CORVALLIS, Ore. — Oregon's wine grape industry is booming due in part to the growing number of new vineyards and wineries popping up across the state. According to a new report on selected Oregon commodities, wine grape crops posted gross sales of $46.7 million last year, an increase of 27.6 percent since 2005. Increases in harvested acreage and improved yields due to better growing practices, management and seasonal conditions resulted in a 25.6 percent increase ... [full story]

The future appears bright for those 2007 graduates entering the working world. MRINetwork, an international recruitment organization, shows the job market for college graduates as being in the best shape it has been in since the 1990s. After hitting a low point in 2003, the job market has advanced for graduates during the last four years. The Economic Policy Institute shows that the employment rate has increased to 86 percent after dropping to 84 percent ... [full story]

Approximately 11 million American women run their own businesses, twice the number of men. Apparently women want more freedom, control and self-fulfillment in their careers. While exploring the idea to become an entrepreneur, Victoria Colligan realized how many women had the same passion in today's market. As a co-founder of Ladies Who Launch, she wants to share women's entrepreneurial stories; one woman is featured in each weekly newsletter. "I felt compelled to share their stories ... [full story]

Weather may have an effect on employee performance. Ten percent of workers said they are usually less productive on gloomy days, according to CareerBuilder, who surveyed more than 6,000 workers. Twenty-one percent checked rain as negatively affecting their character. Weather can also impact employees' moods and interactions in the office. Thirty-two percent of workers said they feel more cheerful when it's sunny outside, while 12 percent tend to be more sad and angry on gloomy ... [full story]

One day when Lynne Hildreth, an employee with Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., was in a meeting, she got a call from her daughter's day-care center telling her the 6-month-old was ill and needed to be picked up immediately. Since it would have been difficult for her to leave work right then, she decided to try backup care. Now she refers to it as a stress reliever. Moffitt's child-care benefit offers the Back-up Care ... [full story]

Crystal-Barkley Corp.'s Life/Work Design courses allow individuals to plot a personalized yet realistic life plan for work, learning and leisure. Formed 20 years ago through the partnership of Nella Barkley and John Crystal, the company enables clients to develop a management plan in order to use the full range of their potential. The program begins by helping clients discover their hidden or overlooked skills and talents, according to Barkley. Through exercises and reflection on past ... [full story]

It pays to be friendly with the majority party in Congress.  The proof is in the new energy bill that just passed the House during the Democrats’ “100-hour” agenda. The CLEAN Energy Act of 2007, a contrived political acronym for “Creating Long-Term Energy Alternatives for the Nation,” has been portrayed as ending preferences for so-called Big Oil - a familiar victim on the left-wing's whipping post. In truth, what the bill does is raise taxes ... [full story]

"Jack Kevorkian's decade-long assisted suicide campaign was never about compassion," says bioethicist and assisted suicide expert Wesley J. Smith. "It was about Kevorkian's obsession to engage in human vivisection." Smith, a senior fellow at the Discovery Institute and attorney for the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide, urges the media to report the story of Jack Kevorkian's release from prison accurately and not promote the false myth of "Jack the Martyr." Kevorkian admitted ... [full story]

TIJUANA, Mexico - For decades, hundreds of people known as pepenadores have earned a living in Tijuana's oldest municipal dump, picking through tons of trash for recyclable goods. Now most of the trash is going directly to a newer dump at the city's eastern perimeter, putting the pepenadores' future in question, for better or worse. City officials say the work puts the scavengers' lives and health at risk, and it won't be allowed at the ... [full story]

Skin cancer is the most prevalent form of cancer in the United States. Ironically, it is also one of the easiest to prevent. There are so many ways to avoid the damaging ultraviolet rays of the sun, but often, precautionary steps are not taken seriously until it is too late. July is UV awareness month and experts want you to be aware of the dangerous affects of UV light, and what you can do to ... [full story]