Making Compost: Getting Your Hands Dirty

 

If you're a gardener then you should not mind getting y our hands dirty. In this line of work, you need to handle plants, soil, rocks, fertilizer, soil conditioners, etc. and not all times a pair of gardening gloves is handy. 

At times using glove can prevent you handling some delicate stuff. In this case, you have to get down on your knees and get your hands dirty. And nothing is dirtier that making compost.

Composting is a the process were biodegradable materials, usually manure and household wastes, are turned into soil-like output by combining them with a little air, water and nitrogen. Is that too technical for you? Well compost is a dark, crumbly, soil-like substance which functions as soil conditioner, mulch, and fertilizers. It feed your garden soil the microorganism that most plants need to grow healthy and strong.

When making your own compost pile, it would be ideal to find a place near your garden and yet it has enough concealment to not affect the overall look of your garden. Does that make sense? Just like one of the famous movies say “hiding in plain sight”. If such is the case, a cleverly painted compost bin would help make the area neater. A corral or a fenced area would do fine.

After setting up your composting area, you start composting by arranging a 3:1 ratio of brown and green organic materials. Green ingredients contain lots of nitrogen while the brown elements contain lots of carbon. Together, they form the basic foundations of a compost file. The green organic components of gardening include grass clipping while the brown components are the dry leaves and other wood products.

If you're worried about the possible bad smell that would come out of your compost pile, then don't. When the ratio of greens and browns is correct, you don't have to worry of any bad smell from your compost pile. Compost should have this earthy smell and not smelling like rot. If you smell the later then there could have been some things that might have been included in the pile or the ratio of the greens and browns components is not correct.

One way to make certain that your compost pile has jus the right combination of greens and browns components, is to get a pile of green material and put it in you compost bin. Follow it up with two piles of brown materials. Keep this gong until you have a nice pile of leaves and grass that measures about three feet. At this high, you probably have a base measuring 3 feet also. One good thing of having this large a compost pile is that the greens and browns can easily and quickly break down.

If you want, you could add in a bucket of already finished compost to the newly formed pile. This will help start the process and begin the microbial activities in your compost pile.

Make sure that you add enough moisture to the pile as well. Keeping the compost pile damp will help quicken the breakdown of the organic materials. Add water to the pile and feel a sample. It should be damp, somewhat like a sponge. See, I told you your hands will have to get dirty.

There is a need to turn over your compost pile at least once a week to keep it loose allowing air into the pile and quickens the process of decomposition. After two months, you should have decent quality compost by now. The original materials you used should no longer be recognizable.

As you can see, making compost is quite easy and requires not too much of your time.

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Posted by: Jose Amoros

How To Relieve Lower Back Pain Sitting

If you want to know how to relieve lower back pain then you are like over 100 million people in America dealing with back pain. More than likely your story is going to be the same. You have to sit at a desk in front of a computer for hours and hours a day. 

You may also have a long commute to work and have to sit for another hour or two while traveling to and from work. Much of the problem comes from having to sit for far too long. There might not be much you can do about those things but there are things that you can know how to relieve lower back pain and do it easily.

The first thing that you can do when learning how to relieve lower back pain is force yourself to get up and move around. Take some time to stretch your back out. This is one of the most overlooked things to do. 

Force yourself to get up and walk for 5 minutes every half hour to an hour.

When you do stand up remember to stretch the opposite way that you have been sitting. Place your hands on your lower back/hips and push your hips forward while your shoulders and head lean back. Hold that stretch while you sing the 'Happy Birthday' song (quietly) a couple times. Don't bounce when you stretch. Just hold it, breathing normally, and then return to your upright and straight position. While you are standing, walk around using good posture. This is key when learning how to relieve lower back pain.

What you will find when you want to know how to relieve lower back pain is that most of the pains that we have in our backs come from a lack of good posture. Don't slouch forward. Put your chest slightly forward and your shoulders slightly back. Your goal is to have your back curved inward instead of outward. Whether you are sitting or standing or lying down, it should look almost like there is a ball pressing against your back pushing the middle of your spine forward.

When you return from a little 5 minute walk, sit back down using that good posture. You will probably find it handy to have something behind your back to help it have the right form. You need to have something about the size of a rolled up fluffy towel behind your back. If you don't have immediate access to that or a small pillow or a piece of foam, use a few magazines or a couple of big newspapers rolled up.

As you are sitting have your hips as far back in the seat as they can go and your shoulders leaning more towards the back of the chair. Pull your keyboard closer to you if you are at a computer and have the monitor raised a bit so that your head stays somewhat level and you aren't tempted to roll your back forward and slouch. If you are using a laptop, get an external keyboard.

Not only will they work, they can be done with little to no cost on treatment and pain medication. These things are essential if you are serious about wanting to know how to relieve lower back pain.

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Posted by: Jose Amoros

Tai Chi Push Hands: A Two-man Battle

When you came to know Tai Chi, somehow, you didn't think of the other things and methods that it has to offer. Most often, people who are familiar to Tai Chi get to be introduced to Push Hands further in the program. 

Some Tai Chi schools will start on the very basic one-man show then advance to Push Hands the moment they are already familiar and adept to all techniques in Tai Chi

There is a need to discover and feel another's energy through exercise. 

That is why Tai Chi Push Hands were taught. It is somewhat similar to sparring but without the hurting-each-other sort of bit. No punching, no kicking. It is a sport made so gentle wherein your only goal as a team player is to upset your opponent's balance in the smoothest possible way.

First, participants will find a partner of their own whom they can share their talents with. The one beside you would be perfect. Bow at each other before you begin, just to show respect. Once the exercise begins, every participant's outside hand must be placed on his or her opponent's elbow while the inside hand is placed on the wrist. On cue, the match begins as the pair uses both their hands to push each other.

As one is pushing the other, they will have to concentrate deeply for them to be able to control each other's energy. Shoving, in any manner, is prohibited and is not advised during exercises. The one who will win the match is the one who had been able to overcome his or her opponent's energy and make the opponent stumble to the ground or loose his balance. Remember, this is not an exercise to of brute but an exercise of skill.

Students recognize the importance of Tai Chi in Push Hands because it complements the forms and meditations. If the task is performed in a correct way, every detail of Tai Chi can be reflected by means of the principles of yin and yang. Once Tai Chi is applied against an opponent, it instructs a different kind of balance, one that can't be learned in any way. Push Hands participants are taught that using such minimum energy is more advisable because if excessive energy is used, it will be exploited by the opponent.

An attack is always aimed at the center of the human's body. Diverting the attack is possible through circular movements. The body must always remain relaxed because if the body is stiff or tense, it will influence the center at any point. But if the person kept his or her body relaxed, the energy can be diverted or dissipated. At this point, reaction and awareness triumphs over aggression and force.

Push Hands aren't used only for exercise purposes but also as a sort of competitive agreement. Chinese Martial Art now asserted Push Hands in competitions and is featured in tournaments. Match formats are always available. It is often accompanied by strict rules regarding the flow of the game and how every combat must proceed.

Practically, a person aiming out to join in such a competition will have a different emphasis on the moves and styles. Unlike a student who is just practicing Push Hands because it is part of their Tai Chi program.

Someone who is in the competition must have a certain level of strength and speed and must also be equipped with the knowledge of every movement to assert the format of the opponent.

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Posted by: Jose Amoros

Young Hands Making a Difference

 

What is the more important goal of any kid? Well if you are a kid or have a kid, you can guess the answer right away. It isn't concerns about having enough to eat, where they will sleep or whether the bomb will be dropped tomorrow. 

No the worse fate that can befall a kid is summed up in one plea – “What can I do? I'm bored!”

It may seem like an odd suggestion then, to both the kid out there and to the ones charged with battling this dread affliction of “boredom” in the kids on our lives that there is one medicine for boredom that you may not have given a chance. And that is community service.

Now this may be a tough sell because on the surface, community service isn't a toy or a video game or something designed to entertain kids. It is something so much different from any of those repacked amusements. 

It's for real. Lots of computer games are made to give you the feeling you created something whether it's a city, an alien planet or a spaceship. But when you turn off the computer, that creation is gone because it never was real.

With community service you DO create something and not by talking to a pretend civilization on the computer screen. Oh no, what you create is real, it will be there tomorrow when you go back. And you are dealing with real people and solving real problems. All of a sudden, the kid isn't so much a kid any more. He or she is a valuable member of the community, just like an adult and there is not better feeling than that!

There are tons of other great reasons to get involved in community service this summer or as a hobby to replace the endless hours playing computer games. There is such a huge variety of things you can get involved with through community service that you can get your hands dirty on a hobby or an interest that you really want to be involved in. 

And you won't be just enjoying that great interest by yourself because you will be working side by side with other youths, older kids in college or beyond, young dads and moms and even grandparents all who don't want to sit home and be bored and would rather be out there being somebody for someone else.

Volunteering can even give you as much variety as playing games or fooling around with toys might give you and you don't have to beg mom and dad to buy you a thing. In most towns or cities, there is a community service coordinating group that will have dozens and dozens of ways you can plug in and do something for someone else. Some of the great ways you can pitch in and help out might include…

* Helping stock food that will go out to famine victims or hurricane survivors.

* Serving meals at the homeless shelter to families who really need the help. In fact, after the meal is over, those homeless kids would like nothing more than to spend a few hours with some new friends enjoying a simple game or just learning about each other.

* Help the Special Olympics put on one of their athletic outings. If you or your kids love sports, what better way to put that skill to work helping others than letting someone who isn't as lucky as you know that great feeling of winning a race or sinking a basket.

* Reading to a shut in or to the blind. You think its great hearing a story? You haven't had a thrill until you read it to someone else who has never heard it and you see their face as they enjoy every new twist and turn of the plot.

Community service gives young hands a chance to really make a difference to others in the community. But maybe the most important thing it does is it opens kid's eyes to how great it is to stop worrying about themselves and help someone else out for a little while. It is the kind of addiction your mom and dad will be glad you got into. And chances are you will never again complain, “What can I do? I'm bored!”

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Posted by: Jose Amoros

Homeschooling hours

 

How many, how often and when? These are some oft-repeated questions when it comes to homeschooling hours. 

Flexibility is of course one of the key underlying principles behind homeschooling.

This flexibility applies not only to the curriculum but also to the number of hours. 

It is only natural that parents, especially if they have just started out on homeschooling should feel that their children should be at their books all the time when regular school-goers are at school. This is not only fallacious but can also be damaging and counter-productive.

One of the most ignored but glaring drawbacks of the public schooling system is the sheer waste of time and energy that it causes. Many periods are simply wasted away and the child effectively derives only 1-3 hours of study everyday. Then, there are days when the studies become too intensive and other days when it's only games and no work at all. 

There is a lot of 'invisible wastage' involved here.

Early on in your homeschooling practice, work out a schedule. It is advisable to stick to the same hours everyday. A routine makes it easier to learn and gives structure to the learning experience.It also tells the students that parents are strict about their learning. A routine also allows your child to free his mind from other activities and concentrate on studies. He knows that a particular time is strictly set aside for learning.

The actual number of hours that you need depends on the curriculum you have chosen and the learning style that suits your child. 

If you are dealing with a subject that seems to be more complex, you may need to sit with the child for a longer period. Using various techniques, it may be necessary to demonstrate what you are trying to teach. For instance, a lesson in Algebra may take more time than a lesson in English.

Homeschooling does not refer to the practice of sitting in front of the books and learning the printed matter. Field trips, watching documentaries, visiting factories and libraries also make up an important slice of the homeschooling process. It makes sense to intersperse these activities so that learning becomes fun.You may want to finish off the few hours of textbook learning in the morning and dedicate the afternoons to these kinds of activities.

Given the fact that too many public school hours are wasted in meaningless activities ranging from talking to extra-curricular activities, do not allow public school hours to dictate the time you should spend teaching your child at home. Remember that at home, he is getting a high-quality one-to-one time that is highly productive. About 1-3 hours of study is enough in the primary level. It is of course true that the more number of hours you put in, the more learning takes place. This is also the reason why homeschooling children are much smarter and more balanced than regular school going children.

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Posted by: Jose Amoros

Hours of Operation for Truck Drivers

There have been various changes to the laws pertaining to the hours of service for truck drivers over the years. The most recent changes took place in April of 2007, and they were met with a great deal of controversy. 

The idea behind these new hours of service is to ensure all truck drivers get enough sleep and to keep the roads safe.

Yet for many truck drivers, the hours of operation have left them with having to split up their sleep time in order to accommodate their load times. In their opinion, this leaves them feeling more tired then the way the old hours of operation were. In many instances the hours of operation laws require the driver to get sleep when they aren't tired, but they are out of hours.

A truck driver can legally drive for a maximum of eleven hours during any fourteen hour period of time. Once that eleventh hour has been reached, the driver must rest for a minimum of ten hours. In addition there is a weekly clock that the driver has to abide by as well. No truck driver can legally drive more than sixty hours over a period of one full week.

Each driver has to keep a daily log book that shows their hours of operation, sleep time, off duty time, and vehicle inspection time. If a truck driver is pulled over by law enforcement or pulled into a port, the log book can be reviewed. If the driver is in violation of the hours of operation they won't be able to move their truck until they have had adequate hours of rest. They can also receive a hefty fine in order to help reduce the number of driver's with such violations.

Any time a semi truck is involved in an accident, the log book is checked over to make sure they are in compliance with the hours of operation. If they aren't, the driver will likely get a citation regardless of who was at fault for the accident. These penalties have quickly taught truck drivers and trucking companies that breaking the hours of operation laws just isn't worth it.

The issue of these hours of operation continues to cause problems for the entire trucking industry. Drivers claim they aren't able to make enough money due to the hours and there is a high rate of turnover in the business now. Many business owners have to charge more for hauling freight due to the time it takes to get it moved now. These costs are passed on to the merchant and ultimately to the consumers.

In July of 2007 the issue what taken before the United States Supreme Court. The Supreme Court struck down the option to return to the previous hours of operation laws that were implemented in 2005. The ruling was made because the judges felt the new hours of operation offer more safety to truck drivers and the public in general.

This is a debate that continues to get more support for both sides as time goes on. Many of the various trucking companies, drivers, and trucking industry support organizations continue to build a case that the hours of operation are unconstitutional. They believe it is costing them money and having a negative impact on the overall economy.

Other organizations fight to keep the hours of service in place. They believe it protects truck drivers from unrealistic demands of employers who are more interested in making a profit than the health of their drivers or the safety of everyone on the roads.

You can expect to see this issue in the courts again and again as both sides of this battle attempt to push forward with their information to make a case for why the hours of operation should or shouldn't be enforced. For the time being though truck drivers and trucking companies have no choice but to be in compliance with them.

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Posted by: Jose Amoros

How Does After Hours Trading Work

If you have asked the question: 'how does after hours trading work' it probably means that you want to start investing but for one reason or another the traditional hours the stock market is open, 9:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, just doesn't work well with your schedule. 

The first thing you have to keep in mind before you dive in head first, is that there are a lot of pros and cons with this type of trading and if you don't take some time to learn what you're doing, you could get burned... badly.

Find out all you can about after hours trading and then you can make an informed decision as to whether or not this really is the right way for you to go.

The first thing you want to do, if you don't already know, is to educate your self about stock market investing in general. There is quite a bit you'll need to learn such as what all the different terminologies mean and how to pick which stocks to invest in by researching the company and it's management to name a few. This is a step that cannot be skipped otherwise you will lose a lot of money. Lack of knowledge is the biggest reason people lose so much money when it comes to investing in the stock market. Don't be a patsy, educate yourself first.

When you are deciding on which stocks you want to trade remember that only the NYSE and NASDAQ are traded after hours. You can make trades on these exchanges from 4:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. You don't have this option with the American Stock Exchange.

When researching which stocks you want to invest in, try to identify those that have a lot of potential for growth. Even though after hours trading is a little different than if you were trading during normal stock market hours, you want to still look for solid stocks to invest in. The fundamentals of investing are the same with after hours as they are with normal hour trading. One good way to start is to take a look at stocks for companies whose products you use and like, then check out how steady their growth has been and whether or not their debt is low.

You will need to find a broker who offers after hour trading, not all of them do. Make sure before you choose a broker you know exactly what their fee schedule is and what you will have to pay fees on. Some brokers have a tendency to 'nickel and dime' you to death. Make sure you know going in what you'll have to pay fees on.

Since you will get a better price when selling a stock that has a lot of people interested in buying that stock, you will likely make more on your stocks if you trade during normal exchange hours. One way to protect yourself from the volatility of after hour trading is to place a limit order.

This is a basic overview of how does after hours trading work. To make sure your investing doesn't become a nightmare never be afraid to ask questions, and keep asking until you get an answer that makes sense, and educate yourself. Doing these things will help you achieve more of your investment goals.

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Posted by: Jose Amoros