Opera Glasses- A Look Through History

By Jeff Bridges

Have you been at a concert or in a theater and wished you could see the stage better? You should consider getting a pair of opera glasses. They are more than just beautiful and classic pieces of history. Modern opera glasses can help you see what is going on around you at any performance. This need has not changed since the 1800's when they became popular with people attending the Paris opera.

Opera was also an important social event. People attending the opera wanted to be able to see and be seen and often spent time scanning the audience as well. To do this, they needed a simple and convenient magnifying device. Opera glasses were the perfect solution.

Like many other accessories, opera glasses quickly became status symbols. They were used by members of high society to view what was happening in the audience as well as what was on stage. Often it was normal to spend much of the evening scanning the crowds as being seen was just as important as seeing a performance itself.

Because of this, anything connected to the opera could become a status symbol. Opera glasses were no exception. A person attending the theater often had a pair made of expensive materials such as gold or enamel. The outsides of the glasses were often highly decorated. Cases to keep the glasses in were often highly decorated as well. Different variations came into being including lorgnette models that had an attached handle and folding models that were quite compact.

Modern opera glasses are much the same as they were in the beginning. They still come in several different models. Opera glasses are still popular as well. They are not hard to find but it may take a bit of looking on your part. You should start your search in stores which sell binoculars. A camera store may have some or they may be able to order them for you.

One thing to look at when selecting your opera glasses is what the level of magnification is. Unlike a telescope or high powered binoculars, you will want to make sure that there is a fairly low level of magnification. A 3x magnification factor is considered ideal. This allows you to get a large field of view and it will keep shaking from hand movement as low as possible.

The actual style you choose is a matter of preference. Do you like the traditional look of the lorgnette? Are you interested in a style which folds down very small? You can also look at the accessories that are out there including straps and carrying pouches.

If visibility at concerts and plays is important to you, you should consider a pair of opera glasses. They are so much more than simply outdated viewing devices. They can find a way to make any stage performance you view clearer and much more rewarding.

About the Author:

Jeff Bridges has always loved the theater and opera, he currently helps run an opera glasses retail site where they sell opera glasses. Including Opera Glasses with handle, flashlight, chain and more!

Improve My Gas Mileage!

By Melanie Beckhart

I was able to improve my gas mileage over 40% - and I did it without spending a dime. In other words come spending a little over half of what I used to spend on gas.

In order to prove my gas mileage, I have to know what my car in gas mileage is. By using a very simple gas mileage calculator, I can figure out exactly what my current miles per gallon are. This is done by writing down how much I'd fill up, and how far I drive, then dividing the miles I went by the gallons I used.

Now I can improve my gas mileage. The first step is basic core maintenance. By simply checking might air filter and wail, I can boost my gas mileage by as much as 10%. Dirty oil makes the engine run hotter and harder, using more gas.

I can further improve my gas mileage another 5% by making sure I have a clean air filter. Clogged or dirty air filters interfere with the oxygen in my engine needs. This results in poor combustion and uses more gas.

One of the easiest ways to improve my gas mileage is by keeping my tires properly inflated. If the air pressure in my tires is low, the engine has to work much harder to move the car. Low tire pressure causes extra drag. I make sure to check tire pressure. When ever I fill up my tank.

Another way to improve my gas mileage is by lightening my load. Every 50 pounds I take out of the car translates to a 1% gas mileage improvement. This is a great excuse to finally clean out your trunk and backseat.

One of the biggest gas mileage improvements comes from, how and when I drive. By doing my errands during off-peak hours, I avoid stop-and-go traffic, congestion, and idling, using up gas without even going anywhere.

I manage to improve my gas mileage by almost 40% this way. I simply combine basic core and maintenance, with a little bit of planning, and common sense driving. By putting these altogether, I can go and nearly twice as long between fill ups, which means I am effectively paying 40% less for gas. And at today's gas prices, that is a lot of money!

About the Author:

The author is currently researching Homedics Back Massager and Homedics Shiatsu Massager for a review piece on massage.

Crush Your Venter Away Your Fat in a Rapid and Easy Style

By Joseph Akmed

Lots of individuals are desperate to shed their stomach fat off. Are your humiliations still floating in air around you? At this position you are in a situation to bring in you a drastic change in whatever you do and eat.

I would like to suggest some tips to cut down your fats in your abdomen.

To efficaciously trim your abdomen stomach, you should have low-carb diet. There are three steps in by how the body extracts the vitality. First the body cuts the carbohydrates. In the next step fats are cut and at the last proteins. To make your body a fat burning machine, you have to take in a low carb diet, so that the burning of fats and proteins are quicker.

Train your body to perform the workouts day-to-day. Exercising everyday reduces the fat warehousing over your arms, thighs, stomach and butts.

Food constitutes of various vitamins and minerals that help the body in doing various metabolic activities. Eating junk food induces a lot of deadly content in our body which affects these actions. So it's essential to have 5-6 small sound meals instead of 3 big ones.

One can eat few nuts, when he/she feels hungry and drink a glass of water. The nuts, since they are rich in vitamins and minerals, they tend to decrease the fat content, enhancing metabolism.

Whole eggs contain lots of nutritious factors that help us in trimming down the fat contents of our body.

Having much of water suppresses your hunger and oxygenates the blood. Thus we sense energetic and as our toxic contents are expelled out through urine or sweat.

Feed slowly. There's no need to speed up. The food isn't going to run away! Is it??? Imbibe water frequently. If you eat slowly, you would feel contended with your meal.

Take a breathe. Take a deep breath through your nose and deeply exhale through your mouth as often.

Regular physical exertions and nutritive diet will greatly assist you in trimming fat assemblage in belly.

Having done all these, you should incorporate forbearance and self confidence in yourself to gain a slender venter.

Breathing physical exercise or Yoga for Fat paunch

It's necessary to habituate breathing exercises in our day today life. You can do this in all the three times of the day. If you want to reduce your fat by just sitting before TV OR pc, then this is the best method. You may need only a couple of weeks to spot the change in your body.

You may struggle hard to spot reduce. But Kapalbhati pranayama reduces your fat from all your body. These exercises are very good for burning belly fat.

Exercise with gym ball.

After gestation many women suffer from excess growth of paunch. This can be checked on by post natal drills. When you grow abdomen after delivery, then you must contract the abdominal, pelvic and perineal muscles and relax them. This can make the muscles strong. For this pull in the abdomen as hard as you can and keep it 10 seconds before relaxing. You can do this contracting and relaxing exercise while sitting, lying, or standing.

About the Author:

Findout the best stomach fat workouts and best stomach fat diet to lose stomach fat.

Opera Glasses: A comedic Review of Shear Madness

By Jeff Bridges

If you are planning on seeing the comedy play Shear Madness make sure you bring your Opera Glasses. In reviewing this wonderful performance I must first make sure that you are prepared for aching cheeks, and stomach muscles that will be sore for a week. I loved Shear Madness, Never have I laughed so hard in my life!

As we begin the performance we find ourselves in unisex hair salon. We see that the stereotypical gossip is happening in this salon, just as it happens in real life. As the clients sit to get their hair cut, their deepest secrets seem to fall with the hair trimmings. We listen to the stories of the performers, and we get our first tastes of comedy, much of this play is improvised by the actors. As you watch Shear Madness, you begin to see the all too stereotypical characters, you have the ditsy blond, a gay hairdresser (played wonderfully by John McGivern in the performance I saw in Milwaukee.) a police officer, high class women, and of course, the all American hunk which makes McGivern's character giggle.

Shear Madness is truly an evolutionary play; this is because it is always changing! What I mean by this, is that many of the words that are spoken in the play are not actually in the script but rather are given as improvisations by gifted comedians, in fact, much of the things talked about in the play focuses on current local and world news, you will never know what to expect. One of the things I found most amusing about this performance, is that many times, actors are caught off guard by the other actor's improvised lines, and you see them trying to contain their own laughter. For this you will surely want to bring your opera glasses as not to miss a beat!

Unexpectedly during the play one of the actors will speak directly to a person or people in the audience to ask for opinions. You may even find yourself yelling out the answers. You must understand that you answer may vary from your neighbors, which adds an exciting new element to this wonderful performance. I do advise you to be careful if you find yourself in the first two or three rows, as you may become the topic of one of the jokes, remember though this is all in good humor.

Besides running a beauty salon and all of the gossip that it entails, Shear Madness' plot pertains to a murder. The person murdered is the owner of the salon. The owner lived upstairs of the salon before she was murdered. As a member of the audience you are enthralled trying to figure out who the murderer is. Looking back at the play, each character in the play could possibly be the correct killer. You will find yourself squinting your eyes and eyebrows and scratching your head trying to figure out who committed the murder. Use your Opera glasses often to help you choose who the guilty murderer is.

Here is where Shear Madness gets fun. The owner of the salon is the one that is always murdered in this play, but the killer will vary from performance to performance, based on clues presented. Also the audience, based on the clues chooses who the murderer must be. This may sound odd, but is a very funny development. Many (like me) see the play over and over so that they can see the different endings!

The play Shear Madness is actually one of the longest running non musical plays being attended today. Many very popular critics such as The Wall Street Journal and the New York Times, and reviewed this play, and have written wonderful things about it. There is no doubt you too will love this play, and want to see it again and again.

Opera glasses are always a crucial element in attending any performance, but especially this one. If you don't bring your opera glasses, you are sure to miss moments, clues and laughs. Make sure you have a pair in hand before you walk out the door to go.

About the Author:

Jeff Bridges has always loved the theater and opera, he currently helps run an opera glasses retail site where they sell opera glasses. Including Opera Glasses with handle, flashlight, chain and more!

Caravan Insurance

By Timothy Simons Grimshaw

Getting your caravan is insured is a vital step to take in order to protect you from any costs that may be incurred by accidental damage to your caravan, or by damage from theft or bad weather.

The majority of caravan insurance policies will cover any damage that has been genuinely caused out of the owners control by fire, flood, bad weather, accidental or malicious damage and theft.

The possessions within your caravan will usually be covered up to a limit which will be predefined in your policy, and will usually be around 300.

The possession cover will not cover small valuables such as jewellery, money and credit cards; these should be covered under all the risks section of your household contents insurance policy. The caravan contents insurance is intended for possessions that you cannot be expected to take with you such as furniture, curtains cutlery etc.

Insurance is there for circumstances out of your control, however you do have a responsibility to take care of your property to the best of your ability, for example by locking the caravan up at all times you are away from it. There will be no cover if you leave it open or if you leave your belongings out in the open.

By the same token, if you do not fit your caravan with a wheel clamp and hitch lock and it gets stolen, you will not be covered.

There may also be some restrictions on the caravan site. Some insurers for example may insist that your caravan must be parked in a registered caravan holiday park, or that your chosen site is concealed by hedges or fencing around the edges, and so there may be different security requirements with different policies, it is worth thoroughly reading your policy through to ensure that you will be covered at your preferred destination.

You may be able to include damage to awnings at a small extra charge, usually there is a restriction on the age of the awning that can be covered, typically awnings that are more than seven years old cannot be covered.

About the Author:

This is only a breif summary of caravan insurance and is not intended to be representative of the covers or restrictions offered by any particular insurance or that all insurance provide the protection described. You can get a recommendation for insurance advice to suit your own circumstances or any of our other insurance products such as taxi insurance

Ventless Fireplace " The Possibility of Enjoying a Warm Fire Without a Chimney

By Gelli Marr

A ventless fireplace is one option you may consider for a room. This is an alternative to traditional vented wood or vented gas fireplaces. Fireplaces without vents typically run on natural gas or propane. Unlike traditional fireplaces, they do not need external outlets like chimneys, flues or side wall vents.

Because of its many advantages, a lot of people prefer ventless units. For one, this type of fireplace does not require the burning of wood. Fireplace units that use wood for burning only produce ash and soot which are a chore to clean. Furthermore, these units are usually cheap to install and use. And because they do not need an external exhaust, they can be installed on any wall regardless of whether it an internal or external wall. This saves you the cost of chimney construction and maintenance.

In terms of its ability to produce heat, ventless fireplaces offer more reliable heat control than wood burning fireplaces. Wood burning fireplaces require a lot of stoking and wood burning in order to get the amount of heat you need. This is something vent free fireplaces can do on its own.

Several types of vent free units are available. They come in small, medium and large units. For large rooms, a large unit is required. Similarly, smaller rooms require smaller units. Be careful to use the right size " using a large fireplace in a small room can prove to be dangerous.

Not everyone is comfortable with a ventless fireplace. In fact, in some states and countries, the use of this type of heating unit is forbidden by law. Some places recommend its use only as a secondary power source during power outages. The main reasons for caution are health related.

Vent free units produce minimal carbon monoxide. There is however a concern, that there is a possibility that the harmful gas could build up and oxygen in a room could become significantly depleted. When this happens, room occupants could suffer serious consequences the worst of which is death.

Moisture is another concern. Vent free units do not have external exits to release the water vapor that they produce. The concern is that moisture could find its way into a room and lead to the formation of molds and mildew. Not only will this ruin furniture, it may also cause allergic reactions in some individuals.

There are ways to protect yourself against possible dangers. If you absolutely must have a vent free fireplace, you have to make sure it comes with a standard gas sensor. This will warn you if carbon monoxide levels are too high and if oxygen levels drop. Some homeowners may also additionally opt to get a dehumidifier to deal with moisture problems.

A ventless fireplace may or may not be the right unit for you. Before you settle for one, make sure you have carefully thought over its advantages and disadvantages. Also, find out if there are specific laws regulating the use of ventless units in your area.

About the Author:

Looking for gas fireplace accessories? Check out the latest and cheapest vent free gas fireplace online.

Making Your Own Hand Crafted Braided Rug

By Dirk Williams

Rugs have been used for many centuries to accent a room or provide a place for a pet to call home, or even to relieve the stress that furniture can put on carpet or bare flooring. Making your own rug is not only rewarding because it is something you make with your own hands, but it is rewarding because it can dress up just about any room and also, provided you follow instructions and your craftsmanship is impeccable, can be passed down to other generations as well as making a great gift.

The first thing you will need to do is take a trip to the fabric store to choose the colors of fabric and style that you want. You will need to choose a very sturdy fabric because remember, this is an area rug or a rug that might have a lot of traffic on it and you do not want it to fall apart in a year. Fabrics that are made of strong material such as denim or very strong cotton are both good choices. Keep the dcor of the room in mind too. You do not want to make a purple and pink rug for a room that has primarily neutral colors in it so stick with the color of the room, but you can be creative in design.

The next thing you will want to do is make sure that you purchase enough material to create the size of rug you want. Most braided rugs are typically either 2x3 Ft. or 3x5 ft. and you can shape them either oval or round depending on your needs. Obviously, there are rugs that are quite a bit larger than this, but for making your first rug, I recommend choosing one just this size to start out with so that you can get a feel for what it will take to create a braided area rug much larger. So with that said, you will need to purchase enough material to cut strips of fabric at least twice that amount because you will be braiding and coiling this rug, it is better to have too much than not enough.

When you have your material ready to go, you will want to cut 3 strips of each fabric into long strips that are approximately 3 inches wide. If you are going for the alternating color look, then make sure that you have the colors in a row the way you want them to appear in the coil. For example, if you are doing a red, white and blue rug, it is best to put the stripes in a red, white and blue order instead of red, blue and white. You will achieve a more flow-like look by doing this.

Next, you will want to sew the ends of each strand together at one end and you can refer to that end as the top of your braid and then once you have sewn them together, you can start braiding until you reach the end. Once you reach the end, you will want to sew that end together to complete the braid.

The final step is going to be coiling and sewing the coil to finish the area rug. You will coil the braid just like a snake would coil and make sure that you start from one end of the braid and place the color you want visible in the center of the rug up.

You will need to hand stitch the inside of the coil with nylon thread because this will be the strongest holding thread. Each time you coil the braid around to the spot where you made your first hand stitch, you will want to make another hand stitch in the same spot for each coil around.

When you reach the end of your coil, you will tuck in the ends between the folds of the previous coils and sew that down firmly. Now you are ready to check the rug for any frays or loose threads and trim them off or sew them down.

You project is complete and you now have a new accent piece to place in any room you choose!

About the Author:

If you are looking for new ways to decorate your home. Check out Birdhouses and more at this website. They have a fantastic selection of home decor.

Top Tips For Saving Money When Booking Holidays Abroad

By Denise William

When you're learning about something new, it's easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of relevant information available. This informative article on cheap holidays abroad should help you focus on the central points.

After you have a few places you would like to visit, look for cheap holidays to that particular destination and see what specials are going on. You can look for cheap airfare and hotel accommodations. Amidst the luxuries that it can offer, taking advantage cheap holidays Ibiza is something that you should not miss. Holidays and Independent Travel helps you compare and book cheap holidays abroad and cheap package holidays to help save you time and money.

Now you can be a confident expert on cheap holidays abroad. OK, maybe not an expert. Holidays and Independent Travel can help you compare and book cheap holidays abroad and cheap package holidays to save you money. Just search various websites that have plenty of cheap accommodation offers for you and this is a big point in your cheap holidays plan.

Once you begin to move beyond basic background information, you begin to realize that there's more to cheap holidays abroad than you may have first thought.

What makes cheap holidays insurance a popular option, is that of its low premium. The low premium means you have to pay less and provides you a rock solid financial back up, which of course is not that expensive. Below you're going to learn just how to spot cheap holidays as well as the best places to find them, particularly if you're based in the UK. There are several options also available to make people enjoy spectacular cheap holidays in London. Cheap hotels and transportation modes plying in the city, make these tours affordable and yet interesting.

You can search and book online or call one of our large numbers of dedicated travel advisers in our Sheffield call centre and home-based agents throughout the UK. There is a searchable cheap bargain holidays database so that you can easily find the great value holiday you want either by destination or by activity - it couldn't be easier. So don't waste any more time surfing the net, go to our cheap bargain holidays page and find that great value break you are looking for. The aim is to make the holidaying experience a joyful one from the moment you make your first search.

You can find so many choices of cheap holidays in great places around the world on the website. One of the famous cheap holiday destinations is Crete. It is located in Greece and is the largest among the Greek Islands. This website enables you to plan your own cheap holidays without having to call anybody. All the information is there right on your finger tip. We can get their cheap holidays in May and October.

There's no doubt that the topic of cheap holidays abroad can be fascinating. If you still have unanswered questions about cheap package holidays, you may find what you're looking for in the next article.

About the Author:

About the author: HolidaysIT.com helps you compare and book cheap holidays abroad and cheap package holidays to help save you time, money and effort. You have complete permission to reprint this article provided this paragraph and links are kept unchanged.