A dark stormy night

It was a dark and stormy night and Steve was sitting on the porch of his house in San Francisco. There were no lights in the streets. The wind was blowing quietly and the only thing that he could hear was the rain hitting the leaves of the tree.

His wife was inside, sleeping. Steve was married to Janet for 3 years and they had been living in this neighborhood since then. They had no kids yet, but they were planning to have when Steve concluded his studies.

Steve was a handsome man. He was tall and had long blond hair. At the University, he was know as a loyal and friendly guy and was part of the athletic team. There were two things that Steve most liked to do, run and play guitar. At home, he was calm and a funny husband.

In that night, Steve didn't get sleep. Something was bothering him. So, he decided to go to the porch and play guitar looking the rain. Maybe, an inspiration could come as well as his sleep. This was the worst decision that he done in his whole life. His life was about to change forever.

When Steve stopped to play a song in his guitar, he took a long breath and looked to the rain, thinking about his life and all his plans with Janet. All of he could hear was the rain, but suddenly he heard a strange noise coming from the end of the street.

Steve's neighborhood was near Alamo Square, and his street ended there. It was a great place to live. On Sundays, Janet, Steve and their puppy Brad, a seven years old Yorkshire, went to Alamo Square Park to enjoy the beautiful view of the city. Sometimes they stayed there until the night looking the downtown's lights.

He got up from his old chair on the porch and looked out to the street. He barely could see the end of his street. He saw nothing. When he sat down, the noise came again. At this point Steve decided not to get up, he left his guitar aside and felt that something strange was happening. Narrowing his eyes, he tried to see something, but it was too dark and raining.

Remembering that he had a raincoat inside of his house, he decided to get in, wear it and go to the street. He needed to look what was happening out there. As soon as he went to the street the rain started to increase their strength. It was even more difficult to see something, but he kept walking toward to Alamo Square. Steve stopped at the crossroad and looked to everywhere. Nothing. There were nobody in the street. When he turned back to come to his house he heard terrible noise near him.....

To be continued.

See you!!

Past Tense

Past Tense

Blink com Felipe Miranda

007 Spectre Official Trailer #2 (2015) Daniel Craig James Bond Movie HD

The girl at the bus stop

Yesterday morning I was coming to my work by bus and at one of the bus stops I saw a girl. She was crying. Her crying was sad, miserable. Her crying broke my heart because was honest and I felt like I've had passed for the same situation in one day of my life. I could feel what she was feeling.

Immediately I started to pray. I prayed to God help her, but what I really wanted to do was be there with her and ask if I could help her. She changed my morning. 

Maybe, my body had come to work, but in some way one part of me stayed there, seated on that bench. I hope that this part of me had helped her to get through that moment. 



See you!!

10 Habits of successful people

I've read an article today on the website www.investopedia.com and I liked, so, I'm writing about it.

10 Habits of successful people.

Here are 10 of the most often cited habits:

1 - ORGANIZATION

Organization includes planning as well as setting priorities and goals. The tip is create an "To-Do-List" every evening before going to bed to prepare for the next day. This list is the third level (day by day) of the main plan. The second level will be done on Sunday (weekly plan). On Sunday you get ready for the rest of the week.

2 - RELAXATION

If you are organized, you have time in your schedule to meditated or simply staying away, avoiding distractions, just taking a breath. This time will prepare you to the efforts yet to come. Try to start just concentrating on your own breathing for three to five minutes.

3 - TAKING ACTION

It is important to organize, to plan and to set priorities, but without action, a plan is nothing more than potential. Rather than procrastinate your life, act!! Take the first step even if it seems outlandish.

4 - PERSONAL CARE

You need to look good to yourself! For some people, personal care involves a complex regimen and a highly disciplined lifestyle. For others, no so much. You should find your internal balance. Love yourself.

5 - POSITIVE ATTITUDE

It's one of the root causes of success. It's not the result of the success. Many people think that they only will be positive if they reach success. The thought is "I am grateful for everything which I have reached until now and I know that I can reach the next step on my plan."

6 - NETWORKING

Successful people know the value of exchanging ideas with others through networking. The key is know the importance of surrounding themselves with other successful people. 

7 - FRUGALITY

Successful people avoid overspending. Instead they comparison-shop and negotiate, but we should not confuse frugality with stingy (giving or spending reluctantly). The technique is save more money than spend.

8 - RISING EARLY

The more time one can devote to being successful, the more likely success will result. Successful people are accustomed to rising early, and that habit appears repeatedly among those who do well in life.

9 - SHARING

Maybe one of the most important topic. People who is successful know the value of sharing and most believe their success should result in something more than the accumulation of wealth for themselves. You can start just sharing your ideas or volunteering in your community or at a local school. It isn't cost anything less than your self effort.

10 - READING

Important people read. They read for pleasure or to create a habit, as a means to gain knowledge or insight.  J.K. Rowling says "Read as much as you possibly can. Nothing will help you as much as reading". This is another key point.

Most people have habits - some are positive, some are not. Successful people tend to have more of the kinds of habits that contribute to their success. The good news, for those who wish to be successful is that cultivating positive habits takes no more effort than developing bad ones.

See you!!

REVENUE

Word of the day : REVENUE

DEFINITION of 'Revenue'

The amount of money that a company actually receives during a specific period, including discounts and deductions for returned merchandise. It is the "top line" or "gross income" figure from which costs are subtracted to determine net income.

Revenue is calculated by multiplying the price at which goods or services are sold by the number of units or amount sold.

Revenue is also known as "REVs."

There is a simple video here: Revenue Video

Font: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/revenue.asp?utm_source=term-of-the-day&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=TOD-10/3/2015

See you !!

TOEIC

I did the TOEIC exam a couple weeks ago. I have been studying English for almost 2 years and preparing myself to FCE Cambridge exam. TOEIC was the first "real" test that a did. I felt that I needed test myself, test my knowledge after all this time studying. Know my "level".

I was in Miami traveling with my wife, wondering how would be great if I could work and live abroad when I decided to send a message to my English teacher. I wrote "You need to find a job for me here"

He replied " hahahahaha" 

" Take TOEIC"

" The tests have arrived"

" Easy"

Seriously, when he told me this I freaked out, but at the same time everything became more clear. That dream could be coming true. I just needed to take the first step and the TOEIC could be one of it.

We had this conversation on August 27. Less than a month after, there was me, doing the TOEIC exam. It wasn't easy I need to confess, but when I've finished I was confident that I could reach a good result.

Last Wednesday, I received the result. I took 810 points of 990 possible. I'm classified as a C1 level. This is more than I was expecting, to be honest. I'm very, very happy. Now, I will put this achievement in my resume and keep studying to pass in the FCE exam. Meanwhile, I will start to look for job positions abroad related to my abilities. 

As I've already wrote here, if you want something, you need to chase it. I have a dream and I will become this dream in reality.

See you soon.

Allergy

What is an Allergy? Is some kind of disorder of the immune system. His action provokes a lot of symptoms in our body. "These reactions occur when a person immune system reacts to normally harmless substances in the environment" - Wikipedia.

Nowadays the medicine has discovered a lot of allergies types, but I will write only about the Pet Allergies, specifically the Dogs Allergies.

If your nose runs, your eyes water or you start sneezing after playing with a dog or cat, you likely have a Pet Allergy. A Pet Allergy can contribute to wake up allergic symptoms or to increase the already existing symptoms. 

Pet Allergy Symptoms

- Sneezing;

- Stuffy nose;

- Facial pain (from nasal congestion);

- Coughing;

- Watery, red eyes;

- Skin rash or hives.

Pet Allergy Management and Treatment

- Avoid being around dogs and cats, if you have a pet at home, take some care to limit your exposure to it;

- Nasal sprays, antihistamines and bronchodilators can help relieve symptoms;

DOG ALLERGY

If all the symptoms described above occur when you play with a dog or when you have contact with it, maybe you can be allergic to dogs.

Dogs produce multiple allergens (a substance that can cause a reaction is called an allergen), or proteins that can cause allergy. These allergens are found in the dog hair, dander, saliva and urine. All dogs produce allergens; studies have not shown that dogs can be hypoallergenic (not cause allergy). Dog allergen levels increase if the dog lives indoors and are higher in the rooms where a dog is allowed.

Diagnosing Dog Allergies

If you suspect that you are allergic to dogs, firstly you need to visit a doctor, an allergist. There, you can run some tests to prove your allergy. The basic test is a skin test which consists in expose your skin to some dog allergens. If your skin reacts to the test being red or shows any kind of reaction, the result will be positive.

Dog Allergy Management and Treatment

Beyond the treatments listed previously you can do:

- Keep the dog out of your bedroom and restrict it to only a few rooms;

- Don't pet, hug or kiss the dog, if you do, wash your hands with soap and water;

- Give your dog a bath at least once a week.

- Use a vacuum cleaner to clean your house and the rooms where the pet lives.

Treatments for dog allergy vary, depending on the symptoms. Your allergist can help to determine what treatment could be better for you.

Key Words

Sneezing - When you sneeze, air and often small drops of liquid suddenly come out of your nose and mouth in a way you cannot control.

Stuffy nose - Without air nose, blocked.

Hives - A condition in which a person's skin develops red raised areas

Dander - Pieces of dry skin in an animal's fur or hair.

See you soon !!