'Linsanity' Details Rise of Asian-American Basketball Star
HONOLULU — A record 92 foreign players from 39 countries began this season in the professional U.S. basketball league, but none is from Asia.
At the moment, there is only one Asian-American player in the U.S. National Basketball Association (NBA) and his name is Jeremy Lin.
Unlikely journey
A new documentary, Linsanity, follows Lin's unlikely journey to become a breakout NBA star last season.
Born and raised in California, Lin has always loved the game and even led his high school basketball team to the state championship. But no college offered him an athletic scholarship.
Lin ended up playing at Harvard, a school known for its academics, where he broke Ivy League basketball records. Still, no NBA team drafted him.
As Lin struggled to prove he could play in the professional league, a group of Asian-American filmmakers began documenting his rocky start.
Rocky start
"We started this four years ago. You know, as a filmmaking team we went through the same journey that he [Lin] went through," said Evan Jackson Leong, who directed the project. "You know, getting cut. As his downs were going down, we were also going down with our project, because no one really cared about what was going on with our project."
Leong kept the cameras rolling during some of Lin's darkest hours, even after the free agent point guard was cut twice from NBA teams. The filmmakers initially planned to create a web series about Lin, never imagining how things would turn out.
The documentary captures the story of an underdog trying to break through barriers in a sport where Asian-Americans are extremely rare.
Breaking barriers
Lin recalls being on the receiving end of racial taunts from spectators and other players early in his career.
"When I was growing up, I was playing in the AAU [amateur] tournaments. We’d be playing games, and a couple times people would be like, 'Yo, take your ass back to China,' or like 'You’re a Chinese import,' or whatever. When I got to college, it just, like, got crazy. 'You Chink, can you even open your eyes? Can you see the scoreboard?' You know, just like crazy stuff."
Despite it all, he fought to stay in the game. When the New York Knicks finally gave him a chance to play in 2012, no one expected he would lead his team on such an amazing winning streak, it would spark a global phenomenon known as "Linsanity.”
The film recounts how Lin became an overnight media sensation and also how some members of the media used racial stereotypes and innuendos to describe him.
One ESPN broadcaster commented about Lin, "He’s handled everything very well as you said, unflappable. But if there’s a chink in the armor, where can Lin improve his game?"
Changing perceptions
By breaking stereotypes, co-producer Brian Yang said Lin is changing perceptions and helping pave the way for more diversity in the sport.
"NBA teams are now giving other Asian-American athletes a second look," Yang said. "I think Jeremy's story has affected the way coaches and recruiters...think and that's important."
In the documentary, Lin credits his faith for guiding him throughout his journey. And that made it especially meaningful for his cousin, Allen Lu, who also helped produce the film.
"For me, the thing that I draw a lot from the journey that we’ve been through is that, is like, where do you draw your hope? Where do you draw your strength?," said Lu. "And for Jeremy and myself, and a lot of us here, you know, we’re Christians. And that’s where we draw our strength."
Christopher Chen, another co-producer, was moved by the audience reaction when Linsanity premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.
"We had always thought that after Linsanity [premiered], this will hopefully impact the Asian community, the Asian-American community," Chen said. "But what was most impactful to me is when you have middle-aged white women and Latino women, and older black gentlemen, coming up to us, [saying] 'Thank you for telling that story.' That was very inspirational."
Now 25, Jeremy Lin continues to inspire children and young people through his charitable foundation. And on the court, he’s now making millions of dollars playing for the Houston Rockets, one of the NBA teams that once cut him from its roster.
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Lifesupport. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Lifesupport. Tampilkan semua postingan
Senin, 09 Desember 2013
When there is nothing left but God, that is when you find out that God is all you need
THE TABLECLOTH
The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry, to reopen a church in suburban Brooklyn, arrived in early October excited about their opportunities.
When they saw their church, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.
They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc. and on Dec 18 were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On Dec 19 a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm - hit the area and lasted for two days. On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church. His heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high. The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home.
On the way he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale for charity so he stopped in. One of the items was a beautiful, handmade, ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a Cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church. By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later. She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers, etc., to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry.
The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the entire problem area. Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet. "Pastor," she asked, "where did you get that tablecloth?" The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials, EBG were crocheted into it there. They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria. The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just gotten the Tablecloth. The woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week. She was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or her home again. The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church.
The pastor insisted on driving her home, that was the least he could do. She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job. What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return. One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood, continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn’t leaving. The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to one that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how could there be two tablecloths so much alike? He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety, and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison. He never saw his wife or his home again all the 35 years in between.
The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten Island and to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier. He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman’s apartment, knocked on the door and he saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.
T rue story - submitted by Pastor Rob Reid who says God does work in mysterious ways.
I asked the Lord to bless you as I prayed for you today, to guide you and protect you as you go along your way. His love is always with you. His promises are true, and when we give Him all our cares we know He will see us through.
So when the road you're traveling seems difficult at best, just remember I'm here praying and God will do the rest. Pass this on to those you want God to bless and remember to send it back to the one who asked God to bless you first.
When there is nothing left but God, that is when you find out that God is all you need. Take 60 seconds and give this a shot! All you do is simply say the following small prayer for the person who sent this to you.
Father, God, bless all my friends and family in what ever it is that You know they may be needing this day! May their lives be full of Your peace, prosperity and power as they seek to have a closer relationship with You. Amen.
The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry, to reopen a church in suburban Brooklyn, arrived in early October excited about their opportunities.
When they saw their church, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.
They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc. and on Dec 18 were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On Dec 19 a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm - hit the area and lasted for two days. On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church. His heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high. The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home.
On the way he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale for charity so he stopped in. One of the items was a beautiful, handmade, ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a Cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church. By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later. She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers, etc., to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry.
The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the entire problem area. Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet. "Pastor," she asked, "where did you get that tablecloth?" The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials, EBG were crocheted into it there. They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria. The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just gotten the Tablecloth. The woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week. She was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or her home again. The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church.
The pastor insisted on driving her home, that was the least he could do. She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job. What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return. One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood, continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn’t leaving. The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to one that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how could there be two tablecloths so much alike? He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety, and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison. He never saw his wife or his home again all the 35 years in between.
The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten Island and to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier. He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman’s apartment, knocked on the door and he saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.
T rue story - submitted by Pastor Rob Reid who says God does work in mysterious ways.
I asked the Lord to bless you as I prayed for you today, to guide you and protect you as you go along your way. His love is always with you. His promises are true, and when we give Him all our cares we know He will see us through.
So when the road you're traveling seems difficult at best, just remember I'm here praying and God will do the rest. Pass this on to those you want God to bless and remember to send it back to the one who asked God to bless you first.
When there is nothing left but God, that is when you find out that God is all you need. Take 60 seconds and give this a shot! All you do is simply say the following small prayer for the person who sent this to you.
Father, God, bless all my friends and family in what ever it is that You know they may be needing this day! May their lives be full of Your peace, prosperity and power as they seek to have a closer relationship with You. Amen.
Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up
MARRIED OR NOT, YOU SHOULD READ THIS ...
“When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand and said, I’ve got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Suddenly I didn’t know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topic calmly. She didn’t seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why?
I avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man! That night, we didn’t talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer; she had lost my heart to Jane. I didn’t love her anymore. I just pitied her!
With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, our car, and 30% stake of my company. She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I could not take back what I had said for I loved Jane so dearly. Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.
The next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at the table. I didn’t have supper but went straight to sleep and fell asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Jane. When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.
In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn’t want anything from me, but needed a month’s notice before the divorce. She requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son had his exams in a month’s time and she didn’t want to disrupt him with our broken marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to recall how I had carried her into out bridal room on our wedding day. She requested that every day for the month’s duration I carry her out of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going crazy. Just to make our last days together bearable I accepted her odd request.
I told Jane about my wife’s divorce conditions. . She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said scornfully.
My wife and I hadn’t had any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mommy in his arms. His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly; don’t tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat upset. I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.
On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest. I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn’t looked at this woman carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.
On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy returning. This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me. On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn’t tell Jane about this. It became easier to carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily.
Suddenly it hit me… she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart. Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head.
Our son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it’s time to carry mom out. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change my mind at this last minute. I then held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just like our wedding day.
But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn’t noticed that our life lacked intimacy. I drove to office…. jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my mind…I walked upstairs. Jane opened the door and I said to her, Sorry, Jane, I do not want the divorce anymore.
She looked at me, astonished, and then touched my forehead. Do you have a fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Jane, I said, I won’t divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn’t value the details of our lives, not because we didn’t love each other anymore. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death do us apart. Jane seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away. At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote, I’ll carry you out every morning until death do us apart.
That evening I arrived home, flowers in my hands, a smile on my face, I run up stairs, only to find my wife in the bed -dead. My wife had been fighting CANCER for months and I was so busy with Jane to even notice. She knew that she would die soon and she wanted to save me from the whatever negative reaction from our son, in case we push through with the divorce.— At least, in the eyes of our son—- I’m a loving husband….
The small details of your lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, property, the money in the bank. These create an environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves.
So find time to be your spouse’s friend and do those little things for each other that build intimacy. If you are not in a relationship now, remember this for the second (or third) time around. It's never too late.
If you don’t share this, nothing will happen to you.
If you do, you just might save a marriage. Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.
“When I got home that night as my wife served dinner, I held her hand and said, I’ve got something to tell you. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes.
Suddenly I didn’t know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want a divorce. I raised the topic calmly. She didn’t seem to be annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why?
I avoided her question. This made her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me, you are not a man! That night, we didn’t talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer; she had lost my heart to Jane. I didn’t love her anymore. I just pitied her!
With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, our car, and 30% stake of my company. She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. The woman who had spent ten years of her life with me had become a stranger. I felt sorry for her wasted time, resources and energy but I could not take back what I had said for I loved Jane so dearly. Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer now.
The next day, I came back home very late and found her writing something at the table. I didn’t have supper but went straight to sleep and fell asleep very fast because I was tired after an eventful day with Jane. When I woke up, she was still there at the table writing. I just did not care so I turned over and was asleep again.
In the morning she presented her divorce conditions: she didn’t want anything from me, but needed a month’s notice before the divorce. She requested that in that one month we both struggle to live as normal a life as possible. Her reasons were simple: our son had his exams in a month’s time and she didn’t want to disrupt him with our broken marriage.
This was agreeable to me. But she had something more, she asked me to recall how I had carried her into out bridal room on our wedding day. She requested that every day for the month’s duration I carry her out of our bedroom to the front door ever morning. I thought she was going crazy. Just to make our last days together bearable I accepted her odd request.
I told Jane about my wife’s divorce conditions. . She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she applies, she has to face the divorce, she said scornfully.
My wife and I hadn’t had any body contact since my divorce intention was explicitly expressed. So when I carried her out on the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mommy in his arms. His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly; don’t tell our son about the divorce. I nodded, feeling somewhat upset. I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for the bus to work. I drove alone to the office.
On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest. I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn’t looked at this woman carefully for a long time. I realized she was not young any more. There were fine wrinkles on her face, her hair was graying! Our marriage had taken its toll on her. For a minute I wondered what I had done to her.
On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I felt a sense of intimacy returning. This was the woman who had given ten years of her life to me. On the fifth and sixth day, I realized that our sense of intimacy was growing again. I didn’t tell Jane about this. It became easier to carry her as the month slipped by. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger.
She was choosing what to wear one morning. She tried on quite a few dresses but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed, all my dresses have grown bigger. I suddenly realized that she had grown so thin, that was the reason why I could carry her more easily.
Suddenly it hit me… she had buried so much pain and bitterness in her heart. Subconsciously I reached out and touched her head.
Our son came in at the moment and said, Dad, it’s time to carry mom out. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had become an essential part of his life. My wife gestured to our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face away because I was afraid I might change my mind at this last minute. I then held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly; it was just like our wedding day.
But her much lighter weight made me sad. On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. I held her tightly and said, I hadn’t noticed that our life lacked intimacy. I drove to office…. jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my mind…I walked upstairs. Jane opened the door and I said to her, Sorry, Jane, I do not want the divorce anymore.
She looked at me, astonished, and then touched my forehead. Do you have a fever? She said. I moved her hand off my head. Sorry, Jane, I said, I won’t divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn’t value the details of our lives, not because we didn’t love each other anymore. Now I realize that since I carried her into my home on our wedding day I am supposed to hold her until death do us apart. Jane seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into tears. I walked downstairs and drove away. At the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife. The salesgirl asked me what to write on the card. I smiled and wrote, I’ll carry you out every morning until death do us apart.
That evening I arrived home, flowers in my hands, a smile on my face, I run up stairs, only to find my wife in the bed -dead. My wife had been fighting CANCER for months and I was so busy with Jane to even notice. She knew that she would die soon and she wanted to save me from the whatever negative reaction from our son, in case we push through with the divorce.— At least, in the eyes of our son—- I’m a loving husband….
The small details of your lives are what really matter in a relationship. It is not the mansion, the car, property, the money in the bank. These create an environment conducive for happiness but cannot give happiness in themselves.
So find time to be your spouse’s friend and do those little things for each other that build intimacy. If you are not in a relationship now, remember this for the second (or third) time around. It's never too late.
If you don’t share this, nothing will happen to you.
If you do, you just might save a marriage. Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.
Jumat, 06 Desember 2013
Winter of My Life
This is so appropriate and meaningful. We never thought it would happen to us. Check it out.
AND THEN IT IS WINTER
I FIRST STARTED READING THIS EMAIL & WAS READING FAST UNTIL I REACHED THE THIRD SENTENCE. I STOPPED AND STARTED OVER READING SLOWER AND THINKING ABOUT EVERY WORD. THIS EMAIL IS VERY THOUGHT PROVOKING. MAKES YOU STOP AND THINK. READ SLOWLY!
You know. . . time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the passing years. It seems just yesterday that I was young, just married and embarking on my new life with my mate. Yet in a way, it seems like eons ago, and I wonder where all the years went. I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams.
But, here it is... the winter of my life and it catches me by surprise...How did I get here so fast? Where did the years go and where did my youth go? I remember well seeing older people through the years and thinking that those older people were years away from me and that winter was so far off that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like.
But, here it is...my friends are retired and getting grey...they move slower and I see an older person now. Some are in better and some worse shape than me...but, I see the great change...Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant...but, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks that we used to see and never thought we'd be. Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day! And taking a nap is not a treat anymore... it's mandatory! Cause if I don't on my own free will... I just fall asleep where I sit!
And so...now I enter into this new season of my life unprepared for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability to go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!! But, at least I know, that though the winter has come, and I'm not sure how long it will last...this I know, that when it's over on this earth...its over. A new adventure will begin!
Yes, I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn't done...things I should have done, but indeed, there are many things I'm happy to have done. It's all in a lifetime. So, if you're not in your winter yet...let me remind you, that it will be here faster than you think. So, whatever you would like to accomplish in your life please do it quickly! Don't put things off too long!! Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today, as you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not! You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life...so, live for today and say all the things that you want your loved ones to remember...and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things that you have done for them in all the years past!! "Life" is a gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one.
LIVE IT WELL! ENJOY TODAY! DO SOMETHING FUN! BE HAPPY ! HAVE A GREAT DAY
Remember "It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.
LIVE HAPPY IN THE REST OF 2013!
LASTLY, CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:
K
TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU'VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU'LL EVER BE SO - ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS.
~Your kids are becoming you......but your grandchildren are perfect!
~Going out is good.. Coming home is better!
~You forget names.... But it's OK because other people forgot they even knew you!!!
~You realize you're never going to be really good at anything.... especially golf.
~The things you used to care to do, you no longer care to do, but you really do care that you don't care to do them anymore.
~You sleep better on a lounge chair with the TV blaring than in bed. It's called "pre-sleep". ~You miss the days when everything worked with just an "ON" and "OFF" switch..
~You tend to use more 4 letter words ... "what?"..."when?"... ??? ~Now that you can afford expensive jewelry, it's not safe to wear it anywhere.
~You notice everything they sell in stores is "sleeveless"?!!! ~What used to be freckles are now liver spots.
~Everybody whispers.
~You have 3 sizes of clothes in your closet.... 2 of which you will never wear.
~But Old is good in some things: Old Songs, Old movies, and best of all, OLD FRIENDS!!
Stay well, "OLD FRIEND!" Send this on to other "Old Friends!" and let them laugh in AGREEMENT!!! It's Not What You Gather, But What You Scatter That Tells What Kind Of Life You Have Lived.
AND THEN IT IS WINTER
I FIRST STARTED READING THIS EMAIL & WAS READING FAST UNTIL I REACHED THE THIRD SENTENCE. I STOPPED AND STARTED OVER READING SLOWER AND THINKING ABOUT EVERY WORD. THIS EMAIL IS VERY THOUGHT PROVOKING. MAKES YOU STOP AND THINK. READ SLOWLY!
You know. . . time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the passing years. It seems just yesterday that I was young, just married and embarking on my new life with my mate. Yet in a way, it seems like eons ago, and I wonder where all the years went. I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams.
But, here it is... the winter of my life and it catches me by surprise...How did I get here so fast? Where did the years go and where did my youth go? I remember well seeing older people through the years and thinking that those older people were years away from me and that winter was so far off that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like.
But, here it is...my friends are retired and getting grey...they move slower and I see an older person now. Some are in better and some worse shape than me...but, I see the great change...Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant...but, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks that we used to see and never thought we'd be. Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day! And taking a nap is not a treat anymore... it's mandatory! Cause if I don't on my own free will... I just fall asleep where I sit!
And so...now I enter into this new season of my life unprepared for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability to go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!! But, at least I know, that though the winter has come, and I'm not sure how long it will last...this I know, that when it's over on this earth...its over. A new adventure will begin!
Yes, I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn't done...things I should have done, but indeed, there are many things I'm happy to have done. It's all in a lifetime. So, if you're not in your winter yet...let me remind you, that it will be here faster than you think. So, whatever you would like to accomplish in your life please do it quickly! Don't put things off too long!! Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today, as you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not! You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life...so, live for today and say all the things that you want your loved ones to remember...and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things that you have done for them in all the years past!! "Life" is a gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one.
LIVE IT WELL! ENJOY TODAY! DO SOMETHING FUN! BE HAPPY ! HAVE A GREAT DAY
Remember "It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.
LIVE HAPPY IN THE REST OF 2013!
LASTLY, CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:
K
TODAY IS THE OLDEST YOU'VE EVER BEEN, YET THE YOUNGEST YOU'LL EVER BE SO - ENJOY THIS DAY WHILE IT LASTS.
~Your kids are becoming you......but your grandchildren are perfect!
~Going out is good.. Coming home is better!
~You forget names.... But it's OK because other people forgot they even knew you!!!
~You realize you're never going to be really good at anything.... especially golf.
~The things you used to care to do, you no longer care to do, but you really do care that you don't care to do them anymore.
~You sleep better on a lounge chair with the TV blaring than in bed. It's called "pre-sleep". ~You miss the days when everything worked with just an "ON" and "OFF" switch..
~You tend to use more 4 letter words ... "what?"..."when?"... ??? ~Now that you can afford expensive jewelry, it's not safe to wear it anywhere.
~You notice everything they sell in stores is "sleeveless"?!!! ~What used to be freckles are now liver spots.
~Everybody whispers.
~You have 3 sizes of clothes in your closet.... 2 of which you will never wear.
~But Old is good in some things: Old Songs, Old movies, and best of all, OLD FRIENDS!!
Stay well, "OLD FRIEND!" Send this on to other "Old Friends!" and let them laugh in AGREEMENT!!! It's Not What You Gather, But What You Scatter That Tells What Kind Of Life You Have Lived.
I Already Told Gold
I told GOD:
Let all my friends be healthy and happy forever...!
GOD said:
But for 4 days only....!
I said:
Yes, let them be a Spring Day, Summer Day, Autumn Day, and Winter Day.
GOD said:
3 days.
I said:
Yes, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.
GOD said:
No, 2 days!
I said:
Yes, a Bright Day (Daytime) and Dark Day (Night-time) .
GOD said:
No, just 1 day!
I said:
Yes!
GOD asked:
Which day?
I said:
Every Day in the living years of all my friends!
GOD laughed, and said:
All your friends will be healthy and happy Every Day!
Let all my friends be healthy and happy forever...!
GOD said:
But for 4 days only....!
I said:
Yes, let them be a Spring Day, Summer Day, Autumn Day, and Winter Day.
GOD said:
3 days.
I said:
Yes, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.
GOD said:
No, 2 days!
I said:
Yes, a Bright Day (Daytime) and Dark Day (Night-time) .
GOD said:
No, just 1 day!
I said:
Yes!
GOD asked:
Which day?
I said:
Every Day in the living years of all my friends!
GOD laughed, and said:
All your friends will be healthy and happy Every Day!
Rabu, 10 Juli 2013
Live Each Day As If it Were the Last Day of Your Life
God love us all!
I have seen too many dear friends leave this world, too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.
Whose business is it, if I choose to read, or play, on the computer, until 4 AM, or sleep until noon? I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 50, 60 &70’s, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love, I will.
I will walk the beach, in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves, with abandon, if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set. They, too, will get old.
I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And, I eventually remember the important things.
Sure, over the years, my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break, when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet is hit by a car? But, broken hearts are what give us strength, and understanding, and compassion. A heart never broken, is pristine, and sterile, and will never know the joy of being imperfect.
I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver. As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even earned the right to be wrong. So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day (if I feel like it).
MAY OUR FRIENDSHIP NEVER COME APART, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT 'S STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART!
Rabu, 24 April 2013
A Girl Without Bones
New drug gives growth to girl born with no bones
Child now has a skeleton strong enough for her to dance after experimental drug therapy.
Nurses didn't know a breakthrough drug was on the horizon when they dressed the tiny little girl in a pink outfit for a hospital photographer to take her picture.
It was a photograph for her parents -- an image of solace so they could remember Janelly Martinez-Amador free of tubes. Doctors told them then there was nothing more they could do for a child without bones.
Born with the most severe form of hypophosphatasia -- a genetic disorder that prevents skeletal mineralization -- the girl didn't have the ribs to support breathing. Her parents, Salvador Martinez and Janet Amador of Antioch, were facing the prospect of having to decide whether to continue life-sustaining interventions.
But Janelly held on long enough for a last chance at life. At age 2 years and 8 months, she entered a clinical trial involving an experimental medicine at Monroe Carrel Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville. Four years later, Janelly can dance.
One of 11 children worldwide enrolled in the clinical trial, she was the runt of the bunch. Her disease was so pronounced she could not move her body. Her bones didn't even show up on X-rays. She was also the youngest and technically didn't meet the trial's 3-year-old age requirement.
But Vanderbilt physicians had been telling Dr. Michael P. Whyte, a metabolic bone disease specialist with Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, about Janelly.
Whyte was about to start a clinical trial for a new drug, a biologic enzyme called asfotase alfa, that he wanted to try on toddlers with hypophosphatasia. Although this genetic disorder can cause a wide spectrum of bone loss in people of all ages, patients diagnosed as infants like Janelly have the most severe form. They usually die.
Janelly was diagnosed at about 4 months old.
"We started noticing she wasn't growing as she should at that point, and she wasn't gaining the weight as she should at her age," Martinez said with the aid of a Spanish interpreter.
The baby responded to hugs as if in pain.
Pediatricians thought Janelly might have cancer when they sent her to the Vanderbilt hospital. Vanderbilt diagnosed the severe form of hypophosphatasia -- a rare disorder that occurs in only one of every 100,000 infants.
Complications from the disease worsened to the point that Janelly spent months in the intensive care unit before her first birthday. She had to get a tracheotomy and depend upon a ventilator to live. When her parents brought her home from the hospital, they also took home a ventilator.
They held onto to hope for a cure.
In February 2009, Janelly began treatment with a medicine that had been developed by Canada-based Enobia Pharma Corp. and put on fast-track approval status by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration because it was an "orphan drug" -- the first possible treatment for a disease. Shriners Hospitals for Children and Enobia, which has since been acquired by Connecticut-based Alexion, funded the clinical trial.
Janelly had a special port surgically inserted in her abdomen so she could receive infusions of this bone-targeting enzyme.
One of the 11 children in the trial started showed skeletal improvements as early as three weeks into treatment. All the others had "striking" skeletal healing by six months -- except for Janelly.
"We were fearful that her bone disease was so terribly severe that it might not work," said Whyte, who had never met Janelly but had read her case history when he enrolled her in the study.
Her parents were the first to notice a change. They saw her gaining muscle control before medical imaging detected bone growth. Doctors initially were discouraged.
"We kept hearing from all the other sites that patients were having significant improvements," said Dr. Jill H. Simmons, a pediatric endocrinologist at Vanderbilt children's hospital. "We kept getting skeletal surveys and seeing no evidence of calcification. We really weren't seeing any improvements in her for six months."
Although no one could see it, the enzyme was sticking like snowflakes falling in darkness.
"We were very concerned when the therapy started that there was no mineral in her bones to target with enzymes," Whyte said. "So, would the enzyme find its way to bone and hook onto something to help her? But apparently -- although you couldn't see the mineral on an X-ray, you didn't see any bones on X-ray -- there was still enough there that the first molecule or enzyme to land did something."
After almost a year of treatment, Janelly finally was able to move all her limbs. After 18 months of treatment, doctors could see ribs forming.
"It was literally within those few weeks that her pulmonologist really started to notice significant improvements and was able to back her off on a ventilator," Simmons said. "It was fascinating how the calcification of those ribs really significantly turned her around."
These days, Janelly darts around in a stroller, sits up to watch television and rolls across the carpet. She dances as gracefully as any ballerina, interpreting the music with hand movements, from her stroller. Although she will soon turn 7, she's still the size of a toddler. Her bones have just begun to grow.
The tracheotomy tube prevents her from talking, but she makes noises and responds to stimuli. She goes to Harris-Hillman Special Education School. The long-term effect on her learning ability from the delay in her physical development remains a mystery.
Janelly recently went back into Vanderbilt to have the port removed from her abdomen. Instead of intravenous infusions, she has grown big enough to receive the enzyme treatment via three shots a week.
This month, Whyte traveled from St. Louis to Nashville, where he met Janelly for the first time.
"Her fingers, can I feel them?" he asked her parents, before caressing Janelly's hands to find the tiny bones.
Nurses didn't know a breakthrough drug was on the horizon when they dressed the tiny little girl in a pink outfit for a hospital photographer to take her picture.
It was a photograph for her parents -- an image of solace so they could remember Janelly Martinez-Amador free of tubes. Doctors told them then there was nothing more they could do for a child without bones.
Born with the most severe form of hypophosphatasia -- a genetic disorder that prevents skeletal mineralization -- the girl didn't have the ribs to support breathing. Her parents, Salvador Martinez and Janet Amador of Antioch, were facing the prospect of having to decide whether to continue life-sustaining interventions.
But Janelly held on long enough for a last chance at life. At age 2 years and 8 months, she entered a clinical trial involving an experimental medicine at Monroe Carrel Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville. Four years later, Janelly can dance.
One of 11 children worldwide enrolled in the clinical trial, she was the runt of the bunch. Her disease was so pronounced she could not move her body. Her bones didn't even show up on X-rays. She was also the youngest and technically didn't meet the trial's 3-year-old age requirement.
But Vanderbilt physicians had been telling Dr. Michael P. Whyte, a metabolic bone disease specialist with Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, about Janelly.
Whyte was about to start a clinical trial for a new drug, a biologic enzyme called asfotase alfa, that he wanted to try on toddlers with hypophosphatasia. Although this genetic disorder can cause a wide spectrum of bone loss in people of all ages, patients diagnosed as infants like Janelly have the most severe form. They usually die.
Janelly was diagnosed at about 4 months old.
"We started noticing she wasn't growing as she should at that point, and she wasn't gaining the weight as she should at her age," Martinez said with the aid of a Spanish interpreter.
The baby responded to hugs as if in pain.
Pediatricians thought Janelly might have cancer when they sent her to the Vanderbilt hospital. Vanderbilt diagnosed the severe form of hypophosphatasia -- a rare disorder that occurs in only one of every 100,000 infants.
Complications from the disease worsened to the point that Janelly spent months in the intensive care unit before her first birthday. She had to get a tracheotomy and depend upon a ventilator to live. When her parents brought her home from the hospital, they also took home a ventilator.
They held onto to hope for a cure.
In February 2009, Janelly began treatment with a medicine that had been developed by Canada-based Enobia Pharma Corp. and put on fast-track approval status by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration because it was an "orphan drug" -- the first possible treatment for a disease. Shriners Hospitals for Children and Enobia, which has since been acquired by Connecticut-based Alexion, funded the clinical trial.
Janelly had a special port surgically inserted in her abdomen so she could receive infusions of this bone-targeting enzyme.
One of the 11 children in the trial started showed skeletal improvements as early as three weeks into treatment. All the others had "striking" skeletal healing by six months -- except for Janelly.
"We were fearful that her bone disease was so terribly severe that it might not work," said Whyte, who had never met Janelly but had read her case history when he enrolled her in the study.
Her parents were the first to notice a change. They saw her gaining muscle control before medical imaging detected bone growth. Doctors initially were discouraged.
"We kept hearing from all the other sites that patients were having significant improvements," said Dr. Jill H. Simmons, a pediatric endocrinologist at Vanderbilt children's hospital. "We kept getting skeletal surveys and seeing no evidence of calcification. We really weren't seeing any improvements in her for six months."
Although no one could see it, the enzyme was sticking like snowflakes falling in darkness.
"We were very concerned when the therapy started that there was no mineral in her bones to target with enzymes," Whyte said. "So, would the enzyme find its way to bone and hook onto something to help her? But apparently -- although you couldn't see the mineral on an X-ray, you didn't see any bones on X-ray -- there was still enough there that the first molecule or enzyme to land did something."
After almost a year of treatment, Janelly finally was able to move all her limbs. After 18 months of treatment, doctors could see ribs forming.
"It was literally within those few weeks that her pulmonologist really started to notice significant improvements and was able to back her off on a ventilator," Simmons said. "It was fascinating how the calcification of those ribs really significantly turned her around."
These days, Janelly darts around in a stroller, sits up to watch television and rolls across the carpet. She dances as gracefully as any ballerina, interpreting the music with hand movements, from her stroller. Although she will soon turn 7, she's still the size of a toddler. Her bones have just begun to grow.
The tracheotomy tube prevents her from talking, but she makes noises and responds to stimuli. She goes to Harris-Hillman Special Education School. The long-term effect on her learning ability from the delay in her physical development remains a mystery.
Janelly recently went back into Vanderbilt to have the port removed from her abdomen. Instead of intravenous infusions, she has grown big enough to receive the enzyme treatment via three shots a week.
This month, Whyte traveled from St. Louis to Nashville, where he met Janelly for the first time.
"Her fingers, can I feel them?" he asked her parents, before caressing Janelly's hands to find the tiny bones.
Selasa, 23 April 2013
The World's Worst Hotel
Wanted: Ugly people for travel ads
Ugly writer crafts beautiful article calling for honest, realistic travel marketing -- pretty people will not enjoy this
Ads lie. Or they did.
The golf vacation commercials are the worst. All those beaming glad-I-came-here faces. After a shank off the first and a round of 118? Not counting 11 lost balls?
It’s impossible for any real golfer to look that happy.
Beach holiday ads are no better. Everyone perfectly formed, no cellulite or growths.
No one looking like they’ve been born in the normal, mammalian way, like you see on real beaches.
Unreally happy families having a wonderfully elated time at a great price with no sign of disharmony, dysfunction or diarrhea.
Couples staring dreamily through candlelight and walking hand in hand through the moonlit Caribbean surf, with no sign of her shenanigans the day before with the hotel’s beach raker.
And the cruises: photo after photo of laughing faces having a once-in-a-lifetime time over a very small portion of fish. Which looks bigger in a close-up.
No sign of anyone seasick or cabin-bound. No pictures taken at the exact moment the dinner table conversation stalled on the first night: “Why did you come on this cruise?”
“Because we have a high superlative threshold and are easily deceived by advertising copy.”
No hint of anyone being tortured by the crooner with the fire-retardant toupee; by the excessively talkative couple from Winnipeg; the extremely cheerful couple from Wales; the husband who memorizes Android reviews and the wife who collects digitalized photos of her master bedroom.
And pronounces Muscadet Muscadette.
No ad can communicate a real vacation and its petty but enervating frustrations.
And that’s to be expected.
But there are signs that as travelers get savvy to the tricks and illusions of marketers, marketers are now becoming savvy to our savvy.
Ugly, the new pretty
I’m an honorary member of the “Ugly Club of the World.” I received the accolade in the self-nominated ugliest place in the world.
The Club dei Brutti is based in Piobbico in the Marche region of mid-Italy. It has 30,000 members worldwide and hosts an ugly persons’ festival every September.
The town square even has an ugly statue.
Amsterdam’s acclaimed Hans Brinker Budget Hotel has been “proudly disappointing travelers for 40 years.”
Its unashamedly filthy rooms are sold out months in advance through sheer honesty, comic in its frankness and superb negative hyperbole.
Its marketing slogan is: “We can’t get any worse but we try our best.”
It waives liability for gastroenteritis, mental breakdown and even lost limbs.
It boasts a bar serving slightly watered down beer and facilities comparable to a prison. One ad proclaims: “Now even more dogsh*t in the main entrance.”
Another shows a figure collapsed on the ground with its head caught in the hostel’s doors, surrounded by an ever-widening puddle of vomit -- a new and successful style of gushing endorsement.
Is all this clever marketing? Or just simple truth that attracts backpackers on a budget and a bender?
Probably both.
What exactly are they advertising?
Being bombarded by perfect breasts and gorgeous men from every holiday brochure and mortgage maturity leaflet I ever picked up gets to me.
Cruise commercials don’t make me go out and book a cruise. They make me go out and get some dental fixative. The only thing that sticks in my head is the teeth.
Recent surveys suggest we no longer trust celebrity endorsement, especially of beauty products. Scarlett Johannsen before and after? Unlikely.
One poll also revealed that 78% of TV viewers believe the people in laxative ads are really actors faking being constipated. Method actors having it the hardest.
It’s time for ads to use normal people with realistic bodies and facial expressions. Someone not so happy. Someone not very photogenic.
Someone with shoulder hair rather than shoulder-length hair. Someone more like me.
It wouldn’t be a totally original concept.
One of the earliest examples of this kind of inverse marketing/reverse psychology came from an Irish realty agent who wrote straight-talking property descriptions along the refreshingly honest lines of, “The décor is revolting and the lack of insulation has attracted insects. Otherwise, there is nothing much wrong.’”
That was in the 1960s.
It proved a productive hook with people flocking up to see just how bad the houses were.
Copywriters need to bin the superlatives and “We’ve found paradise! Come join us!” approach.
They need to realize there’s no such thing as paradise, especially if other people are there and all the loungers have gone.
As my Ugly Club friends keep telling me: “Us uglies must unite to overcome. We are better and stronger than the beautiful people. And there are far more of us.”
It’s all summed up by the recent Southern Comfort commercial.
An astigmatic, middle-aged potbelly in sea waders and tight trunks that could double as an eye patch waddles contentedly down a beach, accompanied by Odetta’s “Gotta Be Me.”
Perhaps body shape losers may not be flocking to the Barcelona beach where the ad was shot, but its aspirational message is clear.
Don’t hype up. Hype down. To the naked truth. Democratize. Don’t idealize. Tell it like it is. And show it how it is.
Get real.
Perhaps then we might not be so frequently disappointed when we get there.
Piobicco has put itself on the map. Being ugly is its Unique Selling Point. It bills itself as a place ugly people can feel at home.
And it’s effective. They come in their hideous hordes, ramping up the tourism income while battering down the beauty factor.
The Czech Republic has gone the same way.
It sells itself to bad skiers, offering “numerous ravishing sceneries” and flat, snowy places where “you can enjoy the nature while struggling to ski” and meet “not very capable skiers.”
Superbeings and posers are not targeted. So everyone else can have a good time. Hard or soft sell, it works. Because it’s different. And funny. And true.
Ugly writer crafts beautiful article calling for honest, realistic travel marketing -- pretty people will not enjoy this
The golf vacation commercials are the worst. All those beaming glad-I-came-here faces. After a shank off the first and a round of 118? Not counting 11 lost balls?
It’s impossible for any real golfer to look that happy.
Beach holiday ads are no better. Everyone perfectly formed, no cellulite or growths.
No one looking like they’ve been born in the normal, mammalian way, like you see on real beaches.
Unreally happy families having a wonderfully elated time at a great price with no sign of disharmony, dysfunction or diarrhea.
Couples staring dreamily through candlelight and walking hand in hand through the moonlit Caribbean surf, with no sign of her shenanigans the day before with the hotel’s beach raker.
And the cruises: photo after photo of laughing faces having a once-in-a-lifetime time over a very small portion of fish. Which looks bigger in a close-up.
No sign of anyone seasick or cabin-bound. No pictures taken at the exact moment the dinner table conversation stalled on the first night: “Why did you come on this cruise?”
“Because we have a high superlative threshold and are easily deceived by advertising copy.”
No hint of anyone being tortured by the crooner with the fire-retardant toupee; by the excessively talkative couple from Winnipeg; the extremely cheerful couple from Wales; the husband who memorizes Android reviews and the wife who collects digitalized photos of her master bedroom.
And pronounces Muscadet Muscadette.
No ad can communicate a real vacation and its petty but enervating frustrations.
And that’s to be expected.
But there are signs that as travelers get savvy to the tricks and illusions of marketers, marketers are now becoming savvy to our savvy.
Ugly, the new pretty
I’m an honorary member of the “Ugly Club of the World.” I received the accolade in the self-nominated ugliest place in the world.
The Club dei Brutti is based in Piobbico in the Marche region of mid-Italy. It has 30,000 members worldwide and hosts an ugly persons’ festival every September.
The town square even has an ugly statue.
Amsterdam’s acclaimed Hans Brinker Budget Hotel has been “proudly disappointing travelers for 40 years.”
Its unashamedly filthy rooms are sold out months in advance through sheer honesty, comic in its frankness and superb negative hyperbole.
Its marketing slogan is: “We can’t get any worse but we try our best.”
It waives liability for gastroenteritis, mental breakdown and even lost limbs.
It boasts a bar serving slightly watered down beer and facilities comparable to a prison. One ad proclaims: “Now even more dogsh*t in the main entrance.”
Another shows a figure collapsed on the ground with its head caught in the hostel’s doors, surrounded by an ever-widening puddle of vomit -- a new and successful style of gushing endorsement.
Is all this clever marketing? Or just simple truth that attracts backpackers on a budget and a bender?
Probably both.
What exactly are they advertising?
Being bombarded by perfect breasts and gorgeous men from every holiday brochure and mortgage maturity leaflet I ever picked up gets to me.
Cruise commercials don’t make me go out and book a cruise. They make me go out and get some dental fixative. The only thing that sticks in my head is the teeth.
Recent surveys suggest we no longer trust celebrity endorsement, especially of beauty products. Scarlett Johannsen before and after? Unlikely.
One poll also revealed that 78% of TV viewers believe the people in laxative ads are really actors faking being constipated. Method actors having it the hardest.
It’s time for ads to use normal people with realistic bodies and facial expressions. Someone not so happy. Someone not very photogenic.
Someone with shoulder hair rather than shoulder-length hair. Someone more like me.
It wouldn’t be a totally original concept.
One of the earliest examples of this kind of inverse marketing/reverse psychology came from an Irish realty agent who wrote straight-talking property descriptions along the refreshingly honest lines of, “The décor is revolting and the lack of insulation has attracted insects. Otherwise, there is nothing much wrong.’”
That was in the 1960s.
It proved a productive hook with people flocking up to see just how bad the houses were.
Copywriters need to bin the superlatives and “We’ve found paradise! Come join us!” approach.
They need to realize there’s no such thing as paradise, especially if other people are there and all the loungers have gone.
As my Ugly Club friends keep telling me: “Us uglies must unite to overcome. We are better and stronger than the beautiful people. And there are far more of us.”
It’s all summed up by the recent Southern Comfort commercial.
An astigmatic, middle-aged potbelly in sea waders and tight trunks that could double as an eye patch waddles contentedly down a beach, accompanied by Odetta’s “Gotta Be Me.”
Perhaps body shape losers may not be flocking to the Barcelona beach where the ad was shot, but its aspirational message is clear.
Don’t hype up. Hype down. To the naked truth. Democratize. Don’t idealize. Tell it like it is. And show it how it is.
Get real.
Perhaps then we might not be so frequently disappointed when we get there.
Piobicco has put itself on the map. Being ugly is its Unique Selling Point. It bills itself as a place ugly people can feel at home.
And it’s effective. They come in their hideous hordes, ramping up the tourism income while battering down the beauty factor.
The Czech Republic has gone the same way.
It sells itself to bad skiers, offering “numerous ravishing sceneries” and flat, snowy places where “you can enjoy the nature while struggling to ski” and meet “not very capable skiers.”
Superbeings and posers are not targeted. So everyone else can have a good time. Hard or soft sell, it works. Because it’s different. And funny. And true.
Senin, 15 April 2013
The Sex Technique Secrets
Is your sex technique right?
Accepting the fact that your partner is not keen to explore your sexual fantasies isn't easy. Here's help!
26-year-old Tanya dreamt of replicating the romantic moves she'd seen on screen last evening with her husband. But the moment she slipped into a sexy black dress, she knew something would go wrong with her anticipated night of pleasure. By the time the two went to bed, her better half was semi asleep and just as she reached across to him, all he sleepily mused was, 'Not tonight honey!'
A frequent occurrence in the sexual life of any urban couple, the moment your partner denies your sexual needs, the other half immediately starts nursing innumerable thoughts. "Is my wife having an affair or is that I fail to seduce her anymore?", "doesn't my husband love my touch?", are the most common thoughts that recur in a partner's head.
An unwillingness to get physically cozy and intimate often creates suspicion and doubts in the mind of the other partner. Too much sexual inadequacy often also creates physical distance and an emotional disconnect, often leading to the break down of marital ties.
Nidhi Chauhan, a homemaker says, "When he denied me for the first time, I got really embarrassed and didn't know how to react. I finally decided to go to bed without uttering a single word. Now this happens quite frequently and obviously it leads to a great amount of friction between us."
Accepting the fact that your partner is not keen to explore your sexual fantasies isn't easy to digest, so here are some tips to get the chemistry sizzling once again.
Is your technique right?
While you're in bed with your partner, try to explore beyond the regular pleasure points. Find out new ways to seduce your partner, try new positions and don't be afraid to go beyond the regular seduction techniques. All this can help you and your partner in renewing the passion for making love to each other.
Sunil Sharma, a marketing manager shares his experience, "I was tired of listening to this line from my wife, so I finally decided to sit across the table and discuss her sexual needs frankly. After a prolonged conversation, my wife revealed to me that I fail to arouse her completely. More than me touching her genitals, she liked kissing, fondling and hugging. She didn't like to be wild in bed and preferred a more subtle approach. I realized that I needed to be more attentive to her innate desires to help us bond better in bed."
Here's help: Dr Sanjay Chugh, psychologist, says, "A man can get his woman in the mood by being physically affectionate with her, like running his hands tenderly along her legs, stroking her hair, kissing her on her eyes or giving her a little love bite on her neck. You will completely turn her off if you are always in a mad rush for intercourse. Many women also get bored with having sex the same way for long. So never be afraid of trying out new things."
'It was a long tiring day'
Today's fast paced life often puts a lot of pressure on the couple which carries into the bedroom. This increases the stress level and thus they get lesser time to relax and rejuvenate themselves. Most of us are indulging in multitasking, which makes it difficult to concentrate on one's personal life.
Dr Samir Parikh, psychologist says, "Our work has become the primary aspect of our life. No wonder that it's the primary source of most of our problems as well. Something or the other goes wrong everyday in one's professional ambit. The work culture we have these days, completely drains us out. It brings in communication gap between couples and affects their sex drive too. Therefore, it is necessary to learn to switch off from work once you walk home."
Smita Sen, a public relation executive says, "Me and my husband hardly have any sex life now. We work for a BPO and our timings are completely different. We hardly get any time to spend with each other. Whenever I pursue him, he says he is too tired, when he is in the mood, I don't feel like making love to him. It's drawing us apart."
Here's help: If your partner has been trying hard to meet deadlines and cope up with mounting work pressure, it may become difficult for him/her to concentrate on lovemaking. It's important to show some concern towards your spouse. Try to find out what is bothering him/her, try to comfort them, give them a stimulating massage if they are fatigued as it may help them open up and talk about their work issues.
Once they talk frankly to you, you can comfort them and maybe get them into the mood for a night of passion. Try to do things that relax you both.
Indulging in a warm shower together, enjoying the experience in an atmosphere filled with scented candles and aroma oils can take away the pent up stress. If you have a bathtub, soak yourself with your beau and put on some Zen chants to make the environment soothing.
Learn to have fun together
Playfulness is a very important aspect of one's sex life. Feeling closer during sex doesn't only depend on expensive gifts, perfumed candles and a cozy bed. The best thing about sex is the fun of experience, so it's vital to learn to laugh together. A little bit of excitement and sense of willingness can really set the ball rolling for you.
Shweta Khatri, who is expecting her first child says, "To rekindle the desire of having sex you need to spend quality time with your partner. One can indulge in some fun activities together, like a tickling match, having a pillow fight or having a shower together. All these naughty things act as foreplay and can lead to a great night ahead."
Here's help: A couple can try doing some interesting things together to perk up their sex life. From discussing each other's sexual fantasies, experimenting with kinky sex toys, watching some erotic films together, performing striptease or giving oral pleasure to your partner- the fun lies in being adventurous in bed.
Time after time
After a few decades of sharing the same bed, men often forget the importance of a satisfying foreplay. Therefore, many middle-aged women feel that their husbands are lesser dedicated to the bond now. Women often desire a prolonged foreplay to reach a state of complete arousal.
Susana Ghosh, an advertising professional adds, "I have been married for 16 years. Though I know, my husband loves me, but the way he just focuses on my private parts during intercourse is a big turn off. The other day, he spent the entire evening watching football. As his team won, he was happy and wanted to make love. He just grabbed me, without any foreplay and post the session he simply turned around and went to sleep. He does not try to understand that I deserve and want more. It really upsets me."
Here's help: Dr Samir Parikh tells, "One should use his spontaneity and imagination as the tools for foreplay. Foreplay should be lighthearted and slow. Many people take foreplay as just a mere exercise to reach an orgasm. However, the fact is, if a man fakes foreplay, his woman will fake her orgasm."
The main purpose of foreplay is to make your partner feel special and cared for. Women really like being touched gently all over their body. An erotic massage, some compliments and some passionate kisses help to arouse her completely.
Too busy for sex
In this age of parenting and exhausting work schedules, it's often difficult for couples to concentrate on their sex life.
Anmol Gupta says, "Nearly after two years of our marriage, we had our first baby. Obviously, both of us were very excited, but our sex life suffered because of my wife's pregnancy. We were hoping that things will get better after the delivery but it did not turn out as planned. My wife spends sleepless nights as she has to take care of the baby and it seems she is never in the mood for a night of togetherness."
Here's help: Dr Rachna Singh opines, "Most of the couples feel that they're spending less time with their children. Therefore, in the quest of becoming perfect parents they sacrifice their sex lives. Do give time to your children, but save some time for your spouse as well. If you do not enjoy a holistic sexual union, you'll never be able to create a stress free environment for your children. For a fulfilling sex life, a couple has to be bonded well and it cannot happen overnight. One can't develop intimacy with his/her partner without spending adequate time with each other."
'I don't feel sexy enough'
Weighty matters often harrow women. If you are incessantly worrying that you are not desirable enough because you have gained extra pounds, think again, as your partner might not have even noticed your extra love handles. Still it's good to be little health conscious. Trust me it will boost your self-esteem as well.
Sushant Rawat, a software engineer states, "Though sex is not only about having a great body, but who doesn't want an attractive partner? Therefore, I follow a strict exercise regime and a healthy lifestyle. I feel great about my body and it boosts my confidence in bed, and definitely improves my performance as well."
Here's help: Priyanka Verma, a yoga instructor says, "Being in shape is not as difficult as people think, if you alter your lifestyle a little bit you can easily get rid of those extra pounds. Just try to consume a lot of fluids throughout the day, take smaller meals at regular intervals and exercise regularly. Be it yoga or hitting a gym, follow a routine and if you are aiming at some serious weight loss, than exercise with a trainer. Eat healthy and workout, that's the only way to stay fit and healthy."
Everybody wishes to have a satisfying sex life, but for attaining sizzling sexual chemistry, you have to understand your partner and give the other person an opportunity to understand you.
Many people find it difficult to put their feelings in words; they feel uncomfortable in doing things to get their spouse in the mood for sex. But it's necessary to realize that these efforts will in turn create a rewarding experience for both of you.
Being sexual is much more than just eliciting a physical response. When you are tuned into your partner as a beloved and not as a sexual object, it will enrich relations between the two
26-year-old Tanya dreamt of replicating the romantic moves she'd seen on screen last evening with her husband. But the moment she slipped into a sexy black dress, she knew something would go wrong with her anticipated night of pleasure. By the time the two went to bed, her better half was semi asleep and just as she reached across to him, all he sleepily mused was, 'Not tonight honey!'
A frequent occurrence in the sexual life of any urban couple, the moment your partner denies your sexual needs, the other half immediately starts nursing innumerable thoughts. "Is my wife having an affair or is that I fail to seduce her anymore?", "doesn't my husband love my touch?", are the most common thoughts that recur in a partner's head.
An unwillingness to get physically cozy and intimate often creates suspicion and doubts in the mind of the other partner. Too much sexual inadequacy often also creates physical distance and an emotional disconnect, often leading to the break down of marital ties.
Nidhi Chauhan, a homemaker says, "When he denied me for the first time, I got really embarrassed and didn't know how to react. I finally decided to go to bed without uttering a single word. Now this happens quite frequently and obviously it leads to a great amount of friction between us."
Accepting the fact that your partner is not keen to explore your sexual fantasies isn't easy to digest, so here are some tips to get the chemistry sizzling once again.
Is your technique right?
While you're in bed with your partner, try to explore beyond the regular pleasure points. Find out new ways to seduce your partner, try new positions and don't be afraid to go beyond the regular seduction techniques. All this can help you and your partner in renewing the passion for making love to each other.
Sunil Sharma, a marketing manager shares his experience, "I was tired of listening to this line from my wife, so I finally decided to sit across the table and discuss her sexual needs frankly. After a prolonged conversation, my wife revealed to me that I fail to arouse her completely. More than me touching her genitals, she liked kissing, fondling and hugging. She didn't like to be wild in bed and preferred a more subtle approach. I realized that I needed to be more attentive to her innate desires to help us bond better in bed."
Here's help: Dr Sanjay Chugh, psychologist, says, "A man can get his woman in the mood by being physically affectionate with her, like running his hands tenderly along her legs, stroking her hair, kissing her on her eyes or giving her a little love bite on her neck. You will completely turn her off if you are always in a mad rush for intercourse. Many women also get bored with having sex the same way for long. So never be afraid of trying out new things."
'It was a long tiring day'
Today's fast paced life often puts a lot of pressure on the couple which carries into the bedroom. This increases the stress level and thus they get lesser time to relax and rejuvenate themselves. Most of us are indulging in multitasking, which makes it difficult to concentrate on one's personal life.
Dr Samir Parikh, psychologist says, "Our work has become the primary aspect of our life. No wonder that it's the primary source of most of our problems as well. Something or the other goes wrong everyday in one's professional ambit. The work culture we have these days, completely drains us out. It brings in communication gap between couples and affects their sex drive too. Therefore, it is necessary to learn to switch off from work once you walk home."
Smita Sen, a public relation executive says, "Me and my husband hardly have any sex life now. We work for a BPO and our timings are completely different. We hardly get any time to spend with each other. Whenever I pursue him, he says he is too tired, when he is in the mood, I don't feel like making love to him. It's drawing us apart."
Here's help: If your partner has been trying hard to meet deadlines and cope up with mounting work pressure, it may become difficult for him/her to concentrate on lovemaking. It's important to show some concern towards your spouse. Try to find out what is bothering him/her, try to comfort them, give them a stimulating massage if they are fatigued as it may help them open up and talk about their work issues.
Once they talk frankly to you, you can comfort them and maybe get them into the mood for a night of passion. Try to do things that relax you both.
Indulging in a warm shower together, enjoying the experience in an atmosphere filled with scented candles and aroma oils can take away the pent up stress. If you have a bathtub, soak yourself with your beau and put on some Zen chants to make the environment soothing.
Learn to have fun together
Playfulness is a very important aspect of one's sex life. Feeling closer during sex doesn't only depend on expensive gifts, perfumed candles and a cozy bed. The best thing about sex is the fun of experience, so it's vital to learn to laugh together. A little bit of excitement and sense of willingness can really set the ball rolling for you.
Shweta Khatri, who is expecting her first child says, "To rekindle the desire of having sex you need to spend quality time with your partner. One can indulge in some fun activities together, like a tickling match, having a pillow fight or having a shower together. All these naughty things act as foreplay and can lead to a great night ahead."
Here's help: A couple can try doing some interesting things together to perk up their sex life. From discussing each other's sexual fantasies, experimenting with kinky sex toys, watching some erotic films together, performing striptease or giving oral pleasure to your partner- the fun lies in being adventurous in bed.
Time after time
After a few decades of sharing the same bed, men often forget the importance of a satisfying foreplay. Therefore, many middle-aged women feel that their husbands are lesser dedicated to the bond now. Women often desire a prolonged foreplay to reach a state of complete arousal.
Susana Ghosh, an advertising professional adds, "I have been married for 16 years. Though I know, my husband loves me, but the way he just focuses on my private parts during intercourse is a big turn off. The other day, he spent the entire evening watching football. As his team won, he was happy and wanted to make love. He just grabbed me, without any foreplay and post the session he simply turned around and went to sleep. He does not try to understand that I deserve and want more. It really upsets me."
Here's help: Dr Samir Parikh tells, "One should use his spontaneity and imagination as the tools for foreplay. Foreplay should be lighthearted and slow. Many people take foreplay as just a mere exercise to reach an orgasm. However, the fact is, if a man fakes foreplay, his woman will fake her orgasm."
The main purpose of foreplay is to make your partner feel special and cared for. Women really like being touched gently all over their body. An erotic massage, some compliments and some passionate kisses help to arouse her completely.
Too busy for sex
In this age of parenting and exhausting work schedules, it's often difficult for couples to concentrate on their sex life.
Anmol Gupta says, "Nearly after two years of our marriage, we had our first baby. Obviously, both of us were very excited, but our sex life suffered because of my wife's pregnancy. We were hoping that things will get better after the delivery but it did not turn out as planned. My wife spends sleepless nights as she has to take care of the baby and it seems she is never in the mood for a night of togetherness."
Here's help: Dr Rachna Singh opines, "Most of the couples feel that they're spending less time with their children. Therefore, in the quest of becoming perfect parents they sacrifice their sex lives. Do give time to your children, but save some time for your spouse as well. If you do not enjoy a holistic sexual union, you'll never be able to create a stress free environment for your children. For a fulfilling sex life, a couple has to be bonded well and it cannot happen overnight. One can't develop intimacy with his/her partner without spending adequate time with each other."
'I don't feel sexy enough'
Weighty matters often harrow women. If you are incessantly worrying that you are not desirable enough because you have gained extra pounds, think again, as your partner might not have even noticed your extra love handles. Still it's good to be little health conscious. Trust me it will boost your self-esteem as well.
Sushant Rawat, a software engineer states, "Though sex is not only about having a great body, but who doesn't want an attractive partner? Therefore, I follow a strict exercise regime and a healthy lifestyle. I feel great about my body and it boosts my confidence in bed, and definitely improves my performance as well."
Here's help: Priyanka Verma, a yoga instructor says, "Being in shape is not as difficult as people think, if you alter your lifestyle a little bit you can easily get rid of those extra pounds. Just try to consume a lot of fluids throughout the day, take smaller meals at regular intervals and exercise regularly. Be it yoga or hitting a gym, follow a routine and if you are aiming at some serious weight loss, than exercise with a trainer. Eat healthy and workout, that's the only way to stay fit and healthy."
Everybody wishes to have a satisfying sex life, but for attaining sizzling sexual chemistry, you have to understand your partner and give the other person an opportunity to understand you.
Many people find it difficult to put their feelings in words; they feel uncomfortable in doing things to get their spouse in the mood for sex. But it's necessary to realize that these efforts will in turn create a rewarding experience for both of you.
Being sexual is much more than just eliciting a physical response. When you are tuned into your partner as a beloved and not as a sexual object, it will enrich relations between the two
The Secret Rules for Stronger Erections
9 Rules for Stronger Erections
No penis is an island. Or so J. Stephen Jones, M.D., F.A.C.S., a urologist with the Cleveland Clinic, likes to tell his patients. If your penis were an island, it would be tempting to think of it as a hot spot in the Caribbean—calm and tranquil during the day, throbbing with activity at night, and the destination of a constant rotation of half-naked coeds.
As much as that sounds like paradise, Dr. Jones says a more precise urological/geographical parallel would be your penis as peninsula—a bodily extension that shares a supply of blood, oxygen, and nutrients with all your other organs. Unfortunately, that means if a natural disaster strikes the mainland, it's likely to affect any protruding landmasses, too.
"ED stands not only for erectile dysfunction but also for 'early diagnosis,' because you can use ED to predict a heart attack, potentially by years—arterial damage from cardiovascular disease affects the small arteries in the penis first," says Christopher Steidle, M.D., a clinical associate professor of urology at the Indiana University medical center at Fort Wayne. That's one reason it's a mistake to let Levitra, Viagra, and Cialis lull you into an I'll-fix-it-when-it-breaks mindset.
Here's another: Take steps to safeguard your sex life now and you may never need to pop the little blue pill. Or any other shade of erection aid. In other words, follow our advice and every woman who visits your peninsula will leave with a smile.
Eat Blackberry Jam on Your Toast
Dark fruits like blackberries, bilberries, and elderberries contain high levels of anthocyanins, ultrapowerful antioxidants that could act as erection insurance.
Quick science lesson: Your penis's ability to rise and shine depends, in part, on the availability of nitric oxide, a blood-vessel-dilating chemical. When too many free radicals are present in your bloodstream, nitric oxide goes down-and so does your penis. Enter anthocyanins. These potent antioxidants attack free radicals before they have the chance to lower nitric oxide levels.
Here's proof of their power: Indiana University researchers found that arteries treated with anthocyanins retained high levels of nitric oxide even after being flooded with free radicals. "Antioxidants help keep free radicals under control so nitric oxide can do its thing," says David Bell, Ph.D., the lead study author. And that "thing" is giving your penis the blood it needs to turn excitement into an erection.
Shut Down the Smokestack
If you still light up, you've probably accepted your increased risk of heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, and bladder cancer. But how about dying young and impotent? A study published in the Journal of Urology found that smoking causes arterial damage that doubles a man's risk of total erectile dysfunction. The good news: "If men quit in their 50s or earlier, we can usually reverse the damage," says Andre Guay, M.D., director of the Lahey Clinic for Sexual Function, in Massachusetts.
When Dr. Guay measured nighttime erections in 10 impotent smokers (average age 49), he noted a 40 percent improvement after just 1 smoke-free day. Swap the cancer sticks for fish sticks: Researchers at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland discovered that taurine, an amino acid found in fish, helps heal smoke-damaged arteries.
Become a More Sensitive Guy
Everyone knows stress is a psychological cold shower. But untamed tension also works in a more insidious way—by releasing epinephrine, a type of adrenaline that goes straight to your arteries and slowly wreaks havoc there. "Stress in the long term can contribute to hardening of the arteries," says Dr. Jones, who is author of Overcoming Impotence: A Leading Urologist Tells You Everything You Need to Know.
In a great medical irony, being hard in the arteries can leave you soft in the shorts. The fix: Force yourself to concentrate on each of your five senses for a few minutes every day—the feel of the steering wheel in your hands, the sound of the engine revving to redline, the sight of the hot brunette in the next car . . .
"Obsessing on stressful thoughts will increase your epinephrine," says Jay Winner, M.D., author of Stress Management Made Simple. "On the other hand, if you focus on current sensations, it decreases the epinephrine and ultimately improves your ability to have an erection."
Stop Sawing Wood
Snoring can sabotage a night of sex, and not just because it's difficult to engage in foreplay from the couch. "All of your tissue needs oxygen to be healthy, and the penile tissue is especially sensitive," says Dr. Jones. "When you snore, you're depriving your tissue of that oxygen."
That said, don't waste your money on OTC snore stoppers; research by the U.S. Air Force shows that these products aren't effective. Instead, try placing bricks under the bedposts at the head of the bed. "Snoring has a lot to do with gravity," says Phillip Westerbrook, M.D., founder of the sleep-disorders center at the Mayo Clinic. "If you elevate the torso without bending the neck, it changes the effect of gravity on the soft tissues of the throat."
Eat a Dark-Chocolate Dove Bar
It's erection medicine. Dark chocolate contains epicatechins, flavonoids that trigger the release of dilating chemicals in the inner, or endothelial, layer of the arteries. How much should you munch? A University of California at San Francisco study shows that those who ate a 1.6-ounce dark-chocolate bar each day increased their blood-vessel dilation by more than 10 percent.
While the study wasn't done specifically on erectile tissues, anything that benefits your body's endothelial system will likely benefit your erections, since the penis is made up largely of endothelial surfaces. "Keeping those surfaces healthy is crucial to good arterial flow," says Kevin McVary, M.D., a professor of urology at Northwestern University. Look for dark chocolate that bears the CocoaPro logo on the label—this symbol is a visible sign that the candy bar you're buying is chock-full of flavonoids.
Lower Your Estrogen
Calculate your body-mass index. If your BMI comes in close to or over 25, you may be carrying just enough lard to drag down your erections. "We know that heavier men convert testosterone to estrogen, and that a lower level of testosterone and a higher level of estrogen are not good for erectile function," says Larry Lipshultz, M.D., a Men's Health advisor and chief of male reproductive medicine and surgery at Baylor college of medicine.
Fortunately, even moderate weight loss can rid you of excess estrogen and put your sex life back on track. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that one-third of clinically obese men—BMI 30 or higher—with erectile dysfunction showed improvement after losing 10 percent of their body weight.
Get Pricked
If you think the problem is that you, well, think too much, see an acupuncturist. The results of a study published in the International Journal of Impotence Research suggest that acupuncture can help treat psychologically induced erectile dysfunction. (Relax—the prick points are all in your back.)
"In psychogenic erectile dysfunction, the patient has trouble with the balance of his sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems," says Paul Engelhardt, M.D., the study author. "Traditional Chinese medicine tries to restore that balance." Sure, it sounds like using feng shui for your underwear drawer, but it works—64 percent of the men who underwent 6 weeks of acupuncture regained sexual function and needed no further treatment.
Build a Stronger Floor
Go figure—one of the best ways to treat erectile dysfunction is to pretend that you suffer from premature ejaculation. British researchers discovered that the traditional treatment for a hair trigger—strengthening the pelvic-floor muscles—is also a remedy for men who can't point their pistols. In the study of 55 impotent men, 40 percent of those who practiced pelvic-floor exercises, a.k.a. Kegels, every day for 6 months regained normal sexual function.
Apparently, the same muscle contraction that's used to stop peeing midstream can also prevent blood from escaping during an erection. "Unless they have severe back pain, all men with ED can perform pelvic-floor exercises," says Grace Dorey, Ph.D., the study author. Here's the workout plan: Contract and relax your pelvic muscles anytime you're sitting, although you can also do them lying down. Work up to doing 18 contractions daily, holding each one for 10 seconds.
Open Your Medicine Cabinet
And make a list of all the prescription pills you're popping. "A lot of prescription drugs may be associated with sexual dysfunction," says R. Taylor Segraves, M.D., Ph.D., coauthor of Sexual Pharmacology. One possible culprit is the cholesterol-lowering drug simvastatin, brand name Zocor. For a full list of erection offenders, visit MensHealth.com/drug. If you're taking one of them, talk to your doctor. Often a similar pill, sans side effects, is on the market.
Still Not Able to Defy Gravity?
At this point, it makes sense to consider taking Viagra, Cialis, or Levitra to stimulate bloodflow to the penis, says Dr. Steidle. And who knows what miracles might happen once you prime the pump a few times? "What a lot of men find is that once they restart these medications, they may not need them for every episode of sexual activity—they may need them only now and then," he says.
Similarly, if you suffer from performance anxiety, a drug-fueled romp or two may be just what the urologist ordered to restore confidence. And while all three erection medications have the power to prevent you from psyching yourself out in the sack, Cialis's ability to work for up to 36 hours may provide an advantage, says Julian Slowinski, Psy.D., an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania school of medicine. "This gives a man and his partner a lot of time over the weekend to be more spontaneous."
No penis is an island. Or so J. Stephen Jones, M.D., F.A.C.S., a urologist with the Cleveland Clinic, likes to tell his patients. If your penis were an island, it would be tempting to think of it as a hot spot in the Caribbean—calm and tranquil during the day, throbbing with activity at night, and the destination of a constant rotation of half-naked coeds.
As much as that sounds like paradise, Dr. Jones says a more precise urological/geographical parallel would be your penis as peninsula—a bodily extension that shares a supply of blood, oxygen, and nutrients with all your other organs. Unfortunately, that means if a natural disaster strikes the mainland, it's likely to affect any protruding landmasses, too.
"ED stands not only for erectile dysfunction but also for 'early diagnosis,' because you can use ED to predict a heart attack, potentially by years—arterial damage from cardiovascular disease affects the small arteries in the penis first," says Christopher Steidle, M.D., a clinical associate professor of urology at the Indiana University medical center at Fort Wayne. That's one reason it's a mistake to let Levitra, Viagra, and Cialis lull you into an I'll-fix-it-when-it-breaks mindset.
Here's another: Take steps to safeguard your sex life now and you may never need to pop the little blue pill. Or any other shade of erection aid. In other words, follow our advice and every woman who visits your peninsula will leave with a smile.
Eat Blackberry Jam on Your Toast
Dark fruits like blackberries, bilberries, and elderberries contain high levels of anthocyanins, ultrapowerful antioxidants that could act as erection insurance.
Quick science lesson: Your penis's ability to rise and shine depends, in part, on the availability of nitric oxide, a blood-vessel-dilating chemical. When too many free radicals are present in your bloodstream, nitric oxide goes down-and so does your penis. Enter anthocyanins. These potent antioxidants attack free radicals before they have the chance to lower nitric oxide levels.
Here's proof of their power: Indiana University researchers found that arteries treated with anthocyanins retained high levels of nitric oxide even after being flooded with free radicals. "Antioxidants help keep free radicals under control so nitric oxide can do its thing," says David Bell, Ph.D., the lead study author. And that "thing" is giving your penis the blood it needs to turn excitement into an erection.
Shut Down the Smokestack
If you still light up, you've probably accepted your increased risk of heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, and bladder cancer. But how about dying young and impotent? A study published in the Journal of Urology found that smoking causes arterial damage that doubles a man's risk of total erectile dysfunction. The good news: "If men quit in their 50s or earlier, we can usually reverse the damage," says Andre Guay, M.D., director of the Lahey Clinic for Sexual Function, in Massachusetts.
When Dr. Guay measured nighttime erections in 10 impotent smokers (average age 49), he noted a 40 percent improvement after just 1 smoke-free day. Swap the cancer sticks for fish sticks: Researchers at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland discovered that taurine, an amino acid found in fish, helps heal smoke-damaged arteries.
Become a More Sensitive Guy
Everyone knows stress is a psychological cold shower. But untamed tension also works in a more insidious way—by releasing epinephrine, a type of adrenaline that goes straight to your arteries and slowly wreaks havoc there. "Stress in the long term can contribute to hardening of the arteries," says Dr. Jones, who is author of Overcoming Impotence: A Leading Urologist Tells You Everything You Need to Know.
In a great medical irony, being hard in the arteries can leave you soft in the shorts. The fix: Force yourself to concentrate on each of your five senses for a few minutes every day—the feel of the steering wheel in your hands, the sound of the engine revving to redline, the sight of the hot brunette in the next car . . .
"Obsessing on stressful thoughts will increase your epinephrine," says Jay Winner, M.D., author of Stress Management Made Simple. "On the other hand, if you focus on current sensations, it decreases the epinephrine and ultimately improves your ability to have an erection."
Stop Sawing Wood
Snoring can sabotage a night of sex, and not just because it's difficult to engage in foreplay from the couch. "All of your tissue needs oxygen to be healthy, and the penile tissue is especially sensitive," says Dr. Jones. "When you snore, you're depriving your tissue of that oxygen."
That said, don't waste your money on OTC snore stoppers; research by the U.S. Air Force shows that these products aren't effective. Instead, try placing bricks under the bedposts at the head of the bed. "Snoring has a lot to do with gravity," says Phillip Westerbrook, M.D., founder of the sleep-disorders center at the Mayo Clinic. "If you elevate the torso without bending the neck, it changes the effect of gravity on the soft tissues of the throat."
Eat a Dark-Chocolate Dove Bar
It's erection medicine. Dark chocolate contains epicatechins, flavonoids that trigger the release of dilating chemicals in the inner, or endothelial, layer of the arteries. How much should you munch? A University of California at San Francisco study shows that those who ate a 1.6-ounce dark-chocolate bar each day increased their blood-vessel dilation by more than 10 percent.
While the study wasn't done specifically on erectile tissues, anything that benefits your body's endothelial system will likely benefit your erections, since the penis is made up largely of endothelial surfaces. "Keeping those surfaces healthy is crucial to good arterial flow," says Kevin McVary, M.D., a professor of urology at Northwestern University. Look for dark chocolate that bears the CocoaPro logo on the label—this symbol is a visible sign that the candy bar you're buying is chock-full of flavonoids.
Lower Your Estrogen
Calculate your body-mass index. If your BMI comes in close to or over 25, you may be carrying just enough lard to drag down your erections. "We know that heavier men convert testosterone to estrogen, and that a lower level of testosterone and a higher level of estrogen are not good for erectile function," says Larry Lipshultz, M.D., a Men's Health advisor and chief of male reproductive medicine and surgery at Baylor college of medicine.
Fortunately, even moderate weight loss can rid you of excess estrogen and put your sex life back on track. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that one-third of clinically obese men—BMI 30 or higher—with erectile dysfunction showed improvement after losing 10 percent of their body weight.
Get Pricked
If you think the problem is that you, well, think too much, see an acupuncturist. The results of a study published in the International Journal of Impotence Research suggest that acupuncture can help treat psychologically induced erectile dysfunction. (Relax—the prick points are all in your back.)
"In psychogenic erectile dysfunction, the patient has trouble with the balance of his sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems," says Paul Engelhardt, M.D., the study author. "Traditional Chinese medicine tries to restore that balance." Sure, it sounds like using feng shui for your underwear drawer, but it works—64 percent of the men who underwent 6 weeks of acupuncture regained sexual function and needed no further treatment.
Build a Stronger Floor
Go figure—one of the best ways to treat erectile dysfunction is to pretend that you suffer from premature ejaculation. British researchers discovered that the traditional treatment for a hair trigger—strengthening the pelvic-floor muscles—is also a remedy for men who can't point their pistols. In the study of 55 impotent men, 40 percent of those who practiced pelvic-floor exercises, a.k.a. Kegels, every day for 6 months regained normal sexual function.
Apparently, the same muscle contraction that's used to stop peeing midstream can also prevent blood from escaping during an erection. "Unless they have severe back pain, all men with ED can perform pelvic-floor exercises," says Grace Dorey, Ph.D., the study author. Here's the workout plan: Contract and relax your pelvic muscles anytime you're sitting, although you can also do them lying down. Work up to doing 18 contractions daily, holding each one for 10 seconds.
Open Your Medicine Cabinet
And make a list of all the prescription pills you're popping. "A lot of prescription drugs may be associated with sexual dysfunction," says R. Taylor Segraves, M.D., Ph.D., coauthor of Sexual Pharmacology. One possible culprit is the cholesterol-lowering drug simvastatin, brand name Zocor. For a full list of erection offenders, visit MensHealth.com/drug. If you're taking one of them, talk to your doctor. Often a similar pill, sans side effects, is on the market.
Still Not Able to Defy Gravity?
At this point, it makes sense to consider taking Viagra, Cialis, or Levitra to stimulate bloodflow to the penis, says Dr. Steidle. And who knows what miracles might happen once you prime the pump a few times? "What a lot of men find is that once they restart these medications, they may not need them for every episode of sexual activity—they may need them only now and then," he says.
Similarly, if you suffer from performance anxiety, a drug-fueled romp or two may be just what the urologist ordered to restore confidence. And while all three erection medications have the power to prevent you from psyching yourself out in the sack, Cialis's ability to work for up to 36 hours may provide an advantage, says Julian Slowinski, Psy.D., an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania school of medicine. "This gives a man and his partner a lot of time over the weekend to be more spontaneous."
A Woman Who Didn't Like Sperm
Woman who is allergic to her husband's sperm opens up about rare condition that threatened to destroy their sex life
'All of a sudden instead of living with your new wife or husband, you are more like roommates'
Intimacy killer: A woman with seminal plasma hypersensitivity has opened up about how is allergic to her husband's sperm - which affects up to 40,000 women in the U.S.
A newlywed bride, who waited until she was married to have sex with her husband, has opened up about the shock discovery that she is allergic to his sperm.
Clara, 35, has seminal plasma hypersensitivity, an allergic reaction to the proteins in her husband Jeff's semen - and even using a condom won't help the North Carolina couple.
'I had this bizarre reaction,' Clara told ABC, who for privacy reasons did not want to use her real name. 'I had burning and swelling and redness, which was very unusual. I thought I had contracted an STD.'
After several visits to the gynecologist and and hours of research online, the couple finally got some answers, but it threatened to destroy their sex life after they had no choice but to avoid intimacy.
Jeff explained: 'It was a real problem, because everything else was great. We were madly in love, but it was a real game-changer for a while.
'It pretty much dramatically reduced our libido. We really haven't had much sex at all for the last 10 months. The intimacy level drops dramatically -- all of a sudden instead of living with your new wife or husband, you are more like roommates.'
Cara, who was also experiencing yeast infections from her hypersensitivity, agreed: 'In a normal romantic relationship, you want to feel attractive to your partner and want to do things that make you feel sexy.
'I feel like we actually started to define ourselves -- minimizing things to avoid sex. I started thinking I wouldn't wear sexy underwear. What seemed like medical problems had bigger effects.'
Up to 40,000 women in the U.S. suffer from seminal plasma hypersensitivity, which does not affect fertility, according to Dr. Jonathan Bernstein, a professor at the University of Cincinnati, who specializes in allergies and immunology.
Women can experience a breakout of hives, abdominal swelling or a reaction that they describe as 'like a needle sticking in to their vagina,' according to Dr Bernstein.
Cara, who said the allergic reaction had never happened before in previous relationships, explained: 'The swelling was worst immediately after sex. It would take 24 hours to subside and my skin would be irritated as if you'd put a chemical on it that caused it to burn.
'It was almost raw and took a while to heal.'
Dr. Andrew Goldstein, director of the Centers for Vulvovaginal Disorders in Washington, D.C. and New York City, said the condition is so uncommon, he has only treated 'about a dozen' cases in the last ten years.
Often, women don't get an accurate diagnosis because the condition can be confused with yeast and vaginal infections.
But once a diagnosis is made, treating semen allergies is relatively painless.
A doctor will isolate the proteins in the man and carry out skin testing on the woman to determine which proteins are to blame. Then, the woman is desensitized to the allergen.
Just two weeks ago, Clara underwent this intravaginal 'graded challenge' using dilutions of her husband's seminal fluid which were injected every 15-20 minutes over the course of two to three hours.
The couple had to have sex within 12 hours to test Cara's desensitization. Her symptoms 'resolved substantially,' according to Dr Bernstein, who had treated the couple.
Cara said: 'There was a small amount of swelling, but compared to previous times, it was much less.'
The couple were asked to have sex every few days 'to see how it went,' explained Cara, adding that each time went well.
'Now I am interested in having sex again,' she said.
Jeff said his wife's treatment has been 'a very hopeful experience'.
He explained: 'On a number of levels, it's been restorative. A whole side of our relationship really suffered. Now it's a whole new world.'
WHAT IS SEMINAL PLASMA HYPERSENSITIVITY?
Seminal plasma hypersensitivity causes an allergic reaction to the proteins carrying the sperm, not the sperm itself
Between 20,000 to 40,000 women in the U.S. may experience the allergy
Symptoms include swelling of the vagina, itching, burning and painful blistering of the vagina and surrounding area
The allergic reaction can last anywhere from 20 minutes to more than a day
A typical patient is a woman having intercourse for the first time with a partner
It can also develop after having sex with the same partner for a long time
It can occur after a period of abstinence, such as when a couple resumes having sex following pregnancy and childbirth
Seminal plasma hypersensitivity is often mistaken for other vaginal conditions, such as a yeast infection or herpes
'All of a sudden instead of living with your new wife or husband, you are more like roommates'
A newlywed bride, who waited until she was married to have sex with her husband, has opened up about the shock discovery that she is allergic to his sperm.
Clara, 35, has seminal plasma hypersensitivity, an allergic reaction to the proteins in her husband Jeff's semen - and even using a condom won't help the North Carolina couple.
'I had this bizarre reaction,' Clara told ABC, who for privacy reasons did not want to use her real name. 'I had burning and swelling and redness, which was very unusual. I thought I had contracted an STD.'
After several visits to the gynecologist and and hours of research online, the couple finally got some answers, but it threatened to destroy their sex life after they had no choice but to avoid intimacy.
Jeff explained: 'It was a real problem, because everything else was great. We were madly in love, but it was a real game-changer for a while.
'It pretty much dramatically reduced our libido. We really haven't had much sex at all for the last 10 months. The intimacy level drops dramatically -- all of a sudden instead of living with your new wife or husband, you are more like roommates.'
Cara, who was also experiencing yeast infections from her hypersensitivity, agreed: 'In a normal romantic relationship, you want to feel attractive to your partner and want to do things that make you feel sexy.
'I feel like we actually started to define ourselves -- minimizing things to avoid sex. I started thinking I wouldn't wear sexy underwear. What seemed like medical problems had bigger effects.'
Up to 40,000 women in the U.S. suffer from seminal plasma hypersensitivity, which does not affect fertility, according to Dr. Jonathan Bernstein, a professor at the University of Cincinnati, who specializes in allergies and immunology.
Women can experience a breakout of hives, abdominal swelling or a reaction that they describe as 'like a needle sticking in to their vagina,' according to Dr Bernstein.
Cara, who said the allergic reaction had never happened before in previous relationships, explained: 'The swelling was worst immediately after sex. It would take 24 hours to subside and my skin would be irritated as if you'd put a chemical on it that caused it to burn.
'It was almost raw and took a while to heal.'
Dr. Andrew Goldstein, director of the Centers for Vulvovaginal Disorders in Washington, D.C. and New York City, said the condition is so uncommon, he has only treated 'about a dozen' cases in the last ten years.
Often, women don't get an accurate diagnosis because the condition can be confused with yeast and vaginal infections.
But once a diagnosis is made, treating semen allergies is relatively painless.
A doctor will isolate the proteins in the man and carry out skin testing on the woman to determine which proteins are to blame. Then, the woman is desensitized to the allergen.
Just two weeks ago, Clara underwent this intravaginal 'graded challenge' using dilutions of her husband's seminal fluid which were injected every 15-20 minutes over the course of two to three hours.
The couple had to have sex within 12 hours to test Cara's desensitization. Her symptoms 'resolved substantially,' according to Dr Bernstein, who had treated the couple.
Cara said: 'There was a small amount of swelling, but compared to previous times, it was much less.'
The couple were asked to have sex every few days 'to see how it went,' explained Cara, adding that each time went well.
'Now I am interested in having sex again,' she said.
Jeff said his wife's treatment has been 'a very hopeful experience'.
He explained: 'On a number of levels, it's been restorative. A whole side of our relationship really suffered. Now it's a whole new world.'
WHAT IS SEMINAL PLASMA HYPERSENSITIVITY?
Seminal plasma hypersensitivity causes an allergic reaction to the proteins carrying the sperm, not the sperm itself
Between 20,000 to 40,000 women in the U.S. may experience the allergy
Symptoms include swelling of the vagina, itching, burning and painful blistering of the vagina and surrounding area
The allergic reaction can last anywhere from 20 minutes to more than a day
A typical patient is a woman having intercourse for the first time with a partner
It can also develop after having sex with the same partner for a long time
It can occur after a period of abstinence, such as when a couple resumes having sex following pregnancy and childbirth
Seminal plasma hypersensitivity is often mistaken for other vaginal conditions, such as a yeast infection or herpes
Minggu, 14 April 2013
Sex Toys Surprise
Surprise your man with sex toys!
He might not have ever revealed, but your man definitely craves for something unusually seductive that pushes his passion-buttons the right way! So, what are you waiting for, we bring to you 6 sexual highs that he always craves for...
1. Listening
Some men are curious about all kinds of sex, while others are overtly conservative. Some however are just not sure of the specific sex moves they want to ask for. If your guy looks bored with the sex you're having it's probably because he's a bit bored. So the hottest thing you could ever do is to tell a man that he is free to ask you for anything. Even if you choose not to do what he's asking for, your guy will love that you listened and tried to understand and this is sure to turn him on.
2. Toys
Men have a love-hate relationship with your sex toys. While most men are convinced that these gadgets take the pressure off male sex performance, all dudes realise that they don't have long-lasting batteries like these machines. But what your guy may not be telling you is that he loves watching you use. So, what's stopping you from starting off a steamy sex romp? Get down and dirty and watch your man watch you get playful with your favourite sex toy! It will blow his mind.
3. Porn watching
All men dig porn, now here's how you can be part of the brat pack. Watch porn together on a steamy night. Your guy is bound to get aroused watching you becoming out-of-control sexcited at the sight of male porn actors. Men also fantasise about their babe mimicking the woman in the porn flick. So, get into some serious role play and scale new heights of desire.
4. Surprise them
Most men love to be pampered and caught off guard. So, why not service your man's fantasy by organising a match night where he's watching his favourite cricket match with you alone. Pour him a chilled beer, massage his back and shoulders with your hands and whisper sweet nothings in his ears. Don't jump into the sack right away. Stimulate his mind, sit on his lap and kiss him all over the body. The girlie make out session will have him charged up in bed later.
5. Fantasise
All men share kinky fantasises of making indulging in role play or being dominated with whips and chains in true bondage style. Now, instead of shunning his kinky desires - give them a concrete shape by participating in them. Catch your man by surprise clad in a leather cat suit, tie him to the bed post and allow him to live out his wildest sexual thrills!
6. Cross Dressing
Men wear trousers and a shirt. Everything else is just a variation of the same dress code. Why not raid his wardrobe and get in touch with your androgynous side. Put on his shirts, spray his strong manly scent and seduce him. And if your man wants to try on your lacy lingerie - don't say no, fun lies in experimentation afterall.
He might not have ever revealed, but your man definitely craves for something unusually seductive that pushes his passion-buttons the right way! So, what are you waiting for, we bring to you 6 sexual highs that he always craves for...
1. Listening
Some men are curious about all kinds of sex, while others are overtly conservative. Some however are just not sure of the specific sex moves they want to ask for. If your guy looks bored with the sex you're having it's probably because he's a bit bored. So the hottest thing you could ever do is to tell a man that he is free to ask you for anything. Even if you choose not to do what he's asking for, your guy will love that you listened and tried to understand and this is sure to turn him on.
2. Toys
Men have a love-hate relationship with your sex toys. While most men are convinced that these gadgets take the pressure off male sex performance, all dudes realise that they don't have long-lasting batteries like these machines. But what your guy may not be telling you is that he loves watching you use. So, what's stopping you from starting off a steamy sex romp? Get down and dirty and watch your man watch you get playful with your favourite sex toy! It will blow his mind.
3. Porn watching
All men dig porn, now here's how you can be part of the brat pack. Watch porn together on a steamy night. Your guy is bound to get aroused watching you becoming out-of-control sexcited at the sight of male porn actors. Men also fantasise about their babe mimicking the woman in the porn flick. So, get into some serious role play and scale new heights of desire.
4. Surprise them
Most men love to be pampered and caught off guard. So, why not service your man's fantasy by organising a match night where he's watching his favourite cricket match with you alone. Pour him a chilled beer, massage his back and shoulders with your hands and whisper sweet nothings in his ears. Don't jump into the sack right away. Stimulate his mind, sit on his lap and kiss him all over the body. The girlie make out session will have him charged up in bed later.
5. Fantasise
All men share kinky fantasises of making indulging in role play or being dominated with whips and chains in true bondage style. Now, instead of shunning his kinky desires - give them a concrete shape by participating in them. Catch your man by surprise clad in a leather cat suit, tie him to the bed post and allow him to live out his wildest sexual thrills!
6. Cross Dressing
Men wear trousers and a shirt. Everything else is just a variation of the same dress code. Why not raid his wardrobe and get in touch with your androgynous side. Put on his shirts, spray his strong manly scent and seduce him. And if your man wants to try on your lacy lingerie - don't say no, fun lies in experimentation afterall.
Sabtu, 13 April 2013
Disgusting Facts About SEX
Weird, disgusting facts about sex
We know sex is amazing, but there are certain things that can give you a creepy feeling about sex.
Unlike in movies, real life sex can be embarrassing at times, and can even lead to sexual mishaps. As part of the animal kingdom, we human beings have sex like the way other animals do. If you imagine the biological things that happen to our body during sex, you will definitely find it absolutely disgusting.
From strange noises to dirty kissing, sex can be awkward, funny, and to say the least, gross. So, brace yourself as we list a few weird facts that might put you off sex for a while.
Why kissing is so dirty: When you kiss your partner's mouth you are almost passing bacteria to each other's mouths. It's a fact that there are around five hundred types of bacteria in our mouth, and about fifty per cent of them are present in our tongue. So be careful when you bite your partner's tongue. At the end of the day, French kiss is a gross thing to do.
Millions of sex a day: Believe it or not, everyday about 100 million couples around the world have sex. That means around 65,000 couples are having sex right now. So if you imagine the sheer intensity of the sexual activity, you are sure to find it gross. It might seem like the earth is shaking under your feet.
Naked bodies make noises: While having sex your bodies rub against each other, and start to sweat, get sticky and even make strange noises. Maybe sex with clothes on is a more hygienic idea.
Vagina could stink: For those who like oral sex, here is bad news for you. If not washed regularly vagina can smell bad, and cause yeast infection. Hence, making the prospect of sex during periods all the more messy.
After sex is a mess: After orgasm, most people always land up in the bathroom rather than just roll over and go to sleep. And also you have to clean up your messy bed or may even have to change the whole bedding. In this case, women do most of the cleaning. After all, ejaculation is a messy business.
Sex after meal sucks: How do couples have sex after a romantic dinner? It could be one of the grossest things to do. Imagine, sex between burps. Sex isn't fun when your mouth stinks, and when your stomach is full. Now, if you are having sex only to burn calories, then it's a different thing altogether.
If you have ever had any such gross feelings about sex, do share them with us.
Unlike in movies, real life sex can be embarrassing at times, and can even lead to sexual mishaps. As part of the animal kingdom, we human beings have sex like the way other animals do. If you imagine the biological things that happen to our body during sex, you will definitely find it absolutely disgusting.
From strange noises to dirty kissing, sex can be awkward, funny, and to say the least, gross. So, brace yourself as we list a few weird facts that might put you off sex for a while.
Why kissing is so dirty: When you kiss your partner's mouth you are almost passing bacteria to each other's mouths. It's a fact that there are around five hundred types of bacteria in our mouth, and about fifty per cent of them are present in our tongue. So be careful when you bite your partner's tongue. At the end of the day, French kiss is a gross thing to do.
Millions of sex a day: Believe it or not, everyday about 100 million couples around the world have sex. That means around 65,000 couples are having sex right now. So if you imagine the sheer intensity of the sexual activity, you are sure to find it gross. It might seem like the earth is shaking under your feet.
Naked bodies make noises: While having sex your bodies rub against each other, and start to sweat, get sticky and even make strange noises. Maybe sex with clothes on is a more hygienic idea.
Vagina could stink: For those who like oral sex, here is bad news for you. If not washed regularly vagina can smell bad, and cause yeast infection. Hence, making the prospect of sex during periods all the more messy.
After sex is a mess: After orgasm, most people always land up in the bathroom rather than just roll over and go to sleep. And also you have to clean up your messy bed or may even have to change the whole bedding. In this case, women do most of the cleaning. After all, ejaculation is a messy business.
Sex after meal sucks: How do couples have sex after a romantic dinner? It could be one of the grossest things to do. Imagine, sex between burps. Sex isn't fun when your mouth stinks, and when your stomach is full. Now, if you are having sex only to burn calories, then it's a different thing altogether.
If you have ever had any such gross feelings about sex, do share them with us.
Kamis, 11 April 2013
The Biggest Secret How To Make Girl's Photo Nude
Learn THis in a year - maybe you can make girl's photo nude in 10 year ahead..
Your Brain develops a negative.
Take 30 seconds and then a few hours to figure out why and how!
This is really slick TRY IT. You'll just be amazed.
Your eyes and brain actually develop this negative. See instructions below.
This one is the BEST I have seen so far !!!!!
Instructions:
1. Stare at the red dot on the girls nose for 30 seconds.
2. Turn your eyes to a plain surface (your ceiling or blank wall).
3. Blink repeatedly and quickly while still looking at the plain surface.
4. The brain makes the negative into a positive!!! Tell me if that isn't the coolest thing?
Your Brain develops a negative.
Take 30 seconds and then a few hours to figure out why and how!
This is really slick TRY IT. You'll just be amazed.
Your eyes and brain actually develop this negative. See instructions below.
This one is the BEST I have seen so far !!!!!
Instructions:
1. Stare at the red dot on the girls nose for 30 seconds.
2. Turn your eyes to a plain surface (your ceiling or blank wall).
3. Blink repeatedly and quickly while still looking at the plain surface.
4. The brain makes the negative into a positive!!! Tell me if that isn't the coolest thing?
Rabu, 03 April 2013
The Top Secrets How To Prevent Mad Cow Disease
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, is a fatal neurodegenerative disease (encephalopathy) in cattle that causes a spongy degeneration in the brain and spinal cord. BSE has a long incubation period, about 30 months to 8 years, usually affecting adult cattle at a peak age onset of four to five years, all breeds being equally susceptible. In the United Kingdom, the country worst affected, more than 180,000 cattle have been infected and 4.4 million slaughtered during the eradication program.
The disease may be most easily transmitted to human beings by eating food contaminated with the brain, spinal cord or digestive tract of infected carcasses. However, it should also be noted that the infectious agent, although most highly concentrated in nervous tissue, can be found in virtually all tissues throughout the body, including blood. In humans, it is known as new variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (vCJD or nvCJD), and by October 2009, it had killed 166 people in the United Kingdom, and 44 elsewhere. Between 460,000 and 482,000 BSE-infected animals had entered the human food chain before controls on high-risk offal were introduced in 1989.
A British and Irish inquiry into BSE concluded the epizootic was caused by cattle, which are normally herbivores, being fed the remains of other cattle in the form of meat and bone meal (MBM), which caused the infectious agent to spread. The cause of BSE may be from the contamination of MBM from sheep with scrapie that were processed in the same slaughterhouse. The epidemic was probably accelerated by the recycling of infected bovine tissues prior to the recognition of BSE. The origin of the disease itself remains unknown. The infectious agent is distinctive for the high temperatures at which it remains viable; this contributed to the spread of the disease in the United Kingdom, which had reduced the temperatures used during its rendering process. Another contributory factor was the feeding of infected protein supplements to very young calves.
The first reported case in North America was in December 1993 from Alberta, Canada.
Another case reported later in May 2003. The first known U.S. occurrence came in December of the same year, though it was later confirmed to be a cow of Canadian origin imported to the U.S. Canada announced two additional cases of BSE from Alberta in early 2005. In June 2005, Dr. John Clifford, chief veterinary officer for the United States Department of Agriculture animal health inspection service, confirmed a fully domestic case of BSE in Texas.
A new case of BSE disease was recently found in a dairy cow on 23 April 2012 in California during a planned Agriculture Department surveillance program.
On 8 December 2012, the Japanese government issued a ban on imports of raw beef from Brazil, based on reports that a cow which died in 2010 in southern Brazil carried disease-carrying proteins. The Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture maintains that its beef is free of BSE. The Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture informed that the animal in question didn't manifest the disease and didn't die of this cause.
Selasa, 02 April 2013
Teenage Lovers Marry After 60 years Apart
Teenage Sweethearts Prove it's Never Too Late as They Reunite and Marry in Their 70s
A lovesick British couple whose teen romance dissolved under the weight of parental disapproval has reunited and married—six decades after splitting up.
“We have simply picked up where we left off. It’s like being teenage sweethearts all over again,” Eileen Billington, 78, told SWNS.com about her newfound relationship with Warner, 79. “It’s as though we have never been apart. As well as loving each other, we are good companions, just as we were when we first met. In fact, we are just like an old married couple.”
More on Yahoo!: As More Vintage Weddings are Forecasted for 2013, David Jones Photography Shares Tips on Capturing Classic Photos that Evoke Timeless Romance
Eileen Lockley met Warner Billington back she was 16 and he was 17, living as neighbors in the West Midlands area of central England, when Warner noticed her walking by with her sister Margaret.
“I saw her and I was smitten,” Warner told the Daily Mail. “I got a pair of garden shears and pretended to cut the hedge outside my parents’ house. When they passed, I said, ‘Hello Margs, who’s that with you?’ and we got talking.”
Shortly thereafter, Warner enlisted in the Royal Air Force and was stationed about three hours away in South Wales. But he wrote to Eileen, an aspiring tap dancer who worked for the gas board, and asked her on a date, and they spent time going to movies and the seashore whenever he was home on leave. They also wrote to each other every other day.
Two years later, they planned to wed. But Eileen’s father said they were too young, and Warner lost his nerve.
“I thought Eileen’s father was wrong, but I didn’t propose,” he recalled. “Somehow, we just parted after that. It was my fault, I just went my own way.”
And life went on for both of them. In 1956, Eileen married a man named Jack Lenton, with whom she ran a hotel in Newquay, Cornwall. They had a son and a daughter, and were together until Jack died in 2006.
Warner, meanwhile, married a woman named Gillian in 1957. They had three sons and were together until Gillian’s death in 2010.
Though Eileen and Warner hadn’t seen each other since their breakup, a friend of Warner’s was a regular at Eileen’s hotel, and Eileen would always ask her how Warner was doing. When she heard he had lost his wife, she called him to express her condolences, and after that they chatted on the phone regularly.
A year later, Warner invited Eileen to visit him at his home in West Midlands; it culminated in a tearful reunion at the train station, where Warner met her “hair all slicked back and roses at the ready,” he told SWNS.com. Then, with the approval of both their families, Warner moved in with Eileen in 2011, and they were married soon thereafter.
“We both had very happy marriages, but anyone who tells you that they don’t remember their first love is fibbing,” Warner said. “Both Eileen and I often wondered about what might have happened if things had worked out differently. But we don’t dwell on it now.”
A lovesick British couple whose teen romance dissolved under the weight of parental disapproval has reunited and married—six decades after splitting up.
“We have simply picked up where we left off. It’s like being teenage sweethearts all over again,” Eileen Billington, 78, told SWNS.com about her newfound relationship with Warner, 79. “It’s as though we have never been apart. As well as loving each other, we are good companions, just as we were when we first met. In fact, we are just like an old married couple.”
More on Yahoo!: As More Vintage Weddings are Forecasted for 2013, David Jones Photography Shares Tips on Capturing Classic Photos that Evoke Timeless Romance
Eileen Lockley met Warner Billington back she was 16 and he was 17, living as neighbors in the West Midlands area of central England, when Warner noticed her walking by with her sister Margaret.
“I saw her and I was smitten,” Warner told the Daily Mail. “I got a pair of garden shears and pretended to cut the hedge outside my parents’ house. When they passed, I said, ‘Hello Margs, who’s that with you?’ and we got talking.”
Shortly thereafter, Warner enlisted in the Royal Air Force and was stationed about three hours away in South Wales. But he wrote to Eileen, an aspiring tap dancer who worked for the gas board, and asked her on a date, and they spent time going to movies and the seashore whenever he was home on leave. They also wrote to each other every other day.
Two years later, they planned to wed. But Eileen’s father said they were too young, and Warner lost his nerve.
“I thought Eileen’s father was wrong, but I didn’t propose,” he recalled. “Somehow, we just parted after that. It was my fault, I just went my own way.”
And life went on for both of them. In 1956, Eileen married a man named Jack Lenton, with whom she ran a hotel in Newquay, Cornwall. They had a son and a daughter, and were together until Jack died in 2006.
Warner, meanwhile, married a woman named Gillian in 1957. They had three sons and were together until Gillian’s death in 2010.
Though Eileen and Warner hadn’t seen each other since their breakup, a friend of Warner’s was a regular at Eileen’s hotel, and Eileen would always ask her how Warner was doing. When she heard he had lost his wife, she called him to express her condolences, and after that they chatted on the phone regularly.
A year later, Warner invited Eileen to visit him at his home in West Midlands; it culminated in a tearful reunion at the train station, where Warner met her “hair all slicked back and roses at the ready,” he told SWNS.com. Then, with the approval of both their families, Warner moved in with Eileen in 2011, and they were married soon thereafter.
“We both had very happy marriages, but anyone who tells you that they don’t remember their first love is fibbing,” Warner said. “Both Eileen and I often wondered about what might have happened if things had worked out differently. But we don’t dwell on it now.”
Selasa, 26 Maret 2013
Winter Blues Girls
Tired, grumpy, always hungry? Why grey-skies syndrome may be to blame...
Winter blues sufferers can still function, but they find it harder to wake up and get going in the mornings, even though normally they have slept longer than usual
'I just wanted to sleep all the time,' said Felicity Newman
'By December, I was feeling really down and some mornings I couldn't get out of bed. Then I started to miss deadlines at work,' said Felicity
Felicity Newman started feeling increasingly gloomy last October as the long dark evenings began to draw in.
The project manager commutes to London from Hove in East Sussex — it’s dark when she gets up and dark when she returns, so she rarely sees the daylight.
‘I just wanted to sleep all the time,’ recalls Felicity, 25.
‘I’d be tucked up in bed by nine every night and still be napping on the train to and from work.’
She also began to feel constantly hungry, craving sweet things and stodgy carbohydrates such as potatoes and bread.
‘I could demolish half a packet of biscuits in no time,’ she adds.
‘I was always snacking, even after a big meal, and I started to pile on the weight — well over one-and-a-half stone in six weeks.
'Everything felt like too much effort. I didn’t even have the energy to call or text my friends. Food and sleep were the only two things I was interested in.
‘By December, I was feeling really down and some mornings I couldn’t get out of bed.
'Then I started to miss deadlines at work. I just couldn’t concentrate.’
Felicity had the classic signs of the winter blues, or SAD lite.
A milder form of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), the winter blues is triggered by grey skies and characterised by sleepiness, low energy levels, a craving for carbohydrates, weight gain and reduced sex drive.
Unlike SAD, which can have a completely debilitating effect, winter blues sufferers can still function, but they find it harder to wake up and get going in the mornings, even though normally they have slept longer than usual.
They may also feel anxious or tearful, irritable and generally ‘down’.
Because they won’t feel fully awake, they can suffer from concentration problems at work, too, says Chris Thompson, former professor of psychiatry at Southampton University Medical School and now medical director of The Priory Group.
The winter blues affects around 17 per cent of the population, but thanks to a grey summer and an extra gloomy winter, experts believe the numbers this year will be higher.
‘It’s been an absolutely appalling winter for winter blues and SAD, the worst in a long time,’ says Professor Thompson.
‘Our consultants report that lots of people who wouldn’t normally be affected by the weather are feeling it this year.
‘I’ve even got a mild form of the winter blues myself this year — I’m finding it difficult to wake up in the mornings and keep snacking on biscuits and cheese in the afternoons.’
Not only are more people affected by winter blues, but this year more may have full SAD, adds Professor Anne Farmer, honorary consultant psychiatrist at South London and the Maudsley NHS Trust.
‘It has been a tough old winter and it’s gone on so long.
'Many people with depression normally see their symptoms start to lift at this time of year, but my experience is that many of them are still struggling with a depressive phase now,’ she explains.
SAD is triggered by insufficient light reaching the hypothalamus, an area of the brain which regulates the production of melatonin.
This hormone controls the body clock and appetite, and also affects the production of serotonin, a ‘feel-good’ brain chemical that controls mood.
The problem is that this winter and last summer were greyer than usual.
There were just 37.3 hours of sunshine in January this year compared with 58.3 last year, according to the Met Office (the usual January average is 44.7 hours).
February wasn’t much better, with just 56.7 hours of sunshine compared with 62.6 in 2012 and the usual average of 65.4.
While sunshine normally increases dramatically in March — the average is 101.7 hours — there were only 45.9 hours of sunshine up until the 17th.
This follows last year’s bad summer, the least sunny for 25 years.
Some people may be more prone to the winter blues or SAD. A recent study from the University of Virginia suggested a genetic mutation in the eye may make sufferers less sensitive to light.
The study, which involved 220 people with SAD and 130 with no mental illness, found the SAD patients had lower levels of a receptor that helps regulate alertness and the 24-hour body clock.
The risk with winter blues is that it can develop into SAD.
‘These sufferers are at the more extreme end of the spectrum of winter blues and their depression is more severe,’ says Professor Thompson.
‘They are more likely to need medical treatment.’
Under guidelines from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), SAD should be treated like depression — with psychological therapies and antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), thought to boost serotonin levels.
Light therapy with a SAD lamp is also beneficial, says Professor Thompson, who is also president of the International Society for Seasonal Affective Disorder.
The lamps simulate summer light conditions so melatonin levels are reset to the amount produced in the summer.
A bright, sunny day provides around 100,000 LUX (the measure of brightness) — typical indoor domestic lighting only has 200-500 LUX, so most people use SAD lamps with 10,000 LUX.
The advice is to use the lamps daily for varying periods, depending on light intensity in autumn and winter, but also in summer if there is no sun.
However, you have to buy or hire lamps privately as NICE says there isn’t enough evidence to support long-term use.
When it comes to winter blues, symptoms usually aren’t severe enough to warrant medical treatment unless they are making other health problems worse, says Professor Farmer.
‘The danger is that if you go to your GP with winter blues, you may be prescribed antidepressants because it’s the easiest and quickest thing they can do to help you.
‘But actually, for mild depression you might be better off having psychological therapies, including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).
'Even this late in the season, CBT is worth considering because if you have a recurring problem it will give you a tool kit and strategies for dealing with it next time.
‘Getting outdoors for at least an hour a day is also good for winter blues — preferably at midday when the sun is brightest, but any time spent outdoors is better than none.
'Try to get out in your lunch hour; it may seem like a small thing, but it will make a difference.
'Exercise helps too. The herbal remedy St John’s Wort has also been shown to be effective in treating mild to moderate depression.
'However, it does interact with a number of prescription drugs including the contraceptive pill, HRT and warfarin, so check with your doctor if you are already taking medication.’
Professor Farmer warns that different brands have different strengths, ‘so stick to the same one so you get a consistent dose to keep your symptoms under control’.
St John’s Wort also cannot be taken at the same time as light box therapy because there is a risk of photosensitivity.
Not everyone is convinced that the winter blues exist. Swedish-born psychiatrist Dr Lars Davidsson, medical director of the Anglo European Clinic in London, says some symptoms are just part of winter.
‘I don’t necessarily feel it’s a medical illness to feel a bit down about the winter. It’s just part of life and you have to get on with it.
‘Obviously if the symptoms start to have a severe impact on your life, you may have full-blown SAD, and that is quite different.’
When Felicity’s work started to suffer, she decided it was time to take action and in December she started taking St John’s Wort.
‘I began to cheer up after a few weeks and came out of hibernation mode,’ she says.
‘I now find it easier to get up in the mornings.
‘I still have carb cravings, but I’m controlling my eating habits.
'I’m also getting out more in daylight hours by walking from the station to work and getting out at lunchtime.
‘I put my symptoms purely down to the bad weather — and like most people I’m hoping spring is just around the corner.’
Winter blues sufferers can still function, but they find it harder to wake up and get going in the mornings, even though normally they have slept longer than usual
'By December, I was feeling really down and some mornings I couldn't get out of bed. Then I started to miss deadlines at work,' said Felicity
Felicity Newman started feeling increasingly gloomy last October as the long dark evenings began to draw in.
The project manager commutes to London from Hove in East Sussex — it’s dark when she gets up and dark when she returns, so she rarely sees the daylight.
‘I just wanted to sleep all the time,’ recalls Felicity, 25.
‘I’d be tucked up in bed by nine every night and still be napping on the train to and from work.’
She also began to feel constantly hungry, craving sweet things and stodgy carbohydrates such as potatoes and bread.
‘I could demolish half a packet of biscuits in no time,’ she adds.
‘I was always snacking, even after a big meal, and I started to pile on the weight — well over one-and-a-half stone in six weeks.
'Everything felt like too much effort. I didn’t even have the energy to call or text my friends. Food and sleep were the only two things I was interested in.
‘By December, I was feeling really down and some mornings I couldn’t get out of bed.
'Then I started to miss deadlines at work. I just couldn’t concentrate.’
Felicity had the classic signs of the winter blues, or SAD lite.
A milder form of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), the winter blues is triggered by grey skies and characterised by sleepiness, low energy levels, a craving for carbohydrates, weight gain and reduced sex drive.
Unlike SAD, which can have a completely debilitating effect, winter blues sufferers can still function, but they find it harder to wake up and get going in the mornings, even though normally they have slept longer than usual.
They may also feel anxious or tearful, irritable and generally ‘down’.
Because they won’t feel fully awake, they can suffer from concentration problems at work, too, says Chris Thompson, former professor of psychiatry at Southampton University Medical School and now medical director of The Priory Group.
The winter blues affects around 17 per cent of the population, but thanks to a grey summer and an extra gloomy winter, experts believe the numbers this year will be higher.
‘It’s been an absolutely appalling winter for winter blues and SAD, the worst in a long time,’ says Professor Thompson.
‘Our consultants report that lots of people who wouldn’t normally be affected by the weather are feeling it this year.
‘I’ve even got a mild form of the winter blues myself this year — I’m finding it difficult to wake up in the mornings and keep snacking on biscuits and cheese in the afternoons.’
Not only are more people affected by winter blues, but this year more may have full SAD, adds Professor Anne Farmer, honorary consultant psychiatrist at South London and the Maudsley NHS Trust.
‘It has been a tough old winter and it’s gone on so long.
'Many people with depression normally see their symptoms start to lift at this time of year, but my experience is that many of them are still struggling with a depressive phase now,’ she explains.
SAD is triggered by insufficient light reaching the hypothalamus, an area of the brain which regulates the production of melatonin.
This hormone controls the body clock and appetite, and also affects the production of serotonin, a ‘feel-good’ brain chemical that controls mood.
The problem is that this winter and last summer were greyer than usual.
There were just 37.3 hours of sunshine in January this year compared with 58.3 last year, according to the Met Office (the usual January average is 44.7 hours).
February wasn’t much better, with just 56.7 hours of sunshine compared with 62.6 in 2012 and the usual average of 65.4.
While sunshine normally increases dramatically in March — the average is 101.7 hours — there were only 45.9 hours of sunshine up until the 17th.
This follows last year’s bad summer, the least sunny for 25 years.
Some people may be more prone to the winter blues or SAD. A recent study from the University of Virginia suggested a genetic mutation in the eye may make sufferers less sensitive to light.
The study, which involved 220 people with SAD and 130 with no mental illness, found the SAD patients had lower levels of a receptor that helps regulate alertness and the 24-hour body clock.
The risk with winter blues is that it can develop into SAD.
‘These sufferers are at the more extreme end of the spectrum of winter blues and their depression is more severe,’ says Professor Thompson.
‘They are more likely to need medical treatment.’
Under guidelines from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), SAD should be treated like depression — with psychological therapies and antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), thought to boost serotonin levels.
Light therapy with a SAD lamp is also beneficial, says Professor Thompson, who is also president of the International Society for Seasonal Affective Disorder.
The lamps simulate summer light conditions so melatonin levels are reset to the amount produced in the summer.
A bright, sunny day provides around 100,000 LUX (the measure of brightness) — typical indoor domestic lighting only has 200-500 LUX, so most people use SAD lamps with 10,000 LUX.
The advice is to use the lamps daily for varying periods, depending on light intensity in autumn and winter, but also in summer if there is no sun.
However, you have to buy or hire lamps privately as NICE says there isn’t enough evidence to support long-term use.
When it comes to winter blues, symptoms usually aren’t severe enough to warrant medical treatment unless they are making other health problems worse, says Professor Farmer.
‘The danger is that if you go to your GP with winter blues, you may be prescribed antidepressants because it’s the easiest and quickest thing they can do to help you.
‘But actually, for mild depression you might be better off having psychological therapies, including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).
'Even this late in the season, CBT is worth considering because if you have a recurring problem it will give you a tool kit and strategies for dealing with it next time.
‘Getting outdoors for at least an hour a day is also good for winter blues — preferably at midday when the sun is brightest, but any time spent outdoors is better than none.
'Try to get out in your lunch hour; it may seem like a small thing, but it will make a difference.
'Exercise helps too. The herbal remedy St John’s Wort has also been shown to be effective in treating mild to moderate depression.
'However, it does interact with a number of prescription drugs including the contraceptive pill, HRT and warfarin, so check with your doctor if you are already taking medication.’
Professor Farmer warns that different brands have different strengths, ‘so stick to the same one so you get a consistent dose to keep your symptoms under control’.
St John’s Wort also cannot be taken at the same time as light box therapy because there is a risk of photosensitivity.
Not everyone is convinced that the winter blues exist. Swedish-born psychiatrist Dr Lars Davidsson, medical director of the Anglo European Clinic in London, says some symptoms are just part of winter.
‘I don’t necessarily feel it’s a medical illness to feel a bit down about the winter. It’s just part of life and you have to get on with it.
‘Obviously if the symptoms start to have a severe impact on your life, you may have full-blown SAD, and that is quite different.’
When Felicity’s work started to suffer, she decided it was time to take action and in December she started taking St John’s Wort.
‘I began to cheer up after a few weeks and came out of hibernation mode,’ she says.
‘I now find it easier to get up in the mornings.
‘I still have carb cravings, but I’m controlling my eating habits.
'I’m also getting out more in daylight hours by walking from the station to work and getting out at lunchtime.
‘I put my symptoms purely down to the bad weather — and like most people I’m hoping spring is just around the corner.’
Sabtu, 23 Maret 2013
Don't GO to University
So you want to be an entreprenuer? Don't go to university
WANT to be young, rich and your own boss? Well, according to Jack Delosa making your mark on the business world is easier than it used to be.
He should know. At just 25, Mr Delosa is a self-made millionaire whose business made the Fastest 50 Start-Ups in Australia.
"All you need is an internet connection, around $5k a good head for business and be prepared to make mistakes. What you don't need is a university degree," he said.
Depending on your view of things, you might consider this a controversial view. Unless, like Mr Delosa, you're part of Gen Y.
"We are more independent, impatient and lifestyle oriented. We also have our own resources," he said.
"But to make business successful you also need to be open to practical advice and the experiences of other people – people with five, ten and even twenty years experience in business."
Mr Delosa's belief in the power of mentorship and the impact it's had on his own success led him down a path to help other young people. That philosophy has become the foundation for The Entourage, an organisation committed to helping young entrepreneurs succeed.
The Entourage's current membership is a combination of budding entrepreneurs and bedrock of established business success stories, like Kathryn Sampson and Peter Lackovic.
Ms Sampson opened her first sandwich shop at the age of 27. Despite admitting to several mistakes and lots of hard work along the way, she went on to become the founder of Australia's largest sandwich franchise.
She agrees with Mr Delosa that one of the best things about the modern business world is the newfound willingness to share information and experience between networks and contacts.
"You can't protect your ideas anymore, thanks to the internet. But that's OK. Anyone can steal an idea. It's how you execute it that counts and that's where other people's experience can be vital. I had five really strong mentors help mw along varied places in my building up my business and they were invaluable. Everyone can benefit from it," she said.
Peter Lackovic, who recently became CEO of The Entourage, said the ability to listen and take in the advice of others can be crucial to making the path to success a lot faster.
"I get a buzz from talking to people about their ideas and helping them to get from start up stage to success. It's exciting to watch people go from nowhere to somewhere in as little as 12 months," he said.
Ms Sampson and Mr Lackovic are two of the speakers who will share all the secrets of their success, and the hardships along the way at this Saturday's "Unconvention". That's The Entourage's latest networking event being held at Sydney's Darling Harbour.
Not only will this be the organisation's biggest event yet, it's also absolutely free.
"We understand when you are starting out [an an entrepreneur] that you can't afford to spend money to learn. So we run the Uncovention twice a year and hope that people walk away inspired each time," Mr Delosa said.
By all accounts there is a lot going on, advice from a panel of speakers with years of business success, networking opportunities between sessions and access to a network of programs to follow up after the convention, including a dynamic Facebook community.
Network Wednesdays and "make a goal" Mondays are regular posts on the page for the benefit of all the community and scrolling through the most recent posts it's clear there it's a good source of decent and thoughtful responses.
Above all Mr Delosa and Mr Lackovic are billing The Entourage as a place for people with a passion for business and are looking for a place to "fit in".
"They could be people who are stuck at home, like stay at home parents who have an idea and want to make it work. Or people who have been forced out of the workforce because of retrenchment or they are just young people who don't fit in at university," Mr Lackovic said.
WANT to be young, rich and your own boss? Well, according to Jack Delosa making your mark on the business world is easier than it used to be.
He should know. At just 25, Mr Delosa is a self-made millionaire whose business made the Fastest 50 Start-Ups in Australia.
"All you need is an internet connection, around $5k a good head for business and be prepared to make mistakes. What you don't need is a university degree," he said.
Depending on your view of things, you might consider this a controversial view. Unless, like Mr Delosa, you're part of Gen Y.
"We are more independent, impatient and lifestyle oriented. We also have our own resources," he said.
"But to make business successful you also need to be open to practical advice and the experiences of other people – people with five, ten and even twenty years experience in business."
Mr Delosa's belief in the power of mentorship and the impact it's had on his own success led him down a path to help other young people. That philosophy has become the foundation for The Entourage, an organisation committed to helping young entrepreneurs succeed.
The Entourage's current membership is a combination of budding entrepreneurs and bedrock of established business success stories, like Kathryn Sampson and Peter Lackovic.
Ms Sampson opened her first sandwich shop at the age of 27. Despite admitting to several mistakes and lots of hard work along the way, she went on to become the founder of Australia's largest sandwich franchise.
She agrees with Mr Delosa that one of the best things about the modern business world is the newfound willingness to share information and experience between networks and contacts.
"You can't protect your ideas anymore, thanks to the internet. But that's OK. Anyone can steal an idea. It's how you execute it that counts and that's where other people's experience can be vital. I had five really strong mentors help mw along varied places in my building up my business and they were invaluable. Everyone can benefit from it," she said.
Peter Lackovic, who recently became CEO of The Entourage, said the ability to listen and take in the advice of others can be crucial to making the path to success a lot faster.
"I get a buzz from talking to people about their ideas and helping them to get from start up stage to success. It's exciting to watch people go from nowhere to somewhere in as little as 12 months," he said.
Ms Sampson and Mr Lackovic are two of the speakers who will share all the secrets of their success, and the hardships along the way at this Saturday's "Unconvention". That's The Entourage's latest networking event being held at Sydney's Darling Harbour.
Not only will this be the organisation's biggest event yet, it's also absolutely free.
"We understand when you are starting out [an an entrepreneur] that you can't afford to spend money to learn. So we run the Uncovention twice a year and hope that people walk away inspired each time," Mr Delosa said.
By all accounts there is a lot going on, advice from a panel of speakers with years of business success, networking opportunities between sessions and access to a network of programs to follow up after the convention, including a dynamic Facebook community.
Network Wednesdays and "make a goal" Mondays are regular posts on the page for the benefit of all the community and scrolling through the most recent posts it's clear there it's a good source of decent and thoughtful responses.
Above all Mr Delosa and Mr Lackovic are billing The Entourage as a place for people with a passion for business and are looking for a place to "fit in".
"They could be people who are stuck at home, like stay at home parents who have an idea and want to make it work. Or people who have been forced out of the workforce because of retrenchment or they are just young people who don't fit in at university," Mr Lackovic said.
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