JabberWocky!

One of the methods of ridding yourself of a phobia, according to the professionals, is to confront your fear and then magically it will probably go away.

Speaking as a person that does have a couple of phobias I have never been able to do this, what can I say? I am weak! I am afraid! In fact, I think I have a phobia about trying to cure my phobias! I don’t quite know what they call a phobia about curing your phobias but I do know the name of one of my personal phobias and that is…Acrophobia! Yes! I have a terrible fear of heights!

So I was reading about the tallest building in the United States today, The Sears Tower, soon to be renamed to Willis Tower, and how they now have “The Ledge”, or I suppose, The Ledges, which are glass balconies that are suspended 1,353 feet in the air and jut out four feet from the building’s 103rd floor Skydeck!! They consist of transparent walls, floor and ceiling leave visitors with the impression they’re floating over the city!!! I Don’t Think So!!! I don’t even like being IN the Sears Tower, much less 4 feet from it in the middle of the air!

I don’t know about any other acrophobics, but I do know about this one, and I for one, will Not be trying to confront my fear of heights by stepping out onto “The Ledge” to see if I can overcome my fear of heights! In fact, just seeing a photo of one today gave me heart palpitations!

But for those of you that do want to confront your fears OR for those Evil Knievels of the World that love thrills and danger all I can say is:

The First Step is the Hardest!

That’s all for me today as I am going to lie down now and try to get these palpation’s stopped! But I hope to see all of you back again soon for more…

I get nosy about the computer a lot and when I find myself bored with what I am doing I try to spend a little time trying find answers to some burning question that I have about the computer.

Over the week-end I found myself in just that situation, bored with what I was doing and I had a question that had plagued me for a while. I have been wondering how to change the welcome screen on my computer.

As it comes to find out it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be, I thought if I could find where the file is located I could just type something besides Welcome and that would be that.

Well as it turns out I come across an answer that said I had to hack into the file using a hackers program and change it that way.

I came across a video that I was able to look at Before downloading this program which is good as I wanted to see just how involved it would be Before starting my little project.

1st of all I decided that I would not be trying it as I am VERY WELL KNOWN for having computer disasters!!! That plus the fact I could not stay awake long enough to finish the video!

I know very well that being a star and making videos is not for everyone but this man had to be the most boring man I have ever heard in my life!!

I kept falling asleep and falling off of my computer desk while trying to view the video!

DO NOT GET ME WRONG! I am very sure that the man is a complete computer genius…something that I definitely am not, but making videos is not his forte at all!

In the beginning he wasn’t even sure what the name of the product he was trying to instruct about was and things only went down hill from there.

But if you are interested in learning how to change your Welcome screen and you can stay awake for the entire 4 minutes and 53 looooog seconds then this Computer Geek can help you out I a am sure!

Changing Your Welcome Screen Video

And to the Computer Geek…I apologize for being so hard on you and your video acting skills but I have no doubt that you are an absolute genius when it comes to the computer…something I am definitely not!

That’s all for me today and hope to see you back again soon for some more good old fashioned…

If you are interested in learning Photoshop then check out video sites like YouTube and MetaCafe. They offer video tutorials on Photoshop basics, photo effects, layers, photo retouching, tips and tricks, Web Design and much more where you will be able to see the techniques actually being done which is great for learning quickly and for dummies like me where you actually need to see something in order for it to make sense!

Use YouTube to Learn Photoshop

That’s all for me today! See you back again tomorrow for more…

It is amazing how much time many of us waste every day while we are online. I am probably one of the worst. I have my mind set on doing something very important and if I need help I “Google It” to see if I can’t find the answer then a couple of hours later after my eye has been caught with 50 other things I finally realize that I had set out to do something that of course it has not been done yet and then the entire circle begins all over again! Sometimes it is even the next day before I get around doing what I started out to do originally!

But there is help out there to help us stop wasting time online if we really want to and it comes in the form of four Firefox extensions and one desktop app to help you keep track of the time you spend online and they even give you reports so you can watch out and make efficient use of your time by cutting down on wandering around sites that are of no use.

LeechBlock can be set to block websites from loading in Firefox.

TimeTracker tracks the amount of time you’ve been browsing around.

8 a Week is basically the same as the first one only it has more powerful options and provides graphs that display the various activities versus the time you’ve spent on them.

MeeTimer is a light activity tracker that keeps track of the visited websites in any given day, records total time, and groups them into purpose-based categories.

And Rescue Time is a desktop program that helps you to understand how and where you spend your time while browsing Web or working on your PC.

I don’t know about you but I am pretty sure that as bad as I am about wasting time online I need all of these!

For more information on these extensions you can visit the Websites or go to:

Make Use Of

That’s it for me today, see you back again tomorrow for more…

Did you ever have the craving to become a world famous author but then come back to reality and think “well that’s not going to happen, I don’t have the education or know how to do that”?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, salaried writers and authors typically earn between $34,850 and $67,820 a year. Annual earnings for a writer does vary though depending on how many pieces the writer publishes in a year and where the work is published.

Many of us have that itch to become writers and authors, just look at the number of bloggers out there, but not all of us have the time or in fact the money to get a quality education what with our families and jobs demanding so much of our attention and time. Sometimes we feel that the education boat has passed us by.

But you will be happy to know that doesn’t have to be the case anymore.

There are many top Universities out there that offer Free writing courses Online and if you’re not interested in becoming a world renowned author there are many other courses on offer at these Universities also, such as Web design, computer programming, foreign languages, bookkeeping and accounting, entrepreneurship, business education and the list goes on.

If this sounds like something that you would be interested in then follow this link for a higher educated you!

Free Creative Writing Courses

That’s all for me today, see you back tomorrow smarter than ever for some more…

For those that know me know that I don’t know bubkes about computers! Ask me to design a Website, write a post for a blog, surf the Internet or copy and paste, (one of my nicknames is the Copy & Paste Queen!), no problem, I can do those things but ask me how to turn on the computer I am at a total loss!

I have a couple of friends that I run totally nuts with my continuous asking them how to do something that I want or need to do on the computer…and to those guys, you know who you are, I say a huge thanks and I am forever in your debt!

But I also depend on Steve over at Steve’s Tech Guide to give me a lot of information that I would NEVER know and would never even know existed!

Well, good old Steve has gone and done it again! One of his best posts was Speed Up Windows XP Startup a few weeks ago and last Sunday he really outdid himself!

He did a post entitled The Ultimate Windows XP Optimization Tweak Guide and let me tell you he did a Great job!

One of the things that I like about Steve and his Tech Guide site is that he makes things so easy. He gives step by step instructions on how to do even difficult tasks and even he tells you why you’re doing it…so you know if you want or need to do it in the first place! But best of all he provided pictures for his Tweak Guide post…just for numbnuts like me, because I tell you if it weren’t for the pictures I probably still wouldn’t have known how and what to do…Especially since my computer speaks Dutch instead of English! While I do know Dutch, so to speak, I definitely do not know technical Dutch, so the pictures were definitely a must have for me!

So hat’s off Steve on a great job, I guess I am going to be always in your debt now too!

If you’re interested in tweaking your XP to increase it’s overall performance and speed it up a bit or are just curious about what I have been talking about why don’t you head on over there and take a look, I’m sure there is some information there on his site that everyone can use!

And since it’s such a great site and since I have to go over there often to see what I can see, I have conveniently added it to our blogroll so it’s easy for all of us to get to!

Well, that’s all for me today, OH! and by the way…I also like picture books too!!!!! See you back again tomorrow for more…

It’s often been said that there is no such thing as a free lunch…and maybe that’s true, but if you know where to look then there are some things that are honest to goodness, no strings attached, Free!

For instance:

House or apartment swapping. If you’re going on vacation you might check one of the house/apartment swapping sites. If you find a place that you like to stay in you contact the owners and try to arrange a swap, your home for theirs for a specific amount of time. Interested? Check out Only In America.

Looking for free products? Check out The Free Site while there might be a few links that should be avoided there are a lot of legitimate no-strings attached samples of newly developed products.

Freecycle is an online community that reaches around the world that takes peoples unwanted items such as furniture, clothes, instruments or anything else you can think of and makes them available free of charge to other people. To post, all items must be totally free. This is also great because not only do people benefit from others outcasts but it’s good for the environment because it keeps good stuff out of landfills.

There are many more honest to goodness free items, books, free advice and even donate to less fortunate than yourself for free!

More information on free stuff can be found at:

Free For All

That’s all for me today, see you back again tomorrow for more…

Since the television and film writers have gone on strike against the studios and production companies, the late-night talk shows, daytime soaps, and prime-time dramas will still need fresh material for the coming months.

But what if the strike doesn’t end soon and they don’t get the new material needed? Will TV end? Be no more? Finito? Gone bye-bye? Out the window? Would life as the couch potato knows it end?

Well CNN.com asked readers what they would do in a world without television and got some very interesting responses.

Surprisingly many said they wouldn’t mind not having television and would actually benefit without it and in fact, as it turns out, many have given up TV years ago!

Here are some of the responses, (in a shorter edited form):

• This could be the best thing to ever happen to America! It’s a great opportunity to fix two of our largest social problems. First: Read a book and second perform some outdoor activities and lose the weight we have collected while sitting on the couch watching TV.
• Fill the time with better conversations, reading, and fitness. The most important of those would be conversation; most people let TV fill the time when we should be talking to our family.
• Read a lot and volunteer for Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic. Enjoy window shopping just to see what there is to see and while doing that you can loose weight.
• Read, exercise, and do things that generally require human contact. It may be a great time for people to reflect upon the fact that TV has become a crutch that allows people to procrastinate and disengage from daily life.
• Spend time outdoors, cook, enjoy being around friends, read books, run, bike, and kayak. More importantly, what do I not do? I don’t discuss commercials and TV shows with co-workers. I don’t obsess over being home at a certain time to watch someone’s fake life. I don’t spend hours a day in a climate-controlled environment sitting in one place.
• We actually choose not to have television just because of all the violence and sexuality on it. My husband, myself and my son are all big readers. We are also very close. We share our day and stay connected in each others lives. We pretty much eat dinner together every night. I personally would like to see America have a National “Turn off your TV Week” so that families could get to know each other.

Not everyone that responded said that they would do well without TV, in fact some said they “will be lost without my shows!!” If you would like to see more interesting responses to this question go to:

Life Without TV

That’s all for me today! I’m off to find something to do, like, cook, walk the dog, take out the trash, “bond” with my neighbor or I just might read more of those responses and get some more ideas! I hope to see you back again tomorrow for some more…

Hi Again!

I was reading The Automatic Millionaire Blog (trust me…it is not me!), and he was giving tips about…money of course, so I thought that I would get off of people today and talk about another favorite of mine…MONEY!!! Here are some of the tips that he shared.

Checking your own credit score doesn’t count as an inquiry and will not hurt your FICO score. The only inquiries that count toward your credit score are the ones that are done whenever you apply for new credit.

Use debit cards in place of credit cards in order to avoid high interest rates and late fees. But there are other pitfalls to be aware of, namely overdraft fees. In the past your purchases would not go through if there was insufficient funds in the bank. But banks are more likely to approve the transactions these days even if you do not have enough money in your checking account to cover your purchase, but then charge you an overdraft fee.

If you’re having trouble paying your mortgage, call your lender today. Too many homeowners are unaware that there are real options available that will help keep their home. But action must be taken sooner rather than later.

If you’re going through a foreclosure, as soon as the proceedings start you’ll likely hear from many different companies claiming they can ‘rescue’ you and your home. In actuality though, they trick you into signing over any equity you have in your home or they take your money and just disappear, make sure you get Legal Advice Before signing anything.

If you have a cell phone, then losing it is worse than losing a credit card because your liability is greater. Make sure that you cancel the account A.S.A.P.! Overseas calls make up a large part of the fraudulent calls. Have international calling blocked from your phone if you don’t need it. Many of the major carriers offer prepaid plans so you can Pay-As-You-Go, No hassles, no huge bills and no unexpected charges.

If you wish to read more about these tips just click on the The Automatic Millionaire Blog link above, it will take you right there!

That’s all for me today, hope to see you back here tomorrow where we will be celebrating…T.G.I.F., UFO’s &…

Hi Again!

I was reading an article today about asking someone out on a date, and while I have not ask that many men out on a date myself, (I tend to be a little old fashioned, the men usually ask me out), I have done it, (ask a man out)!! And I never thought about it before but the article mentioned how people get all clammy and fidgety and mumble and fumble and I was amazed! I finally figured out that it must be because they are afraid of being rejected! Actually I didn’t figure it out, I just read the article a little farther!

I have to say, on those few times that I did ask a man out, I was not clammy, fidgety, mumbly or fumbly, I never had any doubts about what the answer was going to be, and thinking about it now, if I had any doubts what so ever, I never would have done it either!

And I started thinking, isn’t it amazing how each and every one of us are so totally different but yet in many way exactly the same??

We all have come into the world the same way, I am not speaking of the actual individual birth, but we all got there the same way, (that is a whole ‘nother post, and probably doesn’t belong on Uni’s site, he tends to get upset at mention of certain things, you know how Uni’s like purity)!!, but we were created the same way, we all bleed the same way, and contrary to what people may think, it all comes out red, even if you are blue blooded!, we all breath the same air and the same way, some air being more clearer & cleaner than others, but if you were where clean air was you would be breathing the same air!, we all experience the exact same feelings, rejection, love, hate, dislike, trust, safety, pleasure, pain each and every one of us feel, maybe not the same way, but feel it just the same!, we all have to eat, sleep, drink, communicate with each other and the list goes on!

And yet our inner “feelings” seem to be the one that causes us the most pain and pleasure! It makes me wonder about cruelty and the cruelty that we inflict on others! Why do we find that it is necessary to inflict unnecessary pain on others?

Especially when that is probably the “feeling” that we fear so much, pain! Why do we find it necessary to physically hurt another, or why is it necessary to say hurtful things to each other?

Think about the last time that you said something hurtful to someone, I don’t mean accidentally hurt someone, but said something to someone knowing that it would cause them pain. Now think about what you said, and think about how you would feel if that person, or someone else for that matter, said the same thing to you. Would what you said hurt your feelings? If it wouldn’t hurt your feelings then you are done, nothing more to the experiment, but if it would hurt your feelings, then Why? and more importantly Why did you say it? Why in the World would you say something to anyone, and especially a loved one, that would be hurtful and make them feel bad and maybe not just feel bad for the moment, maybe make them feel bad for the rest of their lives???

Is it the power it gives you? Is it because you were angry and lashed out at someone, maybe not even the person you were angry with! If you said it out of anger, then after you cooled off did it make you feel good that you said it or are you sorry you said it? If you are sorry you said it, Now you have made 2 people feel bad, not just the one!! How smart is that? Now you have made yourself feel bad also!!! Was it worth it? Was it really worth acting like a spoiled brat just because you were angry?

Do you realize that stupid things said in the heat of anger, or maybe you are just an evil person, can ruin relationships for the rest of your life? Think about it! Is it really worth loosing your life partner or best friend, parents, children, your job or any thing else that you value just for some stupid thing that you said in an instant and didn’t get that much gratification out of anyway, especially if you are sorry now?

So why not from now on for your sake and the sake of others, try stopping and think about what you are going to say before you say something that in the long run you are going to regret and be hurt over as well as others? And for goodness sake, if someone that you don’t want to go out with asks you out, decline in a pleasant and positive fashion that behooves you, after all, it should really be a very high compliment that someone wants the honor of sharing your company!

That’s it for me today, hope to see you here tomorrow! Oh! and if you ask someone out and they turn you down, try not to feel so hurt and rejected. After all, if they didn’t want to go out with you then how much fun could it have been? There are always many more just waiting for a chance to spend a little time with you!

By the way, the new ways to ask someone out are: Ask your intended out on paper…or a paper napkin, (personally I think that this is as old as the hills…but)?, pull your own “To be continued…” episode, Hire a stand-in to do the asking, Invite someone for a one-on-one, Sneak it onto their to-do list, Start your own rumor, Make a wager & Be specific and straight-up! If you want more information on these new ways of asking someone out then you can go to:

New Ways of Asking Someone Out