Sick as hell

Got sick last night. Had a bad case of the runs, actually made it worse by having a seafood pizza before realising how sick I really was. Man, that Pizza hut was repeating on me for longer than I care to remember...

Anyway, i've been in bed most of the past 24 hours - was struggling to think of a blog topic for the first time in ages.

Hope to be back tomorow - healthier and with some decent news to report.

Until then, it's back to the toilet and some more immodium tablets.

How to succeed at the gym

Its something I have always had trouble committing to... The gym. Yeah, for years I would sign up and just visit the gym a couple of times a month and eventually get bored and walk away from my attempted 'get fit quick scheme'.

I think I may have finally found the answer! :)

Many folks have said, that going to the gym is a habit. And yeah, thats probably true in many cases. But firstly, I hate mornings - so early morning visits are a total no-no.

Ok, so in the past when I have visited the gym - I have ripped into the weights and cardio machines and gone full tilt at them. Burning myself out and not wanting to visit again real soon. So this time, I have been doing 1 hour sessions and working up a good sweat without totally killing myself.

But hey, here's the killer. In the past I have had many distractions to take me away from the gym. A computer game, maybe CS or Warcraft and other stuff like catching up with mates, sleeping or just bumming around.

Well, now I am in a new town and am 'trying' to find distractions.. The gym is the perfect alternative. Getting home from work, the wife might be in a bad mood and starts the annoying chatter - BOOM, i'm off to the gym.

This has been working a treat, I have been hitting the gym now regularly (4 times a week+) for the last month. I am enjoying it and it seriously is the best getaway. So there you have it - use the gym as a distraction and when your wife starts driving you nuts - think of it as the best getaway!

:)

Setup a Free Link Directory Script

I must thank Caroline Middlebrook for the motivation for this one, after she released her free eBook on Wordpress and setting up niche sites - I decided to use her tips and setup one of my dormant domains with a cool new script.

A domain I had sitting around was www.bestbacklinks.info which I have always wanted to setup a Link Directory for. Seeing as I am already using BlueHost for the hosting - I thought heck, with Carolines tips I could maybe launch a script without having to use Fantastico.

Hmmm I can't believe I actually got this going. After setting the domain up as an addon domain, I searched the web and found a cool free link directory script program. cpLinks is the program, totally free - just need to throw in a backlink to the makers.

After some slight teething problems around setting up the SQL database and getting the FTP login rights working - it really wasn't too hard and in around 1 hour I finally had a Link Directory site up. It still needs some tweaking and customizing - but hey, if I can do this anyone can. Seriously, I am very new to wordpress and Bluehost and yeah, it's pretty straight forward.

Caroline's ebook is a really good source of information, from newbies right through to folks who have played with AdSense and are trying to milk some dollars here and there. Try it risk free, well worth the read.

American Gangster Review

I got the chance to go and see American Gangster tonight, a movie I really enjoyed. (I actually went to see it by myself, which was a little weird - but I had some free time and ducked off while my wife was out)

Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington are awesome opposing each other in this film. You get the graphic recreate of the drug wars in the USA during the Vietnam war days of the 1970's.

Denzel playing the gangster, was able to build up a massive drug cartel by using his contacts in the US Army to ship the merchandise from Vietnam during the war. Other drug bosses found it hard to compete as Denzel's product was pure and half the price - the middle men were simply cut out.

With so many cops on the take during this era, drugs were everywhere and the Russell Crowe character was a rare breed, persuing the man not the money.

It's a long film, with some great sequences of action. Some amazing quotes too, one in particular from Denzel - "The loudest person in the room is usually the weakest!" as he tried to teach his family that they needed to keep a low profile or risk losing their strong position.

Its so true, so many people - be it criminals or simply successful folks, flaunt their new found success and end up getting chopped down, caught or robbed. If you're on to a good thing, then hey - keep it to yourself, it'll last longer.

Overall, I couldn't get enough of this movie. From the ruthless gangs, to the crooked cops and the sheer lawlessness of the era. Denzel was pure brilliance in his role, in one scene he walks down a busy sidewalk and puts a gun to a rivals head, pulls the trigger in front of family and hundreds of others - amazing scenes!

Make sure you see this one when you get the chance - top movie!

Faulty Teac Plasma Saga Continues

The saga with my Teac Plasma continues, only 2 years old my pride and joy recently went pop; read the plasma went pop story here.

So it's out of warranty (purchased from the Good Guys in Campbelltown, Dick Quinns!) and American Express was absolutely useless with their coverage of electrical items - certainly not worth the effort to buy things on the card like I did.

Anyway, the repair guys near my work opened the case up on the Plasma today to work out what was wrong -

Teac PLH4220SD with back cover removed. YSUS board fuse blew and it seems there is a short on the board somewhere. Chances of repair of the original faulty board are low, due to the multilayer PCB design - very difficult. Replacement part 6871QYH045C could be quite costly too.

Maaan, so pissed off that a electrical item of this price could pack it in only a year or two after purchasing. I recently transported the Plasma from Australia to New Zealand by shipping container which may have rattled and shook things a bit - shame that it worked for 2 months after arriving or I could have claimed it on the shipping insurance. Also getting parts for this model is hard in New Zealand as it wasn't locally made. So the internet and the parallel import market will be the only choice.

It's such a shame too, Teac stuff I have purchased in the past has been quite good. My Teac HD Set Top Box and other DVD-Recorder items have been very solid performers.... However this time Teac is really off the mark.

So keep that extra warranty or insurance in mind when buying big items. Because this totally sux.

Loving that AdSense CTR

I can't explain it. For some reason, my AdSense click through ratio (CTR) has shot up over 4% and I am seeing decent payouts of around $15-20 a day at present.

Certainly a nice surprise!

It's not that any of my blogroll has experienced a massive jump in visitors and I haven't placed the Adsense squares in new spots - it seems to mostly come down to the addition of more blogs to my blogroll each week.

I am simply adding blogs on popular topics and writing my thoughts in small bursts a few times a week. They are quickly seeing 20-30 hits a day which isn't huge - but as I add blogs continually this is adding up quickly.

It's food for thought. If you can't get a million visitors to your site or blog, simply create a million blogs and just get 1 visitor a day to each.... :)

Does Link Building Still Work?

Oh yes it does baby! I have spent the past month or more building 150 word blog entries with specific backlinks to a certain website of mine. The result has seen my site go from the rear end of the Google Top 20 in the SERPs a few months ago; to the Top 3 in the results page - a huge improvement!

The advantage of writing a small blog post, or blurb around your linking (with suitable text in your niche area) is much more responsive than just a simple text backlink.

I have witnessed this first hand. (In addition my domain name does contain the keyword, so that certainly assists)

But morale of the story, keep your link building up - get your meshed network of blogs going and use the power to boost your rankings!

American Express don't help on Buyers Advantage

With my Tech Plasma televsion totally dead and a hefty repair bill pending, I phone American Express and get things rolling in regards to my 'Buyers Advantage' setup.

Specifically purchasing my Plasma Television on my Gold Amex, I assumed I would have an 'extra' years warranty on the TV. Oh how wrong I was.

Customer support from American Express was terrible. Poor english from the call centre operator, followed by a totally unsympatheic approach - and then a failure to totally explain 'what' coverage I have.

I was nearly ready to cancel the card on the spot, I still may do this in the weeks ahead.

It seems the coverage I had was for the first 90 days of owning the new electrical item. Yay, what a big deal.

Pretty sad that an item like a big screen plasma television lasts only 2 years. I am having it looked at hopefully next week, but it seems even if basic parts are needed cost and labour will be pretty high.

So yeah lesson learned, Amex fail you in times of need and always take the STORES extra warranty...

:)

NRL

My Plasma went Pop!

It's been a devestating 24 hours for me, last night my pride and joy - the 42" Teac HD Plasma went pop while I was sitting down to watch some TV. There was no smoke or anything and the sound and power stayed on, just a total loss of picture.

Maaaan! That totally sux.

I have been worried since shipping the Plasma to my new home (from Australia to NZ) that the change in temperature during shipping would hurt it. The packers only did an average job of bubble wrapping the plasma, they didn't have a specific box for that kind of item. When the TV arrived it was literally dripping wet - when items are shipped from the extreme humidity and heat of Sydney, Australia to the colder environment of the mountainous New Zealand - sweating becomes a big problem.

I feel this may have contributed to the Plasma going pop last night. It sounds like a 'short in the Plasma' for sure.

Oh well, I did buy the unit in late 2005 and purchased it on my American Express Gold Card - so I could get the buyers assurance. My understanding is that Amex covers you for a few extra years warranty on top of the manufactures initial 1 year. Time will tell if this works out, but certainly fingers crossed.

Going from my Teac 42" Plasma to a Tevion (Aldi) 80cm non-widescreen TV is a massive drop.. :)

Getting that Work Life Balance!

As a blogger, do you sometimes find it hard to nestle yourself away and spend some quality time at the keyboard without interruption?

I'm finding it increasingly harder to get more time on the laptop to build my blogging empire. With winter fast approaching in the southern hemisphere, the no.1 sport Rugby League will soon be comencing in Australia and hence my NRL News blog will be in full swing. More attention to my NRL blog along with a major project I was awarded by Smorty (600 reviews of 200 words each) mean I am spending a large chunk of time on the PC.

With a wife and young daughter, they often get frustrated at me spending so much time online. No matter how much I explain to them what I am doing, they don't see it as a money making exercise. (At present my blogs combined with the Smorty project are bringing in over $4000 per month, the most I have ever made online).

Yet, as I try and take things to the next level - I keep getting distracted and talked down by the ones I love.

My only solution has been to go mobile. I take the laptop to quiet spots and the odd cafe to work away from home; which helps me get things done.

I am sure others have faced this problem, I know Shoemoney has spoken before about work life balance. Its certainly a tricky ask, how do you deal with this issue at present?

Meshed Blog Linking - does it work?

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Witness why YouTube is so Powerful

This quite simply blew me away. In my new adopted small town of Nelson, New Zealand I took the liberty of shooting some videos of the local area (beaches, roads and landmarks) I uploaded these to YouTube so my family back in Australia could see. Here's the video below (the most recent one I shot while driving)

After the video was online a short time, I got a long email from a person in the UK - this person used to live in Nelson some 20 or so years ago and was amazed at the growth and change in this tiny little remote town. After a small email exchange, they asked if I could shoot some more videos from some other parts of the town and it was quite amazing to see how small the world is when the likes of YouTube are around.

So while video is certainly the next step in the Web 2.0 revolution, you just get a shock at who is watching all your video content.

Apologies for the delays in the past week or so for posts, my NRL News site is getting back into swing for the 2008 Rugby League season - so it's taking up some of my time. Thanks for your patience.

How to achieve Entrecard Success

The overall success of EntreCard has been seen first hand here at this blog. The smart system of card dropping, when setup right at your blog can certainly bring traffic to you.

Ideally suited to newer and mid-range blogs - it's a great way to boost visitors and give your blog the injection it needs. A couple of things I have found worked well to increase your success from EntreCard are as follows; now while they might sound basic - many EntreCard users aren't doing them.

1. Get yourself not only a unique 'card' or avatar, but aim to make the view curious. Many experts think that explaining your niche within the picture is best and while this has its place, to attract the most amount of users -make them wonder and get totally curious about your picture, forcing them to visit. Curiousity is key. A good example of the ideal avatar is seen on the left. Through this unusual picture, the blog in question quickly jumped up the rankings to achieve a high spot in the 'self help' niche.

2. Secondly ensure your EntreCard widget placement is at the top of your blog. Many feel that by putting the widget at the bottom of your blog, it forces the visitor to 'read' your blog before finding / clicking the widget. This will only serve to anger the EntreCard visitors and reduce the chance they will 'revisit' to card drop again. Don't fear a quick card drop, if the visitor from EntreCard comes again they may be enticed by future articles with content that appeals to them more. 'Think long term for success'

Overall, EntreCard is simply a great idea and a bustling community has been quickly born. Embrace it and watch the traffic boom in.

Google PageRank Drops January 2008

I'm not sure if anyone else has had similar changes, but I have seen Google PageRank drops right across my blogroll. (Hopefully it's not from my recent SEO tests!) Anyway, across all of my blogs including my NRL News Rugby League blog I have seen Google PageRank drops from 5 to 4, and some of my smaller sites have gone from PR3's down to 2's and 1's.

Has their been a recent toolbar update?

Is it getting harder to achieve better PR these days?

I have been updating my blogroll quite regularly, I also had a concern that potentially too much AdSense display may be harming some of the websites and Google may be clamping down on some of these. It would be ideal if Google did start providing a feedback email or something similar to explain why the PR change was incurred - it may assist everyone in keeping to the rules and not blurring the white hat / black hat lines.

SEO Advantages in Wordpress

I have quickly started to fall in love with Wordpress since moving my NRL News Rugby League blog across to the popular platform. The SEO plugin has been great and has instantly boosted some of my SERP placements. (Best thing was the ease of install of the SEO and other Wordpress Plugins!).

I am starting to adjust to the interface now and posting is becoming much easier. I would still say Blogger.com is a better platform to get posts and pictures up 'quickly' but overall Blogger v Wordpress - I can see why many favor Wordpress.

While some have spoken of Wordpress and it's security flaws, you must understand this is open source stuff and certainly not fort knox. If you hold sensitive data on your blog or don't back-up often well then you're going to be at risk - but hey, unless your super big time then it really isn't the end of the world. Once again the benefits certainly outweigh the negatives.

I look forward to finding more advantages in Wordpress and will certainly shout out about them here!

How's your Wordpress blog going? Know a cool plugin? Or are you thinking of jumping over to Wordpress? Drop us a comment with your thoughts.

Free to Air Satellite

Spent most of today looking into getting free to air satellite over here in New Zealand. After relocating from Australia a few months ago I have been missing out on some of my favourite programs and am keen to see some of my home countries TV programming!

I found out on the weekend that it's possible to pickup some of the Australian Channels through some free to air satellite services being transmitted from the Optus D1 Satellite over Asia Pacific. (Hint; for all your satellite needs visit Lyngsat.com a great free resource that covers satellites all over the world - you might be surprised how many free channels you can pickup in your country!)

Anyway, I will be purchasing a Hyundai hss760a model receiver and once hooked up to my 43cm standard receiver dish I should be getting some free channels, around 7 or so free channels which isn't too bad.

It seems there is a whole world of satellite programming for TV that doesn't cost - I am looking forward to investigating some more! :)

Wordpress Introduction

It's been a chaotic past few days for me, I have just upgraded my major blog NRL News from the Blogger to the Wordpress platform. I have considered this several times before, but never quite had the patience, skill or time.

To make sure I had help, I used GetaFreeLancer.com and posted a project to get someone to help me make the switch. Similar to elance.com, its an outsourcing website where you can get help on virtually any techincal subject or language.

I set a bidding limit between 300-1000 dollars. It was interesting to see the bids, they varied quite wildly. Price was not the only factor, you got to see the bidders rating and review according to other users (similar to the eBay rating system).

In the end, I picked a cheaper developer that still had a fairly respectable rating. In any project, setting the guidelines and goals is always important. I tried hard to nail down my request and make it as clear as possible. The developer got into things pretty quickly, however my only complaint was at times he was hard to get hold of. (Obviously time zones are a factor, but I always tried to make myself available at suitable times to both of us)

Anyway, after a longer than expected tranistion period - the developer eventually got the site up and going. Wordpress successfully imported all the older blogger posts, over 650 of them. While the posts imported successfully, I found that my results in Google (SERPS) don't actually match up to the original post for some reason - Wordpress says document no longer exists.

Some advantages however, I am impressed with the available plug-ins with Wordpress, the SEO Plugin especially is quite cool and makes things easier.

When I took my domain away from the Blogger hosting service, it left my original Blog domain with a matching high PageRank which was quite interesting. So essentially I got a two for one deal - my domain kept a PR4 and the older blogspot.com address got a PR4 too. (I did have a PR5 prior to the transition starting)

I am hoping to use the PR from the blogspot address now to build up PR on the domain itself.

So it's been a long and hard road, but in the end the change was worth it. In addition to a Wordpress platform I am using BlueHost.com which has made things easy and offered an array of other scripts and tools. My forums for example are now possile and totally hosted with my site.

(I am hoping coming back to a more regular posting schedule soon, however I also have over 600 site reviews to do for a specific Smorty project I am involved with! I'm expecting this to keep me quite busy)

Now, back to those reviews! :)

Win a Google Fridge

When I saw this competition where you could "Win a Google Fridge" I simply couldn't resist entering. Run by Dan Perry at his blog, all you need to do is say what you would do with the Google Fridge if you won; (I did this YouTube video)

I'd love to get my hands on this Google fridge, and every time I got slapped in the PageRankings, hammered in the SERP's and shortchanged by AdSense returns and referrals - I would simply pop over to the fridge grab a beer and slam that damn Google door as hard as I could. Then after a year of physical abuse I would post pictures of the fridge and see how it looks.

Seriously tho, great comp idea guys! Would love to get my hands on it *evil laugh* - Just imagine the videos of me and fridge in the UFC cage! :)

Get Ahead, Lose your Accent

To reach the upper echelons of the business world; you need to really talk the talk. Conversing in the language of power brokers is an art in itself and to ensure you can advance your career you need all the tools and guidance in this arena to give yourself an edge.

While many people are afraid to even confront the 'C-Club' executives or CEO's - with some training, you'll be surprised how far you can advance yourself.

Whether you want to advance your career within a company or you're an external consultant looking for additional skills to boost your relations and customer base - Executive Language Training is the advantage you need.

Featuring one on one, or small group business English classes, they'll help you understand and converse at the highest business level. Covering all levels, such as communication improvement at written and oral levels and customized course schedules for busy executives.

When it is time to take your career to the next level, drop that accent and learn to converse with the big boys. Chat with

No easy task for middle aged people, however there are options. Whether you work for yourself or you're looking for career advancement - Talk to the professionals at Business English today.

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Complete Geek

I found the Complete Geek blog purely by accident, but I'm glad I stumbled on it - this is a funny little blog that will keep you interested and laughing with each post.

As you see, Complete Geek recently became a Top Spots user here at 30 Day Man, only narrowly missing out on the top slot. Only the speed and craftiness of Jim Kukral beat our friends at Complete Geek to the top spot. If you're keen to get into the top spots, simply click here.

With so many blogs getting too serious these days and trying too hard - it's refreshing to see a simple and funny blog like Complete Geek, as it's really what blogs should be. With movies, comedy and mini product reviews - the content is mixed up nicely with posts on topics such as Mario Brothers, Wedding Humor and more recently some New Years Resolutions by the blog owner! Hahaha, we're watching!

Worth dropping in for a laugh, visit http://www.completegeek.net/ for the ultimate Geeky experience! We thank the team at Complete Geek for their support into 2008.

Download Websites

You know those times when you simply want to access websites offline; ie: flights, long bus trips or maybe while your out on an ocean cruiser - either way, browsing offline has never been the easiest or most accessible task.

I found some software recently that makes things a whole lost easier. With this program you can quickly and easily download websites in whole, audio and visual included.

Recently mentioned on CNN and Yahoo, http://www.web-site-downloader.com is quickly becoming a leader in complete web site downloads.

With plenty of uses; it's ultra handy. As I mentioned above, its super handy for flights. I simply use it to download the websites entirely that I wish to look through and I do all this before taking off - so when I am in the air, no time is wasted.

It's also handy for businesses who might want to grab their corp website and put it into CD or DVD for additional uses or sales promos. This is a really good piece of software and has a tonne of uses, if you want to capture website quickly and easily. Its well worth checking out and the best part is the software costs next to nothing, you can get it for under $20 US which is top value.

Subliminal Messaging Software

I've heard of the power from subliminal messages before, it really opened my eyes when I saw a story on TV about the cinema's using subliminal messages during feature films urging patrons to buy food and drink during intermission many years ago. Apparently it worked and was soon outlawed by authorities.

When I heard about subliminal CDs for the PC I was interested to check things out; visiting the website http://www.subliminal-power.com/ I was amazed that someone hadn't thought of this before, tapping into the human mind while they are seated right in front of the LCD screen all day! So simple and so powerful.

I noticed that referral clients include Microsoft and US Army, big names that obviously believe in the power of subliminal messaging. This was interesting, as these reputable outfits were using the technology, there must be power from using it!

With a downloadable version from $39.95, you can set things up and instantly start sending positive messages during your workday right on your PC screen. You don't see anything different, they are subliminal and pop up incrementally, only your mind is noticing.

Use it to help you lose weight, stop smoking or boost your motivation levels - anything at all really, it's limitless. I can't wait to try this out.

There is talk the price of the software package may be rising, so if this interests you - then definately pop over and check things out at http://www.subliminal-power.com/

Bluray vs HD-DVD

As I site here watching Back to the Future on my 42" Plasma Screen and enjoy surround sound from my Sony 6.1 system - it's such a shame to think that the next generation of technology is being hampered by the Bluray vs HD-DVD showdown.

It's a throwback to the days of VHS vs Betamax, an interesting showdown where of course VHS won out and not necessarily because it was the better format - marketing and studio backing played a big part.

I think we're seeing a litte of that now in the Bluray vs HD-DVD showdown. While it seems Bluray has the inside running at the moment and the format can actually store more data, the Bluray format developed by Sony and Phillips is actually more expensive to manufacture, more prone to scratching/failure and seems to be winning purely on the backing of more players and movie studios.

The HD-DVD format developed by Toshiba and Hitatchi, while slightly inferior in terms of storage space actually uses the same design process as DVD's meaning the creation process doesn't require massive overhauls (saves production costs) and the HD-DVD discs are are sturdy as DVD's and less prone to damage which is a good thing.

Bluray seems to have got a nice entry into the market through the Playstation3 gaming console, Sony pushing the devices into the market and doing their best to get the Bluray devices into homes through a cheaper means.

While HD-DVD lags in uptake and backing from the studios, and more recently the bombshell dropped by Warner Brothers - as they commit to the Bluray standard exclusively in mid to late 2008 - the maker of HD-DVD Toshiba/Hitatchi are continuing their efforts to standardize the format and don't seem likely to take a back seat in the battle.

Hmmm all we need now is the likes of Shoemoney or John Chow to come out and back a standard so the masses will follow. Hey John, maybe hit either side up for a paid plug? Could be a nice earner, and hey flick me some commission for the thought.

HD-DVD gets my vote, although sadly I think my horse is behind and my backing doesn't really help at this stage.

(Speaking of Back to the Future, check out this cool clip I have embedded below, from actor Tom Wilson who played Biff in the popular series)

Google listing test

Usually I can get one of my new blogs or websites indexed in hours with Google. A simple backlink from one of my already indexed sites does the trick and away the spidering goes.

However, with one of my personal sites (my little daughter Chelsea's site) I have not been able to get it into Google. The site is www.chelseajoy.com and I have no idea why it won't index. The domain is over a year old, there are quite a few backlinks now - but it just wont take.

Might have to look into it further to find out why. It doesnt really matter, as this is a personal / family blog - but it just caught me attention as to why it wouldn't index.

Anyway, I am off to get the some seafood from the local Fish and Chip Shop. If you ever come to Nelson, New Zealand - you simply must try the seafood from The Sands Fish and Chips at Tahuna! Very very cool.

Blog Network for AdSense Dollars

I've spent the better part of today tweaking my blogroll of some 15 blogs. I have 2-3 main blogs, with the rest either old projects, junk blogs or rushes of blog that never made it.

However I saw a post over at the Cow blog (John Cow dot Com) which reminded me the power of multiplication and AdSense.

Overall I am making around $10 a day through AdSense. If you take most AdSense users and a tonne of blogs, it averages out at around $1-2 per day you generally earn from these sites. Now, this seems tiny - but think about the possibilities if you create a network of over 100 blogs?

If you can get some decent content on these blogs, and set them up to either self generate (comments, forums, RSS feeds) to keep them self sufficient - you have a nice little earner. Obviously you don't want to have to manage such a large network, as the time factor makes the earn not really worthwhile.

I took this idea on board and decided to give my blogroll a facelift. Cleaning up the templates, optimizing for AdSense and some inter-linking and feed management. I hope to see a rise in CTR over the next few weeks, and I will be trying to add additional blogs as much as possible. End game to be earning at least a $100 a day from AdSense.

Online Business Startup

Here's a handy little online business startup that anyone can do. Offering afffordbale entry, this is a high commission paying phone card business. You get your own website and all the tools to start marketing this gear directly.

Many folks are realising how powerful an online business can be. Able to be run from anywhere in the world and of course the advantage of residiual income, the benefits are many. The hard part is choosing the right business to either create or market.

This is an easy option, where everything has been created for you to succeed. With complete control over the website, it's so much more flexible and has heaps more potential than just pushing affiliate links. You don't need to be a technical guru, you can get this whole deal up and running quickly.

If you fall into the category of wanting to kick off an online business but want cost effective entry point and a simple start up process - here's you chance. Check out the link below to get more info on the phone cards and the business potential.



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Busy last 24 hours

Marching hard into the New Year, I hit the Gym yesterday and took a free trial pass to get ready to sign up for 12 months.

It went well, I haven't been to the gym in 4 years - but a solid 40 minute cycle session had me feeling good and no after effects today!

Gym rates and facilities aren't too bad, I will have to spend $16NZ dollars a week to access the new gym (less than 6 months old) called City Fitness. Massive setup, hundreds of cardio and weight machines, indoor basketball court and class rooms as well as the sauna, tanning salons and huge shower and changing rooms with all the handy stuff.

Because the gym is so new, there is no faulty gear or run down areas - it looks good. Didn't seem crowded and I made sure I visited at the peak time to get a feel for this. Some nice eye candy there too! But overall, the general vibe from the other gym members was good. They were pretty welcoming. (I loved being able to watch TV on the plasma screens or listen to music vids while I worked out, that's always pretty cool)

Think I will sign up today.

I am keen to do more resistance / weight work this time, it seems in the past I have spent too much time on cardio and have fitness levels right up, but not the bodytone I have wanted. I find the classes quite good, boxing and weight class as being in a classroom environment you get pushed hard by the instructors. Much less chance of slackening off.

I want to work hard to keep this New Years resolution in addition to sending some of my websites into overdrive for 2008.

Busy Money Making Time!

My January is already shaping up to be a great result for the blog. Thanks to Jim Kukral and our friends over at CompleteGeek.Net our Top Spots widget is alive and kicking, I'll be doing a review soon of the CompleteGeek site, certainly one not to be missed. Their contributions have been an exciting kick along for 30 Day Man. (Note: getting a top spot is only $5 for 30 days!)

On top of this, I have been invited by Smorty dot come to work on a private contract for one of their larger clients. After some test work and development it's full steam ahead and it really opens the door for much more revenue! It will easily start generating 4x the revenue currently coming into my coffers.

I have also engaged a developer from GetAFreeLancer.com to work on my NRL site. It's being ported across from Blogger.com to Wordpress with a great new template and things look bright for 2007. I really hope to have NRL into the top echelons at the end of 2008. The opportunity of selling this brand and site in the local sporting market really gets me excited! So

I look forward to plotting my successes here at 30 Day Man! Hope you've got things cracking in 2008 as well.

When redecorating goes international

Our lives are better when our wives are happy right? This is usually true! As myself and my wife settle into our new home in New Zealand, we are now looking to go furniture shopping to totally finish the interior of our place off.

While we did bring our Plasma TV, Entertainment Gear, Cooking Equipment and clothing over from Australia - we always planned on buying the furniture once we settled in and started working locally in New Zealand.

Boy, I had no idea the lengths my wife would go to, to secure top quality furniture! We have a look at several local outlets and found the range severely limited and quite pricey (nb: it's a real small town we are now living in here) but eventually, my wife found a site online and loved their range and prices.

I laughed, because the online store was based in North Carolina! However, at first I didn't know that they delivered internationally too. After explaining to my wife that shopping online for furniture was too difficult, she made me look again and I was surprised. GreatPricedFurniture dot come out of North Carolina had some of the best quality bedding and dining room furniture we had seen!

On top of shipping internationally, they had financing from GE Money and offered money back guarantees on all their stock. It seems the internet never fails to amaze me, we can now shop online for bulky furniture internationally and have it shipped to our door.

We're not deciding which items to buy, dining and lounge suites were high on the agenda, but i'm being convinced to now get some of the nice bedding suites from GPF too! Oh the internet, it can be oooooh so powerful.

"Love you sweety!" :)

New Years in your part of the world

New Years is always a time to be with and think of family and friends. As you make your goals and plans for the year ahead, if you can't be near home - chances are you'll think of your home!

This New Years Eve was my first spent outside of my home; Sydney, Australia.

Fortunately the internet and good old YouTube brought me right into the New Years action from home. Here's a video of what I think is one of the best fireworks displays from around the world during New Years - hosted on Sydney Harbour, the Sydney Harbour Bridge forms the focal point for the whole state of New South Wales.

Check it out on embedded video below and see how it compares to your home New Years celebration! Enjoy 2008 guys.

The future of integrated websites

Here's a company and a website that I think has the integrated design to set the standard in 2008. The company is Netcars UK and unlike your standard tradingpost or buy cars online site, you get a real one stop shop type feel from the website.

Here is a site offering several services including car loans, car insurance and when you say to yourself I need to sell my car, this is the first online spot in Europe you would look to.

What really caught my attention at this site, and prompted me to predict a similar format from others in 2008 is the addition of a blog. Regularly publishing thoughts, tips and updates on motoring you get a trustworthy and reliable feel from such a service and of course you'll have the confidence to try their vast services on offer - something not many are doing in the market at present.

So whether it's used cars you're chasing down, a visit to their blog or maybe an additional service such as car data checking, number plates or reviews - motoring in the UK and Europe is leading the way online, through Netcars into 2008.

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