell you at a higher price.

So, before you start swiping your hard-earned money away, do some research about the jeweler as well. Ask your family, relatives or friend who have purchased from the dealer. Online forum is a good place to ask around and there are plenty of sites that provide reviews on jewelry store online.

Give the jewelry store a call, talk to their staffs and decide for yourself if you are comfortable with the store.

5. Always ask for a money back guarantee

There are risks in very form of transactions, so do buying diamonds. Protect yourself and minimize any risks by making sure that the store has the complete details about their return policy. It should include information about the validity period, what to do if you wish to return your purchase and their address.

As a rule of thumb, online stores should offer you no less than 21 days return policy. In fact, most of them have a return policy of 30 days.

6. Choose jewelers who provide grading reports

Certified diamonds will come along with a grading report by reputable gemology organizations such as GIA or AGS. Some online jewelry stores certified their diamond by in-house gemologists and they may be using different grading standards from GIA or AGS, while others may not provide the grading reports. Diamonds from top online jewelry stores generally comes accompanied with a grading report.

After you have purchased your diamond, you should get it appraised again with the grading report by a trained gemologist. The grading report will be very helpful in ascertaining whether the diamond you have bought is up to the specifications shown on the report.

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There are a number of things you’ll want to buy when you commence cycling. The first and most understandable is a first-class bicycle that suits you! While that may well appear like a no-brainer, lots of people start out on bikes that are too small, or built with poor quality parts, simply because they’re significantly cheaper. The exact fit & a well built bicycle can make your ride a lot easier, yet, don’t be persuaded to bargain shop for your bike. However, it will be better in the long run to obtain one that will survive you a substantial amount of time. Once you have a bike that is right for you, it’s time to buy the other cycling items that will help you to become a regular cyclist. Get discount cycling equipment online today at Sportswear-Equipment.com.

Lights: The minimum needed by law for your bike is a couple reflectors. However, a headlight & tail light are worthwhile even in daylight hours. When it is dark & rainy, they can make a huge impact in your visibility to cars.

Tools: Just like driving a car, accidents do happen whilst you are cycling. Therefore, it is important that you keep some type of tool kit with you at all times to take care of flat tires, uncooperative chains, loose bolts and other problems.

Helmet: Whilst it is legal in most places to go without a cycling helmet, in a lot of others, one is obligatory. If you’re hoping to cycle frequently, it is clever to have one even in locations where no helmet law exists.

Clothes: While special cycling clothing is unquestionably optional, it’s prudent to pay close attention to what you are wearing. Loose clothing ought to be avoided, or tucked up so they don’t get trapped in the chain.

Locks: Unless you’re lucky enough to live in a location where you are able store your bike inside all the time, combination lock is important. Even in rural areas, there are individuals who will happily pinch & resell your bicycle.

Related topics of interest include: Formula One Racing & Buy Toys Online.

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With recent technological innovations which consists of digital TV, High Def Telly, Freesat & home cinema sound, if you’re existing television set is more than 5 years old, then now a perfect time to get a new television. Although, as technology develops nearly each day, purchasing a brand new telly set can easily be principally complex and baffling.

This article aims to present an insight on all the most modern technological improvements that will promise to take your television enjoyment to a totally new intensity.

High-Def TV: Maybe the most important improvement to telly since the invention of colour technology, High Def (HD) TV provides detail, clarity and colour, with images normally 4 times as crisp as various usual television machines. To witness the advantages of High-Definition telly you are required to have a Hi Def Ready television. Sky & Freesat have already started transmitting high def TV programmes so you can now take pleasure in an assortment of your favourite programmes, films & sporting occasions with incredible life-like images.

Integrated Digital Tuner: A TV with an integrated digital tuner (usually referred to as idTV) permits you to get hold of all free to air digital television channels, including the likes of: E4, BBC3, Sky News and many many more without the need for another set top box.

Freesat: A brand new digital satellite TV service offered via a partnership between the BBC & ITV, supplying you free HD Telly programmes at no extra price. Freesat has no weekly contract, no joining fee, but instead just one single fee for the telly, satellite dish and installation. Furthermore because Freesat is transmitted via satellite, its accessible to nearly every household in the UK. Freesat telly is at this moment in time only obtainable through Panasonic televisions.

LCD or Plasma Televisions: Although LCD and Plasma televisions operate in entirely different ways, the advantages of both are awfully alike. But, it is imperative to consider that when choosing between a Plasma or LCD TV, it’s in actuality just a question of size. LCD is at its greatest performance up to and including thirty two inches, whilst Plasma tellies offer optimum performance at 37 inches & beyond. Thus, if you are wanting to buy a smaller flat panel TV, then LCD offers the greater performance, in contrast if you call for1 a larger screen size, Plasma is definitely the greatest choice.

In conclusion, its critical to consider when getting the right TV for you, to consider your available budget, your screening distance, the style you desire and if it’s to be an LCD or Plasma telly. Find cheap TVs online at http://www.JohnLewis.com.

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