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Anyone for a Pomegranate Cosmopolitan?

In a previous article, I supplied you with a recipe for the world’s best frozen margarita. Along this same spirituous vein, I am here to unveil another killer recipe – but this time for a cosmopolitan. Cosmos are extremely popular these days, and if you follow the cooking and drinking scene you’ll note that a very popular fruit which has been gaining more and more notoriety is the pomegranate. Pomegranate juice is readily available in stores and is one of the ingredients for this drink. So, without further adieu, I present an awesome Pomegranate Cosmopolitan recipe.

Add the following ingredients to a cocktail shaker:

  • Add plenty of shaved or cubed ice (3/4 full)
  • 3 oz of your favorite vodka
  • ½ oz of Grand Marnier
  • ½ oz of triple sec
  • the juice of one fresh lime
  • 100% pomegranate juice (add as much as you like, or just fill the shaker)

Shake thoroughly and strain into a glass of your choice. This recipe should make at least two decent size cosmos. I like to use the stemmed triangular glasses for this drink. I also like to serve it with ice in the glass, but that is your choice. You could just use the leftover ice that is in the shaker.

No matter which way you choose to serve it, relax and enjoy…and let me know how you like it! Click Here to Read Article …

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21 Tips for Overcoming Writer’s Block

Overcoming writer’s block is hard – really hard. You could spend hours staring at that blank screen and not even come up with the title for an article. I’ve suffered through it many times since I started contributing actively to my own blog and various other sites.

Although a writer’s block could fade away with time, it is better take some immediate measures to battle it as it strikes and get started with writing without significant loss of time. This article talks about how to overcome writer’s block by temporarily shifting your attention to something else, possibly unrelated. Click Here to Read Article …

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Learn How to Build a Successful Blog Business

Envato is one of a small number of companies that has learned how to make money from blogs. Today, we gross well over seven figures a year from our blogs.

So it’s no small announcement that CEO Collis Ta’eed has released a book packed with the company’s secrets, detailing a road map you can use to navigate your blog business to success.

How to Build a Successful Blog Business is a straight forward guide to building a publishing business online that covers everything from choosing a niche to hiring staff, registering a business to selling it, finding traffic to monetizing it.

Whether you are interested in creating an additional income stream or building a fully-fledged business, this is an essential read for web entrepreneurs and online publishers. Click Here to Read Article …

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Fast Recipes for Work #2: Cup o’ Chocolate Cake

Here’s another of my favorite fast recipes. How many times have you been slaving away at the computer, trying to squeeze in that last bit of code, those final tweaks to the copy, or the final lines in your design when you were struck with an overwhelming urge for chocolate cake?

Sadly, this happens way too often here in my house. While I feel a bit guilty when I “forget” to tell my wife that I made a chocolate cake – I feel more so when there isn’t any left to share with her.

So I was delighted to come across this recipe – as it’s a personal-sized cake (well, really – what cake isn’t personal sized?).  And the best part is it will probably take you longer to eat it than it will to cook it!

This is a “Freelance Favorite” called Cup o’ Cake – but you don’t have to be a freelancer to enjoy it.  If you’ve got a microwave at work, you can bring the ingredients and mix them up for your afternoon coffee.  Why buy a $5 cupcake when you can make something like this?

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp flour (all purpose is ok, cake flour is better)
  • 3 tbsp Cocoa powder
  • 4 tbsp sugar (haven’t tried it yet – but you could probably use your fav. flavor Quik and skip the cocoa)
  • 1 med egg
  • 3 tbsp milk (evaporated milk might be pretty good, too)
  • 3 tbsp oil (or melted butter if you want to be decadent)
  • 2 tbsp chocolate chips
  • 1 large mug

Add the dry ingredients and chocolate chips to the mug

Add egg, then milk and oil.  Mix very well. (A large mug is handy here, or this might be a bit messy)

Put the mug in the microwave, and cook on high for 3 minutes

Take out of the microwave, empty mug into a bowl.  Smother cake with canned chocolate sauce, ice cream, whipped cream or all of the above

Hide bathroom scale.

Enjoy! Click Here to Read Article …

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5 Novel Ways to Unwind from the Workweek

The weekends are a time when I need to get away from the rigors of a tough workweek.  Even though I oftentimes bring my work home with me, at least in my thoughts, I usually can separate my weekends from the work week.  Finding different and interesting activities to do on the weekend tends to invigorate me and adds a lot to the end of a long workweek.  Here is a brief list of some activities that work for me:

1. Take a Hike.

I have always been a nature lover and either climbing a mountain or just walking a trail on the weekend is a great way to relax and unwind from the workweek.  It is such a stark contrast from sitting in a cubicle and that is what makes it so enjoyable.

2. Visit a Farmers Market.

My wife and I are lovers of great food.  To make great food you need to start with fresh ingredients.  We oftentimes visit local farmers markets on the weekend where we get to see fresh produce from farms in the surrounding area.  You tend to pay a little bit more than the non-local produce in the supermarket but you are 1) supporting local farms and 2) purchasing the freshest produce you can get for your scrumptious nightly meal.

3. Try a new specialty drink.

These days, finding a recipe for a specialty alcoholic beverage is a few clicks away.  I love to explore the variety of different recipes that I can find for frozen margaritas, cosmopolitans, or, better yet, a drink that I have never even heard of.  Add some spice to your weekend and try something new.  It could even be a new wine from a local vineyard.  You’d be surprised at the quality of wines you can purchase from local vineyards, even if you don’t live in Napa or Sonoma.

4. Day Tripping.

As I write this article, I am on vacation.  This time I did not have anything planned, which was different from my typical vacation.  As a result, I was able to take day trips to unfamiliar locations.  Sometimes we just get stuck in the same routine and don’t explore surrounding areas that may be an hour drive from our home.  Venture out and explore your surroundings.  You may just find that it is a lot more interesting than you had assumed.

5. Visit your local library. Really!

OK this one may sound boring to most of you but recently I have really started to take advantage of my local library.  Until I actually checked it out, I didn’t realize that there are a multitude of movies and CDs available for free.  And don’t think that you can’t get the latest books to read.  I can even go online and check out books from my local library which makes it very convenient.

Weekends can go by very quickly but if you fill them with exciting and interesting activities you may find that, by the time Monday morning comes, you just may be ready to tackle the upcoming workweek.  At the same time, you may start planning what your upcoming weekend may entail. Click Here to Read Article …

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Introducing The Netsetter 2.0

And then there were three.

Today marks the relaunch of our sister site, The Netsetter. Along with this site and FreelanceSwitch, the new Netsetter creates a “triple threat” in terms of getting better at what moves you.  All three sites offer practical tips that cover topics that can help those who want to get better at what they love doing.

The Netsetter was a blog started by Envato’s CEO, Collis Ta’eed in 2009 as a place to discuss start ups. The second iteration of the site doesn’t stray too far from the initial concept, but has been retooled by the Netsetter team to appeal to a wider audience.

If you’re a true netsetter then you’re already on your way to doing something that you truly love doing.  With The Netsetter, FreelanceSwitch and WorkAwesome, you have an arsenal of resources available to you that can enable you to do what you love at a whole new level.

Are you a netsetter? Then head on over to the newly-revamped Netsetter today! Click Here to Read Article …

The Complete Guide to Going Paperless

No, I won’t start with the hackneyed remarks like “you need to save environment”, “go green” and all. Let’s just forget the environment for a moment and think about ourselves. Going paperless actually makes you more productive.

Just think about the times when you spent hours trying to find that one super-important note in the huge pile of documents, notes, files and what not. Had that note been stored somewhere on your computer, it would have taken seconds to locate it, isn’t it.

This article explores various aspects of going paperless; why you need to do it, what tools could help you do that and the process to follow. People working at big corporations might not be able to go paperless completely, because companies have their own rules on use of resources. But, I suggest them to read it nevertheless. Click Here to Read Article …

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What Motivates You?

What gets you out of bed and into your workplace every day? Do you feel stimulated or challenged by your job? Are you in a field that you’re passionate about, and that passion means more than your salary? Do you feel that you’re making a difference to your customers, members, or clients?

Boredom and not feeling challenged by job duties is a popular gripe among employees, but very few of us have the option of leaving to find something more stimulating or that would be a better use of our skills. Every job – no matter how unconventional it may be – has its own patterns and routines, whether it’s certain follow-up procedures for particular duties or other day-to-day tasks that must be done. Without new problems to solve or challenges to rise to, it’s very easy to have this routine turn into more of a rut.

So what motivates you? What keeps you showing up fresh every day? Click Here to Read Article …

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