Eternal youth. Universal adulation. Multiple awards. No more paparazzi. And more money than you can ever spend.

They're what every musician wants. And getting them is easier than you think. All you have to do is kick the bucket.

It's no secret that death has always been the best career move for musicians (if not all celebrities). Just ask Jim Morrison. Or Sid Vicious. Or Whitney Houston. This week, the late diva joins the ranks of the rocking dead with the release of the Sparkle soundtrack, featuring what are said to be two of her final recordings. Doubtless, they'll soon be followed by other posthumous tributes, compilations and rarities sets. We will always love her, after all.

But will we always buy her music? That's another question entirely. Even in the afterlife, not all careers are created equal. Some performers still manage to, um, bury the competition. Here are a few of the most prolific, productive and profitable performers on the posthumous pop chart.

Michael Jackson

Died: June 25, 2009. Age: 50. Cause: Overdose

The King of Pop continues his reign as music's eternally golden goose: According to Forbes' 2011 list of top-earning dead musicians, Jackson's estate raked in $170 million in the previous year. Based on the conduct of his family, it's likely safe to assume there's plenty more where that came from -- or did you really think they've been squabbling over his kids out of familial concern?

Elvis Presley

Died: Aug. 16, 1977. Age: 42. Cause: Heart attack

The No. 2 man on Forbes list, Presley is quite a ways behind Jacko -- he only raked in a comparatively paltry $55 million during the same period. Still, that's a whole lot of peanut butter and banana sandwiches. Not bad for a guy who's been pushing up daisies for a generation -- and whose label keeps recycling and repackaging the same songs and albums over and over again.

Bob Marley

Died: May 11, 1981. Age: 37. Cause: Cancer.

During his life, reggae icon Marley released 18 live and studio albums -- but his posthumous anthology Legend dwarfed them all. The hits collection is one of the best-selling albums of all time, moving more than 25 million copies globally. Between that and aggressive licensing -- his name is on everything from earbuds to tea -- it's no wonder he's been dubbed the '$1 billion rasta.'

Tupac Shakur

Died: Sept. 13, 1996. Age: 25. Cause: Murder.

Rapper Shakur may not be the richest stiff on the scene with an estimated worth of just $40 million. But what he lacks in funds, he makes up in initiative. Since his shooting death, his name has appeared on more than 70 albums of hits, leftovers and new songs assembled from outtakes and ephemera. This year, he even appeared at Coachella as a hologram. Get ready for Tupac 2.0.

Jimi Hendrix

Died: Sept. 18, 1970. Age: 27. Cause: Overdose

The original Tupac, guitar god Hendrix's archive was endlessly and thoughtlessly raided, razed and repackaged in the decades following his untimely death -- until his heirs and their lawyers finally got the situation under control. Now, his catalog is being treated with the respect it deserves -- and raking in something like $6 million a year. If 6 was 9, he'd be further up the list.

John Lennon | George Harrison

Died: Dec. 8, 1980. Age: 40. Cause: Murder. | Died: Nov. 29, 2001. Age: 58. Cause: Cancer.

Paul McCartney was reportedly paid £1 to perform at the Olympics. His former Beatles bandmates don't come nearly so cheap. Thanks to the savvy business sense of their respective widows Yoko Ono and Olivia Harrison -- not to mention royalties, Cirque du Soleil shows and licensing -- the Fab Four's guitarists earn nearly $20 million annually between them. All you need is cash.

With such a beautiful Civic Day Monday remember to have enough food for your bbq, enough lovely beverages and don't worry about checking the mail...those bills ain't comin' until tomorrw so sit back, relax, and enjoy!

Five friends have gotten together for thirty years for this one reason.  Here's the link to this interesting story.  It's something i wish i had done.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/photos/the-five-year-photo-project-slideshow/five-year-photo-photo-1343412739.html#crsl=%252Fphotos%252Fthe-five-year-photo-project-slideshow%252Ffive-year-photo-photo-1343412740.html

I found this article online about the attributes of raisins and water when you work out...

It appears the value of some sports health products have been questioned as of late. Two recent studies challenge the effectiveness of both sports chews and sports drinks, respectively.

In the first study -- published this week in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition -- researchers claim swallowing a handful of raisins is just as effective for fueling a workout as downing a couple of sports chews.

And unlike the manufactured energy enhancers, raisins pack in all the good stuff naturally.

"Raisins are a great alternative to sport chews as they also provide fiber and micronutrients, such as potassium and iron, and they do not have any added sugar, artificial flavor or colors," says professor James Painter, nutrition research advisor for the California Raisin Marketing Board

Researchers at the University of California-Davis tested the endurance of a group of runners by giving them raisins, sports chews, and nothing but water, respectively, over a period of seven days.

They found that runners who ingested either the raisins or the sports chews ran their 5K allotment one minute faster than the athletes who just drank water beforehand.

The findings promote the idea that nature can help provide athletes with the boost they need, instead of relying on engineered lab creations.

The second study -- published last week by the British Medical Journal --- challenges the idea that sports drinks are more effective than water. This report says there is "strikingly little evidence" fancy supplements, sports drinks and expensive sneakers enhance athletic performance.

Researchers from Oxford University analyzed the data from 101 pharmaceutical trials on sports drinks and found the quality of the evidence to be poor.

"The size of the effect is often minuscule.... Basically, when you look at the evidence in the general population, it does not say that exercise is improved [or that] performance is improved by carbohydrate drinks," lead researcher Dr. Carl Heneghan tells BBC

Popular sports drinks, while good sources of performance enhancing carbohydrates and electrolytes, are also laden with sugar, calories and chemicals.

However, Canadians don't seem to mind that their pre-workout beverages are fluorescent blue. Market research shows that in 2011, retail sales of sports and energy drinks grew by 8 per cent to reach $827 million in current value terms.

While it's doubtful those sales will drop any time soon, it may be worth looking in to more natural alternatives to rehydrate, replenish and rebuild.