posted by maggie on Mar 31
Establishing and maintaining a budget is not an easy task for most people. Many of us seem to have a tendency to start out strong, say for the first month or two, and then slowly get off track until we are right back where we started from. This trouble is also compounded by the fact that no matter how hard we work, our paychecks still seem to be getting smaller. No matter how hard it might be, or how bad we are at, planning ahead for each bill cycle is important for maintaining financial security and avoiding unnecessary stress .
If you take a look at your monthly bills you will see some that are consistently about the same amount while others vary greatly. Most of the time service bills, such as your cable or cell phone bills, will be approximately the same amount, unless you make changes to what services and features you receive. Other bills, like your utilities (water, electricity, gas), will typically vary greatly depending on the season. You can offset this cost by keeping your house warmer in the summer while supplementing with fans and cooler in the winter. Keeping your lights off when your not using them will also help cut down on costs . If you can come up with a solid estimate of how much your bills will be each month, you will have a better idea how much you have to spend on extra things like eating out or going shopping.
Of course there are always those things in life that throw us off even the best-laid plans. A broken water line can end up adding a substantial amount to your water bill. Forgetting to close the flue on your fireplace after the last time you used can send your heating/ cooling unit into overdrive and causing your electric bill to skyrocket. These types of things are hard to plan for, especially when you are on a tight budget. In these situations many people turn to payday loans endorsed by Montel Williams . Payday loans are easily and quickly obtained. Sometimes they are just what people need to get them to the next paycheck .
posted by maggie on Mar 30
Not so long ago, quality management was much more difficult than it is today. There was a corrective action database for tracking all sides of business, from customer service and new trends, that was inexpensive, but not incredibly efficient. This was a paper based system that required a lot of man power and hours spent documenting, doing manual searches, audits and inspections. This is much like the old quality control system of “comment cards”, that businesses would place at the check out counters or on the tables of restaurants.
Now however, there are computer programs that do it all. These are automated systems which have elevated the process of deliveries and notifications, of routing and automated management. These are web-based programs that are secure and provide a centralized means to track business procedures and interactions. Previously, the collection of data was an incomplete and slow process, and most often, extremely unreliable, prone to numerous mistakes and a delay in response time.
With computer based tracking systems, not only are the results accurate, but questions from current trends to customer service are attending to quickly, in real time, with no lag. This is a change for many companies, and employee training may be necessary, however the time and the money spent training a staff to use corrective action software is well worth it in the long run. Once the system is in place and the staff is trained, no longer will mistakes be made nor important information lost.
In addition, the increased oversight will enhance every aspect of running a business, whether it be one that provides a product or one that provides a service. What this system provides, is thorough organization. A kind of organization wherein costumers are responded to quickly, and where employees see in a moment, changes that may or may not need to be made. Most of the programs are incredibly easy to use and to understand, which is just one more added bonus to the assurance of quality management, and of the future success of any company.
posted by maggie on Mar 29
Spending time in a new place or revisiting a favorite vacation spot can be a great time to catch up on art and information. The local museums found in cities one travels can be a great experience. While at home, life often is so busy that it is hard to find the time away from the house chores to see what is new at the local museums. When one has time to relax in to a town with out the daily maintenance needs of home, the mind and spirit start to look for something different to do. After some much needed rest in one of the boca raton florida hotels , adventurers could have a great time visiting places like the Boca Raton Museum of Art . There they will find all sorts of amazing art from the current rising stars to the modern classics like Picasso or Matisse. There are all sorts of prints, drawings, paint and photography pieces on display. There is also a walk through the sculpture gardens and many kinds of cultural displays from west African tribal art to Asian art. Then there is the art of building a city and its community. This could be found in a place like the Boca Raton Historical Society and Museum who’s purpose is to share the historical art that is found all around the city along with the stories of the people who took part in making it. This community was built by some very interesting people and can be learned here. Some of the early developers of this area include Henry Morrison Flagler, a railroad magnate and builder, Thomas Moore Rickards, a pioneer and Addison Mizner, an architect with amazing vision. They all had a hand in making the foundation to the city that sits here today and their contribution can be found in a museum and all over the city, if you know what to look for.
posted by maggie on Mar 25
The Mall of America takes shopping and entertainment to a whole new level or two or three actually four. This is a all that truly never ends and they plan to make it even bigger. This could be a vacation that lasts a week or two in a mall. That’s it the mall vacation of a life time. Millions of people visit the mall each year wondering around the 520 stores and walkways. This mall is set up in different sections that have different styles of design. There are four main department stores which are Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, Nordstrom and Sears. Some of the other big named stores in the mall include Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Marshall’s and Old Navy. Many of the other stores are smaller specialty or boutique shops. But the mall is not just shopping it is also a theme park complete with roller coasters and other fun rides as well as games and other activities. They call it the Nickelodeon Universe and it has a fun sort of out door design with trees and plants and the open skylight as the ceiling. They have just added two new roller coasters called the SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge and the Avatar Airbender. They also have a golfing area called Moose Mountain with 18 holes. There is also the Underwater Adventures Aquarium where guests travel through a tunnel that is 300 feet long in 14 feet of water giving a spectacular view of more than 4,000 sea creatures. They will see stingrays, turtles, lots of fish and even sharks. It is possible to set up a scuba diving, snorkeling, birthday parties and even sleepovers. If it were me, I would rather find a quiet hotel away from the action to make sure I got some real rest because there would be the next day’s worth of experience to take on in this never ending mall of activity called the Mall of America. Keep your eye out for the memorials like the home plate marker that sits right on the spot were the old home plate of the Metropolitan Stadium was and the seat where Harmon Killebrew hit his home run ball to.
posted by maggie on Mar 23
In 1755 a man named Thomas Polk traveled through North Carolina and found a homely spot along a wagon road. Between two rivers, the Yadkin and the Catawba, were the native Americans traveled to do their trading is were he built his new home. The man, who was United State President James K Polk’s uncle, was the first of many settlers to come to the area that grew to be called Charlotte Town. It was named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who was the wife of King George III. This area was still under British influence and the settlers wanted to have favor with the King so they named it after his German born wife. Over time, however, there came tensions between the British King and the small Charlotte Town. The King tried to impose some laws on the towns people who wanted their independence and it didn’t go over well. In May of 1775, the men of Charlotte Town signed a proclamation called Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence . It was the first declaration of independence created and signed by one of the thirteen colonies. It was said to have been put into play a year before the U.S. Declaration of Independence but there is no real reference to that claim. Historians still debate this declaration because if it was truly written first than that would make the North Carolinian’s the first to declare their independence from Britian. During the Revolutionalry War there were camps of both British and American armies. They had many smaller fights between the troops and Lord General Charles Cornwallis , frustrated with the situation, called the town the Hornet’s Nest. Religion is also a major part of the development of North Carolina. This is were many of the different Christian sects developed. Most of them were Presbyterian but there were also many Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Episcopalians as well as Catholics. This is why the city also carries the name The City of Churches. This area also had a great Gold Rush during the 1800s which led to the Charlotte Mint opening in 1837. This was the place to mine for gold until the California Gold Rush happened. The Mint was seized by the Confederate forces during the Civil War and was not reopened again. The town went on to become a cotton processing center as well as a railroad hub when those industries were strong. Now the city is filled with luxurious hotels and lots of banking activities. It is the second largest banking headquarters in America.
posted by maggie on Mar 19
The green Fairy has returned! March 17th is St. Patrick’s Day. Absinthe will is sure to be a part of the festivities, along with bagpipes and green beer! While Lucid absinthe is no longer legal in the United states, there are many other varieties of Absinthe that contain less alcohol and lack the hallucinate wormwood agent. Absinthe is almost as famous for its little green fairy on the bottle as it is for its hallucinogenic effects. Many girls like to dress up as the absinthe fairy for St. Patty’s Day and show off their Irish Pride! Most men opt not for the kilt and stockings, and choose a green shirt with a fun slogan on it: ” Kiss Me I’m Irish”. It is a fun time to show off your pride and celebrate.
One city that is definitely not lacking in the pride department is Miami! Miami is an awesome vacation destination! The month of March is full of festivals and street parties. Last week Miami celebrated its Latino Pride with its Calle Ocho street carnival. This week, Miami is gearing up for its St. Patrick’s Day festivities. In true Miami style, everything is bigger and better. Miami is famous for its Latino population and does not have a big Irish community, so the slogan is that everybody is a little bit Irish on St Patrick’s Day. Celebrations started as early as Friday, March 12, and carry on through Wednesday, March 17. The streets will be filled with corned beef and cabbage in celebration of the Patron Saint of Ireland.
Coral Gables is a city just southwest of Miami and is the home to the University of Miami. It has held the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in Fred B. Harnett Ponce Circle Park for eight years now. For a List of other Miami events. All summer long Miami will be hosting parties on the beach with indoor and outdoor bars. Grab your bikini and cool off where white sands meet the blue waters.
posted by maggie on Mar 16
It is the season for spring cleaning. Most people will flip their mattress, do some dusting and vacuuming, but this really is the time to take it one more level and get the whole house a little cleaner. Below are three tips for ways to make the house a little cleaner this spring.
Shutters, fan blades and housing should be cleaned with a damp cloth dipped in a mix of mild liquid dish detergent and water, unless the care information says otherwise. This works as a cheapish all purpose cleaner that will send the dust bunnies running. When you are done, wipe blinds dry otherwise more dust will quickly become attracted to the surface.
Cloth curtains and blinds can be made to look more fresh by vacuuming with the soft brush or dusting attachment set the vacuum on a lower sucking setting to keep the drapes from being drawn into the attachment. This will pull out all the dust that has been collecting in them. You may be surprised just how dirty these really are. If they are really dirty you should If you have the time, you may even want to throw these in the wash machine, or do it by hand. Blinds can brighten the whole house. If they aren’t extremely dirty, or are a fabric that can’t be put through the wash, use an upholstery cleaner to get out any spots or dirty areas.
When cleaning a window, treatments should be done out of direct sunlight. When done in the sun, the heat will evaporate the cleaning liquid before it has been wiped away, which is part of the way streaks are left on windows. Make sure to clean the windows on a cloudy day, or when that side of the building is in the shade. The best way to get a streak free shine is to apply window cleaner with a damp sponge. You wipe it across the window and then use a squeegee from top to bottom. After each run, wipe down the squeegee blade to keep it fresh. Make sure you clean both sides of the windows.
posted by maggie on Mar 9
Get ready, NAS is coming to Honolulu! This concert should be awesome! Click Here to find a hotel for your stay! Great atmosphere and a sure to be great performance from King of east coast rap! While there is much controversy as to who the king of east coast rap is, there is no denying that Nas is a top contender. His flow is out of control! With a well established career beginning in 1994, Nas has never failed to deliver. Since the tragic death of east coast rapper Notorious B.I.G. only two artists have risen up to proclaim his title: Nas and Jay Z.
Notorious B.I.G was murdered on March 9, 1997 as a result of an east coast west coast feud with rapper Tupac Shakur. Although Nas had a self proclaimed rivalry with Biggie, both artists were linked positively to him. Nas and jay Z started out as potential collaborators, but fate took another turn. Although the rivalry between Jay Z and Nas has been long, they have always made sure to keep the heat on the records and off the streets. With songs like “Ether” and “Stillmatic” Nas has used his lyrical talent to take jabs at Jay Z. Jay Z has answered back with “People talking”, and “The Takeover”.
Nas has seemed to be flying under the radar while his rival Jay Z has been flying high! With a new marriage to pop star Beyonce Knowels and pictures of them in the white house, Jay Z has been basking in the spotlight. Nas, on the other hand, has divorced his artist wife Kelis and been keeping a low profile. It is good to see Nas getting back into the mainstream. Mainstream media, that is. Nas has always prided himself with having an underground edge and not selling out to the masses. And, in true Nas form there will also be a tribute mural being painted during the concert. Nas will be performing with Shady Records Dj Green Lantern at the Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace on March 19, 2010!
posted by maggie on Mar 3
When I was in college I read stories written by two different authors who made me want to visit the state of Maine. Due to the way they described the landscape and the small towns along the water I became curious and wanderlust. I don’t remember the name of the author who wrote the first one I read. It was a short story that described the rocky shores of the Atlantic ocean. Steep, old, rock staircases leading up to the businesses and the hotels of Maine that overlooked the shoreline. She made it sound like the landscapes, the seascapes and the buildings were shades of gray. Not gray in a bad or depressing way that winters in some places can become, but the shades of gray that make up the life of an old town and illustrate its history.
The second writer to make me wonder about the state, was May Sarton. She wrote a book of a year she spent alone, in order to gather herself together and to work on her craft of writing, to work in the garden, to shovel the snow. This book was titled “A Year of Solitude”. This is what I wanted. A year away from everything that threatened my painting. Day jobs, ex-boyfriends, family and friends. I wasn’t leaving them forever…I just needed to spend time away to discover what the different shades of gray meant. And I needed to find out whether I could capture that in the paintings–the shades of subtle color necessary in order to create the images I wanted to capture on the canvas. I didn’t spend a whole year in Maine, just one winter.
It was cold. Makes sense. It was Maine in the winter and it was cold. I had rented a small cottage which was old and not well insulated. But a fire each night, and to be honest a fire throughout the day cast a warmer kind of glow on the grays that were just outside my windows. Occasionally a small deer would walk across the yard, and her smooth brown coat seemed cadmium red in comparison to this black and white winter world. I learned a lot about color during the months I spent in Maine. I found that it is the subtleties of life, the grays of life that made the browns so vibrant. My paintings changed a lot that winter. I changed a lot that winter, that winter in spent in a state of grays–in the state of Maine.