My thoughts on Life, Politics, Technology, Our Creator and more...
You probably remember the late Jerry Reed as a pretty popular comic actor, but chances are you never knew that he was also a master guitarist. Mr. Reed wrote a number of outstanding songs, and one of my favorites is “Jerry’s Breakdown” which he performed to perfection in tandem with the one and only Chet Atkins.
I was watching the Jerry and Chet video the other day on YouTube when I came across the one below. I think it’s rather amazing…
Josh Turner has one of the most amazing voices in Country Music, and many of his songs reflect his deep love for our Heavenly Father. His moving performance of “Tears of God” combines that intense sprituality with his love for our great country and a solemn respect for its history to create a true musical masterpiece.
I hope that each and every one of you have the merriest Christmas ever! Please click here if you are interested in reading my thoughts about Christmas and the amazing Child whose birthday we will be celebrating today.
After John McCain won the Republican nomination for President in 2008, he quickly found himself running headlong towards the oncoming freight train known as Barack Hussein Obama.
Like him or not, candidate Obama had a charisma and enthusiasm about him that McCain could never hope to match in a thousand years. But then God smiled on the Senator from Arizona and gave him the gift of a running mate with tons of charisma and enthusiasm of her own: Sarah Palin.
Unlike virtually anyone else in the party, Palin had the ability to energize and expand a following the likes of which rivaled Obama’s, but what happened next is simply beyond rational explanation. For whatever reason, the McCain campaign made the ill-fated decision to put a muzzle on Palin, effectively throwing a tarp over the only real bright spot in the entire Republican campaign. Apparently, they believed that Palin would slip up and say something that would end up costing them the election, and since she was a newcomer to the national political landscape there was always that chance indeed. But they simply had to take that chance because they had no other hope. Inexplicably, they didn’t.
The exuberance and enthusiasm that Palin brought to the ticket was the only real hope McCain had for pulling a victory out of the jaws of defeat. As much as I admire John McCain as a war hero and a patriot, compared to the overwhelming personality of Obama on the campaign trail, McCain’s was virtually non-existent. Governor Palin filled that void in spades.
I believe that if McCain had stood up to his handlers and given Palin free reign to really engage the massive crowds that showed up at her events on her own terms, sit down for substantive interviews, and stand up for herself when attacked, she and McCain together could have defeated the Democratic ticket and possibly even held on to a crucial Senate seat or two. But such was not the case, and the result is the colossal mess we find ourselves in today.
Sarah Palin has been attacked by her supremely liberal opponents at every turn, and in every case she has come out of the ordeal with the upper hand. Every attempt to make her look foolish or discredit her has ended up doing exactly the reverse. Why is she such a lightning rod for liberal attacks and scorn? Because she and she alone among prominent Republicans poses an existential threat to their hold on power. It’s obvious that the Democrats recognize her awesome ability to energize the party’s base. It’s a crying shame that McCain and his advisers did not.
Like most other businesses, restaurants are struggling to attract customers these days. One solution many of them are now implementing is providing free Wi-Fi connections for their customers. And why not? Providing a wireless high-speed Internet connection costs very little for the restaurant to install and maintain, yet the tactic has already proven itself as a great way to lure in more customers during a down economy.
In most any big city a laptop user already has a number of free wireless access points from which to choose, and even in a small town it’s usually pretty easy to find at least a couple of them. By adding one in-house, restaurants can offer their customers the opportunity to access the web while sitting in a comfy chair, hopefully while also enjoying a meal.
Some municipalities are currently installing their own city-wide Wi-Fi connection points, and access is often completely free for residents and visitors alike. But until town-wide Wi-Fi rolls out nationwide (it’ll be a while), your best bet for a free ride on the web is likely to be the restaurant located just down the road.
Contrary to what the cold temperatures would lead us to believe, the earth is actually closer to the sun in the winter than in the summer. Then why is it so cold you say?
The answer lies in the tilt of the earth on its axis. When the earth spins, it doesn’t do so along a vertical axis. Instead, it is tilted 23.5 degrees, and the tilt is always in the same direction. As we speed along on our 365 day trip around the sun, the northern hemisphere is tilted away from the sun in the winter months which gives us shorter days, which in turn gives us less sunlight each day to warm up the atmosphere.
The tilt also causes what sunlight does make its way to our neck of the woods to strike the planet at an angle, resulting in much of it being reflected back into space instead of being absorbed. Of course when it’s winter up here, it’s summertime in the southern hemisphere as that half of the planet is tilted towards the sun.
Title: WordPress For Dummies (2nd Edition)
Author: Lisa Sabin-Wilson
Publisher: Wiley Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-470-40296-2
Pages: 408
I have been building websites using the WordPress blog platform for some time now, and I have always been quite impressed with its amazing combination of power and simplicity. Since there are numerous resources for helping build and maintain WordPress based blogs and websites available on the Internet for free, it never occurred to me that there would be a market for an actual printed book on the topic. Well, it turns out that I was wrong.
While browsing the aisles of my local bookstore, I happened to see a book entitled WordPress For Dummies, and since I have always found the “For Dummies” series of books to be easy to read and understand, I picked it up and read a couple of chapters right there in the store! Then I took it home with me and read the rest of it. I found it not only to be an interesting read, but also a comprehensive resource for every aspect of planning, building and maintaining a blog or website using the WordPress platform.
As expected, the book starts off with an explanation of blogging in general, then it quickly gets into the nuts and bolts of the WordPress software. Topics discussed include the differences between the hosted version of WordPress and the self-hosted WordPress scripts, installing the WordPress files on your server, setting up the database, personalizing your new blog with a theme, finding and using plugins, backing up and restoring your WordPress installation and many, many more. In a nutshell, WordPress For Dummies is a wonderful collection of much of the information you’ll find about installing and using WordPress scattered around the Internet all in one well-organized, easy to understand printed book.
Could you get by without ever seeing a copy of WordPress for Dummies? Sure you could. After all, everything found in the book can also be found for free on the web. But nowhere else will you find so much critical information in one place, neatly organized and indexed, ready to use exactly when you need it! If you use WordPress now, or have plans to use it in the future, this book deserves a prominent spot on your desk.
Click here to read more about WordPress for Dummies on Amazon.
How would you like to turn a $300 investment into a cool $30 million. It’s pretty simple really. Just shoot a 5 minute Sci-Fi video, upload it to YouTube, and then sit back and wait for the offers to start rolling in from Hollywood. Far-fetched you say? Well, that’s exactly how Mr. Fede Alvarez from Uruguay did it!
Check out the video below to see just what $300 can do when placed in the right hands… and prepare to be amazed.
You can read the full story behind Mr. Alvarez’s amazing success right here.
A benefit concert for the Rita Forrester Family will take place at the Carter Family Fold in Hiltons, Virginia on Sunday, January 3, 2010 at 3:00 pm. The concert will be held to raise funds for the Forrester Family who lost their home and all their worldly possessions in a tragic house fire on December 6th.
The concert will feature many top performers in the Bluegrass, Old Time, Celtic and Americana music. On the schedule to perform are The Lost and Found, Melvin Goins, Don Rigsby, the Darrell Webb Band, The VW Boys, Raymond McLain, Whitetop Mountain Band, No Speed Limit, the Jeanette Williams Band, Wayne Henderson and Friends, Tennessee Skyline, Sigean, The Hillbilly Gypsies, Cana Ramblers, Vinny Ringrose, and Ethan Ferguson.
The concert will be in an “Opry Style” format with bands performing two songs each. All bands are donating their time and talents to this cause. Food will be available. Sound support will be donated by Sound Check Music of Bristol, Virginia. Tickets are only available at the door. A suggested donation of $10 is appreciated to support the Forrester Family. Rita Forrester’s friends and musicians who have performed at the Fold will present this concert. For information please visit www.mountainmusicmuseum.org or call 276-645-0035.
Early on Sunday morning December 6, 2009 flames destroyed the home of Rita and Bob Forrester on the A.P. Carter Highway near Hiltons, Virginia. Rita and her son Tyler escaped the flames but Bob did not make it out alive. Rita’s oldest son Justin, who lives nearby is safe as well. Everything the family owned was lost in the fire including both of the family automobiles and a family pet.
Rita is the granddaughter of A.P. and Sara Carter of the original Carter Family and her mother was the late Janette Carter who founded the Carter Family Fold in the 1970s. Rita is the director of the Carter Family Fold, which promotes and preserves bluegrass and old time music on the grounds where the original Carter Family lived and raised their families.
Your prayers and support are desperately needed immediately to uplift and help the Forrester family at this time.
If you cannot attend the concert, an account has been set up by friends and supporters for donations. No amount is too small in this time of need for this family. Please send contributions to:
The Rita Janette Forrester Fund
c/o BB&T Bank
110 Gateway Plaza
Gate City, VA 24251
Just in time for the “Holiday Season of Giving,” TodaysPhoto.org special contributor Robert Schwarztrauber has committed to sharing 50% of the proceeds from his new children’s book with local and national children’s charities.
Via digital, high-tech 3-D FlipBook technology, this photographer-turned-author is releasing his new inspirational, educational, and motivational children’s book titled “Building Blocks of Prosperity” – and hoping to raise a great deal of money for children’s charities this holiday season.
“Many times we limit ourselves by thinking that Photoshop is just a tool for fixing bad pictures, or making good pictures great. But it’s actually a very useful program for creating all sorts of things,” says Robert.
He adds, “You can create stunning business cards, promotional flyers, ads, greeting cards, or in the case of my most recent project, a complete digital book and hardcover printed book using an online print-on-demand service. Everyone can really stretch his imagination when he considers how he can adapt his Photoshop skills to other tasks.”
“Building Blocks of Prosperity,” has been released to great reviews. It is currently available for immediate online viewing via a virtual, 3-D FlipBook technology. This presentation provides a realistic “page turning” book right on your computer screen. Kids love it!
The book is also available on a CD-Rom which includes the 3-D FlipBook, plus a full PDF page file and Bonus Pages not found anywhere else. And just this week, it became available in the traditional hardcover, printed book format.
Nearly 60 pages of toy, building block photographs help young readers discover the secrets of prosperity as quoted from the most prosperous people of all time – folks like, Dr, Martin Luther King, Mark Twain, Benjamin Franklin and King Solomon. Plus contemporaries like Oprah Winfrey, Mark Stevens, Dr. Robert Schuller, and many, many more. Over 105 brilliantly inspired quotes in all!
Robert has also included word puzzles, optical illusions, and hands-on activities that captivate young minds as they participate in this multi-sensory learning experience. For ages 3 to 103!
It’s a great way for parents to spend fun time with their kids – reading – and using this book to start kids down the proper path to prosperous living – in a relaxed, non-threatening environment.
“Along with the plastic and electronic gifts offered this year, I hope parents will give something that becomes even more valuable to their children as they grow older – the gift of knowledge,” added Mr. Schwarztrauber.
Parents and others interested can find more details on this book sale and children’s charity fundraiser at: http://buildingblockbooks.blogspot.com or at http://helpbobhelpkids.com.
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