Thursday, April 30, 2009

just updated her status :O)

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

is off to go do my Petco's shortly...but my second cup of coffee first!

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Jooners is dropping it's free services

While checking my email I opened this one from Jooners. Apparently with the economy the way it is, they are dropping their customers that are not going the paid subscribtion route. 

As we all know, times are tough for the corporations but how about the fact that they are even tougher for the people who are unemployed or job-less during these tough times. I really don't think they are going to miss Jooners that much. So goodbye and goodluck. I'll stick with my free ones. 

                                  April 26, 2009

Dear
 Jeanne,

In this difficult economy many people are asking us, "How are you doing?"  

On the upside... we feel love from our customers, are nourishing tons of new feature ideas and have a renewed passion for serving all of you that have given Jooners so much. On the downside...  this economy has impacted our ability to continue providing Jooners as a free service.  Now we need your support.

Pre-Announcing New Subscription Service
You are the first to know ... in about a month, we will only be able to offer Jooners as a paid subscription service.  This revenue will enable us to keep sign-up sheet creation ad-free, require no subscriptions for volunteer sign-ups and maintain our high level of support.

Exclusive Offer for our Founding Members
As our first, pioneering customers we want to make you this deeply-discounted subscription offer that will be highly valuable to you for many years to come:

  •  LIFETIME DISCOUNT -- ONLY $9.95 PER YEAR -- as long as you're a customer
     Save 50% from our normal subscription price of $19.95 per year.
     LIMITED TIME - offer good when you subscribe before June 1, 2009
     

  • Subscribing to Jooners is the best way to keep all your existing sign-up sheets, calendars and contacts

  • Nowhere else will you find Jooners' level of features for organizing your volunteers. Easy guided steps, a gallery of ready-made sign-up sheets,postable links to your sign-up sheets, auto-reminders, volunteer thank-you notes and more!
     
  • But what really matters is how you value Jooners.  How it bringsyou peace of mind, gives you back a significant part of your life, or helps you make your community a richer place.


Thank You for Your Support.  
We will send another letter in a few weeks letting you know when Jooners is ready for your subscription.

Your friends at Jooners
www.jooners.com
Video tour  Learn how you can collect money for graduation or sports celebrations.

As you can see, we went back to Best Buy and exchanged the Dynex webcam for an HP webcam. I am pretty satisfied with it. I am by no means a movie producer and would not need all the fancy/technical things that come with some of them. I wanted one that was easy to use and had some flexibility as far as features go and of course, a good price. It turned out that this HP webcam was actually $10 cheaper than the Best Buy Dynex generic one...so again, Discount Diva does it again! :O)

Although, I noticed that their website says the Dynex webcam is $39.99, which is what we paid in the store, but the HP webcam on their website says $83.99. I would set myself into a coma if we paid that...

We paid $30.00!! How Fanatically Frugal is that!

And now introducing our first video starring my TooheyBugs; Daniela, mostly and Jacob!

Daniela singing to her new Kid's Bop cd that came with her Happy Meal at McDonald's; Delilah and Girls Just Want To Have Fun.

How Dealicious! Free Turbo Shot in your Iced Coffee

We got a yummy Iced Coffee yesterday at Dunkin Donuts and if you really know me, then you know that I couldn't pass up something FREE. So, I did it. I got the Free Turbo Shot in my Iced Coffee and it was definately a nice treat. I was already needing to get my second wind and was beginning a headache, which I figure was due to lack of coffee in my system and the long week from driving back and forth from Springfield to Warren and vice versa, helping my sister babysit my nephew while she went into labor for 3 days and then helping her when she got home from the hospital with the new baby and my nephew. This was definately a nice treat and a perfect pick me up. Jeanne runs on Dunkin Donuts!

New Webcam not all it's cracked up to be...

We went to Best Buy yesterday so that Shawn could get the parts he needed to fix his computer. I have been wanting a webcam and finally got one yesterday.

The problem is that I'm not a loyal shopper and I go where the price is the cheapest. I have blogged about a few of those instances. Getting this webcam is another one of those to add to the list.

The webcam, Dynex brand - a Best Buy generic, was the cheapest by about $20. But it doesn't have much for controls and looks great when you are not recording or taking pictures. As soon as you record a video, everything is delayed by about 10 seconds. This is an important feature that wasn't written on the package and would have to be one of those learn from mistakes circumstances.

As you can see from their website, they really didn't do much with it. This is important people!!! Get with the program Dynex!

I will be packaging this back up and exchange it for something that I should have gotten to begin with.

Again, I didn't save money...I saved $20 for something that doesn't exactly work as intended and now the time and gas to get back there, just to do it right, like I should have to begin with.

But hey, live and learn....and if you're not learning, you're not living! :O)

Saturday, April 25, 2009

For Obama, hipness is what it is

What a Kool Kat he is!!!  :O)


During his first 100 days as president of the United StatesBarack Obama revealed how different he is from all the white men who preceded him in the Oval Office, and the differences run deeper — in substance and style — than the color of his skin.

Barack Hussein Obama is the nation’s first hip president.

This, of course, is subject to debate. But watch him walk. Listen to him talk. See the body language, the expressions, the clothes. He’s got attitude, rhythm, a sense of humor, contemporary tastes.

This much is clear: Whether dealing with the Wall Street mess, shifting troops from Iraq to Afghanistan or fumbling to fill his Cabinet, Obama leans heavily on personal panache to push political policies. Truth be told, his style is rooted in something elusive and hard to define. Pure and simple, it’s hip.

“Being hip is being able to navigate your environment and others’ environments,” like the way Obama traverses racial boundaries, saidJohn Leland, author of the definitive book “Hip: The History.”

“Obama has this awareness that other presidents haven’t had. He’s white, and he’s black. He’s an elitist, and he’s regular folk. He’s not pinned down to a perspective.”

Young is to hip as old is to fogey — an essential characteristic. Obama has modern instincts and attitudes that appeal to younger people, and more than any other president in recent memory, that makes him a role model. He is green, open, athletic, tech-savvy, healthy. And his hip image certainly isn’t hurt by his wife, who is so obviously cool — setting trends (Sleeveless! Tending her own garden!), confidently mingling with superstars, gracing magazine covers coast to coast.

Consider how, during the campaign, Obama used his personality — the smile, the jaunty stride and the hip-hop verbiage — to disarm critics, charm supporters and persuade fence sitters to elect him president. In an against-the-odds campaign, Obama never lost his poise as he forged a rapport with a new generation of voters while keeping old heads on his team. He could go professorial on the need for health care reform or describe the minutiae of Middle East politics. Still, he begged to bring his BlackBerry into the Oval Office, a signal that he intends to remain in touch with the 21st century. Very hip!

Once he settled into the White House, the hip parade didn’t subside. Early guests included pop artists Stevie Wonder (a campaign supporter), Alicia Keys, Will.i.am and Sheryl Crow — but also Sweet Honey in the Rock, a group of socially and politically active a capella singers with an indie, underground vibe.

Obama strutted onto Jay Leno’s stage and plopped down on the couch, making him the first sitting president to do that. He unveiled his March Madness basketball bracket from the Oval Office. And speaking of basketball, who missed the sight of POTUS dressed in all black, sitting courtside at a Bulls-Wizards game with a cup of beer and high-fiving a trash-talking fan? How hip was that?!

It’s so hip that school kids in Albany, N.Y., coined a term for it: “Baracking.” And it doesn’t stop there. Those in the know at Albany High greet each other by saying: “What’s up, my Obama?” and they respond to a sneeze with “Barack you.” Misbehavior is peer-corrected with the admonition, “Barack’s in the White House,” which translates, “Show some respect.”

Deborah Tannen, professor of linguistics at Georgetown University, said it was “just really stunning” that kids were co-opting the president’s name as a term of endearment and identification.

“This is the most emblematic, positive thing that kids could say,” she said. “It’s connecting them to him, saying that there’s something special in the connection between them.”

John F. Kennedy understood the nexus of Hollywood glam and Washington power, but he wasn’t a hipster.Bill Clinton looked good in Ray-Bans and did a nice turn with the saxophone on “The Arsenio Hall Show,” but in his heart of hearts, Ol’ Bubba was a country boy from the Ozarks with a need-filled, wonky core — not hip.

 

Obama’s hipness reinforces that he’s different, yet he’s comfortingly familiar to Americans who want to revere their presidents as pedestal material while demanding that they be approachable as the guy next door.

So what’s hipness got to do with public policy? For Obama, everything.

His personal charisma is a nonverbal form of communication, sending seemingly conflicting messages: the need for radical and sacrificial change, yet the reassurance to Americans that he’s as sane and stable as the guy in the next barber’s chair, said Roger Wilkins, who recently retired as a history professor at George Mason University.

“Hipness is a way of presenting to the world that you know what’s going on and that you’ve got things under control,” said Wilkins, who served in the Johnson administration and has had up-close dealings with every president since Kennedy.

“For Obama, his hipness exudes power. He just keeps on moving, no matter what comes his way, and he doesn’t lose it. That’s being hip — and I don’t see any contemporary public figures whom I would think of as hip.”

True, Obama uses his hipster personality as a weapon. His enormous popularity is a bludgeon that demands political respect, if not support. For example, almost immediately after settling into the White House, Obama left Washington to campaign in Ohio, Michigan and other hard-hit states to sell his economic stimulus plan. It was an effective effort at charm-school diplomacy, garnering outside-the-Beltway support and applying pressure on Washington insiders to get on board the Obama train.

The implication was that if you were not on board, you were not hip — you were square. And who wants to be so uncool as to be on the wrong side of the hip president, other than a few vocal anti-cools, such as radio yakker Rush Limbaugh, House Minority Leader John A. Boehner and former Vice President Dick Cheney?

There have been a few other nationally recognized hip politicians: the late Rep. Adam Clayton Powell of New York; former California Gov. Jerry Brown, who is currently the state’s attorney general; and former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown come to mind. For a brief period in the 1970s and 1980s, one might argue that Washington’s eternal pol Marion Barry was hip; that was before drugs, booze and women brought him low.

To be sure, the track record for hip politicians isn’t promising. History suggests that the power of personality has limitations in politics. It sours under public scrutiny.

So can it last? Can Obama’s hipness survive the weight and responsibility of the office? Maybe there’s a reason presidents aren’t hip. War-making, secrecy, aging, unpopularity, sternness and sobriety — these are decidedly unhip. And all that could come in the next 100 days, because hipness is a trendy thing, subject to popular whim.

For now, with approval ratings over 60 percent, Obama is hip. But he will have to find a balance between being hip and being powerful while sitting in the world’s most watched fishbowl.

“Hipness is what it is! And sometimes hipness is what it ain’t,” goes the famous song by Tower of Power. “There’s one thing you should know. What’s hip today might become passé.”

Sam Fulwood III wrote about race and politics for the Los Angeles Times’ Washington bureau for more than a decade and is a frequent contributor to The Root.com.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Playboy: The Mansion Soundtrack to Feature More than 40 Emerging Artists, 83 Tracks and a Local Tie to Western Massachusetts

Playboy: The Mansion Soundtrack to Feature More than 40 Emerging Artists, 83 Tracks and a Local Tie to Western Massachusetts

How cool is this? I don't know why, but I just got so excited and happy hearing about this and then found out that one of the studios is located locally. I thought it was so cool, I just had to share it!
BTW, the soundtrack is so wickedly awesome and good!

Playboy: The Mansion Soundtrack to Feature More than 40 Emerging Artists, 83 Tracks
Press Release

SCOTTSDALE, AZ - DECEMBER 16, 2004 - Hip Interactive's (TSX:HP) wholly-owned subsidiary, ARUSH Publishing, in conjunction with Groove Games, today announced that the highly anticipated multi-platform video game release, "Playboy: The Mansion," will feature a diverse soundtrack including music from more than 40 artists. Players can select from eight different stations ranging from hip-hop to rock to house music, setting the mood at their virtual "Playboy Mansion." Developed by Cyberlore Studios for the PlayStation2 computer entertainment system, the Xbox video game system from Microsoft and PC systems, "Playboy: The Mansion" is rated M for Mature by the ESRB, and is slated to launch in January 2005.

Emerging bands such as Start Trouble, The Wylde Bunch, The Rosenbergs, Aquavibe and Sugarcult have songs featured in "Playboy: The Mansion," as well as established artists including Petey Pablo, Felix Da House Cat, All-American Rejects and Sander Kleinenberg. In the game, players can purchase stereos and select music for different areas of the virtual Playboy Mansion. The soundtrack not only will allow players to customize their experience, but also serves a gameplay purpose by entertaining guests, and in turn, keeping the party going.

"With 'Playboy: The Mansion,' you can create the ultimate virtual party, and as the best hosts like Hef know, a party isn't a party without great music," said Jim Perkins, president of ARUSH Publishing. "We're thrilled to showcase music from amazing up-and-coming artists, and think there is something for everyone, with rock, punk, hip-hop, and even flamenco music available on your Playboy Mansion's radio."

Songs from the game's INgrooves radio station, which features dance and house music, will be featured on a CD release mixed by DJ Felix Da House Cat, and released in retail stores and on the Internet in January 2005.

Artists Featured in "Playboy: The Mansion" Include:

Petey Pablo; All-American Rejects; Sugarcult; The Rosenbergs; Start Trouble; Wylde Bunch; Aquavibe; Felix Da House Cat; Sander Kleinenberg, featuring Miss Bunty; Swollen Members; J. Boogie's Dubtronic Science; F.I.L.T.H.E.E. Immigrants; Armand Van Helden; Autopilot; Blue Van; Bob Berg; DJ Sneak; Dolla Skills; Eastern Sun and John Kelly; DJ Excess; Imperial Assassins, featuring Judge D; Jimmy Bruno; Jimmy Grand; Joey DeFrancesco; Like Minds; Matthew Skutnik; Michael Tello; Out, Out; People Under The Stairs; Poncho Sanchez; Prince Charming; Ray Roc; Reflekt, featuring Deline Bass; Silvertide; Simply Jeff; Sweatshop Union; The Moontrane Conductors; Toadstyle; Tony C And The Truth; Tricia Muldrow; and Young Rome.

To download a sample track from the "Playboy: The Mansion" soundtrack, please visit http://www.playhef.com/downloads/Aquavibe_4AM.mp3

About Playboy Enterprises, Inc.

Playboy Enterprises is a brand-driven, international multimedia entertainment company that publishes editions of Playboy magazine around the world; operates Playboy and Spice television networks and distributes programming via home video and DVD globally; licenses the Playboy and Spice trademarks internationally for a range of consumer products and services; and operates Playboy.com, a leading men's lifestyle and entertainment Web site.

About Cyberlore Studios

Based in Northampton, Massachusetts, Cyberlore Studios, Inc. has been creating great, award-winning games for over a decade. Cyberlore's mission is to create games that focus on providing fun and innovative play. The company also values its employees, offering them an open, healthy and fun workplace along with great benefits. For more information about Cyberlore Studios and their games, please visit their website at www.cyberlore.com.

About Groove Games

Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Groove Games is a global publisher of interactive entertainment software. Groove partners with leading developers to deliver great games for avid gamers everywhere. Currently Groove is publishing Digital Extremes' cutting-edge new first-person action game, "Pariah" as well as co-publishing the highly anticipated multi-platform game, "Playboy: The Mansion." For more information visit http://www.groovegames.com/.

About ARUSH Publishing

Based in Scottsdale, Ariz., ARUSH Publishing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hip Interactive Corp., is a worldwide publisher of interactive entertainment software for personal computers and advanced entertainment consoles. ARUSH publishes PC and console video games for sale in retail outlets and on the Internet. The Company's current projects include Playboy: The Mansion and Fear Factor: Unleashed. For more information, please visit http://www.arushgames.com/.

About Hip Interactive

Hip Interactive (www.hipinteractive.com) is a leading provider of electronic entertainment products, including PC and video games, movies, video arcade games, and proprietary games, branded as Hip Games, and accessories, branded as Hip Gear. The Company distributes all first party products, including Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo hardware, software and accessories, as well as third party licensed video game software. With offices across North America and in Europe, Hip uses its distribution business to leverage into higher margin, higher growth areas of the electronic entertainment industry, such as licensing, publishing and its proprietary games and accessories. Hip Interactive trades on The Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol "HP".

About Xbox

Xbox (http://www.xbox.com) is the video game system from Microsoft that brings people together for the most exhilarating game and entertainment experiences. Xbox delivers an expansive collection of breakthrough games, powerful hardware and the unified Xbox Live online service. The new tagline, "it's good to play together," captures the spirit of Xbox as the social hub of the new digital entertainment lifestyle. Xbox is now available in North America, Europe and Australia.

Xbox is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.



Full Soundtrack List<-Flamenco Fusion-1. CIN / Matthew Skutnik2. Fading Memories / Matthew Skutnik3. Going Home / Matthew Skutnik4. Gypsy / Matthew Skutnik5. Into The Night / Matthew Skutnik6. Mexy / Matthew Skutnik7. Nice Guitar / Matthew Skutnik8. Rumble / Matthew Skutnik9. Samba / Matthew Skutnik10. Springtime / Matthew Skutnik11. Sweet / Matthew Skutnik12. What If? / Matthew Skutnik_____________________________________________________________________________-Hip Hop-1. 4 A.M. / Aquavibe2. Day By Day / Imperial Assasins, featuring Judge D3. Dvision / Aquavibe4. Find Us / F.I.L.T.H.E.E. Immigrants5. Last Day Of School / Wylde Bunch6. L.U.S.T., The Remix / Aquavibe7. Mansion / Imperial Assasins, featuring Judge D8. Too Hot / Swollen Members9. Up From The Ground / Sweatshop Union10. Vibrate / Petey Pablo11. Wha Cha Doin Tonight / Young Rome_____________________________________________________________________________-Rock-1. Ain't Coming Home / Silvertide2. Champagne / Sugarcult3. Chemical / Start Trouble4. Crockett And Tubbs / The Rosenbergs5. Department Store Girl / The Rosenbergs6. Little Bit More / Tony C And The Truth7. Nighttime Lover / The Rosenbergs8. Non Stop / Start Trouble9. Playboy Mansion / Prince Charming10. Swing, Swing / All- American Rejects11. Throw The Covers / Start Trouble12. Word From The Bird / Blue Van_____________________________________________________________________________-INGROOVES-1. Barrio Beats / Michael Tello2. Do Me What I Do / Felix Da House Cat3. Drumbox / People Under The Stairs4. Fly Away Love / Armand Van Helden5. Jangle Kisses For You / Ray Roc6. Moodswing / Simply Jeff7. Need To Be Loved / Reflekt, featuring Deline Bass8. Playa Love / Eastern Sun and John Kelly9. Prescribe / Autopilot10. Trb / Autopilot11. Wickeddy Beats / DJ Sneak12. Work To Do / Sander Kleinenberg, featuring Miss_____________________________________________________________________________-Jazz-1. Blue Goo / Bob Berg2. Funk 'n Benny / Jimmy Bruno3. Get it All / Joey DeFrancesco4. Goodfellas / Joey DeFrancesco5. Hypertension / Jimmy Bruno6. Into The Blue Light / Jimmy Bruno7. Jammin' In The Basement / Joey DeFrancesco8. Moon Pie / Poncho Sanchez9. On Time / Poncho Sanchez10. SoHo Sole / Bob Berg_____________________________________________________________________________-Industrial-1. Admire The Question (Naive Mix 2) / Out Out2. Ampex, My Ampex / Out Out3. Antidote Serum / Out Out4. Blanc Says / Out Out5. Forestry For The Theives / Out Out6. Futile Abortive And Barren / Out Out7. Learning English In NYC / Out Out8. Never Tell Ram Produce / Out Out9. No. 5 United / Out Out10. Pointed Fingers / Out Out11. Rot Wither and Worsen / Out Out_____________________________________________________________________________-StylasWars-1. Another One / Toadstyle2. Blocks / Tricia Muldrow3. Grimy / Toadstyle4. It's Gonna Land / Excess5. Lally / Excess6. Life Is / Dolla Skills7. Show And I Shall See / Excess8. UG (Undiscovered Gems) / Like Minds9. Up Jump / Dolla Skills_____________________________________________________________________________-Techno-1. Bossaroca / The Moontrane Conductors2. Deep In The Cut / J. Boogie's Dubtronic Science3. La Playa / J. Boogie's Dubtronic Science4. LeSengre / J. Googie's Dubtronic Science5. Never The Sun / The Moontrane Conductors----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Enjoy!

Monday, April 20, 2009

Twitter + Last.fm = LastfmLoveTweet

LastFM love/twitter mashup

After siging up, any track that you 'love' on lastfm will automatically generate a tweet on Twitter from you that has the track's artist and name, as well as a link to it so your followers can give it a listen.

I actually liked this alot and think it does it's job very well, but due to the number of "comments" I have received from 3-4 people, I have decided to take it off.

Everytime you love a song on last.fm or through the plug-in on Windows Media Player, it would send a tweet saying that you loved a song. I guess this would be alright if you only like one or two songs.

I can see how people would think it was "spammy"...but really? I am a real person who really likes a real song.

Anyways, it's not the end of the world and to please my audience, I have taken it off. Does anyone know of any other type of Twitter + Last.fm apps, widgets, plug-ins, etc? What do you guys use? Why or why not?

Just a little info about LastfmLoveTweet:

  • Who did it?

twitter: @pootytang
lastfm: pootytang

  • Why?

I was tired of seeing hypemachine auto-generating tweets of loved tracks, and not being able to do it with lastfm. So I threw together a little app with ruby and mysql, and then added a simple form to open it up to the people!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Obamas’ Earnings, Helped by Royalties, Stayed High in ’08

Obamas’ Earnings, Helped by Royalties, Stayed High in ’08

President Obama and his wife released their 2008 federal tax return on Wednesday, showing that they paid $855,323 in federal income taxes on a combined household income of $2,656,902.
Mr. Obama and Michelle Obama also reported giving $172,050 — nearly 6.5 percent of their earnings — to 37 charities, including $25,000 contributions to CARE, a global antipoverty group, and to the United Negro College Fund.

For the fourth year in a row, most of the Obamas’ income came from royalties from his two books: “Dreams From My Father” and “The Audacity of Hope.”

Proceeds from book sales totaled more than $2.4 million in 2008, dwarfing the roughly $200,000 the couple made from Mr. Obama’s salary as a United States senator and Mrs. Obama’s at the University of Chicago Hospitals. Mrs. Obama went on leave from her job during the presidential campaign last year and formally resigned at the beginning of this year.

Earlier on Wednesday, the deadline for Americans to file their income tax returns, Mr. Obama made a sales pitch for his tax proposals, saying a tax cut in the stimulus bill would benefit “95 percent of American workers,” and praised other changes that he said would help small-business owners, parents of college students and first-time homebuyers. And he called for a sweeping overhaul of the tax code.

Mr. Obama made his remarks as conservative activists held a series of “Tea Party” protests around the country calling for lower taxes and less government spending.
The president has proposed to raise taxes on more affluent workers, and would himself be likely to pay higher taxes should his proposals go through. He has called for putting a cap on the value of itemized deductions, like charitable contributions.

Moreover, he advocates allowing Bush-era tax cuts to expire as scheduled at the end of 2010, restoring the marginal tax rate on couples’ earnings above $250,000 to 39 percent, as it was during the 1990s. That rate is currently 35 percent.

The White House on Wednesday also released the tax return for Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and his wife, Jill. They reported an adjusted gross income of $269,256 and paid $46,952 in federal income taxes.
The Bidens also reported donating $1,885 to charity, less than 1 percent of their earnings. In a press release, the White House said the Bidens have made additional donations to charity not listed on the returns.

“The charitable donations claimed by the Bidens on their tax returns are not the sum of their annual contributions to charity,” it said. “They donate to their church, and they contribute to their favorite causes with their time as well as their checkbooks.”
The Obamas first opened a window onto their rapidly escalating personal wealth in March 2008, when they released seven years of their tax returns amid Mr. Obama’s effort to secure the Democratic presidential nomination.

Those forms showed that the couple’s income had spiked sharply in 2005, largely because of book sales after Mr. Obama became famous with a speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, when he was running for the Senate.

From 2000 to 2004, the Obamas had earned an average of about $250,000 a year. But their taxable income surged to $1.6 million in 2005 and $983,826 in 2006.
In 2007, as book sales rose to a new high during the first year of his presidential campaign, they earned $4.2 million. Since then, Mr. Obama’s book sales have slowed somewhat but remain lucrative, the new tax filings show.

Mr. Obama signed a book deal in January, just before taking office. The deal, revealed in a routine Senate filing last month, will pay him $250,000 for an adaptation of his memoir for younger readers. The Senate filing also first disclosed his 2008 book royalty income.

The White House also released the Obamas’ and the Bidens’ state tax returns. The Obamas reported paying $77,883 in state income taxes to Illinois, and the Bidens reported paying $11,164 in state income taxes to Delaware.

Spfld Post Office closing early on Tax Day

Dear Post Office;
What's up with that?!

With life being so crazy and living life on the fly, I haven't really had time to sit down and watch the news. The one time I wish I had, I didn't. Isn't that the way my life goes?
I completely forgot that today was April 15th also known as Tax Day. I also missed the Post Office.

In the past years, the Post Office was always open until midnight on Tax Day. I just figured this year it was, also. I was so wrong. Is this just another sign of the economy?

I was so confused about this and was so sure that they were open, atleast one. I came home after finding out the Post Office near my house was closed to find out which one is open for Tax Day and this is what I found:

Spfld Post Office closing early on Tax Day
Closing time at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday April 15, 2009

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) - The Springfield Post Office is expecting to be extra busy Wednesday with last minute tax filers, as they have one more day to file those federal income tax returns, or seek an extension.
A warning for people looking to mail your returns there, as the Springfield Post Office will be closing Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. and the final mail pickup from the blue mailboxes will be at 7 p.m. While it has been open later in years past, this year won't be the case.
One of the most common mistakes people make when they file their tax returns is forgetting to sign their return. So before you mail, double-check and make sure it's signed.

Tax Preparation Tips

Tax Preparation Tips


Apr. 15 is rapidly approaching, and if you haven't filed your taxes yet, you'd better get started on them. Here are some tips to help you through this tough time of year:

When beginning your tax forms, make sure to do that thing where you make your calculator read "BOOBS" upside down right away so you don't get sidetracked later.
Pay your owed taxes in pennies. That will get you on the Yahoo! News front page, and it will most certainly make the IRS feel foolish.
Not putting that little dash through all of your sevens will result in a prison term of up to three years.
You will save significant time between now and the filing deadline if you complete all of your forms in a blind, sweaty panic 12 minutes before they are due.
If you are Yngwie Malmsteen, you can write off your subscription to Guitar World.
Screw over the IRS and save time and money by making less than $8,950 a year.
Here's a way to make taxes more fun and save money: Ask your friends for any old receipts they're not using, then make up stories for each one to tell the auditors.
Be courteous and include a sheet of scratch paper with your forms for the IRS to do math on.
Doing taxes can be a very long and arduous process, full of legal loopholes and pitfalls. Find someone else to file your client's forms.
It's not widely publicized, but now that all taxpayers are part owners of Merrill Lynch, you can use their bathrooms.
Not once does the Constitution of the United States of America mention an income tax. Keep screaming that when they take you to court for nonpayment of taxes.
Filling out your 1040EZ can be frustrating, but screaming at your wife, smashing a glass against the wall, and striking your child is never the right thing to do. You need form 4Y-1098 for that.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Change the look of your purse with The Miche Bag...

https://www.4miche.com/ver12/index.asp

Easily change the look of your handbag with The Miche Bag. It's trendy, versatile and economical. Get unlimited looks with the same handbag.

Saturday, April 11, 2009

The Tease Show May 11 - 14, 2009

The Tease Show
The Tease Show

Starring
Immodesty Blaize
With The Blaize Big Band

Julian Clary
Special Guest Marc Almond


Catherine D'Lish, Dirty Martini And More!

May 11,12,13,14 At KOKO
1A Camden High Street, London NW1 7JE

Doors 8pm, Show 9pm

Aftershow Soiree 'Til Late

Dress in feathers hand-plucked from the neck of a swan. No workboots.

CLICK HERE TO BOOK ONLINE
Or Call 0844 847 2258

Friday, April 10, 2009

The Hoops and YoYo Display

The Hoops and YoYo Display at Hallmark.

and this

I want this

I LOVE Hoops and YoYo!

If you REALLY know me, then you know how much I get a kick out of Hoops and YoYo...you may have even received an ecard from us. But, I didn't know that they were sold in the Hallmark Store and they are just as hilarious as their cards.

Posted via Pixelpipe.

Stock up now on the Forever Stamp!

http://www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/forever_stamp_facts.htm
Forever Stamps can be used to mail a one-ounce letter regardless of when the stamps are purchased or used and no matter how prices may change in the future.

Tilapia - It's what's for dinner!

Here's my recipe...very tasty and totally picked it out of nowhere!
Ingredients:
Tilapia Fillets, 1 or 2 eggs (depending on how many fish)
salt and pepper, adobo seasoning, garlic, bread crumbs, flour, half and half or milk (I prefer half and half but milk works just as well)
Directions:
1. Rinse the fish, add the salt, pepper, adobo and garlic to the egg(s) and scramble/mix together
2. dip the fish into the egg, then into the flour, then into the half and half, then into the bread crumbs
Bake at 350 until the fish is flaky and done

Tilapia - It's what's for dinner!

Tilapia - It's what's for dinner!

Here's my recipe...very tasty and totally picked it out of nowhere!
Ingredients:
Tilapia Fillets, 1 or 2 eggs (depending on how many fish)
salt and pepper, adobo seasoning, garlic, bread crumbs, flour, half and half or milk (I prefer half and half but milk works just as well)
Directions:
1. Rinse the fish, add the salt, pepper, adobo and garlic to the egg(s) and scramble/mix together
2. dip the fish into the egg, then into the flour, then into the half and half, then into the bread crumbs
Bake at 350 until the fish is flaky and done

Posted via Pixelpipe.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Mass-hole Barbies, coming soon to a town near you!

Mattel recently announced the release of limited-edition Barbie Dolls for the Massachusetts market: 



"
 BACKBAY" Barbie"
This princess Barbie is sold only at The 
Prudential Mall. She comes with an 
assortment of Kate Spade Handbags, a Lexus SUV, a long-haired foreign dog named Honey 
and a cookie-cutter house. Available with or without tummy tuck and face
 
lift. Workaholic Ken sold only in conjunction with the augmented version. 





"
 EAST LONGMEADOW Barbie"
The modern day homemaker Barbie is available with Ford Wind star Minivan 
and matching gym outfit. She gets lost easily and has no full-time occupation.
 
Traffic jamming cell phone sold separately.
 




"
 WORCESTER Barbie (ALSO SOLD IN SPRINGFIELD ) "
This recently paroled Barbie comes with a 9mm handgun, a Ray Lewis knife,a
 
Chevy with dark tinted windows, and a Meth Lab Kit. This model is only
 
available after dark and must be paid for in cash (preferably small, untraceable 
bills) ..unless you are a cop, then we don't know what you are talking about. 





"
 LONGMEADOW Barbie" 
This yuppie Barbie comes with your choice of BMW convertible or Hummer H2. 
Included are her own Starbucks cup, credit card and country club membership. Also 
available for this set are Shallow Ken and Private School Skipper. You won't be able to
 
afford any of them.
 




"WARE
 Barbie"
This pale model comes dressed in her own Wrangler jeans two sizes too 
small, a NASCAR t-shirt and tweety bird tattoo on her shoulder. She has a six-pack of Bud 
light and a Hank Williams Jr. CD set. She can spit over 5 feet and kick mullet-haired Ken's
 
butt when she is drunk. Purchase her pickup truck separately and get a confederate flag 
bumper sticker absolutely free.
 




"
 DOWNTOWN BOSTON / NORTH END Barbie"
This collagen injected, rhino plastic Barbie wears a leopard print outfit
and drinks cosmopolitans while entertaining friends. Percocet prescription available 
as well as warehouse conversion condo.
 




"PALMER
 Barbie" 
This tobacco-chewing, brassy-haired Barbie has a pair of her own 
high-heeled sandals with one broken heel from the time she chased beer-gutted Ken out her
 house. Her ensemble includes low-rise acid-washed jeans, fake fingernails, and a 
see-through halter-top. Also available with a mobile home. 





"
 AMHERST/ NORTHAMPTON Barbie"
This doll is made of actual tofu. She has long straight brown hair,
 
arch-less feet, hairy armpits, no makeup and Birkenstocks with white socks. She prefers that you call her Willow . She does not want or need a Ken doll, but if you purchase two Barbies
 
and the optional Subaru wagon, you get a rainbow flag bumper sticker for free. 





"
 HOLYOKE Barbie" 
This Barbie now comes with a stroller and infant doll. Optional accessories 
include a GED and bus pass. Gangsta Ken and his 1979 Caddy were available, but are now very difficult to find since the addition of the infant.
 




"
 WILBRAHAM Barbie" 
She's perfect in every way. We don't know where Ken is because he's always 
out a-'huntin'. 





"
 PROVINCETOWN Barbie/Ken"
This versatile doll can be easily converted from Barbie to Ken by simply 
adding or subtracting the multiple snap-on parts.