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Featured Content
"Click It Or Ticket" Isn't For Everyone*
Am I the only person left who still hates these seatbelt laws? I always, without exception, use my seatbelt in the car, and I always make sure my passengers do, too. It has nothing to do with the law. My parents made sure all of us did as kids, emphasizing that they wouldn't even start the car moving until everybody was buckled in. And that was before Tennessee passed that stupid law.
I am an adult. I am a free man. I am not a ward of the state. I have the right to make my own decisions regarding my safety.
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5 Reasons To Buy A Hybrid Or Diesel Vehicle*
How do you know what vehicle is best for you? Do you go hybrid, electric, diesel, bio-diesel, or hydrogen? How does a person choose from all the options?
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5 Things To Eat Before You Die*
1. A pound of middling from a smoked whole hog
2. A real fried green tomato
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A Virtual Tour of The Parthenon in Nashville*
Did you know that Nashville is home to the only full scale replica of the Parthenon in Greece, complete with the largest indoor statue in the Western Hemisphere?
You can check the link and see a Visual Tour, and a short History of the Parthenon, or take a trip through the Nashville Parthenon Photo Gallery.
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All Things Google*
Google ate my afternoon!...
Have you kept up with all the google logos? How about the zeitgeist? Staged a google fight? Created a google image montage? Searched in/for a book? Checked the blogscope? Or the unofficial googleblog? Gotten your own stuff on google? Googlewhacked? Gotten some google code?
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BA: Bloggers Anonymous Support Group*
Finally. There is a Bloggers Anonymous (BA) support group. I should be relieved. The next time that I see a new college grad's name with a BA extension, I will know that I am among friends.
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Barkley Marathon Is For The Truly Insane*
Brian sent me this link to the Barkley Marathons, a grueling foot race inspired by James Earl Ray's attempt to escape from Brushy Mountain State Prison.
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Blackberry/Peach Cobbler*
I grew up on a small farm in Knoxville, Tennessee not far from the Smoky Mountains. Directly behind our house was a field that belonged to a neighbor that he had allowed to go fallow. What this meant in practical terms was there was a huge field of blackberries just outside the kitchen door. My father would regularly gather us kids, hand us empty paint cans, and lead expeditions back into the tangle of briars.
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BlogNashville Recap Via National News*
The Associated Press has a story on BlogNashville. Check it out here at the Editor & Publisher website or via this Google News search - it has run in print or online at more than 100 newspaper and media outlets including Business Week, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Forbes, San Jose Mercury News, Kansas City Star, Orlanda Sentinel, Baltimore Sun, the South Africa's Independent Online, and numerous smaller papers.
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Borat, the Movie! *
This lawsuit may give some insight into the central mystery of Borat: are these people on the level?
Read more... at Pith In The Wind
Read more... at EricCoomer Blog
Read more... at Yewknee
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Chattanooga Being Considered For Web Design Festival*
So a few days ago Mark n' I get an e-mail from the guys at Tubatomic that a couple of reps from the Webdesign International Festival were visiting Chattanooga to checkit for having the necessary facilities & appeal to permanently host the US Webdesign Festival, and that we needed to meet at the Convention Center for a presentation and to help sell the city.
So of course, we spread the word and Mark n' I headed over to the Convention Center. The main Webdesign Festival is held in Limoges, France, from which the US winners would compete with and attend.
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Corn Reigns Supreme*
We bow down to thee oh great corn. You are the elixir of our lives, the ever growing source of our energy, fuel for our bodies and our vehicles.
Holy Corn. Open your ears and hear us praise ye maize.
Corn is now one of our biggest sources for food and is the choice for producing ethanol. Sugar would be cheaper and more energy efficient but politics and greed will keep the sweet savings away from ethanol.
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Cosmic Rules of Golf*
First, about the magic tee. I realize that I didn’t mention it much in the last post... It’s a sensitive subject. You see, I painstakingly spent countless hours carving that wooden tee myself out of a slightly bigger tee that I found beside the lightening-struck trunk of a tree on the twelfth day of the twelfth month after the second full moon of the winter solstice that followed the day that John Lennon was shot. I was two years old. I named it Wonder Bo. I had no room for the Y .... Now to the cosmic rules that seem to apply to most amateur golfers and weekend warriors.
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Could Walmart Become The New Target?*
Have you been in a new Wal-Mart lately? They just opened a new Wal-Mart in Tiftonia recently and I went in there a week ago. No longer your parent’s Wal-Mart. So why the change? One word: Target.
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Disaster Planning For Entrepreneurs*
As in the wake of 9-11, we have seen businesses paying more attention to their disaster plans in the days after Katrina. Red Herring has telling examples from the technology sector.
Here are some suggestions on how entrepreneurs can prepare for disasters:
1. I would suggest for any business that the cliche' "Cash is King" has never been more true. After Katrina, there will be a prolonged period where many businesses almost ground to a halt. Having cash reserves will allow businesses to make it through the initial economic paralysis. Thirty days cash reserves (enough cash to cover essential and fixed expenses) would be my minimum recommendation. Even ninety days of reserve would not be too much to have at this period of time. One business owner recently told me that the new goal that many are setting is six months of cash on hand.
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Do Fundraisers Build Character?*
I don't think fundraisers build character.
Whether it's girl scout cookies, gift catalogs, Sonic Cards, Entertainment Books, tickets to local concerts, popcorn buckets, restaurant discount books, Pizza Hut coupons, Subway coupons, cookie dough, walks, runs, jumping rope, bowling, Valentine's Day flowers, etc. it all drives me nuts. And in Nashville I think I've been guilted into buying or sponsoring everything on this list at least once.
I am not at all against charitable giving per se, it's just that I don't like the door to door high-pressure sales (and don't even get me started on the Tennessean's cold call telephones sales shtick) blitzes. I especially don't like when we put little kids through it.
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Dollywood... Best Amusement Park In The World?*
Dollywood is #1: In the World.
I know, I know, you're saying "yeah right." But you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Let me begin by saying that my wife is a bigger fan of rollercoasters than I am, but as our son gets older, I am becoming more of an enthusiast. Or perhaps connoisseur. Because I really don't like old wooden coasters that thrash you around. Nor am I a huge fan of over-slick, super-fast steel coasters.
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East Knoxville And Park City Need Your Feedback*
This road project is a once and a lifetime opportunity for Knoxville to take full advantage of the development potential at stake and to help fragile communities move forward with a greater sense of possibility. We want to be clear that we have no interest in delaying this project—only making it better.
East Knoxville, or more specifically, Park City has perhaps the most to gain and the most to lose if this project is not executed properly.
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Farragut Awarded Tennessee's Most Business Friendly City*
After reading the [above] article, I must admit that based on the factors that were used for selecting the town, that they are probably right in selecting Farragut. That being said, Farragut still has much further to go to be truly business friendly. Why are we still losing businesses to Knoxville & surrounding areas? Why do we still have storefronts and other businesses that are empty? What else has the town done to encourage business to come in? Come on, is the town going to "rest" on the laurels handed to them, or raise the standards even higher?
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Highlights: Blogger Gathering In Nashville*
Last night we had our second blogger gathering here in Nashville. As you saw below, the event was organized by Thursday Night Fever while being sponsored (in the form of appetizers) by News 2.
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Hometown News Being Fed Nationwide*
Daily newspapers in most of the places I've lived or worked have all jumped on the RSS bandwagon, including my former employer, "the nation's oldest continuously published newspaper," the Hartford Courant, as well as the Raleigh News & Observer, the Boston Globe -- and now my "current" local, the Knoxville News Sentinel.
(RSS or "Really Simple Syndication" means I can subscribe to an automatic feed of the paper's headlines. Here's my verbose old RSS background page, but these days each paper provides its own brief explanation. See the pages linked to the publication names.)
Here's an interesting twist for serious news-addicts or RSS evangelists: Those four papers just happen to be owned by different media conglomerates. Providing a new service like RSS may depend on corporate-level approval or multi-publication software decisions. I suspect that means there's a good chance RSS soon will be available throughout those chains.
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Hurricane Katrina: Photos of People Helping People*
Following are the responses received to our Katrina Blog -- a request for photographs that depict "good news"... people helping people and having a POSITIVE impact on the lives of Hurricane Katrina's victims.
If you haven't sent in your photo yet, you've got until September 18th to submit a photo that shows you or your family doing something that's POSITIVE and DIRECTLY RELATED to the ongoing relief efforts.
Reminder: Every photo = another donation to the American Red Cross!
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Images from Appalachia*
Downtown Elizabethon, TN... Elizabethton's famous covered bridge... Downtown Boone, NC... Sims Pond overlook, along the Blue Ridge Parkway... Pilot Ridge overlook, elevation 4,400 feet... Raven Rock overlook... Grandfather Mountain, elevation 5,939 feet... Laurel Bloomery, Johnson County, TN.
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Is Global Warming Always Bad?*
According to the Official G8 website there are two topics that are going to be in the forefront of this years G8 summit: Africa and climate change. I think we can all agree that Africa needs some help. Thousands of people are dying from AIDS in the countries of Africa and most of the countries are way behind development wise. Not only is what's happening over there terrible but its an open wound for the rest of the world too, when the world community tries to move ahead technologically and agriculturally, but Africa is holding us back. We might not agree on how to help Africa but I think everybody agrees that they need help.
But what about this Climate Change business? Is the globe really warming? They say that its risen 0.6° over the last 100 years. "Wow, that's not very much. Why should I care", you might say.
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Jack Daniel's Distillery Tour Photos*
Saturday I took a little mini-road trip to Lynchburg, TN to visit the Jack Daniel's Distillery. While the weather wasn't that great (mostly overcast with a light drizzle at times), I did get a few decent pictures to share.
Enjoy...
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Jon Stewart And Weblogs...
Are They Credible?*
For those who wonder about the "credibility" of blogs and the role that weblogs are playing in today's media, journalism, and news... try this on for size.
It's Jon Stewart's take on bloggers. In this full-length video clip from The Daily Show, you will hear the following with regard to weblogs:
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Los Angeles, CA Compared To Nashville, TN*
Los Angeles vs. Nashville
*Malibu Beach vs. Elm Hill Marina
*PCH vs. the Natchez Trace
*Stella Artois vs. Miller Light
*Amazing shows every night vs. amazing shows from time to time
*75 degrees and no humidity vs. 95 degrees and 90% humidity
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Lusting...(G-Rated)*
I see you, yes you. Easing ever so slowly thru the mid-section and tantalizing me with heated breaths that come in urgent puffs. I have never wanted anything so very badly in my life, yet you creep along at your own pace enjoying my anticipation and relishing the extent of my desire. The sweat rolls off of my face as I wonder with bated breath when you will reach me and bring some relief to my longing. Oh yes, yes YES!!!!!
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Measuring The Size Of Charlie Brown's Head*
Tonight on ABC they aired the 1965 Charlie Brown Christmas Special that features the tree that I purchased.
While watching the show, I realized that I had the tools to quantify a question that has puzzled me for ages. Just how big a blockhead is Charlie Brown?
So, I measured the tree...
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Memphis Bloggers Meet Up May 25th
Len at Dark Bilious Vapors has organized a Blogger Bash to coincide with the need to celebrate my dissertation defense and Dark Bilious’ Karen Memphis visit. Here’s the info:
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Memphis Post Secret*
You may or may not have heard about an anonymous community art project called Post Secret. If you have, you probably think it's pretty damn cool, like I do. If you haven't, you should check it out. The following will make a lot more since if you know what I'm talking about.
I want you to send in your Post Secrets, Memphis-style.
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Memphis Week In Review*
The Commercial Appeal website requires a free registration, which can be circumvented by using BugMeNot. Also, Brock highly recommends FlashBlock to improve the CA website experience (I've never tried it, so I can't speak from experience myself...).
April 1: Some members of the Memphis School Board are questioning the wisdom of closing five schools while "11 others are bursting at the seams".
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Memphis Zoo Virtual Tour*
I am intrigued with geobloging. Well, it turns out that I can be obsessive about things. It's taken most of my spare moments at work, but after a week or so you can now take a Virtual Tour(ish) of the Memphis Zoo.
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Middle TN Bloggers & Podcasters Meeting: April 22*
The next Blogger and Podcaster's meeting is slated for Saturday, April 22nd at 2:00 PM.
Espresso Joe's Coffee Co is located at:
901 Rock Springs Rd.
Smyrna, TN
615-220-2870
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Nashville "Wheel Tax" Controversy*
The Tennessean has a story today exploring whether the $20 "wheel tax" increase passed last week by Nashville's Metro Council was passed legally under state law. BillHobbs.com was the first news publication to raise that issue, two days ago in an article titled Nashville "Wheel Tax" Increase May Not Be Legal. That article led to a second publication, the Nashville Scene, to explore the wheel tax increase's legality in an online article by Bruce Barry that generated a very good discussion.
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Nashville Bloggers Who Inspire Me*
Well, here it is. The very first rexpodcast. (And it shows.) Concept: take a recorder to a blogger meetup and interview other bloggers in Nashville. Result: fascinating for me, who knows for you. This is 27 minutes long and 30 minutes was my self-imposed limit. So, the good (or bad) news is, I have more conversations and will probably be doing another one of these.
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Nashville Tennessee's Historic Printers Alley*
Although the Printers have long since gone, The World Famous Printers Alley still remains, providing a Flair of Bourbon Street for those in search of Wine, Women and Song with a strong tinge of Naughty.
Located between Third and Fourth Avenues stretching from Union to Church Streets, the Alley started before the turn of the century as the location of many of Nashville's first Publishing and Printing Companies. Without the Country Musical influences, Nashville could have possibly been known as the Printing Capitol of the World. As late as the 1960's, Nashville was home to over 36 Printing Companies and many other numerous Businesses, whose roles were to support and supply the massive industry.
In the late 1800's Printers Alley was a part of "The Men's District". Many Cafes, Saloons, Gambling Halls and Speakeasies sprang up to cater to the men of Nashville's Print shops, Judges, Lawyers, Politicians and other Nashville Elite were also known to frequent the Alley.
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Old News, New Views...*
You knew it was coming -- the Cheney's Got a Gun video. UPDATE: Same song, different visuals.
Letterman reacts, and, of course, Jon Stewart nails it.
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Overlooked UT/LSU Game Awards*
Rocky Top Talk, a fine UT football news site, missed a couple of post-UT/LSU game awards:
- Best The-First-Time-Was-Just-to-Warn-You Award
- Worst Waste of the God-Given Right to Play-Overturning Instant Replay
- Best Rerun
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Pacman Jones of the Tennessee Titans*
Okay, there's a zillion people bitching about Pacman Jones, particularly if you're anywhere near talk-radio. I certainly wouldn't disagree. He's not done himself any favors this week after his arrest at the former Trap. Grinning and munching on a toothpick during your Night Court booking isn't cool. Having your agent go on the biggest sports-talk show in town the next day and talk about how the arrest isn't that big of deal is definitely not cool. We all do stupid things and hang out with stupid people in our early 20s, but our actions generally don't have millions of dollars of revenue riding on them. And being "ghetto"might fly in Atlanta, but not here.
Therefore, since the Titans presumably have some big-time negotiating leverage now, I have a proposal for how to possibly straighten this guy out and benefit the team at the same time.
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Photos Of "Old Nashville"
Have you ever wondered what Nashville looked like during the Civil War or in the Victorian era? Then you will find it fun and entertaining to check out these Old Nashville Photos, and take a visual trip back to Nashville's earlier days. Photographs range from 1860 to 1910 and include Downtown Nashville as you've never seen it before...
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Reasons To Live In Tennessee*
Reason # 3 why I live in Tennessee...
I moved to Tennessee from Florida for many, reasons. The #1 being it's a beautiful place to live and the seasons are moderate all year round - nothing too severe. Reason # 2 is that good ole Southern hospitality. The folks here are some of the most pleasant people on earth. And reason # 3 is the cost of living was significantly lower than Florida. Especially after Hurricane Andrew where my homeowners insurance was almost as much as my mortgage payment..
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Regulating Speech On The Internet*
I meant to post this yesterday. An anonymous source emailed this story about a very scary hearing this past Thursday. It's important all bloggers know what the federal government is trying to do to our free speech. Here is the opening statement of the hearing:
The Committee is meeting today to hear testimony on the subject of regulation of political speech and activity on the Internet. We have a diverse and interesting group of witnesses here today to testify and I look forward to hearing from them.
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Riding The Dragon*
Autumn is in full color explosion in Tennessee, which means that Winter is not too far away. Winter means my riding season starts to quickly taper off as the roads get very frosty in the mornings here. So, with an Indian Summer forecast of mid-70’s and sunny skies, I decided to play hooky from work and take the last opportunity of the year to travel some of my favorite roads in East Tennessee - The Dragon (aka 318 curves in 11 miles) and the Cherohala Skyway (41 miles of mile-high splendor).
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Snakes On A Blog*
Oh yea!! its on....I am going to see Snakes on a Plane tonight (735 at Green hills). I know it is probably going to be bad but still...
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So Dark the Con of Mac*
Is it merely a coincidence that the Fifth Ave. Apple Store is opening the same night as The Da Vinci Code? After seeing the movie, I think I've unraveled the DaApple Code, proving the movie is filled with hidden references to the Fifth Avenue Apple store -- or is it vice versa?
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Strawberry Festivals In Tennessee*
The month of May has finally arrived in Tennessee and that only means one thing. It's Strawberry Festival Season. If you are a true Strawberry Lover, treat yourself to one of the many Strawberry festivals that Tennessee has to offer; you won't be disappointed.
Strawberry Festival season in Tennessee is only during the month of May, so it is celebrated through out the state in grand style.
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Talking Football In Tennessee*
It's hot as hell around Nashville! Been close to 100 with heat-index OVER 100 for several days and no relief in sight. It’s almost impossible to do anything meaningful outside, at least for more than a few minutes at a time. But it is never too hot, or cold, to think about football...
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The "Inside Scoop" On Shopping Malls*
Here's a few choice things to consider next time you're at the mall:
-Women will buy more if they hear their heels clicking on polished hard surfaces, so designers often use hard flooring in hallways. Inside the stores themselves, there is often carpeting or softer surfaces to lure customers in and make them feel at home.
-Escalators are placed strategically to force shoppers to pass the maximum number of storefronts.
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The "Tennessee Waltz"*
At least two and possibly three members of the Tennessee legislature were arrested and hauled out of Legislative Plaza in handcuffs this morning and my sources indicate it may be based on allegations that they accepted money to sponsor legislation.
...The press conference is underway. I'm listening. The arrests are the result of a two-year investigation by the FBI, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney General's Office, and charges include extortion and bribery.
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The Air You Breathe In Loudon County*
It is said when you have your health you have everything. Loudon County tops Tennessee in cancer rates and respiratory diseases. I have wanted a farm in Loudon or Roane County. Through my work I have visited the Trigen, Viskase and AE Staley plants. So much for my dream. There is no point in living near any of these plants. Are these plants worth the employment and taxes they provide to the local community? Don't the people that live in Loudon County deserve the same quality of life other Tennesseans have?
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The First White House Blogger*
Who was the first White House blogger? This is old news, in a couple of ways, but Robert Cox blogged something last night that, for obvious reasons, made me a little curious, myself. Bob, in reference to the publicity Garrett Graff received for his efforts to be the first blogger to get a day-pass to attend a White House press briefing, says that Garrett asked him whether or not that was a "first."
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The New Apple iPhone*
I made it! I actually made it the whole day without hearing about the Keynote speech given by Steve Jobs earlier today.
The iPhone won't start shipping until June, so I guess I'll start saving money now for the $599 price tag (for the 8GB model of course), plus whatever the actual monthly service fee is going to be.
The iPhone did more than *cough* exceed my *sniffle* expectations, it actually made me feel a little ill. *violent diarrhea*
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There Are Awards For All Kinds...*
Yes, it's that magical time of the year again when the Darwin Awards are bestowed, honoring the least Evolved among us. Here then, are the glorious winners.
Darwin Award Winners:
1. When his 38-caliber revolver failed to fire at his intended victim during a holdup in Long Beach, California, would be robber James Elliot did something that can only inspire wonder. He peered down the barrel and tried the trigger again. This time it worked..... And now, the honorable mentions:
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Titans Draft Buzz*
The Titans haven't drafted an offensive lineman on the first day of the draft since 1999 (G Zach Piller, third round), and you have to go all the way back to 1993 to find the last time they used a first-round pick on an offensive tackle (Brad Hopkins). Instead, the team has drafted linemen in the second day and turned them over to offensive line coach Mike Munchak, who has developed players like G Benji Olson and C Justin Hartwig into dependable starters. But...
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Touring Tennessee Wineries*
We've found the best of the best when it comes to Tennessee Wine, from locations of local wineries across the state, to the local events and festivities in the Middle Tennessee Area.
We've also listed some of the best national wine websites available on the web, from references sites to interactive sites.
Cheers!
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Welcome To The Neighborhood... Life In Memphis*
You read about it in the paper, sometimes, and you see it on television almost all the time, but life in center-city Memphis can sometimes be awful. I don't know what to say when I read about stuff like this.
On my own street (Monroe, just down from Sekisui), I presently live next door to a drug dealer. He has spotters and assistants at four of the six apartment buildings on the block. Traffic is low, but I always have someone I don't know hanging out just outside my apartment.
Back in January the TAC squad conducted a blitz raid on an apartment across the street that netted four people, a lot of money and a very sophisticated video surveillance setup aimed at the street! We can't get folks to move into our building because they come by at night to check out the street, see what's happening and never come back. The landlord claims to be doing something, but it's been more than a year now, so you have to wonder....
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Young Peoples' Habits With Online Media*
Rupert Murdoch, head of the international media empire called News Corp., has his eye on young people and their new habits with online media:
"What is happening is, in short, a revolution in the way young people are accessing news. They don't want to rely on the morning paper for their up-to-date information. They don't want to rely on a God-like figure from above to tell them what's important. And to carry the religion analogy a bit further, they certainly don't want news presented as gospel."
"Instead, they want their news on demand, when it works for them. They want control over their media, instead of being controlled by it. They want to question, to probe, to offer a different angle."
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iPod Phone To Play Your mp3's*
A free program called Mass Storage Synchronizer lets you sync other MP3-playing mobiles with iTunes. Take that, 100-song limit!
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iPod-compatible Levi's Jeans*
Whoever would have thought?
Jeans giant Levi's is hoping to woo fashionistas and music aficionados alike with its new iPod-compatible RedWire DLX jeans, due out this fall.
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