This year I ahve spent a lot of time building a nice backyard garden. I have put in a pond and done all sorts of landscaping. I have planted various flowers and plants and it nhas all come together nicely I must say, but for a couple of months i have been noticing something has ben missing. I have been looking at all of the different home and garden magazines looking for inspiration and then it hit me. I needed to add some lights in the flower beds. I never really thought of it becuase all of the flower beds I look at, I see during the day. So i started my search for a lighting store online and found several. I decided to go with some solar lights that you just stake into the ground and boy it has made all of the difference. To do a large area was a bit costly, but well worth it. Now I can enjoy my creation at night as well as during the day. Its a wonder what a few lights can do to a garden.
November 2, 2009
October 2, 2009
Update On My Health Insurance Project
So its been a few months since I looked into trying a guaranteed acceptance health insurance plan to cover me while i worked out some health issues and transitioned between jobs. As advertised, it worked perfect for me. I did not have to submit any past medical information and i was approved instantly. Of course I knew going in that it would not be as comprehensive a coverage as a full blown major medical plan, but it gave me good piece of mind knowing that i had health insurance if I had needed it.
Now i am on the hunt for a good comprehensive plan. Now that my health issues are behind me and my job situation is stable i can explore those waters again and see what is out there. With all of the different carriers and plans available, I am afraid it my be a little daunting, but there are so many websites out there that surely i can find some good information or a good company to call. Most of these online quoting sites promote the fact that they have low cost health insurance plans available, which is exactly what I am looking for. I will report back with what I find.
September 28, 2009
Tweeting with Gorillas!?
From Reuters – Lurking deep in the mist-glazed forests of east Africa, Uganda‘s mountain gorillas are preparing to ‘tweet’ for their survival.
With the launch on Saturday of the “Friend a Gorilla” campaign, human fans will soon be able to follow the everyday drama of one of the few remaining 720 mountain gorillas online, far from the red ants, mud and tropical rain of their habitats.
When the friendagorilla.org site goes live, users will be able to access videos, pictures and rangers’ blogs through websites like Facebook and Twitter, said Moses Mapesa Wafula, head of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA).
I knew Twitter and Tweeting were popular, but now we have animals doing it…what will they think of next. At least this is for a good cause. Here is the full story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090928/od_nm/us_gorillas_odd
August 26, 2009
There’s a new kid on the Block
As an owner of a koi pond, I am always keeping my eyes open for new websites to either obtain information or find great deals on products. I recently stumbled upon a website called PondFilter.com (easy name to remember). According to their name and product depth, they specialize in pond filters and filtration systems for smaller ponds like koi ponds and water gardens. After doing some looking it appears this is a brand new store and after talking to the people there, they filled me in on the fact it is new ans ther are still getting all of their products added, but they are in fact going to specialize in filtration and water quality for small ponds. This is great news to me as I always struggle with water quality in my pond and it will be good to have another source to go to for answers and products. They also tell me they have plans for a great deal of articles and supplemental information to help educate us pond owners.
So, if you do have a pond, keep them in mind down the road.
July 13, 2009
What to do if you need health insurance but dont qualify…
I, like many others, have had issues in the past getting health insurance due to pre-existing conditions or other reasons and it was very frustrating. However, all of the headaches and searching caused me learn about alternative insurance packages called guaranteed issue health insurance. This type of insurance if perfect for people who dont qualify for major medical coverage as it is not based on medical conditions and virtually everyone qualifies.
While not as comprehensive and standard health insurance plan, most of the guaranteed issue plans cover the basics like prescriptions, emergency room visits, doctor visits, etc. However, many do have a limit to how much coverage they will pay for over the lifetime of the plan.
So who can benefit most from the guaranteed issue health plan?Any individual that cannot afford or obtain a major medical policy.This includes individuals that are considered “uninsurable” by the general market because they have cancer, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, a heart condition or severe depression or who have had these conditions excluded from their existing medical policy.A guaranteed issue health plan can bridge the gaps created either by one’s health or by one’s finances without creating a financial nightmare.
June 19, 2009
Jon and Kate to split?
http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/18/jon.kate.announcement/index.html
So TLC is publicizing that Jon and Kate of Jon and Kate Plus 8 have some earth shattering news that will be unveiled on the Monday episode. Speculation is that they are announcing a split. I dont know if I buy that. The way things are leaked to the media you would think that news my slip out and end up on TMZ or something first. Just seeing the way networks hype shows and “news” to gain interest, only to have the news be less than impressive, I am weary that this announcement will amount to anything. Maybe they will do what they should have done after last season and take some time away from the camera and work on the foundation of the family.
May 28, 2009
Need a vacation
Now that summer is approaching I have started looking for vacation destinations that are kind of off the beaten path, not too expensive and access to outdoor fun. While surfing the web, I came a cross a place called Deer Lake Cabins, located in East Texas. Now I have heared of East Texas and how it is a pretty unique area. So I started looking into this Deer Lake Cabins place and found out it is actually part of a Texas Guest Ranch. There is something like 800 total acres of which part of it is used to train cutting horses. There are several ponds, two of which are large with good fishing. Several of the cabins are located on the water fron of the bigge pond (Deer Lake). They also show to have boats to rent and ranch vehicles to drive all over the property. Based on pictures on their website, wildlife is pretty common, with deer being very abundant.
So, it is looking very likely that a weekend trip to Deer Lake Cabins may be in order this summer.
April 23, 2009
As a follow up to my health insurance issues…
So I finally did find a good place for affordable health insurance. It was through a website called Whataquote.com. I was really impressed with the quoting process becuase it would give me a basic quote, but then let me changes certaing variable to adjust the cost, which really helped me fit a plan for my budget. After I customized the plan I liked an agent was quck to get intouch with me to help iron out the details and further explain the plan and really make sure I knew what I was getting into. This was extremely helpful as some of this insurance stuff is confusing to me and after talking with the agent I felt really comfortable about the plan I was getting and now I have myself a new health insurance plan that is costing me less money that my previous one.
I will have to remember this site whenever I go to adjust my life insurance next.
April 10, 2009
I hate health insurance jargon
Have you ever been shopping for a new health insurance plan or simply reiewing your current plan and come across phrase after phrase that made no sense to you? Well, you are not the only one. My recent efforts to become more educated about health insurance in hopes of securing a better, more affordable plan has been annoying to say the lease since I am constantly having to look up various health insurance terms. I now have a solution to that problem. I found a website called Ehealthmenu.com that has full blown glossary of health insurance terms and their definitions. It is great having one place to go to find definitions for just about anything related to health insurance.
Now I just need to find a good place to get a good plan.
April 8, 2009
Antibacterial Disinfectant
So much is on the news and internet these days about the health risks associated with with bacteria and germs and even the health effects of mold and mildew. Of course there are sanitizers on the market that say they kill these germs, but at what cost to our health and environment. Most of these products are chemicals that can be dangerous like chlorine and bleach. SaniDate RTU is a new antibacterial disinfectant that is chlorine free and promotes the fact that is kills 99.9% of bacteria including harmful pathogens like salmonella, e-coli and staph. The important thing about this product is that it works fast and breaks down quickly leaving no toxic residue behind. It comes in an easy to use spray bottle. You basically spray and walk away and allow to air dry. Within a few minutes the surface is sanitized and disinfected and you didn’t have to use any potentially harmful chemicals.