Living In A Big City = Awesome

I’m sure most of you have rented movies at a self-serve kiosk, but this week was my first experience. It was easy. I chose a movie title, swiped my credit card for $1 and 15 seconds later I was on my way back home to watch it. Netflix doesn’t require you to leave home at all, and for some people, that makes sense. But for people like me who don’t watch many movies or who watch movies on impulse, picking it up at a kiosk is perfect.

Apparently services like this are offered everywhere. If you haven’t tried it you should.

If you’re not sure what to rent, try renting Music and Lyrics. It was a great flick and the music is stellar.

Life Without A Smart Smart Phone Is Not The Life For Me

I used to say I wanted my cell phone to be a cell phone – that’s it, but I relinquished that statement the first time I used a smart phone.

I have been awaiting the release of the iPhone as much as every other techy nerd, but for the first time in a long time, I am satisfied with the phone I currently own. The iPhone will undoubtedly be great, but if I purchase one, I will wait until I can read customer reviews. I’d also like to see them substantially increase the size of the hard drive before I purchase. I’ve been a satisfied Cingular customer for years. And a few months ago, I purchased a Cingular 8525 (HTC) Smart Phone with Windows Mobile 5.0.It has a sliding, qwerty keyboard, touch screen and a full web browser which rocks my world. I can send and receive e-mails, surf the net , listen to Pearl Jam, download applications, chat with my friends and take pictures with my 2.0 mega pixel camera. It can also be used to create or view Microsoft Office documents and applications. I also enjoy the convenience of GPS and the batter life which lasts all day. I am in love with this phone.When signing a two year contract, Cingular listed the phone at $399, but they matched Amazon’s price ($174) without question.

There are many phones from which to choose, but at this time, Cingular (err, AT&T) can’t offer a better product for the money than the HTC 8525.

We pay a price when we purchase smart phones, but it’s worth it for the convenience it lends to almost every situation. Even paying a little extra for unlimited data, I would not want to go back to life without a smart phone.

Happy Father’s Day

Hypocrite: n. A person given to hypocrisy (ex. Al Gore)

It sounds like the Democratic party needs to hear what Al Gore had to say.

Mr. Gore, you got exactly what you wanted from Bush 2, but it appears that because of a bitter loss, you lost sight of the end goal.

Take a look at this video. Note what Mr. Gore had to say about Iraq and Saddam.

Kelly Clarkson Has The Right Idea

“Love is something you work at. It doesn’t come easily. There are going to be bad days. You are going to have to work at loving someone when they are being an idiot.”

Good point, Kelly. At times I play it cool, but more often I freak out about the most trivial things. The guy who loves Kenlie will have to love her through her utter ridiculousness.

As I grow older, I‘m getting better at treating others how I want to be treated. But I still have a lot to learn. I‘m trying.

It’s nice to know I’m not the only one who isn’t 100% ready to be a grown up.

Gosh, I Wonder If The Media Is Trying To Make Romney Look Bad

Mitt has already made it clear that he thinks the practice of polygamy is bizarre. And lets not forget that it was banned over a century ago.
Extreme Mormons are no different than extremists from every other religion. The only reason these folks are getting attention from the media is because the media does not want a strong candidate like Romney building momentum in the coming months.
He has a large task in front of him, but if voters choose the best candidate in the primary, they’ll choose Mitt.

I Don’t Know If Justice Was Served, But…

Paris is back in jail. The sentence seems light, but at least she will be required to complete most of it.

Thankfully, this mockery of the judicial system seems to be over. That’s good news because I’m tired of hearing about the Hilton family and their issues.

I don’t envy her, but I’m sure there are many people who would trade places with Ms. Hilton, current problems included.

Lack of Justice

I typically avoid writing about worthless psuedo-celebrities on this site, but today, Paris Hilton has gotten the best of me.

After serving only five days of her 45-day sentence, she has been sent home due to “medical problems.” Perhaps her alcoholic intake has caused liver problems.

I am not as naive as I once was, but I still have some growing up to do. And those who released Paris from jail last night have helped me in that area. It is important to understand that only 2 weeks after one of my closest childhood friends was killed by a drunk driver that Paris will be allowed to continue driving drunk with no consequence.

What does this say about the system? More importantly; what does this say about America?

The only lesson to be learned from this situation is that those with money, irresponsible and life-threatening or not, can buy themselves out of any crime.

Thank you for the lesson Paris. And while I’m at it, I want to thank O.J. too.

Mitt Won The Second Debate

Kyle and I watched the second republican debate last night on CNN. And I have to say it was much better than the debate on Fox News. The questions covered more topics, and Romney was allowed to answer more than one question.
The same question came to mind as Kyle and I watched; why is Ron Paul running as a Republican? He seems to be confused about partisan politics.
Mike Huckabee did a great job baring the fact that he referred to the day as Reagan’s birthday. As Kyle informed me, it was the anniversary of his death. Huckabee dropped the ball briefly, but few will remember. He spoke with confidence – and he had a nice tie.
It is still tough to remember Tom Tancredo’s name, and I wasn’t struck by anything he said. He said as little as Duncan Hunter, who made a good impression on Kyle. In reference to building an effective fence, he said “if they get across the fence, we sign them up for the Olympics immediately.”
AdMITTedly, I was more focused on what Romney and Giuliani had to say.
Giuliani brings most issues back to terrorism much like Obama has done in the Democratic debates in regards to healthcare. It is his platform. If Rudy wins it will be because the nation believes he will protect us from future attacks.
Mitt spoke out against the Z visa, saying that it is unfair to allow those illegal immigrants to remain here for life while excluding millions of people from other countries who would bring with them skills. I agree with Romney, in that I believe it is unfair to protect those who broke the law to get here while excluding tax-paying contributors. And when asked what he would do about the immigration crisis, Romney responded “We should follow the laws that are already in place.” It was brilliant.
The other highlight was when Giuliani was trying to speak and lightening kept interfering with his words. The other candidates, including McCain, stepped away from him to avoid getting struck. It was the most laughable part of the two-hour debate.
As I said after the first debate, John McCain may deserve the presidency, but he does not have a presidential swagger. He has confidence, and he is not afraid to say things that make him unpopular. He has extensive war experience, and for that, he should be respected. But it won’t make him president.
Tommy Thompson may have said something worthwhile, but if he did it was when I wasn’t listening.
In my opinion, a Mitt/Rudy ticket would be the best for the party. We’ll see if anyone agrees with me in the coming months.

Does It Matter That Mitt Is Mormon?

He said it best last night when he adapted a quote by John F. Kennedy. He said, “I am not running as a Mormon; I am running as an American.”

I have studied Mormonism extensively, and my beliefs are incongruous with the belief of Mormons. However, the specifics are irrelevant. What matters is that we will have a strong, committed president who can balance the budget and protect us from terrorists.