Troble in the Vatican

The Pope has once again been admitted into the hospital, and has had an emergency tracheotomy. He is currently breathing with the assistance of a respirator. This highly controversial, yet very popular pontiff is known as a hero to many and may soon be passing on. The enevetable death of the pope has been a topic of late, and one would wonder what happens after that happens. After the Pope passes away, there will be a nine day grieving period. On the fourth or fifth day, he will be buried. After sixteen days, the college of cardinals, consisting of 119 cardinals will gather and discuss which direction the church should go from there. Once that is done, they will cast a vote for a new pope. a 2/3 majority vote is required to"win". Campaining for this is strictly forbidden while the pope is alive and is frowned upon after his death. 

Michael Jackson

Today the jury was set for the trial of Michael Jackson. I try not to post judgement on anyone until they have been proven guilty or innocent, but I think Michael is in for some serious trouble. The judge in this case has been moving things aong, perhaps tired of all the stalling, and the way things look the defense is already on the ropes. While I was a youngster in the 80's, I was a Michael Jackson fan. But that was when he was a black man. Now that he seems to have evolved into a quaze-white woman, to me he seems more like a circus freak. I am not attempting to be harsh on the man(or whatever) I just call it like I see it. I think that it would be appropriate that if found guilty, he should do some quality time like any other child molester. Well, he could look on the broght side...If he did go to prison he would make a lovely wife to someone!

Diets

Wanting to shed a few pounds? Are you on the lookout for a new diet? Society has taught us that in order to lose weight, you have to go on a prescribed "diet". I think that 95% of this is just someone trying to make money off you. I don't even think these diet producers really want you to lose weight. If you were not overweight, they would not have you as a customer. Well I have a diet for you that is free! I have been on this diet for several months and lost over 20 pounds with NO EXERCISE! I call it the common sense diet. I eat reasonable meals, and try not to overendulge. I have all but eliminated desserts. Instead, I eat many more fruits. I will admit, the first week was the hardest. I have always been a big sweet eater, so it was a challenge to get used to not eating sweets. Another big part of it is not cheating. Like a smoker trying to quit smoking, if he has a smoke once in a while he is doomed for failure. Like I said, I do not exercise, but I feel as if I have more energy so I am naturally more active. Something to keep in mind-if you think it will not be good for you, it probably isn't. Don't obsess over reading nutrition labels. Of course exercise will help but I would recommend not starting until you are used to the new way of eating. I think that making too many lifestyle changes at once will cause burnout and crash the whole operation. How do you think people decades ago were thin before the the big low carb craze came about? There were no South beach diets, Jenny Craig wasn't around and neither was Slim fast! Just something to ponder.

Savings Account

If you are frustrated with ultra-low interest rate on your savings account, you should look into an ING Direct savings account. Their savings accounts currently carry a 2.35% interest rate.

Charitable Goods

Many people miss the boat come tax time because they short change themselves on their charitable giving. Clothing, in particular. Many people assume a shirt goes for a quarter, etc. This is not necessarily the case. You are allowed to claim the thrift store price for that item. If you haven't been in a thrift store lately, maybe you should go in and check it out. It is important, however to keep good records of your donations. There is software available that keeps track of your deducions, such as Deduction Pro and It's Deductible. I personally inventory all items donated, include condition of items and thrift store value. If you have more than $500 in goods, there is an extra tax form that is required, but it is well worth it!

Recycling

With the world's population booming, we will be faced with more and more problems as time progresses. One of the bigger issues we face today is waste management. We as American's have become quite comfortable with the idea of hauling our garbage cans out to the curb on a certain night of the week. We watch secretly from the front window as the trash collector compacts our trash then hauls it away. With landfills filling up, and a society that is encouraging recycling, I see more and more plastic recycle bins sitting out at the curb. Personally, at this point, I do not participate in this ritual. I would if there was a benefit that shows on my trash bill, but that would not happen. According to Rumpke, who is the local trash collection agency, it is not profitable for them to collect all the bottles, plastics and paper. I find this extremely hard to believe. I am baffled by the thought of the amount of recyclable material they collect and cannot turn a profit on it. Of course, I can be wrong.
 

Inventions

Perhaps you have thought of a new invention and were tempted to look further into acquiring a patent for this. Maybe you've seen the commercials on tv and thought about calling. Well, chew on this first. I have those ideas, and once not too long ago I pursued it. I went online, and decided to go with and outfit called Davison. I sent away for a free information packet. Once I got the packet in the mail, I went along with filling out a few papers, including a confidentiality agreement. Shortly after I sent it in, a man called me and wanted to talk to me about my idea. I told him about my idea and he went on about how original it was and I might be on to something. The next step was to pay $700 for them to conduct research to see if there was already a patent on this. That semed a bit much for me. What were the chances of paying $700 and come up with nothing? I did some research on the internet and found that my chances of making it big were very slim. I decided not to send money in. It was hard to shake this guy, he wanted the sale. Less than a month later, I saw my invention in a Pampered Chef catalog. I guess it's a good think I didn't sent him the money! My advice to you is before you go along with it, do your homework and understand the risks!

Looney Tunes

I was watching the news last night, and they were reporting on how Warner Brothers is looking to make some serious changes in their characters to keep up with newer cartoons(Yu-Gi-Oh, etc.) Buggs Bunny will no longer be the funny, grey and white bunny with a likable personality. He will be transformed into a shiny-black, evil looking super hero type rabbit with a deeper voice. He has an "evil" look to him. They plan to make him and Taz and the rest of the gang into some sort of crime fighting squad. I don't like it.

To the moon!!

With President Bush making a lot of controversial cuts in next years budget, I have to wonder if he is still planning on going to Mars and the moon. We haven't heard a lot about that lately. I can't remember if that was before the last space shuttle incident, but I would still be interestd in knowing what the current plan is.

Scottrade

If anyone would be interested in opening a Scottrade discount brokerage account, let me know and I wil refer you. (I'll get free trades)

Stock Watch

HP company(HPQ)is currently looking for a new CEO, and is also moving towards renaming itself. The company would like to move towards a higher quality product, while maintaining low costs.

Circuit City Rebates

I recently purchased a notebook computer from Circuit City. It was the last one they had, a display model, so I got $100 off(plus $150 in rebates). The next day, as I was online processing my rebates, I found that if I had purchased this computer the next day I would qualify for an additional $250 in rebates. I called the store and they told me this was no problem, just to bring in the receipt and I could return it and buy it right back and all will be ok. Well, I spoke with a man with the rebates dept because of my rejection letter I got in the mail today. He said they process the rebates by original purchase date, not the second date(this info is all in their computers). I ended up getting it taken care of, and I will get the rebates but it is quite a hassle!

Hillary Receives German Media Prize

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton received Sunday the German Media Prize for 2004.

"Hillary Clinton is a model politician for millions of women around the world" who "represents in an exemplary way women's rights", the jury for the prize said.

Senator Clinton, who participated Saturday and Sunday in the International Security conference in Munich, emphasised the importance of the role of NATO in trans-Atlantic relations.
Since its inception in 1992 the German Media Prize has tapped left wing political figures.

Hillary will join other winners, including husband Bill, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, Queen Silvia of Sweden, German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

Mideast Peace

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and newly elected Palistinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared a cease fire and have pledged to continue working toward peace in the region. Not long afterwards, fighting errupted again coming from the Palestinian territories. President Abbas has since taken measures to "reign in" militant groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Valentines Day

Here it comes....Perhaps the biggest Hallmark holiday of the year. Just where did Valentines day start? I wish I had a dollar for every holiday the greeting card industry made up! Sweetest day, grandparents day, secretary day, boss' day, jeez! It probably wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't for so many people climbing on board, ready to pump more money into the system. I must say, I am fed up with it, but I know it will never end, only get worse. So, I will put my head down and let my lower lip hang outI will buy my cards and flowers-and like it.Then, I will anxiously await the next, Hallmark holiday......Happy Valentines Day Samantha. I love You.

Howard Dean, head of DNC

It has been made official that Howard Dean will be the next chairman of the DNC, effective this Saturday. After the election was over, all I heard about was how the Democratic party needed to move further to the center of the aisle in order to re-establish itself as a competent body in America. So, I am scratching my head wondering how, after all this talk, Howard Dean could land this job. Personally, I would think someone like Joe Lieberman or Bill Richardson would be a little more appropriate.

Restaurant.com

I am posting this info that I came across on a discussion board that I frequent, http://www.investingpub.com. Sign on to http://www.restaurant.com and you can purchase gift certificates from many eateries in your area and save a significant amount of money. For instance, you can buy a $25 gift certificate for $5. There is a discount code that is valid until 2/28/05 which enables you to save 50% off of their price. The code is 96152.

President Rice

Word on the street is that if Hillary decided to run, (and she probably will) the only one that can bet her is Condi Rice. According to recent polls, Hillary has the edge with New Yorkers over possible opponents Rudi Guliani and Gov Pataki. She has a clear lead over Joh Kerry in his home state. With Condi, Hillary no longer has dominance over the woman vote, and I do believe minorities will go with Dr.Rice. It will be an interesting race to watch!

AK Steel

Watching the current situation, I would think that AK Steel stock (AKS) will continue to do well up to and after Middletown Works' labor contract is to be re-negotiated next February. The company has positioned itself with it's Middletown Works union (AEIF) to make drastic cuts, especially with regards to retiree benefits. I would imagine things to hold up as long as the steel industry rmains strong, as it is expected to for the next 1-2 years.

2-11-05(1)

Well, I'm on the air now....Just started this blog so let's see how long it will last.