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Photo: matt_stanford / Flickr

The way a home is run is as important as how the members of a family communicate with one another. Trivial aspects of keeping a home healthy include cleaning, shopping, daily chores and schedules. The home should be smoothly run so that everybody shares responsibilities in a loving way. All members of a family are equal partners when it comes to creating a healthy home, but what to do when problems arise? (more…)

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French onion soup was once drunk by porters in the early hours of the morning at the Les Halles market in Paris. Late-night revellers soon cottoned on to the soup and Les Halles became a fashionable place to end the evening. This recipe takes a mere 10 minutes to prepare and requires a cooking time of 45 minutes. The ingredients call for onions, butter, flour, dry white wine, chicken or beef stock, French bread and grated Emmenthal or Gruyere cheese. (more…)

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It was the well-known British economist, John Maynard Keynes, who observed that ‘speculative markets… are governed… by fear more than by forecast, by memories of last time and not by foreknowledge of next time.’ This remains true to this day as speculators tend to rely on past events as cues to buy or sell. Value investors have a different approach. They prefer to look keenly at individual stocks rather than attempting to gauge the market’s temperature. (more…)

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Fixed interest bearing securities includes a number of investments like gilt-edged stock, semi-gilt-edged stock and debentures. Gilt-edged stocks are IOUs from the government offering a full guarantee that all capital plus interest will be paid to the investor. If you buy gilt-edged stock, you know in advance how much interest you’re going to receive. Semi-gilt-edged stocks are similar to gilt-edged stocks but they come with higher risks and returns. Debentures are IOUs that have been issued by companies. (more…)

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Research shows that regular exercise affects one’s health in many ways, if it is done at the correct level for the individual concerned. Besides building strength and stamina, exercise can boost one’s immune system and lower blood pressure. Here we share some leg strengthening exercises, which should preferably be done in conjunction with an overall strength building programme to include one’s arms, chest, back and stomach. An exercise routine should always start with some warm up stretches and end with an unrushed cooling down session. (more…)

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Young children find it easy and natural to be themselves but as time passes this ability to be at ease and spontaneous can start slipping away. ‘The most marked feature of this movement away from naturalness is the apparent disappearance of joy, of that inner happiness that characterises the small child,’ states The School for Meditation’s book, On Being Oneself. The book goes on to say that people who meditate can find their joy again without having to rely on outside circumstances. (more…)

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Salmon mousse is a rich dish that is well suited to being served as a starter for a dinner party. It should be prepared well in advance as it needs to chill for four hours before it is served. This recipe, which calls for tinned salmon, cucumber, celery and cream amongst other ingredients, is good for six servings. The salmon mousse is best served with a sauce such as cucumber sauce or avocado sauce. Read on for a salmon mousse and cucumber sauce recipe. (more…)

Photo: Bob Jenkin / Flickr

One day is hardly enough time to explore any city, much less the bustling town of London. However, flight stop-overs or an action packed holiday may leave you with only one day to explore this city. If you’ve never been to London before there are certain things you will want to make sure you put on your itinerary whereas the well-travelled will have other ideas in mind. Plan your day well and it could be the highlight of your trip. (more…)

Photo: Images_of_Money / Flickr

Investing in shares on the capital market is one way to grow your wealth. Investing in the money market is another, allowing for a wide choice of financial assets such as money market funds, participation bonds, negotiable certificates of deposit, treasury bills and bank acceptances. We discussed bank acceptances, the oldest form of credit in the world and originating in the 4^th century BC, in a previous article. Here we explain what negotiable certificates of deposit and treasury bills are. (more…)

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The word ‘jam’ dates back to Elizabethan times when it was a slang word, as seen in 18^th century cookbooks. Jam is what came after the thick and pasty ‘tart stuffs’ of older days, made from boiling fruit juice with sugar until it had the consistency of jelly. It was then stored in pots and served with cream dishes. Jam-making was limited to the seasons back then but we have the luxury of freezers and can make it anytime today. (more…)