We all have dreams and desires but if we do not know how togo about achieveing them they are nothing but pipedreams. Butwith a clear plan in mind one can turn the pipe dreams of todayinto the reality of tommorow. In [...]]]> Article by Judi Singleton

We all have dreams and desires but if we do not know how togo about achieveing them they are nothing but pipedreams. Butwith a clear plan in mind one can turn the pipe dreams of todayinto the reality of tommorow. In life, we need reasons forwhat we do. Goals keep us from just reacting to what’s goingon around us. Goals can inspire and motivate. They help usmake our life happen rather than letting it happen. Most ofall, Goals produce results.There are three main points to goal setting:1. Clarifying your unique goal2. Reinforcing your goal3. Tracking, Measuring and assessing progressIn this article we will look at each one of these steps andaccess how they work. All around us the internet ischanging. Because of the so called recessison, everyone isstarting to charge for what once was free for the taking.Every site had free stuff. Some still do, but, for example, I had a free list a Listbot and now they are charging. I was quite happy with my site and thought about staying with them even ifthey charged. However my small ezine is not in a financialpostion to pay the prices that Listbot will charge. So what to do? Why are people charging for everything that wasfree? The media tells us that stocks for dot.com’s aredown. All around us dot.com’s are failing. So if thislittle ezine was to survive I needed to get a really goodmap of where I was going. Well, I am a person who dreams the impossible dream — always have and always will. I have been told since I was a child that I was a dreamer. Well I am, and as I said, will always be but the difference between my dreams and some others I talk to is that I accomplish them.Believeing that I can accomplish anything I set out to do and I deserve success is the first step in accomplishing any goal. How did I get this belief in myself? Partly because to my parents I was the “apple of their eye.” They believed I could do anything including fulfill their unfulfilled dreams. I never did do that but I have fulfilled a lot of my own dreams. So with experience behind me I learned that if I stay focused, I can accomplish the impossible dream. So why should a little recession or other dot.com’s going downinfluence my little ezine? One thing I don’t do is listento the media much even though as an ezine owner I am part ofthat media. I need to stay focused, and that is why I do not listen to negative input from people or the media; it just breedsfear and fear never accomplishes anything. So I go apart in my own little world and I dream my impossible dream. If I want to know where I am going I must have a clear picture of where I want to be in the next year, five years and beyond that. Life is for living and I intend to live fully until I die.I find that getting away from the computer and writing down my goals helps me. I personally have to sort through wants and desires, and values to define where I want to be. This step can’t be vague. One has to be like that little child at Christmas that knows what she wants, that doll, that bike. Often when I am meditating on goals I try and recapture that feeling of childhood where I could feel myself playing with that pretty doll, brushing her hair, or riding that bike, wind in my hair. Wanting this one thing more than anything, thinking I would die without it. This is the kind of feeling you have to have for what you want beforeyou write your goal. Then the next step is to weed out the wants, desires, brought on by what others say you should want and by family programming of what you should be doing. Well-meaning friends and family often make suggestions. But this is your goal and you need to draw upon your unique dream to pull out this goal. This is a process that can take weeks to or months achieve, but don’t get discouraged that things are not moving fast enough. This is a really important step because this is the basis of your map of getting what you want in life.One of the common pitfalls at this stage is to be in a all or nothing frame of mind. I want all of this now not later!It is important to set goals that are medium term and easilyrecognizable so one can say to themselves, “Yes, I am on myway because I have accomplished this goal. Now on to the nextone.”Another pitfall might be to set goals that disrupt everything else in your life. So look at this carefully. What would you do if you had no obstacles to doing anything you want in life. Believe in yourself you can do it. Don’t be a perfectionist if everything doesn’t go just as you plan and give up. This all or nothing kind of thinking has no room in this plan. You are developing a plan that is uniquely yours, that will make you desire having it just as you did that Christmas doll. Also, choose who you share your goal with carefully as it is fragile, not yet manifested and of this world, and can easily be smashed. There is a time to share with others, but not yet. Solidify it onpaper; this brings it as a real thing into the real world. So now in the next few weeks or months you will know whereyou are going and why you are going there. You no longer are lost in the forest. You soon will be able to draw a clear map. Next week I will write on the clear map. How not to buy a ticket to Seattle when it is San Francisco you long for. Remember dream the impossible dream.

About the Author

Judi Singleton is the webmistress of Jassmine.com andGotojassminesitenow.com and the owner of Jassmine’s Journalhttp://www.gotojassminesitenow.com/journal. She was acounselor for 20 years. You can receive her inspirationalnewsletter Jassmine’s Journal by sending an email to todayjassminejournal-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

So, on December 29th, 2011, I made a trip over to Seattle. (FINALLY!!!) I was joking around saying that as soon as I got off the ferry I would see a truck. No sooner did I get off than I see the back of a CleanScapes Lodal going down an alley. They only have 2-4 of these so this was a lucky catch! Then, I went over to another city to film Rabanco/Allied Waste, that was a fail. I went back and found these last 2 guys. With the garbage it may look like the city provides manual bins (the black Rubbermaid’s). Well, they used to. So, if you thought that you were right. Sadly, I saw the recycle as I was leaving Seattle. I will be getting more footage of these trucks and others soon. No guarantee on more Lodal footage though. I will have more RL videos and maybe if I’m lucky, one of their McNeilus M/As in action. I will also be trying for WM (NOT Seattle since all they have are Autocar McNeilus CNG Fls and RLs) of Seattle area and more AW/Rabanco. So, any requests that people have put in COULD be done. If you haven’t but there is something you want to see, shoot me a Personal Message. I’ll take anything into consideration. Just remember, anything you see on Google Maps is probably gone because in the last few months, everything has changed. I will be going back a few times (2-3) over the summer so that will give me some time to find some routes. Anyways, enjoy the video! If you get bored, just remember that the trucks will change every few minutes! Enjoy my find!

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Parkas are used by men and women in cold weather as these coats are very warm. They are either waist length or up to the hip with attached hood. Parkas can be made of synthetic materials and are usually waterproof. Some [...]]]> Article by Jerry Cahill

Parkas are used by men and women in cold weather as these coats are very warm. They are either waist length or up to the hip with attached hood. Parkas can be made of synthetic materials and are usually waterproof. Some coats can have insulation padding. In very cold weather especially in winter, when temperatures are at a sub zero level, there is a demand for heavy clothing to keep the body warm. Parkas have been created to keep the cold at bay. These are long coats and come in sundry colors of olive, black, dark brown or dark grey. Parka-coats are called anoraks in England.

Parkas are designed for both men and women. The hood is essential to cover the head when it is snowing or raining. There are a lot of reputable brands making parkas. Helly Hansen parka-coats have light padding with straight and comfortable fit. It is made up of a wind and water resistant nylon and cotton combination material, has two way zip, comfortable pockets and a drawstring at the hem. This design is that of “Seattle Parka”. Helly Hansen offers another design. This design has a separate hood, large breast pockets with flaps, two huge flap pockets with Velcro closure, practical inside pocket and drawstring. The lining is totally of polyester. Both the designs are high on the durability quotient and are popular. There are other well known brands too.

Parkas have their origin in Alaska and Canada. The tribal natives were the first to introduce a parka-coat to the world. The earliest parkas had fur and natural down as insulating materials. They did not have the zip open or zip closed system, in fact the earliest parka-coat did not have any zipper at all. The coat was simply pulled over the head. There was a summer adaptation of the parka style. It came with a connected skirt.

Commercial use of the parka-coat first began in 1930s. Since then parka-coats have become more and more popular as the years went by. Generally the coat is used by the residents living in extreme cold conditions. It is also used by sportsmen or sportswomen. The hood of the coat is necessary for beating the cold. The hood functions as a windbreak that dulls the sensation of cold, and the fur provides insulation. The huge pockets of the parka-coat are used as storage compartment where goggles, dry food, maps and other papers and tools can be stored. It is essential for all those who work outdoors to have one parka in their wardrobe, not only to keep their body warm but their mind as well.

About the Author

Author Jerry Cahill is an established webmaster and publisher. See some of his work here Parka Information

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Like a brick-and-mortar firm, the new dot-com will rise or fall on the fundamentals. In addition to a solid business plan, a new dot.com needs additional elements to succeed. This article provides a survey of the basics you need to get [...]]]> Article by Neil Anuskiewicz

Like a brick-and-mortar firm, the new dot-com will rise or fall on the fundamentals. In addition to a solid business plan, a new dot.com needs additional elements to succeed. This article provides a survey of the basics you need to get started.

Hosting and E-Commerce

Choose a domain name (yourcompany.com) and a hosting company at which to host it. Your choice of hosting company is important because their reliability and ability to increase your capacity smoothly as needed are crucially important. Your e-commerce hosting account is likely to start out as a “shared” hosting (less expensive option) and later may grow to a “dedicated” server (more capacity but higher price) later, if needed.

However, the good thing about hosting is that if your host turns out to be unreliable or is unable to scale up to meet your needs, you can always switch hosting companies. Just make sure that you register the domain name under your name and not theirs from the beginning.

Decide if the goal of your website will be to capture leads (which can be done through simple contact forms), which you will then follow-up on later by phone and/or email. Alternatively, is your goal to make direct sales from your website, in which case you will need a shopping cart system. Regardless of your goal, you should also provide good quality content on your website that will capture your prospective customer’s interest.

Most hosting companies offer a shopping cart (such as Miva Merchant) with their e-commerce hosting accounts. Find out which cart they offer, and do some research to make sure it is a reputable system. Find out how user friendly the system is for non-technical people to setup and maintain an online store.

In addition to the hosting and shopping cart system, you will need a merchant account that will enable your business to accept electronic payments (e.g., credit cards). You may already have a merchant account, especially if you now run a brick-and-mortar business. For online transactions, you will also need a Payment Gateway (such as authorize.net or Verisign). The Payment Gateway authorizes payments for online businesses. Generally, these services will interact automatically with both your shopping cart system and your merchant account. Once setup, all this happens behind the scenes so your website is selling your products or services day-and-night, without you having to be directly involved. Someone from Australia could buy something from your site while you sleep.

It is imperative that you have the ability to update your shopping cart easily. It is crucial that you have control of this process, as it is likely you are going to want to make changes over time.

Website

It is a given that you need a professional looking, well-organized website to sell online. This does not mean fancy. In fact, fancy can work against you, as it can confuse your visitors. Your designer can integrate your new website with your shopping cart system. Make sure you retain a designer who has specific experience in the shopping cart system you wish to use.

While you will likely hire a design firm to do the initial website design, it is important that you have the ability to update the website. This means the design firm needs to put some sort of content management system (CMS) in place or learn to use one of the Web design/maintenance software packages (such as Dreamweaver or MS FrontPage), if you do not already know how to use one. You do not want to have to call your website designer every time you want to make some minor change or addition to your site.

While the designer will develop your site initially, it is important to give some thought to this process so you can provide plans and guidance to your designer. What are the goals of your site? Do you want leads captured with a contact form? Do you primarily want direct sales captured through a shopping cart system? If you have more than a few items, your database design becomes very important.

Make sure your design consultant has solid database design experience (ask for examples and references). How do you organize the products so people can quickly find what they are looking for? What market segments will be visiting your site and how do you appeal to each? Both site and product navigation are key components of a useable site.

The next step is to determine the various pages that will comprise your site, what content will go on each page, and how it will all fit together. While you map this out, always keep your goals in mind — direct sales, sales leads, etc.

A good way to start this process is to go out on the website and carefully analyze what similar businesses have done. You can probably get a decent e-commerce website starting at about 0 for the design.

Now What?

You now have a website giving you an online presence and the ability to capture leads or make sales directly. Now, how are you going to get people to people to visit to your site?

Search Engine Marketing

At some point — if your business experiences enough growth to pay for it — you will likely consider hiring a professional search engine marketing consultant to help you. Until then, you need to make some solid progress on your own.

Search Engine Optimization

To increase your site’s ranking in Google and other search engines, it is crucial to have quality content on your website that includes reference to the keywords that you want to optimize. The place to start optimizing your site is during the planning and design phase. This is definitely something you will want to read about further, and discuss with your designer from the beginning.

Once you complete your site, you will want to seek out reputable directories and other sites relevant to your industry, and request to have your site listed in these. Ideally, the link provided on these sites would reflect the keyword you are trying to optimize. For example, if you are optimizing “financial planner in Seattle” you would make sure that the clickable link is “financial planner in Seattle” not just http://www.yourcompany.com. This is easy to do in HTML.

Some directories require payment to be included. Some are worth it; some are not. Be choosy but err on the side of sites that have a high rank, the Google toolbar (available for both Internet Explorer and Firefox) can be a valuable tool in determining the Pagerank of a particular site. For example, Yahoo Directory charged 0/year for expedited consideration of your submission, which Yahoo organizes by topic. We have found this to be a worthwhile 0 for our websites.

Pay Per Click (PPC) Advertising

There are a number of services out there that provide PPC like services, including Google AdWords, Overture (Yahoo), and business.com. You will likely want to start with Google and then expand to one or more other services over time.

Maximizing conversions is your goal but you need to define exactly what a conversion means to your business. Generally, it is either a lead (normally a customer submitting a web form requesting more information) or it is a direct sale (a customer actually purchases your product or service directly). Your website can offer both of these primary types of conversions or focus on just one – or it is possible you have other measures of success you want to measure.

If your goal is to get leads, then that is the sort of conversion your website and advertising should encourage. In addition, do not forget to ask your prospects to request more information or whatever the action you are seeking.

One of the most effective ways to get qualified leads to your site in the first place is through pay-per-click advertising. It is important to read and become familiar with pay-per-click advertising, and then to continue to learn and refine by doing.

In Google AdWords, you set a daily budget (say to start) and a maximum bid on specific keywords (say .50). You only pay when someone clicks on your ad. Therefore, if you are bidding .50 you might only pay an average of say .45 per click. It depends on the keywords you choose and how much you bid. Spend some time choosing good keywords. Google Adwords has tools to help you choose the most powerful keywords. You will also want to embed some special code in your website to enable Google to track conversions.

I have learned through experience that it is best to start with a low bid and increase it incrementally depending on the number of clicks and conversions you get. Your goal is not to outbid the competition but to get the maximum number of clicks (and ultimately conversions) for your budget. Your optimal bid, at your budget, may be much different from the optimal bid for a larger competitor with a much larger budget. The way to find that sweet spot that maximizes clicks for your budget is to start low and increase your bid until you find the optimal bid. That should be your bid for the time being.

Through systematic trial and error, it soon became apparent that the Google Search Network had a much higher conversion rate than the Google Content Network. I responded by dropping the content network completely and focusing exclusively on the search network, which resulted in an immediate increase in our conversion rates.

Over time, I was able to optimize Google AdWords. Now, it pretty much runs on its own and brings in a predictable number of leads and direct sales. We make adjustments here and there, and regularly run tests using different landing pages and so on.

Email Marketing

A crucial but often overlooked component of starting an online business is to have an email marketing solution in place and integrate email marketing into your operations from the beginning. This insures that you collect customer email addresses and ask them from the beginning if they want to receive emails from you. Email can include invoices (often automated), product updates, announcements, special promotions, and email newsletters.

Email is a powerful tool that can help you reduce costs and increase efficiency but perhaps even more powerful is the power of email to increase customer loyalty and retention. As the provider of a product or service that your customers need, you also have information that could benefit your customers as well. If you produce a newsletter and regularly put in the time to create useful content, you will increase your mind share among your customers and they will very likely think of you next time they need to make a purchasing decision.

Provide consistently good content and special deals for the subscribers to your newsletter. Make sure that your customers feel they are getting multiple tangible and intangible benefits from listening to what you have to say.

At a minimum, an email marketing service should make it easy for you to create eye-catching emails, manage multiple email lists, and place newsletter sign-up forms on your website. There should be powerful list management, robust reporting, and reliability.

Your email marketing service should include an easy way to track the results of your email campaigns. Who opened your email, how many times, and when? Did they click on the link you provided? Did they purchase anything or submit a lead? The service should enable you to track message reads in real time, and read detailed reports online or export them to a spreadsheet.

In addition, your email marketing service should give you the ability to manage multiple lists and divide lists into multiple segments. Last, but not least, it is preferable that your email marketing service provider give you a private IP address, rather than one you share with other customers. A private IP address is preferable to a shared IP address, because with a shared IP address you are vulnerable to the shared IP address being blacklisted because of the mistakes of other customers of your email marketing service provider. With a private IP address, you are the only one who sends email through your IP address.

It is also important that your email marketing provider knows the CAN SPAM regulations and makes it easy for clients to comply with them. Knowledge of and compliance with CAN SPAM is crucial for successful email marketing implementation, and with earning and keeping the good graces of ISP’s and other networks. In addition, nothing will ruin the good will of your customers faster than spam. On the other hand, properly implemented permission-based email marketing is one of the most powerful forms of marketing. Done well, email marketing can earn you a reputation as an expert and help you make giant leaps in customer loyalty.

This article is a primer, a survey, of the topics you need to consider from the beginning to have a successful online business. You will want to research each of these topics in much greater depth than I covered them here. It is worth your time to read articles on each of these topics, and even invest the time to read books as well. The effort you put in educating yourself about the various components of starting your online business will pay off, making it well worth the time investment.

About the Author

Neil Anuskiewicz is the Marketing Manager of EZ Publishing.In addition to developing custom web applications, EZ Publishing is the creator of theStreamSend Email Marketing service. The firm also has anactive Email Marketing Reseller program.

As many children learn about Native American culture during November, here are some activities and information about our first citizens.

Do you like barbecues? How about clambakes? Well, the next time you attend one, thank the Indians! Native Americans [...]]]> Article by Freda J. Glatt, M.S.

As many children learn about Native American culture during November, here are some activities and information about our first citizens.

Do you like barbecues? How about clambakes? Well, the next time you attend one, thank the Indians! Native Americans invented them, along with chewing gum, ponchos, chocolate, snowshoes, parkas, and moccasins. Do research to find out what else our first citizens invented!

Chief Seattle’s Lesson

Seattle was a teacherWho taught us how to careFor all the living things on earth, Fresh water, and clean air.”The earth does not belong to us,”Great Chief Seattle said.”We sometimes think it does, but weBelong to earth, instead.”

This poem was written by Helen H. Moore and reflects a basic belief of the Indians. Discuss its meaning and make a collage of fresh water vs polluted water and the effects of each, as well as clean air vs smog and the effects of each.

Beanbag Bunt

Many games that were played by Native American children when the Pilgrims landed are still played to this day. Here is a variation of a game played by the Zuni Indians of the Southwest.

Create a circle about 30′ in diameter and make a horizontal starting line inside toward the edge. Put two different-colored beanbags behind the starting line and choose two children to be the first players; other children should be forming a ring around the circle.

The object of this game is to be the first to kick your beanbag around the inside of the circle without crossing its border. If a player misses, he must step outside the circle. In order to win, the other player must successfully complete his trip around the circle. Should there be a tie, or both players miss, they play another round. The winner of each round chooses a new opponent from the rest of the children.

Bird Feeder

After a good harvest, Native Americans made an offering of three ears of Indian corn tied to a gourd filled with corn kernels; this was hung outside their teepee in order to feed the birds. When the birds ate, the Indians were happy because they believed their offering had been accepted by the gods. Here are directions for you to make a bird feeder.

Cut a gourd in half vertically, scoop out the insides, and use a skewer or metal dowel to poke two holes about 1″ from the top through both sides of each half of the gourd. Using a long piece of thin wire, thread one of the halves and wrap a loose end around an ear of Indian corn at the husk near the top of the ear. The longer end of wire should still be through the other hole so you can add another ear of Indian corn, then the other half of the gourd, and end with another ear of Indian corn. Finally, tie the loose ends together to form a loop and hang your bird feeder outside. Put some birdseed in each hollow end of the gourd and watch the birds eat!

Learn the names of birds in your area and keep a record of the kinds of birds that come to your feeder. Choose several birds and count how many of each kind come within a certain time frame; then make a pictograph showing the data.

Wampum

The Indian money was called wampum and consisted of strings of beads made from the shells of clams and other shellfish. Purple was worth more than white. Here is how to make your own wampum.

Put half of a small box of macaroni into a bowl and cover it with purple paint, letting it soak for two hours. Strain the macaroni and let it dry on paper towels during the night. At last, create your wampum by stringing purple and white macaroni. Tie the ends of the string together for a necklace or a bracelet.

For variation, try stringing the macaroni in various patterns and assigning different numbers to the purple and white. How much is your wampum worth? Open a little store and use your wampum for money! If you can find seashells with small holes for stringing, try using them instead of macaroni.

League of the Iroquois

One of the first governments in America was the Five Nations, or the League of the Iroquois. The Mohawk chief, Hiawatha, helped found it in 1570 to unite the separate tribes, or nations, in war and peace. Consisting of the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas, each tribe took care of its own business. When their affairs affected another tribe, however, the League Council stepped in.

Answer these True or False statements about the paragraph above…using the Cree Indian letters for T and F! The T looks like a lowercase b with more of a heart-shaped right side than a circle; and the F looks like an inverted capital V with a vertical side on the right rather than a diagonal.

Mohawk chief Hiawatha helped start the Five Nations. ____The Seminoles were part of the League of the Iroquois. ____The League told all its members how to conduct their business. ____The Five Nations was one of the first governments in America. ____

Research to find out more about the Iroquois nation. Does the League still exist?

Totem Poles

In the Pacific Northwest, Native Americans such as the Tlingit, pronounced klink-it, still make totem poles to record their family and clan histories. The poles are carved of wood and brightly painted to resemble birds, animals, or people. An angry-looking bear, for instance, could symbolize a warlike relative; while a deer might symbolize a gentle one. Make a totem pole to reflect your family! Here’s how.

Measure various colors of construction paper, exactly, to fit 6-8 1-lb cans, such as coffee cans. Laying the papers flat, use crayons, markers, or paint to draw a different face or design on each. Wrap a paper around each can and tape the edges together. Place each can down with the open side up and decorate with eyes, ears, noses, teeth, and other 3-dimensional features. Use fabric, buttons, sticks…any odds and ends you have.

Decide the order in which the cans will be stacked; then add sand to the bottom one to prevent the totem pole from tipping over. Put one can on top of another, taping them together as you go. Decorate the top of your totem pole!

There are many Native American tribes in our country today. On a map, pinpoint where each tribe lives. Find out which live in your region and take a field trip to learn more about them.

I hope these ideas are useful and have inspired your own creative thinking.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

About the Author

Freda J. Glatt, MS, retired from teaching after a 34-year career in Early Childhood and Elementary Education. Her focus, now, is to reach out and help others reinforce reading comprehension and develop a love for reading. Visit her site at http://www.sandralreading.com. Reading is FUNdamental!

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One high-school subject stands out above all others in my memory: Physical Education. I detested everything about PE, from the endless runs around a large undeveloped property near my high-school to Friday afternoons in the gym where we played “murder-ball”, our [...]]]> Article by Robert Rickover

One high-school subject stands out above all others in my memory: Physical Education. I detested everything about PE, from the endless runs around a large undeveloped property near my high-school to Friday afternoons in the gym where we played “murder-ball”, our own sadistic version of dodge ball.

I quickly learned that if I kept a low profile, and was discreet in minimizing my participation, I could still get by with a grade of “B”, or at worst a “C’. During the outdoor runs, I would disappear for a few rounds into a shallow ditch behind a row of hedges, out of sight of the gym teachers. My murder-ball strategy was to pretend I was hit early in the game when there were still so many players in the game that nobody noticed.

For me, PE seemed a boring and unpleasant waste of my time. So when a recent National Public Broadcasting program about the “New Physical Education” movement was broadcast recently, I listened with great interest.

The first part of the program described one important aspect of the New PE: fewer competitive activities (dodge ball was cited as a prime example) and more activities that emphasize personal achievement such as rock-climbing, kick-boxing and tai-chi.

So far so good, I thought. While rock-climbing and kick-boxing probably would not have appealed to me, I think I would have enjoyed tai-chi, and probably benefited a great deal from it.

But then, in the second part of the program, the whole question of evaluation and measurement was introduced. How are kids in the New PE programs to be graded?

One approach, already in use in one Seattle school, involved attaching tiny heart rate monitors to the children during class. Then, when the class was over, the teacher could check the read outs and determine just how much effort each child had made, and grade accordingly.

So much for minimizing strategies of the sort I had perfected!

But there is a far more serious issue at stake here: This kind of measurement mirrors and reinforces the preoccupation of most adult fitness programs with the quantity of activity activity performed, rather than the way participants use their bodies while performing those activities. We tend to be interested in how many laps we swam, the amount of weights we lifted, or the speed of our runs rather than how well we used our body in performing those sports. In other words quantity rather than quality.

To see what this leads to, take a look at any group of runners or joggers. You will probably see tight necks, hunched shoulders and painful expressions on many of their faces. These runners may be getting a cardiovascular workout, but in the process they’re putting a lot of unnecessary and harmful pressure on their bodies. No wonder so many people who begin fitness programs drop out after a few weeks, often due to pain or injuries.

Of course it’s important that children engage in vigorous physical activity; we don’t want them to grow up to be couch potatoes. But making “effort” the primary basis for grading students – even if it’s as easy as reading a heart monior – does our children a great disservice.

What makes this particularly sad is that we now know how to help people improve their movement quality. The twentieth century saw the development of numerous somatic therapies and teaching methods that have proven effective in helping people of all ages perform all their activities, from everyday ones like walking and using a computer right through to vigorous sports, with greater ease, efficiency and safety.

The method I know best, first as a student and then, for the past twenty years as a teacher, is the Alexander Technique. It has a long history of helping people with stress-related conditions like back pain and stiff necks and shoulders and it is often used by musicians, dancers and actors to improve the quality of their performance.

The Alexander Technique is taught by specially-trained teachers, but some of it’s principles could easily be included in PE classes. Take for instance the Alexander-related process that has come to be know as “body-mapping”. This approach includes learning, on your own body, just where important joints are located and how they function.

It turns out that most of us have serious “mis-maps” of our own body which cause us to move in ways that attempt to reinforce those incorrect ideas.For example, many people think their hip joints are at waist level when, in fact, they are located far lower on our torso. Correcting this mis-map is quite easy to do and almost always results in much smoother bending, walking and running patterns.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the New Physical Education programs included teaching this kind of useful self-knowledge to our kids so they could go through life using their bodies as nature intended? And look back on their PE experiences with fondness and gratitude?

RESOURCES

“Body-mapping” is a term coined by Alexander Technique teachers William and Barbara Conable. You can read a short introduction to the process at http://www.alexandertechnique.com/articles/bodymap

The Conables have written a wonderful book describing the process in detail, “How to Learn the Alexander Technique – A Manual for Students”. As the title implies, the book was written mainly for people taking Alexander Technique lessons, but I have found it to be a valuable resource for anyone prepared to spend a little time exploring the operation of their own body.

Another book, full of practical suggestions, is “Mind and Muscle – An Owner’s Handbook” by Elizabeth Langford. It covers some of the same ground, although she does not use the term “body-mapping”.

Both of these books, along with a great many other books, videos and CD’s about the Alexander Technique can be ordered at The Alexander Technique Bookstore at http://www.alexandertechnique.com/books

About the Author

Robert Rickover is a teacher of the Alexander Technique living in Lincoln, Nebraska. He also teaches regularly in Toronto, Canada. Robert is the author of Fitness Without Stress – A Guide to the Alexander Technique and is the creator of The Complete Guide to the Alexander Technique http://www.alexandertechnique.com

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Driving Trip? Road Trip? Escape from everyday life?

All of these describe the adventure that awaits you on the open roads of Canada and the United States. Some people are comfortable with the idea of heading out on their Driving Trip [...]]]> Article by Colin Haime

Driving Trip? Road Trip? Escape from everyday life?

All of these describe the adventure that awaits you on the open roads of Canada and the United States. Some people are comfortable with the idea of heading out on their Driving Trip with no plan, no rules and no destination in mind. Take the movie Wild Hogs for instance. Woody, Dudley and the guys had no idea where they were going but then again most people’s lives are not a Hollywood movie.

Most people have destinations and deadlines. Most people want to know where they are going to spend the night rather than relying on luck. I am one of those people.

But what has bothered me the most in my travels, which includes a good portion of the US and Canada, is the fact that if I am heading to a specific destination that is going to take more than one day I am looking for somewhere to stay along my route as well as services such as restaurants, attractions and even tourist information centers along the way. I do not want to drive 20 miles out of my way to get to a restaurant if I can find a similar restaurant along the way.

Unfortunately, most mapping is city specific rather than route specific. For example, if I am driving from Seattle to Los Angeles I am likely going to stop somewhere near Sacramento for the night and I want a hotel and restaurant somewhere near the I-5. Most tourism type websites I go to as well as printed information I read is based on cities. I can find a hotel or restaurant in Sacramento however I cannot fine one near the I-5 highway unless I spend a great deal of time reading and searching myself.

This is where the websites, MyDrivingTrip.com and MyDrivingTripCafe.com come in. Using the mapping power of Mapquest including the routing ability and both the Mapquest points of interest and the featured locations of MyDrivingTrip.com I am able to plan my route and search for hotels, motels, campgrounds, B&B’s, restaurants, gas stations and other items based on how close they are to my route.

All I have to do is tell MyDrivingTrip.com where my starting and finishing points are and it helps me do the rest. I can set Sacramento as a stopping point along the way and then plot hotels, motels etc around my route as well as directly searching for locations in Sacramento. If I decide to spend another day in Sacramento, MyDrivingTrip.com even has a Day Planner function where I can plot out my day including driving directions, distance and duration.

MyDrivingTripCafe.com is full of driving trip planning advice and experiences including articles and a forum. All provided to you with the power of Mapquest.

MyDrivingTrip.com and MyDrivingTripCafe.com help you plan your next great adventure.

Check out these related sites at MyDrivingTrip.com and MyDrivingTripCafe.com

About the Author

Based in British Columbia Colin and Denise Haime enjoy taking driving trips all over. Everything from lazy trips through the Rockies to express trips to Los Angeles. Frustrated with current planning methods they created MyDrivingTrip.com and MyDrivingTripCafe.com to help themselves and the travelling public.

Brian talks to us about the rewards of being a Site Reliability Engineer at Google. www.google.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

It’s January, a time that many people, hoping to improve their lives, make New Year’s resolutions. Unfortunately experts say that in less than a month the majority of those resolutions will already be broken.

So why not completely skip the resolutions [...]]]> Article by Bonnie McFarland

It’s January, a time that many people, hoping to improve their lives, make New Year’s resolutions. Unfortunately experts say that in less than a month the majority of those resolutions will already be broken.

So why not completely skip the resolutions and create a “lights on” vision for 2008 instead? A vision of what you truly want that can energize you and guide you as you make this your best year ever!

My Vision Became a Reality

In 2002 I realized how much I would love to have a water view house. I shared my dream with Denny, my husband, who then joined me in looking for a new home.

We drove around countless neighborhoods, searched on the internet, let people know we were looking, checked out any likely possibility, made calls, and wrote letters to property owners. For five years!

During this time, I used my “life tools,” (many of them over and over again): getting clear about my vision, setting my intention, creating a vision map, calling on my allies, following our lights (what energized and enlivened us) and our curiosity, noticing what was and wasn’t showing up, shifting my attention away from Monkey Mind and toward what I wanted, de-cluttering our existing house, and releasing the outcome.

Many times we became discouraged and frustrated (especially me!). I would give up for a while. Then I would return to my vision of what I really wanted, refining it over time and still knowing I truly wanted a house with a view of the water. Denny stayed patient and persistent, trusting it would happen, persevering.

On December 7, 2007 — nearly six years after we began the process — my vision became a reality. On that day, we picked up the keys to our water view home!

It is different than my original vision. It’s on Samish Island, rather than in the Seattle area. It’s a house in need of some updating and remodeling, rather than a new home. It doesn’t even have a garage, which my car-loving husband wouldn’t have thought he could do without.

And we love it!

This new place is so much more than I ever dreamed. The property is more than water view; it is waterfront, so close to the water it seems as if we’re sitting on a boat. On Samish Island, we unexpectedly and delightedly have found community and an ever-growing circle of friends. We love the quiet and natural beauty of this area.

We had a vision. It took us a long time and we faced a number of challenges. We didn’t give up our vision, though, and now our dreams have come true.

In Your Life

How can you make your own dreams come true? Try these steps:

1) Get clear about what you truly, deeply want for this year.

What lights you up? What do you love? If anything were possible, what would you ask for?

Imagine the life you desire. Sense it. See it. How will you feel when this comes true?

The more specific and detailed your vision, the better. Don’t worry if you’re not yet crystal clear. Start with what you do know and let that evolve and become clearer over time.

2) Make it concrete and keep your focus on it.

Write it down. Create a drawing or collage that represents your vision. Post your vision where you’ll see it frequently so it will remind you of your desires and your commitment to create your vision.

3) Use whatever life tools work for you.

You may well face challenges and obstacles. As I mentioned, I used many of my life tools over and over during this process. What are your most effective tools for living? Use them.

4) Take “lights on” actions.

Follow your curiosity and your energy to choose action steps. The steps can be big or small; what matters is that you are moving in the direction of your vision.

5) Notice and be open to what shows up.

Life sends little clues to guide you, clues that may look different than expected.

Denny was lights on about spending time on Samish Island. When we did that, we fell in love with the island and shifted our home search there, 100 miles from where we had been looking. Samish Island turned out to be just the place we were meant to be and it was very different from our initial vision.

6) Balance between focusing on your vision and releasing it.

We first heard that our new home might be coming on the market nearly a year ago. In the months that followed, we sometimes joyously thought the house would be ours; sometimes disappointedly believed it was sold to others.

We did our best to ride this roller coaster. We repeatedly returned to our clear desire to own a home on the Island and our trust that it would be that particular one if it was for our highest good or, if not, something better would appear (even if we had no idea what that could possibly be!).

The key is “Don’t give up your dream.” It may take longer than you’d like (not that it has to take you six years!). It may look different than you thought it would. And don’t give up your dream.

May all your dreams come true — and even better!

Enjoy!

About the Author

Bonnie McFarland works with women at midlife who are bored, stuck, or restless and wondering what to do with the rest of their lives. Visit www.labellavia.com for her free e-book and ezine to create more pleasure, passion, and purpose in your life.

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The story of Morris Tito Gachamba is fascinating and sad in equal measure. Born 75 years ago in Nyeri, he dropped out of school in Standard 3 because he could not cope with mathematics. That notwithstanding, Tito has attempted many engineering [...]]]> Article by Wanjiku Unlimited

The story of Morris Tito Gachamba is fascinating and sad in equal measure. Born 75 years ago in Nyeri, he dropped out of school in Standard 3 because he could not cope with mathematics. That notwithstanding, Tito has attempted many engineering feats, the most outstanding being making his own airplane which he flew for 5 minutes before it crashed into a tree injuring him. For all his troubles, during Kenyatta’s rule he earned himself a stint in prison for trespassing Kenyan airspace, endangering his life and endangering the lives of others. Nobody saw the gold that lay in his contraption. That did not kill his dream though. He has since tried other engineering feats and his current dream is to make a glider. He has also made a tractor which he currently hires out to farmers in his village. Tito is not a rich man by any standards.

The sad bit is that Tito’s is a classic case of wasted talent. In different circumstances, the likes of Tito could have propelled Kenya into the world of aviation firsts. Or he could be relaxing in Seattle having just retired from Boeing. How much more of Kenyan talent is going to waste in the villages? How many Chinkororos and snuff sniffing Mungiki youths for example would have had a better life other than waiting for the whims of politicians? A lanky model can be spotted grazing cattle in the plains of Samburu and propelled to super stardom, but a much better approach for talents such as engineering would be a deliberate effort to look for them.

So Tusker Project Fame is looking for talented musicians, and somebody discovered Dennis Oliech. School Science Congresses have been around for as long as I can remember and are held year in year out. One would think the purpose of these congresses is to identify young Science talent for nurturing. But not in Kenya. Here, the kids, brilliant ideas and all, are sent back to school with a certificate or trophy to continue learning the History of Guatemala. And that is before computer errors mess up their KCSE results.

Do engineering companies send representatives to these Science Congresses? I think they should. Right down to the zonal level – up till the nationals. In fact they should form part of the adjudicating panel. They’re best placed to identify talent in the engineering field. They would know better which projects can be of commercial value so as to further patent and commercialize these innovations on behalf of the kids. They have the ability to then support the kids financially and intellectually and before we know it, Kenya will be on the engineering map. Of course these companies would have to work hand in hand with the government so that gifted kids can be exempted from the normal education system and still be able to work in Kenya. And Noah Wekesa (Minister for Science and Technology) I don’t mean taking them to the village polytechnics.

About the Author

A well expressed Blog Author based in Mombasa Kenya

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