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October 2009

1 -- World Vegetarian Day
12 -- Columbus Day
12 -- Free Thought Day
13 -- U.S. Navy Day
31 -- Halloween

Dana Wagenals, founder of www.DialDana.com, proudly sponsors, The Amazing Race on KTVQ.
 

Man is so made that he can only find relaxation from one kind of labor by taking up another.
~ Anatole France

Real Estate Sales Remain Above Year-Ago Levels

According to the National Association of Realtors® existing-home sales have eased since July but remain above year-ago levels.

Existing-home sales -- including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and coops -- declined 2.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.10 million units in August from a pace of 5.24 million in July, but remain 3.4 percent above the 4.93 million-unit level in August 2008. In the previous four months, sales had risen a total of 15.2 percent.

“Home sales retrenched from a very strong improvement in July but continue to be much higher than before the stimulus," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. "The first-time buyer tax credit is having the intended impact of bringing buyers into the market, allowing them to take advantage of very favorable affordability conditions.

"Some of the give-back in closed sales appears to result from rising numbers of contracts entering the system, with some fallouts and a backlog contributing to a longer closing process, but the decline demonstrates we can’t take a housing rebound for granted.”

According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage fell to 5.19 percent in August from 5.22 percent in July; the rate was 6.48 percent in August 2008.

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Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.
~ Cicero

Teaching Your Kids to Put It Back Where It Belongs

If you have kids, chances are you find yourself saying, "Put it back where it belongs," at least 10 times a day. Following are some tips on how to get your children to help out:

1. Tell your kids what you expect and point out exactly where things belong. If they don't know where the baseball bat belongs, it's hard to put it back.
2. Make cleaning up a game. Challenge them to clean up their mess in five minutes; if they do it, a reward will be given.
3. Use rewards to acknowledge good behavior rather than punishment for bad behavior. A reward can be anything that your child responds well to, whether it's a treat, playing a game, or reading a favorite book at bedtime.
4. Create a "chore" calendar to act as a reminder and track progress. Kids love to check off completed chores.
5. Put up sticky notes or other visual reminders. For example, post a note, "Put the basketball back," on the garage door where they come in after playing.
6. Sincerely praise your child when you see them doing well. And brag up their good behavior in front of people your child looks up to.
7. Make putting things away a family routine where every member chips in at the same time every day.
8. Don't let your kids watch TV, play video games, use the phone, etc. -- until they've cleaned up after themselves. Make it as routine as brushing their teeth, taking a bath, or doing homework.
9. Be patient and persistent.

The younger you get your children involved in helping out and putting their things back where they belong, the more likely they'll embrace this behavior and carry it through adulthood.

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We don't know who we are until we see what we can do.
~ Martha Grimes

Understanding Radiant Floor Heating

If you've ever stepped out of a hot shower on a cold morning and were pleasantly surprised to discover a warm floor, you were probably experiencing radiant floor heating. Though this form of heating has been widely used throughout Europe and the Far East the past few decades, it has only recently become popular in the United States.

Radiant heating is a type of heating setup where the heat is supplied by electric wiring or hot water  tubes installed into or under the flooring, and sometimes walls and ceilings. While heating a room is the most common application, it is also used to heat water, swimming pools, sidewalks and garages.

Several reasons why people like radiant heating is because it doesn't dry out the air, it's essentially invisible, there are no noisy radiators, and most notably -- it provides a gentle and soothing supply of warmth with no drafts or cold spots. Unlike conventional forced-air heating which only heats the air, then quickly cools and needs to be reheated again, radiant floor heating warms everything it comes in contact with, such as your tile or wood floor, making it an extremely comfortable and efficient heating system.

Electric radiant heating is generally used to retrofit a single room, like a bathroom, den or kitchen. It uses coils of wire, or sometimes an electric mat, that is installed under the tile or other flooring often during a remodel. The electric radiant heat system is usually hooked up to a dedicated GFIC-protected circuit and a thermostat with an automatic timer to control the temperature and times.

Hydronic radiant heating is usually installed when a home is built and is intended to warm the entire dwelling. It does this by circulating warm water produced by a hot water heater or boiler through half-inch tubing that was set in poured concrete, installed above the subfloor in snap-in grids or grooved panels, or attached to aluminum strips underneath the flooring. There may be one or more thermostats to deliver the best comfort.

Radiant heating is more expensive to install than traditional forced-air heating systems, but once installed and running, it can be 20 to 30 percent more energy efficient. Other than price, the only other down side is that there are some limitations to the type of flooring you can install. But, when you take the high level of comfort into consideration, radiant heating is quickly becoming a popular heating choice.

5518 WALTER HAGEN DRIVE

Great home in Yellowstone Country Club Estates.  This massive property offers you all the room you need plus great outdoor living as well!!!

3122 Datura

Remodeled home located in Wilshire Heights.  This home boasts a gourmet kitchen, master with balcony, incredible multi-tiered deck, and much more.

5216 Black Stone Circle

Another georgeous Wells Built home with custom kitchen, gas fireplace, and tiled Master shower.  Bring your picky buyers!!!

Let us read and let us dance - two amusements that will never do any harm to the world.
~ Voltaire

Trivia Challenge

Question 1.) How many U.S. states border the Pacific Ocean?
a.) 3
b.) 4
c.) 5
d.) 6

Question 2.) Who wrote "The Picture of Dorian Grey"?
a.) Herman Melville
b.) Sir Walter Scott
c.) Mary Shelley
d.) Oscar Wilde

Question 3.) "We Are the Champions" was a number one hit for which band in the 1970s?
a.) Boz Scaggs
b.) Fleetwood Mac
c.) Kool and the Gang
d.) Queen

Question 4.) In which 1990's movie would you find actress Kathy Bates playing the character Molly Brown?
a.) Diabolique
b.) Dolores Claiborne
c.) Misery
d.) Titanic

Question 5.) The lowest point in South America, Bahia Blanca, is located in what country?
a.) Argentina
b.) Brazil
c.) Chile
d.) Peru

TOP | ANSWERS

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
~ Henry de Bracton

5 Essential Components to Optimal Physical Fitness

Following are the five components of physical fitness you should be aware of to lead a healthy, energetic and more productive life.

1. Cardiovascular Fitness – This is your circulatory system's ability to efficiently supply oxygen and important nutrients to working muscles. This is considered by many trainers to be one of the most important components because cardiovascular fitness keeps your heart, lungs and vascular system working at its best. Benefits can include lowering your blood pressure, increasing your metabolism, and decreasing the chance of depression and anxiety.
2. Body Composition – This measures the amount of body fat compared to lean body mass (bones, muscles, organs, water). Or, to put it simply, “How fat are you?” It is pretty much universally accepted that too much body fat poses serious health risks, including respiratory dysfunction, cardiovascular disease, heart disease, diabetes, and joint diseases.
3. Flexibility – This component is probably the most neglected factor to being physically fit. Flexibility is your ability to move joints or groups of joints through its natural range of motion, for example, bending down to tie your shoes. In addition, it also helps blood circulate to the muscles and nerves, and can help alleviate back and neck pain and other problems.
4. Muscular Strength -- This is your body's ability to generate a maximum amount of force during limited repetitions. This is the "How much can you bench?" component of physical fitness. While it's not important to be able to lift a house, health experts agree muscular strength training should be a part of your fitness program.
5. Muscular Endurance – This is your body's ability to exert sub-maximal force repeatedly over long periods of time. This is especially important for people who play sports or workers who have to sustain physical activity for long periods of time. It also aids in good posture, helps prevent injuries and increases your stamina and endurance for non-sports related activities as well.

The question isn't "who is going to let me;" it's "who is going to stop me."
~ Ayn Rand

Five Star Vegetarian Chili

Ingredients - Serves 6

• 12 ounce package frozen burger-style crumbles
• 30 ounces dark red kidney beans
• 30 ounces black beans – rinsed and drained
• 15 ounces light red kidney beans
• 12 fluid ounces tomato juice
• 29 ounces can diced tomatoes
• 3 tb. sp. chili powder
• 5 onions – chopped
• 1.5 tb. sp. ground cumin
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tb. sp. garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a pot, mix meat substitute, kidney beans, black beans, diced tomatoes, onions, tomato juice, chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, bay leaves, and salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cover. Let chili simmer for at least 1 hour before serving.

Wine Pairing

• Tenuta La Meridiana Barbera d'Asti Vitis 2007

The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will.
~ Vince Lombardi

Put a Firewall Between You and Outside Threats

The term "firewall" is tossed around like everybody knows what it is, yet many experienced computer users don't really understand its function. In short, a computer firewall is basically a secure and trusted program or hardware device designed to protect the resources of a private network from users on other networks by filtering or blocking the transfer of information packets.

Keep in mind firewalls aren't only for big companies with highly sensitive information. If you have credit card information, tax returns, passwords, banking information or other private data on your personal computer, you too should utilize a firewall.

A firewall works by setting up a series of rules to determine whether or not certain network traffic will be accepted or rejected. Many firewalls also monitor FTP, telnet and other types of connections that could leave a security hole in your system.

A firewall is especially important if your computer is always connected to the internet (meaning you have a connection other than dialup). Without a firewall, your computer is openly accessible to anybody on the net, leaving your personal information at the mercy of hackers and susceptible to harmful viruses, adware, spyware and other ailments.

For the average home computer user, firewalls are fairly easy to use and very affordable. In fact, many times a firewall program is included with your operating system. Obviously, a large company that maintains sensitive information will need a much more complex system, often with multiple firewalls for added security.

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Opinion is that exercise of the human will which helps us to make a decision without information.
~ John Erskine

Cool/Free/Fun/Trendy: ScribeFire

If you've been looking for a Firefox plugin to quickly and easily update your blogs – yes, that's blogs with an 's' at the end as in multiple – check out ScribeFire. This handy blogging tool supports WordPress, LiveJournal, Xana, MySpace, Drupal, Blogger, and many others.

ScribeFire is free, easy to use, and makes submitting your posts to multiple blogs a breeze. Learn more at: www.scribefire.com.

If you aren't a Firefox user, there are plenty of Internet Explorer add-ons and software available, some for free. Just type in "blog submission software" into your favorite search engine to find a solution that fits your needs.

Trivia Answers
#1. c.) 5; #2. d.) Oscar Wilde; #3. d.) Queen; #4. d.) Titanic; #5. a.) Argentina

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Dana Wagenhals
2029 Grand Ave.
Billings, MT 59102

This eNewsletter contains information, facts and opinions from various individuals and organizations. This eNewsletter is provided on an "as-is" basis without warranties of any kind, either express or implied. I/We are not responsible for any errors or omissions. Consult with your doctor, fitness consultant, attorney, accountant, or other professional advisor when necessary. © 2009 eNewsletterSolutions.