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در میان برفها
قدمهای استوار برمی داری
کودکان خیال را بینی
قدم بر جای پای تو نهند
در افق نگری
دوستانی در راه مانده
حال قدری از تو فاصله گرفته اند
بی اعتنا گامی به جلو برمی داری
آرام آرام فرو می روی
ناگاه مردی آید که دست به سویت دراز کرده
و چراغش دوردستها را روشن کرده
خیز بر می داری
چشمانت را می بندی و باز می کنی
خورشید طلوع کرده
و مرد تاریکیها ناپدید شده است.

You are in financial trouble if...

You're surprised by your bank balance or credit card statements.
In today's financial world, you can't be caught napping. "Float" -- the time it takes a transaction to clear your account -- has all but disappeared, and financial services are eager to penalize any lapses, such as a bounced check or an over-limit transaction, with hefty fees. At the very least, you need online access to your financial accounts, and you need to check them often -- at least once a week, more often if you've bounced a check or incurred any other fine in the past six months.

You have no savings
You don't necessarily have to keep thousands of dollars stuffed away somewhere, but you do need some kind of financial cushion to cover unpredictable expenses.

You're carrying credit card debt
Don't fall for the myth that credit card debt is normal or that the average American carries huge balances. In reality, the most U.S. households have no credit card debt, according the Federal Reserve. Only one household in 14 carry more than $10,000 in credit card debt and uses cash advance on credit cards. Credit card debt not only costs you ridiculous amounts of interest, but it drastically reduces your financial flexibility, since any balance you've charged is credit you can't access in an emergency. If you've got balances on your plastic, making paying them off a priority.Take a hard look at the real choices

You have no discretionary income
If every paycheck is spent before you get it, or your fixed expenses eat up most or all of your income, you need to fix the problem, now. You may have convinced yourself that you have no choices, but chances are good that you do; you just haven't been willing to really consider them yet.

You don't know what kind of mortgage you have or when the payment resets
One out of three homeowners, when asked what kind of mortgage they had, confessed to pollster GfK Roper that they had no idea. Unless you have a traditional mortgage -- with a fixed rate for the life of the loan -- your ignorance could be expensive. The payment that's currently affordable could skyrocket, leaving you among the rising numbers of homeowners losing their homes to foreclosure. Call your lender now to find out whether and when your payment can change, and get an estimate of how high it can go; then consider your options. You may be able to cut other costs to compensate for the bigger payment, or you may want to explore refinancing or even moving.

You're underinsured
If your job doesn't provide adequate health insurance, you need to look for another job. In the meantime, read "A survival guide for the uninsured." Also check the liability limits on your auto, home and/or renters policies. Liability coverage protects you if you get sued; if your policy limits aren't high enough, you risk losing much of what you own plus big chunks of your future income. Make sure the limits are at least equal to your net worth (what you own, minus what you owe). Finally, if you're a homeowner, adjust your coverage limits if necessary.

Your business (or rental property) is losing money
As a fellow business owner, I understand how much you want your venture to succeed. But too many months of red ink will sink not only your business but your personal finances, especially if you're using your personal credit or savings to stay afloat. Come up with a plan to fix the problem and set a (relatively short) deadline; if your business or real estate isn't generating positive cash flow by that deadline, then pull the plug.

You're ignoring an elephant
This catch-all refers to any big, ongoing money problem you're consciously avoiding or pretending doesn't exist. Maybe you've got a car payment you're struggling to pay. Or you've got adult kids (or parents) constantly turning to you for financial help. Or you're retired and your nest egg is shrinking faster than you'd planned.Whatever the problem, you need to assess the toll it's taking and find a solution before you're backed into a financial corner.

You're borrowing from one lender to pay another
This includes using cash from one credit card to pay another, but it also includes tapping your home equity to pay off credit card debts if you don't have a plan for avoiding credit card debt in the future. You've missed a payment on any loan. Skipping a payment, or failing to pay the minimum specified, is a very big deal. Missing even a single payment can knock 100 points off your credit scores and trigger higher interest payments on your credit cards. Fall much further behind and you could face collection actions, lawsuits, repossession (if you're late on a car) and foreclosure. Don't wait until things get awful; fix them while they're still just bad.

You've taken out a payday loan
The payday loan industry would love you to believe that borrowing money at triple-digit interest rates is a normal and reasonable thing to do. It's neither. If you're borrowing from payday lenders, your financial house is on fire and you need emergency help. A legitimate credit counseling agencies (one associated with the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, for example) can provide budgeting help as well as debt repayment plans.

Source : MSNmoney

Getting the best deal on Airfares

I came across these good tips for getting the best airfares at TheStreet.com.

Be Flexible

Flexibility in your travel plans will go a long way in helping you find cheap airline tickets. Here's a look at some of the considerations:

Departure times: Most people don't like to fly in the very early morning or on "red eye" overnight flights, but sometimes airlines need to schedule these times to get their planes to a different destination. If you are willing to fly at odd hours, you may be able to save some money on your ticket.

Days: If you don't have to arrive or return on specific days, then you can usually get a better rate flying on a day that is less crowded (usually Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays). Many of the top travel sites allow you to factor in a window of a few days into the travel dates you search. If you do find a better deal on one day over another, be sure to take all factors into account. If you save $50 by flying in on a Wednesday instead of a Thursday, but then have to pay an extra $100 for a hotel room and have to rent a car for an extra day, you can actually end up losing money.

Booking windows: The earlier that you know you will need a ticket, the better chance you'll have of getting the best price. Airlines have booking windows of 21 days, 14 days and seven days in advance of a travel day. Ticket prices usually increase when these windows come and go. In addition, if you want to use frequent flier miles to get your ticket, you must reserve as far ahead as possible, since getting these seats is quite competitive.

Alternate airports: Smaller airports on the outskirts of cities often are less expensive to fly into and out of than the main airport. This is the concept the new airline Skybus, which offers ten $10 tickets on every flight, uses. Check prices at all the airports near your departure city and arrival destination to find the best fare. Again, be sure to do the cumulative calculations. If you save $50 on the ticket, but the extra travel costs to and from the smaller airport exceed this, then you really aren't saving money.

Time: If you're not on a tight schedule, sometimes flights with stopovers will be less expensive than direct flights. This will mean you'll have to spend more time traveling to your destination, in exchange for a less expensive fare. Be sure to calculate what your time is worth. If you're saving $25, but spending five extra hours getting to your destination, it probably doesn't make sense to get the lower fare. Also be aware that stopovers will increase the chances that your luggage gets lost or delayed, possibly costing you more time and money.

Let's Make a Deal

Once you have determined how flexible you can be, it's time to start hunting for the best ticket prices. Unfortunately, this will take some digging. It is worthwhile doing each of the following steps in order to find the best price.

Comparison Web sites: Your first step should be to head to the main airline comparison sites, such as Expedia, Orbitz and Travelocity. They do a good job keeping up with the latest fares, but they don't list all the airlines. Prices may even vary between these sites.

Airline aggregators: These sites look for the best deals from among all the travel sites. Some of the ones you may want to try are Booking Buddy, Cheap Flights, Fare Chase, Kayak and Mobissomo.

Airline Web sites: Once you have found the best deal from the main comparison sites and the aggregators, visit that airline's Web site directly. Since the comparison sites charge booking fees to make their money, you can often find the same ticket on the airline's site at a cheaper price. Also check the Web sites of discount airlines like Southwest Airlines and JetBlue, which are not available on the comparison sites. As mentioned above, Skybus is the newest player in the discount airline business. All flights must be booked through its Web site.

Travel Once you have found what you believe to be the best ticket price, contact a travel agency to see if they can come up with an even better one. If you find a good travel agent, it's surprising the number of times they can find something that you missed in your own searches.

Travel packages: If you are going to need a hotel and rental car once you reach your destination, be sure to compare the cost of bundling them with airfare in a travel package. Such packages often will offer a price less than you can get by securing all of these needs individually, even at the best prices.

By understanding that there is no one place that will get you the best price on a ticket and taking time to search various options, depending on your flexibility, you will greatly increase your chance of securing the best price on your airline tickets in the future.