The Great Expert Blog

A few years ago, I was trained as a mediator. Having been involved in different ways in a couple of neighborhood disputes, I thought it would be valuable–and perhaps healing–to learn how to guide others through the process of resolving their particular challenges in an open and supportive manner.

The first thing we learned was that neighborhood issues are rarely what they appear on the surface. Instead, individuals tend to swim in repeated waves of ideas around privacy and respect and too often get caught in a rip tide of disappointment and anger.

Your barking dog might prompt Bob next door to call the dispute resolution center’s number, but it’s likely that a series of seemingly connected events compelled him to pick up that phone.

Maybe he approached you one day, tentatively and awkwardly, and you assured Bob that you would keep your dog quiet–even though you could sleep through an all-night howl session and have never once heard your dog bark in the wee hours.

Perhaps the next time Bob saw you, he waved but you didn’t respond–he didn’t know that you hadn’t seen him through the glare of your windshield.

A few days later, Bob came over to deliver some mail that had arrived in his box by mistake. He stood on your doorstep ringing your doorbell for several minutes, but you never came out because you were in the shower. A few minutes after that, Bob watched you get into your car and drive off without so much as a nod in his direction.

And now, maybe poor Bob has had two nights in a row of sleeplessness and he got up this morning feeling angry about his insensitive neighbor–YOU, who are quite unaware that Bob is so upset.

Mediators spend a lot of time asking questions to get to the very heart of the issues, but mostly, they listen to the way these neighbors tell their stories. Often what seems like anger is really disappointment and hurt. After all, Bob wants to get along with you, and he is bewildered by how you seem to be avoiding him–and his concerns.

Once we start drilling down into the complex feelings and ideas involved, the whole situation starts looking like a comedy of errors, except that it isn’t funny to the participants.

The pivotal role of the mediator is to present the pieces of the puzzle in a way that resonates with all parties. By unraveling the stories, everything becomes clearer and instead of avoiding each other, neighbors actually begin to understand and respect each other, even if they have different perspectives.

More than once, I’ve seen that barking dog become a non-issue once neighbors have made the effort to build a relationship that is open and respectful. And that’s what everyone wants, really–to be able to discuss any concerns in a way that is civil or even friendly.

We all have our own symbolic “barking dog” that annoys and hurts us. We weave together isolated and often misinterpreted incidences to create a story with the ending we choose. “My neighbor is a jerk.” “My partner is attracted to someone else.” “My boss is out to get me.” “My parents are ruining my life.”

Mindfulness makes it possible to clearly see what is going on around us, and more importantly, within us. Think of it as a personal live-in mediator, asking questions and helping us unravel our carefully stitched stories.

By paying attention to your barking dog stories, you see those threads as just that–pieces that have been arranged by you to create only one of many possible tapestries. To play with mindfulness and mediation, try this:

*Look for loose threads. Is everything stitched together neatly? What doesn’t fit?

*Start pulling gently. Ask questions. Did this really happen in this way? Is my reaction reasonable–or just understandable? How many layers have I built based on this one thread?

*Step back. Gain perspective on the way things look from different angles and in different light.

*Delight in discovery and connection, even if it means releasing your attachment to your favorite barking dog scenario. Remember that to be mindful, first we must be willing to open our eyes and see the real world for ourselves.

If we view the process as illuminating, uplifting, and even enjoyable, we can begin to see that barking dog as simply that–without the added clutter. Cooperative and friendly relationships become our vehicle for engaging in the world more fully and meaningfully.

And that makes life a whole lot more fun.

“In Egypt, gold is the dust on the highroads.” Asian king

Among the world’s most ardent collectors of jewelry were the ancient Egyptians. Beauty was taken very seriously in ancient Egypt. Lavish personal adornment was the rule of the day, and everyone in Egypt wore some type of jewelry. Jewelry was a symbol of wealth, a dramatic statement about one’s social status, or religious beliefs. Not unlike today, people loved to show off their jewels.

Jewels had magic, the charm of beauty and the charm against evil. In addition to its esthetics, jewelry, especially rings and amulets, fulfilled the role of repelling evil spirits and injury. So treasured and revered in the society was jewelry, and strong the belief in its powers, that it remained with the owner throughout antiquity, the tombs of nobility laden with some of the world’s most precious gems. A mummy, especially, needs protection. One such magnificent piece is a 4-1/2 pound headdress resplendent in cascades of golden rosettes and precious stones that was found in pieces by tomb robbers at Qurna in 1916. This stunning impeccably detailed headdress has the look of liquid gold flowing over the banks of the River Nile and is an enduring reminder of ancient opulence - a tribute to the jewelry artists of the day.

With the New Kingdom came new styles, new riches. Both men and women of wealth wore pierced earrings made of gold, silver, or electrum (gold mixed with silver), embellished with rosettes and stars through the process of granulation, a meticulous technique which uses solder to fix tiny grains of gold to a gold surface. Egyptian beads, unmatched in number and variety by any other ancient society, still hold a timeless allure for jewelry collectors. Under the cloudless Egyptian sky the people went about their daily tasks or leisure, the gold of their broad jewel-encrusted bracelets and armlets dazzling in the hot sun. Armlets, anklets, bracelets, necklaces, broad collars, pendants, and hair decorations were inlaid with blue-green turquoise, red carnelian (a copper or reddish-orange stone), deep-blue lapis lazuli, and feldspar. Poor people adorned themselves with jewelry that was made of copper or faience (made by heating powdered quartz). Everyone shone bright - their passion for jewelry and their confidence in adorning themselves - palpable throughout the whole society, regardless of social status!

To be magically transported to a dusty ancient Egyptian street to walk amidst the throngs of bejeweled citizens would be intoxicating. Purely for their deep appreciation of beauty, the Egyptians take the prize. It’s not surprising that the ancient Egyptians also loved children, animals, art, gardens, nature, music, fine food and wine, and everything else we may desire or need to enrich our lives, to live abundantly, and to feel joyful. Yes, the ancient Egyptians liked ‘living large’ - and jewelry played a key role, just as it does in our society today.

Susan Dorling is a freelance writer of articles and poetry, copywriter, and web designer living in the countryside of Ontario, Canada with her furry feathered family of dogs, cats, ducks, and soulmate, Gary. She writes on a variety of subjects including web design, smal business and entrepreneurship, personal development and success, Internet marketing, animals, the environment, entomology and pest control.
http://www.focuscreativeservices.com http://www.focusonanimals.com http://www.northcountrygroup.com

Internet has today transformed almost every part of our life. Internet service providers are increasing day by day as more and more homes make their way towards getting Internet access. Whenever we talk about high-speed Internet connection, broadban d comes to our mind. It is an Internet connection that runs at 256kbps or at 512kbps or even faster. The term “broadband” can be defined as a “A class of communication channel capable of supporting a wide range of frequencies, typically from audio up to video frequencies”. From the time of Internet’s advent, people began demanding faster data transmission. In the past, there were only dialu p connections, which could transfer up to 56kbps of data and that too with the help of a high-speed modem. So, to keep up with the average person’s demand for Internet speed, broadband was invented. It not only carries a wider range and type of frequencies but also helps in a faster data transmission. With broadband, you can download audio and video files within seconds. It is much faster than a dialup connection and thus enables you to use the Internet faster and more efficiently. As the demand for broadband continues to increase year on year, so do the number of broadband providers and this leads to increased competition. The increasing significance of Internet in people’s lives has given rise to the expansion in broadband products and services. In the competitive environment of broadband, providers are dropping prices, giving attractive offers and offering incentives to retain customers.

Finding the best broadband provider may become an easy task if a little effort is made in that direction. Firstly, give a thought as to what you really need from a provider and for how much time do you access the Internet. Decide if you need only the Internet service or the bundled phone and Internet service. List your needs according to your personal or business needs. Compare prices of different broadband providers; compare the offers by different broadband providers and their services.

With excellent deals on offer, broadband is now becoming more affordable for the average consumer. The future sees Internet leaving a mark by its presence in each person’s mind and replacing televisions, radios, and telephones. So make use of this great Internet experience provided by broadband.

Do you want to learn French? Everyone knows it’s just the sexiest language on the planet, and the ability to speak French is a real plus - if you want to be chic and add a little je ne sais quoi to your life!

Well the best place to learn French is France, of course. But if you only have a week or two free to go there, you need to get the maximum from your time here. Here are a few guidelines about how to get the most from you stay.

Try to find an international class

If you are American and you go to France to learn French with a group of Americans, you will find that most of the time you spend in France will be spent speaking English, and not French. I can tell you from experience that when given the choice, nearly everyone, myself included, will take the easy option. If you join of group where English is not the common language, you will have to communicate in French, and the more you practise, the more progress you will make.

Do some research about France

You might think that you have to go to Paris to find a language school. Of course, Paris is one of the most famous, and beautiful, capitals in the world and well worth a visit. If you are learning English for business purposes, Paris or one of the other major cities will help you to adopt a business-like attitude. If you want to learn French because you love French wines, for example, forget Paris and look for a school in the region of your favourite wine. This will give added motivation to learn. Just think about being able not only to enjoy a glass of wine right there on the territory, but being able to discuss its qualities in French!

Make sure that there is lots of conversation in the course

French grammar is hard. But studying grammar is not the best, or the fastest way to learn a language. The ideal language course will get you involved in living the language, through role-plays, discussions, and games. Ask the school about what’s on the syllabus, and try to find out a little about the teachers. If they are all academic types with only a teaching background, the course might be a little dry. But many teachers of French as a foreign language still have an adventuring spirit, and have taught abroad. These ones will have plenty of interesting ideas to get you talking

Learn as many words as you can before you go

Don’t go if you are an absolute beginner. Spend a year learning vocabulary and how to ask questions. If you know anyone who speaks French, practise with them as often as possible. That way, when you arrive in France to learn French, you will already have a solid foundation on which to build.

Jonathan Lewis is a teacher of English as a foreign language in Provence, France. He learned to speak French the best way - by living in the country and practising everyday. He has a site about that helps students to improve their learning abilities, apprendre anglais, and a blog about learning English. The advice he offers is invaluable for anyone wishing to learn a language, not just French.

If you think it is high time that you pay off all those debts, otherwise you may be inviting all sorts of troubles; secured debt consolidation loans can do the rescue job for you. Through availing secured debt consolidation loans you get rid of debt burden instantly as this new loan provides the finance at least equal to previous debts.

On taking secured debt consolidation loans, borrower gets rid of various monthly payments that he or she was making to different lenders. Previous debts are generally of higher interest rates and surge the burden of debt. Secured debt consolidation loan is taken at lower interest rate and therefore save money.

Secured debt consolidation loans are utilized also in clearing credit card bills, medical bills or other pending payments. One can use the amount also for home improvements, wedding or any expenses.

Borrowers are required to place collateral with the lenders in order to get secured debt consolidation loans. The collateral may consist of any property of the borrower such as home, car, and valuable papers. Main aim behind collateral is to provide a sense of security to the lender regarding the loan

Collateral can be an effective instrument in getting the required loan deal. It is the equity in the collateral that matters the most to lenders while deciding on loan amount and interest rate. Equity is value of the property minus the borrowings of the loan seeker. So, in case greater amount of secured debt consolidation loan is required, the lender will evaluate the equity. Higher equity makes it easier for the borrower to get a loan deal of higher amount at lower interest rate.

Lenders normally provide an amount anywhere in the range of £5000 to £75000 under secured debt consolidation loans. For availing higher amount of loan, financial standing and credit history of the borrower also becomes important.

secured Debt consolidation loans are availed at lower interest rate. The borrowers can get a loan deal at cheaper interest rate if they search for the lenders online. Numerous lenders have showcased their secured debt consolidation loans products. Choose the loan package that best suits your budget.

Borrowers who are going through a bad phase can also avail secured debt consolidation loan. The loan enables the borrower to improve credit history when they pay off debts. Such borrowers should first pay off easy debt and get this development included in their credit report. To judge the risk involved in offering loan, the lenders give credit score to the borrowers. A credit score of 620 and above is viewed as safe while lower score makes lenders hesitant in deciding loan terms largely in favor of the borrower.

To gain maximum benefits from secured debt consolidation loans, borrowers must give special attention to the interest rate and loan amount and keep both of them lower.

Peter Taylor is a senior financial analyst at easyfinance4u with an acumen for finance and insurance. In recent years he has
taken up to provide independant financial advice through his informative articles. To find Secured loans, secured personal loans, Bad Debt Secured loans visit http://www.easyfinance4u.com

Want to drive more targeted traffic to your web site?

Want to do it for free?

If you answered “yes” you’re in for a treat. Use the search engine optimization and ranking techniques in this article and you will be well on your way to a front page listing in the major search engines.

Up until now, you’ve been led to believe that search engine optimization and search engine ranking strategies were something better left to an expert. But that’s not true. Any serious marketer can and should learn the simple search engine optimization and ranking techniques that can get his site listed on the first page of the search engines.

Before I begin I want to point out that search engine optimization and ranking strategies fall into two catagories. On page factors and off page factors.

On page factors you have a lot of control over. Things like content, good keywords, and the proper use of anchor text.

Off page factors, like page rank, you’ll have less control over. But it’s important that you exercise as much control as you can over the off page factors as well. These will be discussed in another article.

To get your search engine optimization and ranking strategies right you will need some tools. Some free, some payed. But regardless, if you want your site listed in the top ten results you need these tools.

Search Engine Optimization and Ranking - Tools of the Trade

To begin with, I’m not a big believer in throwing money after unnecessary tools or ebooks. After all, if you bought all the tools some gurus recommend it could easily run into hundreds and even thousands of dollars. So rest assurred, what I recommend are the bare essentials of what you will need to get it right.

The first tool you need is free. At least for now. It’s the Overture Search Term Suggestion Tool. You can find it at http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/

You will use this tool for your keyword research. Let’s say you plan to build a site on dog grooming. Type dog grooming in the suggestion box, click the arrow, and a list of related keywords come up. It also tells you how many searches were conducted on Overture and it’s related sites for the past month. This is valuable information as it tells you which keywords are worth persuing and which don’t get enough searches to be worthwhile. You will want to print out or create a file to store these keywords on your computer because you’re not finished with them yet.

The next tool you need is Wordtracker. Although it’s not free, it is one of the most valuable tools in your arsenal. This tool is not expensive as you can order it for short time frames. Twenty four hours usually runs about $7.00 U.S.

Wordtracker takes your keyword research to the next level. For instance:

find all keywords that bear any relation to your business

tells you how popular the keywords really are in multiple search engines

shows you your chance of making the top ten

shows you the number of times the keyword or phrase has appeared in the data base

shows mispellings on searches that you can capitalize on

shows the number of competing sites

prints out a complete list of selected keywords with KEI analysis, count, hits in 24 hours, and number of competing sites.

This valuable tool will save you countless hours of trial and error trying to find the best keywords and phrases to land you in the top ten.

I once built a site based solely on results from the Overture suggestion tool. To my dismay I had few visitors. When I checked the keywords and phrases with Wordtracker, I found a completly differnt story. Wordtracker showed much lower figures for the keywords I was using from Overture. When I revamped the site using Wordtrackers results I found the search results to be much more accurate.

So use the Overture suggestion tool to get a preliminary set of keywords, then, check them with Wordtracker to identify the best keywords and phrases to build your site around.

Build Your Site Around Search Engine Optimization and Ranking Techniques

When I built my first site I used a cheap software program I purchased from my local office supply store. Needless to say, it was never listed in the search engines. I had little control over the appearance and more than likely it did what it wanted, not what I wanted. So if you intend to build a serious web site to get traffic and make money, stay away from them.
I currently use NoteTab Pro. it’s relatively easy to use and gives you a lot of flexibility. Plus it’s relatively inexpensive.

If you are looking for a less expensive way to go I recommend Notetab light. Download a free copy here http://www.notetab.com. Although not as flexible and easy to use as NoteTab Pro, it will get the job done.

Search Engine Optimization and Ranking Power Points

You’ve researched and selected your keywords and phrases. Where do you use them for the best search engine optimization and ranking?

Power Point #1.This is one of the best secrets I can give you. Consider each page of your site to be a doorway into your site. Therefore optimize one keyword or keyword phrase for each page of your site. Many people try to cram multiple keywords into a page. This only confuses the search engines and hurts your rankings.

Power Point#2. Keep your site keywords and pages focused on a common theme. For example: If you have a site about dog grooming, Every page on the site should relate to dog grooming. If you were to ad a page about training your pet snake it wouldn’t fit the theme. So keep all your pages tightly focused on the overall theme of your site. Getting off theme will hurt your rankings.

Power Point #3.Content is king. Give the searh engines what they want and they will give you what you want. A good listing. What they want are highly relevant sites for their search customers with good, valuable content. Methods to trick the search engines are abundant. But when they catch up with you, you’ll be penalized or worse, possibly banned. You don’t want that.

Power point #4. Sprinkle your secondary keywords and phrases throughout your content. When you researched your keywords you came up with a list of primary words and phrases to optimize your pages. You should also have an additional 50 - 100 keywords and phrases that I will call secondary keywords. If you sprinkle these throughout your page it will give you a big boost in the search engines. You’ll be amazed at how many visitors you will recieve from these secondary keyword searches.

Where To Use Your Primary Keywords To Get The Most Impact For Your Search Engine Optimization and Ranking Efforts

Keyword placement, density and proximity are the most important factors when it comes to on page search engine optimization and ranking strategies.

Domain name: Although unproven, some search engine optimization experts recommend your site domain name be your primary keyword or phrase. If I can get a domain with my primary keyword fine. If not, i just try to get a good related name. If you do get a domain with your primary phrase, be sure to seperate the individual words with hyphens. Some search engine optimization experts are now saying that Google can read the keywords even if they are not seperated. I prefer to play it safe and use hyphens. For example: doggrooming.com would be dog-grooming.com. Done this way the search engines can read the individual words.

Page title. It’s best to use your keyword or phrase once in the title of your page. Try to keep it short. Google uses a weighting factor based on the number of words in the title. The more words you use, the less weight each word has. A word of caution here. Don’t just use your keyword phrase. Google will likely consider this spamming and penalize you. Using the same keyword more than once is worth testing, but many experts believe it can hurt your rankings. Try to come up with a good title as this is what your prospects will see on the search engines.

The discription: Again, don’t over use your keyword in your discription. Once or twice is enough. Some search engines will use your discription in their listings so try to develop one that will make the searcher want to click on it.

Heading tags: Header tags are the HTML tags used to make text bigger. Typically they are used for headlines and sub heads. Some search engines use them to determine what a page is about. So try to use your keyword or phrase in your header tags.

Anchor text: This is the text used in a link. When you are linking from one page on your site to another make sure you use your keywords in the link. A good example is your home page. Most people simply put the link as “home.” Instead use website promotion strategies home. Get the idea.

Body copy: Try to use your keyword as often as you can in your body copy without sounding repetitive or being obvious. If it doesn’t sound right, it’s probably to much. Work it in wherever it fits. There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to keyword density. Most experts agree that around 7% density is a good figure to shoot for. Avoid continuously repeating the keyword every two or three words. This is considered spamming.

Alt text: This is text used in place of images for those with text only browsers. It also pops up when you hold your mouse over an image. Because search engine spiders can’t read graphics, the alt text tells the spiders what the graphic is. So discribe the graphic but include your keyword.

URL’s: When using URL’s to link your pages together be sure to use your keywords in the link. Just as in the case of domain names, use hyphens to seperate the words so the spiders can read them.

We’ve covered a lot in this article. I’ve given you information that cost me a small fortune to acquire. We covered the tools and editors you will need to do the job right. I gave you power points that most search engine optimization experts don’t want you to know. Then we looked at the on page factors you can control to maximize your search engine optimization and ranking efforts. Keep in mind, this is only half of the equation. There are still off page factors that have a major impact on your search engine optimization strategies.

Guy Ray is a copywriter and certified search engine optimization specialist who specializes in website promotion and online marketing strategies. Are you getting all the traffic you need?
Click here now! http://www.website-promotion-strategies.com

Debt management (specifically unsecured) is the first step to taking control of your money! Add a household budgeting plan and you’ve got a powerful tool for money management.

Together, budgeting and debt management build financial security and independence. Yes, you can reduce debt and save for your future financial security at the same time! It can be done.

Anyone can do it and everyone deserves it!

In fact, it’s the only budgeting plan that makes perfect sense. Budgeting to include debt management in your personal finance plan builds a good strong defense against credit card use.

Unexpected events and expenses play a significant role in creating debt for most of us. A good budgeting plan that prepares you for those events and provides a strong foundation to fall back on is essential for successful debt management.

This is where most self-created budgets fail. Even the best intentions are doomed if you are you guilty of this common oversight? Without a complete plan, we fall right back into the old credit card trap. Feeling helpless and cornered into using credit to just make ends meet.

Free yourself from the burden of credit card debt. You will never be financially independent as long as you have to depend on the credit card companies to survive.

Quit investing in the credit card companies and start investing in yourself!

Yes, I know the feelings all too well. Barely making ends meet, budgeting chaos, struggling to maintain “everything’s O.K.” while finances continue to get worse and worse. Stop the feelings of inadequacy and failure!

In today’s fast moving society it’s not unusual for the average family to be living way beyond their means. With that in mind, quit blaming yourself. This is the world we live in. Many of us have gotten trapped by society’s expectations.

I made the decision to stop the madness and help myself! You can too! A budgeting plan that includes managing debt will help you succeed at money management.

Create a plan based on your individual needs…set your own goals…and begin your journey to lifelong financial security and independence! After all, we all have different needs and obligations, so everyone’s plan has to be designed to suit their unique situation.

The key to financial success is to live within your means!

The key to independent wealth is living below your means! But wait…we’re getting way ahead now. After living way beyond your means for so long, it’s hard enough to scale down to reality. Once you have that mastered, and see how much money you didn’t even know you had, you’ll be eager to scale down even more!

Debt management is crucial for any budgeting plan to succeed. And, likewise, a good household budgeting plan is essential for any debt management program to succeed.

One cannot be successful without the other. Like “peanut butter and jelly” most of us can’t have one without the other. They just go together!

Cheryl Johnson is a mother of four helping herself and others become and remain debt free. Publisher of http://www.simpledebtfreeliving.com Simple Debt Free Living - A self-help plan, ideas, and resources for debt reduction, personal budgeting, frugal living, and extra income opportunities.

Can a debt consolidation loan eliminate your credit card debt? A consolidation loan might (or might not) be the key. There are several things you must consider when making the choice to consolidate debt using a debt consolidation loan.

First, is a debt consolidation loan your best choice to eliminate or substantially reduce your debt? There are other options available to you, including credit counseling and bankruptcy. Obviously bankruptcy is a last resort. You must examine several factors when making your decision on which debt reduction / elimination strategy to use. You need to get information on debt consolidation to make the correct decision.

•How much outstanding debt do you have?

•What is the interest rate of your current debt? Many credit cards have interest rates of 14% - 22%, depending upon your credit rating and payment history. Obviously, the higher your current average interest rate, the better off you will be if you consolidate your debt with a consolidation loan at a much lower rate.

•How much of your outstanding debt is unsecured? Unsecured debt has no collateral against it. Credit cards, student loans, store charge cards and medical bills are examples of unsecured debt. If you have over $7,500 in unsecured debt there a multitude of lenders that you can look at. Student loans fall into a different classification from other types of unsecured debt. In the United States, most are backed by the federal government. Usually you will have to use a secured debt consolidation loan to pay off your unsecured loans. You may also be able to refinance your secured debts, but you usually cannot consolidate secured debts.

•Do you own a home or other substantial assets to use as collateral for a debt consolidation loan? If you own a home or other real estate, how much equity do you have in it?

•What type of interest rate is available to you for a consolidation loan? The interest rate you receive on your loan is affected by a multitude of factors including the prime rate. For student loans, the borrower interest rate on consolidation loans is currently calculated as the weighted average of the interest rates in effect on the loans being consolidated, rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of 1 percent. They are capped at 8.25 percent.

•How is your credit rating? Someone with a very good credit score has options open to them that those with lesser credit ratings do not.

Keep in mind that if you have more than 20% equity in your home, you are usually not required to carry private mortgage insurance (PMI). If you have reached the 20% equity stage through either paying down the principal, asset appreciation, or both, you can probably drop PMI and lower your payment. On the flip side, if you are not paying PMI and you take out a consolidation or other home equity loan, you may put yourself back under the 20% equity threshold. This would require you to get a new PMI policy. Factor this in when making your cost / benefit analysis.

If you are constantly slipping backward and your cash flow is poor, you can improve things with a debt consolidation loan. Be careful and weigh your options carefully. Take into account the tax benefits you may receive by using a home equity loan to consolidate your debt. This benefit will vary depending upon your tax rate. You can get many free quotes for debt consolidation loans. There are several places that have multiple lenders compete for your business. Talk to several lenders to see which will give you the most favorable terms. You can substantially lower your monthly payment and significantly improve your cash flow situation with a debt consolidation loan. Just make sure this is the right choice for your needs.

Steve writes about a multitude of topics from home theater and automation to business and finance.
See his website, The Debt and Loan Consolidation Guide
for more information.

When searching for the best treadmill for you, ask yourself a couple questions.

• How often will you use it and how much time per day?
• How much space do you have?

The most important part of treadmill is the motor. When looking at how much horsepower the motor has, think of the term “continuous duty” - that’s how long the treadmill can keep working at the rate you’re walking. If you’re a runner, then you’re probably going to want a continuous duty of 2.5. On the other hand, if you just want to use your treadmill for walking, then 1.5 should be fine.

Your height plays a role in getting the most from your treadmill. If you’re taller, look for a treadmill with a belt that’s 60 inches. You don’t want to end up with a piece of exercise equipment that doesn’t “fit”.

Give the potential treadmill a fair ride in the store if you can. Really walk or run on it for at least ten minutes. You may feel a little strange, exercising in front of other customers as they walk by, but a few minutes of discomfort is nothing compared to having to haul the equipment back for a refund.

Does the belt cushion your steps adequately? Does the treadmill hold up as you exercise on it, or is it unstable and wiggly? If it’s that way at the store, it’ll be that way and more so at home as you continue to use it.

What happens if the treadmill breaks or you find a part that doesn’t work correctly? Will someone come to your home to fix it, or do you have to lug it back to the store? These questions are important to ask before the purchase.

The treadmill should have at least a 12 month warranty. Of course, the manufacturer takes the responsibility of fixing a problem, not the store itself. So you’re going to be dealing with technicians via phone.

If your space is limited, consider a treadmill that folds. If you plan to store it under your bed between uses, make sure it will actually fit under your bed when in the folded position. If not, it’s not worth the purchase.

You may want to consider the loudness of the motor. In a large store, the treadmill won’t sound as loud as it will in your living room. So if you’re unnerved by the noise at the store, realize it won’t be any quieter at home.

Using a treadmill can be a terrific form of exercise - as long as you really have a quality piece of equipment. If you’ve never owned a treadmill before, it may be wise to purchase one second-handed -just to see if you will use it. Then, if you’re serious about working out on your treadmill, seek a higher quality one down the road.

Kirsten Hawkins is a nutrition and health expert from Nashville, TN. Visit www.popular-diets.com/ for more great nutrition, well-being, and vitamin tips as well as reviews and comments on popular diets.

UNIVERSAL RHYTHMS: The Sea and Me I sit on warm sand, dig my toes to damp coolness Drained from the last wave’s advance on the shore. Another wave breaks, then in orgasmic relief Washes over me, then ebbs, as in a musical score. The waves come in ripples, then cascading crashes Like tinkling flute notes, then brass cymbals clashing. In rhythms incessant and bold undulant patterns, Progressing, regressing, with sunlit foam flashing. The rhythm engulfs me, and I feel I’m in rhyme With cycles, and heartbeats, and breathing in time, With the planets’ rotation, the moon’s faithful phases, With electrons filling orbits, and seasons in chime. The breadth of the ocean and its plummeting depths Shrink problems of humans to the tiniest mote– And is shrunken then further by vast cosmic space Singing soft and serene like an orchestral note. In rhythms the spheres let their music be found, Stars born and stars dying, as energy abounds– It’s all kept in measure, to keep the song going; My heart resonates in an intimated knowing. As I look to the sea, hear the sure beat of waves, I see all abiding in sublime harmony, This vast and indomitable universe sings With every tree and beast and the sea and me. By Carolyn McNeil Weaver December 13, 2006

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