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happiness

admin — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 14:46:40 +0000

Happiness
Margaret Paul, Ph.D.

Some people believe that achieving happiness is the purpose of
life, yet the pursuit of happiness often leads to unhappiness.
This is because happiness is actually a consequence of a
different life purpose – the pursuit of evolving our souls in
our ability to love ourselves and others.

When achieving happiness is your goal, you might pursue this in
three different ways:

1) You might pursue momentary pleasure, believing that your
happiness is the same as pleasure. When this is your belief, you
might pursue happiness through substances such as alcohol,
drugs, nicotine, or food. Or you might pursue happiness through
activities such as sex, spending or gambling.

2) If you believe that your happiness is attached to money and
the outcome of things regarding money, you might pursue control
over outcomes through spending most of your time working, as
well as accumulating and managing money.

3) If you believe that your happiness is attached to people, you
might pursue control over getting love, approval, attention,
admiration, or acknowledgement.

While momentary pleasure feels good, it is just momentary. Which
means that you need to keep on doing whatever you believe will
bring you happiness, over and over. This is what creates
addictions – the pursuit of what you believe will avoid pain and
bring pleasure. The problem is that none of these pursuits bring
deep and abiding happiness, because their affects are always
momentary.

True happiness is not the result of DOING, but of a way of
BEING. Rather than being a result of the momentary pleasures of
the outside world, it is the result of your intention to evolve
daily as a loving human being.

What does this mean?

This means that ongoing happiness is the result of choosing the
spiritual path of kindness, compassion, understanding, and
acceptance.

Yet it is not enough to express kindness and compassion toward
others. Many have tried this and still end up feeling empty and
angry when the deep happiness they desire continues to elude
them.

The path toward happiness sarts with opening to learning about
what is most loving and compassionate toward YOURSELF. You can
have all the things that people believe will bring happiness -
money, a good relationship, a family, work you enjoy – yet if
you are critical and judgmental toward yourself instead of
accepting and compassionate with yourself, you will not feel
happy.

Imagine a child who seemingly has everything – tons of toys, the
best schools, great vacations, lots of friends. But imagine that
this child has parents who ignore him or her, or who are very
critical, judgmental and controlling of him or her. This child
will not be happy, no matter how many external things he or she
has.

Imagine that this child is you – the feelings within you. How
are you treating this child? How do you treat your feelings? Do
you ignore your feelings and cover them over with substance or
process addictions? Are you judgmental of yourself, constantly
telling yourself that you are not good enough, that you are
inadequate in some way?

Ignoring yourself or judging yourself will always lead to
unhappiness, so matter how much you have in the external world
or how loving you are to others. Until you decide to start
treating yourself the way you want others to treat you, deep and
abiding happiness will elude you. As long as you are treating
yourself the way your parents may have treated you or
themselves, you will continue to feel the emptiness and
aloneness that comes from self-abandonment.

If you want to experience true happiness, then start to pay
attention to your own feelings with a deep desire to learn about
what you are doing or not doing that is causing your pain and
unhappiness. Happiness will be the natural consequence of your
willingness to take full, 100%PRCTG% responsibility for your own
feelings, and learn about and take action regarding what truly
brings you joy,

About the author:

Margaret Paul, Ph.D., best-selling author of eight books,
including “Do I Have To Give Up Me To Be Loved By You” and
co-creator of the powerful Inner Bonding healing process. Learn
Inner Bonding now! Visit her web site for a FREE Inner Bonding
course: www.innerbonding.com or email her at
mailto:margaret@innerbonding.com. Phone Sessions.

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cardio-exercise-14

admin — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 04:27:28 +0000

It may surprise you to know that you can have a heart attack at almost any age. Many of us mistakenly believe that only those who are past the age of retirement are stricken with this problem. That?s not the case at all. People in their 30s and even 20s can have a heart attack if they have a family history and they don?t take care of themselves. There are things you can do to reduce your risk. A healthy diet low in fat is crucial as is regular cardio exercise.

Getting and staying active can be a struggle for many people. This is particularly true of people who work day in and day out for eight or ten hours a day. By the time the weekend rolls around, all they want to do is sit inside and rest. Cardio exercise doesn?t have to be a chore, in fact there are many forms of cardio exercise that are incredibly fun and easy to fit into the busiest of lives.

Swimming is one such example. Getting in the warm water and swimming a few lengths of the pool is fantastic cardio exercise. Many local pools actually open early in the morning for folks who want to get their exercise in before their workday. All you need to do is get up an hour early, head to the pool, swim your laps and take a shower. It?s an easy and effective form of cardio exercise.

Walking is something all of us can do. If you have a regular lunch hour at your job, consider using part of that to take a fifteen minute walk. Walking is one of the best forms of cardio exercise. It helps get your heart rate up and it can also help you lose some weight. There?s no need to power walk or jog, a brisk pace will give you great results.

If it?s winter and you really don?t want to venture out of the heat of your home to get in shape, consider a jump rope. This is another cardio exercise that almost everyone can do and it?s fun. Jump ropes can be found at virtually every sport store as well as most toy stores. Don?t skimp and purchase one of those plastic jump ropes that toddlers use as they tend to easily break and bend out of shape. Instead invest in a good quality jump rope and start your cardio exercise program.

The key to success with this is to find something you like doing. One common mistake that people make when they decide to get heart healthy is they choose an activity that they really don?t enjoy. Cardio exercise comes in so many different forms that there?s bound to be something that you will want to do for a few minutes each day. With just fifteen minutes a day set aside for cardio exercise, you can greatly impact your risk of having a heart attack. It?s easy to see how worth it that is.

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ball-pit-07

admin — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 04:13:04 +0000

Though admittedly my childhood wasn?t all that long ago, some things I remember from it have already faded away. In the small Minnesota town that I grew up in we had what must have been one of the last operating Hardees restaurants. I wasn?t able to go there very often as my parents had a fairly healthy aversion to fast food, but we still manage to stop in occasionally. When we did I usually got a kid?s meal with an orange soda and maybe if I was lucky I could get a sundae, but I wasn?t there for the food. I was there for the ball pit.

Some kids dreamt of having trampolines or pogo sticks or tree houses in their back yards. Not me. I wanted a ball pit. Whoever cooked up the idea for a ball pit was a freaking genius. I wish I could meet him (or her). Who would have thought that swimming around in a big pit full of colored plastic balls would be so much fun? Not only could you swim in the ball pit, the balls were great for throwing at your friends. I would jump in and bury myself in the ball pit, digging down to the very bottom. Sometimes I?d find change or candy or toys down in the bottom. It made me feel like Jacque Cousteau, plunging through the deep sea.

Of course, the two or three foot deep ball pit in Hardees was just the beginning in my mind. I wanted a huge ball pit. Something Olympic sized, with a deep end and a shallow end and a diving board or two. That way I could tunnel all the way to the bottom and then back up again, staying down as long as I wanted since you could breathe through the balls, though the air tasted a little like plastic. In hindsight I?m probably better off without the Olympic sized ball pit, since I?m pretty sure if I dug down through eight or ten feet of plastic balls it would be impossible to dig myself out of. I think it?d be quite a bit tougher swimming up through a ball pit than to swim down.

Though both the Hardees and the ball pit are gone now, if I ever won the lottery I?d still put a ball pit in my house. Maybe not something Olympic sized, but it would have to be a good four feet deep, so if you wanted to you could always tunnel yourself deep down into the pit and relax, with the comfortable weight of a few feet of hollow plastic balls resting on top of you.

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Keeping the Beat Why Percussion is the Foundation of a Band

admin — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 18:51:28 +0000

?Keeping the Beat – Why Percussion is the Foundation of a Band

Anything you find that you can thump on and create a sound is percussion. Hitting two sticks together creates a percussion beat. Finding items to thump on is quite easy. Based upon this, prehistoric cultures also used percussion instruments. The history of percussion is primarily associated with military groups that date back to 700 AD. Around the middle of the 15th century, Turkish military bands included triangles, cymbals and larger drums, which gave a variety to the sound of the percussion.

Percussion is a crucial element in any musical group. Although there are some musical bands that do not include percussion elements, this is very rare. Percussion drives the rhythm and beat of music. This is a necessary element for keeping the musicians on beat. Percussion instruments are among the earliest known instruments. They play a role in almost every ancient culture. Today, a large variety of percussion instruments is available.

Bongo Percussion (drum): People think of the bongos as a toy. Bongos have a rich ethnic history. Bongos were produced in the late 1800s in Cuba. In the 1940s and 1950s, the bongos surfaced as the leading sound for the beat generation. During this period famous bongo drummers gained commercial success.

Conga Drum (percussion): The conga drum came from Africa. Conga is also called the Tumbadora. The conga is a successor of a conical shaped drum of “Makuta.” The conga has gone through several changes since it was first created. Today’s congas are more round and made of fiberglass. The original conga was made from wood.

Conga heads were made from rawhide. Rawhide is still the most accepted material for heads, but today, synthetic heads are also available. Originally, the skinheads were nailed to the wooden shell. Before each presentation the nailed heads were heated by a brazier to achieve the preferred tension. Today, the skin is held in place by a series of rings and tuning lugs, which serve to adjust the tension.

Three conga head sizes arrived on the scene from the conical African drum. The name of the head sizes gives insight to that drum’s functions.

Quinto – this is a high pitched, small head conga. It is the drum played by soloists. The quinto is used to drum a melody; to emphasize; to sing, laugh, and cry.

Conga – this is the mid-range, medium head conga. The percussionist uses this drum to play the middle parts of three-part rhythms. This is the most useful size. It can be used to play high drum and low drum parts.

Tumbadora (Tumba) – This is the low-pitched, large head conga. The percussionist uses this to play the low drum rhythm parts.

When the conga first became popular with conga players (congeros), they would play only one drum at a time. For this reason, the players were experts in their parts. As the percussionists developed and mastered conga playing skill the music and rhythm, planning grew with increasing difficulty. Within this progress, the percussionists began playing two and three drums at the same time.

Djembe Drum (Percussion): The Djembe is named from the Djem tree. In making the djembe, the shell would be carved in one piece, in the shape of a goblet. It would have two open ends out of a large section of a Djem tree. On the larger open end, an animal skin was stretched to the top. This was held in place by a special tightening procedure using rope. The method has not changed too much today, except many djembes use lugs instead of rope for tightening.

The time-honored African way to play the Djembe is by standing. A harness strap helps hold up the drum and the lower section of the drum rests between the legs. The percussionist uses both hands to play the Djembe but the legs are also vital for balancing and controlling the instrument. It is also customary to play Djembe while sitting down. The percussionist’s legs wrap around or the shell for control. The Djembe create a range of percussive sounds. It may have the widest range of sound of all hand drums. People around the world admire the djembe for its healing rhythm and power to make people dance.

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barbie-and-ken-04

admin — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 04:41:52 +0000

I have always loved my Barbie and Ken dolls, since I was six years old. I remember my Barbie and Ken as if they were childhood companions. I remember it as if I was riding around with Barbie and Ken in the Barbie Ferrari, or joining them by the pool in the Barbie Dream House that I got for my 8th birthday. I know that there are a lot of people who say that Barbie and Ken are not good role models for kids. They say that Barbie especially enforces bad self image for girls. She is supposed to make them think that they are not good enough unless they are tall, thin, and blond, and always feel bad about who they are. But I say that that is all hogwash. Barbie and Ken are not meant to be role models. They are meant to be toys, plain and simple. To expect children to try to emulate their toys is absurd, and besides, every child enjoys playing make believe with his or her dolls. Barbie and Ken just allow them another way to play these fun and healthy childhood games. I can not see anything wrong with that. Can you?

Of course, now that I have kids of my own, I can see that not everyone plays with Barbie and Ken dolls in the same way. For example, my son actually has war with them. He gets ahold of my daughters Barbies and makes them fight each other. At first she did not like this, and would come to me, crying, when he was playing soldiers with Barbie and Ken, but over the years she has grown to be resigned to it, and even to like it. Now they all play war together, pitting the Barbie and Ken dolls against each other. Sometimes I even see them using the dolls to act out world political events. They will actually have Barbie doll terrorist attacks, and pretend that one of the Kens is president Bush. This shows me that the Barbie and Ken dolls are not only fun toys for the imagination, but educational as well. So I dispute what the naysayers have been spreading about some of my favorite toys. They obviously quite simply have no sense of fun at all, if you ask me. Otherwise, they would stop talking trash about these great Barbie and Ken dolls, and join in the fun themselves.

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Keeping-Your-Golden-Retriever-Healthy

admin — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 17:25:04 +0000

Keeping Your Golden Retriever Healthy

Once you have helped your Golden Retriever build up his immune system, he will be healthy and strong enough to fend off any type of illness. There are ways that you can help your Golden with his immune system, which is more or less what you feed him. If you care about your Golden Retriever and want to help him develop a strong immune system – you?ll find this information very helpful.

When you feed your Golden, give him some homemade food. You can substitute this for canned food, or mix it in together. Homemade food tastes a lot better to your dog, and it contains a lot of the nutrients and vitamins he needs. When you give him water, give him spring water. Although many prefer to give their Golden water from the faucet, spring water is actually a lot better for him than any other type of water.

When you give him a treat or a bone, you should always give him raw bones with plenty of meat on the bone, as they will help him to develop a strong set of white teeth. Teeth are very important with Golden Retrievers, which is why you want to make sure that his teeth stay strong and healthy. If you give him a bone a day, he will have plenty to chew on to keep his teeth healthy. You can also use chew toys as well, especially when you are playing with him, as they will help him to develop strength in his jaws.

You can also help to keep your Golden Retriever healthy by knowing a bit about health problems that he could have. This way, you?ll able to keep track of what your vet diagnoses. If your vet tells you something that is wrong with your Golden, you should know a little bit about what he tells you, and how you can help to take care of the problem.

To help your Golden Retriever avoid any type of reproductive problems, you should look into having a male neutered. Reproductive problems are common with Golden?s, and can lead to more serious problems if you don?t do something about it. If you aren?t planning to breed your Golden Retriever, you should have him neutered as soon as you can, to help prevent any type of reproductive problems.

If you take care of your dog and keep him healthy, he will live a lot longer. You should always strive to keep your dog healthy, so he can live a pain free life. As long as you feed him a proper diet and let him get plenty of exercise, he will stay strong and healthy. Golden Retrievers that grow to be strong and healthy make great pets, as they can join you in exercise and provide plenty of fun for your entire family.

PPPPP

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summer_survival

admin — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 22:56:16 +0000

Summer Survival
Amy Allen Clark

Summer Survival

The summer season is here and along with it comes summer vacation for the school-aged kids. Moms are now responsible for coming up with the ideas and curriculum for their children and I am the first to admit that by the summer my creative juices have just about run out. How can you make summer another time of fun and enjoyment rather than boredom? And just how do you do this on a budget? There are lots of great things that you can do this summer and ways to keep organized when doing it. Here are a few of Mom Advice?s suggestions for summer survival:

Mini-Vacations

Rather than taking one long vacation in the summer, break your vacations into smaller and more affordable activities. Some suggestions are hitting area zoos, amusement parks, local festivals, and museums. By taking smaller vacations, you have a few things to look forward to rather than just one event. Check out some books from your local library on activities that you can do within your own state and then research on how to get the best price. Talk about your vacation plans with friends and see if they know of any places that are cheap to stay at or where you can get coupons for money off of tickets. Ask your library as well if they offer any season passes that you can take advantage of. One of our local libraries had a pass to the art museum which library patrons could check out for the day gaining them free admittance into the local museums and galleries. We checked these out and saved thirty dollars every time we hit one of these places. Call in advance though because you may be competing with another family for the same day.

If you are planning a vacation to another state or even within your own state, visit the state?s visitor?s bureau website to get a packet of information and coupons for the state. For example, we were planning a trip to Cedar Point in Ohio so I requested a packet of information to be sent to me by the visitor?s bureau. Within this packet of information was a gold mine of coupons for the amusement park including buy one get one free admissions which saved us over twenty-five dollars.

Stocking Up

With the summer season comes a whole new set of things that you will need to be stocked up on. With children home from school, you are now the one who is to come up with the creative lunches and snacks for the kids. Try and keep the fridge well-stocked with lots of fresh vegetables, fruits, whole grain breads, meats, and cheeses so that you can quickly make sandwiches and can avoid spending money at the drive-thru. Having items on hand that children can make themselves will also take some pressure off of you for providing the meal.

A great way to save time on cleaning up after your meals is by taking advantage of the pleasant weather and dining outside. Our family does a lot of eating outside on our patio furniture which makes for easy clean-up. When it is just my son and I though, we eat outside on a plastic mat ?picnic-style?. We love to do this and the mat only requires a quick shake and clean-up is a breeze.

We also purchased a small cooler lunchbox for our day trips out which is a great investment for the family. We take this everywhere and fill it with the day?s lunch or snacks while we are out. Filling this with healthy snacks and food will save you money as well as saving you from a less than healthy trip to the drive-thru when you are out on one of your day trips or just running errands. This cooler can also be used when grocery shopping for keeping your ice cream and meats at cool temperatures.

Another great purchase for your car is a seat organizer where you can stick books and toys in for the kids as well as diapers, wet wipes, and maps to get to your destination. Don?t forget to pack a towel for brushing off after those trips to the beach as well.

A kiddy pool and sandbox can be a great investment for the summer as well for the younger kids. My son spends hours playing in his sandbox and kiddy pool and the investment was small compared to the hours of enjoyment he can get from these. If a family member is looking for a gift this summer for a birthday or just because, suggest buying one of these items so that you don?t have to pay for these yourself. We asked for these items for our son?s birthday and also used our anniversary money to put towards a family zoo pass for the summer.

Don?t forget to stock up on all of those fun summer toys for the kids to play with outside. You can stock up on a lot of your fun summer items over at the local Dollar Store. We purchase sidewalk chalk, sandbox tools and toys, bubbles, and water guns. They offer a wide variety of fun summer toys that won?t break the bank. You can also make a couple of these yourself with these recipes.

Super Sidewalk Paint

? cup cornstarch

? cup cold water

6-8 drops of food coloring

Directions: Mix cornstarch and cold water together in a small plastic bowl. Add food coloring and stir. Repeat this process to creat different colors of Super Sidewalk Paint. Super Sidewalk Paint can easily be washed away with water

Treasure Stones

1 cup flour

1 cup used coffee grinds

? cup salt

? cup sand

? cup water

Directions: Mix all dry ingredients together in a medium bowl. Slowly add water and knead until the mixture is the consistency of bread dough. Break off a piece of dough and roll it into the size of a baseball. Make a hole in the center of the ball big enough to hide treasures in. Fill the hole with treasures and seal with some extra dough. Let your treasure stone air dry for two or three days or until hard or bake in the oven on a cookie sheet at 150 degrees for fifteen to twenty minutes. If you would like to tin your Treasure Stone, add one tablespoon of powder tempera paint to tint.

Water Balloon Yo-Yo

1 small balloon

1 large rubber band

Directions: Cut the rubber band in half. Tie a loop securely on one end of the rubber band. It should be big enough to fit around your finger. Use a garden hose or water faucet to fill the balloon ? of the way with water. Blow air into the balloon until it is the size of a tennis ball. Tie the balloon shut. Securely tie the rubber band around theknot on the balloon. Place the rubber band loop around your middle finger and gently throw the balloon toward the ground. When the balloon springs back toward your hand, try to grab it.

Rainy days during the summer can be particularly difficult for children and parents alike. A great way to make these days go by quicker is by keeping lots of craft supplies on hand. You can also print out free printable coloring pages and crafts through www.dltk-kids.com/. We keep lots of construction paper, play dough, crayons, and coloring books on hand for fun and creative activities during the day.

Keep in mind that your library can be a wonderful summer resource for your family. Obviously, the library offers lot of great summer reading to help you get through those rainy days, but try to look past just the literature and ask your children?s librarian what types of summer reading and activities they offer. I still remember as a child that the library offered a great summer reading program that worked in conjunction with our local Pizza Hut where we received stars for meeting reading goals that could be used towards food at the restaurant. This motivated me so much as a child that I read many more books then I had anticipated. Setting reading goals during the summer can be very rewarding for children. Make sure to ask your child?s teacher for a reading list of books that they should be reading in preparation for the next grade. If your child is not reading yet, be sure to take advantage of this time to read to them. It truly is amazing the power literature has on our minds and speech development.

Don?t Over Schedule

For some reason many parents tend to go overboard on the summer classes and activities. I remember as a child how much I enjoyed just running around through the sprinklers, getting ice cream, or taking a trip to the park. I do not remember as clearly the classes that I took or the activities that my parents had paid for. It is so important to allow our kids to be kids! Kids really do remember the little outings that you do with them and often these outings and time spent with them have a greater impact then four weeks of camp will.

Remember that this is their summer vacation. I know that I do not enjoy having every single minute of my vacation booked with things to do; likewise children enjoy having some downtime. Try to keep this in mind when signing them up for various summer programs. Maybe allowing your child to pick one or two activities during the summer will be more manageable for both you (the driver) and your child.

Making Memories

Most importantly, enjoy your summer to its fullest?.. Whether it is long lazy days of lounging by the kiddy pool or a fun-filled summer chock full of day trips and activities- try to make it a summer to remember. I am filling my son?s memory book up this summer of all the wonderful things we have gotten to do. I always think that I will remember each and every moment with him- the smells of the hot dogs on the grill, the sand between our toes as we play for hours in his sandbox, or his sweet face full of fascination at the tiny bugs crawling on his swing set, but all too quickly it is gone. Put your pen to paper this summer and lovingly write those memories down so someday you and your child can reminisce over the beauty of that hot summer of his youth and all that you shared together during those wonderful months.

About The Author

Amy Allen Clark is a stay-at-home mother of a two year old son. She is founder and creator of www.momadvice.com. Her web site is geared towards mothers who are seeking advice on staying organized, living on a budget, and for those seeking work-at-home employment. Please visit her site to sign up for her free monthly newsletter filled with more great tips to help simplify your life.

amy@momadvice.com

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complete list of nintendo wii games

admin — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 23:53:52 +0000

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Complete list of Nintendo wii games

For avid followers of the latest video games, Nintendo has developed the Wii system, formerly codenamed “Revolution”. The most notable inclusion in the bundle package is the remote, which according to Nintendo can manipulate actions in the game Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Launched on November 14, 2006, Nintendo promises a different gaming experience that will thrill not only video game aficionados but also people who used to think video games are children’s toys.

Nintendo confirmed that 21 game titles will make it during the launching date, and are available for release in North and South America, while the next 12 games are to be released in the 2006 launch window. The complete list of Nintendo wii games released during the console launching are: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Call of Duty 3, Crayon Shin-chan Saikyou: Kazoku Kasuka Peking Wii, Elebits, Excite Truck, The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, GT Pro Series, Kororinpa, Machi Kuru Domino, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance,

Necro-Nesia, Barnyard, Cars, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2, Ennichi no Tatsujin, Far Cry: Vengeance, Gottlieb Pinball Classics, Happy feet, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Madden NFL 07, Monster 4×4 World Circuit, Need for Speed: Carbon, Open Season, Rampage: Total Destruction, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Red Steel, SD Gundam G. Breaker, SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab

Super Fruit Fall, Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, Super Swing Golf, Tamagotchi’s Sparkling President, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Double Agent, Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam, Trauma Center: Second Opiniion, WarioWare: Smooth Moves, Wii Play, Wii Sports, and Wing Island.

These are the complete list of Nintendo wii games so far but reports from Nintendo said other games for the Nintendo wii system are being developed in addition to the complete list of Nintendo wii games. Some, among the complete list of Nintendo wii games, are not available in Japan like the Wii Sports.

The console of the Nintendo wii system features an Optical Media Drive that takes in 12cm wii game discs as well as 8cm Nintendo GameCube discs. The optical media drive lights up for a moment after turning the console on and flashes when reading new data. The remote, on the other hand, is a controller that uses accelerometers while an infrared detection using several LEDs inside the Sensor Bar enables it to identify its position in a 3-dimensional space. Also included in the bundle package are many more features. You can catch the complete list of Nintendo wii games and you decide whether it’s an addition or a distraction to the existing video games.

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who_sets_the_residual_values_and_interest_rates_on_new_cars

admin — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 06:37:04 +0000

Who sets the residual values and interest rates on new cars
Ralph Hoffmann

Before a customer can lease an auto through a dealer, several
parties are involved to determine the residual value and the
interest rate of the proposed auto lease. And understanding how
residual values and rates are determined will help in
negotiating a lower price.

First, a bank, credit union, pension plan or automobile
manufacturer’s leasing or lending subsidiary (commonly called a
“Money source”) agrees to provide funds to pay the dealer the
selling price of the auto. The Money source must then find
someone to determine residual values for every auto it proposes
to buy from a manufacturer.

Determining the auto residual value. The largest manufacturers
may determine residual values in-house. Others will turn to
outside parties, such as Automotive Lease Guide for help. If the
market is depressed at the end of a lease and the residual value
is higher than the used car value, then huge losses result to
the Money source. This is not a business for the squeamish.

Typical Money sources (not necessarily current) American Honda
Finance Corporation Banc One Credit Company BMW Financial
Services, NA, Inc. Chase Automotive Financial Services
Chrysler Credit Corporation Ford Motor Credit Fifth Third
Bank General Motors Acceptance Corp. Huntington National
Bank Mazda American Credit Mercedes-Benz Credit M&I
Automobile Leasing Mitsubishi Motors Credit of America, Inc.
Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. Provident Auto Lease SouthTrust
Bank N.A. Toyota Motor Credit Corp. Usbank Volkswagen Credit,
Inc Wells Fargo Bank

The customer (lessee) actually contracts with a money source
that may, in fact, be a savings institution in which the
customer has deposited funds. Some Money-sources are employee
pension funds in which the lessee is essentially borrowing his
own money.

Who does the lessee really pay? The customer leasing the auto
begins by agreeing to pay the Money source a monthly payment for
the term of the lease. At the end of the lease the Money source
(that actually owns the car) gets the car back and hopes it can
be sold for at least as much as the residual value quoted to the
customer in the lease, plus some incidental costs associated
with the selling price. If not, the money Source loses money.
For example, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that Chrysler
lost of %400,000,000 in 2001 on end-of-lease cars that sold for
less then the contracted residual values.

Who decides the interest rate on the lease Behind the scenes,
the Money Source privately decides on an interest rate it needs
to return a profit to its investors or lenders. A third-party
firm, such as LeaseLink (on the internet), is hired to prepare
the computer displays that are available to dealerships
subscribing nationwide.

Based on data provided to it by its Money source customers,
LeaseLink displays on the participating Dealer’s computers
varying financing terms and monthly lease payments and the
residual value and interest rates or money factors for the
brands sold by the Dealer. Included in this information is the
list of several potential Money sources

The new car Dealer is simply a facilitator between the lessee
and the money Source. It has no loyalty to its manufacturer in
this regard and is really the customer’s best friend by showing
the customer several leasing monthly payments and interest rates
from several Money sources.

Some Money sources choose only to finance certain types
vehicles, such as Jeeps, based on historical residual resale
value data and successfully having recouped the residual value
in the eventual sale of the used Jeeps at the end of the lease.

When the lease is finalized, the money source pays the sale
price; a portion is used to pay the dealer’s cost and the
balance is the dealer’s profit. And the happy customer drives
away with a smile and a lighter wallet.

About the author:

Ralph Hoffmann graduated from the Univ. of Wisconsin, majoring
in Applied Mathematics. He has ten years experience raising
venture capital plus added business experience and has used his
math background to develop web site www.autotruckdata.com
for anyone intending to lease or purchase a new car.

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renewable_energy_credits

admin — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 22:41:52 +0000

Renewable Energy Credits: Buying and Selling Green Power

With the fast depletion of fossil fuel reserves around the world, our energy needs is feared to be depleting also and we can possibly experience regular power shortage once not augmented. Fortunately, the advent and the continuing development of the renewable energy are now in place. Different renewable power plants are started to be erected to facilitate generation of electricity using the power of renewables (in the form of sunlight, wind, water, biomass, or geothermal).

You might wonder how the power or electricity that is derived from these renewable energy sources is delivered to the customers. You need not to wonder. This article will provide you information with regards to the renewable energy credits. Of what it is and how it works, continue reading and learn more.

Renewable Energy Credit- An Overview

Before we defined renewable energy credit, let us first take a look on how we measured conventional energy through the form of electricity. The energy produced by a power plant will be distributed to the local electric grid which will take charge of distributing the standard voltage (110 volts) to households and/or commercial establishments. The energy is measured through a watt-hour meter which will determine the quantity of energy acquired by the local grid from the power plant.

Renewable energy credit (also known as REC) corresponds to one megawatt-hour (MWh) of renewable energy which is physically measured through a meter and verified from the generator of the renewable energy project. The green power (electricity generated through renewable energy sources) is delivered to the local electric grid where the project is situated. In other words, REC is the actual quantity of green power that is produced by the project and delivered to the local electric grid.

How REC Works?

Just like conventional energy, it is impossible to deliver physically the energy from a renewable energy project directly to the consumers, either a household or a business establishment. REC paves the way for easier renewable energy transactions. Of how REC works in an energy deal, consider the following instances.

When a renewable energy project, let us say, a hydropower plant generates electricity, REC are issued to find out the exact quantity of produced green power. Selling these RECs allows the hydropower plant to be competitive with fossil fuel power plants by producing more and more green power. On the other hand, buying RECs converts the ownership of the hydropower. The REC deal helps consumers and businesses as well to buy green power at a reasonable price.

Advantages of RECs

Aside from the convenience of purchasing renewable energy across the country, RECs also offsets high electricity consumption derived from the traditional fossil fuel resources. There are certain advantages of RECs in the energy consumptions. These are briefly discussed in the preceding items.

1. RECs give a cost-efficient renewable energy system. Through REC trade, the capability of renewable sources to produce more green power is achieved. Thus, it really offsets high electricity costs.

2. RECs also encourage competitive technological advancement to generate green power. The advancement can further help reduction of greenhouse gases that are emitted by fossil fuel power plants.

Presently, there are thousands of business, local government, and educational institutions as well as individuals who are already purchasing RECs. Some of them are the U.S. Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Defense, Air Force, Navy, Johnson and Johnson, Harvard University, Portland, Toyota, and FedEx.

Take advantage of renewable energy credits to purchase cheap green power and at the same time help renewable projects to develop and be technologically competitive.

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