GOLDFISH DON'T BOUNCE -- Bart Simpson, writing on the blackboard after school
Through my share of good times and a lot more than my share of challenges, I've learned that life is hard, but God is good. So I've always tried to put my faith into action and keep my sense of humor. This Web site has been my labor of love since 1997 — I sincerely hope that it blesses and empowers you.
How To De-Spam Your Life
Friday, January 27th, 2012
Over the years, I probably received tens of thousands of emailed spam messages — for awhile, I was getting more than 300 every day.
And thousands of pieces of snail-mailed spam, in the form of unwanted advertisements.
Along with hundreds of unwanted telephone sales calls.
But, over the years, I learned some tricks to reduce those unwanted contacts.
So, nowadays, I receive less than [more...]
Tags: Consumer Info, Ethics, Internet, Law, Rights
Stop Using pcAnywhere
Thursday, January 26th, 2012
Ever since shortly after the Wordwide Web was invented, Windows users have had to deal with countless vulnerabilities in their operating systems’ swiss cheese-like security.
In fact, my disgust at that endless stream of Windows security vulnerabilities was one of the main reasons why I finally switched to Linux and stopped using Windows on my home computers almost 6 years ago.
I’m fortunate. Many millions of people around the world are still stuck using Windows.
So they’re forced to [more...]
Tags: Consumer Info, Cybercrime, Internet, Linux, Security, Software, Windows
Have We Lost The Privacy War? 52
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
I’ll bet that most of my readers use Google’s search engine.
And that many of them also watch videos on YouTube.
And use Gmail.
And Google Maps.
And maybe even Google Calendar.
They might even own [more...]
Tags: Consumer Info, Dubious, Google, Internet, Law, Rights, Security
At Least We Don’t Have To Live There
Tuesday, January 24th, 2012
Over the years, my wife and I have lived in a lot of different places.
In fact, we’ve lived in more than 30 different apartments, mobile homes and houses.
And that includes over 10 years in one house in the Frostbite State, and more than 8 years in our current home in the Sunshine State.
A few of our most memorable homes were a [more...]
Tags: Ecology, Ethics, History, Personal, Science
Have We Lost The Privacy War? 51
Monday, January 23rd, 2012
We’ve all read horror stories of travelers’ dealings with the TSA.
Strip-searched little old ladies.
Frisked babies.
Sexually groped children.
Humiliated disabled people.
Attractive women singled out for [more...]
Tags: Ethics, Freedom, Law, Rights, Security
Architectural Camouflage
Sunday, January 22nd, 2012
Where I live, the ground under our feet is not dirt — it’s sand.
And the ground water is just a few feet below the surface.
So you probably won’t find any homes that have a basement.
And very few homes that are more than one-story tall.
Except, a few years ago, about a mile from our house, someone [more...]
Tags: Images, Internet, Law, Rights
Grandeur
Saturday, January 21st, 2012
Back in the late 70s and early 80s, when my wife and I made our living as musical performers, we saw most of the U.S.
The Smoky Mountains in the East.
The painted desert in Arizona.
Washington state’s apple country.
The Jersey shore. [more...]
Tags: Inspirational, Personal, Video
Animal Artists
Friday, January 20th, 2012
Regular readers of this Journal may know that I have very little drawing ability.
In fact, my drawings of people are much closer to raw stick figures than to anything resembling real people.
But, many years ago, I was completely humbled and in awe when one of my two goddaughters showed that she was well on her way to becoming a great artist — at the ripe old age of two years.
And by the time she was ten years old, she could [more...]
Tags: Art, Funny, Images, Inspirational, Pets, Video