Afraid To Travel? Here Are Some Great Tips To Help!

If you are a novice traveler, then there are some guidelines you may want to follow. Below are some tips that will hopefully assist you with making good decisions and in planning trips properly. Winter is back! Canada Big White will be celebrating the return of our favourite season with a jam-packed calendar of fun family events.

Be flexible when choosing your vacation destination. While it may be fun to revisit your favorite spots, checking out new places is part of the fun of going on a trip. You can even save some money by selecting an alternate destination.

Be wary of people who tell you that in some foreign cities many criminals will pose as policemen. Do not give anyone have your actual passport. Do not get in a vehicle with strangers.

When visiting a foreign country, be wary of what taxis you get into. You should ensure it’s a real taxi.

Check the carrier’s website that you are most interested in to make sure you are getting the best deal. Sometimes they have the discount travel websites.

Keep your important belongings when traveling. Do not use bags with easy access to people near you that could easily take your stuff. These are but a few tips to consider when shopping for a safe bag you wish to take on your travels.

When traveling by air, it is important to wear shoes that are comfortable and easily removable. You are going to have to take your shoes off at the security checks. Flip-flops or sandals are ideal air travel.

Keep travel essentials stored in one place. Don’t spend a lot of searching for everything you need for your trip. Buy a bin that can hold all of your travel items together. A container is great for your next trip.

Always look at the expiration dates that are printed on of all of your passports. Many countries have specific rules in place about passport expiration. Many will not let you entry into the country if your passport expires in a certain window of time.

Use environmentally responsible services that are environmentally friendly to have an ecologically responsible trip. Some hotels have energy efficient lighting, provide recycling bins, have low-flow plumbing and give guests a recycling bin. Tour companies, restaurants, auto rental companies and other service providers are looking for innovative ways to let travelers go green.

Most automobile rental companies require the minimum age to be at least 18 years old, and some do not rent to those under 25. You may pay more and have to use a credit card with you. Some cities prohibit senior citizens to rent cars. Find out about age restrictions when reserving a rental car.

Take lots of breaks when driving with small children. Breaks give you stretch and use the restroom. Getting little kids out of the car occasionally can help to prevent motion sickness. It may be a longer trip, but the trip will be a lot less stressful.

Jet lag is an all too common complaint for you and your family. You can’t really do anything about it, but extra sleep on the days before you travel can minimize the effects. You should also make an effort to sleep during the flight if possible.

Pack some travel candles for your trip. Candles can make a room. It is relaxing and romantic, relaxing and could help you sleep easily.

If you want to adjust quickly to an unfamiliar time zone, try to stay awake until 8pm local time. Though you may be tired, succumbing to sleep earlier than you should may end up making your jet lag worse because you have not allowed your body to recalibrate.

Pack snacks when traveling with kids. You should probably pack more than you think they will eat. This will maintain them happy and busy. Even some junk food won’t hurt this time.

You should try to make sure your baggage stand out against the average suitcase or baggage. You can decorate it with stickers on your luggage or tags to ensure it stands out.This will help you spot your luggage and keep others from walking away with yours.

Long flights across continents can be stressful. You can avoid this by taking a flight that gets to your destination at the same time of morning you usually get up. ) and sleep as much as you wake up at your destination. Wake up feeling refreshed and ready to go!

This will help in the event of lost luggage. If someone’s luggage is lost, then they can access their belongings placed with others. Another great idea to help offset any lost luggage experiences is to always have everyone bring one change of clothing in their carry-on.

Take turns driving when traveling with others. If you drive until you are too tired to continue driving, you increase the chances of getting into an accident. Do not wait until you are too tired to do so safely. Try switching out drivers every two or three hours. This will stop you from becoming so tired while you are behind the road and putting you and your passengers at risk.

Get an expandable file to have your itinerary while you travel. This is also a great for storing your receipts.

This can be devastating to your cruise entirely. You might end up in bed for days recovering from seasickness and not enjoying the cruise. If you know you are prone to seasickness in advance, you can buy medicine for seasickness and take it along.

If you’re driving a sizable distance to your destination, consider renting instead of using your own. You don’t want to degrade the value of your car through that abuse.

You should stay alert while driving and refreshed to avoid accidents. Stretch you limbs, visit the bathroom, enjoy a snack, or take a short catnap. You can get back to traveling when you’re revitalized.

Hopefully this material has offered some useful thoughts on getting the process of planning a trip underway. The tips in this article were carefully selected specifically to aid new travelers into developing solid strategies for planning their trips.

USDA Proposes Policies to Improve Food Access, Healthy Choices for Low-income Americans

WASHINGTON, Feb. 16, 2016 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Kevin Concannon today announced a proposed rule designed to provide Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants increased access to healthy foods by requiring stores that accept SNAP to stock a wider array of food choices. A number one best seller, Easy week Night Meals is the one cookbook you need for cooking successfully during the week, and getting back to loving your weeknight meals.

“USDA is committed to expanding access for SNAP participants to the types of foods that are important to a healthy diet,” Concannon said. “This proposed rule ensures that retailers who accept SNAP benefits offer a variety of products to support healthy choices for those participating in the program.”

The 2014 Farm Bill required USDA to develop regulations to ensure that stores that accept SNAP offer a broader variety of healthy food choices. The stocking provisions in the proposed rule would require SNAP-authorized retail establishments to offer a larger inventory and variety of healthy food options so that recipients have access to more healthy food choices. SNAP retailers would be required to offer seven varieties of qualifying foods in four staple food groups for sale on a continuous basis, along with perishable foods in at least three of the four staple food groups. The staple foods groups are dairy products; breads and cereals; meats, poultry and fish; and fruits and vegetables. In addition, the proposal calls for retailers to stock at least six units within each variety, leading to a total of at least 168 required food items per store.

This proposed rule is one of many ways USDA is working to expand access to healthy foods for SNAP recipients. USDA has piloted the use of incentives to purchase healthy foods at point of sale in various venues, including farmers markets and small groceries where the incentive provided for additional purchase of local produce. The 2014 farm bill provided $100 million for Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) grants to expand this effort, which USDA awarded to grantees in the spring and fall of 2015. USDA has also worked to increase SNAP participants’ access to farmers markets and direct marketing farmers, resulting in over 6,000 authorized locations – an eight-fold increase since the beginning of this administration.

USDA is working to ensure that access to food retailers is not hindered for SNAP participants as a result of this rule. Comments and suggestions on the proposed rule are encouraged to help USDA determine when, where, and if any flexibility should be provided to prevent reductions in SNAP client food access.

The proposed rule also underscores USDA’s authority under the Food and Nutrition Act to publicly disclose information about SNAP retailers disqualified or sanctioned for program violations. Information to be disclosed under provisions of the proposed rule would be limited to the name and address of the store, the owners’ and officers’ names, and the nature of the violation for which the retailer was sanctioned.

“SNAP violations are a serious matter,” Concannon said. “Public disclosure of this information is intended to serve as a deterrent against retailer fraud. The information would provide the public with insight into the integrity of these businesses and individuals.”

As the nation’s first line of defense against hunger, SNAP helps put food on the table for millions of low income families and individuals every month and is critical in the fight against hunger. SNAP is a vital supplement to the monthly food budgets of about 45 million low-income individuals. Nearly half of SNAP participants are children, 10 percent are elderly and more than 40 percent of recipients live in households with earnings.

SNAP plays an important role in reducing both poverty and food insecurity in the United States—especially among children. SNAP is an effective and efficient health intervention for low-income families with a positive impact on children beginning before birth and lasting beyond childhood years, improving health, education, and economic outcomes. Over 260,000 retailers nationwide are currently authorized to redeem SNAP benefits.

Digging Up the Artistic Gold Found Within

Concept artist start work at the beginning of pre-production, up to six months before filming is due to begin. During the staggering memorable fragile years from nine to twelve, you experienced your artistic self in such a way as never before or since. Most emphatically during the phase from eight to nine, a calibrated mechanistic artistic phase slipped in. This liberally gifted induced period opened a portal of instinctive talent from which you will draw for the remainder of your life. (In essence, you were grown by the end of this point, though the tender age did not necessarily reflect your innate maturity and society certainly would not have accepted the reality of this outrageous statement.) Nevertheless, the artistic vision of your life was formed and you were acutely aware of your inbred talent. The things that occurred during this most blatantly injected artistically sensitive period from 9 to 12 would determine the temperature of the road you would most likely travel until you reconnected with your latent gifts. It does not matter whether the time frame was obviously productive, non productive, abusive or flourishing, the scenario retained for you untold possibilities that would paint the canvas of the next forty four years. During this winding road of inductive dramatic scrambling and rearranging, you would/will find several pieces of the puzzle of your particular life’s purpose, which left uninvestigated, would cause massive blurring and confusion.

If you would take a moment to go back to the specific year, beginning two weeks before your 8th birthday and run concurrently until your two weeks after your 9th birthday for a period of approximately 13 months, you will able to follow along to decipher the art’ message offered. Remember back most specifically the exact 13 th month period of the 2 years involved. Where did you physically reside? More than likely, you were in the 3 rd grade of school. IF by chance you can not recall your 3 rd grade teacher, the blurred memory will be highlighted within the entire 4 th grade year. Do you remember that’ teacher? Do you remember the circumstances of where you were residing? There are so many viable clues linking your current personality to that poignant part of your existence. {Parts, that you may or may not recognize, as important to you, now.} The reason you may not be aware that you possess an incredibly defined essential artistic nature’ is because when you were young, the ARTIST in you was dismissed, discredited, disavowed or disenfranchised. This unfortunate event could have taken place in a variety of ways, not he least being that you felt inadequate to produce what was expected of you artistically. You felt you either had to compete or compare or both. Daunting as the task set before was, you felt embarrassed to offer your artistic self since “IT” was more precious you then as opposed to any other period in your life.

During the precarious period of your life from the ages of 9 to 12, the most influential and crucial artistic stage presented itself. Depending upon the situation, circumstances, events and people who surrounded you at that time, the “ART IMPETUS” was either nurtured/supported or devalued and denigrated. In other words, whatever was going on in your particular world at that specific time frame, determined how much of an artist you perceive yourself to be. Unless you were recognized and encouraged to pursue your individualistic artistic expressions, that vital natural and convenient’ artistic essence of yours got shut down, closed off, pent up like a caged animal. During this fragile time, if you were placed in a position to either compare your work or to compete with another in order to “show yourself worthy and accepted”, a silent death occurred which would take years to resurrect. Because of the ignorance and inadvertent (deliberate or not) neglect associated with our natural artistic impulse, we end up carrying around useless baggage that prevent us from de-assing’ certain programs of conditioned thought and/or self-sabotaging beliefs that confine and constrict our creative attempts.

How many of you ever wanted to sing but never tried because you were afraid someone would make fun of you? The same principle is applied to ART, MUSIC, DRAMA, and of course simple honest communication. Unless you are willing to search and retrieve those buried artistic aspects of yourself, which you have never been properly introduced to, you will remain a mystery to yourself and others. Your relationships will suffer because of it and you will remain unhappy and unfulfilled seeking outside remedies for inner barricades. In order to kick down the barriers’ that prevent you from being a natural born artist, you will be required to stop bad mouthing yourself or others who you deem more fortunate or talented. You have not been robbed. You were never going to meet these aspects of yourself until you were ready, anyway. If these words resonate with you, it is only because you are ready to pursue the voyage of yourself. {A launching of new indescribable possibilities stand before you ready for you venture into.} Moments of hesitation will be cast into the sea of forgetfulness never to be remembered anymore. Self-doubt, fear of change, and the thoughts of not having any talent will be swallowed up by your natural desire to express yourself artistically. An instinctive GUT detector’ enables you to contact your lost/hidden artistic needs, as long as you are willing to move through the door of self-delusion. By careful study and application, you will be able to break through that wall of self-incrimination into a field your unrealized artistic potential.

As you begin to get still and listen to your inner soul’s yearning, you will discover a world of untold merit. You will literally be stunned by the accuracy of the things you know without knowing how you know them. You must trust your gut, however without reservation. It is the sole intent of your inner compass to provide an avenue of immaculate perception, where you no longer take for granted’ the exquisite beauty found within the mundane, dull, and seemingly lifeless artifacts peppering your world. Without having to dig and search, “What are the closest photographs you have near you?” (Wherever you are sitting) These photographs are designed to elicit a response in you. Whether the response is negative or positive, matters little. What does matter is that it makes you ponder.

Next, what is the first painting you see? The combination of photographs and the one in your face’ painting have been placed together arbitrarily (no matter how far apart they are in physical location) to act as a measuring stick of your present circumstances. You may feel some of the photographs and that painting have been haphazardly placed together. That immediate sensation too is an individualistic artistic response. Either way, the photographs are depicted as RAW symbols of expressions that will speak to you, according to where your consciousness resides. Also, because there are two parts of your artistic nature that needs acknowledging, (one who knows; one who doubts) you will have inadvertently fixed the photographs in your mind, {probably not being able to elicit the real picture the first time you look at them.) Be patient with yourself.

This reaction is part of the artistic development process. The painting plays a significant role in opening for you a panoramic view of things that are connected to your individual destiny. So that whenever you see or think about the object in question, a certain revelation of, “what’s blocking you” will become apparent. And, just as important you will be constantly reminded: it is in the ordinary “things” that the extraordinary is found. Because you have been indoctrinated to strive for perfection, you have forgotten how magnificently beautiful the so called ordinary things really are. No other person can take this cosmically enlightening journey but you. You will be in a type of private cosmic therapy; it is the art that will guide you in all truth.

Its fundamental premise belies the notion that we are separate from any portion, element, attribute, or “THING” that makes up our world. This exhaustively researched method presents the concept that: Everything in life is interconnected, including every single word, sight, smell, taste and feeling that one encounters in the run of a day . Not a person, place or object is exempt. If you interacted with it’, it’ has meaning for you. Though people often ignore or dismiss the obvious evidence that supports the appearance of various signs, symbols, clues, omens, as representational personal truths, the fact remains: “if you saw it’, there’s a valid reason for it’s recognition and validation. Though everything is exactly as it’s supposed to be for reasons we can’t see, it’s important for us, as mortals, to investigate the possibilities. What “if” there really is a Divine Purpose for our lives? Wouldn’t you want to know what that purpose might entail? Wouldn’t you want to discover how and why that purpose related to you? And, most especially if that so-called purpose could eradicate the continual sense of frustration, monotony and restlessness you experience so often.

You are here to produce something of the worthwhile value that you alone can express, connect and enjoy. The determination of that value resonates from the effort, energy, time, money and interest you are willing to invest. {Extremely personal choice: you pursue only what interests you!} Unless you take it upon yourself to explore (all that you possibly can) about you, no other success you ever obtained will compensate. The arduous task of unveiling you to you’ requires that you first eliminate the idea that anyone, NO MATTER WHO IT IS OR HOW MUCH POWER, AUTHORITY, AND INFLUENCE THEY EXERT, has the right to determine for you what path you should pursue or not pursue while you are alive. They are not nor will they ever be in a position to decide for you “What’s best.” Hah! You’re the very best you can be at any given moment for that moment. You are currently in the artistic processing mode and will continue to be for the rest of your natural born life.

Whatever you choose to do and however you choose to do it is all the RIGHT you need to know. No one can say whether your art, music, drama, writing, or any other individual method of expressing yourself is good or not. If you have produced it, IT is worthy. You are governed and maintained by the same innate compassing devise that so-called worthy artists reflect in their work. True ART is expressed by saying what, how, when, where and to whom exactly what you want to say without feeling the need to be praised or validated. If you are glad you produced it, for no other reason than for the sheer joy you derived from creating it, THAT is enough. Don’t feel ashamed, afraid, humiliated, inferior, worried, or intimidated by others. Art is spontaneous natural convenient creative energy! It moves through you while it liberates you at the same time. Recognizing yourself as a genuine artist is no doubt a frightening and horrific experience. Only the inherently determined and ruthlessly focused will survive to penetrate and forge their innate masterful visions.

Cosmic Therapist, Author, Artist, Entertainer, Teacher, Speaker, Singer/Songwriter.
Married 39 years with 6 children and 11 grandchildren and a native of North Carolina.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Paula_Andrea_Pyle/293102

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