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Brian R Stephens - EzineArticles.com Expert Author
My name is Brian Stephens and I worked for many years in the oil and gas industry specializing initially as a production engineer supporting the design and manufacture of directional drilling and surveying equipment.
I progressed in the industry to become a project leader, department manager and ultimately a technology manager once I had gained a 1st class honors degree in technology.
During this progression I was involved in the testing and evaluation of new product ... [More]
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- 3 Key Aspects of a Search Engine Friendly Web Design
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] When first embarking on a new website design; an important part of the design process should consider exactly how the website is going to be promoted. This is particularly important if you want the website to be found by the major search engines.
- Cheap Christmas Presents in the Top Ten Lists
[Shopping-and-Product-Reviews:Gifts] Affordable Christmas gifts are going to be very high on the agenda this year for everyone. We are still in the grips of the credit crunch and for many people money is tight which means Christmas will need to be carefully planned.
- A Michael Jackson Mask For Halloween
[Home-and-Family:Holidays] I think it goes without saying that for quite a few years now one of the top accessories for a Halloween costume has been the Michael Myers Mask. This year following the death of the probably the most famous man on the planet will the Michael Jackson Mask take top spot?
- The Biggest SEO Blog Writing Mistake
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] Good blog writing is an art, it requires attention to detail, good grammar, good punctuation, correct spelling and great content. So what is the single biggest mistake a blogger can make when writing a blog post that is supposed to be optimized for search engines?
- Home Loan Refinancing With a Reverse Mortgage Lump Sum
[Real-Estate:Mortgage-Refinance] Most people who have owned their own homes for a long time and who may even have paid off their mortgage completely can still find themselves with difficulties making ends meet. So what do you do if you don't want to sell your home and downsize or take out a new mortgage with the associated monthly repayments?
- TheBest Skiing in Canada
[Travel-and-Leisure:Ski-Resorts] One of the best ski resorts in Canada has to be Banff in the Rocky Mountains and state of Alberta. There are a number of reasons for this and it is not all about the skiing, although that is obviously a very important factor. For Banff the quality of the skiing is beyond question but you can also enjoy great apres ski, a place with natural beauty and a little bit of history.
- Using an Online Forex Broker to Get the Best Exchange Rates
[Finance:Currency-Trading] If you are looking to move abroad and/or are seriously considering purchasing a property abroad, you need to be aware of the options available to you for securing the best exchange rates for your currency transactions. Many people choose to use their own or high street banks when they want to purchase currency for another country or region.
- The Best Web Hosting is Affordable Web Hosting
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Web-Hosting] To get started with your own website or blog, whether you are using your own dedicated and registered domain name or a 3rd party domain, you need to select the best hosting package to suit your requirements. First decision to make is what type of package do you want, there are 3 main options and a few options that fall into a little bit of a grey area.
- Specialized Online Travel Shop
[Travel-and-Leisure] How many people take themselves off on holiday or on a business trip only to find that when they reach their destination there are about a hundred and one things they wish they had done or got for the trip. It's not really that surprising because when you are preparing for your trip more often than not you are trying to leave your work in a position where things will run relatively smoothly while you are away, you are trying to organize the house so that you don't come back to a complete mess, plus there are services to cancel and a myriad of other things to sort out at home before you can go.
- Must Have Gadgets For Travel
[Computers-and-Technology:Personal-Tech] Any self respecting geek will not leave home without these 5 essential travel gadgets. Why, because no matter where you are in the world you want to have access to a way of having fun, second you want to stop stress in its tracks and third, most important of of all, you do not want to be bored!!!! So there are certain travel accessories you should not leave home without.
- Ways to Make Money at Home?
[Home-Based-Business] This is a question more and more people are asking themselves these days. The answer of course is yes you can, the Internet is one of the biggest reasons this is possible. It has changed the way the world does business and no self respecting entrepreneur will have failed to see this fact, that is why there are so many ways of conducting your business online and you don't even need to sell your own products or services, that is not what a home business means these days.
- Tomato Plants Care and Feeding
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] The tomato plant is one of the easiest plants to grow in the garden and is a great source of food for the family, they are both delicious to eat and promote good health. Learn how to care for tomato plants and you will be able to produce a lot of fruit throughout the growing season.
- Common Mistakes to Avoid When Growing Tomatoes
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] When anyone is first starting out to grow tomatoes there are a few common mistakes that are very easy to make. Nearly everyone who has gone through this process will make some errors if they don't do a little basic research first. To try and ensure that you are not re-inventing the wheel take note of these basic suggestions and make sure you do not get to the end of summer only to find there were some simple steps that could have helped you produce some lovely fresh tomatoes.
- Greenhouse Growing For Tomato Plants
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] There are a couple of ways for approaching tomato growing in a greenhouse, you can either dig and prepare the soil of the greenhouse ready to accept the tomato plants or you can grow the plants in a container such as a plant pot (12" diameter) or growbag. Realistically most growbags that are available which can be 35 or 40 litres in size are only enough to support two plants. There are ways in which you can push this out to 3 plants but for the cost of a growbag its probably as well just to stick to 2 plants, particularly if you take good care of them and produce lots of fruit.
- Tomato Plant Types - Vine Tomatoes Or Bush Tomatoes
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] Vine tomatoes are also known as indeterminate tomatoes or sometimes cordon tomatoes. These are the varieties that need to be pruned in order to limit the growth to a central stem consisting of around 4 to 6 trusses. The alternative determinate or bush variety of tomato plant does not necessarily need pruning but has a shorter fruit producing period.
- Using a Greenhouse to Grow Tomatoes
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] Many people have turned to growing their own vegetables and fruit at home. Often this is because they have become fed up of the mass produced offerings that you get in a supermarket that tend to be very uniform and aesthetically pleasing to look at but also rather tasteless. A great way of growing tomatoes, one of the most popular plants for amateur gardeners, is to utilise a greenhouse. Particularly if the weather where you live is not akin to perfect Florida sunshine and you need to provide a sheltered environment for your tomato plants.
- Mulching For Tomatoes Helps With Water Retention and Weed Control
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] The purpose of mulching is to prevent loss of moisture from the soil, reduce leaching of the fertiliser, suppress weed growth and keep the fruit off the ground helping to ensure that there is less risk of disease and fruit rotting. Other advantages associated with mulching are that there is less need for cultivation of the soil as weeds fail to come through the mulch layer, same applies to having to apply chemical weed killers.
- How to Plant Tomatoes and Care For Tomatoes When Greenhouse Growing
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] One of the main reasons for using a greenhouse when growing tomatoes is because of the climate you live in. If you cannot guarantee warm sunny weather for your tomatoes then you will need to consider using a greenhouse, this will help you control the climate for the tomato plants and give them a better chance of producing lots of edible fruit.
- Tomato Pruning, Is It Really Necessary to Prune Tomato Plants?
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] It seems as though sometimes when working in the garden that there are a lot of tasks that we do that one might sometimes consider as being unnecessary. After all if a plant was growing wild as nature intended they would not get lavish care and attention would they?
- Home Grown Tomatoes in Limited Space
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] Tomatoes are one of the easiest plants to grow at home and there are a number of options for growing tomatoes at home even if you do not have a decent sized plot of land to use. Many people grow tomatoes in containers that they can sit on a patio or perhaps, if space is very limited, they hang them from a support frame or convenient rafter.
- Finding English Speaking Property Services For France and Vetting Them For Suitability
[Business:Small-Business] Finding reliable people who provide property services in France for expats can be a little tricky. There are plenty of people who have moved to France and offer very competitively priced property services of all types, but establishing contact and being sure they are reliable is not as easy as one would think.
- Self Watering System For Tomato Plant Care, Yes Or No?
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] Everyone knows that tomatoes need to be watered properly to extract the best and juiciest fruit. But what exactly does that mean and what is too little or too much water for a tomato vine? There is a happy balance to be struck when watering tomatoes and one way of achieving that balance in a very effective way is to employ the use of a self watering system for getting exactly the right amount of water to your tomato plants, don't agree, well read on to see why.
- Tomato Plant Care and Essential Tips For Growing Tomatoes
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] Tomato plants are one of the most popular plants for any gardener. They are a ready source of food for the family, they are an easy grow plant and depending on your climate you can grow tomatoes in greenhouses or in the garden. Other options are to grow tomatoes in pots or in a hanging tomato planter. Whichever option you decide on you will still need to take proper care of your tomato plants to have a successful crop.
- Hanging Tomato Plants - An Option For Small Gardens
[Home-and-Family:Gardening] Tomato plants are one of the easiest and most popular vine plants to grow but, as with all homegrown vegetables and fruits, it pays to do your homework up front to make sure you can successfully grow your own tomatoes or any other vegetables. Selecting the right location and using the right soil or compost mix will set you on your way to successful tomato crops.
- To Refinance a Mortgage Learn About Obama's Mortgage Stimulus Plan Versus "Hope For Homeowners"
[Real-Estate:Mortgage-Refinance] Obama has signed off on a new mortgage stimulus plan that should in theory give millions of homeowners the opportunity to refinance their mortgages at a lower rate with options to fix the mortgage at the new lower rate. The 'HOPE for homeowners program' is a program introduced by George Bush which looks at mortgage refinance for lenders that are in difficulty and are struggling to make their repayments but have sufficient income to meet the payments on a new loan insured by HUD's Federal Housing Administration also known as FHA.
- Self Employment in France - Try Being an Auto Entrepreneur
[Business:Small-Business] 2009 has become the year for anyone looking for self employment in France and the reason why is the introduction of the 'Auto Entrepreneur System' which allows individuals to register and start a business where instead of paying tax on an assumed income, which may or may not have been realised, they only pay tax on actual earnings. It was pretty clear under the old regime that working on the black market was a temptation many could not resist because of the uncertainty surrounding whether you would actually earn any money from a new enterprise and potentially having to pay tax on a business that didn't actually take off.
- Do You Qualify For Obama's Federal Loan Modification Program?
[Real-Estate:Mortgage-Refinance] In order to help people who are having a hard time meeting their mortgage payments a new federal loan modification program has been introduced under the Obama administration. The program is intended for anyone who has high interest loans against their homes and cannot get refinancing from their current lender. This problem is currently affecting millions of homeowners so the financing that has been set aside in order to provide the levels of aid required totals $75 billion dollars.
- Home Refinance - Avoid Foreclosure Using the New Stimulus Package
[Real-Estate:Mortgage-Refinance] The clear intention of Obama's new stimulus package for homeowners is to prevent foreclosure on their homes. People facing problems when it comes to meeting their mortgage repayments can apply for either a loan modification or mortgage refinancing option in order to avoid foreclosure on their primary home and place of residence.
- Mortgage Refinance Down to 2% With Obama's Housing Affordability Plan
[Real-Estate:Mortgage-Refinance] Details of a home affordability stimulus plan have recently been released by Obama's new administration indicating that as many as 1 in 9 homeowners could be helped to avoid foreclosure and have easier access to ways of refinancing their home even if the money they owe on it is more than the value of their house. The details of the new stimulus plan had to be carefully constructed so that it did not appear as though homeowners who had been reckless in their purchasing were being rewarded after the housing boom had collapsed.
- Le Pays Lauragais - A Part of France Not to Be Missed
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] Le Pays Lauragais is the region that encompasses the Haute Garronne(31), Tarn (81) and Aude (11) departments in the South of France. I would imagine that most people are aware of Tarn, with it's capital Albi, as an area of outstanding beauty but are probably less familiar with the Aude and Haute Garronne departments, until of course the fabulous cities of Carcassonne, which is the capital of the Aude department and home to 2 world heritage sites, and Toulouse known either as the 'Ville Rose' or possibly the 'Cite d'Espace' are mentioned.
- Obama's Stimulus Package For Mortgage Refinancing and Loan Modifications Incentive Programs
[Finance:Loans] The US government under Obama's leadership have produced a stimulus package for mortgage refinancing programs designed to assist people who are facing foreclosure on their homes. The loan modifications incentive is in some cases geared specifically to people who are struggling with mortgages on their homes and is not intended to help out people who have houses sitting empty.
- People With Bad Credit Can Get a Personal Loan
[Finance:Personal-Loans] Loans for people with bad credit are a bit more tricky than for people with good credit scores, but that does not mean you will not be able to get a loan. It is possible that you may be refused credit a few times but don't let that discourage you, there will be companies that will work with you.
- Home Business Ideas For a Work at Home Opportunity
[Home-Based-Business:Network-Marketing] A lot of people think that a work at home job is some sort of mundane, envelope stuffing, boring or poorly paid activity and yes if that is what you want, it can be. But there are plenty of other alternatives that will let you work at home that can be quite enjoyable, interesting and rewarding, they can also be considered as free work at home jobs because you can set up and start your business with zero charges, assuming of course that as you are reading this then you already have a computer and access to the Internet.
- Earn Extra Cash - Build an Online Business
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] If you have considered at any time starting an online business so that you can make money at home and haven't done it, perhaps it was because you didn't know how to, thought that it wasn't possible or simply didn't feel that you had the time, then now is when you should re-consider. Its possible to start an online business completely free of charge and it can be done on a part time basis. You never know these days just how long your job is going to last or how safe you are in employment and it pays to have a contingency plan, especially one that will cost you nothing and can be started in your spare time.
- Which Webhosting Provider Do You Trust
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Web-Hosting] There are two key aspects to what webhosting package you should choose. The first is reliability because without reliability and approaching 100% uptime all the bells and whistles and cheap webhosting options in the world are not much use. The whole point of a website is that people should be able to access the information posted on it 24/7 with no interruptions. Once that is established then it comes down to the 2nd aspect and that is what you pay for the features you get i.e. value for money. Believe it or not there are still packages out there that do not offer php webhosting for instance, so there are cheap webhosting packages and there are webhosting packages that provide value for money.
- For Online Success Choosing the Right Domain Name is Crucial
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Domain-Names] So what is it exactly that makes a really good domain name, in fact to be successful on line its not just a good domain name you need it is a great domain name and understanding that will help you achieve online success.
- Google Cash and Other Income From Blogging
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Blogging] To many people who don't fully understand the whole concept of blogging, the thought of accessing Google's cash via an online diary may seem a pretty remote prospect. What they don't realize is that today blogging is serious business and can provide the potential for people to stop the daily grind of going to work in an office, factory, shop or other routine day job and to work from home.
- Holiday Gites France - The Self Catering Option For Your Holidays in France
[Travel-and-Leisure:Vacation-Rentals] There are numerous options available to you for taking a holiday in France ranging from camping to top class hotels. Deciding which is the best option for you can be a bit tricky but I am of the firm opinion that a self catering holiday in a gite in France is one of the best options available.
- An Effective Loan Letter For a Bank Loan
[Finance:Loans] Due to the recent credit crunch getting a loan from a bank in the US or the UK can be quite difficult particularly as a lot of people are now burdened with bad credit scores. There are still financial institutions that are prepared to give out loans and one way of securing a loan is to send a loan request letter to your bank of choice. For the best chance of securing the loan you will need to do your homework and make sure you put together a well composed, easy to read and sensible letter that provides the bank with all the information they need to assess your request.
- Some Great Holiday Destinations in France For the British Holiday Maker
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] Why would you want to spend your whole day on a plane, most of the time you are above the clouds and can't see the land beneath, that's when it is land of course and not some great big expanse of water. You can drive from the channel ports to the South of France, it will only take you around 9 hours and you can very easily turn that part of the journey into a sightseeing adventure and an enjoyable part of your holiday, especially if you maybe do a stopover for one or two nights.
- Monetize Your Blogs and You Can Make Money Blogging
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Blogging] Many people use blogs to write about their personal experiences, to communicate with their friends and family, especially if they live far away and of course to promote products and services. That is why some people consider them as an online journal or diary and others as a very effective marketing tool. What anyone writing a blog should know however is that with a few very simple steps they could actually start to earn an income from their blog. It actually doesn't take much effort to do this either and is very simple to set up, especially if you are using perhaps Google's' Blogger or Wordpress to publish your blogs.
- Urgent Private Personal Loans
[Finance:Personal-Loans] Most people reading this will understand that an urgent private personal loan is essentially an unsecured loan that is made to help you deal with a financial emergency that has arisen in the middle of your fiscal month i.e. between pay days, when you do not have the funds available to deal with that emergency. They can be used to pay a household bill that you suddenly realise is overdue for example or perhaps you need to repair a central heating boiler that has broken down when you have children to bathe and no hot water, the car breaks down and you have no other means of getting to work. These are all situations that require immediate action but need to be funded.
- A Great October Holiday Destination
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] If you are looking for one of the best holiday destinations in October then with average temperatures of around 21C or 70F the Languedoc Roussillon region of South of France should be given very serious consideration. Experience has shown that certainly through the early to middle part of October and sometimes at the back end of the month that the weather can be very mild and pleasantly sunny.
- Looking For a Loan in an Hour Without a Credit Check - Cash For Personal Loans Fast
[Finance:Personal-Loans] A way of getting cash very quickly is to use the services of an online lender, you will be surprised just how quickly this can be arranged. Potentially you can raise up to $1500 from a loan, without a credit check and have the money in your bank account within an hour.
- What to Do If You Can't Make the Payday Loan Repayment
[Finance:PayDay-Loans] Most of us have been there in our time, especially with the borrow now pay later mentality of recent years and the, until recently, ready availability of credit. You had a few bad days, its the middle of summer and the air conditioning broke, some guy reversed into your car took out the headlight and didn't leave an 'it was me note' on top of that the money for the school trip you promised your kid suddenly had to be paid. So what did you do, you went on the internet found one of those payday loans, filled in the form and asked for a bit extra just in case.
- Do You Need an Urgent Personal Loan?
[Finance:Personal-Loans] It is a fact of life these days that getting hold of a personal loan is much more difficult than it used to be. That doesn't alter the fact that emergencies still happen, cars break down, people get sick and need to fund treatment, accidents still happen around the home and the repairs cannot be left unattended. It is also a fact of life that not everyone has the immediate funds to hand to take care of these sort of emergencies.
- 5 Great Days Out in the South of France
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] One of the most gorgeous locations for a holiday is the South of France and an area that is hard to beat is the Languedoc Roussillon region. It pretty much has everything a tourist could want, wonderful scenery including the Mediterranean coastline, La Montagne Noire, the Pyrenees plus numerous inland lakes and fast flowing rivers. There is some fantastic architecture both Medieval and modern, examples of which are La Cite in Carcassonne and the Millau Viaduct near to Montpellier not to mention the famous Canal du Midi. Add to that the available sporting opportunities, such as skiing, snowboarding, horse riding, cycling, walking and white water rafting to name but a few and an area steeped in history that includes the Cathar fortresses, the abbeys and the historic sites of the Albigensian crusade such as Minerve and Montsegur. Throw in one of the largest wine producing regions in the world, certainly in France anyway, then why would you want to go anywhere else. So if you are visiting the South of France in this region make sure you don't miss out on some wonderful opportunities for a day out. Here are a few suggestions to get you started, 5 to be precise.
- Languedoc Roussillon in the South of France - The Secret's Out
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] The Languedoc Roussillon region of France holds a feast of pleasant surprises for the discerning Francophile. The region may not be as coveted as it's neighboring Provence but that in some ways adds to it's charm. Beware though, knowledge of this less popular, but equally spectacular, part of France is gradually getting out with more and more tourists coming to the area. Carcassonne, the capital to Aude currently plays host to 3 million plus visitors per year.
- Skiing in Zell AmSee, Austria
[Travel-and-Leisure:Ski-Resorts] If you are looking for a great place to ski or snowboard that has all the characteristics and charm of a stereotypical ski resort, then you should look no further than the Austrian ski resort of Zell am See. Sitting on the shores of Zeller See lake in the Saltzburgerland, Zell am See is a vibrant little place where you can get the ski lift from the very center of town to the top of the mountain. Here you can enjoy the higher slopes which are well serviced with numerous cafes and restaurants and then at the end of the day you can if you wish ski all the way back to the main town for a wonderful venue for your apres ski experience, where if you pick your spot you can take in the wonderful views across the lake (mostly frozen over in the winter months) to the backdrop of snow capped mountains.
- Skiing and Snowboarding in the Pyrenees
[Travel-and-Leisure:Ski-Resorts] This global warming is proving to be a bit nippy, there have been record snowfalls all across Europe in November 2008 which has meant that everywhere is enjoying a bumper start to their season on the slopes and the Pyrenees in the South of France is no exception. We have already had some great skiing in the Pyrenees and with the snow falling as I write this expectations are high for plenty more.
- Learn to Ski in Your Forties - It Can Be Even More Special
[Recreation-and-Sports:Skiing] I had always had an idea that I would like to ski right from being a teenager, I did the usual thing of asking my parents if I could go on the school skiing trip but found that the financial implications were a bit too high for my parents to manage as I was one of four children and money was tight. My next attempt at going skiing came quite a few years later when I was a member of the Royal Air Force and tried to take up the option of going on a forces led ski trip, unfortunately I...
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