The top specification version of the vehicle comes in a customized shade of maroon and is emblazoned with ornate gold detailing which depicts dragons to complete the theme. These features, which appeal directly to the Chinese people’s sense of history and aesthetics, no doubt fueled the frenzy of purchases that led to the Rolls Royce Year of the Dragon Phantom to sell out so quickly. Customers who shelled out over a million bucks to enjoy this luxurious ride are also able to fully customize the vehicle with special embroidery, food and wine cabinets and other accoutrements. According to Rolls Royce marketing executives, this element of extreme personalization was a major factor in the rush to buy the Dragon Phantom, because Chinese consumers crave the opportunity to express themselves publically.

The particular affinity that Chinese drivers have clearly shown for Rolls Royce’s Year of the Dragon Phantom is an extension of the country’s overall desire for luxury automobiles. Rolls Royce alone features a total of 14 showrooms throughout China and plans to open more throughout 2012 to meet an ever growing demand for high end items in the country. While the overwhelming success of the company’s commemoration of the Chinese New Year surely contributed the sales success Rolls Royce enjoyed in 2011, there is no reason to expect a decline next year. The global economy is finally beginning to show signs of life and China is home to a growing market for high-end luxury vehicles. After selling a car priced at $1.2 million completely out of stock within a span of just 2 months, Rolls Royce is surely ready to double down on their presence within the expanding Chinese marketplace.

Emma Martin is a contributing writer for eRentals, the best online care rental supplier with over 12,000 locations worldwide.

Time management.  While it is natural for human beings to worry, too much is not productive and actually doesn’t accomplish anything.  Therefore, devoting too much time to worry about anything, especially your finances, is really just an enormous waste.  If you do feel worried, find ways to be proactive.  Try to find the root of your fears and develop an action strategy to combat it.  What can you do to change whatever situation is causing you so much worry?

Fulfilling life.  They say that money can’t buy happiness.  While that may be true, certainly a lack of money or worry about your finances can keep you from enjoying the more fulfilling things in your life, especially when spending time with your children or loved ones.  Your health also includes your mental well-being, and this will suffer as well if you let worrying get in the way of enjoying your life.

Up all night.  How many times have you lain awake all night because you are worrying too much about your perceived money problems?  Lack of sleep can lead to physical problems as well as behavioral issues.  Many people who worry too much take up drinking or smoking and then suffer additional problems because of the ways they abuse those products.  Instead of staying up all night, take a natural sleep supplement such as melatonin.  Worrying won’t solve any of your problems, and staring at the ceiling into the wee hours of the night isn’t going to fix them either.

Illness.  Chronic worrying can lead to a whole host of unpleasant physical side effects, including a suppression of the immune system that leads to increased illness.  If you are feeling anxious about your money, you may be subject to more headaches, fatigue, memory loss, an inability to concentrate, uncontrollable sweating, or nausea.  More severe conditions such as digestive disorders and heart attack may also result from too much stress.

Relationships.  Increased irritability is one side effect of too much worry, and can lead you to mistreat the people closest to you.  If you are fixated on money, it may also cause the people close to you to lie about their own financial situations in order to appease you.  This may be the perfect time for a reality check:  which means more to you, your relationships or our bank account?

If you are continuing to worry about money even after reading this article, perhaps you should consider ways to cut back on necessary expenses, such as looking into discount dental plans.

Think outside the box.  Start brainstorming:  what kind of a party have you never been to that you think would be fun, crazy, hilarious, etc.  Do some research online for different theme ideas.  Costume parties are a lot of fun, and including a Hollywood theme can jazz them up, especially if you make it even more specific by calling it a Hollywood Scandal Party.  Invite your guests to prepare by scanning the tabloids before designing their costumes.  Or you can plan a variation on this theme by calling it a “Too Soon?” party  that encourages guests to somehow embody any sort of disaster, natural or otherwise, that may have occurred in recent memory.  Often totally tasteless, but your guests will have a great time showing off their creativity.  A “Superhero or Villain” party allows your guests to be funny, sexy, creative, or completely nuts, especially if their hero or villain of choice is animal-themed.

Go shopping!  You can help yourself brainstorm by visiting party stores to see what sorts of supplies they have in stock.  This will also give you an idea of how much to budget for when you decide on the kind of over-the-top extravaganza you’ve got cooking.

An eye for detail.  Once you’ve selected your theme, begin pondering ways to amp it up.  How can your food reflect the theme?  Can you choose specific colors or shapes?  What sorts of decorations did you see on your shopping expedition?  Be as specific as possible when laying your plans.

A little help from your friends.  Friends make invaluable resources, so use ‘em!  The more creative of your buddies will love to be in on the planning process, and they may be able to come up with some wilder notions than even you thought of.  Make a night of it:  call three or four of your besties together, have a few drinks, and see who can come up with the craziest, most over-the-top party ideas ever planned by humankind.  Remember to have someone take notes.

Budget.  Don’t forget to keep track of all your spending.  You can help yourself out by budgeting during the brainstorming process, which will keep you on track when you begin the actual purchasing (visiting the party stores in advance should give you an idea of what you can get, and how much you can get it for).  Your theme may be totally insane, but you shouldn’t go crazy when you hit the mall.  And though you probably won’t be able to afford them, but if you’ve got a windfall and suddenly find that you can, think:  fire dancers San Francisco! (It helps if you’re a Californian.)

At a recent conference of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine held in Minneapolis, five thousand researchers convened to discuss the power of a good night’s sleep.  One of the studies addressed the connection between sleep loss and weight gain, and then linked weight loss to people who make more money.

According to this study, when people are deprived of sleep the function in their brain that stops them from eating unhealthy food starts to shut down.  Also, researchers concluded, people who stay awake longer have more opportunities to eat, which may lead to unhealthy snacking.  And recent studies have shown that, while overweight men make more money, overweight women make less.  So if sleep deprivation causes you to gain weight, depending on your gender, it can lead you to make less money.

Healthier people are also more likely to have increased energy, vigor, and show an increase in exuberance in their personalities, which all contribute to help someone who gets enough sleep work harder, faster, or allow them to get jobs which will pay more.

Other reasons to consider how sleep will help you make money:  enough sleep allows the brain to maintain and consolidate memory, which means that people who sleep well perform better on tests and tasks; people who don’t sleep enough are prone to making more mistakes at work and may be more likely to be in an accident; sleep improves the mood, which makes people with enough sleep more pleasant to be around; and finally, people who get enough sleep are less prone to weakened immunity systems.  All these factors help create a healthy person who has more chances to make money than someone who is sleep-deprived.

The sleep of many people is affected negatively by infestations of nighttime creepy crawlies; therefore, knowing how to get rid of bed bugs can help improve sleep and lead to a healthier (and wealthier) lifestyle.  Bed bugs can be identified by their wingless reddish-brown bodies that are flat and are about one-fifth of an inch long.  They are commonly thought to thrive around the human bed, but the bloodsucking critters can be found anywhere else in your home, in places such as furniture or in clothing piles on the floor.  Bed bugs can be clingy, so if you are attempting to vacuum the infested area, scrape the surface with the vacuum’s end.  They are also averse to temperatures of 120 degrees Fahrenheit or above, so you can use a steamer to flush them out.  You can also wash and dry your bedding on high heat, which will kill them as well as their eggs.

Improve your health and your wealth through proper sleeping habits … and remember, don’t let the bed bugs bite!

1. Jay Leno.  He is arguably the most famous celebrity car collector, and considering that his collection is said to rival that of the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, it’s not hard to see why.  With nearly 200 cars and motorcycles sequestered at a huge warehouse in Burbank, you might have trouble thinking of a collectible automobile that isn’t represented.  But some of the most interesting cars in his showcase include a Stanley Steamer (yup, it runs on steam), a 1909 Baker electric car, and a motorcycle that is powered by a turbo jet.  It’s simply impossible to enumerate the many appealing cars in his eclectic collection, but luckily he has a website (jaylenosgarage.com) to show them off.
2. Ralph Lauren.  This fashion mogul may best known for his style on the runway, but his haute couture collections pale in comparison to the lineup of rare and desirable automobiles he keeps in his garage (or, you know, the gallery he designed to display them).  Because he has only a few dozen cars to his name, you might be tempted to ask how he rates an entry on this list.  But when you realize that each and every automobile is akin to the Hope Diamond, his collection of cars starts to look like the crown jewels.  Most notably, he has the keys to a 1930 Mercedes Benz SSK (Count Trossi) Roadster, a 1958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa (in fact, he has a room devoted to Ferraris), a 2006 Bugatti Veyron, and a 1938 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic Coupe (one of only two left in existence).
3. Jerry Seinfeld.  Anyone familiar with gossip surrounding this NYC comedian has probably heard rumors about the $1.5 million parking structure he built in Manhattan to house a portion of his car collection.  In fact, this is true.  The guy who wrote a show about nothing has plenty to show for it, and the money coming in has allowed the car nut to build up an extensive collection, which leans heavily in favor of Porsche.  Amongst his gems are a 959 (one of only 300+ made), a 917 Le Mans racecar, and a 1955 550 Spyder (not “the” James Dean car, but the same model).  In fact, it is said that his Porsche collection, with a value of about $10 million, is second only to the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, Germany.
4. Billy Gibbons.  This ZZ Top guitarist may be a bit rough around the edges, with his beard-wearing, guitar-flinging, rock-and-roll lifestyle, but he is just as attached to the culture of classic cars as he is to his famous Rip Van Winkle beard.  He tends to go for hot rods, and he is probably most associated with the 1933 Ford Coupe “Eliminator”, which has made frequent appearances in his music videos.  He also has a number of custom street rods, amongst them a Boyd Coddington creation that started out as a 1958 Cadillac.  He claims to have so many cars in his collection that he can no longer keep track.
5. Nicholas Cage.  Known for his flamboyant spending habits, this member of the Coppola clan is no stranger to throwing down some hard cash for a collectible automobile.  He has a hankering for Lamborghinis, and he infamously purchased a Miura SVJ that was confiscated from the Shah of Iran in 1979 (he apparently paid half a million for the car, although it was only reported to be worth about $300,000).

Emma Martin is a contributing writer for UsedVolkswagenEngines.com  where Volkswagen engines are shipped nationwide every day.