Surprising truths about a *touchy* subject (safe for work)

Just the facts at a glance, M'aam. Tell me this is not interesting.  

Pornography may not be socially acceptable but it is socially prevalent in the US. It was arguably the economic engine that allowed the Internet to develop; an Internet we now use for organizing church activities and improving the world.

Does knowing how prevalent the viewing of pornography is change your perception of it? Are we fighting our own human nature; and if we are, should we?

<br />Source: Online Education

Posted via email from Deal Expert

Even the stars do not twinkle

Photo courtesy of Image_Editor

Is there anywhere on Earth where the stars do not twinkle at night?

Imagine a place of ice and snow where the air is drier than any desert.  A place of immense cold, that despite being the coldest place on Earth,does not have weather.  A place where the air is still, without even the hint of a breeze.  A place of complete calm and quiet.  The ultimate eye of the storm.

This exists on Earth, but in only one place: the recently discovered Ridge A near the South Pole.

The air above Ridge A is so still, dry, and quiet, that the stars do not even twinkle at night.  The sky is extremely dark and clear.

Images of the heavens taken at Ridge A are 3 times as sharp as images taken elsewhere on our planet, so it is a great place for astronomy.

But even though you do not need to worry about the weather, take your coat.  The average temperature at Ridge A is negative 94 degrees (F).  It is located more 13,000 feet high about 600 miles from the South Pole.

Posted via email from Deal Expert

Breaking Christmas Story – December 23rd Facebook Crisis

The Facebook B4 Christmas

T'was the eve B4 the eve B4 Christmas

And all through their flat

Everyone was on Facebook

Even the rat

Who hoped for dropped cheese

And a sip of spilled cheer

But all folks were in cyberspace

Ignoring those near

No party was thrown

No guests did arrive

No merry, no laughter

No hugs nor hand jive

The kitchen was quiet

No noises no smell

The laptops were open

My friends under spell

I lept to their roof

Crazy sword in my hand

Searched out a cable

My diabolical plan

I slashed and I slahed

Until there was no DSL

Just howls and cursing

That's how I could tell

But within the hour

All was set right

The teleco was busy

No internet tonight

The doorbell was ringing

Friends were at hand

Bringing their iPhones

And unlimited data plans

Takeout was ordered

Chinese – a good guess

There was sharing & laughter

And for the rat…

A spilled mess

Merry Christmas

(c) Eric Pederson

Please share with attribution and or merriment

Posted via email from Deal Expert

Guys only: personal suggestion

If you’re like me and play too much, you might owe your Mom a pair of these for Christmas. Also useful if you aren’t ready to pop the question to your girlfriend, or if you are married and need to make a few points.

If you are married, face it: you need to earn a few points. Can you tell I have given these before? It seems a good time to buy as prices have come down in the current economy. Less than $50 on sale, or you can go big…

As you know, giving diamonds has benefits. Card could read something like: studs from your stud. You have to take it from there.

OK, order and, job well done, reward yourself with 90 minutes on a pitch somewhere, or maybe a pair of tickets.

Oh yeah. You’re welcome!

 

Eric

Posted via web from Deal Expert

Just out – The Top 100 Albums of All Time – Jazz Guitar

This is a great list for all jazz fans and guitar players.   All guitarists, even punkers and metal heads gotta respect the jazz cats.  Thanks to jazzguitar.be for this.

This list is like cheating to get your jazz cred. I’ll admit, I’m ashamed I don’t have more of these.  Check them out!

 

Top 100 Albums – Jazz Guitar

1. Al Di Meola – Elegant Gypsy
2. Allan Holdsworth – Metal Fatigue
3. Antonio Carlos Jobim – Wave
4. Baden Powell – At the Rio Jazz Club
5. Barney Kessel – Kessel Plays Standards
6. Barney Kessel – The Poll Winners
7. Barry Galbraith – Guitar and the Wind 
8. Bill Frisell – East/West
9. Bireli Lagrene – Gypsy Project
10. Bireli Lagrene – Standards
11. Bucky and John Pizzarelli – Contrasts
12. Charlie Byrd – At The Village Vanguard
13. Charlie Byrd – The Guitar Artistry of Charlie Byrd
14. Charlie Christian – Genius of the Electric Guitar
15. Charlie Christian – Solo Flight
16. Charlie Hunter – Bing Bing Bing
17. Danny Gatton – Untouchable
18. Django Reinhardt – Djangology
19. Django Reinhardt – Quintet du Hot Club de France
20. Earl Klugh – One on One
21. Ed Bickert – Live at The Garden Party
22. Eddie Lang – Jazz Guitar Virtuoso
23. Emily Remler – Firefly
24. Ernest Ranglin – Below the Bassline
25. Frank Gambale – Thinking Out Loud
26. George Barnes – Don’t Get Around Much Anymore
27. George Benson – Bad Benson
28. George Benson – Breezin’
29. George Benson – Beyond the Blue Horizon
30. George Benson – The George Benson Cookbook
31. George Van Eps – Mellow Guitar
32. Grant Green – Green Street
    
33. Grant Green – Idle Moments
34. Grant Green – The Complete Quartets With Sonny Clark
35. Hank Garland – Jazz Winds From a New Direction
36. Herb Ellis/Joe Pass – Seven, Come Eleven
37. Herb Ellis/Joe Pass – Two for the Road
38. Howard Alden/George Van Eps – 13 Strings
39. Howard Roberts – HR Is A Dirty Guitar Player
40. Jeff Beck – Blow by Blow
41. Jim Hall – Concierto
42. Jim Hall – Live
43. Jim Hall/Bill Evans – Intermodulation
44. Jim Hall/Bill Evans – Undercurrent
45. Jim Hall/Ron Carter – Alone Together
46. Jimmy Bruno – Burnin’
47. Jimmy Raney – Wisteria
48. Joe Beck – Strangers in the Night
49. Joe Diorio Trio – Live
50. Joe Pass – For Django
51. Joe Pass – Virtuoso
    
52. John Abercrombie – Timeless
53. John Basile – The Desmond Project
54. John McLaughlin – Extrapolation
55. John Scofield – A Go Go
56. John Scofield – Hand Jive
57. Johnny Smith – Johnny Smith
58. Johnny Smith – Moonligh in Vermont (w Stan Getz)
59. Jonathan Kreisberg – Unearth
60. Kenny Burrell – Guitar Forms
    
61. Kenny Burrell – Midnight Blue
62. Kevin Eubanks – Guitarist
63. Kurt Rosenwinkel – Deep Song
64. Larry Carlton – Last Nite
65. Larry Coryell (w John McLaughlin) – Spaces
66. Lee Ritenour – Rit’s House
67. Lenny Breau – Live on Bourbon Street
68. Luiz Bonfa – Solo in Rio 1959
69. Martin Taylor – Spirit of Django
70. Mike Stern – Play
71. Mike Stern – Standards (and Other Songs)
72. Mike Stern – Upside Downside
73. Mundel Lowe – Guitar Moods
74. Nguyen Le – Walking on the Tiger’s Tail
75. Norman Brown – After the Storm
76. Pat Martino – El Hombre
77. Pat Martino – Footprints
78. Pat Metheny – Bright Size Life
79. Pat Metheny – Question and Answer
80. Pat Metheny/Charlie Haden – Beyond The Missouri Sky
81. Pat Metheny/John Scofield – I can see Your House From Here
82. Peter Bernstein – Earth Tones
83. Peter White – Caravan of Dreams
84. Phillip Catherine – Summer Night
85. Ralph Towner – Solstice
86. Rene Thomas Quintet – Guitar Groove
87. Robben Ford – Tiger Walk
88. Ronny Jordan – The Antidote
89. Rosenberg Trio – Caravan
90. Stanley Jordan – Stolen Moments
91. Steve Kahn – The Suitcase (Live)
92. Sylvain Luc – Trio Sud
93. Tal Farlow – Verve Jazz Masters 41
94. Ted Greene – Solo Guitar
95. Tuck Andress – Wreckless Precision
96. Wes Montgomery – Boss Guitar
97. Wes Montgomery – Bumpin’
98. Wes Montgomery – Full House
99. Wes Montgomery – Smokin’ at the Half Note
100. Wes Montgomery – The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery

Do you agree with this list? Who was ignored? Which albums if any should be tossed? Comment please

Posted via web from Deal Expert

Just out – The Top 100 Albums of All Time – Jazz Guitar

This is a great list for all jazz fans and guitar players.   All guitarists, even punkers and metal heads gotta respect the jazz cats.  Thanks to jazzguitar.be for this.

This list is like cheating to get your jazz cred. I’ll admit, I’m ashamed I don’t have more of these.  Check them out!

 

Top 100 Albums – Jazz Guitar

1. Al Di Meola – Elegant Gypsy
2. Allan Holdsworth – Metal Fatigue
3. Antonio Carlos Jobim – Wave
4. Baden Powell – At the Rio Jazz Club
5. Barney Kessel – Kessel Plays Standards
6. Barney Kessel – The Poll Winners
7. Barry Galbraith – Guitar and the Wind 
8. Bill Frisell – East/West
9. Bireli Lagrene – Gypsy Project
10. Bireli Lagrene – Standards
11. Bucky and John Pizzarelli – Contrasts
12. Charlie Byrd – At The Village Vanguard
13. Charlie Byrd – The Guitar Artistry of Charlie Byrd
14. Charlie Christian – Genius of the Electric Guitar
15. Charlie Christian – Solo Flight
16. Charlie Hunter – Bing Bing Bing
17. Danny Gatton – Untouchable
18. Django Reinhardt – Djangology
19. Django Reinhardt – Quintet du Hot Club de France
20. Earl Klugh – One on One
21. Ed Bickert – Live at The Garden Party
22. Eddie Lang – Jazz Guitar Virtuoso
23. Emily Remler – Firefly
24. Ernest Ranglin – Below the Bassline
25. Frank Gambale – Thinking Out Loud
26. George Barnes – Don’t Get Around Much Anymore
27. George Benson – Bad Benson
28. George Benson – Breezin’
29. George Benson – Beyond the Blue Horizon
30. George Benson – The George Benson Cookbook
31. George Van Eps – Mellow Guitar
32. Grant Green – Green Street
    
33. Grant Green – Idle Moments
34. Grant Green – The Complete Quartets With Sonny Clark
35. Hank Garland – Jazz Winds From a New Direction
36. Herb Ellis/Joe Pass – Seven, Come Eleven
37. Herb Ellis/Joe Pass – Two for the Road
38. Howard Alden/George Van Eps – 13 Strings
39. Howard Roberts – HR Is A Dirty Guitar Player
40. Jeff Beck – Blow by Blow
41. Jim Hall – Concierto
42. Jim Hall – Live
43. Jim Hall/Bill Evans – Intermodulation
44. Jim Hall/Bill Evans – Undercurrent
45. Jim Hall/Ron Carter – Alone Together
46. Jimmy Bruno – Burnin’
47. Jimmy Raney – Wisteria
48. Joe Beck – Strangers in the Night
49. Joe Diorio Trio – Live
50. Joe Pass – For Django
51. Joe Pass – Virtuoso
    
52. John Abercrombie – Timeless
53. John Basile – The Desmond Project
54. John McLaughlin – Extrapolation
55. John Scofield – A Go Go
56. John Scofield – Hand Jive
57. Johnny Smith – Johnny Smith
58. Johnny Smith – Moonligh in Vermont (w Stan Getz)
59. Jonathan Kreisberg – Unearth
60. Kenny Burrell – Guitar Forms
    
61. Kenny Burrell – Midnight Blue
62. Kevin Eubanks – Guitarist
63. Kurt Rosenwinkel – Deep Song
64. Larry Carlton – Last Nite
65. Larry Coryell (w John McLaughlin) – Spaces
66. Lee Ritenour – Rit’s House
67. Lenny Breau – Live on Bourbon Street
68. Luiz Bonfa – Solo in Rio 1959
69. Martin Taylor – Spirit of Django
70. Mike Stern – Play
71. Mike Stern – Standards (and Other Songs)
72. Mike Stern – Upside Downside
73. Mundel Lowe – Guitar Moods
74. Nguyen Le – Walking on the Tiger’s Tail
75. Norman Brown – After the Storm
76. Pat Martino – El Hombre
77. Pat Martino – Footprints
78. Pat Metheny – Bright Size Life
79. Pat Metheny – Question and Answer
80. Pat Metheny/Charlie Haden – Beyond The Missouri Sky
81. Pat Metheny/John Scofield – I can see Your House From Here
82. Peter Bernstein – Earth Tones
83. Peter White – Caravan of Dreams
84. Phillip Catherine – Summer Night
85. Ralph Towner – Solstice
86. Rene Thomas Quintet – Guitar Groove
87. Robben Ford – Tiger Walk
88. Ronny Jordan – The Antidote
89. Rosenberg Trio – Caravan
90. Stanley Jordan – Stolen Moments
91. Steve Kahn – The Suitcase (Live)
92. Sylvain Luc – Trio Sud
93. Tal Farlow – Verve Jazz Masters 41
94. Ted Greene – Solo Guitar
95. Tuck Andress – Wreckless Precision
96. Wes Montgomery – Boss Guitar
97. Wes Montgomery – Bumpin’
98. Wes Montgomery – Full House
99. Wes Montgomery – Smokin’ at the Half Note
100. Wes Montgomery – The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery

Do you agree with this list? Who was ignored? Which albums if any should be tossed? Comment please

Posted via web from Deal Expert

Just out – The Top 100 Albums of All Time – Jazz Guitar

This is a great list for all jazz fans and guitar players.   All guitarists, even punkers and metal heads gotta respect the jazz cats.  Thanks to jazzguitar.be for this.

This list is like cheating to get your jazz cred. I’ll admit, I’m ashamed I don’t have more of these.  Check them out!

 

Top 100 Albums – Jazz Guitar

1. Al Di Meola – Elegant Gypsy
2. Allan Holdsworth – Metal Fatigue
3. Antonio Carlos Jobim – Wave
4. Baden Powell – At the Rio Jazz Club
5. Barney Kessel – Kessel Plays Standards
6. Barney Kessel – The Poll Winners
7. Barry Galbraith – Guitar and the Wind 
8. Bill Frisell – East/West
9. Bireli Lagrene – Gypsy Project
10. Bireli Lagrene – Standards
11. Bucky and John Pizzarelli – Contrasts
12. Charlie Byrd – At The Village Vanguard
13. Charlie Byrd – The Guitar Artistry of Charlie Byrd
14. Charlie Christian – Genius of the Electric Guitar
15. Charlie Christian – Solo Flight
16. Charlie Hunter – Bing Bing Bing
17. Danny Gatton – Untouchable
18. Django Reinhardt – Djangology
19. Django Reinhardt – Quintet du Hot Club de France
20. Earl Klugh – One on One
21. Ed Bickert – Live at The Garden Party
22. Eddie Lang – Jazz Guitar Virtuoso
23. Emily Remler – Firefly
24. Ernest Ranglin – Below the Bassline
25. Frank Gambale – Thinking Out Loud
26. George Barnes – Don’t Get Around Much Anymore
27. George Benson – Bad Benson
28. George Benson – Breezin’
29. George Benson – Beyond the Blue Horizon
30. George Benson – The George Benson Cookbook
31. George Van Eps – Mellow Guitar
32. Grant Green – Green Street
    
33. Grant Green – Idle Moments
34. Grant Green – The Complete Quartets With Sonny Clark
35. Hank Garland – Jazz Winds From a New Direction
36. Herb Ellis/Joe Pass – Seven, Come Eleven
37. Herb Ellis/Joe Pass – Two for the Road
38. Howard Alden/George Van Eps – 13 Strings
39. Howard Roberts – HR Is A Dirty Guitar Player
40. Jeff Beck – Blow by Blow
41. Jim Hall – Concierto
42. Jim Hall – Live
43. Jim Hall/Bill Evans – Intermodulation
44. Jim Hall/Bill Evans – Undercurrent
45. Jim Hall/Ron Carter – Alone Together
46. Jimmy Bruno – Burnin’
47. Jimmy Raney – Wisteria
48. Joe Beck – Strangers in the Night
49. Joe Diorio Trio – Live
50. Joe Pass – For Django
51. Joe Pass – Virtuoso
    
52. John Abercrombie – Timeless
53. John Basile – The Desmond Project
54. John McLaughlin – Extrapolation
55. John Scofield – A Go Go
56. John Scofield – Hand Jive
57. Johnny Smith – Johnny Smith
58. Johnny Smith – Moonligh in Vermont (w Stan Getz)
59. Jonathan Kreisberg – Unearth
60. Kenny Burrell – Guitar Forms
    
61. Kenny Burrell – Midnight Blue
62. Kevin Eubanks – Guitarist
63. Kurt Rosenwinkel – Deep Song
64. Larry Carlton – Last Nite
65. Larry Coryell (w John McLaughlin) – Spaces
66. Lee Ritenour – Rit’s House
67. Lenny Breau – Live on Bourbon Street
68. Luiz Bonfa – Solo in Rio 1959
69. Martin Taylor – Spirit of Django
70. Mike Stern – Play
71. Mike Stern – Standards (and Other Songs)
72. Mike Stern – Upside Downside
73. Mundel Lowe – Guitar Moods
74. Nguyen Le – Walking on the Tiger’s Tail
75. Norman Brown – After the Storm
76. Pat Martino – El Hombre
77. Pat Martino – Footprints
78. Pat Metheny – Bright Size Life
79. Pat Metheny – Question and Answer
80. Pat Metheny/Charlie Haden – Beyond The Missouri Sky
81. Pat Metheny/John Scofield – I can see Your House From Here
82. Peter Bernstein – Earth Tones
83. Peter White – Caravan of Dreams
84. Phillip Catherine – Summer Night
85. Ralph Towner – Solstice
86. Rene Thomas Quintet – Guitar Groove
87. Robben Ford – Tiger Walk
88. Ronny Jordan – The Antidote
89. Rosenberg Trio – Caravan
90. Stanley Jordan – Stolen Moments
91. Steve Kahn – The Suitcase (Live)
92. Sylvain Luc – Trio Sud
93. Tal Farlow – Verve Jazz Masters 41
94. Ted Greene – Solo Guitar
95. Tuck Andress – Wreckless Precision
96. Wes Montgomery – Boss Guitar
97. Wes Montgomery – Bumpin’
98. Wes Montgomery – Full House
99. Wes Montgomery – Smokin’ at the Half Note
100. Wes Montgomery – The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery

Do you agree with this list? Who was ignored? Which albums if any should be tossed? Comment please

Posted via web from Deal Expert

Is it urgency or homework that will make your start-up a success?

The most common, and seemingly most sage advice from successful entrepreneurs is to "just do it".  Launch into your venture with unquestioned urgency and commitment, without it your enterprise is doomed!  That seems right, and yet there is another side to the coin we should all say out loud.

Most startups will fail.

If you're trying to build a tech company it's a particulary dicey proposition, and you owe it to your family, friends, and any employees to read this book: High Tech StartUp.  It's a sobering book full of facts, figures, and reality that anyone hoping to succeed as a startup needs to deal with eyes wide open.

The point is not that a passionate person with an idea and a dream should not pursue it with full commitment; indeed how else to succeed?  How else to change, to better the world!  However, there are other factors every entrepreneur would benefit from looking at coldly & rationally.

Imagine you decide to be a surfer and catch a wave.  So I give you, and thousands of others like you, a boat ride out to the middle of the ocean, no land in sight.  Everyone starts paddling in various directions with great enthusiasm, hoping a wave will rise up behind them and give them a glorious ride to shore.

"Wait," you say, "which way is best to paddle?  Where is shore and which direction will the waves come from?"

"Is a wave coming soon?  Or will my arms be tired and as limp as spaghetti noodles when a wave finally arrives?"

"When a wave comes, will I be close enough to shore for it to break and carry me?"

"Will the wave be strong enough to carry me?"

"Will the wave be ridable, or will it break all at once?"

"Will it throw me on the rocks, only for others to see and learn from my mistakes and ride successfully?"

All I can say is that these seem like good questions.

Riding waves, whether in innovation or in the ocean, is hard.  This endeavor takes great fortitude, persistence, self-belief, and endurance, but it only works if you are in the right place at the right time.

Luck favors the bold and confident, but rarely the foolish.  You have a much better chance at success if you know where you are and learn to read the ocean around you.

Then, when you have made your mark, you will have your chance to tell all the hopeful paddlers in the middle of the ocean that it is about a sense of urgency.  

As your professor would say, urgency is a necessary but not sufficient condition.  Do your homework.

Posted via email from Really Bad Ideas

August 24th is Duke Kahanamoku Day

Duke who?  Yeah, I think we went to a Dukes restaurant on vacation once, right?

Duke Kahanamoku, an exceptional man and person, is worth remembering for inspiration.  Duke went confidently against the grain of the larger world in the positive manner he believed in, and he made the world a richer place in doing so.  He did what he loved, and shared what he loved with the world.

Duke Kahanamoku was born August 24, 1890, a full blooded Hawaiian, but he was a common Hawaiian by birth.  So why will you find statues of him at various places around the world?  It was the things Duke did and the way he interacted with people that made his name ring true, for he carried an inherent air of nobility.  Duke was royalty of his own making, by his character and action.

Growing up around the beaches of Waikiki, Duke spent countless hours in the ocean surfing, swimming and paddling canoe, the things he loved, and he was probably as comfortable in and under the ocean and most people are at a grassy park.

It was swimming that brought Duke to world attention, and Duke that brought Aloha and surfing to the attention of the world.

When Duke was 20, an attorney clocked the 100 yard pace of one his daily swims at Diamond Head and realized he was swimming a world class pace.  Convincing Duke and his friends to form a club and enter Hawaii's first sanctioned swim meet, Duke broke the world record for the 100 yard freestyle in Honolulu Harbor.  Mainstream swimming refused to believe it, suggesting the unconventional venue must have given him some advantage.  Duke proved them wrong in the following year at the Stockholm Olympics where he won the gold medal in the 100 meter freestyle and set a new world record.  An unknown, Duke developed his swimming style out in the ocean, learning from any visiting swimmers he met at Waikiki.

Competitive swimming provided a avenue to connect the world outside Hawai'i with Hawai'i, and Duke became an unofficial ambassador for Hawai'i, surfing, and aloha for decades.

For the millions around the world who surf, it's because Duke led the way.

Duke's creed

Try meeting or leaving people with aloha, you’ll be surprised by their reaction. I believe it and it is my creed. Aloha to you.

— Duke Paoa Kahanamoku

A few things about Duke

• Participated in the Olympics from age 22 through 42, winning 3 gold medals, 2 silver, and a bronze over 20 years
• Rode a monster wave at Waikiki for over a mile on a 16' finless board, a legendary ride never equaled
• An incomparable ocean waterman, he rescued drowning men, fought a 10' eel, and filled his life with many more heroics now lost in time
• Introduced the world to surfing, swimming, and Aloha 

Learn more about Duke

• Duke via Hawaiianswimboat
• Dukekahanamoku.com
• Duke at Honolulu.gov
• Duke_Kahanamoku on Wikipedia
• Google search: Duke Kahanamoku

Posted via email from Really Bad Ideas

When a simple tools fail…

…fixing things is harder than if a more sophisticated tool was started with.

This morning Posterous, which I generally think is great! has let me down, let me count the ways:

• Failure to properly handle linked images like
• Lack of good options for adding or managing images after they're posted
• General editing inconsistency from HTML or RTF to actual post

I don't like looking gift horses in the mouth, but I went from spending a couple minutes to share some thoughts inspiring me, to spending a whole lot of time trying to fix an unpalatable post, and regrets for having automatically pinged my friends to come see it.  And I never could get it right.

My apologies friends…

Posted via email from Really Bad Ideas