Merry Christmas to everyone !!!

Check This Out!

 Check this...

 111.111.111 x 111.111.111 = 12.345.678.987.654.321 !!
Look again the result numbers more carefully...

Thoughts !

There are sometimes in our lives, when we feel, broken, empty, tiny and somehow ''out of order''. These times are when we just unexpectedly start crying, or fighting with our family and friends. Let's just say that this is a phase. What happens when such feelings come out ? Well in my opinion, in order to avoid this we should express the feelings we feel, at the time we feel them. For instance if you feel emparassed for a reason, you shouldn't keep it inside yourself, instead you should think about it when you soul-searching or try to talk about it with people you trust. Keeping our emotions ''locked down'' and never express them, will cause serious problems both to the soul -mind- and the body. It is wide-known that when the soul ''hurts'', problems will also appear at the body ( in several forms...headaches, stomach-aches, etc.).
So try not to keep anything that makes you feel bad inside. Whatever that is.
Goodnight!
7-8/12/10
Don't forget to subscribe!

Green Tips!

It is time to write again a Green tip!

Alternatives to Bottled Water   

Today’s challenge is to cut bottled water out of your routine.

The bottled water explosion in recent decades has brought with it an enormous increase in consumer waste. In the first three years of this decade, the planet’s thirsty consumers drank over 500 million litres of bottled water, according to the International Council of Bottled Water Associations. That’s a whole lot of plastic bottles. In fact, the World Wildlife Fund says the industry generates 1.5 million tons of plastic a year.


Even the best recycling programs won’t be able to make that disappear and those of us who are currently watching a winter’s worth of snow melt are surrounded by appalling reminders that most of those bottles don’t even make it to a garbage can.
If you’re concerned about the quality of the water in your taps and, granted, it’s a fair concern consider instead the many alternatives. You can have clean water without the disposable plastic. A filter system for your tap, or a filter jug in your fridge, is cheaper than buying bottled water and much, much greener.
And maybe even safer. Some quick facts about bottled water:

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization released a study in 1997 concluding that bottled water is not better for you than tap water.

Many bottled water companies are simply selling you reprocessed municipal water: Aquafina (Pepsi) and Dasani (Coca-Cola), for example.

Roughly 22 percent of bottled water brands have been found to contain, in at least one sample, chemical contaminants at levels above governmental health regulations.

Correlations have even been drawn between increased cavity decay and consumption of bottled water, due, some say, to the natural absence of fluoride in bottled spring water.

If you do find yourself buying a bottle of water, buy a local brand this means less transport, and also that the water is being consumed closer to its source.

 

Bottled or Tap Water: Which is Better?

Bottled water is a growing trend in today’s fast-paced society, but it is a trend which is harmful to the world around us. Drinking water from the tap is measurably better for the environment, and contrary to popular belief it is just as healthy to drink. There are many reasons that contribute to the growing popularity of bottled water over tap water, but what many people don’t realize is that it all comes down to hype. Large bottled water brands spend millions of dollars on marketing every year to promote their brands, while tap water does not have a marketing team and budget to promote drinking it. The advertising for bottle water leaves many people with the impression that it is a healthier and more refreshing alternative to tap water, but this is just a myth that the companies like to support.
Drinking water from the tap is better for our environment for the following reasons:

There is no carbon footprint. Bottled water is sometimes shipped from different continents, which adds huge amounts of carbon emissions into the atmosphere. With tap water you get instant, and basically free delivery which does not have to be transported across the country or the world.

Not all water bottles make it to the recycling plant. About 80% of plastic water bottles end up in a landfill where they are left to decompose naturally or burned which releases harmful pollutants into the air.

Plastic bottles are hard to break down. It takes an estimated 1000 years for one plastic water bottle to decompose. With North Americans consuming on average 166 bottles of water a year that can leave quite a mark on the environment.

There are many benefits of drinking tap water instead of bottled water. Bottled water is much more expensive, harmful to the environment, and not any better for a person’s health than tap water is. In fact many popular brands of bottled water like Dasani simply sell tap water that has been filtered and put into bottles. With your own filtrations system, you can easily do the same for significantly less money and harmful environmental impact. A good place to compare and shop for water filtration systems is, http://www.waterfiltercomparisons.net/WaterFilter_Comparison.cfm , where you can find a variety of models and price ranges, along with descriptions, retailers, and upkeep pricing. Tap water also contains fluoride which most bottled water does not. Fluoride is a key component to healthy, strong teeth.

Bottled water is often more convenient than tap water because tap water is not always available when you want it. If you are going on a hike or working out, bottled water is much easier to drink. However you do not have to use the bottled water sold in disposable bottles with brand names. It is just as easy and more economically and environmentally friendly to buy a reusable water bottle and refill it. There is often concern about the safety of reusing water bottles because of the bacteria that can gather around the opening. Make sure that your water bottle is washed carefully after each use and you won’t have to worry about this. It is just like any other reusable dish that has to be kept clean. You should also check the content of the plastic to make sure it is not harmful. Some types of plastic can leach out into the water causing it to taste bad and possibly be harmful to your health.

All in all drinking water from the tap just makes more sense. It is better for the environment which is ultimately better for us. It follows the same health standards as bottled water. It is cheaper than bottled water, and can often be just as convenient. Tap water has been proven to taste just as good as bottled water with many taste tests and can easily be filtered if it does not. If you are traveling to another country where the public health standards are not monitored, it is wise to stick to bottled water, which has not been opened, for personal health reasons. In this country where fresh water is abundant and readily supplied there is no reason not to drink the water from our taps

Thoughts

Nowdays feeling trapped and confunsed isn't so rare as we thought. More and more people ( and  I don't consider myself as an exception) are infested everyday with such feelings. This is usually caused by -everyday- strain, bad relationships with the people around us, and hard work. It is wide-known, that when our soul ''hurts'' it is manifested also on our body. That is why sometimes we have unexplainable stomach-aches, head-aches etc. Such moments it's when our body tell us that it needs a break from the everyday strain. A good idea is to try some yoga before sleeping or taking a few deep breaths.

We won't allow such problems destroy our health !


P.S. Christmas... 26 days to go!
Goodnight!

Chocolate Lava Cakes

Ingredients

• 5 squares (1 oz./28 g each) semisweet chocolate
• 1/4 cup (50 mL) butter
• 2 eggs
• 2 additional egg yolks
• 1/4 cup (50 mL) granulated sugar
• 2 tsp. (10 mL) vanilla
• 1 tsp. (5 mL) instant coffee powder
• 1 tbsp. (15 mL) all purpose flour
• whipped cream and berries as an accompaniment

Cooking Instructions

1. Grease four 3/4 cup (175 mL) custard cups or individual souffle dishes.
2. In a small saucepan, melt together the chocolate and butter over low heat, stirring until the mixture is smooth. Remove from heat.
3. In a mixing bowl, with an electric mixer, beat together the eggs, additional egg yolks, sugar, vanilla, and instant coffee powder until very thick, about 5 minutes. The mixture should be thick enough to form a ribbon when you lift the beater from the bowl. Gently fold in the flour and the chocolate mixture, mixing just until combined.
4. Pour batter into prepared baking dishes, cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until about one hour before you're planning to serve dessert. (You can prepare the batter as much as 24 hours before serving -- great for do-ahead entertaining.)
5. Remove baking dishes from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before baking.
6. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
7. Arrange baking dishes on a large pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the top is just barely set. (A toothpick poked into the center of one of the cakes will come out with batter attached.) Let cool for 5 minutes, then very carefully loosen the sides of the cakes by running a knife blade around the inside surface of the dish and turn them out onto individual serving plates.
8. Serve immediately with whipped cream and, if desired, fresh strawberries or raspberries. 

 My favourite!!!

Green Tips!

It’s getting a lot of attention these days. We’ve heard the statistics, with a variety of figures and percentages, but the point remains the same: the number of cars worldwide will roughly double by 2030. Anyone who has spent any time in a traffic jam on a freeway, or in smoggy city streets in summertime, will agree that there just simply isn’t space for all those cars. Cleaner fuel and alternative energy sources are all well and good but the simple truth is that we need to use our cars less.

Here are some quick and easy ways to make a big change to your routine:

If it’s nearby, walk. Don’t drive to the corner store. Don’t drive to the gym. Walk or bike to work a couple of times a week. In most cities, you can probably get by without a car or using it once or twice a week at most.
Take public transit. It’s cheaper, greener, and in many cases faster than driving. Get over the stigma, and take the bus. Many governments now offer tax rebates on monthly passes.
Carpool. When you are driving somewhere, rideshare.
Foster these ideals in your children,and expect the same from them. If they want a ride to the mall, to baseball practice, to school, help them find a greener way to get there. They may not make it easy on you, but you’re planting a seed for a future generation of people who aren’t as dependent on their cars as you are on yours.

Waiting for your green tips!

Scandinavian Brownies

(One-layer Chocolate Cake)
Yield: 24 servings
 

Ingredients

1+1/3 cup (150 g) all-purpose flour
1+½ cup (330 g) sugar
4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup (170 g) butter
3 fl oz (0.9 dl) boiling water
3 eggs
4 oz (120 g) chocolate chips (40-50% cocoa)
5 oz (150 g) chopped walnuts or pecan nuts

Frosting

1/3 cup (75 g) butter
8 oz (220 g) sweet or semisweet dark chocolate
2 tablespoon light corn syrup
2 tablespoon hot espresso or very strong coffee

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 deg F (Gas mark 4 or 180 deg C).
2. Line a 13 x 9 in (33 x 23 cm) cake tin with grease proof or other non-stick paper and grease the tin.
3. Melt the butter in a saucepan.
4. In a bowl combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and vanilla extract.
5. Add eggs, melted butter and hot water and mix until smooth.
6. Add chocolate chips and nuts.
7. Bake at 350 degrees F until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, approximately 20-30 minutes.
8. Cool the cake. Glace with the chocolate frosting.
9. For the frosting, mix butter, chopped chocolate, syrup and coffee and heat in a double boiler until melted. Stir until smooth and spread over the cake.

Enjoy!!!

Presents!

We shouldn't be glad only when we get presents, but also when we give too!

Thoughts

When you take up a hobby or another activity, you are full of happiness and enthusiasm for it, and so willing to become the best in the class, team, or even compete yourself. Sometimes, you feel great, these fellings do affect your hobby's improvement  as well as affect it negatively and making a lot of silly mistakes. Although I do well on almost everything I do, When feeling down and never complete my goals, I feel empty and useless. That is the moment that I keep thinking, that maybe I'm not good at this, maybe I am not made for this or that I've unconsciously given up. And actually these thoughts, make me feel a lot worse. Always my teachers ( almost all of them) were telling me ''Come on try it, don't be so reluctant, if you make a mistake you will learn from it''. This was a possitive thought to go on with my education and my hobbies. And this is what we should do, making mistakes and learning from them and not staying in our ''plastic bubble'' protecting ourselves from the any dissapointment. We should be open to new ideas and new expiriences and not stuck on the old and retrogressive and also not give up so easily...remember ''Difficulties and Obstacles are standing there for a reason''

 Well thats all folks!
 Goodnight!!!
  23-11-10

Thoughts 22-11-10

Wow.... 33  days till Christmas, one of my favourite holidays! Just the idea of it: cold outside maybe snowing, in my warm and cozy armchair and a cup of chocolate with me all  the time and why not a good movie or book to keep me company. I usually spend my holidays with my family and good friends and this makes me feel very nice and cozy however, such moments, I keep thinking of people who don't have their families and friends with them these days, days that are supposed to be dedicated to family. People who face many problems in their life but they keep looking on the bright side of life knowing that if they don't, they will collapse and this will be hard for them.
It a possitive thought that a lot of things has the Goverment done to help every person facing difficulties in every factor of their life, but the actions taken for many problems are never enough...
Also we must 'reduce' our egoism and start showing some interest for others people problems. It would be nice idea the New Year not to find us completely careless and apathetic to people living next door.

Well these are my thoughts for today.
Goodnight

Snowflakes

Snowflakes

Makes about 66

1 cup butter
1 3-ounce package cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cream together butter, cream cheese and sugar. Beat in egg yolk, vanilla and orange zest. Sift together flour, salt, and cinnamon. Gradually blend flour mixture into butter mixture. Fill cookie press. Form cookies on ungreased cookie sheets. Sprinkle with colored sugar, if desired. Bake 12 to 15 minutes. Remove at once to cooling racks.

Cupcake Glaze

Ingredients

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 4 tablespoons orange juice
• 4 drops red food coloring

Cupcake Glaze Directions

combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir until smooth.  Place a wire rack on a baking pan or over wax paper to catch all of the dripping glaze.  Turn all of your cupcakes upside down on the rack so that the bottoms are up.
Spoon the glaze over the bottom of the cupcakes.  I even used the spoon to spread the glaze evenly over the bottoms.  Dry 5 minutes and repeat.
Let the glaze set for at least 15 minutes before turning over to frost the tops of the cupcakes.  I used a white buttercream frosting.  Yummy!


http://www.cupcakerecipes.com/Cupcake-Icing-Glaze.htm

Warm Up!!!

 A warm-up is usually performed before participating in technical sports or exercising. A warm-up generally consists of a gradual increase in intensity in physical activity (pulse raiser), a joint mobility exercise, stretching and a sport related activity. For example, before running or playing an intense sport one might slowly jog to warm muscles and increase heart rate. It is important that warm ups should be specific to the exercise that will follow, which means that exercises (of warm up) should prepare the muscles to be used and to activate the energy systems that are required for that particular activity. The risks and benefits of combining stretching with warming up are mixed and in some cases disputed. Warming up prepares the body mentally & physically.

Benefits

A warm-up will improve the effectiveness of training and should be done before every training session. This is fundamental to a safe practice.

• Direct physical effects:
  1. Release of adrenaline
     • Increased heart rate
       • Enables oxygen in the blood to travel with greater speed
       • Increased production of synovial fluid located between the joints to reduce friction
         • Allows joints to move more efficiently
     • Dilation of capillaries
       • Enables oxygen in the blood to travel at a higher volume
  2. Increase of temperature in the muscles
     • Decreased viscosity of blood
       • Enables oxygen in the blood to travel with greater speed
     • Facilitates enzyme activity
     • Encourages the dissociation of oxygen from haemoglobin
     • Decreased viscosity within the muscle
       • Greater extensibility and elasticity of muscle fibres
         • Increased force and speed of contraction
  3. Increase of muscle metabolism
     • Supply of energy through breakdown of glycogen
  4. Increase in speed of nerve impulse conduction.
   
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warm_up
  

Point shoes

A pointe shoe is a type of shoe worn by ballet dancers when performing pointework. Pointe shoes developed from the desire for dancers to appear weightless and sylph-like and have evolved to enable dancers to dance on the tips of their toes (i.e., en pointe) for extended periods of time. They are normally worn by female dancers, though male dancers may wear them for unorthodox roles such as the ugly stepsisters in Cinderella, Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream, or men performing as women in dance companies such as Les Ballets Trockadero and Grandiva. They are manufactured in a variety of colors, most commonly in shades of light pink.

History of pointe shoes

Marie Taglioni in the title role of La Sylphide, a ballet danced en pointe for the full length of the work.

Women began to dance in ballet in 1681, twenty years after King Louis XIV of France ordered the founding of the Royal Academy of Dance. At that time, the standard women's ballet shoe had heels. Mid-18th century dancer Marie Camargo of the Paris Opéra Ballet was the first to wear a non-heeled shoe, enabling her to perform leaps that would have been difficult, if not impossible, in the more conventional shoes of the age. After the French Revolution, heels were completely eliminated from standard ballet shoes. These flat-bottomed predecessors of the modern pointe shoe were secured to the feet by ribbons and incorporated pleats under the toes to enable dancers to leap, execute turns, and fully extend their feet.
The first dancers to rise up on their toes did so with the help of an invention by Charles Didelot in 1795. His "flying machine" lifted dancers upward, allowing them to stand on their toes before leaving the ground. This lightness and ethereal quality was well received by audiences and, as a result, choreographers began to look for ways to incorporate more pointework into their pieces.
As dance progressed into the 19th century, the emphasis on technical skill increased, as did the desire to dance en pointe without the aid of wires. When Marie Taglioni first danced La Sylphide en pointe, her shoes were nothing more than modified satin slippers; the soles were made of leather and the sides and toes were darned to help the shoes hold their shapes. Because the shoes of this period offered no support, dancers would pad their toes for comfort and rely on the strength of their feet and ankles for support.
The next substantially different form of pointe shoe appeared in Italy in the late 19th century. Dancers like Pierina Legnani wore shoes with a sturdy, flat platform at the front end of the shoe, rather than the more sharply pointed toe of earlier models. These shoes also included a box—made of layers of fabric—for containing the toes, and a stiffer, stronger sole. They were constructed without nails and the soles were only stiffened at the toes, making them nearly silent.
The birth of the modern pointe shoe is often attributed to the early 20th century Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova, who was one of the most famous and influential dancers of her time. Pavlova had particularly high, arched insteps, which left her vulnerable to injury when dancing en pointe. She also had slender, tapered feet, resulting in excessive pressure applied to her big toes. To compensate for this, she would insert toughened leather soles into her shoes for extra support and would flatten and harden the toe area to form a box. While this practice made dancing en pointe easier for her, it was regarded by her peers as "cheating."

Breaking in

Dancers break in, or soften, new pointe shoes in order to improve their fit and thus eliminate the discomfort caused by new shoes. Various methods are employed for breaking in new pointe shoes including deforming them against hard surfaces, striking them with blunt objects, wetting the toe boxes and then wearing them, and heating them to soften the glues, but these method usually shorten a pointe shoe's usable lifetime. Some dancers simply tolerate the discomfort and dance in them until they are naturally broken in.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point_shoe

Christmas Cupcakes

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 4 ounces melted unsweetened  baking chocolate
 

Chocolate Cupcake Recipe Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line cupcake pans with paper liners.
Combine all ingredients into large mixing bowl.  Mix at low speed for 30 seconds, and scrape bowl.  Mix at high speed for 3 minutes.
Fill liners 1/2 to 2/3 full of batter.  Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool 10 minutes in pans then remove from pan, and place on wire racks to cool completely.
Frost when chocolate cupcakes are completely cool.


Enjoy!!!

Matter to disguss

There have been many inventions over the past 50 years that have affected the way we work and live. Which development in your opinion has had the gratest influence on our lifestyle?

Welcome to my Blog!

Hello! Welcome to my Blog!
You can right any of your ideas or some of your concerns to disguss.

Alice