Findings of a new study show the opposite of what has been previously believed in regard to women and aging.

According to the study by researchers from Pennsylvania State University in the US, the experiences that women go through as they grow older boost their confidence, ultimately making their sex lives better.

The research shows that getting married, having children, having a good job and even getting divorced, all empower women in the bedroom by improving a woman’s sense of self-worth.

The researchers interviewed women aged between 20 and 68. The study was part of a look into sexual evolution.

They found that as the women matured, their attittudes towards their love lives, their sense of self-worth and sex also dramatically changed.

One would expect that divorce, for instance, would cause a woman’s esteem to plummet, but the study established that it had the exact opposite effect.

The study subjects reported that going through with a divorce gave them a burst of confidence. Instead of looking at it as the death of a relationship, they seemed to look at it as the beginning of something new.

After divorce, women reported feeling inspired to discover themselves as the divorce gave them space to seek out sexual relationships on their own terms.

The explanation for this could be that most of these women got married when they had little sexual experience and gave little thought to their sexual desires beyond what their spouses provided.

For the younger women who had been more sexually adventurous as young adults, the researchers found that getting married made them more confident in sexual matters. Marriage seemed to give them a chance to reinvent themselves as they probably felt like they were now having sex for the right reasons. Surprisingly the respondents also reported that having babies made them more comfortable with their bodies as the childbirth experience showed them how powerful their bodies were.

“In general, accomplishments made women feel more powerful. When women feel such pride they feel entitled to sexual desire as well,” said Professor Beth Montemurro, the study’s lead author.

Are you a real man? Ever wondered how you rate as a man? Well, here’s the top 50 things every ‘real man’ should know (allegedly):

1. His wedding anniversary date
2. Basic DIY
3. How to change a light bulb
4. How to tie a tie
5. How to read a map
6. His partner’s favourite drink
7. How to iron a shirt
8. How to change a tyre
9. How to wet shave
10. The right amount of aftershave to put on
11. How to change a fuse
12. Knowing if a woman says “I’m fine” that she’s not
13. How to put up a shelf
14. How to polish shoes
15. How to shake hands confidently
16. How many inches in a foot
17. When to accept defeat and apologise
18. The offside rule
19. When England won the World Cup
20. How to do his own laundry
21. How to fix a bike puncture
22. How to jump-start a car
23. How to parallel park
24. The difference between ale and lager
25. The best way to carve meat
26. His own height
27. How to drive in snow
28. How to wire a plug
29. How to introduce himself
30. His parents’ address
31. The weekend football scores
32. How to light a BBQ
33. That if a woman says, “ Do what you want” not to do what he wants
34. How to change oil
35. The big recent football transfers.
36. How to build a fire
37. Which way is north
38. What’s in a toolbox
39. How to tune in a telly
40. How many miles left if the fuel light goes on
41. How to fix a toilet
42. How to put someone in the recovery position
43. His own alcohol limits
44. How to change a car battery
45. How to get a car unstuck
46. The words to the national anthem
47. How to change a nappy
48. How to perform CPR
49. How to put up a tent
50. Who are favourites to win the Premier League!

Business Daily: Housing Finance will begin construction of 424 units at its Komarock site from mid this year in the second phase of a multi-billion shilling project. On-going cash call will go into the Komarock housing project.

Already 162 houses and a commercial centre are being built on the Komarock land and the management is looking at the possibility of packaging some of the properties into a Real Estate Investment Trusts (Reits).

Mr Ireri said one of the potential properties that can be packaged as an investment (I) Reit—where shares sold benefit from rental income—and sold to investors such as the pension funds and insurance firms is the commercial property.

By selling the commercial property as an I-Reit Housing Finance firm will be free from the day-to-day running of the mall, allowing it to concentrate on lending and development through KBS.

Housing Finance, through its subsidiary Kenya Building Society has lined up various projects that would be implemented through REIT structures.” Proceeds from the rights issue are also expected to go towards growing the lender’s loan book. Analysts expect an uptake of mortgages as interest rates begin to go down.

Britam is currently the largest shareholder in Housing Finance with a 46.08 per cent stake, has committed to participate in the rights issue which will see the firm invest Sh1.6 billion.

Whether you plan to be with an organization for one year or 10, it’s important to be in an environment that aligns with your desires and values. Here are some important questions to ask yourself before joining a company:

•Do I believe in the purpose of the company? Do I understand how my role – even if entry-level – connects to the overall purpose of the company?

•In addition to being purpose-driven, is this an organization that is performance-driven? Will my success and career trajectory be directly tied to my effort?

•What kind of feedback can I count on? Does this company believe in continuous and transparent communication, or will I be left to guess where I stand?

•Will my work make me happier? Will my personal life be able to enrich what I do at work?

•Is this an organization that’s willing to invest in me?

If the culture you identify can do these things, then you’ve found a winner. Always remember that you are in control of your career and how satisfied you are in your job. Take accountability to create your own path; don’t leave that up to anyone else.

source:fortune

Four women have been crowned winners of the world’s widest hips – with a combined circumference of a whopping 27ft.

Voluptuous ladies Mikel, Denise, Marlena and Claudia, say they couldn’t be happier with their sizeable saddlebags, despite their daily struggles to get about.

Curvesome Mikel Ruffinelli, 42, who currently holds the world record for the biggest hips, measures in at a well-rounded eight foot.

Mikel Ruffinelli from Los Angeles, California, with her family.

The mum-of-four, from Los Angeles, loves her womanly shape and husband Reggie worships her statuesque form.

Proud Mikel said: “I’m extreme, I have an extreme physique. I love my curves, I love my hips and I love my assets.”

But with the visual perks come the physical drawbacks and Mikel is forced to side-shuffle around her house to avoid getting stuck in corridors and even struggles to fit in the shower.

She is forced to drive a wide truck which she accesses using a step ladder as she doesn’t fit into a standard size car.

Grandmother Denise Souder, or ‘Sweet Cheeks’ as she is known, is a 56-year-old Las Vegas stripper whose record-breaking hips measure just over 6ft (74 inches) – twice the size of the average woman.

Denise suffers from arthritis in her hips and knees, which affects her mobility and can be painful.

Steve said: “I want her to be as fat as she can be but not be unhealthily fat and there’s a fine line there.

“As you get older it can become more problematic so there’s part of me that feels guilty that I like it so much.

“It’s something that as she gets older I struggle with because I feel bad about it but I also like it.

“I feel conflicted sometimes especially if she’s in a lot of pain or having a particularly hard day.”

Mikel Ruffinelli, 39, who holds the world record, has curves measuring eight feet.

Marlena Plummer, 35, is a hip-heavy singleton from New York whose hips span an impressive 7ft (83 inches).

But far from letting her hefty hips hold her back, active Marlena partakes in swimming and even pole dancing in her spare time and now she is on the lookout for love.

She said: “I believe there’s somebody out there who’s going to love me for me.

“I always had hips even as an infant. I have a small appetite and it’s a mystery why my hips are the way they are but I love my hips, I love my shape and I love me.”

Aspiring actress and plus size model Claudia Floraunce, 40, moved to Hollywood from Austria with dreams of making it big.

She believes her 64inch hips hold the key to potential stardom and has amassed a legion of fans on YouTube where she posts videos about her love handles.

Claudia said: “I find my hips very sexy, in fact I find my whole body very sexy.

“I think people like looking at me because I’m a very unique size. I’m very large but I carry myself with a lot of confidence.

“I get a minimum 27 marriage proposals every day. To have curves is in and I’m in – finally.”

Depending on who you ask, genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are the solution to malnutrition and hunger in the developing world, or a threat to food sovereignty. Take Uganda, for example. Ugandans eat, on average, a pound of bananas daily — more than any other population. But this crucial resource has been threatened by a bacterial wilt disease, which turns the banana plant’s sap into ooze, wilts the leaves, rots the fruit, and eventually destroys the crop.

source:theverge

Housing Finance has announced that it will be diversifying into corporate lending. The new move by Housing Finance comes as the home lender looks to entrench its core mortgage retail rooting.

Housing Finance disclosed in its rights issue information memorandum that it recently lent Sh90 million to Embu Water and Sanitation Company.

Additionally, Housing Finance has also set aside an undisclosed amount for lending to 10 other counties and their agencies in coming few months.

This signals the entry into the non-property corporate lending market by Housing Finance as it seeks to boost the deposits and retail banking segment by opening seven new branches.

“The commercial banking strategy is also taking shape and has positively impacted the group’s profitability,” Housing Finance company chairman Steve Mainda said in the rights issue information memorandum.

Housing Finance is seeking to raise Sh3.5bn by issuing 116.6 million new shares to existing investors at a price of Sh30, representing a 26 per cent discount on Wednesday’s trading price of Sh40.5.

The rights offer opens on Thursday and closes on March 13, with the firm planning to use the proceeds to grow its business including the planned expansion. Mr Mainda said Housing Finance will invest Sh175 million in seven new branches this year.