OK, I have to come clean. I’m a sucker for licorice. Strange thing is, the rest of the family hate it with a vengeance, which of course means more for me. Boo hoo.

When I was a kid, licorice came in two kinds: as a long rope, about a metre of it, bought from the school canteen and guaranteed to leave you bloated and black of tongue for the rest of the day. The other way was chocolate bullets – milk choc coated little pieces about an inch long, bought from the local deli for one cent each.

And at this point I must digress. In Australia, as in the rest of the world, regional differences determine the term for the convenience store. Here in South Australia, it’s a deli – which is short for Delicatessen – a place for buying lollies, tissues, the things you ran out of, and where truckies stop for sandwiches and sticky buns at lunch time. The place that’s open for extended hours. In eastern Australia they are called “Milk Bars” (go figure). In the rest of the world it’s the mini-mart, the 7-eleven… and so on.

When I was a kid we would take 20 cents of pocket money and go pick from the lolly counter – a few of those at two for a cent, a few of those at one cent each… the 2 cents each stuff was way extravagant, you never got your moneys worth from those. Twenty cents was enough to ensure a sugar high lasting a whole day, and feeling slightly sick for much of that time as well.

When I were a lad, chocolate bullets featured high on the list. They were cheap, and chocolate, and licorice. What more could anybody ask for?

Imagine my surprise, then, when the lady of the house came home with Ricci Dark Chocolate Coated Licorice. Maybe she likes me! After all, nobody else in the house will touch it. I’ve never heard of the manufacturer: Ricci Remond Chocolate Co – but they are Australian and from what I can find seem to have been around for some time. They have no web site, so it’s hard to find more about them.

Anyhow – the licorice!

The picture does not quite do justice to the sheer size of these pieces. They are huge – about 4 cm (1.5 inches) long, and the thickness of my little finger. The chocolate bullets of my youth were mere babies compared to these. As you can also see – there have been no glazing agents used, and being packed in a plain bag they are quite discoloured from being knocked about. No matter, it’s the taste that counts.

And here, I have to declare that the chocolate is a bit of a disappointment. There is plenty of it, but for being “dark” it is only 47%. And the licorice flavour tends to dominate. The licorice, though, is good. Very nice, not too sweet, and not too black. I could make myself seriously ill on these.

Given that I’m the only one in the house that will eat these, I can see that the huge 300 g pack is going to last me a long time.

It’s not every day that you get a delivery from Mars, so I was quite looking forward to seeing what was inside the Martian jiffy bag that arrived on my doorstep. What we have is four varieties of hot chocolate based on familiar Mars brands, each in their own cup and ready to drink. Once you’ve microwaved them for 90 seconds, that is.

Mars are currently marketing these as “your perfect partner for Valentines Day”, which frankly is a little odd. The press release also describes them as “sumptuous” and “gourmet”, which is perhaps a little optimistic as well. They’re certainly not words I would use to describe Mars Bars or Maltesers.

I’ve never had one of these – or any of Mars’ drinks range – and to be honest, I was sceptical from the beginning. Do I really want a Mars Bar flavoured drink? And wouldn’t it be easier, more efficient and more environmentally friendly to distribute them in packet form and have you add your own milk?

Those concerns aside, I decided to try a couple. Removing the lid of the plastic cup, the first thing you notice is just how thick these things are. In their unheated state, they’re practically solid.

I tried the Galaxy variety first. After having followed the instructions to the letter, the first thing I did was scald my mouth. Even after leaving the drink for a few minutes, it was still piping hot, while the cup itself stayed deceptively cool. I sat and watched the little marshmallows melt away to almost nothing before it had cooled enough to drink. Perhaps I just have an über powerful microwave.

As hot chocolate drinks go, it was passable but nothing special. I tend to make my own hot chocolate, so of course this was much, much sweeter than I’m used to.

The Galaxy flavour was noticeable though. And although it lost most of that thickness in the heating process, it was still quite creamy.

The other varieties all taste pretty much how you’d expect and come complete with marshmallows, Maltesers or tiny Mars Bars to float or dunk in your drink. They all have their own flavours which do actually resemble what it says on the packaging but the main thing they have in common is that sweetness which begins to get a bit sickly toward the end of the cup.

Those with an extra sweet tooth will probably love them. I suspect you’d keep a stash of them in the office kitchen or the cupboard at home for a warm chocolatey sugar rush old a cold day when you just can’t be bothered to make a real hot chocolate. They do have those little plastic lids with small drinking hole, so you can make them at home then spill them all over people on the Tube if you like too. They’re not really my thing though… and I certainly wouldn’t give one to my Valentine.

I thought I should get into Valentine’s Day mode to see what the local stores had to offer for amorous Canadians. The majority of it was the usual stuff, just repackaged into heart-shaped boxes, but something did catch my eye in Laura Secord – Sex And The City licensed chocolates. After all, who wouldn’t want to eat what Carrie, Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte eat? Exactly.

I picked the smaller of the two logo-emblazoned pink boxes which had four chocolates, each apparently being the favourite of the four main characters in the show. There is also a larger hatbox-shaped box which combines these signature chocolates with various truffles, but my budget couldn’t stretch that far because these are really rather expensive. The small box comes in at just over ten dollars, and considering that is only for four chocolates, they had better be some pretty memorable chocolates.

The whole thing is nicely packaged, with a very substantial box which is barely half-filled by the plastic tray that holds the four chocolates. The actual chocolates continue the theme with appropriate designs like a cityscape, leopard print and, of course, shoes. So it does well in the looks department at least. But let’s move onto the feature presentation – the chocolates.

Carrie’s favourite is a Milk Chocolate Cosmopolitan, and it really is disappointing. The flavour is hardly there at all and the thick creamy filing just disappears amidst the milk chocolate. Most people would be hard pressed to recognise this as a Cosmopolitan, especially fans of the cocktail.

Miranda’s favourite is a big improvement. It is a Dark Chocolate Caramel Almond, with a runny caramel centre that comes somewhere between marzipan and Amaretto on the taste spectrum. Definitely the most interesting of the foursome.

Samantha’s favourite, a Milk Chocolate Champagne, is not significantly different from Carrie’s, with a thick, sweet cream that at least has a champagne-like taste. The sweetness is almost too much though and it isn’t something I feel the urge to eat again and again.

And finally, there’s Charlotte’s favourite, a Dark Chocolate Lemon Raspberry. The filling is rich and definitely finds a good balance between the two flavours, but when combined with the dark chocolate shell, it gets a little lost because that initial burst of sharpness fades away too quickly. Close, but not quite.

Worth the money? Definitely not. This really is a case of style over substance, making it the perfect gift for Valentine’s Day. I guess I’m just a romantic at heart…

I love Chococo. They manage to strike the perfect balance between ‘hand made’ and ‘luxury gift’, and this attractive little box is the perfect illustration of that. This is their medium sized ‘Love Box’ (stop giggling at the back!) which contains a total of sixteen chocolates of six different varieties.

We first reviewed a selection of their wonderful chocolates last October, and Claire Burnet was kind enough to send some samples of their Valentines offerings this year.

When you remove the colourful lid from the box, you’re greeted with this…

The six different chocolates in the box are:

Raspberry Riot
Raspberry & framboise liqueur in a dark chocolate ganache, rolled in freeze-dried raspberries.
Wow, there’s a lot of fruit here! The entire outer layer is raspberry and it literally explodes with flavour in your mouth. The ganache is rich and smooth with just a hint of sweetness to counteract the tart fruit flavours. Perfect.

Tate Heart
A hazelnut praline heart decorated with edible silver leaf.
I’ve seen plenty of edible gold on chocolate before, but I think this is the first time I’ve ever eaten silver leaf. A beautifully smooth and soft praline in delicious milk chocolate.

Dotty Apricotty
A dark chocolate heart with sundried apricots marinated in brandy.
Another wonderful combination of flavours. The subtlety sweet apricot goes with the delicious dark chocolate perfectly. I could eat a whole box of these.

Caramel Kiss
A milk chocolate dome with dulce de leche caramel.
The sweetest chocolate of the selection here by far, but another taste combination that works perfectly. The dulce de leche caramel has the flavour of condensed milk, but the lightness of a truffle. To be taken in small doses only!

Fizzy Duck
A dark chocolate marc de champagne truffle dusted with Paraguayan fair trade sugar.
I’m not the biggest fan of marc de champagne, but this is divine. The truffle is soft and light and the shell has a gentle crispiness to it.. yet it melts away to nothing in the mouth.

Perfect Passion
Passion fruit puree in a milk chocolate square with a flower transfer design.
Another wonderfully fruity chocolate. The passion fruit is a set jelly in the centre of this beautifully decorated chocolate. Sweet and tangy in a creamy milk chocolate package. Yum.

I can’t recommend these chocolates highly enough. The flavour combinations work exceptionally well, the presentation is top notch and the ingredients are so fresh that Chococo won’t even send these out until February 10th. So you can be sure your gift will still be in perfect condition for the 14th.

Without doubt, this is my pick of this year’s Valentine’s offerings so far.

Another offering from those people whü like to mis-spell words in order to get more umlauts on their packaging – yes, it’s Gü time again.

This time I bought a box of three versatile little chocolate tortes. ‘Eat hot or cold’ says the box. I was told that chilled they’re smooth, melt-in-the-mouth and deeply satisfying (only with far more e’s than I’m prepared to type). Warm one up and it’s merely mouthwateringly rich and moreish. Naturally, as I had three, I was free to try one each way and have the third in my preferred style. Result!

Slide one out of the box and tyou have a rather unassuming little pud.

My eye was drawn to the dimpled top – ideal for a blob of cream or ice cream, or maybe for filling with your favourite liqueur?

As I said, they’re not the biggest puds in the world – take a look.

But what they are is dense. Very dense. Cutting into one revealed a dark, sticky interior. They’re made with a quarter chocolate, and that chocolate is 53% cocoa, so they’re not slacking on the chocolate content. When I bit into it I immediately thought better of chewing. It’s very rich, very gooey, and very chocolatey, with an underlying sweetness. Bear in mind that half of this little pud is made up of sugar and chocolate.

Heated up as directed and it’s a different story. They’re designed to be microwaved so that the outside keeps its shape while the inside melts, and that’s exactly what happens. Topped with a big blob of vanilla ice cream, they’re a deceptively filling dessert. Heating releases the aroma as well, delivering a much more satisfying experience in sensory terms. A dash of coffee liqueur (I used Patron XO Café, but other coffee drinks are available) and a blob of cream transformed it into a little gourmet treat.

I can imagine a number of variations one could put together using these little chocolate tortes, and they have enough in the way of rich chocolate flavours to accommodate the odd experimental addition. I’m getting to quite like some of Gü’s desserts, and this shows that they can do more than produce a decent chocolate mousse.

Butlers sent me a veritable shed load of samples following Ashleigh’s review of their 70% Organic Ginger bar the other week. At €2.45 per 100g bar, this range is a little cheaper than the dark organic bar that Ashleigh tried, so I’m guessing it’s part of their more ‘every day’ range of bars.

This is a 32% milk chocolate with small pieces of ‘butterscotch’ embedded throughout the bar. Personally, I wouldn’t call it butterscotch, it’s more of a hard caramel. Like crushed up Werthers Originals.

The bar itself is divided into large flat squares, and as you can see, this particular bar arrived a little the worse for wear. Coincidentally, this is pretty much how it looks in the picture on the wrapper too.

Not the prettiest looking bars perhaps, but as it turns out it’s quite pleasant.

Bite into a square and the first thing you notice is the satisfying crunch from all the little butterscotch pieces. Although barely noticeable when looking at the chocolate, it turns out those little pieces are just the right size to give you that crunchiness.

The chocolate is smooth and creamy and although not as rich as some of the higher percentage milk chocolates I’ve had recently, it’s rather nice. I could easily demolish a whole bar without thinking about it.

The butterscotch pieces don’t add quite as much flavour as I’d like, but what there is is nice enough. A little more smoky, caramelly, buttercotchyness wouldn’t have gone amiss though.

This is a really nice chocolate to enjoy with a cup of tea. It’s not a luxury product, but falls squarely into the “well above average” category.

Would someone tell me why there is so much rainy weather in Arizona in January? I just don’t understand it. The only advantage it has for me is an increased enjoyment of such life’s comforts as warm hats and hot chocolate. Truly ideal timing for Steven Meyers from Boulevards to send me over some of their dairy-free, sugar-free hot chocolate. In existence since just 2005, Boulevards has a line of hot chocolate mixes (with cold mixes coming in the spring) designed to present this pleasurable beverage with quality ingredients that stay on the healthy side.

Hence all the labels and logos on the container: USDA Organic, dairy-free, sugar-free, Kosher, and no whey or rice fillers. It can all be a little heavy if you aren’t asking for all these qualities, but it was the cat that got more of my attention. Maybe I’m just a sucker for animals, but he has that spark of naughtiness in his open-mouthed smile that makes him a worthy mascot. Turn the container around and you’ll find the brief ingredients list: organic erythritol, organic cocoa, organic maltodextrin, organic guar gum. Erythritol is the naturally-occurring sweetener used in place of sugar.

Peeling off the lid, the mix is a rough powder with little sugar-look-alike crystals. It smells something like Ovaltine, if my memory serves correctly, a sweeter cocoa powder smell. The directions instruct one tablespoon per cup (making 20 servings). I filled my mug to what I guessed was about a cup, but the tablespoon didn’t seem enough, so being too lazy to get a second spoon, I just poured a little more mix in. And then I chided my laziness when too much powder fell into the cup, worried that I had ruined my tasting. Yet I had no reason to fear. Being prone to add extra mix to my hot chocolate, this excess ended up the right amount.

The mix has a tendency to clump up as you stir it in, yet a small layer of welcoming foam forms on top after it’s all mixed. The taste is creamy, light on chocolate. This is the mild-flavored one, though; there are also dark versions. The erythritol gives it, to me, a slight odd smell and taste, but it’s preferable to stevia, not so strong as that. This chocolate feels good to drink, in the end. No sugar/sweet rush, no chocolate overkill if that’s something you avoid.

So it works. A standard hot chocolate that will meet your not-so-standard needs or wants with at least one of those numerous labels.

The first thing that you have to do if you find yourself in this situation is educating yourself on the process of recovery. This means that you will have to learn about the factors that have caused you to have bad credit.

Likely Causes of Bad Credit

There are a lot of things that are used to calculate a credit score, but a few of those things are the most likely culprits. I’ll focus on the most likely causes and you can check your own credit report to evaluate how they line up with your credit profile.

High revolving credit balances are one of the most likely causes of your low score. As soon as you have balances over 35% of your available credit, it will start to affect you negatively. The higher you allow your balances to get, the more it will affect your credit score. Paying those balances down will have a huge positive impact on your credit. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the terminology, revolving credit accounts are basically credit cards.

Late payments are also a killer and are high on the list of common issues causing bad credit. As soon as you have made a few payments that are 60+ days late, it’s really going to start affecting you. While you usually can’t undo that past, you can make up a lot of ground by making on-time payments. If you will commit now to never make another late payment, you’ll find that your credit score can start to improve within a few months.

My Personal Credit Turn-around

I personally went from having a credit score in the 500 range to having one in the 800 range. However, this doesn’t happen overnight. I didn’t make a late payment for years and years – I’d say I haven’t made a late payment in six or seven years. I now no longer have any late payments on my credit report. I also have balances that are very low on all of my credit card accounts.

In the past, I simply wasn’t responsible financially and I had to make a change. That change wasn’t easy to make. It was worth it. I don’t have to worry anymore about applying for any kind of loan.

If you are struggling to re-establish your credit, secured credit cards can really help. I personally used them before I could qualify for regular cards.

From what I’ve tasted so far, I’ve come to really appreciate Soma Chocolatemaker with their rather splendid bars created from small batches of chocolate made in their Toronto factory. Nevertheless, there is still something really intimidating about any 100% chocolate. Just that number and the realisation that there is nothing to dull or sweeten the flavour of the cocoa beans. This is a really thin line to walk along because disaster lies on either side. There is absolutely no room for error. And Soma absolutely nails it with their Arcana 100% bar.

Even from the outside, it looks like a special bar of chocolate. Their futuristic, space-food-esque packaging is rather appealing, not to mention it does make sure that the contents are fresh too. And once it is torn open, the rich, rich aroma comes flooding out in an almost overwhelming way. A good time to pause and consider if you really want to do this. My nose says yes.

The bar might be a little on the small side at a mere 45 grams, but this isn’t the kind of chocolate that you wolf down. It has a nice high gloss and when snapped, it breaks cleanly without much crumbling, suggesting that this isn’t going to be overly dry like some high percentage bars. In fact, it is a remarkably smooth and satisfying chocolate that doesn’t quite hide its pedigree but doesn’t scream 100% either.

Soma use four different types of beans from Papua New Guinea, Ghana, Madagascar and Ecuador, and that is reflected in the complexity of the flavour. It starts off, not surprisingly, with a rush of bitterness that doesn’t last nearly as long as expected. Instead, it changes into a second wave of burnt fruitiness with warm, leathery undertones that continue to shift in surprisingly subtle ways. And those almost constant shifts are what will keep you coming back for nibble after nibble until the whole bar is gone. Eating a 100% bar really shouldn’t be this easy.

And now it’s all gone and I find myself still wanting more, signifying that this is an extraordinary bar of chocolate. If you are feel the need to experiment with the darkest and purest of chocolate, you should search some Arcana 100% out because you will not be disappointed.

I used to think of Riesens as, if not gourmet, rich treats to be easily had in the candy isle. Chewy, chocolaty caramel was and is plenty pleasing to my palate on idea alone. I did not, however, know anything before about the company that makes Riesen, August Storck KG. It’s a German company that’s listed as Germany’s top candy and confectionary producer. They’re the same people who make the Werther’s Original hard candies.

Coming in a bag both basic and bland, the quality of these caramels is nothing sensational. Nothing worth particular note. Except. When you put one in your mouth, you fight away your criticism. The chocolate caramel is stiff, very stiff, and the chocolate coating melts quickly. Yet in this case, these two facts turn out to be positives. The chocolate is less than satisfactory, so who would want to taste more of it, anyway? Stiff caramel means it lingers, slowly softening, allowing you to alternate between sucking on it as with a hard candy and lightly chewing it as with a gum. My personal beliefs tell me this is the only way to eat a Riesen. A single one can last so long like this.

I find it amusing that the caramel has a better chocolate taste than the chocolate itself. It has a deep taste, a flavor close to cocoa powder, with any sweetness branching off from there and therefore kept to a minimum. There are light milky undertones from the caramel, but that’s it. Which seems to be part of the Riesen’s charm. How many caramel chocolates are out there? The only one I can think of is Amella, and what they do is very different, so it isn’t too common an idea. Then, chocolate and caramel could so easily make a sickly combination, but they don’t in a Riesen. Plus, they’re one of those things you can bring with you anywhere. To enjoy at the bus stop, at the mall, at the office, in between classes, wherever you are.

Another in the seemingly endless parade of Galler chocolates, these minis are a step up from the previously reviewed Bouchée bars in terms of taste. Here we have that perfect little treat to go with your morning coffee, or possibly something dark to enjoy alongside a post prandial espresso?

The three most obvious flavours are the pralines. Noir at 60% cocoa, a milk, and a creamy white chocolate. Each in itself a fine example, and really the only matter is personal preference. I enjoyed the milk, disliked the white, and preferred the dark. No surprises there then.

The Café Liégeois turned out to be a dark chocolate exterior which was home to a mild (and very light) coffee mousse filling. The filling worked as a great counterpoint to the bittersweetness of the chocolate.

I could almost have taken a dislike to the Noix de Coco on sight. A white chocolate shell and coconut filling – hardly my cup of tea now. However I was pleasantly surprised by a dark filling housing toasted coconut which was never too sweet. The rich cocoa flavours were enough to balance the sweetness, and the flavours of the toasted coconut were natural and refreshingly bright.

Another white exterior/dark interior pairing which turned out to be a surprise winner was the Manon. It was sweeter than the coconut version and the filling was very busy with fruit and nut pieces held in a coffee flavoured centre. Something I could see working with a good strong coffee.

So just who are these chocolates aimed at? I can only imagine groups of women on the continent having friends over in the late morning for proper, authentic coffee served in small cups, each accompanied by one of these mini bars balanced on the saucer in place of the more usual brown biscuit. Similarly, I might consider using these to serve with coffee at the end of a meal. They’ve clearly been created to have with a coffee. The question is, will customers get into the habit of having the odd naughty Belgian chocolate treat with their mid morning pick-me-up? These are still quite pricey chocolates at around 45p per piece, and as such they strike me as being the preserve of the wealthier chocolate lover, or as an indulgence or gift for the coffee drinker in your life. They’d certainly make a change from socks for Dad, and why shouldn’t men get chocolate gifts as well?

1. Unlike secured credit cards, regular credit cards have lower interest rates, monthly and annual fees and higher limits.
2. A personal credit card may affect your credit positively, but it does nothing to strengthen the credit of your company. A good credit history is vital for a growing company; especially one that may need an influx of cash for expansion at some point.
3. A business credit card can be issued to numerous employees, making buying company paper, ink, pens etc convenient. It’s especially convenient for a partnership company. As the cards are issued under certain names or numbers, the purchase trails are accountable individually.
4. Business reward credit cards are amazingly beneficial to a company. A business owner can usually choose which rewards work best for their company, including: mileage bonuses, cash back and discount with restaurants (for bromancing clients) etc.

Finding the best unsecured business credit card isn’t as easy as it should be. Searching in Google can take ages if you want to wade through page after page of offers. The best option for a new company is to decide what type of credit card will work best for their company. This means deciding an interest rate you’re willing to settle for, what type of annual fee is acceptable (this is sometimes deductible), rewards vs. fees (chances are that if you have a ‘rewards’ card, there is an annual fee).

It’s easier to find a business credit if you’re looking for a certain type of reward card, for example. It’s simply a matter of searching for “business card reward airline miles” or something similar. Remember when searching the Internet that most websites have an interest in giving you the names of credit card companies they’re affiliated with (meaning they get a fee for referring you). While the companies they recommend may have fantastic offers, they aren’t a comprehensive list.

In the end, the best business credit card offers are probably going to be through your lender. Why? Because they want your full relationship and they’ll compromise to get it. Don’t be afraid to ask for exactly what you want from your lender. It can sometimes be most beneficial to have one of every type of account with this lender. This doesn’t mean you have to close other accounts, by the way. Considering the vast discounts available for having a full relationship with a lender (checking account, business account, credit card etc.), it’s worth asking what is available.

Good luck with your new business!

Credit card debt can be extremely easy to overlook. After all, one only has to pay the minimum, which never seems like much. That new fifty inch television is only costing you thirty bucks a month (and another thousand dollars in interest by the time it’s paid off). Knowing what you’ll pay in interest rate charges may convince you to eliminate credit card debt. However, I’m more convinced that knowing all the extra goodies that come with consolidating and/or legally eliminating credit card debt will be the ultimate persuasion.

Credit card debt is one of the easiest credit problems to fix. Why? Because you have numerous choices in order to do so. Consolidation companies can reduce the total interest paid across the board and create a single payment (however, they cannot help with mortgage or car loan debt). Credit cards have minimum payments and those go down as you pay off the balance. That means there is incentive to lowering the balance (more cash in pocket). Lastly, credit cards can be opened and closed relatively easily, giving opportunities to do balance transfers to lower interest rate cards. So while there are plenty of ways to eliminate or reduce credit card debt, what you’re asking yourself is: how did WE eliminate ours?

We did a rolling credit card debt elimination trick. We had five cards that we wished to get rid of, all of these belonging to me. Of the five cards we picked the ones with the highest interest rates and balance. This was our go-to card, meaning every extra payment we had went to this card, plus the minimum. The rest of the cards only had the minimum payments made. When that card was paid off, we took the used the amount we had been paying ($150 extra + $46 minimum) and applied that to the next card (plus the minimum). Each card was closed upon balance-in-full-payment. This is, in my opinion, the best way to eliminate credit card debt, legally and inexpensively. You could pay the extra money to a consolidation firm, they will, of course, work out better terms with your credit card companies. On the other hand that also has a negative impact on your credit report.

Rolling credit card debt payments is the cheapest, safest and most convenient way to eliminate credit card debt, in my opinion.

Firstly, consolidation companies usually combine all the debt and the borrower pays them a set amount every month. The company then disperses the cash among the lenders. Having the convenience of paying all the bills to one spot is very helpful when you’re overwhelmed with bills and due dates and minimum payments.
The second bonus of using debt consolidation companies is having them work out deals with creditors. The most important bonus, actually, is their ability to reduce interest rates and even, sometimes, the total balance due.

There are a lot of negatives to working with companies that do debt consolidation. It’s important to be aware of them before you make the decision to use them.
Once you accept the company’s terms, you’ll be cutting up your credit cards and closing the accounts as they’re paid off. I have yet to find a consolidation company that allows any credit, in any form, to be kept or applied for during the course of the consolidation.

If you have anything other than revolving credit; i.e. bad checks, mortgages, car loans etc., they aren’t included in the consolidation. This means you’ll have to make those payments separately.

Hidden into some of the terms and agreements at many consolidation companies is a provision to make a “voluntary extra payment”. Be aware this isn’t a necessary payment and you should request anything like it to be removed from the contract, or go through a different company.
Consolidation through a firm isn’t the only option for someone with credit problems. A borrower can actually arrange to lower interest rates and make deals with creditors to pay off an account. A specific company is not always necessary.

There are also ways to pay off debt quickly and efficiently without consolidation; i.e. a rolling payment plan. in this type of payment plan you make the maximum extra payment to one particular card until it’s paid off (paying the minimum on others). Once it’s paid off you take all the money (including the minimum payment) and apply that to the next card. You’ll always pay the same amount total, but each card will get a different appropriation of the funds depending on if they’re at the top of the list to pay off. Once you pay off one card, it’s exhilarating enough to usually spur higher payments to the next.

So how do you get a mortgage with bad credit history? Just doing a simple search on the Internet will garner hundreds of lenders willing to accept your application. But there are implications to applying to different lenders, not the least of which is your credit score being lowered further. In order to get a mortgage loan with bad credit, there are some guidelines to follow.

1. Get a credit report, and not the free kind! Your credit report reveals a lot about your credit history, some even incorrect. The free kind gives you all the information about your debt history, but a paid version includes a FICO score. The FICO score is the magic number that accounts for some 80-90% of the mortgage loan decision.
The scores range from 350 (awful/terribad) to 950 (superduperawesome). If your score is 350-499, you’re better off moving home with mom, rather than getting a mortgage loan. Even at 500-619, your credit score is so poor you can end up with $200,000 extra interest paid.

Knowing your credit score will allow you to visit lender websites and see what you’ll qualify for in terms of their interest rates. Most lenders have this information prominently displayed (and most of the time it’s a scary thought to get a home loan with 20% interest rates).

2. Review your credit report for errors. If you find erroneous entries, follow the instructions with the reporting agency to dispute the transaction. Every entry affects your credit in a different way. Removing even one bad credit entry can raise your credit score 50 points (lowering the bad credit interest offering by as much as .05%, which can be $50,000 in interest).

3. Configure you debt to income ratio. Excluding utilities, create a ratio of your total monthly debt divided by your total gross monthly income. If this figure is above 36%, you’re in the nono area of credit risks. Ideally you want this score to be around 28%. Pay off and close low limit credit cards, wait to apply for a mortgage loan until you have a chance to reduce your debt to income ratio.

4. Learn about the different types of loans and which are beneficial in your situation. Check into the terms “ARM” “FIXED INTEREST RATES” and other terminology. There are literally hundreds of ways a mortgage loan can work and sometimes getting a bad credit mortgage loan will be approved with only fixed or ARM rates. Each lender has their own standards.

Understanding how to get a mortgage loan with bad credit will, I hope, make you consider repairing your credit before the application process begins. Repairing credit is fairly easy and very productive. A year of secured card payments may save you thousands of dollars, as will reducing your debt to income ratio.

Lowering credit card debt isn’t difficult. There are several ways to do it, some expensive, some cheap and some free. Consolidation services are perhaps the most expensive, although not overly so if you go with a not for profit organization. Keep in mind that not for profit does not mean inexpensive in every case! Check what the charges are before you engage in the contract. Oftentimes there is a buried paragraph in the contract which states that you will make one whole monthly payment as a “voluntary” contribution to the company. That’s sort of like baking a hundred cupcakes for a church bake sale only to learn a ten of them are going directly into the mouth of the organist, for free! Request a total amount of fees be stated up front and that you are not making any “voluntary” extra payments (or involuntary, for that matter).

It’s not necessary to lower credit card debt using a consolidation firm. You can negotiate terms with credit card lenders on your own. Simply call the lender and request a lower interest rate. It’s not always fruitful, but neither is opening oysters for pearls. You’d still open one if you the opportunity presented itself, right? Present your own opportunity, call your credit card lender and ask for better terms.

Lastly, there is a great way to lower credit card debt with no cost, it’s what is called a rolling credit card pay off. Make the minimum payment on all your credit cards except one, the highest interest/balance card. On that card make the minimum payment plus any extra you can afford (say $100). So now you’re making around $143 payments to the card (remember, you’re including the minimum). When that one is paid off you carry that $143 over to the next card plus that minimum payment. The next card would get a payment of $173 every month, for example, until it was paid off. Never reduce the amount of the payment, even if the minimum goes down. You’ll eventually have all your cards paid off (close them out if they have low limits by the way!), giving your credit score a boost and allowing you to refinance your home and car at lower rates.

For most people, bad credit is a slow winding road that needs to be carefully maneuvered through. The road is dusty and hard to navigate, but eventually, if you follow the right road signs you’ll get to the main road.

For other people, bad credit is a roller coaster with no brakes. The hills are steep climbs and when you get to the top, you have a moment’s breath before plunging into stomach churning depths. Weeks before the bill comes you wait with trepidation, trying to scrape together money to pay it. You finally get enough to make that minimum payment, barely, and breathe easier until the next month. Meanwhile, the roller coaster has added a new twist; another bill, which you’re unable to pay.
Eventually, when the roller coaster stops and you’re wobbling off the platform of paid bills and past due notices, the amusement park that is your life, hands you a credit report which has you thinking something along the lines of “wow, I didn’t know you could get negative credit”. Cheer up because you may be off the rollercoaster, but the fun is only starting.

All those past due bills, which took you months to pay off, are now showing on your credit report. The mortgage company has decided to up your interest because they ran your credit report and decided you’re a bigger risk than before. Your car lender soon follows suit. And now that poor houseguest has moved in and made itself at home.

Credit cards for poor credit rating borrowers are one of the best ways to make that poor credit houseguest move out. How does having a credit card with a poor credit rating help? Well you need to show those nasty credit report people (who, by the way, sent you that terrible guest) that you can make payments in a timely manner. A credit card is the best way to do that because it’s a revolving account. This means you can pay it off, use it again, pay it off, use it again…and all of that payment history goes on your credit report.

Stop bad credit from ruining your life. Once you’ve caught up on your bills, try and get a secured credit card. It will go a long way into showing creditors you’re a worthwhile candidate for loans and low interest rates.

A credit card company makes money on customers that carry balances over. If you’re a consumer that pays their bills every month on time and in full, leaving no revolving balance, you’ll have a stellar credit report, but you may not be offered the best credit cards available. A smart lender will send you a card with an annual fee and 0% interest rate, they may even tack on extra fees that accrue annually. A person that has a lower credit score, but still good (say in the 650-720 range), that keeps a rolling balance on a credit card will probably get a card that has 0% interest, no annual fees and probably gives miles and/or points to use at various merchants.

So why would a person with worse credit get a better deal? Credit card companies make money from interest payments and annual fees. If a consumer has very poor credit, they’re offered the high interest, high annual fee cards. A different consumer with good credit, but pays the entire balance every month, would be offered a card with 0% interest but an annual fee. Yet another type of consumer has great credit and pays the minimum payment or a little more every month. This last consumer is the ideal customer that every bank wants to keep. (Notice I used the word “offered”, because a consumer can always request a better deal).

Consumer credit cards applications are sent out to customers based on their credit history, but not necessarily the credit score. Unlike a mortgage or car loan, the credit score is not the most important factor in getting better card offers. If you receive an offer in the mail and it says “0% interest”, check the fine print for fees. If you have great credit, don’t be afraid to ask for the exact card you want. Get a card that accrues miles and points with purchase, but has no annual fee. Seek out the lowest interest rate possible. However, do not apply for several cards. Every application for credit lowers your credit score. A simple request for the credit card application of your choice with different lenders will let you read over the details of the card terms and conditions, allowing you to decide which card works for your lifestyle.

Credit cards come in a wide variety of brands. The most familiar and largest is Visa. Visa is the most prominently used card worldwide. It has various fees, interest rates and approval guidelines, depending on which lender from whom you received your card. Next is MasterCard, while not as popular as Visa, it is generally accepted most places. Discover is a less widely used card, but has a nice cash back bonus for transactions. Discover, Visa and MasterCard are similar in nature. One card that differs from all three is the American Express card. This card has no limit and can be used just about anywhere. It generally has very high interest rates, a fairly high annual fee and is best for people that can expect to pay off the balance at the next due date. There are other smaller cards, most are only used frequently in the UK and Australia, but still are available worldwide. You can find more information at each of the brand’s websites.

When it comes to filling out a Visa card application, you’ll do so through the lender and not directly at Visa’s website. Each lender has its own terms which can include monthly, yearly or biweekly annual fees, various interest rates, late fees etc. You can find more information through the lenders themselves. If you’re looking for a specific interest rate or a balance transfer card, you’ll want to read the terms of the card very carefully, some can include fees which make the balance transfer to 0% interest more expensive through the fees. Each of the other credit card brands can be applied through lenders, however, you’ll want to visit American Express’ website for their application.

A business credit card application can go one of two ways, it can be applied through the owner directly, or through the business itself (if it’s a corporation). In order to apply though the business it’s best to use and established firm. If your firm isn’t established in its credit, try a secured business card.

Secured credit card applications are for people with bad credit, or no credit. Normally, to qualify a credit score above 500 would need to be met, the borrower also cannot have any recent judgments or open collections. A secured credit card application can really help you back on your “credit” feet.
A secured card is a great way to boost credit for people with bad credit or no credit, but if you have no credit and are a college student, there are better options for you. A student credit card application is usually available through most lenders and is perfect for new credit users who are enrolled in a college or technical school. You’ll find these cards have significantly lower limits and higher interest rates; however, they are perfect for emergencies and incidentals.

Mortgage rates are factored by more than just your credit score. Although your FICO score plays a huge part in what the lender offers you, the lender doesn’t always begin with the lowest rates in the USA. In fact, some lenders may not begin their rate offerings at the lowest in their city. Every city, town and area has its own base mortgage rate and it’s usually this number that factors into what lenders in your area can offer. This interest rate is based upon the housing market in your district, the prime rate and other factors. Buying a home in Beverly Hills, for instance, wouldn’t have the same interest rates as a home in Detroit, MI. Most lenders, however, guide their interest rates off the prime rate. At the time of this writing the prime rate, a standard set by the Federal Reserve, is 3.25%. This is the scale by which most lenders begin negotiating, or setting, their interest rates for mortgage loans.

Beginning with your FICO score, a bank can either add interest or deduct interest rates from the prime. For example, if you had an 850 FICO score (excellent credit score), a lender may offer you a 3% mortgage, it you choose an ARM (adjustable rate mortgage). If you choose a fixed rate mortgage, you’re probably going to look at 4%+ as an interest rate. There are other factors a lender considers, however. If your debt to income ratio (the amount of monthly debt you have divided by the gross monthly income) is higher than 36%, you’re probably going to be offered a higher interest rate. The best possible scenario is a debt to income ratio of 28% or lower and a FICO score above 750. It’s a good idea to request your credit report with the FICO score so you’re able to negotiate with lenders before applying for a mortgage. Remember that every inquiry into a new credit line will lower your credit score.

The best mortgage rates, USA, can offer are ones which coincide with your needs as a family. Be sure to calculate ARM, Fixed and a variation of both; i.e. calculate a 2/30 ARM (2 years variable, 30 year fixed) and variations of that type of loan. You’ll find most lenders will have their offers displayed prominently on their web site. It’s a good idea to negotiate as much as possible before signing any paperwork.

Today I was banned and removed from Fotothing – the photo sharing site I founded nearly 5 years ago and late sold to ADVFN.

The reason for my ban?

After someone posted saying they wished someone who cared about the site would buy it from ADVFN, I replied with:

I just found 57p down the back of the sofa. I’m in!

And that it seems is all it takes to get you banned from the site. At some point in the last few years it has changed from a fun photo sharing site into a strange communist state where any form of criticism is unacceptable and punishable by “permanent deletion”.

This makes me very sad. And what makes me even more sad is that ADVFN are now systematically deleting any and all criticism from the forums.

Last time I ruffled ADVFN’s feathers, they threatened to sue me. But being removed from the site I founded – by people who neither understand the community or care about it – feels worse than that.

Fotothing took up a fairly big chunk of my life for a long time and I made a lot of good friends there. I find it utterly baffling how a company could deliberately run the site into the ground, squander opportunities and censor the community that made the site such an exciting and vibrant place.

Oh well. Luckily I have another photo site to work on. Anyone who wants to is welcome to join me there, but if you’re a Fotothing user, then personally I think you should stay and fight. Make yourself heard in the forums and with your own photos. It’s your site, not ADVFN’s.

The main area of discussion in this show revolves around what constitutes a ‘photograph’. Stephen believes that as soon as you alter a photo in any way it ceases to be a photograph, but becomes a form of digital artwork. An equally valid, but completely different art form.

The whole show is included below, or you can download it in different formats from the Revision3 web site.

How To Take Portrait Photos ]]> Tips http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/FotonomyPhotographyBlog/~3/GSBdQbVZgng/ http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DynamiteBlogs/~3/NlsG85XhvvA/ This week’s Pic of the Week is this lovely shot of fishing boats from Tracy: I just love the colours and details in this one. I think one of the main reasons it caught my eye is because it reminded me of the jigsaw puzzles I used to do as a child. In fact, I’m tempted [...] http://blog.fotonomy.com/?p=140 Tue, 24 Jun 2008 02:23:24 -0700 This week’s Pic of the Week is this lovely shot of fishing boats from Tracy:

I just love the colours and details in this one. I think one of the main reasons it caught my eye is because it reminded me of the jigsaw puzzles I used to do as a child. In fact, I’m tempted to take a sharp knife to my monitor and cut this out right now…

This is DGM’s entry in June’s Fotonomy Challenge. The subject is transportation, so why not get on your bike and see if you can do better?

First, a little background.

Geekbrief has a video podcast hosted by Neal’s wife Luria Petrucci (aka Cali Lewis). It comes out roughly three times a week, and it’s a short, fun look at the latest gadget news. It’s well put together, but retains an amateur feel, which is something that appeals to me. Cali is a pretty good host – she knows her stuff, she’s very attractive, and most importantly of all, she never stops smiling.

Geekbrief has been on my subscription list for nearly two years, and I’ve donated money to the show to help out on more than one occasion.

I love my “Shiny, Happy Tech News”, but earlier this year, Cali announced that they were going to buy an RV and spend a year driving around the US, visiting every state.

This immediately didn’t sit quite right with me. My initial reaction was to wonder how they could afford to do this when they were apparently making the show on a shoestring and quite happy to take a few dollars here and there from fans.

Then I saw this video of them looking at RVs:

For this little jaunt, they’re looking at buying a vehicle that costs at least 6 figures – possibly as much as half a million dollars. I started to question not just where my money had gone, but the environmental impact of driving a “house” that does 5-10 miles per gallon around the US for an entire year.

I posted the simple question on a blog post about the trip:

I’m interested to know what you’re doing to offset the carbon emissions from this “trip”.

I had expected a simple response along the lines of “we’re looking into it” – but all I got was Neal’s jokey response “We’re going to eat more cows!”.

After trying to make my views a little clearer, Neal responded with:

The Big Trip is about celebrating American exceptionalism, not about politics. It’s perfectly okay for you not to celebrate with us. Here’s what I think about environmental fascism: http://www.nealcampbell.com/2008/04/20/not-easy-not-being-green/

I don’t know if I’m getting old, but I find the use of the word ‘fascism’ to be a little tasteless. And while Neal didn’t directly call me a fascist personally, he certainly implied that’s how he felt about my views.

I will admit that the phrase “American exceptionalism” did make me laugh though.

But I do want to get one thing straight. I’m in no way a “rabid environmentalist”. But excessive waste does annoy me. And making even the tiniest concession to the environmental impact of driving such a huge vehicle around the country isn’t so much about global warming as it is about cleaning up yourself. Common courtesy.

But there are many other reasons why this “Big Trip” doesn’t sit right with me:

• The fact that they’re happy to take money off viewers on the basis that they have to scrape together the cash to produce Geekbrief. Yet they don’t seem to bat an eyelid at spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a shiny RV.
• The fact that they’re taking donations from fans for the trip, but haven’t said what will be happening to the RV and equipment after they get home. Presumably they’ll be keeping the RV for their own use whenever they want to go away. Nice.
• The fact that it doesn’t seem to have crossed their mind how “insular” it looks to consider your own country to be the be all and end all of technical innovation.
• The fact that the utter extravagance of it all has apparently not occurred to Neal and Cali.

To me, the “Big Trip” sums up everything that’s wrong with America. It refuses to acknowledge the world outside the USA. It’s a display of rampant consumerism that flies in the face of fans who have donated to get this small, amateur tech show off the ground. The lack of any notion of the environmental impact is just the tip of the iceberg.

It seems the whole trip is aimed at fulfilling Neal & Cali’s personal ambitions to drive around their country in total luxury. I don’t know where my personal donations ended up, but it feels like they’re being used to give the show’s producers the holiday of a lifetime. I find that a bit of a slap in the face when I have to scrape together enough money just to pay the rent every month.

I’m not asking them to cancel their trip. All I’m asking is that they be a little more open to the issues.

Google are clearly scared by the very notion of Microsoft being in control of Yahoo! This sentence in particular made me fall off my chair:

“While the Internet rewards competitive innovation, Microsoft has frequently sought to establish proprietary monopolies — and then leverage its dominance into new, adjacent markets.”

This, coming from the company that has a total monopoly on web search at the moment and frequently abuses that position. And let’s not forget that all these “open technologies” that Google so thoughtfully invests in are really just more ways to get access to your personal data, so it can show you more ads. Every last one of them.

Sometimes I think that Google has become so self obsessed that it’s losing track of reality.

Having said that…

I can’t think of two worse companies to be involved in right now than Microsoft and Yahoo. MS have failed to make the web work for them time and again, and Yahoo, while having wonderful intentions, have absolutely no sense of direction and just can’t seem to get their act together.

Yahoo constantly launch new products that never quite work with their existing products, yet manage to replicate 50% of the functionality of other parts of their network. They still make a fair amount of money from advertising, but I’m quite sure that’s simply because nobody can ever find what they’re looking for on Yahoo and end up just clicking an ad to get away from all the madness.

If MS and Y! do get together, you can be fairly certain that the result will be chaos. Whether or not the resulting company will survive long enough to take on Google remains to be seen. But I really don’t think Google have anything to worry about for the next couple of years.

Just a quick note that I’m giving away my very own iPod Nano (8Gb, 3rd Gen) in a competition over on Money Blogger.

If you want to enter, all you need to is blog about Money Blogger. The competition ends a week on Friday and full details are available here. Good luck!

As you can see, it looks fantastic. But unfortunately, Apple have seriously compromised on functionality – and more bafflingly, they’ve done it for no apparent reason. The only benefit of the MacBook Air is that it’s a bit thinner than a standard MacBook.

I have a simple question: Why?

For those of us looking for an ultraportable, ‘thinness’ is not one of the requirements that comes high on the list. The other dimensions are far more important! I want to be able to slip a laptop easily into pretty much any bag and go. I don’t care how pretty it looks or that people will say “Ooooh” and “Aaaaah” when I take it out. I just want to get stuff done on the go.

Here’s some more of the MacBook Air’s shortcomings:

• The battery is not user replaceable. But that’s Ok, right? I mean, I’m never likely to want a bit more battery life when I’m on the go, am I? And it’s not as though laptop batteries are have a tendency to explode and need to be recalled? That could never happen….

  This laptop is apparently designed to be ultra portable – i.e. it’s easy to take with you anywhere… like far away from a power socket, for instance. In Apple’s entire range of laptops, this is the one that most needs a replaceable battery. Yet that’s simply not an option, and if something goes wrong, you’ll just have to send it back to Apple.

• That 1.8″ hard drive. Not only is it impossibly slow, but it’s straight out of the iPod, and is known for being fairly unreliable. I can guarantee you that it will die at some point during the lifetime of the computer. And as for the 64Gb solid state drive… $1299 extra? Seriously, Apple…
• Mono speaker (under the keyboard). Yup… all that beautiful design, and it still sounds like crap. Yes, I know you can get stereo through the headphone socket, but it seems to have escaped Apple’s notice that it’s the 21st century, and we’ve had stereo sound for quite a while now.
• 1 USB socket, no firewire. This is going to be the killer for many people. Apple have taken away all that clutter with one hand, yet made it necessary to buy a raft of external accessories with the other.
• The price. $1,799 (£1,199!) is too much. Way too much. Apple have made this laptop smaller by stripping out a huge amount of useful stuff (like the optical drive!). This should be cheaper than a basic MacBook, not the same price as a MacBook Pro!

Unfortunately, the MacBook Air is a case of Apple taking it’s current “form over function” philosophy way too far. It’s over priced, under spec’d and will almost certainly snap in half if you sit on it.

A genuinely small sub-notebook seems to be beyond Apple’s capability right now – despite the fact that they’re already more than half way there with the iPhone. Sigh.

Of course it’s completely true with any technology and particularly true of Apple products. The moment you buy it, it’s out of date. Having said that, MacWorld is coming very soon… and I really could do with a new laptop…

Dance more.

Losing weight is a question of changing your lifestyle and there’s no question that I’ve become much more sedentary as time goes on.

I like to boogie when no one can see me although it’s not something I have ever thought of as “exercise”. But why not? I mean, a good track (especially something from my teen years) can have me bouncing all over the room and panting for breath at the end of it.

So I’m making myself a play-list of songs, called BOUNCE, which I’m filling up with tunes that make me want to dance. I was planning to borrow my son’s ipod to play the songs while I’m doing the housekeeping or cooking, although he’s just informed me that dancing to the B52s “Loveshack” while I’m waiting for the kettle to boil is not motherly behaviour, so maybe that’s out. I can always use the laptop, anyway.

Help me out! Recommend songs that are guaranteed to get these toes tapping and I, uh… well, I promise to update Endiet with my dancing escapades. What a deal

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you… The Chocolate Anus.

This (apparently real) product could be yours in time for Christmas. But I don’t think we’ll be putting this on our Christmas list.

Luckily, the web site doesn’t say if it has a soft centre. Or if it contains nuts. Because I don’t want to know.

We all tend to have turkey meat left over after Christmas/Thanksgiving, but there’s so much more you can do with it than making sandwiches.

Here’s a few ideas:

• Turkey & Lentil Soup
• Turkey Tikka Kebabs
• Oriental Turkey Stir Fry
• Turkey & Parsnip Curry
• Turkey & Spinach Lasagne
• Thai Turkey Salad
• Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti
• Warm Turkey & Pasta Salad
• Low Fat Turkey Soup
• Perkey Turkey Soup

That should be enough to get you started!

Pumpkin is a great source of vitamins and minerals, and as Alanna at A Veggie Venture points out, cooking it couldn’t be simpler. Throw it in the oven.

But if you’re looking for a few more ideas, try these for size:

• Spicy sweet pumpkin seeds
• Low carb pumpkin pie
• Low carb pumpkin cheesecake
• Pumpkin ravioli
• Pumpkin risotto with crispy sage
• Swiss chard tart with roasted pumpkin and basil
• Caramelised pumpkin and orange pie
• Pumpkin soup
• Pumpkin curry
• Pumpkin pancakes

Money Blogger is a year long project to see just how accurate all these “make money from blogging” experts really are.

I’m starting out with a blank sheet – a brand new domain name and a virgin installation of Wordpress, and will share all my experiences, tips – and even failures – with readers. So if you’re interested in making money from your blog, why not join me on my journey by subscribing now.

They are introducing “Chip & PIN” style card readers for customers to use with their online banking service.The reader (which is apparently only used for some transactions) takes your card, your PIN and an authorisation number on screen and generates an authorisation code which must match one on the screen.

Now, NatWest claim this adds an extra level of security to online banking. I disagree. I think it adds an extra headache and a whole lot more hassle to a system which is an actual fact, pretty secure.It also means I have to carry my card reader around if (for instance) I want to do banking from work or a friend/family’s computer. And I can tell you now, I do NOT want to be carrying this thing around with me all the time.

Aside from the hassle of just carrying the thing around with you (and risking losing it), the instructions on the NatWest site are likely to confuse the hell out of most people.

So instead of spending our money on clever looking gadgets that make online banking even more complicated, why don’t they just invest it in a high profile anti-phishing campaign. Because that’s that’s the real problem here – and I’d bet good money that most NatWest customers don’t even know what phishing is.

Still – I can’t help wondering if this thing is hackable…

My favourite food in the whole world is in season right now: mushrooms! I had chanterelles at almost every meal during a recent trip to Germany, if you can find these small wild mushrooms, I highly recommend them. iVillage has posted ‘Shroom 101: The shopper’s guide to mushrooms with three pages of helpful tips and tricks, followed by a set of mushroom recipes. Go get inspired.

And then there is another favourite of mine: artichokes. Steam them gently and then just serve, letting everyone dip the leaves in home-made mayonaisse or just plain melted butter for a good and fun starter.

Fennel is an oft overlooked autumn vegetable: slice it thin and serve it in salads, cut it into chunks and add it to your soups, braise it whole or even roast it alongsie the root vegetables: it’s very versatile and gives a lovely accent to any meal. Squashes are starting to appear which you can roast or mash or even grill. Leeks and onions are in season now too and late season sweet corn is, in my opinion, at its sweetest and juiciest right now. Don’t get the shrink-wrapped stuff, find it fresh, still in the husk. I love to eat this off the barbecue: pull of the husk and remove all the strings, then wrap the cobs back up in the husks and put them on the coals (or under the grill) for 10 minutes. Yum!

My least favourite food is in season this month too, just to balance things out: parsnips. These are commonly roasted and sometimes cut into squares to allow the unsuspecting guest to believe they are roast potato. Cruel practice, and I recommend none of you do such a thing. I’ll concede they aren’t bad in a stew, but that’s all.

This is also a great time to go out and pick your own: blackberries, damnsons, elderberries and greengages are all ready for picking and often you can find them there for the taking in the English countryside.

This is also the time to stock up on apples. Leave them lying around as a tasty and healthy snack. As the weather starts to get a bit chillier you might find yourself inspired to make hot apple pie – especially if you take a look at this American site about making the perfect apple pie.

Two years ago I bought a first generation iPod Nano on the day they came out. I fell in love with the Nano as soon as I saw it, and despite being covered in scratches now, I still love it.

I wasn’t a fan of the second gen Nano though. It looked way too much like the old Mini, and that was a step backwards in my book. It seem to me like Apple had rushed out a brushed aluminium case simply to deal with the scratching issue, and in the process had destroyed the sleek look of the original.

Last week, the third generation Nano was announced, and I immediately fell back in love with it.Having played with one in the Apple Store, I decided it was time to upgrade, and came home with this lovely blue 8Gb number.I’ve had it a couple of days now, so I thought I’d share some of my initial impressions.

Form Factor

The most noticeable change from the old Nanos is the completely new size shape, which has obviously been designed around the enlarged screen. Many people have called it the ‘fatty’, due to it’s shorter, wider form factor, but personally I love the way it looks.It’s not quite as easy to hold as the 1st and 2nd gen Nanos, but you get used to it pretty quickly.At the original Nano launch, Steve Jobs pulled a Nano from the little coin pocket in his jeans, but my old Nano never quite fit in that pocket for me. This third gen Nano is exactly the right size and shape for the small pocket on my Levi’s jeans. The scroll wheel even works through the denim, so when I’m out, I can take my Nano with me without having to worry about it getting scratched. Perfect.

Build Quality

One of the first things I noticed about this new Nano was the build quality. Two years ago, I thought the original Nano was a masterpiece, but this definitely takes it up a level. The brushed aluminium case is gently beveled on the front to give a pleasing feel in the hand, and it just feels solid and well put together.

Apple have gone back to using shiny aluminium for the back of the iPod again, which I do like, but seems to have the ability to attract finger prints just by looking at it. This is a bit of a shame as it’s very noticeable, and Apple don’t seem to have come any closer to solving the problem.

The Screen

The new Nanos all have a 2 inch 320×240 screen, which is a significant improvement over the old screens. In pixel density terms, it’s the highest resolution screen I’ve ever seen.Combined with the new software and the ability to play video, the screen is the real USP of the Nano. It’s bright and beautiful and text is so much easier to read than the old Nanos.

Software

The Nano’s software has improved significantly in the last 2 years, and this version is the best yet. The menus are all familiar and easy to navigate with the scroll wheel – they just have more polish. The menus take up the left half of the screen with cover art, video stills and other useful, contextual information appearing on the right hand side.

The most touted addition to the software was ‘Cover Flow’ – an animated view of all your cover art that will be familiar from iTunes. I personally don’t find this particularly useful, and although the animation is quite smooth, there can be a noticeable delay in loading in new cover art if you scroll quickly.

I’ve also noticed a bug when playing a song that sometimes cover art just doesn’t load at all. Navigating to the next song, then back usually makes it appear, but it can be quite annoying at times. Hopefully this will be fixed with a firmware update.

Video
This is probably the biggest addition to to the Nano and (along with the upgrade to 8Gb storage) was my main reason for upgrading. My video library is quite extensive and I tend to watch a lot of video podcasts, so being able to keep up to date with them wherever I happen to be is a big winner for me.And video looks great on the Nano. The screen may be small, but it’s easily good enough to watch video.

I wouldn’t recommend watching a full length feature film on it (I’ve tried), but that’s mainly because it’s quite difficult to keep the damn thing still for that length of time. It’s not the resolution or the brightness that’s the problem, it’s little movements that mean you have to refocus your eyes constantly.

Games

Games have certainly improved since the first generation Nano. They actually feel like a modern game rather than something written in 1983 and hacked by Apple to use the scroll wheel. I particularly like the ‘iPod Quiz’ which uses your music library as the basis for the questions, but has a real game show feel to it.

The other games are pretty good too and obviously take advantage of the increased screen size and processing power of the Nano. I can definitely see Apple selling a lot more games on the iTunes store from now on.

Overall

What can I say – I love the new Nano. There are a couple of minor firmware bugs, but all in all it’s the nicest – and cutest – personal media player I’ve ever seen.

The only issue for some people will be the storage capacity. At a maximum of 8Gb, it’s just not going to be enough for some people. Personally, I make judicious use of Smart Playlists in iTunes and try to give everything in my library a rating. That way I can make sure I always have my absolute favourite songs along with a good selection of everything else in my library.

Aside from storage capacity, I don’t really know how Apple could improve the Nano in it’s current form. It can’t go much thinner and still incorporate a standard headphone jack, and it can’t really be made any smaller and still incorporate a scroll wheel.I expect we’ll see a touch screen Nano in the next couple of years with a bigger display, but without the scroll wheel. The screen is certainly getting towards the point where Apple’s “Multi Touch” technology would work. But knowing Apple, the next generation of iPods will come up with something even more exciting, and I’ll just have to go out and buy one again…

Related Website: Convert DVD to iPod Nano using PQ DVD to iPod Video Converter. Free to Download The best entertainment software for iPod Nano 3rd Generation. Transfer DVD movies, TV shows, Youtube videos to iPod Nano for your entertainment.

My boyfriend and his mother suddenly came down with summer colds, coughing and spluttering all around the house. I went off in search of something simple yet filling to offer them for dinner, using various search terms, including “healing”. It was a good search, I ended up on a site I probably would not have paid attention to normally: Karina’s Kitchen – “recipes from a gluten-free goddess.”

No one in our household needs a gluten-free diet but the dish, A Healing Curry, sounded just right: vegetables and garbanzos (chick peas) and lots of broth, just the thing for my unhappy patients. I don’t have a crock pot but cooked it at a very low simmer on the stove, which worked just fine. The only other change I made is to use home-made chicken broth instead of vegan broth, hoping for some more goodness to combat the evil viruses around the house.

The curry was a hit, even my carnivore boyfriend asked for more. And from my point of view, it was great to be able to prep everything in the morning and then just throw in in the pot. I cooked it for just over 3 hours, stirring it now and again during the evening. The next day I reheated it again and it was just as good, so the next time I’ll make a double batch so I have a pot full to freeze.

This was a timely reminder that “restricted diet” doesn’t have to be a dirty word and specialist sites can have some wonderful recipes too. I’ll be spending more time on Karina’s site!

Probably the most useful one is not to obsess over the numbers. Concentrating on making small changes to your lifestyle that change the way you feel is far more effective than worrying about what the bathroom scales are telling you.

Hands up: how many of you have never had fresh peas. Although frozen peas are very convenient, you really should try them straight from the garden! This is the time to buy fresh peas and cook them only briefly – fry them up quickly with a bit of bacon or boil them for just one minute — you will know they are ready when they turn a brighter green.

Meanwhile, get your fill of peppers: chopped in salads, roasted for a sweet side dish or stuffed to make a full meal! Tomatos and aubergines/eggplants should still be readily available — if you are dreaming of holidays in the sun, maybe you should try some Greek recipes.

You might also consider heading out to a Pick-Your-Own farm for the summer berries — seasonal and a fun day out for all ages!

Once a month not often enough? Get a tip for a seasonal food every week from www.eattheseasons.co.uk

Fennel comes into season and I recommend trying this as a for a wonderful salad on its own: sliced very thinly and served with parmesan shavings and just a touch of olive oil. Or if you find the anise flavour too strong, mix thin slices in with your green salads to add extra bite and a touch of coolness. Then head over to GoodFood for six pages of recipes, both with fennel as the star and in a subsidiary role.

Tomatos are deep red and juicy now. We could eat them all week: served in salad, sliced with garlic and oil, pureed into gaspacho, chopped up into a light sauce for pasta. We love them although sadly it’s quite clear that not everyone agrees.

You can still go mediterranean this month though — with a focus on the beautiful purple vegetable. Whether you know it as aubergine or eggplant, you will find it a tasty and versatile addition to your meals. Simply brush slices with oil and grill for a quick and healthy side dish or try one of the 3000+ recipes over at Ashbury’s Aubergines.

For afters, you are spoilt for choice with berries: strawberries and raspberries are naturally sweet this time of year: eat them on their own or with just a touch of double-cream. Red currants are lovely added to fruit salads or made into a sauce. Cherries are juicy and lush and will bring smiles just by putting out a bowl full of them for people to grab.

Get the family involved. The Woodcraft Folk have written up an activity called Eating seasons with worksheets for the UK to test your knowlege of local foods and seasons.

But advertising watchdogs were having none of it. They have banned the egg industry from showing the ads on TV because they “fail to promote a varied diet”.

The ads feature legendary comedian Tony Hancock and the slogan “Go to work on an egg” – promoting eggs for breakfast.

Now, we’re all for promoting a varied diet, but banning these fun, nostalgic ads is probably going a bit far. After all, nobody’s suggesting you only eat eggs. And nobody’s banning ads for sugary breakfast cereals.

Until the advertising watchdogs change their minds, you can watch them all here. There’s even a petition you can sign if you want to have your say.

We are told that we should eat ‘5 portions’ to prevent cancer and cardiovascular disease. If there really is a dose-response whereby 4 portions, say, aren’t good enough, then surely the size of the portion and the number of portions would be important. It is odd, therefore, that both the numbers of portions and their quantity vary widely across the Atlantic. Other scientists must have thought so as well, because over the last few years several studies into the 5-a-day claim have been conducted to test the advice – with disappointing results.

The prestigious CARDIO2000 study published its results in 2003.^[i] This study was looking at intakes of fruit and vegetables specifically in relation to acute heart disease. They found that vegetables did reduce the risk of heart disease. But, significantly, it didn’t need ‘5 portions a day’ for the maximum effect. In their conclusions the researchers say:

‘Our findings support that even low consumption of fruits and vegetables (1-2 servings per week) is associated with about 45% lower coronary risk. Consumption of 2 or more servings per week is associated with about 70% reduction in relative risk.’

The Daily Mail reported the study’s results.^[ii] The Mail interviewed Professor Sir Charles George, medical director of the British Heart Foundation, about the obvious conflict with the 5-a-day guidelines. Sir Charles answered ‘There is some argument about how much you need; I think five may be an arbitrary figure’ – and, by so doing, admitted that this was yet another example of dietary advice which was based on nothing more than guesswork or wishful thinking. So we don’t need to eat anything like 5 a day to derive benefits in terms of heart disease.

But is there a benefit in terms of cancer the other major disease it is aimed at? This was considered in another study of over 100,000 people published in 2004. This study, conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, showed that, ‘Increased fruit and vegetable consumption was associated with a modest although not statistically significant reduction in the development of major chronic disease’. They continued: ‘The benefits appeared to be primarily for cardiovascular disease and not for cancer.’ ^[iii] And concluded: ‘Consumption of five or more servings of fruits and vegetables has been recommended . . . but the protective effect of fruit and vegetable intake may have been overstated.’

Not surprisingly, supporters of the ‘5-a-day’ campaign were outraged by the findings, repeating their mantra that eating the recommended number of fruit and vegetables has numerous health benefits – without specifying what those benefits might be.

So you won’t be surprised to learn that a very large study found no benefit in breast cancer from eating ‘5 portions’. In this study, 20 named researchers investigated 7,377 incident invasive breast cancer cases and a wide variety of fruit and vegetable intakes among 351,825 women at 17 cancer research centres in the USA, Germany, Netherlands, and Sweden. They found no association for green leafy vegetables, 8 botanical groups, and 17 specific fruits and vegetables. They concluded:

“These results suggest that fruit and vegetable consumption during adulthood is not significantly associated with reduced breast cancer risk”.^[iv]

Whenever studies such as these are reported, the diet police repeat their dogma that eating the recommended number of fruit and vegetables has numerous health benefits; they say that the evidence is ‘overwhelming’. But they never seem able to quote any of that evidence or to specify exactly what the benefits are. In view of the above studies, that will probably come as no real surprise. The point is that, just like almost all the health advice we have had forced down our throats and come to believe over the last few decades, there is practically no basis for ‘5 portions’ advice in science.

Dr Barnett Kramer, of the National Institutes of Health in the US, said of the healthy eat­ing message: ‘A lot of the public is completely unaware that the strength of the message is not matched by the strength of the evidence.’ That we are still kept unaware of it demonstrates just how strong an influence the diet dictocrats have on our minds and the news media.

References
[i]. Panagiotakos DB, Pitsavos C, Kokkinos P, et al. Consumption of fruits and vegetables in relation to the risk of developing acute coronary syndromes; the CARDIO2000 case-control study. Nutr J 2003; 2: 2.
[ii]. ‘Three fruit and veg are still healthy.’ Daily Mail, 2 September 2003, p 8.
[iii]. Hung H-C, Joshipura KJ, Jiang R, et al. Fruit and Vegetable Intake and Risk of Major Chronic Disease. J Nat Canc Inst 2004; 96: 1577-1584
[iv]. Smith-Warner SA, et al. Intake of Fruits and Vegetables and Risk of Breast Cancer: A Pooled Analysis of Cohort Studies. JAMA 2001; 285: 769-776.