Wise Observer

The Yankees are a team you just do not bet on. There is so much public attention given to them and so much hype that betting on them has very little value.

Over the past 7 years, these Yankees are a 60% club but -60 units. They win their games but because of the juice cost their backers the bank when they lose. They had their worst season in 2005 getting only 97 wins. They were also dissapointed in the Baseball Playoffs but what else is new.

It is hard to know what to expect out of these Yankees. After starting the 2005 season on a sour note, they finished strong and won the AL East. We expect the 2006 season to be different as we expect to see a Red Sox team win this division. There is just too much drama in the Yankees dugouts now that they are likely to implode this season.

Betting against the New York Yankees in the 2005 baseball season when they were going up against divisional rivals would have won you a total of 12 units.

Some historical highlights–> Over the past 7 years, the Yankees have won an amazing 63% of their home games. Interleague teams have an advantage at home and it is most evidenced by an even more remarkable 51-21 home record versus interleague teams. On the road, they are a mediocre 49% against interleague teams.

As you handicap the 2006 MLB Season, betting against the Yankees should be a regular part of your arsenal. Despite the rocky start that plagued the Yankees last season, people still bet on them and their juice was always ridiculous. One of my favorite plays of the year was going against Randy Johnson on the road. His name recognition gave the opposing team a very valuable +220 money line odds because of the Big Units mediocre road record.

Never pay for a pick again because our Free Baseball Picks will win you plenty of money all season long.

Become an eBooker! *

Authoring a book, specifically an eBook (electronic book), is easy, affordable and profitable. Share your expertise and experience with an international on-line community of learners.

Fulfill that dream of yours to write a book and become a published author. Take that workshop you’ve written and presented, take that unit of study you’ve produced, take that wish that there had been a book about something when you needed it most and convert that need into an eBook for others to use and enjoy, take that interest or hobby and convert your personal experience and professional expertise into an instructional eBook for other to enjoy, share your love of a topic with others to encourage them to share your joy or support them in their quest for further skill development, use your experiences to get someone else ‘turned on’ to what you have been enjoying for years, provide the attitudes, skills, and knowledge for others that will help them do a better job,… Yes, you can accomplish all of this and so much more with eBooks.

The technology of eBook production has become so remarkably easy, affordable and yes, even profitable, that you do not need to be a computer expert to become an accomplished and published author.

Whatever your status: student or teacher; worker or administrator; amateur or professional; experienced or inexperienced; veteran or newcomer; rising star or established guru; famous or infamous;… you have something to offer to others who have not had the same experiences or accomplished the things you have done.

We at Teacher eBooks and eBooks by Students have broken the eBook authoring process into 10 steps. A brief outline of those steps is the focus of this article. The article is designed to inform you of the steps, assure you that anyone may accomplish the task, provide you with an outline of the process and point you in the direction of further information to make the process both an exhilarating personal adventure and a professional development activity of the highest order.

WRITING is a POWERFUL TOOL. It is the DOING part of THINKING.

The first step in the process is to have an IDEA for a book. There are few of us who haven’t said to ourselves at one time or another, “Some day I’d like to write a book about …” or “I wish someone would have provided me with information about ____ when I was first starting out.” or “Now that I’ve reached this point in my career (hobby, role, interest,…) I’d like to share my experiences with others.” Whatever you choose as a topic for your first eBook in particular, choose something about which you already are a self-proclaimed ‘expert’!

The second step in the process is to spend some time in REFLECTION. This is a step that goes hand in hand with the first step. You’ve already thought about such things as why you would want to write an eBook, what benefits writing an eBook would give to you, the author, and your readers, who would benefit most from your sharing of your experience and expertise, when would be a good time to begin the process, where you might find an audience for your eBook and how you would get your eBook to those people who would most benefit from it. At this step, share your idea of authoring an eBook and the chosen topic with as many people as possible to get their feedback. Be a risk-taker! In essence, at this stage you are working towards the third step.

The COMMITMENT step is the first really important one, the step that separates the dreamers from the doers; the step that embraces change for personal and professional gain; the step that says you are willing to acquire the attitudes; skills, and knowledge to become not only a published author but a successful one as well; the step that moves you into an adventure that will assure you that you will never be the same person again. This is the most exciting step along the way!

The fourth step is called the BIG PICTURE step since it is here that you call upon both your realistic and your fanciful self to envision the final product. Imagine your eBook cover published on a web site, your eBook being read by others, your professional and personal pride in your accomplishment, your exhilaration at earning money as an author (if you choose to sell your eBook),… your “dream come true”! At this step you must also make decisions involving such big picture ideas as: the scope of your eBook, the number of eBooks in the series if more than one eBook is required, the topic or topics to be covered, the background information you already possess or need to acquire, the people who can act as mentors,…

After the big picture ideas have been dealt with, the fifth step is the choice of how the eBook information is to be CHUNKED. By chunking we mean breaking the general topic into manageable and palatable parts for the learner who acquires your eBook. This depends entirely upon the content of your eBook and the method(s) you see as best to present the material based on your knowledge of the topic. This can range from the simplest format of chapters to question and answer format to case studies to worksheets to theory and practice applications to problems and solutions to how to books to journals of discovery to …

Step six is the step we all associate with authoring an eBookthe WRITING! In reality, this step is merely one of the 10! It is often the most enjoyable because you are writing about a topic for which you have a passion as well as skills, attitudes, and knowledge you wish to share with others. Your personal and professional experiences will make this step a most enjoyable one. Write in an informal manner with impassioned emotion. Write like you mean it! This type of writing is as far from a thesis as you can geta beauty of eBooking! Although this step may be the most enjoyable, it does require a myriad of decisions by you, the author. You must consider such things as font size and style, spacing on the pages, header and footer considerations, word processing software to use, the length of the eBook, links to the Internet you are going to use, material you must gather together, compiling method for publishing,… plus many others. This is a lengthy, but manageable, list when you are prepared for it.

The EDITING step, the seventh, is by far the most time consuming as any of you who have written before will attest. When your work is to be published you want it to be as perfect as possible in so many ways not just spelling and grammar. Such things as visual appeal and use of white space on the page, style of titles, table of contents, use of black line masters, resources and sources of information, ease of use,… are also considerations. Make sure you have plenty of friends to help you with this step, likely the most time consuming step in the entire process.

PUBLISHING or COMPILING your eBook is step eight which is the step required to turn your book into an eBook! The quality of your eBook when it is presented to your audience in its final form depends on the quality of your editing in step seven and the enhancements done in this stage. Whether you choose to have your eBook compiled in HTML (Hypertext Markup Language”.exe”) or PDF (Portable Document Format”.pdf”) or any of the other ways you can have it done to accommodate different reading devices so your eBook can be read and/or downloaded, you will have the choice of doing a little, none or as much work as you wish at this stage. Your decision will depend on the amount of personal time you wish to invest and the amount of money you wish to pay for the services needed. This cost is minimal regardless of the choice you make. Cost is not a deterrent to getting your eBook compiled.

Like in the previous step, MARKETING your eBook can be done with as much personal effort as you wish. It is important in step nine that you get your eBook to market! Web sites and professional agents or marketers are available to do this job. The costs vary depending on the choice you make and there are many choices available to you. Again, cost is not a deterring factor here. For your own sake and the sake of your eBook, you should get involved in the marketing of your eBook to some extent at least. After all, you have the most important investment of all in your eBookyour emotional involvement and you know the ‘niche’ market best for whom you wrote the eBook in the first place. In addition, you stand to gain personally and financially by increasing exposure of the eBook.

The absolute best step in the process which coincidentally is the “10″ step, is CELEBRATING! You deserve a celebration for the final step in this literary adventure. You need to thank those dozens of others who contributed in ways big and small to your success. You should rejoice in the euphoria of accomplishing a dream! You should celebrate the fact that many people go through their entire lives without ever accomplishing what you had dreamed of accomplishingbecoming a published author!

Share your success with others and encourage them to do the same thing. Become a mentor to your friends and acquaintances. Share the joy. Leave your mark!

Dare it be mentionedthere just may be one more eBook in you! Let the adventure begin ANEW!

* Become an eBooker! An eBooker is anyone who embraces eBooks as an important communication device in the present and for the future; who reads and uses eBooks; who authors eBooks; who buys and sells eBooks; who promotes the use of eBooks. Be a proud eBooker!

© 2003 AwakenTheAuthorWithin.com

Paul Jackson is a retired Elementary School Principal who has discovered the joy or writing. He has written several eBooks, instructs others how to author eBooks, ePublishes (compiles) eBooks in PDF and assists authors in designing workshops based on their eBooks. He is a true eBooker!

Viruses & Anti-Virus Software

————
Many people have Anti-Virus software installed. Many of the
major Anti-Virus software company’s now promote what they
call “Security Suites” or packages. These Security Suites
contain everything from Anti-Virus, Firewall Protection,
SPAM and Pop-Up blockers, and Ad-ware protection. Quite
often, once the software is installed people find out that
things they use to be able to do on the Internet are no
longer possible. So what happens is portions or all of the
software they purchased to protect their computer get
disabled. The result, an ineffective software program that
you paid good money for! Worst than that, most people have
no idea exactly how the Anti-Virus portion of the package
should be configured. Leaving it up to the default
configuration to defend their computers. Most of the manuals
that come with these software packages seem to be written
for those who understand the intricate workings of computers
along with every computer acronym ever invented!

Most everyone who owns a computer knows about viruses.
Years ago, viruses were more of an annoyance than anything.
But as time passed those who develop viruses became more
astute at their trade and started developing viruses with
malicious intent.

It’s amazing that we regularly find computers without any
anti-virus protection at all. Typically, those who do not,
find out rather quickly how important virus protection is.
In addition to the many computers we find without virus
protection, we find many computers do not have the
anti-virus software configured and running properly to
protect them from even the most basic type of infection.

What is a Virus?

————
A virus is a type of program that can execute on your
computer and has the ability to replicate itself. Computer
viruses, like biological viruses, spread quickly and in many
cases , are quite difficult to stop and destroy. They can
attach themselves to many types of files. As these files
are transferred between multiple computers each computer
along the away becomes infected and has the ability to
continue spreading the infection.

What is a Trojan?

————
A Trojan is software that can perform unauthorized tasks on
your computer. More often than not, these tasks are
malicious in nature. The biggest difference between a
trojan and a virus is that Viruses have the ability to
replicate whereas a Trojan typically does not. If your
computer becomes infected with a Trojan it can cause;

Damage to your computers software, Operating System, and
data;

Your system can become unstable and exhibit unexpected
behavior;

The security of your system becomes compromised;

It could lead to the unauthorized access of your computer;

Beware programs and software in pretty packages (for free
usually). Remember what happen to the Trojan’s of Greek
Mythology!

What is Malware?

————
The word “Malware” is short for “Malicious Software”. It
refers to any software or programs with malicious intent
such as viruses, Trojans, worms, droppers, and kits. Just
as a note, not all Malware should be considered a virus but
the majority can be considered as such.

What can a Virus do to me?

————
There are many malicious actions a virus, worm, or general
Malware can take. Just a few examples are;

Change or delete important data on your computer such as
documents, music and video files, and possibly destroy all
data on your computer;

Search for important information such as contact lists and
use this information to replicate itself by sending everyone
in your contact lists an e-mail with the virus/worm
attached;

Spread amongst all your computers in various methods such as
e-mail and file sharing;

Disguise itself as a legitimate part of the Operating System
- making it very difficult to detect and destroy;

and just about anything else malicious you can think up!

Virus Life Cycle

————
Creation - In the past it took significant skill to create a
virus. However, anyone with even basic skills can create a
virus. In fact, there are virus creation labs freely
available on the Internet. This can allow anyone to create
interesting and potentially malicious code;

Replication - If one of the main goals of the virus
developer is the replication or spread of the virus, many
viruses will lay dormant and wait for a certain event to
take place like a date something similar. This allows the
virus to replicate to many systems before it activates;

Activation - Once certain requirements or conditions are
met, the virus will activate itself and execute the code
that causes damage to your computer. Not all virus cause
damage. Non-damaging virus usually do not need activation;

Identification - Once the virus has infected computers and
activated themselves in the wild (on your computer), they
are isolated and documented and sent to the anti-virus
companies;

Recognition - The anti-virus companies then develop the code
necessary to detect the virus, update their virus signature
patterns, and make them available to their customers. This
process can be rather quick or can take days or months;

Destruction - If enough people are protected by anti-virus
software that can detect, isolate, and destroy the virus, it
can be stopped from spreading;

Based on current information and statistics no virus has yet
to be completely eradicated!

How do I Protect my Computer?

————
The most obvious thing that you can do is install anti-virus
software. In fact, this is not so much an option as it is
a requirement. That is if you want to be protected and not
A) lose everything you have on your computer, B) spread
viruses to your friends, family and associates, C) be a
productive part of the public network (Internet) community.

In addition, you need to make sure that your anti-virus
software is functioning properly;

Make sure that your anti-virus subscription is not out of
date. In some cases, if your subscription is out of date,
the product ceases to function or can no longer download new
virus patterns. Preventing it from detecting the latest
viruses;

If you receive an unsolicited piece of e-mail do not open
it. Delete the e-mail right away;

Many e-mail clients have the ability to give you a preview
of the e-mail before actually opening it. If your e-mail
client is configured this way, turn it off. This can
actually allow the virus to activate the moment you
highlight the e-mail;

If you receive e-mail from a friend or associate that you
were not expecting, or one that has an odd subject line like
“Subject: The pictures I promised you!” or “The program you
requested”, contact your fiend and ask them if they actually
sent it;

Configure you anti-virus software to check for virus pattern
updates on a frequent basis. Checking once a week is
probably not good enough. At the very least, configure it
to check at least once a day. Our systems check more
frequently than that;

Make sure your anti-virus software is configured to perform
a scheduled scan of your computer. Many people rely on the
“real-time” scanning which is suppose to catch viruses in
real-time as you select and open files. This is not 100%
accurate and nothing substitutes for a thorough manual scan
of “all” your system files

Don’t rely on anti-virus software alone. Make sure that you
are using some sort of anti ad-ware and spy-ware software.
These programs can catch a plethora of malicious software
that your anti-virus software may miss.

Conclusion

————
All it takes is one bad experience with a damaging virus to
make you realize how vulnerable you and your computers are.
Be diligent in your defense against Malware and your
computer / Internet experience will be more enjoyable. The
same goes for small and medium sized business. Those who
have been down for a day or days as the result of a virus
will know exactly what I am talking about.

You may reprint or publish this article free of charge as
long as the bylines are included.

About The Author

————
Darren Miller is an Information Security Consultant with
over sixteen years experience. He has written many
technology & security articles, some of which have been
published in nationally circulated magazines & periodicals.
If you would like to contact Darren you can e-mail him at
Darren.Miller@ParaLogic.Net. If you would like to know
more about computer security please
visit us at http://www.defendingthenet.com.

Twiddling your thumbs, staring out the window and just waiting for the holidays to
arrive? Why not use this downtime to set yourself up for greater success in the new
year? Here are my 10 picks, but you don’t have to do them all. Even doing just one
will get you another rung higher on your energy ladder.

1. Evaluate your “virtual energy” and make changes if necessary.

Are administrative tasks taking up most of your time and keeping you from
prepraring for the holidays? Then set aside one hour a week to take care of “that
stuff” between now and the end of the month. This way you have a good amount of
it taken care of, that you don’t feel angry about it when you are out shopping or at a
holiday party, you aren’t giving it ALL of your attention either and you don’t have a
large pile waiting for you when you come back to reality in January.

2. Learn how to get more energy automatically via your main meals.

Would you like to be feeling energized 24-7 using your main meals? Then finally
take time to learn how it all can work for you. It’s really a simple process, and you
can set it up for the new year! Register for my live telebridge workshop The Energy
Rich Boot Camp and know that you will have this taken care of in 2006. What a gift!

3. Revamp your gift-giving.

Remember that having a ready stack of warm presents for the holiday is the “ideal”,
but it isn’t the only way to go. The beginning of the new year is the perfect time of
year to gift-give and celebrate! Make a pact with some of your friends that instead
of the traditional holiday giving you will get together in January (when things are
slow and some are feeling sad) for a real-heart felt get together. Make a pact to
share one great thing about each other at this gathering. More money in your
pocket and more energy all around.

4. No Need to clean out that chocolate box!

Uneaten chocolates, holiday spirits, plates of cookies looking at you — need I say
more? Don’t lose yourself. Set up reminders to help you stay in your body now and
connect to how you want to feel in the future (like next month!). And if you really
need to, set “rules” to limit the amount of holiday sweets i.e. 1 piece of “something”
on each day.

5. Clean out your closet.

Have I lost my mind? Don’t I know this is the last thing we all have time for right
now? Think for a moment … is there maybe someone who could really use what you
don’t need? Put on some good music, start sorting, and make piles. Make sure these
are items that someone else could really benefit from (only you really love that
concert t-shirt from ‘84). This can be a great thing to do with children, too.

6. Let your family, friends, co-workers know how much you are thankful for
them.

Whether it’s holiday cards or personal note, this is a good practice for both your
energy and you. Letting the universe know you’re grateful for what you have will
only bring you better things in the future. It is the best gift you can give.

7. Write down your 15 best accomplishments for this past year.

The year goes by so quickly that we forget to celebrate the good things we have
done. First I light a candle and write down my 15 accomplishments. Then I read
each one aloud. After the last one, I blow the candle out, and then RIGHT AWAY
make a list of 10 goals for the new year. (After truly acknowledging all the amazing
things you did this year, you’ll feel incredibly powerful, recognize your success and
be energized for the New Year!)

8. Actually enjoy the holidays!

Yes! I realized that for the past few years Christmas and New Year’s have flown by
like a jet plane, and I’m left wondering what happened shortly thereafter. Where’s
the peace?

So take that walk in the snow, get that massage, and plan a leisurely shopping day
during the week - and stop and get a cup of tea while you are out there.

Remember, we only have so many holidays in a lifetime.

Heather Dominick, “The Energy Expert” is a nutrition and energy
specialist, and
coach with over 10 years of teaching and coaching experience. Heather’s
primary
focus is in helping women identify nutritional sources for increasing physical
energy
and making permanent lifestyle changes. To sign up to receive your own 20
minute
Energy Make-over, for her freebie how-to articles and no-charge teleclasses
on
creating your most energized life, visit http://www.individual-health.net.

Canned or scripted sales approaches are rarely successful, because one size does not fit all in selling.

Studies conducted by the public opinion researcher, social scientist and author Daniel Yankelovich in the late ’70’s and the Stanford Research Institute’s VALS (values, attitudes and life-styles) study that assessed buying motives in the early ’80’s, indicate that there are at least five distinct categories of purchasers or individual buying modes.

These studies provided insight into how adults communicate, are persuaded and how they make buying decisions.

It’s almost impossible to create a verbatim sales pitch to address the variety of issues (sometimes conflicting) in each of these categories. Therefore a successful sales or service industry professional must learn through extensive in-depth probing what type of buyer he is dealing with and then create a custom-tailored presentation based specifically on the answers he receives from his probing.

Please check out our self-directed learning system that will help you replace canned presentations with a simple six-step selling process where answering objections and closing the sale often take care of themselves:

http://www.TheSellingEdge.com/manual5.htm

VIRDEN THORNTON is the founder and President of The $elling Edge®, Inc. a firm specializing in sales, customer relations, and management training and development. Clients have included Sears Optical, Eastman Kodak, IBM, Deloitte & Touché, Bank One, Jefferson Pilot, and Wal-Mart to name a few. Virden is the author of Prospecting: The Key To Sales Success and the best selling Building & Closing the Sale, Fifty-Minute series books and Close That Sale, a video/audio tape series published by Crisp Publicantions a dividion of Thompson Learning. He has also authored a client acclaimed Self-Directed Learning series of sales, coaching & team development, telemarketing, and personal productivity training guides. To obtain a substantial discount on two of Virden’s new manuals, 101 Sales Myths and Organizing For Sales Success, check out the listings on The $elling Edge, Inc. website at: http://www.TheSellingEdge.com/books1.htm.

Note: You can contact Virden at: virden@TheSellingEdge.com.

FACT

Most tourism destinations and companies spend lots of hard earned money on advertising and promotion to get clients to visit or take their trips, but rarely know what was effective. Or worse, what was a total loss.

This can be frustrating and potentially fatal if you don’t get the results you need.

“The most important measure is financial return,” stated Eric Grothwoll, former marketing director for successful multi-sport adventure company OARS. Eric generally receives better than 3 to 1 return on their promotional investment. “All promotions work in conjunction with each other. I am always looking at what’s working and what’s not.”

John Willard, president of Wilderness Expeditions agrees, “Tracking advertising saves money.” John found that by monitoring their advertising and promotions monthly and making changes as necessary; his advertising and promotions was far more effective without spending more money.

E-Marketing - The Most Trackable Marketing

Savvy businesses effectively use staff and technology to capture useful information about their prospects who visit their website.

“It’s important to have log reports that are detailed and give you good marketing information. This is something you should insist on from your Internet service provider”, Laurel King of Adventure Sports Online stated. The software they use is called Web trends and tracks the top ten URL’s used to access your site, top key words used, pages most often hit, average time stayed, etc.

Marketing with the internet (E-marketing) is one of the best strategies to track exactly what key word phrases are getting traffic and what ads yield the best return on investment. Google Adwords allows you rotate two different ads for the same group of key word phrases. What this means is the market will tell you, based on your click through rate (CTR) what offer has the highest response, i.e. demand.

It gets even better. Google, unlike Yahoo Overture, Google will even LOWER your cost per click (CPC) for your ads with higher CTR. More web traffic for less money. Plus Google has free conversion tracking to determine your return on investment for e-newsletter sign-ups, brochure requests and reservations. This is place to start your travel advertising.

A Word of Caution

Google does have some subtle nuances that if not done right, will cost you a bunch of money with little return. But with a little guidance and some tips, you can out market your competition easily.

According to Dan Austin, Co-Director of Austin-Lehman, “The source of the inquiry is the most important. How did they hear about us?” Every lead, whether it’s from the phone, internet, in-house mailing or from a trade show gets a “source code” on their computer. These source codes allow you to run reports about your prospects. Additional important monitoring methods include the clients geographic area, are they a repeat guest, when they want to travel, what offer they responded to, who were they refereed by, etc.

It’s important to remember that profitable advertising and promotion is a blend of what your offer looks like and communicates as well as where it is placed. Often clients run an ad that their friend designed, for only an issue or two to “try it out”. Because they may not have gotten immediate response, advertisers often blame the medium. It may be the ad was not compelling, lacked a good offer, placed in the wrong media or all the above.

Travel Advertising Tips: Re-assess quarterly with print and weekly on Google Adwords to make sure your advertising money is working for you. Use your website log report to determine your source of visitors, path of traffic on your site. If your log reports show that most prospects are leaving after less then 1 minute - your website needs major work to enhance retention which will lead to more sales.

Your success is gauged by cost effectively converting prospects into paying clients. Prospects do not pay the bills, only sales.

Converting Prospect Into Sales

What experience are prospects and clients having of your company when they want to reach you?

Staff

I liked what Eric at OARS said, “Marketing makes the phone ring. Staff really makes the difference in converting them into a sale”. Your staff should be knowledgeable on all the products or services you offer. If your staff is sold on the company, they will transfer their enthusiasm to the client.

Follow-Up

Make a commitment to process literature requests and get questions answered on a timely basis. Establishing rapport and credibility with your prospect is key.

Persistence

Your prospect should have your company or destination name at the top of their mental list. Postcards, brochures, newsletters, E-mail newsletters, testimonials, display ads, yellow pages, association, etc. can all perform well if there is continuity in the message and you are persistent.

Travel Advertising Tip:

Remember to ask on your outgoing answering machine message, questionnaires, etc. how people found out about your company.

If you have any travel business and tourism marketing question, go to Ask Tourism Tim and you can ask and get answers to your top questions and concerns. http://adventurebizsuccess.com/ask1_tourism_tim.htm
Tim Warren is the author of Tourism Marketing Success: a step by step guide guaranteed to help you standout from the crowd and sell more travel in your trade show booth, website, advertising, brochure and more. Since1994, business and marketing resources exclusively for tourism and hospitality professionals and trade associations.

For FREE travel marketing and business articles and the free mini-course; “The 10 Commandments of Travel Business Success” visit Travel Advertising Tips: For more information on how-to use Google Adwords effectively for travel promotions, check out the articles on my site or http://www.adventurebizsuccess.com/tourismmarketingbook.php

Okay, so you’ve made a few small changes in your diet and how
you shop. You read labels and are still surprised at what is in
some of the food you used to eat. So what’s next?

Well, you’ve gotten rid of some of the things that are bad for
your health. If you haven’t already, implement all five of the
small changes from part one of this series on real health.

Next you need to make a few bigger changes in your diet. The
first is to eat more fruits and vegetables. Fruits and
vegetables have nutrients and chemicals that are very
health-supporting. And they taste good! You should try to eat
these in their most unprocessed forms and with minimal cooking.

For example, eat fruit, not fruit juice. Fruit juice you buy in
the store, has very little actual juice in it. If you read the
ingredients list, it will often have water and high fructose
corn syrup added. High fructose corn syrup is just highly
processed sugar, with no nutrient value to speak of.

Fruits like blueberries, strawberries, blackberries,
raspberries, all have cancer fighting and preventive properties.
You could snack on blueberries, or slice some strawberries or
bananas into your morning oatmeal.

Buy fresh vegetables, not canned. The canning process removes
most of the nutrient value. Frozen vegetables are usually okay,
but you need to read the label to see if anything has been added.

When you cook vegetables, don’t boil them into mush. Lightly
stir fry or steam, so the vegetables remain crisp and the
nutrients remain in the vegetables. One of my favorite
vegetables is steamed kale. It takes about 2 minutes to make and
it tastes wonderful (I add spices to it) and it is this vibrant
green color.

Color is actually a good guide to what to buy. Deeper colors are
usually more nutrition-packed. Go for orange carrots, red
tomatoes, green broccoli and so on. For your salads, go with the
deeper green lettuces and spinach.

Be creative in how you plan and cook your meals. Make vegetables
the major part of the meal. Try out some vegetarian recipes.
Experiement with spices to add zest to a dish. Snack on carrots
or berries, have fruit as your dessert instead of something
loaded with fat and sugar.

There is one type of wedding favor which is almost always appreciated by the guests at the wedding and this is an edible wedding favor. Whether you opt for sweet or savory items you and your guests are likely to enjoy them. If you have a special wrapper made up it will look that little bit special and even a simple bar of chocolate will be a popular choice. These chocolate bars can be simple milk chocolate, dark or white chocolate which are filled with items such as almonds or raisins. Most brides and grooms opt to have their names plus the date of their wedding printed on the wrapper and to select a wrapper design which relates to love, weddings or the specific theme of the wedding.

It is not unusual to see a picture of the happy couple on this sort of wrapper or even a presentation box. Other edible wedding favors can come in the form of small pieces of candy in tins. There is also typically the option of personalizing the tin by including the wedding date and the name of the bride and the groom. Tins are always useful so once the candy has been eaten, it can be used to store many small items that might be lost otherwise. Candy will probably remain a favorite edible wedding favor for some time because it is so popular.

Why not place an image of the happy couple with the wedding details directly onto the face of the cookie to add a finishing touch. There are many bakeries that can make these cookies for you in a variety of sizes and shapes; you just simply need to select a design and give the bakery a photo to use in the design process. Edible wedding favors can also come in the form of teas, coffees and cocoa for something a little more sophisticated. Tea, coffee and cocoa are very popular with many people and there a huge range to choose from these days so you would not have just stick with the most popular available. Once again, the packaging can contain information about the bride and groom and if it is a metal or plastic container it can be used at a later stage an will not go to waste. If you have not found any of these suggestions appealing, there is no reason why you cannot come up with something that is completely unique for your guests!

The Historic San Carlos Hotel in Phoenix

Read Jetsetters Magazine at www.jetsettersmagazine.com
To read this entire feature FREE with photos cut and paste this link:
http://www.jetsettersmagazine.com/archive/jetezine/hotels/arizona/phx/carlos/carlos.html

The courtesies of a gentler era can still be found at the only historic hotel still operating in downtown Phoenix, the grand Hotel San Carlos, this year celebrating 75 years of graceful and elegant service.

At a reception attended by the Phoenix and Arizona Historical Societies and Phoenix business leaders, the mayor of Phoenix and the governor of Arizona presented a proclamation and plaque to the hotel. It was not the first time the Hotel San Carlos has received accolades; its history is rich in glamour and significance.

On this same site native Americans once worshipped a god of learning. Perhaps this is why Phoenix’s first school, a one-room adobe structure, was built here for a handful of Indian children in 1874. By 1893 a brick schoolhouse with an expansion to sixteen rooms had replaced the adobe building. For almost a quarter century, the new schoolhouse served the children of Phoenix. Then, in 1927, it was condemned to make way for construction of the Hotel San Carlos.

The historic Hotel San Carlos is a perfect selection for your romantic Phoenix week-end getaway.

In the Phoenix of the 1920s there was a growing need for tourist hotels. The Hotel San Carlos, touted as one of the most modern hotels in the entire Southwest, was welcomed as a state-of-the-art establishment with steam heat, elevators and air cooling, justifying $1.00 higher average daily rates over the other three area hotels. The Hotel San Carlos featured circulation by ice water in every room and “automatic cooled air that changed in each room every three minutes.” Elegant tapestries of medieval Italy adorned the walls of the lobby and a high molded ceiling graced the entrance.

The Hotel San Carlos, is just seven stories high, featuring rooms & suites facing picturesque Central Avenue.

The front page headline of the Arizona Gazette (today’s Arizona Republic) of March 19, 1928, announced that the Hotel San Carlos had reached its goal and would hold its formal opening the following evening. At seven stories, it was the tallest hotel in town, and its construction served as testimony to Phoenix’s rising reputation as a tourist destination.

Immediately the Hotel San Carlos occupied a prominent place in the Phoenix social arena. There were not many places that could be called “fashionable”, where one could go to be seen. The Hotel San Carlos, with card rooms and a place for dancing, was called “smart”. The Arizona Gazette noted that the hotel had a “smoking lounge and writing room”. The Palm Room of the lobby served as the cocktail area. The hotel’s French Café restaurant became a noted dining spot. Literature for the hotel boasted that its French onion soup was the best in town, and fashionable Phoenicians were known, according to the newspaper columns of the day, to enjoy the onion soup on Sunday afternoons. Members of the state legislature would have drinks in the Palm Room after a day at the Capitol building.

During the heyday of Hollywood in the forties and fifties, celebrities such as Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Carole Lombard, Jean Harlow, Cary Grant, Gene Autry, Marilyn Monroe, Gary Cooper, Humphrey Bogart, and others stayed - and played - at the Hotel San Carlos.

“Mae West stayed here during her run at the Orpheum theatre,” says hotel general manager Bruce Barnes. “After one performance, she stopped at the front desk, asked that champagne be delivered to her suite with two glasses, and that she not be disturbed until 3 p.m. the next day.”

In 1928, governor Rose Mofford proclaimed April 25th as “Hotel San Carlos Day”. The proclamation recognized the importance of the hotel as the only property in Phoenix selected to join the prestigious Historic Hotels of America, an exclusive affiliation based on historical character, architectural quality, and preservation efforts made by owners who are dedicated to maintaining historic integrity.

The Melikian family, owners for the past thirty-one years, have been keeping this tradition alive: to commemorate the Hotel San Carlos’ sixty-fifth anniversary in March, 1993, the San Carlos Hollywood Star Walk was inlaid on both the Central and Monroe sidewalks adjacent to the hotel with the names of famous movie stars and big band leaders who occupied the hotel while playing at the Orpheum theatre, or the Palace West theater, or the Riverside Ballroom. In addition, suites on each floor of the hotel were named in honor of the famous visitors who slept in them.

Historic Decor -

Rich in design as well as history, the Hotel San Carlos is visually reminiscent of the Italian Renaissance period. The entrances are decorated with vertical ribbed, glazed terra cotta tiles.

Above the entryway, at the second and third floor levels, are neoclassical column ornamentations. Fabulous artwork by the likes of Frank Weston Benson, Frederic Remington, Charles M. Russell, Thomas Moran, and Albert Bierstadt can be found gracing each floor, making the walk to your room like passing through a famous art gallery.

Such an historic ediface is not without its tales of tragedy as well as fame.

“The Hotel San Carlos was the first skyscraper, had the first elevator, and the first suicide,” says history-enthusiast Dawna Higgins of Phoenix.

At 2:30 a.m. May 7, 1928, just months after the opening of the Hotel San Carlos, a 22-year-old woman garbed in a fashionable evening gown jumped from the roof to her death in the street below. Miss Leone Jensen left a note, explaining that she was heart-broken from being spurned in love by a bellboy who worked in another hotel. Today her ghost has been seen in a white gown, and Barnes says the housekeeping staff will never go to the seventh floor except in twos and threes. The entire hotel staff talks of paintings on seventh floor walls that remain crooked no matter how often straightened, and clock radios, turned off, that come on again by themselves. A woman’s figure, in the form of a white cloud, accompanied by unexplainable breezes, has often been reported.

There are also confirmed reports that the ghosts of young children have been heard running through the halls of the San Carlos.

“Four Indian children drowned in the well in the late 1800s,” explains Barnes. The San Carlos water well, originally built for the schoolhouse in 1874 and still operating in the hotel’s basement, is believed to be the center of the countercurrent. “But they’re happy ghosts. They laugh and cackle and giggle. Cynthia, the head housekeeper, the engineering staff, and even nearby store tenants have heard them.

“There’s definitely phenomenon here,” adds Barnes. A normally practical Australian, Barnes relates how psychics and psychologists of the paranormal have visited the hotel and come away convinced of ghostly presences.

To read this entire feature FREE with photos cut and paste this link:
http://www.jetsettersmagazine.com/archive/jetezine/hotels/arizona/phx/carlos/carlos.html

Carolyn Proctor, Jetsetters Magazine Correspondent- Read Jetsetters Magazine at www.jetsettersmagazine.com To book travel visit Jetstreams.com at www.jetstreams.com and for Beach Resorts visit Beach Booker at www.beachbooker.com

About the Author

CArolyn Proctor, Jetsetters Magazine Correspondent. Join the Travel Writers Network in the logo at www.jetsettersmagazine.com

Sneakers are probably the most important items in a sports
wardrobe. As interesting as it may be, you can’t jog in the same
shoes you go to the office.

It’s important to have at least one pair of sneakers handy each
time you go out. Whether you plan going to the woods with friend
or family, or simply you go to the local shop to buy something
for the house, they are the first choice since they are light
and very easy to put on.

How to decide which ones are for you?

That’s a simple task. Look for models that you really believe
would look good on you. Once you have several pairs that you
like, take a closer look at each of them. See if they are of
quality, what material are they made of, the way the sole is
glued.

Will they endure the kind of stress you are planning to make
them have? If not, take them off the list. There’s no point in
buying a pair of sneakers that will break after two weeks of use.

Next, consider if they will fit with the other clothes in your
wardrobe. Usually, sneakers go well with most jeans and other
casual pants. However, if you think you can wear sneakers with
your business meeting suit, stop doing that! Drop it off your
mind! There is no way you can wear sneakers with official
clothes. Unless you deliberately want to shock people.

Once you’ve taken care of the above steps, all you need to do
now is to know the best size. For that, it’s best to go to a
local shop and try a couple of sneakers and see what the size in
which you feel comfortable is. You can also look at your current
shoes, but if you feel a bit discomfort, it’s ok to get a bigger
size. Also, note that the sneakers you already own have passed
trough the stretching phase, so their size might be a bit
different.

Now that you know what to look for, it’s time to get yourself a
good pair of sneakers.