Everyone has heard of the ‘information age’. The signs surround us and are unmistakable. There is much information available to you today.

The reality is that information alone is not enough. Regardless of what you are trying to learn there is always some expenditure of time and effort necessary to reach the point of understanding.

Information is useless without understanding. You can take good information, mix it up, get it confused and have disastrous results when you attempt to utilize it. Without putting in the effort and time to make sense of information and reach a workable ‘understanding’, there is little chance of all that information actually becoming ‘useful’ to you.

Understanding takes a time.

You read from multiple sources, digest information, have practical experiences then then you begin to understand. It is great to have information at your finger tips. However, the whole point is to utilize the information to make your life better in some way, shape or form. For this, you must have ‘understanding’.

This is the problem. Understanding any topic or subject, from the complex and vast topics such as astrophysics right down to much simpler tasks such as changing the oil in your car – all take varying degrees of time, effort and possibly practical experience to reach that point called: understanding. Most of the time, some form of practical experience is necessary to reach a workable level of understanding as well.

Aside from the time it takes to reach the point of understanding – there is always more to learn, more information and knowledge to synthesize in your own mind and this will lead you to new and hopefully deeper understandings. In other words, you may need to deepen your knowledge and this takes more time, effort and possibly practical experience!

The information age is only a small stepping stone. Understanding is what we are all really after. You can buy information or possibly find it for free from a variety of sources, but if you never begin to delve into that information (a process that takes time and effort) – then the information remains useless to you.

Time

I do not know how you perceive life currently but one of the big problems for me is time. I feel like the day is over even though it seems as if it had just begun a few minutes ago. With time moving so fast, your ability to reach an understanding on any given topic requires a greater percentage of that most precious asset, time!

In addition, you, just like most people, probably have multiple topics, subjects and concepts to learn. With the shortage of time, how in the world is this possible?

Therefore you are forced to make a special form of compromise called prioritization. With this compromise you have to actually decide what you are going to learn. The reason why: you don’t have time to learn it all.

You are forced into greater degrees of prioritization until your life becomes more work than anything else. The topics that you are interested in you may not have time for in your daily rush to ‘get things done’.

If all you had to deal with were simple tasks that you had to get out of the way before you could get to the things you want to learn and do, that would be an almost simple matter and a fortunate situation to be in!

However, consider that there are things you are forced to develop an understanding about (again this takes time and effort) and this can put you in a position where you cannot get everything done that you must.

As you can see this is a vicious loop to be in. Only those with significant leisure time have the opportunity to pursue things they are most interested in. If you are fortunate enough to find work that you love, that would be an ideal solution.

On the other hand, if you have all the leisure time and money resources in the world, then you are truly blessed because your burden of time and effort becomes so much less than most of the people in the world stuck in what has been called, ‘the rat race’.

Everyone sees this problem, and many begin to focus on achieving the point of having abundant time and resources. This begins a new learning curve. This takes – you guessed it – time and effort. And since the answers are not often simple, you could find yourself quickly getting lost in a sea of, you guessed it again, ‘information’!

We need to move out of the age of information and into the age of understanding – I have no idea on how we can do that. But you can leave your comments, ideas, thoughts and criticisms below with a comment.

Author: David writes for All Things Pondered sometimes. He is also the author of the book: What You Should Know about Gum Disease – available at most online booksellers. It is 278 pages of dental health goodness designed to save you time, money and most of all – pain!

I’ve noticed that one of my friends on FaceBook appears to be addicted to a game called mafia wars. All of his updated seem to indicate that he plays it all of the time.

I just wrote to him and asked him if he had heard of the mafia wars blueprint (for winning). I haven’t heard back from him yet, but I guess he is busy playing – it actually sounds like he is already doing quite well.

I have seen a lot of other people talk about the mafia wars game on twitter and in other places too. So I decided to look a little further into this. I have never played the game myself and I do not think that I want to. But I am interested in why so many people want to play the mafia war games.

Apparently there are a massive number of sites designed to provide mafia wars help. I was surprised by this. Again, this type of game is something that I do not think I would ever consider playing.

These sites seem to be devoted to mafia wars tips on doing better and improving your mafia wars mastery. Incredible. Who would have thought there would be this much to a game?

Apparently one of the important aspects of the game is to add to your mafia wars family. I guess it is like other areas in life, the more contacts you have and the bigger your network is, the more you can accomplish and the more you can excel. I’m not sure that I would be happy excelling as a mafioso however.

Amazingly enough there are mafia wars Wikis and mafia wars forums and mafia wars secrets to learn. Crazy, and I thought real life was hard enough to master?

Italian Police, one would guess you would want to either buy or ICE these guys in Mafia Wars (the game)

What I see from my friend’s FB postings is that he is very happy to ‘ice’ someone because he continually announces who he killed and what mafia crime families he has overpowered. Apparently, there are special mafia war weapons you can aquire. And mafia war clans attack each other on a regular basis.

It sounds like you start off at the bottom and that you committ basic crimes in order to move up in level. That’s pretty freaky in and of itself. I’m sure it is all in good fun, but the unerlying message isn’t too savory.

Sounds like it is not all about attack either because many mafia war strategies involve defense as well.

That’s about all the time I want to put into learning about the mafia wars game. From here, it is up to you to defeat rival mafia war gangs and become a mafia war boss.

If you are visiting here, please leave a comment below to tell us about your own mafia wars experience. I would especially like to hear about any insight you may have on why this game is so popular?

-

…. And then there is the mafia wars blueprint…

I took a little informal poll among Twitter users and asked the question:

Is the house cat a tiny predator or a cute, adorable pet?

Here are some of the responses I received:

@mareserinitatis: It depends on whether you are a large human or a little mouse.

@aventuredebz: Both!

@CremeMagnolia: my cat is a large bed hog!

@BABSBJGN: Cats are both. We have three who are adorable but bring bloody presents home for us

My favorite:

@mecbc: Predator. Bells are essential!

@midnigth cute

@De_Risky: But very cute predators? I can see that you will take some convincing……………………..

As you can see the majority of responses at least slightly acknowledged that the house cat has a predatory nature.

So how did this Blog post come about, anyway?

I was remembering rather vividly the time my sister’s cat (I would not personally own one) opened its mouth and revealed a huge cage like network of very, very sharp and pointy curved teeth – obviously not designed for a vegetarian diet.

I was never more aware of the cat’s predatory nature than at that moment. It was a bit shocking and even revolting.

If the house cat weighed 100 lbs or so, that cute adorable fluffy ball on your couch might be eyeing you as a potential food source!

House cat behavior makes it a bit obvious too. For example – above you see the response that the cats bring them ‘bloody presents’ from time to time.

Do you realize that means that cats are blood drinking, flesh eaters that don’t even cook their food! Isn’t that gross? For all that you know, your adorable fluffy cat was out having a bloody mouse lunch, and cleaned itself up before you let it back in and you would not even know the difference.

The cat probably scoffs at the dry biscuit meals that you think are so nice and is secretly eyeing your fish tank or just can’t wait to go out and get some ‘fast’ food.

Yes my friend, the domestic house cat is not so domestic after all.

House cat health isn’t all that great either. Many domesticated cats end up with house cat disease such as gingivitis, probably at least in part because of those dry biscuit meals that humans try to feed them.

House cat problems include that potentially awful urine smell. Cats, as predators, often feel the need to ‘mark’ their territory to let other cat’s know that this area is theirs alone!

Isn’t it strange that people have dog houses but not cat houses? The closest you can get to a cat house is simply a cage and most people don’t let their cat stay in a cage for very long. It would be, well, ‘inhuman’ to say the least.

What about house cat training? Hmm. What most people do is simply declaw and neuter or spade their cats in an attempt to deny the cat it’s natural ways. I would argue that is actually harmful to the cat. Once you take away your cat’s claws you cannot really let her out. She may not be able to defend herself from other cats! Outdoor cats will eat her for lunch, possibly quite literally!

Even worse, you can suffer from a cat house attack! Yes, if you have ever spent time around cats that didn’t have their claws taken away, you probably know exactly what I mean. Think long, awkward looking scratches that cause you to declare that no, your boyfriend or husband has NOT been abusive towards you.

The chance for infection from your house cat after such an attack is a possibility because they may have recently been scratching around in the cat litter box!

Ok, despite all of this, I am NOT against other people owning cats. I’m simply against myself owning one. Therefore, if you are willing to live with a cat and live with the chance of being clawed or worse – having your children or even baby suffer from a cat house attack – well who is to say you are wrong? Not me, that is for sure. I am not here to judge.

I am not here to try and deny anyone their right to a pet. I am just pointing out some of the potential pitfalls.

The cost of caring for your house cat’s illnesses can get high too! Now, they have cat scaling and root planings (a.k.a deep cleanings), expensive cat surgeries for a variety of diseases, cat medications and the list goes on!

For the record and so that you do not think I’m prejudice against the house cat, I am no fan of pet dogs either! (that’s another story!)

I get that you might not like some of what I said here. But if you disagree, agree, have a pet cat story to tell or remorse over, or just an opinion to share, you are cordially invited to leave your comments below. No worries – I won’t bite or scratch you…

David Snape is the author of the book: What You Should Know about Gum Disease: ISBN: 978-0981485508

There appears to be quite a bit of debate about the phenomenon known as ‘global warming’. Does it exist or does it not exist?

As in many great debates there appears to be multiple opinions about the issue. A few years ago, Al Gore won a Nobel Peace Prize for his work (film) on global warming. Yet, many scientists have come out to say there is no evidence of global warming. In fact, the prestigious NASA, with its vast array of intellectual capital and high caliber scientists seems to be saying there is no evidence of it.

Then the scandal broke. A flurry of emails were ’stolen’ and made public. The emails seemed to indicate that someone or some group of people is trying very hard to make a real scientific case for global warming. The emails seemed to show that they were overreaching the normal parameters of real science to come to their ‘conclusion’ and convince others too.

Some people today are too young to remember, including myself, but it has been said that thirty years ago, we were being told that we were headed for an ice age. Now, suddenly we have been alerted that the polar caps are melting, that sea levels will rise and that there will be resultant disaster – unless we spend a lot of money to fix the problem now.

Those watching the debate say that ‘fixing’ the problem means sending an awful lot of money to third world countries. Meanwhile, some of the bigger industrialized countries talk about curbing their emissions, but do not actually appear to be willing to do so. Seems that those countries are not fully convinced that global warming exists or is a problem. If they were convinced, would they not get busy solving the problem?

There appears to be doubt. For the proponents of the global warming phenomenon, it does appear that providing some very definitive proof would benefit them in getting these ‘hold out’ nations to take action.

I am not taking sides within this article. However, I know that there are many people who are very passionate about their position on global warming. You tell me. Is global warming a real phenomenon or not? Why do you think that it is or is not?

You are invited to comment below

-David

And enjoy a cup of Italian Hot Chocolate while you are at it… Love this stuff!

For many people, gingivitis is a dreaded condition associated with loss of teeth and bleeding gums. It is actually a mild form of periodontal disease.

Perhaps as many as 75 to 80% of people have some gingivitis or gum disease right now! A good prognosis is necessary for effective prevention and treatment.

If left unattended, it can lead to bad breath, bleeding gums, tooth loss and canker sores among others. And these are just some of the milder complications or consequences associated with it. Many systemic disease have also been associated with the bacteria that enter the blood from disease gum tissue.

So how do you prevent it? The one thing about gingivitis and evenmore advanced gum diseases is that they are often not attended to until later.
Hence, it is usually already present before it can be arrested or stopped in its tracks.

The good news is that it can often be prevented from progressing.
There are actually quite a few ways to ensure that you prevent the onset of this disease.

The best one you can do from home is to use an oral irrigator, like the hydro floss.

An oxygenated, pH balanced mouthwash such as the therabreath brand can also be helpful.

Be advised that you may need more than one approach to deal effectively with the problem.

On the professional side it is important to get a regular prophylaxis at least twice a year. It will not only be for the purpose of cleaning your teeth, it will also be useful for getting a diagnosis on your gums and whether or not you are showing symptoms of this condition.

You also want to make sure that you deal with dry mouth, often caused by a lack of hydration. This can be exacerbated or caused by increased physical activities such as working out. Even taking certain types of medications can cause this dryness. Just make sure you prevent dry mouth to prevent rapid bacterial growth

*Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only and does not intend to advise upon, diagnose or treat any health problem whatsoever. If you have or think you might have a health problem, visit your doctor or dentist for advice, diagnosis and treatment The USFDA has not evaluated statements about products in this article.

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