In a recent television series, commissioned by the BBC, they looked at the top 10 jobs people would really want to do if they could. Basically what would make you jump out of bed first thing in a morning, eager to get to work? Well, the interesting thing is that the top 5 were all ‘creative’ careers, and at number 3 was ‘Photographer’. In particular, Freelance Photography, where you are your own boss.

With the huge rise in sales of Digital cameras, everyone is enjoying the benefits of digital photography; low running costs, the ability to take a virtually unlimited number of photographs at virtually no cost, and the convenience of being able to edit and print them out yourself. The past couple of years has also seen an escalation in the number of digital SLR cameras being sold - in particular, the entry level models such as Nikon D50, Nikon D80, and Canon 350D.

Directly in proportion to this has been the upsurge of photography related sites, forums, galleries - such as Flickr.com for example - where every man and his dog force their photographic efforts upon us with relentless enthusiasm. Some great, some good and, to be frank, some absolutely dire efforts. However, with most people tiring of the daily 9-5 grind of office life, this is a superb creative outlet.

Most people are quite happy to continue with this for pleasure, but for me, I’ve always strived to find an income stream that can be derived from something which most people would deem a hobby. That’s what I call Freelance Photography.

Now I’m not saying that you will become the next Lord Lichfield, David Bailey or Man-Ray, but there is quite reasonable money to be made in freelance photography, and the best thing is you don’t have to be an outstanding photographer - just fairly competent and in touch with the basics.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Register with a stock agency site such as www.shutterstock.com or www.dreamstime.com. These in particular are what we call “micro-stock agencies”. You upload photographs for approval (by the editorial team) and once approved they are available to download by the agencies customers. With only a small portfolio, this type of Freelance photography won’t make you a millionaire overnight, but it will bring in a steady residual income that increases as your portfolio increases.

Set up your own website and sell prints to customers. There are a number of merchants on the internet who handle all the web design and shopping cart technicalities.I have a friend who makes quite a nice second income by selling his landscape photographs of the Peak District in the UK. The best advice here is to find a niche in something you are good at, and focus your efforts within that area.

Sell your photographs to the local newspaper. Seriously, if you’ve taken any decent pictures of the local football game, or community event, then see if your paper will be interested in using it. This sounds like a long shot, but local papers (in fact, national newspapers) use freelance photographers all the time. They often can’t afford to employ more than one or two permanently employed photographers.

So, good luck in your efforts. Even if you don’t quite get to quit the day job, it is very realistic to attain a very decent second income which will pay for all the expensive lenses, filters and accessories that come with having photography as a hobby.

The author, Nick Bailey, is a pro-amateur photographer himself who earns an income from stock and freelance photography. Visit http://www.digital-photography-pro.com for more details.

What’s new in free web hosting?

Alot.

In days of old, free web hosting typically meant dealing with banner ads and using kiddie-corner administrational panels that put a major cramp in your style. In essence, your website’s pretty face had to take a hit in order to accomodate the advertisements that kept your free web host in business. On top of this you were denied access to all the yummy web development goodies that commercial web hosting packages offered.

Welcome to 2007 where free web hosting services are really starting to give commercial web hosts a run for their money. Nowadays, the kind of perks being offered up by some of the cutting-edge free web hosts are looking rather impressive.

If you take a good look around, here’s what you can expect to find:

1. No ads ~ Yes that’s right, free web hosting is no longer synonymous with the words ‘butt ugly’, as in the banner ads that hosts of old required you to display on all your web pages. Nowadays, free hosting with NO ADS is becoming more and more the norm.
2. Server-side scripting ~ Free web hosts are now starting to acknowledge that some freebie hunters have advanced webmastering skills. This means doing away with those front-end teletubby page wizards and providing a means to tinker around with complex back-end web development solutions using server-side scripting –most particularly PHP, Perl and SSI. This kind of support was unheard of four or five years ago.
3. MySQL databases ~ Another no-show in free hosting packages of yesteryear was MySQL databases which play a big role in allowing websites to move from static one-dimensional to dynamic interaction. The advance guard of free hosting are starting to include MySQL support among their growing list of bells and whistles.
4. Auto-script installation ~ To slap a little icing on free PHP/MySQL support thing, some hosts actually provide free automated script installations for blogs, forums and content management systems. This means you don’t have to be a propellor head (nor have a plug nickel in your pocket) to set up a Wordpress blog.
5. FTP access ~ The file manager wizards offered up by old school free hosts (mentioning no names, of course) are slow, klunky and have limited capabilities. Can we say ‘FTP access’? Yes that’s right. This is also becoming the norm among freebies.
6. Domain name hosting ~ The quintessential giveaway that you didn’t have the green to make the paid web hosting scene was a home page URL that looked something like: myname.cheapo-free-host.com. Nowadays, many companies offering free hosting packages are also allowing you to host your own domain name (and at no extra charge).
7. User support forum ~ What!? Free hosting with a technical support forum? Yes, in fact, I’ve seen some free hosts in recent years offer better technical support than some web hosting packages that I actually paid for. User support forums are rapidly becoming a standard especially since many free web hosts keep themselves alive by running a “post-for-hosting” business model (ads are displayed on forums which they require users to regularly post to in order to retain their hosting packages).

Some free web hosts actually provide all of the above and with no obligatory forum posting. However, you should never forget that the bottom line is all web hosting (brace yourself) COST$ MONEY. Hence, if a web host is not making money off ads displayed on users’ web pages nor on forums that they require users to regularly post to then their cash flow is entirely dependent on ‘upselling’ the freebies to paid hosting solutions. (Which can be a tough sell if the freebie hunters are dug in like ticks on a hound because they’re not too fussy about things like guaranteed uptime or high bandwidth allotment.)

Keeping that in mind, your best bet is to go with a free web host that appears to have some solid means of remaining solvent otherwise they’ll tank before they see out their first six months (seen it happen many times). Oh yeah and guess who goes down with the ship?

One final note about free hosting in 2007… Despite the vast improvement in the bells and whistles being offered up by the freebies, a couple of things you’ll probably never see are:

• High bandwidth and disk space allotments
• Uptime guarantees (yeah right… that’ll be the day… *chuckle*)

For those two amenities, you’ll definitely have to lay some cash on the barrel. Fortunately, the winds of change have also blown through the ranks of commercial web hosting. You can now buy a kick-ass web hosting package with tons of bandwidth, tons of disk space, multiple domain hosting, 99.9% guaranteed uptime and more goodies than you can shake a stick at for less than $10 a month.

Robert Darrell currently hosts his websites (and those of his clients) at Lunarpages, his commercial web host of choice. Please visit http://www.golunarpages.com/ for more information.

Robert is at the helm of Iron Spider Web Design and Resource Center where he provides tutorials covering all aspects of web design including Best Free Web Hosting.

How do I handle a “Portfolio Career” - having many different careers? What are my suggested approaches to starting, organizing, handling time management and other concerns? In this article, I share some of the “how’s” that have worked for me. These are beliefs, tools and ideas that I use. However, just remember that each person is unique and will have different ways of approaching the exciting life style of having a “Portfolio Career.”

Beliefs:

1. It takes courage and a willingness to risk to make positive changes. It is usually some form of FEAR that keeps us from pursuing our passions. List some fears that may be holding you back.

2. “When the student is ready, the teacher appears.” I feel strongly - and it has always worked for me - that when we need to know something or someone, or have picked an area of interest, the right person with the appropriate message will appear. What do you need or want to learn?

3. Speaking of learning, I feel that to stay vital and excited about our lives and our careers, we should practice continual learning through books, tapes, classes, seminars and exposure to stimulating events, exhibits, etc. What learning “action steps” will you take in the future?

Tools:

1. Organize in a way that works for you. I use a PDA (Palm Pilot), many file folders, post-it notes, an excellent contact manager (ACT), financial program (QuickBooks), e-mail, and my computer. What saves me is keeping caught up - on phone calls, filing, putting things where they belong, planning, doing many things at the same time, yet devoting an intensity to all I do. What works for you - or could work for you?

2. Join Professional Organizations. For every career imaginable, there is an association or organization with members who have something to do with that career. The resources are boundless. You share ideas, tricks of the trade, networking for opportunities, friends, associates, and give and receive more than you can imagine. A terrific organization that helps everyone is Toastmasters International. To get a listing of clubs in your area, visit their website. Visit several clubs to get an idea of the flavor and strength (each is a little different).

3. Put together a “Visual Portfolio” of your “Portfolio Career” as it grows and expands. This will serve as a selling tool for adding new professions and/or finding new clients. Keep testimonials, photos, articles, honors, awards, a list of achievements and an up-to-date resume (I use a functional resume as opposed to a chronological resume, but it is also acceptable to use a combination of the two).

4. Time Management: I use the “Put First Things First” system proposed by Stephen R. Covey in his incredible book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. This remarkable book will help you in all areas relating to your life, your relationships and your “Portfolio Career.” In addition, because most people who embrace the idea and style of a “Portfolio Career” are creative types, another excellent book about time is Time Management for Unmanageable People by Ann McGee-Cooper with Duane Trammell.

Final Thoughts: A “Portfolio Career” isn’t for everyone, but if it appeals to you, go for it! I can guarantee that each day will be exciting and new, filled with joy. Just remember to persevere, believe you can do it and don’t listen to the WB’s (Wet Blankets).

Chris King is a free agent, professional speaker, storyteller, writer, website creator / designer, and fitness instructor. Chris has what she calls a “Portfolio Career” — many different careers at the same time. If you wonder if you could handle and love having a “Portfolio Career” you will find a free assessment to take at http://www.creativekeys.net/portfoliocareertest.htm Sign up for her eclectic E-newsletter, Portfolio Potpourri, at http://www.freelanceliving.com You will find Chris’ business website at http://www.creativekeys.biz

What is suicide? Suicide is said to a defined as the intentional taking of ones own life.

For a very long time suicide was mostly associated with the adult population and as troubling as this was and still is, we have something else to be concerned about. Our children between the age group of 5 - 14 are fallen prey to this devastating act.

Statistics Canada www.suicideinfo.ca reflects that between 1993-1997, 229 Canadian children died by their own hands. To break down this statistic a little more, 2 boys from among this number were under the age of 10.

The fact that one life is taken is far too many lives to be cut short. Our beautiful children are carrying burdens that they believe that the only way in which they can remove those burdens is by taking their own lives.

Why do our children choose to take such a drastic step? Let us take a look at three of the reasons why they would choose suicide.

They believe that this is what is best for their parents.

As troubling as this may be and it should be troubling, it is a fact that one of the reasons why a child commit suicide is because they believe that this is what is best for their parents. It may be that their parents have been struggling for quite sometime to keep some food on the table. The child may reason within him or herself that if there is less mouth to be fed then the better it will be for the parents and to a greater extent for the entire family.

Pay Back

There is this belief by those who choose to commit suicide, that if they take their own lives then those whom they leave behind will “forever” be sorry for the pain and agony that they had caused them. The sad reality about this is that there is some truth to this assumption. Whenever a child and to a greater extent anyone within a family dies by suicide, the entire family suffers.

To Ease Physical Pain

When our children have fought valiantly against the pain of a chronic disease, in a moment of tiredness they turn their gaze into the direction of suicide.

Our children are precious and the fact that we know a little more about the reason why they would commit suicide, it will help us to help them never to walk down this road that has no cover.

Simply recruiting down line members is not enough. If you do not spend time teaching your down line how to recruit, you are heading for failure in network marketing. This is why it is essential for you to ensure that the system you have established can be easily duplicated by the people you recruited. If you use a system which is established, tried and tested, you will surly produce results matching your expectations.

First and foremost, remember that very few people are born marketers. The great majority of persons activating in home based business have learned the nuances of network marketing and very often they need a mentor to make things easier for them. This is why any successful home based business is the result of good network marketing specialized in a certain field. Good network marketing starts with a professional website. Without one, you will only find yourself struggling and on your way to failure.

Once you create your website, make sure it has a lead capture page, which entices the visitor to fill in their details. If you want to achieve success in your home business, you must be aware of the significance of this page. From this lead capture page you will soon be able to select quality leads specifically asking for information from you. In fact, all the money you will make online will come from these leads.

The next step consists in leading an auto responder to your webpage with some follow up emails. This will help you attract more people in joining your business. The recommended number of follow-up messages is between 8 and 10 over one month. This will efficiently work in your benefit, converting prospects into actual down line members.

Remember that people will enroll in your down line only as long they believe that your system is working. As such, your system must be efficient because it needs to be duplicated by the people you are recruiting. This is why it is even more important that you have your own website and not just a link to your referral. By sending traffic to your webpage you are capitalizing on your potential leads - thus increasing your profit. Do not aim at reinventing the wheel. Keep things simple and use an existing system. This is one of the key reasons of home based business success.

Jim Mack and Bryon Howell are home business experts that are launching the Wealth Magnet System in mid-April. To find out more visit Jim’s blog at http://www.jimmacktips.com and visit the company website at http://www.wealthmagnetsystem.com

These two home business leaders are ready to set the industry on fire. Wealth Magnet System launches in mid-April.

Exposition is the descriptive material that sets a tone to a piece of writing and introduces the background, the characters, and other facts. Exposition is better used in non-fiction, but the need for it can be crucial to the success of a story also.

Exposition in fiction contains necessary elements like time, setting, and background for the story. More than the exposition alone, what is inside it or the information in it is what helps the plot to take off.

A century ago, many novels included long expository pages. Authors like Henry James used long expository passages and narratives without dialogue. In contrast, what is expected from fiction writers of today is continuous energy. Readers expect their interests held on every sentence and section of a story.

In a recent book review, an experienced reviewer said, “Too much exposition mars first half of an otherwise engaging read.” In the stage play Urine Town a girl is stopped from telling too much, since “Nothing can kill a show like too much exposition.”

Expositions are sometimes called info dumps, especially if they are offered in extended mind-numbing paragraphs. Most readers skip them and read the story’s action and dialogue, or they drop reading the story altogether.

Still, some narration and exposition can still be very important to the modern-day story, as in Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code. Could Dan Brown have entered his narrative passages in an easier-to-swallow form? Possibly, but then he would have to write three or four books instead of one, and his readers would not be able to grasp the significance of the backstory in The Da Vinci Code.

Most of the time, what is written as exposition can be incorporated into the story’s action and dialogue. When exposition becomes awkward by delaying the action in the present and it doesn’t advance the plot and yet the information in it is important to introduce a scene or paint a picture, it is better if it is kept confined to a few sentences.

Let’s say a sunset is important to explain a certain mood. A writer may write as exposition: As the sun set, the pale blue sky turned into a grey threatening smoke. The fire of the sun, raging against departure, left the entire horizon in its reddish hue while the rest of the world was getting immersed in shadows. The birds flew back to their nests and all was quiet.
Or the writer might incorporate the same exposition into the action of the story as: Simone hurried inside the house when the sun set, turning the pale blue sky into a grey threatening smoke.
“Hi, Peter,” she called as she rushed through the living room to close an open window. The world was getting immersed in shadows while the sun raged against retreat and left a reddish hue on the horizon. “Where did you disappear, Peter?” Simone called out loud. The birds had flown back to their nests and all was quiet, but where was Peter?

Interior monologue is another way to blend the exposition into the story. Using the same exposition, the writer may use the interior monologue as: Simone made a tent with her fingertips and gazed at the setting sun that had already turned the sky into a grey threatening smoke. Did Peter need to disappear, too? On the horizon the sun was raging against retreat leaving the entire horizon in its reddish hue. Peter had shown no rage whatsoever. Soon the birds would flow back to their nests and all would be quiet, but she would continue missing Peter.

Another method of putting exposition into a story is by way of one character lecturing another one, as Sherlock Holmes did when he explained his mode of crime solving, starting with, “Elementary, my dear Watson…” In some brusquely written work, villains make speeches about their actions and plans to helpless victims. Maybe because of that, these speeches are called idiot lectures.

Whether exposition is blended into the action of the story or is used alone, the trick is to incorporate it wisely inside the story and not bore the reader with long tedious passages.

Joy Cagil is an author on http://www.Writing.Com/
which is a site for Writers
Her portfolio can be found at http://www.Writing.Com/authors/joycag

Keeping the bad guys or any other intruder out is not as simple as installing an expensive secure door. Windows offer the burglar a terrific alternative for access to your home. Window security enhancements are every bit as important to your home and family security as any doorway.

Intruders like windows for several reasons. First, because they are made out of glass, they can easily be broken. Obviously, this gives a burglar free roam of your house. Also, older windows are quite easy to jimmy open, or otherwise defeat the simple latch style locks typical in older windows.

Another contributing factor for burglars joy of windows is the privacy offered. Many homes have windows that are somewhat obscured by bushes or shrubs. Under the cover of a good solid shrub, an intruder has plenty of time to practice her craft.

The security of your homes windows can easily be made more robust with just a few simple tips:

Security bars - one of the ugliest and most destructive things you can do to your home, neighbors, and neighborhood, they absolutely will discourage burglars from trying to enter your home. They also add fuel to the proverbial fire by reducing property values and discouraging otherwise good upstanding neighbors from moving into your neighborhood. Then again, there’s the little problem of preventing people from exiting in an emergency situation too.

Laminates and films - these materials are applied to the glass and serve to improve the overall strength of the glass and eliminate shattering shards of glass in the event of accidental breakage. These types of films are available from many locations, they can serve multiple purposes such as filtering light in the summer, and they can be cut to fit any sized window you might have.

These protective films are not only a great deterrent for burglars, but they also provide a completely unobstructed view of the great outdoors. Even films that offer UV protection cause only negligible reduction in light entering your home. If you are having new windows installed, these film options are readily available from most manufacturers.

Which brings us to the subject of locks. Aftermarket locks are available to fit any window type or design available. They are generally very affordable, do not effect your view and greatly improve the security of your homes windows.

Lets face it, you home is only as secure as the easiest entry point for an intruder. Even in the most minor of intrusion incidents your family is put at risk. For only a few dollars, you can prevent regrets before they happen.

Dave Marx wrote Upgrading home window security for http://www.Vinyl-Window.net - A free resource for residential windows.

Thai people are extremely graceful in their movements and as a result their dances display elegance and fine movements. Traditional classical dancing is mixed with western culture nowadays but the old traditional elegance is still evident in Thai dances.

Thai classical dancing was a symbol which linked earth and god. It is said that they first acquired a dancing group in 1431. Later this dance form underwent a sea of changes and eventually formed a different dance style emerged with typical costumes and masks.

There are folk dances as well as regional dances. The two well known Thai classical dance forms are khon and lakon nai. In the beginning, these forms of dances were enacted specially for entertainment of the court and not for the common people. Later on a dance theater, Likay, another form of dance for the common people was developed which became extremely popular.

Khon and lakon nai are very stylist and strictly in the classical form. Where as the Likay dance form is not as elegant but depends on the common taste of the people and it is performed to humor them in a crude way.

Khon is a masked performance depicting the Thai version of the tales of Indian Ramayana, and lakon nai narrates different legendary stories. Earlier, khon dance was only performed by men and lakon nai was performed by women because of the vital distinction between the two styles. One form needed strength and quick movement and the other form required grace and restricted movement. Though, this rule is not maintained strictly in modern times.

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When entering the foreign currency exchange market known as Forex, an investor should have a plan. Forex is the oldest, safest and most lucrative investment market in the world.

The Forex Investor is in control of his portfolio at all times. There are few fees in Forex Trading and there is no threat of insider trading.

In order to be successful in Forex Trading, an investor will begin by educating himself on the many variables that are inherent to Forex. He should enroll in a reputable course in Forex online and familiarize himself with the currency market by setting up a demo account on one of the many online sites. A demo account does not require any capital, but it does train an investor in how to approach Forex trading.

A Forex investor must learn to maximize his profits and minimize his losses. He can do that by learning to analyze corporate and governmental press releases and economic forecasts. An investor must seek out and incorporate sound investment strategies and learn how to read charts and graphs pertaining to the currency trade.

Forex trading has the highest volatility in the investment market, and it is tempting to just jump into the trading and make decisions based on the spikes and dips in currency values, but a successful Forex trader knows that he must never buy or sell using his emotions as leverage. He never trades out of fear or greed.

To be successful in Forex, a trader should stick to a strategic plan that adheres to what was successful in past trading and what makes sense according to reputable strategists.

Milos Pesic is an expert in the field of Forex Trading and runs a highly popular and comprehensive Forex Trading web site. For more articles and resources on Forex related topics, online forex trading, trading tips, forex software and much more visit his site at:

=>http://forex.need-to-know.net/

There are many advantages to Forex trading over other types of investments, while regular stock markets are open during business hours, the Forex market is open 24 hours a day.

Trading cycles run around the world as financial markets open, starting in Australia then Tokyo, London and New York.

With most investments a large amount of capital is needed. However, with Forex, you can begin trading for as little as $300 USD. With this amount anyone can enter the market and begin trading a “mini account.

The Forex is a very liquid market. When trading Forex you have full control of your capital and it does not get tied up for long periods as it can with many other types of investments.

Forex trading possesses unlimited earnings potential. With a daily trading volume of over 1.5 trillion, The Forex market is the largest in the world.

Forex traders can make a profit during uptrends and downtrends and profit in either bullish or bearish market conditions.

Since each market is one currency against another, when you buy one you are selling another. This way it doesn’t matter whether the market is moving up or down as long as you choose correctly.

With some knowledge of Forex you can accurately predict the outcomes. Since currency prices generally repeat themselves in predictable cycles so you can see what the trends are.

Technical Analysis can be used to help see these trends and profit from them. Market transparency is another advantage in Forex trading. You can manage risk and execute orders within seconds. It is highly efficient and allows you to avoid unexpected surprises.

With a computer you can trade the Forex market anywhere, especially with sites that provide in-depth coverage of the Forex market.

Milos Pesic is an expert in the field of Forex Trading and runs a highly popular and comprehensive Forex Trading web site. For more articles and resources on Forex related topics, online forex trading, trading tips, forex software and much more visit his site at:

=>http://forex.need-to-know.net/