27/05/2009 by FeedCrazy.

Children’s playground games come and go all the time. They are made up one day in the creative mind of 7 year old and the next they are a distant memory. One game though dates back hundreds of years and has been played by school children all over the world. The we are talking is ‘tag’. This basically involves one or two people being ‘it’ and they have to chase others around to ‘tag’ them and make them ‘it’. When someone is caught they then become the person who is ‘on’ and they then have to chase others. The original chaser is now chased. It’s a very simple game that promotes agility and spatial awareness, as well as improves teamwork and of course fitness levels.  You don’t need any expensive toys, and also it can be played anywhere.

The UK government howe ever feel that the it can act to discriminate and it is also unsafe. They therefore would like to see it stopped in schools. Their stance is that because the game often takes place on harder ground, children can seriously hurt themselves. They also say that the game can often escalate into a more physical tussle when there become agreement over whether someone has been caught or not.  Their second grievance with the game is that people tend to get left out and this promotes segregation.Harold James from the Education Committee says “the unpopular children are often not chosen to take part in the game or are ignored all together….we would like to see more inclusive games”. Mr James continued to say that it is not something that can include those with physical disabilities as they have difficultly competing in the game.

Other games that have been banned already include conkers, mercy, British bulldog and kiss chase. It does make you question whether kids are allowed to do anything anymore and ask if wrapping them in bubble-wrap is really the best thing for them. We need to take the wheels from the trainer bike someday don’t we?

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27/05/2009 by FeedCrazy.

If you come to the conclusion that just trying to pay off your existing unsecured debts (bearing in mind that interest will continually be added) is impossible within your income level or would leave you in poverty for years to come, then your options appear to be limited.

For many people, bankruptcy could actually end up being the cheapest way to resolve their debt situation.  It costs around £500 to make yourself bankrupt at the local County Court, but this “last resort” action does have severe and long lasting consequences, especially on your ability to gain credit in future and should be avoided if at all possible!

Other options include a consolidation loan.  You’ve seen them advertised on the TV!Take out a secured loan and lump all your debts into one monthly repayment. Not only does this mean putting your home at risk, but if you are in this position, your credit score and rating may mean you can’t get such a loan in the first place, and even if you can, monthly payments could still be crippling.

You could get a debt management company to negotiate with your creditors to accept a reduced payment schedule. Creditors are under no legal obligation to accept reduced payments or a suspension of interest in this way, so each creditor would have to be approached individually to see if they will agree to it and of course you do have to pay all your debts in full.  It’s costly, time consuming and if the debt management company is unsuccessful in stopping interest you’ll probably end up being charged more in interest than you are actually making in payments, which means you’ll never get out of debt!

A better option is to consider entering into an IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement).  This is a legally binding deal lasting five years that’s brokered by a licensed Insolvency Practitioner who puts forward a single repayment proposal to all your creditors.Within 24 hours the Insolvency Practitioner will make contact with your creditors and they are then legally bound not to hound you any further.   The insolvency Practitioner will make an offer to your creditors of somewhere between 30%-50% of what you owe them and in most cases interest is dramatically reduced or even frozen.   Your creditors then vote to decide whether to accept the proposed IVA or not.If 75% (that’s by value of the debt you owe them – not ¾ of all the people you owe money to) of your creditors do accept it, then it’s binding on everyone, even those who voted against it.

Because the usual minimum level of acceptable monthly repayment for an IVA is £300.00, it’s only suitable for larger debt cases (i.e. if your debt is more than £20,000.00) to at least three or more creditors.If you are a homeowner with a level of equity in your property more than the total of your unsecured debts, then an IVA proposal will probably not be accepted.Your creditors will require you to re-mortgage or sell the property to pay off the debts in full. IVAs are also not suitable for people living on state benefits as their main or only source of income, as the level of these benefits has been set to allow solely for living expenses.

If you’re not in those circumstances above, and you’re  are certain you’ll  be able to make consistent payments towards an IVA from your earnings of at least £300 per month for five years, then an IVA is worth exploring.Unlike debt management, an IVA is a “full and final” settlement which means that any debt still outstanding is permanently written off and you are free of debt.An IVA is an affordable and workable solution to serious debt problems and preferable to bankruptcy.

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27/05/2009 by FeedCrazy.

Home beer brewing is a growing hobby, and the last few years more and more people started taking part of this ancient tradition. Making your own beer, complete with your own label is a great activity. And with the right equipment, setting up your own home beer brewery is not hard at all. You need to invest a little time to learn how to create a perfectly brewed beer and a little money to buy your first equipment but then you will be able to brew a good tasting beer and save money in the same time.

A home beer brewery is not something new, in fact brewing beer was a practice that was done even during the time of the ancient Sumerian’s. The equipment we use for our home beer brewery is a bit more sophisticated but the process is still more or less the same.

What equipment do you need?

The most simple way to start a home beer brewery is with a beer home brewing kit which contains all equipment you need and, most times, even a pack with ingredients for the first batch is included. You can use the equipment in the kit for many years and it is the best investment you can make.

Beer kits are also great father’s day gift ideas

For father’s day, birthdays, Christmas, Valentine’s day and other gift opportunities is equipment for your home beer brewery is a great gift idea. And not just equipment but also different types of beer packages with ingredient mixes are great gifts. There are beer kit packages for draught, lager, ale, stout and many other popular tastes.

If you are just starting with your own home beer brewery you will be glad to know that this is a hobby that will not get boring very soon, you will be able to fine tune your beer recipes and there even many people who have created a home business with there own brand of beer. A home beer brewery is a opportunity to be creative and it can be a real money saver and even a money maker.

The author of this article, Drew Brown, has one hobby, home made beer brewing and he loves to share it with the world. On his website Brewing Your Own. com he tells you all about Father’s Day Gift Ideas like a beer home brewing kit and much more.

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