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Finnish papermaker M-real have blamed recent price rises for its paper products upon rising wood and energy prices, Tootoo.com reports. In a press-release announcing a 10% hike in European prices (below), the paper merchants claimed "price increases are needed to improve profitability." M-real Press Release  Profitability in the board and paper industry has been sliding for a number of years. Costs have been rising heavily. The increase has been especially strong in wood and energy prices. At the same time, sales prices have not compensated for the cost escalation despite price increases for some grades. It is clear that price increases are needed to improve profitability. In Finland, where the folding boxboard production units of M-real are located, production costs have risen 20 per cent since 2005, annual cost increase being 6-7 per cent. We have already announced new price increases in the USD and GBP markets. In the Euro markets the needed price increase of folding boxboard is minimum 10 per cent at the first stage. We will revert to the folding boxboard price increases in the near future. M-real has announced a price increase for coated magazine papers between 6-8 per cent depending on product and market, and the implementation is ongoing. For uncoated fine papers prices were increased in April and May. Further actions are under evaluation. The price increase needs are greatest in coated fine papers. M-real plans to increase prices of its coated fine papers by a minimum of EUR 50 per ton. Negotiations are ongoing with customers 

An upcoming Paper Recycling Conference in US city Chicago is expected to highlight the environmental issues facing the paper industry, Tootoo.com reports. The Paper Recycling Conference & Trade Show, now in its ninth year, will be held June 22-24 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare in Chicago. The three-day event offers paper stock dealers, consumers, paper mill representatives, and equipment and service providers involved in the paper recycling industry the opportunity to network with leading industry consultants and entrepreneurs from across the globe. The show features an educational program with panel discussions on current business and operational trends and their impact on the secondary fiber industry. The program also dedicates an afternoon to targeted breakout sessions covering important niche areas of the industry such as transportation, plant safety and pricing trends. It also features an exhibit hall filled with industry equipment and service providers. On June 22, Moore & Associates will conduct a Recovered Paper Supply Development Workshop from 3-5 p.m. Bill Moore of Moore & Associates will be the moderator. The objective of the workshop will be to present a variety of approaches that are designed and have been successful in developing new supplies of recovered paper. 

China's airline industry entered a new era in air travel on June 1, as carriers nationwide stopped using paper tickets and began to adopt electronic tickets. This move was in answer to a 2006 call by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which called for carriers worldwide to adopt the widely-used e-ticket. An official from Youee.com, one of the country's biggest on-line e-ticket agents, said Chinese travelers could look forward to easier travel by using the new format. He said passengers could change, re-endorse or cancel their e-tickets through the Internet or telephone; they didn't have bother with physically going to a travel agency or airline ticket office. Currently, e-tickets are generally used by most domestic carriers. Only a handful of international carriers and some for pertaining to infant tickets accepted paper ones. "Electronic tickets will entirely replace paper tickets by the end of the year," said the expert, adding prices were expected to fall because operation costs would be reduced by using electric tickets. Paper tickets date back to the 1920s. The first e-ticket was issued in 1994. IATA adopted a global standard for e-ticketing in 1997 but the evolution was slow. In May 2004, only 19 percent of global tickets were electronic. 

Upholstery Fabric Vista, Vivo & Venue add vibrancy to Boltaflex contract upholstery June 10, 2008 (USA) OMNOVA Solutions is excited to introduce Vista, Vivo and Venue, thelatest offerings from OMNOVA's line of Boltaflex contractupholsteries. This new trio of coordinating patterns offers the healthcare andhospitality markets a fresh design look and superior ease inupholstering. Featuring an elegant leather-like appearance, Vista is a versatilesolid color design with a great, pliable hand, available in 49contemporary colors from high-impact hues including Key Lime andSeville to traditional Maroon and Porcelain. The full design storydevelops with the addition of coordinating patterns Vivo and Venue,which add subtle style. Vivo is a refined dot pattern with glimmers of metallic sheen thatplays nicely with a dynamic palette of 16 colors, while Venue addsa little more bling with just a hint of metallics and a fun flow ofcurly loops. Use them alone or mix and match. All three designs are 28 oz., 100% vinyl upholstery with a fabricbacking and can be used in both interior and exterior applications.Additionally, all three patterns boast our

Instant Food They sell meat, fruit and vegetables, dairy products and bread thatis either organic or traditionally produced - the vast majoritywithin County Durham. It is then delivered to the customer's home. Mrs Deacon and Mrs Rose- Gray admitted even they were surprised bytheir instant success. Mrs Deacon said: "It has taken off even better than we expected. "We are getting orders from all over the region. Initially, westarted off delivering in Durham City, then a further ten-mileradius, and now we are taking orders from Stanhope, Burnopfield,Washington and Sunderland. "Initially, we were just thinking of serving only the domesticconsumer, but we are starting to take commercial orders as wellsuch as schools and nurseries." Mrs Deacon said that herself, Mrs Rose-Gray and a third friend whois a silent partner, had first seen the possibility of starting abusiness after their own experiences of having to travel todifferent locations to get various products such as fruit and meat. She said: "That was the reason the business was formed. We both ateorganic and if I wanted meat I had to go to one part of town and ifI was wanting vegetables I had to go to another. "On other occasions I was going to the supermarket which I didn'tfeel right about because I wanted to know where the meat was comingfrom." As they buy the vast majority of their stock from local producers,within a 35-mile radius of Spennymoor, the pair believed everybodygained. Mrs Deacon said: "Everyone is benefiting, we are giving a fairprice to farmers in this area. "It is about supporting local producers. We have some fantasticproducers in the North-East but a lot of people don't know aboutthem." The business partners were also delighted with winning theircertification from the Soil Association. Both gave up jobs working at a direct mail company to set up theirbusiness. With limited experience of running a business, the pair had help insetting up from Business Link North-East, which provides freeadvice and guidance to the region's budding entrepreneurs andestablished companies. Mrs Deacon said: "Business Link helped us source financial supportfor our corporate identity, website and design - without which wewould not have been able to communicate with new customers." Colin Willis, Business Link account manager, said: "The Honest FoodPartnership has proved to be a huge success already as SoilAssociation accreditation is only given to businesses whose foodproducts are produced and processed to strict animal welfare andenvironmental standards." The Honest Food Partnership can be contacted on 01388-817085 or goto thehonestfoodpartner ship.co.uk 12:12pm today Print Email this Comment

Oolong Tea DrinkIt's not easy being a celebrity, attending endless receptions andVIP parties, so my recent hometown holiday in Tianjin was just whatthe doctor ordered. Whenever I return to my roots I head straightto a downtown teashop called the Qing-Cha Bubble Pot, which servesoolong tea and plates of my favorite snacks, "ear-eye" fried ricecakes and "take no notice of the dog" steamed buns. It was herethat I made my debut as a cross-talk performer and got into a fightafter making jokes about one of the patrons. Generously, the ownerdoes not hold this against me. Much of the teashop gossip focused on a local lady known as the"Tianjin Mouth", who has upset traditionalists in the cross-talkcommunity by performing naked. I worry that I will have to followsuit, though I am cheered slightly by the fact that televisionmakes one appear bigger. There was also talk about constructing anAussie Rules football stadium, costing around $1.5 million. Notmany people know that Tianjin is twinned with Melbourne, I didn't,but that was the explanation given for building the white elephant.I just can't imagine my homies charging around after a rugby ballshouting "g'day mate, fancy a vegemite sandwich?" On my return to Beijing I was perusing the newsstands when I spiedour nation's sweetheart, Zhou Xun, on the cover of Time OutBeijing, with a leaf glued on to her upper lip. I suspected theactress and singer was promoting some novel kind of moustache-likebody adornment for women, or alternatively a natural airpurification system. It turned out that she was recently made a UNgoodwill ambassador for the environment. The green moustache isstill a mystery. On Saturday night (back in the swing) I went to a champagne andmodels reception at Hilton's Zeta bar for fashiontv (www.ftv.com),which positions itself as the favored portal for fabulousfashionistas. At the party clean-cut foreign fashiontv presenterswith strange English accents mixed with skinny models, who got topmarks for posing but failed to do much more than wiggleuncomfortably on the dance floor. One of the party hosts brought me up to date with the latest goingson in celebrity circles. Like the models, it was thin pickings. Theonly remotely interesting snippet was news that next month57-year-old billionaire Terry Gou is planning to marry dancer DeliaZeng, 34, after a whirlwind three-month affair. The headlong rushinto nuptials has the press speculating that Zeng is pregnant. Atan event attended by the couple journalists popped the shotgunmarriage question, but Zeng was keeping mum. Hu Deman, legendary Beijing crosstalker and confidante to China'sbiggest celebrities, talks to Jules Quartly

Computer Bluetooth Mouse Mice are personal, and in some way, they're the most personalaspect of today's personal computers,

whether a Mac or a WindowsPC. Some people, for example, love Apple's mice. Other people can'tstand them. I fall into that

category. Thus, my pleasure at seeingthat Microsoft  which makes great mice  has released a newBluetooth mouse for Mac

owners. There are many good mice manufacturers. Logitech, Kensington,Microsoft. Apple. Others. There are many styles of mice,

and many ways of connecting them.Wired mice have their place: they're cheaper, they don't run onbatteries, and they never get

lost. However, Bluetooth wirelessmice are nice, especially for notebook owners, because they don'tneed cables, and since all

modern Mac desktops and notebooks havebuilt-in Bluetooth, they don't tie up a precious USB port. That's areal plus for

notebook users, who never have enough ports. The new Microsoft Bluetooth Notebook Mouse for Mac, $49.95, which just began

shipping this week, is slightly smallerthan a standard mouse, which will make it ideal for both notebookusers and for desktop

users who prefer a smaller mouse. (In myinformal polls, about 1/3 of adult desktop Mac users prefer to usea notebook mouse to

a standard full-sized desktop one.) The new mouse has some solid features, including a scroll wheel, anon/off switch (to save

battery life and comply with FAAregulations) and a battery life indicator. Plus, it runs on AAAbatteries, which means that if

your batteries die, you're not outof luck until you wait for it to recharge. Just pop in newbatteries, and you're back in

business. Interestingly, Microsoft also makes a notebook mouse called the Bluetooth Notebook Mouse 5000, which is billed as

being for both Windows and Macs. What's thedifference between the $49.95 Mouse 5000 and the new Mac mouse?Absolutely none, as

a Microsoft spokesperson explained to me: "The mouse itself is identical to the Bluetooth Notebook Mouse5000. With the Mac

packaging, we wanted to make it clear toconsumers that the mouse is compatible with both the Mac andWindows operating

systems. And now the product can be sorted inboth Mac and PC sections of stores so users can ensure they arebuying a product

that will work with their computer." That's why, the spokesperson said, you can find the new mouse inApple stores, in the Mac

section of Best Buy, and of course,online.

Printed Velvet Shop Sui by Sylvia Tai at No. 227 has funky printed T-shirts youwon't see on anyone else's back, while Little

Salon at No. 71 is asmall but perfectly formed boutique selling designer scarves,handbags and more. Food Melbourne's best

Italian pizzeria is not on Lygon Street. There areno red-and-white checked tablecloths or Ferrari posters, just darkwood,

marble-topped tables - and authentic wood-fired pizzas withminimalist toppings. It's Ladro, at No. 224a, a slick diner

thathas held tightly to its one hat in The Age Good Food Guide. Justcome early or you've got no chance of getting a table.

Anotherdarling of Melbourne foodies is the Gertrude St Enoteca at No. 229.Started by slow food proponent Brigitte Hafner, it

is part winebar, part cafe - and everything that Clover Moore is trying toencourage in Sydney. Tables are surrounded by

shelves ofinteresting bottles of wine - you can get a French Pouilly-Fume orartisan cognac, a coffee or an antipasto platter.

Jars of picklesand olives line the window and a sign proudly declares the Enotecais a "GM Free Zone". In fact, it's more a

philosophy than a shop. The Builders Arms pub on the corner does both reconstructed pubgrub and Middle-Eastern specialities.

The menu ranges from suchAnglo staples as corned beef and bread and butter pud to Greekskordalia and tagines. And don't be

fooled by the traditionalyellow-tiled exterior - inside, think disco balls and not a pokiein sight. Dante's restaurant and

wine bar at No. 150 is a bit of aboho institution and is a great place to go for tapas and a drink.Also worth mentioning is

Fatto A Mano organic bakery at No. 228,which apart from a variety of breads and rolls, sells irresistiblypuffy Italian sugar

doughnuts. Art It has to be remembered that the art galleries in Gertrude Streetare what started to draw fashionable and

creative types into itsorbit in the first place. At No. 200 is Gertrude Contemporary ArtSpaces, a collection of galleries and

studios started in 1983. TheDiane Tanzer Gallery at No. 108 also started in the 1980s and isdedicated to exhibiting

innovative artists. Also see SeventhGallery at No. 155, which has two galleries rotating severalexhibitions each month. Books

Artisan Books at No. 159 is crammed with unusual literary finds.Here, you can find tomes on everything from crop circles to

bodyart. Title at No. 183 is a new shop staffed by musos, stocking raremusic and films. If you need an obscure piece of

vinyl, look nofurther. Some of the items on display included a vinyl soundtrackof the film Lolita, a collector's edition DVD

of Zatoichi and theFritz The Cat series. The standout bookshop here is Books for Cooksat No. 233, Australia's largest seller

of cookbooks. There arebooks that date back to the 18th century, a foreign languagesection and of course the latest titles

from top cookbook authorsaround the globe (the day I pass, Stephane Reynaud's Terrine wasfeatured).

Nylon Cable Gland Top U.S. cable operators Comcast Corp and Time Warner Cable Inc will begin testing ways this week to

limit individual subscribers who use the largest amount of Internet capacity in an effort to protect their high-speed

networks.ADVERTISEMENT The moves are a response to government inquiries as well as the heavy costs of upgrading existing

broadband infrastructure due to the explosion of downloading and watching music and videos. Such usage is "taxing the

infrastructure," a Time Warner Cable spokesman said. "In order to make investments in the infrastructure, we have to find the

revenue to pay for it." Some technology blogs have criticized the new pricing structure and usage limits, which they said

would curtail interest in viewing videos online and enrage consumers who currently pay for unlimited service. Time Warner

Cable said it will launch a service on Thursday that charges new consumers of high-speed Internet service based on their

usage. Broadband subscribers in Beaumont, Texas, will be charged $1 per gigabyte above monthly allowances, a company

spokesman said. Separately, Comcast said it has changed the way it will manage network traffic and begin a test to slow the

transfer of files to individual subscribers who are its heaviest users during congested periods. The tests will begin

Thursday in the Chambersburg, Pennsylvania and Warrenton, Virginia areas. Time Warner Cable's new policy is intended to

address its top 5 percent of users, who have spent a "disproportionate" amount of time on the company's network, the

spokesman said. Consumers in Time Warner Cable's test region will be offered several levels of service. A $29.95 per month

plan for slower speeds of 768 kilobits per second and a 5 gigabyte limit would let users send and receive nearly 350,000 e-

mails, play 170 hours of online games, or download more than 1,380 digital songs per month. At the high end, a $54.90 monthly

fee for a 15-megabit-per-second service and a 40 gigabyte monthly limit would allow subscribers to watch 124 hours of

standard-definition videos or download 11,070 songs. COMCAST MULLS NEW BILLING Comcast is currently looking at "consumption"

billing plans. The top U.S. cable operator offers tiers of service differentiated by speed, but not by size limits. A Comcast

spokesman said it is also evaluating a monthly 250-gigabyte limit for customers to manage its heaviest users, but it has not

made a decision. "We want to deliver the best online experience for our customers," a Comcast spokesman said. "We can do it

really quickly and without the need for government intervention." In January, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission said

it would investigate complaints by consumer groups over the blocking of file-sharing services such as BitTorrent on Comcast's

service. At the time, Comcast said it did not block such services, but used network management technology to slow delivery of

files to heavy users of such services. Comcast's new approach will stop distinguishing the type of activity or services that

are considered bandwidth hogs, but will slow delivery of files it believes is taxing the network. "Setting the caps is a very

simple matter to change," the Time Warner Cable spokesman said. "If usage patterns are such that we need to change those, we

certainly can." 

Mobile Phones Batteries Gadget fans will also hope that iPhone 2.0 makes much better use ofits built-in Bluetooth, which at

the moment only works with a fewselected Apple-approved accessories. This could potentially allowiPhone owners to ‘pair'

their handset with theirBluetooth-enabled computer to transfer files between them, andwirelessly connect to Bluetooth

headphones and handsfree systems. Expect to see voice-dialling and speed-dialling added to iPhone 2.0as well - it seems

ridiculous that such a cutting edge gadget ismissing so many of the utterly basic mobile phone functions andcapabilities that

we've taken for granted on lesser handsets foryears. Apple could also add "proper" global positioning software to theiPhone,

which would tie-in nicely with its Google Maps tool. At themoment, iPhones are able to triangulate a users' vague location

bytriangulating their mobile phone signal with nearby masts andwireless internet hotspots. In truth, that's probably

sufficientfor most iPhone users, and GPS is an expensive technology that isstill largely in its infancy on mobile phones.

Adding it to theiPhone would probably increase the cost of the deviceprohibitively, and it's unlikely to improve navigation

andtriangulation accuracy enough to justify the outlay. In terms of appearance, several industry analysts have said thatthey

do not expect Apple to make any significant or dramaticchanges to the look of the device until early 2009. The

maindifferences are likely to be that slightly convex back to make roomfor a 3G-capable battery, and a non-recessed headphone

plug -plenty of iPhone users were left disgruntled to discover theirexpensive, noise canelling headphones didn't have a long

enoughjack to fit into the current iPhone's sunken headphone socket. So, what won't we see with the new iPhone? Don't expect

too manydramatic changes to its text-messaging functionality. Americans arenot big fans of "txting", and while we Brits would

love to be ableto forward on text messages to other contacts in our address book,it's unlikely to be added to the device.

Instead, keen texters willhave to look to the new Application Store for those sorts of tweaks- more of which below. It's also

unlikely that Apple will make any dramatic changes to itstouchscreen keyboard. iPhone users have long hankered after

theability to flip the iPhone for a horizontal keyboard layout, andhaptic feedback to indicate that buttons have been

correctlypressed, but that sort of interface improvement is more likely toappear on the third-generation device rather than

on iPhone 2.0. Opinions are divided on whether Apple will drop the 8GB version ofthe phone and instead offer 16GB and 32GB

versions of the device,which would bring it into line with the storage capacity of theiPod touch range. The fact that

Carphone Warehouse and O2 storesslashed the price of the 8GB model just a few weeks ago couldeither be taken as a sign that

they were trying to clearsoon-to-be-discontinued stock, or that they are simply making a bitof extra space for the next-gen

model. Personally, I think we will see an introduction of a 32GB model,not least because Apple will be making another big

announcement atthe conference that is all about software, rather than hardware:details of the iPhone application store, that

will allow people tobuy third-party programs and widgets through iTunes and installthem on their device. Essentially, Apple

is seeking to make the hacking of iPhonesunecessary by providing a development ecosystem in which people canbuild small

programs that improve, diversify and personalise theiPhone's capabilities. The iPhone is built on a stripped-downversion of

Apple's OS X operate system, which means there is plentyof latent power that can be leveraged to turn the handset into amini

computer of sorts. Expert to see some really clever bits of software that fill in thegaps Apple itself is not plugging, such

as an instant-messagingprogram for the iPhone, nifty location-based features, such asrestaurant recommendations and movie

reviews that tie into GoogleMaps and its triangulation capabilities, and even software to keeptrack of your company expenses.

In many ways it is this, rather than the actual handset itself,that should dominate the headlines, because it is the

platform,rather than the hardware, that is key to securing the enduringpopularity, flexibility and longevity of the device.

But the poor old iPhone, rather like a handsome movie star, hasbeen typecast for its good looks and sex appeal. Still, there

areworst things to build a reputation on.

Mobile Phone Cable What kind of vehicle would Sprint Nextel CEO Dan Hesse have todrive to accommodate all of the back-seat

drivers wanting to advisehim on how to steer the wireless company back into the fast lane? Don't think a van would be big

enough. A Hummer stretch limousine?How about a bus? A really, really, really long bus? "Wow. I've received hundreds of

messages since we put my e-mailaddress on our latest TV ad. Thanks to everyone who responded.There are a lot of awesome ideas

out there. Keep them coming!,"Hesse states on his company's blog, Buzz About Wireless. The folks at Laptop Magazine are

getting in on the pass your tipsto Dan phenomenon. They recently interviewed Berge Ayvazian, YankeeGroup's chief strategy

officer, about what he would do to save Sprint. Ayvazian covers all kinds of topics in his assessment of Sprintmissteps and

possible fixes. Among other things, the company has todo a better job of getting the hot new phones and overcome ahistory of

failed ventures with cable companies such as Comcast andTime Warner, he said. "Sprint is in an all-out war with AT&T and

Verizon, and theonly allies it has are cable companies," Ayvazian said. "They needto partner with cable companies in

effective ways to secure theirbase Hesse first must complete his WiMax spinoff with Clearwire, fix hiscustomer care problems,

prove that the company can roll out a newhigh-performance walkie-talkie technology over the Sprint networkand solve all the

other big problems, he said. But then, he said, Sprint becomes an attractive acquisitioncandidate for T-Mobile or its

corporate parent, Deutsche Telekom. Or, headded, it's not out of the question that Sprint eventually will bethe buyer in such

a transaction. "Neither T-Mobile nor Sprint on its own is sufficient to competeagainst Verizon. Sprint has put together the

partnerships thatwould make it possible to create a viable competitor againstAT&T and Verizon," he said.

Animal Cushions By 5 o’clock a mob toting slim, white plastic seat cushionshad jammed onto the cement benches of the arena.

I was there, likeeveryone else, to see José Tomás, and found myselfsandwiched between an elderly, rheumy-eyed Valencian in a

porkpiehat and a bullfighting announcer for Spanish television on abusman’s holiday from Madrid who was working a thick

stogie.The smells of wet clay, manure and sand gave way to after-shave andcigar smoke. José Tomás Román Martín — fans call

him byhis double-barreled first name, José Tomás, or justTomás — is a mystical figure in Spain. Quixotic, prone topublic

squabbling with bullfighting’s notoriously sleazypromoters and rarely given to speaking to the media, he keepslargely apart

from his fellow matadors and fights much moreinfrequently than they do. His remoteness, in one respect, speaksto bullfighting

’s disengagement with a growing segment ofSpain, though his artistry and grace, along with his fearlessness(it shocks other

matadors), make him a figure of widespreadfascination. The contradiction seems to encapsulate something deepin the Spanish

psyche. The announcement of his appearance in Valencia caused a scrambleacross the country for tickets, and old Spain, the

Spain that stillloves bullfighting, turned out in full. When Mariano Rajoy, thehead of Spain’s conservative Popular Party,

who had just lostthe election to the Socialist José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero , entered the arena, he received a thunderous

ovation, somethingthat didn’t much happen to him out on the campaign trail.“He will yet be the ruin of Zapatero!” murmured

ared-faced man, to no one in particular. I spottedTomás’s father a few seats over — short,gray-haired, bespectacled, in

crew-neck sweater and slacks, staringanxiously into space. Everyone now stood, expectant. Then a brassband struck up; the

matadors, after first crossing themselves,paraded into the ring behind white horses; and the crowd finallysettled down to

wait for José Tomás. AS SPAIN GOES, so goes toreo, or bullfighting. That’s the oldadage. During the 1940s, Manolete was a

matador of stoic gravity,reflecting the rueful mood of a country coming out of bloody civilwar under a dictatorship. During

the 1960s, the mop-topped ElCordobés, a hot-dog and a rule breaker in the ring,personified the opening up of the nation after

years of isolation.In the ’90s, Espartaco was called a technocrat for atechnocratic era. This sort of metaphor is glib, but

there isnonetheless something to the notion that you can read Spain throughbullfighting. Today, along with José Tomás, a

variety of other giftedmatadors have emerged — among them Enrique Ponce, El Juli,Cayetano Rivera Ordó?ez, Morante de la

Puebla, JuanBautista, Miguel ángel Perera — at precisely a momentwhen the country apparently cares less than ever about what

theydo. It’s also revealing of Spain’s curious dividebetween indifference and fascination that several of the

moreflamboyant and handsome toreros (bullfighters) occupy the gossippages the way Spanish soccer stars do. But first things

first. Aficionados will rightly tell you thattoreo is not a sport; in Spanish newspapers, it is never featuredon the sports

pages. Sport implies a fair fight between willingopponents. Except in the unusual case that a bull is spared forhaving shown

exceptional bravery in the ring, all the bulls die.Even in Portugal, where bulls aren’t killed in the ring, theyare killed

afterward, a hypocrisy that spares the spectator but notthe animal. Every lidia — an individual bullfight between abull and

a matador — is a ritual orchestrated to injure andthen exhaust the animal so that it can be more easily killed.Whatever that

is (and opponents call it torture), it’s notsporting. 

Memory Pillow Repressed anger will often cause us to clench and grind our teeth,even during sleep. This grinding can wear

down our teeth, causethem to break as well as cause pain and tension in our face andjaw. In addition, anger also triggers the

release of cortisols andother stress hormones in our brain which may shrink the brain'smemory centre and ultimately affect

our memory. When we say, "I was so angry I saw red," it's not far from thetruth. Anger can trigger ocular migraines where we

get flashes oflight or jagged lines in front of our eyes, our blood pressurerises and there is an elevation of stress

hormones in our body thatconstrict the blood vessels in our brain resulting in headaches.When our blood pressure soars it can

lead to heart disease andstrokes. Holding onto anger and hostility takes its toll on the body. Whenwe are upset, our brain

releases certain neurotransmitters whichreduce the flow of blood to our belly, resulting in the occurrenceof diarrhoea and

abdominal pain. Other symptoms may include skinrashes, circulatory problems and even arthritis - anger can releaseuric acid

into our blood stream which may contribute to arthritis. If any or all of the above-mentioned sounds familiar, then here area

few guidelines to help you in reacting more positively in angercontrol and freeing yourselves from resentment and aggression.

Our anger can often be a reaction to someone else's anger andfrustration, and if we learn to step back and control our

ownresponse before we lose control and buy into their emotion, then wecan deflect the 'anger arrow' that has been shot at us.

We can stepback with compassion and not react and respond by saying hurtfulthings or showing violence. Once the words leave

our mouths they can never be retracted. Theold saying 'sticks and stones can break my bones but words cannever hurt me', is

far from the truth, as words often slicestraight to the very core of our being. The next time you find yourself in a

situation that will cause aneruption of anger, take a deep breath and repeat the word 'calm'three times, then step back

before you respond, bearing in mindthat you do not have to buy into someone else's 'stuff'. Being aware of personal 'hot

buttons' that trigger anger responsescan be very helpful. When you are faced with situations thatprovoke your anger, knowing

and being in control of your 'hotbutton' makes the situation easier to deal with. Find ways to vent your emotion by talking

things through withsomeone who is objective such as a friend, a pastor, or acounsellor. This way you can freely release pent

-up resentment andfrustration. Learn ways to practise forgiveness, as anger can result inresentments which can be resolved

through forgiveness. Be creative: if you feel angry at social injustice, get involved inpublic service, for example. It is

very important that we find ways that are safe and effectiveto release anger. Sports, dancing, breathing, meditation and

evenpunching your pillow will help to release that tense feeling ofanger built up inside. However, if there is no way you can

releasethese feelings, then it is time to seek help from a professionalwho can teach you how to understand why you feel the

way you do andgive you steps to address the underlying causes of your anger. Spa Elder Tip If you are feeling tense, sit in a

chair with both feet firmly onthe ground. Take three deep breaths then rub your palms togetherbriskly and place them over

your face for a few seconds. Thenmassage your face, scalp and the back of your neck. Stella Gray is the Spa Elder at Fern

Tree, the Spa at Half Moon,with over 35 years in the spa industry. She can be reached atferntree@halfmoon.com.