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LET'S TOUR THE SITES AND FIND THE TREASURES! 
May 1, 2010 Some of us know all about sleep deprivation as a form of torture. We’ve experienced it. Repeatedly and sometimes, it seems, endlessly. I’ve had jobs I loved AND hated because of the torture of forcing myself through day after day without sufficient sleep. I remember walking to catch the bus to work, passing a nursing home, and bitterly envying those old people strapped into wheelchairs. They got enough sleep. Except now I suspect they didn’t. Now that I’m retired and can sleep in, I successfully go to sleep at night using an elaborate three-hour slow-down while reading, a technique that renders me groggy at the end. But then comes the curse of old age: I wake up too soon. I used to sleep until the alarm clock went off or I’d had enough sleep, whichever came first. Now I wake up after only part of a night’s sleep. Saw a study of older people that said they averaged six hours of sleep a night. Did they NEED more than six hours? A lot of them doubtless did, I sure do, but they didn’t know how to get more sleep. But I have licked the problem. My system may or may not work for you, but here it is: when I wake up after only five or six hours of sleep, I get up, have a bowl of cereal (a full stomach tends to make you sleepy, as does the calcium in milk). Then I sit up in bed and read the paper and such until grogginess sets in again, usually in a couple of hours. I then slide down in the bed and take what is either a nap or the rest of my night’s sleep. Doesn’t matter what it’s called. I get it. For me the secret is no caffeine. No pot of morning tea until I’ve had the rest of my night’s sleep. What will work for you? I don’t know, but items 12 to 14 tell us what scientists and practical types think about the issue of sleep. Janette P.S. My go-to-sleep techniques are one reason I have a $500/month reading habit – fortunately funded for me by the Loudoun County Public Library. I love that place. ----Table Of Contents---- 1. YouTube’s 50 Best Videos 1. YOUTUBE’S 50 BEST VIDEOS According to TIME MAGAZINE, these are the best. Or at least the most popular. I may have previously listed number one, “Charlie Bit My Finger,” but more likely I THOUGHT about listing it but decided it was too dumb. But here it is, impersonally selected by the Internet itself in its supreme wisdom. Forty-nine more videos follow, and if you still think at the end that the Internet is supremely wise, I’ll be amazed. http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1974961_1974925_1974954,00.html 2. WORLD’S MOST DANGEROUS CHOCOLATE CAKE An ideal gift for your mother, if you plan to see her on Mother’s Day. It would also make a nice Father’s Day or birthday or hostess gift. If the recipient is watching his or her weight, you of course do not want to let them have them the recipe. Just the cake and the cup. http://www.ehow.com/how_4553352_minute-chocolate-mug-cake.html 3. GIVE A MINI-HERB GARDEN A mini-herb garden in a container of your choice is a delightful gift your mom – or dad, if he cooks - can set outside by the kitchen door to supply herbs all summer. 4. A MOM AND POP POPCORN STORE Nostalgic candy from back in the fifties AND more than 45 different flavors of popcorn, all yours online for gifts or for your own pleasure: And, if you’d like to learn how this particular mom and pop got their store, try: http://www.momandpopcorn.com/index.php/news/corncoin2/ 5. MOTHER’S DAY GIFTS FOR KIDS TO MAKE FAMILY FUN is a great site for families. Here’s the Mother’s Day section: http://familyfun.go.com/mothers-day/mothers-day-cards-gifts/ For gifts grownups can make, try FAMILY CRAFTS: http://familycrafts.about.com/od/mothersday/tp 6. FREE CALLS WITH SKYPE Make free calls to anyone anywhere – provided you have SKYPE and they have SKYPE. You can also see them and they can see you with SKYPE’s free video calls. http://www.skype.com/getconnected/ 7. GORGEOUS SHOTS OF AUSTRALIAN NIGHT SKIES The Australian Outback remains one of the few places on earth where the night sky is clear of light pollution. Wish I could have been there and seen what the photographer saw. http://members.ozemail.com.au/~loomberah/mcnaught.htm MOON SHOTS: http://www.flickzzz.com/2007/11/amazing-moon-photos.html 8. GOOGLE SKY You can now use GOOGLE EARTH to search the heavens: http://earth.google.com/sky/skyedu.html GOOGLE EARTH itself is much more than a program you download. It is for many people a social club and a way of life. To learn more about GOOGLE EARTH, click on INTERNET RESOURCES in the lefthand column, then on “Exploring Earth And Sea.” 9. TOP 10 GOOGLE EARTH FINDS People find interesting things on GOOGLE EARTH every day (most people like to find their house first of all). Following are the “finds” TIME MAGAZINE considered most outstanding: http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages 10. GOOGLE SIGHTSEEING Each weekday, GOOGLE takes you sightseeing from earth satellite, homing in on sights suggested by viewers. The whole site is head-shakingly strange, and you are bound to see some things that fascinate you, no matter what fascinates you. And if you see beauty in the things of earth seen from far above the earth, that is there too. In addition to the current day’s sights, the archives take you back, by date or by category: 11. MINIATURE EARTH If the world population were only 100, here’s what it would be like. DON’T MISS THIS ONE! http://www.miniature-earth.com/ 12. THE NAP EFFECT Hmmm. This research shows that “the more hours we spend awake, the more sluggish our minds become.” But it seems a nap can punch our reset buttons. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100221110338.htm LIFEHACKER has a number of practical hints about getting a good night’s sleep. First it ran these hints: http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifehack/6-sleep-tips.html And a couple of years later it ran these: http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle 13. ALL ABOUT SLEEP I thought the SLEEP EDUCATION site would be dull, but it isn’t. It has interesting news about the latest sleep research and findings. When you’re through, you’ll know a lot more about whatever sleep you’re not getting. http://www.sleepeducation.com/ The HEALTH, MEDICAL section in the lefthand column not only has more about sleep, it shows how to learn how good your doctor is and whether your medications are safe: 14. GET RID OF BAD DREAMS The technique is surprisingly simple and practical, though I think JASON IVERS credits it with more than it can accomplish. But his approach can definitely help with a certain type of bad dream. And that is good news for bad dreamers. http://www.amiracleaday.com/articles/2007/08/09 You’ll notice that this leads into the following post: 9 METHODS TO START YOUR MORNING ALERT AND FOCUSED: http://www.amiracleaday.com/articles/2007/08/21 15. CONSIDERING A MOVE? With PROPERTY SHARK, you can find an incredible amount of data about that house you’re thinking of buying. http://www.propertyshark.com/mason/ And save big money with REDFIN: “In major metropolitan areas, our clients work with real estate agents employed by Redfin. Rather than charging you 3% of the home price to sell your home, Redfin charges only 1.5%, with a minimum fee of $5,500.” http://www.redfin.com/sell-a-home/ For much more about moving – and also about staying put in your house – click on HOME RENOVATION, UPKEEP, SALE in the lefthand column. © Copyright 2010 Janette G. Blackwell. All rights reserved. You may copy and use portions of this newsletter for noncommercial, personal use only. You may forward a copy to someone else as long as the copyright notice is included. Any other use of the materials in this newsletter without prior written permission is prohibited. |
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