Gambling Beach

“We’ve been robbed,” I told Ana. “All of it.” I grabbed the thief, who was no longer acting drunk at all. It was a lesson in travel safety.

It started when both my wife and I had a strong feeling we shouldn’t get on that bus in Cuenca. Neither of us said anything, because a taxi was two dollars, and the bus cost only twenty-five cents. It seems a bit TOO frugal now.

Ana found a seat, but there was no seat for me. I was packed in with the other commuters standing up. I noticed the drunk pushing his way through the crowd, randomly going this way and that, and I knew somethimg was up. I instinctively reached into my pockets to check on my money. I had just visited the ATM. The $170 in my pocket was the most cash we had carried during the entire trip. Still there. The old guy pushed against me like he was trying to find a place to stand comfortably. I checked my again.

Five minutes later some space opened up near Ana, and I moved over to her. When I reached into my pocket again, it was empty, and the other pocket was empty too. I never felt a thing. I told Ana, and saw that the old drunk was still on the bus.

We got off at the next stop, dragging the thief with us. An officer appeared, and a crowd formed. The thief was sober now, pulling his pockets out and insisting again that he was inocent. Search him, he said, and I did, but I understood now that his associate was long gone with the money, probably off the bus at a previous stop. His role had just been to distract me and push me into the right place on the bus.

He begged to be let go, and we knew we couldn’t get the money back. Nonetheless, we had the officer take him to the police station on his motorcycle while we followed in a taxi, paying with a twenty from under the sole of my shoe. Filing a complaint at least meant he would spend the night in jail, and though he would be released in the morning for a lack of evidence, his finger prints are on file now.

Travel Safety Lessons

Most likely, a money belt probably would have prevented the robbery. Closing pockets help too, although I had a wallet stolen from a zipered pocket once, and I didn’t notice until forty minutes later. Fortunately it was a decoy-wallet, put there for just such an occasion – another little travel safety trick.

Other travel safety tricks? Put your money in at least three different places, like under the sole of your shoe, in a pocket you pin inside your clothes, and in your shaving kit. Carry two credit or debit cards in separate and secure places. Carry a list of “lost or stolen” phone numbers in another place. In areas with much crime, leave expensive watches and jewelry behind.

Learn a few tricks and you can travel more safely. Our experience also shows the importance of learning to trust your intuition. That was our lesson in travel safety.

Steve Gillman hit the road at sixteen, and traveled the U.S. and Mexico alone at 17. Now 40, he travels with his wife Ana, whom he met in Ecuador. For more on travel safety, plus travel stories, tips and a free e-book, visit: http://www.EverythingAboutTravel.com

In the words of Paul Simon, “I’m going to Graceland, Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee” and now I’ve been but, in my case, with a travelling companion several decades more than nine years old and a devoted fan of the “King of Rock and Roll”.

Since Elvis Presley’s death in 1977, Graceland, the house purchased by Elvis in 1957 and in whose grounds he is buried, has become a shrine to the memory of Elvis and a centre of pilgrimage for thousands of fans who visit every year.

Graceland was built on a hilly, heavily wooded thirteen-and-three-quarter-acre site on the two-lane Highway 51 connecting Memphis with Jackson, Mississippi, for a Dr. and Mrs. Thomas D. Moore. Over time the name “Graceland” came to refer specifically to the house but originally it applied to the entire area which was establish as a Hereford cattle farm in 1861, by S.E. Toof, the publisher of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. It was named after his daughter, Grace Toof. Ruth Moore, who built Graceland the house, was Grace’s niece who planned the house for her daughter, Ruth Marie, who played the harp and piano. Music seeped through it’s very foundations. The rooms were designed with an eye to future musical evenings and space was essential. A Commercial Appeal headline for Sunday, October 27th 1940 heralded the “Colonial Courtliness of Georgian Style Exemplified in Stately Graceland”. The home that has come to symbolise Elvis.

The house was opened to the public in 1982. I understand about 650,000 people a year pass through the front door. Graceland has become one of the five most visited home museums in the United States and in 1991 gained the honour of being placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Joining one of the many shuttle tours that operate from downtown Memphis, I, personally was prepared to be disillusioned. Would it all be hype and tasteless, but hey, forever curious about other peoples tastes and extravagances it was a ‘must do’ visit. Surrounded by fellow travellers, devoted Elvis fans, who have all come to see not only where Elvis lived by how he lived, the tour began.

The neoclassical faade of white Tishomingo stone with windows shuttered in contrasting green present a truly tranquil, elegant and stylish house. Entering through the Corinthian columns on the front portico, the “formal” Dining Room and Living Room are lavishly decorated in blue, white and gold colour scheme and given a spacious feel by the mirrors which are a predominant feature of both rooms. The centrepiece of the Dining Room is a spectacular Italian cut glass chandelier purchased by Elvis on an after-hours shopping spree at Belvedere Lighting in Memphis in August 1974. In the Living Room stunning peacock stained-glass windows designed by Laukhuff Stained Glass of Memphis, separate the Living Room from the Music Room. The same company that did the stained glass work around the front door and the stained-glass billiard light in the Pool Room.

Moving into the Music Room, decorated predominantly in gold and white, a black Story and Clark baby grand takes pride of place. The most famous person to play it other than Elvis was James Brown who recalls singing gospel songs with Elvis. The wall mirror in the Music Room illustrates the fact that a lot of things were kept; things weren’t thrown away and trashed over the years. This mirror dates back to the Presley’s previous home on Audubon Drive where they lived prior to moving to Graceland. The stairway in the hall leads to the upper floor of the house that disappointingly is not open to visitors. I would have loved to have had a nose into the bedrooms and the four bathrooms. The chandelier over the stairs is the largest one of three in the house and the same design as the one in the Dining Room, in the Maria Theresa design. The third chandelier is Strauss crystal and hangs just inside the front door in the foyer.

The TV Room, decorated in black and gold with mirrored walls was decorated in its present style by Bill Eubanks who also decorated the Pool Room across the hall. All the chrome, glass, chrome arc lamps and sectional black furniture are very much the style of the 70’s including a yellow leather topped bar and bar stools! The most spectacular feature of the Pool Room is the fabric used to cover the sofas, walls and ceiling. We are told it took something between 350 and 400 yards of fabric and three workmen about ten days to hang it. The room, with its French, Oriental and turn-of-the century European influences is an example of the Seventies American trend toward eclectic decorating, mixing styles of various eras and countries. A similar “retro” trend emerged again in the Nineties. None of the furniture is antique. Most chosen to complement the general décor including the reproduction Louis XV red leather chairs.

All the pictures are either prints, some signed by artists, or – like the Toulouse Lautrecs, just regular commercial reproductions. The gold, green and peacock blue light shade over the pool table is again, the work of Laukhuff Stained Glass in Memphis and done in the revived Tiffany style. Possibly the most spectacular and unique room of the visit though is the Jungle Room. Added to the house in the mid-Sixties it functioned as a screened-in porch, then it was closed in completely and made into a family room or den. Legend has it that Vernon, Elvis’ father had been out and about and had seen some hideous furniture in a store in Memphis. Apparently, unbeknownst to Vernon, Elvis had seen the same furniture and had liked it because it reminded him of Hawaii. He bought a whole roomful of it. The big “monkey chair” is so enormous that one of the windows had to be removed to move it into the room. Much of the room’s décor seems to be tactile, as with the fake fur on the bar stools and the heavily carved wood, the exotic feathered mirror frame and the ornamental animals.

The indoor waterfall completes the theme although we are told that it wasn’t turned on very often because it tended to make the carpet wet.
Finally the office. Housed in a building that was already there when Elvis bought Graceland. Vernon ran the office and had a staff of secretaries to handle fan mail and all the household and personal bills. Elvis gave a press conference sitting at his father’s desk in this office in 1960 the day after he returned from his tour of army duty in Germany. In photographs it is possible to see that it is the same desk, same blotter, lamp, filing cabinets and cards on top of the filing cabinet.

It is recorded that when Elvis was a child he made a promise to his parents that “One day, I’ll buy you the prettiest house in Memphis, and I’ll pay you back for all you’ve sacrificed for me”. Graceland represented that to him. Both house and garden provided a fascinating visit. One I would have no hesitation in recommending to others and one I would happily repeat if I ever found myself back in Memphis, Tennessee.

Olivia Hughes,
Invaluable group of companies.

http://www.invaluable.com

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Every year we search our brains for a unique, exciting gift for Mom. We have bought flowers, candy, jewelry, pictures of our kids and us. But this year, we want something really different, something really special. We have prepared a list of suggestions that might just fit the bill.

1. Create a website for your mother to share with her friends and family. You can add pictures of her as she was growing up. Or turn the site into a tour with pictures of all of her vacations that you can find from friends and relatives. Take old family photographs and turn them into a family genealogy tree. Make a sweetheart page and add pictures of all of her grandchildren as her sweethearts. You can also write a page that just tells her how wonderful you think she is. List all the times that she was there for you or inspired you to do something. Can be a great bragging page to her friends or just make her feel better and loved every time she clicks in and reads it.

2. If your Mom isn’t an Internet user, you can create a love book. Add photos of her children as they were growing up. Each one will bring back a special story to your Mom. Find old cards she has collected over the years and put them together in a memory book. And memories of your childhood can be written as Letters to Mom. Write about the times she listened to your sadness and your joy. Tell her how important it was to have those private little talks with her. Thank her for how she taught you how to fish, or how to sew.

3. Create a “do-gooder” jar. Add little notes on how you will do good things for her during this next year. These little notes will be promises that she can pick out the jar each week. They may be mowing her yard, picking up your room, an afternoon ice cream date, vacuuming the house without complaining, painting the outside of her house, or taking her on a picnic.

4. Treat your Mom to a Day at the Spa. Most Spas have gift coupons for massages, mud bathes, and all of their tempting delights. If you live in the same area, make it a Mother and Child day followed by lunch. If you live in another city or state, call a Spa close to your Mom and purchase the gift coupon to be sent to your mother.

Adriana Copaceanu provides people with creative gift ideas that don’t blow the bank. If you are looking for Mother’s Day Gift Ideas, look no further. Want regular reminders on gift-giving? Sign up for her free monthly newsletter, Gift News

You possibly know how vital uploading your businesses online video is. For a company’s CEO, Web video clips are a creditable tool that can easily capture your customers’ attention & drastically enhance the amount of users to your organisations website. Internet videos are particularly effective in holding the target customers’ short attention span. What’s more, if codes are built-in and online video sharing is endorsed, short format videos can be a splendid way to get one-way incoming links & in so doing positively affect your sites position on the search engines.

If truth behold, short format promotional videos have become an excellent tool for business or self-promotion. The following are a few tips to circulating your own online video clips.

Firstly, you can post your Internet video clips on your own website; although this would entail you to find your own video hosting arrangements. Instead, ask your web hosting solutions supplier if video downloading or video streaming services are supported.

Video downloading is where your viewers have to download your video commercial to their PC’s hard drive. They need to store the short format professional video to their own workstation before they can play it using their personal computers video player or a downloadable video player application. There are hundreds video downloading service companies that are reasonably priced. There’s also a progressive downloading mechanism where your Internet visitors can play the videos at the same time as downloading them. Vidify offer unique video production and distribution solutions that help broadcast your business online to a global, regional or local audience.

Whereas video streaming on the other hand totally does away with the need to download the professional videos and permits instant playback so it presents the most use to your users. Naturally, getting a video hosting provider that supports video streaming can cost you a pretty penny.

Finally, the more popular way to distribute Internet videos is posting your sites to video distribution web sites that possess their own video hosting infrastructure. These websites cost you nothing to log on and will from time to time pay you to post video clips. What’s more, also have a huge market base & reach; for example, YouTube acquires in the region of 20 million Internet visitors each month.

Securing mortgages and loans as well as acquiring on credit all require that your credit status is optimistic and that you aren’t suffering from bad credit. A succession of debt is felt by a person with a low credit score as credit businesses will charge a high price for their service. Lots of people today think that the high priced methods of obtaining credit repair service is the only way to repair bad credit, but with a little struggle many easy and inexpensive tips can be used.

The basic step is to pinpoint the ground of bad credit. If you can confirm the ground of your bad credit status, only then can you repair your status. Unexpected
tight spots such as job complications, funeral or hospital bills, etc can be the main factors of bad credit. 

After that, a workable solution can be recognized by reaching at the base of the problem. Your credit reports can inform you of your most current debts, credits and financial transactions. Beforehand knowledge of your financial position can help your future position which is why yearly credit reports should be studied.
Furthermore, the recent credit actions can be tracked by maintaining a note of all the updated reports.

Organize and maintain your bills.Lower your credit card use and do not postpone your bill payments.
You will find that a credit score can be procured and your reputation with loan companies will become complimentary.If you are unable to withstand the desire of using credit cards then think over the lives of ancient people which were happier without credit cards. End moment bill payments are also a basis for plunging into bad credit as many people have endured an overdue payment because of a detainment in the credit procedure. Repair bad credit by instilling constancy in your payments.

It’s recommended to use the direct style with your creditors and discuss with them. Favorable discounts can be procured by a competent discussion. compelling resolutions can accomplish your aims when negotiating with your creditors.

All such possibilities which can pose a danger to your credit status should be avoided to prevent you from getting a bad credit score. Bad credit can be hazardous to your standing in society which is why it is recommended to employ the procedures outlined above.
Bad credit not only lays barriers in your way of getting a worthy job but also extend problems in getting loans or in the obtaining of a luxury. Prompt action to repair bad credit can ensure that your credit profile is safe and unharmed even after falling prey to bad credit.

Every New Year’s Day, except when that holiday falls on a Sunday and the Rose Parade is held on January 2nd, millions of viewers around the world enjoy the Rose Parade and think about Pasadena, California. The citizens of Pasadena are justly proud of this spectacular event and the fame it brings their beautiful city, however, there is more to Pasadena than the Rose Parade.

The following is a partial list of areas, activities and event hosts that make the city of Pasadena a great place to visit. These activities and events are not listed in order of importance.

1. The Rose Bowl – The Rose Bowl not only hosts the New Year’s Tournament of Roses Football Game it also hosts the U.C.L.A. home football games. Additionally the stadium is home to Fourth of July celebrations, concerts, religious services, filmings and the Rose Bowl Flea Market, the world’s largest flea market. The Rose Bowl has also hosted five NFL Super Bowl Games, the 1984 Olympic Soccer Matches, the 1994 Men’s World Cup, the 1999 Women’s World Cup, the 2002 BCS National College Football Championship Game. The Rose Bowl, which is part of the Central Arroyo Seco Parklands, is the starting off place for numerous runners, joggers and walkers who use the area as a safe and lovely place to take their daily exercise.

2. Norton Simon Museum – The world famous Norton Simon Museum of Art holds one of the world’s finest and most prestigious collections, with nearly 1,000 works of European, American and South Asian art.

3. Restaurants – Whether you are looking for a cheap, mid priced or expensive dining establishment, if you are hankering for central or south American, Chinese, French, Indian, Italian, Japanese, Mexican, Thai food, a hamburger joint, a steak house, indoor dining, outdoor dining or a drive thru, you will find what you are searching for in Pasadena with it’s over 500 restaurants, coffee shops, cafes, bakeries and fast food eateries.

4. Eaton Canyon Natural Area Nature Center – A “zoological, botanical, and geological wonderland situated at the base of the beautiful San Gabriel Mountains. With its hiking trails, wildlife, rocks and minerals, and plants, there is something for everyone to enjoy”.

5. Old Town Pasadena – Day or night, weekday or weekend the area is always “jumpin”. People come from all over to dine, shop, visit art galleries, go to the movies, go dancing, listen to jazz and other types of music, be entertained by street preformers and most of all to relax and have fun in a safe, clean and pleasant atmosphere.

6. Paseo Colorado – There are 391 luxury residential apartments and lofts, an upscale Gelson’s Supermarket, a Macy’s Department Store, over sixty five specialty and botique shops, including Coach, Ann Taylor, Tony Bahama, Hugo Boss, Bombay Company and Sam Goody, a Pacific Theatre with fourteen screens, seventeen (17) dining establishments, a fitness club, a day spa and much more.

7. JJ Steak House – Have you been looking for that perfect romantic restaurant to take a date or spouse to? Do you like old fashion elegant steak houses with lots of dark rich wood, plenty of marble and romantic lighting? Do you like the idea of a large fireplace? Do you like soft romantic harp music played by a very talented harpist? Do you like excellent leisurely attentive service where you never feel rushed?

8. Pasadena Museum of California Art – The Pasadena Museum of California Art (PMCA) is dedicated to the exhibition of California art, architecture, and design from 1850 to the present.

9. Pasadena Shakespeare Company – A non-profit professional theatre company. Our mission is to produce great theatre, entertain, and educate. We do this by presenting high-quality, accessible productions of the works of Shakespeare and other outstanding playwrights, and by offering periodic lectures, discussions, workshops, and classes.

10. Pasadena Symphony Orchestra – One of Southern California’s cultural treasures. Diverse programming, musical excellence, exceptional artistic leadership and deep community support are among the hallmarks which have made it a major success among its peers.

The foregoing is just a taste of what is available in Pasadena. Check it out, you will be glad you did.

For more information about the city of Pasadena, California see http://pasadena.usacitydirectories.com, a directory of links to city of Pasadena, California guides and directories listing hotels, restaurants, churches, physicians, attorneys, articles, information, resources, services, things to do, places to go, art galleries, service organizations, auto dealers, nursing homes, convalescent hospitals, antique dealers and more.

David G. Hallstrom, Sr. is a retired private investigator and is currently the publisher of several internet directories, including http://pasadena.usacitydirectories.com a directory of national, state, county and city guides and directories listing local guides, directories, web sites and web pages providing resources, services and information about things to do and places to go.

This February is host to countless different types of events; the most famous of the 2 are at completely particular ends of the spectrum, the cities Fashion Week and The Awards 2009

Both of these events are highly renowned and have become somewhat of institution & frequent once a year occasion.

The Capitals 2009 Fashion Week takes place in New York, Milan and Paris, the most stylish and esteemed urban cities in the entire world. The first Fashion Week was situated in New York, in 1943 and was held planned to focus attention away from France fashion rage during WW II when fashion experts were not able to voyage to Paris to catch the French Fashion shows. The long anticipated excellent Fashion Week always takes place in Feb, this is just purely an opening for talented designers both famed names like Marc Jacobs and up & coming undeveloped designers to make an exhibition of their own most up-to-date collections on the runway. This presently gives fashion and store buyers an opening to take note of what is going to be in and out this coming new season. Fashion Week starts with New York Fashion Week followed speedily by London Fashion Week, Milan Fashion Week and then finally French Fashion Week.

The British Phonographic Industry also known as The Brits is the once a year latest pop music awards ceremony. The awards went on the go in 1977 and took place in the Royal Albert Hall in London The awards in the beginning broadcast on BBC One it is currently now aired on ITV 3. They are viewed by hundreds and hundreds of music lovers once a year and are also put out live every single year. 2009’s Brits are promised to be a show to remember & with brilliant performers such as Kings of Leon, Duffy & Girls Aloud performing your guaranteed to be in for out of this world evening, and what is great to know is that it wont stop there though. This years Brit Award Presenters are the witty Gavin & Stacey’s, James Corden & Mathew Horne and the elegant Kylie so you are also assured to be in for a laugh too. Find out all you need to know about the 2009 Brits.

In honor of Labor Day, here are random thoughts, suggestions and observations on the importance of work. It’s been said that if you deprive a man of meaningful work, he will go stark raving mad.

Each one of us has to define meaningful work for ourselves and find meaning in our work. You are really fortunate if you love what you do and your entire job is meaningful.

Others may have to dig a little deeper to find meaning in the work they do. Even if the only reason is to provide for your family – that makes it a meaningful thing.

A recent article in the declared “U.S. jobs getting harder to bear, survey reveals.” The article said that more and more people are reporting dissatisfaction in the work they do. Since we spend a majority of our waking hours at work, that adds up to a lot of time feeling dissatisfied.

Barbara Glanz, an author, speaker and expert on employee
motivation and performance, has a book that you may want to
check out, “Handle with CARE: Motivating and Retaining
Employees.” It’s full of creative, low-cost ways to raise morale, increase commitment and reduce turnover. The CARE approach stands for

C = creative communication
A = atmosphere and appreciation for all
R = respect and reason for being
E = empathy and enthusiasm.

Glanz has found that motivation and retention are not about money as much as it is about how employees are treated as people.

Her research consistently shows that good wages are less important than interesting work, feeling appreciated, being “in on things” and job security. This is a must-read for any boss or manager.

If you think about it from a certain angle, workaholics really
put so much more pressure on themselves than any one realizes.
There is so much more pressure to succeed. If you are going to be a workaholic, you had better be very successful, because what could be more embarrassing than an unsuccessful workaholic?

If you are the spouse or close to a person who has lost a job, the best thing you can do is be present. You may not know what
to say, and you don’t have to know what to say. Just being there and being supportive is the very best thing you can do.

All people can find themselves out of a job. That’s why it’s
important for everyone to do a couple of things to protect themselves, just in case: Build your network of contacts before you need them. As author and speaker Harvey McKay says,

“You have to build your well before you are thirsty.”

While what you know is important, who you know and who knows you is equally important.

Also, it’s important to always have a what-if plan. Steve Christian of Magic 107.1 recently shared with me this analogy: “A good pilot is always looking for a safe place to land. A good pilot will continuously look out ahead during a flight, looking for a safe place to land, just in case.”
We should always be doing the same. Ask yourself, “If the bottom falls out of what I am doing tomorrow, what would I do next?”

When you do find yourself out of a job, the worst thing you can do is keep it to yourself. Let everyone know. Remember, what’s important is who you know, who knows you and who knows you are looking. Some folks sort of play at getting the next job. To be successful, you have to make a job out of getting another job. Spend as much time looking for a job as you would working at a job.

If you are not able to make a living doing what it is that you
love, you still have a winning option. Make sure you still do
what you love in some form. It can be a part-time job or simply a hobby. Do it because it fulfills you. You may end up as one of the many people who have made a career out of a hobby they love.

Another thought from Barbara Glanz. She strongly recommends that whatever you do, you make it your own. She calls it giving your job your own personal signature. Ask yourself, “What can I do to make this my own, different from how anyone else would do it?”

Finally: “Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be the miracle.” Phillips Brooks.

Visit http://www.TheArticleGuy.com for more leading edge tips and tools for writing articles that bring you prospects, publicity and profits. You can also subscribe to our monthly Article Writing & Marketing Tips Newsletter. You are also invited to visit my Express-Start Article Writing Program for more information on the next article writing tele-seminar.

Oil rates are rising and as a result, company expenses are spread thin harder than ever before. With an nations economic output lumbers along slowly and capital remains rare, intelligent decision makers see that unnecessary costs have to be slashed. Executives across the country must make a few calculated choices to shrink expenses. But theyll find that the best method to slash company costs is to hack away at frivolous travel allocations, and the solution is web conferencing calls.

Online conferencing calls allow business people to converse with others virtually in a conference in a far away town, in another time zone or most definitely in another continent. Most Internet conference calling make use of revolutionary streaming technology. Since that they done through standard high-speed Internet connections, they only make additional use of no additional organizational capital. Just from using the web, is it possible to make a overseas meeting from just about any place that has a high-speed connection. Its not just convenient, it has huge potential to reduce big travel five digits or more in a year.

Advancements in telecommunications technology make online conferencing calls so easy for participants to give and receive information and presentations in real time. Internet conference members can see and hear as though they were in the same room, even if they are halfway around the planet. The detail of the video, audio, and presentation is very accurate through the highest standards in web architecture.

Obviously just about any business can save money by switching to online conferencing in place of wasting thousands dispatching an executive on a long-distance trip. Your company shouldnt throw away money on transportation costs, hotels and meals. These trimmings cannot be dismissed. Any cost savings is higher flexibility for a company. It’s not surprising that many organizations are deciding on Internet conferencing calls to save money on needless sales travel.