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In a wholesale clothing business, it is very important to choose a niche market especially if you are just starting up. Bigger businesses can have several niche markets, but a start-up business should focus on just one niche. In the wholesale clothing business, there are niches such as urban wear, sportswear, junior clothing, petite size clothes, etc. However, there are three main categories of the clothing business that are highly profitable and these are menswear, women’s clothes and children’s clothing.

If you are planning to start an online business selling wholesale clothes, a niche market is ideal. Before you decide on your niche, let us take a close look at the three main markets or categories of clothes that bring in the most profits.

Men’s Wear

In the past, men were not too concerned about their clothes. They just wore the same basic shirt and pants in the same basic colors and style. These days, however, men are more fashion conscious. Urban clothes for men are very popular. Other popular choices are short-sleeved shirts and tight jeans. Men are now more adventurous when it comes to clothes and they go for bold colors and designs. Quality and style are primary considerations when men buy clothes to wear. Men also buy clothes more often these days, so this market is highly profitable.

Women’s Clothing

Women have always been fashion conscious and eager to buy new clothes as often as possible. For this reason, selling wholesale women’s clothing is a very lucrative business. In fact, it is one of the most profitable markets in the clothing industry. Women want the latest in style and the trendiest clothes. When you sell wholesale clothes for women, always have the most fashionable clothes available. The retail and wholesale business in women’s clothes will continue to grow each year around the world.

Children’s Clothes

Some experts consider kids’ clothing to be the most profitable market in the clothes business. Parents buy a lot of clothes for kids because they outgrow their clothes very quickly. Babies and toddlers, in particular, need new clothes every few weeks or so. Parents are constantly on the lookout for affordable clothes for their children.

All of these clothes are available from SaleHoo wholesalers, dropshippers or liquidators. Use SaleHoo’s wholesale directory to find suppliers of the most affordable clothes to sell. With the huge discounts being offered, you can make a good profit selling these popular items from SaleHoo suppliers. Start with one profitable niche market and watch your business grow.

70% Salehoo Discount Link. See More About: Wholesale Clothing Lots and Wholesale Clothing Online. Michelle Samual Williams has been a professional buyer for many multinational companies. In little over 2 years, she has managed to become one of the top eBay Powersellers, raking in more than $50,000 in sales monthly.

Having basic auto repair tools can really be nice when your car starts to have car troubles. Having some repair tools can save you from having to run to your local Utah auto repair garage. You don’t want to have to run to a Utah auto shop for every single mechanical problem that goes on with your car.

Be sure to carry auto repair tools in your car with you whenever you drive. As discussed in a previous article, major car repairs may be saved by keeping up with the general maintenance of your car. Yet, even doing that does not guarantee that your car will never break down.

It is inevitable that your car will need some minor repairs every so often. Even when they are cared after very well, cars will need some mechanical work done. However, keeping good care of your car and bringing it in to your local Utah auto shops to replace oil and other maintenance checks will make it more plausible that you can save money when your car does have smaller issues because you will be able to do the repairs on your own.

You can usually find a good set of auto tools at most Utah auto stores. Stores that deal with car accessories are always a good place to look for auto repair tools. A lot of supermarkets are also selling auto repair tools.

Basic tool kits will allow you to do basic mechanical repairs yourself. Before trying to repair anything on your car yourself, you need to make sure you have a basic knowledge of car repairs. Local classes, online tutorials, and basic videos are a good place to start when studying how to do repairs on your car.

Some procedures should never be tried by a novice. For example, you would never want to try to replace a broken clutch by yourself. The type of repairs that novice car owners can easily do are things such as replacements on spark plugs or fuel filters.

When you buy a basic auto repair tool kit it should have some form of tutorial included with it. Tutorials will help you understand the tools and their uses. The more detailed the tutorial, the better.

You can ask your Utah auto repair technicians what tools are the best to have for basic maintenance work. Most will tell you the need for jumper cables, screwdrivers, set of wrenches, thick gloves, and breaker bars. When you go in to talk to your technician, compare the pricing between their basic auto repair tool kits and others you can find online or at the supermarkets.

Master Muffler is Utah’s leading muffler, brake and auto repair shop, and has 13 locations from Brigham City to Provo. Visit or call one of their locations for a free quote on how to improve your miles per gallon up to 30% for your car, truck or van. Visit their website at http://www.mastermuffler.net.

College recruiting is all about finding the best players for college programs. Recruiting at the major college level is big-time business in order to recruit big-time players. The game of college recruiting is cut-throat; it’s kill or be killed when you’re out there looking for the best talent for your college program. College athletics is mostly about winning, making money and turning your program into a success right now. The days of taking three to five years to build a successful program are long gone.

To be a success at any sport at the major college level you have to reach your conference tournament then go beyond the tournament to compete for a national championship. Anything less, especially if you’re a college coach. Chances are you will be fired.

College sports is big business; from the games on TV to the fans who see the teams play in person, big money is being made and the better your college program does in a tournament or ball games means more money for your college or university.

The pressure to achieve that goal year in and year out is extremely difficult and only the most successful coaches, with a strong background in recruiting, will succeed. Keep in mind, to reach the level of the major college coach you already know strategy, you already know how to coach and motivate players and do all the things that it takes to prepare your team for each and every day, but if you do not have the best players for your program to succeed then you will struggle.

Recruiting is such a sophisticated process that it requires a coach to handle those responsibilities full time.

How has college sports become big business? The answer to that question is television, the NCAA tournament and the BCS Bowl championship series. Fans at the stadiums want to see their favorite college team compete which generates millions of dollars in revenue, merchandise is sold, television rights are sold and the larger college programs get that money which could stretch from $40 to $50 million per year in revenue.

College athletics is an extremely powerful presence in American culture. Millions of people watch the games, millions of people read about their favorite team, and millions more spend money on their favorite teams’ merchandise. With all of that being said, you must produce a successful college program every year and the only way to do that is to recruit top caliber players by any means necessary.

The best college coaches who can recruit and win successfully are paid millions of dollars. Many coaches make more money than the President of the United States. Coaches who receive these large salaries are there for one reason: to win games. Because of the pressure to win each and every year, there are some college programs that will cheat to secure the top high school talent in America. The rules that govern college programs, set forth by the NCAA, are as big as a phonebook. There are so many rules and regulations that govern college programs and the college recruiting process that it can be a challenge to stay within the guidelines of the NCAA rulebook.

Many college programs have what is called a “compliance department” that oversees the athletic programs to ensure that the rules are being followed. Cheating at college recruiting happens almost every day. Many college coaches, in order to succeed, feel they have to go outside the rule book in order to recruit players.

With that type of pressure placed on college coaches to win many turn to cheating. Cheating is almost a way of life in the world of college recruiting because in order to achieve some level of success, rules will be broken.

College coaches, it seems to me, do not fear getting caught. So what if they lose a scholarship or two or have to vacate ballgames that they won. Cheating to recruit players will never stop. Nobody cares about the players it seems. When a college program only cares if that player can help that program win ball games, then that college program will do almost anything to recruit a potential superstar athlete and do whatever necessary to keep that college athlete eligible.

What does this say about the college coach who only cares if you can play a game and is willing to manipulate the rules of recruiting to recruit you to their program? There are many college student athletes who, for the most part, have no business ever being admitted to college in the first place, but because they can play a sport better than many others, that college’s athletic department is willing to bend the rules to get that superstar athlete admitted into their college program.

There was a time when a college coach would recruit high school student athletes, build their programs, graduate their players and continue to build a successful program.

That does not happen anymore. College programs are built for the ‘right now’ and recruiting is a key factor in reaching major success. College coaches from major college programs have the resources to recruit players from all over the country. These coaches, with their deep recruiting pockets, will travel coast-to-coast in search of talent. Because of the recruiting calendar set by the NCAA, the actual days to evaluate and recruit players is limited. College coaches are using whatever resources are available to them to recruit players.

Football camps is a good resource to evaluate and recruit players and the AAU for basketball is another good resource that is used to recruit players but all of these resources can be manipulated by paying off club coaches and making promises to persuade a high school athlete to sign to their college program.

It seems that everyone is looking to make money off high school student athletes who possess superior skills to compete at the major college level. “Street Agent” is a term sometimes used to direct a high school basketball player to a college program. That so-called agent is the middleman who can facilitate the recruiting process outside of the rules to help secure recruits to a college program.

Who is to blame for how out of control the college recruiting process has gotten? To answer that question, you really have to go back 50-60 years, when top recruits were getting special gifts or cash to play ball at a certain college.

Even as far back as the 1950′s and 60′s, illegal recruiting has gone on. Is it the parent’s fault because they’ve got to have some inkling as to what’s going on and maybe they accepted it as part of the process of getting their son or daughter into a major college program. What responsibility does the high school coach have? Do they also turn a blind eye to what’s going on with their superstar player? There is no doubt that the high school coach is aware of the illegal recruiting. What role does the club coach play in the illegal recruiting? They have just as much access to players as anyone and can influence players to certain programs if the price is right.

The ultimate goal, when it comes to recruiting, is to bring in the best possible players for your program and the athletes understand that there is value to obtain their services. These high school athletes understand how coveted they are by college programs that look to them to turn their program into winners. The student athletes who have been hyped up during their high school athletic careers understand that most college programs may have to do something extra to secure their recruitment to that program.

An illegal recruiting allegation is the term associated with recruiting by underhanded practices by some college coaches. Many times, these allegations surface during a college coaches time associated with that program and sometimes nothing is done, in terms of investigation, until after that coach has moved on to another program. Big-time college coaches these days do not stay in one place very long.

Generally, coaches may stay two or three recruiting classes build their programs into a winner, make a lot of money and move on to bigger paying coaching jobs, before any sanctions are placed on them while still with that program. Gone are the days where a coach will remain at a program for his entire career. The pressure to win makes coaches move to different jobs all the time. Win or lose, the coaching carousel never stops.

If a college program is found guilty of a recruiting allegation, only the program suffers by loss of scholarships or they may have to vacate victories. But how many times has a college coach been fined lost some of the money they make for recruiting wrong-doing? The answer is never! Sure there have been college coaches who have been fired because of recruiting wrong-doings, but somehow these coaches continue to get coaching jobs at other major college programs.

Summer recruiting, as it applies to AAU or club basketball, is big business this time of the year because college programs can scout and evaluate potential recruits.

Club basketball in some ways is taking over high school basketball in terms of recruiting. During the summer club season, there are many tournaments around the country where college programs can see the best of the best high school talent show their skills.

This, too, has become corrupt. Many AAU club coaches earn six-figure salaries from shoe companies and donations and they do not have to disclose this information. In many people’s opinion, there is too much power and influence over high school athletes than what the high school coaches have. There is a tug of war between club coaches and high school coaches over the control of the high school student athletes but who reaps the benefits? The college coaches!

For every bad story you read about college recruiting there are good stories; there are stories about the hidden talent that was discovered. While the stories about players walking on to a major college program and turning out to be outstanding student athletes is few.

There are many rules in place to protect the high school student athletes from over-zealous recruiters. But, like many things in this world, rules are made to be broken and are often broken in the big-time world of college recruiting.

Woods Recruiting: specializing in helping high school student athletes get recruited for college.

Buying a new car, or a car that’s new to you, can be a minefield. Women are traditionally vulnerable to con men when buying cars, taking their cars for a service or anything else related to motoring for that matter. Although we’d like to think that times have changed, and in the most part they have, there are still car sales people waiting for an innocent looking female to trot through the door. This applies to men too, so don’t be offended! At CoverGirl Car Insurance we want you to get the best deal, cheap insurance and above all a great car. So, we’ve compiled a concise guide to what can be one of the most expensive purchases you’ll have to make.

The first thing you will need to do is decide whether you want a new or used car. You probably have a make and model in mind already, so it’s best to do as much research into the car as possible. You can look in trade guides and on the internet to get some ideas about the production and engineering of your desired car. If you go to the dealer armed with this information then you will know what to look for and will know about any parts of the car that are particularly expensive to replace. Whilst doing your research you could also look out for any common problems with your car. For example certain vehicles have notoriously bad electrics and you could be left having to pay a large bill to have them repaired.

So what’s the best bet, new or used?

Buying a new car

Buying a new car gives you the peace of mind that your car hasn’t been rescued from an accident and ‘cut and shut’ (more about this later). Plus you don’t have to worry about service history and recurring problems.

If you decide to buy a new car then you have three options. You can either buy from dealership, from a broker or by personal import from Europe. There are pros and cons to each option so you should look carefully at each to decide what’s best for you. The benefits and pitfalls of each are as follows:

Dealership: Many dealers offer cheap finance schemes with frequent special offers, you can take the car for a test drive and you also may be able trade in your existing car. This is often a more expensive option so it’s worth looking around.

Broker: It is often cheaper to buy through a broker and relatively easy to organise. You may not be able trade your car in.

Personal imports from Europe: Cheaper in the majority of cases. However this is not the easiest way to buy a car. You’ll have to put in quite a bit of work.

What to check when you collect your car

We advise that you check your new car over before you drive off the forecourt. There are a few key things to check:

o That you’ve got a copy of the dealers pre-delivery inspection form

o Check that all lights, electrics, sound systems, alarms, door locks and windscreen wipers work

o Check for any scratches and check that there is no damage to the interior

o Check you’ve got the spare tyre and any tools that are supposed to come with the car

o Make sure you’ve got the manual and service book

Buying a used car

When you buy a used car there are a few more pitfalls to look out for but you can bag yourself a bargain if you look in the right place. It can also be great fun deciding whether you want a sexy classic like an Alfa Romeo Spider or a bargain run-around like a Ford Ka. Whether you chose to buy from a dealer or from the private market you’ll need see the history of the car. This is really important. You can either buy from a franchised dealer, a used car dealer or privately. Here are some of the pros of buying from each:

Franchised dealer: One of the safest places to buy a car. You’ll get a great choice from a franchise. You can get used or nearly new cars. A franchised dealership also might know the entire history of the car. They will also provide you with a warranty, so if anything goes wrong you can take it back and they will fix it.

Used car dealer: They will usually have checked that there is no bad history or outstanding finance. Most dealers have an excellent reputation but you should exercise some caution and again, do your own research about the type of car you’ve chosen. You will usually get at least a 3 month warranty from a used car dealer. But check to see what it covers. Service items like tyres, exhausts and brake pads are not usually covered.

Private purchase: Best place for an excellent bargain. This is the riskiest way to buy a car as the car could have been involved in an accident, and might not belong to the seller. You should ask to meet at the sellers’ home or work and ask the following questions:

1. Is it your car?

2. Has the car ever been in an accident?

3. Can I have a signed receipt?

‘Cut and shut’, counterfeit parts, car ringing and clocking

Unfortunately there are many unscrupulous people out there wanting to make a buck out of the innocent car buyer. Some of the tactics undertaken by an unethical minority leave drivers with dangerous, illegal and unreliable cars. Many cars are stolen and sold on or taken from accidents and patched up to look like new. The following are some ploys that con men use to cheat the buyer:

‘Cut and Shut’

This is when two cars are taken from a scrap yard after write off accidents and welded together. This is extremely dangerous and potentially difficult to spot. Look for mismatched panels, traces of paint on window seals and door handles, mismatched upholstery and signs of serious repair work. It is very difficult to spot a cut and shut but it’s worth a closer inspection in case the person who carried out the work has cut corners.

Counterfeit parts

These are fraudulent copies of genuine manufacturer branded components. They are intended to deceive motorists and can be incredibly realistic. They are however not intended to be safe. Their makers don’t care about the potential safety threat to future drivers. They have started to make fake brake pads, discs and steering linkages. All of these could cause fatal accidents if they go wrong. You probably won’t have the opportunity to check parts before they are fitted to your new car, but it is something you should be aware of when buying a second hand vehicle.

‘Car ringing’

This is where a stolen car has its identification number changed. The vehicle identification number is taken from vehicles that have been written off in an accident. By forging these details thieves can pass off stolen cars as the genuine article to innocent car buyers. Once you’ve paid for a ‘ringer’, it’s too late. It does not belong to you and if it is traced it will be returned to the original owner, so you will lose out considerably. You can look out for this by checking all documents to see if they look forged. If there is little or no paperwork you should also be suspicious.

‘Car clocking’

This is when the car’s odometer is reduced to make it look as if the car has not done as many miles as it has. This makes cars look more valuable than they are. If the mileage of a car looks suspiciously low you should look for other tell tale signs such as wear and tear to the pedal rubbers and seats.

All of the above are seriously detrimental to the buyer and will leave you with a stolen, dangerous or faulty vehicle. If you have any doubts it is advisable to get an independent vehicle inspector to check the car before you buy it. This will avoid any potential fraud and will eliminate the risk to you.

Good luck!

Buying a car should be fun. You could end up with the car of your dreams – if you follow our guide. It really is worth checking for any discrepancies before you make the purchase. There are many ways to check the history and safety of the car so it’s easy to do and worth it in the long term.

Once you’ve bought your car you’ll need to insure it. Visit CoverGirl Car Insurance http://www.covergirlcarinsurance.co.uk 0800 195 48 52 to get car insurance exclusively for women.

Editorial notes: CoverGirl provide cheap car insurance for women. Great value quotes are available online at http://www.covergirlcarinsurance.co.uk

By Sophie Evans
CoverGirl Car Insurance http://www.covergirlcarinsurance.co.uk
0800 195 48 52

Special education professionals work to promote students’ overall behavioral, social and academic growth. Special education professionals aide students in developing socially appropriate behavior within their family, school and community. Teachers of special education help students become more confident in their social interactions. Special education professionals administer activities that build students’ life skills.

What Does the Job Entail?

Are you interested in helping others? Can you handle and care for people who learn differently and have other behavioral problems? Do you want to make a difference in a young child’s life? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then you might consider a career in special education. Below is a breakdown of the short and long-term responsibilities of a special education teacher.

First and foremost, special education teachers focus on the development and academic needs of children with disabilities. They encourage learning in disabled students by implementing educational modules and behavioral techniques. Special education teachers work alone or with general education teachers to individualize lessons, develop problem-solving techniques and integrate children into group projects with other students. Furthermore, special education teachers are responsible for ensuring that the needs of disabled children are met during assessment periods.

Did you know that special education teachers work with a team of professionals, qualified staff and family in order to fulfill their job requirements? It is true. In fact, special education teachers work in conjunction with these entities to create an Individualized Education Program (IEP) for each student. An IEP is designed in collaboration with a child’s parents, school principal, social worker, speech pathologist and general education teacher to ensure effective implementation. An IEP targets a student’s needs and growth areas for maximum response. The specialized goals set by the IEP are woven throughout all aspects of a child’s daily activities. Teachers of special education must monitor a child’s setbacks and progress and report back to parents and administrators. Planned goals and tasks are outlined for family members to refer to while a student is at home as well.

The types of disabilities a special education teacher might encounter are difficult to predict. For one, the qualifications for special education services vary greatly from mild disabilities to extreme cases of mental retardation or autism. Types of disabilities include, but are not limited to, the following: speech impairments, hearing disabilities, emotional disturbances, orthopedic impairments, brain trauma cases, blindness, deafness and learning disabilities.

Do You Exhibit These Qualities?

Now that you have an idea of the job’s demands, let’s see if you have the right qualities to be a special education teacher.

Recognize the symptoms and needs of special needs students

Patience

Ability to work with one or more parties to achieve short-term and long-term goals

Strong communication skills

Ability to motivate others

Ability to multi-task

Knowledge of the most recent education modules, medical research and behavioral practices

Knowledge of the latest medical technology relevant to special education

Taking the Next Step toward a New Career

Once you have decided to enter the field of special education, you will need to follow several steps. Due to the specialization of the field, special education teachers in all 50 states must receive licensure before employment. Licensures are approved by each state’s board of education, and the requirements for certification differ between states. Nevertheless, the growing shortage of special education teachers has led institutions of higher education to offer more special education degree and certification programs. In fact, special education degrees are offered at the bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels throughout the nation. Not to mention, the booming field of distance learning has made certification more accessible from any location in the United States.

In many cases, hopeful special education professionals do not meet the requirements of special education licensure due to their prior completion of degree programs outside of the field of education. Therefore, several states have begun to offer alternate forms of certification. The hope of these programs is to attract new special education professionals and fill the growing need for teachers. The chance to positively impact the lives of special needs children is one of the driving motivations and benefits of entering this field.

After several years, some special education teachers look for new opportunities within their field. In the most common situations, special education professionals transfer to administrative or supervisory positions. Others, after receiving a higher degree, become college professors and educate new students in the field of special education. Experienced teachers of special needs students have also moved up to serve as mentors to incoming special education teachers.

As for the future of special education and employment, there are many changes on the horizon. Most significantly, the job market in special education, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), is projected to “increase faster than the average of all occupations by 2014.” Due to the new emphasis on education and training in legislature, special education professionals will become even more valued.

Can I Make a Living as a Special Education Teacher?

As mentioned previously, the special education job market is on the rise. In 2004, the BLS reported 441,000 employed special education teachers in the nation. While only 6 percent worked within private schools, over 90 percent were employed by public schools or districts. In rare cases, special education professionals were involved in home or hospital care.

Several factors determine a special education teacher’s financial compensation. Such factors include experience, educational background, area of specialty and geographical location. In May 2004, the BLS reported the following breakdown of median annual earnings of special education teachers:

Preschool, kindergarten and elementary school level: – $43,570

Middle school level: – $44,160

Secondary school level: – $45,700

Special education teachers receive increases in salary through additional involvement in their schools’ educational activities and through coaching school athletic teams. In some districts, being a mentor to a new special education teacher carries additional monetary benefits. However, the most common way to increase earnings is through the completion of a higher degree, which can also make a teacher’s instruction more credible and valuable.

elearnportal is an information resource center for finding high quality, online college courses and degrees.

Your child will soon grow up to really appreciate their surroundings. They will soon be at the stage where they will understand the necessities of what a bedroom should be like. Then comes the inevitable: they’ll choose the furniture for their selves. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with that because they are in charge of their own room.

The bed is not the only thing that your child will change. They’ll change the complete makeup of the room from the headboards to the bookshelves. Fortunately you can find complete childrens furniture in online stores and look at them with your child. You won’t be disappointed in the selection of furniture that’s available.

A child’s bedroom should reflect more than just the bed; it should reflect their imaginations. If they are adventurous and action-oriented, then buy furniture that’s geared toward that. Fantasy-filled? There’s furniture for that, too. There is nothing that can’t be done in this regard. Your child will have much furniture from which to choose and you’ll be able to go with them.

Your child’s bedroom is going to more than just a bedroom, too. It’s going to be a central area where games are played and friends are going to spend the night. As such, you should buy childrens furniture that best reflects the child’s needs in regards to space and imagination.

The best option is to buy them online because many stores have limited time from which to shop. At least online, you can shop to your heart’s content.

To learn more about childrens furniture you can research more through some trusted website or learn more through children bedroom furniture.

Your mobility depends too much on your possession of a private vehicle. You may go for a car, motorcycle or truck as your own vehicle. But due to severe weather conditions in many regions it is not a good idea to depend on motorcycles all the time. It is also not a good idea to have a truck or SUV as they drink lot of gas and the maintenance is high. Somewhere in the middle and perfectly positioned vehicle for Desi would be a car. There are various types of cars to suite your need.

What you should have

If you are a single man and do not depend primarily on your car for commuting to your work, then go for anything as you wish.

There are coupes which have capacity for 4 persons but only two big doors. Primarily these cars are designed keeping in view for two, driver and one passenger. The other model is the sedan which has capacity for 5 and has 4 doors. This can also be called a family car. Depending on the size of the car, they are categorized as Compact, Mid-sized and Full. Compact cars are very small in size and have a good mileage per gallon too. Some manufacturers even make two seated compact cars. The power of the compact car is also little less than the cars of other categories. There are other cars that have powerful engines and are rated as sports cars.

On the contrary, if you have a big family and need more space in your vehicle, then go for van/SUV. But I wont suggest this idea to people who have just come to US, before/after marriage and don’t have any kids.

Besides, it is always your dream and desire that makes you to go for a particular type and model. But before deciding upon something, you must give a thought to the other factors like, the mileage, sitting capacity, transmission, trunk capacity, engine power, ease of driving/safety, interior, power doors and anti-theft devices. Also your affordability plays a major role in purchasing a vehicle.

Do you have a driver license yet? It is most important to have one before going for a vehicle. Various states have different rules for issuing drivers license. You can logon to Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) sites to know about the pre-requisites and methods of getting one driver license for your state. Normally it involves a written examination, minor vision test and a road test.

The never-ending comparison

Now you have to decide whether to buy a new car or a used car. I wont suggest you any thing or force you to go for what I think is right, but you must know the good and bad things involved in each.

Used Cars

* They are cheaper.

* They may be old.

* They might have more than one owner.

* They could be purchased from private parties or authorized dealers.

* They might have gone through serious maintenance/repair in the past.

* They might have gone through an accident in the past.

* Some parts/components are just about to die.

* There may not be enough warranty/guaranty on some expensive parts.

* The mileage may not be good.

* They may need more maintenance.

* They may not be reliable for long drives.

* Resale may be a headache.

New Cars

* They are not cheap.

* They are covered under manufacturer/dealer warranty.

* Their fuel efficiency must meet the specification.

* There is the satisfaction of owning a new car.

* Easy to get a finance for new car than a used car.

* No need to worry about the engine, body, suspension, tyre, batteries and interior conditions.

* Insurance premium may be higher.

* Can only be bought from an authorized dealer.

There are many other things that can be discussed as advantages and disadvantages under both the headings. However, I don’t want to focus on them right now. If you are convinced to buy a new car, then go for it.

Your target

Now it is the time for you to decide the Make, Model and Type of your car. In US you will find hundreds of Make and Models (no Hind Motors/Maruti cars of course). From a Desi prospect I would say it is better to start with Honda/Toyota/Nissan. These Japanese car manufacturers know our requirement and never ditch us on the highways. The engines are good and prices are low. They run long enough before giving up. The life of a Honda/Toyota is considered to be 300K miles. But the look and interior designs are not at par with the American/European cars.

Buying a New Car

Take a cup of coffee, chat with your friends and go through some reviews before you decide upon the make model and color of your first dream car in USA. Check for the existing/upcoming models of your car by logging onto the sites. Select the color and interior and look at the car through the simulator. The most important thing that you must consider here is that, when the next model is going to be released. If it is very soon, then don’t go for it, because after you buy your car, you will see the newer model in the market and the resale value of your car will fall drastically.

Cars with automatic transmission and power window have good resale value. ABS and anti-theft devices are added advantages. Leather interior is as per your wish.

Now you have all the details in your mind and the budget is also finalized. Next step is to study the finance market and look for the bank/credit union who gives the best APR. Also don’t forget to decide upon your auto insurance. Find out a good insurance company and try to get a quote from them. The premium varies from place to place. With all these things set up, go to the Auto-Mall of your city. Go for a test drive for the car you have already decided. Beware of the car sales representatives. They will always try to sale you the most expensive car they have. But you shouldn’t deviate from your decision. Try to bargain with them for a possible reduction in their margin and ask for extra accessories.

What is the status of the loan? Have you arranged one or you want the dealer to make some arrangements for you? Always try to bring down the APR. If you are very new to US and don’t have any credit score, you may not get a good APR. However, dont worry about the APR right now. You can always refinance the loan with a better APR after you buildup the credit history after few months of repayment of the loan.

Once the deal is final, you need to sign some papers and then provide the Insurance details if you have. Otherwise, you could also provide the insurance agents phone number and the sales representative will talk to the insurance agent to get the car insured before leaving their premises (dont worry too much for the insurance premiums now, it is important to get your car insured before you drive out of the dealers premises, however you can easily change your insurance later, if you find a better one). In case you didn’t get any insurance, you can always go for binder insurance, but they are quite expensive, but you can always cancel them in the middle once you establish your insurance with somebody else and get the refund for the unused portion of your premium.

The next thing is to make the financial paper work. You will be guided to the dealers accounts department and one of the accountants will assist you in finalizing the loan and payment for the car. At that time they will try to sale an extended warranty for another 3 years after the manufacturers warranty. It is you who will decide for that. Don’t listen to them, but evaluate it being unbiased. They will try to sale so many other things like paint guard, gap insurance etc. I would suggest not to go with all these things except paint-guard.

After everything is over, they will apply for the vehicle registration/license plate to DMV on your behalf and give you the temporary ownership license (stuck to the windshield of your car). As far as I know, they wash the car and give you a full tank as a compliment before you drive your car back home.

New cars don’t give you much trouble as long as you do all the regular oil change and maintenance in time.

Buying a Used Car

Used cars are good but not as new cars. They are much cheaper than the new cars, but at the cost of your peace of mind. You can buy used cars from either a private party or from any dealer. Here also you have to decide your budget and the make, model and year of the car that you need. Also the other main factor is the odometer reading.

There are many sites that give you the links for used cars for sale. You can also refer to the local news papers for any such advertisement. There are places in some cities where people come with their cars for auction/sale. Since you are new, don’t go to such places. Rather get contact information from news paper ads or internet. Get the details of the car like make, model and year of the car, miles it has run, condition of batteries, tires and engine condition etc.

Now go to Kelly Blue Book (www.kbb.com) or Edmund (www.edmund.com) and try to evaluate the car. KBB will ask you some question depending upon the private trading or buying from dealer. After you enter data about the private trading car, it will show you an approximate value of the car.

Private Party

If you are buying a used car from a private party, then you need to be more cautious about certain things like, the engine condition, the body condition, the interior and the accident/maintenance history of the car. Don’t go for cars that have already run almost 300K miles (for Honda and Toyota). You can start locating for used cars for sale from various sources like, news papers, local ads and internet. After locating the availability near your place, prepare your matrix.

* Call each of them to fix an appointment for trial.

* Get the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) from the owner.

* Check for the approximate cost of the car using KBB or EDMUND sites.

* Compare the advertised price with the approximate cost that you arrived at.

* Use the VIN to find out accident/maintenance history from CarFax.com and check for any major incident. There will be a registration fee for CarFax.com, go for the one month pack.

* Talk to a mechanic for pre-purchase inspection of the vehicle. Mechanics charge around $50 per car. It is better to go to some brand names like Pep-Boys. They are good and reliable, but you may need to take an appointment beforehand.

* Go to the owner, see the car physically (for any visible dents, body color, torn airbag containers and interior) and then drive it with the owner.

* Take the car to the mechanic and have it inspected.

* (All the cars need a timing belt replacement after running for around 100K miles, so if the car is around or over 100K, then you need to figure out if the timing belt has been replaced, this information could be obtained from the CarFax report too. One thing you must remember that, in US, the auto spare parts are not that expensive, but the labor charge to install them is too high.)

* The mechanic will give you a report, in which it will indicate the current condition of the car and what needs to be fixed with a rough estimation.

* Check for the vehicle registration, is it current?

* Is the vehicle smog certified?

With the Kelly Blue Book report, CarFax report and the mechanics report, you can have a good bargain with the owner. If you really like the car and every thing looks OK to you, then start bargaining. Don’t focus more on the tires/batteries, they are not that important as the engine.

NEVER BUY A CAR THAT HAS A SALVAGED TITLE.

Once you have decided to buy the car, talk to the owner about the payment and mode of payment (check or cash). The owner has to give you a pink slip indicating that you paid for the car and it is yours now. He cant simply lodge a complaint with the police saying you have stolen his car. It is his duty to inform the DMV office about the sale and transfer of title. You should also apply to DMV for transferring the title to your name. For registration, you will need the pink slip, the insurance (get one immediately) and smog certification. After you apply for the transfer of the vehicle registration into your name, you are the proud owner of the car.

It is too cumbersome to buy a used car from a private party, sometimes it is too risky and in all the cases it is damn cheaper. For some unlucky guys it might have resulted in spending huge money on maintenance the next day. But it is not always true. However, you are supposed to visit the mechanic frequently and spend lot of time there.

Buying from Dealer

The next best thing that you can do is to buy a used car from a dealer. It may not be as cheaper as buying from private party, but 100 times more reliable. Even some dealers give warranty on the used cars they sale. They buy the used cars, clean them up, do a thorough checking of the engine and repair any damages, dents etc before putting them on sale. You don’t have to take the car to a mechanic for inspection, worry about the smog certification. But never forget to check the approximate price through KBB and have a CarFax report handy before making a deal with the dealer. Normally, good dealers don’t keep cars for sale that have any major issues like bad accident history, salvaged title etc.

Go to the dealer, talk to the sales representative about your purpose. He/she will show you all the different used cars they have that fits your requirement as well as your budget. Once you have selected the model, make and color, go for a test drive (don’t forget to check the odometer reading). If everything feels ok to you, then go to the dealers office and access their computer to logon to KBB for approximate pricing as well as to CarFax for accident/maintenance history for that car. Some dealers even do this for free. Now with all these things handy, start the bargain. You must always consider the worry free deal with the worth of the vehicle you are paying for. You may end up paying a little more than that of a private party deal, but there wont be any worries after you buy the car. If there will be any problem with the car (which is covered under warranty), you can always comeback to the dealer for having it fixed for free. The dealer may also arrange a loan for you and take care of the other formalities like title transfer etc. You will save a lot of time/worries in this. Time is important and costly in this country. So it is your call again.

After you finalize the deal, it follows the same process as a new car purchase. So finish all paper work and drive the car safely back home.

Tips

* If you own an old used car that needs maintenance and the mechanic gives you a list of jobs to be done, then do all of them once. That way you may save a lot of labor charge.

* As per my experience, buying a new car is always better than buying a used car from a dealer and buying a used car from a dealer is always safer than buying a used car from a third party.

* It seems to be a huge amount in the beginning to buy a new car. But if you compare the money spent for new (repay the loan) and used car (repair/maintenance), then over a period of 3 years they will almost equate with each other. So, why not to enjoy the ride of a new car.

When looking for information on how to fly fish, fly fishing tips or fly fishing techniques, many anglers, or anglers to be,who limit their search to books or material written ithin the last few years or decades are short-changing themselves.

Fact is, many anglers continue to miss out on great fly fishing information by not reaching back into the rich history of the sport and seeking the advice and wisdom of true fly fishing pioneers.

Now when I say pioneers, I’m talking about the guys who didn’thave anyone to learn from – the groundbreakers.

Remember that when dry-fly fishing first made its appearance here in America from England it came without instructions.

That’s when anglers such as Emlyn Gill, George La Branche, Theodore Gordon and Samuel Camp, just to name a few, came up with their own set of instructions for dry-fly fishing.

Yes, they were the true pioneers – and they wrote the first books about the artistry and craftsmanship of what it took to successfully fly fish in these American waters.

For some strange reason, the last few generations of anglers have not been exposed to this classic fly fishing information that helped shape American dry-fly fishing.

True, there are many fine fly fishing books being published today. But, for some reason, it’s the story-telling aspects, only found in the older classics, that can get your blood racing and beckons you to the nearest stream or river.

It’s these older classics that represent the very heart and soul of fly fishing; its mystery, its allure.

You’ve felt it, haven’t you?

Fly fishing classics every angler should have as part of their library include a wide array of books written by fly fishers for fly fishers and span anywhere between the early to mid 1900′s.

Here is a glimpse of the quality and quantity of fly fishing instructions you can find in any one of these classics. Feel how smooth and flowing they are when being told as a story, as opposed to some stuffy, boring tutorial or manual.

Within these two excerpts (taken from George LaBranche’s, Dry Fly and Fast Water) there are no less than 20 fishing tips; at least 10 in each paragraph!

See if you can you spot them.

**********************************

Exercising patience, he may walk slowly and quietly into the water at the tail of the stretch and as closely as possible to the bank the fish are under. Having attained the desired position, he should remain there long enough to allow all commotion made by his entry to cease, during which time no motion of the rod should be made, because the sight of any moving object will send the now alert trout scurrying, while the ripples will make him uneasy for a short time only. The horizontal cast should be used if possible. The fly should be floated down about a foot from the bank, and it should not be retrieved until it has traveled more than half the distance between the angler and the spot where it alighted….

When satisfied that no trout are within the section covered by the fly, the angler should lengthen his line and fish the fly a few feet above-always permitting the fly to travel over the water already fished. He should continue this until the maximum line that can be handled neatly without moving from the original position is being cast. When the line becomes unwieldy (in this method and position it is courting failure to attempt anything over thirty-five to forty feet, even if one is expert) an advance may be made a few yards up-stream as closely to the bank as the depth of the water and free casting space will permit. As it is quite possible-and likely, too-that a trout has been under the fly all the while, but was not interested in it, the angler’s advance will drive him ahead, and indications of this should be sharply looked for. The discovery of the fish will save much valuable time, for in that case the immediate stretch may be abandoned, because any fish above the one seen will have certainly taken alarm at the actions of his ! fellow and will have lost all desire to feed for some time.

**********************************

How did you do? And, that’s just within 2 paragraphs! Imagine the number of tips you’ll find throughout an entire book!

Reading the early American fly fishing classics is a must for all anglers who are passionate about learning as much as they can about the world’s oldest outdoor sport.

Remember, it is from these now classic books that America learned how to fly fish using the dry-fly. Surely, these books haven’t lost the capacity to continue to teach more generations the art and craft of fly fishing.

Don Berthiaume has uncovered fly fishing tips and techniques that were almost lost forever. To discover more about fly fishing, and claim your free, 4-part mini-course, visit this site: Fly Fishing

June is quickly approaching and for most coastal regions the thought of a hurricane begins to creep into our minds.

We become concerned about the safety of our homes, our pets and ourselves.

However, hurricanes are not the only disasters that can confront our well being and that of our pets. Floods, wildfires, tornadoes, riots and terrorists attacks add to the list of things that can happen.

The important thing is to have a plan. Hurricane Katrina was a disaster that displaced not only thousands of people but displaced many animals and unfortunately many died along with their owners. It is said that approximately 44 percent of Hurricane Katrina’s victims were pet owners that would not leave their pets.

Until Katrina hit, our country was not too pet friendly in the light of disasters. Most, if not all, did not allow pets of any kind to be brought to a designated shelter.

Currently many states are now providing shelters for owners and their pets providing they follow certain restrictions. Red Cross shelters however, will not allow pets. It is not their rule, but that of the local health departments. A Red Cross shelter is for the benefit of those who do not have pets, who are afraid of pets or who have allergies to pets.

It is up to “you” the pet owner to check your local facilities and see what shelters will allow pets and what size and kind of pet is allowed.

Planning ahead for yourself and your pet should be at the top of your list of things to do. The problem with advance preparing is that many of us go into the “denial mode.” We tell ourselves that whatever the disaster is “it is not going to involve us.” Then it hits and we are not even prepared for ourselves let alone our pets.

So what should a pet owner do? In the following paragraphs I am going to give you some tips on how to keep your cat or dog as safe as humanly possible. The important thing is to remember you need to prepare before a disaster strikes.

A disaster kit should be large enough to contain all the things you normally need for your pet for at least a 7-day period. It should be waterproof (a plastic container with a tight fitting lid) and labeled “disaster supplies cat or dog.”

Owning a pet is a big responsibility and with that responsibility comes the job of seeing that your pet is safe and well taken care of. A pet is not a thow-away item, it is a breathing living being and deserves the best care you can give it. For more information on taking care of your pet, please visit my website http://www.cats-and-dogs-on-the-web.com

If you are seeking automotive training, then a technical or vocational school may be the right place for you to get your start in an interesting and challenging career in automotive technology!

Whether you’re interested in becoming an auto mechanic, technician, service advisor, manager, or auto parts worker, automotive training can be your key to obtaining an automotive education and professional certification in automotive know-how.

In the modern world, automobiles are operated by electronic systems and complex computers, measuring performance and efficiency as the machines move down the road. Students in automotive training schools must develop skills as technicians to become high-tech diagnosticians, using electronic equipment and computer-based reference materials. Diagnosing the sources of problems quickly and accurately can be the most challenging and most rewarding part of a good automotive training program.

Students who would like to enroll in vocational automotive training should have well-developed math skills and physical science acumen prior to enrollment. As with all educational courses, it is important to review the automotive training curriculum to be certain that your school will offer Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certification training. Furthermore, potential automotive technicians should understand that most employers pay their service techs based on productivity. Upon graduation, you may wish to consider the option of becoming an independent business professional.

In addition to their initial vocational automotive training, students can return for continuing education courses and credits to remain updated on ever-changing computerized diagnostic systems, tools, and other automotive-related technologies. Training in automotive technology often leads to an interest in other related areas such as auto body repair or automotive and diesel repair. The job seeker will find that diesel mechanic training is particularly valued.

If you would like to know more about Vocational Automotive Training, or even Online Automotive Training, we urge you to search our site for more in-depth information and resources.

DISCLAIMER: Above is a GENERAL OVERVIEW and may or may not reflect specific practices, courses and/or services associated with ANY ONE particular school(s) that is or is not advertised on SchoolsGalore.com.

Copyright 2007 – All rights reserved by SchoolsGalore.com, in association with Media Positive Communications, Inc.

Notice: Publishers are free to use this article on an ezine or website, provided the article is reprinted in its entirety, including copyright and disclaimer, and ALL links remain intact and active.

Michael Bustamante is a staff writer for Media Positive Communications, Inc. in association with SchoolsGalore.com. Find Automotive Training Schools, Colleges, Universities, Vocational Schools, and Online Schools at SchoolsGalore.com, your educational resource to locate schools.

With the continued proliferation of the Internet, the meaning of the word “marketing” also seems to proliferate. Cyberspace has opened up a whole arena of new marketing technologies, techniques, and twists. Amidst the online exuberance, it seems each online marketer or salesperson changes the definition of marketing to suit his or her preference.

Many times, ill-conceived notions and perceptions reduce the meaning of the word “marketing” to a shadow of it’s true self. Many see marketing as a series of tactics or gimmicks. Some define marketing as pyramid programs and the like. Others treat the words “marketing” and “sales” or “marketing” and “advertising as synonymous. None of these adequately convey the definition of marketing.

Different Marketing Definitions

Along with all of the new terminology, new techniques, and new twists the Internet has brought us, it has also opened opportunities for misguided notions about the definition of marketing. While the above definitions describe different facets or definitions of related terms, they do not convey the much broader process that is truly marketing. By taking a look at some dictionary and trade definitions of marketing we can get a better feel for what marketing is truly about:

American Marketing Association Definition

The process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives. (Note 1)

American Heritage Dictionary’s Definition of Marketing

The commercial functions involved in transferring goods from producer to consumer. (Note 2)

Merriam Webster’s Marketing Definition

1 b: the process or technique of promoting, selling, and distributing a product or service.

2: an aggregate of functions involved in moving goods from producer to consumer. (Note 3)

Marketing Definition From MSN Encarta Dictionary

The business activity of presenting products or services to potential customers in such a way as to make them eager to buy. Marketing includes such matters as the pricing and packaging of the product and the creation of demand by advertising and sales campaigns. (Note 4)

Note the phrasing: “The process,” “functions involved,” “process or technique,” “an aggregate,” “the business activity.” These all get to the heart of the definition of marketing.

As a process, there are certain foundations of marketing that will never become obsolete. We still have products, services, and ideas to sell at some price. We deliver to our customers via some means of distribution. We promote and we advertise. Those are the basics. Those basics still exist and always will.

If The Marketing Definition Hasn’t Changed, Then What Has?

What has changed is the business environment. Companies compete with more efficient technologies. Customers have better access to their cost options and they communicate to each other in ways not conceivable in the pre-Internet age.

In some industries, the Internet has lowered the cost of entry so that entrepreneurs — many times from a home office — have entered the competition. The changes in competitive environment are numerous. What have also changed are marketing strategies and the marketing programs we have available to implement those strategies.

These have changed, but the basic marketing definition has not. Superior marketing is and always has been analysis, then action. It is strategy development, then logical and thought-out tactical implementation. It is the way to customer satisfaction and increasing profit.

The steps to successful marketing and implementation include:

1) Analyzing your customers and the business environment in order to

2) identify key opportunities to better and more profitably meet customer needs,

3) figuring out how to act on those opportunities, and then

4) implementing your plan.

The process doesn’t have to be cumbersome. Five-year plans and novel-length documents are not required. The logic of the action is what is important.

By applying the basic marketing process, rather than a tactic here and a technique there, your chances of success skyrocket.

Notes:

1. [http://www.marketingpower.com/live/mg-dictionary.php]

2. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

3. Merriam-Webster Online, http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary

4. http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/dictionaryhome.aspx

About The Author

Bobette Kyle draws upon 12+ years of Marketing/Executive experience, Marketing MBA, and online marketing research in her writing. Bobette is proprietor of the Web Site Marketing Plan Network http://www.WebSiteMarketingPlan.com and author of the marketing plan and Web promotion book “How Much For Just the Spider? Strategic Website Marketing For Small Budget Business, http://www.howmuchforspider.com/TOC.htm .

Copyright 2002 – 2004 Bobette Kyle. All rights reserved.

The landscape of American farming changed dramatically between 1850 and 1950 due in large part to the introduction of farm tractors. Initially, tractors used steam engines, until these gave way to internal combustion engines in the twentieth century. The turn-of-the-century steam engine tractor is gigantic and primitive looking, using chains on a rotating shaft to steer.

When tractors were introduced, farmers quickly found that engine driven tractors were more economical to use, as compared to keeping animals for tillage, and tractors began selling widely. In many cases agricultural machinery dealers received cattle for the barter for tractors and they and in turn sold the cattle in the meat market. The Farmall is one of early tractors and the most familiar and famous names in tractor history. Tractors were made to be work horses, so niceties were minimal. This included foregoing a fuel gauge.

Tractors are most useful for cultivation purposes, so a tractor or tractors have been a must for farm owners, but tractors are also used in excavation, in manufacturing and industry, or on construction sites. Farm size, availability of labor and custom services, crop selection, and cultural practices, such as choice of tillage system, all affect the selection of an optimum equipment set and, ultimately, the number of tractors necessary to farm. Although demand for tractor power generally increases with farm size, many commercial farms operate efficiently with a single tractor.

Tractors are designed to operate at different travel speeds, but the final drives are not designed for all possible torques theoretically available. The engine may range from about 12 to 120 horsepower or more and tractors over the years have been typically offered in the range of 20 to 400 horsepower. Engine power is transmitted to a gearbox typically having 4 to10 speeds (these transmissions are manually switched via a control lever to determine how fast the tractor can go) and through the differential gear to the two large rear-drive wheels. Some farm tractors can reach speeds up to 25 miles per hour, but slow speeds are necessary to give the farmer more control while doing field work.

Farm tractors are designed to be operated with additional weight or ballast when pulling heavy loads to reduce wheel slip. Insufficient ballast can cause excessive wheel slip and increased fuel consumption. Tractors need large tires to avoid compressing the earth, and to avoid digging in. Thus only the rear tires really need to be large and the front tires can be small and smooth unless the tractor has four wheel drive. Tractors used on ground of irregular contours have tracks so mounted that their left and right front ends rise and fall independently of each other. However, soil undulations induce tractor and machine vibrations, reducing driver’s comfort and their capability of controlling the linked machinery.

Tractors are usually used to pull, or in some cases, push objects and are designed to pull either large loads at slow speeds or lighter loads at higher speeds. Field speeds up to 10 mph are typical, but rangeland applications usually vary from 2 to 5 mph. Tractors can be generally classified as two-wheel drive, two-wheel drive with front wheel assist, four-wheel drive (often with articulated steering), or track tractors (with either two or four powered rubber tracks).

Tractors are equipped with a hitching point below the rear axles to prevent roll over. Unfortunately, some people will attach to a point above the rear axle in a foolish attempt to get more weight/traction on the drive wheels and this can lead to disaster. Also, if a tractor is used to free and tow a stuck vehicle, the operator should hitch the vehicles front-to-front and drive the towing tractor in reverse, which minimizes the risk for rollover, by transmitting all the engine power of the towing tractor through the chain to the other vehicle.

To read the rest of this article and see interesting Farmall Tractors click here: Farmall Tractors [http://www.farmalltractors.net]

Colorado fly fishing is an adventure that you won’t want to pass up on your next vacation. Colorado fly fishing offer something for every angler. Mountain streams, river basins, lakes, and reservoirs fill the need of any fly fisherman.

Where to Fly Fish in Colorado:

Colorado offers fly fisherman miles of world class fly fishing streams where the waters are managed by the Colorado Department of Wildlife to guarantee you the populations of large trout that you are looking for.

You may be a crackerjack fly fishing angler and know all the hot spots for fly fishing in Colorado or you may be new to the state and need some expert guidance. When you get your Colorado fishing license, be sure to pick up your free copy of Colorado Fishing Season Information & Wildlife Property Discovery booklet or go to any of the local Colorado Division Wildlife offices and pick up the Colorado fishing map.

Colorado fly fishing is divided into five regions: Northeast Region; Northwest Region; Southeast Region; Southwest Region; and the Denver Metro Region. You can choose many fine Colorado fly fishing spots in any of these prime fly fishing regions. Your Colorado fly fishing experience can be divided into fishing the roaring streams and majestic rivers to fly fishing the many mountain lakes and large reservoirs.

Fly Fish the Northwestern Region of Colorado

The Northwest region of Colorado offers fly anglers a variety of rivers, lakes, and reservoirs to choose from. From the Yampa River and its tributary, the Elk river in the north to the prime Colorado fly fishing rivers of the southern part of this region, the Northwest region of Colorado is noted for fly fishing.

Colorado fly fishing is at its finest from Meeker and the White River to the grand Colorado River running through central Colorado from the high mountains. Fly fisherman will delight in the trophies they find fishing this region’s rivers. Most notably, the Green river, Blue river, Roaring Fork River, and the Crystal River provide anglers with the fly fishing adventure they are looking for.

Colorado fly fishing is found on the lakes and reservoirs of the region too. Grand lake and Grandby Reservoir are found on the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park and are both noted for their fishing. Steamboat Lake is in the north of this region and is a picturesque place for the fly fisherman to angle. Other reservoirs include Williams Fork Reservoir, Willow Creek Reservoir, Stagecoach Reservoir, and Wolford Reservoir to name just a few.

Wherever you are looking for a fly fishing adventure, Colorado offers excellent fly fishing conditions and opportunities. Colorado fly fishing is constantly improved by the efforts of the fifteen Colorado Division of Wildlife hatcheries. The Colorado Division of Wildlife stocks over 4.3 million 10-inch fish a year, in addition to 43 million warm-water species and 11 million cold-water species. Catch and release fishing is popular and if you don’t plan to eat the fish you’ve caught, please help conserve Colorado’s precious fly fishing resource by returning the fish to the water.

What to fly fish for in Colorado:

The natural beauty of the Colorado fly fishing spots is distracting even to the most seasoned angler. But distractions not withstanding, and the proper fly fishing equipment, fly fishing anglers and enthusiasts are more than able to hook trout species like browns, brookies, and the rainbow trout in the rivers and streams that fly fisherman prefer. Fly fisherman may also stumble upon grayling and cutthroats too.

The other species that can be found here in Colorado’s fly fishing lakes and reservoirs are Walleye, Wipers, Yellow Perch, Crappie Smallmouth Bass, Largemouth Bass, Tiger Muskies, Bluegill, and Pumpkinseed. Colorado fly fishing provides any angler with an experience of a lifetime.

Various lures and worms work best during the spring runoff when the waters are high and streams running fast. Flies usually work best during late July, August and September. Watch for what’s hatching in the area where you’re fly fishing. This is the indication of which fly fishing flies will work best. Mayflies, caddis flies, midges, and stone flies predominate in this fly fishing area.

Colorado fly fishing is world class and you will find some of the best fly fishing in North America. There is no excuse not to pick up your fly fishing rod and tackle and set out on a leisurely Colorado fly fishing vacation of a lifetime.

Jim Bruce maintains a website on Colorado travel. Find out more about Colorado fly fishing and the fly fishing hotspots the state of Colorado has to offer by going to: http://www.coloradotravelexperience.com/Colorado_fly_fishing.html

Over the years as a recruiter and resume coach, I’ve seen the consequences of poorly written resumes. Unfortunately, most people don’t seek professional career help until they experience the frustration of a long and fruitless job search. It’s surprising how many of their problems can be traced to the top five resume mistakes.

#1 No resume focus.

The most effective resumes leave no doubt as to the job seeker’s career objective. A one-size-fits-all resume gives the impression that the job seeker is uncertain of his career goal. An employer once told me that if a candidate is interested in two completely different positions, he must not be very good at either. If you have more than one career objective, you need more than one resume.

#2 Lack of marketing strategy.

Job seekers rarely see their search for what it is-a sales campaign. Think of your resume as marketing material designed to create a powerful first impression and win a multitude of job interviews. A resume coach can help you translate your career history into an effective marketing piece by selling toward the reader’s buying motives: solving problems, saving money, or increasing profits.

#3 No accomplishment statements.

95% of all resumes lack accomplishment statements. These statements allow employers to visualize your contribution to their company. A resume coach can help you move from a job description type resume to a resume with quantifiable statements that motivate employers to call you before their competition does. These statements can dollarize your worth and increase your bargaining power.

#4 Lack of resume keywords.

These days, resumes are screened by both humans and computers. A resume lacking in keywords runs the risk of being read by neither. An average screening of a resume is 15 seconds or less, so more attention is paid to resumes using the same words found in the job description. Candidate-tracking software retrieves resumes by keywords. A keyword-focused resume will put you front and center.

#5 Incorrect resume format.

Basically, there are three resume formats: chronological, functional and hybrid.

Chronological: The chronological is best known and easiest to write, a timeline style resume. This format works well if your objective is to remain in the same industry or occupation.

Functional: The functional resume places transferable skills and accomplishments at the beginning of your resume. However, a poorly crafted functional resume can be confusing, causing the reader to believe the candidate has something to hide.

Hybrid: The hybrid resume combines the best features of other resumes. It showcases skills and accomplishments while maintaining ease of reading. This is the best format for job seekers of all level, but it is also the most difficult to write, requiring thoughtful planning to identify the most critical transferable skills that will attract potential employer attention.

Once your resume is designed to avoid the top five resume mistakes, you will be well on your way to winning interviews and reaching your career objective. How much is you old resume costing you in lost opportunities?

Deborah Walker, Resume Coach, has spent years studying the art of fine resume crafting. Her career-long focus on all phases of the employment process provides a solid base of knowledge for resume advice and coaching. Learn more about resume coaching at http://www.AlphaAdvantage.com

Some people just love eating and some people just love cooking; but when it comes to cooking and eating outside most people say, hey, I love it.

So lets get to it.  Summer will soon be upon us and the outdoor season beckons. Its now the ideal time to think about those barbecues you’ll be having. Whether those meals will be on the patio or in the outback its now the time to ensure that you’ve got all your outdoor cooking equipment to hand and that you’ve got a good idea about how best to go about things.

There’s many that will argue, including me, that nothing tastes better than food cooked outdoors! Don’t you just love the aroma when cooking outdoors, the smells seems to just waft around as the food cooks and this makes everyone hungry. How is it that the food cooked outdoors always seems to smell so much nicer than when its cooked indoors?

Cooking outdoors comes in many guises. You and your family may prefer to use wood or charcoal because of those wonderful flavors that come from the charcoal and the smoke; or, you may prefer the cleanliness, control and  convenience of cooking with propane gas.  Whatever you prefer the market is now awash with great outdoor cooking equipment to make your cooking experience enjoyable and the results fabulous.

Now when it comes to choosing your outdoor cooking equipment a little thought is necessary as you can easily miss a trick or two and fall short when the time comes to perform!  So, here are 20 great tips to help you make the right decisions when planning this season’s outdoor cooking:

1. Firstly you must decide will it be gas or charcoal; don’t fudge this one as its important; if you want ease and convenience go for gas grills; if you don’t mind a little extra trouble & time and your family loves the flavors that are picked up from the smoke then go for charcoal;
2. If you go for charcoal always start the fire naturally, never use lighter fuels; let me say that again, never use lighter fuels! Why? Because no matter how long it is before you bring your food to the grill you’ll pick up those chemical smells…Yuk!;
3. Ask yourself, are you making an investment for the future of just for the coming summer season; because thats how long cheap ‘stuff’ is going to last!  I recommend making an investment in the future, therefore go for quality; as you know in your heart, you pay for what you get! Don’t go cheap if you can afford better; for example: stainless steel looks better and lasts longer than aluminum and cleans up much better and easier; although it has to be said heat distributes more evenly and quickly with aluminum so the arguments are not always so clear cut; portable pick up and go grills are going to be great for tailgating and impromtu stops but they’ll be a disappointment on the patio when cooking for a group of  friends & family;
4. There are many styles & sizes of outdoor grills, picking the right one to meet your needs and of course your budget is important, but remember that quality counts; you don’t want to be regretting your purchase half way through the summer! Go for the best you can.
5. Think about where you’re going to be doing your cooking and buy your kit appropriately. Ask yourself, will we be cooking on the patio, or will you be tailgating or then again will we be going outback; this makes a big difference to your choice of kit; indeed you may decide that you need quite separate cooking equipment for the patio as opposed to when you’re getting out and about. Gas grills are heavier and bulkier than charcoal, on the patio that’s a bonus in the outback its a chore; gas grills cook quicker than the charcoal grills; some people hate gas grills by comparison because they love the flavors that wood bestows; gas grills are more expensive than charcoal ones etc. etc.
6. Decide what style of cooking best suits you because the kit you’ll need will change with your preferred style of cooking. If you’re into Jambalaya cooking then you should buy Jambalaya pots, if your going to be frying whole turkeys then a turkey fryer kit will be ideal; do you prefer cast iron stove ware for cooking, Dutch ovens are great for simple outdoor cooking or do you prefer open grills;? The questions go on and on and only you know what the family are going to prefer. Its not as hard to think things through as you might think,  I suggest that you go to a store that sells the full range of equipment and ask yourself what’s going to work best for us?
7. When cooking with propane check the level of gas in the cylinder and whenever possible have a second one in reserve. There’s nothing worse with friends and family hovering, the meal is half ready and the gas goes out!!! If you’ve a replacement, no problem, but if  you’ve not, just how bad can things get?
8. Don’t forget basic safety advice when cooking outdoors; remember salmonella is just as happy and active outdoors as it is inside. So what to do? Keep those fresh meat  plates and your cooking utensils away from any plates and cooking utensils that you’ll be using for eating off. Yes i know its obvious but this is important and its easily forgotten especially by the kids if they take a hand;
9. Will you betaking your cooking kit out in the outback or to the beach where there are safety regulations preventing the use of certain cooking methods; how annoying is it to arrive and then find your kit isn’t appropriate. And don’t think you’ll be okay they’ll never know. have you seen the recent damage that’s been caused by fires that get out of control; think safety first. Its important to remember that usually you find restrictions at picnic areas and on beaches & camping zones;
10. When you find a great recipe that cooks well outside share it with family; especially the simple tips that made it work out so well. Many people are apprehensive about cooking out doors and even when they do they make simple errors that you could help them avoid making. Simple tips need passing on;
11. Never pierce food on a BBQ or the juices will run out and it will dry out very quickly: most people who say they don’t like BBQs do so because they hate dried out tasteless food that so often arises from a smoldering BBQ
12. Never cook meat too long as again it dries out
13. Always make sure that meat is fully defrosted before starting cooking on your grill, not only is this dangerous to your health but the food will burn on the outside before you’ve cooked it in the inside!
14. Try to cook slower rather than faster when cooking outdoors, except with you steaks of course, they need searing and a minimum of time is preferred for however well you like them cooked; [yes I know this goes against what conventional wisdom says and your desire to tuck ij but the rewards of slower cooked foods great exceed the extra time it takes; believe me
15. Always let your meat rest after cooking without cutting it up. This allows the juices to settle and the full flavor to come out, it also means all the juices don’t run away across the serving plate; 7-10 minutes is all you need to wait and whilst the time is short the difference in flavor can be huge; try it.
16. Try marinating your meats before barbecuing, and remember, the longer the better, overnight if you can. If you do the flavors of your cooking will be greatly enhanced and your friends will marvel;
17. If you use a grill with a lid, keep it closed as much as possible. This improves the consistency of cooking due to the retention of the heat which otherwise is lost each time you open the grill; stop worrying and go and have a chat;
18. Try some of the many free recipes you’ll find online; there are so many and some are really good. Don’t get hooked on complication though; keeping things simple and experiment are the keys. But equally don’t get into the ideas of those that say quick and easy is best go for things that cook quickly! NO. Marinades are simple and add tremendous flavor, cook slower than quickly and you’ll retain more flavors;
19. Try out Dutch cooking; its easy and straightforward and the flavors are great; look for Dutch cooking recipes on the web;
20. Keep your outdoor cooking fun; share the joy of the cooking with friends & family. Try to get the kids involved; if you do you’ll develop in them a lifetime passion for cooking, which is often hard to do in the kitchen. Better still you’ll have a laugh and if you involve your friends you’ll start appreciate them in totally different ways than before; its like a new way of bonding. You’ll start to see them in a totally different light…… interesting! … Oh, just one quick point, but take care the opposite can work out too.

Check out the latest outdoor cooking kit at http://www.outdoorcookingequipmentstore.com you’ll find a wide range of outdoor cooking equipment meeting all levels of budget and there’s a long list of really tasty, simply to cook recipes, ideal for the grill or the stove, for the boiling pot, the fryer or the Dutch oven.

Happy outdoor cooking and good luck getting your outdoor cooking equipment into shape.

Stephen Kember is the President of Transform your life, a leading provider of e-books, video and audio based materials featuring not only his own insights but also those of other renowned experts and speakers in the Outdoor Living, Outdoor Cooking and Personal Development fields.

To learn more about the skills of outdoor cooking, outdoor cooking recipes and and outdoor cooking equipment go to: http://www.outdoorcookingequipmentstore.com

For those job seeking professionals that have been searching for a job for months or more, the whole job search process may seem a bit stale. Countless hours are often spent on job search websites and job search engines such as CareerBuilder.com, Dice.com, and Monster.com often resulting in minimal feedback. It is frustrating to go months without finding a job. Inevitability you begin to question career choices, your professional skills, experience, qualifications, or even your education. But you’re not alone. In times of high unemployment, a slow moving job market can create the appearance of a job search that becomes stagnated.

In this seven part series we will provide job search strategies and tips to revive your job hunt and reenergize your career confidence.

1) Part Time Job, a Temporary Job, or Volunteering

Seek out short term, part-time, or temporary work in your career field is a good way to get your foot in the door. Even if there does not seem to be any full time jobs opening any time soon, part time work and temp work is a way your employer can get to know you and your work ethic. If a job happens to open up or a new position is created, then you are at a higher advantage then others applicants who may be applying for that same job. You’ll have much more than a resume to show the company.

2) Work on your Personal Brand

If someone were to search for your name online, what, if anything would they see? In all likelihood, hiring you is a big investment to any company or organization. Especially in challenging economic times and an employer driven job market, companies are being more selective about their job applicants.

Take a few minuets and search for yourself online to determine what your digital footprint is. Do you share a name with someone that could create a career opportunity or a problem with your online image?

Use your personal brand to let the employer know your strengths, why they should hire you, and that you are a worthy candidate to investment in. If you remember, the personal brand is your life and professional skills as they appear online. You want your personal brand to be accurate and truthful, but you also want to it to make you look great to an employer. Your brand should reflect your overall qualifications, education, and indicate your career goals.

See what shows up in a Google search and a Yahoo search. Having a LinkedIn profile and profiles on other professional social networking sites can help to create a positive digital footprint. Your profile should be professional and consistent. Keep your information consistent with similar career goals and career objectives in each profile. Avoid blending social media and your online professional image. It is important to keep your private life PRIVATE. That is a mistake many people make with personal branding which may cost them being selected for that next job or opportunity.

3) Changing Careers or Branching Out to New Industries

Diversify you job search and branch out into new job markets you may not have considered in your previous job hunting strategies. Pick a career field, any career field and determine if your skills and qualifications would translate into new job opportunities.

That is not to say that you should just apply for the first job opening that presents itself. As a matter of fact, the opposite is true. Choose a career field that may benefit from your professional knowledge. Your best option is to look at a small geographic area and determine what employers are within this region. Examine what the area employer’s job positions and the job descriptions they are seeking and compare the qualifications to your resume. A midlife career change into a new industry can appear challenging but rewriting a career change resume and cover letter can quickly expand your employment options.

Examine your strengths. If you are not good with people, do not apply to personnel jobs. If you do not have an aptitude for math, do not apply for engineering or accounting jobs. Choose an industry or career field you know you can succeed in and focus your job search in that field. Perhaps you haven’t found a job yet because you are stretched across too many possible career paths. You may have missed an opportunity while you were wasting your time and applying to jobs that do not suit you. As a job search seems to drag on, it may seem tempting to try to apply for everything, but stay focused on your qualifications and job skills.

Be realistic about the types of jobs you are applying for. Most often when make a career transition into a new job market you will find yourself competing for more junior level positions then you would within your current career field. Changing careers may seem like a step backwards; yet showing potential future employers you are capable of taking on new challenges, have the foresight, and flexibility to expand your skill set across industries can become a strong asset.

4) Use Career Counseling and Career Advice Services

Get some help. If month after month has passed with no job offers or employment prospect you may need some help with your job hunt. You do not want to be put in a position where your financial obligations overtake you focusing on your job search.

Recent college graduates and college alumni can use their college’s career services department. Beyond employment listings and postings, many college career service departments offer interview preparation assistance, resume writing and career advice, and can assist you in choosing a career path. These services are often helpful when you are considering changing careers or at a career transition. Also, many companies seek out students from specific universities, colleges, and specific degree program or departments. A career advisor in the schools career services can connect you with these companies.

Beyond the college or university career services centers, look into what career placement services your local city or county provides. Contact your local chamber of commerce to begin your search for these types of local services. Many of these services are either free of charge or at a minimal fee to local residents.

Depending on your specific situation, consider hiring a professional career advisor or career counselor. A professional career counselor’s job is to help you figure out exactly what you want to do and advise you on how to maximize your resources and qualifications.

Before electing to get a career counselor, do some research on what services the career counseling service provides and what their recent candidate placement success rates are. This way, you will know what to expect as an end result. Will they help you find a career path, provide resume writing advice and interview preparation, placement services, and help you along the way? Do not be afraid to ask for help when the job search seems to be dragging on. Having a career advisor or an independent career service can help you revitalize your job hunt.

5) Is Your Resume Writing Reflective of your Career Objective

Refresh your resume and your professional image. If your job search appears stalled, take this time to review your resume and your overall professional image. This includes your cover letter, professional social media sites such as Linked-In, and your professional references.

If employers have already seen your resume and you have not received any responses back, then this might be your cue to give your resume a second look. Check your resume for spelling mistakes, typos, and poor grammar. Those are a definite turn-off to any potential employer.

Do you think your online resume would pass the 20 second test? Remember that 20 seconds is generally the amount of time an employer will spend looking over your resume. In that time frame, an employer will decide whether or not he or she will call you in for a job interview. If it has been a while since you have been called for any interviews, then this may indicate that your resume does not pass the 20 second test. Some resume writing changes may be necessary. Also, be sure that your resume is aesthetically pleasing and your resume qualifications, education, and experience properly flows together.

6) Using only Top Job Search Engines can Limit Your Career Options

Not all job search websites are created equal. Searching that next job opportunity using online job search engines can distribute your resume to many companies and employment centers. Although, not all job search websites are weighted the same for your professional career field or industry.

Major job websites like Moster.com and CareerBuilder.com are great choices to broadcast your resume skills and qualifications. However, your chances in getting noticed on these online job search sites are low. Thousands of career professionals and job seekers are posting and updating their resumes daily, and in a highly competitive job market, being too general with your career objectives may not result in you landing that job.

Take some time to research what are the best job search sites, specific to your industry or career objectives. If your career field is within the medical industry, look for those web sites that focus specifically on medical jobs or nursing jobs. Expand your career and look for part time job search opportunities to get into a company or organization.

Be focused and specific in your job search and make sure you are looking everywhere. Limiting yourself to just a few major job sites can be disastrous. Many of the jobs you are seeking may not be listed on the common and the most popular job search engines. So, try looking at lesser known job sites, and on industry specific ones. Check your local newspaper daily, especially on Sunday editions. Sometimes a job listing may be printed on only one day in the newspaper.

Keep checking your professional social networking sites and keep your eyes open for mentioning of possible job openings. You might be missing out on great opportunities by limiting your search to one place. If you are unemployed, be sure to tell everyone that you are looking. People talk and word will get around. Your friend’s cousin’s girlfriend may be in the Human Resources department in a company where they are hiring. You could be surprised where you find your next job. Whatever you do, do not stop looking until you find what you are looking for.

7) Revisit your Long Term Career Choices

What long term career planning steps have you considered throughout your professional career. Often times we can become comfortable and somewhat complacent within our chosen occupation after we have met certain education and experience requirements. However, over time we can loose our job security if our skills are not continually up to date or with economic shifts, technology innovations, or company restructuring.

If you find yourself in a position where there does not appear to be any jobs in your career field, they you may consider changing industries. Change can be good, but when you mention changing careers, often people confuse this with more schooling or education, significant changes in their schedule, or starting back at the beginning. While any change may require some retraining or new on the job knowledge, changing careers maybe easier then one would think.

Examine what parallel industries or other careers use your same talents. Seek out career counseling and take several career tests to help you determine what industries you maybe unaware of that use your qualifications. A career counselor can help you with this decision and provide you some inside knowledge on specific career fields. If you do not have a career counselor, then you may want think about who in your local area hire professionals with your skills and list all the things you loved about your old job. Then look for jobs that have those same qualities. You can also look at things you disliked about your old job, and look for jobs that do not have those qualities. Take a reputable personally or career test and consider jobs that work for your personality type.

The worst thing you can do is nothing, especially if you see major changes coming in your career field where your future employment could be effected. A proactive approach can open new doors and provide you with new career opportunities.

http://www.resumeadvantagepro.com – Resume Advantage Pro is produced and distributed by the Seneea Corporation, a product developer and publisher, specializing in transforming the online media experience in creating customer focused quality products and services for the Ecommerce consumer. Our resume writing workshop and job search guide, ResumeAdvantagePro.com teaches members the step by step method of drafting a resume for experienced professionals, recent college graduates, and new employees entering the workforce through an online video coaching program and workbook course.

When one thinks of rental cars, they usually imagine overused sedans in neutral colors that lack pep or performance. Rental cars have often been generic, neutral vehicles maintained due to their functionality and reliability. The ho-hum prospect of renting a car in the past rarely elicited any feeling of excitement.

The car rental process, however, has changed over time. Now, a prospective renter can choose from a wider spectrum of vehicles, including popular high-performance sports cars.

A sports car might appeal to a renter for any number of reasons. A single person traveling alone may crave something novel and fun while on a dull business trip or as a means of rounding out a vacation trip. Others may wish to try their hand at driving a sports car on a temporary basis just for the sake of variety. Still others can use the opportunity to rent a sports car as a financially viable means of creating an extended test drive prior to making a sports car purchase. There are true sports car enthusiasts who need a rental car for any number of reasons and can simply not imagine a return to the doldrums of driving a conventional car.

This great variety of reasons has created sufficient demand for rental agencies to add sports cars to their available fleet of autos. Now, in addition to station wagons, economy class cars and base sedans, more and more rental companies are providing prospective customers with a healthy array of sports car options.

Of course, one cannot expect to rent a high-end import sports are at rates similar to those they might pay for a domestic standard issue vehicle. Sports cars, of course, are more expensive to purchase, maintain and insure. Thus, one can expect to pay significantly higher rates when renting one.

In addition to higher base rental rates, prospective customers can also anticipate some additional expenses. For instance, sports cars generally do not boast the fuel efficiency found in the more frequently rented subcompact cars and gas bills for the period of the rental are likely to run high.

Additionally, the rental agency may require additional insurance purchase, or at the very least, more expensive insurance options, than are generally required of other rented vehicles. Remember, the agency must purchase (or lease) these cars at considerably higher prices than standard models and that expense will be reflected throughout your rental experience.

Younger drivers may also encounter some difficulties in renting high-end sports cars. Rental agencies have always been somewhat restrictive when it comes to the age of drivers, but there are likely to have even stiffer requirements for the rental of sports cars. Rental agencies want to insure the safety of their sports car investments.

Sports car rentals create a unique opportunity for renters. It allows someone who may otherwise never have the opportunity to take the wheel of a high-performance vehicle to see what all the fuss is about. It can give one a chance at glamour and excitement for a few days without any real commitment or long-term burden. Although the cost of renting a sports car may be high enough to freeze some renters out of the market, their availability does increase their accessibility to those who may never have another opportunity to enjoy the sports car experience.

The next time you are renting a car, you may want to consider trying an exotic sports car for a few days. It can add something unique to your vacation or business trip. You can experience the excitement of sports car driving without the burdens of sports car ownership. If one can afford the additional expense of a great rental car upgrade, the rental sports car experience may be a great alternative to chugging about in a dull generic car.

For more articles like this one, please visit [http://www.SportsCarGuide.org]

You’ve probably read the previous piece on North Indian breads. This article focuses on North Indian cooking, which includes cooking style, spices used, terminology and some common foods.

North Indian cooking is nearly always quite spicy and uses a large number of spices in any given dish. The terms used for various dishes are normally descriptive of the food itself like Jeera Aloo for instance, which literally translates to ‘Cumin seed Potatoes’. Like most cultures there are also some misleading names like ‘Butter Chicken’, which is actually marinated chicken cooked in a tandoor and served in smooth, tomato gravy and doesn’t contain any butter. There are also terms which aren’t related to the food in question, like Pulao, which is rice cooked with spices and vegetables. The term sabzi (sub-zee) is used quite liberally when describing nearly any dry, vegetable preparation. The same applies to the term dal, which is used for most types of lentils. The term tari (tuh-ree) denotes gravy and is suffixed to the name of a dish when it has gravy.

In these days of fusion food, it is difficult to pin down a set of spices that a given region can claim. However, traditionally, north Indian cooking uses the following spices and herbs:

• Cumin seed (Jeera)
• Ajowan or (Ajwain)
• Red Chili Powder I – Flavor over color (Lal Mirch)
• Red Chili Powder II – Color over flavor (Degi Mirch or Kashmiri Mirch)
• Turmeric Powder (Haldi)
• Dried Mango Powder (Aamchur)
• Coriander Seeds (Sabat Dhania)
• Coriander Powder (Dhania)
• Fresh Coriander Leaves (Hara Dhania)
• Green Cardamom (Choti Elaichi)
• Black Cardamom (Badi Elaichi)
• Cinnamon (Dalchini)
• Garam Masala – A set mixture of spices – roasted cumin, cinnamon, cloves, caraway seeds, nutmeg (and/or mace) and green cardamom seed or black cardamom pods. The composition of Garam Masala changes from region to region.
• Dried Fenugreek Leaves (Kasuri Methi)
• Black Mustard Seeds (Rai)

This list is by no means complete – there are many more spices used in every day North Indian cooking – the purpose of this article however is to provide a feel for North Indian cooking.

Different spices are used in different situations, in different ways. The flavor and characteristics of spices change if you’re dry roasting them, frying them, adding them before simmering to cook or after cooking.

Our first foray into traditional North Indian cooking could start with a simple vegetable preparation, which we could either call Aloo ki Sabzi (‘Vegetable Preparation of Potatoes’) or Jeera Aloo (Cumin seed Flavored Potatoes).

Cumin Seed Potatoes / Jeera Aloo

Ingredients

- 3 Large Baking Potatoes

-One onion, chopped fine

-1 tsp Cumin seed

-1 tsp Turmeric Powder

-1 tsp Chili Powder

-1 tsp Coriander Powder

-1 tsp Dried Mango Powder

-Salt to taste

-Chopped fresh coriander for garnishing

-Oil for frying

Method

First peel your potatoes, dice and then boil in lightly salted water. Then drain and let cool. Heat oil in your pan and add the cumin seed. After 2 – 3 seconds of crackling, add the onions and fry, stirring lightly for about a minute on low heat. Now add all the spices, except the dried mango powder and mix well. Throw in the potatoes, which should be nice and firm now and toss well, so the onion-spice mixture coats the potatoes all over. Simmer for about 5 – 7 minutes. Finally, add the dried mango powder and toss the potatoes on high heat, till there’s a thick, spicy sludge adhering to the potatoes. Garnish with the fresh, chopped coriander prior to serving.

These can be served with Rotis, filled in toasted sandwiches or just eaten as is for a snack.

As you can see, this everyday dish uses 5 different spices and one herb. There are some traditional dishes that use up to 30 different spices! These are now (in most part) a thing of the past and cooked only on very special occasions.

As an example, let’s say we’d like to try our hand at cooking a simple north Indian dish without a recipe, simply going by the style. Obviously we’ll need some north Indian spices, the most common of which are Jeera (cumin seed), Haldi (turmeric powder), Namak (salt) and Mirch (chili powder). The first step, in nearly every dish is to fry onions as it is a staple in north Indian cooking. When pink/transparent, we add some spices and fry some more. This gives us a thick sauce to which we can add a little water if we wish. This sauce will coat the vegetables or meat we’ll add later. Here’s a simple example.

Onion and Tomato Sabzi / Pyaaz Tamatar ki Sabzi

Ingredients

-3 Large tomatoes, chopped roughly

-Two Onions, chopped roughly

-2 large cloves of garlic, finely sliced

-1 tsp Cumin seed

-1 tsp Turmeric Powder

-1 tsp Dried Mango Powder

-1 tsp Chili Powder

-Salt to taste

-Oil for frying

Method

The process is really quite simple – we heat a little oil, add the onions, fry a little, add the garlic and continue frying till the onions are pink or translucent. Then we add the rest of the spices except the dried mango powder, mix well and finally toss in the tomatoes. The dried mango powder goes in at the end.

One major feature of Indian cooking is that vegetables are rarely left crisp or crunchy. They’re nearly always cooked till they’re very soft. This isn’t very good for the nutrition content of the veggies and I’d recommend cooking them till they’re just done and still have a bit of bite left.

The pan will be kept on a simmer for 5 – 10 minutes, till the tomatoes are cooked through. Finally we stir in the dried mango powder and it’s ready to eat! This dish is usually eaten with Rotis.

As you can see, the pattern is similar – fry onions (if using), spices, toss in vegetables, nuke them (or not) and serve. Now that we have an idea of the basics involved, let’s get on to the secrets!

The Cooking Methods (by Naheed)

Secret 1: Bhuno well.

This is an extremely important process and involves frying spices to extract most of their flavor. Remember not to overheat the oil (unless it is mustard oil, which has to be heated till it emits some smoke & does not froth when something is put in it). If dry powdered masala is being used, the oil should not be hot as the dry spices will burn. Some amount of water must be added if you feel the spices may burn. When making the masala, use onion paste along with ginger & garlic to which you will add other spices as required.

For meat however, the method is quite different. This is the last process for cooking meat in quite a few cases, or the process just before adding water to make the gravy. It is believed the real flavor of meat develops only if you devote upward of 10 minutes to this process. Meat releases some of its own fat which mixes with the spices and then the oil cooks the meat and helps the meat absorb the mixed flavors of the spices. How long to do so, is a question that has no fixed answer. As a guideline, stop when either the meat becomes too tender or the gravy becomes completely dry, or your guests start to get very restless. You will also notice that the meat & gravy tend to stick to the vessel if you do not stir them constantly. If they do, scrape it off; and if the gravy gets too dry, add yoghurt or water.

Secret 2: Bagharna

This is a simple process and is called Chaukna in Hindi. Here dry spices are added to hot oil and this concoction is added to a dish (e.g. Dal). Although a simple process, do not burn the spices. In fact it is advised that once you have added the spices, remove the vessel from the fire.

Secret 3: Dum Cooking

This is the art of slow cooking. It enables individual flavors to intermingle properly. This is also the method used for the last few minutes when cooking rice or biryani. In the old days, when food was cooked on coal or wood, the only way was to raise the distance between the flame & the vessel, or put the vessel in the dying embers, seal the lid of the dish with flour & put a few embers of coal on top of the lid. In dum cooking, it is essential the fire be at its lowest and the food will therefore take a while before it’s done. Rest assured that your patience will be amply rewarded. Thankfully modern cooking presents us with newer methods and one of the easiest is to put the whole vessel in an oven. If you do not have one, put a griddle (tawa) on the flame & then put the vessel on it. Also note that dum cooking meat will make the ingredients (meat, vegetables) exude the moisture or water within. A word of caution here: Try not to use a pressure cooker or the meat will not turn out right.

Secret 4: Frying

Simple you’d say. Well, yes it is. However, there are two types of frying. One is frying to cook and the other one to brown. For deep frying it is essential that there be sufficient oil to cover the item. For browning, the oil can be less but must be at a low temperature.

Secret 5: Using earthenware

Not only is earthenware cheap in India but it was also the first form of disposable crockery. Most desserts in India were traditionally served either on banana leaves or in earthenware crockery. Some of the better known five star restaurants in India still use earthenware. If you’ve noticed, tea at Indian railway stations is still served in earthenware glasses. Not only is it environmentally friendly, a special earthy flavor permeates the tea, which no cooking method can simulate.

Secret 6: Kewda Water

Kewda is the derivative of a desert plant with very fragrant leaves. The essential oil of this is heavily diluted in water which is used as a perfuming agent for food. Typically used in Firni and Zarda among other desserts and has no parallel.

The Ingredients

Secret 1: Dahi or Yoghurt

This is a wonder ingredient. Yoghurt lends a light buttery flavor to the creation as well as a light creamy consistency. For example, it is the base for some dishes like Rizala where the original flavor of yoghurt is completely transformed. Yoghurt when cooked transforms in taste to lightly sour and gives the gravy a creamy texture. All in all, it is an essential item. In a few dishes, it may be substituted by tomato puree but then the final result will be slightly different. Did you know vegetables cooked in yoghurt retain their shape? In fact in Dumpukth Fish, it is the yoghurt that preserves the shape of the fish. Also, at times if you have mistakenly added extra salt, add a splash of whisked yoghurt and cook for a while.

Secret 2: Onions

This is an essential ingredient in a lot of dishes and is commonly used for salads. A handy tip on handling onions is to remove the outer dry skin, cut in half and wash thoroughly to prevent your eyes from watering. Onions lend a sweetish flavor to cooking and are a common masala base. However when fried then mixed, the taste is totally different. So when the recipe says “fry onions”, you’d better fry them.

Secret 3: Cumin

There are two types of cumin seeds. The common white cumin seeds which are cheap are used mainly in vegetarian dishes. They are more often than not fried to get their flavor out. Sometimes as in a raita, they are dry roasted on a tawa and then ground. However, the more expensive black cumin seeds or Shah Jeera as they are commonly known as, are quite different in taste and flavor. The two are rarely substituted. Most restaurants substitute them in rice preparations, but then, what you get is something totally different.

Final Recipe

Now that we have quite a good idea of what’s involved in North Indian cooking, perhaps a slightly complex recipe is in order – Nihari. This is definitely not one of the dishes that one finds on the menu of five star restaurants. This is one of the dishes eaten with a lot of passion by all. In fact to have Nihari one must have the zest to wake up before dawn because it is a very hot meal and in most places where it is served, the service is over by 9am. It is a delectable broth of meat, cooked over a slow fire, mostly overnight and eaten in the early hours of the morning with a tandoori roti and an assortment of fresh herbs accompanied by loads of lemon. The meat is fulfilling and the broth is had as a refreshing and a rather hot soup. The other reason why one has it as a breakfast meal and that too only in winter is because it makes you feel very thirsty and rather warm. Don’t tell me I didn’t warn you.

Nihari

Ingredients

• 1 kg Nihari meat (or any other meat that’s available)
• 250 grams Onions, sliced
• 3/4 cup Ghee
• 2 tbsp ginger paste
• 2 tbsp garlic paste
• 2 tbsp dry roasted chickpea flour
• 1/2 – 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp Coriander powder
• 1/4tsp Turmeric powder
• Salt to taste

Spice mixture

Grind together the following:1/4 tsp. dried ginger, 1/4 tsp. mace, 1/2 tsp. fennel, 1/2 tsp. white cumin seeds, 2 large cardamom, 4 small cardamoms, 4 cloves, 6 black pepper seeds

Preparation

Preparation time 30 minutes | Cooking time 2-3 hours

• Add 2/3rd of the onions in moderately hot oil and when the onion goes soft add ginger & garlic paste along with ground coriander and turmeric powder and let it fry for about 3-4 minutes or until the oil comes on top again.
• Add the meat and cook over slow fire. The meat will let out its own water.
• When it is semi cooked, add the chick pea flour to 2 cups of water and leave the broth to cook over very slow fire for at least 45 minutes.
• The slower you cook the more flavors you will draw out.
• Keep the pot covered but no pressure cookers please.
• When the meat is as tender as it can get, add the spice mixture along with the leftover onions.

On a parting note, while cooking methods remain largely consistent and typical, knowing the spices will help tremendously. So while you’re cooking go on and add that sprinkle of black mustard seeds to hot oil and watch them crackle or throw in some curry leaves and savor the change in flavors!

Sid Khullar has written nearly 400 articles on food, cooking and other related subjects on Chef at Large. He welcomes recipe and photo contributions and is always looking to meet people passionate about the culinary arts.

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