NO LONGER POSTING TO THIS BLOG

 Just in case you landed here by some unfathomatible reason, I no longer post to this blog, as can be seen by the lack of recent posts. But Happy 2023 anyway.

Ramblings and Musings, and a great new free deal!

Just a couple of things today, just some rambling off hand thoughts and suggestions.

If you have an old cell phone hanging around the house you don't use or need anymore, consider keeping it in the glove box of your vehicle for emergency 911 calls (keeping it charged, of course). Most phones will connect to 911 even if they're not connected to a cell phone service. At least that's what I've read recently.

Freeze grapes and then use them to chill down your white wine (or red wine) instead of using ice cubes. That way the grapes in your glass won't dilute the wine.

Unclog your drains without expensive (and possibly corrosive) chemicals: pour a half a cup of baking soda and a cup of vinegar into a clogged drain. Once it stops foaming rinse down the sink and your drains will be clear. That's a cheap and environmentally friendly way to unclog a sink!

Did you know that putting your phone into airplane mode will charge it twice as fast?

And on a similar note, you can charge your phone while traveling. Many hotel TV's now have handy USB slots in the back that will charge most smart phones.

And speaking of airplane mode, did you know that putting your phone into airplane mode while playing games will stop those annoying ads? That I didn't know, but it makes sense for probably the same reason it charges twice as fast (the phone, not the game).

Now for the freebie. I've put together a set of IM Tech video tutorials that I've allowing you to access for free. They're over at http://rdavidhale.com, and they're only out there for a short time. So click on over to check them out, especially if you're short on newbie knowledge when it comes to the technical side of Internet marketing.

We're still here at the beach, kicking back, soaking in the rays, and generally having a great time. And keeping a well stocked supply of frozen grapes. Till next time,

R. David

Bona Fide Graphics Firesale

"Grab these awesome graphics for your website!"

I've just launched my first ever Graphics Firesale:
http://www.bonafidegraphicsfiresale.com


My partner and his team spent the better part of the past year creating this package for you, and I'm really proud of the end result.

When you see the quality of these graphics, you'll understand why I'm very excited about it.

I should also mention... the price will make you happy too :-)

I'd be honored if you would check this out today:
http://www.bonafidegraphicsfiresale.com

It will be online for just a few weeks at this price, so don't delay.

Have a great day!

R. David

Latest Reunion this past Saturday

I cannot believe it's been a year since the last reunion. But it has, and we did it again. Thanks to Emily, Joe, and Eric, a bunch of us gathered once more at Dillworth Billiards in Charlotte to get reacquainted with old friends from bygone days. Jack was there, talking about his new business venture and website, cabinetworksofcharlotte.com, and Pete was there almost seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. Tucker and Linda promised to be at Spring SOS, Donna was going to try, and Frank and Sissy and Joe and Sally said no, and no. How are we going to make a reunion video without you guys?

TALKIN’ ‘BOUT TREE TOP

Just this last Saturday, we had a reunion for a lot of  people who used to lived at the Tree Top  apartment complex in south Charlotte. Most of us who attended lived there during the 70's. What made this reunion so  special? Well, back in those days,  Charlotte really had no club/bar or social scene of  any real significance, and your apartment complex friends were your social family. We all  had other friends, of course, but Tree Top was the first really all singles complex in that part of Charlotte, and it became the mecca (if you will) for young, single working adults, people who liked to socialize and party without having to drive home. The  Tree Top clubhouse and pool area WERE the place to gather socially.

During the evening of our special reunion, one of  our founding residents, Emily, had composed and read out to all of us there, a special poem that summarizes a lot of  everything that symbolized that special time in our lives. It's copied here with her permission (I hope):

"         TALKIN’ ‘BOUT TREE  TOP  

Thank you old neighbors and friends for coming to this Tree Top Reunion in 2011.

Who but us could remember living off Nations Ford Rd as a little slice of heaven.

It was the 70’s when love was in the air along with the sweet smell of marijuana.

You could say no to getting high but if you inhaled at Tree Top…well, you were gonna.

When I told other friends about this reunion they gave me that “I don’t get it” stare.

Is it a high school, college or family reunion?  No, it’s Tree Top…you just had to be there.

There’s no explaining Tree Top.  We had no common ground other than being young and loving life.

There were only parties and more parties and suffering hangovers was our biggest strife.

Do you remember the parties at the Clubhouse?  I can still smell the popcorn and the beer.

It was like Cheers where everyone was welcome and you just walked home…no DUI fear. 

We somehow dragged ourselves to work each weekday for whatever jobs we had.    Disco’d Friday night in Charlotte.  Drove to Myrtle Beach Saturday for shagging at the Pad.

The patriarch of Tree Top was the beloved and truly unforgettable Joe Galyan.

He can be a man of few words but has the heart and spirit of a true stallion.

But you had to guard things around Joe because if he could see it, touch it or smell it

He would back up the Truck of Fortune, load it up and drive somewhere to sell it.

And then there were the beach trips.  Sabbash over Easter and Gotcha over Labor Day.

Thank you Chief Gotcha Dick Hale!  We still talk about those trips to this very day.

If you walked down a certain hallway at Tree Top and heard the sexy sounds of Barry White

You could be certain that Jack Lemons was entertaining some lovely lady in the night.

Or perhaps the melody you heard on that same hallway was the sultry Donna Summer

Which could only mean Charlie Lavene’s evening was not going to be a bummer!

Many great love stories began at Tree Top and the couples are still together and strong.                            Frank and Sissy deserve a prize for something.  They finally got married…..but they dated for SO LONG!!

And then there were Charlotte Knight’s nights with Dan Pfeifer and they were just the cutest pair in town.

But so were Pete and Myra and all these years later they are still making the “Rounds”.

Gladys and Mike Vaughan were such a sweet couple and they are still sweethearts today. Mimi and Charlie Crisp….how they used to make me laugh with all the funny things they would say.  

My first roommate at Tree Top was the cute Mary Hinson who will always have a special place in my heart.

My last roommate at Tree Top was the floozy Donna Reeves, a special friend and I hope we’re never far apart.

I never dated many guys at Tree Top  because I was “in love” with  Barry Porter …the  bad boy with class.

Tucker told me years later he was her prom date….if I had known that then I would have knocked her on her ass.

E-Rack was always a cutie but the atmosphere in his apartment was so thick you could cut it with a knife.

Now I know that he was simply a very spiritual person and enjoyed being high on life.

Jill Kinney…I heard she had a party once and had a horse brought in. That girl had class!

I always wondered Jill…was it really a horse or just a horse’s ass?

And sweet Martha Bailey and Linda Tyler were always the parties’ loveliest belles.

We Southern girls say “Bless your heart” so sweetly when we really mean “Just go to Hell”.

Fred Parker was a party animal at Tree Top and could often be quite the rascal

But he had the sweetest roommate by the name of Zissel….we just called him Pascal.

Did you know that Mecklenburg County Sheriff Chip Bailey was a Tree Topper?  Yes, he surely was.

In the midst of all the sinning and debauchery at Tree Top, there lived the future fuzz!

Who wins for the nicest guys at Tree Top?  Joe Moody, Larry Harmon and Sam Tyler…that’s a slam dunk!

I have never heard them say an unkind word about anyone but I have seen them all drunk.

Did you know that our very own Susan Ratledge was in a movie with George Clooney.

She really is a movie star although until I saw it, I thought she may be a little looney.

Tree Top without Charlie House would be like Santa Claus without his deer.      

You could always count on good old Charlie unless he met a floozy and she had beer.

Did you know that today is Elvis Presley’s 76^th birthday?   So a toast tonight to the King.

Joe Galyan took me to see Elvis in 1974 along with Shirley Stokes and Larry Springs.

We all moved away from those apartments on Farmhurst Drive & High Meadow Lane.

We moved on with our lives but somehow the Tree Top day memories still remain.

We have lost some dear friends but I think they are smiling down on this reunion from above.

Charlie, Ceil, Doug, Helen, Mike, Patsy, Ted and, Tommy….we celebrate your lives with love.

It’s easy to see tonight that we are all older, life is not as simple and certainly not as much fun.

But for a few years at Tree Top we were all together, we were all happy, we were all young.

If I had to compare those long ago days to something more poetic it would have to be Camelot.

“In short, there was simply not a more congenial spot for happily ever after than there at our Tree Top”.

Written by Emily Stephens Tadlock

for the 2011 Tree Top Reunion

Dilworth Billiards

Charlotte, N. C.

January 8, 2011

I agree with Emily, it was our  "Camelot" for the swingin' swingles 70's. May it, and the friends we made there, live in our hearts forever.

Hey you all, please leave a comment, and tell what you thought. This is a perfect venue for that kind of thing. AND, as Emily and Joe mentioned, we're planning an Oct 1-2 weekend Tree Top Reunion here @ the beach, so comment on that as well. That's the weekend after the end of Fall SOS.

TTFN,

Your ex-Chief Gotcha

BTW - whatever happened to Barry (fire-starter) Houston?

History of the Ebook Reader, or EReader

If you’re interested in any eBook reading device and the role it can play in your life, then you might also be interested in the way in which both the reader - and the eBooks they are designed to display - have evolved over time.

The Book’s Journey Into the Digital World

Books themselves are nothing new, with origins centuries back. However, they were something that most people did not have access to until the development of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg in the 15th century. Since then publishing has gone from strength to strength, and the book made its first appearance in the digital world in 1971, with a digital version of the Declaration of Independence: Project Gutenberg was launched (which now houses many free books available to download right to your reader!)

The First Readers Available on the Market

As the popularity of the eBook started to grow, the first eBook reading device was developed in 1998, and websites first begun selling popular books in eBook format. Though the popularity of downloading and sharing eBooks on the internet caught on, the eBook reader itself wasn’t so quick to follow suit, until recently.

The Evolution of Today’s eReader

When it comes to the modern form of the eBook reading device, Sony led the way with its first release in 2006 - being the first to make use of e-Ink technology. It was 2007 when Amazon launched its Kindle in the US, and popularity of the device began to grow at a rapid speed.

Modern eBook readers make use of technology similar to that employed within a computer, with the main difference being the e-Ink screen: designed for the most pleasant reading experience possible. These screens mean that we don’t experience glare as we would with a traditional computer screen or other handheld device.

The Future of the eBook Reader

Readers continue to evolve, bringing bigger and better features to book lovers. These features include larger screens, as seen in the Kindle DX, and will also, in future, involve color screens and perhaps a larger amount of applications and software added onto the main function of reading eBooks.

eBook readers have received some criticism from those who are worried that the book will lose its purpose. However, the popularity of the eBook reading device shows no signs of slowing down, prompting major manufacturers to get in on the act and release their own models.

To see the full array of Ebook readers, or EReaders, visit:
http://jphvideoventures.com/ereaders/

Till we talk again,
The Beachmiser

Article Marketing - Answering the Three Big Questions

We are continuing our series on Internet Marketing, with ..... Article Marketing.

The Internet is crying out for content. There are billions of web pages with millions more being created every day. And every single one of them needs to have something to say - some content to attract visitors.

Article marketing is a branch of Internet marketing that focuses entirely on providing that content. Many people make good money online simply by writing a few articles on a regular basis.

So what is article marketing for, is it as easy as they say and what kind of results can you expect?

Big questions, but I'll do my best to answer them as comprehensively as possible.

What Does Article Marketing Entail?

Article marketing can be as simple as writing a series of articles to put on your own blog or website. If you've ever written a blog post that ran to more than a few hundred words, you've done it already. That is fine, as far as it goes, but why go to all that effort of writing something to only use it once?

Article marketing is about leveraging the effort you've put into creating an article in the first place and getting as much benefit from it as possible.

You do that by syndicating your article for other people to use, with the condition that every time they publish it on their website, they also include a resource box that you specify. That resource box will usually include a link back to a website, or product offering of your choice.

Syndication of your work is easy: there are hundreds of article directories on the Internet who are happy for you to post your work. EzineArticles is perhaps the biggest and best known, but there are many, many more that you can use. The article directories serve two purposes for article marketers: they are a central source for website builders to go to to find content, and they are also quickly indexed by search engines so you'll get backlinks even if nobody else uses your work.

Is Article Marketing as Easy as They Say?

For some people, writing articles is very easy, but for others it can be a chore. Fortunately, like any other skill you need to learn in Internet marketing, the more you practice, the easier it gets.

The trick is to discover what kind of articles are the easiest for you.

The best articles for beginners to write are how-to and tips articles. Both formats start out by identifying a commonly asked question, such as 'how can I stop my dog barking?' or 'what's the best way to make money online?' and provides an answer.

The how-to format is very straightforward - the article would start with a paragraph that expands on the question, move on to four or five paragraphs that explains the solution and ends with a paragraph that sums up both question and answer.

To write a tips article, on the other hand, you would first research 3 or 5 solutions and then, instead of the 4-5 paragraphs in the middle of the how-to article that explains just one solution, you'd have a separate paragraph - perhaps as bullet points - for each tip. The intro and finishing paragraphs would be very similar to the how-to ones.

Once you've written your article (allow anywhere from one to two hours for each one until you get more proficient) your main job is then to get it onto as many article directories as possible. Although you can do this by hand, it takes a lot of time so I would strongly recommend using one of the many article submission services who will do the job for you.

What Kind of Results Can Article Marketers Expect?

The answer to this question depends on how much work you are prepared to put into it.

Frankly, if all you do is write one article a month and submit it to just one or two directories, your results will be very poor.

Professional article marketers write a lot of articles and build up a big online presence for their body of work over time. That can bring them a huge number of backlinks to websites of their choice, a constant flow of traffic to their money sites and, most importantly, a stream of income that once started, is almost impossible to turn off.

In summary, article marketing is a very effective branch of online marketing that can bring excellent results for those who have the writing skills and the determination to build a big body of work online. It is unlikely that any individual article will make very much impact on its own, but 200 or more scattered over the Internet can bring many long term rewards.

To learn more about Article Marketing, especially as Netrepreneurs see it, read the Entrepreneurs Guide to Article Marketing!

To help you with your article writing and get over writer's block, use the Instant Article Creator for Article Marketing. 

And last but not least, here's a simple step-by-step system that will show you how to break the money code and build a massive list with article marketing. Curiously enough, it's called the Article Marketing Money Code.

Affiliate Marketing - Making Money Online Doesn't Get Much Easier

This is the start of a series of articles about the different facets of Internet Marketing. We start off with .......

AFFILIATE MARKETING

The idea of one person selling products on behalf of someone else, and receiving a commission in return is nothing new. As a marketing method it has been around for probably thousands of years. The idea of affiliate marketing took a little longer to make it onto the Internet though.

The World Wide Web as we know it came into existence in 1990, but it was not until 1994 that the first company applied affiliate marketing methods to its sales strategy. That company was in the adult industry, which often seems to be at the forefront of marketing innovation. However, soon after that the online music store CDNow began to operate what is generally considered to be the first non-adult affiliate program.

A couple of years later, in 1996, Amazon launched their Associates Program and affiliate marketing really took off.

Affiliate marketing is an alluringly simple idea: you show an offer from a third party company to your website visitors or newsletter readers and if they click through and buy, you get an agreed commission. Those commissions can be anywhere from a few percent, right up to 100% of the products' sales price.

Yes, some vendors will give affiliates the full value of the sale because they know that the lifetime value of a new customer is worth far more to them in the long term.

Affiliate marketing can go under many different names: associate marketing, partners programs, joint ventures and revenue sharing. Some affiliate programs are open to anyone while others insist on pre-approving applicants. Still others are only available to people who have bought the product.

It is very possible to become an affiliate for an individual company or product vendor as many run their own affiliate programs. However, the majority are run through affiliate management companies. Possibly the best known of these for online marketers are ClickBank, who specialize in digitally downloadable products and Commission Junction who represent thousands of companies under one roof.

All affiliate programs have their pros and cons. ClickBank, for example, are blissfully simple to use. You pick a product from their marketplace and they instantly give you an affiliate link to use. You need to sign up with them to become a member, but that takes only a few moments and is free. Commissions are generally between 50% and 75%. The downside is that ClickBank make it almost too easy for customers to get refunds and there is always a question-mark over how efficient their link tracking mechanism is.

Despite the potential problems, many Internet marketers make a lot of money from selling ClickBank products.


Here's an example of a Clickbank affiliate link:
http://c13a0ru6vexnuia-lihgr88uf5.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=BLOG
Pretty ugly, no? That's why we recommend Cloaking your affiliate links.
(That which is underlined is a direct link to the article).
I also made a short video on the same subject: http://dickhale.com/videos/linkcloaker

Commission Junction is great for marketers who don't want to be part of the Internet marketing niche and prefer to sell real products from real world niches. The choice is huge at CJ, but you do have to apply to be an affiliate for each company individually.

As you also have to apply to be a member of CJ initially, the reapplication every time you find something you want to promote can be annoying, and very often the companies concerned will reject your application without giving any reason.

Commission levels at Commission Junction are usually much lower - a few percent of the price, but as the products are often in high demand, you can make up for the lower commissions by volume.

Amazon, as mentioned earlier, run their own affiliate, or as they call it, Associates Program. It is free to join and pays a sliding scale of commissions depending on the volume of sales you make. Expect to start out at around 4 or 5%.

The great beauty of Amazon is that once you've sent them a customer for a specific product, Amazon are experts at building up the value of the sale by offering all kinds of other products ('customers who bought this, also like that'). As you get commission on the entire value of the shopping basket, you can often end up with a lot more than you expected.

Many affiliate programs now offer recurring income products and services, so you could make a sale for, for example, a membership site, and receive a monthly commission payment for as long as your referral remains a member. These residual income streams, as they are known, can quickly mount up and provide you with a regular paycheck for months or even years to come.

If you have a website that gets a lot of traffic, a blog with a regular readership or have built up a mailing list with whom you've established a trusting relationship, affiliate marketing can be very easy money. You hold no stock. write no sales letters, deal with no customer service issues and generally avoid all the hassles that product owners and vendors have to face.

Making money online doesn't get much easier than affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketers simply make recommendations, or put up a few banner ads on their sites, and then sit back and take their cut. There need be no overheads to start and you could be earning commissions in minutes.



As a follow-up to all this, I have an article about how to take advantage of your Clickbank affiliate code called "Saving on Clickbank."  You need to read that as well.

The Beach is HOT, and so is this free List Builder.

Before we talk about the beach, there's something I really must talk to you about. It's all about automating your list building efforts.

Can A Listbuilding System Be TOTALLY Automated? The answer is totally - YES.

I know we're all a bit sick and tired of promises of "automated software" that will make us rich before dinner.

And I'm always the first to be skeptical of these kinds of outrageous claims.

But today I may have to actually eat my words.

Because I just picked up a listbuildilng system that really is incredibly fast...,

And the traffic actually does keeps flow in on auto-pilot.

It's a pretty new tactic on the scene that I've heard of.

But I never really knew how to implement it.

Then I found this:

Free Plug N Play Listbuilding System

At that link 7 figure marketer Bill McRea is  GIVING AWAY this listbuilding system totally free...

It's his way of getting some buzz going for his upcoming product launch (apparently he's go another system up his sleeve that's even better than this)

In any case..

I went and got this myself and it's totally legit.

There's nothing scammy about it all.
It's just a way to instantly create a win-win offer that potential JV partners can't refuse.

Bill hands you EVERYTHING you need to make it work. And I mean EVERYTHING.

So if you know the power of having a mailing list..

Do yourself a favor and go get this.

Do it now: Free Plug N Play Listbuilding System

I mean...you can't beat the price, right?

P.S. There is one catch to this...you'll have to help spread the word. But that's easy for me because I've seen this strategy in action and know that it works.
You should get Free Plug N Play Listbuilding System now!

OK - enough about that. The beach right now is HOT - I mean really HOT. So I'm going to delay our latest adventures till next time because it's too damn hot.

Let's Review the Anne Collins Weight Loss Program

"No Man is an Island" - I've heard that over and over. Well, it's as true today as it was yesterday, and all through these years. We can accomplish a lot more when we work in a group or have the support of our peers to help us reach our goals.

Another thing people often overlook, or are shy to ask for, is, having a mentor.  There have been many studies recently that show that people who ask for, and work with, a mentor or coach have a much higher chance for success than those who stubbornly try to 'go it alone.'  

Anne Collins is an Irish nutritionist and the beauty and strongest point of her program is the very active forum.  All the comments I read by people who use the forum - newcomers and old timers alike - were positive and full of stories of support and encouragement as they walked their path towards good health and weight control. 

Anne Collins personally moderates this forum.  She will answer your questions and guide you as you progress.  It's also possible for members to send private messages.  Anne Collins stresses that lack of motivation is one of the biggest obstacles to successful weight loss, and motivation is one of the high points of this program.

Anne Collins doesn't just offer a "one plan fits all" diet program.  Her program has nine different diet plans so you can chose which one best suits you and you can move around between the different plans whenever you chose.

Here is a brief description of each of the plans currently available:

*  Glycemic Index Diet which is great for diabetics or anyone else who needs to watch their carbohydrate levels.  There is also information explaining what the glycemic index is and how it works.

*  Balanced Diet - this is a traditional diet that basically follows the popular food pyramid.

*  Low Calorie "Booster" Diet - designed to be followed for just fourteen days to jump start your weight loss.

*  Cholesterol-Lowering Diet - High fiber for those with a cholesterol problem.

*  Low Carbohydrate Diet - quick weight loss.

*  10-Minute Meals Diet for those who don't have the time or inclination to do a lot of cooking.

*  Vegetarian Quick Start Diet.

*  Diet for Life.

*  Vegetarian Diet for Life.

She provides tools to help you figure out your body mass index (BMI), what the best weight would be for your body size, and how many calories you need each day.

The price for all of this:  Just a one-time fee of $19.97 for a full year's access to all of the information on this extensive website.

Here's a list of exactly what you will get for this low price:

*  The 9 diet plans listed above, downloadable as convenient ebooks

*  Access to any new diets Anne may develop as well as updates to any of the existing diet plans

*  Shopping lists - very comprehensive and useful to just grab and go!  This feature will save you a lot of time and money!

*  Access to the exclusive members-only area for a full year

*  Access to the private members-only community forum

*  Personal support from Anne Collins herself every day of the year

*  Massive amounts of motivation tips and advice to keep you on track, not only from Anne Collins, but from the whole community

*  Many of the diet plans have fitness and exercise advice and information

*  Nutrition and calories explained in detail

Anne Collins program offers you a 60-day risk-free money back guarantee, but notes that if you do cancel, you will pay a $5 retention fee to prevent abuse.

Conclusion:  for the price and the massive amounts of information the Anne Collins program provides, as well as the excellent community forum and direct access to Anne Collins herself, you can't go wrong with this program.

http://urlcx.com/acwlp/

Now, it's true that if you buy her book, I will receive a commission. That's only fair. But in all honesty, I wouldn't be recommending it if I didn't also believe in it. It's the real deal.

http://urlcx.com/acwlp/

Snapshots, Lifeshots, and other Ramblings

SSN and Your Wallet
Perusing an AARP publication, I came across this tidbit. They warn against carrying your Medicare card in your wallet. Why? Because your Medicare ID number IS your Social Security Number, and if your wallet is ever lost or stolen, they've got your SSN dead to rights. And it's your SSN that is most valuable to identity thieves. So take it out, keep it home in a safe place, and don't take it out unless you're establishing an account with a new doctor or medical facility.
Here's the AARP Article - Scam Alert: Your Wallet Is No Place for a Medicare Card

Government Deals via E-Mail
E-Mail scammers are now posing as the US Government. What with all the "free" bail-out money floating around, e-mail scammers have been sending out hoax e-mails trying to get your personal information. Don't believe any of it. The US Government doesn't send e-mails, period.

Here's the full story- Scam Alert: 'Government' E-Mail? Don’t Believe It

The Check's in Your Mail - Yeah Right
Ever get a check in the mail, claiming this is a refund or prize or some such? Lots of times it's an authentic-looking government check for some grant or other. And they want a "finders" fee, or processing fee, for sending you the check. Well, it's a scam. The check's bogus.

Here's the scoop - Scam Alert - the check may look real but it's not

Use Your PIN at the PUMP?
Remember seeing those scams about debit card readers at ATM's? Well, they're back, and this time they are targeting gas pumps. They are usually unattended, don't have security cameras to record goings on. These devices are installed in gas pumps, and when you use your debit card to buy gas, this device records your bank ID and your PIN. Defense? If you must use your debit card, choose the Credit Card option so you don't have to enter your PIN.

Read all about - Scam Alert - No IN at the Pump

First Lady Quotes
Lady Bird Johnson said,
"Become so wrapped up in doing something that you forget to be afraid."

Barbara Bush said,
"You don't just luck into things... You build step by step, whether it's friendships or opportunities."


That's it for this post. Stay happy, health, and well.

My Kindle and Me

I've been waiting for an epiphany, but that ain't happening. So to get the old creative juices flowing again (like they ever did in the first place), I've decided to relax my publishing standards and just start writing (or typing as the case may be). So here goes .......

I've been spending way too much time on my Kindle. It's become a sort of escapism mechanism for me, but then again, reading always was and has been. But the Kindle is great, because when I finish one book, all I have to do is download another, and off I go into another writer's adventure, mystery, or flight of fancy. It's just too easy. No matter where I am (except 32,000 feet on some flight), I can download a new ebook directly into my Kindle, on the fly, without being connected to my laptop. Plus, I've discovered a whole new way to find out where the free ebooks are. They're not by A+ authors, but they are, for the most part, fairly decent, and highly readable. And when I say free, I mean zip, zilch, nada, free.

Right now the price of a Kindle 2 has dropped., and probably will again. When you buy it through Amazon, you establish a special account, and then when you select a book you want to read, you "buy" it and it download directly to your Kindle, and Amazon charges your account. Most new, popular, releases are around $9.99, but there are a bunch less than that, and like I mentioned above, there are true freebies.

The only downside I've had is not being able to turn the page. Old habits being hard to break and all that. But seriously, if you're a student that needs to highlight passages for reference, or something like that, the Kindle can be cumbersome. It does have highlighting and note taking ability, but it is not as easy as using a magic marker. Did I mention it comes with a full WYSIWYG keyboard; built in, searchable dictionary; internet access (albeit slow because you are on the 3G network); text-to-speech; and (of course) online access to the Kindle store.

If you're like me, like to read, hate the hassle of carrying around dogeared paperbacks (trips, flights, doctor office visits, etc.), and want the convenience of reading the latest whodunit at a much cheaper price than the hardback price, click the following link:
Kindle Wireless Reading Device (6" Display, Global Wireless, Latest Generation)

OK, that's my 2 cents worth on that subject. As you can probably tell, I LOVE my Kindle. BTW, get the protective leather cover to go with it, about $30. It's done wonders in protecting the Kindle screen.

Now here's another secret I bet you didn't know about. If you are yourself an author, or have access to PLR ebooks, you can become a Kindle publisher, and sell your own stuff via the Kindle library. You can name your own price, write your own copy, headlines, etc., and sell it directly to the ever expanding Kindle nation. This can be really cool if you have a great niche and ebook info to sell. Just follow the Kindle publisher rules (there are already several books out there that can help) and you're all set.

That's it for now. Hope everyone had a great holiday, and we'll see you on the flip side.

Dick

Olga's Unisex Salon

We're still at the beach, just at Miami Beach, helping Robin do catch up stuff. More detail later, but in the meantime, see the next paragraph.

One more tip - recommendation - before I sign off. My friend Olga in the Miami Beach / Surfside area has a really cool unisex salon you ned to know about if you're ever there. It's called Hair and Body New Dimensions, so go check it out if you're anywhere around there.

Dick, from Miami Beach (for now).

Aging Gracefully

Aging gracefully

"$5.37." That's what the kid behind the counter at Taco Bueno said to me. I dug into my pocket and pulled out some lint and two dimes and something that used to be a Jolly Rancher. Having already handed the kid a five-spot, I started to head back out to the truck to grab some change when the kid with the Emo hairdo said the harshest thing anyone has ever said to me. He said, "It's OK. I'll just give you the senior citizen discount."

I turned to see who he was talking to and then heard the sound of change hitting the counter in front of me. "Only $4.68" he said cheerfully. I stood there stupefied. I am 66, not even 70 yet?" a mere child! Senior citizen? Isn't 70 the new 50? Geeze!

I took my burrito and walked out to the truck wondering what was wrong with Emo. Was he blind? As I sat in the truck, my blood began to boil. Old? Me?

I'll show him, I thought. I opened the door and headed back inside. I strode to the counter, and there he was waiting with a smile.

Before I could say a word, he held up something and jingled it in front of me, like I could be that easily distracted! What am I now? A toddler?
"Dude! Can't get too far without your car keys, eh?" I stared with utter disdain at the keys. I began to rationalize in my mind. "Leaving keys behind hardly makes a man elderly! It could happen to anyone!"

I turned and headed back to the truck. I slipped the key into the ignition, but it wouldn't turn. What now? I checked my keys and tried another. Still nothing. That's when I noticed the purple beads hanging from my rearview mirror. I had no purple beads hanging from my rearview mirror.

Then, a few other objects came into focus. The car seat in the back seat. Happy Meal toys spread all over the floorboard. A partially eaten doughnut on the dashboard.

Faster than you can say ginkgo biloba, I flew out of the alien vehicle. Moments later I was speeding out of the parking lot, relieved to finally be leaving this nightmarish stop in my life. That is when I felt it, deep in the bowels of my stomach: hunger! My stomach growled and churned, and I reached to grab my burrito, only it was nowhere to be found.

I swung the truck around, gathered my courage, and strode back into the restaurant one final time. There Emo stood, draped in youth and black nail polish. All I could think was, "What is the world coming to?" All I could say was, "Did I leave my food and drink in here?" At this point I was ready to ask a Boy Scout to help me back to my vehicle, and then go straight home and apply for Social Security benefits.

Emo had no clue. I walked back out to the truck, and suddenly a young lad came up and tugged on my jeans to get my attention. He was holding up a drink and a bag. His mother explained, "I think you left this in my truck by mistake." I took the food and drink from the little boy and sheepishly apologized.

She offered these kind words: "It's OK. My grandfather does stuff like this all the time."

All of this is to explain how I got a ticket doing 85 in a 40. Yes, I was racing some punk kid in a Toyota Prius.. And no, I told the officer, I'm not too old to be driving this fast.

As I walked in the front door, my wife met me halfway down the hall. I handed her a bag of cold food and a $300 speeding ticket. I promptly sat in my rocking chair and covered up my legs with a blanky (or was it a Snuggles).

The good news was I had successfully found my way home.


-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Charlie Brown Remembered

Our very good friend, Charlie Brown, passed away Sunday a week ago. You can read all about it on his Caring Bridge Journal and Back story. The memorial service itself was just this past Saturday in Charlotte. His daughter, Charlotte, had asked me to do the eulogy, so I thought I'd present a synopsis of my eulogy here - as an FYI.

I started with a quote: "God pours life into death and death into life without a drop being
spilled." ~Author Unknown

"The Power of Positive Pessimism" by Charlie Brown.
He was a published author. Not many can say that.
Many read it - a lot identified with it - some even saw them selves in it.

I first met Charlie Brown in Charlotte, at Tree Top, 1974. At that time, he was known as the candy man. We did rafting trips (Chattooga twice), mountain trips, road rallies, pig pickings, and beach trips. We also partied - a lot.

He was instrumental in my connecting with Sally and Susan - I knew CB, Sally/Susan knew CB,
but never all together. The Sunday after I had originally met Sally at the beach, we all had planned to gather at a place called Mancino's, a local watering hole. Having met only Sally, and not Susan, and knowing they were twins, I asked CB how to tell which from which. CB said to look for the one with the biggest smile.

2. He was a sailor, 2 years Navy, knew how to sail (Hobie, single masted), and captain a power boat (single screw, double screw) - owned Snoopy, cabin cruiser.

3. He loved to dance:
- Shag
- Disco
- If you watched him, never knew which was which
- C & W two step, learned in Dallas.

4. Talented Amateur photographer
- Wildlife Photos framed in his house
- Raft Up pictures from the Lake Norman 2003 - 04 raft up gatherings.
- Alaskan Cruise scenic pictures taken on our Alaskan Cruise in 2007.

5. Conservative politically - (I leaned to the right to make my point)
- He could out Rush Limbaugh
- Loved to discuss politics
- Used history and facts
- Could go on forever

6. Renaissance Man
- He built his own house as the general contractor.
- Loved good wine, good food, single malt scotch. and a good Cohiba.
- Man of all Seasons (beach in the winter, mountains in the summer)

7. History buff
- especially the SC Coast and Myrtle Beach and Conway.
- Civil War
- knew a lot about this and that, broad range of history.

8. Widely Read
- From Clive Cussler to Bruce Catton to Joel Osteen and Billy Graham, and his Bible.
- Could recite the Charge of the Light Brigade in its entirety from memory.
- Would read 3 - 4 books at a time.
- Loved to go back and re-read older books

9. C.B. was Gentleman and a Gentle Man
- Ladies Man (?) -I thought not. Lots of his really good friends were women.

10. Spiritual - basic faith that comes from the heart & soul.

11. At that point I brought a cigar and waved it at the congregation saying - here's how Charlie would have celebrated. After all, he considered cigar smoking the "Last bastion of Male Chauvinism."

He was was my friend, and sometimes mentor. He will be greatly missed.

CB's is Really Getting OLD!

WOW - that's cruel - but true. Actually 71 these days ain't all that old. It just makes getting around a little harder. And unfortunately, CB's in the hospital right now - so read all about it at his Caring Bridge Site so you can get the whole picture.

Sally, Susan, and I just got back from visiting him, and we had to readmit him to the hospital Friday night for extreme bloating caused by, of all things, his pain meds. So he's back in for a few days until they can get several things corrected.

Stay in touch with Charlie's progress by registering yourself with Caring Bridge. You'll receive email updates whenever he updates his Caring Bridge journal.

25 THINGS ABOUT TO BECOME EXTINCT IN AMERICA

This is a bit different - but I thought rather noteworthy.
My thanks to friend Norman for passing this along to me.

25 THINGS ABOUT TO BECOME EXTINCT IN AMERICA

25. U.S. Post Office
They are pricing themselves out of existence. With e-mail, and
and on-line services they are a relic of the past. (refer to #9)
Packages are also sent faster and cheaper with UPS.


24. Yellow Pages
This year will be pivotal for the global Yellow Pages industry.
Much like newspapers, print Yellow Pages will continue to bleed
dollars to their various digital counterparts, from Internet
Yellow Pages (IYPs), to local search engines and combination
search/listing services like Reach Local and Yodel Factors like20an
acceleration of the print 'fade rate' and the looming recession
will contribute to the onslaught. One research firm predicts the
falloff in usage of newspapers and print Yellow Pages could even
reach 10% this year -- much higher than the 2%-3% fade rate seen
in past years.
(Note: buildng mon-n-pop websites for local businesses is one of the fastest
growing internet related activities today. And not just websites, but related
services as well, like SEO, affiliate based hosting recommendations, etc.)


23. Classified Ads
The Internet has made so many things obsolete that newspaper
classified ads might sound like just another trivial item on a
long list. But this is one of those harbingers of the future that
could signal the end of civilization as we know it. The argument
is that if newspaper classifies are replaced by free on-line
listings at sites like Craigslist.org and Google Base, then
newspapers are not far behind them..


22. Movie Rental Stores
While Netflix is looking up at the moment, Blockbuster keeps
closing store locations by the hundreds. It still has about 6,000
left across the world, but those keep dwindling and the stock is
down considerably in 2008, especially since the company gave up a
quest of Circuit City . Movie Gallery, which owned the Hollywood
Video brand, closed up shop earlier this year. Countless small
video chains and mom-and-pop stores have given up the ghost
already.


21. Dial-up Internet Access
Dial-up connections have fallen from 40% in 2001 to 10% in 2008.
The combination of an infrastructure to accommodate affordable
high speed Internet connections and the disappearing home phone
have all but pounded the final nail in the coffin of dial-up
Internet access.


20. Phone Land Lines
According to a survey from the National Center for Health
Statistics, at the end of 2007, nearly one in six homes was
cell-only and, of those homes that had land lines, one in eight
only received calls on their cells.


19. Chesapeake Bay Blue Crabs
Maryland 's icon, the blue crab, has been fading away in Chesapeake
Bay Last year Maryland saw the lowest harvest (22 million pounds)
since 1945. Just four decades ago the bay produced 96 million
pounds. The population is down 70% since 1990, when they first did
a formal count. There are only about 120 million crabs in the bay
and they think they need 200 million for a sustainable population.
Over-fishing, pollution, invasive species and global warming get
the blame.


18. VCRs
For the better part of three decades, the VCR was a best-seller
and staple in every American household until being completely
decimated by the DVD, and now the Digital Video Recorder (DVR). In
fact, the only remnants of the VHS age at your local Wal-Mart or
Radio Shack are blank VHS tapes these days. Pre-recorded VHS tapes
are largely gone and VHS decks are practically nowhere to be
found. They served us so well.


17. Ash Trees
In the late 1990's, a pretty, iridescent green species of beetle,
now known as the emerald ash borer, hitched a ride to North
America with ash wood products imported from eastern Asia . In less
than a decade, its larvae have killed millions of trees in the
Midwest , and continue to spread. They've killed more than 30
million ash trees in southeastern Michigan alone, with tens of
millions more lost in Ohio and Indiana . More than 7.5 billion ash
trees are currently at risk.


16. Ham Radio
Amateur radio operators enjoy personal (and often worldwide)
wireless communications with each other and are able to support
their communities with emergency and disaster communications if
necessary, while increasing their personal knowledge of
electronics and radio theory.. However, proliferation of the
Internet and its popularity among youth has caused the decline of
amateur radio. In the past five years alone, the number of people
holding active ham radio licenses has dropped by 50,000, even
though Morse Code is no longer a requirement.


15 The Swimming Hole
Thanks to our litigious society, swimming holes are becoming a
thing of the past. '20/20' reports that swimming hole owners, like
Robert Every in High Falls, NY, are shutting them down out of
worry that if someone gets hurt they'll sue. And that's exactly
what happened in Seattle . The city of Bellingham was sued by Katie
Hofstetter who was paralyzed in a fall at a popular swimming hole
in Whatcom Falls Park . As injuries occur and lawsuits follow,
expect more swimming holes to post 'Keep out!' signs.


14. Answering Machines
The increasing disappearance of answering machines is directly
tied to No 20 our list -- the decline of landlines. According to
USA Today, the number of homes that only use cell phones jumped
159% between 2004 and 2007. It has been particularly bad in New
York ; since 2000, landline usage has dropped 55%. It's logical
that as cell phones rise, many of them replacing traditional
landlines, that there will be fewer answering machines.


13. Cameras That Use Film
It doesn't require a statistician to prove the rapid disappearance
of the film camera in America . Just look to companies like Nikon,
the professional's choice for quality camera equipment. In 2006,
it announced that it would stop making film cameras, pointing to
the shrinking market -- only 3% of its sales in 2005, compared to
75% of sales from digital cameras and equipment.


12. Incandescent Bulbs
Before a few years ago, the standard 60-watt (or, yikes, 100-watt)
bulb was the mainstay of every U.S. home. With the green movement
and all-things-sustainable-energy crowd, the Compact Fluorescent
Lightbulb (CFL) is largely replacing the older, Edison-era
incandescent bulb. The EPA reports that 2007 sales for Energy Star
CFLs nearly doubled from 2006, and these sales accounted for
approximately 20 percent of the U.S. light bulb market. And
according to USA Today, a new energy bill plans to phase out
incandescent bulbs in the next four to 12 years.


11. Stand-Alone Bowling Alleys
Bowling Balls.. US claims there are still 60 million Americans who
bowl at least once a year, but many are not bowling in stand-alone
bowling alleys. Today most new bowling alleys are part of
facilities for all types or recreation including laser tag,
go-karts, bumper cars, video game arcades, climbing walls and glow
miniature golf. Bowling lanes also have been added to many
non-traditional venues such as adult communities, hotels and
resorts, and gambling casinos.


10. The Milkman
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in 1950, over
half of the milk delivered was to the home in quart bottles, by
1963, it was about a third and by 2001, it represented only 0.4%
percent. Nowadays most milk is sold through supermarkets in gallon
jugs. The steady decline in home-delivered milk is blamed, of
course, on the rise of the supermarket, better home refrigeration
and longer-lasting milk. Although some milkmen still make the
rounds in pockets of the U.S. , they are certainly a dying breed.


9. Hand-Written Letters
In 2006, the Radicati Group estimated that, worldwide, 183 billion
e-mails were sent each day. Two million each second. By November
of 2007, an estimated 3.3 billion Earthlings owned cell phones,
and 80% of the world's population had access to cell phone
coverage. In 2004, half-a-trillion text messages were sent, and
the number has no doubt increased exponentially since then. So
where amongst this gorge of gabble is there room for the elegant,
polite hand-written letter?

8. Wild Horses
It is estimated that 100 years ago, as many as two million horses
were roaming free within the United States . In 2001, National
Geographic News estimated that the wild horse population has
decreased to about 50,000 head. Currently, the National Wild Horse
and Burro Advisory board states that there are 32,000 free roaming
horses in ten Western states, with half of them residing in
Nevada . The Bureau of Land Management is seeking to reduce the
total number of free range horses to 27,000, possibly by selective
euthanasia.


7. Personal Checks
According to an American Bankers Assoc. report, a net 23% of
consumers plan to decrease their use of checks over the next two
years, while a net 14% plan to increase their use of PIN debit.
Bill payment remains the last stronghold of paper-based
payments -- for the time being. Checks continue to be the most
commonly used bill payment method, with 71% of consumers paying at
least one recurring bill per month by writing a check. However,
a bill-by-bill basis, checks account for only 49% of consumers'
recurring bill payments (down from 72% in 2001 and 60% in 2003).


6. Drive-in Theaters
During the peak in 1958, there were more than 4,000 drive-in
theaters in this country, but in 2007 only 405 drive-ins were
still operating. Exactly zero new drive-ins have been built since
2005. Only one reopened in 2005 and five reopened in 2006, so
there isn't much of a movement toward reviving the closed ones.


5. Mumps & Measles
Despite what's been in the news lately, the measles and mumps
actually, truly are disappearing from the United States . In 1964,
212,000 cases of mumps were reported in the U.S. By 1983, this
figure had dropped to 3,000, thanks to a vigorous vaccination
program. Prior to the introduction of the measles vaccine,
approximately half a million cases of measles were reported in the
U.S. annually, resulting in 450 deaths. In 2005, only 66 cases
were recorded.


4. Honey Bees
Perhaps nothing on our list of disappearing America is so dire;
plummeting so enormously; and so necessary to the survival of our
food supply as the honey bee. Very scary. 'Colony Collapse
Disorder,' or CCD, has spread throughout the U.S. and Europe over
the past few years, wiping out 50% to 90% of the colonies of many
beekeepers -- and along with it, their livelihood.


3. News Magazines and TV News
While the TV evening newscasts haven't gone anywhere over the last
several decades, their audiences have. In 1984, in a story about
the diminishing returns of the evening news, the New York Times
reported that all three network evening-news programs combined had
only 40.9 million viewers. Fast forward to 2008, and what they
have today is half that.


2 Analog TV (already bye-bye)
According to the Consumer Electronics Association, 85% of homes in
the U.S. get their television programming through cable or
satellite providers. For the remaining 15% -- or 13 million
individuals -- who are using rabbit ears or a large outdoor
antenna to get their local stations, change is in the air.. If you
are one of these people you'll need to get a new TV or a converter
box in order to get the new stations which will only be broadcast
in = 0 A digital.


1. The Family Farm
Since the 1930's, the number of family farms has been declining
rapidly. According to the USDA, 5.3 million farms dotted the
nation in 1950, but this number had declined to 2.1 million by the
2003 farm census (data from the 2007 census hasn't yet been
published). Ninety-one percent of the U.S. FARMS are small Family
Farms.

Both interesting and saddening, isn't it?