Many agents homes, offices and insurance Companies claims centers were in the same situation as their clients due to the storms. So what did they do? They set up office in tents and mobile trailers. Then Hurricane Rita blew away these temporary offices and the agents and companies set them up again. These temporary shelters acted as a communications center for all people in the surrounding areas. Local people would come by to ask questions, meet with their claims adjustors and just catch up on the news with their neighbors. Extreme circumstances dictated unconventional responses: some agents even filed claims for their clients without even talking to the clients just so they could get the claim in the queue. Allstate allowed customers to submit claims through any agent in the country and set up a priority line to

assist. They sent email to agents in the areas surrounding the disaster areas to act as messengers by word of mouth to their fellow agents in the effected areas. The larger companies such as State Farm and Allstate that service claims for the national flood Insurance Program even used satellite imagery to determine damage in some neighborhoods that were entirely flooded. Lessons Learned: Those of us not effected by these disasters can learn a few lessons about coping with future disasters from the thousands of policyholders that are still waiting to get their claims paid. As soon as possible, take steps to prevent further damage to your home if possible: such as covering the roof with a tarp if possible. You can hire a contractor if you can find one, as that would be safer for most of us than climbing on our roofs. Hold

off making any repairs until you see or talk to an adjuster first. Plus, keep your receipts, as youll need them to prove expenses that can be re-imbursed later.

Copyright c 2006-2010 Brandon Miller

Brandon Miller is owner and president of Free Home Insurance Quotes.Com. His company provides consumers with the opportunity to save 30-40% on their home insurance costs. Webmasters also love his articles. His articles provides valuable content for newsletters and websites. All FreeHomeInsuranceQuotes requires, for the use of the articles, is a link back to their website: http://www.freehomeinsurancequotes.com Read More Articles From Brandon Miller: http://www.freehomeinsurancequotes.com/hotnewarticles.html http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/brandon-miller.html

growth of mold on tropical fish. These molds in at least some stages of their complex life cycles propel themselves through water with the aid of tiny whip like structures called flagella. Flagella are those long whip like structures that are found on some cells such as sperm cells and are one celled plant like Eugenia protozoans which push themselves through water. In his book, The Fifth Kingdom, Dean Kendrick noted mycologist mold biologist discusses three phyla large groupings of swimming molds: 1 PHYLUM CHYTRIDIOMYCOTA The first group is known as chytridiomycota these are true fungi and they have a single flagellum at the rear of the cell, this flagellum propels the mold cell through the water just like the flagellum at the rear of a sperm cell propels sperm cells. Around 1998, Joyce Longcore determined that a type of chytridiomycete mold was causing the death of many frogs around the world by infecting their skin. You may not have heard of it but widespread frog deaths have been a serious concern for decades now. 2 PHYLUM HYPHOCHYTRIOMYCOTA The 2nd group that Dean goes on to discuss is the kingdom Chromista phylum hyphochytriomycota.

They have a single hairy flagellum at the front. Though similar to the above molds, these are not true molds. 3 PHYLUM OOMYCOTA The Third group is the kingdom Chromista phylum oomycota, they seem to be split and cannot make a clear decision on if it is better to have one smooth flagellum at the rear or to have a hairy one at the front, so the oomycetes have opted for two flagella at the side, one of the two is a hairy flagellum that points to the front and the other is a smooth one that points to the rear. Oomycetes make up the water molds that cause many common fungal infections in fish including tropical aquarium fish, as well as downy mildew that cause serious crop damage around the world every year. Most importantly oomycetes caused the Irish Potato Famine. This famine caused the death of one million Irish people and caused millions to emigrate from Ireland including the ancestors of Al McNamara of Abode Inspections, one of Americas first ASHI home inspectors. He was my mentor and introduced me to the home inspection field in 1993. Some of the above organisms have a flagellum during its reproductive state only while a few exist as a

single celled flagellated mold its entire life. Most of the above live in water, moist soil, or in the thin film of water on wet plant leaves. A few even live on the surface of single grains of flower pollen. Obviously, none of the above water molds are common in moldy homes. However, it is interesting to understand that these microscopic molds swim and cause serious negative impacts on humans, plants, and animals around the world.

In Lost Revenues And Millions Starve To Death

Daryl Watters is president of A Accredited Mold Inspection Service, Inc. He provides home, mold, and indoor air quality investigations in South Florida. He is also the creator of MIR forms designed to aid inspectors in the production of computer generated indoor air quality and mold inspection reports. For more information visit: http://www.florida-mold-inspection.com/ http://www.floridamoldinspectors.us/ http://florida-mold-inspection.com/mold_inspection_Florida.html Read More Articles From Daryl Watters: http://www.thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/daryl-watters.html http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/daryl-watters.html

are unforgettable symbols that will delight in any home. * Office Bookends: Office themed bookends make great presents for the career focused. A scale of justice bookend is appropriate for giving to the lawyer in the family while the medical caduceus bookend is a perfect present for a doctor. A brass computer bookend will look great in any type of office. The brass design of office themed bookends will keep them looking polished and professional, delighting coworkers and impressing clients who you do business with. * Nautical Bookends: With a nautical themed bookend, you can showcase your love of all things nautical. Sea bass and whale bookends are great for those with a passion for marine animals. Those who enjoy tales of sea adventures can appreciate bookends featuring pirates, fisherman or a ship captain at the helm of his ship. Sailboats, lighthouses, sea shells and even ship anchors are fun themed sea bookends that look great on the shelf and will make you feel like youre enjoying a day at the beach. * Contemporary Bookends: Modern bookends work well in homes and offices with contemporary or new age design elements. Letting the user express their own individuality and offered in bright bold colors to go with their home furnishings. Black and white rose or white marble are popular contemporary designs that offer an innovative twist on the more commonly known brass bookends. These eye catching pieces will sure to be a conversation starter for guest and are an ingenious

way to hold up books without looking obvious. For those who prefer to mix contemporary designs with traditional brass materials contemporary hearts or fleur de liss designed bookends are available. * Leaves and Flowers Bookends: Without the proper design, bookends can be clunky and unattractive in your home. For those who prefer a more delicate and soft looking bookend that will seamlessly blend with the surroundings you can not go wrong with leave themed bookends. These beautiful bookends feature detailed imprints of a single leaf or flower forever captured for your viewing. Emphasizing nature and outdoors, these bookends are great for those who live in the country or those who appreciate outdoor activities. Bookend options include a dogwood flower, pinecone, maple leaf or oak leaf themes. * Childrens Bookends: Showcasing the beauty of a family are mother and daughter or father and son bookends. These bookends show your children how much you love them a nd look great in their bedrooms. Funny clowns or kids playing tug o war bookends look whimsical and are age appropriate additions to a childrens playroom. For a nursery, a teddy bear bookend is a must have. In fact, the teddy bear bookend is so eye catching and plush looking your child might think its the real thing! * Historical Bookends: The history of America is rich and varied. With a historical themed bookend, you can depict important moments that shaped the country. Giving a child a visual representation of an event

that happened well before they were born or simply showcasing your respect and admiration for past historical figures. One of the most revered historical figures is Abraham Lincoln. The 16th president has several different bookend designs to choose from including Lincoln sitting in a chair and sitting on a bench. A Lincoln bust which features his head and torso is ideal for those who want to see the profile of this great president in detail. Historical bookends also include Doric columns to represent ancient Greek architect and Christopher Columbus to represent discovery of North America. * Animal Bookends: Sure to delight your child or your own inner child are animal themed bookends. Plenty of bookends representing mans best friend are available. Choose a playful puppy for a kids room, or a dog chewing bookend for your office. Butterfly, American eagle, elephant, swan or lion bookends will work in any room of your home.

Copyright c 2009-2010 Beth Mark

Beth Mark enjoys sharing home decoration ideas with her readers. Find this Bookend Collection and hundreds of other items at http://www.MadeInAmericaDecor.com/ Made In America Decor is always adding to their collections and everything in the store is guaranteed to be Made In America!! The store owners say that it is their goal to eventually offer products from every State in the Union. Read More Articles From Beth Mark: http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/beth-mark.html

to restore our national economy. Of course, it isn't just the government that's broken. Big business has also tarnished its reputation by becoming greedy and predatory. Big business has destroyed its workers jobs, poisoned the housing market with toxic mortgage derivatives, turned Wall Street into a den of thieves, and encouraged CEO's to treat companies as their own personal piggy banks. Does Cain possess the extraordinary competence and integrity required to recover our economy that has been debilitated by both the failures of government AND business? Cain begins to answer that question in the first paragraph: =============================

I didn't grow up wanting to be president of the United States. I grew up po', which is even worse than being poor. My American dream entailed working hard and making $20,000 a year, but I surpassed that goal and became a corporate CEO, a regional chairman of the Federal Reserve, a president of the Restaurant Association, an author, and an Atlanta talk show host before retiring at sixty-five on cruise control. And then I became a presidential aspirant. But a strange thing happened on my way to cruise control: The country got off-track.

============================= From that, I gather that Cain is running for the right reason — a

sincere calling to elevate the condition of the country and serve its people. Then Cain explains how he developed his character. Most of it, he says, came from observing his father. He explains how his dad left impoverished rural Georgia at age 18, hitchhiking to Ohio to find work in a factory. His dad then returned to Atlanta, working three jobs as a barber, chauffer, and janitor; his mother worked as a maid. Cain says: =============================

I relished those moments. While we were financially poor, we were emotionally rich, and our hard-working parents taught us lessons in dignity, ambition, and the value of formal education. Dad didn't have the opportunity to earn a college degree, but I always tell people that he had a Ph.D. in common sense. And both of our parents taught us not to think that the government owed us something. They didn't teach us to be mad at this country. They would always say to us: “If you want something, just work hard enough, focus on it, and guess what? You can make it happen!” And Dad made things happen. One day in the summer before I started the eighth grade, he came home and said to us: “Get in the car; we're going for a ride.” He drove us to a suburb west of Atlanta, pulled up in front of a six-room, all-brick house on Albert

Street, and said, “This is our new home.” He had fulfilled his dream of being able to buy a “whole house.”

============================== Cain explains that his dad was so well thought of that he became the private chauffer of the legendary Coca Cola CEO Robert Woodruff. Woodruff gifted him Coca Cola stock. Herman watched his dad prosper through integrity, work, and investment. He describes a man whose life was well balanced between work, love of family, religious values, and desire for success — a man who started out as an impoverished, uneducated Black kid in rural Georgia at a time when society didn't do Blacks any favors. Cain has taken this lesson through the rest of his life. He earned his master's in mathematics. He set his goal to become an executive in business by age 40 and succeeded when placed in many challenging positions of large companies. He succeeded as an entrepreneur. Now he has moved into the first tier of presidential contenders. This book has answered the most import question I wanted to know about Herman Cain: “Does Cain have the character of extra ordinary competence and integrity to lead us as President in recovering our debilitated economy?” After reading the book, the answer is a resounding “Yes.”

should be the most exciting WSOP ever held. One thing that has been exciting is the addition of the new events to the lineup. Of those games, one will be Event 51 played on July 1 called SHOE. SHOE is another multi-game tournament which combines Stud, Holdem, Omaha and Stud 8 all played as limit games. The SHOE event will also maintain the four game spread structure through the final table. Other multi-game tournaments are Event 5 Omaha/Seven Card Stud Hi-Low-8 or Better, Event 16 and 26 which are HORSE events with lower buyins of $2500 and $5000 respectively. HORSE which combined Holdem both Limit and No-Limit, Omaha, Razz, Stud and Stud Eight or Better, was the biggest attention draw of the 2006 WSOP outside of the Main Event with WSOP champion David Chip Reese as its winner. Another first is that the bracelets given out to event champions will be the most elegant and expensive in the history of the WSOP. CORUM, now the official timepiece of the WSO P, has created fifty-three of the bracelets that are studded with 53 diamonds apiece. The Main Event winner will receive a bracelet featuring 136 grams of 18-carat white gold set with 120 diamonds. The winner of the $50,000 buy-in HORSE tournament Event 39 and the Ladies Championship tournament Event 17 will have bracelets sporting black diamonds in them. Also welcome is the new payout schedule revisions. This enables players who make the money, but not the final table to receive a larger slice of the prize pool than in 2006. For example, according to Harrahs the

2006 Main Event would have paid $22,266 for 873rd through 775th places, up from the range of $14,605 to $15,512. And the Main Event winner would have been paid $10,028,715, down from $12 million, with the runner up receiving $5,442,769, compared with $6,105,900. Plus there are charity tournaments such as Ante Up For Africa organized by Annie Duke and actor/player Don Cheadle to raise awareness for Darfur survivors. One of the more interesting points of this years WSOP is having PartyPoker.net as the official sponsor of the tournament series. Harrahs has been dead serious about not having any connection to online poker or online gambling and has gone so far as to not let any online poker rooms register their WSOP Main Event satellite winners into any of their tournaments including the Main Event. Online poker rooms have gone to placing the registration fees into the players account and letting the player make the decision to register if they so choose. Par tyPoker.net has no online wagering on it, so being a purely fun only poker room Harrahs has allowed it. Others still see it as brand name advertising for PartyGaming, owners of PartyPoker.com. Also the ambition of having two tournament events a day has not been without its side effects. For instance, the number of signups for Event #3 No-Limit Holdem reached 2,998 players which broke all records for all WSOP tournaments outside of the Main Event. But players, even those who pre-registered and stood in line at 6:00 a.m., had to wait for hours before being seated.

Add final tables taking place, two to three bracelet events being played, satellite tournaments, late starts and cash games all happening at the same time and you have lots of chaos and unhappy players. One issue that Harrahs quickly solved were the new card decks brought into use. Players immediately complained and they were phased out of use by the second day of the WSOP, and there was a town hall meeting with the WSOP, the United States Playing Card Company and the players concerning ideas on future card development ideas. Another concern is the Pavilion room which is a tent behind the RIO set up for tournament overflow. It has been deemed so unstable in high winds that many players and dealers said they were terrified to be in the structure for tournament play. Well with the largest poker tournament in the world, there are bound to be some problems and Harrahs is highly committed not to let any issue keep the WSOP tournaments from taking place. So loo k forward to more records being set, more big money won and more excitement from the RIO in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Copyright c 2007-2010 Tom Howze

Tom Howze is a webmaster of an Internet site that relates to the http://www.justgambleforfree.com/world-series-of-poker.htm 2007 World Series of Poker events, updates and results news and http://www.justgambleforfree.com/Events1thru5.htm 2007 WSOP Reports on the tournament events themselves. Read More Articles From Tom Howze: http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/tom-howze.html

protesting actions taken by the United States as their legislation against online gambling impacts free trade. A Republican led Congress together with President Bush enacted the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act UIGEA bill which basically restricted the use of certain financial instruments such as credit cards to finance online gambling activities and yet at the same time states that it is not illegal for Americans to gamble online. On October 31st 2006, the Remote Gambling Summit which had representatives from 30 countries took place in Britain at the Ascot Racecourse to discuss how to regulate and tax the online gaming industry. The United States was invited but declined to attend. Some of the issues discussed at the summit were age and identification verification systems as well as the role and responsibilities of governments that host and regulate Internet gaming operators, along with legal and ethical considerations, including those rela ted to awareness and treatment of problem gambling and gambling addictions. It was the opinion of U. K. Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell that regulation is needed for this industry, and that taking measures like the United States ban risks driving the industry into criminal hands, just like Prohibition in the U.S. back in the 1920s. For those not knowledgeable about Prohibition, on August 1, 1917 the U.S. Senate passed legislation to create the 18th Amendment which was also passed by the House 3 months later. This bill prohibited the manufacture and use of alcohol in the United States. The result was that Americans

looking for an occasional drink went from regulated outlets such as saloons to speakeasys which were run by gangsters and racketeers. Even police, politicians, judges and civil leaders frequented the wet cabarets and soft drink parlors which remained open through graft payouts. At the same time whiskey sales for medicinal purposes soared. The failed experiment of Prohibition was ended with the creation of the 21st Amendment on December 5, 1933. Initial reaction to the recent UIGEA bill has shown similarities to Prohibition with numerous publically regulated offshore corporations leaving their U.S. customers, only to be replaced with privately owned companies where it is almost impossible to know who owns them. A number of privately owned online poker rooms have reported a surge in signups for U.S. real money players. Many online gamblers simply switched over to sites that would accept U.S. players and continued their activities. Critics of the bill state that the UIGEA actually does nothing to curb online gambling, because many banks had policies against credit card usage for online gambling far before the bill became law. Other nations such as Antigua and Barbuda have seen the UIGEA and other legislative actions the United States has taken as discrimination against Internet casinos and a restriction on international free trade. They have already won a case against the U.S. in 2005 at the World Trade Organization and are planning another filing because the U.S. was to comply with the WTO ruling and has made no efforts to do so. Several countries besides the

U. K. have laid groundwork to regulate and tax the egaming industry, rather than outlaw it, such as Italy and Belgium. Other efforts to stop protectionism have made The European Commission EU put Italy, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and Finland on notice in April 2006 for letting state lotteries offer online sports betting, while barring other competitors. The EU Financial Services Commissioner Charlie McCreevy said in September that eight more countries might be added to the list of countries already facing legal action for refusing to open their betting markets. Research by the British government shows that there are close to one million regular online gamblers in Britain. They make up nearly one-third of Europes approximate 3.5 million regular online gamblers. Combined with the estimated 20 million online gamblers and poker players in the United States, this represents only part of a sizable world-wide group of people who fuel a mu lti billion dollar industry that everyone seems to want to get a piece of, so expect the regulation of online gambling to be a hot topic for quite some time.

Copyright c 2006-2010 Tom Howze

Tom Howze is a webmaster for sites that relate to the http://www.justgambleforfree.com/world-series-of-poker.htm World Series of Poker with resources for http://www.justgambleforfree.com/freegames.htm Free Slot Machine Games and Online Casino Gaming http://www.justgambleforfree.com/casino.htm Read More Articles From Tom Howze: http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/tom-howze.html

teas. It undergoes very little processing and remains in a very natural state. This early harvest and minimal processing gives white tea a very light and delicate flavor that is slightly sweet. Compared to the amount of black and green tea grown in the world, there is very little white tea. This makes the tea more expensive and much harder to find. White tea connoisseurs may find that they have very few local stores that carry really good white tea in loose form. The Internet Has Opened a Whole New World The Internet has changed the way the world shops. In fact, experts say that 84% of Americans have shopped online at least once. And, approximately 60% of Americans say that they shop online regularly. Online shopping is popular for several reasons: * Its convenient you never need to leave the house and its faster than calling a catalog number. * Its fast Shopping online takes far less time than shopping in person * Its easy to f ind bargains Comparison shopping is easier * Your purchases are tax free in most states saving up to 7% of the value of each purchase. * You have access to more retailers. Shoppers are not limited to retailers in their local areas. This final reason is very important when it comes to purchasing tea online, particularly white tea. Anytime youre looking for a product thats rare, being able to widen your shopping horizons is very wise. I personally live in one of the largest cities in the US, and I know of only

one really good tea purveyor whose shop is convenient for me. Therefore, I buy most of my tea online because it gives me access to the best teas from anywhere in the world. Shopping for white tea online allows the opportunity to try more varieties of tea for sampling. Once youve chosen your favorite, you know that through online ordering, youll always be able to find the white tea you love. Shopping for tea online can pose one problem, however. This is, of course, the fact that you cant see the tea before you buy it. High quality white tea will be fluffy in appearance. White tea that is too compact has probably been improperly stored and thus, damaged. Good white tea will either have a delicate slightly sweet fragrance or no fragrance at all. Tea that smells stale probably is. But, when you order online, you cant scope out the smell and appearance of the tea before you buy. So, for this reason, the most important thing you can do to ensure that yo u get high quality tea online is to choose a reputable tea purveyor. Ordering from a company with a reputation for selling only the best teas and for having excellent customer service can help ensure that you get quality tea. It also helps ensure that in the event that you ever do get a bad batch of tea, youll be taken care of. The best tea purveyors stand behind their products and take care of their customers in order to gain repeat business. White tea is very expensive, and its no less expensive when you purchase online.

In fact, if you find a price on white tea that seems too good to be true, it probably is, unless you find it offered by a tea purveyor that youve used before and trust. The best tea purveyors will have relationships with the best white tea gardens in the world, or at least in one of the areas of the world where white tea is grown. This relationship will help them to procure the best crop of tea each year. It also pays for a customer to have a relationship with a tea purveyor, particularly where white tea is concerned. Since good white tea is only harvested once a year, youll want to know when your favorite online tea store gets its new batch. Many good tea purveyors will send out emails or other notifications to their customers advising them of new arrivals. Theyll also be happy to ask your questions about when your favorite tea will be in stock. Shopping online is a very good way to get good teas. Youll have access to some of the finest teas i n the world without leaving the comfort of your home. Just be certain that youre doing business with a reputable online tea company.

Copyright c 2007-2010 Marcus Stout

Marcus Stout is President of the Golden Moon Tea Company. For more information about tea, http://www.goldenmoontea.com/greentea green tea http://www.goldenmoontea.com/blacktea and black tea go to http://www.goldenmoontea.com Read More Articles From Marcus Stout: http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/marcus-stout.html

cultures. The quality and type of metal, whether gold, silver, iron, or bronze seems to have had significance not only to mark the social and economic class of the wearer, but also in symbolic and magical ways. Silver, long associated with the moon, was the most commonly used metal for Celtic torques and bracelets. Gold, very rare and precious in the centuries BCE, was reserved for not only the wealthiest members of society, but also the most powerful in a spiritual sense. Gold, due to its luster and color, has long been associated with the sun, and by extension, the vitality of the life force itself. The widespread archeological finds of torques have also provided archeologists with evidence of how widespread Celtic culture was in much of Pre-Roman Europe. A famous example of an ancient torque resides in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Dating from the 5th Century BCE, this item, fashioned of silver and 6 inches in diameter, is a smooth circle in part but a lso decorated with fascinating and mysterious designs. Elementary filigreed curves suggest a precursor to Celtic interlace work, and the balance and elegance in the arrangement of the torques ornamentation speak of how advanced Celtic metalwork was centuries before the Roman Empire. Torques naturally evolved to the smaller form of the cuff i.e., open or closed bracelet, and these bracelets sometimes were almost identical to torques in design and ornamentation. A common torque design, for example, was a simple

cable of woven metal, usually silver, with gold inlay, with the only ornamentation occurring at the clasp. This is also a common Celtic bracelet design, in pieces thought to be nearly 2,500 years old. Torques were sometimes created in the style of a cuff, with an opening in the metal so it could be easily placed around the neck. Cuff-style bracelets, usually broad gold or silver bands covered with highly stylized Celtic designs, began to emerge in the late Iron and early Bronze Age. Perhaps the most recognizable feature of Celtic bracelets is the presence on the decorated surface of the bracelet of intricate knot work and interlacing designs. Celtic knots or interlaces are one of the instantly recognizable hallmarks of Celtic jewelry. Tracing the line of one thread of most Celtic knots, for example, reveals that the thread is unbroken, returning over and over again to complete its path. The organic form of Celtic knots as revealed in bracelet patterns thro ughout the centuries symbolizes ones strong connection to nature and the cosmos. Indeed, the symbolism and written language of the ancient Druid priests, called Ogham, derives from an interweaving of earthly and heavenly symbols. This language has symbols that derive directly from various kinds of trees. The abstraction of tree-symbolism into a series of horizontal and vertical straight lines provided a language that was intimately connected to the world of nature. On the other hand, dolmens, which are massive

sacred, sacrificial stones, are found scattered throughout Europe as mute witnesses to the ancient predominance of Celtic culture, and are etched with spirals and circles that echo astronomical forms. These interweaving symbols, both the vegetative and cosmic designs, are expressed on the circular surfaces of bracelets. The surface itself, often a simple curve, provides a sense of movement through time, containing the designs in such a way to suggest dynamic flow within cosmic order. Bracelets as a form of sacred adornment served to anchor, for the wearer, the order and spiritual meaning of the Celtic world. Still evocative and contemporary in appearance after more than 25 centuries, Celtic bracelets reveal the astonishing skill of ancient metalworkers, as well as modern artisans. The enduring beauty and mystery of these objects makes them pieces of great fascination, transcending the simple function of jewelry as ornamentation.

Copyright c 2007-2010 Marc Choyt

Marc Choyt is President of Reflective Images, an award winning jewelry company, http://www.celticjewelry.com that sells wedding rings sourced by artisan designers online at http://www.artisanweddingrings.com. His company produces fair, eco-sourced, fairly trade jewelry. Marc also authors http://www.fairjewelry.org supporting green, fair trade, socially responsible jewelry practices. Read More Articles From Marc Choyt: http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/marc-choyt.html

no bearing on their success — but conversation did. Most successful were those who could make conversation with anyone — from strangers, to secretaries, to bosses to customers. Small talk impacts your success in personal relationships because it can shape how others see you in terms of intelligence and confidence. People tend to see good conversationalists as more intelligent and confident. Other research — to find the characteristics of the ideal person — has shown confidence and intelligence are the most important factors for about 60% of respondents. Despite the importance of small talk, most people dont do it well. Shyness is one reason. Others range from not knowing how to start a conversation to not having anything to say. But all it really takes to be good at small talk is a simple strategy. THINK AHEAD You will never have a conversation in a vacuum. It will always have its own context and envir onment. Think ahead about conversations you are likely to have — even those casual encounters that may happen because of where you will be on a given day. HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY Make sure you have something to say. Do a little research.

Read the newspapers. Find interesting things to talk about — serious or humorous — on the subjects that come up in everyday conversation – careers, sports, the weather, money, kids, politics, etc. ASK QUESTIONS This is critical. A conversation takes two and questions help BOTH you and the other party. Ask someone a question, and you get them engaged. LISTEN AND UNDERSTAND This strategy step requires you to, not only listen to how others answer questions, but to understand and adapt. ADAPT Lets assume you are a salesperson and, when you enter the new prospects office, you alertly notice a picture of him standing in front of a sign saying Michigan State University. You say, Oh, I see you went to Michigan State. The prospect replies, Yeah, I went there on a football scholarship. And you reply, Oh, I went to Boston University, myself. What was your major? Wrong follow-up question! The prospect vol unteered information important to him football scholarship. You should have adapted . . . following up with something like, Oh, what position did you play? This could lead to a whole series of questions, increasingly engaging the prospect.

When you successfully apply this simple strategy, you create rapport – a feeling of trust and liking. This can cause others to think of you in positive ways: Personal friends or personal friends-to-be: This is an interesting, entertaining and witty person — the kind of person I like to have around me. Employers or potential employers: This is a person who would fit in here — a person who can relate well and get along well with others. Customers: Im comfortable with this person. This is the kind of person Id like to do business with. Clearly, small talk is crucial to you. You owe it to YOU to do it well.

Copyright c 2004-2010 Paul Barton

Paul Barton is a communication and marketing consultant. His book, How To Be GREAT!!! In Conversation, has been used by thousands of people all over the world to help them build relationships and sell themselves through conversation skills, and his personal/phone consultations have benefited people in all walks of life. http://www.howtomakeconversation.com – selfi3k@twcny.rr.com Read More Articles From Paul Barton: http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/paul-barton.html

that allows the creation of value for the tea drinker. What is a tea wholesaler? A tea wholesaler is a business that buys high quality loose leaf tea in bulk and at a discount from the retail price and then serves the tea to its customer in a tea room, restaurant of other establishment. The tea serving is almost always combined with value added offerings of other products like quality food and beverages, What is a tea supplier? A tea supplier is a business that purchases and imports tea in bulk from the country of origin like China, India, Sri Lanka, Taiwan or other tea producing country. Many suppliers will blend raw tea using recipes for unique flavors that the supplier has developed. Blends like Earl Grey, Coconut Pouchong, Vanilla Jasmine, Kashmiri Chai and others are included with basic black, green, wu long, white and pu-erh teas are in the product line of the supplier. The essence of the wholesaler/supplier relationship is the valu e created as a result of the products and services offered the wholesaler by the supplier and the benefits received by the wholesaler. What should the wholesaler look for in a supplier? * Tea Quality The starting point for any tea relationship is the quality of the loose leaf tea. Without quality tea and tea blends, the business relationship will fail. Wholesalers should look for suppliers with a reputation for supplying the highest quality tea. * Customer Service and Support Many wholesalers are tired of

trying to reach the supplier and getting lost in endless phone trees or automated responses. Choose a supplier that will be assign a dedicated live phone representative to help with orders, track shipments, provide billing support, and help you with anything else you need * Pricing and Profitability A wholesaler should earn the best discount for the volume purchased? With some suppliers wholesalers can earn greater profits through larger volume based discounts based upon multiple-tiered pricing structures. * Discount Velocity and Reliability Are the discounts offered as an integral part of the business relationship and on a consistent basis that allow the wholesaler the ability to construct a profitable business model? Some suppliers offer large discounts that often are reduced at a later date and this practice is very detrimental to the wholesaler. Look for a supplier with a wholesale program that offers auto-adjusting price levels that reward higher volumes in real time as well as a status indicator that tells you how close you are to that next price break * Easy Access to Your Account for 24/7 Account Management For wholesalers who purchase after hours some suppliers offer wholesale tea programs that provide unique account logins that allow account management 24 hours a day. * Easy and Cost Effective Ordering Some suppliers offer wholesale programs that can load previous orders with a single click and a few also offer autoship programs that

will ship your wholesale tea order every month at a discounted price. Some of these programs are also manageable 24 hours a day through online. This feature saves the wholesaler time and money. * Manageable Order History For those wholesalers who only order teas during specific seasons it is important to deal with suppliers that offer comprehensive order history lookup whereby the supplier can see every order placed and the exact date the order was placed. Never again will the wholesaler forget that best selling tea during Mothers Day, Valentines Day, or any other peak holiday. * Multiple Delivery Locations For wholesalers with multiple locations look for suppliers with wholesale programs that allow shipments to multiple locations without having to place several orders also keep this information on file that allows easy lookup in the future. Tea wholesalers are a very important part of the loose leaf tea business but they must work wi th a reliable supplier that produces only the highest quality tea and offer a business model that allows the wholesaler long term, sustainable profitability.

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Marcus Stout is President of the Golden Moon Tea Company. For more information about tea, http://www.goldenmoontea.com/greentea green tea http://www.goldenmoontea.com/blacktea and black tea go to http://www.goldenmoontea.com Read More Articles From Marcus Stout: http://thephantomwriters.com/recent/author/marcus-stout.html