Check Out Amazon's Kindle Fire, Its New Tablet!

Pre-order now, shipping November 15, 2011.

Details
• 
  Stunning Color Touch Screen
• Magazines in Rich Color
• 
  Beautiful and easy to use
• 
  100,000 Movies and TV Shows
• 
  Fast Dual-Core Processor
• 
  Your Favorite Apps and Games
• 
  Ultra Fast Web Browsing Amazon Silk
• 
  Millions of Books
• 
  Free Cloud Storage
• 
  Your Favorite Children’s Books
• 
  17 Million Songs
• 
  Extra Durable Display
• 
  Email
• 
  Amazon Whispersync
• 
  Read Your Documents

Technical Data
• 
  6 Inch Multi-Touch Screen
• 
  7.5" x 4.7" x 0.45" (190 mm x 120 mm x 11.4 mm
• 
  14.6 ounces (413 grams)
• 
  8GB internal. That's enough for 80 apps, plus either 10 movies or 800 songs or 6,000 books
• 
  Up to 8 hours of continuous reading or 7.5 hours of video playback, with wireless off. Battery life will vary based on wireless usage, such as web browsing and downloading content
  Fully charges in approximately 4 hours via included U.S. power adapter. Also supports charging from your computer via USB
• 
  Supports public and private Wi-Fi networks or hotspots that use the 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, or 802.1X standard with support for WEP, WPA and WPA2 security using password authentication; does not support connecting to ad-hoc (or peer-to-peer) Wi-Fi networks
• 
  USB 2.0 (micro-B connector)
• 
  3.5 mm stereo audio jack, top-mounted stereo speakers
• 
  Kindle (AZW), TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively, Audible (Audible Enhanced (AA, AAX)), DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, non-DRM AAC, MP3, MIDI, OGG, WAV, MP4, VP8
• 
  1-year limited warranty and service included. Optional 2-year Extended Warranty available for U.S. customers sold separately. Use of Kindle is subject to the Kindle License Agreement and Terms of Use.
• 
  In the Box, Kindle Fire tablet, U.S. power adapter (supports 100-240V), and Quick Start Guide

Flooding During the Drought

Who would have expected flooding during a drought, but it happened in a nearby city.   A twenty-four inch water main burst, and several homes ended up flooded.   The water main was a 50 plus year old piece of cast iron pipe.   But to at least one home owner's despair, they learned their regular homeowner's policy didn't cover the damage, because the cause wasn't on their property.    And, the city wasn't liable for the damage, wording in their papers.  To be  covered, the homeowners would have needed flood insurance.

To top this all off, the city increased their water restrictions.

Finally Some Much Needed Rain

Last night, it rained a whole 37/100th of an inch, giving use a total rainfall for the year of just over a half an inch! We've had over 50 days of temperatures at or above 100°F! They're rationed us to water our yards only twice a week for starters, and many trees in town are showing the hot dry temperatures! Even though we got rain last night, we'll need a lot more before the drought ends.

Things in Texas have been so dry, that the Wall Street Journal published an article recently about it!

Firewood Stacking Tip

Due to the drought, we're only allowed to water twice a week, and with 100°F temperatures and higher this summer, we're watching a lot of trees and shrubs die.

The landscape artists still have a lot of work today. Instead of planting lawns and flowers, they've moved to tree removal. As a result, I've seen more than the normal amount of trees getting chopped down. I've driven past several of these homes with firewood stacked neatly outside the front door. While it may be really handy during the wintertime not to have to walk too far in the cold, it's not safe from the termites.

We used to stack our wood against the house, but after finding termites, I purchased a metal rack from Home Depot, and carried the wood, two pieces at a time across the yard. These days, when we buy firewood, we always tell them to stack it WAY out back!

Project Payday - Realistic Extra Income!

Project Payday - Realistic Extra Income!

How to succeed in tough economic times

How to succeed in tough economic times

Handcrafted Wooden Knitting Needles at Dyakcraft

My knitting needles came in from the kind folks at DyakCraft. Each set of needles are handcrafted using DYMONDWOOD®. They handcraft fixed circular knitting needles a well as double pointed needles and interchangeable needles. They come with four cables and four matching stops. They also make crochet hooks, and have won 2011 Flamie award for the best crochet hooks by an individual. Right now, they have three styles of crochet hooks, and future plans for interchangeable crochet hooks. But their crochet hook line is temporarily out of production to focus on their interchangeable knitting needles. Other handmade items on their website include looms, spindles, shawl pins (also temporarily out of production).

Often a pattern will suggest a size that's not in my needle inventory, or after working a gauge swatch, another size is indicated. Fortunately, these interchangeable needles come in size 4 to size 9 or 10.5, so the proper size is handy. While their individual needle sets come start at $19.99, the sets are $109 and $140 respectively (including shipping). So, the sets are definitely the better buy.

Each interchangeable needle has a tiny screw on the end, that attaches to a tiny nut on the end of the cable. The needles start out slightly sticky, but get smoother as you knit due to the lanolin in the yarn. The points are sharper than most knitting needles I've used.

I've been using nothing but Addi Turbo Knitting Needles for years in fact, I have a lot of the 40" Addi Turbo Lace Circular Knitting Needles for sock knitting because I work the magic loop technique.

I've noticed fewer yarn splits with the DyakCraft interchangeable as compared to my Addi Turbo needles, and that's a huge advantage for me. Nothing is more frustrating than noticing a split stitch ten rows back and having to unravel those rows to fix it! Even just loosing a few stitches down to the split stitch is annoying, because I can never duplicate the original tension.   Also the sharper points make it easier for me to "pick up and knit" than the blunter Addi Turbo needles.

I like the joins on my Addi Turbo fixed circular needles, and the join on my DyakCraft is comparable. Too many times, I've found yarn catching on the joins of inferior circular needles, or the cables too stiff and jumping out at me. Addi Click Interchangeable Needle Set come with a press in and twist connector that I found a little harder to figure out. And aggravated my arthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome.  They're also a little more expensive than DyakCraft but exclude the size 10.5, but include sizes 11, 13 & 15. But for me, once I'd gotten the Addi Clicks connected, they stayed put. My DyakCrafts have a habit of unscrewing with my style of knitting. No problem, because my 5" needles are long enough to grasp the point with one hand, and the 5/8" join in the other and simply twist the needle a few times every couple rows. I find DyakCrafts cables seem to become part of the project, and almost disappear from notice when in use, rather than having the stiff cables bounce up at weird times like other circular needles have done in the past.

Dyakcraft needs more payment processors than just Paypal.  I'd suggest finding a payment processor that charges the purchaser's credit cards upon entering shipping information.

Each interchangeable set comes with a handmade case that is numbered and signed by artisan.

If You're Looking for New Socks

I just love my Thorlo Socks These socks are amazing! They have excellent cushioning knitted into the toe section and heel, making these perfect for those times you're on your feet too long. You can pick light, moderate or thick cushioning!

Now's the time to purchase them, because many are on sale with a 4 for 3 promotion until June 1st!

Check them out!

Kindle DX & Oberon Design Cover Makes a Winning Combination

I jumped on the chance to order a Kindle DX Wireless Reading Device, Free 3G, 3G Works Globally, Graphite, 9.7" Display with New E Ink Pearl Technology a few weeks ago. And I just love it! It's easier to read, and you can see more on the page! When you combine it with one of the Oberon Design Leather Covers you have a wonderful reading system. Because comes with a cord and tab platform device that lets you prop up your Kindle DX Wireless Reading Device, Free 3G, 3G Works Globally, Graphite, 9.7" Display with New E Ink Pearl Technology for tabletop reading.

This morning, I propped my new Kindle DX Wireless Reading Device, Free 3G, 3G Works Globally, Graphite, 9.7" Display with New E Ink Pearl Technology up and was able to read my The Wall Street Journal without craning my neck at an awkward angle.

Order one soon while you can still get the $25 Amazon Gift Card with the Mother's Day Promotion.

Check Out the Great Mother's Day Deal at Amazon.com

Two Great Deals for Mom

Get an $25 Amazon Gift Certificate when you purchase a Kindle 3G or Kindle DX.

Doctor Who Season 6 Available at Amazon

For the Doctor Who fans out there, Doctor Who: The Impossible Astronaut is available at Amazon Instant Video! I'm only getting basic/expanded cable at home, and BBC America isn't one of the channels we gete. But thanks to Amazon Instant video, I can still watch Doctor Who without paying a lot for a higher costing cable package.

I had a laugh though. Death Valley is in California, not Utah!

Kindle DX $299 (Down $80) - Through Midnight April 15, 2011

Kindle DX available for $299 today only (April 15th). That's $80 off the regular price!

Features:

• 
  
  New High Contrast Pearl E-Ink Screen
• 9.7" Diagonal Display
• Read in sunlight, no glare
• Books in under 60 seconds
• Buy once, read everywhere
• 
  Global Coverage, wireless coverage in over 100 countries & territories
• Auto Rotating Screen
• Large selection over 900,000 books
• Free book samples
• Built in PDF Reader
• Battery life with wireless off 2-3 weeks
• Battery life with wireless on seven days
• Storage 3,500 books

Buy today, because the price goes back up tomorrow!

Amazon Kindle Special Offers for $114

Get a Kindle Wireless Reading Device, Wi-Fi, Graphite, 6" Display with New E Ink Pearl Technology - includes Special Offers & Sponsored Screensavers
for $114. That’s $25 less than the regular model. You’ll be receiving special offers on your screensaver as well as a strip at the bottom of the page. Don’t worry, it won’t affect your reading.

Special offers such as:

• 
  
  $10 for $20 Amazon.com Gift Card
• 
  $6 for 6 Audible Books (normally $68)
• 
  $1 for an album in the Amazon MP3 Store (choose from over 1 million albums)
• $10 for $30 of products in the Amazon Denim Shop or Amazon Swim Shop

Cat Bordhi's New Sock Book for Knitters

Knitters!

Have you checked out Cat Bordhi's Personal Footprints for Insouciant Sock Knitters: Book Two in the New Pathways for Sock Knitters Series? I got mine yesterday, and talk about illuminating. I thought New Pathways for Sock Knitters: Book One was innovative, but this one looks even better. She has included a new stretchy bind off method. Several ah ha moments!

Check it out!

On Novels, Series, Stand Alones and Trilogies

Back in the 80s, I started reading Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time Series but got bogged down about book four. Robert Jordan started that series, and it became a best seller. Each book while having an ending of sorts, also had a cliff hanger. As the series progressed, more characters and story lines were introduced. He wanted to put every little detail into his world. Unfortunately, he never lived to complete it. If you've followed the series, Brandon Sanderson took over in Book 13!

I really like Anne McCaffrey's Pern Series because even though Mrs. McCaffrey has written over a dozen books, maybe even twenty or more books in the Pern world, they are either stand alone books, or at the most grouped into a trilogy. By stand alone, I mean that the story is complete in itself, while trilogies usually are a three-book story with a cliff hanger at the end of each book. Now, Todd McCaffrey, Anne McCaffrey's son has continued the Pern legacy.

Probably the most famous trilogy is The Lord of the Rings: 50th Anniversary, One Vol. Edition.

Check them out!

Not So Good Deal at eBay

Over on ebay, cruising for iPads, I saw an iPad 2 with a top bid of $30. I placed a bid via eSnipe, and read more carefully especially the shipping. It had a shipping charge of $600! Needless to say, I clicked back to eSnipe and deleted my bid!

If you're going to place a bid, make sure you use a sniping service, because if you change your mind, you can cancel the snipe. If I had made the bid via eBay, I would have been stuck with an iPad that cost $633, and the same model was running for $499 at apple.com.

FusionMails is Up Again

Less than one month after catastrophic server failure, Fusionmails is loaded to a new server and is running again. Be sure to follow the link to their forum for the latest news.

Pictures from My Alaska Cruise

Check out the pictures!   I finally got them registered with the copyright office, so I can now share them!