THE TIMEKEEPER CHRONICLES

The Miller's wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Here's an article I found rather interesting, posted on Yahoo!Tech page.

By Christopher Null, Yahoo!Tech writer

Get Better Portraits by Turning Your Camera Upside Down?

File under oddity: Website Digital Camera University says that you can take better portraits (that is, pictures of people's faces) if you turn your digital camera upside down.
Why? It has to do with the location of the flash: Since it's mounted above the lens it creates slight shadows by the way the light bounces off the lines on your subject's face, which makes wrinkles and blemishes look more noticeable than they should. By turning the camera upside down, the light (now coming from beneath the lens) hits the face at a slightly different angle, creating a slightly different image. That's the theory, anyway.
Looking at the close-up on the site's sample images you can indeed see the difference the writer is talking about if you look at the lines around the model's eyes fairly closely. But I tried it myself to make sure this wasn't a hoax. When shooting an adult face, it was very clear that the upside-down tip did indeed reduce the appearance of lines. The crease around the mouth was noticeably less visible in the upside-down shot I tried than in the regular portrait. However, there was one unintended side effect: The upside-down shot made her face look much redder than it should have, for reasons I can't explain.
I also tried the trick on my four-year-old daughter, but since she is not yet jaded and beaten down by the cruel world, she doesn't have facial lines. I couldn't tell the difference between the side-by-side shots of her.
As the linked site itself notes, the effect is subtle and difficult to see, but it does exist. Is it something I'll do regularly? Probably not, unless repeated portraits keep turning out badly. But it's a neat little party trick that you ought to try at least once when snapping a shot of grandma.

Don't know if this will work, but I'll try anything if it makes 'some' folks look better (no, I'm not pointing anyone out)

Wizards In Winter - Trans-Siberian OrchestraThis ought to get you in the mood for Christmas!!! (no, this is NOT my house, though it would be neat if it was:-) )

Christmas Lights synchronized to "Wizards in Winter" by The Trans-Siberian Orchestra

Ok, not really, but I thought it was funny :-)

Here's a recent article from the Happy Cookers Group about women and grilling. This actually sounds like a great way to cook, though I'll just use the grill since Susan would probably burn the house down. :-)

Women take to grilling

You'd think women would embrace their freedom from cooking once they've introduced their men to the grill.Not so.The number of outdoor female grillers is up 20 percent from just a few years ago, according to the 2005 Weber GrillWatch Survey conducted for Weber-Stephens Products Co. in Palatine, Ill.Women are hot for the heat for several reasons said Karen Adler, co-author of "The BBQ Queens' Big Book of Barbecue."Women who have their own apartments enjoy entertaining, and grilling is part of that. And if they were brought up on a Foreman grill, they know the pleasures of a crust-coated burger.What are women preparing?Food grilled on wood, said Adler, who runs an online barbecue business in Mission, Kan. "Planking is one of the hottest new trends," she added.Purchase a fancy grilling plank at specialty stores. Or make your own.Any clean, 1-inch thick piece of untreated wood will work; cedar, oak, cherry and apple are popular choices. Soak the wood plank in water for at least an hour, so the plank will withstand the heat of the grill without burning.Most any food you grill can be prepared on a plank: fish, chicken, small roasts. Cuts of meat that require quick, high heat, such as steaks and chops, are better off on the metal grill.One of Adler's favorite "planked" recipes for the holidays is Brie with cranberry chutney. Just place a wheel of Brie cheese on a wooden grill plank. Place the plank on the grill's grid over low heat just until the cheese begins to melt. Top with cranberry chutney and arrange crackers on the side.

Every year the Gaylord Palms Hotel in Orlando presents an "Ice Exhibit" featuring carved ice "art". I have to say it was quite interesting and not to mention..COLD! They keep this area 9 degrees F. BRRRRRR. Here's some pics.

Here's a little slideshow of pics from Mikayla's Birthday Party. It's hard to believe she's 12 now...where does the time go!

Jeremy cruising the strip. (Everyone out there driving around need to watch out for this guy :-0)

Here's a couple of pics of our Christmas tree and Christmas lights on the house. I wanted to show them now before half the lights blow out. I spent 2 whole day's last week just putting these darn things up. (I know, I know, you folks are SOOOO impressed)

Ba humbug.

Once again, WOOT.COM is doing a WOOT-OFF! Better check it out, you might miss something nice, you know, Christmas gifts for me....

http://www.woot.com

And, here's a couple of nice auto-refresher's specifically for wootoffs. This is a good way not to miss anything.

http://www.oddpic.com/wootoff/index.html

http://smoothdesigners.com/woot/index.html

CYA

I came across this site the other day and found it to be quite interesting. This is a clock that a hand scribbles the number and erases it, then rewrites it as the time changes. Where do people come up with this stuff? Click the link belowand watch time go by...



http://beeks.eu/swf/handclock.swf

I just came off of night shift, and I'm sitting here vegitating in front of the computer trying to recover, so I thought I'd just post a few more pics. I mean geez, we have like thousands of them, so why not share, huh.


Our little corner of the world
Mikayla and friends
A funny pic I took with my cell phone camera of our cat Misty. Looks creepy.
Mik took the wheel while we were driving around the mountains. As you can see, I was quite frieghtened.
Me and Eric. (Sorry Deb, I just had to post this 'cause it's funny.)

Here's a few pics from our Turkey Day. I fried up a bird and it really came out great. I think it was a hit! Hope everyone had a great one.


Susan just wishing we'd went to Carrabas

Dad, me, and Mom

Dad and Great Granpa McNeight watching football

Susan telling her dad and Great Grammie McNeight "I told you the fried turkey was gonna be good!

Watching the Bucs lose in HD is not very fun...

Everyone have a Happy and Safe Thanksgiving!!!! (and don't eat too much!)

We had the pleasure of going to a Lightning game Friday night. We had a blast. Mikayla even got selected to ride on one of the Zamboni's....how 'bout that.

Each season, the Lightning and the St.Pete Times Forum set aside one game to promote "Tampa Bay Fights Cancer" with the Steve Yerrid Foundation. A great cause, and a great team. Of course, our favorite player is Brad Richards. We've met him personally and he is a genuin, down to earth guy, an awesome athlete and has a passion for helping kids with childhood cancer. Kudos to the Lightning and Brad.... and oh, the B0lts beat the Devils in OT 3-2!

Ok, in an earlier post, I told you a little about Woot.com. Well, here they are today, having a WOOT-OFF! You've got to check it out.

Click here for an "Woot Auto-refresher" link. It automatically refreshes the Woot page so that you don't miss any Woots.

Rich

I've made a couple of little changes on the blog today. A while back, in order to leave a comment, I set it up to have folks sign-in on blogger to leave their comments. This was so that I could know who left the comment. But, after even more review (and my wife telling me it was a pain in the butt for someone to have to do this), I realize now that the effort to have someone go through the motions to 'sign-up' with blogger was a little excessive. Therefore, I have changed it back to where anyone can leave a comment, anonymous or not, without having to sign up. This wasn't meant to pick on anyone in particular (Brett)..oh, sorry. Anyway, my hopes were that anyone could leave a comment and enjoy the webpages. So, hopefully this will make it easier and please don't hesitate to tell me what you think about any post, or anything else for that matter. I'm still leaving the word recognition option there..and this is there to prevent spam comments. (Believe it or not, spam leaves comments...don't ask)

Thank you guys for visiting and I hope to hear from you soon
Rich

il collard la pizza verde (en. Collard Green Pizza) Fine Southern quisine, in an Italian kind of way. Southerners tend to make improvements in everything (hey, I married a New Englander...now look how nice she is!!!). Really though, it sounds pretty good..I think I'll try it.

Only in the South...Collard Green Pizza

No matter what kind of pizza your making, it will taste so much better if cooked using a grill, I like using a pizza stone;Only in the South...Collard Green Pizza1 (1-pound) store bought pizza dough (or use recipe below)

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup marinara sauce, plus 1/4 cup
1/2 cup cooked collard greens, drained
1 large ham hock, cooked and meat removed
4 slices bacon, cut into large pieces
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.Stretch dough and press into an 8-inch pizza pan. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise and 1/2 cup marinara sauce. Coat the pizza dough with the mixture. Top with drained greens, ham hock meat, and bacon. Cover with cheese and remaining 1/4 cup marinara sauce. Bake 25 to 30 minutes until golden brown. Slice and serve warm.

It's Woot.com. These guys are funny as heck and they sell some nifty gadgets. I love gadgets. A one deal per day thing. And the shipping is always $5, no matter what. The real fun comes when they do a "Woot-Off" (every few months or so - it's a suprise, you never know). I've bought a few things from Woot and have found some pretty good deals. You have to read the item descriptions for each day's woot because they are hilarious. Even if you don't buy anything, it's still funny to read.

I saw this article on CNN today and thought it was interesting. It's hard to remember what our world was like before the internet (I think it was better sometimes :-) )

Notice the dudes name in the article from Netcraft. He must be one smart fella :-0

Web reaches new milestone: 100 million sites

POSTED: 2:32 p.m. EST, November 1, 2006

Story Highlights
• The Web now has 100 million sites
• There were 18,000 Web sites in August of 1995
• Web sites have become a way to bond and belong
By Marsha WaltonCNN

(CNN) -- Are your Web surfing fingers getting tired?
There may be a reason. Netcraft, an Internet monitoring company that has tracked Web growth since 1995, says a mammoth milestone was reached during the month of October.
"There are now 100 million Web sites with domain names and content on them," said Netcraft's Rich Miller.
"Within that, there are some that are busy and updated more often, and that represents the active sites, which are at about 47 or 48 million," he said.
Bloggers, small businesses, and simplicity have combined to create the dramatic growth of sites, much of it just in the past two years.
"The bottom line is it's much easier to create a Web site nowadays, and it's much easier to make money with a Web site," said Miller.
Netcraft uses the domain name system to identify Web sites, check how many of them are in a particular location, such as what operating system and Web server software they're running, and then publishes its information in a monthly report.
There were just 18,000 Web sites when Netcraft, based in Bath, England, began keeping track in August of 1995. It took until May of 2004 to reach the 50 million milestone; then only 30 more months to hit 100 million, late in the month of October 2006.
Netcraft says the United States, Germany, China, South Korea and Japan show the greatest Web site growing spurts.
Today there are seemingly endless Web sites for shopping, social networking, and, of course, sleaze.
But what was the subject of Web site number one in 1989?
"When the Web was started, it was started as a mechanism for sharing high energy particle physics data," said Professor Rebecca Grinter of Georgia Tech's College of Computing.
The creator of that Web site, Tim Berners-Lee, wanted experts to be able to share data on particle smashing, even if they weren't at CERN in Switzerland where he was doing research. CERN, in Geneva, is the European Organization for Nuclear Research.
Research facilities and universities soon started seeing benefits of this new tool for things as lofty as nuclear physics and as mundane as sharing restaurant recommendations.
Even today CERN proudly proclaims on its home page, "The world's largest particle physics laboratory, where the Web was born!"
It did not take long for this technological baby to flourish.
"As is true of many things, if you teach a lot of students how to do something, these students go somewhere, and around '96, lo and behold, you see this much more significant transition of the Internet," said Grinter.
Soon, a Web "explosion" took place when businesses realized they could use the Internet to make money.
"Web sites begin to be incorporated into advertising. So that just sort of raises the awareness of the general public," said Grinter.
And by the mid-'90s the cost of personal computers had fallen enough so that the Internet began entering peoples homes and schools as well as their workplaces.
The cost, and the complexity of creating Web sites have both diminished since the beginning of the 21st century.
Computer users no longer have to be experts in HTML, or hypertext markup language, to be masters of their own Web sites.
"There have been price wars going on in both the domain name and Web hosting industries for some time now, and as a result it's very affordable to create your own Web site, and the tools, the software being offered by these companies are much better," said Miller.
Blogs and social networking sites link family, friends and experts in just about everything.

Bond and belong
"What we've seen is people finding interesting new ways to use the Web to showcase their information and their expertise; particularly in niches in all kinds of subjects where it's really just opened the door to new uses of the Web," said Miller.
Whether it is sharing photographs on Flickr.com, showing off an amateur video on YouTube, or looking for a mate on Match.com, Web sites have also become a way to bond and belong.
"The history of humanity is the history of being part of a group, having a group mentality, and the Internet makes a whole other set of those groups possible," said Grinter. "And they don't have to be physically proximate to you, you can create content for people who are physically distant," she said.
So will a URL someday be as common as a birth name and a Social Security number?
For some celebrities, it already is. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt registered domains for all three of their children.
And in both the business world and the social scene, a Web site is now an identifier almost as common as a phone number or an e-mail address.
"The Web has gone from being a very straightforward thing where you put some text and perhaps some images, to being this incredibly powerful medium in and of itself. You can engage so much more dynamically, and so many more people are doing so many more things. And who knows what will come about tomorrow?" said Grinter.

Here's some pics from our camping trip we took back in June to North Beach. As usual, we had a great time. We spent most of our time enjoying the beach and taking it eeeeeasy.

Inside Man was a pretty good flick with a neat twist. Though I'm not a big fan of Spike Lee (director), this was an ok rent. It is rated R, so not recommended for the youngins.





Here's the Blockbuster.com reveiw:


Running Time:
2 hours 8 minutes



Complete Cast:
Denzel Washington - Detective Keith Frazier
Clive Owen - Dalton Russell
Jodie Foster - Madeline White
Christopher Plummer - Arthur Case
Willem Dafoe - Capt. John Darius
Chiwetel Ejiofor - Det. Bill Mitchell
Kim Director
Director(s):
Spike Lee
Producer(s):
Brian Grazer

Full Synopsis:
The volatile showdown between a determined cop and a perfectionist bank robber is sent spiraling toward disaster when a scheming power broker steps in to take control of the situation in this hair-raising heist flick directed by Spike Lee and starring Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, and Jodie Foster. Dalton Russell (Owen) is a bank robber with a difference. In his quest to execute the perfect heist, Dalton has taken every possible factor into consideration. Dalton's uncanny ability of staying one step ahead of the law thwarts even-tempered Detective Keith Frazier's (Washington) best efforts. But there's another factor at play. The bank president (Christopher Plummer) has requested the services of high-profile negotiator Madeline White (Foster). Despite her commendable track record, Madeline is something of a wild card, and before the day is over, this bank robbery will go down in history as one of the most elaborate heists ever executed. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Here's some random pics from earlier this year....

It seems as though the blogger is having some occasional issues doing page loads. If for some reason things look out of whack, please try again, or come back later and hopefully the page will load correctly. They have been doing some "routine maintenance" on the blogger lately, so maybe this has something to do with it.

In any case, please come back and visit.

Rich

Susan just returned from a weekend trip to Long Pond in Mass. to see some family and to get her fall colors fix. She stayed with her Aunt and Uncle, Janette and Wes. Here are some nice pics she took of the Pond.

This is a classic. You've probably seen this before, but this is hilarious and I couldn't help but to post it. Kudos to Brett for the vid! Enjoy

Here's something to try for the upcoming Halloween holiday. I get tons of recipes from a Yahoo group my dad started up, called Happy Cookers, just a place share recipes. If interested, click here for more info. All you need is a Yahoo account.

Pumpkin Bread
4 eggs
2/3 cup water
1 cup oil
1 can solid pumpkin
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
pinch of cloves
3-1/2 cups flour
3 cups sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Beat eggs, add water, oil and pumpkin, then spices. Mix well. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well. Add nuts and raisins if you desire. Pour into 2 greased loaf pans. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

I finally had a little time (though I watched this in segments lol) to watch a movie. Click was a great movie--though sometimes crude (your dealing with Adam Sandler here), but what it was about sure made you think about your life...and what's important. I recommend it, A great rent.

Here's the Blockbuster.com review:


Running Time:
1 hour 47 minutes
DVD Release:
10/10/2006
PG-13 Profanity, Drug Content, Adult Language, Sexual Situations, Adult Humor, Adult Situations

Full Synopsis
A workaholic architect, frustrated in his job but determined to make a better life for his family, is bestowed with a powerful universal remote that allows him more control over his life than he ever knew possible in director Frank Coraci's high-concept fantasy comedy. On the surface, Michael Newman (Adam Sandler) seems to have it all, yet with all the demands forced upon him by his ungrateful boss (David Hasselhoff), Michael finds that setting aside time to spend with his loving wife, Donna (Kate Beckinsale), and two picture-perfect children, Ben (Joseph Castanon) and Samantha (Tatum McCann), has grown increasingly difficult. When a frustrating bout with the television remote leads the overworked husband and father to a nearby Bed, Bath & Beyond in search of a universal remote with the power to control all of his electronic devices, a curious peek into the back room leads Michael into the company of eccentric employee and talented inventor Morty (Christopher Walken). It seems that Morty has created a device that will not only allow Michael complete control over his television and stereo, but his entire life as well. As Michael discovers that the remarkable device has the power to muffle the barks of the family dog, zoom himself past an irritating quarrel with his wife, and even allow him to travel back and forth through time to different points in his life, the rush of being able to skip straight to the good parts in life soon leaves him feeling as if he's missing out on the total experience. Only when Michael begins to realize that the he has lost control of his life and the remote is now programming him does he finally learn that life is as much about the moments he'd rather forget as it is the moments he will always remember. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Good morning world. Here's some shocking news for you Floridians. I was breezing through some articles this morning, and much to my disgust, I read about another developement to be built - a dude with tons of money and nothing else to do - in an area that you would figure would pretty much be left alone. BUT, no. Not in this state. Really. You don't have to go far to see that Florida is quickly becoming over-built, with new develpements on every corner it seems. I feel bad for those cattlemen. (Geez, I didn't even know we still did that stuff here :-0) I guess I should be happy that the guy is at least keeping the land in a natural condition, but it's just the point of it all. Anyway, read if ya want.

Developer sees Destiny in Fla. frontier
By TRAVIS REED, Associated Press Writer Sat Oct 21, 12:23 PM ET

YEEHAW JUNCTION, Fla. - This is about as close to nowhere as it gets in quickly sprawling Florida. Just off Florida's Turnpike, Yeehaw Junction consists of two gas stations, two shops hawking theme park tickets, a hotel so sleepy roosters run free and tens of miles between here and civilization. But where you see nowhere, Anthony Pugliese III sees Destiny.
That's the name of the new city the South Florida developer is planning, where overgrown brush and cattle pasture now spread wide. Within 25 years, he and billionaire partner and Subway founder Fred DeLuca envision a biotechnology hub, 40 miles of navigable lakes, a sustainable energy source and some 150,000 people.
Pugliese says it will be Florida's first eco-sustainable city, and has secured 41,000 barren acres about 75 miles south of Orlando on which to build it. The plan still requires government approval and it would be years before ground is broken, but the state's population grows by about 300,000 people every year so there could be a market.
"What we're really trying to do is create a model city," Pugliese says, with much less bravado than it sounds. "Rather than just going out here, digging a bunch of holes in the ground and putting a bunch of buildings on there for retirees, we basically want to create a city that is environmentally sensitive to its surroundings. We will be basically keeping about half the property as natural."
The land sits at the nexus of three major thoroughfares, making it ideal for a distribution center and manufacturing plants that could employ some of Destiny's work force.
But as it sits now, the most remarkable thing about the property is that there's nothing remarkable about it. Decades ago Yeehaw Junction was a place for range-minding cowboys to dine, drink and dance. It has evolved into an inside joke for Floridians, who are entreated by dozens of highway billboards counting down the distance every few miles, and promised a free lottery ticket with purchase of theme park packages at the timeshare-pushing clearinghouses.
Pugliese said his wife was incredulous when he made the deal to purchase the initial 27,400 acres at about $5,000 an acre last year — a $137 million investment. She joked that she wouldn't even stop for gas there.
"Everybody's been through, but very few people have been to, Yeehaw Junction," says Dan Shalloway, a Palm Beach County resident who owns a ranch there.
The cattlemen who still make their living the Old Florida way say they are disappointed, but not surprised, that change is on the horizon.
Varley Grantham, who runs Triple S Cattle Co., said it probably won't be long before there's a solid belt of houses and cities stretching from St. Petersburg on the Gulf to Vero Beach on the Atlantic.
"I think there are a lot of issues, but I think it's inevitable that you're going to have developments like Destiny," Grantham says.
So far Grantham has resisted developers looking to buy his land, but says at some point the steadily increasing offers might be too hard to refuse.
Environmental groups are keeping a wary eye on Destiny, as with all major developments, but say the early signs are promising because Pugliese's plan would preserve so much natural space.
"We're optimistic, but that may not ultimately be what happens," said Charles Lee, advocacy director for Audubon of Florida.
Pugliese is optimistic too. He has made a fortune on South Florida real estate by striking cheap deals at opportune times and designing high-end offices and condos, but this is by far his biggest undertaking.
The project's 65 square miles is bigger than Miami, though it would have far fewer people.
It's also important to Pugliese that the town have homes in every price range, from $100,000 into the millions, and apartments for those unready to purchase. After all, the 59-year-old hasn't always been on top.
Pugliese skipped college to help his laid-off father start a pool business in his native New Jersey at age 17, and at 21 penned a design that made the family a fortune: a residential pool that looks like a lake. Orange, N.J.-based Pugliese pools is still selling the same thing today, almost 40 years later.
Perhaps wealth's greatest affect on Pugliese has been his ability to amass a collection of strange and obscure pop culture items. He says the collection includes the gun Jack Ruby used to kill Lee Harvey Oswald, the leather jacket James Dean was wearing when he died and the suit John Lennon wore on the Beatles' "Abbey Road" album cover.
Those all might someday be on display in a Destiny museum, one of a handful of possible attractions to entice Orlando's more than 50 million annual tourists to visit.
The rotund, mustached and calm-speaking developer has also become much more health-conscious as he ages, a philosophy he hopes to suffuse in every aspect of Destiny life. He envisions a longevity spa like the one Pugliese visits, where he receives twice-weekly intravenous vitamin injections and plans for healthier living.
Destiny's restaurants would serve organic food, and the city's biomedical tenants would shepherd a constant quest for longer life. Sprawl and road-chocking traffic would be impossible after Pugliese protects the undeveloped land under special state rules that would forever prohibit building. It's not on the ocean, but residents could pop over to a beach in about 30 miles.
Still, there is a long road ahead before Pugliese's vision comes to life. He expects to spend the next two to three years going through the approval process, but says crews might in that time be able to break ground on a city center and university research park.
Destiny will need its own water and sewer system, fire and police force and even government. And Pugliese still needs to convince a bioresearch firm and universities to locate branches there, a competitive process typically requiring hundreds of millions in upfront incentives.
Daunting to others, perhaps, but to Pugliese an enjoyable, artistic challenge.
"It's all about having something unique, something that's creative, something that's attractive to people," he says. "Because you could fail on one acre just as easily as the 41,000 acres if you don't have a good idea and you're not doing it right."

Gosh, I'm glad child birth didn't look like this!

This is Dr. Letson. He is the sugeon that repaired Mikayla's leg. This guy is the best there is, and we are so greatful that God put him in our lives when we needed him most.

The other pic is Mikayla using her femur as a weapon.... just in time for Holloween.