Wikaniko progress

I have written previous blogs about Wikaniko but for those who have not read them Wikaniko is a UK based on line company that sells eco friendly products. A couple of months ago the company began a special offer where people could become distributors without paying the joining fee. The offer is still open if you fancy joining this wonderful company. I will put a link to the site at the end of this blog. The reason why we joined the company is not only because of the special offer but also because we know the people who own Wikaniko and we have found them to be very honest and trustworthy. They truly believe in their products and are committed to an eco friendly lifestyle. Unlike other multi marketing companies Wikaniko has a wide range of products that are of good quality and also sell at a reasonable price. The company is open about the ingredients in their products some of which they make themselves. The products are not tested on animals and if bought from overseas are subject to a fair trade policy. There is no pressure on distributors to recruit or indeed sell products. Wikaniko provides training and offer ongoing support. We have found the experience enjoyable and have learnt a lot about leading a eco friendly lifestyle  I have spent time reading articles and also the information sheets provided by Wikaniko and I have been shocked to learn about the harmful toxins and chemicals in cleaning and beauty products. I had always been a bit dismissive of eco friendly type people but I have to admit that my eyes have been opened to not only the potential harm we can do ourselves but also the harm we are doing to the earth.

Since we became distributors we have been busy trying to not only sell products but also recruit people. We are only in the early stages but at the end of this month we will receive an income for products we have sold  and also a percentage of the products sold by our distributors that we have managed to recruit.

Well at least we have made an income this month so that is positive and we hope to onwards and upwards as time progresses.
If you want to read more about Wikaniko, become a distributor or buy products click the below link



http://www.wikaniko.com/index.php?distributor=greenerearth&redirect=http://www.wikaniko.com/become-a-distributor.php

Grey skies

The weather continues to be pretty miserable and we had another spate of rain. After cooking Colin and I breakfast I wondered what I could do with myself for the day. I decided to look at my Helium writers site  http://www.helium.com/ and see what article titles were available.
I joined Helium about a year ago and have received just over £300 dollars for writing and rating articles.The way it works is that you need to apply to become a member and then write a short piece for approval. Once you are accepted you can choose from a large variety of titles which are placed on an assignments page. Some of the assignments pay one or two dollars  upfront if they are accepted whilst others go into revenue share. The articles are rated by other users and stars can be gained. As a user you are required to rate other peoples articles and providing that you rate a certain number in a month you are paid three dollars. The website has a support network including a group that is very helpful particularly as some of the guidelines for use is not always clear.
During the time that I have been a member of Helium I have written a number of articles on different subjects ranging from university guides, travel guides and pieces about adoption and child care. The assignments titles are very varied and most people will find a subject that is  of interest. Helium also holds a monthly writing contest when winners can earn between 5 to 20 dollars. If you are interested in writing Helium is a good forum to join. Today I choose an assignment entitled the Prince Charles biography. Whilst I'm not a royalist I quite enjoy writing biography's. I researched Prince Charles on the net and then wrote my own piece using the information that I had gained. I have submitted my article that is 400 words long and will wait and see if I will be paid my one dollar. Its not much but every dollar counts. I will also earn money depending on the number of views my article gets.

How Can I Make Money?

How Can I Make Money?

Homemade Marmalade, Chutney and Jams

Since moving to Spain I have found myself in a position where I have seriously lacked money. During the first five years in this lovely country I rented and slaved in a restaurant. In the short term I had paid the first three years rent in advance so things seemed fairly okay and we were getting along just fine. However after three years, as a consequence of the recession, I found that I was barely making enough money to pay the rent, let alone covering the numerous bills.
So I asked myself how can I make money?

Given that I was living in an area where oranges grew in abundance and a grove near to my restaurant had been abandoned, I set about picking oranges and making marmalade. Secondly, I had a small patch of land at the back of the restaurant where I grew vegetables which I decided to use to make chutney.
Always optimistic I got up very early every Saturday morning and took my wares to a local market/boot fair in the hope of making money. Sitting under the hot sun was not fun and I was concerned that my marmalade and chutneys were going to boil. Plus I found it quite frustrating that customers really wanted something for nothing and frequently asked for offers of buy one get one free!
After a month I took time to review what was happening and whether in fact I was making any money. When assessing my income I decided not to include the time I had spent making the items or indeed sitting in the blazing sun. I concluded that whilst I was selling my goods I was not really making a profit particularly after paying for my stall and petrol and therefore I asked myself was it really worth the effort. After two months I decided that the disadvantages outweighed the advantages so gave up on this venture. I however displayed my marmalades and chutneys in my restaurant and at least made some income without the hassle of the market. I also made English Christmas cakes, Christmas Puddings and Mince Pies for customers, which sold well.
Fortunately chutneys mature with age so even now I occasionally attend fetes and fairs to try and move on my stock.

My Clever Partner

Whilst I was working and perspiring at the market my partner designed his own website which provides UK television in Spain and an English IP address. I actually thought that it should be called UK TV anywhere in the world because this is what it is. All that is needed is an internet connection and computer. To my surprise his venture to date is successful although I sill feel that he would have more customers if he advertised world wide.

Ebay

On the advice of my belly dancing daughter I decided to make exotic belly dancing costumes and sell them on Ebay. I spent hours sewing sequins onto the costumes I had made, took photographs and placed them on Ebay. The problem I found was that Ebay Spain is really not that good and therefore chose to use Ebayuk. Whilst I sold a few items the cost of postage from Spain to the UK was against me. Plus I was competing with cheaper mass produced costumes from countries such as China.
Whilst looking on Ebay I came across dolls that looked like babies and some of the clothes for sale for these dolls were selling at high prices. I can make those I thought so I bought wool and lace and set about knitting. Again I sold items but I had to lower my prices as a consequence of the high postage costs. I also advertised my items on craft sites such as Dwanda and Etsy which have brought some success.
I also noted on Ebay that jewellery from Tibet was being sold for 0.99 pence, postage and package free. I ordered a number of items and displayed them in the restaurant. I was very surprised to see that they were actually selling so I set about ordering more. Thinking that I had at long last come across a way of making money I ordered items in bulk from Peru and Tibet. Unfortunately as the recession set in and the number of customers eating at our restaurant declined so did the sale of my jewellery.

MABS

In the area that I lived there was a charity called MABS that supported people who were suffering from cancer. They paid carers 12 euro an hour to go into the client’s home to maybe cook, do shopping, clean or sleep over. As I had worked in the caring profession in the UK I decided this was for me. Now I'm really not very good with vomit and other bodily functions but I was being paid, so on the occasions clients had accidents I took deep breathes and just got on with it. Whilst the work was rewarding both financially and emotionally it was also depressing because all my clients eventually died.

Country Cousins

The situation at the restaurant was getting pretty bad and I needed to seriously make money. A customer told me about an organization called Country Cousins who are based in the UK. I completed my application and was invited for an interview in the UK. I paid for my airfares and also a police check. Shortly after my interview I received confirmation that I had been accepted and I was placed with a rather bad tempered lady in a remote part of England. As a Country Cousin my job was to live with and care for this lady. I was given two hours break a day, which to be honest, I needed given her rather nasty and demanding attitude. In general it was not a particularly good experience given the nature of the lady but at least I earnt two thousand pounds minus air fares. Since that time I have been placed with an elderly couple and a single lady. These clients have been very pleasant which made a huge difference. I continue to be registered with Country Cousins and use them when things get tough money wise.

Agony Aunt

Having now left the restaurant and having more time on my hands I was surfing the internet and came across a website that offered work as an agony aunt paying fifty pounds an hour. There were two ways to apply to become an agony aunt the first was to pay for tuition the second to prove over a period of three weeks that you were able to offer advice by answering fictitious problems and demonstrating that you had time. Given my history in social worker coupled with the fact that I wanted to make money and not spent it I decided on the second option. In all honestly I was rather sceptical about the whole thing but it was costing me nothing other than my time. I dutifully signed into the website every day for three weeks and added my comments, wrote my required article and so on. I asked various questions in respect to how agony aunts were paid, what was The Association of Agony Aunts and so on. Most of my questions were not answered and the more I looked into the website the more I became suspicious about the claims made and also whether there actually were any jobs available. After three weeks I eagerly awaited an email from this website offering me a job but unsurprisingly nothing appeared. 
Given my suspicions and that I had nothing else to do I wrote a critical review about this website and after surfing the net found Wikinut. I did not really read what the Wikinut website was about but was pleased that I could post my review. To my surprise my review created a lot of traffic which in the main tended to be in the form of abuse from the owner of the website.

Wikinut

Since posting my review I read all the details about Wikinut and have posted a number of articles and poems. In all honesty I have not really made any money but the Wikinut community seems to be supportive and friendly. By reading various articles on Wikinut I have now discovered Factoidz and Pay to Click, (Neobux is my favorite), which I hope will bring in some income although I’m not holding my breathe.

Surveys

In the past I have registered with a number of websites that pay to complete surveys. Whilst I have found that the majority of sites do not offer that many surveys to complete Valued Opinions have proved to be quite lucrative and I have received a number of 10 pound Amazon vouchers during the past six months.

Interneteyesuk

Again whilst surfing the net I came across a website called interneteyes. For £14.99 I was provided with a year’s subscription and live feed from camera’s placed in shops. In essence I was to be a security guard surveying cameras. If I noted shoplifting I was to press the alert button and register my concern. The website paid £1.50 for 60 viewing hours a month plus a financial reward for the viewer who made the highest number of alerts. I figured that even if I did not register an alert I would be repaid my registration fee over a year. During the first three months I avidly watched my screens and made a couple of alerts. After four months I became quite bored by the whole thing so now I just make sure that I am logged in for 60 hours or more to ensure my monthly payment. After a year I decided not to renew my membership mainly because sitting in front of a computer al.l day watching people shopping was really not my cup of tea

Wikaniko 

More recently Colin and I have become distributors for Wikaniko which is a UK based on line company that sells eco friendly products. The company is run by our friends who we trust. We are only in the early stages but feel positive that this company will indeed make and income for us. 

http://www.wikaniko.com/index.php?distributor=greenerearth&redirect=http://www.wikaniko.com/shop/aloe-vera/aloe-vera-muscle-relaxing-cream.html

Overall View

As you can see I have tried a number of ways to make money and as a result  have a room full of jams, chutneys, jewellery  belly dance costumes and knitted items. My partner on the other hand continues to make income from his website and we are positive about our new venture with Wikaniko

Why the Surrogacy Laws Need Reviewing

This is a piece about the laws relating to surrogacy. For many people surrogacy is the only means to achieve parenthood. However the current surrogacy laws tend to leave the applicants and the child vulnerable.

Why the Surrogacy Laws Need Reviewing

Why Surrogacy Laws Need Reviewing
Prior to retiring I lived in the UK and worked for 15years as a self employed Guardian. A Guardian is a qualified experienced person who is appointed by the Courts to represent the wishes and feelings of children in Care Proceedings and Adoption. The Guardian’s role is to work in partnership with a solicitor, who legally represents the child, to investigate the child’s circumstances and interview any relevant person involved with the child such as social workers, family and schools. She/he then writes a report for the Court detailing the child’s wishes and feelings, his/her findings and making a recommendation regarding the child’s future.
In respect to uncontested Adoption, Step Parent Adoption and Surrogacy the Guardian can also be appointed by the Court as a Reporting Officer where his/her role is too investigate and seek consent to the application i.e. for adoption or a parental responsibility order. In these cases a solicitor is not usually appointed to work alongside the Reporting Officer although the applicants may wish to be legally represented.
During my fifteen years as a Guardian I worked on five cases of surrogacy and concluded that the law needs reviewing because unlike other child care laws the best interests of the child is not paramount.
Surrogacy is the only means available to some couples to have a child and for many it is the last resort. Prior to reaching the decision to ask another woman to carry a child for them, many couples have experienced years of disappointment not being able to conceive, and undergone intrusive medical procedures.
Asking someone to carry and give birth to a child requires tremendous trust particularly as the law is not in favor of the child or the applicants.
Criteria
Before entering into a surrogacy arrangement in the UK the applicants have to meet certain criteria. Both applicants must be over the age of 18. They must be either married to each other, in a civil partnership or living together. One or both of the applicants must be a biological parent to the child. One or both of the applicants must also be domiciled in the UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man.
Providing these criteria are met the next step for the applicants is to identify a suitable surrogate. Some couples register with a clinic whilst others choose private arrangements for example with family or friends. I have also noted that during the past few years adverts by applicants and surrogates are being placed in newspapers and on the internet. Whatever method is used to find a surrogate it is essential that the applicants ensure that thorough checks have been made in terms of suitability, reliability, background, motives and where the surrogate’s egg is used, genetic disorders.
Agreement
Once the surrogate is found a meeting takes place to discuss and draw up an agreement of what is required in terms of expectations, contact between the two parties, finances and the terms of the conception.
Method
The surrogate may be asked to impregnate herself with the male applicant’s sperm or she may be required to undergo a medical procedure where the female applicant’s fertilized egg is placed in the surrogate’s womb.
If the first method is used the baby will inherit the surrogates genes alongside the male applicants. In the second method the baby will not be biologically related to the surrogate. Which option is taken is usually reliant upon medical conditions for example if the female applicant is infertile or cannot sustain a pregnancy full term.
Finances
In respect to finances a surrogate cannot legally charge for her services. However the applicants can agree to pay for ‘reasonable’ expenses such as maternity clothes, a mobile phone, time off work, medical expenses and so on.
Birth
The surrogate and applicants usually agree that the applicants will be present during the birth and take the baby home immediately unless otherwise advised by the hospital. Depending upon the agreement the surrogate may or may not remain involved in the child’s life. Plus as the child grows it may not be aware that it was born by surrogacy.
Parental Responsibility and Maternity Leave
After the child is born the proud applicants usually take the baby home and this is when both the child and the applicants are in a vulnerable position because the parental responsibility for the child is held by the surrogate and her husband, if she is married. The applicants therefore legally have no rights and cannot for example give consent to an operation.
Occasionally newspapers report that a surrogate has changed her mind and wants to care for the child which legally she is perfectly able to do as she hold parental responsibility. In this situation the applicants usually involve the Courts and the whole situation becomes very complicated.
The law in respect to surrogacy has clearly not been thought through because after the child is born he or she is placed in the care of two people, the applicants, where one or both are biologically related and yet they don’t hold parental responsibility. On the other hand there is the surrogate, who may or may not be biologically related to the child, and her husband who is definitely not biologically connected, and yet they hold parental responsibility for a child who is not in their care.
In addition although the applicants are caring for the child full time they are not allowed to take maternity or paternity leave whereas the surrogate and her husband have this right.
Application for Parental Responsibility
After six weeks of caring for the child the applicants can make their application to the court for a parental responsibility order. If they do not make the application by the sixth week they cannot apply for PR.
Reporting Officer
However once the application is filed with the Court an officer is appointed. From my experience it may take time to appoint an officer due to the high level of work.
Once appointed the Reporting Officer has to confirm that
The child had his /her home with the applicants throughout the application process.
The surrogate mother and her husband must fully and freely consent to the making of the order.  If the surrogate and her husband are separated the Reporting Officer needs to make every effort to contact him and gain his consent even if he is unaware of his wife’s actions.
Expenses have to be checked and an assessment made as to whether these are reasonable. The reporting officer should be shown receipts and include them in her report for the court.
Interestingly the law does not define reasonable expenses.

Once the Reporting Officer has completed his/her enquires a report is written and filed with the Family Court. If complications arise for example that the surrogate will not give her consent to the making of the order the case is transferred to a higher court.
Once the order is granted the applicants for the first time in their baby’s life hold parental responsibility for him or her and the surrogate has no further legal responsibility for the child.
To conclude
Only couples can apply for a parental responsibility in respect to surrogacy and therefore single men and women are excluded which seems unfair when for example adoption allows for both to apply.
The regulations in respect to finances is vague and even if the surrogate makes huge profits the only option open to the court is not to grant the parental responsibility order which leaves the child and the applicants in limbo particularly as they cannot reapply once the six week time period has ended.
The whole issue of who holds parental responsibility for the child from birth until an order is granted is of concern leaving the child in a vulnerable situation.
The option of surrogacy is for many couples the only option that is available to them to experience parenthood and yet the law is not well thought through leaving both the child and the prospective parents in a vulnerable situation until a parental responsibility order is granted by the Court.

Low Cloud

This morning I have woken up to very low cloud which gives the place quite an strange quiet feeling We have had two days of rain although yesterday afternoon the sun came out. My friends who live in Denia had storms which as always in Spain meant that people were without electricity. At least the rivers appear to be coping and as yet no floods have been reported. Today would be a perfect day to burn the garden rubbish but the wood and so on will not burn because it is so wet. The rain seems to have spurred the garden to grow and I noticed that hedge really need cutting. The large hedge at the front of the garden is a real pain to cut because it is so high and I have to hold a ladder for Colin to balance on to reach the top with the electric hedge trimmer.
I have decided that at the beginning of May I shall try and loose more weight. I shall go back on the Atkins diet for three weeks. I don't really like the diet because it is restrictive but I know it works and the last time I went on it I lost two stone. I find the main difficulty with the diet is that vegetables and fruit are restricted which I find difficult. My friends lost a lot of weight on the Slimmers World diet but I was not happy about paying the joining fee. Plus in Spain we do not have the support groups and have to rely on getting the information on line.
The reason that I want to loose more weight is because I'm probably going to a special occasion in the UK in June so I want to look my best. Once the weather improves I shall get back in the pool. Last year although I was swimming 50 lengths every day the weight did not shift. I did however notice that my muscles were firmer and toned.
I'm not sure what I am going to do today. I cant really do gardening because the ground is so wet. I had a look at the veg plot yesterday and it was covered in those pesky ants. I have nearly finished the arm warmers for my daughter and may go on to knit leg warmers to match. I quite like knitting with four needles. It took me a while to get used to holding the needles but once I mastered it its fairly easy.
Well that's it for this morning so have a good day and dont forget to like my greenerearth face book page. Thanks
Pat

Encounters with registered sex offenders

Child molesters are dangerous, manipulative people who target  our vulnerable children. Unfortunately child molesters do not come with a warning sign but research has shown that many have a pattern of behaviour which should be known to every parent to help them protect their children.

Read my article to gain some insight into encounters with registered sex offenders.  

http://www.helium.com/items/2304749-encounters-with-registered-sex-offenders

Do you believe in ghosts?

Do you believe in ghosts? Read my article about the strange goings on in  McPike Mansion.


http://www.helium.com/items/2316809-haunted-history-mcpike-mansion-in-alton-il