How to Get More Balance in Your Daily Living

Laundry, jobs, hockey practice, PTA meetings, aging parents, dental appointments...sound familiar? No wonder there is so much stress in our day! Add to these the current economic crisis and it seems that finding balance in life is virtually impossible. And women are particularly poor at creating balance in their lives as they continually put themselves at the bottom of their priority list. Whatever "me time" there was, gets lost in the shuffle. But, there are some relatively simple things you can do to try and achieve that all essential balance.

As Andy Rooney said, "Remember God didn't do it all in one day, so why should you." Maybe getting the laundry started before breakfast isn't nearly as important as that extra half hour of shut eye.

You have to boldly schedule "me time". Make sure the family knows you will be incommunicado when you are taking that much needed bubble bath.

Make a lunch date with a friend or a relative you haven't seen in awhile.

Remember the kid in you and act goofy. It becomes even more therapeutic when you act silly in front of your kids friends.

Keep a journal. Sometimes it is easier to express your feelings in writing than it is to vocalize them even if no one but you reads them.

Sit outside and let the warmth of the sun wash away your tension.

Stare out the window while you sip your cup of coffee and think of nothing except the great taste of that coffee.

Watch your favourite sitcom and remember, laughing will make sure your wrinkles end up in the right places.

Take time to pray- for the homeless, the orphans, the sick.

Meditate, do Tai Chi or yoga.

Finding that balance is never easy and it will be different for each person. The one common element however is that whatever you choose to do, it must be guilt free. Remember, you are valuable and you make a difference .

The lyrics to that old hymn "Count Your Blessings" serve to remind us that we sometimes simply need to take a moment and be thankful.

"When upon life's billows, you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one.
And it will surprise you, what the Lord hath done."

Remember to be thankful for the things you have gained in life and stop obsessing over what you might have missed. Yesterday is passed, tomorrow is yet to come, and all we have is today.

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Shark!!!

This dude must be rely happy that hes getting a swim and a wash! hmm i wonder what would happen if someone yelled "SHARK!"

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Chipmunks- we made you with lyrics

The chipmunks sing we made you by eminem. comment, rate, subscribe. LYRICS: [Intro] Guess Who? Ya Miss Me? Jessica Simpson sing the chorus [Hook] When you walked through the door, it was clear to me (clear to me) Youre the one they adore, who they came to see (who they came to see) Youre a rockstar (baby) Everybody wants you (everybody wants you) Who can really blame you (who can really blame you) Were the ones who made you [Verse 1] Back by popular demand Now pop a little zantac for antacid if you can Youre ready to tackle any task that is at hand How does it feel? Is it fantastic, is it grand Well look at all the massive masses in the stands Shady, man, no, dont massacre the fans I think Kim Kardashians a man She stomped him just because he asked to put his hands On her massive gluteus maximus again Sqeeze it, squish it, then pass it to her friend Can he come back as nasty as he can Yes, he can, can, dont ask me this again He does not mean to lesbian offend But Lindsay, please come back to seeing men Samanthas a two, youre practically a ten I know you want me, girl, in fact, I can see a grin Now come in girl [Hook] [Verse 2] The enforcer, lookin for more women to torture Walk up to the cutest girl and charlie horse her Sorry Porsha, but whats Ellen Degeneres Have that I dont, are you tellin me tenderness I could be as gentle and as smooth as a gentleman Give me my vitamin, inhaler and 2 senoren And Ill invite Sarah Palin out to dinner then Nail her, let her say hello to ...

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It is All About Integrity

"Adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty." - dictionary.com

The easiest way to start demonstrating integrity in the workplace is to do what you say you are going to do. I've seen many instances where people make promises they can't keep. Even worse, people make promises they have no intentions on keeping in the first place. It's better to keep expectations low and exceed them than to constantly come short on what you said you were going to do. Keeping and delivering on promises not only show integrity, they also show dependability. Many of the supervisors I've worked with group employees into two categories: ones who are dependable, and ones who are not. When it comes time to give someone a big assignment to complete, which type of employee would they look to assign it? That big assignment is an opportunity for employees to show their abilities and audition for promotions, and the undependable employees are going to miss out.

I provided you the definition of integrity I found when looking it up on Dictionary.com. I tell people my definition is 'doing what you are supposed to do when you could easily get away with doing something else.' We all have responsibilities at work, and we should be aware of what we can or can't do. Most companies have detailed procedures which let you know what you can or can't do. Even if your company does not, I would bet your own determination of right and wrong will point you in the proper direction. I bet you've had a situation in work where you've said to yourself, or co-worker: "I wonder if I'll get in trouble if I do this?" Here is a helpful hint, if you are ever in a position where you are wondering if you should or shouldn't be doing something, you probably shouldn't be. This is what I would refer to as making a wise decision. I've heard people say this: "know I shouldn't do this, but nobody will know." This is where real integrity comes in. If you know you shouldn't do it, but do it anyway because no one is watching then you are lacking integrity. When you do get caught and justify your actions, or try and point the blame at another direction other than your own you are seriously lacking integrity.

I've worked at big banks during my 20-year career in banking. Big banks are usually all about the numbers. Shareholders like to see growth, and one of the ways to grow is increase checking accounts. In my book "Promotions Are Not Served At The Deli Counter" I tell a story about branch employees who would solicit customers to open up checking accounts for just one dollar. On top of that, the branch would charge the dollar to a random general ledger! Most times, these customers wouldn't deposit anything else; they are customers in name only. Sure, the branch got their goals, but they were seriously lacking integrity while achieving them. When the bankers got caught - and they always get caught, the only thing they ended up getting was a quick end to their banking career.

Understand what the right thing is to do each day at work, and do it. You will be better for it in the end.

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How to Take Care of Your Skin

Knowing what type of skin you have is very important because everyone has a different skin type and will need to care for their skin in a different way. That is why one type of acne medication or treatment may not work well for you and another will do wonders.

If you have fair skin, get sunburn easily of have a history of skin cancer you need to be especially careful when out in the sun and make sure you are well protected by using the proper sunscreen and wearing caps, hats and staying covered up.

If you have a dark complexion or are of Asian heritage, you may also have very sensitive skin and may not be able to use many of the different topical acne medications on the market today.

Daily Face Cleaning

Many people wash their face two, three or more times per day and a great majority of these people do it wrong.

When I was a child I was taught to vigorously wash my face and scrub my hands with lots of soap and water until they were immaculate. Then when I became a teenager, I was told to use soap, soap and more soap to get my face clean and clean up my oily skin to help prevent acne. In my early adult years I followed basically the same program that I did as a teenager but had different results because my skin had changed.

Now in addition to the wide range of soaps available for the skin, there are many different types of skin cleansers as well. Some of them only clean, others exfoliate the skin (remove dead skin) as well as clean and still others contain various concentrations of medications like benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid. If you wash too often and use these types of soaps in addition to any topical acne medications, you can unnecessarily irritate and dry out your skin.

It should be noted that washing more than twice a day, regardless of the type of facial cleanser used, will have very little beneficial impact on your acne. If your skin is already inflamed and red from acne, then washing too often will only make your face redder and more irritable.

I have tried many different types of soap from the medicated ones to the fancy wonderful smelling moisturizing and exfoliating soaps. However, after a lot of trial and effort on my part I have found that the simple basic types of soaps can work wonders. I have listed some soaps that I fully recommend for the different types of skin. They are not as expensive or have the fancy fragrances of many types of soaps on the market, but they do work and when used regularly will provide good results.

Oily Skin: If your skin is a bit oily, then Ivory soap is a very good as well as economical soap for your skin.

Dry Skin: If you notice that your skin is often dry, then try Dove moisturizing soaps.

If you have very sensitive skin or have an allergic reaction to most soaps, you may want to try some of the non-soap cleansers like Cetaphil, Aquanil, or Neutrogena's Extra Gentle Cleanser.

Once you have the soap that fits your skin type, it is good to develop a regular face washing program. The following steps are ones I use on a consistent basis and I feel really help my skin.

First get your soap wet with warm water and lather up a soft washcloth. Using the washcloth to apply the soap to your skin by gently rubbing it in circles all around your face. Lather up the washcloth as needed and make sure you go over your entire face. Apply a light pressure and gently massage your face as you wash. One thing I do is I count to three in each location before moving the washcloth an inch and counting again. This allows me to make sure I give each area of my face the care it deserves. Once you have covered your entire face, splash some warm water on your face to remove the soap. Keep doing this until all the soap is gone. Use a soft cotton towel gently pat your face (don't rush and rub it) until your skin is dry.

Tips:

One thing you can do to help is to have a few hand towels set aside that you use just for washing and drying your face. (Don't use the same hand towel that everyone else in the household uses after they wash their hands before leaving the bathroom.) Also, when you wash these hand towels, avoid using a large amount of detergent or heavy amounts of fabric softener. You want them clean and soft, but not laden with detergents or fragrances. This may sound a little off the wall to some people but I feel it helps. When you are washing your face, visualize having clear beautiful radiant skin. This helped me to stick to my program and look forward to my face cleaning as a welcome daily diversion rather than a chore.

Well, that is it. Take a few minutes for yourself and your skin twice a day - once in the morning, and once in the evening - to properly wash and care for your face. After a while, you will notice that your skin feels better and is more radiant and then you will start to feel better as well.

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Have You Played Tetris on the iPhone Yet?

live.pirillo.com - That's right... I can play Tetris on the iPhone! It is absolutely worth the $10 you pay in the App Store. It's no secret that I am a Tetris fanatic. Since I also happen to be a tad fanatical about my iPhone... it's no wonder I love this app!

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Fire Ant Bites - First Aid in Case You Are Bitten

Fire ants, although they are such annoying creatures for us humans, they are a real wonder of biological engineering. Fire ants come in different shapes and sizes, the largest of these creatures can come up to be as big as a fifth of an inch, which it is very impressive for a microscopic insect. They can be very easily distinguished because of their brown head and their slightly darker body.

The fire ants have a very simple way to feed, but a much more complicated way to deposit and digest the food. Fire ants bite, cut and chew the skin with they very powerful mandibles (in comparison to their own size), in order to suck up all the nutritive liquids. Interesting is that, fire ants have two stomachs: the fist one has the purpose to deposit and digest the food for themselves, and the second one to share the food with other members of the colony, in order for them to fed properly.

Fire ants have a very annoying bite. The bites from fire ants can cause a burning or stinging sensation on the nearby zone of the skin where the bite occurred (because they cause this kind of sensations, they are called "fire ants"). After that the skin will raise and fill up with a fluid. It is very important that you will not scratch the injured area, in order for that to heal, because you can easily infect yourself or some leave permanent scars on your skin.

These are very little insects, and it is quite impossible to see them on your skin and clothing, with a naked eye. Although they are so little, their actual effects of their bites can be seen and mostly felt very quickly, in less than 10 seconds. Don't be surprised if you will be bitten another time in a short amount of time. Fire ants will bite many times, even if all the venom they have had was consumed before on you or other people.

The best method to kill these creatures is to use on the harmed area a lye - water solution (approximately 20% lye and 80% water). Firstly you will need to make a circle with this solution, in order to trap the insect, and then turn all the solution that you have left on the mound to kill it. Attention! Be very careful when you deal with this solution, because this is a caustic solution.

Also, it would be very wise to douse the mound under hot boiling water for a short period of time in order to kill all the insects. Unfortunately, if we are talking about a full colony, the queen will most probably not die.

Another very good method in order to get rid of these insects is to soap and wash the zone, but in some cases, it will not kill the queen.

Also, it is wise to use proper insecticide on the mound, but you must be very careful in order that the insecticide will reach the queen. If you cannot reach the queen, this action is mostly useless. The good news is that all the other insects will eventually die after this toxic attack in 24 hours.

You can also use some insecticide baits in your house or garden. The bait will be carried back by the fire ants to the queen, and they will eventually feed from the bait or just get in contact with it and die, in the end. This is a very good solution for your problem, if the time factor doesn't count for you so much.

First Aid in case of a Fire Ant Bite

If you are outside your house and you are near a mound, it will be smart to get away from it.

Immediately remove the infested clothes that you have on the moment of the fire ant bite.

Clean the zone by rubbing alcohol or using soap and water on the affected skin part.

In order to reduce the obvious pain and inflammation use ice packs.

Apply creams or lotions based on hydrocortisone topical ointment or calamine.

Try a bleach or even baking soda with water in order to reduce the pain or inflammation.

Use Benadryl to reduce the itchiness sensation and the inflammation.

Call immediately 911 or contact a specialized doctor when you encounter sensations such as hives, swellings, chest pains or even shock and coma.

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GH:WT Today (Guitar, Expert, 100% FC)

Ahh, I'm glad Guitar Hero World Tour has more Smashing Pumpkins, but I really wonder why Billy Corgan is in a skirt...

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Finding a Person

Did you ever wonder if there is a way to find that long-lost sweetheart from high school? How about that college classmate that you always wanted to get back into touch with. Or your first roommate who you've lost contact with over the years. How about a relative that you remember from your youth that moved far away and that you hadn't seen since? We all have someone that we wouldn't mind finding again in our lives. The question is, how, with the influx of cell phones, are we supposed to find those special people that we've lost contact with over the years? If you've ever tried you know that it is completely frustrated when you hit a wall and can't find anymore information about someone.

If you have had the chance to plan a family or class reunion, then you know how terribly difficult it is to track people down these days. Most people move often and have their numbers changed, too. Not only that, but when you buy an online people search you will become easier for people to find you in order to reconnect. When you've got a list three pages long of people you haven't spoken to in many years, you need professional help gathering all their information together. You should spend your time planning the reunion not trying to track everyone down. We will find people and we will find them fast. The information we give you will be much more up to date than online address sites or various white-pages. You can't put a price on your time, but time is what it will cost you to try to find everyone you've lost touch with over the years. Give yourself a break and let us do it for you.

Why not have someone who knows what there doing help you find those classmates, relatives and friends that you have been wanting to locate again? For a small fee, you can search online and find more detailed and recent information about the people you've lost track of. What's more, the information will not be outdated and definitely will not run you into a wall. The fee is affordable and will help you find those people in your life that have faded from your reality. In addition, most of the information about people will be made available instantly and you will also have a chance to contact them via email to say hello.

Get back into touch with those friends, relatives or classmates that you've been meaning to track down for years.

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