Leased vehicles and automotive insurance

People have different opinions when it comes to leasing a vehicle and buying a vehicle, but here’s the basic gist of it: buying a vehicle differs from leasing a vehicle in that buying a vehicle requires you to pay for the entire vehicle, whereas leasing a vehicle requires you to pay for the amount of the vehicle you “use up” during a set period of time. Simply put, once the time period is up the person leasing the vehicle may decide to buy the vehicle, or move on.

There’s no difference, however, in purchasing automotive insurance for bought and leased vehicles. If you lease a vehicle and finance through the dealer or a bank, you’re still required to purchase automotive insurance for your leased vehicle. Just because you’re only paying for the portion of the vehicle that you use during a specific time period doesn’t mean you aren’t responsible for repairing the damages to the leased vehicle, or the damages your leased vehicle may inflict upon another person’s vehicle, or another person.

For example, if your leased vehicle is involved in an accident that is your fault and involves another party, you’re responsible for paying to repair not only the damages to your leased vehicle, but the damages to the other party’s vehicle, as well. At the same time, if your leased vehicle is involved in an accident but no other party is involved, you’re responsible for repairs to your leased vehicle if the accident was your fault.

Too, your leased vehicle may be involved in an accident that wasn’t your fault with a party that doesn’t have automotive insurance. By having automotive insurance for your leased vehicle, you are safeguarding yourself against drivers who don’t have automotive insurance.

The purpose of automotive insurance is universal. Regardless of whether you buy or lease your vehicle, and regardless of your reasons for buying or leasing, you must still purchase automotive insurance.

Lancaster suites manila announce launch date for condotel operations

Beth Collingz, International Marketing Director of PLC Global an internet based sales and marketing company and lead marketing partners with Pacific Concord Properties, Inc., for the Lancaster Brand of Condotels in the Philippines, recently announced the company has set a December 2007 soft launch date for its Lancaster Suites Manila Tower I Condo Hotel rental operations.

Property is all about LOCATION said Collingz. Lancaster Suites, centrally located along Shaw Boulevard, Metro Manila some 200 meters from EDSA-Shaw Boulevard Light Rail Transit Station and the Ortigas Center business district, provides guest access to its own unique Mini Mall feature with prerequisites of the urban dweller. Schools, hospitals, banks, restaurants, shopping malls, and leisure are all found within a few minutes from the Condotel.

Lancaster Suites, located a mere 5 minutes from such Ortigas landmarks as the SM Mega Mall, Shangri-La Mall, Edsa Plaza Hotel, and the Asian Development Bank, San Miguel Corporation and Banco de Oro Head Office, provides you with easy access to all the essentials of urban living. This ideal location will complement the Condotel operation since Lancaster Suites Manila will function as a condominium hotel a preferred accommodation choice of businessmen and holiday travelers alike. Clients can either purchase Condotel Suites for investment purposes or lease the units on weekly, monthly or yearly basis.

For the soft launch, LHLPI will prepare special promotional room rates aimed at budget and business travelers whilst longer term discounted rates for monthly and yearly lease rentals are also to be made available said Collingz.

Clients wishing to purchase units may do so and we currently have a few Executive Studio Suite and One-Bedroom Suites available at Lancaster Suites at Pre-Operational Prices that will be “Ready For Use from December 2007”… at the current price said Collingz.

All units at the Lancaster Suites have kitchen facilities. The standard unit price provides for the suite to be semi-finished but not fully furnished. Included in the current price are the interior finishing’s such as tiled & semi-fitted bathrooms, bedrooms with simulated wood plank flooring, semi-fitted living and dining area with simulated wood plank floorings and lower kitchen cabinets/work tops installed. Walls and ceilings are painted cement finish. A complete optional extra interior fit-out package including unit fittings and fixtures, furniture’s, furnishings, air-conditioning, lighting fixtures and appliances will be available towards the time the units are closer to being completed. Monthly condo dues or maintenance fees are currently around 80 pesos/square meter of the unit floor area/month.

Prospective or existing unit buyers may avail of up to 15 year mortgages for the purchase of all Lancaster Suites Tower I Condotel units with minimum equity of 30%. Banco De Oro (BDO) a commercial Bank in Metro Manila has just approved a buyer's financing or mortgage plans for Lancaster Suites Tower I Manila Condotel units. The new financing scheme, a first providing Philippine Mortgages to Foreign Nationals residing overseas for Condotel units in the Philippines, is now available to unit owners (Filipinos, Filipino-Americans and Foreign Nationals alike) whom are looking to purchase a Condo Hotel Suite or refinance their investments through BDO's Home Loan

Lancaster Suites Tower I Manila Executive Studio Suites may be purchased with a Reservation Fee of - Pph - 25,000.00 then 30% Down Payment of - Pph-659,583.34 within 30 days and the resulting balance payable over 12 equal consecutive monthly installments of - Pph-128,252.32. Interest Free. For clients intending to enroll units in the Condo Hotel Rental Pool a complete Condotel Suite "Fit-Out" package including all required items of furniture's, furnishings, appliances, air-conditioning, kitchen utensils, dinnerware's, linens etc is now available for Studio Suites ranging from - Pph-403,715.00 said Collingz

Metro Manila remains a popular choice with international buyers and institutional investors. Collingz says clients tell her that it makes more sense to buy in a year-round vacation destinations and business centers. Lancaster - The Atrium Condotel developments by Pacific Concord Properties located in Shaw Boulevard, Metro Manila - fits the bill with all it offers to International buyers.

Accessibility is also a factor. Flights from London to Manila, for example, average just 16 hours, add to that the many airline specials and it’s easy to see why this area is becoming an international community. Unlike other offshore rental properties, where the rental market is largely seasonal, in the Philippines there is a strong market for rental properties year round. This gives buyers greater flexibility in choosing when to use and when to rent their property. The strong rental/second home market also has resulted in a proliferation of professional property managers and rental agents, making property ownership and rental easy. Pacific Concord Properties Inc with it’s flagship Lancaster Condotel Developments fit’s the bill enthuses Collingz

Measuring iptv qos quality of service

IPTV QOS is a topic that has become a confusing issue for many businesses, so let's clear it up.

Quality Of Service, being something new oftens makes people automatically think of using pre-existing measurement techniques. This basic starting point for QOS measurement is where most of the confusion is generated.

In the same way that when companies began moving from Analogue to digital broadcast signals, the natural tendancy of the existing engineers was to want to measure the new digital signal by converting it back to analogue and then using their existing equipment. IPTV QOS has caused a lot of the same methodology, whereby engineers with a network background want to measure network statistics, and engineers with a video background want to measure video statistics. The former (network engineers) can happily take their measurements from the existing network infrastructure, but get no feeling for what packets on the network relate to what video signals. The video people want to convert the IPTV signal back into its digital video format (converting it from IP to Video), which really misses the point that all you're really finding out is how well the converting device works (a piece of test equipment won't be comparable to the way a STB (set top box) would decode the signal. Thus, you have two separate approaches to the same problem - neither of which is really ideal.

Now, there IS a place for existing test equipment (network test equipment is great for data traffic as it always was, and Transport Stream (digital video) analysers are great at your Head-End (where the video content originates)and other video aggregation points in order to confirm that the video into your IP network was good), so it's not time to throw it away, it's just not the right tool for IPTV QOS.

With those comments out of the way we can move forward (it's difficult to move when you still have one foot in your old mindset).

Depending on who you are, you could very well be concerned with just one part of an IPTV system or the entire system, so we'll break it into the core problem and what that means at each place in the network (we'll assign the network 4 test points: 1) Head End 2) Core Network 3) Network Edge 4) Customer Home).

1) Head End.

This might concern you if you are responsible for creating, providing, or receiving video from a Head End.

A Head End can consist of anything from professional video encoders to VOD Servers (Video On Demand), and could be in one of many video formats, compression types, bitrates etc. They could be Unicast or Multicast, UDP, RTP or a proprietary mechanism (As in the case of MSTV).

Whatever the situation, it's a good idea to take steps to ensure that the Head End is robust and that the video encoding devices are reliable. A problem at the Head End affects everyone down the line, right to the customer. (we'll assume that various 'redundant' systems are in place to avoid this type of problem where possible)

Having built the Head End system with a robust architecture, the last thing (and the important one for us) is to monitor the Head End IP video flow output to ensure that this first point where the video is IP encapsulated has been done adequately and that the rest of the IPTV infrastructure can rely on this input.

Note: One common mistake at this point (and elsewhere) is to have some sort of round-robin system in place where not all of the video streams are measured at the same time - this should only be done if absolutely necessary as one of the 'issues' with the nature of IP delivery over a network is that impairments caused to the signal in the IP domain have a non-deterministic affect on the video flows. This means that while you're looking at 5 of 100 flows, you could be having problems on some random number of other flows which you wouldn't see - unless you monitor ALL flows simultaneously.

2) Core Network.

Hopefully the steps above will have been done, so if you're concerned with the core network, your main work involves doing your own verification that the flows coming into your network are ok (you can't rely on the Head End provider to do this for you, and it's much easier to be able to get out of the spotlight when problems occur if you can easily confirm your input), and ensuring that the passage across the network doesn't cause any loss or excessive jitter (the only 2 components that can stop the network getting your video to the end intact.

Now that we're in the IP domain, this issue of packet loss is ultimately the number 1 thing to look out for (any IP packets lost WILL mean video content loss since all mechanisms insert video packets into IP packets for delivery, some even contain up to 7 video packets in one IP packet). However, with that said, every network device (and ultimately the STB) have buffers which means that excessive jitter can cause packet loss. Since we REALLY don't want packet loss, this means jitter is just as important to us when monitoring our system.

The real kicker here is that if you're from the old school of IP monitoring you'll be pretty happy with what I've said so far - but there's one thing which makes thing a little more 'interesting'. It is perfectly possible to lose 'media' packets but NOT IP packets. Whenever an infrastructure includes elements like multiplexers which combine the mpeg video and 'MUX' several streams into one, if you're not doing some form of 'deep packet inspection' (looking into the media headers to ensure the continuity counters are correct) you could have no IP packet loss, but still have video problems. This basically means that your solution cannot come from one approach or the other, but needs to do the monitoring in the IP domain while still confirming that the media packets are intact.

This additional complication is one of the things that many test equipment manufacturers haven't accounted for, usually due to the fact that this is still a fairly new field and many equipment vendors are focused on creating 'features' rather than addressing the customer problems to deliver benefits which actually give them the robust solutions required.

3) Network Edge.

As before, our first step is to confirm our input is good by monitoring all flows simultaneously for jitter and packet loss and then ensuring that the 'last mile' mechanism to the customer home is as robust as possible.

Since this step could easily involve conversion from IP to RF (cable companies us RF (Radio Frequency) signals instead of the copper or fibre cables that most network equipment uses, any test equipment may need an appropriate interface for this (the most common interface here is QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation) of which there are 3 main type (they're actually called 'Annex's') Annex A, B, and C for US, Europe and Asia.

So depending on your infrastructure here, you may or may not have an IP network to the customer home.

4) Customer Home.

The final, and some would say the most important part of the system.

As before, we need to check our input (the IP video flows that are about to go to the customers STB). Since we're talking about IP, again this is all about the jitter and packet loss that has occured to those video flows on their journey to this home. Since we checked the video quality as it was encoded at the head end, we know that as long as the jitter isn't too much for the STB to cope with, and there's no packet loss - the video will be exactly as it was when it was encoded.

If you're wondering how to get around this - there are equipment vendors with devices that go IN the customer home and adstract the workload from the STB and even some that let the customer press a button to signal when THEY saw a problem (regardless of what your test equipment may or may not have indicated - who says you need to simulate a customer experience)

There - Pretty simple really.

That's true, but in real life most companies don't own, control or even have access to the entire system. This makes rolling out an IPTV deployment a bit of a nightmare unless you understand the issues and have the appropriate test equipment (remember, some people still have one foot in the network or video world of old).

When companies do have access to large parts of the system or are working with friendly companies that do, this headache can get a whole lot easier when the equipment being used can have its data fed into a central video monitoring system. This way, the 2 common problems of 1) Where is the problem 2) Is it an IP problem, are visible at a glance and much wasted time and effort just getting to the point where you even know where the problem is can be avoided.

When it comes to wanting to quantify the quality of the system, there are several standards for assessing IPTV, the most common are 1) V-Factor 2) MOS 3) MDI

1) V-Factor

V-Factor is a system that uses Moving Picture Quality Metrics (MPQM) research to try and simulate what a human would have decided the video quality was like.

This is an interesting method and is one way to approach the problem, but requires a lot of processing, cannot realistically be done across most of the network (since the processing work is heavy, this does not lend itself to 'core' or 'head end' monitoring), so might serve as a useful measurement to integrate into STBs.

Since we're looking at a holistic IPTV QOS approach, only a monitoring solution that gives us the big picture aswell as the detail will do.

2) MOS (Mean Opinion Score)

Again, this metric is designed to try and give an approximation of what a human would see.

As with the V-Factor, it's a cool idea and technically excellent but doesn't tell us what is wrong with the system (it's nice to have a quality 'score', but in reality we need to know what to DO about a 'poor' score).

3) MDI (Media Delivery Index)

As the name suggests, we get a metric that tell us something about the delivery. (xx:yy where xx equates to the cumulative jitter and yy equates to packet loss) This time, rather than trying to analyse the video and 'score' it, we get data about the jitter and packet loss at the point being measured. While it might not study the decoded video signal, it does tell us how well the video has been delivered - which if you remember is really the most important thing if it was encoded properly.

MDI is an apporiate metric at any point in the system and would let us know immediately if there was a delivery problem. Since the MDI values are based on the bitrates of the video streams, this also gives us some really useful information about how different streams will be affected by our network (for example, if we're already running 50 SD (Standard Definition) Streams and we want to replace them with HD (High Definition) streams, a V-Factor or MOS score at some point in our network won't tell us what to expect, whereas MDI metrics will let us know how much difference the network is likely to make. The jitter on the network will affect SD and HD stream differently (in fact, any streams with different bitrates will be differently affected by the jitter - this causes many problems), so having information about the way the jitter is affecting the IP delivery is REALLY useful information, that you just don't get with the other measuring systems.

I hope you find this article useful and take the steps to ensure a reliable system before you get 'deployment headaches'. Another article will follow shortly describing how to build a robust IPTV network.

Icann violating free enterprise

Message to ICANN: Let those who want to create a tld, simply register it with ICANN.

If the tld is not already taken, if they have the technical capability to mange the tld, and they have the desire to market domain names on that tld, then let them do so.

It should be similar to the registering of a domain name, except on a higher level, with the added technical requirements. ICANN should be sort of an uber-registry for tlds.

It would be ludicrous for a domain name restrar like go daddy or enom to ask you for a business plan, or a non-refundable application fee, before allowing you to register a domain name. It would be ridiculous for a registrar to have "rounds" of domain name releases of names "they chose" in advance.

Okay, this month, go daddy will be allocating cheaperwebhosting. com, doggrommingmadeeasy. net, and virtualinternetwebnetwork. net. We will be taking applications and public comment during the month of february. We will then spend another month reviewing the applicants business plans to decide who we will allocate the domain name to. If you are not approved to manage the domain name you apply for, your application fee will be held by go daddy until further notice.

Some people will say that is not a good analogy, but it is a perfect analogy. Here is why. If info. com was still available and I registered it. I could then start selling subdomains like car. info. com, computer. info. com, icann. info. com or any other subdomain someone wished to purchase from me. The subdomain is one dot removed from the domain name the same as the domain name is one dot removed from the tld.

There is no longer any reason to believe ICANN is doing anything other than restricting free enterprise and free trade by not opening up the market for tlds. It is no longer acceptable that ICANN should be the one to decide which tlds will or will not be created nor is it acceptable that ICANN gets to choose who can or cannot run a tld.

Do you present a businesss plan to the city you live in before they allow you a business license? No.

Does the city ask you to prove you are financially stable before issuing you a business license? No, as long as you pay the registration fee.

If you apply for a business license to open a clothing store, does the city ask how you will run your clothing store or if you have the necessary expertise to run a clothing store? No.

Does the city think you will hurt them economically if your clothing store goes out of business? No, it's none of their business.

Is the city concerned that there may not enough demand for yet another clothing store? No, again none of their business.

ICANN not allowing me, or anyone else in the world, to create a tld of our choice in any language we choose, is a blatant violation of our rights. In many countries, America among them, the right to free enterprise still exists. ICANN is denying me that right as an American citizen and doing so when even their own organization exists under American law.

There are no needs for auctions or rounds or anything else. If you want to run a tld, then you register it and start selling domain names. If you fail, you fail, just as in any other business venture you take on.

Artificially restricting namespace to make a few business IP interests happy has to stop.

Can hair dye cause cancer

Further study is needed to fully understand relationships between hair dyes and bladder cancer, researchers said. Basically, they found no overall increase in cancer deaths among users of hair dyes. These opinions are concerning the use of permanent hair dyes and bladder cancer in 2005. Because of the widespread use of hair dye, the possibility of a relationship between it and cancer is quite alarming. In this study, the two main criteria were exposure to personal hair dye products and an outcome of cancer at any anatomical site.

"The totality of evidence today is far more reassuring than alarming about any hazards of hair dye use," Dr. None found evidence of a significant excess among hair dye users overall. A European Commission watchdog has criticized the hair dye industry for failing to provide evidence of the safety of its products. Until definitive evidence come in consumers may want to proceed with caution when selecting a hair dye. A European Commission watchdog criticised the hair dye industry in 2002 for failing to provide evidence of the safety of its products. But there is no strong evidence that hair dyes cause any of these.

Permanent hair dyes, the most popular choice among consumers, come in two categories: oxidation and progressive. Thus it may be concluded that it is hair dye that accidentally spilled over and has taken effect by oxidation. They are called Oxidation hair dyes because they contain Paraphenelenediamine, which is a basic constituent of these dyes.

You might feel good after a chemical hair dye but, if you're dying your hair in this way frequently, It is belived that you're killing yourself softly. A chemical free hair dye, use at home hair colour. A compound henna mix is not a chemical free hair dye. Suraiya As with any chemical product, you should always use hair dyes in a well ventilated area. Here are the facts: Hair dye, bleach, perms and relaxing solutions are all absorbed into the bloodstream to some degree.

Skin irritants at work using bleach

Bleach is an Irritant to the skin, and in some cases it is also classed as a corrosive. Children are more at risk than adults as many are not aware of the risks that bleach poses. Adults usually can recognise the smell of bleach and know to wash their hands after contact where as children are ignorant of the risks.

The main risk is to the user of the chemical, through either damaging the skin, eyes through contact or by mixing it with another chemical which may produce toxic fumes that can cause problems with breathing especially if the person has a pre existing breathing related problem or illness such as Asthma. An example of this would be pouring bleach down the toilet then spraying an acidic cleaner on the toilet walls can produce chlorine gas.

Assessment of risks in the use of chemicals such as bleach whilst at work is required to be completed and the assessment communicated to all employees under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2003. All COSHH risk assessments need to use a Material safety data sheet on the product which contains all the relevant safety information for the safe use of the product. All suppliers or manufacturers have a legal duty to produce and provide these material safety date sheets on request.

If you are sourced with the requirement to complete an assessment of the risk of the exposure on harmful chemicals then the information you should use in the assessment includes:

The safe storage of the chemical

Safe disposal methods

First aid requirements in contact

Personal Protective equipment to be used

The likelihood of contact and its usage

The control measures to safe guard safety in use

Precautionary measures to reduce risk in the contact of harmful chemicals such as bleach include using thinner bleaches to reduce the concentration. The use of safer alternative products which does not contain harmful substances is the best option.

Antibacterial sprays on the market today are more suitable especially in environments where children may come into contact such as schools. These are classed as low hazard and only pose a risk when used excessively sprayed into a room with no ventilation.

I write health related articles for information purposes and advice / guidance. Please feel free to use any of my health related articles.

Franchisees - beware of the franchisor

Some franchisors seem to act in like highway robbers. They mistreat their franchisees and want to take the largest slice of profits. So how can you ensure that you do not end up buying the wrong franchise business?

A franchise business should be like a partnership where both parties gain. But some operators seem to treat their franchisees as cash cows and continuously milk them for all they are worth. They promise everything at the start but fail to deliver.

The first step in determining the franchise is by examining the franchise agreement very carefully. A decent franchise lawyer can help here. If it is too much in the favour of the franchisor then stay way from this opportunity!

Bear in mind that often the franchiser can agree a letter of variation to the standard franchise agreement. If after reading the agreement there are only a few points that disturb you now is the time to bring to the table. Make sure that you negotiate hard to remove these clauses or agree a more favourable compromise.

The second check you should do is look at how many lawsuits the franchisor has fought with existing or previous franchisees. This will give you a fair idea of how many disputes have happened or are currently active.

The best people to contact are existing franchises. They are most likely to know about previous and existing clashes. Most franchisees have minor grievances with their franchisor but if they seem happy and relaxed in their business then this is a good sign.

Ask the franchisor how many franchisees have failed recently. If they hesitate to answer or do not know then this should set alarm bells ringing. If they seem wary of answering any of your questions then walk away.

Larger more established brands tend to demand the highest franchise fees and ongoing licence fees. They tend to negotiate less and demand more from their franchisees. They are usually more set in their ways and less likely to allow you to run the business your way.

With smaller less established brands, the buyer often has more room for negotiation and can demand greater protection right at the outset. They can help to shape the future innovations and improvements to the franchise business.

Many people make the mistake of assuming that running and managing a franchise business is easier than being in paid employment. This is a big mistake to make as many existing business owners have found out.

Running a franchise (or any other business) often eats into all of your free time and demands discipline, motivation and a desire for hard work. The rewards can be much greater for those who are willing to put the effort in at the start.

Buying into a (franchise) business is a costly way to get started in business. Not only do you have to pay a large sum of money at the start but you have ongoing royalty payments for the lifespan of the business. If you make a mistake by choosing the wrong franchisor to go into partnership with you could end up regretting it for the rest of your life.

Pahl receives bronte prize nomination

Writing on a small press, Nelson Pahl joined some of mainstream literature’s most famous names to become one of the five finalists for romantic fiction’s biggest award, the 2007 Bronte Prize. The accolade recognizes the best love story published in the U. S. and Canada annually.

Pahl’s Bee Balms & Burgundy, published on independent imprint Cafй Reverie Press, goes head to head for the coveted accolade against Nora Roberts’ Angels Fall (Putnam), Richard Paul Evans’ Finding Noel (Simon & Shuester), Roger Alan Skipper's Tear Down the Mountain (Soft Skull Press), and Water for Elephants (Algonquin Books) by Sara Gruen.

Bee Balms & Burgundy is the tale of Mia Lawson, a 30-year-old post-mastectomy breast cancer survivor who, in the aftermath of her diagnosis, realizes her lifelong love for childhood neighbor Nick May. Narrated by “Nicky,” the story takes the reader through Mia’s three dilemmas. First, how will she tell her childhood buddy of her feelings? Secondly, if he feels the same, how will she cross the necessary bridge to her first intimate encounter since her mastectomy? And thirdly, if all else works out, will she live long enough to savor it? The story is set between St. Paul, Minnesota and Vancouver, British Columbia.

Pahl's witty and articulate style, as well as his sense-teasing descriptive writing, have garnered him much critical acclaim in the independent literature realm. Indie Nation Magazine went so far as to bill him as "Indie Lit's Most Intriguing Writer" in their Autumn 2006 issue.

And at least one person feels Bee Balms & Burgundy is a sure winner.

"He's a better writer than anyone I've seen in a long time," says Jay Nelson, Cafe Reverie Press managing director. "He understands the rules, how to self edit and activate everything, how to get the most out of the least.

"And that story in particular is better than anything it's going up against. If he doesn't win, the jury doesn't know what they're doing. Bee Balms has it all."

The Bronte Prize winner will be announced March 15, 2007 on the organization’s Web site ( bronteprize. org). The victor receives $12,500 and the Bronte Prize trophy.

Ideas for decorating the baby nursery walls

Planning a baby nursery can be a big job but the decorating aspect of it can be quite fun. There are many great ways that you can accent your baby nursery walls to give the room a personality as unique as your new baby. Remember to keep safety in mind when decorating your nursery walls and to have fun and get creative. Keep in mind that you will be spending a lot of time in the room also, so make it a place that will be enjoyable not only for your new baby but for you as well. Here are some great decorating ideas to consider for your baby’s new room:

1. Purchase a belly casting mold and make a belly cast of your stomach. Sometime in the last couple months of your pregnancy is best so that you can get the full effect. Once you have made the mold, decorate it any way you want. A popular option is to paint it to compliment your baby nursery’s theme. For example if your nursery has a beach theme, paint a beach scene on it or paint the belly cast to look like a beach ball. Another idea is to make some good quality copies of your ultrasound pictures and paste them on the belly cast like a collage. Get creative and have fun with it. The finished product will be a great memento for you and your baby.

2. Hang a growth chart. It is a great way to decorate your nursery, track your child’s growth, and it makes a great keepsake. Growth charts are available in a wide variety of colors and styles and you may even be able to find one that matches your nursery’s theme. Consider purchasing a non-toxic baby ink pad and making a hand or footprint on the chart whenever you measure your child’s height. It is another great way to measure your baby’s growth and you will be surprised how quickly those little hands and feet grow!

3. Look for wall hangings and art work that coordinate with your room theme. For example, if your theme is airplanes, look for airplane related items that will compliment the room. If you have a character theme such as Winnie the Pooh, Hello Kitty, or Baby Snoopy, it should be easy to locate some art work items that will work well on the nursery walls. The quilt that comes with your nursery bedding set also works great as a wall hanging.

4. Murals are a really great way to dress up the nursery walls. Murals can cover the whole wall of just a small portion. There are several types of murals you can buy, the most popular and easy to use murals come in pieces that can be applied to the wall just like wallpaper. If you or someone you know is artistic, you might want to consider a hand painted mural. You could also hire an artist to paint it for you.

Wall decals are another option to murals. They come in much smaller pieces and can be applied to the nursery walls where ever you want. There are a wide variety available and you may be able to find some that go with your theme.

5. Letters that spell out the name you have chosen for your new baby is another great way to decorate the nursery walls. You can get wooden letters in many styles and colors that will hang on the wall. Ceramic letters featuring characters such as Winnie the Pooh can also be found and look cute sitting on a wall shelf.

You can be as creative as you want when it comes to decorating your baby’s nursery. Taking the theme or color scheme you have chosen into consideration will definitely help you when it comes to picking out art and other dйcor for your nursery’s wall. Have fun and enjoy the experience and you will end up with a great room that both you and your new baby will enjoy spending time in.

How to promote your books in online world

Now I assume that you had published you first book, and you want to promote it. These are many way you can use to promote books online.

1. Make use of your signature online. Make sure you put your link to where your book can be found or purchased in your signature. In your email, you can link to websites, blogs, or whatever you want. Don't make it too long, it'll annoy the readers. And another important point is to make a post to relevant groups or forums.

2. Google and Yahoo group are the best places to go. Join the groups that are for readers and post often. The other will see your site through your signature

3. Go to chat spot and start chatting, Offer them a gift or related promotional items to come to your sites ( That where the address of your book.) If the chat is somethings about writing, offer them a critique. That will make your book more interesting in their point of view, just remember, people always love critique.

4. Try finding a related websites or blogs that are in your genre, offer them to do a reviews or maybe a short interview on their site or blog. If the blog has a very high traffic, the more people will see your book. Follow the golden rules of selling online, "the more traffic, the more sales"

5. Put up your own website or blog. You will argue me with this. You might say that you don't want to afford the hosting or domain. I have to tell you that, your site or blog can be a huge different. Your book's site will add the book more value from the customers' eyes. What's more is that when you publish another book just simple put it there, where your promoted site is. That make your life a lot more easier because you have to promote once and for all.

6. Create a mailing list. That way you can interactive with your readers. You don't have to make a newsletter about your books or your goods. It'll scared the readers away. Try to make if fun and friendly, convince them that you are their's friend. The friend that introduces them a great books ( of yours, exactly) :)

7. In your blog (or your website, but I recommend you to setup it with Wordpress to use blog feature. It's very easy for you because you don't have to worry about on-page factor) try to write it as often as you can. If it possible, try to write it everyday, Visit other people blogs and don't forget to comment on their's blog. By doing this will keep him/her happy and the important thing is don't forget to link back to your blog for his/her comment.

8. After you have finished setup your site, try to exchange your link with your author friends or others. That will make your site more visible to a horde of internet users.

9. Every time you finish reading a book, try writing a review article of it. You can submit it else where. That will make you backlinks.

10. Join the internet contests. Usually, It's free. You don't worry about winning the first place. If you don't win, your title will be list anyway. So many more people are watching you!

Be friendly, Go everywhere and make friend. Be helpful to everybody. Giving your time. Pay respect to other and say them a congrats when they make a nice post or article. This is the most important thins I want to tell you above all. You will get help by many people, you'll be the inspiration of the other, they'll promote you without saying a word. Friendship rule the world :)

Prevent yourself from needing teeth whitening procedures

You have problems with yellow bad looking teeth? You are afraid to smile because people will see your stained teeth? Then don't freak out because any problem can be resolved, even this one. There are many great teeth whitening techniques that can bring back your beautiful smile.

What you should ask your self is why you end up in this situation. There are numerous factors that lead to bad colored teeth. If you don't know them and you don't do anything to avoid them you will frequently need teeth whitening cosmetic dentistry procedures.

First of all the most common causes of yellow teeth are dark foods, tobacco and coffee. You should try to prevent this nasty situation, by following a stain proof eating plan. Try to reduce as much as you can drinking coffee, tea, cola, red wine, grape juice. They are very harmful for your teeth color. Surprisingly, one of the worst drinks for your teeth is tea. Instead of this drinks i have spoke about above try to drink more water, grapefruit juice, white wine vinegar

There are some easy teeth whitening methods that you can use at home. Try to use a good whitening toothpaste, gel or strips. For maximum efficiency try not to drink any dark liquids or eat any dark food after you used the products above.

As i said before smoking is one of the most nocive elements for your teeth. If you have a little will, you could stop smoking and prevent your teeth from becoming yellow and ugly. Also if you stop smoking is very good for your lungs.

If you think about having an oral piercing I would advice you not to. Having a metal in your mouth all day long can be quite harmful for your teeth.

Another important thing that you should keep in mind is the temperature of the foods you are eating. You should never eat oposite temperatures foods one after another with short time intervals. Your teeth might expand or contract, allowing stains to penetrate them.

Acidic foods can also ease up the staining process of your teeth, so try as much as you can to avoid them.

All in all there are many teeth whitening techniques to choose from so you shouldn't worry to much when you have stained teeth. But try as much as possible to keep them white by avoiding bad foods and habits.

A complete list of all restaurants in new york at your fingertips

On DiningFever, you will be able to access a list of restaurants

offering various services in New York City, and much much more.

DiningFever is a complete source for all your restaurant needs in New York.

You can easily find a restaurant by clicking on the restaurant names’

scroll list. The names of restaurants are arranged alphabetically to make

your job easier. In addition, if you don’t have a particular

restaurant in mind but want a list of restaurants serving a particular type of

cuisine such as Mediteraanean, Italian, Mexican or Indian, simply

search the cuisines section and find all the details of restaurants offering

the type of cuisine that you would like to have.

The website also has a powerful keyword search feature, where you can

enter any keyword you like. The results for your keyword will be

displayed instantly. If you are interested in various deals offered by

restaurants, then you should definitely visit the deals section. Here you

will find a complete list of restaurants that feature discountsor other

types of promotional offers. The name of the restaurant and type of

cuisine it offers is also displayed. And if you want to keep track of the

most recent offers, you can see them on the right hand side of the page.

And you never have to worry about finding the restaurant you’ve

selected, since the site includes the restaurant’s addressalong with a map, so

that you can find the restaurant easily. You can even check out the

full menu of the restaurant before choosing it.

You can also browse the restaurants by restaurant category. For

example, if you want to browse by fine dining, click on the upscale and fine

dining section. If you are interested only in casual dining, then you

can search the casual dining section. How about going for a take-out or

delivery option if you don’t have enough time for a full dining out

experience? You will find a complete list of restaurants that provide

delivery service, as well as all of the restaurant’s details.

If you are a restaurant lover and would like to get up-to-date

information on all new restaurant offers, sign up for the DiningFever

newsletter. Simply provide your email address to have the weekly newsletter

describing the latest restaurant offers delivered right to your inbox.

Save an innocent life through charity donation - sponsor a child

An extremely large number of children all around the world are in serious need of help. Sponsoring a child is a great way of helping these poor children live a better life, and by sponsoring a child with a charity donation you will feel a certain warm feeling of satisfaction when you will see that a child which had no hope is now grown-up and happy thanks to your help.

A recent research has proven that nowadays once at three seconds a child dies because of the lack of a home, food and water - things that we can't even imagine our lives without. Needless to say that for these children, schools and education is a luxury that they can only dream about.

If you decide to sponsor a child you will be able to choose the location where you want him to be, and then you can pick the special child you want to help from a list that also has the pictures of those children.

You will then be connected with that child, he will know your location and your name, and he will constantly write to you and tell you how he is feeling and what he is doing. If you want you can also send the child a picture of you and a letter where you introduce yourself to him, so that he knows who is helping him.

Your charity donation sponsorship can bring clean and fresh water, medication, treatment and also school and education to one of the many children in need.

You will be the only person that sponsors one child, because there are many of them and too little sponsors to assign more that one sponsor to one child. Therefore, you will be one of the most important persons in his life. If you want, after some time you can even visit that child and see how he's doing and in what way you've helped him. You're surely receive a warm welcome from the child and his family.

Child sponsorships are usually done through charitable organizations specialized in charity donations. These organizations also make investments with the money they receive so that every dollar you send is most likely multiplied. Besides providing the child you choose and his family with their basic need, a part of your investment is used to train volunteers that go directly at the heart of the matter and help the people there by providing vaccinations and nutritional programs. Also, with the money coming from the people's charity donations, some other major projects can come to life, like the building of schools with all the needed educational equipment, roads and bridges over the rivers so that children from a wide area can come to the schools, and also water and irigation systems - clean and fresh water is highly important for people's health.

Homebuyers benefit from tightening lending market

Some good news is knocking at the door of prospective homeowners worried about the recent surge in mortgage rates.

The previously booming home - loan industry is undergoing a contraction. In fact, the Mortgage Bankers Association predicts the industry will shrink by 14 percent in 2006. What's the good news? That means lenders are competing harder to win your business and you can take advantage.

Beyond discounts and extended terms, banks are leveraging their scale to eliminate many of the costs that cause confusion and frustration for homebuyers at closing. Bank of America's Floyd Robinson says his company offers real savings off closing costs of up to $2,000.

Robinson says they can offer this because they cut internal costs from the process and are passing those savings on to customers. These funds can be critical when applied towards the down payment, moving fees or new home amenities.

Robinson suggests you follow these tips when shopping for a mortgage in this new lending environment:

• Check with your bank first-banks may reward your loyalty by offering a relationship discount.

• Don't pay for fees that you know other lenders have eliminated-take advantage of programs like the one offered by Bank of America, which eliminates the origination, application, lender closing, appraisal, flood determination, tax service, credit report and courier fees for existing customers.

• Confirm the savings are real-make sure the lender has truly cut costs and isn't simply rolling them into the overall cost of the loan.

• Focus on the annual percentage rate (APR) and not just the interest rate-the APR is what the loan is actually going to cost you and it's a more accurate comparison of loan offers.

Most of all, remember to always work with a lender that you know and trust; one that will work with you to find the right loan for your individual needs and your monthly budget-now and in the future. The right lender will take the gimmicks, guesswork and surprises out of closing and help make your dream home a reality.

Todo sobre el poquer

El pуquer es un juego que comenzу durante los 1800, primero en Francia y sus alrededores. Gracias a inmigrantes y viajeros americanos y su alta demanda, el pуquer llego al continente Americano transformбndose en uno de los juegos mбs populares de la historia.

El Pуquer es sin duda un juego astuto que requiere de mucha atenciуn y experiencia para tener buenos resultados y salir del juego sin desesperar.

Si es la primera vez que juegas, seguramente has pensado que es muy difнcil jugar como se debe. Sin embargo, la mayorнa de los principiantes se sienten de la misma manera, y luego comenzaron a jugar perdiendo el miedo. Gracias a algunas reglas y guнas en lнnea podrбs jugar y quien sabe ganar.

Vying es un estilo de juegos que se origino en Francia y gracias a su llegada a Amйrica, particularmente Nuevo Orleбns, nuevos tipos de Pуquer fueron creados, como pуquer abierto, pуquer cerrado, texas holdem, etc, 5 cerrado, 7 abierto y otros.

Las normas del juego son encontrar en las cartas recibidas al comienzo del juego y durante su proceso las combinaciones de cartas necesarias. Hay muchas combinaciones cada una vale mas o menos que otra. Por ejemplo carta mas alta es la menor, luego viene dos cartas iguales, tres cartas iguales, colores iguales, full house, escalera de color, etc. Escalera real es la combinaciуn mas alta con la cual gana cualquier otra combinaciуn (depende los valores de tus nъmeros).

Lo interesante del juego es que cada mano deberбs hacer decisiones que afectaran el resultado de la jugada. Por ejemplo, un vez que llegue tu turno deberбs decidir si aumentar tu apuesta, continuarla, o dejar el partido. Desde ya todo depende de tus combinaciones o potenciales combinaciones que puedas conseguir. Tambiйn depende de si deseas engaсar a otros jugadores haciйndoles creer que tienes buenas cartas cuando no.

Si buscas comenzar a jugar y practicar es muy importante que lo hagas antes de comenzar a jugar en un casino real. Una de las mejores maneras es los casinos en lнnea, en donde no te sentirбs presionada por los demбs jugadores ni pasaras incуmodos momentos. Lo puedes hacer muy relajado desde tu casa, sin usar plata real sino que solo por diversiуn y practica.

Otra de las cosas que debes tener en cuenta es ser cuidadoso a la hora de jugar por dinero y practicar bastante antes de largarte a hacerlo. No querrбs arrepentirte ni perder mucho dinero, aunque en general los principiantes tienen suerte.

Ahн puedes conocer otros jugadores de otros paнses que buscan tambiйn practicar, jugar y divertirse. Luego puedes comenzar a apostar por dinero y versa que los casinos en lнnea tienen muchas ventajas en cuanto a porcentajes de ganancias y demбs.

Si lees un poco mбs a cerca del juego en diferentes sitios de pуquer, te darбs cuenta que es muy entretenido y no tan complicado como parecнa serlo.

En fin, el pуquer es un juego que ha existido desde el siglo XIX y actualmente sigue siendo tan popular como siempre.

Tips for traveling safely in the us

Are you planning to spend your vacation in the United States of America? Have you processed your legal documents and all you’re waiting for is to go aboard the plane and start the dream journey of your life?

Here are some tips that would provide you a safe tour to the US:

1) Legal matters. These are the safety measures provided by the US Embassy for tourists.

* Before leaving your own country, you should register with the U. S. Embassy. Provide them with your itinerary and copies of your passport. This will ensure that your whereabouts are known in case it is necessary to contact you during emergencies.

* Remember to have a valid passport. And if your travel requires a visa, your visas should always be intact with the passport. Remember to fill out all your information on the emergency page located inside your passport.

* Be aware of all the local laws of the US. Always be reminded that you should abide by the laws of the U. S Constitution.

* Make multiple copies of the identification page of your passport. This will assist in the replacement of your passport if it is stolen or lost.

2) Electricity. If you have brought appliances that would make use of electrical systems, be aware of the voltages used with these devices.

* US residential use 115 volts of electrical systems operated at 60 hertz. If your electric appliances operate on different voltages, you will need a voltage converter or transformer before plugging the appliance.

* The main wall sockets in the US basically make use of 115 volts which looks like two parallel flat blades. Make sure to match the socket with the device by purchasing a converter.

3) Basic Information.

* The official language in the USA is English.

* Used as measurements in road signs, temperature displays, and tourist brochures are the imperial and metric system.

* It is customary in the US to tip for services. Tips average from 10% to 20%, depending on the discretion of the person paying the bill.

4) Safety.

* Never leave your luggage unattended in public areas. Do not accept any package from strangers.

* Prevent wearing eye-catching clothing and priceless jewelry to avoid being a victim of crime. Do not carry large amounts of money and credit cards of.

* Deal with official agents when purchasing art, antiques and exchanging money. This would help in avoiding the violation of local laws.

* If you suddenly get into trouble, it is best to contact the nearest U. S. Embassy.

Now you know the basics, it’s your turn to enjoy your travel legally and safely. Have fun.

Mediums

When someone we loved has passed away, we might find comfort in being able to contact the person through psychic means to give or receive final messages from the other side. This is what a medium specializes in. A psychic medium is someone who can connect with those who have passed on and share the thoughts of the spirit with the person or people left behind in the world, as we know it.

There really are people who can communicate with those who are no longer with us, but there are also some real scam artists out there who will take advantage of the grieving people looking for one last moment with their loved ones. This is why you need to be cautious about the medium you use to have this moment yourself.

You should beware of the Ouija boards because both the living and the spirit world have beings that can manipulate the Ouija board disingenuously. A Ouija board has all the letters in the alphabet on it, and a marker that slides around the board to spell out messages. The idea is that the people using the board will place their hands on the marker but they will not actually move it. The spirit of the person they are trying to contact in the spirit world is supposed to move the marker to spell out the message, but you never know if you are really talking to the spirit or if someone else at the board is moving the marker. For this reason, avoid the Ouija board.

You should also watch out for tealeaf readers, or any medium, who tells you that you must give the medium money on behalf of the person who has passed on that you are trying to contact. There are charlatans who have no sense of remorse about fooling you into thinking that the dead need our money to go to strangers staring at tealeaves. Walk away as soon as the medium tells you to fork over cash on behalf of your loved one. This is an age-old scam.

All this talk about con artists might seem discouraging, but there are legitimate mediums out there, and you can find one if you are cautious.

There are two basic types of mediums: physical mediums and mental mediums. They have different ways to connect with those who have passed on, but they are all mediums. Here is a basic breakdown of how each type of medium works.

The physical medium will channel energy from the spirit world into the physical world in any number of ways. The physical medium may use a pen and paper to channel the message from the spirit; the medium allows the spirit to control the use of the pen and paper to communicate with the person in this world. This is called automatic writing, but there are many other forms of physical mediumship.

For example, levitation, telekinesis, and seeing auras are all examples of physical mediumship. Levitation is when the body of a person is lifted up without any visible person or object moving the body. Someone is floating in the air without any strings attached if there is levitation happening. Telekinesis is the state of moving objects in the physical world with the mind and no physical assistance, like switching off a light without touching it. An aura is a glow of energy around a person that describes the person’s state of existence like mood or power.

A mental medium will have different kinds of powers. The mental medium will sense the message from the spirit world either through some kind of psychic sight, smell, sound, or touch. It might even be from taste. Clairsentience is the experience of a psychic sensing the something intangible or not readily apparent to the psychic. More specifically, clairvoyance is often the term used to describe psychic sight. Clairaudience is psychic hearing, and clairalience is psychic smelling, while clairgustance is psychic tasting.

Whatever kind of medium you find, be cautious but be open to the experience. If you are so inclined, there are even mediums out there who can communicate with your pets who have passed on to the other side!

Cosmetic surgery is it for you

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If you thought cosmetic surgery was reserved for Hollywood stars, you're out of sync with the times. Nowadays it's become a surprisingly affordable lifestyle choice for people from all walks of life. Here's a look at some of the more common cosmetic procedures to help you decide if cosmetic surgery is for you.



Essentially, cosmetic surgery is a surgical procedure carried out to improve a person's appearance. As such, it can be applied to any part of your body. But the most common are the various regions of the face, the breasts and the waist. Let's look at each in turn.



The most famous facial surgery procedure is the facelift (rhytidectomy). The objective is to tighten up skin and smooth out the lines and wrinkles that time etches on your face. The end result is a more youthful appearance.



The second most common is the nose job (rhinoplasty). This works to bring balance to the face by changing the shape of your nose, by making it wider or narrower, for example. It's also used to remove bumps in the nose.



Then there's eye enhancement. This procedure centres on removing unsightly bags under the eyes.



Lesser known is ear surgery. This is for people who feel their ears are too prominent. The operation adjusts the shape of the ear cartilage so that the ear lies closer to the head.



Next is breast surgery which involves altering the size and/or position of the female breast. The most sought after procedure is breast enlargement which is achieved through implants. Another popular procedure is the uplift which corrects sagging breasts. Finally there's breast reduction for women who suffer from back or shoulder pain due to excessive breast weight.



Finally, body surgery involves ways to improve the shape of the body, particularly the waist. The two most popular procedures here are tummy tucks and liposuction. The tummy tuck involves removing folds of overhanging skin and fatty tissue from around the midriff to give that smooth, tight, youthful look. For moderate weight reduction, liposuction is available. This involves the selective removal of fat cells by vacuum suction through a small metal tube inserted into the affected areas.



These are the most popular cosmetic surgery procedures. But in addition to the above, there are also more specialized procedures such as weight loss surgery, cosmetic surgery for men and anti-aging cosmetic surgery. Your surgeon can give you details of these.



In deciding whether to go ahead with cosmetic surgery, the first step is to consult a surgeon to determine whether you are a suitable candidate. The surgeon will take many factors into account such as your age, state of health, skin texture, bone structure and healing ability. Though most cosmetic surgery procedures are safe and carried out under local anaesthetic, there are risks involved and your surgeon will make you aware of them.



Another key factor is how realistic your expectations are about the results of your surgery. If you're expecting to be transformed into a clone of Julia Roberts, you're probably setting yourself up for disappointment. Results tend to be subtle rather than transformational and it's important to remember this. However, they can be life changing too.

Dbol the great grandfather of all anabolic steroids

You can call dbol as the “great grandfather of all anabolic steroids”. Dr. John Ziegler’s Dianabol is popularly known as dbol. Its pharmaceutical name is Methandrostenolone / Methandienone. It was released by Ciba in the United States in 1956.

Dbol is one of the most powerful anabolic steroids. It comes in pills and injectable form under the trade name, Reforvit-B, which is 25mgs of methandrostenolone mixed with B-vitamins. Chemical structure of dbol is 17 beta-hydroxy-17alpha-methyl-1, 4-androstadien-3-one. Molecular weight of dbol is 300.44; formula is C20H28O2; and Anabolic/Androgenic Ratio (Range) is 90-210:40-60.

Dbol is one of the most widely used anabolic steroids bodybuilder and power jocks. It is said to be used by almost every Mr. Olympia from Scott to Zane. It is said that dbol pills helped Arnold Schwarzenegger to win his first of seven Mr. Olympia titles. Dbol was freely and abundantly used by bodybuilders until it was banned by the U. S. FDA under the Controlled Substances Act.

Dbol has a great effect on protein metabolism. It effects protein synthesis, supports protein buildup, and maintains a positive nitrogen balance which can also have a positive effect on well being. It helps bodybuilders to increase their muscle mass, strength and improve muscle stamina. It helps them gain 2-4 pounds each week for six weeks, if it is taken combined with proper nutrition and training of course.

DOSES – Dr. Zeigler recommended dose for athletes is 5-10mgs/day. Effective dose is 25-50mgs – effective dose for men is 15-50 mg/day and effective dose for women is 5-10 mg/day. Its active life of is 6-8hours, and its detection time is up to 6 weeks.

Dbol is often taken in cycles and usually stacked with various other anabolic steroids. It gives the best results when it is used in combination with other anabolic steroids. It is commonly stacked with Deca-Durabolin or Primobolan, and perhaps even Equipoise. It is also stacked with injectable anabolic steroids, such as enanthate, cypionate, and sustanon.

STUDIES – Studies conducted on dbol in the early 80ґs showed that high doses of dbol (100mgs/day for 6 weeks) decreased plasma testosterone to about 40%, plasma GH went up about a third, LH dropped to about 80%, FSH went down about a third, and Fat Free Mass went up anywhere between 2-7kgs (3.3kgs average gain). Studies concluded that dbol increases fat free mass as well as increasing strength and performance.

SIDE EFFECTS – The some side effects associated with dbol include acne, gynecomastia, liver infections, increased body weight, excess fluid retention, high blood pressure, faster heart beat and early hair loss. It may develop strong masculinization features in women.

PRESENT STATUS – Dbol is presently banned by the U. S. FDA. Its production in most of Western Europe and the United States has been stopped, but it is still produced in countries, such as Mexico under the trade name Reforvit-b, Russia, and Thailand. It is amply available on the U. S. black market.

2006 high point furniture show scheduled events

If you're not familiar with the High Point International Home Furnishings Market, it's the largest trade show in the US for furniture. The first furniture market was held in 1909 in High Point, North Carolina and was called the Southern Furniture Market.

Today, the trade show is attended by people from all over the globe. It's held twice a year and you can learn about anything from home fashion and design to how to effectively build your retail furniture business. You also get to see the new furniture trends and styles before they hit the market.

The dates for the upcoming Furniture Market will be April 27 to May 3. Here's a quick rundown of what you can expect at the approaching furniture show.

Day 1 – April 27:

Learn what industry experts are doing to close their sales.

40% of your customers are checking out your website before and after a purchase. Are you sending the right message?

How to tell fashion from fad. Invest in the right thing.

Is your inventory lost? Learn some great tips on inventory management.

Day 2 – April 28:

Don't miss Candice Olson, the host of the popular HGTV show “Divine Design with Candice Olson,” give some design solutions and tips.

Find out how adjusting your store lighting can make a big difference in the presentation of your furniture.

Do you advertise on TV or thinking about it? Find out how to do it right.

Day 3 – April 29:

The Allure 2006 Fashion Show hosted by Nancy Glass

Diversify yourself by retailing if you're a designer or designing if you're a retailer.

The session shows you how to combine them both and help your bottom line.

Drive your sales. Learn how to create that High Performance Sales Force.

Day 4 – April 30:

Ever wonder how you can compete against the National Brands? This day has a session just for the Independent Furniture Retailer.

Stay way ahead of the trends with the “8 Incoming Looks for 2007.”

Find new ways to control your delivery expenses.

How would you sell to your Grandmother? This session titled, “Selling to Your Grandmother” is about building trust and getting intimate with your customers.

May 1-3 is all about shopping and networking. For more information go to: greatpricedfurniture. blogger. com

Is your child ready for preschool

Parents know that children do not always follow the experts when it comes to physical and intellectual development. As the closest observers of their individual child's temperament and abilities, parents are the best judges on whether a child is ready for an academic preschool program.

An academic preschool program differs from a daycare program in that it focuses on early learning skills, pre-reading readiness and linguistic development. While there is time for free play, preschool is a learning rather than care giving environment. In past times, preschool programs were designed for children who stayed home with a parent. Children attended preschool two or three mornings a week, spending the rest of the time at home. Today, because so many parents work, preschools have been restructured to full-day programs.

However, many children in the two to three year old age group may not be emotionally mature enough for a full-day academic experience. Younger children frequently get tired and upset after too much stimulation and many still need an afternoon nap. In this case, parents should seek a program that offers academic experiences in the morning and play time, naptime and other, less structured, activities for the rest of the day.

At three, the age most children begin preschool, children have developed the ability to speak in short sentences. At this age, adults can understand about three quarters of the words children say. A functional level of verbal ability can help a child more easily navigate preschool as he or she can ask for help, to use the toilet, or whatever else they may need.

Most schools require that children attending preschool be toilet trained. The consistent ability to use the bathroom during the day is an important part of preschool readiness. While teachers are accepting of accidents, they are teachers and not daycare providers and can't be expected to change diapers. Additionally, children should know how to pull down and pull up their undergarments and to wash and dry their own hands.

Children should also have mastered basic life skills before beginning preschool. Snacks are definitely served at preschool and often lunch is served as well. Your child should be able to manage finger foods and use a regular cup without a spout in order to manage preschool meals. Also, they should be able to put on their own shoes and coat although teachers at this level fully expect to help with buttons and zippers.

Microsoft xbox

Microsoft Xbox is a sixth video game console of era of initially released generation on November 15, 2001 in North America, then released on February 22, 2002 in Japan, and on March 14, 2002 in Europe.

Xbox was the first company independent of Microsoft in the arena of video game console, then having developed the operating software and the development tools for the MSX, and having collaborated with Sega by putting in communication the EC of Windows at the console of Sega Dreamcast. The notable titles of launching for the console include the halation: The combat evolved/moved, Amped, completely or 3 and Oddworld alive: Chewed Oddysee. Development Xbox was at the beginning developed in Microsoft by a small team which included Seamus Blackley, a lotissor of play and physicist of high energy.

The rumours of a video game console developed by Microsoft emerged the first time at the end of 1999 following interviews of Bill Gates. Start known as that a play/device of multi-media was essential for the convergence of multi-media in new times of the numerical entertainment. On March 10, 2000 the “project of X-box” was officially confirmed by Microsoft with a press release. Some see Xbox like manner of benefitting from the market growing of video game, noting that the growth of the market of PC stagnated after the bust point-COM.

According to the Smartbomb book, by Heather Chaplin and the ruby of Aaron, the remarkable success of the upstart Sony PlayStation worried Microsoft in the Nineties late. The market growing of video game seemed to threaten the market of PC that Microsoft had dominated and counted at the time for the majority of its incomes. As well, a company in the market of game console would also diversify the product of Microsoft, which until this time had been strongly concentrated in the software. Xbox presented an alternative standardized to the variety close relation-without end of configurations of user on the PC.

Xbox even brought technology at end high of play to the principal current, fфlatrant a top of the line equivalent processor of graphs of GeForce 3, an integrated adaptor of Ethernet, and the noise dolby of DIGITAL 5.1 in the material. One of the complaints about Xbox is that people do not like the cost to employ the service on line, Xbox of phase. They allege that other companies offer the similar programs which are cheaper or for free. Xbox launched to North America on November 15, 2001.

The greatest success of the plays of the launching of Xbox was halation: The combat evolved/moved, which bien-a be as a critic received and one of the plays of good-sale of the year. The halation remains always the title except contest of the console. Other successful launching entitles the fever included 2002 of NFL, the packing project of Gotham and died or 3 alive). However, the failure of several plays of first-part (frenzy including and Azurik de Fuzion: Rise in Perathia) damaged the initial public reputation of Xbox.

Although it had the third strong support of its beginning, much from plays early of Xbox did not benefit fully from its powerful material, with few auxiliary attachments or graphic improvements to be distinguished from version PS2, and this denied one of the principal points of sale of Xbox. To finish, Sony avoided Xbox by fixing PlayStation 2 exclusivenesses for the plays strongly envisaged such as the automatic solid 2 in series in large flight and speed out of metal: Wire of freedom. In 2002 and 2003, several releases helped Xbox to accelerate and to be distinguished from the PS2. The service in line of phase of Xbox was launched beside the phantom of MotoGP titles, MechAssault and Tom Clancy of reconditioned pilot.

Several good-being sold and of the titles critical-acclaimed for Xbox were published, like the cell of glare of Tom Clancy, Ninja Gaiden, and hold the first role of the wars: Knights of the old Republic. To take-Two the interactive business of exclusiveness with Sony was modified to allow the large car III, large car of flight of flight: Vice city and its continuations to be published on Xbox. Moreover, much of other editors entered the tendency to release the version of Xbox beside version PS2, instead of delaying it during months.

In 2004, overall discs of halation 2 like highest incorporating the release in the history of entertainment as well as to be a killer successful APP for the service on line. These year, Microsoft and Web arts reached a business which would see the last popular titles allowed on Xbox of phase. In 2005, console-exclusive unhappy fate for a long time awaited 3 of Xbox, it half life 2, and the remote instincts of cry were released. Plays which are sold more than 400.000 units in their the first 9 months are indicated like platinum blows and have their prices with the released detail of detail.

Xbox of phase On November 15, 2002 Microsoft released the service in line of phase of play of Xbox, making it possible subscribers to play the games on line of Xbox with (or against) of other subscribers all around the world and to download the new contents for their plays with the hard order. Work on line of this service exclusively with to wide strip. 250.000 subscribers had connected themselves in 2 months since of phase was launched.

In July 2004, Microsoft announced that of phase of Xbox 1 million subscribers reaches, and announced in July 2005 that of phase had reached 2 million. A subscription of phase of Xbox currently costs $50 per year [which is roughly $4 months].

Get the right filler for your children s play area

If you are currently creating a children’s play area you may well have arrived at the point where you are wondering what type of filler is best. Below we have a closer look at some of the most popular material used for the surfaces of children’s play areas.

Play Bark

Many people avoid play bark because it as seen as being quite expensive. However there are many advantages to this product. It is 100% natural, it does not easily blow away and packs down well to make a kind of carpet effect. Just make sure that it is regularly raked to get rid of any unwanted foreign objects.

Recycled Coloured Woodchip

Recycled coloured woodchip is a great play area filler. Again may people find it on the pricey side but really it is value for money as its low moisture content means that it last 5 times longer than play bark product. A two inch layer of coloured woodchip is sufficient to block out sunlight and eradicate weed growth.

Pea Gravel

Pea Gravel is often used in playgrounds. It is definitely a cheaper alternative to woodchip or play bark. Furthermore pea gravel looks very nice and decorative. Consider using edging to keep the pea gravel contained.

Recycled Mulch

Grass and tree clippings can be ground up finely and turned into mulch. This recycled mulch is then used within children’s play areas. This option is good for limiting weed growth as the trees naturally have an in-built weed deterrent.

Artificial Grass Carpet

You could also consider using an artificial grass carpet. It dries quickly which means that the children will be able to play on it when the rest of the garden is still too wet. You can also remove it and place it elsewhere and clean it if need be.

Ramp it up

Today’s lifestyle is highly competitive and difficult especially for disabled persons. Nevertheless, disabled individuals should enjoy the same quality of life that able-bodied individuals experience. Public and private places should be built with ramps and structures that make them accessible even to disabled persons. If your workplace does not have ramps or facilities for disabled individuals, you can talk with your employer to make some adjustments.

Ramps differ in places and come in many designs but all of them have the same purpose – to make an entry accessible to people in wheelchairs, scooters, walkers or anyone else who cannot use the stairs. Building a ramp is not as easy as putting a flat piece of wood in place where the wheelchair can pass through. In building a ramp certain factors need to be considered. Who will use the ramp? How much room do you have? Will the ramp be permanent or temporary? How much weight are you expecting it will have to support? How much will it cost?

For permanent ramps, build metal or concrete ramp. Wood ramps can be pleasing but they are not very durable and can easily crack. Although metal ramps are strong, its surface can get severely hot in the summer. Concrete ramps are durable and ideal in many conditions but they are very difficult to remove. Thus, you need to carefully consider how the ramps will be used before building it to avoid any problem and costly mistake.

Any person with basic carpentry skill can build a ramp. However, it takes more than that to build a good ramp. It may be a good option to let the one who will use it design the ramp if the person who will design it does not have enough experience with ramps and knowledge of the design guidelines. Fortunately today, cluelessness in ramp creation is declining. The accessibility regulations that were drawn after the passage of the American Disabilities Act have given architects guideline to work with. Keep in mind that ramp construction is not rocket science, thus, the guidelines of the ADA act gave a clear understanding of the procedure and considerations for good ramp building that even someone with no understanding of gravity can build and design a good ramp.

But remember, from time to time wooden ramps may need paint jobs and the no-skid rolled roofing surface needs to be occasionally replaced. Likewise, metal ramps may need certain joints to be re-welded and rust removed. Thus, whichever type of ramp you build the key to keeping them safe is by complying with the American Disabilities Act codes and maintaining the ramps regularly.

Martial arts training more than just self-defense

According to the FBI, four women die everyday as a result of domestic violence and about 130,000 women report that they’ve been victims of rape or attempted rape annually. Because of statistics like this, many women enroll in self-defense classes to learn the skills they need to defend themselves.

The thing is, a short-term self-defense class may not address all of the areas you need to be able to fully defend yourself. While martial arts classes won’t specifically train you for combat and fighting, they will give you the ability to defend yourself if you ever find yourself in a situation where you need to practice self-defense. The best part is that this self-defense isn’t always physical. What most people don’t know is that in a good martial arts class you’ll learn a variety of skills to help you gain the awareness, peace and physical conditioning you need to be a stronger person, in all aspects of your life.

Confidence. All the physical defense skills in the world won’t help if you don’t have the confidence needed to use them. That’s the beauty of martial arts training. In order to successfully train a martial art, you need to have your mind and body in tune with one another. This self-awareness gives you the confidence your need to control and defend yourself if needed. You’ll be able to handle everyday and extraordinary situations without losing your temper. You’ll be able to stand your ground. You’ll appear to be (and will be) more confident – and people who appear to be confident are less likely to be the victims of violence because they don’t look like “easy targets”.

Focus and Awareness. While training martial arts, you need to focus and concentrate on what you are doing so that you don’t injure yourself or those around you. This focus and concentration carries over into other aspects of your life as well. Soon, you’ll find yourself better able to concentrate on work, school and home. You’ll even find yourself being more aware of your surroundings which can help you avoid potentially harmful or violent situations.

Peace. Training martial arts will also give you an inner peace that can change your life. First of all, to effectively train martial arts, your workout will always be changing. You’ll never get bored with your workout because it will always be challenging to your abilities (both physical and mental). In addition to that, training martial arts is a great stress reducer. You probably already know that regular physical exercise can reduce physical stress, but what you don’t know is that martial arts go one step further to reduce emotional stress as well. Activities such as martial arts that require you concentrate on your movements and your core strength can give you full stress relief in one activity.

Strength and Conditioning. When you train martial arts, you use your entire body. You cannot use just one muscle set at a time. The exercises are always changing and evolving to give you the maximum out of each training session. Martial arts also increase your flexibility which is great because people who are flexible suffer fewer injuries, have better posture and are better able to relax their muscles.

If you are interested in learning more about how martial arts can help your self confidence, please contact one of my three locations in Bellevue, Lynnwood or Kent, Washington at 800-508-6141or martialadvice@hotmail. com to set up a free 2 week trail orientation.

Also, please see our web pages at kungfutemple. com and martialarts-instruction. com

Sincerely,

Robert Jones

Master Instructor

6th Degree Black Belt

Owner, the Academy of Kempo Martial Arts

How to get huge muscular arms build big triceps exercises

So you want to get big huge muscular arms. Do not ignore your triceps exercises.

In gyms everywhere, you will see people doing bicep curls after bicep curls. If someone were to ask them to show their muscles, they will most likely flex their biceps. How about you? Well, since you are reading this article, then you must have known that to own huge muscular arms, you must build huge triceps.

Do you know why? It is because your tricep is 2/3 the size of your arm. Just imagine, your bicep is only 30% while your tricep takes up 60%. So if you are neglecting your triceps, you are neglecting 60% of your arms while working on the miniscule 30% called the biceps. Of course you still need to work on your biceps for that well rounded balanced muscular look.

Furthermore, since your triceps are involved in many other body building exercises such as military presses, bench presses and many other exercises, having strong triceps will help you to lift heavier in those other exercises and thus will be encouraging further muscular growth in other body parts.

Your triceps consist of three main muscle whereas your biceps has only 2, the their respective names begins with “tri” and “bi”. That is another reason why your triceps should be bigger.

Tricep Excercise Form

So you have been training your triceps but do not see good results. It could possibly be due to your movement during your reps where the exercises are not performed to its full range of motion. You see, the mass concentration of tricep muscles is at the top of the arm and therefore you have to stretch your arms beyond what you feel that is natural in order to reach the deep fibers of your tricep muscles.

On top of that your form must be strict with minimum elbow movements when performing tricep exercises like skull crushes and tricep extensions. These exercises reach deep into your triceps muscles when you do it with full range of movement.

Tricep exercises like close grip bench press, diamond pushups and cable pushdowns do not give you that range of movement as the range of these exercises are limited. This is not to say that you don’t do these exercises, just concentrate on them less.

So in order to build big huge triceps, you must feel the pull of your tricep muscles when the weight is at its lowest position before pulling them back.

Want those big muscular arms? Then do not forget to work on your triceps hard and do it in good form.

Bike for fun and fitness

Aerobic fitness has many benefits

Excellent health is based on aerobic strength, flexibility and fitness. All of these are significant. For healthy heart, any type of aerobic exercise is good. Normally, this needs movement that is continued over a period of time and that uses the power of your arms and legs. This kind of work out makes your heart work harder. Aerobics causes your body to burn fat for energy and use oxygen. Cycling is a good example of aerobic activity.

Cycling is a excellent exercise for people with high blood pressure or heart disease. Research shows that cycling is actually better for reducing blood pressure than more intense activities like jogging.

Eventually, it strengthens and conditions your heart.

The American Heart Association and the American College of Sports Medicine recommends cycling, for healthy individuals and low-risk cardiac patients.

Cycling has following benefits:

·increase your endurance

·flexibility is increased

·stimulates sexual desire

·muscles that supports joints are strengthened

·improve your remembrance and attentiveness

·keeps you in shape

·reduces stiffness and ache

·ability to perform daily tasks is enhanced

·makes you feel good

·reduces sleep disorders and improve your sleep

·increase your confidence

·help you feel more confident

·reduce nervousness

This century is certainly of fear and doubt, but this is a century of uproar, hatred, clash, insanity, exploitation, brutality, corruption, this century is of terrorism, this century of instant profit, so humans are depressed and hurt.

How about biking when you are depressed?

How about going out there biking and seeing beautiful world GOD made just for you? How about feeling that cold breeze? How about your body realizing all those happy hormones while cycling which are natural pain killers? How about taming all those mountains? How about chasing sun by biking towards sun?

Man, it feels great, trust me.

Do you remember how many sports and games you played as kid? Do you remember how many times you fell while biking? Don’t give up on it, it felt great, no? Let’s pedal back to the time of cheery delight. Bicycle is the best way to have fun while staying healthy and fit. And age is no barrier to biking. Who knows? Who you might meet along the way!

Florida s first time buyer incentives

Florida has been labeled a progressive state before, when it introduced radical 'green' measures throughout the state, but this time its innovative idea is to offer help to first time buyers. Florida has recognized that younger people are being pushed out of the housing market, and are trying to rectify this with fairly substantial financial incentives.

This failure to accommodate young people in the realty market has happened because nationwide, most homes have become larger and more expensive. Consequently, they are too pricey for the average first time buyer.

A spokesman for a local builders association told the St. Petersburg Times that builders will still be building over-sized homes but there will also be an increase in smaller houses being built. This change in strategy is not seen as a fad by builders; it is simply sound economics as smaller homes are in short supply.

Building smaller homes in the Florida area could also be one way of keeping the younger generation active there. There have been extensive studies involving the affordability of house prices for young people. One recent study was carried out in Boston, Massachusetts. This is an area known for its lack of moderately priced housing.

Boston is the third most expensive property market in the nation and according to the 'Boston Globe' newspaper, young people are moving away in droves because of the house prices. This is costing Massachusetts the 'human capital' needed for future growth and economic expansion. This type of situation could easily be replicated in Florida because it is such a popular retirement area; approximately 17% of the population is over 55.

This youthful exodus has been recognized and hotly debated in Boston. Part of the blame has been laid at the local government's feet with their zone rulings favoring large residential lots. A study proved that homes built from 1998 to 2002 used an average of 1.3 acres per lot.

With the cost of a building lot in Boston quoted at around $300,000 and a house costing around $250,000, young people have no chance of owning a home.

Perhaps learning from Boston's mistakes, the news in Florida is that the government is trying to encourage more first time buyers. This will expand the younger segment of Florida society and consequently will also be likely to increase the permanent population.

The first time buyer program is designed to help those people who may have only a modest income. (There is a ceiling on the monthly salary.) Income limits are not rigid, but determined by the number of individuals living in the house.

The help that the state of Florida is offering is very worthwhile to look into if you are a first time buyer. Help can come in the form of assistance with the down payment, with the closing costs and in the provision of low, fixed rate mortgages.

There are several requirements to be met in order to qualify, including established credit worthiness and not having owned a home in the last three years. The program details can be found on the web listed as Florida's First Time Buyer Program, or you can ask your real estate agent to help you sort out the details.

Review of mgm grand hotel and casino

The MGM Grand Hotel and Casino is located in Las Vegas, Nevada. The MGM Grand Hotel and Casino is a true delight for every gambler, a site that has won more AAA Diamonds Awards than any other hotel/casino location. Accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino is a vastly sized property consisting of a casino that has 170,000 square feet of space loaded to the brim with gaming. While visiting the hotel and casino, guests can stay in one of over 5,000 finely decorated rooms, thereby extending the time they have for gambling endeavors.

The MGM Grand Hotel and Casino first opened its doors to the public in 1993 and is situated right in the heart of all of Las Vegas' gambling excitement: the hotel and casino can be found right on the Las Vegas strip. Specifically themed with Hollywood in mind, this hotel and casino is a huge establishment. The primary building of the MGM Grand has a total of 30 floors and is home to one of the biggest casinos in Nevada.

At the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino there are more than 2500 slots and nearly 200 table games for gambling enjoyment. Table games at the MGM casino include all of the gambling favorites: 3 Card Poker, Baccarat, Blackjack, Craps, Grand Baccarat, Let it Ride, Mini-Baccarat, Pai Gow Poker, Pai Gow Tiles, Poker, Roulette, Spanish 21, and Wheel-of-Fortune. Access to a race book and sports book are made available to guests as well. Further, if table games aren't the main focus of one's desire, the array of slots to choose from is vast, the accessibility of: Anchor's Wheel of Gold, Betty Boop's Big Hit, Dollar Slots, Five Dollar Slots, Five Hundred Dollar Slots, Half Dollar Slots, Hundred Dollar Slots, Addams Family, Megabucks, Wheel of Fortune Progressive Dollar Slots, Elvis, Jeopardy, Multi-denomination Slots, Nickel Slots, Penny Slots, Quarter Slots, and Twenty Five Dollar Slots ensures hours upon hours of gambling entertainment.

For added delight, the MGM casino displays live lions six times a day within the casino. A habitat has been specifically created, allowing gamblers to view the incredible animals amidst all of the gambling action. Further, a special viewing tunnel is provided for closer examination of the animals: no other casino in the world can boast such an incredible attraction.

Offroad tires - getting dirty with style

What to do with the inherent urge you feel every time you quick spot an opening in the brush, in a trail that may or may not lead to an off road utopia? What do you think you should do, you Nancy, slam the brakes, twist the wheel, apologize to whomever is sitting next to you for the fact that they will not be making it to their intended, particular destination at that moment and tear off road and into the liberation of street sign-free good times.

Well, wait, hold on for a moment. While it’s true that I do think that, for the most part you should do that, there may be a thing or two slightly over-impulsive to that off roading call to arms. First off, really you should drop your passenger off and let them walk to their destination (we are members of decent society after all). But, more importantly, consider if you truck is ready for the offroad.

One of the biggest considerations here will be what your tires are looking like. If you already have off road tires, then that’s great. If not, consider for a moment that purchasing higher tires while offer you greater ground clearance, while the shorter offroad tire will give you more traction. If your not already set up with an aggressively treaded tire (and at times even if you are), you may follow the time honored activity of offroaders everywhere and air down (or let air out of your tires). Its fairly easily understandable how and why this is come to be common practice by those heading offroad. By lowering the air in your tire and effectively lowering and widening the tire you can quickly and easily multiply the traction you are going to have. The is quite helpful, but certainly try to not go overboard with the air down. An obvious problem to this is that the sidewalls of your tires are going to really open themselves up to vulnerabilities and punctures.

There are certainly plenty of other options that one can make while setting up for heading offroad, so go check them out and figure which one is for you. Some may fall under a category of pretty strictly offroad, while others will really offer some advantages to both bring onroad and off.