tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69856207152827292402024-02-22T02:29:35.719-06:00Life & LawnsOpinions of Allyn Paul, Mostly about Lawns, & a Little about LifeUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-21035780211700594922008-02-11T22:05:00.003-06:002008-08-19T13:44:46.995-05:00Don't forget, we've moved. Find us here<a href="http://lifeandlawns.com/">Lawn tips and info</a><br /><br /><a href="http://youcangetajob.com/">Career Advice and Job search tips</a><br /><br /><a href="http://chicagolawncompany.com/">lawn spraying services</a><br /><br />The <a href="http://detroitlawncare.info/">Detroit Lawn Care Service </a>guide is now available online. THe <a href="http://daytonlawncare.info/">Dayton Area Lawn Service </a>guide is also available online. <a href="http://lifeandlawns.com/">DIY Lawn Tips and Advice</a><br /><br /><a href="http://monkeycrash.com/2008/08/18/saddleback-forum-transcript/">SaddleBack Forum Transcript</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-26142902550924055292007-12-11T19:44:00.001-06:002007-12-11T19:57:18.867-06:00Attention Readers, Subscribers, VisitorsThis blog on this free hosted platform is now finishd, over caput, finito!!!!<br />We have moved everything over to our custom, hosted domain located at: <a href="http://lifeandlawns.com/">lifeandlawns.com </a><br /><br />That's right folks, we've moved to a bigger, better and more organized format. Once again, you can <a href="http://lifeandlawns.com/">visit the new site here</a>.<br /><br />Also, if you are a subscriber, please visit the site to suscribe to the feed for a reader such as Google desktop or Yahoo live links..or you can <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/lifeandlawns/dmQs">click here and get it now!</a> If you prefer the email version of the feed, please <a href="http://lifeandlawns.com/">visit the new site </a>and enter your email address in the box on the upper right.<br /><br /><br />Best thing to do...go visit the new site and leave a comment or two and let me know what you think! See you on the green side!<br />ALUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-65853443214756177572007-12-09T10:07:00.000-06:002007-12-09T10:29:10.302-06:00NFL Flags for Christmas! Show Your Spirit!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUcrJYOaqR9PMR0JfZY6IjaO3P4tycexNVtQYAK_5fNF9yCaYxzJox2YC7LK-BmjluXGNq-24osM7sT0Jr_RM1LLQ6iknRTxlV4Hv6ydYXL27F6gHZBOOLUiSOgu6fvW-CZfVJxulxaT8/s1600-h/bears+flag.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142009133209762610" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUcrJYOaqR9PMR0JfZY6IjaO3P4tycexNVtQYAK_5fNF9yCaYxzJox2YC7LK-BmjluXGNq-24osM7sT0Jr_RM1LLQ6iknRTxlV4Hv6ydYXL27F6gHZBOOLUiSOgu6fvW-CZfVJxulxaT8/s320/bears+flag.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Pro Football is in full swing now, and while my Bears aren't doing so hot, I still like to display my team spirit on Sundays.<br />The best way to show some team love is to display your team's flag outside for all to see! Or at the least, hanging in the garage, or both?<br />Just in time for Christmas, a company called Uncommon USA Inc is offering <a href="http://www.jdoqocy.com/ao104efolfn259B67692437A7785%22%20target=%22_blank%22%20onmouseover=%22window.status=" 20onmouseout="%22window.status='%20';return%20true;%22%3ENFL%20Team%20Flags%3C/a%3E"">NFL team flags at incredibly hot prices.</a> Uncommon USA is better known for selling telescoping flagpoles and American flags and accessories, but this time of year, the NFL fans flock to them for their team displays. <a href="http://www.jdoqocy.com/ao104efolfn259B67692437A7785%22%20target=%22_blank%22%20onmouseover=%22window.status=" 20onmouseout="%22window.status='%20';return%20true;%22%3ENFL%20Team%20Flags%3C/a%3E"">ALL NFL flags are on sale </a>right now for the holidays! Go check em' out!<br /><a onmouseover="window.status='http://www.uncommonflagpoles.com';return true;" onmouseout="window.status=' ';return true;" href="http://www.tkqlhce.com/sg79hz74z6MPTVQRQTMONRURRRR" target="_blank"><br /><img alt="Uncommon USA Telescoping Flagpoles and Flags" src="http://www.tqlkg.com/6e108tkocig148A5658132696666" border="0" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-82303007244798829762007-12-05T19:25:00.000-06:002007-12-06T15:17:44.914-06:00Check out John CowHey guys, I want to plug a website that I really like. It's <a href="http://www.johncow.com/">John Cow dot Com</a>.<br />It's a "make money online" site with a twist. This one is funny because its entire premise is a spoof of JohnChow.com.<br />John Chow is a famous internet money-maker. John Cow is a money-maker too, just on a smaller level and not as dry. If you look in my sidebar, you will see an advertisement for his site on the Entrecard button.<br />Give it a click and head over and check out the cow, and learn how to make Mooney Online.<br />Mooh, Mooh.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-25402808800824837742007-12-01T21:29:00.000-06:002007-12-01T22:26:50.389-06:00Holy Crap, an Ice Storm ... Let's Block the TV!<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5139224173335821010" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4iEsAfLx_YbfRa3LDtXZQodQowSJRS2mOYuvqsvo2IK3gib11juJtTjLcbw1pum7TBiN9Heyszxzbdm-nmFrypgCgayycYwcjBu1R9jHqEIlZI1c-Yl7z1z6V78QWW9ZJkZ6OY8Kx7yE/s320/foolish+news.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><div>This is not Southern California; it's Chicago. As far as I can tell, this city has been heavily populated for several decades now; and during that time, it's always been very cold and snowy here during winter. But one thing never ceases to amaze me: when the first ice storm of the season hits, news outlets think it's a "breaking story."</div><br /><div>My first gripe (yeah, I know, I bitch alot) is that the local stations find it necessary to place a gigantic graphic picture in the lower left corner of the TV screen during prime time...It really invades my viewing pleasure when I'm attempting to watch reruns of Law and Order SVU.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguGJrTTUfSBy0Mq2KCc4p1hG1cwe7xeMrQkezEgq0FbwOt1UY-9GMP8YjseHokidgrGGG6sq2kx5Qi5vs67jqD4sFA_9KqgJhm4BdWkEa6oRliG8-GBy6xfI7Rgn-CsUFbGpO9oBtX63E/s1600-r/block+my+tv+jerkweeds.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5139224164745886402" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuSTmgblYRCA5iCDJTvIz0SeU8MXmGBB9YFav2qWd1hSN3EmYzPoH6S4AlV0ei5EiEdZk_7jNsyMvEE31zbMT0crVLyH9V9sp_pkPXfsZ8Eqs1QmEgTkay06fnac3Pzuv3Mmmfzi4bIYs/s320/block+my+tv+jerkweeds.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Secondly, it seems that every news brief aired during the breaks looks and sounds like this,<br /></div><div><blockquote>"Winter storms hit Chicago area, see how citizens react to the sudden<br />onslaught of cold." <em>--local news affiliate headline</em></blockquote></div><br /><div>What onslaught? It's December you idiots, not July! If this happened on July4th, it'd be news.</div><br /><div>...and I'll tell you how people react: they either drive way too fast and slide off the road, or they drive entirely too slowly and get rear-ended by the guy driving too fast! But is that really news when it happens every year? I'd much rather hear Drew Peterson (the local cop suspected of killing 2 of his wives) talk about how his missing wife, Stacey, was a raving witch during <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pncVWMqA9Oo">her menstrual cycle</a>, or how she wanted a "boobjob and tummy tuck" and he bought it for her on his modest cop salary. (his words, not mine)</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi25-FSQlZLOnrKBnk-BrDVjF8lfdvwLsG46w6LrUfharVh0aLvZ9Dn80EKj3mm-4gvQbSxkWu46DmnwzktslkEXVxtVPWst8aXkeJvsr0TPy3-yDQK1UUEIJlxUeHWYjgnPfjXH0fhpog/s1600-r/me+and+mike.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5139223198378244786" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd2Tk4J1GX7WeftKp8EXuQLzMNWF9aFD5Ge2t1ATI93pkDWvkqqzbwdndprOIdzUxHPrT6eoiaouOYoh20mxB5CDzDtReCMNghZLvj2n7eHUwJKBi0Yf2RAvMc5vjRL8Wrp4-M8KiWepI/s200/me+and+mike.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Anyway, I know the best way to combat a cold night: meet my brother at Starbucks for a hot latte and some relaxing conversation, and then head home and curl up on the couch and feed my blog. Goodnight!</div><br /><br /><div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-53885402891767777792007-11-30T13:46:00.001-06:002007-11-30T15:34:13.776-06:00Check out my online buddy: BloggerNOOB<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrZhZkFqu11NCkISCJ0xGDlKsLuEsdkfRm-um5jMeKv8Z4byWQxWQc66J1YI_ZttJMj3_dUymK6BqM_RlT3xazoGfWQOQPjdsNq9IqxGlz3PGpgLRFoHFANbruojMy0Cfj7IyygOCpQ30/s1600-r/header.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5138726425280920194" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCiD4EwtFbHfrEaBDRmh18v1zLs0D3t50fDmUq7M0BvEMuRRdQum2RZbuYP6eJcUs1MrZaPkv-98LiQmxoFAqJ33f4rm06KGokpT3uQjz83rp9Ehwz5ahZIA244FhH6c7kcWg6xmv8ne0/s200/header.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="http://visavis80.blogspot.com/">Chad</a> sent me an email the other day with these words, "You and I need to get together soon so you can teach me about making money online."<br /></div><div>I just had to laugh at this because my response would be, "OK Chad, no problem. My crappy free-hosted blog with great content and cheesy layout has made me a whopping $8.95."</div><br /><div>I can't stand the majority of the "Make Money Online" blogs. There are, however, a few that I like to read. One of those is <a href="http://www.bloggernoob.com/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">BloggerNoob</span></a>.<br /></div><div>The "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Noob</span>" is not a big name in the blogging world. I don't think he has gotten rich on line (yet) and I also don't believe he is much more than 29 years old. <strong>But I can learn from him</strong>; here's how.<br /></div><div>First off, when he updates his site, (I subscribe to his <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/Bloggernoobcom">daily <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">RSS</span> feed</a>) he writes several posts. I like this because I can pick and choose from several entries. Also, the length of the posts are not so long as to lose my attention, but not so short as to be too generalized.<br /></div><div>Secondly, his site is clean and neat and not full of flashing and blinking advertisements woven into the content. The adds are there, but they are not invasive.</div><br /><div>Finally, and most <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">importantly</span>, he is personal and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">accessible</span>. What I mean by this is that I actually sent him a message the other day asking some specific questions and he <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">promptly</span> answered! That's not gonna happen on the Big Money sites. Also, the advice he gave me was concise and simple.</div><div>So, to Chad and my other "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">BigDaddy</span> Blogging Gang" buddies, go check out the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Noob</span> and you will learn about making money online.<br /></div><div>Here are some posts I like from his site:</div><br /><br /><div><a href="http://www.bloggernoob.com/my-first-house/30/">My First House</a></div><br /><br /><div><a href="http://www.bloggernoob.com/set-up-multiple-blogs/30/">Setting Up Multiple Blogs</a></div><br /><br /><div><a href="http://www.bloggernoob.com/my-official-first-month-income/26/">My Official First Month Income</a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-29365122126118887292007-11-27T22:03:00.000-06:002007-11-28T08:52:59.367-06:00Bag Phone, Brick Phone & Bluetooth Couth<span style="color:#ff9966;"><span style="font-size:85%;color:#999999;">Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)<br /></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong><em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">couth</span></em></strong> </span></span><a href="https://secure.reference.com/premium/login.html?rd=2&u=http%3A%2F%2Fdictionary.reference.com%2Fbrowse%2Fcouth" minmax_bound="true"></a><span style="color:#ff9966;">/<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">ku</span>θ/ </span><a class="pronlink" onmouseover="status='Click for pronunciation key';return true;" title="Click for pronunciation key" onclick="pk = window.open('/help/luna/IPA_pron_key.html', 'PronunciationKey','height=700,width=560,left=0,top=0,resizable,scrollbars');if(pk){pk.focus();}" onmouseout="status='';return true;" minmax_bound="true"><span style="color:#cccccc;">Pronunciation Key</span></a><span style="color:#cccccc;"> - [<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">kooth</span>]<br />–adjective<br /></span><span style="font-size:85%;color:#ff9966;">1. showing or <strong><span style="font-size:100%;">having good manners</span></strong> or sophistication; smooth:<br />2. good manners; refinement: to be lacking in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">couth</span>.<br /></span><br />When I was a kid, rich people had car phones. You could pick em' out because of the little squiggly antenna on the back window. But sometime in the latter 1980s, the car phone went mobile. It came in the form of a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">faux</span>-leather fanny pack attached to a black handset that looked like you got it from the bedside table at the Motel 6:...it was the Bag Phone. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrCZW6bS9OQw_S7fVJWLNCYp4Jah6acr0zSiyLwqsyeelIfco4A5CQPWTiC2uxbLiqo1rwdK3IZNbHeqwyZsZ-qn8M5XU3uc2m5o1Oh9cfePO9SV7BGVsqOkBwNDPR9Ss52xVjN9Fw3VY/s1600-h/motorola-bag-phone.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5137903210022689458" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrCZW6bS9OQw_S7fVJWLNCYp4Jah6acr0zSiyLwqsyeelIfco4A5CQPWTiC2uxbLiqo1rwdK3IZNbHeqwyZsZ-qn8M5XU3uc2m5o1Oh9cfePO9SV7BGVsqOkBwNDPR9Ss52xVjN9Fw3VY/s200/motorola-bag-phone.jpg" border="0" /></a>It was big; it was bulky; but most of all, it was freakish! I mean, fanny packs were never cool anywhere were they? In fact, to wear a fanny pack, the style gods dictated you also have on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Sansabelt</span> slacks, white tube socks and penny loafers. Still, those willing to pay 1-dollar-and-68-cents-per-minute were abundant. I'd see them coming through the line at the grocery store I worked in. It seemed strange to me however, that they were always talking on the thing as they were checking out...as if to say to the rest of us, "I got this really cool fanny packed bag phone, and I'm gonna yell at my mom through it while you put my canned ham and Hot Rod Magazine in paper AND plastic, dude!"<br />In those days, it was kind of embarrassing for me to overhear <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">someone's</span> private conversation in a crowded, public place. It freaked me out. Either way, people who owned the bag phone were rude, yet cool in their own minds.<br />A couple years later came the Brick Phone. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu6pglLC92NZ_TJb8XhWdpy4O821hEZ9iNp1YTHfC4DyO2NW1qhROWZubfZhnba1fwjM1cOhC5rNVInZz8Y-aNKiJpzg3a2PJNj8d3Z9C_4FyZ387dqE5MfsDz0gj5zyy4I_VM0ouxKkY/s1600-h/Brickphone.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5137903545030138562" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu6pglLC92NZ_TJb8XhWdpy4O821hEZ9iNp1YTHfC4DyO2NW1qhROWZubfZhnba1fwjM1cOhC5rNVInZz8Y-aNKiJpzg3a2PJNj8d3Z9C_4FyZ387dqE5MfsDz0gj5zyy4I_VM0ouxKkY/s200/Brickphone.jpg" border="0" /></a>This one bothered me too; mainly because it was a very strange shade of off-white-grayish, and because when someone had it up to their face, it looked as if they were calling in an air strike!<br />But the bag and brick phones have nothing on today's technology when it comes to "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">freakin</span>' me out." Nowadays, it's the blue tooth earpiece that's making me nuts. In this case, the device in and of itself is pretty neat. But the people that use them have nearly drawn me to blows.<br />Like today after work: I stopped over at Starbucks to grab a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">grande'</span> with whipped latte... As I neared the counter to order, a guy sitting in the corner <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">across</span> the way looked right at me and annoyingly said, "Did you want me to bring you some damn coffee too?"<br />He was literally on the other side of the shop, but his voice was loud, like he was calling out to me.<br />I paused, and said, "Are you <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">talkin</span>' ta me?" ...in my best Chicago accent.<br />He kept staring in my direction and once again said, "Look, do you want a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">freakin</span>' coffee or not?!"<br />I began to walk over to him, at which point he leaned his head down and mumbled, "I gotta go," and then reached to his ear and and touched his roach-sized <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">bluetooth</span> headset. Suddenly, as if coming out of a hypnotic state, he looked up and me and kindly said, "Oh, hello, can I help you with something?"<br />I immediately figured out that none of his conversation was directed at me ... it was just his lack of <strong><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">BlueTooth</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Couth</span></strong> that caused him to nearly throw me into a rage.<br /><br />It seems that people who use these <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">bluetooth</span> sets have 3 things in common:<br /><blockquote><p>1) the thing is always in their ear...all day long at work, at home,<br />weddings, funeral, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">barmitzvahs</span>; everywhere, all the time, and because of<br />this, they are always talking on it openly.<br />2) since the device does not actually stretch all the way to the mouth, people feel they need to speak loudly for it to pick up the sound.<br />3)because it requires no hands, people tend to keep their head<br />up, indicating interaction with everyone around them. With a traditional cell phone, it is a natural reaction to dip your head a bit as you speak into it...not so with<br />blue tooth. In addition, when people use a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">bluetooth</span>, they go into a trance-like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">state where</span> even though they <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">are looking</span> right at you, they do not see you until the call is terminated. </p></blockquote><br />You might think that I am just a little overly <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">sensitive</span>...<br />A few weeks ago, I was taking the train downtown for a meeting. This particular morning, it was standing room only, and even the aisles were shoulder-to-shoulder. About 10 minutes into the trip, a short guy (yep, shorter than me) wearing a suit next to me loudly declares, "I'm <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">gonne</span> be late ta <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">da</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">freekin</span>' meeting, so just wait on me!"<br />I, too, was wearing a suit and attending a meeting, so I looked at him and realized that he was looking right at me.<br />"Are you going to the AT&T <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">telecom</span> meeting also?" I asked.<br />His gaze remained fixed on me and he said again <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0hEbwmoY4Duu_qBr28fGBDlupfkaImpn8b_7zIM3E1WziFc33i88YhyphenhyphenKLx5NE_LtVBHW6td5R0bfBunSVjCFaU4gnunWC_OX5pwdcFiMKQkeUGqR5CHdsk11sr8oDrPd465ukq_rQ4XA/s1600-h/bluetooth.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5137903940167129810" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0hEbwmoY4Duu_qBr28fGBDlupfkaImpn8b_7zIM3E1WziFc33i88YhyphenhyphenKLx5NE_LtVBHW6td5R0bfBunSVjCFaU4gnunWC_OX5pwdcFiMKQkeUGqR5CHdsk11sr8oDrPd465ukq_rQ4XA/s200/bluetooth.jpg" border="0" /></a>(a little louder this time) "Look Pal, Um on my way over-by-dare and will get ta <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">da</span> place double quick, ya got it?"<br />"Yeah sure buddy," I said. "What company do you represent?"<br />Once <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">again</span> came that familiar "awakening" as he came out of his <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">bluetooth</span> trance, looked in my eyes, scoffed, and pushed his way through the crowd to the other end of the train car.<br />Needless to say, I was completely embarrassed when I saw that silver thing sticking out of his ear as he turned the other way. The whole time he had been speaking on it and I just assumed that since he was looking directly at me; and going to a meeting; and wearing a suit; on the same train as me; that he must be talking to me?!?!?<br /><strong><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">Publice</span> Service Announcement: If you have a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">bluetooth</span> headset ... get some <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">bluetooth</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_31">couth</span> before you take it out and use it!</strong><br /><br /><strong>Am I the only one with this issue? please help...</strong><br /><em>Disclaimer: Chicago accents represented in this story are the responsibility of the reader and his or her own <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_33">preconceived</span> notions of what one actually sounds like. If you're not sure, go rent a copy of the Blues Brothers, and then come back and read this article again.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.digg.com/"><br /><img height="17" alt="Digg!" src="http://digg.com/img/badges/91x17-digg-button-alt.gif" width="91" /><br /></a><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/faves?sub=addfavbtn&add=http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com"><img alt="Add to Technorati Favorites" src="http://static.technorati.com/pix/fave/tech-fav-1.png" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: 0px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px" alt="" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon32x32.png" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate">Subscribe in a reader</a></p><br /><br /><br /></em><em></em><em></em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-64157249546340216372007-11-24T17:48:00.000-06:002007-11-25T22:20:14.411-06:00Christmas Lights, clean, simple, classy (Part 1)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUU_yCl6-uFZ8V_12h2v9Fb-tGck2buU9jkpo2K58HGhlHh6lNzOlTfdZdOt8r1eL_lwHvqDqpz8csCpgzUyoecthfH-crErPAm7-DDUJF9BPNa2SmGVXVRA8a0rWUIDCJ88rMjbyvh0A/s1600-h/roof+clip+test.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136578096647756130" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUU_yCl6-uFZ8V_12h2v9Fb-tGck2buU9jkpo2K58HGhlHh6lNzOlTfdZdOt8r1eL_lwHvqDqpz8csCpgzUyoecthfH-crErPAm7-DDUJF9BPNa2SmGVXVRA8a0rWUIDCJ88rMjbyvh0A/s400/roof+clip+test.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div align="justify">It's that time of year men (and ladies). It's the time when we go all out in the unwritten, unsponsored, but extremely important competition to out-do the neighbors with holiday spirit ... we do this, of course, with outdoor Christmas decorations and lighting.<br />In this post, part 1, I will explain some of the basic materials and preparation, as well as my own philosophy in the matter.<br /><em><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>Introduction to the "runway" look:</strong><br /></span></em>I am not a fan of sloppy, floppy, multi-colored-1980s-looking Christmas lighting. I prefer my outdoor lighting display to be clean, neat, well-ordered, methodical and classy. My setup is made completely using C7 (medium-sized) clear lights. Each light is evenly spaced and laid out logically so as to keep power cords and plugs hidden from view. In short, I want my display to be "tight," and not look like an old, burned out Ferris wheel at a strip-mall parking lot carnival. Interestingly enough, my method also makes putting up and taking down the display much easier year after year.<br /><strong><em><span style="font-size:130%;">Definition of the "runway" look:<br /></span></em></strong>I'm not sure if I am the first to ever use this term, but I'll take credit nonetheless. The name indicates that your display will be well defined like the outline of an aircraft runway. Every light is exactly spaced and straight. This creates a very classy appearance. (visuals coming in parts 2 and 3)<br /><strong><em><span style="font-size:130%;">Supplies needed.</span></em></strong><br />(1) 10 sets of C7 lights. The best place to get them is Walmart where they are about $5 per set.<br /><br /><br />(2) 4 packs of stake clips and 6 packs of 'shingle and gutter' clips.<br />(3) 4 extension cords (50 ft each in green)<br />(4) 2, 3-plug solar-sensing outlets with on/off timers. These save you from having to trek out in the cold at night before bed to turn the lights off.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAsa3NlraIt0LloR_ix2D7oGeTmbr2mVb599OUIgOwX0MX9kQKLVaUN3t0e_MMdN1330WQvkdt27cPrHWfQN-lTxRbcmPWgWL8Dwy_2-fqC-ao2LKJ0jLKzWpzVjQyTm38iC2Lj_C2CJE/s1600-h/solar+timer+with+3+outlets.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136578113827625346" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAsa3NlraIt0LloR_ix2D7oGeTmbr2mVb599OUIgOwX0MX9kQKLVaUN3t0e_MMdN1330WQvkdt27cPrHWfQN-lTxRbcmPWgWL8Dwy_2-fqC-ao2LKJ0jLKzWpzVjQyTm38iC2Lj_C2CJE/s400/solar+timer+with+3+outlets.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />The above supplies will cover most houses, front and sides. This basic setup is designed to highlight your roof-lines and your bed-lines on the ground. (4 sets for the ground, and 6 sets for the roof.) The cost of these supplies is around $155 total. Keep in mind that it's a one-time investment that will last several years.<br /><strong><em><span style="font-size:130%;">Layout and planning.<br /></span></em></strong>Here is where you can save yourself some bigtime headaches. Preparing a good plan keeps you from having to remove and re-position clips while you are up on the roof. It will also help you make the most of your extension cords and power source.<br />(1) Make a generic drawing (bird's eye view) of your property with some basic measurements. Identify your power source (hopefully at the rear of the house) as well as where your solar power strips will be, and how your cords will run to them. Also keep in mind that you can only string 4 or sets together or you will blow fuses (see instructions on box) This will effect they way your layout your lights.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiRVHczmSpxP0reSQDX7mAO5oaL1RnBRdfHR0pENR_h3QwGwAeOUTzDdJZjUfRmeC0AsnKJwvXa6yA_AH0UCh13wWTWo9-tP4pJqVsVgl29yQGrzT8aBjr8ehEcO1kf32pcBDyS4poxXI/s1600-h/plan.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136578109532658034" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiRVHczmSpxP0reSQDX7mAO5oaL1RnBRdfHR0pENR_h3QwGwAeOUTzDdJZjUfRmeC0AsnKJwvXa6yA_AH0UCh13wWTWo9-tP4pJqVsVgl29yQGrzT8aBjr8ehEcO1kf32pcBDyS4poxXI/s400/plan.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />(2) attach clips to lights. For the stake clips on the ground, attach them whichever way you want, just do every light the same. Important: every light gets its own clip. We do not want any sags in the line. For the roof and gutter clips, you need to go outside and visualize how the clips will attach to the roof.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7vrqs0sQZ1ui9c-VWxAyK-jnBzcyGgj1WG3FT_vsFJMEZ-5joRQjj3TsZPwQ8bq7NcI030jenkSou5hQT_PlSMW-J6IncpcqtUnBK9jZfWp3WOuvybJoVkJmGC8tNU8x3OGMJJ4upsgI/s1600-h/clip+position+gutter.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136578122417559954" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7vrqs0sQZ1ui9c-VWxAyK-jnBzcyGgj1WG3FT_vsFJMEZ-5joRQjj3TsZPwQ8bq7NcI030jenkSou5hQT_PlSMW-J6IncpcqtUnBK9jZfWp3WOuvybJoVkJmGC8tNU8x3OGMJJ4upsgI/s400/clip+position+gutter.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSR-_o-8PV9SokIDlAZIXlC5v8Cf8DqwU8Y3E5VIhE6SOjNX8CUaf5P4QEJLa4vdGvanxwjMQ045PuT5y7MZ8uJRpJPNS1KMl_F2avQpDBFfnFOm8P3AyduYMpq8dK6CNCCPzyAMV8SQ0/s1600-h/stake+clip.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136625860979055042" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSR-_o-8PV9SokIDlAZIXlC5v8Cf8DqwU8Y3E5VIhE6SOjNX8CUaf5P4QEJLa4vdGvanxwjMQ045PuT5y7MZ8uJRpJPNS1KMl_F2avQpDBFfnFOm8P3AyduYMpq8dK6CNCCPzyAMV8SQ0/s320/stake+clip.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />You also need to decide where to start and if the starting end will begin with the male connector or female connector. It helps to go on the roof and place a few clips to see your options because clip positioning varies depending upon if you start your strand with the male end vs the female end. Once again, with the roof line lights, every light gets a clip ... no skipping!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiwlmSAERRI43PiSCrRVc8qO4sO1IYOtz3OzBoSJGHMc9ZWC2b2wNywmcdyMZ6lyIHs4MQu_tKvK2PyQqk_fEiB8jrLrfw2Mhs855af0AKzsVdnXqtPCkG17aykkjcMHfw3xOlSdQriOw/s1600-h/start+point+female.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5136578809612327346" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiwlmSAERRI43PiSCrRVc8qO4sO1IYOtz3OzBoSJGHMc9ZWC2b2wNywmcdyMZ6lyIHs4MQu_tKvK2PyQqk_fEiB8jrLrfw2Mhs855af0AKzsVdnXqtPCkG17aykkjcMHfw3xOlSdQriOw/s400/start+point+female.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />(3) gently tighten all the lights in their sockets as you attach the clips.<br /><br />Next, move on to Part 2 <a href="http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com/2007/11/christmas-lights-clean-simple-classy_25.html">HERE</a>.</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/faves?sub=addfavbtn&add=http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com"><img alt="Add to Technorati Favorites" src="http://static.technorati.com/pix/fave/tech-fav-1.png" /></a><br /><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: 0px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px" alt="" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon32x32.png" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate">Subscribe in a reader</a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-74768120457981112452007-11-20T11:25:00.000-06:002007-11-21T21:26:20.208-06:00I need my Ketchup you Bastards!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiI3CkhXAEPMXMBv4znNccFYZe0Z0f9C0nx-0lDqO4n2WQCnxwpbPdWA3aE-5QaDh06yNy7gMPsUTIdjjHEjUP-U0SFgHD3ZIHKj70vmfc2kCT8cPqe5Mbf9ZoMPD3t9ZBUf2qYCNtG6A/s1600-h/al+with+cup.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135333659938510994" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiI3CkhXAEPMXMBv4znNccFYZe0Z0f9C0nx-0lDqO4n2WQCnxwpbPdWA3aE-5QaDh06yNy7gMPsUTIdjjHEjUP-U0SFgHD3ZIHKj70vmfc2kCT8cPqe5Mbf9ZoMPD3t9ZBUf2qYCNtG6A/s400/al+with+cup.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="justify">There's a new trend afoot within the restaurant industry, and it tees me off big time! It has to do with the simplest of condiments: ketchup. Throughout my life, when dining at a "Bar and Grill" type restaurant (ya know, burger, fries and beer or Coke), I've taken great pleasure in dipping the entire contents of my plate into a wide, slithering mound of ketchup. There's just something pleasing about drowning everything in tangy goodness and packing it down with Coors Lt. The bottle is always conveniently located on the table next to the salt and pepper, so you never find yourself wanting...<br /></div><div align="justify">However, on a recent trip to Hoolihan's Restaurant in Schererville, IN, I was left feeling shorted, upset and angry.<br /></div><div align="justify">Instead of allowing me to squirt my own ketchup directly from the bottle, they included only a small, white, plastic "cup" of ketchup with my meal...no bottles anywhere in site. Now the reader will need to realize that I was eating chicken fingers (yep, gay food) and fries, so ketchup was an essential cross-over dip with both food items. In addition, the service was horrible this night, and I actually felt guilty asking the server to "please bring 10 more of these little cups of ketchup." </div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw_9BzGj-qZ3yn010JP91tIMbd89cLqcv3lJdj5IJDQKzGWdx3Hz1NmNf3XD8lnfKUwKDcsTeEbsmbp3B0QG5Xlgil1WS0FaA2b9Zn-2rOPDR1V8B438sdYofw69juhUOe88po_Agk7bA/s1600-h/cups+shot.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135334166744651970" style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw_9BzGj-qZ3yn010JP91tIMbd89cLqcv3lJdj5IJDQKzGWdx3Hz1NmNf3XD8lnfKUwKDcsTeEbsmbp3B0QG5Xlgil1WS0FaA2b9Zn-2rOPDR1V8B438sdYofw69juhUOe88po_Agk7bA/s400/cups+shot.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I noticed that Red Lobster started doing this a few years ago also, but it is not as bothersome there because I normally don't dip my crab legs in the stuff.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikDX0qwSchKvjCuSXj_eA1Bez1sux823C_K7JaqZ6Fc0VqZl8kihkZUl4DRqjHuUPdYxdvyxunaqRdinaEh0EkyilklE9ItfORLEp5fDlro_Ko0U0gu9_O-1-VwGsuBs-HTdbUhE9OyNk/s1600-h/cups2+shot.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5135334175334586578" style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikDX0qwSchKvjCuSXj_eA1Bez1sux823C_K7JaqZ6Fc0VqZl8kihkZUl4DRqjHuUPdYxdvyxunaqRdinaEh0EkyilklE9ItfORLEp5fDlro_Ko0U0gu9_O-1-VwGsuBs-HTdbUhE9OyNk/s400/cups2+shot.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I am not without understanding here either. I know the bastards who watch the bottom line profits are trying to save the waste, but not at the expense of customer convenience! Afterall, I'm already paying a 400% markup on the "Big Beer," so what's a a few cents in ketchup gonna hurt?<br /><br /><div align="justify">And McDonald's does the same thing. I always "Large Size" my meals, and in turn, I ask for "Super Size Ketchup." Whenever I do this, the $5-dollar-an-hour counter helper smirks at me and puts 3 packets in the bag. Are you kidding me? How about 20 packets you bastards!<br /></div><div align="justify">Is there anyone else out there that feels this pain, or is it just me? Please leave a comment and vote in my poll about this.<br /></div><div align="justify">(and yes, I do have possession of those little plastic cups...they just ended up in my to-go box somehow?!?!?!?)</div><br />Gobble gobble...<br /><p>If you like posts where I "rant and rave," you might also find this post appealing:</p><p><a href="http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com/2007/10/micro-managed-trick-or-treat.html">"Micro-Managed Trick or Treat"</a><br /></p><div align="justify"></div><br /><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/faves?sub=addfavbtn&add=http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com"><img alt="Add to Technorati Favorites" src="http://static.technorati.com/pix/fave/tech-fav-1.png" /></a><br /><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: 0px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px" alt="" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon32x32.png" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate">Subscribe in a reader</a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-8299378910054602942007-11-19T20:13:00.000-06:002007-11-19T20:43:44.338-06:00Yes, you can Smoke a Dandelion<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE36MhyphenhyphenE9X1_eKHEshB0Q-70zUmJem9lnJEfLKSxD6EW4rPmi9KER0fCyLwUU6olULdTehIPbGFetsGPhw9vy-XfaojMjUCNK_BpBbiooWvzyHBqKo4_VAnODpuQgQeKNMXgOyBymX75M/s1600-h/dandy+smoke.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5134747097812772370" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE36MhyphenhyphenE9X1_eKHEshB0Q-70zUmJem9lnJEfLKSxD6EW4rPmi9KER0fCyLwUU6olULdTehIPbGFetsGPhw9vy-XfaojMjUCNK_BpBbiooWvzyHBqKo4_VAnODpuQgQeKNMXgOyBymX75M/s400/dandy+smoke.JPG" border="0" /></a> ...just a funky picture from this past Spring...<br /><br /><div align="justify">I'm no druggie, but I'll do almost anything for a laugh, including smoking a big fat dandelion. Each April, when dandelions pop, it's a literal gold rush for lawn care operators like me. Each season, I give out a prize for the biggest, fatest dandelion found. This particular specimen was only about 5 inches long, but mega fat, especially its stem.</div><br /><div align="justify">Dandelions are a perennial weed, meaning a single plant returns year after year. On top of that, they drop thousands of new seeds every season as well. If left unchecked, dandelions will take over a property quickly. Are you ready for next Spring? Only 5 months left</div><br /><div align="justify">The dandelion pictured is estimated to be 3 years old.<br /></div><div></div><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/faves?sub=addfavbtn&add=http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com"><img alt="Add to Technorati Favorites" src="http://static.technorati.com/pix/fave/tech-fav-1.png" /></a><br /><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: 0px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px" alt="" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon32x32.png" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate">Subscribe in a reader</a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-82265696404046489262007-11-17T12:35:00.000-06:002007-11-17T13:42:30.854-06:00An open letter to: DIY Network, Desperate Landscapes, Jason Cameron<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUCDPRv11qjvEoqoDCrlm5kkudmiwAfLReCTGvGyvTotzkBnMvGZzhGKs8OmtBWBTwH8B3AYHY9-t9iAyOAh8X5tXhTLz5Jk1MEgFM4RttnrkCO2XuEcuNP5GqBd0BwwO-iNBlWHYjnbw/s1600-h/hostImage.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5133893773710403074" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUCDPRv11qjvEoqoDCrlm5kkudmiwAfLReCTGvGyvTotzkBnMvGZzhGKs8OmtBWBTwH8B3AYHY9-t9iAyOAh8X5tXhTLz5Jk1MEgFM4RttnrkCO2XuEcuNP5GqBd0BwwO-iNBlWHYjnbw/s400/hostImage.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="justify">I am a fan of home improvement TV, but DIY Network's <a href="http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/shows_ddsl/">"Desperate Landscapes," </a>hosted by pretty boy, Jason Cameron, is pile of misleading crap that only masks an underlying problem.<br />Here is a description of the show from their website: </div><blockquote><p align="justify"><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;color:#ffcc00;"><em>"A little peer pressure goes a long way when you've got a dull and Desperate<br />Landscape! Watch as Jason Cameron and his team of experts visit homeowners<br />nominated as having the worst front yards on their block, then help them to make<br />incredibly dramatic changes in just one day. "</em></span></p></blockquote><br /><div align="justify">First off, the host, Cameron, is NOT a landscape architect. He's also NOT a landscape designer. Finally, he's NOT even a landscape contractor. Yet he is billed as a "pro" when he meets and works with the homeowners throughout the show. Interestingly enough, the statement above leads you believe that he is accompanied by a "team of experts." However, in the show's video intro, it says, "Jason Cameron, landscape pro and all around handy guy takes..."<br /><br />Is Cameron a professional or not? Some of you may think I am splitting hairs here, but in my opinion, this degrades the landscape trade. It makes it appear as if anyone who happens to be an all around "handy-man" is already qualified to install hardscapes and plantings. This is misleading to the would-be do-it-yourselfer.<br /><br />Here is Cameron's bio from the DIY Network website: </div><blockquote><p align="justify"><span style="color:#ffcc33;"><em>"A native of Toledo, Ohio, Jason Cameron is experienced in carpentry and home<br />remodeling, as well as being an outdoorsman and sportsman. He is a familiar face<br />to home improvement fans, having been lead carpenter on the TLC series, While<br />You Were Out. Jason worked his way through college as a carpenter while<br />attending Northern Michigan University. He is also certified as a personal<br />trainer, specializing in strength and conditioning. In his spare time, Jason<br />enjoys working out at the gym, playing volleyball and basketball, and of course,<br />doing carpentry projects. He currently resides with his wife, Mary Ann, in New<br />Jersey."</em></span></p></blockquote><div align="justify">Once again, nothing about landscaping in that bio. It looks to me like the main reason he's qualified is because of his big biceps.<br /><br />Secondly, the work done on the show is second class. While I will give them props for using a decent variety of plants, and for displaying the the correct pricing, the work Cameron does is poop. In one episode, (see video here under <a href="http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/shows_ddsl/">"rustic paver walkway"</a> ) they install cement pavers on top of an existing, unlevel sidewalk. To combat the heaved cement, Cameron decides to use a sledge hammer to remove some of the high areas, yet leaves the cement sidewalk intact in other spots. He then proceeds to scrape a layer of sand across the whole thing and set the pavers. For the record, this is a crime against all hardscapes, and it is dangerous! You NEVER NEVER NEVER install hard pavers on top of an existing cement slab. The reason the existing sidewalk is out of level is due to an improperly prepared base. By adding pavers on top, you will do nothing but make the problem worse. After the first hard freeze, those pavers will move and become unlevel themselves, causing a major safety concern.<br /><br />The only proper way to lay cement paving stones is over a properly excavated footprint that has been layered with limestone crush to a depth of 4-6" and thoroughly tamped.<br />(I've lost some of you here I'm sure, so just know that Jason Cameron is an idiot)<br /><br />Another reason the show is misleading goes back to it's basic premise: that being the "desperate" landscape itself. Folks, landscapes are desperate because their owners are not.<br /><br />Think about this: <a href="http://www.cesarmillaninc.com/">Caesar Milan </a>has a show called the "Dog Whisperer," and his claim to fame is that he "rehabilitates dogs, and trains owners."<br />Caesar says the problem is not the dog, but rather the owner. The dog lives by instinct and breeding, and it's up to the owner to be the "pack leader" and steer the dog in the right direction.<br />Same with landscapes friends! Trees and shrubs, and grass and weeds, are going to grow as the rain falls and the sun shines. It is up to the homeowner to train these elements and keep them under control. Just because a crew from DIY Network swoops in and installs an entirely new landscape doesn't guarantee a lazy homeowner will decide to take care of it.<br /><br />To sum it up: a landscape that Jason Cameron saves from being desperate, will be desperate again in under 2 years.<br />Maybe we should start a DIY show on educating homeowners about taking care of their lawn and land, instead of replacing it? Or maybe they should all just come to this blog and learn for themselves. Finally, I would love to see what these landscapes look like a couple years after their makeover. I don't think Desperate Landscapes has been in production long enough, but if any of you readers know of someone who has been on the show, please drop me a note <a href="mailto:t1brokerhousevp@gmail.com">here</a>.<br /><br />If you liked this post about lazy and desperate landscapes, try this one:<br /><a href="http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com/2007/06/low-maintenance-landscapes.html">"Low Maintenance Landscapes"</a><br /><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/faves?sub=addfavbtn&add=http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com"><img alt="Add to Technorati Favorites" src="http://static.technorati.com/pix/fave/tech-fav-1.png" /></a><br /></div><br /><p align="justify"><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: 0px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px" alt="" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon32x32.png" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate">Subscribe in a reader</a></p><br /><div align="justify"></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-78931352231535556452007-11-16T09:47:00.000-06:002007-11-16T11:49:28.711-06:00Thou Shalt Not Covet Thy Neighbor's Lawn<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUXuKsw-4hcTrjyVhQeUFwM37U5JxaDwr9qPlkR9HaCKjqSN9utFFGgXdqO-FhHX1IgtT0YtaPe91KvWvmMVKdLVqnMPgya1i_4384nzNYYSfDA7IIekROMt3rFN5DKywr4rqP47kFBV8/s1600-h/neighbors+lawn.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5132167843574947378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUXuKsw-4hcTrjyVhQeUFwM37U5JxaDwr9qPlkR9HaCKjqSN9utFFGgXdqO-FhHX1IgtT0YtaPe91KvWvmMVKdLVqnMPgya1i_4384nzNYYSfDA7IIekROMt3rFN5DKywr4rqP47kFBV8/s400/neighbors+lawn.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><blockquote><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:#ff9900;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><em><strong>"My neighbor's lawn looks a whole lot better than mine, and he never does<br />anything to it."<br /></strong></em>-- covetous homeowner</span><br /></span></span></blockquote><div><br />I hear this a lot, so let me address it by taking it away from the context of <strong>lawns</strong>, and placing it within the framework of <strong>life</strong>. </div><br /><div><em>Do these statements seem logical?...<br /></em>(1) Your neighbor's wife looks hotter & happier than yours, and he never pays any attention to her.<br />(2) Your neighbor's kids are perfectly behaved, and he never gives them any direction, rules or discipline.<br />(3) Your neighbor makes more money than you and he never goes to work.<br />(4) Your neighbor's car is in better shape than yours and he never washes it or changes the oil.<br /><br />There you go, <strong>Life and Lawns</strong> in a nutshell.<br />Anything worth having and caring for, takes work, whether the neighbors observe it or not.<br />Any questions? </div><div> </div><div><em>(This post was from a couple days ago, but I am bringing it back to the top because I wanted it to get more attention. It was posted just prior to my screw up when this blog went down)</em></div><div></div></div><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/faves?sub=addfavbtn&add=http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com"><img alt="Add to Technorati Favorites" src="http://static.technorati.com/pix/fave/tech-fav-1.png" /></a><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: 0px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px" alt="" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon32x32.png" /></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" type="application/rss+xml" rel="alternate">Subscribe in a reader</a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-50911259047423454452007-11-15T16:09:00.000-06:002007-11-15T16:50:42.958-06:00Paige Davis to return to Trading Spaces-- Good Move<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuhgQlxj5PuUEnkWhus-saW0-DBe1kkXEWg-QTWnTrblf0-P6hzaGJ5R8tRzl6VjC2l7LHOLOxJCBzI41WL6TnSvm3tiM_186umUlLvk7CGv3BgkyRHNk7HYZYBDzsneNzoHtwBJy-d-s/s1600-h/paige.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5133193629616645618" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuhgQlxj5PuUEnkWhus-saW0-DBe1kkXEWg-QTWnTrblf0-P6hzaGJ5R8tRzl6VjC2l7LHOLOxJCBzI41WL6TnSvm3tiM_186umUlLvk7CGv3BgkyRHNk7HYZYBDzsneNzoHtwBJy-d-s/s400/paige.jpg" border="0" /></a> <em>Trading Spaces is one of TLC's original bread and butter home improvement shows, but has gone considerably down hill in the past few years.<br /></em><br /><strong>From "Reality Blurred dot com"--</strong>TLC is revamping Trading Spaces again by bringing back fired host Paige Davis and bringing in new producers. The show’s old designers will return, too, including Doug Wilson, Hildi Santo-Thomas, Laurie Hickson-Smith, and Frank Bielec. <a href="http://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/archives/trading_spaces/2007_Nov_15_paige_davis_returns">The new show may debut ...</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-19168240441861044402007-11-15T12:37:00.000-06:002007-11-15T12:58:40.685-06:00Life & Lawns back on line! I won't take this risk again.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeJADX7CedWBDYuNpJIL9-3eZWm5hzvq9dX5DfUn4j7bD925B8RcHcI9K7yBEHQRzSOuI8S6Et03a055IhMaO33T74hoqcIBzQKmydxDLdk_FPS_qy05F5T6i656Fln88iuWQ1VlGl0w/s1600-h/thinking+over+the+www.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5133142871693141474" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeJADX7CedWBDYuNpJIL9-3eZWm5hzvq9dX5DfUn4j7bD925B8RcHcI9K7yBEHQRzSOuI8S6Et03a055IhMaO33T74hoqcIBzQKmydxDLdk_FPS_qy05F5T6i656Fln88iuWQ1VlGl0w/s400/thinking+over+the+www.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div>To my 67,899,001 readers: I am sorry that Life and Lawns has been down for a couple days. I was attempting to make some changes to the hosting and domain and CNAMEs and 'A' records and flux capacitor settings and I jacked up my G-14 classified files being stored in Switzerland. (Google now owns 64.6% of Switzerland, FYI) LOL<br />Anyway, I will have a REAL Webmaster hook me up/in the right way next time. <em><strong>(Note to self: just because you can over-haul a crappy lawn in 1 week flat doesn't mean you can modify your WWW presence--stick to what you know, dummy!)</strong></em><br />In the meantime, thanks for your understanding, and know that I have missed you. (for real)<br />I will not take a risk like this again...<br />Blogging for me is like a drug, and I was suffering some massive withdrawals the last few days.<br />AL </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-19827184816527150992007-11-11T22:39:00.001-06:002008-02-13T10:48:32.036-06:00CBS backhands troops with Millennium Generation report<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYbg6Pr7DgTGgOzBinV-UuhCy-4NyR_9nV1xezcOXRkBxrSTPwvORqxPEUdl_EDYeVc_ZvvLNw9503EnNbYHdI4FGDiABw7Yj41cmBM29jxdMiCnzDuDo3Rh1bYetX-AnRtF5exvBkvFw/s1600-h/soldiers.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5131818357791104530" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYbg6Pr7DgTGgOzBinV-UuhCy-4NyR_9nV1xezcOXRkBxrSTPwvORqxPEUdl_EDYeVc_ZvvLNw9503EnNbYHdI4FGDiABw7Yj41cmBM29jxdMiCnzDuDo3Rh1bYetX-AnRtF5exvBkvFw/s400/soldiers.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="justify">60 Minutes' report on today's <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/08/60minutes/main3475200.shtml">"Millennium" generation</a> has once again proven the entire staff there, including Morley Safer is old, out of touch, and should retire. The gist of the entire segment was that young adults these days (20-25 year-olds) want to earn a living only on their own terms, which means having a flippant attitude towards management, rules and corporate structure.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"><a href="http://youcangetajob.com/2008/02/04/dealing-with-the-millennium-generation-it-boils-down-to-leadership-and-understanding/">Read the full story on the Millennium Generation here</a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-28161226135717157192007-11-10T03:02:00.000-06:002007-11-11T21:07:56.174-06:00Dirty truckers keep finding me, Thanks Google<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCsoH8jEpOOqU3pro6Da-x2SLATGTzmq3mn-TzjkQVNvtGiClh4eMeJjxidfs30SEOmk5PwEgFQaozF7qPTMnaaWuCYZOMK4lV-C4584eUj5IJOIJFclTZEiojc1LcCkipQpJRfdFziLI/s1600-h/Clipboard01.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5131141307736497570" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCsoH8jEpOOqU3pro6Da-x2SLATGTzmq3mn-TzjkQVNvtGiClh4eMeJjxidfs30SEOmk5PwEgFQaozF7qPTMnaaWuCYZOMK4lV-C4584eUj5IJOIJFclTZEiojc1LcCkipQpJRfdFziLI/s400/Clipboard01.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div align="justify">In the midst of all the blogs out there that claim to be able to increase your Google page rank and importance and whatever else, I have a claim to fame for this little blog; and it ain't pretty.</div><br /><div align="justify">Some of you may remember <strong><a href="http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com/2007/08/trucker-massage-and-cheap-disney.html">this little post</a></strong> from a couple months back. In short, I was ranting and raving in disgust with all the billboards along Florida's interstate 75 advertising Oriental Massage for wayward truck drivers. </div><br /><div align="justify">Florida is about family, fun, sun and Disney World, ... not horny truck drivers looking for a happy ending at a roadside whore house.</div><br /><div align="justify">Well, guess what? <strong>Google ranks me number one in their searches for these two key words, "Trucker," and "Massage."</strong></div><br /><div align="justify">I guess my clever and witty humor noting the similarities between "<em>lawn" care</em> and "<em>life" care</em> means nothing to Google.<br /><br /></div><div align="justify">You may be thinking, "Al, you're over-reacting...this is no big deal" --until you realize just how many dirty-ass-pervs there are out there actually searching those 2 words!</div><br /><div align="justify">I've been using a couple of different tools to track my incoming links for this blog. One is from <a href="http://www.mybloglog.com/buzz/members/Allyn_Paul/">MyBlogLog</a>, and another from BumpZ... and just today, I installed Google Analytics.</div><br /><div align="justify">Here's the scary part: MyBlogLog and BumpZ only give you brief summaries of your hits and where they originated from. Google analytics, however, is quite comprehensive.</div><br /><div align="justify">Long story short: Since my rant was published on this subject back in August, MyBlogLog has recorded 39 hits resulting from the key words "trucker" and "massage" searched through Google.</div><div align="justify">Keep in mind, a "hit" means that the jerkweed actually clicked on to this page to view the article.</div><div align="justify">Here's the scariest part: Google analytics recorded 7 search hits using these 2 key words just in the past 10 hours!</div><br /><div align="justify">I don't really know what else to say here except that the internet is a very strange place sometimes. Can you catch cooties from some dirtbag surfing your page? </div><br /><div align="justify">At the end of the day, I certainly hope I at least pissed off one or two of these freakin' degenerates when they read my post and what it was aiming at. Here's a word of advice: If you're a trucker looking for some fun on the road: take your wife with you next time! </div><br /><script src="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis.js" type="text/javascript"></script> <br /><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/faves?sub=addfavbtn&add=http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com"><img alt="Add to Technorati Favorites" src="http://static.technorati.com/pix/fave/tech-fav-1.png"/></a><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml"><img alt="" style="vertical-align:middle;border:0" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon32x32.png"/></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml">Subscribe in a reader</a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-5959260454694422922007-11-08T08:49:00.000-06:002007-11-11T23:23:06.789-06:00Don't Crack Your Crowns!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnCWDPDu_116aj3ru4UfrfRihHYCMn1Ny_XXwX0PRAk7LSs5LN178xE4Jv928B_gskw_C7QgPbvMRae-76AY-aLVIySpSaWX0JlJX2HRie0z12U0L7fnVB8qbEjCkf6Q1BfMnhyphenhyphenWXUb0Y/s1600-h/grassanatomy2.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5130482605782179218" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnCWDPDu_116aj3ru4UfrfRihHYCMn1Ny_XXwX0PRAk7LSs5LN178xE4Jv928B_gskw_C7QgPbvMRae-76AY-aLVIySpSaWX0JlJX2HRie0z12U0L7fnVB8qbEjCkf6Q1BfMnhyphenhyphenWXUb0Y/s400/grassanatomy2.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div align="justify">Mother Goose taught us that, “Jack and Jill went up a hill, to fetch a pale of water; Jack fell down, and broke his <strong>crown</strong>…” From this childhood nursery rhyme we see that jack has apparently broken his skull. (more on this later) Did you know your grass also has a crown that can be cracked and broken?<br />When grass plants freeze during winter dormancy, their crowns are vulnerable to breaking if stepped on. The crown of the grass plant is the area that pushes up the actual blades. It’s akin to your skull (Jack’s crown) where your hair grows from. When the crowns are frozen, they become brittle and less flexible, and are easily crushed. A crushed crown will not grow back.<br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong><span style="color:#ff6600;">The Lawn Application:</span><br /></strong></span>During winter, it is imperative that no one walks on your turf. Inevitably, when Spring hits, I get calls and emails from readers asking about dead trails in the lawn that extend from their front porch to the neighbors’. You know what those are? It is where the mailman has walked on the frozen turf all winter and broken the crowns, resulting in dead areas.<br />We also see a lot of dead spots around driveways after winter. This is sometimes caused by salt used to melt the ice, but more often, it’s where homeowners have stepped on the edges of the lawn when getting in and out of the car.<br /><strong><span style="font-size:130%;color:#ff6600;">The Life Application:</span></strong><br />The same works for people like Jack. His crown got broken too. Mrs. Goose would lead us fill in the details ourselves: she vaguely states that after “Jack fell down, and broke his crown,” that Jill came “tumbling after.”<br />But we married men know the truth... Jill was nagging ole’ Jack all the way up that hill. I’m sure she blamed him for their lack of indoor plumbing, and also for the fact that the water well was so far from the house. She wasn’t there to help him “fetch” the water either .... oh no, she was actually chasing him with a rolling pin, cursing all the way.<br />That caused him to turn cold and dormant… “Yes dear, you’re right honey, I’m sorry,” is what he was saying, but she kept on with her bitchin’. Finally, Jack could stand it no more and completely shut her out of his mind...but then he remembered, “Today is Sunday!”<br />Once the pale was full, he turned quickly and made a dash for the house...partly to get away from Jill (who was still squawking wildly) and also because the Bears game was about to start!<br />..and in his attempts to get away from Jill, he fell and broke his crown. Jill’s nagging is what did it! She pounded him just a little too hard!<br />Oh, and for the record, Jill was only tumbling after in an effort to get the last word.<br />Watch your crowns boys, grass and otherwise!<br />Married men...can I get a witness? </div><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/faves?sub=addfavbtn&add=http://lifeandlawns.blogspot.com"><img alt="Add to Technorati Favorites" src="http://static.technorati.com/pix/fave/tech-fav-1.png"/></a><br /><p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml"><img alt="" style="vertical-align:middle;border:0" src="http://www.feedburner.com/fb/images/pub/feed-icon32x32.png"/></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/LifeAndLawns" rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml">Subscribe in a reader</a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-45912195869978005632007-11-07T11:13:00.000-06:002007-11-07T12:52:12.633-06:00(beer)New post coming .. in the meantime (beer)I found a funny post on <a href="http://bryansviews.blogspot.com/2007/11/google-adsense.html">my buddy Bryan's blog</a>. He got overly-sensed by Google Adsense, and had to remove their ads for a while.<br />If you are not aware, Google Adsense looks at your content and pumps in ads relevant to your topics. He wrote about some ... well, go there to see!<br />Let's do a test ok?<br /><br />Here Google--find this...<br /><br />BEER, <strong><em><span style="font-size:180%;">BEER,</span></em></strong> <span style="color:#ffcc00;"><strong>Corona,</strong></span> Schlitz, <span style="font-size:180%;">BEER</span>, BEER, Keystone,<br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:78%;">BEER</span> </strong><span style="font-size:130%;"><em><span style="color:#cc0000;">BEER</span></em>,</span> Bud, Miller, <span style="font-size:180%;"><strong>BEER </strong></span><br /><p><span style="font-size:180%;"><strong></strong></span> </p><p><span style="font-size:180%;"><strong>I like Beer. and Beer and beer.</p><br /></strong></span><br /><br /><br /><br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-35115888526919907972007-11-05T11:06:00.000-06:002007-11-05T11:15:29.606-06:00Need help from fellow bloggers/webmasters<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjibhAnfwDF5BtruwmOEgjGKRvN4fITT5ui9cfocOV90K_ZZdAXqmX3ct8WWVa_pqzAGcKzi8Kb8emJTzwdYcrPmVnh5ZKfC2gcAzkyZQV6wldTRtSvLPrbJkscg_TD0Ix0snijGNMeyRA/s1600-h/Joomla_logo.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129405854167214050" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjibhAnfwDF5BtruwmOEgjGKRvN4fITT5ui9cfocOV90K_ZZdAXqmX3ct8WWVa_pqzAGcKzi8Kb8emJTzwdYcrPmVnh5ZKfC2gcAzkyZQV6wldTRtSvLPrbJkscg_TD0Ix0snijGNMeyRA/s320/Joomla_logo.png" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I have a new project/<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">blogsite</span> I am working on. It will not be rolled out until Spring of next year. In the course of planning, I am going to have to build a website and have it hosted as I do not want to run it on the "blogger" platform that this site runs on. I have already purchased the domain.</div><br /><div>I looked at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Wordpress</span>, but it seems a little too restrictive. I also downloaded some open source software called <a href="http://joomla.com/">"<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Joomla</span>"</a> that seems usable for someone as myself who has little-to-no HTML experience.</div><br /><div>Have any of you used <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Joomla</span>? Could you give me some advice in getting started with it? How user friendly is it? Flexible?</div><div>The site will be in an online newspaper format with several pages, and one page will be in a blog format.</div><br /><div>Your help is appreciated!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-86035443412613206502007-11-05T07:01:00.001-06:002007-11-05T07:38:06.091-06:00Strange Grocery Store Purchases<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOcujXd9Hhh-_Mj2go_L7ReFFYrwvFoLm18ocDhV1k7Mupf9ZjZvQwxynvpbZagtu0axHaPaSYMyvDApheFjWLDl0yqKIXf8XdnFjZQ8v6nryzYSfoh5xthUPcfuuIeNZ3Dv6Yis5ZubY/s1600-h/ad.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5129349422591911890" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOcujXd9Hhh-_Mj2go_L7ReFFYrwvFoLm18ocDhV1k7Mupf9ZjZvQwxynvpbZagtu0axHaPaSYMyvDApheFjWLDl0yqKIXf8XdnFjZQ8v6nryzYSfoh5xthUPcfuuIeNZ3Dv6Yis5ZubY/s320/ad.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I worked at the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Kash</span>-N-Karry grocery store on 34<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">th</span> st and 30<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">th</span> Ave in St. Pete, FL from the age of 16-20. It was my first job (besides mowing lawns) and it taught me a lot. I learned customer service skills, task management, and most importantly, how to fondle the melons in produce without bruising them. (a skill I still cherish today!).</div><br /><div>The experience also taught me just how <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">wierd</span> some people are. Spending 4 years in the same store afforded me the opportunity to observe most of the regular customers and take mental notes on their buying <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">habits</span>. Here is some of what I noticed.</div><br /><div>(1) Guy in his 60s that would buy multiple types of chocolate bars, cans of green beans and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">immodium</span> anti-<span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">diarrhea</span> pills. (that's all he ever bought!)</div><br /><div>(2) Skinny tall guy with a mullet, he always wore faded rock concert T-shirts: He would buy fitness magazines and KY jelly. (I let him bag his own stuff! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">LOL</span>)</div><br /><div>(3) Guy always dressed in a suit (made me think he was either a lawyer or businessman) would buy bottles and bottles of hand soap...like maybe he was literally and figuratively "washing" his hands of his dirty work practices.</div><br /><div>(4) Middle-aged woman who would buy dozens of cans of soft cat food, and bottles of sun-tan lotion. Was she rubbing it on the cats? I dunno.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>What strange combinations have you noticed people buying at the grocery store?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-24111690504722552782007-11-03T07:55:00.000-05:002007-11-03T08:09:47.722-05:00Weekend Guest Blogger, Patti Chrisman<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMLovR2ap0KfYpfvzu4d37WpqEkmX4U5KZTrOPuBJ54UYh_EF_JV2ZjstJnOE3dFHt7FyOGekJyRC1u_RLCv-1P56bhNP37xtZGnVE_yQx1voPxM3-ZfScJ8EJ5hUnpLLW1vQ360Z8ukg/s1600-h/fall+leaves.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5128600431835096978" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMLovR2ap0KfYpfvzu4d37WpqEkmX4U5KZTrOPuBJ54UYh_EF_JV2ZjstJnOE3dFHt7FyOGekJyRC1u_RLCv-1P56bhNP37xtZGnVE_yQx1voPxM3-ZfScJ8EJ5hUnpLLW1vQ360Z8ukg/s320/fall+leaves.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><em><span style="color:#cc6600;">Patti and her husband Steve are high school friends of mine. Patti is a full time Mom of 4 and lists her occupation as "supervisory" and the industry as "non-profit." :)</span></em></div><br /><div><em><span style="color:#cc6600;">Her post from October 27<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span> fits very well with the purpose of this blog. Please see below, visit her page and leave her a comment if you feel lead...</span></em></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><strong><span style="font-size:130%;color:#cc6600;"><span style="font-size:180%;">A lesson from the leaves</span><br /></span></strong><br />I was driving in the car the other day and I was looking at the changing leaves on the trees. Some trees lose their leaves in little sections at a time. Others change colors slowly all over. Others lose all of their leaves quickly. Some trees stay green longer than most of the other trees, then begin to change colors and drop leaves. Even trees of the same kind don't change at the exact same rate. Some trees change colors but the leaves cling to the tree until the leaves are totally shriveled up. Yet others don't lose leaves at all.<br />Seeing this, I thought of sin in people's lives ... <a href="http://www.xanga.com/spchrisman/623878143/a-lesson-from-the-leaves.html">(see the rest here)</a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-66129710541402583752007-10-31T22:11:00.000-05:002007-10-31T22:40:46.670-05:00Unabashed<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilZQIK6ZVu7kSZrmlhY8KwE9fEN7MyUgwy-l_BDo1v4o5i7c-JihhIpYyG38qLVgRNOsok1Q-lBwtF7cngexjzh74RgcHasI-qa10xUeM2r-TW3Hy5E1b9M9ygzTOxQ7xXOjN-4neXcPg/s1600-h/matt.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5127711008532604674" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilZQIK6ZVu7kSZrmlhY8KwE9fEN7MyUgwy-l_BDo1v4o5i7c-JihhIpYyG38qLVgRNOsok1Q-lBwtF7cngexjzh74RgcHasI-qa10xUeM2r-TW3Hy5E1b9M9ygzTOxQ7xXOjN-4neXcPg/s320/matt.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;color:#ff6600;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">un</span>·a·bashed</span> <a href="https://secure.reference.com/premium/login.html?rd=2&u=http%3A%2F%2Fdictionary.reference.com%2Fbrowse%2Funabashed" target="_blank" minmax_bound="true"></a>(<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">ŭn</span>'ə-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">bāsht</span>')<br /><em>Not disconcerted or embarrassed; poised.<br />Not concealed or disguised; obvious: unabashed disgust.</em></div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I want to introduce my 8,342 regular readers to one of my new favorite writers, <a href="http://mattmitchellfiction.com/unabashed/about/">Matt Mitchell</a>. Even though he's a Navy fish, he's still gained my respect and admiration as a fellow blogger and lawn care enthusiast. First off, he's got a huge, 6-acre grass patch that he mows each week. He's got a manly John Deere tractor, but plans to invest in a 4-wheeler with bush hog attachment as soon as his wife dot com gives him the "go-ahead." (I feel his pain) I'm sure he'll convince her to let him splurge on the 4-wheel drive option as well ... just in case the weeds get out-of-hand. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">LOL</span></div><div>Secondly, his blog site is 80% content and not a bunch of stupid "how to make money" ads that hinder the reader...you can actually visit the site and find some good thoughts from a unique mind. He's got several projects/works pending, and you can find out about them as you explore his site. (he's obviously pretty smart because his blog is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Wordpress</span>, which is way too complicated for me)</div><div>What's more, he's a sports fan and has a second blog entitled <a href="http://houndstooth.wordpress.com/">"Real Men Wear <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Houndstooth</span>"</a> in which the most recent post trashes Alabama ESPN radio. I gotta figure that whoever they got down there sucks as much ass as Dan Patrick does up here on our local ESPN affiliate.</div><div>Either way, go check out Matt's humor and view on life...I'm sure you'll be impressed.</div><br /><div>Leave him a comment and let him know that "Big AL" sent you! </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-59912892922997220152007-10-30T20:22:00.000-05:002007-10-30T22:59:36.086-05:00Micro-Managed Trick or Treat<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGEKyWm7AI9ZzvA-iNuZRW18m0w8Bn24tHTmlS3p9Gvwa3Q_7esN2YOGORffINC-zR0RTJAM-m4-8pVRa3sZcumlY9imreLhEwPdQJgjEXhXOOC-xAG3rdiGEH5YME4ywWJwPaCBhyVbQ/s1600-h/tricktreat.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5127324487245768418" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGEKyWm7AI9ZzvA-iNuZRW18m0w8Bn24tHTmlS3p9Gvwa3Q_7esN2YOGORffINC-zR0RTJAM-m4-8pVRa3sZcumlY9imreLhEwPdQJgjEXhXOOC-xAG3rdiGEH5YME4ywWJwPaCBhyVbQ/s400/tricktreat.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">The concept of Halloween has changed a lot in 20 years. In the 1980s, my friends and I started the day's festivities about 6 AM as we dressed in our costumes for school. In those days my favorite character was your standard Dracula. My version of ole' Drac came complete with white face paint, blood dripping from the corners of my mouth, plastic fangs and a black valour cape. If I was lucky, I could find a knotted branch from a crape myrtle tree to use as a magic staff.<br />The school day was pretty much a throw away on Halloween; filled with parties, costume contests and dramatic improv. (that's why I dressed as Drac because I got to, well, ya know, suck on the girls' necks!) I also remember a particular teacher, Mrs. Stutgert -- a genuine witchy woman -- but on this one day every year, she came dressed as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, complete with her gray wire-haired sheepdog, Toto.<br />Following the bus ride home from school, the treating started. We'd knock every door all the way home and have a half-filled pillow case by 3:15 pm!<br />By 5, we were back out and hitting up every door within a 3-block radius. To finish off the night, we begged our parents to take us to what we assumed were "rich" neighborhoods, because those people gave away better candy; or so we figured. That usually took us to about 9pm. The treat gathering ended and we headed for home, but not before stopping at McDonald's for a free swirl cone.<br />Today, the entire process is controlled by governments, school boards and homeowners associations. Tricks and treats have been regulated to the point where it is nearly impossible to pick up the bounty of candy a kid desires: plus, it just ain't any fun anymore.<br />First off, my boys (they're in Junior High) are not allowed to wear costumes to school on Halloween. The only opportunity they had to share their creativity was at a Fall dance 2 weeks ago. My boys didn't dress up for it though, and good thing, because neither did any of the other kids ... it was just too early. What's more, the school sent home a list of "prohibited" costume-wear.<br /><strong>--no masks<br />--no full face paint<br />--no "all black" clothing<br />--no trench coats or cloaks<br />--no blood or perceived violent characterizations</strong><br />So, basically, Mrs. Stutgert's Dorothy would be approved, but the Tin Man, Lion and Scarecrow are all off limits!<br />And then, us parents have to look in the paper to find out what times the town has approved the actual "Trick or Treat."<br />Funny, this year it's from 4-6 PM ... I work until 5 and have a 45-minute commute. It figures that government workers would be able to start their trick or treating at 4PM. Plus, it's not even dark at that time, what the heck?<br />Finally, to top it off, a list was published of certain subdivisions that were "highly discouraging" trick or treaters from neighborhoods outside of the town.<br />I told the kids that this year, we're foregoing the candy gathering; it's just too restrictive. Instead, we're going to toilet-paper the mayor's house ... no one has outlawed that yet!</span> </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-89558366714678941082007-10-29T22:57:00.000-05:002007-10-29T23:19:36.604-05:00What will I write about during Winter?<div align="justify"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiMsH1for1VmhJlIHdQ5LexkBGju25CB40GILxkHZtMcV_jor9Jz2Jb9aDug7hrtOAjpJurcjbEnsJedcEemSiy-NXg6I8-y0BOQPv1ARBP_n37ZwNohan1dZCwmrwGuCckhTEKWoDyDk/s1600-h/im+gonna+miss+you.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5126977535492630210" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiMsH1for1VmhJlIHdQ5LexkBGju25CB40GILxkHZtMcV_jor9Jz2Jb9aDug7hrtOAjpJurcjbEnsJedcEemSiy-NXg6I8-y0BOQPv1ARBP_n37ZwNohan1dZCwmrwGuCckhTEKWoDyDk/s400/im+gonna+miss+you.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">I got an email today from a fan of this blog (no lie, really, a real life fan!) and he wanted to know just what topics I'll explore now that the lawn season is pretty much over here in the Chicago area.<br />"Have no fear," I replied. "Allyn Paul is full of ideas and opinions and bitches and whines."<br />I plan to still include some Life and Lawn type articles, but I will sprinkle in some more ranting, raving, lame attempts at humor and the occasional post about making money blogging.(hey, buy something here please...) More importantly, I will share with you my knowledge on home improvement. This winter, I am tasked with finishing "Man Land," a.k.a. the basement bathroom. I want to take you step by step through that process.<br />Oh, and I almost forgot, I need to teach these young kids who are new to home ownership (you know who you are over there on the right in the "blog friends" links) how to put up Christmas lights the righ</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMEIKBZFvGeRC9XYL-BY_7O-Hn4yGuKoHOI-96UFDEqbirlmq6_u8XAmPT42ewdedUu2CkYd8ZbHhza6mPvm4n9DHBqEF3JsJjosgv7Rw_WgNVfXd25bIURcce9vQ5ZuijmtD64aJCIQY/s1600-h/goodnt+kiss.JPG"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5126977539787597522" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" height="412" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMEIKBZFvGeRC9XYL-BY_7O-Hn4yGuKoHOI-96UFDEqbirlmq6_u8XAmPT42ewdedUu2CkYd8ZbHhza6mPvm4n9DHBqEF3JsJjosgv7Rw_WgNVfXd25bIURcce9vQ5ZuijmtD64aJCIQY/s400/goodnt+kiss.JPG" width="331" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;">t way. One of my pet peeves are Christmas lights that are hung all crooked and crappy! Sheesh! Oh, and please don't put up the multi-colored C6 lights (the fat ones) that were popular in 1982! Stick to a nice, clean, clear light that looks fresh and...well, you'll have to wait for the post and pics on this one...<br />Last thing: please pray for me as I am feeling a little empty nest syndrome since I tucked my lawn mower in to hibernation for the long winter to come. See the pics, and send your comforting thoughts my way please</span>. </div><br /><br /><a href="http://www.kqzyfj.com/click-2683436-8335299" target="_blank" onmouseover="window.status='http://brecks.com/index.asp?';return true;" onmouseout="window.status=' ';return true;"><br /><img src="http://www.ftjcfx.com/image-2683436-8335299" width="125" height="125" alt="Free $25 off any order of $50 or more!" border="0"/></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6985620715282729240.post-87250534188296195742007-10-28T20:24:00.000-05:002007-10-29T08:47:58.897-05:00Planting bulbs now brings rewards later<div align="justify"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK4AGVMV2ELWWp6TkWMSjk-jkLM8JPfoy4eg4lkpxGPXHPpaA1moSYca72zXcKgfBuu36iJXBwWp2ky67rFXfguue6oJ8pBRxEzOaTgxibTmv1Dw_3De1j9uzwol6GO03PxipzgsBuCts/s1600-h/bulb+supplies+2.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5126574302488045170" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 290px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 360px" height="329" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK4AGVMV2ELWWp6TkWMSjk-jkLM8JPfoy4eg4lkpxGPXHPpaA1moSYca72zXcKgfBuu36iJXBwWp2ky67rFXfguue6oJ8pBRxEzOaTgxibTmv1Dw_3De1j9uzwol6GO03PxipzgsBuCts/s400/bulb+supplies+2.JPG" width="277" border="0" /></a> </div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">Fall is the time to plant bulbs. A small investment of time now will pay off in huge dividends in the Spring, and far into the future. I have great respect for homeowners who take the time to plant fall bulbs, because it involves some careful forethought. It is also demonstrates patience in that the reward for the work comes months later, and not instantly. Surprisingly, most people will not take the time to plant bulbs because of the absence of "instant gratification." (stay with me folks, there's a "life" lesson in your future) But first, let's look at the planting criteria for bulbs.</span></div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">It's really a very simple process. First off, the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">soil </span>needs to be in the range of 55-60 degrees (that's now </span><span style="font-size:130%;">if you live in the Midwest). This is <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnPCgrKGTZ7gJnOLQzdCzPbhrxPOvCkyi4FuMlHjhi-9t5_7UqHSEn6VrQfAFUImM5e6Apm8QyY-LQ4OWcPz6DdMGbn54dwY6TjFiQsJMP2mkvxjxS_bNXRpGiloqJxapzI6tfhbmu-rw/s1600-h/hole+depth+guage.JPG"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5126574311077979778" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 199px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 395px" height="364" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnPCgrKGTZ7gJnOLQzdCzPbhrxPOvCkyi4FuMlHjhi-9t5_7UqHSEn6VrQfAFUImM5e6Apm8QyY-LQ4OWcPz6DdMGbn54dwY6TjFiQsJMP2mkvxjxS_bNXRpGiloqJxapzI6tfhbmu-rw/s400/hole+depth+guage.JPG" width="161" border="0" /></span></a>the optimum temperature to stimulate the newly planted bulbs to begin to "root," but not so cold as to freeze them prematurely.</span><br /></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">I like to plant my bulbs using a paddle-bit for an electric drill. I find that the 1.5" bit makes the perfect sized hole for a standard tulip bulb, and makes a clean hole fast.</span><br /></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">You should follow the planting directions that come with the bulbs you purchase, but the standard depth for tulips is usually 6". Place a piece of tape on the shaft of the bit at the 6" mark to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">gauge</span> your depth with drilling. Once you drill the hole, be sure to place the bulb in right side up (see pictures) and use the shaft of an old hammer to gently push the bulb to the base of the hole. Next, cover with some top soil and mulch...finish by watering them <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">thoroughly</span>.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">As I stated above, planting bulbs, in my opinion, is the mark of the mature and wise gardener. Tulips and other bulbs are interesting because they "naturalize" or spread over time. Most species of tulips naturalize-when unaffected by rodents- via underground stems called stolons, or daughter bulbs. T</span><span style="font-size:130%;">he new naturalized plants are usually identical to the <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYOxN0Dqeaahyphenhyphen0mQCzCiQkH7RpOYAwJaU1oK6q2dre9u0pH21-RTJtVsjulBUVmFARobWZDEGWeutRWrXWGML1aOUXTWBGRKo17O5dHwazyqmZ7T0KnhkpFp1NOI4F1ywUqhnBtKiEcI4/s1600-h/drill+bulb+hole.JPG"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5126574315372947090" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYOxN0Dqeaahyphenhyphen0mQCzCiQkH7RpOYAwJaU1oK6q2dre9u0pH21-RTJtVsjulBUVmFARobWZDEGWeutRWrXWGML1aOUXTWBGRKo17O5dHwazyqmZ7T0KnhkpFp1NOI4F1ywUqhnBtKiEcI4/s400/drill+bulb+hole.JPG" border="0" /></span></a>parent plant.</span></div><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">Planting 20 or 30 bulbs now will bring 20 or 30 beautiful early Spring flowers, but the next year, the numbers will double, and grow exponentially year-after-year.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;color:#993300;"><strong>The Life Lesson:<br /></strong></span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">I have noticed something similar with my kids. There are small bits or "bulbs" of wisdom that I've buried into them that seem useless to them at the time, but as they have aged, those bits of wisdom naturalized and are now producing some positive outcomes.</span><br /></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">A simple, but important one would be how to properly shake a man's hand. I taught my boys at the ages of 6 and 7 how to properly shake hands: firm grip, stiff arm, look the man in the eye, etc. When the boys were very young, it was kind of a joke to them when they'd practice what I taught them. However, now that they are teenagers, the skill has naturalized and is now second "nature" to them, and they shake hands like men. I c</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9aSMKgeejzOgv4L_OI-ktgKPpWsl7ir5m6PCz6HSgTjVYqtmg7vmm3LnXNQ7cbGebpJ0uoDBfS8KVRNNiWFTb6UznXMsuQps2KJR89ToCPwYT5-cerBZTw5s-5W7GGP1E3qdsoE1p9CU/s1600-h/hammer+bury.JPG"></a><span style="font-size:130%;">an only wonder if as they become adults, the difference between them getting a good job or not will be in the way they shake the interviewer's hand. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6-_d9qRW5igmOPmQl4YG7Xbx7FLSM_HRJOgxdHLkWKEq86PC6IeTYAlYfGlWFKlcsJRt2Xgf9pPEVYDctJ4eVX7Nv_Sm0BhthhD-3bQm7v6QM6CZrLjsCWPDepCzpgIrq1wRDKBiRJ2c/s1600-h/bulb+put+in+hole.JPG"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5126574332552816290" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6-_d9qRW5igmOPmQl4YG7Xbx7FLSM_HRJOgxdHLkWKEq86PC6IeTYAlYfGlWFKlcsJRt2Xgf9pPEVYDctJ4eVX7Nv_Sm0BhthhD-3bQm7v6QM6CZrLjsCWPDepCzpgIrq1wRDKBiRJ2c/s400/bulb+put+in+hole.JPG" border="0" /></span></a> It will be interesting to see this one naturalize exponentially over time. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">A great place to view and purchase a wide selection of quality bulbs is here:</span></div><div align="justify"> </div><br /><a href="http://www.jdoqocy.com/click-2683436-10305999" target="_blank" onmouseover="window.status='http://brecks.com/index.asp?';return true;" onmouseout="window.status=' ';return true;"><br /><img src="http://www.lduhtrp.net/image-2683436-10305999" width="120" height="60" alt="$25 off $50 order" border="0"/></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com