My best friend is getting married next month and has asked me to be her maid of honor.  I was so pumped, both for her and myself.  We had so much fun planning the wedding and shopping for gowns.  She will be the most beautiful bride there ever was.

I am extremely shy and it just dawned on me a few days ago that the Maid of Honor toasts the bride.  It’s not that I couldn’t create many wonderful wedding speeches about her that worries me.  It’s that I have to stand up and talk in front of 350 people.

Wedding toasts and speeches are such a traditional part of the reception that I couldn’t ask her to let me skip it.  I have completed my speech and am practicing in front of the mirror several times per day.  I just hope I don’t choke when it comes to stand up and talk…

I took my cousin to his math tutor today for his weekly lesson.  He goes twice a week to this math tutor because his parents don’t have the time to help him.

I had a chance to talk to his tutor while Stephen was working on his problems.  He commented that the lack of parent involvement in his students’ lives due to busy work schedules was job security for him.

He mentioned that he had been a teacher and that he noticed a decrease in parent involvement in education over the last few years.  Due to parents being so busy, he needs to spend more time with his pupils, as they are more behind than his students were back in his teaching days.

He figured that if there was more parent involvement in schools that kids wouldn’t really need tutors as the teachers would have the time they required to help the students that need it.  He urged me to take the time with my kids, to value their education, and most of all: be there when they needed them.

With that, the hour was up and I took Stephen home.  His tutor has definitely given me a lot to think about.

A buddy of mine makes all his money in the currency trade market, and has been doing so for about five years.  A year ago yesterday he was able to quit his job and trade currencies full time.  I made him a deal at that time that I would support his choice, provided that he would show me the tricks of the trade if he succeeded.

A year later, it was my time to collect on my education.  He sat me down and explained the basics to me - which I caught onto quickly.  He showed me some of the currency trade companies that he deals with and helped me to setup an account.

He also showed me the online currency trade platform he uses to make his trades.  We walked through a typical trade he would make in a day - and I learned a lot.

We have set a date next weekend to get some more one on one training for me.  Now that I know it works, I will certainly give it a shot.

I have been planning a trip for some time to visit Universal Studios in Orlando.  This has been a few years in the making - but the time has come for me to go.

At the same time I will be out at Universal Studios, I will be checking out Disney World.  Interestingly enough, I found information on both places at the Disney World forum.

I also was able to find the hotel that I was going to stay at because of my research done on this forum.  You see, I like to go places where I have recommendations from my friends, but when I cannot get an opinion from them, a large number of strangers will do.

So, from the testimonials and good experiences I read online, I have decided to stay at one of the Disney World Resort Hotels.  From what I have seen, most people say that they treat you very well, and I don’t think I read one bad review - that has to be a good sign.

All I have to do is finalize my plans and book my trip.  I am so excited that I will be able to realize this dream I have had for so long - now I just have to be patient until I get there.

I am amazed at the number of gadgets I carry around on a daily basis.  I have my mobile phone, my digital camera, my mp3 player and a Palm pilot.  Now, it is okay on days that I am going to work and I bring my briefcase, but on days that I have off, it looks like I have a utility belt - which sure is not cool.

So, I have been looking over the mobile phone deals in a flyer I found in the mail, trying to get a complete portable media solution that can do everything that my current gadgets do - without the excess weight.

Just as I was about to give out, the answer leaped out at me: the Samsung G600.  Now what sets the G600 apart from every other mobile phone is it can do everything I am looking for and more.  In fact music, pictures, text messaging and even a TV-out come standard with the camera - I could say bye to my utility belt if I bought one….

With that thought in mind, I am going to head down to the store right now, buy the phone, and enjoy the freedom of only carrying one gadget.  That will be a lifestyle change for me.

Who knew that living too long would be a bad thing?  Seems that when you are younger you are doing whatever you can to try and age slower.  Now, there is a "catch 22" if you will from these activities - chances are you will live longer than you expected.

In fact, as medical technology gets better and better, people are living longer and longer.  According to some blogs I read, the average life expectancy of a 80.9 years for men and 84.5 years for women.  This means that we should expect to live about half as long as we were in the work force after retirement.  Thing is, when we were working our health is usually good, with very little problems.  But as we age, we are more likely to need medical attention or care - which can be very expensive.

Sadly, most people prepare for their retirement, but leave out any sort of financial planning for their health.  This can turn into a horrible oversight, with most retirement nest eggs wiped out in a few years after one enters a nursing home.  This can cause stress on your children, that need to foot the bill - and may lead to marital problems in their lives.

In order to avert the financial consequences of long term care, you should take the time to plan for the worst case before you find yourself there.  Consider getting some long term care insurance - it will protect your loved ones from the financial burden of taking care of you.

If you are a home owner that has missed a lot of mortgage payments, your credit score is in trouble.  Chances are that you will see a drop in your credit score because of your missed payments, but if you don’t get your act together, you will be heading for trouble.

If your home becomes one of those repossessed properties your lender has, your credit score is in big trouble - expect it to free fall.  Not only will this harm you in the short term should you need a loan, but even in the long term you will have big problems getting another mortgage, when you decide to buy another home.  Repossession is definitely something you should avoid.

If there is absolutely no way that you can avoid getting your home repossessed, take advantage of the many sell and rent back programs in your area.  Instead of defaulting on your mortgage, they will buy your house from you giving you the money to pay off the mortgage.  They can then rent the home to you, so that you don’t have to find a new place to stay.  Most of these programs also allow you the option to buy back your home at a later date - when you are doing more financially.

I am doing some research into the Hotels in Winnipeg.  My sixteen year old daughter and her friend will be traveling there alone to do an academic presentation.  Ideally I would like to find them a hotel that offers enough that they wouldn’t have to leave except to go to the presentation.

The school had originally booked them in at the Carlton Hotel Winnipeg.  I did a bit of research, and while the hotel looked fine, I decided that there was just not enough for the girls to do at that hotel.

I booked them into the Garry Hotel and am pretty sure that they won’t be running out of things to do there.  They will be able to receive spa treatments, as well as use the gym and the track.  Though it is a bit more pricey, I feel better with my daughter staying there.

Some of you out there know that I am a big Super Mario fan.  I have played most of the games that have been made - and a lot of them I can play with my eyes closed.

Some of you might call me a fanatic of sorts - I have Mario clothes, backpack, laptop bag and jacket.  I also have some Mario pajamas for at night - don’t laugh!

So, I have decided that a good video game Myspace layout, specifically Mario, would be perfect for my profile page.  Really, the whole point of Myspace is to express yourself and who you are - so that is exactly what I was going to do.

I checked out some of the free MySpace layouts from many sites and found a Mario one!  I was so excited that I changed my profile as quick as I could.  Now, when I login to my account, I see Mario looking at me - and that puts a smile on my face.  It is definitely one of my favorite Myspace layouts.

Well, it seems that my hobby has gotten a little bit out of hand.  Just six short years ago I built my first website, and now I am sitting on 26 of them.  Though the growth in sites and income has been great, with more websites, there have been more problems.

Most recently I have been tempted by really cheap web hosting offers.  I snatched up quite a few of these in the past few months, but I have found one thing out:  if the price is too good to be true, it probably is.  Needless to say, I have had a number of cheap web hosts disappear, and basically disrupt my business.  Learning from my mistakes though, I realized that maybe I should do a little more research before purchasing hosting.

So, I have been checking out some web host review websites to find a good and reliable web hosting.  I have found a few prospects, and have made the commitment to try them out.  So far, so good, but I guess time will tell - but according to the reviews I read, I have nothing to worry about.