I’m starting to look around at contractors to remodel our kitchen, and quite possibly add another bed and bath to the house. I live on a very large lot and with our current real estate market; it seems a lot wiser to just improve the house I already inhabit. Plus, we live in a super convenient location with a relatively safe neighborhood. So, rather than move to another location, I’m much more open to expanding the kitchen and family room and adding that bedroom and bathroom I mentioned.

I like knowing that the contractor I choose to work with in the end will have performance bonds in place. Having them will guarantee the contractor will complete the project per the terms of the contract. A performance bond is usually issued along with a payment bond, which assures the sub-contractors and suppliers will be paid even if the contractor flakes out and defaults.

We have some contractors in the area with great reputations, but the industry is also built of a delicate web of dependence on the market. Things could go wrong at any turn. I want to know I’ll be getting exactly what I contract for – no more and no less.

A bigger kitchen is any cook’s dream, yes? We have two bathrooms, but one more would only add value to the house. One more bedroom? Ah, bliss! We’re a tad bit crowded now. Gigi would love to have her own “princess” room.

Hillsborough County libraries (Tampa and surrounding) are making what I think is a commendable move in the way they will allow internet access to children younger than 17. All children and teens will be required to take a free safety course called NetSmartz if they want to use the net inside the library system.

NetSmartz was developed by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to teach children ages 5 and older to avoid the dangers of online sexual predators. On top of earning the right to use the internet at the library, every one who completes the course will also receive a free children’s admission to Lowry Park Zoo, The Florida Aquarium and the Museum of Science & Industry.

The course only takes about 20 minutes to complete. I think the Hillsborough libraries deserve massive kudos for instating this requirement for internet use. It is a responsible measure.

Here’s one for all my friends who are striking out and forming their own home-based businesses. I have a site that offers free instructions for hair bows and I mentor a lot of women in the building of their businesses. It is a huge feeling of satisfaction to know I am helping even one person find a way to stay home with their children.

Business networking is an important aspect of running a successful business, large or small. You probably already realize you need to get out and there and get the word out to potential customers, but don’t over look the value of having significant contact with other businesses. You can hook up with other local businesses that compliment your product so that you can cross-sell for one another, refer customers, and help each other further your business appeal. You can form alliances with business owners in other states or non-competitive regions that run the same kind of business that you do so that you can exchange best practices and give one another encouragement and support.

Direct Matches is an online business community with over 65,000 members. You can post a business profile for free, as well as take advantage of free advertising, free classifieds, free networking, and a host of other business-building features. It does seem to be especially aimed, though, at direct sales business opportunity situations – specifically multi-level ventures. Nonetheless, the free features are worth checking out. See if you can make the community work for you.

There is a very misleading story running on CNN’s website today with a headline that reads: “Town accepts role as Scientology’s mecca.” The town of which the article speaks is Clearwater, Florida. And, the story is dead wrong.

The mayor, Frank Hibbard, and few other city officials are quoted, making wishy-washy statements that imply that people in the Clearwater area have slowly begun to build a trust and tolerance when it comes to the church of Scientology and their virtual overtaking of Clearwater.

The most telling phrase in the story, though, is: “some sources approached for this story declined to talk on the record, citing fear of harassment by Scientologists.”

That’s the most truthful statement in the article. This is a group of people known for sifting through people’s trash, going to great lengths to get individuals fired from jobs and making frightening threats. I hear local instances all of the time and if you look online, you can find literally thousands of accounts to back this claim. That is, if the church members have not already done their magic and found ways to have the websites pulled offline.

Taxpayers in the area resent that the church does not pay taxes, yet they are eating up the downtown area of Clearwater faster than a flesh-eating bacteria. Just try strolling the streets during the daylight hours and you will more than likely be shoved aside by the throngs of uniformed Sea Org members all but racing from one task to the next. The Sea Organization members, by the way, are those who sign a contract that reads, in part “I Contract Myself to the Sea Organization For The Next Billion Years.” They also sign over their entire net worth.

Yeah, we find them creepy around these parts.

Picket the church and you will find yourself denied service in more than a handful of retail shops and eateries.

It’s not the church’s teachings that most people feel uncomfortable about. In all actuality, you will find that downtown Clearwater is probably one of the only places in the world the Scientologists do not aggressively recruit. They quietly go about paying thousands of dollars for their e-meter sessions, supposedly ridding their minds of bad vibes and seeking the enlightenment that will allow them to rid their minds and bodies of the thetans, or disembodied souls of a long-ago alien race that was conquered by Xenu, the ruler of a Galactic Confederacy.

Whatever helps you get out of bed in the morning, I say. If it takes living out L. Ron Hubbard’s SciFi stories, so be it.

That’s creepy, but it’s not why people hiss internally when think about the Scientologists around here. The church’s own polling in 2003 showed that a majority of local people who had no previous contact with the church had negative opinions about it.

Maybe that is because Hubbard taught his followers to “attack” the church’s enemies.

There are downtown building purchased by the Scientologists under assumed names, convictions in Washington for a plot to steal federal government documents, the sad and mysterious death of Scientologist Lisa McPherson, and the fact that if you speak against them you can expect them to lash out at you. In fact, let’s see now what kind of response I get about this blog article. It might be interesting.

When I first moved to the area, I went on a job interview at a small publishing company in the downtown area. The job and its duties were perfect for me, but I knew something was amiss when I was waiting in the lobby and saw all the fawning posters of L. Ron Hubbard. The interview went very well until the gal interviewing me gestured to a series of books on a shelf behind her and explained that they ran the business based on the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard. Then she proceeded to ask me how I felt about Scientology. I remember thinking that asking me about religion was illegal. She remained silent until I finally replied. I couldn’t lie. And in the end, that job was not the one for me. To this day, though, I resent that the interviewer felt she had the right to talk about religion in that setting.

The reporter of the Associated Press (AP) story interviewed a couple of politicians who were trying to keep the peace. If they had actually taken the time to really find out what people thought, it would have been another story altogether.

I’ve been having a problem the past couple of weeks with my contact lenses. All of the sudden, my eyes will begin to itch and water. I end up removing my lenses to let my eyes rest. The other night I realized I am nearly always out in the family room when this happens. This morning I walked out there and the eye itchiness immediately began.

The probable culprit? Curtains. I’m going to take them all down today and wash them, because it’s been long enough that are probably dusty. I am allergic to dust and curtains are one thing I often forget to clean as often as I should.

Think about it. How often do you take down all of your curtains, wash them, hang them to dry to avoid shrinkage, iron them, and put them back on the curtain rods? I am willing to bet most of us don’t do it as often as we should.

So, I stood out in the family room to try and figure out if it is time to just replace the curtains with Faux Wood Blinds. I am leaning toward the faux wood, because I get a lot of hot sun in the windows in that room and I feel like real wood may not hold up as well. The blinds would look nice and wiping them clean with a damp sponge would be so much easier than taking down and laundering curtains.

I’m looking online and the Select Blinds website has several different varieties of faux wood blinds, plus a current coupon for 25% off everything on their site. Since I am unsure what the textures and colors really look like from the online pictures, I am going to take advantage of their free samples and then go from there.

That is my main message to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Just answer yes or no. The American people are nowhere remotely as simple and gullible as you obviously think. You might be used to getting away with giving replies that beat around the proverbial bush and end up never even touching the realm of an actual answer when you are in your own country. Perhaps your people are easily pacified by your condescending laughter and wry grins. Maybe your government officials are OK with the fact that you never, ever commit to a single concept.

Americans are smarter than that. We understand that you are avoiding a committed answer. We see that you are laughing at our opinions and our ways. If you met one of us in a dark alley alone, you would more than likely keep a swift kick in the teeth. Do you really think this is the best way to make Americans feel good about you, your country, or your backwards society?

When asked in an interview that aired yesterday if Iran ever intended to have a nuclear bomb in its possession, he refused to say yes or no. He just smirked and said things akin to “why would we need one?” and “What are you getting at?”

Arrogant fool. The world does not suffer fools for long.