It turns out Bobby McFerrin was onto something . . .
British study says happiness may be contagious
Saturday, December 6, 2008
It IS About The Economy, Stupid.
Okay, maybe that's kind of a snarky title for a post about President-elect Barack Obama's Weekly Radio Address, but it fits, so I'm using it.
This week's address is all about the economy and how President-elect Obama will work to fix it. He's got some exciting ideas for job creation.
This week's address is all about the economy and how President-elect Obama will work to fix it. He's got some exciting ideas for job creation.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Happy Repeal Day!
That's right kids . . . today is the Diamond Anniversary of the repeal of the 18th Amendment by the ratification of the 21st Amendment!In English that means that today is the 75th anniversary of the end of Prohibition.
Of course, the only way to celebrate is with an appropriate cocktail.
Please drink responsibly. And by all means, do not drink and drive.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Barack Can Call Me Anytime And I Won't Hang Up On Him
This is hysterical to me. I love the fact that President-elect Obama had a sense of humor about being hung up on twice.
And it reminds me of an awesome scene from The American President. President Shepard and Sydney Ellen Wade have met earlier in the day and he's quite taken with her, so he attempts to call her up and invite her to attend a State Dinner as his date. She hangs up on him a couple of times, insisting it's a prank call. If I could have found a YouTube clip of it, I would have posted.
Fla. [GOP] congresswoman accidentally hangs up on Obama [twice]
by the Associated Press in the Daily Herald, December 4, 2008
MIAMI -- When a man sounding remarkably like President-elect Barack Obama called a Florida congresswoman Wednesday, she assumed it was a crank call.
So Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen hung up. But, the Miami Herald reports, this was no prank.
"I thought it was one of the radio stations in South Florida playing an incredible, elaborate, terrific prank on me," Ros-Lehtinen told the newspaper. "They got Fidel Castro to go along. They've gotten Hugo Chavez and others to fall for their tricks. I said, 'Oh, no, I won't be punked.'"
The call came about 1 p.m. Obama congratulated her on her re-election, saying he was looking forward to working with her as the ranking Republican member of the House Foreign Affairs committee, Ros-Lehtinen told the newspaper.
The conversation lasted about a minute when she cut Obama off, telling him she wasn't falling for the hoax and that he was a better impersonator than the guy on Saturday Night Live, she said.
Then Rahm Emanuel, Obama's chief of staff, called the congresswoman to tell her it wasn't a joke. But she hung up on him, too. It took a call from Rep. Howard Berman, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, to persuade Ros-Lehtinen that Obama really did want to talk to her.
When the two finally talked, Ros-Lehtinen said she and Obama had a good conversation and she congratulated him for his victory despite how hard she campaigned for his opponent, Sen. John McCain.
He didn't even blame her for mistaking him for a radio-station prank, she said.
"He laughed a lot, saying in Chicago they do it all the time," Ros-Lehtinen said. "He said, 'I don't blame you for being skeptical.'"
Repeated calls by The Associated Press to two office numbers for the congresswoman rang unanswered after hours Wednesday. An e-mail message to an Obama spokeswoman after hours wasn't immediately returned.
And it reminds me of an awesome scene from The American President. President Shepard and Sydney Ellen Wade have met earlier in the day and he's quite taken with her, so he attempts to call her up and invite her to attend a State Dinner as his date. She hangs up on him a couple of times, insisting it's a prank call. If I could have found a YouTube clip of it, I would have posted.
Fla. [GOP] congresswoman accidentally hangs up on Obama [twice]
by the Associated Press in the Daily Herald, December 4, 2008
MIAMI -- When a man sounding remarkably like President-elect Barack Obama called a Florida congresswoman Wednesday, she assumed it was a crank call.
So Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen hung up. But, the Miami Herald reports, this was no prank.
"I thought it was one of the radio stations in South Florida playing an incredible, elaborate, terrific prank on me," Ros-Lehtinen told the newspaper. "They got Fidel Castro to go along. They've gotten Hugo Chavez and others to fall for their tricks. I said, 'Oh, no, I won't be punked.'"
The call came about 1 p.m. Obama congratulated her on her re-election, saying he was looking forward to working with her as the ranking Republican member of the House Foreign Affairs committee, Ros-Lehtinen told the newspaper.
The conversation lasted about a minute when she cut Obama off, telling him she wasn't falling for the hoax and that he was a better impersonator than the guy on Saturday Night Live, she said.
Then Rahm Emanuel, Obama's chief of staff, called the congresswoman to tell her it wasn't a joke. But she hung up on him, too. It took a call from Rep. Howard Berman, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, to persuade Ros-Lehtinen that Obama really did want to talk to her.
When the two finally talked, Ros-Lehtinen said she and Obama had a good conversation and she congratulated him for his victory despite how hard she campaigned for his opponent, Sen. John McCain.
He didn't even blame her for mistaking him for a radio-station prank, she said.
"He laughed a lot, saying in Chicago they do it all the time," Ros-Lehtinen said. "He said, 'I don't blame you for being skeptical.'"
Repeated calls by The Associated Press to two office numbers for the congresswoman rang unanswered after hours Wednesday. An e-mail message to an Obama spokeswoman after hours wasn't immediately returned.
Thanks Prop 8 - The Musical
From the fine folks at FunnyorDie.com.
"Prop 8 - The Musical" stars many of your favorites including Jack Black, Allison Janney, Margaret Cho, Mya Rudolph, John C. Reilly, Neil Patrick Harris and more.
"Prop 8 - The Musical" stars many of your favorites including Jack Black, Allison Janney, Margaret Cho, Mya Rudolph, John C. Reilly, Neil Patrick Harris and more.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Public Service Announcement: Scam/Fraud Alert
I recently signed up to receive an email about crime in my town through Citizen Observer. I did this because of a rash of attacks against women while out running or walking in my neighborhood (sorry Mom, I know I didn't tell you about this, but you've got enough going on without worrying about this too!). What's really cool about Citizen Observer is that they work with many towns, so I encourage you to go look up your town.
Today I received the email below. While this scam was attempted in my town, it could easily have happened in any town, so I wanted to put you, my faithful readers, on alert. It sounds a lot like the Nigerian email scam, only this scam happened through the U.S. mail, which could make it a Federal crime.
Today I received the email below. While this scam was attempted in my town, it could easily have happened in any town, so I wanted to put you, my faithful readers, on alert. It sounds a lot like the Nigerian email scam, only this scam happened through the U.S. mail, which could make it a Federal crime.
Arlington Heights - Scam/Fraud Alert through the U.S. Mail
Arlington Heights resident received a suspicious check from Life Investors Insurance Company of America. The check was attached to a letter from Readers Digest explaining the resident was a prize winner and should cash the check before contacting one of the listed names on the letter. The resident called the number provided and spoke with a male subject who told them to cash the check and call back for further instructions. The resident contacted Readers Digest who advised that no letter or check was mailed. The check was never cashed and the incident was reported to the Arlington Heights Police Department.
Typically the offender will send a counterfeit check to the victim and make up some kind of story about where the money came from. The victim is told to cash the check and send a portion back to the offender for some service or processing fee. The bank eventually finds out the check is counterfeit and the victim is responsible for the amount cashed. The loss to the victim is the amount sent back to the offender.
There are numerous frauds/scams being used against unwary people. They all offer you some type of financial or personal gain that is too good to be true. Do not let yourself be caught in their traps.
Do You Get Snow in the Winter?
If you live in an area where you get snow in the winter, I have a favor to ask of you.
I would appreciate it if when you shovel or use your snow blower on your driveway and sidewalk, you could toss the snow onto your grass and not out into the street.
This may sound stupid and petty, but the thing is that when you shovel or blow your snow into the street, it can freeze and turn into black ice. Of course, I know that you know how dangerous black ice is and I'm certain you would never want anyone to get hurt when innocently driving past your home or turning into their driveway when the snow you blew into the street has frozen in front of their driveway.
In many communities it is actually against village code to shovel or blow snow into the street. But even if it's not, it's just not neighborly. In fact, it's downright mean.
So let's all join together this winter and pledge to shovel or blow the snow from our driveways and sidewalks onto the grass and not out into the street. Okay?
In fact, you can consider this act your Christmas gift to me. Thanks.
I would appreciate it if when you shovel or use your snow blower on your driveway and sidewalk, you could toss the snow onto your grass and not out into the street.
This may sound stupid and petty, but the thing is that when you shovel or blow your snow into the street, it can freeze and turn into black ice. Of course, I know that you know how dangerous black ice is and I'm certain you would never want anyone to get hurt when innocently driving past your home or turning into their driveway when the snow you blew into the street has frozen in front of their driveway.
In many communities it is actually against village code to shovel or blow snow into the street. But even if it's not, it's just not neighborly. In fact, it's downright mean.
So let's all join together this winter and pledge to shovel or blow the snow from our driveways and sidewalks onto the grass and not out into the street. Okay?
In fact, you can consider this act your Christmas gift to me. Thanks.
All Guys Need to Know About Love & Women They Can Learn From a 9-Year Old
I seriously love this story. This kid knows more about love and women at age 9 than most men in their 30s and 40s. How did he get so wise? He watched girls on the playground at recess.
Really guys, this kid knows his stuff.
Really guys, this kid knows his stuff.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Uno - The Best Christmas Gift Ever
I've previously discussed the Christmas my brother and I received our only Christmas gift (yep, just one apiece) from the local Giving Tree. After reading that post, my mom reminded me about a very important part of that Christmas. In addition to the individual gift Dave and I each received, we received a family gift.
That gift was the card game Uno. Just a simple deck of cards. Well, special cards. Uno can't be played with a regular deck. Back then, I bet a deck of Uno cards couldn't have cost more than $1. 26 years later, it only costs $3.99.
As a family, my mom, Dave, and I spent countless evenings sitting around the kitchen table playing Uno and talking. My mom reminded me that although we'd always come home from school and reply to the question of "what did you learn today" with "nothing," when we were playing Uno, Dave and I both opened up and that's how she always learned what was going on with us.
Uno isn't a complicated or fancy game. In fact, it's unbelievably simple. Maybe that was the beauty of it. Whatever it was, it brought our family many nights of fun together and kept our us together during some truly difficult and painful times.
All these years later, whenever I donate to the local Giving Tree at Christmas, I always pick up an Uno game. I hope it brings other families as much joy as it brought mine.
That gift was the card game Uno. Just a simple deck of cards. Well, special cards. Uno can't be played with a regular deck. Back then, I bet a deck of Uno cards couldn't have cost more than $1. 26 years later, it only costs $3.99.
As a family, my mom, Dave, and I spent countless evenings sitting around the kitchen table playing Uno and talking. My mom reminded me that although we'd always come home from school and reply to the question of "what did you learn today" with "nothing," when we were playing Uno, Dave and I both opened up and that's how she always learned what was going on with us.
Uno isn't a complicated or fancy game. In fact, it's unbelievably simple. Maybe that was the beauty of it. Whatever it was, it brought our family many nights of fun together and kept our us together during some truly difficult and painful times.
All these years later, whenever I donate to the local Giving Tree at Christmas, I always pick up an Uno game. I hope it brings other families as much joy as it brought mine.
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