by bintangkecil on Wednesday, March 17th, 2010 | Knowledge, Life | No Comments

Today is St. Patrick’s Day! — March 17, St. Patrick’s Day 2010

The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for over a thousand years. On St. Patrick’s Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink and feast—on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.

History of St. Patrick’s Day

Saint Patrick (Latin: Sanctus Patricius, Irish: Naomh Pádraig) (c. 387 – 17 March, 493) was a Romanized-Celt, a Romano-Briton and Christian missionary, who is the most generally recognized patron saint of Ireland.

St. Patrick was originally known as Maewyn Succat. There is some speculation on when Succat was born. Two dates are agreed upon, but no one is quite sure which one is correct. McLeod said Succat was born in either 385 AD or 387 AD, and he died in either 461 AD or 493 AD.

“When he was a teen Succat was kidnapped and was taken to Ireland to be a slave where he stayed for five or six years [until] he escaped,” History Professor Chip McLeod said.

While in slavery in Ireland, Succat had a vision form God that led him further along his path to become the saint we know.

McLeod said: “[Succat] came from a Pagan world after his vision, and he dove headlong into Catholic Christianity. He changed his name to Patrick and traveled to Ireland to convert them. This is what he is best known for.”

The day that is celebrated in honor of St. Patrick is the day of his death, March 17. He was made a saint after his death and to celebrate it was a Catholic religious observance, mixed with Pagan observances.

“The first observance [in the States] was in a Boston Colony in 1737 when the Irish folks celebrated St. Patrick’s Day,” McLeod said.

From that day St. Patrick’s Day has become a secular holiday.

Irish sayings, blessings, quotes, and phrases:

“May the road rise to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face and rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the hollow of His hand.”

“May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light. May good luck pursue you each morning and night.”

“May the enemies of Ireland never eat bread nor drink whiskey, but be afflicted with itching without the benefit of scratching.”

“A toast to your coffin. May it be made of 100 year old oak. And may we plant the tree together, tomorrow.”

“Leprechauns, castles, good luck and laughter. Lullabies, dreams and love ever after. Poems and songs with pipes and drums. A thousand welcomes when anyone comes… That’s the Irish for you!”

“You’ll never plow a field by turning it over in your mind”

“Here’s to a long life and a merry one. A quick death and an easy one. A pretty girl and an honest one. A cold beer – and another one!”

“May your blessings outnumber the shamrocks that grow, and may trouble avoid you wherever you go.”

“For every wound, a balm. For every sorrow, cheer. For every storm, a calm. For every thirst, a beer.”

“May the lilt of Irish laughter lighten every load. May the mist of Irish magic shorten every road. And may all your friends remember all the favors you are owed!”

Tags: catholic religious observance, happy st patrick s day, happy st patrick's day, irish blessings, irish drinking quotes, irish phrases, irish proverbs, irish quotes, irish sayings, irish toasts, Maewyn Succat, Naomh Pádraig, pagan observance, Sanctus Patricius, st paddy s day 2010, st patrick s day quotes, st patricks day 2010, st. patrick, st. patrick day, st. patrick s day, st. patrick s day 2010, st. patrick s day history, St. Patrick's Day, st.patrick, st.patrick s day, st.patrick s day 2010, st.patricks day, when is st patrick s day celebrated 2010

by nate on Friday, March 12th, 2010 | Career, Inspiration, Knowledge, Life | No Comments

Primary care doctors were offered an average base salary of $173,000 in 2009 compared to an average base salary of $189,000 offered to certified nurse anesthetists, or CRNAs, according to the latest numbers from Merritt Hawkins & Associates, a physician recruiting and consulting firm.

CRNAs are advanced practice nurses who administer anesthesia to patients. An important distinction between CRNAs and anesthesiologist is that when anesthesia is administered by a nurse anesthetist, it is still recognized as the practice of nursing rather than a practice of medicine.

Kurt Mosley, staffing expert with Merritt Hawkins & Associates said medical doctors and specialists, including anesthesiologists, typically have four to five years more of medical training than CRNAs. After spending a lot of time speaking with physicians around the country, he said many family doctors are starting to feel like “second-class citizens.”

read more

Tags: doctor, economic, health, health practitioners, high paid job, nursery, specialized doctors

by wildcherry on Monday, March 8th, 2010 | Knowledge, Life | No Comments

Each year on 8 March, hundreds of International Women’s Day events occur all around the world. They events range from small random informal gatherings to large-scale highly organised events. All celebrate women’s advancement and highlght the need for continued vigilance and action.

International Women’s Day has been observed since in the early 1900’s, a time of great expansion and turbulence in the industrialized world that saw booming population growth and the rise of radical ideologies.

1908
Great unrest and critical debate was occurring amongst women. Women’s oppression and inequality was spurring women to become more vocal and active in campaigning for change. Then in 1908, 15,000 women marched through New York City demanding shorter hours, better pay and voting rights.

1909
In accordance with a declaration by the Socialist Party of America, the first National Woman’s Day (NWD) was observed across the United States on 28 February. Women continued to celebrate NWD on the last Sunday of February until 1913.

1910
n 1910 a second International Conference of Working Women was held in Copenhagen. A woman named a Clara Zetkin (Leader of the ‘Women’s Office’ for the Social Democratic Party in Germany) tabled the idea of an International Women’s Day. She proposed that every year in every country there should be a celebration on the same day - a Women’s Day - to press for their demands. The conference of over 100 women from 17 countries, representing unions, socialist parties, working women’s clubs, and including the first three women elected to the Finnish parliament, greeted Zetkin’s suggestion with unanimous approval and thus International Women’s Day was the result.

1911
Following the decision agreed at Copenhagen in 1911, International Women’s Day (IWD) was honoured the first time in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland on 19 March. More than one million women and men attended IWD rallies campaigning for women’s rights to work, vote, be trained, to hold public office and end discrimination. However less than a week later on 25 March, the tragic ‘Triangle Fire’ in New York City took the lives of more than 140 working women, most of them Italian and Jewish immigrants. This disastrous event drew significant attention to working conditions and labour legislation in the United States that became a focus of subsequent International Women’s Day events. 1911 also saw women’s ‘Bread and Roses‘ campaign.

1913-1914
On the eve of World War I campaigning for peace, Russian women observed their first International Women’s Day on the last Sunday in February 1913. In 1913 following discussions, International Women’s Day was transferred to 8 March and this day has remained the global date for International Wommen’s Day ever since. In 1914 further women across Europe held rallies to campaign against the war and to express women’s solidarity.

1917
On the last Sunday of February, Russian women began a strike for “bread and peace” in response to the death over 2 million Russian soldiers in war. Opposed by political leaders the women continued to strike until four days later the Czar was forced to abdicate and the provisional Government granted women the right to vote. The date the women’s strike commenced was Sunday 23 February on the Julian calendar then in use in Russia. This day on the Gregorian calendar in use elsewhere was 8 March.

1918 - 1999
Since its birth in the socialist movement, International Women’s Day has grown to become a global day of recognition and celebration across developed and developing countries alike. For decades, IWD has grown from strength to strength annually. For many years the United Nations has held an annual IWD conference to coordinate international efforts for women’s rights and participation in social, political and economic processes. 1975 was designated as ‘International Women’s Year‘ by the United Nations. Women’s organisations and governments around the world have also observed IWD annually on 8 March by holding large-scale events that honour women’s advancement and while diligently reminding of the continued vigilance and action required to ensure that women’s equality is gained and maintained in all aspects of life.

2000 and beyond
IWD is now an official holiday in China, Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. The tradition sees men honouring their mothers, wives, girlfriends, colleagues, etc with flowers and small gifts. In some countries IWD has the equivalent status of Mother’s Day where children give small presents to their mothers and grandmothers.

The new millennium has witnessed a significant change and attitudinal shift in both women’s and society’s thoughts about women’s equality and emancipation. Many from a younger generation feel that ‘all the battles have been won for women’ while many feminists from the 1970’s know only too well the longevity and ingrained complexity of patriarchy. With more women in the boardroom, greater equality in legislative rights, and an increased critical mass of women’s visibility as impressive role models in every aspect of life, one could think that women have gained true equality. The unfortunate fact is that women are still not paid equally to that of their male counterparts, women still are not present in equal numbers in business or politics, and globally women’s education, health and the violence against them is worse than that of men.

Tags: international women day 2010, international women day history, international women's day, iwd

by wildcherry on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 | Knowledge, Life | No Comments

Today is March 3, 2010, and its National Cupcake Day 2010.Who would thing that there would be a day made specially for Cupcakes, this is the day where we will be having the National Cupcake Day 2010. Famous cupcakeries include the adorable Magnolia Bakery in New York and Sprinkles Cupcakes, which has locations in Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Newport Beach, Scottsdale, Palo Alto and Washington, DC.

Here’s a spring cupcakes recipe from Martha Stewart as a special treat to those who love and waited for this National Cupcake Day 2010.

Ingredients

Makes 2 dozen
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/3 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Lavender Icing
Sugared Flowers

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 standard 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt.
Put butter and chocolate into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water; stir until smooth. Remove from heat, and let cool slightly.
With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat chocolate and sugar for 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture; beat until just combined.
Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Bake until set and a cake tester inserted into centers comes out clean, about 18 minutes. Transfer to wire racks; let cool completely.
Spoon icing over cupcakes, covering tops completely. Let set, about 1 hour. Decorate with sugared flowers. Cupcakes can be stored in single layers in airtight containers for up to 2 days.

Tags: cupcakes recipes, famous cupcakeries, National Cupcake Day 2010, National Cupcake Day 2010 - March 3, National Cupcake Day 2010 - March 3 2010, National Cupcake Day 2010 activities, National Cupcake Day 2010 events, National Cupcake Day 2010 recipes, National Cupcake Day 2010 schedule, National Cupcake Day 2010 updates

by wildcherry on Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010 | Knowledge, Life | No Comments

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss! Those who are fond of children’s books should know who Dr. Seuss is. Dr. Seuss was born as Theodor Seuss Geisel on March 2, 1904 in Springfield, Massachusetts. He has already published over 60 children’s books and some of them even made it through the movies. He is famous for the “Cat in the Hat” series.

For Dr. Seuss Birthday, Quotes and Celebration Ideas, here are some that I have found while browsing the internet.

Some of the quotes by Dr. Seuss:
- So the writer who breeds more words than he needs, is making a chore for the reader who reads.
-And will you succeed? Yes indeed, yes indeed! Ninety-eight and three-quarters percent guaranteed.
- I meant what I said, and I said what I meant. An elephant’s faithful, one hundred percent.
- From there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere.
-Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you.

CAT IN THE HAT PARTY GAMES AND ACTIVITIES
We’ve provided ideas for games and relays focused just on Cat in the Hat, however you may want to add to your party using other favorite Seuss stories - Green Eggs and Ham, One Fish Two Fish, Horton Hears a Who, The Butter Battle Book, The Foot Book, Fox in Sox ….

Thing 1 and Thing 2 Relay Races
To play these relay race games you’ll need to the children into teams (Thing One and Thing Two) You can give the players matching arm bands (red and blue) or large T-shirts to wear.

Clean-up Relay
Play this exciting and fun relay race to clean up the mess before Mom gets home!
Provide Each team with one large shopping bag with handles.
Mark a starting line on one side of the room (or yard, if playing outdoors) and place a cone or chair at the other end, one for each team.
Scatter items along the course from start to finish; clothes,
shoes, toys etc. When you say “GO” the first player from each team quickly moves along their course picking up the items and placing them in the bag as they go. When they reach the cone they must return to their team while removing the items out of their bag along the way. This will create the “mess” for the next player so the items should be scattered, not placed in one pile. The last player on each team does not make the mess again but runs back to their team with a full bag.
box or large plastic toy barrel.

“The Fish” Relay

Keep the teams divided as stated above.
You’ll need two large plastic mixing bowls or acrylic fish bowls,
two plastic fish and water. Fill the bowls with water and add the
fish right before playing.
The object of the game is to run from start to finish and back to
your team without spilling all of the water or “sloshing” the fish out
of the bowl. When the player returns to his/her team
they will pass the bowl to the next player.

Balancing Act Relay
This time the teams will attempt to balance items on their head like

The Cat?
Before the party select a throw pillow or light shoebox for each team. When you say “Go!”, the first player on each team will place the item on their head and walk to the cone at the end and then return to their team. Then the next player takes a turn. It’s okay if the pillow falls off, just keep trying. Keep your players in team as stated above.

Please Cat May I?
Play just like the traditional Mother May I playground game.
The “Cat” will wear a Cat in the Hat Stovepipe hat.
and stand away from the other children.
The Cat will select players to call out requests –
“please Cat may I take one giant step (baby step etc)?”
The Cat responds with “Yes you may” or “No, you may not”.

Follow The Cat
Play just like Follow the Leader except the leader is wearing
a Cat in the Hat Stovepipe Hat. Take turns being the leader and don’t forget that Seuss characters are silly and fun. So do silly things -
flap your arms, wiggle around, hop on one foot, make silly noises…

Cat in the Hat Craft
Children will be making their own “Super Luxurious OmniDirectional Whatchamajigger” ? the Cat?s car.

Tags: Dr Seuss activites, dr seuss birthday, Dr Seuss Celebration Ideas, dr seuss coloring pages, dr seuss games, Dr Seuss movies, Dr Seuss printables, dr seuss quotes, dr. seuss birthday 2010, seussical, seussville, seussville games, seussville playground, suessville

by wildcherry on Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010 | Knowledge, Life | No Comments

Tuesday March 2nd 2010, is Texas Independence Day and also voting day for the 2010 Texas Gubernatorial Primary Election. The Texas Primary on the GOP side features two Republicans who both claim the true conservative mantle.

Texans with their strong independent spirit declared independence from Mexico on March 2, 1836.

59 signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence gathered in a blacksmith shop at Washington-on-the-Brazos and formally split from Mexico to form the Republic of Texas. The signing came less than a year after the first battle of the Texas Revolution was fought in Oct. 1835 in Gonzales. Texas won independence when the revolutionary army won the decisive Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836.

Texas later joined the United States in 1845. Now, Texas and Texans are continuing the political traditions of the state with Primary Elections. With the GOP in a three way race the Democratic ticket seems more straightforward.

Tags: battle of san jacinto, texas declaration of independence, texas history, texas independence, texas independence day 2010

by wildcherry on Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010 | Knowledge, Life | 1 Comment

The 8.8 earthquake that hit Chile may have shifted our planted off its axis and shortened the length of days on our planet, said a NASA scientist. Earthquakes can involve shifting hundreds of kilometers of rock by several meters, changing the distribution of mass on the planet.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

This affects the Earth’s rotation, said Richard Gross, a geophysicist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., who uses a computer model to calculate the effects.

Now don’t start making your armageddon plan yet. The Earth only shortened the length of a day by 1.26 milliseconds. But is that considered a lot in astronomy?

“Perhaps more impressive is how much the quake shifted Earth’s axis,” NASA officials said in a Monday update.

The computer model used by Gross and his colleagues to determine the effects of the Chile earthquake effect also found that it should have moved Earth’s figure axis by about 3 inches (8 cm or 27 milliarcseconds).

The Earth’s figure axis is not the same as its north-south axis, which it spins around once every day at a speed of about 1,000 mph (1,604 kph).”

This isn’t the first time this has happened. “Strong earthquakes have altered Earth’s days and its axis in the past. The 9.1 Sumatran earthquake in 2004, which set off a deadly tsunami, should have shortened Earth’s days by 6.8 microseconds and shifted its axis by about 2.76 inches”.

Tags: 2012 predictions, chile earthquake 2010 facts, chile earthquake earth axis, chile earthquake facts, chile earthquake facts 2010, chile quake shorten our day, earthquake earth axis

by nate on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 | Health, Knowledge, Life, Tips | No Comments

The authors of the best-selling weight-loss series Cook This, Not That!: Kitchen Survival Guide
have rounded up three of the worst orders of fries available at chain restaurants across the country.

Best Fast Food Fries in America
McDonald’s Small French Fries
230 calories
11 g fat (1.5 g saturated)
160 mg sodium

Worst Curly Fries
Arby’s Curly Fries (Large)
640 calories
34 g fat (5 g saturated, 0 g trans)
1,460 mg sodium

Arby’s is famous for its curly fries—too bad they’re overloaded with fat, calories and sodium. When one side dish accounts for nearly three-quarters of your daily allotment of salt, you know there’s a problem. As fun as these curli-Qs are, stick to the Homefry variety at Arby’s—downsizing to a small Curly Fries will still leave you with a 410-calorie side, which is more than many of Arby’s sandwiches!

Eat This Instead!
Homestyle Fries (Small)
350 calories
15 g fat (2 g saturated)
720 mg sodium

Worst Wedge Fries
Jack in the Box Bacon Cheddar Wedges
715 calories
45 g fat (13 g saturated, 1 g trans)
905 mg sodium

It doesn’t take a nutritionist to identify the hazards of a grease-soaked, cheese-slathered sack of deep-fried potatoes, but by appearance alone, nobody could guess what’s really at stake when you order this side from Jack’s. The American Heart Association recommends that people cap their trans fat intake at 1 percent of total calories. For people on a 2,000-calorie diet, that’s about 2 grams per day. See the problem? Another issue, of course, is the overload in calories—about one-third your daily allotment!

Eat This Instead!
Grilled Chicken Strips (4) with Fire Roasted Salsa
185 calories
2 g fat (0.5 g saturated)
805 mg sodium

Worst Fries for Your Blood Pressure
Dairy Queen Chili Cheese Fries
1,240 calories
71 g fat (28 g saturated, 0.5 g trans)
2,550 milligrams sodium

This one’s a no-brainer: Chili, cheese, fried potatoes. But even a savvy eater couldn’t possibly anticipate how bad these 3 ingredients could be when combined by one heavy-handed fast-food company. There’s as much sodium in this side dish as you’ll find in 15 strips of bacon. Stick with classic ketchup and recapture nearly a day’s worth of sodium and 930 calories.

Eat This Instead!
French Fries (regular)
310 calories
13 g fat (2 g saturated)
640 mg sodium

Worst Regular Order of Fries
Five Guys Fries (large)
1,464 calories
71 g fat (14 g saturated)
213 mg sodium

Unfortunately, Five Guys doesn’t offer anything but fries in the side department. Your safest bet, of course, is to skip the fries altogether (you’d be better off adding a second patty to your burger), but if you can’t bring yourself to eat a burger sans fries, then split a regular order. That will still add 310 calories to your meal, but it beats surrendering more than 75% of your day’s calories to a greasy paper bag.

Eat This Instead!
Regular Fries (1/2 serving)
310 calories
15 g fat (3 g saturated)
45 mg sodium

Worst Fries in America
Chili’s Texas Cheese Fries w/Jalapeno Ranch
1,920 calories
147 g fat (63 g saturated)
3,580 mg sodium

The only thing that comes close to redeeming this cheesy mound of lard and grease is the fact that it’s ostensibly meant to be shared with a few friends. Even so, you’ll collectively be taking in an entire day’s worth of calories, three days’ allotment of saturated fat, and a day and a half’s allotment of sodium. What’s even scarier, if you can imagine, is that even if you try to order more sensibly and ask for the “half” order of Texas Cheese Fries, you’ll still receive a disastrous dish that packs in 1,400 calories. There’s one French fries side dish at Chili’s that’s acceptable, although even in its much-reduced form, you’d be better off splitting it.

Bonus Tip: See what other Chili’s items made our list of The 20 Worst Restaurant Foods in America.

Eat This Instead!
Homestyle Fries
380 calories
23 g fat (4 g saturated)
230 mg sodium
source: health.yahoo.com

Tags: arby's, burger chains, Calories, Chili Cheese Fries, Dairy Queen, eat this, eating healthy, Five Guys Fries, french fries, fries, health conscious, healthiest fries, high calories food, Jack in the Box Wedges, junk food, McDonald, men health, tips of choosing fries, worst french fries, worst fries

by wildcherry on Friday, February 19th, 2010 | Knowledge, Life | No Comments

Credit scores are the No. 1 determinant in a bank’s decision to approve or decline credit. You may be approved for credit even though your scores are low but you will undoubtedly pay higher interest rates. The following are tips to begin rebuilding your credit:

(1) Authorized Buyer or Piggyback Credit. Becoming an authorized buyer also known as piggyback credit can be an instant way to boost your credit score. If you know someone who has a good credit history and score and is willing to add you to their account, this can immediately raise your credit score. There are companies that provide authorized buyer accounts for a fee. The credit card company will report to your credit files as well as the card holders’. The downfall of becoming an authorized buyer is that if the person ever becomes delinquent, it will also reflect on your credit report. However, if this happens, you can always dispute the account and the credit bureaus will have to remove it because an authorized buyer is not financially responsible for the account.

(2) Retain Old Credit. Maintaining older credit gives you a longer credit history. This is important because credit history constitutes 15% of your overall credit score.

(3) Apply for Easy Credit. There are many companies that do not require strict credit

guidelines. These companies extend credit to consumers with little to no credit history and less than perfect credit. You may have to pay higher interests rates but if you pay on time and keep your balances to less than 30% of your available credit limit, you will build positive credit. Seek credit at your local appliance, furniture, jewelry and tire stores. In addition Radioshack, Fingerhut and Chevron Gas extend easy credit.

(4) Balance Transfer. Do not transfer all your balances to one low interest rate card. You may get many offers for the best credit cards with low and even zero percent interest rates, but if you transfer all of your balances to the one card then you run the risk of increasing your balance to limit ratio. A high balance to limit ratio lowers your credit scores. You should always maintain a balance less than thirty percent of your credit limit in order to have good scores. (Amount Owed is 30% of credit score)

(5) Decrease Your Credit Card Balance. Pay down your credit card and decrease your balance to thirty percent (30%) or less than your credit limit. Your credit score will increase. The great thing about this technique is that it works whether it is a $5000 limit credit card or a $500 limit credit card, your credit scores will instantly improve.

(6) Get a Credit Line Increase.

In the alternative, if you do not have the cash on hand to pay down your credit card account, request a credit line increase but don’t spend it! Many credit card issurers can increase your limit without running a credit report. Make sure you inquire before you request the credit line increase if you do not want to create inquiries.

(7) Get a Bank Loan Secured by a Savings Account. If you have at least $500 cash on hand obtain a savings account secured bank loan. Most banks and credit unions do not run credit reports when you apply for a secured loan. However, they do report these loans to the major credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax and Transunion. Bank loans rank high in credit scoring. But don’t stop at just one secured loan. Once you obtain the first secured loan, take those funds, go to another bank and repeat the process. Now you have two bank loans that will report to the credit bureaus. Make sure these loans are small enough that you can handle making at least two payments per secured loan before the actual due dates. When the banks report to the credit bureaus they will show these payments and you will have established an excellent payment history within (30) days of obtaining the loans.

(8) Get a Secured Credit Card. Secured credit is a good option for those who cannot qualify for regular credit. Not only will you have the benefits of a regular credit card but you will also get an opportunity down the line to convert that secured credit card into a regular one. The same rules apply with a secured card in that you must pay your credit card bill on time and you should keep your balances low. When seeking secured credit make sure the bank reports to all three major credit card agencies, Experian, Equifax and Transunion.

(9) Limit Hard inquiries. Hard inquiries can take up to five (5) points off your credit score. Applying for new credit will lower your credit score. Keep inquiries at a minimum. Additionally, any company that pulls your credit report without your authorization is in violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act which allows only authorized inquiries to appear on your credit report. According to FCRA rules you are entitled to $1,000 for each unauthorized hard inquiry. (New Credit Applications is 10% of your credit score)

(10) Know the Information reported by Credit Card Companies. Make sure your credit card companies report your limit and balance. Some may only report your balance and not your credit limit. Lenders who engage in this practice may actually be causing your credit score to be lower. The scoring system will plug in your highest balance as your credit limit and if you are currently at a high balance this can be detrimental to your scores. Capital One was notorious for this practice; however, in August 2007 they changed their policy and will be reporting credit limits. This means many consumers who hold a Capital One credit card may see a boost in their credit scores.

(11) Pay Obligations by the Due Date. Pay your obligations by the due date. A late or missed payment can drop a good credit score by 100 points or more. It may not make sense but if you already have negative entries on your credit report adding more will not hurt you as much as if you don’t have any negative entries. Regardless, paying on time can raise your credit score. (Payment History is 35% of your credit score)

(12) Zero Balances may Hurt Your Credit Score. Strange but true. If you have many credit card accounts with zero balances your credit score may be lower. Credit scores can be raised by maintaining a small balance (at least $10) on your credit cards.

(13) Keep Balances to Thirty Percent (30%) of Credit Limit. Do not use over thirty percent (30%) of your available credit. Keep those balances low and your credit scores will rise. Definitely do not go over your credit limit. This hurts your credit score tremendously.

(14) Re-Aging to Improve Your Credit Scores. Re-Aging is a technique used by creditors to get rid of your past-due account. You are no longer delinquent and your account status changes to “current” which increases your credit score. Request Re-Aging from your creditors. Re-Aging is a quick and free method to raise your credit scores, it gives you a fresh start. Federal guidelines dictate how creditors can re-age accounts but essentially here is how it works:

• The borrower has to demonstrate renewed willingness and ability to pay the account on time.

• The account should be at least nine (9) months old.

• The borrower should have made at least three consecutive monthly minimum payments.

Tags: Credit, credit scores, fico scores, finance tips, Improve Credit Scores, low Credit Scores, Raise Credit Scores

by wildcherry on Thursday, February 18th, 2010 | Knowledge, Life | No Comments

For most consumers with bad credit in the low to mid 500s or even worse, there are definite ways you can repair your damaged credit score quickly, and 120 points or more isn’t out of the question.

Step #1: Stabilize!

Some of you might already have done this step, but for those who haven’t this is critical. Don’t overpay all your credit card bills $20 a month when you have an old $150 bill sitting in collections. That doesn’t make any sense. The first part of quickly turning around your credit score 120 points or more is to stabilize your current situation.

This means every single bill needs to be paid on time every month. If you have bills that are 120 days or more overdue, pay them or work out a payment plan to avoid those from going to collections. If your bills are 90 days overdue, keep them from going 120. Same process with bills that are 30 and 60 days overdue, and especially for bills that are late, but haven’t hit that 30 day mark where most get reported.

Some credit bureaus have your history of on time (or not) payments account for up to a third of your entire credit score. Even if you’ve been bad about this, paying all your bills on time for even a few months after a long history of not can show immediate dividends for your credit score. On the other side, getting hit with one 30 day overdue mark can drop you 50 points or more in one hit.

Many other credit scores have the 30 day mark account for up to one third of your credit score, so do not let late bills hit this bench mark. Once you are stabilized so you are at least paying all of your bills on time, add an extra penny to credit card bills, car loans, mortgage loans, bank loans, or student loans.

This is my favorite trick for helping out the credit scores of really cash strapped consumers. Your credit score records if you pay on time and if you pay the minimum or pay more. You get more positive points on your credit score for paying more than the minimum, but most credit scores don’t differentiate between whether you pay $100 a month extra, or one penny a month extra. Those extra pennies can add a nice little boost to your credit score.

Step #2: Check Your Credit Reports and Clean Them Up!

Every consumer is entitled to one free credit report from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus per year. Order all three and take a close look at them. A conservative estimate says that over 30% of all credit reports will have errors of some type on them. You will want to remove all the incorrect information immediately, especially if you have a common name. It is not uncommon for someone else’s information to appear on your account

Have all incorrect information removed. For some people, this action alone could result in a 120 point jump if someone else’s negative information is on your account. Getting your credit reports to reflect on you specifically is the first step to fixing your credit score. There is a second part to this step, one that involves advice given by many credit repair “experts” who give the wrong advice (we’ll correct the myth here).

Many will give advice to challenge every negative item on your account. Unless you only have one or two black marks, do NOT do this! First of all, it will set off a red flag. If your requests get marked as frivolous, then not only will legitimate problem accounts not be removed, but they can prevent you from challenging in the future. This means if you have a negative account that hits the 7 year mark and should therefore be removed, but isn’t, you have no way to get that black mark removed even though by law that’s your right.

If there are one or two accounts you do question, do ask for evidence of these late charges. That’s the key. Don’t categorically deny that this is your debt, but ask for evidence. If the company doesn’t respond in a timely manner, the challenged mark is removed. But never challenge more than one or two accounts at one time unless there is an actual concern of identity theft.

Step #3: The Magic of 50%

One of the biggest factors of anybody’s credit score, and perhaps maybe the most underreported, is the “magic” of the 50% mark. A huge part of your credit score at any given time is amount of credit you’re actually using as opposed to your total credit available. So if you have $10,000 in total credit card limits, and are using $9,000 of that, then you’re using 90% of your credit, which is really bad.

That percentage is a huge factor in your credit score. Everything above 50% is considered poor (and gets worse the closer to your limit you get) while everything below 50% is considered good and improves your credit score. This is figured on BOTH an account by account basis, as well as total over all debt. So even if your overall debt is too high to quickly pay under 50%, you can still improve your credit score by paying enough off several small credit cards to knock them all below that seemingly magical 50% line.

Credit score wise, it’s better to pay $400 to three small credit cards and get them all below 50% than to pay $400 to a large credit card (say an $8,000 used out of 10k available). You then will get extra points on your credit score for those three small credit cards that are under the 50% line. Eventually you want to get all your debt under this line, and once you do the effect is immediately noticeable on your credit score.

Another way of accomplishing this if you don’t have a lot of money to ask for a higher credit limit from companies you have a good payment history with. If you’ve missed payments, they won’t agree, but if you have a good payment history, many will. You might owe $300 on a $500 credit card, but if your credit limit is bumped up to $800 then you’re already under 50%. Not only does this help your score on that card, but it adds to your total credit, meaning you’re filling up less of your total credit, as well.

Step #4: Not Falling for Myths and Using Common Sense

In the end, there is no trick for improving your credit score if you are going to keep charging and spending more and more. The other advice to keep in mind is to avoid these common credit score myths:

1. Closing an old credit card account helps you credit score. This is a myth. After paying off a credit card you want that account to stay open, especially for older cards since length of credit history is critical to your credit score. Pay off the card, but do not close the account.

2. A debt consolidation loan will help my credit score. Actually, in the beginning this will hurt your score not only because of the addition of a large new loan, but also because it indicates trouble with debt. In addition, many people will then use their credit cards, digging themselves into a hole yet again. Consolidation might help with paying off debt, but it does NOT improve your credit score the majority of the time.

3. Common sense: stop using credit cards. You can’t improve your credit score while constantly adding to your balance. It’s just not possible, and anyone saying otherwise is trying to scam you.

Follow these four s

Tags: credit repair, how to fix credit score, increase credit score, increase fico score, Raise Credit Score, repair credit, Repair Credit Score