Obama Rally in Leesburg

Hearing that Obama was coming to Leesburg, Virginia, I decided to take off work and go up for the rally (Leesburg is about 25 minutes away from our house). After 7 hours of standing and waiting, I managed to get a front row spot for the speech! It was a very good event, with his typical, yet powerful stump speech. I even got a hand shake for my efforts! :)

Here are some of my best shots.











My ugly mug with Obama in the background.


In this short clip of Obama's entrance, the guy next to me yells "we love you" at the end and Obama retorts "I love you back!"



This is a really good clip on the importance of our time in history and the critical issues facing our nation and our world. At the end I pan the crowd briefly.



A short, but very good clip on healthcare. Obama gets personal about his Grandmother and her death from cancer.

July 4th Celebration in D.C.

This fourth of July we braved the crowds and rain and descended upon D.C. for the 4th of July celebrations. Standing on the memorial bridge behind the Lincoln memorial, we had a great view of the show. Kieran had a blast and gets very animated when reminded of the event. His favorite new word is "exploding."

Here is a short clip of the celebration, you can see the back of the Lincoln memorial to the left, and the Washington monument in the distance at the center.

Help Save Pandora!

Pandora radio is in big trouble, and may be shut down if the RIAA has its way. Congress is considering legislation to protect internet radio, please act now to show your support for Pandora.

Amazing Ability to Navigate Using Echo's

You have to see this to believe it!!!! This boy had his eyes removed at two years old, but has developed a "super-human" ability!

New Animal Discovered

A new animal has been discovered in Tanzania, Africa. This is a "cat sized" shrewlike animal, that is actually related to elephants and sea cows! Way cool!!!

Couple Reunited After 50 Years

In a time when there are so many tragic stories, this is a beautiful exception!

Top Ten Lists

I am sure most people are well innundated with top ten lists by now, but in case you are not, here are a few I found interesting:

Time Magazine's 50 Top Ten lists.

National Geographic's Top Ten News Stories.

NPR's Top Ten Music Albums by genre

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Rolling Stone's Top 100 Songs.

Top 100 companies to work for in 2007.

Technorati's Top 100 blogs (list is dynamic).

Wired's Top Ten Scientific discoveries

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PC World's Top 100 products of 2007.

PC Mag's Top 100 undiscovered websites.

Lifehacker's Top Ten lists (tech nerds only).

Oklahoma Ice Storm

As you may have heard, over the past week there has been a massive ice storm across much of the midwest, with Oklahoma hit the hardest. My brother Wes has taken some incredible pictures of the impact in Oklahoma, with some of my favorites below.

Tay Zonday revisted

This song is very good, I like it even better than Chocolate Rain. Check it out, the lyrics are powerful!

Chocolate Rain

The singer of this clip on YouTube has become an internet phenomenon. Maranda actually heard about the song on the radio. It is a very interesting song, and an amazing, unique voice. The lyrics are great, I could do with a bit more variation in the tempo though... This really demonstrates the power of the internet as a forum for everyone, we live in a different kind of world these days...

Week From Hell

Last week was not a good week.

1. My dog Vic died, he escaped due to my negligence and was struck by a car.
2. I poured a cup of coffee on a 10K sound board at our church.
3. My company performed 10% layoffs severly affecting the work atmosphere. I came within a hairs breadth of quitting.
4. I was found in violation of property zoning laws and will have to get rid of my chickens (a neighbor reported us).
5. I was faced with some very serious problems in an important relationship.
6. I was told by my grad school professor that I needed to catch up or drop out.
7. And worst of all, I dropped an almost full Beer in my bathroom, shattering the bottle and wasting the beautiful Dos Equis Amber Ale (technically this happened last night, so it doesn't count...)

Native American Dance

On our way back from lunch with our friends Mike and Shawn & Sara, Kieran and I spotted a drum circle, so of course we had to attend! It was fun watching the native american dances. Our favorite was the men's hunting dance which I recorded on my cell phone. Watch the men sneaking up on their prey, then rejoicing at their success. Really, really enjoyable for Kieran and I.

07.07.07

Maranda, some friends, and I attended the kick-off for Live Earth 2007. We didn't get in to the actual event so had to watch screen from the side of the platform. The event is intended to raise global awareness and commitment to reducing global warming pollution. Attendees were asked to sign a 7 point pledge. Here is a shot of the capitol and Al gore on the stage (he was about 150 feet to our left out of sight. To add your name to the pledge, click HERE.

Paul Potts - Semi-Final song

I just can't get enough of this story! Sorry if this is old news for some of you, but I thought I would post Paul's semi-final song between the two original clips below (see yesterday's post for new clip).

Paul Potts - An Inspiring Story

If you have 10 free minutes and want to experience a story that will literally raise the hair on the back of your neck and bring tears to your eyes, watch the following two clips from the "Britains Got Talent" show. In a day when good stories are hard to come by, this one is a gem.

Be sure to watch this clip first.



Second video - Paul's semi-finals song


Watch this clip last


He Won!

Truck Burning

Interesting sight on the way to work this morning. I had a fire extinguisher in my truck but there was no way I could get across. Fire Fighters showed up shortly as you can see in the clip. It was a full size truck and the front tires and entire hood were engulfed in flame.

Double Amputee Might Make Olympics

What a cool story!

Good Post on Forgiveness

Check out this post by maker of Dilbert, Scott Adams.

Therapist has Cancer

I am sad to report that my therapist has an aggressive form of prostate cancer. He goes in for operation in the morning. The good news is that Doctor's are optimistic that the cancer has not spread from the prostate. He is a very person and has been very influential in my life. While there is nothing that can be done but wait and hope, it helps to share my feelings of helplessness.

A Tribute to the Creator of the TV Remote

It is a sad day for beer bellied men everywhere. The creator of the T.V. remote has passed on to the wide screen in the sky.