1. Starting Jan. 31, DHS will no longer allow Americans or Canadians on Canada’s border to enter the U.S. by showing their driver’s license or declaring their citizenship. Instead, travelers must present a passport or an enhanced driver’s license or border pass card.  Washington Post, The

2. Passengers will no longer be able to pack loose lithium batteries in checked luggage beginning January 1, 2008 to reduce the risk fires.  They will continue to allow lithium batteries in checked baggage if they are installed in electronic devices, or in carry-on baggage if properly protected from short circuiting in their original packaging or by placing them in individual plastic bags or a protective travel case.

3. At airport security checkpoint: Lighters are allowed in carry-on or on your person. There is no mention of how many you can have, however, I recommend no more than 4 lighters.

4. At airport security checkpoint: DVD and video game consoles need to be taken out of their cases to be screened alone.

5. At airport security checkpoint: Breast milk and baby formula are exempt from the 3-1-1 rule.

6. At airport security checkpoint: TSA has added a leg pat-down when in secondary screening.

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I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving …ready or not here comes the holiday season.

My main goal in publishing these newsletters is to provide you with the best golf instruction resources I am aware of. For the most part I’ve mainly included the Thumbs Down method, so today I’m pleased to announce an affiliation with a highly touted pro, Chuck Evans. For those of you not familiar with Chuck, he’s one of only 31 Teachers in the world to hold the designation of “Doctorate in Golf Stroke Engineering”, and a Golf Magazine Top Teacher. He’s been called, The Teacher of Teachers and has been touted as one of the most highly sought after instructors in the world not only by players but other teachers as well!

Evans Golf Group recently announced the merger of two golf companies’, Chuck Evans Golf and Medicus, now known as Medicus Golf Institute. Medicus has long been known for their game improvement training aids and programs. These two power houses have come together to form a company that combines both instruction and training aids to enhance, and improve, your golf game.

Chuck’s written a wonderful ebook and he’s also offering his entire golf training system for $67 (sorry, his half price offer has expired). Included as a bonus are interviews on 2 downloadable CD’s and if that wasn’t enough….he also has agreed to come on a “live call with you personally! For a limited time you can talk with Chuck Evans and ask him any golf question you have, would that help you and solve some of your questions? You will be able to ask him anything you want. Hurry up, as he will only be accepting so many customers because Chuck is busy!

To receive your FREE Secrets to Better Golfing interview with Chuck Evans go to:

http://www.masteryourgolfgame.com?lid=&a_aid=93a827ca

While you’re there take advantage and purchase Chuck’s entire golf training system.

The holidays are here and so is the stress.  There is nothing like the stress of booking tickets and traveling during the holidays.  Added to that stress is airport security.  I am a former TSA airport screener (www.tsa.gov) and I have made it my personal mission to help passengers get through airport security fast, safe and easy.

Here are my top ten valuable airport security tips to help you travel through airport security this holiday season.  Be sure to tell me your horror stories or comments on traveling through airport security during the holidays.

1.  Book your tickets as far in advanced as possible at www.travelocity.com, www.orbitz.com or www.priceline.com.  This will lower the chance of you being chosen for secondary screening, since last minute bookings seem to increase your chances.

2.  Pack light.  Nothing delays the security lines more than when the x-ray operator has to ask for a rerun on a passenger’s bag because they cannot determine if the contents contain a prohibited item or not.  Remember that liquid medications, breast milk and baby formula are exempt from the 3-1-1 rule for liquids, gels and creams.  Pack your exempt items separate from your regular 3-1-1 carry-on items and declare them to the screener at the divesting table at x-ray.

3.  Know what items are permitted and prohibited in your carry-on and checked baggage.  Download the “Ultimate Packing List” at http://www.airportbook.com/contact.htm.  40 million prohibited items have been confiscated to date, including explosives, guns, knives and weapons.  Do not be only of those passengers who delay the line by bringing a prohibited item to security checkpoint.

4.  Use online check-in.  The airlines, such as www.usairways.com, www.southwest.com or www.united.com will allow you to check-in no more than 24 hours in advance.  This is a BIG stress reducer.  If you can print out your boarding pass from home, this alone tells you that you are not scheduled for secondary screening.

5.  Use curb-side check-in.  The porters have to pay for their carts in some cases, so give them a little and save BIG TIME.  I saved 2 to 3 hours of waiting in line when I tipped a porter $20 to check me in curb-side in Orlando. 

6.  Keep your cool!  TSA could charge you up to $5,000 for interferring with the screening process for unruly behavior or threatening comments.  This means NO joking around.  Do not say any of these words: terrorist, bomb, IED, IID, George Bush and Osama bin Laden.

7.  Dress for airport security.  No body piercings, no thick bracelets or jewelry.  No baggy pants and avoid wearing skirts or dresses.  You will increase your chances of secondary screening if your clothing can easily conceal a weapon.  Wear slip-on shoes!  This alone will save you time.

8.  Place your personal bedroom toys in checked baggage.  You could shutdown an airport by mistake if they are carried in your carry-on luggage.  They have similar components as an IED.

9.  Arrive at least 2 hours early for domestic and 3 hours for international flights.  You don’t know if the person in front of you will do something stupid and delay the line.  Power outages, weapon scares, bomb threats are just a few reasons airports will shutdown for hours.

10.  Normally you can get cheaper ticket prices on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.  During the holidays, avoid traveling that holiday week if possible.  Fly early than 10am and later than 3pm if possible.  That is peak travel time for security lines.

Tell me your horror stories of going through airport security screening during the holidays at http://www.airportbook.com/contact.htm.

Happy and Safe Travels–Natalia

It’s not about how bad it is, it’s all about what we can do to makes things better!

http://www.climatefilm.com

Working with powertools makes the work go faster, and easier, but increases the possibility of injury. Whether an axe, chainsaw, or hydraulic log splitter, you need to be aware, and be safe. This was brought to Steve’s attention, painfully, when a piece of wood on the wood splitter twisted, caught his glove, and pulled it into the splitting path. He has a broken finger, an open fracture, of the distal aspect of the middle phelanges, a swollen hand, heavily bruised, and will be splinted for the next 4 weeks or so.

Nathaniel has headed back to Texas, and will spend some time redeveloping his drilling apparatus, based on the rock samples he took here. In the meantime, our focus will shift to Roofwater Harvesting. We have built quite a collection of books and materials on the subject, and are confident this is a project we can handle ourselves. As are most projects at Green-Trust, this one is DIY in nature, and our goal is to provide enough information that the reader can duplicate our successes, and avoid our disappointments.

We have uploaded a free PDF document called Roofwater Harvesting at http://www.freeiq.com/stevespence/WaterHarvesting that is a very good resource. Although written for the humid tropics, our rainfall here in NY is similar in quantity and distribution.

The steps we need to take are:

• Rebuild the damaged rain gutters and add new ones where missing.
• Connect distribution pipes from the gutters to the filter and cistern.
• Connect our existing 12vdc piston pump to the cistern.

Since we live in a cold climate where winter temperatures hit -40 degrees, above ground tanks are out of the question. We will be installing a 1000 gallon precast concrete tank available locally for $600 delivered into our hole.