It’s amazing when you think about how the internet has evolved over the last decade or so. I still remember those static HTML pages that were hosted on geocities way back when. Websites are no longer static and are dynamically rendered using powerful PHP scripts. Not only that but everything is interactive and constantly being updated with blog comments, tweets and status updates. I can’t even fathom the amount of new content that gets created on the web every minute of the day. How do we even try to keep track of it all? Tried and true search engines have been very helpful in this manner but even search engines have to evolve to keep up with the ever-changing web.
Take leapfish for example. LeapFish not only features real-time searching capabilities, their on-screen portal includes facebook, twitter and digg applications so that you can share info and interact with friends all in one place. Why go to all these separate websites to perform different tasks when you can do search, be informed, interact and share through the LeapFish portal.
I tested out the search aspect of LeapFish by using the term “AWATS”. It’s an acronym related to Todd Rundgren’s album “A Wizard a True Star” that he’s currently performing live in concert. Leapfish’s results are nicely organized in separate categories instead of just a straight list of links. There’s a section for web results and then a separate list of videos, photos and twitter feeds. the side bar conveniently displays related links from Digg, facebook and amazon. Leapfish correctly identified AWATS as a Rundgren album and gathered videos, photos and links from the recent shows in Akron. I like the look and feel of the website and think the added social networking apps are great additions to the search portal.
Head on over to LeapFish and check out the next level in search engines.
While booking a trip for my parents the other day, I came across a great deal offered by British Airways that I thought I’d share here with my readers. They’re currently running a promotion called the “World Sale” to help remind travelers their world-class service is not only for routes in and out of the U.K. but also for the rest of Europe, India, Africa and the Middle East. Along with their great fares, British Airways offer “upgrades” that you won’t find anywhere else including: more than 200 on-demand entertainment options, complimentary food and cocktails on ALL flights, ergonomically designed seating and of course their world-renowned customer service. You can save even more by combining hotel reservations and car rentals when you book your flight.
Currently, flights from JFK to London are only $659, round-trip. Flights to Madrid are only $755, round-trip. I booked a flight to Rome for my folks for just $749 each, round-trip. They had a fabulous vacation in Italy a couple years ago and they’re ready to go back and explore the country some more. It’s not too late to book your own vacation. Head on over to the British Airways website before November 19th to take advantage of the special sale.
And speaking of British Airways, they put together a special website for frequent flyers of New York and London, highlighting the best of both cities called MetroTwin. It’s a handy resource that helps you find a great restaurant, attraction or place to shop. The best thing about MetroTwin is the interactivity. Add your own two-cents on various hot-spots, vote for your favorite places and even submit your own photos to the site. It’s definitely a must-see for New Yorkers and Londoners alike.
While browsing through the online destination guide that’s also available on the British Airways site, I was reminded a trip I took in my youth that I’d love to re-live again with my wife and kids. It’s a trip to Prague in the Czech Republic. I loved the incredible architecture, the intriguing castles, the food and of course their culture. Hopefully I can save up enough to take my whole family there in the near future.
Cirque du Soleil has become a trusted brand for theater-goers seeking fresh and unique entertainment. Known the world over for their innovative fusion of circus acrobatics and dramatic theater, the Canadian entertainment company created 19 different productions over the years which were shown in over 271 cities. With such demand and popularity, Cirque du Soleil is continually working on something new to keep their audience coming back for more.
Their all new show titled Banana Shpeel will be premiering at the Chicago Theatre in November. This is Cirque du Soleil like you’ve never seen before!! It’s their own take on vaudeville which will blend comedy, music and dance into something new and exciting. The story centers around a struggling actor named Emmett who meets Shmelky, a cruel producer who enjoys power and control a bit too much. Emmett ends up falling for the beautiful Katie and encounters a variety of characters including the mysterious “Banana Man”.
Written and directed by David Shiner, Banana Shpeel looks to be another hit for the company which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. I absolutely enjoyed their Vegas show “Love” which is based around newly remixed Beatles songs. And I can’t wait to see this new show. I’m very intrigued about this Shmelky character and this so called “Banana Man”. If I had to guess, the banana guy will probably turn out to be the one to help Emmett find his happy ever after with Katie. But whether my guess is right or wrong, it doesn’t matter because the show is much more than just a storyline. One thing you can count on with Cirque du Soleil shows is the “wow” factor. This is no ordinary night at the theater. They want to expand your world and bring you something that you’ve never experienced before. Their creative use of music and visuals hava always impressed me over the years. And I’m sure Banana Shpeel will deliver in the same tradition.
Find out more about the new show on the Cirque de Soleil website.
With all the various cooking shows that are constantly shown on the Food Network, culinary schools across the country have experienced a surge in interest in recent years. Whether you’re a foodie or a weekend grillmaster, having a great meal is always an important part of one’s day. There’s so much depth and variety in the realm of cooking that one can always learn more. And these food related shows have opened our eyes to all of the wonderful goodness that can be created in our own kitchen.
Cooking classes offered at local schools and even higher-end grocery stores are a good place to start for those interested in expanding their repertoire in the kitchen. But what I’ve noticed recently is the rise in popularity of vacation packages built around gourmet cooking classes. As a matter of fact, I just learned about one being held at the Hilton Branson Convention Center Hotel on October 16th and 17th.
Since my wife loves working out new recipes and interesting dishes in our home, I thought she’d might like a weekend getaway that would feature fine dining as well as tips and instructions from a professional Chef. The weekend cooking school in Branson is hosted by Chef Nathan Read and attendees get to enjoy and feast in his restaurant and learn how to prepare the meals the following day. Looking at the itinerary, I’d love to learn more about the Berkshire Pork Porterhouse as well as Bison Short Ribs. There’s an art to grilling meat and keeping things tender and juicy and I’m sure Chef Nathan would have helpful tips for me in that regard.
Now, I’ve been to Branson years ago and had a blast. I took in a couple shows and I remember checking out some of the neat museums in town including the Roy Rogers museum and Hollywood Wax museum. And the Hilton in Branson is located conveniently in the heart of the historic downtown district. While the summer months are typically the busiest, there are still tons to do in the fall. Besides working with Chef Nathan, I’ll personally take the opportunity to enjoy a relaxing weekend away from the kids.
Have you seen the brand new 2010 Chevy Camaro? After being off the market for seven years, the iconic sports car is back, redesigned and looking better than ever. As your typical “family man”, I’ve been relegated to driving the kids around in a minivan the last few years. My innate desire for speed has sadly been neglected. So, I would oh so love the chance to drive a powerful new sports car like the Camaro. That’s why I recently entered Charter Communications’ Camaro Sweepstakes for a chance to win this slick lookin’ speed machine.
Just like cars, I like my internet super FAST and as it so happens, Charter offers one of the fastest broadband connections in the nation. And not only are they giving away a great sports car, they’ll also give you a $100 gift card if you bundle 3 Charter services together such as digital phone, internet and digital cable.
I think it’s pretty cool that Charter continues to come up with these neat little giveaways for their customers. I remember them giving away laptops a few months back and last year, a brand new Hybrid car was up for grabs. Charter has also embraced social networking and openly interacts with their customer base. Whether you connect with Charter on Facebook or tweet with Charter on Twitter, it’s great to know that they are actively seeking your feedback. That’s pretty rare in this day and age where customer service has gone the way of the dinosaur.
Head on over to Charter.com/camaro to find out more about registering to win the 2010 Camaro 2SS.
Isn’t it time to find your bliss? With all the gloom ‘n doom about the lagging economy and President Obama’s health care plan, we all are in need of experiencing some good old fashioned bliss. Do you even remember the last time you ever felt that way? I know I don’t. Well I guess it doesn’t help when I stare at my ugly furniture each and every day. My ripped up ol’ ottoman doesn’t really help me in achieving my bliss.
As a matter of fact, LG, the maker of the sleek new smartphone called Bliss suggests that we should lose the ugly and follow our bliss. Why hold on to something that brings us down everyday? Let’s set ourselves free of these “stumbling blocks” so that we can make room for some joy. And to help us along in our journey to find our bliss, LG has recently set up a FaceBook page for us to share our photos and videos of our “ugly” objects and get a chance to win a brand new LG Bliss phone.
The contest is pretty simple to enter since it’s on FaceBook and we all know that everyone including their grandma has a FB account. And while you’re on the LG Bliss page, be sure to browse through the “Gallery of the Utterly Ugly”. There are already some outrageous examples of some ugly items!! yikes! Share your own photos of what you think is ugly and who knows, you might just become one of the 55 winners in the contest. The contest ends November 6th so get your photo posted on the LG Bliss Facebook Fan Page today. Photos can range from outdated fashions or furniture to low-tech electronics and even weird looking plants. Oh and put away that photo of your “freaky looking” Uncle Larry. No photos of people will be accepted. Also photos of violent, indecent or illegal activities aren’t acceptable either. More details are available on the LG Bliss facebook page.
Now that it has been a couple years since the changeover from Court TV to truTV, the network has proven beyond any doubt that it had made the right decision. I, for one, have been very impressed with how much the programming has improved since the switch. Their current primetime lineup is increasingly drawing viewers away from the other major networks by broadcasting quite an assortment of entertaining and compelling shows like Black Gold, Forensic Files, The Smoking Gun Presents and Party Heat. One of TruTV’s specialties is showing intense and dramatic real-life video clips through shows like Speeders and one of my personal favorites, Most Daring. Most Daring is probably the ultimate in “caught on tape” shows featuring the most incredible, life-threatening moments involving ordinary citizens. These are the moments that gets your heart-pounding and your jaw-dropping. the videos range from daring rescues to freak accidents to inspiring moments of bravery.
Here’s a video clip from the show that took place at a dirt bike racing event. The “holy crap” moment arrives pretty quickly when a biker plows straight into another biker at top speed. The moment happens in a flash and the video has to be slowed down and replayed several times in order for the viewer to full grasp what just happened.
Thankfully the crash wasn’t fatal but as you can see from the video, the outcome could’ve just as easily went the other way. What’s even more amazing to me is the fact that these moments were even captured on video. Most of these incidents happen at a blink of an eye and to have someone witness the event AND have the camera rolling is a major feat in itself.
The dirt bike video is just one of thousands that have been shown on the TruTv series. I love watching the show and I sometime catch myself with my mouth ajar or sitting at the edge of my couch while viewing some of this stuff. It’s THAT good. In fact, these types of visceral reactions among viewers of TruTV are pretty typical nowadays. They call it the “TruTV effect” and the network even has to caution its viewers due to some reacting too severely to these dramatic videos. And it’s not hard to realize the greater impact these videos have on people just for the simple fact that they’re from real-life events. The network slogan sums it all up pretty clearly – when the stories are real, the effect is actual. very true, indeed.
I recently came across a mysterious website called Red Chair Confessions. The site doesn’t contain a whole lot of information at this time but its got the blogosphere a buzz with theories. Currently the site features a youtube video titled “Forgive Me Father” and not much else. I have to say that the video clip is very well done with some pretty decent production values which seems to indicate that there’s more to all of this than just a simple promo for a website. So what’s this all about? and what’s with all the secrecy? I suppose it’s a way to garner attention and from the look of things, it’s definitely working. The storyline in the video doesn’t really give us much in terms of clues. Obviously there’s another part to the story which will probably appear in the next week or so. I’m intrigued on what drove the lead character in the story to seek out the confessional at church. Could it be something sinister like some sort of noir-ish murder mystery? or maybe they’re planning on a comedic punchline involving watermelon and a sledgehammer. Maybe she’ll fess up to an addiction to watching the Wendy Williams show. oh the horror! but who can blame her, Wendy Williams is such a trainwreck. anyway, I can’t wait for the next installment of Red Chair Confessions. stay tuned.
Feel free to share the video with your friends as well as post your own theory about this whole thing!
The second season of truTV’s Black Gold kicked off last night with a lot of changes. The first season featured three competing rigs vying to be the first among the group to hit oil. But this time around, the show focuses solely on the crew of Rig 28 with a huge dilemma. They need to find oil in 50 days or end up losing the lease on their plot of land. Basically, if they don’t hit crude, the crew will lose their jobs and cost the company millions of dollars. The pressure is definitely on and viewers will be riveted in watching to see if the hardworking roughnecks will make the deadline. I like the fact that the new season will be focusing on one rig this time around since it’ll allow us to get to know the crew members and dig a little deeper into what makes these men tick. I mean, really, can you imagine CHOOSING to be out in the 110 degree heat, working on a 15-story rig and getting all muddy like that?
The new season’s opener which premiered August 19th, introduced a newbie to the rig named Cheston. Cheston is a great addition to the show since viewers can see through his eyes how hard it is to learn this job. The veterans really don’t want to be bothered with a new trainee or “worm” as they call ‘em and so we get to see Cheston having a real tough time figuring out what he’s supposed to be doing. Check out this video clip of his on the job training.
To make matters worse, daytime driller Pee-Wee doesn’t want the newbie around and is actually gunning for him to get fired. Hopefully Cheston will be able to survive this trial by fire especially since viewers will be drawn to this underdog. I, for one, can identify with Cheston because we’ve all been there at some point in our lives. Whether we’re a new kid at school or working our way up the corporate latter, we know how it feels to be the lowly peon. So Cheston should hang in there and not take all the abuse personally. I don’t think it matters who it is, every worm on the rig would have to go through this “rite of passage”. They’ve obviously got to earn their right to be on the rig. Not everyone is cut out for this type of work. It’s labor intensive, physically draining, hot, dirty and I’m pretty sure it’s smelly too. I can’t imagine going through what Cheston’s going through on the job but I could see myself getting the same expletive-filled “employee review” that he got in the following video clip.
But beyond all the in-fighting and name calling, the show should be an eye-opener for the nation. As a country filled with gas-guzzling SUVs and minivans, most folks don’t think twice about the fuel that they pump at their local gas station. The show gives us all a rare glimpse beyond the gas pump and into the lives of these roughnecks that are simply trying to provide for their families while helping supply our nation with some crude.
Oh, and one other neat little tidbit I’d like to point out is concerning the pipe supplier on the show. His name is Michael Patrick McConaughey who happens to be Matthew McConaughey brother. The two even appeared together in a movie titled “The Newton Boys” back in 1998.
Anyway, Black Gold is definitely a “must see” in my book. And when a show like this is run by the geniuses behind “Deadliest Catch” and “Ice Road Truckers”, you just know there’ll be some heart-pounding drama on hand. To get a taste of what the show is about, be sure to check out the truTV’s Black Gold trailer up on youtube.
Watch for new episodes of Black Gold every wednesday night at 10pm on TruTV.
My niece’s birthday is coming up and I’ve been scrambling to find something unique for her. I recently learned through my son that she has been re-discovering old school hip-hop music which I thought was pretty amusing. This is the stuff that I grew up with in junior high with artists like Run-DMC, De La Soul and LL Cool J. They all bring back memories of my younger days with me lugging around that old Panasonic Boombox with the five-band equalizer and dolby cassette deck. man, those were the days! Anyway, I found a cool online retailer called Hip Hop Bling that offers some great jewelry that my niece would absolutely love especially now with her new found obsession. They’ve got a wide range of styles and designs from the tasteful and restrained to the all out bold and eye-catching “Bling Bling” including some outrageous diamond encrusted Grillz. I just can’t wait to see her face when she opens up her gift that I got for her this coming weekend!
