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Many people, even school children, suffer neck and shoulder pain during their life. Almost everyone becomes limited in their ability to turn their head and lift their arms up with the progression of years. Often we notice the neck and shoulder injury when we get up from our work station, our kitchen table, our piano, or any other nonviolent but repetitive activity we engage in. Repetitive Strain Injury takes a huge toll on the quality of our lives, even if we dont know it. Neck and shoulder pain should not be regarded as part of a package deal which comes with our computers. There are ways to protect ourselves against it and ways to relieve ourselves from it.

What do we often do when we discover our neck and shoulders are stiff? We turn our head from side to side, up and down again and again, we frantically roll our shoulders back and forth, hoping to "untie the knots", to free ourselves from the pain in vain. Instead, while trying to relieve the strain and pain we often injure ourselves even further making things worse. Then, trying to avoid painful movements in one area, we often strain other areas.

Most neck and shoulder pain is caused by poor posture and poor movement habits formed by faulty learning, usually beginning in childhood. When the movement in our back, neck and shoulders is disorganized, some of the forces generated by our muscles create friction that, over time, destroys body tissue and leads to injury and pain. Even when neck and shoulder pain is the result of accidents or illness, unfortunately, when we try to protect ourselves from the pain, we create new bad movement habits that cause us even more pain and could lead to chronic pain. No matter the cause of the pain, the speed at which pain can be resolved goes right back to movement habits learned in childhood and adulthood, and to our ability to learn new patterns of movement, of thinking, and of awareness.

Rather than insisting on moving the already strained and painful muscles, we need to look for ways to bypass the injured area. This way we can achieve what we set out to do and allow the injured part of our body to reorganize itself and heal.

Since it is the brain that organizes movement, effective techniques for shoulder and neck exercises should be developed to provide your brain with the information and experiences it needs in order to form new, pain-free patterns and solutions. Rather than create friction where it hurts, we need to look for Methods that guide us through safe, gentle and easy ways to by-pass those painful areas. With new information from the body, mind, and the new awareness, the neck and shoulder pain should subside - often in only a few short sessions.

There are various methods that attempt to approach pain and strain in such a way - some more widely known than others. There is Yoga, Pilatis and the Feldenkrais Method. The first two are extremely well known. The last one and least known of the three, solves targeted complaints using scientifically proven bypasses that are of particular interest and efficacy for shoulder and neck pain.

Daniel was a first-chair violin player in one of the world's great orchestras. When he came to see Ms. Anat Baniel (a former student and assistant of Dr. Feldenkrais), he was unable to play for nine months because of severe neck, shoulder and wrist pain. None of the traditional therapies helped. He was terrified that his career as a musician was over. Like most people, he had no idea what he was doing wrong and how the ways he was moving were causing him to injure himself. Ms Baniel observed that various parts of Daniel's body: his lower back, his upper spine and the powerful muscles in his pelvis were not moving at all when Daniel was using his neck, shoulders, arms and hands to play. Ms. Baniel began by guiding Daniel through very gentle movements in those dormant areas that were new to him and felt easy and safe to do. These movements were waking up his brain to new possibilities. Daniel quickly learned to move in better ways that gave him complete relief from neck and shoulder pain, as well as wrist pain. two months after Daniel began training he was back to playing.

This cutting edge approach is based in the understanding of how the brain forms patterns of posture and movement good ones and bad ones. It looks at all aspects of the person: body, mind, emotion and spirit and their relationship to pain. It addresses an invisible element that is of the utmost importance in our ability to recover from neck and shoulder pain and prevent future pain: the QUALITY with which we move.

Thousands of computer users suffer from neck and shoulder pain as a result of poor office workplace ergonomics and repetitive strain injury. To assist those that need neck and shoulder pain relief at their work-stations desk-Trainer (www.desk-trainer.com) offers preset series of 5 minute Anat Baniel Method based on the work of Dr. Feldenkrais desk exercises. The site also offers subscribers training series for fitness, desk exercises and office stretches for protection against repetitive strain injury as well as office workplace ergonomic guidance for organizing the work station.

Eran Baniel brings into desk-Trainer Ltd. 25 year of experience as Theatre writer & director, head of Festivals and companies, CEO of a lighting design company and until recently CEO of a medical Device Company.

# posted by 34435 : 11:06 PM  0 comments

On November 22, 2005, Microsoft released the long awaited xbox 360, the next generation of its popular xbox gaming console. The XBox 360, however, goes farther than any game system that users are currently accustomed to. The xbox 360 is more like a fully functional, broadband connected entertainment gadget that appeals to gamers but is equipped to entertain the whole family.

Although smaller than the original xbox (The 360 weighs in at a mere 7.7 lbs), this version packs so many nifty features in a small package. If you also happen to own a HDTV, you will truly be able to appreciate the advanced graphics features and support for windscreen (16:9) format. Of course, the console will work on regular television as well, but the depth of the graphics will be particularly stunning on more advanced televisions. The xbox 360 carries a ATI graphics processor and 10MB of embedded DRAM. This setup allows the xbox 360 to draw up to 500 million triangles per second for the ultimate in realistic graphics.

The xbox 360 unit also has a 12x dual layer dvd Rom drive that serves the dual purpose of playing xbox games as well as ordinary DVDs. There is also additional support for surround sound audio for the ultimate home theater experience and realistic gaming.

For game save and other media storage, you can optionally purchase a 20GB external harddrive which also serves to make the xbox 360 backwards compatible with original xbox games.

The xbox 360 goes well beyond the range of gaming and video with its built-in ethernet port that allows users to connect via their broadband connection to xbox live (available in various flavors). xbox live will allow you to play live over the Internet, use voice and even video chat and, of course, purchase additional goodies for your xbox. In addition to ethernet connectivity, you can optionally purchase wireless adapters that comply with the standard wireless 802.11 protocol for integration into your existing wireless network. For other data transfer tasks, such as uploading of your digital photos, digital home movies, and music, you can use the integrated USB 2.0 port. With all of these features, it is a piece of cake to stream all of your digital files.

As you can see, the xbox 360 offers a little something for everyone. Kids can enjoy the futuristic gaming capabilities (check game ratings for age appropriateness), and Mom and Dad can enjoy the file sharing, music and video streaming, and home theater features.

# posted by 34435 : 10:06 AM  0 comments

Napa Valley: The Home of Californias Wine Country Everyone likes a good wine tasting tour. The question arises: Where are we going to go and how reachable are the wineries from one another? Few regions in the US boast a better environment for vineyards and the subsequent wine manufacturing than california.

When you think of California's Wine Country, you're thinking about Napa Valley and Sonoma county, situated just north of san francisco and the Bay area. Father Junpero Serra, a Franciscan missionary, first brought wine to the state of california when he began the first vineyard in san Diego in 1769. In the years that followed, wineries began to creep farther north along with establishment of spanish missions. The wine industry really began to take root after the Gold Rush of 1849, when Count Agoston Haraszthy established Buena Vista, the first premium winery in the area. In nearby Napa Valley, Charles Krug introduced Riesling grapes in 1861.

The Charles Krug Winery is still in operation but is now run by the Peter Mondavi Family. The area's wine industry continued to flourish over the next century but failed to receive international recognition until the mid-1970s. The Stag's Leap Winery put California's wine country on the map after it squeezed out a victory over world-renowned Mouton Rothschild in a competition in paris in 1976. By the mid-1980s the wines from Napa Valley were considered fit for royalty, Quail Ridge Vineyard's 1981 Chardonnay was served to the late Lady Di and Prince Charles at the White House.

In the last two decades California's wine country has continued to grow and now the region is home to hundreds of wineries and vineyards. Millions of people visit Napa Valley and Sonoma county every year to imbibe the Chardonnays, Cabernet Sauvignons, Pinot Noirs, Merlots, and Zinfandels the area is now famous for.

California's central coast is known for gentle, green hills and deep valleys (you may have even seen a landscape shot of the Napa Valley as the default wallpaper on Windows XP). The Napa Valley is to the east of Sonoma county and is typically warmer in the summer, resulting in a better yield of Cabernet Sauvignon. Sonoma County's slightly cooler weather typically brings in better Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays. Despite the hotter weather father south, Paso Robles, near san Luis Obispo, has established an American Viticultural area that has become one of the fastest growing winery regions in california.

Napa Valley and Sonoma county
The better-known wine country of central california is, of course, in Napa Valley and neighboring Sonoma county, which are home to over 280 wineries. This beautiful area, with its gentle rolling hills, is a great place to tour around. Virtually every winery offers tours and wine tastings, they vary in price between $5 and $20 and are usually open daily - be sure to check with the individual winery for exact hours. To check out other vineyards and wineries, planning is a must, simply because of the sheer number. Keep in mind that this area is also very scenic (in case you're traveling with a non-wine drinker). For fans of the 1980s television show Falcon Crest, this area was the setting for the fictional Tuscany Valley. Most of the wineries offer free public tours from mid-morning to late afternoon, but many of them require some sort of advance reservation.

california wine production truly started in Sonoma county at the Sebastiani Vineyards and Winery, which started off as part of the Sonoma Mission set up by the spanish in 1824. The Seabstiani Vineyards produce a wide assortment of wines and appellations such as Zinfandel, Merlot, Pinot noir, as well as Cabernet Sauvignon. Tours of the Sebastiani Vineyards are available, as is wine tasting, for a small fee.

Located on the Carneros Estate, the oldest winery in Sonoma county is Buena Vista. In addition to being a state historical landmark, the Buena Vista Winery was started by Count Agoston Haraszthy and is the headquarters for the U.S. branch of the Knights of the Vine. There are tours offered which only cost about $15 per person as well as a $5 tasting fee. The Green Hungarian is a particular selection of the wine produced by the vineyard.

Another unique winery, the Carmenet Vineyard, create wines using exclusively French techniques, such as malo-lactic fermentation, and by stacking their wines in a natural cave. Tours of the Carmenet Vineyard are by appointment only and their in-house wines, such as Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Zinfandel, Chardonnay, and Merlot are available for tasting.

More about Napa Valley and other areas in california of interest to wine aficionados can be found on http://www.TripCart.com the internets leading travel planning guide.

# posted by 34435 : 6:39 AM  0 comments