Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

Ho Chi Minh City, commonly known as Saigon or by the abbreviation HCMC, is the largest city in Vietnam and was the capital of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). As the throbbing commercial heart of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City is always in a hurry, and the heat, noise and crowds can be overwhelming. But don't give up: Ho Chi Minh City rewards patient tourists with a fascinating glimpse of Vietnam--as it was, is, and will be.

Ho Chi Minh City is located in the southeastern region of Vietnam, 1,094 miles south of Hanoi. Just 63 feet above sea level, HCMC has a muggy, tropical climate with an average 75% humidity. Rainy season runs from May to late November, with December to April being the driest, coolest months.

History

Ho Chi Minh City began as a small fishing village called Prey Nokor, inhabited by Khmer people originally from what is now Cambodia. Over time, Vietnamese refugees fleeing civil wars elsewhere in Vietnam filled the region. By the end of the 17th century, under the Nguyen dynasty, Vietnam had completely absorbed Prey Nokor, which was by then known as Saigon.

The French arrived in 1859 and conquered Saigon and, later, the rest of Vietnam. With its wide boulevards and French-inspired architecture, Saigon became known as "the Pearl of the Far East" and "Paris in the Orient."

Resentment against French colonial rule fueled the liberation movements led by Ho Chi Minh and others. In 1954 Ho Chi Minh's communist Viet Minh forces defeated the French at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, causing them to withdraw from Vietnam. Subsequently, Vietnam was partitioned into North and South Vietnam, with the government of the south--the Republic of Vietnam--based in Saigon. It wasn't long before bitter conflict engulfed the country.

On April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese troops captured Saigon, ending the Vietnam War. Following North Vietnam's victory, Vietnam was unified and the capital was moved to Hanoi. Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City to honor "Uncle Ho," the leader who led Vietnam to independence. Many Vietnamese, however, still call the city Saigon.

People

With 10 million inhabitants in the greater Ho Chi Minh City area, 7 million in the city itself, HCMC is the largest city in Vietnam and has about 7% of the total population of Vietnam. HCMC, the economic and financial hub of Vietnam, has attracted increasing numbers of immigrants from other Vietnamese provinces in recent years, and as a result its population is growing rapidly--about 200,000 people per year.

About 90% of the population is ethnic Vietnamese. Another 8% of Ho Chi Minh City's residents are Chinese and they make up the largest Chinatown in Vietnam and perhaps the world. The inhabitants of Ho Chi Minh City are known as "Saigonese" in English, "Saigonnais" in French and "dan Sai Gon" in Vietnamese.

Most residents of Ho Chi Minh City are Buddhist or practice ancestor worship, but about 13% are Roman Catholic or Protestant--a legacy of French missionary work. Adherents of other faiths such as Islam and Hinduism are found in smaller numbers in Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnamese Tet

From the 30th day of the twelfth lunar month of the previous year to the 3rd day of the first lunar month of the new year. It a time Vietnamese people workship for grandparents and ancestors.

Tet is the biggest and the most sacred festival. It is the most attractive to a majority of the Vietnamese.

Tet falls on a time when the old year is over and the New Year comes by lunar calendar. This is also the time when the cycle of the universe finishes: winter ends and spring, the season of birth of all living things, comes.

Tet is an occasion for pilgrims and family reunions. It is a time when one pays respect to his/her ancestors and grandparents who have brought up him/her. It is an occasion when everyone sends each other best wishes for a new year, stops thinking about unhappy things and says good things about each other.

On the 23^rd day of the twelfth month by lunar calendar, there is a rite to see Tao Quan (Kitchen God) off. The rite to say goodbye to the old year is held on the 30^th or 29^th day (if that month has only 29 days) of the twelfth month by lunar calendar. The rite to welcome the New Year is held at midnight that day. The rite to see off ancestral souls to return to the other world is often held on the 3^rd day of the first month by lunar calendar when the Tet holidays finish and everybody goes back to work.

There are various customs practiced during Tet such as ancestral worshipping, visiting a person’s house on the first day of the new year, wishing Tet wishes, giving lucky money to young children and old people, wishing longevity to the oldest people, opening rice paddies or opening a shop.

Hướng dẫn kiếm tiền với Google Adsense

Giới thiệu
Đây là chương trình đặt banner quảng cáo cho Google được gọi là Google Adsense. Nói một cách dễ hiểu thì khi bạn được chấp nhận vào chương trình này, thì bạn sẽ có một đoạn code HTML để cho vào bất cứ đâu trong trang web của bạn. Mỗi lần khách đến thăm nhấp chuột vào banner của Google Adsense thì bạn sẽ nhận được một phần tiền. Không ai biết và Google Adsense cũng không công khai khoản tiền kiếm được là bao nhiêu. Theo kinh nghiệm của tôi thì số tiền bạn được trả phụ thuộc vào từ khoá trong trang web của bạn. Ví dụ trên thị trường quảng cáo trên mạng người ta - các Google Adword - đấu giá với nhau các từ khoá. Chẳng hạn từ Real Estate được nhiều người muốn quảng cáo, thì người nào trả cao hơn, banner của người đó sẽ xuất hiện. Do vậy nếu banner của bạn hiện nhiều từ "đắt" thì bạn có kiếm được nhiều tiền hơn. Nhưng chung quy mỗi khi có người click là bạn sẽ nhận được tiền từ Google Adsense.
Đăng ký
Để đăng ký, bạn hãy click vào button sau:
Trên trang của Google Adsense bạn click vào nút: "Click Here to Apply"
Sẽ mở ra cho bạn Form để bạn điền thông tin đăng ký tài khoản với Google Adsense: Ban cần phải điền:
Account type: Thể loại tài khoản
Individual: Cá nhân
Bussines: Doanh nghiệp
Country or territory: Bạn chọn quốc gia là Việt Nam
Website URL: Điền địa chỉ website của bạn vào đây
Website language: Ngôn ngữ website của bạn, nên chọn là English, vì Google Adsense hiện không hỗ trợ tiếng Việt
Product(s): Mục này đã điền sẵn cho bạn
AdSense for Content: Đặt quảng cáo theo nội dung của website
AdSense for Search: Tìm kiếm
Payee name: Họ và Tên
First: Phần thứ nhất của Họ Tên
Last: Phần thứ 2 của Họ Tên
Giải thích: ở phương Tây người ta hay viết Tên Trước và Họ sau, như vậy đối với người phương Tây thì First là Tên, còn Last là Họ. Ở Việt Nam thì chúng ta luôn viết Họ trước và Tên sau. Bạn muốn điền thế nào thì tùy bạn.
Address line 1: địa chỉ của bạn, dòng thứ nhất
Address line 2 (optional): dòng thứ 2 của địa chỉ, nếu địa chỉ của bạn dài quá thì bạn có thể điền thành 2 dòng
City: Thành phố
State, province or region: Tỉnh, vùng
Zip or postal code: Số hiệu của Bưu Điện
Country or territory: Việt Nam
Phone: Số điện thoại
Fax (optional): Số Fax (không bắt buộc)
Email address: địa chỉ email của bạn (đây cũng chính là login của bạn vào tài khoản ở Google Adsense),
Password: mật khẩu truy cập, tối thiểu là 7 chữ số bao gồm cả chữ và số
Re-enter password: gõ lại mật khẩu
Sau khi đã điền xong các thông tin vào Form đăng ký, bạn click vào nút: "Submit information" để gửi thông tin đăng ký.
Sau khi gửi thông tin đăng ký, thì ngay lập tức bạn nhận được 1 email của Google Adsense, trong email đó có link để xác nhận địa chỉ email của bạn, bạn cần phải click vào link đó, sẽ mở ra cho bạn trang của Google Adsense với dòng thông tin đại khái như sau: "Địa chỉ email của bạn đã được xác nhận, bạn cần phải đợi 1-2 ngày để chúng tôi kiểm tra xem trang web của bạn có thỏa mãn yêu cầu của chúng tôi hay không"
Google Adsense sẽ kiểm tra nội dung trang của bạn xem có đủ điều kiện để tham gia chương trình không? tiêu chí thì là trang phải có nội dung thật sự, không có hack, crack, xxx và một vài thứ khác. Nếu trang của bạn nằm vào những mục tôi vừa nói thì xin chia buồn. Còn không thì hãy tự tin chờ khoảng 1-2 ngày, Google Adsense sẽ gửi một mail chấp nhận cho bạn và lúc đó bạn đã có thể tạo thu nhập cho mình rồi.
Sau khi nhận được email chấp nhận của Google Adsense thì bạn có thể login vào tài khoản của bạn, sử dụng login (địa chỉ email) và mật khẩu mà bạn đã dăng ký với Google Adsense.
Trong tài khoản của bạn có những mục sau:
Report: Là bản báo cáo hàng ngày, hàng tuần, hàng tháng ... với số tiền bạn kiếm được.
Ad Setting: Là phần để bạn thiết lập những banner quảng cáo sao cho phù hợp với trang của bạn, với kích thước của banner, màu sắc của banner và lấy dòng code HTML để chèn vào trang của mình.
Search Settings: Phần này để chèn đoạn tìm kiếm với Google và trang của bạn, bạn cũng nhận được tiền từ dịch vụ này.
Account Information: là thông tin về tài khoản của bạn bao gồm địa chỉ, số để trả thuế, tài khoản ...
Ad Performance: là "thành quả" lao động của những banner bạn đặt trên trang web.
Search Perfomance: cũng giống như Ads Performance
Payment History: Là thông tin về những lần Google Adsense tính toán sau mỗi tháng.
Về cơ bản là thế! nếu bạn đã tạo ra được trang web rồi, và lại đủ điều kiện để Google Adsense chấp nhận thì hãy cho phép tôi bỏ qua phần hướng dẫn bạn lấy Code HTML và chèn vào trang như thế nào nhé.Nếu bạn là người thích tìm hiểu những cái mới thì bạn có thể bỏ ra khoảng vài tiếng đọc Terms of Service, và mục FAQ (Quy định khi sử dụng dịch vụ và Những câu hỏi thường gặp) của Google Adsense thì bạn sẽ hiểu hết. Nhưng sau đây tôi tóm tắt lại một vài ý chính để các bạn tiện theo dõi hơn
Trang của bạn phải có nội dung thật sự. Vì banner khi đặt lên trang của bạn phụ thuộc vào nội dung của chính nó. Vì Google Adsense có hệ thống tìm kiếm rất tài tình, mà bạn và tôi ai cũng phải khâm phục. Cho nên đừng bịp nó! mà hãy làm những trang có nội dung thật sự.
Bạn nên đặt banner vào những trang có nhiều chữ, chứ đừng để ơ những trang có ít chữ hoặc chỉ có hình.
Một điều đáng tiếc cho chúng ta là Google Adsense chưa hỗ trợ tiếng Việt. Cho nên đôi khi nó không thể tìm ra nội dung thật sự trên trang của mình để đưa ra banner hợp với nội dung. Cho nên đôi khi bạn thấy trên website có những banner chẳng ăn nhặp gì với nội dung cả. Và một vài chỗ còn toàn tiếng Mán và Mường. Đó là vì khi Google Adsense không tìm được từ khoá thích hợp ở phần nội dung của trang web nó sẽ đưa ra banner được gọi là Public Service Ads. Với loại banner Public Service Ads bạn không được tiền mỗi khi có ngừơi nhấp chuột vào. Hơn nữa đây cũng là một thua thiệt của những trang web tiếng Việt. Vì những banner của Google Adsense xuất hiện dựa trên nội dung trên trang mà nó kiếm được. Nhưng vì tiếng Việt chưa được hỗ trợ cho nên nhưng banner của Google Adsense chưa thực sự chuẩn xác lắm với nội dung trên trang đó. Chúng ta phải chờ thôi chứ biết sao bây giờ! "
Theo nhiều tài liệu mà tôi đọc về Google Adsense thì những trang động dạng như forum, Portal với nội dung thay đổi thường xuyên thì tỉ lệ gặp Public Service Ads cao hơn là những trang có nội dung tĩnh. Vì Google Adsense cần ít nhất 1, 2 ngày để tìm ra từ khoá cho trang đó. Mà nó lại thay đổi liên tục cho nên nó bó tay cũng phải.
Tuyệt đối đừng tự nhấp vào banner của bạn!!! vì những lần click đó của bạn sẽ bị tình là những click "ma" và tất nhiên bạn sẽ không được tiền. Điều tệ hại hơn là nếu xảy ra nhiều lần bạn sẽ bị xoá account và số tiền bạn kiếm được cũng mất luôn.
Nếu bạn có thời gian hãy tìm hiểu thêm về Google Adsense để tối ưu hoá khả năng kiếm tiền với trang web của bạn. Bằng những tips mà Google Adsense cung câp.
Cuối cùng nhưng không kém phần quan trọng là bạn ĐỪNG BAO GIỜ tìm cách bịp Google Adsense bằng những phần mềm tự động nhấp chuột. Vì Google Adsense đủ thông minh để biết rằng nó đang bị nói dối và trong trường hợp đó thì tài khoản của bạn sẽ vĩnh viễn bị xoá và bạn không bao giờ còn cơ hội tham gia chương trình đó nữa.

Bao giờ thì bạn nhận được tiền từ Google Adsense và nhận như thế nào?
1. Trước khi được thanh toán thì bạn phải gửi bản báo cáo thuế. Họ quan tâm đến vấn đề là sự hoạt động trang web của bạn có liên quan đến những công ty khác trên nước Mỹ hay không, chẳng hạn những dịch vụ mà bạn sử dụng chẳng hạn như: Web hosting, đăng ký tên miền (domain), thuê thiết kế web (web design), duy trì hoạt động của website... có nằm trên dất Mỹ hay không? Nếu có thì bạn phải chọn bản báo cáo thuế mà điền và gửi thông tin cho họ. Nếu sự hoạt động website của bạn không có liên quan gì đến nước Mỹ thì bạn cũng phải gửi thông tin cho họ.
2. Khi bạn đã kiếm đủ 50$ thì Google Adsense sẽ gửi số PIN đến nhà bạn, kèm trong thư có chỉ dẫn từng bước bạn phải điền số PIN đó như thế nào.
Sau khi đã làm xong 2 thủ tục trên thì bạn mới được họ thanh toán tiền sau khi bạn đã kiếm đủ 100$.
Mỗi khi tổng số tiền của bạn là 100$ thì vào cuối tháng sau Google Adsense sẽ gửi cho bạn một chi phiếu (séc lĩnh tiền) qua địa chỉ bạn đăng ký với họ. Google Adsense sẽ gửi qua đường bưu điện đến địa chỉ nhà của bạn.
Bạn chỉ cần mang tấm séc đó ra ngân hàng nộp và bạn sẽ còn phải đợi trong khoảng từ 3 đến 6 tuần, khi ngân hàng họ nhận được tiền từ tấm séc đó thì họ mới trả tiền cho bạn. Hơi lâu một chút nhưng hiện tại không có cách nào khác.
Bài viết có sử dụng tư liệu của bantayden.com

Vietnamese Culture

Vietnamese New Year

Vietnamese New Year is significant to Vietnamese people. Here you can find all articles of Vietnamese New Year from its meaning to customs, decorations and beyond.

Vietnamese Customs

Vietnamese customs describe habitual practices through life line of Vietnamese people such as: Pregnancy and birth customs, Vietnamese wedding customs,...

Vietnamese Culture Values

Vietnamese's culture values describe abstract ideas about what Vietnamese society believes to be good, right, and desirable.

Vietnamese Business Culture

If you want to do business with vietnam successfully, you should know about Vietnamese business culture. Read Vietnamese business culture articles on our site to success.

Vietnamese Clothing

Vietnam not only has ao dai but also other dresses you ever want to find out like ao yem, ao tu than and more.

Traditional Instruments

Want to know Vietnamese traditional instruments? come here you will see the most common traditional instruments from Vietnam which include: Dan bau, Dan nguyet, Nhi and many more.

Vietnamese Traditional Music

In Vietnam, music is used to express innermost feelings and encourage Vietnamese while working. Furthermore, music is also a tangible mean of communication between Vietnamese people. Come here to read and listen Vietnamese traditional music to have better understanding about Vietnamese culture.

Myths and Legends

Vietnamese myths and legends give you unverified stories handed down from ancient times and reflects Vietnamese culture in depth, read and enjoy!

Vietnam History

One stop Vietnam history articles will give you a quick overview of Vietnam history from ancient time, which you ever want to read and understand quickly.

Vietnamese Ethnic Groups

Vietnamese culture is comprised of the 54 main ethnic groups, presenting vivid cultural elements unique to the cultures of each group.

Vietnam Travel Tips

One of the greatest ways to understand Vietnamese culture is to travel through Vietnam. We present some Vietnam travel tips to make your trip enjoyable!

Vietnamese Culture Video

Come here to not only read but also watch our exotic Vietnamese culture video clips to understand more about Vietnamese culture and Vietnam.

Vietnamese Arts

We cover almost every common Vietnamese art aspects from Vietnamese art history, types of art... to the contemporary art.

Vietnamese Food & Recipes

Vietnamese food and recipes in these categories: beef, pork, chicken, seafood, vegetarian, appetizers, salads, soups, desserts, drinks and sauces

Vietnamese Culture Misc

About Vietnamese money through time, Vietnamese traditional stilt houses, Vietnamese traditional toys, Vietnamese paper fan and more.

Traditional Festivals

We covers national traditional festivals such as Vietnamese New Year, Tet Trung Thu... and aslo festivals which express the Vietnamese local traditions and Vietnamese Culture.

Vietnamese Literature

Parallel and deeply interacting with other cultural aspects, the Vietnamese literature came into being at an early date, including two major components - oral literature and written literature.

Vietnam Religion

The three traditional religion forming the "Tam Giao" (Buddism, Taosim and Confucianism)strongly influences Vietanmese religous beliefs. Futhermore, Vietnam religion was also influenced by ancestor worship, Islam and Catholicism.

Vietnamese Timeshare

To have an authentic Vietnam experience, you'd have to live here. If you can't, the next best thing is to buy a timeshare and live like a local, even if it's for just a few weeks a year. Because your vacation property is designed for comfort, you'll feel like you're home. For the best deals, try timeshare resellers, which help current owners find buyers for their properties at discounted prices.

(http://www.vietnam-culture.com/)

Warm heart

It hurts to love someone and not be loved in return, but what is more painful is to love someone and never find the courage to let that person know how you feel.

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Maybe God wants us to meet a few wrong people before meeting the right one so that when we finally meet the right person, we will know how to be grateful for that gift.

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Love is when you take away the feeling, the passion, and the romance in a relationship- and find out you still care for that person.

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A sad thing in life is when you meet someone who means a lot to you, only to find out in the end that it was never meant to be and you just have to let go.

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When the door of happiness closes, another opens but oftentimes we look so long at the closed door that we don't see the one which has been opened for us.

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The best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a porch and swing with, never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you've ever had.

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It's true that we don't know what we've got until we lose it, but it's also true that we don't know what we've been missing until it arrives.

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Giving someone all your love is never an assurance that they'll love you back! don't expect love in return; just wait for it to grow in their heart but if it doesn't, be content it grew in yours.

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There are things you'd love to hear that you would never hear from the person whom you would like to hear them from, but don't be so deaf as not to hear it from the one who says it from his heart.

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Never say goodbye if you still want to try - never give up if you still feel you can go on - never say you don't love a person anymore if you can't let go.

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Love comes to those who still hope although they've been disappointed- to those who still believe although they've been betrayed, need to love those who still love although they've been hurt before.

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It takes only a minute to get a crush on someone, an hour to like someone and a day to love someone - but it takes a lifetime to forget someone.

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Don't go for looks; they can deceive. Don't go for wealth; even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem
bright. Hope you find the one that makes you smile.

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There are moments in life when you miss someone so much that you just want to pick them from your dreams and hug them for real! Hope you dream of that special someone.

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Dream what you want to dream; go where you want to go; be what you want to be, because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do.

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May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, enough hope to make you happy and enough money to buy me gifts.

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Always put yourself in others' shoes. If you feel that it hurts you, it probably hurts the person, too.

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A careless word may kindle strife; a cruel word may wreck a life; a timely word may level stress; a loving word may heal and bless.

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The beginning of love is to let those we love be just themselves, and not twist them with our own image - otherwise, we love only the inflection of ourselves we find in them.

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The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way.

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Happiness lies for those who cry, those who hurt, those who have searched, and those who have tried, for only they can appreciate the importance of people who have touched their lives.

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Love begins with a smile, grows with a kiss and ends with a tear.

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The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past, you can't go on well in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

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When you were born, you were crying and everyon around you was smiling. Live your life so that when you die, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.

5 Ways to Stay In Love Forever

Excellent advice for every couple.
1.CHERISH YOUR WIFE. RESPECT YOUR HUSBAND.

The core emotional need of a woman is to be cherished. This is the husband's number one responsibility. That means making her feel loved and appreciated, that she's your number one priority.

A man's core emotional need is to feel respected by his wife. When he comes home, he wants to feel that there is at least one person in the world who thinks he's got what it takes. That means getting off the phone when he walks in the door.

2.TREAT EACH OTHER LIKE GOOD FRIENDS

Under the marriage canopy one of the seven blessings given to the bride and groom is that they should become "beloved friends."

The hallmark of friendship is that each person validates and respects the other person's feelings and needs. Validation means: What's important to you is important to me. It's a key way to make your spouse feel loved.

3. REMEMBER THE FOUR GOLDEN WORDS: LISTEN, COMPROMISE, REPAIR, AND GRATITUDE.

Agree to keep one basic rule at the beginning of your marriage: No matter how upset you are, never launch a verbal attack. Fighting with insults only makes problems worse and erodes the relationship. Instead, implement the four golden words:

Listening: It's essential for working together and solving problems. Allow your spouse to speak without interruption and then repeat what has just been said. This reassures your spouse that he or she was heard.

Compromise: Strive to solve problems where both of you are happy with the solution. Neither one should feel coerced into accepting the other person's point of view.

Repair: When you hurt each other emotionally, repair the breakdown and remove the lingering feelings of anger and resentment. Aim for 100% reconciliation. A little resentment multiplied 50 times can create a wall of bitterness.

Gratitude: You can never say thank you enough to your spouse. Try to notice everything your spouse does for you and acknowledge it with sincere gratitude.

4. ESTABLISH STRONG BOUNDARIES

Your spouse is your number one priority - not your parents, relatives, friends, children, work, or hobbies. Set strong boundaries that show you value your marriage and don't allow anyone or anything to weaken your relationship.

That means meeting your spouse's needs before your parents' needs, coming home with enough time left in the evening to have quality time together, and inviolate date nights.

5. GIVE EACH OTHER PLEASURE DAILY

Marriage is ultimately about making each other feel good and striving to give your spouse pleasure on a daily basis - on his or her terms. If she says she likes lilies, don't bring her roses because you think they're more romantic.

Learn how your spouse prefers to be given to - whether it's physical affection, words of affirmation, receiving gifts, acts of service (like helping out in the house, running errands) or spending quality time - and get in the daily habit of doing it.

You'll enjoy giving more than receiving.

About the author:

Rabbi Dov Heller, M.A.

Rabbi Dov Heller is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who holds Masters Degrees in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University and in Contemporary Theology from Harvard University. He also holds a B.A. in philosophy and was ordained a rabbi in Jerusalem in 1982. He is presently the director of the Aish HaTorah Counseling Center in Los Angeles and in addition to teaching extensively for Aish HaTorah, runs a private practice specializing in adult psychotherapy, marriage counseling, and personal guidance.

Rabbi Heller has recently founded The Relationship Institute in Los Angeles specializing in helping people solve their relationship challenges.In addition, he provides an "international coaching and counseling service via telephone for relationship issues." For more information about his telephone counseling service and public speaking availability, contact him via email at Dheller2@netzero.net. Visit his website at www.claritytalk.com.

BRAD PITT BIOGRAPHY (Part 4)

The critics were disappointed by The Mexican's failure to play the Pitt-Roberts card. They weren't too keen on his next outing either, Spy Game. This saw him as the protege of retiring CIA spymaster Robert Redford - thus bringing together two generations of actors who had to battle against the effects of their own looks in order to gain respect. The movie begins with Pitt in a Chinese prison and Redford having 24 hours to save him. During the course of this fraught rescue mission, we flash back to see how an idealistic Pitt was recruited by Redford after Vietnam and how falling for a dodgy Catherine McCormack got him into this mess. It was intriguing stuff, but generally spoiled by director Tony Scott's insistence on super-snappy editing that did not allow any character to grow.

Now, in an odd subversion of his leading man status, Brad chose to join an ensemble cast for Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's 11, an update of the 1960 Rat Pack flick. This saw George Clooney as Danny Ocean, gathering a team of crack crooks to turn over a Vegas casino. Brad would play his trusty sidekick Rusty Ryan who, while casing the joint, notices that casino boss Andy Garcia is going out with Ocean's former wife (Julia Roberts, again). Could emotional stuff be getting in the way? Of course, it does, adding extra enjoyment to one of the slickest and smartest crime movies of recent times.

After this huge hit, Pitt would not be seen on screen for another three years, other than cameos for his new buddies Soderbergh and Clooney. First, alongside a host of stars including Roberts and his fomer Johnny Suede cohort Catherine Keener, he popped up in Soderbergh's $2 million budget Full Frontal, a cinematic curio of films within films within films. Deep in there would be Brad, appearing mostly on mag covers and playback video, playing a superstar playing a tough cop in a new movie. Full Frontal would be attacked as a major indulgence on the part of Soderbergh and his cast, with only Pitt escaping criticism. It was noted that he was the least actorly and pretentious of them, and more than willing to send himself up, as was Seven's director David Fincher, who here fawned over Pitt very amusingly.

The next cameo would see Brad playing it for laughs once more, in Clooney's Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind, written by Charlie Kaufman and based on the cult memoirs of Chuck Barris, a game show host who claimed to have also been an assassin for the CIA. Working for free, Pitt would pop up in a flashback to an episode of TV show The Dating Game, where hopefuls would choose from three prospective spouses. Brad, and his Ocean's 11 co-star Matt Damon, would naturally be turned down in favour of Bachelor Number 3. With Julia Roberts also putting in an appearance, it was the fourth time in two years these major stars had graced the same credit listing.

2003 would see Pitt lend his voice to the titular hero of the animated Sinbad: Legend Of The Seven Seas. But this was just a prelude to a far more ambitious mythical epic, Wolfgang Petersen's $220 million Troy. Having consciously avoided starring roles that played up his looks, now Brad went the whole hog as Achilles, the elite warrior charged by King Agamemnon to lead the seige of Troy and win back the stolen wife of his brother Menelaus. Petersen pulled out the stops in making Pitt look like a Greek god. Pitt, on the other hand, never keen to pose when he could be acting, attempted to deepen his character by playing Achilles as an embittered man with a profound disrespect for authority and an unhealthy death wish. Even so, it was his titanic battle with Eric Bana's Hector that really stood out in a movie marked by its spectacular SFX.

Such was the scope of Troy that Pitt was forced to pull out of Darren Aronofsky's sci-fi epic The Fountain. Coincidentally, a severe pulling of his Achilles' tendon also put back the filming of a forthcoming effort, a return to Soderbergh and Clooney with Ocean's 12, where the old gang are forced by their original victim Andy Garcia to regroup and pull off three major European heists. This would not, though, be the main reason Pitt was so glaringly in the public eye throughout 2004. Instead, the tabloids were foaming at the mouth over the possibility that Pitt's marriage to Jennifer Aniston was on the rocks. Rumours abounded that on the set of his next picture, Mr And Mrs Smith, an affair had begun with co-star Angelina Jolie, rumours that would not cease. And, come January, 2005, Pitt and Aniston would indeed split (they'd divorce the following October) with Pitt now being photographed increasingly often in Jolie's company. The coverage would reach absurd proportions, with one set of sneaked photos selling for over $500,000. Eventually, the couple would confirm that they were, indeed, an item. Come 2006, Pitt would officially adopt Jolie's two children, Maddox and Zahara. Just a few months later they would have a child of their own, Shiloh Nouvel, born in Namibia. He'd also join Jolie in her ambassadorial work for the United Nations, travelling to an earthquake-ravaged Pakistan and making enormous charitable donations.

The scandal would have no effect on Pitt's pulling-power at the box-office. Mr And Mrs Smith, where he and Jolie played a married couple who, unbeknown to each other, are both assassins, was hugely stylish and another big hit, raking in $186 million at the US box office. And Pitt's other interests would begin to flower, too. Ever more involved in architecture, he would join Frank Gehry on a project in Hove, England. He'd present a BBC Radio 2 documentary on the tragic folk singer Nick Drake. And Plan B Entertainment, the production company he'd set up with Aniston and friend Brad Grey, really took off. With Grey appointed CEO at Paramount, the company would see success with Charlie And The Chocolate Factory and have a further dozen projects on the go. Pitt's divorce settlement would see Aniston take the Hollywood mansion and Pitt take control of Plan B with Aniston maintaining just a small holding. From now on, Pitt would usually produce his own movies.

Onscreen, 2006 would bring two more offerings. First would be Babel, directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, of Amores Perros and 21 Grams fame. This was a series of interconnecting stories, taking place over 36 hours on three continents, with Pitt and Cate Blanchett as an American couple on holiday in Morocco, recovering from the death of their new baby. It would be a testing role for Pitt, who had to deal convincingly with the death, with Blanchett being shot and their other children going missing in Mexico. And he'd carry it off, Babel being a big winner at Cannes. Next he'd take on another heroic historical role, this time appearing as the titular bandit in The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford which, based on the novel by Ron Hansen, retold the famous western story through the eyes Casey Affleck's Ford, who joins the James gang then comes to resent Jesse's popularity.

Brad Pitt now chooses his parts carefully, clearly alternating between hero roles in blockbusters and more "interesting" fare. All he really needs now is for the diehard critics to finally accept that he's not just a screen stud. As he's said himself: "One, it's boring. Two, it's stupid. And three, it's death". Good luck to him - he deserves better.

Dominic Wills