Inaugural Goodies

Obama commemorative items are everywhere!

Over at Rand McNally you can get a commemorative inaugural map. Their description of this map states:

"Our NEW, limited edition President Barack Obama commemorative Inaugural fabMap® portrays on one side a full-colo r portrait of President-elect Barack Obama against the Capitol building where he will be sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. The reverse shows a map in stunning detail of the Mall area of our Nation's capital with its rich tapestry of historic sites, museums, and tourist services. Even better, this beautifully rendered inauguration souvenir map highlights the January 20, 2009, Presidential Inauguration site and parade route, from the Capitol to the White House."

What is a fabMap? The Rand McNally website describe it as:

"The fabMap is the most convenient and stylish way to find your way around town. Made of microfiber, this map requires no folding, doesn't tear or wrinkle and is even water-resistant. And what's more, it's safe to use for cleaning eyeglasses, phones and computer screens. With the fabMap, navigating your world just got a little more fabulous!"

Safety First!

This incident occurred to the father of the environmental manager of one of our ADM facilities. He was working in his shop on their farm in upstate Iowa on Thursday, September 4th. He was using a grinder with a wire wheel and he was using his safety glasses as well. When he stopped grinding, he took his glasses off. He saw a spot he missed and picked up the wire wheel and turned it on but failed to put his safety glasses back on. A loose strand flew up and landed squarely in his eye. He was taken to his local medical center where they gave him some sedatives and sent him on to the Mayo clinic. Four hours later they performed surgery on him to remove the wire. During his recovery from surgery, he aspirated vomitus into his lungs and was placed into intensive care for a day. He was released from the hospital after 3 days and is expec ted to make a full recovery but with some vision impairment that will be correctible by glasses or contact lenses (he did not need these before the incident). The wire strand punctured his eye to a depth of ½ inch. They tell us this picture will make the ophthalmology text books!

LESSON LEARNED

If this incident does not convince you to A

LWAYS use your PPE, then maybe nothing will. This is an extreme case where failure to use eye protection could have been life threatening. I am sure this person feels very fortunate that this incident did not result in the complete loss of an eye.

This Christmas

Steve Harvey had a stand up routine entitled "Don't Trip, He Ain't Through With Me Yet". At the end, he introduces Jesus. This is pretty fitting since this is when we celebrate Jesus' birthday. The fact that he was not born this time of year is a different story all together. But hey, at least we celebrate it!

Escape!

Not much to this picture. But for some reason, it really made me laugh uncontrollably... at least for awhile.

Jolly Fats Wee Hawkins Airline

Today I was talking to my sister on the telephone. Somewhere out of my subconscious, a reference to a movie sprung to my mind. I used it in conversation, the title of today's blog Wee Hawkins Airline, but I could not remember what the reference came from. After tons and tons of google searching, I finally found it!

The reference was from a 1983 Jerry Lewis film called Cracking Up: Smorgasbord. There's a 1985 movie review of the movie in the New York Times. In essence, the movie review pointed out that this film "has two sequences that are tolerable. In one, the great Milton Berle makes a brief appearance in drag. The other takes place aboard Jolly Fats Weehawken's Airline, a carrier designed for the economy-minded"

I now bring to you, from our wonderful friends at YouTube, the Jolly Fats Wee Hawkins Airline skit from the movie, broken into 3 bite sized chunks.

Cracking Up Movie - Airport Scene 1

Cracking Up Movie - Airport Scene 2

Cracking Up Movie - Airport Scene 3

Dr. Detroit!

My sister, author of the Salt n Light blog, sent me an email. I was so amused that I had to hop over to where else but Youtube.

Growing up, I remember watching the movie Doctor Detroit, a 1983 classic starring Dan Aykroyd and Howard Hesseman. Also guest appearance by none other than the hardest working man in show business, Mr. Dynamite, Soul Brother #1, the Godfather of Soul, the late great Jaaaaammmmeeeessss Brownnnnnnn!



Inspired by my sister, I will introduce to some and present to others the party scene of all party scenes from Dr. Detroit.

Hiatus over - Solidarity Begins

If you haven't taken a look around lately, here is what you've been missing. The world in turmoil, financial systems on the verge of collapse, wars and rumors of wars abounding on every hand.

It is time for solidarity. People are no longer collectively voicing the profound words of Rodney King (1992 L.A. Riots), "Can we all just get along?"

So, in a spirit of unity, I am going to bring back memories of a better time. Remember USA for Africa? Well I do. And thanks for our friends at Youtube, you can also with this commemorative video, We Are the World.


Remember We really Are the World.

A New Skittle!

If any of you recall, I am in class at University of Phoenix. This has been an interesting, fun ride so far. Still carrying a 4.0 cumulative with 3 classes under my belt so far.

In my current class, Organizational Leadership, I had gotten a green skittle in the first week. I was excited because of my 13 out of 13 skittle spree in my Human Capital Management class. I was giddy with excitement to know that this instructor gave out skittles. Be advised that Julie Gibbons (Business Law) does not reward substantive comments.

So, I got a skittle in my first week. Then BAM-MO-O !! UoP begins experiencing technical difficulties. Everything from week 1 was lost. I was sad. I had forgotten that our instructor gave out skittles.

Now we are into week 3. A stem off from the discussion questions prompted our instructor to pose this question. My response to this question netted me a green skittle! The skittles are back and I have received 2 out of 2 that she has given out... so far.

Instructor Question:
William hit on a great topic in the discussion on communication - listening. The American culture is not really good at this skill. Asian cultures seem to be very good at it. I very much enjoy this Chinese symbol for 'to listen.' If you look at it, and I know it is small, it has actually 4 symbols in 1 - Ear (left), Heart (bottom right), Eyes (top right), and Undivided Attention (center right).

What portion of the communication channel do you think listening is? How do you think we can learn to take the time to listen and what would be the impact on our team members, supervisors, direct reports, family members, etc?

My response that netted me a Green Skittle:

Listening is certainly an all inclusive "sport". I say sport because when done correctly and fully, it is an endeavor, not just a past time. It requires interaction. It requires effort. But of the symbols given, ear, heart eyes and undivided attention, I have to say that listening for me involves the eyes. I am a visual person. I am a people watcher when I go to the mall. I use my eyes to look into the faces of people at work or at church and can "listen" to the pain they are going through from seeing the brokenness and hurt in their eyes. I use my eyes to listen to the joy and excitement of my 5 year old who has discovered the joy of reading. I use my eyes to listen attentively to the non-verbal language everyone uses to convey how they feel, what they mean, what they want and if they understand what I am saying.

On Hiatus

I will be on Hiatus for a little while as I battle the rulers, authorities, powers of this dark world and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

This will be a battle unlike any other you can imagine. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh. The weapons of my warfare are not carnal. But they are made mighty through God. These weapons are used to pull down strong holds. These weapons are used to cast down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God. These weapons are used to bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

So as I prepare each day I am mindful to put on the whole armor of God. I must do this so that when the day of evil comes, I may be able to stand my ground. And having done everything I can, to stand.

Why me? Because many are called, but the chosen are few. So I will be on hiatus for a little while.

The Price is Right

There is a name for people who are not hardcore gamers, but still enjoy playing a game here and there. The name for these people are casual gamers. I am one of those types of people. I enjoy playing a game every now and then, but nothing that really is going to take up a lot of time from school, work, family life or my Christian walk. I am very selective about what I play not just around the kids, but even when the kids are not watching.

I have a Nintendo Wii and a PC that are fun to play games on. And I was surprised when a specific game came out. It is an old one, and as you can see from the title of this blog, you more than likely have seen countless episodes of the game. It is The Price is Right video game.

(screenshots)

The game is available on the following platforms.


Why is this exciting? Well for the PC version I came across the following statement that made me say, in an audible voice, "That's pretty cool !"

The Price is Right has fairly high system requirements. To ensure it will run on your computer, please take advantage of the free 60 minute trial before purchasing.

So find out more about the game at the following websites and decide if you want to give it a try!
Main website
IGN Entertainment Games Review
Gamespot Games Review

iWin is just one site that has the 60 minute trial. If you look around, you may find others. Or just click here and not look anywhere else at all. It is up to you.

That's my J-A-M !!

No matter where you are, in the supermarket, mall or even Best Buy. When your jam comes on the radio, you just gotta do your dance and rep for your hood.

Just try, try, try not to get tooo carried away in the dance off!

Introducing Amazon Video On Demand

I received an email from Amazon.com... nothing new there. They love me so much that they send me emails very frequently.

However, in this email, the top line was:

"You can now choose from thousands of movies and commercial-free
TV shows to watch from your PC or Mac, no downloading required."

Well, after having found legally free Microsoft Software earlier in the day, I was all up for another freebie.

I had to check it out. The selection of FREE TV shows was very, very limited. In fact, it was just a cover up for their Video On Demand Pay To View TV & Movies.

The banner does look cool, however. So I may check it out at work. If it works there, then I may be interested. If not... oh well. I will still be on the look out for more legally free stuffs.

OOpps!! I almost forgot to give you the link to try it out. So, Click here to check out the limited FREE section of TV shows.

Be prepared to update your flash to Version 9, if you haven't already done so.

Office Accounting Express - F-R-E-E Software !!

Do you like free software?
How about legally free software?
How about legally free Microsoft software?

Well, here's a product I am about to try out. It is Microsoft Office Accounting Express 2008. The professional version costs money, but this Express version is FREE !

How cool is that?! Way cool!

Here's what you get with the software. This information is taken directly from the product website. You can also go here to begin your download. No, I am not being paid by Microsoft to hype this product. I just like sharing FREE LEGAL Software with all my friends, family and blog visitors.

The following information taken directly from the Microsoft website.

Microsoft® Office Accounting Express is an easy to use accounting package that works with other Office applications you already know.

• Save time on everyday tasks

  • Get started in minutes with a step by step interview wizard
  • Create invoices, track time and expenses and bank online
  • Enter data once and share it seamlessly with other Microsoft Office system programs
  • Manage payroll and accept credit cards with affordable add-on services that save you time and money

• Get a complete view of your business

  • See customer, vendor, employee and financial data in one place
  • Get business insights with customizable reports
  • Easily share your books with your accountant through Office Live

• Grow your business online

  • List items on eBay, manage sales and download transactions
  • Email invoices and get paid faster with PayPal
  • Process credit card payments directly in Office Accounting

With all of this available, how come you haven't already downloaded the program yet? Here's the link to download.

Not convinced? Check out this medium-length video to really get the scoop and see how it may benefit you!


Online Videos by Veoh.com

Christian the Lion

Two friends living in London in 1969 bought a 35-pound lion cub, who they named Christian, and raised him in a flat under the furniture store where they worked. But after a year, he had grown to 185 pounds and had become very expensive to feed. The men met wild life naturalist George Adamson, who helped them reintroduce Christian to his natural habitat in Kenya.

Here is the video on YouTube. It is a very heartfelt, telling story of true friendship... even in the animal kingdom. Here is a link to the article on Wikipedia - Christian the Lion

And something certainly worth blogging on.

FIREPROOF - The Movie

Only 14 Days until you can say "I Do" to Fireproof.

Fireproof - the Movie is on Blogspot with their own Blog. It will be in theaters 26 September 2008.

For those who didn't know, Fireproof looks to be an awesome movie. Check out the following links for trailers and more info:

Apple.Com - Movie Trailers - Fireproof

IMDB.Com - Fireproof (2008)

ChristianAnswers.Net - Fireproof

Hollywood Jesus.Com - Fireproof

This is certainly a must see movie of the year. After watching the trailer, how can anyone say differently??

A Blast From the Past

I remember not long ago when my oldest daughter was learning the alphabet song. Only to be upstaged by her younger sister. Anyone else remember those days?

Put Your Car Keys Beside Your Bed At Night

I had never really heard of this before, but when you really stop to think about it, it does make sense.

The advice to have a set of car keys by your bed at night is a wonderful idea.

The advice circulating in blogs and other websites goes like this.

If you hear a noise outside your home or someone trying to get in your house, just press the panic button for your car. The alarm will be set off, and the horn will continue to sound until either you turn it off or the car battery dies.

It's a security alarm system that you probably already have and requires no installation. Test it. It will go off from most everywhere inside your house and will keep honking until your battery runs down or until you reset it with the button on the remote. It works if you park in your driveway or garage. If your car alarm goes off when someone is trying to break in your house, odds are the burglar/rapist won't stick around... after a few seconds all the neighbors will be looking out their windows to see who is out there and sure enough the criminal won't want that.

---

A few disclaimers

• If you live in an apartment this will probably not work for you.
• If you don't have an alarm/panic mode for your car, this will certainly not work for you.
• This assumes you have neighbors who really look out the windows when they hear car alarms going off. Actually, I don't think anyone even looks around any more when the sound of a car alarm goes off.

Google Chrome Update

I tried out the program. I kicked the tires. I peeked under the hood.

 

And then…

 

I went back to Firefox.

Drink NOS?

Can you really drink NOS? Yes you can! I am not talking about the product known as Nitrous Oxide Systems, a manufacturer of Nitrous oxide systems, a gas used as an automobile fuel oxidizer for high-performance automobiles.

Rather I am talking about an energy drink (soft drink) that can be found at Drink Nos.com.

The bottle that I guzzled last night really did not get me super wired or hyper, but it did keep me from falling asleep on the night shift.

Was it as exciting as as getting some relaxation from a yogurt? Maybe not. But it did taste like real fruit punch.

Installed Google Chrome

I installed Google Chrome Browser today. Remember when I mentioned it in this post on my blog?

Well, I will let everyone know my findings after the weekend testing. If you are interested in trying it out for yourself, kick the tires around, see if you like it, you can download it from their website: www.google.com/chrome

The Choice Was Not Hard (T-Shirt Woot)

A little while ago, my sister posted a picture of the then current T-Shirt Woot item. The title of her blog and the T-Shirt offer were New Kid in Town.

In the spirit of that post, which can be found on her Salt and Light blog, I too have found a picture I have truly fallen in love with.

Yes, that is about it. Just a quick little note to share this with everyone!

Joy is a Sling?

Most recently I began to wonder, question, ponder, inquire, seek the answer to the query What is joy?

Well if you talk to enough in your daily walk of life and ask this question, one plausible answer you will get is,

"You will know it when you see it"

I was in a pharmacy yesterday, and based on these pictures of products I saw, I think I know what joy looks like. And I even know how you can get joy. You can buy it. It is called a sling.

Now that you've probably stopped laughing, I will take it a little too deep. The ladies of course are just ad figures for a product. But when you really think about it, a sling is joy.

• a support in your time of need
• helps you when you cannot help yourself
• is not designed to be permanent
• when you are well on your way to your healing, it can be removed
• is not free, it will cost you something
• comes when you need it the most, after you've probably been hurt
• will probably be forgotten after the painful season in your life is over
• will be there for you in the future should the need arise
  

Google Chrome

Have you heard about a new browser by Google? I certainly thought my ear was to the ground on things of this nature. But I admit I was caught completely unawares!

I know that Firefox (my most favorite web browser) was on version 3.01 with a 3.02 slated to come out very soon. But I had not known, until today, that Google was making a launch into their own browser. The following text is taken from an article on rlslog, with my highlights in RED.

Google managed to steal the march on the IT news press by announcing its forthcoming new browser whilst the US was busy celebrating Labour Day. As the rest of the world was scratching around for news because the US was shut, Google could be guaranteed to get lots of attention worldwide for its announcement. The free browser, called Chrome, is supposed to be available for downloading today in more than 100 countries for computers running on Windows. Versions for OSX and Linux are still being worked on.

Chrome has more tools for Web surfers to cloak their online preferences, creating a shield that could make it more difficult for Google and other marketing networks to figure out which ads are most likely to appeal to which individuals. Having had a look at it there is not much difference between Chrome and all the other browsers out there and time will tell where its security holes are. Quite where this will leave Firefox – which ranks as the second most popular browser, and which has been dependent on Google support – is anyone's guess. Google recently extended its advertising alliance with Firefox through 2011.

I really wonder how well this browser by Google will protect you from Google? A comic book style explanation of the browser is available online through Google if you are interested in learning more.

More blog plz

I have been remiss these past few days in making posts. I have been away on vacation. I went down to San Diego for a working group meeting.

There's been so much going on the past few days I cannot begin to start at the beginning. So, before I begin talking about Sara Palin and Barack Obama, I will share with everyone a few pictures from my trip to San Diego.

Beautiful scenery taken with my 3.0 megapixel camera phone.

A little night life action. This band did a tribute to Parliament that was not half bad at all. They actually performed the song Maggot Brain (after receiving a $50 tip from a drunk acquaintance of mine) and did a really good job. This song has incredible guitar sections that you would not believe. Here's a link to Maggot Brain @ YouTube to view it there. Not this group performing the song, just the original song being performed.

That's My Car!!!

Have you ever played the game "That's My Car"? Well, here are the rules,

Take turns. Choose one of the next 5 vehicles that you pass (or that pass you) to be "your car" as if it were your very own. All players mutually decide if you are a "winner" or a "loser" based on how nice a car you "own" compared to the other players current cars.

From what I saw in San Diego, I think I was the winner of this game.

Praise and Thanksgiving

Ok, I admit this is filler. I wanted to post something. But I really don't have much to go along with what I want to say.

But then again, the word of the Lord is more powerful than any two edged sword. It can stand all by itself. So without much further to say, introducing to some and presenting to others... Psalms 100:4.

NIV
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.

AMP
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and a thank offering and into His courts with praise! Be thankful and say so to Him, bless and affectionately praise His name!

KJV
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

Creative Marketing

While watching today's olympics, I was not excited about anything I saw. That is until I saw a commercial for Round Table Pizza.
The commerical is a good play on words, comparing their slogan "More for Less" to the "Les", the name of the guy depicted in the commercial.

At first I didn't understand the commercial when I saw it. But at second, when the tag line was spoken, not only did it make sense, it was inspirational. I had to blog on it. But it took me a little bit of hunting through Google and Youtube to find what I was looking for.

So, here is the commercial found on Youtube.

Enjoy!

Way to go Woot!

The 2008 edition of Inc Magazine's annual list of fastest growing companies in America.

I recently received an email that Woot! has garnered some really nice kudos.

In part the email says that Woot.com :

• Woot was acknowledged as the #1 fastest-growing retailer in the United States
• The fastest-growing North Texas-based company
• 25th fastest-growing company in the nation

The rest of this entry can be found at Woot Named Fastest-Growing Retailer In The Inc. 5000 on the Woot website.

Congratulations Woot!

Now get rid of the Smart Post method of shipping, I bed of you.

A belated tribute

(click photo to enlarge)

I am really going to miss the late, great Bernie Mac. The Mac Man left a rich legacy. So many facets of my life will be forever changed because of the man he was.

I recently came across a video of DL Hughley speaking at Bernie Mac's memorial service. It was originally taken from the SmokingSection website. The video is hosted at Youtube.

Please enjoy this clip while I have a few moments of deep, contemplative time to remember the late, great Bernie Mac. May you rest in peace Mac Man.

How Fast is Fast?

(image courtesy of http://www.sportsnet.ca)
(click all photos to enlarge)

There are two other countries that I enjoy cheering for in this 2008 Olympics. I am pulling for

BRAZIL and
JAMAICA

Not because I have ever been to those countries. Not even because of the similar colors in their flags or that they are dark skinned people like myself (but it does weigh heavy in my mind).

But rather, I believe in the sportsmanship that the country's program sponsors and supports. Yesterday I was privileged to watch an awe inspiring event unfold before my very eyes, and it was beautiful.

The headlines read:

Jamaica sweeps women's 100m

I believe the true star of the hour last night was 21 year old Shelly-Ann Fraser. She was the winner of the women's 100m dash last night (Sunday). Her teammates Sherone Simpson and Kerron Stewart came in for the silver and the bronze in a "dead heat tie" according to the commentary on NBCOlympics.

A question boggled my mind. It rattled around in my mind so fiercely that I could not sleep until I found out. I just had to know. Shelly-Ann was clocked in 10.78 seconds in the 100m. How fast is this in miles per hour?

Well, I am no scholar of the metric system thing thanks to the education I received (or did not receive) at schools such as Pine Forest Sr. High. So I simply consulted the oracle, or rather the internet.

The website Machine Head Software has a Speed Distance Time Calculator that made the task of converting her numbers so easy. Unfortunately I had to round her 10.78 seconds up a little bit to the 10.8 mark, but in this instance it is surely forgiveable.

And the results from the calculation is that Shelly-Ann ran at an amazing, alarming, exciting speed of 20.7 miles per hour!

Here's proof of the calculations.