Hamilton Family Las Vegas

The Costume lineup

2011-10-31T13:33:00.001-07:00

For the UFC yearly Halloween party. Winner: Dan Hardy, 2nd place: Mark Ratner, 3rd place: Lego Man

Halloween Party at The UFC

2011-10-31T12:11:00.001-07:00

Lego Man and a hearse...nice

Joshy chasing a chicken at the pumpkin patcjh

2011-10-22T13:08:00.001-07:00

He wasn't too happy when he actually caught the little thing.

Easy, Fast, and Cheap Solution That Converted ALL My VHS Tapes.

2011-10-05T22:29:00.000-07:00

I had box after box of unused VHS tapes that are now converted to an acceptable mpeg 2 format for use on my media player. Its basic, you aren't going to light the world on fire with this $55 software but you can easily, quickly, and cheaply convert all of your old VHS to DVDs in a snap. And isn't that what life is all about?

Pros: Easy to Install/connect, Cheap: under $60, Fast - as much as real time can be I suppose

Cons: Cheap construction flimsy plastic, Little/No customization of preferences, bad conversion to Quicktime

Roxio Easy VHS to DVD for Mac
Overview:

I had boxes and boxes of VHS tapes, ones that I bought, ones that I shot on camera and many of the purchased VHS I had not intention of replacing with DVD. So I had to find an easy, fast, and cheap solution to convert ALL the VHS tapes I owned. I found Easy VHS to DVD for Mac on Buy.com for about $55 and decided I would give it a try.
Box Opening Extravaganza:

Not much to it actually. You receive a usb dongle with RCA (composite) and S-Video squid cable inputs, a CD for the software,
and a slip of paper that is supposed to pass as a manual of some sort.
The dongle was cheap, light plastic but for $55 I wasn't exactly expecting pig iron with gold-tipped connectors. It is what it is.
Installation:

As with all Mac peripherals and software, its one or two steps and or clicks and away you go. I plopped the CD into my Mac and double clicked the install, pretended to read the licensing blah blah blah, and then selected the destination drive. It took about 30 seconds to install.

I then simply plugged the USB into my mac, plugged the audio composite cables (red and white RCA) from the output of my VCR into the connectors hanging from the dongle, did the same thing for the video/picture output of my VCR to the dongle and then, for kicks, tried to run the VHS conversion software right away to see if it is "smart" enough to find the dongle without a restart. It is not. I needed a restart. Once I did that. It was ready to go. Very easy to install.
The Software:

Yes, Roxio, vanilla called and it wants its flavor back from your software. The provided software is BORING and featureless with a very spartan interface, but for $55 I wasn't exactly expecting Adobe Creative Suite 5 or anything. Its very basic as I mentioned, You get an introduction screen to name your video and to set the approximate length of the video and the quality to set it to.

Easy VHS to DVD for Mac software sets up its own folder deep in your "movies" folder without telling that it has done that. You have to go into the sparse preferences menu to set a different folder for it to capture to.

The estimated lengths of video are on a pull down menu of 15, 30, 60, 90, 120, and 180 minutes which is ok unless you have a 45, 75, 105 (most Hollywood movies), or 145 minute movie, in which case, you will either have to babysit your VHS conversion to manually press "STOP" or be content with a HUGE waste of time and space at the end of your movie. More selections of time allotments please Roxio. The quality selection is High, Medium, or Low which is strange because, you wouldn't want any less quality than the "high" setting: medium is horrible, low quality resembles something shot on a late 90's treo phone.

After you've selected this criteria, you move to the hardware connection screen where it detects where your picture is connected, and it is here that a preview screen is up. I would recommend running the VCR just to make sure you are getting a picture. If you are, click continue.

This brings up the next screen which is the audio hardware connection screen. This can be tricky on a Mac because you have to go into your system preference pane with audio and select the proper input for the entire computer system so that it knows to gather and process the signal from the right place. Macs are not too good in this area even with all the other Mac advantages, audio is NOT one of them, sadly.
If you see the green audio bars resonating across the blue/grey bars at the bottom of this screen, audio is working, click continue and away you go.

This brings up the final screen which is the big fat red recording button and the little button at the bottom which says "Automatically stop recording after ___ minutes" I would use this button religiously unless I came across a video at a length in between the presets and I didn't want a bunch of blank video and dead file space at the end of my movie file. So I toggle that button "on" with a check when I don't want to babysit the conversion process. click the big fat record button and the software and dongle hardware are now converting the VHS tape to an mpeg2 computer file.

When completed, another window pops up allowing you have the option of:

• Sending to Quicktime (converting to an Mp4 - which I DONT recommend)
• Sending to Imovie, which is OK if you want to try to edit your movie • Sending to to Toast (convert straight to DVD through the provided toast basic software.)

I have no interest in DVDs anymore so I just simply took the mpeg2 file that is automatically created by the software and used it on my Seagate Freeagent Home Theater + player (see my review here on Epinions) and that is the highest that the quality gets with this software, otherwise for the MP4 it takes the mpeg2 and FURTHER compresses it to garbage ville and I was dealing with artifacts, digital hits, dropouts, and HATED the final product when exporting to Quicktime on MP4.

If I wanted mp4 I would just bring the mpeg2 into a piece of freeware software called Mpeg Streamclip and convert it there. The Mp4 conversion using Easy VHS to DVD is garbagio.

Its not quite as bad for the DVD conversion, it converts the mpeg 2 to an M2V by transcoding and that is much easier for this software to handle, actually, it is a scaled down version of Toast that burns the DVD, it is very easy to convert and burn a disc, its only a matter of a few clicks and you've now converted 80's technology into 90's technology! Congratulations!
Hardware:

The device itself is cheap plastic that when the weight of VCR cables running into the stubby composite inputs on the dongle cause the plastic device to 'droop' the device doesn't hold up well. Handle it delicately. That being said it set up in a cinch and does EXACTLY what it says it does, it provides an analog ito digital input into your system. I can't argue with that.
Overall Picture/Video Quality:

It has its imperfections. I get acceptable picture with sync'd audio and it seems a fair replication of the poor VHS quality that I started with, so I don't have an issue with it. I am 99% certain that the hardware device is nothing more than a very cheap analog to digital 'capture' card with no compression capabilities whatsoever, but I could be wrong. It appears to me that all conversion to mpeg2 takes place in the few minutes of processing that follows a successful import.
Wrapping It Up:

With everything being said, I don't advocate copyright infringement but in my little post-napster world, I feel that if I purchased videos and/or 'cassettes' and the technology is no longer viable, I can convert it to a current viable technology without violation of conscience so long as I get rid of the old format, which in the case of VHS and Cassette tapes, I do. I just throw them out basically because who would want them?

So disclaimer aside, I had box after box of unused VHS tapes that are now converted to an acceptable mpeg 2 format for use on my media player. The only tapes I had an issue with were VHS-C home videos that I shot in EP...I just had to give up on those. But even store bought EP VHS (cheapie documentary) tapes gave the device some problems.

If I were still caught up in the DVD world, I would have been fine with the DVDs it made, the software allows for colorful menu themes and neat little tricks that only 2001 could offer. Its basic, you aren't going to light the world on fire with this $55 software but you can easily, quickly, and cheaply convert all of your old VHS to DVDs in a snap. And isn't that what life is all about?
3-1/2 stars out of 5. Its a cheap, fast, and decent conversion app and hardware. Its got its flaws in makemanship, conversion quality, and features. But it does the job.

The Bottom Line: 3-1/2 stars out of 5. Its a cheap, fast, and decent conversion app and hardware. Its got its flaws in makesmanship, conversion quality, and features. But it does the job.

Recommended:
Yes

Best Place to Buy and Smoke a Cigar in Las Vegas a la 2011.

2011-07-09T22:06:00.000-07:00

I originally wrote this article a couple years ago but found that much of the information I shared, desperately needed updating as many of my favorite cigar haunts have closed and shops have changed.

In case you're feeling nostalgic for the "old days" of 2009, here is the original post with the old information.

As a Las Vegas local, I saw the days where smoking a cigar was really just a matter of "Where do you want to go?" Today, it is a little more touchy with regards to lighting up a big phatty in a public place. I have decided to blog some of my favorite locales for smoking (or buying) a cigar in Las Vegas and have listed a few places to avoid that are NOT cigar friendly.

If you enjoy watching a game, having a microbrew, and smoking a nice cigar all at the same time, you have two choices: Grab the rabbit-eared TV from the closet, buy some cheap Oregon beer at Albertsons, and light up a cigar in your gas fumed garage. OR, you can just make a quick trip to The Chicago Brewing Company on Fort Apache and West Sahara in Summerlin. The upstairs room opens at 5pm so you'll have to make it a night game, but you will have access to a little tobacco hideaway with leather chairs, big ashtrays, and a plethora of micro-brews to choose from. My personal micro brew favorite here is the sampler. It is about 10 small sized beers on a round rack that gives you a nice overview of everything they have to offer. A nice Maduro wrapped Punch Belicoso with a Chicago stout microbrew and you'll feel like you were watching the game from a luxury box!

Another enjoyable haunt for locals is FAR FAR away from the strip (just like I like it!) in the northwest of the Las Vegas valley, and about 4 miles north of The Chicago Brewing Company. It is yet another micro brew house called Tenaya Creek Brewery on Cheyenne and Tenaya. Whereas this is a nice place to grab a number of delectable micro brews from the lightest to the darkest, it is not a place to get your grub on. They don't serve food here and haven't for some time. However, they are quite friendly toward cigar smokers and have a nice set of leather couches toward the back which allow for a little quieter cigar atmosphere (if that is your thing).

OK, I've covered some places far from the strip for those Vegas natives among us who avoid the strip like a pile of fresh vomit in a meat packing facility. But perhaps you are a visitor to our grand city and are staying on or near our "Fabulous Strip" and would like to find a great place to enjoy a cigar that is not far from your hotel (or motel if you're in my income bracket). Read on my welcomed visitor. Read on:

My favorite place on the strip to enjoy a nice cigar would have to be Napoleon's Lounge at the Paris Hotel. The Paris is a centrally located resort next to Bally's and across from Caesars Palace and the Treasure Island or "T.I." as we smug pretentious locals call it. When the Paris first opened Napoleon's, it had a sultry piano and a big, dark, and seedy interior. They have now added an additional piano and brightened up the place just a bit but it is still a nice locale to acquire an enticing glass of cognac or brandy whilst puffing away thoughtfully at the cigar of your choice. There used to be a small humidor here which sold your standard famous names at a wonderful "Strip markup" price - i.e Punch, Macanudo, Monte Cristo, Davidoff etc. but humidors come and go depending on the profitability so no promises there. I will say that the entertainment has been bumped up a bit with the second piano as you may now find "dueling" pianos on a Saturday night, which to be honest, does NOTHING for my cigar experience. Mostly because I not only like to hear myself think, but I like to hear myself talk...endlessly...about nothing...and everything...philosophical...political...religiosical, etc.
whether I am with someone or not! (weird as I may look) So for this reason, I tend to stick to quieter environs para mi fumo.

Another decent place on the Strip to smoke a stick would be Andre's Cigar and Cognac Lounge at the Monte Carlo. The Monte Carlo is probably one of the best kept secrets on the Strip, in my never so humble opinion. If I didn't look to avoid the Strip, wasn't married, didn't have kids, didn't have a morning job, and didn't have a limited bank account, I would probably hang out here on a semi-regular basis. The Keg Room has a wall of lighted kegs of some of the best beers in the world, and a 'meat and potatoes' food menu which is a great place to start. The Keg Room is not, however, a place to consider for smoking stogies as it is like most "restaurant/pub" establishments and has become "smoke free". But, cigar fans do not fear, Andre's Cigar and Cognac Lounge is but a few scant strides away here at the Monte Carlo and, like Napoleon's in Paris, is a great place to grab a nice Port, Brandy, or as the name suggests, a Cognac to sip in very upscale cigar lounge surroundings.

Now, speaking of buying cigars in Las Vegas, I have two rules:

1. Don't do it unless you absolutely HAVE to.

2. Don't buy down on the strip EVEN IF you have to! You will get reamed my friend, reamed.

So here is what you do, if you're down on the strip, hop in a cab and say, "Driver, take me to Pheasant Tobacco!" "Where is that?" he might ask, you answer, "West Sahara directly across from the Palace Station Casino" and then lean back with a smug I've-been-in-town-45-minutes-and-I-know-it-ALL look. Be sure to tip him though. Pheasant is not far from the strip at all but its WAY on the North side where the old school hotels are: Circus Circus, Riviera, Sahara, etc. It is a very reasonably priced tobacco shop with a fantastic selection. There is a cigar there for everyone no matter what your income bracket. They have a nice smoking room and , in my humble opinion, the most knowledgeable staff in Vegas. The only catch is, operating hours. For some reason, these guys seem to think that they have set up shop in Minnesota or something. They close early and don't give a rat's behind that this is a 24 hour town (is my personal frustration showing through?).

If you are happy to travel up to the west or northwest side of town, there are a couple good places to purchase a cigar.

Tobacco Leaf on West Lake Mead and Rock Springs. Again, a decent selection, but the prices are bit more jacked up. They are still probably 40-50% cheaper than what you would buy on the strip or in a cigar lounge that I've suggested. The store has been around a couple years and contains a decent walk in humidor with a somewhat helpful staff. I would consider it a bit small and cramped but they offer a frequent flyer punch card where if you purchase 8 or 9 cigars, you get one at the same level for free, so its about a 10% discount for volume or repeat business

Another Cigar store that is a little more roomy, has a wall-lined humidor (no walk in), a decent selection with cigars in nearly every range is Hemingway's on Cheyenne Rd and The I-95 way up in the northwest of Vegas...right where I like it! This guy is very knowledgeable of all that he sells, he's very friendly every time I've been in. My typical weekend wear is flipflops and a UNLV cap...this look tends to draw a worried dithering of humidor attendants who seem worried that I might try to slip a pack of Phillies Blunts in my camo cargo shorts pocket, but this guy is hassle-free and will let you browse to your hearts delight, and will come over only if you appear to need some help (or have slipped a pack of Phillies Blunts in your camo cargo shorts pocket). I will say that he does appear to be a bit "proud" of his high end cigars and overprices accordingly there, but I usually buy in the $4-5 range and this cigar shop has more to offer along that budget line than does the aforementioned Tobacco Leaf.

The last and most recent find for a place to buy cigars in Las Vegas is WAY WAY out in the Northwest, just outside of town at the Snow Mountain Smoke Shop on the Paiute Indian Reservation. I found this sort of 7-11 looking "smoke shop" out there that I thought I might pop into as its on my way...to...well...nothing. Its not on the way to anything except wilderness. But I somehow found an excuse to stop in to this little building only to find rows and rows of cigarettes everywhere. I was afraid that I would be left with Swisher Sweets or a nice choice of Backwood Smokes (which I like by the way) but there in the corner, a beam of Sunlight from heaven and angelic voices began to sing...angelically...as I discovered a glorious corner walk-in humidor with one of the best-priced (and tax free!) selections of cigars from everywhere! (Except Cuba - but that is a different blog post) Romeo y Julieta, Te Amos (which I hate and which hardly anyone in Vegas sells anymore), El Rey Del Mundo, La Gloria Cubanas, Punch, and a slew of great mid-range cigars that fit my budget.

I realize that Snow Mountain Smoke Shop is way out in the sticks to go and buy...well...a stick, however, it turns out that I discovered only the tip of the iceberg as the MAIN Paiute Reservation Smoke Shop is called "Main Street Smoke Shop" or "Cigar Shoppe" in downtown Las Vegas! It has been rated by our local newspaper as the "Best in Las Vegas" for cigar and smoke shops and boasts the largest selection of cigars under one roof in the city of Las Vegas.

Ultimately, its all about finding what works best for you, your budget, your tastes, and your temperament that will determine your cigar experience here. Hopefully the above list will give a couple good places to start, that are off the tourist's beaten path.

A Tribute To My Dad For Father's Day

2011-06-22T00:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day Dad. Late as usual I suppose. Thank you for giving your life and dreams to provide for us kids when we needed it most.

TomTom One - Worth its 1lb weight in gold!

2011-06-07T17:21:00.000-07:00

Technology designed to do a number of things: phone, internet, gps, music player - will usually do all of them only reasonably well. But a device that is designed to specialize in one of the above will generally do that task MUCH better. This is definitely the case with the TomTom One 140-S GPS device.Overview

With the advent of faux-GPS available on Smart Phones today, many people, including myself, believed the stand-alone GPS device to be obsolete. Nothing could be further from the truth.
I discovered that when I travel overseas and don't wish to incur mammoth data charges, clumsy map books from a "petrol garage", or ask directions in a language I don't speak, I have relied on my TomTom One GPS to bail me out and help me navigate unknown towns and cities.

The following review will give a basic look at the hardware and software of the TomTom One and will apply to the following TomTom One models: ONE 3rd Edition, ONE 130, ONE 130-S, ONE 140, and ONE 140-s - all of which utilize essentially the same hardware technology minus cosmetic, aesthetic changes from the 3rd edition (fatter and more square 3.5" screen casing) to the ONE 140-s (slimmer and more rectangular 3.5" screen casing) and software technology 140-S (features text-to-speech - announcing streets and Points of Interest) vs ONE 3rd edition (No voiced street names and POIs receive a "chime").

Whats In The Box

I wish I could start this review on the right foot, but I can't. Here is one of the few negatives of the TomTom One Line. You will receive the GPS unit itself, a USB Car Charger and USB cable, an Easyport Mount (Windscreen Holder for the ONE 3rd Edition), and last but not least, Documentation - Quick Start Guide and Accessory leaflet.

Conspicuous by its absence is the wall charger that EVERY Electronic Device should come with, even stingy old Apple provides a very basic wall charger for its products! Not so with TomTom ONE. You can use the USB cable to charge the device on your laptop or home computer and the device will charge while running from the cigarette lighter, but if you are at a motel and don't have your laptop, and the car is parked and turned off safely 3 floors below, you're out of luck for charging this thing. It also does not come with any thin flimsy faux-leather case that even cheap $8 Sunglass purchases come with! Not to fear, I've found aftermarket GPS cases for about $7 and the discount stores.

I picked up a $5 USB wall charger and found it to charge this unit just fine. *WARNING* Do NOT buy this accessory from TomTom or from Radio Shack, they will hammer your wallet for $40 or $50 to buy the actual "charger" and its completely unnecessary. The USB wall adapter and TomTom supplied USB cable work just fine for my unit.
Specifications (for all models mentioned above)

Screen Size is 3.5"
Screen Type is 4:3 LCD
Screen Resolution is 320 x 240 Pixels
It weighs about 140 grams (about a pound)
It has an internal non-removable battery that is rated for 3 hrs
Memory - Internal Flash Memory only 2GB no SD slot!
Hardware

I'm a big guy and this GPS device fits in my hand well, but it would not fit into a smaller person's hand. (My wife hates carrying this thing around.)

It has a power button on the top and a mini USB port on the bottom (ONE 3rd edtion has a traffic antenna port on the bottom that works with FM radio - traffic antenna is an additional $125 accessory)

The back contains the speaker for voice instruction.

I've saved the LCD on the front for the last observation. Before the iPhone came out, the touch LCD was amazing technology that seemed to work so well. Now that I've had an iPhone for a couple years, the LCD response and lag can be a bit frustrating but ultimately does the job. Without going into the software here, it basically requires a quick 'pop' of the finger to register an entry and is sluggish to register when attempting to "zoom" or scroll like you would Google Maps on an iphone.

It has an internal GPS sensitive chipset that often times requires a precise position on your dashboard or hand to properly pick up triangulation accuracy. Think of it like the old days where sometimes you had to hold the rabbit ears of your TV set and stand on one foot when trying to get M*A*S*H to come in 'just right'. Once the satellites lock on your TomTom, you're in. I've rarely ever seen this GPS drop the satellite link unless I've done something obvious like driven into a tunnel or parking garage.

A negative here is there isn't an SD slot for expansion. You are stuck with the scant 2GB internal flash Memory forEVER! The problem here is that one map set: US/Canada or Western Europe etc, will use up all 2 GB of that space which means you have this horribly complicated process of wiping the GPS and trading out for the alternative map EVERY time you leave your main map area. Believe me, this process is a pain because the technology is USB 1 and the transfer time is an over night endeavor.
Software

The software is where the TomTom really shines. It comes preloaded (in the U.S.) with U.S. and Canada maps with most additional countries running about $79 for each map.

Like the earlier units you get:
• turn by turn voice directions
     The volume can be set to auto-adjust to your vehicle speed.
     I have been through downtown LA about 20 times and the ONLY
     times I have successfully navigated the tangled mess of off and
     on ramps without a reroute has been when I've used this TomTom.

• automatic rerouting when you miss a turnoff (intentionally or unintentionally
• Fast Navigation
     Several months ago I had this TomTom working directly next to
     my iPhone 3G GPS and the TomTom gave directions well before
     a turnoff whereas the iPhone GPS lagged behind to the point
     where it gave instructions (non-voice) well after I had already
     passed the turnoff - definite advantage TomTom
• Fairly reliable and updated maps
     This can be user generated (most up-to-date but only somewhat
     reliable) or TomTom generated (behind the times but very
     accurate)
• Find POIs near you, or near destination, etc
     I have used this here in the States or overseas to find ATMs, gas
     stations, and post offices, etc which can come in VERY handy in a
     city you don't know very well. On this 140-S unit, it will voice the
     POIs you've selected as you near them. On the ONE 3rd Edition,
     you can set it to chime as it nears a selected POI.
• Saved destinations for future use.
• Set Routes for Driving, Walking, Bicycling - Fastest, no freeways, etc
     I walked around Paris with this GPS in my hand and set it to find
     the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, and Notre Dame. It kept guiding me
     along strangely LONG routes until I discovered that I needed to
     set it to "walk" routes and not "drive" routes. The TomTom was
     paying attention to one-way streets that are all bypassed in "walk"
     mode. VERY handy once again.

The 140-S adds the following features:
• Advanced Lane Guidance
     Now detailed information about complex freeways (like downtown
     LA) and the ideal lanes to maintain your particular route of travel.
• Text-To-Speech
     This is just a minor "add" as it now allows you to have street
     names and POIs 'spoken' which the older models cannot do. I
     don't find that this feature is necessary, so you could save a few
     bucks and get the older models which do not run this version of
     software.
• IQ Routes
     This utilizes compiled user data of average speeds on a given road
     at a given time and then passes that information on to your device
      if you select "fastest route"
Conclusion

Technology designed to do a number of things: phone, internet, gps, music player - will usually do all of them only reasonably well. But a device that is designed to specialize in one of the above will generally do that task MUCH better. This is definitely the case with the TomTom One 140-S GPS device. If I need to do some serious navigation and don't want to continue looking at my iPhone for instructions, this is the device that has saved my bacon time and time again.

I paid about $100 for this device and considering I no longer stop for directions or to buy maps or waste hundreds of dollars in time and/or gas driving or walking in circles. I would count the benefits of this GPS in the thousands of dollars - 1 pound GPS device equal in value to 1 pound of gold, even with the stingy box offering and sometimes glitchy screen!
Pros: Price, Map Accuracy, Software, Fast Navigation, POI locators.
Cons: Poor LCD map touch response, No wall charger or case! Expensive accessories, No SD EXPANSION!
The Bottom Line: If you need a device to help you navigate an unknown concrete jungle or spaghetti bowl of freeways, this is your GPS!

Recommended:
Yes

Remembering My Mom on Mothers Day

2011-05-08T20:34:00.000-07:00

Today is the first Mother's Day without my Mom. I wasn't sure how to feel about it. The obvious feelings are "loss", a bit of "emptiness", and somewhat"lost", but mostly it was really just awkward I suppose. I didn't quite know how to go about the day. In the end, I figured I would write a quick blog to honor her memory and reflect on a few of the more obscure moments with my Mom.

I remember that as a small boy, my Mom would pray with me every night: the typical Catholic "Our Father" + "Hail Mary" + personal petitions and intercessions. I remember that after each night of prayer she would give me a kiss and say, "Goodnight Andy, sweet dreams, God bless you!" and every night this was repeated. It became a very comforting ritual, the most satisfying of which was my Mom's goodnight blessing.

One night she left my room by saying, "Good night Andy, sweet dreams." and began to close the door. I remember crying out in a panic, "YOU FORGOT TO SAY 'GOD BLESS YOU!?!'". I remember her gentle smile and a sort of laugh at my correction. She assured me that everything would still be OK even if she forgot to say one of those magic phrases. However, she saw how important it had become to me and she would never forget to include all three elements of the "Goodnight" ritual thereafter.

Today, when I pray with my six year old, I give him a kiss and repeat those three elements in that exact order, "Goodnight Joshy, sweet dreams, God bless you!" He seems to derive a similar comfort from this blessing and even repeats it back to me the same way that I would with my Mom.

Each night I say this, I privately think of my Mom and it brings a bit of her into my daily life, her kindness and love paying dividends even to the next generation.

Happy Mother's Day Mom. I'll never forget you and I sure do miss you.

I. Did. Not. Know. That. Little known Cliff Claven facts about the world.

2011-02-23T12:19:00.000-08:00

Alaska

More than half of the coastline of the entire United States is in Alaska .

Amazon

The Amazon rainforest produces more than 20%
of the world's oxygen supply.

The Amazon River pushes so much water into the Atlantic Ocean that, more than one hundred miles at sea off the mouth of the river, one can dip fresh water out of the ocean. The volume of water in the Amazon river is greater than the next eight largest rivers in the world combined and three times the flow of all rivers in the United States .

Antarctica

Antarctica is the only land on our planet that is not owned by any country.
Ninety percent of the world's ice covers Antarctica .
This ice also represents seventy percent of all the fresh water in the world.
As strange as it sounds, however, Antarctica is essentially a desert;
the average yearly total precipitation is about two inches.
Although covered with ice (all but 0.4% of it, ice.),
Antarctica is the driest place on the planet,
with an absolute humidity lower than the Gobi desert.

Brazil

Brazil got its name from the nut, not the other way around.

Canada

Canada has more lakes than the rest of the world combined. Canada is an Indian word meaning ' Big Village '.

Chicago

Next to Warsaw , Chicago has the largest Polish population
in the world.

Detroit

Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, carries the designation M-1,
so named because it was the first paved road anywhere.

Damascus, Syria

Damascus, Syria, was flourishing a couple of thousand years
before Rome was founded in 753 BC,
making it the oldest continuously inhabited city in existence.

Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul, Turkey, is the only city in the world
located on two continents.

Los Angeles

Los Angeles' full name is:
El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula
-- and can be abbreviated to 3.63% of its size: L.A.

New York City

The term 'The Big Apple' was coined
by touring jazz musicians of the 1930s
who used the slang expression 'apple' for any town or city.
Therefore, to play New York City
is to play the big time - The Big Apple.

There are more Irish in New York City
than in Dublin, Ireland;
more Italians in New York City
than in Rome, Italy;
and more Jews in New York City
than in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Ohio

There are no natural lakes in the state of Ohio , every one is manmade.

Pitcairn Island

The smallest island with country status is Pitcairn
in Polynesia , at just 1.75 sq. miles/4,53 sq. km.

Rome

The first city to reach a population of 1 million people
was Rome , Italy in 133 B.C.
There is a city called Rome on every continent.

Siberia

Siberia contains more than 25% of the world's forests.

S.M.O.M.

The actual smallest sovereign entity in the world
is the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (S.M.O.M).
It is located in the city of Rome, Italy,
has an area of two tennis courts
and, as of 2001, has a population of 80
-- 20 less people than the Vatican.
It is a sovereign entity under international law,
just as the Vatican is.

Sahara Desert

In the Sahara Desert, there is a town named Tidikelt, Algeria ,
which did not receive a drop of rain for ten years.
Technically though, the driest place on Earth
is in the valleys of the Antarctic near Ross Island ..
There has been no rainfall there for two million years.

Spain

Spain literally means 'the land of rabbits'.

St. Paul, Minnesota

St. Paul, Minnesota, was originally called Pig's Eye
after a man named Pierre 'Pig's Eye' Parrant
who set up the first business there.

Roads

Chances that a road is unpaved:
in the U.S.A. = 1%;
in Canada = 75%

Russia

The deepest hole ever drilled by man is the
Kola Superdeep Borehole, in Russia .
It reached a depth of 12,261 meters
(about 40,226 feet or 7.62 miles).
It was drilled for scientific research
and gave up some unexpected discoveries,
one of which was a huge deposit of hydrogen
- so massive that the mud coming from the hole
was boiling with it.

United States

The Eisenhower interstate system requires
that one mile in every five must be straight.
These straight sections are usable as airstrips
in times of war or other emergencies.

Waterfalls

The water of Angel Falls (the world's highest) in Venezuela
drops 3,212 feet (979 meters).
They are 15 times higher than Niagara Falls.

Ted and Pat Hamilton: Celebrate Life Memorial Fund

2011-01-07T12:35:00.000-08:00

http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/tedandpathamilton

Ted and Pat Hamilton met in 1953 in Topeka, KS. Pat was the ROTC Queen of her class at Washburn University where she attended and volunteered to register returning veterans to the University. It is here that she met a man who would become her "Knight in shining armor" and lifelong best friend: Ted Hamilton.

They would marry in 1955 and welcome their first child in 1956 and their second child in 1958. Tragically, they lost their third child, "Kenneth" in the first few months of his life due to brain damage at birth.

This young couple persevered through this tragedy and because of their undying faith and love for children they would bless 6 more children with life: A total of 3 boys and 5 girls.

They would spend their lives wiping tears, changing diapers, and packing lunches for these eight children. Endless stories read to eager young minds, countless sessions of nighttime prayers, and an eternity of hymns and campfire songs would cheer our spirits set our childhood world aright. They would support, mentor, and pass on their values of family and hard work to all of us.

Patricia Hamilton became a 4th grade teacher while still a young mother in Topeka, KS. She would eventually transition to full time "home and family builder" until her early 40s where she would move on to become a Social Worker for Clark County, Nevada. This was a God-ordained role that was a natural fit for her natural compassion.

Pat also spent some time as a case worker for St. Vincents "Haven of Hope" in Las Vegas and would talk make continual mention of the kindness of those people around her there. She would eventually retire from the County with her husband Ted to a little town in Southern Utah called Cedar City. She would achieve her dream of living in a green forested area.

Theodore Hamilton was a renowned photographer of his Hayden High School class, earning him the nickname "Snappy" by all of his classmates. "Snappy" would follow in his father's footsteps and join the Navy almost directly after high school. Ted went on to become a Naval Veteran of the Korean War and immediately entered the University of Washburn in Topeka, KS after his tour of duty in Korea was completed.

Ted was a hard working man of many talents. With a degree in Systems Analysis from Washburn University, he would marry his college sweetheart and they would embark, on a journey that would take the family from Topeka, KS to Louisville, KY, to Greenville, TX, to Phoenix, AZ and finally to Las Vegas, NV, adding 8 children along the way! He was a firm believer in providing for his children in many ways. He was always willing to share his engineering skills and woodworking craft with family, friends, and neighbors even after he began to struggle with his health.

Both Ted and Pat were quite active in the Catholic Church while in Las Vegas. Ted was in The Knights of Columbus and a lead usher while Pat sang in the choir and sat on the Church council for a time at St. Francis De Sales.

Tragically, on December 14th, 2010 while toting Christmas gifts from Cedar City to Las Vegas for their children, grand children, and great children, they were involved in an auto accident outside Cedar City that would immediately claim the life of Pat and complicate the health of Ted where he would pass away and join his best friend only 12 days later.

It is because of their lifelong love of 8 children, 7 children-in-laws, 14 grandchildren, and 5 great grandchildren that we have set up this page to celebrate the lives of our parents who tirelessly celebrated the lives of their own children. This memorial fund offers an opportunity to honor their memory by donating to the work of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in lieu of sending memorial flowers. We felt that supporting the medical well-being of children who cannot support themselves would be most consistent with the way our Parents lived on this Earth.

http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/tedandpathamilton

Services to celebrate our dear Mom and Dad's lives will be held at 9:30am on January 26th, 2011 at Christ The King Catholic Church in Las Vegas.

Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ :Your HD Movies,DVDs, Netflix, Internet Streaming

2011-01-02T23:37:00.000-08:00

Great variety of formats, ample inputs, 1080p, and easy set up will cause you to overlook the awful operating system of this sub $100 glitchy media player. It will play ripped DVDs and Blu Ray files and will...

What I Was Looking For:

I saw media boxes out there that streamed Netflix (Roku) and boxes
out there that could play my HD media files and ripped DVD files
(popcorn hour) but I was looking for a media box that could do both.
I saw a couple variations from Western Digital etc but decided on the
Seagate FreeAgent Theater+.
Whats in The Box:

The unboxing was unspectacular and I found myself asking "Is that it?"
Its basically a very slimline plastic box about an inch or two high and
roughly as big around as fat DVD package. It came with the following:

• a feather light (not always a good thing) remote control
• a composite cable (yellow, red, white old-school garbage)
• a component cable (red green blue - for up to 1080i play)
• an ethernet cable. (for streaming Netflix, Youtube, Mediafly, etc)
• a 1 year warranty.

Strangely, a big selling point of this box is the fact that it can play
1080p which is HUGE. However, Seagate went cheapie cheap and did
not include an HDMI cable. I guess when they considered all that
expensive plastic they poured into the box and remote, we had
already received enough value for our $99.

Hardware:
OK, so I've harped on the somewhat "flimsy"-feeling construction,
but lets look at what we can plug into the Seagate Theater+.

• Connection of this box is very simple and very straightforward and
requires very little technical expertise. However, operation of the
remote, as you will soon see, requires the patience of a thousand monks.

• No physical buttons on this thing save a small deeply recessed reset
button on the back panel. Get familiar with this button you will need
it. No buttons means TOTAL reliance on the remote. DON'T LOSE
THAT REMOTE. Just a subtle warning.

• This compact media box has a removable plastic cover on the front
right panel. When removed it reveals a niche with a dock that
fits/connects a USB Seagate FreeAgent drive "almost" nicely. I say
"almost" because the drive extends beyond the front of the player and
the removable plastic cover does not fit back over the niche with an
attached hard drive so you're left with a media player that constantly
looks like its in the middle of giving birth to an overpriced mini hard
drive at all times.

I don't know what Executive at Seagate signed off on this glorious
design but really, 2 more inches of plastic and it all looks wonderful.
Seagate wanted an almost invisible media player, so in a brilliant
effort to preserve aesthetics, some designer decided to sacrifice...
well...aesthetics. Weird, really weird.

• On the backside of this unit there are a number of ports to
accommodate a variety of audio and video input.
Going left to right:
     - a 1/4" mini "AV" input which is compatible with the standard
       definition composite to mini cable included in the box. This also
       acts as an audio input to compliment the component input.

     - Red, Green, Blue component input for those who still have only

       1080i capable TVs and/or devices. These inputs are picture only
       so if you are finnicky like me, and require audio with your video
       you will need to utilize the composite to mini cable and just plug
       in the red and white (audio) cables to your TV or device. This is a
       clunky weird set up for this box I know. Seagate could have just
       added an additional 2 RCA audio inputs and Bob would be our
       uncle, but they went ultra cheap on this media player to compete
       with Roku and get one up on Popcorn Hour,
       so this is what we get.

     - Optical Audio Input - this is pretty cool, if you have a TV or
       device that has an Optical Audio output. If you do, by all means,
       utilize this input for your component audio, its far better and
       clearer kluging RCA composite cables with Radio Shack
       extenders to get the AV cable working.

     - HDMI Input - For those of us who decided to party like its 2007.
       Basically all HDTVs now come with multiple HDMI outputs that
       enable you to view 1080p HD. This is an added feature to the
       Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ and the picture quality is not bad
       in my opinion. In fact, very good considering the sub $100 price.

     - LAN or "Ethernet" input - Run this to your broadband router or
       home network and you are well on your way to enjoying Netflix,
       Youtube, Mediafly, vtuner, picasa, Flickr, AND access to any
       movies you've made available on your home network.

     - USB port - You can load your movies, music, pics on an external
       USB2 hard drive, run a USB cable discreetly to this USB 2.0 port
       on the back of the box and you've just expanded instant access
       to your media library. You can also connect digital cameras,
       camcorders, or flash drives to access movies, music, & pictures.

     - 12v DC power input - not sexy - just does what it does.

     - RESET button - DEFINITELY not sexy - wished it weren't necessary

• And now, we address another "con" of the Seagate FreeAgent Theater+:
The Remote.

Actually, I'm not really even sure if its the remote or the infared
receiver on the box, but nearly every command to this player from
the compulsory remote, requires 2 or 3 presses of the same button to
get the box to respond.

Sometimes, its just horrible lag and then suddenly it catches up and
bombards the interface with multiple "left" or "enter" or "back"
commands and you find yourself at the root folder of the player and
far far away from that glorious Meatballs III movie you had intended
to watch 5 minutes ago.

This remote, I believe, is responsible for more hair and eyes being
pulled out of humans than all mass murderers in history COMBINED.
Very frustrating interaction between the remote and the box.
Software Interface (OS):

Some of the problems I've listed above are actually not problems with
the remote but rather are issues with the OS of the media player.

The Interface is very basic and really feels like a 3rd rate Chinese rip
off of Popcorn Hour or Roku, which, I believe, are both 3rd rate
Chinese rip offs of something else.

Very basic selections to choose from: Movies, Pictures, Music, Internet, Devices - all as square thumbnails floating in a blue room.

• "Movies" opens up an archaic "DOS-like" screen which lists all movie
files you have on any connected hard drive.
• "Pictures" opens up a thumbnail list of available pics found on a
connected hard drive.
• "Music" same as pics and movies
• "Internet" connects you to Netflix, Youtube, Mediafly, some VIDEO
RSS feeds and hundreds (if not thousands) of internet radio stations
through vTuner. You can also access Picasa and Flickr photo sites.
Sadly, no Hulu connection here yet, a DEFINITE disadvantage over
other competitive media boxes for sure.

• "Devices" gives you access to media on whatever hard drive, or 3rd
party devices you have connected.

Software: Media Formats

This is definitely a strong point for the Seagate FreeAgent Theater+
Media Player, and definitely the reason for my decision to buy:
Video: MPEG–1, MPEG–2 (VOB/ISO) this was important for me
because I wanted to rip my collection of DVDs and make them
available on my home network for instant viewing (in my home only
of course, only legal usage) When you use the VOB/ISO file format, it
will play with menus like you have a DVD running.
More Video: MPEG–4 (Xvid), DivX Plus™ HD, Xvid HD, AVI,
MOV, MOV is a format that I've noticed gives the FreeAgent Theater+
some problems for some reason. The Mpeg1,2, and 4 formats work
fine but the larger .MOV files are not readily recognized when the
Theater+ scans my drive for movie files.
MKV - This is HUGE I tell you, HUGE! If you own Blu Ray and have
figured out how to legally rip your blu rays to MKVs for personal
in-home "backup" or some other legal reason, then you will delight in
the fact that the Seagate box plays those blu ray files. yahoo.
Even MORE Video: RMVB Real Media, AVC HD, H.264, WMV9, VC–1,
M2TS, TS/TP/M2T

Video Resolutions: NTSC 480i/480p, PAL 576i/576p, 720p, 1080i,
1080p
Subtitles: SAMI (smi), SRT, SUB

Audio: AAC - it is important to note here that this box will definitely
play Apple's AAC format, but will not play the "protected/locked" AAC
files you've purchased from iTunes. That isn't really a knock on the
Theater+ though, even most APPLE devices won't play the locked
AACs unless you authorize them with big brother.
More Audio: MP3, Dolby® Digital, DTS, ASF, FLAC, WMA, LPCM,
ADPCM, WAV, OGG Playlist: M3U, PLS
Photo: JPEG files (up to 20 megapixels), BMP, GIF, PNG, TIFF

I have had a couple firmware upgrades which have made some of the
above file formats play a bit more smoothly but there are still a few
kinks to work out with this media player. I paid about $85 for my box
and then about $150 for a 1TB FreeAgent "Go" drive and overall I'm
not really disappointed, but not overly overjoyed with this media
player.

It has been a workhorse in my home and my 5 year old quickly
figured out how operate it, AND, dare I say, trouble shoot it when it
freezes up: that's right, he clicks the recessed "reset" button on the
back which starts the box all over, or he just unplugs the DC cable
and fires it back up.

I would recommend this box to a friend or family member at the
current price point of about $50-$75. Its definitely worth that much.
Versatility of file format playback
Versatility of inputs
Price
Picture
CONS: Navigation interface and software is circa 1994
Remote Control operation is horrendous
Plastic Construction
The Bottom Line: Great variety of formats, ample inputs, 1080p, and easy set up will
cause you to overlook the awful operating system of this sub $100
glitchy media player.

PROS:

Recommended:
Yes

Otterbox Defender for IPhone4: All-In-One Bulky Protective Case But Worth The Price.

2010-12-20T23:14:00.000-08:00

The Background:

My wife and I recently picked up a matching set of iPhone 4's and because I was a veteran "screen breaker" of my old iPhone 3G, I figured I would either buy insurance at $8-10 per month, or pay a bit extra for a top quality case that could protect my phone. I chose the latter and 2 months later, I am not looking back.

Types of iPhone Cases:

First of all, with regards to iPhones in particular, there are 4 basic types of cases:

Bumpers - the cheap rubber ring that surrounds the outer edge

     of the iphone while leaving the front and back open to all the
     disasters that are magnetically attracted to all iPhones.
     This is the type that Apple temporarily offered for "free" to quell
     an angry mob that was suffering from the antenna design flaw
     built into the iPhone 4. If you didn't get the freebie, then you have
     to cough up about $4 on ebay (plus shipping...usually $44.95 or
     some ridiculous amount that ebay Nazis charge)

Silicone Case - this is generally an inexpensive "wrapper" that

     surrounds your iphone around the back and edges but leaves the
     front open to any disasters that might befall your over priced
     iPhone. you can use a thin annoying film-plastic sticker over
     your screen if you are a glutton for punishment and crud on your
     screen. I have tried these "film screen protectors" and the only
     thing they protected my iPhone from was actual use by its owner.
     dust, cold, heat, breath, will cause this film to become a barrier
     between your touch and the touch screen. Nevertheless, some
     people use this film crud and swear by it. This Silicone style can
     be picked up for about $8.

Hard Shell Case - this is definitely the "next step" of cases and

     offers slender hard shell protection around the back and edges
     and is raised a bit above the front rim of the iPhone which allows
     minimal protection against dropping the iPhone. This is the type I
     had for my old 3g before buying the Otterbox Defender for the 4.
     This can be used with a thin annoying plastic film to give a "thin
     annoying" level of protection to your screen but I still don't
     recommend this type. A hard shell case usually runs about $15 or
     so, I got mine at cellphoneshop.com or something like that.
     shipping was free, price was fair, legit dealer, no problems there.

All-In-One Case - This is the best of all worlds. Generally is a 3

     or 4 part case that involves in internal plastic case that securely
     wraps the phone and has a plastic "window" that protects the
     iPhone glass and allows for touch operation directly through the
     plastic and this snap on case is covered by a grippable "silicone"
     wrapper/bumper that allows for holding the Phone and offering
     water resistance and an additional layer for phone and case
     longevity.
     These cases are like plastic tanks that protect your iPhone: Big,
     Bulky, and Pricey, and if you've broken your iphone screen a
     couple times like I have, those things stop mattering as much.
     This style of case will generally run from $30-50 depending on
     what kind of shopper hound you may be.There are only about 3
     makers of "All-In-One" cases:
     Ballistic, Logitech, and the one I am reviewing - Otterbox.

The Look and Feel:

The Otterbox Defender Case for iPhone 4 is definitely the skinniest pig in the litter of fatso cases. The new Defender case has been slimmed down to better match the contour of the squarish iPhone4 yet the outer silicone is textured to allow for a good grip. I like that the Otterbox has a coating on the outside of the touch screen protective window that protects it from static, oil slicks (eww), and bubbles while still permitting full functionality of the touch screen.

Access:

The Otterbox Defender allows for easy, protected access to all major ports: headphone on top, sync/charge cable on bottom, and the silence switch on left side. Otterbox has improved the Defender line by removing that annoying plastic film (all plastic film is annoying by the way) that used to cover the camera holes on the old 3g versions of the Otterbox. They now just have a beveled/recessed hole for the lens and for the flash which now gives us clear wonderful pictures without weird light aberrations. Good job Otterbox.

Installation:

Here is where the negative mark comes in. Yes I want protection, yes I'm glad it completely covers the phone. No, I do not want to take more time to open the phone case than it takes to prepare a Doctoral Thesis on the mating habits of the amoeba! MAN! They make this totally un-user friendly when it comes to popping this thing apart, putting in your phone, and plopping it all back together.

Basically, it requires peeling the tight silicone off the snap ridges on the top and sides and then popping the interior plastic case apart and then lining your iPhone in the front half just right and then aligning that front half with the phone into the snap slots of the back part and then the silicone goes back around the outside. God help you if you need to take your phone out of the case in a hurry. Its not going to happen at first.

Be prepared to watch a couple Youtube vids like I did to figure it out. Apparently its hard for those weirdos too because every video cuts away right at the point that you have to pry the plastic case apart to insert your phone. Anyhow, this is the only negative I found besides the price. In defense of the Otterbox, once you've mastered the install it becomes easier to take the iPhone in and out each time.

Protection:

The outside silicone absorbs shock from drops, the interior plastic case further absorbs shock and keeps the phone secure, because of the plastic operating window, broken or scratched screens are a thing of the past.

There is a soft felt lining on the interior that serves to gently protect your over priced iPhone from the inside against case scratchings etc.

However, please note, this case does not protect the iPhone 4 from owner stupidity. It does not protect from theft and: The Otterbox Defender for iPhone 4 is NOT, repeat 'not' waterproof, but rather, is water resistant. So dropping the iphone in the toilet while in the Otterbox case will not save the iPhone. However, if you have to speak on your phone while holding it in the rain or if you are using your phone in the sweltering Sun of Las Vegas and your palm is sweating profusely (again, ew), the Otterbox will keep your iphone relatively dry and safe. The majority of risk with an iPhone is damage by droppage or squashage etc and the Otterbox is awesome to protect your there.

Whats in the box?

You will get a fully secured Otterbox case fully built in one piece that you will have to learn how to take apart like a rubix cube. You will now get a holster which can be used to attach your iPhone 4 to your belt like you were some kind of techie Clint Eastwood. AND, this holster doubles as a stand for "hands free" viewing of movies, etc OR, as a decent stand to use your overpriced iPhone as an overpriced
"web cam" on your desk.

Price and Availability:

The Otterbox Defender for iPhone 4 lists for $34.95 on the Otterbox site but I've seen it at Amazon for around $25. We got ours from a place called "recellular" where it was basically an open box or store demo and we got it for about $15. I do consider the $34.95 a bit pricey for this case, however, the alternative is paying for a new $125 screen replacement or $8-10 per month for insurance. I'll pay the $30 and zip it. Its a value for what this case provides
Pros: Protection, Access, Usability, Look and Feel
Cons: Complicated installation and Price
The Bottom Line:
Of the "all-in-one" plastic bulky tank cases, the Otterbox leads the pack. Great protection, horribly difficult to install, but worth the price.

Overall Product Rating:
Above Average

Recommended:
Yes

Is There Life After Death? Or Is There Nothing After Death?

2010-09-10T14:47:00.000-07:00

Very interesting comparison of what some of the major world religions have to say about "what happens when you die" and even addresses the atheist "after death nothing" position. Its a good read from a good site in my Stumblr opinion! Enjoy!

Is There Life After Death? Or Is There Nothing After Death?

Democrat Spenders Fail

2010-08-10T16:57:00.000-07:00

So, let me get this straight: The first stimulus went to Democrat pet projects and non-existent public works, it resulted in less private sector jobs AND (wait for it...wait for it) it put YOU and ME on the hook to pay for it. FAIL. I'm sure Obamulus really believes that the failure of this stimulus was somehow George Bush's fault.

It gets better. Now, Harry Reid and the Obamacrats backdoor us for another 26 Billion "stimulus" while our Reps in Congress were in recess. For what will this second FAIL stimulus be used? To pay for failing Democrat incumbent campaigns?

The following article is hilarious:

Republicans Suggest Names for 'Second Stimulus' Bill...
Click to view story:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/70813

Happy Reading!

A Salute To The Famous Ladies of Politics

2010-07-30T13:56:00.000-07:00

In the fun of this political season, I wanted to take some time out to give "much luv and respeks" to all the wonderful ladies that grace the famous political scene here in America.

While some are loved only by MSNBC, CBS, and CNN. and others only loved by FOX, nearly all of them are not without controversy of some kind: whether it is defending the sanctity of marriage years after making a controversial video, slaughtering an entire compound of innocent women and children, defrauding millions in a Whitewater investment, or vowing to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain garners the Republican nomination, these women are all worthy of note when it comes to today's political landscape in the U.S.

Most of these ladies are conscientious observers and contributors of ideas that fuel discussion and debate regarding the policies that shape our future, and for that, I say "thank you".

Perhaps my next post will be honoring the controversial dudes of American politics. I'm open to suggestions for that list.

How Gullible Are We?

2010-07-10T22:03:00.000-07:00

This was found on the newsgroup: rec.humor.funny

Dangerous Chemical!
A student at Eagle Rock Junior High won first prize at the Greater Idaho Falls Science Fair, April 26. He was attempting to show how conditioned we have become to alarmists practicing junk science and spreading fear of everything in our environment. In his project he urged people to sign a petition demanding strict control or total elimination of the chemical "dihydrogen monoxide."

And for plenty of good reasons, since:

1. it can cause excessive sweating and vomiting
2. it is a major component in acid rain
3. it can cause severe burns in its gaseous state
4. accidental inhalation can kill you
5. it contributes to erosion
6. it decreases effectiveness of automobile brakes
7. it has been found in tumors of terminal cancer patients

He asked 50 people if they supported a ban of the chemical.

* Forty-three (43) said yes,
* six (6) were undecided,
* and only one (1) knew that the chemical was water.

The title of his prize winning project was, "How Gullible Are We?"

He feels the conclusion is obvious.

Al Gore would be SO proud.

You asked for it! The big-spender scorecard

2010-07-07T10:24:00.000-07:00

How did the congressional representative in your state vote on key "fail" issues?
Bank Bailout? It was supposed to "keep the loans for business and homes flowing". It did not. The banks took our money, and now refuse to give business and home loans.

Auto Bailout? It was supposed to "keep the auto manufacturers stable and profitable" It did not. In fact, GM - Government Motors is doing worse and Ford Motor Co., who refused the bailout, is more profitable than the manufacturers that took our money.

Cap and Trade? It is being pushed as legislation to stop evil industrial monsters from dumping poison into the atmosphere, lakes, and rivers. When in reality, that is not happening. It is legislation to tax you and me for using hot water, air conditioning, heating, gas, etc that is in "excess" of what Big Brother says it should be.

Health Care? It was supposed to usher in a utopia of shining happy people all secure in their government provided health care. It hasn't even gone into effect and already, the insurance companies are revealing that they will not cover certain "high risk" health patients. Already our insurance premiums are going up and coverage is going down to compensate for the future claims of deadbeats that show up at the door of the hospital and jump in on some gub'ment health care.

So how did your Congressmen and women vote. Here is a scorecard. Bookmark the site and make sure you bounce these clowns in November. There is no reason to allow them to continue to take our money and use it for extremist liberal left uses.

A new, simple guide about how lawmakers voted on controversial measures such as the TARP bill, auto bailout, cap and trade, food regulations and health-care reform bill. A new congressional scorecard details votes by House members on key measures , evidence of growing federal government control and excessive spending. A man named Dave Kittley created the scorecard using data from Govtrack.us . He included a red label next to each member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus , or CPC, the largest caucus within the Democratic caucus in Congress. CPC was set up in 1991 by then-Rep. Bernie Sanders, in conjunction with Democratic Socialists of America and the far left Institute

You asked for it! The big-spender scorecard

"If Movie Posters Told The Truth" list

2010-06-28T15:23:00.000-07:00

This was quite a funny little find. Because I refuse to watch movie trailers, often times I am left with nothing to go on but
a movie poster. It might be helpful if a few of those movie posters REALLY told me what the movie was about!

"If Movie Posters Told The Truth" list

Putting Things Into Proper Perspective

2010-06-21T23:29:00.000-07:00

With all the griping and political bickering and ceaseless concern for what I don't have, I came across this interesting collection of statistics.

I suppose it gave me reason for pause...and a bit of correction for perspective on life in general.

In case you have trouble with the "artsy" overuse of EVERY font in the book, here is a summary of what it says:

Food, clothes, shelter = richer than 75% of the world

Money in the bank, wallet, and spare change = top 8% of world's wealthy

Etc. Etc. Etc.

OK...I'll stop complaining - for tonight anyway.

Obama - Greatest Hits

2010-05-25T22:33:00.000-07:00

An interesting little collection to help keep a clear mind with the primaries coming up.
Vote for the candidate that has the greatest chance of removing this guy and his
cronies.

Zoom H4n - Field and Home Recording Studio In Your Pocket.

2010-05-01T22:57:00.000-07:00

Not too long ago, I picked up a field recorder to improve audio captured for various random shoots. I felt inclined to thoroughly express my opinion through a review on the overall value of the Zoom H4n Recorder...

Pros: Sound Quality, XLR input versatility, and some home recording functionality, not normally found on digital hand-helds like this one.

Cons: Small buttons, tricky double-punch-to-record function, poor battery life when utilizing 4 channel recording. VU meter reading is only activated by "single" pressing record button.

The Bottom Line: The H4n Digital Recorder is worth every penny I spent on it. Great audio quality in a small mobile unit along with XLR, 1/4", and 1/8" input versatility.

I own a video production company in Las Vegas and more and more we were looking for a reliable field recorder to allow us to capture professional qualitiy audio outside of the cameras we use. I also wanted a unit that could be used for a quick studio recorder with a USB interface for an editing bay. I shopped around and, on paper, the best buy for my buck looked to be the Zoom H4n. I had never purchased a Zoom product before so I was a little tentative, but once I got the H4n, I immediately began to feel comfortable with my purchase.

Whats In The Box

When the recorder came in, I liked the combination of sturdiness and mobility. I also liked the accessories that Zoom included with the purchase. The package came with the H4n unit itself, an AC adapter, a 1GB SD Card, a mic wind screen, a mic clip adapter, a USB cable, Cubase LE recording software, and a plastic case for the H4n unit. I have seen retailers online try to pass these accessories off as their own "add ons" but don't be fooled, Zoom includes them in every box.

That being said, I bought mine at a company called "uniquesquared" that included a microphone stand with boom and a 16gb SD card for the same price as what everyone else was selling just the H4n by itself. My point is, shop around, there are some good packages out there where you can pick up some additional accessories at no extra cost.

I will run through an overall look of the Hardware itself and will incorporate pros and cons along the way:

The Hardware

As I mentioned before, this unit was a bit surprising, I've used voice digital recorders before and they were light as a feather and were built that way. I half expected the H4n to be the same but it had some girth and substance to it (for a hand held mobile recorder) yet was still about as light as some of the old school ipods.

Microphones and Mic Inputs:

Here is the big selling point for me: 4 channel recording with XLR inputs. I could not find this in a sub $500 recorder, until the H4n, end of story.

I use professional mics that utilize XLR outputs so I needed a field recorder that would have XLR inputs, this unit has 2 XLR inputs on the bottom. If you are a home recording musician and your instrument utilizes 1/4"...no problem, the XLR inputs double as 1/4" inputs as well.

There are 2 high quality built in XY mics at the top
of the unit that aim either 90 or 120 degrees depending on how you want them. On the back of the unit is a 1/8" mini stereo mic input in case you would rather use a mini input for an additional mic instead of the XY mics. The versatility is staggering I could set the unit up for 4 channel recording and have 1 XLR in one channel, a 1/4" in another channel, and either the XY built in mics OR a 1/8" mic to record audio. This is really amazing, and after using it several times, works beautifully with a simple 1 button configuration!

At the top of the H4n Digital Recorder are two very good XY microphones. They are VERY sensitive which means that if ANY contact is made to the chassis of the H4n, these mics will pick it up. They come set up as a 90 degree setting which will allow for a standard, directional room ambient setup. However, they are adjustable to 120 degrees to allow a wider coverage area like a full audience response in a conference room, which is what we need for convention speaker videography here in Vegas.

The Display and Controls

The front of the H4n Digital Recorder has a 1.9" LCD display which give you channel VU meters, record remaining time, and even a battery remaining meter.

*Please note* when checking the LCD to see if the H4n is receiving a signal, you need to press the record button once. This does not start the recording but rather appears to just ready the unit for recording. Only after pressing the record button are you able to see the VUs registering a signal. Its an annoying 'feature', I know, perhaps Zoom will allow for the VUs to register without having to press a button at all in the future.

Moving along, above the LCD screen is an LED mode display to give you a quick glance at whether you are in 4channel, Stereo, or MTR mode.

The Controls

Beneath the LCD screen are 4 short cut and track select keys, which, like nearly all of the control buttons, are teenie tiny itsy bitsy. Which, is one of the true Lame-ities of this product, I have big fingers which makes selection a bit challenging, and when my videographers need to use it, they are trying to select things on the fly which doesn't bode well for small buttonry, but aside from this, its liveable.

Underneath the short cut/track select keys are the playback and record buttons called the "transport" keys by Zoom. The record button has a "gotcha" built in that can be costly when professionally recording a "one-time-only" event. I've alluded to this above, when you press the record button, it is more of a "standby" on the first press that readies the unit for recording. Pressing it a second time, actually starts the record timer on the LCD which tells you that you are recording. It can be a gotcha for newbies who think that they are recording only to find out after the session that they didn't press it the second time. Ouch!

The Menus and SD Card slot

The right side of the H4n is where you'll find the menu and jog dial selector. This information will be displayed on the LCD screen to configure the unit the way you like. I really like the set up the menu controls, it seemed intuitive enough for me, but I've read that others aren't too happy with them. The controls felt very "ipod-ish" to me, with jog dialing to sub menus and more sub menus, but the main selections are all on the main menu selector so that didn't bug me much.

Also on this side is the SD Card slot. I LOVE that this unit is expandable with SD cards, as long as SD cards (or SDHC) keep getting cheaper and the space on them even larger, my H4n recorder capacity will grow accordingly, BEAUTIFUL. OK, I'll calm down now. There is a "gotcha" involved with the SD card slot that seems to be consistent with ALL recording devices (video as well) that record to flash memory. Remove the card while the unit is running or processing in any way and you stand the chance of losing ALL data from that session...OUCH again. But no one reading this is going to try that are you? Are you!? Its just good to be aware of this pitfall ahead of time in case you fill a card and try to change it out too quickly. Dont do it!

The left side of the unit has the ever-popular "power" switch (its a good thing to know where this button is located), the headphone output - 1/8" mini which can double as a line-level out if you are working with a larger soundboard and/or mixer, volume controls, and, another gem feature of the H4n: The mini USB port.

The USB Port

This glorious USB port will allow you to power the H4n
by your computer's USB bus, or it lets you use the H4n to offload your files to your computer directly from the device OR, another great feature, use the H4n as an interface between your microphone(s) and or instruments to directly record to your computer. Ah, therein lies the 'home recorder in your pocket' phrase. The H4n is equipped with a preamp which will allow you to connect unpowered mics and instruments directly to the H4n and then directly to your computer.
Don't worry about picking up a USB to mini USB cable to accomplish this, as I've mentioned before, its in the box.

The final stop on our hardware tour is the back of the H4n digital recorder. At the top there is a small 1/8" mini input should you decide to use an external mic instead of the XY built-in mics. Obvious as this may be, if you choose to use this mic input, you DISABLE the built in speakers AND I've not been able to get it to work properly in "Stereo Mode" so using this output may be a choice only for the 4 channel mode.

Below the speaker to give you an audio reference apart from the headphone jack. VERY handy when trying to quickly get an audio read...remember, VU meters can tell you if you are getting a signal but they can't tell you if that signal is clipped (distorted) or wacked out in some other way. This is where the headphone jack is a must! And, when in a hurry and needing a quick reference, the speaker is a small blessing.

Tripod Mount

Beneath the reference speaker, is the threaded tripod mount. It is the standard size which I think is 3/8" or 1/4" basically the same as what you find on the bottom of consumer and prosumer video cameras. The great thing here is that Zoom includes a wooden Mic-handle shaped adapter that screws into this slot and the mic handle attaches to any standard mic clip for use on a mic stand. This is how hiproductions uses it exclusively.

I set it up as an "ambient" mic on a stand with the windscreen on the XY mics, put it in 4 channel mode, run my mics to it and Bob's my uncle.
The mic-handle adapter is included in the standard box, but the microphone clip and stand are not. As I mentioned, I found a nice kit that included these so I was set to go when it all came in.

Power, Batteries, and Stamina

Underneath the tripod mount on the H4n is the battery compartment . It takes 2 AA batteries and inside the battery compartment, (hidden by the battery cover, is something Zoom calls the "Stamina Switch" this is a switch that supposedly doubles the life of your batteries. Herein lies another slight flaw with the H4n. First of all, Zoom advertises nearly 6 hours of life on a set of 2 batteries...eeerrrmm, not so much. This unit might give you 6 hours if you attach it to your wall and use it as a night light, but try to do serious recording, especially 4 Channel recording and the battery life drops off significantly. When the batteries go, so does the recording, OUCH yet again.

I lost part of a recording during a shoot because I refused to believe that the batteries were dying after only about an hour of usage. They did. But I have seen 2+ hours on 4 channel recording with this which does the trick but its NO 6 hrs as advertised.

Zoom's answer to this is the hidden stamina switch. Supposedly this doubles the life of the batteries but does so at a cost to the responsiveness and performance of the H4n. I personally prefer to sacrifice battery life for performance everytime so I am not complaining, however, I did experiment with the stamina switch and it did improve my battery time, but I did not try it while 4 channel audio.

Herein lies yet another "GOTCHA". You will set up your rig to record 4 channel and the unit will record in 2 channel stereo. You will scramble to find the setting in the menus and submenus, you will try to press the 4channel mode button all to no avail. It is only going to record in 2 channel UNTIL, you find that sneaky nagging little hidden Stamina switch inside the battery compartment and turn it OFF. Then, magically, 4 channel mode is enabled again. So, stamina mode only works with Stereo 2 channel and will disable the ability to record in 4 channel.

Of course all of this can be avoided by using the adapter that is included in the kit and running this to the DC5V jack on the bottom of the H4n - but who wants to do it the easy way!? We find ourselves in a situation that requires a field recorder without access to power on outdoor shoots, but maybe this isn't your application. If its home studio stuff - then the power adapter is the way to go.

Software and Features

Included in your H4n package is a disc for Cubase LE software that allows you to record directly to your computer. This software is not bad at all, its on a level with Garageband for Mac (which is somewhat superior) but better than the freebie audio software out there for PC and Mac. Its not Pro Tools or advanced audio editing software but it is a great start for someone just getting started.

In addition to the H4n being a field recorder and a home studiio audio interface, it is also a phase trainer for musicians trying to learn a song by slowing down the playback without changing the pitch. The playback can be slowed to 50% or sped up to 150% as needed. This is also good for video work where we would need to add subtitles to an audio track to go along with picture. We can roll the session playback from the recorder and madly type in the appropriate subtitles in FCP's absolutely useless text 'mode' (I'll save that for the FCP review).

The H4n can also be used in MTR mode to record continual 2 track audio and dub down to 4 track for mixing vocals and music on the fly. Pretty cool. It also triples as a digital tuner for guitarists and a metronome for rhythm as well. Guitarists can also plug in and utilize some preset "amp" models should they decide to go on the cheap for this.

For Guitar FD Clean, VX Clean, HW Clean, US Blues, BG Crunch, MS #1959, PV Drive, Rect Vnt, DZ Drive, TS+FD_Combo, SD+MS_Stack, FZ+MS_Stack For Bass SVT, Bassman, Hartke, SuperBass, Sansamp, Tube Pre
I haven't used it for this purpose but I've read that they are probably not the recommended method for amp modeling. You can be the judge there.

Quality

The H4n can record to Mp3 or to WAV (less compressed) files up to 24bit quality, which is superior to CD quality and to most prosumer camera audio record quality (16bit). Recording to 24bit, and in WAV for that matter drastically reduces the amount of record time on your SD card but I tend to record in this quality exclusively and have been VERY pleased with the crisp, clear, rich sound that I've received from this unit. Granted, this is a $300 recorder so I'm not expecting the world, but for the money, the quality is more than acceptable.

Conclusion

Since I bought the H4n several months ago, the price has dropped by about $50. If I had to do it all over again, I would be willing to buy it at the $350 price point. It has been worth every penny to me. Yes a few gotchas and minor construction issues i.e. button size, but the quality, versatility, and functionality of this little H4n make me forget about those altogether.

Recommended:
Yes - by all means if you are in the market for a decent little 4 channel hand held recorder.

Evidence That I Do Not Yet Have The Worst Job In The World

2010-04-14T15:55:00.000-07:00

Sometimes the clock is moving so slow it can feel like this is our job but it isn't. I wonder how the benefits are for this? Do they have coffee makers and microwaves in there for breaks? These are the things that pique my interest.

Make: Online : Real time clocks are powered by humans

Your Old Mac is Not Dead!...not yet anyway - Here is How to Revive It

2010-03-11T09:46:00.000-08:00

Upgrade your original 1984 Macintosh to run OS X Snow Leopard. - More DIY How To Projects

Joshy counts to 100 (video made by Qik VideoCamera)

2010-03-07T13:42:00.000-08:00

Joshy counts to 100

The attached video was created using Qik VideoCamera application for
the iPhone.

Sent from my iPhone, please excuse any misspellings or odd words.

Are There Different Kinds of Truth?

2010-03-03T17:17:00.001-08:00

Are There Different Kinds of Truth?

Posted using ShareThis

Do as I say, not as I do Democrats

2010-02-24T12:02:00.000-08:00

As the Democrats threaten to use the "nuclear option" to ram Marxist healthcare down our throats whether we want it or not...It gives one reason for pause...to think back to 2005 when these same Democrats were decrying the "evils" of the nuclear option....here is a video collection of those moments...I love how Biden is shown on this video lamenting that he "prays to God the Democrats don't use this arrogant power grab" when they are in power...now, he is leading the way to the nuclear option. Like Michael Moore, Nancy Pelosi, George Soros, Al Franken, and the rest of the Obama bunch...its all about doing as they say and not as they do. Blinding hypocrisy.

P.S. I love Joe Biden...for all the flack the libbos gave Dan Quayle...Biden seriously makes Quayle look like Albert Einstein. Keep going Biden! At least you haven't used the racist phrase "negro dialect" yet...that is something to your credit!

Suicide Foods Blog

2010-01-05T10:24:00.000-08:00

WHAT WERE THE MARKETING GURUS THINKING!?

One of the funniest blogs I've come across in a long time! Basically, its a collection of real world advertisements where the animals that are being eaten appear "happy" or "cooperative" in the WEIRDEST ways to sell food. Random wackyness!

Mac User for Fifteen Years and Entitled to GRIPE!

2009-11-18T21:51:00.000-08:00

So here's the scoop. I bought my first "home computer" back in the mid nineties and a computer tech at the time, who was a friend, lets just call him "Tim" for the sake of this article...Actually, his name was really Tim so, nevermind, the cat is out of the bag.

"Tim", a PC repairman, recommended I get a Mac for a couple reasons:
1. based on the fact that Macs had an operating system that ran native to the hardware. I didn't know what any of that meant at the time but he explained that Windows ran on top of another OS called DOS, which I had heard of, and was using at work, but had no idea whatsoever what it was.
2. He was recommending a Mac because Apple had just released a new computer which was both a TV and a computer in one, called a Macintosh TV! Wahooo! a two-in-one TV I could deal with, I knew how to work a TV...mostly. A VCR, no, TV, yes.

I ran down to Computer City on Charleston and Decatur here in Vegas, and picked one up. I think that Computer City is now a gigantic PTs Pub now. Anyway, the rest is history - I would own a laptop 190cs which had an ACTUAL color screen! AMAZING! But it had nothing else - you had to buy a special dock if you wanted to actually accomplish anything productive with it, I sent it back. After the Powerbook 190cs, I then bought a Powerbook 1400 laptop
Powerbook 1400 Rest in Peace -
May God Have Mercy on your soul for I would not.

This 1400 piece died and then caused me to go Office Space on it in front of a dumpster across from UNLV, reducing it to 1400 pieces. I then bitterly purchased a G3 laptop which was better but eventually died but is still safe in my closet, with repair parts that I purchased on ebay about 3 years ago. I believe this G3 laptop is the proverbial "GTO" in the garage that I hope to put a new "engine" in but in reality is just an annoyance to my wife.

Anyways, after the GTO, I then bought a Dual G5 tower which has been the best Mac I have ever owned...knock on silicon...In fact, I am writing this little gripe on that G5 right now! aMAzing. Now, I have convinced my wife to become a Mac user and have purchased a new iMac for her - making us an ALL MAC home for the first time in our nearly 7 years of marriage. I then recommended that my church buy an iMac for video projection, they agreed, things were going swimmingly.

Here is where the love-fest for Apple all goes sour. It seems that Apple has pulled a fast one on all of us. They have completely removed the universally loved and accepted, DVI ports for monitors from ALL their systems and have replaced them with a new little piece of crapnology called Mini DisplayPort. That is a long annoying name which I shall truncate to the word "Tim". Wait...I've used that one somewhere here before, lets call that crapnology "MDP" which, amazingly, stands for Mini DisplayPort.

SO! MDP is supposedly "smaller" and "sleeker" and is able to transmit HD signals much more effeciently blah blah blah according to Apple. (The blah blah blah was actually me) At any rate. What Apple doesn't tell us is that #1 you have to buy new monitors because the sweet 22" Samsung you JUST BOUGHT is ridiculously incompatible. Your BRAND NEW monitor has DVI inputs on the back. Macs have NO DVI outputs only the MDP which means you need to buy monitors that have MDP inputs for them to work happily with your new Mac. LIAR! you say! Yes, true, but not about this subject my son. You see, Apple tells you to buy an adapter for $20 that supposedly makes your new Mac play nice with your new monitor...NO! It does not. Another secret of Steve Jobama's is this MDP crapnology is actually forced upon us because of its ability to limit piracy! YES! correctomundo! Mini Displayport crapnology has DRC firmware built into it which allows it to detect an HDCP (High Bandwidth Digital Content Protection) Device. If it detects either correctly or erroneously, a device that is not up to what it deems "HDCP Compliant" it will black the image and you will get NOTHING my friend. NOTHING! on your screen because the image from YOUR computer going to YOUR display device has been BLOCKED by the firmware built into MDP crapnology.

Infuriating? yes! Frustrating? Even more so! No one said ANYTHING about potential compatibility issues and now I've bought one iMac and recommended the purchase of another and I am skay-rood. So annoying. The adapters don't work, many HDCP compliant devices don't work and even some new MDP monitors are not working! My recommendation - STAY AWAY FROM BUYING MACS FOR THE NEXT 6-8 MONTHS! Let this crapnology settle in, give some genius engineers time to figure out how to communicate to and from this port and allow new devices and adapters to hit the market. This will save you lots of headaches, believe me!

I remember this happening once before when Apple suddenly removed ALL serial ports (remember those? if you're a PC person, you're still using those!) only to replace them with USB and Firewire. At the time, I wasn't a techie nerd, I was just a regular nerd, so I had no idea this was coming and no one at Apple gave a warning that ALL of our serial devices would need adapters to work. Change is fine, it just sucks when it is secretly forced on us like some Obama/Bush Bank Bailout.

Ok...I got it out of my system...now I am going to get back to that GTO in the garage...no seriously, I am going to work on that real soon...2-3 days. You'll see.

Airline Pilots Use Their Laptops and I'm not allowed to even turn on my iphone!

2009-10-29T23:37:00.000-07:00

So I've been reading about these two pilots that were supposedly doing all sorts of things while the plane they were supposed to be flying was about 150 miles past their target. The pilots admitted to using their laptops while flying which caused a "distraction" and WHAM-MY, they fly WAY off course. Apparently the FAA has stripped them of their licenses to fly and I believe they lost their jobs at the airline.

I guess my only thoughts have been that of frustration at the double standard of airline stewardesses. If I take out my iPhone for a freaking second those Helgas are all over me to shut it off, and now I hear that its common practice for pilots to use their laptops while flying the plane. Isn't this a little backwards or at least ironic?
I think it is. But at least they managed to land safely and weren't hopped up on the pot which is comforting.

On a different airline note, I read that now Boeing and other airplane manufacturers are producing planes where the passengers line each side of the fuselage while face-elaging each other in order to cram more people in each airplane. I guess that means that the only true first class seats in the future will be the pilot seats.

Perhaps we should all take flying lessons (one at a time of course). Its a scary over crowded world we are entering.

I know the pic I used shows a pilot joking with a person taking his picture while the plane plummets toward the Las Vegas Strip, but in reality, I must admit, I doctored this photo a smidge, for dramatic effect.

Feel free to use it, just dish out a little credit love to help my little blog here.

Andrew
Precise Plus Electronics
Technology Reviews and Recommendations
http://www.preciseplus.com

World Premier of Astroboy at grahams Chinese Theater

2009-10-19T19:22:00.001-07:00

The whole world is waiting with baited breath for this piece of crap.
I think I saw George Clooney exiting a limo earlier.

My Experimental Electronica Project

2009-10-15T16:57:00.000-07:00

This is an EP from the first release of my Embryonica project a couple years ago called "Where Have All The Weird Days Gone?".
Just a few Experimental Electronica musings from Las Vegas with a world beat feel.

I am preparing some new tracks for a release in the next few months called "Grooves From The Short Bus". I thought I would post a little re-love on the first release. Its garnered about 5800 listens on Jamendo.com, a few favorable reviews, and even a few cuts have found their way into creepy short films (Where T-shirts Are Made) and a couple German non-profit promotional shoots.

Alas, it has not succeeded in making me a rock star. But I'm sure by the time I am 60 years old, I'll be HUGE in Japan (actually, everyone from America is Huge in Japan)

Click the Andrew Einstein Album Cover below to throw a sick check out on the piece. Let me know what you like/hate aboot it. And I promise not to ignore you right away.

If you like it, subscribe to my blog and be notified when 'Grooves from the Short Bus' is released!

Kindergarten Graduation Video

2009-07-31T09:29:00.001-07:00

A kindergarten graduation that we shot some time ago here in Las Vegas.

Andrew's Review of Palmolive's "eco friendly" Detergent

2009-07-26T19:02:00.000-07:00

Gone are the bachelor days where the dishes just stacked up in the sink for 6 weeks until the cockroaches themselves grew tired of the mess and started washing up the dishes. Now, as a family man these past years, I've grown to depend on the automatic dishwasher. Yes, you could say that in my life, the dishwasher has now entered its "zenith". (yawn)

In case you were wondering how a review of automatic dishwasher detergent could be interesting, let me save you the suspense...it's not. However, from time to time I like to review random products that we try at home and random products that I use to produce video here in Las Vegas, all for the benefit of the consumer. Whoever that might be... OK So here we go...the breakdown

The Supposed Good
When we first saw the new line of Palmolive automatic dishwasher detergents in the store, we were happy to check out this new "ecology friendly" version. That slowly, silently turned to regret after only a few uses.

The Supposed Smell
The detergent boasts an "apple" scent on the label, but I actually had to read the label to know that there was supposedly a "scent" included with this soap, as it didn't smell like any apples that I've ever seen. Unless maybe they were apples that were grown in orchards under power lines while irrigated with water that comes from a nuclear fission plant? Its hard to say, but forget about the scent. It just smells like plain old dishwasher detergent.

The Supposed Eco Friendliness
It claims its safe for septic tanks and is environmentally friendly but as I relay our experience I suppose I'll leave that conclusion up to you.

Prior to using the Palmolive Eco+ detergent, we've used a variety of detergents (even other Palmolive products) with complete success. So much success that we never even thought about what detergent we were using. This Palmolive Eco+ was the the first "environmentally safe" detergent we have tried.

The Bad
The first couple usages flew under the radar as we didn't really notice anything different about the soap but after 3 or 4 uses of the detergent, we started to notice a white film left on all the dishes. We simply wrote this off as a "bad wash" and proceeded to use it for the 5th and 6th times at which point we started to notice big chunks of undissolved detergent on all the dishes and actually, the dishes were coming out more filthy than when we put them in.

The Ugly
We tried different cycles and eventually, the undissolved chunks grew so heavy that they clogged the drainage system of our dishwasher. At that point the washer stopped working regardless of what detergent we tried. Fortunately, my wife is like Rosey the Riveter and tried a few tricks to open the dishwasher drain back up but we literally had to remove all the racks and scrape, soak, and scrub to get all of the hardened Palmolive Eco+ detergent out of our dishwasher.

The Conclusion
Today, our dishwasher works but not quite as well as before and its obvious that we've discontinued use of this product and have gone back to the "non ecologically friendly" detergents that seem to work fine.

Now I leave you with the question, if dishwasher detergent does not dissolve in water and actually cakes up in drains, is that really more environmentally friendly than soap that does dissolve and dissipate?

Surmise it to say that our joy of finding and eco friendly dishwasher detergent was met with equal disappointment at the damage that resulted from the caking up of undissolved Palmolive Eco+ detergent in our dishwasher.

So we paid less than $4 for this soapy crud but its cost us about $80 in labor to fix the mess that it left behind and of course, my hope is to spare you from the same trouble...now if I could just get those cockroaches to come back and fix my dishwasher, all would be well.

2009-07-23T17:19:00.000-07:00

Anytime I start to feel like Las Vegas has too much traffic and I'm tempted to partake in a bit of road rage. I think about this picture and realize that the traffic here in Southern Nevada could be worse!

Thanks to subtire.com for the pic...here is the link where the original can be found.

http://www.subtire.com/i.php?n=trafic.jpg

Alternatives to Scissors Rock Paper...The Game That Could Bring World Peace.

2009-07-18T14:33:00.000-07:00

I used to play Scissors Rock Paper as a kid here in Las Vegas and it was amazing how so many conflicts could be resolved from a 2 out of 3 Scissors Rock Paper game. Think about it. Winston Churchill - Paper, Adolph Hitler - Scissors, FDR - Rock. We win, no lives lost, no need for the creation of a toothless barking dog known as the "U.N." and all is well.

The only limitations of this game were in the weapons selection: Scissors, Rock, or Paper. I remember at one point we started to slap our palm with a single finger and called it "dynamite" which blew up the rock and paper, but Scissors cut the fuse. It didn't really catch on.

Now, if you see the attached picture, you'll see that the guys at sportsontheweb.net
have come up with a much more comprehensive list of hand formation weapons to really make this game take off on a grand scale. Can you imaging slapping your hand once, twice, and on the third slap you curl your knuckles and form the "monkey" ? outstanding.

Here is the original link where I found the jpeg.

http://iceland.sportsontheweb.net/shore/rpc-guide/

Very funny. I can't wait to pull out a few of these at work.

And by the way, if you are a small business owner and are in need of a training, promotional, or tv commercial spot for DVD or on the web. Give me a call.
My company is called:

Hamilton International Productions
Training Video Las Vegas
http://www.hiproductions.com

Best Places to Buy and Smoke a Cigar in Las Vegas

2009-03-10T21:40:00.000-07:00

As a Las Vegas local, I saw the days where smoking a cigar was really just a matter of "Where do you want to go?" Today, it is a little more touchy with regards to lighting up a big phatty in a public place. I have decided to blog some of my favorite locales for smoking (or buying) a cigar in Las Vegas.

If you enjoy watching a game, having a microbrew, and smoking a nice cigar all at the same time, you have two choices: Grab the rabbit-eared TV from the closet, buy some cheap Oregon beer at Albertsons, and light up a cigar in your gas fumed garage. OR, you can just make a quick trip to The Chicago Brewing Company on Fort Apache and West Sahara in Summerlin. The upstairs room opens at 5pm so you'll have to make it a night game, but you will have access to a little tobacco hideaway with leather chairs, big ashtrays, and a plethora of micro-brews to choose from. My personal favorite here is the sampler. It is about 10 small sized beers on a round rack that gives you a nice overview of everything they have to offer. A nice Maduro wrapped Punch Belicoso with a Chicago stout microbrew and you'll feel like you were watching the game from a luxury box!

Another enjoyable haunt for locals is FAR FAR away from the strip (just like I like it!) and is, in fact, just a mile down the road from The Chicago Brewing Company on Rampart (Which is what Fort Apache becomes as you cross Charleston Blvd) and Alta. It is none other than Gustav Mauler's Cigar Bar in the JW Marriott Hotel & Casino. Again the atmosphere is perfect, dimly lit, leather chairs, great Port or Cognac, tasteful live blues players, and smooth Davidoff or Dunhill Corona cigar or if you're feeling adventurous, you can always pick up one of the delicious-yet-overpriced Gustav Mauler cigars which I have enjoyed on many occasions. This is located right next to Wooligan's Irish Pub which is a blast for Celtic food and song but don't even think about sparking up in there Sparky. Take it from me, Wooligan's is NOT cigar friendly, but its an excellent place to eat, drink, and enjoy yourself, then retire to Gustav's for a nice dessert of Brandy and cigars.

I've saved the best for last in my brief overview of cigar friendly places in Las Vegas, this is the Pullman Car in the Main Street Station Casino in Downtown Las Vegas (again - quite far from the Strip - yahoo!). This place is an absolute dream located right in the heart of an absolute slum, but hey, don't worry, there is covered parking with security so you'll be OK. I hope. The Pullman Car is located inside the Pullman Grille which is a little more upscale steakhouse style restaurant for downtown. If that is your thing, have a nice steak and retire through a couple mystery doors into an actual Pullman rail car that has been converted with interior decor consisting of cherry wood, hunter green paint, deep comfy leather sofas and easy chairs, and Victorian style lamps. If you are looking for a more budget-conscious meal, you can always start at the Microbrewery just down the walkway inside the casino, great snacks, appetizers and excellent microbrew, then, you know the routine, over to the Pullman Car to discuss your plans for world domination over a rich Merlot and a La Gloria Cubana Charlamagne smoke. De-licious, and whats best of all, no dirty looks, just people with the same interest and taste for a fine cigar. Make sure you buy your cigars before coming downtown, there really isn't a decent place to pick up cigars down there and you DO NOT want to be wandering around looking like you don't know where you're going. stay on the main thoroughfares like Fremont, Main (near the casinos) and you'll be fine. The Pullman Car is one of Las Vegas' best kept secrets.

Now, speaking of buying cigars in Las Vegas, I have two rules:

1. Don't do it unless you absolutely HAVE to.

2. Don't buy down on the strip EVEN IF you have to! You will get reamed my friend, reamed.

If you insist on staying near the Strip, I would recommend the cigar room at the Paris or Monte Carlo. Neither of which require a pricey meal (like the cigar restaurant at the Venetian) and both offer a very pleasant "piano atmosphere" with fine wine, brandies, and cognac.

Another place, should you decide to venture out to either Chicago's or Gustav's, is out by Summerlin and is called Tobacco Leaf on West Lake Mead and Rock Springs. Again, a decent selection, but the prices are bit more jacked up. They are still probably 40-50% cheaper than what you would buy on the strip or in Gustav's. As of this writing, the store is fairly new, nice walk in humidor (pales in comparison to the Minnesotan's at Pheasant) and very helpful staff, but a little small and cramped. The great thing about these guys is their punch card. If you buy like 8 or 9 cigars, you get one at the same level for free, so its about a 10% discount for volume or repeat business.

Thoughts on the Glass Being Half Full or Half Empty

2008-12-24T11:02:00.000-08:00

Glass Thoughts by Andrew Hamilton

While deep in discussion with my wife, I shared my current outlook on life in general and she responded by asking, "Isn't that being negative, you know, the glass is half empty?"

to which I responded, "No, its being cynical, the glass could be either half full or half empty, what difference does it make, its not going to change anything one way or another, so who cares about the stupid glass!?"

I then began to consider other views of the glass:

The optimist: The glass is half full (yawn)

The pessimist: The glass is half empty (get over it)

The cynic: Whether its half full/empty it makes no difference to anyone.

The Partisan: The glass is either half full or empty depending on what my party decides

The Elitist: Full or Empty, the glass is mine.

The Empiricist: We could never know if the glass is half full/empty unless we drink it.

The Masochist: Hit me with glass, NOW!

The Sadist: I'm going to hit you with the glass, NOW, and you're going to LOVE it!

The Narcissist: I can see myself in the reflection of the glass! GOD I love this glass!

The Anarchist: The glass is neither half full nor half empty, lets throw it at each other!

The Facist: The glass is what I say it is.

The Socialist: Lets divide up the contents of the glass and say its full for everyone even though it isn't!

The Capitalist: Give me $100 and I'll make your half empty glass half full OVERNIGHT!

The Communist: Its the state's glass, now shut up and get back in line!

The Theist: Whether the glass is half empty or full is a mystery, only God knows.

The Atheist: The glass being either half empty or full, is evidence that there is no God.

The Anthropologist: Lets spend time with the water and learn the ways of the glass to avoid being ethnocentric regarding its half full or emptiness.

The Psychologist: Lets ask the glass about its childhood then work toward half full.

The Economist: The glass is half empty.

Will The Real Philadelphia Eagles Please Stand Up!?

2008-12-21T17:10:00.001-08:00

Here is a trivia question: How many NFL teams called the "Eagles" have played in Philadelphia since 2004?

The answer? Two. One amazingly dominant team that knocks off the NFL darling (and molly coddled) New York Giants, which we will call the "Good Eagles", and the other Eagles team? One sad underwhelmingly inept team that fights tooth and nail to eek out a tie against one of the worst teams in the NFL. We shall call this Eagles team the "Evil Twin".

This "tale of two teams" in Philadelphia isn't unique to this season alone, mind you. Oh no, this two headed monster has reared its ugly mug(s) for 4 years running. It just seems that because the Good Eagles win so big, the Evil Twin Eagles seem to go unnoticed. Overrated? possibly. Underperforming? definitely. But of course, which team you see each Sunday all depends on which Sunday you choose to watch them play. I, sadly, try to watch them every week so the great disparity of good and evil is quite apparent to me. Lets recap these last few years to see if we can pick up on a trend.

2005 season - Evil Eagles ruled this season. win/loss record 6-10 - Brad Childress leaves the team at the end of the 2004 season to coach the Vikings. He is replaced by Marty Mourning-wig. Apparently, Andy Reid was so impressed by Marty's 5-27 record with the Lions that he just HAD to get him on board the team to develop a very predictable, inconsistent, and underperforming offensive squad. Marty really rose the occasion and accomplished all three tasks with amazing quickness. The self-destruction of this season was blamed on Terrell Owens' implosion and attempted suicides etc. but really, he was just a big fat distraction. Not in the way you were told in the sports press: "a distraction to the team, to the coaches" etc. Rather, he was a smoke and mirrors 'skapegoat' to distract the fans, from recognizing the real problem that lay in the fundamental operation of offense. Toward the end of the season, Andy Reid admitted to 'interfering' a bit too much and not allowing Marty to make the play calling. He promised to turn more of the offense over to Marty. Phew! Thank God! Now we can see Mourning-wig's 5 win 27 loss genius in all its glory. A couple other side notes here. The Eagles were 26th in penalties this year which is a sure sign of nothing other than poor preparation, and poor preparation is nothing other than poor coaching. And lets not forget,McNabb started the season playing like crap against the Falcons, then fantastic against the 49ers, then a couple games later, like crap against the Cowboys. Then, wouldn't you know it, injured for the final 6 games.
The truth is, he played like garbage for the 4 games leading up to this injury. People seemed to overlook that and would give the excuse, "This is just a different team without McNabb" no, its just as inconsistent without him as it is WITH him. we just win half our games by 3 points instead of 30.

2006 season - Good Eagles showed up slightly more than the Evil-twin Eagles during this season.

The win/loss record was 10-6. . McNabb got off to one of the best statistical seasons of his career, and despite all those wonderful yards and touchdown to INT ratios? We were, you guessed it! 5 wins and 5 losses! Then, wouldn't you know it? Injured, out for the rest of the season. Here come the excuses, "This is just a different team without McNabb" he is the "Heart and Soul of this offense" all due to his tremendous statistics. In my not-so-humble opinion, keep the yards and stats, give me the wins, which is exactly what McNabb's backup gave us, 5 wins and 1 loss. Yep, we were definitely a different team without McNabb, with Jeff Garcia coming off the bench, we won consistently! Garcia, a good veteran back up came in and saved our bacon. Garcia led our 5-5 team to a division title and the playoffs. We beat the Giants in the wildcard...then lost to the then-NFL darling (and NFL referee favored) Saints, of course, due to inept coaching, clock management, and predictable play calling. To thank Garcia for his heroics, he was shown the working end of Reid's boot with the door slammed shut behind him. This is more smoke and mirrors, fire the backup QB, not the incompetent Offensive Coordinator.Now, instead of firing Mourning-twig for a RIDICULOUS offensive scheme, Reid decides to pick up A.J. Feely at the end of the 2006 season! Ol' 19 for 42 1 td 4 int himself. Apparently Reid was REALLY impressed with Feely's 61.7 passer rating at Miami and just HAD to get this clown back on the roster, get rid of Garcia, promote Mr. 19 for 42 1 td 4 int up to #2 QB on the squad. Whose call was this?

Morninwheg or Reid?

Some side notes, again, the Eagles were 30th in the league for penalties this season, not to repeat myself but, penalties equal bad coaching plain and simple.

2007 season - The Battle of the Evil Twins win/loss record 8-8. This season was the best representation of what the Eagles have been over the last 4 seasons - a perfect .500 record. This was a season where the Evil Eagles and the Good Eagles would alternate showing up from week to week with blowouts one game, and then amazingly BLOWN out the next game. Again, this is starting to be typical of 5-27 Mourning-ball. McNabb was healthy this entire year, but would throw for 381yds in one game then the Evil Eagles would show up and he would throw for 158 yds. Sound familiar? It should, it is EXACTLY what has happened all year in 2008! Never mind the inconsistent play, coaching, etc, here come some more excuses: "Rust" - McNabb has been out so long!, "Recovery"- it sometimes takes 100 years to recover from a blown ACL, and/or "Receivers" (lack thereof) Never mind the fact that McNabb is throwing passes into the dirt and eating sack after sack because our receivers couldn't get open, and when they could, McNabb couldn't find them. Nope, none of that taken into consideration, it was all due to rust, recovery, and receivers. One excuse after the other, when in reality, there were never any adjustments made on the part of our offense to counteract things that defenses threw at us this year.

There were still horrendous moments of clock mismanagement and a very predictable offensive scheme. Please Remember, the Evil Eagles had us at 5 wins and 8 losses after 13 games, the Good Eagles had to show up and FIGHT to win the last 3 games of this season just to get us back to...you guessed it! .500!

In all fairness, we went from 30th in penalties in 2006 to 18th in 2007, nothing to write home about, but an honest improvement (we really couldn't have done worse in this area than we did in '06).

2008 season - 8-7-1. Like the previous seasons, we started out with a BLOWOUT of St. Louis (one of the worst teams in the league) and then went on to lose 3 of our next 4 games. In the area of penalties, we slipped back to 25th (as of week 16) and judging from how sloppy this team played against the Redskins this week, they will probably slip even further. After making progress in 2007, we are now back to where we were in 2005 with regards to being one of the most undisciplined teams in the league. Two full years of a healthy Donovan McNabb and yet, still we have won as many games as we've lost. Where are the excuses now? There aren't any. We have the talent, we just don't have the leadership. So today, I watched my beloved Eagles eliminated from the playoffs by a VASTLY inferior team in the Washington Redskins (inferior fans as well). So what do we do now? Do we trade away our first round draft pick for the 3rd year in a row? Or do we keep it and draft a Defensive Tackle that amounts to nothing? Announcers, and football fans that I've talked to are "surprised" by the inconsistent play of the Eagles and of McNabb. But as I've pointed out, there are no surprises here. In fact, there are no changes here in the mediocrity of our offense over the last 4 years. As I've mentioned before, keep the statistics and points scored, none of that matters, its about wins and losses and sadly, because on any given Sunday (a very horrible movie) the Evil Eagles or the Good Eagles can show up, and the result is a demon-possessed team that has lost as many games as it has won over the last 4 years: 6-10, 10-6, 8-8, 8-7-1. What is the answer? Fire Morninwhig and get a good offensive coordinator, the window isn't closing on the Eagles, it has shut. Begin the rebuild, and keep an eye on Andy Reid, if all he can produce is a .500 squad with the best players in the league, then maybe it will be time for a change. Even Holmgren reached a place where he could only do so much with his teams. Reid was one of the best we ever had, but something desperate has to be done for him to maintain his respect and reputation among Eagles fans.

Christmas lunch in the snow of Las Vegas

2008-12-17T14:39:00.001-08:00

Snow in vegas!

2008-12-17T14:25:00.000-08:00

Christmas Lunch from Michael

2008-12-17T14:21:00.000-08:00

Gurgel

2008-11-12T14:50:00.001-08:00

Gurgel Rules.

A day at the office with Roger Huerta

2008-08-22T17:06:00.001-07:00

I think you're being paranoid.

Where Do Philadelphia Eagles Fans Come From? Part 2 of 5

2008-08-14T16:16:00.000-07:00

I had no idea how quickly this answer would come to me. Part one consisted of, boyish dreams, new-found identity, a new group of heros, and immediate success with a football team. Part two would be a rude awakening.

It doesn't take much of a "fan" to suffer through great success. In fact, here in Vegas, we have a name for people that always bet the favorites: Frontrunners. Most young fans start out this way, and I was no different. However, the rite of passage into ANY fan base, would have to be the endurance of defeat and undying support in the face of failure.

At 14 years of age, I would find myself completing this 'rite' right away.
The 1981 season had a few upsides, my new team would go 6-0 right out of the gate and although the 'dynasty' tag was not really thrown around in those days, there were a lot of Eagles believers back then. Wilbert Montgomery would have one of the best seasons of his career, rushing for 1400 yds and receiving another 500+ yds.We also boasted the #1 Defense led by 3rd year linebacker Jerry Robinson. Jerry Sisemore was the lone representative of the offense that year in the pro bowl. Defensively, Jerry Robinson, Frank Lemaster, Charlie Johnson, and Roynell young would all make trips to the Pro Bowl. However, long before the season ended, my Eagles' season ended.

Mid season, it all started to come unraveled. The Eagles would lose 6 of their last 10 games to finish 10-6 and then, only to be eliminated in the playoffs by the dreaded and all-evil Giants (with a defense led by a rookie kid named 'Lawrence Taylor'). It was a deflating end. The offense was snubbed in the pro bowl despite having the 4th best rusher (and 4th best offense) in the league.

My old Raiders buddy who was wallowing in the joy of a Superbowl victory over my team, was now bitterly enduring a 7-9 season. The team name-calling began. Just about any derogatory reference for homosexual was retro-fitted to the name Philadelphia, normally, I suppose I would have caved and safely move on to a team that was winning at the time Cincinnati? San Francisco? I couldn't do it. For some reason, the childhood attacks galvanized my support for the team. I survived the onslaught and would utter 5 words for the first time (of many times): "Just wait till next year".

Now, as a fledgling NFL fan, I didn't know much about draft prospects or anything even close to that. But I knew that our pick #20 was not the best position to be picking from, and the guy we got, was named "Mike Quick" and repeatedly I heard announcers say, "His name is Quick, but he is anything but quick". Little would I know that this 1st round pick would be my only bright light in the dark cave of the seasons that would immediately follow.

Start of the 1982 season 1 loss and 1 win, then, end of the 1982 season. The strike would shorten that year to 9 games only. My beloved Eagles, who I SWORE would be back in 1982, came back from the strike to go 2-5, end up with a 3-6 record, and find themselves eliminated from playoff contention for the first time in 4 years. What went wrong? Its hard to say. The coaching staff would claim, correctly, that the Eagles never really played good football from the middle of the 1981 season. Dick Vermeil, my new hero, would quit and utter a phrase that would become a mainstream idiom, he claimed he was "burned out".

Out came the detractors, more childhood name calling, and for me, I just learned to ignore it. I blamed it on the weird strike and guaranteed this team would be back next year! (There I go again)

By this time, I was nearly 15 and had abandoned my 7childish' plastic helmet collection. Gone was the paper route, now I had moved up to mowing lawns, digging ditches, and caring for plants at a plant store. Yep, I was big time, making a grand total of $3 an hour 6 hours a week! It was around this time that I began to invest myself in the Eagles even more. I began to collect football cards like a insane little teenager. My family was poor during those years and I wish I could say that I saved every penny and then hurriedly scampered to the 7-11 to buy some Topps football cards, but unfortunately, my youth was not quite Brady Bunch material. In reality, I bought as many as I could honestly, the rest I "borrowed" with all the integrity of a Las Vegas teenager. Not the brightest moment of my childhood. But within a short time I would go fully legit. In those days, we didn't have the internet with databasefootball.com or nfl.com to get our info. Most kids kept informed from the backs of these chipboard cheapie football cards. I was no different. I had fully immersed myself in the stats, records, and trivia that comprised the Philadelphia Eagles.

The time for my team was dark and only getting darker but strangely, I had developed a trait that Eagles fans have come to know well, and that is "resolve".
Where do Eagles fans come from? They arise during times of plenty, but ultimately are strengthened during times of want.

Part 3 will cover the plunge to rock bottom and strange hope that a cantankerous defensive coordinator and 2nd round draft pick would bring to the City of Brotherly Love.

2008-08-11T10:07:00.000-07:00

Where Do Philadelphia Eagles Fans Come From? Part 1of5

2008-07-13T14:08:00.000-07:00

The Quick Answer: a 25 cent football helmet machine.

The Long Answer: From years of agonizing ups and downs
where loyalty is tested in the hell fires that spawned
little annoying demons of silver/blue, red/blue, and red/orange.

Growing up in Las Vegas, the "Entertainment Capital of the World", in the late 70's was about as entertaining as watching an off-broadway stage play starring Tony Danza in drag. (Which I think actually ran at the Riviera for a while). But like all desert dwelling kids with nothing to do, I found ways to pass the time.

Like other kids, I had a paper route and blew most of that money on Asteroids,
Space Invaders, and Pinball. I always saved a couple bucks for football cards
(Topps or Fleer chipboard gum-stained variety - we didn't have 'upper deck'
glossy cards back then)and our neighborhood version of childhood gambling:
NFL Football helmets. Yep, thats right, put a quarter in and DAMN if you didn't
get another lame Baltimore Colts or New England Patriots (2-14 that year) helmet!
EVERY quarter was a crap shoot.

I admit, at the point of near-vomiting, I was a bit of a front-runner at 11 and I think the winningest team of the day was the Steelers. I knew nothing about them, I just knew they recently beat the Los Angeles Rams on TV and that was good enough for me. I put a quarter in the NFL Helmet lotto dispenser and instead of a black and gold helmet, out came a Green helmet with silver wings on each side. I thought it was very cool looking. I kept it, despite wanting to trade it at first, and through a little magazine called "Football Digest" (We didn't have ESPN or nfl.com back in those days) I discovered that this was the Philadelphia Eagles, and with a "superback" named Wilbert Montgomery, was a serious up-and-comer in the NFL.

I read anything I could find about them, magazines, football stats from the backs of my Topps, chipboard, gum-stained cards, anything. The next season, I was going to watch for this team.
It just so happened that the season I chose to start following the birds was the 1980 football season. For a little 11 year old front runner, the timing couldn't have been better. I only saw one televised game in Las Vegas that year, Eagles vs Saints (of course we didn't have DirectTV back then). Which was an Eagle blowout. This Eagle team went on to a 12-4 record and I watched them destroy the only team I truly hated in the NFL at the time: The Dallas Cowboys. This new favorite team went to the Superbowl the first season I followed them. It was fate. I'm sure.

I began to trade my worthless Franco Harris, Stallworth, and Bradshaw cards
for the more valuable (in my mind) Jaworski, Carmichael, and Montgomery cards
(which I still have today). I couldn't wait for the Superbowl, my best friend
at the time was (and still is) an avid Raiders fan. He couldn't believe that
I was turning on him and his team to support the Eagles! He was still ticked
off at the Eagles because earlier that year Philadelphia played Oakland and
beat them 10-6.
Coming into this Superbowl game, the Raiders were the "underdogs"
(a new term to me that I would NEVER forget in the subsequent Eagle seasons).
I was sure that my new favorite team was guaranteed a Super Bowl victory
over the evil black jerseyed Raiders!

Then, reality set in, the game started, Rod Martin of the Raiders was EVERYwhere,
he intercepted so many of Jaworski's passes that I think he started calling for
"fair catch" every time Jaworski dropped back to pass (a la John McKay of the Buccaneers). It was awful. We managed 1 touchdown to Keith Krepfle, not even Montgomery or Carmichael! and one Tony Franklin field goal. Despite the
touchdown cutting the Raiders' lead to only 2 touchdowns (24-10)
our defense: Bill Bergey, John Bunting, Randy Logan, etc.
just couldn't stop Pumpkin-head Plunkett and his offense from getting
into field goal range. They scored the final points of the game bring
the final score to 27-10.

At the end of it, I confess, I was 12 years old and crying like a baby. I don't know why. As a 12 year old boy, I knew that crying was evil and make-fun worthy by every OTHER 12 year old boy, but I couldn't help myself. I sensed a great disappointment of missed opportunity. In fact, prior to that game I NEVER had any emotional attachment to any team besides maybe the little church soccer teams I played for, this was truly something I'd never felt before.

In hindsight, I believe that this new found 'attachment' was what made me a true Eagles fan. Even though I had never set foot in Philadelphia and was trapped in a mob-infested desert hell-hole in Nevada: I was still emotionally attached to this football team on the other side of the Earth.
I somehow, came to identify with a professional team, 'bled green' with, if you will, and Dick Vermeil was my new hero and my destiny as an Eagles fan would forever be cemented, despite that loss to the Raiders in Superbowl XV.

Part 1 ends with the Eagles reaching the Superbowl, part 2 will catalogue the excruciating tests of loyalty I was soon to face as a new-born Eagles supporter.

Hope in a Crazy World

2008-06-18T10:01:00.001-07:00

This is a video with my nephew and niece performing the skit for Lifehouse "Everything". I called it "Hope in a Crazy World" because that seems to be what the message is about.

Newsmax Carpet Bombers of Popups in Your Browser

2008-06-02T22:45:00.000-07:00

I've just had a rather annoying experience with a conservative news site called "Newsmax". I was so frustrated that I wrote a letter to the editor. Hopefully, dude responds so I can post that as well.

I just signed up for the RSS feed for Newsmax, after having turned away from your website a couple years ago.
Back then, I would have my email box bombarded with emails from Newsmax selling all kinds of strange things. Finally, I just couldn't take it anymore and I unsubscribed (repeatedly) from those continual emails, and after much effort, I was free. Now I've moved on to Web 2.0 and have embraced the idea of 'news digest' via an RSS reader...BRILLIANT! I thought. And I immediately sought out conservative news sources to balance the liberal CNN's, Yahoo's, and Reuters of the world. I first went to "Drudge Report". I love what the site has to say, but they may as well just print that out on a Guttenberg press, as they do not offer ANY option to subscribe via RSS. (they are SO 2003!) then, silly and giddy as I was in my new found technology, I returned to Newsmax, and you fine folks had an RSS feed...YAHOO! literally, yahoo...shouts of glee, not the liberal dotcom organization.
Anyhow, here is where my rant to the editor all goes to hell in a hand basket. I sign up with your RSS and do you want to know what happens!? OK I'll tell you since you asked, EVERY time I click on a news headline from my RSS feeder, I AM CARPET BOMBED BY POPUPS!!! Holy crap!? I am amazed that ANYbody besides PORN sites actually still uses carpet bombing popups...or popups at ALL! As I began to write this, LITERALLY, I was continually interrupted with popups that tried to sell me books about heart disease and some other weird crap that you guys tried to sell me through email 5 years ago! Now, to leave this lengthy letter, I had to give you my email address again, how much do you want to bet, Mr. Editor, that I start getting bombarded again with ridiculous ad emails from Newsmax again!? How much? Yeah, you're right. Its a sucker bet. I'll be posting this on my blog. I hope you plan to respond to this so I can post your response, in all conservative fairness, as well.

Love you guys, Having fun at camp.

your son

Andrew Hamilton
Hamilton International Productions

Going to Build a Bear at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas

2008-05-28T22:14:00.000-07:00

Alright alright I know. I'm a local, been in Vegas my whole life. So what on earth am I doing at Planet Hollywood? Shakabra. Actually, I sucked it up and we took our little 3 year old Joshua to build his own little bear. There are several steps, each with their own little video. I wanted to edit them all together, since thats what I do, but if I did that, it would never get done, so here it is, piece by piece at a timer!

This video is step 1. He had to pick the bear:

Intelligent Design gets 'Expelled' - Opinion

2008-05-13T09:25:00.000-07:00

Intelligent Design gets 'Expelled' - Opinion

HamiltonfamilyLV

2008-05-02T09:14:00.001-07:00

Learn how to draw cartoons, comics, and anime at Sketchfu!

Kindergarten Graduation Video

2008-04-30T11:51:00.001-07:00

This is a fun Kindergarten graduation that we filmed a while back.

Joshua Hamilton in Stroller 1 year old...Lake District UK

2008-04-26T19:44:00.000-07:00

This was a fun day, a few years back, we took a day trip from Preston England up to the Lake District and brought little Joshua with us. He's a little Giddy in this shot as he plays with his English cousins: Savannah, Thomas, and Joe.

Josho 2 years attacking the cam in Daddy's office

2008-04-22T10:28:00.000-07:00

This was the old-school set up of my office. Little Joshua (2 years old) refused to let me work, so I busted out the cell phone and tried to interview him but he was obsessed with seeing himself on camera more than being interviewed...like most Hollywood starry stars. My favorite words that Joshy says are: Mazazine (magazine), Washersheen (Washing Machine), Dancing Sing (thing) which is what he calls the stereo system. He has also invented things like the "Goster" which is a car he makes out of blankets, A "happy box" which he keeps promising to give to Mommy.

The other day we were playing in the back yard and he suddenly stopped and with alarm said, "Whats that sound!?" "Its a happy sound, we have to go see whats making that happy sound!"

He was hearing the ice cream truck coming down the street. We stood out on the porch and watched as the truck drove by. The 2 old ladies inside GLARED at me and Josh as they drove by. That was enough for me to avoid flagging them down to buy my son an ice cream.

Correction: THIS is Joshy in Daddy's Office

2008-04-22T10:15:00.000-07:00

The video on the previous post was Josho at 2yrs walking around in Daddy's shoes.

I attached the wrong video like a big fat...wrong-video-uploader. (that's self-harsh)

Hamilton International Productions

2008-04-22T10:03:00.000-07:00

Hamilton Productions is a Las Vegas based motion picture company. Our value statement is“Effective Video Production. Elegant Videography” because we recognize thatevery event requires unique application of creativity and professionalism toperfectly capture the images of the day for Television, DVD or the Web.

Ourprofessional videographers and editors utilize state-of-the-art digitalequipment for the sharpest image and colors that are crisp and vivid. Our editorsemploy tasteful transitions and custom animation and graphics to give yourproduction a visual edge.

We specializein trade show & conference video coverage, product or service promotional& commercial spots, & corporate training videos. Your finishedproduction can be created on DVD or web streaming.

We take all ofthe difficulty out of producing a video. Simply tell us what you have in mind& we take it from there: writing, planning, shooting, editing, &delivering a brilliant visual representation of your corporate image.

In thiseconomy, we all need more leads for our business. A promotional video of yourproduct and/or business will be the affordable 'lead generator' that you need.Tell the world about your unique product by way of a unique video created byHamilton Productions. Let us put a salesman in the field for you at a fractionof the cost!

Not sure whereto start? No problem, our customer service representatives are available togive you a step by step approach to an accurate quote.

Getting A Blog Up and Running

2008-01-26T23:41:00.000-08:00

This is no easy task but if this indeed works. Then Bob's your uncle.

Andrew Hamilton

andrew@hiproductions.com

2008-01-26T15:51:00.000-08:00

I want to blog from my phone. That wovld be nice

Blog #1 - The Hamilton Family in Las Vegas

2008-01-26T15:40:00.000-08:00

Here is the initial post for our little family. I was posting pics and brief text messages on textamerica.com but it became a lame pay only site which will descend into obscurity. I will
attempt to post pics up here and a brief synopsis of what is taking place in our little family
here in Las Vegas: Me (Andrew), Sarah, and Joshy (joshuabrian.com).
Here is an attempt at a starter picture: