Binary options brokers are service providers whose responsibility it is to provide customers with the services that they require. This makes them no different from other service providers in terms of how their services should be judged. Most people would not hesitate to comment on the service that they received at a particular restaurant or in a particular store, and the fact that brokers seem to offer more professional services does not exempt them in any way. In fact, one of the best ways to choose a particular broker to trade with is through binary options brokers review articles.
These are articles written both by professional writers and customers like yourself. Some writers have to review brokers as part of their job descriptions, and this is particularly true for writers of financial magazines or websites. On the other hand, there are some people who are customers of a broker and simply want others to know what they think of that particular broker. In both cases you get an evaluation of the broker and the level of service offered, albeit from very different perspectives.
Professional Writers vs. Existing Customers
Professional finance writers will approach the issue of how good a broker in a very different way from existing brokerage customers. This is because writers are much more concerned with the technical side of trading, and are probably focused on the types of underlying assets offered to customers to trade on and various other technical aspects. Customers, on the other hand, are probably more concerned with the aspects that make up the entire experience. Customers, for example, might find a particular interface difficult to use or understand, and this will probably matter more than the availability of other financial products that they do not trade in anyway.
Online Reviews
Perhaps the most convenient and easily accessible source of broker reviews is through the internet, with a number of different websites catering specifically to people looking for broker reviews. The wide range of reviews can be very useful in forming a clearer picture of which broker is more suited to your particular needs and which might be a waste of your money.
You should use this source of information in conjunction with comparing the features offered by each broker. Once you have narrowed the list of potential brokers down to the ones that offer the features that you require, then you can proceed to compare them further with the use of reviews.
Word Of Mouth
Most people have friends who also trade in binary options. In fact, a great many people start trading because they have been told just how effective it is as a means of augmenting their income. If you have friends who trade using particular binary options brokers, you should ask for their opinions on their brokers. This is probably the best type of binary options brokers review that you can rely on, since you can be sure that your friends are being honest with you.
How To Switch Energy Suppliers - And Save Hundreds Of Pounds
A survey of 53,000 households who changed their energy providers recently revealed an interesting statistic. On average, each of the households had saved over 200 pounds in gas and electricity bills. The survey was carried out on households who had switches suppliers between September 2011 and August 2012.
Let's talk about how to shift energy suppliers and save money on electricity or gas bills. Here is a simple guide to switching suppliers without running into difficulties or paying steep exit fees.
Before The Switch To Your New Energy Supplier
Check with your current supplier if you will incur a canceling fee. Most energy plans have exit fees that are either fixed or linked to your tariff rate. This fee is applicable if you end the contract with the energy company before your plan period ends. If you provide the company with due notice, then you may not be liable for any penalty or payment.
How To Start Making The Move
Step 1:
Keep all relevant information ready. Your energy provider will most likely require your postal code, the name of your current supplier of electricity and gas, the tariff plan under which you are contracted, your energy usage in kilowatt hours or kWh of both gas and electricity, and your bank details or credit card details. Most of this information can be found from your recent electricity bills. The switch can be done even without the electricity bill by working with estimated usage figures.
Step 2:
Enter the details into the on-line form provided by your energy company and the system will calculate your best options depending upon your usage and needs. The results of these calculations along with your most highly recommended options will be displayed, along with the latest deals on offer from different providers in your area.
The results also provide rates charged by different electricity and gas suppliers, and their ratings based on customer feedback. When in doubt, there are guides to energy tariffs that list out the advantages and disadvantages of each type of tariff plan for your easy and quick reference. Go through them to get a better idea about the plan and to choose your ideal provider.
Step 3:
Once you have made the final decision, pick the supplier and tariff plan and then follow the instructions to complete the switch over to a new supplier.
Step 4:
That's it. The switch over will be complete in about 8 weeks. Once you submit the form, your new supplier will take over and follow up on the subsequent steps in the process. You will be requested to provide meter readings and other details. You are expected to settle all outstanding bills with your previous company before making the switch.
Despite many advantages, over 50% of the people surveyed had never switched energy suppliers. If you are one of them and are still locked into an old tariff plan which charges higher rates than what newer providers are offering, then you will benefit from making the switch now and finding a better deal. The process is not all complicated and many have found the moving procedure simple and straightforward.
There are no restrictions to switching suppliers. Even households with pre-payment meters, or those with outstanding debts less than 100 pounds, can switch energy suppliers. Those who change providers frequently should also compare new tariffs and plans against their current set-up every six months and make sure they are enjoying the best deals available.
New tariff structures and plans are announced literally every month by energy suppliers who seek to lure new customers. Taking advantage of such offers could save your household hundreds of pounds in gas and electricity bills.
Let's talk about how to shift energy suppliers and save money on electricity or gas bills. Here is a simple guide to switching suppliers without running into difficulties or paying steep exit fees.
Before The Switch To Your New Energy Supplier
Check with your current supplier if you will incur a canceling fee. Most energy plans have exit fees that are either fixed or linked to your tariff rate. This fee is applicable if you end the contract with the energy company before your plan period ends. If you provide the company with due notice, then you may not be liable for any penalty or payment.
How To Start Making The Move
Step 1:
Keep all relevant information ready. Your energy provider will most likely require your postal code, the name of your current supplier of electricity and gas, the tariff plan under which you are contracted, your energy usage in kilowatt hours or kWh of both gas and electricity, and your bank details or credit card details. Most of this information can be found from your recent electricity bills. The switch can be done even without the electricity bill by working with estimated usage figures.
Step 2:
Enter the details into the on-line form provided by your energy company and the system will calculate your best options depending upon your usage and needs. The results of these calculations along with your most highly recommended options will be displayed, along with the latest deals on offer from different providers in your area.
The results also provide rates charged by different electricity and gas suppliers, and their ratings based on customer feedback. When in doubt, there are guides to energy tariffs that list out the advantages and disadvantages of each type of tariff plan for your easy and quick reference. Go through them to get a better idea about the plan and to choose your ideal provider.
Step 3:
Once you have made the final decision, pick the supplier and tariff plan and then follow the instructions to complete the switch over to a new supplier.
Step 4:
That's it. The switch over will be complete in about 8 weeks. Once you submit the form, your new supplier will take over and follow up on the subsequent steps in the process. You will be requested to provide meter readings and other details. You are expected to settle all outstanding bills with your previous company before making the switch.
Despite many advantages, over 50% of the people surveyed had never switched energy suppliers. If you are one of them and are still locked into an old tariff plan which charges higher rates than what newer providers are offering, then you will benefit from making the switch now and finding a better deal. The process is not all complicated and many have found the moving procedure simple and straightforward.
There are no restrictions to switching suppliers. Even households with pre-payment meters, or those with outstanding debts less than 100 pounds, can switch energy suppliers. Those who change providers frequently should also compare new tariffs and plans against their current set-up every six months and make sure they are enjoying the best deals available.
New tariff structures and plans are announced literally every month by energy suppliers who seek to lure new customers. Taking advantage of such offers could save your household hundreds of pounds in gas and electricity bills.
Is an Insurance Broker Also an Agent?
A professional indemnity insurance broker or agent is one who is familiar with financial planning and receives a commission for guiding you as you seek the best professional indemnity insurance coverage for your needs. Most individuals get a bit confused when they have so many options to consider. They prefer using the expertise of someone knowledgeable in the field. For assistance in choosing the right agent or broker, one can use the Internet to get a list of reliable agencies or professional indemnity insurance brokers in the area.
An insurance broker generally does not work for the insurance companies. They take up individual case studies, make surveys, bring back the best options, and guide you as to the one most suited to your needs. For this, the broker expects a commission. Brokers receive a commission on every sale they make. An insurance agent, on the other hand, works for a company or many companies and receives a commission for every client he or she brings in for the insurance company. Therefore, they try to sell you the product of the companies they work for and can provide up to date information for you regarding those companies.
Since brokers link themselves to multiple companies, they can provide a wealth of useful information as intermediaries in the financial sector. Some insurance brokers belong to big commercial business establishments where they involve themselves in specialized fields to cater to clients with specific needs in a particular area. If they choose to work in a small area, then they take on the job of personally filling in the forms and delivering it to the insurance agency and the client who gives them business.
The work of a broker does not stop with getting a client. The insurance broker has to be available for the client when a situation arises, especially if there is an accident or damage to property due to theft or vandalism. A good insurance broker will make sure his or her services to the client in order to have their continuous business. By having a broker who is always working diligently, the client feels his or her investment is secure and recommends that broker to their family and friends. The broker makes sure that premiums reach the insurance office regularly and on time and keeps the client updated on new policies when it is time for renewal, and informs the client when they can change to a better plan.
Whether they work as a professional indemnity insurance broker or independent agent, a broker's trustworthiness and capability ensures a quick rise to success. An insurance broker ideally is a sales person with good communication and verbal skills. A successful broker is persuasive and positive in their approach. If their disposition is pleasant and they display patience, the insurance broker can go a long way towards ensuring client service and obtaining referrals to pave the way on the road to success.
What Is Errors and Omissions Insurance?
Professionals are accountable for their actions every time they undertake work for a client. This means that even a simple mistake, a misunderstanding or disagreement with a client can potentially lead to an accusation of negligence and an expensive law suit.
If a claim is made, the professional will have to cover the costs of defending the claim. This invariably means, at the very least, incurring attorney's fees, and in the worst case, paying damages and the claimant's legal costs as well. Errors and Omissions insurance is designed to protect professionals against those risks.
Errors & Omissions insurance was previously required only in traditional professions such as architecture, engineering, law and medicine but today it has become a vital form of protection for consultants in any field such as Information Technology, design, marketing, business consulting, real estate and recruitment. Also known as Professional Liability Insurance or E&O insurance, the insurance covers the financial consequences of either an error - something a professional has done wrong, or an omission - something the professional has failed to do.
Claims frequently arise from disputes deriving from confused communication between the professional and client, or a perception that the professional over-promised. Even if there are no obvious 'errors' or 'omissions', this may not stop a client from alleging negligence. This means even the most diligent professionals are at risk from a client claim and the associated cost of defending themselves.
In the event of a claim, professionals will often have to defend themselves against clients with deeper pockets who can easily afford the cost of litigation. An Errors and Omissions insurance policy from a reputable insurer helps level the playing field.
What's more, professional liability litigation is often outside the expertise of the majority of commercial lawyers, which can make it hard for the professional who doesn't have coverage, to find a suitable lawyer. An E&O insurer, on the other hand, will have access to lawyers who specialize in professional liability litigation and negligence lawsuits.
Smaller clients may choose to hire attorneys on a contingency ('no win, no fee') basis. The professional without coverage will have to find a suitable law firm, pay a sizable deposit, and pay for any of their attorney's costs as they arise - whether they win or lose the case - as it is unlikely that the court will award costs in their favor.
Many professionals seek the protection afforded by forming a Limited Liability Company (LLC) - but the company will still need protection against claims of negligence from clients. Errors and Omissions insurance will help protect the company's assets and if it doesn't have assets, the policy will also protect the directors' or officers' personal assets.
Even if the professional individual or firm adopts the best in-house processes and procedures, does the best work, and never makes a mistake, it may not stop a client from making a claim alleging negligence. The coverage of an Errors and Omissions insurance policy will help to minimize disruption caused by a law suit and protect the reputation and finances of the business.
What To Do To Avoid A Cra Bank Freeze
It is not at all uncommon for a tax payer to have a dispute with the CRA, Canada Revenue Agency. In fact this is something that is quite common. One of the worst things that can happen during this time is that you could be issued a CRA bank freeze if the CRA thinks that you are making more income than you are claiming to them. Until the dispute is settled you might not be able to access your bank accounts or use the money that you have earned. This can be problematic for a lot of reasons, the main one being that you might not be able to pay your bills or take care of your necessities without this money.
There are times when you are going to have expenses that are claimed legitimately or when you are going to have income that you do not have to declare. The problem is that if the CRA believes that you are earning additional income and thinks that it should be claimed then they can actually issue a CRA bank freeze so that they can seize their money should you owe it to them. If this happens to you and you believe that it is unfair and unnecessary then the first thing that you should do is make sure to file a notice of objection. This is going to clarify to them that you are supposedly claiming all of your income and giving the honest answers about all of your expenses.
In some instances you might think that you are okay because you have yet to file a return. In fact this is a huge misconception because the CRA can assess your income based on different estimates of your worth. Then they can declare that this is what you owe them taxes for. If you do not have the money that you owe it is still better to file a claim and then to set up a payment plan than to try and avoid filing the claim.
In addition to what they estimate your worth at, if this happens the CRA is also going to issue you penalties. Then they will assess the interest on the amount of money that they feel was owed to them. In the end this is going to be a considerable amount more than what you would have had to pay had you just been honest about your expenses. In addition to issuing the freeze of your accounts, you could end up with a garnishment of your wages or a lien put on your home.
If any of these happen then you must first file a notice of objection in order to get the ball rolling in your favor and to help you clear up these issues legally in court. If you fall into one of these disputes it can be nearly impossible to be objective because of the situation that you are in. You might find that the best thing to do is hire someone who can help you professionally. In addition you will want to make sure that you stay on top of your most current taxes to show effort on your part.
There are times when you are going to have expenses that are claimed legitimately or when you are going to have income that you do not have to declare. The problem is that if the CRA believes that you are earning additional income and thinks that it should be claimed then they can actually issue a CRA bank freeze so that they can seize their money should you owe it to them. If this happens to you and you believe that it is unfair and unnecessary then the first thing that you should do is make sure to file a notice of objection. This is going to clarify to them that you are supposedly claiming all of your income and giving the honest answers about all of your expenses.
In some instances you might think that you are okay because you have yet to file a return. In fact this is a huge misconception because the CRA can assess your income based on different estimates of your worth. Then they can declare that this is what you owe them taxes for. If you do not have the money that you owe it is still better to file a claim and then to set up a payment plan than to try and avoid filing the claim.
In addition to what they estimate your worth at, if this happens the CRA is also going to issue you penalties. Then they will assess the interest on the amount of money that they feel was owed to them. In the end this is going to be a considerable amount more than what you would have had to pay had you just been honest about your expenses. In addition to issuing the freeze of your accounts, you could end up with a garnishment of your wages or a lien put on your home.
If any of these happen then you must first file a notice of objection in order to get the ball rolling in your favor and to help you clear up these issues legally in court. If you fall into one of these disputes it can be nearly impossible to be objective because of the situation that you are in. You might find that the best thing to do is hire someone who can help you professionally. In addition you will want to make sure that you stay on top of your most current taxes to show effort on your part.
Can You Afford Not to Have Insurance for Your Business?
Why should a company have business insurance? Perhaps the number one reason for not having coverage is the financial costs involved. The logic is probably a common one. Why get insurance if it costs too much and nothing has happened to warrant the need for insurance anyway, right? Wrong.
Few things can put you and your company at risk more than unforeseen disasters. You are quite literally one big storm or one major lawsuit away from financial ruin if you don't have some form of adequate coverage for you business -- no matter how big or small it is.
Furthermore, what some perhaps some small business owners or self-employed individuals don't understand is that any business is at risk of being sued for all kinds of reasons. No one can physically protect themselves from every conceivable disaster that can happen at some point in the future. It's why insurance exists. It's why you need business insurance. It's why you need to make the investment in coverage to protect everything you've worked for in establishing and growing your business.
Similarly, one of the greatest risks to some firms is the prospect of being sued for professional misconduct. It's the reason why some businesses need professional liability protections as part of their insurance coverage. Without it, one lawsuit for professional misconduct can not only put your business in serious financial risk, but it can also affect your reputation and those associated with you. Without liability protection, you can be one step away from jeopardizing your professional status permanently.
In fact, if you're a successful and growing business, the amount of people you affect with your activities could be unlimited. The services you provide or even outsource to others could become the subject of litigation without even the slightest of warnings. It is literally impossible for any business to protect themselves from every possible lawsuit without some form of professional liability insurance.
Think about the extent to which your professional conduct can have an impact on others, and the extent to which those activities put you at risk of litigation. You provide direct services to clients. Those clients turn around and use your work in the conduct of their business. This impacts their clients, who use that work to impact others, and so and so forth.
It can literally take years for something to become the subject of litigation at some point in the future. Without professional liability protection as part of your business insurance coverage, a lawsuit can strike and you won't know what hit you. This can be avoided by smart businesses that protect themselves with foresight and the proper coverage.
What some business owners aren't aware of is that some jurisdictions won't even allow you to have a license or conduct business without insurance which can include professional liability coverage. Some businesses won't deal with you unless you have professional liability coverage because they don't want to be the subject of a lawsuit themselves. By getting professional liability coverage as part of your business insurance coverage, you're essentially engaging in good business practice as well a protecting yourself from the risk of litigation big or small.
Now, some business owners or professionals might think that their conduct is above reproach. For that reason, they might think that things like professional liability insurance coverage are unnecessary. If you do everything by the book, and provide the kind of service and professionalism you know you're capable of, some people think that's good enough.
There are two basic reasons why this thinking is flawed.
The first is that you're human. You're going to make mistakes. And all it takes is one mistake and you could be ruined. As much as it might be comforting to think that it will never happen to you, the prospect of it happening should be of enough concern to you. Think about it. It's after disaster happens when you say to yourself, "I should have seen this coming." By getting professional liability coverage as part of your insurance package, you did see it coming and did something about it to avoid disaster.
The second reason you can't rely on your own conduct is that you simply cannot imagine how frivolous or innocent a lawsuit or allegation can be, and how costly it might end up if you find yourself having to fight it. By having business insurance with liability coverage, you almost take all the worrying off the table. It's only at that point that you can truly feel comfortable in relying on your professionalism and conduct. If the truth wins out, then adequate insurance coverage makes that victory a less anxious and worrisome one.
As much as business owners and professionals would like to think that they won't be struck by lighting, or that business insurance is too costly, it's only smart and prudent to ensure that you have the right coverage that includes professional liability. Otherwise, one morning you might wake up and notice you've been served with a notice of litigation, and your business life can flash right before your eyes.
Bicycle artist
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| Rat, Michael Wallace, 2013. The pictures are by necessity crude, and the charming wobble comes from the accuracy of GPS, which records changes of a few feet. |
Michael Wallace draws pictures using his bicycle, his Samsung Galaxy smartphone, two GPS apps, and the streets of Southeast Baltimore. It’s a simple concept: his phone records his rides (the double apps are in case of crashes). In five years, he has completed nearly 500 drawing-rides.
Wallace prints out Google maps and sketches his route over them. Then he consults Google Maps Satellite View to verify that the route he’s planned actually exists. In an online interview, Wallace said he doesn’t climb or jump fences. When obstacles require changes on the fly, Wallace consults the printed map he's carrying.
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| Downtown Crab, Michael Wallace, 2013. |
Wallace isn’t blindly following his GPS; the act of mapping out the pictures makes him memorize the route. This is analogous to what happens when an artist draws a subject before painting; he can draw it again, much faster and more expressively, because he has memorized the subject. In some way, Wallace is duplicating this drawing process, but while using his whole body.
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| Sailboat, Michael Wallace, 2013. |
I have the same phone and a bicycle. I’m going to try this when I get back to the Duchy.
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
Smart kids
“The smartest kid in class, by contrast, is not an expensive problem. A boy or girl who finishes an assignment early can be handed a book and told to read quietly while the teacher works on getting other children caught up. What would clearly be neglect if it happened to a special-needs child tends to look different if the child is gifted: Being left alone might even feel like a reward, an acknowledgment of being a fast learner.”
When I came across that in a recent Boston Globe pieceon educating gifted kids, I had to laugh. Having once been the smartest kid in my public school class, I was anything but a cheap problem to fix; in fact, my parents ended up sending me to a private school to finish high school. I’m a great example of high intellect swamped by low expectations.
Fast-forward a generation to my own kids’ educations. You would think it would be better, but it’s not. Gifted and talented programs—all the rage before No Child Left Behind—have (if they still exist at all) become shock troops in the military boarding school approach to education we’ve adopted. More seat work, more homework, no time for things like art and music.
Busy work is the bane of the bright child’s existence. It teaches him to blow off his homework and rely on test-taking skills to get by. Moreover, it ignores developing the synthetic, intuitive parts of his brain, which are developedby studying art and music, and, yes, by daydreaming.
I have a friend who’s a classicist, living in penury as an adjunct professor. I’ve often thought that our school district should send three kids to her and pay her the roughly $65,000 it gets for educating them for a year. After four years, they would know history, music, the arts, Greek and Latin.
And before you tell me that’s not enough, America was built by people with exactly that education.
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
Will your neighborhood art historian be replaced by a robot?
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The most expensive painting on record is currently Paul Cezanne’s The Card Players, which sold for an estimated $259 million in 2011. (The exact price is unknown.) |
In a paper entitled Toward Automated Discovery Of Artistic Influence, Babak Saleh and his Rutgers team claim to have used imaging software and ‘classification systems’ to automate the process of identifying artistic influences.
Last week, Apollo Magazine askedwhether robots can indeed replace art historians. They reached the same conclusions as did I—nope—but for different reasons.
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The second most expensive painting on record is currently Jackson Pollock’s No. 5, 1948, which sold for $140 million in 2006. |
The international art market moved $66 billion last year, so the experts in authenticating and analyzing paintings are valuable. And when they work at museums and galleries, art history majors are not badly paid. In 2009, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, museum curators and archivists made slightly more than $45,000 a year.
But the rub is when art historians enter the academic stream. While post-secondary teaching jobs are expected to growin the next decade, even the BLS admits that many of these jobs will be for adjuncts, or part-timers. In fact, more than ¾ of college professors are adjuncts, and their wages are abysmal: between $1000 and $5000 per course. As Salon pointed out this month, that leads to professors with PhDs earning the same amount as the average full-time barista—who’s not expected to do curriculum development or grade papers on his own time.
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The third most expensive painting on record is currently Willem de Kooning’s Woman III, which sold for $137.5 million in 2006. |
Why does the United States tolerate a system where university educations are obscenely expensive at the same time as they’re being provided by slave labor? Beats me. But there is no reason to automate intellectual disciplines when we pay them atrociously. Your art history degree is safe for now.
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
Consolidation Loans With Bad Credit: 3 Ways They Can Improve Your Financial Position
As debt mounts, the pressure to repay them increases dramatically. But while the simple solution is obvious, the reality is that the ability to pay lessens as debts rise. The most practical solution? A consolidation loan, with bad credit borrowers getting the funds needed to clear their debts in one go.
Of course, there are other ways to get rid of debt, but not all of them have a positive outcome. Filing for bankruptcy, for example, can see the debt lifted with the minimal settlement payment made (often nothing paid) but it can affect your credit rating for up to 10 years. With the right debt consolidation program, however, the consequences are all positive.
There are several aspects to getting a consolidation loan that must be addressed if the program is to be as effective, but the advantages are significantly greater than any compromise that may have to be made. Here are just 3 of them.
1. A Clean Slate Through Consolidation
Consolidation is not about getting off paying your various individual debts, but is really about replacing them with a more manageable single debt. To this end, taking out a consolidation loan with bad credit is the most practical way to clearing the credit slate and starting again.
For example, if a person as 5 individual loans to repay each month, they have to manage 5 different repayment schedules, 5 different loan balances at 5 different interest rates. This can be a nightmare to manage, but with a debt consolidation program, everything is melted into one payment on one repayment schedule.
And with the slate cleaned, the pressure is lifted for the long term with the only obligation being to repay the consolidation loan each month, over the duration.
2. Free Up Extra Cash
It is one thing to lift the pressure of repaying mounting debts, but it is another to improve the living standards for the borrowers themselves. But even when securing a consolidation loan with bad credit, this is the outcome. How? Because it also frees up extra cash.
Typically, the problem with repaying the original loans is that there is not enough cash to hand to make the repayments. As the arrears build up, the situation worsens and eventually no payments can be made at all. Through a debt consolidation program, the total debt is restructured to lower the monthly obligations.
For example, if repayments on 5 loans amounted to $1,000, the lower interest rate and longer repayment term on a consolidation loan can see the obligation fall to just $500. That leaves an extra $500 to hand every month to cover other bills and expenses.
3. Restore Credit Reputations
While effective debt management is the key purpose behind consolidation, there is another positive consequence – restoring your credit reputation. This occurs because by securing a consolidation loan with bad credit, your credit scores rise.
Unlike other debt management initiatives, a debt consolidation program buys out all of the debts so they are marked down as having been repaid in full. This fact means that your credit score is increased, thus moving the borrower into the good credit range.
Perhaps more importantly though, the reduction in debt repayments means the debt-to-income ratio is improved too. And since this is the key factor in all loan approval processes, the consolidation loan can make a huge difference to future loan applications too.
Of course, there are other ways to get rid of debt, but not all of them have a positive outcome. Filing for bankruptcy, for example, can see the debt lifted with the minimal settlement payment made (often nothing paid) but it can affect your credit rating for up to 10 years. With the right debt consolidation program, however, the consequences are all positive.
There are several aspects to getting a consolidation loan that must be addressed if the program is to be as effective, but the advantages are significantly greater than any compromise that may have to be made. Here are just 3 of them.
1. A Clean Slate Through Consolidation
Consolidation is not about getting off paying your various individual debts, but is really about replacing them with a more manageable single debt. To this end, taking out a consolidation loan with bad credit is the most practical way to clearing the credit slate and starting again.
For example, if a person as 5 individual loans to repay each month, they have to manage 5 different repayment schedules, 5 different loan balances at 5 different interest rates. This can be a nightmare to manage, but with a debt consolidation program, everything is melted into one payment on one repayment schedule.
And with the slate cleaned, the pressure is lifted for the long term with the only obligation being to repay the consolidation loan each month, over the duration.
2. Free Up Extra Cash
It is one thing to lift the pressure of repaying mounting debts, but it is another to improve the living standards for the borrowers themselves. But even when securing a consolidation loan with bad credit, this is the outcome. How? Because it also frees up extra cash.
Typically, the problem with repaying the original loans is that there is not enough cash to hand to make the repayments. As the arrears build up, the situation worsens and eventually no payments can be made at all. Through a debt consolidation program, the total debt is restructured to lower the monthly obligations.
For example, if repayments on 5 loans amounted to $1,000, the lower interest rate and longer repayment term on a consolidation loan can see the obligation fall to just $500. That leaves an extra $500 to hand every month to cover other bills and expenses.
3. Restore Credit Reputations
While effective debt management is the key purpose behind consolidation, there is another positive consequence – restoring your credit reputation. This occurs because by securing a consolidation loan with bad credit, your credit scores rise.
Unlike other debt management initiatives, a debt consolidation program buys out all of the debts so they are marked down as having been repaid in full. This fact means that your credit score is increased, thus moving the borrower into the good credit range.
Perhaps more importantly though, the reduction in debt repayments means the debt-to-income ratio is improved too. And since this is the key factor in all loan approval processes, the consolidation loan can make a huge difference to future loan applications too.
How To Identify The Best Colorado Mortgage Companies
Several places are available for obtaining mortgage rates from different Colorado Mortgage companies. Look at the ads or scour the advanced engines online and you will find many companies offering different rates in your area. Try to find one in the state of Colorado when you are looking for the best Denver refinance rates. The homes in and around Colorado are unique and offer homes that range from modest to luxury.
First, try to find a Mortgage company that offers quotes that spell low interest rates. However, just because the company offers low rates does not mean that they are the best. It is important to ascertain that they have a reputation in the area and are not out to take your money by luring you with false quotes. You should start by examining the fees charged for the mortgage loans. Each company offers different closing costs which you should note. The terms and condition of Colorado Mortgage companies differ and therefore you should be able to make your final decision after studying these points and making comparative notes. The company you select should have excellent customer service and answer all your queries. They should be experienced in the field and help you understand the rates and quotes that are offered.
Refinance is the term that refers to the replacement of a current home loan debt with another obligation of debt with different terms. People do this to either extend the length of the repayment period or to change the existing parameter. People may prefer to pay the Denver refinance rates if their present agreement involves adjustable interest rates. Due to various reasons such as economic turmoil, the interest rates may fluctuate and this affects the mortgage interest rates. This may cause someone in Denver to refinance the adjustable rate mortgage and make it a fixed rate to enable them to pay the amount determined beforehand on the mortgage.
If you plan to live long in your current home in Denver, then you can use this option of refinancing. Call your mortgage counselor and ask them for their valued advice and guidance. They will explain the benefits and disadvantages and help you make the right decision. People in Denver are now refinancing their mortgages in the hope of getting a lower rate. Some people may use their mortgage on their property in Denver to consolidate debts. They may be able to transfer their debt from a high interest rate to a lower interest rate and save money.
There are many reasons to refinance the mortgage but it is important to know the different options and consider the pros and cons when taking one on the Denver home. Beacon Financial is a private company that arranges for loans, using money of others. They offer exceptional service and great rates including low closing costs. This is why you should select one of the best mortgage companies in Colorado to help you make a vital decision on Denver refinancing.
First, try to find a Mortgage company that offers quotes that spell low interest rates. However, just because the company offers low rates does not mean that they are the best. It is important to ascertain that they have a reputation in the area and are not out to take your money by luring you with false quotes. You should start by examining the fees charged for the mortgage loans. Each company offers different closing costs which you should note. The terms and condition of Colorado Mortgage companies differ and therefore you should be able to make your final decision after studying these points and making comparative notes. The company you select should have excellent customer service and answer all your queries. They should be experienced in the field and help you understand the rates and quotes that are offered.
Refinance is the term that refers to the replacement of a current home loan debt with another obligation of debt with different terms. People do this to either extend the length of the repayment period or to change the existing parameter. People may prefer to pay the Denver refinance rates if their present agreement involves adjustable interest rates. Due to various reasons such as economic turmoil, the interest rates may fluctuate and this affects the mortgage interest rates. This may cause someone in Denver to refinance the adjustable rate mortgage and make it a fixed rate to enable them to pay the amount determined beforehand on the mortgage.
If you plan to live long in your current home in Denver, then you can use this option of refinancing. Call your mortgage counselor and ask them for their valued advice and guidance. They will explain the benefits and disadvantages and help you make the right decision. People in Denver are now refinancing their mortgages in the hope of getting a lower rate. Some people may use their mortgage on their property in Denver to consolidate debts. They may be able to transfer their debt from a high interest rate to a lower interest rate and save money.
There are many reasons to refinance the mortgage but it is important to know the different options and consider the pros and cons when taking one on the Denver home. Beacon Financial is a private company that arranges for loans, using money of others. They offer exceptional service and great rates including low closing costs. This is why you should select one of the best mortgage companies in Colorado to help you make a vital decision on Denver refinancing.
Creativity
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Maternity, Mary Cassatt, 1890. |
Sorry about the delayed post. I was busy caring for a baby.
Actually, I’m not all that sorry. After all, all other creativity derives from this fundamental beginning of life. The word “create” derives from the Latin creare: ‘to make, bring forth, produce, beget,’ and is related to crescere: ‘arise, grow.’ My etymology dictionary also links the latter to the Greek kouros (boy), and kore (girl), but I’ll take that with a grain of salt.
Most of the artists I know are childless, and the ones who do have children struggle to resolve the demands of their careers with the demands of parenting. Not that this isn’t true of all careers, but there’s something about the creative impulse that seems to channel in one direction or another. I’m an outlier because not only do I have kids, I have a lot of them.
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| Breakfast in Bed, Mary Cassatt, 1897. |
My daughter had a difficult delivery and I’m back in Pittsfield helping her until I’m sure she’s recovered.
We Americans have a weird attitude toward parenting. In trying to give women equal access to the marketplace, we’ve relegated parenting to the status of a hobby or a part-time job. Done right, it’s difficult work, demanding high levels of organization, energy, intelligence and time. My daughter is a well-paid professional, and I don’t want to see her dump her career to stay home. But having worked through my own parenting years, I also don’t want to see her wandering around in a fog of exhaustion, either.
But enough of this. Junior needs changing and his mom needs her meds before we start the round of doctor’s office, visiting nurse, visiting specialist. This baby stuff is a lot of work.
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Baby Reaching For An Apple, Mary Cassatt, 1893 |
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
How Unsecured Credit Card Debt Can Be Cleared Through Consolidation
There are plenty of things we would rather do than worry about loans and bills. It might be vacationing through Europe, or charity work in Africa, or hitting the road on a coast-to-coast tour of the USA. But whatever it is, the debt we have built up is ruining such plans. Clearing debt, especially unsecured credit card debt, is possible, and consolidation offers the best solution.
It never fails to amaze people how easily credit cards bills can get out of control, creating a debt that is nothing short of crippling. But it is comforting to know that it is possible to alleviate the situation regardless of how bad the situation has become. Even getting debt consolidation with bad credit is a realistic target.
And with unsecured credit cards providing the majority of debt in the typical American household, the most positive impact that can be made on debt management is a consolidation loan that replaces the troublesome terms with something far more manageable.
What Is Consolidation
Consult the dictionary and consolidation is explained as the bringing together of a number of elements in order to create a stronger position. It depends on the context, but the concept is there. When it comes to clearing unsecured credit card debt, it is a matter of bringing all of the individual card balances together so as to pay them off in one go.
With the average American having 4 credit cards, and combined credit limits of $30,000, the job of managing these credit cards can be a serious task. Each card has different interest rates, and different late fees, so the size of the debt can become large very quickly.
Even when opting for debt consolidation with bad credit, it is possible to get a fixed sum of $30,000 to pay off the debt created by the unsecured credit cards in one simple payment. And replacing it with a single loan repayment over a longer term makes the debt easy to pay back.
Advantages Consolidation Provides
There are several advantages to using consolidation loans to clear unsecured credit card debt, not just the fact that the debt is removed in one go. For a start, the credit rating of the debtor is immediately improved.
Another is that the job of repaying the new consolidation loan is made easier by the terms of the loan. For example, the debt may still be $30,000, but the sum can be repaid over 10 years. This means that monthly repayments of just $265 are needed to pay off the sum. So, even when opting for debt consolidation with bad credit, the financial pressure is alleviated greatly.
However, the advantages enjoyed depend on the terms secured, the total debt to be cleared and the source of the debt consolidation loan. This means that despite the benefits of paying off your unsecured credit cards, there are some issues to consider.
Your Consolidation Source
There are two main sources of a consolidation loan: firstly, a general loan provider, whether traditional or online; and secondly, from a dedicated debt consolidation company. When considering the best to use to clear your unsecured credit card debt, it is important to understand the difference.
From a regular lender, a consolidation loan is usually available at competitive terms but when trying to get debt consolidation with bad credit, there may be issues over the size of the possible loan. This creates a problem if the debt is very high.
However, a company will take on larger debt on you have, and even negotiate a final settlement sum with your creditors. In return, they will charge a fee as well as accept monthly repayments at a competitive interest rate. Either way your unsecured credit cards are paid off and your financial status improved.
It never fails to amaze people how easily credit cards bills can get out of control, creating a debt that is nothing short of crippling. But it is comforting to know that it is possible to alleviate the situation regardless of how bad the situation has become. Even getting debt consolidation with bad credit is a realistic target.
And with unsecured credit cards providing the majority of debt in the typical American household, the most positive impact that can be made on debt management is a consolidation loan that replaces the troublesome terms with something far more manageable.
What Is Consolidation
Consult the dictionary and consolidation is explained as the bringing together of a number of elements in order to create a stronger position. It depends on the context, but the concept is there. When it comes to clearing unsecured credit card debt, it is a matter of bringing all of the individual card balances together so as to pay them off in one go.
With the average American having 4 credit cards, and combined credit limits of $30,000, the job of managing these credit cards can be a serious task. Each card has different interest rates, and different late fees, so the size of the debt can become large very quickly.
Even when opting for debt consolidation with bad credit, it is possible to get a fixed sum of $30,000 to pay off the debt created by the unsecured credit cards in one simple payment. And replacing it with a single loan repayment over a longer term makes the debt easy to pay back.
Advantages Consolidation Provides
There are several advantages to using consolidation loans to clear unsecured credit card debt, not just the fact that the debt is removed in one go. For a start, the credit rating of the debtor is immediately improved.
Another is that the job of repaying the new consolidation loan is made easier by the terms of the loan. For example, the debt may still be $30,000, but the sum can be repaid over 10 years. This means that monthly repayments of just $265 are needed to pay off the sum. So, even when opting for debt consolidation with bad credit, the financial pressure is alleviated greatly.
However, the advantages enjoyed depend on the terms secured, the total debt to be cleared and the source of the debt consolidation loan. This means that despite the benefits of paying off your unsecured credit cards, there are some issues to consider.
Your Consolidation Source
There are two main sources of a consolidation loan: firstly, a general loan provider, whether traditional or online; and secondly, from a dedicated debt consolidation company. When considering the best to use to clear your unsecured credit card debt, it is important to understand the difference.
From a regular lender, a consolidation loan is usually available at competitive terms but when trying to get debt consolidation with bad credit, there may be issues over the size of the possible loan. This creates a problem if the debt is very high.
However, a company will take on larger debt on you have, and even negotiate a final settlement sum with your creditors. In return, they will charge a fee as well as accept monthly repayments at a competitive interest rate. Either way your unsecured credit cards are paid off and your financial status improved.
New drug boosts creativity, cures hypertension, depression, and diabetes... and it's free!
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| A young walker in the Duchy. |
A Stanford studyearlier this year found that walking boosts creativity. This is a real-time effect, and it lasts during the time you’re walking and for a short while thereafter. It gives legs to the idea that we get our best ideas while walking.
This will come as no surprise to people who walk regularly. I have no idea how it motivates the circuitry of one’s brain (any more than I understand how it massages the gut or how it strengthens back muscles) but as a lifelong walker, I’m convinced it works. It certainly reduces anxiety. I’m finding myself walking upwards of six miles a day this month, and it’s done much to assuage my grief and worry over the upheavals in my personal life.
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| Walking every day has the perverse effect of making me like winter more, although I'm not always keen on the way sidewalks are maintained here in Rochester. |
Although I’ve been a dedicated walker/runner/hiker my whole adult life, about five years ago my doctor started making noises at me about cholesterol and high blood pressure. I realized that I needed to ramp up the pace. Now it’s the first thing I do every day, and I’m willing to spend at least two hours a day exercising.
The biggest objection people make to walking is, “I don’t have the time.” On the other hand, the average American watches five hours of television a day.
I’m self-employed, so I can set my own schedule. I walk my husband to work every morning. Most married couples have very little time to talk to each other; we are guaranteed the better part of an hour together. (Since the average car in the US costs more than $9000 a year to own and operate, we save a lot of money, too.)
Later in the morning, I walk with a small posse. Who shows up varies by the day, but we’re all self-employed or telecommuters.
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| Walking is gentle on the environment. This is the annual salt collection at the side of our street after the snow melts. It's a miracle anything grows here. |
It’s paid off: I’m apparently the only middle-aged American who isn’t takingsome kind of prescription drug. Nearly 70 percent of Americans of all ages are on at least one medication, and more than half take two or more. Among women in my age cohort, a stunning one in four are taking antidepressants.
Walking is cheap. It makes you creative, it makes you happy, it gives you great gams, and it mitigates many diseases of aging like diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol. Why doesn’t everyone do it?
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
Philistines, everywhere
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| Graffiti on the Colby Street pedestrian bridge in Rochester. I trudge over it daily, so I can certainly relate to these two flipper men doing endless laps on the bridge. |
Being a believer in private property rights, I’m generally not amused by graffiti, but last Friday when I came across two swimmers on the Colby Street pedestrian bridge, I genuinely LOLed. The pedestrian bridge does kind of look like a 50-meter lap lane, and because it’s a regular part of my route, I often feel like I’m swimming mindlessly back and forth across it.
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| Meh. Not as witty as the first graffiti-artist, but at least he was trying. |
Periodically, people commit acts of art on the pedestrian bridge (usually involving arrangements of found objects). They seldom last more than 24 hours before some Philistine knocks them apart. So I wasn’t surprised to walk by on Monday and see the poor swimmers defaced with a second layer of graffiti. It wasn’t nearly as witty, but at least the poor anonymous second writer tried.
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| But then comes the inevitable and predictable impulse to destruction. Really makes you despair for the human race. |
Tuesday, the whole thing was scrubbed out by a third graffiti artist, whose only goal was to deface the message that preceded him.
It’s a great metaphor for the forces of creation and destruction that coexist in the human heart. In my current bleak mood, it makes me wonder why artists even try.
My young friend Serina Mo reminded me of this recently by mentioning the aged enfants terrible of the British art scene, Jake and Dinos Chapman. In their massive work of destruction, Insult to Injury, they defaced a rare folio of Francisco Goya’s Disasters of War.
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| From Insult to Injury, 2003, by Jake and Dinos Chapman. The Chapman brothers added nothing to Goya's work. I hope they fade into obscurity, taking their micron pens with them. |
In the short run, it made them famous. It tore at notions of preciousness and art. In the long run, it made the tremendous presumption that modern sensibilities and intellectualism are superior to the pain and suffering drawn by Goya. If nothing else, the world should know by now that rich, silly ninnies are transient, but war and death are eternal verities.
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
Everything I know about cleaning
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Hercules rerouting the rivers Alpheus and Peneus to clean the Augean stables, Roman mosaic, 3rd century AD. The Fifth Labor of Hercules was intended to be humiliating and impossible, since the livestock were divine and produced enormous quantities of manure. No metaphor there. |
I am trying to put my house and studio in order after months on the road.
There are those who might think this should be blank, because I don’t know anything about cleaning, but they would in fact be wrong. Most orderly people don’t need to think about how they keep things up; I have to think about it a great deal.
- Be driven by process, not results: King Augeas' stables are very dirty and if you’re not Hercules, the only way to get them clean is to plug along despite how little progress it appears you are making. Yesterday I managed to get half a room finished; I was stalled by the piles of receipts and bills that needed attention on the dining room table. I can either be driven nuts by this, or I can just plug along until I finish.
- Actually put stuff away. That really slows you down—especially if you think the stuff has no place—but in the end it’s far more effective than moving piles of stuff from point to point.
- Or get rid of stuff. We 21st century Americans are drowning in material goods. To me there’s energy and potential in open space.
- Clean the perimeter first, starting at one point and working your way around the room. I read this in a book about professional cleaning, and it really works. I think it’s a continuation of point #1: if you’re looking at the walls, you can’t be driven nuts by your current lack of results.
- Don’t clean what isn’t dirty. Don’t straighten what isn’t messed up.
- Do all cleaning in a single pass. I am lucky enough to have modern windows, and I clean them whenever I clean my rooms. It’s dumb to pull the furniture out to vacuum and then not do the crown-molding, the windows, and the chair rails.
- Once you get one corner of your space clean, protect it; it’s a place to retreat when you lose your mind. Normally, this is the second floor of my house, which I generally keep pretty tidy. However, my peripatetic paintings from the RIT show seem to be wandering around up there looking for a home. So for now, I’m taking solace in the fact that my freezer—which was full of ice because someone had neglected to pull the door totally closed—is now immaculate. Even that small rectangle of order is enough to prevent me from losing my mind.
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Hercules takes a break, Attic black figure skyphos, c. 500 B.C. The goddess Athena is pouring him a cup of wine. (Mount Holyoke College Art Museum) |
Mastering chaos
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Francis Bacon is the icon of messy-studio advocates. He was renowned as much for the awful state of his studio as for his brilliant painting, but he did occasionally attempt to clear it. Electrician Mac Robertson was working at Bacon’s studio when he saw the artist disposing of ephemera. He asked to keep it, and thirty years later, sold it for more than a million dollars. There's a lesson in that, but I hardly know what it is. |
There is a myth that creatives enjoy working in chaos, but that isn’t true. All people tend to create messes when in the throes of work, but most of them understand that when they are finished, they need to clean them up. Creating order doesn’t come easily to me, but as an adult I’ve learned it’s the only way I can be productive.
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Contemporary Australian painter McLean Edwards continues the Bacon tradition in his Sydney studio. If I were his mother, I'd tell him to clean that mess up, and to stop drinking while painting. |
I think this idea of the messy artist is a continuation of the myth of artists-as-geniuses, and it actually stops many people from being as productive as they might otherwise be. The vast majority of us do not thrive in chaotic working and living conditions. I’ve been in many of my peers’ studios, and most of them are sensible, organized workrooms. (In some cases, what an outsider perceives as clutter is actually just order in a very small space.)
I would normally “reset” my studio and workshop in the early fall anyway—go through my stock, winnow supplies, and reorganize shelves. For me, chaos effectively blanks out all thinking, and I like the idea of spring and fall cleaning.
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| To the contrary, note that Jackson Pollock's chaos was pretty much confined to his canvases. |
This year, it’s worse, because my RIT show was pulled for being obscene, and the work ended up stacked in the middle of my studio floor. At a loss about how to put it away in a hurry, I moved it to my bedroom, where it’s still in the way. Until I get it properly stored, there’s no easy living in my house.
On top of that, there are three months of mail to go through, and three months of dirt to vacuum. (My family did a decent job of maintaining order, but the finer points of housekeeping are beyond them.)
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
Debt Settlement Programs Or Bankruptcy: How To Choose Wisely
When managing debts becomes too much, a choice needs to be made. Should a file for bankruptcy be made, or should one of the debt settlement programs be applied for? This is a choice that needs to be thought over deeply before any move is made.
The reason this decision is not that simple is that there are serious repercussions to choosing bankruptcy, and even if that is the only logical option, there are a number of bankruptcy chapters under which debtors can file. Increasingly, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan is becoming the preferred option, but other chapters are 7, 11, 12, and are just as efficient in ridding oneself of debt.
However, while debt settlement is more expensive and less damaging to credit histories, they do not always turn out to be the saving grace that applicants would like them to be. So, when clearing existing debts, which of the two is the right one to choose?
Check Your Own Status
The first step in ascertaining the best choice is not to look at the options, but to look at yourself. Depending on your credit and financial status, either bankruptcy or a debt settlement program will provide the most effective solution. And reading your credit report is the starting point.
Once the true extent of your debt problem is confirmed, it is possible to work out what the right debt relief option is, based on what kind of deal is affordable. When debts are slightly greater than income, then a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan is likely to be the right choice. When it is very much greater, Chapter 7 might be the most plausible choice.
However, if there is still some income more than debts, then a settlement deal is likely to be affordable. The complication is that, while a settlement involves clearing existing debts for a fraction of their worth, it still requires a lump sum payment to complete the deal. Saving up that lump sum is the problem.
Terms of Bankruptcy Chapters
There are four chapters to the Code of Bankruptcy that any bankruptcy case can be filed under: chapters 7, 11, 12, and 13, The key differences between them relate to the extent of the poor financial situation an applicant has, and the likelihood that a debt settlement program cannot be approved.
Chapter 7 is filed by those seeing liquidation or straight bankruptcy where debts are completely written off. The other options relate to reorganizing debt, with Chapter 11 filed by businesses seeking to reorganize their debt, but not to liquidate. Chapter 12 is applicable to family farmers seeking to reorganize.
However, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan is sought by individuals who earn the average income or higher in the state the case is filed in. The court decides on the terms of the debt reorganization, and continuously monitors the repayment progress. So, clearing existing debts is done under strict conditions.
Bankruptcy or Settlement?
The basic deciding factor is cost, with the fees associated with a debt settlement program almost double that of the costs of filing for bankruptcy. But there is also the matter of monthly repayments and other terms associated with the type of bankruptcy. If the Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan is more affordable than the settlement plan, it makes sense to choose the former.
But the consequences of the decision need to be considered too. For example, clearing existing debts through a settlement plan will reduce a credit score by around 50 points, but bankruptcy cuts it by a minimum of 200 points. And it will be on your record for 10 years, while with a settlement plan, credit is returned after 2 years.
The reason this decision is not that simple is that there are serious repercussions to choosing bankruptcy, and even if that is the only logical option, there are a number of bankruptcy chapters under which debtors can file. Increasingly, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan is becoming the preferred option, but other chapters are 7, 11, 12, and are just as efficient in ridding oneself of debt.
However, while debt settlement is more expensive and less damaging to credit histories, they do not always turn out to be the saving grace that applicants would like them to be. So, when clearing existing debts, which of the two is the right one to choose?
Check Your Own Status
The first step in ascertaining the best choice is not to look at the options, but to look at yourself. Depending on your credit and financial status, either bankruptcy or a debt settlement program will provide the most effective solution. And reading your credit report is the starting point.
Once the true extent of your debt problem is confirmed, it is possible to work out what the right debt relief option is, based on what kind of deal is affordable. When debts are slightly greater than income, then a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan is likely to be the right choice. When it is very much greater, Chapter 7 might be the most plausible choice.
However, if there is still some income more than debts, then a settlement deal is likely to be affordable. The complication is that, while a settlement involves clearing existing debts for a fraction of their worth, it still requires a lump sum payment to complete the deal. Saving up that lump sum is the problem.
Terms of Bankruptcy Chapters
There are four chapters to the Code of Bankruptcy that any bankruptcy case can be filed under: chapters 7, 11, 12, and 13, The key differences between them relate to the extent of the poor financial situation an applicant has, and the likelihood that a debt settlement program cannot be approved.
Chapter 7 is filed by those seeing liquidation or straight bankruptcy where debts are completely written off. The other options relate to reorganizing debt, with Chapter 11 filed by businesses seeking to reorganize their debt, but not to liquidate. Chapter 12 is applicable to family farmers seeking to reorganize.
However, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan is sought by individuals who earn the average income or higher in the state the case is filed in. The court decides on the terms of the debt reorganization, and continuously monitors the repayment progress. So, clearing existing debts is done under strict conditions.
Bankruptcy or Settlement?
The basic deciding factor is cost, with the fees associated with a debt settlement program almost double that of the costs of filing for bankruptcy. But there is also the matter of monthly repayments and other terms associated with the type of bankruptcy. If the Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan is more affordable than the settlement plan, it makes sense to choose the former.
But the consequences of the decision need to be considered too. For example, clearing existing debts through a settlement plan will reduce a credit score by around 50 points, but bankruptcy cuts it by a minimum of 200 points. And it will be on your record for 10 years, while with a settlement plan, credit is returned after 2 years.
The Glasgow Boys
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A Hind's Daughter, James Guthrie,1883 |
Quebec has tried twice and failed to secede from Canada. The referendum of 1995 was considered a foregone conclusion by pollsters; commentators breathlessly discussed whether the Maritime Provinces—separated from the rest of Canada—would ask to join the United States. However, the polls were wrong and although the Parti Québécois remains a political force, the idea of Quebec separatism is spent.
Yesterday Scotland also ignored the polls and voted to stay in the United Kingdom. Hopefully, the Scottish separatist movement will go the way of the Parti Québécois. In honor of that, let me give you a tiny bit of Scottish painting.
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The head of the Holy Loch, George Henry |
The Glasgow Boys are called the Scottish Impressionists, but they’re more similar to the Australian Heidelberg School painters in their sentimental attachment to their history. Their painting was done en plein air with free brush work and an emphasis on the play of light. But they were not interested in modern life—as were the French Impressionists—but in the romance of Scotland’s rural past.
Considering the blanket of pollution over 19th century Glasgow, the workers packed into its tenements, and the befouling of the River Clyde, that made sense. What rich industrialist wanted a painting of the environmental and social mess his new-found wealth had helped create?
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
Why are art babies so ugly?
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The Haller Madonna, Albrecht Dürer, 1498 |
We interrupt this regularly-scheduled programming to address the age-old question of why babies in paintings are often deformed, distorted, and generally ugly. (And, BTW, this phenom isn’t limited to Renaissance babies, no matter what the current meme says.) It isn’t because the artists can’t draw; I’ve included examples by superb draftsmen.
There are a lot of theories about this, covering context to symbolism to the possibility that earlier babies just were not that good looking in the first place.
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The Baby Marcelle Roulin, Vincent van Gogh, 1888 |
Having had several babies myself, and having done a lot of figure painting, I think the answer is much simpler: babies make lousy models. They squirm and howl when they’re uncomfortable, and they won’t hold a pose. They have no muscle tone and very little neck, and they wobble. Pre-photography, the best the artist could do was limb in a few lines and return the pathetic little creature to its mother’s arms.
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The Three Ages of Man, Titian, 1511 |
On the other hand, I’ve always wondered why so many Renaissance infants are pictured wearing jewelry. Didn’t they get the memo about choking hazards?
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Newborn Baby in a Crib, Lavinia Fontana, c. 1583 |
Enough of this. I have a new little grandson to go visit. He arrived squalling into the world last night, and I haven’t yet begun to paint his portrait.
Message me if you want information about next year’s classes and workshops.
Debt Consolidation Loans With Bad Credit: Solving Financial Woes In One Fell Swoop
The pressure created through quickly mounting debts can cause real chaos. It does not take long for creditors to begin to demand payment, and unless something is done to deal with the problem, bankruptcy becomes a real possibility. So what is the solution? Well, it is not difficult to secure a debt consolidation loan with bad credit, and to clear the troublesome debts in one go.
The challenge of clearing existing debts, and lifting the weight that can cripple even the hardest working of us, is no light matter. It usually requires great discipline to take control of debts, making it extremely difficult to achieve independently.
A precisely tailored consolidation plan can make a real impact, and a debt consolidation loan provides the means to restructure the money owed into something that is manageable to handle. But how is this possible, and what are the terms that should be sought?
How Consolidation Is The Answer
Applying for a debt consolidation loan with bad credit is a good decision, but it may seem strange that a new loan can actually make your debt situation better. Knowing how consolidation works is the best way to ascertain the effectiveness of the strategy. In its simplest form, consolidation replaces multiple debts with a single loan, thereby removing the complexity and lessening the burden.
The biggest problem with multiple loans and debts is that they each have their own terms. So, 5 loans will have 5 different interest rates and 5 different repayment dates. That means the amount of interest is higher than it needs to be, but clearing existing debts with a single loan means a single interest rate is paid.
And even the principal if the debt consolidation loan is $50,000 to buy out the individual loans, the terms can be much better than those original debts combined, making it much more affordable than the original deals.
What Terms Should Be Sought
Of course, applying for a debt consolidation loan with bad credit is one thing, but securing terms that make it worthwhile is another. By and large, lenders offering consolidation packages are willing to offer very flexible terms, but the key issues are the interest rate and the loan term.
The interest rate can be quite low, but what is most important is that the rate is significantly lower than the average rate charged on the existing loans. That way, clearing existing debts and replacing them with a new loan can be accomplished while making savings - as much as 50% on monthly repayments.
Crucially, however, it is the size of the loan principal that makes the biggest impact, and this is where the loan term comes in. With 5 loans to pay each month, the total sum could easily reach $1,500, but even a $50,000 debt consolidation loan repaid over 10 years could be half that amount. The longer the lifetime of the loan is, the lower the required monthly repayment.
Considering a Consolidation Company
When it comes to applying for a debt consolidation loan with bad credit, there are two chief options. The first is to approach a lender (traditional or online) and apply for a loan large enough to clear existing debts. While securing a large loan might be difficult usually, if the purpose is known to be debt consolidation, approval is more likely.
However, there is no guarantee of approval and this means that the problems might only persist. Another option is to approach a debt consolidation company, professional service providers who will buy out your debt and then receive monthly repayments directly.
Of course, this option is a little more expensive as there are fees to pay on top of interest on the debt consolidation loan. Still, the cost is manageable, and progress in lifting the debt is certain to be made.
By: Mark Venite
The challenge of clearing existing debts, and lifting the weight that can cripple even the hardest working of us, is no light matter. It usually requires great discipline to take control of debts, making it extremely difficult to achieve independently.
A precisely tailored consolidation plan can make a real impact, and a debt consolidation loan provides the means to restructure the money owed into something that is manageable to handle. But how is this possible, and what are the terms that should be sought?
How Consolidation Is The Answer
Applying for a debt consolidation loan with bad credit is a good decision, but it may seem strange that a new loan can actually make your debt situation better. Knowing how consolidation works is the best way to ascertain the effectiveness of the strategy. In its simplest form, consolidation replaces multiple debts with a single loan, thereby removing the complexity and lessening the burden.
The biggest problem with multiple loans and debts is that they each have their own terms. So, 5 loans will have 5 different interest rates and 5 different repayment dates. That means the amount of interest is higher than it needs to be, but clearing existing debts with a single loan means a single interest rate is paid.
And even the principal if the debt consolidation loan is $50,000 to buy out the individual loans, the terms can be much better than those original debts combined, making it much more affordable than the original deals.
What Terms Should Be Sought
Of course, applying for a debt consolidation loan with bad credit is one thing, but securing terms that make it worthwhile is another. By and large, lenders offering consolidation packages are willing to offer very flexible terms, but the key issues are the interest rate and the loan term.
The interest rate can be quite low, but what is most important is that the rate is significantly lower than the average rate charged on the existing loans. That way, clearing existing debts and replacing them with a new loan can be accomplished while making savings - as much as 50% on monthly repayments.
Crucially, however, it is the size of the loan principal that makes the biggest impact, and this is where the loan term comes in. With 5 loans to pay each month, the total sum could easily reach $1,500, but even a $50,000 debt consolidation loan repaid over 10 years could be half that amount. The longer the lifetime of the loan is, the lower the required monthly repayment.
Considering a Consolidation Company
When it comes to applying for a debt consolidation loan with bad credit, there are two chief options. The first is to approach a lender (traditional or online) and apply for a loan large enough to clear existing debts. While securing a large loan might be difficult usually, if the purpose is known to be debt consolidation, approval is more likely.
However, there is no guarantee of approval and this means that the problems might only persist. Another option is to approach a debt consolidation company, professional service providers who will buy out your debt and then receive monthly repayments directly.
Of course, this option is a little more expensive as there are fees to pay on top of interest on the debt consolidation loan. Still, the cost is manageable, and progress in lifting the debt is certain to be made.
By: Mark Venite
Color and meaning (color temperature, part 2)
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Composition VII, 1913, by Wassily Kandinsky. |
One of the chief promoters of the Fourth Dimension was Pyotr Demianovich Ouspenskii, a follower of G. I. Gurdjieff. Ouspenskii believed our consciousness was evolving, which would ultimately lead us to perceive the fourth dimension, and that art and music were the path to this evolution. In the fourth dimension, reality and unreality were reversed, and time and motion were revealed as illusions.
Theosophy was Madame Blavatsky’s occult movement. She described it as “the archaic Wisdom-Religion, the esoteric doctrine once known in every ancient country having claims to civilization.” Madame Blavatsky taught that color had spiritual vibrations which would awaken the dormant spirituality within a person, and that art should begin in nature, a nature that would be found in a world-birthing apocalypse.
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A fully realized theory must include the proper colors for shapes. The passive and dull circle deserves a correspondingly dull blue. The energetic triangle ought to be rendered in a dangeresqueyellow. |
Rudolph Steiner's spin on theosophy was called Anthroposophy. This postulated the existence of an objective spiritual world accessible through inner development of the clairvoyance and intuition that modern man had lost as he developed rational thought. Steiner focused on the symbolic and synesthetic properties of color.
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And then there are angles, which should be matched in aggression with their colors. |
Kandinsky’s Concerning the Spiritual in Art (1912) is both turgid and broad-ranging. Let me just hit his major points about color:
- Colors evoke both a purely physical effect on the eye and a vibration of the soul or an “inner resonance.”
- The elements of color are warmth or coolness, and clarity or obscurity.
- Warmth means yellow, and coolness means blue, so yellow and blue form the first great contrast. Yellow has an eccentric movement and blue a concentric movement; a yellow surface seems to move closer to us, while a blue surface seems to move away. Yellow is a terrestrial color: mad, disturbed and violent. Blue is a celestial color, deeply calm but sinking toward the mourning of black. The combination of blue and yellow (green) yields total immobility.
- Clarity is a tendency towards white, and obscurity is a tendency towards black. White and black form the second great contrast, which is static. White is a deep, absolute silence, full of possibility. Black is nothingness, an eternal silence without hope (death).
- The mixing of white with black gives gray, which possesses no active force and is similar in tonality to green. Gray is frozen immobility; dark grays tend toward despair, but even lightening gray yields very little hope.
- Red is a warm color, forceful, lively and agitated. Mixed with black it becomes brown, which is a dull, hard, inhibited color. Mixed with yellow, red gains in warmth and becomes orange, which irradiates and energizes its surroundings. When red is mixed with blue it moves away from man to become morbid and mourning purple. Red and green form the third great contrast, and orange and purple the fourth.
In short, Kandinsky's color theory is a magnificent exercise in hooey. Still, it has had a long-reaching influence, with overtones in fashion, industrial design, and every other area that touches our lives.
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