The all-important first date. This getting-to-know-you can be greatly facilitated by an amusement ride, and the most exhilarating one of all must be the Skywalk by Zalman Silber. A serial entrepreneur who made his first big fortune with New York’s infamous Skyride, a much ballyhooed but modest thirty-minute movie of helicopter flyovers, Sydney, Australia’s Skywalk is a much more visceral affair – and for a first-date, visceral is where it’s got to be at!

No, get your mind out of the gutter – “visceral” here simply means heart-pounding thrills which, studies show, make dates more attracted to one another. Yep, it’s true: the more physically exciting the activities the more likely dates are to perceive one another as being physically attractive. Scientists have paired up total strangers of the opposite sex and asked them to secretly judge one another’s attractiveness. Then each pair was put through a roller-coaster, sitting side-by-side, and asked again to rate one another’s attractiveness after the ride. The second set of responses were almost always substantially higher than than the first set!

So if you really want to make a great impression, make sure to get her (or him!) engaging in some kind of physically exhilarating activity with you – such as the aforementioned Skywalk from Zalman Silber. Situated at the top of the Sydney Tower, the Skywalk is effectively a catwalk with glass flooring that provides visitors with a panoramic view of the city a thousand feet above street level. Being a catwalk, everything is out in the open, with no windows between guests and…nothingness. The Skywalk offers not only a bird’s-eye view of the Harbour City but all the visceral feelings to go with it as well!

And if the simple fact of being up so high doesn’t get your date’s heart throbbing, make sure she looks down! Visiting the Skywalk is a perfect first date because the Skywalk is the perfect ice-breaker. Don’t be surprised if she instinctively grabs your arm! Even though everyone is tethered by cable to sturdy metal support structures, the frequent gusts of wind can be strong enough to make one forget all the safety features built into the experience. Afterward, you and your date can retire to the conventional observation deck of the Sydney Tower to enjoy the romantic view while sharing fond memories of your Skywalk. Or better yet, purchase another set of tickets to really jack up the excitement and send her emotions through the roof!

With media attention routinely concentrated on foreclosed homeowners, this article will take a brief look to consider the consequences on homebuilders such as Isaac Toussie.

Embittered homeowners who have been foreclosed upon have taken to trashing the property before getting kicked out, with anecdotal estimates by real estate agents putting the number of such vandalized properties at up to half of all such units. But given all the media coverage of foreclosed homeowners, it’s time to take a look now at how the same crisis is affecting homebuilders like Isaac Toussie. After all, many of the small-time businessmen had to take out loans in order to finance their housing developments. Of course, there are no such developers out on the street, and their cases, unfortunate in themselves, are not anywhere near comparable to that of homeowners who have nowhere to go at all. But it’s intriguing to see how things can turn out for businessmen and women caught up in the same economic hurricane, and how responses can differ – or not.

For instance, many small homebuilders have had to dip into personal savings just to keep their companies afloat, a familiar predicament to many homeowners. Buyers were disappearing with cash deposits of several thousand left on the table, proof that local residential property markets had turned ice-cold. Even more unfortunately, many homebuilders have proceeded since then to file for bankruptcy protection, with vast sums owed not only to their lenders but also their subcontractors and workers. But still worse yet, these small-time builders have often financed their businesses with so-called recourse debt which allows banks to seize homes, cars, and other personal assets in case of default – again, quite a familiar scenario comparable to that faced by many homeowners.

Such problems have increased and are now considered commonplace across the country. Many a builder has been left with unsold units and land, falling behind on interest payments and facing foreclosures. And in a very bad sign of the extent of the destruction involved, even very large homebuilders are in trouble, with legendary builders such as Levitt & Sons, founders of Levittown, New York on Long Island, famous for epitomizing postwar suburbia, forced into bankruptcy like some small unlucky start-up.

It’s gotten so bad that once solid partnerships and friendships have frayed as an every-man-for-himself mentality creeps into the proceedings. Contractors and subcontractors have had to take out liens on the property they build in order to protect themselves. And it is in this respect that the ordeals of homeowners and homebuilders differ: the latter have almost no hope of any governmental assistance whatsoever, despite being affected by the same subprime mortgage industry shenanigans that’s made owning a home so suddenly onerous.

Legal Disclaimer: Be advised that such information as has been presented so far only constitutes mere opinion and should under no circumstances be misconstrued for professional advice of any kind whatsoever! Always consult those properly licensed and/or otherwise qualified when it comes to making business decisions of any financial importance.

Wine racks are important accessories for the true collector. While the word “accessories” originally referred to those items which aren’t essential to a product but which might enhance the enjoyment of that item, in the case of wine racks they’re so helpful in organizing and displaying one’s collection that they are really quite necessary, particularly when a collection runs into the multiple scores or even hundreds.

But when speaking of wine racks, one usually thinks of a casual collection, practically amateur in its scope – though the proud owner may be just as devoted as any professional trader or dealer. This kind of display rack is normally wall-mounted in a prominent spot, such as the kitchen (most often) or den.

These racks are practically always carefully chosen for their designs to complement the room as well as offer safe storage. Most such racks or holders are made out of wood while others are wrought of iron. Wood is such a favorite material because of the role it plays in winemaking; many wines are carefully aged in wooden caskets before being bottled. Iron is a close second in popularity since the nature of metal is such that sinuous shapes may be created, a feature much harder to accomplish with wood.

While many of these racks provide only enough space for a few bottles, full-sized racks can take up an entire basement. For those who don’t know their wine, it might seem extravagant to devote an entire level of one’s house, but practically all agree that basic holders are a fantastic way to store wine.

But people being people, there are even automated models out there which will pull your bottles for you! The super-fancy varieties can also be quite expensive, but are very popular. But no matter which type is chosen, it’s much more elegant than basically stowing your bottles in a cupboard!

State tax forms are required to file state taxes – but where is our tax money going? Taxes are utilized to support the government, but in a democracy the government is supposed to be “for the people,” as a popular rumor has it. All the state tax forms filed year in, year out seem to have no effect on our local governments, which across the nation are much more likely than not operating at a deficit. How is this possible with all the money pouring into government coffers?

Most individuals simply file their state tax forms and leave it at that, too busy with their lives and some even hoping not to attract any government attention. But a growing number of our fellow citizens and residents are greatly concerned over where “their money” is going. Nearly everybody agrees with paying for firefighters, sanitation workers, and other civil servants, but even then there can be a lot of controversy over the details.

Take educators for example. Again, nearly everybody agrees that educators are necessary. But how to compensate them with our tax dollars, exactly? Currently, many individuals across the nation are up in arms over teacher perks and salaries.

It is felt that educators have things much too comfortable, and there are people who would like to make the profession of teaching a job like any other, which in the United States means “hire and fire at will.”

These folks want to, they say, hold teachers more “accountable” for student performance, which is usually proposed to be measured by standardised test scores. But the other side of the argument believes that teaching isn’t just a job like any other, that the training of minds and the inspiration of hearts isn’t something which can be neatly measured on a quarterly or yearly basis like some corporate earnings report.

Dallas Cowboys merchandise are among the most popular of any sport, but especially well-known among football fans, even those whose first-choice favorite may well be another team. That’s because the Cowboys are one of the most successful and storied outfits in all of football history, and it is memories of this kind that are evoked by all the many forms of Dallas Cowboys merchandise available on the market, from clocks and towels to clocks and even license plates!

Perhaps the most common form of Dallas Cowboys merchandise to be found on fans and collectors are team jerseys, especially those bearing the specific roster number of their favorite player. After that, however, must surely be those products bearing pictures, photographs or illustrations, of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders! No other team in American sports fields a cheerleading squad that is a veritable franchise in itself. It was intentionally created to capitalize on female sexuality and boost in-game attendance, and its genius was to offer an “All-American” look and feel that played well not only nationally but around the world as well. For many foreigners, a real American girl was someone like a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader, fun and fit. In the United States, their popularity lead to two made-for-TV movies about the squad along with other media like annual swimsuit calendars.

Oh, yes, and as for the team itself – it was the first modern-era expansion team, and can boast of many distinctive achievements as a business entity. But of course, no one buys team merchandise on the basis of business innovations, and even the venerable cheerleaders would be just another squad were it not for the club’s stellar performances on the field. Founded in 1960, just ten years later the team became a serious national contender, and by the end of that decade was the undisputed “glamor team” of the entire sport, with a cheerleading squad that epitomized what an American girl should be like and winning players and coaches who embodied American can-do.

One way of generating money on the web is to find explosive niches to blog about, wildly popular topics that individuals go online to research and read. For example, you can start a website devoted to a successful Tv shows with a large audience. This ensures interest in your website, which is the first step in making money online: providing something that people find valuable.

This is what it means to find explosive niches to blog; you want to provide a forum where people interested in a certain topic can gather and exchange viewpoints. In order to make money, the topic has to be “explosive” but “niche” – popular but not so popular where you are likely to be a Johnny-come-lately to the proceedings.

The trick is to find that delicate balance where the territory is still fresh enough, so to speak, so that you can claim your own stake, and territory that isn’t so out of the way such that very few people will be interested in dropping by (your website).

That’s how you can blog residual cash to your business, generating money even while you sleep because the whole thing is computerized and automated! The idea is that you have what’s known as a turn-key system set up which will basically run on its own without needing your constant supervision.

So to continue with our Television show example from above, you would produce a web site devoted to that Tv show, with gossip, news, and reviews about the stars, episodes, and plotlines – anything that would be of interest to a fan of that show. This show has to be popular enough to assure you of numbers (very important as any salesman will tell you: only 1-3% of “eyeballs” actually “convert” into real sales – money in your pocket), but not so popular such that other people already have sites up (which you will be hard-pressed to steal readers from!).

Ah, summer – baseball, backyard barbecues, and swimming pool resurfacing. That’s correct, swimming pool resurfacing. Once an occasional chore every other year, it’s now practically a once-every-other-decade spring or even summer pastime (for those who like to wait until the very last minute) – all thanks to the new do-it-yourself fiberglass pool resurfacing in a can made possible by modern chemistry.

Pool resurfacing done right means fiberglass in this day and age. Swimming pool resurfacing is an essential aspect of pool ownership, just the sort of restoration that is made periodically to counter the effects of corrosion. Regardless of whether constructed of gunite, concrete, plaster, or wood (especially wood), swimming pools will deteriorate over time to the point that a complete resurfacing isn’t only advisable but necessary.

Thankfully, as previously mentioned, modern technology has made it possible for the finest kind of resurfacing, fiberglass resurfacing, to be performed entirely by oneself safely and fairly quickly. Best of all, it’s as permanent as any job handled by licensed contractors but much less expensive.

Fiberglass pool surfaces have a proven track record of more than three decades now as a durable coating that happens to also provide other benefits, such as decrease operating coasts. Fiberglass is really a material that bonds extremely well with existing surfaces, giving pools a nice sheen that makes them appear to be brand new.

This wondrous item is now available in simple cans like paint, readily applicable and requiring no sand-blasting. Approved for both commercial and residential use, do-it-yourself fiberglass resurfacing will need less maintenance than even marcite or vinyl pools. In addition, with the right care you won’t need to worry about your swimming pool’s surface for another twenty to thirty years or more!

Less prone to staining. Gorgeous shiny protective shell. All easily applied and ready for duty within one day. That’s pool resurfacing in the 21st Century. Now that’s progress!

Welcome to another edition of Isaac Toussie’s real estate insights. Today Isaac Toussie will be talking about an upstate town that once rivaled New York for industry and commerce. Originally from the native term “Uppu-qui-ipis-in” which means “reed-covered hut by the water,” Poughkeepsie today has grown beyond huts into a permanent community of some forty-three thousand individuals. Poughkeepsie is actually the name of both a town and a city, both municipalities right next to one another because the city actually used to be the western part of the town (and, incidentally, was an independent village in its own right before that). Except for legal purposes, and such services as fire and police, the two communities are often viewed as one, with a combined population of more than seventy-five thousand people. The town is actually home to much more people than the city, which counts only some thirty-thousand-plus citizens.

Thus, it’s expected that their respective real estate markets will be quite different. A closer examination of the latest demographical figures shows that the town is much more affluent than the city, with a median income of over fifty-five thousand dollars a year as opposed to well under thirty-thousand for the city. Indeed, the Town of Poughkeepsie is able to provide for its own emergency services, which are staffed by fully paid civil servants, and not volunteers as is the case with many a suburban community.

As for the City of Poughkeepsie, it’s been severely battered by the economic malaise afflicting the rest of the state and the country as a whole. Average listing price in the two-week period between January 20, 2010 and February 3, 2010 fell almost thirty thousand dollars, to two hundred and fifty-one thousand dollars, though almost five thousand of that has been “recovered” as of February 10. However, the actual median selling price, based on two hundred and thirty-four homes sold, is almost thirty-three thousand dollars short of the median listing price, at barely two hundred and twenty thousand. Average price per square foot in the city is one hundred and thirty-two dollars.

Poughkeepsie was once the “Queen City of the Hudson,” but has suffered economic problems for the past twenty-plus years and was just beginning to recover in fits and starts when the recent recessionary woes struck. This has obvious implications for local realty, both residential and commercial. The Town of Poughkeepsie, however, seems rather more vibrant in comparison. International Business Machines, Incorporated, was once the most notable employer around, and while the company still maintains a campus in town, most of its production has been moved elsewhere. Vassar College in the City of Poughkeepsie is arguably the most notable employer now.

Should you purchase any Poughkeepsie property? Well, there’s no way it’s reclaiming its glory days, so the local real estate market is never going to be a hot one. But if your goals are more modest, and especially if you live in the city yourself, of course, Poughkeepsie property can be a solid investment.

Now even with all that said, however, we must end on this note, that of the legal disclaimer: Neither the author nor the publisher shall be deemed liable for the contents of this article, which constitute mere opinion only and should never in any way be misconstrued as professional advice of any kind whatsoever! Always consult the relevant professionals, properly licensed and/or otherwise qualified, when making business decisions of any financial consequence.

It is essential to do your research when it comes to investing in New York properties. New York City is a very diverse place, and even adjacent neighborhoods can be drastically different, never mind those in different boroughs. According to industry experts such as Isaac Toussie, nothing is as it seems, and if you are looking for residential property that you plan on living in yourself, you might even want to arrange to spend a few nights on the premises to really know personally what it’s like. For example, many peaceful-looking places are actually not peaceful at all but deadly, ridden with crime and pollution and a host of other social ills. Even when it comes to commercial real estate, things may not be as they seem. Developers like Isaac Toussie are abundant in this town, and to stand apart from the crowd you need to be known for something more than only a hole in the ground of an empty lot.

New York property markets are one of a kind in many categories, including population density. As an investor you want to thoroughly explore them all before proceeding to a decision of any financial significance. It is often valuable to think of different neighborhoods as cities or towns in themselves, which was indeed actually the historical case. Such an artificial view of the city would not suffice long-term, but it can be usefully dabbled in from time to time for specific purposes. For example, it is not uncommon to find the direst poverty fairly close to some of the most opulent luxury. As an investor in New York property you want to be aware of this possibility so as to not miss any good opportunities simply on account of ignorance.

When looking for property in New York City, you must consider the people, especially when it comes to homes for yourself or potential tenants. Ultimately, the people are what will determine the quality of life. Will it be a noisy place? Full of trash? Or does the local community take some pride in itself, without any kids running around causing trouble?

Even when it comes to the commercial side of things such considerations are important. If you have space for rent but the neighbors are lower class people, you probably won’t get any upscale businesses looking to sign a lease with you, even with all the governmental encouragement there is, such as tax breaks and the like.

It’s a delicate balance, which is part of the reason why rents are so high in the city. But what to do as an investor?

Watch. And learn. You can never learn enough about such an exciting, dynamic city, and you never can tell just when such knowledge may be put to good use. Why not bicycle around to get a good feel for a place? New York City has ambitions to become one of the most bicycle-friendly municipalities in the country, and this is one of the best ways to transport yourself through different places in order to get a direct feel for them.

In the popular culture, horse racing tips have traditionally been akin to great Florida real estate deals or fantastic bridge sales in Brooklyn. But the internet has allowed for the proliferation of computerized horse racing systems, not simple programs that ran your input through a set of magical algorithms but dedicated servers that can be contacted in real-time for near instantaneous updates right from the track.

Best of all, modern racing systems like these allow you to bet anytime, anywhere – even at work (or church!), as long as an internet connection is available. Evidently working on somewhat similar models that has been successfully utilized by the hobbyist day trader, you can now bet and seriously handicap your game thanks to the power of 21st Century “cloud computing.”

Precise details are understandably vague, as no one likes to divulge trade secrets, but what is claimed are numerous benefits: real year-long staking records, consistent profits, and better than three-fourths strike rates. This kind of near-miraculous outcomes come from a close analysis of numerous factors, such as the ages of the runners, the classes involved, and also the overall number of competitors in the field. The main difference, besides any improved methodologies, seems to be an ongoing maintenance that ever fine-tunes performance and results.

Also unlike the old handicapping programs of old models, it’s no longer a basic matter of paying for software once. Such a powerful service can only be feasible under a subscription model, as ongoing improvements need to be made. Essentially, it’s like hiring a money manager for one’s portfolio of stocks and bonds and other holdings – only we’re talking horse racing here! Finally, in the spirit of our times, try-before-you-buy trials are available. It’s now possible to easily see for yourself whether the horse racing system actually works!