Wilton Heart

Wilton Heart

Fort Lauderdale Real Estate: the Venice of America

Located in Broward County in Florida in the United States of America, Fort Lauderdale, known as the Venice of America, is a metropolitan city that happens to be the most prominent city in the South Florida Metropolitan area. Fort Lauderdale is especially recognized as a tourist destination and entertains more than 10 million tourists annually . It has been given the tag of a metropolitan city mainly because of the diversity in culture. The city derived its name from a series of forts built by the US during the Second Seminole War. The forts, in turn, had taken their names from Major William Lauderdale, the commander of the troop of soldiers who built the first fort.

Situated at 26°08'09"N, 80°08'31"W, the city has an area of about 36 square miles. It has a long stretch of beaches as it lies adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean. Fort Lauderdale is bordered by Wilton Manors and Pompano Beach in the north, Lauderhill and Cooper City to the west, Hollywood and Dania Beach to the south and Sea Ranch Lakes to the east. Climatically, too, the city is diverse since it is affected by two kinds of weather yearly. In the summers the weather is hot and wet and winters, on the other hand, are dry and cool. The place is also affected occasionally by hurricanes.

The city of Fort Lauderdale has a population of around 173,000 and the population density is about 4, 800 per square mile in an area totaling 36 square miles. English is the first language followed by Spanish, French Creole, French and finally Portuguese. Fort Lauderdale real estate has doubled in value in recent years. Median home value is close to $400,000. Median home age is 38 years.

Infrastructure is very good in the city of Fort Lauderdale, education and transport playing an instrumental role in the framework of the economy. Though the level of education is slightly lower than the national average, the city of Fort Lauderdale, falling under the Broward County Public Schools has more than 23 public schools within its working area. Apart from this, five institutions of great repute are situated in Fort Lauderdale-The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, Florida Atlantic University, Florida International University, Nova Southeastern University and Broward Community College. Transportation facilities are ample considering that the Fort Lauderdale Airport is nearby and happens to be one of the fastest growing airports. Among the local transportation available, buses and rails rule the roost providing for the basic need of connectivity. Las Olas Boulevard is the heart of the city.

Fort Lauderdale has an economy that is mainly dependant on tourism. Though initially the city was just a vacationing spot for college students in spring break, through the years it has turned you to be more a destination for the rich and affluent. It is also a major yachting center and the boating industry is naturally thriving and contributes a lot to the gross product. With tourism being the most vital component in the economy, the real estate market has grown rapidly in Fort Lauderdale. Innumerous hotels, homes and condominiums have come up to meet the rising demand for permanent or temporary shelter. It is viable to invest in real estate in the Venice of the Americas since there is ample employment in the nearby areas. Fort Lauderdale subdivisions include Lauderdale Shores, Seven Isles, Venice, Las Olas by the Sea. There are 1,814 single family homes, 3,659 townhouses and condos, and 1,673 rentals now available. Fort Lauderdale real estate is bouncing back and it will be flourishing again by 2008.

About the Author

Hector Lesende is Owner/Licensed Real Estate Broker in Miami South Florida. Please visit Miami Real Estate. Search Fort Lauderdale Real Estate. We will sell your home from only 1% commission.We provide a free South
Florida Foreclosure and MLS list.

How would I make a cake that looks like a motorcycle gas tank?

I thought of using the Wilton puffed heart pan, cutting it in half, and using those as the sides of the tank.

Or a teardrop cake pan and then carve the cake to make it more rounded.

I'm trying to make it 3-D. It will be covered in fondant for a groom's cake. Thank you.
I've never shaped a cake before. I'd imagine it would be hard to get the round lines of a gas tank by cutting into the cake. But then again...what do I know?

I would say just make a regular square cake and cut out the outline of a gas tank, then decorate it.

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Blue Buffalo Pet Dog Food Recall and How it Could Affect Your Canine   by Philip Reich

Blue Buffalo, a pet food manufacturer headquartered in Wilton, Connecticut, announced a recall due to illnesses in dogs that was traced to the use of a variety of Blue Buffalo dog food. In this Letter from The Blue Buffalo Company they try to minimize the issue, as most companies would, and say "While the potential of increased Vitamin D presents no serious health risk, and any negative reaction to these products has been confined to a very small segment of the canine population who appear to be sensitive to higher levels of Vitamin D...". First of all, vitamin D hypervitaminosis results in hypercalcemia, which can lead to cardiac arrest and death, and second, how many animals are suffering from the effects of being fed these excess levels of vitamin D? Only a limited number of reactions were diagnosed properly and reported by responsible veterinarians, but that doesn't mean thousands of animals haven't been affected that we will never know about, or that thousands of animals were not misdiagnosed and are now on medications for hyperparathyroidism or renal disease, both of which can also produce symptoms of hypercalcemia!

Since July 2010 there were reports from veterinarians across the country of dogs suffering from hypercalcemia, or elevated levels of calcium in their blood. Symptoms included an increased thirst and urination, weight loss, loss of appetite and signs of kidney damage. Samples were sent to the Diagnostic Center for Population and Animal Health (DCPAH) at Michigan State University and a series of 16 test results from dogs were indicative of hypercalcemia related to excessive intake of vitamin D. This is a rather uncommon occurrence that can be linked to excessive dietary intake of vitamin D or ingestion of rodenticide containing vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) as the principal ingredient. Endocrinologists soon found a common factor: all 16 dogs whose samples were tested had very high levels of vitamin D in their blood and were being fed Blue Buffalo Wilderness Chicken.

An excess of vitamin D causes abnormally high blood concentrations of calcium, which can cause overcalcification of the bones, soft tissues, heart and kidneys. It can also damage the kidneys, produce kidney stones, cause hypertension and in severe cases result in coma and cardiac arrest. While no deaths have been reported at this time, since vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin and is stored in the liver and other tissue, it can take weeks or months for elevated vitamin D levels in the body to return to normal even after the source of excess vitamins is removed.

Consumers should be aware that the vitamins used in most brands of commercial pet foods are synthetic. Synthetic vitamins are more closely related to drugs and have more of a drug effect on the body. They can also be dangerous, as we have seen here. It would be very difficult to create hypervitaminosis in the body from a natural source because the body can easily digest, absorb and metabolize a natural substance and then eliminate what is not used. However, with synthetics, hypervitaminosis can be created quite easily, especially with a fat-soluble vitamin like vitamin D. There is a report on the test effects of vitamin D in 500 human pregnancy cases. All the women given synthetic vitamin D developed calcified and diseased kidneys while women given natural vitamin D had no observable changes in the kidneys.

The type of vitamin D supplement used in Blue Buffalo dog food is listed as "vitamin D3 Supplement". Pet food manufacturers add these synthetic vitamins to their foods because it is an easy and inexpensive way to accomplish meeting, what they view as, the nutritional needs of animals and also to satisfy the nutritional levels established by AAFCO (Association Of American Feed Control Officials). However, I have always maintained that it is better to get nutrition from whole food sources! When you purchase processed foods, either for yourselves or your animals, you always run the risk of not knowing what is in the package, and that can be dangerous as this pet food recall shows.

If you would like to read the entire article please visit Blue Buffalo Pet Dog Food Recall.

About the Author

This article was written by Philip Reich, co-founder of The Pet Health and Nutrition Center.

Phil is an herbalist and at the time this article was written is nearing successful completion of his Master Herbalist studies. He has over twenty years of experience in the field of animal health and wellness.

The Pet Health and Nutrition Center