Nov 18, 2011

Thanksgiving

Don't forget next week is Thanksgiving. Happy Thanksgiving to all.

PS - Here is a site for bacon wrapped turkey recipe.  LINK  Also, I read where some folks are beginning to add bacon and sausage to the stuffing for Turducken. Mmmm!

Who is Watching You

Each minute, 24 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube, and it is only one of many video sites. There are millions of photos uploaded to Facebook each month. Flicker has 5 Billion photos and there are hundreds of photo sites like it. Millions of people have iPhones and Androids with video and still cameras. Google Earth is constantly scanning the globe from satellite and you can actually zoom into a view of your own home. I found one site where you can compare pictures from today, side-by-side with the same location from many years ago.

There are many thousands of cameras in public places around the world. One site that I enjoy has a collection of cameras available from around the world and it has a search capability LINK. Earthcam has locations of cameras that you can watch what is going on in full detail, live, up-to-the-minute color, and in full screen. Get a view from the Statue of Liberty, or Trafalgar Square. Check out the ski conditions in Switzerland. How about a live view of Hong Kong, or Melbourne? There is even a camera to watch the penguins in Sarasota, Florida.

Dallas has hundreds of traffic cameras that you can click on and watch traffic and weather. If you know someone it going to work on I75, you can actually watch them drive all the way to work, using the many traffic cameras. You can even set up a list of personal cameras that you want to watch. If a spouse or friend calls and says there is an accident, you can check the cameras and tell them what happened. Of course, if they have their iPad, they can look it up themselves while they are at a dead standstill.

Be careful if you call and tell your boss you are stuck in traffic, he or she might just check the cameras to make sure you are telling the truth.

Planning a trip, check the weather and traffic cams set up in the city you are going to and get a close up look at weather and traffic conditions. Tie these together with Google Streetview and you can look up pictures of the building, neighborhood, or house you are looking for. If you are going on vacation almost anywhere in the world, let your family back home know where you will be and they can watch you on a local camera. Of course, you can just stream your own video from your phone.

It is fun, interesting, distracting, and a bit scary at the same time. Big brother, big sister, and their nieces and nephews, cousins, and neighbors are all watching. Smile, you are on camera!

Baconator Dumpling

Just saw this on the web, peanut butter baconator dumpling. Put a gob of peanut butter and some cooked chopped bacon in a potato dumpling and deep fry. Am searching to see if the cook is a long lost relative.

What's in a Name, Leotard

In 1859, twenty one year old Jules Leotard, made a public appearance as the world’s first flying trapeze artist. He was first to turn a somersault in mid-air and the first to jump from one trapeze to the next. He died at 28, likely from smallpox, typhoid, or cholera.
 
He also designed the eponymous piece of apparel for men. He called it a maillot, and the name leotard did not come into being until years after his death. The original leotard design was a skintight, one-piece garment with the lower portion resembling tights. Current designs do not have legs, but may be worn with tights. Unitards cover the torso and legs.

Jules had been practicing since he was a little boy. He would swing from a trapeze hanging over the swimming pool in his father’s gymnasium. The leotard is still worn by acrobats, dancers, skaters, and exercise enthusiasts throughout the world.

In 1867 George Leybourne wrote lyrics to the song "The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze" about Leotard,

iPad Apps

App is short for application and an application is a program or bunch of programs that make iPads and other computers do things. Here are a few interesting apps people have found for iPads, Playing piano LINK,  Play drums LINK, a review of ten book reading apps LINK, many are talking about Alice for the iPad, fast, but shows it well LINK, and finally, we find out if it will blend with a blendtec that is a favorite for teens LINK.

Nov 12, 2011

Unelectum All

I am so excited. It is official! My latest (45th) book "Unelectum All" is available on Amazon, Barnes, etc. The stores do not yet stock it, but it can be ordered at the counter. The title says it all. Obviously it is political and is packed with facts, figures, and quotes from some of the good, bad, and ugly politicians that we are responsible for voting into office. This is all tempered with my opinions and a bit humor thrown in. We can correct our errors next year by serving up our own form of term limits - not re-electing any incumbent from either party.

Amazon has the 'search inside' feature turned on, so you can take a peek before you buy a few dozen for Christmas gifts. LINK With each gift you make three people happy, the receiver, me, and yourself for being such a good person. Thanks!

Nov 9, 2011

Lady Godiva and Lady Gaga

It just occurred to me that we should send Lady Gaga to Washington and she can do for us what Lady Godiva did for Coventry. Hey, it worked before. I am sure Budweiser would lend her a horse. Then we could decide what to do with our tax money and eliminate the middlemen, who have not been doing a very good job lately.

Bad Guys Release Bad Guy

A Mexican member of online hacker group Anonymous was released by the Zetas drug cartel ahead of a threat by the Web group to expose details of the crime ring's activities. The kidnapped man was released ahead of a November 5 deadline set by Anonymous, after which it planned to divulge the Zetas' links to politicians and others.

The US released a video in which a masked individual claiming to be part of Anonymous had threatened to make some information public about the Zetas in retaliation for the kidnapping of one of his associates.

Salty Thoughts

Adding salt to water changes the boiling point and cooks food faster is a myth. You hear it repeated by home cooks and professional chefs, but any first year chemistry student knows how little salt affects the boiling point. You need to use at least an ounce of salt per quart of water to raise the temperature one degree. Of course, adding salt to your pasta water makes the resulting pasta tasty.

Other Uses for Wine

A nice glass of wine with dinner is always appreciated, but what happens when dinner is over and there is still wine in the bottle? We all know wine does not last forever, so here are a few tips to make use of the last bit of wine in the bottle. Pour leftover white wine onto grease and oil stains on garage floors and driveways, and the alcohol and acidity will help them dissipate.

Just like baking soda, wine can be used as a natural fruit and vegetable cleaner. The alcohol in the wine dissolves impurities on the surface, and according to a 2005 study by Mark Daeschel of Oregon State University, components in wine kill several types of foodborne pathogens like salmonella and E. coli.

Spoiled white wine is on its way to being vinegar, so naturally it works like a charm on dirty glass. Add a few tablespoons to a spray bottle of water, apply to windows and mirrors and wipe with a newspaper.

Nov 5, 2011

Happy Friday

We can be knowledgeable with other folk's knowledge, but we cannot be wise with other folk's wisdom.

I have some knowledge and wisdom to enjoy a Happy Friday!

Daylight Savings Time

It looks like we saved enough time this year. This weekend, at 2:00 AM on Sunday, November 6th, Daylight Savings Time will end, and revert back to Daylight Standard Time (turn your clock back to 1:00 AM). Actually, the debate is still raging, whether clock shifting is a benefit or curse. It seems to me that all the debate, clock changing, and missed appointments more than offsets the benefit. Am reminded of the Indian wise man who said that changing the clock was like cutting the bottom of a blanket off and sewing in on the top.  If you live in Arizona, Hawaii, or parts of Indiana, and other parts of the modern world, please disregard this message as you are smart enough not to believe in hobgoblins or time monsters.

Statue of Liberty

The Statue of Liberty, was presented to the American people by the French and unveiled in October 1886. The statue in New York Harbor is the work of French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi. He called it Liberty Enlightening the World.

Inscribed on a tablet inside the pedestal of ‘Miss Liberty’ is a poem by Emma Lazarus. It describes the statue of a woman holding a book and torch. The symbol of freedom, she waits for immigrants who must pass by her on their way to Ellis Island and admission to America.

“Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, with conquering limbs astride from land to land; here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand a mighty woman with a torch, whose flame is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command the air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame. Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp! cries she with silent lips. Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost [sic] to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

The 152-foot high statue, weighing 225 tons sits on Liberty Island. On August 3, 1957, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower changed the name from Bedloe’s Island to Liberty Island.

Freezing Candles

Candles will last almost twice as long if they are placed in the freezer for a day before using them. For some candles this will also cause them to drip less and burn straight down without burning through the side of the candle. If you have the kind in a glass, freezing them when done will make it easier to get the remaining wax out of the bottom.