This Saturday (tomorrow), October 28, my family and I will be participating in a very special event, WALK NOW benefiting the Cure Autism Now Foundation. It is a 5K walk and community resource fair with the proceeds going to further the search for causes and cures for autism. Autism is a devastating disease affected over 1.5 American children and their families. 1 in every 166 children is newly diagnosed with autism. Autism is the 3rd most common developmental disorder, following mental retardation and cerebral palsy.
You may be wondering why Cure Autism Now and WALK NOW are so important to me and my family. My involvement stems from a very personal and deep emotional contact with this complicated disease.
My 7-year-old son, Sean, was diagnosed with a form of Autism, Asperger's Syndrome, four years ago. I am very proud of Sean and impressed with his progress so far thanks to hard work on his part, our part and an excellent program within the Cy-Fair School District.
I strongly feel that I can have a direct impact on finding causes and cures for autism. I also feel strongly that Cure Autism Now is a wonderful organization which has been instrumental in furthering autism research. In 1995, when Cure Autism Now was founded there were only 12 researches focused solely on autism. Today there are over 300. That is progress. WALK NOW gives us a tangible way to help the nearly 1.5 million other Americans affected by autism and related disorders.
I am asking for your support in helping us raise money for this worthy cause. Any contribution you are able to make would be greatly appreciated, but I ask you to give big as there is a big need for further research. My personal goal is to raise $500.00 for Cure Autism Now and I hope to far exceed that goal. Last year I raised just shy of $500!
It is easiest to donate online by going to our personal webpage at Sean's CAN page.
Please feel free to forward this on.
I look forward to hearing from you. I thank you very much!
Always,
Marc
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Friday, October 27, 2006
Save big on a tiny income
19 ways – and counting -- to save when you make next to nothing.
Save big on a tiny income - MSN Money
Save big on a tiny income - MSN Money
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Ultimate Alliance In Stores
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, a role-playing video game that brings together superheroes from the Marvel Comics universe, has shipped to retail outlets nationwide, Activision announced.
The game allows players to create their own dream teams from a roster of superheroes that includes Spider-Man, Wolverine, Blade and Captain America to embark on an epic quest that will ultimately determine the fate of Earth and the Marvel universe.
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance is available for the Xbox 360 with a suggested retail price of $59.99; for the Xbox, PlayStation 2, PC and PSP for $39.99; and for the GameBoy Advance for $29.99. PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii versions will be available in mid-November.
Serenity's Fillion On Lost
Serenity star Nathan Fillion guest-stars on the Nov. 8 episode of ABC's hit series Lost, "I Do," which also marks the decision by Kate (Evangeline Lilly) to hook up with either Jack (Matthew Fox) or Sawyer (Josh Holloway). Fillion will play a character named Kevin in the episode, which is the last new one for a while as the series takes a 13-week hiatus, returning in February.
In "I Do," Jack makes a decision regarding Ben's (Michael Emerson) offer, Kate feels helpless when it looks like an angry Pickett (Michael Bowen) is going to make good on his threat to kill Sawyer, and Locke (Terry O'Quinn) discovers a hidden message that may guide him through the next steps on his journey to unlocking the secrets of the island.
"I Do" was written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse and directed by Tucker Gates. It airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
In "I Do," Jack makes a decision regarding Ben's (Michael Emerson) offer, Kate feels helpless when it looks like an angry Pickett (Michael Bowen) is going to make good on his threat to kill Sawyer, and Locke (Terry O'Quinn) discovers a hidden message that may guide him through the next steps on his journey to unlocking the secrets of the island.
"I Do" was written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse and directed by Tucker Gates. It airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
Tonight Only!!!
KISS on the big screen!
You wanted the Best, you got the Best -- KISS on the Big Screen. Experience KISS ALIVE! at Cobo Hall, Detroit 1976. This never-before-seen special one night event will feature a historic Rockumentary - KISS Day in Cadillac, Michigan 1975.
For Only One Night, October 26 at 8PM local. In select theatres nationwide!
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Monday, October 23, 2006
Sunday, October 22, 2006
I caught about 15 minutes...
of Monica Crowley's radio show today. I liked what I heard.
MONICAMEMO.COM Official Online Home of Monica Crowley
MONICAMEMO.COM Official Online Home of Monica Crowley
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Death Road
Watching Death Road on the History Channel right now, scary stuff.
Travel high into the Andes to a road that has more deaths per mile than any other byway in the world. This steep and bumpy road plunges almost 2.5 miles in the four hours it takes to drive it, and those who choose to make the journey will endure an often extremely narrow path that hugs the mountain as it snakes through dramatic, verdant scenery. Twisting between waterfalls and rocky overhangs, the road is unprotected, making near death an almost constant travel companion. A fatal accident every two weeks is not uncommon, and by 1995, the road was commonly referred to as world's most dangerous road. Marsh Mokhtari is our guide, as we explore the people and places along this treacherous path.
All Shows
Travel high into the Andes to a road that has more deaths per mile than any other byway in the world. This steep and bumpy road plunges almost 2.5 miles in the four hours it takes to drive it, and those who choose to make the journey will endure an often extremely narrow path that hugs the mountain as it snakes through dramatic, verdant scenery. Twisting between waterfalls and rocky overhangs, the road is unprotected, making near death an almost constant travel companion. A fatal accident every two weeks is not uncommon, and by 1995, the road was commonly referred to as world's most dangerous road. Marsh Mokhtari is our guide, as we explore the people and places along this treacherous path.
All Shows
Why I still love 'Star Trek'
By Charles Cooper
Upon hearing that a bidder at last weekend's auction of "Star Trek" memorabilia paid $576,000 for a 78-inch-long model of the Starship Enterprise-D, my first reaction was pure snark.
Another yuppie dope, I quickly concluded. Doesn't this guy--and yes, it's a guy--have better ways to spend his dot-com dollars?
But it wasn't a single act of insanity. Over the course of three days, more than $7 million worth of props, models and costumes that figured in the "Star Trek" television series and feature films were auctioned off. That's more than double Christie's presale expectations. (For stories, video and photo galleries on the Christie's auction, fan-driven filming of new "Star Trek" episodes and how life imitates "Star Trek," click here.)
What with the Dow Jones Industrial Average seemingly breaking new records every day, I suppose one could attribute this extraordinary splurge to a surplus of disposable income. Times are good, and as the economic historian Thorstein Veblen noted more than a century ago, Americans never have been shy about engaging in conspicuous consumption.
But that explanation only goes so far. My hunch is this crowd would have been equally ga-ga had the items been auctioned off smack in the middle of the recent recession. That's because "Star Trek" and the adventures of Kirk, Spock and the rest who followed have a special way of speaking to sci-fi fantasies we've carried over from childhood.
The first time I saw William Shatner in his spandex-like suit making out with gorgeous aliens and battling Klingons--the two naturally went hand in hand--it was instant infatuation. I was 10 years old and dreamed of one day taking off for distant planets on a starship just like the Enterprise. Back in the real world, NASA was shortly about to put men on the moon. Maybe wanting to be like Capt. Kirk wasn't so crazy an adolescent fantasy.
My career obviously went in a different direction, and the closest I ever came to a spacecraft was a summertime visit to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. But every astronaut liftoff in the last 20 years has set my pulse racing, returning me to the days when the battles of a fictional starship were more tangible to me than the real-world heroics of the Apollo astronauts.
The Christie's auction again underscored how fan attachment to "Star Trek" is stronger now than it was during the three years the original show appeared on NBC. Put another way, Kirk, Spock and Dr. McCoy were doing their thing when LBJ was still in the White House. The cross-generational appeal of the series is virtually unheard of in the annals of television. Imagine the Nielsens ratings if a network attempted to reincarnate "My Favorite Martian" for prime time.
Lots of science fiction shows have since come and gone since the 1960s. But last time I checked, groupies don't hold conventions to celebrate the "Outer Limits" or "Battlestar Galactica."
Maybe it's the other-worldly gadgetry that various "Star Trek" captains have had at their disposal to use against sundry Klingons, Romulans and Cardassians. When I was a kid, I wanted a phaser in the worst way. My friend next door would have sold his Lionel train set to get his hands on a set of dilithium crystals. (Just what he would have done with them was never entirely clear.)
I think for most folks, though, it was the hokey story lines where the good guys usually--though not always--trumped the bad guys in a way that helped foster a greater good. A professor once tried to explain the appeal of "Star Trek" to me by likening it to Wilsonian idealism. His point was that Kirk et al were on a mission to spread the benefits of the Federation to oppressed aliens throughout the universe. In the aftermath of the First World War, Woodrow Wilson sought self-determination for people living under the rule of multiethnic empires. Kirk = Wilson, the Federation = America.
The story goes that "Star Trek" creator, Gene Roddenberry, wanted a story line that could hold its own against the likes of Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. And that meant writing about technology--lots of it. Holed up in his office with a typewriter and a big idea, he did good.
The personal-computer revolution was still more than a decade away, but Roddenberry's imagined future wasn't that far off the mark. Of course, in one respect he was awfully wrong. On the Enterprise, the computer served the crew. Back on Earth in the early 21st century, it's still too often the other way around.
But at least we can dream of that starry future, the one the Enterprise is pointing to.
Why I still love 'Star Trek' Perspectives CNET News.com
Upon hearing that a bidder at last weekend's auction of "Star Trek" memorabilia paid $576,000 for a 78-inch-long model of the Starship Enterprise-D, my first reaction was pure snark.
Another yuppie dope, I quickly concluded. Doesn't this guy--and yes, it's a guy--have better ways to spend his dot-com dollars?
But it wasn't a single act of insanity. Over the course of three days, more than $7 million worth of props, models and costumes that figured in the "Star Trek" television series and feature films were auctioned off. That's more than double Christie's presale expectations. (For stories, video and photo galleries on the Christie's auction, fan-driven filming of new "Star Trek" episodes and how life imitates "Star Trek," click here.)
What with the Dow Jones Industrial Average seemingly breaking new records every day, I suppose one could attribute this extraordinary splurge to a surplus of disposable income. Times are good, and as the economic historian Thorstein Veblen noted more than a century ago, Americans never have been shy about engaging in conspicuous consumption.
But that explanation only goes so far. My hunch is this crowd would have been equally ga-ga had the items been auctioned off smack in the middle of the recent recession. That's because "Star Trek" and the adventures of Kirk, Spock and the rest who followed have a special way of speaking to sci-fi fantasies we've carried over from childhood.
The first time I saw William Shatner in his spandex-like suit making out with gorgeous aliens and battling Klingons--the two naturally went hand in hand--it was instant infatuation. I was 10 years old and dreamed of one day taking off for distant planets on a starship just like the Enterprise. Back in the real world, NASA was shortly about to put men on the moon. Maybe wanting to be like Capt. Kirk wasn't so crazy an adolescent fantasy.
My career obviously went in a different direction, and the closest I ever came to a spacecraft was a summertime visit to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. But every astronaut liftoff in the last 20 years has set my pulse racing, returning me to the days when the battles of a fictional starship were more tangible to me than the real-world heroics of the Apollo astronauts.
The Christie's auction again underscored how fan attachment to "Star Trek" is stronger now than it was during the three years the original show appeared on NBC. Put another way, Kirk, Spock and Dr. McCoy were doing their thing when LBJ was still in the White House. The cross-generational appeal of the series is virtually unheard of in the annals of television. Imagine the Nielsens ratings if a network attempted to reincarnate "My Favorite Martian" for prime time.
Lots of science fiction shows have since come and gone since the 1960s. But last time I checked, groupies don't hold conventions to celebrate the "Outer Limits" or "Battlestar Galactica."
Maybe it's the other-worldly gadgetry that various "Star Trek" captains have had at their disposal to use against sundry Klingons, Romulans and Cardassians. When I was a kid, I wanted a phaser in the worst way. My friend next door would have sold his Lionel train set to get his hands on a set of dilithium crystals. (Just what he would have done with them was never entirely clear.)
I think for most folks, though, it was the hokey story lines where the good guys usually--though not always--trumped the bad guys in a way that helped foster a greater good. A professor once tried to explain the appeal of "Star Trek" to me by likening it to Wilsonian idealism. His point was that Kirk et al were on a mission to spread the benefits of the Federation to oppressed aliens throughout the universe. In the aftermath of the First World War, Woodrow Wilson sought self-determination for people living under the rule of multiethnic empires. Kirk = Wilson, the Federation = America.
The story goes that "Star Trek" creator, Gene Roddenberry, wanted a story line that could hold its own against the likes of Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. And that meant writing about technology--lots of it. Holed up in his office with a typewriter and a big idea, he did good.
The personal-computer revolution was still more than a decade away, but Roddenberry's imagined future wasn't that far off the mark. Of course, in one respect he was awfully wrong. On the Enterprise, the computer served the crew. Back on Earth in the early 21st century, it's still too often the other way around.
But at least we can dream of that starry future, the one the Enterprise is pointing to.
Why I still love 'Star Trek' Perspectives CNET News.com
Lynne Stewart sentenced to 28 months
28 months?! She should have been given the maximum sentence (30 years)! I'd give her the death sentence. What a menace!
A REAL (ANTI) AMERICAN Redstate
A REAL (ANTI) AMERICAN Redstate
Damn global warming
Al Gore - STFU
BUFFALO, New York
A flood watch was posted Saturday (10-14) as the region's record snowfall melted, and some 350,000 homes and businesses still had no electricity.
More than a day after nearly two feet (60 centimeters) of snow buried western New York, travel bans were lifted Saturday, the airport was open and stores reopened.
However, more than 250,000 customers were without power at noon Saturday and New York State Electric & Gas reported 104,000 customers still in the dark.
More than 300,000 await power and flood watches are posted following record snowfall in Western New York - iht,america,US October Snow - Americas - International Herald Tribune
BUFFALO, New York
A flood watch was posted Saturday (10-14) as the region's record snowfall melted, and some 350,000 homes and businesses still had no electricity.
More than a day after nearly two feet (60 centimeters) of snow buried western New York, travel bans were lifted Saturday, the airport was open and stores reopened.
However, more than 250,000 customers were without power at noon Saturday and New York State Electric & Gas reported 104,000 customers still in the dark.
More than 300,000 await power and flood watches are posted following record snowfall in Western New York - iht,america,US October Snow - Americas - International Herald Tribune
'LOTR' Actress Befriends USA's 'Wife'
Miranda Otto will shoot 'Starter Wife' in November
Miranda Otto, who filmed the final "Lord of the Rings" film in New Zealand, will head back home to Australia for her next project.The Aussie actress and Joe Mantegna will join Debra Messing in "The Starter Wife," a USA Network limited series set in the world of Hollywood, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
"Starter Wife" is adapted from the novel of the same name by Gigi Levangie Grazer and revolves around how Gracie (Messing) copes after her husband, the powerful head of a studio, cheats on her and then divorces her. Used to being a "Wife Of," Grace is homeless, until a friend allows her to temporarily crash in a home in Malibu.
Otto will play one of Gracie's best friends, while Mantegna will play the ex-husband's boss.
Production is scheduled to begin in early November, and the show is aiming to premiere in late spring.
Otto's other film credits include "What Lies Beneath," "Flight of the Phoenix" and "War of the Worlds." Mantegna played Will Girardi on CBS' "Joan of Arcadia." His big-screen credits include "The Godfather Part III," "Searching for Bobby Fischer," "Up Close & Personal" and "The Kid & I."
Fox Foments Future for 'Firefly's' Fillion
'Serenity' star snags a holding deal
Don't get too excited. - Marc
Dozens upon dozens of Browncoats are already hopelessly devoted to Nathan Fillion, a number FOX hopes to increase.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, FOX and 20th Century Fox have signed Fillion to a talent holding deal, aiming to either develop a new property for the "Firefly" star or else to slot the actor into an existing show.
Fillion is best known for his work as Mal Reynolds on both FOX's short-lived Joss Whedon offering "Firefly" and in the subsequent Universal feature "Serenity." His additional TV credits include "Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place," "Miss Match" and a run on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."
Message boards have also been buzzing that Fillion will appear in an upcoming episode of "Lost."
On the feature side, the 35-year-old actor was most recently seen in the feature "Slither." He's also completed work on "White Noise 2: The Light."
Monday, October 16, 2006
Sunday, October 15, 2006
HOW TO: Make a Blog Header Graphic
Probably posted this before...
HOW TO: Make a Blog Header Graphic - PaulStamatiou.com
HOW TO: Make a Blog Header Graphic - PaulStamatiou.com
motley crude
Another blog I ran across while searching for instructions on how to change the header into a picture.
motley crude
motley crude
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