from new young chefs like Xos? Cannas of Pepe Vieira offering creative dishes based on fine products of the sea, to traditional small fishermen's taverns right on the docks offering an abundance of fresh seafood (Spider Crab, Bay Prawns, Lobster, etc...) caught just that morning and served in handmade wicker baskets right on the table for everyone to dig in and enjoy this delectable "finger-food".Being right on the coast we will spend a day making a boat trip over to on one of the small Island offshore with beaches of un-touched beauty, golden soft sand and clear blue water. The Cies Islands know as "The Island of the Gods" and the Ons Islands have been declared a national park called "The Archipelago Atlantic Islands National Park". Here can be found all types of wild Flora & Fauna, excellent for nature hikes & walks.A trip to Galicia is not complete without a visit to Santiago de Compostela the Capital of the region and also the end of the important Pilgrimage Way of St. James. Here you will walk the streets of the old quarter and visit the Cathedral which marks the heart of this historic centre.About the Gastronomy of GaliciaThe main allure of Galician Gastronomy is its variety, to such an extent that it is hard to tell which is the most typical dish of the region.

If there is one characteristic that links all the dishes, it must be the familiar, loving way of cooking, with slow craft and varied abundance. The same product can be cooked in many ways and has a different taste in different places. It could be said that Galician cuisine is a classical one, in the sense given by history or art, because it reaches its peak with the simplest elements naturally combined.To speak of fish and seafood in Galicia may be a commonplace, but it is worth a reference. There is a rich variety of fish, the tastiest of them are those caught in the rias or close to the coast: hake, turbot, sea-bass, grouper and sole. They are prepared in classical styles: grilled, a la Gallega (Galician fashion) or caldeirada (a sort of casserole), or else sophisticatedly dressed by expert cooks.

With regard to seafood, shrimp makes a delicious appetizer, as do squid, cuttlefish, served fried or in their own ink, and crab. Barnacles gather the quintessence of all the sea flavours. Others are eaten raw, like the fine cockle (Razor Clams) and its oyster. Another group of seafood which make delicious dishes include the spider crab and its three flavours, lobster, Galician Coastal Cooking, king prawns and scallops, in their uncountable variety of sauces, along with the nourishing and accessible mussel. The final seafood worth mentioning, considered humble because it is eaten every month of the year in every fair in Galicia, is the octopus "? feira", i.e.

cooked, sliced, sprinkled with paprika and salt, and dressed with olive oil.To finish up with this short glimpse at the Galician cuisine, some products must be called to mind: the rich fresh cheeses, the exquisite confectionery and the filloas (a kind of pancake), the most original and delicious dessert that can be tasted in our land.An Unforgettable Cooking Holiday on the Atlantic Coast of Spain..

Every item is carefully wrapped in mango bark papers with earthy accents and Chinese I-Ching coins that give the gift sets a natural, rustic feel. Many of the high quality products originate in Nepal, India, Thailand and Tibet and some of the gift sets come in re-usable banana leaf jewel boxes custom made for Rapunzel Gifts in Thailand. Each gift set can now be changed to include any variety of the products offered on the site. Gregorski says they also expanded their product line to give the customer a wider variety of individual products to add. The site will introduce a new area for shopping a la carte next month.

RapunzelGifts.com is the brainchild of television industry veteran Lynn Gregorski. A former manager at CNBC and CBS Marketwatch.com, Gregorski found a peaceful refuge in the practice of yoga. "I combined my experience traveling to places like Nepal and Peru with my own yoga practice to design gifts that help people on a journey toward relaxation and inner peace," she says. When Gregorski says, "We are committed to helping you find your peacefulness in physical body and spiritual mind," she's talking about beautiful gift baskets and jewelry, but she's also about the joy of helping others.For more information on wholesale or retail opportunities, contact Lynn Gregorski at (201) 489-9849.Media Contact: Terri Thornton 404-932-4347, e-mail protected from spam bots.

The key to successful holiday gift giving starts with a plan. Begin by making a list of names you will be purchasing holiday gifts for. Leave two or three blank spaces between each name where you will jot down information about each recipient. Once your list of names is complete, your holiday gift giving plan will start to take shape one recipient at a time. Starting with the first person on your list, write down what types of things they like, hobbies they enjoy, collections they may have, and anything you can remember about them that will help you make your holiday gift selections.

For example, Susie is the first person on my list. The things I know about her are that she is a scrapbook enthusiast and she enjoys gourmet teas. I jot those items on my list and move on to Tim. Tim is Susie's husband and a guy that is so hard to buy for. I am never sure what to get him.

I do know that he likes to golf, and Susie recently mentioned that he has taken up cooking. That is an interesting combination, but I will think of something. My list also includes a corporate client that I like to send something to every holiday season as a token of my appreciation for the business they send to me throughout the year. There are many other recipients on my list, but I want to focus on these three individuals.My holiday gift giving plan is beginning to take shape. Since I am the type of person who cannot settle for just one item, I have discovered a very simple and smart approach to meeting my holiday gift giving needs ? gift baskets! Based on each recipient, every gift basket has its own theme.

Let's start with Susie the scrapbook enthusiast. A gift basket filled with archival safe photo mounting paper and pens, interesting fibers, decorative brads, a corner punch, and a few other small related items make a great start to a winning gift. Topped off with a mug for the avid scrapbook-a-holic and a few gourmet tea bags, this gift is going to rock!Tim's gift will even come together nicely when implementing a little creativity. I decided on a huge mixing bowl filled with small kitchen tools, a cookbook, and some unique spices will be sure to please the aspiring cook. For a more personal touch, I added a personalized apron and gourmet chef's hat! The bowl of goodies is sitting on a wooden cutting board and the entire present is tied up in a square table cloth.The corporate gift is a cinch.

Select either a basket filled with gourmet treats or a stack of gift boxes filled with diverse snacks. Either is sure to make a big hit.Holiday gift giving and planning do not have to be a chore. Solicit the help of others. If you come up short on items for your list, call a family member or friend to assist you. They may know or remember more about a specific individual than you.

Once your list is complete, the fun part actually begins. Gift baskets take the stress out of the entire process of holiday gift giving. To make it successful for both the giver and recipient, be sure that you take into consideration items that relate to the individual. When you take time to personalize the gift basket, you ensure a successful holiday gift giving experience..

• tiny wicker baskets or straw hats
• egg cups
• candle holders
• flat shells (scallops)
• small filigree metal boxes
• decorated wooden boxes
• coffee mugs
• wine glasses
• small decorative dish
• tiny flower pots
• little tin watering cans
• small jars
• ceramic spoon rest

• heart-shaped candies or chocolates
• Hershey's kisses and hugs
• small floating candles
• gourmet or flavored coffee - enough for one pot
• little decorative soaps
• wild flower seed packets or small quantity of seeds with planting instructions, wrapped in colored cellophane
• flower bulbs
• bath oil beads
• bath salts
• small bag of mixed spice (cinnamon/nutmeg) and your favorite apple pie recipe
• packets of specialty tea
• hot chocolate and cinnamon mix - enough for one mug

• Please plant these to celebrate our growing love (for bulbs, seeds)
• All things grow with love (for bulbs, seeds)
• Our flame of love will always be bright (for candles)
• Hugs and Kisses from the new Mr. And Mrs! (for Hershey's kisses and/or hugs)
• Heart-felt wishes from the new Mr.

  And Mrs. (for anything heart-shaped)

• Love lives in happy hearts (anything heart-shaped)
• The best gifts are tied with heartstrings (anything heart- shaped)
• May there always be spice in your life! (for apple pie recipe and spice; for hot chocolate/cinnamon mix)
• We're suited to a 'T' (for specialty teas)
• Nothing can wash away the love we feel! (bath oil, bath salts, soaps)
• Thanks for sharing this special day with us
• Thank you for sharing in the celebration of our love (or union, etc.)
• Thanks for joining us on our wedding day
• Thanks for sharing in our special day

• Personalized coasters made from CD's (see http://www.whimsies-online.com/cdcoasters.htm)
• Personalized CD mix of your favorite music - print out a liner for the CD case with your names, wedding date and a nice background or a photo of the happy bride and groom-to-be!
• Fortune cookies to make with printed fortunes that you create on your computer - or add your names and wedding date (see http://www.whimsies-online.com/wedding.htm for fortune cookie recipe)
• small picture frames that can double as place cards
• Heart-shaped cookie cutters with your favorite sugar cookie recipe
• Homemade bell-shaped or heart-shaped cookies decorated with your names and wedding date in hard icing

Past statistics have shown the average survival rate of inflammatory breast cancer to be approximately 18 months. Kitty has survived and fought this disease for over 6 years now and is now facing the realities that such a long battle bring when her spirit is stronger than her body as the cancer has spread to her bones and other soft tissue organs."We hope to help Kitty with this fundraiser for Kuu while making the community aware of this untalked about form of breast cancer," says PR volunteer, Stephanie Piche, one of over 15 organizers of this event, (www.kittyslove.com), "By pulling together and asking for support from our community we hope to raise funds and awareness in a significant way while sharing the wonderful love that Kitty has for her daughter, family, and friends with others in the community."Donations for gift baskets, silent auction and food for the event are being requested as a list of participating merchants will be available online at www.kittyslove.com and updated daily as more sign up to support this event.For more information on Kitty's Love Fundraiser, please visit www.kittyslove.com, and to learn more about IBC/Inflammatory Breast Cancer Organization visit www.ibcsupport.org..

And, here's the worst part - somewhere in this ever-growing mound of chaos lies your business: important phone numbers, bills that have to be paid, clients that need attention, receivables that need collecting? Before I help you to dig out of the paper clutter, let me assure you of two things:

1. You are not alone.
2. There is a light at the end of the tunnel.

The first step is sorting, To sort, we'll need some containers (I use laundry baskets or milk crates, but any boxes will do). Label the containers accordingly:

• Take Action ? anything that requires you to do something within the next two weeks. Includes bills, appointments, meetings, etc.
• Read ? includes any paper, newsletter, announcement, magazine, etc. that might contain information you want to read. The secret here is to cut it out the article, and throw away the rest of the publication.

• 30 Days ? includes things that must be done within 30 days, but are not as critical as Take Action items which must be done within two weeks. Includes bills due, appointments, events, to-dos, etc.
• File ? These are archived items that require no action, but must be retained. Includes contracts, bank statements, receipts, warranties, product information, tax information, etc.
• Throw Away ? anything that is six months old and requires you to take no action.

Just glance at it, and quickly put it into the correct container. We will do a more specific sort later. For now, we are doing a general sort, and discarding trash. Of course, the biggest question is what to throw away. The simple answer is to throw away anything you don't need.

You need to ask yourself, "Do I really need this, and what is the worst thing that can happen if I throw this away?" I worked with one person who published a local, specialized newspaper. He wanted to keep one or two copies of each back issue, but when we sorted his paperwork, we found 40-50 copies of each. We also found records of events he was involved in years ago, wedding photos, some of his children's artwork, DVD rental receipts, last year's to-do lists, his son's birth certificate, the title to his SUV, etc. We also found owners manuals and receipts for items he no longer owned, stacks of bank statements from the 1980s, and so on. Remember, this is your workspace.

For you to be most efficient, effective and professional your paperwork has to be in order. By now, you've gone through each stack of paper. You sorted correctly, you have five containers or boxes of papers to be filed, and (most likely) a lot of discarded paper for recycling. Congratulations on your hard work and progress. Stay tuned, and I will discuss how to set up a filing system, and what to do with the papers you sorted.

Here are a few tips for creating an inviting home on a budget.

• Watch television shows, read books, and look through magazines to gather inspiration for creating a stylish home. Although many of the things you look at are completely out of your budget, you can try to recreate it with lower costing materials and a little creativity. Some great looks can be found on www.potterybarn.com, www.pierone.com, www.ikea.com, and www.marthastewart.com.
• Paint is the cheapest way to really change a room. One thing I have learned is to never be afraid of color- bright colors can really liven up a room.

  Be wary though with small rooms because this can make the rooms look smaller and closed off. In smaller rooms use softer and lighter colors- yellows, light green, lavenders, and white/off-white.

• Getting your home organized will make your house look well-kept. To find out some great ways to get your home as well as yourself organized, go to www.organizedhome.com. This site is wonderful for learning how and what you need to do to clear out the rubbish in your home.

  With different styles of baskets to organize your items it not only makes the room look cleaner, but it also adds to the d?cor.

• Target, Kmart, and Walmart all offer great items for your home at a much lower cost. Target has fantastic drapes, tableware, towels, pillows, and furniture for your home. Kmart offers incredible linens, drapes, and sheets from the Martha Stewart line. Walmart offers great fabrics for those do-it-yourself projects in making pillows, drapes, and linens.

• To add pictures to your walls, look through old art books or photograph books. Buy a cheap frame to put it in and you will have beautiful artwork for a fraction of the cost.
• Rearrange your furniture in your home. Try to find new ways to break up a room or to make the room more open and inviting.
• Light a candle and put potpourri in a bowl.

  This really warms up a room, not to mention adding a beautiful smell to the air.

• Find slipcovers for your couches. Doing this is a lot cheaper then buying a new sofa and when you get tired of it you can take the covers off. These are especially nice if you have little children because it is a great way to preserve the quality of your furniture. The slipcovers are easier to clean because you can throw them in the wash, unlike your couch.

  A couple of great places to look for nice slipcovers are www.kohls.com and www.surefit.com.

• Want something in particular in your home, but can't afford it? Hit www.ebay.com and bid on it. Ebay always has great things for your house not to mention beautiful antiques and collectibles which make your home more unique.
• Buy large pillows to use as extra seating. These are great for when you have a large group over and not enough seating.

  Don't invest in more seating; just buy big beautiful pillows for your guests to sit on.

• Go to the garage sales, but go early. Those who wait do not get the deals that the early risers get. Don't underestimate the Salvation Army and Goodwill either because you can find some interesting and beautiful things for your house.
• Learn one craft that will aid you in decorating your home.

  Several of the fabric and craft stores offer wonderful classes for learning crafts such as sewing and floral for a very low cost. By learning crafts you can make things yourself at a lower cost or you may be able to make money off of this to afford you more luxuries in your home- you just never know.

• Hit your local Dollar Tree for some great buys on things to make your home more inviting. You might laugh at this one, but you would be surprised what ends up at that store. I have bought beautiful mugs, baskets, and stationary for a buck a piece and no one knows that I spent so little money.

  Try to think outside the box and go to the stores that are normally not known for quality houseware. This is where you get the real deals.

• Purchase all different types of blankets and put them under your end tables or drape one on your sofa. They make your guests feel cozy and invited especially on those cold winter nights.
• Put a book or two on your coffee table that can be a conversation piece, but don't overdo it.

  People tend to get carried away with this and then you lose the beauty of the furniture underneath. One or two books are nice, but four or five looks like clutter.

• If you buy the do-it-yourself furniture or have a piece that looks like it needs a face-lift try replacing the knobs on those cabinets and drawers. A beautiful brushed silver knob or ornate gold knob can make the item look entirely different.
• Replace your old plastic curtain rods with sterling silver or gold rods.

  Target and Kmart have some really beautiful ones with different styles of ends (leaves, fruit, glass) that really add that special touch.

• Try a theme room, but don't get carried away. Remember that whatever theme you chose you will have to live with it for a long time. Go for classic themes that seem to withstand the ages. If you choose to pick a theme for the room do hints of it throughout rooms, but don't make the entire room one big theme.

  Just give your guest's hints of it.

The key to becoming a good shooter is practicing often and using a system that enables repetition of your shooting stroke.""When I was younger, I wasn't a very good shooter but one night a high school teammate of mine and I had the opportunity to go to a gym the night before a game. We took turns rebounding and quickly feeding each other for shooting practice. The next night, I felt more confident about my shooting skills and scored 26 points, the most I ever scored. That experience sold me on the benefit of a quick repetitive shooting practice."Most people don't have someone immediately available to rebound and pass the ball back to them. The shootAndstar rebounder performs this function very well so that anyone can practice by themselves and still get the benefit of a quick repetitive shooting practice.

Hudson says, "If anyone wants to help their athlete become a better shooter and scorer, they will definitely benefit from purchasing the shootAndstar rebounder for their athlete. They won't make excuses anymore for not practicing because they will be excited about being able to actually practice shooting instead of wasting their time chasing the ball."The shootAndstar rebounder is easy to assemble and use. When you are finished using it, you can just allow the net to hang from behind the backboard while using the entire basketball court for any purpose. This keeps the ball from bouncing over into the neighbor's yard and protects your landscaping. If you want the net down, the Velcro attached sleeves are easy to slip off their supporting angles, the apparatus portion attached to the backboard easily compacts and stores out of the way on top of the backboard.

If you want the entire apparatus down, you can easily, by hand, unscrew the clamps that secure the apparatus to the backboard, and compactly store it away.Hudson has formed his own corporation, Sporting Advantage Inc., and has Bloomington IL based RB White, Inc. manufacturing the aluminum portion of the invention, with other components being supplied by various companies throughout this country and the world. Hudson is talking to several large backboard manufacturing companies about building the shootAndstar rebounder directly into the backboards that they manufacture. Hudson has created his own website- www.shootAndstar.com through which his company will market and sell the shootAndstar rebounder. The product will only be available to purchase over the Internet, and he does not plan on allowing stores to purchase and sell his product.

He believes he can efficiently sell and market his product at its lowest cost without bringing in a lot of middlemen. Initially, there will be three versions of the product so that almost anyone with any type of backboard, from fan shaped and narrow rectangular shaped baskets to 72" wide backboards, will be able to purchase the appropriate version for use with their backboard. The basic unit of this rebounder starts out at a regular retail of $169 plus the appropriate taxes and handling costs. Hudson's goal is to continue to develop sales volume and ways to reduce costs so that every basketball player that wants a shootAndstar rebounder can afford it. Hudson's initial marketing efforts will be in starting a grass roots effort to make as many basketball players aware of his product so they can benefit from it.

He has demonstrated product at various basketball camps, tournaments, and other events including camps at Illinois State University, Illinois Wesleyan College, Bradley University, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, Millikin University, AugustanaCollege, and Western Illinois College. Future promotions for the product will be conducted through a wide variety of resources, including a mini-infomercial, and will be used to direct potential purchasers of the backstop to Hudson's company website: www.shootAndstar.com ..

Details of the agreement were not disclosed.Earlier in the year, this new entrepreneur lost her husband, Dan Chase, to colon cancer and faced many tough life changes. With one of two children still at home, Ms. Chase needed to return to work. However, she did not wish to return to her career as a medical assistant due to her late husband's recent medical battles."I initially was considering enrolling in the cake decorating classes, but when the opportunity to purchase the business materialized, I knew it was right. This was truly a blessing.

Now, I look forward to coming to work ? everyday," added Ms. Chase.Clark's Cakes and Candies was established in 1998 by Margaret Clark and has been happily serving up treats to the Tri-Cities area since. Ms. Clark stated, "I am thrilled that Gail would take over my business. She has bright, new ideas and I strongly believe she will take great care of Clark's customers." Clark's may be known for providing professional, custom wedding cakes and all-occasion cakes to its customers.

However, one of Ms. Chase's "bright, new ideas" is to provide area customers with "desserts-to-go." These items will be made fresh daily and will be available for pick-up. The menu will change regularly, so customers simply need to call ahead and reserve their treats for pick-up on their way home from work or other errands. Some possible treats on the daily "desserts-to-go" list are: mini-cakes, cream cakes, shortbread cookies, cheesecakes, and more. Customers are encouraged to provide additional dessert suggestions as well.To commemorate Ms.

Clark's retirement and the new ownership of the shop, Ms. Chase is hosting a Grand Opening Event at the shop on April 9, 2005 from 10 am to 5 pm (PST). Both ladies will be present. The event will feature free samples of specialty cakes, bar cookies, mini-cakes, chocolates and other goodies. Special giveaways will be awarded through a random drawing of visitors as well.

Adding to the celebration, Ms. Chase has arranged for two live radio remotes to be stationed in the parking area for several hours the day of the event.In closing, Ms. Chase offered, "I am very much looking forward to growing this business and serving the community with consistent, high-quality baked goods. Clark's will also continue to provide the area with those "hard-to-find" professional baking and candy supplies, just as Margaret always has done."About Clark'sFounded in 1998, Clark's has been serving up tasty treats and professional baking and candy supplies to the Tri-Cities area for seven years. The shop provides the largest selection of professional and "hard-to-find" baking and candy-making supplies in the area.

Clark's also offers custom wedding cakes, all-occasion cakes, cookies, candies, espresso, gift baskets, and more. Clark's Cakes and Candies is located at 8551 West Gage Boulevard, Suite J, Kennewick, WA 99336, next door to Tony Roma's and adjacent to the Costco parking lot. The business telephone number is (509) 736-1520.For more information, contact:Sheryl L. JanoskyPartner Envision Marketing2101 Eastgate CourtProsser, WA 99350t) 509.786.2033c) 509.832.2522.

• Cookie Gift Basket ? bake up some homemade cookies and enclose them in colorful plastic wrap, include a personal card or poem.
• Chocolate Lovers Gift Basket ? include individual fancy chocolates, boxed chocolates, or the person's favorite chocolate bars along with hot chocolate mix.
• Holiday Gift Basket #1 ? a Christmas holiday gift basket idea could include small stocking stuffers, candy canes and homemade Christmas cookies.
• Holiday Gift Basket #2 ? a Halloween holiday gift basket can be stuffed with candy, throw in some plastic skulls, spiders, cob webs and assorted creepy items.
• Wine Country Gift Basket ? wine and cheese baskets are favorites, include two bottles of choice wine from your favorite winery or wine shop, add cheese and crackers.
• Coffee Gift Basket ? Your favorite coffee lover will enjoy fresh gourmet ground roasted coffee (or their favorite brand), flavored creamer, cookies and a fun coffee mug.
• Italian Gift Basket ? include a variety of dried gourmet pasta like spinach, whole wheat, or dried tomato, two jars of pasta sauce, fresh mozzarella and parmesan cheese, garlic bread and fancy olive oil.
• Tea Lovers Gift Basket ? you can include several varieties of black tea, green tea and herbal teas, a mug and homemade butter cookies adds a nice finishing touch.
• Champagne or Beer Gift Basket - the champagne basket would be elegant: includes a bottle of fine champagne, cheese and crackers, and fancy chocolates; the beer basket includes several domestic and/or imported beers, lagers, or ales, chips, pretzels and nuts.
• Pet Gift Basket ? dog and cat gift baskets are the most popular.

  For a dog you can include: homemade doggie biscuits or cookies, a doggie collar, doggie toys. For a cat you can include: cat treats, cat nip and cat toys.