So This Is Christmas

Merry Christmas is such an infectious feeling I like to feel that way all year around.

So if you are visiting just before Christmas, just after Christmas or even here on Christmas day I am sure you will find something of interest for you and in the spirit of Christmas.

It may be said that Christmas is no longer a celebration but this must be spoken by people that have never had trouble closing their eyes on Christmas Eve in an expectation of what maybe left for them on the carpet under the tree.

I continue to look forward to the surprise on my Grandchild's faces to this day at Christmas events.

Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas

Monday, December 21, 2009

Intelligent Office Space Planning - Some Guidelines

By Ivy Sanchez

Businesses have to keep up with the swiftly changing market trends in order to remain competitive. The office plan that fitted an office a few years ago may be redundant in today's context. Therefore, it is very important to keep the design of the office and its office system furniture in accordance with the current trends for streamlined working of the organization. Given below are some recommendations that will enable you to successfully redesign your office space.

Good office planning should begin with discarding items that cause clutter in the office without serving any purpose. Huge file cabinets filled to the brim with company files and records formed a vital part of office system furniture. In this era of advanced communication and data management technologies, data storage must be done using digital storage and retrieval systems. Technology clears up area and saves money for the organization, besides raising levels of efficiency in dealing with data storage.

Sensible use of the space created by removal of redundant furniture can change the office layout in a major way. The empty spaces created can be made use of as meeting spaces, where employees can freely interact in a relaxed way. They can also be considered as an opportunity for remodelling the design of the office and for providing spacious seating to the employees by enhancing the distance between their office desks.

A lot of communication and electric wires hanging in an office can be a real turn off and can also increase the chances of someone falling over. Hence office desks must have hollow spaces to have these cables carefully tucked in. Sockets should not be too visible and be within arm's reach of the employees, and this requires an intelligently thought out electrical planning.

Conference rooms used by internal groups and clients must also be given due consideration. Sufficient space must be allocated for them so that they are enough in number and have a reasonable amount of seating capacity. Office chairs inside conference halls must be elegant and light, and ones that can be easily moved so that they fit in more staff inside the conference hall.

Office space planning is normally best carried out by experts having a solid experience in this area. They can develop a 3D layout of your new office plan on the computer, highlighting the arrangement of office desks and office chairs, so that you can decide if their layout fulfils your need. With skilled professionals and their modern technology at your service, you can be sure that the office space planning will be of superior quality and will effectively cater to your organization's requirements.

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Some Useful Tips About Retail Outlet Design

By Vincent Rodriguez

With great competition in the markets today, retail store owners are attracted to new store design ideas which will draw more customers to their outlet. If you own a retail company and have been looking for methods to take your customer base up a notch, then you will certainly find the suggestions and ideas on retail design mentioned here very beneficial.

First impressions are generally the most important ones and the ease and comfort your store imparts will help make an excellent first impression on every customer who comes in. When the customer first enters your outlet he should feel welcomed and at ease.

Free space just inside the entry point of the store will satisfy the aim of letting the visitor to take a quick glance at the entire store at once. Your layout should be such that the racks and the merchandise arranged in them let the visitor see and assimilate all at one glance without his view being hampered by obstructions. In order to make your merchandise more accessible to all customers, you will have to ensure that shelves are of the correct height to make products on highest rows visible with least effort. Your customer should be able to choose, examine and replace products without too much trouble. Leave sufficient space between rows of shelves to allow two customers look through parallel shelves at the same time without pushing one another.

By nature, people are found to prefer their right as the first direction of motion within any space. Inspire movement to the right by the organisation of your layout and give your visitors a sense of ease which will keep them coming to your store. Display products labels above aisles and shelves to make shopping a fast, hassle free experience for the shoppers and keep them coming back to your store simply because your store is so efficiently arranged.

How people view your store and whether they like shopping there or not depends greatly on how it looks and feels. Analyse your customers and design your outlet to make shopping a pleasant experience for them and you will see your first time customers become regulars in no time at all.

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Increase The Market Value Of Your Home Through Low-Cost Renovation

By Jane Cooper

A house sheltering its inhabitants for several years requires regular renovation and repairs to keep it in a good condition and to ensure that its market value doesn't start falling. There are some important aspects to the renovation of a house that need to be focused on to ensure that everything works out smoothly.

Where exactly does your home need the renovation and what all components need to be replaced must be first decided upon. If space is falling short because your family is expanding then the house may have to be extended or you may want to build a new garage in the premises for your car. chimneys can make a soiled and stuffy kitchen cleaner, airy and more roomy.

Some household electrical items installed in the kitchen or the bathroom can also be mended or replaced as part of the renovation exercise to make the house look as good as new in every respect. An intelligently carried out renovation will make your home a delightful place to live in.

Some people also renovate their home to make it more attractive to potential buyers and therefore increasing its worth in the market. When the purpose of uncommon. But you should be careful that the expenditure made on renovation does not surpass the potential increase in market value that the renovated house will witness. Hence, it is always advisable to take expert advice before investing in renovation and latest interior design.

come before any renovation activity as you would want to make sure that you are distributing your funds appropriately to different aspects of the house. Some extra expenditure beyond what the contractor has calculated might be required during renovation, and the budget has to be made while keeping this emergency requirement in mind.

If you find the contractor's charges too heavy for you to meet, you can also weigh the alternative of taking home renovation loan. There are several renovation loan schemes with convenient repayment options available and you can use them to renovate your home.

A new interior design, along with overall renovation is sure to convert your home into a cosy dwelling, where not only will you feel good but will also obtain an appreciated value of your property in case you consider a resale.

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What Makes An Attractive Interior Design

By Raymond Bishop

A house will feel like your home only after decorating it as per your preferences and lifestyle. The image of the residents among other people often depends on the interior design and styling of the house and it is very important to be cautious about these things.

It is easy for a creatively inclined person to come up with excellent interior design ideas. An interior design exercise can be undertaken by the assistance of various magazines which give some great tips and make you conscious of the newest trends. You can also choose to take help from professionals in this field. Here is some advice, which can be useful to you if you want to take care of the design of your house all by yourself.

The initial step is to select a style which will suit your aesthetic inclinations. Try to concentrate on a look which is in line with your personality. For example, you can either choose detailed European style woodwork which will give a classical look to your home or you can go for a modern theme which will make sure that the area in your house is not squandered.

The colour palette must match the theme. If there is a lack of sunlight in your home then you should choose lighter colours. If you want to use darker shades then you can develop shadows in your home through covered lamps instead of relying on simple tube lights or electric bulbs.

Furnishing choices for the house must take both your style preferences and comfort into account. Ideal furniture for a small house is that which occupies less space and can fulfil several needs. If you have a larger house then you can choose more lavish furniture options.

You should choose tablecloths, bed sheets, mats, curtains etc., which go well with the style of the rest of the home. Always be careful and selective while designing your home, after all it shows what kind of a person you are.

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Boston Bruins' Scoring Legend Phil Esposito

By Ross Everett

Although many of his offensive records have now been left in the dust by Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, former Boston Bruins/New York Rangers center Phil Esposito is still regarded by hockey experts as one of the greatest players in NHL history. He's forever enshrined in hockey's hall of fame along with brother, goaltender Tony Esposito.

Esposito was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario and his prodigious hockey talent quickly became apparent. He was signed by the Chicago Blackhawks as a teenager, and made his NHL debut in'64 quickly earning a spot on the teams top line between Bobby Hull and Marcel Dionne. In'67, Esposito was traded to the Boston Bruins along with Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield. Within a few years Hodge and Stanfield blossomed into All Stars, while Esposito quickly took his place alongside his former teammate Hull as the best scorer in the league. Suffice to say that Boston fans were of the opinion that theyd gotten the best of the deal.

Esposito began to shred the NHL record book in Boston, prompting Bruins fans to display car bumper stickers that read Jesus Saves; Esposito scores on the rebound. In'69, he became the first NHL player to top the 100 point mark (combined goals and assists) for the season"he obliterated the record with 126 points, which would be the first of six times that hed top the century mark. He topped 100 points in five straight seasons between'71 and'75, missing a sixth straight season by a single point with 99 in'70.

In the'70-71 season, Esposito smashed the NHL record for most goals in a season with 76. That record stood for over a decade until Wayne Gretzky scored 79 for the Edmonton Oilers in'81-82. Gretzky also broke Espositos single season points record of 154. Even now, only four other players including Gretzky have scored more than 150 points in a season and only five others have scored more than 76 goals in a season. Perhaps the most amazing element of Espositos game was the frequency with which he put the puck on net"Espo had 550 shots on goal in'70-71. No one has since come close"in fact, just last Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals became the first player to come within 100 shots of Espositos mark.

In'75, Esposito was traded with Brad Park to the New York Rangers for Brad Park, Joe Zanussi and Jean Ratelle. By that point, he had been slowed considerably by knee injuries but his experience, intelligence for the game and nose for the puck made him a valuable component of the Broadway Blueshirts offense and he was named team captain. Until the very end of his career, he remained a dangerous scoring threat that all opposing teams were forced to reckon with.

After his retirement in'75, he remained active in hockey. He served as the GM of the Rangers before helping secure an expansion team for Tampa, Florida in'92. Esposito served as the President and GM of the Tampa Bay Lightning until'98. Esposito now hosts a daily hockey radio show on XM Radio, and has even done some acting appearing in a recurring role as a fire chief on the TV series Rescue Me.

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Some Advantages Of Kitchen Bay Windows

By Matthew Roberts

A kitchen bay window can be useful & it can look very nice in your room. A dark, unappealing room can be brought into light. Such a window is both attractive & practical. There are a lot of advantages to owning a house with a kitchen bay window.

The addition of a kitchen bay window would make a beautiful accent to your room, but that might be all you're considering. You might not be thinking any further than that, but other reasons, apart from looks, are also important in choosing a bay window for your kitchen.

The looks are indeed the primary cause for your purchase. There are three aspects to the appearance of the bay window. First is the window frame. Bay windows can have several types of frames. Most these days they are metal frames when you purchase them in the store, but you can seat them in new woodworking to let them become a part of your house. Homeowners with an older home can buy used lumber to fashion you framework and sill from them instead. Whatever you choose, make sure your window will be framed beautifully.

At the same time, you may want to consider the glass itself as a feature of your window. When you are choosing how large to make the window, you also must decide how many sides that the bay window will have. This is because a bay window is made of three or more glass panes held together at angles. You can have a simple 3-pane window, or you can have several panes.

Sunlight is a specialty of bay windows. sunshine streams into your kitchen & breakfast nook areas once the sun is in the right direction. If your windows face west, you will get afternoon sunlight and if they face east, of course you will get morning sunshine. The natural light will brighten your kitchen in a way that no lighting fixture can do. Plus, the kitchen bay windows provide a feeling of openness to a room that might otherwise seem too closed off.

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MMA Pioneer Helio Gracie Remembered

By Ross Everett

Gracie family patriarch and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu pioneer Helio Gracie died in early 2009 in Rio de Janeiro at the age of 95. Its impossible to overestimate his influence on martial arts, and particularly his pathbreaking role in what is now the sport of mixed martial arts. The Gracie family name will forever be synonymous with Brazilian sports, jiu-jitsu, MMA and the UFC"not only due to Helios own accomplishments but the legacy he created both by training others and through his family.

Helio Gracie began studying martial arts early in life, and by the age of 16 had already begun to teach judo in his native Brazil. While Helio had no problem mastering the theoretical aspects of judo, he found that many of its techniques required a great deal of brute strength which made them less effective for a smaller fighter such as himself. Along with his brother Carlos, he began to adapt many of judos techniques to make them more reliant on leverage rather than strength. This experimentation led to the creation of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) which is often referred to as Gracie Jiu-Jitsu in his honor.

Gracie also had a professional fighting career of his own, taking on champions from other fighting disciplines in an early version of modern MMA. These bouts were arduous, unregulated affairs with arbitrary rules and no time limits. By his own recollection, Gracie fought 15 times against the top opponents of his time. He began his career in'32 by submitting professional boxer Antonio Portugal in just 32 seconds. Later that year, he fought American catch wrestler Frank Ebert to a draw after the ringside doctor ordered the bout stopped after an ungodly fourteen ten minute rounds.

His most famous battle was against Japanese judo legend Masahiko Kimura, resulting in a rare loss for Gracie. Despite the setback, he fought bravely and may have actually enhanced his legend after refusing to submit to a reverse arm bar (the same modern MMA submission that now bears Kimuras name). Only after his arm was broken did his brother Carlos throw in the towel.

Helio Gracie's impact on fight sports and mixed martial arts would continue through his offspring. Married twice, he had seven sons (Rickson, Royler, Rolker, Royce, Relson, Robin and Rorion) and two daughters (Rerika and Ricci), many of whom went on to make their own mark on the fight sport world. Royce Gracie is well known as the first UFC superstar, while sons Rickson Royler, Renzo have also achieved considerable fame in professional MMA.

Gracie died at age 95, after suffering stomach problems though the cause of his death was officially listed as 'natural causes'. His last words are classic and highly fitting for a man who gave so much to martial arts and fighting sports:

"I created a flag from the sports dignity. I oversee the name of my family with affection and nerves of blood.

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Clemson Upsets Miami In Overtime

By Ross Everett

The Clemson Tigers used a touchdown pass on their first possession of overtime to upset the Miami Hurricanes 40-37 on Saturday night to cap a back and forth game. Miami kicked a field goal on their first possession of overtime to take the lead, but Clemson responded with a seldom used play on third and 11 to get the victory as quarterback Kyle Parker completed a 27 yard touchdown pass to Jacoby Ford. Clemson improved to 4-3 with the win while Miami slipped to 5-2.

College football betting devotees who backed Clemson as +4 road underdogs eventually cashed their tickets, but they definitely earned their money in a game that saw twelve lead changes and two ties. Clemson improved to 5-2 against the spread with the cover, while Miami dropped to 4-3 against the money.

After the game, Jacoby Ford explained the logic for the surprise play:

"We knew this game was going to come down to who made more plays. And we did."

Miami has a history of winning when their offense is clicking-this loss was only the second in 115 games when the Hurricanes score 37 or more points dating back to'85.

For his part, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney is glad this one is over:

"I have a birthday next month and I think I'm going to turn 50 instead of 40. We had to put on Superman capes. We made plenty of mistakes that could have lost us the game, but they played with poise and confidence. We just kept battling."

CJ Spiller was also a big factor for the Tigers as he set a school record with 310 all purpose yards including a 90 yard kickoff return for a touchdown. He also added 81 yards rushing and 104 yards receiving with a 56 yard touchdown catch.

Clemson QB Parker suggested that last week's win over Wake Forrest was a turning point for his team:

"I think last week we realized that we could be really good and this week we acted on it. I thought we really got some explosive plays and we played well."

Miami's quarterback Jason Harris sounded a different tone in his postgame comments:

"This has to be my toughest loss here. We fought so hard throughout the game as a team and didn't come out with the victory. We let Clemson outwork us, we turned the ball over too much -- little things that made us get to this point."

Clemson will host FCS foe Coastal Carolina next Saturday before resuming ACC play the following week at home against Florida State. Miami plays two of their next three on the road, starting next weekend at Wake Forest. They'll face the University of Virginia at home the next week before traveling to Chapel Hill for a game against North Carolina on November--.

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