Author: Flash

Holiday Shopping Online is Great

Hunting the Best Gifts for Loved Ones

The Yuletide Season is the merriest time of the year. For this is the time to reunite and be with family members and close friends in order to celebrate Christmas. More importantly, it is also the perfect moment to show your love and appreciation to persons who are close to your heart. Although there are various ways in which people express their affection and say “thank you” to their dear ones, the most popular trend today is still gift giving.

Giving gifts is already an old Christmas tradition which has deepened in meaning through time. Buying tokens for your dear ones is more than just adding to their collection of Christmas items or satisfying their material wants and desires. Handing Christmas tokens is actually about valuing your family especially your wife and kids. It is a way of showing that you remember and that you truly care. For your friends, it is a reaffirmation and restrengthening of your bond. It is a way of being thankful for the gift of friendship and their kindness. That is why choosing gifts, even if it appears so simple, often ends up as a rather long and complicated task. You are excited to go shopping and yet you are challenged to find the most special and most appropriate gifts for your family members and friends.

The reality is that some people who often want to avoid the usual hassles of holiday shopping are often tempted to pick anything without thinking much about their choice. Worse is that there are even some who dare to recycle the gifts of other people during the last season. The latter is in fact a very practical strategy especially if you want to save money. If you can creatively remake old gifts, then go for it. Surely, you will be making a lot of people happy by giving gifts that you yourself worked hard for. But if you simply remove them out of their shelf and then wrap them, then this is definitely not an advisable thing for you to do. What if the former giver discovers that you have actually given away his gift to you? In fact there may be even funny yet embarrassing situations in which your own gift returns back to you during kris kringle. But if you have enough budget, the best alternative for you is to go shopping. Besides, why not grab the holiday opportunity? While you spend most of the entire year controlling your budget, holiday season is actually giving you a legitimate season to go for a shopping spree. Yet of course, you shop for a generous and good cause.

Now that Christmas season is almost near, have you already began shopping gift items? If you haven’t, perhaps you might want to start thinking and deciding which things you are going to purchase. Besides, you would not want to be caught up by the last minute holiday hassle. Now, the question is the best place to go for a holiday shopping.

While many people flock the many department stores, why not consider looking for your gifts via the internet. Clearly, city shopping centers are still the traditional places to go hunting for gifts. Yet browsing and shopping through on line stores have also their own advantages. Obviously, one of the most immediate benefits of holiday shopping on the web is convenience. Through the internet, you need not to go out of your house in order to shop. Through the internet, all you have to do is browse, select items, and then give your credit number. In a short time, your purchases are delivered right in front of your doorsteps. Besides, this will also help you avoid spending long hours brushing with the crowd while you are selecting your gifts and standing in long queues with piles of items on cart. More importantly, the online stores can offer you the widest range of options. If you are very particular with regard to choosing gifts, then holiday shopping online is the best option for you. Most of the time it is tiring and is waste of time hopping from one department store to another just to search for the perfect gifts for your dear ones. Through the internet, gift hunting has been made easier for you. All you need to do is to patiently browse through the online catalogues and you can finally have your desired items. Then finally, holiday shopping online is also recommended for practical reasons. If department stores mark down the prices of some selected items, the internet shops also offer nice discounts to buyers. Besides, with the many stores online, you can easily check out which among them offers then lowest prices.

Holiday shopping online indeed can be very advantageous for you. Nevertheless, there are also other factors you must consider in order to make the best out of this option. One primary factor is time. Actually, whether you decide to shop in stores or through the internet, time is a matter of importance. If possible, you may begin your shopping as early as possible. Giving yourself enough time allowance enables you to carefully select the best and most unique gifts that will surely please your family and friends. Another thing to remember when you are shopping is that cost is not that important. Often, some people fall into the trap of thinking that the most precious gifts come with a price. Yet as they say, it is not the cost that counts but rather it is the thought. In selecting gifts, aside from considering your budget, you should also think about the person who is going to receive it. You must always bear in mind that your purpose in buying and giving gifts is not your own pleasure but rather the happiness of the receiver. That is the secret in gift-giving. It is not about the price, but rather it is about your affection and generosity towards your beloved one. If you have spent great effort in carefully selecting gifts for your loved ones, then most likely you are going to make them happy.

Choosing the Best Parrot Cage

The cage is your beloved parrot’s home. Any living being should have a good home so you must be sure to provide your parrot with the best conditions possible. Also, if you choose the parrot cage wisely you will prevent parrot care problems that might appear in the future.

The parrot cage will be the largest expense after buying the parrot. So if you are going to spend some money then be sure to spend it wisely and find a great deal.

Obviously, the parrot is going to spend a lot of time in the cage and you need to make SURE that this cage is the proper one for your bird. There are four parrot care issues that must be taken into consideration when you decide to buy a parrot cage. The most important parrot care issue is you bird’s safety. There are many cases where parrots were injured or killed because of their cage.

I will try to discuss all four parrot care points that you should have in mind when you are going to buy a parrot cage.

1. Safety

Safety is the most important thing when choosing a parrot cage. You can find Knock down cages on the market. If you buy one, you’ll have to examine it very well and check if there are any pieces that can be easily removed by your parrot. If there are then I advise you to NOT purchase the parrot cage. The little pieces can be swallowed by your parrot and most likely will kill him or her.

One important, but often overlooked safety issue, is the cage’s bar spacing. When you buy a parrot cage make sure that the bar spacing is smaller than you parrot’s head. This way you can be sure that your pet’s head won’t get stuck between the bars.

2. Cage Material

The majority of parrot cages I have seen in pet stores are built from different metals like wire, stainless steel, zinc. From what I have found the wire cages are the most economical, but you must not forget to inspect the cage regularly for broken welds or broken wires.

You can find metal parrot cages at a medium prices on the market. These parrot cages are built in a variety of metals, shapes, and come in many different colors.

The most expensive parrot cage that you can find in your search is the Stainless steel cage. The advantages of this type of parrot cage is that they will never rust or cause metal poisoning. If you are ready to make a good deal, buying a stainless steal parrot cage would be the perfect choice. Even if it’s expensive I ensure you that you’ll never have to replace it.

3. Size

Another important aspect for a parrot cage is it’s size. The best thing you can do is to go to a pet store and buy the largest parrot cage that you can find in your budget range. A big parrot cage gives more freedom to your parrot and it will have a happier life. Keep in mind that the width of the parrot cage is more important than the height. Mostly, your parrot will fly from side to side.

4. Cage Accessories and Components

The components that come with the parrot cage are last on the check list but NOT the least of importance. Swing out feeders are a good way to feed your parrot. These are especially good for aggressive parrots.

You can also buy after market food dishes for you parrot cage. These accessories also come in different styles and colors.

Try to find a parrot cage that has an entry door large enough to get the bird out easily. Remember that parrots are very smart so they can learn how to open the cage doors. If this happens then you will have to take some security measures and add some new components in order to prevent the parrot from opening the door.

Also try to look for a parrot cage with removable litter trays. This way you will clean the cage with no effort and your bird won’t reach the old left over food.

A Good Home Makes a Happy Parrot

If you want a happy and healthy parrot you must provide him with a good home. If the parrot cage meets all the parrot care points that were mentioned above then you can be sure that your pet will live healthy and peacefully.

Spring Cleaning

Clean scents, polished floors, spotless window glass, and scrubbed decks – here we come.

Plan Ahead

Before jumping in gather tools, cleaning supplies, buckets, trash bags, boxes, and a few friends to help out. Wear something old so good clothes won’t get stained, or bleached.

Decide how much time it will take to clean based on the size of your home and how many family members will pitch in.

Tool Time

A week before you plan to start your spring cleaning marathon, review what supplies you have on hand.

Do you have:

  • Ammonia for wiping away grease
  • Foaming cleaners for bathtubs
  • Squeegees to make quick work of window washing
  • Buckets for mixing concentrated cleaners
  • Cleaners made for washing cars and trucks
  • Oven cleaner
  • Floor cleaners for wood and linoleum
  • Stiff-bristled large brooms to sweep away winter dirt
  • Angled soft-bristle brooms for indoor use
  • Sponges and scrubbing brushes for general use
  • Lambswool and ostrich feather dusters to clean in hard-to-reach places
  • Laundry detergent booster
  • Static free cleaner for electronics
  • Oil soaps for wood cabinets
  • Cleaners formulated for artificial plants
  • Oxygenizing cleaner to remove spots and stains without bleaching fabrics, upholstery or carpets
  • Other brushes for specific uses: toilet bowl brush, refrigerator coil brush
  • Ladder for reading ceiling fans, tall bookcases and to wash windows

Purchase versatile concentrated cleaners when possible. Benefits include being able to dilute cleaner to different strengths depending on the cleaning job involved. They also cost less per use and require less packing making them environmentally-friendly.

Brushes and brooms that are made for a specific purpose make the job easier. Toilet bowl brushes scrub under the rim with less effort. Cleaning refrigerator coils is as easy as an afterthought when you use a soft brush made for just that job.

A lamb’s wool duster with extended pole makes it easy to sweep walls and ceilings for cobwebs and dust. The static in the wool works like a magnet to attract dust with little effort on your part. Rags, sponges, gloves that protect your hands from the effects of cleaners, mops, and brooms can be stored in one place until you need them. A small laundry basket or extra bucket can be used to carry supplies from room to room. Create one bucket of supplies for bedrooms, living rooms, dining areas, and one bucket of supplies for bathrooms and the kitchen.

Don’t forget cleaning supplies for outdoor decks, window washing and the car. A ladder (and someone to hold it steady) is required for window washing. A soft chamois and cleaner specifically formulated for washing cars makes the finish cleaner and shinier.

Make washing windows easier by purchasing two sizes of squeegees – a small one for multi-paned windows and a large one for sliding glass doors. Use the squeegee to dry the window for the quickest, streak-free finish.

Take it from the Top to the Bottom

Clean one room at a time from top to bottom before moving on. Decide whether curtains and rugs go to the cleaners or get tossed in the washer with a laundry booster.

Always start at the top. Sweep for cobwebs and wash ceilings and light fixtures first with a lambswool duster. Light fixtures that are dirty or greasy, as they are likely to be if located near the stove, need to be removed and washed in warm soapy water.

Move down the walls, dusting pictures and decorations. The rest of the room can be best tackled by starting at the door and moving around the room. Pick up objects, dust, clean, remove spots, vacuum.

Bring a box and a bag into the room. Your goal is to find a storage place for everything. Books go back in the bookcase, pictures back on the mantel. Loose papers need to be filed, tossed, or shredded. Spring cleaning is also the perfect time to weed out all the objects that are cluttering up your home. The box is for objects you plan to donate, give to friends, or sell at a yard sale. The garbage bag is for everything else you don’t want anymore that cannot be recycled.

Spring may have sprung, but remember spring cleaning is for all seasons.

Voice Over Internet Protocol OR PSTN?

These days transferring voice, in anyway, is one of the most important tools a company has in gaining an edge over competitors.  Without any form of communication a company has no way to keep in contact with different divisions or groups who belong to it.  There are currently 2 more popular choices for transferring voice; analogous which uses the current Public Switched Telephone Network, or digital, which uses the Internet.  A company needs to make the decision of which to choose by basing the preferred selection on whether or not a system will be cost effective, and meet the company’s needs.

In order to use the Internet as a medium for sending voice data, a Voice Over IP or Voice Over Frame Relay system must be created.  Hardware must take analog voice, then using pulse code modulation convert it to a digital signal, compress it, then send then place it in packet form.  Once a packet is created, it is sent out on a network to find its destination.  Due to the nature of the Internet, multiple data packets can take completely different routes causing frames to reach their destination out of order or even drop packets.  With normal data packets this is acceptable, as a device can arrange the packets in order, but with real-time voice, the varying delay of packets sometimes cause a corruption in the transmission.  In the case of dropped packets, a real-time voice transmission is to fast for a receiver to wait for a sender to retransmit and thus quality is lost.

A VOIP system can be beneficial to larger companies.  By using the Internet as a medium for transferring voice communications, there is no such thing as long distance calls.  The packets of data can cross millions of miles before reaching their destination, while the company only pays the cost of being connected to the Internet.  This element is very important to companies who work over seas, or have multiple headquarters worldwide.

On the other hand, voice communication can use the Public Switched Telephone Network.  Circuit switched communication is a guaranteed clear connection for the duration of the call.  When an individual calls another individual, a dedicated link is established and stays that way for the span of the call.  Once a circuit is established, that path is taken by all parts of the transmission.  This factor completely eliminates almost every negative drawback of VOIP.  There is no lost of packets to worry about so quality is consistent.

For larger companies using the PSTN for voice transfer can be a very unwise decision.  As used above in the example for VOIP, a company with locations across the globe could easily be paying out the nose for basic telephone services, as the fees of across seas communication is quite expensive.  Contrary, a small chain of businesses all in close vicinity to each other could make good use of the PSTN.  PSTN can also become a less cost effective solution due to the necessary need for 2 mediums used for communication – one for data, one for voice.  In a VOIP network, voice and data can both travel on the same medium, eliminating costs.

There are a lot of factors to consider before choosing a preferred system, but I feel a large company, especially one with multiple worldwide locations, would benefit from using VOIP rather than the PSTN as it would be more cost effective.  The inverse approach relates to small companies that are somewhat close in location.

Wedding Cakes: The Myths and Magic of Matrimony

Wedding cakes come in all shapes and sizes and there is no limit to the creativity of the bride’s design. They have become long-standing traditions and are still being admired as the focal point of the wedding receptions today. Modern wedding cakes can be made of plain or chocolate sponge as well as the fruitcake (for the groom) and little cupcakes scattered around the bride’s cake gaining popularity since they are easier to dole out to the guests.

Wedding cakes have been a special part of the Greek and Roman civilizations. Perhaps the tradition of scattering rice or confetti over newlyweds had evolved along with the wedding cake; the Romans have scattered wheat in the belief that the bride and groom would be fertile. Wheat is a cake ingredient and symbolizes life – the abundant harvest and fertility that newlyweds must enjoy. The wedding cake back then was a special delicacy that the Ancient Greeks have eaten as part of their feasts.

During the Roman era it was a custom for the guests to give wedding cakes to newlyweds to simulate the gift of nature since wheat (also barley) as an ingredient of cake is a life-giving plant. Brides who bake their own wedding cakes were thought to be destined to face bad luck in the future.  The groom would break the gift cakes on the bride’s head. This was a quaint symbolism of the breaking of a woman’s hymen, signifying her surrender to the groom. The guests would then scramble for the fallen crumbs as they believe this would give them fortune. The evolution of the wedding cake has made breaking it less common, but in some parts of Scotland in the 19th century this tradition continued with certain variations.

By the Medieval Era the wheat cake had been replaced by the rolls and buns that were laid on top of each other. The custom was that if the groom and the bride were able to kiss on top of the tall stack of rolls they will receive the blessings of prosperity and fertility. Then during the seventeenth century a French chef added sugar frosting on the stack of cake so they would maintain their form. This was considered to be one of the precursors of the modern tiered cake with the extra frosting.

The tradition of preserving the top tier of the cake and eating it on the first anniversary could be traced back during the eighteenth century when the wedding cakes were actually fruit cakes blended with wine to keep them edible even after a long time. It was still an enduring myth that the cake must not break into slivers before it could even be eaten on the first anniversary; otherwise the newlyweds would be beset with marriage problems. Thus, they have taken great care not to let it crumble.

The bride’s pie, the cake that contains a hidden ring, could be traced back to the early seventeenth century until the nineteenth. It was believed that the woman who is able to find the hidden ring will be wedded next. The bride’s pie has evolved into the more elaborate cakes of the Victorian era. Queen Victoria adored ornamental cakes and bridal gowns that she had ordered a cake made for her weighing over 300 lbs. Since then wedding cakes had become intricately-designed and were eventually called bride’s cake.

The bride’s cake is the most common type of wedding cake, as opposed to groom’s cake, which is just a simple slab of cake that acts as a supplement for the more elaborate bride’s cake. Most bride cakes chosen by the bride are usually tall-tiered cakes with flowers and fruits. Most groom cakes are fruit cakes which traditionally were brought home by single ladies so they would “dream of their future husbands”.

Most brides’ cakes were decorated by the bride as a reflection of her decorating style. It could, for instance, have custom- made figurines on the top tier, a set of sugar flowers or fruits in season. For flower designs usually a bride can opt to lay it on the top of the cake or have it cascade around the tiers for a more ornate look. It can have the romantic appeal with one unifying motif. It can also have a symbolism such as gold, marzipans or swans.

The groom’s cake is more of a wedding favor and plays a special part on the wedding as well. The groom chooses his own design but usually it is dark colored (chocolate). It is a supplement to the bride’s cake because it may be served at the reception dinner (or even ahead of the time and given to the guests) and is consequently a lot cheaper than the bride’s cake itself.

Choosing and decorating your wedding cake may be easy but you should consider adding brandy if you wish to preserve your cake according to the tradition. You can opt to shop for spices, fruits and flowers ahead of the time; or have a florist coordinate with you. For many soon-to-be-wedded couples it would be easier to borrow or hire a cake tin stand if you would like a multiple-tiered cake.

Buy wedding cakes two months in advance; this is to assure you that you will get exactly what you have ordered. There are expensive cakes but if you are low on the budget there are ways to reduce the price of fancy wedding cakes. Check out the local bakeshops and consult with two or three bakers to get information on the prices and styles of wedding cakes.

You can get a great deal for a wedding cake by asking for pictures of the recently designed cakes (those created by their current cake decorators) and getting a free taste. Do not forget that the taste of the cake matters just as well as its fancy design.

Lastly, when selecting your wedding cake, your own preferences matter but you can always be open to suggestions offered by an expert baker.