Many Benefits of Meditation

Meditation is a way of life. It leads one to the path of health and peace.

Meditation is not easy. One needs a mental discipline and dedication. It requires perseverance just like those who are dedicated to their sports, art or other field of endeavour. Over time, their performance is enhanced through their dedication and discipline. There is much to gain from learning to embrace the practice of meditation. It is not as awkward and uncomfortable as some may think.

Meditation works through the brain circuitry. Meditative practice helps people achieve different levels of awareness. Through meditation. the brain waves get organized and mental activities like focus, memory, learning and awareness are sharpened. Benefits of meditation touches on the physical, psychological and spiritual level. Many medical practitioners believe in the benefits of meditation.

PHYSICAL HEALING

Stress reduction

Today's world is stressful. Negative emotions invade our everyday life. These manifest as disappointments, regrets, overwhelming responsibilities, relationship issues, failure, feelings of rejection and a lot of other issues. There are many physical conditions triggered by stress such as hypertension, cardio-vascular disorders, ulcers, skin rash and insomnia, just to name a few.

Calm down, relax. These are words we hear when stress starts to take over. Meditation offers the promise of a tranquil and calm mind. Meditation is not a review of what could have been and other thoughts of uncertainty. It is not a rehash of unpleasant events. Meditation is a way to relax the mind and focus on the present moment. A calmer mind is empowering. Issues are not threatening.

Levels of cortisol and lactate are lowered through meditation. These chemicals are linked with stress. During deep meditation, the metabolic rate and heart rate are reduced. It is a process of slowing down. This state will not be achieved quickly.With patience and dedication, a meditator will get to this state.

PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALING

Meditation quietens the mind. This brings about coherence in the brain waves. When the brain wave activities are in harmony, this is associated with improved reasoning and greater creativity. The clutter in the mind is minimized.

Other psychological benefits are decreased anxiety, decreased depression and irritability. With a quieter mind, the power of concentration is improved, memory is enhanced, vigor and vitality is renewed, better emotional stability and self-awareness. A calmer person finds inner peace and happiness and projects this on the outside. Meditation makes one realize that problems people worry about are trivial.

SPIRITUAL

Meditation is a way to connect with inner feelings. It guides one to feel calm, love and peace. Acknowledge negative feelings and let these go.The goals of meditation is to replace these with positive feelings. Meditation helps one to go deeper into one's being and appreciate what a relief it is to be able to surrender negative thoughts, let go all negative feelings that cloud judgment and reason.

Meditation ushers one into a different world. There is an experience of feeling peaceful and general well-being. Intuitive capabilities are enhanced with a feeling of assurance and "knowingness." One embraces unconditional love and psychic abilities are sharpened.

MINDFULNESS MEDITATION

Breathing is very important in meditation. It is a way to calm down and quieten the clutter in the mind. Thoughts will come and go as one meditates, especially at the start. Don't let this discourage you. Even expert meditators experience fleeting thoughts that intrude into their meditation. Just let it go and continue meditating.

The proper way to breathe is to extend the stomach on inhale, and contract on exhale. The shoulders should not move. Focus on counting as you breathe in and out.

Sit in an upright position, on the floor, lotus or semi- lotus position or sit on a chair. It is important to be comfortable.

Focus on breathing and nothing else.

Start with count of four or five as you breathe in. Hold your breath

Count the same as you breathe out.

Thoughts will come and go, don't let this stop you, just keep counting and breathing.

As you practice, increase the count. Savor the calmness and relax. Slowly, you can adopt a mantra, this helps you to keep your focus. As you practise, you will be able to clear your mind of intrusive thoughts. As time moves on, so will you. Discover the surreal world of meditation. There is a lot of doors to open.

Bonnie Moss writes to inspire and to motivate her readers to explore the depths of their heart and soul and make a difference in this world. She draws from personal experience and her interest in spirituality.

Visit her website :

http://goldencupcafe.tripod.com

Outdoor Feng Shui

Many homeowners pay careful attention to designing the inside of their homes and forget to take a good look at the outside. What does the exterior of your home look like? Does it convey a feeling of success and wealth, or does it suggest a feeling of poverty and misfortune?

I recommend you go outside and pretend you're seeing your house for the very first time. How does it look? Is there paint peeling? Are there things to be repaired, cleaned, planted, mulched or trimmed? If so, that's negative energy. It's important to create positive outdoor energy to allow new "opportunities to knock."

In Feng Shui, your front door is known as the "mouth of chi." It's the most important part of your home because this is where the energy enters. Your front entrance must be inviting. Is your front door clearly visible or is there confusion on where to go? Is there a clear pathway to your door? Is it well lit? If you gave me directions to your house can I find it easily? Is your house clearly numbered? If your pathway is blocked energy can't flow in. Since the front door is known as the "door to opportunity" if your front entrance is uninviting, cluttered or blocked you might be having financial difficulties, poor health, unhappy relationships, or constantly have obstacles get in your way.

Here are some Feng Shui Tips to get you started.

A painted front door can uplift the energy outside your home and also dazzle your entrance. A green door symbolizes money, a red door represents good fortune, a purple door signifies spirituality and a gold door welcomes prosperity.

Welcome mats are great for welcoming friends as well as new opportunities to come your way. Or if you prefer, you can even hang a welcome sign on your door at eye level.

Placing plants and flowers at your front entrance in beautiful, rich-looking containers can give your porch a facelift. Just be sure to stay away from unfriendly cactus or plants with pointed, spiky leaves.

Wind chimes are great for circulating the energy outside your home. You can place them anywhere on your property. I have one on my front porch to keep the positive energy ringing in.

Water fountains are considered to be lucky elements outside your home. They can be placed in your front or back yard. Since flowing water is associated with money, abundance and prosperity, the water should always flow towards your house. Just make sure that the water stays clean and flowing.

By now you have a few Feng Shui ideas to get you started on sprucing up your outdoors. It's important to beautifully "dress" the outside of your home and have fun in the process!

If you enjoyed this article, you'll love "Feng Shui Made Simple: Room By Room" ebook. Since your home mirrors your life it's important to create an environment that supports your goals and dreams. You have the power to create your best life yet and this book will give you the tools. Click this link to read more about this book: http://tinyurl.com/98rtkb

Setting Up Your First Fish Tank

I still remember every minute of the day I got my first fish tank. Of course, I said I wanted to start small, so I got my 10 gallon tank with 3 small Goldfish...six months later, I had a 75 gallon tank with 9 Goldfish. So, if you don't want to repeat the whole process very soon, I would recommend getting the largest tank that you can accommodate. It's actually easier to clean a bigger tank than a smaller one. Small tanks and bowls require a lot more maintenance, believe it or not. You can find more information about all that throughout the site. For now, let's hope that this guideline can help you set up your fish tank. Like I said, you can start with a 10, 20, 30 gallon tank or bigger, made of glass or acrylic. Glass is traditional, but the advantages of an acrylic tank are many. It's a lot lighter, seamless, and the clarity is unbeatable. Just remember to buy cleaning tools for acrylic and not glass.

Get an under gravel filter, UGF, a plastic cover with a fluorescent light, one pound-per-gallon of aquarium gravel or sand, an air pump and a heater. If you have some extra change, get a power head instead of an air pump and replace the hanging heater with a submergible model.

You can buy a complete setup without ornaments for a low price, and this is a great beginning. You also need a stand that can hold the tank. Remember it'll be very heavy once you add the water. Start out with plastic plants, and plastic or resin, maybe wood, stone or ceramic decorations. Be careful, not every rock or toy is good for your tank. Some have toxins that can kill your fish. Remember, a larger tank is easier to maintain than a small one and it can hold many more fish, which will lead to a more pleasant experience of fish keeping.

Once you have the equipment, the rest is easy. Choose a stable place to set the tank in your home.

Once it's filled you won't be able to move it without emptying it first and you don't want to do that, and try no to put it under the direct sunlight of a window or a very hot area, since heat makes algae grow faster, which means, cleaning will be harder.

There are more complicated and expensive ways to filter the gravel, but I recommend using under gravel filters (UGF). These sit on top of the glass in the bottom of the aquarium. Lift tubes are inserted into the risers at the rear of the filter, and then the under gravel filter is covered with gravel.

Rinse the gravel well and spread it so you get an even layer. You always have to rinse everything very well before putting it in the tank.

Now add the heater and the water pumps if necessary. If you have a hanging heater, hang it off the back, where you can still see it and tell if it's on. A submersible heater should go near the bottom of the tank because the heat rises. Find a location for your air pump and put your air line and air stones in. You will also need a gang valve for the air line, which will let you run two lift tubes off of a single outlet air pump. Run a piece of air line from the air pump to the gang valve. Run another air line from the gang valve to each of your lift tubes. Read the instructions for your filter to see exactly how to attach the air line to your particular air stones.

Power heads are great for aquariums. They draw water from under the UGF and pump it out of the power head, creating water movement as well as delivering oxygen to the fish and the beneficial bacteria that live in the gravel (substrate).

There are also mechanical filters on the market. I prefer the ones with a Bio Wheel. The Bio Wheel is a paper like cylinder that rotates as the water is returned to the tank. Beneficial bacteria live on the wheel and helps increase the biological cycle.

Now place your ornaments in the tank and see where you want them before you get your hands wet. Expect some ceramic or plastic decorations to float or tip over as you put water in the tank.

Once your decorations are in place, you are ready to add water. You can just pour tap water into the tank and since you have no fish, plants, or a biological filter to worry about, add the treatment after the tank is full. Be careful that the water doesn't dig a hole in the gravel as you pour it in.

It's good to wait a couple of days before adding fish. Remember that patience is important to have long living, happy fish.

Then you'll be ready to start the biological cycling process.

If you want more information about setting up or maintaining a fish tank, visit me at: http://www.thefishtankplace.com.

8 Feng Shui Ways to Be a Grandparent

You may ask what being a grandparent has to do with Feng Shui. My answer is, 'Feng Shui is our reaction to the environment.' Family is a piece of the puzzle.

Reflect back to when you heard you were becoming a grandparent, or fantasize about what it will be like. Did you or will you think, "I'm not ready for this?" Or, were you like (or will you be like) me ... so excited? The honor of a new life in our family meant many things, and I couldn't help but also daydream at the prospect of playing again, and freedoms I didn't feel I had as a parent. It is said that 'once a man, twice a child;' (Rabbis) -- meaning we are born and die with limited mental capabilities, yet live as adults once. While debatable, you get the concept.

Growing up, I did not want to hear how my parents walked a mile in snow to go to school. Certainly, our children don't want to hear the 'same old' from us. In most cases, they can't relate. Actually, my mother never went to school. She was in an Australian adoption home, never feeling wanted (and before education and 'school' was mandated). Dad left home at 16 to join the service because his father passed, and his Mother couldn't afford five children during the depression (one with a disability). As far as grandparents, I only knew one. She came to live with us following an auto accident, and on a good day she tolerated us.

Before both my parents passed, I asked each if we could go through pictures. Mom was an amateur photographer so she was delighted to dig the photos out. This endeavor was one of the most memorable times I had with them. Instead of asking what the pictures were ... I asked what they were going through at the time, who their support group was, and what their joys and fears were. After all, we all have heavy boots to wear (something to learn, ways that we suffer). My parents met during World War II and my uncles all served. The reality is that life doesn't come with an instruction manual (whether a parent, sibling, spouse, or parent). The questions I asked my parents were open ended, and invoked a bigger-picture explanation. Their answers provided a real glimpse into their lives.

So, this article is about children. We can ask ourselves how our lives would be different "if." We can't go back (at least not yet) so it is our duty to go forward. Learn from the past and don't make the same mistakes. My first pregnancy was an ectopic one so I never saw my child. My second born was my daughter (who eventually passed over). Keeping a long story short, decades later, my granddaughter was born. Gems that I have learned and want to share with you are listed below in a short list. It's not necessarily inclusive, and it is a place to start. Remember, our youth is our future. Help create it!

Eight Feng Shui ways to Be a Grandparent:

1. When viewing a picture of your grandchild, ask them what is going on in their life (friends, bullies, teachers they like, teachers they don't (and why to both), etc.) rather than about the picture itself.

2. Encourage them to be all they can be. Limitations will reveal themselves as your grandchild grows. Remember to include lost arts such as manners, and contributions such as chores.

3. Teach them that money is a tool, not an end to a means. That being said, also teach them how to manage money -- balance a checkbook, save, and avoid debt.

4. Set an example of acceptance. This might be an act of kindness every day to a stranger or neighbor. Let them see that everyone deserves respect.

5. Actions speak louder than words.

a. When you help others, take your grandchild with you.
b. When you volunteer (soup kitchen, food bank, clothing drive, picking up trash, etc.), take them with you.
c. When you vote, take them with you.
d. Let them know their action and words make a difference. Complaining isn't productive-instead, action discloses ways that work (or are discoveries in and of themselves). Coach them that wounds may heal but unkind words last forever-what we put into the world comes back to us.
e. Consider a change of perspective (make another city or country available). A change of environment can be eye opening.

6. Educate them that instant gratification is temporary.

a. Each person needs to learn their own truth and purpose. That means reading, processing, problem solving, and learning.
b. Technology (TV, the internet, iPods, etc.) occupies us but what has it really made better? Information can be controlled and manipulated. Take your grandchildren into nature and explore the wonders there. Seek other people to expand your horizons.
c. Enroll your grandchildren in growing, cooking, and shopping for healthy food.
d. Tutor them on what is good for Mother Earth (what is meant by sustainable, renewable, and attuning to the environment). It is rewarding to reuse, renew, and recycle.

7. Persuade them to write their own legacy-begin with the end in mind. Each one of us has an innate desire to make a difference. Ask your grandchild how they want to be remembered, and be supportive when the story changes.

8. Love them unconditionally. Let them know that no matter what happens, you are there for them.

There are wonderful books these days that offer more ideas, but I hope this has provided tips on 'being' with a grandchild. It is easy to get caught up in doing and buying, but 'being' means sharing ourselves.

Have you ever heard, "I'll be a better parent than you were!"? A great response to that is, "Good, you got it! We're supposed to learn as we grow." As you've heard before, 'We did not inherit the Earth of our forefathers, we inherited it from our children' (Crazy Horse). It reinforces the notion that we need to do things differently.

In conclusion, when people want to know what Feng Shui is, to me it is ultimately feeling safe and secure in my environment. My husband and I collect our granddaughter a couple times a month for an extended visit. We play, read, explore, and talk. It is a sacred time and an absolute joy. Hope for the future depends on what we make of today. It isn't up to one leader, one nation, or one relationship. It is up to us!

Diana Garber is a classic Feng Shui practitioner with nearly 30 years experience in energy and risk management. Her extensive corporate background and work with Fortune 100 companies sets her apart as an international consultant, speaker, author, and seasoned program manager. She utilizes over a dozen sciences to evaluate influences such as electromagnetic currents, geopathic stress, and other factors internal and external to one's living or work environments to improve clients' lives. Please visit our Web site at http://www.intuitiveconcepts.com for information, testimonies, and much more.

Chinese Proverbs

Nearly every society boasts of a high-quality collection of proverbs which denote life experiences along with the materialistic and intellectual depths of that culture. Humans are humans and by and large our understanding of the universe differs between every individual. Indisputably, each culture is one of a kind in a number of ways, and proverbs offer us a window to see the difference and the similarity between various cultures. Chinese proverbs could easily be termed as a living history as they unite the distant past with the present. They present a window through which Chinese people have traditionally and even presently view and understand their lives.

These proverbs are admired for their simplicity and wisdom, and the simple sheer number of them. You might derive a sense of gratification by going through this ancient heritage and will equally recognize the significance of these sayings. Chinese proverbs have the ability to take you back to the traditional Chinese way of life. With a 4,000-year record of civilization and culture, the Chinese have produced countless proverbs and you will find a proverb for almost any modern-day situation. In China, the well thought-out use of Chinese proverbs in writing is regarded as a symbol of higher learning and knowledge rather than a general knowledge of folklore or cliches.

A number of these proverbs and simply profound, having been crafted with the purpose of alleviating the sometimes unconventional thoughts and myths which permeated Chinese society at the time. These proverbs provide insight and tidbits of wisdom about Chinese society. Structurally, all proverbs can be further grouped into established phrases, proverbial sayings, admired sayings and two-part symbolic sayings. These are all incomparable to each other in the Chinese language, and are all vibrant with metaphors and layered meanings. Whilst most Chinese proverbs consist of only a few characters (words), when joined together they represent a tremendous amount of cultural depth, history and backstory.

An example of a Chinese proverb translated into English is: "A single ant may wipe out an entire dam, and be only afraid of standing still rather than to work slowly" which symbolizes at a surface level the power of every single individual in this universe. The proverb "Behind an able man, there are always other able men" signifies that being a leader will inspire others to follow. "Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without one" shows that man is a rational creature. "Better a good deed done close to home than a journey far away to burn incense" shows that people should be modest and stay away from pompous displays of fluff. "It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness" sums up the Chinese Confucian philosophy to life - do something to alleviate your idleness, don't just complain about it.

Jackie Tan is a Feng Shui writer and enthusiast, and part of the team behind BeingBlissful.com

Types of Salt in the Market

If you pay some attention on the health issues today, there are many articles discussed about the effect of salt in our diet. In the market today, we can find it in many forms and each carries different contents depend on the application, flavor and place of origin. Some is claimed to be better than the other in terms of mineral contents and processes, so we need to know what we consume everyday and do we have better options?

Table salt
It is what we buy from the shops and consume in our food everyday. We use it for cooking most of the time because it is the cheapest and easily available. It contains mostly sodium chloride with additional of iodine. It is currently produced by evaporation of sea water or brine. Usually it is obtained from brine wells and making use of energy from sunlight. Other than cooking, it is also used in manufacturing of pulp and paper, produce soap and so on. Recently there are many health issue associate with it especially high blood pressure.

Kosher
It has a much larger grain size, and a more open granular structure. It is coarse-grained and free of additives that tend to cause pickling solutions to cloud.

Sea salt
It is believed to be better in taste and texture. It is also the coarse and unrefined sea salt that contains many minerals, such as calcium, potassium, magnesium, and sulfate. It generally lacks high concentrations of iodine an element essential for human health, it is not necessarily a healthful substitute for regular iodized table salt

Black salt
It is usually found in Indian markets and sounds uncommon to people in other locations. The characteristic is that it is strong in flavor. The structure is unrefined, and it is actually pinkish gray and has a strong sulfuric flavor. In traditional medicine, it is considered as a cooling spice in Ayurvedic medicine.

Bamboo salt
It is roasted in bamboo and contains more types of minerals balance that is suitable for our body. It is originated from Korean traditional medicine practice. It is believed that it contains the benefit of salt, bamboo and yellow clay that mixed together during the burning process. In order to enhance the benefits, it is repeatedly roasted in bamboo for 3-9 times before it is good for consumption.

Rock salt
It is also called halite and it is inedible. It is the mineral form of Sodium Chloride (NaCl), typically is colorless to yellow, sometime may also in light blue, dark blue, and pink depending on the amount and type of impurities. The primary use is to make ice cream. It is also used to clear highway from icing during winter.

Understanding salt can help us a lot and it is the basic to our health, the reason is simple, because everybody needs it. Our body needs it to stay healthy and nutritionally balanced provided we take the correct type. We need more mineral balanced type of salt to maintain the proper function in our body and stay in good health.

by Steven Chai, a purchasing manager in metal scrap industry, affected by financial crisis and go into home business. He started up a new website for Bamboo Salt.

Grandparents As Primary Caregivers - Paradise Lost

The true definition of a grandparent is the parent of a child's parent. In today's society, more and more grandparents are stepping in as parents because their son or daughter is unwilling or unable to give their child proper care. While this situation may be better off for the well being of the child, both the grandparent and the child lose something in the process

Children can learn quite a lot from their grandparent if both parties are in their traditional roles. They can spend quality time together and form a deep and lasting bond because the grandparent is able to treat the grandchild as an equal. But this equation changes as the grandparent becomes the parent. He is now the authority figure in the child' s life and may even had to come out of retirement to provide for the child. As for spending quality time with the child, there is a good reason that as human beings we have our children when we are younger. The grandparent may not have the stamina to work and spend time with the child. The chance to form that special bond between the grandparent and the grand child has disappeared.

Psychologically speaking, returning to being a parent figure after so many years can also put extra stress on the grandparent. These older people do not have the patience or the tolerance to raise another child, and may be dealing with feelings of guilt because of the anger that they feel towards their own child for placing them in this position. The child may also be dealing with feelings of abandonment, which the grandparent is trying to cope with also. Basically, it is an emotional time bomb that could explode at any moment and the grandparent may not have the strength to defuse the situation. All these volatile feelings can also block the way to the grandparent and grandchild having a normal relationship.

If as a grandparent you find yourself in the position as parent to your grandchild, there are several things that you can do to make the situation as easy as possible. First, you should take care of your health. You have someone else depending on you now and you can't afford to end up sick or in the hospital.

You may also want to take some parenting courses at a local school or online. It may have been quite a few years since you were a parent and the issues faced by today's youth may have you at a loss. You can also check for support groups for grandparents in the role of parents. These other older adults may give you some insight into the child's feelings and reactions.

You may also want to consider counseling for both you and your grandchild. You are both dealing with a lot of strong emotions, you towards your child and your grandchild towards his parent. By going through therapy together, you may find that it will create a bond between you and your grandchild. It may also make him feel better to know that you are just as confused as he is.

Finally, you should see an attorney to discover how you can obtain any legal documentation that your grandchild may need as well as starting permanent custody arrangements.

Transforming from a grandparent to a parent is not an easy situation for any of the parties concerned. You should keep talking to your grandchild and show him that you love and support him while both of you are making the transition. After all, the two of you are in it together and you may be surprised to discover that you both make a pretty good team.

Find helpful and creative ideas for parents and grandparents while you shop our affordable kids furniture. For more information, visit this article on wooden toy boxes

Lighting a Charcoal BBQ Grill Fast and Easy

The best as well as the easiest way to light charcoal briquettes is by using a charcoal chimney starter. This is an aluminum cylinder with a wooden handle on the outside and a metal shelf on the inside that separates the cylinder into to sections. The top section is about 2/3 the length of the cylinder and the bottom section is 1/3 the length of the cylinder. There are round holes surrounding the bottom 1/3 of the cylinder as well as holes inside on the shelf that separates the two sections.

To use the charcoal chimney starter, you need 2 to 3 sheets of newspaper. Wad or roll the sheets together loosely into a long cylinder. I don't wrap it too tight so that air can circulate while it is burning. Curl the the sheets into a donut shape with a hole in the center. Fit the paper donut into the bottom of the chimney starter. Try to have a few stray pieces of paper sticking out of the holes. This makes it easier to light. If you want you can use paraffin cubes either bought in the store or made out of something like a cardboard egg crate you buy your eggs in.

Fill the top section of the cylinder with charcoal. I prefer to use briquettes in the chimney starter. Lump charcoal burns too quickly. Place the chimney starter on the floor or charcoal shelf of your bbq grill and light the newspaper through the holes on the bottom of the charcoal chimney starter. The charcoal lights fairly fast and should be ready in about 15 minutes. Lump charcoal is a lot faster to start but also burns out faster, so I don't use it in the chimney starter. The charcoal is ready when you see a coating of white ash over almost all of the charcoals.

When the coals are ready, carefully poor the coals into the grill and spread them evenly around the grill bed. Remember to safely place the very hot charcoal chimney starter away from pets and children so they don't get burned. Also, don't put the hot chimney starter on the grass because it can cause a fire.

A second method to light the charcoals is with paraffin cubes bought at a store or made at home with cardboard egg crates. Place a few paraffin cubes in the middle of your grill bed or charcoal grate. Then build a pyramid of charcoal briquettes over and around the paraffin cubes. Light the cube and when all the briquettes are evenly lit and covered with ash spread them evenly out around the grill bed.

I don't like or recommend starter fluid readily available in stores. These fluids can impart a taste to the charcoal that I don't like and I prefer a more natural non chemical way to start my fire.

A chimney starter holds about 90 to 100 briquettes. This should cover 2/3 of the area of a standard 22 1/2 inch standard charcoal kettle grill like the commonly used Webber kettle grill. It is important to use the right amount of briquettes so that you get an even heat. The charcoal briquettes should extend a minimum of 4 inches in every direction beyond whatever food you are cooking. This will allow an even heat and let your food cook evenly.

For more tips and great information to make your next barbecue memorable visit the bbq-expert.com We show you what to look for in your next bbq grill, how to light a charcoal bbq grill properly and everything in between.

Numbers in Feng Shui and the Fortunate Number 8

There has been so much discussion about feng shui with the Olympic Games in Beijing and in particular the symbolism and meaning of numbers. It was interesting to hear western broadcasters repeatedly refer to the fortunate number "8". So Let's talk about the number 8 in feng shui terms. Presently, we are in what is called a period 8 cycle.

Cycles in feng shui are 20 years in length and the period 8 cycle began in 2004. The number 8 is associated with the northeast mountain, the earth element and the life aspiration of knowledge. We are careful not to place a water feature in the northeastern area of the home or property during period 8 because the water element competes with the earth element and in feng shui we are seeking to harmonize the elements. The numbers 1 through 9 are associated with the compass directions and their corresponding elements (fire, wood, earth, metal and water) plus the center of the home.

Because we are in period 8, the numbers 9 and 1 also having increasing energy. One aspect of the feng shui assessment is to analyze the numbers in each area of the home and harmonize the elements associated with them. For example, let's say the bedroom has a 3/8 combination. 3 = wood and 8 = earth; wood controls earth. In this 3/8 combination, the 8 is in the wealth/ career position and can be interpreted as 3 wood controlling or dominating the 8 earth wealth/career energy in the bedroom. As a consultant I would recommend to my client to place a red accent (perhaps a red candle) in this area of the home. The red candle or red accent serves to burn up the 3 wood and add to the 8 earth alleviating the dominating cycle of the elements and releasing the wealth/career position of the 8 earth.

This is one feng shui factor I always address when I am on a consultation. What is the number combination based on? It is based on the home's year of construction and the compass direction. On my website there are step by step instructions on how to take a compass reading (see Feng Shui Compass Instructions ). These are considered the "permanent" numbers and are part of the home's energy matrix. If you are able to supply me with the compass reading according to the instructions given and the year of construction I will send you a Customized 1 Page Report recommending which elements will harmonize the number combinations in the 8 areas plus the center of your home. The cost is $10.00.

To summarize, the fortunate number 8 being highlighted in the mainstream media is associated with the present 20 year cycle, known in feng shui circles as Period 8. The northeast part of the home is where the mountain 8 resides and your feng shui placement should include objects of art and accents that are gold. The idea is that you are unlocking the gold from the mountain! It has been a challenging economic year for so many people, particularly in the housing market, but I have to say by giving attention to the feng shui basics you can add to your own stability and support. Many of the powerful things in life are subtle.

MaryAnn Russell is an expert in the field of environmental energy. For over a decade the focus of her research and practice has been on the feng shui factors that truly influence the quality of people's lives. "The focus of my practice is to make feng shui relevant, practical and useful so that people can gain the greatest possible benefit from their living spaces." MaryAnn is the author of The Feng Shui Factor Modern Homes Ancient Blueprint. ISBN: 978-1-4218-9965-7 - Available at 1stworldpublishing.com and Amazon.com

For more tips, video presentation, purchase book go to:
http://www.fengshuifactor.com
MaryAnn Russell
714.842.7728

Why You Shouldn't Hate Math

People hate math, at least that's what they're always telling me. Of course, being the way that I am, I have to make converts of everyone. I don't know what my passion is exactly, that drives me to convert the "math haters," but I simply cannot overcome the compulsion to do so. To me, there is not just beauty in mathematics but something else which is spiritual. It's as though God speaks to us through this strange and mysterious language. For this reason, I always approach the subject with a certain degree of humility and reverence, knowing that I can be both abased and exalted by its magnificence.

But why try to make math converts? Why not simply preach to the choir of that rare group of math lovers? Well firstly, the latter group is minuscule in comparison to the former, and secondly, there has always been something noble in trying to make a "believer" out of a "doubter." Moreover, I have this firm belief that our society advances or stands still according to the progress of its children. If the children of society are reared properly, then the future success of such a society is strongly enhanced. If the children are adulterated, ill-educated, and poorly motivated........well, then guess what? Do you really expect a brighter future for mankind? Hardly.

It is for this reason that I go around preaching the importance of mathematics, particularly the foundations of arithmetic. To this day, when I work with a student and see him or her struggling with the topic at hand-whether it be algebra, geometry, or even a higher branch such as calculus-I come to observe that invariably a weak foundation is the root cause of the struggle. In addition, the student's lack of confidence makes the fight even more challenging. The struggle having increased without remedy, the student eventually succumbs and adopts an "I hate math" attitude.

What is encouraging for such cases and certainly worth stressing is that all of mathematics hinges on the basics of arithmetic. It is unfortunate that much of a student's frustration in his studies later on is the result of poor mastery of arithmetic. For this reason I say, "Soundly drill this discipline into the minds of our children and the chances of success in higher mathematics is dramatically increased." A good analogy to make would be with sports and professional athletes. Expert athletes master the basics. The Tiger Woods of the world spent countless hours practicing the fundamentals of golf swinging. The ace pitchers of baseball worked on mastering the mechanics of certain pitches. In both cases, these athletes practiced endless rounds with a keen focus on both speed and accuracy. Even great coaches understand the importance of the fundamentals: this is why athletes spend countless hours in training camp going over the basic exercises and drills. This same concept applies to mathematics. Master the basics and the chances of success later on are increased dramatically.

Consequently, in mathematics, once the foundations are mastered, success comes in this discipline as easily as it does in others. Okay. Maybe not as easily, but certainly success will come nonetheless. And as mathematics is so powerful in helping us march forward as a society-indeed mathematics unfolds to us mysteries of the very universe itself-there really is no need to hate this most awesome subject, but rather love it.

See more at Math Ebook Online Bookstore

Joe is a prolific writer of self-help and educational material and an award-winning former teacher of both college and high school mathematics. Under the penname, JC Page, Joe authored Arithmetic Magic, the little classic on the ABC's of arithmetic. Joe is also author of the charming self-help ebook, Making a Good Impression Every Time: The Secret to Instant Popularity; the original collection of poetry, Poems for the Mathematically Insecure, and the short but highly effective fraction troubleshooter Fractions for the Faint of Heart. The diverse genre of his writings (novel, short story, essay, script, and poetry)-particularly in regard to its educational flavor- continues to captivate readers and to earn him recognition.

Joe propagates his teaching philosophy through his articles and books and is dedicated to helping educate children living in impoverished countries. Toward this end, he donates a portion of the proceeds from the sale of every ebook. For more information go to http://www.mathbyjoe.com

Finding Homes Using the Internet - Home Shopping

You can simply type the words real estate or homebuying into any search engine on the World Wide Web and you will come up with hundreds, maybe even thousands of websites that are extremely helpful and full of great information. Like the one you're on right now.

Finding homes with the internet, combined with a skilled real estate salesperson, provides you with the most effective technology available today. Most websites start out, having you select a state you would like to search in and then, select a city, with your price range.

By answering their questions, this narrows the search down to all of the homes available in the area. The internet has made home shopping very simple. Considering what you had to go through in the 1970s. You found a realtor or by looking in the yellow pages, sometimes you found a good realtor and if you are lucky, maybe you would find you a good home.

Most of the time, the first homes you would look at, were owned by the real estate professional you were working with.

There are however a couple of problems with using the internet to find your dream home. Some of the verbage used and photographs taken can create a wonderful illusion of a tropical paradise but the reality, it's a regular home in a decent neighborhood.

Some of these photos are taken by skilled photographers who take advantage of every angle and tend to give an illusion of grander. When you actually start driving around and looking at these homes, only then will you get a reality check, of what the home actually looks like. You'll get used to it.

After you've looked at a few of your future dream homes, you will get a better idea of what I'm talking about with these wonderful pictures and the extraordinary home descriptions like "Beautiful Three Bedroom House with an Ocean View." When reality it's a two-bedroom house with an extra closet for the third bedroom and the ocean is 45 miles away, but you can see it on a clear day if you actually climb to the top of the largest tree on the property.

Take your time when searching for your dream home and don't let any one push you into making a decision if you're not ready. If you find your real estate professional a little too aggressive or pushy, get out of your contract, if you've signed one and find another, more helpful real estate salesperson to help you with your home purchase.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a home buyers guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

Find other real estate tips and great advice, from another one of the Internet's best website creators.

What Happens To Nonbelieving

Time Management in the Workplace - Slow Down and Still Get More Done

Do you know what an overworked machine looks like? It functions at its optimum level right before it finally breaks down.

Does this seem like you?

Has your life turned into one big race to beat the clock? Does it feel like no matter what you do, you can never seem to catch up? Has this pressure to catch up caused you to go into overdrive - working faster and harder - fearing that one day you too might just break down?

Being on overdrive leads us to belief that we are being more productive. However, the reality is, it can be the quite opposite. When you are on overdrive, you are in a "do, do, do!" mode, without being able to slow down and step back.

As a Result, Time Management in the Workplace Suffers.

Instead, step back and slow down. Doing this can be very beneficial to your overall productivity in the workplace. Slowing down allows you to plan so you can do more with less effort and time. It also allows you to think more clearly and strategize better as you are less stressed and have more energy.

So, if you seem to be caught running on all cylinders, yet can't seem to get anything accomplished, it's time to step on the brakes and slow down.

Listed below are useful strategies for time management in the workplace, which you can use to ease yourself out of overdrive, yet still be as productive as you want to be.

Time Management Strategy #1 - Learn to delegate tasks. Whenever possible, delegate less important errands, especially repetitive tasks that can be done by a lower level staff member or assistant. Assigning minor tasks to others gives you extra time to take care of the more important projects and assignments, especially those that are critical for decision making and those that impact the bottom line.

Delegation not only saves you time, but money as well. The less time you waste on petty errands, the more time and money you can save by focusing on the bigger goals. Of course, there will always be tasks that require your attention and personal touch, so focus on those tasks yourself.

Time Management Strategy #2 - Brainstorm. Hold meetings with your staff to brainstorm better time management in the workplace techniques. They may have fantastic ideas that they have not voiced because they were never given the opportunity. Their specific skills and experience puts them in a good position to make thoughtful recommendations on use of time, ease of work, and improving job efficiency. This will encourage your staff to work together as a group to become a more effective, time efficient unit.

Remember, heed smart ideas and give credit where it is due. Otherwise employees will be unwilling to share their ideas in the future.

Time Management Strategy #3 - Go for a Walk. Slowing down means clearing your mind from the cluttering effects of your office. The best way to do this is go outside, walk around, and get some fresh air. This may sound like a waste of time, but it is very effective in de-stressing which plays a big part in easing you out of overdrive.

Also, talking a nice relaxing walk helps you remove all the ancillary worries from your mind that can get in the way of important obligations you have to focus on. By eliminating these distractions, your mind can be freed to better focus on these obligations, be more creative, and hence, be more productive.

In the workplace, it is easy to find ourselves falling into a fast track routine. However, the fast track might not be the right track. Meaning, it might not be the best pace for you to do the things you need to get done. Instead of the fast track, focus on the smart track.

The smart track is to slow down, relax, and plan ahead on ways you can save time. Doing so will allow you to do more without burning out like our overworked machine we mentioned in the first paragraph.

To learn more time management in the workplace strategies and how to achieve a work life balance, visit http://www.selfmadeeasy.com, a self help and personal development company.

Bathroom Moisture Problems - Home Repair

Right above my bathtub in my master bathroom the paint is peeling off the wall. The area is peeling above the tile in my bathtub and shower combination. I tried to glue the peeling paint back and only made the situation worst.

First things first. The paint is peeling because there is to much moisture in the bathroom while you are using it. Do you have any windows you can open or a ventilating bathroom fan. If you have a window crack it open part way while you are showering.

The water droplets will accumulate on the walls and drip into any cracks. Right above the tile grout is a great place for moisture to accumulate. Oh yeah moisture loves grout and drywall. If you have any unpainted areas or an area that has cracked. Guess what you have now.

Your paint is peeling because the bathroom gets hot and cold. Moist and dry. If you have the door and windows shut. You just created a moisture trap. Most people prefer their privacy and will closes the door when using the shower. Well then open the window and let some cold air in while you are taking a nice warn shower. I don't think so. Most showering fools don't like that idea either.

Ok one more idea keep the windows shut so you don't let the cold air in. Then lock the door so no on barges in on you. If you have a ventilation fan turn it on. This will at least pull fresh air in from under the door and send the moist air out of the house.

But the fan is so noisy and I can't enjoy my nice warm vapor producing shower that will eventually cause me to get sick from mold particles floating around in the air while I am using my bathroom.
Does this about sum it up for you and don't we all do this from time to time. We want to enjoy our shower time, so we close up everything and when we are in our bath sauna environment relaxing our house is getting some damaging moisture that could cause mold and mildew.

Open a window or door a little when you shower. Get some air circulating through the bathroom and prevent damage to your nice house.

Put up with a little inconvenience for you homes sake and your pocket book.

Greg Vanden Berge has been in the home building and remodeling business in California for over 30 years. With this knowledge he has created a few websites that provide useful information for home owners as well as contractors. His main goal is to educate professionals in the home related businesses, dealing with problems that can easily be avoided with just a little bit of information.

His website provides all kinds of answers to remodeling and new house building in North San Diego Home Remodeling Carlsbad Home Remodeling

Visit us now for Bathroom Ideas

Religion Articles

What You Need to Know to Improve Your Study Skills

Improving your study skills will make you a better student when taking tests and exams for any subject. Students who struggle to perform on tests do so for a variety of reasons. A big reason why certain students struggle is a failure to prepare properly. Students may be studying but not fully using their time wisely. This article will talk about how motivation and a desire to be great is the fundamental building block to success.

Tiger Woods is a classic example of motivation and a desire to be great, having that motivation and desire means going to the driving range and hitting 1000 golf balls everyday. But how do you get motivated or if you perceive to not have motivation how do you develop it. The answer is to find what motivates you. What I mean by that is what do you want to accomplish. Not knowing what you want to achieve makes it very difficult to get motivated.

Motivation and desire are often not always the difference between a great student and a good student. Its the difference the majority of times between a good student and a student who just gets by. Improving your study skills takes commitment and a desire to want to change. In essence you have to be motivated to make that change. Motivation can happen very quickly if you make the conscience decision to embrace it. That is the point of this article and how it relates to improving your study skills. To improve you must focus on it, set goals and get motivated to learn new study skills and then apply them. If you do you will see results in the classroom and exams guaranteed.

I have written a ton of articles on tips and study suggestions but without goals, desire and motivation all these tips will not help you. Students who graduate Magna Cum Laude have the desire to be great in school. They have a focus, they make sacrifices and they are motivated to complete a task to the best of their ability. If you want to be great at whatever you do strive for it and don't stop until you reach your goals.

My motivation was to become a better student by learning how to improve my study skills and also learning how to increase my study speed. Motivation will help you become a better student guaranteed but you have to find it and use it. As mentioned before becoming a better student is learning how to increase your study speed. A website you can go to to learn the benefits of speed studying is here SpeedStudyMethod.com Imagine how well of a test taker you will be when you can study twice the material in half the time. My motivation was because I had more time to focus on other things. There are many benefits to using this method of studying. I used this method and was able to finish my undergrad in 3 and half years and currently I carry a 3.79 in my MBA program. If you want to be a better student follow these tips and check the website out you won't regret it.

Bathroom Faucet Leaks

Faucet leaks can waste more water than you think. Have you ever put a cup or bowl underneath a leaky faucet and actually seen how much water is wasted. Leaky faucets should be repaired as soon as possible to prevent the waste of water in your home. Water is a precious resource and should be used wisely.

One slow drip from the faucet can waste over 5 gallons of water per day. If you think that's not a big deal, let me put it in perspective for you. 5 gallons of water per day equals 35 gallons per week, times 52 weeks in a year, that equals over 1800 gallons of water, and that's a lot of water.

The problem with a faucet leak isn't just the amount of water it waste, it will soon start to deteriorate your sinks, bathtubs and showers and could damage other sections of the home, like the wood framing. I've seen a water drip in a steel kitchen sink, in just a few years, wear a hole right through it. Keep in mind water and wind formed the Grand Canyon, water can be extremely erosive.

Faucet leaks can attract house pests, like mice, flies, ants and a wide variety of other insects.

Most faucets can usually be repaired for under $20. Most of the time the problem will be in the valves or handles that turn the water on and on. If you're not familiar with plumbing parts, you could pick up a do-it-yourself home repair manual or go online and look up the manufacturer of your faucet, for more information.

Usually the manufacturer has a diagram of the faucet, broken down into sections and you could get a pretty good idea, what parts you will need to remove, in order to replace the damaged part or parts that are creating the water leak.

Calling a plumber seems to be most homeowners last resort. They only do it if they absolutely have to. If you don't understand how a faucet works and have no desire to learn how, I would suggest you call a plumber or contact someone who can help you with your faucet leak, but get the faucet leak fixed and quit wasting water.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a Home Buyers Guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.
If your looking for some more bathroom remodeling or home building ideas.

Does God Make Mistakes

Jay McGraw's Life Strategies For Dealing With Bullies

My little girl is only four years old, so bullies have not yet been much of a problem. (Except for one bigger boy at the park one day who made her cry, but we never did find out just what he said) However, as someone who also teaches martial arts and self-defense, I recognize the problem of bullies. In fact, I agree with Dr. Phil McGraw's first line of the foreword he wrote, "Bullies have been a huge problem for as long as there has been any kind of society." Therefore, I enjoyed Jay McGraw's "Life Strategies For Dealing With Bullies" very much. I provided me with further information for my teaching and writing, and I also have this great book on the shelf when my daughter gets a bit older. It will be a book we read and discuss together.

I like that this book teaches the reader how to help themselves, but also how to get help when bullied. No one should be intimidated, harassed, and especially physically abused, and those doing such things need to be stopped. This book has plenty of good advice on how to do just that.

The book is written so a younger person can understand it, but due to the serious topic, it is a good read for adults as well, especially those of us that are parents or work with kids. I especially liked that Jay McGraw emphasized that we must put a stop to bullying, and that starts with the reader.

The first chapter starts with a description of what bullying is. I was surprised to see that a year 2000 source claimed that more than five million students in grades six through eleven were affected by bullying. Readers will also find out there are many ways to bully, and in chapter two the focus is on e-bullying, something not around when I was a kid. Computers and technology have changed the way things are done, including bullying.

Chapter three discusses the whys of bullying and why people do it. I think this is important to know as one starts to confront bullying. Chapter four goes into the damage bullies can do, up to kids killing themselves. Reading this chapter I sure don't want any of these things to ever happen to my little girl. Chapter five helps the reader recognize when they are being bullied. Believe it or not, but some bullying is not as recognizable and obvious, but can still have harmful effects.

Chapter six is a great chapter if you think your child might be bullying others. It focuses on if you are a bully. With so many people being bullied, that means a lot are bullying. This is a good chapter to help recognize that and cut it off before it gets worse.

Chapter seven got into what I was really looking for, taking on bullies and what kids can do. This chapter is very good at helping the reader realize they have worth, and then it provides strategies to deal with bullies. When I grew up the advice for facing bullies was to stand up to them and pop them one and they would then leave you alone. This in fact does work, and has worked for people. However, I much prefer McGraw's "Fight Back Without Fighting" methods. The remind me of Bruce Lee in "Enter the Dragon," the art of fighting without fighting. With that said, I still believe there are times when physically fighting is appropriate. McGraw does not agree with me, but then he is not a martial artist and self-defense instructor. And there are times when someone must be able to stand up to bullies physically too.

The eighth chapter deals with bystanders. You might not be the victim of bullying, but as the title of chapter eight says, there are no innocent bystanders. This is a good chapter for anyone who knows of someone being bullied. Remember, this book is aimed at a younger audience, to actually help kids being bullied. So chapter nine focuses on educating parents. It tells kids how to ask for help. Chapter ten lets kids know what they can ask schools to do. And finally, chapter eleven discusses forgiving a bully.

I feel this is a very important book on a very important topic. I like that it is aimed at the younger audience, and would be very good for 9-13 year olds to read. Each chapter includes journal exercises that kids can at least think about and figure out for themselves what they can do, and what they will do.

This is a timely and much needed book. Five stars because he is addressing a very important topic. It provides tools to deal with bullies in a very direct no-nonsense approach. I recommend it for anyone who has kids that are being bullied, or for those kids who are bullies. It should also be read by those that work with kids and are in positions to help stop bullies and bullying. Stop bullying in its tracks, and start with Jay McGraw's "Life Strategies For Dealing With Bullies."

Alain Burrese, J.D. is a mediator/attorney with Bennett Law Office P.C. and an author/speaker through his own company Burrese Enterprises Inc. He teaches people to live with the warrior's edge through his writing and speaking on a variety of topics focusing on the business areas of negotiation and success principles as well as self-defense and safety topics. He is the author of Hard-Won Wisdom From the School of Hard Knocks, several instructional dvds, and numerous articles. You can find out more about Alain Burrese at his websites http://www.burrese.com and http://bennettlawofficepc.com

Cost Effective Stair Building

What is the most cost effective way of building stairs? Why do the tract homes use on site methods of construction? When you think of a factory assembling a product on a assembly line you think why not a home. Why do they still build homes on lots or residential home sites?

If homes could be built in a factory cheaper than on site that is exactly what every home builder would be doing. They just haven't quite figured it out yet. When dealing with the large amounts of materials required to build a house and of course the expense of shipping. It is not cost effective to build a conventional home in a factory and ship it over long distances.

This is the biggest problem with cost effective stair construction. Most prefabricated stairs you will notice are spiral stairs. These stairs are smaller than most stairs that are used for multi level construction.

Spiral stairs are hard for your average carpenter to build. These stairs can be purchased from a factory easily and quite inexpensive.

The stairs in your average two story house are going to weigh about 3 times the amount of a spiral set of stairs that could be shipped in a cost effective way. Spiral stairs are not going to be the main stairway in a home and normally go up to a loft or an attic. Most spiral stairs don't meet the minimum building requirements for the main stairway in your home.

When building tract homes the lumber is shipped in bulk directly to the house site where it will be assembled. The lumber and other building materials will be shipped once. If it went to a factory and then assembled it would also have to be sent to the site on which the house was to be built. This added expense in shipping the materials twice is the problem for such a large and heavy item such as a set of stairs.

There are other prefabricated types of stairs that are built locally and the shipping usually is not a major expense. If you are building a stairway that is not to difficult to build for the average carpenter it will normally be cost effective to build the stairs on site. This would require having the carpenter build the stairs as part of the rough framing and then after drywall have the finish carpenter build the stair handrail system.

Visit us now for easy Home Constuction Help

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more building stairs books and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

When Do We Get To Meet God

Questioning Your Religion - Movie Video

Are you one of those who believed in your religion wholeheartedly and never has doubted it. Watch this video to gather some more information about questioning your religion.

Start Living Your Dreams Today and Create a Wonderful Life For Yourself And Your Family. Greg Vanden Berge is one of the best inspirations on the planet. You will be hearing a lot about this guy in the future. You can count on it.

Attic Odors and Strange Smells

If you've ever opened up your attic access hole, only to find one of the worst odors you have ever smelled in your whole life, I've been there too. What causes these horrible smells and what can you do about them?

Let's start with the cause of these smells, moisture, dirt, mold, mildew, dead animals, animals that make their home in your attic and the biggest problem of all is normally poor ventilation.

Poor ventilation is the biggest problem with musty smells in the attic. These smells are often caused from moisture accumulating in the building materials over time. If there is enough moisture in the attic, the wood will start to rot but this wouldn't be a normal situation, unless there was a roof or water leak.

Roof leaks can cause a constant supply of water to one part of the attic. This constant supply of water will eventually rot the wood and damage the ceiling. Water leaks from pipes can provide a steady supply of water and the situation can attracts termites and mold. Not a good thing.

One of the worst possible smells or odors in your attic would be a dead animal. Don't under estimate the size of some of these animals, they have found dead raccoons, cats, snakes, large birds, squirrels, rats and mice in some attics. These animals usually enter through damaged access holes or vent blocks, roof vents, large gaps, holes and even fireplace chimneys.

Once these animals die, their bodies start to decompose and produce one horrible odor. Once the body is completely decomposed, the smell usually goes away if the attic is ventilated properly. These smells can seep into the homes living area, often creating a room that no one wants to enter.

Home peststhat make their home in your attics, often create smells from urinating and defecating in the areas around their nest. Large birds like owls can become a problem over time.

Now that we've figured out some of the causes for attic odors and strange smells, what can we do to prevent this from happening and if it's already happened, how can we get rid of the smell.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a Home Buyers Guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

If your having problems in your attic, find out more at pest control books and home building ideas.

If I Hate My Brother

The Good People Get to Go to Heaven

I found a website that was recommended to me and it had the comment, is Jesus the only way to heaven at, Gotquestions, seems like your typical Christian website that replies with biblical quotes and simple to follow information. If I was lost, they will help me find a way. There's even a button at the bottom that states, I have accepted Christ today. I guess if I was to push that button, I get to go to heaven and be with Jesus. Hard to imagine, avoiding a life of burning in hell could be as simple as pushing a button and uttering a few simple words.

I found this question and began reading their comment. The first comment is from somebody answering as a nonbeliever in Christianity. It states something like, if I'm basically a good person and live a moral life, I get to go to heaven, right, only the bad people like murderers go to hell.

Now the answer that the website gives, seems to create fear if you do not belong to Christianity and provide you with hope if you join the group.

It mentioned Satan as the ruler of the world, and he can plant these thoughts into your head if you're not a Christian. He also controls your mind and let's you believe, that it would only make sense to any rational person, they get to go to heaven if they're good.

Now this is what makes sense to me but according to this information, I am doomed to rot in hell for eternity, even if I am a pretty good person. All I have to do is accept Christ as God and I get to go to heaven. That seems pretty easy and I wonder why more people don't do it. Just push the button.

I wonder if Satan is controlling, non-Christians minds and that's why there's brutality and war throughout the world. If everyone was a Christian, would our world be better.

Here's a quote from Wikipedia The Crusades were a series of religion-driven military campaigns waged by much of Christian Europe against external and internal opponents. Crusades were fought mainly against Muslims, though campaigns were also directed against pagan Slavs, Jews, Russian and Greek Orthodox Christians, Mongols, Cathars, Hussites, Waldensians, Old Prussians, and political enemies of the popes.

These Christian Crusades killed thousands of people. To give you an idea how many people were killed, all I had to do was type the word crusades into a search engine and it took me to the Christian Crusades.

I guess that rules that out, it seems like the Christians a long time ago were pretty aggressive towards their enemies, I wonder if most Christians would refer to these people as enemies today or are they just being controlled by Satan. Do these Christians from the Crusades get to go to heaven? If people like this get to go to heaven, may be hell is a better place anyway.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Check out one of his recommended books, Mere Christianity

Here's something to think about, go to heaven

Advantages of Framing With Steel Studs

I have heard all sorts of stories over the years of the advantages in framing with steel versus wood studs. One time I even heard you could build an entire house with the amount of recycled steel from a large automobile such as a Cadillac. I find this hard to believe unless you're building a very small home.

My personal favorite for framing with steel studs is that they are extremely straight. I have built nonbearing partition walls using 12 foot 3 1/2 inch wide steel studs and after the drywall you can lay an 8 foot level to check it for straightness on the wall with amazing results.

If you use 3 1/2 inch wide steel studs with 5/8 of an inch drywall you will get an extremely durable and sturdy wall. Framing was steel studs is common in office renovations or remodeling. Most of the steel stud framing is done via the drywall contractors.

Steel studs and termites do not mix. You'll never have to worry about these little buggers or other uninvited house pests damaging your walls.

Over the years I have heard stories that steel framed buildings are earthquake and fire proof. They might be more resistant to fire than wood but keep in mind when metal is hot enough it will bend and warp making it unusable.

When I hear people talking about a fireproof building built with metal framing components my first thought is all of the other materials used in building the house that are not fire resistant. Don't get a false illusion when buying a house framed with steel studs and think it is 100% fire proof.

As far as steel framed buildings being earthquake proof this is another story. I really can't comment too much on earthquake damage to a steel building. The problem with earthquakes is they seem to create fires. So even if you're building does survive an earthquake it could get damaged by a fire in the area.

I have framed more wood homes than steel homes over the years and my steel stud construction is limited to nonbearing partition walls usually located in office buildings. I love framing with metal because of its light weight and ease of construction.

I still love framing with wood. There is something about what framing that I have always loved and always will.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as

well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Visit us and get more information on House Framing Ideas

Ask And You Might Receive Or Ask

Good Communication Makes All the Difference

Have you ever heard the phrase "we just can't communicate?" We just don't get along anymore and we never did anyway or what about, she just doesn't understand me. Most people identify communication with the ability to read or write well. This might not be the case as you will soon find out.

How many times have you been to the doctor's office and listen to an educated professional explain something to you that just doesn't make any sense. These people keep asking you, "Do you understand," Am I making myself clear and sometimes out of embarrassment because you don't want to look like an idiot you tell them yes I do understand. This isn't a good way to communicate either.

How do we communicate in a positive way to get our point across? I'm going to share a secret that works time and time again and some very successful communicators use this often. Ask the person you are communicating with if they understand what you just said, if someone is talking to you then use the statement, "Just to Make Sure That I Understand What You Just Said" and then repeat back your understanding of their conversation.

Sometimes just asking a view simple questions and clarifying your understanding can bring great benefits to any communication.

In some countries like Japan for instance you might find them reading your body language more than the words you are communicating with. Sometimes just by the way someone stands or reacts to something you said can give you a valuable insight to what can be understood in the conversation.

Don't forget however this could lead to a misunderstanding also. Again if you think someone understands how you are communicating with their body language, try not to assume that you know for a fact how they are reacting. Always ask them if they understand what you're talking about.

A person is responsible for what he says and to make sure that the other person understands completely the point he is trying to get across. I don't know how many times I have mentioned something to someone only later to find out there was a problem with my communication.

One of the greatest problems in business, marriage and most relationships are poor communication skills. Why not start using some of the simple skills used in this article to help with communication. You will start to see the benefits within a short period.

How do we do it? Why do we do it? And when are we going to change? How do we change our lives to become fulfilling sources of extreme happiness and joy. What is it going to take to open your eyes and finally seek the information you need.

If you're looking for a secret to happiness or a missing piece to the puzzle you quite possibly could find what you're looking for but no guarantees at spiritual books.

Check out Greg Vanden Berge.

Finding Homes Using the Internet - Home Shopping

You can simply type the words real estate or homebuying into any search engine on the World Wide Web and you will come up with hundreds, maybe even thousands of websites that are extremely helpful and full of great information. Like the one you're on right now.

Finding homes with the internet, combined with a skilled real estate salesperson, provides you with the most effective technology available today. Most websites start out, having you select a state you would like to search in and then, select a city, with your price range.

By answering their questions, this narrows the search down to all of the homes available in the area. The internet has made home shopping very simple. Considering what you had to go through in the 1970s. You found a realtor or by looking in the yellow pages, sometimes you found a good realtor and if you are lucky, maybe you would find you a good home.

Most of the time, the first homes you would look at, were owned by the real estate professional you were working with.

There are however a couple of problems with using the internet to find your dream home. Some of the verbage used and photographs taken can create a wonderful illusion of a tropical paradise but the reality, it's a regular home in a decent neighborhood.

Some of these photos are taken by skilled photographers who take advantage of every angle and tend to give an illusion of grander. When you actually start driving around and looking at these homes, only then will you get a reality check, of what the home actually looks like. You'll get used to it.

After you've looked at a few of your future dream homes, you will get a better idea of what I'm talking about with these wonderful pictures and the extraordinary home descriptions like "Beautiful Three Bedroom House with an Ocean View." When reality it's a two-bedroom house with an extra closet for the third bedroom and the ocean is 45 miles away, but you can see it on a clear day if you actually climb to the top of the largest tree on the property.

Take your time when searching for your dream home and don't let any one push you into making a decision if you're not ready. If you find your real estate professional a little too aggressive or pushy, get out of your contract, if you've signed one and find another, more helpful real estate salesperson to help you with your home purchase.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a home buyers guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

Find other real estate tips and great advice, from another one of the Internet's best website creators.

Effects Of False Prophets

Yoga Isn't Stretching

If we look at the purpose of yoga and understand it in its spiritual context, we could distill itas 'opening the body, at the physical and subtle levels'. In this process of opening what is held within these different levels, the holding and in fact what creates the holding itself, is released. This process of the release through openingis in yogic terms purification. There is no way shape or form by which this process can beequated withstretching.

Stretching does not transform. As the word implies implicitly it is simply a forced lengthening. If we look at asana practice in this way the consequence of stretching will of course result in greater flexibility. This type of flexibility however requires perpetual stretching to be maintained. Because there is a force in stretching the natural response of the body is to retract again once that forces is removed with the same amount of force as was applied. This is a basic law of physics.

It is possible that through stretching, the body can be reshaped, the muscles and tendons lengthened. But if we compare this affect to the purpose of yoga, then the purpose is not achieved. Doing yoga by stretching will also have benefits, but they will be limited and short term. Yoga classes where you are exhorted to pushed to the limit, and then some, might leave you in a state of sweaty exhilaration, but like any high you come down. If this was what yoga was really about, then gymnasts and ballerinas, would be yogis and yoginis.

My yoga teacher in Rishikesh continually warned a naturally flexible student that her flexibility was a barrier to her practice. He also used to say that there were two ways to we could do asana practice. One way was the way of force, in which I am including stretching. He described the way of force as using a sledgehammer. The second way he described as using a chisel, and a hammer. He said the chisel was awareness the hammer was intelligence. Awareness takes consciousness into the body and intelligence follows it and directs it. As I have written elsewhere what the body holds is the contents of our subconscious. Obviously this means that we do not have conscious awareness of what is held. Yoga as a process of opening and releasing is then the discovery and making conscious what our subconscious holds in our body.

We live in a fast paced got to have it now culture. Sledgehammer yoga might elicit fast results, but the possibility of injury can be attested to by many. If conscious awareness was there could injury occur? I think not.

What then is opening and how do we do it? Well first of all, as what is held in the body is not conscious, it must become conscious, which essentially means we have to discover it. This discovery requires us paying a lot of attention while doing asana, the first 'union' is between awareness and body, then awareness body and breath.

Holding is by definition a contracting. Opening then is a letting go of the holding/contracting that is unconsciously occurring. It is the creation of spaciousness in the body. On a practical level it looks like this. We must in any asana find and not pass the boundary of our bodies capacity. Then we slightly withdraw from that boundary - just a little. Then we breath into the area where we find our boundary. Inhalation is definition expansion, so we breath space into the boundary of holding. Then as we exhale we direct awareness into the space we have just breathed open, and we keep doing this over an dover again.

This is asana as a meditation practice. This is yoga as an ongoing relationship of discovery with yourself. To practice this way takes patience, perseverance and courage. Courage because sooner or later you will start to meet parts of yourself you probably didn't even remember or know where there. Parts in pain, in darkness. In practicing this way, it is slower in terms of 'results' from the external view, but the results will last forever and you are fulfilling the age old addage to all spiritual practitioners "know yourself".

Ray Baskerville is a healer, meditation teacher, certified hypnotherapist, yogi and proud father. He has taught in worldwide. Ray is also the creator and editor of http://www.lifedivine.net an online magazine for yoga, meditation, spirituality and personal development. Please visit for more free quality articles like this.

Surviving As A Contractor In California

So you want to make big money making a living as a contractor in the state of California. Well now I bet you have seen contractors on TV or maybe you know someone who is a contractor. You see these men and women playing the part as Mr. or Mrs. Money bags. If you have the slightest thought that becoming a contractor will provide you with a life of riches think again.

Most contractors that I know and have worked with over the years don't think of there jobs as easy. They have to work everyday and a lot into the night doing estimates or meeting with potential clients because they are to busy during the day. The life of most contractors in the beginning will be difficult to say the least. But if successful you will make a great living for yourself and your family.

Now that we got the false illusion of the contractor answering his cell phone all day at some nice golf course having lunch talking about the money that he just made selling his oil stocks. We can start on reality. If being a contractor was that easy everyone would be a contractor. Right..... Well maybe not everyone.

I have been a contractor for over 22 years and in construction for 30 year. I have seen a lot of changes over the years. I remember when a few contractors that I worked for made a lot of money during the late 1970's. These guys had Ferraris and money to burn with one exception they had no idea how to save any of it. These guys went on vacations and bought extravagant toys for them selves. Out of most of the big framing contractors I worked for about 10 percent are still in business or actually saved their money during the good times so that they could make it through the bad times.

These contractors never thought it was going to end. Life on easy street that is. But it did and most went by the way side. I guess that is the nature of business. Especially the current economic business cycles that we seem to go through over the years. If you don't have the money to advertise or carry a payroll. Your business is going to suffer during the bad times. Sure there is credit and bank loans but you still have to pay that money back. IF you can't save your money stash some away for advertising.

Some of the best advice I can give a contractor anywhere especially in the state of California is " Don't Think The Great Times Of Easy Money Will Last Forever". Save some of the money you make just in case you need to get through the bad times. You will thank me for this latter, Some time down the road. Take this advice and put it into action starting right now.

Greg Vanden Berge has over 30 years of experience in residential home building and remodeling. This provides you with the comfort of knowing that you have a professional with the knowledge and skills to complete your construction projects in a timely manner.

Our low overhead along with our new online estimating system will provide you with the most competitive construction pricing in the area. We continue to educate ourselves about the new home improvement books and building systems in the construction industry. If we have any doubt that something might not work we don't use it. We have found some of these products to be the root of some major home building problems.

Click on the Home Remodeling Ideas to get more information and a possible online estimate for your home improvement project.

Religion Articles

A Positive Attitude - It's Not the Only Answer

There are many people who would lead you to believe that just having a positive attitude is the answer to all of life's problems. There is one huge problem with that line of thinking. We do not live in a world that is only filled with thoughts. We live in a physical world where action is a necessary ingredient.

Think about it like this. How many times have you had a good attitude and all of a sudden money just comes flying at you? Probably never.

The real juice comes from your actions and your thoughts. Thought alone is not a means of creating what you want in your life. Instead, you have to be able to couple your thoughts with actions as well. That is the only way you will materialize what you want in your life. People who believe in just using their thoughts are not going to see what they want happen to them. How many fortune 500 companies were built solely on thought? NONE!

DO NOT BE AFRAID TO TAKE ACTION...

Believing that thought alone will create the life that you want exposes a truth about yourself. The fear of taking real and concrete action. And this fear will reinforce a limiting belief that you do not have the power to create the life you want. Don't fall for the hype. There is no one on this earth who can manifest material things simply through thought. But, there are numerous examples of people changing their lives when they couple positive thought with positive action.

Do not use just half of the equation. Think and act positively. Create a real and tangible life that you desire!

Learn how to attract love, money, or happiness or all three in YOUR LIFE NOW! Go to http://www.successfulfather.com and SIGN up for the FREE newsletter and BOOKMARK the site and return as often as you can!

You can attract the life that you truly desire! All you have to do is learn HOW!

Law of Attraction Secrets

Bryan Appleton is an investor/entrepreneuer who has dedicated himself to teaching others how to achieve their dream life. He is also a proud single father with one son.

You can publish this article as long as you leave it intact and in full as well as keeping the url link clickable.

Nailing Or Screwing Drywall

Nails versus screws who will become the winner. When drywall first came out the installers used everything from regular steel nails to galvanized roofing nails. After a short amount of time they started to develop major problems from nails popping out of the finished drywall.

Nail popping results when the nail is driven into moist lumber and as the lumber shrinks the house settles and nail can actually pop out to the walls. Hard to imagine the nail could actually pop out of the drywall as the wood was drying out.

How far the nail would actually pop out was determined by how far it was driven in to the framing studs or ceiling joists. Well pretty soon drywall installers started to use ring shank nails to eliminate this problem. This worked great but these nails were hard to drive in and would often break.

As time went on the nails improved and were made out of galvanized metal with cupped shaped heads and came in a few different sizes. The size of the nail used was determined by the thickness of the drywall. These new nails worked great and had good holding power and eliminated a lot of nail popping.

Using nails means driving them in with a hammer. If you miss the nail you damage the drywall. This seemed to be a big problem and was virtually eliminated with the screws.

Well pretty soon people started using screws which had greater holding power and pretty much nail popping. Another advantage to using screws over nails is the simple fact you need less screws than you do nails to attach the drywall to the metal or wood framing.

This means less labor installing and finishing the drywall.

There is one problem with the screws and that is they have to be set perfectly. They can not break the paper surface on the drywall but have to be set enough into the drywall so that it can be finished properly. Most screw guns have an adjustable setting used to get just the right depth for the screws installed in the drywall. But this also was a problem when screwing into a hard piece of wood you can actually snapped the screw head off, strip the screw head or break the screw.

Nails on the other hand can bend while driving them into a hard surface.

Who wins the nails versus screws while installing drywall? I have got to give it to the screws. That doesn't mean the nails just got screwed or the screws just got nailed.

I couldn't resist. I actually preferred the screws over the nails except for when nailing the drywall corner bead on. Some drywall professionals use nails to hang the drywall and go back with a screw gun and some screws to finish the job. The nails sometimes seem handier than the screws when installing the drywall.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Visit us and get more information on building and remodeling your homes and Carlsbad Home Improvement

When Do We Get To Meet God

Self Help Books - Do They Help?

I recall seeing a study somewhere that suggested self help books don't really help. I believe it looked at financial self help books. If I remember correctly, three or ten years after reading various "get rich quick" and other money-related books, the readers were generally making more money, but so was everyone else (on average) that didn't read the books. The conclusion was that the books didn't help.

Now that is jumping to conclusions! Consider the assumption implicit in it. Researchers assumed those who didn't read books did nothing special. This seems unlikely, to say the least. From what we see of people, we might wonder if most really want to work on general self development, but we also can see that almost everyone regularly tries to better their financial situation.

In other words, people in the control group were doing things other than reading self help books, and those efforts got them further ahead also. Think about this for a moment. How does this show that the books didn't help? It's like "proving" that a car can't get you across the city because walking and biking and taking a bus can also get you there. They are just different ways to the same goal!

In other words, the books may have helped (on average), just like the other things people tried. Perhaps people choose the things that work best for them. Based on this hypothesis, a better test might be to have one group choose their self help methods while another is forced to use methods chosen by the researchers. If the first group shows more improvement, it suggests that many methods work, and that each person intuitively knows which will be more helpful.

It might show the opposite too. It is difficult to design such research. It is also difficult to have a proper "control," and to start with the best hypothesis. One lesson from this is to be skeptical of research where things are hard to define and measure.

Self Help Books Clearly Can Help

There are those of us who don't need research to prove that a good book can help. We clearly recall a book that changed the course of our lives, or that obviously helped us in our relationships, or even boosted our income. Yes, of course self help books can help us.

Now, there is the question of why they don't always help. You may have a friend who has told you all about a great new self help book or theory, yet doesn't seem to be much affected by it in the end. You may have read some books yourself that got you excited, but didn't seem to "stick" in our mind or change your subsequent behavior or life.

One reason for this apparent ineffectiveness may be that you need to read each book more than once, and that self help books in general help most if they are read regularly. (It is also possible that the effects of such books can be powerful, yet too subtle to notice right away.)

This reminds me of some research on eating I read about once. Researchers had people eat a meal. They then concluded that eating didn't increase the odds of survival, since everyone died of starvation two months later. Okay, I made that up, but do you see the point? Just like you have to eat regularly to get the maximum survival benefit, perhaps you need to get those self help books out again and feed your mind from time to time to get the most out of them.

Copyright Steve Gillman. For more on Self Improvement, and to get the Brainpower Newsletter and other free gifts, visit: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.com

When We Choose Misery Over Happiness

I am not one to feel sorry for most people. They seem to have a unique ability to cause themselves the most damage during certain parts of their lives. I have met some pretty self destructive people in my life. Being raised by a mother that lived in misery and love.

My mother had a difficult childhood. It seemed as if every corner she turned there was a obstacle either right in front of here or waiting just around the corner. Her father died when she was 12 year old. He was a farm laborer and didn't make much money. In other words they were poor...... She got sent to live with a few foster families and according to her she was molested by one of the fathers she lived with.

Soon her older sister invited her to live with her. My aunt was married to the owner of a pottery business and had 2 children about 10 years younger than my mother. My aunt soon realized she had a live in baby sitter that allowed her to stay out drinking most of the day.

My Uncle was what you would call a drunk back then, now we call these people alcoholics. Well any way I think you are starting to get a picture of my mothers life up to this point. It is probably safe to assume that this isn't the ideal life for a young woman.

The next event to happen in my moms life was for my uncle to fall in the shower one night after tying one on that night. He died soon after but my aunt seemed to make a another good choice and ended up marring the owner of the bar that they spent most of their time in.
The Grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love, and something to hope for. Allan K. Chalmers

By this time my mom was in High School and met my future father. It wasn't exactly a marriage made in heaven. My dad was always an easy going man. He seemed to let most stuff go in one ear and out the other.

As you guessed it they had a few children. Nice one Dad and Mom. According to the books I have read on Angelic beings. People that believe in the after life and angels. They tell me I had a choice and was able to choose my parents....... What was I thinking...... I should have choose someone with some money and a couple of parents that were deeply in love .

How did I end up here in this situation.

I ended up loving my parents like most of us. They seemed to be doing the best that they could possibly do raising me, my bother and my sister. My mom and dad ended up getting a divorce and I went to live with my father.

My Father is remarried to a wonderful woman that seems to bring him a lot of happiness.
I haven't seen my mother for a while now. She lives with a life of excuses and misery. Her childhood was not the greatest but that doesn't give her the right to bring misery into other peoples lives. She has made a conscious choice to live what seems to be a painful life. Maybe her choices in life have made me choose happiness over misery.

I have always wondered what it is that motivates someone to live a life of true unhappiness when it takes the same amount of energy to live a life of joy. Life is meant to be full of joy and happiness so start today by making the right choices to live a fulfilling life of happiness.

If you are reading this and can't make up your mind what kind of life you truly want to live visit me at http://live.spiritualideas.com/ . Change your thinking and change your life.

Greg Vanden Berge will help you create a new approach to life and discover talents you never knew you had. We can help you get the most out of yourself all the time. Start developing your innate strengths and abilities to start enriching your life TODAY !

Does God Make Mistakes