Towards A Healthy Economy + Marketing World

Norman Collins, better known as Sailor Jerry, is considered as the foremost American tattoo artist of his time. He expanded the array of colours available for commercial use by creating his own range of safe pigments. He was the first artists to use single use needles and hospital-like sterilization. He was known not only for his use of colour but also his incredible attention to detail. The riggings in his nautical tattoos were known for their perfect accuracy. Sailor Jerry’s influences ranged from the tough lifestyle of the American sailor, to the mystical curiosity of the Far East. Throughout his life he kept close ties to famous Japanese artists. For Jerry, tattoos were the ultimate rebellion against “the Squares”.

Jerry was legendary for his sense of humour; his “Aloha Monkey” being a famous example of his eccentricity and humour. However, he was also incredibly vocal about professionalism and craft. He taught aspiring artists who he respected and believed had talent. Today well known artists who were some of Jerry’s pupils include Don Ed Hardy, Cliff raven, Don Nolan and Mike Malone whom he left his legacy of Flash designs.

When Sailor Jerry was 19 he enrolled in the US Navy and remained a sailor for the rest of his life. Even when his tattoo career took flight, he continued to work as a licensed skipper on a three-masted schooner which he used to give tours of the Hawaiian Islands. But Jerry was talented on many levels besides his art and his sailing. He was a saxophone player in a dance band for many years and had a night show on KTKG radio where he spoke under the name of “Old Ironsides”. He stopped tattooing in the middle of life due to trouble with the IRS.

Jerry died in 1973 but his legacy has lived on through Mike Malone and Don Nolan, who opened a small independent clothing company in Philadelphia dedicated to the art work of Jerry, and dubbed the company name of Sailor Jerry Ltd. The company is anti-sweatshop and all the clothes are made in America and sold on the internet or at the store in Philadelphia. The store is host to many gigs featuring independent or up and coming bands.

By Christine Pinella for Black Cat Tattoo Aftercare

Daughter of Destiny
Child of the Spirit

Yesterday’s is gone
A new day has come
With the fire of My Spirit
You now shall burn and run
Taking your testimony forth
Going into the nations
Boldly arising without hesitation
For the finances shall flow
All fear and doubt go!
Provision you’ll know
My bounty untold
Abundant treasures of old.

As for your audience
You’ll attract them like a magnet
For you attract what you are
And daughter you are much
Much more than you know
Definitely beyond the vain show
For you are a woman of valor
A woman of honor
A woman of strength
None shall dishonor
For I shall be with you
I will guard your back
And silence the enemy
Before every attack
So fear not My daughter
For this is your hour
To arise and shine
Redeem the time
Be at peace and sublime
For you’re in your prime
Prime time has come
Divine destiny is fun!
Together we’ll teach
The nations we’ll reach
And when you open your mouth
Through it I shall speak
My authority you’ll know
My power through you shall flow
Demon power shall go
As you abide in My zoe
The God kind of life
That cuts through lies
With the edge of a knife
The sword of the Spirit
Causing to cease all turmoil and strife
The gifts of the Spirit within you
Far better weapons are they
Yet to be discovered
They’re in you already
Waiting happily to be uncovered
Gifts to be unwrapped
Treasures to be unlocked
Divine ability to explode in you
So you can teach and do!
It’s all yours by faith
Just believe and enter in
Grab it with grace
With a smile on your face
Once you get it
Guard it well
For the jealous devil
Would prefer you in hell
As you freely receive
Freely give
Give it to the nations
Letting God arise
Imparting spiritual sensations
Removing all limitations!

The Dream-Maker is here
In His glory He’s come
To take away the dull
And make life more fun
To cause you to arise
To not despise
Even to remove the scales
From your eyes
Imparting spiritual vision
A burden for the nations
A yearning for revival
And divine impartation
So think it not strange
As I the Lord come suddenly
For I have chosen you
To be a daughter of destiny.

by Paul Davis - poet and prophet

Paul Davis is author of Breakthrough for a Broken Heart a book telling us “How to overcome disappointments and blossom into your dreams!” He is a minister, life coach (relational & professional), dating expert, popular worldwide keynote speaker, creative consultant, humor being, adventurer, explorer, mediator, liberator and dream-maker.

Paul’s compassion for people & passion to travel has taken him to over 50 countries of the world where he has had a tremendous impact. Paul has also brought revival to many in war-torn, impoverished and tsunami stricken regions of the earth. His nonprofit organization Dream-Maker Ministries is building dreams and breaking limitations.

Paul’s Breakthrough Seminars inspire, revive, awaken, impregnate with purpose, impart the fire of desire, catapult people into a new level of self-awareness, facilitate destiny discovery and dream fulfillment.

Paul can be contacted at: RevivingNations@yahoo.com

407-967-7553 or 407-282-1745.

For additional info:
http://www.CreativeCommunications.TV
- http://www.DreamMakerMinistries.com

I must stress that there are some rules when it comes to how to preserve your precious photos.
Use papers that are Acid and Lignin free. Acid free means a PH of 7. Lignin is a substance in wood pulp used to make paper. If your paper contains Lignin it will turn your pages or photo’s yellow.

Most stores, be it scrapbooking, craft or department stores now sell scrapbooking papers that are both acid and lignin free. Using these papers will not accelerate normal deterioration of your photos. Many of the photo albums on the market today are not safe for preserving your photos. They actually speed up the deterioration process, leaving you with the yellow, faded pictures that we all love from years gone by.

We all spend so much of our money on the best camera’s, film or memory sticks, and developing, only to place the photo’s in an album, show a couple of people and then put them away for years to come. Why not extend on these investments by actually preserving these memories for not only our children but our children’s children’s children. As we have not only preserved these photo’s we have journalled the who, what, and where, and the generations to come will not be just looking at photo’s of people, not knowing who they are. I know when I look at my parents photo’s I do not know any of the details. This only makes the photos less meaningful.

So once you have followed the rule of the technical part of scrapbooking, the rest is just your own personal creativity. It is also a great way for your children to preserve their own photos and use their ever growing need to do something crafty.

What NOT to do AKA bad love poetry.

I love your lovely fingers,
My love, as they dive through
Your silky, sunshine hair.

Just wanted to let
You know that in you,
I’ll always care.

Unless the plan is for you and your beloved to be the only eyes on the planet to read your love poetry, you need to avoid some common problems that can be found in romantic poetry.

1) Like clowns in a tiny car - Cram it in until it bursts.

Don’t try to shove every feeling you’ve ever had into one piece. Find a single metaphor or element and breathe life into it. Let the reader feel the moment, not a lifetime.

2) Clichés - Deeper than any ocean…

Avoid clichés. Find unique ways of saying how deep your love is.

3) Mushy Metaphors

You’re the hot fudge on my sundae… The strings on my angels harp.

Unless you’re going for giggles, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, or country music lyrics (sorry, Dad), see number one and stick to a few well thought out metaphors. The shorter the poem, the fewer metaphors.

Feel free to turn a single metaphor into an extended metaphor (poetry thread) but avoid things like the example above.

4) Forced Rhyme

Your lips are liquid
Lava and at them
I always stare.

Just wanted to let
You know that in you,
I’ll always care.

Forced rhyme at it’s best, um, worst. It’s better to have no rhyme scheme than to force one out and hammer it into your poem like a misplaced puzzle piece.

Rhyme should sound natural, almost as if it isn’t there. Don’t try to switch words around to make them fit into a rhyme scheme. Also, I find slant rhyme (can/hands) works better than perfect rhyme (can/plan).

5) Finally, did I mention “I love you”?

I love your lovely fingers,
My love, as they dive through
Your silky, sunshine hair.

Ack! Enough already. A way to get out of this habit is to try to write love poetry without using the word love at all. It goes back to the “show don’t tell” rule of literature, which can be applied to all forms of writing.

© 2006 Holly Bliss. All Rights Reserved. This document may be freely redistributed in its unedited form and on the condition that all copyright references are kept intact along with the hyperlinked URLs.

About the Author: Using her writing as paint on the canvas of her life, Holly Bliss is an eclectic writer, newsletter editor and an author on http://www.Writing.Com/ which is a site for Creative Writers.

When I have spent hours working on knitting a sweater, I want to make sure it looks as good after a dozen washes as it did the day I was knitting it.
Here’s how I care for the things I have been knitting. I always use luke warm water. I actually don’t use detergent. I use my shampoo. I read somewhere that if it’s mild enough but effective enough for my hair it must be good enough for my knitting. I add about a teaspoon. I swoosh the sweater around in the soapy water for a while then let it soak for at least fifteen minutes.

I drain the water, squashing the sweater into the bowl to get rid of the water. I rinse with luke warm water as many times as it takes until the water is clear. I press the knitting against the sides of the bowl. I don’t wring it tight as I don’t want to lose the shape. I then lay the knitting on a flat clean towel. I roll the towel up with the knitting inside and press a little. I find this gets rid of a lot of the water. If you have a mesh sweater dryer then lay it out carefully shaping the sweater to its original proportions. If you don’t have one the you can just place the knitting on a fresh towel. This takes longer to dry and I suggest changing to a dry towel and flipping the sweater over so it dries quicker.

Obviously I never hang a sweater, not even on padded hangers as I find it stretches the shoulders with the weight of the wet sweater.
I hope you could follow my guide to caring for your knitted items. I learned a lot from a great book I discovered a while back. It was fun and helped me learn more about knitting with advice on free knitting patterns, knitting instructions, all the knitting essentials. You can find it on my blog called Knitting Essentials. Good luck with caring for your knitting.

The Knitting Nova loves to knit and to teach people how to knit. She also loves to blog. She has been knitting for 30 years and has taught many young family members how knitting is fun and easy. You can find more information on her blog at http://knitting-essentials.blogspot.com.

This article will provide you with a general understanding of some of the more basic watercolor painting techniques.

Flat Wash Technique - The flat wash technique is one of the more basic and common of the various techniques. The flat wash technique is usually used when large areas of the canvas need to be covered. You will want to lay out the watercolor wash evenly and uniformly. First you will need to dampen the area of your canvas where you will be applying the watercolor wash. Make certain to have an adequate amount of water and pigment available before your start. If you should have to stop for any reason, it will be difficult to match your layers. It is better to have more than less available. The angle at which you apply the watercolor wash is important. If the angle is too steep your wash will run down the paper. If the angle is too level, then you won’t have enough movement. Use a large brush for this technique and start your first stroke at the top of the paper. Continue applying the watercolor wash going down the paper, but alternate sides as you move down.

Glazing Technique - The glazing technique is when you apply a thin transparent color over a completed dry layer of color. This technique creates some very interesting blends of new color. You will need to use a non-staining, transparent color for this watercolor technique. You should use a soft brush and don’t apply that much pressure.

Wet In Wet Technique - Wet in wet is simply applying a wet wash over a wet surface. You start by evenly wetting the paper with a brush or spray bottle. Have a sponge handy to absorb any excess water. You want your paper to be evenly saturated. Then apply your watercolor.

Dry Brush Technique - With the dry brush technique, your paper is completely dry. You then apply a fairly dry pigment with very little water to the paper.

The dry brush technique should only be used where you want to draw focus or create texture in your painting. It’s always a good idea to use various watercolor brush techniques in a single painting. This results in a more interesting painting.

Lifting Off Technique - Artists use this technique when they want to remove watercolor from a certain area of the panting. It is usually done by first wetting the area that needs to be removed with a clean sponge and then absorbing the color with a tissue. If you find that the color does not come off right away, then let the water soak in a bit longer and try again. If you still are unable to remove the color, then dampen a bristle brush and gently scrub the area. You should use extreme care with this watercolor technique, as there is a risk you can damage the paper.

I hope this article on watercolor techniques has helped. Happy Painting!

Ralph Serpe is webmaster and founder of CreativeSpotlite.com. Visit Creative Spotlite today for more watercolor techniques, including free step by step demonstrations by experienced watercolor artists.

One huge advantage of knowing about family history is that sometimes it can help you to trace and pinpoint occurrences of illness.

My father and two of my brothers had all died of heart attacks at a fairly young age. My dad and my eldest brother were in their forties, and my younger brother was just thirty two years old.

In tracing back my paternal side of the family, I discovered that rarely did any of the males live beyond the age of forty four, and many had died of heart disease before they reached the ripe old age of forty. The females in the family line hardly ever suffered with any heart trouble at all.

It occurred to me that the heart disease in the male line was too frequent to be coincidental, especially as it all seemed to be because of high cholesterol levels, leading to a fatal heart attack.

Once I had concluded my investigation, I discussed this with a heart disease specialist, and after examining all my paper work, he called my nephews in for medical checks. In two of my three nephews, he discovered that they had severe cholesterol levels (above the 15 mark) and needed immediate medication.

The information was too late to save my dad and brothers, but at least my nephews are okay.

A different branch of family history, but a useful one.

Pam,
Parish Chest,
http://www.parishchest.com

When I first got into rock and gem hunting in Colorado I had a very serious fetish for crystals and gems. While I would see information here and there about agates, I really never quite got the clue about the world’s fascination with agates until, just after moving to Oregon, I finally stumbled across my first gem quality banded agate in the Prineville area while hunting crystals and geodes. What a beauty it is - yellow and green banding, about 3 inches long. Finally I understood why people were drawn to agate hunting.

Agates can be found all over the world. The patterns are as diverse as the
number of stones there are to be found, and all colors of the rainbow are
represented. For a time I just started collecting these wonderful stones just for
the delight of having them to look at. But as I learned more about the agate I
found there is a whole world of reasons to collect them. Agates not only look
terrific as display items, they are also provide the finder a versatile crafting outlet.
Beautiful jewelry stones can be crafted from agates, from carbochons to beads.

Agates can be slabbed and the slabs can be used to make just about anything. I
have a collection set aside for slabbing to build a “stained glass” type of window.
Some people set the stones in fireplaces and mantles. You can make table tops
inlaid with agate, dangling windchime like ornaments, pictures and picture
frames, and lampshades. Agates can also be carved into ornamentive boxes,
figurines, perfume bottles, and so on. I saw a tea set recently that was carved
from agate ( it was magnificent, but I was afraid to even guess at the price of
such a work).

For those of you buying and selling agates, the prices of a good stone can be
somewhat surprising.

Stones can go from $5.00 up into the hundreds. Some museums display agates
priced into the thousands of dollars. One agate from South Dakota brought the
finder the healthy sum of $13,000!! So if you’re hunting for items to sell, you
may want to look to the agate for a good source of profit.

Finding Agates isn’t too rough a job, yet top quality specimens take some
determination and effort as they are not always plentiful. While maps abound
with x-marks-the-spot agate hunting locations, you still can expect to spend
some time hunting when you get to a location. Popularly travelled locations can
get hunted out, too. Finding lesser known spots can take time as people are not
always willing to let you in on their favorite sites. I have my own favorite site
which produces spectactular stones. Some time if I find someone who really
wants to go with me I will take them, but this is not a location I will scream to the
world about (not just yet anyway). You can expect the same reaction from
others when you visit localities and try to elicit information from local rockhounds
about hunting sites. So expect that if you are hunting “off map” that you will be
doing the work of locating beds all on your own. It’s a tough job, but is very
rewarding when you run across an uncharted agate bed.

To save you some time in looking up examples of what is just laying around out
there for you to pick up, I have provided some links below that will take you
straight to the pictures. I have looked at all of them myself (which has done
nothing but make me want to get off this computer, pack, and get back out in the
field) and found that you can click on any of the pictures for a closer look at the
specimens.

Have a good time browsing the pictures on these links. I wish you the best of
luck finding top value specimens of your own.

©2005 Sally Taylor: Sal is an avid gem and treasure hunter, explorer, writer, and is the owner of http://www.rockhoundstation1.com

In the midst of darkness, there is light.
In the midst of evil, there is virtue.
In the midst of war, there is peace.
In the midst of agony, there is ecstasy.

In the midst of night, there is day.
In the midst of illness, there is health.
In the midst of winter, there is summer.
In the midst of hate, there is love.

In the midst of grief, there is healing
In the midst of hunger, there is Bread of Life
In the midst of thirst, there is Living Water
In midst of loneliness, there is companionship

In the midst of sin, there is redemption
In the midst of catastrophe, there is restoration
In the midst of rain, there is a rainbow
In the midst of adversity, there is privilege

In the midst of decay, there is renewal.
In the midst of hopelessness, there is possibility.
In the midst of poverty, there is wealth.
In the midst of pain, there is joy.

In the midst of tears, there is laughter.
In the midst of anguish, there is pleasure.
In the midst of disappointment, there is satisfaction.
In the midst of futility, there is hope.

In the midst of the bad, there is the good.
In the midst of the ugly, there is the beautiful.
In the midst of the unholy, there is the sacred.
In the midst of the body, there is the soul.

In the midst of suffering, there is mercy.
In the midst of rage, there is calm.
In the midst of failure, there is success.
In the midst of death, there is life.

In the midst of all…. THERE IS GOD.

Rev. Saundra L. Washington, D.D., is an ordained clergywoman, veteran social worker, and Founder of AMEN Ministries. http://www.clergyservices4u.org. She is also the author of two coffee table books: Room Beneath the Snow: Poems that Preach and Negative Disturbances: Homilies that Teach. Her new book, Out of Deep Waters: My Grief Management Workbook, will be available in July.

In today’s world, everything that’s old can be described as antiques and generally speaking that’s quite true. A product is considered to be an antique if it is over a hundred years old or is rare enough to have some value. In other words, these are old items that are in limited supply.

An antique is something collectible. It may be a piece of antique furniture that you want to collect to enhance the look of a room, or a piece of antique pottery to decorate a corner cupboard, or some antique books, antique camera and photographs, antique jewelry, antique money, antique car, antique clocks, or antique watches that you want to hand down to your grandchildren but the items must be rare enough to be considered an antique. The others are just secondhand goods junk. Most people have a common misconception about an antique: the older they look, the more antique they must be. Appearance has nothing to do with it, just because a piece looks like it came out of grandma’s attic does not necessarily mean that it’s an antique. The value of an antique is based on demand due to suitability and limited supply.

Most people become fascinated in an antique for two reasons; either they have an interest in collecting antique purely for personal enjoyment and are willing to shell out money for antique restoration or they inherited it from a family member. The most common are antique pottery, antique car, antique furniture, antique books, antique camera and photographs, antique clocks, antique money, antique jewelry and antique watches. However they came about it, everyone wants to be sure of one thing that what they buy or inherit will escalate in value as time goes by. That is what antique collection is all about.

There are two main principles that apply when collecting an antique: The first is to know everything that you can about the antique that interests you and second is to obtain them at the lowest possible price. Doing so will not only give you satisfaction and enjoyment, but at the same time you will also be assured that your investment will appreciate in value.

Some people only developed an interest in antique because they inherited an item or a whole house full of antique from a relative. The dollar signs started to appear and they began their hunt for some antique appraisals and antique auction. But what most failed to consider is that much of what Great Grandmother had is probably just junk, unless she was a seasoned collector who’s into antique restoration or an expert in antique appraisals.

It’s true that people could have bought a piece of furniture to decorate their home a long time ago and that furniture, if it were of fine quality, would now be worth something. But only a professional appraiser can guarantee that, and appraising costs about $100-150 an hour. So if you are keen on bringing you item in an antique auction and contemplating about asking someone how much an item is worth, be prepared to shell out a few bucks for the information. Appraisers charge so much because they shoulder the lion’s share for insurance companies and lawyers settling estates. Although appraising is not an exact science, it still requires an appraiser to do lots of research and then prepare a detailed report that’s acceptable in a court of law.

Thinking about exploring the exciting world of antiques? Join us and utilize our resources in the treasure hunt for the exquisite. There is no membership required. Use the links below to get started today:

Antiques
Antique Jewelry