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howtoloseweightfastsafely · 5 years

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The 10-second Trick That Can Slash Your Risk Of Cardiovascular Mortality By 37% (Most Traditional Cultures Have Done This For Centuries)

Did you know that people who ate less than 2 grams a day of this vital nutrient were 37% more likely to die of heart disease?

Did you know that this nutrient is constantly blamed for stroke, heart disease, high blood pressure, and various other ailments...but research shows it does the opposite of what most doctors and the media tell us?

And did you know that this nutrient is literally sitting in your kitchen cabinet at this very moment?

Well, I'll quit teasing you.

This nutrient is gold ol' "deadly, vicious, blood-pressure rising" salt.

Doctors and the media tell us salt is causing heart disease, is slowly killing us from the inside out, increasing our blood pressure and causing all sorts of issues.

And big pharma sells us expensive pills and emergency surgeries (while making millions, at our expense)...when we could pay less than $5 for an annual supply of simple heart-disease-preventing salt.

You see, the whole "salt = heart disease/increased death risk" hypothesis is based on a very poor "if (this), then (this)" thinking, without accurate backup research.

Basically, "experts" (including the American Heart Association and its inaccurate sodium recommendations) say:

1. Salt causes a slight increase in blood pressure

2. High blood pressure is related to heart disease and stroke risk

3. So, if we cut out salt, then we'll decrease our risk of heart disease and stroke

Sure, that sounds great in theory.

But since when, in the history of time, has one single nutrient or one single "anything" caused the downfall of our health (or any other issue for that matter).

Long-term problems are almost always due to a combination of poor choices, but never to just one single choice.

Just as obesity is likely due to excess calorie and nutrient consumption and limited exercise and underlying issues in the body...heart disease, stroke, and increased disease risk is likely due to poor dietary choices and poor lifestyle choices and possible genetic predispositions, etc.

But, no, of course, the "experts" don't consider this. They just come out and say "salt = heart disease and stroke", and don't even think to look at our evolutionary upbringing and samples of modern-day sodium usage. (These "experts" are ridiculous.)

Thankfully, I've come upon some good info in my readings that should help make this all clear.

If I haven't mentioned it already, I'm a big fan of ancestral health/longevity researches like Paul Jaminet, Chris Kresser, and Stephan Guyanet. And, in some of their findings and writings, you'll see that salt is actually well-documented as a staple nutrient in various cultures and as a necessity in our diets.

Let's jump into the facts.

Here's the truth about salt (and its disease-preventing properties):

1) A comprehensive study of sodium intake of 33 countries found that intake averaged 3.7 grams (about 1.6 teaspoons per day), decade after decade.

a. This level correlates with what can be thought of as a certain "reward threshold". The thinking is: the level is uniform in all countries, regardless of the culture or cuisine, because without that 3.7-gram intake level, we just don't feel adequately satiated.

2) From a biological standpoint, renin and aldosterone hormone levels jump significantly once sodium intake is below 1.5 teaspoons per day, in a clear-cut sign of sodium insufficiency.

3) A Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) showed that sodium excretion of both over 7 grams per day and under 3 grams per day was directly associated with increased cardiovascular disease risk

4) The "sweet spot" in the JAMA study was a level of roughly 4 to 6 grams of sodium per day.

a. For those having under 2 grams per day, cardiovascular mortality risk was increased by 37%!!

b. FYI: The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends a max of 1.5 grams per day! This is even less than the 2 grams per day threshold. If we follow these AHA guidelines, our cardiovascular mortality risk will be even more than 37%.

5) A 2011 American Journal of Hypertension study found no solid evidence that a reduction in salt intake prevents heart conditions.

What this means for you:

Disregard the government/doctor recommended levels, which may cause sodium insufficiency and increased disease risk

BUT, don't go so high that you still end up damaging your body.

The "sweet spot" is 4 to 6 grams of sodium per day, or roughly 1.6 to 3 teaspoons per day.

Increase your potassium intake. 4,700 mg per day is recommended, whereas most Americans get half that number. Potassium and sodium go hand in hand and the former can often prevent internal deficiencies caused by the latter.

If you have kidney problems, you may be one of the few people who should worry about keeping salt intake down. Please speak to your doctor.

You've now got the information you need. It's time to make the changes!

Interested in losing weight? Then click below to see the exact steps I took to lose weight and keep it off for good...

Read the previous article about "7 Steps To Reduce AGEs and Slow Aging"

Read the next article about "How To Clean Up Your Liver and Vital Organs"

Moving forward, there are several other articles/topics I'll share so you can lose weight even faster, and feel great doing it.

Below is a list of these topics and you can use this Table of Contents to jump to the part that interests you the most.

Topic 1: How I Lost 30 Pounds In 90 Days - And How You Can Too

Topic 2: How I Lost Weight By Not Following The Mainstream Media And Health Guru's Advice - Why The Health Industry Is Broken And How We Can Fix It

Topic 3: The #1 Ridiculous Diet Myth Pushed By 95% Of Doctors And "experts" That Is Keeping You From The Body Of Your Dreams

Topic 4: The Dangers of Low-Carb and Other "No Calorie Counting" Diets

Topic 5: Why Red Meat May Be Good For You And Eggs Won't Kill You

Topic 6: Two Critical Hormones That Are Quietly Making Americans Sicker and Heavier Than Ever Before

Topic 7: Everything Popular Is Wrong: The Real Key To Long-Term Weight Loss

Topic 8: Why That New Miracle Diet Isn't So Much of a Miracle After All (And Why You're Guaranteed To Hate Yourself On It Sooner or Later)

Topic 9: A Nutrition Crash Course To Build A Healthy Body and Happy Mind

Topic 10: How Much You Really Need To Eat For Steady Fat Loss (The Truth About Calories and Macronutrients)

Topic 11: The Easy Way To Determining Your Calorie Intake

Topic 12: Calculating A Weight Loss Deficit

Topic 13: How To Determine Your Optimal "Macros" (And How The Skinny On The 3-Phase Extreme Fat Loss Formula)

Topic 14: Two Dangerous "Invisible Thorn" Foods Masquerading as "Heart Healthy Super Nutrients"

Topic 15: The Truth About Whole Grains And Beans: What Traditional Cultures Know About These So-called "Healthy Foods" That Most Americans Don't

Topic 16: The Inflammation-Reducing, Immune-Fortifying Secret of All Long-Living Cultures (This 3-Step Process Can Reduce Chronic Pain and Heal Your Gut in Less Than 24 Hours)

Topic 17: The Foolproof Immune-enhancing Plan That Cleanses And Purifies Your Body, While "patching Up" Holes, Gaps, And Inefficiencies In Your Digestive System (And How To Do It Without Wasting $10+ Per "meal" On Ridiculous Juice Cleanses)

Topic 18: The Great Soy Myth (and The Truth About Soy in Eastern Asia)

Topic 19: How Chemicals In Food Make Us Fat (Plus 10 Banned Chemicals Still in the U.S. Food Supply)

Topic 20: 10 Banned Chemicals Still in the U.S. Food Supply

Topic 21: How To Protect Yourself Against Chronic Inflammation (What Time Magazine Calls A "Secret Killer")

Topic 22: The Truth About Buying Organic: Secrets The Health Food Industry Doesn't Want You To Know

Topic 23: Choosing High Quality Foods

Topic 24: A Recipe For Rapid Aging: The "Hidden" Compounds Stealing Your Youth, Minute by Minute

Topic 25: 7 Steps To Reduce AGEs and Slow Aging

Topic 26: The 10-second Trick That Can Slash Your Risk Of Cardiovascular Mortality By 37% (Most Traditional Cultures Have Done This For Centuries, But The Pharmaceutical Industry Would Be Up In Arms If More Modern-day Americans Knew About It)

Topic 27: How To Clean Up Your Liver and Vital Organs

Topic 28: The Simple Detox 'Cheat Sheet': How To Easily and Properly Cleanse, Nourish, and Rid Your Body of Dangerous Toxins (and Build a Lean Well-Oiled "Machine" in the Process)

Topic 29: How To Deal With the "Stress Hormone" Before It Deals With You

Topic 30: 7 Common Sense Ways to Have Uncommon Peace of Mind (or How To Stop Your "Stress Hormone" In Its Tracks)

Topic 31: How To Sleep Like A Baby (And Wake Up Feeling Like A Boss)

Topic 32: The 8-step Formula That Finally "fixes" Years Of Poor Sleep, Including Trouble Falling Asleep, Staying Asleep, And Waking Up Rested (If You Ever Find Yourself Hitting The Snooze Every Morning Or Dozing Off At Work, These Steps Will Change Your Life Forever)

Topic 33: For Even Better Leg Up And/or See Faster Results In Fixing Years Of Poor Sleep, Including Trouble Falling Asleep, Staying Asleep, And Waking Up Rested, Do The Following:

Topic 34: Solution To Overcoming Your Mental Barriers and Cultivating A Winner's Mentality

Topic 35: Part 1 of 4: Solution To Overcoming Your Mental Barriers and Cultivating A Winner's Mentality

Topic 36: Part 2 of 4: Solution To Overcoming Your Mental Barriers and Cultivating A Winner's Mentality

Topic 37: Part 3 of 4: Solution To Overcoming Your Mental Barriers and Cultivating A Winner's Mentality

Topic 38: Part 4 of 4: Solution To Overcoming Your Mental Barriers and Cultivating A Winner's Mentality

Topic 39: How To Beat Your Mental Roadblocks And Why It Can Be The Difference Between A Happy, Satisfying Life And A Sad, Fearful Existence (These Strategies Will Reduce Stress, Increase Productivity And Show You How To Fulfill All Your Dreams)

Topic 40: Maximum Fat Loss in Minimum Time: The Body Type Solution To Quick, Lasting Results

Topic 41: If You Want Maximum Results In Minimum Time You're Going To Have To Work Out (And Workout Hard, At That)

Topic 42: Food Planning For Maximum Fat Loss In Minimum Time

Topic 43: How To Lose Weight Fast If You're in Chronic Pain

Topic 44: Nutrition Basics for Fast Pain Relief (and Weight Loss)

Topic 45: How To Track Results (And Not Fall Into the Trap That Ruins 95% of Well-Thought Out Diets)

Topic 46: Advanced Fat Loss - Calorie Cycling, Carb Cycling and Intermittent Fasting

Topic 47: Advanced Fat Loss - Part I: Calorie Cycling

Topic 48: Advanced Fat Loss - Part II: Carb Cycling

Topic 49: Advanced Fat Loss - Part III: Intermittent Fasting

Topic 50: Putting It All Together

Learn more by visiting our website here: invigoratenow.com

#weightloss #diet

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myminifactory · 7 years

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How to Spend Your Time like a Nerd in Cancun

Words from our Scanbassador David Jeuniaux, currently venturing through Cancun as part of a South American tour, armed with his camera and a strong passion for culture, photogrammetry and 3D printing!

When I say the word vacation, what do you picture? I bet it would involve a blue sea, palm trees, white sand and overwhelming heat. Now add Mayan ruins and a plethora of tourists, and you will have a good idea of what Cancun is like.

I was there with my beloved girlfriend and, like a massively proud nerd that I am, I spent most of my time at archaeological sites and museums.

Two of my passions are History of Ancient Civilizations and Photogrammetry, and this trip is a great opportunity to mix them in a giant “spend 8 hours per day in museums and piss girlfriend off” kind of way.

In this article, I will talk about the Museo Maya de Cancun (MMC), the most postcard-ready place in the world.

But let’s get to the start of it, shall we?

Inaugurated in 2012, the MMC is one of the latest and most modern museums in the country. Located right in the Zona Hotelera, it is the spot you don’t want to miss, when Chaac, the god of rain, in not chic. (My apologies for the lame joke.) The MMC is divided into 3 rooms. Although that doesn’t seem like much, they are literally filled to the brim with treasures from all around Mexico.

The first room is where they display all the magnificent artifacts that have been found in the state of Quintana Roo (where Cancun is located).

This is one of the richest departments of the country, culturally and economically. But it relies so much on tourism that it can be overwhelming. We actually passed by a large crowd thinking it was some kind of amusement park only to notice later that it was, in fact, Mayan ruins.

When you look at the map below, it can be hard tell where the ruins end and where the funfairs begin.

...and then, after your cotton candy, don’t miss out our reenactment of a Mayan sacrifice. It is a blast!

But all in all the MMC still managed to gather an extensive collection of artifacts, here are a few examples. And yes, now’s the time I start linking STL files.

Stele with Spiral Writing [download STL]

The first item is a stele with Mayan writing on it. “Not very spectacular.” you might think, but what is peculiar about this one is that the text is written in spiral. From what I can gather, it is a one of a kind. Most steles are written in block in two columns from top to bottom and from left to right. If this interests you, follow this link. I could not find more info about this one except that it was found in the ruins of Coba and was carved during the Golden Age of the Maya, between 600 and 850 AD. The description of the stele doesn’t include a translation, so if you have a linguist friend, print this out for him, it will make a great mind puzzle gift.

Nakawé smells like a coyote. Tanok

Architectural Features

I put the two next artifacts together because they both came from the same building. These are stucco reliefs from the ruins of Oxtankah. They were dated between 650-850 AD.

The facades of the Mayan buildings were richly decorated and painted with scenes associated with divine rulers and supernatural beings. The first one represents the face of a man with a headdress, probably a noble, and the second is the head of a bird, most likely an eagle.

1) Architectural Feature Bird [download STL] 2) Architectural Feature Head [download STL]

And that’s about it for that room. There were so many other things to scan, but the problem is that the museum has large windows and the sun there is so bright, leading to reflection, leaving me unable to scan more artifacts. But luckily in the next room a lot of items were uncovered.

The second sala in the museum is dedicated to the Maya as a whole. It features artifacts from all around Mexico. I spent most of my day there and made friends with the attendant… just kidding, museum attendants hate photogrammeters!

Monkey In Noble’s Clothes

I’d have to say this is my favorite piece. Even though I know that dressing up a monkey in clothes is sort of animal ill-treatment, I can’t help but giggle when I see one. So it makes me laugh internally when I picture the Maya having the same kind of goofy tradition a thousand years ago.

The Maya associated the monkey with writing, knowledge and the arts. It was also associated with pleasures such as gluttony, sexuality, dance or music; all typical entertainments of the Mayan elites.

This piece dates back to the post-classic Maya period, between 900 and 1200 AD, and was found at Chichen Itza.

[download STL]

The Hatted Lord

This bust was found in the ruins of El Rey, located at the seaside of the Caribbean. It represents one of his lords, dressed elegantly with earmuffs and a headdress. There is a depression in the top of the head, meaning it was also used as a censer. Treat yourself, print it and use it as an ashtray!*

[download STL]

*Mayan curse included

Reliefs with Warriors

This is one of my favorites too.

This artifact represents a pack of Mayan warriors aligned like the seven dwarfs going to the mine, and sculpted like some Super Deformed figurines. Look at those dainty little feet!

This object is really worth printing because like most bas-relief, a picture doesn’t render it finely, you’ll need to print it in 3D to see all the little details. Found in Chichen-Itza and dated between 900 and 1200 AD.

[download STL]

Heigh-ho, heigh-ho! To murder you we go.

And here we are at the last room. It is where they display temporary exhibitions. When I was there, the attention-grabbing theme was “sexuality and motherhood”.

As you can imagine there were lots of interesting things I could have scanned there, but again, the glass/sun combo screwed up my plan.

But the one I managed to scan is so good, it made my disappointment go away.

Metaphorical statue with spike

This sculpture represents the penetration of the Earth. (kinky) Archeologists believe that it was buried with the reproductive organ at ground level, probably during a farming ritual.

So go ahead, print this one out and bury it in your garden to improve your crops just like the Mayas did!

[download STL]

But remember kids, the balls have to drop to the ground.

And that’s about it for this museum. I’d have to say, I had an awesome time there.

I was a bit frustrated about the reflections on the glass cases, and I wanted the freedom to take pictures without the cases. There was a good chance they would say no, but I asked anyway. So on my way out I pleaded to talk to the person responsible, and they introduced me to an archeologist that worked there, Dr. Antonio Reyes. I talked with him about my project, and he told me that he too is a photogrammeter! It was the first time I had met another scanner, and we talked for a long time, mainly about the interest of photogrammetry for research and education. That encounter comforted me that this technique can also be used to help researchers in their studies, and not only be a fun way to waste your holiday.

All of the objects mentioned in this article have been made available on Scan the World, many thanks to David for his contributions. Be sure to track his progress as he travels across South America by following this blog!

You can download all of his scans and follow his profile on MyMiniFactory here! https://www.myminifactory.com/users/eurotronic

~Happy Scanning!

#David-Jeuniaux #3dprinting #photogrammetry #3dscanning #scantheworld #myminifactory #south-america #travel #photography

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ilovehighhats · 7 years

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Scutum, ch. 2, The Walk

The bed was made after she forced herself to get up and do some chores, shower and dress. Hopping on top of the cover she sat comfortably, preparing to surf the net. To distract herself from tempest raging in her mind since yesterday.

Thoughts coiled in her head all night, simultaneously tightening and releasing pressure over Helena's heart. Bane was alive. He was a short walk away, a distance she could scale anytime she wanted. He came for her, to be with her. It was everything she wanted. More even, since he was silently watching over her through all the years. Vigilant but careful, he never let her feel pressure other than concern of a friend.

All that while he planned to destroy a whole city, after keeping its occupants hostage for few bitter winter months, exposed to elements and cruelty, and oppression. Men, women, children alike.

Death was indiscriminate, but his pragmatism and casual way he talked about it rung discord in Helena's brain. How could one be both loving and murdering? Focused on subtleties of academia and brutally murdering scientists?

She spent unnecessary hours trying to find in her mind arguments against him. Every single one felt hollow. Bane was a child of circumstance he was born into, molded by violence, later excelling in a cutthroat mercenary environment he was an autonomous part of. Tied by honour or sentiment he worked for League of Shadows, destroying and tainting the world… but what was the difference between him and some shady businessman who funded those kinds of operations? Where was he worse from people ordering abductions, assassinations, assaults? How were his sins comparing to presidents ordering their troops to invade foreign countries, supposedly for peace and upholding higher moral values?

Ultimately, Helena knew Bane was at the very least a murderer. Probably objectively could be qualified as mass murderer. She couldn't find in herself an ounce of honest to God fear over that fact. What she needed was an explanation, reasoning, validation.

Above all, she wanted to make sure he was done with his mercenary work for good.

If only he'd spent all those years and resources towards his research. At fifty there was still some time left for him to leave his mark on the world, a different one he had scored already over the years. Maybe he could bridge the gap between his disposition and what the world made him become, maybe he could reconcile merciless machine of destruction with intricate tool of discovery.

After all, many inventions came to life from dusts of war.

Helena was still the most interested in Bane the person. The man behind now non-existent mask.

How would he be without everything he built so far? No people to govern over, no tasks to complete, no places to conquer. Peace and quiet of retirement crushed many men before him. Would he be like Napoleon, a genius tactician reduced to moping around an island he was confined to, no light in his eyes anymore? Would he become gluttonous and complacent?

All she needed to do to find out was simple - let the man do what he wanted.

But damn, he always got his way. This didn't feel right to just let him slide into comfort of a relationship, without a hitch, hindrance, without second thoughts.

She wanted nothing more herself...

Chime announced new email. She wasn't in the least interested in anything but her neighbourhood friendly mercenary, but obsessing over Bane had to stop. And for that she needed distraction. An email would do.

Was it a commission? A friend with news on their kid? A request from LinkedIn? Some horribly disfigured person asking for money for a medical procedure?

No such luck.

‘I read your emails.’ the message said simply.

Another chime.

‘All three hundred sixty four of them. It took a while.‘

Helena stared at the screen. Laptop could use some cleaning; the edges were darkened with grime. Fingerprints smudged the dark plane of glass. She focused on them instead of words displayed below.

‘One might think you were worried about me.’

“Oh, you fucking dick!” she growled.

‘Contrary to what you might have thought, I took care of you to the best of my abilities and possibilities. This land for instance, along with everything on it would be yours in the event of my death. There is a hefty sum to go with it. The notary is obliged to assist you in any legal matter you might encounter.’

‘Also, there is the small subject of your concessions. Who do you think gave Herr Schmidt your contact info? ‘

‘Also, there is another plot of land in Italy, and apartment in London. A mansion in Kashmir. Summer houses in Chile, Namibia, Mongolia, and Argentina. House in Louisiana. Pick any if this place doesn't suit your needs.’

‘Also, you might want to reconsider your comment about being indebted to me. You're welcome to follow my suggestion as for the interpretation of this whole situation.‘

Infuriating. He danced around important subjects, never leaving any information that could link him to his true identity, all the while conscious of Helena’s awareness of the double meaning of his words. Playing her knowledge against her.

Closing her eyes to think she exhaled slowly, ignoring pings of notifications coming from the computer. Well, for one Bane did put enormous effort into tricking her. Then again, it was all to make her comfortable and content. He never talked her out of her numerous affairs. Instead, he made sure she was well provided for, either by his own commissions or those of his friends. As control freaks go, he was actually quite caring and generous.

Okay, now he was agitated too. Five messages in span of around five minutes.

Very unlike Bane.

Helena glanced over the emails, more ranting with “also” as a starter, and hit reply on the latest one. If they were to discuss anything it certainly couldn't happen over monitored emails.

‘Let's go for a walk. Meet me at mine in five.’

She sent it and closed the laptop. Not wasting time immediately went to put on her boots and warm jacket. She was finishing with laces when Bane appeared on the pathway to her cottage. Well before the time she gave him.

She thought he'd look out of place, the memory of his imposing silhouette from Armenia still etched in her mind, but he was irritatingly casual to a bystander. If not for the scars one could think this was just an ordinary man, past his prime but still fit. Dark jumper with turtleneck hid most of his markings, the sleeves long enough to cover his hands down to base of thumbs. Washed down blue of baggy jeans blended with grey sneakers. The only spot of colour was scarf tossed carelessly around his neck.

Helena could have sworn he magically shrunk over the years. Once she thought he was a giant. Now, as he stood politely by the glass door to the terrace waiting for an invitation in, she saw he couldn't be taller than her latest fling. Which put Bane from realm of fantasy back into cozy normalcy. Unnerving. Dangerous. He was anything but normal, average or ordinary.

She stood up and gestured for him to come in.

“Since it's all yours I don't see why you're sticking to formalities,“ she observed, sliding her hands into warm jacket. It was still chilly out.

“It's your home. I'd hate to be impolite.”

Helena only hummed in wonder. Bane watched as she tucked scarf and hat on, zipped up and put gloves on her hands.

“Are we going far?”

“Don't be so amused. I was always amazed how you'd burn up even in the middle of winter.” They went out to the terrace and Helena immediately congratulated herself choice of wardrobe. Despite the sun, cold wind pinched her cheeks with unpleasant gusts. “We might take a turn around the beach?”

Bane nodded and they started, silent for the short walk down to the sea. He followed Helena down wooden steps through budding foliage, across the tarmac and down to the sandy patch by the water. Only then he stepped up a bit to catch up and stroll shoulder to shoulder.

“I like your hair like this,” he gestured vaguely towards her messy bun.

“Dishevelled?“

“Long. But the disarray is quite charming too,” he admitted.

“Thank you. I like you with your hair on better too.”

The weather was nice, even though gale from over the sea tossed their scarves around carelessly.

“You know, I don't think we ever went anywhere together like this. Always either you or I was one step behind, trailing along.”

“Technically you’re wrong, since I carried you around once or twice. Almost the same.”

“I disagree. That's hardly comparable to walking together.”

“Perhaps.”

“I'm worried, you know.” She sighed. Bane waited patiently for a follow-up. “You turn up all of a sudden after all this time and I have to remind myself of everything you are.”

“Do you?” He sounded genuinely interested.

“No, I really don't.” Helena laughed dryly. “But it feels wrong to just pick everything up and start anew.”

“Why?”

“Well, you're a mass murderer. Maybe not exactly, since the bomb exploded safely away from Gotham, but you confirmed yourself you wanted to blow everyone up.”

“Does it matter to you?”

Fuck.

“Maybe.”

“Helena.”

He knew her too well, had her thoughts, intimate and private, on display for him for years.

“How do I even call you now?” she spat angrily, furrowing her brows in impotent frustration.

He only chuckled. “Tony.”

Nose wrinkled in comical display of distaste Helena sneered.

“Don't be ridiculous. It doesn't fit you one bit.”

“It’s my name.”

“I get it, your alias should be like a second skin, yadda, yadda…”

“No,” he interrupted. “You don't understand. That is my real name.”

“It is?”

“Yes.”

“But you were born in prison.” Like that would be the explanation to everything.

“Every penal institution keeps meticulous records.”

“Even ones where people are treated like animals?”

“Yes, even those. I know exact time and date of my birth, names of my parents, my weight, height, and credentials of doctor who cut the umbilical cord. No different from any other person.” Looking down at her he snorted inelegantly. “You thought it was all savagery and dirt?”

“It sounded like it.”

“Nazis treated people like inferior beings, which didn't stop them from recording every name anyway.”

“Point taken. Still, Tony just doesn't suit you.”

He chuckled again. “What would then?”

“...Bane.”

He laughed.

“But we can't keep using that name, what if someone overhears?” she continued, oblivious to the way he stared at her in amazement. Whether she realized, the decision was made, and she already acted upon it. “I could always try calling you ‘babe'. “ She winked at him. “Sounds almost the same and is culturally acceptable. Alas,” theatrical sigh escaped her, followed by slight shaking of her head, “that would imply a relationship closer than what we have.”

“How do you mean?” Bane furrowed his brows again. Maybe she knew exactly where she stood and only played with him?

“Well I don't really know you. I thought once I had you all figured out,” rueful smile softened her gaze for a second, when she recalled one conversation they shared, “but in reality I don't know how to reconcile everything I know about you. You're like three different people to me now. Bane the terrorist, Tony the scientist and this unnamed man who said yesterday he loves me.“

No, she wasn't sure what she wanted, Bane thought. She was figuring it all out still.

“It’s too much, all at once. Two days ago I was mourning your death. Yours and Dorrance's!” She huffed a small scoff. “And now here we are. But enough on that. What did you mean when you said you want me to go away with you?”

“There are people who know your name and your connection to me never was a mystery. I wanted to take you somewhere where we could both have a fresh start.”

“But I like it here.”

“It would be safer that way.”

“You assumed I'd just pack my things and go because you say so?”

“Yes.”

“How typical.” There was some disappointment in her tone, but she was surprisingly stable otherwise. “How about this. Stay here with me. Let me get to know you. Then we'll see.”

The proposal was risky at best. Unwise.

“For how long?” Bane found himself asking to buy some time.

“I don't know. As long as it takes, I guess.”

“It’s not a game, Helena. “

“I'm not playing games with you… pal.”

“Pal?”

“I have to call you something!”

“How about ‘mate'?”

“Tsk, tsk, you try to sneak double meaning in there?”

“Never,” he winked.

But his smirk faltered into a disappointed scowl.

“I imagined this to be different,” he admitted towards the sea.

“Well, it's real.”

“It is,” he agreed.

No matter what happened next he knew he'd never let her go now. Even if she would keep him perpetually an arm’s length away. Just being together like this, walking down the beach, was doing wonders to his battered soul. For the first time in years he felt good. Even despite aches of his body and discomfort the conversation brought along.

The smile he gave her when he turned back threatened to overpower weak March sun. She didn't see it, observing rolling clouds, swimming deep into her own thoughts.

He faltered. That was his mistake in the past. He was too focused on his own musings to take into consideration she had ones of her own. Valid point of view, vector of actions she took. He would do well to listen to her more carefully this time. What he wanted could be different from what she needed...

“How did you get here, anyway? After you've been hit by a rocket back in Gotham.”

The reply was automatic, he had other things on his mind, but he was glad she was interested in him still.

“There was a lot of commotion that I missed, since I was unconscious for the most part. I ended up in a bunker, been roughly patched up. Transported around the city to avoid detection, then out with a smuggling tunnel. Spent most of those two months on a vessel at sea.” And in a hideout that was tropical mansion in Bahamas. Details, details, details. Helena didn’t have to know everything, at least not all at once.

“And you magically healed yourself?”

“No. There was a professional who took care of me.”

“So, the League of Shadows just let you go?”

“No.”

“Are you going to volunteer any information without me explicitly asking for it?”

“Probably not. It's not who I am.”

“Go figure,” she chuckled.

Bane resisted an overwhelming urge to gather her close and kiss that sound away. He hadn't had a chance to kiss her yet. How did that omission even happen?

“Okay, so what about your primary occupation then?” she continued, unaware of his inner turmoil.

“I'm an astrophysicist.“

“I'm being serious here, friend.”

He was taken aback.

“Is it really so hard for you to call me by my name?” Do we have to negotiate everything too? He thought. Do you still want me? Why won't you accept me for who I am now instead of who I was?

“Yes. Now stop evading the question.”

Her sincerity put him in his place.

“They thought I was dead, but are probably looking for me.”

“Why?”

“They expect me to lead them. Expected. Now they probably want me eliminated.“

It came out more bitter than he intended, resentment towards Helena bleeding out into his words.

“Would you stay alive as long as you did, if that was really their objective?”

Bane stopped dead midstride.

“Well, your men are League’s men, are they not?”

“They are loyal to me.” The argument sounded childish even to his own ears. But he knew that to be true.

“Maybe they just let you retire with dignity.” Helena reasoned, offhand remark offering no comfort, only brutal honesty backed by cold logic. That was a hard blow. The realization he might have been let go of consciously, as a courtesy for years of work. As a reward for his sacrifices.

“You could step up and lead them different path, right? But you chose to come here instead.”

Action as clear to interpret as a written resignation.

“What happened to the people who cared for you when you were convalescing after Gotham? The ones who smuggled you to safety?”

“They work for the league still, or went into hiding.”

He never stopped to think about what happened to them. Some leader he was.

“I still don't understand how you are up and about so fast after major injury.”

“That drug I was taking, the one the mask was for. It had many purposes beside the main one. One side effect was vastly improved self-healing ability of my body,” he supplied absentmindedly.

He didn't leave them, they abandoned him. A general no longer needed. Broken soldier sent back home to put himself together, too incomplete to be an asset again.

“Cool.”

Helena's amused voice brought him back to reality.

Wasn't that what he wanted? To be left alone, to live in peace?

If the League let him go, as she suspected, he had nothing to escape from. He could just stay here.

“Plus I was cared for by the person who concocted it. She is real magician with organic chemistry,“ he finished his previous thought out loud.

“Isn't magic an undiscovered science?”

“Indeed.”

This time he made sure she saw his happy grin. Relief pooled in the pit of his stomach and he started different kind of plotting nearly instantly.

Again, why didn't he kiss her yet?

oOo

Bane stopped at the threshold waiting for Helena to permit him entry. She scoffed and waved him in, aggravated with his attention to formalities.

“Do it one more time and I will legitimately treat you like a vampire. With your accelerated healing and all.” She warned half seriously.

“That was Venom. Don't have it anymore.” He vaguely gestured around his bare face.

“Oh. Mere mortal like the rest of us puny humans.”

“Quite so.”

He followed her downstairs to the kitchenette.

“Take a seat,” Helena threw over her arm as she busied herself with the stove. There was still enough soup for the two of them, and she could make some grilled cheese to go with it.

Warm chest pressed to her back and two big palms splayed over the counter on each side of her. Bane leaned in to peek over her shoulder.

“What are we having?”

“Chunky tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Do you like them with mustard?”

“I don't know.”

“I'll make two kinds then. Fried in butter or baked?”

“You decide.”

“Mustard ones will be fried, and I'll make plain baked too, then.”

“Sounds good,” he rumbled and turned back to sit at the table.

Silence stretching between them was cozy like a blanket, invaded only by sounds of Helena working, heating up pan and oven, layering cheese over toasts and checking on soup back on the stove. Bane just watched her sprawled in the chair like in the old days, listening to her absent-minded humming. Skylight in the corner let some of pale sunlight in, but it hardly reached the counter below and rest of the room. Helena worked under cold spotlight stretching under upper shelves over the working station. The oven emitted warm, yellow light, a counterpoint to almost medical detachment of grey planes of steel shelves with their cold blue of led lamps.

This was it. The feeling of rightness washed over Bane, the familiarity of place and situation, ridiculous since there was nothing he could attach himself to. But he did find himself at home. Sitting in a chair and watching Helena like he did so many times before.

It was right, somewhat. He was complete.

“You make me satisfied. That's why I came here. You make life simple. There is something that's just enough, without much fight, without much arguing. You allow me to just, be,” he said, recalling a rant interested same subject years past.

To think she knew what was best for him even back then.

“This is the first time in your life no one expects anything of you,” she mused, mulling over his words while she ladled the soup.

Bane only murmured in agreement, waiting for anything more she might add.

Twin bowls clunked softly on wooden plane of the table, followed by plates Helena set gently with a smile.

“Tuck in,” she encouraged Bane, sipping soup with a muffled sigh of satisfaction.

“How barbaric,” he noted, smiling over bite of toast.

“Cutlery is useful, but not always necessary. This is much better at warming one up after a stroll,” she defended herself, glancing coyly over rim of the bowl before she set it finally on the table. “Besides, isn't it nice to wrap your hands around something warm and pretty?“

“I had in mind something else than clay,” he smiled. She didn't pick up on frivolous tone he used. Too soon still? “This is my new favourite thing. This soup.” He practically inhaled half of it in one go. “If I knew how good you were in the kitchen I would have you cooking along with copying.”

“You don't get to joke about that!” She huffed in mock annoyance.

“Why not?”

“I'm supposed to be traumatized over the subject, you know.”

“Are you?”

“Not over this one, no.” There was enough between them to leave open the possibility of working through myriad other things other than the fact she was abducted and imprisoned. “So, did you have anyone? Over the years?”

Surprised look he sent her was a gem, the unguarded way his lips opened a bit taking off at least a decade of strain off his face.

“There were women,” he admitted.

“Anyone long term? “

“No,” he furrowed his brows, leaning back in the chair. “You know how difficult it is to meet anyone not professionally interested in my person, in my line of occupation. They were all paid.“

Helena nodded with a hum, not in the least put out.

“I expected as much.”

“Last one was few years back,” he said quietly, munching on his toast, eyes turned down.

It wasn't like him to be embarrassed, so what was it?

“So this is the first time in your life you're allowed to just get to know people, develop healthy relationships, without complications over work.”

That wasn't a question. She said it like she only needed him to confirm something she thought about long and hard, before they even started this conversation.

Bane didn’t like the look of resolve on her face. Not one bit.

“Where are you going with this?”

“I think we both should give each other ample time and space to work this situation over,” she said, a decisive nod punctuating her conclusion.

“Explain.”

“Perhaps it is not me you're in love with, but the idea of this life that I lead. The peaceful life you want to have. Perhaps I'm in love with the memory of you, more than the actual person.”

He couldn't argue otherwise immediately, which in itself gave him pause.

“What then? How do you want to proceed?”

“We have the basic covered already. Let's get to know each other. You have your cottage, I have mine. I wouldn't mind if you wanted to broaden your circle of friends.”

With some effort Helena could pretend she didn't notice how he seethed across her.

“Which reminds me, Grace and Graham will invite me over for Easter, am I allowed to say you're here?”

“Yes,” he hissed.

“Would you like to come with?”

“I don't know,” His eyes were impassive, but his jaw was set so hard he barely opened it to speak. “My thanks for the meal,” he nodded and turned to the stairs.

“Are you gonna sulk because I want to deal with this situation like an adult?”

“Am I allowed to?” He sneered.

“Do what you want. I know I can take care of myself and just live on my own. Can you?”

He turned at the bottom of narrow staircase, straightening up to look down at her. No more a scientist she walked with over past hour.

“Helena, you will do well to remember one simple truth about me. Whatever you or I would like to think, I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.” His voice was quiet, but gravitas of words seeped to her in powerful confident waves, strengthening their message. “And my decisions over past decade proved that not only am I capable of taking care of myself, but also of you, and a very complicated military operation, all at the same time.” His eyes narrowed, conducting the anger he felt. “Now for the solitary living, the whole point of me being here was to avoid it. I've been alone most of my life. But I understand your fears. You won't hear from me again, until you ask yourself for my presence.” He nodded in farewell. “Goodbye, neighbour.”

#bane #fanfic #bane dcu #original character #tdkr #fanfiction

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centerforhci · 4 years

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Nine Unconventional Ways Freelancers Landed Gigs

According to a recent study by Upwork and the Freelancers Union, the most common places for freelancers to pick up work are friends and family (36%), professional contacts (35%), and online job platforms (29%) like Upwork, Freelancer.com, Guru, and even Craigslist.

This breakdown spells trouble for some. American workers looking for projects on online marketplaces, for instance, are often competing with workers who live in countries where the dollar is strong. That means many foreign workers can accept far lower rates. If you can hire someone to transcribe an interview for $3 an hour, you aren’t giving that contract to a freelancer charging $15.

So where else can freelancers find work? Just ask these ten people, who picked up gigs in some unexpected places.

1. TAP YOUR DATING LIFE

Joy Yap found freelance work by unintentionally mixing business with pleasure. She went on a Tinder date with an entrepreneur who was just about to launch a company.

They didn’t hit it off romantically, Yap recalls. But, remembering her line of work, the entrepreneur reached out a couple months later with an offer to do some freelance marketing for his startup. “I agreed!” she says. “I’ve been doing freelance work for him off and on for about a year now, and saw the company grow from inception into a million dollar company today.”

Anyone who’s used an app like Tinder knows that modern dating often involves a little harmless cyber-stalking to gather extra intel on the person you’ve just met or are planning to meet. “One funny way I got a client on Fiverr,” says Alex Genadinik, referring to the gig marketplace, “was from a girl I was dating about a year ago. Early on during our dating, she and her friends decided to Google my name, which is very unique, and my Fiverr profile was one of the things that came up in their search.”

The woman and her friends shared Genadinik’s Fiverr profile with someone they knew who was looking for his line of freelance work, and the two ended up striking a deal. “All along I thought he was just a regular client that randomly found me on the internet,” says Genadinik. It was only months later that the woman let him know she’d played professional matchmaker. “[It] was pretty embarrassing for me because everyone was clued in except me,” Genadinik says, but hey—he got the work.

2. ADVERTISE IN REAL TIME

If you’re a freelancer, chances are you’ve sat at coffee shops with your nose in your laptop. So why not let passersby know exactly what you’re doing and that you’re available for hire?

Shayla Price says she landed a gig by creating and placing a makeshift placard saying “freelance writer” in front of her computer while working at Starbucks and other public places. Price says she’s received a few inquiries every time she whips out the placard.

3. EMAIL THE CEO DIRECTLY

“I’ve been obsessed with a large, multinational hair care brand for many years now,” says Termeh Mazhari, “so when I became a freelancer, I decided to just email the CEO directly.”

Going straight to the source may sound like a waste of time—execs usually aren’t the ones hiring contractors. But in Mazhari’s case, it paid off. “I told her about myself and the value I could bring to the company, and to my great surprise her assistant wrote me back and arranged a meeting with the CEO at their posh Manhattan office!”

What’s more, Mazhari landed more than just a tiny one-off project this way. “I ended up getting a year-long consulting gig with the brand, even though they already had a large internal PR team as well as multiple external agencies working with them.”

4. HUSTLE FOR FACEBOOK SHOUT-OUTS

After Stephanie Moore got laid off, she decided freelance full time and turned to Facebook to market her services.

“It started with one client . . . that I met through Facebook. She was very popular with a national brand,” Moore recalls, so she decided to attend one of the client’s networking events. There, Moore told her she wanted to “shift my focus from marketing and design to PR,” and the client “agreed to be my guinea pig.”

Their bargain went like this: “After each big accomplishment,” Moore says, “she would shout me out on Facebook as her publicist. Every time she tagged me, there was a guaranteed client on the way. All of her friends and potential clients began to reach out and ask for press releases, designs, etc. The more work I did, the more tagging I would get.” By tapping into one happy client with the influence to amplify Moore’s work, offers began piling up. “People would post my designs tagging me in the post, almost bragging that Stephanie Moore did it.”

Like another “solopreneur” who recently shared her method with Fast Company, Moore never thought Facebook could drive so much of her business—95% of which she now estimates comes from the social network.

5. OWN YOUR OUT-OF-THE-BOX THINKING

If you want to freelance, you have to be willing to share your ideas, even if you’re not sure they will be well received. Don’t wait for the perfect, full-proof pitch to go out and get your gig.

Just look at Chris Post. He held steadfast to his out-of-the-box thinking when he was building his freelance business. He says,

“At the time, just about every local property management company was trying to hold onto and gain tenants by offering them one or more months of free rent.

I had previously worked as a commercial real estate agent, and made a pitch to a property management company I was friendly with from that time: Instead of offering free rent to tenants, offer marketing assistance in the form of a free website in exchange for signing a year lease. They would spend less paying me to build a website than they would lose by deducting a month’s worth of rent.”

Post’s freelance career has now become a full-blown web development and marketing company called Post Modern Marketing.

6. NETWORK ON INSTAGRAM

Mallory Musante is one of the co-founders of Bold & Pop, a collective of social media, branding and web design freelancers. While they mainly find new clients from referrals, they occasionally use freelancing sites to find work. In this case, they sent a proposal to a client, researched the company a little further, and decided to follow all of their social media accounts. Musante never heard back so assumed the company had gone with another freelancer.

But wait—Instagram to the rescue. She says, “we were surprised when we received an email through our website requesting more information on our social media marketing services. While they didn’t remember us submitting a proposal on the freelancing site, we were able to catch their eye on Instagram by occasionally networking with them.”

7. PARTICIPATE IN YOUR COMMUNITY

Abandoning the traditional workplace can feel isolating, participating in your local community can be a remedy, as well as a fantastic place to drum up freelance work. Photographer Tammy Lamoureux shares a great example of community involvement leading to jobs.

“Wanting to get more product photography gigs, we started hitting up our local craft fairs and farmer’s markets. We get a room full of small businesses who will most likely need professional photos of their merchandise at some point or another. So, go around from booth to booth and chat with the vendors. Take some photos of their products and make sure to get their contact info so you can send them the shots later. They will appreciate the free photos, and you’ll be top of mind the next time they are in need of some product photos. We did this at one craft fair, and ended up with five new clients for about 2 hours worth of work.”

8. GO WITH YOUR GUT

Kelly Boyer Sagert’s usually picks freelance work based on the right amount of income attached to it. But sometimes, she decides to go with a gut feeling to see what happens. She explains how one of those gut-driven exceptions landed her unexpectedly great work:

“A few years ago, a nonprofit agency asked me to take their research about the first woman to solo hike the Appalachian Trail and turn it into an ebook. I did — and then they asked for it to also be written as a first person storytelling performance, so I did. Concurrently, the agency was having some of their video footage turned into a mini-documentary and discovered that they couldn’t get the grant funding they wanted/needed unless a play was written on the subject. So, I wrote a play script and we talked to a theater that had produced some of my work in the past, and they put on the play. So, the funding was secured, the documentary was created and, since my play was used as the foundation, I got writing credits — and the documentary was picked up by PBS: Trail Magic: the Grandma Gatewood Story.”

9. TELL PROSPECTS WHAT THEIR COMPETITORS ARE UP TO

If one company is looking for services, then their competitors are probably looking, too—or will want to as soon as they learn of it.

“I had one company contact me for a strategic marketing plan for the upcoming year,” recalls freelancer Stephen Twomey. He saw that as not just one potential opportunity but several. “I knew they were looking at other consultants as well.”

“So, since I knew company A was looking for something, I contacted companies B, C, [and] D and mentioned that one of their main competitors was looking for strategic marketing consulting”—without mentioning which one. Twomey says “Company A ended up going with a different [contractor], but company C actually bought a consulting package.”

The services you offer may not belong in a creative field, but it still often takes ingenuity to land those gigs in the first place. For just about every freelancer, thinking outside the box can really pay off.

Have you landed freelance gigs in an unusual way? Share your story in the comments below, on Twitter, or send me an email.

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#top leadership consulting firms in alexandria #top human capital consulting firms alexandria #human capital consulting firms in alexandria #top management consultancy in alexandria #strategic human capital consulting #top leadership development consulting firms

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unixcommerce · 5 years

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What is a Virtual Assistant – and 47 Tasks They Can Do for You

A reader asks:

What does a virtual assistant do? And how can one help my business? I run a small business but the volume of emails and customer inquiries has exploded. It’s challenging to stay organized. Yet we can’t afford to hire a full-time administrative assistant or office manager — nor do we have the space, because our office is tiny. A colleague suggested I hire a virtual assistant. Can you give me some idea of the types of tasks a virtual assistant can do?

— Howard from Albuquerque, New Mexico

Howard, this is a great question. Yes, we will explain exactly what a virtual assistant does. We’ll go one better for you. At the end of this article we outline 42 different tasks a virtual assistant (VA) can do for a small business, so that you have examples to draw on. But first, let’s answer some basic information.

What is a Virtual Assistant?

A virtual assistant is an independent worker who assists with administrative, business development, social media, marketing or other tasks. By taking on recurring tasks and administrative work, they free up time for small business owners, entrepreneurs and managers.

The virtual assistant works remotely, often from a home office. Virtual assistants may be US-based but may also be located in another country.

VAs have become incredibly popular with small businesses over the past decade because they are a flexible workforce. A virtual assistant can be part-time or full-time, depending on your requirements. Need 20 hours a week? No problem. Need 30 hours? What about 40? VAs are available.

Virtual assistants may be paid an hourly rate. Or they can get paid a fixed fee per week or month.

Often you can get a better deal and deeper benefit by hiring a full-time virtual assistant, for several reasons:

Prices can be surprisingly affordable, especially for offshore workers.

It’s easier to integrate a full-time assistant into regular workflows and get deeper benefit from the arrangement.

A full-time VA will be better positioned to learn any special software apps you require, develop cordial relationships with co-workers and customers, and grow with you as the business grows.

Some virtual assistants work as independent freelancers. Others are part of a company or agency where you hire the company to provide a flexible workforce. When you work with a virtual assistant company, you dealing with a manager who will discuss your needs and find the best fit.

Benefits of a Virtual Assistant

Virtual assistants can do a lot to boost your business’s productivity. Think of it this way. How an owner spends his or her time might be the biggest factor in the success of the business. So business owners (and key managers) need to spend their time on high-value activities.

Rob Levin, Chairman of Work Better Now, puts it this way, drawing from his own experience.

“In order to spend time on high-value activities, it was important for me to spend less time on lower-value activities. This is why I not only hired a virtual assistant 5 years ago but why I co-founded a company, Work Better Now , to provide virtual assistants to other business owners.”

Levin’s partner Andrew Cohen and Work Better Now’s CEO, says the most common question asked by the company’s prospective clients is “what can a virtual assistant do for me?”

To answer that question, Cohen provides a list of 46 tasks a virtual assistant can do.

47 Tasks a Virtual Assistant Can Do

A virtual assistant performs a variety of tasks. These range from scheduling appointments to screening and responding to emails. But scheduling and emails are just the tip of the iceberg. If it can be done online, a virtual assistant can probably do it.

Here’s your ultimate guide to virtual assistants, what they are and what they do.

Calendar Management

Managing your calendar, both professional and personal, is one of an entrepreneur’s greatest challenges. From providing reminders to scheduling appointments, virtual assistants can make it effortless for you. They can:

1. Coordinate and schedule calls and appointments. This alone typically saves owners about 10 hours a week and keeps them from doing these tasks that they dislike. The key is to give your assistant rules about when and who. VAs also schedule calls for some team members.

2. Confirm appointments. A best practice is to give the virtual assistant a list of appointments to confirm, such as the next day’s appointments. This eliminates wasting time when the other party forgets or waits until the last minute to cancel.

3. Provide reminders about calls and appointments. There are times when you might forget to make a call, especially when out of the office or in back-to-back meetings. The virtual assistant can call or text you a few minutes before to ensure you don’t forget.

4. Reschedule calls and appointments. While you may try to avoid it, sometimes, you need to reschedule. Your VA can handle this for you.

5. Provide notice of schedule changes to others. The virtual assistant will also provide notice to the other party and get the rescheduled time confirmed.

6. Protect time. It can be hard for business owners to say no to someone who wants to meet for a coffee to “catch up.” The VA can be the bad cop.

7. Send and maintain a “pending list”. Each week, virtual assistants can send you a list of people that have not responded to requests for setting up a meeting or a call so you know when you need to get involved.

8. Inform significant others when you will be out of town. As part of a travel process, the VA gives significant others a calendar invite with the out-of-town dates along with flight and hotel details. This keeps them informed.

Email and Contact Management and Communications

If you’re buried under a ton of emails — or if you need someone to update your contact list — take note. A good virtual assistant can save hours of time by doing the following activities:

9. Screen emails. Based on rules you set, VAs will delete, respond, forward or flag emails for your attention.

10. Add people to contacts. When you have a call, meeting or some other form of engagement with someone new, the virtual assistant can add that person’s details to your contacts.

11. Update people’s info to contacts. Sometimes, a contact’s phone number or other information is not known right away. A VA can add information to contacts as it becomes available — say from an email signature.

12. Add contacts to CRM. One of the main reasons that small businesses don’t use their CRM app is due to the time involved in entering data. Virtual assistants can add to and organize your CRM system.

Phone Tasks

If you need some light receptionist work done, or phone interactions, a virtual assistant can do certain tasks.

13. Perform light receptionist duties. When expecting important calls that you may not be available to answer, calls are forwarded to the virtual assistant.

14. Transcribe voicemails. As most voicemails can now be received by email, these are forwarded to the VA for transcription. And any necessary follow up activities.

Travel

Arranging flights and hotels for business travel could eat up way more time than you realize. Isn’t that time you could better spend working on your business? A virtual assistant can:

15. Research flights. A virtual assistant can screen flights to meet you criteria and present options to you. By providing them with airline, seat and other preferences, the VA will save an amazing amount of time over the course of a year.

16. Research hotels. Similar to air travel, by providing the virtual assistant with hotel preferences, including any special rates you get, they can present a shortlist to you.

17. Book flights and hotels. By providing the VA with credit cards and frequent flyer information, they can book travel once you’ve decided.

18. Research transportation options. This includes rental cars, rideshare and sometimes even public transportation.

19. Book transportation. Beyond researching these options, your virtual assistant can also book the rest of your transportation — as they do your flights.

20. Arrange for events. Whether it is a special restaurant or meeting space or even a concert, the virtual assistant researches and makes arrangements for you.

21. Suspend newspaper or mail. Your virtual assistant can cut off these regular services when you are traveling.

Business Development

Whether researching leads on LinkedIn or finding email addresses, there is a lot of leg work in business development. A virtual assistant can do these activities, letting you focus on the personal interactions involved in making sales.

22. Research leads on LinkedIn. B2B businesses (and some B2C businesses) must keep a list of ideal clients. A virtual assistant, following guidance from you, can research LinkedIn and creates a list of prospective clients.

23. Find email addresses. Using databases along with Google, a VA can find email addresses of prospective clients you need to contact.

24. Design presentations. A VA can enhance proposals by finding and inserting a prospect’s logo and changing the text color to match. They can also animate slides as appropriate.

Management

As you scale your business, there will be plenty of management functions that need to get done. You may need to assemble reports for clients. This may simply mean putting together a lot of data you may already have. There are other management functions — like recruiting more people to your team. You can easily delegate some of this to your virtual assistant.

25. Assemble reports. A VA can create KPI reports at pre-determined intervals to track progress.

26. Help to recruit employees. The competition for good people is tougher than the competition for employees. VAs screen LinkedIn for prospective employees based on criteria that you provide.

Accounting

Does doing the books or sending invoices fill you with dread? Why not have your VA do this stuff instead.

27. Maintain the books. With a little training, virtual assistants can review and match transactions and handle monthly reconciliations.

28. Create and send invoices. With the help of templates, a VA can create invoices and send them to clients.

29. Chase down payments. All companies should have an accounts receivable process. virtual assistants can follow that process and collect A/R. The process can include escalation to the business owner or someone else when appropriate.

Personal Errands

You’ve got a personal life too. Making restaurant reservations and sending gifts takes time. But they’re extremely important for maintaining your personal relationships. And you’re supposed to be running a business at the same time? Get your virtual assistant to help.

30. Make personal restaurant reservations. Armed with personal preferences and log in details for booking sites like Open Table, VAs can book restaurant reservations and then invite the guests.

31. Make purchases. Sometimes even Amazon doesn’t have what you need and the purchase process is too time-consuming. A virtual assistant can shop online and get you what you need.

32. Research and send gifts. When a gift card won’t do, your assistant can look for something unique and make it happen.

33. Manage the logistics for your hobby. Whether finding and arranging a studio for your garage band or arranging the details of your book club, a VA can take the tedious details off your plate enabling you to rock (or read) on.

34. Track down problem orders. When an order doesn’t arrive on time, a virtual assistant can do the waiting-on-hold and get to the bottom of it while keeping you updated.

35. Manage the family calendar. This is another simple personal task your virtual assistant can take off your plate.

36. Schedule medical appointments. With birthdates and insurance details, a VA can schedule doctor visits and even start to fill-out those annoying forms.

37. Pay personal bills. For those vendors you don’t buy from regularly or who don’t have online payment options, a virtual assistant can pay the bills.

38. Call stores to get information. Whether you are looking for a hard-to-find bottle of scotch or a gift, a VA will make the calls to find the store that has what you are looking for.

Operations

Your job as a small business owner is planning for your company’s future. As a result, you want to focus on creating new products and services — and other projects that will take your business to the next level. So maybe you should leave jobs like filling out online forms and handling file management to someone else.

39. Fill out online forms. A virtual assistant equipped with company information can fill out forms including subscribing to SaaS products.

40. Take notes from webinars. Sometimes you would like the information from a webinar but don’t want to invest the time to watch — even for on-demand! A VA “attends” and provides the notes.

41. Convert files. Have a PDF but need a jpeg? A VA can convert it for you.

42. Conduct research. A virtual assistant can conduct first-level research for decisions that need to be made, such as which SaaS product to choose.

43. Set up projects in your project management system. A VA can set up the project and then invite the appropriate participants.

44. Handle file management. Whether you use Dropbox or a local server for file management, a virtual assistant ensures that files are put in the right place with the right filename. He or she also ensures that the right people have access.

45. Schedule social media. A VA takes your social media posts and schedules them per your process.

46. Proofread and edit letters, blogs and presentations. One of the great risks you run when you get overloaded is that mistakes may creep into your work. So your virtual assistant can help you with that.

47. Maintain a virtual assistant manual. Most business owners love processes but hate making or sticking to them. A VA keeps a manual of how to do their tasks. This comes in quite handy when a virtual assistant is out sick.

Things a Virtual Assistant Does Not Do

Of course, there are a few things your virtual assistant won’t do. You needn’t worry about a virtual assistant’s attitude if you ask them to do something. A VA does not:

48. Roll his or her eyes at you. At least you won’t see it if it happens! And you won’t “hear” it in any communication.

49. Require a bigger office or another desk. These folks won’t be sharing your office space, so there’s no need to make extra room.

50. Interject drama. With virtual assistants you won’t have big egos to coddle. You won’t need to walk on eggshells or worry about gossip overriding professionalism. The nature of the relationship being long distance means office drama is nonexistent.

Next Steps to Get a Virtual Assistant

Identify the tasks in your business that would be best to outsource. Hint: Focus on tasks that do not require your expertise. Ask yourself if the task is the best use of your time or would be better done by someone else

Use services like Work Better Now to identify virtual assistants that fit your needs.

Whether you want to scale your business, stop doing tasks that annoy you or just want more free time, a VA is a game changer. I think you can see hiring a virtual assistant could be key to your success. Hope this helps you decide whether a VA is right for your business.

Good luck!

For more information about virtual assistants, read:

How to Succeed in Your Small Business While Doing Less with Virtual Assistants? (INFOGRAPHIC)

19 Secrets to Hiring the Right Virtual Assistant

All answers to reader questions come from the Small Business Trends Editorial Board, with more than 50 years of combined business experience. If you would like to submit a question, please submit it here.

Image: Depositphotos.com

This article, “What is a Virtual Assistant – and 47 Tasks They Can Do for You” was first published on Small Business Trends

https://smallbiztrends.com/

The post What is a Virtual Assistant – and 47 Tasks They Can Do for You appeared first on Unix Commerce.

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thyroids101 · 6 years

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BargainBrute.com Review: The ultimate shopping experience....

BargainBrute.com Review: The ultimate shopping experience. Shopping online is fun!

Are you a shopaholic? If your response is yes, then you will love to read my review. I am addicted to upgrading my wardrobe every now and then. This is why I am always on the lookout for great shopping sites. I work long hours, so I do not get the time to go to malls.

For me online shopping is a more convenient option. We all know that the online world is full of scams, so it takes a bit of research to develop your trust on a shopping portal. Two months back I was surfing for a great online shopping platform and came across BargainBrute.com.

I was skeptical to shop from here at first because I had never shopped from them before. However, I decide to take a chance. My experience has been so positive I just had to share.

An overview about BargainBrute.com

When I had a look at the website of BargainBrute.com I noticed that they have an extensive variety of items. It is a one stop solution for buying items of your choice. I love art, and they have an Art Collectibles store called Audrey’s Artwork that is run by an exceptional 5 yo little girl. Audrey Vandergraph, the daughter of Billionaire Douglas Vandergraph runs this store and you will fall in love with the pieces she has chosen if you have an artistic eye. I researched Audrey further and found that she is quickly becoming recognized in the business world as the youngest Senior Executive in the United States. Very impressive Mr. Vandergraph!

Apart from this, BargainBrute.com has an additional 49 stores. As I walked through each store I felt as if I were at the mall itself. The graphics, product pictures and descriptions all made perfect sense to me. With 2 million different products I was beginning to wonder if I would have time to see everything !! This was amazing !!! Being a parent, I love the fact that site is also good news for all new mommies out there who have not had the time to rush to the markets to buy things for their babies. You will find baby food, clothes, toys, diapers and baby skincare products in the All Inclusive Baby store. I mentioned clothing. I was completely amazed by Sarah’s Fashions. At the age of 8 years old this little girl is apparently in the 7th grade and in her free time runs to multi-million dollar fashion outlet. Unbelievable! I could not believe how many articles are on the internet about this amazing family. Sarah also maintains the store on BargainBrute.com called Sarah’s Fashions. They have fashion and apparel for Men, Women, and kids, as well as Shoes and accessories. It was hard for me to see myself taking fashion tips from a 8 year old, but I found some really nice things at prices I feel are fair. I bought more than I should have. :)

If home is where the heart is, then the good news is that you can find plenty of love at the Colorado Furniture Mart. I guess I never really thought about getting my furniture from an online store, but I will now. That store is full of everything you need for the home. My garden can use some help as well. Once again this one stop giant has an answer with a store called Peaceful Home and Garden. I especially loved the outdoor furniture and fountains. I spent way too much time in this store. You can also get ahold of computer supplies, cell phones, beauty supplies, jewelry, pet supplies and toys at this Online Shopping Mall with 49 different stores.

What I found interesting about BargainBrute.com is that they have a full grocery store called High Country Grocery that will deliver groceries directly to your doorstep. I have to admit that I got to bed late the first time I ventured into this cool mall. Pretty much has changed my thinking on shopping. Why have I been wasting so much time driving to multiple stores to deal with people, parking, etc …? I can just get everything I need from the 49 different stores here and the prices are very nice.

Why BargainBrute.com should be your preference

What I love about this online store is the element of accessibility. It is a common dilemma for me when I visit stores I get confused what to buy and what not to buy.

Online shopping at this shopping mall was easier for me because I could just select the store I wanted, and then all the relevant items I am looking for are displayed in front of my eyes. Not being a traditional online shopper, this makes my quest easier.

The prices of products offered by BargainBrute.com are also quite reasonable. I realized this when I compared the prices of their products with the prices of items available in other online stores. In addition, I found that this online shopping mall incentivizes the stores within to give discounts to customers as well.

Initially, I ordered a jacket from Sarah’s Fashions. This is when I realized that quality standards of this online shopping mall are high and they do not make any compromises at all. BargainBrute.com ensures each store updates their item on a regular basis. In the past few months I had a very negative experience buying things from different online stores because of the poor customer support. However, this time shoppingonline was a different experience altogether. BargainBrute.com’s customer support gave prompt responses, and they took the time to answer all of my concerns. Their relationship with Sarah’s Fashions is obviously seamless. I wonder if that has anything to do with the fact that Sarah’s father owns the online shopping mall? I guess they can afford to treat customers the way they deserve to be treated.

Based on the website info, BargainBrute.com believes in prompt delivery from it’s online stores. You do not have to wait for days for your order to arrive. The website indicates that they have a network of 97 shipping facilities / warehouses and the packaging is managed in a way that the item reaches you safe and sound. This was my experience when I bought the jacket. It arrived quickly and looks great on me !! :)

I am of the opinion that they have strong quality checks before they deliver the items.

Another aspect that I would like to tell you about is that BargainBrute.com appears to have sound policies. If you want to return any item, then you have about 10 days to do that. For clothes you need to contact customer service . They have a chat feature on the mall website so you can talk to someone if you want to or do your own thing. I like that !!! If you return any non-items, then the purchase can be refunded. This policy shows one thing clearly and that is the online shopping mall gives a lot of flexibility to the customers.

You do not have to worry about any privacy issues when you make a purchase from this site. I have made several purchases and I feel that all my information is safe. Additionally, this website has a GoDaddy security certificate that will also ensure that you do not have to worry when you buy items from this online store.

How to sign up with BargainBrute.com

I like the fact that this mall gives me the ability to register. It is not required, but I personally like it when stores know me and my habits. I have found that registering with BargainBrute.com has helped them to tailor to shopping experience that is specific to me. With 2 million different products they always have a variety of options in all price ranges. They let me know when I have a great new item and it is trending so I always have the option of getting the latest and greatest.

They do not spam me, and I appreciate their professional approach.

Verdict

I personally recommend that you should think about buying your items from BargainBrute.com. It is a hassle free process and you can get anything you need for daily living delivered to your doorstep.

Based on my experience, I can assure you of one thing, you will not regret buying from this Colorado based shopping mall . It is amazing to find 49 different stores in one place.

PLEASE REVIEW OUR BLOG DISCLAIMER BY CLICKING HERE

#amazon, #business, #hiring, #douglasvandergraph, #bargainbrute.com, #blockchain, #blog, #blogger, #shopping, #onlineshopping, #shoppingmall, #onlineshoppingmall, #walmart,

Source: https://bargainbrutedotcom.tumblr.com/post/178685211244

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lovenerdywinnerbouquetfan-blog · 6 years

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Boca Raton Florida Cheap car insurance quotes zip 33427

"Boca Raton Florida Cheap car insurance quotes zip 33427

Boca Raton Florida Cheap car insurance quotes zip 33427

BEST ANSWER: Try this site where you can compare quotes: : http://freecarinsurance.xyz/index.html?src=tumblr

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Toronto

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My son is in his late twenties, without health insurance and was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes, requiring him to take insulin daily. We are trying to help him with this financially, and bills are enormous. Any ideas on what might be the best health insurance plan for him? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.""

Average cost for house insurance for a trailer? (VA)?

My husband and I have been renting for years and are looking to purchase a single-wide trailer as a starter home. We're looking at 2009 models under $50,000. I've googled myself to death and can't find an idea of what our monthly insurance cost would be. Just a rough estimate would be nice, so we can continue with our budgeting. Thank you!""

Can I get Car Insurance on my own?

I'm 17 and ive had my license and been insured since 5-3-2013. But my parents are cancelling me off of their insurance because they found a pistol grip in my truck and are convinced im some type of thug gangster when in reality i was at a friends house helping them clean his dads gun and i guess they had just left it in their. But they said if i can find a insurance company that will take me without my parents having to be responsible for any mistakes i make (like if i got a speeding ticket their insurance wouldn't go up) I can still drive as long as i pay for my own insurance etc. I'm still in high school but i work a full time job because i get out of school at 10:30 everyday so i can afford insurance plus i do alot of side work. It's a real messed up situation because the truck i have now i payed 2500 cash for it after saving up for 3 years and now my dads selling it and taking the money because it was in his name so nothing i can do there. im selling most my stuff so i can buy another car. i just need insurance. I really need a license so i can continue to get back and forth to school and work. Please any help would be much appreciated.

Best car insurance company in 2013?

I am looking for a new car insurance company. My current one is charging me $2500/year for 2 cars.

Insurance for additional drivers has shot up?

I'm 16 and looking forward to buying my first car, so a few weeks ago i saw that if i was the additional driver on my dad's policy it would only cost around 400. However i have tried a few recently and they all have shot up to 1500+!!!!! Does anyone know why? It's ridicuolous how much they are trying to charge me for first years insurance.""

Where should we keep car insurance papers and license plate registration?

My husband and I live in Ontario and currently share one vehicle. He insists on keeping the insurance papers and plate registration in his wallet but if I need the car I have to get them from him each time (of course, if we get stopped we can be ticketed for not having the papers). The problem is, we are both extremely busy and sometimes forget to give them back to each other and find ourselves driving without the papers. My question is, where is the best place to keep these papers (I've heard you shouldn't keep them in the car in case its stolen) AND/OR are they valid if photocopied and one of us keeps THOSE copies in our wallet? I've heard that using a true copy, whatever that is, is accepted but that some police officers won't accept them at true if you're stopped. This is becoming a real problem for us...please help!""

Boca Raton Florida Cheap car insurance quotes zip 33427

Im taking my drivers test on Tuesday..?

Ok so yesterday, Friday, my dad made an appt for my drivers test in the afternoon, and im taking it tuesday after school. Heres my problem, I need a Certificate of Attendance present with me but it takes like 2-3 days for it to be ready, and if I order it Monday then it will most likely be ready like on wednesday or thursday so what should I do? Reschedule my appt or just talk to the school office about it? Thanks in advance. God Bless.""

How much will insurance cost for these cars?

How much will insurance cost for a 16 year old boy for the following cars. Mustang GT Mustang (V6) Toyota Tacoma Please no answers like You don't need a GT or too much for you money is not a problem for me (not that its any of your freaking business) i just would like to know.

What insurance can i get ? need advise?

i am 17 years old and i got a truck and im going to get my license in a few days how can i get insurance for my truck and what will be the cheapest price ? i need advise on what i should do and how i should get insurance like should i get it under my dads insurance or how ?

Peugeot 206 gti insurance cost?

Does anyone know roughly how much it would cost for first time insurance? I'm 18 by the way.

""Any idea how much the car tax is on a vauxhall frontera,and is the insurance expensive?

is it much more than running the average car

""I'm looking for a sporty car with low insurance rates and preferably american made around $15,000?""

I'm looking for a sporty car with low insurance rates and preferably american made around $15,000?""

Do you have life insurance?

Ok we have been married for 10 years with 2 small boys. My husband works, I don't. I think he needs disability insurance and life insurance just in case something happens to him. And maybe even life insurance on me and the boys to cover at least funeral costs.. He thinks it's a big waste of money but I think we should. Also, my sister asked me if I would take her boys if something happen to her and brother-n-law. I said of course!! She told me that I would then get XX amt. of money from her life insurance... She also stated it's in their will!! OMG do I need a will too. What do I need in this will. I don't want my kids in foster care so I should name some people who would care for our boys..""

My dad says a 2 door car would be more on the insurance. Is this true? PLEASE ANSWER!!?

We went out looking for cars today and every 2 door car we saw he just kept walking by them. I dont know about him but Im a 2 door kind of guy. He said 2 door cars would be more Insurance. Is that true? I wanted to get this 2 door Cougar or maybe a 2000 or 2001 or 20003 Monte Carlo. WOuld that type of car add more to the Insurance? I really want the monte carlo. Im gonna be putting about $1400 down & the car cost no more than $5000.

Cheap Car Insurance for a 17 year old ?

I am looking for car insurance in Britain. I am 17 next month so I am looking at provisional prices which aren't too bad. I was curious and put in my birthday a few months earlier and said i had passed, the price was in excess of 4000, for a car worth 1000 ? I then put in the details of a friends new car, hes 17 and only just passed. Rich and got a 2011 bmw 1 series top of the range, quote was 9,500. How can a 1000 car be only 5000 cheaper than a 30000 car, none of this makes sense ? I know we are 4 times more likely to crash but does anyone know of any cheap insurance companies for 17 year olds just now ?""

Does your car insurance go up for possession of marijuana in your car?

Should an average person buy a life insurance?

Where can i find the cheapest car insurance?

""If your auto insurance expires today, do you get a grace period?""

If so, how long is the grace period?""

Problem with my car insurance company?

Just before new year, sitting stationary at a roundabout, old guy bashed into back of me. Exchanged details and went through the insurance. Nearly 4 months on...and my insurance company is still chasing liability. Meanwhile, my premium was due for renewal at end of Jan and that has gone up and my insurance company tell me they have problems with the other insurers as they don't answer their phones. They tell me they're sending out letters every 2 weeks and are trying to phone them. I don't think this is enough, especially after all this time. Basically, I'm being held over a barrel. I'll bet the old guy has got his car fixed now, but meanwhile even though I've done nothing wrong, I'm paying out more money and still have rear damage to my car!! I'm getting really sick of it, especially as I need to sell the car soon. It's completely ridiculous. Please wait for rest....""

Has legislative push for affordable insurance been cut short in the u.s congress?

Would it be a good economic decision to lower my limits of liability on my car insurance?

I'm looking at my bills, and trying to cut costs, would it be wise to lower the limits of liability on our older (2004) car. I currently do not have comprehensive coverage on it... we only have that on the newer one. Here's what I have now: Bodily Injury - 25,000 / 50,000 Property Damage - 50,000 Personal Injury - 10,000 Uninsured Motor Vehicle - 25,000 Bodily Injury (non-stacked) - 50,000 Really, my husband only uses this car to go to work and back. We use the newer car for everything else. What would you recommend lowering our limits to, or would you recommend lowering them at all? Thanks!!! I know nothing about this... I just have what the insurance agent told me to get.""

Additional driver car insurance?

hi , i have a car and i have my car insurance my husband he just get his driving licence and he want to drive my car ,does he need to apply for car insurance for himself , or can i add him with me in my policy and how much will cost him . if i add him as additional driver on my policy is that will cost him to pay""

My husband needs life insurance but has diabeties?

My husband needs life insurance about 50,000 but want payments cheap payments 40.00 monthly. We been trying to find some life insurance but some dont take with diabeties. My husband doesnt take insulin. Hes ranging about 100 to 180 every month on sugar level.. Any ideas on life insurance we should quilified!!!""

Car insurance question?

Ive got a younger brother who's 16 years old, newly licensed, had his drivers license for about 4-6 months... he's buying a car soon but he's paranoid of what the insurance will be! Its going to be a used car with a lot of miles (90-130K) and he'll spend no more than $4,000 on the vehicle. I know there are discounts for good grades, he has a GPA of 4.2 Advice? How much will it be per month, AND what provider is best? Thanks!""

DIFFRENT CAR INSURANCE rates?

me my uncle and my aunt have 4 vehicles in our household. we have a chevy avalanche or , toyota 4 runner limited edition o3, toyota corola s 10, and a harley bike 07. do this vehicles like have diffrent rates each under one insurance plan? its under USAA btw. (the numbers are the year models of car)""

Car insurance policy and rates question?

My girlfriend is on my car insurance policy. Recently she got in an accident and now I believe our car insurance rates will be raised. Can I drop her off my car insurance policy and have her transfer her car in my name that way both cars can be insured in my name. If I do this can she still drive her car?

Important question regarding auto insurance while renting a vehicle?

Does anyone have any idea about how much a person is liable for if they rent a car from a place such as Avis, Hertz or Thrifty without paying for the insurance coverage they offer? A friend of mine doesn't have her own car so therefore she doesn't have any insurance. She is renting a car for the weekend and wasn't sure about her liability with or without purchasing the insurance coverage thru the rental agency. Any answers would be great as we all know that those rental insurance programs offered by car rental agencies can be quite expensive:-)""

Insurance coverage with DUI involved?

My father recently crashed his car into a van after consuming over the legal limit of alcohol (well over knowing him), and is concerned whether Progressive insurance will cover vehicle damages for him and the other driver. Also notable is that his car is pretty much totaled, I think, and he does have some previous blemishes on his driving record and the car is leased. If someone with some knowledge on these matters would help and give me an idea of what insurance will and will not cover could help it would be much appreciated.""

What are the best car insurance sites for a 17 year old male?

Im just looking what sort of prices id be looking at for insurance for small cars (1.0/1.1 engines) and cant get a quote under 3000. Who are the best insurance providers for recently passed 17 year olds?

Mitsubishi eclipse 2007 insurance problems?? :(((?

So I'm sixteen, and my dad said OK to the Eclipse 2007, and everything, but then theres the insurance problem. They said I cant get it without charging my dad and me a ton of money. I'm EXTREMELY attached to this car, basicly as much as lambo fans dream of getting a lambo, but probably even more, because I have a chance of owning this car eventually. I've planned everything, I got a job, I've got saved up for vertical doors, the hook ups, sound systems, everything. I have got to have this car, please, is there ANY way of getting my insurance to insure the Eclipse? I currently have State Farm, but my dad knows how much I LOVE this car, and how much it means to me, and is willing to switch insurances if they will insure me, but so far, none have please, are there any insurance companies that will insure the Eclipse to a 16 year old? or a way to get them to? Please and Thanks :(((((((( And again, I'm feeling so depressed right now, I have no idea what I'll do if I don't get it :(""

Boca Raton Florida Cheap car insurance quotes zip 33427

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tip-cheap-car-insurance-quotes-las-vegas-jason-stanley/"

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andrewdburton · 6 years

Text

Does the American Dream require a a big American home?

This is a guest post from Steve Adcock, who writes at Think Save Retire, a blog about early retirement and Financial Independence. Steve and his wife retired in their mid-thirties to travel full time in an Airstream trailer. For more info, check out their YouTube channel.

One of the most deeply-embedded pieces of the “American Dream” is the desire for a large, spacious home with lots of sitting rooms, corners, nooks, and crannies. Large dining rooms and other entertainment spaces! Wrap-around porches! Two- or three-stall garages and one heck of a master suite!

To many of us, a large home is a mark of success. A big house indicate status, and the more space we’re able to call our own, the more successful we look and feel.

But, what if I told you that most of us don’t use even a fraction of that space? That’s not just me talking. A research team affiliated with the University of California studied American families and where they hung out the most inside their homes, how (and where) clutter builds, and the general stress level associated with living big.

The findings were overwhelming: The majority of the space in our homes is wasted.

How We Use Our Homes

As J.D. shared on Saturday, researchers at UCLA conducted a detailed study of 32 dual-income families living in the Los Angeles area, one of the first studies to document so vividly how we interact with the things for which we’ve paid good money. The findings were not pretty. In fact, they helped prove how little we use our big homes for things other than clutter or objects that hold little intrinsic value.

From the press release:

The researchers doggedly videotaped the activities of family members, tracked their every move with position-locating devices and documented their homes, yards and activities with reams and reams of photographs. They asked family members to narrate videotaped tours of their homes and took measurements at regular intervals of stress hormones via saliva samples.

When I originally wrote about the study, I took special note of where families spent the large majority of their time. In the following UCLA-published diagram of one family that was studied, we can easily observe a truth that’s probably common among so many of us: We tend to congregate around two primary areas of the home: food preparation/eating and television.

While this diagram only represents a single family, the results of the study suggest that this family is very typical of most of those studied, and the majority of traditional homes.

Take note of the different areas of this home, especially the dining room. The dining room saw extremely little activity from this family. The porch was almost never used. The study found that 68% of the family’s time was largely spent in the kitchen/nook as well as the family room, typically near the television.

The large majority of the time, this family spends their waking hours congregating around areas of food preparation and consumption. The rest, they’re plopped down on the couch watching the boob tube or on the computer.

As J.D. mentioned on Saturday, the study also found that clutter, enabled by such huge homes, fueled stressful emotions for many of the family members — especially mothers. And amazingly, only 25% of garages could be used to store cars. The remaining 75% were jam packed with so much stuff that cars simply couldn’t fit. Cars were relegated to the driveway or street.

Furthermore, families hardly used their yards, devoted money to renovating little-used areas of the home (like master suites) instead of fixing obvious problems, and relied on heating up frozen meals instead of using large and luxurious kitchens to cook.

Of course, not every family will exhibit these behaviors in their homes. Some will use their yards or porches, or dining rooms. However, most families don’t use large areas of their homes — which means they’ve essentially wasted money on space they do not need.

The results of this study reflect my experience perfectly. Years ago, I lived in a 1600-square-foot home and spent 99% of my waking hours in the kitchen and family room. The remaining rooms — like my small office/den and two extra bedrooms — were closed off. One bedroom turned into my hidden cavern for the accumulation of boxes and plastic shopping bags. The other held a spare bed that almost never got used.

Why People Want Big Homes

Why do we want huge homes instead of living smaller? Why do we make the choice to drop additional coinage for space that most of us don’t use?

I believe there are two primary reasons:

We link “bigger” with “success”. It’s all too common to feel like our big homes represent our success or status in life. The bigger our home, the more successful we appear to our friends and family. How many times have you heard people at work talking about how many square feet they have? It’s a brag item! New homes today are 1000 square feet larger than they were in the 1970s. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median single-family home built in 2016 was over 2400 square feet.

We want room to grow — temporarily.Many of us enjoy entertaining groups of people at our homes. Others want a dining room for big family dinners. But wait, how about that spare bedroom? After all, the three or four times that your in-laws come to visit demands additional sleeping quarters in a dedicated room that probably isn’t used for much the rest of the year.

Let’s talk a little about that last point, since there’s a sort of logic to it. I get why you might sometimes want extra space in your home. But here’s the problem with buying extra space for need temporarily: That additional space is always there. We’re buying additional space in our homes that we pay for 100% of the time but seldom actually use. We like having the space, but what is that space doing to us? Is it worth the cost?

In the video below, two of J.D.’s friends give him a tour of their tiny house. As you can see, it’s perfectly possible to be fulfilled and content — to live the American Dream — in a very small space.

youtube

Big Home, Big Headaches

Larger homes and yards not only require large mortgages and tax payments, but also more maintenance. If you aren’t spending your own precious time mowing the lawn or fixing your roof shingles, you’re paying someone else good money to do so. These costs can become cripplingly expensive, especially with super large houses (McMansions).

Larger homes require more security, too. The more space we have, the greater the need to protect it with fencing, cameras and Internet-connected security systems.

Big homes also need to be filled with furniture. Beds, couches, loveseats. Pianos. Pool tables. Most of us don’t let unused rooms sit idly by without anything in them. They need something, so we buy additional stuff to put in there.

Larger homes are also becoming tougher to sell as younger generations look for homes in more unique neighborhoods and, increasingly, in city centers where homes tend to be smaller. And, smaller homes tend to appreciate in value faster and more consistently than larger homes.

In general, the larger the home the bigger the risk. If owners of big homes lose their jobs, their homes don’t suddenly get cheaper. Mortgages are as relentless as they are monotonous, easily wiping away a large majority of our take-home pay.

Here’s the truth: The American Dream shouldn’t compel you to buy a home that you cannot afford or maintain. (Or to drive a car you cannot handle or to watch televisions that are just too big for our walls and pocketbooks.)

More does not automatically equal better. More simply means more.

Downsizing to 200 Square Feet

Naturally, larger families require larger homes. We all have different needs, comfort levels, and desires. The point of this article isn’t to prove that larger spaces are always bad. Such a conclusion is much too simplistic and entirely inaccurate.

Instead, this article is designed to spur thought and self-reflection. Regardless of the space that you call home, are you fully utilizing that space or is it overcome with clutter? Do you feel stressed when cleaning or maintaining your home? Do you use the large majority each and every week?

As the UCLA study found, we tend to overbuy, believing the misguided wisdom of buying “as big of a house as you can afford”. Forget that advice. Instead, buy as much house as you need. Then, feel confident that you aren’t overextending yourself or weakening your financial position through your rent or mortgage.

To conclude, I want to share how I’ve move past the idea that I need a large home.

For those unfamiliar with my story, I’m a 36-year old early retiree who travels the country in a 200-square-foot Airstream with my wife and two rescued dogs. Both my wife and I sold our homes (each around 1,600 square feet), along with the majority of our possessions, and bought an Airstream that we use to travel the country full-time.

Downsizing has been amazing for several reasons:

Life is much simpler with fewer possessions.

It takes about 10 minutes to vacuum the entire house (well!).

We can clean the whole outside of our home in about 30 minutes.

We can park this thing virtually anywhere (legally permitted, of course!) and change our scenery at a moment’s notice.

Even in a small space, we still have a separate bedroom, bathroom, shower, two sinks, a desk, couch and kitchen with stove, oven and microwave; we also have a refrigerator and freezer, an air conditioner and solar power

The full-time RV life isn’t for everyone, and it’s not my intent to convince you otherwise. Instead, use my story as a testament to the fact that large homes are very much a choice. Few of us need the space we buy. I certainly didn’t need a 1600-square-foot home before I sold it to move into the Airstream. There are many different ways to live.

Don’t let the American Dream take over your life…or your wallet.

J.D.’s footnote: By now, regular readers know how much I agree with Steve’s perspective. My girlfriend and I recently lived in an RV for fifteen months ourselves. The experience taught us that we do not need a large space to live. We believe somewhere around 1000 square feet is perfect for us and our zoo. Last summer, we downsized to 1235 square feet, and even this place has space that goes unused.

The post Does the American Dream require a a big American home? appeared first on Get Rich Slowly.

from Finance https://www.getrichslowly.org/american-home/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

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foursproutwealth-blog · 6 years

Text

Does the American Dream require a a big American home?

New Post has been published on http://foursprout.com/wealth/does-the-american-dream-require-a-a-big-american-home/

Does the American Dream require a a big American home?

To many of us, a large home is a mark of success. A big house indicate status, and the more space we’re able to call our own, the more successful we look and feel.

The findings were overwhelming: The majority of the space in our homes is wasted.

How We Use Our Homes

From the press release:

While this diagram only represents a single family, the results of the study suggest that this family is very typical of most of those studied, and the majority of traditional homes.

Why People Want Big Homes

Why do we want huge homes instead of living smaller? Why do we make the choice to drop additional coinage for space that most of us don’t use?

I believe there are two primary reasons:

Big Home, Big Headaches

Larger homes require more security, too. The more space we have, the greater the need to protect it with fencing, cameras and Internet-connected security systems.

More does not automatically equal better. More simply means more.

Downsizing to 200 Square Feet

To conclude, I want to share how I’ve move past the idea that I need a large home.

Downsizing has been amazing for several reasons:

Life is much simpler with fewer possessions.

It takes about 10 minutes to vacuum the entire house (well!).

We can clean the whole outside of our home in about 30 minutes.

We can park this thing virtually anywhere (legally permitted, of course!) and change our scenery at a moment’s notice.

Don’t let the American Dream take over your life…or your wallet.

The post Does the American Dream require a a big American home? appeared first on Get Rich Slowly.

#Wealth

0 notes

shockinglysherlock · 6 years

Text

LED grow lights 2018 review

If you are beginning your seedlings to a bright windowsill and you are serious about your gardening, then you need to purchase a grow light rather. You will notice an immediate difference in the color and expansion of your seedlings before you set them outside for this season. They will be greener and stockier, with stronger stalks, and they will grow faster than they want with restricted, filtered light through your window. If you currently have a classic fluorescent lighting set up with T8 or T12 bulbs (having a diameter of approximately 1-1.5 in. Over the span of five decades, you are going to spend approximately $30 to $60 more with T5 bulbs than you'd using two T8 bulbs, depending on how much your energy prices. Nonetheless, it's well worth it: The seedlings will get greener and expand quicker only because the T5s will send more photons for their light-loving leaves compared to the T8s.

The top increase light is the light which develops what you wish to grow. It generates enough photons in the ideal spectrum (400-700 nm) to provide plants the energy that they need to develop and contains sufficient light in either "red" and "blue" wavelengths to create plants grow dark green leaves and thick stems. ) The top lights offer you just as much light as you require, but not more (since you do not need to waste energy), and do not produce extra heat. Unfortunately for anglers, it is hard to find decent info regarding plant lighting (see Why can not you get helpful measurements for mature lights? ). Lighting companies do not give out important measurements, along with also the typists stuffing up the world wide web only appear to need to grow either bud, salt-water corals, or even orchids. (I have been looking for a website around a garden which combines all three to one beachfront pleasure asses, but I have yet to locate it.) Regrettably, most hobbyist growers--out of marijuana to petunias--don't print rigorous scientific study to their growth methods. The aquarium light people actually examine their setups, but their standards for a fantastic lighting is a little different from a normal tomato-grower's (ditto for orchids). Therefore, I consulted with five Distinct specialists to Learn What makes a great grow light and exactly what most anglers want:

He co-authored a post about increase light efficacy together with his grad student Jacob Nelson, my sixth pro. These bulbs change in size, the total amount of light they put out, and also what wavelengths of light they emit. Utilizing our specialists' plant light evaluation, I looked for lighting that supplied the photon output necessary for routine seedlings, herbs, and tabletop lettuces. After estimating functionality, I then calculated the approximate price of working with the fixture including cost, bulb replacement expenses, and the quantity of power required to provide plants the essential daily light integral (DLI). (Watch How we calculated output signal price. )

The outcomes of our study and specialist input were unequivocal. There are not that many 2-foot, four-bulb T5 fixtures available on the market--as well as fewer testimonials of T5 systems--although the overwhelming popular among Amazon reviewers would be your Hydrofarm Commercial T5. A couple of reviewers complain about client support for replacement bulbs broken in transport. Peter Warburg, Hydrofarm president, also advocated the industrial T5 for anglers over various sorts of lighting. "For seed-starting, T5s will be the most economical. They are affordable and practical ... they are the greatest practical option."

"It works nicely for me personally," he explained. "With four lights onto a 2-foot [broad] shelf that you get far greater expansion than just two." This light does set some heat out, however. An orchid grower composed this light fixture increased the warmth of his terrarium by 5-7ºF (3-5ºC). If that's the circumstance, the temperatures increase ought to be minimal. The industrial T5's light temperature is ranked as 6500 K, or "daylight," so the light will appear slightly bluish-white. It is possible to observe the spectrum with this carnivorous plants enthusiast site, or see a nausea-inducing cartoon of the colors of distinct light beams on Wikipedia. When you take a look in the plants beneath the industrial T5, their colors will appear in the same as they want if you set them out. If you would rather a woodsy, rustic brown color to your own plant light home, rather than white, the Hydrofarm Agrobrite Designer T5 FLP24 is practically identical to our select. Its one purpose of death from the industrial T5, aside from the distinguished mottled-bronze outside, is the fact that it comes with a three-prong socket at the same corner of the lighting. That socket allowing farmers to "daisy-chain" lights collectively and control multiple lights using one timer, which is why it now costs over the white version. You may also just get a two-outlet timer once the time arrives to plug in another mild, but you will miss the delight of watching a block of shiny mud-colored metal hovering over your tender seedlings. The option is yours.

Depending on the expense of your power, it is going to cost approximately $30 to $100 to operate these lights for 5 decades along with also your seedlings will get loads of photons--a DLI of 6 within the duration of a 16-hour day--to reach their highest possible potential. (If you would like them to reach a rather average seedling possible, operate your lights for only 11 hours per day to acquire a DLI of 4 and save a third of their energy price.) With an anticipated bulb life of 20,000 hours, then you need to be able to begin afresh for another 22 decades.

As stated before, the Hydrofarm Commercial T5 won't attract your tabletop greens into their entire potential. If you maintain this light on 24 hours every day, you will still only receive a DLI of 9--substantially under the DLI of 12 that greenhouse growers believe necessary for generating vegetables, lettuce, lettuce, along with other greens. If you are searching for leafy greens, then keep reading to see our option to lettuce farmers beneath.

If you truly wish to grow greens inside, you are likely to need to spend a good deal of lettuce ... I mean cash. As Giacomelli stated, "The top [for indoor plants] is just two to three times the cost of non-branded lettuce or tomato in the supermarket" Depending on the expense of your electricity, you are going to spend anywhere from $600 to $1,200 rising lettuce for 5 years using two Fluence RAY22 lights--the cheapest choice I discovered that could offer enough photons daily to increase greens. Mount two pubs per square foot on your seedling tray, and you're going to find a DLI of 12 in the event that you maintain these bars for 17 hours per day along with also a DLI of 17 in the event you maintain your greens lit for 24 hours per day just like Aerofarm along with other indoor growers. That is a fantastic DLI for green bibb lettuce, based on researchers in Cornell University's Controlled Environment Agriculture Program, however more fragile greens might suffer "tip burn"--yucky-looking brownish edges because of plant stress. Researchers enjoy Fluence Bio-engineering (previously BML Horticulture) because of the extensive product information and quality construct. Mattson known as the organization's Spyder mild "the Cadillac of LEDs," and its own lights tied to the cheapest electric cost per photons delivered of their LEDs which Bruce Bugbee examined. Be warned, however, your interior-decorator-slash-vampire buddies will adore the colour of this Grow Max light pubs, which encircle everything a type of damn pink.

If all you wish to do is get your seedlings around about 1/2 inch, I will tell you from personal experience that a fixture with two T8s will perform a decent job. But they will only offer you a maximum DLI of 3 in the event that you maintain them 16 hours every day; to get a DLI of 4, then you will want to run them at least 23 hours per day. Your seedlings will be somewhat light and leggy in comparison to crops grown under better lighting, and they will gain from getting outside whenever possible. If you are starting small with one seedling apartment, you do not have that many alternatives for store lights using a reflecting hood which will direct marginally more mild downwards and also make watching your plants marginally more pleasing.

The Hydrofarm Fluorescent Grow Light Fixture along with also the Lights of America Fluorescent Grow Light System Seem to be Precisely the Exact Same mild and would be the cheapest available alternatives to get a 2-foot shop lighting. The Lights of America fixture includes two T8 bulbs; you are going to have to purchase them individually to your Hydrofarm fixture. Run them for 5 years for eight months per year, along with your total price including power will probably be approximately $60 to $83. Just do not come running to me if your Radiator Charlie's Mortgage Lifter berries do not fruit in time to the country fair.

The way we calculated output signal cost Giacomelli was unequivocal: "Are you really attempting to develop seedlings? Proceed to Home Depot and purchase fluorescent tubes" Other specialists had marginally more nuanced views. Harwood and Mattson found that though LEDs have improved over time and today put out as several μmoles/kg of photons as fluorescents, they are still expensive. "For the ordinary man using lights for a few weeks at the spring, it is probably not worthwhile [to purchase LEDs]" said Mattson. Since Jacob A. Nelson and Bruce Bugbee composed: "In massive greenhouses with little aisles and thickly spaced plants, the wide, even output usually emitted from HPS fixtures supplies uniform lighting distribution and great catch of photosynthetic photons. In bigger greenhouses with spaced benches, the concentrated pattern commonly found in LED fittings can optimize radiation transport to plant leaves"

Even though these remarks were helpful, I wished to affirm them.

Initial cost (bulb and fixture) Price of power to function Replacement price (bulb only) I presumed that you, gentle reader, want to develop completely legal seedlings, herbs, and table-top lettuce, which seedlings need about 4 moles/m²daily of photons, while lettuce requires 12 moles/m²daily. Additionally, I assumed that you are going to start small, with one or two normal 21-by-11-inch black seedling apartments that seem like that. Four feet is the typical duration for mature lights used at the nursery school, but firms that appeal to house growers, aquarium hobbyists, and orchid growers normally offer you 2-foot bulbs and fittings. According to their advice, such as Jacob Nelson and Dr. Bugbee's evaluation of plant light, I made a spreadsheet calculating the price of using the lights for 5 decades, employing the exact daily light integral (DLI), the minimal absolute number of photons needed daily which researchers advocate for developing seedlings (4 mol/m²/p) and lettuce and lettuce (12 mol/m²/p). I tested lights acceptable for one seedling apartment (approximately 11 by 20 inches or 28 from 51 cm) at a little space--say, hung onto a bookshelf. Additionally, I read reviews about Amazon, Home Depot, and assorted aquarium hobby websites to learn what users thought of their lights.

I created 2 sets of calculations such as seedlings and lettuce. For ordinary use, I presumed that growers could have the light on for 16 hours every day for eight months each spring for five decades, or 3,480 hours. For tabletop lettuce, I presumed that, for example AeroFarms' customers, growers could leave the light on for 24 hours every day for five decades straight, for 43,800 hours. For more miserly users, I calculated that the price of power for only getting plants the minimal daily light integral (DLI). I excluded lights which could not offer the minimal DLI for seedlings in one day. I did calculations to its top-rated T5 High Output fluorescent fixtures, regular shop-light T8 fluorescent bulbs, LED, and higher pressure sodium (HPS) lights on Amazon along with Home Depot, in addition to the best three stair fittings (with respect to price per micromole of photographs) in every class as assessed from Jacob Nelson and Bruce Bugbee in the USU Crop Physiology Laboratory. I removed lights which were clearly overpowered for house seedlings (for instance, 1,000-watt HPS lights created to light a 10' by 10' greenhouse, that could create enough heat to cook blossoms if they were foot off), however when there were still lower-powered lights accessible from precisely the exact same maker in precisely the exact same model lineup, I included them. In circumstances where dependable PPFD information wasn't accessible, I made independent calculations to the lowest and highest values for photon creation per joule for this form of light in the Nelson and Bugbee evaluation, multiplied it by the wattage provided for this light, and presumed a narrow surface region beneath the light will be pinpointed (a place the length of the fixture using a diameter equivalent to 1.3 times the fixture's elevation over the seedling level).

LEDs are a technology that is fascinating, but they are still a lot more expensive than other varieties of plant lighting, plus they do not create enough photons per unit price to warrant their usage by many home gardeners. 1 evening, LEDs will create enough photons per watt of wall-plug power to make them economically competitive with fluorescent lighting. However, as of now, you are going to pay a premium to find sufficient LEDs to grow plants inside. 1 expert who opted to talk off the record stated, "With LEDs, you are paying for future study." Horticulturists and light scientists hope that LED lighting will turn out to be far more efficient over the next ten years and begin to become aggressive with high-pressure aluminum and metal halide lighting for underfloor light and indoor growers, but they are not available yet. As Giacomelli stated, "LEDs will grow in the years ahead, however, HPS [lighting] will not." Mattson discovered, "It is eight times that the [carbon] footprint to mature plants entirely inside in a greenhouse" If you would like to attempt and conserve the earth by developing your own lettuce, then wait.

The contest I seemed at elevated pressure sodium (HPS) lamps too. Warburg stated, "Most programs in commercial farmers utilize HPS [lights]," and based on Giacomelli, they're still the very functional lights for growing plants inside. As a result of their heat output, high-watt HPS have to be kept up to many feet apart from young seedlings to avoid the lights from scorching their leaves--and those volt result in expensive electrical bills. I calculated that the anticipated expense of launching seedlings and growing lettuce under many different HPS lamps ranked highly by Amazon users and mentioned as being effective in Dr. Bruce Bugbee's newspaper. In circumstances in which I didn't have PPFD dimensions readily available, I made independent estimates for both high-PPFD and low-PPFD situations, according to Bugbee's HPS data.

The lamps greater than 200 watts were clearly overkill. They are intended to light a 3' by 3' place, create a DLI of 4 3 hours, and have to get suspended at least 24 inches above seedlings based on the Sunlight Supply Information Sheet.

They have to get suspended about 12 to 24 inches over crops, depending upon your installation's ventilation. All three of those HPS systems are somewhat overpowered for seed-starting too: They will generate a DLI of 4 four hours to get seedlings, plus a DLI of 12 for lettuce in only 16 hours. Should you conduct them for only the period of time required to create the minimal DLI, they are economical. The complete cost for five decades of seedlings will operate out of $90-200 for four hours daily of light, depending upon your energy cost, whilst lettuce will probably run you somewhere between $450-1000 for 16 hours every day. But so long as you are pumping out that lots of photons, you may too keep it around for 20 hours and test out some berries (DLI 15, at the "great" variety for lycopersicon).

Nevertheless I'm not advocating HPS lights per se since their heat output means they need more focus. If your crops grow too near those bulbs, they'll be ruined--and if you spill water onto the bulb while it's on, the bulb can burst. Should you really feel as if you'd love to experiment using HPS lights, then the Hydrofarm SBM150S along with also the Sun System received passionate user testimonials, including, "that I LOVE THIS LIGHT. "

A few T8 fluorescent fixtures are somewhat different from our most important selections, but they are no better. The 2-foot Flora Hydroponics Fluorescent Grow Light System has exactly the very same attributes as the Lights of America T8 fixture, but includes bulbs which have a mild temperature of 5000 K, maybe not 41000 K such as Lights of America, meaning that lighting will appear slightly bluer. If that matters to you, go right ahead and spend somewhat more on this mild, but do not expect your crops to observe the difference. If you still have not spent enough cash on T8 bulbs, then you could opt to purchase "full spectrum" T12 increase bulbs, that will fit into precisely the exact same fixture, like the Agrosun T12 or a Agrobrite 24-inch 20-watt T12 bulb. I am certain they are charming, but they will only get one to a max DLI of two in the event that you depart a two-bulb fixture for 24 hours every day under a foot away from small leaves. That is enough light to increase ferns, African violets, and orchids, but lots of different species won't fulfill their entire potential.

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southaustinlocation · 7 years

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Sexscapes: The Internet Gives a Voice to the Perverts of the World

Ever since it reached a level of general western-world ubiquity sometime in the 2000s, it has been widely accepted that the internet is one of humanity’s most ingenious inventions. The ways humans interact and connect with one another world-wide has been changed so fundamentally that to describe them would seem futuristic and absurd to twenty-year old incarnations of my now aged grandparents. Sites like Wikipedia, Google, and YouTube have not only entered the lexicon, but have also become invaluable research tools for the average individual curious to discover more about the world at large. Soon, it seems, it will be difficult even to find a cellular phone plan that doesn’t require paying for round-the-clock internet access as part of the basic contract.

For the first time in the history of our species, information and knowledge have become more or less democratized [though it can be argued that inherent class discrepancies lead to the fact that those who are unable to afford internet access, i.e. the bottom rung of the socioeconomic strata, now face more obstacles than ever when attempting upward social and economic mobility], and it would seem the average internet user has few excuses not to continue their education far past their formative school years.

But the human capacity for perversion should never be underestimated.

According to some not-so-groundbreaking research (mine), the internet, along with being one of the final bastions and troves of limitless, easily accessible knowledge available to an increasingly apathetic and dumbed-down populace, is used primarily for two main purposes: “trolling” (the sending of inflammatory or provocative messages purposefully crafted with the expectation that this initial message will elicit equally negative responses, or, if the troll is particularly lucky or adept, the commencement of an all out “flame-war”); and, of course, the viewing of pornography. Both of these purposes being symptoms of the altogether larger first-world problems of boredom and a general and ever growing inability to empathize with other sapient beings.

However stark and socially pertinent, none of this should come as particularly surprising or new information. Since pretty much its first widespread public use, the internet and perversion go together like cops and child molesters in prison (the metaphor, of course, falling short at the fact that, unlike prison, where police officers and pederasts meet up in protective custody—the smaller, secluded group of the prison at large—the perverts of the internet are the general population). Hell, one of my first experiences with the internet was when I was twelve and I didn’t have it, but my next door neighbor did, so every afternoon I’d go over to his house and, sitting in the side room of the garage where his family computer was kept, we’d burn through his AOL hours disc by logging onto AOL Instant Messenger and asking strangers if they “got pics?” Then, after inevitably getting bored with this game, searching for naked pictures of the girl from Seventh Heaven (no, not Jessica Biel, who actually had semi-nude photos published in Gear magazine around this time, but the slightly more homely Beverley Mitchell, for some reason).

But that was back in the Wild West frontier days of World Wide Web-based perversion and sexual curiosity. These days, perverts are no longer cloistered away to obscene chat sites. Instead, with the inception of so-called “porn 2.0”—tube sites such as Youjizz, YouPorn, PornoTube, PornTube (distinct from “PornoTube”—common mistake), FuckTube and BookpornTube (compelling name, I must admit, though surprisingly unliterary in the final analysis)—the perverted majority of the internet finally have a way to truly interconnect with one another: rubbing them out to the same videos as thousands of other horny people.

Someone, however, decided the perverts of the interweb weren’t connected enough by these shared masturbatory stimuli. Somewhere down the line, apparently, the question was asked at a pornographic video tube site board meeting: what happens when the trolls of the internet are given a medium with which they can broadcast far and wide to other trolls and pervert-trolls, just how they, as an individual and lonely troll caught in the vastness and potentially infinite wisdom of cyberspace, feel about a particular pornographic video? This led to the somewhat alarming decision to begin including “comments” sections for each video on many of the more popular tube sites.

In an effort to try and better understand the perverts of the internet (myself included), I decided, at great risk to my personal sanity and computer security, to browse through a varying array of these comment sections to see what I could glean from the pervert-trolls of the internet. Interestingly, the results actually managed to be profoundly disturbing in ways that superseded my already sordid expectations. With the hopes of not encouraging additional traffic to any of the sites, many of which are hosted in foreign countries, thus allowing the sites to avoid prosecution for the hosting of copyrighted material and in turn denying profit to the hardworking men and women of the pornographic industry (yes, that previous sentence was completely serious), I will be withholding the names of the sites in question, though I will be providing my notoriously stringent editor with URLs for all of the videos in question. Videos will be chosen the same way I choose which Wikipedia articles I’m going to read to kill time: I will start at the homepage and see what looks interesting until I’m inevitably led down a wormhole sticky with wasted-time and shame and regret.

Video One: “Retail Store Creampie”

The Video:

I’ll start first with what appears to be a short excerpt taken from a longer film. The video has seven comments and an overall rating of 88.50% with 554 “Good” votes, and 72 “Bad” votes. The video is four minutes and six seconds long and depicts a young woman in a green shirt getting plowed by a guy with a shitty tattoo on his ribs. Throughout the video she makes some fake moany noises and says things like “fuck me.” Also, she’s getting banged in a store on a clearance rack for some reason. Pretty standard porn territory.

The Comments:

Comments range from the coherent, if subject-ambiguous, “nice cock. Love his pussy pounding, wish it was me,” to people being pissed about false advertising in the title of the video, “not a creampie stupid,” and, “THAT WAS NOT A CREAMPIE MOTHERFUCKERS!!!” Then there is the somewhat baffling, “can’t stand those fake moans, quiet moans are hot, but not those fake-ass American-hoe ones. FUCK YOU AMERICAN ASSHOLES. WHITEPOWER!!!”

(Reader, take note that this last comment, left 07/31/2010 at 1:12 am, is a classic example of trolling. Notice how the comment doesn’t make sense, but implores others to reply defensively.)

What I learned:

The art of trolling is alive and well in porn comments. Also, if your video promises a creampie (sex act—you can look it up your damn self), you’d better deliver. Otherwise, people will call you names like “stooped.”

Video Two: “Barely Legal Casting”

The Video:

With a total of twenty-four comments, this video has 1,484 votes with an 86% positive rating and 1,714,761 views. It was added to this particular site eight months ago which means that this video is watched roughly 7,030 times per day. The video is part of the “Backroom Casting Couch” series of videos. It is a “reality” porn series, where a middle-aged dude, face always blurred out, has unprotected sex with women, many of them girls who appear to be amateurs and in their late teens. In this video the man asks a girl who claims to be eighteen, but could pass for fifteen, a whole bunch of awkward questions about sex, which she answers in a way that either highlights a strong history of character acting, or simply belies her actual sexual greenness. The man then proceeds to have her strip in front of the camera, ostensibly as part of a casting process. After sexing her up against a wall, he ejaculates on her face in a close-up that is really just creepy and left me feeling not aroused, as porn should, but rather cold inside.

The Comments:

Highlights include the somewhat racist, “have you ever done any black chicks? Or are you afraid that they’ll find out & shoot you? LOL” by someone named Bonezz_11 (his profile picture shows a shirtless dude with sunglasses and a visor blowing out some sort of smoke, and under “more info” he is listed as a twenty-two year old male who has been actively using this particular site for over two years and has watched 2,224 videos, giving him an average of three porn videos per day); the perverted, “daddys girl exploited, love it,” and, the misogynistic, “she looks hot with a dick in her mouth, but other than that, not so cute. too tiny,” by Freaknasty831, whose profile picture is an erect penis.

What I learned: (Besides how many porn videos Zach Bonezz_11 watches per day.)

That the American public education system is profoundly failing to teach its youngsters that riddling your text with comma splices makes you look like a total dumbass.

But, my porn comment research did lead me in an educational direction. Additional research into the authenticity of the Backroom Casting Couch series revealed that the male “star” of the videos is an Arizona man named Eric Whitaker, and that he totally has Herpes Simplex Virus Type I (he released proof through his Twitter account for some reason). The girls in the video are paid a flat fee up front, and are fully aware that they are entering Whitaker’s sleazy as hell Scottsdale office to have sex on camera, though apparently Whitaker has no qualms about knowingly spreading his Herpes, an offense which in the state of Arizona could possibly be considered aggravated assault.

Since June 2011, the greasy fuck Whitaker has been on the radar of sex crime detectives.

Next month Anderson continues to probe the porno-troll world and stumbles across a sex scandal involving a senator’s daughter.

The post Sexscapes: The Internet Gives a Voice to the Perverts of the World appeared first on South Austin Location.

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smoothshift · 7 years

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I may have just bought the highest original MSRP vehicle CarMax has ever sold via /r/cars

I may have just bought the highest original MSRP vehicle CarMax has ever sold

I recently brought home a 2013 SL63 AMG from CarMax. This was a single owner Arizona car with no accidents and a clean Autocheck sold to a CarMax dealership in rural Arizona a few hundred miles before it went off warranty.

CarMax is known for pricing a few thousand dollars over the market rate. In this case, the car indeed started off overpriced. You cannot haggle with CarMax, but they will periodically lower the price of (or transfer) cars that don’t sell in order to turn over inventory.

As you can imagine, there are not a lot of people shopping for just-about-off-warranty SL63 AMG’s. The people who are shopping for them aren’t going to CarMax and they certainly aren’t in rural Arizona. In the six months that this SL63 sat on the lot in AZ, the price dropped by $6k. At the time I purchased the car, it was the lowest priced SL63 AMG available for sale in the US.

Depreciation has not treated the SL-series well. The car I purchased is less than five years old and has lost well over half of it’s value, or nearly $100k, off of the sticker price. This model is still in production and you can go to a Mercedes Benz dealership today and purchase the same car with the same interior brand new (with a facelift, mind you) for over $150k. I know this because I convinced a salesman at the local dealership let me test drive one because this is Silicon Valley and although I look like I’m not old enough to drink, neither do half the billionaires in town.

So did I buy a B U M P E R – T O – B U M P E R - W A R R A N T Y /u/Doug-DeMuro (or you) may ask? Why yes, yes I did.

Bonus pic from when I wrote this behemoth of a post.

Lots of Context

Warning: I’m going to give praise to a few companies that have treated me really well. Feel free to post to /r/hailcorporate but companies are made up of people I feel that if people go the extra mile to give excellent customer service they should get some positive reinforcement.

In 2013 I graduated from engineering school having never owned a car or having driven one regularly. I had landed a well paying job in the US and had decided I was going to buy a manual BRZ or FR-S based on the concept pictures alone. I landed in Hartford to start my new career and had seven days of a beat up Hertz Aveo (the worst car I’ve driven to date) to find my car. My goal was to land one at MSRP and the best finance rate I could find with $10k down to establish some credit in the US.

My initial dealership experience was awful. Most dealerships had one or two BRZ/FR-S’s in stock, almost all of them marked up over MSRP. I went to three dealerships before I found one that would even let me take a test drive. I was 21, looked 18 and may as well have walked into the dealership wearing a sticker that said “Hi, My Name Is Tire Kicker”. The salesman acted like showing me the car was a bigger waste of time than

Ironically, I was exactly the type of customer Scion was after. I was buying my first new car out of college. I was young, had some disposable income, and wanted something sporty looking but reliable that could fit exactly one girl and zero children. The fact that they couldn’t land a customer who was trying very hard to buy one of their cars speaks volumes to why Toyota killed the brand.

Then, one Tuesday I went particularly out of my way to Secor Subaru in New London. Pfizer had recently packed up and headed to India, leaving behind one pharma-employee’s deposit on a satin white 2013 manual BRZ which sat parked in the display space outside of the dealership. I haven’t been to New London since 2013 but if you had driven through town then, you would understand why nobody had even stopped by to test-drive it.

Secor Subaru is a pretty modest dealership. There were two salesman at their desks that afternoon, one with a client and Andy, who was gingerly eating a sandwich. I plunked myself down in front of Andy and he asked how he could help me. I told him exactly what I was looking for. Andy took me outside and showed me the car and before I could ask, handed me the keys to the BRZ and told me to bring it back before they closed.

Because I had no credit, I was trying to finance through a program which a few manufacturers offer for professionals in the US on work visas. Most finance managers have never heard of this. Andy was a retired Pepsi sales rep who was working a couple of days a week at Subaru to keep health insurance. He had the next few days off, but came into the dealership each day to move the finance process through this program forward. I can’t say I’ve ever received better customer service anywhere than Andy gave me that week.

The BRZ was the car that made me care about cars. I felt, up until recently, that I would own that car until the day that it died. It’s so good in so many ways, torque be damned. I had fun driving that car in some of the most boring conditions imaginable, including driving it from Connecticut to California.

If living in California doesn’t make you want to drive a convertible, you’re probably due for a CT scan. By my second year there, I was overwhelmed by the urge. I couldn’t stop perusing Boxster S’s and Z4M’s on Craigslist. Then, pretty much on a whim, I won this Dinan Z3M Roadster on Bring a Trailer, site unseen, never having even sat in one. This is particularly important because I’m 6’8 and was out of the country at the time. I rebooked my flight home to land in Portland and drove the car home to California. What’s the fun in winning a 16-year-old 89k-mile German performance car at auction if you don’t have a 1000-mile drive home?

The BMW has been an adventure ever since. It sounds amazing, has oodles of torque all the way through and I’ve had many, many little weekend projects to polish it into the experience (not to mention a fair amount of professional service). To me, it’s a character car that I can pull out when I need to make a quick trip to the store through the back roads, to dinner on a warm night or to the beach on the weekend.

After a recent move, my commute turned to an hour each way on the freeway while often making calls in the car. I also started feeling the aches and pains of shoulder and back problems that come with being 6’8 and a former athlete. Daily driving the BRZ was becoming a compromise.

I started looking at F-Types and C7’s online. Then I stopped into a Chevy dealership and realized I literally didn’t fit in one. Then I went to a Jag dealership and sat in an F-Type. I could sit in it, but it was too much of a squeeze to drive. Heartbroken, I went back online and ended up back on CarMax. That’s when I saw the SL63 AMG.

I watched all the videos, did all the research and stopped into the local Mercedes Dealership and sat in one. Miraculously, I fit! (With ample room!) And what a comfortable and spectacularly crafted interior. After a test drive, I was pretty much sold. I requested the CarMax car to be transferred and after taking it for a test drive and looking over the info, I picked it up last Thursday (and then immediately left town for a week ☹).

When I get home, I’ll list the BRZ for sale. I’ll be sad to see it go, but I’m also excited for some long road trips with cooled seats, seat massagers and 590 lb-ft of torque.

#reddit #autonews #auto #cars