My girlfriend Martha has had back problems for about 3 years now, during which we have seen about 9 doctors. Each doctor diagnosed her with something different, and none of them resolved the problem. Fibromyalgia, arthritis, lower back pain syndrome, stress, pinched nerve, were just some of the many explanations that the doctors would say. It came to the point were the doctor would say she was crazy and that there was nothing wrong, that perhaps she needed a vacation to relax. All the exams that were done proved otherwise. The MRI showed that her spinal column was perfect and that there were no herniated disks. We also had a test done on her nerves to see if there was a pinched nerve that was causing the pain…. nothing. The weekend before last she was in immense pain whether she was laying down or walked around. We made another doctors appointment on Monday, and out of frustration he decides to look in another direction. That same day we had another MRI done to her pelvic area. While we waiting for the results we went to a special mass that was given by a catholic priest from India were he was curing the sick. We prayed, and prayed. That night we got the results from the doctor saying that he found a cyst on her ovaries that was about the size of a sugar packet (4 centimeters). Three years with back pain and we never found the source, we were finally relieved. The doctor suggested that Martha have a few more exams done including an ultrasound. Tuesday Martha went to another mass by Father Thomas the next day to pray some more, and to thank God that we had found the source. Wednesday was the ultrasound, I was waiting in the lobby for the results when Martha comes out and tells me that they could not find anything. NOTHING! The cyst mystically vanished. If it had exploded or decreased in size the ultrasound would have shown an extra liquid from the cyst, but it was no where to be found. We had expected that she was going to have to get operated to remove the cyst in case of cancer and to remove the pain, but instead God decided to intervene, he removed the cyst and her pain. She has been pain free all week, doing things that would normally put her in bed from all the pain. Not only was she healed, there were many others last week that were healed. The blind could see, the deaf, hear, and the cripple walk.

I have been living abroad for the past 4 years and recently we have decided to move back to the USA. Our idea was to move in February, but now I am not so sure because of the current economy crisis in the states. Many of my friends are telling me not to move back, and to stay where I am because their companies are downsizing and alot of people are losing their jobs. With that said I would like to take a little more time to think about the move until half of next year to see how the economy behaves. What do you think? Should I risk the move with hopes and expectations that things will look up in the USA? or should I stay tight where I am, save some extra money, and see how things play out? What would you do in my situation?

I sold my motorcycle in preperation to moving back to the states. We are not moving until the beginning of next year, so was it too early to sell it? Some may say so, but even though I won’t have a motorcycle to keep my mind at ease on the weekends for awhile I still feel better that it is one less thing on my plate that I will need to sell before I leave. All that is left is my car and my tv with the entertainment system. I hope that they will be as easy to sell as my motorcycle was. So this was a sad day to see my motorcycle leave, and come back to see the spot where it used to sit empty, but I can honestly say I enjoyed it, now it’s on to bigger and better things. I may either buy a Harley Nighster so that I can ride my girlfriend around in when we are in the states, considering she never got the chance to ride with me on my CBR, but also I need to save my money for my boat. So only time will tell.

A few weeks ago a friend of mine got married. The civil wedding was held here in Guatemala, but the religious ceramony was held in El Salvador because his wife is from there. The drive from Guatemala City to San Salvador is about five hours give or take. The beautiful scenery makes the drive pretty easy. On the way back from the wedding the previous day I was in a hurry to get home so my led foot took charge. Not really paying attention to the speed limit signs that were posted I asked one of my friends that was with me what the speed limit was, “90 kilometers an hour” he replied, as I continued my speed of 140 km. Not shortly after though, there was a bend in the road where I decreased my speed from 140 km to 125 km. Sure enough right around the corner the el salvador police set up a speed trap waiting for people like me.

Considering I have never seen or heard of anyone being pulled over for speeding with a radar gun in Guatemala I was almost sure it was the same in El Salvador until now. As I came closer to the officer he sluggishly waves his arm from top to bottom. I couldn’t understand if his hand signal was telling me to slow down or stop completely. I asked Martha if I should stop, but nobody in the car seemed to have the answer, so I stopped just in case. The police office took his time walking up to my car. He was definitly in no hurry. As he was walking up I asked Martha if I should just pay him off, but she had no advice toward the matter and she said “we are in El salvador, not Guatemala, I am not sure if you can pay off the police here.” With that said, the office finally arrived to my window, displaying his radar gun at which I was going 125km. I told the officer that I was sorry and hadn’t seen any signs displaying the speed limit, trying to appear ignorant. He then asked for my license and registration which I kindly gave him. The officer looked at my Ohio drivers license and said, that he was going to have to confiscate it. He then said that he was going to give me a ticket which could be payed in the municiple court house the following day. That was not good news at all. The officer then walked around the back of my car, looking as if he was writing down my license plate number, and returned to the driver side window again. I asked if I could speak to him for a second as he didn’t seen interested in talking to me infront of the other passengers, he asked me to get out of the car and he walked away again. I asked my friend in the car how much money he had. I had no dollars which is the el salvador currency and he had $40. I asked him to lend me $10. I then got out of the car and walked over to the officer. I told him that we were on our way from a wedding back to Guatemala, and we couldn’t stay there for the night. I then told him that it was my only form of identification and I needed it to travel very soon. He asked where I was from and where the others in the car were from. It was kind of ironic, me, being the only american, speaking to this officer in spanish while the two guatemalans were waiting in the car. The officer then suggested that he keep one of the documents of the other passengers of the car if he were not going to retain mine. I then asked him how much the fine was, and kindly asked if he could pay the fine for me to avoid me the trouble of returning. He then said that the town’s people get the wrong idea if that happens and that it would look bad. After talking to him for awhile, he said he was going to give me a hand. Seeing that he hadn’t written down anything in his notebook it was most likely he was just looking for money. I then pulled out the $10 that my friend gave me in the car and said.. “Look, officer, I don’t want to offend you but this is all I have.”, that way $10 didn’t look like an insult when I gave it to him. I placed it in my passport and handed it over, not like anyone was going to see me bribing the police anyways. I then took my things and walked back to my car, put my seat belt on, and drove away. Martha and Neto were curious what happened, as they were certain we would have to find a hotel for the night.

I learned this technique after living in Mexico for a year. Although now I would not recommend it. The United States are putting alot of pressure on Mexico to enforce the laws which only makes the bribes alot more pricey.

Awhile ago I stumbled upon this youtube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsFZURpfdYQ of an exclusive interview with a sales associate from Chantier Amel. The Amel 54 is an amazing sailboat. The guys from Chantier really hit the nail on the head when they were designing this boat. Only 32 built a year they have considered safety and comfort making it easy for anyone to sail away into the sunset while taking their home with them. A home away from home, if I owned this boat I would think twice about buying another home because you may never want to be stuck one place for too long. Although this boat is in a class of its own it still takes a pretty penny to be able to afford one of these. For more information about the Amel 54 you can visit their website at http://www.amel.fr/. The Amel 54 is definitely high on my list of must have sailboats.

001. Luxury

Aston Martin, Omega and Classic Spirit Yachts are all luxurious items that James Bond so frequently uses. James Bond would not settle with mediocre, he only uses the best, so why was Bond stuck using a PC in his latest movie Casino Royale? Apple has always been a little more expensive than a PC, but you get what you pay for with cutting edge technology.

002. Style

James Bond is a style icon for many, and always seen wearing the latest fashion. Macs, not only run great, but they look great too. A sleek and shinny MacBook or MacBook Pro would match Bond’s style perfectly. Mac in fashion, music, photography, and multimedia is definitely a lot cooler!

003. Speed

Bond is busy fighting bad guys and what little time he has on the computer should be managed well. He does not want to wait around for Windows to load while he is researching his latest target. OSX has a faster boot time than Windows, and can sleep and wakeup as fast as Bond can draw his gun. Not only loading time, Mac runs its applications faster than Windows. Heck, if you wanted to run Windows on a Mac, it would run faster than on a PC!

004. Stability

The Walther PPK and P99 are famous as Bond’s weapon of choice. For its stability and ergonomics the Walther is Bond’s gun for the same reason that a Mac should be Bond’s favorite. James Bond needs a computer that he can rely on anywhere he travels, and considering Mac OSX is more stable than Windows, it is definitely reliable.

005. Protection from virus and hackers

James Bond is always up against some of the worst Villains. You never know when his next counter part might try to hack into the MI6, or even his personal laptop to compromise his mission. Also Bond does not have the time fighting computer viruses. Just like his trusty pistol for protection he also needs a Mac that will protect him in the virtual world.

006. Macs in the Movies

GoldenEye, Hackers, Independence Day, Johnny Mnemonic, Mission Impossible I and II, The Saint, Wargames, Antitrust, Men in Black II are just few of the movies that is seen using a Mac. James Bond should be given that opportunity as well.

007. Instant Video Conference

Sometimes when Bond is traveling he may need to communicate with the MI6 HQ. What better way than via Video Conference? Talking to M, Q, and Felix all at the same time would be simple and save time with OSX’s iChat. What applications in Windows do you know that will allow simultanious video conferencings?

The rainy season in Guatemala has been extremely harsh this year not leaving us many clear days for anything. When I woke up this morning to my surprise the day was beautiful and I had a choice between taking out my motorcycle or going out with Martha to take pictures. We decided to take a drive to Antigua where we had lunch at our favorite Italian restaurant “Cafe Mediterraneo”. The camera I am using is Martha’s old Nikon D70 which would lock up a few times taking pictures, and the sensors probably need to be cleaned by now, but I did manage to get a few good shots. What do you think?

I have recently stumbled upon one of the youngest solo circumnavigaters, Zac Sunderland. I am not sure if am just finding out about him now because the news never actually reached Guatemala. Zac Sunderland is only 16 and is attempting to sail around the world in just a year in a half, becoming the youngest man ever, but he has to make it back home before his 18th birthday. You can check his status at his homepage http://www.zacsunderland.com/. With all the technology today it definatly will make it easier for Zac to navigate than it was for Robin Lee Graham who currently holds the world record.

Many people dream of making easy money, whether it be winning the lottery, inheriting from a relative, or even come up with the next dot com boom. Where few have succeeded making money online many of failed. There are many site on the web today that claim to have a step by step guide to making a lot of money fast.

John Chow dot Com gives away a free PDF telling people how he makes money online, even explains the ad companies that he uses to make most of his profit. One thing I would like to point out about his claimed methods is that in his PDF he says:

“If you’re blogging only for money, than you’re in for a shock. Yes, you can make good money with a blog, but despite what the National Post story on me said, it takes a lot more than `no effort` 99% of blogs on the Web cannot make more than $100 a month. John Chow dot Com make money because I don’t blog for money. If the only reason you’re blogging is to get rich you, you will fail.”

Although this might be true I recently read an interview of bloggingfingers.com which claims John Chow explained his blogging success:

John Chow dot Com got so successful because I was singularly focused on making as much money as possible for the blog. By showing massive monthly increases in blog earnings, I fire up the imagination of bloggers everywhere. People came to read it not just to learn how to make money online but to see if I could beat last month’s record. The blog is based on the “success breeds success” model. The more money the blog makes, the more traffic it gets. The more traffic it gets, the more money it makes. It’s a good situation to be in.

If you look closely at John Chows blogs you won’t find many interesting unique stories other than making money blogging. An even closer look and you will find that most of the ad companies that John Chow claims to be making all of his money are almost impossible to be used by a start-up blogger. Many require that your site receive 500,000 minimum hits monthly. Some of the ad companies are also owned by John Chow, or owned by his friends.

Another online money maker is Ty Coughlin’s Reverse Funnel System. Does the system work or is it just another SCAM. Unlike John Chow which tells you his “secrets” free, Ty actually requires that you pay him money in order for him to give you his secrets. After giving him your e-mail if you refuse to pay him and go about your business surfing for other ways he continues to mail you with convincing mails like:

Hey Jeremiah,

Listen, you absolutely must get yourself into this system ASAP.. Do not wait another second. Our goal has always been to actually create the first income stories on the net of people who got started with our system at 9am and had made their first thousand dollar profit by 2pm that same day. Well, we knew we could pull it off but it would have been unrealistic for us to make that goal public until we were 100% complete with the back end of the system and finished the marketing co-opps. Well the word is out… we just had our first student earn their VERY FIRST thousand dollar profit within….. **Check this out, their first 48 hours!** Maybe it was luck for this guy, we’ll see as the funneling continues. Maybe it’s you who does it first.. Oh! wait, don’t tell me you’re the one that thinks that it could never happen to someone like you? Are you? Well you’re right, it can’t happen, there is nothing out there that works that well where you won’t mess it up some how. I promise you this Jeremiah, within the next 30-60 days you will see posts all over the internet from people that are posting a real time thousand dollar profit in 24hrs PR release. **Mark my word** I’m excited, so I’m going to go and get to work on my commitment. I suggest you do the same

Over and out
Ty Coughlin
~Inner Circle~

They say if it sound’s too good to be true, it probably is.

Welcome back. Those of you that are just tuning in, might want to check part one of how I met my girlfriend before reading the following article.

Visiting Guatemala for the first time was incredible, but the vacation was quickly over. I went back to my desk job in Ohio and Martha went back to her’s where we continued to talk daily on instant messenger, missing Martha more than ever. One afternoon while chatting she mentioned to me how strange her day was. She start to explain to me about a friend of her’s that gave her chocolates the day before, and now a large arrangement of flowers arrived at her door. The roses had no card, and the flower company would not disclose who they were from so she assumed they were from him. The awkward thing was that she was going to tell him that she only wanted to be friends. Martha’s younger brothers were ready to take the roses off her hands and give them to their girlfriends as if they had bought them. Finally I had told her the secret that I had bought her the roses only to brighten her day, and when she asked me why I hadn’t put a card with the arrangement I had no reply. In the end she was glad that the roses were from me.

Time past and I was tired of Ohio and needed a drastic change. A friend of mine in Monterrey, Mexico mentioned to me that he had a spare bedroom and I should move in with him. I save my money for eight months before moving to Monterrey so I would have enough money to live while I find a job there. Thinking that the move to Monterrey Mexico would make me closer to Martha was in fact the opposite. I was working even harder to start my company there, programming all day long. In fact I ended up living in Mexico for one year without making a penny before our company took off. Martha was also working hard at the time in a fashion magazine as a photographer that was trying to launch.

I tried again and again for Martha to come and visit me while I was living in Mexico, hoping to start up some sort of relationship. I guess when you keep your feelings from someone and are not straight to the point no matter how many hints you drop it’s just not enough. Months go by and I start asking Jen for advice of how to win over Martha and we come to the conclusion that I should move on. So in the process of moving on, I found a girlfriend in Monterrey. Jealous, controlling, immature.. everything in a girl that was not for me and total opposite of Martha. But while we were dating she helped me to see alot of the city and to distract me of work.

About two months into dating the girl from Monterrey, I finally told Martha I was dating her. I had also sent Martha a letter explaining to her how much I was in love with her and she began to cry uncontrollably. She wouldn’t tell me much about her feelings because of the relationship I was in, and FINALLY decided to come and visit me along with my best friend Jen. Just as friends right….

Two weeks before Jen and Martha were to visit me I broke up with my girlfriend. What would you have done? The girl that you were in love with for years now is finally coming to visit. Jen and I had a great plan so that Martha and I would get some time alone. Jen would come one day after Martha and leave one day before Martha leaves. Success! I don’t know if there was something in the wine but the night Martha arrived to Monterrey we shared our first kiss.

We kissed! Now what? Where do we go from there? I was still living in Monterrey and she was still in Guatemala, but that was enough. Martha didn’t want to start anything formal because of the long distance so we continued with our lives but continued talking again via instant messenger and e-mail. We managed to plan a few more trips together throughout the year, including Cancun and Ohio where she met my parents for the first time.

A year went by living in Mexico and I was running out of money so I talked with Martha and we were going to move away to Florida so that I could start looking for a job. Before I could act, she ended up finding an apartment of her own in Guatemala. So with my first paycheck that I finally received through the business I started in Mexico I took a risk and bought a ticket to Guatemala. I had a return flight for two months later in case things did not work out. Shortly after I arrived in Guatemala, Jen and her recent boyfriend Kellen came to visit Martha and me.

Here I am three years later and still living in Guatemala! Against all odds, I was everything that Martha never wanted in a guy. Younger, a Gringo (American), and long distant relationship.

All of the above pictures are from my first visit to Guatemala in 2003.