Thursday, April 30, 2009

He's a Good Man

Charlie BrownImage via Wikipedia

We just got back from the dress rehearsal for Cory's play, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. I helped Jeffrey tape down some cables and test some mics, but things were pretty much set to go. All the kids got into costume and got their mics and then they ran through the performance. Overall, it went pretty well. It's like the whole play is a series of Peanuts comic strips, some longer than others, and some just the typical 4 frames. A lot of it made me laugh.

Jeffrey and I had never seen it, so it was a little tough getting the mics turned on at the right times, since the kids start talking in the dark or talk off-stage or randomly walk onstage while talking. We told Cory that we need his script for the actual performances so we can follow along and be better able to know who's supposed to be talking when. It's either that or leave the mics on all the time...

So, tomorrow night for real and for an audience.

As This Flu Spreads

How worried are you about the swine flu that seems to be spreading everywhere? Just yesterday they announced 3 cases in Wisconsin. Of course, it took them at least an hour to announce it and talk about it. I'm not terribly worried since I'm not a hugger or a toucher, and I don't get out much - though I did go shopping yesterday. Of course, I can't say that about the rest of my family. Cory's a serious hugger, and all of them are at school or work every day. Working as a cashier, Beth comes into contact with all kinds of people every day.

I'm going to have to stress the hand washing - regularly, often, all the time. If you're more worried about it, and you don't think avoiding hugging and hand-shaking, and washing your hands a lot is enough, you can buy swine flu kits that include not just the face masks like everyone in Mexico is wearing, but an entire Tyvek suit, safety goggles, gloves, antimicrobial wipes, and more. It really looks like serious swine flu protection.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

A Wish for a Friend

I'm following Misty on twitter, and she just said that the top thing on her wishlist is a Kindle. Now, being the wonderful friend I am, I really wish I could make her wish come true. What I really wish is that we could both have one of these, loaded up with plenty of Amazon books, of course. The Kindle isn't just for reading books, either - it's for reading blogs, too. It really does look like one of the most amazing things ever, but can I afford to buy one for me and one for Misty? No, not really.

So, Amazon, how about this? You send Misty a Kindle and me a Kindle, and we promise to use them and use them and use them, and then we'll blog about them and tell everyone how much we love them. That sounds like a plan, doesn't it?

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

New Glasses for Cory



Cory decided he really liked the contacts, so we went last week and bought him some. It's pretty nice with the vision plan. It only cost us around $25 for enough contacts to last him a year. While we were there, he also found a pair of glasses he liked, and we got them for around $100. They came in today, so he's all set - contacts for everyday wear and glasses for backup. The lady at the Walmart vision center also wrote down his pupil distance measurements so we can try ordering him some glasses online, for additional stylin', of course.

Me, I'm still trying to find a pair of glasses I like on my face. Of course, I've only looked there at Walmart and haven't gone anywhere else. It's just so hard for me to find something I like. I'd like to try ordering some online, too, but if I have this much trouble with glasses I can actually try on, I don't know how I'd ever find any I like online.

Another problem I'm having, since I'm so cheap, is the whole vision plan thing. I love that we got our exams paid for, but the coverage for glasses seems backwards to me. They'll pay up to $125 for frames, and $25 for lenses. Now, I don't know about you, but my lenses are the part that costs the most - because I have to upgrade to the thinner polycarbonate ones. And then there's the small print on all the advertised specials, "not valid with insurance plans" - So, I can't get a special deal, have to pay full price, but they'll pay $25 towards my $200 lenses. It would make a lot more sense for them to just pay $150, regardless of how you split it up between frames and lenses, but that would probably cost them more.

I'm beginning to think about getting contacts like Cory. That way at least I can get my whole $150 benefit paid toward the cost of my lenses. I'd still need some backup glasses, and the lens upgrades are still going to cost a bit, but at least I would be able to take advantage of the advertised deals.


Monday, April 27, 2009

Heads or Tails – Down on the Farm

The theme/prompt for this week is:
HEADS - "Down on the Farm"

I had a friend ask me last week, “How is everything on the farm?”  Since the closest I come to living on a farm is my little garden, I was a little confused.  Farm?  What farm?  He had to explain that it was just another way of asking, "how is everything in your corner of the world" or “how is everything going.”

Now, when I ask my dad or my brother that same question, “How is everything on the farm?”  I really mean the farm.  They’ve got cows and goats and chickens and gardens and tractors and all kinds of farm stuff where they live – and they blog about it, too.  It’s fun to read about how everything is down on the farm.

Drop on by, say hi – and find out how things are “down on the farm” won’t you?

 

Heads or Tails is a fun weekly meme created and hosted by Skittles!

It's Almost Charlie Brown Time

The play is next weekend - Friday night, Saturday night, Sunday afternoon. And let's not forget the dress rehearsal Thursday night. That means this is going to be a very busy week, and it's started already. Not so much for me, but Cory and Jeffrey went to school yesterday to start getting things set up. The cast was all supposed to be there to get the lights put up, so Jeffrey took all the sound equipment over, too. They hung lights and set up chairs, and he got some of the sound equipment set up, though he couldn't do everything until the lights were focused and all the chairs set up, which can't be done until the lights are focused.

Then, after all that he took Cory and Erich to Home Depot to get stuff to make a tree. The boys spent several hours at Erich's house after that building their tree. Then today they took it to school and stayed after to work on it some more. Play practice was from 6-8 - so Cory walked out of the house at 7:10 this morning and just walked in the door at 8:20 tonight. Jeffrey came home from work, ate a quick dinner, and ran over to the school to hopefully get most of his stuff set up - so I didn't see much of him either. Me, I just stayed home, finished up the laundry, made some sandwiches for lunches tomorrow, and watched Dancing with the Stars. That Ty is so darn cute!

Sorry, I got distracted.

I'm not sure how much more Jeffrey has to do to get the sound system ready to go, but I do know that Cory has play practice the next couple nights and then dress rehearsal and performances. After asking him, it sounds like Jeffrey has everything done as much as he can, so we'll just have to get there early Thursday night for the dress rehearsal to do last minute stuff. And then we'll be there every night... I also have to get something baked for concessions. I'm thinking cupcakes, but it all depends on what I feel like when I actually get to the baking part.

OK, I have to go vote for Ty now.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Not To Miss

I've got so many unread posts in my reader that I'm pretty sure I'll never catch up. Still, I keep trying. I know I really should, but I hate to just mark everything as read and start fresh - because I might miss something important.

One important thing I didn't miss - Jenn went Dot Com on us! Of course, I didn't have to read about that in my reader since I helped her get it all set up. I just have to say, I'm so proud! So, if you haven't yet run over and congratulated her on the new domain, what are you waiting for? Oh, probably trying to catch up in your reader, too.

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Camera Critters (#55)

cameracritterspost

It got nice, warm and sunny yesterday.  It’s making me think Summer!  and maybe a visit to Old World Wisconsin.  Maybe I’ll even get to see these horses again.

Camera Critters is a fun weekend meme hosted by Misty Dawn.Visit the Camera Critters headquarters and join in. There are all kinds of great critters to see!

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Looking at the Sky on Friday - 13

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For more info on this fun meme, click the image.

This morning’s sunrise – before I left for my walk:

And then, when I got back home:

It seems that it wasn’t all that long ago that I was walking in the dark.  The stars were gorgeous, but I’m appreciating this!  

If you enjoy skies as much as I do, be sure to check out Looking at the Sky on Friday.  (It’s way better than Colonix)

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Everyone Needs a Little Help

This week I got an email from a friend asking for some advice on obtaining her own domain. She wanted to know if she could keep her blog hosted free on Blogger without changing anything but her url or if she would need web hosting. Now, I know a lot of people say that moving away from any kind of free blogging service and getting your own host is the only way to go, but so far I've been happy using Blogger. Also, I'm a little intimidated by the whole process of choosing a web host and moving my blog, and I'm especially intimidated by the idea of learning how to use and maintain a new blogging platform because those same people say Wordpress is the only way to go.

I probably shouldn't let that stop me, because there is plenty of information available to help with all that, from lists of the Top 10 web hosts that include ratings, rankings, and reviews (the 3 Rs?) to articles that cover every topic. Because I'm really cheap in all things, I'm most likely to look first at the hosting plans that cost the least - some of these are $3.95 and $4.95/month, which doesn't sound too bad. However, there really is more to it, which is why I'm glad that the top 10 sites listed at Web Hosting Rating list what's included in each plan as well as customer reviews. Customer service and support seem to be really important to the reviewers, so I think when I decide to choose a web host, that's going to be high on my list, too. I'll also probably check out the Awards page to see which host was voted Best Blog Hosting, as well as Best Budget Hosting.

For now, like I told my friend, it's OK to stay with Blogger, but when she's ready to choose a web host, visiting Web Hosting Rating can help in choosing the right one.

She's Good

Beth called after work tonight. She said the District Manager came in to the store today and she wants Beth to go to all the stores to train people. See, part of everybody's job at Marshall's is to get people to sign up for their Rewards card - yes, it's a credit card, and if you get one, you save money, 10% on the first purchase and then points afterward.

Last month the store Beth works at got 150 people to sign up. Beth got 50 of those herself. So the District Manager would like a Beth in all of her stores and wants Beth to go to all of the stores to demonstrate her techniques - because obviously she's doing something right. And it is kind of cool when someone notices.

1 plus 1 is 2

This cat of ours is really smart. I'm not saying she can actually do math or figure out where to buy the cheapest auto insurance, but she certainly knows what's going to happen in this house.

Like most cats, she does not like the vacuum cleaner. When the vacuum cleaner comes out, she completely disappears. But then I started noticing that she disappears when I pull the broom out - not that she's scared of the broom. She just knows that after the broom comes the vacuum cleaner! I usually sweep the kitchen floor and then vacuum it, in hopes of getting all that dirt and cat hair cleaned up, so she's got that figured out pretty well.

Then I started noticing that she disappears when I start dusting the furniture. Yep, after dusting I usually vacuum. It might be a while before I get to the vacuuming part, but Tillie doesn't want to be around for that, so she disappears right away.

Then today, before I even pulled the broom out, Tillie got up off her chair, where she had been sleeping all day, and ran off. Why? I was shaking the kitchen rugs out the back door. She knows. Shake the rugs, pull out the broom and sweep the floor, and then comes the vacuum cleaner. There's no way she's going to stay around for that!

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Heads or Tails – Once Upon a Time

The theme/prompt for today, April 21, is:
TAILS - "Once upon a time"

Make a post using the prompt "Once upon a time." It can be a real story or idea that you want to start that way, a fairy tale of your own, etc. (Remember this is TAILS so your post needs to start with "Once upon a time.")

Once upon a time there was a young boy who loved to perform and loved to be the center of attention.  When he was in kindergarten, his class put on a circus performance for their parents.  Some of the kids were clowns, some were tigers, and some tumblers.  But not this little boy.  This little boy was chosen by his teacher, along with a little girl in his class, to be a Ringmaster.

The teacher saw, even back then when this little boy was only 5 years old, that he would be perfectly comfortable standing up in front of all those people and talking.  In fact, both this little boy and his co-ringmaster loved getting up in front of all those people.  They learned all their lines, and they got to use a microphone, which neither one of them actually wanted to give up when it was the other’s turn.  They had a fine time!

As he grew, this little boy continued to love getting up in front of people.  Stage fright was not something he’d ever heard of, much less experienced.  He won the class Interpretive Reading competition several years in a row and got to move on to the larger competition.  He joined Drama Club in middle school, and enjoyed putting on plays.  Unfortunately, in 8th grade, he was sick the day of the performance and didn’t get to participate.  The show went on without him, but of course it wasn’t the same!

When this little boy, no longer so little, entered high school he didn’t get involved in drama right away.  His first play was in the Spring of his sophomore year – The Odd Couple (female version) – and he was hooked!  Fall of his junior year he played Bill Sykes in Oliver, and in a couple weeks he’ll be Linus in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.

IMG_0084Also, his junior year of high school, this young man joined the Forensics team – not the CSI kind of forensics, the public speaking kind of forensics.  There are several different categories to choose from in Forensics.  This young man and his partner participated in the Play Acting category with a piece called Open to Interpretation that examined various possible versions of the classic Hansel and Gretel.  The piece is hilarious, and they did a wonderful job – bringing home a 6th place in the State Tournament this past weekend.

Of course you’ve figured it out by now, even before you got to the pictures – this young man is my son Cory, and I’m definitely proud of him!!

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Does Mother's Day Sneak Up on You?

Or is it just me?

Mother's Day always seems to sneak up on me. It's the 2nd Sunday in May - May 10th this year. (Just noting that so it's in my head.) When I was in college, I completely forgot about Mother's Day until the Thursday or Friday before. Well, actually, I didn't forget, I just thought I had another week. I was in California, Mom was in Illinois, and there was no way anything was going to get to her in time.

So, did I send (late) mothers day flowers? No, I called my good friend Jeffrey and had him buy a card, sign it for me and leave it for my mom on her chair at church. I thought that was a pretty good solution. Mom wasn't exactly thrilled, but at least I tried!

I'm not sure what I'm going to do this year. E-cards are great for those special occasions that sneak up on you - too bad they didn't have those back in the day! But, since I have a while and I'm thinking about it now, maybe I'll check out the Mother's Day Flowers and Gifts suggestions at 1-800-flowers.com. Some of these are even available the same day, so if Mother's Day sneaks up on you, you know what to do!

PE 4N6 Rocks!


Cory and his entire Forensics team went to State this weekend. Cory and Jenna made it all the way to the Finals and placed 6th. That's 6th in the entire state! How cool is that? 6th!

He got a really nice plaque, and a t-shirt.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

PayPerPost v4.0 alpha



PayPerPost v4.0 has just been released, and I'm happy to say I got my Alpha key so I can check it out and see how it works. So far I'm pretty excited, and not just because of the spiffy new design.

The part I think I'm going to like best is that I won't have to hang out on the site looking for opps, only to have the good ones snatched away. Sometimes that gets so frustrating! No, with the new version of PayPerPost, there's no more fighting for opps. Instead you get an email:

Good news!

An advertiser fancies your blog and has offered you an opportunity...

The email even tells you the title of the opp and how much the advertiser is offering, and you get three days to write your post and accept the opp.

When you first add your blogs to the new PayPerPost, you get to set the amount you will accept for a link as well as the amount you will accept per word. You also decide disclosure type (In Post, Site-wide, or Either) and link type (Follow, No Follow, or Either) you prefer for your blog. That should mean that the opps you get offered are opps you will be willing to take. If not, you're free to decline them.

I've been reading through the FAQs and finding more things that should be very positive. I especially like that advertisers will have a more hands-on role in the process. Instead of creating an opp that gets released to every blogger in the system that meets certain criteria, the advertisers actually get to choose the blogs they wish to advertise on, from a match-list of blogs supplied by PPP. I'm hoping this means that the bloggers who really take the time to do the research and write a good post for each advertiser will be the ones who get the most offers, as the advertisers see and learn where they get the most value for their money.

Anyway, this post has been sponsored by PayPerPost v4.0 - but they're really only paying me for 100 words, and I went way over that and haven't even said half of what I could. If you'd like an alpha key to check it out for yourself, leave a comment here on the IZEA blog .

Camera Critters (#54)

cameracritterspost

This silly cat lays around in all kinds of interesting positions.

I think somebody needs to rub that Tillie tummy.

Camera Critters is a fun weekend meme hosted by Misty Dawn.Visit the Camera Critters headquarters and join in. There are all kinds of great critters to see!

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Looking at the Sky on Friday - 12

Photobucket

For more info on this fun meme, click the image.

Jet trails crossing in my sky this evening:

I wonder where they’re going?

This was the plane making that trail that went straight up.  I had to catch it quick as it went over my house.

If you enjoy skies as much as I do, be sure to check out Looking at the Sky on Friday.

He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not

78Image by giuss95
via Flickr

When I ask him if he loves me, my husband likes to joke that he told me that he did once and he hasn't told me any different. I guess until I hear different I just get to assume that he still loves me?

It really is just a joke, because he tells me all the time that he loves me, but from everything I've heard, it's sometimes hard for guys to say "I love you" or to know how to say it. When is it the right time to buy flowers or jewelry? Will she read too much significance into it? Will she wonder what you did wrong? And what worked last time won't necessarily work this time. It's tough being a guy, isn't it?

That's why Bella True has put together a great site to help guys know what jewelry to buy when, from the beginning of a relationship all the way through engagement, marriage and the 75th anniversary. With a guide like this, guys ought to be able to let that special lady know that he really does love her, even if he doesn't say so all that often.

Honey? I'm loving this heart necklace.

Craziness at the Library

Cory's been on Spring Break from school this week. Mostly that means he's been able to sleep in, and stay up too late at night talking to his Bookworms on Skype, which is why he needs to sleep in. He also volunteered at the library one day, helping with the Wii Bowling for seniors. Our library staff is really good, but when it's time to use technology those teenage volunteers really come in handy!

Later that same evening he had a TLC (Teen Library Council) meeting where I suppose they planned lots of fun teen activities, but mostly it looks like they made a video and took pictures.



I love the video (except for that one part where he said something he shouldn't have and didn't bleep it), and this pic:

He's got some crazy friends. :)

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Next Trip Florida?

Cory and I went to New York with the band, and we had a really good time. One of Cory's friends who goes to another school just got back from DisneyWorld with her band. She's my friend on Facebook, so I've been looking at the pictures she uploaded. I haven't been to Florida in years, and her pictures are making me want to go back. We've been to Daytona Beach and Destin, but the last time we were in the Orlando area, Beth was 6 and Cory was 4. That was a long time ago, wasn't it?

We stayed in Kissimmee , because everyone knows you can get much better deals on hotels and condos in Kissimmee than right in Orlando - and it's right there, anyway. From Kissimmee you can reach all of Central Florida's best attractions in just minutes, or be lounging on one of Florida's sandy beaches in about an hour. And Kissimmee has some great attractions of its own, some of them free. You know how much I like free stuff, right? I'd like to visit the Old Town Shopping, Dining, and Entertainment Complex, not for the shopping, but for the live entertainment and street party at night. I'd like to go hiking or roller blading at some of the Lakefront Parks and maybe spend the day at East Lake Toho in St. Cloud.

Of course, while we're there I will want to visit SeaWorld, because I love SeaWorld. Too bad that isn't free... Also, I want to visit Disney without the kids. I know that sounds backwards because most people want to take their kids to Disney, but our kids didn't like any of the rides except the Small World ride, and it just about drove us crazy. Oh, that song is irritating!

Anyway, I'd love a Central Florida vacation - not just for all the great attractions, but also because I would get to visit my cousin who lives there, and I haven't seen her in ages and ages. I just entered the Freedom to Enjoy Sweepstakes for my chance to win a 6 night trip for four that includes airfare, a rental car, admission to theme parks and attractions, and even golf for Jeffrey. Maybe SeaWorld can be free after all. And while Jeffrey is playing golf, I can hang out with my cousin!

Kissimmee is giving away three weekend getaways (3 days/2 nights) for two; and two weeklong vacations for four. So be sure to enter, because the best vacations are free, right? There's so much to do in Kissimmee. What would you do?
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Saturday, April 11, 2009

Camera Critters (#53)

cameracritterspost

Here’s another critter from New York City.

One of the lions in front of the New York Public Library.  It was Sunday.  The library was open, but I didn’t get to go in and check it out.  I was with teenage girls, and they were busy shopping.

Camera Critters is a fun weekend meme hosted by Misty Dawn.Visit the Camera Critters headquarters and join in. There are all kinds of great critters to see!

Thursday, April 09, 2009

Looking at the Sky on Friday - 11

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For more info on this fun meme, click the image.

I took a few pictures of the sky this week – again from my back door.  But, since you’ve seen plenty of those, and I haven’t taken them off the camera yet, I thought I’d share another photo or two from New York. 

This was while we were waiting for our tour of Radio City Music Hall to start.

I’m noticing that you have to look really hard to find the sky in New York City with all those tall buildings and all.  It’s there, though, and on our first day the sky was blue and the sun was out.

Here’s another shot I liked of the buildings and the sky somewhere close to where we were waiting.

If you enjoy skies as much as I do, be sure to check out Looking at the Sky on Friday.

Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Designing My Own Shirt

I wore my I ♥ NY shirt to the grocery store today. You know the one I mean - they're everywhere on the streets of New York, and everyone who has ever visited New York City probably has one. Well, actually Cory doesn't, but he did get a really cool hat at Nintendo World. Beside the point, I know. The point is, thousands of people are wearing these I ♥ NY shirts.

I wonder if whoever came up with the logo/design is rich? Don't you wish you could come up with some great design that everyone wants? VistaPrint lets you create your own custom t-shirts, and while they may end up for sale on every street corner, it's still really neat to have your very own shirt with your very own design, something that no one else has.

T-shirt prices at VistaPrint start at $4.74 for a short-sleeved shirt right now, and you can upload your own logo/photo/design for just $2.49. Those are some pretty good sale prices. If you don't have your own design to upload, you can browse the designs on VistaPrint to customize one of their templates.

Cory has a really good idea for a t-shirt that he wants designed. I love his idea. Unfortunately the design requires a specific color shirt, which is not available on VistaPrint. They have white, light gray, and black available - all good colors, just not for this specific shirt. No, I can't tell you about his design, because we wouldn't want someone designing it before we do!

Unfortunately, I'm not usually creative enough to come up with my own design ideas, so I like that VistaPrint has so many designs to choose from. Once I find one I like, I can add my own text, change fonts and colors, move things around, and completely customize my shirt. VistaPrint makes it easy, even for people for me who don't know where to start. I know I could get more creative, but I found a really nice design and added my blog URL. It really didn't need much customization because I like it just the way it is - just made the font a little bigger. I think I'm going to have to order a shirt, and I bet no one else will be wearing this one!

Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Heads or Tails – List Three

Heads Or TailsThe theme/prompt for today, April 7, is: 
TAILS – List Three

List three things from any category. Your choice. (Remember, this is TAILS
and that means your post should be a real list of some sort.)

This really could be anything, couldn’t it?

I was voting online at abc.com for my favorite Dancing with the Stars dancers, so I thought I’d share the three couples I like best this season.

 
Gilles Marini & Cheryl Burke

These two are hot!  Jeffrey loves Cheryl, as always, and Gilles is just steamy.  

 

 
Shawn Johnson & Mark Ballas
(Team Shark)

Shawn is just adorable. 
 

 
Ty Murray & Chelsie Hightower

I just love Ty.  I think he’s so cute, and the first time I saw him dance I saw that he had the potential to do well.  He is really improving and I see that I’m right.  Ty Murray is a dancer!

I’d love to see these three couples go all the way to the end, and I’d be happy with whichever one wins.  It will be hard deciding who to vote for then…

Heads or Tails is a fun weekly meme created and hosted by Skittles!

Monday, April 06, 2009

HDTV Winner Every Day in April

-1Unless you've been living in a cave and don't have television, you know that all television is going digital in June. That means without a converter box, or cable or satellite, you won't be able to watch television once the change goes into effect.

Charter wants to make sure you don't lose your television signal. They have some pretty good packages, and the best part is that you can use the Charter website to build the package that works best for you. Right now there's a bundle offer that gets you cable television, high speed internet, and local and long distance telephone for under $100/month for 12 months. If that bundle isn't what you're looking for, you can use the bundle builder to build your own. Personally I know a bundle like that would save us quite a bit of money.

To make it even better, Charter is giving away a 22” flat screen HDTV every day throughout April. New Charter customers and existing ones who would like to upgrade are eligible to win. Simply sign up for service online, and you're entered once Charter installs your Cable, Internet, or Phone service - or your money-saving bundle. Imagine how great all those HD channels are going to look on your new television! There's also a really great grand prize that includes a 52” LCD flat screen HDTV, a Home Theater System, and one year of free Charter Digital Cable® service with HD programming. Sounds great, doesn't it?

Charter still isn't available in my area, so I guess I won't get a chance to win a new TV or get a great deal on my Cable television, high speed internet, and phone service - but don't let that stop you!

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Sunday, April 05, 2009

I Won!

This is going to be so much fun. Last week on SocialSpark I found out about Tweet-A-Prize. It's a weekly Twitter-based scavenger hunt with REAL prizes. This week's prize was a Robosapien, which looks like a lot of fun. I entered; I followed; I won!

So, I'm looking forward to getting and playing with this robot. Actually, I think Jeffrey and Cory are going to have a lot of fun with it - and Tillie, too.

A new prize is going to be announced tomorrow, so enter, follow, and get ready to WIN!

You can use this link to get started: Follow Tweet-A-Prize on Twitter and win a prize
or click the graphic in the sidebar.

Saturday, April 04, 2009

Camera Critters (#52)

cameracritterspost

I missed Camera Critters last week because I was in New York (in cased  you missed that) – at least I didn’t miss this week, because it’s the 1 year anniversary of Camera Critters.  Can you believe this awesome meme is 1 year old?    Wow! 

Anyway, since I was in New York, I guess it’s only appropriate that I post some critters that you see all over the city.

There they are – real New York City pigeons.  They come in different colors and everything.

Camera Critters is a fun weekend meme hosted by Misty Dawn.Visit the Camera Critters headquarters and join in. There are all kinds of great critters to see!

Friday, April 03, 2009

Get Spunk

For Cory's Economics class, they had to come up with a product and create a commercial for the product. This is the commercial for his group's product:



They presented it in class today and got 70/70 points. It's pretty fun to watch, and I know you're all going to want this product once you watch the commercial.

Bonus: you get to see Cory dance with a Green M&M!

Thursday, April 02, 2009

Looking at the Sky on Friday - 10

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For more info on this fun meme, click the image.

Our last day in New York, Sunday, we visited Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty.  Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate, and the New York skyline looked like this:

But we got to see the Statue of Liberty!

This was the day that the band was supposed to perform on Liberty Island, with the Statue in the background.  Because of the rain, they did not perform.  Even on a perfect day the logistics of getting all the instruments and equipment through security and on and off the ferry would have been quite interesting – to say the least.

If you enjoy skies as much as I do, be sure to check out Looking at the Sky on Friday.

Log Those Miles with BeeWell

I've been walking 2 miles every weekday morning since Cory was a baby. That's 16 years of walking. I haven't actually kept track of all my miles, but if I figure about 50 weeks at 10 miles each 16 years I get - a lot of miles! I should probably do the math, huh? One of these days.

I have been keeping track of my miles for about the last year on my LiveJournal. I got a new pair of walking shoes, and I wanted to keep track of the miles I walked in them. They've about reached the end of their life now, but they've served me well for 400 miles. (If I round to 400 miles per year for 16 years, I get 6400 miles - how's that for math?)

Today I signed up for BeeWell Miles , and I'm going to continue tracking my miles. Now it's for something even more important than knowing when it's time to replace the walking shoes. With BeeWell Miles, Bumble Bee Foods will donate $0.15/mile for every mile logged, up to $150,000. When more than 1 million miles are logged, Bumble Bee Foods will donate an additional $50,000, for a total of $200,000. Donations go to help Breast Cancer Network of Strength provide emotional support to those who can't wait for tomorrow's cure.

The campaign runs from 4/1/09-10/31/09, so it just started yesterday, and I've already logged my miles for yesterday and today. 60¢ gets donated for those miles, and by logging all my miles through the end of October, I can donate almost $2 per week. It may not sound like a lot, but I'm just one person. The more people who sign up for BeeWell Miles, the more miles that will get logged, and the more money that gets donated. Since Jeffrey started walking with me a little over a year ago (that's him in the picture) I ought to have him sign up and log his miles, too.

Besides being a great way to help other people, BeeWell Miles looks like a great way to get moving toward a healthier lifestyle. There are all kinds of resources on the site, like articles to help you get more benefits from walking or running, tips on eating well and making wise choices, community forums where you can meet and interact with other BeeWell members, and a great tool for calculating the mileage of your walking routes. So far that last one is the only one I've used. I found out that my route is actually 1.86 miles instead of actually 2 - but it still counts as 2 miles!

If you've been thinking about getting healthier, let BeeWell Miles help you. If you're already running or walking, why not log those miles and help make a difference for breast cancer NOW.

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