Worthy Articles Directory

These Shoes Are Too Tight!

2008-11-06T22:00:00.000-08:00

These Shoes Are Too Tight!

Sometimes when we are at the window looking into someone else’s life, it’s easy to pass judgment based on what we see at that particular moment. I’ve always been told to believe none of what I hear and only half of what I see and frankly, I think maybe half is too much. I say this because for a long time, I was the person standing at the window looking in-passing judgment on other people simply because they looked or behaved a certain way.

At the age of nineteen, I was carefree and single. I had been in one relationship that was basically puppy love. I was happy go lucky, and very self-righteous. I couldn’t understand how a young lady could find herself pregnant without a husband and I was very vocal about it. Guess what happened to my self-righteous behind? In a span of 5 years I fell in love two times and became a single mother not one or two times, but three. And to add insult to injury, my children were fathered by different men.

Taking a short journey in someone else’s shoes is one of the most surefire ways for me to stay balanced and honest. I’ve stepped into a dancer’s shoes when I was tempted to judge her –not knowing she had children to feed. I’ve stepped into a disabled person’s shoes more often than I can remember [Read more]

Twenty-Eight Hours

Have you ever spent twenty-eight hours with somebody and it felt like one minute? Twenty-eight hours in which the conversation never ceased to stop? Twenty-eight hours in which the excitement kept building and where the connection kept getting stronger as each minute passed?

Life is a gift. It’s time all of you started accepting the gift of life, because when you do what will happen is that you will actually start to meet people who are going to blow you away. When you’re open and you’re being honest, that is when you’re going to find someone who is also open and honest and then life is just going to seem to mesh.

You will be on the same page with this person about everything you think and feel. It’s amazing when you spend twenty-eight hours with somebody, and when they leave all you want to do is start another twenty-eight hours with them all over again. You don’t want that person to leave. You just want them to stay [Read more]

One Real Change Beats a Thousand Daydreams

Successful change requires taking action, handling the problem in a different way than you have in the past. Thinking about it, wishing, daydreaming, repeating old behaviors, none of that works. Only an actual change in your behavior will move you in a new direction to fix the problem.

But if you’re like most of us, much as you may want to change, when the time comes to actually do things differently, negative feelings get in the way. Everybody wants to feel ready to change before they get going. “As soon as I lose 20 pounds, I’ll try to find a guy.” “When I don’t feel so depressed, I’m definitely going to look for a job.

”Or sometimes when people’s feelings resist change, they decide change is totally impossible for them. “It’s my nature to be shy. There’s nothing I can do about that.” “It would make me too nervous to give up cigarettes.” “AA can’t help. My father was alcoholic and so was my grandfather. It’s genetic.

”Wanting to feel ready to change before taking action is exactly backwards. As a clinical psychologist who has spent many years helping people successfully change, I know that if you wait to feel ready to make your move, you could wait forever. But the good news is, with the right roadmap, it’s perfectly possible to move yourself forward without feeling ready. We don’t like to go against our own feelings, but in the situations I’m talking about, it isn’t dangerous to do so, just uncomfortable. And there are techniques you can learn to handle that discomfort and move forward anyway [Read more]

Will Shopping Save the Economy

Shopping is our real national pastime, but it comes, as he warns, at a price that is not advertised in the malls:

The idyllic wonderland of consumer credit too often belies a reality of unknown sacrifices and enduring debt… the credit card industry is playing a crucial role in transforming American consumer attitudes. The promotion of “immediate gratification” ruptures the cognitive connection between earnings/saving and credit/debt that has traditionally shaped consumer behavior. It is this “cognitive disconnect,” with its siren song “Buy, buy, buy. It could be free, free, free” that constitutes the cornerstone of the Credit Card Nation.

And so it is not surprising that holidays are used or created as national events to spur consumption. They have become rituals of shopping. None is as important as the first day after Thanksgiving, itself a day set aside for overindulgence at the kitchen table. That day now has a name, Black Friday, so called because it is supposed to be the day when the whole retail sector goes into the black financially. (This may not have been such a wise use of language since the Wall Street crash of l929, ushering in the Great Depression, started on a “Black Thursday.”) [Read more]

Dating Other Women

2008-11-02T01:13:00.000-07:00

How to Save Marriage by Talking to and Dating Other Women

Sooner or later your wife is going to be looking for a new man. A guy who is confident and self assured. Someone who is capable of living his own life while protecting her at the same time. You can be this guy if you want to be and one of the ways you can help yourself to turn into the man she wants is to start dating other women. You won't get your wife back just because you've been out on dates but it will give your confidence a boost that your ex is bound to notice.

Pleading with your wife to change her mind about the breakup is not going to work. This is what most guys do in this situation because it's what all your instincts are telling you that you should do. This is why most men fail to save their marriages. All you will succeed in doing is push your wife further away and make things even worse than they were before.

It's hard at first. I know because I've been there. You've probably forgotten how to talk to women and you may be a little frightened by the thought of it. Well you have to get over that. Force yourself to take the plunge and just say something to a woman. Anything - it doesn't matter much what you say, the point is just give it a go [Read more]

Parking Spaces As Real Estate Investments

So how much does a deeded parking space cost? It depends on where you are located. In New York, it's possible to pay more than $175,000 for a prime parking spot. In Chicago, deeded parking spaces run anywhere from $20,000 to $65,000 or more in some of the trendy new construction high-rises or downtown locations.

According to Parkingsearch, the value of parking spaces has increased by quite a bit over the past few years. Their research finds that in Chicago the average parking space sold for $28,000. By 2006 that increased to $30,000 and last year in 2007 it was about $33,000. With a fixed rate loan of 6 percent there is definitely a profit to be made. It may be a bit if a challenge to find a bank to loan you the money, but it is certainly doable. You monthly payment should be in the range of $200 and the going rate for renting a parking space in prime spots can be as much as $300 to $500.You need to keep in mind that you'll have a few fees associated with owning a parking space. It isn't all profit. While you won't have much upkeep on the spot, you will probably have to pay a maintenance fee to the building or condo association. A deed must be obtained, liability insurance is a good idea and yearly taxes must be paid [Read more]

Currency Controls Coming to the U.S.?

Exactly what is a digital blip worth? For that matter consider that the paper dollars in your pocket are backed by nothing more than digital blips.

Washington backs those dollars and blips with nothing more than the promise of "I owe you nothing". If you walked into the U.S. treasury and asked to exchange your dollars you would be met by blank stares. After all, it's been a few decades since anyone even pretended that a U.S. dollar had any real value.That brings us to the problem. With the world's supply of U.S. dollars greatly enlarged we will soon see more dollars chasing the same amount of goods and services. Actually, in a recession/depression there will be a diminished supply of goods and services. That means the increased supply of dollars will be vying for fewer goods and service.

You don't need to be a Stanford economist to know that your government is lighting the fuse to an inflationary explosion. The result will be that every one of your dollars will be worth less… and less… and less. It's the time honored way governments rob from their citizens to pay for politicians misguided financial policies [Read more]

Should Your Teen Get a Job?

The legal age for employment is, indeed, fourteen, although there are certain state regulations, such as not being allowed to work between the hours of 9:00 PM and 7:00 AM. And being employed in hazardous or unsafe working conditions. No problem, there!

But regardless of the fact that the law allows my son to be employed, is he truly ready to hold down a job? Maybe you’ve wondered the same thing. Here are a few things to consider before chauffeuring your teenager around town to fill out those applications.Is my child responsible? The term, “responsible” is most definitely subjective. You might consider you son or daughter responsible if they keep their room clean. Other parents might overlook the messy room but see their child as responsible if he or she turns in their homework on time.

Does my child get along with others? Of course, we’re not only talking about siblings, although if they get along well with their brother or sister, you are in the minority and have reason to rejoice! The more important question to ask is how your child gets along with friends, as well as the parents of those friends. Being comfortable around adults and being able to communicate well with them is a sign that your child may be ready for this step towards their own adulthood [Read more]

Teaching Children to Tell the Truth

2008-10-31T00:42:00.000-07:00

Teaching Children to Tell the Truth

Honesty must be valued. This seems obvious, but here is what I've seen happen time and time again. Parents in a family like the IDEA of truth telling, but not the HARD WORK of honesty. If you value honesty, you will make being honest a priority each and every day. It is what you do, far less than what you say, that carries weight with your children. If you are not valuing telling the truth in your family, neither will your children.

Develop a culture of honesty. This second point flows naturally from the first point. Once you decide that you are going to make honesty a priority in your home, look for ways to incorporate truthfulness in your everyday life. Instead of only focusing on behavior that involves lying, emphasize truthful behavior everywhere you see it. This will show both you and your child how vital a foundation of truthfulness is in daily living and that throwing the occasional lie in the mix is like throwing a wrench into a smoothly running machine, causing problems far more difficult to solve than the original issue. [Read more]

Stop Listening to Your Friends

It’s time to stop listening to your friends. You get to a point in your life as a woman when you’ve got to start listening to yourself. That time is right now!Women always talk about their “women’s intuition” and how great it is at just knowing what is really going on in any situation. If that’s the case, though, why does every woman seem compelled to go to her friends with a blow-by-blow description of their dates seeking her friends’ opinions?

Start listening to yourself. Start trusting yourself a little bit!Your friends were not on that date with you last night. They can’t break it down.Remember that great Sex And The City episode that spawned that really bad book “He’s Just Not That Into You” (which has now spawned a movie of the same title)? Just like the scene in that episode, a lot of women will get together to do what I call a “post-date recap.”

Now, granted, a lot of guys will do a “post-date recap” with their friends as well. They’ll talk about the moment they talked about their crazy uncle and will worry about the fact that he brought that up and whether the fact that he did ruined the date. Just like the women, his friends will break down the date and agree with him. [Read more]

The Five Secrets of Getting Lucky in Love

Be still and in the now to find the lucky surprises and coincidences that can turn your love life on. Most of us are rushing hectically around, getting work done, taking care of errands, running here and there.

We don’t take time to slow down and notice what is happening around us. And so we may be sitting next to the love of our lives on the train or standing behind the ‘One’ at the grocery store and never actually speak to him or her. In my book, Love in 90 Days: The Essential Guide to Finding Your Own True Love, I describe a Being-In-The-Moment exercise, where you take 10 minutes and practice slowing down and paying attention to who or what is right in front of you. You would be surprised about the connections, lucky surprises and coincidences you will encounter if you pay attention to the people and things around you right now.

Say hello to a new person every day. He or she may be the ‘One.’ Even if they’re not, every person knows about 200 other people. You never know what love connections may come from a whole new social network! [Read more]

Choosing the Right Make Up Mirror

A mirror that offers a magnifying side is perfect for applying tricky eye makeup, and is especially helpful for plucking and shaping eyebrows. This type of mirror is also a great asset to anyone who usually wears glasses and would have difficulty applying makeup when they were removed. A magnifying side can be very useful for paying extra attention to skin imperfections and blemishes, particularly when applying concealer to dark areas under eyes etc. The majority of magnifying mirrors swing to give a 'true image' on the reverse side. A variety of magnifications are available.

The lowest gives three times magnification (generally referred to as X 3 mag) progressing to X 5 magnification, X 7 magnification and a high X 10 magnification. The ten times magnification mirror will reveal amazing detail such as pore size, fine hairs etc. Although this can be quite a shock when you first use it – remember that others do not see this detail when they look at you! It is for your benefit only. Which magnification you choose really comes down to personal preference, which may be influenced by your visual acuity.

Pedestal mirrors are ideal for applying makeup when placed on a dressing table, or positioned on a higher surface if standing. Pedestal mirrors come in a variety of heights and sizes, and many can be adjusted to the perfect height. [Read more]

Untold Mortgage Crisis

2008-10-27T21:59:00.000-07:00

The Biggest Untold Mortgage Crisis

According to one recent study, the number of foreclosures in military towns are four times the national average. Why? Because military families were targeted as customers during the boom in subprime lending.

Their frequent moves, overseas stints, and low pay meant they were likely to have weak credit ratings. The initial low rates and easy terms of these loans made them more attractive than the traditional route of taking out a Veterans Administration loan. In fact, at the peak of the U.S. subprime lending, the number of new VA loans fell to their lowest level in 12 years.

With that in mind it’s not surprising that a large number of military families are being caught in the subprime mortgage collapse. Fortunately, there’s some help in the form of the Service members’ Civil Relief Act (SCRA). The SCRA was created to protect soldiers and sailors from losing their homes for nonpayment of mortgages while they are on active duty and for 90 days after they return home.

Those who qualify for the SCRA include members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corp and Coast Guard. Also included are members of the public health service, commissioned corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and National Guard members who were called to active service during a national emergency and authorized by the President or Secretary of Defense for more than 30 consecutive days.

In addition, citizens ordered to report for induction under the Military Service Act, and those serving with the Allied Forces are also covered under the bill. [Read more]

Dealing With Economic Fear

Anxiety about the future is widespread, with a sense of there being no clear way to avoid the coming trouble. Within this atmosphere, fear and anxiety are rampant, and it becomes even more important to find a basis for trust that does not depend upon external circumstance, but rather on a sense of hope and conviction that the present turbulence will lead to a positive outcome.

Such hope and trust becomes more difficult to achieve when one’s personal fortunes are jeopardized either by loss of work, loss of one’s retirement fund, savings, or investments, or the inability to obtain a loan for a purpose deemed vital. All of these bring the present crisis home in a personal way. Even more personal would be the loss of the value of the dollar which would be able, then, to purchase less in the way of critical commodities, and would create widespread financial restrictions both within the banking system and within our personal lives. In the blink of an eye, we would no longer be a nation of prosperity, but would have to face poverty amidst vastly changed economic conditions. [Read more]

Don’t Crash and Burn Like I Did

What I have learned that never worked for me:

There are no real get rich quick schemes in this world – what ever you want to do you are going to have to give up something else to achieve it, whether that is time, money or a combination of both.

95% of the people that do MLM businesses can’t make a living from it – so I won’t spend my precious time on them, not just because they have not worked for me in the past but also because I only want to promote ideas that I can pass on to others and have them succeed.

If a system is quoted as 100% automated then it will not work. This is because it will very quickly become over subscribed and therefore stop working and also, because the world is a constantly changing place, what worked yesterday will not necessarily work tomorrow.

Much like the first lesson, I have learned that you can never get anything of real value for nothing. Life changing results need to have real input from you to achieve.

So with that in mind, what types of opportunities do work? [Read more]

Mini Skirt and Weight Loss Tactics

If you are looking to lose weight, you have absolutely no problem. The weight loss industry is a strong one in the United States and other parts of the Western world.

You can begin by asking questions around on what steps to take, or you can go straight to a professional. If you are an overweight male, imagine this - you have just met this damsel that looks like she took a holiday from heaven. The way she looks at you, you can tell that she adores you. But deep inside, you know also that she is bound to have an issue with your weight. Isn't that reason enough to do everything you can to lose weight, even if it means spending hours daily in the gym?

Some people rely on illness to help them lose weight. While this is fair enough the first time around, you shouldn't make a habit of it. Getting used to such could result in some kind of ‘cry-wolf' syndrome in which you might not recover from the illness soon enough. In the end, you lose. [Read more]

Why Everybody Isn't Rich

2008-10-19T22:23:00.000-07:00

20 Reasons Why Everybody Isn't Rich

1. People never define what being rich actually is
2. People's definition of being rich normally focuses on long term goals therefore making it feel impossible to achieve.
3. Most people over estimate what they can achieve in 1 year and under estimate what they can achieve in 10 years
4. People tell themselves that "they don't really care about money" and then proceed to work 40 plus hours a week in a job they hate
5. People never decide that they must become rich and take genuine action towards achieving this goal
6. People don't have a realistic plan
7. People don't follow the plan
8. People listen to advice from poor people yet they are very skeptical about advice from rich people
9. People allow other people's opinions to effect their action and goals
10. People don't take responsibility for their own results always blaming everyone else if they don't succeed [Read more]

Eat Yourself To Death

Generally People are either too busy or too lazy to check what they are putting in the mouths of themselves and their children. They truly believe that food manufactures would never try and poison them or put “Highly Toxic” ingredients into their food. This could not be more further from the truth.

These are the same people that constantly suffer from being overweight or obese, depression, constipation, loss of vision, anemia, heart disease, respiratory illnesses and varying forms of cancer to name just a few from a very long list.What you are about to read here is going to shock you. It will change the way you eat forever and hopefully, if applied, will prevent the premature death of you, your family members and your friends within the next 10 years.

Take a close look at the labels on the food in your house and you will find that most have Canola Oil or Vegetable Oil (which 9 times out of 10 is Canola Oil) on their list of ingredients. Well to get started, here are probably the 10 most important facts about canola oil that you will ever read [Read more]

How to Calm Down Easily: Some Zen Steps

The monkey mind is the mind that jumps from one thing to the next, fears, demands, grabs and sabotages our lives. But when we take charge of our focus, we still and dissolve the monkey mind, and we also discover a place within which we can always return, for wisdom, strength and comfort. When we allow the external world to consume us, we are simply giving our natural treasures away.

Reality continually renews and confronts us with new tasks, challenges, opportunities and solutions, day after day. Are we in touch with this ever flowing reality? Usually we focus upon what is missing, what we lack and what hasn’t worked out as we hoped it would. We do not focus upon what is available now, the gifts we are receiving and what we can give to others. It is a simple matter to turn this around.

As we take charge of our focus we dwell upon our strengths and the strengths of others, not the weaknesses. We find what is healthy and encourage that to grow. Rather than struggle to analyze and undo our patterns, we work directly with our focus. The question before us always is: What am I focusing on this moment? Am I available to what is going on, or lost somewhere in a dream? By taking our attention off our toxic inner dialogue, and focusing upon what is going on now we interfere with the negative thoughts that are causing our suffering. However, when our focus and life are primarily self-absorbed, we live in a prison without bars. Any insult, real or imagined, can become the cause of great pain, resulting in withdrawal and retreat into fantasies [Read more]

Top 10 Cars That Have Cheap Insurance Rates

Buying a new car is one of the most expensive bills you will have to pay besides your house (most likely). To make sure you get the best deal on your car you have to key in the insurance rates as well. There are many vehicles on the market that are known for their affordable insurance rates. If you want the most for your money, you may want to consider one of the cheapest insurance rate vehicles. Not sure what they are? Keep reading and you may find out some of the best deals for your future cars.

Top 10 Vehicles that have the Cheapest Insurance Rate for 2008:

1. Chrysler Town & Country – The Town and Country is the cheapest vehicle to insure as of 2008. The average premium price for this vehicle is only $940 a year!

2. Ford Escape – The Ford Escape has been a major hit for the year 2008. It has come a long way for its gas mileage and now is the second cheapest vehicle to insure for 2008. To insure a Ford Escape for the whole year you will pay an average price of $1,022 per year [Read more]

Plus Your Civil Rights

2008-10-18T00:14:00.000-07:00

The Cost Will Be $44.95 a Month, Plus Your Civil Rights

How did we get to this point in history? The cell phone started out as all inventions do: Science fiction. Good old conjecture. Then it moved to the next stage, as a luxury for the super-rich. A scarce toy with poor service for early adopters. These ultra-wealthy then started buying these for their businesses, partly as a way to get things done in a quicker manner, and partly to keep up with the Jones'.

Now, we are looking at something that is a necessity for communication, in any form. Pay-phones are now a novelty. Many of us don't even have home phones to make a call on anymore. With the massive adoption of the broadband internet, and the availability of email and information on-command data, why would we waste $25 to keep a landline?

Triangulation was the first way that 911 was able to locate us in the event of an emergency. Using 3 cell towers, they were able to isolate our signal, and depending on the strength of it, isolate our position to a matter of 500 feet of search area. This has saved some lives, but it has also served as a cover for far more sinister activity: Tracking us. Now, to that, we've added GPS. This was filed under "convenience". "Never get lost again", was the marvelous claim that this was marketed under. Now, instead of 500 feet, we can be tracked within a matter of inches [Read more]

Pluto in Capricorn and Indigo Children

From the moment of the Big Bang, that was the birth of the Universe, these conscious entities "knew" where and more importantly for us, when they would "arrive" at a particular point of the Zodiac at any given point. Therefore, instead of looking at the ingress of Pluto into Capricorn with trepidation, we should look (possibly) at the state of Capricorn as it is at present. In other words, when we enter a room, we can always tell if someone's been there before us by the state that the room is in. Any mother knows that!

This generation of children who were born under the very demanding combined energies of Saturn, Uranus and Neptune (1988-1991 and beyond, because it wasn't until 1996 that Uranus left Neptune alone in Capricorn) are sometimes referred to as "Indigo Children". A name that seems to suggest their vibrations are at the opposite end of the spectrum to the red/warrior types. If we simply take the symbolism of the three planets in turn we get Saturn structure, Uranus breaking through and Neptune spiritualising and refining. So to make a coherent image, I see this as the type of mentality and way of functioning in the world that offers ways to break through old forms and refine and idealise human behavior [Read more]

5 Ways to Determine If Your Spouse is Cheating

1. Changed Routines – One thing you want to look for if you think your spouse may be cheating on you is if he or she changes up their routine suddenly. For instance, let’s say they work at a job where they’ve never had to stay late and suddenly, they have been working a lot of ‘overtime.’

Another example could be if your husband or wife have suddenly started going to visit friends in the evening or going out with the ‘boys’ or ‘ladies.’ While this doesn’t mean for certain that your spouse is cheating, it’s certainly a red flag.

2. Changes in Appearance – This is another classic sign. If your spouse has dressed a certain way for years and suddenly they have changed their appearance or dress, you may need to be suspicious. They might have gotten a new hairstyle, different clothes, suddenly started wearing perfume or cologne, etc. These are all signs that your spouse may be trying to look great for someone else.

3. Unexplained Calls – If your spouse’s cell phone bill or the house phone bill has had some strange calls lately, you may want to take a second look. Check for a repeat number that you don’t recognize. Also, if you’ve been having hang-up calls, it could be your spouse’s lover trying to get in touch with them. While there are cases of calls being billed to the wrong account, if this happens more than once, you should start getting suspicious [Read more]

What to Expect From a Gypsy Fortune Teller

During the 15th and 16th century the usual dress of the gypsy woman consisted of a simple robe gathered at the neck. It was worn over an under gown made of chemise. They would also drape a cloth behind their backs, cross it at the front and tie it at the shoulder in the fashion of the toga which the Romans wore. They also wore a turban on their heads.

Fortune Telling is a mystical practice which deals with the prediction of future through supernatural means and is usually done for commercial gain. Western Fortune telling mainly concerns future romances, financial predictions and those related to child birth. Fortune tellers are also sought to help in the decisions of jobs, illness, marriage or divorce.

The major reason as to why people come to card readings is to know whether or not they will be happy. Fortunately, more often than not, cards bring joy and hope into their lives. However, along with predicting our client's happiness we also have to explain the essence of the Fortune card. Fortune telling can only show us the source of our happiness while it is our responsibility to recognize, capture and protect it [Read more]

Just be Friends

2008-10-14T22:42:00.000-07:00

Can't we Just be Friends?

It's as though women have two separate file folders: FRIENDS and POTENTIAL LOVERS and there is no mixing of the two. Worse yet, once she puts you into the FRIENDS folder it's nearly impossible to make a switch to the other. This is why it is so important not to act like a friend during the early stages of getting to know a woman. It is next to impossible to make it into the POTENTIAL LOVER folder after you've been relegated to the FRIENDS folder.

If you do the kind of things friends do, she will see you as belonging in the FRIENDS folder, even if she initially felt ATTRACTION for you. Virtually every guy that a woman meets gets categorized. Some, more quickly than others. Nonetheless, every guy is labeled [Read more]

Seven Ways to De-Stress

Studies show that women are more likely than men to experience anxiety, depression, and just feel generally stressed-out. This may be due to hormones, genetics, or because women feel they need to be and do everything for everyone. Keeping the house up, arranging the kids’ hectic schedules, working, friends, husbands, church…women tend to have a huge collection of hats of which they wear several on any given day.

And Christian women certainly aren’t exempt. Many people think that Christians are supposed to have it all together. Ha! There are days when I feel like I’ve lost my mind and burst into tears as I look at my “to-do list” that’s much longer than the hours in the day. And while God offers me His peace, I don’t always think to ask Him for it before the stress finds its way in [Read more]

Proper Eye Contact With Women

The proper use of your eyes can improve your chances of meeting women. We have to understand why this is true before taking advantage of it. Proper use of eye contact can help you quickly and easily identify interested and available females, and also tell them that you are interested in knowing them better.

Guys that are good at making and interpreting eye contact signals have almost no risk of being publicly rejected, embarrassed, humiliated, or ridiculed. Proper eye contact technique is like a handshake between strangers. It serves as an introduction and an opportunity for more interactions, if BOTH parties desire it.This is why you can use eye contact to instantly screen out women that are not interested or just not interested in you specifically, at that moment [Read more]

What do You Really Want in a Woman?

Most guys will respond with something like "I want to be able to nail every woman I feel ATTRACTED to ..." But this is only because they haven't thought things through.

It's not that being able to bed any woman you choose is a bad thing ... it's just not an answer to the above question.

I'm asking what you really want in a woman ... not "how often do you want to have casual sex?" I'm putting you through this exercise because it will help you to deal more confidently with women you meet. More about this later.Once you know what you really want in a woman you will start doing things that helps YOU qualify the women you meet. This is a complete reversal of how things normally happen.

Remember what I said when you were first introduced to the Memorable MACKing philosophy: "Don't play by the rules." [Read more]

Winning And Losing

2008-10-12T22:14:00.000-07:00

Redefining Winning And Losing

Most of us allow others to dictate how we see winning and losing for ourselves. This is a fundamental mistake. How can it make sense to live our lives according to the opinions of others? If your parents/family have certain expectations for you, your life, and your work - they are defining winning and losing for you. Be willing to get clear on your values and goals. Most of us are reared to embrace the values and goals of our parents and family members. We don't give a lot of thought to how we truly believe and think and aspire. We simply parrot what we've been taught. We have never thought deeply about our own beliefs and most of us would not dare to hold conflicting beliefs. Without examining these for yourself, the possibility of a deeply gratifying and authentic life becomes impossible. Instead, you simply "go along" with your life as someone else has laid it out for you.

If, upon examination, you discover the desire to live a life counter to what's been expected, it will take some will and fortitude to forge the new path. When we find ourselves deciding to create a life of our own choosing, there is likely to be resistance from others. Typically, those with expectations for us are unlikely to abandon them willingly. Those who desire to run our lives will inevitably find our choices disappointing [Read more]

The Color of Food and Weight Loss

It is possible to color coordinate a healthy diet from foods that have a deeply saturated color because the color is a signal to what types of nutrients are contained in the fresh food. By eating from an array of deeply colored foods daily, it is possible to provide the body with highly nutritious foods that can curb the hunger feeling.

When eating a healthy or unhealthy diet, your body will get hungry when it needs more energy or nutrients every few hours. Cravings and bingeing begins when the body does not have all the nutrients that it needs. A craving will start for a food or snack that provides a bit of that nutrient and bingeing will happen when the body is such desperate need of a nutrient that a person will binge on a food or foods that contain some of the nutrients that they need. To avoid this cycle, the best diet will provide the all the nutrients that the body needs.

Deeply colored foods contain more nutrients than their duller companions. Eating foods that offer more nutrition can contribute to more than just weight loss because the nutrients found in these highly nutritious foods can protect the body against many diseases including cancer. Eating too much foods that are low in nutrition can be a direct cause of weight gain, illness and disease. The choice to eat highly colored natural foods is a step in the right direction for many people [Read more]

I Am Not My "To-Do" List - Or Am I?

I fear for my life when the to do lists take over. Notice plural. I can't live without them and I can barely live with them. Of course, there's more than one. They grow, they multiply, they spawn themselves into more. I write my lists to capture all the stuff of life. I write lists of ideas that tend to fly. I write lists for the maintenance projects or new ideas for the corner garden I recently ripped out. It's the chaos corner of the property planted with impossible roses. I'm about to give up on them. So there's a list of replacement ideas. Then there's the food shopping list that usually includes the drug store, drycleaner and hardware store. For groceries, I wonder why I bother to buy anything let alone make a list about it. I'm out in the world a lot for meals or I forget to eat what I bought. When I do finally get some groceries in the house I overbuy and so that doesn't work either.

This list making thing started when years ago my Mom gave me this little red booklet in the midst of a personal crisis. The booklet was encouraging making a list of all the things you wanted for your life. Start writing and at the end of the weekend, and not before, she said, will we talk about it. O.K. Mom. I wrote lists, more lists, edited them, threw stuff at the page with great fury and exuberance. I wrote and edited in a storm. The next day those things that seemed exactly what I wanted stayed on the list. Other things that seemed great yesterday and now seemed ludicrous or totally alien to anything I would ever consider doing or being went away. By the end of the weekend, I had a handle on the immediate crisis and the beginning of some Light for a long term picture. I had run the marathon of non-stop list making [Read more]

5 Keys to Happiness

How can happiness be unreasonable? If I was giddy, or manic, or obviously unhinged, I'd understand the comment. But that's never been the case. Those comments were directed toward me when my life's circumstances were understood: I have two children with a serious mental illness, bipolar disorder. When other people learn that fact, they sometimes feel pity, or sadness, or some other negative emotion. I understand that. We never expect to have less than perfectly healthy offspring, and we certainly don't expect people to be happy about the fact when they do. But how defeating is that attitude? I mean, really, since two of my kids have an inherited illness (that can be treated, by the way), I should live in a puddle of my own despair?I don't think so!

I think we are meant to be happy; and I've always made happiness my aim, despite the obvious let-downs and challenges. We can all make that choice. And it is a choice. Researchers from across the US, including groups at University of California at Riverside, University of Illinois, University of Minnesota and University of Pennsylvania, have studied happiness and all its intricate makings and workings. As I read their findings I identified five common components, or keys, to the development of happiness in anyone's life, regardless of circumstance. You might be surprised at how simple it is to be happy [Read more]

Beauty Products Killing

2008-10-07T21:48:00.000-07:00

Are Beauty Products Killing Us?

If you're like most Americans, you use an average of nine products, containing about 126 unique ingredients, every day. Every day! More than a quarter of women use at least fifteen. This includes shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, deodorant, lip balm and lipstick, sunscreen, body lotion, hair coloring, hair spray, shaving cream, perfume, makeup, and soap. And each of these products, in turn, contains a dizzying (sometimes literally) array of chemicals and fragrances, most of them synthetic petrochemicals and many of them potentially toxic.

Nearly 400 products sold in the United States contain chemicals that are prohibited for use in cosmetics in other countries. More than 400 products contain ingredients that the cosmetic industry's own safety panels have found unsafe when used as directed on product labels.

An astonishing 98 percent of all products contain one or more ingredients never publicly assessed for safety. And then there are the dozens of chemical ingredients in personal-care products that the government and the industry say are safe but for which there are troubling, though not definitive, study results. Parabens are a good example. Parabens are synthetic preservatives and they're in all sorts of lotions and potions. Industry and the government say they're safe. However, researchers examining the effects of these chemicals in lab animals and in marine life say they suspect parabens are hormone disrupters [Read more]

Half Million Home Foreclosure Victims Become Renters

The wave of real estate foreclosure is not expected to end soon, so those looking to turn lemons into lemonade should begin to pay attention. Foreclosure investing could be a bright spot in an otherwise dismal real estate market.Oh sure, the US congress made noises like they were working on a foreclosure bailout that will help struggling homes owners. But, as usual, when you read the legislation's fine print darn free people can count on getting help of any kind. It is definitely a case of to little to late.

Here's where foreclosure investors should be focusing their attention. Banks are flooded with home foreclosures and in an effort the slash their foreclosure property inventory they are willing to deal with investors who know what they're doing.One of the secrets of business success is to find a need and fill it. When you can see a growing demand for rental property your goal should be to get in front of that demand as quickly as possible. One way to do that is to buy deeply discounted homes from banks and lenders. Those deep discounts mean that you can offer to rent those homes at the reasonable rates required by a new population of financial stressed renters.

The whole foreclosure crisis developed not because people could not afford to own homes. But rather they bought more home than they could afford. Now you have an army of renters with bad credit, but good paying jobs. They can afford to pay rent of they can find landlords willing to rent to them [Read more]

Can You Take Viagra If Your a Smoker?

Your doctor should be aware of anything that you are taking or doing while on Viagra, including smoking. Caffeine, alcohol, the nicotine from cigarettes, or street drugs can affect the function of many medications. Headaches and dizziness are a couple of the side effects that result from taking Viagra but often when men smoke too, the headaches and the dizziness can be much more painful and last longer.

Look at it this way for a minute, if smoking can cause or at least contribute to erectile dysfunction and you are taking a medication to treat the erectile dysfunction, then why smoke?

Another side effect from taking Viagra is stomach upset but it is also proven that the ill effects of smoking can also affect the digestive system. This very well could be the cause of the erectile dysfunction. The bad news is that quitting will not stop any erectile dysfunction because once the damage is done it is too late but it can contribute to some improvement and also help the Viagra to work better. Since everybody is different it may improve or even may not improve [Read more]

Is Astral Projecting or Travel Really Possible?

It is quite likely that you dream, in fact nearly everybody across the globe dreams when sleeping. Note this is not touching on those who daydream; that’s different.In order to explain the mechanism behind dreaming, here is a basic definition. In a nutshell, this is feeling an out of the body experience. It may sound mystic to the ear, but it is a likely fact which people around the world have felt and acknowledged at some level.

When we sleep, our physical body goes to sleep, but our mind works continuously. This is primarily the reason why we dream about the facts and experience which have not felt as yet. So in other words astral projection is the extension of our dream like state, but the only difference being is that we can control it and do it whenever we want. This cannot be termed as the sleepy state completely, although the feeling is that of sleep.

Astral projection is to large extent a proved theory. Even religious literature of all sorts puts the seal on this technique.In the past this type of therapy was used to cure psychological ailments. Then unfortunately, it lost touch in a world focused on drugs for curing every ailment [Read more]

Gold Investors Should Relax

2008-09-30T20:10:00.000-07:00

Why Gold Investors Should Relax

The recent 25% correction in the price of gold per ounce has a lot of bullion investors wondering if the bull market in gold is over. I'm going to provide you with a little bit of historical gold trivia that I hope will reassure you that the fundamental reasons for owning gold bullion, as a safe-haven investment, are still valid . . .

If the gold bull market were over, we would have:
1. Low inflation
2. Healthy banks
3. Stable housing prices
4. A new, major oil discovery
5. Increasing job creation
6. A falling unemployment rate
7. A fiscally responsible government
8. A strong dollar due to a balanced budget and a shrinking deficit

I don't see any of the above happening anytime soon. Do you? [Read more]

Do You Live Your Life As an Amateur?

An amateur never figures out what his/her life goals are. An amateur never takes time to discover their values, much less to embody and live them. An amateur never makes their goals into the #1 priority focusing on them daily and putting them first. An amateur never assesses or addresses their "weaknesses". If you think of like as a game, do you play like an amateur or like a pro? Here are some ideas to get out of amateur league living.

Decide that you are going to live like a pro and go for what you really want. This means a commitment to excellence, to doing your best, to give up second rate performance. Pros are almost always clear on their goals. When they start, they may not know the whole process necessary for success, but they start the work anyway, knowing they will learn along the way. Taking the time to make goals, assess progress regularly, and alter the plan as you go is the sign of a pro.

A pro considers their deepest values when they make their goals. If you're going to devote a major part of your time to something, doesn't it make sense that it is in alignment with and supports your values? [Read more]

What is the Difference Between Yoga and Qigong?

Yoga has its origins in ancient India and has been in practice for centuries. Yoga essentially means “to sum up” or “to combine”. To put it in simpler words it implies to connect oneself with the inner soul. When one does so, inner peace is achieved. This health exercise is beneficial for nearly everyone irrespective of the age.

People who practice yoga sit or stand in a position as told by the person who guides them while on the other hand some people do it on their own with the help of books and other resources. Meditation, slow rhythm, and positive thinking are the basic building blocks of this therapy. Any human being irrespective of health status can enjoy the benefits of the yoga. In modern days Yoga has caught the fancy of many and has even found acceptance amongst celebrities.

Samurai warriors and fighters who took part in swordfight in feudal china often needed something to calm their unfazed mind. In their quest to find a solution they stumbled upon the fact that the body of human is the store house of energy. They explored various dimensions in which humans can direct their energy and unleash it. This technique primarily stressed on the rhythm of breathing pattern. Further on, this technique was refined and remodeled after various qigong masters. People who follow this therapy are guided to swing their body slowly and gently as if they are in a slow motion dance. Qigong masters believe that energy moves in our body and if we could tap it then health and strong body can be achieved [Read more]

5 Things Debt Settlement Companies Are Not Telling You

Credit card debt relief is a burgeoning business and credit card debt relief companies are throwing a lifeline for those battling with insurmountable credit card debts. You may do your own credit card debt settlement if you have the time and energy to do all the planning and the credit card debt negotiation. If not, get a professional to do the grunt work.

Getting professional help from a credit card debt relief company may cost, but you no longer have to worry about haggling and negotiating with credit card companies. A credit card debt settlement expert does the job effectively since their company has a working relationship with credit card companies and has insider information on the industry's trade secrets.

But before you eagerly knock on the doors of credit card debt relief companies, know what you are putting up with because not all credit card debt settlement companies are going to reveal their dirty secrets. Here are the shocking truths [Read more]

Do You Feel Free?

2008-09-29T20:37:00.000-07:00

Do You Feel Free?

Do you believe that someone has to give you your freedom? Do you believe that you can be free only when you have others' approval? Is your sense of freedom dependent upon what others think of you?If you believe that your freedom is dependent upon another or others, then you will wait forever to be free. You will feel free when you decide that you are going to do what feels right and loving to do for yourself, regardless of what others think.

How do you reach a place where you are willing to trust yourself enough to follow your own inner guidance rather than be limited by others? How do you come to a place where you are willing to experience others' disapproval in order to be true to yourself? [Read more]

Obama’s Plan to Tax the Poor

There are two other major ways that Obama plans on taxing the poor. One is by raising taxes on corporations and second is by making businesses pay for insurance for people who do not work for their companies. Both of these programs will significantly impact the poor and especially the poorest of all Americans.

Obama like many Democrats, is relying on the general lack of understanding of how taxes work. They want you to think that they are taxing someone else. There is only one group of Americans that pay taxes, that is the individual tax payer. Yes, you can tax companies and corporations but they are not the ones who pay the taxes. The taxes are paid by the people who buy their products or use their services. If you raise taxes on businesses they have no choice but to add the cost into the prices of their products or services. If they do not they go out of business. Below is an example of how taxing corporations affects prices. For the example I will use food because everyone including the poorest of the poor has to buy food [Read more]

How to Get Your Child Moving!

Your children also need you to get out there and join them. Throw the ball around, take a walk, go for a family bike ride, set up one of those portable basketball hoops in the driveway or walk up to the local playground. Children learn by doing and watching what we do. If we sit on the couch and watch television after we send them outside, we are not sending a consistent message. Most children’s faces absolutely light up when Mom or Dad join them outside in their games.

If you are not into playing games, then just step outside and sweep the sidewalk. Be out there with them for at least a little while. Maybe you could spend an hour a day all week pulling weeds out of your flowerbeds while the children play. They may join you for a bit while you work, but be prepared for them to wander off to play.They need to explore their environments and spend some time close to nature. No, you don’t have to go camping or fishing if that isn’t your thing. Take a walk by the edge of the retention pond and look at the minnows. Talk in a hushed voice when the egret lands so you don’t disturb his dinner [Read more]

College Trick 1: How To Help Your Hangover

An alcohol hangover is associated with a variety of symptoms that may include dehydration, fatigue, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness,difficulty concentrating, sensitivity to light and noise, erratic motor functions, trouble sleeping, and lack of depth perception. Many people will also be repulsed by the thought or taste of alcohol during a hangover. The symptoms vary from person to person, and occasion to occasion, usually beginning several hours after drinking.

Of course you are reading this because you are randomly bored, but i assure you , after reading this you will be fully prepared for what may happen any crazy night of the week at college. This will definently make your next day a hell of a lot better. This formula has helped me multiple times in my college career, and i hope it will help you too.Vitamin B12 and Dehydration are 2 main causes to why you feel so bad in the morning. In order to stop these from happening there are acouple of premeditated things you can do in your drunk stuper before you get to sleep [Read more]

The "Toilet Stoppages" Of Life

2008-09-28T00:55:00.000-07:00

The "Toilet Stoppages" Of Life

There are times in life when you're making great progress on your goals, gaining momentum, developing direction and suddenly find a major blockage. There's nothing you can do but deal with it. No amount of complaining, crying, protesting, whining or ignoring the blockage will change the fact. You must stop what you are doing and deal with it. You could try ignoring it. You could pretend it's not blocked and keep using it. You could even leave it for someone else to fix...and live with the stink. If you want to solve the problem and get right back to making progress, you will have to take the actions that get your life unblocked.

Whatever you do, don't ignore the problem. It is likely that doing so will only lead to a nasty mess on the floor, or a big stinking unresolved problem to be dealt with later. Make sure that you handle the problem as quickly as possible. Every life has unexpected "toilet stoppages" in it. Don't let it be an excuse to stop making progress. Don't choose to ignore it and end up with a stinking mess or overflowing sewage. Just deal with it! [Read more]

Why Ghosts Stay Around After Their Death, And 5 Ways You Can Avoid Making the Same Mistake

Several things happen once you leave your body. First, very few people - other than a few psychics - can see, hear or interact with you. So your existence becomes very, very lonely. Second, after you die you can hear others' thoughts and feel their feelings. This might be entertaining in the short term, but in the long term it's demoralizing. (Think about the amount of greed, hatred and suffering in the world.) And third, your life is over at this point. There's nothing left for you to do here and your life becomes empty and depressing, which is crazy-making.

Ghosts don't consciously choose this miserable life, no more than the living consciously choose to live tragic and depressed lives. But, like the living, they end up in this sad existence because they haven't faced the challenges and spiritual lessons of their lives. Here are 5 ways you can avoid making the same mistake with your life [Read more]

7 Hot Christmas Gifts For a Man Who Has it All

If he has everything, why not give him absolutely nothing as a Christmas gift! This gift of nothing comes in the shape of an empty wrapper labelled with the word 'Nothing' and a short description. Nothing happens once opened and nothing can be exchanged for it. Let's just hope he has a sense of humour!

His name and a message can both be printed on the bottle, making this Christmas gift both personal and unique. Note that this kind of gift derives its personality from the message on the bottle, because a simple bottle of champagne would be more suited for a friend rather than a partner as a Christmas gift. If he enjoys the finer things in life then this may just be the present for him. Should he be more of a wine drinker than one of the options in number 3 may be more suitable for him.

Such an experience can include a racing along a track in a super fast Ferrari or even flying a plane. He could be enjoying a scenic view from a helicopter ride or tasting a plethora of wines in a Vineyard with you by his side. For less adrenaline, a relaxing day at the spa is also an option. Intangible gifts like these avoid them from lying around and collecting dust. Despite being very atypical Christmas gifts, they are unforgettable activities that are bound to make his day [Read more]

Trying to Make a Cat Into a Dog

There's something seriously askew when we cannot accept the basic nature of others in our life. Here are some things to consider. Perhaps the issue is that you never noticed the basic nature of the cat. You've spent a lot of time with them, but somehow (perhaps because you wished it so) you convinced yourself that the cat was a dog.

There are those who delude themselves about the nature of things from the beginning. They prefer to live in fantasy rather than in reality. They end up with lots of knocks on the head (or heart) doing this, but somehow they just keep repeating the pattern. Some people accept others as they are at first, then later decide who they are is not adequate or acceptable. This can have a lot of causes...it can be a "rejection game" meant to allow them to feel superior. It can be a way to create distance. Perhaps they were desperate for attention and company at first, then wake up one day finding fault [Read more]

Removal of Anger

2008-09-25T22:05:00.000-07:00

Energetic Healing for the Removal of Anger

The true purpose of anger is to stimulate us to take action. The more that we can be present in us with our feelings and express them in some way we release anger with greater ease.

The problem is that most of us were not taught to be present with our anger in some way or form. Some of the more common themes that we create of a distorted view of anger are: good children don’t get mad, a dominating force over us to create submission, or confronting anger with more anger.

The first step in breaking out of your own cycle is the realization that it is your own creation. The people that influenced you to be a certain way did not create you or your limitations. Some though had very few choices but to express anger by suppressing or dominating. It is important not to judge you as wrong for what you have chosen [Read more]

Teenage Bodybuilding

There are several things that all teenagers should realize before jumping into teenage bodybuilding, and under no condition should any teenager use steroids. While the body is still growing, teenagers need to make sure to work out safely in a way that won't permanently injure their bodies. Bodybuilding is a great healthy activity for young people when it is done right.

But for teenage bodybuilding to be done right, there are many different truths, or realities, that teens must be fully aware of. Still Growing: During the ages of 14-18, and sometimes even longer, a teenager's body is still growing and filling out. Because of this it is especially important to avoid work out programs that have a risk of severe injury. This is true of any athlete, but particularly bodybuilders since they are working to bulk up as their bones and muscles are still growing. Safety should always come first, there's no sense in getting a permanent injury, especially if it could have been easily prevented.

Stay Away from Supplements: Some combinations turn out to be deadly (see Creatine and Ephedra), most are loaded with caffeine that could cause heart problems, and if you have a smart diet with the right proteins, carbs, and work outs then you don't need any extra help. Stay away from anything that isn't natural and work on the good habits that make champion teenage bodybuilders [Read more]

4 Bald Celebrities Who Look Awfully Good

Perhaps it would be comforting to know that even celebrities can suffer from hair loss. There are some celebrities that simply choose to go bald and flaunt it rather than go worrying and going through numerous treatments.

Patrick Stewart—best known for his role in Star Trek, is a multi-awarded actor (both on film and stage). Stewart has never been ashamed of his baldness, in fact, he was even included on the list of Sexiest Man on Television on the 1992 TV Guide.

Bruce Willis who wouldn’t be able to recognize this hot and sexy action star? He starred in many unforgettable films such as Armageddon, Pulp Fiction, Sin City, The Sixth Sense and the Die Hard series. His hair noticeably receded in the late 90’s. He eventually shaved the rest of it and started a trend among white males as did Michael Jordan among the African-Americans [Read more]

Three Common Relationship Mistakes to Avoid

The more you worry about it the more he thinks that you're changing. He thinks that maybe you're not interested in him anymore because you seem to be distant and always thinking about something else. Then he holds back and when he does, you think that maybe he's not interested in you anymore. You start questioning him over the little things he does. His calls are not as frequent as before and he visits you less often. He thinks you're worried over nothing so he'll step away from the relationship thinking that that's the best solution.

Not knowing how his mind works. It's easy for women to assume that they're in an exclusive relationship after a few dates. He, on the other hand, thinks that he's just having a grand time with a wonderful woman.

Making the “big mistake.” Thinking about your needs, but never about his own, is the big mistake. Although meeting our needs first is our basic nature, this won't work in a relationship. You have to take the limelight away from you momentarily and focus on what his needs are. Do this and you're sure to benefit from it in the future [Read more]

Don’t Feel Guilty if You Forget

2008-09-23T00:50:00.000-07:00

Memory Improvement – Don’t Feel Guilty if You Forget

While you read this article, you recognized instantly and on the spot hundreds of different letter combinations that form words. How else could you possibly make it this far if you did not remember the meaning associated with each letter that makes up word?

Think of facts about your favorite sport or hobby? What else quickly comes to your mind? These thoughts probably came in the form of pictures to your mind. You are remembering.You remember the days of the weeks and the standard concepts of time. How is it that you don't forget these ideas? Easy. You live with them and apply these ideas on a daily basis. Memory improvement does not have to be so challenging.

You can remember an old high school buddy from 10 years ago, even if you saw him in the African Sahara because you associate certain characteristics with him.

However, you may pass the same stranger every day on your walk to work, recognize his face and never learn his name. Then one day you may come across him in a city far away and you begin to wonder just exactly where did you see him last. He looks familiar you will think to yourself [Read more]

How To Develop The Habit Of Saving

Now I am going to tell you something, which will probably surprise you - NEVER TOUCH THE MONEY! No, I am not crazy, but this is one of the peculiarities of life - it is no good saving the money for a rainy day or emergencies, because you will find that an emergency will crop up fairly regularly - you'll just never create wealth. Most people consider a birthday, Christmas, new car etc. as an emergency - your funds will never mount. If you have a specific goal towards which you are moving, you should set up a separate account - a new car savings account for example - BUT NEVER TOUCH YOUR WEALTH BANK!

But what if you are already living to the limit, up to your neck in debt with unpaid bills. With no spare cash how are you going to save 10% of your income? If this is the case, and I've been there myself, you have to start saving something maybe 1% of your income, or put your loose change in a jar and invest it in an interest account at the end of each month. Any time you receive a bonus - Christmas, birthday money etc., invest it once again. It doesn't matter how small the amount, once you start saving and it develops into habit, good things WILL begin to be attracted to your life [Read more]

Why Relationships Become Boring and How to Spice Them Up!

We slip into the Dead Zone when we are avoiding our emotions – when we have switched them off in the belief that they will hurt us or get us into trouble. In a relationship it is part of what Dr. Chuck Spezzano, founder of the Psychology of Vision, has termed Independence. When we are independent we have disconnected in our relationships and dissociated from our emotions in the belief that we can be happy and successful without relying on other people. In a romantic relationship this happens when there is something so horrible in our minds that we hide it away so nobody can see it.

The only problem is that these hidden feelings are still very much present in our subconscious mind and will create all sorts of problems for us. If you are in a relationship that seems dead and boring ask yourself what is it that is not being expressed in the relationship? What is it that you and your partner are afraid to talk about? There will be some secret, fear or piece of guilt that is shutting you both down.

Relationships can easily turn into inadvertent conspiracies where both partners unconsciously agree to avoid dealing with the problems that stand between them. This is often because either partner feels that to reveal their concerns, resentments or pain, will drive away their partner. There are some things we have not even shared with the people closest to us and it is these things that eventually create deadness in a relationship [Read more]

How to Bond With Your Children

If you want to see your younger child’s eyes light up, plop yourself down on the floor while he or she is playing. Young children live for the opportunity to include their parents in their games. While it is good for them to spend time playing independently, it is equally important for them to have a few minutes of time to just play. Young children need spend time playing in a way that does not impose rules on them. They need the freedom to create rules themselves. This type of play may be more challenging for parents as most of us have forgotten how to play, but give yourself time and opportunity, follow your child’s lead and you will catch on.

For tired parents of young children, a snuggle on the couch after the dinner with a favorite book will go a long way toward helping you reconnect with your little one at the end of the busy day. Think of this time as an investment in your children’s future [Read more]

Wedding Superstitions

2008-09-18T23:09:00.001-07:00

Common Wedding Day Superstitions

Everything the bride says while opening presents will come back to her on her wedding night. It could be good to be careful with this one . . . you never know! Having the same phrases repeated on the wedding night could be a good or bad thing, depending.

For good luck, the first gift opened should be the first gift used. There are a few superstitions surrounding the gifts given at a bridal shower, such as the giver of the third present opened will have a baby.The whole wedding outfit must not be tried on until the actual day of the wedding. This common superstition is due to the fact that it was thought to bring bad luck on the bride. If she put on all her wedding garb before the wedding . . . she might not be married after all!Green, yellow, pink and red wedding dresses are considered bad form. According to an old marriage rhyme, these four colors of wedding dresses would bring assorted miseries on the married couple`s life and they wouldn`t be happy [Read more]

You Are Not on Your Own, Universe Assists You

Your mission will take more than one day to conclude, even more than one year. It is your life work, steadily unfolding as you progress on your path. It’s quite normal that you are in need of assistance on this journey. This can be received from friends, family members, professional counselors, training courses, education programs, effective aid, contacts, books, …You are not supposed to complete your mission entirely on your own. Your mission is connected to the mission of the people around you. Each of them also has their mission, and part of it may well be to assist you! Ask for help, and don’t carry the false belief that you need to do this on your own.

Do not let this happen. Remember that you are a social being living in a social context, able to help others and receive help from others. Everybody else is here with a specific purpose. Part of that purpose it to help you! Without other people receiving your help, your mission would be meaningless. In the same way, your needs give meaning to the mission of others. Do not hesitate to ask for assistance when you need it! [Read more]

Mom's Guide to Saving Time

Make a plan and write it down. Make it a habit to write a daily list of things to do and things you need. Life gets so busy sometimes especially if you have kids. It is going to be helpful to have those lists handy. You can easily save an extra trip to the store if you have a list of things to buy. You can also figure out how you can run all your errands so that you do not have to drive back and forth. Try to shop in the evenings when stores are less busy. There is no need to waste an hour standing in line when you can do something more productive with that time. Don't care to stand in line? Try shopping online.

Plan your meals. You can use a blank monthly or weekly calendar to list down your meals for the upcoming week. Once you have the meals figured out, it will be easier to come up with a shopping list based on the meals. Keep your planned meals posted on the refrigerator door so you know what needs to be prepared. Even if it is tempting to sway off the planned meals, do your best to stick to it - you can save lots of money this way and keep with in your budget [Read more]

How Safe Are Teeth Whitening Gels?

The dilemma that people face is the perceived added safety of having a procedure carried out professionally by a dentist, against the possible major cost saving of a home treatment. Will the home teeth whitening product be as effective and will it be safe to use? Is it easy to follow the instructions and if you do, are there any possible side effects? What are the arguments?

In order to provide a safe product for home use, especially in over the counter products, the teeth gel supplied is of a lower concentration than you would get in a professional treatment. So one question that people ask is, with less of the active ingredients, can they produce worthwhile results? But there is also a kind of conspiracy theory, questions this.Do unscrupulous manufacturers add more of the bleaching agent than they admit to, so that their product will work? It is even suggested that abrasive materials are added that can be potentially damaging to tooth enamel. I think that both of these theories can be discounted. As long as you stick to properly licensed products you should be safe. The penalties for such practices, from major fines and lawsuits, to withdrawal of the product license, would be too costly to contemplate [Read more]

Slow Death By A Thousand To Do’s

2008-09-18T23:09:00.000-07:00

Slow Death By A Thousand To Do’s

Are you demoralized on an ongoing basis because the To Do list grows as fast on one end as it shrinks on the other end? Does it seem like your To Do list is a stack of items about two feet high, and consumes all your time? Do you wonder if there is any meaningful way to manage your To Do list and not be "run" by it?

Consider the "Rotating To Do List". The concept is that you always organize your To Do list with the highest priority items on top, and handle the most important items first. It’s called a rotating To Do list, because the most important things naturally rotate to the top of the list, and off the list when accomplished.

Unimportant items naturally rotate off the bottom of the list when you realize they do not need to be done. Items rotate up and down the list according to their importance.

Maintaining focus on accomplishing highest priority items first gives a great feeling of satisfaction and competence. It eliminates the negative feeling of being constantly bogged down in minutia. It helps us make progress on the things we consider most important. Doing that makes us feel like winners rather than losers to To Do trivia [Read more]

Fear Of Conflict Drives Us!

Can you recall a time when you did not say something you needed to say because you, "Didn’t want to fight"? This many be one of the most common human experiences. When people say or think "I don’t want to fight", what do they really mean? They probably mean that they had childhood experiences where they expressed their truth and it led to a dramatic scene of conflict. Now they connect telling their truth with unpleasantness. They also mean that they expect the other person to be unhappy with what they need to say. It’s likely that in the past they have lived with "anger addicts" whose explosive tempers created a fearful atmosphere.

They mean that they’ve not been able to separate those childhood scenes from present day. They also mean that the fear has become so entrenched that they don’t even want to attempt communicating their truth. Probably they don’t think they have the right to express their truth. Lastly, they mean that they don’t have the skills to express themselves, and don’t know how to learn them [Read more]

Improve Your Brain's Health With These Tips

Maintain a healthy lifestyle. Having a healthy lifestyle means that you don't drink too much alcohol, you are not a chain smoker, or you don't expose yourself to too much stress. The brain is said to be the most vital body organ and any activity that threatens its existence is not good at all. Quit anything that can kill your brain cells. If there is one thing that must be done, it is all about maintaining a lifestyle that will promote the brain's long life.

Eat the right food at the right time. There are a number of foods which are enlisted in the three groups of balanced meals. Anything that you take into your body must be brain-friendly. It is the food which fuels the brain so that it can carry out its task. Throw away any garbage food that you keep in your cupboard or refrigerator and put in the necessary ones that can take care of your brain. Exercise your brain. A dull mind has no brain prowess. For your brain to stay active as well as alive at all times, an effective way to do that is by administering brain teasers. Put your brain at work so it gets accustomed to performing its task [Read more]

Things to Remember During an Interview

Here are some common job descriptions explained that can aid a sales job applicant specify which job is right for them. Having a successful sales career has a starting point. Successful entrepreneurs today, built the skills, attitude and character by starting off somewhere and being excellent in that field. This is where the first job description is all about, the sales representative. A sales representative is usually in charge of calling customers and building relationships with them. They usually find the need, promoting products, assisting and advising customers and taking orders from customers. Often times, this is the starting point of a sales career.

This is for people who will be getting in sales jobs. When considering a company one should always look at the company’s integrity. Remember that in a sales job interview you will be like an ambassador. You will be introducing products and services that aim to help people improve their lives. Ask yourself, am I willing to sell products that won’t really provide the best service for the people? If you are not sold out to the products you are selling and if you know with complete honesty that it won’t really help people, then don’t do it. The purpose of business is to serve and provide excellent services [Read more]

Woman Becomes Fat in America

2008-09-14T22:30:00.000-07:00

Skinny Asian Woman Becomes Fat in America and Writes Diet Book

I began to reflect back on when I was growing up in Asia. I was a skinny girl with a big appetite. Meals would last for an hour and I usually ate two to three plates of food in addition to mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks and also supper. I then began to realize that American food was the culprit.

I was a skinny girl when I first came to the United States twenty two years ago. But after several months of eating American food, I gained 25 pounds.

For two years, I fought to lose the weight. I read at least a dozen weight-loss books; I tried diet patches, fat reducing creams, diet pills, diet tea, Slim-Fast, and everything that was on commercials at the time. The expensive diet patches and fat-reducing creams showed no results even though I applied them religiously. The diet tea gave me diarrhea for a few days, and I lost a couple of pounds. Then it lost its power, and my stomach didn’t react anymore. Consequently, I gained back the weight, most of which was probably water anyway. Slim-Fast was just like any regular milk for me.

I would stay full for an hour, and then be hungry again. It could not substitute for a regular meal. Diet pills were a scary experience. They made my heart beat so fast, I thought it was going to explode. I also followed the directions in the many diet books I bought, but the result was always yo-yo weight loss; I would lose 5 pounds, then gain back 7 pounds. It was very discouraging [Read more]

Making Love and Logic a Lifetime Habit

My dad had his own special parenting program. It was called "My Way or the Highway." When I complained to my childhood friends that my dad bossed me around and made a household slave out of me, I was told how lucky I was because that's what loving parents were supposed to do. When he said, "Sit down and shut up," I sat down and shut up.

Needless to say I grew up knowing nothing else and tried to use the same techniques on my own child. Unfortunately, when I said, "Sit down and shut up," my kids didn't sit down and shut up. They said, "We're calling Social Services. We have rights." The parenting style my dad used so effectively didn't work on kids a generation later. I also had a hard time getting his style to work for me as a classroom teacher. I was fortunate enough to discover some new skills that worked better. But they only worked when I remembered to use them. Unfortunately that wasn't often enough. I was getting frustrated [Read more]

Teenangers and Substance Abuse

In fact, most parents who care about their children see their kids growing up to become decent members of society who will hopefully be happy and successful in their life. The sad truth is that many teenagers do become involved in things they should not, such as drugs. It could be alcohol, it could be a prescription drug or it could be a street drug. What it is does not matter; what does matter is what encourages these kids to start taking such things in their bodies. Some do it because they like the high and they keep taking it because they can’t stop, others do it because they are trying to hide from a world they have no control over.

Many teens will often turn to substance abuse because they feel it is the way to deal with the stresses and/or abuse they are suffering at home. It could be both, or just one or the other, but both play a significant role in pushing teens toward substance abuse. The sad part in all this is that in many cases this could have been avoided. It starts with the parents communicating with their child. Parents should be talking to their kids and taking part in educating the child in what is and isn’t a good idea. Parents should be encouraging their kids, supporting them and ensuring that if things are going wrong the child knows that their parent is there for them to talk to [Read more]

What Does Life Do For an Encore?

As a human being do our eyes behold what few have ever seen or have we hardly seen anything at all? Do we see life as it should be or as it might be? Are we a large gathering of copyists? Are we complete outsiders to the position of being human? Are we here to trust in our instincts, instinctively care for the Earth or are we here to slip into the effects of our mind and cobble the body of the dreamer back together? Perhaps we are here to pass our accomplishments on to some other world where failure is later accepted.

Does life reveal passwords of truth hidden in crumpled up papers stuffed in cardboard boxes only to star in tomorrow's trash bundles? Are the secrets of life standing awkwardly over us or do they fly past us as memorable experiences that scant our mind two or three days and then are forgotten? Is the mystery of life shot off in emails, dropped off in manila folders, diagrammed stiffly on tables or is the mystery of life given to us as history in walls torn down as timely symbols?

One day filled with covered wagons and the next day jotting jazz on a map of trumpeting icons life remains under the microscope of reality's researching eyes. Camera-shy about gravity and cautious of schemers life presents a world premiere of utopian visions in real world consequences. A fearless dedication to dance with its visions life is a space of readable presentation where we are never quite sure just what is proven fact and if human beings are artists judging on fact or if human beings have in fact turned life into a laboratory realm for judging souls [Read more]

Treats That Can Kill Pets

2008-09-12T00:24:00.000-07:00

Treats That Can Kill Pets

While you may be aware of the adverse affects that these foods have on humans, you may not realize just how devastating they can be to your pets. In fact, in many cases, foods that are simply unhealthy for humans can be downright dangerous to pets. Here is a look at just a few of them.

Alcohol is potentially lethal to humans, and the same is true when it comes to pets. Since pets are smaller than humans, they are more easily affected by alcohol. As such, even consuming small amounts of alcohol can be quite dangerous to pets. So, you should never purposely provide your pet with alcoholic beverages and you should take certain steps to make certain your pet cannot get into your alcohol.

The artificial sweetener xylitol may help humans enjoy tasty treats without the potential negative side effects associated with eating sugar, but it can be quite dangerous for your pet to consume. Xylitol is found in many sugar-free products, including candy and gum. If a dog eats a significant amount of these products, it can experience a number of different reactions that can be quite severe [Read more]

Hey Creditors: Stop Harassing Me!

Unfortunately, because many people are made to feel guilty when they owe money, they think that a creditor has the legal right to hound them until they pay their bills. Fortunately, however, Congress has passed a number of federal laws, most important of them being the FDCPA (Fair Debt Credit Protection Act) which hold that regardless of the status of your delinquency, the amount of money you owe, or how overdue it may be, you do have certain rights. Primary among them is the right to not be harassed by a creditor.

As many collection agencies operate by attempting to scare or intimidate a person who owes money, you need to know that you are not required to enter into any agreements or discuss your financial situation with a collection agency representative who calls you on the telephone. These agreements are often unfair and place a debtor in a sever disadvantage, but many are too tired of receiving harassing phone calls, or to scared after they have been harassed for so long, and go ahead and sign these agreements anyway [Read more]

3 Tips on How to Get Her Phone Number

Some women are friendly, but they are hesitant to give their phone numbers. Most of them are just being careful and some claim that they want to avoid being labeled as "too-easy". But in reality, women consider the phone number exchange as a commitment rather than an act of friendliness. Read these 3 tips on how to get her phone number and your dating life would never be the same.

The first tip on how to get her phone number is to know when to ask for it. You don't really expect a girl to give her number seconds after introduction right? When you have known her for a long time (and we're talking minutes here, let us say, 30-45 minutes), then it is a good time to ask for her number. If you feel that the attraction is present, then it will boost up your chance of having her number. One of the hardest things on how to get her phone number is the idea of whether she's single or not. You must try to find out by asking her in a subtle manner [Read more]

Diet Without Exercise is a Recipe For Failure

Our bodies were created to live a rugged, active, lifestyle while eating moderate amounts of natural foods.Though we may not live a rugged lifestyle, we most assuredly live a hurried lifestyle. When it comes to developing a lean, fit, muscular body many people don't believe they have the time, motivation, or discipline to exercise on a regular basis. Many of these same people however will rationalize that they can lose the weight by way of dieting alone.

There are many diet programs that even make this part of their advertising campaign, telling you that you can lose the weight without any "streneous exercise." Many people will buy into this idea as a simple way to lose weight. Just buy their pre-packaged diet food, eat it, and you will lose the weight, right? [Read more]

Internet Highjacks Your Kids

2008-09-08T23:09:00.000-07:00

Don't Let the Internet Highjack Your Kids

Would you consider letting your 13 or 14-year old daughter go to an unsupervised costume party to hang out with strangers? I'm talking about people you’ve never met, people of any age, people who are all wearing costumes, people who can pretend to be someone they aren't?

It is estimated that there are over 750,000 adults cruising these sites every day looking for vulnerable kids. When they find one who has self-esteem problems or strong needs for approval or a sense of belonging they start asking innocent questions such as, "Do you like this band? Can I help you with your homework?" Before long the questions turn to, "Do you want to go private?" Then they set out to meet this kids.

In a recent sting operation, agents were able to trace a child whose profile only gave information about her name, school, and the name of her soccer team. It only took the team 30 minutes to know where to find her. She thought she was being safe [Read more]

Practice Sex for Long Life

Sex improves the immune system of our body. Having sex twice or thrice in a week increases the amount of antibody called as Immunoglobulin A (IgA) in the body. Increase in the level of antibody IgA makes you resistant to the common cold and other seasonal infections like sneezing. It also helps to increase your resistance to typhoid.

Sex prevents Headache in women. Migraine headaches are observed more in women because of not making sexual intercourse. Because of the sexual arousal and intercourse the increase in the level of corticosteroids and endorphins is observed that prevents the migraine headaches in women. Same effect was observed in men also.

Sex keeps your weight under control by burning the unwanted calories. Performing sex for thirty minutes burns the same calories that you burn by doing one hour of workout. As the calories are burn your weight remains in control and you are safe from the diseases like obesity [Read more]

Can Erectile Dysfunction Excercises Help Me?

Many medical professionals believe that exercise is important in helping a man achieve and maintain an erection. Since an erection depends on unimpeded blood flow to reach its full potential, regular exercise can help keep arteries open and possibly contribute to better, longer-lasting erections. And when a man is in better physical shape, he also may have more stamina, an important factor in sexual performance whether he is using an ED drug or not. And a better, longer performance can have a positive impact on self-esteem and self-confidence.

As good an idea as exercise in general is, though, there are specialized exercises that some men believe can make a particular difference in helping with erectile dysfunction. These unique exercises can be done quickly and easily at home, and don’t require any equipment.

Men whose erectile dysfunction is the result of leaking veins may find help in special exercises known as Kegel exercises. These exercises are sometimes recommended to help women who live with urinary incontinence, and were originated to help control incontinence in women after childbirth. In Kegel exercises, the pelvic muscles that a man uses to stop urination in mid-flows are contracted and relaxed. By working on strengthening these muscles, it is believed that some men may eventually be able to achieve erections without using other means, such as ED drugs like Viagra, Cialis and Levitra [Read more]

Ten Ways to Protect You and Your Home From Ghosts and Negative Energies

Smudge Your Home Every Week - Smudging is the process of burning sage and other herbs to purify the energy of a room, a building or even an individual. To properly smudge, open a window in the room you are clearing. Light the end of the smudge stick and begin to walk around the room, moving the smudge stick in the areas of the room that feel thick, negative or uncomfortable for you. As you smudge you want to hold the intention of clearing away all negative energies.

Burn Candles with an Intention - After you smudge you want to burn a few candles, and infuse each candle with an intention. For example, you might say as you light a candle, "I intend for my house to be filled with love and kindness." Burn black candles to dispel negativity and burn white candles to infuse purity and protection. This will raise the energy of any room. Candles and smudge sticks are available at my website, Their Way Home. Clean Out the Clutter - Everyone has a little bit of clutter in their busy homes, but too much clutter (particularly the kind that never goes away) creates a chaotic, stagnant vibration that can affect your ability to think clearly. Ghosts love chaos and stagnation because it reflects how they feel.

They feel right at home around it. Schedule a couple of days every so often to organize your home and office. And never, ever store boxes of 'stuff' under your bed. It will ruin your sleep and can potentially give you bad dreams. Put chunks of rose quartz under your bed instead. It will surround you with love and sweet dreams [Read more]

What Parents Need to Know

2008-08-31T21:18:00.000-07:00

Kids and Drugs

Prescription drug abuse is also becoming a growing problem among America’s youth. One such drug is oxycontin, a pill that is used as a painkiller. Also known as “hillbilly heroin,” young people tend to smash the capsules, allowing them to snort or swallow a more potent dosage of the drug than the time-released capsule will allow. The resulting “high” is compared to the buzz that people receive when doing heroin, thus the nickname. Many drug centers are reporting large numbers of cases of oxycontin addiction in young people, many of which had no legal prescription for the drug.

The symptoms of this drug include euphoria and may be accompanied by stomach and bowel problems. It can also cause respiratory problems and organ failure when used over a long period of time. When a long time user is taking off the medication, they will experience withdrawal symptoms similar to those of other addictive drugs, such as heroin. If you think that your child is abusing oxycontin, you should confront him immediately. If he experiences withdrawal symptoms, you should seek medical help as he may become very ill and disoriented [Read more]

The Truth About Mood Swings During Menopause

Whether you’ve been feeling depressed or anxious or you’re sad one minute and happy the next, understand that there is a reason for your unpredictable moods and there are ways to get back to your old self.

The causes of mood swings: hormone imbalanceWhile there’s no clear medical explanation for how hormones affect mood, it’s clear that they do have a profound impact on the way we feel from one day to the next and even one moment to the next.

What’s known is that estrogen, testosterone, and androgen stimulate the nervous system, while cortisol and progesterone have a depressant effect. When levels of stimulating hormones fall, you’re left with a relative excess of calming hormones which can have an overall depressive effect on your mood. These hormones also control your level of serotonin, the chemical that directly controls you mood. When hormones alter your brain’s level of this chemical, you’re mood is bound to get out of whack [Read more]

Resolutions And Why They Fail

Did you realize that for the average person starting on a new workout program they are looking at about a 6 week transition period? And further more, during this transition phase all of the things that you hear about feeling better, having more energy, reducing stress in your life, when engaged in a workout program simply isn’t true. The reasoning behind this is that your body simply doesn’t know what to do with all of this new activity. In many cases you have just transitioned from sedentary lifestyle to an active lifestyle and your body doesn’t like it because it is change. Not to mention that many people make the mistake of starting a diet at the same time they just engaged in a workout program at their local gym. In short you have been setup to fail before you even step into your first workout. As opposed to starting a diet in the typical sense that most people start a diet, try eating a little healthier at the start without necessarily limiting your calories. Once you have adjusted to your new exercise routine then you may want to look at your calories. Please don’t get me wrong, as I am not saying that you should eat like there is no tomorrow. Even too much of a good thing can be bad for you. Simply try cutting out the simple sugars that are found in your sodas, candies, and many processed foods. Stick with your vegetables, whole grains, meet, fish, poultry, and dairy products.

While there are a number of benefits to a consistent exercise program, in order to begin to experience these benefits you have to make it through the transition phase. First you need to understand that consistency in your exercise program is far more important than the intensity. Assuming that your goal is to burn fat, as a general rule you want to start of slowly and whatever the activity try to keep active for 30 minutes or more 4 to 5 days out of the week. The reasoning behind the 30 minutes plus is that it takes approximately 30 minutes for your body to switch from burning carbohydrates to burning fat. As a result every minute beyond 30 minutes that you are able to exercise you are burning additional fat [Read more]

Wedding Diet - 6 Effective Tips To Lose Weight For Your Wedding Day

On top of the list is of course a healthy diet. Experts call it, well a wedding diet. Alright, please do not be put off. It just means eating your meals regularly. Studies prove that an irregular eating habit burns fewer calories, therefore making a person gain weight, maybe even worse in the long run.

Always read labels! That's a cardinal rule. When you are shopping in the grocery, always make it a point to look at the labels of the products you are going to purchase. Experts say that a person who consumes more fat does not even glance at the labels. It may sound simple, but it is one of those unseen things that spell the difference in the end. A person cramming to lose weight needs a steady dose of fruits and vegetables. They provide you with the feeling of being full, even if you're not. Wonderful, eh? This is because of their high water content. You know the feeling water gives when you have too much intake of it right? A good 5 servings of fruits and vegetables everyday is recommended by expert nutritionists. In relation to it, water should always be within reach. This is because water multiplies the energy outlay. This translates to the burning of calories and it goes up to a high 30% [Read more]

Personal Code of Ethics

2008-08-25T23:56:00.000-07:00

Integrity - Living Your Personal Code of Ethics

I had never even heard of integrity as a means of personal development before. It was always something you heard about in church or old black and white movies where some big situation would arise and a dashing character in a sweet hat would act with integrity and just "do the right thing".

If you are following someone else's accepted principles of right and wrong, you could possibly personally feel stuck, internally torn and incomplete. So let’s put it all together then so we can get back to how integrity puts us onto a kick butt lifestyle. Living a life of integrity means that you adhere to your personal sense of right and wrong, and by taking actions based on those beliefs, create a life for yourself that feels wholesome, fluid, complete and pure.

If you want to feel whole and live a life of integrity you must have your code of ethics trump all others that cross your path. There are people that will be emotionally hurt by this but you have to remember that even if you acted OUT of integrity it is NEVER your job to try to change another person's emotions by sacrificing your own. It's a losing battle. People will feel what they feel and when you try to guess you often just end up with two pissed off people. The one you were trying to help and yourself for not taking the action you knew you should have [Read more]

5 Things You Didn’t Know About Cuba

Much has been written and said about Cuba’s former president Fidel Castro, but few can argue that he’s an incredible man. The 81 year old has lived through an estimated 600+ assassination attempts, the Cold War and 9 US presidents.

Despite widespread poverty and being free for all, Cuba’s healthcare is amongst the best in the world. An interesting fact about Cuba is that the average life expectancy is around 76 years, and its medical technology is amongst their most successful exports. Indeed, Cuban scientists were behind vaccines for hepatitis B and meningitis B. If you get sick on your luxury Cuba holiday, you are entitled to the same excellent healthcare as the locals [Read more]

Infrastructure Metal Theft on the Rise

Sewer grates, manhole covers, and even steel bridge castings from a railroad company have become the items of choice for those looking to cash in on the high price of metal. As the domestic and international demand for infrastructure and manufacturing metals has increased, the price for these commodities has created an escalation of metal thefts. These types of crimes do not only create serious safety problems, they also add a significant financial burden to the communities affected.

The recent rise in ferrous metal theft is a serious concern due to the relative ease and availability of iron and steel materials. In addition, thieves will often cause serious damage to public or private infrastructure during the theft. Recovery of these materials is very difficult and replacement costs are often expensive [Read more]

Natural Cures For High Blood Pressure

The first natural cure for high blood pressure is increased physical activity. The activity should be something that you enjoy and should also increase the heart rate and help you to lose weight. This natural cure improves the blood pressure several ways. It increases your overall health and stamina. It reduces stress by releasing the ‘fight or flight’ hormones accumulated in your system from daily stress, and promotes weight reduction.

The second natural cure involves monitoring your diet on a daily basis. Some foods reduce cholesterol, a prime cause of artery blockage and increased blood pressure. Eliminate caffeine and nicotine, from your life. Reduce the intake of salt and increase natural fibers like those in whole grain foods, fruits and vegetables.

The third way to reduce hypertension is the use of herbal remedies and supplements. Increase your intake of calcium, vitamin C, CoQ10 and Flaxseed. Herbs that lower blood pressure include coleus forskohlii, hawthorn and mistletoe. Always speak with your doctor before starting a regimen of herb supplements [Read more]

Ugly Steroid Effects

2008-08-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

Ugly Side of Steroid Use

A different theory was reached juice a new assent to published command the Australian Medical Journal that reviewed the evidence concerning the effects of anabolic steroids on the thinker. Half - formed violent acts committed in Australia and allegedly related to steroid maltreat seem to keep precipitated this study.

The first position centered on a 29 - year - old bodybuilder who journey his wife to euthanasia using a weapon described as a claw hammer. Instant he committed this horrific undertake, his four children were prominence besides unit of the condominium. He therefore stab himself in the stub. Before this incident, his home essence had been described as ‘‘happy ’’.

This friend had used steroids off and on for years, and seven weeks before the obliterate, he had used a steroid maintain consisting of Winstrol - V and sustanon, both injectable steroids. A later urine assessment showed that he again used Valium, a muscle relaxant and anti - anxiety drug. [Read more]

Sensing Energy of Place

Most people can remember a time when they have entered a building or an area and sensed an uncomfortable or unwelcome feeling. We may say that the place gives us ‘the creeps’. This is because we have picked up the energy left behind and lingering in the atmosphere, dust, walls and other aspects of that building or place. There may have been much unhappiness, illness or even violence occur in the history of that place or it could be that an argument or violent incident has only recently taken place. Can you remember entering a room after two people have been arguing or after some other negative social situation? The term ‘you could cut the atmosphere with a knife’ refers to an atmosphere heavy with negative and hostile energy. In this situation the energy has been left behind by the people - their words, actions, thoughts and intent.

In other situations, we may enter an area that has a vibrant and happy atmosphere which lifts our spirits. Many people who have been house hunting for a home to buy or rent will relate to sensing a different energy at each house they visited. Besides the physical features of the house, the energy present will often be a big determinant on whether we decide a particular house could become our home or not. Some houses have that special homely feeling. Others may fit our physical requirements but we feel there is something just not right. [Read more]

Toothpaste For Acne - Not Only For Teeth

Toothpaste can be used to clear acne, but there are certain factors that determine how effective it will be. However, toothpaste is a common remedy and here are some factors that should be kept in mind while using it to treat acne. Some toothpastes will suit you better than others and help treat acne better. Gel based toothpastes, for example, are usually less effective than plain toothpastes. It is advisable to avoid using toothpastes that contain teeth whitening chemicals, for they contain a high amount of hydrogen peroxide that may cause burning and irritation of skin. In order to select the right toothpaste, read the various reviews carefully or you may seek advice from friends who might have treated acne with toothpaste. This will make it easier for you to determine which toothpaste will suit you best for treating acne.

Acne is generally caused due to lack of nutrition, bacterial infection, a weak immune system, accumulation of toxins and inflammation of hair follicles. Most toothpaste contains anti-bacterial, antiseptic and anti-inflammatory agents that can help in clearing acne. But acne caused by hormone fluctuation, pregnancy or malnutrition cannot be treated with toothpaste. It is best to consult with an expert and follow a proper treatment method. [Read more]

The Changing Face of the American Family

Unfortunately, divorce has also become more commonplace in today’s society. Some researchers estimate that 80% of all homes are headed by a single parent, usually the mother. This situation can be extremely difficult for children, especially little boys, who need a male role model in their lives. If you are divorced and do not have custody of your children, you should try to remain as involved in your children’s lives as you can.

You and your ex spouse should also agree not to talk negatively about each other in front of the children. This can lead to the children to feel hostile towards the absent parent.

Another type of American family that is becoming more common is couples who choose to live together without marriage. Many of these couples claim that they are happier than their married counterparts as they stay in the relationship because they want to, not because they feel as though they have to. Some of these partners have been together for years and share a good relationship with their children. When asked, most of these couples state that they are married as far as they are concerned. The children that are growing up in this type of family unit do not seem to be detrimentally affected by these circumstances. [Read more]

Teaching Our Children to be Cheerful Givers

2008-08-18T21:00:00.000-07:00

Teaching Our Children to be Cheerful Givers

Giving is not something that comes easily to a child. Hey, it doesn’t even come easily for adults! We tend to want to hang onto our stuff. After all, we’ve worked hard for that stuff. It’s ours! Why work so hard if we’re just going to turn around and give it away?

Kids, on the other hand, have to be taught how to give. And, of course, that is left up to us as their parents. So what can we do to teach our children to be cheerful givers? Set an example. If I complain every time I write out the check to church for our tithe, or express frustration at having offered to cook a meal for a neighborhood family, why should I expect my kids to gladly give their time or money to someone in need? Kids only become what their parents are. Scary thought, but one that really makes me consider the example I’m setting. Toy exchange. When your children receive a toy as a gift, why not make them give away one they already have?

Not only will this keep the clutter to a minimum, but it will make them more aware of the toys they do have and allow them to choose something specific they decide they can do without and give it to another child who doesn’t have as much [Read more]

Surviving the Job Interview

You should keep in mind that, as a job applicant, you have certain rights. There are questions that you don't have to answer by law, and you cannot be discriminated against for your refusal to answer them. Legally, certain questions are not allowed to be asked during an interview. While hostility is not a wise option, it is essential to understand your legal position. Remember to be confident when answering questions, even the tough ones that deal with lapses in work history or mediocre career goals.

The best course to follow during an interview is always one of honesty. If they find out you lied, you will no longer be in the race for the job and you'll be automatically disqualified.

Practicing interviews goes a long way toward giving you self-confidence. With the help of friends or family, you can prepare yourself to answer questions without hesitation and try a few different answers to choose the one that sounds best. Rehearsal is important for making sure you look confident to potential employers. You can also use a mirror to see how your face and eyes display a look of either nerves or confidence, and work on eliminating small details that will give an impression of self-doubt. Once you enter the interview and finally meet your potential employer, use a firm handshake and a smile, keep yourself from looking down at the floor, and definitely try not to shift too much from nerves [Read more]

Seven Success Secrets to be Better at Everything

Read the Signs. We all get busy. Our personal and business lives are full to the brim with things to occupy our time and mental space. So, it’s easy to zip through life and miss things.

Do the Right Things Every Day. The best way to accomplish anything is to put the power of action and time to work for you. Just like interest accruing on an investment, when you invest the right actions on a daily basis, you accomplish your goal much faster.

So, whatever you’re doing, figure out the actions you need to take on a regular basis to accomplish your goals. Then do those every day, every week, every month, whatever it takes to get it done.

Be Good to Yourself. Being successful in business, as in life, takes energy and work. And it’s a lot harder when you’re tired, stressed out or otherwise in poor health. So, set yourself up for a win by taking care of yourself. Keep your body and mind well-tuned and in good shape so you have the physical and mental energy to be all that you can be.

We’re all different so we all have things that help us stay healthy and balance. Find what works for you and do them on a daily basis [Read more]

Why Do Some People Get Spots and Others Don't?

Spots whether you like them or not can happen at time, and it really does not matter if you are a teenager, an adult or even a little baby, spots can and do strike at any time. There are some common factors as to why spots do take place such as genes, age and if your parents had spots then it is quite likely that you will also have spots too. Spots are not just for the face, but can appear anywhere on the body such as the back, shoulders and also the chest.

It is also the possibility that you are actually dehydrated and if your body is not able to flush out toxins then your body will cause the development of spots to appear. It is essential that you are drinking lots of water in order to make sure that you body is getting rid of excess toxins.

As well as drinking water make sure that your eating a well balanced diet that is not consisting of junk foods and excess chocolates. Avoid excess amounts of tea, coffee and also alcohol, and other drinks that are so called stimulants.The biggest issue that you need to be aware is not to squeeze your spots, even if they seem to be ready to squeeze. This can cause further damage to the skin and it can cause a permanent scar to appear on the skin. But this is something that people never not do, and are quite happy to squeeze away at their spots, only to regret the decision later on when then it is too late or too difficult to then heal the skin to its normal state [Read more]

Melt Her With Your 'Bedroom Eyes'

2008-08-16T00:53:00.000-07:00

Dating Tips: Melt Her With Your 'Bedroom Eyes'

Let's talk about a very widely used technique we utilize to convey sexual interest...'Bedroom Eyes'. One obvious benefit about sustained 'bedroom eye' contact is it's certainly not gonna land you in the friend zone. And I'm a firm believer that it should most definitely be practiced in front of a mirror or a supportive buddy.

Even after you get really good at doing this you will almost always get called out on it by her, particularly if you are with her for an extended period of time.

Here is a brilliant counter I developed to deal with her when she does [Read more]

Remember to Have Fun

Remember, people like doing business with people they like. And, there’s no one more likable than someone who is clearly enjoying themselves. Nothing brightens my day more than someone with an easy smile and a ready laugh.

Think of the people you spend time with (regardless whether for business or personal reasons). No doubt there are one or more people who always bring a smile to your face just by being around them. Do you think they affect others the same way? Do you think they have customers who enjoy them as much as you do? I’d bet they do.

So, what do you do when you’re NOT enjoying yourself? If you’re feeling stressed and harried and your blood pressure is rising, what can you do? Here are some things that always work for me. Maybe they’ll work for you too [Read more]

Top 2008 Jewelry Trends

Gemstones are on the trend menu this season, favoring shades of blue such as aquamarine blue topaz, sapphire, and tanzanite. For those who find tanzanite is a bit out of their budget, try the lovely iolite. While blue rules the season, gemstones in all colors are incorporated into necklaces, bracelets and earrings.

Favorites include shades of purple and pink - amethyst and pink topaz or their cubic zirconia sisters. Other popular gemstones this season are peridot and opal. Lapis lazuli and moonstones are also being seen on a variety of jewelry designs.

Ethnic influences remain strong in jewelry trends for 2008 and range from Oriental-inspired to Egyptian elements. Jewelry wearers looking to stand out should look for a big brooch or pendant adorned with an exotic animal or ethnic design with colors like turquoise against gold.

For a more classic look, heart motifs are a popular choice for a simple pendant look. Pendants made of a favorite stone or symbol with special meaning are also being worn on cords and chains. Classic pendants work well with spring and summer's more detailed, showy clothing [Read more]

What Are Online Addictions

I ask you to take an honest look at an addiction to online pornography, if it is happening online, chances are greater then not that it is going beyond just online… and it is harming the people around you… and in the case of children you are promoting the continued abuse of children, and you need help.

Online gambling can also be an addiction, if it is consuming your life, if you are building your family and social time around gambling and risking your lifesavings on a daily basis.

Again, as above, if the gambling addiction is going on over the internet, chances are high that a person is also gambling in the real world. There is a difference between doing something for recreation on the occasion, but it is time to face the fact that "an occasion" is not a daily occurrence [Read more]

In-home Drugs For Teens

2008-08-15T02:16:00.000-07:00

Most Adults Never Heard of the Stuff Today’s Kids Are Using to Get High

At least 24 million Americans, many of them under age 20, have a substance abuse dependency.

But such drug dangers represent just the tip of the iceberg! You’re probably in the dark about the other stuff today’s kids are using to get high. It’s those insidious chemical concoctions -- available in our own kitchens, bathrooms, closets, laundry areas, garages and even at our computer workstations -- that could destroy the life of a child you love.

As the new school year approaches, and in anticipation of National Recovery Month in September and the National Alcohol Awareness Month in October, every parent and educator will want to be informed about the latest drug crazes, and what it takes to educate and safeguard teens and pre-teens [Read more]

Stress Free Child’s Development

Many parents have strong views on what sort of childhood is best for their little ones. They are determined that they should enjoy those early years and imagine them playing in the garden, building dens and hunting for fairies. Having fun is what they believe childhood is all about, not being force-fed activities.

They want their children to learn at their own pace, and develop their own tastes and interests. They would provide plenty of play-dough, paints, building blocks and dressing up clothes. But sad to say, life does not always follow the intended path. Within precious few years they find that their life is ruled by the clock and a calendar crammed with pre-school or after school activities. Both child and parents become stressed, over-stretched, overtired and over-pushed [Read more]

Daddy Will You Buy Me Some Diabetes?

Over 12 million children in the United States suffer with childhood obesity. This is an alarming statistic and a frightening one for parents. The incidences of childhood obesity increased 100 percent over the last ten years.

The reasons for obesity are a societal as well as physical. There are two major forces that have created this phenomenon of overweight children in our society.The first major impact on the weight of our children is the amount of fast food that is eaten on a daily basis. The fast food industry has changed the American diet into a junk food melee that lacks healthful options. Fast food consumption combined with the sedentary lifestyles of kids who play expensive video games rather than playing outside contributes to the high incident of overweight children [Read more]

Proven Ways Make Your Husband Come Home Earlier

Let the romance live on and consume the both of you, even when the kids have grown up, and they are falling in love, themselves.So you must be wondering why your husband comes home too late, or worse, barely comes home. You start to suspect that he has a lover and that he may have lost his love for you. Eventually, this can be frustrating. But before you even conclude on the situation, start thinking about what kind of relationship you have at the moment, as someone outside of the circle.

Have you been so busy that you have forgotten to romanticize with him at night? Have you been too tired, that you refuse his sensual innuendos often? Or have you simply stopped being the desirable wife that you once were? If you are guilty of any of the following, why don't you start bringing the life back into your romance. Here are some wonderful ways to make your husband come home earlier every day [Read more]

Healthy Junk Foods

2008-08-10T22:10:00.000-07:00

Can You Eat Healthier Junk Foods?

It is not uncommon for people to tell me that they are herculean really hard to lose weight, but I leave still notice boxes of nature jacks and fruity pebbles on their counters, cakes, candies, and long green fame their cupboard, and sodas or syrupy juices in their refrigerator.

So the issue that always stumps me is that if all of these people honestly imperative to lose weight so bad, why character the world do most people pacific retain their houses filled with junk foods instead of healthy food?Interestingly, the answer usually is that they do not want to shell out upping their favorite foods since they image that eating this junk food allows them to " live a infinitesimal "... if you ask me, it sounds more cognate dying a little disguise each subsistence! [Read more]

Forgiveness Begins With Forgiving Yourself

In terms of self-help a better saying to use would be “charity begins at home” or in this case charity begins with self. You cannot freely give to the world that which you do not give to yourself. Just as you cannot truly love someone without first loving yourself, you cannot forgive someone without forgiving yourself. When you learn to forgive yourself then and only then will you be able to forgive others. Paradoxically though, when you learn to forgive yourself you will in turn find that you have nothing to forgive others for.

Self forgiveness is not difficult to master, you only need to simply spend some time thinking over things that you feel badly about, things that you may have said or done to yourself or to others, thank your higher self for allowing you to see that you are in fact imperfect and there will be times when you mess up. Apologize to yourself and let it go. Practice this often, whenever you find yourself beating up on yourself about something you did or did not do, accept that the deed is done and it cannot be undone, forgive yourself and move on to find a solution if necessary, if it something that another action cannot rectify then you must let it go, for it is in fact in the past already and remind yourself that no one can change the past. [Read more]

Cayenne Pepper Diet for the Heart

A lot of researchers and doctors have confirmed that cayenne peppers are well known to be effective in boosting the heart’s mechanism of action, and improve blood circulation in the body. And a cayenne pepper diet is just perfect to give you an improved condition and an enhanced wellness state.

The chemical component found in cayenne pepper that renders it to be effective in blood flow is called the Capsaicin. This chemical is also responsible for giving the cayenne pepper the “heat” in it. Study shows that the more a cayenne pepper contains Capsaicin, the more it oozes with heat.

Likewise, in a cayenne pepper diet, the stronger the heat a chili produces, the more it is effective in giving the body an increase in blood circulation. Experts even say that a single “very hot” chili included in a cayenne pepper diet can already make your blood flow faster in a smooth manner. Having a good circulation of blood all over the body, means that your body cells are receiving the right amount of nutrients. The transport of oxygen to the body cells is also improved, and the exchange of the waste material, which is the Carbon dioxide gas, from the cells to the blood is also speedy. [Read more]

Burn Fat Sleeping

I ' ve noticed that one of the challenges for many people leverage their fitness endeavors is receiving enough quality sleep each night. In case you didn ' t just now know, the quality and quantity of your berth each night is Genuine important to maintaining an optimal hormonal bill within your body and keeping your metabolism as high as possible. Obviously, this all translates leisure activity a leaner you, if you are sleeping well regularly.

On the incommensurable hand, if you never seem to stir up enough berth, or don ' t sleep well enough to consign your body the rest and recuperation it needs, you can count on the fact that this absence of sleep is forging you fatter! That ' s conscientious, the lack of quality berth creates a fat - storing hormonal mess inside your body.

The fact is, the stats show that strikingly people don ' t get enough moor oftentimes, and besides don ' t anchor considering soundly as they should.Aside from sleeping disorders, most people simply don ' t get enough sleep because they hold a insoluble time shutting down their minds at night, which leaves them lying learned significance bed tossing and turning with thoughts about the stresses of their unvaried lives shooting washed-up their heads. Does this happen to you? [Read more]

Interior Design Mistakes

2008-08-04T21:52:00.000-07:00

5 Common Interior Design Mistakes

Too much furniture in a room or extra large furniture in a small room can make the room look cluttered or even smaller. Purchase furniture with the room in mind to make sure that it goes with the size of the room, as well as your needs. When placing furniture in your room, be sure that you allow enough room to breathe. This can make a big difference in how a room feels to both your family and your friends.

Most homeowners hang their pictures too high on the walls. You want them to be at eye level, so that they can become part of the design space. The center of the art should be 5 to 5-1/2 feet from the floor, so that they will be at the right height. Showcase your art and special pieces by hanging them at a level where they will become a focal point on your walls [Read more]

Winning Lotto is Not Good For Your Financial Future

Could it be that the mentality that causes people to buy lottery tickets is the same mindset that loses those winnings. One of the proven points is that if people advance beyond where they are, whether it be financially or socially, that they eventually gravitate back to the level where they see themselves. (Eg. The image you have of yourself must also advance if you are to retain your financial status).

So when people gain these winnings, they don’t have the financial intelligence to deal with the large amounts of money and therefore these funds disappear at an extremely fast rate.On the other side of the coin if we look at people that have created their own wealth, their wealth continues to grow. By developing the right mindset in the first place it gives them the understanding of what wealth actually is [Read more]

The Spa: A History in the Renewal of Body, Mind and Spirit

There's some disagreement as to the derivation of the word spa. It has been suggested that the word originates from the Latin verb "spagere" - to pour forth, or as in the phrase, "Salus Per Aquam," meaning health through water, but these assertions are only suggestions. More likely, the term is derived from the name of the Belgium town, Spa, well-known since Medieval times as a source for healing illnesses caused by iron deficiency. Patrons there drank chalybeate, or iron bearing, spring water whose mineral essentials healed what ailed them. An Englishman who had been to the town of Spa, discovered a chalybeate spring in Yorkshire, England, where he built what became known as the first English resort for drinking medicinal waters. As time went on, the word "spa" referred less to resorts for water drinking and more generally defined a place offering external remedies.

No matter its word origins, the spa has served as a prominent place in many cultures. During the Classical Age, Homer and other writers reported how Greeks enjoyed a variety of baths, as early as 500 B.C. Emperor Agrippa, in 25 B.C., created the first Roman thermae, or large-scale spa. As emperors tried to outdo the efforts of the last, thermaes were built across the Roman Empire, from Africa to England. These sometimes extravagant complexes included sport activities, restaurants, and a variety of baths [Read more]

10 Steps to Avoid ID Theft

Be on guard for the shoulder surfer. This is the guy who likes to casually look over someone's shoulder as he or she enters a PIN number or credit card number at an ATM, phone booth, or even work computer. Those using a public place to withdraw cash or import personal information should always be aware of others around them and their ability to see what keys are being pressed.

Direct people to photo ID verification. Instead of signing the back of a credit card, write "See photo ID" on the back. Often, store clerks do not check for a signature on a credit card; and thieves can still use these cards to make purchases online or over the phone. However, for times when signature verification is required, the card holder is creating another layer of security by directing a salesperson a photo ID as well [Read more]

Because I Just Don’t Care

2008-08-03T20:43:00.000-07:00

Drop the Ego

There is no reason to befriend everybody. If you are nice to someone and they are an asshole to you or are just plain old rude to you, then you have done nothing to them to warrant their behavior. You’ve been nice, self-aware, non-confrontational, and you haven’t challenged them. You’ve killed them with kindness. Yet they still choose to be an asshole.So what’s the point? You need to understand and accept the fact that you can’t make everybody like you and respond favorably to you.

The way I look at it is if someone is being an asshole, it’s really your ego that doesn’t like it. Your ego may not like that you can’t succeed in getting this person to think the way that you are thinking. Your ego may not like that you can’t get this person to respond favorably to you.

It’s also your ego that doesn’t allow you to just walk away from someone like this. If I have to deal with an asshole, then I will kill them with kindness during the one or two obligatory minutes I must spend talking to them. When I then walk away, I will just mutter “asshole” under my breath and walk away . . . because I just don’t care [Read more]

Master Class: Ways to Heal Your Broken Heart

The tendency that many have after experiencing a loss is to pretend that it didn't happen. We want to deny that what was taken from us will never be ours again. "Certainly we will get back together, right?" "I know he still loves me." "She just needs a break." "My love will realize I am the best catch out there.

"While these statements may make you feel better for the moment, they certainly do not help you move past the pain and move forward in your life. When we lose the love of another, it is best to accept that the loss has taken place and focus on how we can learn, grow, and move forward into a happier place. Futile attempts to hold on to the love will only prolong the agony of your heart break.

It is very easy after a break up to beat yourself up. "If only I had done this… or that… perhaps we would still be together." The one being left in the relationship often takes blame and responsibility for the sorrow filled ending [Read more]

Why Are Fad Diets So Dangerous?

In today’s society, looks mean everything. Looks predetermines how you are viewed as a person. And because of that, people have become more and more obsessed with the next fad diet or pill in hopes to cut those unwanted pounds to improve their appearance. Everybody wants to be thin and they are desperate enough to try anything to get their quickly. And the best way to get there is by obtain free online diets.

Now, I’m not saying these fad diets don’t work. Most of them work fine as long as you follow their instructions strictly. In fact, most of them help people obtain their goals quicker. So why am I even talking about old fashion dieting? Why am I so insistent in you obtaining free diet programs? There are three important benefits that separate regular dieting from those fad diets [Read more]

Tattoos In Ancient Societies

Long before Otzi was tattooed in the Bronze Age, there is evidence recovered during archaeological digs of probable tattoo implements as early as the Upper Paleolithic period (38,000 – 10,000 BC). These implements included red ochre, needles, and bone cups stained with ochre. Some figurines discovered from the same time period had designs on their skin, adding more circumstantial evidence to the belief that these very ancient people tattooed their skin.

Moving forward in history, we also know that the ancient Egyptians tattooed themselves. The first tattooed Egyptians were from the Middle Kingdom period (2160-1994 BC). The most famous tattooed Egyptian mummy from that period was a priestess named Amunet, who was discovered in Thebes. Amunet had tattooed lines and dots arranged in ornamental patterns on her chest, back, pelvis and legs. The tattoos on her back and chest were patterns of necklaces, belts and collars that were clearly ornamental. The tattoos over her pelvis were believed to enhance fertility [Read more]

To Have a Father

2008-07-31T22:37:00.000-07:00

So Lucky to Have a Father

Sometimes when I was a kid, I was glad that my dad was at work and perhaps not at home to catch me doing something I shouldn't have been doing in the first place. There were always greater consequences when you got in trouble by your dad. It was far more of an ego crush than when your mom had a few cross words for you.

My dad, like so many fathers out there… set the stage for what kind of a man I should one day marry. Most little girls look at their father as the king of all men… and they want to marry someone "just like him."During our teen years, we often decide that we want to marry someone exactly the opposite of our fathers. This is the time in our lives when we start to see their faults and realize we want nothing to do with them, most of the time [Read more]

The Cat's Mastery of the Present Moment

I have been the caregiver of six cats in my adult life, and I have learned about living through them. They taught me one important, life-altering lesson. All the cats focused on the present and enjoyed life immensely when doing so.

Cats are not enamored with the past — "Wasn't that a tasty mouse I had last week?" They certainly are not focused on the future — "When are they going to board me again?" They do not know they are not going to live forever. Cats do not worry about when the next medical breakthrough will help them or save them. They do not know the warning signs of their deteriorating health like you do and do not flop restlessly about during the night agonizing about what will happen next [Read more]

The Importance of Side Projects

It's important to distinguish "productively busy" from just "busy." Many people are busy, but how much are they actually getting done? For programmers, the single most important contributor to productive busy-ness is having lots of side projects going on, aside from your main "day job."

Kohsuke Kawaguchi just loves to program, and he loves making users happy. Looking at his homepage kohsuke dot org you see an enormous list of side projects that have various levels of relevance to his day job at Sun. Some of his projects, the Hudson continuous integration engine, for example, are enormously successful and popular. It is this productivity and breadth of side projects that make me consider Kohsuke the most productive programmer I know [Read more]

Treat Sunburn With Home Remedies

The home remedies for sunburn are not only helpful in treating the sunburn, but also in avoiding it to quite an extent. The best way to protect oneself from sunburn is intake of lot of fluids in order to prevent dehydration, and also replace the loss of water due to sunburn. In order to avoid the brunt of sunburn, one should eat high-content protein foods and raw fruits to fulfill the appropriate need of body for vitamins and minerals. Coconut oil and sandalwood oil are very effective in healing the burnt skin due to their cooling properties. Application of coconut or neem oil on the body, before and after taking bath is considered as a useful remedy for sunburn.

An effective home remedy for sunburn is to apply the paste of four tablespoon of buttermilk and two tablespoon of tomato juice for half an hour, and then wash it off. Similarly, paste of turmeric, barley and yoghurt in equal proportions also gives immense relief when applied on the sunburn area. Intake of juice of raw mango along with salt and sugar is very effective in combating sunburn, and is highly recommended at least thrice a day [Read more]

Famous Most Experimental Songs

2008-07-27T21:50:00.000-07:00

The Beatles Seven Most Experimental Songs

"What's The New Mary Jane". This song which features only John Lennon, George Harrison and Lennon's soon to be wife Yoko Ono. It was not actually released until The Beatles Anthology 3. It was intended for The Beatles incredible 1968 double album known as The White Album (it was actually self titled.) It was not included due to time constraints. The song features a simple piano part, bizarre lyrics, and insane sound effects. The last 4 minutes of the song is basically just spacey sound effects. It's definitely one of those songs that's quite hard to describe with words. It's definitely a real trip.

"Revolution #9". This 8 minute track was included on The White Album and has probably become The Beatles most infamous track. Many hate it. Some love it. Count me among those that loves it. Don't get me wrong, I don't listen to it every time I put the album on, it's not that kind of track. But when I do listen to it, I still find it fascinating [Read more]

The 10 Warning Signs That You Have Too Much Debt

Credit cards can be too easy to obtain yet too difficult to maintain, especially when people find themselves borrowing from one card to pay off another. Credit may even be advertised as free - but we still have to pay in the end.

What you buy on credit may raise your standard of living today, but the repayments will lower your standard of living tomorrow, and possibly for years afterwards. Families often live from payday to payday with little or no savings for emergencies.

In America personal bankruptcies have more than doubled in the last 10 years. Most of these people had jobs yet unexpected bills or reductions in pay caused their bankruptcy.

British people have over Ј130 billion of personal debt. It is estimated that, on average, there is nearly Ј10,000 of debt from credit cards, loans and overdrafts for every adult in the country - and that's excluding mortgages.

The amount borrowed from credit cards has risen more than 100% in the past 4 years [Read more]

Utilizing the Tools of Feng Shui - The Bagua

Shape has an effect on the flow of energy and balance. Hence the Bagua, used like a map can be applied to your plot of land, your house, your rooms, your furniture and even your business and prosperity in life. The Bagua is a most fair and practical way of applying the philosophical principles of the I Ching or what is also referred to as “The Book of Changes” to Feng Shui.

From time immortal, the Chinese have taken to consult and ponder the I Ching for its measures and insights into the very nature of people, places things and interpersonal relationships. Other cultures may have used wizards and astrology. The Chinese used the “Book of Changes “, which we know its Chinese language term “The I Ching”.

It can be said that the very basis of I Ching directs one towards an understanding of what are called and technically described as simply “ trigrams “. Trigrams can be said to indicate the degree of yin and yang. Trigrams in their simplicity explain and demonstrate the ideas of constant change. Not only that but the change illustrated by these trigrams is constant and cyclical- that is not only can you count on it to change but also to change in a similar predictable manner – that is if you live, or persevere long enough.

The statement ‘what goes around comes around” is a testament and example of this philosophy and way of life. In its simplest explanation the octagonal shape of the eight trigrams with unbroken lines represent yang, and broken lines represent yin and is called a or the “Bagua” [Read more]

How to Get Rich: Illusions and Facts

Every one would start worshipping money in an unnatural way then. For functioning in the society, one needs to have some money, so that he can conduct himself comfortably. That would certainly mean around $250/week or even $1000/week, depending on the circumstances of yours, along with location. Anything additional to this survival amount would definitely be less essential as compared to the health, family, friends, happiness, and spiritual life of yours. Anything less than this amount would become a struggle in terms of survival, and hence, must be avoided at any cost.

You, however, need to understand that it’s not money, but the people causing problems. Money is, in actual sense, a tool which can be used for the betterment of society. A person having good virtues would use the money for constructive purposes; whereas the bad person would go on to do something destructive with the same money. It’s the attitude that matters. It should be noted that a thing mustn’t be labeled evil just because certain bad people tend to use them in an incorrect manner [Read more]

Fine Tuning The Criminal Mind

2008-07-18T23:31:00.000-07:00

Crime Shows: Fine Tuning The Criminal Mind?

The writers are increasingly creative and have a tireless supply of inspiration from real life events that they can put various spins on. The actors are dedicated and the directors are creating stories that are engaging and elicit emotional responses.

I know that personally they are my favorite thing to tune in to when I watch television. I watch a complicated crime unfold and the story develop around it until the criminals minimal error is exposed and the perp is collared! Usually this error is exposed by using a combination of a mastermind underpaid detective and the limitless resources of forensic science. I have often feared that this information may be misinterpreted by some as instruction. The program lays out how to commit the crime, what errors to avoid and if arrested how to see your trial through to acquittal.

The truth of the matter is that the numerous crime shows and frequency with which they air are in fact having an effect on real-world expectations [Read more]

5 Steps to Starting Your Day Right

1.Always think of something to look forward to when you wake up. As soon as you hear the sound of your alarm clock, think of something or someone that will inspire you to get out of bed. You can either think of the new suit you are going to wear at the office. You can also think of someone you want to see during the morning.

2.Do some stretching and/or meditation. Stretching in the morning will also make you feel better. And if you have the luxury of time, try to meditate. You will have a more peaceful mind set if you include this in your morning routine.

3.Fresh up. You will feel fully awake after freshening up. Feel good about yourself after taking a shower. Dry your hair and look glamorous after using the professional hair straighteners. Wear your dress and finish your make up. You will feel much better once you like what you see in front of the mirror [Read more]

Fashion - Catalyst For Social Change

One of the first points of contact between fashion and social issues was the Vietnam War and the developing opposition to that conflict. Invariably, those strongly opposed to the war wore their hair long and favored tie-dyed "hippie" clothes while those who supported the conflict wore their hair short and chose clothes that were much more conservative in nature.

When the United States began to lose its' once predominant position in the textile industry, most of the industry shifted to lesser developed parts of the world where working conditions often approached "sweatshop" status. With Hollywood taking the lead, consumers boycotted many of the companies that used these ill-treated workers to make the garments and, in many cases, succeeded in changing company policy. This type of boycott was especially successful in getting companies to stop doing business with areas of the world that employed child labor under unusually harsh conditions [Read more]

Busting Relationship Myths

Dating provokes a wide spectrum of emotions, ranging from excitement and giddiness to disappointment and frustration, which means starting a new relationship, requires that we take a leap of faith. We have to trust that our instincts will attract the right person, who offers qualities that will create lasting happiness in our lives. To create a new relationship model for yourself, it’s important to debunk a few distracting societal myths so you can begin with a clean slate.

Romantic Myth Buster #1: You control who you date.I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news but as I mentioned earlier, unless you do a little self-discovery you’ll typically attract someone that fits a pattern you observed in your parents. It’s true. Before man could write, humans survived for thousands of years mimicking roles and behaviors, which became heavily ingrained in our species. It’s why young adults find themselves in carbon copy relationships that their parents warned them to avoid [Read more]

Wise Housewife Tips

2008-07-14T19:18:00.000-07:00

Some Unusual Uses For Motion Detectors

Everyone thinks that motion detectors are just used to keep people out of their home. Well, here are a few uses for motion detectors that you might not have thought about:

- Place a Door Alarm on your elderly parent's or young child's door to alert you that they are out of the room at night

- How about teenagers -- what time do they really come in at night? You will absolutely know the time with a properly placed Motion Detector. Just don't tell the teenager that you set one up or it will spoil the surprise...

- Pantries -- place a Motion Detector near your food supply (pantry, refrigerator, even the cookie jar) to let you know when someone is trying to break their diet or eat when they aren't supposed to [Read more]

Are You a Stress Addict?

Even while complaining about stress, stress addicts believe that if you aren’t stressed, you:

- are too dumb to notice what a terrible state everything is in

- just took a tranquilizer or

- need to be educated by someone who “gets it” before you experience the dire consequences of your lack of awareness.

So wherever you are on the stress-addiction scale, it’s absolutely okay.

Extreme stress addicts have already abandoned this article because it reminded them of the fifty things they need to get done immediately. Or they ran off to take a Paxil or a Xanax, or maybe a Celexa, all the time wondering if they should have stuck with Prosac.

Yes, I’m being facetious, but one sign of stress addiction is worrying that any choice you make is the wrong choice [Read more]

Ways to Increase Metabolism - Metabolism and Exercise

Researchers have studied the acute effect of undertaking the exercise on the energy that is being exhausted. In most of these studies, there is a faster metabolic rate in a period of a day following the exercise. For example, aerobics shoot up the rate of metabolism just after the session is over.

There is also a probability that men and women have different effects of exercise on the metabolism. Most of the researches that were conducted have used men for the study. But, women have shown not much change in RMR when comparisons were made between women who were in the habit of exercising and those who were not. This goes to conclude that women appear to use up lesser amount of calories both at rest and while exercising.

Although a lot of data has been assimilated through several researches that have been conducted in this regard, it is still very difficult to come to a conclusion mainly owing to the various methodologies that have been followed. However, there is growing evidence seen that there is a definite correlation between exercise and the metabolic rate. A few of these observations are listed below: [Read more]

How Freelancing Changed My Family

I already knew I wanted to work for myself since graduating high school, but it was many years before I would eventually do just that. As the start of kindergarten approached, my husband transferred positions within his company and landed a Monday-Friday schedule. It was time to do something. I finally made the leap the February before the start of a new school year.

I had one client I worked with doing marketing work. The money was better than the job I had just quit so it seemed like things were worth the risk... until the rug was pulled out from under me and I lost the client due to his lack of money six months later. I freaked out and scoured the internet for a new client with no success. That is, until I answered a craigslist ad for an administrative assistant and my life and the life of my family changed for the good in a way I didn’t think was possible.

My family’s life has changed immensely for the positive. My daughter went off to kindergarten as excited as could be and was even happier to find me waiting for her bus when she returned home, as I was able to do everyday for the entire school year. Even though I was really business in just a few short months and making sufficient money, I still had complete control over my life and my schedule [Read more]

Dating Lies

2008-07-13T22:47:00.000-07:00

Five Big Fat Dating Lies

There are a lot of lies circulating around the world, especially when it comes to dating! Some of the lies are told to us by other people and some of them, we actually tell ourselves.

I don't think you find love when you least expect it. That's as stupid as saying, "You'll get a job when you least expect it." Do you think anyone would ever recommend that a person interested in a new career should not look? Don't send out a resume either, I suppose. Don't search in the classifieds for a new job. In fact, just give up the job search all together and suddenly, miraculously your dream job will show up, unannounced… when you least expect it! Right? Wrong! That entire thought process is insane!

Every romantic on earth wants to meet, "The One." "The One" is our soulmate, right? He/She is just perfect for us. They can practically finish our sentences, they laugh at our jokes when everyone else thinks the jokes are stupid, we are wildly attracted to "The One" and there is an immediate chemistry that we just can't deny [Read more]

Working With a Difficult Boss

The first thing you have to realize is that the only person whose actions you can control and direct is your own. Don’t even bother trying to change other people – they will probably only end up disliking you for it. You can, however, direct some of the more potentially heated confrontations by adapting a non-confrontational attitude. Be clear, firm and assertive without resorting to loud or aggressive acts yourself. In most instances, this can already work to cool the heads of people involved.

It cannot be emphasized enough the importance of clear communication. This means the ability to speak clearly without being ambiguous or leaving the potential of being misunderstood. Learning how to communicate effectively is a skill like any other. Thus, it can be learned and developed. Over time, it can help to define a better working relationship with other people [Read more]

How to Ask for a Raise

Access How Much Others Working in Your Field are Earning: The first thing you should do before you ask for a raise is learn about typical salaries in your field. You can get this information by using salary calculator tools like Salary.com and even looking at salary surveys. If you belong to a professional association, check with it to see if it has salary information available.

Prepare Your Argument: You really shouldn’t approach asking your boss for a raise as an argument, but you may have to make your case. Arm yourself with information. Know what a normal raise is for someone with your experience and occupation. Think of it as selling yourself just as you would do if you were trying to get a prospective employer to hire you. That’s why it is imperative to make a list of all the things you’ve accomplished for your employer [Read more]

10 Facts You Have To Know About Alcohol

One glass of beer can lead to a lifetime of alcohol bond. When drinking, always be in control and always drink in moderation.

The safe level of drinking is at least 2 drinks per day for men. Well, this is dependent on the age of the drinker. But in most cases, 2 drinks a day is moderate.

Don’t be too overwhelmed with the studies that show how alcohol can be good for your heart. This is only true to moderate drinkers. Studies show that moderate drinkers are less likely to develop heart disease compared to non-drinkers and heavy-drinkers [Read more]

Exercise Can Lead To Overeating

2008-07-12T00:13:00.000-07:00

Your Exercise May Be Causing You to Overeat!

Most people exercise early in the morning on an empty stomach. Maybe this is because they have read somewhere that the morning is the tight time to exercise or that the only free time in the day is during the morning. Whatever the reason, exercising on an empty stomach, fresh and early can wreak havoc on your stomach. Exercise burns calories and will make you more hungry after the workout.

Paired with the euphoric state the body enters into after prolonged exercise (often as little as 30 to 45 minutes) can lead to overeating. This is not to say that people who exercise in the morning are going to eat five eggs, three pieces of toast and two large glasses of orange juice after a workout, but the calculation of calories burned is often far higher than the actual calories burned during exercise.

Paired with the fact that many people underestimate the amount of calories they are consuming in a day, combines to make for a slower weight loss plan [Read more]

Fat Burning Myths

Myth 1: Low - Intensity Exercise Burns the Most Body Fat

This fable was spun from a poor interpretation of scientific research. Studies on exercise metabolism showed that the body burns a higher percentage of fat calories during slower, easier exercise sessions. Yes, the primary fuel used at rest is fat, but that doesn’t mean due to a couch potato or doing low - intensity aerobic exercise will make you lean.

Myth 2: Lift Weights Only After You Lose Unwanted Body Fat

I hear both sex and women say that they’ll pump some iron abutting they bob the weight first. This is just plain dumb. Resistance enterprise encourages the fat - burning evolution by main taming skeletal muscle and thus preserving the body’s most important metabolic regulator muscle. Skeletal muscle is the single largest minutes system in humans, accounting for midpoint 40 % of our bodyweight. Most people fail to get it that muscle is much more than something pretty to look at it’s the key to the fat - burning process [Read more]

Researchers Find Amazing Effects of Meditation on Human Brain

The research suggests that meditation can indeed lead to larger brain sizes. That would mean, that people who meditate grow bigger brains than those who don't. When it comes to gray matter, the thickening turns out to be more pronounced in older than in younger people. That's very interesting as the thickening or as regards the sections of the human cortex get thinner as we age.

Those who meditated practiced Buddhist "insight meditation," which focuses on whatever is there, like noise or body sensations. No chants or mantras were used during the meditation process There were an average of about 40 minutes meditation sessions per day. As reported, there were mediators of varying experience, some had been doing it for only a year, others for decades. Very profoundly, it was noticed that those most deeply involved in the meditation showed the greatest changes in brain structure [Read more]

Dealing With Stress

If you feel that you are stressed out and this stress is interfering with your normal activities then you must seek professional guidance. Sometimes, dealing with stress can be easy and you can do it on your own. Look around and see whether you can change, the situation that you are in. Set realistic goals for yourself so that you reduce the number of events that are going on in your life. It stops the circuit overload that you experience. This can sometimes become very serious and can cause a nervous breakdown.

More tips include:

1) Prioritize the series of events that go on in your life.

2) Do not fret over the entire workload. Instead, dissect it in small bit and pieces and perform them one by one.

3) Meditation and breathing exercises help a lot in controlling stress and cleansing your mind of all the disturbing thoughts [Read more]

Memory Strengthening Exercises

2008-07-08T21:14:00.000-07:00

Simple Techniques For Improving Memory

Keeping your brain active at all times will help to ensure that brain is able to practice good memory skills. This would refer to you training your brain to remember facts, descriptions, figures, addresses and such. As time goes by, your brain will continue to grow and develop and hence you will need to feed it. Alternatively, you can keep your brain active by working on mind-boggling puzzles, mind games and crosswords. At the same time, introduce yourself to newer things like learn a new language or new sport to help to keep your brain thinking and working at all times.

When the going gets tough, some people will just explode and let their rage out. Some prefer to stay quiet, but deep down; they compress all stress and anger inside. This calls for some stress relief awareness. It is definitely not good to burst through the doors when you are angry, and at the same time, it is definitely not good to suppress anger either. Suppressing anger and stress will clog your mind and hence preventing you from performing at peak pace. A troubled heart leads to a troubled mind, so, prevent yourself from a clogged mind and learn some of the ways you can handle or avoid this unnecessary stress. [Read more]

Diet Tips to Prevent Heartburn

Because heartburn is only a symptom of a more complicated medical condition known as GERD (gastro-esophageal reflux disease) or acid reflux, we need to know if new diet plans will act on the true, underlying causes. It is important to know that recurring heartburn cannot be dispatched in a permanent way without a full holistic treatment that clearly identifies the root causes.

New diet habits must bring down this excess of stomach acidity, but must also take account of a malfunctioning sphincter. Therefore new diet habits must simultaneously work with both aspects of acid reflux. We describe seven simple axes for diets below as initial actions to get to a holistic, all-natural treatment for GERD: Reduce the quantity of each meal. The bigger the meal, the more the stress on the digestive system, the more the level of stomach acidity and the greater the risk of compounding an existing acid reflux condition. 5-6 smaller meals per day is better than 2-3 big meals [Read more]

Gourmet Chocolate – Luxurious and Decadent or Wholesome and Healthy?

Good quality chocolate is not only a pleasure to eat but also has considerable health benefits over the rather more unpleasant ‘candy’ style products which are laden with sugars and additives. The high quality of the ingredients ensures that the vitamins and minerals which are essential to good health are present in a form which is easily accessible to the body providing nutrition and allowing the release of endorphins within the brain that raise your mood and make you feel better.

The cocoa beans used in quality chocolate are finely ground before being mixed with the other ingredients and the length of the cooking time is critical to the development of the flavors as well as the consistency of the finished product – and most important, how smoothly it melts. Chocolate should never be chewed, but rather allowed to gently wrap itself around your tongue before melting away leaving the memory of its flavor lingering in the mouth and the mind [Read more]

The Bottled Water Myth

Bottled water is much less regulated than tapped water. In fact, bottled water companies, because they are not under the same accountability standards as municipal water systems, may provide a significantly lower quality of water than the water from a tap. Bottled water is one of the least regulated industries and is usually held to less-stringent standards than ordinary tap water.

Since tap water is a public resource the quality and content must be made public to the consumer. Bottled water has no such regulations and is regulated more like a soft drink than a public resource. The truth is that often bottled water is little more than tap water in a bottle. The Federal regulations that govern the quality of bottled water only apply if it is transported across state lines, and then they only require it to be as good as tap water. Most bottled water is bottled and sold within the same state to avoid Federal purity standards therefore there are no assurances or requirements that bottled water is any safer or better than tap water [Read more]

Safety of Herbal Medicine

2008-07-04T23:32:00.000-07:00

Safety When Using Herbal Medicine

Firstly - remember that herbal medicines are still medicines at the end of the day. Many of our most powerful modern drugs are derived from plants originally so it's no great surprise that extracts of those plants also have the active chemicals in them. You need to think about how the herbs might react in your system and also about how they might work with or against any other drugs you are taking.

Recent press reports have given significant cause for concern although - to be fair - the vast majority of those who take this kind of complementary herbal treatment do so with no adverse effects of any kind. If you are thinking about using herbs to improve your health then follow these simple guidelines to make sure that you and your family remain safe [Read more]

Master Class: Top 5 Ways To Help Control Your Anger

If you've got a close friend – maybe a person who has known you for years - or even someone in your family, talk things out with them. How you play this depends on you but often the simple act of talking about your feelings helps diffuse them. Oftentimes it doesn't matter if the person you're talking to says little if anything.

If talking to someone is too much for you or if your anger fits have got so bad that no-one will talk to you any more, then write it down. Write or type away without editing what you write. Just write constantly for between 5 and 15 minutes. This kind of "brain dump" lets your subconscious out into the open and you may be surprised at some of the things you write. There's no need to show anyone else what you've written so feel free to vent your anger on the paper or keyboard [Read more]

Safety Tips: If Your Daughter's Leaving For College

Today, unlike years ago, there are many kinds of personal safety and self protection devices available. Personal alarms are small and fit in any purse or pocket -- they even clip to your belt. These alarms give off a very loud sound that will get anyone's attention. Also, pepper spray comes in different camouflaged containers -- pagers, pens, key chains and even lipstick!

Think of how it was when you went to college or high school. If you were lucky, your classes were close to each other. If you were like me, each class was in a different building, scattered all over the campus, usually on the top floor. The library was never next to the dorm ...

When I went to college, it wasn't like it is today. Coeds could walk alone at night on campus and feel fairly secure. But today, with colleges becoming so large, the parking lots, labs, study halls and the library seem to be in darker and more distant locations.

Kids, being kids, will brave the dark and look for shortcuts. They don't realize what can happen to them. "It can't happen to me" seems to be the ongoing thought [Read more]

Late Bird Advice: 3 Food Categories That Help Burn Fat

Foods That Help Burn Fat #1: Citrus. These foods include limes, lemons, grapefruit, tangerines, and oranges. To get the most benefit from them you need to eat them in their freshest form, which means all by themselves. Don't attempt to cut them up and use them for a marinade because you will lose the calorie burning benefits. In addition, don't assume drinking them in juice form will work. Most juices bought at the store are filled with preservatives that negate the calorie burning benefits.

Foods That Help Burn Fat #2: Fruits and Vegetables. Not just any fruits and vegetables though, but fruits and vegetables that are rich in Cellulose. These include watermelon, cabbage, asparagus, carrots, broccoli, apples, and blueberries [Read more]

Beauty: There Is A Price To Be Paid For It

2008-07-02T21:27:00.000-07:00

Shoe Styles and Injuries

Spiked heels, in particular, have a tendency to lodge in cracks in sidewalks and severe ankle injuries are the result. Some shoe manufacturers have recalled shoes due to the number of injuries that clients experienced, and the company absorbed the cost of offering refunds to customers, but many tried to offer customers the option of trading the defective pairs for a shoe style that was stylish but safer.

Shoes that fit closely on the foot are likely to cause some injuries during the first month of wear. Many shoe customers know that some shoe materials will require a breaking in period before they are comfortable and safe to wear. During the first weeks of wear, many customers will love the shoe styles and injuries will occur when shoe material rub against the skin and cause it to blister from the friction caused by contact with materials such as leather.

Other shoe styles cause injuries due to the angle at which the bottom of the foot rests in the shoe. Some people are unaccustomed to wearing shoes made of cork or hard leathers and will recognize the unsuitability of long-term wear after only a few hours [Read more]

Addiction 2.0

Almost 2 million people this year will find themselves entering some kind of rehabilitation for abuse of various drugs or alcohol. In the past 70 years or so, these alcoholics and addicts would have left various rehabilitation institutions to then begin a lifetime of meetings in church basements with fellow addicts or alcoholics, there to find the support and encouragement to continue their life clean and sober.

Well, now, in spite of fears about Internet addiction, major recovery organizations have been using the Internet to help and support individuals recovering from their affliction. An increasing number of support groups are springing up all over web with one goal: to provide online, 24/7 support for people recovering from some form of substance abuse.

Of course, for every benefit of online meetings, there are also some risks. The use of chat protocols, for example, opens up a portal to the user’s PC that may expose them to risk of being “hacked.” Email-based list servers also pose the problem of how to remain “anonymous” when the entire virtual room can see your email address [Read more]

3 Weight Loss Diets Than Don't Work!

You can achieve your weight loss goals with free and/or inexpensive information and products. So, I want to go over three diets that are being marketed like they’re miracles, but in reality will not do the job. They may help some people lose weight temporarily; however, if you’re looking to lose weight and keep it off, I would avoid these three diets.

1.Low-fat diets. These diets make a lot of sense right? You don’t want to be fat, so you figure let’s just cut out all foods that have fat in them. Unfortunately, while this sounds great in theory, your body doesn’t like it. You see, our bodies actually need fat to perform certain vital functions properly, and without lipids (or fats) we could be putting our bodies in serious danger. Now, there is a big difference between good fats and bad fats. Without going into too much detail, I’ll tell you that the fat from a fast-food hamburger is not good fat, and the fat from eating natural peanut butter is good fat [Read more]

The Blessings in Challenges

If you learn to see challenges in a new light, they can easily become the best things that have ever happened to you. Below you’ll find 5 questions you should ask whenever you find yourself facing challenges:

What Can I Learn From This? Too often we view challenges as annoyances or personal vendettas, when in fact they may hold a great opportunity to learn and grow! If you start by asking what you can learn from each challenge, you’ll suddenly see them as possibilities that pave the way to greater wisdom and self-mastery.

How Can This Strengthen Me? One major reason why challenges intimidate us is because we don’t feel capable of handling them. We have a limited perception of our own abilities, so we automatically believe that the challenge is bigger than we are. However, if you learn to see challenges as an opportunity to become stronger and more empowered, there’s no way they can hold you back! [Read more]

When Your Cat Looks Steadily at You

2008-06-29T22:03:00.000-07:00

Talking Cats

There are five basic ear signals. If they point forward and slightly outward, then all is well. If the ears are erect and facing forward, they're wide awake and my explore the source of something it hears. If the ears are twitching nervously back and forth, they're agitated or anxious.

A tail waving quietly from side to side is a sign of contentment or concentrating intently on something. If growling accompanies this, back off! If tail-wagging is somewhere between heavy-duty and half-hearted, this may indicate that your cat is not sure of things. If the tail is leaning forward over the head and looking fluffed up, it means your cat's feeling like "top dog."

When your cat looks steadily at you, giving you several long, slow blinks, it's your cat's version of a kiss! Blink back at kitty the same way!If you get on the same level and speak to your cat while sitting on the floor, your cat will feel more at ease right away [Read more]

Master Class: How To Use Body Language To Attract Women

First off, make sure you maintain eye contact with the woman you are trying to talk to. By having eye contact with her you let her know you are very interested in what she is saying, not only that she will think you are listening, which you should be. Women often say a man has nice eyes, so give her the chance to really see you looking at her and showering her with attention, she might end up saying you have nice eyes, which shows she is interested and attracted.

If she is talking to you, and you are having a conversation, move a little closer but not too close. You still want her to give her personal space, but if you can invade that just a tiny bit, you will give her a sense of what it might be like to be close to you, make sure you have a good perfume on. By doing this you will also be able to exchange scents. Women are very attracted to scents, and every little bit can help.

Flash a nice smile. This can be the first thing you can do from a distance. You don't want to overdo it but a nice friendly smile will make a huge difference. Keep smiling when you approach her and when you start talking to her. Try to keep smiling the whole time, even while talking you can smile with your eyes [Read more]

Live Forever: An Interesting Theory on Aging

Cells use calories from food and oxygen to generate the energy that keeps the body running. It is through this process, that free radicals are produced - molecules that are highly reactive and will attack the replication structures inside the cells. It is estimated that the DNA in each cell will be attacked 100,000 times in a 24-hour period. Fortunately, there are repair systems, but they are not foolproof.

Every time a cell divides, some mistakes are made in the DNA-copying process and these errors accumulate over time. Sooner or later, a cell line will have accumulated so many errors in its DNA, that it may transform into a tumor cell. Many researchers believe that oxidative stress, which leads to a gradual destruction of intracellular structures by free radicals, is one of the major causes of aging. An example of oxidation, is a cut apple which turns brown after a period of exposure to air, or an old yellowed newspaper. Taking antioxidants through dietary sources and as supplements may help in this regard.

The Solution? Dietary Recommendations include [Read more]

What to Do When You're Being Spied on With a Hidden Spy Camera

When you feel someone is secretly spying on you using a hidden spy camera, remain calm. Just go with the flow and act naturally. The people who are monitoring you will quickly split when they realize that you are on to them.

If you suspect that a hidden spy camera is placed in your room, sit still and listen for sounds that spy cameras make as they operate. Contrary to what most people say, even the most advanced spy cameras do not work silently. Listen for these sounds at the dead of the night when everyone is asleep. It will be like listening to the ticks of your clock, except that you would be listening for sounds as the hidden spy camera pans and tilts [Read more]

By Their Fruits Shall You Know Them

2008-06-27T20:59:00.000-07:00

Earth Battlefield: Aliens vs Demons

We have blurry pictures. We have marks on the ground. We have fantastic eyewitness accounts of strange assaults on human beings in isolated places.

What we don't have is much in the way of technological evidence, if we're dealing with space travellers. Nothing like the crashed remains of a Cessna. UFOlogists say the Government is keeping these hidden. Given the constant spying scandals that bedevil Western governments, it seems unlikely they could keep a lid on such a sensation for very long.

An interesting alternative explanation is that UFOs are the modern equivalent of fairies, demons, and ghouls. They attack and sport with mortals who stray into their domain. Thus, they leave little in the way of physical evidence; marks on the witnesses bodies and a few scorch marks on the ground!

The overall effect of the UFO phenomenon is discord, upset, dissimulation and dissatisfaction. Nothing good or useful has come of it [Read more]

Digging Your Grave: Four Dinner Mistakes

You’re finally home from work and the urge to get right into dinner and move on to the rest of the things you have to do, so speeding through dinner becomes a bad habit, and you need to break it.

When you eat dinner in front of the TV, you can easily get caught up in mindless eating. Instead of stopping when you have satisfied your hunger, you are more likely to continue putting fork to mouth until a commercial break or the end of a show, because you are not really paying attention to what you are eating, you are paying attention to the screen.

It may seem time consuming to portion out your meal sizes to the ounce, but if you can at least follow some loose guidelines for food portioning, you will sidestep this mishap. Spooning food on to your plate without a real measurement can add up to very large quantities of food [Read more]

Aging Process - Environmental Factors That Damage Your Skin

The sun can be warm, fun and make someone feel happy. Your skin even likes to feel its warmth. In fact, a moderate amount of daily sun exposure is very healthy. However, you must be extremely careful to limit that exposure because the sun is also the number one reason why people age faster than they should.

The sun's rays come down in three ultraviolet rays: UVC, UVB and UVA. The UVC is so far contained in the Earth's atmosphere that it doesn't reach the skin.The other two, however, are a different story. These UV rays dry out and burn the skin, causing the cells to wrinkle. They also break down the collagen in your skin and allows free radical cells to form which cause wrinkles and can even lead to various forms of cancer [Read more]

Listening – The Art of Business Negotiations

A good negotiator will first listen to the other party, and hear their viewpoint. If you are looking for certain price for a job, for example, don't make your demands immediately, but wait until the customer gives an indication of what they expect to pay.

Another quality of a good negotiator is to be able to listen: and not only to listen, but let the other person know that they are listening. Any course of communication will stress the importance of response; even a simple nod of the head is better than no response at all when somebody is trying to communicate with you.

It is important to understand that negotiation is not argument. Instead it is to understand the viewpoint of the other party, before you strike a favorable bargain. If you fail to see things their way, then you will have difficulty in negotiating an outcome acceptable to both of you. Negotiation is not the same as arbitration, where the arbitrator takes a neutral viewpoint [Read more]

It Ain’t So Sweet

2008-06-26T22:43:00.000-07:00

Sweet Killer: Sugar… It Ain’t So Sweet!

Sugar, especially in its refined state, has many detrimental effects on the body. First and foremost, it is highly acid-forming. This means that sugar consumption throws off your pH balance so that your blood and other important become more acidic. The more acidic your body becomes, the greater the likelihood for disease to flourish. It’s no wonder that research has linked sugar consumption to cancer, hormonal disruptions, arthritis, osteoporosis, obesity, diabetes, cataracts, and many other degenerative diseases.

Refined sugar is one of the worst poisons you can put into your body. It is known to compromise the immune system response for between 4-6 hours, lowering the body’s natural defenses and making less capable of fighting harmful pathogens.

The manner in which sugar is processed exacerbates the problem. More than 60 chemicals are used in the processing of natural sugarcane’s thick beige stalks into the fine, white granular table sugar that we’re all to familiar with. Many of these chemicals, including bleaches and deodorizes, are still present in the product [Read more]

Recreational Singing May Make You Live Longer

Professor Graham Welch, who is the Chairman of Music Education at the Institute of Education, University of London has studied developmental and medical aspects of singing for more than three decades said not so long ago that health benefits of good singing are both physical and psychological.

Singing has physical benefits because it is an aerobic activity that increases oxygenation in the blood stream and it exercises major muscle groups in the upper body. Singing has psychological benefits because of its normally positive effect in reducing stress through the action of the endocrine system which is linked to our sense of emotional well being.

Psychological and emotional benefits are also pretty evident when people sing together as a group because of the increased sense of community bonding, belonging and shared recreation pursuit.According to a research conducted by leading singer cum singing teacher, Helen Astrid from The Helen Astrid Singing Academy in London, regular vocal cord exercises are also thought to prolong life [Read more]

6 Proven Ways to Teach Your Child About Money Matters

Cater to the child’s age group when teaching about money. Consider a child’s age when discussing money matters with him or her. Toddlers and preschoolers can learn about money by doing tasks such as sorting coins. They can also be taught about how money can be used to get “things.”

Teach how to save for a rainy day. After a child starts earning money, open a bank account for any income that he or she earns. When the child becomes four-to-five-years old, help them to open their own account in Amish Homes County Ohio or whatever county you live in. After the child saves a sufficient amount, it’s best to invest the money in ways that will earn more interest, such as cash deposits, stocks, or IRAs for children.

Teach children about credit and debt. Today, more and more people in society are falling into serious debt. So it’s important that children realize that indeed, money doesn’t grow on trees. It’s limited, and they should learn how credit cards really work. Games such as Monopoly Jr. teach your kids about purchasing power [Read more]

Toning Your Muscles Electrically

Electronic muscle stimulators are not a new technology. Professional athletes looking for a competitive edge and body builders looking for that extra sharpness to their physique have been using them for years. However, an EMS device can be of practical use to everyday people who want to keep up a fit form simply from the comfort of their living room or home gym. In particular, people who are physically disabled, in physiotherapy or who just need results to appear quickly can benefit greatly from what an EMS has to offer.

Electronic muscle stimulators are not a cheat or a new fangled quick-fix. They were developed over forty years ago in England for enhanced athletic performance as well as for everyday functions in beauty salons, health spas, hospitals, and physiotherapy clinics. Their use has been permitted by the International Olympic Committee for athletes since the early seventies. Through an array of soft rubber pads, gentle electronic impulses stimulate muscle groups into relaxing and contracting. Most electronic muscle stimulators come with a chart or a guide to the optimal placement of the pads to work out specific muscle groups [Read more]

Place Under The Sun

2008-06-24T20:56:00.000-07:00

Men’s World: A Woman’s Place is in the Home

Mum would be up at 6.30 ready to see my dad off to work and then look after four growing boys. By the time evening came around after shopping, cooking, cleaning, ironing and tending our needs my mum and dad were both exhausted. In those days dad was the breadwinner and he had to work 12 hour days 7 days a week just to make ends meet, and mum was a fulltime do everything hurricane.

However the world is a rapidly changing place, everything is at lightning speed and if you don’t keep up you get left behind. This affects us all men and women alike. However I see a huge hole in the workplace that can easily be, and should be filled by more women. What is this hole and why are women possibly better suited to this opportunity than their male counterparts.

It’s the internet and internet marketing. The opportunities are huge, and women from all walks of life can do this and become extremely successful. Some are so successful that they are giving their husbands early retirement and recruiting them into their home businesses. I know of some very young work at home mums who are earning ten times their husband’s salaries. Some in excess of $30,000.00. Per month [Read more]

Forever Young: Truth About Most Anti Aging Skin Care Products

Ingredients to AvoidPurified water is often the primary ingredient in anti aging skin care products and cosmetics of all types. It’s fine, but it doesn’t “do” anything for you. Alcohols of various types are usually listed. Ethanol, ethyl, methanol, benzyl and isopropyl are all forms of alcohol and they are all drying.

The collagen fiber that many companies list as an ingredient in their anti aging skin care product line is derived from cow skin and is ineffective. We all have collagen and elastin in our skin. As we age, we lose collagen due to the sun, the wind and other environmental factors. Cow collagen can not replace what we have lost. It works in injections in sort of the same way that you would blow up a balloon. It does not work in creams.

Parabens are preservatives that a company may still use in anti aging skin care product, even though they have been banned in several countries, because they are believed to drive cancer tumor growth [Read more]

Guru Tips: The Safe Travel Guide

If you ever get that distinct feeling that something is wrong, which often happens on vacation, that is your instinct giving you a warning that you should take notice of. If you are heading out on the town to discover new bars or taking photos at the local fish market, do you really need to carry your passport, traveler's checks, extra cash, credit cards and plane tickets? Just take what you need for the time you will be away and place anything that is valuable in the hotel safe. One easy thing to do to protect your money is not carry all of it around at once or leave it in just one location where a thief can steal everything you have quite easily.

A follow on to this tip is to carry two separate credit cards instead of two from a joint account as this adds an extra security measure should one be stolen; this travel safely tip means this way you are not without a credit card. For some time now, thieves have been perfecting the art of snatching handbags and cameras on straps over the shoulder; but by placing the strap over the head and laying it across the chest, this is much harder to do without cutting the strap. Some of the easiest crimes involve snatch thieves that may actually work in teams; they locate unsuspecting victims who have a bag on their shoulder for instance that can be easily grabbed by a passing cycle or scooter. There are many ways to scam tourists and you are vulnerable when you are on vacation so it is an easy task as these people are very good at what they do [Read more]

Use Your Mind to Get a Desirable Bodyshape

You see, most of us have our own mindsets developed from life experiences and although some of these mindsets served us well at some point in time, many of them are now obsolete and might even be damaging to you. If you think that I am being audaciously ridiculous by suggesting that, then let me ask you a few questions.

a) Do you believe that no matter how hard you try to lose weight, you just can't keep the weight off?

b) Do you believe that your body shape is determined by your genetic makeup and thus you can't do anything to change it?

c) Do you believe that you just do not have the discipline and commitment to get the body shape you want?

d) Do you believe that you are the skinny type and will never be able to gain weight?

If you say YES to any of these questions, then you know what? [Read more]

Modern Diets: Calorie Shifting

2008-06-23T21:04:00.000-07:00

What is Calorie Shifting and Can it Benefit You?

Jenny Craig: Tends not to work in the long run, they don't teach the fundamental habits to keep the weight off after the diet program is over. Also, when you start the diet, you are required to purchase pre-packaged meals which can get very pricey.

The Atkins Diet: Promotes heart disease, stroke, and cancer? I don't know about you but I can live without those.

The South Beach Diet: The meal preparation is very complex and it takes a lot of time to prepare. Not for busy people, they don't want to be spending time preparing meal after meal after meal.

The diet Fatloss4idiots claims that it could make you lose 9lbs in 11day using the calorie shifting theory. Is this even possible? Well everybody is different some have lost 8 pounds in 11 days while others lose up to 12 pounds in 11 days. Regardless, those are still some INCREDIBLE results that I haven't seen with any other weight loss program [Read more]

How to Understand Wine Rating Systems

There are several wine rating systems in use that are quite popular. Below is a brief explanation of two popular systems: The Wine Advocate Rating System and The Connoisseurs Guide to California Wine. As you can see by the names of these rating systems that some systems rate only specific types of wine.

The Wine Advocate Rating System is written by Robert Parker and runs from 50 to 100. The ratings are based upon the color, appearance, aroma, bouquet, flavor and overall quality of the wine. Anything over 80 is considered very good and anything over 90 is considered excellent. You know better the cost of a bottle of wine and the wine's ratings [Read more]

Finding Balance Between Making Money And Being Happy

Train yourself to shed off problems at work the moment you leave your office. Use the time you spend traveling home to get rid of residual stress. By the time you enter your home, you should have all your work problems shelved inside a drawer that you can only pull open when you go back to the office.

Do the same thing about problems at home. Problems are better solved when you ponder them on appropriate settings. You should let your family and friends know that you find it easier to function if they’d wait for you to come home before telling you about your worries. Of course, emergencies are an exception.

Time is the most precious commodity of all because it’s something you simply can’t buy. When yesterday gives way to tomorrow, you can never get it back. You must therefore make full use of every moment of your time [Read more]

Power Camping Games to Play With Your Kids

Our hectic schedules are full of business meetings, junior league basketball games, and cleaning—spring or otherwise. A family camping trip can be the perfect getaway to help your family relax and bond. It can include traditional camping activities, such as hiking, bicycling, swimming, kayaking and fishing. But remember that your kids naturally have a “Are we there yet?” attention span, which has become shorter in today’s Information Age. Wherever you camp, including Berlin Ohio, you’ll want to keep your children engaged in activities that will make their camping a memorable experience.

You can center your camping trip around a place that becomes the main activity. This can include a national park, an amusement park, etc. When you return to your family camping tent at the campground, you can use other minor activities that will keep your little ones busy whenever they’re not sleeping [Read more]

Dad's Home Master Tips

2008-06-22T21:41:00.000-07:00

DIY: Dad’s Irate Yelp?

Dads being dads, they like to at least give the impression that no job is too large for them to attempt themselves. Most working class families from the past 50 years will know the horrors of dad’s attempts to wallpaper a room when his wallpapering skills just about stretched to erecting the special table without losing a finger. The arrival of the cavalry in the shape of mum usually saved the day, even if upside-down bamboo prints were something that we had to learn to love.

And we’ve all heard the shocking stories of DIYers drilling straight into power cables and water pipes – often at the same time. And yet they continue, safe in the knowledge that the money they save can be put to better use, like upgrading the home insurance and buying a caravan. Kids growing up today might think that the huge DIY superstores have always been around, but they’re just another symbol of the rise of doing it yourself over the past few decades [Read more]

Buying a Diamond Engagement Ring? Get What You Pay For

Color can be manipulated in several ways. The diamond is shown under a colored light that offsets any yellowness in the stone or is shown against a black cloth backdrop instead of white. The setting of the stone can influence the perception of the color. A white gold or platinum setting contrasts with a yellowish diamond making the yellow cast more obvious, while a yellow gold setting doesn't make the yellow color as obvious. None of these methods are dishonest as long as the seller states the actual color grade.

However some dishonest sellers misstate the color grade intentionally or enhance it. Yellowish diamonds can be made to look whiter by touching the side of the diamond with indelible purple ink which neutralizes yellow. The diamond can also be painted to neutralize the yellow. The "paint" isn't at all obvious, can't be washed off and may take months of cleaning before it wears off.

Diamonds that are two carats don't look twice as big as a one carat stone. The increase in perceived size is only about 50%. A word of warning: Be leery when someone says a diamond spreads 1.5 carats. That doesn't mean it weighs 1.5 carats, just that it looks the same size as a 1.5 carat diamond when viewed from above. That can be achieved by cutting the diamond broader but shallower [Read more]

How to Love the Spouse You Hate

The process begins with you identifying why it would be beneficial to love the spouse you hate. You need to have a good reason why you would benefit from transforming your hate to love. The transformation process continues by asking you to write nice things about yourself. Why? Because if you don’t love yourself, it’s difficult for you to love others.

The divorce rate is sky high in many countries around the world. If only spouses who are considering divorce would go through the process I call “Loving the You Hate.” The process can work with anyone or anything – your job, your boss, even your mother-in-law, by transforming your hate to LOVE. It’s ridiculously simple and contains just 10 questions or steps. Now, let’s look at the process from the perspective of “how to love the spouse you hate.” [Read more]

The Truth and Myth About Morning Coffee

Drinking coffee whether in the morning or in any part of the day can be beneficial and also disadvantageous. There are myths about drinking coffee in the morning. It is said that it can making anyone who drinks coffee in the morning stay alert. There are also recent studies about drinking coffee like the statement that it can release anti-oxidants in the body and other more curative properties.

The so-called “eccentric exercise” is met when the skeletal muscles create a force once it is lengthened. An example of this is when the cup of coffee is lowered from the person’s mouth unto the table. Thus, the biceps brachia muscle acts eccentrically. This study can actually improve the life of persons who are experiencing skeletal muscle pain after they are engaged in an unaccustomed, eccentrically biased form of exercise [Read more]

Colors That Can Reflect Your Mood

2008-06-17T21:54:00.000-07:00

Life Rainbow: Seven Colours That Can Reflect Your Mood

Red is a stimulating and energizing colour. It also enhances self-assurance; what woman in a fiery red dress doesn't exude confidence. Red will produce an illusion of fantasy. It can promote opposition in others ( you have been warned) If you want to be attention-getting, feel powerful and dominate - wear red. The colour also symbolizes love. It is a hot and passionate color. Red is said to increase the appetite, so you may want to keep it out of the dining room unless you're having a dinner party. In the bedroom, red light helps sexual activity, and could lead to active nights.

Orange. This is also the colour of love. It is perhaps a little less serious and a little more fun. Wear it to lift your love life. Orange is a very high energy colour imparting boldness and distinction. Is about being different. Like red and yellow, orange is stimulating. It is an antidepressant and also stimulates the mind. Anyone with a desire to sharpen and add focus and purpose to their life can do with a little orange [Read more]

How Do You Know Your Child Isn't Dating Someone Who is Violent?

According to the Advocates for Youth website, “More than 20 percent of all adolescents report having experienced either psychological or physical violence from an intimate partner ...” Some young people, in violent relationships, have been diagnosed with a mental illness before they became involved with their new partner and in the past have had suicidal thoughts or eating disorders. Others are recovering addicts of drug or alcohol abuse and victims of sexual abuse. Some children involved in these types of relationships have unresolved feelings about their parent's separation or divorce while others are still grieving over someone’s death.

If your child seems to be involved with drinking, smoking, and/or fighting more than usual, chances are they are hiding from their problems. He or she may also begin or start back to thinking about committing suicide or stop taking prescribed medications. This all can be contributed to this new girlfriend or boyfriend’s negative influence over them [Read more]

How to Burn More Calories in Your Workout in 5 Steps

Step one. Please get out of the fancy machine and hit the free weights and cables. There are many things that these machines cannot offer. Although they are highly engineered and are of latest technologies, they still do not train your muscle on balanchaving and coordination. The movement path is fixed and all you have to do is push. But with free weights, you need to balance the weights, focus on coordination, and focus on the power and speed of individual arm and also the movement path. This will burn more calories. Not only that, the muscle is worked more intensely. This will require more calories from the body for muscle recovery.

Step two, add in lunges into other exercises. Most of the time, people think that lunges is used only to work the butt, quads and hamstrings. But not many people know that lunges can be integrated into other exercises to make the exercise more complex and intense. A good example is dumbbell shoulder press with lunge. This exercise works the shoulders, the triceps, the core and the entire lower body. Rather than just sitting down on the bench and pressing the weights upwards, why not add in the lunges [Read more]

Guru Tips: One Secret To Having A Great Career

Would you like to be more passionate about your job? Here's the key:Do more. Instead of being passive and going with the flow, be proactive. Do the little things at work that no one else is willing to do. Believe me. People will start to take notice - especially those in position of power.

Get more involved in those boring business meetings. Who says business meetings have to be boring? Why not spice things up with a joke of the day, or something else of a lighthearted variety. If you change your attitude and become more passionate, it will rub off and have a positive effect on others.

And you'll feel better about yourself, knowing that you are helping others feel better about themselves and their job. You will actually be an inspiration to people.

More importantly, when you develop passion, you'll get more done. You won't have to hide out in the bathroom, doing as little as possible, until it's time to go home. You won't have to waste time scheming about how to get out of an unpleasant assignment, because with your new attitude, there will be no such thing as an unpleasant assignment. Also, you won't be at work daydreaming about your upcoming vacation that's 6 months away [Read more]

Connecting With Women

2008-06-16T21:48:00.000-07:00

How to Control Women

Nobody knows it. So men who are unable to control women does not equals to weak and timid guys. It is just that over the years, women are catching up with men in many aspects and it is not a surprise that men are getting increasingly intimidated by powerful women. Despite all these, women have the very same characteristics as those women 100 years back.

Every woman has her soft spot and if you are able to reach out for it, then bingo! You hit the right spot buddy. Tell yourself this, no women is too tough to puff. It all depends on how you approach her and how you carry yourself.It does not mean that you need to be dripping with money in order to get her under your love spell. Not all women are looking for that in men. Women in general love men who are attentive and attention giving. You might be the hottest looking dude in the planet but if you lack the qualities as aforementioned, then you are going to have a tough time connecting with women. As much as you want her to listen to you as you speak, she wants your 100% focus and attention as she speaks about her latest shopping trip [Read more]

Dealing With Risk and Fear

When we tell our life story, we usually convey an image of strength and confidence. But don't be fooled. We're as fearful of the unknown as anyone else. If you think we weren't scared when we packed up and moved to the Caribbean, think again. And if you think we weren't afraid of looking foolish when we wrote our first book, you're wrong. And can you imagine how scared we were when we had to recall thousands of bottles of Sesame Seed Dressing from stores all over the country because of yeast contamination? Talk about fear. We had visions of losing everything. "This is it," we thought. "It's over."

But here we are to tell the tale. And we're here to tell you that fear can be managed and minimized. When we first learned that we had to pull our Sesame Seed Dressing off the shelves, we were standing in our booth at the Fancy Food Show in Washington D.C. talking to the buyer from Macy's: Suddenly, ka-pow! One of our dressing bottles exploded off the shelf. We called food technicians and experts to gain as much information as we could. We needed to know what was going on. We needed to understand all of the dangers and the repercussions. It felt like we had produced toxic waste and the image of people getting sick - or worse - because of something we had done wrong was unbearable. We were instructed to call all of our accounts and tell them to carefully dispose of the dressing [Read more]

Ways to Increase Computer Speed

While an old computer will never operate at the same speed as a newer one, you can help your computer stay as "young & healthy" as possible.

Firstly, make disk cleanup. Whenever you "surf the internet", open attachments, delete files, your computer saves a record of your activity. Many of these files are harmless, and individually are very small. But if you spend a lot of time on your computer, before long you'll take up enough space to slow your computer down a bit. Disk Cleanup is a Windows utility that helps keep unused and unwanted files from taking up extra storage space on your computer. You can think of it as "spring cleaning" for your computer.

Next, defragment your hard disk. Basically, defragmenting is putting files back where they belong. With the files in the proper order, your computer will run more efficiently. It's simple to do. You just need to plan ahead, because if you have a lot of "stuff" on your computer, it could take a while. And it's best not to use your computer while defragmenting.

Try to remove spyware & adware. If you've ever had spyware or adware on your computer, you know how frustrating it can be - strange things happening, your homepage changing, inappropriate popups, unfamiliar icons... [Read more]

Safety Concerns to Watch Out When You Travel

Ever since the 9/11 attacks, a lot of people have been more conscious about travel insurances. Hijacking is covered by it even though the said cover will only be enjoyed by the policyholder AFTER he/she survives the feat.Although some hijackings had bad results, there are some high profile hijackings that were controlled by the authorities.

So, what will your travel insurance cover if this mishap will happen to you? Well, if the hijackers order the pilot to land the plane on an isolated island or another place perhaps and they let you go, lose all your luggage in the process and then get sick or PTSD in the long run, the travel insurance will definitely cover the loss of your luggage and medical treatment.

World Nomads claims that they offer at least 50% off travel agent prices. True! Since for a six month coverage, it’ll only cost you about $240.00. Plus, they’ve got great services in their website. You can download an mp3 guide of the major languages of the world (for conversation purposes) and put it in your iPod! Are there any deals sweeter than this? [Read more]

Master Class: 10 Simple Tips to Feng Shui Your Home

2008-06-15T22:43:00.000-07:00

Feng Shui Your Home Easily

For Feng Shui Beginners, it is not important to get into the details, but they should just stick to the aspects of Feng Shui homes and Feng Shui in bedroom...

Feng Shui uses a design and to choose colors, and other decorating elements, be it the redecoration of a room, a house or even a building. If you use the traditional Feng Shui, then the grid is oriented according to the compass directions. It you are using the western style Feng Shui, then it is oriented according to the entrance or the door that is used.

1. Shoes and slippers should not be left lying around outside the entrance door of the house. Let the place in front of your door be free of any clutter. The chi (energy) that rides with the wind will bring the dirt and the stink of shoes into the house, which causes sickness. Once in the house, the chi looks around for water to stay in. If there is no water fountains or fish tanks, then it will flow away with the wind.

2. The water fountains or the fish tanks in the house should be placed in a favorable direction or area to help your get whatever you want [Read more]

7 Reasons Why People Fail in Life

Being successful is very simple. Just model others who are successful. Talk like they talk, do what they do, and most importantly think like they think. Focus on less, but only on that which is more important to you, whatever that may be. There are certain areas which are equally important to the well being of every human when it comes to success and happiness. These areas are spiritual fulfillment, vibrant physical health, nurturing relationships, and financial wealth.

There are many reasons why people fail to attain the state known as success, or even happiness. Below are seven of the most common reasons in my opinion.

1. Not Knowing What They Want. The number one reason why people are unsuccessful or unhappy is because they do not know what they want out of life. You see, life is a like a blank canvas. It is up to each individual to pick the colors they wish to paint and draw any picture they please. If a person does not choose to pick their colors or picture to paint, they can be certain that someone else who does know what they want will pick it for them.

2. Not Doing What They Know. Knowledge and action are worlds apart. Just because you know that you need to eat healthy and exercise regularly in order to attain vibrant health does not mean that you will do it. [Read more]

How To Have The Life You Want! - The Art Of Receiving

When somebody compliments us we feel awkward, embarrassed or guilty.We do not enjoy Christmas or Birthdays when we are given gifts.When we are given a compliment or a gift we my immediately want to reciprocate without giving time to thank or appreciate the giver. We never quite reach the point of success or reward. If we do have a success we often lose it quickly or Won’t feel good about it.We would rather give a present than receive it.

We hate people making a fuss over us or treating us kindly.We are often rushing around looking after everybody else’s well-being or happiness.Something important is never present in your life – there is always a feel of lack. If you recognized any of these you are not alone. An ability to receive fully is at the heart of most human problems.

It can usually be traced back to a level of guilt and feeling of failure around our original families, where we subconsciously believe we have let our parents and siblings down. This lowers our self-worth and esteem and makes us feel that we do not deserve to have life’s rewards. Obviously the key is to find self-forgiveness and to feel more worthy [Read more]

The Historical Significance Of Sunflowers

The history of the sunflower begins in the Americas, the land to which it is indigenous. The native Indian cultures revered the sunflower – the Incan sunflower was used as a symbol for their sun god and Olmec (Ancient Mexicans) sunflower rituals and temple sculptures are well documented, but perhaps the greatest use of the sunflower was by the Native American Indians.

Archeological evidence has shown that the Native Americans considered the sunflower a special crop and used it abundantly – as far back as 2300BC. The Native Americans formed very close bonds with the earth and all of the abundances arising from it – and the sunflower was considered among the most important of the crops. Buffalo Bird Woman, a Hiditsa Tribe member born in 1839, tells of the importance of the sunflower and described many rituals based around the plant. She also states that the Native Americans believed singing to the sunflower would help it grow.To the Native Americans, the sunflower symbolized strength and endurance, and was a prominent feature in their ceremonies.

The Lakota Indians, during their Sun Dance Ceremony, would wear medallions in the shape of a sunflower head as they danced during the ceremonial event. The Hopi put sunflowers in their hair and commemorated their ceremonies by drawing pictures of sunflowers in their lodges and kivas. The Native American warriors also used rolled sunflower balls as “iron rations” on war marches – being away from home, the nourishment offered by these ancient iron rations apparently “…invigorated the body before battle…” [Read more]

Minimize Food Miles

2008-06-13T23:26:00.000-07:00

Why Eat Seasonally?

The first major benefit is an important one in our environmentally conscious times. When we eat a food which isn't in season, it would normally have to be transported to us from a part of the world where it is. This brings up the subject of so-called 'food miles', which measure how far a food has to travel from where it's produced to where it's consumed.

For a variety of reasons - pollution, energy consumption etc - it's better to minimize food miles whenever we can. Seasonal food will generally be produced much nearer to the point of consumption, and so will have a lower impact on the environment than well traveled foods.

A related point is freshness: if food doesn't have to travel as far, it will be fresher when you come to eat it, and it's generally the case that the fresher a food, the better it tastes and the more health benefits it has. This is especially the case with fruits and vegetables, which are often picked well before they are ripe so that they can withstand the long journeys they have to make without going past their best. Unfortunately, this will normally reduce the eating qualities of the food.

With seasonal food usually being more locally produced, concentrating your spending power on buying it will help to keep your local economy ticking over, keeping money circulating within your community, which can only help make the place you live a more pleasant area to be in [Read more]

Breaking the Caffeine Addiction

Caffeine addiction is just as hard to break as any other addiction, if not more because you have it widely accessible and it is legal to have. Prices are cheap and it is around every corner whether it is in a machine, at a restaurant or inside a store. Enter a store and look straight down the aisles, you are sure to see an entire rack of nothing but chocolate candy, donuts and in the freezer side you’ll find soft drinks galore, chocolate shakes, teas, coffee and even chocolate milk. How easy is it just to walk away from all this? It isn’t.

Breaking the caffeine addiction is hard. Items such as a chocolate éclair, candy bars or even chocolate ice cream seem innocent but these too fuel the caffeine addiction. Even something that says it is “Caffeine-free” contains a small amount of caffeine in it, which means you are still using it. Many prescribed medicines contain doses of caffeine in them, so if you are trying to quit you’ll need to let your doctor know ahead of time.

Why would one want to break away from caffeine? One big reason is their health, it is possible to get heart disease or even fibroids from drinking too much caffeine. Some people may try cutting back on sodas that contain lots of carbonation because they rot your teeth. Diabetics normally cut out soft drinks as well as candy and if they were already addicted to caffeine it is much harder to break. Some may do it all at once while others do it gradually depending on the degree of diabetes they have. Another is to lose weight, that’s right if you replace your daily soda with water you can actually lose weight [Read more]

The 10 Most Popular Amusement Parks in the USA

If you are on a holiday with your family and you wish to go to an amusement park for a day or two of fun and adventure, you can get a good idea of the best amusement parks in America by viewing the list below.

At number 1 is Disneyland, a world-famous amusement that has been wowing visitors of all ages for fifty years. Located in California, this amusement park presents eight colorful and delightful lands, each one offering adventure and nostalgia. Here, you can enjoy numerous rides and meet Disney’s most beloved characters such as Mickey and Goofy.

At number 2 is Universal Studios in Florida. This amusement park is perfect for movie buffs and fans of famous American celebrities. Here, you can visit the sets of classic and recently produced films. As an added bonus, you may even have the chance to you’re your favorite actors and actresses.

If you prefer to have fun in the water, you may choose to visit Florida’s Sea World at number 3. With around 200 acres, This is the world’s premier marine amusement park. In Sea World, you can find shows featuring the best aquatic creatures. It also offers water rides and a chance to interact with its marine animals [Read more]

Keeping a Tarantula As a Pet

Although the thought of having a pet tarantula would make some people's skin crawl, there are many people that love the thought of keeping one of these big spiders as a pet. If you are one of them, it is important for you to know how to properly care for a tarantula so you and your pet can both be happy. So, aren’t you thinking about keeping a big, hairy spider as a pet now?

The most important step you can take is to avoid an impulse purchase. Rather, research the type of tarantula you will be purchasing so you can learn about its temperament as well as its needs. You may be surprised to learn that tarantulas can have very different needs, so you need to make certain you know the proper temperature requirements, diet, and humidity levels for your pet tarantula. While some tarantulas are arboreal, which means they live in trees, others are ground dwelling. In order to keep your tarantula happy, therefore, you will need to create a habitat that meets is natural needs.

Now that you know more about your tarantula, it is time to pick out a container in which it can live. Critter Keepers make good choices, though you can use an aquarium as well. Either way, make sure the top is tightly sealed so your tarantula cannot get away. They are very adept at climbing glass walls, so don't think the smooth surface will prevent them from getting out. Also, while you do need to give your tarantula a little room to move about, you don't need to make the enclosure too large. In fact, if it is too big, your tarantula will have a difficult time finding its prey. A good rule of thumb is to make the width equal to about twice the tarantula's leg span and make it as long as about three times its leg span [Read more]

What Your Body Thinks of You?

2008-06-10T22:05:00.000-07:00

Do You Know What Your Body Thinks of You?

Healthy hair is a sign that you have strong, healthy kidneys. To ensure that you have strong, luxurious hair, take care of your kidneys by:

* Drinking lots of water.
* Avoiding salt.
* Cutting out nasty foods such as coffee, refined sugar, alcohol, dairy and fatty foods.
* Eating more onions, seaweed, salmon, beans and grains.

You can also improve the way your hair looks by increasing your intake of the protein keratin. Hair is largely made up of this protein, which is found in beans, seeds, grains, tofu sprouts and fish.Other hair-healthy vegetables, such as nori, hijiki and arame can be added to delicious soups, salads and casseroles. Many common vegetables, including onions, garlic, carrots and bell peppers, are a great source of silica – another of the main building blocks of hair [Read more]

8 Warning Signs of Financial Doom!

This is the electronic age. If your surprised that checks clear almost immediately, you shouldn't be. There is no significant "float" time any more. "Float" is term used to describe the period between the time a transaction is implemented, and when it clears your account. In the past it has been up to a few days. Now it is almost immediate. Sometimes no longer than close of business on the same day as the transaction.

If you are relying on float time, you're in danger. Banks love to slap heavy fees on bounced checks. Even if they pay the check, they charge you a significant amount for the service. Make sure you know what your balances are. Use MS Money or Quicken to actually balance your checkbook and keep it up to day at least every week. Your savings account has a zero balance. There is no money to access in the event of emergency (without going into debt by using a credit card). The old advice about 3 months income is great, but in many cases just not possible. That being said, you need some cushion to land on if something happens [Read more]

Foreclosing on Mental Health

According to an Associated Press - AOL Money and Finance Poll, more than a quarter of homeowners in the United States fear the loss of value in their homes over the next couple of years. Up until the housing crisis, the increased value of real estate had homeowners re-financing left, right and center; homeowners felt secure and cashed-up.Unfortunately, April's foreclosure filings show a more dismal reality since the housing boom; one in every five hundred and nineteen households received a foreclosure filing this year.

A surge of 65% since last year.Leading analysts warn that the crisis seems to be accelerating; sinking home values, rising foreclosures, an excess of homes for sale, and tighter lending rules, which disadvantage those trying to re-finance, and shut-out those trying to purchase. A survey by the American Psychologists' Association sites that half of the Americans they interviewed identified rent and mortgage costs as significantly high sources of stress [Read more]

Money Merge Accounts: Predators Among Us

We are a society buried in debt, that wants to get out of debt. Now the debt peddlers and predators are coming at us with something called an MMA or "Money Merge Account". They actually have the audacity to try to convince people that they can pay off their mortgage faster with a line of credit and some software.

Unfortunately, they are succeeding in convincing some people.Its like so many things. Too good to be true.Do something for me. Just a favor that will really help you more than me. Take your right hand, extend it out in front of you and look at your palm. Now, take that same hand and hit yourself in the head as hard as you can.

Do this repeatedly while chanting "I will not buy stupid stuff, I will not buy stupid stuff". Don't you feel better?What these accounts do is is use all of your extra income during the course of the month to pay down your mortgage. Let me explain a little better.

Lets examine a $200,000 mortgage at 6% annually. Lets assume you take home $5000 per month and have $4000 dollars per month in expenses - leaving you with $1000 at the end of the month after the bills are paid [Read more]

Using Nature In An Unnatural Way

2008-06-03T23:05:00.000-07:00

Does Our Food Eat Us?

Since early 1990’s scientists have urged the food industry and the FDA, to carry out conclusive studies about the threats that GMOs can pose. Until it is proved that no harm is being done to living beings and the environment and particularly causing no severe health risk, to young children, consumption of such foods can be disaster prone. But unfortunately till date, the FDA has blatantly ignored the warnings and is allowing big corporation to use all of us as guinea pigs while the wallets of the business heads in the biotechnology industry are getting obscenely fat!

Genetically modified foods use organisms, plants or living beings which are not similar, such as inserting a fish gene into a tomato. Using nature in an unnatural way, carrying out mutations of various genes without proper or informed study can be a potential cause of severe health hazards.Numerous studies conducted in the field of genetics have shown that whenever a new gene has been introduced in a plant, the new gene can disrupt the functions of the plants native genes. It can result into altered or mutated DNA.

Sequence of DNA can be deleted, truncated or the gene may be turned on or off, and the protein coded from such a gene in the native plant that is otherwise harmless has the potential to become very toxic. In a case study done on rats which were fed GM potatoes, had smaller hearts, livers, kidneys, testicles and brain, a damaged immune system and a change in the white blood cells. Several rats developed lesions in the stomach. But the most frightening fact is the speed with which these changes start to develop [Read more]

Best Way To Loose 10 Pounds

Stop eating. According to the latest statistical data produced by American Obesity Association, over 64% of adults in U.S. are overweight. If you know that you are one of these obese people, then I am pretty convinced that the probability of your trying out several different diet options is very high. With innumerable diet programs available to choose from, it can be very trying to figure out which diet would suit your body constitution.

I can understand this dilemma because I went through similar times struggling to figure out the suitable one. It's not always easy to spot a good fad diet. There are too many diets advertised and offered that promise unrealistic weight loss just to attract public attention.The strong foundation to every diet is good, well balanced meal plan. If a diet has a poor meal plan not taking care of proper nutrition, it will not work.

The answer to most difficult part before making the choice and starting a fad diet comes from the two questions you are expected to ask yourself. Firstly how much weight can I expect to loose? Secondly will this diet work for my body? Unfortunately, most of the diet websites fail to tell you the complete truth in this regard. I am convinced about this because I have tried many different diets but with no success [Read more]

Truth Of The Food Pyramid Guide

There are variety of diet plans known for weight loss and can be used specifically to suit each and every body type or constitution. The Atkins diet is a popular high-fat and low carb diet. The Glycemic diet, originally developed for people suffering from diabetes is another option available in weight loss diets, meant specially for those seeking to loose weight. The Hamptons diet is a modified version of the Atkins diet which stresses more on nutrition. In recent times the Mediterranean diets are going up in their popularity.

Along with the visual representation of the recommended daily intake of nutrient-rich foods, the food pyramid also suggests a personalized approach to physical activity. Requirement of physical activity varies from person to person depending on lifestyle, food habits, body composition and other things. By accessing the web sites related to food pyramid you can get valuable information explaining the above factors [Read more]

Top 10 Anti-Aging Foods For The Skin

There are many categories of foods. Surprisingly, there is a category of foods known as superfoods. How do we define superfoods? Superfoods are foods that contain high amount of Essential Fatty Acids, antioxidants and fiber. However, superfoods may contain one or more of the nutrients. Studies shown that there are particular superfoods can reduce levels of cholesterol, lower the risk of heart diseases and ensure organs are functioning properly.

The EFAs, antioxidants and fiber are able to provide sufficient nutrients for the body so that cells are able to repair itself and keep the digestive system healthy apart from erasing wrinkles.Scientists have narrowed down the superfoods to the top ten superfoods that are proven to be fully beneficial. They are green foods, barley, acai, allium family, beans or lentils, sprouts, hot peppers, buckwheat, yogurt or kefir and nuts or seeds. These are the top superfoods that have high level of EFAs, antioxidants and fiber that are scinetifically proven against all other types of foods in the laboratories.

Green foods have the power to lower the risk of getting cancers, lower the cholesterol levels and reduce the high blood pressure. Barley is the best source for fiber and it is useful in helping to regulate the level of blood sugar. Acai is full of antioxidants and EFAs. The allium family include garlic, onions, chives, shallots and leeks that have very powerful antioxidants for better liver functions. Beans and lentils are rich in antioxidants and have low GI. Sprouts are rich in protein and vitamin C [Read more]

Uncommon Insurance Claims

2008-06-02T21:02:00.000-07:00

Unusual Insurance Claims And Policies

Lloyds of London made a weird insurance policy specifically for the nose – valuing it at Ј3,900,000! Not everyone’s nose is worth that much though, this unusual insurance package was specifically designed for wine maker Ilja Gort of Bordeaux’s Chateau de la Garde, and covers him against loss of both his nose and his sense of smell.

Car policies bring up their share of weird insurance scenarios too. For example, in Denmark, the Danish Automobile Association has two schemes to protect drivers from fines – the speeding insurance, which will cover drivers for up to four offences, of a total of Ј900 (Ј90 per year) or parking ticket insurance, which covers four tickets or Ј182 worth of fines for Ј36 per year.

Unsurprisingly, the Danish Council for Traffic Security is less happy about these strange insurance policies, believing it’ll make fines less of a deterrent for some reason.Not so much an unusual insurance policy, as an interesting stat. According to a poll commissioned by Ann Summers, the British cause Ј350,000,000 worth of damage through energetic sex per year! How does this relate to insurance? Well, who do you think foots the bill for the 10% brave enough to make odd insurance claims after breaking items? [Read more]

5 Benefits Of Drinking Wine

Wine contains anti-bacteria agents and something called procyanidins that both work in wonderful ways in your body to help improve your health. Wine also, being an alcohol, helps to thin blood and let it flow more smoothly through your body. These factors create many benefits that you experience just from drinking wine.Five of the benefits that you get from drinking wine are outlined below.

1. Good heart health. Wine is good for the heart because it helps to thin our blood which allows the heart to work a little less. Additionally, studies have shown that people who consume wine in moderate amounts have lower occurrences of heart disease and other heart problems then people who do not drink wine.

2. Lowers risk for diabetes. Studies have shown that drinking wine helps to reduce the risk for developing diabetes. The make up of the wine and its alcohol base help to extend the function of the pancreas and sweep glucose from the body, allowing a person to avoid diabetes onset later in life [Read more]

Core Strength, It’s At The Heart Of Everything You Do

One day, I was unloading groceries from the back of my car and when I tried to reach for a bag of groceries that was deep in the trunk, I felt a sharp stabbing pain in my back. Now I hadn’t even lifted the groceries I was just reaching for them when this happened-so it had nothing at all to do the amount of weight in the grocery bag. Even though my abs (what I incorrectly perceived as my core strength) were in good shape. I had done relatively less work on other muscles, and very little work on my balance.

So what is core strength? Within the fitness community there is some variance as to what exactly constitutes your core strength. In general, your core strength is represented by a group of muscles that extend from your neck to the bottom of your mid-thigh. And in many cases, they are hidden by other muscles.For instance the transverse abdominis, a muscle that wraps around your spine and provide stability, is located beneath your external obliques, internal obliques which in turn are underneath your rectus abdominis muscles. These muscles are all located around your waist.

In addition there is a group of muscles that are located around your spine that need to be developed in conjunction with your abdominal muscles for good core strength. Similarly your muscles that compose your hip flexors (muscles around your hips); as well as the well-known glutes which need to be worked in order to obtain good core strength [Read more]

Mafia Island

Mafia Island is locate in the Pwani Region of Tanzania and is home to the largest marine park in East Africa. It boasts of the finest unbleached coral in the Indian Ocean and claims to have resident Whalesharks … something that attracts divers from around the world. Islands, sandbanks and beaches personify Mafia’s sheltered deep-water anchorage and the original harbour. The clear, protected waters present fantastic snorkeling, sailing and swimming prospects.

Just beyond the Bay, a continuous reef extends for almost the length of the island, from Tutia in the south to Ras Mkumbi at the northern tip. The history of this dreamy Island stretches back to the 8th century when Mafia played a big role in ancient trade between the people of the Far East and mainland Tanzania. The island is home to an assortment of rare species including green and hawksbill turtles, which now and again lay their eggs on its wrack-strewn beaches. A 200m deep trough off the island is home to tuna and marlin. Its people are primarily fishermen; many also engage in small-scale food cultivation [Read more]

Reasons You Didn’t Get That Dream Job

2008-06-01T20:54:00.000-07:00

Application Unsuccessful: Reasons You Didn’t Get That Dream Job

It would be helpful to know just exactly what you’ve done wrong though, wouldn’t it? 9/10 times, an unsuccessful job application will just be that there was someone that bit more qualified, and there’s nothing that can be done in that instance, except to try again… but if this keeps happening, it may be worth considering some of the following, which are almost universally considered a bad thing on the recruitment circuit. Keep these tips for your job interview and you should do better next time!

A bad reference will most likely kill your employment chances stone dead, and many recruiters will call them at this point in the proceedings, if you’ve included a contact on your CV. Of course, you could put that references are “available on request” in the hope that you can charm them enough that they either won’t check, or will not believe the referee, but the best bet of all is to work hard enough that your contacts will have nothing but good things to say about you!

Increasingly, the idea that workplaces are 100% formal has been greatly corroded, but the chances are that you won’t know until you visit. As for advice on job interview dress code, without a doubt it is best to be overdressed rather than underdressed, so if in doubt, wear a suit – or at least go smart/casual.You should also make sure you are looking your best – it shouldn’t come down to judging on appearances, but the interview panel are only human, and it’s natural to take in these things, even if it’s subconscious. Don’t take any chances, or risk adding to your list of unsuccessful job applications [Read more]

Staying Confident To Achieve Success

If you have a strong vision of what you want, you need to stay confident and focused on that end result no matter what is thrown at you. We never know how long it may take to achieve our goal or what lessons we are to learn along the way. When we do not see immediate results, it is easy to get stuck in the negative and lose faith in ourselves.

STEP ONE: All of us have already accomplished many things along our journey. I challenge you to write at least 100 things you have experienced in the past. Just list them. It can be big or small, obstacles you survived, accolades or anything else. All that you list is a success of some sort. If you don't think you have accomplished much in your life, start by listing successes such as: I bought myself a blanket to cover me when I sleep. To have money to purchase something that will provide warmth is a huge success to a person in a 3rd world country.

STEP TWO: Choose 1 thing on that list and write all the details about it. What you choose to write about should be a large obstacle you overcame or a goal you achieved. Write how you felt before, during and after that experience; what steps you took to resolve it; what lessons you learned; and what blessings came out of it. You will realize how strong and amazing you are [Read more]

Everything Happens For A Reason

When I was 18, I was desperate to be a dancer but got rejected from the only degree dance program in Ontario because my grades were 2% below the cut off. Although I was devastated at the time, it was truly a blessing. A month later I went and trained full time in a professional dance company, 6 hours a day. Within a week, I snapped a ligament in my ankle and damaged my knee; within a month the director heard me singing to myself and cast me to sing in the show; within 2 months, I was accepted into a post secondary diploma program for… singing, not dancing. Since I never had a lesson in my life, it was a big sign. When I applied for university again, I got into the music program on talent despite my grades still being too low. My big rejection forced me onto the path I am still on today… 14 years later. So when things don’t go your way, there may be something far greater for you. Have faith!

Let’s say you and your partner have been trying to get pregnant for over 2 years. Suddenly, a parent gets sick forcing all your energy towards helping them through their crisis. Can you imagine how difficult that would be if you have a small baby? Or maybe there was something you had to learn – perhaps by tending to the sick parent, you gained greater insight and compassion… tools that would make you a better parent when the timing was right [Read more]

Are You A Good Reciever?

Let’s imagine a group of friends, Kelly, John, Larry, Julie and Rebecca, go out for lunch. Larry is just full of compliments...
a) Larry: John, congrats on your promotion at work.
John: Well, I worked 12 hour days for the last 6 months.
b) Larry: Rebecca, your new condo is really great.
Rebecca: Oh well, I am barely making it. Hopefully I can keep up with the expenses.
c) Larry: Julie, your garden is shaping up nicely.
Julie: Thanks and Larry, I love what you did with the living room paint.
d) Larry: Kelly, I love your new sweater.
Kelly: Thanks.
What kind of receiver are YOU? Are you like... [Read more]

The Art Of Forgiving

2008-05-26T20:58:00.000-07:00

The Art Of Forgiving

I once had a neighbor who was always yelling about something. My garbage cans were too close to her driveway. People parked their cars in front of her house. The neighborhood dogs were digging in her garden. Understandably, she wasn't my favorite person. One afternoon, I heard an ambulance coming down the street. I looked out my window and saw it turn into her driveway.

The paramedics loaded the woman into the vehicle and, lights flashing, took off for the hospital. That day I found out my neighbor was a very sick woman; she had a serious liver disease, chronic back problems, and lived every day of her life in constant and excruciating pain. My anger at her disappeared instantly. When she came back from the hospital until she died a year and a half later, I not only felt differently toward her, I found myself doing anything I could to help her [Read more]

Getting And Keeping The Attention Of Beautiful Women

You raised your voice (a little) and dropped in another question, but she only replies you a single word. This is when you will have to realize that you are in the danger zone. Danger of losing the attention of the beautiful woman that is! Well, if you want to be an effective seducer, then you will definitely need to know some of the tips to getting and keeping the attention of beautiful women. They will do you good, someday somehow.

So when you are in this kind of situation, what do you do exactly? There is no way you are going to let the beautiful one flutter off into the arms of another man. So learn to be quick and seize this opportunity [Read more]

Goal Setting? Too Boring...

Here take this blank sheet of paper. Now draw two lines down the page and split it into three sections by drawing a line across the page near the top. In the furthest left section at the top write “Objective”. In the middle section write “Method”. Finally in the furthest right section write “Date”.

Yawn… are you as bored as I am?Well while we’re into this lets have a little fun. Let’s fill up the whole sheet with some things we could be doing instead of this. I mean really we have other things to do that are far more exciting than this right? [Read more]

How Does America Really Feel About Black Celebrities

High profile athletes have the ability to bring all colors and creeds together in unity at any professional sporting event across the world. For those few hours that we are at a stadium or arena, we seem to forget about our differences and problems because of the exploits of some superbly talented athlete.

After earning an excessive amount of money, many Black superstars have the false notion that have crossed over and are above the struggles of ordinary African Americans.In Spike Lee’s controversial film Do the Right Thing, bigoted pizzeria employees implied that icons such as Eddie Murphy and Michael Jordan were beyond being Black because of their success. They argued that their prejudice toward African Americans did not include their Black heroes because they had risen above regular Black folk [Read more]

People Driving You Nuts

2008-05-20T22:29:00.000-07:00

Why Some People Drive You Nuts

On our planet a very large percentage of people exhibit characteristics of being tough, highly independent, stubborn, impossible to please, restless, perfectionists, etc., and they continue to lead their entire life like that. And everyone would have definitely experienced or heard true stories of such people who drive others nuts through their irrational behaviors.

The traditional methods of interaction that works for normal or sweet people just don’t work for them. So how do you deal with such tough people? The simple answer is you cannot in most of the cases. Nor can you fully blame the other person for acting irrational, as there is usually a specific scientific reason for such behavior. And that reason is biological in nature as man is not a uniformly programmed species like animals and birds. As you would have observed animals and birds of a species behave in exactly the same manner [Read more]

Perfect Gift For A New Mother

When the new mother arrives home, it is nice to have someone to help for the first few weeks, especially if she has no close family living nearby. The new father may be home also, but may not be capable of taking care of everything. Offering to prepare home-cooked meals and to clean the house is an ideal gift and will help to keep the mother from getting too overwhelmed as a new parent.

Having someone to care for the baby while she can get some well deserved rest would be greatly appreciated also. You can offer to babysit as well as running any necessary errands. The less the new mother has to do the faster she will recuperate form the effects of childbirth.
Many people purchase items for the new family, but the gesture of giving your time freely so that they can enjoy some spare time without the baby can be the greatest gift of all [Read more]

What To Do If He Suddenly Withdraws

The moment you started to feel "safe" and things became stable, he out of a sudden withdrew. From one moment to the next he became unavailable, found excuses not to see you or even worse, stopped contacting you at all. You were totally shocked and disappointed.What on earth had happened? The answer is: Nothing. Yes, you understand correctly.

What you have to know about guys is that they - in contrast to us - have what I call an "automated withdraw-mechanism", that gets triggered whenever he experiences sudden intense emotional closeness to a woman. Even if he enjoys being together with you as much as you do, his masculine instincts tell him there is danger and he has to defend his freedom. Consequently, he starts pulling away. So how should you react when that happens? [Read more]

Manic Depression: What Are The Symptoms?

Manic depression can affect both men and women. There is no specific age at which this disease usually starts. However, experts believe that the onset of this disease takes place in late adolescence. Manic Depression is not something to be taken lightly. It is a serious disorder and needs serious professional and personal care.

This disorder can be found among people irrespective of their age, race, social classes and ethnic groups. Medical experts feel that this disease has a genetic link and even tends to run in the families. The disease does not only affect the patient but also the person who attends to him or her. The immediate family circle is known to suffer a lot [Read more]

Keep the fire burning - that's all that matters

2008-05-19T22:52:00.000-07:00

Keep The Fire Burning

Billionaire Richard Branson, the entrepreneur behind the Virgin brand, is one of the world's most successful and adventurous businessmen. Not being satisfied to run several highly profitable businesses Branson also engages in occasional feats of courage, or stupidity, depending on your stand point.

Branson had called a meeting a few hours before he and his co-pilot were due to embark on an attempt to fly from Japan to America across the Pacific non-stop in a hot air balloon. The attempt would be fraught with countless difficulties, challenges and life-threatening risks.

After an intense 3-hours' briefing, covering everything that could go wrong, on this, one of the most complex and risky aviation record attempts in history, Richard Branson came away having written just eight words into his notepad;” Keep the fire burning - that's all that matters.” [Read more]

The Middle Child

The middle child may feel as if he has to struggle just to get noticed. Growing up as a middle child can make the youngster feel like they go unnoticed by his parents. The oldest children are held in high esteem due to their accomplishments while the youngest are coddled and babied. Parents tend to expect more from their youngest and oldest children as it may be difficult for them to define their expectations for the middle child. In most cases, parents may have taken pictures and documented every “first” that their oldest child did and may have lightened up these efforts in relationship to the second child. While the parents may have done this as a result of being more relaxed about their second experience at parenthood, a middle child may view this as solid proof that they mean less to their parents than their older sibling.

The middle child may also constantly compare themselves to the other siblings, especially the older ones. He may seek interests in different areas that will allow them to stand apart from their elder. This attention-seeking attitude also tends to make the middle children the “risk-takers,” often participating in dangerous sports or choosing careers that have an element of danger and/or risks involved [Read more]

Are We Building Superman?

I believe that's exactly where we are heading. As we continue to advance the big four technologies — genetics, artificial intelligence, robotics and nanotechnology — we will create a new version of humanity that will have as little in common with us as we have with Cro-Magnon man. The next three to five decades will place humanity firmly on the path to this new reality.

I don't mean to sound gloomy, because the destination will be pretty damn good for the most part. It's the transition that concerns me; technological evolution will proceed so rapidly that many will fall by the wayside. Underdeveloped countries may fall far behind, lost forever. Even in technology-rich North America, pockets of people may lose their way. Don't let it happen to you [Read more]

7 Reasons You’re Not Losing Weight And 7 Secret Fixes

Many people see weight loss as being “for the wedding,” “for summer in my bikini” or “for my high-school reunion.” But weight loss is for keeps, so train yourself in habits that last a lifetime. When you figure the changes you’re making are for the long term, you’ll make better, more realistic, decisions. Like not banishing everything sweet from your taste buds.

Most of us don’t have the facts on foods. Calories, fat content, portion sizes. And those who have been on many diets begin to merge them together. That could actually cause weight gain. Example: If you ignore calories and use the Atkins diet strictly, that may work, at least in the induction phase. But if you eat the high-calorie proteins and fats Atkins allows and also snack on carbs, you’ll gain weight. Get clear on the path you’re following and keep a log until you’re absolutely sure you don’t need one [Read more]

Drinking Water Safety

2008-05-17T00:35:00.000-07:00

How Safe Is Your Drinking Water... Really?

The water that ends up in our taps comes from a variety of sources. The ocean of course is one of the largest sources followed by ice caps and glaciers. A smaller amount of water also comes from groundwater, lakes, rivers and streams and the atmosphere. The concern for drinking water comes from the worry of what is contained in that water.

Microbes are a big threat to the water you drink. They include viruses and bacteria that may come from parasites. Diseases can be communicated through drinking water as well such as infectious hepatitis, gastroenteritis and dysentery. The source for these microbes comes from storm run-off, animals such as wildlife, livestock and even pets. Septic systems can breed microbes as well as sewage treatment plants.

Pesticides are another concern for drinking water. There are many ways that chemical pesticides can infiltrate water systems such as rainfall, wind transfer, and urban waste. They can also seep into groundwater supplies and end up in rivers, lakes and streams. Some effects of pesticides in your drinking water can include headaches, diarrhea for short term and for long term effects may include certain cancers and fertility problems [Read more]

Don't Count On a Bird Flu Vaccine!

A Bird Flu vaccine is months and months away from production, and production will be a problem since health officials believe it will take at least 1 year to make enough for all citizens. Even then, it may not be effective, since it was based on an earlier seed of the virus. Bird Flu, or H5N1, mutates rapidly. Today, Bird Flu is something entirely different than when it was first discovered.

But there is one, off-the-shelf, device that will protect you and your family against Bird Flu, SARS, and ordinary flu, right now. It's called Animas®, manufactured by a company that originally was tasked to make a better biomass for our military troops.

Why is a filter mask the best tool you can have against Bird Flu? Because of its new nana-technology. A Animas® isn't just an ordinary N95 mask like you see in hospitals or on construction sites [Read more]

Are Electronic Muscle Stimulation Devices Safe For All Ages To Use?

Physical therapists and doctors prescribe these devices to reduce or completely avoid muscle atrophy in patients, especially after a surgical procedure or a severe injury. EMS devices are also used in those with paralysis and in anyone who needs to improve their blood circulation, improve their range of motion, or even increase muscle endurance. In addition, EMS devices may be used to relax muscles, re-educate nerves, and also in the management of pain.

As far as the safety of these devices, they are safe as long as they are used as directed. The medical community has used them for years for many of the reasons that were described above. EMS devices are regulated by the FDA, which means they regulate the sale of the many different kinds of EMS devices within the United States. This means that those companies who manufacture EMS devices must comply with regulations set forth by the FDA before they can ever sell their device. Their use is mainly meant for rehabilitation and other medical purposes, however there are bodybuilders using them all of the time to aid in the toning of muscles [Read more]

Childhood Obesity - Getting Your Kids Off The Couch

The first thing that you need to do is to teach your child to eat healthier. In the world of working mothers and two-income families, it may seem that fast food is the best way to get everybody fed. In reality, there are many healthy meals that can take the same amount of time to prepare that it takes you to drive to the restaurant, sit in the drive-thru line, order your food, and drive back home. There are also foods that can be fixed the night before and placed in the slow cooker first thing in the morning. The food cooks all day and is ready as soon as you get home from work. There are many microwavable foods available at the grocery store also. Another advantage of having a microwave oven is the ability to defrost foods quickly if you forgot to pull something out for dinner.

To create a healthy meal, you should have a meat, a vegetable, bread, a dairy, and a fruit. While this may sound complicated, a plate of spaghetti with parmesan cheese, a salad, bread, and a can of peaches with a glass of milk would cover all these groups and would take about fifteen minutes to fix. Another way to help your kids eat healthy is to remove all the junk food from your house and replace it with healthy snacks. Replace a bag of potato chips with cheese and crackers. Replace those cheese curls with celery sticks smeared with peanut butter. The children may complain at first about losing their favorite snack foods, but once there is nothing else in the house they will eventually eat these healthier alternatives [Read more]

Value Relationships

2008-05-13T20:05:00.000-07:00

Discovering Pleasure, Ecstasy And Value For Value Relationships

Most believe that selfish and giving are mutually exclusive things. How wrong they are. This is another illusion that has resulted in much misery and unhappiness. Giving and receiving pleasure is both selfish and generous. Give the best that you have--and receive as pleasurably and as graciously as possible.

A perfect example of the above is a sexual relationship between two lovers. I know from my own relationship that the more pleasure I give to my woman the more pleasure I experience.

You can draw the conclusion that if one person is sacrificing and the other is benefiting--it is not a value for value relationship. In the end the relationship will break down and both individuals will suffer the loss [read more]

The Quiz Of Relationship

The questions are designed to assess the likelihood of your relationship being a success in the long term. Take the results seriously, but realize that no quiz can take into account everything that may important to you. Please do not feel completely discouraged if you don't score well. Instead, use what you learn from the questions, and let the results motivate you to identify patterns of negativity and areas needing improvement.

Please answer the following questions using the 3-point scale provided. Answer according to how often the experience occurs in your relationship to either you or your partner. For more honest results, take the test alone before comparing results [read more]

Time To Be Alone

Alone time is important for anyone, of any age and any walk of life. Spending some time in solitude can be a valuable opportunity to take stock of one’s life, to reevaluate one’s priorities, and look at things from a broader perspective. Funny how “alone time” is often used as a punishment for rambunctious children, when, for adults, it’s often viewed as a real reward! Remember how we all hated nap time as children? Now we’d give anything for a nap during work! As we mature, alone time becomes a crucial element of our lives.

At the same time, human beings are social creatures. This is a fact of our genetic programming. Anyone who spends too much time alone, or who is downright frightened by the idea of venturing out into society, or who fails to establish any meaningful human contact, might have cause for concern. Ironically, too much solitude can produce the same levels of stress as too much social interaction. Obviously, moderation is called for here—a healthy balance between one’s social life and private life. No one wants to feel lonely, and if we have too much alone time, feelings of isolation can take over. These feelings can produce chemical imbalances in the body that are actually physically unhealthy. This can disrupt sleep and even lead to heart trouble [read more]

An Effective Way To Combat Dark Circles

There are loads of reasons as to why dark circles develop under the eyes that takes the natural radiance from the beautiful eyes. The most common factors are process of natural ageing, lack of adequate sleep and heredity.

There are other factors that attribute to the formation of these dark circles under the eyes. These unwanted circles point towards improper functioning of kidney or liver. On the other hand, people who suffer from sinus problem are likely to develop these loathed circles. Also, people who have the history of problems like asthma, eczema, or hay fever get these dark circles developed on the contours of eyes. Dark circles become a common phenomenon due to the process of ageing too. The chief culprit responsible for occurrence of these highly unwanted circles is the delicate vein under the skin of eyes. The under eye skin gets easily damaged due to which it is always the foremost to show.

The process of ageing as well the harmful rays of sun make the delicate skin translucent and thin, which allows the veins look prominent. These veins give the glaring dark circles under the eyes. As the elasticity of skin keeps on reducing with the age, skin even begins to look puffed and baggy. Lack of adequate sleep is another eminent factor that leads to dark circles but once you begin to take sleep normal course of 6-8 hours sleep, they vanish like anything [read more]

6 Fat Melting Habits

2008-05-12T22:39:00.000-07:00

How To Lose Stubborn Belly Fat For Good In 21 Days With These 6 Fat Melting Habits

Men on the other hand don't want to admit that they want to have the coveted six pack abs. However, every time a cute girl walks by, just watch how they suck in that gut trying to hide the fact that they have a few extra pounds of belly fat themselves..

Doesn't it just drive you nuts to constantly work doing crunches just to get that flat tummy, only to fail miserably. We are bombarded with temptations that we give into and then before our very eyes the belly fat takes on another pound.

We all want to get rid of excess belly fat especially when summer is around the corner however it's not enough to just want to lose it, you have to actually do something to lose it. Dieting is not the way to do it because diets do not work. You get tired of the restrictions placed on you by diets so you end up going back to the way you were eating and the same bad habits and generally put on more weight than you lost. Like a yoyo, constantly going up and down. Well it's time to break that bad habit for good.

We allow habits to control our lives. Smoking, nail biting, cracking our knuckles, overeating or even eating the wrong foods are all habits we have learned. Well here you can learn a good habit and lose stubborn belly fat for good in 21 days with these 6 fat melting habits [read more]

How To Attract Beautiful Women

When you think of "beautiful women" , pictures like Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman and other glamorous stars that are dripping with glamor just whiz past you and leave you gagging. Some would think that beautiful women are simply out of reach and they are just sexy goddess that we can dream of time and again.

Maybe you think that you do not have the looks, but hey, not every "good looking" guy gets what he wants all the time. Stop thinking that beautiful women only go head over heels for guys with good looks. Learn how to attract beautiful women, as these girls aren't very hard to get, if you have the right kind of techniques of course.

The key to impressing girls is having the aura of confidence that comes so naturally from you. These are the kind of men that tend to attract more women as compared to average or mediocre guys that are passive in their mindset. As such, when you are approaching a beautiful woman, it is vital to be let your confidence apparent [read more]

How To Meet Real Men

It’s partly society’s fault – after all, we were brought up to know better than talk to strangers. That’s why so many women would much rather stick to what’s familiar, even if it means relegating themselves to a very small circle of friends. And with so few men to choose from in that tiny network, it’s no surprise why they think it’s next to impossible to find “real” men anymore. It doesn’t have to be that way. If you want to meet new men, here are a few tips to help get you started.

Stop making excuses. While it’s true that everybody gets nervous now and then, it’s no excuse to shy away from initiating a conversation with a guy you’re attracted to. Neither is it an excuse to say that it’s the men’s “job” to make the first move. Put bluntly, men are actually just as scared as you are when it comes to establishing a connection with someone new. Some are even just plain terrified. Either way, making excuses for not establishing a connection deprives many, many individuals of happy, long-lasting relationships in society today [read more]

Fighting Debt With Extreme Savings

If your job is in jeopardy, your debts are high and getting higher, and you don't have an emergency fund - enough to cover at least 3 months' expenses - it's definitely time to consider extreme savings. Extreme savings involve more than just smart shopping. You need to do more than skip manicures. You need to cut your monthly expenses down to the bone. Achieving extreme savings may be painful, but remember: it's a way to gain some control over your finances. And you won't have to do it forever.

Think about what your absolute essentials are: food, shelter, medical expenses, health and other insurance premiums, electricity, heat, phone, transportation. Extreme savings call for extreme measures. Add up what the bare essentials cost you each month, plus payments for credit cards and other debt. Cut out everything else [read more]

Preventive Medicine

2008-05-11T19:23:00.000-07:00

Ayurveda: Preventive Medicine

There are many ways to enhance the immune system along with our natural ability to heal and help each other. 'Cleansing' auras or meridians of 'Chhi' or pranha, positive visualization and what is sometimes deemed holistic have been available for longer than books or politicians were practicing their questionable arts.

Ayurveda includes the use of herbs and plants combined with psychic arts of a healing nature. The proper practitioner includes psychology as part of the diagnosis and getting the patient to use their own mental or soulful energy. It comes from very ancient shamanism and has many names for its practice. This art is called ayurveda in India, and it has Taoist and Yogic corollaries.

The ancient priests and shamans who were corruptible became even more so as this knowledge grew. The Inca’s 'magic' and healing may have been one of the best balances of knowledge and compassion ever exercised on behalf of every citizen. When I lived in Vegas I grew Aloe Vera, and its Vitamin E may be part of why it works to heal so many things. Comfrey tea is something my brother took to help a broken leg that wasn't healing in the traditional medical approach [Read more]

Do Spells And Witchcraft Exist?

Does the type of witchcraft and spell craft, which appears in the movies, really exist? Witchcraft is nothing more than the learning and practice of this particular type of prayer. Both of these things exist, they work hand in hand and while these things have been associated with dark and evil images, it is not necessarily the way it is.

Witch and spell craft is usually associated with certain types of religious practices. This is because often in time these spells invoke the name of a particular divine being to oversee the caster and the event or individual that the spell is intended for.

There are two main types of spells and witchcraft. These are generally referred to as White and Black. This is a simplified way of expressing the intention behind the spell. The words can be exactly the same; it is the intent behind the spell that makes it good or bad. Spells are like prayers. Candles are lit, incense is burned, stones are used all of which are designed to attract the attention of the intended action; words are written carefully in order to do the same. Everything in the universe is made of energy spells which are nothing more than ways of attracting a particular type of energy to the caster in order to obtain a particular result [Read more]

Make Your Relationships Stronger In The Midst Of Conflict

In the workplace as with all types of relationships, conflict can be either a positive “power driver” or counterproductive. Left unresolved, conflicts can sabotage the best of working environments and/or relationships. Conflict must be dealt with head-on, particularly when it is interfering with people working together as a team--whether at work or as partners, friends or any other type of relationship.

Conflicts run the gamete from minor to major. Anytime it interferes, whatever the conflict, it needs to be resolved. Confrontation is the only way. The trick, however, is to do it in a way in which the conversation stays productive and the relationship(s) remain intact. The skills needed to resolve a major conflict are the same skills needed to resolve a minor conflict. Let’s first take a look at the widely accepted five causes of conflict and their definitions [Read more]

Fat Burning Foods: Kick Your Metabolism Into Overdrive!

Fat burning foods that burn more calories during digestion then they contain are generally high in two things, fiber and water. Celery is a good example. Fat burning foods, or negative calorie foods, are supposed to be so low in calories that digesting these foods burn more calories than they contain.

Fat burning foods are readily available and will definitely fit into your budget as well. Fat burning foods not only helps us to lose weight naturally but also increase our body rate of weight loss. So include these foods in your daily diet helps speed up weight loss, build a healthier body and put you on the road to a healthier lifestyle.

Plus eating every 2-3 hours is the basis of a good fat burning diet because it helps keep your metabolism burning your fat stores and also you do not have to concentrate on the food you're taking in. Lack of activity combined with lack of attention to diet causes your body then ignores fat stores and works on what you are eating, packing the rest of the excess calories away for a rainy day since it feels you are not eating frequently enough [Read more]

Top Ten Modern Diets

2008-05-09T22:53:00.000-07:00

Looking For The Top 10 Diets?

10) Ornish Diet - The Ornish diet was developed by Dr. Dean Ornish, as a low fat diet for vegetarians. His plan was to create a diet to help avoid clogged arteries rather than later having to deal with them. His credo is this is your life you should own it and learn to manage your diet and day to day stress.

9) Zone Diet - The Zone diet which was created by Dr. Barry Sears, is a reduced calorie diet, and has one simple premise - use food as fuel. Eating the proper ratio of low carbohydrates, dietary fat, and lean protein you can burn excess body fat and keep it off permanently.

8) Okinawa Diet - First published in 2001, the Okinawa Diet is an outline of healthy habits based on the lifestyle and diet of the Okinawans who have the highest rate of centenarians (40 per 100,000) on earth. With lots of vegetables and complex carbohydrates this diet gets a great deal of its protein from tofu [Read more]

Stretching Exercise: A Modern Lifestyle Mantra

Stretching exercise after the workout has yet another important role to play. After workout, the blood circulation fastens and body temperature increases. Some exercises cause muscle tightening. A 30-60 second stretch cools the body down and relaxes the muscles. However, it does not mean that these are the only times one can do stretching exercise. Anybody, anywhere and anytime can do stretching exercise unless otherwise prohibited for any health concern.

Modern fitness programs include proven stretching exercises literally for every part of the body. Appropriate body posture is very important factor to be considered while performing stretching exercises. Unless the posture is appropriate and comfortable, it may cause serious injury to the muscles. Concentrating on any pleasant object like a flower or a picture helps attain the right posture. Unlike some yoga positions, simple stretching does not require holding breath. In fact, it is the combination of relaxing the body and at the same time maintaining normal breathing.

Stretching also helps improving balance, co-ordination and concentration. Therefore, athletes and sportsmen prefer to do regular stretching exercise. It helps them keep their stamina high, heal the muscle pain occurred during sports and improve their balance while making fast movements [Read more]

Optimal Ways To Make Absolutely Sure You Get Nothing Done Today

Five minutes is the perfect amount of time to get something started but not completed. I recommend starting the day with a 5 minute shower (If you can get completely showered in less than 5 minutes, you’re a better woman than I am. Between the shampoo, conditioner and trying to get my legs shaved, I find it impossible.). No one will notice that the shampoo is still in your hair. Follow that up with a 5 minute breakfast (better make it a granola bar or you’ll never get it down in time). And then spend all of your time at work doing no more than 5 minute projects (Since that little mail icon always pops up every five minutes with a new email message, this shouldn’t be too difficult). Five minute dinner. No more than 5 minutes on any one TV show (just give the remote to the man in your house). And there you go, you’ve spent no more than 5 minutes on any one project today.

There is no better way to get your day off on the wrong foot than to get up late. It almost guarantees that you will not be on time to anything all day and that you will feel like you’re constantly trying to catch up. This is also a great way to make sure that you stay stressed out all day. Of course if you really want to make sure you don’t get anything done today, just don’t bother getting out of bed at all.

Do not, under any circumstances, write out a “to do” list or task list for the day. This would be a much too productive use of your time. Better yet, write out what you’re not going to do today. Of course, don’t spend more than five minutes on this list (see point number 1 above) [Read more]

Exercise for Immunity

I'm not a body builder, although I respect people who are. My ideal is to keep a slender, wiry body, such as a runner or swimmer. Typically I spend only 15 to 45 minutes per day, which is nothing compared to an Arnold Schwarzenegger work out.

After breakfast and before my shower, at least 20 to 30 pushups, then 20 to 30 knee curls. For the curls, I lie on my back and draw my knees to almost touch my chest. After my shower, long enough for my arms to recover a bit, I do at least 15 to 20 chinups from an in-door-way bar.

Thus, I have stimulated my arm and chest muscles, abdomen, and lower back. If I have any lower back aches, which can happen from too much sitting, I tilt my pelvis back and forth, either while still on my back or standing, 10 to 30 times. By the way, this stretcher can be done nearly any where, if one does not make the moves very obvious [Read more]

Guess What’s In Your Bed?

2008-05-07T00:38:00.000-07:00

We are currently in an age when we seem to be worried about every little thing. ‘Are the preservatives and artificial colorings in our food making us ill?’ ‘Is the environment giving my child asthma?’ ‘Why is the occurrence of allergies and food related disorders at an all time high?’

But the simple fact is; we are only worried about the things that we see and hear about on the news – there are lots of other things that are not mentioned lurking in the crevices of our homes and offices.
I don't mean to gross you out or anything, but… eeewww, guess what’s in your… [read more]

Beware Of Your Super Performers

While being super efficient is not a crime, a hyper performer can often make other team members (who work quietly without fanfare) look bad and inefficient, either intentionally or unintentionally. To understand this, just go back to your school and college days. Remember in school where a couple of smart kids would quickly shout answers before the other kids could even understand the teacher’s question. They were the class "Know it alls."

And slowly those speed kids would become the teacher's pets, and the rest of the students would constantly be compared with them leading to an icy jealousy. Similarly a super performer in a team can corrode the manager's opinion of others as they will invariably be compared against the team's hero. But people hate being compared with others as it will make them look inferior and dull. This in turn kills teamwork, collaboration and can lead to various internal politics. [read more]

Staying Calm Under Pressure

Each of us have things that make us feel anxious. For some of us we feel anxious as soon as the alarm clock goes off in the morning because we know that there are going to be things that we cannot control during our day. If this describes you, you may find that greeting each day with a series of free positive affirmations will help you repel this instantaneous anxiety upon wakening. Instead of waking up in the morning and instantly being filled with anxiety about what you need to do, you can slow down and say a few anxiety affirmations. You may very well be amazed at what this can do for the rest of your day!

Other people start to feel anxious when they get to work. Maybe it's because their boss starts making intense demands or their co-workers aren't doing their job as well as they should, leaving you to pick up the slack. Before you allow anxiety to take over completely, why not take a deep breath and recite one of the very simple anxiety affirmations that you know to help you calm down a bit? Sometimes just stopping and saying one of many simple free positive affirmations is enough to allow us to gain our composure. [read more]

The Early Signs And Symptoms Of Pregnancy

While each woman will exhibit different symptoms when she's pregnant, the one that is most important is a menstrual cycle that's been missed or delayed. It's important that you understand the various possible symptoms of pregnancy, since most of these symptoms could also be a sign of something else.

Some women will begin exhibiting signs of pregnancy only a week after conception. Others will take several weeks to have symptoms. While each situation is different, here are some of the most common signs of pregnancy. If you experience any of these, and especially if you experience two or more, you should take a pregnancy test as soon as possible.

• Implantation bleeding. Somewhere around six to twelve days following conception, the embryo is implanted in the wall of the uterus, causing some bleeding. Some women experience cramping and spotting. Other causes could be actual or altered menstruation, infection, intercourse-related abrasion, or changes in your birth control pills. [read more]

2008-05-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

Do You Wonder Where Your Day Went?

Time is a very personal thing. It is man-made. Actually it doesn’t exist. Time takes on different characters: it can be long, short, boring, stressful, valuable, the best time in my life, horrible, the good old times… you get the idea? If time is man-made I can influence the way I’m experiencing it.

Have you noticed that time tends to rush much faster when you have lots of things to do? In order to manage time effectively you have to be in control. This is not something you can figure out over night, it is a process which can take some time to accomplish.

My personal experience is that "getting things done" and the right time management gives you results rather than lots of unfinished tasks without the feeling of satisfaction. Will power is another important ingredient that helps you to focus on just the item you have decided to work on.

Save Your Relationship With Nothing But Words

Once the relationship gets past that early stage though, when the relationship becomes serious and a permanent fixture in your life, it's *then* that the power of words can be seen, and they undoubtedly have the power to make or break the relationship.

It's important to keep saying the nice things you like about your spouse. During the early stage you will have said those nice things over and over, but his/her own feeling of elation meant that you could have been reading out the phone book and it would have felt the same!

If you tell your spouse what you like best about him or her after the relationship has settled in, it's much more likely to sink in. Thinking that your spouse knows how you feel is a mistake. Although he/she probably *does* know, there is nothing like actually hearing it to boost someone's esteem. Positive re enforcement is a powerful mechanism! When you're in a relationship it's easy to stop noticing the good things and get overwhelmed by the negatives. Make a conscious effort to note the good things you like about your partner or things they do.

Eliminate The Myths And Create Wealth Through Cash Gifting

Have you ever thought to ask a renowned professor what he or she made in salary? Most are highly educated, but not all that wealthy. Formal education does not equate to wealth or performance in anything that you do. A strong vision and direction with a conversion of knowledge will lead to desired wealth.

Sounds a bit like an excuse, doesn't it? Business empires that are worth billions of dollars today have been started in a basement or the garage out back. Don't get me wrong… Some "seed money" can be helpful, but desire and effort will go a long way toward success.

There's an old saying; the more I learn, the more I see that I still need to learn more. Take action today… don't wait for tomorrow, it may never come. Opportunity passes us by every day. You need to first see the opportunity and then seize it and make it your captive.

Saving A Passionless Relationship

You’ve probably been in a passionless relationship before, and you might even be in one right now. A passionless relationship is obvious when you don’t feel the same “butterflies” when you first started going out with him. He seems to talk with you less openly, touch you less frequently, and initiate sex barely once in a blue moon. It’s almost as though he prefers to be on his own most of the time.

Naturally, you don’t want this to happen. You can save a passionless relationship by simply to stop doing what isn’t working. If nagging or arguing only makes things worse, then stop doing so and focus your efforts on doing things that do elicit genuine reactions from him.

Time To Start Your Engines

2008-05-05T00:02:00.000-07:00

Gentlemen Start Your Engines!

The most important thing about staying in shape is to eat healthy. Even if you're not big on running, or lifting weights, bring your bike to a local park, or walk your dog. Just staying active will help your body to feel younger, and you'll be surprised how much stamina you have after a few weeks of the routine. Play volleyball, basketball, or any other recreational sport with friends, or even family. Working out doesn't need to be a chore, you can make it enjoyable.

Exercise! Splurging once in a while on a Big Mac is okay, but fast food isn't the direction you want to go. Eat your meals in regular proportions, not super sized, and eat things that are good for you. Not all health food is bland and tasteless- look around until you find what you like. Not only will you look better, but your body will also feel more energized.

Stress can cause major health issues such as cardiovascular disease, and depression. Keep your stress to a bare minimum. Managing stress may not seem very important, but it's a vital step to maintaining a healthy life-style. Try not to get too overwhelmed with work, money, or family situations. Take a day off, or do something to take your mind off of your personal problems. By living a stress-free life, you'll not only be healthier, but much happier and relaxed.

How to add enjoyable power to your workout

Agility is what lets my friend run rings around us, leaping from rock to rock along the Pedernales River in Texas. Agility is what you see in top athletes who make great skill look effortless. Agility is what helps a ballet dancer make it look effortless. Agility is how Jackie Chan can still do martial arts even while he is rolling over tables, bouncing off walls, leaping between the rungs of ladders.

Some sports and fitness activities promote agility more than others. For me, martial arts gave me agility. I've been doing Kung Fu for 25 years, and martial arts in general for almost 30. I have to be able to adapt to what an opponent is doing quickly and perfectly. I have to seize the advantage, gain and maintain dynamic control. I have to stay balanced and graceful even while moving rapidly and adjusting to the changing dynamics of sparring.

If you're not doing something to develop agility, today is a good day to start. You'll be amazed at the difference increased agility will make in feeling physically fit. Before long you'll move with the grace of a cat, you'll bound like a gazelle.

The Power of Fear in a Relationship

Why do we keep carrying around that fear? Very simple - many times we don’t know any better, and other times we are just afraid to be vulnerable, or to allow ourselves to open up. That fear can only bring unhappiness in the end.
Why have we allowed ourselves to be stuck in that relationship for so long? What is it that created this fear in us? Why have we allowed it to go that far in the first place? Asking that, and many other good questions that need to be addressed until we click in with the answer. Do not disqualify any answer because that is what most of us do in the first place. Our intuition seems to be the last thing we trust. Just learn to trust that inner voice of yours.

The Myths About Coffee

Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in the United States. It stands to reason that people need to take action to reduce their chances of it occurring. It is scary when you read that drinking coffee may be a factor in causing it then. Yet there are simply too many other factors that have to be considered as well. Drinking coffee can't alone be held accountable for it.

Some individuals have decided to drink decaffeinated coffee in order to reduce the caffeine intake the have each day. That was all good and well for them until reports came in that decaffeinated coffee was linked to high cholesterol. It seems that coffee drinkers out there just can win even when they are trying to make good choices.

The issue of obesity is definitely a concern in our society though. This is one area where coffee often does have a very bad reputation. The days of plain old coffee have gone out the window in many places. Coffee shops all over the place offer you a choice of many flavored drinks. Yet the calories you will get from the may astonish you. If you consume these types of drinks daily you may notice you are putting on a few pounds. You may be wondering why if you haven't changed your eating habits.

Coping With Carb Withdrawal

2008-05-01T22:41:00.000-07:00

Golden Rules To Coping With Carb Withdrawal

During the first three to four days you'll go through strong carb withdrawal which consists of weariness, headaches, petulance, acute cravings for sugarinesses or starches, a few intestinal disruptions, mild sickness and a gain in overall hungriness. Sounds frightening doesn't it?

Well, let me assure you, these will pass. And before I explain the ways to cope with these very temporary side effects of car withdrawal, you should know that if you follow my advice, you will see amazing benefits over a short period of time. The reason I have stated these side effects is so that you know what to expect, at worst.

I think this is important for you to know and it helps you prepare using the following techniques. Ultimately, I didn't mention these things to scare you, but to make you realize the reality of what to expect temporarily. Of course, these side effects are not set in stone, and you may have a plain-sailing transition to your new low carb diet. Either way, it's important for you to know how to cope effectively.

Meditation Exercises – A Fulfilling And Efficient Way To Improve Your Health

Even though some might be inclined to doubt the efficiency of meditation exercises, the truth is that they are based on medical facts. For starters, meditation can not be done without a proper relaxation and proper breathing – and by proper, you should understand long and slow breaths that purify the body.

Breathing has numerous positive effects on your health, even if it sounds too simple to be true: what breathing does is that it basically slows down our heart rate and, at the same time, it normalizes your blood pressure. In addition, meditation exercises can actually strengthen your immune system and improve a wide range of functions, such as concentration, attention and memory.

To many people, being active is essential – if you are one of them, then the best type of meditation exercises for you is the one that can be done while walking. Basically, nature and a peaceful environment are excellent premises for a successful meditation session – in the case of these types of walking meditation exercises, breathing has a major role, since it allows the body to purify with the help of the fresh air and oxygen.

Putting A Dog On A Diet

On average, seven out of ten animals that are brought into a veterinary clinic each day are there because of a weight related issue. Torn ACL or knee ligaments, bad backs, aching joints, constipation, diabetes, respiratory issues, heart disease, skin conditions – get the picture? The same things that affect their overweight owners sideline the overweight dog.

Thankfully for our four-legged friends, they do not require willpower to lose weight – we supply it for them! No trying to decide what to salad to order at a restaurant when really what they want is a giant plate of Fettuccine Alfredo, no guilt over eating a sweet and hopefully no food addiction or compulsive eating issues (this can be a problem in a dog that at one point in their lives did not eat regularly).

But how to you put your dog on a diet? First thing is to have your veterinarian exam them from their nose to their tail. There may be an underlying condition such as a hypothyroid that is making them gain the unsightly pounds. You also need to know if your dog has any blood sugar problems before putting them on a calorie restricted diet or increasing their exercise level.

Effective Crate Training For Your Puppy Or Dog: Secrets From A Pet Expert

Many dog training experts have heard pet owners complain that it’s cruel to put a dog into a cage. This is the wrong way to look at crate training. Providing a crate for your dog may actually be doing him a favor. Dogs are den animals and actually prefer to have a secure place of their own to retreat to when they’re tired, stressed, or just want to be alone. If you crate train your dog properly, he’ll happily spend time inside this den-like environment.

Some dog owners are surprised how much their dogs really do like their crates. Many owners have told stories about how they would look all over for their dog and would eventually find him cuddled up with his favorite blanket and toys in his crate, sleeping soundly. Just like people prefer to have someplace that belongs just to them, dogs enjoy their own personal space too.

Crates are usually plastic or wire metal and are sometimes collapsible. In addition to providing you dog with a room of his own, the crate can be used to transport him and give him a suitable place to hang out when it may not be appropriate for him to be moving about the house (such as when you have company or are hosting a social event). It is also appropriate to take your dog’s crate on vacation with you so that he can continue to take advantage of his safe place especially during a sometimes stressful event such as traveling.