Sometimes it seems everyone in authority is going quite daft! I recall a quote which went "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Unfortunately history is either not taught at schools these days, or is skewed to suit some left or right wing bigoted idiot's viewpoint, or is ignored to pander to a vocal minority.
In Australia we have recently experienced massive destruction in the southern states from bush fires. Although I live in the north, it seems to me that the solution is quite simple - burn off selectively at the most suitable time, which is what Aborigines practiced for centuries and what the older generation in the rural sector also practiced.
Unfortunately, in recent years local authorities, no doubt encouraged by politically correct nitwits in the State & Federal arena, have conveniently forgotten the lessons of history, bent over for the vocal minority greenies, many of whom have no idea what they are talking about, & reduced or forbidden burn offs.
A recent report has recalled history - ScienceDaily (Nov. 29, 2009) — A landmark Australian project that mitigates the extent and severity of natural savannah blazes by deploying traditional Indigenous fire management techniques is being hailed as a model with vast global potential in the fights against climate change and biodiversity loss, and for protecting Indigenous lands and culture, etc, etc Check it out here http://bit.ly/8rz9Rm
What resources we could save by studying history more closely!
Monday 30 November 2009
Monday 23 November 2009
Xmas Ideas for the Lazy Shopper!
Christmas comes but once a year, fortunately, even if that makes me sound like Scrooge!
It has really lost much of its charm, thanks to retailers chasing the almighty dollar.
As a kid in the '50's I recall it was a magic time. As I had been sent from Ceylon to boarding school in Scotland, I spent my school holidays with my Aunt in the country outside Glasgow.
She bustled around for several weeks before Xmas making the cake & icing it, making various sweetmeats & the pudding, ordering some luxury groceries by phone from a friend in Glasgow who owned an upmarket shop, boiling the ham and making arrangements to obtain a pheasant, salmon, or other special item from various locals, who I suspect may have been poachers! I helped by licking out the bowls!
Uncle Tom set up the tree in the sitting room in bucket suitably covered with fancy paper, with pine boughs spread around under it on which the gifts would be laid & I helped him decorate it. He had spent much time in Germany & Austria before WW1 & was strongly influenced by the traditions of those countries, which included a quiet family gathering on Xmas Eve, presenting & opening gifts after a light meal & having guests in or going out to friends for a formal lunch on Xmas Day.
Most evenings were occupied by games like rummy, chinese checkers, tiddlywinks, & dominoes, although when guests were present they usually played bridge. We did not get TV until after 1960!
Stockings were put out at the foot of the bed on Xmas Eve for Santa to fill with fruit & nuts to keep kids quiet for some time the next day.
Most of the gifts in those days were home made, or at least modestly priced, as there were no credit cards then. Much time was spent in thinking what would be appropriate for the people you were proposing to give a gift to, followed by careful shopping around, with considerable time spent on wrapping the item and composing a carefully worded card addressed to the recipient.
These days little thought seems to be given to what gifts might be most appropriate for a person. Often shopping is left to the last minute, with items hurriedly picked from shelves, paid for by credit card & wrapped by the shop assistant.
As a kid I was a bookworm, but these days, although I still enjoy browsing in bookshops, I have taken to using the web to check out the latest offerings from authors I enjoy. Of course, this site is great for not just books
It has really lost much of its charm, thanks to retailers chasing the almighty dollar.
As a kid in the '50's I recall it was a magic time. As I had been sent from Ceylon to boarding school in Scotland, I spent my school holidays with my Aunt in the country outside Glasgow.
She bustled around for several weeks before Xmas making the cake & icing it, making various sweetmeats & the pudding, ordering some luxury groceries by phone from a friend in Glasgow who owned an upmarket shop, boiling the ham and making arrangements to obtain a pheasant, salmon, or other special item from various locals, who I suspect may have been poachers! I helped by licking out the bowls!
Uncle Tom set up the tree in the sitting room in bucket suitably covered with fancy paper, with pine boughs spread around under it on which the gifts would be laid & I helped him decorate it. He had spent much time in Germany & Austria before WW1 & was strongly influenced by the traditions of those countries, which included a quiet family gathering on Xmas Eve, presenting & opening gifts after a light meal & having guests in or going out to friends for a formal lunch on Xmas Day.
Most evenings were occupied by games like rummy, chinese checkers, tiddlywinks, & dominoes, although when guests were present they usually played bridge. We did not get TV until after 1960!
Stockings were put out at the foot of the bed on Xmas Eve for Santa to fill with fruit & nuts to keep kids quiet for some time the next day.
Most of the gifts in those days were home made, or at least modestly priced, as there were no credit cards then. Much time was spent in thinking what would be appropriate for the people you were proposing to give a gift to, followed by careful shopping around, with considerable time spent on wrapping the item and composing a carefully worded card addressed to the recipient.
These days little thought seems to be given to what gifts might be most appropriate for a person. Often shopping is left to the last minute, with items hurriedly picked from shelves, paid for by credit card & wrapped by the shop assistant.
As a kid I was a bookworm, but these days, although I still enjoy browsing in bookshops, I have taken to using the web to check out the latest offerings from authors I enjoy. Of course, this site is great for not just books
Wednesday 11 November 2009
Hooked on Golf - Some Tips & Tricks from a Golf Addict
In my last article, Hooked on Golf - A Slice of a Golf Addict's Tale (part 3), published on 10th September, I finished describing my inexorable slide into addiction to this exhilarating, fascinating, humbling, infuriating game & I promised to cover some tips & tricks that I have picked up over the years.
Some of these have helped me to overcome the depths of despair into which I have been plunged into from time to time by the vicissitudes of the game, when I couldn't seem to get anything right & my handicap was steadily moving out.
Others have helped me hold the game together when I've started off well, but then found my game falling apart in the middle of a competition round.
Still others have lifted my game to new levels, unfortunately usually only temporarily, as without constant practice the effect of a new technique seems to wear off, or the technique is forgotten over time & the bad old ways sneak back!
This process must inevitably be spread over several articles, as I should really start with advice for potential newcomers to the game. They may have been drawn to it after watching it on TV, or hearing friends talk, or because they have no interest in team games, or because they have retired and have time on their hands, or their doctor has advised them to get some exercise, or their wife wants them out of her hair for a while (more on that later), or any number of other reasons.
The first thing they need to understand is that the idea behind the game of golf is simple, the object being to hit a small ball from a starting point (the tee) over a variety of terrain & get it into a hole in the ground some distance away in the least number of shots using a variety of clubs.
That is not to say the game is easy! There is a vast difference between the idea and the practice, so we'll go straight into practicalities.
I am firmly of the opinion that a beginner should not spend a vast amount on equipment. After all, you may decide after the first few weeks that it is not what you were looking for. However, bearing in mind Abe Lincoln's advice that "If you have 8 hours to fell a tree, spend the first 6 sharpening your axe", professional tuition at the start is a must.
Friends who play the game will be able to advise you which club professional in the area offers the best tuition. If you live in a country area with only one club, then you may have no choice, but any professional tuition at the start is better than none. Tips from well meaning friends, however low their handicap, will only confuse until you learn the basics.
This need not be expensive either. Most club professionals have beginners classes where, for a reasonable fee, a group class is tutored once or twice a week for a few weeks & the professional may supply the clubs too from hire sets (at least in Australia in my experience).
Once you decide that the game may be worth further investigation, you have several options. You can pick up a few cheap clubs & a bag from friends or at car boot sales & hone your skills on the practice range until you feel reasonably confident to go out with friends for a social round. Or you can go on eBay, or see if your local golf shop or professional has any cheap sets available. Used balls can be obtained cheaply at the golf club, or found on the course if that is allowed.
Eventually, however, you should see a professional to get measured for clubs, as the lie angle of the clubhead and the length and flex of the club shaft have a significant effect on your game. As in every field of endeavour, some professionals are better than others at measuring & fitting you out, so discuss this with your friends who play. You should not be talked into buying a new full set at this point. If your pro is any good, he will give you some options. These could include buying a decent second hand set which can be altered to your measurements, or buying a new half set made to measure. What bag you need will depend on which option you take, or how close it is to your birthday or Christmas!
Hopefully you will feel that you know enough now to make a decision whether to investigate this wonderful game further. The next article will cover common beginners problems & what I found useful to fix these. Meanwhile here are some Hot golf books
for light reading over the festive season, or if you want some swing tips Click Here!.
Some of these have helped me to overcome the depths of despair into which I have been plunged into from time to time by the vicissitudes of the game, when I couldn't seem to get anything right & my handicap was steadily moving out.
Others have helped me hold the game together when I've started off well, but then found my game falling apart in the middle of a competition round.
Still others have lifted my game to new levels, unfortunately usually only temporarily, as without constant practice the effect of a new technique seems to wear off, or the technique is forgotten over time & the bad old ways sneak back!
This process must inevitably be spread over several articles, as I should really start with advice for potential newcomers to the game. They may have been drawn to it after watching it on TV, or hearing friends talk, or because they have no interest in team games, or because they have retired and have time on their hands, or their doctor has advised them to get some exercise, or their wife wants them out of her hair for a while (more on that later), or any number of other reasons.
The first thing they need to understand is that the idea behind the game of golf is simple, the object being to hit a small ball from a starting point (the tee) over a variety of terrain & get it into a hole in the ground some distance away in the least number of shots using a variety of clubs.
That is not to say the game is easy! There is a vast difference between the idea and the practice, so we'll go straight into practicalities.
I am firmly of the opinion that a beginner should not spend a vast amount on equipment. After all, you may decide after the first few weeks that it is not what you were looking for. However, bearing in mind Abe Lincoln's advice that "If you have 8 hours to fell a tree, spend the first 6 sharpening your axe", professional tuition at the start is a must.
Friends who play the game will be able to advise you which club professional in the area offers the best tuition. If you live in a country area with only one club, then you may have no choice, but any professional tuition at the start is better than none. Tips from well meaning friends, however low their handicap, will only confuse until you learn the basics.
This need not be expensive either. Most club professionals have beginners classes where, for a reasonable fee, a group class is tutored once or twice a week for a few weeks & the professional may supply the clubs too from hire sets (at least in Australia in my experience).
Once you decide that the game may be worth further investigation, you have several options. You can pick up a few cheap clubs & a bag from friends or at car boot sales & hone your skills on the practice range until you feel reasonably confident to go out with friends for a social round. Or you can go on eBay, or see if your local golf shop or professional has any cheap sets available. Used balls can be obtained cheaply at the golf club, or found on the course if that is allowed.
Eventually, however, you should see a professional to get measured for clubs, as the lie angle of the clubhead and the length and flex of the club shaft have a significant effect on your game. As in every field of endeavour, some professionals are better than others at measuring & fitting you out, so discuss this with your friends who play. You should not be talked into buying a new full set at this point. If your pro is any good, he will give you some options. These could include buying a decent second hand set which can be altered to your measurements, or buying a new half set made to measure. What bag you need will depend on which option you take, or how close it is to your birthday or Christmas!
Hopefully you will feel that you know enough now to make a decision whether to investigate this wonderful game further. The next article will cover common beginners problems & what I found useful to fix these. Meanwhile here are some Hot golf books
for light reading over the festive season, or if you want some swing tips Click Here!.
Wednesday 23 September 2009
Hooked on Golf - A Slice of a Golf Addict's Tale (part 3)
In part 2 I described how my interest in golf became fascination, which was one step from addiction! This article describes the final slide into addiction.
The second tee of Stirling golf course at that time faced what was to us a huge crater filled with thick rough. It was a severe challenge for a 10 year old to drive over, with only a narrow path through the rough on its left edge leading to the fairway beyond.
The right edge was guarded with gorse and broom bushes and, of course, that was where most beginners who managed to avoid the crater itself ended up, as we tended to either aim left and/or tried to force the shot with too much right arm, which led to the inevitable slice. However, there were compensations in ending up in the crater or amongst the gorse, as that was where balls were to be found, apart from our own, thereby saving some of our precious pocket money.
Having negotiated the crater, the hole was quite straightforward. A broad fairway led to a green situated part way up a rise. As beginners, we merely hacked our way around the course without paying much attention to how the ball behaved as long as it eventually went into the hole!
However, after a while our competitive instincts began to kick in and we started to compare scores to see how few strokes we needed to get the ball into the hole, which after all was the object of the game. We began to take notice how the ball behaved as we struck it in certain ways.
The first observation was that if we tried to leather the ball to get it over the crater by hitting it as hard as we could with our right arm, as was natural for a right handed person, it tended to take a fairly sharp left to right turn, ie fade or slice. This was compounded if we aimed to the left to try to avoid the crater by following the path. This was a puzzle and was our first intimation that golf was counter intuitive, although we had no words for it at that age. We had played hockey and a good swipe with lots of right arm worked well with a hockey stick, so why didn't it work with a golf club? It took quite a while to discover that the left arm was the key to keeping the shot straight; the right arm was merely along for the ride.
The next problem was deciding how to attack the green. Should one try to pitch the ball onto it or play a chip & run shot?
We soon discovered that much depended on the time of day and the season. In winter, particularly after frost, the ball would react as if the green and its approaches were concrete! Consequently a chip & run was the way to go. In summer, the approaches would be fast, but the green & its surrounds soft, particularly in the morning after watering, so a pitch shot was the answer.
You will recall from my second article that the clubs used were a half set, with the Mashie-Niblick being equivalent to a 7 or 8 iron, often with a flange which made it similar to a wedge to play. However, around the green one had to learn to play it with a very open face to get it to stop quickly. It was very easy to fluff a shot by trying to play it too softly.
The final problem was how to putt the ball into the hole. Should one use a wristy stroke, which was common in those days, or play it stiff-armed, which we heard was the modern method?
The grass used on courses in those days was often the same as that on the fairways, just cut shorter on a more prepared surface with good drainage and a watering system. Consequently it had a definite grain which affected how the ball ran, both as regards speed and direction, ie how the ball took any break. We discovered that a wristy stroke on the green was not as effective as a stiff armed one.
As the above demonstrates, we learned a lot in the first few weeks of play. Some came to the conclusion that golf was a stupid game and reverted to the team games that were encouraged. A few of us decided that there was a lot more to the game than we had first thought and began to take a serious interest in it.
That was the final step into addiction for me, as the more I played the more I discovered I had to learn, and the more I learnt about the game the more I discovered about my own character and abilities, and after 52 years I am still learning!
My next article will cover some tips and tricks I have picked up over the years which have helped ease my addiction.
The second tee of Stirling golf course at that time faced what was to us a huge crater filled with thick rough. It was a severe challenge for a 10 year old to drive over, with only a narrow path through the rough on its left edge leading to the fairway beyond.
The right edge was guarded with gorse and broom bushes and, of course, that was where most beginners who managed to avoid the crater itself ended up, as we tended to either aim left and/or tried to force the shot with too much right arm, which led to the inevitable slice. However, there were compensations in ending up in the crater or amongst the gorse, as that was where balls were to be found, apart from our own, thereby saving some of our precious pocket money.
Having negotiated the crater, the hole was quite straightforward. A broad fairway led to a green situated part way up a rise. As beginners, we merely hacked our way around the course without paying much attention to how the ball behaved as long as it eventually went into the hole!
However, after a while our competitive instincts began to kick in and we started to compare scores to see how few strokes we needed to get the ball into the hole, which after all was the object of the game. We began to take notice how the ball behaved as we struck it in certain ways.
The first observation was that if we tried to leather the ball to get it over the crater by hitting it as hard as we could with our right arm, as was natural for a right handed person, it tended to take a fairly sharp left to right turn, ie fade or slice. This was compounded if we aimed to the left to try to avoid the crater by following the path. This was a puzzle and was our first intimation that golf was counter intuitive, although we had no words for it at that age. We had played hockey and a good swipe with lots of right arm worked well with a hockey stick, so why didn't it work with a golf club? It took quite a while to discover that the left arm was the key to keeping the shot straight; the right arm was merely along for the ride.
The next problem was deciding how to attack the green. Should one try to pitch the ball onto it or play a chip & run shot?
We soon discovered that much depended on the time of day and the season. In winter, particularly after frost, the ball would react as if the green and its approaches were concrete! Consequently a chip & run was the way to go. In summer, the approaches would be fast, but the green & its surrounds soft, particularly in the morning after watering, so a pitch shot was the answer.
You will recall from my second article that the clubs used were a half set, with the Mashie-Niblick being equivalent to a 7 or 8 iron, often with a flange which made it similar to a wedge to play. However, around the green one had to learn to play it with a very open face to get it to stop quickly. It was very easy to fluff a shot by trying to play it too softly.
The final problem was how to putt the ball into the hole. Should one use a wristy stroke, which was common in those days, or play it stiff-armed, which we heard was the modern method?
The grass used on courses in those days was often the same as that on the fairways, just cut shorter on a more prepared surface with good drainage and a watering system. Consequently it had a definite grain which affected how the ball ran, both as regards speed and direction, ie how the ball took any break. We discovered that a wristy stroke on the green was not as effective as a stiff armed one.
As the above demonstrates, we learned a lot in the first few weeks of play. Some came to the conclusion that golf was a stupid game and reverted to the team games that were encouraged. A few of us decided that there was a lot more to the game than we had first thought and began to take a serious interest in it.
That was the final step into addiction for me, as the more I played the more I discovered I had to learn, and the more I learnt about the game the more I discovered about my own character and abilities, and after 52 years I am still learning!
My next article will cover some tips and tricks I have picked up over the years which have helped ease my addiction.
Friday 18 September 2009
Phobias & How to Overcome Them
I've had a phobia about wasps ever since I was stung twice as a kid, specifically the European variety, which are far nastier than the generally tolerant native ones in Australia, so I know how scary a phobia can be.
Although I can control my reactions to some degree, I know other people may not be able to & may suffer severe reactions when they encounter their trigger, be it a spider, snake or whatever.
Until comparitively recently, the only known cures (& some of them were only partial) were hypnosis or desensitising by massive exposure to the cause of the phobia.
These days, other methods are being discovered/trialled with some success.
Tapping is one method & you can check it out at http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?af=1032271,
Another I've just come across is at http://62c1d8vcm0m-en5848o9sbh5y0.hop.clickbank.net/ or http://tinyurl.com/nawzfd
Although I can control my reactions to some degree, I know other people may not be able to & may suffer severe reactions when they encounter their trigger, be it a spider, snake or whatever.
Until comparitively recently, the only known cures (& some of them were only partial) were hypnosis or desensitising by massive exposure to the cause of the phobia.
These days, other methods are being discovered/trialled with some success.
Tapping is one method & you can check it out at http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?af=1032271,
Another I've just come across is at http://62c1d8vcm0m-en5848o9sbh5y0.hop.clickbank.net/ or http://tinyurl.com/nawzfd
Free Private Label Rights and Master Resale rights Products
I'm never sure if giving away free items really helps get people to visit your site, or if they merely encourage tyre-kickers!
I've downloaded my share of free stuff, some of which I've found quite useful, whilst some is just awful rubbish, but I suppose that could be said of items you pay for too!
One benefit of getting free items is that they are free, so after you have downloaded them, you can take your time to open them & check them out, then send them on to targeted groups.
You may even learn some useful tips & tricks from them yourself, although if they are being given away you'd have to ask yourself if they are still valid in today's rapidly evolving internet scene.
Anyway, I came across this site which has over 220 Free-Products including a vast assortment of Private Label Rights and Master Resale Rights Products which I found interesting. See what you think; you've nothing to loose:
http://tinyurl.com/ktvvq6
I've downloaded my share of free stuff, some of which I've found quite useful, whilst some is just awful rubbish, but I suppose that could be said of items you pay for too!
One benefit of getting free items is that they are free, so after you have downloaded them, you can take your time to open them & check them out, then send them on to targeted groups.
You may even learn some useful tips & tricks from them yourself, although if they are being given away you'd have to ask yourself if they are still valid in today's rapidly evolving internet scene.
Anyway, I came across this site which has over 220 Free-Products including a vast assortment of Private Label Rights and Master Resale Rights Products which I found interesting. See what you think; you've nothing to loose:
http://tinyurl.com/ktvvq6
Wednesday 9 September 2009
Money Management
Following from my last blog on fiscal management, I came across an interesting article which helps with personal financial discipline, something that seems to have gone by the board for many people for many years, as the banks have encouraged profligacy with their easy issuance of credit cards and many parents have failed to educate their children in money management & thrift.
I have seen several similar suggestions, but this is probably about the simplest to implement & I reproduce it below.
The Five Account System, by Stuart Goldsmith (www.stuartgoldsmith.com)
Now I want to tell you about a powerful but simple idea for controlling spending and building wealth. This idea is so simple, that when you read it you're likely to dismiss it as 'too obvious'. Please don't. I use this exact idea myself and have done for many years. Also, American Guru Frederic Lehrman has such firm belief in this idea, that he tours the world lecturing on the subject. By the way, check out his excellent audio series 'Prosperity Consciousness' available from Nightingale Connant. Superb stuff.
The idea runs like this:-
The human brain is not terribly good at handling big projects. If you say to your subconscious 'go get a million pounds', it will really flounder because 'one million pounds' is not a concept easily grasped by the brain. It's just too big a number. Too big a project.
However, the brain is very good at doing lots of smaller manageable tasks in a serial fashion.
“Open a savings account and put £50 in it” is a task you can easily do. No problem.
Going back to our theme of discipline, a command such as: “Save for thirty years and you can retire independently wealthy” is just too much for the brain. It cannot really contemplate five years, let alone thirty. The task is just too huge, and this is why people don't bother. They say to themselves “Heck, I know that thirty years of saving will make a lot of money, but thirty years is a long time and anything could happen. I'll spend it all now.”
Alcoholics are not told: “You must give up drink and for the rest of your life - you cannot ever touch another drop.” No. The 'rest of your life' is just too big a project. Instead they are told: “Forget the rest of your life. Don't think about it. The trick is not to drink today. Stay sober one day at a time.”
One Small Step
So the trick is to realise that the brain can't handle big projects and to break these big projects down into bite-sized pieces. This is the way any large project gets completed. “Put a man on the moon!” is a ludicrous command to the average brain. It's utterly impossible to contemplate the enormity of such a task. The only way to handle it is to start cracking it down into smaller parts and putting teams of people to work on each task.
Thus 'propulsion systems', 'human environment', 'medical', 'food and water', 'navigation', 'power supply' and so on are all set up as separate tasks. Then, within those groups, the tasks are broken down even further. Eventually, you have tens of thousands of manageable tasks such as: “Build a 12-volt power supply which can deliver 3 amps continuous, weighing not more than 0.5Kg and occupying a space of 10cm x 5 cm x 4.5cm”. Now that's a task which any electronics engineer can comprehend and get cracking on. But “Put a man on the moon”? Forget it! I don't know how to do that!
Okay, here's how to apply this to your spending and savings habits. It's called the 'five account' method. It works. Please don't dismiss it. Give it a try.
To operate this system, you must set up five accounts at your bank or building society (or even both - it doesn't matter where the accounts are located). Here are the five accounts:
1. Income Account.
2. Cheque Account.
3. Financial Independence Account.
4. Large Purchases Account.
5. Cash Account.
Here we are using the ability of the mind to handle small units/projects. We are breaking up our finances into manageable chunks. There are rules associated with each account, and of course, each account has a specific purpose, hopefully suggested by its name! Typically, accounts 3, and 4 would be Building Society 'deposit' accounts, and accounts 1, 2 and 5 would be normal bank accounts or Building Society 'current' accounts.
Here are the rules:
Income Account
This has just one function. It's the account into which you pay all the money you receive from all sources. Your pay cheque, the cheque for selling the car, your second job salary, gifts of money, whatever. Every penny you receive gets paid into this account and nowhere else. This also makes your accounts and tax computations easy. Just look down the statements for this account, and all your income is listed. The only function of this account is to receive your income, and to distribute it, by standing order, to the other four accounts. No money leaves this account apart from payments to the other four accounts. You do not have a cheque book on this account. Most importantly you do not have a 'cash-card' on this account. It is impossible for you to go to the bank and withdraw money from this account. That's done automatically by standing order, to the other four accounts. I hope I have made myself clear.
Cheque Account
If you have a bank account already, this is the sort of account you will have. It's a 'current' account with a cheque book. That's all. The difference is that at present, your salary cheque (etc) is probably paid into this account. That's now changed. The only income into this account is by transfer from the Income Account. The cheque account is for paying bills. You do not write cash cheques or cheques for any other goodies on this account. You do not have a ‘hole in the wall’ card on this account.
Here's how it works. When you get a bill, you lay it to one side in a pile. A bill is just a request for payment, it is not an actual payment until you have paid it. When you have a suitable pile of bills you have to pay, you add them all up. Let's say the total is £391.62p. You write out a slip to transfer exactly this amount from your income account, into your cheque account, pop it in an envelope, and mail it to the bank. Obviously you can do this on line too. You then write out exactly £391.62 in cheques to pay the bills, and mail the lot. Any bills which are paid by standing order also go through this cheque account so you have to allow for these. Better still is to pay all utility bills by cheque. This gives you total control. You will never be overdrawn.
Cash Account
To stay solvent you must decide how much cash you need a week, and then never spend more. To determine this, look back over your cash withdrawals for the last six months. Decide if you could live on less. Come up with a sensible figure. Let's say it's £150 a week. Now set up a standing order to transfer £150 a week from your Income Account to your Cash Account.
Your Cash Account will have an ATM cash card, and nothing else. When you need cash, you go to a hole in the wall, use this card, and withdraw cash. If you need more cash £150 is transferred. Guess what? This is called discipline - having a limit on the number of sweeties you can withdraw from the jar at any one time, and not just using the card to withdraw the gas bill money or the rent because you 'need a few quid' to spend on whatever trash you think you ‘need’ right now. Sorry to sound harsh. Been there, done that.. Set it up so that you can't get cash from any other account apart from your cash account. This is to stop temptation. Making sense so far? It's a powerful system, I don't mind telling you.
Now you must sit down and decide two things:-
a) How much you can afford to save each month. This should ideally be 10% of your net income. Don't say 'no way'. I never met a person who couldn't save 10% of their income, no matter how little that income was. You can always live on 90% of what you earn.
b) How much you want to allocate each month towards saving for large purchases. This means T.V. dish-washers, holidays, furniture etc. I suggest another 10%, leaving 80% of your salary to split between the cheque account and the cash account.
Let's say you have decided on 10% and 10%. Set up two more standing orders. The first one transfers 10% from the Income Account to the Financial Independence Account. The second transfers 10% from the Income Account to the Large Purchases Account. This should happen automatically, each month after your salary has cleared. You don't have to take a monthly decision to save, it's done for you. If you had to take a monthly decision to save, that decision would ALWAYS be: “I can't afford to save this month because of x, y and z. I'll start next month.” So make it automatic. Also, these standing orders come out FIRST, immediately after your pay cheque (or whatever) has been paid in. You save first and spend what's left.
Why? Because there's never anything left if you spend first and then try to save.
Large Purchases Account
This is what its name suggests. Whenever a large purchase comes up, look at this account. If there's enough money to buy the item, then go for it. This is what the account is for, to spend on large purchases. The money in this account is not for saving, or paying bills.
It's for spending on goodies. So spend it. If there's not enough money in the kitty, then forget it, you can't afford the item. No debate. No argument. You can't afford it. How do you know you can’t afford it? Simple – there’s not enough cash in the account. Go away until you have accumulated enough in the account.
Compare that to what most (undisciplined) people do when faced with a large purchase. They buy it anyway. They use the electricity, rent and gas money and then hope that 'something' will turn up. Or they buy it anyway and pay for it over months or years with money which they have already allocated for other things. In other words, they are spending their salary several times over and 'hoping' that 'it will be all right'.
Sad.
This account is usually a Building Society account with a 30-day withdrawal notice. That makes you think for a month before spending the loot - so no impulse purchases! You withdraw the money in cash, or counter cheque made out to the store/person you are buying the item from.
Financial Independence Account
This is the best and most exciting account. The purpose of it is to make you independently wealthy at some point in the future. Make this a Building Society Account with the longest possible withdrawal notice (120 days?) and the highest interest rate. The trick here is that you never withdraw the money from this account! Never. No excuses, no exceptions, no emergencies. Consider this money to be gone forever. You'll get interest on this account. At first it will be pitiful. Leave it to build and build. Eventually, you will get enough interest to 'buy' you a week of life! Then enough to 'buy' you a month of your life back (e.g. interest equivalent to one month's salary). Then a year, then several years. Eventually you will be able to give up work altogether.
If you get a sudden windfall of money, put half of it into this account, and do whatever you like with the rest.
Okay, that's the idea. Simple, huh? But very powerful. It's not just for the poor and needy.
I use this system myself. Everyone needs to set limits on their spending. It doesn't matter how much you're earning, you can always dream up ways of spending until there is nothing left.
Please, please consider using this system. It's a bit of a pain to set up, but not that tricky. You could do it in an afternoon. The sheer thrill and power of having your finances under precise control has to be experienced. I promise that if you operate this system you will be happier and more wealthy.
It takes discipline, though....
About the only thing I would disagree with him is in the last paragraph, which advocates leaving savings in the Financial Independence Account. My feeling is that when savings reach a reasonable amount, they should be used to generate additional wealth by investing them in shares, property or some other medium, but that is another subject!
I have seen several similar suggestions, but this is probably about the simplest to implement & I reproduce it below.
The Five Account System, by Stuart Goldsmith (www.stuartgoldsmith.com)
Now I want to tell you about a powerful but simple idea for controlling spending and building wealth. This idea is so simple, that when you read it you're likely to dismiss it as 'too obvious'. Please don't. I use this exact idea myself and have done for many years. Also, American Guru Frederic Lehrman has such firm belief in this idea, that he tours the world lecturing on the subject. By the way, check out his excellent audio series 'Prosperity Consciousness' available from Nightingale Connant. Superb stuff.
The idea runs like this:-
The human brain is not terribly good at handling big projects. If you say to your subconscious 'go get a million pounds', it will really flounder because 'one million pounds' is not a concept easily grasped by the brain. It's just too big a number. Too big a project.
However, the brain is very good at doing lots of smaller manageable tasks in a serial fashion.
“Open a savings account and put £50 in it” is a task you can easily do. No problem.
Going back to our theme of discipline, a command such as: “Save for thirty years and you can retire independently wealthy” is just too much for the brain. It cannot really contemplate five years, let alone thirty. The task is just too huge, and this is why people don't bother. They say to themselves “Heck, I know that thirty years of saving will make a lot of money, but thirty years is a long time and anything could happen. I'll spend it all now.”
Alcoholics are not told: “You must give up drink and for the rest of your life - you cannot ever touch another drop.” No. The 'rest of your life' is just too big a project. Instead they are told: “Forget the rest of your life. Don't think about it. The trick is not to drink today. Stay sober one day at a time.”
One Small Step
So the trick is to realise that the brain can't handle big projects and to break these big projects down into bite-sized pieces. This is the way any large project gets completed. “Put a man on the moon!” is a ludicrous command to the average brain. It's utterly impossible to contemplate the enormity of such a task. The only way to handle it is to start cracking it down into smaller parts and putting teams of people to work on each task.
Thus 'propulsion systems', 'human environment', 'medical', 'food and water', 'navigation', 'power supply' and so on are all set up as separate tasks. Then, within those groups, the tasks are broken down even further. Eventually, you have tens of thousands of manageable tasks such as: “Build a 12-volt power supply which can deliver 3 amps continuous, weighing not more than 0.5Kg and occupying a space of 10cm x 5 cm x 4.5cm”. Now that's a task which any electronics engineer can comprehend and get cracking on. But “Put a man on the moon”? Forget it! I don't know how to do that!
Okay, here's how to apply this to your spending and savings habits. It's called the 'five account' method. It works. Please don't dismiss it. Give it a try.
To operate this system, you must set up five accounts at your bank or building society (or even both - it doesn't matter where the accounts are located). Here are the five accounts:
1. Income Account.
2. Cheque Account.
3. Financial Independence Account.
4. Large Purchases Account.
5. Cash Account.
Here we are using the ability of the mind to handle small units/projects. We are breaking up our finances into manageable chunks. There are rules associated with each account, and of course, each account has a specific purpose, hopefully suggested by its name! Typically, accounts 3, and 4 would be Building Society 'deposit' accounts, and accounts 1, 2 and 5 would be normal bank accounts or Building Society 'current' accounts.
Here are the rules:
Income Account
This has just one function. It's the account into which you pay all the money you receive from all sources. Your pay cheque, the cheque for selling the car, your second job salary, gifts of money, whatever. Every penny you receive gets paid into this account and nowhere else. This also makes your accounts and tax computations easy. Just look down the statements for this account, and all your income is listed. The only function of this account is to receive your income, and to distribute it, by standing order, to the other four accounts. No money leaves this account apart from payments to the other four accounts. You do not have a cheque book on this account. Most importantly you do not have a 'cash-card' on this account. It is impossible for you to go to the bank and withdraw money from this account. That's done automatically by standing order, to the other four accounts. I hope I have made myself clear.
Cheque Account
If you have a bank account already, this is the sort of account you will have. It's a 'current' account with a cheque book. That's all. The difference is that at present, your salary cheque (etc) is probably paid into this account. That's now changed. The only income into this account is by transfer from the Income Account. The cheque account is for paying bills. You do not write cash cheques or cheques for any other goodies on this account. You do not have a ‘hole in the wall’ card on this account.
Here's how it works. When you get a bill, you lay it to one side in a pile. A bill is just a request for payment, it is not an actual payment until you have paid it. When you have a suitable pile of bills you have to pay, you add them all up. Let's say the total is £391.62p. You write out a slip to transfer exactly this amount from your income account, into your cheque account, pop it in an envelope, and mail it to the bank. Obviously you can do this on line too. You then write out exactly £391.62 in cheques to pay the bills, and mail the lot. Any bills which are paid by standing order also go through this cheque account so you have to allow for these. Better still is to pay all utility bills by cheque. This gives you total control. You will never be overdrawn.
Cash Account
To stay solvent you must decide how much cash you need a week, and then never spend more. To determine this, look back over your cash withdrawals for the last six months. Decide if you could live on less. Come up with a sensible figure. Let's say it's £150 a week. Now set up a standing order to transfer £150 a week from your Income Account to your Cash Account.
Your Cash Account will have an ATM cash card, and nothing else. When you need cash, you go to a hole in the wall, use this card, and withdraw cash. If you need more cash £150 is transferred. Guess what? This is called discipline - having a limit on the number of sweeties you can withdraw from the jar at any one time, and not just using the card to withdraw the gas bill money or the rent because you 'need a few quid' to spend on whatever trash you think you ‘need’ right now. Sorry to sound harsh. Been there, done that.. Set it up so that you can't get cash from any other account apart from your cash account. This is to stop temptation. Making sense so far? It's a powerful system, I don't mind telling you.
Now you must sit down and decide two things:-
a) How much you can afford to save each month. This should ideally be 10% of your net income. Don't say 'no way'. I never met a person who couldn't save 10% of their income, no matter how little that income was. You can always live on 90% of what you earn.
b) How much you want to allocate each month towards saving for large purchases. This means T.V. dish-washers, holidays, furniture etc. I suggest another 10%, leaving 80% of your salary to split between the cheque account and the cash account.
Let's say you have decided on 10% and 10%. Set up two more standing orders. The first one transfers 10% from the Income Account to the Financial Independence Account. The second transfers 10% from the Income Account to the Large Purchases Account. This should happen automatically, each month after your salary has cleared. You don't have to take a monthly decision to save, it's done for you. If you had to take a monthly decision to save, that decision would ALWAYS be: “I can't afford to save this month because of x, y and z. I'll start next month.” So make it automatic. Also, these standing orders come out FIRST, immediately after your pay cheque (or whatever) has been paid in. You save first and spend what's left.
Why? Because there's never anything left if you spend first and then try to save.
Large Purchases Account
This is what its name suggests. Whenever a large purchase comes up, look at this account. If there's enough money to buy the item, then go for it. This is what the account is for, to spend on large purchases. The money in this account is not for saving, or paying bills.
It's for spending on goodies. So spend it. If there's not enough money in the kitty, then forget it, you can't afford the item. No debate. No argument. You can't afford it. How do you know you can’t afford it? Simple – there’s not enough cash in the account. Go away until you have accumulated enough in the account.
Compare that to what most (undisciplined) people do when faced with a large purchase. They buy it anyway. They use the electricity, rent and gas money and then hope that 'something' will turn up. Or they buy it anyway and pay for it over months or years with money which they have already allocated for other things. In other words, they are spending their salary several times over and 'hoping' that 'it will be all right'.
Sad.
This account is usually a Building Society account with a 30-day withdrawal notice. That makes you think for a month before spending the loot - so no impulse purchases! You withdraw the money in cash, or counter cheque made out to the store/person you are buying the item from.
Financial Independence Account
This is the best and most exciting account. The purpose of it is to make you independently wealthy at some point in the future. Make this a Building Society Account with the longest possible withdrawal notice (120 days?) and the highest interest rate. The trick here is that you never withdraw the money from this account! Never. No excuses, no exceptions, no emergencies. Consider this money to be gone forever. You'll get interest on this account. At first it will be pitiful. Leave it to build and build. Eventually, you will get enough interest to 'buy' you a week of life! Then enough to 'buy' you a month of your life back (e.g. interest equivalent to one month's salary). Then a year, then several years. Eventually you will be able to give up work altogether.
If you get a sudden windfall of money, put half of it into this account, and do whatever you like with the rest.
Okay, that's the idea. Simple, huh? But very powerful. It's not just for the poor and needy.
I use this system myself. Everyone needs to set limits on their spending. It doesn't matter how much you're earning, you can always dream up ways of spending until there is nothing left.
Please, please consider using this system. It's a bit of a pain to set up, but not that tricky. You could do it in an afternoon. The sheer thrill and power of having your finances under precise control has to be experienced. I promise that if you operate this system you will be happier and more wealthy.
It takes discipline, though....
About the only thing I would disagree with him is in the last paragraph, which advocates leaving savings in the Financial Independence Account. My feeling is that when savings reach a reasonable amount, they should be used to generate additional wealth by investing them in shares, property or some other medium, but that is another subject!
Wednesday 2 September 2009
Thoughts on Fiscal Policy
There has been a veritable storm of comment, criticism, blame and finger pointing over the current economic crisis, so I thought I'd put my simple tuppence worth in!
It is some time since I studied economics, but it seems to me that everything that has transpired stems from plain greed. That greed is at all levels of society in many countries and is compounded by corruption, ignorance, stupidity and/or lack of common sense at senior levels of government and bureaucracy over many years.
The fact is that, since World War II, society generally has been suborned gradually by talk of rights with little mention of responsibilies.
I recall when I was a lad in 1956, I was taken to a bank in Scotland to open an account, mainly for my pocket money and any monetary gifts I was given for birthdays etc. The bank manager sat me down and talked to me very earnestly about the virtues of thrift and how saving was essential if I was to get ahead in my life. When I went to draw money out on holidays, I was always ushered into his office for a chat about how I was getting on and what I wanted to draw my money out for. If I admitted to requiring it for inconsequentials such as going to a film or a show, I was made to feel that was decidedly not thrifty!
Fast forward to 1980 in Australia when I went for a housing loan. Little questioning was done before the loan was approved, even though I was newly married with a relatively small income.
Similarly, at school, little mention was made of our rights; we had none it seemed. The emphasis was all on our responsibilities, and very onerous they were, often driven home by a few strokes of the cane!
Some years ago, during the recession of the 1990's, I saw a mug on which was printed Abraham Lincoln's (1809-1865) fiscal policy. It seemed to me that it was so relevant at the time and that it has become even more so today, that I reprint it below in the hope that politicians and public servants may learn something, (although that is probably a vain hope).
"You cannot help men permanently by doing more for them than they can do for themselves.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away man's initiative and independence.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot prosper by discouraging thrift.
You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn."
How much has been forgotten or cast aside in 150 years.
It is some time since I studied economics, but it seems to me that everything that has transpired stems from plain greed. That greed is at all levels of society in many countries and is compounded by corruption, ignorance, stupidity and/or lack of common sense at senior levels of government and bureaucracy over many years.
The fact is that, since World War II, society generally has been suborned gradually by talk of rights with little mention of responsibilies.
I recall when I was a lad in 1956, I was taken to a bank in Scotland to open an account, mainly for my pocket money and any monetary gifts I was given for birthdays etc. The bank manager sat me down and talked to me very earnestly about the virtues of thrift and how saving was essential if I was to get ahead in my life. When I went to draw money out on holidays, I was always ushered into his office for a chat about how I was getting on and what I wanted to draw my money out for. If I admitted to requiring it for inconsequentials such as going to a film or a show, I was made to feel that was decidedly not thrifty!
Fast forward to 1980 in Australia when I went for a housing loan. Little questioning was done before the loan was approved, even though I was newly married with a relatively small income.
Similarly, at school, little mention was made of our rights; we had none it seemed. The emphasis was all on our responsibilities, and very onerous they were, often driven home by a few strokes of the cane!
Some years ago, during the recession of the 1990's, I saw a mug on which was printed Abraham Lincoln's (1809-1865) fiscal policy. It seemed to me that it was so relevant at the time and that it has become even more so today, that I reprint it below in the hope that politicians and public servants may learn something, (although that is probably a vain hope).
"You cannot help men permanently by doing more for them than they can do for themselves.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away man's initiative and independence.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot prosper by discouraging thrift.
You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn."
How much has been forgotten or cast aside in 150 years.
Monday 31 August 2009
Golf Swings
Having spent last week spotting at the Australian National Veteran Golfers Championships held here in Paradise (Cairns, Queensland if you need to ask!)I was struck by the wide variety of golf swings exhibited.
Some of these looked very ungainly, if not downright weird, but nevertheless were quite effective. On reflection it was obvious that many of those of my vintage or older had achieved those swings because they, like myself, had either not had access to professional coaching, or had not been able to afford lessons when they started playing. They had to observe existing players and try to put into practice what they deemed to be the most efficient strokes for the shot being played.
As video cameras were not available/affordable 50 years ago either, they had to rely on a mirror or feel to refine their swing. Naturally, there were some good ball players who achieved a 'natural' swing, but many made do with what worked for them, putting up with a fade/slice or draw/hook and playing for it. They usually made up for defects in their long game by becoming deadly around the green.
These days there is simply no excuse for beginners to go through this trial & error process which was, if we are honest, downright disheartening and frustrating at times. (This was graphically illustrated by some of the language overheard on the hole I was spotting on at the Vets Championships!) In fact many may have quit the game as a result, which is unfortunate. Many more keep struggling, trying this or that temporary remedy & using the excuse that 'You can't teach an old dog new tricks' to avoid making a determined effort to get back to basics.
I've ever only had 3 lessons in my 52 years of playing. Two helped me temporarily. One completely threw me off my game for 6 months until I reverted to my old swing. None bothered to explain basic principles behind the swing or the role the big muscles were supposed to play in it. They only addressed my particular problem of the time, namely a slice.
From these experiences I came to the conclusion that before taking any lessons you really need to check out the professional you are intending to go to. He needs to:
- be prepared to actually LISTEN to you,
- be prepared to take you through the basics of why & how the swing works,
- not overload you by changing dozens of things at one time (particularly if you have been playing for years), and
- VIDEO you to demonstrate what you are doing compared with what you should be doing.
Believe me, a 2 minute video of your swing is better than an hour of instruction in that your mind doesn't really take in what you are told until your eyes actually see it.
However, if you can't afford a series of lessons, or can't find a decent instructor, or just plain prefer to do things in your own time at your own pace, there are dozens of golf instructional books, DVDs, tapes and sites out there.
One I discovered recently is by Don Trahan at http://www.peakperformancegolfswing.com.
I consider it the best because it explains things in simple terms, illustrates the swing and various variations, like bunker shot and lobs, and is based on scientific principles. Moreover, if you like what you see on Don's blog & decide to buy his course, he has a very fair refund policy if it doesn't work for you within a year. You can't say that of many courses.
Some of these looked very ungainly, if not downright weird, but nevertheless were quite effective. On reflection it was obvious that many of those of my vintage or older had achieved those swings because they, like myself, had either not had access to professional coaching, or had not been able to afford lessons when they started playing. They had to observe existing players and try to put into practice what they deemed to be the most efficient strokes for the shot being played.
As video cameras were not available/affordable 50 years ago either, they had to rely on a mirror or feel to refine their swing. Naturally, there were some good ball players who achieved a 'natural' swing, but many made do with what worked for them, putting up with a fade/slice or draw/hook and playing for it. They usually made up for defects in their long game by becoming deadly around the green.
These days there is simply no excuse for beginners to go through this trial & error process which was, if we are honest, downright disheartening and frustrating at times. (This was graphically illustrated by some of the language overheard on the hole I was spotting on at the Vets Championships!) In fact many may have quit the game as a result, which is unfortunate. Many more keep struggling, trying this or that temporary remedy & using the excuse that 'You can't teach an old dog new tricks' to avoid making a determined effort to get back to basics.
I've ever only had 3 lessons in my 52 years of playing. Two helped me temporarily. One completely threw me off my game for 6 months until I reverted to my old swing. None bothered to explain basic principles behind the swing or the role the big muscles were supposed to play in it. They only addressed my particular problem of the time, namely a slice.
From these experiences I came to the conclusion that before taking any lessons you really need to check out the professional you are intending to go to. He needs to:
- be prepared to actually LISTEN to you,
- be prepared to take you through the basics of why & how the swing works,
- not overload you by changing dozens of things at one time (particularly if you have been playing for years), and
- VIDEO you to demonstrate what you are doing compared with what you should be doing.
Believe me, a 2 minute video of your swing is better than an hour of instruction in that your mind doesn't really take in what you are told until your eyes actually see it.
However, if you can't afford a series of lessons, or can't find a decent instructor, or just plain prefer to do things in your own time at your own pace, there are dozens of golf instructional books, DVDs, tapes and sites out there.
One I discovered recently is by Don Trahan at http://www.peakperformancegolfswing.com.
I consider it the best because it explains things in simple terms, illustrates the swing and various variations, like bunker shot and lobs, and is based on scientific principles. Moreover, if you like what you see on Don's blog & decide to buy his course, he has a very fair refund policy if it doesn't work for you within a year. You can't say that of many courses.
Tapping & Weight Loss
Tapping is really fascinating me, as it seems to have application to many problem areas.
Check out this audio about weight loss with Carol Look. It's another great example of the quality information that we have in the Tapping Insiders Club. You can listen to the audio here:
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231598
In the audio you'll learn:
- How Tapping can help you get into the mentality and vibration of a healthy vibrant person.
- How to stop being a slave to food and cravings.
- Why it's not all about the food and exercise
- How to use Tapping and the law of attraction to lose weight.
- The easy way to be healthy and STAY healthy!
Next here are some common questions about the club:
Question One: Are the audios in the club downloadable?
Answer: Yes, all of the audios are downloadable so that you can take them with you on the go on an I-Pod or other MP3 player.
Question Two: If I miss the weekly tele-seminar will I be able to listen to it afterwards?
Answer: Yes again! All of the tele-seminars (and Ask the Expert Interviews) are available for download at any time after they go live. Currently all four parts of this months tele-seminar entitled "Supercharging Your Tapping with NLP" are available for download inside the club!
Question Three: I don't have a credit card. Can I pay through paypal?
Answer: Because of all of the requests we have installed paypal as a payment option. Just select paypal on the page where you create your membership username and password. You can click on this link to go to the sign up page:
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231598
The last common email we've been receiving hasn't been a question but actually just positive feedback from members! :) Here is an example of an email we received last week:
"Thank you so much. I would like to say that I have already felt benefits from tapping along on one of the sessions. I am going to really enjoy being in this tapping club." -Barbara in Roseburg, Oregon
That's it for the most common questions we've been receiving. If you haven't joined yet remember there are only hours left until the super low Charter Membership prices end.
Enjoy the weight loss audio and if you have any questions about the club just respond to this email and let me know. :)
Keep tapping!
P.S. - Speaking of weight loss, there is a great video tap along with Jessica inside the club about how to eliminate cravings. If you're trying to lose weight it's a "must watch."
P.P.S. - To give you an idea of how cheap the charter membership prices are...the month to month is a 33% off price, the 6 month option is a 42% off price, and the 1 year option is a whopping 47% off price!
There are only hours left before the Charter Membership time ends. You can take advantage of these prices by clicking on the link below:
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231598
Check out this audio about weight loss with Carol Look. It's another great example of the quality information that we have in the Tapping Insiders Club. You can listen to the audio here:
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231598
In the audio you'll learn:
- How Tapping can help you get into the mentality and vibration of a healthy vibrant person.
- How to stop being a slave to food and cravings.
- Why it's not all about the food and exercise
- How to use Tapping and the law of attraction to lose weight.
- The easy way to be healthy and STAY healthy!
Next here are some common questions about the club:
Question One: Are the audios in the club downloadable?
Answer: Yes, all of the audios are downloadable so that you can take them with you on the go on an I-Pod or other MP3 player.
Question Two: If I miss the weekly tele-seminar will I be able to listen to it afterwards?
Answer: Yes again! All of the tele-seminars (and Ask the Expert Interviews) are available for download at any time after they go live. Currently all four parts of this months tele-seminar entitled "Supercharging Your Tapping with NLP" are available for download inside the club!
Question Three: I don't have a credit card. Can I pay through paypal?
Answer: Because of all of the requests we have installed paypal as a payment option. Just select paypal on the page where you create your membership username and password. You can click on this link to go to the sign up page:
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231598
The last common email we've been receiving hasn't been a question but actually just positive feedback from members! :) Here is an example of an email we received last week:
"Thank you so much. I would like to say that I have already felt benefits from tapping along on one of the sessions. I am going to really enjoy being in this tapping club." -Barbara in Roseburg, Oregon
That's it for the most common questions we've been receiving. If you haven't joined yet remember there are only hours left until the super low Charter Membership prices end.
Enjoy the weight loss audio and if you have any questions about the club just respond to this email and let me know. :)
Keep tapping!
P.S. - Speaking of weight loss, there is a great video tap along with Jessica inside the club about how to eliminate cravings. If you're trying to lose weight it's a "must watch."
P.P.S. - To give you an idea of how cheap the charter membership prices are...the month to month is a 33% off price, the 6 month option is a 42% off price, and the 1 year option is a whopping 47% off price!
There are only hours left before the Charter Membership time ends. You can take advantage of these prices by clicking on the link below:
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231598
Tapping Site
I've just finished reading an email from Nick Ortner, the creator of the documentary film Try It On Everything and the newly opened Tapping Insiders Club.
I thought I'd pass on the email to you as there are less than 48 hours left to join the Tapping Insiders Club:
"Dear Friend,
A little over 20 years ago, in the town of Brookfield, CT where I grew up, they were opening a new YMCA. I remember walking around the facility with my parents and brother and sister. The building was still under construction but it was still so exciting to walk around. The facility was going to have a large gymnasium, racquetball courts, an indoor track, and two fantastic pools. As a kid this was all extremely exciting to me! I had never had a place like this to go to before, where there would be so much to do and other kids for me hang out with. Seeing the excitement from us kids, my parents decided to join.
That YMCA was practically a second home for our family for years. We went swimming there at least twice a week, we took Karate classes there as a family, and we were constantly going there just to play in the big gym (which was like paradise for me as a kid). I went to the YMCA as a kid, I continued going as a teenager and even when I was in college I would go there to work out when I was home from school. And even today over 20 years later, even though I don't live in Brookfield, CT anymore, I still have a membership there. I'm still a member because we signed up at the ridiculously low charter membership prices. The family pack that my parents signed up for back then and that my parents still pay for now is cheaper than if they signed up for just one person right now! The YMCA was offering really low prices because they wanted more funding for the completion of the facility and they wanted to be sure that they filled the place up right from the start with a strong community.
That's where I got the idea to set really low prices for the opening of the Tapping Insiders Club. For me it was more important to build a great resource and a great community right away then to sell memberships for as much as we could.
Charter members are a part of the team that helps to create this club. Because of charter members we'll be able to put together more great resources that will help not only the charter members but future members who join. We already have so many ideas that we're working on putting together and they're all going to be possible because of charter members. Charter membership prices start off at 33% lower than the regular price and go up to as much as 47% off for those that join for a year. The best part is that those that join now get to stay at the low prices that they join at, just like we did when we joined the YMCA.
Those that join on the month to month get to stay at $19.95/month. Those that join for 6 months get to stay at $17.33/month and those that join for a year get to stay at $15.75 a month.
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231597
When I visit my local YMCA today there is still a plaque on the wall with the names of all of the charter members on it and every one of my family members is listed on it. And when we use the YMCA now we get to use all of the amazing new stuff like the top of the line exercise room, the sauna and steam rooms and much more and we still only pay the ridiculously low family price that we started off at over 20 years ago. We always keep that charter membership because we know that we could never get those low prices again. If we left and tried to come back we'd have to pay 5 times as much! So thank you to all of you that have already joined the Tapping Insiders Club as charter members. You are helping to make this an amazing place. Maybe we'll have to figure out a way to show your contribution like the "plaque on the wall" at the YMCA. :) If you haven't joined yet please remember that there are only two days left to join and then the charter membership prices are gone. There is always only one opportunity to join at charter membership prices.
I'm glad we joined our local YMCA years ago and I hope you get to have the same experience and receive a huge amount of value with the Tapping Insiders Club.
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231597
Keep tapping, Nick Ortner
P.S. - If you've had any issue in signing up because of all of the traffic please email us and let us know. A few people have been concerned that they would miss out on the low prices but I can promise you that if you contact us we'll make sure you get to join.
P.P.S - Again, a huge thank you to all that have joined already. The response has been amazing and all of your heart felt emails have been greatly appreciated. I'm glad you're all enjoying the club already!"
I thought I'd pass on the email to you as there are less than 48 hours left to join the Tapping Insiders Club:
"Dear Friend,
A little over 20 years ago, in the town of Brookfield, CT where I grew up, they were opening a new YMCA. I remember walking around the facility with my parents and brother and sister. The building was still under construction but it was still so exciting to walk around. The facility was going to have a large gymnasium, racquetball courts, an indoor track, and two fantastic pools. As a kid this was all extremely exciting to me! I had never had a place like this to go to before, where there would be so much to do and other kids for me hang out with. Seeing the excitement from us kids, my parents decided to join.
That YMCA was practically a second home for our family for years. We went swimming there at least twice a week, we took Karate classes there as a family, and we were constantly going there just to play in the big gym (which was like paradise for me as a kid). I went to the YMCA as a kid, I continued going as a teenager and even when I was in college I would go there to work out when I was home from school. And even today over 20 years later, even though I don't live in Brookfield, CT anymore, I still have a membership there. I'm still a member because we signed up at the ridiculously low charter membership prices. The family pack that my parents signed up for back then and that my parents still pay for now is cheaper than if they signed up for just one person right now! The YMCA was offering really low prices because they wanted more funding for the completion of the facility and they wanted to be sure that they filled the place up right from the start with a strong community.
That's where I got the idea to set really low prices for the opening of the Tapping Insiders Club. For me it was more important to build a great resource and a great community right away then to sell memberships for as much as we could.
Charter members are a part of the team that helps to create this club. Because of charter members we'll be able to put together more great resources that will help not only the charter members but future members who join. We already have so many ideas that we're working on putting together and they're all going to be possible because of charter members. Charter membership prices start off at 33% lower than the regular price and go up to as much as 47% off for those that join for a year. The best part is that those that join now get to stay at the low prices that they join at, just like we did when we joined the YMCA.
Those that join on the month to month get to stay at $19.95/month. Those that join for 6 months get to stay at $17.33/month and those that join for a year get to stay at $15.75 a month.
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231597
When I visit my local YMCA today there is still a plaque on the wall with the names of all of the charter members on it and every one of my family members is listed on it. And when we use the YMCA now we get to use all of the amazing new stuff like the top of the line exercise room, the sauna and steam rooms and much more and we still only pay the ridiculously low family price that we started off at over 20 years ago. We always keep that charter membership because we know that we could never get those low prices again. If we left and tried to come back we'd have to pay 5 times as much! So thank you to all of you that have already joined the Tapping Insiders Club as charter members. You are helping to make this an amazing place. Maybe we'll have to figure out a way to show your contribution like the "plaque on the wall" at the YMCA. :) If you haven't joined yet please remember that there are only two days left to join and then the charter membership prices are gone. There is always only one opportunity to join at charter membership prices.
I'm glad we joined our local YMCA years ago and I hope you get to have the same experience and receive a huge amount of value with the Tapping Insiders Club.
http://www.tryitoneverything.com/cmd.php?Clk=3231597
Keep tapping, Nick Ortner
P.S. - If you've had any issue in signing up because of all of the traffic please email us and let us know. A few people have been concerned that they would miss out on the low prices but I can promise you that if you contact us we'll make sure you get to join.
P.P.S - Again, a huge thank you to all that have joined already. The response has been amazing and all of your heart felt emails have been greatly appreciated. I'm glad you're all enjoying the club already!"
Monday 10 August 2009
Tapping & Acupuncture
I've always been interested in some of the more arcane subjects I come across in my reading and web surfing. Acupuncture/pressure is one I've followed for some time, but recently 'tapping' came to my notice.
Formerly, many may have regarded acupuncture and acupressure as weird oriental practices which had no place in Western medical practice. Perhaps they were even classed with herbal remedies, formerly the domain of wise women or, shock, horror, witches!
In more recent times this view has changed and both acupuncture/pressure and herbal remedies have become much more widely accepted, even to the point of supplanting traditional Western medical practices in some cases.
Of course, herbal remedies were the precursors of Western medical science, particularly since most country folk were unable to access the old barber surgeons or even medical practitioners in modern times and there can be no doubt that many of the old herbal remedies were very successful. In fact many of them have found their place in modern drugs.
The latest practice that incorporates acupuncture is 'tapping', which can be used as a self help practice to overcome things like blocks, allergies, past & present traumas, procrastination and other areas that you may feel are holding you back from achieving your full potential.
This site helps explain what it is all about http://tinyurl.com/mu9q33, or watch this video demo http://tinyurl.com/kt5owf.
Formerly, many may have regarded acupuncture and acupressure as weird oriental practices which had no place in Western medical practice. Perhaps they were even classed with herbal remedies, formerly the domain of wise women or, shock, horror, witches!
In more recent times this view has changed and both acupuncture/pressure and herbal remedies have become much more widely accepted, even to the point of supplanting traditional Western medical practices in some cases.
Of course, herbal remedies were the precursors of Western medical science, particularly since most country folk were unable to access the old barber surgeons or even medical practitioners in modern times and there can be no doubt that many of the old herbal remedies were very successful. In fact many of them have found their place in modern drugs.
The latest practice that incorporates acupuncture is 'tapping', which can be used as a self help practice to overcome things like blocks, allergies, past & present traumas, procrastination and other areas that you may feel are holding you back from achieving your full potential.
This site helps explain what it is all about http://tinyurl.com/mu9q33, or watch this video demo http://tinyurl.com/kt5owf.
Monday 3 August 2009
Hooked on Golf - A Slice of a Golf Addict's Tale (part 2)
In my first article, I described how my interest was aroused in this frustrating game called golf. This next article describes my slow descent from interest to fascination, which is only a step away from addiction!
At my boarding school, all sports periods were taken up with team games apart from one day a week when we were permitted to play a sport of our choice. I chose golf, as the second tee of Stirling golf course in those days (it has since been remodelled) was directly across the road from my school. Junior membership of the club for the year cost two shillings and six pence and juniors were only permitted to play during the week at certain times. New golf balls cost two shillings, so in order to afford to start play, most of us had to find some.
My first golf clubs were adult cast offs consisting of a Brassie (2 wood), Mashie (5 iron), Mashie-Niblick (7/8 iron) and a putter, which were roughly cut down to size. A Cleek (roughly any straight-faced iron, often one you could also putt with) was added later. I acquired a 6 inch bag at the same time, as most players in those days carried their golf clubs, then went looking for golf balls on the local course.
Golf balls were not difficult to find, as the golf courses in Scotland in those days had narrow fairways some 25 yards across (as some do even today), and the rough, which was about 6 inches deep, was deceptively dense and often liberally sprinkled with very prickly gorse. You had to brave the thorns or virtually stand on a golf ball to find it. Consequently all we had to do was to watch where the adults usually sliced or hooked their balls and when the coast was clear, go there and brave the thorns or stamp through the long rough picking up all the golf balls we stood on.
(Check out some of the game's history and old equipment on the web at http://www.golfforallages.com and http://www.golfeurope.com/almanac/history/or http://www.antiquegolf.com, or in books at http://tinyurl.com/mx283a.)
Did I but know it, that was a tentative step down the slippery slope of addiction to golf, as there is a certain thrill associated with finding a golf ball in difficult terrain,knowing you have just saved yourself the cost of several tasty items in the school tuck shop. Such were the economics practised by ever hungry pupils at a Scottish boarding school in those days!
Unfortunately, at that time, coaching of juniors was unheard of. We relied on watching adults play and attempting to copy the better shots we saw. We also occasionally had tips passed onto us by a passing adult who saw us play, presumably out of pity for our efforts, so in my next article I will describe further my steady descent from interest into addiction.
At my boarding school, all sports periods were taken up with team games apart from one day a week when we were permitted to play a sport of our choice. I chose golf, as the second tee of Stirling golf course in those days (it has since been remodelled) was directly across the road from my school. Junior membership of the club for the year cost two shillings and six pence and juniors were only permitted to play during the week at certain times. New golf balls cost two shillings, so in order to afford to start play, most of us had to find some.
My first golf clubs were adult cast offs consisting of a Brassie (2 wood), Mashie (5 iron), Mashie-Niblick (7/8 iron) and a putter, which were roughly cut down to size. A Cleek (roughly any straight-faced iron, often one you could also putt with) was added later. I acquired a 6 inch bag at the same time, as most players in those days carried their golf clubs, then went looking for golf balls on the local course.
Golf balls were not difficult to find, as the golf courses in Scotland in those days had narrow fairways some 25 yards across (as some do even today), and the rough, which was about 6 inches deep, was deceptively dense and often liberally sprinkled with very prickly gorse. You had to brave the thorns or virtually stand on a golf ball to find it. Consequently all we had to do was to watch where the adults usually sliced or hooked their balls and when the coast was clear, go there and brave the thorns or stamp through the long rough picking up all the golf balls we stood on.
(Check out some of the game's history and old equipment on the web at http://www.golfforallages.com and http://www.golfeurope.com/almanac/history/or http://www.antiquegolf.com, or in books at http://tinyurl.com/mx283a.)
Did I but know it, that was a tentative step down the slippery slope of addiction to golf, as there is a certain thrill associated with finding a golf ball in difficult terrain,knowing you have just saved yourself the cost of several tasty items in the school tuck shop. Such were the economics practised by ever hungry pupils at a Scottish boarding school in those days!
Unfortunately, at that time, coaching of juniors was unheard of. We relied on watching adults play and attempting to copy the better shots we saw. We also occasionally had tips passed onto us by a passing adult who saw us play, presumably out of pity for our efforts, so in my next article I will describe further my steady descent from interest into addiction.
Friday 17 July 2009
Hooked on Golf - A Slice of a Golf Addict's Tale
This is a first slice of the sad tale of how an addict became hooked on golf, a game invented by sadists for masochists, which should really be called flog.
In 1955 I was staying with my Aunt & Uncle in Scotland prior to attending boarding school. Whilst exploring a garden shed, I found some hickory shafted clubs and small balls with rectangular dimples. On inquiry, my Uncle explained the clubs were for playing golf which consisted of hitting the small ball into a hole some distance away.
He demonstrated the action by hitting a ball into a neighbouring field, and informed me that good players were supposed to play around courses in a certain number of strokes determined by the degree of difficulty of the course. I spent the rest of the day attempting to copy him, which resulted in large lumps being taken out of the lawn until I was banished to an adjoining field.
That was how I became hooked on golf, an addiction which persists to this day despite all my attempts, conscious & unconscious, to overcome it by becoming good enough to play around a variety of courses in the designated number of strokes, preferably also getting a hole in one to demonstrate my superior skill, and therefore having no further need to play the game.
For some books on the early days of golf see Early days of golf
For some prints of the early days of golf see Early golf prints
For a good history of golf & golf equipment see http://www.golfeurope.com/almanac/history/
In 1955 I was staying with my Aunt & Uncle in Scotland prior to attending boarding school. Whilst exploring a garden shed, I found some hickory shafted clubs and small balls with rectangular dimples. On inquiry, my Uncle explained the clubs were for playing golf which consisted of hitting the small ball into a hole some distance away.
He demonstrated the action by hitting a ball into a neighbouring field, and informed me that good players were supposed to play around courses in a certain number of strokes determined by the degree of difficulty of the course. I spent the rest of the day attempting to copy him, which resulted in large lumps being taken out of the lawn until I was banished to an adjoining field.
That was how I became hooked on golf, an addiction which persists to this day despite all my attempts, conscious & unconscious, to overcome it by becoming good enough to play around a variety of courses in the designated number of strokes, preferably also getting a hole in one to demonstrate my superior skill, and therefore having no further need to play the game.
For some books on the early days of golf see Early days of golf
For some prints of the early days of golf see Early golf prints
For a good history of golf & golf equipment see http://www.golfeurope.com/almanac/history/
Friday 3 July 2009
Goals - To Do List!
My goals for '09 are way behind. So far I've only achieved my travel goals, so now I've been reading & making notes frantically, trying to catch up on share trading & internet marketing interests.
The new financial year means full speed ahead on both fronts, starting with the Alex Jeffreys tutoring that I commenced before my trip - see Get Post LaunchProfits Secrets Now... Click Here!
The new financial year means full speed ahead on both fronts, starting with the Alex Jeffreys tutoring that I commenced before my trip - see Get Post LaunchProfits Secrets Now... Click Here!
Monday 22 June 2009
Egypt
Egypt - I expect the very name conjures up romantic images of camels, deserts & ancient monuments, as it did to us before we went.
Unfortunately, although the Pyramids, Sphinx, Karnak, etc were interesting we felt Egypt was the pits. We had been warned that Cairo was very polluted and that was certainly the case, but the rest of the country was about as bad. It was quite the filthiest country I have ever visited and that does not refer to the ever present dust that one expects to find in a predominately desert country.
Rubbish was everywhere, even built into the banks of some canals and pushed down the banks of the Nile. The attitude to litter seemed to be, if you empty a packet of food or cigarettes in the car, just chuck the rubbish out the window. If you have household rubbish in a bag, leave it in an empty allotment nearby, or sweep it down an embankment. If you use a tissue on the street, just dump it in the gutter or on the pavement. The people in the tourist areas were greedy, grasping pests, service was poor & the food was pretty ordinary too - not a patch on Thailand or Turkey (see my earlier articles).
It was very obvious that graft was a way of life, with those at the top of the food chain getting the biggest slice of the action, so everyone was keen to fight their way up the ladder.
Tourists were at the very bottom of the food chain and aggressively targeted.
The star system of grading hotels & tourist boats reflected either a very low standard compared to the rest of the world, or that stars could be purchased, probably both. We stayed in a 5 star hotel, which would probably rate 3.5 star elsewhere & only 2 for service. The Nile cruise boat was graded 5 star and although it would again probably rate 3.5 star, I would grade it a bit more for the fact that the toilet was, thankfully, near the bed! The 3 day cruise itself from Luxor to Aswan was OK, but nothing to write home about.
The name of the game throughout was RIPOFF; eg at the Egyptian Museum which you paid to enter, you had to pay extra to get into the section containing the mummies of the kings. A sign at the museum of Alexandria said it all: 'Foreigners LE35 , Foreign Students LE20, Egyptians LE2, Egyptian Students LE1'. In other tours we have taken in India & Turkey, the tour guide doubled as the tour leader as well. It was obvious that in Egypt the system was set up to ensure extraction of tips to the maximum number of people with a tour leader & then guides at every location visited.
General comments on the tour organised through a company I will not bother to name are:
- The Al Kalili market/bazaar was nowhere near as good as the one in Istanbul we had just visited, or that in Tehran that I visited in 1968 & we were constantly pestered, which put us off completely. Egyptians just do not have the pleasant way of enticing tourists to part with their cash that the Thais have.
- The Citadel museum was a joke with most of the interesting bits closed off.
- The tour didn't cover the Step Pyramid & museum, which I did on my own later & which I found most interesting. But avoid Memphis which is usually part of that option in a tour, where the only interesting thing was the great statue of Ramses II which was certainly not worth the LE35 entry fee (rip off).
- We did an overnight train trip from Cairo to Luxor (& returned the same way) on which we were advised dinner & breakfast would be served as part of the so called first class service. Don't use the train! If you must do it, make sure you take adequate food with you as that served on the train is inedible, (which our tour leader admitted when we caught him buying his own rations at a nearby stall!)
- The optional Nubian Dinner of the tour suddenly increased from the advertised LE40 because we had to pay the driver to take us from the out of the way hotel we were dumped in to the river, then the boat trip, then the tour of the village, then tips on top. Also, we were too far out of the town to visit the Nubian museum without paying for a taxi. Another rip off!
- Because my partner was sick we visited the Gayer-Anderson museum in Cairo on our own after the tour, which turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip for us. It contained some lovely items & was a time capsule of a bygone era in an old style house no longer existing in any areas we saw in Cairo, to that city's detriment.
- One of the things I look forward to on any trip to foreign destinations is experiencing the food of the country. In Egypt the food was pretty awful, especially after Turkey. The bread was generally stale, choice & flavour were poor. One of the best meals we had was at the Nubian village with freshly baked bread & home cooked servings of vegetables and meat.
- Naturally, the tour leader did not refund us the cost of entry to places that were included in the price of the tour, but which we had missed because of sickness.
We were both sick on the trip, my partner quite badly, despite taking every precaution. This was the first time either of us have been sick on any of our trips in Europe, India or the Far East and we were not alone - all our tour group were either sick or feeling off at one time or the other.
My advice to anyone contemplating a trip to Egypt to see the ancient monuments is to visit your local library, borrow a book & DVD & enjoy them in the comfort of your own home.
If you must visit the country, make sure you allow plenty of extra cash for the ripoffs you will encounter, ensure you have plenty of medication with you for stomach upsets, and make sure your travel insurance has good accident and health cover!
Also, research where you want to go thoroughly, plan the shortest & quickest route between points & be very careful what you eat, so you are in & out of the country in the shortest possible time. That way you may avoid being pestered too much & getting too sick, (although I wouldn't bet on the last)
Monday 15 June 2009
Turkey
Turkey - Turkey & Egypt have always fascinated me, so I decided to combine the two, since they are only an hour's flying time away from each other. I also had the advantage of a Turkish acquaintance who was able to give me some tips on what to do in Istanbul and a website to check out - www.turkeytravelplanner.com - which I found useful & informative.
Turkey in April is cold, so be prepared! I didn't know what to expect visually, but was quite surprised and disappointed in the modern architecture, which consisted of undistinguished residential tenament blocks. Many of these were unfinished or unoccupied, reflecting the financial downturn. I was also surprised at the amount of litter around in various places, which somewhat detracted from the wonderful scenery in places. We had booked a 2 week tour through Neon and can definately recommend them. The guide and driver were both great. (The guide is freelance & can be contacted on consultmir@yahoo.com if anyone would prefer to tailor an individual trip.) Naturally, we did not see more than some highlights of the western part of the country. Another tour concentrated on the eastern areas & we may take that another time. The Turks initially struck me as being a rather reserved race, but we found them to be most helpful and friendly when approached for assistance or directions and they were not pushy or intrusive.
We covered the usual Istanbul sights of which the Topkapi Palace is the standout, particularly the exhibits in the former mint. The Blue Mosque was impressive but the Grand Bazaar was very touristy & not a patch on the one I visited in Teheran in 1968. After the tour we did a Bosphorus trip on the state ferry, but would have been better not taking a return ticket or going to the end stop which has nothing apart from a good view at the top of the hill & a nice restaurant there, not enough to fill the several hours' wait for the trip back. Instead, we should have taken a single ticket, got off at Sariyer, the stop before, had a look around and a meal, then taken the bus back.
Gallipoli was moving; the lime cascades at Permukkale fascinating; Antalya on the Mediterranean coast enabled us to thaw out a bit & go on a short boat trip around the harbour & coastline; the Fairy Chimneys in Cappadocia were interesting, but we spent too much time in that region before going to Ankara, where Ataturk's Mausoleum was a real highlight. It contained some wonderful exhibits and one of the best dioramas I have ever seen covering the Gallipoli and Independence campaigns, with some fascinating history of how the Allies were defeated and driven out of the country. (Naturally, the British in particular don't dwell on any of this when they teach history in their schools & I expect the same applies to the French!) The Anatolian Civilizations Museum was also most interesting & I felt that the tour did not allow enough time for those final two items.
We had two days to ourselves after the tour to wander around Istanbul & visit places that were not included in the tour, like the Cistern, before we left for Cairo.
Finally, FOOD! The food in Turkey is great, particularly the sweets, so be prepared to put on weight, or take it off after your trip. The Turks have a very sweet tooth, but the sugar in their sweets is masked to some extent by the nuts they use in baklava etc. They also like their lunches and most stops on the trip were set up for a full meal instead of a snack.
Turkey in April is cold, so be prepared! I didn't know what to expect visually, but was quite surprised and disappointed in the modern architecture, which consisted of undistinguished residential tenament blocks. Many of these were unfinished or unoccupied, reflecting the financial downturn. I was also surprised at the amount of litter around in various places, which somewhat detracted from the wonderful scenery in places. We had booked a 2 week tour through Neon and can definately recommend them. The guide and driver were both great. (The guide is freelance & can be contacted on consultmir@yahoo.com if anyone would prefer to tailor an individual trip.) Naturally, we did not see more than some highlights of the western part of the country. Another tour concentrated on the eastern areas & we may take that another time. The Turks initially struck me as being a rather reserved race, but we found them to be most helpful and friendly when approached for assistance or directions and they were not pushy or intrusive.
We covered the usual Istanbul sights of which the Topkapi Palace is the standout, particularly the exhibits in the former mint. The Blue Mosque was impressive but the Grand Bazaar was very touristy & not a patch on the one I visited in Teheran in 1968. After the tour we did a Bosphorus trip on the state ferry, but would have been better not taking a return ticket or going to the end stop which has nothing apart from a good view at the top of the hill & a nice restaurant there, not enough to fill the several hours' wait for the trip back. Instead, we should have taken a single ticket, got off at Sariyer, the stop before, had a look around and a meal, then taken the bus back.
Gallipoli was moving; the lime cascades at Permukkale fascinating; Antalya on the Mediterranean coast enabled us to thaw out a bit & go on a short boat trip around the harbour & coastline; the Fairy Chimneys in Cappadocia were interesting, but we spent too much time in that region before going to Ankara, where Ataturk's Mausoleum was a real highlight. It contained some wonderful exhibits and one of the best dioramas I have ever seen covering the Gallipoli and Independence campaigns, with some fascinating history of how the Allies were defeated and driven out of the country. (Naturally, the British in particular don't dwell on any of this when they teach history in their schools & I expect the same applies to the French!) The Anatolian Civilizations Museum was also most interesting & I felt that the tour did not allow enough time for those final two items.
We had two days to ourselves after the tour to wander around Istanbul & visit places that were not included in the tour, like the Cistern, before we left for Cairo.
Finally, FOOD! The food in Turkey is great, particularly the sweets, so be prepared to put on weight, or take it off after your trip. The Turks have a very sweet tooth, but the sugar in their sweets is masked to some extent by the nuts they use in baklava etc. They also like their lunches and most stops on the trip were set up for a full meal instead of a snack.
Thursday 11 June 2009
Travel
Well, I've been off the air for some time because my partner & I have been on an extended holiday to destinations that have beckoned for quite some years, namely Turkey and Egypt.
We decided to go via Thailand, as one of my mates is married to a Thai & lives and works in Phuket. We always enjoy seeing him & his family, and he & I manage a few games of golf on various courses as well, whilst my partner relaxes on the beach, having Thai massages & shopping!
I'll treat all our destinations separately in my blog to keep them simple and short (relatively), as not everyone will be interested in all of them & they were all very different.
Thailand - We love the country & probably the main reason for that is its people, who are so friendly & eager to help without being pushy or intrusive. Of course, it also helps that the exchange rate means that a good time can be had eating out, shopping & enjoying a Thai massage!
We spent a few days last year in Chang Mai in the north, which was cooler but still green & tropical. It is a former capital in a scenic area, quite close to the Burmese border on one side & North Vietnam & Laos on the other. We will return there to explore further. Also last year we went to Kanchanburi to see the Death Railway & Bridge on the River Kwae. Whilst the Railway and cemetery were very moving and the stay in the boatel moored on the banks of the river was relaxing, we found the area quite arid compared to Chang Mai and considerably less scenic.
Our stay this time was in Patong, the major tourist area of Phuket, which has completely recovered from the tsunami. It is brash, with plenty of shopping and nightlife and a crowded beach, although quieter beaches close by, one of which we stayed at. However, if it is shopping you are principally interested in, go to Bangkok instead, as it is cheaper and there is plenty of nightlife and things of interest there too.
Phuket has several world class golf courses, my main interest, most of them carved out of old tin mining areas resulting in large water hazards with steep, deep sides in many cases! Blue Canyon and the Lakes are two adjoining courses near the airport, exclusive with residential facilities attached. Laguna is halfway between the airport and Patong, is flatter and is part of a resort complex. Country Club is near Patong and has 27 holes. Loch Palm is also near Patong and has a second course next to it completed only a couple of years ago, Red Mountain, which I think is the best course of the lot, very scenic and although all these courses are challenging, this is probably the most challenging, with the advantage that if you are not having a good day, you can relax and enjoy the views! There is another course, Mission Hills, which I have not played. Prices vary, but are not cheap by Aussie standards and there are caddy fees and tips on top. I have heard that courses in Pattaya are cheaper, so that will be on the agenda for the ruture.
We decided to go via Thailand, as one of my mates is married to a Thai & lives and works in Phuket. We always enjoy seeing him & his family, and he & I manage a few games of golf on various courses as well, whilst my partner relaxes on the beach, having Thai massages & shopping!
I'll treat all our destinations separately in my blog to keep them simple and short (relatively), as not everyone will be interested in all of them & they were all very different.
Thailand - We love the country & probably the main reason for that is its people, who are so friendly & eager to help without being pushy or intrusive. Of course, it also helps that the exchange rate means that a good time can be had eating out, shopping & enjoying a Thai massage!
We spent a few days last year in Chang Mai in the north, which was cooler but still green & tropical. It is a former capital in a scenic area, quite close to the Burmese border on one side & North Vietnam & Laos on the other. We will return there to explore further. Also last year we went to Kanchanburi to see the Death Railway & Bridge on the River Kwae. Whilst the Railway and cemetery were very moving and the stay in the boatel moored on the banks of the river was relaxing, we found the area quite arid compared to Chang Mai and considerably less scenic.
Our stay this time was in Patong, the major tourist area of Phuket, which has completely recovered from the tsunami. It is brash, with plenty of shopping and nightlife and a crowded beach, although quieter beaches close by, one of which we stayed at. However, if it is shopping you are principally interested in, go to Bangkok instead, as it is cheaper and there is plenty of nightlife and things of interest there too.
Phuket has several world class golf courses, my main interest, most of them carved out of old tin mining areas resulting in large water hazards with steep, deep sides in many cases! Blue Canyon and the Lakes are two adjoining courses near the airport, exclusive with residential facilities attached. Laguna is halfway between the airport and Patong, is flatter and is part of a resort complex. Country Club is near Patong and has 27 holes. Loch Palm is also near Patong and has a second course next to it completed only a couple of years ago, Red Mountain, which I think is the best course of the lot, very scenic and although all these courses are challenging, this is probably the most challenging, with the advantage that if you are not having a good day, you can relax and enjoy the views! There is another course, Mission Hills, which I have not played. Prices vary, but are not cheap by Aussie standards and there are caddy fees and tips on top. I have heard that courses in Pattaya are cheaper, so that will be on the agenda for the ruture.
Friday 16 January 2009
Share Trading
As we flounder around in the present financial meltdown, I've been seeing some articles promoting 'penny dreadful' stocks on the basis that you stand a greater chance of doubling your money than if you bought a blue chip stock like BHP, when the market eventually rises.
Whilst these small cap stocks may appeal because they don't cost much & therefore may seem affordable, the blurb doesn't take into account a number of other factors, like the cost of brokerage, which can be proportionately higher on small packages; what level of debt the company has (often high); what its cash flow from operations is (often very little, the stock being promoted on the 'potential' of its mining tenaments/likely sales of software to customers & the like); whether the company is paying dividends (not likely at its present stage of growth, as any surplus funds in responsible companies are ploughed back into growing the business); inability to trade in options & other derivatives like CFDs in this class of share; finally & perhaps most importantly, the liquidity of the company, ie will you be able to dispose of the shares when you want to in the future?
I read recently that only about 3% of the 10c Australian shares listed in 2004 are worth more than $1 now, so you would have to ask yourself if your cash wouldn't have been better invested elsewhere. On the other hand, there has been the occasional success story, if your gamble had paid off! These are what lure people into this sector of the market.
Personally, I have come to the conclusion that trading in shares is more risky than trading in commodities and foreign exchange, for a variety of reasons such as quality of management & government intervention.
Wednesday 14 January 2009
Goals for '09
Well, the festive season has gone again, not that it was too festive this year with the economic meltdown preying on everyone's minds and our troops deployed in various trouble spots. We had a quiet time, with family visiting and plenty of golf.
Now the time has arrived for me to plan how to advance in '09, by setting goals on various fronts.
Although I've always been a positive person, my upbringing tended to emphasise qualities like caution & thrift. Whilst thrift is an excellent quality, it can be overcooked. In recent years my thinking has changed from scarcity to abundance, mainly after I encountered a little book by a Wallace D Wattles called 'The Science of Getting Rich'. http://www.scienceofgettingrich.net/gifts/freeresource4u.html
One goal which is well under way is to get a major travel itch scratched. For many years, I have wanted to visit Egypt to see the pyramids & other remains of that incredible civilization and also Turkey to see the former capital of the Holy Roman Empire, Constantinople, or Istanbul as it is now, as well as Troy, Gallipoli etc. In March/April his year we are visiting both after my annual trip to Thailand to play golf with a couple of mates, & as my partner has always wanted to do a cruise, we are also taking care of that goal, by doing a trip down the Nile - talk about multitasking!
The next major goal is to get my internet marketing efforts making some money to pay for another major overseas trip that is taking shape in the back of my mind. Did I mention I was born with itchy feet? I have decided I need a mentor, so will see how far I get with Alex Jeffreys http://www.mybloglog.com/buzz/community/Alex-Jeffreys.
In tandem with that, I intend to expand my share trading efforts into commodities and forex, which will require particularly careful planning. When I have time from all that, I want to get my handicap down to single figures.
Well, now that I have put myself on the spot by articulating my goals, '09 will be a busy year.
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