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Quit smoke. Day 49. My Story

2012-10-05T19:38:00.000-07:00

My wife always asked me to write about my struggle with quitting smoking. She thinks that anything I write about this struggle will help someone out there.

I certainly had intentions of quitting smoking but I didn’t think I would be doing it so quickly. I started smoking at the age of 22. I’m sure everyone remembers their first cigarette because I remember it very vividly. I was over at an old friend’s house partying with my twin and just couldn’t help but to try and I’ve been addicted to it ever since. I can’t recall the moment I started buying my own pack but it followed very soon. The addiction went on for eight years before I put a stop to it and I have to be honest, in the entire eight years I have been smoking, I never really wanted to quit. The thought crossed my mind so many times but I always found a way to reason with myself and justify my habit.

I still remember countless lies and excuses that I had to come up with when I was with my wife just to walk away to have a smoke. My culture or at least in my household, smoking wasn’t welcome. My dad was a smoker from the time he got into the police force ages ago. Growing up at home, I can’t recall one time that I saw my dad smoke in front of my brother and I. He will send me to the convenience store to buy him a pack but my memories of seeing him smoke are not vivid, because they were nonexistent. When my brother was caught smoking, he got the bad end of it and my parents tried everything to make him quit and they failed. My brother thought my dad was a hypocrite and I don’t blame him for feeling the way he did. In my case, my mom saw me smoking at the airport in Abu Dhabi for the first time. Was she disappointed? Yes she was but what can she do? She tried talking to me but I could care less.

Eight years passed by very quickly with many changes in my life. I got married, bought a house, job promotions etc. There were always plenty of reasons to continue my habit. When wife came into the picture seven years ago, she started giving me pressure to stop and she was very upset with my habit. I came up with future dates to quit and kept smoking behind her back. When I do get caught, it will blow up in to huge arguments and that didn’t even stop me from quitting. I never appreciated when someone asked me to quit as I thought it was very disrespectful to be told. I’ve always told everyone that I would do it, when I’m ready.

Pump gas at this station and you may get killed

2012-10-05T19:14:00.003-07:00

First of all, I shouldn’t have titled this post this way but unfortunately I cannot control my anger at what happened today. I’ve had three hours to calm myself down and I’m going to try my level best to be fair and offer a balanced approach to this situation.

Approximately 4:30 pm today, I stopped at the Husky gas station located at 7998 Dixie Road in Brampton, Ontario. I stopped at the pump number 12 and prepaid using my credit like I’ve done thousands of times in the past. I got in my car and drove around to get to the main street and all of a sudden I see two individuals running towards my car. My first reaction was to stop my vehicle and open the door. One of the gentleman started saying “sir you didn’t pay”. I was confused at that point but kept my posture but the second man behind him who spoke very little English came towards me with a piece of metal in his possession. It was very clear to me that he was about to smash my windows, had I not opened or stopped. I stopped my car right in front of the gas station and stormed inside and I have to be honest here, my choice of words weren’t that great but who can blame me for it? I PREPAID at the pump but these two fellows had no interest in talking to me. They threatened to call the cops for which I agreed and at the same time, I’ve called my credit card company and they quickly confirmed that the payment went through, not once but twice. At this point, I wrote my number and was about to walk away but one of the attendant was already on the phone with the cops.

I stood around until two Peel Police vehicle pulled into the gas station. The officers responding this call were Mr. Herritt (badge #3647) and Mr. Winters (badge#3443). They spoke with both parties and came to conclusion that they had no grounds to accuse me with anything. I went as far calling my credit card company again and let the officers listen in as a proof that my payment went through. I provided my business card and told them that I will be available to answer any questions, if the need arises.

Throughout this whole time, I kept telling the attendant that they were wrong to chase me with a piece of metal and how dangerous that was but both of them denied having done this to the officer or and refused to offer me an apology. Now, I still haven’t forgotten the incident two weeks ago where a gas station attendant was killed by a driver who tried to flee without paying. I fully understand how hard thousands of attendants across this country work so hard under very difficult conditions. You guys do an amazing job and I respect you.

I was always told that when you’re wrong, you have to admit to it and learn from this but in the case of these two guys, it was not the case. I followed up by a phone call an hour later to ask for their names so that I can file a complaint with Husky but they refused even after I told them I will be talking about my experience on the internet. The answer I got was that they see people like me every day and are not afraid of the power of internet.

I did some research and found out that Husky is not present in the world of social media. This is a surprise to me. I mean who doesn’t have social media presence in this day and age right? Anyways, with the help of a few friends, we were able to find out the customer service number as well as a gentleman by the name of Mel Duvall who is the Media & issues officer. I gave him a quick call and explained him the situation but I was told to send him and email and that he will follow up. I followed through with a call to customer service where I spoke with a lady by the name of Jane who referred this incident to the district manager by the name of Matt. The district manager ensured that he will go to the site on Monday morning and review the surveillance tape. I will forward a copy of this blog to everyone involved and will keep you guys posted.

Leave your comments. This article is posted on my site also.

Time to rethink who delivers National Post Papers

2012-10-01T18:54:00.003-07:00

Does National Post have too many subscribers? Or they have post man who doesn’t enjoy his or her job. This was taken today around 5pm, just as I came home from work. I had a paper on my door step and I don’t remember signing up for one.

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Police officer’s excessive use

2012-10-01T18:50:00.002-07:00

The video of the day that`s generating a lot of buzz on YouTube and other popular social media channels such as twitter and Facebook relates to a man water at officers in Philadelphia followed by a police officer suddenly turning around and punching the first person he sees with a water bottle.

Unfortunately, it happened to be a woman by the name of Aida Guzman who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. I`m not going to talk about the politics or the reasons behind what led to this unfortunate incident but what I do want to talk about is the manner in which the officer reacted.

YouTube Video: Gisela Valentin

My Pregnancy: Week 34

2012-10-01T18:48:00.000-07:00

I just completed my 34^th week and I have another five weeks left to see my little munchkin according to my due date. I’m planning to go to work for another three and a half weeks just so that I can stay longer after the baby is born. But I just can’t wait for the next couple of weeks to go by just so that I can finally stay home and relax before the baby comes. Right now I literally feel like I’m dragging myself to work, especially when it is time to wake up. I wake up at least four or five times at night to go to the washroom and that literally kills my sleep and just when I’m fast asleep my alarm goes off every morning. As if that is not enough, I have so much to do at work so that I can complete everything before I start my leave. I guess this is the norm for all working mothers to be.

I’m usually exhausted by the time I get back from work too and have started taking a power nap right after work. My biggest enemy these days are the nasty heartburns, especially during the evening. So I finally started eating small portions more frequently to keep my heartburn under control. I know heart burn is a common symptom, so how did you guys deal with it?

House destroyed by fire in Mississauga,Ontario.

2012-09-29T14:09:00.002-07:00

I don't know what to say but today doesn't appear to be very good. First it started with a parrot that was lost and now we just witnessed a house totally destroyed by fire in Mississauga,Ontario. I hope that everyone got out of the house safe. We were driving on Terry fox and saw a bunch of fire trucks pass by and i knew that something wasn't right.

A little frustrated to see the amount people standing there and taking pictures and laughing.

Effects of Drugs on babies : Avoid Drugs during pregnancy

2012-09-29T11:21:00.001-07:00

Illegal drugs are harmful to those who consume it regardless of age, sex, race etc. However, it is even more harmful during pregnancy since everything the mother to be consumes will also be consumed by the baby to be. Since the unborn baby is not developed completely, the effect drugs have will be even worse as the unborn baby will not be able to clear it off as quickly as an adult.

Some of the common effects of illegal drugs are miscarriage, low birth weight, premature birth, placental abruption, fetal death etc. The long term effects as the child grows are learning difficulties, behavioural problems etc.

Some of the common drugs and their side effects during pregnancy are as follows:

Marijuana

- Restricts oxygen supply to the baby

- Increases the supply of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide

- May lead to premature births, low birth weight, miscarriage, delays in development, learning and behavioural problems

Cocaine

- May lead to miscarriage, placental abruption, premature birth, fetal death, growth issues and kidney, brain, genitals deficiency

Healthy Eating during pregnancy

2012-09-29T11:05:00.002-07:00

It is of no surprise that whatever a mother to be eats during pregnancy will directly impact the unborn baby. Hence, it is important to watch what you eat and ensure whatever your consuming will have a positive effect on the development of the unborn baby. Although most women are worried about their weight gain during pregnancy, it is not the best time to go on diets that will starve your body since starving yourself equals starving your baby to be. But, it is a good time to minimize the consumption of junk foods, refined carbs, sweets, fatty food etc.

Some of the nutrients that are important for the development of your baby during pregnancy are listed below:

Iron

Iron is vital for the circulation of the red blood cells. It is even more important during pregnancy as the red blood cells are increased during pregnancy. Hence, it is important to increase the intake of iron during pregnancy. Health Canada recommends, consuming multivitamin that contains 16 to 20 mg of iron. Lack of iron may need to maternal anemia, premature birth, low birth weight and perinatal infant mortality. Some food items that are high in iron are spinach, soy products, beef, dried fruits etc.

Calcium

Calcium is important during pregnancy to meet the needs of your growing baby. It aids in building strong bones, teeth, heart, nerves, muscles and to aid in blood clotting abilities and maintaining a normal heart rhythm. Daily calcium intake of 1000mg is recommended during pregnancy. Some of the food items that are high in calcium are milk and milk alternatives (yogurt, cheese), fortified juices, dark green vegetables (broccoli, kale, spinach etc.) and fish with soft bones (salmon, sardines etc.).

With the consumption of calcium it is also important to intake vitamin D as it aids the body to use calcium effectively.

Folic Acid

Folate is a B vitamin that is essential for spine, brain and skill development of the unborn baby. Health Canada recommends consuming a multivitamin that has 400mcg of folic acid during pregnancy. Lack of folic acid during pregnancy may lead to Neural tube defects in the baby. It is actually recommended, that women start taking multivitamin containing folic acid three months prior to becoming pregnant. If your pregnancy was unplanned then it is important to start taking multivitamins high in folic acid as soon as you find out about your pregnancy. Some food that are high in folic acid are lentils, romano beans, black beans, okra, white beans, asparagus, spinach etc.

Airline Pilots having fun?

2012-09-25T14:17:00.004-07:00

I love planes. They always amazed me from a young age. I always wondered what it feels like to fly one. What I saw today was simply too amazing. No offense to any pilots. I mean how can you fly a plane straight for hours at a time? I’m sure it gets boring.

Saw this plane this morning literally zigzagging its way through the sky. Being a plane fanatic, I had to take a shot. I can’t see a reason why or how they agreed on this flight plan. There are no apparent reasons as to why he/she was doing this. There is nothing flying anywhere close to this airliner, so he/she can’t be trying to avoid anything. Someone please explain this to me. I have never seen such behavior in recent years.

Click here for picture

drinking coffee during pregnancy?

2012-09-24T18:22:00.002-07:00

Limiting the intake of caffeine while trying to conceive or during pregnancy is a well-known concept. Most health professionals recommend to limiting the caffeine intake to less than 200 milligrams per day. While some other recommend that it is safe to consume less than 300 milligrams per day.

According to Health Canada, it is recommended that “women of reproductive age consume no more than 300mg of caffeine per day”.

Caffeine leads to some physical effects on the baby. Adults are able to break down and digest the coffee; however this is not the case for the unborn baby. As a result, the caffeine stays in the unborn baby’s bloodstream for a long period of time. Furthermore, the caffeine also increases the unborn baby’s heart rate while slowing down their movement in the uterus. Since caffeine is a diuretic (substance that increases urination), it will reduce the amount of nutrition such as calcium, iron etc. your baby receives. Lastly, high intake of caffeine may increase the chances of miscarriage in a pregnant woman.

My Pregnancy week 33

2012-09-23T18:23:00.001-07:00

I just wrapped up my thirty third week and I can’t believe how fast time is flying by. I only have another six weeks left according to my due date and I’m starting to get very nervous and scared about the whole birth process. I’m still not sure if I’m physically and mentally ready for labour and birth.

I went for my routine checkup and my OB said everything looks great and the baby is growing well. I gained about 25 lbs. in total and I don’t know how much more I’m going to gain in the next couple of weeks.

On Wednesday I went to the third prenatal class with hubby and went over some information regarding birth, contractions and things we can do to minimize the contraction pain. Following that we watched a labour and birth video which really freaked me out. The video was very explicit and showed things that I really did not want to see. It started with the mother to be in pain at home and finally getting to the hospital. The mother to be was trying out different positions, taking hot showers, relaxing on the exercise ball etc. It looked like she was in tremendous amounts of pain and even kept giving up at times. Finally when it came to the time to push, things got really scary and the video literally zoomed in to all the little details. I was really freaked out by the end of the video and hubby felt the same. The entire class looked like they were in shock and the nurse reassured that giving birth is a normal process that has been happening since the beginning of human lives and that we will all be ok. Hubby is very nervous and has already said that he will step out of the labour room if he feels too nervous. So I’m just prepping my mom to stand by me for support. The best part about last week’s class was that the last hour was dedicated to massages and other things that we can try out to ease the labour pain. We tried hand massages, exercise ball, hot/cold packs, pulling you tummy a bit using a scarf and slowly swinging and even slow dancing. The last hour was very relaxing I enjoyed the exercise ball while getting a nice massage from hubby.

Wal-Mart: Treat your employees with some respect

2012-09-23T17:01:00.000-07:00

Seems like every time I decide to write about something it’s to complain but at least I’m convinced that this is very different. This is a review about my shopping experience at Wal-Mart.

Wife is on her 34^th week of pregnancy and we are both almost prepared except a few things to do before our bundle of joy arrives. We went to Wal-Mart Super Centre in Mississauga (800 Matheson Blvd. West) to buy her pajamas. Major intersection is Mavis and Matheson. While we got a great deal on the set, I wasn’t very pleased with the way the express checkout cashiers were being treated by the manager. I’m the most impatient guy in this world, my wife would certainly agree on this but today what I saw was disgusting. There were about 10 cashiers, almost fully staffed and the line was moving very well and within a few minutes, I saw the manager appear.

He was very short and bald with glasses and he started to rush the whole process. He did not allow the customers to even cash out properly and started calling the next one to line up right behind. I personally thought this was putting a lot more pressure on the previous customers. I would understand if some of them were slacking off or holding the line up but everything was going right. He rushed so much to a point that whilst we waited to pay, the customers behind us were able to get served faster than us because our cashier wasn’t done with the previous clients.

The Baby Palace: One stop for all your baby needs

2012-09-23T08:15:00.000-07:00

Once I was ready to shop for baby items we started with Babies R Us and were a bit overwhelmed with their prices. In the meantime, my husband’s co-worker recommended The Baby’s Palace. Prior to visiting the store, I browsed their website and wrote down a list of items I was interested in. We dropped by their Mississauga location and were impressed with the prices as they were very affordable and the products were of good quality. The website does not have all the things that are available at the store so it was a good idea that we dropped by the showroom. The store owner was always available to provide assistance and answered all our questions and the prices were negotiable especially when purchasing a variety of baby items. Price matching is also available at the Baby’s Palace and they provide online registry. It took a bit of time for the registry to be online. This was not due to lack of effort from the owner but rather lack of support from the person who manages the website. However, she was able to get the registry online on time for my shower.

The store sells pretty much all the things you’d need for a baby, ranging from Peg Perego/Baby Jogger strollers, solid wood Bonavtia/CaraMia/Denali baby cribs and furniture, Maxi Cozy/Peg Perego/Safety 1^stcar seats, Sealy/Simmons crib mattress, bath/potty items, crib linen and accessories, diaper bags, feeding accessories, infant toys, playpens, bassinets, cradles etc.

The Baby’s Palace has been in service since 1989 and has two show rooms with over 5,000 sqft located in Mississauga and Brampton. The Mississauga showroom is located inside the Sheridan Mall (2225 Erin Mills Prkwy.) and the Brampton showroom is located by Tomken and Steeles (20 Wilkinson Rd, Unit 5).

Banking your child’s blood cord? benefits and issues!

2012-09-21T20:19:00.004-07:00

Having a baby is probably the most exciting event in every parent’s life and it is no surprise that parents will wonder and worry about their children’s future. Although most of parent’s worries and thoughts revolve around positive aspects some do worry the thought of their children becoming very ill. For this reason, cord blood banking is a topic that is popular among expecting mothers especially those who have family history of serious illness.

After the birth of the baby the placenta is released from the mother’s body. In the past, the placenta was thrown out; however, it was then discovered that the umbilical cord blood supplies blood forming stem cells similar to that of a bone marrow donor. This discovery led to the collection and storage of cord blood cells.

The blood is collected using a small tube that is passed in to the umbilical vein and is placed in storage bags and sent to the cord blood bank. At the cord bank stem cells are separated from blood and are stored for future usage.

Finding a bone marrow donor may be difficult and this thought leads a lot of parents to take precautionary measures and reach out to cord blood banking. Although, it is done in the best interest of the child there are pros and cons involved with cord blood banking.

Some of the pros involved with cord blood banking are as follows:

- Offers peace of mind and acts as an insurance to some extent

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Apple’s iPhone Launch, long lineups and connectivity issues

2012-09-21T11:56:00.004-07:00

The long lineup to grab the most anticipated gadget of the year 2012 is finally here. As expected, the diehard fans of Apple camped overnight or woke up early enough to get their hands on it. This is definitely a good day for Apple. I didn’t get a chance to see what the market share is but I’m convinced that it’s up. I’m used to sit in the comfort of my room and browse the internet to read stories after stories about how people struggle to own a piece of Apple’s toys. This year, I decided to experiment a little and I went to square 1 in Mississauga, Ontario and a little drive around the region of peel (Mississauga, Brampton) to check it out for myself. At 8 am this morning, I saw a huge line up at the Shoppers World (Hurontario/Steeles) Rogers store. As soon as the door opened, they let customers in 1 or 2 at a time and each one of them spent about 30 minutes.

The second part of my visit was to square one and it wasn’t any different than Brampton. The line was incredibly long. I’m sure this scenario was repeated throughout Canada. According to Toronto Star Article” Apple received 2 million orders in the first 24 hours of announcing its release date, more than twice the number for the iPhone4S in the same period when that phone launched a year ago”.

Drop Calls? What you need to know before calling tech support

2012-09-20T17:35:00.004-07:00

In this article, I’m going to try to explain few things on what you can do before engaging technical support personnel, when you experience dropped calls. This doesn’t have to be carrier specific. You can be with any wireless carrier such as bell, Rogers, Telus , Verizon…the network functionality is the same.

Let’s admit it; dropping a call while in the middle of an interesting conversation is never fun. Most people are very quick to call the tech support line and report the problem with the hopes of getting the issue resolved. If the person at the other end don’t’ get the information they need, then you’re almost guaranteed to have a tough time.

First of all, let’s not forget that the carriers in general do NOT guarantee coverage inside your house or building. Many of you are probably shocked? But unfortunately, that’s the truth. There are many reasons for this (I will cover this on a separate article). The exception to this is if you the building you’re in is known to have coverage or signal penetration issue that the carrier was already aware off and has a signal booster or inside coverage system installed. Most of the time, this applies to big companies with thousands of users. The carrier has to justify the cost involved in installing a system like this. It usually ends up costing the carrier thousands of dollars.

Keeping this mind, let’s look at what you need to have prior calling for further support.

Rogers and their Voice Mail access trouble

2012-09-19T19:49:00.003-07:00

What’s happening with the Rogers Network lately? Keep having issues accessing my voicemail. Every time I’m trying to access it, it keeps telling me that it’s not a recognized mail box? I’ve been with them since 2007 and don’t remember going through anything like this. I’ve placed several calls to their tech support and keep being told that they had some upgrade done and the issues are resolved but mine is still not. The frustrating part about all this is that every representative that I’m speaking with seems to have a different explanation for this. How many times can I restart my phone or swap the SIM card into another phone? I don’t even think that they read the notes on the account before advising me on things. What I’m pissed off is that it’s been problem after problem with them lately. Earlier this month, I had issues with very slow speed on the 3G network and it took those 2 weeks to finally admit that there is congestion in the area and they are working to improve this.

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iPhone 5 on Rogers network and LTE plan and Coverage

2012-09-19T19:47:00.002-07:00

I know that everyone is excited with the launch of iPhone 5 but there is something that everyone should know before signing up lengthy contract and getting stuck with it. I’m going to talk about several things you should consider before anything. Keep in mind that this analysis only applies to Rogers Wireless. I can’t really comment on other carriers, as I couldn’t do the research on them.

Coverage:

Why am I talking about coverage? Yeah, we know its Rogers and everyone thinks that their coverage is good. Well, let’s think about this again. The new iPhone 5 is an LTE device (Long Term Evolution). I’m not going to expand what LTE is for now, maybe I’ll write a separate article about that later on. Getting access to the LTE networks increases your browsing experience and the data speed. Think about getting the same speed you get with your high speed internet at home or business on your mobile device. Rogers launched their LTE service in Ottawa in June of 2011 and been expanding the coverage to the rest of the market. By the end of this year, Rogers aims to provide LTE coverage to the top 25 markets. We’re talking big cities like Ottawa, Toronto to Vancouver. What about the rest of the areas? What if you were in Belleville area? Or any other smaller cities were they don’t have the coverage yet?

In my opinion, if you’re going to spend your hard earned money, you should be able to make full use of this type of service regardless of where you are. Now this is not always possible but to the least, they should be able to cover a good chunk of the country. Yes you will always have access to 3G networks but to experience the full potential of the new iPhone 5, you need to experience it on LTE network. Just talk to any of your friends currently using a Samsung Galaxy S III on the LTE network and ask them about their experience.

Activities and Excursions at Maldives

2012-09-18T20:47:00.001-07:00

Snorkelling

We stayed eight days in Maldives, so we planned different activities to keep us busy. Out of the activities one of my favourite activities was coral reef snorkelling. We signed up for it at the water sport centre and we were told to arrive there half an hour earlier for practice. They provided all the snorkelling kits and also taught how to snorkel for those that has never snorkelled before. Following that, we took a Dhoni (Maldivian traditional boat) to the snorkelling spot. After about half an hour of boat ride, the boat stopped in the middle of the ocean and hubby and I jumped off the boat. One of the staff members from the water sports centre guided the way for snorkelling and we were right by the reef edge. It was filled with all sorts of fishes and beautiful coral reefs. The snorkelling was for about 45 minutes and we were able to see fishes throughout the whole 45 minutes. This was one of the best excursions I have ever done and I would recommend it to anyone that visit Sheraton Full Moon Resort and Spa.

Dolphin Watch

The second excursion we did was the dolphin watch. The excursion was in the evening and they took us on the Dhoni (Maldivian traditional boat) to the middle of the ocean. We were told that the dolphins would come and do their tricks as the sun starts going down. We were eagerly waiting for the dolphins to come to the top and finally we heard some people scream and we all ran to the opposite side of the boat and saw a bunch of dolphins just doing what they do best. From that point onwards till the end of the excursion (about 30 minutes), there were no shortage of dolphins. It was just really nice to see them in their natural setting. I would recommend this excursion as well especially those with little kids.

Trip To Paradise Island

2012-09-17T21:07:00.000-07:00

Who doesn’t love traveling? It is one of the best ways to explore and learn about different countries and cultures. My husband and I made it a point that we will travel to a few countries every year as we are both fans of travelling. Our plans didn’t materialize this year due to my pregnancy but we definitely plan to start travelling again after the arrival of our baby, especially since babies can travel free up to the age of two. Also, in our culture they don’t promote travelling during pregnancy. We did consider going away for a week but with my morning sickness, exams and board reports I wasn’t able to do it and by the time I was free I was almost into the end of my second trimester and didn’t want to take a chance.

I have been meaning to write about my past travelling experience and decided to start today. First I will talk about our trip to Maldives considering it was the best trip we have ever been on. We went there end of September and stayed at the Sheraton Full Moon Resort and Spa. It was for our honeymoon and we delayed it by a couple of months since my husband wanted to attend a conference in Hong Kong in October. We booked the overwater bungalow as that was my honey moon dream. We took Emirates and flew on the A380 as my husband is crazy about planes. I didn’t find it to be too special since the economy class is the same as that of every other plane.

cancel doesn't include refund at Host Gator!!

2012-09-17T16:22:00.002-07:00

At the beginning of June, my wife was looking for a good hosting company to run her blog site. She kindly asked me look into this and provide her with some information. She relied on my expertise because I had lots of experience with hosting as I use to run my own site, couple of years ago. Instead of going with a company that I was familiar, I instead told my wife to sign up with HostGator. The reason why I recommend them was partly due to a recommendation by a friend of mine. Little did I know that this would turn into a nightmare that would last two months. Less than two weeks after we signed up, I found out that Bluehost had a better pricing and we decided to follow HostGator’s policy to cancel our services. The cancellation process was very straight forward, a couple of clicks and it was over. I received a confirmation via email a couple of hours later confirming the cancellation and that my funds will be refunded at the next billing cycle.

Two months went by and we still haven’t received anything. I contacted them on a Saturday morning and I was told that the matter would be looked into as a priority and that I will get a follow up. I also found my old emails and reopened the ticket requesting my refund.

Excellent service and Great deal at Future Shop

2012-09-16T19:25:00.002-07:00

My wife always asks me to write about my experience and today I had an amazing one that I must talk about. Yesterday, I took my brother in law to buy a laptop and we ended up at Future Shop in Mississauga (2975 Argentia Rd, Mississauga, ON L5N 0A2). We dealt with a gentleman by the name of Syed who was very courteous and helpful. I was really impressed with the service I received as he took the time to answer all our questions and got what we believed was the best offer ever.

He even arranged to have it ready by noon today. Little did I know that this morning we woke up and realized that my brother in law misplaced the receipt and he also found that the same laptop was going for cheaper than what we paid for by almost 30$ at Best Buy.

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Amazing deal on Laugh & Learn Dance and Play Puppy

2012-09-15T12:37:00.004-07:00

I purchased this product yesterday from the Fisher Price/Mattel Outlet in Mississauga located at 6155 Freemont Blvd. It is selling for $49.94 at Walmart and I bought it for $10 during the blow out sale at the outlet. If any of you are interested, take a trip the outlet before the end of the blow out sale (Sept 15/16, 21/22/23 and 28/29/30).

This product is suitable for children ages 9 months to 36 months. It promotes interactive learning through 25 songs, phrases and games.

How did my Husband quit smoking?

2012-09-15T11:01:00.004-07:00

I just posted an article about the side effects of smoking during pregnancy and wanted to talk a bit about it. From childhood, smoking was a habit that was condemned by my family and luckily my brothers or I never picked up this harmful habit. However, my husband was a smoker from the time I met him and I tried everything possible from talking, making dramas, seeking help etc. to make him quit. However, he kept coming up with excuses or timelines such as I will quit before we get engaged, buy a house, get married etc.

and it never happened. However, in the seven years I have known him, nothing worked and it has been a huge issue between us. Everyday especially during the weekends, he will come up with random excuses to find time away from me to have his cigarettes as I was under the impression that he got rid of the habit already. But a couple of months after I got pregnant, he confessed to me and said that he has not been able to quit and wanted to quit the habit before the arrival of our baby. He wanted to be healthy to live long enough to see our baby grow. He also wanted to make sure that our daughter will never pick up the habit and was worried that she might think its ok to smoke as the dad is a smoker. I was so happy that he spoke the truth about his smoking habit and finally understood the implications.

Exercising while pregnant

2012-09-15T11:00:00.000-07:00

Now that you are pregnant, there is no need to stop exercising and exercising during pregnancy is actually encouraged by doctors. However, it is always important to keep in mind you are carrying another life and it is important to make your exercise moderate. Exercising during pregnancy helps you to handle the weight you have gained during pregnancy and allows you to limit the weight gain to a healthy level. It prepares you for the physical strain related to labour and birth and will help you get back in shape. Also it is not a good idea to get too hot during pregnancy, especially in the early stages as it may cause birth defects. Avoid exercising for a long period of time especially in hot or humid surroundings. It is a wise idea to have lots of liquids (a cold bottle of water) to avoid dehydration. You should not exercise to a point of fatigue so don’t push yourself and stick to moderate exercises. It is possible that you may be told to minimize or stay away from exercising by your doctor due to risky pregnancy. If that is the case, follow the instructions given to you by your physician.

Danger Signs during Fitness Activities

Exercising has its benefits but moderation is recommended during pregnancy. Over exercising may cause harm to yourself and your baby to be, so beware of the danger signs and contact your doctor or midwife if the following sings are present.

Vaginal Bleeding

Although some experience light spotting during pregnancy bleeding is a sign of warning. Bleeding may be related to the following issues:

- miscarriage (especially in the first trimester)

- premature labour

- placental abruption