Thursday, March 13, 2008

Rose Gardening Serenade


The Tools of Rose Gardening

Like any job you tackle, it's always easier if you have the right tools. Before heading out to your rose garden, make sure you arm yourself with these basic rose gardening tools.

Gloves

"You can complain because a rose has thorns, or you can rejoice because thorns have a rose." - Tom Wilson.

The rose garden is no place for thin, wimpy gloves. Unless you enjoy feeling the thorns pierce your skin, opt for leather work gloves with those big, fold-down cuffs.

Pruners

A good pruner is one tool that you will use almost daily. There are two types of pruners on the market. One is called an "anvil" pruner, and the other is called a "bypass" pruner. An anvil pruner has blades that meet on top of each other. Bypass pruners have blades that pass each other like scissors. Always use bypass pruners so you don't crush your canes and stems.

Loppers

When your rose garden starts to mature there will come a time when loppers will be indispensable for cutting back old, thick canes that are too much for pruning shears. If you are just starting your rose garden, save your money, since you won't need this for a few years.

Kneeling Pads

Some people prefer the big 8"x15" water-resistant pads with handles, while others prefer strap-on knee pads. The kneepads are more convenient because they move when you move, but the one-size-fits-all knee cups may not work for you. In that case, the pad with handles should suit you fine.

Short Digging Fork

This tool is indispensable for turning and loosening soil in small patches. Choose a good quality model with steel tines and a sturdy handle.

Watering Wand

Great for watering potted roses and for giving your other roses a good root soaking. Choose a model with a quick shutoff valve on the wand itself, and a quick release fitting for the end that attaches to the hose. Spend the money to get a wand with brass fittings instead of plastic. It will last years longer.

Long-Handled Shovel

Choose a lightweight model with a strong handle. Shovels with fiberglass throats are good choices. Spend a few extra dollars and get one with a padded handle, and it will save you lots of blisters as the years go by.

Wheelbarrow

Avoid the temptation to buy the cute garden "carts." You are going to need a real wheelbarrow. As your gardening addiction--I mean hobby--takes off there will be no end to the things you will be hauling in and out of your garden. Some of those things will be very heavy and you'll be glad that you have a real wheelbarrow to help you.

Garden Rake

This is the rake with the sharp steel teeth that you use for leveling and smoothing beds. Choose one with a sturdy handle and steel tines.

Leaf Rake

You'll use this tool often for cleaning up clippings, leaves and other garden debris. You may want to buy both a regular size rake, and one of the smaller "child size" rakes for pulling debris from tight quarters.

You shouldn't have any trouble locating these basic rose gardening tools. Your local garden supply store will likely stock them, or if you don't mind purchasing gently-used items, check out yard sales for your gardening supplies.

Enjoy yourself!

Author, Ron King. Visit Ron's website http://www.grow-roses-now.com to learn more about this popular gardening activity.

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Weight Loss Succeed Verse


Successful Weight Loss Pointers

Well we're at it again, trying to honor our promise on New Year's Day to lose weight and tone up those flabby parts. Although the year's still young more than half of our New Year's Resolutioners have strayed from their promise of fitness and or weightloss. The reasons may vary as to why their resolutions have been pushed to the side, one common compliant is difficulty in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Why? It's difficulty to break old HABITS!

For so long we've had a life of overindulgence with the foods that are considered taboo, now we're expecting ourselves to enjoy doing without those favorites with no effort whatsoever. Rather than ease into a new way of eating through gradual elimination of our no no foods we jump in with both feet not expecting any backlash. To our surprise we have reactions ranging from endless cravings,headaches, stomach and intestinal discomforts.Some pointers for being successful this year:

1. As mentioned above ease into your new eating plans, gradually eliminate forbidden foods from diet. As far as exercise is concern give yourself plenty of time to build your endurance, don't attempt to workout for two hours the first day and you've been sedentary for twenty years.

2. Set goals that are short term. Instead of setting a long-term goal to lose forty pounds this year, lose four pounds a month.

3. When you feel anxious and desperate to reach your goal in a hurry remind yourself of past day,week, or month's progress. Losing alot of weight in a hurry leaves little time to adjust lifestyle habits for long-term success.

4. If you're not able to reach your goals alone join a support group that reflects you. Stop by http://www.onelist.com and peruse their categories of health and fitness surely you'll find a list for a individual like yourself.

5. Have hobbies and other outside interests so you're sure to get a mental break from your goal. Thinking to much about having to lose forty pounds can depress even the most enthusiastic of persons.

6. Don't be afraid to take time out of your day to relax your nerves and do nothing but enjoy that moment.

7. Use you imagination to see yourself after reaching your goal. The more vivid the mind picture the better, doing this will enlist the aid of the subconscious. It has been said that our goals are 10% actual work and 90% mental. So don't be afraid to be child-like in using your imagination to help you reach your goals without sweat and strain.

Always remember, "What the mind can conceive it can achieve!"

Author, Regena English,editor St.Mary Publishing Company of Houston is the first publisher dedicated to the happily unmarried careerwoman. Visit the company's website which hosts both a newsletter and ezine for this specialized audience: http://www.leatherspinsters.com.

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Fighting Asthma Opus


Fighting Asthma - Part 2

One week my wife had severe asthma and it would not go away. In fact, we had visited our doctor numerous times for adrenalin shots. These helped in the short term (for a day or so) but the asthma just returned again later. Both of us wanted to resolve this condition on a more permanent basis, as it was becoming very difficult to deal with.

We talked to our doctor, a wonderful man named Dr. Frischer, and he directed us to a specialist. Someone who was familiar with the disease and could help us come up with a permanent handling.

I must admit that my wife did not want to go to this specialist. She didn't say why, she just was not comfortable with him. However, I convinced her, and before long we had pulled up to the doctors office, which was in a little hospital in Paramount, California.

The specialist took one look at Claudia and knew that her asthma was terrible. He had Claudia breath into a tube, then tisked to himself when he saw the result. It appeared that Claudia was not getting anywhere near the amount of oxygen that a normal person received. In fact, her lungs were drawing in about a forth of the normal amount of air - it was pretty bad that day. Which meant, of course, it was the perfect day to see the specialist.

The guy did some more tests, then recommended an allergy panel to determine exactly which substance was causing Claudia's condition. He explained that asthma is usually triggered by something, some particle in the air. It could be dust, pollen, cockroach droppings, cat dandruff or any other small particle.

We agreed and the panel was done. The doctor swabbed her arm with about twenty different substances, explaining that they would swell up into little bumps if anything registered. One substance registered strongly - simple dust. It seemed that Claudia's asthma was caused by dust.

While we were there, the specialist increased her Prednisone dosage to 60 milligrams. This is an incredibly high dosage of this drug, but based upon Claudia's poor breathing, the doctor felt it was necessary. If you remember from the previous article (part 1), prednisone has the side effect of making Claudia extremely hostile to our poor cat Baby. Well, during the next few weeks that cat had to be guarded night and day by Al and myself to keep Claudia from killing it.

The result of this trip? We finally realized the link between the environment and Claudia's asthma. We decided to be a little more proactive, and purchased some air filters for the living room and bedroom. These helped control the asthma to a certain extent. The other result? Now Claudia was feeling the other major short term side effect of Prednisone - it's very difficult to stop taking..

Author, Richard Lowe Jr. is the webmaster of Internet Tips And Secrets. This website includes over 1,000 free articles to improve your internet profits, enjoyment and knowledge: http://www.internet-tips.net.

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Fighting Asthma Ode


Fighting Asthma -Part 1

My wife has asthma. It is extremely difficult, if not impossible, for anyone else to understand what that means and implies. If you have not had to care for someone with asthma, you cannot even begin to comprehend what it is like to deal with this condition. When I mention it to someone and they start telling me what they think, I have to control my feelings ... they do not and cannot understand. I restrain myself because they think they are being helpful. It's the same kind of thing when a single person gives a married couple advice on their union, or someone without kids thinks he knows how to raise them.

So what does it mean when I say my wife has asthma? It means her life is in constant danger. Every single day that she's breathing is a good day - because she survived the night. A week without gasping is a luxury, and a full month without an asthma attack is almost unheard of. What today really means is another day of breathing - it may be a difficult day or a good day, but there is always the knowledge that breathing is the most important thing.

You see, breathing is something that most of us take for granted. We never think about it, never need to be concerned about taking that next breath. Personally, the worst trouble I have had with my own breathing is a bad cold - my nose was stuffed and I had to use my mouth.

My wife, on the other hand, has to think about breathing all of the time. Some days she breaths fine, others are difficult. Breathing problems are in a special class all of their own - it's not like, say, having problems going to the bathroom, a cold or throwing up. These things all are minor compared to not breathing. You see, with breathing problems there is no time to think. You've got just minutes or even seconds to make a decision and get into action.

I discovered my wife had asthma soon after we were married. It was news to her also - she had never had asthma before, although her child had attacks when he was younger. So one day, out of the blue, Claudia came home because she had difficulty breathing ... and I didn't have a clue what to do.

This is a very unusual circumstance for me ... not knowing what to do. I am very intelligent by any measure and I make a strong point at knowing how to handle just about anything in my life. Before this time, no matter what the emergency was, I could and did handle it. Yet here I was with my wife having difficulty breathing. Over the next few days I learned a little bit. One thing I learned real fast is not al doctors are created equal. You see, even though our doctor visits were covered under insurance, our doctor would not accept any insurance. She ran a strictly cash operation. So on top of having a medical crisis we had a financial one - we had to pay the doctor then wait for the insurance company to pay us back. This severely limited our options at a time when we really needed options.

So when Claudia had breathing troubles we rushed over to the doctors office and asked for help. The doctor gave her a shot of adrenalin to correct her breathing. I watched in awe as my wife trembled from an injection of the same stuff they use to start a person's heart if it has stopped. I wondered for a moment if the "cure" was worse than the disease. The wonder soon stopped as Claudia's breathing settled down and she could take a breath without gasping. Her color returned to her normal pink - she had been slightly purple in hue., and the doctor prescribed something called Prednisone.

The next few weeks were not good weeks. You see, I didn't know it at the time, but Prednisone has some side effects. The most important one being that large doses tend to make a person a little bit psychotic. What I'm saying is my normally calm and collected wife became the "She Devil From Hell" ... but not so much to me or my son. No, her frustration was taken out on the cat (Baby).

That poor cat went through hell for those weeks. I had to protect him several times from the wrath of my wife for some new offense ... it appeared to her that the cat was trying to annoy her and make her miserable. I do believe that Baby used up at least two lives during those weeks ... and he only survived because my son and I protected him.

There were several trips to our local doctor during this first year with asthma. We noticed that the disease was not getting better, and our doctors did not really appear to know what they were doing. Their answer was more Prednisone and more adrenaline ... so we decided to see a specialist.

Author, Richard Lowe Jr. is the webmaster of Internet Tips And Secrets. This website includes over 1,000 free articles to improve your internet profits, enjoyment and knowledge: http://www.internet-tips.net.

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Cold Poem


Conquering the Common Cold

What do we know about the Common Cold?

* No Cure. Antibiotics, designed to knock out bacterial infections, do nothing when it comes to treating a cold.

* None of us are safe! No matter how strong and healthy we are, an occasional cold will reduce us to whimpering, sneezing, coughing versions of our former selves.

So, what do we do? Lay back with a box of tissue, pop a couple of cold tabs and wait it out? Not necessarily! Doctors who specialize in self-care medicine say that there is a lot more that we can do to get through a cold comfortably, and possibly more quickly! Here is some of the best advice that experts have to offer on the subject.

* Vitamin C - "Vitamin C works in the body as a scavenger, picking up all sorts of trash - including virus trash," Says Keith W. Sehnert, M.D., a physician with Trinity Health Care in Minneapolis, Minnesota. "It can shorten the length of a cold from seven days to maybe two or three."
Studies conducted at the University of Wisconsin found that cold sufferers taking 500 milligrams of vitamin C four times a day suffered from about half as many symptoms (coughing, sneezing. etc) as those not taking the vitamin.
Best way to get it? Drink it! Orange, grapefruit, and cranberry juices are excellent sources of vitamin C.

* Zinc - Suck on zinc lozenges and cut your cold short, to an average of just 4 days! It also can help reduce symptoms such as dry, irritated throat. Unfortunately, it doesn't work for everyone, but when it works, it works!

* R and R - Take a day or two off of work, or at least slow down! Extra rest enables your body to focus it's energy on getting you well.

* Stay Warm - Keep your immune system cozy by bundling up against the cold. This way your body can use energy to fight your cold instead of protecting you from the cold.

* Eat Lightly - Eat, but steer clear of foods that put a strain on your body's metabolism. Eat fewer fatty foods, meat and milk products, and eat more fresh fruits and vegetables.

* Chicken Soup - A silly folk remedy? No! Researchers at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach have found that hot chicken soup, either because of its aroma or its taste, "appears to possess an additional substance for increasing the flow of nasal mucus." Researchers say that this mucus serves as a first line of defense in removing germs from your system, so eat up!

* Liquids - Drink six to eight glasses of water, juice, tea, and other mostly clear liquids daily to keep the body hydrated and to flush out impurities.

* NO Smoking! - Smoking aggravates the throat and interferes with the infection-fighting activity of the cilia, the microscopic "fingers" that sweep bacteria out of your lungs and throat. Even if you don't quit for good, at least stop for the duration of your cold.

* Salty Gargle - Dr. Van Ert of San Francisco advises mixing 1 teaspoon of salt into a glass of warm water and gargling away whenever your throat hurts.

* Hot Toddy - Get a good night's sleep and clear a stuffed-up nose by sipping a "hot toddy" or a half a glass of wine before bedtime, suggests Dr. Caughron, a family practitioner specializing in preventive medicine in Charlottesville, Virginia. But don't go overboard! More alcohol than that can stress out your system and make recovery more difficult.

* Get Steamed - Clear congestion and relieve a dry cough by taking a hot steamy shower. Or make a steam tent by draping a towel over your head above a bowl of boiling water.

* Keep Your Germs to Yourself - Cough and blow away, but do it into a disposable tissue instead of sharing them! Then promptly throw the tissue away and wash your hands.

* Medicate - If you decide to take over the counter medication, follow the instructions carefully and only take medication that addresses the symptoms that you are suffering from.

Looking for alternatives to drugs? Try these herbs and teas that contain special properties that are natural antagonists against colds!

* Goldenseal and Echinacea - "I recommend herb capsules such as goldenseal and echinacea at the early onset of a cold," says Elson Haas, M.D. He says that goldenseal stimulates your liver, which helps to clear up infections. Echinacia clean your blood and lymph glands, helping circulate infection-fighting antibodies and removing toxic substances from the body. Try one or two capsules twice a day for up to two weeks.

* Garlic - Garlic is known for its antibiotic effect and "can actually kill germs and clear up your cold symptoms more rapidly," says Dr. Haas. He recommends two or three oil-free garlic capsules three times a day.

* Licorice Root Tea - Dr Van Ert recommends this teas for it's anesthetizing effects for soothing irritated throats and relieving coughs.

* Other Teas - Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime tea, or tea brewed with hops or valarian her, have natural tranquilizing effects that will help you rest. Add a teaspoon of honey, a simple carbohydrate that has a sedative effect.

* Monolaurian - Dr. Van Ert also recommends this fatty acid (available in capsule form) for it's antiviral effect. He recommends taking two capsules three times a day with some food, for helping the immune system stay fit to battle the cold virus.

A cold may be something that we have to live with, and through, but finding ways to make the best of it will help you get back on your feet in record time.

Author, Mari Peckham, is the President of Peckham Enterprises and webmistress of PowerPromoPlus, your online advertising solution at http://www.powerpromoplus.com.

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Narcissistic Serenade


Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) At a Glance

Most narcissists (75%) are men.

NPD is one of a "family" of personality disorders (formerly known as "Cluster B").

Other members: Borderline PD, Antisocial PD and Histrionic PD.

NPD is often diagnosed with other mental health disorders ("co-morbidity") - or with substance abuse, or impulsive and reckless behaviours ("dual diagnosis").

NPD is new (1980) mental health category in the Diagnostic and Statistics Manual (DSM).

There is only scant research regarding narcissism. But what there is has not demonstrated any ethnic, social, cultural, economic, genetic, or professional predilection to NPD.

It is estimated that 0.7-1% of the general population suffer from NPD.

Pathological narcissism was first described in detail by Freud. Other major contributors are: Klein, Horney, Kohut, Kernberg, Millon, Roningstam, Gunderson, Hare.

The onset of narcissism is in infancy, childhood and early adolescence. It is commonly attributed to childhood abuse and trauma inflicted by parents, authority figures, or even peers.

There is a whole range of narcissistic reactions - from the mild, reactive and transient to the permanent personality disorder.

Narcissists are either "Cerebral" (derive their narcissistic supply from their intelligence or academic achievements) - or "Somatic" (derive their narcissistic supply from their physique, exercise, physical or sexual prowess and "conquests").

Narcissists are either "Classic" - see definition below - or they are "Compensatory", or "Inverted" - see definitions here: "The Inverted Narcissist".

NPD is treated in talk therapy (psychodynamic or cognitive-behavioural). The prognosis for an adult narcissist is poor, though his adaptation to life and to others can improve with treatment. Medication is applied to side-effects and behaviours (such as mood or affect disorders and obsession-compulsion) - usually with some success.

Please read CAREFULLY!

An all-pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behaviour), need for admiration or adulation and lack of empathy, usually beginning by early adulthood and present in various contexts. Five (or more) of the following criteria must be met:

* Feels grandiose and self-importance (e.g., exaggerates achievements and talents to the point of lying, demands to be recognized as superior without commensurate achievements)

* Is obsessed with fantasies of unlimited success, fame, fearsome power or omnipotence, unequalled brilliance (the cerebral narcissist), bodily beauty or sexual performance (the somatic narcissist), or ideal, everlasting, all-conquering love or passion

* Firmaly convinced that he or she is unique and, being special, can only be understood by, should only be treated by, or associate with, other special or unique, or high-status people (or institutions)

* Requires excessive admiration, adulation, attention and affirmation - or, failing that, wishes to be feared and to be notorious (narcissistic supply)

* Feels entitled. Expects unreasonable or special and favourable priority treatment. Demands automatic and full compliance with his or her expectations

* Is "interpersonally exploitative", i.e., uses others to achieve his or her own ends

* Devoid of empathy. Is unable or unwilling to identify with or acknowledge the feelings and needs of others

* Constantly envious of others or believes that they feel the same about him or her

* Arrogant, haughty behaviours or attitudes coupled with rage when frustrated, contradicted, or confronted

Sam Vaknin is the author of "Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited" and "After the Rain - How the West Lost the East". He is a columnist in "Central Europe Review", United Press International (UPI) and ebookweb.org and the editor of mental health and Central East Europe categories in The Open Directory, Suite101 and searcheurope.com. Until recently, he served as the Economic Advisor to the Government of Macedonia. His web site: http://samvak.tripod.com.

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Mental Healthy Verse


Morality As A Mental State

Moral values, rules, principles, and judgements are often thought of as beliefs or as true beliefs. Those who hold them to be true beliefs also annex to them a warrant or a justification (from the "real world"). Yet, it is far more reasonable to conceive of morality (ethics) as a state of mind, a mental state. It entails belief, but not necessarily true belief, or justification. As a mental state, morality cannot admit the "world" (right and wrong, evidence, goals, or results) into its logical formal definition. The world is never part of the definition of a mental state.

Another way of looking at it, though, is that morality cannot be defined in terms of goals and results - because these goals and results ARE morality itself. Such a definition would be tautological.

There is no guarantee that we know when we are in a certain mental state. Morality is no exception.

An analysis based on the schemata and arguments proposed by Timothy Williamson follows.

Moral Mental State - A Synopsis

Morality is the mental state that comprises a series of attitudes to propositions. There are four classes of moral propositions: "It is wrong to...", "It is right to...", (You should) do this...", "(You should) not do this...". The most common moral state of mind is: one adheres to p. Adhering to p has a non-trivial analysis in the more basic terms of (a component of) believing and (a component of) knowing, to be conceptually and metaphysically analysed later. Its conceptual status is questionable because we need to decompose it to obtain the necessary and sufficient conditions for its possession (Peacocke, 1992). It may be a complex (secondary) concept.

See here for a more detailed analysis.

Adhering to proposition p is not merely believing that p and knowing that p but also that something should be so, if and only if p (moral law).

Morality is not a factive attitude. One believes p to be true - but knows p to be contingently true (dependent on epoch, place, and culture). Since knowing is a factive attitude, the truth it relates to is the contingently true nature of moral propositions.

Morality relates objects to moral propositions and it is a mental state (for every p, having a moral mental relation to p is a mental state).

Adhering to p entails believing p (involves the mental state of belief). In other words, one cannot adhere without believing. Being in a moral mental state is both necessary and sufficient for adhering to p. Since no "truth" is involved - there is no non-mental component of adhering to p.

Adhering to p is a conjunction with each of the conjuncts (believing p and knowing p) a necessary condition - and the conjunction is necessary and sufficient for adhering to p.

One doesn't always know if one adheres to p. Many moral rules are generated "on the fly", as a reaction to circumstances and moral dilemmas. It is possible to adhere to p falsely (and behave differently when faced with the harsh test of reality). A sceptic would say that for any moral proposition p - one is in the position to know that one doesn't believe p. Admittedly, it is possible for a moral agent to adhere to p without being in the position to know that one adheres to p, as we illustrated above. One can also fail to adhere to p without knowing that one fails to adhere to p. As Williamson says "transparency (to be in the position to know one's mental state) is false". Naturally, one knows one's mental state better than one knows other people's. There is an observational asymmetry involved. We have non-observational (privileged) access to our mental state and observational access to other people's mental states. Thus, we can say that we know our morality non-observationally (directly) - while we are only able to observe other people's morality.

One believes moral propositions and knows moral propositions. Whether the belief itself is rational or not, is debatable. But the moral mental state strongly imitates rational belief (which relies on reasoning). In other words, the moral mental state masquerades as a factive attitude, though it is not. The confusion arises from the normative nature of knowing and being rational. Normative elements exist in belief attributions, too, but, for some reason, are considered "outside the realm of belief". Belief, for instance, entails the grasping of mental content, its rational processing and manipulation, defeasible reaction to new information.

We will not go here into the distinction offered by Williamson between "believing truly" (not a mental state, according to him) and "believing". Suffice it to say that adhering to p is a mental state, metaphysically speaking - and that "adheres to p" is a (complex or secondary) mental concept. The structure of adheres to p is such that the non-mental concepts are the content clause of the attitude ascription and, thus do not render the concept thus expressed non-mental: adheres to (right and wrong, evidence, goals, or results).

Williamson's Mental State Operator calculus is applied.

Origin is essential when we strive to fully understand the relations between adhering that p and other moral concepts (right, wrong, justified, etc.). To be in the moral state requires the adoption of specific paths, causes, and behaviour modes. Moral justification and moral judgement are such paths.

Knowing, Believing and their Conjunction

We said above that:

"Adhering to p is a conjunction with each of the conjuncts (believing p and knowing p) a necessary condition - and the conjunction is necessary and sufficient for adhering to p."

Williamson suggests that one believes p if and only if one has an attitude to proposition p indiscriminable from knowing p. Another idea is that to believe p is to treat p as if one knew p. Thus, knowing is central to believing though by no means does it account for the entire spectrum of belief (example: someone who chooses to believe in God even though he doesn't know if God exists). Knowledge does determine what is and is not appropriate to believe, though ("standard of appropriateness"). Evidence helps justify belief.

But knowing as a mental state is possible without having a concept of knowing. One can treat propositions in the same way one treats propositions that one knows - even if one lacks concept of knowing. It is possible (and practical) to rely on a proposition as a premise if one has a factive propositional attitude to it. In other words, to treat the proposition as though it is known and then to believe in it.

As Williamson says, "believing is a kind of a botched knowing". Knowledge is the aim of belief, its goal.

Sam Vaknin is the author of "Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited" and "After the Rain - How the West Lost the East". He is a columnist in "Central Europe Review", United Press International (UPI) and ebookweb.org and the editor of mental health and Central East Europe categories in The Open Directory, Suite101 and searcheurope.com. Until recently, he served as the Economic Advisor to the Government of Macedonia. His web site: http://samvak.tripod.com.

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Prepaid Wireless Phone Plans Opus


Prepaid Wireless: Is It Right For You?

Just about every leading mobile phone provider now offers some sort of prepaid calling plan in order to fit their customers' budgets. But is is right for you?

The first question you'll need to ask yourself is how often you'll use your wireless phone?

Since the biggest benefit of a prepaid wireless phone is there is no monthly contract, you'll pay a little more for the prepaid minutes you purchase. But if you plan on using your phone strictly on an as-needed basis for emergencies, etc., a prepaid wireless program could be just what you're looking for.

The biggest mistake most people make when choosing to go prepaid is not reading the "fine print" of the providers' terms and conditions.

In most cases, the prepaid minutes you purchase will expire after a certain period of time, usually two or three months down the road. What this means is, if you buy 300 minutes today and fail to purchase more minutes anytime during the next few months, the unused portion of those 300 minutes will be unuseable!

This is sort of a convenient way to force you to keep on purchasing minutes even if you don't actually need them.

Another thing to watch out for is a daily minimum. Many providers will charge you $1.00 for each day you use your wireless phone. So if you get a prepaid wireless phone with the intention of making one two-minute call every day of the month, in addition to using 60 minutes of airtime, some providers will also charge you an additional $30 for the month, since you used the phone all 30 days.

Not a very good deal.

Out of all the prepaid wireless deals out there, TracFone seems to have the most competitive prices and terms of service. Although TracFone minutes expire after three months unless you purchase additional minutes (just like all the other companies), they also have a one-year activation service which is perfect for people just needing a wireless phone for emergency purposes. The deal changes from month to month, but usually provides for one year of activation, without requiring you to purchase additional minutes for a whole year. Thus, your monthly cost should average about $8.00 and you'll have a wireless phone with a few hundred minutes that will be good for the whole year.

The choices seem endless, but it pays to educate yourself about prepaid wireless phone plans.

Author, Edwin Mazanke. For more information on prepaid wireless phones and service, visit http://www.prepaidwirlelesshelp.com.

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Plasma Television Buying Ode


Why You Should Buy A Plasma Television

The plasma television has many advantages and benefits for you and your entertainment needs and wants. The plasma tv gives you incredible picture quality, it has a sleek design, and it is HDTV compatible.

Plasmas provide sharper images and more vibrant colors. You can display both HDTV and DTV signals as well as computer signals such as XGA, SVGA, and VGA.

Plasmas Superior to Both CRT's and LCD

Plasma screen televisions provide sharp, clear pictures, plus no image distortion. CRTs can't match this. Plasma tvs have brighter pictures and provide a better viewing angle at 160 degrees, than LCDs. For the best technology in display panels, choose plasma technology.

High Resolution

Plasma display televisions have higher resolution than most standard TV sets. They are able to display full HDTV and DTV signals as well as XGA, SVGA, and VGA signals from a computer. If a plasma has a resolution of 1024x1024 it can display images from 1080i and 720i HDTV resolution, plus 480i and 480p HD signals.

Flat Screen

Plasma display televisions have screens that are completely flat. There is no distortion of the image even at the edges and corners. Plus to increase your viewing fun, the flat plasma screen tv provides an amazing 160-degree viewing area.

Ultra Thin Design Saves Space

Plasma televisions can hang on almost any wall. You can even hang them from your ceiling. Other advantages of plasma screen tvs are high ambient light tolerance, distortion free images, entirely digital techology, not affected by magnetism, and can be attached to a ceiling or wall, or used as a freestanding fixture.

Author, Jeremy Hier. Find out about the top plasma televisions by reading our reviews at
http://www.best-plasma-televisions.com.

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Home Tanning System Poem


Find the Best Home Tanning Bed Package

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could find a cheap used tanning bed for your home. Have you ever wondered how to buy tanning beds and what would be the best home tanning bed package? Well you’ve come to the right place.

If you are looking for a tanning bed for home use there are some things you need to know.

The most important thing you have to do is make sure the bed you are looking at is safe. There are many different types of tanning bed on the market and you need to understand everything about the bed you are looking at.

There are many tanning beds available online and many can be purchased for a great price. Most of the beds available online are high quality. Just be sure to do your research.

To make sure you are getting the best home tanning bed you need to check publications and sites that rate tanning beds. Here you will learn the pros and cons of each bed, which ones are recommended, what type of tan they produce, and any known problems that have been reported.

More money doesn’t mean a better bed. So don’t part with your money easily, rather compare prices and get the most bang for your buck. Besides online you can check newspapers, and your local salons who sometimes sell off beds when they are buying newer models. A little research will pay off in big savings.

When choosing a bed for home use make sure your room and wiring can accommodate it. Some of the larger commercial beds require special wiring. They can also be large and require allot of room. Make sure you’ve measured up your room before buying a bed.

There are some other things you will need to consider such as the cost of replacement bulbs and how often they need to be replaced. You will also want to understand the strength of the bulbs in the bed and whether you can upgrade to a more powerful bulb in the future.

Make sure you are comparing same beds. Little features can make a huge difference in price, so when doing your comparison shopping be sure you are comparing like products. You should also make a list of features that are important to you and stick to finding beds that have those features.

Just think about how relaxing and enjoyable having your own bed will be. No more running to the salon and trying to fit their schedule with yours. No having to fight traffic on the way home. No fighting for parking spots.

Now you can come home, grab a shower in the comfort of your home, and relax in your tanning bed listening to your favorite cd. When your done in you can throw on some comfy clothes and relax. It will be great!

So the question is are you ready to take the plunge and own your very own home tanning bed?

Author, M.D. Stracener from Home Tanning Beds, has been serving customers for over 20 years, providing valuable information to keep you beautiful and healthy. Please visit us at http://www.tanabanas.com.

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Explained Mobile Phones Serenade


Mobile Phones Explained

Even though the popularity of mobile phones is at an all time high, the complexity of the systems driving this technology usually means that only those involved with the industry have a complete understanding on how mobile phones actually work.

Until recently, and like most of today’s millions of mobile phone users, I found myself confused by the amount of information on the subject, and even when I found information which was relevant, the terminology used was best suited to someone with a degree in telecommunications.

In truth, the technology is very easy to understand when the information is presented in simple terms. In this article I’ll try to do just that – simplify the technology.

The concept:

Even though technology has become widely known as wireless, this is only true between your handset and your nearest receiving antenna. After that the connection goes through a series of telephone wires until it reaches the antenna nearest to the person you are calling – assuming the call is to another mobile.

Your handset and provider:

If you put features to one side, one handset works in much the same way to any other and the same is true of the actual network provider you choose to go with.

Manufacturers such as Nokia and Samsung dedicate themselves at producing the handsets and network providers such as Vodafone and O2 focus on the structure of the network itself.

Cellular networks:

The term “Cellular” has been derived from the fact that each antenna only has a reach of a limited area; this area is known as a cell. By placing antennas in various part of the country, providers have created Cellular network. The total area within these cells, determines the coverage of a network service provider.

Making and receiving calls:

When you make a call, your mobile phone locates the nearest antenna available for your network and connects you to the wired telephone system. The telephone network then locates the nearest antenna available for the person you are trying to call and connects you to that mobile. The opposite happens when you receive a call.

Your location:

For a connection to be successful, your network needs to know where your phone is located. To achieve this you mobile phone is in constant communication with your nearest antenna.

If you move location, and your original antenna no longer has enough reach to connect to your mobile, your phone will automatically search for another one. The new antenna then informs the system of your new location.

Conclusion

This article is by no means trying to undermine the achievements or the potential the technology has to offer. Instead, it is intended to provide an insight to the key elements of the mobile phone technology which would otherwise remain invisible to everyday users.

Author, Marco Barra, is a web designer for Digital Phone Company, a leading independent provider of mobile phones serving over 30,000 customers across East Anglia through a network of 11 retail outlets and a team of dedicated Business to Business consultants: http://www.digital-phone.co.uk.

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