So It's Pelosi's Fault?

So let me get this straight:

Pelosi says some things that supposedly upset some of the house, and that changes their votes from voting for what they think is right to voting against her?

Dude(etts)(s):

If you people in the House are running our country on emotions, you need to step aside so intelligent people can make the right decisions.

And now everyone is pointing fingers at each other. Peshaw.

So Who Is To Blame For The Market Travesty and Such?

I like to simplify things because too many issues have too many angles and the focus can get quickly diluted. With that said, let me present you with a question, and from that question, you must choose one option from it.

Here goes:

A Man Owns a Horse, and he keeps the horse in his barn. He never locks the barn because the horse never leaves. Out side the barn, there's a man with a fresh carrot and dangles it outside the barn, where the horse can see it. The horse, in pursuing the carrot, gets out of the barn and things just go downhill from there.

So who's to blame?

A: The man who owns the horse and does not lock the barn?
B: The horse, whose nature it is to gobble up carrots?
C: The other man who dangles the carrot?

If the horse would never have seen the carrot, he would have done as he's always done, and stayed in the barn. A place he knows and is comfortable with. I chose D.

That's how I've broken down this lender spawned tragedy that's hitting the financial institutions and other related markets.

True, all parties involved have a part in this role.

A: The oversight institutions who never put rules in place to prevent what's happened.
B: The home owner who saw opportunity and took it, sometimes not knowing what he was getting into.
C: The lenders who shoveled these no-doc cheater loans out the door like they were sugar.

Like I said, everyone had a part to play. But in the end, I feel the lenders helped get the ball rolling in this tragic market experience.

Do you have an opinion?

A Reminder About Daylight Saving Time/Standard Time

In case you're wondering about when we get to play with our clocks yet one more time this year to comply with Daylight Savings Time / Standard Time, keep this in mind about daylight savings 2008:

In 2008, Daylight Saving Time begins on March 9 and ends on Nov.2.

In 2009, Daylight Saving Time begins on March 8 and ends on Nov.1.

Here's a great link that shows what days this happens on going all the way out to 2015: wwp.greenwichmeantime.com. That's some serious planning ahead! BTW: These changes are regulated by the Department of Transportation.

If you ever want to know what time it is where you're at, just hit up the Time.gov and click on your time zone!

Source: National Institute of Standards and Technology,

Hershey's Changes It's Chocolate Ingredients

If you think you have yourself a Hershey's milk chocolate product, you may wish to examine the labels of your favorite products to make sure. It's been reported that some of Hershey's products are now labeled “chocolate candy” instead of “milk chocolate.” (I guessed they missed the phase when Coke tried something new and had to put their original mix back in the fray.)

They're doing this because they've gone the route of less expensive production methods by using vegetable oil instead of cocoa butter.

The products that this involves are reported to be Whatchamacallit, Milk Duds, Mr. Goodbar and Hershey’s Kissables.

Despite the labeling reflecting the changes, folks are saying that the products look just like they did, but with the one ingredient change and reference to the product now being a chocolate candy.

Though I'm no chocolate sales expert, the items noted would seem to be items that aren't the bigger sellers. Regardless, it seems the subtle label changes seem to verge on the practice of sneaky. What did Hershey's expect in this day and age? One can't even fart without it getting blogged about and finally picked up by media on many levels.

Hershey's defends itself by saying the packaging is clearly marked and this change is a cost saving measure.

Despite the concerns of many, when some were put to a blind taste test of Kissables, 1/2 the taste testers liked the new version better. Hmm... that doesn't help the arguments against.

I guess this makes it official, the economy is in a nosedive when our chocolate providers start swapping out key ingredients.

So far Hershey’s Kisses, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and its classic chocolate bars are immune to the substitution and that's good because when you mess with my fave, (Reese's), then I go to war!

Or as I like to say, if you don't like it, speak with your wallet and write letters. Letter writing has worked. It convinced them to put Almond Joy back to it's original formula.

source

Help Find the Lost Dog Bella; Victim of a Pit Bull Attack

On April 11th, Steve Belsley was walking his dog, a Shiba Inu named Bella in the San Jose, CA area.

While walking his dog, a 10-month-old Pit Bull attacked Bella. To protect Bella, Steve picked his dog up to keep it away from the attacking dog. Subsequently, Steve was bitten 20 times and in the process, he had to drop Bella during the attack and in fright, Bella ran off.

Pet owners can be responsible, or can be ego driven. Don't let the breed fool you. I've seen articles where Chihuahua's have attacked small children, but they aren't as good a press as ranting about the breed with a reputation. In my experience, Pit Bulls have been some of the sweetest animals I've ever known. (No, I don't own one.) The owner of the Pit Bull has been charged with a Felony, and I hope is properly dealt with for not socializing their animal, or keeping it properly contained.
(Source: San Francisco Chronicle)

Bella is Steve's and his wife Terri have no children and consider Bella to be an important part of their life. They've instituted a website dedicated to finding and bringing Bella back.

The site, http://www.bringbellahome.info/, is a splash (jump) page to a Google site that is dedicated to tracking Bella when people spot her.

There are several links to posters, descriptions or what not. The important part of the instructions is to not chase her, but to follow her and call the owners.

This is information directly from the web page and it's important to note the directions if she's located:

Bella's Description:

• Bella is a Shiba Inu - small to medium size
• About Knee-height
• Bella is only about 25 pounds; 15 inches tall
• Black Collar w/ tags
• Pointy Ears
• Curly Tail
• Shy, loner

If you see Bella:

• call 408-891-4239 immediately
• do not chase her
• do not shout at her
• follow her from a distance and report her location
• offer her food; lure her to an enclosed area, backyard or garage

Bruce's request: To anyone in the San Jose area that reads this, Please forward the information about Bella to anyone you know. Let's help bring her home. I surmise how I would feel if my dog got out and was running loose and I'd like to help bring closure to this poor couple's plight.

Please. Digg, Twitter, StumbleUpon or what have you the article, the site, or this post. Whatever it takes to help them. Thanks.

And Yet Another Email Phishing Attempt - Beware, as Always.

Oh goodie, I just got an opportunity to help a Mr. Robert Rice, who went to the Bank of China, Shenzhen and for some unknown reason, instead of investing his money here in the U.S., invested it there.  Now the bank needs my help!!  Mr. Rice has died and they don't know where to distribute his money. Darn.

Since they can't find his next of kin, they picked me.  Wow!!  How lucky can I be today!  Lottery Jackpot!!!  Woo hoo.

All I have to do is send my banking information to the included email address at gmail... hmm, not a banking email?  But heck, once I send him all my banking information, he will take care of the rest.  (The rest?  The rest of what, my savings?)

Of course, if I don't have the opportunity to partake in this excellent opportunity, please just delete the email.  Never mind sending it to the proper authorities I guess.  Huh.

Today's lesson:  As always:  no one will ever ask you for your personal information over the phone or in email.  If they somehow accidentally

A:  Use actual proper English punctuation
B:  Get wayyy lucky with names you know,

Get out of the email or off the phone, look up the phone number of the institution (No, not the one they give you over the email or communication) and contact them directly.

Don't mean to repeat myself, but heck, these things need to be said.  Repetition is the Mother of Skill.

Product Review: Sandisk Sansa Clip Audio Player

When my brother-in-law purchased an MP3 player for his wife she not only liked it, but found it easy to use. That was my clue I could tackle the issue myself. I had been avoiding tackling this unknown realm of digital music.

When I bought my Sansa Clip, I had never used an iPod or any other electronic player for my music. I was old school. CD's in my CD player. After I bought the Sansa Clip, I got home and I was up and running in less than 10 minutes.

I purchased the SanDisk 2Gb Sansa Clip MP3 player and I am impressed with the ease of use.

more >>

A Warning About *72 (star-72) Cell Phone Number Scam

by Bruce Simmons :

Last weekend, the CHP was warning folks about a scam that kicked in over the weekend where someone would call an unsuspecting victim saying they're a CHP officer, a phone company employee or some other person of service importance.

After identifying themselves, they would give the call victim some tale of woe that would necessitate their dialing *72 to connect them to someone else.

In the CHP's case, someone calls saying they're an officer and that someone you know has been in an accident and to contact another "officer" for more information, dial star-72 on the keypad, followed by another phone number.

If you don't know, that particular instruction just sets call forwarding on your phone to the number you just entered.

Then, the person involved in the scam can accept all the collect and third-party calls they want, but you get the bill since the calls are all going to your phone.

I used to forward all my phone numbers to one phone, and I can attest that yes, the initial phone number is the one billed, not the phone number who actually connects with the originating call.

The CHP also noted there are different variations of the issue where in one case, you might receive a call from an inmate who only has one call available and he just accidentally called you and could you then do this star-72 (*72) routine.

Try to fight the compassionate side of your phychy, hang up, and call your local law enforcement agency.

Of note: You may wish to confirm this with your cell provider, but I believe *73 turns it off.

This is an important service announcement that many people need to become aware of, so please let others know through your favorite social media. It's important people become aware of this. Thanks.
Source: SF Gate

Verizon Wireless: Moving Data & Pics From an Old Phone

by Bruce Simmons :

In the middle of 2007, I got myself a new cell phone and once I had it, I wondered what I would need to do to move pictures and my phone book from my old phone to my new phone.

I called and inquired about this and the following is excerpts from the email they sent me regarding the issue.

In this case, I had already gotten my new phone so I had to go through a couple of extra hoops to reactivate the old kodger of a phone first. If you are ahead of the game, you could probably skip some steps if you've got the opportunity.\

First Things First
First, you need to reactivate your old phone to get the information off of it. So turn off your new phone.

Then if you are a registered "My Account" user, (Kind of critical in this process) you can process an ESN/MEID change online at no charge (So they told me) at www.verizonwireless.com/login and do the following:

Once using the online tool
From the "My Account" overview page, select "Go," in the "My Phone" section, which is located near the top of your "My Account" home page.

• Choose "Activate Phone" link on the right side of the page.
• Click the "Activate Equipment" link in the "Existing or Replacement Equipment" section.
• Select the mobile number for the equipment change and enter in the ESN/MEID (You will have to determine this on your own!) and select the reason for change.
• Click "Submit"

To transfer contacts, you'll need to add Backup Assistant. It's Verizon Wireless' free backup application, for folks that are registered for "My Account." This (It was a promotion at the time I dealt with this) is available for all lines on your account as long as you remain registered for "My Account" services and use a Get It Now capable handset.

When you download Backup Assistant through Get It Now, you will be prompted to accept the $1.99 charge. As long as you are registered on "My Account," this charge will be waived and will not appear on your monthly statement. (YOU NEED TO VERIFY THIS FOR YOURSELF!! Contact Verizon)

Now What?
Once Backup Assistant is loaded, you can view, edit, or print your wireless phonebook online by logging on to www.verizonwireless.com/backupassistant and entering your wireless number and PIN. Any changes made to the online phonebook will automatically synchronize back to the wireless phonebook in a matter of seconds.

If you experience difficulty with Backup Assistant, please call Customer Service from a landline phone at 800-922-0204. Please have your wireless phone available when you call.

After you have backed up the contact list, you will want to send each PIX or short video (FLIX), one at a time, to an e-mail address.

To do this,

• Pull up the photo and select options, then
• Send, then
• Type in the e-mail address to where you would like to send it.

You can then store the picture on your computer or send them back to your phone after you reactivate the new phone. Please be aware that (In my specific case) you have the Pay-As-You-Go messaging package therefore it will cost $0.25 per picture to send or receive.

If you would like to add our $5 - 250 messaging option, please contact Customer Service at 800-922-0204 or reply to this email. (How nice of them!!)

Now Getting It to the New Phone
After you have backed up your contacts and sent all of your pictures to your email address:

• Power off the old phone and
• Change the ESN/MEID back to the new phone (this would be on you to discover!!).
• Then add the Backup Assistant to the new phone and send each picture message back to yourself.

There ya go. Remember, I did this back in mid-'07. More than likely it's still applicable, but if not, at least it gives you a starting reference point.

Market Woes and Email Scams

With the stock market taking it's hits from the economic reactions everyone is having, surreptitious scammers and spammers are going to come out of the woodwork.

I just received my first email from TD Ameritrade, saying something to the affect that there might have been errors in my account due to the highly volatile nature of the market in the last week, and I should click on the link provided to verify any errors to my account.

"you are requested to follow the provided steps and confirm your Online
account details for the safety of your Online Accounts"

Now HAD I actually been duped into clicking on the link, I would have seen a website that looks very much like Ameritrade, and if I were doubly duped, I might have even signed in via THAT website, giving out fairly important access information.

Don't worry, I didn't do that.

First off, I don't have an account at TD Ameritrade, so this was a no brainer.

But if I did have an account with them,

• I still would not have accessed my account via the email.
• I would have closed the email, opened up a different / new web browser (That's a bit important) and gone to the website, as I always do.
• Then when I logged in, I probably would have seen that I have messages awaiting me in the sites system, much like my other banking websites handle communication.

Plus, Nobody

• asks you for anything via email for one,
• the English is much better in the real deal, and
• my name is not "dear customer", or "sir or madam".

If you have any other curiosities, you can go to TD Ameritrade's Security Center and check out their advice and other tidbits. It's pretty good. I just can't find a "Report Phishing" email address anywhere! Most organizations have one and I tend to be rather diligent in that part of this process.

Here's TD Ameritrades recommendations for spotting this kind of phishing scenario: HERE

So take heed and be careful folks. I don't want to hear about any of my readers running into troubles!!

Writers: At A Loss For Words?

by Bruce Simmons :

There are days that the blogger who is worried about their literary image might not want to set in stone statements like "To look at the exemplary examples of.." because face it, you've just stuttered.  If not in meaning, then in visual reference in your typing.  I don't like that.

I used to use MS Word to enlighten myself of synonyms of words.

• I'd open up Word,
• type my word,
• highlight it, then
• press Shift and F7 together. 

That brings up the right pane synonym dictionary thingy and I got ideas for more words.

That's all great and what not, but what if I'm somewhere where I can't get to MS Word, or on a computer that doesn't have it installed?

Well, that is no longer a problem!

Though I like Word's feature, I found something better.  http://freethesaurus.net/

I've just started using it, but it cranks out a lot of different options for simple words.  It kicks MS's butt, and the other online thesaurus I tried, from ask dot com, really paled and actually annoyed me.

So the next time you're at a loss for words, check out the free thesaurus site.  You may just like it.  Crap...  I did. 

They even have plugins for IE 7 or FireFox so you don't need to even go back to their website.

Oral Hygiene and Cancer?

Scientists have discovered a link between gum disease and pancreatic cancer in men.

Gum disease is usually associated with poor dental habits: IE: not enough flossing, not brushing your teeth on a regular basis, etc.. Two habits that are just too easy to do.

The study involved reviewing health related information to ~ 51,000 men. That sounds like a fairly decent number of people that were watched.

The end finding was that those who had periodontal disease had a 64% higher chance of developing pancreatic cancer.

What happens is that periodontal disease tends to have what's called a higher amount of inflammatory markers such as C reactive protein (CRP). These "markers" are part of your early immune system response to inflammation and this is one of many factors that have been linked to pancreatic cancer.

The other potential finding is that there are high levels of carcinogenic compounds present in the mouths of people with periodontal disease.

It's suggested that the carcinogenic compounds mix with digestive fluids in the gut, tending towards this pattern they have discerned in this study from early 2007 and reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

What is good oral hygiene and how can we attempt to prevent this?

We can brush 2x a day with a fluoride toothpaste.
Floss every day.
Avoid snacks.
Visit your dentist every 6 months for your cleaning!

It's too easy folks. Too easy.

source: medical news today

Who's More Likely To be Found: A Dog or a Cat?

Dogs and Cats
According to a study conducted around 2006, dogs are the more likely of the two animals to be found than lost cats.

The reasons for the return rate on dogs is simple: Dogs have collars with tags. (If the owner is smart about it.)

Source, Source ,

It's not that easy to catch a stray
I've spent a lot of hours wrangling lost animals, and they are mostly dogs. But the most frustrating part of the whole process is indeed, how many dogs don't have tags.

The other part of the issue is when people put up lost posters, very few think to put the dogs name on the sign. If you're a good Samaritan, knowing the dogs name can go a long way towards helping catch it. A lot of the time they are scared and only want to run. Hearing their own name called can help calm it do some degree.

If you've ever lost a dog, or found a dog, check your local kennel, ASPC or other animal shelters. They aren't kept that long so you need to be aggressive in contacting these places.

Here are other resources for lost pets:
www.homeagainid.com
www.petfinder.com
www.pets911.com

UPDATE (9/24/08): Speaking of lost dogs, go check out Bring Bella Home. Bella is a circumstantial victim of a Pit Bull attack and ran away during the altercation while her owner defended her from a Pit Bull. Now, they want to be reunited with their lost pet, who has been spotted in areas around the San Jose area.

Please head to their site, and Digg, Stumble, Twitter or what ever tools you have to help them reconnect with their family member. Thanks. And and all help would be appreciated!

Junk Mail is on the Out, But...

by Bruce Simmons :

The unsolicited offers called junk mail that we all get from financial institutions is on the decline, as the amount of junk mail sent fell an estimated 12% in the first quarter of 2008.

This follows a year where consumer awareness is becoming more acute with present housing market and the consumer is reassessing their situations. (And here I thought they didn't care.)

Why do I think this a good thing?

• People aren't sucked into the mindless offers that really don't do them any good.
• It's less paper wasted. (I love my fireplace.)
• Less junk mail mean less opportunity for trash thieves to *F* your credit rating. (I love my fireplace)

Despite this wonderful news of declining junk mail, we still got an estimated 4.2 billion, (A billion is 100 million. Isn't it?) pieces of direct mail.

Did you know that junk mail is responsible for:
Each year,

• 100 million trees are used to produce junk mail;
• 250,000 homes could be heated with one day's supply of junk mail;
• Americans receive almost 4 million tons of junk mail every year.

Sadly, while direct marketing is still effective, we'll never get rid of it. That means you have to stop responding to the unsolicited offers and sales folks.

If you didn't know you needed or wanted something before you got the mail, you should stick to that premise and toss the stuff. Don't open it... toss the junk... your eyes are getting droopy, you want to toss the junk mail...

In other words, be smart shoppers, not victims.

Here's at least one resource:
Junkbusters is a site that has information on how to stop junk mail and telemarketing calls, this service is free. (It's a reference to get you started looking. I haven't used it myself.)

Sources: wsoctv; epa

I Hate Earthquakes

Why do I hate earthquakes? Because you never see them coming, you have very little warning and as they hit, they don't hit all at once.

They start out small or medium in intensity then build up to whatever level of destruction they are going to achieve. In other words, you wonder when it will stop getting stronger through the duration of the event.

You can hear an earthquake coming though, but it's about a 5 to 15 second warning at best. It's a low frequency buzz that comes at you through all your walls at once. No fun. I once had a low-rider car go by with it's base turned "up" and as he drove by, my walls vibrated so bad I thought this was going to be the ONE that ends it all. Once he drove by and my personal heart attack ended, it was almost a relief, yet I was somewhat ticked at that driver... THANKS BUDDY!

On the bright side, once the energy of an earthquake hits around 6 to 6.5, it's no longer a matter of how much harder it's going to hit you, but rather a time issue. For me the whole scale is just a time issue.

The smaller ones don't last that long, the bigger ones do. IE: The big one in Alaska: 9.2, on March 27th, 1964. (source) Official reports say it lasted 4 minutes, others say 10 minutes. (It probably felt like 10 minutes.). It moved a whole town 47 feet south. (Seward). Nuts.

The surprising part about living around earthquake faults is just how active they really are. I live a few miles from the San Andreas and we get bumped around with little ones a lot. It feels like Godzilla stomped on something a few miles away and that's that.

If you've ever wondered just exactly where the San Andreas fault is, check out this link at geology.com. And if you have the chance, go look at it, if you can find it. There are spots that it's evident in a visually small sense, but then there are other spots that just look like a nice little glacial valley that lots of people have settled in at, but it's really the result of all the activity of the San Andreas making it's own mini mountains.

Eesh!

Which is More Important: Bike or Cell Phone

Which is more important: The phone call on the Cell Phone or the Bicyclist You almost hit?

Here I come toolin' down the street to a "T" intersection.

The woman making a left coming towards me is desperately trying to wrangle her cell phone, holding it with one hand, head tilted to press it against her shoulder... Cirque du Soleil almost could hire her for her contorting abilities.

As she makes her turn, a car gets in her way. It could have been ugly, but still managing to dodge the car, she heads for me... she sees me. Her eyes go wide, her face grimaces... I see it coming.

I hit it hard to the right then snap left to not hit the curb! She swerves to her right, tires grinding on the pavements as we pass. We miss my mere inches... but she maintains her telephonic conversation throughout it all!!

Answer: The Cell Phone.

Chase Online: The Invisible 'Net Hurdles

by Bruce Simmons :

Chase Online Hurdles
or
Are they trying to simplify online tracking use?

My Primary Issue:
I was trying to log into a Chase account and it seems that keeping meticulous records on passwords is not enough. If you get another computer, or new browser, or new operating system, you have to call each time to get an "activation" code. So much for ease of use.

When I questioned someone on the other end of the line, I could have sworn the guy said 'patron act', but I think he probably said patriot act. Basically, the Patriot Act forces banks to create protective measures in dealing with customer log ins. In Chase's account, they use Java applications to verify the user, and as we've discovered, it links to the computer, browser, operating system combination. What this means is that any time you change one of these, you need to request an activation code.

Now, if I log in from a different computer, or even a different web browser, I will have to go through a hoop or two to log on to my account. Which I surmise, to Chase Online, means they think I have 18 different computers.

Obviously the Patriot Act can be interpreted differently, because my other online banking choice does not give me these hurdles. I can log in from anywhere, anyhow any way and I am fine.

My Secondary Issue
My second issue is created by myself and my own security measures. I block various processes from operating freely on my computer, like Java scripts. I'm alerted when a script wants to run and I have the option to let it or not. Because these security features use Java, I've created a secondary hurdle for myself, so that's on me.

I've also trained my firewall to not allow spurious connections to occur without asking me. But in this instance of interacting with Chase Online, it took the initiative and just didn't ask me and blocked some interaction with the Java scripts from the bank. Good boy!! Sort of. Eesh.

The Bright Side
The Chase Visa staff went at my problem quite aggressively and did their job well, even if I was the one that figured it out, but they can't know everything about each computer.

Lesson for the day:
At least for Chase, you should probably log in from the same computer and the same browser each and every time. For most people, this is not an issue, but for the person who might have access to more than one computer, this is for you!

That was a fun 31 minutes. Hope this saves you some time down the road!!


One person told me that:

We have been having a lot of trouble accessing our Chase online accounts over the last 2 months. Today I called Chase Online support and was told to 'lower my security settings'. What???? No thanks - we'll find another bank.

TV, News Or Entertainment - It All Needs Advertising

The sad fact of the matter is that if advertising didn't make money of EVERYTHING on television, we'd either have no television or we'd be paying through the nose for cable.

News is the saddest casualty.  They have to pimp up their stories with questions leading to the articles rather than actual headlines.  They have tease to keep people watching.  It's depressing.

But without the advertisers paying the networks for their product successes off their air times, who knows what we'd have.  The scary part is that advertising, as annoying as it is, works.

Think about that for a second.

Tom Brady's Injury Impacts Fantasy Leagues Everywhere

by Bruce Simmons

Wow - I remember the days when a few of us would gather around a lunch room and draft our fantasy football team.  There'd be a few arguments about scoring, replacement players and what not, but nothing big.  In the end my handicapping system got me 3 out of 3 seasons of fun and profit.  Those days are gone by the way side because I just don't have the time any more to track stats like I used to.

Players pay $1-1/2 Billion dollars a year to play in these leagues. (source)  Zoinks.. I guess it has gotten bigger.  Yea, I even see TV ads referencing last years fantasy football winner... so it's big, officially.

Heck, there was even a lawsuit that decided that CDM Sports didn't have to pay licensing fees to the MLB for using its players names in the fantasy games it makes available!  That was close, but obviously another indicator that they're making so much money on fantasy sports that the ball leagues are trying to recoup some of it.  Gimme a break.  (source)

Now it's being reported that Tom Brady's injury is going to cost fantasy players $150 million in losses.  (source) 

Fantasy sports sure has come a long way.  And one of the things you have to be ready for is the ultimate snafu in any fantasy sport strategy:  player injury.  Especially when everyones favorite QB takes the hit.

Yep, fantasy sports have come a long way.  I wish I had the time.

Newest Bigfoot Sightings In Canada

by Bruce Simmons:

It would seem that after the stupidity of the Palo Alto press release that provided human skunk DNA samples as their evidence of their "body", there have been some interesting media coverage of new Bigfoot (Sasquatch) sightings up in the Canada Region.

Sighting: July 2008
Back in July of '08, 2 Ontario women were out berry picking north of Grassy Narrows, Ont., which is about 230 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg when they spotted the large hulking creature from their truck at around 10 AM in the morning.

They described it as black and about 8 feet tall, walking upright. When the mythical creature spotted them, it ran off.

The ladies bolted home and returned with some friends and upon looking around, found a large 6-toed footprint.

source
~

Sighting: August 2008
A married couple were traveling in the Skiff Lake region shortly after 7 PM on an August evening,

They were 3/4 of a mile from Skiff Lake region in a thickly wooded area. They came around a turn in the road and spotted a huge, 8 and a half foot tall, black creature standing at the edge of the road approximately 250 meters from them. It spotted them and walked across the road and disappeared. They said it took 4 steps to cross the 35 foot wide road.

They are pretty sure it wasn't a bear. The husband has extensive experience with hunting camps and bear.

The couple were being followed on the road by another couple and they chatted with them and they too saw the creature.

source
~

Bigfoot, Sasquatch, Yeti.

Sasquatch is an aboriginal word that means "hairy giant,". The legend of the creature is that it's a large manlike creature that roams the woods from Northern California up the West Coast, into and across Canada.

I'd like to be a believer. Many years ago I was an avid chaser of the newspaper reports of sightings of this beast. The thing that had me leaning towards the existence of Bigfoot was the pattern of the sightings across the years, from Northern CA and Northward.

Sightings never seemed to stay in one area, but took a slow but distinct route to the north up through CA, through Oregon and into Washington. I had kept lists of sightings up until they seemed to cluster around Mt. Saint Helens, then it erupted and sightings seemed to end after that. I figured that was it... poof. After some time, I tossed my list, grounded myself back to reality and got on with life.

Additionally, the last few years have there are so many sightings being reported from across America that it just dilutes any probability of the reality of the situation.

I've had a few personal experiences on my expeditions to Bigfoot territory, but I attribute those moments to my wanting to see / experience a Bigfoot sighting. You see, all I want to do is see it. I wouldn't need to prove it, report it or capture it... Just see it. Like today. I didn't have my camera with me for the first time in years and I got to stand about 10 feet from a huge deer and it just stood and looked at me. It perked up it's ears and stared at me for about 3 minutes. That would have been plenty of time to take some miraculously detailed pictures, but that's OK, because I've now got the experience. It was awesome. That's how'd I like to chalk up a Bigfoot experience. See it, then I'd know it.

There's a great sight that tries to put some sense to it all in one fashion or another called the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization. You can check them out at BFRO.

'Nuff said, don't ya think?

If you're interested in reading up on the subject, check out these books:

I can vouch for this book: This is a great, but dry approach to the Bigfoot phenom. A hard core debunker scientist friend of mine came away from the book with a different, more open minded approach to the issue after reading it.


BFRO says this is the Best New Title on the subject:


Amazon has other products on the issue, but I can't vouch for them.


image is screen shot from BFRO.net 1967 Patterson still on website
~

Related:
An Update On the Palo Alto Press Conference (The hoaxer was called out)
Has BigFoot Been Found? (Press Conference Announced)
Yeti Footprints Discovered
New Photos of Bigfoot
Google Photo Search for Jacobs Creature
.

Change is Promised, But the System Lumbers On

Why is it that politicians always promise things, and people soak it up?
It's rhetoric and advertising.
Promise all you want, but you still have to sway the system that is heavily entrenched and coffers that go deep.

I know they have to say something, but egads, I am tired of the empty promises.
I'm tired of hearing that they will bring about change.
Can't we try something different instead of attacking things and opponents?
Can't was just sit down and say, this is my plan rather than high lighting the opponents short sightedness?
We're smart enough to figure that out on our own with you showing your dirty side with smear campaigns.
Oh well.
One day, I'd love to see an outline of that change everyone says they're going to enlighten us with.
It's like that "lockbox" from years past.  You know what I'm talking about.

Any how, I don't think McCain did himself any good using video footage from 9/11 or promising to continue the fight that is never ending against terrorists while getting our family members and friends killed off every day.

The jury is still out for me.

When Jesse Ventura became governor of MN, he did an interesting thing: 
He put up a web page that listed his promises that he made on his campaign.
The then checked off each one he accomplished.
He also made it clear when he hit hurdles.
His group did this themselves.
It was a fresh approach.

At least that was a refreshing approach, no matter how it turned out.