TRUE LOVE

           

     Once there lived a strong and handsome he goat, Tabi. At his prime, Tabi met and fell in love with the  young and beautiful  daughter of the lion.

The love that sprung between them that beautiful summer grew and blossomed, as everyone watched. Theirs was true love.

THE HAPPIEST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD

Everyone around me appear to be caught up in the preparations for the closing banquet of our local chapter of “The Happiest People on Earth”. I found myself speculating about the things that make someone happy, as well as who really are the happiest people in the world.  These things, we already know are not Rocket Science or beyond reach, and I am quite happy to share them with you.

What makes people happy isn’t money, class, age, gender or race. Not even social status.

Like I revealed in one of my older posts, “secret to happiness”, happiness is subjective, what makes one individual happy will not necessarily make the next person happy. But I however found some attributes and tendencies pretty consistent with all truly happy people I have ever met. Below are those attributes.

1. Happy people create their own rainbows

Health Hazards of G-string Pants That Every Woman Should Know.

G-string or pant is a type of underwear that does not have to cover the buttocks. They can be an option for women’s underwear while using a skirt or trousers with a thin material in order to avoid the visibility of a panty line. These sexy bits come in every conceivable designs and fabric from lace to satin, cotton to silk.

As a fashion trend, the G-string has become so popular and gained widespread acceptability. So, it has been accepted as a sexy fashion statement.

Coconut Oil Eaters: The Healthiest People On Earth

The newly discovered “super food.” called coconut oil comes with a unique combination of fatty acids that have profound positive effects on health.

This includes  amazing benefits like  better brain function, reduction of seizures, elimination of bacteria’s, and the best of all, fat loss.

 The health benefits of coconut oil is so much, with such high recommendations from health experts and researchers that I couldn’t resist calling the privileged consumers  of this miracle food “The healthiest people on earth”

9 Ways To Prevent Sagging Breasts.

Female breast sagging or ptosis is a natural consequence of aging. The rate at which a woman's breasts droop and the degree of ptosis depends on many factors. The key factors influencing breast ptosis over a woman's lifetime are cigarette smoking, her number of pregnancies, gravity, higher body mass index, larger bra cup size, and significant weight gain and loss. 

Post-menopausal women may experience increased ptosis due to loss of skin elasticity. Many women and medical professionals erroneously believe that breastfeeding increases sagging. It is also commonly believed that the breast itself offers insufficient support and that wearing a bra prevents sagging which has not been found to be true.

Medical professionals categorize the severity of ptosis by evaluating the position of the nipple relative to the infra-mammary fold, the point at which the undersides of the breasts attach to the chest wall. In the most advanced stage, the nipples are below the fold and point towards the ground.

Breast sagging is a natural process that happens with age wherein the breasts lose their suppleness and elasticity. It can be prevented by the following;

1). Coconut Oil:

Massaging the breast with coconut oil is beneficial and it will prevent the breast from sagging. There are a number of natural oils which can be used, including coconut oil, olive oil and pomegranate oil. They are readily available and will improve skin tone, increase the elasticity of the skin, and add firmness to the skin. 

Pomegranate oil, is rich in phyto-nutrients, and is considered a wonderful anti-aging agent, helping to return youthful elasticity to aging skin. Massaging the breast will draw blood to the surface and increase blood flow, thus stimulating muscle growth and cell repair which will reduce the appearance and severity of sagging breasts.

Weight Training and Fat Burning: Ladies only.

A lot of women believe erroneously that weight training would only make then develop bulky muscles and look masculine. No lady wants to look like a superman, so they stick to the treadmill and day in day out diet like a maniac. And painfully with so little result to show.

I want to tell you how weight training burn fat more than anything you can think of, and why you should embrace it.

Lifting weights has shown to burn more fat than steady state cardio because of the metabolic demand it causes on the body – this works through a fancy term called ‘excess post-exercise oxygen consumption’. When you perform cardio you will be burning calories only while you perform it, during high rep strength training you will be burning calories both during and post work out. So you work just as hard and get twice the results. Winning!

Agriculture: Backbone of the Economy, Hope of the Youths.

Agriculture, the production of food and livestock and the purposeful tendering of plants and animal has been described as the most important sector of the Nigeria economy which holds a lot of potentials for the future economic development of the nation as it had done in the past. Blessed with abundant land and water resources, Nigeria’s agricultural sector has a high potential for growth.  

Before the advent of oil in the 1960s, the Nigerian agricultural sector was doing very well and the country could fend for itself in all ramifications.  With the steady decline in oil revenue, it is not difficult to see why attention is shifting to the Nigeria long neglected agricultural sector.

The new wave of Agricultural revolution:

The unprecedented crash of the crude oil price from June 2014 in the international market and the subsequent devaluation of the Naira  by the Federal Government have been described as a pointer to the fact that the salvation of the Nigerian economy in the future depends on massive agricultural revolution and local manufacturing. The notion held in the past by large percentage of African youths that Agriculture is a primitive vocation meant for the uneducated rural peasant engulfed in a vicious cycle of poverty and not what a young person should practice, is gradually changing.

DANGER SIGNS THAT YOU ARE STRESSED!!

The term “stress” is conceptualized in many different ways by psychologists. Simply put, stress just means “effort, demand upon energy “. Almost anything can create this stress position; a loud noise, approaching deadline, revision, late transport, being stranded, traffic gridlock, blackout, uncooperative spouse or even simply getting up in the morning. Stress is defined as an organism’s complete reaction to environmental demands or pressures. The term was used to refer to both the reason and the experienced effects of these pressures. For many people, stress is so common place that it has become a way of life.

Stress isn’t always bad. In small doses, it can help you perform under pressure and motivate you to do your best. But when you’re constantly running in emergency mode, your mind and body pay the price. You can protect yourself by recognizing the signs and symptoms of stress and taking steps to reduce its harmful effects. 

BODY RESPONSES

It is important to learn how to recognize when your stress levels are out of control. The most dangerous thing about stress is how easily it can creep upon you. You can even get used to it. It starts to feel familiar, even normal. You don’t notice how much it is affecting you as it takes a heavy toll. 

The signs and symptoms of stress overload can be almost anything. Stress affects the mind, body and behaviour in many ways and everyone experiences stress differently. Because of the wide spread damage stress can cause, it is important to know your own limit, but just how much stress is “too much” differs from person to person. Some people roll with the punches, while others crumble at the slightest obstacle or frustration. Some people even seem to thrive on the excitement and challenge of a high-stress lifestyle.

Business Loan for Corpers

 NYSC corpers that are entrepreneurs will soon get NYSC business loan support to either kickstart their business or expand while still serving.  The management of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) on Friday announced that it had secured a N200 million bank facility for disbursement to corps members as loans for their entrepreneurship endeavours.

Brig.-Gen. Johnson Olawumi, the Director-General of the corps, said this when the Commander, Guards Brigade, Nigerian Army, Brig.-Gen. Musa Yusuf, paid a familiarisation visit to the NYSC Headquarters in Abuja.

The NYSC DG revealed that the corps was taking steps to ensure that having trained youth corpers, they were also equipped financially to pursue their business interests. He said a foundation had been put in place and that the NYSC foundation had recently approved the sum of N10 million as loans for corpers.

“A couple of months ago, I also approached Heritage Bank and Heritage Bank is setting aside the sum of N200 million under a package where corps members will get a soft loan and the only collateral they will have to drop will be their discharge certificate.

New Investment Opportunity in Cashew Nut Processing.

There is great investment opportunity for the processing and export of cashew nuts in Nigeria.

Cashews which are considered to be the number one crop in the world (after almonds), is at the moment in high demand, both for domestic consumption and for export.

Cashew plants don't begin to bear nuts for three to five years, and then another eight to 10 weeks is needed to develop them to full maturity.  They require a hot, humid climate to proliferate, which is why India, Brazil, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Nigeria are the largest raw cashew producers.

In Nigeria, Cashew nuts are produced in 28 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). In 2004 alone. Nigeria's production of cashew amounted to 60,660 tonnes out of which, 30,510 tonnes were exported at a value of US$22.27 million.

The United States is the largest importer of cashew kernels, accounting for over 50 per cent of world imports.

Nigeria, indeed, is the 6th largest producer of cashew in the world after India, Brazil, Vietnam, Guinea Bissau and Tanzania. Like most African producers, most of Nigeria’s production are exported in raw form to India and Vietnam for processing and export with added value and benefits to those economies.

13-year-old CEO successfully runs 5-Employee, $200,000 in Sales Business.

 He is just 13, yet he has achieved more in his short years than most have by 30. His neckties have delivered $200,000 in deals, and he has five workers on finance which incorporate his mom and grandma. Also, he has been commended by Oprah's O Magazine, Steve Harvey and guide/FUBU organizer Daymond John.

His name is Moziah Bridges and he is the CEO of Mo's Bows. The young style architect began his organization in 2011 at the youthful age of nine when he requested that his grandma show him how to sew. He took her scraps of fabric and started making special neckties. Not long after, Mo's Bows started offering to nearby stores and on the web.

You can win up to €25,000 for your Innovative Start-up idea in the Orange African Social Venture Prize.

Orange is currently inviting applications for its fifth edition of the Orange African Social Venture Prize. This initiative aims to encourage innovative start-up projects from around the world which help to accelerate development on the African continent. The prize will recognise three projects with grants of €10 000, €15 000 and €25 000, along with six months of support from Orange experts. The first prize will also be offered a patent registration in the country of the project’s deployment.

The Orange African Social Venture Prize showcases entrepreneurs offering innovative products or services that meet the needs of Africans in various fields .Operating in 19 countries in Africa and the Middle East, Orange serves more than 100 million customers in the region and plays a major role in Africa’s economy and future development.

Orange’s main priorities is to improve connectivity, particularly in rural areas, and to introduce value-adding mobile services. The Group also supports entrepreneurs by offering a variety of support programmes, both to entrepreneurs seeking to create their own company and to mature start-ups.

Peer pressure: The number one cause of anorexia or bulimia in young adults.

People who suffer from eating disorders have an intense fear of gaining weight and a distorted perception of their weight and body shape. They believe themselves to be fat even when their weight is so low that their health is in danger. An anorexic severely restricts food intakes, and usually becomes extremely thin. The bulimic on the other hand eats excessively, followed by compensatory behaviour of physically eliminating the food by throwing up or using laxatives, right after her food cravings are satisfied.

Eating disorders develop during adolescence or early adulthood, but can also occur during childhood and late adulthood. Researchers estimate that more than 9o% of cases of eating disorder are diagnosed in females, while many cases in males go unreported.
What are the causes of eating disorders?
Most researchers agree that one of the most important causes of eating disorders is societal, media, family and peer pressure. There is the Western society pressure for women to be thin, which has been relayed to Africans and the rest of the world.  In addition, media images and hype about very thin models and actors cause many people to develop unrealistic expectations for their bodies.  Anxiety or depression due to physical, sexual and emotional abuse or loss of a loved  one can also contribute to the development of the illness.

STARTING SMALL AND MAKING IT BIG IN POULTRY FARMING.

The demand for eggs and poultry meat has been overwhelming and still rising.

In This article, I will take you through all you need to know about the production of table eggs from poultry birds.  Poultry farming for egg production, though laborious is a very profitable business.  It is a business you could start at a small scale even in your backyard with as little as 250 birds and begin to expand as you start to make profit.

The birds begin to lay egg daily from twenty weeks old and continue to do so for the next fifteen weeks, at the end of which the exhausted birds are sold off as meat for profit.  There are  lots of benefits in raising poultry birds, even their wastes, which is cleared off twice a week, can be sold off as manure to plantation owners for additional profits.

Eggs are sold in paper or plastic crates and need little or no packaging

 You can Start your poultry farm business with day -old chicks and feed then growers marsh till they  are twenty weeks old , at which time you would  transfer them to layers cage and begin to feed them layers marsh. But if you  are inexperienced  and wish  to reduce the risk of possible loss, or perhaps  you wish to start making  profit at once, you may decide to purchase  18 weeks  old birds ( point of lay) at about 900 or 950 naira per bird and they will start producing egg within the next two weeks.

For the benefit of complete beginners, below is a detailed breakdown of what the daily routine of running a poultry farm business looks like.

30 minutes farm inspection and 3 hours for:

a. Pumping, Testing the water delivery system and nipple

b. Calculating and evenly distributing one-third of daily feed ration

 

c. Egg collection

 This routine is repeated twice: (12:30 pm and 5:30 pm) daily.

Eggs are sold daily

Feed bought weekly and manure cleared twice a week.

Layers become exhausted after about 15 months and are sold off as old layers for consumption.

New set of chicks and purchased and the same process is repeated.

Success factors to have in mind when starting up a poultry farm business.

There are vital factors to consider and put in place when starting up a profitable poultry business, and here is where many beginners make a lot of misstates, incurring heavy losses as a result.

Setting up of the poultry pen:  The poultry pen should be constructed in such a way as to ensure that it is airy, spacious and comfortable for the birds. The block work for the four corners of the pen should not be more than two couches. The rest of the wall should be covered with wire gauze for security.  The roof should be done with asbestos sheet instead of Zinc so as to minimise heat during the hot weather.  The things to bear in mind when erecting a poultry pen are; comfort, ventilation, temperature, light, the size of the gutters in relation to the size of the cages you wish to purchase. Getting the poultry house right is so vital to running a profitable and viable poultry business that I recommend contracting the service of an experienced technician for the purpose if you are not familiar with it.

Battery cages:  Poultry cages are indispensable in running a large scale poultry business for profit. The cages come in varied sizes, quality, capacity and price to suit your budget and need and they are equipped with drinking nipples and feeder. It is more hygienic and less laborious.  And in addition, it reduces the rate of egg breakage.

Feed:  Adequate feeding is very important in running a poultry business and the birds lay eggs according to how well they are fed. As your business begins to grow, you may need to start up your own feed mill, in order to maximise cost.

Water: water is vital for the survival of the birds, as well as for good sanitation. It is necessary to check the nipples from time to time to ascertain if they are all dispensing water and to ensure there is no leakage also.  Leaking nipples will get the birds wet and this constitutes another problem.

Veterinary care: you would also need to contract the service of a competent vet doctor for routine and periodic preventive vaccination for the birds.          

Birds: this can be day old or Point of lay birds. When purchasing birds, care must be taking to buy good strains. In Nigeria, there are over 20 different laying strains or trade names of laying chickens.

Poultry attendants, experienced managers and veterinary services are expertise needed.

 Land: It goes without overstressing the need for adequate agricultural land to support expansion, preferable in a non- residential area as wastes may constitute hazard for close neighbours.

Delivery van: As your business grows, you may need to acquire a delivery vehicle for the ease of egg distribution.

Poultry farming for table egg production is a highly profitable venture which you could start up even in your backyard with as little as five hundred thousand naira make a turnover that is over 200% of your start-up capital within one year on the sales of eggs alone.

I do hope that the information here has been of help to someone out there. Please feel free to contact us for more details, Questions or for help in writing a business plan for your poultry farming business.

By Onyinye Orabuike

 

5 Benefits of Exercise.

As described by Wikipedia, Physical exercise is any bodily activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. As we know health is wealth, for one to be having a balance in that area the physical wellbeing of the individual must be in sync with the health of the individual.

People exercise for various reasons, including strengthening their muscle and the cardiovascular system, honing athletic skills, weight loss or maintenance, and merely enjoyment. Frequent and regular physical exercise boosts the immune system and helps prevent the "diseases of affluence" such as heart disease, cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes, and obesity. It may also help prevent depression, help to promote or maintain positive self-esteem, improve mental health generally, and can augment an individual's sex appeal or body image, which has been found to be linked with higher levels of self-esteem.

The following are the benefits:

1. Weight Control:

Exercise helps to control excess weight gain or help achieve weight loss. This is possible because exercise involves physical activity which burn calories. The calories you burn depend on the intensity of the exercise. You don't need to set aside large chunks of time for exercise to reap weight-loss benefits. If you can't do an actual workout, get more active throughout the day in simple ways — by taking the stairs instead of the elevator or revving up your household chores.

2.Sex and exercise

Do you need a boost in you sex life? Exercise would help to promote a better and a healthy sexual experience. Exercise helps the body to be in form,  improves flexibility and stimulates hormones that would boost your sex life. It has been proven that after physical activities like exercise, due to the hormonal stimulation, there is an increase in your sex drive.

3. An Energy booster:

Do you find yourself knocked out by daily household chores? Regular exercise can come to your rescue. Done regularly; it can improve your muscle strength and boost your endurance. Exercise and physical activity deliver oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and help your cardiovascular system work more efficiently. Your energy drastically peaks when your heart and lungs work more efficiently.

4.  Fight disease:

Exercise combats health conditions and diseases. No matter what your current health condition is, as long as it is not critical or you are bedridden, exercise can alleviate the situation.  This physical activity would keep your blood flowing smoothly, which decreases the risk of cardiovascular diseases. In fact, regular physical activity can help you prevent or manage a wide range of health problems and concerns, including stroke, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, depression, and certain types of cancer.

5. Exercise and your Mood:

Need a lift to your mood? Or need to blow off some steam after a stressful day? A workout at the gym would help. Physical activity stimulates various brain chemicals that may leave you feeling happier and more relaxed.  You would also feel better about your appearance and yourself when you exercise regularly, this will in turn boost your confidence and improve your self-esteem.

The role of exercise cannot be overemphasized. It plays a vital role in our life, health care providers often call exercise the "miracle" or "wonder" drug—alluding to the wide variety of proven benefits that it boasts of.

The  thought of starting an exercise program could be daunting, however start small and keep on working at it.

Investment Opportunity In Palm Production and Palm Oil/ Kernel Processing.

 Palm oil production is a money spinning business that an aspiring entrepreneur can start with reasonable amount of money plus a lot of hard work.  But like I said, the reward is quiet huge and lasts for a lifetime.  

 The palm tree starts producing ripe palm fruits within three years of plantation and keeps producing round the year, even for decades, except for a slight drop in yield during the rainy seasons.

 Palm kernel oil business can be done on a small, medium or large scale, depending on the financial capacity or experience and specialty of the person that is going into the business.

To state that there is huge potential in palm production and palm oil processing business is an understatement. The palm product can be processed and sold as red palm oil, vegetable oil or as cake. The by- products can also be sold off as animal feeds.

The market for palm product is very huge and the demand is all year round and consistently on the increase. Red palm oil is commonly used in most homes in Africa for cooking /direct consumption. It is also sold as raw materials for cosmetics manufacturers, diesel producing and soap making factories.

Investment in palm production is a very lucrative one, as the demand for palm products all over the world and in West Africa in particular is grossly unmet.

For those planning to start up a palm plantation business, it is also recommended to consider adding palm oil extraction and vegetable or palm kernel oil processing to it.

Production of palm oil and palm kernel oil from palm fruits.

 The production of palm oil from palm fruits is done in these simple steps

1          Sterilization: this softens the fruit for the digestion and release of oil. It also helps to condition the nuts to minimize kernel breakage.

2          Stripping: Stripping or threshing involves separating the sterilized fruits from the bunch stalks.

3          Digestion and Pressing: After stripping, the fruits are moved into a digester where they are reheated to loosen the pericarp. Improvements in press designs have allowed fruits to undergo single or multiple pressing. Second stage pressing on the press cake fibers enables more oil to be extracted.

4          Clarification:  this is the process of separating oil from bunch of fiber, water and other solids.

 Kernel Production

Production of refined palm kernel oil from the palm kernel is more technical than the red palm oil extraction process and require highly efficient mechanised machines.

The press cake from the digester is fed to a vertical column in order to separate the fibre from the nuts. The nuts are passed to a polishing drum where pieces of stalks are removed. A nutcracker cracks the nuts after the conditioning and drying process.  The mixture of cracked nuts and shells are separated manually or with a machine, followed by a hydrocyclone or a clay bath. A hydrocyclone uses centrifugal force to separate the kernel from the shell using water. The clay bath principle works on the specific gravity of kernel of 1.07 and the shell of 1.17. The kernels will float while the shells sink in a clay bath mixture of SG 1.12. The kernels are then dried in hot air silos to moisture content of less than 7%.

With Good mentorship and a comprehensive business plan, tapping into the palm oil production/ processing business could take you where you wish to be within the next five years. 

Considering the large space of virgin land available for cash crop farming in West Africa, I can authoritatively state that it doesn't take much to start it and the reward and potential is unlimited.

There are lots of funding opportunities for people that wish to start up an agro based business as governments are becoming increasingly interested in agriculture.  With laid  down policies in favour of agricultural related business, governments and organizations are ready to lend helping hand to everyone willing to go into partnership, provided the person could come up with sound and impressive business plan.

Palm production business is a highly profitable venture and you can start in a low scale, medium or large scale.

 By Onyinye Orabuike