Archive for March, 2008
03.29.08
Posted in Lifestyle Stuff at 5:58 pm by admin
There was a time people thought the world was flat. At another
point in history it was believed that women didn’t have the
know-how to run a business or change a tire. Then there was the
one about man not being able to fly. Over time all of these
fairytales have proven untrue.
So it is with interior design. Until recently, many people held
the belief that having their home decorated by an interior
designer was reserved for the rich and famous. Nothing could be
further from the truth.
Fact is, many people of average income who live in a middleclass
neighborhood are frequently surprised to learn they can easily
afford the services of an interior designer. In other cases,
many folks prefer to learn tips about design so they have the
flexibility to redo a room on a whim. Either way, you have more
choices today then ever before.
It is not uncommon to completely redo a room for a one time
social event such as a birthday celebration, a graduation or a
wedding. With some simple tips, even the most inexperienced
person can easily spruce up a room.
Before you begin, think about the style you are interested in.
Is it art deco, traditional, Mediterranean, western, modern, or
contemporary? These are only a few of the multitude of choices
you have. Think through how functional the room will be with
what you have in mind. Avoid rugs and chairs that stain easily
if there will be a lot of traffic in the room.
Be very careful to scale your furniture to the size of the room.
If you have a very large space you can break up the area into
little sitting groups or area groups. You can easily shift the
“feel” of a room with the use of lighting and/or plants. Area
rugs are another tool many designers use to break up large
spaces. A variety of paint colors and wall textures can make
even the most mundane room come to life.
Small space decorating is fast becoming a favorite topic for
many people as real estate prices rise. Think priorities when it
comes to small spaces. Do you need to use an area of the room
for more than one reason? In some cases you can easily convert
the kitchen table to your workspace provided you have cabinet
space handy for supplies. A chest of drawers can easily serve
this purpose by holding office supplies, linens, or even
computer components.
If you are considering utilizing the services of a designer, do
your homework. Check their portfolio and references. Find out
how they are to work with, did they deliver on time, were they
easy to work with and did they listen to the homeowner. If you
get an affirmative answer on all of these and their fees are
suitable to your budget, then take the leap. Often, interior
designs services are provided at no additional cost to you, and
will give you the extra edge you need to create exactly the
feeling you want for your home.
A great designer can make recommendations you may not have
thought of. Ultimately, their goal is for you to be ecstatic
with what you were able to accomplish together. After all, you
are the one that has to live in the space long after the
designer has done their magic.
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Posted in Web Templates + More at 4:57 pm by admin
Horizon treadmills are well built and sturdy, and their durability is mentioned positively in Horizon treadmills ratings. It is inevitable, however, that any piece of fitness equipment will require maintenance at some point or another. And it is, in fact, this regular maintenance that will keep your Horizon treadmill running at its peak capacity for longer.
Maintaining your Horizon Fitness or Horizon Elite treadmill will reduce the need for any repairs down the line, so it is a good idea to incorporate regular checks of your treadmill into your workout routine.
Horizon Fitness treadmills are built to very high specifications, so it is unlikely that these checks will necessitate much action, but it is important to catch any potential problems at an early stage. This small amount of home maintenance can ensure the prolonged life of your treadmill, and reduce the likelihood that you might need to purchase replacement parts later on.
With careful maintenance, it is possible to avoid having to replace parts of your treadmill too soon. Special treadmill maintenance kits are available to help keep your treadmill in peak condition, but you can just as easily use a soft cotton cloth and a non-abrasive, non-acid based cleaner to keep your treadmill in full working order. As debris can build up underneath the running belt, it is important to check this area
regularly, and to wipe it down if necessary - this is a simple procedure than can prolong the life of your belt and ensure its continued safe and effective performance. Never spray your cleaning fluid directly onto the equipment however, as this can damage sensitive parts of your treadmill - instead, spray a small amount on your cloth. Treadmill mats are always a good investment - they can help prevent the uptake of debris into your treadmill belt or motor, and they can help reduce treadmill noise too. It
will be very much appreciated by your downstairs neighbour! Be sure to regularly check that your treadmill belt is properly positioned on the treadmill deck too - loose or ill-fitting belts can cause accidents.
Check the safety features on your Horizon treadmill on a regular basis - these are not something that you can afford to have fail on you in an emergency situation. Check your emergency stop feature and do not use your treadmill if it is faulty - your fitness is important, but safety must always be your primary concern.
Horizon Fitness treadmills come with good warranties, but you need to ‘activate’ them within thirty days of your original purchase. You can activate your warranty by mail or by logging on to the Horizon Fitness website. Horizon also offer great customer support - their contact details are also available on their website. If you are in any doubt about the safety of any of your Horizon treadmill’s component parts, contact the company immediately. The customer tech support department ask that before
you call, you have beside you the Horizon Fitness model number, the serial number, and a brief description of the problem you are encountering.
Horizon also offer useful troubleshooting advice on their website, so check their frequently asked questions if there is a problem with your treadmill - you might find a quick and easy solution with just a click of your mouse.
Horizon Treadmills should supply replacement parts, such as the running belt, free of charge if your machine is still under warranty. Should your Horizon treadmill require a part after the expiration of your warranty, the manufacturer will be able to provide the part for you for a fee. Be sure to quote the serial number of your treadmill when contacting Horizon for a replacement part, and ask for it to be fitted by an expert if
necessary - Horizon offer ‘in home’ service. The proper fitting of any repair part to your treadmill is absolutely essential to ensure the continued safe use of your fitness equipment.
With some regular maintenance you will hopefully never have any need to contact Horizon Treadmills for assistance with any aspect of their treadmills, but if you do, you can be sure that you will dealt with in a friendly and helpful manner.
Find out more about Treadmills as well as Folding
Treadmills used treadmills, and treadmill maintenance at Peters website, Terrific Treadmills.
© 2005 Peter Clark
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Posted in World Of Home Improvement at 2:57 pm by admin
When planning out the area you are landscaping, one thing that
is a necessity is a landscape plant guide. You need to take a
few things into consideration before you decide on what plants
to use for your project. And when you do decide on which ones,
you’ll need to have a good idea as to what they will look like
in your setting. Viewing pictures online or visiting a local
home and garden center or greenhouse can help with this.
Considering what types of plants to use is a crucial first step
for any outdoor project. While choosing which ones to plant, you
will need to think about which ones will grow better in the area
you are planting them in. Different plants require many
different things to survive, as well as thrive. Doing a little
research before planting them will save you time and money, and
not needlessly waste our planet’s greenery.
The first thing to do is to think about the amount of sun and
shade that you will have available in your landscaped area. With
this information you can purchase plants that can thrive in the
conditions that you have. Check out the literature or guide that
is provided with the plant to determine if everything is right
for its’ survival. Additionally, make sure that you select
plants that compliment your overall ideas for the project.
For a property border, you will most likely use trees to create
an aesthetically pleasing line. A couple of common types stand
out and warrant consideration in most climates. Oak trees remain
pest free and can adapt to a wide variety of climates. These
majestic trees provide ample shade and wonderful colors and are
a staple in most rural neighborhoods. Maple trees are another
great choice since they have fascinating colors as their leaves
change with the seasons. They too can adapt to a wide variety of
conditions. If you go with maples you will need to be aware that
their leaves do drop each year and can require some raking if
they are in your yard. And if you don’t want to use trees for
the borders, you could always decide on a large plant or flower
species that really stand out.
You may also choose to have shrubs as the outline for your area.
They can be a great way to make any landscape idea come together
and look well maintained. There are alot of different species to
choose from, so try to decide on the one that is best for your
garden area. Hydrangeas are a beautiful shrub for any area, as
the green foliage and vibrant flowers look great in the summer
and they produce a festive fall color as the seasons change.
They are popular choices among homeowners for their wonderful
colorings.
It is always important to make sure that there are no unfinshed
ends when you are planning to start on your own new landscape
design for the back or front yard. If you are planning to
include a sidewalk or patio along with your design, it is
important to consider them in your plans. Perennials and annuals
are a great way to accent any of these focal points, placing
them around using a pattern or at random. Experiment until you
are completely satisfied with the look.
Whatever plants you choose to decorate your landscape design
with, remember to maintain them and keep them looking fresh and
vibrant. Pay attention to all the small things and you will
receive a big pay off in the end.
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Posted in Recreation Resources at 12:14 pm by admin
The river Wandle once offered wonderful trout fishing, up to the latter part of the last century it was prized by anglers including, some say, Lord Nelson who fished here two centuries ago, before annihilating Napoleon’s fleet at the battle of Trafalgar.
The rivers swift flows were increasingly harnessed to power water mills producing everything from silk to gunpowder, but also to take away the effluent, and, by the 20th century the river was all but dead!
Now, after centuries of abuse and neglect, and the indignity of running red, pink & blue from the dyes of the calico printers, and worse, we are learning to treasure the Wandle. As a result, the kingfishers, water voles and mayflies have returned.
In the 1960s the Wandle was officially designated an open sewer. A major factor in its recovery since then can be traced back to the privatisation of Britain’s water industry. In our area Thames Water has invested millions of pounds into improving water quality.
In March 2003 brown trout were released into the Wandle for first time in 100 years, thanks to Alan Suttie’s ‘Trout in the Classroom’ program, which is run by the Jet Set Club in partnership with Environment Agency and Thames Water. This is a relatively simple idea where teachers set up aquariums and incubate trout eggs in their classrooms. The teachers and children are responsible for daily maintenance and observation of these eggs until they have an aquarium full of trout fry, which is released into the Wandle during a class field trip.
The project is designed specifically to incorporate more environmental education into the curriculum by inviting local Primary Schools to breed trout in the classroom and releasing them into the River Wandle thus helping to sustain the river’s population of brown trout.
Although only two of every hundred are likely to survive into adulthood, this is a cumulative process and we are hoping that each such release exponentially increases the benefits.
March 27th saw 4 local primary schools and Linden Lodge special school visit Merton Abbey Mills to release this year’s trout fry into the Wandle, in the presence of various local dignitaries including Merton’s Deputy Mayor and his wife, and the Leader of the Council. A parallel event involving Wandsworth schools took place a few days later.
© Michael Hart.
I am the website administrator of the Wandle industrial museum (http://www.wandle.org). Established in 1983 by local people to ensure that the history of the valley was no longer neglected but enhanced awareness its heritage for the use and benefits of the community.
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Posted in Credit Issues at 8:34 am by admin
It is vital to get rid of debt while things are
going well. Yet the opposite is usually the
case. Human nature is such that when we
find ourselves living in good times, we let
down our defenses. With our lives going
great we seem to make the worst
decisions. It’s not hard to understand why
this happens. We believe things will always
be better in the future, “When I’m done
with school, When I get a better paying
job, I’m sure I will get that promotion.”
With this attitude, that extra lump
sum of money, or the raise at work, is
used as a springboard to increase your
personal debt. After all you can now afford
better this, bigger that. You assume in
your linear view of life that tomorrow will
take care of everything. You don’t become
concerned with your debt load, until you
no longer can make the payments.
When you begin to feel the squeeze of
debt, you want some quick fix to get you
out of trouble. Unfortunately there are no
quick fixes for debt that will leave you (or
your credit report) unscarred.
But why should it be any different from
other areas of your life? If you know a
food will give you heartburn you take a
pill and, “presto,” you may eat any thing
you like. If you can’t find time to exercise,
just take a pill and watch those pounds
melt away.
The economy is built on the same “I want
it now,” principle. If you want an item,
you just whip out the plastic. You need it
now. You will figure out later how to pay
for it. When your plastic can take no more,
you want out of debt in an easy way. You
begin looking for the magic pill.
Unfortunately the drugstore closed a long
time ago.
A woman, who I know casually, had no
problem taking on more debt because she
saw herself able to handle the extra
payments. She reasoned, if everything
remained the same she could handle the
drain on her income. So she bought some
expensive gift items on her cards and
began making the monthly payments.
She found out rather quickly she could not
see into the future very well. Her car gave
out on her. The repairs exceeded the value
of the car. She needed one for work, so
she bought another.
The new payment wiped out the tiny
cushion she had each month and also made
it impossible to pay on her credit cards and
store accounts. Today she finds herself
hounded by her creditors and unable to
pay them anything.
What she should have done, and what you
should do, is pay off your debt while you
can and not take on any more. Whatever
extra you have each month should be
applied toward getting out of debt in a
systematic way. Until you are debt free,
you should order your life to make it a top
priority.
Life’s pressures are more easily handled
without money worries dogging you. Then
when those big promotions, with those big
raises come along, you will be trained to
put some aside. And without debt to take
care of, you can. The goods times then,
truly, will be the good times.
(c)2004 David Wilding
David Wilding has worked with individuals and groups to help them get rid of debt. He has, for the past ten years, attempted to change attitudes toward and the acceptance of personal debt. Visit his website http://www.debtattack.com for more ideas, tools, and strategies to make yourself debt free.
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Posted in Web Resources at 1:11 am by admin
It’s a fact that one website will pull many times the leads or sales as a competing website. What causes this large variance in results? It’s the copywriting on the website.
Here’s what we’ve learned works best from actual results and testing on dozens of websites we’ve done the copywriting for.
1. Make your website easy to “scan” with headlines, sub headlines, boxes, sections, colors and the like that give the reader the main benefits he will get. Almost all people are “scan first” or “scan only” readers. Your headlines and sub headlines should take advantage of this fact.
2. “Just Sell, Baby”. Websites have one main end purpose and that is to sell your products and/or services, to move people to action, to make money. In today’s high-tech world, most copywriting on websites forgets this vital fact and that is why they don’t perform better.
3. Tell the reader what he/she will LOSE if they do not take the recommended action. Fear of loss is a great motivator.
4. Build up excitement, enthusiasm, passion and urgency to get the reader to take the desired action right now. We analyzed the most successful copywriting we’d ever done back to 1978 and found it all had one thing in common: excitement. Yes, excitement is contagious and it sells!
5. Make a great offer to get their email address. In today’s overcrowded environment and with spam concerns, it’s not enough to just say “enter your email address for our newsletter”. You need to make a great offer including special reports, bonuses and the like in addition to your newsletter to get the maximum number of qualified signups.
6. Focus your copywriting because people want to buy from the expert specialists in a field. If your copy is too broad you will lose a lot of your best prospects, who of course, are the most likely to buy. A great way to do this is to have separated focused web pages for separate types of people or industries on your website.
7. Make your website as easy to use and find things as Amazon.com (for consumers) or Dell.com (for businesses). The copywriting and organization of these sites is a key reason they are ultra-successful.
8. Start thinking like your website reader (your prospect) and stop thinking like yourself (the marketer). Figure out what your prospect wants most from your products or services that they deliver, then come right out and tell him what benefits he’ll get, why, and what he needs to do now. Simple but it brings in Billions.
9. Test everything, measure it, use the winner, and always keep testing. This is the key to “optimizing” your website and all of your marketing. Don’t guess - test and let the only vote that matters (your prospects) tell you what works best.
10. Compare your product or service against your competitors to show and prove your superiority. We’ve used this secret very, very profitably for our clients.
11. Copywriting is king and queen for your website to sell the maximum number of people. The right copywriting can bring you up to double, even triple or more your current results for no additional marketing cost. Hire the best copywriter you can afford, and don’t skimp because this one-time investment can be the best investment you make.
Mike Pavlish of Profit Boosters Copywriting has done the copywriting for dozens of successful websites. Fees start at $3,000.00 and up. He can be reached at www.ProfitBoostersCopy.com
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Posted in Profitable Real Estate at 12:35 am by admin
Looking for the best homeowner loans can be stressful, especially when there are so many different lender options to choose from.
Banks, finance companies, and online services all claim to offer the best homeowner loans… which one should you choose?
The answer can depend upon what you’re wanting out of a loan, what past business relationship you have with the lender in question, and the amount of equity that you have in your house to use as collateral for the loan.
Each type of lender has its own criteria for offering the best homeowner loans, but as long as you have enough equity you should be able to find a loan regardless of your credit history.
Bank loans
When looking for the best homeowner loans at local banks, you should always start with the bank or banks that you hold personal accounts with. Banking is a business, and just like any business your bank will love your repeated patronage.
Banks which you’ve had good experiences with in the past are much more likely to give you lower interest rates and better loan terms… and the lower the rates and the better the terms are, then the more likely you are to go with that bank for their best homeowner loans.
You should make sure to get loan quotes from several banks, however, since interest rates do vary from bank to bank.
Finance company loans
Whereas banks offer with loans in addition to other services, most finance companies deal only with lending services. Interest rates can be higher or lower than those found at banks, depending upon the amount of your loan request and the amount of equity that you have in your home.
When looking for the best homeowner loans at a finance company, it’s a good idea to keep other options available in case the interest rate or loan terms aren’t to your liking.
Online loans
Another loan option that’s been growing in popularity comes from online lenders.
These lenders often deal in specific types of loans, and can offer the best homeowner loans to individuals with enough home equity regardless of credit history.
Many online lenders offer extensive loan information on their website, and feature the advantages of being convenient, accessible 24 hours a day, and easy to work with.
Additionally, many online lenders can process the best homeowner loans more quickly than some of their physical lending counterparts due to their specialization and lower overhead.
You should compare online quotes to those obtained from banks and finance companies, using all of the information you’ve received from all sources to determine which loan is the right one for you.
You may freely reprint this article provided the following author’s biography (including the live URL link) remains intact:
About The Author
John Mussi is the founder of Direct Online Loans who help homeowners find the best available loans via the http://www.directonlineloans.co.uk website.
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03.28.08
Posted in Gender Issues Center at 8:08 pm by admin
Are you losing more than 20-100 strands of hairs a day? If your
answer is yes; you are part of 50 percent of the population
experiencing hair loss, but before you get alarmed there are
some changes in your body either conscious or unconscious that
maybe causing your hair to shed. Did you make a change in your
diet, Are you eating enough proteins and amino acids, Is your
body going trough a hormonal change (postpartum, thyroid),
Anemia, stress, medications etc.? It is advisable to consult a
dermatologist for anyone experiencing extreme hair loss. A
professional will evaluate all the possibilities and right
treatment for those with a more serious problem. Here are some
recipes that will act on the scalp by tightening it and helping
to avoid hair loss and promote hair growth. Caution: Make sure
recipes are not to hot before applying to hair or scalp.
1.Apply 2 tablespoons of warm olive oil to scalp, leave on for
10-30 minutes before washing hair.
2.Boil 2 cinnamon sticks in one cup of water apply to hair and
live on for at least 5 minutes then rinse off.( it will sting a
little).
3.Apply & massage vitamin E oil to scalp at least once a week.
It’s also helpful for dull hair lacking shine.
4.Increase your protein intake by taking multivitamins. Eat high
protein foods like meat, chicken, fish, eggs, dried beans,
grains etc.
5.Massage your hair with warm Castor and Almond oil once a week.
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Posted in Self Improvement Resources at 12:12 pm by admin
Do you know how to get the changes in your life that you desire? Here are some powerful suggestions for making changes.
Sometimes change can start out slowly and then pick up speed as momentum builds and builds.
Kaleidoscopic change
Remember the kaleidoscopic you played with as a child? Each time you turned it, there was a little bit of movement, and then the whole picture changed.
Sometimes it takes hanging in there during the little changes to get to the big changes.
Change requires focus
Although change can happen quickly, there are times when it takes much more focus to create change.
Several years ago the clutch went out on my two year old car. After the repair, the mechanic asked me a few questions about how I drove. I discovered I was a champion clutch rider. If there was any opportunity to have the clutch in, it was in.
So there I was, with 20 years of driving experience, having to pay conscious attention to changing something I did by habit.
As I focused on learning how to drive differently, it occurred to me that I really did not have to change.
I could still drive the car the same way I had been, and it would get me where I wanted to go. I would just burn out a clutch every two years.
It was time to change.
Visit The Article Guy for more leading edge tips and tools for writing articles that bring you prospects, publicity and profits. You can also subscribe to our monthly Article Writing & Marketing Tips Newsletter. You are also invited to visit my Express-Start Article Writing Program for more information on the next article writing tele-seminar.
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Posted in Market Commerce at 8:33 am by admin
Do you know what your website is worth? The short answer: Multiply the number of unique monthly visitors to your website by $38. That is, if you average 1000 unique monthly visitors, your website is worth $38,000; if you average 100,000 unique monthly visitors, your website is worth $3.8 million.
Consider some of the following purchases in the last year:
Dow Jones purchases MarketWatch for $519 million
America Online purchases Weblogs Inc for $25 million
News Corp. purchases MySpace for $580 million
InterActiveCorp purchases Ask Jeeves for $1.9 billion
In an article entitled “What Works,” the December issue of Business 2.0 magazine looks at recent sales of websites and analyzes the websites’ traffic to reach a value for each monthly visitor. The figure they came up with is $38 per unique monthly visitor.
So what does this mean? For high traffic websites, bubble-era buyouts are back. If you own a high traffic website you can, potentially, sell it and strike it rich. Now, the above example of a website that generates 1000 monthly visitors is just that, an example; nobody’s interested in 1000 visitors. But, if you have 100,000 monthly visitors and up you may be on to something. High traffic is worth money in advertising revenue. Internet advertising spending will reach $12 billion by the end of this year.
The article states that venture capitalists look at three metrics when valuing an internet company:
1. The cost of enrolling new users to the website
2. The stickiness of the website (the frequency of repeat visits)
3. Add-on services (like premium accounts)
I would go further to say that websites that target a niche audience that isn’t already saturated by other websites will be worth more. Take MySpace.com, for example; it targets the 18-35 age bracket. Off the top of my head, I can think of dozens of websites that directly compete for the same advertising dollars… TheFaceBook.com, Friendster.com, ClassMates.com, HotOrNot.com, to name just a few. Yet, MySpace.com sold for $580 million. What if your website has high traffic but also attracts a different demographic, a demographic that advertisers would like to get to but don’t yet have the opportunity to do so? How much is that worth?
Also, I would say that websites that find a way to get users to pay for unique services will also cash in. We’ve all seen websites that offer free accounts but require a fee to upgrade to premium accounts. PhotoBucket.com, a photo sharing site, requires a monthly fee for increased bandwidth. Ryze.com, a business networking site, requires a monthly fee just to be able to email other members on the site. But what if your website charges users a fee for unique information? And, what if your users are more than willing to pay for it? How much is that worth?
So, how much is your website worth? Only time will tell.
Tino Buntic is the creator of TradePals, providing qualified sales leads to business professionals and entrepreneurs across The United States and Canada.
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