No excuse for the weekend, but my real job co-worker (we’re now a department of 2!!) was out Friday and Monday. She came in yesterday, but left early. More news on the job front later.

I’m still fighting the computer restarting on it’s own. Usually when I’m right in the middle of something. At the same time, I’m revisiting using Chrome as my browser. What are your thoughts on chrome?

Now if I can just end my addiction to Cafe World. . .

I just want to know. There’s been some discussion about moving to Louisville, KY. and I would love to hear from those in the know. You know, to expand my knowledge beyond what I can learn on the intertubes.

I really need to know more than it’s home to the Kentucky Derby, Louisville Slugger Bat Co., and the U of L Cardinals.

The good news is my job. The company I work for has an office there, and what I do can be done just as easily there as here. So, what do you know that could help as I think about this move? Are there conservative bloggers there? Are there conservatives there? Inquiring minds want to know.

What a great morning. One that started last night.

I got a call when I was on my way home last night. Our one shared computer (two adults, three kids) had a blue screen pop up. Yes, the infamous blue screen of death. I got home and managed to get that to go away, but was faced with a system that would start and randomly restart on it’s own. Frequently.

I ran what diagnostics I could (while it was up) and could not find any identifiable problem. So, I went to plan “B”.

Almost a year ago I bought a computer at a yard sale for $25.00. The plan was to give that computer to the kids when I could get an extra $50 for a wireless card. Before that happened the monitor that came with it went belly up. You would think that plan B would be simply switching out the problem box with the other one. And that’s what I did, but of course there were a few issues. Issue number one is that the old (new) system came with — get ready for it — Windows ME. Yes, ME, the operating system Microsoft would rather the world forget. (On a side note, for the most part the world has pretty much complied with that wish. Still, I think MS may have entered into their deal with Yahoo to flush any remaining record down the memory hole.)

ME also means that I can choose between Firefox 1.0.6 and IE 6.0 for my browser.

There are a few other issues, like an iffy connection on the keyboard (you shouldn’t have to jiggle it so much or so often) and having so much information on my other hard drive. I did try adding the hard drive to the new system, but ME won’t recognize the NFTS portion of the drive.

So, unless someone(s) hit(s) the donation button pretty hard (it’s over there in the sidebar), or has a “real” computer they would like to send to a Florida retirement, posting will be even more iffy than it has been for the past few weeks. I didn’t think that was possible.

I’m opposed to the whole bailout, non-stimulus stimulus thing, but if there’s a cash for clunkers plan for computers I may have a few candidates.

I’ve been working on something for my High School senior class. It’s taken a bit longer than I had planned, but it’s been fun. If by some chance you know anyone who went to Glassboro High School (NJ) and graduated in 1974 send them to: http://ghs74.floridimagine.com

More in just a minute, but I wanted to throw these few quick thoughts out there.

Smoking update: Things are going pretty well here at the start of week two. I can’t say I’ve really had physical cravings for a cigarette, but I have had some “habit” cravings. What I mean by that, I am looking for a smoke at those times I habitually had one: With my morning coffee, starting the drive to work, after supper, etc. Surprisingly, I haven’t missed the ones I might be expected to miss, like when I take a break at work. What experience have you other quitters had? And, how long does it take for taste buds and sense of smell to come back?

(Yet Another) New Theme: I haven’t been able to leave the theme alone here lately. I do really like this one. I have to add/modify a few things, most importantly adding the Day by Day code. I promise I’ll have that working tonight. Do you like it? I just thought of something, are nested comments set up? I’ll have to go check.

For any of you who think that I have no style I am about to prove you wrong.

Me and Jackie

A friend posted this on his Facebook page. It is me and a very good friend Jackie going to either the prom or the Senior Dinner Dance. For those of you who weren’t even born when this picture was taken (1974), crushed blue velvet tuxes were very cool at the time. I just wish I could remember being that thin.

Jackie, it would be great to hear from you.

The rest of you may make snide comments now.

There are more things dropping on New Year’s Eve than the ball at Times Square in New York.

Website TripAdvisor (www.tripadvisor.com) has come up with a list of America’s top 10 quirkiest New Year’s Eve drops on advice of its editors and travelers. This list is not endorsed by Reuters.

“While New York City’s famous ball drop in Times Square is a spectacular sight, there are other uniquely wonderful ways Americans can ring in the New Year,” said TripAdvisor spokeswoman Michele Perry. “While they range from clever to wacky, it’s clear that New Year’s Eve is about celebrating traditions and enjoying the company of a crowd.”

What I found interesting was the smorgasbord of things being dropped around the country. You can find a 20-foot, 600-pound fiberglass walleye fish in Port Clinton, Ohio, an 18-foot sausage in Elmore, Ohio, a seven-and-a-half-foot edible bologna in Lebanon, Pa, a Gumbo Pot in New Orleans, a giant replica of a steamed red crab in Easton, Md, Cheese in Plymouth, Wisconson, and a three-foot tall, glowing pickle in Mount Olive, NC. If you want desert head to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania where they drop a 25-pound fiberglass illuminated Marshmallow Peep.

I’ve heard of some others not mentioned in the story. I believe Atlanta drops a giant peach and I’m sure that somewhere here in Florida someone drops a big orange. Know of any others? Let us know in the comments.

Or perhaps we can make some suggestions:
Philadelphia — A cheese steak, soft pretzel, or Tasty Cake™
Battle Creek, Michigan — A big bowl of breakfast cereal
Dallas — An effigy of Jerry Jones
Washington, DC — A huge sack of cash

Any others?

Even throwing a fair amount of money at a situation isn’t enough if it’s not enough money, so the day before Thanksgiving – my birthday – the house is dark. The problem, you see, is a series of large bills. The amount we need is $1178 (Correction, I just found out the amount is $778). We’re not even close. We were hoping that some money we’re expecting (but not confirmed) would be here by now. Obviously, it’s not.

Nothing hurts as much as coming to you again, but if you could. . .

Thank you all in advance.

Saturday morning Update: The amount is now right at $600. Thanks for all your help.

I thought the power would be the first to go. I guess throwing money at them almost daily has put that off. Not so with the internet. Our neighbor is letting us piggy back of theirs, but it’s iffy at best. A big thanks to those who have donated!

If you could drop something in we would really appreciate it.

I don’t want to go into details. Heck, I’d rather not write this at all. But if you could throw a little something on this donation button I would be very grateful. An unusually large (and way past due) electric bill and a series of small pay checks are a bad combination. I’ll let you know when the lights come back on.

For what ever you are able to do, Thanks.

And if you could spread the word, that would be appreciated too.

UPDATE: First of all thanks for those who have helped. It is appreciated more than I can express.

As you can see, today was not the day. I’ll try to put a few things in the pipe line tonight and in the morning.

Most days are entirely forgettable. We work, we sleep, we eat, and we play. We do the things that are part of our lives, important for the moment, but hardly memorable.

Other days hold special memories for us and our families. Births and deaths and other special events are recorded in our minds while going unnoticed by the rest of the world.

And then there are other days, days that are universally memorable. Days that you can replay in your mind like a flawless DVR. If you are old enough you can still “see” the events of the day JFK was assassinated and man’s first steps on the moon.

Today is one of those days. Three years ago I wrote:

I was living in South Carolina at the time in a town between Columbia and Charleston. I was rooming with an older couple, helping them out in exchange for room and board. The night before I had worked the closing shift at Sears and that morning I was sleeping in. I remember laying in bed, sort of hovering between sleep and waking when Hugh knocked on my door. “You need to come see this,” I remember him saying. In fact his first couple of exchanges are the only exact quotes I can remember from that day and those that followed. I lay in bed a while longer, not really wanting to get up yet, and thinking that Hugh was just engaging in his usual habit of pointing out things he thought I would be interested in.

I knew something different was happening when he knocked on my door again. Typically he would knock or say something once, and if I didn’t show any interest he’d leave it alone. Not that morning, “Somethings happened at one of the Twin Towers.” He hadn’t seen very much yet himself. Reluctantly I got up and made my way to the living room. News was just begining to filter in and Hugh was flipping channels trying to find out what exactly was going on. My first reaction was that some tragic accident had occurred. An act of terrorism hadn’t entered my mind. We watched those early reports together. I can still recall how stunned, numb, and disbelieving I was when the second plane was seen heading for the other tower. That is the visual image which is clearest in my mind.

Some days are memorable because they change our world, while other days are memorable because they change our world. September 11th, 2001 changed our world, our lives, and our future.

Even though blogging can be done for free, for most there are a few minimal expenses. If you have your own domain and hosting that’s going to cost a few dollars, and then there’s the cost of your internet access and computer.

There are a few ways to bring in a few dollars from your blog. Blogads is a great service (and one I wish someone would take advantage of here). But let me just say a quick word about . They are easy to use, easy to set up, and they do the work of both pricing and selling the ads. They payout through paypal on the first of every month.

They're not going to make you rich, or allow you to blog full-time, but they may just help you break even. And sometimes breaking even is a good thing.

(Full Disclosure: They even give you bonus for people who sign up for through a link on your site.)