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Author: Pat Carpenter Very few of us don't have at least one good memory of chocolate. Remember warm chocolate chip cookies after school, or brownies pulled straight from the oven on a cool, fall day? Hot chocolate is still the beverage of choice for many children, and few of any age can resist a scoop of chocolate ice cream. With a hot Texas summer approaching, and cities like Dallas, Houston, and Austin already getting a hint of the heat to come, a hot fudge sundae just might be the cooling cure for a lot of maladies. Not even health insurance can provide a sweet cookie and fresh glass of milk when it's really needed, after all. The first records of chocolate consumption date back to the Mayan Classical Period, or between the years 250 and 900 on our modern calendar. Cacao beans were cooked, ground, and made into a paste. When mixed with water, a bitter beverage important to Mayan, and later Aztec, ceremonies was created. That means chocolate has not only survived thousands of

Author: Pat Carpenter Knowing the right individuals in Austin, Dallas, Houston and other great places in Texas really can make your world go around. If you want to go up to the next rung on your career ladder, networking can be an incredible tool to help you reach your goals. It was held to be number one among "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People," a self-help book written by Stephen R. Covey in 1989. Here are some simple rules to help you become a notable networker: - First impressions -- Every time you meet someone new, use the 'SHE' rule -- Smile/Handshake/Eye Contact. Greeting people with a genuine smile, a firm and friendly handshake and direct eye contact helps set a positive tone and makes the best first impression. - Learn names -- By knowing an individual's name you show he/she that you value that person and have separated him/her from the rest of the crowd. There is no better way to make individuals feel good about himself/ herself. It also creates a

Author: Pat Carpenter Ask any individual who's got them, friends, whether you live in Austin, Dallas, Houston or anywhere else in Texas, are good for you. They are good for health as well as for your life in general. The proof? During down times, friends are a source of comfort and strength. So it's important to learn how to find and nurture friendships as well as to be a good friend. Friends have the shoulders you lean on. They give you good advice. They comfort you during hard times and share in your laughter in the good times. Friendships provide all these advantages and more. Friends can boost your self-esteem, provide companionship and even help improve your mental and physical health. It's not always easy to make friends, especially when your life is hectic with work demands, family time or school. But friends are important for both men and women. Friendships can help you get through a divorce, a job loss or family death. Your friends may encourage you to change unheal

Author: Pat Carpenter While music and sport are not generally talked about in the same sentence, there are historic connections between two of modern culture's biggest realms of influence. Even as modern day basketball stars such as Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant and Alan Iverson record their rap albums in an attempt to formalize a crossover between sport and music, it's hardly a first for mixing the two. Indeed, as early as the 1930s and 1940s, evidence existed that there was a natural connection. Jump bands, for example, often toured on the same bus as basketball teams, players and musicians fraternizing to the point of attending the other's events. A look at the rhythm associated with sports like basketball and music provides one similarity between the two, but so does the sense that in both music and sports, there are individuals (soloists) that excel while remaining a part of a larger, cohesive group. At sporting events such as baseball or hockey games, in citi

Author: Pat Carpenter Denial isn't a river that runs through Egypt. It's an emotional state that many individuals in Austin, Dallas, Houston and elsewhere in Texas put themselves through on a daily basis. For many individuals, denial is an unconscious coping mechanism which grants a person time to adjust to a distressing situation. But when denial goes on too long, it can interfere with a person's reality and their ability to move forward. Someone who's in denial isn't being realistic about something that needs to be addressed directly; something that's very obvious. When an individual is in denial, he or she appears to be pretending that something isn't happening or isn't true. A little denial can be a good thing and being in denial for a short period can be a healthy coping mechanism. But denial does have a dark side. If it becomes a long-term situation, it can prevent an individual from dealing with issues that need to be addressed immediately. When this occurs,