Major Remodeling Loans

When a Construction Loan is used to purchase an existing property.

If you are planning on buying an existing home with the intention of conducting a major remodel then a construction loan is the only effective way of doing that. A construction loan will not only provide enough loan to purchase but also enough to money to make the payments during construction and all the work to be done.

The reason for that is the fact that a construction loan is based on the future value of the property, rather than the purchase price. Loan to cost limitations will apply which are outlined in the "construction loans" page.

Loan to cost ratios can be as high as 95% where the "cost" is defined as all the costs associated with:



Lot/existing property purchase

Soft cost of construction, such as architectural plans, permits fees etc.

Hard cost of construction which is all the actual costs associated with the physical work and labor.

Closing costs, such as loan fees, title fees, real estate taxes, per diem interest and last but not least closing agent fees.

Interest reserve, which is the reserve account that will make the payments on the construction loan during construction.

Contingency reserve, which is the reserve account that will pay of the unexpected cost over runs.

Note that unlike a purchase money mortgage loan a construction loan closing expenses are considered as a cost and are inclusive of the loan amount calculation.

When Remodeling an existing home.

The same loan can be used to completely remodel and or add on to an existing home, when the present equity is not enough to complete the project using a home equity line of credit.

Again the loan to value will be based on the future value of the property. However if you have owned the property for over a year then the loan to cost can be as high as 100%.

How Does It Work?

All repair, renovation, rehabilitation and expansion expenses including but not limited to the following list can be included in this remodeling construction loan Program :

•Additions to existing structure.

•Removing / Replacing doors and windows.

•New roof.

•Interior and exterior walls.

•Floor coverings

•Landscaping.

•New Kitchen and bathrooms.

•Even luxury items such as, pool, spa and tennis court are allowed. Basically everything can change down to the foundation

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'Relocation' Plan Of Metastatic Cancer Cells Uncovered

Few things are as tiresome as house hunting and moving. Unfortunately, metastatic cancer cells have the relocation process down pat. Tripping nimbly from one abode to another, these migrating cancer cells often prove far more deadly than the original tumor. Although little has been known about how these rogue cells choose where to put down roots, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have now learned just how nefarious they are.

"Metastasis is not a passive process," said cancer biologist Amato Giaccia, PhD. "Cells don't just break off the primary tumor and lodge someplace else. Instead the cells actually secrete substances to precondition target tissue and make it more amenable to subsequent invasion."

In other words, the cells plan ahead by first sending molecular emissaries to orchestrate a breach in the body's natural defenses. Blocking this cascade of events in mice hobbled the cells' migration and prevented the metastatic cancer that developed in control animals. The researchers are hopeful that a similar tactic will be equally successful in humans.

Giaccia, the Jack, Lulu and Sam Willson Professor and professor of radiation oncology at Stanford, is the senior author of the research, which will be published in the Jan. 6 issue of Cancer Cell. Giaccia is also a member of the Stanford Cancer Center.

Scientists have known for some time that certain primary cancers metastasize preferentially to other organs — breast cancer often spreads to the lungs, for example. This is in part due to the patterns of blood flow in the body. They also knew that such future colonization sites, called pre-metastatic niches, harbor large numbers of cells derived from the bone marrow that somehow facilitate the cancer cells' entry. What they didn't know is how the bone-marrow-derived cells were summoned, and what, if any, role the primary tumor cells played in site selection.

Giaccia and his colleagues turned their attention to a substance that they had previously shown to be involved in metastasis: a protein called lysyl oxidase, or LOX. In healthy people, LOX works to strengthen developing connective tissue by modifying collagen and elastin, which are components of the extracellular matrix surrounding many organs. LOX expression increases in cancer cells deprived of oxygen — a condition called hypoxia that begins to occur when blood vessels fail to reach the inner cells of a growing tumor mass. Inhibiting LOX expression decreases tumor cell invasion and metastasis in the lungs of mice implanted with human breast cancer cells.

The researchers wanted to know how LOX affected metastasis. In the current study, they found that blocking LOX expression in the mice not only prevented metastases, it also kept the bone-marrow-derived cells necessary for niche formation from flocking to the site. When LOX was present, it accumulated in the lungs of the mice and was associated with one particular type of bone-marrow-derived cell known as a CD11b cell. CD11b cells, in turn, secreted a protein that breaks apart collagen and provides a handy entry point for the soon-to-arrive cancer cells.

"We've never really understood before how normal tissues are modified to allow metastases to target and successfully invade them," said Giaccia, who is hoping to devise a clinical trial to study the effect of blocking LOX activity in humans with primary cancers. "Now we know that LOX goes to the target tissue and attracts CD11b and other bone-derived cells to the pre-metastatic niche. If the mouse data is transferable to humans, and we have reasons to think it will be, we really believe way may have found an effective way to treat human disease."

Other Stanford researchers include former postdoctoral scholars Janine Erler, PhD, who is now a group leader at the Institute of Cancer Research at Chester Beatty Laboratories in London, and Kevin Bennewith, PhD, who is now a research scientist at the British Columbia Cancer Research Centre in Vancouver; Albert Koong, MD, PhD, assistant professor of radiation oncology; and Quynh-Thu Le, MD, professor of radiation oncology. The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Institute of Cancer Research and Cancer Research UK.

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Newly Identified Gene Powerful Predictor Of Colon Cancer Metastasis

Cancer Researchers at the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch and the Charité – Universitäts Medizin Berlin (Germany) have identified a gene which enables them to predict for the first time with high probability if colon cancer is going to metastasize.

Assistant Professor Dr. Ulrike Stein, Professor Peter M. Schlag, and Professor Walter Birchmeier were able to demonstrate that the gene MACC1 (Metastasis-Associated in Colon Cancer 1) not only promotes tumor growth but also the development of metastasis.When MACC1 gene activity is low, the life expectancy of patients with colon cancer is longer in comparison to patients with high MACC1 levels.

According to the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, more than 108,000 people developed colon cancer in the US in 2008. Despite surgery, chemo- and radiotherapy, only 50 percent of patients can be cured because 20 percent of the patients have already developed metastasis by the time their colon cancer is diagnosed. In addition, one-third of patients whose treatment of the original colon cancer was successful will, nevertheless, go on to develop metastasis.

The MDC and Charité researchers are convinced that the identification of the MACC1 gene will aid medical doctors in identifying those patients as early as possible who are at high risk of developing life-threatening metastasis in the liver and the lungs. As a result, more intensive treatment and follow-up care could be offered to high risk patients.

MACC1 turns on a signaling pathway which is important for tumor growth and the formation of metastasis. Researchers call this pathway HGF/Met signaling pathway. Once MACC1 has activated this HGF/Met signaling pathway, tumor cells proliferate much faster, get rid of their ties within the cellular tissue, and eventually settle down as metastasis at various sights throughout the body far from the original tumor.

High MACC1 Levels – Higher Risk for Metastasis

The researchers discovered the MACC1 gene by comparing tissue from healthy persons with tissue from 103 patients with colon cancer between 20 to 88 years of age. Sixty (60) cancer patients had no metastasis at the time they underwent surgery.

Of these 60 patients, 37 had no metastasis five years after surgery and treatment. These patients were shown to have had low levels of MACC1 when first diagnosed with colon cancer. In contrast, 23 patients had developed metastasis in the course of five years after surgery. Researchers detected high levels of MACC1 in their colon cancer tissue. Thus, patients with high MACC1 levels have a much higher risk for developing metastasis than patients with a MACC1 gene that is not very active.

The researchers are convinced that MACC1 will enable physicians to decide if a patient needs a more intense therapy or if a less aggressive treatment is sufficient. "The expression analysis of MACC1 in the original tumor tissue will probably contribute to individualize and optimize colon cancer therapy", they assume.

Now the MDC and Charite researchers and their colleagues want to find out if the MACC1 gene also allows for a more precise prediction about the outcome of lung cancer, breast cancer, and stomach cancer.

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Milky Way A Swifter Spinner, More Massive, New Measurements Show

Fasten your seat belts -- we're faster, heavier, and more likely to collide than we thought. Astronomers making high-precision measurements of the Milky Way say our home Galaxy is rotating about 100,000 miles per hour faster than previously understood.

That increase in speed, said Mark Reid, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, increases the Milky Way's mass by 50 percent, bringing it even with the Andromeda Galaxy. "No longer will we think of the Milky Way as the little sister of the Andromeda Galaxy in our Local Group family."

The larger mass, in turn, means a greater gravitational pull that increases the likelihood of collisions with the Andromeda galaxy or smaller nearby galaxies.

Our Solar System is about 28,000 light-years from the Milky Way's center. At that distance, the new observations indicate, we're moving at about 600,000 miles per hour in our Galactic orbit, up from the previous estimate of 500,000 miles per hour.

The scientists are using the National Science Foundation's Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) radio telescope to remake the map of the Milky Way. Taking advantage of the VLBA's unparalleled ability to make extremely detailed images, the team is conducting a long-term program to measure distances and motions in our Galaxy. They reported their results at the American Astronomical Society's meeting in Long Beach, California.

The scientists observed regions of prolific star formation across the Galaxy. In areas within these regions, gas molecules are strengthening naturally-occuring radio emission in the same way that lasers strengthen light beams. These areas, called cosmic masers, serve as bright landmarks for the sharp radio vision of the VLBA. By observing these regions repeatedly at times when the Earth is at opposite sides of its orbit around the Sun, the astronomers can measure the slight apparent shift of the object's position against the background of more-distant objects.

"The new VLBA observations of the Milky Way are producing highly-accurate direct measurements of distances and motions," said Karl Menten of the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in Germany, a member of the team. "These measurements use the traditional surveyor's method of triangulation and do not depend on any assumptions based on other properties, such as brightness, unlike earlier studies."

The astronomers found that their direct distance measurements differed from earlier, indirect measurements, sometimes by as much as a factor of two. The star-forming regions harboring the cosmic masers "define the spiral arms of the Galaxy," Reid explained. Measuring the distances to these regions thus provides a yardstick for mapping the Galaxy's spiral structure.

"These direct measurements are revising our understanding of the structure and motions of our Galaxy," Menten said. "Because we're inside it, it's difficult for us to determine the Milky Way's structure. For other galaxies, we can simply look at them and see their structure, but we can't do this to get an overall image of the Milky Way. We have to deduce its structure by measuring and mapping," he added.

The VLBA can fix positions in the sky so accurately that the actual motion of the objects can be detected as they orbit the Milky Way's center. Adding in measurements of motion along the line of sight, determined from shifts in the frequency of the masers' radio emission, the astronomers are able to determine the full 3-dimensional motions of the star-forming regions. Using this information, Reid reported that "most star-forming regions do not follow a circular path as they orbit the Galaxy; instead we find them moving more slowly than other regions and on elliptical, not circular, orbits."

The researchers attribute this to what they call spiral density wave shocks, which can take gas in a circular orbit, compress it to form stars, and cause it to go into a new, elliptical orbit. This, they explained, helps to reinforce the spiral structure.

Reid and his colleagues found other surprises, too. Measuring the distances to multiple regions in a single spiral arm allowed them to calculate the angle of the arm. "These measurements," Reid said, "indicate that our Galaxy probably has four, not two, spiral arms of gas and dust that are forming stars." Recent surveys by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope suggest that older stars reside mostly in two spiral arms, raising a question of why the older stars don't appear in all the arms. Answering that question, the astronomers say, will require more measurements and a deeper understanding of how the Galaxy works.

The VLBA, a system of 10 radio-telescope antennas stretching from Hawaii to New England and the Caribbean, provides the best ability to see the finest detail, called resolving power, of any astronomical tool in the world. The VLBA can routinely produce images hundreds of times more detailed than those produced by the Hubble Space Telescope. The VLBA's tremendous resolving power, equal to being able to read a newspaper in Los Angeles from the distance of New York, is what permits the astronomers to make precise distance determinations.

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Mosquitoes Create Harmonic Love Song Before Mating, Study Finds

That pesky buzz of a nearby mosquito is the sound of love, scientists have known for some time. But a new Cornell study reports that males and females flap their wings and change their tune to create a harmonic duet just before mating.

Cornell entomologists have discovered that male and female mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti), which can spread such diseases as yellow and dengue fevers, "interact acoustically with each other when the two are within earshot -- a few centimeters of each other," said Ron Hoy, professor of neurobiology and behavior.

The study is available online Jan. 8 and will be published in a February issue of Science, said Cornell associate professor of entomology and mosquito expert Laura Harrington, a co-senior author on the study with Hoy.

"The frequency at which males and females converge is a harmonic or multiple of their wing-beat frequencies, which is approximately 400 hertz [vibrations per second] for the female and 600 hertz for the male," said Hoy.

The mating duet, generated just before the couple mates on the fly, settles at around 1,200 hertz -- roughly an octave and a half above concert A (the pitch to which instruments are tuned -- the A that has a frequency of 440 hertz and is above middle C). "That is significantly higher than what was previously thought to be mosquitoes' upper hearing limit," he added.

Interestingly, the mosquitoes adjust the harmonic resonance of their thoracic box to produce a harmonic frequency that converges at a frequency that is the female's third harmonic (three times her fundamental frequency) and the male's second harmonic (two times his fundamental frequency). The study also is the first to definitively show that contrary to previous thought, female mosquitoes are not deaf.

To study mosquito mating calls, the researchers tethered mosquitoes and flew them past each other while recording the flight tones with a special microphone. Co-first author Benjamin Arthur, a postdoctoral researcher in Hoy's laboratory, placed electrodes in the mosquitoes' auditory organ in their antennae during playback to measure physiological responses of the mosquitoes to the sounds of potential mates.

The researchers hope that their work will provide new ways to better control of mosquito populations in places where yellow and dengue fevers are significant problems.

"By studying these flight tone signals, we may be able to determine what kind of information males and females consider important when choosing a mate," said co-first author Lauren Cator, a Cornell graduate student who works with Harrington. "This will allow us to release 'sexy' transgenic or sterilized males that will be able to successfully compete with wild populations."

Dengue fever affects 50 million people annually, and two-thirds of the world's population is at risk. In recent years, it has reached epidemic levels in Asia, South and Central America and Mexico, where the number of dengue cases has increased by more than 300 percent from year to year. No dengue vaccine is available, and no treatment exists beyond supportive care.

The study was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and by a $19.7 million Foundation for the National Institutes of Health grant awarded to Harrington and a global team of scientists to cure dengue fever and control the mosquitoes that transmit the viruses that cause it.

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Weight Loss Tips

Dietary control and exercise.
It’s true what they say - all you need to do is watch what you eat, and expend more energy than you consume. It’s really that simple. You can quit reading this list now, you now know everything you need to know and didn’t need to fork over $500 for the privilege of me telling you the secret of losing weight. You don’t need to read a 4,000 page book, you don’t have to buy a tape series, you don’t need to stay up late at night to watch infomercials to understand this basic premise. It’s 100% true.

Change your lifestyle.
If you’re calling this a “diet,” then you’re going to gain all the weight back (and more) within a few months of losing it. Diets do not work. Diets are temporary. When you change your dietary lifestyle, however, you’re changing your habits - and you’re putting yourself on track for long-term / continued success and weight maintenance. Don’t ever tell anybody you’re on a diet - ever. I’m speaking from experience, here - a reformed low-carber. Worked out well for a while, but ultimately failed because my entire lifestyle didn’t change (permanently).

Join an online support group.

In my case, I created my own - FatBlasters. It’s essential that you not feel alone, and reaching out to friends (new or old) is typically a smart move. I just heard about PeetTrainer, but didn’t know about it when I began down the road to weight loss. You have to know that others are out there for moral support - they know things that you couldn’t possibly know, and they’ve probably been “in your shoes” at some point in the past (or present). Share stories, laughter, tears, successes, and failures - share them. There are thousands of communities out there, so keep looking until you find the one that fits you.

Take before and after photos.

I know it sucks to see yourself as a chunky monkey (sorry, that’s what I called myself - if only to get myself motivated to meet my weight loss goal). However, there’s no easier way to illustrate your progress. The “after” photos are far more fun to capture and share, admittedly. Find yourself on Flickr! It’s good to see yourself how others see you. Do you like how you look? In many ways, Flickr helped me lose weight.

Hire a substitute teacher.

Don’t reach for the brands you know and love immediately - or without thinking first. Eggs are “good” for you, but consider using egg substitutes instead (in fact, many restaurants will let you order lower calorie foods). There are countless “lower” alternatives for you to try. If something different doesn’t taste good, by all means - find a better substitute, or eat less of the original. In some cases, the substitute may be worse for you than the regular version of the product. The good news is, healthier choices are silently replacing their “normal” counterparts - and they taste just as nice.

Start reading labels.

I know it sucks, but you have to do it - and there’s no way to avoid this tip. If you don’t know what you’re putting in your mouth, you’re flying blind. Don’t assume, either - triple-check the ingredients list and serving sizes. You must rely on yourself for this; nobody else is going to be able to lose the weight or do the math for you. It’s not that complicated a task, but it will require effort. If nothing else, just pay attention to the calorie count.
What’s so funny about bovines? If you like cheese, you must buy the Laughing Cow brand, and keep several of the suckers in stock at all times. The individually-wrapped wedges make for excellent snacks, and are wonderful when melted over just about anything edible. I’d be careful about straight-up American cheese, though - it’s oil, but not necessarily as good for you as (say) a slice of cheddar would be. I have yet to find something as calorie-light and filling as Laughing Cow (I don’t know how they do it).

Tell your family.

You’re not going to lose the weight alone, even if you ARE alone in losing the weight. If you’ve got a family at home, talk to them about it - initially, not incessantly. Let them know what you’re going to do, and that you want (and need) their support. If you don’t let them know, you’re running the risk of them inadvertently sabotaging your efforts. You want them to help you get to your goal(s). You want them to share in your happiness when you’ve made it past a certain mark. Who knows? Maybe some of your new habits will rub off on them and they’ll become healthier people, too?

Go public.

I didn’t want to admit that I had screwed up, but admitting the problem in public was the first step on the path to eventual success. I was now accountable for my actions, and all my friends knew what I was doing. There was no turning back, otherwise I’d be risk damaging my integrity. I didn’t want to disappoint the people who read me on a regular (or semi-regular) basis. Plus, it’s an easy way to find out which of your friends have gone through the process before - and glean tips from their own experiences. Then, other friends might become inspired to do the same thing you’re doing once they see that you’ve taken the first step.

Identify your exercise.

No exercise was created equal. You might like running, so run. You might like jogging, so jog. You might like stationary bikes, so bike stationarily. Find the one that works best for you - that isn’t too much of a chore for you to do regularly throughout the week. Don’t pick a routine that you don’t like - or you won’t want to do it, and you certainly won’t stick with it for long. I also wouldn’t recommend buying into that whole “no pain, no gain” mantra. I’ve lost weight without hurting myself, and you probably can, too.

Become a Gazelle.

You’ve probably seen Tony Little on TV, selling his Gazelle glider - a low impact exercise machine. I can tell you: it works. It’s easy on my legs, and really gives me a workout when I apply myself on it. Some people say it’s awkward to use, but I love mine - and would consider recommending no other home exercise equipment at this point. Then again, I’m a wimpy geek who only wants to burn calories.

Zone out.

There’s a reason why people exercise to their favorite music - listening to external stimulus takes your mind off of the physical activity. That’s the secret to making “exercise time” fly. If you’re concentrating on what your body is doing, the session is going to drag on for what will seem like days. Buy a portable music player, or situate yourself in front of a television.

Never count on live programming.

It’s important to stimulate your mind while your body is exerting itself in other ways. However, never rely on “what’s on TV or the radio” at the time. Instead of zoning out, you’ll find yourself flipping between channels - and that’s going to make the time drag as much as it would if you weren’t keeping your mind busy in the first place. “Live” is a very bad idea. Go with pre-recorded programming or go without.

Video games helped me lose weight.

I can keep my balance on the Gazelle (which some might find difficult to do). As such, I plugged an Xbox 360 into the TV and started to play it while I was working out. Immediately, I found that I was sweating more than I was when I was only watching TV passively! The reason boils down to a single word: adrenalin. Now, the only way I’m able to work up a sweat is when I play a fast-paced game on the game console. Yes, even game genre is important; avoid any diversions that require long pauses between tasks. Racing games (like Burnout) have worked very well for me. The more mindless the game, the better your burn, the faster the exercise session will go.

Set realistic goals.

You can lose 50 pounds in a week if you work out 12 hours a day and eat nothing but celery - but not if you’re human. Slow and steady wins the race. Don’t bite off more than you can chew - literally. Make small goals on your way to the bigger goal(s). In the end, you’ll have achieved more (and more frequently, might I add).

Avoid trans fats and high fructose corn syrup.

I offer this suggestion for a few reasons. First, they’re not good for you anyway. Second, you’ll eliminate a lot of the “bad foods” outright - no questions asked. You’ll have to become more selective in what you eat by avoiding these two nasty ingredients - which are in more foods than you probably care to know.

Don’t always listen to your mate.

I’ve already suggested that you tell your family - but sometimes members of your family will try to dissuade you from trying to lose weight. It’s simple: they might not want you to succeed where they may have already failed, whether consciously or inadvertently. Your loss is not always their gain. Watch out for statements like: “You’ve lost enough weight.” or “I like you just the way you are.” Fact of the matter is, if YOU don’t like the way that YOU are - then YOU are going to have to do something about it, no matter what anybody says. They still love you, though (in theory).

Don’t compare yourself to others.

Every body is different. It stands to reason that everybody will lose weight differently. Even if you do the exact same things that I do, you won’t lose weight at the same rate. The key is in finding your triggers. Keep your goal in sight, and do whatever you have to do to meet that goal. When you start looking at someone else’s habits, you’re only going to become discouraged and quit without even realizing that it’s physically impossible to be anybody but yourself.

Women aren’t men.

It’s been proven that men can lose weight more rapidly than women can, which is likely due to our physiological makeup (women are supposed to have more fat than men, because they’re the birthing gender). This isn’t a sexist statement to make - it’s pretty much the truth. As such, females should expect to set separate goals than males - especially if you’re working on losing weight together, side by side.

Take a magic pill. Nonsense!

There is no such thing as a magic pill. Don’t fall victim to the hype of the latest fat-burning drug commercial. If you listen or read closely, you’ll see that every single one of these things is effective when combined with proper diet and exercise (which they even state in their advertisements). The side-effects for these drugs are usually worse than your additional weight, anyway.

Vitamins are good for you.

If you’re going to take any pills, let them be natural supplements (like Essential Fatty Acids or multivitamins). Be careful about overdoing it, though - especially with herbal remedies. Too much of anything is a bad thing. You can consult a nutritionist, but always buy on your own - and keep these supplements to a minimum. Remember, too, that specific vitamins are no good without specific minerals.

Deck your desktop.

In the beginning, some of my friends sent me complicated spreadsheets to help chart progress. Uh, no - not for me; I’m the kind of guy who likes taking the easy route. As such, I scoured the Web for the best desktop tool and remembered CalorieKing. You won’t find anything easier to use. Trust me, this is the one; I can keep track of everything I eat and expend (without hassle). While the statistic-addicts will love CalorieKing for its thoroughness, the utility was truly designed with non-geeks in mind. The CalorieKing Web site and service are fine on their own, but the downloadable client is what you really want to get. Pay the registration fee, man - how much is your health worth to you?

Identify your ideal weight.

If you’re 5′5″ with a certain build, there’s an ideal weight that matches your body type. Find it - and make that your goal. And if you don’t know what that might be, try searching the Web for a calculator (though results and calculations will vary by a small margin). Now you have a weight goal to shoot for.

Consider the source.

I’m going to make a gross generalization here, but… why would I trust an overweight doctor or nutritionist to give me proper advice on weight loss? “Do as I say and not as I do” is not a maxim I’m willing to accept from anybody who would be qualified to tell me how to do something. Talk to people who are doing it, or who have done it and been successful. You don’t have to mirror their regimen, but at least you’re getting help from someone who’s really been there. Or, as they said in the Christmas episode of “Two and a Half Men,” people who live in fat asses shouldn’t throw waffles.

Ignore Ronald McDonald.

You don’t have to eliminate fast food completely, but you should avoid it at all costs. Most of it is nasty, bad stuff anyway - if you’d even go as far as to call it food. If you’re looking for convenience, find a more convenient meal source. Besides, most of what they serve would be considered “food product,” not food. There’s a gigantic difference as far as your body is concerned. Your bloodstream does not have taste buds, need I remind you?

Scale up.

If your measurement tool sucks, upgrade it. If it’s analog, dump it. I’ve talked to many geeks about their choice in scales, and most of them (myself included) recommend something in the Tanita family. They’re high-quality, rugged, accurate devices. Make sure you set your scale on a hard surface, too (as carpet foundations do not make for accurate weight measurements).

Watch your weight.

Some people say that you shouldn’t weigh yourself more than once a week. I’ve been much happier charting my progress every day. No matter what, you need to weigh in at the same time, every time. For me, that’s 10am every morning (or somewhere thereabout). If you decide to weigh yourself every single day, understand that your weight will fluctuate by one or two pounds - and that you should only keep a serious eye on the lengthier trends.

One pound a week.

If you’re not losing at least one pound a week on your chosen weight loss regimen, you’re (a) stalled, or (b) finished. You might need to push yourself even harder, or (in some cases) let up a little bit while your body plays catch-up. If you lose more than one pound a week, then you’re doing better than average. Expecting to lose five pounds a week just isn’t realistic, though.

Maintain your priorities.

Sure, your sandwich would taste amazing with an extra tablespoon of mayonnaise… but do you really need it? Rather, is it more important for you to reach your weight loss goal quicker - or have this sandwich taste marginally better? What’ll happen the next time you’re faced with this decision - will you cave again? It’s a slippery slope; don’t lose sight of what’s most important to you.

All weight is not equal.

Muscle weighs more than fat, but the last thing you want to lose is muscle! For this reason alone, it’s important to have a regular exercise routine somewhere in your schedule. Without exercise, your body is going to burn through muscle first - and you’ll wind up more imbalanced than you were to begin with. You want your body to burn fat, not muscle. You want to lose weight, but you want to lose “fat” weight - not muscle mass.

Counteract the “Rainy Day” principle.

If you decrease your calorie count without necessarily increasing your physical activity level, your body is going to crash. It’s going to say to itself: “Holy sh*t! I better store these calories as fat, because I’m not getting enough of them - and I don’t want to die.” When you exercise, you set your body’s process to “burn” instead of “save.”

Don’t overdo it.

If you change something in your lifestyle, you’re probably going to see results - but there’s a law of diminishing returns at play. You can exercise for an extra hour a day for a week and still lose the same amount as you had when you were only exercising half as much. Give your body time to adjust - don’t push yourself too hard or you’re just going to spend your energy on something that’s not necessarily going to give you immediate and direct benefit. This, of course, only applies to those of you wanting to lose fat - not for those who are training for a triathlon.
Patterns are good. Once you’ve found your workout groove, do your best to stick with it. Exercise no less than three times a week for 40 - 60 minutes each time, but don’t feel the “need” to do it more than five times over a seven day period. Your body will likely appreciate a burn-off in the morning more, but if you need to relieve stress in the evening - don’t be afraid to adjust your workout schedule accordingly. Schedule making and keeping are important for other areas of your life as well.

Sleep it off.

To be an efficient fat-burning machine, your body requires at least eight hours of sleep a night. If you think that you’re doing yourself a favor by sleeping less, you’re mistaken. Give your body time to rest itself, both mentally and physically. Sleep is very, very important (if only for mental alertness for the following day). If you feel tired, that’s likely your body’s way of saying: “Shut your eyes, stupid!”

Remember that the fork is not a shovel.

I eat fast (I swear I can’t help it). Even if I’m not hungry, I want to shovel everything into my mouth in less than a minute. But my brain doesn’t know that my stomach is full until twenty minutes after it actually is. As such, I could stuff myself silly before realizing I didn’t need to consume as much as I did. Try eating half of what’s on your plate, wait ten minutes, then continue to eat if you’re still hungry. You never want to feel full - ever. That’s when you know you’ve eaten too much. If you want a real hunger-stopper, try an Omega 3 and Omega 6 supplement (EFAs) twenty minutes before a meal.

Become your own snack fairy.

It’s okay to snack between meals, really. Small meals throughout the day are enough to keep you satisfied, as (much like the sensation of being full) you never want to feel hungry. Let your body know it’s going to get a regular regimen of calories. Plus, if you starve yourself for the regular meals, you’re probably going to eat more before your brain tells your mouth to stop. Think about it: breakfast, lunch, and dinner are social constructs at their very core.

Love the oil companies.

Just like your car needs high-quality oil, so too does your body. Not all oils were created equal, though it’s hotly contested which ones are better for you than others. Personally, I love a good olive oil - it’s 100% natural and is rich with Omega 9 fatty acids. Enova is another one that we’ve found to work quite well in our lifestyle at home. Choose your oil wisely, though - your weight loss goal should be more than simply cosmetic. It’s a good rule of thumb when it comes to food: the more natural something is, the better it is for you.

Fat is where it’s at.

If you think you can lose weight and keep it off by avoiding all fats, you’re sadly mistaken. In fact, if you think that low fat eating is the only way to go, you might as well just quit now. Your body (and your brain) needs fat to survive! This is why the scientists call “them” essential fatty acids - Omegas 3, 6, and 9. These fats have been stripped from many supermarket shelf items, and it’s your responsibility to put fat back into your dietary plan. Don’t avoid eating fat, embrace it - equally.

Bring balance to the force.

If you eat the same foods over and over again, you’re going to get bored - unless they’re foods you really, really like. Feel free to change it up - keep your tongue happy. Balance carbs with proteins with fats, though. If you have more of one nutrient for one meal, try more of another nutrient for the next. And for heaven’s sake, don’t just shop in the “diet” section of the store. You can still (likely) eat the same things you’ve always eaten, just not so much of them at any one time.
Know your daily calorie limit. When I was in the process of losing weight, it was suggested that I stay under 1700 calories a day. Knowing that number was half the battle. I could eat anything I wanted throughout the day, so long as I would stay at or beneath that number. While I couldn’t track 100% of the items I ate, I was able to make intake estimates - and adjust my schedule and ration my remaining calories accordingly. In this sense, you’re given extreme freedom - so long as you stay at or beneath that suggested calorie level for your plan. If you don’t know how much you’re supposed to take in, how are you supposed to know how much you’re supposed to take in?! Sounds redundant, but it’s a situation that many “dieters” are in (which is why they fail)!

Fiber good.

When you start to lose fat, you’re probably going to get constipated. Yeah, it happens more frequently than we care to admit (or share). You should have a good amount of fiber every day, anyway. Fiber is very important to your health (and your weight loss goals). Try the Metamucil snack wafers for a quick fiber infusion. Then, magnesium citrate for those… “stuck” moments, in which you’ll find yourself from time to time. Stick a bottle or two of that in your fridge for safe keeping, and don’t plan on going anywhere for 24 hours after taking a dose (trust me, trust me, trust me).

Walk the walk.

You burn calories when you walk, did you know that? Certainly, you don’t expend as much energy as you do when you run, but you burn it nonetheless. Consider picking up a good pedometer, if only to gauge how many steps you take in the average day. According to others, the Omron HJ112 Premium Pedometer is the one to beat. If nothing else, knowing how many steps you take on the average day will give you a better idea as to your regular activity level - around the home and/or the office. Plus, you can count those steps as calorie deficits in certain programs (like CalorieKing).

Train wrecks will happen.

One of these nights, you’re going to go out with friends and eat your weight in steak (likely blowing any kind of progress you had made for that day). Instead of repeating the overindulgence, just put yourself back on track the next day. You’re allowed to “mess up” every now and again, so long as you don’t make a habit out of consuming an excessive amount of food. Right the dining injustice immediately. You’ll be okay. You’ll be fine. Just don’t do it again. And again. And again. And again.

Satisfy cravings with extreme prejudice.

If you’re hungry for something, eat it. Don’t deny yourself the simple pleasures. If it’s possible, eat only half of what you want. Is your craving satisfied, or are you addicted to the flavor? Losing weight shouldn’t be torture for anybody. You have to ask yourself: Is it more important for me to eat this entire case of fudgesicles, or to look good for my brother’s wedding? Only you have the answer to that question, and if you ignore logic, you’re going to hurt yourself in the long-run. Just take a nibble or two - I won’t tell a soul.

Water you waiting for?

If you’re not drinking enough water, your body will let you know. Thirst is an amazing sensation - quench it. If you’re not hydrated, your body won’t be working at peak levels. Most of your body happens to be water, by the way. If you’re worried about “water weight,” remember that you’re likely to retain more water when you’re not giving your body enough of it in the first place. Besides, that’s what those workout sessions are supposed to help with every other morning. I’m not going to dictate how many glasses you should drink, though - as that’s going to vary from person to person.

Join the soda club.

Like most people, I love carbonated beverages. However, unlike most people, I love unflavored carbonated beverages - and if your tongue is attune to sugary-sweet drinks, you’re also the kind of person who believes that club soda tastes salty (even when it contains no sodium). Make the move to an unflavored drink sooner rather than later. If you need help along the way, lemons and limes can be your best friends. If you’re going to drink something more than water, at least make sure it’s not going to hinder your progress. If you’re a sugary-soda drinker, dropping it from your daily routine altogether will help you drop ~5 or more pounds in a single week (WITHOUT doing anything else).

Sugar is evil that tastes good.

You probably don’t want to hear this, but sugar is a bad thing. The more refined it comes, the more your body is going to react negatively to it. Sugar, sugar, sugar is in everything, everything, everything. If it’s sweet, it’s got sugar in it. There are all sorts of sugars out there, and all of them are ultimately metabolized by the body. It’s a good bet that the sugars in an apple are better for you than the sugars in a candy bar, though. If you’re addicted to sugar, this is going to be a horrible hurdle to overcome.

Sugar substitutes are just as evil as sugar itself.

Do you really think your body knows how to handle something that was man-made? Seriously. These chemically-adjusted products do not occur in the wild; there are no Splenda trees in warmer climates, nor are there NutraSweet plants in the Arctic. In some instances, taking in sugar substitutes may actually increase your levels of hunger! Let’s not forget about all the health issues that might arise from these unnatural substances. If you’re given a choice, it’s almost better to go with something your body knows how to deal with (real, unprocessed sugar). No, it’s much safer (and healthier) to stay away from blue, pink, and yellow packets entirely. Do a Web search for “Artificial Sweeteners May Damage Diet Efforts.” Then sit there and tell me they’re okay? No way.

White bread can’t jump.

Did you know that white bread isn’t good for you? Oh, it’s true - just ask any diabetic. Research has shown that people who eat more refined products (like white bread) are more likely to have belly fat. Why? It’s simple: your body isn’t getting what it needs. The food industry isn’t the health industry, okay? You can’t trust that they’ve got your best interests at heart (despite all their marketing efforts). If you want the flavor of white bread, please eat the whole grain white bread instead? Sara lee makes a wonderful loaf, as I can personally attest (even though I like rye more than white or wheat). Repeat after me: whole grain white bread, whole grain white bread.
Hasta la pasta, baby. Much like its cousin, white bread, refined pasta can damage your health and pinch your weight loss plans. I’m not saying you should quit pasta altogether, but I will suggest that you change your pasta pusher to Barilla. They have a new wheat pasta that’s a dead ringer for the ol’ crappy white stuff you used to eat. “Barilla PLUS” is absolutely fantastic, as well as a good source of fiber and protein. You’re usually going to be better off with a “wheat” option, although traditional wheat pasta has a texture that you might not like (even though I find it perfectly acceptable to my palate).

Now, once you’ve achieved your weight loss goals, what are you going to do to keep the fat at bay?

The worst thing you can do is something I’ve done countless times over: get lazy. I’ve conveniently forgotten about all of the aforementioned rules a few times, and it’s put me back in the same situation I don’t want to be in - ever again. While I don’t have to be as careful as I was during the weight loss period, I’m still measuring myself and recording my daily activities. This may turn into a weekly weigh-in soon enough, as it’s easier to correct yourself at 5lbs than it is at 50lbs. Good luck

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Facebook sues social-network aggregator Power.com

Facebook is suing Power.com, a Brazilian start-up that lets users access a number of social networks through one portal.

Facebook filed a lawsuit on December 30 in United States District Court in San Jose, Calif., for copyright and trademark infringement; unlawful competition; and violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, CAN-SPAM Act, and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, among other charges.

Power.com signs users into their various social networks and messaging clients and delivers the data from those sites and services to one page. For example, you can see all of your friends, their status updates, visit their profile pages, and even send a message to multiple friends on multiple social networks--all in one place. Last month, Webware editor Rafe Needleman described it as Meebo for social networks, and it's obviously a big convenience for people who have profiles and friends spread across Facebook, MySpace, Orkut, Hi5, and the AOL, Yahoo, and MSN instant messaging clients.

But Facebook would rather users go through them. It has requested that Power.com use Facebook Connect instead of asking users for their log-in information and has been in discussions with the start-up for a month, according to The New York Times. But the Times reports the two failed to come to any resolution, and so Facebook decided to file suit. Power removed access to Facebook after the claim was filed.

It's true that Power.com does its thing without consent from the sites and services it taps into. But a month ago, when the company was making its first big push into the U.S., CEO Steve Vachani told the Times that Power.com was in fine legal standing because it only accesses other sites' content when a user voluntarily logs in. He likened Power.com's actions to the way social networks import contact lists from e-mail services or the way Meebo accesses users' instant message accounts.

Facebook seems to be feeling the pressure from FriendFeed, Twitter, and other social sites du jour--doing its own compiling of third-party sites. In May, it added feeds from Google Reader, Hulu, Last.fm, Pandora, StumbleUpon, and YouTube into its Mini Feed service, which had already included Delicious, Digg, Flickr, Picasa, and Yelp. And in August it launched Live Feed, a real-time stream of everything your Facebook friends are doing on the site, giving users a more centralized way to track their contacts' activity.

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Twitter phishing scam may be spreading

There's a scam spreading through Twitter. Direct messages (DMs) are showing up in Twitter accounts with appealing come-ons to visit a site on blogspot.com. The text is, "hey! check out this funny blog about you..." The URL in the message then redirects to a page that looks like the Twitter login page, but is actually not on Twitter--it's a site, twitter.access-logins.com, that masquerades as Twitter to steal your login credentials instead.

If you need to log in to Twitter, do it on Twitter.com itself. And to play it safe, double-check your browser address bar to make sure that's where you are.

The phishing site in question also appears to support the theft of Facebook IDs.

I have not received this bogus Twitter message, but the Twittersphere is abuzz over this scam



Read more on the Twitter Status blog, Chris Pirillo's blog, VentureBeat, or Mashable. Related: Koobface virus hits Facebook


Update: If you are logged in to the real Twitter.com, you'll now see an update about this scam on the page. No warning appears if you use another Twitter client, like Twhirl.

Update 2: The effect of getting taken in by this scam seems to be that affected accounts send messages to their followers with the original phishing message. To date, no other effect of falling victim to the scam has been reported. However, since many people use the same user ID and password for multiple online services, it's possible that credentials collected from this scam could be used to log in to other services, including financial sites.

As Twitter recommends on its blog: "If this has you feeling a bit weirded out, feel free to change your Twitter password."

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Pull Up Stakes, Move Where Home Prices Grow

Americans are staying put more then ever, but when they do move many of them do so for housing-related reasons, say, to buy a new home or find a better neighborhood.

And, if previous migration patterns are any indication, those trends could bode well for those seeking homes with equity gains to come. It's also pretty good news for housing markets rife with inventory.

That's all provided home buyers can get to market with the right stuff.

Here's the scoop.

"American Mobility Who Moves? Who Stays Put? Where’s Home?" a new Pew Research Center Social & Demographic Trends survey found that most Americans have moved to a new community at least once in their lives, but a record low number changed residences in recent, more economically troubling years.

In 2007, when Americans did move, their net migration patterns reveal much moving to the South, with far fewer moves into the West and Northeast, according to Pew.

Also, as the two coastal markets' home prices began to sink, home prices held best where net migration was greatest, in the South, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA, formerly the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, OFHEO) Home Price Index (HPI) for the last quarter of 2007.

Home prices played a key role in the shift South, according to an earlier report this year from the Brookings Institution, "Housing Bust Shatters State Migration Patterns".

The Brookings report said the current migration pattern shift is a reversal from a half decade ago when Americans migrated to booming housing markets in the West and Northeast, often in search of lucrative real estate investments, including first and second home buys with the promise of skyrocketing appreciation.

The current reversal of the rush-to-boom-towns pattern has left behind greater inventories of more affordable homes as Americans head for previously more affordable housing markets with greater price strength.

In 2008, home prices have remained strongest throughout much of the South, according to the FHFA's HPI for the third quarter of 2008.

Alabama, Kentucky, North and South Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas and Tennessee, all revealed price increases of 1.4 percent or better, year-over-year in the third quarter this year. Likewise, North Dakota (at 4 percent, the highest in the nation) and South Dakota (3.9 percent), Montana, Wyoming and Maine all saw some of the greatest price increases in the nation during the same period. Other southern states Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia, along with Iowa, saw smaller price gains, but gains nevertheless.

The rest of the nation's home prices by state were in the red or flat.

"In sum, there appears to be a migration correction going on. We're at the beginning of a leveling off of migration between unaffordable and affordable America. As with the broader economy, we don’t know how much longer it will last," Brookings reported early this year.

According to the more recent Pew report, net migration to the South appears to be picking up steam.

Pew reports while the 2007 migration pattern shows decidedly lopsided net migration to the South, the earlier 2005-2007 pattern revealed less lopsided migration, but nearly equal net migration from one region to the next.

The Pew report examined U.S. Census data, but also surveyed 2,260 Americans to learn more about the wheres and whys of migration patterns.

The ties that bind

•The Pew report found that while the migration trend is toward more affordable housing markets with greater price strength, fewer people are pulling up stakes.

•Only 13 percent of the U.S. population changed residences between 2006 and 2007, the lowest share since the Census Bureau began to publish statistics on this topic in the late 1940s.

•But that means those who do migrate for housing are likely to find less competition and more bargains.

•"The annual migration rate, which held at 20 percent through the mid-1960s, has drifted downward since then before hitting its low last year, with the recent housing market slowdown perhaps playing a part," Pew found.

Pew's main findings also include:


•Movers most frequently said they pulled up stakes for better job or business opportunities (44 percent); because their new community is a good place to raise children (36 percent) or because they have family ties there (35 percent).
The report also cites Census data which says "Most Americans who move relocate within the same county. About half of all moves are for housing-related reasons, such as buying a new house or moving to a better neighborhood."


•Those who did not move said they remained because of family ties (74 percent); the desire to remain where they grew up (69 percent) and their belief that their communities are good places to raise children (59 percent); for job or business opportunities (40 percent).

•Four-in-ten Americans say they are very likely or somewhat likely to move within five years. Among those especially likely to say so are younger people, unmarried Americans and the foreign born.
Making a savvy move

To make a move elsewhere pay off:


•Learn the game. Obtaining general knowledge about the home-buying process and the real estate market where you'll live. Buyers who don't know the market tend to low ball and alienate sellers.

•Get local smarts. A buyer's market can be designated by a small community, larger region or greater geographic area. Local smarts will prevent you from paying a seller's market price in a buyer's market.

•Buy smart. Buy the least expensive house on the best block; buy into the least expensive neighborhood in the best community; buy into the least expensive city in the best region.

•Bring money. Even motivated sellers aren't going to wait around for your money to show up. Get your credit report checked and in order. Get your loan approval guaranteed. Lock in your mortgage rate.

•Buy for keeps. Buy because you need a home, because you plan to stay put for awhile and enjoy the appreciation end of your investment.

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Selling Your Home in a Declining Market

Selling a home in a declining market starts with a proper attitude and finding the right Realtor® who is optimistic and knows the right sales techniques in this tough market. Even though most people and economists are down on the housing market (feel it is depressed, that the economic recovery isn't going to happen in the next few months, and consumer confidence is down), it doesn't mean that you can't sell your home.

The truth of the matter is many people will sell their homes between now and this summer. While many sellers and real estate agents take a reactive approach to market conditions, those sellers who take a more proactive and realistic approach to the market will be the ones who sell their homes. These are the sellers who take advantage of this market and move up to their dream home! First, be honest about appraising the condition of your home.

The key to successful selling in a 'declining market' is pricing your home at today's market value, having your home in tip-top condition and being able to work with a prospective buyer on financing needs and terms. Don't let your ego or pride get in the way when determining a price for your home. Put yourself in the buyer's shoes and walk across the street. Curb appeal to a new buyer is a very important and is many-times overlooked.

Secondly, take a leisurely walk through your home jotting down the little things you might do to spruce it up. New carpeting, a fresh coat of paint, new light fixtures, mirrors, etc., are items that will give your home more emotional appeal and does not cost too much. Put away the clutter throughout the home. Rooms free of clutter will appear bigger and the new buyer can visually 'move into' your home much easier. Remember, new buyers are not buying your furniture.

Finally, be patient. The real estate market has changed considerably since the last run-up where homes sold in hours or days. We are now experiencing a more "normal market" where homes take 90-120 days to sell. Remember, inventories are at an all-time high right now. Bank foreclosures are all around you and many buyers will have difficulty qualifying for a new loan. Lenders also have very strict guidelines now and consumer confidence is very low. Allowing for a normal marketing period will do a lot to alleviate your impatience when you have few showings of your home or a lack of offers to review.

A good Realtor® will keep you abreast of market changes, activity on your home and others in the neighborhood, while maintaining a "teamwork" concept that is paramount for a successful sale. Properties need ample time to be exposed to the public and finding the right buyer requires a good understanding of the market as well as sales values. In all honesty, there are no easy answers but one thing is for certain, even in the worst markets, there are people selling homes and taking their equity!

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Saving Money on the Cost of Travel Insurance

Whenever you plan to travel outside the country, you need to have travel insurance to cover any medical emergencies that may occur while you are abroad. You can purchase this insurance in several ways. When you book your airline flight, you have the option of including travel insurance for the duration of your visit.

This is usually at a very low cost and you can have it added to the cost of your flight. You can also contact your regular insurance company and purchase travel insurance, but this may mean you have to buy the insurance for a year. Unless you plan to travel a lot during the year, this may not be the cheapest option.

If you plan to hire a car when you arrive at your destination, you can save money by purchasing this insurance before you leave home. Then you won’t incur the extra cost per day that the car hire agency will require you to pay if you don’t have such insurance on your own.

For those wishing to travel outside the UK, a European Health card, available at most post offices, will provide you with free health care when on holiday in the countries of Europe as well as Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

When you own your own home, your home insurance policy will often have clasues that will provide cover for many of your personal belongings that you need to take with you when you travel. If you already have this insurance in place, you don’t need to purchase additional travel insurance in the event that you lose these belongings or if they are stolen.

If you frequently travel to other countries, you can save money by purchasing an annual policy from an insurance company that specializes in travel insurance. The policies are available as single or family policies and are relatively inexpensive. When you decide to take this route, the cheapest is not always the best policy, You need to have an inclusion for lost or stolen baggage that is for more than £500. Any less than this is not worth bothering with.

Online travel insurance policies tend to be a lot cheaper than those available from companies and banks. In addition, when you search online you have many more companies and policies to choose from. You can sit back in your armchair and compare the various rates on your own time to see which one best suits your needs.

Those who are older and have medical problems are likely to have to pay more for travel insurance. It is important that you disclose any per-existing medical conditions because failure to do so will mean cancellation of your policy.

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Protect Your Home during High Risk Periods

There are certain times of the year when you home is at higher risk of being burglarized than others. Christmas and New Year’s are two such occasions when most people are away from home visiting family and friends. The summer is another time when you are often on holiday and away from your home for an extended period of time or maybe you go away every weekend. Simply forgetting to cancel the post when you plan to be away will alert potential burglars that your home is vacant because of the newspapers piling up. The same thing applies if you forget to leave a note for the milkman not to make any deliveries for the period during which you will not be home.

All kinds of accidents could keep these devices from working properly, such as a power outage, especially with the drain that the many Christmas lights places on the electrical systems at this time of the year. In spite of having locks on all the doors and windows, if a thief is determined to get into your home, he/she will be able to find a way of doing so. Some people leave the lights on at night to give the appearance of being home, but if there is no car in the driveway for a number of days, thieves will know that this is a bluff.

Christmas is a lucrative time for thieves because all the gifts are laying beneath the Christmas tree and they do not have to spend time searching the home for valuables. Even prior to Christmas, burglars can make off with the gifts you have purchased to give to others. Most people wrap their gifts and leave them in one central location or even if the gifts are unwrapped they usually have them all in the same room so that they have all the gifts in one place for when they start wrapping. Thus the thieves can take less time in the theft and still get away with the loot in a very short period of time. New Year’s Eve is one night of the year when most people are out late partying and ringing in the New Year. This gives thieves plenty of time to ransack your home and make off with not only the expensive Christmas gifts but other valuable items, such as electronics and jewellery.

In order to protect yourself, your home and your belongings, you not only need to have adequate locks on the doors and an alarm system, but you also need to have adequate insurance policies in place to cover such losses. Most homeowners take out insurance cover when they purchase a home and never bother to update it. Then when damage of this nature occurs, they are dismayed to find that some of the stolen items are not covered under the terms of the existing policy. Whenever you make a large purchase for your home or acquire expensive jewellery or artwork, you should contact your insurance provider to make sure that it is covered under the policy. In some cases, you may have to have additional insurance on certain items, such as furs, artwork or antiques.

There is also increased danger of incurring damage to your home or property. During the Christmas season, you will likely host a party or two in which you have many guests in your home. This is the time of the year when people do more entertaining than at other times. Having people in your home puts you at risk of one of these guests taking a liking to something that you have and putting it in his/her pocket.

It also increases the potential for damage to the home, such as accidentally spilling wine on the carpeting or upholstery or causing damage to the walls or furniture. The likelihood of this occurring is small when you have a small intimate gathering of friends, but it is possible. If you have teenage children, while you are out with friends, they may decide to invite friends over for a party. Sometimes, such a party can get out of hand with young people showing up that are not invited and they can steal or cause damage to your property. Having appropriate insurance cover in place will assure that you can recoup your losses in the insurance settlement or have the repairs done under the terms of the insurance policy.

Insurance providers do have an online presence where you can shop around to find the best policy prices with the coverage that you need for all types of accidents. Once you do take out a policy it is important to read the policy, including the fine print to make sure that it meets your insurance needs.

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Consumers advised over action to take if rejected for finance

In the current financial climate an increasing number of consumers are finding themselves being turned down for finance, such as loans, credit cards, and mortgages, and at this time year, when many people are looking for ways to fund Christmas, the level of applications is higher than normal.

However, with the increase in the level of applications that are being turned down consumers are now being advised with regards to what action they should take once rejected for credit. Many tend to make another application to a different lender immediately but this is the wrong this to do.

Consumers that are turned down for finance are advised to make sure that they wait at least three months before they make another application for finances, as each rejection can result in a black mark against their credit, which can in turn make it harder to get finance in the future.

Prior to making any applications for finance consumers are also advised to check their credit report, as this will show them what their credit rating is like and will give then an indication of whether they are likely to be refused finance before making the application.

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UK resolves to save in New Year

Almost half of Brits have made a New Year’s resolution to save more in 2009, according to research by the Association of British Insurers (ABI).

Forty seven percent of those polled said they have resolved to save more this year, whilst 51% felt that the recession will make them ‘more likely’ to boost their savings.

ABI’s director general Stephen Haddrill said the apparent change in the public’s attitude to saving is ‘good news’.

According to Haddrill, ABI research has found that 13 million Brits - half the UK’s working population - aren’t saving enough towards retirement.

As such, ABI wants the government to step in to encourage savings.

The government has a ‘golden opportunity’ to help people save more as saving is growing in popularity, Haddrill said.

He added that the government should increase the ISA limit from £7,200 to £10,800, and that auto-enrolment for pensions should come in as early as possible.

National Savings and Investments recently said that the New Year is a good time to plan savings.

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Hollywood Style Bedroom

Create a glamorous and stylish bedroom fit for movie stars (and their petS). With a luxurious four-poster bed and classic wall art this room will be a great fantasy retreat. A light-studded mirror and pewter-effect fireplace complete the look.


Warm neutral colours
Use warm and neutral tones of cream and grey for the walls.


The bed
Create a glamorous hanging bed frame using 18mm MDF suspended about 30cm from the ceiling by chrome chain. Add a decorative lightweight cornice to the outside of the MDF frame. Then paint the whole frame in the same cream as the walls.


Fabrics
Drape curtains made from cream script fabric lined with satin, from each of the four corners to create a soft four-poster bed. Use the same cream script fabric to make a throw and cushions to match the curtains.


Celebrity pet
Why not indulge your pet and with a mini four-poster bed. Build an MDF box with 2"x2" uprights and a dado rail for the top frame. Again, use the script fabric for the corner drapes.


Wall feature
Upholster panels with wading and a stencil on natural linen. Try this elaborate rose design, created using five stencil sheets painted in layers to build up the final design. Use the wall colour paints and bronze and turquoise acrylics.


Fireplace
Remove the covering board and get the chimney professionally swept. Put in a second hand grate for coals or logs. Give the surround a classic aged look using a pewter effect kit, painting coats of black, grey and then silver paint.


Finishing touches
Hinge together four second-hand doors to make a screen. Paint them with the grey wall colour. Dress a mirror in Hollywood style with bayonet lights studded around the frame.

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Arranging Your Living Room Furniture

Here are some tips for arranging your Family Room and/or Living Room Furniture. It won't work for all of you, but give it a try if your room doesn't have that "Designer Look" yet.

1.) Figure out what your focal point is... the main thing that your eye is drawn to when you enter the room, and what people will want to look at when they're sitting. This is probably a fireplace, TV, or picture window.

2.)Position your largest furniture piece (probably a sofa) opposite your focal point, approximately 10 feet away. It will probably be in the middle of the room, which is fine. Just make sure that there is a clear and easy traffic pattern behind it.

3.)If you have an area rug, then position it under the front edge of the sofa. There should be some space between it and the focal point on the other side.

4.)Position your coffee table in front of the sofa.

5.)Position your other furniture on either side of the coffee sofa, so the furniture forms a "U". The coffee table should still be in reach. Try to balance both sides of the U... if you have a loveseat and club chair, then put the loveseat on one side, and the club chair with a side table on the other side. If you have two chairs, then put one on either side.
(Note: If you have two large pieces that are similar in size, then put them on either side of the U, and your small chair in the end of the U.)

6.)Position your end tables near the furniture that they fit best with, but keep them balanced, too... not all on one side of the U.

7.)If you have other furniture, either move it out of the room, or position it in the spaces that look empty... a chair and table in a corner... a sofa table along the back of the sofa... a book case on the wall opposite the fireplace, etc. Just make sure that the room stays balanced.

8.)Arrange your accessories to compliment the furniture placement. Don't just stick them on the walls. If you have a fireplace or other low focal point, then arrange a large grouping or single picture over (or resting on) the mantle. And place a few accessories near it. Other than that, leave the wall space immediately on either side of your focal point empty so that nothing distracts from your focal point.

9.)Adapt these as well as you can if your furniture is different, your room does not allow for a part of it, or something else is different. Just make sure your furniture isn't plastered up against all the walls, and make sure that you have a comfortable, cozy conversation area. If you need more advice on keeping your room balanced, then read my article series on "Achieving Balance in Your Decorating."

Have fun!

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"We Found Our Dream Kitchen on Craigslist"

Looking for New Cabinets
You spend weeks painstakingly picking cabinets and researching countertops...or, sometimes, you just get lucky. Jack and Andrea Campbell of Quincy, Massachusetts, were remodeling their basement when they ran across an ad for a kitchen showroom that was relocating and selling off a complete floor model. "We were doubtful the model would fit into our space, but with a little rejiggering it worked perfectly," says Andrea.

They paid $6,675 for base and upper cabinets, plus additional cabinetry, trim, side panels, and appliances, then adapted the setup for their galley-style kitchen.



A Craigslist Find
It all began when Andrea saw this posting on Craigslist in April 2007. By Thanksgiving, she and Jack, a restaurant owner and chef who did much of the renovation himself, were enjoying their new kitchen.



They Rearranged the Cabinets
The cherry base cabinets, topped with Silestone counters, were configured in an L shape. The Campbells separated the bank of cabinets into two rectangles at the counter's seam, then placed the 8-foot and 6-foot sections on opposite walls. Here, on the sink side, "we made sure the basement door next to the dishwasher could open all the way," says Jack. "It just fit! It's like we were Cinderella and the kitchen was the glass slipper."





They Moved the Parts Around
A built-in desk, plus a bookshelf and wine rack, were separated from the bank of cabinets and attached to a wall in the dining nook for extra storage.



They Found Space for Existing Appliances
The couple considered adding double ovens, "but we figured we'd use them only once a year," says Andrea. Instead, they tucked a wine fridge they'd gotten as a gift beneath the oven and enclosed both in cabinetry.




They Made Room for an Upgrade
The kitchen came with an electric cooktop, but the Campbells wanted a gas one. "We bought a discounted floor model from the showroom, and one of their employees came to our house and enlarged the opening in the Silestone to accommodate it," says Jack.




Before Shot: They Traded a Range for a Wall OvenThe range was swapped for a gas cooktop and a wall oven.






The Campbells in Their New KitchenThe couple with sons Jack, 2, Matthew, 5, and Nathan, 9.

TOH Tip: In a bargain-hunting mood? Don't wait for deals to come to you. Post a "wanted" ad on Craigslist or another classifieds site like Kijiji or Freecycle. You may just find that special someone who's willing to part with what you need.

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HOW TO MAKE A WOMAN FALL DEEPLY IN LOVE WITH YOU

"I still don't get it!..."

"I have a nice car. I'm accomplished. My A List CV make the next guy look funky. I even wear the latest Armani! Why doesn't she flip for me? Why am I always alone?"

STOP!

How many times did you pound the dashboard of your Corvette bewailing this persistent question?

The avenue to Romance is littered with roadkill hearts and unrequited love. If you think you're unique in your loneliness, think again. There is enough dashboard pounding out there to start a global orchestra of dire distress.

But don't despair. Before you spin out of control, deploy the airbags fast. These strategic maneuvers should cruise you back on track:

1) Dress to Kill - all the time: No I don't intend that You wear that $5000 suit to the grocers or the Rolex to walk the dog. What I want you to do is is to dress decently each time you hit the streets. Dab on some cologne. Be neatly shaven. Men, women are everywhere. If you dress with flash only at the bar or the party, you're missing out on 95% of eligible women. Some of the best relationships were forged during chance encounters at the bus stop.

2) Bedroom Eyes - When exploring new relationships with that sexy stranger, intensify the eye contact. Lock deep into her pupils. Let the rest of the world disappear even as a horde of supermodels troop by. You will naturally thrill her with the attention as she experiences the tendrils of growing attraction. Ethnologists have a term for it, the copulatory gaze. Get your eyes even sexier by enlarging your pupils. Dr. Hess concluded that dilated pupils are far far more attractive to women after he presented hundreds of assorted pictures of men to test subjects. How does one get the pupils popping? Simply gaze at the most alluring parts of her face and fill your mind with loving caring thoughts. Your pupils naturally grow, endowing you with irresistible eyes.

3) Visual Caress - Get your eyes do some facial traveling as you chat. Linger a bit on the nose, traipse across the eyes and rest at the lips. Drink in her facial features as though you were admiring the Mona Lisa. She will delight in the attention!

4) Easter Eggs - Stumped at having nothing to say? Listen carefully for easter eggs as you talk. These are unusual words of phrases that she utters. Ask her to expound on it. Say "What's the story behind that?" or "How do you feel about that?". Women love to be probed for their opinions and their feelings. Gently bring out her emotions with sensitive open-ended questions.

5) Keep it Adrenaline Charged - Men talk facts: stock figures, bill payments, and boring engine specs. Women are different. They delight in FEELINGS TALK: how the new dress takes them to 7th heaven, how that special meal got them all giddy with ecstasy, how their shopping expedition drains their deepest problems away. Leverage this by steering away from facts talk. Pick out emotionally charged subjects and ask her how she especially relates to them. You'll be her new confidant!

I know what you're thinking. It's all common sense! That's true, but ask yourself this: how many of you actually practice this? Be honest.

Get out there and be the man women loves. Use your common sense!

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SIGNS OF AN ATTRACTIVE MAN

Attractiveness doesn't only come as looks. Regardless of how good looking you are, if you don't know what to do, what not to do, what to say, and what not to say, your chance of landing your dream girl is slim to none.

Most often, popular guys are not the ones with celebrity looks, but the ones who have mastered themselves in the art of “true attractiveness.” For those still struggling with what makes men truly attractive to women, I offer some advice.

Be Responsible

You are going on a date with your girlfriend, you are driving, and luckily, you get stuck in traffic. Suddenly, you start venting about how everyone should just stay home and not bring their stupid cars out just to jam the street. You complain about how the road system in the city sucks and how you will not be able to make it to the movie on time. What would your girlfriend think of you?

How about using that time to have a conversation about something you haven't spoken about so far? You are the one who initiated the date, so why not try to make the most out of this not-so-pleasant situation?

Instead of venting at everybody, which does nothing more than show how immature you are, start a conversation about the movie you will be seeing that evening. Or, if you have that sense of humour, crack a few jokes, which is totally harmless. Your girlfriend will definitely notice how hard you are trying to lighten up the situation - and she'll enjoy it, too.

Be Humble

Every person this planet values humility as one of the greatest human virtues. Women like men who are confident but at the same time, humble. As a society, we sometimes take humility to mean lack of confidence, but humility and confidence can definitely go together. When such a combination is found in a man, a woman will definitely be attracted.

Loosen Up

What's even more important than the look is the voice. A Man who has a low tone of voice and relaxed shoulders exudes confidence and appeal to women. They see him as reliable. If you look too strained, even though your portfolio might be stellar, women generally will not find you as attractive.

The Little Things Matter

Kindness is good, but if kindness is the only thing going for you, you are out of luck. Add a tough side to your kindness and you will boost your score on the popularity scale.

If your girlfriend is struggling with the menu, take the lead and say, “Why don't we try this? It's really good. You will like it.” Don't just sit there and keep asking, “So, what do you want?” There is a difference between rushing her and taking the lead. The latter is a very good thing! You are sure to earn a few extra points.

Be an Entertainer

An entertainer doesn't have to be on TV every night. If you have what it takes to make your girlfriend laugh, cry, smile, and frown, then you are her entertainer.

Love must be true and genuine, but just for now, treat your relationship like stage. Think about each scene, where each character is and what they will say. Think about how the play will begin and end. Make her the heroine and you, her prince charming.

Every girl says they want to meet prince charming, and he is character straight out of a story. You may not be prince charming but you can be the closest thing there is.

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TAKING YOUR LOVER BACK ( BOYFRIEND ) - SHOULD YOU ?

The Happy Times Vs the Sad Times

If you have to put thought into whether the happy times surpassed the sad times, the answer should be clear: Don't give him a second chance because he didn't make you happy. Giving him another chance will only cause you to revisit the past and encounter the same problems over again. If you had major problems then chances are they aren't likely to dissolve into thin air.

All relationships have their ups and downs but emotional turmoil should not be an everyday occurrence. If he doesn't understand why you get upset at him all the time, then it might be the right time to find someone who can communicate on the same level as you and understand why you react the way you do.

However, if you've worked through problems successfully before and feel as though your relationship encompasses something special which is worth working out, give it another shot.

The Opinions of Friends

Did your family and friends approve of your ex-boyfriend who is trying to make his way back into your life?

Your friends and family are the ones who know you best and support the fact that you should be treated in a way that keeps you happy. They are your personal support system and are always at your side when you need a shoulder to cry on, and they provide you with advice when you are confused or distraught.

If your friends and family don't approve of your ex-boyfriend who is trying to weasel himself back into your life then it might be a sign. How can you allow a man who isn't respected by the closest people in your life to claim such an important status in your life? Does he really deserve it, or did he manipulate you in order to obtain such a place in your heart?

Clearly, figuring out whether or not he deserves a spot in your social circle should be thought through before you let him back into your life.

The Reasons Behind the Break Up

Take some time to reflect on a moment in the past when he broke your heart. Do you remember yourself crying on a friend's shoulder or drinking the night away with friends in order to forget about the way he hurt you or made you cry? Are you prepared to repeat such a process if his scheming ways strike again?

Heartbreak can be encountered in any relationship. However, giving a guy another chance once he has already broken your heart can be an extremely regrettable judgment call. An important question to ask yourself is why you would want to be with him if he doesn't want to be with you. Unless you are able to communicate what went wrong previously and how you can make things better, conflict will be an inevitable and unavoidable matter.

Look at all Sides

Examining all these factors is important before determining whether or not he deserves a second chance. The answer might be quite clear even though you refuse to admit it to yourself. You might find yourself searching for reasons to let him crawl back into your life, but make sure you remember how you were treated previously and ask yourself if it is what you really want in a relationship.

Figuring out whether or not there is a spot for him in your future is ultimately your own personal decision.

Happiness matters most

Sometimes women fall back into relationships because they are used to a certain routine of being with a man, or simply don't want to feel lonely. But revisiting a painful past while realizing you could be exploring new options will just cause an elevated level of emotional anxiety.

Feeling happy with yourself is the most important and if getting back together with your ex-boyfriend will prohibit this from happening, then it is time to move on.

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