Business, economic development - the unofficial Chamber of Commerce

OPTIMISM MONTH: March 1- 31, 2006

Are you an optimist or a pessimist? Do you often expect bad things to happen? Pessimists are like the fairy tale about Chicken Little. In the fairy tale, Chicken Little kept shouting, ‘Help, help the sky is falling’. In contrast, optimistic people expect the best. Don’t worry however, I co- founded OPTIMISM MONTH, which runs from March 1st -31st, 2005. If you’re a pessimist don’t get discouraged. Optimism is not a disposition you are born with or without. It’s a learned skill, and a very important ingredient determining your level of happiness. I suggest practicing these tips each week of Optimism Month:

Week 1: De-tox Your Mind

To get rid of negative or intruding bad thoughts remember this “Rule of Optimism”: You can only keep one thought in your mind at a time. You can focus your thoughts on either pessimistic or optimistic thoughts. It’s your choice. Pessimistic people focus on gloomy thoughts of how they could fall down and not get up. They expect the worst to happen. Optimistic people expect the best. So, houseclean your head. This week, when setbacks or problems pop-up, immediately focus on finding a solution. Pessimistic people focus on complaining, but happy and optimistic people focus on solutions.

Week 2: Optimism and Happiness by the Numbers

Are you obsessed with negative thoughts? A simple way to become optimistic is to count your way to more positive thoughts. It’s easy to become an expert at switching your negative and bad thoughts to more positive and upbeat thoughts and feelings. So, this week your assignment is to focus on counting and switching your bad thoughts to upbeat and uplifting thoughts. Each time you have a negative thought, immediately switch to a positive thought or solutions to your woes. Write a tally mark on a pad of paper each time you switch like this each day. Your goal is to decrease the number of times you need to switch. For example, at first you may need to switch 50 times. In time, you will decrease it to 30, 20 or 10 times a day. If you are obsessively negative, you will become obsessively positive using this technique.

Week 3: Avoid Emotional Vampires

Are you a loser magnet? Do you attract emotional vampires or losers into your life? To become more optimistic — avoid emotional vampires. Pessimistic people allow “emotional vampires” to suck their positive feelings right out of their skulls. Emotional vampires include people who put you down, criticize you or mock or sabotage your dreams and aspirations. This week, take survey of your life by making a list of people and situations you are exposing yourself to. Then, discard or limit people, habits or situations that keep you from feeling optimistic and happy. In other words, “burn your bridges” if needed. Remember: Happy and optimistic people hang around with personal cheerleaders. Unhappy people surround themselves with emotional vampires.

Week 4: Act Like An Optimist

To begin acting like an optimist yourself, you need to learn what they do. Optimistic people act and carry themselves in certain ways. First, they use certain words. The words people use can effect their mood. Changing your words can actually change your attitude and feelings. I recommend using “upbeat” words instead of “upset” words. For example, you can say, “I feel overwhelmed.” Or, “I feel challenged … nevertheless I can do it”. Second, optimists and happy individuals take big steps, walk faster and stand taller. In sharp contrast, pessimistic and unhappy people shuffle their feet, take tiny steps, walk slowly and slouch. This week, use upbeat words and watch how you carry your body. Use the word choices and body posture of optimistic people.

Using each of these techniques during Optimism Month will help you become happy and optimistic. They are easy to carry out and will create a positive domino effect with people in your life.

Maryann Troiani, Psy.D., is a speaker & consultant with The Mercer Group, Inc., in Barrington, Illinois. She delivers speeches & workshops at meetings & conferences. She co-authored the book, “SPONTANEOUS OPTIMISM: Proven Strategies for Health, Prosperity & Happiness”. Dr. Troiani has tele-coached people with her ‘optimism & change-your-life” techniques. She has appeared on Oprah & hundred of TV & radio shows. You can email her at drmary@mercersystems.com or call 847-382-0690.

Why not start walking your weight off?

The utmost battle for any working mother is the obstruction of having time in their day to exercise. For stay-at-home mom it can be even extra tricky because children will regularly go along with the adventure which means a plethora of distractions.

One of the most effective forms of exercise is walking which is also an easy exercise program to start with because you are able to set your own goals and limitations as you get on with your new fitness exploit. People might try to persuade you to join your local gym, walking for exercise allows you the capability and flexibility to exercise anywhere and anytime you want.

Even though an open schedule is good, when you are starting out it is important to schedule your walks. Pick out a set schedule for 3 weeks and write it on your calendar and plan everything else around your walking schedule. The reason is you will find it easy to break exercise commitments because you put someone else’s needs before your own. For 3 weeks, put your overall health and well being first.

Start slow. It is also a good idea to start with two 10 minute brisk walks before plummeting into a full twenty minute power-walk. Unless you are extremely overweight and or have health problems, you should be able to start your walking program with the two daily exercise sessions and do these 5 days a week. I highly recommend you take a couple days off a week so you do not get burnt out.

Start your walking program on a Monday. If you really want to improve your health then also change your eating and sleeping habits too. By eating right and getting a good nights rest every night you will see dramatic improvements in not only your health but also your overall feeling. You can accomplish so much more if you are maintaining a healthy lifestyle while taking on a life-changing and possibly life-saving walking program.

Walking the weight off may be just what the doctor ordered, but please be sure and ask your doctor before you start this or any exercise program. In particular if you are twenty pounds or more overweight and haven’t been actively involved in any other exercise program.

Find the Perfect Aquatic Exercises to get safely into shape fast!

Dog fashions are all the rage and have become quit affordable for anyone and everyone to enjoy with their dog, but not everyone knows the best ways to find their dog’s size or how a garment should fit to avoid accidents. Choosing the right size for your dog is very important, we always want our pets to be safe and feel comfortable in whatever they wear. 30% of all online dog apparel sales result in returns or exchanges due to improper sizing.

The first and most important thing you should know before you begin to buy for your dog is his/her measurements. You should write them down and always have them with you just in case you see something you can’t resist.

The most important places you’ll want to measure are:

The chest (circumference) measurements should be taken at the deepest part of the chest, which is usually right behind the front legs. This measurement is most important, so make sure you don’t exaggerate your dog’s chest by adding inches for more room and if you wrap the measuring tape to tight you will lessen the measurement and end up buying something too small.

Then measure the dog’s length from the back of his neck to tail. This measurement should start from the middle of the back of his neck right to the base of his tail. This measurement is not as important as the chest the length of the garment can vary and will be up to you whether you like him to wear his shirts long or short.

When measuring the dog’s neck (circumference) you should take the measurements around the lower middle of his neck.

If you have a breed with shorter legs then you’ll want to stick to short sleeves unless you’re purchasing from a store that makes their own clothes then you should provide them with his front leg measurements to ensure proper fit. The leg measurements should start from his under arm to right above his ankle. The length of the sleeves is very important, you don’t want your dog to wear anything with sleeves that are too long, this may cause accidents.

Every dog clothing manufacture has their own sizing chart, study it carefully for most charts won’t suit all dog’s so the most important thing to remember is the chest, as long as the chest size is right then it should be ok. If you’re buying online then you should provide the online store with his measurements, just to ensure you’ll get the right size. Some online stores will make the garment to your dogs measurements, this is a great feature for anyone but greater if you own a Dachshund or Crested or any hard to fit dog.

If you’re buying for a puppy from an online store then it’s very important to let the store know, what kind of puppy, how old and how much does he weigh. This is important so the seller can calculate what your dog’s size will be by the time you get your package.

Dressing your dog in different clothes for different occasions is lots of fun… after all, your pet is part of your family too. Just using common sense in choosing what size for him as we, wouldn’t wear anything uncomfortable. Like babies they can’t tell us what’s too tight or loose so it’s our responsibility to choose the right size for them.

About the Author

Author Eva Sanchez founder of PrincessPetear.com, online seller of small dog clothes for boy and girl dogs.
http://princesspetwear.com

In our society today, it is routine when a child is born to begin testing for certain illnesses that could be devastating to development. Doctors have set a routine schedule for growth and development to be evaluated and encourage parents to have children immunized against diseases. Prevention is a buzz word used repeatedly in clinics and hospitals, however, when applied to Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), testing and evaluation is not done until adulthood when the condition is out of control and complications have already begun. Testing and evaluation for PCOS during the adolescent years should be used to prevent devastating complications from PCOS.

Do women know what they have is treatable, and if not treated could lead to devastating disease? There are many women that suffer with the daily complications associated with untreated PCOS. For many women testing is not being accomplished. Because in reality, PCOS women do not even know that there is anything that can be done for the symptoms, and continue to suffer. According to the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologist (AACE):
PCOS is the most common metabolic disorder of reproductive-age women in the United States, is generally known as a reproductive disorder but is also associated with life-threatening medical illnesses. In the U.S., six million reproductive-age women are affected with the syndrome. (”Fact Sheet”)

PCOS was discovered before computers were invented and yet [2005] there’s still no evaluation for PCOS during adolescence, when the symptoms first start to develop. The symptoms associated with PCOS were first reported by Irving Stein and Michael Leventhal in 1935 (9). Women with menstrual problems who had large ovaries because of multiple cysts [classical symptoms] were diagnosed with Stein-Leventhal syndrome. Due to more research these symptoms have become just a subset of a more encompassing syndrome called PCOS. Many people in the medical profession simple call it PCO, because the symptoms will vary in individuals.

The statistics show that no one person has all of the same symptoms, but doctors should be able to make educated guesses and send women in form testing much earlier than during adulthood (11). By the time some women are treated the complications due to lack of treatment have set in, and some women become infertile, overweight, and have depression. In Living with PCOS, Angela Boss states:

Although the age of onset for PCOS symptoms varies, most women with PCOS can think back to their teenage years and remember a point in time when they started feeling “different” and wondering if something was wrong with them. (1)

Signs and symptoms of PCOS include irregular menses, no menses, infrequent menses, central obesity, excessive body hair growth in male distribution pattern, acne, cysts on ovaries, and infertility (2). Abnormal test results such as elevated levels of male hormones, lower female hormones, fasting insulin abnormalities and reduced levels of sex hormone (8).

Another abnormal test, in PCOS that should be evaluated as part of a routine screening for the adolescent, is a cholesterol test. There is a new test being used in the process of evaluating cholesterol (4). The VAP (Vertical Auto Profile) helps to evaluate cholesterol and there seems to be certain factors of cholesterol elevated only in female with PCOS (12). As more studies are conducted to validate this information, this may prove a definitive test for PCOS patients (4). Most parents become very concerned when medication is involved and want some kind of proof there is something medically wrong before starting treatment. Without the VAP test many parents may not take the doctors word, just based on symptoms, their child has PCOS and will need to take medication for treatment. The medication would be used to treat PCOS and Insulin Resistance (IR).

IR the over production of insulin, is one of the more severe, but treatable syndrome associated with PCOS (10). Acanthosis Nigricans (velvety thickening hyperpigmentation of the skin; brown spots) may be present at nape of neck, axillae, area beneath breast and exposed areas (elbows, knuckles) a sign of insulin resistance (2). However, this is also one of the signs used by the doctor to diagnose PCOS. Research has been conducted to determine whether or not IR causes PCOS or whether PCOS cause IR. The debate is similar to the question of which came first the chicken or the egg. “Insulin resistance if not treated can lead to glucose intolerance or type 2 diabetes mellitus” (2). The treatment must be started as soon as possible to avoid complications. In order for treatment to start the condition must be diagnosed.

The diagnosis of PCOS is a hard thing to get from many Physicians. The reason, as stated before, is because symptoms vary from person to person and many physicians are still following the classical symptoms and do not know how to treat this syndrome. The Mayoclinic states, “Management of PCOS focusing on each woman’s main concern, such as infertility, hirsutism, acne or obesity”, this is how most doctors today are treating this syndrome. My daughter, Alizza, experienced this first hand when she could not loose weight no matter what she ate or how hard she exercised. While in one doctor’s office the doctor told Alizza all she had to do was exercise more, eat less and see someone for her depression. Alizza was very depressed and had no self-esteem due to being overweight. She felt the doctor’s recommendation was not the answer and began doing research. She was fortunate to find a doctor that knows about PCOS and how to treat it. As my daughter experienced most women with PCOS have been made to suffer and think that the symptoms were in their head or it was just how they were made and they would have to live with the symptoms.

As more and more studies have been done, there is a plethora of information that is available to the medical community and women. The AACE in conjunction with the Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Association (PCOSA) is trying to educate doctors and women of all ages in an awareness campaign (2). Most of the sites on the internet have conferences schedule, and public forums to educate people about PCOS. The Associate Press has picked up on PCOS and reported: Doctors often fail to connect the disparate symptoms. There are also stories of how PCOS is affecting women like “Hidden Fertility Disorder can lead to Diabetes” (7). In an effort to educate medical providers the AACE provided this Position Statement:
The physician should no longer regard these women as merely having annoying cosmetic complaints, or primarily suffering from infertility, but as having potential metabolic disorders that may be associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular events. (2)

Education of the physicians and women is needed to make early diagnosis a reality. Before someone can be treated for a disease they have to know that there is a treatment available to them. With the education that the AACE has started there is a better chance of treating PCOS during the adolescent years.

Doctor Foley, a pediatrician specializing in adolescent gynecological problems, stated in our interview, “Adolescence with abnormal periods should be evaluated for PCOS.” When asked why this evaluation would be important, Doctor Foley had several reasons. Early treatment of PCOS will prevent complication later on in life. There has been an increase in the number of adult onset diabetes in younger and younger children. Weight gain puts them at risk for diabetes, and heart disease. It also has a big impact on self image, which is extremely important in the developing child. We also know that PCOS effects neurotransmitters of the brain and can cause depression.

The last reason for treating PCOS during adolescences was quite a unique philosophy. Until our interview I had not even thought about the implications. According to Doctor Foley adolescent having PCOS have higher levels of testosterone. This high level of testosterone causes females to feel more masculine. The other symptom that most will have is no periods or very irregular periods. Which coupled with high levels of testosterone, could make a girl feel like she is not very feminine. “Insulin resistance (IR) almost always goes hand in hand with PCOS, and girls that have IR will have problems with weight gain, and difficulty loosing weight” (10). Put all of this together and Doctor Foley feels this could lead girls to lean toward and alternate life style of Homosexuality:

Girls come in and have made statements like, “I don’t feel right”, and “I don’t look like the other girls, and “I don’t feel like a girl”. Part of this is because the hormone levels are not in a normal range. This is due to the PCOS and IR. After treating the PCOS the girls have returned to state that they feel much more like a normal girl now, because they are now having periods and their testosterone level is within a normal range.
Studies have confirmed the prevalence of PCOS in adolescence. In Doctor Mahin Hashemipour study he concluded PCOS is a common endocrine disorder in adolescents. Adolescents with a mother, or sister that has PCOS and symptoms of PCOS should be evaluated for this syndrome in order to prevent its potential complications (6).

The treatment of PCOS does vary from one doctor to another. The newer philosophy is to focus on the root cause of PCOS. “Many of these new therapies are designed to lower insulin levels and, thus reduce production of testosterone” (3). Doctor Foley agrees with this newer approach however she feels emphasis needs to be placed on the nutritional side of the treatment. Treatment with medication aimed at lowering insulin levels and changing eating habits have shown to eliminate most of the symptoms of PCOS and IR.

The role of hereditary factors in the development of PCOS, its associated metabolic abnormalities and the use of insulin-sensitizing agents in the treatment of PCOS is currently being research at the University of Chicago by Doctor David Ehrmann and his team. Metformin is an insulin lowing drug. It has been approved by the FDA for diabetes, but is not yet FDA-approved for use in treatment of PCOS. These studies will help to find out if metformin does help in lowing insulin production in the PCOS patient. Doctor Glueck studies have found:

During adolescence and childbearing years, before the advent of Metformin therapy, treatment of PCOS was directed (with only modest success) at the presenting clinical feature. Metformin, a safe and effective, widely available, oral medicine increases the effectiveness of insulin at the peripheral cell level, reduces hyperinsulinemia, and reduces hyperandrogengenemia in turn, thus correcting this biochemical domino effect by correcting it at the source.

Doctor Foley currently uses metformin in treating PCOS, and has found dramatic results in her patients and those of her husband, Doctor Steven Foley a Board Certified Gynecologist. Doctor Foley and her husband treat patients with a combination of metformin and nutritional therapy. After a diagnosis of PCOS the patient is scheduled to see a nutritionist for an hour appointment. During my daughter’s evaluation the nutritionist explained that a diet restricting the amount of carbohydrate to 30-50 grams a day, and increasing the amount of protein to 80-100 grams a day, will help to lower insulin levels. As Doctor Foley stated, “It’s a life style change that will be with you the rest of your life.” If the diagnosis of PCOS was made during the adolescent years this life style change could begin sooner and help reduce the risk of long-term complications much earlier. It would also be easier for younger women to adjust to this new lifestyle than when they are much older and set in their ways.

Most women report one or more of the symptoms to their doctor, but unless the doctor has been trained to recognize the symptoms and relate them to each other, many women will suffer until their symptoms worsen, or they develop more symptoms. “Irregular or heavy periods may signal the condition in adolescence, or PCOS may become apparent later when a woman has difficulty becoming pregnant” (8).

At present there is no screening that is done until a woman see a doctor for treatment of her symptoms. If early diagnosis and treatment of PCOS can help reduce the risk of long-term complications in six million women, then why is there no screening during adolescence? Testing and evaluation for PCOS during the adolescent years should be used to prevent devastating complications from PCOS.

Works Cited

1. Boss, Angela, Evelina Weidman Sterling, and Richard Legro. “Adolescent Females.” Living with PCOS. Omaha: Addicus, 2001.

2. Cobin, Rhonda, et al. “American Association of Clinical Endocrinologist Position Statement on Metabolic and Cardiovascular Consequences of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.” American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists. Oct. 2004. 10 Apr. 2005 http://www.aace.com/pub/pcos2004/index.php

3. Ehrmann, David, et al. “Treatment Options.” The University of Chicago Center for Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. n.d. 10 Apr. 2005
http://centerforpcos.bsd.uchicago.edu/Treatment_options/treatment_options.html.

4. Foley, Deborah. Pediatrician Advanced Gynecology Prof. LLC. Personal Interview. 15 Mar. 2005. 719-633-8773.

5. Glueck, C.J. “Metformin: The Treatment of Choice in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.” Health Alliance on line. Scientific Update 5 Sept. 2000. 7 Apr. 2005

6. Hashemipour, Mahin, et al. “Prevalence of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome in Girls Aged 14-18 Years in Isfahan, Iran.” Hormone Research :2004, Vol. 62 Issue 6, p278, 5p. Article. EBSCOhost. Front Range Comm College, Westminster Lib. 10 Feb. 2005 http://rpa.westminster.lib.co.us/rpa/webauth.exe.

7. “Hidden fertility disorder can lead to diabetes.” The Associated Press. 11 Oct. 2004. 11 Feb. 2005 http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6227116 .

8. Hunter, Melissa and James Sterrett. “Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: It’s Not Just Infertility.” The American Academy of Family Physicians 62 (2000): 1079-88. 22 Mar. 2005 http://www.aafp.org/afp/20000901/1079.html

9. Marrinan, Greg. “Polycystic Ovarian Disease (Stein-Leventhal Syndrome).” Emedicine. 30 Aug, 2002. 22 Feb. 2005 http://www.emedicine.com/radio/topic565.htm

10. Pick, Marcelle. “Insulin Resistance in Women.” Women to Women on line. n.d. 9 Apr. 2005 http://www.womentowomen.com/LIBinsulinresistance.asp

11. “Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.” Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. 14 Nov. 2003. 2 Feb. 2005 http://www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?id=DS00423

12. “The VAP Test: An Emerging Standard of Care in Cholesterol Risk Assessment.” Medco Forum. 8 (2001): 36. 29 Apr. 2005
http://www.atherotech.com/information/default.asp?section=aa&location=1

Mary B. Eddinger is a mom and Retired Air Force Medic of 22 years. She is also a nursing student specializing in women’s health. After seeing the same symptoms in her daughter she had suffered with for years, she began researching PCOS and found experts in the field of Obstetrics’ and Gynecology who treat PCOS. Through Mary’s support, and guidance her daughter has lost over 25 pounds. This has been a life changing experience for her daughter. Mary cares about women that have PCOS especially teens and wants to help them achieve a successful treatment program through support, education and real life experience.

US Occupation & US Support for Israel fule terrorism. The war on terror is unwinnable because it makes more terrorists than it kills!
Global “federal” War on Terrorism “previously Communism” (The war is un-winnable because it makes more terrorists than it kills & actually fuels terror!) Bombing & invading nations makes more terrorists than it gets rid of and drives moderates to decide to become extremists to defend their religion!

“US OCCUPATION FUELS TERRORISM!” Out of 190 countries around the globe - the federal government occupies over 100! That’s over half of the World! That’s also why they call us “IMPERIALISTS!” US occupation breeds terrorism - especially in Muslim countries where it is a violation of their religion (It is forbidden for infidels to occupy holy lands & holy war may be used to remove them!) Photo/T-Shirt available at the link below. Link: http://www.cafeshops.com/terrormotive

You simply can not fight terrorism with an Army! Because when you send an Army into a village to get one terrorist, by the time they come back out (after violently invading homes, destroying private property & killing innocent people by accident or otherwise) you will find that you have many more terrorists than you managed to capture or kill!

“By going after one terrorist in an unjust & illegal manner that violates the rights of others - you will make several more if not hundreds!”

Note: Our founding fathers were revolutionaries & the King of England sent his soldiers to round up these few troublesome revolutionaries in order to squash the rebellion. But after invading homes & private property, the King found out that the moderates (those who were in the middle & didn’t want to fight) had turned & joined the revolutionaries!

The Colonists then terrorized the King’s men all the way out of America by using unconventional tactics that could have only seemed like terrorism to the King’s men! Unconventional tactics were the only way for the revolutionary “farmers” to stand up to & defeat the mightiest military in the world (at that time).

By using armies to fight terror we may make the moderate Muslims overtly side with the mighty US - only to covertly side with & truly support their religion! This could drive the moderates to side with the extremists! But this is just what the Republican Right-Wing Religious Extremists in Washington want as all extremists do. They want to bring about Armageddon! This is them forcing their un-provable religious beliefs on all of us and we may all have to live in a living - fiery - hell on earth if they get their way & are wrong!

At the dawn of the first millennium, many religious extremists or “true believers” gave up all of their material wealth thinking that the end of the world was coming “The Apocalypse”. And so they ended up with nothing when it came to pass.

The Moral of the Story is: “Believe what ever you like but don’t force your beliefs on others by voting religious extremists into power!” Bush wasn’t voted in but took over so I’m not talking about him but many others throughout the history of this nation.

If we stop making terrorists in the present - we well have a much safer future for us, our families, & our great Nation!

But if we fight terror globally with violence, we will fuel terror & the extremists only to motivate more terror! Terrorism will evolve! It took years for the terrorists to hit American soil but they did eventually! They used our planes to attack us & the next evolution of terror will likely be weapons of mass destruction on US Soil!

I don’t want to see this or to see American citizens have to live like Israel! But that’s where we are headed with the un-winnable federal war on terror. Moreover, we are now sending federal agents abroad to pre-empt terrorism from coming here to the US! “Our federal agents going to Muslim Nations - IN VIOLATION OF THEIR RELIGION - will not make us safer but less safe my motivating more terrorism against American!

It is up to us Americans to change our government because these career politicians are corrupt beyond repair & will not admit wrong doing or mistakes, therefore they are doomed to repeat past mistakes as well as not being able to solve the problem - when it is “their fault!”

(Check out this link for a good debate on US support for Israel, for example, fueling terrorism against Americans.) http://pub169.ezboard.com/fgunsandpoliticsfrm2.showMessageRange?topicID=19.topic&start=1&stop=20

“US SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL FUELS TERRORISM!” When US Tanks, Helicopter Gunships, & other US weaponry are used by Israelis against Palestinians, this FUELS TERRORISM!

The US is supposed to be fair & just but WHERE is the Palestinian weaponry from the US?

-Why does the US support Israel but not Palestine?

-Why do we keep guns from the Palestinians (gun control)

-Injustice breeds hatred & motivates men to violence!

About the Author

You have just discovered the wonderful world of magic. Trip
after trip to the magic shop has added to your ever growing
arsenal of magic tricks. Thirty-three days later the credit card
bills arrive to remind your wife that this IS an expensive
hobby.

No problem! You will make back all of the money you’ve spent and
more by becoming a part-time professional magician. Looking
around for places to hone your craft, you suddenly remember that
you niece has a seventh birthday coming up. You call you sister
and offer your services in lieu of a gift.

Two weeks later the performance time arrives. You pack all of
your “A” material into two large cardboard boxes. You start the
show for sixteen first graders and all of your relatives. The
show goes well. Everybody is laughing and having a good time.
You take some theatrical pauses to build suspense as you search
your boxes for the next great trick. Finally, your fifteen
minute show concludes after fifty-three minutes. You never
realized you had that much great magic. The kids cheer and
applaud for your debut magic show. Even your sister, wiping the
tears from her eyes, says, “I have never had more fun than I did
watching your magic show. It was great. John got it all on tape.”

This is how many part-time professional magicians attempt to
begin their career. They look around and decided that doing kid
shows is the best way to start. Performing magic for kids is one
of the most difficult areas of magic to do well. This article
explores some of the challenges of performing children’s magic.

–You are training children–

Children don’t understand many of the common cues in a live
performance. Most children are raised in the age of television.
Not a bad thing, except the laugh tracks prompt the children
when to laugh. No laugh tracks and the children are left out in
the cold. They are quick and will get up to speed in no time.
But they need your help.

The same issue is even more problematic with applause. Children
are not used to clapping. They don’t understand applause cues.
Those wonderfully timed applause cues will leave you and your
audience with a lot of uncomfortable silence.

What can be done? Everything. One of your most important tasks
as a children’s magician is your opening. The beginning of your
show must do four things:

•Establish audience control •Teach the children to react to
applause cues •Set the tone for the show •Introduce your
performing personality

The audience needs to be warmed up prior to your magic show. It
seems hokey and a waste of time, but it can make the difference
between a great magic show and a horrible one.

Children love to have fun. Even in school children are taught to
obey those in authority. For some reason, many magicians forget
to establish authority early in the show. The result resembles a
saloon brawl in the wild west.

When you step out for the start of your show, you have the
perfect opportunity to establish the ground rules for the show.
I don’t mean that you should bring out a list of house rules for
the show. Instead come out with confidence and warm up your
audience.

After you welcome everyone to the show, look out over the
audience and say, “This looks like a really great crowd. Let’s
see how loud you can clap. On the count of three ONE. . . TWO .
. THREE . .Not bad! Let’s try it again. On three . . .” After
some byplay conclude by saying, “What do we do when we like the
magic? (pause) What do we do when we LOVE the magic?” (pause and
react strongly to the crowd)

Four things are being done by that warm up. You have taught the
children to clap when they like the magic. It also trains them
to react to the applause cues in the rest of the show. The warm
up establishes that you are in control for this show. Finally,
it sets a fun tone for the show. This is the first time your
audience gets a sense of your performing personality.

–You are not performing for the kids–

You will learn quickly that the most difficult task facing the
children’s performer is to design the show to appeal to children
and adults at the same time and at different levels. No I don’t
mean filling your performance with phrases that have sexual
double meanings. Nothing is more pathetic and unprofessional
than the performer that gets a child on stage and slyly eyes the
adults in the crowd and says “Do I have a big magic wand or
what? ”

Children’s cartoons provide the best examples of the point I am
trying to make. Take Loony Toons or Spongebob Squarepants for
example. These cartoons work for children and adults on
different levels at the same time. This is what you must achieve
to be a successful children’s magician

This is very difficult thing to pull off. This is one of the
main reasons that doing children’s magic is so difficult. You
must DESIGN your show for both audiences. One key to the show
design is your performing personality.

–You are not yourself today–

When you perform magic for children, you must have a distinctive
and appealing performing personality. Long gone are the days
when the children’s magician can come out on stage in a second
hand tux and wow his audience with a formal magic show. Look at
Silly Billy, one of the most successful children’s magicians.
His performing personality is fun and engaging. His show tone is
fast paced and humorous.

Even beyond children’s magic, examine the performing
personalities of children’s television. Captain Kangaroo, Mr.
Rodgers, and Peewee Herman are examples of compelling performing
personalities. Each one was successful, yet, had very different
performing personalities. The common factor was that each
performer engaged children through fun.

Your performing personality must engage you audience, children
and adults, with fun and wonderment. You must draw your audience
into the show by your performing personality, but you must wow
them with a well designed show that delivers great magic. This
is why doing children’s magic is so tough.

If you want to start your career in magic as a children’s
magician, think again. Kids are brutally honest. There is
nothing tougher or more satisfying than have a great children’s
magic show. Being a children’s magician is not the best way to
become a part-time professional magician.

Find out more about perfroming for kids at Learn-Great-M
agic-Tricks

Copyright 2006 Bina Omar

Deciding to create a website for your home business is one of
the best ways to maximize your business success. However, as a
home business owner, you probably don’t have any expertise in
website creation, nor the money to hire an expert. The good news
is that this by no means that you can’t have a professional,
functional, and appealing website of your own at an affordable
price.

The trick is to know how to proceed, and what tools to use.

The following are 7 easy steps to get your own website off the
ground with little or no experience.

* Step 1: Plan your web site

This is the stage where you decide the purpose of your website,
what it will contain, and what keywords you need to focus on in
order to attract the most people. You may even want to start
thinking about the layout of the site at this point.

Before you go ahead, you must at least know what your site is
going to be about and what you’re planning to do with it.
Planning is probably one of the more boring parts of the web
building process, but nevertheless, remains to be one of the
most important.

* Step 2: Register a Domain Name

Once you’ve done that, you can start thinking about your domain
name. These days, you can get a domain name for as little as
$8.95 a year . Getting your own domain name is one of the most
important investment you’ll ever make for your web site.

You can purchase your domain from any registrar on the net. If
you’re not familiar with any, check out: http://www.GoDaddy.com

Decide on an appropriate domain name that is easy to spell, easy
to say, and isn’t too long to be impractical, then register it.
Your own domain name can instantly give you a professional aura
even before your customers reach your web site.

* Step 3: Choose a web host

The next thing to do is to rent some space on a server that is
permanently connected to the internet i.e. sign up for a web
hosting account. Decide upon an affordable, reputable, secure,
and well equipped web host company that can meet your
requirements of web site design, minimum downtime, and
reliability.

Depending on your requirements, you may want to check out the
web host’s support system, connection speed, storage space, data
transfer limit, e-mail features, FTP access, CGI and PHP support
and database access.

There are plenty of web hosts out there. Do your homework BEFORE
you sign up with one. And when you first start up with a new web
host, sign up using the monthly payment plan first. That way, if
you hate their services, you can always switch after the first
month.

If you’re in a hurry, I recommend signing up with
http://www.website-webhost.com. They’re not the cheapest host
out there but they provide many extras that could prove to be
time savers to home businesses.

* Step 4: Search for a web site template

Okay! You have an idea of what your web site is about, you’ve
registered a domain name and you’ve found a great web host. Now,
it’s time to look for the perfect web site template.

Why?

Well … because it’s a lot easier to start off with templates.
And you can get a much more superior web design quality.

Web site templates are created by web design experts. who has
the experience and skill to know what works and what doesn’t.
They’ve tried and tested more site designs than we’ll ever want
to see in our lifetime.

There are thousands of web site templates out there at our
disposal. Just go to Google.com and type in “web site template”.

You can choose free web site templates, or you can pay a one
time membership to a template reservoir, or you can even pay per
template. It’s up to you.

My favourite is http://www.TemplateMonster.com.

* Step 5: Get some tools

Once you have a your desired web site template, you will need to
get some tools to make changes to the template.

Since you don’t know any HTML, you’d want to get web authoring
software that will allow you to work ‘visually’. What you need
is a WYSIWYG web design software. And just in case, you decide
to learn HTML in the future, get one that will also work in code
mode.

There are many softwares out there today. The more popular ones
include Dreamweaver and Frontpage. If you’re after a free
software, you may want to check out NVU.

You’ll also need a web graphics software. Not so much to create
a graphic but more to customize the images in your web template.
To add labels on the buttons, for example.

A popular software is PaintShopPro. If you’re after a free
software, try out the GIMP.

* Step 6: Customize your web site template

Now that you have your web site template and your tools, all you
need to do is customize the template.

When customizing a template, all you really have to do is
replace the template content with your own. You may also need to
customize some of the images. Usually, this would be the logo.
Some templates uses button images as the navigation. You may
want to add text to these buttons to set up your navigation.

Once you’ve customized the template, just upload it to your
“rented” server space and you’re live on the internet.

* Step 7: Learn HTML to customize further

Although you don’t have to, I highly recommend that you learn a
bit of HTML. You don’t have to master it but knowing some basic
HTML will take you a long way when it comes to having more
control over your web site.

Follow these 7 easy steps and you’ll have a smooth and
affordable entry into the world wide web.

Corbels, or HREF=http://www.goceilingmedallion.com/Architectural_Details/Corb
els1.html target=_"blank" rel="nofollow">decorative brackets, are one of
the most versatile decorative ornaments that can be used to
enhance the architectural beauty of any room . Corbels are
growing in popularity and can be used just about anywhere. By
definition, a corbel is an architectural bracket or projection
from a wall. They often support a cornice, or moldings, an arch,
or some other type of overhang.

In Medieval architecture, a corbel was the name given to a piece
of stone which jutted out from the wall whose purpose was to
support any weight lying on top of it. A ‘tassel’ or ‘bragger’
was the name given to a piece of timber extending out from the
wall instead. The word corbel actually originates from the Old
French and is derived from the Latin corbellus meaning raven,
referring to its beak-like feature. Corbels are made from wood,
plaster, marble, stone and polyurethane. Corbels are used
interiorly as well as on a home’s exterior. Decorative corbels
can be used to adorn cabinets, furniture, pilasters, and door
panels or as brackets for shelves and mantels.

While Romanesque corbels were often plain in appearance,
occasionally they were also carved into heads of humans, animals
and other patterns. Sometimes they were carved into imaginary
beasts. Structures built during the Early English period were
frequently decorated with elaborately carved corbels.

Corbels of great size and beauty, with rich carvings, carried
balconies in Italy and France. These were some of the greatest
examples of the Italian 16th century style. In England, wooden
corbels bearing window-sills or oriel windows flourish. Gothic
Revival style homes and buildings are often built with oriel
windows.

Corbels occasionally end with a point that looks like it is
growing into the wall or forming a knot. These are many times
bolstered by angels and other figures. In later periods, carved
foliage and other ornamentation was adopted.

Corbelling, which has been used since Neolithic times, is a
technique where rows of corbels support a parapet or a
projecting wall. Between the supporting corbels of the
battlement, was an opening in the floor called a machicolation.
Stones, burning objects or hot liquids could be released onto
enemies or attackers at the foot of the defensive wall.

Common in Medieval architecture, corbelling later became a
decorative feature without the openings of the machicolations.
Corbelling which supports upper stories and corner turrets
became typical of the Scottish Baronial style during the 18th
and early 19th centuries.

Today, decorating with architectural corbels has been adopted by
homeowners, interior decorators, builders, millworkers and
furniture designers. Use HREF=http://www.goceilingmedallion.com/Architectural_Details/Corb
els1.html target=_"blank" rel="nofollow">corbels with crown molding to add
flair and style to any home restoration project. Create lasting
impressions and beautiful architectural designs that reflect
anyone’s personal style. Decorative brackets are great accents
to use on furniture, walls, as art, or even on the exterior of a
home. They truly are setting trends across America!

One of the most important gardening tools of choice comes with the lowest of price tags. In fact, not only can every gardener afford one of these but quite by design, every gardener automatically comes equipped with the single most effective watering tool known to man. I am not talking about curly hoses or fancy watering cans or even denatured, ionized and pre-shrunk water. Nope. I’m referring to the gardener’s index finger. And unless you are missing all ten digits, (they substitute nicely for each other) you have one of these extremely sensitive moisture meters.

The most common cause of houseplant and garden seedling death at this time of year is improper watering but with the use of the common finger, plants can be made 100% safe on their shelves.

To begin with, touch the surface of the potting soil with your finger. If there is any moisture at all left on your finger, if it feels damp at all, then the pot does not require watering. However, if that finger comes away feeling dry then the pot requires water. And water we will by completely soaking the pot so that water runs out the bottom of the pot into the saucer. This soaking ensures all parts of the root ball are wet and makes each root happy, it also flushes out excess salts from the soil. Allow the water to sit in the saucer for an hour to soak up into the pot and then dump excess water.

Do not water again until the soil is once again dry to the touch. Check every few days by touching the soil but do not be tempted to water until your finger comes away dry. Keep the finger in shape and your plants will follow suit.

Doug Green, award winning garden writer, gardens and writes a free gardening newsletter at http://www.beginner-gardening.com.

Thankfully, we do not take Murphy’s Law, too seriously. Imagine, dealing your sickness with this attitude: “What’s going to get wrong, shall go wrong”! Stoical, yes; practicable, no. Natural home remedies have maintained a balance between the excessive hypochondria and absolute unconcern, as far as diseases are concerned. Age-old wisdom has a habit of coming true, though, in some instances, nobody knows how. Natural home remedies-be it for acne, skin care, infection or cold or even chronic irritants like arthritis or headaches-work or at least, provide relief to some extent.

A German proverb says that cold and cough can be cured in a week with medication, it takes seven days, otherwise. Is it not natural, that cold and cough would have a list of natural home remedies to fall back onto? The symptoms are running or blocked nose, Sneezing, Sore throat, Congestion, Headache, Low fever with body pain, Loss of appetite, Lethargy and Insomnia. The remedy is taking half a teaspoon of ginger juice with half a teaspoon of honey, three times a day (morning, noon and night). In cases of dry cough, chewing on a small piece of fresh ginger with salt sprinkled on it helps.

Severe pain in the affected joints, inflamed muscles, ligaments and cartilage, movement of the joint becoming extremely painful, especially in cold, windy and damp weather-means it is arthritis. One raw clove of garlic every day is supposed to be a cure. Half a teaspoon of turmeric powder with warm water, taken twice a day, also helps cure arthritis.

“Not, tonight darling, I have a headache” is an endearing lie that has become an integral part of every man woman relationship, since Adam and Eve. However, headaches are not lies, if nothing they are frustrating as hell. The symptoms are pain tearing apart the head, forehead or the eyes, nausea, irritability and loss of appetite. Home remedy suggests a paste made from grounded clove, cinnamon and almond to be applied on the forehead. A quarter teaspoon of clove powder in one teaspoon of cinnamon oil, applied on the pain zone, also provides cure.

Acne, occurs due to a myriad reasons and likewise there are a host of skin care treatments. Green coconut water or mehndi, juice of basil leaf blended with Chandan paste are traditional natural home remedies. However, a regular use of TCA peels can really give you a skin, free from blemishes.

Natural Home remedies are here since ages. Would they have been, if they had not worked?

David Maillie is a chemist with over 12 years experience in biochemical research and clynical analysis. He is an alumni of Cornell University and specializes in biochemical synthesis for public, private, and governmental interests. He can be reached at M.D. Wholesale: http://www.bestskinpeel.com