phillycounts.org

From the first day of your life that you enter the work force you have had a choice. And that choice has always been to either get a job or buy yourself a job. You probably didn’t look at it that way, but stand back and think about it now. If you continued on with your education, you were preparing yourself for a job. You can call it a career if you like, but in simple terms it was a job regardless if it was the president of a large manufacturing company, the local bank or an executive position on Wall Street. You still had a job with an employer. Your other choice has always been to buy yourself a job. By this statement I am referring to by either becoming an entrepreneur or buying yourself a business. Which in turn means that you have bought yourself a job.

Some people are made to have a job and work for someone or some company and do very well and are very happy or content in that position. Others would be restless in working for someone else and feel the need to make their own rules and have more control over their work place. Because we only have one of the other choices in the matter of how we spend our time you would think it would be a pretty simple decision wouldn’t you? Well sometimes it is, but here is the clincher to this situation.

People change. Change is the only constant we truly have in our lives. You may stay with the same partner for 50 years and you may stay at the same company or work in the same industry for years, but the one thing that is constant in all of this is change. People change, industries change, families change, economies change. Everything changes. And that is where the confusion and anxiety comes from. It is when the change occurs and we don’t know how to react to it. Plus a lot of the time change has a tendency to sneak up on us and before we know it. We need to change. And then we are in a reactionary mode instead of being in a responsive mode, therefore creating the anxiety and uncomfortableness that comes with change.

The change feelings that may occur in ones like can come in many different forms and have many different reactions to oneself, but the one I want to address here is the one regarding whether you get a job or buy yourself a job.

Buying or starting a business is an area that I am an expert on since I have owned 35 different businesses that I have either bought or started and probably managed to make more mistakes in the short time that I was buying, starting and selling business than most people could make in their lifetime, therefore enabling me to write and comment on this subject for your benefit.

In today’s economic climate we are experiencing a large number of people who had been employed and have had a job and their job was eliminated and they are out on the hunt to find another job. A commendable quality for them. But the chances of them finding another job is probably pretty thin, especially if they are looking to stay in the same field they were in, with the same amount of pay and in the same geographic area that they were working in before. As my old science teacher used to say. “It is very possible, but not very probable” that they will find such a position. So what are their choices? Back to what I mentioned earlier. Either they go out and find a different job or buy themselves a job.

Since I am a qualified expert on the buying oneself a job you need to take heed and review the 11 different points I have listed below. These are short, but substantive issues that you must address if you are going to be buying yourself a job and be happy and successful at it. Not following the listed information could determine you financial failure and or the cause of your personal unhappiness.

Take your time and study each of the listed areas of life and business I have described and then move forward.

I have not gone into great detail as to all of the ins and outs and intricacies of operating a business. There are plenty of books on that subject for ever particular business that is available. What I want to address and for you to think about is whether you want to or have the qualities to be the one who buys themselves a job or not. The final decision if for you to make, but by following the listed points I have made there is a very good chance of you actually making the right decision for you and your family and your future happiness, which is what it is all about.

Good luck and good hunting for the business of your dreams and enjoy the journey.

1. First decide what you like and don’t like to do.

Sounds simple, but if you don’t like cooking or working around food then why would buy a restaurant? Because you tried to justify it by saying it is really marketing and the food is only an end to the means? You can say that and part of it is true, but in the beginning you will BE working with food. So to begin with find something you like to do and gravitate in that area. Reflect on what you enjoy doing. Your hobbies. Do you enjoy working one on one with people? Old people, young people. Maybe you are tired of working with people and want to work in an indirect manner with people on a business to business level instead. This is probably one of the most crucial parts of the equation you need to address before you go any farther.

2. Where do you want to live?

Generally people want to work close to where they live. This is not always true, but for the most part it is. Are you willing to buy a business that is 1 to 2 hours away from your home and commute daily to it? Or do you want it to be across town within 5 minutes of your home? Or do you want something that involves traveling all over the country and enjoying a different setting every day?

In today’s business with an individual’s access to the internet, cell phones, web sites, asp systems on the internet, outsourcing of administrative duties and pcAnywhere you can be doing business literally around the world from your bedroom at home while never leaving home and having the perception of a large company. So your ability to reach a large audience of customers without leaving a geographic area is available to you. So if you want to live in a resort town and work across the world it is possible for you to do in today’s economy.

3. How much money do you want to make?

Don’t give the lame answer of a lot? Be definite. Determine how much you need and then add to that amount to get a realistic number. You have got to have a goal as to how much money you want to make before you set out to buy or get into a business. Before you get into a business you HAVE to know the dollar amount as to what you want to make, because without this number you will never be able to determine if the business can support that amount.

All too many times people jump into a business not having a clue as to how much money the business can really generate and then after they get into the business they are disappointed that they have invested a large amount of time and resources only to find out the business could not support them.

That is why we want to know on average how much income a business will generate before we start or buy the business and then having that number we work backwards to see if it meets our requirements of being capable to support us in our financial needs.

4. What is your risk tolerance?

Are you willing to put everything you have on the line to get into business and sink or swim or are you only wanting to put your toe in the business and try it out to see if it is for you or not. If you are not one who has a high risk tolerance then maybe you should be looking at a franchise where they already have systems in place and if you follow the tried and true program of the franchise you should be successful. But keep in mind that the more you put into the business the more you are going to get out. So if you think you can only work 20 hours a week at a business instead of devoting 60 hours a week to knowing everything there is about your business and industry there will be a difference in the results you receive from the business. Plus, if you are concerned about not wanting to lose all of your money I would suggest that you start out small with a low investment business, because you will make mistakes and you will end up paying tuition to learn the business so you might as well start out with a small investment and work your way up to a larger business later.

5. Do you buy or start a business?

When offered the difference between the two I always suggest buying an operating business. Why? Because the day you purchase an operating business you have a cash flow. It may not be the greatest cash flow in the world, but you have a cash flow and with that cash flow you have a jump start with the business and all you will need to do is to concentrate on growing the business and cash flow. Where if you start out with a new business you have nothing. Only a hope and a dream and it will be exciting, but you have no cash flow.

Buying a business is always a safer bet than starting a business. At least with buying a business the day you take the business over you have a cash flow and all you have to do is build the cash flow. Starting a business regardless how good of a franchise or idea it may be you are starting with zero and when you start at zero it can take a long time to get to breakeven let alone profitability.

6. What is the upside to the business?

If you are buying an existing business you need to know if there is an upside to the business. In other words is the present business owner getting all there is out of the business or have they been lazy and not advertised or marketed the business and not paid attention to it and all it needs is your attention. Do your due diligence and check out the business and chances are the present owner of the business has gotten tired and burnt out and left a lot of opportunity in the business.

You never want to buy a business that has no upside to it. Sometimes there will not be any upside to a business, because the previous owner has owned it for so long and ran it so well that you can never duplicate their business model. Sometimes there is no upside to a business, because the industry has changed. One does not want to be selling horse whips, when cars were first coming onto the scene.

Check the competition of the business. Generally speaking regardless if you are buying an existing business or starting a business the success of the business if going to be determined by the amount of competition you have. Very simple to find and very definite the reason for the success or failure of the business.

7. Where do I find a good business to buy?

Good businesses are hard to find. There are many of businesses for sale on the internet on business for sale web sites like bizbuysell.com, businesssesforsale.com, bizquest.com, AmericanBusinessBrokers.com and dozens of other web sites. But some of the best businesses you could buy are not on the internet. They are being run by their present business owners and all that is needed is for them to be asked. Yes, just ask. Once you have determined what kind of business you want to be in and where you want to be, then start asking around with the present business owners if they have every considered selling their business. You will be surprised that there are many business owners that would like to sell their business, but don’t know how to or have just been putting it off and all they are needed is to be asked. Take it upon yourself to ask and if they are not interested in selling their business you will at least get a preview and education of the business is all about.

8. How do know what a business is worth after you find it?

Valuation is one of the toughest things about buying a business. ALL sellers think their business is worth more than what it really is. It is just human nature and you are not going to change that. Part of the valuation process is going to be decided as to what kind of buyer you are. By that I mean are you looking to buy yourself a job or are you looking to buy a business to sell in a few years? It makes a difference when it comes time to buy. If your goal is to buy yourself a job and expect to keep the business for quite some time then you can afford to pay a little extra for the business. But if you are planning on buying a business and then selling it in a few years you have to make sure that you get it as cheap as possible so that you will have a larger profit margin when it comes time to sell. There are several different ways to determine the value of the business. One is to hire business valuation consultant and have them review the numbers and quality of the business. Another way is to purchase the book “The Business Reference Guide” by Tom West, which lists hundreds of different business and what the general rule of thumb of valuation for each of these businesses is. It is the same book that is used by business brokers when valuing businesses. And another way is to hire a knowledgeable business broker and pay him to do the valuation for you. But make sure they are an experienced business broker and are not going to school on you.

9. Do you have the money or where do you get the money?

Depending on the total cost of the business and if it has a good cash flow stream you will be able to find the money. A lot of businesses are still being sold with the seller doing owner financing or at least partial owner financing and I suggest to buyers that they look for this kind of arrangement. Because, if the seller is willing to finance part of the sale they are electing to remain a part of the business and are your partner until you can get them paid off and they will be more willing to take your phone calls or offer advice if you still owe them money. Local banks are the next choice for getting money to purchase a business. They will be very conservative and probably only want to loan on a business that has real estate included as opposed to a Subway or something that is in a leased space with very little in the form of hard assets for them to collator, but they will probably loan in the 60% to 70% of the total sale price of the business. However, you get the money whether it is from your savings, relatives, friends, or banks get the money so you can get into the game so to speak. Once you get into the game and own your own business all of the banks, relatives, friends etc… will treat you differently, because you are now a business person. It may sound weird, but it is true.

10. When do you buy the business in today’s economy?

As soon as you find the right one. It is not all about the price. Sure price is important, but the quality of the business, location, industry of the business, whether you like it or not and especially if you are going to be staying in the business for a while are more important than the price. Of course you don’t want to over pay above the market price and end up behind the eight ball right from the start, but when you find it. Buy it. Don’t get caught up in the small details of trying to save a ½ point on the financing or a few thousand dollars on the purchase price. Your goal is to get into business and stay in business and make a profit. Until you get into the game you are nothing more than a wanta-be who is setting on the sidelines talking about. I don’t care if you have hundreds of thousands of dollars in the bank. Until you get into the game of business you just a wanta-be on the outside looking in.

11. Bonus Tip.

DO NOT search for the perfect business. Why? Because there is no such animal. All businesses will have some warts on them and what you are looking for is a business that will meet your general needs and wants. Just like in friends, spouses, co-workers there are no perfect people or perfect businesses so you might as well accept this fact before you begin your search.

People have a natural tendency to look for and talk about the things that are wrong about a person or a thing. Become a good finder and look for the things that are good about the business and how many of the points I have listed here that meet your criteria and then go forward. Nobody bats 100% and you won’t either. But by following my list of what to look for in the buying or starting of a business you will come much closer to your goal of having an enjoyable journey in your life as a business owner.

Terry Monroe is a Professional Intermediary, with achievement degrees in Entrepreneurship, Education, Law, Accounting, Finance, Operations, Management and Psychology and author of “The Art of Buying and Selling a Convenience Store”. He is also the founder and President of American Business Brokers. To receive a Free report on on how to increase sales or maximize the sale of your business go to http://www.TerryMonroe.com.

Childcare resources can be hard to find. As a parent, the health and well-being of your children is always your top priority. However, with an ongoing and often prohibitive expense like childcare, money is also an issue in almost all instances. There may be dozens of childcare services that are being promoted within your immediate area, but that doesn’t mean that any specific one is right for you. In order to determine what will best meet the needs of you and your children, you will need to further explore the various options, finding the best fit for your schedule and lifestyle. There are several possibilities.

Childcare Center

A childcare center is the most readily available option in most areas. Daycare centers are also often more affordable. You can expect to see a higher ratio of children to adults, though all the legal mandates of your state will need to be maintained. Before you explore childcare resources, know what those laws are. If you visit a daycare center that does not comply with these regulations, walk away. The safety of your children is not worth the risk. In addition, keep in mind that being exposed to more children can increase the potential for the spread of infectious diseases.

The best daycare centers are very aware and keep hygiene concerns at the top of their minds.

Licensed In-home Care

This option is a middle ground between the institutionalized daycare center and private care. In-home daycare providers are usually required to carry a license from the state in which they operate. Again, getting familiar with these guidelines will be a large part of gathering your childcare resources. Home daycare workers must maintain a smaller ratio of children to adult care providers. These are usually run out of a private home, so the atmosphere is more relaxed and less like an institution. Take the time to carefully interview the provider.

Many in-home daycare caregivers truly love children and desire to offer nurturing and love. However, there are some that are mainly in the work for the money. Obviously, you will probably favor someone with a warm demeanor, who is at ease with your children.

Private Daycare Provider

There is more variation in this category than in any other. Childcare services can be provided by anybody, in any setting. Many parents, for example, find a grandparent or aunt that is available to provide care to their children. Others may find a referral through a mutual friend or via church. Keep in mind that caution should be maintained when using a private care provider.

There is not licensing or training requirements that are necessary for most of these arrangements. Don’t be afraid to extensively interview and ask for references. If you are working with family for your childcare resources, it can save both parties a lot of trouble to have a written payment agreement in place. The fastest way to alienate a family member from caring for your children is to neglect to pay as agreed upon. Luckily, most private providers charge extremely reasonable rates.Depending on where you live and what your local community has to offer, there may be other options. However, these are the three most common types of childcare resources that most parents will be choosing from. Each has their pros and cons and vary in price. Getting familiar with these options will help you select the best childcare services.

To learn more about child care and to get more Childcare Resources and tips visit my blog

When you are interested in pursuing a career in fashion design, you should explore what some of the principles of fashion design are, before you can truly understand the depth of this occupation. With the principles of fashion design mastered, you may be on your way to creating designs that surpass even the brilliant minds of Calvin Klein, Armani, Ralph Lauren, Versace, as well as Dolce & Gabbana.

Fashion designers, who have mastered the principles of fashion design, go on to create the trends that we see displayed at fashion shows, and featured in magazines, such as InStyle and Vogue. The designs could be as serious as the times or as sexy as they want to be. The principles of fashion design do evolve with the changing tastes of society. Sometimes it is up to fashion designers to give consumers a little nudge in the right direction, as far as seasonal colors, trends and style go. More than often, fashion designers must pay attention to the changing desires on the streets. Many times designers are able to draw from the public when searching for ideas to use with respect to the current principles of fashion design.

The principles of fashion design come into play when a designer sits down to create a sketch of their latest creation. The principles always state that every creation starts with a sketch. A special desire to create a certain type of garment may exist, or maybe the idea surfaced from outside contact involving street trends. Inspiration comes in many different ways, with designers drawing from the past, movies, magazines, as well as current events.

When the sketch becomes a visual on a computer screen, numerous principles of fashion design are incorporated. Design software creates a graphic, which patternmakers and tailors can follow in order to develop a sample. This is when a designer can see their ideas and creations in the flesh. This will then give them a chance to alter things that do not materialize in the way that they expected. If the designer is successful in incorporating the principles of fashion design with this experience, they may produce a sample suitable for acceptance into a clothing line.

A successful designer should know how to perform a variety of tasks in order to prosper in the business. Designers should know how to sketch their ideas; create patterns; choose relevant fabrics, materials and colors; work with other designers; be able to communicate with other production employees; as well as attend fashion shows and be aware of the latest fashion trends.

When deciding upon a career in fashion design, as individual should know that in order to master the principles of fashion design, they should possess additional skills that would make life easier for a designer. Some of the skills needed to truly make an impression in the business is reading, writing, math skills; the ability to speak and listen; knowledge of computers; good problem-solving and decision-making skills; as well as a positive attitude. Keeping these principles and skills of fashion design in mind allows the chance of success to greatly increase.

For more womens fashion articles, and a FREE Fashion Magazine featuring the latest fashion trends for women, please visit our web site: http://www.net-planet.org

Market Availability Of Lawn Tractors

There are many manufacturers of lawn tractors . If you go to market for purchasing a lawn tractor you will be flooded with offers for sale and then there will be more offers from the markets like eBay and Amezon.com. It is really a difficult choice to make. However if you have your priorities clearly defined things become easier in selecting a lawn tractor.

Many Names A Lawn Tractor Takes

A lawn tractor may be referred by many names as lawn mower, garden tractor. All of them essentially do the same work and some of them do more work compared to others. The horse power may vary but essentially al of them help farmers in completing their work or a small householder maintain the garden.

Purpose Of Purchasing A Lawn Tractor

The purpose of selecting a lawn tractor should be made along with the area it is going to serve. Specialized lawn tractors of high capacity are available for large areas like a golf field or a horse racing area tennis court a cricket or even a football field.

If the intention is just to cut grass over a large area, then the type of lawn tractor you can select is the front bed tractor where you can collect the grass so you can dispose it off quickly.

On the other hand, if you wish to serve a small area and do some small things in your garden, you can go in for garden tractor with attachment for grass removal.

If you have a small area and all you require is just to cut grass, then you can go in for a riding lawn mower or a walk behind lawn mower

The Area Lawn Tractor Serves

The area served by a lawn tractor may vary depending on individual needs and the number of tractors available for serving the area. The same job could be done by more than one tractor if the area is large.

The maximum sweep of lawn tractor blades is about 48 inches and beyond that, the lawn tractor becomes unmanageable and cannot service in tight corners and this area is then required to be served by smaller machines increasing the workload and attendant problems. So for large areas two or more tractors seems to be an effective solution

Future requirements

If you can spare money beyond buying a lawn tractor, you can go for an upgraded version and purchase a garden tractor. With a garden tractor, you can do many things that cannot be done by a lawn tractor. If you can think of future requirement of your work, you may be able to get a better selection.

Driver Comfort In Lawn Tractor

Whether you are going to use the lawn tractor or your employee is going drive it, it is imperative that the lawn tractor should have driver comforts. Power steering, vibration isolation, and better control are some of the accepted norms of driver comforts and most of the manufacturers incorporate it in their lawn mowers.

Hence, while selecting a good lawn tractor, you will have to take many things in considerations than just the money you are going to put in.

Andrew Caxton is a journalist who has written more articles and newsletters on the subject for www.lawn-mowers-and-garden-tractors.com . If you would like more information on this topic please checkout his website and read further articles about lawn tractors

Stress is the common problem these days for many people due to the changes in life style and the aggressive career goals. Many of us forget the stress built within us while chasing our dream of earning money to have a better life. To get peace of mind while we fight with this aggressive life style, many of us choose various relaxation methods. Playing games is considered as the best option since it relaxes the mind in a very enjoyable way. Tennis is one of the favorite games for many people which gives a complete body workout and helps in maintaining the body health as well. The game not only relaxes the mind, but also gives a stretching relief for the body.

Tennis being one of the most popular games around the world, individuals begins playing the game pretty early. As a result, more and more people line for playing. However, with the lack of space, most have to go through long queues and endless waits before they get a change to hit the tennis ball around the court. Public tennis courts are a few in number and so if you too are tired of waiting or never seem to find an empty court, you could consider building a backyard tennis court.

A backyard tennis court is a great solution for every tennis buff. And converting the backyard into a tennis court is a really cool idea as well! Whether you go for a grass court or a concrete court, you will have plenty to choose from and your dreams of having a backyard court could become a reality in no time. It is always great to have a play area at home, where you can spend considerable time of your day in the game and get the stress relief as well.

If you are lucky to have a backyard that’s big enough to house a court, you should immediately begin looking at data as to how to build a backyard tennis court. It is no secret that some of the most fames tennis stars of recent times had always enjoyed the services of a backyard court while growing up. From Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt and the great Andre Agassi, everyone grew up playing tennis at the backyard tennis court. So if you too want to give support to your children who show immense talent in the sport, consider building a backyard court.

Planning For Backyard Tennis Court

For a grass backyard tennis court, what you need is a flat surface. If your backyard is big enough to hold a 78 by 36 feet tennis court, nothing like it! However, if you have a smaller backyard, go for a court that’s 27 feet wide. That would serve as a good singles court. Once you have the space,

• Get rid of all the obstructions huge stones, pebbles, bushes, debris, junk, etc.

• Reverse the soil with the help of a spade or shovel. This will help expose the fresh soil from underneath and will also help trim out all the extra, dead and dry grass.

• Rent a roller and take it around the playing surface. This will help harden the playing surface and make it level as well. You can hire a roller from the local hardware shop.

• Once you have leveled the ground, sprinkle grass seeds and with proper watering, you will see fresh, new grass appearing in no time, just the perfect beginning for your very own backyard tennis court.

• After the grass grows to a height of 19 mm, which is the height required for playing, you could start marking the area with the help of spray paints.

• The next step would be to a buy the net and install it. Take care while installing the net. Fix two poles on the adjacent sides to which the net will be tied. The net needs to be absolutely straight and uptight. Once equipped with the net, you will have successfully transformed your regular backyard into a sprawling court.

Construction Of The Tennis Court

While a grass backyard court is simple to set up and maintain, for areas where grass does not grow easily, concrete backyard tennis courts are the preferred choice. Concrete tennis courts are also heavy-duty, can be looked after easily, and are anti fracture. However unlike a grass backyard tennis court, constructing a concrete backyard tennis court is not very simple and therefore it is recommended that you consult an expert for it. There are a lot of construction firms that specialize in backyard tennis courts and it will do you good to seek their services. Before consulting the experts for the construction, you will need to collect a lot of information like the area space details, any other affecting factors like water, electricity etc… and most importantly your budget. Based on your inputs for the construction of the court, the construction companies give the plan and the estimation for making the backyard tennis court. It is suggested to consult with more than one consultation firm to make the your dream backyard tennis court.

For Tennis Career People

If you want your child to grow up and take tennis up as a profession, it is highly recommended that you get a backyard court. If you have the space and the resources, definitely go for it. A lot of the top tennis coaches of the country have always suggested that for a player to flourish later on, it is important that training begins early. And what better place to train than at home! Setting up a well planned tennis court at home will give flexibility for you and your children to practice the game anytime in the day. You can find a lot of tennis coaches available for training the players at home and give great tips to excel in the game. Having a backyard tennis court is always an added advantage to get an effective training from a home training tennis coaches.

Factors To Consider

While building a backyard tennis court, you should, however, be cautious about a few things. The neighborhood you live in could play a very vital role. If you have nice, friendly and supportive neighbors, then well and good! But if your neighbors are troublesome and like picking arguments, you may have to face a lot of problems. A lot of complaints are heard from neighbors of people who have backyard courts and how the light and the sound from the backyard tennis disturb them. Sometimes, if you play at night, you may have to use floodlights, and that often causes a lot of problems for the neighbors. Also, the constant, monotonous noise that a tennis ball machine makes can be very annoying for the people around you. So before you install a backyard court, make sure you have the neighbors on your side and thereby prevent any future misunderstandings and obstacles.

Budget And Time For The Construction

Building a backyard tennis court may seem simple, but before you embark upon the project, you need to sort out important issues like your budget, the time you are willing to devote, and so on. Budget is a very important consideration and the overall look, design and sturdiness of the backyard court will depend on the amount of money you will spend on it. So sit down and chart out a budget carefully. See how much money you can spend and where you want to spend it. Also, building a backyard tennis court will take up a lot of your time. Be sure that you will be able to devote that much time to the project; else the project will get completed with numerous flaws. You will need to check with the construction firm for the construction methods they follow and how they deploy the planned project. You can check their previous experience in making such projects, find their delivery time and can estimate how well and faster your dream court can be made.

So build a backyard tennis court that will not only give you the opportunity to play tennis and remain fit, it will also be a great place where you can have complete family activities at anytime of the year! Having our own tennis court at home gives lots benefits in having a joyful time with the family together at the play area, enjoy the game and have a wonderful time together!

Swati is a freelancer, a work from home mom, who loves to write. She is a postgraduate in English and an MBA. She has written on practically every niche on the web. She writes articles, blogs, web pages, reports, press releases, product descriptions, eBooks, sales letters and newsletters. Visit Swati’s blog at http://swatibanerjee.wordpress.com now if you need content for your business or personal needs.

June is quickly approaching and for most coastal regions the thought of a hurricane begins to creep into our minds.

We become concerned about the safety of our homes, our pets and ourselves.

However, hurricanes are not the only disasters that can confront our well being and that of our pets. Floods, wildfires, tornadoes, riots and terrorists attacks add to the list of things that can happen.

The important thing is to have a plan. Hurricane Katrina was a disaster that displaced not only thousands of people but displaced many animals and unfortunately many died along with their owners. It is said that approximately 44 percent of Hurricane Katrina’s victims were pet owners that would not leave their pets.

Until Katrina hit, our country was not too pet friendly in the light of disasters. Most, if not all, did not allow pets of any kind to be brought to a designated shelter.

Currently many states are now providing shelters for owners and their pets providing they follow certain restrictions. Red Cross shelters however, will not allow pets. It is not their rule, but that of the local health departments. A Red Cross shelter is for the benefit of those who do not have pets, who are afraid of pets or who have allergies to pets.

It is up to “you” the pet owner to check your local facilities and see what shelters will allow pets and what size and kind of pet is allowed.

Planning ahead for yourself and your pet should be at the top of your list of things to do. The problem with advance preparing is that many of us go into the “denial mode.” We tell ourselves that whatever the disaster is “it is not going to involve us.” Then it hits and we are not even prepared for ourselves let alone our pets.

So what should a pet owner do? In the following paragraphs I am going to give you some tips on how to keep your cat or dog as safe as humanly possible. The important thing is to remember you need to prepare before a disaster strikes.

A disaster kit should be large enough to contain all the things you normally need for your pet for at least a 7-day period. It should be waterproof (a plastic container with a tight fitting lid) and labeled “disaster supplies cat or dog.”

Owning a pet is a big responsibility and with that responsibility comes the job of seeing that your pet is safe and well taken care of. A pet is not a thow-away item, it is a breathing living being and deserves the best care you can give it. For more information on taking care of your pet, please visit my website http://www.cats-and-dogs-on-the-web.com

How have you celebrated being alive today?

If God were to ask you: “How have you loved being alive today?” “Who have you touched with the grace of your smile?” “Are you grudge-full or grate-full?” “Have you seen me in our child’s beaming face?” “Do you work in the Church of Joy or the Church of Misery?” What would your honest answers be to these heart-hitting questions? Don’t allow yourself to be chained to a false prophet called negative thinking and negative talking. Start celebrating your life instead.

THERE’S NO BETTER TIME FOR JOY THAN TODAY

There’s no better time than today to tap into many, many, tiny moments of joy.

Celebrate the fact that you can’t change anyone but yourself.

Celebrate the awareness that you can make a new choice at any time.

Celebrate the reality that only you have the power to control your own mind.

Celebrate the wisdom of God, who keeps you safe and loves you unconditionally.

Celebrate the importance of having joy in this one life to live.

Celebrate the capacity to open your mind to new insights.

Celebrate finding ways to enjoy yourself despite failure.

Celebrate that you’re a fully feeling human being.

Celebrate being surprised.

Celebrate having faith.

Celebrate having friends.

Celebrate having another day to express who you are.

Celebrate bags of resentments dropping off like heavy rocks.

Celebrate revenge boomerangs being knocked away.

Celebrate accepting yourself after being rejected.

Celebrate the joys of partnering and parenting.

Celebrate starting, persevering, swerving, finishing.

Celebrate lives lost and lives bravely led.

Celebrate balancing a sour reality with your sweetest dreams.

Celebrate the healing power of a sincere apology.

Celebrate the mystery of creation.

Celebrate being forgiving in order to be forgiven.

Celebrate life by speaking words of caring when you don’t feel like it.

Celebrate any love you’ve ever been blessed to receive.

Celebrate a small child’s glorious intuitions.

Celebrate the wisdom of your elders.

Celebrate getting your anger out in healthy ways.

Celebrate life by trusting, risking and reaching out when there is no logical reason, whatsoever, to do so.

Dr. Dennis O’Grady is the grate-full author of a proven new communication theory found only in “Talk to Me: Communication Moves to Get Along with Anyone.” Dennis is a husband, father, communications coach and a guy who can’t stop talking about the art of talking. Visit http://www.drogrady.com for more information and valuable resources.

Tennis is a world known sport since the 1800s. It originated from France and has become widely known in Europe although the sport has been known to have existed in the 12th century, but without using Tennis Racquets. Today tennis grand slam events the US open, French Open, Australian Open, and Wimbledon are annually anticipated by tennis enthusiasts.

World renowned players such as Andre Agassi, Billie Jean King, Margaret Court, and Roger Federer are some of the greatest players of all time for they each have won multiple Grand Slam tournament titles.

Before playing tennis you should be aware that there are some tennis equipment that you will need beforehand, first of all you will need a tennis racquet, especially made tennis shoes, and of course proper tennis clothing.

Because of its grown popularity more and more people are encouraged to join this event, what they do not know is that there is more to tennis than they thought they know. Did you know that tennis is one of the most recommended sports by most doctors? This is right although there are a lot of sports out there keep your body healthy yet tennis remains to be the only one that promotes discipline, as well as physical, mental, and emotional well being all at the same time.

Here are some of the benefits that one could get by playing tennis:

1. It is a proven fact that people who engaged themselves into three hours of tennis every week cuts their possibility of death caused many different natural causes of diseases.

2. A study have also shown that people who plays tennis in good mood have higher chance of winning as compared to angry or depress players.

3. Tennis is also a game that requires mental alertness and strategic thinking which means that you continuously develop new connections from the brain into the nerves and vice versa, which means that even if you grow old your brain continues to develop.

4. Tennis also promotes positivity in terms of personality development.

5. The process of playing tennis promote both aerobic and anaerobic fitness that helps in burning more fats at the same time give your muscles enough time to rest.

The world of tennis has indeed been developed ultimately and because of this development there are more than enough stores worldwide that continuously come up with various tennis equipment to keep players at their best.

It is very important that as you follow the rules you also follow the basic guidelines of tennis in terms of clothing and accessorizing. There are tennis accessories such as sunglasses, that helps you stay in focus even with the sun towering high over you, some people simply miss the ball just because the sun hit them directly into the eye.

Other accessories such as tennis caps, allows you to cover you face from direct sunlight without hassles. Tennis clothing on the other hand are especially made for players to move freely inside the court. Tennis is a great sport but takes courage and determination to be good a good player just like any other sports, except you get more benefits more than anything.

If you are looking for great tennis equipment such as tennis shoes, tennis raquets, or clothing, visit thetennisshop.com.au. They offer the best tennis accessories from equipments to tennis apparels. Everything about tennis will be available to you in just one click.

As a psychologist and career counselor, I have worked with thousands of people over the years who are choosing or changing careers, and who are wondering whether they would really like to be in a particular career. Based on this experience, I believe that most people who want to go into a career they think they’d like do not really explore the questions they need to in order to be sure that it’s the right career for them.

Here is a list of 20 questions to find answers to before concluding that a career you think you’d like is really right for you, followed by 9 sources of information for answering these questions:

Questions:

1. In general, why do you think you’d “like” this career?

2. Why is going into this career important to you? What values, needs, and goals does it satisfy?

3. What do you actually know about this career?

4. Do you have any direct experience in this career? Have you had any jobs or volunteer experiences?

5. Have you talked to people who are in this career?

6. Have you done any reading on the career?

7. What are the opportunities? What kinds of money can you make in this field, and where are the openings?

8. What would your typical day be like in this career?

9. What are the drawbacks, disadvantages, and roadblocks of this career?

10. Do your interests match the interests of others in this career?

11. Do you have the aptitudes, skills, and abilities to be successful in this career?

12. Do you have the education or training to get into this career?

13. Do you have the personality characteristics that will make you successful in the new career?

14. Do you have the motivation and energy to follow through and do what you would need to do to get into the new career?

15. What are your “transferable” skills? That is, what skills or knowledge do you now have that you can use in the new career?

16. What skills or knowledge do you have that would not only be transferable, but that would also be a unique advantage in the new career?

17. What will it take to get into the new career? What kind of additional training, education, or experience would you need?

18. Have you developed a specific plan, including timetables and specific goals to be accomplished?

19. Do you have a network of support from family, friends, co-workers, or significant others?

20. Having answered all of the above questions, do you still “like” the career and think it’s a good idea to get into it, and why?

I think you’ll find that there are many resources you can use to help you answer the above questions. Among them:

1. Reading. This would include not only the hundreds of books and pamphlets on careers and career choice, but also publications describing careers (such as the Occupational Outlook Handbook, published by the U.S. Department of Labor and available on the Internet).

2. Practical experience. Not only is it possible to get a full-time or part-time job, but one can also volunteer at an organization or a company a couple of hours a week, just to get exposure to the area. Usually, any organization is glad to have this kind of help (unless they think you’re an investigative reporter from some newspaper or TV program).

3. Job search counseling. Anyone changing career directions needs a highly competitive job search strategy. This should include resume, cover letter, and job interviewing strategies that are specific to your situation. This may also include advice on researching the job market.

4. A thorough self-assessment. This is not an assessment BY yourself, but an assessment OF yourself. A good career counselor can provide this kind of assessment, which would include counseling and testing.

5. Career tests. In general, tests divide into three categories: 1) aptitude, ability, and skills tests, 2) career interest tests, and 3) personality and motivational tests that focus on characteristics related to the career world.

6. Career coaching. Guided discussions with an expert can help you to clarify your goals, strategies, and commitment.

7. Education and training. Before you launch full-time into a degree program, it is possible to take one course, or a seminar, or a workshop, or a brief certificate program in the new career.

8. Networking. There are many job clubs and career resource centers available to explore new careers. Schools, career counselors, and other professionals can usually give you information on these resources.

9. Informational interviewing. It’s usually not a good idea to go into a career if you haven’t talked to at least a few people who are already in it and can give you the lowdown. You can also talk to people in academic and training programs.

Armed with all of this information and all of these insights, you should now be in a better position to judge whether taking the next step in this new career area makes sense for you.

Sander Marcus, Ph.D., is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and Certified Professional Resume Writer in Chicago. He has over 3 decades of experience in providing career counseling, aptitude testing, job search coaching, and resume writing to tens of thousands of individuals. He is the co-author of 2 books on academic underachievement, various tests, and numerous articles. He can be contacted at marcus@iit.edu, 312-567-3358.www.center.iit.edu

Nothing beats the exhilaration brought about by speed. Anyone who has ever driven an automobile has at least dreamt of taking the role of Steve McQueen in “Bullitt”, getting into a high-speed car chase. If not Bullitt, each driver has dreamt playing Michael Caine’s Charlie Cosker in “The Italian Job”, driving that gorgeous convertible into the very heart of the gold heist.. Anyone who has ever taken control of the wheel has at least once dreamt of driving not just to get from point A to point B but to go from point A to B in flair. And driving a fantastic sports car fulfills this dream.

In making an automobile or any land vehicle for that matter, a lot of factors are being considered: cost of material, safety, efficiency, and performance are only some of these at play on the drawing board of a car maker. A sports car however, in definition gives priority to performance above all other factors. By performance, speed is usually the first thing that comes to mind. Speed relies heavily on the power of the car’s engine.

Most sports cars do have muscle engines which can outrun even the fastest sedans easily. A sports car engineer therefore puts it first on the list of factors that he has to consider: how to travel the distance with the least amount of time possible.

But of course, even if performance is a cut above every other consideration, the other factors are never neglected. Safety cannot be compromised, because even the fastest sports car needs a driver on the wheel at all times, and safe at all times. Besides, everyone wants to drive from start to finish in one piece, after all. So a performance-oriented vehicle must pay attention to the other factors and not rely solely on the car engine’s power.

A number of sports cars compensate for a not-so-powerful engine with a light body, paying due respect to the laws of physics: the lighter the mass, the smaller amount of force required to move this mass. This is also the reason why a sports cars usually are smaller, and do not have backseats. If these cars do have backseats, these are not as convenient as a sedan’s and is only a throwaway to please the insurance companies. One may also notice that a sports car quite often only has two doors, and it shares the same reason as that of the backseat.

Because it can outperform any of the regular four-seater cars out in the market, sports cars are sold obviously at a higher price. Another reason is because quality materials are almost always being used to withstand the heavier wear and tear in this type of vehicle.

This also explains why purchasing a sports car remains a pipe dream to most car enthusiasts. But it doesn’t have to be that way anymore. It is easier to get one’s hands on the steering wheel of a sports car than most people think. One just has to have the imagination and acumen to do so.

Buying a sports car does not have to mean going to your nearest car dealer and getting a brand new vehicle off the rack. There are quite a handful of these vehicles beyond the dealer’s garage, in very good condition and sold at a lower price. You can always check out car auctions and watch out of sports car models being sold at pancake rates. Pre-owned sports cars are always available on your local car magazine or website; sometimes it just requires you to pay more attention to these ad placements; you’ll never know when the sports car of your dreams is right under your nose.

Buying second-hand sports cars maybe the best way to go if one is facing monetary constraints. If a pre-owned sports car is taken cared of properly, it will give one the same excitement that a new one can provide.

There are also private sellers particularly of sports cars. More often than not, owners of these sports cars found themselves short of cash and are willing to dispose of their sports cars at considerably low prices, much to their resistance. Desperation is in a way good for buyers on the look-out: they get their dream vehicles at bargain prices.

And once you have spotted the car of your dreams, it is wise to exercise routine vehicle inspection, the way one does when buying a regular car. Do not forget to visually inspect the engine, the interior and the body. It is a folly to disregard these simple reminders, especially when buying a pre-owned sports car. You as a buyer can easily assess the condition of the car, how well it was maintained by the owner, simply by looking at it. Then, the proof of the pudding is in the eating: do not forget to test-drive your prospect sports vehicle before closing the purchase. Give it a go and see how it feels. If it feels good – and you feel like Steve McQueen in Bullitt – it is time to call that sports car your own.

Lee Dobbins writes for sportscars.unique-articles.com where you can learn more about the sports care and get tips on buying a sports car

There are many different reasons why parents choose to enroll their children in childcare. The most common being that both parents need to work in order to sustain a household, however, many parents use childcare as a method of spending a little time together without the children. Experts believe that children and parents need some time away from each other in order to form relationships with others.

When the decision has been made that both parents need to work, it is often a heartbreaking decision to put a child in childcare. However there are many benefits to placing using a childcare center both for parents and for children.

If both parents need to work, childcare is the only option that they have to make sure that their child or children are in a safe and secure atmosphere. This give the parents piece of mind knowing that their child is in good hands.

Even if both parents do not work, placing the child or children in childcare a few days a week can give the parent time for his or herself to regroup.

Children benefit from childcare because they are not around one single person everyday and allowed to play with other children. This develops their social skills. Studies have indicated that children who attend childcare on a regular basis tend to adjust better when they are placed in a structured setting such as school.

The social skills that children learn at a very early age will grow with them into adulthood. It is crucial that they learn good social skill early to know what is acceptable behavior and what is not.

Choosing a childcare center will be very time consuming and at times overwhelming. There will be aspects of each one that you visit that you like. Some parents opt for private or home childcare where their children with receive one on one attention.

Many parents choose to use home childcare. They feel that their child will be in a familiar setting and will adjust to the time away easier.

The world in which we live is a very scary place at times. There are disreputable people everywhere and it can be difficult to distinguish the good from the bad. When you choose home childcare, you can take control of what happens in the day-to-day life of your child and know that he or she is safe with the use of nanny cams.

Once you have found the right childcare, whether it is home childcare or a childcare center, the first day that you drop him or her off will be very difficult. However it is important that you realize that both you and your child will benefit from the time you spend apart.

Author: Matt Garrett © 2007 [http://www.positiveparentinghandbook.com] Get your Free 12 Part Ecourse on Positive Parenting for Raising Healthy, Happy and Smart Kids Inc. Free Report on how to choose the best Day Care for your child. What Makes a Good Parent [http://www.positiveparentinghandbook.com]

Hiking is one of the most adventurous activities. It is not enough to just wear usual clothes during hiking. There are required hiking clothes for hiking. The clothes are the most important gear for any hiker because it serves as protection from any kind of harm while outdoors. There are two kinds of clothing for hiking, the hiking clothes for women and for men. Layering system of clothes is usually used by hikers for the reason that it is lighter and flexible compared to carrying a separate piece for every contingency. And normally works better compared to trying to make one piece for each need encountered. The layering systems of clothes are:

o Base layer – the innermost clothing layer next to skin

o Insulation layer – the middle clothing layer gives warmth to the body

o Outer layer – the outer layer is the clothing that protects the other layer from rain, snow, wind etc.

The hiking clothes for women must keep them warm, dry, and protected from any harm and different weather conditions, terrain conditions, and other conditions that you will encounter during your hike. You must consider the weight and bulk of the clothing in buying hiking clothes. Lightweight hiking clothes are more functional and very comfortable to use. The hikers must also chose the right hiking clothing in order to protect their torso and extremities. Here are some guidelines in choosing hiking clothes including the hiking footwear.

o Outdoor clothing – you can be exposed to different conditions during hiking. It is important to choose and wear hiking clothing that will protect from any harm from outdoor. You must also consider the purpose of your outdoor clothing, like maintaining your thermal balance.

o The three layer system – this is the best way to protect yourself from some weather. This is discussed on the second paragraph of this article.

o The appropriate hiking socks and hiking boots – you must choose an appropriate hiking socks that fits your hiking boots. This is basically for the protection of the feet.

o The hiking pants – this is the perfect clothing to maintain your thermal equilibrium and protect your extremities.

o Hiking shirts and jackets – hiking shirts and jackets will give protection in your torso. Choose the hiking shirt and hiking jackets that really suites your body.

o Hiking vest – hikers usually use hiking vest. This gives warm to the body also.

o Hiking rain clothing – this is the best clothing during rainy season. This will keep your body warm and dry.

o Gloves or mitts – this will probably protect your hands

o Hats and scarves – used for head protection, you can also use some head gears that can protect you head.

These are the best guide for choosing hiking clothes for women. Always consider the quality and feature of any hiking clothing and you must also wear the appropriate hiking clothing before heading to hike.

Amy Carpenter is an accomplished niche website developer and author.

To learn more about hiking clothes for women [http://hikingandcampinggearstore.info/hiking-clothes-for-women], please visit Hiking and Camping Gear Store [http://hikingandcampinggearstore.info] for current articles and discussions.

For many fly-fisherman, fly-tying is a serious hobby. Not only is fly-tying economical, it is enjoyable. Nothing beats the thrill of mastering a new fly pattern, or creating specialized flies for ones’ unique fishing situations. Also, one cannot underestimate the sense of adventure that accompanies the fly-fisher on the prowl for the perfect materials, whether browsing the local fly shop, ransacking a craft store, or even salvaging road kill.

Given that tying your own flies provides so much satisfaction, why buy flies online?

Obtain local fly patterns

The first reason is that as your fly fishing experience grows, your desire to test new and foreign waters increases. As a result, your need for localized patterns becomes more important. Sure, you want to do the research and tie your own variations of the Club Sandwich before you hit the Snake River for the first time, but there’s something to be said about fishing the tried and true local patterns on your initial outings to foreign waters. With that idea established, you can either buy these flies from a local shop or purchase them online. I recommend doing both.

Say you live in New Jersey and you’re planning your first trip to Colorado. You and your buddies plan to hit a few a rivers within 10 days. Before you go, do research on the internet – find out what’s hatching on these rivers when you plan to visit them, and what patterns work best. Then, based on your research, purchase enough flies online to cover you while fishing these waters. Now you have a safety net – you won’t have to worry about not having enough flies for the rivers you’ll fish at the end of your trip.

Next, research local shops on the internet – find out who the proprietors are and when they are open for business. Now this idea might seem obvious to many of you, but make it a point to stop at these shops before you fish. When you arrive, ask them about recent fishing activity and what flies they would recommend. Tell them about your trip, let them know you found their site on the internet, and ask for their advice. Tell them what flies you already have and ask about what else you may need. If your budget allows, purchase as many of the flies they recommend.

Save time while supplementing your current collection

There comes a time in which your energy is better focused on fishing than tying flies. A typical North American fly-fisher and fly-tyer spends the “off” months tying flies for the season ahead. Many fisherman focus the bulk of their tying efforts on the winter months to prepare for spring, summer, and fall fishing. If you are one of those anglers who feel like they never have enough flies, purchasing your “basic” flies online can leave you time to focus on the more specialized, region-specific flies that you might not find on the web. For example, why not buy your attractor flies such as Adams or Stimulators, so that you can concentrate on the special mayfly flies that you know will require special attention to detail? The same idea applies to those “hard-to-tie” flies – if you dislike tying size 24 Tricos, why not buy those items online so you have more time to crank out the flies you prefer to tie?

Also, consider how much your time is worth. Think about your fly-tying time as if you were a professional fly-tyer. How much is an hour of your fly-tying time worth? If it takes you two hours to tie twelve size 26 BWO emergers, you might be better off spending $10 on a dozen of the same fly so that you can use those two hours to tie 18 Rusty Spinners.

Variety

No matter what you want to purchase, nothing beats the internet for window shopping. I have seen the same fly pattern tied three different ways on three different sites. This variety allows you to find the best pattern that matches your intended fishing location. For example, if you plan to fish faster moving water, your parachute patterns might need a bit more hackle, or even a brighter post. On the other hand, if you plan to fish tailwaters, your mayfly patterns might need to sit lower on the water. By the same token, if you intend to fish mostly in the spring, your mayfly patterns might need to be a lighter color than if you intend to fish in the fall.

By browsing different sites for the same patterns, you will be able to compare patterns and ascertain the right fly for you. The best way to do this is to open two or three browser windows at a time on your computer. Then go to different sites in each browser and compare the patterns you are interested in.

Save money

Quite simply, buying flies online can save you money. Not only can you find discounts for large orders, the actual cost of individual flies can be lower than if you purchased flies from some of the larger fly fishing retailers. The best online merchants often charge as little as 65 cents (sometimes, even 50 cents for fly patterns). One disadvantage is that you don’t get to inspect the flies before you purchase them, unlike in a store. I recommend buying a few different patterns your first time so that you can determine not only the quality of the flies, but the consistency of the quality across different patterns. For example, a good initial purchase might include a stonefly nymph, a caddis pattern, a mayfly emerger, a mayfly dun, and an attractor pattern. This way you could check the various elements of typical flies such as tails, dubbing, hackle, deer-hair, and hook strength.

Types of web sites

There are hundreds of web sites that sell flies online. These sites fall into two categories: companies that only sell flies, and fly shop owners who run web sites for their businesses.

Businesses whose sole purpose is to sell flies online usually have a greater amount of flies available. One advantage these sites offer is that they are more likely to offer discounts on larger purchases. Also, their web sites tend to be more user-friendly (though not always). Many of these sites typically include advanced functionality that make selecting and purchasing flies easier on the user. The best of these sites allow you to set up personal accounts or use “shopping carts” to store your selections before purchasing. In this manner, the purchase experience is more convenient. Shopping carts tend to be “persistent” – in that a visitor may select items to the cart one day and return to the site at later time to find that the shopping cart still contains the previous selections. This allows you to select items you are interested in, leave the site and do more research, then alter or add to your selections later.

Fly shop web sites, on the other hand, typically present the user with flies specifically relevant to the area that the fly shop services. You have a better chance of purchasing flies that are most effective to the area you want to fish if you purchase them from local fly shops. Furthermore, you are supporting the local economy of the area in which you desire to fish. Many fly shop web sites also include online hatch charts which can inform you of flies you most likely need.

The authors experience

In the spring, and summer I do a lot of fishing on the Delaware River in the Catskills Mountains of New York. Throughout the winter I will tie a decent amount of the flies I actually need. As spring approaches, I have found that supplementing my collection with web-bought flies ensures that I am ready to meet the various hatches encountered in the spring. Any Delaware River fly fisherman will tell you that hatch-matching is a critical part of success on this river. In my limited experience, I have encountered days in which four or five different hatches took place. On top of that, the hatches change from week to week. I have ensured a decent modicum of success by checking local hatch charts ahead of time and then purchasing a dozen flies from week to week.

Hopefully, these tips will help you increase the amount of flies you own, and enhance your fly-fishing experience.

Article courtesy of Steve Clark of TotalFlyFishing.com at www.totalflyfishing.com.

It’s all about sports say coaches and parents as they sign their children up for little league, soccer, swimming or youth track. Both parents and coaches alike realize that by teaching our kids sports we are instilling in them strong work ethic, competitiveness, team work, sportsmanship, striving to accomplish goals, and to win.

These are all such obvious life skills you’d wonder why any parent wouldn’t want their kids in sports. Still, some psychologists say that an underperforming young athlete can have their self-esteem hurt if they find that they are not as good as the other kids on the team or in the league.

True enough and yet parents say, that’s alright they can still be part of a winning team, if they will put forth effort they’ll learn what can be accomplished working together, and they will also learn that if they want to do good and win in anything in life they will have to rise to the occasion and train and work harder to accomplish their goals, dreams and objectives. Indeed.

Today however, we are finding more and more studies and research done by psychologists that say we are damaging our children by pushing them too hard and that we should back off in order not to hurt their psyche. Sure, we could do that, but what happens when they enter the real world say coaches and parents; “Things are not going to get any easier then are they?”

No matter what you believe on this topic, one thing is known for sure; Team Sports Build Character in Our Youth! And so, I hope you will consider this.

Lance Winslow is a retired franchisor – Lance Winslow’s Bio. Lance Winslow is formerly the CEO of WashGuys family of franchises for instance one of Lance Winslow’s favorite companies on the team; www.windowwashguys.com/links.shtml /.

This is a touchy subject when it comes to community access television. After all, usually our audiences are moms, dad, guardians, babysitters or teachers of children, and if not, they probably are related to children in some way. And almost everyone loves children. So, what do you do with children in the community access television productions? No one wants to alienate anyone who brings babies or children inside the building but everyone wants everyone to be safe and secure once inside the building. So this article is to spread information that will keep babies and children safe and secure while inside of any studio building. Before I get deep into this topic I should discuss what the children are doing there, in the studio building. Children are in the building for these reasons (For one, some or more than one of these reasons):

• Sometimes the talent, guests, hosts or co-hosts are children, teens, or young adults.
• Sometimes the children are audience members.
• Sometimes the children are there with their adults who are producers. The producers are doing their own shows or helping other producers in the other producer’s shows.
• Sometimes there might be children of staff or administration present.

Any or all of the above can be possible. Now that I have listed the reasons why children, teens or young adults are in the studio, I can get down to the basics of what happens, and what you might want to do if children appear on your reservation time.

There are many shows, a large number of shows, that have children as talent and active participants in main parts of the show, so we welcome babies and children into the studio, as long as the babies and children are well-supervised at all times. This ensures their safety and security. So, whether the children are talent, invited guests, or producers’ children, we all have the safety and security of babies and children as our first priority. Everyone inside the studio building must be safe, or there will be no successful television production possible. A production with injury or loss is not successful. So, with success in mind, I will go on to talk about babies and children inside of the studio buildings. So, this article is not stating that children, teens and young people should not be inside the studio, but clearly stating that there are places that are not safe for babies and young children, so most Executive Producers do not want to see children in these places that are or could cause injuries to any young children. Injuries could be caused by heavy equipment, electronic equipment and also by strangers who might have entered the building. So to avoid these injuries, the best thing to do is to have children supervised at all times when children are in these places inside the studio building. So, by following these instructions, all children should be safe and supervised inside any of the studio buildings, no matter what borough you live in.

• When you bring children inside the studio building, know and remember that you are responsible for these children. The other producers, staff, interns, guests, volunteers, hosts, co-hosts or talent are not responsible for any babies, toddlers or young children that you bring inside the building. Knowing this and remembering this will help you to keep them supervised and safe while you visit the building. Many people forget this because there are so many people around. It is easy to take your eye of a child while some other adult is speaking with the child or paying attention to that child.
• Know that the Security Guard is protecting your child when he or she tells you that your child is not permitted inside the conference room or permitted inside any other area of the studio building without constant adult supervision. That makes good, common sense. Many strangers come into the building at all times of day. You would not expect to leave your baby or child unattended with a stranger, so you are not going to leave your child unattended with strangers in the conference room, or any of the other areas of the studio building. While all this might seem like unnecessary rules to you because you feel comfortable and safe in the studio building, these are necessary rules for babies and children since the studio is not a place that was designed with babies or children in mind. So, leaving any baby or child unattended in any area of the studio building is like inviting a baby or child into a factory and leaving them alone. No reasonable parent or guardian would do that. So, if anyone reminds you that children need to be supervised, kindly take that as a friendly gesture that is helping to protect your child from injury or loss.
• If and when you bring babies or children inside of the studio area (where producers tape shows), be alert that no one brings liquids inside the area. These liquids ruin equipment and the equipment is extremely expensive to replace. Besides being a financial responsibility, any liquids that come in contact with any of the equipment causes a possible electrical or fire danger to anyone nearby. Liquids and electricity has never ever mixed well when it comes to any electrical, camera or sound equipment. One of the reasons for the dressing room is so that parents and producers have a place to enjoy their meals, drinks and other snacks while they are at the studio building.

How Parents and Guardians Enjoy the Studio Experience:

• Wait (with babies and children) in the waiting area (usually near the Security Guard). This keeps all babies and children in full view of the Security Guard. Even though you are still fully responsible for their safety, the Security Guard adds another measure of safety, just be being there. (Most strangers will not bother or abduct babies or children while a uniformed Security Guard is present).
• When it is time to go into the conference room, have your babysitter watch the children outside the conference room while you are inside the room. If the child is older and responsible, they might be able to come into the conference room. Just ask the Executive Producer and there should be no problem with that. (You will need to pre-arrange this with the Executive Producer so he or she is aware that you are bringing babies or children into the building).
• Once you leave the conference room or the lobby area, bring all babies and children with you, wherever you go. If you go into the rest room, bring them there, unless you have a babysitter watching them somewhere else. If you go into the dressing room, bring them there. Do the same as you would do with your babies or children in any business situation.
• Be alert, and have your child’s safety first in mind. Yes, the show must go on, and everyone works to make the production a success. But you, as the parent or guardian, have a job first, and that is your child’s safety and security. (Yes, I know you have that in mind always. But I mention that because being inside the studio is such an exciting experience for some babies and children, that it can sometimes be overwhelming to them. And this alone, can cause some babies and children to want to explore areas that they have not seen or been in before.

By following those ideas, all babies and children should be able to safely experience the television production process and shows. With safety in mind, that makes everyone happy. No one would want to put any baby or child in any danger, so following these ideas definitely makes the show run smoothly.

What Dangers?

• Dangers of strangers inside the studio building. Anything at all is possible. So, know that there might be strangers inside the studio building. Even though everyone signs the security books upstairs and downstairs, everyone entering the building is usually a stranger to your child. You do not know their background, where they come from, how they live or even what they are in the studio building for.
• Dangers of electrical exposure, fire hazards and things like that. The studio room has numerous electrical outlets, and all sorts of heavy, moveable electrical equipment, throughout the studio.
• Moving hazards, most studios have robotics cameras that are controlled from inside the control room. So a baby or child could see this camera (robotic) moving all by itself and they might go over and try to handle, touch or move the camera. This causes great danger to the baby or child as these cameras are extremely heavy and can fall onto babies or children inside the studio area. This is one reason why parents and guardians must supervise babies and children at all times inside the studio building.
• Heavy doors leading into the studio area and into other areas of the studio, control room, and dressing room. Any or all of these doors can close on little fingers causing great danger and hazard.

False Sense of Security:

This is very important. When producers and other people come into the building with children, they usually feel very comfortable because everyone is very friendly. They feel comfortable too, because they think that they know everyone. Feeling too comfortable here with babies and children is having a false sense of security. You need to feel like you are in a public building — which the studio is in a public building (one that anyone from outdoors can walk inside of ) . One of the reasons that some parents and guardians feel safe inside the studio building is because they know most of the people entering the building. Most are either friends, relatives, or co-producers, or producers they have worked with before. There are staff members, volunteers and interns that work there too, and most might be familiar with them also. However, there are, at times, complete strangers in the building. Hundreds of different people might enter the studio building during any given week (depending on the studio where you are). Some of those hundreds could be people who do not belong in the building. They might be people who belong in the building also, but still strangers, like plumbers, electricians, locksmiths, computer repair people, and any number of others that might enter the building. There have been people who have entered the building by mistake. They were looking for another building. So, not everyone that you see inside the studio building belongs in that particular building. I am not saying that the building is unsafe. What I am saying is that the building is not safe for babies or children who are left unattended. You would not leave children unattended out in the world, so it makes sense that babies and children are not left unattended inside the studio building.

What Is In The World Is In the Building:

Knowing that what is in the world is inside the building, that might open anyone’s eyes as to the many reasons why we (as producers) ask parents and guardians to supervise their babies and children once they are inside of the studio. What is in the world? Look around your outside world. Almost everything that is out there can be inside the building. Why? Because there are people inside the building and those people are from outside the building. There are all kinds of people with all kinds of values and all kinds of backgrounds. The world is a magnificent place and it is also a place where babies and children should be supervised. Ask yourself these questions:

• What if people are discussing an adult topic? Do I want my children to hear this?
• What if people argue? Do I want my baby or child to be around this?
• What if two people begin fighting? Will my baby or child be in danger?
• What if a large piece of heavy equipment falls, will my baby or child be protected if they are there unsupervised?
• What if there is an electrical problem, will my baby or child be safe if they are unsupervised?
• What if a fire breaks out, will my baby or child be safe if they are unsupervised?
• What if an expensive equipment fails or is broken while my child is around unsupervised? Will I be responsible?
• How will a studio experience be for my baby or child if they are left unsupervised in the building?
• What if my baby or child is unsupervised, and I can not find them in the studio building?

If you ask yourself those questions then you will know why producers insist that babies and children have constant supervision at all times once inside the studio building. And many of those things have happened inside of different studio buildings in our own cities. They might not have happened while babies or children were around, but they have happened. Some reading this might think this article is too much or too restricting but supervision can never be too much when you are talking about having babies and children in an industrial-type area. Yes, there are times, when babies or children are needed in the studio area. They might be part of the show or they might even be the entire show! So, knowing this, you see that I am not trying to restrict the admission of babies or children inside the building but rather I am simply writing an article on how to keep babies and children safe and secure when they are in the building. All babies and children who are guests, hosts, co-hosts, audience members, and children of producers are welcome inside the building provided they are supervised at all times. So, knowing that, I invite you to thoroughly enjoy your studio experience, now that I have placed these few reminders out to the public in this article.

I am hoping that everyone reading this takes the article in the spirit that it is written, entirely for safety first for babies and children inside the building. I warmly welcome everyone to the studio for my own productions, including babies and children (with proper constant supervision). There have been many occasions where some producers have brought children to the show and they were properly supervised and they were a great asset to the show. I invited them back again. So, it definitely goes without saying that some of our shows are enhanced by the children’s presence.

Security:

Our particular building does have wonderful security guards who take care of what needs to be taken care of. Thank God for that. One of the things that does make producers and visitors feel secure is that our studio has uniformed security guards at the desk, and they have proven that they can handle any situation that arises. So, know that the studio has provided a means for safety, and that you need to help them out by being responsible for your own children or for the children that you bring inside the building.

That is all I have to say, for now, about the experiences of being inside the building with babies and children. I welcome any comments, questions or criticisms from my readers.

Certified television producer, artist, writer, collage-artist, and creative individual with many years photography, press and publicity experience. She has covered national and International events as an independent journalist and artist. She shares information, helpful hints and resources with the readers on a variety of topics including television production, art, photography, and psychology.

At first sight the title of this article seems a reasonable question for any cat owner. As with most individual members of the human race, we tend to orient our personal world into our own system of logic, predictability and orderliness. We establish our routines and habits to fit a life style that gives us a comfort level free from the fears that always seems to surround us. We are continually reminded of those fears whether it’s broadcast yellow journalism espoused by the news media, or from neighborhood gossip by people who seem to need such excitement because they are either just bored, or think that you’re in need of some kind of realistic jolt into seeing things the way they do. As narrow as that may seem, there’s no doubt that each person organizes their home into some kind of system, that is a life style, that encompasses the concepts of order and predictability with logical results that ensures peace, comfort and tranquility.

It’s about that time many will decide they would like a pet to complete the picture. Some may want the company of a pet because they live alone; others might want surrogate children, either because they don’t have any yet, or maybe their children have grown and flown the nest. Of course, there are those who just appreciate the easy love and fidelity pets seem so easily capable of. Many will opt to get a cat. It’s here that the peace and tranquility you have established and come to know and expect is sure to be interrupted, if not challenged.

The introduction of any new pet, and cats in particular, will require a new way of thinking. With this new way of thinking, to be a successful cat owner will depend on how well one can incorporate balance and perspective, as an evaluation of oneself, into their new relationship. In other words, one needs to balance their own personal needs and the needs of their cat with a perspective that allows them to see the relationship in the long term as well as on a daily basis.

There’s a lot hidden in that last paragraph.

• Balance and perspective as an evaluation of oneself requires complete honesty when analyzing ones emotions and reactions to a given situation. Any biased rationalization of an event or circumstance just won’t do when one is seeking the ‘truth’ of a situation.
• A person’s needs can be either emotional (a harmonious, peaceful and happy home environment), spiritual or physical (food, warmth & shelter). The same goes for your cat. She has emotional and physical needs not dissimilar to your own. As for the spiritual needs of either people or cats, we’ll leave that for other discussions.
• Perspective is necessary to perceive a relationship with your cat as a long term affair, what you might call the forest, in light of the activities of day to day living, or the trees that make up a forest. Moreover, reactions to a given situation can change from one day to the next, some of which can have an altering effect on the long term view. You can see that moving from the long view to the short view and back again requires a good measure of mental agility.

So, what’s all that got to do with cat behavior?

The instincts of cats have been ingrained over eons of evolution. The qualities that distinguish a cat from all other animals (people included) can be listed as follows:

• Cats are nocturnal: Cats learned a long time ago that they could find prey and avoid predators by doing their hunting at night. Physiologically, they evolved senses that allowed them to be quite successful at night time activities. Senses such as eyes that could detect motion in very little light. Hearing that allows them to accurately pinpoint a prey’s movements in the dark. Their hearing range far exceeds that of humans so that they can not only hear noises people can’t, but they can communicate in those ranges, too. They’ve the ability to lay a scent trail that doesn’t require light to follow which is useful when escape from predators can be the difference between life and death in total darkness.
• Cats are territorial: A cat will mark off an area with her scents and claim it for herself. Usually her territory would be just large enough to support her, and any of her kittens, with a food source in the form of prey. Her scent marking also warns other cats that this is her land and it would be best if they just move on.
• Cats are solitary: Except when mating, cats are used to living alone. This is closely related to the territorial aspect of the cat’s personality. In order to keep from spending all their time marking a territory, the claimed land is usually small enough for only one cat. Besides, to many scents can be confusing especially if she is trying to escape a predator in the dark of night.
• Cats are predatory: They have learned to be quite proficient at hunting, especially for small nocturnal prey. The cat’s hunting technique can be divided into four phases:
  • Stalking
  • Catching
  • Killing
  • Eating

  Most cat owners are familiar with the staking phase. All cats will stalk from kitten-hood. But, the success of any cat’s ability to stalk, catch, kill and eat prey is solely dependant on what their mother teaches them when they were a kitten. If they didn’t get good training in these predation techniques, they may be less than stellar at being a predator. Still, the instinct to act out all four phases is inherent in every cat’s nature.

• 
  Cats are maternal: Because a cat is solitary and her territory will only provide prey for her and her brood, it’s necessary for the kittens to learn a lot before mom kicks them out of the house. Otherwise, there would be too many mouths competing for a limited supply of food. Not to mention all the different scents cluttering up the territory. The maternal instinct has to be strong to teach so much in a short period of time. Unlike pack animals that will share in child rearing, a cat has only herself to rely upon to successfully raise her brood and perpetuate the cat species.

So, when someone decides to own a cat as a pet, they should realize that the cat comes with some pretty deeply ingrained characteristics. Most see only a package that doesn’t require a lot of attention (unlike dogs), is basically clean and doesn’t have to be house trained. But, then when a person’s logical sense of order and predictability comes into conflict with the basic natural instincts of a cat… the fur begins to fly!!

When a cat’s feeling at home, she will rub her cheeks against prominent pieces of furniture, your pillows, or your leg. Most people find that an endearing quality. She’s really marking her territory which she shares with you. If she becomes stressed (due to a change in or invasion of her environment such as a move to a new home, or the introduction of a new pet or family member), or due to certain illnesses, she may feel the need to mark her territory a little more strongly, say with urine. In both cases she is marking her territory, but only one marking is acceptable to you. The other can cause you fits and wonder why you brought her home in the first place. Your reaction will have a lot to say about you and how you evaluate circumstances. It will say less about your cat since she will only be doing what comes naturally to her.

It’s sometimes hard to believe, but cats really aren’t diabolical.

I know that there are many who’ll disagree with me. But, I’ve found that cats are just as loving, faithful, playful and needful of attention as any dog. They just manifest those qualities in a different manner which is unique to cats in general. Mostly, I’ve found that with an understanding of the instinctual feline characteristics, many of the problematic behavioral confrontations people have with their cats can either be corrected, albeit with some compromise on the person’s part, or avoided altogether. Yes, you’ll have to be smarter than the cat. And, being smarter than anything requires a lot of work. In the end, cats aren’t diabolical, or out to make your life miserable; they don’t try to get even, even when you think they should. They just do what comes naturally. Whether what they do is normal or not… that depends a lot on their childhood experiences. Something even people have a hard time being. Normal, that is. Kitten-hood experiences and how they relate to adult cat behavior will be discussed in the next newsletter. For now give yourself a little test. Without looking at your cat, ask the following questions:

• What color are your cat’s eyes and coat?
• Describe the quality of your cat’s coat, skin, teeth and gums.
• What sex is your cat? Is your cat neutered or intact?
• How much does she/he weigh?
• How much does she/he eat and drink every day?
• When, how much and how often does she/he urinate and defecate?

If you can answer these questions, then you are on your way to really knowing your cat and a big step towards a peaceful coexistence which you both want, for sure. Learning her instinctual drives will complete the picture. Then your life together will be remembered as a life of harmony. Not of strife or détente. Or worse with her staring at euthanasia or becoming feral.

Work in Progress: Coming to Cat Lovers Gift World will be a section entitled Cat Behavior which will discuss the concept of the cat’s natural instincts and how they affect the cat in her relations with people.

Robert J Gallegos, author of http://www.catlover-giftsworld.com a web site dedicated to proper cat care with quality cat lover gifts based on an understanding of cat behavior, instincts and the unique requirements for healthy cats as pets. Cats are the newest of animals to be domesticated and still have one paw in the wild. It’s a major reason why they’re so mysterious and resistant to human expectations. Robert is a life long lover of cats. He is dedicated to sharing his understanding of the cat experience, reducing the epidemic feral cat situation, and helping cat lovers to provide the best care for their cats.

There are many avid skiers who grew up skiing as young children that make those adults new to skiing feel quite inept. Everyone has to learn, even if it is as a child. When thinking about learning how to snow ski, it is important to seek lessons with a reputable ski resort or well known private company that gives skiing lessons for a reasonable fee. Learning how to ski takes effort and practice, but with perseverance, you will be swishing the bunny slopes and aiming for the intermediate slopes in short order.

When learning how to snow ski, the best lessons are the ones given at one of the many reputable ski resorts. Snow skiing is their business and often the best of the best in ski instructors are on staff as such places. At ski resorts, you can choose from group ski lessons or private ski lessons. If funds and circumstances permit, learning how to snow ski through private lessons gives you plenty of one on one time with the instructor at hand to help in the practicing. Here are a few things you should look for in private snow skiing instruction:

• Do you prefer the instructor to be male or female? It does not mean you are discriminatory if you prefer a male or female instructor. It is important that you will be comfortable learning how to snow ski with the private instructor, so pick one that will put you at ease.
• Do you want to learn quickly and hit the slopes with abandon or would you prefer to take it slowly? Some instructors will teach you quickly, getting you out on the slopes safely but quickly as they stand by ready to assist. Other instructors spend more time getting you ready and practicing moves with you before ever hitting the slopes. Both ways can be effective and safe; it is a matter of your personal preference and bravado.
• Lastly, be sure to check and double check your ski instructor’s qualifications. While trusting the ski resort to have done so in hiring the instructors, it is still a good idea to ask when you seek to sign up for learning how to snow ski lessons. Knowing your private instructor is well qualified will help ease your fears as a beginning skier.

Learning how to snow ski is something many aspire to do, to enjoy the crisp cold air outdoors during the snowy winter season. Those who love the outdoors will find ways to be out in the fresh air no matter the season. With so many avid skiers and great resorts, skiing is a fun pastime in which to spend time with friends and family-and meet new fellow skiers as well.

Jonathan loves winter sports. During the winter he sometimes picks up a second job driving snow plow trucks to earn him the extra cash he needs for his ski resort ticket.

Outdoor cooking appliances are simply the most extraordinary inventions that have ever seen the light of the day. Cooking is made an enjoyable and effortless activity thanks to these appliances. Nobody in their right mind wants to set the house on fire, but even than it is far less difficult and dangerous to ignite a fire outside the house for cooking purposes, greatly aided by suitable equipment. These appliances are the essentials of outdoor cooking and facilitate the preparation of tasty and healthy dishes in a jiffy. Amongst the outdoor cooking appliances available, the most widely preferred are Dutch ovens, griddles made from cast iron and cooking grills.

1. Griddles : Griddles made from cast iron present stovetops with greater flexibility. The side with ridges can be employed for grilling and the other plain side can be utilized for making eggs and pancakes. A vital point to commit to memory is that when the griddle is used, you should ensure that it receives proper circulation of air.

2. Jambalaya Pots : A different kind of outdoor cooking appliance is the Jambalaya Pots, which are made of cast iron of approx. 3-10 gallons, and are multifunctional. They are extremely useful in the preparation of stoufee, gumbos, and soups when cooking for a large number of people. On the inside, it is concave in shape, but even then can function as a LPG burner.

3. Cooking Paddle : Then, another kind of outdoor cooking appliance, which is used regularly, is the cooking paddle, which comes in both wood and steel and, largely makes cooking very uncomplicated and easy.

4. Fish Fry Basket : A further kind of outdoor cooking appliance, which is often used, is the fish fry basket, which can be put in the deep fryer.

5. Fry Thermometers : Fry thermometers, which apart from being a safety measure, enable you to check that the meat is cooked at the right temperature and is not over- or under done.

6. Grill Accessories : Grill Accessories can be placed in the storage shelf or rack of the grill. Hence, seasoning food becomes quite easy as all the ingredients are kept close at hand.

7. Deep Fryer Kit : The deep fryer kit is a very popular outdoor cooking appliance and comprises of large and deep fryer pots with a thermometer and a burner included.

One can make cooking seem easy by putting the ingredients on the grill or in the deep fryer very conveniently. You need not invest a lot of time or effort to prepare dishes using the outdoor cooking appliances, as they tend to reduce considerably the cooking time. Many people who lead extremely busy lives opt for grilling as it produces fast results in a relatively short time. At times, the menu should include simple meals and grilling is your best bet as it helps you prepare food with ease. Outdoor cooking can really be a pleasurable activity, more so if you are using the latest equipment, which provide you with valuable assistance. Discover the thrill of cooking outdoors. Take pleasure in what you do best and remember there is no short cut to success. The only exception to the shortcut rule is grilling.

Abhishek is a cooking enthusiast! Visit his website http://www.Cooking-Guru.com and download his FREE Cooking Report “Master Chef Secrets” and learn some amazing Cooking tips and tricks for FREE! Learn how to create the perfect meal on a shoe-string budget. And yes, you get to keep all the accolades! But hurry, only limited Free copies available! http://www.Cooking-Guru.com

It is summer 2006. Young and not so young people are graduating from school and there are millions of people who are starting to think about student health insurance. Here are some tips for parents and students who are looking for health insurance for a college student, health insurance for a graduating college student or health insurance for an older graduate student. There are a lot of choices. This article is designed to give you an overview of the choices available to students.

Health Insurance For College Students You should explore all of the medical plan options available to you. Your choices may include:

1. Getting health insurance through the student’s employer.
2. Getting medical insurance through your local Blue Cross Blue Shield or other private health insurance plan.
3. Getting “college student health insurance” through a plan offered by their college or university.
4. Getting health insurance as a dependent on the policy of a parent or spouse.

When looking for the non-group health insurance plans that are available in your area, you may want to contact your state’s insurance department. You can contact them and find out which companies market individual health insurance in your area. Healthcare choices for the out-of-state student If you live on campus, look into the plans offered in each area. If your parents live in Florida, but you go to school in Texas, you should see what health insurance plans are available to you in both states. A student who has a permanent address of Connecticut and attends Yale in New Haven should only purchase a Connecticut-approved plan. If the same student transfers to UCLA, he or she can also explore plans offered in California. Some plans may even charge differently based on your zip code, so even if your two addresses are in the same state, you may still save money by looking at rates for both areas. Health Insurance For A Graduating College Student You should explore all of the medical plan options available to you. Your choices may include:

1. Getting health insurance through the former student’s employer.
2. Getting medical insurance through your local Blue Cross Blue Shield or other private health insurance plan.
3. Purchasing short-term health insurance to cover you until your employer-sponsored plan becomes effective.
4. Getting health insurance as a dependent on the policy of a parent or spouse.

Medical Insurance Plans to Watch Out For:

• Discount plans. These are not health insurance plans! These plans can save you money on health care, but only offer discounted services and not true insurance benefits. If you had a major accident or sickness, getting 25% off of a healthcare bill of $50,000 may not give you the benefits you hoped for.
• Accident only plans. Students get the flu, mono and even cancer. Being covered with an accident only plan can offer substandard coverage when compare to a comprehensive health insurance plan. (By the way, an unplanned pregnancy is not considered an accident either J. )
• Hospital Only or Basic Plans. These plans tend to offer good coverage in the hospital but little coverage outside of the hospital. These plans can save you from a hospital bill that might otherwise bankrupt you. However, today hospital stays are getting shorter and more and more healthcare is being done in doctors offices. If keeping your premiums low is important, consider a plan that covers you both in the hospital and in the doctors office that has a high deductible.
• School Sponsored Clinics And Urgent Care Centers. They cover you well for the little things, but not so well for the big things. There may be no coverage for surgery or hospitalization. In contrast to hospital only plans, these plans my not cover you for a hospital stay or for surgeries.

Finding the right student health insurance is important. College students and graduating college students have a lot of choices. Hopefully reading this article will make you aware of the options that you have. This article can be copied and reprinted but only in its entirety. The article was originally published on http://www.1800insurancect.com/articles/student-health-insurance-article.htm. The article starts with the heading “Student Health Insurance – Tips to Help You Choose the Right Policy” and ends with this sentence.

Alston J. Balkcom has been a Connecticut insurance agent since 1985. His practice primarly involves helping Connecticut residents find health insurance. His focus is on those who do not qualify for health insurance through their employers. Most of his clients reach him after visiting his Connecticut health insurance focused web-site . He has taken several advanced courses over the years to increase his knowledge of health and other types of insurance. His resume includes time with Metropolitan Life, and Mutual of Omaha.

The fashion industry is a utopia where money rains down on streets paved with gold; where the citizens are bedecked in the finest fabrics and jewelry known to man. They live in extravagant homes surrounded by diamonds that grow from trees. This utopia is such an amazing place that words cannot describe it. Well, okay maybe I’m exaggerating a bit. But when you see the staggering amounts of money that is made in the fashion industry annually, it is hard to not compare the industry to a fairytale.

The fashion industry seems to attract money like iron filings to a magnet. Clothing lines make millions of dollars each year, some well-established lines and designers even make billions of dollars. Now the fourth largest industry in the world, the fashion industry brings in $4 billion a year and includes the revenues from old established companies and a host of new clothing lines introduced by the urban market.

Contemporary Fashion History at a Glance

Initially Contemporary fashion as we know it was run by such top couture companies and designers as Channel, Calvin Klein, Karl Lagerfeld Gloria Vanderbilt, Dianne VonFurstenberg, Ralph Lauren, and Liz Claiborne to name a few. These and others such as Donna Karen, Guess? and Tommy Hilfiger bought couture style to the ready-to-wear market. Today, new clothing lines have made their mark upon the fashion industry, and include the wave of urban clothiers like Phat Farm, Sean John, Rocawear, and at one-time the mega clothing company FUBU.

Given the laundry list of clothing companies and fashion designers, one would think the market is over saturated. But quite the contrary is true. Like an elastic waistband, the market has simply expanded to accommodate each new clothing line, many of which have been able to capture a significant portion of market share to be rewarded with millions of dollars for their creativity, fashion sense and work efforts. Simply put, if you are the owner of a hot clothing line, chances are, you’re rich!

Marketing Genius

Tommy Hilfiger should be considered the poster child for marketing innovations. He was the first traditional clothing designer to capitalize on the Hip Hop world. From 1990 to 1993 Tommy Hilfiger was only bringing in $25 million a year. But that all changed in 1994 after a performance by Hilfiger-clad Snoop Doggy Dog performed on NBC’s Saturday Night Live. After the performance Tommy’s sales quickly jumped to $67 million. Since then, Hilfiger’s sales have continued to claim nearly $900 million. In 2002 Tommy Hilfiger reported sales of up to $1.9 billion. The company has remained around the billion-dollar mark. In 2006 Apax Partners, a global private equity investment group bought Tommy Hilfiger, Corp. for a reported $1.6 billion along with the agreement that Hilfiger would stay on to run the company.

Ralph Lauren, designer of the POLO brand is synonymous with the word fashion. Since the 1980s Ralph Lauren has been a dominating force in the fashion industry. His sales consistently hit record numbers and in 2006 for the U.S. market reached $3.75 billion. Projections for fiscal year 2007 are anticipated to reach $4.5 billion.

The company Guess?, by designer Maurice Marciano is yet another example of clothing line that has remained on top. Since 1981, the brand has dressed infants to senior citizens. A crossover brand, it has earned sales from both the urban and suburban markets, and in 2006 the company reported profits of $1.2 billion. Both Chairman Maurice Marciano, and co-chairman and CEO Paul Marciano command million-dollar salaries in their leadership positions in the company.

The men of fashion are not the only ones commanding high salaries and huge profits. In 2006 Liz Claiborne Inc, reported sales of $5 billion. While Liz Claiborne unfortunately died on June 27, 2007, her legacy lives on as does the testament to the longevity of the Liz Claiborne brand.

A self-taught fashion designer, Claiborne founded her company with her husband Art Ortenberg, Leonard Boxer, Jerome Chazen in 1976. Within a decade, the clothing company became a billion-dollar business. That type of growth is a testament to just how great and rewarding the world of fashion can be.

Another of the many top women in fashion is Donna Karen, founder of DKNY (Dona Karen New York). The DKNY name commands great respect in the fashion world and in 2006, the privately owned company reported earnings of $1.2 billion. The company’s 2007 sale projections are expected to stay steady at around the 1.2 billion-dollar mark. It should be noted that some companies partner with others to achieve their high financial earnings. For example, DKNY Jeans and DKNY Active are partnered brands of Liz Clairborne, Inc.

In 1967, fashion icon Calvin Klein graced the industry with his presence. Since then, Calvin Klein has become a household name. Another designer to use apt marketing strategy the Calvin Klein Company has also hit the billion-dollar mark. In 1980, Klein pushed the envelope with his Jeans ad where a young Brooke Shields stated, “Nothing comes between me and my Calvins.” Since then, the sentiment has been true for many. By 1996 Calvin Klein company surpassed $3 billion in sales worldwide, and by fiscal-year 2006, its subsidiary, Calvin Klein Jeans Wear Co., hit $90 million in sales. Just as Hilfiger sold his company to Apex, Calvin Klein sold his brand to the Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation, the largest shirt maker in the United States. According to industry financial reports, the Calvin Klein Company was sold for $400 million dollars in cash and $30 million in stocks.

The fashion industry is not limited to clothing. It also includes accessories and shoes. The cosmetics industry is different yet closely related market that cannot be overlooked when discussing fashion. Many designers, such as Chanel for example, branch their brands out to include cosmetic and fragrance lines, and for many consumers, cosmetics are just as important to their overall sense of fashion and style as clothing, shoes and accessories. The Estée Lauder Company has held on to its market share for quite some time. Estée Lauder sales for fiscal year 2007 were reported at $7 billion dollars. For the year, that figure breaks down to approximately $19.2 million per day. The company’s sales were up 9 percent from its recorded 2006 earnings of $6.46 billion, which shows just how much the cosmetics industry parallels the fashion industry.

“The fashion industry is a best-kept secret. There is so much money to be made is this business that it’s unreal! If you have a good name and some really hot fashion designs along with the knowledge to bring it to the market and keep it there, chances are good you will do quite well for yourself! In the fashion industry the potential is always present for a clothing line to make millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars. This business is unreal and that’s why it is a best-kept secret!”

-Jay Arrington co-owner of www.startingaclothingline.com

New Kids on the Block take the Industry by Storm

Talented, new urban designers have imposed their will on the fashion industry with the same force, if not a greater one, as their fashion predecessors did. They have opened new doors to an industry that was difficult to break into. This phenomenon started in the early 1990s with the former companies Cross Color clothing and fashion designer Karl Kani. While they are no longer active companies, they were the trailblazers for FUBU, Phat Farm and many other clothing designers.

Trail Blazers

Cross Colors was founded by Carl Jones in the early ’90s. Cross Colors. Upon its arrival on the market, the company was so hot, that they had major problems filling orders. With $130 million in pre-paid orders, they could only ship $89 million. The company grew at an uncontrollable rate. In its first year of business, Cross Colors made $15 million, and by 1992 it made $89 million. These figures are staggering and show the kind of market share that the new, urban market was able to capture easily.

Designer Karl Kani started his career with Cross Colors (Threads 4 Life), but left the company in 1994 to start his own label. In its first year the Karl Kani label had $22 million in sales, ranking him No. 38 on the Black Enterprise Industrial/Service 100 list. In the following year, Kani had $59 million in sales-a 37 percent increase over the previous year. The 1995 numbers earned him a leap from No. 38 to No. 25 on the Black Enterprise Industrial/Service 100 list. After such an impressive first two years, the line lost its market share, but Kani managed to reinvent himself and the company. Often called “the godfather of urban fashion,” in 2002, Kani returned with the introduction of “Life” a new clothing line that made $25 million in its first year. Achieving success where Hilfiger failed, Kani partnered directly with Hip Hop artists, rather than just having them wear his product.

For Us By Us, (FUBU) was an inspiring slogan that motivated four friends from Queens, New York to follow their dream. According to legend the guys from FUBU went to the Magic Show in Las Vegas. Magic is the biggest clothing convention in America, and at the convention, buyers were so impressed with their designs that FUBU took $1 million in orders from stores across the country. Lacking the capital to fill the orders, they placed an ad in the newspaper for investors. It read: “One million dollars in orders. Need investors.” The ad attracted the attention of the conglomerate Korean company Samsung, which made an investment in the company and helped FUBU fill the orders. Since then, FUBU has been a household name.

FUBU went on to take the fashion industry by storm. They went from selling hats on the street corners of New York to selling full collections in stores all over the world. Their operation moved from a basement in Queens to the entire 66th floor of the Empire State Building. In 1997 FUBU made $75 million, in 1998 they made $200 million; in 1999, $ 350 million and by 2001 their sales reached $380 million. Overall, the company’s worth grew to $450 million.

While FUBU does not currently have the same market strength that they had a few years ago, last year, they still managed to make $12.1 million from international sales. It is this ability to capture both domestic and international markets that shows the versatility of the fashion industry.

“With respect to the urban market, Carl Jones of Cross Colors invented it, Karl Kani solidified it and FUBU refined it!”

-Jay Arrington

The classic urban brand, Phat Farm, created by the godfather of hip hop, Russell Simmons is another line that took the fashion industry by storm. While the company did have its ups and downs, including going bankrupt, with the perseverance and business savvy of Simmons, the company has thrived. A resilient entrepreneur, Simmons pulled the company out of bankruptcy and went on to make millions of dollars. He started developing his collection and product line slowly. In 2000 Phat Farm made $120 million dollars; by 2001 it made $200 million. In 2003 Russell Simmons reported earnings for Phat Farm of $350 million. Taking a cue from other successful designers, Russell launched the subsidiary Baby Phat line in 2000. In its first year Baby Phat made $10 million. A year later, Baby Phat tripled its sales. In the last seven years, Baby Phat’s earnings have continued to climb the chart and in 2006, reached $100 million in earnings. Phat Farm kids was also launched by Simmons, and made $15 million in 2000 and $25 million in 2001. The entire Phat Fashion line brought in $659 million from licensing deals and in 2006, the Phat Farm label had around $740 million in retail sales alone overall, the entire Phat Fashion Label made approximately $2 billion in 2006. Without sound business practices however, the company might have suffered the same fate as many other new companies.

In early 2004, Russell Simmons sold Phat Fashions to The Kellwood Company for $140 million in cash. He stuck around for two years to make sure that the company stayed on track and judging by the numbers reported above it did. Russell, job well done!

“You see, most people don’t understand the fashion business. You start a brand and you make it hot! And then you start licensing out the name to other companies to create more products and that helps to build your brand and your company. That’s how you get to the billion-dollar mark. And when you do licensing deals, others do the work and you get a cut of the action. Why? Because it’s your name! I love this business!”

-Jay Arrington co-owner of www.startingaclothingline.com

Rocawear was founded by the Shawn “Jay Z” Carter, Damon Dash and Kareem Burkes in 1999. Since its inception, the company has been a force in the fashion world, bringing in an average $300 million annually. As Jay Z states in the lyrics of his song The Watcher, “I had it laid out before you knew what a plan was $300 million later now y’all understand us.” Rocawear’s annual sales are currently up to a staggering $700 million making it one of the highest earning clothing lines in the industry. Carter recently reported selling Rocawear to the Iconix Brand Group, Inc. for $204 million in cash and $35 million in stocks. Two years before the sale, Damon Dash sold his stake in the company for $22.5 million in cash and controlling interest of several spin-off apparel and fashion brands. His business manager estimated the total value of the deal to be approximately $30 million.

Another Hip Hop star to cross over into the fashion business is Sean Combs. Known during his musical career by several different names, he has made his mark on fashion with the Sean John line. As Sean Combs would say, “It’s not a brand, it’s a lifestyle.” And apparently it is a lifestyle that the world is buying. In the first year of Sean John’s full arrival, the company received great reviews and quickly shot past $100 million in sales. In 2002 Sean John brought in $325 million; in 2003, $450 million. In the short time that Sean John has been on the market, the company has consistently maintained an average of $400 million a year. With the upcoming introduction of his women’s line, earnings in the billions can only be expected in a short time as well. Comb’s has also signed a licensing deal with power house Estée Lauder to distribute his fragrance worldwide. The fashion business is not local or regional, it is global, and those who really succeed in the business for years and years know how to capture a global market share.

“You know one of the reasons why I always praise this industry is because you can be a self-taught clothing designer and still make millions or even billions of dollars! Tommy Hilfiger, Liz Claiborne, Karl Kani, Christian Dior, Yigal Azrouel are all self-taught, but a lot of people don’t know that.”

-Michael Harper co-creator of www.digitalfashionpro.com

Miskeen is a new company that in 2002 started out making t-shirts into wearable art canvases. They created original designs on each shirt and in the first year Miskeen made $502,000. In 2003 they made $4 million and in 2006 the company increased sales to $12.5 million! Like with many other companies, Miskeen could go far, so I will be keeping my eye on them. With sound business practices along with great designs and good marketing strategies, they could be another FUBU or Phat Farm. And who knows? Maybe one of you will be the next hot clothing designer that catches the public eye. Until then, think fashion and you will always look your best!

Nigel Christopher is a fashion stylish, designer, industry insider and researcher. He currently resides in New York City as free lance clothing designer. He is also a budding fashion writer so be sure to look for more articles from him.