Jetev Weblog

Coming up with fly fishing gift ideas is a surprisingly simple task. Here are a few fly fishing gift ideas that will make great Christmas presents.

Fly Fishing Gift Ideas

Fly fishing is much more than just a rod, fly, water and fish. Don’t scoff. This is true and gives you plenty of fly fishing gift ideas for Christmas presents.

1. Wading Staff - Picture it in your mind. A clear, green river flowing through majestic trees. The sun filtering through the leaves of the shadowy banks. A fly fisherman wading out into the stream…slipping and falling on his butt in the water. Ahhh, it was going so well! A Fly Fishing Wading Staff can keep derrieres dry by giving you something to support yourself while walking across wet rocks and slimy things in the deep. Typical staffs retract into a shorter stub for easy packing. Expect to pay between $40 and $60 for something of solid construction. A great fly fishing gift.

2. Quick Seine Nets - Ask a fly fisher about how to pick the best fly for a location and you’ll get a lecture on nymphs. By nymphs, I mean the insects, not the randy historical figures. With fly fishing, insects tell the story on rivers. The Quick Seine Nets are tailored to help fisherman quickly and easily analyze the insect population at a fishing spot. The nets act like a sieve in the water and let you scoop up the local insect population. The size of a racquetball racket, you can free hand them or attach them to your fish nets. Quick Seine Nets come in a few sizes, but cost no more than $25. Just plug the name into a search engine to see the selection.

3. The Trout King - This book is the equivalent of the Shootout at the O.K. Corral for fly fishing enthusiasts. The story revolves around a fly fishing tournament in an out of the way location. The undefeated local angler goes against an out of town visitor. Both hate to lose. The friendly competition turns serious and the pages just start flipping buy. You can buy it online at any bookstore for $15 or so.

4. Nomad Fly Fishing Journals - A little self-promotion here. Nomad Fly Fishing Journals are compact writing journals that let anglers keep notes on their efforts. They can note the fishing conditions, which flies worked the best, who the fished with and notes on what they should do differently next time. You can click the link at the bottom of this article to see the journals and expect to pay $25 for the journal and waterproof case.

Frankly, it is pretty hard to go wrong when buying fly fishing gifts. Any of the above fly fishing gift ideas will make great Christmas presents.

Rick Chapo is with NomadJournals.com - makers of diary and writing journals for fly fishing. Visit NomadJournalTrips.com to read more articles about fly fishing and the great outdoors.

Are you using testimonials in your marketing? If not, you
are missing one of the most successful forms of marketing
ever used. Adding a testimonial to your current marketing
material can not only increase your sales, but more
importantly, increase your credibility!

Adding testimonials can greatly increase the power of
your marketing program, if done correctly. Done correctly?
How hard can it be to add a testimonial, you say? Read on
and learn how you can increase the power of your testimonial
by ten-fold and avoid the most common marketing mistake
many top oline sites make.

Browse around some of your favorite websites and see how
many testimonials from satisfied customers are prominently
displayed. I bet many of them are lacking the most important
part. Contact! How many times have you come across a page
full of testimonials that are listed like the following
example:

Great products and services! I will recommend you to
everyone I know. Your services are fantastic.
D.S. - Wilkes Barre, PA

Wow, that’s believable…Not! Who is D.S. and why should I
believe this person? When you are using a testimonial on your
site, or for any form of marketing for that matter, include
as much information about the person as you can.

How much more credible do you think the above testimonial
would be if it had the full name, email address and URL, if
available, of the author? Ten times or more! If you are
concerned about people blasting your customers with email
asking about your business, don’t be. Most people will
not bother to email them. Just the fact that they could is
all the support your testimonial needs.

When you receive a testimonial from a customer or a happy
visitor, respond and thank them! Ask them if it would be
okay to use their kind words on your site. Be sure to tell
them you will give them full credit for their testimonial
with a link.

Leery about asking for your customers’ permission?

Most people will be glad to let you post their testimonial.
In fact, I bet most would appreciate the link. Always ask
before posting comments on your site or including them in
your marketing material.

You will be surprised at how far a testimonial can go in
the eyes of your prospects. One great bonus is the fact
that there is absolutely no cost! Nothing beats a personal
recommendation.

I hope you re-evaluate your use of testimonials and if you
have never used them, start. They could make you rich!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

David Seitz
CEO and President Virtual Imagination Inc.
http://www.virtual-imagination.com/
“Subscribe to the FREE Award Winning Helping Hand Internet
Marketing Newsletter Today For More Great Articles and
Tips Just Like This!” mailto:subscribe@associatesearch.com
http://www.helpinghand-newsletter.com/

Did you know? One year of disability can wipe out 10 year’s worth of savings.

Other interesting things to know about disability:

- 7 out of 10 people between the ages of 35 and 65 become disabled for three months or longer.

- The average length of disability lasting longer than 90-days is 36 Months.

- Most American families have only enough money in savings to cover two months worth of bills.

- In 2000, wage and productivity losses from unintential injuries was $259.8 billion (Statistical Abstract of the US: 2002)

- The maximum Social Security disability payment for 30-yr old earning $70,000 per year is just $1600 per month.

- To be eligible for Social Security disability, your disability must last at least 12 months.

- Social Security Disability will only pay an approved claim after a minimum of 5 months have passed.

So if you suddenly become disabled… how would you pay your bills?

What is disability?

The Random House Webster’s Dictionary of American English defines disability as:
“Lack of adequate strength or ability; incapacity; a physical or mental handicap; anything that disables or puts one at a disadvantage”

The Social Security Administration defines disability this way:
“The inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months.” Emphasis Added

Simply put: Disability generally means that you are unable to work. And Social Security Disability means you are unable to work at anything.

Disability can happen at any time, to anyone - regardless of race, religion, gender or profession.

Sometimes people become disabled dur to injuries received in a car accident. And sometimes it’s a simple matter of getting hurt while participating in sports, or improving your home in your off hours.

A very common injury that can cause you to become unable to work, is a back injury. And back injuries can happen simply by moving furniture, working in a garden, or fixing a leak in your roof.

Other people become unable to work due to an illness or the onset of a disease: Like diabetes, stroke, or heart attack. And even pregnancy can cause some females to become unable to work: If the pregnancy develops other complications that require the woman to stay in bed, she is unable to work.

This Can Happen to You Too.

Unfortunately, people often assume that just because they’re healthy, they can’t become disabled. And that’s simply not true. Accidents happen. So being healthy doesn’t usually have anything to do with whether you become disabled.

Let’s look at some undeniable facts:

- In 2000, wage and productivity losses from unintentional injuries was $259.8 billion (Statistical Abstract of the US: 2002)

- In 1999: 338,000 people were injured in a fall

- In 1999: 141,000 people were injured due to overexertion

- In 1999: 338,000 people experienced sprains and strains

And just a few of the ways these injuries happened included:

- Hand and power saws

- Hammers

- Kitchen flatware

- Beds

- Tables

- Ladders

- Rugs and Carpets

- Footwear

- Bicycles

- Swimming Pools

If you’d like to know more about disability and various ways you can protect yourself and your family, read the rest of this report online.

© 2004, Kathy Burns-Millyard. This article is provided courtesy of Electronic Perceptions Marketing - You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author name and URL remain intact.

Onyx is gaining popularity as an interior design material for properties in the top end of the residential and commercial market. Onyx is quite rare, compared to other natural stones, which is partly responsible for the relatively high prices it commands. It is also considered to be a semi-precious natural stone, along with alabaster and lapis lazuli.

Its main attractions are translucency, colour and natural pattern. Translucency makes onyx a unique natural stone and helps create outstanding interior designs. Onyx is typically highly polished to enhance its natural translucency. It comes mainly in white, yellow (or honey), brown, pink and green colours. The most popular colours are currently white and honey, the latter being chemically similar to white onyx with an addition of iron oxides. White onyx originates mainly from Persia and honey onyx is quarried mainly in Turkey.

Natural patterns of onyx form unique and intricate designs. When lit up, patterns become almost three dimensional. Back lit onyx panels are very popular interior design elements, especially when made of yellow or brown onyx. They are particularly recommended for bars and restaurants where lighting is usually dim. However, even in a well lit room such panels will stand out. The richness of the pattern is very important. Other popular items often combined with appropriate lighting include lamp stands, table tops, bar stands, skirting, windowsills and stair risers. Even a small item can make a lot of difference to a room.

Onyx also used for wall cladding and various stonework, including bath surrounds and vanity units. It is similar to marble in this sort of applications. In many cases, marble or limestone may be more appropriate. Your natural stone supplier should recommend most suitable materials, giving consideration also to the technical characteristics of different natural stones. It has to be said that onyx is quite a delicate natural stone. Thin panels made of onyx could also be experimented with as an alternative to stained glass windows, gain due to translucent properties of onyx.

Written by Erika Hansen. Erika provides interior design advice to Stoneville (UK) Ltd. More info on onyx and other natural stones can be found at
http://stoneville.co.uk/

I personally struggle with the term “managing people”, because I firmly believe that people cannot be managed - only processes and systems can. How many times have you heard it said - “Why won’t my employees just do as they are asked?”

Despite all our best efforts at “managing”, we have very little control over other people’s actions, including the people that work with or for us. We can inspire, motivate, guide or threaten them, but the choice to act in a certain way is up to the individual.

Today’s workplaces are complex environments - it is a rare occasion when all employees get on together and work enthusiastically and constructively to achieve the goals of the business. Problem behavior on the part of employees can erupt for a variety of reasons. Here are ten tips for dealing with it.

1. Recognize that problem behavior usually has a history

It usually develops over time and seldom from a single incident. As a manager, it is your responsibility to be alert to the early warning signs and deal with the underlying causes before the situation reaches a crisis.

2. Ask yourself: “Am I partly or wholly responsible?”

If the problem is in your team, then you are at least partly responsible for it. Perhaps you were blind to the signs the individual was undoubtedly leaving you, or you chose to ignore them and hope they would go away. Perhaps you hadn’t been managing that individual’s performance on a regular basis, and so missed an opportunity to discover the problem earlier. Whatever the reason, responsibility lies with you in some part.

You would be surprised how frequently it is the manager who has created, or at least contributed to problems of employee behavior. Having an abrasive style, being unwilling to listen, and being inattentive to the nuances of employee behavior are all factors that contribute to the manager’s need to thoroughly examine what is going on.

3. Don’t focus only on the overt behavior

When confronted by an angry or upset employee, it’s easy to attack the person and target their behaviour rather than examine the factors that underlie the behavior. Often, this takes patience, careful probing, and a willingness to forgo judgment until you really understand the situation.

4. Be attentive to the “awkward silence” and to what is not said

When an employee is obviously reluctant to communicate, it’s almost a sure sign that more lurks beneath the surface. Often, employees will hold back because they feel unsafe. They may test the waters by airing a less severe or kindred issue in order to see what kind of a response they get. In order to get the full story and encourage forthrightness, the manager has to read between the lines and offer the concern and support necessary to get the employee to open up.

5. Clarify before your confront

Chances are, when an issue first surfaces, you will be given only a fragmentary and partial picture of the problem. You may have to dig deep to surface important facts, and talk to others who may be involved. One safe assumption is that each person will tend to present the case from his or her viewpoint, which may or may not be the way it really is. Discretion and careful fact-finding are often required to get a true picture.

6. Be willing to explore the possibility that you have contributed to the problem

This isn’t easy, even if you have reason to believe it’s so, because you may not be fully aware of what you have done to fuel the fire. Three helpful questions to ask yourself:

• Is this problem unique, or does it have a familiar ring as having happened before?,

• Are others in my organization exhibiting similar behaviors?, and finally,

• Am I partially the cause of the behavior I am criticizing in others?

•

Once you understand how you have contributed, you can decide to take action yourself to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

7. Plan your strategy

Start by defining, for yourself, what changes you would like to see take place, then, follow this sequence:

Meet with the person and let them know that there is a problem.

State the problem as you understand it and explain why it is important that it be resolved

Gain agreement that you’ve defined the problem correctly, and that the employee understands that it must be solved

Ask for solutions, using open-ended questions such as: “What are you willing to do to correct this problem?” In some cases, you may have to make it clear what you expect

Get a dedication that the employee will take the required actions

Set deadlines for finishing the actions. In the case of a repeated problem, you may want to advise the employee of the consequences of failing to take corrective action

Follow up on the deadlines you’ve set

8. Treat the employee as an adult and expect adult behavior

To some extent, expectation defines the result. If you treat the employee as a naughty child, then you should expect a naughty child to respond. If you indicate - by your actions or by the content or tone of your voice - that you expect adult behavior, then that’s what you’re likely to get.

9. Treat interpersonal conflicts differently

If the problem behavior stems from a personality conflict between two employees, have each one answer these questions:

(1) How would you describe the other person?

(2) How does he or she make you feel?

(3) Why do you feel that the other person behaves the way he/she does?

(4) What might you be able to do to alleviate the situation?

(5) What would you like the other person to do in return?

10. Gain agreement on the steps to be taken and results expected

A problem is not really “fixed” until it stays fixed. Everyone involved must agree that the steps taken (or proposed) will substantially alleviate the problem. This includes you as manager, and the steps you personally will take to ensure you are not contributing to similar problem in the future.

Finally, agree how you will both monitor the issue. What needs to take place for you both to be satisfied that the issue has been completely resolved. Write this down and use it as your measure of success.

Free traffic?!! Wow! That just sends goose bumps down my spine!

We are all looking for free web site traffic. Search engines are
the best sources but you must constantly optimize for top
indexing. There are however other sources of free traffic.
Making good use of them takes a bit of patience and care.

One of growing popularity, traffic exchanges supply visitors to
your site in exchange for traffic which you deliver to the
network of sites. These systems allow you to accumulate credits
which are then converted in to a predetermined number of
viewings of your site either in the form of a link or an actual
web page. The following lists some of the most popular systems.

(1) Traffic Exchanges - TrafficSwarm is owned by SixDegrees
Media in Sausalito, California, and driven in large part by CEO
Wayne Van Dyck, an ex-Wall Street Investment Banker. It is by
and far the most well-run and beneficial traffic exchange that I
have found to date. You can check it out at
http://www.trafficswarm.com/cgi-bin/swarm.cgi?224700 .

Traffic exchanges work by crediting per the amount of traffic
you bring to other sites on the network. This can be through
your own surfing, referral traffic, or even by purchasing site
visits. Most exchanges offer free and paid memberships, with
paid members of course obtaining more perks and potentially more
targeted traffic.

(2) Banner Exchanges - Banners are known not to have the
largest click through rates but can still be of benefit. They
typically make use of a 2:1 or lower visibility ratio, meaning
that for every 2 times someone views a banner on your site, 1
view of your banner will be shown elsewhere on the network.

The most important aspect is to make your banner highly
targeted and not general. Moreover, make sure the exchange
program will target your banner topic to sites that attract
visitors within your target market. Otherwise your efforts will
not prove fruitful. You may have traffic but not from people
interested in what you offer. Banners GoMLM is one of the more
popular exchanges. I personally use
http://www.superbannertraffic.com and have had modest success.

(3) Reciprocal Linking - Trading links with other web masters
can generate traffic from both the individual site and through
better search engine ranking. The later takes time and cannot be
rushed. The SE has to crawl a site in order to locate the
reciprocal link before the index is updated.

Above all else, you must be diligent, patient, and track what
methods work. You must put in the time and care to learn about
and tailor them to your particular purpose. If you prefer to
dish out the bucks for traffic there are numerous fee-based
systems. Pay-per-click is the most popular and can deliver
highly targeted visits to your site. Although, whether you
benefit or not from the visit, your money is already spent.

With the prices of real estate and housing soaring high, your sweet home is no more a structure of bricks and steel but is also a means to generate cash when you fall in the need of money. A home is a high value investment which a person makes. So, naturally there is lot of money tied up which can be released if the owner wishes to. The market is filled with various HOME EQUITY LOAN OPTIONS which consumers can avail to meet their financial requirements.

A home equity is the value left in your house after subtracting the unpaid mortgage amount if any, from the current value of the house. For example, if the current value of your house is £ 25,000 and the amount of unpaid mortgages is £ 7,000 then your home equity is £ 18,000. Based on this home equity lenders will provide you a loan which is called a home equity loan. The equity in your house will be kept as collateral.

The home equity loan can be utilised for any purpose you wish to. Whether you want to pay your past bills or want to buy a second home, a home equity loan will serve all your purposes. This equity release schemes are especially beneficial for older people, where they can release a part of their home equity to finance their twilight years.

As there are lots of HOME EQUITY LOAN OPTIONS in the market, consumers need to be cautious in choosing a plan. A brief market research on the options available with genuine lenders in the market will not only prevent them from fraud and cheating but will also help them in getting the best possible deal. People who are busy and are short of time are advised to research online and get quotes from lenders. Taking professional help from various credit counselling agencies can be a good idea. Loan seekers are advised to compare various Home Equity Loan Options and then choose a plan as per their need and wisdom.

The author is a business writer specializing in finance and credit products and has written authoritative articles on the finance industry. He has done his masters in Business Administration and is currently assisting Shakespeare Finance as a finance specialist.

For more information visit our site http://www.home-loans-for-everyone.co.uk

Being new to the web and wanting to start your own business, you probably are feeling a little intimidated by the new vocabulary you’ve encountered, not to mention the sheer number of opportunities you’ve got to chose from.
Never Fear! There is an easy Solution.

Starting your business with Affiliate programs might be your best bet. Why? Simplicity.

Selling a product or service of your own means creating and building a website. Will you hire a web designer or attempt to do it yourself? Learn how to write ad copy or hire a freelance writer to do it for you? Set up a marketing plan, be able to accept payments online and obviously you must create this product or service. If you’re selling a physical product then you’ll either need to make it or buy it.Where will you get it? What will it cost? How will you pay for it? How will you accept payments online? With all these factors to consider, How do you plan on handling the workload?

Getting started in an online business using affiliate programs is a whole lot quicker and easier.You can, In fact, be making money within hours of signing up with your first affiliate program. There are some folks out there earning huge incomes from affiliate programs. Also referred to as “Super Affiliates.” Assuming you are, in fact, New to the Web you’re probably wondering what an Affiliate program is.

Essentially, an Affiliate is a salesman or a subcontractor, if you like. You enter into an agreement with an individual or company, to sell their product or service. They, in turn, provide you with a webpage with it’s own unique we address, which identifies you. The company takes care of tracking your unique address, completes and delivers the product or service to anyone purchasing through your page, and makes sure the sale is credited to you. Your only job is to drive traffic to your affiliate sales page and collect the commissions.

Some companies offer what’s known as a “Two Tier” Program. What this means is, If someone is interested in selling the same product as you. They can sign up as an affiliate from your unique web page and you get a small percentage of everything they sell. Once again, the company tracks it and you get paid.

Picking an affiliate program can be as easy as matching your interests with any one of the thousands of programs available. Whatever that may be, you’ll first need to see if there is a market for it. Go to the Overture keyword tool. located here: http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/ Put the main keyword or phrase into the search box and hit Go. Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because your particular word or phrase has been searched for a Kazillion times that you’ve got a winner. If it has, chances are there are half a Kazillion other people marketing the same thing. You’ll need to make another choice.

Once you’ve found something popular yet not too popular, you can go to your favorite search engine to see what programs are available. When you find a program you feel you’d like to try, don’t forget to read the Terms and Conditions as well as the (FAQ) Frequently Asked Questions. Make sure the payout structure isn’t one that is so high that you’ll never see your money. 50% payout is pretty much the standard. If the cost of the product or service is high enough you can probably settle for less than 50%. Do the math and decide if it will pay you what you can live with.
(Here’s a Tip. It takes as much effort to market a high priced item as it does a low priced item.) If you can comfortably agree with the Terms and Conditions then go ahead and sign up.

Being the smart, savvy person you are it is probably pretty obvious why marketing affiliate programs is great for beginners. All you need to do is Drive Traffic to Your Affiliate Sales Page. Everything else is taken care of by the company!

So, What are You Waiting For? Get Out There and Create the Great Income You’ve Been Dreaming About!

“Give us 1 hour per week and we’ll force 26 of the world’s top marketing
experts to reveal their most powerful, most clever, and most profitable
methods for building huge, ultra-responsive, double-optin subscriber
databases and making millions online.” lightninghotprofits.com/LstBldr.html

There has been lots of talking about the millions of people who are looking their hair and the potential to bring it back. With the hormonal changes of aging comes a decrease in the number of active hair follicles. Though this is an essentially universal change in all of us, a number of hormonal, genetic, or disease states make some of us lose hair earlier in life. Male pattern baldness affects a large portion of the population especially before the age of fifty. Female pattern hair loss is generally a change to thinning hair rather than just falling out, and is more noticeable on the top of the head.

There are many different options that experts are suggesting that help to combat thinning hair. The number one thing you can do is to find out why you are losing your hair. This can give you the peace of mind that you require in order to determine what your next step is. If it is something that is only cosmetic than you might have a slim chance of recovering some lost hair perhaps. Other physical reasons include hormonal balances over or under-active thyroids and certain fungal infections can all result in hair loss. Hair loss may also signal some underlying problem like diabetes or lupus. Only an expert can help you with that assessment.

Often they state that you can improve your hair through diet. Eat food that is rich in biotin. Because a broad array of nutrients, including vitamin C, iron, biotin, FOLATE and zinc, seem to play roles in hair growth, some experts recommend taking a multivitamin/mineral supplement to cover all your nutritional bases. There are so many natural treatments out there that have claims to work for consumers, yet they never seem to get any results. On the other hand there are also tons of products that claim to stop hair loss, reactive dormant damaged hair, promote healthy hair re-growth. The key lies in your own hands.

Alan Zunec is a successful author and publisher on the topic of Male pattern baldness- where you can tips on why you could be losing your hair.

I was four, soon to be five in October. School would be starting
up the day after Labor Day and I was eager to start school but
scared to have my vaccination. I wanted to have the circle on my
arm that the vaccination left from the scaring. All the kids
that were in school had them. Other kids told me that the shot
hurt but I wanted it anyway and wanted to go to school.

I was a tiny child. Most all the students and the teachers
seemed to like me. How could anyone not like a little girl? I
was cute but very shy. From kinder garden to the fifth grade
went quite well, although; my grades were not that good. In the
fifth grade, school became harder for me. I could not
concentrate in the class and if I did know the answer to a
question, I was to shy to raise my hand. I was very sick that
year with childhood diseases. Mumps, measles, chicken pox, you
name it, I had it. I missed a lot of school. At the end of the
school year, all the classes in the school would go on a picnic.
That would also be the last day of school. While playing with
some of the other kids at the picnic, my teacher called me over
to her. She told me that because I had missed so much school
that year, I would have to stay back. She said my grades were
just to low. I was crushed and embarrassed. I didn’t want any of
the other kids to know that I would not be in the same class as
they were the following year.

I hated to return to school the following fall. I felt that all
the kids would laugh and make fun of me. I felt cheated. I
wasn’t fair. I couldn’t help it if I was sick and couldn’t go to
school. I made it through the fifth grade this time and now I
would finally go on to the sixth. In the sixth grade, some of
the older kids would make fun of me for the way that I dressed
and the shoes that I wore. Our family was very poor and my dad
had eight mouths to feed. We were lucky to have hand me downs to
wear. Most of my clothes didn’t fit and were outdated. My shoes
were too big or too small. At the beginning of the year, I would
get a new outfit and a new pair of tennis shoes. When those were
worn out, I would have to wear what ever people would give me.
There were days that I would not want to ride the bus home after
school. The other kids would pick on me and I would walk home
crying by myself.

In the seventh grade, I struggled to learn. I really didn’t like
school much then. I wished that I could have quit. Two of my
teachers helped me in two different subjects. My math teacher
would spend more time with me and I liked him. My grades really
improved and I felt better about school. I baby sat all I could
on week-ends to make money to buy some nicer clothes. I wanted
to fit in with the other students. I wanted friends and didn’t
want to be made fun of anymore.

My mother had to go to the hospital to have surgery. My two
younger sisters were not yet in school. Dad had no one to care
for them while my mother was gone. I stayed home from school to
care for them so my dad could work. After Mom returned back home
and was able to care for my sisters, I returned back to school.
I had missed more days than I should have but had my cousin to
get me my homework so I could study at home. I tried not getting
too far behind; I did not want to stay back another year. Mom
got better but then she left us. Dad, again, could not care for
the youngest sisters. I stayed home from school once again to
care for them. I missed so much school that even with doing
homework at home, my grades suffered. I was told that I would
not pass the seventh grade and would have to stay back another
year.

My family and I would now be separated. I was to go to a foster
home in a new town. I would have to start seventh grade again in
a new school. School was better there. No one knew me so no one
would make fun of me for having to stay back. I now had some new
clothes that were up to date. No more shoes that didn’t fit. I
became more interesting in learning and liked to write stories.
I would make them up but had trouble with the spelling. When I
didn’t know a word, I would get out the dictionary and find the
word. My spelling improved greatly.

Eighth grade. One more year before high school. I had planned to
really study hard so I could go to high school. My grades were
good in the eight and I now was going on to high school. First
year in high school I studies hard. It wasn’t as easy for me
like it was for some of the other students. I had to study all
the time. I felt that I must be dumb. I couldn’t quite grasp
things like the other students could. In my foster home, I had
to do choirs each day, before school and after. After supper I
would have to help clean up supper and then study. There was
never any time to watch TV or do fun things. One day I was
beaten by a young man that was then living in the home. I was
being moved to another home in another town. It was in the
middle of the school year. I felt that I couldn’t go to school
anymore. I was 17 and I was old enough to quit. I never went
back.

Many, many, years later. I was now 49 years old. My place of
employment for years was now closing the doors. I was out of a
job. I needed a high school diploma to get any decent job with
decent pay. There were not many jobs available at that time. I
was given the option to go back to school and get my GED so I
could find a better job. I thought this was crazy at my age to
have to go to school. It was hard enough for me in school
growing up; this would be twice as hard now that I was older. I
decided to try. I studies all the time and as soon as I could, I
took the test. I passed the test and got my GED. I was so proud.
I was told then that I should consider going on to college. I
just couldn’t see myself going to college, a dream that I had
growing up but not now at my age. My husband encouraged me to
go. I decided to try it for one semester to see how it went. It
was difficult at first. I felt strange with all the younger
people, I felt like I did not belong there. Some of the younger
students would ask me about things that I had seen and places
that I had been. I felt that I had something to offer them with
my age and my years of experience. While I was in college, I
started writing a book. I graduated and got my book published in
2005.

Do you think you are too old to learn? I did at first but then
realized that I was hungry for knowledge. I wanted to learn more
than it seemed my brain would let me take in. I feel that I have
accomplished a great deal in the past five years of my life. I
want to continue to learn all I can. You are never too old to
learn so jump in there and go for it. You will be amazed at what
you can accomplish if you want to badly enough.

learning, age disabilities, accomplishments, abuse, education,
experiences, knowledge, books