Evernon Creations

Oil News

Friday, August 22nd, 2008 | Commodity Charts, Oil News | No Comments

Whether or not the gas bubble has burst, Americans are now living in an economy where the prospect of a gallon of gas for less than $4 is cause for celebration.

That barrier could be broken as early as this coming weekend, as a two-week header in crude prices has begun to ripple out to all gas stations nationwide.

The national average for a gallon of regular gas has pulled back to just above $4 a gallon and oil is tumbling to its lowest point in weeks just recently. The belief that high prices have yet to reflect just how badly the demand has dropped in the United States, one of the world’s thirstiest oil consumers.

Pump prices are poised to dip even further, and very well may cost as much as 25 cents less by Labor Day. People do say typically, prices will shoot up like a rocket, and fall like a feather. However, this time, it is looking like it is different. The retail sector especially is interested in bringing down these prices as fast as they can so the retail business can be stimulated in their convenience stores.

In the oil news markets, oil has continued on a two-week sell off. Light, sweet crude for September’s delivery has fallen to $2.23 to settle at $123.26 a barrel in the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier the contract dropped even more to $122.50, its lowest point since June of this year.

In the oil news, many analysts say the market’s momentum is pointing to further declines. Crude prices have dropped in seven of the last nine sessions, and are currently down more than 16 percent from its highest price above $147 a barrel just earlier this month.

There is nothing sufficiently bullish coming into the market at this time to sustain a rally. We are just seeing a new theme where as demand has become a very significant part of the equation. Oil news does tell us prices have remained about 65% her than they were at this time last year.

Signs of Americans continued struggle with soaring energy prices are affecting the filling station operators that are hungry for business to ratchet down the average price for a gallon of regular gas by 2 cents to encourage purchases.

Such a large decline suggests demands are fading. Retail prices have fallen about a $.10 cents per gallon in just the past week. We are seeing a drastic and historic change in the Americans driving habits; however, we still have a long ways to go before we reach the comfort zone again.

The talk on the trading floors has all the sudden shifted to demand worries and analysts note that prices could rebound even if just on a temporary cut to supply. The abduction of five crew members recently from a Swedish boat in Nigeria’s oil producing Niger Delta

Region has been a reminder that much of the world’s oil is still being pulled from politically volatile regions. The African nation is a huge supplier to the U.S. It was reported earlier in the week, Nigerian militants have threatened to destroy pipelines in the region within a month.

Still More Children Party Ideas

Sunday, August 10th, 2008 | New York Children Party Ideas | No Comments

OK, so you’ve read the other children party ideas, but you still aren’t sure what to do. Here’s another batch to get those juices flowing – you can do it, I know you can!:

· A day at the farm. Depending on the age level of the kids, this could be a fun one! Have a bunch of stuffed farm animals, or – better yet – have some adults dressed up as farm animals! Have the kids wear overalls and straw hats. If you have a field, you can take them for a hayride.

· Mad scientists! Think something along the lines of a “Mr. Wizard”-type party. Have the kids do simple little science experiments, like an erupting volcano or giant bubbles. Dress them up in white coats, big glasses, and hair standing on end – it could make for some great photographs to send home with them!

· A trip through space. If your group is smaller and easier to manage, decorate your basement with planets and glow-in-the-dark stars. Have a few adults dress up like aliens, and make-believe that you are taking a trip to the outer reaches of space.

Think about different ways you could decorate a room – a laboratory, space, a barn, etc. – and use that to fuel your children party ideas!

A safe bet

Wednesday, August 6th, 2008 | Gifts | No Comments

Cashmere shmashmere: instead of getting your loved ones the same old gift for birthdays, holidays, congratulations or thank you’s, consider that although you know them well, the thoughtlessness of your gift may make them feel a ‘no thank you’ rather than a ‘thank you’ in the inner dialog of your gift’s recipient. The truth is, most of us can’t be clever and thoughtful about every gift that we give. We constantly resort to old standbys, thoughtlessly giving those little luxuries to people that we think they want but won’t buy for themselves – perfumed soap, wool sweaters, fishing gear… There’s no reason to be ashamed by this, either. Most of us don’t know enough about others’ interests to give them what they really want: hence the recent surge in gift cards as a way to defer gift giving to the recipient’s choice so that he or she may get whatever it is that they fancy.

But there are some gifts that have universal appeal – gifts that spoil rotten with their sensuality: with how beautiful they are, how good they taste, and how decadent they are; gifts that assemble the best products in any given area of interest: food, wine, flowers, or sport. Though you may not be an expert in any of the areas that the person you’re giving a gift to cares about, there are people out there who are, who are more than happy to lend their expertise for a small premium over the price of the products they buy, assemble, and package beautifully for the enjoyment of whoever it is that you choose to ship them to.

Gift baskets offer a great option to those looking to give thoughtfully and easily. The best online gift basket retailers will have a large selection of baskets running the gamut of interests from wine to fruit to golf and more. They also take care of packaging and shipping for you – always a headache – and the result is an appearance of plenty for a cost that’s a lot lower than you might expect. Someone close to me recently received a gourmet gift basket from a friend for his birthday and I was so shocked by the quantity and quality of stuff in it that I couldn’t believe – when I checked the price online – that it was only slightly more than it would have cost to get all the components separately from the cheapest sources online. So in this writer’s view, you really can’t go wrong with a gift basket if you’re looking to give great gifts.