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We’ve all read stories about the coupon-savvy woman who can feed a family of five on $50 a month. What is her secret? She’s perfected the art of couponing. While I won’t promise that you’ll be able to do quite that well, I do guarantee that if you follow the tips below you will be able to slash dollars from your monthly grocery bill.

Know when NOT to use coupons. When is a coupon not a good deal?Knowing this can be as helpful to you as the voucher codes itself. In most cases, the generic version of what you’re buying is cheaper than the more expensive counterpart even WITH a coupon. You may be asking yourself, “So why even bother? Why not just purchase generics?” You will need to become coupon-savvy in order to recognize when coupons are a good deal and when they’re not. Coupons work best when they’re combined with another deal or are doubled. Carry a small calculator in your purse to help you calculate the price per unit when you’re shopping.

Combine coupons with in store-sales and two-for-ones. I recently bought two boxes of Cheerios cereal. They were on sale at the grocery store for 2 for $3. I also used two $1 off coupons I had, saving an additional $2.My cost per box: only fifty cents. Normally, without the coupon, each box is at least $3. Cool, huh? A lot of grocery stores also offer “in store” coupons. Use your own coupons in addition to these to save even more.

Find a store that will double your coupons. If your town doesn’t have one, it may be worth a short drive to another town to a store that does. If making a special trip, be sure to call in advance to see if the store has restrictions on doubling coupons. Some stores will only double coupons under $.50, some only double coupons on certain days of the week.

Buy the smallest size. Most people are under the impression that you will save more by buying in bulk. When using a coupon, this usually isn’t true. What you will need to consider is the price per ounce. Here is an example of what I mean:

While the price per ounce of the larger size is more economical without the coupon, the smaller size is the better buy with the coupon. Keep a small calculator in your purse or coupon caddy to help calculate the best deal.

Trade coupons with friends and online. Start a coupon group with women in your area. Let them know which items you need coupons for; and offer to trade with them. I have a friend who uses Pampers diapers, so whenever I see a coupon for that item I give it to her. In turn, she looks out for the items I use. To get started, e-mail 5-10 of your “thrifty” friends to see if they’re interested. Have each friend list 10-20 items that she always uses, and print out the lists. Keep the lists handy when you’re clipping coupons, and then pass on the coupons to your friends.

Other coupon sources. Some grocery stores have coupon bins within their store. Look for them near the customer service counter, or in the front of the store. Some libraries also have a coupon swapping bin. If your local library or grocer doesn’t, it doesn’t hurt to suggest it. Coupons are also now available in-store right next to the products themselves from machines sponsored by SmartSource.

Find coupons online. When you think of coupons, chances are you think of the kind that come as inserts in your Sunday paper. With the invent of the internet all sorts of other kinds of coupons are now available. You can download coupons from your computer and print them out. You can even find coupons being sold on eBay.

Organize! Make promo codes easy to file and easy to use. I used to have my coupons clumped together in an envelope in my purse. I could never find the coupons I needed, and I ended up throwing out expired coupons I could have used. I use a large plastic index-card box for my coupons now.I have it divided by categories such as: canned goods, baby products, clothes, cosmetics, cereal, baking, Bed & Bath, books, magazine, dairy, etc. After serious couponing for a few months, you will discover which categories work the best for you.

After using a lot of coupons, you can become a coupon expert for your own.you will become a master and being mastered the art of coupon, you will never buy anything without promo codes.

There are many kids story books out there so parents have a lot of of choices. Parents can read with their children or the children can read by themselves. Reading can be a great activity alone as well as together. Books can be expensive, though, so you may want to find a way to save money such as becoming a member of your local libraries or buying from discount stores. Your local library should have lots of kids books to choose from. If they do not, they should be able to borrow from other libraries, even from out of state libraries.

It is important to find the right books for your children to start reading. You mustpick suitable books that are also fun to read so that your children will not get bored reading and will want to read more. At your library, you will find books that are age appropriate for your children and books that are not appropriate. Some parents just let their children loose in the kids’ section of the library and let them find what they want to read. Other parents prefer to read kids book reviews and only expose their children to appropriate books. You can find plenty of kids’ book reviews online, in newspapers, and in magazines for parents. Your local library should also have a list of books that are recommended for children to read.

For toddlers and babies, board books are great. Many board books are usually small books made of cardboard. They can withstand rough handling and can withstand being thrown around. You can also clean the pages quite easily because many of them are glossy. There are many board books in stores and they can be as cheap as $1 or less. Board books usually have colorful pages and simple stories with small words so that babies and toddlers can get used to the idea of reading even when they cannot read yet.

Science fiction does not get better then this. Dune is the wet dream of every sci-fi lovers.

# 1: Dune (Frank Herbert)
Science Fiction doesn’t get much better then this. Dune is every Science Fiction aficionado’s wet dream. Many people claim Dune is Science Fiction’s answer to “Lord of the Rings” and I have to agree: it sure is. For more details www.be-a-stargazer.com There are many good science fiction books, but Dune is indeed a giant among giants. This is a pinnacle of achievement for science fiction. If you do not see the sand dunes, there is no more time wasted. Reading it now!

# 2: Starship Troopers (Robert Heinlein)
War is beautiful according to Robert Heinlein. This is a fiction novel about the glorification of war. The premise: space-marines wearing special armor battle vicious alien insect aliens. This is the typical “old school” sci-fi in the best. It’s a rip-roaring ride through the galaxy that you don’t want to miss.

#3 : Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
This is one of the corner stones of science fiction and new fiction book that you shouldn’t miss. Criticism of society, the story of a boy who refused to give up, a destiny to save humanity - this book combines science fiction and have become addicted to a combination of persuasive and should not be missed.

#4: Foundation (Isaac Asimov)
This is undoubtedly the most outstanding works of science fiction writing. If you like science fiction, the grand and epic story, so that your hand on this book. An inevitable result: Foundation is a series of people who love the idea of the complexity of Japan. If you are looking for a heavy book, but the concept of thin, this may not be the book for you. The strength of the ideas presented are the focus of this story, not the characterization. In any case, this is a sci-fi books, you only need to read. You will never be thought of as science fiction, the foundation in reading series.

Reading is one of the greatest past-times known to the human race. Yeah, I’m well aware of how massive that statement is. But, it’s the truth! Imagine for a moment how long reading for pleasure has been around. Do you even know when the very first piece of literature was written? I’m talking fun literature here as well as flower girl jewelry. Something people actually enjoyed reading on their free time. Regardless, this past-time is certainly still in full effect today. As it should be. The day we no longer read for simple pleasure will be a sad one. Now, there is one nuance to the reading game. These days you don’t have to only enjoy your paper books. You can easily read books online as well. Some may even find this more convenient.

It’s phenomenal all the things we no longer have to purchase. Take literature for example. Now, back in high school I would have had to hit up the library or the bookstore to read a text. As we all know, this happens quite often when you’re in school for bridesmaid gifts. There is always some homework assignment to get done that requires research. I have to say that I prefer today’s methods. It’s just so much more convenient to read books online and get the scoop from home. Now just to be clear, there is a limit with this. If you haven’t encountered it yet, you will. Most teachers and professors are not too awful crazy about all your sources and background information coming off the web. The truth is that much of it can be unreliable. Therefore the next time you read books online, you may want to make certain they’re the real deal. Typically if you’re reading a novel for pleasure, it’s totally fine. However, if you’re researching for a paper, things and ring bearer gifts are a little more complicated. I found in college that there are a great many websites purely opinion based. This fails to hold much relevance. You can always ask your teacher or professor if they recommend some legitimate websites.

So, read and good books lately? Maybe you have no time to get over to the local bookstore or library. Don’t fret! You can simply get on your personal computer and read books online. Search any book by title on Google, Yahoo or MSN. My guess is that you’ll find what you’re looking for in no time flat.

The maps Yahoo makes are very similar to Google Maps, MSN Virtual Earth and MapQuest. They use satellite maps, road maps and traffic maps to help you get from point A to point B. Drivers can view estimated travel times, as well as how many miles to drive down a particular road. With Yahoo, you can better budget your time so you are never late. You can also avoid irritating traffic build-ups by previewing the traffic, weather and construction conditions before taking off. Since there is such fierce competition to be the best mapping company, you are bound to see a number of new innovations in the years to come.

One benefit of Yahoo Maps is that you can find local information about businesses, restaurants, gas stations, hotels, museums and more by typing in general search terms for your city. You can access this information through the driving directions page or visit directly at www.local.yahoo.com. Yahoo’s Local Search listings mimic the Yellowpages, but combine mapping capabilities, user-generated content and reviews, photos and videos. To search, you just need to know generally what you are looking for and where (for instance: “best pizza in new york city”) and the search engine does the rest. Yahoo automatically shows you other favorite restaurants as rated by other Yahoo members and invites you to add your own reviews.

You may be thinking, “Well Google has business listings too. Why should I look at the maps Yahoo makes for local information?” One distinction you will notice is that most of the real estate on Yahoo is dedicated to business listings, with only a small map. So if you are looking for local directories of businesses, then Yahoo would probably be best, whereas driving directions are more prominent on the maps Google offers. You will also notice that Yahoo Local has more paid ads, which account for the top three listings, as well as a few listings on the bottom of the page. User reviews are provided for each local listing, with a 1 to 5 star rating format to help you choose the best local business to suit your needs. One current problem is that Yahoo sometimes returns non-relevant listings. For instance, if you type “dog bathing service,” you will also get paid listings from animal hospitals, pet food stores and dog walking services. In that respect, Google may give you more targeted listings.

The phrase “Mapping 2.0″ is being thrown around to describe recent innovations in the world of online maps. You will notice many of these functions on the maps Yahoo features. For instance, you can now manipulate maps by dragging, dropping and zooming with your mouse or arrow keys. You can also use a number of widgets to change the map type from street maps to satellite maps to hybrid maps. You can search local businesses based on user-generated reviews, searching by rating if you so desire. You can right-click to set a way-point and get a map to any marker you set on the map. Today many users are creating “mashups” through the Yahoo Maps Developer APIs (using Adobe Flash, Ajax JavaScript or Simple XML format). Yahoo is also incorporating data from Flickr users and www.upcoming.org to add more value to their site.

MapQuest was the first of the online maps and has changed the least over time, yet it remains the most popular site for driving directions and local street maps. Google Maps is quickly inching up in popularity, which is fair since they are the innovators of the satellite imagery and aerial photography, yet some speculate that their tie-in with the search engines is corrupting web traffic data. The major players in the mapping industry each have their own special perks.

First let’s look at simple directions. That is why most of us find driving directions online after all, is it not? If you are worried about road hazards, construction zones and thick traffic, then Yahoo Maps (www.maps.yahoo.com) is good for that function. MapQuest (www.mapquest.com) lets you check boxes to avoid highways and tolls, choose the shortest distance or take the route with the shortest time. The user-friendly, simple nature of this site is also a good perk for someone who wants their directions right away. They also have recently added the drag-and-drop function that Yahoo has had, which helps you navigate around traffic obstructions. If you are walking or jogging, then Ask (www.maps.ask.com) is the only site that lets you plot your pedestrian course. Google Maps (www.maps.google.com) can zoom in for close topographical views of any continent. To sum up, Yahoo is the best site when traffic or construction sites are a concern, while MapQuest provides quick point-A-to-point-B directions.

So what about maps of sightseeing? MapQuest does not offer satellite images currently, although if you have the addresses, you can plot out multiple points on your sightseeing tour to discover an efficient route. Google can show you extremely close-up views all around the world from Nairobi and Lima to Baghdad and Tokyo. Yahoo also takes you right to the heart of the world’s most far-flung continents using a number of sources for its images, although Google and Ask have more display pixels. Conclusively, Google Maps probably has the most comprehensive database of real-world images and the fastest response time for your sightseeing needs. In fact, there are entire websites dedicated to “sightseeing without leaving your living room via Google satellite maps.”

Another site not detailed here, but worth looking at, is the newer Microsoft Windows Live Local (www.maps.live.com). You can stick a pushpin on favorite locations, record notes and upload pictures to your sites to save or share with friends, which is sort of like the Google map creator function. You can also view traffic reports and get the clearest route, explore collections of sightseeing landmarks and tour 3-D cities. This new player seems to perceptibly take the best of the other sites and do it better. As you browse, you will notice that all the sites have similar interfaces (except for that rebel, MapQuest) but the subtle differences are what make people so adamant about their favorite mapping engines.

Set in Afghanistan, from the fall of the monarchy until the collapse of the Taliban regime, and in the San Francisco Bay Area, Khaled Hosseini ’s first novel, The Kite Runner, is a thrilling story about fathers and sons, sin and atonement, injustice and the human yearning for redemption.

It is the story of a young boy, Amir, juggling to establish a closer rapport with his father and coping with memories of a haunting childhood event. Its many themes include ethnic tensions between the Hazara and the Pashtun in Afghanistan, and the immigrant experiences of Amir and his father in the United States.

The Kite Runner is about a complex Middle Eastern culture Americans are supposed to be uninterested, but the book has sold over four million copies in three years. The novel was the number three best seller for 2005 in the United States, according to Nielsen BookScan. The Kite Runner mp3 was also produced as an audio book read by the author himself, and has been adapted into a motion picture of the same name, released in December 2007.

“Probably the passages most resembling my own life are the ones in the US, with Amir and Baba trying to build a new life for themselves,” author Khaled Hosseini says in an interview with Time magazine. “My father and I did work for a while at the flea market and there really are rows of Afghans working there, some of whom I am related to.”

Now the most popular Afghan in the world, Khaled Hosseini has very fond memories of his childhood in Afghanistan largely because his memories, unlike those of the current generation of Afghans, are untainted by the specter of war, landmines, and famine.

Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul, where his father worked for the Afghanistan Foreign Ministry. In 1980, they sought political asylum in the United States and made their residence in Fremont, California. He earned his M.D. in 1993 at University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine. He practiced medicine until a year and a half after the release of The Kite Runner. Hosseini is currently a Goodwill Envoy for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Posted on May 1st, 2009 by Lindsey Harper

Are you an art love? I sure am! However, if there’s one factor about original art that prevents many people from owning it - it’s price. Original art is very expensive to collect.

I'm sure you’re familiar with live auctions where people bid on artwork. Those fancy auctions are not necessarily the places where you can get the best prices. But did you know that you can find original art for awe-inspiring prices at an auction site? You don’t have to be rich to collect great original art!

What do I mean by awe-inspiring prices? Purchase this gallery wrapped, ready to hang, original Leonid Afremov masterpiece, signed by the artist! The painting is oil on canvas and painted with a palette knife. This beautiful painting has been appraised at $3,500. It is unbelieveable but this painting began with only a $1 bid and its current bid is only at $30!

You should know that this online auction ends on May 2, so hurry! I have noticed that the $1 bid original art deals go very, very fast!

Online Auction Original Art

An estate auction incorporated in an auction site is not only a convenient way to save, but one of the best ways to save. You’ll find clear and vivid photos of the original art created to help you make your decision. You’ll also find full details on the art as well as its appraisal value.

Where do you start to find original art at awe-inspiring prices? Government Auction Network. They point you to the online auction opportunities that will put original art in your hands for less.

If you want to save on vehicles, real estate, computers, jewelry, original art and more, head straight to Government Auction Network. I can help you with any questions you may have. Click on “About Lindsey” then click on “Just Ask Me.”

Government Auction Network - auction site - online auction - estate auction

When is the best time to buy a house? The answer is not simple. You need to consider more than just having the money for the down payment and monthly pay  ments.
What is the local housing market like now and likely to be in several years? Is it a “buyer’s” or “seller’s” market? What is happening or is likely to happen to the local economy? Are houses in the neighborhood increasing in value? Will you be able to sell the house for a profit if you decide to move?

Once you have decided to become a home owner, the next decision is whether to buy or build, buy an existing house or a new one, or to buy an existing house and remodel it. Many factors may influence your decision to buy or to build. These include: the supply of houses available that fit your family’s needs, location(s) where you choose to live, and the amount of time you have available before you must move.
The amount of time that you have to put into the house is a significant factor in whether to buy or build. Some­ times families find that the many decisions that must be made in building a house are so overwhelming that they would rather not spend the time and energy to build. Generally speaking, an existing house is less expensive than buying or building a new one.