My small percentage of genius...

Is not displayed by being able to write witty shorts.  But, I will attempt to keep you non-FBers more in the loop this way, if you want ♥ 

Emily started swim team last night, and she is adorable!  She does think that the coach was just trying to make them tired, and she was a little confused about that.  ;-)

The Grown-Up Dividend

Today I made a bone-head move of pulling a U-Turn in front of a police officer. Not such a big deal but I basically pulled away from the curb, across two lanes of traffic, a middle turn lane, and then into the other side of the street.

Had no idea that was illegal since the street was 100% empty of any and all traffic.

Well it is illegal. Can't UTurn from the curb.

So he pulled me over, checked my papers, and sent me on my way with a polite, respectful verbal warning.

Being 44 with the same (correct) address on all of my documents just got me out of a ticket Isurely would have received had I been a younger man (I am sure of ths because as a younger man I got LOTS of tickets).

So now my record is STILL clean and I didn't get a fine and my insurance doesn't go up like it would have if I had been young. And we all know young people pay higher rates because they are poor drivers.

Event thought I just made a young-person mistake.

As a grown-up.

I'll take it.

This needs to be saved here so we can look back and say ...

Comments to be added to Alex's post about cars.

The Things I've Done

My friend Leonie is right, of course. The way to become a writer is just start writing.

Do it Now, while the soup and bread is paid for. Later you won't have time to do the creative stuff during the daylight hours. Those hours will be needed to pay for the room & board. And it really will take awhile to become a good writer.

There are two techniques you need to master. The Outline & The Daydream.

The Outline is used to plot a story and leave a trail of breadcrumbs so you can come back later and finish/modify what you started to write...

The Daydream is used to fill in the blanks in the Outline.

There is another "trick" that will help you if you actually intend to be a writer. That is to buy a Dvorak keyboard and learn to use it. There really is very little controversy left in the world of typing ergonomics. Dvorak typists can type 200 words a minute without injury. The entire "Carpal Tunnel Syndrome" was invented to describe repetitive strain injuries that typists receive from using their qwerty keyboards. All computer operating systems now come with built-in support for the Dvorak keyboard.

It's $2.00 to try it out... Search for "Dvorak Keyboard" at eBay.com.

Here's the Wikipedia page, Dvorak_Simplified_Keyboard

I recommend you read this page. dvorak-keyboard

And here's something from someone at MIT Dvorak

Again, I spent $29.00 to buy a PC Keyboard with the keys in the Dvorak pattern (on eBay, though he doesn't seem to have any for sale right now.) The $2.00 stickers can be used for a trial, along with a simple set of changes to windows or Linux or Mac OS system software.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If I ever have to "grow up," what do I want to become?

Let's see, what have I done already?
Ceramics pourer for the largest Ceramics outlet in Northern California
high points include making a numbers matched German Luger (The place I worked was attached to a machine shop that specialized in making replacement parts for guns.)

Craft's Instructor at the YMCA
high points sculpting neat things...

Dishwasher at a bunch of places...
high points, free food.
low points, hard to get out of that lifestyle. People don't seem to think you can do more than that.

Gas Station Attendant
high points, One bright shiny day with a Cowgirl, naked on my lap in an empty house looking out the windows and making memories that, so far, have lasted for 44 years.
low points, It would be easy to become a criminal starting here.

Carny (Yes, I ran off and joined the Carnival.)
High points, Let's see if I can find it. I know i left it somewhere... Let me look around.

I remember when I was twenty-one, back when I was "Second Man on the Rock-O-Plane" for Blake and Sons, Concessions, life was like this... Fast and uncomplicated. Hour followed hour.

Some hours were spectacular, like when we escaped the midway for a couple of hours up in The Dalles (Sp?) Oregon. It's an area with a very twisty river running through it that has cut canyons about 8 feet deep in the floor of this flat plain. But the river twists back and forth, like a stream of syrup on a waffle... We stole away from the Carnival for a couple of hours in the afternoon to go swimming/skinny dipping in the Dalles... And when we got there there was this girl... We had a lot of good time. And later that night, after the Carnival closed, (in Oregon, back then, the show closed at Midnight.) After the Carnival closed at midnight we went over to the club where the girl danced. She was the Go-Go Dancer at this 'sort-of" Country Western Bar in Redlands, Washington... I can still close my eyes and see her fly around whenever I hear "I'm 'enery The Eighth I Am... 'enery The Eighth I Am... I Am... I got married to the widow next door, She's been married seven times before, and every one was an 'enery, She wouldn't have a Willy or a Sam, I'm her eighth old man I'm 'enery, 'enery The Eighth I Am...""

Low points, the show closes for Winter.

Payroll Clerk, The State of California
High points, First encounter with computers...
Low points, First female boss, and her menopause.

Night Counselor at The New Mexico School for the Deaf
High points, I love children
Low Points, Children with long term disabilities.

Manual Writer, The Zia Company
High points, Making six multi-media slide shows... Writing, Photographing, Scoring, Producing them.
Low points, one month writing the Response to the RFQ (Request For Quotation) for the new contract... Everyone I knew was expecting to be replaced and everything depended on what I wrote... Never again!

COBOL Programmer, The Zia Company
High points, Sit in cubical, writing code, fed through slot in door... My first experience with total isolation.
Low Points, having to attempt to modify code written by paranoid programmer who deliberately obfuscated the code so he couldn't be replaced. Then he left. He wasn't near as irreplaceable as he thought he was.

Computer Consultant,
High points, the salary...
Low points. Companies hire consultants when they are in trouble. Sometimes it is merely a "Time Crunch" on a project, but most times it is because they have a boss who can't keep employees. A boss who is nasty to his underlings. This is not a job for beginners.

The next 17 years I spent working at Los Alamos National Lab as what they call a "Computer Technician" because I didn't have a degree.
High points, I was part of CORRTEX. We saved the world and ended The Cold War. There were eight of us, I was the peon. Look it up. I forgot to mention going to NTS (i.e. Nevada Test Site) for three Nuclear Tests. Better than the California earthquakes on the sixth floor of that office building, though the building in California (Sacramento) was much scarier.
Low Points, Working in a University environment for Physicists. A Physicist can never admit that he doesn't know the correct answer. Physicists spend the first 30 years hiding from other people, "doing Physics," and then, to be able to afford to hire them, they are hired as the Boss. Imagine working for someone who hides from his employees.

Truck Driver
High points, Sunsets on I-40 headed west. Café Risqué in Lavonia, Georgia talking with "Sunshine" or "Sky" or "Jade"...
Low points, almost any time spent driving a 75 foot long 13 and a half foot tall rig in New York City or Chicago or New Orleans...

So, given those experiences, the best AND the worst times were "writing". And the way the world is changing nowadays where everyone thinks they can write, and they usually can't, so nobody actually gets paid to be a writer anymore, I suspect that the right career path is to join the Carnival and write novels all winter. Love a "townie" now and then, and never tell anybody your Social Security Number.

I almost forgot. The essential tool for becoming a "Writer" is The Careful-Writer

Here it is Used, but in Hardcover for sixty cents and four dollars shipping The Careful Writer (used)

Perhaps I could go back to school and learn to make movies like Worldclass-Movies
__________________
Dave

%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#
"Le uova non devono ballare con le pietre."
"Eggs have no business dancing with stones" from the movie "Shoot 'Em Up"
%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#%#

An early Parker

Matt, Parker, and BG

Ian & Curtis.

Hah!

So that's how it works.

Pink Peaches Photography: Super cute boy is on the blog.....here is Brannans...

Pink Peaches Photography: Super cute boy is on the blog.....here is Brannans...

SnaxSax November Sale

Hey all - wanted to let you know first that I just marked down all of my SnaxSax!  I have a bit of an overstock after my craft shows and thought I could pass on some savings!!  So ...  as Christmas shopping is upon us - I am having a November Sale!!!  

Check it out:

www.SnaxSax.com

Great gifts!!!  (for others or yourself)  :)  :)

Happy Holidays!!!

Sara

More Fuel for the Illegal Immigrant Fire

One of the problems with having flashes of enlightenment is that nagging feeling that associates with the light-- namely, "why didn't I think of this sooner?"

With the current US vs Arizona court case (re: AZ SB1070) working at a breakneck pace to come to a decision before July 29th, of course the major news media are publishing every possible angle on the story.

One angle is, as always, "Why break up families?" And I have to admit, as staunchly anti-illegal immigration as I am, I have always twinged a bit at the thought that the mother or father of a bona-fide US Citizen might be deported BACK to where they are legal residents of.

Man do I not like the idea of breaking up families. Of course, the illegals (they are illegally here) could always take the anchor baby home with them. That is one solution that certainly adheres to the "personal responsibility" I respect so much.

But you can't force a citizen to leave. (BTW, if you don't like that the anchor babies are citizens, tough. It's in the Constitution. Amend it.)

But it just hit me: I have heard more stories for decades along the lines of "they come here to work and they work really hard and they send money back to their family back in Mexico or El Salvador, etc."

Exactly.

Coming here, illegally or otherwise, is for the most part, an act of breaking up your family. Yes, the intentions are good. So what? Breaking the law and breaking a family are bad, no matter what the intentions are.

But, and this is a big but, I hold myself and America to a higher standard than just "well they did it so we can, too." I hold myself and America to the standard of "do what is RIGHT."

And what I believe is right is to allow the parents to take their US Citizen child home with them to their legal country of residence. Once there, the whole family can work to make their legal home better. A place that we would want our citizens to live. A place where they can prosper. And if anything happens to our citizen while there? We have laws and procedures in place for that.

And if they decide to leave the citizen here while they go back to their legal residence and get in line to come here legally?

Well we have lots of people in America that love to take care of children. Our citizens, even the poorest, enjoy a decent standard of living. And of course the US citizen child can travel freely between their US home and their parents legal residence until the parents get legal permission to come back, should they choose that over the option of improving their homeland.

And another note: if you worry that we are deporting people back to places that are unfit for them to live... remind them that God gave them the right to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

America's founding fathers, bless their eternal souls, believed in that truth so much so that they risked their property, their fortunes, and their to lives make it possible.

Dakota / Flirt / The Veronicas

The Press Release

What about this idea for a flat tax?

I just had an epiphany about taxation.

It has long been said that high marginal tax rates on the richest members of society will incentivise (sic) them to either leave the country, hide their income, or disencentivise them from earning that marginal next dollar.

So what would happen if we taxed the poorest of the country?

What about a $20,000 flat tax on everyone? What would that do? I can tell you that if you were earning $20,000 a year, you would be very highly incentivised to work a little more because it would all go to you, not the government!

Plus, if we were to let everyone know just where that $20,000 in taxes were going, what it was being spent on... wouldn't that create pressure among the masses for whom $20,000 is a lot of money, to try to economize? I honestly believe that those who consume a lot of taxpayer services rarely worry about the efficiency and value of those services. But if you foot the bill... then you start looking for bargains!

And what about the idea of taxation causing someone to "leave the country"? Is that true? If we taxed the poorest people, would they go somewhere else? Would they take their families to look for areas where taxation is lower? Maybe. I don't know. Would that be a bad thing? It is a free country, right? And I don't really hear too much complaining when wealthy people say they might move if the taxes are too high... its almost like those who are not wealthy are happy to hear that the wealthy among us are suffering.

Lastly... I hear frequently that the best way to reduce a behavior is to tax it. Makes sense. Want someone to stop driving an SUV? Tax the gasoline. Want them to stop smoking? Tax their cigs. So why do we tax the wealthy and the top earners? Are we trying to get them to stop? No.... because we need those people. Maybe we should tax poverty out of existance. If we start this year with a 50% tax on everything you earn below $40,000... that would be awesome incentive for people to earn more. How do you earn more? Well, to start with you could finish school. Go to college. Become a professional.

Would the poor have a lot of incentive to hide their money if the tax rate was so high as 50%? Yes, they would. But in this age of technology it should be impossible to hide money.

Besides, I've already posted about how to make more money, get free healthcare, and a free education... Join the army!

Another cost of illegal immigration

I don't know why this thought never occurred to me before but maybe the reason is because it is so simple and plainly obvious.

I hear stories about the "best and brightest" of other countries coming here illegally to get an education and a better life and whatever other reason they come here.

Some newspaper articles point out that these people are future doctors and lawyers to make sure I don't think of them as unworthy (nice bit of attitude manipulation there!)

What just occurred to me is the undeniable fact that if these wonderful people stayed in their own country and worked that hard, they would be the best and brightest in their own country and they would raise their own country.

If illegals are willing to break our laws (and there is no argument that this is exactly what they are doing) and learn a new language and suffer the distance from family... wouldn't all of that energy be so much better spent in their own country to make it better from the inside?

Amazingly, by simply stating that smart people in other countries should stay there and try to work to improve their country, I am going to be seen by some people as the bad guy.

I Know How The Afterlife Works

Its very simple. "The afterlife", whatever that is, should be a fair and straightforward way to reward those who were good and punish those who were not.

I also believe that, once you are part of the afterlife, there should be opportunities for you to grow and learn and possibly even earn a better and better afterlife for yourself.

BUT, if you are not one of those who should be rewarded, and you are not one of those who grows, then your experience in the afterlife (it stands to reason), will be a very negative one.

But even that doesn't seem so straightforward, because if you deserve punishment, who hands it out? Does God? Seems unfair to make a kind and loving God punish anyone. So who do you give that job to, without putting someone fair and honest into the unenviable position of having to dish out punishment for those who deserve it. Sounds like a terrible job for a fair person or deity.

So here is my very simple afterlife equation.

The afterlife should be an opportunity for a person to drive themselves around as a passenger on an eternal road-trip.

That way, if you are a good and kind and understanding person, you will be taxiing around a good and kind and understanding person.

And if you are an asshole, you will be the chauffeur of an asshole.

More than that, if you are the type of person who complains about everything, you will hear nothing but complaints.

If you are a praise-giver, you will hear nothing but kind words of encouragement.

Following the plan literally, you will be your own passenger, driver, and back-seat driver. You will reward and punish yourself with your own spirit, soul, and demeanor.

You will spend an eternity treating yourself the way you treat others. Good for good, bad for bad, helpful and tolerant for peace and love... you get the picture.

And what if, after some eons of living with oneself, a spirit begins to grow toward the rewards and the fairness and love? Then your growth is immediate for you will instantly find yourself in the company of a spirit that is, likewise, better and nicer, and more lovely than before.

It has been said a million times "put yourself in someone else's shoes".

Maybe you ought to put yourself in your own shoes.

And don't wait until you are dead to do it.

KotaHollywood on YouTube

For anyone who cares, there is another, um, more private (if there is such a thing???) YouTube channel that Kota/Copa/Dota/Dakota has been posting at. There are some wicekdly funny videos on there as well as some absolutely beautiful performances of hers. Mostly, it is Kota getting full value out of her little Mac Book. I HIGHLY recommend that kids get Mac Books.

Sara and Alex, I think your kids will find some vids on the channel that they like:
http://www.youtube.com/user/KotaHollywood

Check this out:



She recorded multiple takes and layers of her own voice accompanying David Archuleta and, in a sense, remade the song. Not really a remix, but a very cool customized version.

Peace and Love,

Eric

I'm Calling A Bottom - DJIA 8100 to 8200

First caveat: there will be a few hundred points of volatility in the DOW 30 for the next few weeks but I'm calling this as the bottom. The DJIA closed in the 8200's today and I feel like we're done selling. Maybe get as low as 8,000 but I think what we are witnessing is a bottoming process.

I am hearing from radio / TV that they are calling this the Obama Recession because people are selling stocks, etc., to avoid increased capital gains taxes.

I don't buy that. Yes, there are anectdotes about that but there's also anectdotes about people seeing flying saucers. I think we had a huge pop in the bubble, the economy is in the tank, financial companies are laying off like crazy and the stock market is as low as it's gonna get, plus or minus a couple percent.

So, I honestly think you're pretty safe to start buying or adding to your diversified, well managed mutual funds at this point.

Would I buy individual stocks? Not too many of them. LOTS of risk still exists that GM or Ford may go BK. However, if you buy diversified portfolios, you should be okay. Try to buy American if you're going to buy based on this recommendation.

Finance

I'm looking at taking a big chunk of my Financial Aid check from January and sticking it in a short term CD (like 6 months) so that way this summer when I am studying for the bar exam it will mature, and almost more importantly: Megan and I will not be able to touch it before then. <-- is this a stupid idea with the interest rate being so low right now?

I'm looking for virtually NO risk (the kind of risk that means if I lose that money the USA has bigger things to worry about). I'd love to put $$ into a mutual fund and see it double in that time (like if prices bounced back to what they were 5 months ago), but I'd hate to get to June and have it be worth half as much as if I had just put it under my matress (as Megan's mutual fund has done in the last few months).

The Logic of a 6 year old:

So, this was just a joke that was forwarded to me, but I knew all you would like it... unfortunately they don't point out that fiscal responsibility can be achieved in other ways than selling your soul:

I was talking to a friend of mine's little girl, and she said she wanted to be President some day.

Both of her parents, liberal Democrats, 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 houses to all the homeless people.'

'Wow - what a worthy goal.' I told her, 'you don't have to wait until you're President to do that. You can come over to my house and mow, 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 a new house.'

She thought that over for a few seconds 'cause she's only 6. And while her Mom glared at me, 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?'

And I said, 'Welcome to the Republican Party.' Her folks still aren't talking to me.

First day of School

Today is the first day of classes at StMU Law, which subsequently means that today was little Miss Parker's first day at school too.

Megan and I dropped her off at 7am this morning and her teacher/caretaker Diane was very nice and there was only one other little boy named London there when we left. They may have 4 infants under supervision, or 2 people can supervise 10, but the classroom I think only has capacity of 8. I may be wrong.

Parker will stay in this room until she is 6 months or self-propelled, whichever comes first, then to a room with all the 6-12 months.

I almost made it all the way to the car before I broke down.

The Law of Big Numbers - eg., Cars

Here in California we listen very intently on what might be coming down the road re: automobiles. Like all of America, we love our cars. We bought so may hybrids that the car pool lanes are clogged with them. We are one of the lead testing grounds for electric only cars. Likewise for the fuell cell hydrogen cars.

The argument is that if we take those fossil-fuel cars off the road, then roughly HALF of the global warming gasses will go with them.

Sounds great on paper. This is what I wondered: take hydrogen fuel cell cars, for example. Estimates in America point to 125 Million to 150 Million cars on the road, here in the USA. Fuel cell cars supposedly only have water vapor, droplets, whatever, as an exhaust. Okay, what is going to happen to the atmosphere with 150 Million cars spewing water vapor into the atmosphere? I'm guessing there will be places with high humidity that have never seen humidity before. Maybe more cloudy days? Wet streets? Seriously, I'm wondering if anyone has stopped to think that soon enough, water vapor will start to become some kind of runaway pollutant.

And about electric cars. My house is on the electric grid. If me, and all my neighbors, had electric cars and we al charged them from home, wouldn't we need increased capacity to get that electricity to the house? Would the utility co's have to come out and put in new cables? Or would we just smoke the system that is here? And what happens when California's notoriously sketchy grid goes down? That's a lot of demand for electricity (which, btw, isn't growing on trees).

I'm not saying that we shouldn't move forward. I'm just wondering if 150 Million "solutions" won't cause their own kind of problems.

Eric
(author's note: at the time of this writing I have a Prius and, while it is a great car, it's not for everyone. There's no way you could replace a work truck with a Prius).

Battle

Here's a little claymation that Beth and I put together while we were in San Fransisco at Zeum. Justin edited the clip, adding the title and sound. Check it out and let me know what you think. We hurried through it and wish we would have had a little more time, so it's a little rough around the edges.

The F Word - the last word you want to hear!

Preview an EP coming out August 15th that seriously starts off with a song called "F Word", then goes on to "Materialistic" by a debut SoCal girl Dakota Wade. The article gives her story and makes sense of the F WORD song.

read more | digg story

1952 Vincent Black Lightning

Posted by Eric for DAVE WADE

If you wanta ride a Motorcycle, you've got to know about the old days... What it really meant to be a motorcycle type guy. Nowadays, it's like Ham Radio, anybody can walk into the local dealership and walk off with a Big Red Ducati. For about a mile or so, they will be king of the world. Then they die.



1952 Vincent Black Lightning (((CLICK HERE FOR ORIGINAL POST, Quoted Below)))

created by ideath, Wed Oct 02 2002 at 16:36:38

One sign of a great song is when it is has been successfully performed in multiple musical genres. "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" is one such song.

Richard Thompson wrote this song, and it he recorded it on Rumor and Sigh in 1991. Thompson is an English singer-songwriter known for his days with the groundbreaking folk-rock band Fairport Convention and for the duo albums he recorded with his then-wife Linda. His recording of "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" falls into that same category and the recording is a prime example of the artistic style that is Richard Thompson.

A couple other singer-songwriter and folkie types covered the song in the mid 1990s, but things changed in 2001 when the premiere bluegrass unit performing today, the Del McCoury Band, put this on their record Del and the Boys. Rob McCoury's banjo kicks off the tune, and Jason Carter's mournful fiddle provides musical contrast, portraying both the celebration and sorrow inherent in the story. Del, who was 62 years of age when he made this recording, sings like he really did used to ride around like James Dean picking up up leather-clad redheads. If folks didn't know any better, the Del McCoury Band could make them believe Thompson wrote this as a bluegrass song.

The McCourys did make one change to the lyrics. Thompson sang about riding to Boxhill which is in Surrey near Dorking. Del replaces that with Knoxville, a city in Tennessee.

Since Del and the Boys came out, the bluegrass community has been clamoring for this song everywhere Del goes. He's performed it on a PBS bluegrass special, on Austin City Limits, and it has been featured in the Down from the Mountain tour. Del has been recording since 1963 when he joined Bill Monroe, and it appears that nearly 40 years later he has finally found a signature song penned by an English folk-rocker. With its newfound audience, I wouldn't be surprised to hear this song performed at every bluegrass festival held over the next few years.

Yet none of this takes away from Thompson's own performance. For the past decade he has sung this at many of his appearances, and it is a quintessential Richard Thompson song. But the way the song is at home in more than one genre shows just how great "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" is.

Richard Thompson

1952 Vincent Black Lightning lyrics

Said Red Molly to James that's a fine motorbike
A girl could feel special on any such like
Said James to Red Molly, my hat's off to you
It's a Vincent Black Lightning, 1952
And I've seen you at the corners and cafes it seems
Red hair and black leather, my favourite colour scheme
And he pulled her on behind
And down to Boxhill they did ride

Said James to Red Molly, here's a ring for your right hand
But I'll tell you in earnest I'm a dangerous man
I've fought with the law since I was seventeen
I robbed many a man to get my Vincent machine
Now I'm 21 years, I might make 22
And I don't mind dying, but for the love of you
And if fate should break my stride
Then I'll give you my Vincent to ride

Come down, come down, Red Molly, called Sergeant McRae
For they've taken young James Adie for armed robbery
Shotgun blast hit his chest, left nothing inside
Oh, come down, Red Molly to his dying bedside
When she came to the hospital, there wasn't much left
He was running out of road, he was running out of breath
But he smiled to see her cry
And said I'll give you my Vincent to ride

Says James, in my opinion, there's nothing in this world
Beats a 52 Vincent and a red headed girl
Now Nortons and Indians and Greeveses won't do
They don't have a soul like a Vincent 52
He reached for her hand and he slipped her the keys
He said I've got no further use for these
I see angels on Ariels in leather and chrome
Swooping down from heaven to carry me home
And he gave her one last kiss and died
And he gave her his Vincent to ride

The Hype Machine, Free Music, Pandora

I just discovered a new (for me) blog consolidator calle The Hype Machine.

I love music and The Hype Machine scours blogs for music and puts samples and links of stuff you may never hear otherwise. Wow, is there some cool stuff out there that you'll likely not come across anywhere else.

Here's one hot little number called Autumn Love by ELECTRA (link will play an mp3). Alex, you will like the chill sound and it's like a beautiful quilt of samples.

Check it out when you can.

Oh, and if you're not familiar with PANDORA then you're missing something, there, too.

Eric

Fame and Fortunes

Ana just found and played some old VHS tapes from our earlier years.

In hers, she's on The Dating Game. Pretty cute in her LA Aztecs cheerleader outfit!

In mine, I'm being interviewed a few times by Channel 7 in ABQ about stock deals and announcements. Kinda funny that I've lived such a rich life that I completely, 100% FORGOT about ever having been on the evening news. Let alone at least three times that we have tape for.

Keep track of how cool you are because really, I had forgotten a cool little memory!

Eric

Keeping the Harley Thing Going

So I couldn't figure out how to post a picture to the comment section, so I started this article so I could put up this picture.

This is my father in law on the Harley that he won from a high school booster raffle. $100 tickets, and he played once a year for 6 years, so a $600 Harley Softail Fatboy (he's going to paint it once the warrantee runs in a few months). Anyways, I wanted to put that out there to explain why I was at a Harley store this weekend, because he was in town and wanted to go get some gear. while there I actually saw a lot of good looking bikes...

Check out some more here

Anyways, from the video dad posted I couldn't tell which bike he was talking about since there were quite a few models.

Also, don't write off Harley until you take a closer look at the Buells:

"Harmful" Water Bottles???

This isn't exactly the same question as what Megan asked about the baby bottles, but maybe similar.

I try to drink a lot of water. I try to drink it out of my marvelous BRITA whenever I can.

Which means I'm perpetually looking for something to HOLD the water in. Being the cheap bastidge that I am, I like to use plastic water bottles a few times. Not until they're gross, mind you, but maybe twice or three times.

And then someone tells me that there's research that says "Do Not ReUse Water Bottles"

DIRECTLY contradicting the "reduce, reuse, recycle" stuff I'm a big fan of. Something about the plastics can be carcinogenenic once they're used so just recycle them. According to the Plastics Council of Greater Muskogee or something official like that.

Scared me right off reusing those things.

For a while. Now I'm STEAMED. I think I've been had, but I only have logic on my side. If those water bottles are so dangerous, why are we using them at all??? If they're gonna kill me after one use, shouldn't we be considering them weapons?

I'm thinking that this is a bunch of bunk science aimed at keeping water drinkers like myself from shaving 99.999% off the cost of that second bottle of water by reusing a perfectly good container.

(What's really sad in all of this is that I think I've developed a small, nagging habit of questioning Corporate America. Great. Next I'll be getting hemp britches and a compost heap.)

Eric

Something New and Cool

I read a cool blog called "The Stalwart" with an interesting article today.

HERE

So I signed up at identi.ca

And I think you, can, too. I haven't figured out WHY you would, but as soon as I do, I'll let you know. There seems to be a bit of "all of the -1*cool people are doing it" - you know, those cutting edge for cutting edge's sake people. Some kind of microblogging thing like twitter (which I totall missed the cool wave on that one) but identi.ca is open source and, therefore, better than twitter. (or so the -1*cool people say).

What is important about this is that LITERALLY TODAY (I know!) I was thinking to myself, well, looks like I've plum run out of internet. I was sad.

Now I can be amused by identi.ca for an hour or so and try really really hard to find the value proposition.

I'll keep you posted.

In the mean time, what are YOU reading?

Eric

Keeping The Harley Thing Going

(Dad) tried to post this to the Harley thread, but it said that tags are not allowed.



This is the only Harley model that I (Dad) actually think is pretty. (It's a '50s thing...)

When they get going with pictures of "Night Trains" from around the country, I recognized Thunderbird Harley in Albuquerque and Bleu Bayou Harley in Monroe Louisiana, and the place in Stockton, Ca.

Don't Give Up On California

Last week we went to Dakota's choir banquet. She was awarded "Outstanding Sophomore" so we were very proud. As you all know, she works very, very hard with her music. She is also taking piano and she fronts two bands, one of which has been invited to be the "house band" for the prestigious School of Performing Arts that she takes her piano lessons at. So we're very proud.

But that's not the only thing I'm proud of that night.

While we were there, the band also got their awards. At one point, they invited a US Marine Sgt. up to award two band members an award for their musical abilities. The crowd cheered when the Marine came up, then gave a speech about just how important music is to the Marines. Then he gave the awards, and when he was done, (he must have sensed he was in a friendly crowd) he said "and I'll be at the back of the room if you think you have what it takes to be in the marines band" and half the people laughed andthe other half cheered.

You might remember that as of this writing, I live in California. Not Texas. Not Ohio. California. I was very happy that this little sliver of SoCal hasn't turned too blue to cheer for a Marine.

I was even more happy to hear the Choir Director, Robert Henthorn, announce Dakota's award by saying "this isn't going to surprise very many of you..."

Rockin' In L.A.

That's right, you heard me. ROCKIN IN L.A.

Check out the rocker girl. One step short of punk, eh?

Dakota wrote the lyrics, her bandmates Dylan, Cole, McKenzie, and Chris = "Silver Lining" came up with the music (aside from the obviously recognizable "tribute" parts, of course).

If you've got broadband you can watch it here:
Rockin' In L.A.

401K vs. IRA

Matt asked me recently which was better, a 401K or an IRA.

I wanted to answer it here in case future readers wanted to know...

It's a good question but in some ways it's like asking whether a pickup truck is better than a sedan. The answer is: it depends.

In a nutshell: 401k's are usually associated with your employer. The account is YOURS and the assets are yours, but the plan itself is usually (and by usually I mean I can't think of one that is not) attached to work. Moreover, since each company's plan can have many different features, you may have trouble getting to your money in case of emergency. Some plans allow loans, some don't. On the other hand, some employers "match" a portion of your contribution as a way to 1) help you retire and 2) incentivize you to participate and 3) allow them to admit high-dollar earners into the plan without it getting too top heavy. This is important to Wades because during this generation, the Wade Family is literally shifting into the "high earner" category of any organization we are associated with.

IRA's on the other hand, are your Individual account. You can consider it a savings account with perks. You can open one virtually anywhere, including a bank or a credit union or a mutual fund company or a brokerage. The IRA holds liquid assets such as cash, money market funds, certain bonds, stocks, etc. Fancy IRA services can even hold the deeds to real estate and other real properties. As this is YOUR account that you set up independent of your employer, you can do anything you want with it. There are restrictions, of course, but getting money out is up to you (and the penalties and the taxes, but NOT a company telling you what you can and can't do.)

Other significant differences:
ASSETS: Ira's are VERY flexible. 401k's are usually pretty limited to a dozen or even fewer investments, and they are almost always mutual funds.
My single most critically important piece of advice for investing in a 401K - make damn sure the funds they are selling you are exchange traded or NASDAQ funds. Do not ever ever ever buy a fund that you can't track in the newspaper or online at www.bigcharts.com

OWNERSHIP: An IRA is yours yours yours. A 401K is yours but in the caring hands of your employer until you quit. It is rare, but there have been cases of employers neglecting to actually send in the checks to fund the 401k. Sadly, this usually happens with crappy companies and so when you lose your job is when you find out that the CFO absconded with the cash. And, they might have even put you in fake funds (see above). Again, this is very very rare.

CONTRIBUTIONS: IRA's can be pretty limited as to how much you can put in them, like a few thousand bucks a year. This is to keep Ross Perot from eliminating that last few percent of income taxes that he hasn't been able to get rid of. 401ks, on the other hand, are designed for active income earners (workers) and therefore allow you to shield a lot more from taxes (like $15 or $16 thousand a year). And, the contribution you make from your paycheck is pre-tax dollars which reduces your drag through the year.

MATCHING: 401ks have it all over IRA's here. When your employer matches a percentage of your contribution, it is literally FREE MONEY. My employer matches 4%, which isn't bad. Some employers are even more generous. This match might have a vesting schedule, but still... free money is nice.

In general, I've always felt that if you are offered a 401k, go with that first unless it is absolutely draconian with its rules and sketchy. And you can ask me about that.

There's a lot more to think about, like when is an IRA contribution tax deductible and what about when it is time to retire, but we can cover that another time.

BPA - what is the deal?

Ok so I was hearing from folks that I needed to add my breastfeeding "needs" to our registry. So I go online and not only do I immediately become overwhelmed with the many choices of pumps, bottles, feeding systems, etc. I also start reading reviews about the "BPA Scare".

To be honest I never heard about BPA and I immediately start looking up info about it and find that it is a chemical some find safe and some claim is completely harmful, specifically to the unborn and newborn child! It is found on can liners, plastic bottles, and more. While some claim it is a naturally occurring chemical resembling estrogen and is nothing to be worried about, the website i looked at claims that it causes increase chance or cancers, hyperactivity, and can hamper, halt or disrupt reproductive development and brain development.

Basically I am freaking out. I thought the hardest thing I would have to do this evening was figure out which system would be best for breast/bottle feedings, which by the way I am still clueless about! Instead I find myself increasingly worried about this. Did I drink from my Nalgene bottle too much, have I made sure I hand washed the plastic and not dish washed? Did I eat too many canned soups? Have I increased the chance for my child to develop cancer or diabetes (also suggested by the website)?

I realize there are more than enough things to scare a person about if you think on it hard enough, but should I worry? My doctor never mentioned it, so is it worth freaking out about?

I need some advise/comfort from the more experienced!

Scary

ok.... If you think that Google is everywhere, you gotta try this first:

Street View


they have it in parts of LA, Most of San Antonio, nothing in ABQ yet. MKE and CHI both have parts too.

Go to google maps and zoom in on my address, then click street view and you can do a virtual drive by.

There was a article in the paper here the other day, because some lady did that for her own home and both of her cars were in the driveway and she could read the license plate numbers!

Come Check me out at: http://parkerwade.blogspot.com/

DJ Tiesto Remix - Touch Me by Rui da Silva

This is something I love. It's a 2001 song / remix, but worth posting. Unfortunately the video is juston epic, but the music is cool. For those who don't know, DJ Tiesto is known by other DJs as the Best DJ in the WORLD.

I hope you like it as much as I do.

Curiosity, Seth Godin, Nic Askew

Nic Askew created this little film, an interview with Seth Godin.

I felt a connection with the message.



Here's an interesting statement, maybe a bit imperfect quote, but the message is there: "the richest, best educated people are the ones who have turned off their TV."

Beth bball

Hollywood

Newport

Laguna

Happy Holidays

Last night Dakota had a High School Choir function for us to go and watch. For her solo she performed The Carpenter's "Merry Christmas Darling" and it was so beautiful it brought tears to Ana's eyes and beams of pride from mine. I think we're going to YouTube it so I'll let you know if we do.

THere were other beautiful singers there, including a girl with a wonderful voice who, from her wheelchair, brought tears to everyone's eyes.

Pretty cool reminder to look for something to be happy about.

I love you all and wish you the best for the holidays,

Eric

Beautiful, no matter how far away I get.

I still love the Jemez Mountains. I still love the Indian Bread made by Indians or Native Americans or Jemez Pueblo dwellers. Remember that big round loaf of white bread, shaped like a kiva oven? Yeah, that's my favorite. Dipped in red chile.

I have to say I am very happy with the intelligent disussions legacy we are building here. Hopefully these conversations will stick around as long as my Enchantment for New Mexico.

And who knows, maybe in time I'll be able to fully understand what Alex is saying :^)

Eric

When you have a minute to think really hard...

Someday we'll know how all this stuff works at some metaphysical level.

I'm watching Dakota, actually listening now, while I type this in a separate window.

A while ago, as a younger man with a more agile brain, I became convinced that life is a tapestry of sorts, and that each of us is a thread through time, and that part of 'heaven' will be stepping back far enough to see how our thread was woven into the tapestry. I figure that friends and relatives and coworkers will be threads we were woven with to form some pitcure that would mean something to the higher power. Whether woven by the higher power or what, who knows. Different topic, different day.

Today I'm sitting here and my brain just broke through another wall. Over the last month I've added the new Linkin Park song, the new Public Enemy song, and especially the new Sixx A.M. song to the high frequency rotation in my mind. I realized the other day that the Sixx A.M. song Life is Beautiful was playing continuously in my head.

So the breakthrough moment is this: When I watch Dakota's video / listen to her song, she bridged a gap between "external thought being made internal" and "reality." In other words - LP, PE, and Sixx A.M. don't exist to me except as I allow them to exist in my mind. (No offense, guys.) I create a space for them in my mind. As such, the thread of me in the tapestry doesn't necessarily change or interact with anything else by virtue of my experience of those songs. My thread might change colors as I change from a LP to PE mood, but that's abouot it.

Here's the mind-expansion moment: What if that's not true? What if, like I feel closer to Dakota by virtue of watching her video (and thus presume her thread and my thread are somehow interacting in this tapestry), what if I actually am interacting with the others when I experience them? Does their thread actually move to interact with me by virtue of my thoughts? Or am I creating threads that are somehow part me, part LP?

Perhaps that's the value of the time after death wherein we see the tapestry, seeing the threads attributed to you that you never even knew were there. I anticipated seeing pictures I was part of that I didn't know, whether the damage done by choices made, such as on the freeway when I blow by someone and he fumes at me and spills his coffee and misses the interview and loses his house and so on, or friends who remembered me long after we stopped talking, or whatever.

The next logical step is, what if the thread of me changes in additional dimensions? The tapestry may become three dimensional, instead of just a flat, perhaps really wide and long, tapestry, what if there are layers to it? The upper layers are our spirit / soul, the lower layers are dreams, the middle layers are where the meat I lived in actually was...? Imagine seeing yourself as a want that your parents had before you were born, or seeing your influence on the world after you passed on. And, obviously, the interaction of my thread with Dakota's thread and LP's thread may be at different levels than just the "real world" or meatspace thread.

What I need to know is: Do people know what it happening to their thread in real time? Are there levels of transcendancy that allow you to see the tapestry before you die?

I don't know much. What I know is confusing. What I believe is dynamic. Don't try to run your life or save your soul with my musings.

Here's three things I absolutely know:
1. The Sun will set on you. (Linkin Park)
2. It's Harder than you think. (Public Enemy)
3. Life is beautiful. (Sixx A.M.)
And one I think is true and await the proof:
4. I'm stuck on you. (Dakota)

An Early Moment in "Proud Papa" Development

Having trouble keeping up with the videos of Dakota since she does so much... put up a Youtube Page for her.

Here is a video of our rising star... before she started rising :^)

The Cult

Did we all know that The Cult has a new album out? I like Dirty Little Rock Star so far, but I am not done listening...

http://www.myspace.com/cultmusic

It came out on Matt's birthday!

A Little Movie for Halloween

Starring - Matt Wade!

Actually, if you want to be able to leave a 5-Star rating for it and maybe a snappy comment, then go to XYZfear on YouTube and watch the movie there.

We also have it on GOOGLE VIDEO and could use some high ranikings there, too.

What I don't understand about Evolution

I'm a pretty big fan of Charles Darwin (especially his awards show) and his theory of natural selection. (IIRC it is his Theory of Natural Selection that evolutionists use to bolster their case, but the theory of evolution is not specifically due to Darwin. Correct me if I'm wrong.)

In any event, I was watching a fascinating show called Planet Earth which I highly recommend if you can find it. (Below is an example of the sights you'll see on Planet Earth, but it is a home-made video from some fan of the show so the music is not part of the show).





One episode was about shallow water and they talked about a salamander in Japan (Dragon Salamander???) that was like 2 meters long. That's big. They explained that the salamander has poor eyesight and lives in murky, cold water, so it has developed (through evolution and natural selection) this phenomenal electrical impulse-measuring system that allows it to sense other prey (fish) as they come near based on the infinitely small electrical pulses the fish give off simply by being not dead.

Wow! That seems like a VERY HANDY adaptation that makes a lot of sense.

Except, why didn't the salamanders also evolve into salamanders with good eyesight? Its very confusing to me, if the salamanders did, indeed, evolve, why did only the most esoteric and one-purpose trait get better? Isn't good eyesight the least bit valuable?

Sheesh... very confusing to me.

Bringin' The Noise

I hope Alex isn't the only one who recognizes the title but I wouldn't be s'prized if he was. I want to share with you a 2007 release by Public Enemy called "Harder Than You Think" on their own label. Yes, it's that Public Enemy and they are ROCKIN on this song. Give it a minute and then listen up. Chuck D raps about the current state of the Hip Hop culture and blasts it out in a way that proves he deserves his spot in History, but even better, the tune is catchy.

If it wasn't for me playin you this, would you have ever heard it? Unlikely. I hope you like it and I hope you comment.

Oh, and by the way, here's a worthy diversion. BLOGGER PLAY

It's a real-time slide show of all the user pics being uploaded to various Blogger blogs.

Eric

Here's Something I Don't Understand about Bass

I love listening to music. For a while I've been trying to decide if I like the little ear-bud headphones, over-the-ear headphones, or big speakers better.

And I realized that big speakers make music that you can feel in your whole body. So how do those ear-bud things do that? When I listen to ear-buds, it doesn't SEEM like something is missing.

Now I'm confused. Does the body compensate for no real bass with fake bass stimuli or something??

Eric Wade's HealthCare Solution, with BONUSES

Here is Eric Wade's On The Record HealthCare Coverage Solution.

There will be an extraordinary amount of coverage and debate in the next few months / years about HealthCare. Who has it. Who doesn't. Who should pay for it. Who shouldn't. Whose responsibility is it? What changes should Americans make in order for this to work? Which countries plans should we copy? Which should we avoid copying?

I have answers for all of that. Let's call it EWHC for simplicity's sake.

It is the eventual goal of EWHC to make coverage available to 100% of Americans who desire coverage. It is assumed by EWHC that this will be an optional, voluntary program that will not take the place of any private programs that Americans have access to through work or privately owned Healthcare Policies.

Also, to make sure the system provides the most benefit to the most families with young children, we will limit the initial enrollment class to individuals 42 years old and younger for EWHC. Once in EWHC, a person can stay as long as they wish or leave whenever they wish, but EWHC does not guarantee reacceptance once a person has chosen to leave EWHC.

All Family members will be immediately eligible with full benefits, including preventive care, dental, vision, prescription, maternity, surgery, hospitalization, etc. There are no loopholes. Copays will be minimal to make sure access to care is not limited to income.

Certain enrollees may be eligible for cash bonuses when they sign up for EWHC. These cash bonuses are variable and will run from a few thousand dollars to as much as $25,000 depending upon the individual. In most cases, this upfront bonus cash will more than cover years, if not a lifetime, of copays.

EWHC will provide guaranteed global coverage as long as a member remains in good standing.

EWHC will require some members to participate in health and wellness exercise programs in order to keep members in good health and the costs down.

EWHC will offer nutritional guidance as well as skills training and job placement for members in an effort to maximize health and happiness of members for it is a widely recognized fact that health and happiness are related.

EWHC will provide many members with the option of receiving prepared, healthy, balanced meals at no cost.

If a member stays in good standing as well as completing their required exercise, health, nutrition, and skills programs, then their family will not only continue to receive EWHC for no cost, but the member can become eligible for rebates and cash payments for remaining healthy and remaining an EWHC member in good standing. These payments can start as high as $20,000 per year or more, and will increase with each year that the EWHC member continues their membership. Although family members receive free EWHC coverage, they will not be eligible for these payments unless they choose to enroll in EWHC independently when they reach their 18th birthday.

With free coverage, family benefits, up-front cash payments to cover future expenses, free food, free exercise programs, international / global coverage, and ongoing cash payments for members in good standing, it seems that EWHC, if possible, is the perfect solution for the millions of Americans currently suffering from having no healthcare coverage.

Well, EWHC is possible. It's called the US Army.

Just think of the SERIOUS BONUSES America and Americans would get if everyone who needed Healthcare Coverage joined the Army.

1. Recruiting goals would be met immediately.
2. More Americans would exercise.
3. The unemployment rate will drop.
4. The Army would have plenty of people for any job they needed.
5. More Americans would get job training.
6. More Americans would get money for college.
7. When reports about our Army getting overwhelmed with new recruits are heard by hostile countries and terrorists, it should serve as a warning that America is STRONG and that in itself will serve as a detriment to future hostilities.
8. More Americans will travel abroad.
9. The Army will be able to take expensive private-contractor no-bid-jobs away from companies like Halliburton and BlackWater.
10. More Americans will feel that they belong to something bigger than themselves and possibly work to improve our communities.
11. Fewer Americans will have to commute long distances to work, cutting down on traffic, greenhouse gasses, traffic fatalities, and the overwhelming influence of conservative AM radio.
12. More Americans will learn manners, discipline, organization skills, and many other beneficial attributes.
13. More Americans will be eligible for retirement at an early age.
14. EWHC will not discourage research and development by pharmaceutical companies.

This is not a joke. If you think this is a ridiculous idea, try comparing it to the other "solutions" that will be bandied about in the next few months.

I've never had a Harley

And perhaps I'm worse off for it. I do know that I've come close a few times, so there must be some Harley blood in there somewhere. And I'm really keen on eventually getting a Sportster 883 or 1200. Pretty cool to me.

Specially when I come across this:

http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/Content/Pages/Riders/Creed_Video.jsp

I like this one:

I borrowed the pic from BikerNet.com, so thanks a bunch to them.

Ethics

Just a quick note to let you all know that I got the results back from the MPRE (Multi-state Professional Responsibility Exam) and I am ethical enough to practice in a little over half of the states, most of the Territories, and the District of Columbia. I am not ethical enough to practice in Texas or New York, but California, New Mexico, and Wisconsin are all on the OK list. (Actually Wisconsin doesn't even care...)

I can take the test as many times as I want (without penalty or averaging of scores), and in fact some states make you take it within a certain amount of time of taking their Bar Exam, so I'd have to take it again for those states if I moved into them anyways...

I'm sure that I could have smoked the test and could have appeared to be ethical enough to practice in all the states, but I thought that it would be unethical to study for an ethics test! At least I know that I am truly ethical, and not just talking the talk, right?

Oh, don't worry, if someone in NYC wants me to come work for them, I'll talk the talk. I just wanted to see how I measured up without pretending first...

Blast From The Past!

I'm making a pictorial history of my cars to someday share with Gibson.

(Went to the Kickapoo County Fair today, there was a tractor exhibit - I didn't know there used to be a tractor company named Gibson!)

And I stumbled across this picture.

It needs a roof rack, of course. Fold down the back seat, toss some suitcases down, and some blankets, and you have appropriate sleeping quarters for two 5 year old boys!

Mom used to leave for Merced from La Cueva with 20 bucks, we'd drive to Kingman, pay $6 for a Motel 6, and then drive the rest of the way to Merced. Figure about 50 mpg with gas at $0.29 per gallon, and it's about 7 buck for the gas to go from La Cueva to Merced!

Holy Cow!

Granola bars, potted meat, Vienna Sausages, and those chewy stick things that sort of remind me of tootsie rolls but not really. What the heck were those?

Turns out I've owned (at least in part) 20 cars (except 3 were motorcycles). :)

Spend a Few Minutes Getting To Know Each Other

I just came across a couple songs I REALLY like and I wanted to share them. I think its time we start another thread for music tastes... so we can all benefit from the different paths we are on.

Here's #1: Roisin Murphy

The song called "Overpowered" is a very nice blend of electronica and pop with a hint of the stuff I love about Bjork. YES, I love Bjork.

And # 2: The Ting Tings

The Ting Tings - first off I like it from the name of the band, but then there's something cool about a song they have called "That's Not My Name". For one, it seems to be structured perfectly (which really means nothing to me since one of my favorite songs is Angels & Airwaves "The Adventure" and I suspect they tried to follow no structure.)

So how do you participate by putting snazzy links in?

Add links like this:

So what do you think of Roisin and Ting Tings?

Why they Say Freedom is Hard

For a long time I've been a libertarian, maybe even so much as "Objectivist". Not that I object to everything, but that I agree with a lot that Ayn Rand writes about. (more on that in another blog).

I don't know why, but I have a hard time picking a side in the debate about an "official language" of America. ((I do believe that American English would be a difficult "official language" to manage based on the fact that it is the most flexible language and is literally changing every day.)) WARNING: this blog is not about Zenophobia or legal vs. illegal immigration.

On the one hand, I like freedom enough that I truly feel that no one should have the right to tell others what language to speak. Even further, would we ever want to punish people for speaking the wrong language? And what about dialects? What about English people speaking English? Or Aussies? I sure know I don't want anyone telling ME what to speak and by extension, I wouldn't tell anyone what to speak. Plus, I always kinda figure that the invisible hand of the capitalist market will make sure there's always a shopkeeper able to speak my language. ((this is an old debate, but a local LEGAL immigrant radio DJ named Bill Handel hade a new take: let 'em speak any language they want, but believe me, if they want to be doctors, lawyers, or scientists, they'll learn English, too))

On the other hand, America has successfully grown for centuries because all of the wonderful people coming here in the past have added their knowledge to our society, which requires that we be able to communicate. In the past, Immigrants have come to America in small enough waves that the society could absorb them while allowing them to integrate and also remain themselves. So maybe there should be an official language.

But recently I got the honor of spending an hour in a LA courthouse for supposedly driving 86 mph in a 55 Zone. ((Damn those 55 Zones!)) It was an hour in court because I spent 3 minutes in front of a judge and 55+ minutes listening to the same "instructions" in English and Spanish.

So by my estimate, NOT having an official language ((where else would you use it if you didn't use it in court?)) cost me about 27-30 minutes. By my calculations, that half hour is worth about 25 phantom bucks. ((Wherease the three minutes I spent NOT driving 55 mph turns out to be worth about $361.))

So I lost a half hour, my company lost $25 of my productivity, and the other 100+ court attendees lost some time, too.

But since I hate to lose and I hate to waste, I listened to the Spanish part of the tape, trying to turn this into a government subsidized Spanish lesson, decreasing my losses.

Furthermore, during the Spanish part, the guy next to me lamented that he was in court for missing a previous court date for a jay-walking ticket and now, all told, he was going to pay MORE for jay-walking than I did for NOT driving 55 mph. The dude was like 50+ and didn't know where he was going to get the money...

And perhaps that was the most valuable lesson I was able to get during that "no official language" timeout: that I'm glad I don't STILL make dumb-ass mistakes like I did when I was 20 ((like not going to court and turning a tiny fine into a big fine.))

So no matter what language I have to use, I'll keep trying to see the message put in front of me.

I had this, once...

For 21 days one summer, with thrills galore, and a lifetime of heartache, and the biggest lesson of all:

Make sure you have insurance.

1986 Suzuki GSX-R 750R (Limited Edition). 55 imported to North America (one for each state, 5 for Canada). The guy who sold it to me said he kissed the ground every time he got off of it. I kissed the ground the last time I rode it, through the chin guard of my helmet.

I wish I had video of that wreck, maybe it would keep me from wanting another motorcycle!

My Awesome Husband

It's a little after 8 pm on this quiet, sticky evening here in San Antonio. I am drinking a beer searching Myspace for an old high school buddy when in walks my husband with not one, but TWO trophies. After spending over 6 hours at a golf tournament, my first assumption is, WOW he really did well. That was until I read the inscription and really looked at each one. The first is a smaller sized, i'd say about 6 in tall. The base is white marble, while the pedestal holding the golden figurine is silver and rainbow in color. The man that sits atop this pedestal is not a golfer but a bowler. The inscription reads, 2007 SAYLA SCRAMBLE "LEAST BEST AWARD".
Before I begin to laugh hysterically, I decide to take a look at the second trophy. This one is much larger, almost 2 feet in height . It is adorned with a cup in the center and two small, but noble eagles on the second tier. The third tier however hold a large gold bowling pin. My first thought was, "did they not realize this was a golf tournament?" Once I read the inscription, Matt's fate was sealed! It read : "FARHEST FROM THE PIN" yes, farhest! Not only, did my wonderful, athletic, intelligent husband score very last at this tournament of mentors and fellow legal brains, but he managed to roll a golf cart while immersed in this intensely challenging round of golf. At first I didn't believe he had rolled it over but alas he had the scrapped up arm to prove it. This is what makes my husband so incredibility awesome. While the majority of the players are going home tonight with nothing but a bruised ego, my husband showed up with TWO bowling trophies and a bruised arm!!!!!

Who knew golf could be so enthralling?

If you haven't seen this yet, check it out...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=D6ZYcBocfQo


by the way, this is Matt setting up Megan's account.

50 seems to be the new Plateau

50 Pushups, started with 50 and counted down... getting easier, but can't mentally get myself to start with 51...

Alex, are you at 100 yet?

Matt, can you be a worker-outer with that tennis injury?

Sara, still busting them out in the closet?

Eric

Let's See If I Still Have It

Or, Why I went 25% Cash on Tuesday, June 19th, 2007.

In my retirement account I am appropriately invested, which means 100% equity, and probably 50% of that "international" or global or world, and at least 50% of the whole portfolio in small or mid-sized companies.

I can't say that the past year has been particularly stellar for any kind of investment, and most indexes are at or near their highs (except for NASDAQ, which will take a decade to hit it's high) but at least everything is at or near 5 year highs.

That part doesn't worry me at all. In fact, most of the money ever made in the stock market was made when investments went above previous highs. (The very nature of an upward-sloping investment means that overall, time makes you more money than timing.)

So why did I move 25% into "cash"? Because I don't like how the market keeps sputtering at the top.

So why didn't I move 100% into "cash"? Because even with all the fear and bad news floating around, the market is actually chugging along pretty well.

So I'm looking for a buying opportunity if the market dips or corrects a few percent.

I own a mutual fund named Capital World Growth and Income (CWGIX) from American Funds and when you see the picture below, you'll know why I use the Dow Jones to see how well CWGIX is doing. So, therefore, we'll see if selling some of this when DJIA was 13,645 is a good idea or a bad idea...

By the way, www.BigCharts.com is a great resource for stock charts and performance info, that's where I got the chart above.

Eric

OMG!!! I SO look like Colin Farrell!

Hi,

I thought you'd like to take a look at MyHeritage.com.
This website has a *cool* demo of face recognition.

To see the celebrity results I got on my photo, click here: http://www.myheritage.com/FP/Company/face-recognition-results.php?temp=8e4d5764rwxevo10&server=Server28&database=2&startYear=1800&endYear=2005&loadMethod=myFiles

Take care,
Eric Wade

Fwd: Rainbow Room

In case you wanted to see some dark, quiet, hard-to-see videos of a future superstar, you can preview these on Rebel Channel...

http://www.RebelChannel.com/rr-mistake.htm

http://www.RebelChannel.com/rr-minutes.htm

http://www.RebelChannel.com/rr-goindown.htm

http://www.RebelChannel.com/rr-unwritten.htm

http://www.RebelChannel.com/rr-superstar1.htm

http://www.RebelChannel.com/rr-whoknew.htm

http://www.RebelChannel.com/rr-beforehecheats.htm

http://www.RebelChannel.com/rr-screenname.htm

Teen wins American Idol Underground

Entertainment

Teen wins American Idol Underground

Dakota Dawn Wade of Newport Beach gets first place in worldwide singer/songwriter competition.

By Yvonne Villarreal

Hours before her performance at Hollywood's Rainbow Room on Friday night, Dakota Dawn Wade planned to stand in front of the bathroom mirror with a hairbrush, practicing various poses as she rehearsed songs. It's become a ritual for the Newport Beach teenager so she can make sure she doesn't make any mistakes on stage.

But singing in front of the club's relatively small crowd wouldn't be the first time she was judged; 15-year-old Dakota won first place last week in the American Idol Underground singer/songwriter competition with her original song, "Mistake: Sampleman 7 Remix."

" 'Mistake' is my favorite song to perform," Dakota said. "It's really fun to do, and the crowd really gets into it. So when the remix for it won, I was very excited." Her winnings included $5,000 and many other prizes.

"It was nice to win, Dakota said. "But the most important thing is that I just want my music out there to help and inspire people."

American Idol Underground is a worldwide competition and Internet radio station, Idolunderground.com, that serves as a musical outlet for emerging artists. Music enthusiasts can upload their work to the site, where it is reviewed by Web listeners and celebrity judges, such as Isaac Hayes and one-time American Idol contestant Kimberly Caldwell. Although Underground is an official licensee of the American Idol brand, it is not directly affiliated with the show.

"Dakota was our highest-rated electronica artist," said Justin Beckett, the site's executive producer. "There were hundreds in the category … it was fairly competitive. Thumbs up to Dakota. She put together a very catchy and powerful track. It's was all in her performance."

But Underground isn't the only website where Dakota's music can be heard; the teen also has a MySpace music page, myspace.com/dakotadawnmusic, where she has more than 850 friends, many of whom have created their own Dakota fan sites.

"MySpace has helped a lot because it allows me to connect with my fans," Dakota said, "I get to share my music with people; it's amazing."

Many comments on the site are from fans eagerly awaiting her upcoming album.

"Hopefully it will be done by Christmas," Dakota said. "We're trying to figure out if we want to release it or shop it around."

The work to become a music star requires Dakota to do homework on her way to dance classes or show performances.

"She works really, really hard," said Ana Montoya-Wade, Dakota's mother. "She started this so long ago that it's nice to see it just kind of gradually work itself out."

Dakota, a fan of Lilly Allen and Christina Aguilera, unofficially began her music career when she was 5 years old, singing a self-penned ode to her mother entitled, "The Mother's Day Song," although she considers writing her first "real" song at age 9 as her true indoctrination.

"I love the whole writing process," Dakota said. "It's fun going into recording studio, brainstorming, and writing lyrics. I hope to do it for a long time."