It is generally safe to state that the era of the video cassette recorder is gradually on its way out & drawing to a close, video recorder will still be around for a long time and it is phenomenal to see how countless people actually still have them & watch their recorded films on them. The piece of technology which is key for anyone to have is the fantastic DVD player, which is little by little now branching out to the DVD Recorder. When DVD recorders were 1st brought out they were exceedingly expensive.

It is now possible to pick up a really discounted DVD Recorder if you look hard enough & conduct some research. Men get perplexed with the differences between a DVD recorders and DVD burners; they are 2 completely different pieces of technology, although they do generate DVD’s with burning via a laser to a blank DVD disk. Each and every one of the Digital Versatile Disc recorders can record from any analogue video source, most can record video from digital camcorders via firewire.

The terrific thing now is that Digital Versatile Disc recorders have under no circumstances been so low-cost thus it’s possible for you to purchase a top of the range system for an awfully cheap price. The electronics market place is motivated by the latest equipment, new improvements & product quality, of which these can be found varying just about every month.

Some of the top brands for DVD recorders at the moment are Bandridge, Toshiba and Panasonic, however, if you’re watching for the best of the best and you do not mind spending a little more to get something incredibly special then you might often go for the Vita-audio Digital Versatile Disc recorder, this really is best of the line & there can be found lots of distinct ones to choose from. Your next large choice after deciding what brand is whether you want one that has a fantastic hard drive installed in it like the iLuv one. Amazing prices on Sony DVD Recorders at Sound and Vision. Visit the website.

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Bond together both of man’s dominating quests and what you’ll unveil is something normally named a sportsbook bets site. Would you know of anything that could ever be more ingenious… See a large assembly of fellows cheering to support any local players, and always antes will be computed in tandem with the uproar. So keen to get a share of the enjoyment, on-lookers will frequently aspire to figure who will prevail the upcoming game. All this evolves into a congenial and friendly game termed sportsbook bets site.

Play your favorite bet pick sports game anytime. Visit this top casino site.

Agreed it might well appear dependency forming, but in actual fact sportsbook gambling is, in reality, merely diverting and to relate with fellow sports buddies. You can wager a a skimpy sum of wampum and yet have a amazing time. See below for a select number of basics to help everyone get started sportsbook gambling.

In order to place a wager, you’ll want to search for a sportsbook bets site, i.e. a place which receives sportsbook bets site. In the US, you have no less than four states where everybody can do sportsbook gambling officially, but beyond legal you may do it wherever so long as you are able to find a bookie and happen to be a legal adult. Among the sports activities you can choose to risk your money on are pro plus, to boot, college level football plus basketball, professional baseball and hockey, plus, to boot, dog and horse racing. Visitors may choose to risk some money on the comprehensive result of a competition or game, when exactly any given contester will be vanquished, and even if a given coin toss in a competition or game will land either heads or tails.

The sportsbook setup rely on pure statistics make it easier for you decide which players you deem will prevail. First we have the chances, or lead allocated to a trailing contestant that is presumed to lose by a given number points. Of Course, this is the bookie outfit’s routine of offering stakes for a Sports Book. For a practical example, a customer may choose to wager on a side that is presumed to lose and and yet profit from that bet so long as the contestant does actually get beaten by a given number of points.

Why not give it a runover, and enjoy the excitement simultaneously… But safeguard you won’t get too enthusiastic and waste your entire income on a boutade! If not, chances are you’ll be caught full of regrets all your life!

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Here are 10 retail technologies that I believe will give retailers the biggest benefit and boost for success. If you’re not utilizing any of these technologies then you might want to check them out because you could be missing out on some big time saving and money making tools…

Here they are in order of importance (in my humble opinion, of course):

1) Point of Sale (POS) and Inventory Control Software
A good POS / Retail Management System can be a huge time saver and money maker for you. That’s partly why it’s number one…

In its simplest form, a good POS system will track all your sales so you can easily see how your business is doing (at any time). In other words, it replaces your cash register.

It’s difficult to decide where to even start talking about POS software because it can do SO many things for you. I could literally write a book about ALL the reasons why a POS system will help you — so I’ll quickly summarize in 5 key areas. A good POS system can…

* Dramatically improve your customer service.
* Simplify and improve inventory management.
* Improve the effectiveness of your marketing efforts.
* Easily show where you’re making and losing money so you can make adjustments and increase profits.
* Save huge amounts of time by automating bookkeeping and countless other retail tasks for you.

Now keep in mind… not only will a POS system give you a huge benefit, but it can also be the MOST difficult technology to choose. There are many things to consider and you certainly don’t want to miss out on anything important because it’s very expensive to change POS systems. So take your time and do your research when you choose a POS system.

2) Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software
One of the unwavering keys to building a successful retail business is to build relationships with your customers. Because of that, CRM software is a critical tool for the retail business. And not only will CRM help you improve your customer loyalty it will help you market to potential prospects and generate new business.

In a nutshell, CRM software allows you to track your customers, identify market segments and then easily communicate with them via email, telephone, direct mail and more.

Some POS systems actually include CRM capabilities and that’s what I recommend. This allows you to track all this information in one place and reduce time consuming double entry. In any case, CRM software can be purchased as a stand alone product or considered its own module in your POS software. So it deserves its own category.

3) Bar Code Scanning and UPC Codes
Simply put, bar code scanning allows you to check products at the point of sale much faster and more accurately than can be done on the keyboard. Not only will this save you time, but you should also consider the effect of your inventory…

Just think about the consequences of entering the wrong product number and throwing off your inventory. Your inventory is the lifeblood of your business and accuracy is vital. These errors can cause you to lose sales, increase inventory costs, and waste hours of time.

I should also point out that if your merchandise has UPC codes, you can easily scan those tags without the need to print your own bar codes. This can be a huge time saver.

4) Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)
EDI technology allows you to send purchase orders (created in your POS software) to your supplier electronically via phone line or internet. Not only does this save a huge amount of time, but it can also reduce errors — so you don’t have to apologize to your customer because you special ordered the wrong item.

Just imagine, using your POS software to automatically generate purchase orders (based on order levels and sales history) and then sending your order to your supplier electronically. You can process your entire order without entering a single product number! How much time would that save you?

5) Retail Accounting Software
More and more retailers are doing their accounting in-house because they can quickly produce up-to-date financial statements and see how their business is doing at almost any time. This has become easier for the small business owner because of a variety of user friendly accounting applications.

Accounting software can be purchased stand alone or can be integrated with your POS software. Now it’s important for you to consider each different module within an accounting system. I suggest that your Accounts Receivable module (what people owe you) should almost always be integrated with your POS software. It’s also a good idea to get your Accounts Payable module integrated with your POS too (because you’ll reduce double entry). Your General Ledger module can be stand alone or integrated. There are pros and cons for each method. If you’d like to learn more about integrating POS and accounting software, here’s a good article to check out: http://www.possoftwareguide.com/articles/pos-accounting-integration.html

6) Store Traffic Counters
These valuable devices will help you improve sales conversion ratios, increase store traffic, and improve advertising. If you’re serious about increasing sales conversions then you need an accurate measure of your store traffic so you can determine your closing ratio. Automated traffic counters are accurate and objective. They provide surprisingly detailed data that takes the guesswork out of measuring closing ratios and even how ads pull.

Store traffic counters also help better schedule your sales staff because they identify actual foot traffic in your store during certain time periods. You can also determine if traffic goes up or down during marketing promotions so you can figure out what works the best. And this is just the tip of the iceberg! There are MANY benefits to this technology.

7) Graphics Design Software
Most small retail business owners tend to wear many hats… and taking care of marketing promotions can be one of them. With computers and graphics programs today, you can save thousands of dollars by creating simple flyers, brochures, and ads with your own graphics design software. Popular programs include Adobe InDesign, Adobe PageMaker, Corel Draw and Microsoft Publisher.

Websites & Shopping Carts
Whether you sell products on your website or not… websites can be powerful tools to promote your retail business. For example, you could link to your website from business cards, newspaper ads, and more. This gives you an opportunity to tell your story, give people an idea of what you sell, and convince them to stop by your store. Since it would be very expensive to tell your entire sales story in a newspaper ad… you can finish the job by sending people to your website and save money.

Then if you’re really serious, you can utilize a website shopping cart so customers can place orders and pay you right from the website.

9) Payroll Software
Payroll software can allow you to do payroll in-house and save a bunch of time. The software calculates the deductions that come out of each payroll, like FIT, SIT, FICA, 401K, HSA, flex, etc. It also calculates the totals for W-2’s (and prints them) at the end of the year. And of course, it also prints nice looking checks with all the deductions per payroll as well as year-to-date totals.

10) Portable Data Terminals (PDT) and Hand Held Computers
Portable data terminals are great tools that allow you to quickly count your inventory and easily update your POS system. You can simply carry around this portable terminal, scan your merchandise, and then enter your on-hand quantities. This allows you to more easily and accurately count your inventory.

In addition, hand held computers are becoming more popular. They allow you to create orders and complete various tasks on a computer that fits in the palm of your hand. You could place orders from a truck or anywhere inside or outside of your store.

Now I obviously listed only 10 retail technologies because it’s a nice round number, but there are many other great technologies that can help you out. For example, a few honorable mentions include… signature capture devices, smart cards, customer loyalty cards, wireless technology, and email auto-responders.

I’m sure there are a few more that I’m missing, but depending on your type of business, this is a pretty good list to start with.

I suggest that you take a close look at each one of these technologies. Make sure you understand what’s involved and why they are SO important. Then consider utilizing this type of technology in your business (if you haven’t already).

Learn more about retail technology including how to choose, utilize, and maximize profits with retail technology:
http://www.possoftwareguide.com/newsletter.asp

Jeff Haefner is a nationally known author and retail technology expert. He has past experience as a programmer, retail consultant, network administrator, POS software salesmen and marketing manager. He’s also the author of “The Point of Sale Software Buyers Guide” and a free “Retail Technology Newsletter”:
www.possoftwareguide.com/newsletter.asp

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We all know that when a bride to be has already spent practically twenty years planning her wedding before she even knows who the groom is, the image that she dreams of is how she will look on her wedding day. Every little detail counts and is carefully pondered upon before making the all important wedding decisions.

The first part of the dream is “The Dress”, the wedding gown, her day, her style. The selection of the wedding gown is one of the most important items a bride to be must decide upon. The dress no matter what the style should always be a selection that the bride to be feels elegant and beautiful in. Whether a bride envisions herself in a simple white gown, a lacy gown or a bright pink gown, the bride’s attitude in the dress is what makes that bride an individual and beautiful bride on her wedding day. The selection of the wedding gown should always remain fun and as stress free as possible, buy what makes you feel beautiful.

Now that the dress has been chosen, you have been measured and the all important deposit has been made, you are committed to “The Dress”, you need to finish off your bridal look for your wedding day. This is where all of the little details that you hem and haw about for hours come together to make a magnificent and magical combination of the perfect bride! The shoes, the garter, the something old something new and last but certainly not least, the bridal jewelry!

The bridal jewelry that the bride to be decides upon should coordinate with the wedding gown she has selected to wear for the big wedding day. Keeping in mind the style of your dress, the bridal jewelry selection must be made with as careful of attention to detail as when choosing your wedding gown. The bridal jewelry chosen by the bride should finish off your look and bring the entire ensemble together.

Some suggestions to follow as to the style of dress you are wearing to match the style of the bridal jewelry you will wear follows.

Open Backed Dress – When wearing an open back dress, adding a bridal jewelry lariat is a great way to add the final detail to show off your beautiful wedding gown. A bridal lariat is a piece of bridal jewelry that the bride wears around her neck like a normal necklace; however; the back of the neck will have a longer dangling piece of jewelry to finish off the look. Depending upon the piece of bridal jewelry, lariats can be purchased that are adjustable, which will be a better fit for any bride with a backless dress. Another great way to show off a backless dress is a bridal jewelry choker or bridal jewelry collar with a hanging jewel embellishment in the back. Bridal chokers have become a very modern and popular choice for brides that want an edgier bridal look and feel that still embraces the classic and elegant bride.

V Neck Dress – When a bride is wearing a v neck style wedding gown, Y- drop necklaces are a very nice touch for bridal necklace jewelry. The Y- drop necklace takes the same angles as the v neck wedding gown line. Bridal chokers are also a great selection for the bride that is wearing a v line dress. The choker gives clean lines and does not distract from the v neck style of dress. Regular simple and double strand necklaces also work very nicely for this style of wedding gown, as they provide a simple but elegant style that compliments the v neck.

Square Top Dress – For the brides that select a very traditional square top wedding gown, simple single strand and double strand bridal jewelry necklaces are a great way to finish off the neckline. They bring contrast and attract the eye towards the cut of the dress. For a very clean lined look, bridal jewelry chokers are the most perfect style of bridal jewelry necklines for the square top dress. The bridal choker has become more and more popular as the years pass, now with so many options available; brides are finding it easier to select the perfect bridal jewelry choker that fits the style of their gowns.

The Sweetheart Gown – The sweetheart gown style of wedding gown is accessorized nicely with a y – drop necklace, as it follows the line of the top of the wedding gown. Also with this style of gown, bridal chokers go nicely, as well as pendant necklace and simple round necklaces. The sweetheart gown is such a nice choice; the bridal jewelry that you select to wear with the gown should always compliment that neckline.

Strapless Dress – When a bride wears a strapless gown, there are many options for the bridal jewelry necklace. A bridal jewelry choker is such a great way to compliment the line of the top of the dress. A choker brings a symmetrical and parallel line, and adding a sparkly pearl or swarovski crystal bridal jewelry choker or collar with a strapless gown is so elegant and sophisticated. In addition to the bridal choker, simple pendant necklaces as well as single strand and multi-strand necklaces make great choices for the strapless style wedding gown. Wearing a strapless gown draws much attention to the shoulders and neck region, so wearing the perfect bridal jewelry that looks spectacular with that line of dress is very important for your bridal look.

Halter Top Dress – The halter top dress calls for a certain type of bridal jewelry. A dangle backed necklace or lariat are perfect for this line of wedding gown. The attention is drawn on the front and the back, making use of the entire wedding gown to compliment your bridal jewelry. A halter dress also looks beautifully pulled together with a y drop necklace or pendant necklace. The y drop necklace was just about made for this style of wedding gown; the y drop centers the entire look and feel of this type of gown.

Off The Shoulder Dress – When wearing an off of the shoulder dress, any style of bridal jewelry necklace works. A regular single or double strand necklace can frame out your entire bridal look with simplicity. If you choose to wear a bridal jewelry choker, that brings the eyes up to the face with ease as it finished off your bridal look. Y drop and lariats work great with the off the shoulder dress. Depending upon how much of your back shows, a lariat can look elegant from behind when standing at the alter, and a y drop necklace really brings focus to the bride with this gown. What ever style you choose for this line of dress, you cannot go wrong.

One Shoulder Dress or Asymmetric Dress – With the asymmetric gown, it is best to choose a great bracelet and pair of earrings, as a necklace will look unbalanced and unnatural. The one shoulder dress is a bold move; wear a bold bracelet and glamorous earrings.

Scoop Necked Gown – When wearing the scooped neck gown a simple one or multi-strand necklace is perfect. A necklace such as the simple one to five strand bridal necklaces will frame out the top of your wedding gown perfectly. A bridal jewelry choker is also a really nice selection for this style of dress. It is a simple and even topper to the scoop neckline, a great selection.

Whatever your dress selection, choose bridal jewelry that makes you feel gorgeous when you put it on. Your bridal jewelry is your icing on the cake and the selection of the bridal jewelry is just as important as the selection of the gown. Your bridal jewelry will be bridal accessories that you cherish for a life time. You will never wear your wedding gown after the big day, but you can wear your bridal jewelry when ever you want to. Wearing your bridal jewelry is your memory to the most special day in your life. What ever your bridal jewelry selection, look spectacular on your wedding day because you waited for this special moment for a lifetime!

Resources:
www.bonitaj.com
sales@bonitaj.com
888-526-4479

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As the last rays of summer’s warmth ebb away and the gentle breezes of autumn waft themselves upon us, we recognize once again, that change is inevitable. Nature is constantly changing and yet, so many people have the notion that change is frightening.

People are creatures of habit and some find it difficult to adjust to changes that are certain to come our way. Life is like an old, comfortable pair of shoes. We may realize that we need new ones and we may even find new ones we really like, but, we know that changing will cause us discomfort for a little while until we break them in.

Sometimes we need to realize that life isn’t always easy. What may be better for us is not what we are used to, but it is certainly worth the trouble of breaking in new habits and lifestyle changes.

Change does not have to be painful. Just look to nature and it will give you clues to how change can be effortless. The beautifully colored autumn leaves do not hang on to the old tree for dear life. No, they yield to the changes with ease and float gently off the tree.

With the coming of autumn we have been busy in our gardens pulling up the old stuff and getting ready for a time of rest. We know that the ground must rest and next year there will be more wonderful things in our garden to delight us.

Are there things in your life that need to be gently eased out of your life? Maybe there are bad relationships or habits or thoughts that need to be weeded out of your life. Don’t be afraid to do a little gardening in your own life.

Every gardener knows that unless we get to the roots, we really are not getting rid of the problem. It may go away for awhile but unless we get to the root, it will sneak back into the garden very quickly.

Although the harvest time is here there is no time to stop weeding the garden of our minds. This garden needs constant attention in order for us to flourish and be all that we can be. The only way to keep this garden in top shape is to make sure that no weeds are there trying to strangle any good we are trying to do. The weeds of our mind, of course are negative thoughts that like to creep in and keep us from achieving that which we are striving for.

William James said, “Human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives.

How do we change the inner attitudes of our minds? By changing the way we think. We must put fear and negativity behind us. How, you ask? Just as the leaves of autumn gently blow from the tree, don’t try and make a change in your thinking over night and expect to get instant results. We cannot rip these thoughts out of our minds, as much as we would like to sometimes. No, we need to be gentle on ourselves and let positive thoughts replace the negative.

Yes it will take some work on your part. You must constantly fill your mind with positive thoughts. Proverbs 27: 3 says, As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. We are what we think. When the negative thoughts come into your mind, you must be ready and willing to replace those thoughts with positive ones. Just say to yourself, no, I won’t let that thought take over my mind, I will think positively. Affirmations are good to have readily available so you can replace the negative thought with the positive one. It won’t be easy, it won’t be hard either, it will just be different, like that new pair of shoes we were talking about earlier.

The autumn leaves fall to make way for new life. We too must go through changes that will bring new growth to our bodies, souls and spirits.

Change is inevitable, so why fight it? Why be afraid of it? Yes, change will require us to do a bit of readjusting but it is always worth it. Don’t be afraid of change, a change will do you good.

This article is bought to you by Sharron Myers

Sharron Myers has been a teacher of Spiritual Truth for over 30 years. She also is a Certified Aromatherapist and Personal Development Consultant. Be sure to check out her site: www.sharron-myers.com

To Live the Life You Want, Learn the Skills You Need
www.sharron-myers.com

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In his recent testimony, Alan Greenspan warned against the possiblity that we have seen home prices plateau. The bursting of the “bubble” could cause a big hit to the U.S. economy. But, why should we worry?

Well, as we all know, house prices are up across the country…over 10% in the last year, including over 25% in some markets. Additionally, house prices have risen over 70% since 1994, more than double the increase of renting during that time period. Demand for houses is high, as interest rates have stayed low. This has created an investment market for houses.

Now, the average homeowner can use the equity in his/her home to finance the purchase of one or more additional houses. One statistic showed that 13% of houses are currently unoccupied, due to investors gobbling them up, hoping the prices will continue to skyrocket.

But can these prices last? Once the supply of houses exceeds demand, we could see a rapid drop in prices, as people look to sell their extra homes. Higher interest rates or falling prices could scare away potential buyers, creating a housing market crash.

Furthermore, those with Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMs) who figured they would only own the house for 3-4 years might now be stuck with either a high interest mortgage, or selling the home for a substantial loss.

Either way, the potential for bankrupt investors seems unnervingly real. With new laws making it harder for one to declare bankruptcy, we could become a nation with huge individual debt…and that would certainly hurt our economy.

Scott publishes and maintains Stock Market Plus, a financial blog with topics ranging from Investing to Debt Control. Visit him at http://www.stockmarketplus.com

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If you have asthma, it’s important to understand the strong link between asthma and allergies. In fact, most people who have asthma–especially children–have it as a result of allergic triggers.

It’s essential to know what triggers–or worsens–your asthma, so that you can then work on avoiding those triggers, if at all possible.

Asthma tends to be much more common in western countries, compared to the poorer, more rural areas of the world. Experts think this is because allergies also tend to be more prevalent in western countries. And, allergy rates are on the rise, which means even more people in this part of the world will be at risk for asthma.

Many studies today go a long way toward proving that asthma is caused by our environment. This leads the experts to believe that we may be able to prevent asthma–at least in many cases–simply by changing our environment. Wow, wouldn’t that be great? Where do I sign up?!

When asthma can be treated by easily removing an allergic trigger (cause), it can be very successful. It works best when the cause is easy to remove, as when the trigger is a fume or a substance you’re exposed to only in certain situations. Or, if the trigger is pet dander from cats or dogs, it’s also fairly easy to avoid, unless you own the pets, of course.

However, the most common cause of asthma is a sensitivity to house dust mites. And, reducing dust mites enough to make a big difference with asthma necessitates significant changes in lifestyle for both the asthma sufferers and their families. Plus, it can be quite expensive to achieve such changes, what with having to toss out carpeting, encasing pillows, mattresses, and bedding in allergy-proof plastic covers, etc.

Hopefully, experts will develop future treatments that can change, get rid of, or lessen the allergy process in our bodies. In fact, this is an area where much research is already being done. Here are a couple of pages where you can view some of the research being done in the US on asthma:

http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct/gui/action/FindCondition?ui=D001249&recruiting=true

http://www.niehs.nih.gov/airborne/research/background.html

Kathleen MacNaughton is a registered nurse and accomplished consumer health writer whose work can be seen at http://www.rhinocortaqua.com and http://www.everydaykidz.com For more information on asthma, see Kathleen’s site at http://www.asthma-a-to-z.com

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Not absolutely sure which sex lube to own? Your questions might be reviewed in this fab water based lube guide.

Sex Lubricants are not primarily for sex. Getting oiled up for single fun is one of the most common uses for water based lubes, massage oils and sexual lotions. Using fruity lubricant during one on one fun is safe, incredible and practical. You will want your dongs to go in and thrust as much as possible. Perfect for the rock hard look – Cock Rings.

If blokes are looking for a sexual lubricant which is safe to experiment with all dildos stick to a water-based sex lubricant, there are countless delicious types out there like vanilla. And there are some that melt.

Many current users might well already know what water based lube is most suited for them. But if you yourself are experiencing a fruity lube for the 1st time Sex Bomb would adore to recommend the following. It?s best to start off with a water-based sexual lubricant. Water-based sex lubes don?t stain and fruity lubes are likewise totally safe to use on all vibrators. If you yourself want to have a lubricant for oral play we recommend you yourself get one of the rich strawberry flavoured ones. Anal admirers tend to go for heavier sexual lubricant because these lubes are slightly longer lasting. Remember, the more fruity lube you experiment with the more breathtaking sex you can have.

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How much is too much?

For youth sports, the answer is apparently nothing. An average professional hockey, basketball, or soccer player might have 80 games a year. Eight- or nine-year old kids often play the same, along with practices and weekend tournaments.

So what’s going on?

What’s going on is that adults are ruining sports from kids. We’ve professionalized youth sports, organized the games kids used to play in the schoolyard or in parks. Instead of that endless and unstructured fun, parents drive their kids to games and practices, where coaches tell kids what to do and how to do it. This goes on five, six, even seven times a week. Sure, a precious few go on to superstardom as professional athletes, but they’re the one percent of the one percent. The rest burn out.

Is it really necessary to travel every weekend to yet another tournament? Is that third practice a week really adding to a young person’s enjoyment? Has society forgotten about the Law of Diminishing Returns? Is there not something wrong about $30,000 budgets for a hockey team of 12-year olds?

More is not necessarily better. The magic number is three – one game and two practices a week. Until a kid is 13 or 14, that is enough of any one activity. Let them develop a number of interests – sports, reading, music, and maybe hanging out with friends once in a while. After that age, if the interest is still there, then it might be appropriate to let them focus on one sport or activity. Two- and three-sport athletes are going the way of the Dodo bird. We do no lack for great athletes, but we force our kids to specialize at an early age. Cross training is widely accepted by experts as an essentially part of an athlete’s development. Yet, I do not see many kids cross training at all.

Naturally, if any of my kids were a Michael Jordan or a Tiger Woods I would encourage them to focus. Unless yours belongs to that elite class, however, perhaps your kid would be better off playing a number of sports; and make sure they have time to play after school, without coaches and referees blowing whistles all the time.

There is also a worrying commercial side to this issue. Leagues and tournaments have become a big business, along with equipment sales and sports facilities. Ironically, all this money depends upon a constant stream of kids who play a whole lot of sports. The more they play, the more money is made. I find it hard to ignore this connection; and, also not to believe that business has been an active partner in fueling the belief so prevalent among parents and coaches that kids have to play ‘their sport’ every day of the week.

We need to remember that youth sports are for kids – not for those watching from the sidelines, or tournament organizers, or equipment manufacturers. Professional athletes are paid millions to play 80 games a year; how much are our kids getting for becoming professional athletes at 8-years old?

David Skuy is the author of “Off the Crossbar,” a sports novel for boys. You can visit his website at http://www.charliejoyce.com He is a popular lecturer, speaking to kids and parent groups on the importance of literacy and sports for children.

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As you are likely aware, I am a designer handbag fanatic. I have been advised by family and friends that this could be developing into a problem, but I am confident that I have it under control. Sure, I have bounced my rent check to purchase a new purse. Who hasn’t? There have been times when I have skipped out on my utility bills, so I would have enough cash to buy a new handbag. Who wouldn’t?

I have spent countless nights dreaming about shopping for the latest fashionable designs. So what if I want to have Kenneth Cole’s babies. I really don’t see the problem here. To make my mother happy, I have made the following pledge (ever-so-loosely based on the “twelve step” program):

My name is Cathy, and I am addicted to designer handbags and high fashion. I admit that I am powerless over Prada, and that my life has become unmanageable in certain respects. I have faith that a power greater than Dior can restore my sanity. I have made a pledge to turn my will and my life over to the power of the House of Gucci. I have made a searching and fearless inventory of every handbag on bagborroworsteal.com.

I have made an admission to Chloe, myself, and my friend Sara regarding the exact nature of my wrongs. I am ready for Melie Bianco to remove all these defects of character, and I humbly implore her to remove my shortcomings. I have made a list of all the handbag designers I have harmed with my caustic language, and I am ready and willing to make amends to them all. I have gladly continued to take personal inventory of all my designer purses, and when I was wrong it was promptly admitted.

I have sought through prayer and meditation to improve my conscious contact with Vivienne Westwood as I understand her, praying only for knowledge of her will for me and the power to carry that out. After having this spiritual awakening, I have tried to carry this message other handbag junkies. I have tried to apply these principles in all my erm…..affairs. My name is Cathy, and I am addicted to designer handbags and high fashion.

Cathy Feldman is looking forward to her meeting with Kenneth Cole. When she is not dreaming about the perfect purse, she writes for designerhandbags101.com – a beacon of light in the world of designer handbags, with information about Balenciaga Handbags, Birkin Bags, Zero Halliburton Luggage and more.

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