Swine Flu and the Economy

Swine flu seems to be cramping my lifestyle. The news just broke in on the TV to say that the entire Fort Worth school district will shut down til May 8th due to a confirmed case of swine flu. We had planned to visit a few events this week to get out of the house. Now that we think about it, maybe we should stay at home. So if the economy is not a downer you have this flu throwing it's hat in the ring. I'm actually thinking about doing what I said I wasn't gonna do in the first place; I'm getting worried. Not the "run out and buy out the pharmacy" kinda worry, but I will take a few precautions.
The CDC has put a set of guidelines and they are as follows:

• Stay informed. This website will be updated regularly as information becomes available.
• Influenza is thought to spread mainly person-to-person through coughing or sneezing of infected people.
• Take everyday actions to stay healthy.
• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
• Stay home if you get sick. CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.

• Follow public health advice regarding school closures, avoiding crowds and other social distancing measures.
• Develop a family emergency plan as a precaution. This should include storing a supply of food, medicines, face masks, alcohol-based hand rubs and other essential supplies.
• Call 1-800-CDC-INFO for more information.

How has the "possible" pandemic affected what you do, if at all? Or just point out my misspellings?

Two Tons of Steel remake of The Ramones - I Wanna Be Sedated

"Heard this song on my way out to see my Dad a few weeks back and just remembered to look for it. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Or not.

I Wanna Be Sedated - Two Tons Of Steel

Has the economy bit into your movie budget?

My wife and I don't go to the movie as often as we did when we started dating. As great as the movies are, we just can't seem to bring our selves to shell out $9.50 a ticket for a cramped seat and the chance to hear what the person four aisles away is talking about. Add snacks and they can cost as much as the tickets.

We finally tried the dollar (actually $1.50) movie across the highway and enjoyed it. For less than the price of one regular priced ticket we were able to see a double feature. Snacks still cost the same, but for $30 we did what would have cost us almost $60. Still the same old guy talking four rows up and the tight seats, but, hey, for that price, I'll deal.

Nowadays, we don't go out unless it's a blockbuster spectacular that has to be seen on the big screen. Any kind of blow'em-up, shoot'em-up, scifi, adventure, epic type of movie is why we shell out the big bucks. (Un)Fortunately, they are few and far between. Well, except for May, when Wolverine and Star Trek come out. We'll deal with that through the local comic book shop, Boomerang Comics. They're across the street and Neal, the guy that owns it, has a movie night at Studio Movie Grill. He rents out the whole theater and you purchase your tickets through him.

Another way of fighting the price of movies is through NetFlix. We have an account with them and it's great. For $16 a month, we can get 2 movies at a time. We watch them and return them and they send two more. As many as we can watch in a month for $16 and there are no late fees. Wife gets a movie and I get a movie. We watch one, stick it in the mail the next day and a new one usually arrives by the time we are done with the next movie (unless you watch them both one after the other.) They have bigger plans including 8 movies at one time. You manage your list online and as they recieve one movie, they ship the next one out. I've sent one out on a Monday and had the next one on a Wednesday.

And for those with fast connections, you can watch certain movies and tv shows on your computer. This is great for people like me who want to see things that the spouse is not interested in like my Red Dwarf tv series from the 80's. Even watched a book-turned-movie by one of my favorite authors and saw why he hated it. I did too.

I'm a NetFlix fan because we don't waste alot of money on the movie experience unless it warrants it. I've got a link for it on my other website, so if you'd like to try it out, please do.

So, how do you cut corners with your entertainment expenses? Do you rent, or do you deprive yourself during the economic downturn? Or are you even affected by it? Let me know!

What is news?

Susan Boyles' performance on Britain's Got Talent has been a world-wide phenomenon and people were weighing in on CNN about it. The typical comments were "never judge a book by it's cover." Then one woman posts a video comment and in it she says that someone being judged by their looks is not news. She being an over-weight asian woman means that she is judged every day. That is not news. Yes, I agree with her. It's not. She as well as others missed exactly why it was news. The look on Simon Cowell's face as well as the other judges' and audiences' is why it is so worthy of the attention. Yes, she is a wonderful singer and yes, she's frumpy. But that is far out-weighed by the eating of crow by so many people at one time.

Susan Boyle - Singer - Britains Got Talent 2009 (With Lyrics)

You have to hear her to believe her. And to see the look on the people's faces is a big bonus!

Cats are human too

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Sharing the Awe-someness

Amanda Bauer is an astronomer in the United Kingdom and I love reading her blog. This latest post tells how she shared her love of astronomy even though there was a language barrier. Please check out the post and check out the rest of her blog. The Language of the Universe

Making the Sale

I've been out of work now for a little over three months. Most of it by choice, but now that school has fallen through on it's end of the deal, the wife and I have decided to get back to work and concentrate on building up our reserves. Again, if it hadn't been for Dave Ramsey, we wouldn't be keeping our heads above water like we are.

I'm going to an interview on Tuesday for a bank teller position with Wamu. They've been bought out by Chase and are looking to expand a little in my area. Wifey has had experience in the bank field, so we thought that if her job hits the skids then she might apply also.

While I'm preparing for Tuesday, I came across this article and thought it very timely and that I would pass it on to you. It's one of those articles that I wish everyone would read or pass on to anyone getting ready to go looking. Time and time again, I've witnessed, as well as the wife, people who show up to job interviews half-prepared. That's putting it politely. People who show up to fill out applications wearing short-shorts and flip-flops alongside those that bring all of their children. You can't tell me that Mama didn't teach them how to dress and that someone couldn't watch those kids for 2 hours. Yeah, yeah, I know. I don't know their story, but I see it too much to think that it's not a social norm nowadays.

Question: Have you been witness to people sabotaging their interview before they even begin? Please comment and give details. We love the details!

Here's To You, Mr. Jefferson

An excellent video! Hope you enjoy!

Greed

Kay from 'Perhaps we learned something' put together this little string of offerings about the 7 deadly sins or "vices that lead to sin" as she put it.

I decided to give it a whirl and talk about greed. I believe that you can be greedy without even being aware of it. In fact, all of the sins can be committed without any conscious thought. But, we're speaking of greed here.

Ever been in a buffet line and there's people behind you and there are three slices of pizza left. You think nothing of it and take all three. People behind you will now have to wait for the next pizza. (and you know who you are, buddy!) You cut someone off on the highway because the person in front of you isn't going fast enough. The person you cut off now has to throw on their brakes and thus everyone behind him does the same. Because of your impatience, people now have to slow down thus causing slight ripples in traffic that lead to backups.

These things are minor, but they are still examples of greed. You have gained while others "suffer." Is it something that you should go to hell for? I don't think so, but look at it this way. This kind of behavior causes the people who have been slighted to think bad thoughts or want to commit bad acts. The things that they want to say or do may be slight in our eyes, but in a world where we all live and work together, these add up. Almost a butterfly effect of emotions.

Then again, I could be full of hot air! Let me know what you think. Check out Kay's blog and leave my pizza alone.

It Should Always Be Sung Like This

Got this in an email from my dad today. Just beautiful. No gracenotes, no seeing how long or how high they can go. It's all about the song.


This was at a Texas Tech Basketball game, February 9th. The National Anthem is sung by five young ladies (ages 6-8). You have never heard it performed better than this! An entire arena remains completely silent throughout the song. You could hear a pin drop. Take a moment to listen to this.

The two young ladies on the right are six years old. The two in the middle Are seven and the one on the left is eight.

NationalAnthem CactusJH

Where the Wild Things Are

Here's a link to another blog that I produce with the trailer to the movie "Where the Wild Things Are." Enjoy!

Earth Hour, Al Gore & Global Warming. Oh My!

I hate the hype that Al Gore has heaped onto global warming. He uses sensationalism to scare people to his cause. But after going to the Global Warming website, I feel much better. The folks there have a much calmer view of it and realize that we don’t have all the answers. It’s a whole different story than what you see on the news. I do believe that global warming is real, but it’s a natural cycle of the earth. Just like ice ages. Please check out the website.

What got me started on this was the Earth Hour event that takes place tomorrow night. For one hour at 8:30pm local time, everyone shuts off the lights. I’m not sure what is expected of this gesture, but I’d like to see the results.

Turn out. Take action.
Be part of this historic event.
March 28, 2009, 8:30 pm local time
World Wildlife Fund is asking
individuals, businesses, governments and organizations
around the world to turn off their lights for
one hour – Earth Hour – to make a
global statement of concern about
climate change and
to demonstrate commitment
to finding solutions.

Welfare Drug Testing and a Joke

I got this joke from my Dad and I love it. This is coincidental to the story I just saw on CNN. Congress authorizes states to require drug testing to those on welfare. So far, eight states are contemplating it. I say "About time!" If you have money for drugs, then you don't need mine!

I recently asked my friends' little girl what she wanted to be when she grows up.She said she wanted to be President some day. Both of her parents, liberal Democrats, we were standing there, so I asked her, "If you were President what would be the first thing you would do?" She replied, "I'd give food and houses to all the homeless people." Her parents beamed."Wow!...what a worthy goal."

I told her, "But you don't have to wait until you're President to do that. You can come over to my house and mow the lawn, pull weeds and sweep my yard and I'll pay you $50. Then I'll take you over to the grocery store where the homeless guy hangs out and you can give him the $50 to use toward food and a new house. "She thought that over for a few seconds, then she looked me straight in the eye and asked,

"Why doesn't the homeless guy come over and do the work, and you can just pay him the $50?" I said, "Welcome to the Republican Party." Her parents still aren't talking to me.

The Best Laid Plans . . .

of mice and men often go awry.  Of course, it might help if I'd actually planned a little better.  My plans to attend Connecticut School of Broadcasting are no more.  Two days after I get a note from Sallie Mae saying that my first disbursement has been sent to the school, Carroll calls me and tells me to turn on the news.  I didn't see it on the tv but it was all over the internet. 

Seems that the school had been having some problems and their bank froze all of their assets.  Fortunately, all states are required to have a fund in place to handle these situations and Sallie Mae seems to be willing to help.  As for the loan, I don't see any problems getting it taken care of, but I've got a co-signer that I would like to keep as calm as possible.

I went and checked out another school, but I think that I'm just gonna go back to work and finish paying off more of our debt and try it again in about a year.  That's the one thing that I've learned out of this fiasco is how much money it takes to keep us afloat.  We've been living on just Carroll's income these 3 months and we still put money in the bank and pay on debt.  If we didn't have debt, we would have a substantial savings account.  So, by going back to work and utilizing that money, instead of blowing as it seems we've done the last 6 years, we can knock it out and put some away.

Amazing what you can achieve when life throws curve balls at you!

A Little Common Sense

Decided to head out to Grapevine Mills today to do a little browsing and idea gathering. That wasn't the original idea though. I had a hankering for some cajun and didn't feel like overpaying for it at Razoo's. Supposedly, there was a place called the Bayou Cafe by the mall, but alas, it had fallen victim to these economic times. I figured since I was in the area that I might as well browse.

I parked the truck and as I got out I noticed the nice Mercedes parked next to me. Hanging from the mirror was a woman's work badge complete with picture, name, and where she worked. Folks, you don't have to be paranoid to know that this is not a good idea. If I were an animal, I would have more than enough info to stalk her or make her life miserable.

I've always mentioned things like this to my wife to make her more aware and it never hurts to talk about it some more. I'm a big boy and even I don't make mistakes like this. So, here's a few things that you may want to rethink.

1. Any kind of badge or ID needs to be put away preferably on your person or in a purse. If it's left in the car, it can be stolen.
2. If you pick up the mail while you are out, same thing goes. Put it in your purse or somewhere you have control of it.
3. And on this one, I'm not trying to scare people, but then that may not be a bad thing. Stickers on your vehicle with your child's name, jersey number, and the team they play for are not a good idea. How easy would it be for some maniac to walk up to your child at a game and say that he was there to pick him/her up because you would be running late?

These are only the tip of the iceberg, but they are the ones that I seem to see the most. If I've scared you, then maybe it is a good thing and you'll start to think when you're out and about. Remember, it's not the same world as when we were kids!

Bailout Size Overwhelms The Mind

Every time you turn on the news the bailout numbers keep getting bigger and bigger. How is it a country that can just up and print it's own money ends up in a credit crisis? Here's an illustration showing the size of a trillion dollars. Just try to wrap your head around it. I dare you.

How big is a trillion

Ane Brun

Caught this on the astropixie's blog and was mesmerized. The haunting vocals and the slightly out-of-tune guitar make it hard not to listen. Her rendition of "True Colors" was used in a few commercials, including Kodak, and you can hear it on MySpace. Also, on the MySpace page is a remake of "Big In Japan" by Alphaville. Very nice.

Ane Brun At MySpace

Black Cab Sessions

NINA KINERT & ANE BRUN from Diaspro on Vimeo.

I guess I should be nicer

Average person has at least 150 friends. Man, I gotta work on that!

Friends! How many of us have them? - Whodini

Free Resume Printing From Fedex

Due to the hard times befalling many Americans, Fedex is stepping up to the plate to help out.  On March 10, you will be able to walk into any Fedex location and get 25 black & white copies of your resume for free.  Feel free to check out the link below and read the whole story.  And also, let me know if you intend to take advantage of this or do you need to?

Free Resume Copies