GeoCities Closing October 26, 2009

The internet came to life and we went out and created our first websites. The summer of 1998 was my first website attempt. The graphics and design were simple as there were no set templates to use. The intention was to create a site from one's own knowledge of html and abilities. We worked with one another to expand our html knowledge and create slightly more advanced sites.

One of my favorite options was the chat function. I enjoyed several chats with Georgetown friends as they were all across the country during the summer of 1998. The other exciting features were the counter and guestbook. Today those features are just basics to any site.

Check out the original website one last time before GeoCities closes October 26, 2009: Robin's Home Page

Do you have an old GeoCities site? Check it out and save it before it disappears.

Home of Superman!

Are you a Superman fan, then you should visit the home of Superman in Metropolis, IL. There is a large Superman statue in front of the courthouse and a festival every year. I have seen Superman and actually competed many moons ago in the Superman 5K event.

Why do I bring this up because Metropolis, IL made my CNN feed today with the article For Lois Lane statue, economy may be kryptonite so I thought I would share some trivia with you.

Tim Tam's, an Australian Biscuit, in the USA, with a KY tie!!!

Yes, you are hearing correctly. For a limited time, you can purchase Australia's top chocolate biscuit (cookie) in the United States!! And if you have never been to Australia or had the privilege of a friend sharing a Tim Tam Slam with you, then I encourage you to head to your local Target (if you have one). Once you have a package of Tim Tam's in your position along with some hot cocoa, Milo, or hot tea, then we can share in the experience of a Tim Tam Slam. If you have had prior privilege of indulging in a Tim Tam Slam, then you know where to head in order to indulge again for a limited time.

Pepperidge Farm, a sister company of Arnott's the maker of the Tim Tam, is producing Tim Tam's for the American market through March (Market Watch Story). Thanks to Ashlee and Nick for their discovery at their local Target store!!! Check out the Pepperidge Farm link for a $1 off coupon and an opportunity to enter a sweepstakes for a trip to Australia.

For all my Kentucky friends:
"Tim Tam biscuits first hit supermarket shelves in 1964. They were named after a horse that won the Kentucky Derby in 1958. A member of the Arnott family, Ross Arnott, attended the race day and decided ‘Tim Tam’ was the perfect name for his new biscuit." Arnott's Website

Hurricane Winds lead to rare phenomenon in Kentucky

Here is the news report from Paducah. I might try to write more on this later.

"UPDATE: David S. White, professor of Biological Sciences at Murray State University is reporting more evidence supporting our story.
White writes, "Our water monitors (taking measurements every 15 min) in Kentucky Lake actually picked up the seiche and the changes in water levels. The changes in water level perfectly match the changes in wind speed from our weather station."

Marshall County, KY - As cleanup continues from this weekend's hurricane-driven wind storm... a new mystery. Why were so many boats left high and dry? It turns out they were not simply swept away by high winds.

It is suspected that a rare phenomenon known as a seiche raised one end of the lake by several feet.
It's similar to a storm surge -- those walls of water we've all seen as hurricanes slam into shore. Except on inland waters it's called a seiche. The strong sustained winds push the water to one side of the lake and hold it there. The national weather service says it's likely that's what happened on Kentucky Lake.
Copyright 2008 WPSD-TV, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcasted, rewritten, or redistributed."

Water Shortage - Kentucky

Kentucky has been plagued with the lack of water for the entire latter part of the summer. I was just reading about the recent restrictions of water in Georgetown in particular. I found the following interesting though sensible:
"Serving water in restaurants, clubs, or eating places, except by customer request."

Very often the water that is brought out for everyone is not used, so it makes sense to only serve when requested. So if you are use to a restaurant automatically serving you water and they don't, it may not be the server but the lack of water.

Accident w/ No Injuries - "Move It"

Found the above link on WKYT. Apparently as of July 1 if you have an accident on the interstate and no one is injured, it is law now to move your car off to the side of the road and call police. This is to keep traffic moving and reduce the risk of secondary accidents due to traffic congestion. Look for the new signs in your area soon.

Electronics and Lightning: Are you prepared?

For those who wear their iPod or other musical device while running, you may want to read this article. Granted it can also happen with cell phones, jewelry, pagers, and other items with metal. The musical device and the wiring into your ears is much more dangerous than wearing a ring or having a pager on your side.

In addition to the dangers of lightning, there is the dangers of not being able to hear what is going on around you or paying appropriate attention to that around. For example, a kid was talking on his phone on Sunday in Lexington. Had I not been paying attention to the fact that he was going to walk right out in the middle of the road as I sailed 55 down it. He and the car would have probably came into contact. A car on the other side also honked at him. I don't think he had any clue that what he was doing was unsafe. He was too busy chatting away on his cell phone.

Smaller Cities Lose Their Identity

Has Lexington really grown large enough to have suburbs? Especially suburbs that are really not attached to the city in any true fashion.

The following is quoted from an AP article on WKYT.
"The bus was traveling to the Lexington suburb of Georgetown for
a weeklong church camp at Georgetown College, Hale said."

When did Georgetown become a suburb of Lexington? The answer it hasn't, yet. I do understand that one day it may become more of a suburb of Lexington, but currently, there is nothing that ties the two towns together in close enough proximity to consider it a suburb. There is still a lot of rural land between Lexington and Georgetown, which unfortunately is quickly depleting, but not enough for Georgetown to be a suburb of Lexington.

What are your thoughts on the suburbanization of Lexington or other towns?

Ready to Roller Skate

Roller skating is coming back to Lexington in a couple weeks. If you haven't roller skated lately, it is actually a blast once you get a hang of it and good exercise. Check out previous post about my last roller skating experience.

Earnhardt Jr joins Hendrick Motorsports

Gordon and Earnhardt fans alike today are dealing with how to react to the announcement that Earnhardt Jr is joining the Hendrick family. Fans for these two drivers are probably the most against one another and now they join the same larger family.

I wish Earnhardt Jr the best and hope that this move will be beneficial to his career.

Check out SI article.

Stop the real time blogging

Louisville Courier Journal reporter was removed from the NCAA Baseball tournament for blogging the game real time. What do you think?

Louisville's New Archbishop Named

Scanning through the feeds, I found the above article about the naming of a new Archbishop for the Diocese of Louisville. The Archdiocese of Louisville also includes the Diocese of Owensboro, Covington, and Lexington.

Price is Right

Another sign of the times and change in history, Bob Barker has taped his last Price is Right. I don't know about you, but I definitely watched a many Price is Right shows as a child and some thereafter. He will definitely be a missed icon in the game show world.

Speaking of game shows: What were some of your favorite TV game shows over the years? Don't be afraid to admit you watched a many of them. I remember racing to turn on the TV at my grandparents as a young child to catch some of our favorite shows after school. Well, the actual racing to the television set was to see who got control of the TV for that afternoon, but it often landed on USA Today (I believe is what aired most of the shows back then.)

Press Your Luck (No Whammies!!)
Price Is Right
Let's Make a Deal
Family Feud
Wheel of Fortune

I might come up with some more later, but there is the start of my list.

Pac-Man Receives Face Lift

After 26 years, Pac-Man has a new set of mazes. What are your reactions?

Did you know that Pac-Man was created in 1981? Pac-Man seems like such an ancient game and one that I thought was around prior to me though maybe not by much. I guess I was wrong it I was actually around before it though not by much.

Donovan's may not be leaving Florida

This story gets more interesting by the day. The morning news reports that Donovan is looking to back out of the Magic deal and return to Florida. Florida's meeting with ex-assistant coach, Anthony Grant, did not happen as originally planned for this weekend. He has not been offered a job.

Chris you might get to see UK beat Florida under Donovan's reign this year after all. Definitely an interesting change of events, we will just have to wait and see what happens.

Desktop Computer, Fish Tank: What do they have in common?

I just found this alarming news story about a fire being started by a desktop computer and as I reported over Christmas a fire was started though thankfully extinguished by a fish tank.

How much attention do you pay to your electronics, especially when you are headed out of town?

Land Lines vs Cell Phones in Emergency

Have we become to dependent on cell phones? How many people actually still have a land line? Since I moved to Bloomington, I know longer have a land line because of the additional cost that I would occur. Now if I had a full paying job, I might reconsider this option because I do feel a lot safer with a land line versus a cell phone. Granted if all you have are cordless phones in your house attached to land lines, you are in about as bad shape as if you just had a cell phone when the power goes out.

The issue discussed in the article on WKYT talks about the use of cell phones and how you really do not know where your 911 call is being received. Though this is outlining an issue on the river, the same could be true between towns.

Two things to remember:
- When using a cell phone to call in an emergency, remember to give state, town, and then the address.
- If you have a land line, make sure that at least one phone is not cordless or power dependent.