Next Best Thing

Introduction German officers and soldiers had gazed from the French coastline across the 20 miles of the English Channel which separated them from their enemy. To a man, they knew that the conquest of Great Britain would be their greatest challenge to date. However, they were brimming with confidence. Operation Sealion, as the forthcoming invasion was codenamed, would involve the marshalling of troops and equipment, as well as the rounding up of enough barges suitable for transporting the most formidable fighting machine in the world across the narrow expanse of the Channel. Still, all of the victories thus far, all of the planning and all of the Fuhrer’s  bold rhetoric meant far less without mastery of the skies. Control of the air was a perquisite to any successful invasion. Battle Map A map of the theatre of battle. The big red line indicates the range of British radar. Source: Hohum, PD, via Wikimedia Commons Kanalkampf Its opening phase was known ...

Most people do not understand how minimum payments are calculated on credit cards and thus end up paying much more interest than they should to the card issuers. Here's what you need to know about how the minimum payment due on your card and how it can wreak havoc on your finances if you are not careful. How do lenders calculate minimum balance?   Credit card companies have different standards for calculating the minimum amount due, but largely the industry standard remains 5 % of the total account balance plus interest. You opt for the minimum amount because it seems like a lesser burden each month, but what you do not realise that you are making a far bigger interest payment to your issuer. Let's understand with an example. Miss. XYZ has an outstanding of Rs 50,000 on her credit card. Since she has opted to make the minimum payment of Rs 2500 per month and her card company is charging an annualised interest 36 per cent on it! This means it will take her 31 months to...

What's in a name? The majority of classic car manufacturers and their marques are normally named after the company founder. Everyone is familiar with Enzo Ferrari , what would Henry  Royce have been without Charles  Rolls  and David Dunbar  Buick , all world famous for vintage cars. After owners, the places the cars where manufactured is also a popular choice, Vauxhall  from the district in London where the company was originally founded. The Pilgrim fathers on the Mayflower, landing at  Plymouth Rock, despite the Chrysler logo, did not  give rise to the well known Chrysler  marque but a simple agricultural brand of string. While an American, Wilbur Gunn, from Ohio called his vintage vehicles after the river flowing through the town of his birth –  Lagonda . Here are some of the more exotic stories behind a few household names in classic cars. Alvis  – A British car manufacturer whose name was crea...

We all probably remember our moms telling us not to run out and play too soon after eating or not to jump into the pool and start swimming right after a meal.  Sometimes the advice we get runs the course from urban myths, half truths, to possibly very useful.  So what is safe to do these days in an age where warning labels seem to be on everything and concerns about our health and safety  reigns supreme.  Well, let us not get too far down the path of trying to over analyze everything we eat and assess what is safe to do from a physical exertion perspective.  Nevertheless, it is prudent to understand some of the basic good advice out there and these revelations may be pretty surprising. What is Unsafe To Do After Eating a Big Meal 1.  I think smoking is never good for you and if you engaged in the habit, find a way to quit.  But studies have revealed that if you smoke right after eating your meal, the intake of all the b...

Leaving a well paid, secured day job with the aim of becoming a professional photographer is not easy. It can be compared with taking a leap from the known to the unknown world which is full of possibilities and indefinite things. Therefore, any person taking a leap must be extremely determined and strong willed. Right from the time we gain maturity to understand how things around us function, we start planning about our future goals that will steer our way to make life secured and stable. Many a time we give up our dreams and passion for our own betterment, but that certainly does not imply the death of our ambition. Life offers us many opportunities to give shape and form to our ambition and when such opportunity knocks at your door, only strong resolute will help you overcome all hurdles and challenges that is going befall in your life thereafter. Here is what it takes to give up the day job and become a  professional photographer : Humility You might have been awarded ...

Frequent flyer miles -- the more you fly, the more you get. But racking up enough miles to redeem them for actual tickets can take years of flying, years of, as it's called, B.I.S. – "butt in seat." Unless you know a few tricks that can earn you miles faster. For example, did you know you can get miles by the millions without ever getting on a plane? Money-saving travel expert Rick Ingersoll started the "Frugal Travel Guy" blog to offer tips to the common man. He hosts conferences for frequent flyer mile hobbyists that attract upwards of 500 people. In the past year, Ingersoll said he and his wife were able to fly to several places on tickets paid with his millions of miles. "This year we have gone to Greece," he said. "From Savannah to Athens and then down to a little island, flew over to Dubrovnik in Croatia spent some time there, then up to split also in Croatia, then up to Amsterdam and back all in business class." ...

For the traveler – novice and experienced – India is a milestone. It’s a word that elicits surprise and a little bit of awe when uttered as a destination. Whether you’re at the phase of getting excited at the idea of traveling to India or have already started budgeting for airfare, this post is for details the “how” piece of planning a trip to India. I’ve traveled to India on two Big Trips (and there will be a third, fourth,) and consolidated what others and I have learned on planning a trip to this amazing part of the world.  If you’re reading this and have visited India – please, share your own tips in the comments section. 1. Decide Where You Want to Go/Do It’s a big sub-continent with different experiences awaiting the traveler across every state line. There’s  tropics and beaches in the South, tiger treks in the center, vibrant metropolises in the North, the heart of Hinduism and Buddhism along the Ganges plain in Bihar, serene lunar landscapes in Ladakh, and...

Get Gorgeous Skin with Ingredients from Your Own Kitchen Did you know that many of the same ingredients found in expensive, high quality skin care products can be found in the natural products that you likely already have in your kitchen? In this article, I will provide you with 10 easy, natural, inexpensive, at-home skin treatments that I love. There are number of reasons why you can benefit from homemade skin treatments. First of all, they are relatively inexpensive. They are all natural and since you're the one making them, you know exactly what is in them and from where those ingredients came. Many of the ingredients have a wide variety of uses, and, most importantly, they work! After you read through some of my suggestions, feel free in invent your own natural skin care treatments. I will explain why the ingredients I use are beneficial, and then you can mix and match to create a perfect, customized skin care routine that's best for you and your skin. 1.Gr...