Glokal Lifestyle Diary

A question that will change your life if answered properly

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:29:00 +0000

Once upon a time, there was a wise man. He was a very popular person then. Not popular for his wisdom, but because he was known to go to a village and single-handedly brought out the best of every person in the village. Everyone suddenly became more productive, more focus and happier.

All he did was only asking one simple question. One of the most powerful question ever created. The question is this

Is what you are doing right now, make your life any better?

/end story

I just made up the story. There was no wise man, no village. There is the question though. A very powerful question and I truly believe that this question is one of the most influential question ever. Just think about it.

If you are window shopping at the mall, ask that question. Is this activity making your life any better. If you were actually thinking of buying a computer and you need to survey which gives out the best price, then it is definitely will make your life better.

But if you are just killing time, you will immediately know that what you’re doing is just pointless. So why are you still there loitering?

Be honest. You are not answering the question to anyone. You are answering for yourself.

There will be two type of respond to the question. Both have opposite effect but equally life-changing and if we are not careful we may fall into the negative type. So identifying these two types is very important.

Type 1 - The one that actually become better.
These are the type of people whom the question is designed for. When they know that what they are doing is pointless, The first thing that will come to their mind is “why bother doing it”. They will immediately renovate their activity to achieve something from it.

One example is when you are spending time chatting on the net 10 hours a day. Yes, it is bringing you closer to so many people, but you are losing on so much more like real relationship, or socializing with neighbour. What you should do is to maybe limit the time of chatting to about half, and adjust from there.

Type 2 - The one that will feel more depressed with the question.
These are the pessimist approach. They will answer the question by saying that nothing they do can make their life better. When they study and they fail, they just assume that the whole studying is not making them any better. This is of course wrong. The failure itself is making them better. They should study what is wrong in the first place. Maybe their study method is ineffective, or they are friends to the wrong crowd.

Conclusion - Such a powerful question can bring so many different result if used wrongly. We are all smart people. Decide how you are going to benefit from the question

Anger Management for Teens

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 07:13:00 +0000

12 Calm Down and Get a Grip Anger Management Tips for Teens

I get mad. You get mad. Your Mom gets mad. Your Dad gets mad. Hey, even God gets mad. Let’s face it, at one time or another EVERYBODY gets mad! Anger is a normal human emotion and it is the way that your subconscious mind releases mental and emotional pressure but sometimes this normal psychological function can run amok and lead you astray. Getting angry is normal, letting anger get the best of you is not. So how do you know if your anger is getting out of control and what can you do about it if you’re raging? Surprisingly enough recognizing and managing anger is relatively easy, here’s how!

Your anger is out of control if…

you find yourself getting angry at everything that inconveniences you, annoys you or otherwise gets in the way of what you want to be doing, it leads you to act out aggressively or violently as in yelling, ranting, hitting, shoving or plotting revenge, it consumes you long after the event has passed,
if you dwell on the things that make you angry then you’re in trouble because normal anger is only a temporary emotional response to unsettling eternal stimuli, things that didn’t used to make you angry are suddenly major issues worthy of a rant, this does not apply to times when you have suppressed normal anger only to times that anger really isn’t merited, for example when somebody gets a higher grade than you or when a person is taking too long in the bathroom,
you find yourself doing self destructive things to cope with your angry feelings, such as reckless driving, hazardous recreational activities, physical fighting, drugs and alcohol or, unsafe or random sexual activity.

You can manage that anger by…

recognizing the difference between an annoyance or inconvenience and a bona fide reason to get mad - somebody hurting you, hurting somebody you care for or damaging your property are all good reasons to get mad; somebody “disrespecting” you, getting in your way, slowing you down, being luckier than you, or doing something better than you do it are not reasonable causes of anger,
taking a deep breath, stepping away from the situation and asking yourself “Why am I really mad?”, often people misdirect anger caused by a valid yet bigger issue on to everyday annoyances and inconveniences,
know your triggers, if there are certain things that you know bother you or that you can’t accept know what they are, take steps to avoid them, and play out an appropriate reaction in your head when you're feeling calm to train your mind to react that way when the problem arises in real life,
plan your time wisely, one of the most common anger stressors is poor time management, when you’re in a rush and something slows you down even more you are very likely to react in anger, the simplest way to avoid this is to exercise effective time management,
exercising regularly, it’s true that exercise is an excellent way to de-stress body and mind, people who exercise regularly are less likely to overreact to annoyances and inconveniences,
talk it out, reacting in anger often causes the reasoning center of the brain to shut off for a time and the way you can turn it back on is to talk rather than act out when anger takes hold, it may sound crazy but taking a few minutes to gather your thoughts and speaking them out loud can do wonders to diffuse an angry situation.

Fake A Beach Body

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 04:24:00 +0000

With the winter season coming to a close and spring quickly approaching, this only means one thing: Beach season is rapidly approaching, as well.
For some, beach season simply means warmer weather and more time playing golf; for others, it’s a time when they want to bare their bodies and show off what they’ve been working hard to achieve over the winter months in the gym. The problem that occurs for some, however, is that over the winter months, they’ve really let their diet slide and now have much more fat than they’d like accumulated over their freshly built muscles.
Since fat loss can be a slow process, particularly if you want to maintain as much muscle as possible, this could translate to trouble in terms of you getting that "ripped" beach body you covet.
Luckily, all hope isn't lost: As long as you know a few quick tricks, you can get yourself looking fully beach ready in time for summer.Here are the points you must consider when you try to fake a beach body.

The enhanced muscle-tissue buildup factor

Have you ever noticed that immediately after a workout your muscles look a lot fuller than normal? Most guys refer to this as a "muscle pump" and notice their confidence levels soar after a good session as they feel they’ve made some real progress.What this actually consist of is a buildup of muscular byproducts that were created during the lifting session. As time passes, your body will work toward removing this buildup and eventually your musles will return back to their usual size. If you’re smart, you can take advantage of this process when it comes to looking warm-weather ready when you want to fake a beach body.
If you know you’re going to be at the beach in a few hours, schedule your workout right before. If you aren’t able to have a full gym session beforehand, don’t stress about it too much; just drop down and do a quick set of 20 to 50 push-ups (depending on how many you can handle), some quick ab work, a few tricep dips, and a set of pull-ups, if you have a bar you can hang from. This will get the blood flowing to the muscle tissue, which also serves to help temporarily increase their size and add more definition.
The important thing to remember, regardless of whether you’re doing a quick few exercises at home or are going to the gym to do a full-fledged workout, is that you want to focus on slightly higher reps for this workout with less rest time between sets.
This is the best way to develop a maximum level of muscle byproduct accumulation, which is exactly what you’re going for at this point. Note that this will mean you're lifting slightly lighter weights, but again strength is not our primary objective at this point.

Get rid of water retention

If the situation is slightly different and you have about a week to prepare and fake a beach body -- maybe you're going on vacation somewhere warm and will want to you look your best -- then you can do a few more things to help get the look you are going for.
Everyone on a normal, mixed diet will generally have a fair amount of glycogen stored in their muscle tissue. This is normal and is needed to help maintain the intense workouts that got you your body like that in the first place.What you can do, however, is work toward reducing this amount of stored muscle glycogen because with every gram of muscle glycogen you lose, your body will also lose a corresponding four grams of water (muscle glycogen causes water retention in the body, which explains why you look bloated and your weight goes up after a very high carbohydrate meal).
So, in order to effectively get rid of some of this stored water, cut your carb intake the week prior to your beach appearance. Since you will not be taking as many carbohydrates in through your diet, your body will not replenish them to the same extent after each workout as it normally would, hence water will be excreted from the system instead of retained.
If you wish to speed up this process try and gear your workouts again to ones that are higher rep/volume in nature, since this will help utilize the most muscle glycogen (rather than, say, doing six sets of five reps, when you’re shooting for maximal strength production).Do keep in mind that while this process occurs you will start to feel more fatigued as the week goes on, since muscle glycogen essentially is fuel for the muscles, and without replenishment they will have less fuel to run off.

Alter your skin's appearance

Finally, the last step to take in your efforts to fake a beach body is to hit the tanning bed or invest in a good self-tanning lotion or spray.
Tanned skin naturally shows off more muscle definition, which gives you the appearance of looking leaner. If you think about it, all the bodybuilding competitors tan to a great extent and then slather their bodies in oil to increase the amount of definition.
While you shouldn’t go to this extreme since it looks obviously unnatural and frequent use of tanning beds pose a great risk to your skin, getting a slight tan will really go a long ways toward helping you make a few pounds seem to disappear.
Also, consider one of the many hair removal products available after you’ve become more tanned. While some guys do shy away from the thought of removing hair from their bodies, when you have nicely defined muscles and a dark tan, hairless skin really can up your sex appeal to women. Further, without the hair in the way, your muscles may look even more defined.Don’t think you should remove all your hair from a specific region either, consider strategically removing it in the areas you want to look most defined (lower abs for instance), while keeping the hair in place in the surrounding region (chest).

get ready for sand and sun

So, the next time you’re starting to feel panic set in because you are about to head into a situation where you’ll likely be topless and aren’t quite sporting the body you’d like, take comfort in knowing that if you follow these tips, you can dramatically change your appearance in a very short term.
Obviously, the better approach will always be planning ahead to ensure you have enough time to get to your desired body-fat levels through a proper diet and exercise program, but when time is working against you these factors become a great second alternative.

7 Jobs Britney Should Avoid Like The Plague (and so should you).

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 01:01:00 +0000

Now that her music career is in the limbo of rehab, crazy public antics, violent behavior and inability to dress appropriately, Britney could be looking for another day job soon. Oh oh, bad news for the rest of us!

1. Spokesperson for underwear company

It''s not uncommon for movie stars and singers to use their celebrity status to sell things like cookware, cosmetics, soft drinks and lingerie. Britney Spears knows it - she''s done it for Pepsi. And oh boy did the multi-million dollar campaign pack some heat and fueled the imagination of little kids all over the world. Young boys thought of her in their sleep and girls looked up to her. And unfortunately, looking up to her isn''t something anyone should do. After her "commando" predicament got snapped by the photogs (one time with Paris and again after 2007 VMAs), left her feeling a little cold from the situation, it''s going to be tough convincing the consumers that she really loves her undergarments. Although we don''t doubt anyone would question if she says, "she''d rather go naked than go without her Calvins!"

2. Sell baby chairs

We all know Britney is really good with babies and kids. She''s even put her toddler on the wheel while she was driving off from Starbucks. She''s been seen texting while driving junior around. She''s also caught on tape for running a red light with her kid sleeping in the back seat. Nice. There''s nothing cooler in the world than a speeding mum, right? Who says women drive slowly and hog the road? In fact, Britney has proved that women are just as capable at running a red light as guys. And she upped the ante by gambling her baby''s life. Now wouldn''t it be perfect for her to promote infant food, kiddy chairs and Nintendos? After all, mama knows best? By the way, she only lost custody of her kids by accident!

3. Own a dating agency

Britney knows a thing or two about a good catch, since she''s gone through a lot of the scraps. Justin Timberlake fled the relationship ten years ago and probably found out early (thankfully) that it wasn''t right for him. While Justin''s gone on to date Cameron Diaz and Jessica Biel, Britney has settled for her manny (man nanny), looneybin manager Sam Lufti, paparazzi Adnan Ghalib and the classic father of the year, Kevin Federline. So if you want to hook up with someone your mum warned you about, look up Britney''s dating agency or better yet, just look through her MySpace friends list. You''ll surely find exactly what you''re not really looking for.

4. Acting

Crossroads is probably as good as it gets, I''m afraid. That was a good time for Britney - hit album, modest movie box office run and sober (or mentally sound, take your pick), and she had plenty of support from fans. Now, she can''t even get back to her lip-syncing form at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards or move her body to the rhythm to save her life. So we don''t recommend that she take on Tinseltown again, not even to play herself in a made-for-TV biopic of her own life. We''d rather Lindsay Lohan do the honour.

5. Walk the streets

Some people are dressed for success, while others are dressed like Britney Spears. Torn fishnet stockings, barely-there-shorts, trashy garbs and boots that''s made for ¡®walking'' are all signs of Britney''s stylist on a long vacation. Ok, she might have been fired since the single "Me Against The Music" and Britney has never looked back (or into the mirror) since. So no Britney, don''t take your music to the streets or parade your horrible fashion sense to the world. We don''t want the fashion felons of the world to think there''s hope in blue eyeshadow, shoulderpads and heaven forbid, fishnet stockings! You see, even our favorite American idle, Paris Hilton, doesn''t do much but at least she always does ¡®nothing much'' in style.

6. Barber-ian

Never trust Britney with the scissors and razor. Seriously, we wouldn''t. The last time she took hairstyling into her own hands, Sinead O'' Connor called and wanted her hair back. So if Britney ever opens a salon on Rodeo Drive or Fifth Avenue, we would tell you to stay out of it unless you''re Chris Daughtry, Michael Stipe from R.E.M. , Patrick Stewart or Kojak. See the bald pattern?

7. Being a POP STAR!

The thing is, pop stars are known for their sexual deviance (a la Madonna), spick and span image (a la Justin Timberlake) or arrested development (in the form Christina Aguilera voice and Jessica Simpson''s body). What successful pop stars never have are multiple DUI charges, psychological breakdowns and a career spanning a gazillion lip-syncing concerts (that kind of stuff is best reserved for Ashlee Simpson).

If she plans to continue to lead the destructive life she has now, she''d be better off setting off for the rock scene. Where drugs, rehab, alcohol and bad marriages are the stuff people come to expect with the territory. For example, it''s never headline news if Courtney Love takes a piss on stage and appears wasted in fake Chanel to red carpets, right? So we strongly recommend Britney to hook up with Noel Gallagher, and let her inner rockstar rule the mic. We can almost hear the rock interpretation of "Hit Me Baby¡ One More Time" featuring Tommy Lee, already.

Best Jobs To Impress Women

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 11:04:00 +0000

Contrary to what the leathery cougars of Wisteria Lane might have you believe, it takes more than attorney, doctor or pool boy credentials to get the girl, even if you do have six-pack abs. So let’s look at some of the best jobs to impress women. Sure, the leaders in these fields usually make decent money and have the kinds of personalities women dig, but these guys tend to back it up with genuine character and style.
Of course, it’s understood that this review can function as a road map for poseurs. You know, the average actor, rock star or -- if you’re George Costanza -- architect wannabe next door. If you can’t cut it as the real deal, we've provided tips to help you fake it; just hope she doesn’t do a little research and bust you for embellishing your resume for hormonal gain.

Chef
Let’s be honest: There are easier ways to get laid than by becoming a chef. You’re working when everyone else is out having a good time. For that matter, you’re working because everyone else is out for a good time. Survive culinary school, then the backstabbing and burnout on the way up, and you might just nudge six-figure territory someday. Clearly, you’re not doing it for the dough -- it’s about the passion you have for creatively and uniquely interpreting your dishes, and of course having a job to impress women.
Fake it: Adopt a charismatic, screw-you attitude like that of Anthony Bourdain, watch the Food Network for a week straight and don’t eat at chain restaurants -- ever.

Entrepreneur
So, you’ve just barely made it through another day of hell in a cubicle without strangling anyone. You’re in your boring car, crawling along in six lanes full of corporate drones just like you, with nothing to anticipate over the horizon other than a dull evening. This is about the time most people feel the urge to break out on their own as entrepreneurs. Most control these desires and fall back into their rut, only to repeat the same mundane process the next day. However, a few run with the urge for change and become entrepreneurs. These guys can come from different walks of life and have vastly different training and capital. Most, however, are willing to take risks and refuse to settle for less without giving it their all. Working nights and weekends, especially early on, is a given. If the early years don’t bury you or your venture, you’ll be in the minority. As an entrepreneur, you’re well aware of all this, but you have the vision to persevere. It may not be easy, but it is one of the best jobs to impress women -- they will admire your courage, independence and perseverance.
Fake it: Refer to your day job as a consulting gig.

Military man (i.e., soldier)
You didn’t sign your life over to Uncle Sam in exchange for a life of luxury. You could advance to officer ranks and still not make as much as a kid in a call center. But that’s beside the point. To you, it’s far more important to protect that kid and defend your country. You’re compelled to do this by a fundamental sense of duty and honor. Fame and fortune may not smile upon you as a result, but you’ll still feel rich. And even if you won’t admit it aloud, you’re especially grateful for one of the few fringe benefits that come your way: Women really do love a man in uniform.
Fake it: If better judgment fails to stop you from doing this in the first place, you’d better be in great shape. Not only will it help you impress women, but it might also save your life if a real enlisted man discovers you’re a fraud.

Veterinarian
The bond between people and their pets that can be stronger than a parent/child relationship. Often, pets aren’t just part of the family; they are the family (which can make dating a lot less complicated). Veterinarians understand this bond and take pride in their work, whether it’s a simple checkup or treating the ill and injured. Like human doctors, vets must spend a number years in training before they can become licensed. Unlike people docs, vets earn less (about $80,000, on average), but they still put in long hours. On the plus side, vets get to play multiple medical roles within their practices and get a great deal of satisfaction from their work.
Fake it: Go the New Age route and claim to be able to communicate on a conversational level with pets. You may just land a series on Animal Planet.

Firefighter

Bravery, danger, a sense of protection, physical conditioning: These are just a few of the many elements that make up a firefighter who, incidentally, responds to a lot more than just fires. These are often the guys assisting when there’s a car wreck or a medical emergency. When we were kids, we just thought it was all about sliding down poles and hanging off the backs of trucks. The grown-up understanding of the intense training and dedication required, combined with a modest salary (about $42,000 on average) causes many of us to respectfully take a step back. However, especially since this is one of the best jobs to impress women, a few do have the courage to take a step forward and accept the challenge.
Fake it: Lose the beer gut, consider growing a mustache, study and memorize every episode of Rescue Me.

Pilot
Being a pilot was cool long before Tom Cruise hopped in an F-14. Even if you only command a commercial puddle jumper between small cities, you’re still cooler than the traveling salesman sitting in the cabin behind you. Make it to the big leagues flying the bigger birds, and you could make $150,000 while seeing the world. Plus, as passengers file toward the Jetway on your last flight of the day, you can make mental notes of the faces you hope to see in the hotel bar later. Fake it: Get a flattop haircut, a pair of aviators and chew gum vigorously.

Photographer

Your camera is a window to the soul -- be it yours, your subject’s or both. A lot of women like that connection and appreciate a man with an artistic eye who can capture a moment in time and say it all with a single image. Others just lose their inhibitions for the lens. Of course, that’s once you’re established and making about $46,000 yearly or better. That only comes after a lot of formal and informal training, not to mention gigs you reluctantly accept to build experience: weddings, screaming inbred babies in discount stores, proms, you get the idea. But if talent and perseverance one day propel you to a photo shoot of swimsuit models on a Caribbean Island, it will all have been well worth it. Fake it: Randomly halt conversation, frame her or other things with your thumbs and index fingers and complain about the lighting, wherever you happen to be.

work that works ‘em

Like Ted Knight remarked in Caddyshack, the world needs ditch diggers too. The problem is that the ladies don’t dig diggers. Not the kind that should be dug, anyway. Jumping to the polar opposite career, like attorney or doctor, isn’t the answer, either. Aim for a job that makes a living, but that also offers elements of bravery, creativity and/or skill, and you will impress women every time.
Resources:www.bls.gov www.salary.com

5 Things You Didn't Know: The Apocalypse

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 00:58:00 +0000

Peanuts cartoonist Charles M. Schulz once advised us: "Don't worry about the world coming to an end today; it's already tomorrow in Australia."

If only those words were enough to assuage the anxiety of the human heart. Instead, throughout history, the idea of an impending apocalypse has persisted. Throughout, it has changed costumes many times, wearing fires, floods, frog storms, and even catchy sayings -- remember Y2K?

Traditional visions of the apocalypse share at least a couple of general traits. For one, predictions are set for the near future. We are a selfish, self-serving life form, so if the end isn’t in our near future, we don’t care. To that end, the apocalypse becomes a handy tool of manipulation.

The second trait is the most obvious: Every apocalyptic prediction that has been made has failed to come true. When this happens, true believers are fast to explain why, often suggesting that the world took various steps, such as prayer, to curtail or delay the event. Sadly for them, if any prophecy alleged to be the word of God can be upended through simple human intervention, there’s only one conclusion: God sucks at executing his will.

Here are five things about the apocalypse that you may not know.
1- The Jehovah’s Witnesses have been wrong the most
The Jehovah’s Witness began in 1876 as a ”Bible Student” movement, but today it’s operated by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society (WTS), a mess of a prognosticator. The WTS has predicted that the apocalypse would arrive in 1874, 1878, 1881, 1910, 1914, 1915, 1918, 1925, 1932, 1941, 1975, 1994, and 2004. In case you weren’t counting, they’re 0-for-13.

You might imagine that just one failed prophecy -- much less 13 -- would spell the end of any group, but according to Leon Festinger’s cognitive dissonance theory, the opposite is often true. Festinger’s study found that a failed prophecy has the tendency to strengthen groups like the WTS. He argued that it can be impossible to convince someone with real devotion to their convictions that those convictions are somehow flawed, regardless of how unimpeachable the evidence. One reason is because the devotee is so invested in his convictions that any challenge to them is perceived as a call to arms to defend them. They can even begin to see this challenge as part of the prophecy.

2- 2012 looks like one hell of an eschatological year
A brief, incomplete survey of these prophecies includes the following:
An aspect of the polar shift theory claims that on December 21, 2012, a shift of the axis of the Earth’s rotation will bring a host of devastating natural disasters.
The Orion Prophecy is a book that claims the Earth’s magnetic field will flip-flop in 2012, causing mass chaos. The truth is that the magnetic field will in fact reverse at some point (it has done so many times), but this does not happen overnight.
According to algorithms extracted from the bible and mentioned in The Bible Code, a big asteroid will strike the planet in 2012. The Bible code is the belief that messages, warnings and predictions were encoded in the Hebrew bible by E.T. and his friends (who also gave us our genetic code). The decoding technique was described in a paper entitled "Equidistant Letter Sequences in the Book of Genesis" by Professor Eliyahu Rips of the Hebrew University in Israel. Incidentally, supporters claim The Bible Code gives proof of Oswald’s destiny as JFK’s killer, and it also predicted the apocalypse… in 2006. Remember that one? Me neither.
More 2012 predictions and Nostradamus' views on the apocalypse…

Some Hindus regard 2012 as the year an avatar -- a god in human form -- will appear on earth and usher in a new age, one presumably favorable to the Hindu faithful.
Meanwhile, alien devotees believe that 2012 is the year when those aliens who first gave human civilization a kick start will return to see how we’ve done. Some believe they’ll give us another boost or two if we haven’t lived up to potential, while others expect mass slavery as punishment for our slacker ways.
Finally, Nostradamus predicted the apocalypse for 2012, but you’ll have to wait until 2013 to see how it ends. What a cliffhanger.

3- Nostradamus never accurately predicted an event
Nostradamus, the 16th century apothecary, gets a lot of press for making accurate predictions on virtually every major event since he died in 1566. But his followers consistently commit three overwhelming flaws. The first is that some of them work from poor French translations. The second lies in interpretation -- Nostradamus was no idiot, and his quatrains are so ambiguous that they allow for the extraction of virtually any event. The third, and most damaging to his status as a ”seer,” is that his followers engage in “postdiction” -- it is only after a major world event occurs that his believers begin to search his works for the ”prediction.”

If Nostradamus can’t be understood prior to an event, he can't be said to have predicted it. An alleged, loosely interpreted prediction ex post facto is not only without any merit, it also fails to qualify as a prediction.

At his core, Nostradamus was little more than a thief and a plagiarist who stole from the likes of classical historians Livy and Plutarch, medieval chronicler Jean Froissart, and every contributor to the Mirabilis Liber, a book of predictions that dealt with Christianity and the French Revolution.

4- Many scenarios feature an ambiguously evil duo
Talk about your major, high-profile players. I don’t care who you are, if you run into either Gog or Magog, say your prayers. Variously represented as people, monsters, demons, or nations, Gog and Magog are a force to behold.

Although first appearing in the Hebrew bible, they’re featured heavily in the New Testament, which provides what is by far the western world’s most influential apocalyptic vision. Revelations (20:7-8) defines them as the nations in the four quarters of the earth, which Satan sets out to attack and destroy by deception (sounds a lot like Ezekiel in the Old Testament).

In Islam, their arrival is one of the major clues of the coming apocalypse. Once again, according to scholar Gharm-Allah El-Ghamdy, "Gog and Magog (two hidden tribes of people) will break free of the dam that holds them back and ravage the earth. They will drink all the water, and kill people until Allah sends against them a worm which will wipe them out."

Other scholars have identified Gog and Magog as Koka and Vikoka, servants of an apocalyptic demon in a minor purana in Hinduism called the Kalki Purana. They have also been identified, with some challenge from the research community, as representing Russia, the Mongols, the nations of Europe, the Goths, the Khazars, and the Jews.

All told, Gog and Magog most often are situated as the fall guys, the greatest enemies against whichever organization is making the prophecy.

A hairy animal is a definite sign of the apocalypse…

5- The end is near when a hairy animal approaches
In Islam, both hadith (hadith is a collection of oral tales that relate the life of Mohammed) and the Qur'an feature numerous clues to the coming apocalypse.

One of the major clues in the Qur'an is the arrival of an animal so hairy that you can’t tell if it’s coming or going (in Arabic, he is described as Dab-ba). His appearance coincides with a large number of Muslims who have turned away from Islam (apostasies) and this animal will beckon them “back to Islam,” according to the scholar Gharm-Allah El-Ghamdy.

Folks are naturally curious about the future. Will I get married to a supermodel? Will I drive a Ferrari? Will a hairy Gog from Mars call me back to the Watchtower Society… again? The point is that many people really believe in these prophecies, while others read or write them for kicks. On the darker side of the moon, sociopaths use them as tools of manipulation, claiming that the predictions provide justification for actions that range from hatred to bigotry to outright murder.

We suspect two factors influence the length of the public’s interest. The first is that this interest will last until each member meets his or her own apocalypse (personal death). The second is more basic: When a particular society is thriving economically, its interest in seeing the world end is very low. Yet, when it hits hard times, interest skyrockets and people begin filling the churches and synagogues, hedging their bets on the best possible scenario.

Ultimately, the most important thing offered by an apocalyptic scenario is the one thing people want the most, but ostensibly cannot have: They want to survive death, in some form, and greet their loved ones on the other side because the alternative -- a long, dark, unconscious nothingness -- is somehow intolerable.

All this man-made madness recalls the 19th century transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson. Sick with grief as Ralph sat in front of the tombstone of his recently deceased young son, he bemoaned these words into his journal, “The blazing evidence of immortality is our dissatisfaction with any other solution.”

Resources:
www.godrealized.org
www.freeminds.org
http://en.wikipedia.org
www.usc.edu

5 Things You Didn't Know: OPEC

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 03:27:00 +0000

Formed in 1960, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is a powerful and controversial international oil group composed of 12 nations: Algeria, Angola, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. Since its inception, the organization has been responsible for generating vast sums of wealth for its member nations.

By definition, OPEC is a cartel -- a group of producers which tries to restrict output in an effort to keep prices higher than the competitive level. Vilified in the West as a staunch defender of its own interests, yet still not fully understood by the most of the public, we think it’s time to introduce you to five things you didn’t know about OPEC, your friendly neighborhood oil cartel.

1- It no longer sets crude oil prices
OPEC admits to setting crude oil prices in the ‘70s and’ 80s -- they would look ridiculous to try and deny it. However, the oil market underwent a transformation in the 1990s and today, prices for crude oil are established according to three markets: 1) The New York Mercantile Exchange; 2) The International Petroleum Exchange in London; and, 3) The Singapore International Monetary Exchange.

This isn’t to suggest that OPEC has no influence on prices; quite the contrary. Prices established by the exchanges are based on supply and demand; therefore any decision OPEC makes concerning restricting production, for example, will have some effect on prices. These decisions, however, can have a direct consequence on profit margin, so it isn’t always in their best interests.

2- Its practices are considered to be illegal
Simply put: Cartels are illegal in many countries. In the U.S., for example, OPEC is in direct violation of antitrust laws, such as the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 -- the same act that broke up Standard Oil, American Tobacco and Ma Bell. Antitrust laws don’t criminalize monopolies per se, only if the monopoly is used to eliminate its competition through methods of production or price-fixing.

Ordinarily, U.S. antitrust laws explicitly prohibit dealing with cartels. What makes OPEC so special? Simple: Congress grants OPEC diplomatic immunity from prosecution and in essence treats it as though it were a sovereign nation, even though this is not remotely the case. This status was tested in 1978, when the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), a non-profit labor organization in the U.S., filed suit against OPEC under the Sherman Act. In 1981, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the case, claiming OPEC was protected by its sovereign immunity status.

In 2007, a pair of controversial bills were introduced in Congress designed to amend antitrust laws to include OPEC. If the measures are approved in both houses and the president doesn’t veto it, individuals harmed by OPEC in the U.S. can begin to sue the organization. If this were to happen, few expect OPEC to continue doing business with the U.S.

3- It isn’t the only game in town
If one only paid passing attention to the media, you might get the impression that OPEC is the only oil game in town. Granted, its member countries control anywhere from two-thirds to three-quarters of the world’s proven oil reserves and over 40% of the globe’s oil production; however, there are other sets of somewhat substantial oil-producing groups.

Originally formed as an agent of the Marshall Plan following World War II, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is a vast and all-encompassing organization with all sorts of arms and legs. Of its 30 member countries, a minority are oil producers, including the USA, Canada, Mexico, and the UK. Together they account for about 23% of the world’s oil production.

Additionally, the Russian Federation and a handful of former-Soviet states, such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, are responsible for about 15% of global oil production.

4- It was formed to fight the “Seven Sisters”
The world’s wealthy oil barons have not always resided in the Middle East. In fact, for most of the 20th century, the member nations of OPEC were at the mercy of the so-called “Seven Sisters,” a non-organizational set of oil producers and distributors which, perhaps due to that non-organizational status, somehow eluded antitrust prosecution. The Seven Sisters was composed of Standard Oil of New Jersey, Royal Dutch Shell, Anglo-Persian Oil, Standard Oil of New York, Standard Oil of California, Gulf Oil, and Texaco.

By 1960, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela had grown tired of exporting their oil and then having to buy it back at higher prices. They formed OPEC to assert their “legitimate rights in an international oil market,” and by the 1970s, thanks in part to strategic maneuvers such as the Arab oil embargo, began to dominate the market.

5- Its “customers” see bigger oil profits than its members
Oil taxes by countries that regularly import oil from OPEC, such as the U.S., the UK, Japan, and Italy, are often as much to blame for high oil prices as OPEC. Such taxes allow some countries to see oil-related revenues that are three or four times higher than some OPEC members see from exports. In addition, the production and development of oil requires huge investments, a fact that further chips away at OPEC-member profit margins.

As gasoline prices soar, more and more attention gets paid to OPEC. In the Western press its easily vilified and is a common ”fall guy’“ for every issue related to oil and oil prices -- not always unjustifiably so.

More than a few people would be pleased to see OPEC’s influence reduced or even made moribund. However, proven oil reserves are defined in the industry as the amount of oil that can be recovered and produced using today’s technologies, and as of 2006, the world total was 1,195,318 million barrels of crude oil; OPEC’s share of that amount was 922,482 million barrels or 77.2% (if you accept OPEC’s figures; hardly everyone does). Thus, unless a drastic change occurs in the energy-consumption habits of much of the world’s oil-hungry population, interest in OPEC is unlikely to recede for some time.

Resources:
www.opec.org
http://en.wikipedia.org
www.slate.com
www.govtrack.us
www.heritage.org
www.bp.com
www.oecd.org

A Happy Moment Amongst Turbulent Times

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 02:53:00 +0000

A key to happiness: ASK FOR HELP. Why? Because other people can help you solve your problems. Amazing.

I was so, so, so annoyed. The “t” key on my laptop was sticking. Turns out that the letter “t” comes up a lot in writing.

At first, I pretended it wasn’t happening.

Then I told myself it would go away after I’d turned the laptop on and off a few times.

Then I tried to pretend that it would fix itself if I just kept typing.

Then I was plunged into gloom, imagining the effort and expense it was going to take to replace the key, or the whole keyboard – or, I feared, the laptop itself. Surely not. But I couldn’t continue without a workable “t.”

At last, I remembered one of my most useful Secrets of Adulthood: “It’s okay to ask for help.”

I emailed a friend who knows a huge amount about computers to ask -- why was my “t” sticking? Was there anything I could do to fix it? Was I going to have to replace the key or keyboard?

He answered: “Turn off the laptop, then rub the keyboard with washcloth dampened with warm water and a little soap. Let it dry. See if that helps.”

Could it really be so simple? YES.

That was all it took to fix the “t.”

Zoikes, that made me happy. Samuel Johnson observed, "To live in perpetual want of little things is a state, not indeed of torture, but of constant vexation.” Wanting that "t" was pure vexation, and bliss to get it back.

Now I have a new appreciation for my beloved, sturdy, reliable laptop. I won’t take it for granted – at least for a few days. And I fixed it MYSELF -- after I asked for help.

4 Ways to Say “I Love You”

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 06:58:00 +0000

Saying “I love you” always makes for a tender moment. But “I love you” doesn’t have to be “said” with words. While this phrase is a powerful conveyor of emotion, showing your love in other ways is just as significant, and possibly even more effective, at keeping a relationship alive and healthy. There are simple ways to show how much you love someone without uttering those three little words.

1. Show Your Approval, Gratitude and Admiration

As human beings, we are programmed to seek reassurance from those we love and even sometimes from those we don’t.

So it makes sense that you’d do your best to make sure your partner knows just how much you approve of and admire him. Letting your guy know how you feel takes no time at all. And even if you think he already knows how you feel about him, constant reminders are still extremely motivating.

We all want to be shown approval for the things we do, whether it’s the way we provide for our family financially, the way we raise our children, the way we take care of the house, the way we do our jobs, the way we look, or our other personal accomplishments.

So being constantly critical and only focusing on your partner’s negative attributes doesn’t say “I love you” very well. In fact, it’s demeaning and will drive him away pretty quickly.

Unfortunately, most of us are guilty of it. Recognize the damage your criticisms may be causing, especially those that are petty and insignificant, and choose your battles wisely.

Instead of picking at your partner’s flaws, sprinkle your conversations with words of approval, gratitude and admiration. And when your partner shows his love for you by taking out the garbage, putting the seat down or changing your oil, don’t forget to respond with gratitude with words like “Thank you for _____,” “I appreciate that you did _____” and “I admire you for _____.”

Say these words often.

2. Make Him #1

Commitment is the foundation in which any relationship – especially marriage – lies on.

While your relationship should take priority in your life, there’s no denying that you have a long list of other commitments you need to tend to. Your career, children, friends, extended family, and social life often compete for time you could be spending with your partner. Your commitment to your man can easily waver as you give importance to all the other things you have going on. And it’s especially difficult once children are in the picture. Parents, especially mothers, tend to think their children are their biggest obligation, and the other spouse gets pushed aside.

Your spouse is just as important, if not more so, than many of your other commitments. And there’s no better way to show him you know that than with time and affection. Saying “I love you” isn’t enough – this demonstration requires action and active support.

Always make sure you spend an adequate amount of time – and more importantly, quality time – with your partner. Don’t neglect his needs in favor of other more trivial things, and don’t use those as excuses to avoid spending time with him. A third “girl’s night out” this week doesn’t say “I love you” or “I want to spend time with you” very well. It’s your obligation to find a healthy balance.

3. It’s the Small Stuff that Really Counts

Being thoughtful and taking the initiative to bring happiness to your partner is another simple way to say “I love you.”

Kindness and consideration, especially when it’s personal and intimate to who you are as a couple, shows you care so much that you’re willing to go above and beyond. It’s about responding to your partner’s needs and wants, before he has to ask for it.

Be one step ahead by remembering important events coming up in his life. Anticipate the things he needs to get done and help him accomplish them.

Take the initiative to call him at work to see how the big presentation went. Clean out the garage for him without being asked to do so. Don’t wait for him to ask you if you’ll rub his shoulders after a long day – do it before he has a chance.

Learn to be a good listener, even he’s talking about something you really don’t care about. And keep unsolicited advice to yourself.

4. Be Your Honey’s Everything

Whether you’re a girlfriend or a wife, your true status takes on so much more meaning than your title does. You’re a friend, a lover and a confidante.

You may also be the mother of your spouse’s children.

Fulfill all of those roles 100%. Be the friend who is fun and loyal, the lover who is affectionate and intimate and the confidante who is trustworthy. Provide an ear to talk to and a shoulder to lean on when your partner needs it most.

If you have children, being a loving, devoted mom shows your partner you love him enough to take care of the children you produced together.

Being your partner’s everything takes work, but it’s an endeavor that says “I love you” more than words ever can.

When you incorporate these different ways to say “I love you” into your everyday life, you’re guaranteed to see a positive response from your partner and even more rewards in your relationship.

So go ahead and “tell” your partner just how much you love him today.

How To: Pick A Lock

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 01:27:00 +0000

This article on how to pick a lock is for entertainment purposes only. We do not advocate picking locks
for nefarious purposes, including but not limited to breaking and entering,

or escaping from police custody once you’ve been arrested for said breaking and entering. If you’re locked out
of your own house, a guy’s got to do what a guy’s got to do, but you’re probably better at picking your nose
than picking a lock anyway, so we wouldn’t recommend it.

Have you ever brought a babe home and realized you left your house keys in your other pants? “Uh, just a second,” is all you can muster as you fumble awkwardly through your pockets. A lesser man would’ve ended the night right there and sent her home with little more than a goodnight kiss, but you’ve come this far, and damn it you will not be denied! So what do you do? You could scale the balcony and climb through the second-floor window, but why overexert yourself before the main event? No, there’s an easier way, but it requires a little more finesse and style: picking the lock.

Faced with a locked door, these days you’re most likely dealing with a dead bolt. Picking padlocks will probably get you past the front gate, but not into the house, and combination locks are a little too advanced for beginners. If you want to pick a lock that’s common, challenging, but still possible to crack with minimal frustration, the dead bolt is the one worth learning.

So, to get yourself out of a sticky locked-door situation, here’s our guide on how to pick a lock.

what you’ll need

1 Torque tool - A skinny, flat piece of metal thin enough to fit in the lock with a 90-degree bend at the end. It’s used for applying constant rotational pressure on the lock.

1 Pick/Rake tool - A flat and skinny piece of metal with a tiny triangular bump at the end. It’s used to push up the pins in the lock.

1 Dead-bolt lock - Obviously.
Apply torque pressure
To pick a lock, stick your torque tool in the bottom of the lock with the tool starting on a slight angle and twist it just like you were unlocking the lock with a normal key. The crucial part is applying slight and constant upward pressure to prevent any set pins from falling back down; not too tight and not too light so the pins aren’t trapped above or below the sheer line. Once all the pins are set, it will release.

Use the pick/rake to set the pins
The secret behind a lock lies in the key that opens it. The teeth on a key are used to hold the pins in the lock at the right height for their tips to lie on a common plane (the sheer line) and allow the lock to turn and open the door. The pick is used to push each of the pins to the correct height. While applying pressure with your torque tool from the bottom and preventing pins from falling down from the set position, push the pins up to their proper height one at a time with your pick. You will know when a pin has reached the sheer line because the lock will turn a small amount when you twist the torque tool, and for every pin raised it will twist a tad more. As you repeat the process, each pin will be set at its correct height until every pin is in position and you can turn the torque tool all the way around like a key and open the door.

An easier way to pick a lock is to push the pick/rake all the way into the lock with enough pressure to depress the pins, pull the pick out, dragging it over all the pins, depressing them into the correct position on the way out. Just keep raking the pick over the pins while applying slight pressure from the bottom with the torque tool and eventually the pins will click and set into position and the lock will open.

Practice, practice, practice
As the age-old adage goes: Practice makes perfect. Get yourself a practice lock and go at it. As your lock-picking skills improve, you’ll get to know how your pick is interacting with the pins and which ones are set and which ones still need your magic touch. Raking at the pins blindly also works, but like sex without foreplay, it may take longer to get the desired result.

locked and loaded

Don’t get discouraged; learning how to pick a lock is like anything: The more you do it, the better you get at it. Remember: Every structure has its weakness and with this helpful guide on how to pick a lock, you’ll be well on your way to exploiting one of them. Become a master lock picker and, suddenly, coaxing a door open will be much easier than coaxing a woman out of her clothes.

10 Ways to Lower Your Cholesterol Naturally

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 02:11:00 +0000

Heart disease is the #1 killer in the U.S., responsible for one death every 35 seconds. No
matter how old you are, it’s never too early or too late to protect your heart. And there’s
no better time to do it than now. In her book, Cholesterol Down (Three Rivers Press,
2006), Janet Bond Brill, Ph.D., R.D., highlights cholesterol-lowering foods that will
satisfy your stomach and keep your ticker healthy.

Cholesterol and Heart Disease
“The scientific evidence is indisputable that lowering your cholesterol reduces your risk of
contracting heart disease and of dying from a heart attack,” explains Brill.

Cholesterol is found in our bodies in particles called lipoproteins. Low-density lipoproteins
(LDL) are deemed “bad” cholesterol because high levels of them can lead to a buildup of
plaque in your arteries. This thick mass narrows your arteries, restricting the flow of blood –much like trying to sip juice through a clogged straw. Eventually the plaque ruptures and a blood clot forms, cutting off the flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients to the brain. Hello, heart
attack and stroke!

High-density lipoproteins (HDL), on the other hand, are dubbed “good” cholesterol for their
ability to pick up the LDL clogging your arteries and take it to the liver, where it’s processed
and eventually excreted.

Chow Down
Brill’s cholesterol-lowering eating plan is as tasty as it is effective. “My diet is about what you can eat, not what you can’t,” she says. What’s on her list? For starters, try these eight
superfoods:

(Aim to eat all eight daily, and heed the two bonus tips as well. If you follow only half the
steps, you’ll only get half the benefits.)

1. Oatmeal
Oats are rich in beta-glucan, a special type of soluble fiber that acts like a sponge to soak up cholesterol.

Dig in: Add cinnamon or dried cranberries to your morning oatmeal for a flavor boost.
Oat-bran is a highly concentrated source of beta-glucan, and it’s easy to mix into homemadebread, muffin and pancake batter. (Brill’s book includes a yummy recipe for

blueberry muffins with oat-bran).

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: 3 grams of beta-glucan, found in a 1/2 cup of dry oatmeal or oat bran.

2. Almonds
Almonds contain two powerful antioxidants – vitamin E and flavonoids – both of which prevent the oxidation of LDL, a precursor to plaque buildup.

Dig in: Opt for almonds still in their skins, which pack a hefty dose of flavonoids. Stir a

handful into your yogurt or spread two tablespoons of almond butter on whole wheat bread.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: One ounce of dry-roasted, unsalted almonds.

3. Flaxseeds
Flaxseeds contain lignan and soluble fiber, which block the production of LDL and increase your body’s ability to get rid of cholesterol.

Dig in: Eat ground flaxseeds rather than whole ones; your body can better absorb the
nutrients inside. Brill likes to sprinkle them in her morning bowl of oatmeal.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseeds.

4. Garlic
Garlic impedes the liver’s ability to make cholesterol. (See related article: Lower Your
Cholesterol)

Dig in: Chop garlic into small pieces to release its flavor. Sauté it with steamed spinach, add it to sauces and soups or purée roasted garlic with cooked potatoes and olive oil for a heart-healthy version of everybody’s favorite: mashed potatoes.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: One clove and one Kyolic One Per Day Cardiovascular aged garlic extract supplement.

5. Phytosterol-Containing Foods
Phytosterols are a type of fat found in plant foods like fruits, nuts, seeds and vegetable oils. They interfere with cholesterol absorption by blocking cholesterol from entering your intestinal cells.

Dig in: Even a vegetarian diet filled with plant foods provides no more than 300 to 400 mg of
plant sterols a day, well below Brill’s 2-3 gram recommendation. Supplement this with some of the
many foods containing added phytosterols (chocolate bars, margarine, cheese, granola bars and cookies, to name a few), but keep an eye on saturated fat and trans fat content.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: 2–3 grams of phytosterols per day spread over two meals.

6. Apples
Apples, particularly the skin and outer flesh, are rich in polyphenols, powerful antioxidants which help prevent plaque buildup.

Dig in: Chop, slice or dice ’em, but leave the peel on for maximum health benefits.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: One apple a day (to keep the doctor away, of course).

7. Beans
Beans contain a special type of soluble fiber that gets fermented in the colon. Healthy bacteria eat the fiber and bean sugars to form short-chain fatty acids, which travel to the liver and hinder LDL cholesterol production.

Dig in: Brill loves Adzuki beans, which are used in Japan to make sweet red bean paste. She also
recommends cannelloni beans (try them in Tuscan soups, a type of Italian bean-based soup) and kidney beans, perfect in southwestern chili.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: ½ cup of legumes (beans, peas or lentils).

8. Soy Protein
Soy protein contains phytoestrogens – compounds that increase the number and effectiveness of LDL cholesterol receptors, improving the liver’s ability to get rid of cholesterol in your bloodstream.

Dig in: Order a soy latte at your favorite coffeehouse, throw tofu into a fruit smoothie, use soy
flour when baking, or mix a handful of roasted soynuts with dried fruit for an energy-boosting trail mix.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: 20–25 grams.
Diet isn’t your only defense against cholesterol. “Every step works to lower cholesterol in a
specific way,” Brill explains. “By combining them all together, you get an extremely powerful LDL-lowering multi-pronged approach.”

Here are two of her favorite non-food-related tips:

9. Take Metamucil (Psyllium Husk)
Metamucil contains psyllium husk, a fiber that blocks cholesterol from entering your intestinal cells. It’s “the most powerful LDL-lowering viscous soluble fiber in existence,” according to Brill. This fiber soaks up cholesterol so you excrete it rather than absorb cholesterol into your
intestinal cells.

Dig in: The National Cholesterol Education Program recommends adults consume 10-25 grams
of soluble fiber a day, but most of us get only 3-4 grams.

Brill recommends getting half your fiber from a supplement and the rest from food. Take half your daily dose of Metamucil before breakfast and half after dinner to avoid overloading your body on fiber, which can cause gas, constipation or even diarrhea.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: Work up to 12 capsules a day, for a total of 6 grams of psyllium husk.

Or use the powdered version, which you can mix into water. It varies by product, but most Metamucil powders contain 3.4 grams of psyllium husk per serving.

10. Work up a Sweat
Brisk exercise speeds up the blood flow in your arteries, reducing your chances of inflammation and clogging (two precursors to hardening of your arteries).

Get moving: You don’t have to hit the gym to get some exercise. Clip on a pedometer while you run errands and aim to take 10,000 steps a day.

Dr. Brill’s daily Rx: 30 minutes of exercise.

Each of the foods and tips mentioned play a crucial role not only in lowering your cholesterol, but in keeping your body healthy. For more on their benefits, and for delicious recipes and meal plans (you'll love the walnut-crusted salmon), get your own copy of Cholesterol Down and check out CholesterolDownBook.com.

4 Steps: Dancing

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 12:29:00 +0000

It doesn’t take much to see that a person who can dance is attractive to the opposite sex, and usually has more dates as a result of his dancing abilities. According to a study from Rutgers University, dancing is attractive because of the bodily symmetry it displays -- something that’s sought in a mate.

Regardless of why we like those who are able to dance, it clearly marks a disadvantage for those who can’t. If you have two left feet, you are well aware of the challenges faced at a social outing to a dance club or a wedding reception.

Have no fear; dancing, like most other things, can be learned. Although we probably can’t turn you into a candidate for Dancing with the Stars, you can learn how to appear congident-- and competent -- on a dance floor. Check out the four easy dancing steps below. Just note that when you give your new dancing moves a try for the first time, do it on a dance floor that’s already full -- that way it’ll be harder for anyone to single you out.

step 1 Watch and learn

Sit out the first few dances on any given night and, without being creepy, watch the simple moves people use and the confidence they emit. Consider this your first dancing lesson. Watch a few different people and connect with the steps you feel the most comfortable doing. As you watch, you’ll find most people aren’t really doing anything too complicated, which makes this a prime opportunity to learn some basics from those dancing around you; you should pay special attention to partners. Go easy and take it slow, but be sure to improve your moves by mimicking others. This way, when you actually try getting out on the dance floor, you’ll have some idea of what you want to do.

Having ideas before you go out will help you feel more confident, and nothing is sexier than confidence. Just don’t try anything too complicated and remember to dance at a skill level that’s appropriate for you.

step 2 Do a shot

Although alcohol is not the ideal way to obtain a confidence boost, it is often the quickest way to help you man up. Doing a shot or two with your friends at the bar will help you to feel less conspicuous when you embark on your dancing journey, so you’ll be able to focus on what you’re doing rather than worrying and feeling tense. If there’s one thing that’s true about dancing, it’s that the looser you are, the better you’ll look.

One word of warning: This tip is not a license to get smashed. Do not, under any circumstances, get too drunk before you decide to try out your new dancing moves. It is important to remember that your dancing does not improve with more drinks -- only your perception of it does. If you drink too much, you will think you’re doing a great job out there, and only succeed in looking very silly. This tip, like most things, must be practiced in moderation in order to be successful.

We have two more steps to help you with your dancing abilities…

step 3 Start with your head

Treat dancing like it’s connected to your positioning on the dance floor. When you’re on the periphery, only move your head. Find the beat and enjoy your mini participation of bobbing your head, smiling and checking out the crowd. Once you feel comfortable with those movements, go just a little farther into the crowd, and get more of your body involved in dancing. Move your arms and shoulders in a way that coincides with the music and with what other dancers are doing (don’t forget step one about learning from others).

As you move toward the center of the dance floor, get your hips and legs going with the rest of you. The advantage of being near the center of the dance floor is that the fun-lovers around you motivate you and you don’t feel silly when everyone around you is busting a move too.

step 4 Recycle your moves

As with every other valuable commodity, dance moves are not to be wasted. Once you have a few moves that you feel comfortable with, and you think they’re looking good, begin reusing them. Since songs are so repetitive, dances that fit to them can fit to a cycle too. If a dance move fits well with certain lyrics or parts of the song, use that dance move each time they come up.

Having a system like this makes you look like your dance has unity, giving it the same appeal as a choreographed dance. Besides this, it also has the advantage of keeping you from going off on a tangent in the heat of the moment. Once you’re successful, stick to what you know and work it into a system. Look at you; in four steps you’re already customizing your moves.

Get your groove on and have fun. Don’t forget that the most obvious and attractive thing in a mate is a positive, upbeat attitude. Don’t take yourself too seriously on -- or off -- the dance floor. Just get out there and smile. The feeling is contagious.

Using Law Of Attraction To Lose Or Gain Weight

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 03:48:00 +0000

How does law of attraction work?

Most of you would probably know of the best selling book "Think And Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill and many people have claimed that the book changed their thinking and have seen their personal wealth grow. If people can think and grow rich, then can people think and grow thin? Can thinking to be thin help you to lose weight?

Since the released of Rhonda Byrne's "The Secret" DVD and book, the Law of Attraction (LOA), which is the essence of her work has swept the world by storm. If you are unfamiliar with the law of attraction, then the simplistic definition of the law of attraction is that you attract to you what are in your dominant thoughts and what you are focused on.

In other words, you get what you think. Of course there are more to it than just merely wishful thinking and if you want to know more, the internet is full of articles on the application of law of attraction.

Weight loss or gain using law of attraction

Experts in the law of attraction such as Bob Proctor, John Assaraf and some others who appeared in "The Secret" explained that recent breakthroughs in neuroscience along with understanding mental laws, reveal why the "law of attraction" and "positive thinking" work regardless of whether you look at the theory from a metaphysical or a scientific point of view in a Larry King show.

Scientists have long known that your subconscious is completely neutral and impartial and it will carry out any instructions you give it. In other words, you can use the law of attraction to attract love, to lose or gain weight, attract wealth, quit smoking or whatever you desire.

Unfortunately, many of us are still running negative programs we picked up from others as children when our subconscious minds were totally open and impressionable, or which we have developed over the years as a result of repetition of our own negative thinking.

Yes, many of you may say to me now that you have been thinking of losing weight, but is still getting fatter and fatter. You see, when you are thinking of losing weight, you are using your conscious mind, but what is your subconscious mind thinking? Let me list a few examples :-

a) I am too fat, so I need to lose weight – This thinking cancels out each other. Yes, you want to lose weight, but you are also thinking about being fat. The law of attraction do not react to whether you want it or do not want it, it just delivers to you what you are thinking and focused on.

b) My family members are fat, so I am genetically programed to be fat – I don't need to explain this further. It is a self limiting thought and guess what? If you think you are fat, then you are. Period.

c) I wish to be thin – Now merely wishing is not good enough, the law of attraction will just entertain your wish. You will always be wishing.

d) It is difficult to lose weight – Then you will never lose weight because it will always be difficult for you to lose weight.

So when you do not lose weight even if you have always wanted to, it could be because of your self limiting subconscious thoughts. Our own thoughts when repeated often enough are programed into our subconscious mind and most of the time we do not even know that they are there sabotaging us. These thoughts then become our beliefs, habits and automatic behavior.

To change your results, you must overwrite old negative programming and instill new positive programming into your subconscious mind. If you are getting more of the same or negative results in your life such as not being able to attract more wealth, good health or the body shape you desire, then you have probably been unconsciously running old negative programs and reinforcing them with daily negative thought patterns.

How to get rid of limiting beliefs and negative thoughts

There are a few techniques you can use to get rid of limiting believes and negative thoughts such as using goal setting, affirmations and creative visualizations. I will not describe in detail how these methods work here as books are written on them. However, from personal experiences, the best method is using self hypnosis.

Self Hypnosis To Lose Or Gain Weight

Yes, you can use self hypnosis to lose weight, gain weight, quit smoking, attract wealth, attract love and a lot of other benefits. If you are constantly procrastinating in getting the bodyshape you want, then self hypnosis can help you transform your body in the comfort of your own bedroom.

How does hypnosis work?

There are many of the myths and misconceptions about hypnosis and you may have probably heard some of them. Most people think that hypnosis is that of a hypnotist waving the gold watch or pendulum in front of you and puts you under the complete control of the hypnotist. This is completely untrue and are the influences of Hollywood movies and cartoons.

Many people think that while under hypnosis, they will go into in a state of sleep. Again this is not true. Hypnosis is merely a state of physical relaxation and it actually heightened your mental alertness. The subject under hypnosis is able to hear everything that is going on. You can also get up from your bed to full consciousness immediately if you wish to. In other words, you are in full control of yourself.

When you are under hypnosis, you are so relaxed that the therapist can then suggest beneficial information into your subconscious mind. For example, if you have trouble keeping to your diet to lose weight, the therapist will suggest into your subconscious mind information such as why you are able to keep to your diet and its healthy benefits. In this way, you are programming your subconscious mind of letting go of limiting beliefs and implant more beneficial thoughts and beliefs to help you stick to your diet to lose weight.

Now, instead of visiting a real hypnotist to lose weight/gain weight or for any other therapies and paying expensive hourly consultations, you can now conduct your own self hypnosis through CDs and MP3s in the comfort of your own bedroom. Isn't that a nice way to slim down, attract love, gain weight or attract wealth?

The Aesthetics of Sex

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:11:00 +0000

Will Women Wear the Female Condom?

Prophylactics aren’t expected to be particularly pretty, but no one wants to have sex looking like they’re wearing their grandmother’s rain slicker. That may be why the female condom, available since the late 1990s, has never caught on in the U.S. The fact that it is visible may be a turn-off for some. But women may want to reconsider: after all, the rain-gear look trumps facing unwanted pregnancies or STDs…

The female condom — marketed as the FC — may not be alluring, but it puts protection directly into the hands of women. Produced by the Female Health Company, the FC is one of four barrier birth control methods, the other three being the cervical cap, the diaphragm and the sponge. Of these, only the FC can prevent both sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and pregnancy when properly used.

Unfortunately, the female condom has not caught on in the United States or abroad, despite the hopes of European health officials that it would help fight the AIDS epidemic.

What the FC Can Do for You

Unsightly or not, the FC has many advantages: Most important, it helps women prevent both infection and unplanned pregnancy. Of every 100 users, about 21 will become pregnant during the first year of use. But only five will become pregnant with perfect use, a rate similar to that of other barrier methods, albeit less effective than the male condom.

A 6.5-inch polyurethane pouch with a flexible ring at each end resembling a diaphragm, the FC is also easy to use. The closed end of the female condom – which is lubricated to ease placement – can be inserted into the vagina up to eight hours before intercourse. The open-ended ring extends outside the vaginal opening, making the FC easy to remove and discard after each use. It doesn’t have to be taken out immediately, but the female condom is only recommended for use during a single sex act. The ring at the closed end holds the FC in place while the ring outside the vagina helps guide insertion and keeps the condom from bunching up inside.

Don’t use the female condom if your partner is wearing a male condom. The friction between the polyurethane and the latex can undercut any protection.

FCs are readily available and affordable – about $2.50 each in the United States. And people who are allergic to latex can use them. Currently, 14 million female condoms are distributed annually to women in poor countries. By comparison, between 6 and 9 billion male condoms are distributed each year. So why hasn’t the female condom achieved the same level of popularity as the male condom?

Not So Sizzling Style

In the United States, complaints about the female condom are largely aesthetic. Many find it to be ugly and awkward to use. It has an unnatural feel and makes noise during sex, though this problem can be lessened with additional lubrication.

Resistance by women in third world countries also stems from the fact that the FC is visible during intercourse. In many cultures, a wife’s use of protection during sex suggests infidelity, which can create a volatile domestic situation. Those who use them are usually prostitutes. Consequently, female condoms account for only 0.2% of global condom use.

The Female Health Company redesigned its original FC, and in 2005 introduced a product called the FC2. Made from a nitrile polymer, the FC2 boasts a thinner, more compliant material than polyurethane with a more natural feel. The FC2 is coated with a silicone-based lubricant to ease insertion and allow for smoother movement during intercourse. The FC2 is cheaper than the original and offers a non-allergenic barrier to STDs, including HIV. The FC2 is seeking FDA approval.

A new female condom design has also been developed by the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), a non-profit group in Seattle, and has a smaller insertion end the size of a tampon. It also features softer, thinner polyurethane that moves more naturally and dots of foam that adhere to the vaginal walls and allow the condom to expand along with the vagina during arousal. PATH’s female condom has not yet received approval by the FDA for sale in the U.S., but 90% of couples who tested the product reported satisfaction, ease of use and comfort.

Rough Road to Approval

Despite the improvements, redesigns of the female condom still have problems to sort out. In 1999, the FDA adopted a much more stringent test for approval. The male condom is considered a Class 2 medical device (meaning it must pass leakage and bursting tests). However, the female condom is now considered a Class 3, meaning it must pass costly clinical trials due to a lack of clinical data on its effectiveness for preventing STDs and HIV. The rating (the same held by pacemakers, heart valves and silicone breast implants) is a huge setback to its acceptance.

The FC2 has received a CE mark indicating that the product can be marketed in Europe. And the World Health Organization has recommended that United Nations agencies purchase FC2s to use in more than 80 developing countries. The FC is known by several different brand names in other countries including Reality, Femidom, Dominique, Femy, Myfemy, Protectiv’, and Care.

Another version called the VA feminine condom is manufactured by Medtech Products Ltd. and Intellx Inc. It is not available in the United States, but has gained the CE mark allowing distribution in the European Union. The VA, also called Reddy female condom and V-Amour, has also been distributed in South Africa since 2004 as part of HIV prevention efforts.

Similar to male condoms, the lubricated VA is the first female condom made of latex. It has a sponge at the closed end, anchoring it inside the vagina. Only water-based lubricants can be used with latex: Oil-based products can damage the latex, leading to leaks and tears.

How to Use the FC

Lie down, squat or sit – whatever’s comfortable. Hold the ring at the closed end of the FC with the open end hanging down. Squeeze the ring with your thumb and middle finger just as you would with a diaphragm, so the ring becomes long and narrow. Insert the ring and sheath into your vagina. Place your index finger inside and push the inner ring up as far as it will go, making sure the condom is straight and not twisted. The outer ring should be outside the vagina. When you are ready for intercourse, guide your partner’s penis into the ring and sheath. If the condom slips or the outer end enters the vagina, stop intercourse and take the FC out; then slip on a new one.

After intercourse, gently twist the outer ring and pull the condom out. Be careful to keep the sperm inside. Wrap the FC in toilet paper and put it in a wastebasket, not down the toilet.

Available Alternatives

Barrier methods such as the cervical cap, the diaphragm and the sponge also have drawbacks but a much higher rate of acceptance than the female condom. None will prevent STDs, and two of the three require the addition of a spermicide. (The exception is the sponge, which is infused with spermicide that is activated with moisture before insertion.) A health care professional must fit you for the cervical cap and diaphragm to ensure proper placement for protection.

Each of the barrier types can come loose during intercourse, and the sensation of a foreign body during sex can distract even the most devoted partner. The expense of the alternates makes them prohibitive in developing countries. So, many advocacy groups are working to advertise the advantages of the newly designed FC2, hoping that usage rates will eventually rise.

This information should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare professional regarding any medical condition. Information and statements provided by the site about dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This website does not recommend or endorse any specific tests, physicians, third-party products, procedures, opinions, or other information mentioned on the Site. Reliance on any information provided by this website is solely at your own risk.

Birth Control, The Natural Way

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 00:29:00 +0000

Is FAM the Right Choice for You?

The pill doesn’t thrill you. You’re sick of fumbling with condoms, sponges and foams. You’re in a committed, monogamous relationship… but not looking to start a family. Well, there’s an all-natural – and widely misunderstood – option that can keep you from getting knocked up. And no, it’s not the rhythm method…

Who hasn’t wished they didn’t have to deal with birth control pills, fumbling with condoms in the heat of the moment, or fretting about your period after unprotected sex?

Many women seek a natural form of contraception that doesn’t mess with our bodies, but also doesn’t leave us chewing our fingernails each month and running to the store for pregnancy tests (and uncomfortable moments with the cashier).

The Fertility Awareness Method (FAM) offers a natural form of birth control and a better sense of your reproductive cycle. It’s often confused with the rhythm method – a form of birth control that counts the days of the menstrual cycle to predict when it’s safe and unsafe to have sex.

The rhythm method relies on tracking past menstrual cycles and using them to predict the future. It’s the look-into-a-crystal-ball approach to birth control, which is why it often fails.

FAM is significantly more effective since it charts a woman’s current symptoms, day by day, to offer a more precise prediction about her fertility or lack thereof. With perfect use and abstinence during fertile times, FAM is as effective as the pill and more effective than condoms. However, FAM won’t protect against sexually transmitted diseases. As such, it’s a method of birth control best practiced by monogamous, committed couples.
The key to FAM is in the details: basal body temperature and cervical fluid.

What’s Your Temperature?

Technically, a woman is only fertile one day out of the month – the day she ovulates. However, since sperm can survive in the body for up to a week, there are actually at least seven “unsafe” days if you are trying to avoid pregnancy (and fertile days if you are trying to get pregnant): the five days leading up to ovulation, the day you ovulate and the day after.

Ovulation is different for every woman. Some women ovulate on Day 10 of their cycle, while others ovulate on Day 20.

When a woman is ovulating, her body temperature rises. Most women can’t feel the temperature increase; a thermometer is the best way to monitor it. Tracking your basal body temperature (BBT) helps you zero in on your ovulation time, so you know when it’s safe and unsafe to have unprotected sex.

Sarah Slocum, Coordinator of fertility awareness workshops at the Chicago Women’s Health Center, says, “FAM really allows women to get to know their own cycle. It’s very personal; every woman is different.”

However, timing is everything.

Your temperature should be taken before you do anything – brush your teeth, have sex, get out of bed, or meditate. Set a daily alarm, wake up, roll over, and put the thermometer in your mouth. Most digital basal thermometers will record your most recent reading, so you can roll over again and fall right back asleep.

Tracking your daily waking temperature with a basal thermometer is essential, because the differences are actually in 10ths of a degree that wouldn’t register otherwise. These instruments are also called family planning or fertility thermometers. Over the course of several cycles, you’ll begin to see a pattern in which your temperature plots along, then does a dramatic increase. That is your magic day of ovulation.

Check Your Fluids

Tracking your cervical fluid can help you know where you are in your menstrual cycle. While tracking BBT helps you monitor your body during and after ovulation, checking your cervical fluids helps you recognize those fertile days before ovulation (and before your temperature has gone up). In combination with BBT, you can predict when it is safe to have sex and when you must abstain or use backup birth control.

Yuck, you say? You’re not alone. Many women feel cervical fluid, or “discharge,” is gross, mysterious and certainly not the subject of conversation and attention.

However, this is where many women go wrong in understanding their fertility. Women’s health expert Toni Weschler, in her seminal book on FAM, Taking Charge of Your Fertility (Collins, 2001), says: “Because of misleading and inadequate health education, women are rarely taught how to distinguish between normal signs of fertile cervical fluid produced every cycle and the signs of a vaginal infection.”

Cervical fluid changes predictably for most women over the course of the menstrual cycle. It also plays a vital role in helping women conceive, which many people are not aware of.

Noting the characteristics of your cervical fluid helps you recognize where you are in your cycle and when you can have sex without fear of getting pregnant:

In the days following menstruation, most women experience “dry days,” in which no cervical fluid is present. These are generally days that are safe for intercourse.

As the egg matures for ovulation, many women experience sticky, cloudy or clumpy fluid. These can be safe days, depending on your cycle.

Next, women experience increasing wetness and creamy, lotion-like cervical fluid. These are generally unsafe days.

As ovulation approaches, women experience a more slippery cervical fluid that often resembles raw egg whites. This cervical fluid is stretchy and highly conducive to transporting sperm to an egg (in other words, no sex!).

Check your cervical fluid each time you use the bathroom by wiping the vaginal opening with either a tissue or your fingers. Record the quality of your cervical fluid at the end of each day. Remember, it may take a couple cycles to begin to see patterns or even distinguish between different types of fluid.

FAM Fare

As you recognize your fertility patterns, you’ll be able to know when you can and can’t have sex without using other forms of birth control.

According to Slocum, a woman’s safe days become evident as she tracks her symptoms over the course of several cycles in fertility charts. You can get a fertility chart online or at a local clinic.

Slocum recommends that women take a workshop to learn the basics of FAM. According to her, it’s best if women come to a workshop with three cycles tracked; meanwhile, use a backup form of birth control during that time. To find a fertility awareness workshop in your area, visit CCLI.org.

To practice FAM, you’ll need a basal thermometer (available for about $10 at your drugstore), fertility charts to record your temperature and other symptoms, and a backup form of birth control until you get the hang of it. Again, FAM is only recommended for women in monogamous relationships.

The Fertility Awareness Method offers a natural approach to pregnancy prevention and, when you’re ready, pregnancy! Even if you choose not to practice FAM, simply knowing about it and how your body works can help you take charge of your health.

Want to learn more? Get your own copy of Taking Charge of Your Fertility.

15 Ways to Save $100

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 02:16:00 +0000

Easy Changes Can Equal Big Bucks

Sure, you’d save a bundle if you bought only second-hand clothes, never used electricity and ate canned peas for every meal. But fortunately, saving money doesn’t require you to sacrifice your lifestyle… or the occasional pair of designer shoes. By simply cutting a few corners here and there, you’ll be surprised how much moola you can squirrel away. Here are 15 easy tricks to save you money on everything from clothes to your car…

1. Gas

Getting the best price on a gallon of gas isn’t the only way to save big at the pump. Don’t ignore the check engine light. According to the Automobile Association of America (AAA), an out-of-sync car can consume 3%-8% more gas than a well-maintained vehicle, which adds up to hundreds of dollars in extra fuel over the years. Make sure your ride has inflated tires, clean oil, good spark plugs, and a clean air filter. And don’t lug around unnecessary baggage in your car; the extra weight actually eats up gas.

You should also use the Internet to find the cheapest gas in your neighborhood. Web sites such as GasBuddy.com and GasPriceWatch.com keep track of gas prices in a number of cities.

2. Plane tickets

“Information is worth money when it comes to travel,” says Carmen Wong Ulrich, personal finance expert and author of Generation Debt: Take Control of Your Money – A How-to Guide (Business Plus, 2006). Research fares online, and be sure to check more than once because prices can drop. Ulrich recommends the Web site SmarterTravel.com. It features the peak and off-season dates for travel destinations around the world. It also alerts you when certain cities have promotional deals, as well as compares airfares from Orbitz, Expedia and Hotwire.

3. Car repairs

Feel like you’re being taken for a ride by your car repair place? Look to the next generation of mechanics for help. Some colleges and vocational schools have on-site auto repair shops open to the public. While you still have to pay for parts, you’ll get a huge deal on labor costs. Students are guided by an instructor who supervises every step.

4. Dining out

A busy social life can be expensive. Fortunately, there are several ways to keep restaurant and bar bills under control.

At Restaurant.com, you can buy gift certificates to participating restaurants for cheaper than face value. (For example, you can purchase a $25 coupon for only $10.) Register as a member to be alerted to special deals.

Look for happy hours and restaurant discounts. Check Citysearch.com and your local newspaper’s Web site for listings of weekly dining and drinking specials.

Bring your own wine. Restaurants usually charge for corkage ($5 to $20), but it still may be cheaper than ordering several glasses of wine à la carte.

5. Office snacking

Work is supposed to be where we earn money, not spend it. But between food trucks, concession stores and, of course, local restaurants, the money adds up. A 2003 study found that office workers buy lunch an average of three days a week and spend an average of $7.10 when dining out for lunch. That means most office workers are spending more than $21 per week on lunch, not even counting those mid-day purchases of soda, candy bars, chewing gum, etc.

Bringing your own lunch to work saves cash, but packing a brown bag can be time-consuming. Make it easy: When you cook dinner, double the recipe; place extras into single-serving containers, then freeze. Take out as needed for lunch.

Stock up on non-perishables like frozen dinners, granola bars, peanut butter, and canned soups to store at the office so you’re not forced to order in.

6. Credit cards

Many people don’t know that it’s possible to lower your interest rate – you just have to ask. Call the credit card company and ask if they’ll lower your rate; they may be more likely to if you have good credit. Also, no matter what APR you’re charged, “pay off your highest interest debt first,” Ulrich advises.

7. Gym memberships

Many gyms charge start-up/enrollment fees on top of monthly dues. Ask the sales rep if these one-time charges can be waived. If not, start to leave… the rep will probably give in. Also, sign up during off-peak times. Everyone signs up in January, but more deals are offered mid-summer.

8. Coffee

For some people, a stop at Starbucks is part of their morning commute. But all those $4 lattes can take a venti-sized chunk out of your wallet. A couple tips:

If you don’t have a coffeemaker at work, ask your employer to purchase one for the office. Keep some milk in the fridge and whatever sweeteners you like at hand to make the coffee just as you like it.

Suggest a better brand of coffee if the one at work doesn’t taste good. Brands like Starbucks and Peet’s are often sold in bulk through office-suppliers and emporiums like Costco.

Invest in a high-quality travel mug and brew your coffee at home.

If you truly can’t live without your daily coffee stop, look for cheaper drinks. Alternate lattes with drip coffees and milk; get an iced coffee instead of a frappuccino – both will save you a couple bucks.

9. Clothes

There are many good deals to be found on great clothes; you just have to know where, and when, to look:

Many top brands, such as Nike, Coach and Ralph Lauren, have factory outlets. Go to the designers’ Web sites for outlet locations.

Know when the sales start. Department stores and retailers like Banana Republic are constantly moving clothes onto the sales racks, but there are a few key times of year. Don’t wait to stumble onto a sale – call the store and ask.

At a smaller boutique, make an effort to get to know the manager. Ask her to alert you when a coveted item goes on sale; if you’re a loyal customer, she’ll usually oblige.

10. Cosmetics
Not ready to go fresh-faced just to save a few bucks? Relax: A girl can have her lipstick and wear it, too:

“Gift with purchase” is your friend. There’s no need to forgo the products you like, but do buy them wisely. Wait until there’s a special offer with your cosmetics/skin care line, then stock up. Gifts with purchase allow you the opportunity to sample new products for free while spending the same money you usually would. You can also get samples from product lines with their own freestanding stores, such as M.A.C. and Aveda.

Invest in a makeup lesson from an artist at a reputable salon. You’ll earn back the money the next time you do your own makeup for an event. Plus, you’ll learn about the right cosmetics – and the right way to use them – which will prevent a drawer stuffed with barely used, rejected makeup.

11. Utilities

Even if electronics (such as a computer or printer) are turned off, they can still suck up power and energy if they’re plugged in. This is especially true for cell phone chargers. And the more electricity they use, the more you have to pay for on your next utility bill. Plug all your electronics into one power strip and turn it off before you go to bed. Also, turn off the light when you leave a room. It may not seem like much, but “cutting back on these little things together can absolutely save you anywhere from $15 to $50 a month,” Ulrich says.

12. Groceries

Buying items in bulk isn’t the only way to save a buck. Here are some other tips for spending wisely at the grocery store:

Join your local supermarket chain’s “member” or saver program. Benefits can include discounts on products and store credits that can be applied to any purchase.

Make a list before you go to the grocery store. Estimate prices for each item, then total them up – again, before you go to the store. At that point, you know roughly how much that visit to the store will cost you. This exercise can help you keep track of what you’re purchasing, as well as prevent impulse buys.

13. Mortgage refinancing

Unhappy with the mortgage you signed up for years ago? It might be time to refinance:

Find the best rate by checking local banks and the newspaper for offers, then compare them using Bankrate.com.

Get a “good faith estimate,” a government-issued document that outlines all the fees and charges associated with a mortgage. These charges can include closing costs, inspection and loan application fees, and taxes. Don’t make a commitment with any lender before receiving this document.

14. Taxes
“Variable Universal Life Insurance, otherwise known as whole-life insurance, can be a very good way to save money for your retirement years,” says Joan Perry, CEO of Take Charge Financial!, a California-based money management firm. When you take money out of an IRA or 401K, you have to hand over a portion to Uncle Sam, but not so with the money that comes out of life insurance. “It’s a big benefit in saving for your future,” Perry says. “You can save thousands of dollars in taxes.”

15. Retirement

Have a 401K? Great. The next step is to know what your money is invested in. “Invest it in funds related to an index, such as the Dow or NASDAQ,” Perry suggests. “This way, you can pay attention to what the index is doing.” If the market fares poorly over the long term or there’s a downward trend, you can move your assets into a money market fund.

Want to learn more? Get your own copy of Generation Debt: Take Control of Your Money.

5 Tell-Tale Signs of Aging

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:12:00 +0000

Let’s face it: You’re not getting any younger. And try as we might to turn back time with lotions, potions and plastic surgery, there are a few signs of aging that are dead giveaways. They can even pop up as early as your 20s. “Some people just age faster than others,” explains Dr. Z. Paul Lorenc, a plastic surgeon in Manhattan. And facelifts aren’t necessarily the solution for these five age giveaways; sometimes more unusual remedies are needed…

You can blame it on heredity, environment, stress, or even poor diet and health, but aging happens to us all. However, there are a few things you can practice to halt and reverse the aging process, says Dr. Douglas M. Monasebian, a plastic surgeon with Park Avenue Plastic Surgery in New York City. “This includes a healthy lifestyle, no smoking and limited sun exposure.” But if, like so many people, the damage is already there, it’s possible to fix the five signs of aging below. That’ll keep ‘em guessing for a few more years.

1. Veiny, Spotted Hands
What causes it: According to Monasebian, as we age skin loses collagen and elastin fiber, making it less elastic. Hence, your hands suddenly look scrawny. Also, you may see changes on the surface of the skin (such as brown “age spots”) due to sun exposure. After all, how often do you remember to apply sunscreen to the tops of your hands? Heredity also influences your likelihood of getting liver spots.

What you can do about it: There are a number of treatments for veiny or spotted hands. An IPL (Intense Pulse Laser) can remove the visible signs of sun damage such as pigmentation and broken capillaries, and help even out skin tone and texture. “Hand lifts” are also becoming popular: Fat can be transferred from elsewhere in the body, or cosmetic fillers (such as Scuptra or Perlane, similar to those used on the face) can be injected to “fill in” deep grooves.

Chemical peels can remove some hand blemishes; recovery time is 1-2 weeks. For a less dramatic solution, try bleaching or alpha-hydroxy creams: topical fading lotions that you use for up to one year.

Price: The average cost of an IPL treatment is $350-$600. Filler injections range from more than $539 for Restylane injections to $1,200 for fat. Chemical peels can cost $100-$300 per treatment. Usually at least six treatments are recommended.

2. Eye Bags
What causes it: Fat and fluid settles into the under-eye area. There are a number of reasons why bags appear, including genetics, fluid retention and allergies. Bags tend to look more pronounced when we get older because the skin under the eye gets thinner and loses elasticity.

What you can do about it: The simplest solutions are to cut salt out of your diet, apply cold compresses (even the old cucumbers on the eye trick), and use under-eye creams or serums to soothe and moisturize. But if your eye bags are truly bothersome, surgical techniques might be the way to go. Blepharoplasty is a procedure to remove fat, usually along with excess skin and muscle, from the upper and lower eyelids. In addition, Restylane or Juvéderm can be injected around the eye area to smooth and fill it out.

Price: Prices for a blepharoplasty run about $2,500, which doesn't include the price of the operating room and anesthesia. Procedures using a plumping agent (Restylane) range from $368 (for collagen) to $1,226 (for fat).

3. Mouth Wrinkles
What causes it: Again, a lack of elasticity in the skin is to blame. The face has a much shallower layer of subcutaneous tissue, and it’s one of the first places that wrinkles will appear. Frequent sun exposure is another culprit as is smoking (the constant pursing of the lips creates lines).

What you can do about it: There are many short-term solutions. Botox works by relaxing the muscles and making the line disappear – and one injection treatment will last between 3-6 months. Bovine collagen injection is another option. It normally last about 3-4 months, but about 10% of the population is allergic to it so ask your dermatologist about a skin test. You will get the longest (although not permanent) results from autologous fat transfer. This is a wrinkle-filling procedure in which fat is removed from one part of the body (such as the thighs, buttocks or stomach) via liposuction and used to fill in deeper wrinkles elsewhere.

Price: Botox injections run approximately $500 per treatment. The cost of a fat transfer procedure can run over $3,000.

4. “Turkey” Neck
What causes it: That “wattle” comes from weak or loose neck muscles. You may also notice "bands" ringing your neck.

What you can do about it: According to Lorenc, Botox injections can relax parts of the neck muscle, “releasing” the wrinkling on the neck. This is a quick and easy treatment (it takes about 15 minutes). But if your situation is more extreme, platysmaplasty surgery (also known as a necklift) may be a better option. This typically one-hour surgery is designed to tighten loose, sagging skin in the neck area and below the jaw line. During the surgery, incisions are made under the chin and/or behind your ears. A surgeon removes or realigns specific neck muscles that will tighten and support the middle part of the neck. A neck lift is often performed in conjunction with a facelift or forehead lift.

Price: Fees for neck lift surgery can range from $1,000 to $5,000, depending on the scope of the procedure.

5. Varicose Veins
What causes it: The word “varicose” literally means “twisted” in Latin. These bulging, blue, enlarged veins can pop up anywhere, but most often occur on the legs and feet. That's because standing and walking increases the pressure in the veins in your lower body.

As you get older your veins can lose elasticity, causing them to stretch. The valves in your veins may become weak, allowing blood that should be moving toward your heart to flow backward. Blood pools there and your veins enlarge and become varicose.

What you can do about it: According to the Mayo Clinic, you can take some self-help measures first: Exercising, losing weight, elevating your legs, and avoiding long periods of standing or sitting can prevent varicose veins from getting worse. For more extreme cases, there are numerous surgery options. During sclerotherapy, your doctor injects varicose veins with a solution that scars and closes them, allowing them to fade within a few weeks.

Laser surgery works by sending strong bursts of light onto the vein, which makes the vein slowly fade and disappear. No incisions or needles are used. A more invasive treatment, vein stripping, involves removing a long vein through small incisions. And during an ambulatory phlebectomy, your doctor removes smaller varicose veins through a series of tiny skin punctures.

Price: The average price of a sclerotherapy procedure is $325. Laser treatments cost between $300 and $450 per session. A phlebectomy usually costs at least $1,000. Vein stripping can be considerably more expensive than the other treatments; ask a plastic surgeon for an estimate.

Reverse Aging with the Anti-Inflammation Diet

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:03:00 +0000

The Right Foods Can Keep You Looking Young

Imagine slowing and even reversing the effects of aging on your looks, your health and even your memory. Add to that the ability to eliminate common skin problems. Now picture doing it all without plastic surgery or magic pills. Impossible? Absolutely not, according to anti-aging authority Dr. Nicholas Perricone, a dermatologist and best-selling author. In his new book, Ageless Face, Ageless Mind (Ballantine Books, 2007), Perricone says that you can look and feel younger with his three-part plan to reduce inflammation that may be aging you…

The bad news: Getting older happens. The good news: It doesn’t matter your age or the toll the years have taken on your body. Starting today, you can begin reversing the aging process. All it takes is a commitment to three steps: proper diet, targeted skin care and nutritional supplements that control blood sugar and insulin levels.

How does it work? Foods that cause a spike in blood sugar levels lead to internal inflammation that speeds up the aging process of all organ systems in our body. “When these sugar molecules attach to collagen protein, for example, wrinkles are formed as the inflammation produces enzymes that break down the collagen,” Perricone tells LifeScript. When the sugar and protein attach, a sugar-bond is formed called advanced glycation end products, or “AGEs.”

“AGEs can be responsible for wrinkles, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and much more, including age-related memory loss and even Alzheimer’s disease,” Perricone says. “For many years science has known about AGEs, but we have had no effective strategic interventions to fight them.”

Until now, that is.

In Ageless Face, Ageless Mind, Perricone explains that certain foods – like sugar and foods that rapidly convert to sugars (breads, pasta, potatoes and other simple carbohydrates) – make your blood sugar levels spike and then crash. Avoiding such foods and learning which foods promote a more youthful you – inside and out – will lead to overall health benefits.

“The effects of age are cumulative, they build up over time, which means that as we age our AGE level increases,” Perricone says. “So it makes sense to avoid sugar and other foods that promote internal AGE formation, which can cause a host of diseases from heart disease to cataracts, as well as wrinkled, sagging skin.”

12 food sources that cause aging: (See related article: 25 Foods That Fight Disease)

1. All foods that are cooked at high heats

2. Foods cooked at low heats for long periods with no liquid

3. Charbroiled meats

4. Roasted meats

5. Rotisserie chickens, turkeys, etc. Browned poultry skin is a significant source of AGEs.

6. Fried foods

7. Roasted or toasted nuts and seeds

8. Prepackaged baked goods that are deep brown in color. That usually signifies the addition of sugars or caramel coloring, making them a source of AGEs.

9. Processed snack foods (potato chips, pretzels, etc.)

10. Fast food. Most fast food outlets offer fare that is full of trans fats, char-cooked meats, fried foods, and soft drinks.

11. Coffee. In addition to raising levels of the stress hormone cortisol, coffee beans are dark-roasted, fostering the formation of AGEs.

12. Soda. Soda is dangerous for several reasons, including its sugar content or, even worse, its high fructose corn syrup. In fact, almost every bottle or can of soda on the market is now made with high fructose corn syrup, which increases the appetite and promotes obesity to a far greater degree than cane sugar.

Foods cooked at high temperatures – fried, broiled, baked or barbecued – or those cooked at low temperatures for extended periods create AGEs, and possibly a low-grade but chronic state of inflammation in your body, Perricone says. A conscious effort at eating the right foods and avoiding the wrong ones will help you wage an effective war against aging. Perricone says with his eating regimen, you’ll lose weight and maintain your healthy weight for life. You’ll also fine-tune your mental clarity and boost your immune system function.

“I have a very busy schedule and need to follow the anti-inflammatory lifestyle to maintain it,” Perricone says. “Eating a lot of great seafood, such as wild salmon and lots of dark green leafy salads dressed with extra virgin olive oil and fresh lemon juice, alongside berries and plenty of spring water ensures that I have the energy to meet all of my commitments.”

It’s not all about your internal health either. While many changes will happen inside your body, your skin will also improve, especially if you suffer from any of these four skin problems:

1. Loss of collagen

Collagen is the protein that helps keep our skin firm and elastic. As women enter their 30s and 40s, collagen production decreases. Perricone advises taking supplements of water-soluble vitamin C (ascorbic acid) and the fat-soluble variety called vitamin C ester, both believed to stimulate collagen production. For topical vitamin C application he advises using products with only vitamin C ester; the ascorbic variety is irritating to skin. Another collagen-producing supplement: alpha lipoic acid (ALA), an antioxidant that can conquer damaging free radicals.

2. Loss of muscle tone

This is the culprit behind the dreaded sag. “As we age, our levels of acetylcholine decline, resulting in reduced muscle tone,” Perricone explains. “Instead of staying short and tight, the muscles become elongated and relaxed, resulting in a sagging face and body.”

Cause for despair? Not quite. Instead, you can do four things that will tighten and shorten the muscles.

One: Eat fish. It provides the only dietary source of a substance called DMAE (dimethyl amino ethanol), which combats saggy muscles.

Two: You can take DMAE as a nutritional supplement.

Three: Perricone suggests applying a high-potency, rapidly penetrating DMAE topical lotion to the skin on the face and body.

Four: Keep your muscles toned with exercise.

3. Wrinkles and sun damage

The damaging inflammatory effects of UV radiation may be causing your skin to age faster than it should. Perricone suggests using products that contain ALA. “ALA’s capacity to regulate production of nitric oxide, which controls blood flow to the skin when applied topically, helps to transform the complexion from dull, pasty and pale to vibrant and glowing,” Perricone says.

Topical application will also reduce puffiness in the face and eye area, decrease wrinkles and pore size, even out skin tone and skin color.

Perricone also recommends products with neuropeptides, an anti-aging hormone, “As you reach your 40s and beyond, products containing natural and non-toxic neuropeptides play important roles in the beauty and appearance of the skin,” Perricone says, adding that as you age, the levels of natural neuropeptides, produced by your body, diminish.

Women in their mid-30s should use a topical formula with neuropeptides several times a week; frequency should increase in your 40s and 50s. The result? Improved appearance of your skin and a slowing of the aging process, he says.

4. Skin conditions (psoriasis, acne, atopic dermatitis)

As many as 7.5 million Americans have psoriasis, a disease of the immune system that results in red scaly patches on the skin. Acne and atopic dermatitis (a disorder that causes chronic inflammation of the skin) also have a “significant inflammatory component,” Perricone says. “They are all deeply affected and even precipitated by mental stress.”

If you suffer from any of these conditions, Perricone suggests lowering your stress levels. “Follow the anti-inflammatory diet, practice yoga or walking in the park, or having a loving pet – all good stress reducing strategies,” Perricone says.

So What Should You Eat?

The key to the anti-inflammatory diet involves the avoidance of problem foods, combined with the consumption of good-for-you eats, such as food cooked either for a short period or with added moisture (as with a marinade).

In his book, Perricone urges readers to increase their intake of vegetables (except for potatoes, which are highly glycemic), legumes and whole grains. Also important are the “good” fats, such as those found in salmon and other seafood. Saturated or “bad” fats from meat and dairy should comprise no more than 10% of your daily diet intake.

“We need to maintain even levels of blood sugar and insulin,” Perricone says. “A good way to do this is to avoid sugary, starchy foods and beverages as much as possible.” Otherwise, he warns, AGEs begin to build up in our system, ultimately aging us and our bodies.

7 Foods for Strong Bones

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 05:47:00 +0000

Good Eats Rich in Calcium and Vitamin D
If you think brittle bones are just for old people, you’ve got a lot to bone up on. True, osteoporosis usually affects women after age 50, but bone mass starts to deplete in your 30s. If you’re a teenager, a grandmother or any age in between, a good diet will lower your chances of developing a weak and fragile skeleton. Strong bones take more than the occasional glass of milk. Here are seven foods that are surprisingly good for your skeleton…

1. Pumpkin Seeds and Brazil Nuts

When you think of bone-building minerals, you probably think of calcium. Our bones are largely made of calcium, but other minerals form a strong frame, too. In fact, 50% of the body’s magnesium resides in our bones. Research shows that a low magnesium intake is linked to bone fragility and calcium loss, most likely because poor magnesium status alters calcium metabolism.

Nuts and seeds of all types are good sources of magnesium, but pumpkin seeds and Brazil nuts outshine the rest. Definitely eat up for your bones, but don’t overdo it: Nuts are a high-fat, high-calorie snack. Limit your serving to just one ounce – about 1/4 cup – per day.

A few ways to go a little nuts:

Pre-measure a 1-ounce portion to take to work for an afternoon pick-me-up.

Sprinkle a tablespoon or two onto your mixed green salad.

Toss some with green beans or sautéed spinach.

2. Walnuts

These nuts – rich in alpha linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 fatty acid – deserve their own category. Bones aren’t a hard, brittle skeleton like many people think. Actually, they’re living organs with live cells and body fluids. Every day, bone cells break down and build back up. That’s how they remain strong and repair after a break.

A January 2007 Nutrition Journal study suggests that the ALA in walnuts protects your skeleton by decreasing the rate of bone breakdown while keeping bone formation at a constant level. So grab a small handful of walnuts for a snack or sprinkle a couple tablespoons into your oatmeal. Other foods with ALA include: flaxseed oil, ground flaxseeds, walnut oil, soybeans, soybean oil, and canola oil.

3. Tap Water

Bet you couldn’t have guessed this one. Famed for its role in dental health, fluoride is also a component of your bones and adds to their density. Many communities add this mineral to their drinking water to help prevent dental decay. If you drink only bottled water, you may not be getting adequate fluoride to protect your teeth or your bones.

4. Leafy Greens

Make green your new favorite color. Your salads and steamed greens are packed with bone-building nutrients, particularly calcium, magnesium and vitamin K.

Vitamin K is critical in the formation of bone proteins. Research shows that too little of this fat-soluble vitamin increases your risk of hip fracture, but eating enough vitamin K decreases urinary calcium losses. One cup of raw or a half-cup of cooked greens provides several times the recommended intake of 90 micrograms per day.

Here are a few ways to sneak some extra green in today:

Add lettuce to your sandwiches. Even iceberg lettuce has vitamin K.

Slip spinach leaves between layers of noodles in homemade lasagna.

Start your dinner with a salad of spinach or mixed greens.

Have something unusual for dinner. Look for dandelion greens or Swiss chard.

5. Beans: Pintos, Black Beans, White Beans, Kidney Beans

Have beans for supper tonight. You’ll get another good boost of magnesium and even some calcium. The U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends at least 2 1/2 cups of beans and other legumes (peas, lentils) weekly. If you’re a bean eater, you might also reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease and obesity. Problem is, most people don’t know what to do with them. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

In the beginning of the week, open and rinse a can of beans, and store them in your refrigerator. Each night, toss a heaping spoonful into your mixed green salad.

Top nachos with red beans.

Mix any canned bean into vegetable soups.

Add black beans or kidney beans to pasta salads.

Instead of coleslaw or potato salad, bring a bean salad to your next potluck supper.

6. Salmon

Calcium may be the chief bone-forming mineral, but it’s nothing without its sidekick vitamin D, which is necessary for calcium absorption. A small serving of salmon – just 3 1/2 ounces – gives you 90% of the daily recommended amount of vitamin D. As with low intakes of vitamin K, vitamin D deficiency is linked to hip fracture. In one scientific review by the American Medical Association, 50% of women with osteoporosis who were hospitalized for hip fracture had signs of vitamin D deficiency.

If you want a double-whammy of bone-building nutrients, don’t just look to fresh fish. Canned salmon provides vitamin D as well as a good dose of calcium… as long as you eat the bones. (Don’t worry, they’re soft.)

7. Milk

Okay, not so surprising. But since milk is the most likely source of both calcium and vitamin D, it’s worthy of attention. Many of us forget about milk once we outgrow our crazy straws and strawberry powder, but bones don’t stop developing in our teens. We can add bone mass even in our 20s, but only if we consume adequate amounts of these nutritional elements.

Once we reach menopause, our bones lose calcium more rapidly than at any other time due to a loss of estrogen. Here again, calcium and vitamin D can help delay the loss of bone mass.

Milk is a good source of vitamin D because it is fortified, but cheese, yogurt and ice cream are generally not fortified and contain very little vitamin D. Choose nonfat or 1% milk. Avoid the others because of their saturated fat and cholesterol content. Pour a nice cold glass and enjoy – with or without a cookie.

More Dos and Don’ts for Strong Bones

Do eat your fruits and veggies.

You’ve been told this over and over, but it’s worth repeating. Higher intakes are associated with greater bone mineral density. Researchers can’t say exactly why, but fruits and vegetables are loaded with an array of nutrients that have been studied for their potential role in building strong bones.

Do learn to love exercise.

Get at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day. Weight-bearing exercises like running, dancing and lifting weights stress your bones in a good way. This signals your body to make more bone cells.

Don’t drink to excess.

Alcohol can inhibit the formation of new bone cells.

Don’t drink cola often, even diet and decaffeinated.

Regular cola drinkers have lower bone mineral density than women who rarely drink cola.

Don’t smoke.

The more you smoke, the greater your risk of a fracture.

Don’t worry about caffeine… if you get enough calcium.

Caffeine does cause you to lose more calcium in your urine for one to three hours after ingestion, but your 24-hour calcium loss shouldn’t be any greater than if you didn’t have caffeine. Drinking more than two or three cups of coffee per day is associated with bone loss in postmenopausal women when their calcium intake is inadequate. Aim for 1,200 milligrams (mg) of calcium daily – the equivalent of four cups of milk or yogurt – if you’ve already hit menopause. Otherwise, 1,000 mg should do.

5 Most Exciting News Stories of 2007

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 20:52:00 +0000

Scientists are no snobs. A breakthrough is a breakthrough – from gum habits to stem cells. Researchers will comb through data about almost anything to discover what makes us tick. Below are five of science’s most surprising, miraculous finds in 2007…

1. Chew away cravings.

We know that a number of factors contribute to obesity, including genetics, diet, mood, exercise, and social influences. Several of those factors are controllable, others not. But at least one weight-loss solution is simpler than you think. A study at Caledonian University in Glasgow, Scotland found that chewing gum – sweetened or not – suppresses a person’s hunger and cravings for fatty, sugary snacks.

The investigators asked 60 people to chew gum as they prepared a meal. The gum chewers reported fewer hunger pangs, ate less at the meal, and reduced their snacks more than those who cooked without chewing gum. In addition, those who chewed gum also reduced calorie intake by about 39 per sweet snack they did eat. Another bonus: Chewers felt less stressed out.

The Caledonian study dovetails with other studies that show chewing calories rather than drinking them curbs people’s hunger more effectively. For example, an apple is a more filling snack (and has fewer calories) than apple juice. When subjects ate an apple before lunch, their lunch calories dropped 15%.

2. The sponge is back.

In the 1980s and early '90s, the contraceptive sponge was an icon of feminine sexual independence. Easy to use, inexpensive, and with few side effects, the sponge was a favorite of women – until sponges disappeared from drugstore shelves because of manufacturing problems.

Now, the Today Sponge, re-approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in September 2005, is making a comeback in the United States. Synova Healthcare, which acquired rights to the sponge, launched an advertising campaign targeting women ages 20-50, many of whom have never heard of this option.

The doughnut-shaped, one-size-fits-all sponge – about 1.75 inches in diameter and a half-inch thick – combines 1,000 milligrams of a sperm-killing chemical with a physical barrier, a small polyurethane foam sponge. Between the two, sperm have a hard time making it past a woman’s cervix.

Although you can have intercourse immediately after inserting the sponge, for maximum protection you must leave it in place for at least six hours after intercourse but no longer than 24 hours after insertion.

Unlike hormones in oral contraceptives that may increase the risk of heart disease, sponges have few side effects. However, in the company’s clinical trials, the sponge was only 89%-91% effective in preventing pregnancy when women didn’t carefully follow package instructions. Other researchers have also found a similarly high failure rate.

By comparison, oral contraceptives are 99% effective when used properly. And, as with birth control pills, the sponge doesn’t protect against STDs.

3. Tests uphold the safety of birth control pills.

For decades, women have worried that oral contraceptives might also cause cancer. But a landmark study released this year suggests women on the pill may be safer than they thought.

More than 300 million women have taken the birth control pill since its introduction in the 1960s. And over the years, studies about oral contraceptives have raised women’s fears about everything from cancer to heart disease.

The results of the long-term study, led by the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, put some concerns to rest. The findings suggest that when women are on the pill less than four years, cancer risk goes down. The reverse is true for women on the pill more than eight years.

The Scottish study is tough to dismiss because of its size and duration. In 1968, doctors in the United Kingdom recruited about 46,000 women – half taking the pill, half not – to participate in the 36-year study. Women who took the pill lowered their cancer risk by 12%. Surprisingly, women over 50, who generally have a higher rate of cancer, had an even lower risk than younger women.

When researchers looked at individual cancers such as large bowel, uterine and ovarian cancer, they also found reduced risk and a 29% lower risk of all gynecological cancers combined.

The protective effect of oral contraception for ovarian cancer lasted for at least 15 years after stopping the pill. The effect on uterine cancer was shorter lived, up to five years after stopping.

The initial small increase in cervical cancer risk among current and recent users declined over time. And no significant difference was found between users and non-users when it came to breast cancer.

4. Hormones are safe for some post-menopausal women

Five years ago, results from the massive, multi-year Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study shook the medical community. The study suggested that menopausal and post-menopausal women on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) were at increased risk of heart disease. Virtually overnight, many women abandoned HRT, preferring to suffer through menopause rather than risk a heart attack or stroke.

However, additional analysis of data from the WHI study has called the earlier findings into question, at least regarding recently menopausal women. Women using HRT 20 years or more past menopause may still be at increased risk of heart attack. But the re-analysis showed that HRT was safe for women within 10 years of the onset of menopause. In fact, those women had a 30% lower risk of heart-related death compared to non-HRT users.

That’s great news since synthetic hormones are reasonably effective at improving the symptoms of menopause – hot flashes, night sweats, irregular sleep, or mental confusion – and also help prevent conditions such as osteoporosis and heart disease in recently menopausal women.

Unfortunately, the side effects of conventional HRT – bleeding, bloating, irritability, and breast tenderness – are bothersome enough that only 20% of women who begin HRT stay on it.

5. Breakthrough in stem cell research

Stem cell scientists slid into a huge discovery in 2007. Researchers in Japan and the University of Wisconsin-Madison have reprogrammed ordinary skin cells to behave like embryonic stem cells.

Doctors at Kyoto University transformed a woman’s cheek cell into a cell capable of developing into any of the body’s more than 200 cell types. Meanwhile, the discoverer of the first human embryonic stem cells reported reprogramming cells from newborns into stem cells. Before this advance, scientists believed only embryonic stem cells could transform into almost any human cell.

The implications of the breakthrough are enormous. First, unlimited numbers of stem cell lines for research and development of new therapies may soon be available. Second, scientists can begin to generate stem cells from patients themselves, limiting the risk of rejection for cell transplants. Third, the technique may dramatically reduce the demand for stem cells from human embryos.

Even Ian Wilmut, the scientist who cloned the sheep Dolly, says he is abandoning the use of embryonic stem cells in favor of the new adult cell technology. Changing the cells of a patient into stem cells offers considerable advantages over embryonic stem cells by lowering expense and eliminating the ethical and political controversy of embryonic stem cell research.

This information should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare professional regarding any medical condition. Information and statements provided by the site about dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

4 Steps To: Getting Organized

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 04:40:00 +0000

Super-organized people are innately fussy. It’s annoying.

The anaphylactic, anal-retentive manner in which they respond to clutter calls Sigmund Freud to mind. Freud attached this kind of compulsive tidiness to having been potty-trained by an impatient and intolerant parent. Whether he was right or not is impossible to discern without bias once you’ve seen such people in action and made the association.

Chiefly troubling is the notion that organized people believe they have the power to veto a fundamental law of nature; they think that by putting everything in the right spot once, it is somehow beyond continental drift, or universal expansion. Yet the second law of thermodynamics says that life moves toward disorder, not toward order -- nobody has ever spilled milk only to watch it return to its original carton. In short, it is next to impossible to stay organized and still do things other than stay organized.

Getting organized -- well, that’s different. We can all set aside an hour now and then and get organized, and for that we present the following traditional four-step program. It will not keep you organized without added attention -- nothing can achieve that. But every month or so, after everything around you has started to slouch, return to these reliable four steps to getting organized.

step 1 Take inventory

Give yourself a good overview of just how disorganized things have become by gathering together all of the component parts. If you're organizing your desk, get everything off the desktop, out of the drawers and onto the floor. If it’s a closet, empty it all out onto the floor. If it’s a schedule, clear it off. Whatever it is, clean the slate because we’re starting from scratch.

Use a pen and paper or open a file on the computer, and take inventory of each of those component parts you've just removed. Don’t concern yourself with categorizing things right now and don’t worry about deciding what to throw away; just create the damn inventory.

step 2 Eliminate the unnecessary

Using the inventory list you just compiled, you’ll want to thin it out a bit before any actual reorganization begins -- otherwise you’re just wasting time. To do so effectively, you’ll need to establish some criteria regarding what is and what isn’t necessary for this particular space or system to function efficiently.

For the pack rats of the world, this is a very difficult step. The idea of throwing anything away is hard to swallow, and they can generally manufacture an excuse to keep virtually everything. Whether or not it’s possible to be both a pack rat and organized is beyond the scope of this piece; instead let’s try to determine some initial, workable criteria. For a desk, throw away anything you haven’t accessed or used in a month, and you can’t foresee needing it for another month. The same goes in a closet; are there clothes you don't ever see yourself wearing again, even as the seasons change? Dump them. This applies to items of clothing that are visibly falling to pieces as well.

The last two steps to getting organized...

step 3 Establish a home for everything

You have eliminated or thrown away the unnecessary; what you’re left with are the components that will represent the newly organized space. The issue then becomes in what fashion you will group these components together prior to going back into the system. The method you choose will, to some degree, dictate just how long you’re able to stay organized this time around. This applies to a weekly schedule as well. For example, group together the various duties by room, the various errands by location, and so on.

Begin by grouping like things together so that when you assign a new home for them, they will all fit nicely and neatly. If you’ve ever seen a U.S. television show on the Style Channel called Clean House, you know that this is where they generally introduce plastic bins, often with lots of enthusiasm. These bins are not going to save the world, but if you think they can help you, go buy a small stack.

step 4 Re-assemble groups in a logical sequence

You’re almost done -- there's just one final step left. Here, you’ll need to restore all those components back into the system. Before doing so, establish the most effective method, one that’s not only easy for you to remember but also one that makes good sense: alphabetically, big to small, by priority -- whichever suits you, so that you remain this organized a week or a month from now. At your desk, this might mean alphabetizing in a clockwise fashion, beginning on your left-hand side. If you are organizing a weekly schedule, the same thing applies. For example, schedule all of your outside errands for a certain time on a certain day. Do the same for assigning a day to do housework.

This last step is where you truly try to stamp some order on a disorderly world, order that can last a decent amount of time before the inevitable drift sets in.

I signed up for PayPerPost

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 02:33:00 +0000

I have recently signed up to the ‘Pay Per Post’ scheme - and I think it’s great! I hope some of my regular visitors will take this opportunity to either review my posts or even join the scheme to start earning some money from blogging!

I came across Pay Per Post when I recently started investigating new revenue streams to support this site (it’s not free to run a site like this you know!). So far I have been very pleased with how this system works! At the moment I am looking at opportunities to write about the things you want to hear about, be they image related products like digital cameras, or the latest cutting edge technology news… all related to design or digital imaging.

Why not take advantage of Pay Per Post's service? Pay Per Post does all the legwork--you pony up the mad writing skills!

Here's the deal: you sign up with Pay Per Post. Once your blog is approved (mine was approved less than 24 hours after I hit 90 days!) you can check out the Opportunities. (What's an Opportunity? It's a summary of the advertiser's review requirements including word count, requested links, and some info about the company--and of course, the fee they'll pay once your post is approved!) You can post up to three reviews a day (though they need to be bookended by unpaid posts.) After you've submitted your post, Pay Per Post will send it on to the advertiser who will accept your post or request edits. Once the advertiser accepts your post, Pay Per Post will check your blog 30 days later to make sure the post is still live, then pay you the agreed amount via Paypal.

This system is really cool, it basically allows people like me (and you!) to get paid to write about things that your visitors are interested in.

PPP's signup is simple and if you hit any snags their Customer Love team is quick to respond. The Terms of Service are spelled out in plain English, not legalese gobbledygook, and the FAQ page explains many of the terms even more clearly.
Don't like the idea of review blogging? PPP has another great program: Get Paid To Review My Post. Just add the badge to every post--when a fellow blogger reviews your post and submits it to PPP you both get paid $7.50. This isn't a one time shot--if 35 people review your post, you get paid 35 times. You can also take advantage of the Review My Post program if your blog is less than 90 days old.

I hope that this system begins to support this site - you will notice I have introduced a very cool new feature that appears on every page - a link to ‘get paid to review this post’… which like it says on the tin gives you the opportunity to get paid to write a review of the post you are reading. So in a way, with my new Pay Per Post system I am able to spread the love (and cash!) with all of you too. So go ahead, why not go ahead and earn yourself some money by reviewing one of my posts through Pay Per Post - it ROCKS!

If you run a blog, you can sign up to the Pay Per Post system yourself, and being making some money almost straight away! I found it very easy to integrate into my site, and they offer a very large range of ways to start making money from your blog - so what are you waiting for, start to drive traffic and make money from all your hard work today!

If you are a blogger, why not sign up right now and get your account up and running - it’s easy!

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Make Your Resolutions Come True

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 11:53:00 +0000

10 No-Fail Tips for New Year’s Success

It’s easy to set goals. Achieving them, well, that’s another story. If you’re like most people, you didn’t completely follow through on previous New Year’s resolutions. Were there factors out of your control? Or were lack of self-discipline and an overabundance of excuses to blame? Whether you want to lose 10 pounds, quit a bad habit or start a healthy one, the following 10 tips are your formula for making – and achieving – your goals in 2008…

1. Lose Weight

It’s no secret we’re an overweight society. A huge number of Americans need to lose at least 10 pounds (and often much more) to get down to a healthy weight. And it’s not just about looks – it’s about your health. Thirty to 60 minutes of exercise every day will do your heart and waistline some good, as well as contribute to a better overall outlook on life.

Eating right is the other half of the weight-loss equation. Focus on introducing healthier foods into your diet rather than vowing to cut out your favorite “bad foods.” If that seems overwhelming, don’t make dramatic changes to your diet; that may only set you up for failure. Instead, gradually increase your daily consumption of fruits, vegetables and whole grains; you’ll be amazed how easily they will take the place of calorie-dense, unhealthy foods.

2. Be Realistic
Whether it’s losing 25 pounds, starting your own business or being nicer to your coworkers, your New Year’s resolution must be realistic regarding the amount of time, money and effort necessary to achieve your goal. Otherwise, your chances of success are greatly compromised and you run the risk of another failed resolution this time next year.

Your first challenge is to make sure your goals are attainable. While there’s nothing wrong with setting goals that seem nearly impossible (people do perform on Broadway, right?), the chances of making it happen decrease if you aim for the extreme. So train for a 10K before tackling a marathon, and strive to lose those first five pounds before expecting to fit into a size 4.

3. Do It for You
Whatever the goal, making a resolution because someone else wants you to change is a recipe for disaster. Why? When the going gets tough, you’ll lack the passion and perseverance it takes to see it through. And when you inevitably end up quitting, it won’t feel as bad because it wasn’t your goal to begin with.

If a loved one is suggesting a resolution for you that’s in your best interest – like quitting smoking or eating healthier – don’t attempt it until you can find ownership in that goal. You have to be personally invested if you want to succeed.

4. Stop Smoking

This one is pretty self-explanatory, but in case you need more convincing, here are some good reasons to quit smoking: it kills; makes breathing difficult; may cause depression; is a bad influence on your family; causes pregnancy complications; is linked to infertility in both men and women; causes wrinkles, gray pallor, and discolored teeth and fingers; makes your hair, clothes, car, home, and everything else smell bad; and, finally, it’s expensive!

5. Take Baby Steps
It’s great to keep your eye on the prize, but in order to reach the final goal, you’ll have to take baby steps. It won’t be easy since most of us prefer instant gratification. So instead of looking at your resolution as one big challenge, break it down into small goals you can tackle along the way. Accomplishing a goal within a goal is motivating and will strengthen the resolve you need to reach the finish line.

For example, if becoming more fit is your goal: Cut by half your junk food in Week One. Start an exercise program (like walking 30 minutes, three days a week) in Week Two. Add a serving of vegetables a day in Week Three. And so on. Each time you accomplish a smaller feat, you’re that much closer to your main goal.

6. Expand Your Horizons

While weight loss and health-related goals are among the most popular resolutions, self-improvement can also stimulate the brain, not just the body. And what better way to seek progress in your life than being open to new experiences?

There are countless ways you can expand your horizons and feed your need for self-improvement. Try expanding your knowledge through books: biographies, brain-teasing mysteries, or a how-to guide to get more active with your learning. For a more hands-on approach, consider taking a course at your local college or community center. Encourage your creativity with a cooking, painting or ceramics course, or get your body in motion by joining a yoga class or sports league.

Look beyond the obvious New Year’s resolutions and get inspired to expand your skills, knowledge and interests this year. You may just discover a whole new side of yourself in the process.

7. Expect the Unexpected

There will always be obstacles that can slow down your progress in achieving your New Year’s resolutions. But if you’re prepared for them, you’ll be less likely to throw in the towel. Sometimes you can predict the challenges; sometimes you’ll be blindsided. Either way, having a game plan will help you deal with the hurdles you face.

It helps if you can get the support of someone who went through the same process you’re tackling. Did a girlfriend recently lose a lot of weight, and you’re trying to do the same? She can give you tips about dining out options, low-fat snacks to try or helpful Web sites. Better yet, find a friend who is making the same resolution this year and encourage each other through the challenges.

Planning for potential roadblocks will help clarify your goal, force you to get specific about the details, and identify possible red flags for unrealistic goals. You might need to tweak your roadmap a little, but at least you’ll have a plan in place to tweak.

8. Laugh More

Now this is a New Year’s resolution to feel good about. Laughter really is the best medicine! Finding the upside in life means knowing when you need a good laugh. Laughing at your own mistakes will help you not feel so bad about small failures.

Using the power of positive thinking and having a good giggle every now and then isn’t hard to do. It’s simply a choice you make for yourself, no matter what your circumstances are, and it could be your saving grace. Don’t forget to share your laughter with someone else: You could really make their day… and your New Year, too.

9. Celebrate Your Successes
Every little triumph is cause for celebration as you take steps toward your ultimate goal. Rewards should be positive reinforcement, so don’t reward yourself with a cocktail for cutting back on alcohol. That’s detrimental to the final picture. Instead, practice the trick of healthy bribery. If you’ve reached your goal of losing five pounds, or you’ve added an extra half-mile to your marathon training, do something healthy for yourself. Splurge on those shoes you’ve been eyeing, or treat yourself to a massage.

It’s really all about your mindset and attitude. The majority of us are much more capable than we give ourselves credit for. So don’t give up – you’ll end up surprising yourself when you do finally reach your goal.

10. Pay It Forward

A surprising way to continue goodwill in the New Year is to help someone else, particularly if you’ve enjoyed success with your own resolution. Don't think you have the time or resources to spare? You can make this goal as easy or involved as you like.

Aim to do something nice each day: Hold open a door, let someone merge into traffic, say “thank you.” The possibilities are endless. For an even bigger impact, volunteer at your local shelter or soup kitchen. Buy a bagged lunch and give it to a homeless person. Go through the old clothes, shoes, coats, hats, and scarves in your closet and donate them to your local Goodwill or Salvation Army. For more options, check out VolunteerMatch.org.

No matter the focus of your good intentions, the smallest of efforts can add up to a successful 2008 for you and those around you.

2008 Financial Resolutions

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 03:42:00 +0000

2008 is upon us, and with the dawn of a New Year comes the flood of the stereotypical New Year’s resolutions. Of course, setting goals for the next 12 months does not have to be limited to weight loss or personal fitness goals -- there are many money matters you can resolve to tend to in the New Year as well. Here are some practical 2008 financial resolutions to fuel your money-matters' well-being in the New Year and beyond.

I will fully fund my IRA

Since the message is so prevalent, it is nearly common knowledge that if you start fully funding your IRA in your 20s, and earn a modest annual rate of return, you will be a millionaire by the time you retire. However, the general mindset among young professionals is that you can catch up later. While some may be fortunate enough to be able to make that happen, it is more prudent to prepare for the worst. If you do not fund your IRA, it doesn't mean that you are going to be destitute come retirement, but having a retirement stash certainly can make things easier. You should max out your contributions -- $4,000 in 2007 (you have until April 15 to fund your IRA for 2007) and $5,000 in 2008.

Additionally, rather than waiting until the last minute, opt to have a portion of your pay check automatically routed to your IRA account each time around. This approach will save you the stress of having to come up with a big chunk of change at the end of the year and reduce the temptation to short your contributions. Furthermore, keep in mind that this money is not spent and gone until you are 65. If you are eligible for a Roth IRA (and most of us are), you can withdraw your contributions (not your gains) without penalty for any purpose. For traditional IRAs, special exemptions are available if you are withdrawing funds for a first home purchase or educational expenses.

I will pay off my credit cards

Everyone talks about paying off their debt, and 2008 is the year to do it. Oh wait, you said that last year, and yet again, you only managed to make the minimum payment each month and watched that 20% interest rate eat you alive. Eliminating your debt can seem like an overwhelming task, especially if you've been shackled with it for sometime. However, like all tasks, it starts with an action plan and small steps. First, you should actually outline a very specific strategy for accomplishing this goal. It needs to consist of more than “I am going to spend less.” Explore your options, such as setting up a realistic budget outlining your required living expenses and social expenses. After all, punishing yourself by becoming a hermit is no fun.

Consider inviting credit counseling services, such as Incharge. These services are free and work with your creditors to lower your interest rates to reasonable levels, help you make payments on time and, for the most part, do not damage your credit score. Avoid consolidation loans that can have negative impacts on your credit score and actually encourage you to reload your cleared-up plastic. Paying off your debt may end up taking more than a year or two. But by having a clear action plan and asking yourself each day what you can do to reduce your dependence on credit cards will go a long way in clearing up your personal balance sheet.

Even more 2008 financial resolutions to consider...

I will sign up for my 401(k) and flexible spending account at work

Most employers offer 401(k) retirement plans and flexible spending accounts. We often hesitate to sign up for these because they reduce our take-home pay, which we immediately equate with having less money. The reality is, when you allot some of your paycheck to these areas, you are not losing money -- you are simply transferring it within your financial arena. Flexible spending accounts are a great way to save on taxes and maximize your tax refund at the end of the year. Most importantly, if you use them right for medical and dependent care expenses, you end up getting all of the money back anyway. You can choose to be immediately reimbursed or if you can stomach it, let your balance store up and then get one big reimbursement at one time, which always seems to help more than lots of little installments.

As for the 401(k), you are able to put tax-free money away for retirement and if things really get tough, you can usually borrow against it. Most importantly, many employers will match a portion of your contribution, which is essentially free money -- you have to take that. If your employer is a public company, they will often allow you to buy shares of company stock in your 401(k) and usually at a discount compared to the market price. The latter may need some research, but if it is a good investment, you will have the opportunity to buy something for less than it is worth with someone else’s money that you don't have to pay back.

I will start saving & investing for me

Every financial adviser beats the drum about saving for retirement. While you absolutely should, what is the fun of socking away money that you can't touch for 30 or 40 years? You ask yourself: “Shouldn’t I have something for me now?” The answer is, yes. After all, you only go around once and some enjoyable things cost money. Obviously, each of us should live within our means and buy only what we can realistically afford -- and that is different for each person based on their income and other factors. It's OK to have financial goals that you would like to reach before retirement, such as saving up for a down payment and buying a house or going on a European cruise.

Before saving for retirement, make it a point to pay yourself first. You can choose to spend it on whatever you want, even going out that very night. For those of you with longer-term horizons, start taking that money and saving toward the down payment. You will feel good knowing that you are building for your financial freedom now and not just in your golden years. Additionally, should an emergency event happen that requires some immediate cash, having access to it without having to dip into the credit cards or retirement fund can bring peace of mind and the feeling of having control of your finances.

bright financial futures

Most New Year’s resolutions fail because they are either not realistic or not clearly sketched out. Take control of your finances in 2008 and put the above suggestions into practice and develope a very specific financial plan of attack. If you are aiming to pay off your credit cards, take the necessary budgeting and credit counseling steps. If you want to start saving for a house, run the numbers to determine what mortgage payment you can afford and how much you will need to have ready for a down payment. Your resolutions can become reality if you take control of your finances -- rather than letting them control you. Here's to wishing you a financially successful 2008!

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly Of The Holidays

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 04:44:00 +0000

Norman Vincent Peale once observed, "Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful." Peale's optimism is endearing, but it's also remarkably naive. For most of us, Christmas is a never-ending procession of guilt trips, drunken relatives and last-minute shopping excursions that make D-Day look like a stroll along the beach.

As Christmas creeps ever nearer, it's time to take a look at the good, the bad and the ugly moments that await you this holiday season.

the good

Drunken office benders

Let's be honest: Under ordinary circumstances, your chances of scoring with the hot new secretary at work rank somewhere between "slim" and "none." But thanks to a little something called "The Office Party" and a little something else called "free alcohol," you're suddenly looking better than Tom Cruise at a Gay Pride Parade. So what are you waiting for? Get out there and mingle!

Mistletoe

Mistletoe gives even the hairiest Wookie the opportunity to enjoy a little Christmas snogging. Think of it as a kissing booth without the charge. Just beware of lurking aunts and drunken grandmothers.

Peeing your name in the snow

We all want to leave behind a legacy, and peeing your name in a freshly fallen pile of snow is the perfect way to say "Bob was here," or if you prefer, "Celtics Suck." Only your imagination (and the fullness of your bladder) need limit your artistic expression.

Primetime sports viewing

The NBA rolls out its marquee games on Christmas Day with big-time grudge matches featuring the Spurs vs. the Pistons and the Lakers vs. the Heat. Lest we forget that College Bowl mania also runs from December 20th to January 4th. With any luck, you won't have to speak to your significant other until almost February!

Big-budget movies

It's a well-documented fact that Hollywood releases some of its best movies during the Christmas season. This year, you can look forward to the biggest monster epic of them all -- King Kong. Finally, an overweight, ill-tempered beast that's almost as hairy as you.

the bad

Retail madness

For 11 months of the year, malls are safe, unassuming places full of mediocre Chinese food and seniors with pants pulled up to their nipples. And then arrives Black Friday, the official start to the Christmas shopping season. In 2005 alone, Black Friday attracted tens of millions of clutching and grabbing consumers throughout the U.S., generating $8 billion in sales. In case you're keeping track, that's more than the combined GDPs of Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Burundi, Liberia, Gambia, Lesotho, and Djibouti. Not bad for a day's work.

Christmas can be wonderful, but find out what can make it bad and ugly..

Having to return bad gifts you never wanted in the first place

As if having to brave crowded malls before Christmas wasn't bad enough, you also have to fight the masses afterward when you return unwanted gifts. Honestly, how many Flowbees does one man really need?

Buying gifts for people you don't even like

Doling out cash for loved ones is one thing, but having to lay down $40 on a gift for your girlfriend's second cousin twice-removed is quite another. After all, isn't this the same schmuck who smells like a garbage scowl and picks his nose while talking to you?

TV repeats

We have nothing against It's A Wonderful Life or Mary Poppins. We liked them the first time we saw them. We were even amused the second and third time we tuned in. But why do we have to watch them in place of original sitcoms every single year?

Furthermore, why is Dick Clark still hosting New Year's Rockin' Eve in NYC? Note to the networks: The last thing we want to see on New Year's Eve is a wrinkled old Dick that's been left out in the cold.

Christmas charities

We have no problem donating money to worthy causes like The Salvation Army, but it seems like every year we get buried beneath an avalanche of new (and often dubious) charities. Sandwiches for Somalia? Hats for Haiti? Who the hell are these people?

the ugly

Spending forced time with family

It's been said that "the best Christmas of all is the presence of a happy family all wrapped up with one another." Pardon us while we gag. The reality is that most people would rather listen to Michael Bolton while having their toenails pulled out than have to spend another night in with their relatives.

Cheesy Christmas albums

What is it about Jesus' birth that prompts boy bands and B-list celebrities to release uninspired Christmas LPs? This year, consumers will have to contend with The Regis Philbin Christmas Album, a sinister collection of seasonal songs guaranteed to appeal to the lobotomized and the tone deaf. In other words, Michael Bolton fans will love it.

Having to assemble impossibly intricate gifts

Apart from "the check's in the mail" and "I'll respect you in the morning," there are few phrases as deliberately misleading as "some assembly required." Like it or not, you're guaranteed to be spending half the night piecing together a needlessly complicated gadget with the aid of screwdriver the size of your thumbnail and a manual written in Swahili.

New Year's Eve

In principle, New Year's Eve can be the most wonderful night of the year. After all, it's full of the promise of hope and fresh beginnings. You might want to keep that in mind when you find yourself kissing an open-mouth-breathing troglodyte once again at 12:01. Then again, what choice do you have? She is your mother.

Home-knitted Christmas sweaters

Your grandmother undoubtedly means well, but let's be honest: The old gal just hasn't been herself since the end of WWII. Unfortunately, that's little consolation when you have to wear yet another of her oddly misshapen handmade Christmas sweaters. It's bad enough that the top is wider than the bottom, but why in God's name does it have five arms?

bah, humbug

In the end, Christmas isn't a time or a season; it's a state of mind. And if your mind is relatively calm and stress-free, your odds of survival are infinitely improved. So even if the weather's bad, your date is ugly and you're good for nothing, there's no reason why you can't still have Christmas in your heart.

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