Chances are, on any given day during the six-month ski season, one of those “ski bums” will be a tall, bushy-haired, and bespectacled eccentric whose mind and chat during the 14-minute ride up the mountain are not necessarily on the slopes passing below. His name is Bill Joy. As Sun Microsystems’ co-founder and chief scientist, Joy is considered one of software’s top propeller-heads. During his 18-year tenure at Sun, Joy has been instrumental in developing Sun’s RISC microprocessor, SPARC, and the software behind Java and Jini.

The Silver Queen Gondola serves as an incubator of Joy’s thought. In 1995, he discussed Java with uber-venture capitalist John Doerr. He has subsequently mulled over Sun’s Java and Jini strategies with Mike Clary, who worked on both projects and who now heads Sun’s consumer and embedded computing division, while the mountain whisked below them. He even helped redesign the company’s latest chip, MAJC, released last summer, with designer Marc Tremblay — all while riding the Silver Queen.

Notes Joy: “I stuff my sleeves with reading material, and read on the way up and then ski down. There is incredible incentive to finish each article or paper before the top so I can throw it away — if bad. It works better if you read the bad stuff first, so you get your sleeves back.”

Good question. First of all, there’s not much you can do about the fact that credit-card issuers are continually upping credit limits in an effort to get you to use their cards, run up debt and then pay them 15% or more for the privilege. It is absolutely outrageous.

To answer your question specifically, there is no formula from your point of view. Credit-card companies look at a number of factors when extending credit limits: your job stability, your income, how much debt you already have, your long-term credit record, whether or not you pay your bills on time, whether or not you’ve ever declared bankruptcy, how long you’ve been their customer, and so on.

So if you feel you’ve been offered too much credit, go with your instincts and don’t accept it.

There is, however, a general formula that Cash Flo does want you to know about: You should spend no more than 20% of your monthly take-home income on consumer debt. Consumer debt is simply another phrase for installment loans, such as car loans and credit cards.

If your credit-card issuer has recently offered to extend your line of credit, use this as an opportunity to negotiate a lower rate. Call and point out that if they think you’re such a valued customer, then you’d like either a lower rate or a lower annual fee. If the first person you speak with seems unwilling to negotiate, ask to speak to her supervisor. This strategy can work, especially if you suggest you will switch to another credit-card company.

I am not of the mind that one must wear a dress to appear dressed up. Pants can be just as spectacular, they just have to be the right kind. You definitely don’t want to show up at a party in the same kind of slacks that you wear to the office. (Unless, of course, it’s that kind of party.) Personally, I always go for something a little flashy around the holidays. Sequins, sparkly leather, stretchy velour — they all do it for me. Preferably in red.

But say you’re not as bold (or obnoxious) as I am. Something soft can be nice and partyish — a pair of pants with a wider leg gives the illusion of wearing a skirt, as does something made of a flowing fabric. If you’re not into the idea of going out and shopping — especially for holiday pants — and you’d rather see if you can make something work that’s hanging in your closet, you really never can go wrong with basic black. I’m even oddly attracted to tuxedo pants in some androgynous early ’80s kind of way.

It might not even be all that important what the pants are, as long as the top screams holiday. Bare shoulders, bare backs, shiny fabrics — really, anything festive. You see, I don’t think people are looking at you all that much from the waist down if they’re standing there talking to you at a cocktail party. Usually, they seem so busy craning their necks to get a load of just who else is at the party that you can get away with simple on bottom and fancy on top.

As far as accessories go, I’m a minimalist. I hate those cutesy Santa earrings, and I’d sooner sit through a Barry Manilow concert than be caught in a fuzzy holiday-themed sweater and matching pin/beret/scarf/mitten (choose one or any combination of the aforementioned). Wear some flashy costume jewelry — rhinestones or paste or what have you. And try to stay away from pearls and lace and fuzzy things. Yuck. Oh, and nix on wearing the red and green together. Try instead red and purple or acid green and orange. Something to show you’ve got a little originality in your holiday thinking.

Kate shows us that a woman can be strong and successful, in her profession, but still find something lacking in life. It’s great to live in a modern world where a woman has the resources and respect needed to build a knockout re’sume’, nab the corner office, and be a powerbroker who wows clients and intimidates adversaries. But that same strong woman can also expect a man to treat her with deference and respect based on the fact that she is, of all things, a lady. There’s nothing inherently weak in a woman who appreciates having a man open a door, or send flowers, or defend her against the unwanted advances of other men.

Some old-fashioned feminists might say this is disempowering—women should be treated exactly the same as men! That logic is flawed to the core. A woman can be treated as a man’s equal without being treated as identical to him. There’s nothing wrong with a chic and strong woman appreciating tender respect from a man.

That’s the essence of chivalry: respect. We’re not talking medieval chivalry, where a knight defends a swooning maiden against a shadowy figure on a black horse. We’re not talking about complete retrenching of traditional gender roles. We’re talking about modern chivalry. Modern chivalry requires that a man treat a woman with respect and dignity. It requires that he appreciate her for both her worldly successes and her innate charms. It requires that he look beyond the crass goal of getting her into bed and explore the beauty of her mind and spirit. It requires that he respect her as a human rather than a conquest, and that he act accordingly with duly respectful actions.

To all you career-oriented modern women: we need to take a lesson from Kate and Leopold and infuse a little modern chivalry into the hectic hustle of contemporary life. Here’s the beautiful truth: in the modern world, we do have the power to command chivalry without compromising the image of a strong, savvy powerbroker. In fact, commanding the respect of chivalry might even make us look stronger.

Such is the life of Kate McKay (Meg Ryan) in her new romantic comedy Kate and Leopold. Ryan plays the hyper-successful advertising agent who possesses a keen knack for determining what appeals to focus groups, but no ability to assess what is lacking in her own life.

Despite material trappings of success—closet full of modern power suits and an apartment stocked with aromatherapy candles and relaxation rock gardens—we meet Kate just as she’s discovering that her life is truly empty. She devoted her best years to a seemingly-feckless man who couldn’t keep his promises, and her only romantic prospect is a self-important boss who tells Kate “you don’t do pretty” and values her only for her ability to get into the head of a woman without succumbing to female “weaknesses.” Kate’s life is utterly glamorous … and utterly loveless.

Enter Leopold, the third Duke of Albany imported straight from the 1800s. Thanks to a convenient portal in the space-time continuum, Leopold has been transported into modern Manhattan all by accident. With his tight britches and crisp accent, he’s the very image of an old-fashioned Prince Charming: handsome, educated, polite, and sophisticated in every detail. Leopold stands up when a lady enters or leaves his presence. His knowledge of fine art and opera are astounding, and in passionate tones he converses with women about artwork and history. He dances with grace and kisses a lady’s hand. He attends to a woman’s interests and engages her intellect. He’s a modern chivalrous dreamboat dressed as an anachronism.

Predictably, Kate and Leopold find themselves in a dance-a`-deux of romance. They meet through Kate’s ex-boyfriend, a semi-crazed scientist who discovered the time portal and unwittingly brought Leopold into the 21st century. The ex, who happens to be Kate’s upstairs neighbor, finds himself compelled to house Leopold before shipping him back in time. Kate, the jealous-but-in-denial ex-girlfriend, hears Leopold banging around upstairs and must investigate. Instead of finding another woman, Kate finds Leopold.

Their initial encounters are chilly to say the least. She’s an independent urban gal who resists his attempts to treat her like a “lady.” He’s the britches-wearing royal who can’t understand her career-girl ways. Somehow they discover a spark, and he quite literally sweeps her off her feet with chivalrous charm. The city becomes quieter, the colors brighter, and Kate less harsh-looking as Leopold treats her royally and shows her the respect she deserves.

But Leopold doesn’t stop with romancing Kate. He also does his part to improve the lives of modern women by educating modern men in the art of chivalry. Call her first; ask her about herself; learn how to buy her flowers that express your feelings for her. Show interest in her intellect and her hobbies. Treat her with respect. Treat her like a lady.

Therein lies the real value of this sweet little flick. Admittedly, the story line is formulaic and a predictable romantic comedy. Kate and Leopold does little to push the limits of cinematic genius, and it hardly touches upon anything revolutionary in storytelling. What it does do, though, is remind us that in this crazy modern world it’s not a sin to crave a little chivalry.

Everybody wishes to take the easy path in life. You watch an ad that makes you believe that by just applying an amazing scent on your body, all your issues with women will go away. While you will get more attention from the ladies when you venture out to the local bars and clubs, that won’t magically change your ease in approaching them or your beliefs about how to attract them.

If you’re a man looking at pheromones to increase your ability to charm the opposite sex, then you should only consider it if you commonly approach ladies that you’re attracted to, and do not take rejection personally, have fun playful dates as well as already “catch” a lot of girls, normally.

If you’re fearful to approach and start conversations with women and don’t have much success in the seduction area of course, you should spend some money for dating programs that specialize in internal games as well as establishing new ideas about attracting women. You can get a lot of them online as e-books and DVDs. Materials showing you what to do and how to accomplish it may be located easily.

Pheromone sprays are an useful tool, but they shouldn’t be your only one. Look closely at yourself and determine the kind of person you want to be.

Do you wish to be the one who attempts taking shortcuts, then just ends up with short-term satisfaction, or are you ready to take the long path and build a solid foundation to grow with? Anyway, the best results can be reached from the use of pheromones.

If you show an interest in obtaining additional information on this subject, use resource: Human Euphoria Pheromones