Four easy ways to get a boost

Achieving our personal and business goals takes lots of energy, but one of the most common complaints we hear these days is "Wow, I'm exhausted!" Fortunately, there are four easy ways you can boost your energy and keep it up. Taking the time to do these four simple things every day will literally fuel your body and help you achieve a vigorous and high state of energy:

Breathing. Regular deep and rhythmic breathing enables us to keep refreshed physically and mentally, and provides us with the fuel to breathe through the problems and challenges of the day. So to be sure that you're getting the oxygen you need to keep going, take note of your breathing patterns. If you find that you're short of breath or sighing a lot, your body is sending you a signal that you're holding your breath and need to focus on taking in deeper, longer breaths.

Exercise. Exercise gets us going. It gives all our organs and bodily functions the workout they need to get tuned up to operate effectively. Getting at least 20 minutes of physical exercise each day helps keep us energized.

Water. Our bodies need ample water every day to keep the right electrolyte balance. To calculate how much you should be drinking, divide your body weight in half. That's the number of ounces you should be drinking at a minimum. So if you weight 120 pounds, you need to drink 60 ounces of water a day.

Alkaline foods. The human body works best when it's in an alkaline state. So eating foods high in acid like red meat, salty snacks and sugary desserts can create an acidic buildup in you robody that drains your energy. But an alkaline diet with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables has just the opposite effect. It keeps you healthy, nourished and energized.

Doing these four simple things will provide the high-impact energy and enthusiasm you need to achieve your goals.

-- Paul and Sarah Edwards, The Costco Connection, March 2000

Smart Cat

Online university sued for allegedly awarding MBA to cat

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The Pennsylvania attorney general's office Monday sued an online university for allegedly selling bogus academic degrees — including an MBA awarded to a cat. Trinity Southern University in Texas, a cellular company and the two brothers who ran them are accused of misappropriating Internet addresses of the state Senate and more than 60 Pennsylvania businesses to sell fake degrees and prescription drugs by spam e-mail, according to the lawsuit.

Investigators paid $299 for a bachelor's degree for Colby Nolan — a deputy attorney general's 6-year-old black cat — claiming he had experience including baby-sitting and retail management. The school, which offers no classes, allegedly determined Colby Nolan's resume entitled him to a master of business administration degree; a transcript listed the cat's course work and 3.5 grade-point average.

The state is seeking a permanent injunction, civil penalties, costs and restitution for violating consumer law and restrictions on unsolicited e-mail ads. Prosecutors said more than 18,000 illegal e-mails were sent out this year with links to Trinity Southern's Web address, including 300 that appeared to originate from the Internet servers of Pennsylvania companies and institutions. Among the alleged victims are Penn State University and the University of Pennsylvania, as well as numerous Internet service providers, businesses and technology companies. The defendants are the school; Innovative Cellular and Wireless Inc. of Corpus Christi, Texas; Alton Scott Poe of St. Cloud, Fla., vice chancellor and dean of admission for Trinity; and Craig Barton Poe of Frisco, Texas, president of Innovative Cellular.

A phone message left at Trinity Southern was not returned Monday. None of the other three defendants appears to have a listed or published phone number.

http://www.courttv.com/people/2004/1207/degrees_ap.html (email from Aaron)