A Fun, Informing, Pushing the Envelope Blogistpher where anyone that can read, understand, and comment will fullfill my objective, which is to incourage more dialog from my readership!
Find Out How You Really Can Retire in Thailand On $500 Per Month?
When many people retire, they just stop working and continue to live where they currently are. This is not for me. I live in Hawaii and have been here for 23 years and love the islands, but I don't want to retire here.
The cost of living in Hawaii is not conducive to retirement living unless you have a ton of money. I have a nice nest egg, a pension coming and a military retirement, but I don't want to struggle with day to day living in Hawaii.
I prefer to live in a country where it will take about 25% of what it costs me now to live. That place is Thailand.
I have been stationed there as a soldier, participated in military exercises there, and take two or three vacations in Thailand every year. It is my personal paradise and where I will spend my golden years.
If you have ever visited Thailand and been to Bangkok, Pattaya, or Phuket, you will think I am crazy saying that you can retire in $550 per month. But, keep in mind that living in Thailand permanently is different than being there for a two or three week vacation.
During a vacation you tend to spend all of the money that you saved up over the year and have a great, blowout holiday. If you live in Thailand, you won't be going out bar-hopping and just throwing your money around like you do on vacation. Plus, if you live in a place, you tend to know the places to get the best deals and prices.
As I've gotten older and have a lady that I see in Thailand, I don't have the need to go out as much. We still go out for dinners and shopping and sight-seeing, but I spend a lot less than when I am in Pattaya on a single man's holiday.
My last trip I spent three weeks in Khon Kaen, northeast of Bangkok. My hotel room was basic and cost about 12 dollars per day. My lady would cook breakfast for me and then pick up some goodies from the local street vendors for my lunch. We would go out for dinner and have three or four plates of food, a couple of beers, and some water.
My daily expense for this was about $25. This is for meals and my room. Granted, I spent a little more when we went out shopping and I also saved a bit by drinking beer in my room instead of bar-hopping. Movies were bought at the mall for $3 and watching a movie in the room, drinking a beer, and having a pizza was cheap entertainment.
Once I retire in Thailand, I will buy a house, so the hotel bill is gone. My soon-to-be wife will be able to cook for us in the house and we won't go out for meals as much. We will still go out, but it won't be every night.
Even if you don't own a house, getting a monthly rental in a city away from the touristy areas will still be cheap. Getting by on less than $20 a day is easy unless you are out in the bars and clubs every night.
I recommend that you visit Thailand and see what this beautiful country has to offer and see if it is the right place for you to retire.
I was diagnosed with type one diabetes Results from the body's failure to produce insulin, the hormone that unlocks the cells of the body, allowing glucose to enter and fuel them. It is estimated that 5-10% of Americans who are diagnosed with diabetes have type 1 diabetes.
Having type 1 diabetes increases your risk for many dangerous ramifications. Some complications of type 1 diabetes include: heart disease (cardiovascular disease), blindness (retinopathy), nerve damage (neuropathy), and kidney damage (kidney disease).
Type 2 diabetes usually occurs gradually Results from insulin resistance (a condition in which the body fails to properly use insulin), merged with relative insulin deficiency. Most Americans who are diagnosed with diabetes have type 2 diabetes.
Having type 2 diabetes increases your risk for many dangerous ramifications. Some complications of type 2 diabetes include: heart disease (cardiovascular disease), blindness (retinopathy), nerve damage (neuropathy), and kidney damage (kidney disease). Learn more about these complications and how to cope with them.
Gestational diabetes is treatable Gestational diabetes affects nearly 4% of all pregnant women - approximately 135,000 cases in the United States each year.
Because gestational diabetes can hurt you and your baby, you need to start treatment quickly. Treatment for gestational diabetes aims to maintain blood glucose levels equal to those of pregnant adult females who don't have gestational diabetes. Treatment for gestational diabetes always includes special meal plans and scheduled physical activity. It may also include daily blood glucose testing and insulin shots. You will need help from your doctor, nurse educator, and other members of your health care team so that your treatment for gestational diabetes can be changed as needed.
For the mother-to-be, treatment for gestational diabetes helps lower the risk of a cesarean section birth that very large babies may require. Sticking with your treatment for gestational diabetes will give you a healthy pregnancy and birth, and may help your baby avoid future poor health. (See Diabetes Symptoms)
Pre-diabetes Pre-diabetes is a condition that occurs when a person's blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. There are 41 million Americans who have pre-diabetes, in addition to the 20.8 million with diabetes.
This is the second in a series of articles we will be publishing
relaying thoughts and ideas from the Internet Retailer Conference in
Chicago, which occurred June 5th through June 7th. Peter Kosciewicz,
Director of E-Commerce for the Eastwood Company, and Chris Saito, Senior
Director, Shopping Products for Yahoo! Shopping, delivered a
presentation entitled "Social Networking: The Peer Persuasion Marketing
Tool."
According to Kosciewicz, the Web today has grown into an
"architecture of participation" that facilitates social networking
through devices such as blogs, wikis, RSS, podcast, and more. Forrester
Research has published studies that show that traditional marketing is
continuing to lose credibility. For example, in 2002, 78% of respondents
in a survey said that ads are a good way to learn about a new product.
In 2004, that number dropped to 46%. In 2002, 14% of respondents
agreeing that companies generally tell the trust. As pathetic as 14% is,
in 2004, it had declined even further - down to 7%. Social networking as
a means of marketing overcomes this lack of consumer trust because it
relies on the word of the consumer rather than the word of the producer.
Research from Datamonitor reported that 85% of respondents in a survey
indicated that word-of-mouth from friends, family, or colleagues is more
trustworthy than corporate-generated content.
So how do you take
advantage of social networking to sell more merchandise? Simple - you open
yourself up. You plant the seeds of a community to grow up around your
site by using devices such as blogs, customer reviews, and forums to
give a voice to your customers or prospective customers. The caveat is
that you must be high caliber. You must have high quality service and a
high quality product. If not, avoid this marketing method.
Kosciewicz outlined four important rules for using social networking on your website:
1. Guide but don't control. 2. Never censor. 3. Don't be afraid of negative comments. 4. Don't be paranoid.
If
you open up a forum on your site, but then restrict what people are
allowed to say, such as removing posts that are negative toward your
company or that mention your competitors, then you will do more damage
than good to your reputation. Use negativity as a way to improve your
business. If people are negative, look at that as feedback and act on
it. Make changes, and then let your community know about it. Don't worry
about your community talking about your competition. Your attitude has
to be that you are the best, so why worry about it?
As a
community develops around your web site, certain members will establish
themselves as more influential than others. They will be more outspoken,
and will be the ones who often respond to others. Cultivate these
members, because they can be powerful allies. Once you have identified
the more influential members of your community, inform them regularly,
give them free merchandise, become their friend. Feed your influencers
information, and they will distribute it for you. But do not make it
appear that you are only interested in them because they can help you
sell stuff. You need to be genuine.
Measuring the impact of
social networking is difficult. Unlike other forms of marketing, there
is no direct connect between social networking activity and sells. What
you will want to do is track traffic to pages such as customer reviews,
referral links, etc.
Social networking can be a powerful
marketing tool, if you have a high quality product and are not afraid of
an open dialogue with your customers.
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One thing that stops Americans from purchasing hybrid cars is the lack of options out there for them. For instance, some people just like to ride in certain models of cars, and when those models are absent from the market, people start to get upset. What the automotive industry needs to do is make sure that every consumer need is satisfied when it comes to hybrid cars. What should it do to satisfy every potential customer's need? Just take a look at what people are buying. And hey, why isn't there a hybrid pickup?
Half of the entire US vehicle market is based on sales of SUVs and pickups. That whole market is comprised of 16 million vehicles. And since pickup vehicles use tons of gas per year, it would be a great idea for pickup hybrids to flood the market. These types of hybrid cars would save pickup drivers tons of money on gas. The savings would make a great case for the hybrid car industry. Alone, those dollars saved would get people curious about hybrid cars. If people saw just how much money hybrid pickup drivers saved on gas, they might be led to rush and get a hybrid for themselves. The dollars saved would provide the perfect visual for potential hybrid car buyers.
But the question still is, why isn't there a hybrid pickup truck. Hybrid car drivers all over are waiting to hear the answer to that question.
Well, actually for a short time, a hybrid pickup truck did in fact exist. Late in the year of 2004, there was a hybrid system on the Silverado and Sierra models. This system was introduced by general motors. However, this truck was not really the market. It was developed, but no one really knew where to buy it. Then in about the year 2006, GM dropped the hybrid pickups known as the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra. And that's the last the market heard of hybrid pickups. But these hybrid cars or hybrid pickups were let go for a number of good reasons, one being the hybrid pickups created an increase in the fuel economy.
But in the near future, more hybrid pickups will be introduced to the market. And that will be approximately a year from now. So a hybrid car-lovers can get ready for these great utility vehicles. Hybrid cars are already selling fast. So with a new kind of hybrid car like the hybrid pickup, hybrid car sales will take off even more. And then, auto manufacturers would need to produce more hybrid cars. The end result would be that hybrid cars would multiply on the roads because everyone would be driving a hybrid car. And that would do wonders for the environment and the general economy.
So if you want a hybrid pickup, you may just have to wait until about 2008. And that should be fine. Just purchase a different kind of hybrid car while you wait. There are plenty of other hybrid cars available.
Salary negotiating is an important topic that must be addressed prior to your initial interview with a prospective employer. Knowing your bottom rate, and being able to live with it [or on it?] is an important thing for candidates to uncover before the first interview. Why then do so many of us make the tactical mistake and go to the interview unprepared? One of the first mistakes - a real killer - is to tip your hand too early in the interview process on what you will accept for a salary. Many interviewers will attempt to screen you out by finding out what your ballpark figure is. To mention that amount too early in the interview process can and will lock you in to a figure you might not be happy with later. Try changing your salary requirements after an offer has been made and you will come across looking flakey or greedy. You must have a salary range in mind before going on the first interview... you then have to be determined not to reveal it in that interview or you just might find yourself on the outside looking in. In other words, you will be screened out of the selection process before you can show the employer [the person with hiring authority, not the Human Resources (HR) rep.] what you can do for them. If you are asked on the first interview what your salary requirements are you must stall the interviewer. Chances are the first interview is with an HR rep who is trained to weed people out, oftentimes the salary requirement being one of the "weeds" the rep looks at to eliminate candidates. More than likely the rep is a "no-nothing" regarding your job; he or she is tasked with presenting a certain group of candidates to the person with actual hiring authority [e.g., chief flight attendant, chief pilot, operations manager, etc.] and knows [or cares] little about your background or what you can do for the company. I have seen the best candidates get screened out prematurely because they tipped their hand too early in the interview process. So, what do you do if someone insists on a salary figure? The best answer can be summed up along these lines: "my salary requirements are based on the nature and scope of the position." In other words, the more difficult the job, the higher your salary requirements will be. If pressed further -- assuming the rep insists on uncovering your salary range -- you can always announce a figure closer to your bottom rate. For example, if you want 60K and sense that announcing that figure ahead of time will sink you, you can tell them: "my range starts in the upper 40s to mid 50s." That way, you won't be screened out for what the H.R. rep might consider an excessive salary requirement. Most importantly, it will enable you to go to the all important second interview with the person who has real hiring authority.
Your second interview is your opportunity to "WOW" your potential employer. Tell them all the things you can and will do for them. Avoid salary negotiating and let them know they can't live without you. Once you sell them on that point, you will be prepared to give your salary figure of 60K, but only discuss salary if they bring it up [your third interview should be their actual offer to you, however be prepared for an offer earlier than that if you WOW them and they insist on hiring you on the spot. In that case you should be able to secure your upper figure]. Should the remark be made that HR told them you would accept a much lower salary, you must stress that the job responsibilities detailed to you in the interview are much greater than what the HR rep had indicated. Most reasonable people will understand that HR only has a general, not a specific understanding of the job requirements, and will accept this reasoning. Reemphasize your experience, your business acumen, all the points that set you apart from the average candidate, which you are not. I cannot tell you how often I have heard candidates fail at this important game, which it is -- a cat and mouse game. Do not for a minute think that you will be able to renegotiate your salary later. If you settle for less you will have to live on less. Maybe that works for you, but chances are you will be unhappy and had wished you never caved in.
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If you were to ask anybody in this country what was America's "finest hour", you might find many different answers. For most of us, we think of a handful of incidents where the true spirit of what it means to be an American comes forth. And to some, you might hear the answer "America's finest hour is still ahead of it", and that may be true. Nobody can tell that right now.
But in terms of American history, without a doubt when America linked arms with it's allies and stood down the terrible threat Adolph Hitler's Germany was posing during World War II would have to represent the finest show of strength, national resolve and honor in the history of the nation. And that is because during these difficult years, America did not just use its vast resources to save Americans and American interests.
It is not an overstatement that by standing down Hitler, America saved the world.
World War II was without a doubt the most devastating war in the history of the world. The death toll worldwide from this conflict reached over sixty million people. The aggression of the axis powers seemed to know no limitations which only makes more dramatic the brave stand that America, England, France and the other allied powers showed to stand in the face of a well armed and ruthless enemy and deny them the world domination they sought.
Its easy to look back now on how the greatest generation, as they often have been called, found the will, the determination to risk everything to stop Hitler's armies. But we forget that at the time, there was no way of knowing if the allies were going to prevail. Early in the war, Hitler seemed unstoppable as he occupied Poland and the invasion of Europe spread to England, France, Norway and beyond giving Germany more and more leverage to spread the war to Africa, into Russia and across Asia as well.
By the time the full allied force was assembled and ready to strike back, Hitler's advances were so deep and the spread of the war so far reaching that at times it seemed impossible to turn back this evil tide of military hostility that threatened to engulf the globe.
As often is the case, it was when America entered the war that the allies began to see a hope to stop the horror of what Hitler was trying to do.
It took the bombing of Pearl Harbor to put the American population on alert that the isolation of the American continent did not mean that they would be spared the spread of the war to their homeland unless something was done. By attacking America's ships at harbor in Hawaii on December 7, 1941, the Japanese brought the most potent military machine in the world into the war against the axis powers which eventually spelled doom for the cause of Hitler and his allies.
America's battles on the many fronts of World War II is filled with dozens of stories of courage and strategic brilliance that finally began to turn the war to the favor of the allies. It took courageous decision making at the very top levels of command to make that decision to use the most devastating weapon man had ever known to strike Japan and speed the end of conflicts. The toll of dropping nuclear weapons on Japan was horrific but America's president knew that by ending the conflict, tens of thousands of American lives would be saved.
Only that made it a justifiable attack. But that attack alone did not bring Hitler to his knees. The turn of fortunes began on D-Day on June 5, 1944. This massive assault on the beaches of Normandy France caught the German defenders by surprise. Nevertheless, the cost in lives was tremendous as American and allied troops staged that massive invasion to begin to bring the Nazi war machine down.
We can only look back with gratitude to the brave men and woman who fought to keep America and the world free from Hitler's plans of world domination. And by stopping him, we can truly say, this was America's finest hour.
Many take both Mother, and Mother's Day for granted. We all have, as children growing up. Mother's Day is more than just a Sunday to send flowers to Mom. Mother's Day is a memorial that serves as just a fleeting moment of the year to show honor and due reverence to one we love so dear. It's only one day, and not nearly enough.
Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs in my field, since the payment is pure love. -- Mildred B. Vermont
Eight of her twelve children had been baptized in tears of grief. For Ana Maria Jarvis the Civil War was far from civil. It didn't seem fair that a mother should outlive so many children, yet she did. In doing so, Ana left a legacy that was adopted and championed by an unmarried daughter who shared her mother's name.
In 1905, the younger Ana would baptize her mother's grave in her own tears and begin a quest to bring attention to the incredible gift of mothering.
Two years later, Ana Jarvis sought to have Mother's Day recognized on a national level. The second Sunday in May was the second anniversary of the death of Ana's mother so this was a logical choice for Jarvis. Ana lobbied politicians to accept the notion of a day set aside to honor mothers. By 1911 the day was celebrated in almost every state in the union.
The tradition did not stop in America either. This special holiday is now recognized in many countries around the world.
More than a century has passed since the mother of inspiration passed away, and yet it is her legacy that is reflected in the admiration of multiple generations for the tradition of motherhood.
The choice of a Mother's Day gift is a common celebration of that tradition. Special care should be exercised when seeking out a gift that proclaims a willingness to attempt to pay a debt that can never fully be repaid.
A gourmet gift such as an Oil and Vinegar Set can pay homage to the grand tradition of Mother's Day in a way that brings a stroke of brilliant elegance and style to the occasion.
Gifts for the kitchen or that will ultimately tempt the palate are perfect for Mother's Day gift giving primarily because moms spend so much time in the kitchen. Gifts that aid in meal preparations or pamper the taste buds are a welcome departure from more familiar gifts.
A kitchen gift may even indicate a willingness to return for a well anticipated meal with mom. Spending time with our mothers is important in maintaining closeness throughout the years. A Mother's Day kitchen gift speaks volumes in regards to individual thoughtfulness, creativity and degree of kindness.
It's possible to become so caught up in our own worlds that we forget the moments in childhood when our jelly-stained hands would reach for mom's and we'd gaze into her eyes wondering why we couldn't marry her or how much we wanted to be like her when we grew up.
Should you be able to take the second Sunday in May to personally express your appreciation for your Mother, be sure to take along a special gift that says you care. Then, consider investing some of your time with your mom. Grab her hand and look into her eyes and allow yourself to recapture the wonder of childhood. You're in the midst of greatness.
We owe a debt of gratitude to Ana Jarvis for her persistent call for a day to honor the esteemed calling of motherhood. I think Ana would agree that, when it comes to motherhood, a lifetime is not nearly enough time to say thanks, I love you.
Online dating is very popular today with the advances
of technology and the increase of people who use
computers. Online dating is a system for organizing a
date and can be an excellent way to meet that special
someone.
Today, online dating is one of the most popular
systems for meeting someone new to go on a date with.
There are many online dating websites you can visit
and see people who are looking to meet someone new.
You can post your picture and create a profile on one
of them too.
This will allow you to tell everything about yourself.
This way, people can see if you enjoy the same types
of activities they do and you can see if certain
people look to be like someone you might be interested
in.
Online dating has proven to be a successful method for
meeting people and setting up dates. Many people have
continued their relationships and even been married
through online dating methods.
All relationships through online dating aren’t
successful but you may meet a new friend if you are
not compatible for dating.
When you consider online dating, it is important to
remember you need to be safe. The Internet is not
always what it seems and people are not always honest
with everything about themselves.
You should be sure when you go on your first online
date you are somewhere you feel comfortable with and
be sure to protect yourself at all times.
You can have a fantastic experience and meet your
perfect match but you don’t want to be a statistic
because you believed everything the other person said
on the Internet.
If you love your sugary sodas and oh-so-sweet chocolate cream pies, you know how difficult it is to restrict the amount of sugar in your diet. However, eliminating sugar can be critical to effective weight loss. That, at least, is the theory behind the diet known as Sugar Busters. While some experts consider this diet to be instrumental in helping people shed unwanted pounds, critics contend that it is just another dietary fad.
There are a number of misconceptions about Sugar Busters. It does not consider carbohydrates to be the enemy, and it is not oozing with fat. The Sugar Busters formula is 40/30/30, or 40 percent carbs, 30 percent protein and 30 percent fat. That means that the diet does not ban carbs; it simply urges people to consume nutritious carbs. While dieters may consume a great deal of protein, it is not considered to be strictly a high-protein diet.
Those on the Sugar Busters plan eat a fair amount of grain, which enables the intestines to work properly and can also reduce blood sugar and cholesterol levels. In fact, the amount of fiber consumed is considered to be one of the diet’s biggest attributes. Fiber has also been credited with helping the body to maintain healthy weight loss.
Of course, the key ingredient of Sugar Busters is the reduction in an individual’s sugar intake. While this may be difficult at first, medical experts say that, after an extended period of time without sugar, an individual will no longer crave it. Therefore, you can truly kiss those banana splits goodbye, once you go on the Sugar Busters plan.
What you may not realize is all that sugar entails. It includes corn syrup, dextrose, sucrose, and honey. In other words, to the layman, it includes not only sugar, but a number of sugar substitutes. About the only permitted sugars are the lactose found in milk and the fructose which appears in fruit.
Of course, Sugar Busters has both assets and liabilities. On the plus side, it eliminates unhealthy sugary foods from one’s diet. It allows an extensive array of protein-rich foods; therefore, you’re less likely to feel unsatisfied. It also encourages healthy sugar consumption in the form of fruit. In addition, proponents of the Sugar Busters plan encourage dieters to drink a great deal of water which helps to flush out the system.
But there are also flaws in the Sugar Busters plan. Critics maintain that it places too much emphasis on cutting sugar, and not enough on reducing one’s intake of other unhealthy food. Also, it restricts the consumption of some fruits and vegetables, causing dieters to lose valuable vitamins and minerals. At the same time, detractors say, it encourages far too much consumption of protein, which can result in kidney damage. Moreover, some dieticians maintain that the only effective way to lose weight is by cutting calories, not simply by zapping sugar from the diet.
And there are other things to consider with Sugar Busters as well. For instance, if you follow the program religiously, you may be deprived of vitamin D, as well as calcium. You could also see your bad cholesterol levels skyrocket because of the protein-rich foods you are eating. Sugar Busters has also been linked to heart disease and osteoporosis. And then there’s the obvious problem: it’s simply difficult to give up candy, cookies, bread, and other treats, even if you want to be committed to the program.
It is also important to note that the authors of Sugar Busters do not guarantee a specific amount of weight loss. If you try to follow the program and you fail to lose weight, the plan’s supporters maintain that you have probably indulged in too many carbohydrates. This may or may not be true; the point is that following the program can be a challenge for anyone, even the most disciplined dieter. However, if you’re not fond of sweets, you enjoy high-protein foods, and you can live without many carbohydrates, Sugar Busters may be the right plan for you. The best advice may be to try it and see if it yields results—without jeopardizing your health in the process.
