Welcome to Tempe, President Obama
13 May 2009 Leave a Comment
in Politics
As I type this, Obama is either speaking to the graduating class at ASU or he just finished. Of course, his presence caused great traffic snarls, but I suppose that would be the situation for any president appearing at ASU. No one was allowed to bring containers of any kind inside the stadium. However, when they got inside, everyone found out that bottles of water cost 5.50 EACH! Considering they started arriving around 1 pm in the hot Arizona sun, I sure hope everyone stayed well-hydrated and safe.
I confess that I didn’t watch the television coverage of Obama’s visit. I would hope he would encourage the grads to start on a path of self-reliance, and to accept responsibility for their prior actions. Then again, the Democrats aren’t accepting any responsiblity for the financial problems that started two years ago when they took control of the Legislature. I mean, how can Obama tell the seniors that they are responsible for their futures when he and Pelosi refuse to accept any responsiblity for their past actions?
Retro News: 1981 Report on first forms of internet
13 May 2009 Leave a Comment
in General
I almost died laughing when I heard how long it took to download a newspaper, and how much the service cost:
Steven Crowder Wishes everyone a Happy Prayer Day
09 May 2009 Leave a Comment
in Youtube
I know the National Day of Prayer was on May 7th, but I was too busy clearing out my old posts that day, so I’m putting it up now. Better late than never, eh? You go ahead and enjoy this video while I keep on throwing out stuff here that’s no longer relevant. (I just found an old post, “Easter 2008 Gifts for Mom”. Should I keep it around and use it for next year?)
Happy Ocho De Mayo!!!
08 May 2009 1 Comment
in Links I Love
I decided to log in and clean out more of my old posts in draft status, like the ones I wrote last year about the Oktoberfest at Tempe Town Lake. I also installed a banner for Kiva.org because I truly believe in their system. They help needy people in third world countries get loans to improve their businesses and lives. It seems that here in the U.S., our definition of “poverty level” is someone that has a flat screen tv that is less than 32″, but the borrowers on Kiva are living at a whole different level. Some of them want micro-loans to buy livestock to raise and sell, while others just want to borrow enough to put a roof over their head.
But don’t think Kiva is charity, because it’s not. You choose who you will loan your money to and the amount you want to loan, starting with $25. Here’s how Kiva explains the process:
Choose an Entrepreneur, Lend, Get Repaid
1) Lenders like you browse profiles of entrepreneurs in need, and choose someone to lend to. When they lend, using PayPal or their credit cards, Kiva collects the funds and then passes them along to one of our microfinance partners worldwide.
2) Kiva’s microfinance partners distribute the loan funds to the selected entrepreneur. Often, our partners also provide training and other assistance to maximize the entrepreneur’s chances of success.
3) Over time, the entrepreneur repays their loan. Repayment and other updates are posted on Kiva and emailed to lenders who wish to receive them.
4) When lenders get their money back, they can re-lend to someone else in need, donate their funds to Kiva (to cover operational expenses), or withdraw their funds.
My family and I have been loaning money since January, and have received every repayment when it was due. Of course, you can keep the money when you’re repaid, but it’s fun to find another entrepreneur and loan the money out again. I could go on and on about Kiva, but I have those old posts to clear out. While I’m doing that, head over to Kiva, you can lurk without logging in. Right now as of this very moment, there are over 700 people who need a loan to change and improve their lives. They’re not looking for a hand out, just your helping hand.
Confession: I have 126 posts in draft status… and a bad haircut
07 May 2009 Leave a Comment
in Humor
I was going to write about my horrible haircut, even to the point of whining piteously. However, I just noticed that I have some old posts that definitely need to be cleaned out. I mean, one’s so old, it’s topic is “Mitt Romney for President?”. I don’t think I need to hang onto that one, but I do need to some spring cleaning on my blog if I plan on blogging semi-regularly.
So instead of going into (too much) detail about my hair, I am going to resolve to clean out five of the old posts tonight, either post them or delete them. If I do five old posts a day, that should take me about 25 days.
Do you think my hair will have grown out by then?
Lately, EntreCard users visit my blog more often than I do
04 May 2009 Leave a Comment
in General
I have been a horrible blogger lately. It feels like I haven’t written a post here since the Truman administration. However, I do seem to be getting quite a few visitors due to EntreCard, so I figure I’ll try to post here on a semi-regular basis. I just am so busy lately, doing business-related stuff that probably isn’t relevant to this blog. I’m also getting ready to move soon. My sister (and best friend) lives about 10-12 miles from me right now, and she and I decided it would be great if we were all in the same zip code. At first, I thought of persuading her to move closer to me, but I decided I like her neighborhood stores more than I like mine. Plus, even though I’ve had this house for a long time, it has never quite felt like “home” and I now want a place with a huge, gigantic, humongous yard. Of course, I know that a person selling a house won’t get as much as they could have a year ago, but I also know that people buying a house won’t have to pay the inflated prices that are long gone. So I have a feeling that part is going to even out, I just have to find the right house.
Back to work, work and more work for me. I’m enjoying what I’m doing, but lately, it feels like I’ve been working at it 23 hours a day. But I have a feeling that the workload’s going to change very soon and I’ll be able to go back to a fairly normal schedule. At least, that’s what I’m working towards.
Gosh, I just checked my home page and saw the banner I put up for Hurricane Relief.
In 2008.
I should fix that one of these days.
(P.S.- I wasn’t alive during the Truman administration, in case you’re wondering. )
