Okay, so I have to confess.  I don’t own an iPhone, iPod or any other product made by Apple.  And, I probably never will.  In fact, I really despise Apple products due to their overbloated price and zealous marketing hype.  There’s no real excuse to own an iPhone, iPod, iTouch, MacBook, etc, when an equivalent product, like a PC, can perform way faster (and just as stable) at a cheaper price. 

As a longtime PC enthusiast, don’t bother getting into an argument with me about the merits of Steve Job’s propaganda.  And please, if you invite me over to a so-called dot com lunch, I want to hear REAL IDEAS, listen to REAL success stories, and discuss REAL new trends.  Just put away the damn iPhones and stop bragging about how much Apple has stolen your hard earned money.

Since I work at home in front of my computer, why the heck would I want to be electronically connected for a few hours with an overpriced product from Apple?  Because the ads are so cool? 

I’m sure not everyone shares my lack of enthusiasm, especially with companies that continue to push out Apple iPod accessories as fast as possible.  There’s most certainly a few good ones and, of course, the downright horrible as pictured below.

In addition, I read an article that iPhone’s can now be used as a Heart Rate Monitor.  At first I thought it was a cool, novel concept until I found this picture on the actual implementation.  Of course, the ad was done in typical Apple style - cheesy & overcooked.

Can you just imagine the curious stares and having to explain what you’re doing?  My recommendation, unless your modeling for an Abercrombie & Fitch ad, don’t try this in public!.

Long live Microsoft PC’s & Zune Media players!

The national anthem of the Soviet Union is a pretty catchy tune.  As a child of the 1980’s and WWE/WWF wrestling, I fondly remembered Nikolai Volkoff (a Soviet Heel wrestler) singing the song on a nightly basis.  Sure, Volkoff was booed most of the time but he sung it really well!

Thanks to YouTube, the old song for Soviet oppression is now an anthem for U.S. Presidential Candidate Barrack Hussein Obama.

Don’t take me wrong, I think Obama is a very interesting person.  However, this video is quite hilarious and makes a dramatic point.  A slap in the face to the Media Machine that created a God-like image in the first place!

We all know gas prices are continually rising due to many factors, such as supply and demand, middle east politics, etc.  Many of us have no choice but to fill up our tanks, while absorbing these higher prices because we rely on our cars as a means of transportation.

What Can I say?  Hummer’s really suck ass.

I was recently forwarded an email from a friend containing tips on how we can stretch our gas consumption, especially without buying a new car or electric hyrid.  Perhaps you save a couple of dollars by following these simple tips:

Check out the following email.

“…I don’t know what you guys are paying for gasoline… but here in California we are also paying higher, up to $3.50 per gallon. But my line of work is in petroleum for about 31 years now, so here are some tricks to get more of your money’s worth for every gallon. . .

Here at the ******** Pipeline where I work in San Jose , CA we deliver about 4 million gallons in a 24-hour period thru the pipeline.! ! ! One day is diesel the next day is jet fuel, and gasoline, regular and premium grades. We have 34-storage tanks here with a total capacity of 16,800,000 gallons.

Here are the instructions: 

Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold.  Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the gasoline, when it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening…  your gallon is not exactly a gallon.  In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products plays an important role. A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business.  But the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.

When you’re filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode. If you look you will see that the trigger has three (3) stages: low, middle, and high.  In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed, thereby minimizing the vapors that are created while you are pumping.  All hoses at the pump have a vapor return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapor.  Those vapors are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you’ re getting less worth for your money. 
  
One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank is HALF FULL/HALF EMPTY. The reason for this is, the more gas you have in your tank the less air occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates faster than you can imagine.  Gasoline storage tanks have an internal floating  roof. This roof serves as zero clearance between the gas and the atmosphere, so it minimizes the evaporation. Unlike service stations, here where I work, every truck that we load is temperature compensated so that every gallon is actually the exact amount.
 
Another reminder, if there is a gasoline truck pumping into the storage tanks when you stop to buy gas, DO NOT fill up–most likely the gasoline is being stirred up as the gas is being delivered, and you might pick up some of the dirt and WATER that normally settles on the bottom.
NEVER …..this is a fact. 

Hope this will help you get the most value for your money.

DO SHARE THESE TIPS WITH OTHERS”

Sex and Politics is a nasty combination as evidenced by the New York Governorship.  Like a Soap Opera getting weirder by the hour, newly sworn Governor, David A Paterson, openly acknowledged his own extramarital affairs during a 15 year marriage.  This stunning admission comes a little more than a week after his predecessor, former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, resigned amid allegations he spent thousands of dollars on a prostitute.  

To be honest, I Feel Relatively Neutral About New York
And yes, I already bought this T-Shirt

Paterson admitted to the Daily News of New York City that his fling with another women occurred between 1999 and 2001.  Apparently, Paterson’s wife also had an affair during this stormy part of their relationship.  A wacky situation indeed!

As a legislative member, Paterson claims those extramarital romps came out of his wallet and not at the tax payers expense.  If caught using State funds, his tenure as Governor will be less than a New York minute or worse. 

Given the weirdness of the past week, I really hope Gov. Paterson is telling the truth because I don’t want to know what other skeletons may be hiding in his closet.