Donny Osmond: Design icon

Donny Osmond


In the 1970s, he was as popular as Beiber.




Donny Osmond: Design icon

Birther bullshite

So Arizona is playing games

With a fringe Republican candidate trying to get Obama off the ballot in Arizona:
http://zeenews.india.com/news/world/birther-controversy-obama-might-not-make-ballot_776466.html

Of course, Obama's so called "long form" birth certificate was released a year ago:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/rss_viewer/birth-certificate-long-form.pdf

Fringe conservatives are wasting time. Jobs have been lost, and they aren't doing anything to help America get back to work.

Dining out on Jenny Craig

I went to a Chevy’s restaurant for the first time today, for lunch. I thought I’d offer this review, and provide some opinions about the eating out alone experience from a married man who has just lost thirty five pounds on a Jenny Craig diet plan.

Originally, I had planned to bring my business to a salad bar – but that restaurant is out of business. I might add, finally – and I am not surprised: The quality of the produce was declining steadily as our economy got worse. Fewer people would patron the store, fueling the cycle of decline. I think the closure was only a couple of months ago.

So here I was about forty minutes from home, and my plans to have a robust,  veggie-laden (and typically very filling salad) with the least amount of meat and starches was shot. But this one restaurant – Chevy’s -- was here. In fact, it’s the only other restaurant here. There are a half dozen chain ‘big box’ stores – CostCo, Target, and the like. This place should be getting a lot of business. And I guess that it is.

First, there are a lot of young families here. In fact, this fact leaves me a bit confused by the ambience and the menu. The menu emphasizes tequila. Tequila is not a drink I favor. I know I probably don’t know what I am missing. I apologize to all tequila aficionados in advance. However, this emphasis on booze surprises me when I have mothers, fathers, grandparents, and youngsters between the ages of relative newborn to seventeen here outnumbering the drinkers.

And there are drinkers. (This one fellow in particular is probably unaware of how loud he is. His partner/spouse, whatever, seems aware. She has given him the old stinkeye more than once in brief time that I’ve been here.)

So as an old married person, whose family are out and about, I feel a conspicuous here. The only individual patrons in this restaurant are the men and women (who are older than the general population here) in the bar. It’s a full bar, with two large television sets. It’s also very bright with a full window offering natural lighting in the afternoon. It’s also clean and there is plenty of seating, which is surprising given how crowded this place is.

Speaking of noise, it is pretty loud in here – obviously by design. Personally, I have never understood the need for so much noise in a restaurant. The first I encountered this phenomenon was at the Cadillac Bar in San Francisco in the late 1980s. The building had been some type of factory or warehouse before the restaurant had been installed. It was deafening. If you were drunk, it wasn’t so noticeable. But being or staying drunk wasn’t fun, and the noise really became a distraction.

The wait staff are very busy. Practically no one who works here walks. The young men and women, all uniformed in logo-branded tee-shirts and dark pants, scoot, scamper, scramble and generally all-but-run from table to kitchen and back.

The meal, a fajita salad with chicken, was made fresh at my table. I know some ingredients will tip the scale on my diet. This means I will need to make some adjustments and compensate. For instance, the salad has diced avocado. That’s one fat. It also has oil in the salad, which brings the fat count to at least (I hope only) two fat servings. This I can adjust to easily. But the dressing also has sugar. This is a given. So now I will have to think about this in terms of either giving up one or more of my fruit servings. But the fat issue isn’t over yet: There are also seeds in the salad. Then I have to deal with the protein issue. There are at least two protein servings with the chicken, and another with the crumbled cheese. These are my first proteins for the day, however. I have three remaining. That leaves the final issue: portion size. I’d say they served up enough food for two. So I will have to put this aside (and hope that the salad is not so wilted later that I won’t eat any of it.)

For  this, I will have to make sure I increase my exercise allotment. At least thirty minutes more – making it one and a half hours today  and tomorrow, to compensate.
In sum, the food is fresh and tastes delicious. There are no options for dieters. Wait for a meal on my own day, and then really plan to compensate in a big way. Enjoy the people watching and the noise and the fast service.

I will probably be around here again because I shop sometime at the big box stores.

Be sure to leave a healthy tip. The kids who work here appear to work very hard, and they seem to have a good disposition in spite of all the pressure.

The remarkable growth of Google

Created By Online PhD

Life Is Short

Sad story: The brother of a friend retired six months ago. In January, he drove out to Firebaugh, CA. Just a day trip. Ate lunch, and drove back home to the coast.

Two weeks later he's feeling sick, can't breath, and is rushed to the ER.

His lungs are filled with fluid. Pneumonia, right? For three week's the doctors can't find a cure, can't figure out what's really happening. They're searching for a bacterial infection. Then they figure it out: he has Valley Fever. (Valley fever - PubMed Health).

Now his life has changed forever. Four weeks in Intensive Care. Need for long term care. His life in retirement: plans to travel with his wife, see the country, spend more time with children and grandchildren: All plans have been shelved, probably forever. Just stays in bed, in a hospital struggling to get even a part of his health back.

Amazing to me how something can just 'happen' and your life changes forever. Amazing also how that what happens is typically very bad.

Had we known, if we could have anticipated what troubles the future holds ... But don't we already 'know.' The theory of Black Swans events tells us the unexpected, the tragic, the catastrophic are in fact 'known.' We don't know the specifics -- cancer, car accident, valley fever. But we know that something terrible could, probably will, happen and will turn our lives entirely upside down.

How trite to say, "We need to be ready. We need to live life fully." But also how true.

As one truly great writer I know recently wrote: “We’re all living in buildings that are going to be demolished.” (see http://unexpectedendings.blogspot.com/)

Catholics for Obama

Newt Is a Poor Excuse for a Catholic

I support Obama, a good man and a good President who is guiding this nation through a difficult transitional time. He doesn't sleep around, get a divorce, blame is sinful behavior on his wife(s), and then buy an absolution from the Pope.

In fact, now that I think of it, Newt's morals are similar to a certain Kennedy's morals -- and that is not good.

If you also support President Obama, and are Catholic, please sign the petition:
Catholics for Obama

The Prayer of Saint Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is despair, hope.
Where there is darkness, light.
Where there is sadness, joy.


O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console,
To be understood as to understand,
To be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive.
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned.
It is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Be Infectious - A truly Inspiring Reminder

What in life may have crushed the creative spark inside you?

Can you get it back?

This little movie really made me think -- about making sure I praise my children and tell the their 'faults' are their strengths -- and about trying to find out whatever happened to that part of me. How did I lose it? Where did it go?

Can I ever get it back?

Can You Make Money Blogging on Blogger?

Can You Make Money Blogging on Blogger?:

An online article that claims making money using Blogger is possible.

The main premise of this statement is to have a solid offer and a good mailing list.

Would that it were true! I've been at this a year, and I supposedly have had nearly 1,000 page views. But only a handful of comments and no followers.

Wonder what this guys says on his blogs?

A Tip from Robert G. Allen
A metaphor resonates

I recently read Robert G. Allen's One Minute Millionaire. He's a financial writer, who has written numerous books on wealth creation. He also claims to have made millions in real estate, back in the Seventies I think.

A metaphor he used struck me. Allen said that every dollar should be viewed as a 'seed' -- a money seed.

That made an impression.

In nature, a seed grows only if it is in good soil and receives sufficient water, sunshine, and nutrients. In nature, it's hit or miss, isn't it? An acorn falls and may sprout and take root, or it may not. Which is why trees must produce so many.

But in a garden, the gardener adds important differences: intention, and attention.  The gardener plants each seed the the intention of seeing them grow and produce. She adds her special attention, weekly perhaps, or perhaps monthly, tending her seedlings until they mature and produce.

So in our financial matters we must carefully plant our money seeds with the intention of seeing them produce more seeds -- interest or capital gain. We must remain attentive, making sure the money seeds receive sufficient nutrients, such as an experienced fund manager.

I was talking to my daughter recently. She told me that she looked to me to provide her with financial advice. I was pleased. Here was a seed of another type. Since I can recall, I talked to her about careful use and investment of money. She seems to get it. She's young yet. Time will tell.

Now I will try to tend to the 'money gardens' I have planted. These include:

•  My regular job -- my day-to-day bread-winning work, which I enjoy and hope to continue doing until retirement (whenever that is).
• My house (now that spring is here, the place needs mending, painting, cleaning to retain its value).
• The tiny investment fund that I have, which I have split half and half between large cap type investments and bonds.
• My writing, which I hope will produce an additional income stream some day, one I can rely upon in the future.

Cluttered Mind ... Music from the other side of the digital divide

This one is very interesting, and not just because my son created it!

It is very rich in its tones and plays out its melody with a lot of pleasant variations. Reminds me of Cluster, a little.

Here's a piece created by a very talented young person, who has figured out that electronics has liberated him from the need to follow the traditional corporate route to a musical career.

in reference to: ▶ A Cluttered Mind Doesn't Solve Anything by s7y1u5 (view on Google Sidewiki)

Network Marketers site

I have to say I am impressed by how often Michael issues a tweet, and he seems to blog everyday.

Here are a bunch of comments on his blog, which all seem to be very enthusiastic!

in reference to: Comments for Michael Cole's Internet Network Marketing (view on Google Sidewiki)

Og Mandino's Books and Audios Have Been a Personal Source of Inspiration and Motivation

I  personally recommend these books and audios. In terms of helping me become more positive about myself and my ability to control my destiny, Og Mandino's easy to read and understand tales and parables have been a source of authentic guidance in the area of self help.


I recommend these, from Amazon.A Better Way to Live: Og Mandino's Own Personal Story of Success Featuring 17 Rules to Live By

Oblique = Indirect
A strategic approach to getting out of a rut

When my imagination gets stuck, I try this online tool -- Oblique Strategies generator, derived or based on the product of the same name developed by Brian Eno, the English rock and ambient musician.

In reference to: Brian Eno's Oblique Strategies -- Random Generator (view on Google Sidewiki)

The value of this tool is that it challenges me -- I often get stuck when trying to find a new way to improve myself, my work, and my outreach to others. A 'rethink' is often in order.

What is also good is it allows me to use music as away to expand my ideas. I listen to a lot of Ambient music,  which blends classical and electronica and popular music into something 'new.'

America's Future is Natural Gas

An articulate article explaining how the nuclear crisis in Japan will continue to lead us in the direction gas fired electrical generation.

Renewables will play a smaller role because they are not baseline power plants.

Roger Conrad writes numerous articles about the utility industry. They are worth reading.

in reference to:

"America’s energy future is natural gas:"
- Japan's Nuclear Crisis and America's Natural Gas (view on Google Sidewiki)

Deepwater Drilling Picking Up

The DOI issued its 5th Deepwater Oil Drilling permit since February 2011, when the started issuing them again.

The Obama administration lifted the ban on deepwater drilling in October 2010, after calling a temporary halt to drilling after the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

More domestic oil production will lessen the US dependence on foreign oil imports.

in reference to: Interior picks up pace of deepwater permits - The Hill's E2-Wire (view on Google Sidewiki)

Nuclear Energy, Neutron Beams, & Experiments Gone Wrong

This summarizes two important and interesting facts about the Fukushima Daiichi plant accident and nuclear energy experiments.

1. The Fukushima event may have produced a neutron beam. These are signs that the damaged nuclear fuel rods may have cong supercritical and released radiation.

2. The history of a handful of really interesting events in the early days of the application and demonstration of nuclear, during which researchers accidentally exposed themselves to lethal doses of radiation.

Now, I still think energy efficiency is a better alternative to nuclear energy.

in reference to: Tickling the Dragon’s Tail | Progressive Lever (view on Google Sidewiki)

Inspirational Quotes

This is a page I recommend -- mainly for the content, which is inspirational and motivational in nature.

It includes Ben Franklin and Abe Lincoln, as well as Frank Bettger, the author of How I Raised Myself From Failure to Success in Selling.

It reminds me that I have some inspirational quotes of my own to add to my blog.

in reference to: http://morganj428.blogspot.com/2011/02/frank-bettgerss-how-i-raised-myself.html (view on Google Sidewiki)

Side Wiki Definition - Links to Social Media

The part I found interesting about this answer is that it addresses the issues of social media immediately, and provides examples. I wasn't aware Amazon had an answers page like this.

in reference to: What is Sidewiki and what does it have to do with Google? (view on Google Sidewiki)

Energy Efficiency: Being on the Losing End

If you've been practicing energy efficient for years, are you going to be penalized?

I found a slightly boring article about energy efficiency and 'demand response' (the links lead to Wikipedia pages that define these topics in greater depth).

Definition time:

Energy efficiency is simply using what we have as productively and as cost-efficiently as possible, for whatever benefit you value -- such as lower utility bills or faster economic growth. Demand response involves managing your energy use (not necessarily reducing it, however) in direct response to market conditions, such as price or availability of supply).

Utilities have invested in both for decades. And for years they've been giving away money to businesses and homeowners (usually not renters) as a way of encouraging users to modify their energy use behaviors. Typically in the 1980s, the goal was to avoid building expensive generation facilities -- studies in California showed that the cost of a conserved kilowatthour was less than the cost of building a power plant to generate a new kilowatthour.

By the 1990s, everyone got slap-happy around deregulation -- the notion being that we'd all happily pay more of our hard-earned money to 'entrepreneurs' who would find some magical and innovative way to encourage us to lower usage.

That didn't happen. Nearly everyone stuck to their utility companies rather than switch to some untested and untried and usually more expensive unregulated free marketeers. Which in the end was probably a good thing, because Enron was often held out as a shining example of the type of company we should want to buy our therms and kilowatthours from.

This article (found here) included a lament from a senior citizen (do people our age really want to be labeled as such?): Since he'd already been actively and voluntarily reducing his energy usage through conservation techniques, he will 'lose' because utilities will now start handing out more dollars to aggressively encourage those people who have not made any effort to change.

I think he is only partly right. I know that utilities have been offering these various cash incentives since the 1980s, when I got into the business.

In addition, in the 1970s the US and State governments started providing tax credits for numerous energy efficiency investments.

So the opportunities to take advantage of these types of programs -- such as refrigerator rebates, time-of-use electric rates, voluntary group load curtailment programs, and so on -- have been there for a long time.

Sadly, during the 1990s some of these programs were reduced because the 'experts' (many allied with investment bankers) convinced regulators that 'free market' principles could be applied to electricity and natural gas utility services, magically driving down the price of energy while simultaneously producing financial incentives to conserve energy or use renewable energy. [Now where is the logic in that? If prices go down (they didn't), what would be the 'incentive' to spend more money than you have to on a more expensive and more energy efficient air-conditioner?]

I think the best recourse is to advantage of whatever program you can now. If you apply for a program, and you qualify, then you get a double benefit -- you lower the amount of money you give to your utility, and you get some of it back.

And if you don't qualify, you are still lowering the amount of money you give to your utility. That's important. There seems to be less and less money to go around; I see no reason to pay more for something you value -- lighting, warmth, computers -- than is absolutely necessary.

And for people who tell you to not conserve because rates will go up if you do: rates are going to go up no matter what. (As an example of why they're going to go up, think about how old the power lines or gas lines are leading up to your home; 60 years? 40 years? 20 years?) These are all going to be replaced -- and the cost of replacing them is going to be greater than the cost of installing them originally. Those replacement costs are going into your bills.)

So you are better off conserving now. Your utility bill will be lower than it otherwise would be.