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The holiday season is upon us, which can only mean one thing: electronics are at the top of everyone's wish list. Even if you can't snag a new PlayStation 3 or nintendo Wii, there are still many electronics gifts that will delight your recipients. Here are just a few:

Cell Phones: Cell phone technology continues to improve, as do the features available on cell phones. A new cell phone, complete with a high-res camera, video functionality, and wireless adaptability, is certain to be a welcome gift. If that's beyond your budget, opt for any of the number of cool cell phone accessories that are available.

iPods: An Apple iPod makes the perfect gift for anyone who enjoys music or television, even if they're not tech-savvy. Not only can they download tunes, but increasingly, they can download television episodes that they may have missed. Again, if you can't afford an iPod, there are any number of accessories - from earbuds to "socks" that are adorable and affordable.

Home Theaters: This year, why not indulge the whole family with a home theater? Flat screen TVs have come so far down in price that they're more than worth the splurge. While you're at it, get a collection of DVDs that every family member can enjoy!

car Audio and video: Entertainment has most definitely moved out of the home and into transportation. High-quality car audio and video equipment make wonderful gifts for family members on the go. Everyone can enjoy the high-quality sound that great car audio produces, while the kids in the family will be entertained on road trips with car dvd players.

Computers: For many people, computers aren't a convenience - they're a necessity. Everyone from adults who bring work home with them to students who have to research school papers (and book some time on one or more of the social networking sites!) will treasure a new computer. Again, prices on electronics have come down so much that either a notebook computer or a desktop PC is affordable.

Games: If you're not able to nab one of the new gaming systems, don't worry about it. There are still great games that are made for the Sony PlayStation 2, the nintendo gamecube, and the microsoft xbox and xbox 360. Final Fantasy XII, guitar Hero II, Okami, LEGO star Wars II, madden nfl 07, and Viva Pinata, are all highly rated games for a variety of interests and age levels.

The bottom line is that, whatever the gift-giving occasion, you can't go wrong with a gift of personal electronics. Your best bet is to find an online source that has deeply discounted electronics, continually adds new items to their inventory, and provides you with the perfect online shopping experience.

Chris Robertson is a published author of Majon International. Majon International is one of the worlds MOST popular internet marketing and internet advertising companies on the web. Visit their main business resource web site at: http://www.majon.com

Imagine spending several wondrous days on the turquoise seas on the most luxurious cruise liner you've ever seen. Now imagine taking that once-in-a-lifetime cruise with inadequate cruise insurance, or worse, none at all. Chances are you won't even enjoy your cruise because you won't have peace of mind.

You might ask, is cruise insurance really important? The thing is nobody really knows for sure what could happen while you're traveling, but it's always better to be safe than sorry.

Cruise insurance can help immensely if, for instance, your trip is cancelled because of foul weather. Or if your baggage gets lost somehow. There are personal belongings that are surely irreplaceable, but it's a consolation to be partly compensated for the loss. Even something as simple as missing a connecting cruise can ruin a dream vacation.

search the Web to find the best deals on cruise insurance. Most companies provide checklists of items to consider when purchasing a policy. Unexpected illnesses, accidents, and trip cancellations are good enough reasons to get cruise insurance.

Normally, travel deposits are non-refundable and this could be a great loss if an unexpected event comes up, necessitating you to cancel your trip. Cruise insurance can reimburse deposits and payments if the reason for cancellation is included in the coverage, such as injury, sickness, or death of the insured, a traveling companion, or a family member.

There are some policies that cover a lot of weather-related crises such as blizzards, typhoons, or floods. Some even include coverage of emergency evacuation and repatriation.

It's important to read the fine print to make sure that you're getting your money's worth. Do some research about the companies known to respond quickly to claims payments. If there are items in the contract which are vague, never hesitate to ask the company's representative about them.

You must also remember to inform a trusted friend or relative about your travel plans which cruise you're taking, where you plan to go, and details about your itinerary.

Cruise insurance may seem like a minor concern, but getting one makes you feel more secure, knowing that your trip won't be marred by unexpected expenses.

You can also find more info on Travel Insurance For Backpackers and Travel Insurance Tips. travelinsurance-help.com is a comprehensive resource to get information about travel insurance.

It is well known that about two-thirds of the U.S. population is either overweight or obese. The U.S. Surgeon General has stated that approximately 75% of Western diseases, such as heart disease, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, gout, arthritis, excess weight gain, hypertension, diabetes, some cancers, impotence, biventricular disease, constipation, heartburn, and gallbladder disease, are lifestyle-related. They are directly correlated with our high fat diet, inadequate amounts of exercise, smoking, high intake of caffeine, and high amounts of stress coupled with insufficient support.

Hoping to address this alarming situation, more than 20 years ago, cardiovascular epidemiologist Hans A. Diehl, DrHSc, MPH, created the Coronary health Improvement Project (CHIP). Since then, this 40-hour community-based lifestyle intervention program has helped more than 40,000 people rediscover their health by preventing, arresting and reversing their diseases. It has been conducted in more than 150 North American cities as well as in Bangalore, India, Australia and Switzerland. Depending upon the needs of the group, the meetings are held either live with Dr. Diehl delivering the program personally (usually meeting four times per week for four weeks) or as a video-based program with certified CHIP facilitators (normally two times per week for eight weeks). In addition, Dr. Diehl is a best-selling author To Your health, Dynamic Living, and health Power (co-authored with Aileen Ludington, M.D.) -- as well as the executive editor of a 24-page quarterly Lifeline health Letter; he has produced scores of health videos. CHIP empowers people through its scientifically-documented, educational and inspirational program that addresses common western diseases -- those that used to be seen primarily later in life.

Today, these diseases increasingly appear at far younger ages. CHIP may make all the difference in ones life -- even the difference between life and death.

In 1999, CHIP launched a community health transformation template in Rockford, Illinois, a city with a population of 130,000. The intention was to transform Rockford into the healthiest city in American, thereby enabling it to serve as a model and template for cultural transformation on a community-wide level. Recently, CHIP was recognized as just such a model by HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson and was approved under the National Institutes of health (NIH) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as a STEPS to a HealthierUS applicant. In addition to live CHIP, a series of CHIP videos are offered through schools, churches, corporations, and hospitals. In Rockford, CHIP is sponsored by the Swedish American health Systems Center for Complementary Medicine.

Who is the typical CHIP participant? Generally, CHIP participants are over the age of 40. Most are between the ages of 50 and 59. There are twice as many women as men, and almost 90% are married. Clinical research, published in peer review journals, has found that they have the following lifestyle diseases:

• 10% report having heart disease

• 27% have elevated blood sugar

• 42% are overweight

• 49% show evidence of hypertension

• 60% are obese

• 89% are cholesterol above 160mg%

over the course of the program, strict adherents are likely to experience significant clinical improvements such as the following:

• Serum cholesterol reduction average 15 20%

• Average weight loss of six pounds

• In about half of the participants with type 11 diabetes, a dramatic reduction in need for insulin and hypoglycemic agents

• Lowering of high blood pressure levels

• Diminishing of angina

• Reduced levels of depression and increase in self-esteem

Class & Video Lecture Schedule

Week 1

Modern Medicine: Miracles, Medicines, & Mirages

The limitations of high-tech medical approaches in dealing with lifestyle related diseases

Portrait of a Killer: Onslaught from Within

Atherosclerosis, the culprit in many lifestyle diseases

Stalking the Killer

Reviewing the risk factors for coronary heart disease

Eat More and Weigh Less

Basic guidelines for healthy, sustained weight loss

Week 2

Going Up in Smoke

smoking the most controllable risk factor for coronary heart disease

The magic of Fiber

The role of fiber in preventing and reversing lifestyle diseases

Reversing Hypertension

Changing the major risk factors for high blood pressure

Disarming Diabetes

Lifestyle factors that can arrest or reverse diabetes

Effective Cholesterol Control

Dietary factors that prominently affect blood levels of cholesterol

Fats in the Fire

The role of excessive fat intake in lifestyle diseases

Week 3

Fit at Any Age

Benefits of regular exercise in preventing and arresting disease

Boning Up on Osteoporosis

Cause and prevention of this so-called disease of aging

Lifestyle and health

Clinical studies that demonstrate how lifestyle choices are related to health

The Optimal diet

Positive dietary guidelines for the prevention and reversal of Western diseases

Week 4

diet and Cancer

Dietary factors in the development and prevention of common cancers

Atherosclerosis of the Mind

The importance of adaptability in achieving and maintaining optimal health

The Gift of Forgiveness

How a spirit of forgiveness enhances emotional and overall health

Building Self-Worth

The development, preservation and role of self worth in a healthy person

Sidebar

Connie Thebarges story

At the age of 59, Connie Thebarge, a patient at the Ottawa Heart Institute in British Columbia, Canada, was told that her doctors could no longer help her. After all, in addition to suffering from hypertension, she had diabetes and painful diabetic neuropathy. She had two heart attacks followed by a triple coronary bypass surgery and an unsuccessful angioplasty. Every day, she had to take 27 pills. Not surprisingly, she was also depressed.

Yet, today, more than a decade later, Thebarge walks three miles a day, swims twice a week, dances, and travels to Florida and Europe. No longer depressed, she also requires far fewer pills. How was this accomplished? Thebarge participated in CHIP and transformed her life.

Written by the Editors at Weight Loss Buddy Press in collaboration with Hans A. Diehl, DrHSc, MPH, FACN, CNS

about The Author

Copyright 2004, by Weight loss Buddy Press

May be reproduced and distributed as is.

Joey Dweck - your Weight loss Buddy

http://weightlossbuddy.com

PO Box 488 Tenafly NJ 07670

Tel. 877-BuddyUp

When it comes to water pressure, what one person thinks is adequate might come across as a trickle to another. Because opinions vary widely, it is important to be able to make a determination of the adequacy of water pressure in some definitive way. That is especially true for a working home inspector. If a client asks why the inspector did not comment on high or low water pressure, then having a normal water pressure reading documented on the report is a good idea.

Water pressure gauges are easy to use practical tools and, certainly, not out of the reach of the homeowner in either cost or the expertise required to operate them correctly. In fact, these gauges can be purchased at any good hardware store for about $10.00. Once you have the device, you might wonder what readings you are looking for? Well, normal pressure is described as being between 40 and 80 PSI (pounds per square inch). The easiest place to check that reading is to screw the gauge on at an outside faucet. Beware, there can be a potential snag doing that: Not often, but sometimes, the hosebibb or faucet is plumbed in before a pressure reducer is put in the system and, in that case, there will be a high reading on the gauge. For this reason, when a hosebibb gives a high reading, a person should try to get another reading, such as attaching the gauge to the faucet the washing machine connects to. The washing machine faucet is usually inside the home, or so we hope, and has the same threads as the pressure gauge. If the reading is still high, then the problem is confirmed since the washing machine is one of the appliances we are trying to protect from damage caused by high water pressure.

As an aside, it is my opinion, having inspected many homes and then checked the water flow, that any reading under 50 PSI is suspect and the people who are going to live in the house ought to see for themselves if they like the water pressure. If a person buying a house does not have a pressure gauge, or wonders if he or she will be satisfied with the water pressure, I suggest the good old-fashioned multi-flow test. It is simple enough. Get the dishwasher or washing machine running. Then turn on a sink or two and go to a bathroom and try the shower, the sink, etc. Do this on each floor, with other fixtures running. You can get a pretty good idea of the adequacy of the water pressure and how it will affect you.

As far as solutions to a pressure issue: If the pressure is too high, a pressure reducer will probably be installed by a plumber. If, on the other hand, the water pressure is too low then that will be more complicated. The cause can range from bad pressure at the source, to rusted pipes and a number of other issues.

Steven L. Smith, owner of King of the house Home Inspection is a licensed structural pest inspector and a certified home inspector in Bellingham WA. Smith is the program coordinator for the college level home inspection training program at Bellingham technical college.

www.kingofthehouse.com