A Strange Brew

Some enterprising YouTuber replaced the audio for this Britney video with a track by a scary Canadian transvestite. Carol Pope was the lead singer for Rough Trade back in the 80s before Britney was born. She is basically the exact opposite of Britney. Parts of this video work very well. Other parts don't. WARNING: THERE IS EXCESSIVE POTTY MOUTH IN THIS SONG

Merry Christmas

This video is a little over one year old. The song itself was released in 2000. I found the Wikipedia article to be one of the most poorly written fluff pieces that I have ever seen on Wikipedia. Nobody cares enough about the subject to improve the article and the person who nominated it for deletion didn't care enough about it to make a compelling argument. I think I might write a Google Knowl about this important song.

The People that You Meet in Church

I have attended a range of different Christian churches. I have met just about every kind of person in these places. I know people who are scared to set foot in a church for fear that the walls with fall down around them because of some perceived evil deed. I don't think any well attended church suffers from an evil deficiency. The walls are usually quite well built.

Showing up is Important

Not showing up for scheduled appointments is one the signs that a person may have a drug problem. Britney Spears has failed to show up for legal depositions and also drug tests. Not showing up for your drug test is a very good sign that a person may have a drug problem. Britney called in sick for her recent deposition. In her defense, is is the cold and flu season.

Shoplifting is Bad

There is a social cost to the shoplifter who gets caught. People who live in small towns know this better than city folks. In a small town, all the shopkeepers will be watching you and you will know it. I once lived in a small community. I was in my uncle's yard during his big yard sale and I noticed some kids that I knew had been shoplifting. I discretely let my uncle know about it and he just followed them around until they left.

Trusted Tours and Attractions: Key West

One of the places that I would like to visit is Key West, Florida. My older Brother went on a road trip down to Florida twenty years ago. Judging from the pictures that he took, a good time was had by all.

Trusted Tours and Attractions are a great resource for vacation planning and booking. They have lots of special guided tours available, but we are more of the self guided kind of people. If you want to find out what the site has to offer in the way of discounted tours, check out the newsletter. We would definitely go to the Aquarium in Key West. This aquarium was built in the 30's. Today it is carrying out important turtle conservation efforts. The tourist trade on the island of key West actually had a sad beginning, the city handed over control to the federal government due to complete financial collapse during the depression. Today the place is very much recovered.

It is the southernmost city in the entire country. this makes it the perfect winter destination whether you are going for the sun, for the natural beauty, for the history. Oh, I almost forgot the nightlife. They know how to PARTY in Florida.

Key West is closer to Havana than it is to Miami. Prior to 1959 there were regular ferry crossings to Havana. Wouldn't it be an even more amazing and rich city if one day political changes brought an end to the embargo and lead to normalized relations between these neighboring cities?

Turn to Important Issues

The cry to leave Britney alone was not heeded. It wasn't sincere. That was obvious to most people. I think that we are living in very interesting times, and frankly, Britney Spears is not that interesting. I am going to devote the next year of blogging to important issues. I really am. What was the deal with that plane that was flying over the White House?

I will, of course, also blog about shoes and fashion.

DecorativePools.com

This website from people at the pool builders league city texas has something that you just have to go check out. They have an application that lets you custom design your dream swimming pool. I pretended that I was designing a pool layout for a celebrity, so I added more bushes on one side for extra privacy.

I feel so lucky to live in a place with a pool. My daughters were in the pool almost everyday this past summer. We had a rule that they couldn't go out until after 4:30. This was to reduce UV exposure. Our pool is small and rectangular, but it was full of refreshingly cool water all summer.

Britney Rumored to be Adopting

I do not have much faith in this particular rumor. My source announced the death of Fidel Castro prematurely this year, and he can't seemed to make up his mind with regard to hair color. The basic rumor is that Britney is in the process of adopting a pair of orphaned Chinese twins from an agency. I think I hinted at the fact that a reputable drug rehab gave her an easy 28 days without any real pressure to change because they liked the publicity. I would not put it past a Chinese adoption agency to compromise their lofty principles to get some mega publicity. I don't know if any authorities in the US have to OK the adoption.

St. Augustine Artwalk

Here is a bit of mood music for you to listen to while you read about the St. Augustine Artwalk. This was recorded during last year's walk. Entrance to the art venues is free. You can walk around downtown drinking in the ambience and pop into the various galleries to view some eclectic works of art.

The First Friday Weekend Art Walk includes complimentary shuttle service to most of the venues, so the walking part is optional. An evening stroll in this historic city is very pleasurable but you may want to use the shuttle to get back to the free parking at the end of your jaunt.

I would spend a lot of time at the first stop on this walk. Rembrandtz has some excellent hand blown glass items on display. The artwork of Trip Harrison is very enticing as well. His pieces really capture the essence of rural Florida. He uses very natural and subdued colors. Ray Brilli takes the same subject matter and treats it in an entirely different way. He uses surreal and vibrant colors that tell a simple story in a very loud and strong voice. He comes from New York and I suspect that besides falling in love with the city of St. Augustine, he has also fallen in love with the light that brings Florida to his eyes.

Why Are They Calling Britey's BF a Waiter?

It is cliche to say that there are no waiters in LA. If you ask any one of them, they will tell you that they are an actor or a singer or a screenwriter.

The gossip sites are talking about a new 'secret' boyfriend for Britney Spears. They try to make it interesting by saying that he is a waiter. I Googled him. Michael Marchand is an actor. He has a page on IMDB. He has a role in the very lame sounding movie Knuckle Draggers that is in production.

Here is a buttload of pictures of the dude. There are several Michael Marchands on the Internet. I apologize to this one if he is not the rumored boyfriend. If he is the right guy, but the rumor is wrong, I apologize for that too.

Reading Tutors

Score Learning centers have Reading Tutors that can help younger children get started or help older children catch up. The point at which children take that leap and start reading is not fully understood by educators and psychologists. Nevertheless there are a number of things that tutors can do to encourage that leap forward. My kids actually took that leap in the summer without any help. We bought some high interest/low vocabulary Pokemon books for them and one day they just started reading. There was a lot of effort from parents and teachers to lay the groundwork for that process. If your kids are falling behind, intensive, focused tutoring using a proven method might be what they need.

The Dashboard Fight

Most of the uploaded versions of Do Something are illegal copyright infringement. Some of them also feature a few frames that bag maker LOUIS VUITTON sued to have taken out. It seems the dashboard of the terrorist supporting Hummer that Britney was 'driving' is crafted from counterfeit material that mimics a famous LOUIS VUITTON pattern.

Britney is not in trouble over this, but the producers got dinged for some cash and had to change the video. I think it is immoral and stupid that they have a Hummer in the video. Here is another video with a hummer...

Who's Gonna Drive ?

Britney cannot drive with her kids in the car because of a court order. I hope she hires a professional driver. Maybe Ric Ocasek is looking for work.

Ric met his present wife when the Cars were filming this video back in the 80's. He was married to his 2nd wife at the time.

Hookup With A Free Personal Ad

I am seeing lots of attractive people with free personals profiles on the website that I joined yesterday. The site is called DateHookup.com

It's been a while since FREE made its triumphant return to the World of online dating and what separates one free site from is mostly the members. This is a general site that is easy to join and international in scope. There are a LOT of North American members. You can find a few attractive guys or girls from just about every small town and when you look in the category for a big city like NYC or LA the options are amazing.

The Eagles Have the #1 Album???

So, these guys are like 60 years old and they have been largely irrelevant for about 30 years. Nevertheless, they have the #1 album in the USA. Naming your band after the official bird of a country must guarantee a certain amount of affection forever, I guess. I used to live in a community that had a large winter population of eagles. They came for the poultry offal. They are scavengers. American tourists would come up to Canada to watch them. They are pretty good looking, I guess. Here is a webcam that shows Live Eagles.

LAP-BAND Surgery

The LAP-BAND System is an adjustable and reversible weight-loss surgery. It is the only device of this kind available in the United States today. Many of us are familiar with the principle. The band it placed around the stomach of a patient and then tightened in such a way as to create what is basically a mini stomach above the band. The result is that post operative patients feel physically full after eating only a small volume of food. Dangerously obese individuals have managed to lose much of their excess weight through this procedure.

Richard Collier is an accomplished Lap Band Surgeon who operates a conroe lap band clinic in Texas. Some people opt to save money by having this procedure done in Mexico but end up finding themselves heading back for adjustments and sometimes even reversals at a significant expense.

Album Review: Blackout

I was going to read the LA Times review of Britney's new album and use it to support my own observations. I got distracted by a banner ad about a new Cohen Brothers movie. It looks like it is REALLY good. Tommy Lee Jones has a major role and Woody Harrelson is in the movie as well. He is a bad guy, but he wears a white cowboy hat. That is so confusing.

Find the Best Payday Loans

A payday loan fee calculator that provides you with multiple quotes on payday loans is available at Payday Loan Quotes.

Payday loans are a quick and easy way to get needed cash between pay days without having the hassle of a credit check. They are small short-term loans that can be for anywhere between $100 and $1,500. The money can come to you as a direct deposit and then it is repaid through your checking account an agreed schedule. Payday loans can be a lifesaver in some situations, like when you run out of furnace oil in the middle of the winter.

Money Comes and Goes

Britney Spears' monthly spending is a matter of public record now. I have been advised that most people fudge these estimates quite a bit, but the figures seem to support the tabloid claims that she doesn't save any of her huge monthly income. It is a toss up as to what I find more shameful, the fact that she is not investing in the future of her children, or the fact that she gives so little to charity. I guess I can understand both. If her kids get in a financial bind when they are older, they can just sell their stories. And making regular payments to charity does not get you as much good will as doing one charity themed publicity stunt every other year.

How the hell can someone spend $800,000 a month? I am trying to not be too mean in this blog, but I am tempted to make a pie chart showing where I think the $112,000 on entertainment, gifts and holidays is going.

Bad Credit Loans: Make a Comeback

Circumstances result in good people getting bad credit. For many of these people bad credit loans are not only a way to get funds for important expenses, they are also a way to rebuild credit. BadCreditOffers allows you to make side by side comparisons of bad credit offers from a number of different lenders.

Many of these offers will include some kind of non-repayment insurance, which will increase the overall cost of borrowing. Comparing the actual cost of borrowing is the best way to decide which one is the best.

Britney's Early Cry For Help

The lines in this song from the turn of the century clearly delve into the subject of depression. There is a part where Britney's semi-autobiographical character receives what appears to be an Oscar. Given her lack luster dabbling in acting, that makes her seem a bit delusional. I don't remember any nominations for Crossroads, but it was a long time ago. Reprising a Ralph Macchio role was quite a challenge.

Create Polls Easily

Hey, check out easy-poll.com - create your own poll and find out what your readers think. I have tried a few different poll hosting sites in the past and this one has them all beat. I like the variety of different graphical presentations that you can choose from. You can even go with minimalist text only.

I was glad that they create polls that look good on black sites. This site is black because it is supposed to save energy. This service is free, but you have to include a link to a third party site. This is how Easy-Poll finances their service, which builds and hosts polls and data for you for free.

Tracks on Britney's MySpace

If you want a legal source for some new Britney Spears tunes, go check out her MySpace page. There are four full songs. Gimmie More has been played over 4 million times. This is more plays that there were for the other three tracks combined. I think the "It's Britney, Bitch!" intro has resulted in many visitors playing the start of the track over and over.

There is a popular unauthorized remix doing the rounds that features that line repeated a buttload of times.

Merchandising Britney

I go to check BritneySpears.com regularly. There have been a COUPLE OF CHANGES. The crazy letter 'apologizing' for the umbrella car bashing is gone and in it's place there is an ad for the Blackout album. I went to the store and it looks very different. Dell Furano is the CEO of Signature Networks. This is a huge company that handle things like KISS merchandise. I noticed that there is a Britney shirt that is black with white sleeves. I think she should go all out with merchandising...comic books...condoms...whoopie cushions... EVERYTHING. Gene Simmons may not have sold a Kiss Coffin yet, maybe Britney could market coffins as well.

Shared Parenting is Best

My title sums up the view of many people in the fields of law and child psychology. In a family where a mother and father live together with they children, a child has equal access to both parents. Ideally, a child should be provided with the same in the event of a breakup. Ideal situations are not that common. Animosity between parents, drug abuse, anger management, long distance moves and any number of other things can be an impediment to maintaining an ideal situation for children.

Young parents need to be made aware of the potential cost to their child's psychological well being. That might encourage them to take the necessary steps to appraoch that ideal.

Uptown Saturday Night in St. Augustine

La Notte Bianca is a tradition in Europe. It is a late night of social and cultural activity. The retail sector participates in some cities.

St. Augustine, Florida is the oldest continuously occupied European-style City in America. On October 27th and again on November 24th residents and visitors there will get to experience an event called Uptown Saturday Night. There will be festive live music in the streets and there will be incredible opportunities to shop for antiques. St. Augustine shopping is a great experience. The antique sector of this town is famous, there is even a bustling trade in real Spanish treasure. This city is home to a Spanish fort that was an active military installation under 5 different flags over the period of 205 years. It stands today as a monument.

Ripley's Museum calls this city home. Uptown Saturday Night will take place on several streets including the oldest street in America, Aviles Street. During Uptown Saturday Night, retailers will play host with wine and refreshments. You will get the opportunity to meet artists and authors. I should mention that while La Notte Bianca is a tradition that goes late into the night, Uptown Saturday Nights end at 9pm.

I have been a willing participant in 'antiquing' in the past. The 4 hours between 5pm and 8pm should be more than enough to satisfy most people. If you are l ike me and you begrudging go antiquing with your partner, remember, they will be serving wine.

Mouth Covering Devalues Paprazzi Photos

Britney Spears has lately been covering her mouth with her hand when the evil throng descends upon her. This is not because she has a cold that she doesn't want the paparazzi to catch. It is because it drives down the price of photographs.

I honestly think the best thing for everyone would be for Kevin and Britney to both agree to move to another state. Kevin has no career and Britney is independently. The could live somewhere that is sparsely populated for several years for the sake of the children's privacy. Many celebrities do this.

Will Smith's family lives on Star Island in Florida.

Ashton and Demi Kutcher live in Hailey, Idaho.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie spend part of their time living in New Orleans. Pitt had this to say to People:

If we're on the front deck, people go by and say, 'Hi.' Then they go on their way, very friendly.

If the paparazzi are negatively impacting your life, you can easily avoid them.

Britney Spears Not Submitting to Drug Tests

Not Submitting to Drug Tests is the most likely reason why Britney Spears has had some parental privileges removed after a closed door session called by Kevin's lawyer.

I think it is quite likely that Britney has obtained some test kits that she can use to test before the random tests. Since the court ordered tests are random, she has to take the pre-test tests a lot just to be on the safe side. I think it is quite possible that she simply ran out of pee. Life is just not fair sometimes.

Makeup Artist School

Did you know that you can get professional distance education from a makeup artist school called Elitepro?

Their site is really cool and they have three courses to choose from... Stylist, Nails, and Makeup

If you really excel at one of these professions, you could find yourself working for a celebrity one day. I here that there is a high turnover rate with some pop stars.

The at home coursework is based on courses that are taught at a prestigious school in Spain in Madrid and Barcelona.

Britney's Hair Looks Alright

The bad news... there are paparazzi pics of Britney looking a bit overdone while leaving a tanning salon. Tanning can be addictive and it speeds up the aging process.

The good news... Britney was sporting what appeared to be just her plain old hair and it has grown back quite nicely. Hormones that have may still be elevated post partum might make her hair grow faster. She could be taking a hormone replacement therapy for postpartum depression as well. I think she should stick with whatever strategies are reducing the crazy and also stick with short and sassy hair.

Britney Spears Has Pinkeye

When Britney Spears walked in for booking on her traffic related charges she wore big sunglasses. AP reports that her excuse was pinkeye. Also called conjunctivitis, this condition can be caused by allergens, bacterial infection or viral infection. I had this at least once when I was a kid. It is nasty.

Review of Britney Spears Music Video

The Gimme More video is a better video than I could make with what I have on hand in my house right now.

The stripper pole was a great idea. Those big, chrome handrails in handicap bathroom stalls are also very useful. The video is available on YouTube today, I am not sure why nobody from the record company is insisting that it be removed. Wait....maybe they realize that it is so bad that MTV is only going to play it a few times because it is newsworthy, but not put it into rotation because it is so bad.

Save on Computers this Christmas

If you are planning on buying a computer for someone this Christmas be sure to have a look at CouponChief.com. I though it was really interesting that Dell and HP each have a featured offer on the online coupon site and that the savings are almost identical. This means that you need to do some homework do decide which company offers the best product. You should also look at the details of the offer. I am not too keen on mail in rebates. Instant savings are always better, especially when you are on a budget.

The HP coupon is for 30% off on a $999 computer.

The Dell coupon is $350 off any desktop computer over $999.

If you are buying a computer for a child, you might want to be up front about your intentions and have a discussion about whether a desktop or a notebook will best meet their needs. Gamers will probably want a desktop PC. If you have a child that wants a MAC, tell him that there is no Santa Claus.

Commitment

Commitment should be the name of Britney Spears new album. It should also be the name of the proceeding that her parents enter into in order to save Britney from the fate of too many celebrities. I think Britney is going through a mental process that is more common in minors and in those cases people are in a position to make important decisions on their behalf to prevent them from harming themselves or others. If a judge can be convinced that Britney is not capable of making sound decisions for herself, that she is not sane, then people can begin making decisions for her. I think this might be what she wants.

Celebrity Psychic Tana Hoy

I am a skeptic at heart, but I cannot objectively discount the possibility that people can have Psychic powers.

I think that anyone who appears to excel at the practice of making psychic predictions tends to have a special set of skills in addition to what may or may not be their special gift. Someone like Tana Hoy has an understanding of human nature and an incredible ability to communicate. The entertainment value of his predictions, some of which involve celebrities, makes them more acceptable to our minds.

TanaHoy.com has loads of video and audio content including some predictions that Tana was making for people on the streets of LA.

If he has any dire predictions about Britney Spears, I hope she hears about them and strives to prove him wrong. Sadly, celebrities often surprise us with their predictability.

Last Week's Poll

Last weeks poll results are unanimous. People do not want me to leave Britney alone.

I am going to have to disappoint the people who are crying out for more though. I have decided to stick to the occasional bit of social commentary on Britney's plight without actually sinking to the level of the tabloids...or coming up to the level of the tabloids, depending on your perspective.

This whole driving without a valid license has me wondering once again why all these wealthy celebrities even drive. I drive because I have no choice. I actually managed to live without a car of my own for about a year recently. That was really great in some ways, but it comes down to time management for me. I have responsibilities that require having my own transportation. Many of these celebrities would be much better off availing themselves of a professional driver. I bet big stars could get their record company or movie studio to pay for a car and driver.

If I Had a Good Camera...

Cameras can certainly be used in lots of positive ways. If you have babies, I recommend that you take as many pictures of them as possible. They are only babies once. Another great reason to have a digital camera handy at all times is that, at any given moment, there is a remote chance that you will see a cat in a very humorous pose. You want to be able to capture that moment for posterity and also add a ridiculous caption and post it on the internet.

Nikon cameras like the good quality SLR version that my friend brings to work everyday have a lot of advantages over my little Kodak point and shoot. High quality optical zoom lenses allow you to get a close-up photo of distant objects. There was a fantastic looking yacht near the beach the other day and I almost felt like chasing it so I could get a picture worth showing off. As it was my point and shoot provides photographic evidence, but not a photo worth publishing. My friend was at our house when some bee eaters were flying around and he managed to get a few great photos of them. I emailed the photos to my birdwatching aunt. I may have already shown my favorite picture on this blog before, but here it is again :)

Pap Test

This blog is a 'Former' Britney Spears News and Gossip Blog. I just am not feeling it anymore. One of the first changes that I made on the journey from what this blog was to what this blog is was to adopt a policy against Paparazzi photographs. Take a look back through the archives if you want. I don't exactly know when I last used a picture of Britney other than publicity pictures.

To be honest, I think that the relationship between celebrities is more symbiotic than parasitic. The only way that things will ever change is if fans and other consumers were to stop buying tabloids and viewing sites like Perez Hilton. The demand for Paparazzi pictures drives up their price and then the photographers start behaving badly. If they had very little value, people like Britney would have to hire a photographer to follow her around.

Seniors Need Luvin' Too

I think that many senior singles must feel more comfortable looking for soul mates in an environment that caters specifically to them. More to the point, I think senior dating scene is less fraught for seniors whose previous life partner may have left them for a younger person. It's a cliché because it is true.

DatingForSeniors.com is one of a new generation of niche personals and it is thriving. I think I should be a bit more positive and comment on the fact that there are a lot of sweet decent people on the site who are only single because the outlived their first love. These people also know how to write a good profile.

Joining DatingForSeniors.com is fast free and easy.

Retro Britney Game

The premise for this video game reminds me a lot of what Kevin Federline has done with his life. I am not joking. I wonder if he ever played this game. Actually I wonder if anybody ever played this game. In spite of the assertion that it is the coolest game ever invented, I don't think it can be considered one of Britney's hits. If you can't read the text in the screen cap, you can check out the archived website circa 2002.

Bikers Dating Bikers

BikerPlanet.com is a biker dating site that gives lonely riders the chance to type all those great biker terms and tweak them so they are double entendres.

Live to ride, ride like the wind, these are the headlines you use in biker personals.

I think the biker lifestyle is another subculture that really does need its own personals site and this one fits the bill. There are, of course some wannabes. But in this culture, pretty 18 year olds that want to hook up with a biker are quite readily accepted.

The site works the way that a free personals website should. You can send 'flirts' to members that you want to start something with. You can save profiles as favorites. As a past user of personals sites I want to suggest that you only send messages to people that you are serious about. You need to put in the effort to speak to what they want and be honest about who you are and what you want.

Retro Britney Business

I decided to take a look at the archives of Britney's official site today. The oldest version is pictured here. I find it weird that she is asking her fans about their household income. Does anybody know if the real Britney was actually in control of this domain back in 1999?

Maybe this was a typical squeeze page back in 1999. I wasn't very net savvy back then.

Tattoo You

As far as niche personals sites go, TattooLovers.com is pretty nichey. Apparently nichey is not a word.

When Johnny Depp was dating Winona Ryder, he got a tattoo that said Winona forever. Their relationship didn't last and he had the tat altered to say Wino Forever. I think they use that makeup that conceals tattoos when he takes his pirate shirt off. I don't know, I don't watch kid movies.

I guess a tattoo singles site makes a lot of sense. Not only is it going to be filled with people who are accepting of body art, it is probably going to involve a lot of people who are eager to show of ALL of their tattoos. I haven't joined and I noticed that a lot of the profile photos are for members only. I suspect that these photos are pretty interesting.

The site has all the bells and whistles that you expect from the latest generation of free online personals and it is filled to the gills with tattooed ladies and men.

So go get your tattoo dating on!

Human Interest

I am just throwing this poll up to try to engage readers. I will operate my blog according to my own interest and my own conscience regardless of the outcome.

It looks like the last time I directly mentioned Britney was Aug 16th. I would be quite happy if she magically became a happy productive function person who stayed out of the spotlight. I think very few people actually expect that to happen.

Thanks for Making Me a Fighter...

I don't know if that's the song that plays in the clay heads of the Terracotta Warriors that are visiting London from China, but I think it would be appropriate. They might not like Christina's musical styling given the fact that they are really old. Maybe Bob Seger's Like a Rock would be more to their liking.

I think it would be much better to go visit the impressive troop of Terracotta Warriors that were left behind in China rather than these emissaries in England. The tickets to view the touring warriors are expensive and very hard to find.

Viewing this massive army of life-size statues effects different people in different ways. Seeing them in real life is much more impressive than seeing them on TV or in a movie. They are going to be featured on an upcoming sequel to The Mummy.

What is the Point?

This blog has been adrift lately. I decided to just let a certain person live, to leave her alone as it were. I would like to add that I did that BEFORE the famous YouTube video was uploaded.

I guess the difficulty I ran into is the age old adage of "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all."

I admit that I said things that weren't nice in the past. In my defense all I can say is that I thought they were really funny. It became not funny quite a while ago.

If anyone is reading this and they feel like giving me some direction with this blog, I would greatly appreciate it. Maybe we could get something going where the comments were the real content. I have seen that on other blogs.

Weightloss Options from Online Pharmacies

If you have a personal email account and you occasionally look in your junk mail folder, you know that weight loss drugs like Phentermine and Acomplia are being peddled online by people who are at the very least guilty of rude marketing tactics.

You have to laugh at all the hard sell pitches that you get for drugs to help you lose weight, stop losing hair and various other drugs. I have often wondered how frustrating it must be for people who want or need these products. Well, it seems that people are recognizing a need for a sort of consumer watchdog for this market. websites with Blacklists and Whitelists should be the first place you go if you are considering getting drugs from an Online Pharmacy. CompareOP.com focuses on sites that sell weight loss pills. Basically they test the eStores out and grade them as pass or fail, thus saving consumers money and aggravation.

Louisiana Needs Voices

The Jena situation is tragic and it might help if some of the State's most celebrated sons and daughters were to go there and add their voices of reason.

I think entertainers might be better equipped to create dialog without increasing tension. I am at a loss in some ways when I try to think about what should be done and what could be done. The root of the problem is that their are people in positions of power and responsibility whose actions are driven by hate and foolishness. I don't know if anyone close to the situation is calling them fools. I am very far from the situation and I think the some of the politicians and civil servants in Jena are fools.

Scubish.com: This Diver is Down

Right at this time, I am staying in an area with excellent opportunities for Scuba Diving. One of our favorite spots is Xlendi. I have seen countless varieties of fish as well as an octopus in Xlendi. The bay is at the end of a narrow gorge and the water is deep and usually very clear. On one side there is a cave where nuns used to bathe in seclusion. There is still a gate part way along the path to this cave where one lady would remain back to thwart any possible intrusions.

Scubish.com is a site that provides SCUBA enthusiasts with a wealth of information about dive sites. It also serves as a social website. You can create an online log of your dives and you can search for dive buddies as well.

The Forum on Scubish is very busy. I think all activities that can't be enjoyed by its enthusiasts as frequently as they might like tends to m get talked about a lot.

Time Travels Forward

Time travels forward. Everything that we have done up until this point is now in the past.

This isn't very profound. I am just writing it because some people don't seem to live their lives with this in mind.

The future does not exist.

The Example That We Set For Our Children

Children who grow up with parents that are addicted to drugs, including alcohol, are at a very high risk of becoming addicts themselves. The reasons for this are both genetic and environmental.

If you are a young parent, please do whatever you have to do to avoid exposing your children to your addictive behavior. If you feel like you can't give up your drug abuse, GIVE UP YOUR CHILDREN.

Spoof Cards from SpoofCard.com

I had a lot of fun making this video to promote www.SpoofCard.com
. Imagine how much fun it would be to make a real prank call. A good natured one to a friend or family member, please.

I once tried to fool the E-list actresses and models that had a phone in show on TomGreen.com. I used a Dr. Phil soundboard. They were mildly entertained, but not fooled in the slightest.

With SpoofCard, you can disguise your phone number and even your voice. You can also have your call recorded for posterity. They even have a free trial that provides enough minutes to find out if prank calling is your 'thing'.

Professionals can use spoof cards so they can call from a private number without giving that number away to clients.

I have a short phone conversation that I had with Ed McMahon on video somewhere on the internet. I asked him if he had ever had to turn down the opportunity to plug a product for ethical reasons. I don't know if he was pausing for emphasis or if he drew a blank. We were interrupted by the 'talk show host' and my call was cut short.

GodTube

I found this while clicking on the Next Blog button. I had never heard of GodTube. I think it's kinda stupid to be insular like this, they should be hyping their message on YouTube. This particular dramatization of spiritual struggle is pretty intense. I was almost in tears through parts of it.

TrustedPlaces.com is Awesome

I like the idea behind Trusted Places. It is a sort of combination of a social site and a recommendation site for restaurants and clubs and many other types of places. The cool thing about this melding is that just like IRL, you are going to trust the recommendation of people who you know more than someone who has just shown up out of the blue.

I wish I had heard about it before I spent a couple days in the London area last month. I was very unadventurous simply because I didn't want to waste my time and money on any places that might not be all they were cracked up to be.

On Trusted Places, you can find out what people like yourself have to say about a london restaurant. Profiles include ratings of how Helpful, Interesting and Cool a member is considered to be. I think TrustedPlaces.com is Helpful, Interesting and Cool !!!

New Blogger Videos

This is a test. Blogger has its very own video uploading function now. It is much simpler than going off site to YouTube. It is also nice to not obsess about how many views you get for a video. I'm sure everyone is going to watch my test over and over again because it is so fascinating.

One tiny complaint about the new video uploading on blogger...it is very, very, very slow. I can continue to write this post while the video is uploading. I might have an entire novel written before this very short video uploads.

Bring It to The Dance With a Splendid Gown

It's never too early to start shopping for your prom dress.

I have never actually witnessed the stress of choosing/buying/making a prom dress first hand. I had already moved out when my younger sister went through it. I didn't have a girlfriend in high school. I invited an acquaintance from the previous year's graduating class to my prom. She already had a dress.

I have two daughters who may introduce me to the expense of ball gowns and/or party dresses at some point years from now.

Splendid-Gowns.com looks like a pretty good eStore with reasonably priced pretty dresses. Something that I really appreciate is the excellent photography used to display the dresses on the site. The image galleries feature large images with good lighting showing the dresses from several angles. This is important when you are ordering a dress online for a momentous event.

Such Sweet Sorrow

I was searching for the original recording of this song by Ben Harper when I found this very well done cover. The song is very open to interpretation. The devil is in the details, but on the surface it is about relying on a source of strength to bring you back from the depths of sorrow.

It is also a very beautiful song. Ben's arrangement is not for beginner guitarists, but you can just use a G and C chord for the verses. The chorus is C/D/G...C/D/Em...C/D/Em...C/D/G

The University of Wales Online

It must be hard for real distance education enterprises to market themselves effectively when there are so many scams on the Internet. The University of Wales Online is a highly regarded institution that offers a free trial. You can audit a real MBA course for 14 days. If you already have your MBA, you should still consider checking out the University of Wales calender in PDF for excellent post graduate courses such as Project Management.

I have a degree in Agriculture, it was very hands on. I'm not sure whether I am a better blogger as the result of my university degree, but I'm sure it hasn't made me any worse.

koyaanisqatsi excerpt

If you have eight minutes to spare, you should watch this. I watched the entire koyaanisqatsi movie when I was taking a university course in ethics in the early 90's. I was just reminded of this because a movie reviewer drew comparisons between this film and the global warming documentary narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio. There is not one word spoken in koyaanisqatsi. The music is by Phillip Glass. The ugly buildings are by some guy who went on to design the ill-fated World Trade Center.

My Six Blade Knife...

The Swiss Army Knife is an iconic gift idea for a boy that has reached the age and the level of responsibility that makes it appropriate. It is also one of the favorite fathers day gift ideas.

The Swiss Army Knife like the one pictured has so many tools that it isn't just for outdoor types, swiss army knives make ideal corporate gift ideas. Even in an IT workplace, there is occasionally a need for a serious tool. You might never need to fillet a fish in your cubicle, but you might want to tighten a bolt on your chair, or cut a diseased branch off your favorite plant.

Swiss army is now a vendor on the internet gift market. InternetGiftMarket.com is a great place to find gift ideas for any occasion.

Juxtaposed Video Friday

Being a Sports Super Star AND a 'Mawdole' must make for some strange days indeed.

Seeing your last name stenciled onto the back of 46% of shirts worn in Europe must be a bit of an odd experience as well. You can choose to watch one or the other or both of these videos. The fashion photo shoot is very strange.

Inside Every Woman

The first chapter of this book, which features 5 Promises is available for free at InsideEveryWoman.com. It is in the form of a realistic flip book. Expect to see more and more sites using this flash element in the coming months. this one even has a sound effect that very convincingly sounds like a crisp paper page being turned...neat.

But that's just style. I would rather talk about content. I like Vickie's promises, they are hopeful, but they are mostly rooted in reality. She has a multi million dollar business, so she must be doing something right.

Click here if you are interested in hearing the author talk about her promises.

If you are interested in getting Inside Every Woman bookmarks to put inside Inside Every Woman, you can make a request at Vickie@

Gimme

Gimme is a slang term used in golf.

PGAprofessional.com describes the gimme as follows:

derived from the words "give me," as in "concede the next stroke to me as holed") a putt that is short enough in length to be certain to be holed with the next stroke

Traditionally, if you opponent thinks a ball is still too far away from the hole for a gimme, he or she may say "There's some chicken left on that bone."

This can be confusing if you are in the habit of playing golf and eating chicken at the same time.

Shop for Music and Movies with RapidSearch

Amazon is a great site, but it is almost too huge to browse. RapidSearch pulls a selection of entertainment product entries from Amazon and puts them into logical and convenient categories.

Here are the items that I want most from the music, movie, and video game categories...

Icky Thump is pretty whack.



This looks like a very visually rich movie about comic books.

And lastly, I would really like to buy Bratz Rock Angels because Bratz rock!!!

It was so quick and easy to find all my favorite stuff on RapidSearch.

Something Cute

I had made a post on another blog entitled Toys or Us. I thought I was being so witty.

Anyway, I googled the term and one of the high ranking results was a musical photo album from some French people who are cute and funny. It is at Toys-or-us.net. See how long it takes you to recognize the song :)

D I V O R C E is Less Common Today

Divorce rates are dropping in America. Divorces peaked in 1979. They have been gradually decreasing from a high of .53% ever since 1981. I was thinking of embedding the Tammy Wynnette classic D I V O R C E .

I decided to go with something more current and less awful. This is Regina Spektor, and this song is sad.

Golden Rule Travel

I was talking about making some changes yesterday. I think that rather than make some contrived theme, I am just going to try to focus on positive things. If you have visited my site before you are probably surprised by the lack of bright colors today. It's not meant to be negative. I was reading about the movement to make browsers and search engines as black as possible to save energy. I thought that was a positive move that I could make to help reduce my footprint a bit.

The great thing that I want to talk about in this post is a travel agency that specializes in meeting the needs of missionaries. Besides working to get special missionary fares for its clients, Golden Rule Travel also makes a point of being available 24/7 over the phone. They have an honest Christian staff, many of whom were once missionaries themselves.

I am building another positive site that feature all different types of marriage proposal videos. One particular video that really touched me was a young missionary in Malawi proposing to another missionary whom he had met while they were serving God in Nicaragua. They shared this joyful moment with the people of the Malawi village and in turn they were treated to an astounded display of joyful singing and dancing.

I am glad to here that there is a travel service that meets the special needs of missionaries and does their utmost to provide safe comfortable trips to places that are not generally safe and comfortable.

Seriously Considering a Change

I think I might start over with this blog. Not that I will delete anything that I have already said. I have just begun to lose interest in Britney Spears.

I also think that what would be best for Britney Spears is some kind of period without getting any positive feedback for her attention seeking. I honestly think that she has a destructive addiction to celebrity. I don't want to be part of the problem.

Snowmobiles are Awesome

I grew up in an area of North America where some guys kept a snowmobile in the back of their truck for about 5 months of the year. You couldn't always depend on there being a good layer of snow around the community, but on the weekends you could drive to areas with higher elevations and find all the snow you could ever want.

Snowmobiling on frozen lakes was another option. I would advise everyone to avoid this practice unless you can be absolutely sure that the ice is thick enough. Snowmobiles are pretty heavy. I know of some people who stopped out on a lake for a moment with a sled that had an auxiliary trailer filled with beer. The beer trailer broke through and they had to disconnect it from the snowmobile or the snowmobile would have been sunk.

For most snowmobile enthusiasts, there is more time spent wishing and planning than there is time spent driving. A snowmobile forum is time well spent in the off season. Watching exciting snowmobile action on SledTV is another way to spend those pesky snowless days.

Snowmobiling has to be one of the most exciting winter activities. It is about a million times more fun than building a snowman.

Britney Spears' Fictitious Movie Role...

I apologize to the pap for a stunt that was done 4 months ago regarding an umbrella. I was preparing my character for a role in a movie where the husband never plays his part so they switch places accidentally. I take all my roles very seriously and got a little carried away. Unfortunately I didn't get the part.

Strange, telling missives tend to show up on the 'coming soon' page that is BritneySpears.com quite sporadically. I am not sure why the webmaster doesn't take them down after one news cycle and replace it with something less crazy. If anybody has any information on the part that Britney was trying for, I would love to hear from them.

I suspect that the apology by way of an excuse is mostly fabricated.

Here is a video of Britney Spears ina role that she took very seriously. It's a French dub. For some reason, the characters don't sound gay to me.

Train Horns: Let Them Know You Are Coming

Still on the subject of celebrities driving through the paparazzi clot, I think every celebrity should invest in a train horn for their car. Not only would it more effectively convey the point that you want a path cleared, it would also make for a more interesting video clip for the internet. Most stars like to pretend that they want to be left alone by the paparazzi, but they really want to maintain their celebrity. Having a really loud and authoritative horn would make life easier.

You can hear the sound these horns make at TrainHorn.org but your PC speakers won't do it justice. The real thing really moves people.

Here's a funny aside. I am using a computer in my kids' room. They are both asleep. I am going to play the train horn sound to see how they react. There are no trains where I live, so they are not desensitized to the sound at all...

One kid said "Quit it!" the other just laid there. They are so lazy this summer.

Paparazzi Makeover

The popularity of paparazzi video clips with sound has one drawback for the paparazzi. The audio usually features one or more of the cameramen saying moronic banal things to the celebrities. I have never seen a website where any of these guys take credit for the stuff they say.

I think the value and quality of these clips would be greatly improved if all the paparazzi chipped in and paid a professional voice actor and writer to do the shout out.

While they are at it, I think it would be a nice gesture of goodwill if they paid to have a professional valet parking attendant to park and unpark celebrity's cars for them.

The Old Britney Spears

Looking at this vibrant young woman makes me sad. I asked a friend how she could be like this then and, well, you know...

My friend surmised that what you see in this video is entirely superficial. Britney had no inner core and when the pressure increased, she simply imploded. That is sad, and probably quite accurate.

Save On Holiday Expenses With CouponChief

The Holidays really do start rolling by fast once the summer ends. I think I may have freaked my wife out by actually buying a Christmas present in August.

Halloween is a night that I look forward to every year. I am going to give you a great idea for a costume. Go to the CouponChief page for Linens-n-Things and buy a nice set of sheets for yourself at 50% off. Then cut two holes in the middle of your old sheet. Can you see where I am going with this?





These coupons are so easy to use for online purchases. More and more people are getting the bulk of their Christmas shopping done online. Hickory Farms is a great place to go to get gifts for people that you have a business relationship with or people that you just don't know how to shop for because it is perfect for everybody.

Britney Just Doesn't Get It

Britney has earned some more scrutiny of her parenting ability. There is a report that she asked a dentist to perform a whitening procedure on her toddler. Whitening is a cosmetic procedure that is generally for adults who make an informed decision. The story adds that Britney was not adhering to current dental care advice for children. Juice in a bottle at night is bad.

I guess the worst way to interpret this story is that Britney was asking to have a professional kind of sweep the results of her poor childcare under the proverbial rug. That is not good.

Comfy Quilt Covers

I have had a few sleeping partners. No more than average. From that small sampling, I have discovered that some women prefer to sleep with something weighty and substantial draped over them. It's not even about being kept warm. It's some kind of primordial nesting instinct. Women also appreciate beautiful quilt covers. You could start with a richly colored damask duvet cover and match all your bedroom decor to create a room the revitalizes your aesthetic senses.