Life after 50 with a dash of Healthy Adventure

Monitors Computer is online to help buyers find monitors computer cheaper. They are one of the few sites in the UK dedicated exclusively to finding buyers the best prices on monitors computer.

#ad

Last month I received an e-mail from HotelsCombined.com with information on their Spread the Word for Charity campaign.

Note from Mardeck – this post is provided by Laurie. Be sure to visit her blog La Vie de Laurie for more information. This is not her first year on the Three Day walk for breast cancer and is commended for all her hard work.

By letting your friends know about their awesome site, they will make a monetary donation to your choice of three very worthy charities. Currently they are supporting the World Wildlife Federation, Make A Wish, and World Vision. I immediately took to Twitter and Facebook and helped spread the word.

They were also kind enough to offer to sponsor my Susan G. Komen for the Cure 3-Day walk in November by contributing donations for friends and family that I refer to their website and program. It is easy to help and costs you absolutely nothing except a few minutes of your time and clicks of your mouse! Here is how you can help me and Susan G. Komen for the Cure:

Become a fan of HotelsCombined on Facebook, and they will donate $5. You can mention in their comments that you are supporting me and Susan G. Komen.

Tweet the following message from your Twitter account and they will donate $10:
Please RT @laurie_pooh: Check out HotelsCombined.com! I’m spreading the word and supporting Susan G Komen http://tinyurl.com/ao2rgj

Write a quick blog post like this one about HotelsCombined and their charity program (you can mention me and my walk too), and they will donate $20.

The best part? You can do one, two, or all three of the above. So won’t you help me spread the word and help me earn more donations to end breast cancer forever?

I love that HotelsCombined.com is a green and socially conscious company. What do they do? I am so glad you asked! They are a search engine that consumers can use to find hotel availability and rates. Their site allows their users to compare prices and offers from multiple merchants which means you don’t have to go to any other websites to find the best deal on your next hotel stay. Once you find the supplier suitable for your needs, they link you through to the supplier website to book directly. They offer a “complete picture” for any hotel that can be booked on the Internet, and are not paid to promote any particular website or hotel.

Go check them out for yourself. I plan on booking my next hotel through them (I found a ridiculously great rate on a room at the Paris hotel in Las Vegas!), and you should too. Want to help spread the word? You can get a nifty badge (like the one below) on their website. It couldn’t be more easy to make a donation to a wonderful charity and not even have to open your own wallet.

Thank you to those of you who have already helped, and especially to HotelsCombined for this wonderful opportunity!

However, the child with the most action and looking directly at the camera – was not there – for the photograph. No one in the family has ever known or seen this child. None of the people present saw the child in the room. I am posting this photograph so that we may get comments from other investigators. I am a professional photographer and have been so since 1973. The photograph did not appear to be tampered with and was developed by a retail store.

I would love to hear your opinion on this photo.

I am looking for plenty of discussion on the photo.

Monday, February 1, 2010
The Power of a Quickie
Posted by craftyGAgal “Meredith”

Not that kind of QUICKIE… a crafting quickie. All you crafting junkies know exactly what I am talking about. That quick crafting fix… just something you can SEE pretty quick.
I have been missing due to personal circumstances such as moving and a few other things….but no more. I am back, back online and back creating.

I had stopped making jewelry and stopped crocheting due to having to move and pack up all my supplies and stash… but recently I went digging and found enough to get my creative juices flowing. I started a new project of a pattern I made up for iPhone cases that are super cute. They are cool, bright and funky colors with neat matching buttons and some I put silver word plates on- you will see. I love them and they were the best kind of craft project… one that you can start and finish in a few hours giving that instant creative gratification! I made a dozen in a matter of a couple days. After that I got the bead itch and got out my goodies and made a necklace that is so awesome I am seriously debating even selling it- it has a big silver circle pendant that says on it “Be True to Yourself”… and I paired it with my favorite color- GREEN! It turned out super!

Another “Quickie”…. crafting bliss! It is almost like an addiction… just needed a ‘fix’ to get my craft mojo flowing and get that satisfied feeling- AHHH.

Be back soon… promise. I am back to stay and continue on my way…. Watch out! I am super motivated and super happy to be back blogging and networking.
SMILE

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To see more of her blog use the link above. Meredith is one of the “craftiest” people I know. She makes the coolest jewelry and sells it on Esty.

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I think this video speaks for itself. Blu Frog is a tasty and healthy energy drink. Tested and tasted by Courtney Benefiel. She is one of the most energetic people I have ever met. If one could bottle Courtney, they would be a billionare! We got to  know each other face to face this year at in Orlando at Izeafest which was one of the wildest and craziest conferences I have ever attened. Can’t wait for next year. I first made contact with Courtney, who is RideToRemedy, while wandering about Twitter.

Courtney is a strong competitor in the bicycle field. Lance Armstrong better look out. Her web site Ride to Remedy is chalk full of info about racing. It is also about breaking the chains of diabetes, which she has. Courtney describes her mission on her website like this, “A year ago (May 2006), I decided that I was going to take care of my diabetes because I wanted to go skydiving and couldn’t do so without proper care of this hideous disease. With that goal obtained, my next goal was getting on the insulin pump, I had to show that I was capable of 7-10 blood checks a day, that I was going to watch my carb intake, that I was going to take insulin when I was supposed to (I have a history of not doing so). Being on the insulin pump gave me the power to be athletic and with that power I set out to prove that I have control.

When I completed my first ride in Southern, CA I was immediately craving my next ride. I had proven my point; I could control my diabetes and within that control, be athletic. What I spent the better part of 15 years missing out on, I wanted others not to miss. There’s no reason why diabetes should restrict anyone at anytime and while controlling it is an answer, it isn’t the answer. And that is why I ride and want to ride. I ride to find the cure, the answer to diabetes.” There is a ton of information about diabetes on her website.

We got together when I visited her home town and I brought her a six pack of Blu Frog. It’s healthy energy drink with no artificial sweenters or sugar other than that provided by the fruit. For more info on Blu Frog as a drink or as a way to make money be sure to click on the Blu Frog on the top right of the page.

While I was at Izeafest I met this very interesting person, Azim Jamal. He was once a corporate employee, but discovered the power of giving. Now he is trying to spread the word around the world. He explains this in the book “the power of giving.” Mr. Jamal and Harvey McKinnon collaborated together together on the book. They completed it and it was published by Penguin Group. I was not the only person interviewed at Izeafest. Other interviews can be found on Viddler and at YouTube with other conference attendees.

The idea of Mr. Jamal’s book is to teach you how giving back enriches everyone and how to create abundance at home, work and in your community. What I enjoyed while reading the book is that it shows the reader how to give back without spending money. There is much more information about the power of giving on the website. Mr. Jamal has his own website for information about him.

If even half the people who read the book follow some of the advice within its pages, the world would be richer and a much quieter and safer place.

Mr. Jamal and Mr McKinnon come from Canada. Mr Jamal has been volunteering an average of 20 hours a week for the last 25 years. Mr McKinnon has been a fundraiser or organizations such as UNICEF and Amnesty International. You can find out more about Mr McKinnon at his website.

I can tell you there are many ways to help within your community. You don’t have to go around the world or have a lot of money to help. There are shelters, soup kitchens, volunteer fire departments, libraries, schools, museums, nursing homes and many other places you can help and make a difference. Then there are plenty of service organizations that continually welcome new members. Some of these are the Lion’s Club, Kiwanis and so on.

I have volunteered for years and it has made my life rich and given me peace within when something good happens to another person or family. Through the years I have been involved with my children’s school. I was a room mother and on the Parent Teacher Association. I have been with the Kiwanis. We had several programs to serve the community. Getting up early in the morning to put together Thanksgiving boxes and Christmas baskets is an experience that is rewarding. I have received a lot in life and have always believed I should give back to my community wherever I live. I was on a Board of Adjustment in one city and on the Planning and Zoning Commission in another. These are volunteer positions and can help the community in a variety of ways. I spent years as a rescue diver and firefighter with my local volunteer fire department. While often it was sad seeing other people loose homes or property, it was a wonderful feeling when we were able to save the homes. I even spent several years as a reserve police officer. While working side by side with paid officers, I did it without pay. In Texas a reserve police office has the same training and is identical to the paid officer, except there are no benefits or pay involved. Some people join the armed forces for the same reason, to contribute to society and make the world a better and safer place for everyone.

While I was in law enforcement as a paid officer (I made the switch years ago and am now retired) one of my passions were kids at risk. I had a policy of making myself available 24/7 if the child needed help or to talk. They would call dispatch who would then locate me and I would call the child back. Texas Department of Criminal Justice has an interesting program that many of these kids participated in while I was with the police department. It is called Operation Outreach. While many children ages of 10-17 were ordered by juvenile court to attend, our police department took many children through the program at the request of concerned parents. The kids and I would go toa state prison for the day. They would go through a day similar to one of an inmate and some would come back changed for the better. One of my favorite successes is a girl I had known since she was in diapers. Her family background is one of drinking, fighting and jail. That went back several generations. Her mother wanted to break the cycle and her dughter started to run with gang memebrs in high school. On the day she whent throug the program I asked her mother to let her bring her “colors” with her. I let her bring it to the prison and she spent the day treated like a gang member. It was not pleasant. Ofcourse when she was searched befor entering the prison her “colors” were removed. (I had talked to the sergeant who runs the program before we came about her bringing the bandana) Seemed as thoug the entire prison knew what gang she was trying to run with and treated her accordingly, albiet from a distance. The success came after we left. She got her bandana back and hung it up in her room to remind herself of why she did not want to go this way. She graduated from high school while many in her family did not, got into the medical field, married a paramedic and is living a good life. That makes you feel good when you realize how one day can make such a difference. She stayed in contact through the years so we would know how well she is doing and  yes, I received a few phone calls from her or her mother when they hit rough patches.

I know quite a few Y generation individuals who have told me, “If I don’t get paid for it, then I’m not doing anything.” Of course I’ve heard it from my generation too. It can be quite difficult to put into words the satisfaction that comes from giving. Maybe if a person like this gets a gift of this book their mind can be changed enough to try at least once to give of themselves.

Mr. Jamal’s and Mr. McKinnon’s “power of giving” can be found on Amazon from $10.04 to $4.86 . To learn more about Mr. Jamal on Amazom you can visit his Amazom page.