Is Your Computer Running Slower-than-molasses?

I have been struggling for some time now with a slower-than-molasses-computer. I had a gut feeling that it had something to do with Internet Explorer, but wasn't sure what the problem was. I had halfway decided I might need a new computer. One of the problems being was that I kept getting an error message that said Virtual Memory Low. Well I found this webpage, and now I've fixed the problem. Thinking that you might be struggling with the same issues, I'm passing this "wunder page" along.

This is no April Fool's, but I must say I got suckered into one before 8 a.m. this morning. Stay on your A game and try to be a good foolee and not a fool!--Ruth Mitchell

If you enjoy reading our Blog, then we think you'll enjoy these too...

Some interesting websites we've come across lately are listed below.

Our friend Judy, of the Charter Yacht Ursa Minor, shared with us recently her sailing life exploits and mentioned that the Marshall Islands had some wonderful craft art. We certainly things so. This PDF file of the Marshall Islands goes into great depth of what is available and how it is made.

COLOURlovers Blog covers the latest design trends, colors in science & culture as well as interviews with top creative professionals. COLOURlovers.com was a Nominee for Community Website 2007 in the Webby Awards.

The Insider travel guides cover Bermuda, Boston, Hawaii, New York, Philadelphia and San Francisco, providing an insider's view on what to see and where to go. This blog updates you with regular tips about how to save money getting to and enjoying your destination, how to survive the hassles of traveling, what "hidden treasures" you might have overlooked as you planned your trip, and what is on the upcoming calendar.

Encouragement

Crimea 6 - Alexey Yesjunin

It's odd really to think that some people don't thrive on encouragement. But in my dealings with artists and the rest of the world, I have found that some people appreciate encouragement, some are skeptical of it, and a few are downright intimidated by encouragement as if you are manipulating them.

In my work career, I always found it odd, that while I might be excelling and making my boss lots of money, encouragement and enthusiasm for my work was handed out rather stingily. I found this strange considering encouragement is free and in fact I would have not been as concerned with how I was being compensated monetarily, than if I had a little encouragement now and then. As a parent, my children always seemed to thrive on praise and encouragement, and it only seemed logical that someone who had hired me to do a job, would find this simple courtesy effective in motivating me to work harder. Not so.

In turn, I try to encourage people in my daily encounters, whether it is an artist, a colleague or a volunteer. I'm not afraid to tell people I love them, and I am more open to giving out encouragement than I used to be. I'm not looking for something in return when I encourage, I'm just acknowledging their efforts.

The reactions I get for my encouragement are not always positive, however. There are just those that are not comfortable with a compliment.

Creative people who are "putting themselves out there," and taking risks like artists do everyday have to learn to deal with comments about their work.

I developed a "thick skin," years ago when I made the commitment to be a writer. I knew that if I wanted to become proficient as a writer, I would need to be open to constructive criticism, good bad or ugly. Prior to the internet, it was amazing how many people had time to let you know you had a comma out of place! Now, seeing poor punctuation and grammar is a daily occurrence.

And then there are times when you have to give yourself encouragement. Today, when I was working on researching new artists for the site I was sent a very hostile email, as if I was trying to take advantage of someone. I had to chuckle. You would have thought that we were out here scamming our way through life taking advantage of artists at every turn.

I guess the ultimate encouragement for any artist is purchasing their art. Who did you encourage today?--Ruth Mitchell

Shopping for a Fuel-Efficient Car

I gave up my five-cylinder Volvo SUV a couple of years ago. While it was relatively fuel-efficient, I no longer needed such a large car. I looked then at hybrid cars, but was dissatisfied with the trade off of fuel-efficiency for poor acceleration. I have to drive over a lot of two-lane mountainous roads with passing lanes the length of a small back yard.

I'm still driving the car that I replaced it with. A car that was supposed to get 30 mpg, but which only averages 23.5 mpg. So, today, with a little time on my hands I drove a couple of hybrids. The Honda Civic was disappointing and handicapped by the fact that the batteries needed for a hybrid obstruct cargo space.

The Toyota Prius is actually pretty surprising, and if I can get over the jelly bean look of the little car that could, I may end up purchasing that awesome 45-48 mpg promise. It was also very satisfying to watch the computer screen tell me if I was using electric or motor power. It validated my need to do something about this petroleum holocaust.

Then there is diesel. Volkswagen had an '08 Jetta, not yet available in my area, that promises to get as much as 50 mpg. From what I have read, they are utilizing new technology now used in Mercedes as well, that reburns the particulates. Performance is up and the clean/green factor is up. Very interesting, but they didn't have anything for me to test drive and I seemed to know more about the technology than the dealership did.

This morning's news talked about sales being down for American car manufacturers. They reported a 4 percent increase for Toyata. Imagine that. They only had one Prius to test drive, no hyrbrid SUVs and no hybrid Camrys on the lot. They said they would sell most of them before you could test drive them. Now who would buy a car without test driving it? Desperate Americans that's who. You know in most areas of technology, it's there before we are ready for it, with cars, the environment has been, perhaps unalterably destroyed, due to some very powerful people holding back.

People into Creative Consumerism™ are the most likely to be interested in the environment I've found. They are sharp, aware and into a style of living that is beyond the norm. We'd love to hear what you are driving these days.--Ruth Mitchell

Help A Hometowm

I have been working on a volunteer basis for sometime with people from our hometown to revitalize our historic downtown. We have become an affiliate of the Mainstreet program, which is a very successful national program that assists communities with economic development through historic preservation.

Like other non-profit oranizations, we have to finance ourselves through fund-raising projects such as writing grants. Recently we have applied to the Hamburger Helper Foundation for a grant to assist us with a project. We would like to ask for your help by visiting this site and sending in your comments. This will help us receive the recognition we need to make this grant come true.

A great big thanks in advance! --Ruth Mitchell

Winter Ramble

Artist kEITH kIMMEL is back from several months on tour in South Florida. He's home in Fort Collins for a bit of peaceful rest. "The weather right now is perfect, crisp, clean, slow and easy," he says.

Recent forays have included time in Santa Fe, New Mexico where he played some music and did some painting with friends. "Seems like there is an art gallery on every corner," he says.

"Driving through New Mexico always offers some fabulous photos. Here's one that particular defines it for me.""--kEITH kIMMEL

Catching Up

Some people just live fascinating lives! My friends Judy and Bryan of the Charter Yacht Ursa Minor are a couple of those lucky creatures. Enjoy their exploits from a recent correspondence.

This has truly been a very special year for Ursa Minor and her crew. We have sailed almost 10,000 miles across the Caribbean, through the Panama Canal, and out across the seemingly endless Pacific Ocean. Along the way came a myriad of new experiences, dozens of new friends and an enhanced appreciation of the vastness of this world as well as reminders of how small a world it can be.

Cruising the southern Caribbean we saw the pristine, isolated islands off the coast of Venezuela, the sophisticated islands of Bonaire and Curacao, and then the delightful San Blas Islands off Panama where the Kuna Indians live a very traditional life style in thatched huts and dugout sailing canoes. Imagine our surprise when a Kuna family in colorful traditional clothing paddled up in a dugout canoe to offer a trade of fish for our charging up their cell phone for them! We also loved the San Blas for the dozens of protected anchorages in crystal clear water surrounded by coral reefs full of fish, and for the molas made by the women – very colorful embroidery on unique reverse appliqué designs.

Transiting the Panama Canal was an exciting time, made all the more enjoyable by the company of old friends Sharon Allen and Joyce Bearse, two lady captains who were friends from our VI days. Days before and after the canal were filled with making new friends, seeing old ones, exploring Panama and provisioning the boat at fabulous prices. Heaven only knows when we’ll find rum or beer that cheap again!
Just past Panama, we had a short restful stop in the Las Perlas Islands (where the dozens of jumping manta rays made up for the murky water, numerous floating logs, and huge tidal range) before setting off on our then longest passage: 8 days to the Galapagos Islands. Crossing the equator en route we had a ceremony thanking King Neptune for his kindness and generosity.

The Galapagos Islands were a wondrous treat. The tortoises are just as amazing as we’d imagined, and our favorite was Pepe, a 300 year old family pet who came when called by name and just loved chowing down on fresh papaya. We rode horses up to an extinct volcano caldera, and then hiked down into the eerie and barren landscape. We snorkeled with sea lions, eagle rays, penguins and sharks, and laughed at the antics of the hundreds of sea lions frolicking in the harbor, as they tried to crawl aboard any boat that looked to offer a nice sunning spot.

Next came our longest passage to date, to the Marquesas – over 3000 miles across mostly fairly tame ocean, where weeks would go by without sight of another boat. It took us 22 days, and never was a landfall more welcome, especially after the final 48 hours included lots of rain and squalls and occasional winds to 40 knots. Our first island in French Polynesia, Fatu Hiva, was truly magical – fantastic rock pinnacles framing lush green valleys extending deep into the towering mountains, a very welcoming population that were far more into trading than any we’ve seen before or since (Bryan’s bright orange crocs bought a cornucopia of goodies including food and carvings), and a friendly bunch of fellow cruisers who had all proven themselves by getting there. We stopped at 3 or 4 other islands as we worked our way up the Marquesas, spending almost a month at the most populous, Nuka Hiva, where Bryan got his first “personal” Pacific souvenir – a traditional tattoo of a manta ray with a tiki embedded within.

Another week’s passage brought us to the Tuamotus – a huge group of coral atolls, very low-lying clusters of islands spread along reefs built up on the rims of ancient sunken volcanoes. The most fabulous snorkeling we have ever done was at Fakarava where several times we drifted y with the rushing incoming tide through the pass and into the lagoon, surrounded by the most colorful and varied coral and huge numbers and varieties of sea life, including dozens of disinterested sharks. We toured a pearl farm, and bought some of the famous Polynesian black pearls.

Then the Society Islands of French Polynesia, best-known for Tahiti. Our favorite isle was Huahine, where we spent several lazy sunny days in a flat calm anchorage surrounded by reefs and a long sandy beach, had dinner ashore in a beach restaurant with fancy French food and sand between our toes. Tahiti gave us our “big city” fix, and was far more enjoyable than we’d been led to expect by some who’d been put off by its hustle and bustle. The huge indoor produce, seafood and handicraft market was always enchanting. The “roulottes” (vans that rolled into the park nightly, pulling out tables, chairs, grilles and whatever else necessary to transform them into cozy restaurants) offered great food for reasonable prices. We hitchhiked the length of the island to visit the Gauguin Museum and could easily imagine the fascination these islands held for him. Stays at Moorea, Raiatea, Tahaa and Bora Bora all were delightful as well.

A 5 day passage through very rolly seas brought us to lovely Suwarrow Atoll, a national park of the Cook Islands, inhabited only by another 5 or 6 cruising yachts and caretakers John and Veronica and their 4 boys. They made our stay there very special, with frequent potlucks on the beach (including a birthday party for Bryan’s 64th), tours to various small islands in the atoll to see thousands of breeding seabirds, huge coconut crabs, and great snorkeling spots. Judy had a small stroke while there, which proved to be very minor – only a 5 hour memory loss and never any speech or motor impairment – and served as a strong reminder of the importance of regularly taking one’s blood pressure meds.

Another 5 day passage to American Samoa where Judy got a CT scan and other tests, as well as some additional meds, and we spent a month waiting for everything we needed to arrive in spits and spurts. The inner harbor, unfortunately the only place on the island to anchor, was filthy and frequently subject to strong nasty odors from the two fish canneries, and received more rain fall than anywhere we’d ever been. Mildew grew rampantly, but at least our tanks stayed full. The people were very nice – a couple we met at the hospital invited us to their home, the American ex-pats welcomed us at the Yacht Club and ferried us around shopping and eating. Here was a small world incident – within 15 minutes of meeting ex-pat Brad Rhea we discovered that one of the memorial services for Judy’s deceased nephew Teddy was held at his daughter’s house in Washington State. Bryan got his second Pacific tattoo, an ankle band in a traditional Samoan style, at the Tattoo Fest held at Tisa’s Barefoot Bar, a delightful beach bar strongly reminiscent of Foxy’s at Jost Van Dyke in the BVI. Our tour of the Chicken of the Sea cannery was an eye-opener. It’s hard to believe the ocean holds any more tuna when you see how many tons of fish they process in a day.

On to Wallis, a small French island that’s ringed by a fringing reef. Surprisingly, many people spoke English, as they’re quite isolated from other French-speaking islands but surrounded by many island nations where English is the predominant second language. Hitching was the only means of land transportation, and brought us into contact with many friendly locals and French ex-pats. The French cheeses were a treat!

Funafuti, the capitol of Tuvalu, brought us back to the world of coral atolls. Our first day we made friends with Sylia, an energetic young business woman who seemed always to be nearby when we needed advice or help, and sent us off with a nice gift when we finally left. We arrived at the Saturday market after most of the produce from the Taiwanese Aid farm was gone, but after a nice chat with the Taiwanese Ambassador, he graciously sent some boys back to the farm to freshly pick some for us.

Crossing the equator once again, we returned to the North Pacific at Tarawa in Kiribati. The atoll was in the process of some major road works and painfully dusty. We were only able to stay a few days so had to put off our tour of the infamous WWII battle site until we return there next spring on our way south. Our only other stop in this widely spread nation of atolls was Butaritari, which had far and away the most traditional life-style we’ve seen in the Pacific. There were numerous extended family compounds with multiple thatched-roof structures with distinct functions: separate houses for sleeping, cooking, eating, and even dish-washing. Interspersed among the compounds were several maneabas – large community meeting houses. Known as the garden island of Kiribati because it gets much more rain than most, it was full of flower, fruit and greenery. Strolling one day, a family befriended us and took us to their home for refreshing drinking coconuts, and then delivered a bag of more to the wharf for us the morning we left.
In early December we arrived at Majuro, Marshall Islands, where Judy lived for 5 years 25 years ago, and where we’ll be spending the next 3 or 4 months. It’s been a very pleasant “home-coming” with lots of old friends. The cruising community is very active, with a morning radio net announcing races, dinners out, potluck picnics, and this weekend we all hosed a potluck lunch for a group of young American basketball players known as the Harlem Ambassadors who were on a goodwill mission across the Pacific.

That evening we watched them have a fun and goofy game with a local team, much to the amusement of the hundreds of school kids who were admitted free.
Christmas here provided lots of music and festivities, with good friends old and new. We went to a huge party at “Wallaby Downs”, otherwise known as the Australian compound, with the houses of the three Australian navy officers who are here with their families helping with the patrol boat that Australia gave to the Marshalls. Their compound has great party space, clearly a high priority for Aussies, and easily held the few hundred party goers despite lots of rain throughout the evening. On Christmas Day we had a large potluck with about 50 other cruisers and some volunteer teachers and a few other assorted ex-pats, with a gift exchange game in which several gifts changed hands several times. Afterwards we went to watch singing and dancing in the nearby church. Next comes a rollicking block party of thousands for New Year’s Eve.

Judy spent the last week extremely busy practicing law, after agreeing to take an election case. The November election here was beset with an unbelievable number of problems, in large part because of several changes in procedures that were not well thought out. The courthouse still showed me as licensed to practice, even though it had been 25 years, and it was quite nice to be able to add a few bucks to the cruising kitty.

We’ve seen some of the family here of Baide and Taranga, the girls Judy informally adopted here almost 30 years ago who now live in New Jersey. Now that the election petition has been filed, we’ll have the time to find the rest of them and several other of Judy’s friends from long ago.

In the new year we hope to make some trips to outer islands, where life is much closer to traditional Marshallese lifestyle.

With lots of love, Bryan and Judy of the s/v Ursa Minor

Web: www.sailblogs.com/member/ursaminor See for photos and more about our trip.

Opting Out

Color photograph by Dougan Gary

So far over the last few weeks, I've opted out of 23 catalogs through catalogchoice.com. None of the 23 catalogs I have requested to stop sending me a catalog has confirmed they will do so, and one catalog Title Nine (1-800-342-4448) refused my request. Call them today and ask them why. Don't think I will ever order anything from them again. Remember the good 'ole days when you might get a catalog or two around the holidays, and you were glad to receive a few gift ideas that weren't available in your locale?

I've already written about how many trees you will save by opting out of some of these mass mailings. I am still going to allow a few choice catalogs reach my doorstep, but my quest is to save as many trees as I can in this time consuming process.

The main reason we receive so many catalogs from stores we have never bought (nor ever will) things from is because many retailers sell your information to marketing companies who sell your personal information to a wide variety of marketing entities.

At buyoutsidethebox.com, we want you to know our loyalty to you as our customer extends far beyond this common courtesy. We will never sell, trade or give out your personal information. Your credit card info is safe with us as well. We are a secure site.

Easter is early this year, March 23. Celebrate with art!--RuthMitchell

Something New

"Twins" - Abhilasha Singh

Abhilasha is one of our more international artists. "I especially like doing florals and still lifes and feel inspired by the works of early 16th century European artists," she says. I have also been influenced by Russian artists of St. Petersburg, a place close to my heart for its immense beauty and talent. My clients have been from Spain, UK, Italy, Russia and India." I was approached by British Fine Art Gallery in 2000 for displaying my work on-line for them. I have been marketing my art work ever since and have met many different artists and celebrities from various fields of art and entertainment through my work." Some of her latest work appears here.--Ruth Mitchell

Snow Day

We seem to get one snow day a year here where I live. This morning we woke up to three inches. Only thing is two days ago, we were in our shirt sleeves playing goofy golf with the kids in 70 degree weather. Go figure