Well, if you live anywhere in the northern hemisphere, we have experienced the winter and cold season for a few months now, and other than the usual nuances of being cold, there are a lot of people, particularly women, who experience a lack of energy and a general ho-hum feeling of apathy. There is actual scientific proof now that the lack of natural light, as in sunlight, restricts the natural production of melatonin in the body. Melatonin is produced by the pineal gland, which is a hormone that induces sleep. So this is why during the cold wintery season when the days are shorter, and the nights are longer, and the sun is scarce, that we often feel sleepy and/or drowsy. Also, even if its during the spring or summer, and if you choose to stay indoors most of the time, the effect may the same, although not as severe.
This as you probably know, is known as Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD for short. But if getting drowsy was the only impact of seasonal change, things would then be a lot easier to solve (especially with a little coffee : )). Well, the problem with melatonin is that it’s secretion is synchronized with the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter, which is affected by several external physiological processes such as: blood pressure, temperature, as well as neuro-psychological functions such as: memory, mood and appetite. The two do not unfortunately work together simultaneously. When melatonin is secreted in the body, serotonin production is inhibited. The lack of serotonin production can cause disorders such as: depression and chronic fatigue syndrome, directly reflecting ones mood.

Melatonin is most active at night while serotonin is active during the day. Also, your age may be a factor that contributes to the balance of the two chemicals. The production and thus the secretion of melatonin will also decrease with age. It’s also been scientifically proven that the link between melatonin and serotonin, along with their dependence on ones body clock, explains the depression experienced by those suffering from ‘Seasonal Affective Disorder’. Depression, along with problems sleeping, sudden weight gain, increased anxiety, arthritic joint pain, irritability, stress headaches are just a few of the symptoms of SAD.

Heavenly Sunshine
The problem can be narrowed down simply to a lack of sunlight. It has been proven that sunshine naturally increases the serotonin levels as well as favoring vitamin D accumulation. Vitamin D is known also a mood-modulator.

UV rays exposure from the sun favors vitamin D synthesis in the skin. That’s the reason why people who go to tanning salons, have noticeable mood improvement and a general feeling and state of well-being. However, it’s also well known what the effects of UV exposure can cause and they are not that favorable. So if your going to a tanning salon, and it becomes a habit, keep in mind direct prolonged UV exposure may result in premature skin aging which may eventually lead to skin cancer.

Light therapy seems to be a way to treat SAD. Light on the body affects us in two ways: through the skin or by entering through your eyes. Any type of UV light effects the skin, while light that enters through your eyes need not be UV, it just has to be bright. Just its energizing effect on the eyes is needed to simulate the production of serotonin. The easiest way to get enough bright light is by spending just an hour or more a day outdoors, where the natural light levels range anywhere from 1,000 to 50,000 lux, compared to indoor room lighting, which is just around 50-200 lux.

If your schedule or the weather outside doesn’t permit you going outdoors, an alternative can be using a ‘light therapy device’. To gain optimum advantage, the light source needs to be bright, around 5,000 lux or more. For eye therapy, the source has to be a particular spectrum, around 460 nanometers, which is known as the blue range. According to current research, blue range light provides benefits even at dimmer levels.

As with anything artificial, there are some side effects and risks that these bright lights may cause, the most common being it may interfere with your sleep (when the exposure is during the evening), or it may trigger, in some people, what is known as a mania - condition, or bipolar disorder (manic depression).

The safest way of course is to get natural outdoor light, provided UV protection is used. Another way is exercise. Go to the gym and do a lot of cardio type exercises, get your heart rate up, exhaust your body and your mind by sweating it out. Get on the treadmill or bike and your mood will change for the better.

The recession is a word many of you don’t want to hear these days, but unfortunately, it seems like it’s going to linger around for a while. When it drops by your household or neighborhood, it can take you a while for it to go away. However, that doesn’t mean you should just simply sit back, surrender and let it overcome you like the plague. These bad economic times are solely responsible for wrecking havoc in your lives by damaging our finances, as well as our personal lives. During these tough times, finding a job that can survive these rough patches seems improbable. But take heart, don’t despair. Here is a list of the top 6 recession-proof jobs you can target:

So Where Are Those Jobs In The Recession Proof Industries
If you follow the news in any way, obviously trying to land a job in an auto plant is out of the question, so is real estate or even the travel industry, just to mention a few. (Just recently seen an ad for a 3 Night/4 Day Package, including Air to LasVegas for $99.00)

So instead of wasting your time trying to re-enter one of these declining industries presently experiencing bad times, set your sights on the industry sectors that have actually remained stable or are even experiencing growth.

The Top 6 Industries Include:
- The Health care industry including (care giving, nursing, special care, physical therapy, medicine or any other support based manpower) Anything related to aiding in our aging population

- Law and Security Enforcement - As the population increases and the economy declines, crime rises, law enforcement is always in demand

- Specialized Information Technology (computer network administration, software coders, graphic design and development) The IT industry is growing

- Customer Support Services (customer guest services, administrative and management assistance)

- Sales, Marketing and Business Development (product management, wholesale and retail sectors)

- Specialized Engineering - As new technologies evolve, specific trained engineers will be needed

- Teaching and Education (specialized teaching, school administration and related administration support services) Many are looking to re-invent themselves

It’s All In The Resume
Make sure that a potential employer sees something special or promising in your resume, make it stand out. Emphasize potential. The competition is fierce out there, so consider revamping your resume. If it’s even several months old, make sure you continuously update it by adding special skills or interests you may have that may add to the job in question.

Always Focus On Your Accomplishments
A common error when applying for a job is that candidates fail to detail their specific past job descriptions clearly on their resumes. Although it’s helpful establishing work experience, it may not give the prospective employer a good enough idea on what you can do. Emphasize on the end results that you have produced instead.

Adapt Your Resume To The Job
Don’t just use a generic resume, but adapt it to the specific job you are applying for. Tailoring your resume will give you a better chance that it will stand out from the crowd. If you are looking for a recession-proof job, make sure that your resume is something that employers will find interesting.

Consider the specific industry that your targeting. If the job is for someone who has a strong sales background, then make sure you emphasize and hi-light your sales background. If it calls for someone who has direct marketing or promotion skills, alter to show your qualifications in these areas. The more relevant your resume is to the job, the better off you will be at landing that job.

Try Expanding Your Reach
Other than just scouring advertised job vacancies, consider other ways in finding recession-proof jobs. Look into trade magazines, clubs or associations, specific to that company or industry. Tap into your network of professional associates who are in the same field. Target companies that you want to work for, do research on them and directly contact them expressing your interest.

Further Your Education
In these tough economic times, you have to prepare yourself as best as possible. Enrollment for specialized post secondary educational training jumps ten-fold as job seekers continuously upgrade their skill sets. Getting additional training or education, getting certified or expanding your professional qualifications, will help in making you a lot more desirable.

Usually when employers narrow down in choosing a potential employee, and they all have similar job experience, they will usually choose the employee that has the better educational background qualifications, this courtesy of better training.

Yes, there still are credit cards out there offering free instant approval and yes, they still are the easiest way for you to get a new card. When applying for these cards, you’ll usually find out in about a minute if you are approved or not. Better yet, applying for a credit card with instant approval online is simple as ever.

How To Find The Right Card For You
The first step is to decide what type of instant approval credit card you qualify for. There are hundreds of them out there that you can choose from, and are all conveniently online. Make sure that you do thorough research to find out which is the best fit for you. Some things to look out for include: interest rates, annual fees, and any other additional fees. If you happen to have excellent credit, make sure to apply only for a card without a high interest rate. If your credit rating is not as good, compare the different instant approval credit cards that offer the lowest amount of fees and the lowest possible interest rate.

If your credit happens to be poor, your best option would be an instant approved ‘Secured’ credit card. These credit cards require you to deposit money into the card up front. So what you actually charge on a secured credit card is actually your own money, based on the amount that you deposited on the card. Make sure the credit card company reports to all the credit bureaus, before you waste your time applying. If the card company doesn’t report, then getting a secured credit card will not help you in rebuilding your credit. Don’t bother applying for a ’secured’ credit card if you have better credit, unless you have a child who is in high school or entering college who needs a controlled, limited amount credit card.

How To Complete The Online Form
Online instant approval credit card forms are the same as a traditional online credit card form. You’ll complete the application to the potential lender by submitting your: name, address, social security number, employment information, and your annual household income. Generally, the higher your annual household income is, the greater the chances you will get approved and will also receive a higher credit limit. Make sure you tell the truth, as the information you supply is primarily used to protect you in case of bankruptcy.

If you’re applying for a secured credit card, you may not be required to supply as much information. For example, for many of the secured credit card companies, they do not require your employment information. All that’s required is that if you have the cash to deposit to the credit card, the lending company won’t be concerned about verifying your employment. You will however need to have a verified bank account, as you will be electronically transferring funds to the secured credit card.

Regardless of the type of credit card you’re applying for, make sure that you are submitting your personal information on a secured online site. You’ll know if the website is secure as there will be an icon of a lock located on the top or the bottom corner on your computer screen. A secured site prevents potential hackers from being able to access your computer. If the online instant access credit card company is reputable, it will be a secured site. If the site isn’t secure, stay away.

Instant Approval
After you have completed the online application form, you’ll usually find out within a minute or less on whether you qualify for credit card or not. Don’t be disheartened if a particular lending company doesn’t instantly approve your application. Often, it’s because the credit card company may need to look a bit more closely at your credit history. Generally, this should only take just a couple days. Online instant approval credit card are still the fastest way to get a credit card, than the alternative of getting a traditional credit card through a bank, which can take anywhere from six to eight weeks for approval.

If you are a WAHM, a work at home mom, or if you are busy at both home and at work, some days it may seem almost impossible to find any spare time for yourself. You may be wondering how those other ‘Mom Entrepreneurs’ manage their time for their family and themselves.

Well, Here Are Some Tips:

1. Take Breaks During The Day
Have you ever been just overwhelmed and feel that you can’t stop or slow down for the fear you will fall yet further behind? When you are in a high stressed situation, it’s easy for your thinking to become confused and cluttered, thus making you less productive. Well, when that occurs, that’s the exact moment when you should be taking a break. Whether you choose to take a brisk 15-minute walk outdoors, catch a matinee, or even taking a full day outside doing completely unrelated activities that you love to do. Slowing down and relaxing and getting your mind off things can actually provide you with amazing clarity and actually help you complete your tasks faster and on time. This to you may seem counterproductive, but it really works!

To prevent your life from going into overload, try doing the following tips on a regular basis…

2. Take the time out to socialize at least once a week
Taking time out has proven to be invaluable to the Mom Entrepreneur. Make it a point to go out and socialize at least once or twice a week with your friends, partner, or just get out there and have some time alone. It will revive you and will instantly make you a lot more focused when you come back to being a mom or a business person. It’s pretty well known that ‘All work and no play, can make you a dull boring person,’ and it will also make you completely stressed out and ineffective!

3. Take a couple “Mommy Moments” as often as possible.
Make it a priority to take some time out and take those “Mommy Moments” as often as possible. You can soak in a sauna in your bathroom, go for a workout or a run, or enjoy a favorite goodie, such as chocolate chip cookies or an ice cream sandwich, that you can devour say once a week.

Another excellent “Mommy Moment” is that its okay to take the occasional ‘afternoon nap’. Whether it be for a quick ten or fifteen minutes or even forty-five minutes, it’s refreshing and relaxing once in a while just to take a nap, but don’t make it a habit. The revitalization that you instantly receive from a short catnap is very beneficial and powerful. If you are not able to take a nap in the middle of a hectic chaotic day, it is vitally important to take yourself out of your stressful situation to regain focus. You will have more mental clarity and energy if you meditate and clear your head.

4. Go “off duty” on a set regular time
If you are a stay at home working mom, its important you choose a regular time during the day when you are on a mandatory break, sort of an “off duty” time. For example, say every evening after 8:30PM every night, your kids cannot bother you with “Mommy, where are my pants?” or “I want some cookies for my school party tomorrow,” etc. (Of course, other than emergencies.) Your kids will soon learn and understand to ask for what they need before your ‘off duty’ time or will wait until the morning. This will work on young children all the way up to teenagers! So set out a ‘off duty’ time for yourself, everyone will understand.

Well they warned us, the experts said that the economic bubble is bursting, but you’d never know or realize it by looking at the 35,669 active real estate listings, from the last 7 days alone, just in the Los Angeles section on Craigslist.com. Real estate listings and thus sales are active and quite well on Craigslist, especially with the real estate listings, which happens to be the No# 3 most popular category on the worlds most popular online classified site. There are more agents that are are realizing the power and value of using Craigslist to reach potential new buyers.

So Who or What is Craigslist?
Craigslist was started back in 1995 by Craig Newmark. When craigslist.com was born, it’s original intent was to help people find affordable housing or rent in the San Francisco area. Now craigslist has become the single most popular online classifieds site on the internet, with over 20 million visitors monthly and growing rapidly. Craigslist currently features over 300 available cities scattered across 35 countries for posting free ads. Everyday, online seekers come looking to either buy, sell, trade or lease property. Real estate agents can capitalize on this targeted traffic by posting their free ads and answering ads from people seeking homes. It truly has become a real estate agents dream marketing tool.

So How Do You Get Started
Real Estate Agents who are interested in using Craigslist can do so by going to the site and choosing the city or cities they want to post in. First, do some research on other ads in your area and that will give you an idea of the different types of property listings, as well as what your competitors are posting. The huge real estate section on Craigslist.com is divided into different sections to redirect visitor traffic to specific areas, including: single rooms & shares, apartments or houses for rent, house swap, office or commercial space, storage rental, real estate for sale, sublets and vacation rentals. The best thing about craigslist as mentioned, posting an ad is completely free (except New York City), which has just started a $10 charge for rental listings. Once you know where you want to post your ad, create either a single ad for ‘hot properties’ or a combination of ads listing all your available real estate properties for that area.

How To Create an Ad
Ads of Craigslist are easy to create as they are primarily text, thus requiring no graphic design or html experience. Your ad should obviously be descriptive including contact info and photos. Images of the property has been proven to increase response by over 200%, so be sure you include pictures that really help highlight the property. You are able to easily upload images during the posting process.

How To Post Your Ad
Posting an ad on Craigslist is as simple as picking the city, choosing the proper category, then selecting ‘post’, at the top right hand corner and entering your real estate listing into the form. Make sure you come up with a good relevant title to get the potential clients attention. Your ad should also feature specific key phrases that people may be searching for when looking for the area of the property, features of the house, etc. Once you’ve entered your text into the form and uploaded your images, you’ll need to enter an e-mail address or just keep it anonymous. Then submit, review and wait for the confirmation link in your e-mail to publish the ad.

Reposting, Multi-Posting and Auto-Posting
Once your ad is published, your ad will remain on the Craigslist site for 7 to 45 days, depending on the selected city. Your listing staying on the first page is important, but since you can only post the ad in one city every 48 hours, that may become a problem. However, to can get around this by creating multiple ads for the same property, by using slightly different text or by using a different e-mail address for each ad. To be successful, you’ll need to re-post the ad at least every 48 hours as new online buyers are looking for listings. To automate the re-posting process, there is auto-posting services out there, or you can purchase software programs for that purpose. But keep in mind that these types of programs are not exactly approved by Craigslist, but nonetheless are widely used and are highly effective. Also realize buyers on the internet are turned off by spam, and craigslist is no different, so make sure to only post your property just once a day, per city per category. This will ensure you will get great ad placement without coming off as a desperate or overly aggressive spammy seller.

Hopefully you realize that using Craigslist is easy and an affordable way to reach new customers. This is only a taste of what real estate agents or anyone else who has anything to sell or promote can do on Craigslist. As Craigslist gains in popularity, you can take advantage of your creativity and experiment with ‘out of the box ideas’ as it has an instant audience and the posting of ads only takes your effort.

First Of All… What Is The FOREX (FX) or Foreign Exchange Currency Market?
The Foreign Exchange or currency markets (more commonly referred to as the Forex or FX market), is the single largest financial market in the world, with over $3.5 trillion dollars changing hands every day.

That’s larger than the entire US equity and Treasury markets combined!

Unlike other financial markets, such as the stock or commodity markets that operate at a centralized location, (i.e. NYSE stock exchange), the global Forex market has no central location. It is a worldwide electronic global network of financial institutions, major banks and individual traders, all involved in the buying and the selling of currencies.

A major and unique feature of the Forex market is that it operates non-stop, 24 hours a day, corresponding to the opening and the closing of major world financial centers in countries around the globe. The trading day starts in Sydney, AU and then Tokyo, followed by the London and New York markets. At any time, in any of these locations, there are global buyers and sellers making trades, thus making the Forex market the most absolute liquid market in the world.

Not too long ago, access to the Foreign Exchange market was made available only to the major banks and other large financial institutions. With advances in technology, trading the Forex market is now available to anyone, from small to large banks, individual traders and speculators, to large money hedge managers trading retail accounts. The opportunity to get involved in this global market hasn’t been better than right now. You can now open an account for less than $500 and become an active player, rubbing shoulders with the big boys in the largest market on the planet.

Keep in mind that the Forex Market is different from trading currencies on the futures market, and it’s a lot easier than trading stocks or commodities.

Whether you’re aware of it or not, you already play a small role in the Forex market. The simple fact that you have cash in your pocket makes you an investor in that currency, particularly if its the US Dollar. By holding any amount of US Dollars, you have elected not to hold the currency of any other nation. Your portfolio of: bonds, stocks, or any other financial instrument, along with the US funds deposited in your bank account, represents investments that rely heavily on the value of ¨the mighty US Dollar. However, due to the constantly changing value of the US greenback, combined with fluctuating exchange and interest rates, your investments are constantly changing in value, thus affecting your overall financial status. With this in mind, it’s no surprise that a lot of savvy investors take advantage of the fluctuations in Exchange Rates, using the volatility of the Foreign Currency Exchange markets as a way to increase their overall capital.

For Example: Say you have $1000 USD and decide to buy Euros. The exchange rate is 1.50 Euros to every 1 US dollar. You would receive 1500 Euros. If the value of the Euro against the US dollar increases, then you would be inclined to sell (or exchange) your Euros back into US dollars and have more dollars than you originally started with.

The EUR/USD currently trading at 1.5000 means
One Euro is worth $1.50 US dollars.

The first currency EUR (the EURO) is the base currency and the second the (/USD) is the counter or quote currency.

If the currency pair goes up to 1.75 the following month, and you sold the Euro back into US dollars, it would now be worth $1166.65 (1750/1.50). You have made a small profit based on natural currency fluctuation.

Trading The Forex
The FOREX plays an important and vital role in the world economy and there will always be an enormous need for the exchange of currencies. International commerce increases as technology and communication increases. As long as there’s international trade across borders, there will be a FOREX market. The Foreign Exchange market exists so a country like Japan, can sell products and services to the United States and be able to receive Yen back in exchange for the US Dollar.

The All Familiar RISK WARNING:

The Huge Risk Of Currency Trading and Speculation
Trading foreign currency on margin to the novice is an extremely risky form of investment, and is only recommended for individual traders or financial institutions capable of handling the potential losses it entails. An account with a FX broker however, allows you to trade currencies on a highly leveraged basis (some offering up to 400 times your trading account). But keep in mind that the funds, even traded at maximum leverage, can easily be wiped out if the position(s) held in the account experiences even a 1 percent swing in value if it goes in the wrong direction. With the possibility of losing your entire investment in a snap, speculating in the foreign exchange market should only be considered as risk capital. Risk capital are funds, if lost, will not significantly affect your financial well-being.

So the actual math of losing that bit of flab off your body is pretty simple. Did you know that one pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories? So here is a simple plan, if you are looking to lose a pound or two a week. All you need to do is consume 3500 to 7000 calories less per week than you would take in, which is around 500 to 1000 calories a day. While you’re reducing these calories, you should also maintain or slightly increase your activity level.

So you’re saying, okay, that really doesn’t sound like much, especially if you’re more than say 25 pounds overweight. Studies have shown that those people who lose weight on a gradual basis - at a rate of 1 to 2 pounds per week, are more than likely to keep that weight off, and maintain that normal weight for a lifetime.

How many calories exactly is 500 calories? If you’re wanting to reduce your daily food intake by that many calories, it then helps to know what exactly you need to cut out.

Here is a plan on how easy it is to lose 500 to 1000 calories a day:
* Use milk in your coffee or tea instead of cream. Savings? Approximately 50 calories per cup.

* Skip using real butter on your baked potato. Savings? 100 calories

* Drink flavored water instead of a 10-16 ounce can of soda. Savings? 200 calories

* Skip that ‘Big Mac’ and have a salad instead. A Big Mac has a whopping 460 calories. A fresh salad with light dressing? Less than 100 calories! Savings? 360 calories

* Pass on those bag of potato chips. An average size bag of chips contains over 300 calories. Savings? 300 calories

* Eat fresh corn still on the ear. 1 cup of canned corn contains 165 calories. An single ear of corn (minimal butter or salt) has 85. Savings? 80 calories.

* Switch to cream cheese with low-fat for your bagel. Savings? 90 calories per ounce.

* Love those french fried potatoes and can’t give them up? Then exchange those skinny fries out for the really thick ones. Thin fries absorb less oil than the thicker ones. Savings? 50 calories per every 4 ounce serving

This is why an important food intake diet plan is recommended

Lose Weight By Exercising
If you would rather lose weight from an exercise perspective, you can then also lose one or two pounds a week by raising your activity level by burning off 500 to 1000 calories per day. So how do you do that? Take a look:

* Take a 30 minute walk around your neighborhood or the park. Aim for a walking pace that’s moderately faster than a stroll, but not fast enough so you will become breathless. Burn: 160 calories every 30 minutes

* Get out your trusty bike and go take a ride. Make sure you hit a few hills and try aiming for about five miles in total. Burn: 250 calories

* Lets All Go Dancing - and really DANCE. The longer you’re out on the dance floor doing you’re John Travolta, instead of sitting at the table drinking those high-calorie drinks, the better you will feel. Doing those dance moves that leaves you a little breathless will net you a nice calorie reduction. Burn: 400 calories for one hour of dancing

* Swimming is great, and you will have a lot of fun too. The water resistance on your body and muscles means you burn more calories, while simultaneously avoiding the stress impact on your joints from dancing, aerobics or walking. Do a few laps every day at a slow crawl - try getting you stamina up to an hour. Burn: 510 calories

* Get outdoors into your garden. An hour of active gardening that includes bending, a bit of digging and stretching can burn as many calories as a brisk walk. Burn: 250 calories.

* Go out and play tennis. Meet with a friend for a semi-weekly game of tennis and you’ll benefit at the difference. Playing just 1 hour of tennis is one of the best calorie burners out there. Burn: 800 calories per hour

Now keep in mind that all the exercise calorie burning numbers are based on a woman that weighs around 130 pounds. If you weigh a tad more, you will then obviously burn a bit more.

If you are wanting an added bonus to burning more calories through exercise? When you work out, you automatically get better tone by converting fat into muscle. The good news, your body naturally uses a lot more energy to maintain and feed muscles than it does fat.

So to get the best results, try mixing and matching your food calorie savings with exercising that burn calories. But keep in mind that when you eat less than 1000 calories per day, for more than 3 or more days, that will automatically convince your body that it’s starving, and will slow your metabolism and thus store fat. Keep your calorie intake ranges reasonable, and consult a dietitian or doctor if you want a quicker, more drastic weight loss.

The world famous and renown, Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains, situated just hours north of Vancouver, Canada, is known as on of North America’s leading ski resorts. These two mountain ranges rise majestically over a valley to produce one of the best skiing conditions available anywhere in the world, with well over a vertical mile up to the peak. So imagine if you had just a single day to ski. Which mountain would you choose? Some will head for the Whistler Village Gondola or the Creekside Gondola, both which head up Whistler Mountain, while others will head for the Excalibur gondola or the Wizard chair, the main lifts for Blackcomb mountain. So what are some of the differences? What type of skier would choose one mountain over the other? Is there any visible difference between the two mountains?

For Those Powder Days (for experienced skiers)
If the weather gods bless the mountain and the day with fresh powder snow, there is little question that Whistler Mountain is then the mountain of choice, especially for those expert skiers. There are just two words that explain why: Peak Chair. The Peak Chair on Whistler Mountain gives access to an immense variety of off-piste, (off piste - A piste is a term given to marked ski runs or paths down a mountain for skiing or snowboarding), runs to cater for powder skiers. (NOTE: If you are an advanced skier, you can head to Air Jordan, a huge leap off a cliff involving a 50 foot drop landing onto a point that’s only 60 foot square. Once landing, there is another descend that’s 40 feet to the soft snow below. If you miss your first landing, you are unfortunately looking at several months in hospital). There is no such lift on Blackcomb Mountain to compare to the powder terrain available by the Peak Chair.

Those Powder Days (for the rest/most of us)
Less accomplished novice skiers who like the powder, mostly head for the Blackcomb Glacier lift. This is a fabulous yet enormous bowl where you can find fresh tracks, two hours after the lift has opened. While the over-ambitious skier can easily do themselves a bit of damage in the assorted couloirs and cliffs off the Peak Chair, they won’t do that much harm on the Blackcomb Glacier.

Those Darn Stormy Days
When the weather goes bad and is stormy where winds of up to 70km/hour are beating up and battering the high alpine, then its very likely that the uppermost lifts are closed. The Glacier Chair and Seventh Heaven lifts on Blackcomb Mountain will be closed for sure, as well as the T-bars on the Horstmann Glacier. Crystal Chair will also closed. This will leave most of the interesting terrain available on Blackcomb Mountain inaccessible. But, on Whistler Mountain, even if the Peak and the Harmony Chairs are closed, you will still have access to the Village gondola, Big Red, the Garbanzo Chair, and the Emerald Express. These lifts will remain open for any weather conditions regardless. The Garbanzo lift in particular gives access to many tree sheltered runs that can be great in a storm.

Yes, For Those Sunny Skiing Days
The majority of both Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains face either north or west, thus receiving the sun only obliquely. This is one of the reasons why the snow will last a long time. However, when it’s cold, yet a sunny day, (which is a common occurrence especially during the Whistler winter), you want the sun shining to soften up the off-piste, and to keep you as warm as possible. During these times, you want to be on the Seventh Heaven, which is the only major slope on Whistler mountain that faces south.

Tree Skiing
Both Whistler Mountain and Blackcomb Mountains are well covered with a lot of trees on the bottom two thirds of the terrain. However, Whistler mountain has the edge in terms of the better areas of treed terrain. The runs such as Club 21 or Sidecut on Whistler are equally similar to Bark Sandwich on Blackcomb, but the tree runs off the Peak Chair on Whistler can’t be compared.

Lunch Days
If you like to do ski runs on short intervals between lengthy café cognac breaks, or those who deem lunch is a vital central part of the day, then Whistler mountain in this department has little to offer, so you will most likely spend more time on Blackcomb Mountain. Not too many of the restaurants in Whistler are known to have much atmosphere, where Blackcomb mountain has a few that are marginally better, such as: Christine’s in the Rendezvous and the Crystal Hut.

So either Whistler or Blackcomb both have their own pro’s and con’s. Each mountain is better and known for certain conditions and for certain types of skiers.