Karl and Jimmy - Grappling Practice

Here's Karl and Jimmy working on their new techniques. karl schulenburg kimmy zei woodstock mixed martial arts wmma wmma.com schulenburg family young hong karate institute prostar pro-star grappling takedowns www.prostarmma.com kickboxing bjj brazilian jiu jitsu jiu-jitsu kick boxing punch thai mixed martial arts MMA UFC ultimate fighting championship pride IFL ultimate fighter kurt schulenburg carolyn schulenburg joe brignoli joey joseph jerry jones john graden david bybee frank shamrock chuck norris liddell bas rutten gracie mata teachers association kids taekwondo tkd drills woodstock illinois chicago kids jab cross overhand right hook to body uppercut upper cut focus pads mitts sparring games left hook thai kick straight right straight knee thai knee clinch full mount side mount escape roll guard half full butterfly head north south takedown take down single double sprawl arm bar hammer lock hammerlock reverse keylock key lock bearhug bear hug forearm fore arm snatch low leg headlock front fight stance fighter defense 1 2 3 4 stand up standup position full nelson pass catting out guillotine counter scoop class classroom movement knee kneebar pummel over and under plum tie up tie-up block blocks warmup warm-ups warm ups spin active standing ankle pick foot touch back backward backwards jump side sidekick hook front transition combo combination duck slip evade weave submission submissions www.martialartsteachers.com capping cap

digital wall clocks rat exterminator

Are There Specific Heavy Duty Suspension Systems For Off-Road Trucks?

Some of you might be interested in off-road trucks. When you say off-road trucks, you must prepare yourself and your truck to handle all kinds of terrains and roads. Heavy duty suspension systems ensure smooth journey and so make sure that your truck is installed with the best heavy duty suspension systems to handle all kinds of roads and terrains; in short, your truck should be well equipped as a heavy military vehicle would to face all terrains, roads and climate.

Well, if you are contemplating off-road trucks with a combination of long-term survival and self-sufficiency, reliability, durability, safety, capability, and comfort, then the following points might help you.

How does it Work?

Heavy duty suspension systems for heavy duty, off-road trucks incorporate unique axle connections that distribute the load more evenly, over a wide footprint. They are designed for durability and a better ride and are engineered for all standard heavy duty trailer applications, including platforms and drop decks, dump trailers, and fixed-axle vans. Its tri-functional bushings at pivot points improve ride stability and driver comfort. An induction hardened camshaft system produces less suspension wear and longer operational life.

These heavy duty suspension systems are manufactured for heavy-haul vehicles such as those used in logging and mining, but the suspension is also appropriate for tankers, livestock and grain trailers, and container chassis. Its beams and axles are designed to live longer in off-road and other applications.

Braking systems are critical components with heavy duty, off-road vehicles and these customized suspensions include brake shoes as standard equipment. The suspension lift kits also minimize front-end dive caused by heavy braking. It is extremely important for it to have front lift kits which increase the off-road trucks center of gravity and cause extra body-roll.

For a street-driven application emulsion shocks are more than enough, but in off-road conditions a reservoir shock is recommended which subjects the shocks to excessive heat by increasing the oil capacity. The four corner shafts will help give more resistance to compression and act more like an air spring in heavier trucks whether it is in the desert, dunes, mud, or on the trail.

Coil over shocks are customized shock absorbers for desert cars, pre-runners, sand rails, rock crawlers, dune buggies, and many more off-road and racing conditions. A coil over shock has more easily adjustable features than standard suspension, and the reason they are so popular is that they can be finely tuned and adjusted accurately. Most people like the smooth ride a coil spring can provide.

If you have larger tires or upgraded power and gearing, you will probably need the optional replacement leaf springs. It all depends on how you like your truck to look. If you prefer it to be level, then stick with the 5" rear blocks. If you prefer the raked look, then you can choose shorter blocks.

Bump stops are a great way to smooth out even the harshest hits while protecting your chassis from the extreme energy transfer impact.

Generally, off-road racing shocks need to be charged with nitrogen only. DO NOT USE compressed air as it can cause a number of problems. The oxygen and moisture in compressed air will corrode ferrous materials. Not only that, nitrogen is more stable through a greater pressure and temperature range.

With the significantly increased oil volume and a large diameter piston head these shocks can just about take any suspension!

Beat all terrains, roads and climate with the best suspension systems. Make your journey a smooth one with an intelligent choice of suspension systems

Car Ramps rat exterminator mosquito fogger

Mike ~ SNATCH PULLS OF BLOCKS 100 KG X 3 REPS

IM 16 AND WEIGH 68 KG FOR DETAILS, 2ND YR OF LIFTING

viking refrigerator digital wall clocks rat exterminator

Shaun Clegg northern juniors championships

Snatch 85kg 95kg 105kg Power Clean and Jerk 110kg 120kg total 225kg Nice comp really nice venue and well laid out thanks to everybody who helped and the judges and lifters.

skeletool wall graphic

Dance Star Mickey - The Hottest Toy For Christmas 2010

For more than eighty years, Fisher-Price have been producing superior quality toys and games which keep working, this holiday season they've brought it to a great new standard by bringing out the most innovative cutting edge addition to the Fisher-Price team, Dance Star Mickey. Ever since Mickey Mouse was introduced more than eighty years ago, he has become the loving ambassador of kindness and fun just about everywhere and treasured by innumerable kids across the world. Now that Dance Star Mickey is here, playtime has never been more magical. Finally young ones are able to get up, dance and sing with their buddy Mickey like never before.

Dance Star Mickey is easily the most animated Mickey Mouse toy ever and is perfect for children 18 months to 6 years old. Mickey walks, talks, sings and dances to a variety of brand new grooves. There are a total of half a dozen tracks like the melodies, Shake Your Groove Thing and Get Up Offa That Thing as well as a handful of diverse dances which includes Michael Jackson's historical moonwalk. Dance Star Mickey includes songs that cover many of the coolest styles of music from soul, disco, Latina along with techno.

Dance Star Mickey is without question loaded with interactive activities, dances and melodies sure to get your child dancing and performing together with Mickey. Offering the newest technological innovations, Mickey will move like no other toy available. His actions and alluring temperament will entertain even the littlest audience member all the way up to dad and mom.

Dance Star Mickey is manufactured out of a lush fabric that can easily be cleaned employing a damp pad. Mickey moves his hands and legs and additionally rotates all-around on small wheels incorporated into the base of his feet. Fisher-Price Dance Star Mickey requires half a dozen Double A battery packs. Mickey weighs roughly 4.5 lbs that is certainly easy enough for almost all youngsters to move around.

Mickey Mouse lovers will definitely expect to grab this as it will clearly be a collectors' item. In the short time since Dance Star Mickey was released at the New York Toy fair earlier this year, he has performed with Donnie Osmond and also made an appearance in the popular Tv program Dancing with the Stars.

nikko tableware Car Ramps

Advantages of A Playa Del Carmen Condo on Coco Beach

Coco Beach is, for the time being, the place at the north end of downtown Playa del Carmen where all the beachfront and tourist action ends; for now, the beaches beyond are fairly quiet and empty. But this is changing, the neighborhood is becoming trendier, and the main focus of development is moving quickly in this direction. For this reason, there are several real benefits to owning a Playa del Carmen condoss in the Coco Beach community, including:
 
Best Beach in Playa del Carmen, Walking Distance.
 
The beachfront in this area is wide and spacious and completely sandy, with a few palm trees for shade. Among the beautiful beaches which have made Playa del Carmen famous, this is perhaps the best.
 
Trendy, Up-and-Coming Area
 
As already mentioned, along Playa del Carmen's downtown beachfront area, this is up-and-coming community shows the most potential to become the next trendy area - and it already is. With many young couples moving in, investors are already beginning to buy Playa del Carmen condos here; there is already a restaurant/bar on the beachfront, and some activities like jet ski rentals and oriental massages. An Italian pizzeria has just opened on the corner of Fifth Avenue, the city's main tourist street.
 
Fifth Avenue Within Short Walking Distance.
 
This street runs parallel to the beach right past the small Coco Beach neighborhood, between 1 and 3 blocks from the beach - 3 blocks at Coco. Here, the pizzeria is the first more interesting place to appear; but three blocks south (about a 10 minute walk from the residential area) nice new plazas, upscale cafes, bars and international restaurants are beginning to open. Just past this begins the heart of Playa del Carmen's tourist area.
 
Invest Income from Vacation Rental.
 
For these same reasons, Coco Beach is a great pick for vacationers - close to all the action, while still being a quiet residential neighborhood. While Fifth Avenue continues to develop on one side of the community, and more activities appear on the beachfront on the other, this community will grow in appeal for tourists. Buyers who use their condo only for vacations can cover expenses and even enjoy an income through rentals.
 
Rising Property Value.
 
A condo dedicated solely to income could be quite profitable (especially larger 3 or 4 bedroom units); because of the new development moving towards this community, as well as new hotel development on the other, emptier side of the community, property value also has good potential to rise, making these an excellent investment choice.
 
For those still not convinced, come visit Playa del Carmen, and see the potential of this community for yourself.
 
TOPMexicoRealEstate.com; Mexico's Leading Network of Specialists for Finding and Purchasing Mexican Properties Safely

samurai armor

Top New Tron Toys for 2010

If you are eagerly awaiting the new Tron movie, you are not alone. TRON: Legacy is a film on the cutting edge. It has a futuristic feel that hasn't been seen since the Blade Runner or the original Tron movie that came out many years ago. To go with the movie, you know there are going to be toys. What you might not be ready for is how cool these new Tron toys really are when you see them in action.

New Tron Legacy Toys 2010

Here's a quick look at some of the toys based on TRON: Legacy that are going to be really hot in the months ahead.

TRON Zero Gravity Light Cycle - At the top of the list is this cool light cycle that you can drive around - on the wall. Disney based it on Air Hogs technology by Spin Master. This is set to be one of the top toys of 2010 in general, not to mention the hottest toy from the new Disney movie.
TRON Action Figures - These are not your father's action figures. Just like in the movie, their faces are blank and display video representations moving faces, making them extra special. They are going to be available in 7" figs, as well as deluxe 12" modules. Collectors and toy fans are going to be snatching these up as soon as they're available.
TRON Core and Deluxe Vehicles - Just like in the movie, when an action figure is put into the vehicle, they both light up. The deluxe version has cool sounds, just like from the upcoming TRON: Legacy movie.

There are more details to come, but for now, all of the new TRON: Legacy toys look really interesting in one way or another. If you're a fan of the classic Tron movie from 1982, or you are a toy collector who wants to make money, keeping your eyes on the new TRON toys is important if you want to snatch one up before they're gone. And the ways things are looking, they're going to be gone quickly.

TRON: Legacy - the Movie

The movie is set to be released on December 17, 2010. Even after the day - especially after - all of these TRON Legacy toys are going to be super hot. Remember, you heard it here first. The movie is sure to be a modern classic. While that still awaits to be seen, there are many fans - new and old - that are going to enjoy the toys, even if they don't like the movie.

Car Ramps

Stop Waiting, Start Creating! How Much Time Do YOU Spend Just Hanging Around Waiting For Others?

How much of your life do you spend simply killing time while waiting for others?

And at the same time feeling you really could be getting on with something more creative..?

We all seem to have busy lives these days and anything that can help us to make better use of our time is usually gratefully welcomed.

The act of creating each day and getting into this rhythm and discipline is one way we can begin to work towards this.

Even if we do this however, many of us find we still "waste" much time in waiting around for others.

Some everyday examples are waiting in queues in shops, or waiting for a train that's late. These situations we can't do much about.

But then there are those other times where we're waiting out of some obligation for another. We're with people we're close to in our lives - our partners, children, friends or colleagues - and we may feel because we're in the same room or building at the same time, we "should" spend some time with them .

Rather than schedule a fixed amount of time in which to see them and have some quality undisturbed time together, we often just try to squeeze it in and drop the other activities we're currently doing.

How often have you been with a friend, and felt pressured because you know you don't have much time together until one of you has to leave to attend to some other task?

This looming urgency then puts a spoiler on your time together and instead of relaxing and enjoying each other's company, you never quite get into any meaningful conversation or commit to doing something together you both like and appreciate.

Over a period of weeks, months or years, this can build up and instead of having occasional enjoyable and largely undisturbed time together where you're both focused and committed, you feel like you have a series of snatched interludes, where in all honesty you'd probably both be rather spending the time doing something else!

It's like having a snack every few hours and throwing it down your throat because you know the restaurant is closing in five minutes.

When really, you'd rather take a couple of hours to sit down and relax with a delicious meal and a bottle of wine once a day.

Or maybe even worse, it may feel like sitting in a restaurant waiting for a meal with someone when neither of you are particularly hungry and can't decide what to order!

So maybe it takes being selfish first to be giving in the long term.

Maybe next time you try to snatch a few minutes with your partner, children or friends, just because you're both in the same place at the same time, think about how you could book some more focused and relaxing quality time together instead, and give you both the opportunity to really get the most from each other's company...

rat exterminator skeletool samurai armor

Get Productive To Make Money From Your Creativity

Are you as productive and creative as you could be?

A few years ago I travelled up the north coast of New South Wales, Australia, and
visited a client whose wife was a potter. She showed me around her large, well-lit
studio.

I was envious.

Not because of the high-ceilinged work area. And not because of the location right
in the middle of eucalypt-scented old growth forest, with wallabies and wombats on
the doorstep.

I was envious because of the pottery mugs, cups, vases, plates, bowls, platters,
serving trays, and planters piled on long tables, stacked in deep shelves on the
walls, and rising in columns on the timber floor.

Pottery in stippled blue, pottery with a white and yellow glaze. Brown shiny pottery.
Pottery lushly painted with bush animals and parrots. Unglazed and unfired pottery.

Pottery everywhere.

This was one productive lady.

At the time I thought I was productive because I was turning out a thousand words a
day. I thought I was writing a lot. But the pottery lady made me realize that I was not
as productive as I could be.

I asked her how much she worked. "I don't think about it. I'm here whenever I have
time. I suppose I work a couple of hours in the morning, and another couple in the
afternoon. And if I have something I want to finish, I'll work at night as well."

I've been thinking about the potter on and off since I met her. Because her pottery
wasn't art. Don't get me wrong, all her products were good. Serviceable. But only
around ten per cent of her products were wonderful.

Ten per cent... Which got me thinking. I had then, and still have, a real problem
expecting perfection in my work.

The pottery lady was happy to make her pottery. And a percentage of it was
wonderful. If she'd held back, and thought: "I can't make coffee set with yellow
glaze. It might not be good enough." How much would she have produced? How
much excellent work?

So that's what the pottery lady taught me: Produce.

Just write (make pots, take photos, design, paint...). Like Nike, Just Do It. Get over
your mental blocks to creativity: perfectionism, negative beliefs, and expectations.

She also taught me about production-line creativity, because you can't make a pot
in one day. You need time. Time to create it on the wheel, dry it, glaze it, fire it.

=> Creative Productivity Secrets

==> Multiple projects

You need lots of projects. Got an idea? Great! Start it.

The only thing is --- keep a master list. I tend to be disorganized, and have
notebooks I don't remember writing in and directories on my hard drives I don't
remember creating. Keep a list.

==> A mix of short and long projects

You never know enough to write a book. But you can write a page. Tomorrow you
write another page. Maybe next week you're hot and you write five pages in a
morning.

No matter. If you're working on a long project do what you can when you can. It's
lovely if inspiration strikes, and hard work when it doesn't, but keep at it anyway.

Do plenty of short projects too. You get a charge from completing a short piece that
inspires you to work on your current long project.

==> Create anywhere

Take a notebook, or a tape recorder and camera. Snatch five minutes (even if it's in
a restroom somewhere) and write, or sketch.

==> Collaborate

You need a creative buddy. Team up with someone else and collaborate on a
project. Having a creative buddy teaches you things you didn't know about yourself
and your work. And it's fun.

But make sure that it's a working relationship. Get the work done, and then you can
socialize.

==> Take time out

When you work all the time you need breaks to recharge and refill the well. You'll
have slow periods.

I have days where I only want to read, and I might read five books in three days. I let
myself do it, because I know I need it --- I need to have someone else's thoughts
and images in my head for a while.

There you have it: production-line creativity. Happy creating!

nikko tableware

Struggles With Faith

On my dear soul, why are you lamenting over your lack of faith?!

Struggling with faith spells hope!

Would you agree with me that a problem can be solved only when you realize or admit that there is a problem in the first place?

If you are struggling with faith, I have good news for you!

The sense of unbelief or lack of faith you have been feeling for probably ages is a seal of your salvation; a saving grace from all things: hell and lack of anything.

The Lord is my shepherd and I shall not lack. [Psalms 23:1]

It signifies your awakening. It spells hope! It bears witness that the blessed Holy Spirit is working mightily within you!

To me, the Gospel or good news is just this: I have been saved from ALL EVILS by simply trusting in the faithfulness of God who cannot lie. [Numbers 23:19]. I rest on His faith and not mine.

What in the world are you talking about?!? It is precisely this lack of trust that I have having trouble with!

Hold your horses, dear soul.

The spirit of unbelief is impregnated in the air which we breathe; in the realm where spiritual forces of evil rule. These powers of darkness are constantly oppressing us. They are working through every person and every circumstance in our lives. Like a frog trapped in a boiling pot that is slowly heating up, we do not even realize that we are being cooked alive! (That is before we receive the gift of faith and the desire to receive Jesus into our lives.)

But thanks be to God. In His grace and mercy, he ordained a salvation plan to snatch us out of that sinister boiling pot. His one and only beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, descended on earth and set the machinery of salvation in motion. With that perfect finished work of Jesus on the Cross of Calvary, the Holy Spirit can now dwell within us.

Oh, come on! Can you tell me something I do not already know?!?

Sure.

With that breath of eternal life of the blessed Holy Spirit, we now feel the oppression. Suddenly, we begin to feel uncomfortable. We are no longer stone cold dead! We are now alive to that condition.

Repentance!

What an all encompassing word! It means to change the way we think. But what is it about what we think that needs changing?

Everything!

We need to change how we think about God, Jesus, the blessed Holy Spirit, even our salvation and our faith!

Praise be to God if you already know this in the heart!

Of course I know this cliche. Everything I have heard is about knowing it in the heart! But it is not working! And what you said so far is not helping with my faith struggles either! So do you have anything useful for me or not?!?

What I know has proven useful. Have you forgotten? But you are right to feel you are not receiving anything. It is only the Holy Spirit who can teach us ALL things. I thank God for this privilege of using me as a vessel to write about this. For I believe that penning my thoughts would help to reinforce the goodness of God. And I pray that the best Teacher anyone can ever have will Himself teach us.

I am not here to profess that I know everything that there is to know. But I do hope for us to bring our questions to the Holy Teacher. If the blessed Holy Spirit has managed to make His presence known to us by the vessel of my hands, Hallelujah!

So what has He taught you?!?

In this business of faith, I have come to know this. That it is the faith of God that counts. It is never my faith or the faith of anyone else. Knowing this, why then should I struggle with my own faith or the lack of it?

Do I trust that God is faithful? Yes! He is faithful to personally see to it that I enjoy all the covenant blessings of grace.

Why that trust? Well, I have not seen with my own eyes Jesus crucified. Yet I believe that He died for me and as me so that I may have abundant life. And I did not struggle with having faith to believe in that in the first place. It was the merciful God who Himself first planted this seed of desire and given me this gift of faith to do so. This is grace!

Now, since it was my God Himself that started me on this journey of salvation by giving the gift of faith to do so in the first place, why would He not continue to give me the same gift of faith for everything else? It is from faith to faith; from one gift to another from the generous Father God. And since it is a gift, I do not have to earn or merit it. I just stay still and know that He is the faithful God; that He would not give me a snake when I ask for bread. Sometimes, we do not realize He has given us bread when we have asked for a snake! Think about it for a while. He is my God and I am His people.

Do I see God as someone with nothing better to do than to start something in me and then just leave it undone? Oh, this thought of God so doing is a filthy lie straight from the pit of hell! Away from me Satan! For whatever God Himself has started, He will personally see to its completion! He watches over His Word to perform it!

Then why am I not seeing the blessings in my life?!?

Repentance! How do you think about blessings?

His wonderful grace is sufficient for each day. Give us this day our daily bread. Did not God Himself who said it?

If we were to look at our supplies beyond a day, we would naturally shiver. But if we were to look at the same supplies on a daily basis, we would soon realize that it is more than sufficient. This is how God has taught us to look at our provisions. My God shall supply our every need!

On the contrary, if we were to take the daily supplies for granted and venture to look into the demands of future weeks, months or years ahead, I wonder who would not struggle with faith.

If our idea of blessings, in the area of finances especially, is to have lots of them in our store where we can see, touch and feel, then we may set ourselves up for a shocking disappointment.

Are you playing with psychology here? This sounds like how the ugly ones console themselves by saying that beauty is only skin deep! This looks like self-denial!

But soul, is not this what repentance entails? The world says that seeing is believing. But God says believing is seeing. Who do you believe? Have you not had enough of believing what the world says?!?

Could this be the reason why God says that faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses]? [Hebrews 11:1 Amplified].

Down through the ages, men and women greatly used by God have grasped this in their hearts and lived it out.

George Mueller [1805-1898] built orphanages for multitudes of homeless children costing more than a million dollars in the 1800s, without asking for a penny. He did it by faith in God. He started in faith and ended in reality. Was he in a state of self denial when he first began? History and fact speak for themselves.

Jackie Pulling er, a young lady, left her family in Britain to venture alone into the darkest area of Hong Kong in the 1960s without any resources at her disposal. God led multitudes of sinners to salvation by her. God supplied all the demands on her ministry. She started out in faith and ended in reality. The fact speaks for itself.

The list goes on if you would spend the time looking for it.

I am not sure. I do not feel you have helped me at all!

Dear soul, take all your doubts and questions to the Holy Spirit. Allow Him to teach us. For the blessed Holy Spirit shall take all things of our Lord Jesus Christ and show them to us! Do it! Our very life depends on it!

After the initial receipt of salvation, the rest of our journey is learning to trust in God. One step at a time, we learn to live a brand new life of pure trust in the faithful God. Yes, we will tremble with wobbling legs as we walk the path. A resounding yes to the feeling of fear doing what we are not accustomed to doing. But would not this experience shed some light on what is meant by working out our salvation with fear and trembling? I believe this fear and trembling are signposts that we are on the right track. With each wobbling step, we grow in confidence and therein faith.

To believe is to trust. We trust because we have faith in the object of our trust. We can have faith because there is an assurance. And this assurance can come in varied forms:

1. Testimonies of many witnesses or power of sheer numbers in testimony;

2. Our own experiences;

3. Avenue of redress should the trust be betrayed.

Dear soul, you have been used to gaining trust through assurances. We fear of being played out, betrayed and being made used of. And what has God done to earn our trust?

To begin with, He sent His one and only beloved Son to die for us.

Well, I did not see it and this is not helping.

Then, there have been many eye witnesses and testimonies recorded in the Bible.

I do not know them and it is so far back in time that I cannot relate to them.

What about the fact that 30 million people willingly gave up their lives to preserve the Bible. Would not that speak volumes of the trustworthiness of the Word of God?

Well, I applaud their sacrifices but I still do not have that faith I need.

What then has been your experience of Christian life?

All I know now is that I am struggling with faith. I do not see much of the promised blessings manifesting in my life! I do not feel and live the abundant life.

Dear soul, are you referring to financial blessings?

Err, not really that. I just want to feel happy, problem free, stress free, no physical lack, you know what I mean, do you not? But it seems that most problems arise from the lack of money. And if Satan is controlling the world with money, why do not God just give us the money? In that way, Satan would have lost much of his control over us, right?

Why it sounds like you are placing your trust in money! Did not God say that the love of money is the root of all evil?!? Has it ever occurred to you that perhaps God is dealing with this evil root that is so deeply entrenched in you?!?

Has God come short in the area of finances in our lives? No! So far, you have more than enough to spend each day. Why worry about the future?

Did not God Himself beseech us not to worry about what we eat or drink or wear?

Did not God Himself say that He knows we need them?

Did not God Himself tell us to seek first His kingdom and righteousness and ALL these things shall be added to us?!?

Did not God say that the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit?!?

Did not God say that we are His righteousness in our Lord Christ Jesus?

Do we not have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit whom Jesus prayed to our Father God to give us?!?

It was Jesus Himself who prayed for it! How can anyone doubt that His prayers will not be answered?!? So, since we already have what is needed for "ALL these things to be added", why worry?!?

The thief comes in order to steal and to kill and to destroy but our Lord Jesus has come that we may have life and have it more abundantly! Someone once said that if you know help is on the way, there is no need to worry. But if you know that there is no help, then what is the use of worrying? A word of wisdom.

But if you are indeed cash strapped, have you considered how have you steward the money that God has given you all this time?

Ha, you probably have not imagined that the money that you have was given to you by God right?

You probably missed the part that it is God who gives you the power to prosper right?!?

You probably have thought that you are the one who earned and worked for it right?

Therefore you deem it your right to spend it as you wish right?

If indeed you are now short of money, have you considered it a possibility that God is teaching you how to spend His money?!?

Have you envisaged that God would give you more money to perpetuate your wayward pattern?!?

Have you thought about what you really would have done if God had given you financial abundance?

Would you have rushed to sins; puffing up your pride by showing off?

Oh blessed Holy Spirit, show us how we should steward the money of the Lord. Help us see money as only a tool. Help us view it as the least of the promised blessings. Help us not to idolize it. Help us dear blessed Holy Spirit to see our life the way God would want us see it. Help us hear the heart beat of God.

Look at what our Lord Jesus said in Luke 16:10-14:

10 He who is faithful in a very little [thing] is faithful also in much, and he who is dishonest and unjust in a very little [thing] is dishonest and unjust also in much.

11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the [case of] unrighteous mammon (deceitful riches, money, possessions), who will entrust to you the true riches?

12 And if you have not proved faithful in that which belongs to another [whether God or man], who will give you that which is your own [that is, the true riches]?

13 No servant is able to serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stand by and be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon (riches, or anything in which you trust and on which you rely).

14 Now the Pharisees, who were covetous and lovers of money, heard all these things [taken together], and they began to sneer at and ridicule and scoff at Him.

Hey, you are putting me in a very bad light you know?!? I am not like what you say! Come on, give me some credit will you!

Dear soul, I am not running you down. There is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. But should we not recall why we first come to Jesus? It was because we were sick and tired of the kind of life that the world has to offer. We have considered our ways and how they fared. They were horrendous!

And since we have concluded that our old way of living has not done us any good, should we not now concentrate on this new life that God has given us? As in anything new, we need to learn it before we can master it. Our Christian walk is one of pure trust. God knows what we are like. He has assured us of His goodness by giving us our Lord Jesus as surety.

Hey, is not this a chicken and egg thingy? Are you telling me to just trust. But my problem is I do not have the faith to trust! I need faith to trust and are you saying that I need to trust before I can have faith?!?

Dear soul, what I am about to say may sound like the chicken and egg thingy. If you are looking for assurance, it is in Christ Jesus. If you fear the Jesus will fail you, then I am afraid you have not fully given up on the world. It seems that you have more trust in the world system that in the system of God. Then perhaps you should consider going back to the world. When you have completely come to the end of yourself after the world system has utterly failed you, then come back to Jesus. He will not turn away any that come to Him. Until such time, Jesus cannot pour new wine into old wine skin. He would rather you be hot or cold but not lukewarm for He will spit that out! A lifeguard cannot save a drowning person who is still struggling.

As for me, I will stand on the unfailing faithfulness of God. In saying the impossible, even if I should perish, I rather perish standing on His Word. But that is an oxymoron! For no one can ever perish standing on His Word! Just look at the Book of Esther.

Esther 4:16

Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast for me; and neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. I also and my maids will fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law; and if I perish, I perish.

To put it extremely, I rather die a poor man standing on His Word to heaven then to live rich trusting in the world to hell. Just look at the rich man in Luke 16:19-31:

19 There was a certain rich man who [habitually] clothed himself in purple and fine linen and reveled and feasted and made merry in splendor every day.

20 And at his gate there was [carelessly] dropped down and left a certain utterly destitute man named Lazarus, [reduced to begging alms and] covered with [ulcerated] sores.

21 He [eagerly] desired to be satisfied with what fell from the rich man's table; moreover, the dogs even came and licked his sores.

22 And it occurred that the man [reduced to] begging died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.

23 And in Hades (the realm of the dead), being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far away, and Lazarus in his bosom.

24 And he cried out and said, Father Abraham, have pity and mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.

25 But Abraham said, Child, remember that you in your lifetime fully received [what is due you in] comforts and delights, and Lazarus in like manner the discomforts and distresses; but now he is comforted here and you are in anguish.

26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who want to pass from this [place] to you may not be able, and no one may pass from there to us.

27 And [the man] said, Then, father, I beseech you to send him to my father's house--

28 For I have five brothers--so that he may give [solemn] testimony and warn them, lest they too come into this place of torment.

29 But Abraham said, They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear and listen to them.

30 But he answered, No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent (change their minds for the better and heartily amend their ways, with abhorrence of their past sins).

31 He said to him, If they do not hear and listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded and convinced and believe [even] if someone should rise from the dead.

So you are saying that a Christian should expect to be poor?!? If that is the case, what kind of Gospel is that?! Come and believe in Jesus to be poor?!?

Nope! I am not saying that. Does it make any sense that my God should give us His most treasured and beloved Son but not give us financial riches? I believe that God is love. Everything He does is done out of love. I believe He will definitely give us the least blessing of financial prosperity when He knows we are ready. I may even venture to say that we already have it. But to manifest the riches at the point when He knows we would use them for sins is definitely not an act of love! I know that God knows our heart better than we would like to imagine. We may well be asking for a snake when we pray for riches! But let it come according to His time and season.

Of course you may get it from the world by the means of the world. But what do we have to sacrifice to get it? What is the use of winning the world and yet lose you, my dear soul?!? I will never forget what I had to do to get the meager sum! And who knows what kinds of headache accompany such riches?!? I would rather have it from God who gives financial riches without any sorrows attached to them.

You have said too much. Can you simplify it for me? So what is my problem with faith?

Dear beloved soul, do we dare stand on the Word of God in the face of contradictory circumstances? There will always be two sets of evidence placed before us: circumstances and God's unfailing love preserved in His Word.

If we are hoping for a life free from problems and stress, that would be a life in heaven. Did not our Lord Jesus say that there will be trials and tribulations but fear not for He had conquered the world? What does that mean to us? We do not fear because He has conquered the circumstances. And "fear not" does not mean an absence of fear but rather, pressing on in the face of fear. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall not fear for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff they comfort me. Oh yes, we will have those problems and stress. But they do not affect us when we rest in the faithfulness of God.

I believe this business of lacking faith is one of fear; the ultimate fear that God will not honor what He had promised. For whatever it is worth to you my dear soul, I have this to say: that God is not a man that He should lie, neither the Son of man that He should repent; for has He said and shall He not do it, or has He promised and shall He not make it good?!

Through it all, I shall rely on the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit whom our Father God was able to give through the perfect finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross of Calvary.

Thanks and praise to the ever loving Holy Trinity!

samurai armor mosquito fogger

Basic Graphic Design Course

A basic graphic design course will teach a person about all the elements that are involved in producing a great design. These basics can then be used to further their career either by advancing in to more technical areas of design such as for motor vehicles or for the designing of furniture or clothes.

The first lesson that a person will participate in when they choose to do a basic graphic design course defines what are the building blocks one should be using when producing a design of their own. You will be made to look closely at the 5 elements that all graphic designers use in their own designs and these are as follows:-

1. Line

2. Shape

3. Mass

4. Texture

5. Color

All of which are essential for a person to understand and know how to use if they really want to become a competent graphic designer.

After learning about the 5 elements mentioned above during the next lessons a person will learn exactly how these pertain to designs. Although we all know what lines are during this lesson a person will learn much more about the various different lines that can be used during the design stage of a project and the ways in which they can be used.

Once the student has learnt about the importance of lines in their designs they can then move on to the next lesson which involves shapes. The three main shapes that any basic course will include are squares/rectangles, triangles and of course circles. During the lesson the student will closely examine the role that these shapes play in the scheme of a design.

Although to some people mass and texture in relation to a drawing or design may not seem important to a graphic designer it is. Through participating in a basic graphic design course a person is able to understand the visual weight of graphics and text elements which they will include in their own designs and in the designs of others. Plus by learning about texture a graphic designer is able to understand how embossing or other visual textures may make a person react in a certain way to a design.

Finally as part of any good basic graphic design course a person will learn how important the colors are that they choose for their design and the way that are likely to impact on it. Also it provides them with a better understanding of how certain colors work together and which don't.

When it comes to finding a basic graphic design course the best place to start your search is on the internet. Not only will there be schools located close to where you live that offer you the chance to learn a little bit more about graphic design but there are also some courses available which you are able to take online. So in fact you are not restricted as to when and where you take yours if you choose to do one.

nikko tableware skeletool strathwood falkner

John Wilson FERN-C

Pie-na-li! Pie-na-li! Hahahahahaha Pakinggang mabuti. At hanapin ang pie-na-li!

rat exterminator

Winch operation

Basic operation of the M35 deuce and half winch. Does not cover the safe operation when pulling heavy loads or using snatch blocks.

strathwood falkner samurai armor

Olympic Weightlifting for Athletes.wmv

Olympic weightlifting for athletes. Snatch transfer series including overhead squats, pressing snatch balance, and snatch balance. Followed by hang snatch and then cleans off the blocks.

digital wall clocks ladders

Causes of Drunk Driving - Think Before You Drink

Nobody can resist a good party. Why should you? There's lots of free foods, endless conversation, and the inevitable, alcohol. There have been countless of accidents that occurred because someone had miscalculated his level of inebriation at a party. A lot of people have mistakenly thought that driving while being a little tipsy cannot be accounted for drunk driving. After all, it wouldn't hurt anybody if it's just a few blocks, would it? That's where most people were wrong and they paid a heavy price.

The causes of drunk driving are far-reaching and disturbing. One of them is the fact that they didn't really intend to get drunk. There comes a time when a person is not sufficiently prepared for it. For instance, he drives to a party or heads to a bar, gets carried away with the situation and ended up drinking more than he can handle. The result, he drives home drunk, exposing his self and others to all the hazards of the road. Most often, these people think they're left with no other option but to drive home while in extreme intoxication. What they should understand is that there is always another option. They could call a family member or hail a cab instead to drive them home.

Alcohol can muddle a person's best judgment and majority of the time, drunken people are often always too proud to admit that they can't control themselves anymore. Others are just so used to the situation that they think nothing is wrong with it until something bad happens to them. Deaths and injuries can seem surreal and unrealistic until you suffer the same fate.

One of the most common causes of drunk driving is the trouble in recognizing the intensity of your impairment after drinking a generous amount of alcohol. Nobody can really tell you just how drunk you are if everybody's having a good time just like you. Alcohol can set your reflexes back and weakens your reasoning power by tricking you into believing you are still perfectly able to drive and that your motor skills are unaltered.

The other reason blamed for drunk driving is peer pressure, especially, among teenagers. Teenagers love to show off to their peers just how much alcohol they can imbibe to impress each other. In most situations, when they get too drunk, they refuse anybody else to drive them home. Many young adults are at a higher risk of becoming more involve in drunken driving accidents because they don't know how to put a limit to their alcohol consumption.

A study in 2004 revealed that 18 million Americans are alcoholic. Experts believe that a significant number of this statistics become illegally intoxicated at parties or in bars. Parties attended by teenagers are deemed more dangerous because some of them are still inexperienced drinkers. Cajoled by friends, they could consume more than they think they can handle and unaware of what alcohol can do to their state of mind. As they get drunk, a false feeling of confidence builds up and impairs their sense of reason.

Drunk driving is one of the most prevalent problems on the road that law enforcement is trying to control. If you are caught driving while under the influence of alcohol, you could end up in jail. Not only will it affect your life but also the lives of your loved ones.

tankless water heaters reviews

Pharoahe Monch - Free + lyrics

My favourite emcee rippin the mic [lyrics] You can clip my wings, shackle and chain me Back straight standing tall a child of God, N' I'm... Free! Spit in my face, hold me down I'ma keep my feet firm to the ground, cuz I'm... Free! Your A&R's a house nigga, the labels the plantation Now switch that advance for your emancipation MC's are the field like pick cotton for real I pop blocks like beat street with a notch n' a kill They take the strongest of slaves to compete in a track meat For the King of the city sang songs of back streets Choruses of cocaine tales and black heat Only to trade niggas like professional athletes! Don't take that merchandising, snatch that publishing Practice that black ass, ship you to London By way of France, Germany, Dublin A railroad to underground like Harriet Tubman While ya'll stay strugglin' we smuggle MC's through the streets Till we bubblin' on mix CD's, hustlin' Clans see me on the block n' say freeze I say Fuck You! I'm a man, I'm Free! You can clip my wings, shackle and chain me Back straight standing tall a child of God, N' I'm... Free! Find More lyrics at www.sweetslyrics.com Spit in my face, hold me down I'ma keep my feet firm to the ground, cuz I'm... Free! I give birth to verses in churches with no confession So please pardon my post-partum depression A-list MC to spit it in C-Sections For immature minds that get it with each lesson Three-fifths of a man ass jigga with no plans How you discussing publishing figures without a ...

strathwood falkner mosquito fogger garden sundials

Snatch Pull Training Session - 5-15-2008

Master lifter training off the blocks to protect his back from overuse.

ladders

Josh Cox Clean and jerk 87 Kg @ Most powerful youth 2009

A lifter who clean and jerks more than he can front squat! :S hmm!!

viking refrigerator garden sundials shade umbrellas

The Last Emperor and The RZA - He's Alive

He's Alive by the Last Emperor featuring the RZA on Hidden Treasures Lyrics: (user RrrutssS hooked me up) [Intro] (RZA) Inject the serum to the tip of his cerebellum Seventy CC's of Digi should brain-excel him Nurse, increase the IV *But doc, that may kill him!* Don't worry, we've got technology, we can rebuild him Strength of the ox, swiftness of the fox Electrical brainwaves, bein' charged by the dreadlocks Audio dynamic vocal, box out the black opal Won't be a beat that my son couldn't flow to Call Prince Paul to inject De La Soul fool *Doc, his heart is beatin' too fast* Nurse, I told you Decrease the brain battery, more gamma to the chest cavity Put the DNA code of every Pharoah in his anatomy Heart of the conquest, fightin' force like Joe Blanca Interscope won't be the same, we've just created a monster! (Last Emperor, *RZA*) A mysterious man with a mysterious past who came back from the dead to kick some serious ass I clearly surpass, blast glocks, raps, whatever RZA, put my DNA blocks back together and constructed, somethin' impenetrable by heaters Made for the world's great ancient leaders Rzarectah, I wanna thank you for givin' me a second chance at life, you've up risen me to separate the wise art from the wizardry and take revenge on those who've imprisoned me In the East, the location was well hidden My corpse was torn, rotten, bullet-ridden but still an after-taste from the poison I was given *Last Emperor* Yes master, what is thy bidding? (RZA) Go off bari ...

tankless water heaters reviews

21 JAN 09 Workout

In Video: Snatch from blocks: 110x2x5 C&J: 145x2x2, 155x2x2 Clean pulls to knee: 170x3x2 Behind Neck Push Press: 120x2

ac repair digital wall clocks viking refrigerator

Extraordinary Strength Training For Sprinters in 1 Awesome Exercise!

If you expect to beat your competition out of the blocks and blister them in the middle of competition then you have got to engage in the art of kettlebell snatches! That's right my friend, I said kettlebell snatches. As a strength and conditioning professional I can tell you with a 110% confidence that if you need to either punch someone really hard or run somewhere really fast then the kettlebell snatch lift is just what you need. For the sake of this article I know you really only need the latter, but the first trait could always come in handy!

Strength Training For Sprinters!

To give you an idea of the power and explosive nature of kettlebell snatches you should be able to execute 3 to 5 reps of this particular lift with a moderately heavy bell in as much time as it would take you to read this sentence! Now that is muscular performance. So what are kettlebell snatches?

As a kettlebell man myself I will honestly tell you that the snatch lift is my favorite kettlebell lift. This lift involves you having to pull the bell from either the ground or from between your legs up to above your head. The motion involved in this lift should be smooth and you should end with the kettlebell in a locked position above your head. Your shoulder should be retracted into the socket with the bell balanced and stable above your head. The lift engages your hips and knees to forcefully flex and extend to allow you to generate the necessary power to swing the kettlebell up to a high pull position just lateral to your head. Once you get the bell to this high pull position you can then complete the lift by vertically punching your palm towards the sky to finish it off.

After you execute just a few of these you will quickly see why it is so beneficial for your sprinting strength training program. You see the kettlebell snatch is great for initiating all of the muscles of your posterior muscles (glutes, hips, hamstrings, back, and shoulders) which are all necessary for your sprinting speed performance. The lift is also explosive and dynamic which also falls right in line with the action of running!

If you haven't already started to include the kettlebell snatch and other great kettlebell lifts into your sprint strength and conditioning program then your program is lacking! Take time to learn more about this subject by accessing the rest of my articles on the matter for free. Remember that most any athlete can train hard, but only the champions train smart!

mosquito fogger

Tara Endorses WMMA

A Leadership Team video, created by students of Schulenburg Family WMMA. woodstock mixed martial arts wmma wmma.com schulenburg family young hong karate institute prostar pro-star grappling takedowns www.prostarmma.com kickboxing bjj brazilian jiu jitsu jiu-jitsu kick boxing punch thai mixed martial arts MMA UFC ultimate fighting championship pride IFL ultimate fighter kurt schulenburg carolyn schulenburg joe brignoli joey joseph jerry jones john graden david bybee frank shamrock chuck norris liddell bas rutten gracie mata teachers association kids taekwondo tkd drills woodstock illinois chicago kids jab cross overhand right hook to body uppercut upper cut focus pads mitts sparring games left hook thai kick straight right straight knee thai knee clinch full mount side mount escape roll guard half full butterfly head north south takedown take down single double sprawl arm bar hammer lock hammerlock reverse keylock key lock bearhug bear hug forearm fore arm snatch low leg headlock front fight stance fighter defense 1 2 3 4 stand up standup position full nelson pass catting out guillotine counter scoop class classroom movement knee kneebar pummel over and under plum tie up tie-up block blocks warmup warm-ups warm ups spin active standing ankle pick foot touch back backward backwards jump side sidekick hook front transition combo combination duck slip evade weave submission submissions www.martialartsteachers.com capping cap

mosquito fogger wall graphic

Finding The Right Job In Tough Times Might Be Easier

We may want to change the title of this article to "Finding the right job in tough times is easier". I make some emphasis on  "Good/Right" because the only real difference between tough times and let's call them regular times is not how difficult is to find a good/right job but to find a job.

Understand that the right job is always more complex to find since those are positions where we ideally fit in, referring to things such as;  located in the right area, responsibilities to be performed are what we enjoy doing most and not to leave out salary and benefits.

All the requirements and offerings of that opportunity get as close to perfection as it possibly can in an imperfect world. You can see now how finding that job might not be any harder in tough times than it's in regular times.

When the economy is well and employers are hiring, jobs are advertised and need to be filled quickly. We as job seekers have no chance to even think about what we would like to do next or what we do best. You apply or approach a couple places and they have an opportunity. The company has a need and tries and probably very successfully sales you the company and the opportunity. We at the other hand haven't had the opportunity to sit down and review our past accomplishments, the value we have brought o our prior employer hopefully in dollars and cents.

We haven't had time to assess and review our prior responsibilities and determine what we have done best and would like to continue doing in the future.

We haven't had time to think about our long term goals in our careers and the different decisions we may have to make to successfully achieve those goals.

We haven't have a chance to turn every stone in front of us in the form of companies and the type of opportunities in the form of growth and training options they offer, their history and employee turnover statistics, their financial stability and their prospects base on industry and other factors of staying that way.

The average length of employment in the US across industries and job disciplines in 2.7 years some estimates are lower. That means that if you don't find or even search for the right job your chances are that by the company or by your  personal choice the relationship employer-employee will end even before.

Only a few job seekers perform due diligence before they accept an opportunity, many times because they don't know how to do so or simple fear of not finding another job. They say where there is one there is two.

Guess what? Because times are tough jobs that are not right for you will not jump in front of you and scream"Take me, take me!" you might be in luck. Since for once you have to do your home work and uncover where exactly you fit best and turn every rock and speak to everyone you know.  Since employers are taken more care who the hire there are also looking for the perfect fit, after all they can afford to do so now. But that is great news, since if you are the perfect fit for that position they will be more likely to wait for you and be extremely happy they found you and that you bothered looking for them.

Why does this make sense? Think back on what we wrote about before, the chances are that in a regular economy you would have been snatch by some other job that was not the ideal for you.

decorative glass bowls Car Ramps strathwood falkner

Owner Financing FAQ #12: What is the second most common objection to Owner Financing?

www.OwnerFinancingAnswers.com. In the popular "Owner Financing Answers" Series, Mike Watson answers Question #12 What is the second most common objection to Owner Financing? This series will help you take advantage of incredibly low "Post-Bubble" real estate prices without "Help" from a Bank! Open the paper or turn on the TV and all the so-called "experts" agree: real estate is going down down down with no end in sight. You've probably been watching the prices drop month after month and thought "if I only had some money I'd go snatch up some of these drastically reduced homes!" You are right! With foreclosures and short sales abounding, everyone should be buying RIGHT NOW! Prices are incredibly low and higher rents are providing amazing cash flows. The only problem is that the shell-shocked banks won't touch you with a 10 foot pole without a 720+ FICO score and a 20%+ down payment. What if you could purchase property without a mortgage? I know this idea seems crazy on the surface, but just humor me for a moment as I ask the question that could change the course of your life forever... How many properties could you buy if you could secure unlimited financing without asking a bank or mortgage company for their funds? The question seems outrageous, I know, but only because you don't know that my partners and I are buying more "cash flow positive" properties than ever before... all without "help" from the bank! In fact, we are literally buying up whole blocks in depressed ...

mosquito fogger ac repair strathwood falkner

Green Acres is the Place to Be (Your Guide to Purchasing a Green-Built Home)

For today's sophisticated homebuyers, things like clawfoot tubs, pedestal sinks, beadboard trim and wide rocking chair porches are the coolest. There's just something about the character of houses built almost a century ago that draws people to them like magnets. As for the day-to-day maintenance of those homes, however, only 21st century state-of-the-art will do, thank you. Most want a home that looks charming, but that also functions well - where they can live comfortably, aesthetically and affordably and, where they can live - well, 'green'.

Increasing interest and demand for green living has been fueled by economic and environmental concerns. But how do we evaluate eco-friendly design? Green building is still relatively new, and the majority don't know how it can positively affect their lives or their homes. Nearly everyone wants a green home, but few know the first thing about how to find and evaluate one. That is until now.

First it is important to note that a green-built home is built like every other home. The difference is that the builder has taken extra precaution to use sustainable materials and techniques that improve the air quality inside of the home and that reduce the amount of energy required to operate the home. The builder also takes steps to ensure that the home contributes positively to the outdoors environment.

Arts and Crafts

Atlanta's artsy Reynoldstown neighborhood is home to an eclectic mix of Bungalows, Shotguns, Craftsman Cottages, Lofts and Moderns, Reynoldstown now boasts a growing population of certified green homes as new construction replaces some of the older inventory.

Bungalows are so interesting and you can have loads of fun with them. The Art Deco movement inspired bold colors and inventive design like tall baseboards, tall doors, decorative molding and picture perfect baths. In fact, the Bungalow's inherent design makes it naturally suited for green building. Let's take a walk through a typical energy efficient construction and identify the features we should look for when shopping for a green-built home.

Size Matters

One of the best ways to reduce a home's energy consumption is to reduce its size. So, one simple thing you can do, if you want to live greener is to look for a smaller house. Just think about it - smaller homes use less of everything. If enough thought is put into a home's planning and design, then a smaller home can look and feel more spacious than it actually is. And sure, you get a little less space. But you gain that back in efficient use of each room, utility savings, comfort, charm and aesthetic appeal.

Healthy Air in There

All open air spaces from the tiniest to the obvious should be sealed, as even the tiniest of air leaks can cause more damage than you know. Sealing areas like windows, doors, plumbing fixtures, attics, floors, walls, light fixtures and outlets will tighten the building envelope, reduce energy consumption and keep out the bad air. More importantly, it keeps out the bugs. The ladies of the home will appreciate that.

Be wary, if you walk into a house and see wall-to-wall carpeting, as carpet tends to trap dust mites. If a house has carpeting installed, it does not necessarily mean it is not a green-built house, because builders have a right to choose which green features to incorporate into their design. There are different levels of green building. Just remember that if a home has carpeting, you are going to have more dust to contend with and that will likewise reduce the air quality inside of your home.

Though it won't be obvious to the eye, you should always ask what type of paint was used on the walls. You want a non-toxic paint where no chemicals were used. Paint made with no volatile organic compounds (no VOC) or low VOC works best.

Another feature that will improve a home's air quality and create a healthier living environment is having a detached garage. People don't realize that by purchasing a home with a garage that is detached from the house, you avoid possible exhaust emissions that can enter the home from the garage and contaminate the air you breathe in your home.

One of the most impressive green features a home can have is a product called Techshield, which looks like an ordinary piece of plywood with aluminum foil on one side. This plywood is called OSB board, which is an engineered wood panel. The aluminum side provides a radiant barrier which is laid along the roof line. It is designed to reflect the sun's warmth and thereby reduces the amount of natural sun heat entering the home. It will certainly keep the living areas cooler and the HVAC costs lower, and should save the homeowner hundreds of dollars in Atlanta's sweltering summers.

In fact, you may not need to turn the air conditioning on at all during some of the summer days. That's how good it is. On a performance scale, it definitely gets an A+ and a letter of referral.

Buyers hoping to invest in a green home should also look for things like a wood burning fireplace which can be used to cost-effectively heat the home during the winter months. Other basic items which will help you operate your home more efficiently are ceiling fans, compact fluorescent lights, low flow faucets and shower heads, low flush toilets, programmable thermostats, insulation on pipes leading to the hot water heater (or a tankless water heater), a heat pump or other high efficiency system, higher than normal insulation in the attic and laundry room, as well as in the ceiling, floor and wall cavities, and low E windows and doors.

Also, be sure to ask what the home's HERS Rating is. HERS stands for Home Energy Rating System. It is determined after an analysis of the home's construction plans and on-site inspections, and after tests for leakiness in the ducts and leakiness in the home are conducted. Each point below 100 scored by the home corresponds to a 1% reduction in energy consumption. A HERS rating of 76 means the house is 24% more efficient than the standard HERS reference home.

Exterior Green Benefits

Living green means choosing a healthier lifestyle. That means the eco-friendly benefits of your home do not stop at the back door. They carry on outdoors. If a home is Intown, and close to a variety of amenities - libraries, parks and other entertainment - and it has the advantage of easy access to the expressway and all parts of the city - and if it's walk-friendly - close to dining and public transit - then the home provides extra green benefits. Exterior green points are awarded, because it saves the homeowner the cost of gas and reduces environmental emissions. The more places you can walk to from your home, the better.

Use It Again

If the yard has a smaller footprint than what you would typically find, there is less grass to cut and less water needed to make the landscaping thrive. By recycling leftover materials on site during the construction process, the home reduces waste, enriches the soil and sends a lot less to the landfills.

Take Our Word For It

All green homes will not contain each and every one of these items. As mentioned earlier, builders have the right to choose which green items they will incorporate into a home's design. But if a home is truly green, it will contain a good number of these items. Some homes will even contain much more extensive greening like solar panels, geothermal energy, and even green rooftops. There are many more green features to choose from depending on how far up the green tree (and money tree) you want to travel.

Any home constructed according to Energy Star guidelines and certified by independent third party inspection and testing programs like Earthcraft House or LEEDS will provide the homeowner with immediate savings. Reduced energy bills and water savings are a doubly attractive benefit for home buyers in today's economy.

If you are not certain whether or not a home meets the official green test, be sure to ask to see the stamp of approval from a third party certification program like EARTHCRAFT House or LEEDS. They have already done the work for you and determined that the home in question is certified green.

The next time you go looking at homes, take this checklist with you. If you are lucky enough to find a place that attracts your eye and fits your needs, and it also happens to be green built, snatch it up and be proud to call it 'home'. As an extra bonus, you will enjoy substantial energy and utility savings and will also enjoy a healthier daily living environment. Be prepared to pay a little bit extra up front for your green home. There are some added costs involved in making a home energy efficient. But those costs are mitigated by utility savings, energy tax credits, and fewer visits to the doctor. In the long run - you win!

garden sundials

February Thoughts

February 1

"Our brothers have made us lose heart. They say,`The people are stronger and taller than we are...'" (Deuteronomy 1:28). What a pity that our brethren put stumbling-blocks in the way by discouraging us with goblins of fear, guilt, inferiority and hate. God sent His Son to deliver us from these evils. Now we must go on to our new and heavier responsibilities with courage. We must not pay attention to those who would melt our hearts by "saying"--by criticizing and downgrading--and thereby making the downhearted to fall. The one who discourages is like a black cloud with no silver lining. The Christian who knows God knows better.

February 2

Art Buchwald told the story of the Hollywood producer who loved to collect rare books and loved to tell about it, too. His friends, tired of bent ears, hired an actor to tell the producer that he had an old German Bible. The collector asked him who printed it, and the actor replied, "`Guten' something." The stunned producer said, "Guntenberg?" "Yes, that sounds like it." The producer screamed, "Let's go, we'll hire a plane!" The actor replied, "It can't be worth anything. Someone named Martin Luther scribbled all over it." Are we making our Bibles worthwhile for others by notating what is precious to us?

February 3

Ambition is fine if it is headed in the right direction, but aspiration without inspiration can literally kill us. We should hope for a better life, but be willing to work for it, too. "Hope is the sunshine of the heart; and those young people who begin life with a free gratification of wants and a full sense of prosperity lose the fine relish that comes with each new and hard-earned indulgence, and the delight of adding to another's pleasure by self-sacrifice and renunciation. They may well be pitied for not knowing the enjoyment of gradual progress through their own power of perseverance" (George S. Hillard).

February 4

"He leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul" (Psalm 23:2b). This jewel of a psalm has calmed countless hearts. It is beside the still waters where the Holy Spirit meets His saints, not in the winds and waters of strife. He cannot lead us to the placid waters if we are rushing ahead of Him. We must take the time to be led to the peaceful morning hours with Him. This is when He prepares our hearts for the struggles of the day. This is where the success is won before the campaign is engaged: in prayer, seeking our guidance for the day. Then let us rest awhile by the still waters of His gentleness and affection, His joy and peace.

February 5

This humorous story whittles us to our befitting size: A young woodpecker felt quite energetic one morning, and he decided to start the day by pecking at a giant oak tree. He pecked away and was making a minuscule dent when a flash of lightening split the tree from top to bottom. The bird rushed out from under the wreckage, looked up at what the lightening left of the tree, and whispered in awe, "Gracious! I didn't even know my own strength!" It might help to get away from the trees and see the forest to get a better perspective on what God has done for us--and what we can't do for ourselves!

February 6

We have heard many times that overdone expression, "It's a great life if you don't weaken." Words that come to mind are endurance and steadfastness and unwavering. "...We consider blessed those who have persevered" (James 5:11a). The outstanding example of fortitude is Job, even though he understandably went through a period of peevishness. Actually Job was not so patient as he was persevering. He was afflicted with a variety of intense griefs and yet could still bless God and go on. The most effective way to endure the ills that beset all is to look to the end of them, for "This, too, shall pass." At the time it may not seem so, but God is going to wipe away all tears (Revelation 21:4).

February 7

"When he drank some of its wine, [Noah] became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent" (Genesis 9:21). Abraham passed off his wife as his sister--twice--and he rationalized that it was true, for Sarah was his half-sister; he also gave in to Sarah's plea for a child through her maid. David, "the man anointed by the God of Jacob" (2 Samuel 23:1), the beloved of God, fell to the depths and committed just about every sin in the Book. But God forgave them--and He forgives us.

February 8

How the heart yearns for quietness and harmony! We are drowning in din. We are bombarded with rock music and loud ads and obnoxious TV programs with their senseless laugh tracks. The stupidity is appalling. "Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while..." (Isaiah 26:20). The Word asks us to pray for those in authority that the rest of us may lead tranquil and quiet lives in godliness and dignity (1 Timothy 2:1,2). Our guarantee is in Isaiah 30:15: "In quietness and trust is your strength." God is the author of peace, not confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33).

February 9

"So live, that when thy summons comes to join/The innumerable caravan, which moves/To that mysterious realm, where each shall take/His chamber in the silent halls of death,/Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night,/Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed/By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave,/Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch/About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams." (Thanatopsis, William Cullen Bryant). How shall we then live?

February 10

Abraham Lincoln said, "My concern is not whether God is on our side; my great concern is to be on God's side." In 2 Corinthians 4:8 Paul tells us, "We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed..." It is because Paul is on God's side that he can declare such peace of mind when troubles press in from all sides. Lincoln knew that we need only to be on God's side--to know and to do His will--and then we need not worry about God being on anyone's side. After all, God is the Father of us all. He loves all equally and is impartial, which means He is just. That takes care of our need for man's justice, for we have God's truth.

February 11

God means for us to be active. It is against the nature God gave us for us to seek ease and the easy way out. "The only thing in which we can be said to have any property are our actions. Our thoughts may be bad, yet produce no poison; they may be good, yet produce no fruit. Our riches may be taken away by misfortune, our reputation by malice, our spirits by calamity, our health by disease, our friends by death. But our actions must follow us beyond the grave; with respect to them alone, we cannot say that we shall carry nothing with us when we die, neither that we shall go naked out of the world" (Colton).

February 12

The disciples of Jesus progressed from common men into uncommon revolutionists who changed hearts and attitudes. When we envy others their success, or seeming success, let us think of this small band of men who Jesus chose to be His first pupils. And let us remember that these His followers thought Jesus had failed when He was raised up on the cross. But O! that glorious testimony of the Son of Man, "But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all...to myself" (John 12:32). In the lifting of that cross from earth to heaven is the accomplishment and vindication for us all. From that seeming greatest defeat of all came the consecrated and perfect success for humanity. Thank You, Jesus!

February 13

"God does not comfort us to make us comfortable, but to make us comforters" (Dr. Jowett). When we look back on our times of trouble we know that God uplifted us. What He gave was strength as well as consolation. His comfort is not a sedative to desensitize but a brace to fortify our spirit so we might then share courage with others in their time of distress. The cup of grief is full for our friend, and our tenderness is sorely needed, but with that compassion we can tell our friend about His Passion, and thereby help that person to see a reason to live through his or her sorrow.

February 14

Our present generation (and probably every generation) disdains rules. Some have complained that it cramps their style and makes them feel hemmed in. Wilbur Chapman sums it up it for the Christian: "The rule that governs my life is this: Anything that dims my vision of Christ, or takes away my taste for Bible study, or cramps my prayer life, or makes Christian work difficult, it is wrong for me, and I must, as a Christian, turn away from it." Jesus sums it up ultimately: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart...You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Mark 12:30,31). This sums up our rules for life.

February 15

"For Christ's sake..." We cringe when we hear it used wrongfully but in prayer what a splendid purpose it has. "For Christ's sake" we are to forgive one another (Ephesians 4:32); serve one another (2 Corinthians 4:5); accept our weaknesses and difficulties (2 Corinthians 12:10); pray for each other (Romans 2:3); and be fools for His sake (1 Corinthians 4:10). God has mercies for our sakes: "For the sake of ten I will not destroy [Sodom]" (Genesis 18:32). Man pleads in His name: "For the sake of your name, O Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great" (Psalm 25:11). Too, we will be hated of men for His name's sake (Matthew 10:22).

February 16

Arthur M. Moore, in his book, The Mighty Savior, relates the following: "I heard of a boy converted at a revival meeting...who had to leave next day to work three months in a tough labor camp. The people of the church were anxious about him lest he go down there and lose his experience and fail to give his testimony. So they had daily prayer meetings for him until he returned. `How did you get along? How did they treat you?' they asked. `Fine,' he replied. `My associates never found out.'" Was this young man a void page? "You are our letter...known and read of all men..." (2 Corinthians 3:3 ).

February 17

We have heard the phrase, "We are our own worst enemy." Let's rephrase that to, "We are our own best friend." Of course the Christian knows that Jesus is his or her very best Friend, but it might make us feel better, when others disown us for a time, to know that we are friends with ourselves. Abe Lincoln said, "I desire so to conduct the affairs of this administration that if at the end, when I have come to lay down the reins of power, I have lost every other friend on earth, I shall at least have one friend left, and that friend shall be down inside of me." If we stay friends to our principles, then we can remain friends with ourselves.

February 18

"Our youths love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for their elders, and have to chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when their elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up their food, and tyrannize their teachers" (Socrates, 400 B.C.). Doesn't this sound familiar? Apparently human behavior is consistent through the centuries. But our God tells us that He wants to give us a new character; He wants to give us a heart of flesh and take away our hard heart (Ezekiel 36:26).

February 19

A lady realized that her fears were running and ruining her life so she made for herself a "worry table" in which she tabulated all her anxieties. She came up with the following figures: 40%--will never happen because fear is the result of a tired mind; 30%--about old decisions which I cannot alter; 12%--others' criticisms about me, most untrue, made by people who feel inferior; 10%--about my health, which gets worse as I worry; 8%--"legitimate," since life does have some real problems to meet. (From Thomas S. Kepler, Jesus' Spiritual Journey and Ours).

February 20

"And the Lord turned the captivity of Job when he prayed for his friends..." (Job 42:10, KJV). When we are angry toward others then we are captive to ugly feelings. "There is nothing that makes us love someone as praying for him, and when you can do this sincerely...you have fitted your soul for the performance of everything that is kind and civil toward him. Be daily on your knees... praying for others in such form, with such length, importunity and eagerness as you use for yourself; and you will find all little, ill-natured passions die away, and your heart will grow great and generous" (William Law). What a beautiful thought!

February 21

Hands! Do we appreciate our hands? "He showed them His hands..." (Luke 24:40). The hands of Jesus were human hands, hands that once were baby hands; hands that toiled in a carpenter's shop; hands that blessed, motivated by a love that finally literally killed Him. His hands hallowed the little ones; His pure hands touched the sick and made them well in mind and body. But most important of all are His saving hands: "I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand" (John 10:28). To think that our Savior took to heaven wounded hands that were used only to bless us....!

February 22

Sometimes we sink to our knees in sickness of body and mind, unable to gather our forces to go on. This little story should help us in these times. A small boy was struggling to lift a heavy stone, but he couldn't budge it. His father, passing by, stopped to watch his efforts. Finally he said to his son: "Are you using all your strength?" "Yes, I am," the boy cried, exasperated. "No," the father said calmly, "you aren't. You haven't asked me to help you." Even Jesus asked His Father for help that terrible night in the Garden: "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done" (Luke 22:42).

February 23

Benjamin Franklin, printer, publisher, author, inventor, scientist and diplomat, published Poor Richard's Almanack in which he coined numerous proverbs praising prudence, industry and honesty. He wrote: "When confronted with two courses of action, I jot down on a piece of paper all the arguments in favor of each one. Then, by weighing the arguments pro and con and canceling them out one against the other, I take the course indicated by what remains." There are legitimate gray areas of life when it is a good idea to do this. It's choosing the better of two goods, when two options are equally honorable.

February 24

There's a story about a cow and a pig. The pig was complaining because he was so disliked. He told the cow that people were always talking about how gentle and kind the cow was. The pig admitted that the cow was quite generous with her milk and cream, but he told the cow that actually the pigs gave much more. The cow thought a while and then said, "Maybe it's because I give while I'm still living." Proverbs 11:25 KJV says, "The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself." It's a good idea to open hand and heart while living; one of the rewards is both their happiness and ours.

February 25

We should read Psalm 8 on days when we wonder if God cares about His creation. "... What is man that you are mindful of him...You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor" (Vss.4,5). The responsibilities and possibilities are awesome when one does consider what man is. Hebrews 2:9 tells us, "But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death..." The greatest favor and honor to man was the incarnation and resurrection of the Son of Man. In this lies our value.

February 26

A father gave prudent advice to his son who had just graduated from college and was about to go into his profession. "My boy," he said, "remember there are three bones, and you will never have any trouble." "How will three bones keep me out of trouble?" the boy asked, puzzled. "There is a wishbone, a jawbone, and a backbone," the father explained. "The wishbone keeps you going after goals. The jawbone helps you find out how to go after them if you are in doubt, and the backbone keeps you at it until you get there." Lord, we pray for one more bone, a firebone of love from the Holy Spirit, that we may glorify You.

February 27

Richter defined time as the chrysalis of eternity. What an unusual and exquisite concept this is. The dictionary defines chrysalis as the third stage in the development of an insect, the pupal stage; also, anything still in the process of development. It is during pupation that larval structures of insects break down and adult structures form: wings appear for the first time. The adult emerges from the cocoon; the caterpillar is transformed into the butterfly. God is giving us this chrysalis to develop our wings. May we use our time wisely that we may have it for eternity.

February 28

Ecclesiastes 1:9c tells us there is nothing new under the sun. But whatever the current population is, that is how many newnesses there are. Martin Buber said: "Every person born into this world represents something new, something that never existed before, something original and unique...There has never been anyone like him in the world, for if there had been someone like him, there would have been no need for him to be in the world. Every man is a new thing in the world and is called upon to fulfill his particularity in this world." So let us not doubt that God has His good reasons for our being.

wall graphic

Pro-Star MMA, Jerry Jones teaches Guillotine Counter 2

Pro-Star MMA Instructor Jerry Jones teaches Guillotine Counter 2 to a Pro-Star adult class. 1-877-274-4846joe@prostarmma.com prostar pro-star www.prostarmma.com kickboxing grappling bjj brazilian jiu jitsu jiu-jitsu kick boxing punch thai mixed martial arts mma ufc ultimate fighting championship pride IFL ultimate fighter joe brignoli joey joseph jerry jones john graden david bybee frank shamrock chuck norris liddell bas rutten gracie mata teachers association kids karate taekwondo tkd drills clearwater palm harbor FL florida Nutley nj new jersey kids jab cross overhand right hook to body uppercut upper cut focus pads mitts sparring games left hook thai kick straight right straight knee thai knee clinch full mount side mount escape roll guard half full butterfly head north south takedown take down single double sprawl arm bar hammer lock hammerlock reverse keylock key lock bearhug bear hug forearm fore arm snatch low leg headlock front fight stance fighter defense 1 2 3 4 stand up standup position full nelson pass catting out guillotine counter scoop class classroom movement knee kneebar pummel over and under plum tie up tie-up block blocks warmup warm-ups warm ups spin active standing ankle pick foot touch back backward backwards jump side sidekick hook front transition combo combination duck slip evade weave submission submissions www.martialartsteachers.com capping cap wrestling

garden sundials tankless water heaters reviews