In the spirit of remembrance, I'd like to dedicate today's posting to the memory of my great-uncle, Lance Corporal John Edward Chew, who fought in WW1 and died of his wounds, aged just 24, on 22 July, 1916 in France.
Also, his younger brother, my grandfather, Gunner Ernest Chew, who died of his wounds, aged 29, on 10 January, 1944 in Tunisia.
R.I.P.
How cool is this?
Question: What do black leather, wine bottles and group therapy have in common?
Answer: They're all topics that are covered in this week's Blogging Boomers Carnival. And if that's piqued your curiousity, head over to The Boomer Chronicles for the full story.
Sarah Susanka
A drunken French sommelier gives a demonstration of how to open a bottle of wine without a corkscrew...
I just made a loan to someone in Cambodia using a revolutionary new website called Kiva (www.kiva.org).
You can go to Kiva's website and lend to someone across the globe who needs a loan for their business -maybe for raising goats, selling vegetables at market or making bricks. Each lender profile has a picture of the entrepreneur, a description of their business and how they plan to use the loan so you know exactly how your money is being spent - and you get updates letting you know how the entrepreneur is going on.
The best part is, when the entrepreneur pays back their loan you get your money back so you can lend it to someone else - and Kiva's loans are managed by microfinance institutions on the ground who have a lot of experience doing this, so you can trust that your money is being handled responsibly.
I just made a loan to an entrepreneur named Mrs. Long Pork Village Bank Group in Cambodia. They still need another $125.00 to complete their loan request of $2,425.00 (you can loan as little as $25.00!). Help me get this entrepreneur off the ground by clicking on the link below to make a loan to Mrs. Long Pork Village Bank Group too:
http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&action=about&id=144900
It's finally easy to actually do something about poverty - using Kiva I know exactly who my money is loaned to and what they're using it for. And most of all, I know that I'm helping them build a sustainable business that will provide income to feed, clothe, house and educate their family long after my loan is paid back.
Join me in changing the world - one loan at a time.
Thanks!
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What others are saying about www.Kiva.org:
'Revolutionising how donors and lenders in the US are connecting with small entrepreneurs in developing countries.'
-- BBC
'If you've got 25 bucks, a PC and a PayPal account, you've now got the wherewithal to be an international financier.'
-- CNN Money
'Smaller investors can make loans of as little as $25 to specific individual entrepreneurs through a service launched last fall by Kiva.org.'
-- The Wall Street Journal
'An inexpensive feel-good investment opportunity...All loaned funds go directly to the applicants, and most loans are repaid in full.'
-- Entrepreneur Magazine
Blogging Boomers is being hosted this week by our most glamourous bloggers - the ladies at Fabulous after Forty. There can't be many blog carnivals that deal with subjects which range from swamps to violin lessons, so why not head over there now? You're sure to find something of interest.
It takes 10,000 hours of practice to achieve excellence. Retirement 'frees up' between 2,000 and 3,000 hours per year. What would you like to become excellent at?
Dreams or excuses? You can't have both. Excuses take up time, energy and divert us while deceiving us into thinking we're being prudent. Excuses are never prudent. However, they can insidiously take over if we don't consciously choose to give our dreams a higher priority.
Barbara Winter