Best Bets Sometimes Look Like Losers

There are great dogs. There are lousy dogs. There are so-so dogs that spend most of their lives bouncing between Grade C and Grade B, never making it into the top grade, but hanging in there with enough wins and seconds to keep them from dropping down into the lower grades. You can make money on dogs like these.

If you follow dogs who never break into A, but hardly ever fall back into D, you can use them in quinielas, trifectas and Pick-3's, 4's or whatever your track has for Pick bets. The casual bettors - Friday Night Freddy and Saturday Afternoon Annie, won't bet on them, because they don't win that often. They'll go for the favorite at 8-5 with a win in D and C and wheel it to win in a trifecta or quiniela bet.

While you, the more experienced bettor, will realize that dogs that are coming up don't win as often as dogs who are moving down or dogs who stay at the same level by making the board in quinielas and trifectas, but not winning that often. I call these dogs "Bread and Butter or B&B dogs. So while Freddie and Annie are up at the window wheeling the "can't lose" favorite, you quietly bet a quiniela box with the B&B dog, the favorite and another dog that you picked when you handicapped the program earlier that day.

If your other dog runs in the money and the big favorite doesn't - which happens a lot - the quiniela could be a big one. I've hit some quinielas this way that were as big as small trifectas. It's certainly worth an investment of $6 when you see one of these dogs in a race with a big favorite that's moving up in class.

And if you have the money, bet the dog to win for $2. Every once in awhile, they do and they pay big. There's nothing better than having a winning ticket on a dog that most of the bettors overlooked. This is just one way to be a winner at the dog track.

How to Sell Your Timeshare at the Best Price

Many people purchased timeshare when the economy was good. At the time, it seemed like an affordable way to take family vacations every year. However, as the economy weakened, your financial circumstances may have changed. Maybe you are out of work, can no longer afford the annual fees, or just undergoing a cut in income. If this is your situation, it is probably a good idea to sell your timeshare. What's the best way to sell timeshare? Keep reading and we'll try to cover how to sell your timeshare at the best price.

Selling a timeshare is not as easy job as it sounds. It is simple for sure, but if you are not familiar with the process, you might not get the best price possible for your timeshare.

The single most important aspect of selling a timeshare is it's pricing. You need to price your timeshare very carefully. Price it too low and buyers will get suspicious and may be reluctant to make an offer. However, if you price it too high no one will even consider buying it.

What is the Real Value of Your Timeshare?

Understanding the actual value of your timeshare is critical in order to sell it. You can do market survey and see the price of other timeshares that are similar to yours. But this involves doing a lot of work and research. There are companies out there that have this type of information readily available. If you can't spend the time to do the research yourself, you would benefit by contacting a timeshare resale company that can provide you with this information for a small fee.

Also you need to determine if you have deeded ownership of the property or a Right To Use (RTU). These documents are critical in the pricing of your timeshare. You should also have your mortgage information, tax records, and maintenance details related to your timeshare. Possession of these documents will make the sale easier when you find a buyer.

Aspects Affecting Pricing:

1. One of the most important factors that determines the price of your timeshare is the location and your usage dates. And if your unit is studio, the price is almost certainly going to be less. The price you get will also be less if your usage dates are in the off-season for that resort. Another factor to consider is maintenance. If the unit was improperly maintained, your unit could be worth less.

2. Can your timeshare credit be converted for other purposes like obtaining airline tickets or trading resorts? If yes, you may get much better price as many individuals are searching for inexpensive timeshares that can be traded or converted to something that better meets their needs.

3. Just how much time do you have to sell the timeshare? If your RTU is about to expire, you may want to get rid of it quickly. This can negatively affect your price as consumers will realize that you are probably eager to sell!

So what are you waiting for, get started and sell your timeshare at the best price possible.

Keep Your Self-Esteem To Yourself

Walk into any bookstore these days, and what do you see? About half an acre of "inspirational" works: self-help manuals, guides to life, motivational books and books-on-tape-the literature of uplift.

Who are the "authors" of these molehills that make up a mountain? Doodlers with a knack for sugar-coating, for assuring us this is the best of all possible worlds, that man is the pinnacle of God's creation and that each and every one of us is endowed with touch of the divine, not to mention a generous helping of genius just waiting to be tapped.

Every age gets the philosophy it deserves. Ours is one that can be summed up in an advertising jingle: Feel good about yourself.

About 120 years ago, Ambrose Bierce, known today mainly for his Devil's Dictionary and as the hero portrayed wholly inaccurately by Gregory Peck in The Old Gringo, wrote a regular newspaper column in The San Francisco Examiner. America in the 1890s was, in some respects, much like it is today: on the brink of a new millennium, it was struggling with the idea of freedom-wildly optimistic on the one hand, terribly insecure on the other.

Bierce, who had a low opinion of humanity in general, had his own view of freedom. He thought most Americans unfit for it.

"I don't believe in the greatest good to the greatest number," he wrote. "I believe in the greatest good to the best men. And I would sacrifice a hundred incapable men to elevate one really great man."

Every age also gets the cynics it deserves. Ours has Andy Rooney, the Lovable Grouch ("Have you ever listened to cell-phone conversations?...")

The United States today is the Land of Importunity, obsessed with the Self. It is a place inhospitable to genuine cynics.

The true cynic refuses to place too great a value on anything, his own person included. He is not at home in this republic, which flies the flag of Self-Esteem. He is a stranger to the society of family values, forced geniality, compulsory inoffensiveness.

The Cynic's Creed goes something like this:

1) Put your faith in man. You can be sure that, sooner or later, he'll let you down. A corollary to this is:

2) Don't believe anyone, or anything, you hear without sufficient evidence. Depend upon facts, not emotions. And furthermore:

3) Avoid experts at all costs. Keep in mind that no one knows much about anything.

4) Face facts, however disheartening. Strive to look life squarely in the face. As Bierce wrote, try to "see things as they are, not as they ought to be."

5) Respect your limitations. Consider the possibility that you might not be the apple of some god's eye. Humbly admit that, contrary to popular sentiment, you cannot do, or be, anything you want. Even a milking-cow knows it cannot climb the Matterhorn.

6) Finally, don't worry about your self-esteem. You are as insignificant as anyone else.

Steaming the Bridesmaids

 Some of you will recognize this extreme from past weddings and some will think it crazy. My friend is Mother of the Bride and as she told me, the second most important person after the Bride. (Not sure where the Groom comes!)   So why is she treating herself as the least important person? She is organizing it, mainly as her daughter works full-time. Good excuse, must watch out for that one although I can quite see how it happens that you're at daughter's beck and call. My friend wants to be deeply involved and that's why she is. It did not just work out that way.    This wedding has been planned for 18 months. My mother met and married my Dad in 6 weeks. Forty years later they're still together. Have fun together and apart, that's what she tells me. She did think it odd that he wore two pairs of trousers, one over the other. He was working in the Far East, where the temperature was in the 100's and had come home to Liverpool where my mother snapped him up - at least that's what he says.   Have fun. How do you do that when you have not done it for ten years +? Doing things for other people all the time can be very fulfilling yet women with young children now are starting to get it right. They will work, some of them full-time after they have had babies yet they insist on time off. Are they selfish? They are sensible. They can see their mothers literally worn out by years of caring without taking a break and it's not only mothers. It is anyone who constantly does things for other people: workers in the voluntary and public sectors, people with their own businesses. Not having fun wears out parts of the body that you don't think about because they don't bother you, like ears. Wearing out comes with age or being a high performance athlete so why is a reduction in hearing such a shock? No-one realizes the impact of a disease until they have to cope with it. Exercise instructors and now the government have finally woken up. More exercise, more walking, keep the blood flowing. Gym rats, those with washboard figures who never had children, they can keep their walking like on a hamster's wheel. We need fun.   Like we used to. Like when we were children. We took everything at face value and never looked for meaning beneath. There is a lot to be said for keeping it simple.   Ten minutes a day. Will you join me? Tell me what you see when you're out that you would never notice from your car. You can meet local people, see the old man who forces himself to walk round the block every day because he knows he must keep the blood flowing, the shrub that is flowering at the back of the border and you haven't given yourself time to notice.   Start with ten minutes to yourself away from babies, anyone under 25 and anyone who wants you to do something for them now you have a minute free. Most people I meet, do not have hobbies. With me they have five minutes to work it out because it is a question on the form we're completing to qualify for Disability Living or Attendance Allowance (on hearing impairment). You can bubble it in your head for several days. Often it helps to sleep on it. What is the first thing you want to do when you get up? It can't be work. That means you haven't thought about it enough. Take a few days: it's your life you're thinking about. No worries if it is something easy like reading. The Library is free in the UK. I could spend my life in it. See you there.   The concept of having time to yourself in the day is hard to get over. Working people feel they should be out making money and non-working feel they should be out looking for a job. Stop this wheel spinning.. Try repeating to yourself "Slow this spinning wheel, I want to xxx. If you want to get off and change your career, your life, you only have one so it may as well be now. No worries if you cannot think of anything you want to do. We will do that next.   And my friend? The wedding is next week and I see a glimmer of hope. She showed me the bride's silk undergarments. When I wanted to know where hers were,, her lips tilted into a small smile. If I've planted a thought to treat herself, then it might keep her sane for the next week.

The Importance Of Self Affirmations

It was in May 2007 when I heard:

"How many of your have watched The Secret?"

I was wondering what is it that they are asking? Then I realized that it was a new DVD that was launched recently and although I have been engaging in personal development for more than 5 years since 2002, I am ashamed to admit that I did not even hear about it. It was until I visited a website with a link stating "Law Of Attraction", did I sit down and watched the preview.

All the things that are mentioned in The Secret is nothing new to me as it basically boils down to the law of attraction similar to what Earl Nightingale says in The Strangest Secret In The World that you are what you thinks about. I have been reading several books that was similar to it like:

* The Magic of Believing by Claude M. Bristol

* The Great Trilogy by Og Mandino

* The Success Principles by Jack Canfield

I then took the time to sit down and watch the DVD and after which, I make it a point every day to start practicing visualizing every steps of the way from waking up to having a great day; affirming that I have what it takes to achieve my success in life and at the same time visualizing the life I am going to lead after achieving success.

Honestly speaking, I can feel the impact on myself on giving myself the daily affirmations and visualizing how it feels to achieve what I am working towards to and it is something that everyone should do. Eventually, it is a choice in whatever we do. We can choose to:

1. Thinking of being health or sick

2. Be happy or be sad

3. Treat every outcome positively or negatively

For me, I choose to affirm that I have what it takes and couple it with persistence and massive action, I am sure that I will be able to achieve the phenomenal success I am working towards to. You too can achieve whatever you want too by affirming that you have what it takes to deserve it all.

I Believe In You! I Know You Can Do It Too!

Yours Believing

Matt Hughes Defeats Royce Gracie. Was It Fair?

Royce Gracie Vs. Matt Hughes

No one thought it would have ended the way it did. The legend went down.Looking back, one can't be surprised with the result. In retrospect, it was inevitable.

Matt Hughes has been training for nearly a decade for a fight with Royce Gracie without even realizing it. When Royce Gracie unleashed Gracie Jiu Jitsu on the MMA world in UFC 1, no one knew what it was or how it worked. By UFC 2 people began to see that there was a pattern to what he was doing. The years that followed sealed Royce's fate as a marked man.

Fighters were attempting to dissect Gracie Jiu Jitsu, but in reality they were analyzing Royce Gracie's application of the fighting style. Without setting out to do so, every fighter that wanted to evolve and step up his game by learning to employ and defend Gracie Jiu Jitsu was training to fight Royce. It became Royce Gracie vs. the MMA world.

To Royce's credit, he remained largely victorious in all of his bouts for years to come. But a man with a bulls eye on his back is bound to get hit once in a while. Matt Hughes was an on target bullet at UFC 60 where he bested the king and pulled out the most significant victory of his career.

But was it fair?

That's hard to say. Matt Hughes is a tremendous athlete with dedication to his craft and an abundance of skill. Add to that palette an army of trainers teaching students how to defend and counter Royce Gracie's every move, and Matt Hughe's victory becomes somewhat destiny.

In theory, another Gracie would have had a much better shot at beating Matt Hughes. Take a look at Renzo Gracie's incredible performance against BJ Penn, who has been touted as pound for pound the best fighter on the planet by many. Renzo fought tough and nearly pulled out a victory. His different style than Royce's may have been enough for him to gain victory over Hughes.

Royce is possibly the greatest ever, but even a bullet can be dodged when its target has advanced warning.

A strategy for Royce, which under normal circumstances would seem absurd, would be to do the opposite of what some of the Gracie Jiu Jitsu tactics are. When he should place his body weight a certain way, if he were to suddenly shift the opposite way his opponent would be totally thrown off momentarily. And a moment is all a boa constrictor like Royce needs.

I'll explain the tactic in the next post. I used it extensively on the AAU Freestyle wrestling tour a few years back. Until then, you can post your comments on Matt Hughes Vs. Royce Gracie at a blog on this topic can be followed at http://www.UltimateFightingChampionship.com