One week and forty years ago, I bought a ticket to a musical event which was supposed to be kinda special. The guy who sold me the ticket said he’d expected more than thirty five thousand people there. I though out loud, “Where are they gonna find thirty five thousand freaks?”.  He said: “You’ll be surprised.”

Well, I’ve never been known for small mistakes. One week later, not only was I surprised, but so was the world, as four hundred thousand people made it to that small farm in update New York for three days of Peace, Love and Music, with another hundred thousand stuck on the New York State Throughway, which had, that day, become the largest parking lot in the world.

There were far more of us in the movement than I thought. In fact, we were a nation, as Abbie Hoffman called it, “The Woodstock Nation”.  On that day, forty years ago tomorrow, as we shared what little food and water there was, in this impromptu city, the size of the population of San Francisco, the revolution was born.

We could change the world, we thought.

Flash forward forty years, there are still endless wars, massive poverty, and a corporate domination of politics and our lives which rivaled anything in our nightmares. Yet, you can hear Crosby, Still, Nash and Young  oozing from the loudpeakers in the chain pharmacies and Jimmy Hendrix is frequently played in office elevators… and now, for the first time, we have our first multi-racial President. Whether we’ve changed the world in form, or essence, only time will tell, for like Dylan said: “the wheel’s still in spin.”

How ever it goes, happy anniversary to the Woodstock Nation. May your freak flag always fly.

I’ve always perspired allot, but usually when conducting strenuous physical activities In the last few years, I’ve noticed a significant increase in my sweating. I can no longer wear the dress shirt all day; in fact, I carry a second shirt with me when I have an appointment of any consequence. In spite of ice cold air conditioning in my car, the back of my shirt is usually soaked through before I arrive at my destination. And I can no longer comfortably enjoy resting my forearms on the arm rest of my leather couch. They stick there – even just minutes after a shower!

Excessive sweating is cumbersome and unpleasant. If you suffer from the same condition, or know someone who does, I have a free report for you. Here’s the download link. I can’t say that this report will cure your ills, or end your misery, but it might help your understanding and point you in the right direction.

According to the author, here are just a few of the benefits of using the Dynamic Theme Unit methods to home school your children.:

• There will be less stress in the home school environment
  
• Children will be More willing to learn
• They will have better retention
• Children will develop greater self reliance
• You’ll have a more satisfying family life
• There’ll be happier kids and parents

While I am not yet personally familiar with these techniques, and have created an affiliate relationship, I believe this is a product worth looking into.

If you have to spend money, one of the best places to get the biggest bang for the buck, is at the local flea market.  It’s a place where vendors of all kinds set up their products in one place so potential buyers can walk around and see items both new and used at bargain prices.  One caveat though, be disciplined.  There is so many items to choose from, then you may end up spending far more than you had planned items that you hadn’t considered or genuinely need.

Make your day at the flea market and adventure, but plan adequately for it.  If the flea market is outdoors make sure you wear a hat and throw on some sunscreen.  Get there early for the best selection.  And bring a bag or cart so you don’t have to lug heavy items around with you for the entire day.

It’s also a good idea to have some fairly good walking shoes, since you will be spending a good deal of time on your feet and you don’t want your day ended abruptly because of pain.

Most people begin their walk through the flea market at the entrance, but you should do the opposite.  Begin your journey at the end of the market so that when your’re tired at the end of the day your close to your car. In addition starting at the end of the market will enable you to see booths that other people haven’t gotten to yet and thus have access to many of the bargains before others can scoop them up.

It is acceptable, and often expected that you try to bargain with the set prices the vendors ask.  It doesn’t always work, but you got nothing to lose by trying.  It’s up for debate whether the best time to bargain with the vendor is at the beginning of the day or just before the market closes.  At the top of the day, the flea market vendor often wants to break the ice with a quick sale, however at that time he’s fairly optimistic and hopes to sell out as many items as you can at the maximum price.

At the end of the day, most flea market vendors are more amenable to bargaining.  They’d rather sell at a discount and make a little money rather than pack it back up in their cars or trucks and make nothing at all.  Of course waiting till the end of the day runs the risk of your desired item having already been purchased by another.  You’ve got to decide just how badly you want that item and make your decisions accordingly.

There a couple of ways to negotiate the price of an item.  One way is to flat out asked the vendor his bottom price for the item.  Another is to offer a set price and hope he accepts your offer.  It’s often helpful to have that amount readily in your hand when you make the offer, as the sight of green paper to anyone trying to earn a living in retail, is very appealing.

Some people, willing to risk losing the item to another customer, hold off on making a purchase until they’ve scouted the entire market.  Often one vendor sells the same product for considerably less than another.  If you’re willing to run the risk of losing the item for the sake of the potential savings, make sure you write down the exact location of the original vendor because at the end of the day one booth looks the same as another.

Flea markets have great items at even greater prices, but beware they also sell well packaged garbage.  I’ve personally had experiences where I’ve bought cheap substitutes which broke the first or second time I used it, resulting in my having to buy the product again, often at the original retail price.

Okay why should you homeschool your children instead of sending them to public school?  First of all, you don’t have to wake them up before the sun rises.  Feed them in a hurry to send them off with 1000 instructions, and worry about them all day long.

In addition, homeschooling allows you to have more control over the things and influences that can effect your child.  You are an absolute control of the things that you believe your child needs to do or learn.  You get to determine their curriculum based on their individual needs and interests.  You get to decide what is of the greatest benefit to your children.

You get to monitor your child’s intellectual and academic growth and tailor his or her lessons according to her actual needs.  If your child is having a difficult time with math, but excels in reading, then you will know to give extra emphasis and extra time to her math studies.

You get to determine the length of the lessons and are able to base your decisions on your personal observation of your child’s individual needs and progress. Artificial, external pressure is  eliminated

Peer pressure, which has been the bane and downfall of so many children in the traditional school setting is no longer an issue.

When parents get more involved in the learning experience, education becomes a family activity, bringing all members closer.  Outings become field trips with all members of the family involved.

Competition has its place in sports and business, but not in the education of your children.  Homeschooling eliminates the competition normally found in traditional school setting, thereby ensuring your child remains confident. Your child does not need to prove himself.

You as a parent understand your child better than any teacher possibly could, especially in a crowded classroom.  You know, what interest your child.  You know, what motivates your child. And you know better than anyone the proper length of a lesson and how to inject fun activities into those lessons to keep your child interest.

You can make learning fun.  You can teach based on things that you know work for your individual child.  Some people are visual, some people verbal, and others need to write things down, or see actual examples in order to learn.  No rubberstamped public school environment can provide for those needs, or even understand what works best for your child the way that you can.

An increasing number of parents are coming to distrust the school system.  They see their children being pushed too hard, or ignored completely.  Teachers are forced to comply to rules and methods that they may disagree with, rules that originate from bureaucrats and which they often  believe are not in the best interest of your children.  Their jobs are in peril, and they are forced to comply.  Your children suffer as a result.  And pretty much the only thing you can do is to take matters into your own hands.  Remove your child from the public school system an place him or her in a better learning environment, in your home, where you can determine what’s best for your child.

Additional Home Schooling Resources

Home Schooling Guidebook:  “Thinking About Homeschooling? Read This Book First!”

Homeschool.com: Everything you’ll ever want to know about home schooling.

KnowledgeQ: “Are you brand new to homeschooling?  Or perhaps just frustrated and need direction and encouragement? Don’t let self-doubt, or lack of experience, rob you of the best first year possible!”

Everyday Education: “Everyday Education- Literature, Home School Teens, Etc. Homeschool Through High School & Beyond With Easy To Use Resources!”

Guide To Successful Home Schooling:  “What Every Parent Should Know About Home Schooling Their Child.”

3Moms: Home School the Easy Way. Homeschool Curriculum Ideas For Parents

Coupons can save you a whole lot of money.  Retailers, competing against their competition, in an attempt to retain customer loyalty, except coupons on a variety of products.  One of the most common coupon and most widely accepted are coupons for grocery items.

Find stores that offer you double or even triple the value of the coupon.  Beware that some stores offer only double and triple coupon value on specific days of the week, so make yourself aware of what days they are making the offer and take advantage.  Doing so will greatly reduce your grocery bills.

Stay alert that stores are not inflating their prices in light of the influx of coupon shoppers.  Using coupons in stores that inflate their prices will reduce the value that you get from the coupon.  And don’t use coupons to purchase things you don’t really need and wouldn’t buy if the coupons didn’t exist.  It won’t help your budget and your grocery bill will end of the worse for it.

Coupons are readily available in newspapers and magazines, but pay close attention to their expiration date.  Take advantage of the Internet and look up the websites for products that you use.  Many of them offer coupons online , that you can print at home, or will mail them to you. Sign up for any opt in email list they offer and take advantage of the discounts they periodically send you.

An innovative idea that is used by several retail stores, is providing a counter where people can take their unused and unwanted coupons and exchange them for others and many retailers are willing to accept coupons from their competitors.  They’re happy to have you make the purchase from them instead of those competitors.

If it’s not their overt policy ask to speak the store manager and explain that you’d like to make a purchase from them, but their competitor has a better price.  Many times the store manager will match or even beat the price of the competitor.  These days stores are hyper aware of their competition and will go to great lengths to secure customer loyalty.

When you’re engaged in recreational activities, going on vacation visiting an amusement park or museum, always check first if there are coupons available for these outings. Considering the cost of some of these amusement parks getting a two-for-one deal can make for great savings.  Check online for some of these offers or call the Chamber of Commerce in the area of the event.

Restaurants are  famous  for offering coupons.  They’re hoping that by offering discounts for a free meal that you wont be dining alone . They’re hoping to make their profits from your companions.  Be aware though many of these restaurants have specific days of the week when a coupon can be redeemed and many have restrictions on the time of day when the coupon is applicable.

Other places to find coupons include online auction sites as well as specific websites devoted to compiling and referring you to appropriate coupons.

While it may seem petty to be whipping out coupons to save $.50 or a dollar, the savings can add up and if you use these coupons to purchase things that you already spend money on , you may find that your income goes a great deal further than you thought.

Homeschooled children tend to adapt better to real-life situations than children who were sent to public schools.  There’s no way to quantify that statement, but if you think about it.  It makes a lot of sense.

Socialization is important, however, in the school setting, socialization is artificial and extremely limited. Your child is forced to sit still for six or seven hours at a time without speaking to other children.  The only really noticeable children’s voices are those who misbehave.  Misbehaving gets attention, thereby reinforcing this negative behavior and setting an example for your child that I’m sure you would prefer were not a part of his life.

The school system creates an artificial busyness, an environment with constant input, where introspection and contemplation is called daydreaming and discouraged.  Creativity is squashed. In the public school system, a child is not allowed to concentrate for any prolonged period of time on any one thing, never follow anything through the end, never really learned to savor and appreciate literature, or understand the depths of science.

Public education is superficial, designed to teach facts, not to teach understanding. Teachers are forced to teach for exams, for rote learning, where children regurgitate back isolated disconnected facts without acquiring true knowledge or wisdom.

In the school system, children can interact pretty much with only their peers.  They’re never taught how to interact with adults and rarely with children in other age groups.  Homeschooling is a more natural environment.

Additional Home Schooling Resources

Home Schooling Guidebook: “Thinking About Homeschooling? Read This Book First!”

Homeschool.com: Everything you’ll ever want to know about home schooling.

KnowledgeQ: “Are you brand new to homeschooling? Or perhaps just frustrated and need direction and encouragement? Don’t let self-doubt, or lack of experience, rob you of the best first year possible!”

Everyday Education: “Everyday Education- Literature, Home School Teens, Etc. Homeschool Through High School & Beyond With Easy To Use Resources!”

Guide To Successful Home Schooling: “What Every Parent Should Know About Home Schooling Their Child.”

3Moms: Home School the Easy Way. Homeschool Curriculum Ideas For Parents