Pencil Thin

A couple of weeks ago I received a very lucrative job offer. This job was with a company I have worked for before and would have been in an area I love. The only reason I didn’t take the job was my children. We simply could not uproot them yet again for me to chase after my career. I admit turning down the job was very hard to do. It did get me thinking about my long time goal of starting my own private practice hearing health care practice. My formal training is in the field of audiology. I have begun taking steps to make this dream a reality and feel very strongly I have what it takes to be successful.

One of the steps I have taken to get my practice off the ground is to develop business cards. Having these on hand is an invaluable tool when it comes to promoting a business. As a small business owner every penny counts. This is especially true when you are starting a new business. Whenever I can I look for ways to save as much money as possible on the things I need for my business such as supplies and equipment.

One way to do this is to create your own business cards using services like LogoYes.com. Using the user friendly tools offered by this site I very quickly arrived at a logo design for my business cards that I like very much. Editing and revising the design to suit my individual taste was a snap. I really am surprised that so many people spend so much on specialty services to do this for them. Using LogoYes within minutes I created a business card that looks every bit as nice as those that several of my former employers spent many times more for. Business cards are a vital part of creating a business brand that sticks in the minds of clients and patients.

I sought to design a card that not only shows our professional image but has a bit of flair. Hearing health is a business where new technologies are always evolving and I want my business cards to show match the cutting edge technology my practice will offer. What do you think of my work? Please drop a comment with changes you would make or what you really like about these cards.

Nothing is more encouraging at this time of the year than to look out my window and see signs of spring. The tops of daffodils are just now showing in my yard and little buds are visible on the tree limbs. It won’t be long before we can get our camping gear out of the basement and begin hitting the trails. Not being a fan of outdoor winter sports makes for a very long winter season. I can almost feel the warm sunshine and the crunch of the trail under my feet. Just one or two more inches of snow have to melt and that little vision will become a reality. These winter blues are just about to hit a trail all their own for at least another 6 months or so!

Whenever I go to the gym there is one thought that I can’t get out of my head. Call me crazy but the only thing I find myself always thinking about is just how grimy the equipment must be. When you consider all the people who are sweating and touching each and every piece of equipment it really is kind of disgusting. If I could I would just carry a big old box of antibacterial wipes with me. This way I could disinfect each thing before I sat on it or touched it. They have these wipes at my local grocery store now for people to use to wipe off the shopping cart handles. Why not just leave them lying around next to each station? Of course I can’t really see some of those serious body building macho types taking the time to wipe things off but at least I could have the option.

For several months a good night of sleep has eluded me. In attempt to catch a decent night of sleep I have tried many over the counter sleep aids. The problem is that I find after a while I simply can’t sleep without them. Getting concerned that this could lead to a bigger problem in the long run I have weaned myself off of sleep aids entirely. A friend suggested I have a glass of wine before heading to bed each night instead of taking a sleep aid. She has never tried this herself but says her mother swears by it. My husband makes wine as a hobby and our wine racks are very well stocked. The thing is that I just don’t care for wine that much at all. I do however love the idea of really sleeping well and would gladly have a glass of wine if I knew this was more than an old wives tale. I also don’t want to find myself hooked on wine in order to sleep.

Don’t use regular table salt – it usually contains iodine and an anti-caking agent called sodium silicate. The pre-mixed packets also contain sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) as a buffering agent.

You can make your own buffered salt mixture – first off find a measuring spoon that matches the amount in the pre-mixed packets so you know how much to use and get an air tight container to store the mixture in.

Using canning/pickling salt or kosher salt (neither of which normally has additives but double check the ingredients) and regular baking soda mix 3 parts of salt with 1 part baking soda – be sure to mix it up well, and store it in the airtight container. You can adjust the balance of salt to baking soda to find a comfortable ratio.

You can use this mixture with your neti pot, just be sure the measuring spoon is clean. It’s probably a good idea to dump any unused salt/baking soda mixture after a couple of weeks, so don’t mix up much more than you’ll use in that timeframe.

My in-laws are what I would consider pretty savvy when it comes to finances. They did however surprise me, a few years back, when they informed us that should anything happen to them we would need to take care of the cost of burial. The reason for this was because they do not have any sort of life insurance policies in place. Fortunately, they have put money aside to cover these expenses which has really abated my fears about where we would get the money when the time comes that we must face this.

This discussion caused me to wonder just how many other people, like my husband and I, might find themselves in a very tough financial position should a loved one pass away without savings or life insurance to cover the expenses? options available to them. Obtaining this information is as simple as making a phone call to eQuote and offering a bit of information. eQuote then gets to work to find what no medical life insurance carriers offer policies to individuals based on the data a caller supplies. eQuote handles all types of life insurance quote requests including term life insurance, annuities, and long term care coverage.

I can’t begin to say how thankful I am that both our families have made adequate preparations for these type of future concerns. Were these preparations not in place I can only imagine the financial stress it would place on our family were something devastating to happen to any one of them. The last thing loved ones should be worry about in these moments is how to make ends meet.

The topic of mattresses came up at my coffee group the other day. Several of us have been dealing with neck and back pain for several years now. Having tried so many things on the market I thought I would share my 2 cents on the topic here with all of you. When it comes to mattresses there isn’t one type that is best for everyone, it all depends what you personally like best. That’s tough because one has to spend alot of money on mattresses. I personally have a King Coil with mattress topper, plus a down mattress top on that, plus a several inch thick memory foam mattress topper on top of all of that! I have a queen sized bed, but use king sized deep pocket sheets. So the mattress itself is firm , but I have layers of softness on top it and can take them off if need be. However, it’s never helped to stop some back and neck pains I’ve had, especially when it’s due to nerve pain. As a matter of fact, i have all that b/c when my back first started hurting (in my low back area), I thought maybe it was due to my previous mattress. I wasted all that money on new mattresses and toppers and all sorts of other things and most of the time nothing helped my pains. I do find, though, that having the memory foam helps my one shoulder when that acts up. (I usually sleep on my sides). I’ve also tried many different pillows for neck pain and the only that helps alot is not even really a pillow. I had this buckwheat filled, horseshoe shaped small neck pillow for the car. I was desperate in finding something to lay on and that was my last resort. When I woke up the next morning, I had a lot less pain from spasms anyway. I guess it kept my neck in a nice neutral position because it’s not too smooshy.

So many people I know have been complaining lately about how worn out they feel. I count myself among these batch of people. My diet lately hasn’t been the greatest and my stress level has been over the top. One of the things I really need to do is start taking better care of myself on a basic level. Taking a multi-vitamin would be a really good way to get a jump on this. My doctor has suggested it and I have started looking at different options on the market.

One product I have looked at is GBG Liquid Vitamins. This is a 10-In-One liquid vitamin formula that appears to offer quite an array of good things for the body. Aside from being packed with multi-vitamins and minerals this product is offers properties are supposed to help the body manage the effects of stress and aging. Heart, vision, digestion, and bone health are also supported by this special formula that is boosted with the power of well known super foods like pomegranate and wolfberry. One thing that really appeals to me about this product is the fact that it is supposed to taste good. I have tried so many traditional vitamins that I ended up throwing away because either they tasted awful or left me feeling sick to my stomach. A nice feature about this product, aside from the the low price point of $19.95, is that it is offered with a 60 day money back guarantee. This makes purchasing this product risk free. This product offers people the opportunity to not only take a step towards better health but also to earn extra money by taking advantage of the GBG MLM matrix opportunity. Referring new GBG 10-In-One Liquid Vitamin customers offers a number of added perks such as great money earning opportunities, product shipping discounts, and more.

I suppose it really is time that I stop complaining about how crummy I have been feeling and actually do something about it. Taking a vitamin really is a very small and simple gift I should be giving my body. There are so many much more taxing things I should be doing to improve my health and well-being that there really is no good reason for me not to be doing this. A vitamin that taste good, supports several different body systems, and offers a money back guarantee seems like a solid product choice to get me back on the path to better health.

Routinely I find that I can’t sleep. If this sound familiar you might try this. Melatonin 3-6 mg. might work. For Melatonin to work properly, you should be in a darkened room. It is the dark that stimulates the Melatonin. Try taking it when after you have gotten into bed and in a dark room. After taking it don’t watch TV or sit in front of a computer. If you must get up, do not cut on bright lights. Light from a TV or computer screen will cause it to stop working. Of course, I would talk to my doctor or phone his nurse and ask before mixing any medications that are used induce sleep. One cannot be too careful here.

My friend has a dangerous addiction. It’s not that she is addicted to crack or heroin but she is addicted to something that is just as deadly. She was always just a big girl and never had any desire to work out but did want to loose the weight. About six months ago she started taking over the counter weight loss pills. At first she lost a little at a time but she then adopted the mindset that a little is good but a lot is so much better. She started to skip meals and take more and more of these pills. Eventually, because she was not exercising, she plateaued and could not get over this hump. So she got even more drastic by eating only breakfast and taking more pills against her doctors advice. Now she looks horrible and no matter how hard we try we can’t convince her that she needs to eat and that the pills are playing a huge roll in how she now looks and feels. I have tried to talk to her about quitting the pills but it is like talking to a wall.

My mother is an older woman but she stills tries to do as much as she can to stay active. She started with a rowing machine an soon she had her sun room filled with various equipment. As she got older she would get rid of something and try to replace it with something that was more user friendly to her joints. She recently got rid of her stationary bike and decided that she was going to replace it with an elliptical bike which allows her body to rest in one position while she works her legs and gets in some cardio. From my standpoint its something that I can come over and use and the kids can use it for what they use every other piece of exercise equipment for, a coat rack.

What is it with children and marketing? Everything my son sees lately he thinks our family needs to have. Sometimes it is understandable why an 8 year old boy would want the stuff he asks for and other times it just leaves me bewildered. For example it makes perfect sense that a child this age would be asking for a dog or a new video game. On the other hand just because he sees an eye catching display or garden tractors or hears advertisement for HDMI switches does not mean that we need to jump in the car and go get one. Certainly, there are very good reasons to buy these things but it isn’t a top priority for a second grader to have a new John Deere lawn tractor when his yard is the size of a postage stamp! I suppose I can understand it slightly because I went through my own phase of purchasing every beauty product known to man that came in a pretty box.

For me, there are two types of women at the gym those who are there to work out and those who make me laugh. A women who is there to work out looks the part and is prepared and focused on her workout routine and is not there to socialize. The other type of women is the one who is only there to socialize. These women come in with their big fluffy track suits and hats with gaudy designer jewelry on which probably gives them a workout in there own right. They never complete a full set of reps in any machine and think nothing of trying to start a conversation with you as you hit the peak of your routine and cannot understand why it is necessary to work so hard to work out. The eventual outcome of this phenomenon is that they all find each other and coordinate when they will all be there so they end up having this little clique.

Tax time is here and it has left me feeling stupid. Last year was the first year I worked from home as an independent contractor. Having no clue what working for yourself would mean when it came to taxes I am finding myself completely unprepared. I did not save any of the receipts that I should have. It just never occurred to me that stuff like my digital camera and micro sd cards could be deducted on my taxes because I use them for work. This doesn’t even begin to cover the dozen or so other things I have overlooked saving receipts for. It is pretty clear now that I need to keep very careful records for next year because I am likely going to be paying for my oversights this year.

The last year has been a roller coaster ride for us. We have had to make a number of decisions about the future that in another situation we might not have been forced to make. For quite a while we have known that we would eventually be trying to sell our house. The thing about this was that it was always some far off distant plan that would take place whenever we got around to it. Life has a way of putting your plans on the fast track when you least are ready for it.

After 10 months of being driven crazy by our hard partying, criminal, and gangster “wannabe” neighbors to the left and right the time has now come for us to move. There is only so many times you can call the police, Department of Development, the landlords who own these properties, the city council, and CPS before you just have to give in and move. What really sucks is the fact that we worked hard and saved money to buy our home in a community that wasn’t a rental community only to have it turn into over the 8 years we have lived here.

Anyhow, it really feels good to be making progress on moving and selling the house. What is fun is to begin daydreaming about the things we would like in our new home. My oldest son recently got the chance to play pool for the first time. He now is quite serious that we need to have a game room in our new house so that he can have a pool table or “billiard” table has he puts it. He points out pool tables and billiards supplies every time he sees them when we are out shopping. My husband has even gotten on the bandwagon for buying a pool table. In his day he was quite an avid pool player. At one point he almost flunked out of college because he spent so much time playing pool. At least I won’t have to worry about that quite yet since my older son is only eight years old.

I am quite fine with us having a game room as long as I get my single desire for our new house granted. The only thing I really want in a new home is a big yard. This mean a yard big enough that my neighbors can’t look straight into my windows and I can’t hear every time they flush the toilet. That isn’t too much to ask is it? I am a woman of single needs and consider myself pretty low when it comes to upkeep but this is one thing I simply have to have. My future sanity very likely relies on it!

I recently had a friend come out of drug rehabilitation and it looks as if he has finally decided to change his ways. I’m not basing that on any one statement he made but more on how he looks which is ripped. It turns out that there was a gym in the facility that he was in and when he was not attending group he was working out 2-3 hours a day for 5 days a week. He has cut out most red meat in his diet and has recently joined a cardio kick boxing class as he was not able to do much of a cardio work out other than jump rope. I have to give him a lot of credit as this is the first time in 7 attempts that he has attended rehab and not come out only to immediately go to his dealer for a fix. He says he feels better than ever and wants to make this a total lifestyle change which could only be a change for the better for him.

My husband and I have agreed that we were going to try to by more active together so we are going to take a yoga class twice a week. Upon registering, the instructor gave us some literature on yoga and some of the equipment we would need to participate and, should we choose to, continue with it from home once the class is over. One of the things was an exercise ball which increases the resistance of each position you can use with the ball. We found one on e-bay for a reasonable price and the reviews indicated that it was good for yoga so we purchased it through their a directbuy option rather than going through an auction. Until the class starts, which is next week, my kids are literally having “a ball” with it in our living room. My son is more active now than he has been all winter.

Winter is not normally the time that my husband and I try to plan a vacation, but this year we are going to give it a whirl. After searching what seemed like millions of sites looking for travel deals, we found what we think would be a great first time winter vacation site in the Adirondacks in upstate New York. The place that we found says that it has the best ski trails in the area and dozens of trails to take for our first attempt at snow shoeing. I am hoping that we can keep the kids occupied for the four days we are there so we are investing in a portable DVD player for the drive and a multitude of sleds and igloo block makers. Hopefully we will have time to really take in the sites and get the incentive to try it again the following year. Knowing our luck though, an avalanche would come and bury us until spring. Hope the battery for that DVD player is long lasting.