bradleyjackson.net

One of the most annoying things about moving house is the cleaning - and removing stubborn stains and marks is one of the hardest things to do when prepping your house for a move. It is always important, when using these tips to spot test and ensure that you will not be doing more damage than good. You should also always take your cleaning items with you - a box of your most commonly used items or a checklist can save you time and effort in the long run.

Some of the most common stains and marks can be removed with ease - with every day household items.

Scuffs and marks on woodwork can be removed with a pencil eraser - these marks, from shoes, wheels, or rubber bumping against things are hard to remove any other way, but come off with ease with a rubber.

Toothpaste is not just great for cleaning teeth - you can use it to remove stubborn ink, crayon, or scuff stains from any surface - be careful to test it on wallpaper first in an inconspicuous place. You will have to remove most of these stains from walls before painting as they can show through several layers of paint.

Toothpaste is also good for removing crayon from radiators, or glass - just rub lightly with a non abrasive cloth, or for tough stains, leave to sit for up to one hour before scrubbing gently.

You can remove unwanted paint from most woodwork by carefully scouring with a brass scourer - not too hard though, or you will scratch the other paintwork.

Scum stains, dried toothpaste and lime scale come off with liberal application of an oxy based paste - you can get any ‘oxy’ based cleaner (one that fizzes and heats up the water slightly) in most supermarkets.

You can remove moldy or damp smells just about anywhere with bicarbonate of soda. Simply apply to the smelly area (or leave a tub open in a cupboard or fridge) and the smell should be vastly diminished or gone within 24 hours.

The same goes for activated charcoal, or a few drops of vanilla on a cloth. Baking soda is good for a whole month, so can be used continually, not just for cleaning for a move.

If you are washing textured walls, use a nylon sock to do so - it means you will not leave fluff in your wake - and always wash walls from the bottom up to avoid streaking, applying any cleaning solution you are using (once tested to ensure paint, or wallpaper fastness) in small patches whilst you are cleaning.

You can remove wax from carpets, floors or curtains simply by using an absorbent cloth and a hot iron - the wax should stick to the absorbent cloth and peel away easily.

Finally, do not mix cleaning products - most contain either ammonia or bleach as when combined the fumes are deadly.

Care should also be taken when cleaning any that have been spot treated with a different solution, than the one you are mopping with, because not only are some mixes deadly, but others can react against each another, and cause spotting, or ugly marks.

Flamingos choose to build their nests on lakes that are remote and inaccessible. This isolation is important, since the nesting colony is extremely sensitive. If disturbed, the parent birds may completely abandon their eggs and never return. The nesting colony swarms with activity. With great excitement parent birds begin building. Bending their long necks, they scoop up mud, bird dung, and a few feathers to form a cone-shaped mound some 16 inches [40 cm] high. It is topped with a slight depression that holds the single egg away from the shallow, alkaline water. Soon hundreds of thousands of chicks begin to hatch. Parent birds fly in and out of the nesting site in vast numbers, busy with the exhausting work of feeding and caring for their begging chicks.

Then, when the chicks are old enough to walk, the parent birds suddenly leave their young behind and fly to another part of the lake, where the blue-green algae are richer and more abundant. Here, away from the demands of their chicks, they will be able to feed and replenish their energy. The huge brood of chicks is then gathered together into a nursery by a few remaining adult birds. Under the watchful care of these nursing adults, the noisy youngsters are herded across the salt flats until they are reunited with their parents. Amazingly, in all this confusion, the parent birds are able to recognize their individual chicks and continue caring for them.

The young chicks are awkward and bear little resemblance to their magnificent parents. Their young legs and necks are short, their beaks are straight, and their feathers are plain white in color. After some time their short legs begin to grow, their necks begin to lengthen and curve, and their beaks begin to turn down, forming the delicately angled shape that is unique to the flamingo. It will take some two to three years before the ungainly chick turns into a beautiful flame-feathered flamingo. It will then pair off with a mate and join the great pink flocks of flamingos that are such a delightful complement to the Rift Valley’s soda lakes.

MANY people the world over seem to believe that the keys to happiness are a fancy car, a fat bank account, a prestigious career, a big house, and the latest electronic gadgets, along with an attractive figure or muscular physique. Yet, does happiness really depend upon such material and physical assets? There has been “an explosion of research on happiness, optimism, positive emotions and healthy character traits,” says a special report in Time magazine. The results of such studies have been surprising to many. With remarkable consistency the evidence shows that people who are governed by the premise that money, fame, or beauty will make them happy are deceiving themselves. In fact, they are building their lives on a foundation that may be detrimental to their mental health and may even lead to their suffering depression.

In the United States, many people are richer than they have ever been. “But we are basically no happier for it,” says Time. Of course, the same could be said of people in other lands. China with its booming economy has also seen an alarming increase in unhappy people. There suicide has become “the leading cause of death in persons aged between 15 and 34 years,” says the quarterly Access Asia. One factor underlying this trend seems to be the pressure on young people to succeed in a tough and demanding secular environment.

Clearly, material progress does not diminish anxiety and stress; if anything, it heightens them. “Our very mode of life has now become our principal cause of emotional and mental instability,” concluded one university study. According to social-trends analyst Van Wishard, “mental and emotional health is the fastest growing component of health insurance for many companies.”

Even children are affected by our rapidly changing world. Books are now available for eight-year-old children that give them advice on “how to recognize the symptoms of stress and how to deal with it,” says Wishard. And according to a fact sheet on depression, diagnosed depression among children in a number of Western lands is increasing at an astounding 23 percent a year. Moreover, “pre-schoolers are the fastest-growing market for antidepressants.”

Fear is also increasing–and not just because of economic uncertainties. With political and religious extremism on the rise, many people shudder at the horrors that tomorrow may bring. Is help available?

Some two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ taught a way of life that is refreshingly different and reduces stress. At the heart of his teaching was a simple but profound truth. “Happy,” he said, “are those conscious of their spiritual need.” Yes, Jesus encouraged his listeners to focus on mankind’s greatest need–spiritual truth about our Creator and His purpose for us.

As we shall see in the following articles, that truth can help us to discern what is really important, leading to a happier and more meaningful life. Such spiritual truth also furnishes us with a bright hope.