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This has been an awesome month for “There’s a Blog in my Soup”. We have had a tremendous amount of traffic. Most of which has come from stumbleupon, and google.

Our traffic for the month is 46,512 – Of course this is liable to go up a little before the end of the day.

The majority of my traffic comes between 13:00 hours and 19:00 hours.

My unique hits for the past 7 days is: 4,286.

My total hits for the past 7 days is: 28,331.

Since March I’ve had 156,587 total hits with 32,926 unique hits.

I’m very excited with the growth, and am working hard to put up seasonal posts per each holiday that will bring in some good targeted traffic year after year. I’m also working on increasing the amount of posts that I write each week. My goal is to break 500 posts by the end of the year.

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New Ghost Hunters Social Network Launched + Special 6 Hour LIVE Ghost Hunters Event!

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Scifi.com just announced that it will be launching a social network to give Ghost Hunter fans a chance to “join the hunt“.

Ghost hunter fans will have the opportunity to share their ghost stories, learn how to use ghost hunting equipment, ask questions of the ghost hunters.

Ghost Hunter Network Users will be get the following perks:

Weekly Ghost Hunting Tutorials: Learn how to use EMF guages, EVPs, and other ghost tracking gear.

View and Share Ghost Stories: Ghost hunter fans can view and share stories of ghostly encounters.

Ask a Hunter: Ghost hunter fans will be able to ask a TAPS member questions and get answers about ghost hunting.

Haunted or Not? Fans will be able to view alleged photos of haunted places and vote on whether they are haunted or not.

Other Resources: Books, movies, and more for those fascinated with the paranormal, and hunting ghosts.

Tonight the hugely popular Ghost Hunters live event will take place at the historic Fort Delaware in Delaware City, DE.

The live ghost hunter even will run from 7pm – 2am ET.

Ghost hunter fans will be able to view online video feeds of different rooms, in both night vision, and thermal imaging camera views. Fans will also have access to exclusive photos from the live event, live q&a with the TAPS team, and the return of the “Panic Button” allowing web hunters to alert the team of unusual ghostly activity.

A little background on Ghost Hunters:

If you haven’t seen the show, it has been on the SciFi channel since October 2004. It highlights a team of paranormal investigators led by Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson.

Plumbers by day, and ghost hunters at night, Jason and Grant explore private homes, businesses, tourist locations, and even government facilities that are said to be haunted.

They are very scientific, and work hard to debunk all claims, and unlike many paranormal shows that seem less than genuine, ghost hunters works hard to make sure to only give their ‘haunted’ declaration if it meets their guidelines.

Ghost Hunters, has also launched a spin-off series called Ghost Hunters International where they explore haunted castles, monasteries, grave yards, alleys, churches, and sites from the old world. Some of the cooler locations were Dracula’s Castle, The Lair of the Blood Countess, and the Castle where Edward Longshanks ruled(Think evil king from Braveheart).

Ghost hunters are also ramping up to go to college, with a new spin-off series following College Students looking for Ghosts with experienced TAPS members.

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Here is a mashup of all the different Thriller videos I found online.

First there’s the original, and obviously the best with Michael Jackson:

Next we have a how-to on how to do the Thriller Dance:

This is one of my favorites – Watch a Phillipino Prison do the Thriller:

And here’s the Lego version of Thriller:

Here’s a thriller video for the Final Fantasy Fans:

Here’s a hilarious thriller at a Wedding video:

For you Second Lifers here’s a SL Thriller Video:

This one is definitely the cutest Thriller video – cute little 3 yr old dancing to Thriller:

Another geekie wedding Thriller video, it’s a pretty good one though!

Wow, is all I can say about this version – definitely the Sexiest version of Thriller, I’ve ever seen – I can’t find an embed for this so you’ll have to check it out on youtube.

Ok, Now I’ve seen everything – a Real Life Chipmunk doing Thriller…This one’s short but cute:

Here’s a Marine in Iraq doing the Thriller Dance:

Here’s a funny Thriller Spoof Video from the BBC:

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I absolutely love “the monster mash”, definitely one of my favorite halloween songs. This song is definitely a classic.

Bobby “Boris” Pickett’s song was originally launched in 1962, I couldn’t believe it was so old, I  remember listening to this song growing up in the 80’s.

Watch these two versions of Monster Mash – and let me know which one you like best!

Here’s the simpson’s version of the monster mash music video on youtube:

Here’s the original Monster Mash video by Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett & the Cryptkickers:

Here are the monster mash lyrics:

I was working in the lab late one night
When my eyes beheld an eerie sight
For my monster from his slab began to rise
And suddenly to my surprise

He did the mash
He did the monster mash
The monster mash
It was a graveyard smash
He did the mash
It caught on in a flash
He did the mash
He did the monster mash

From my laboratory in the castle east
To the master bedroom where the vampires feast
The ghouls all came from their humble abodes
To get a jolt from my electrodes

They did the mash
They did the monster mash
The monster mash
It was a graveyard smash
They did the mash
It caught on in a flash
They did the mash
They did the monster mash

The zombies were having fun
The party had just begun
The guests included Wolf Man
Dracula and his son

The scene was rockin’, all were digging the sounds
Igor on chains, backed by his baying hounds
The coffin-bangers were about to arrive
With their vocal group, “The Crypt-Kicker Five”

They played the mash
They played the monster mash
The monster mash
It was a graveyard smash
They played the mash
It caught on in a flash
They played the mash
They played the monster mash

Out from his coffin, Drac’s voice did ring
Seems he was troubled by just one thing
He opened the lid and shook his fist
And said, “Whatever happened to my Transylvania twist?”

It’s now the mash
It’s now the monster mash
The monster mash
And it’s a graveyard smash
It’s now the mash
It’s caught on in a flash
It’s now the mash
It’s now the monster mash

Now everything’s cool, Drac’s a part of the band
And my monster mash is the hit of the land
For you, the living, this mash was meant too
When you get to my door, tell them Boris sent you

Then you can mash
Then you can monster mash
The monster mash
And do my graveyard smash
Then you can mash
You’ll catch on in a flash
Then you can mash
Then you can monster mash

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Texas Earthquake hits in Irving and Grand Prairie.

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According to noaa.com and usgs.gov, two earthquakes shook dallas texas last night on October 30th at 11:30 Pm, and the other at 12:01 am this morning.

The first texas earthquake shook it up at a 2.5 magnitude. The second dallas earthquake came in at 3.0 on the ricter scale.

These earthquakes were strongest in the Irving and Grand Prairie areas.

For those lucky enough not to ever been through earthquakes, a 3.0 feels like a light truck passing by, just a sharp jerk, and some vibrating.

Personally, I blame the Dallas earthquake on Texas’s support of John Mccain, lol.

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Check out these hot Halloween Blog Topics!

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I was just perusing the google trends hottest trends, and came across the following halloween related keywords, any of which would be a good blog post starting point:

1. printable pumpkin carving stencils
2. happy halloween comments
3. halloween 2008
4. rocky horror picture show
5. myspace halloween graphics
6. easy homemade halloween costumes
7. 100 scariest movie moments
8. last minute halloween costumes for guys
9. the real exorcist
10. halloween quotes
11. samhain
12. halloween parade nyc
13. sam hane
14. nerd costume
15. grand rapids zombie walk
16. halloween pumpkin patterns
17. short scary stories
18. this is halloween lyrics
19. halloween e cards
20. roasted pumpkin seeds
21. all hallows eve
22. nightmare on elm street
23. halloween history
24. west hollywood halloween
25. tim curry(rocky horror)

My advice is to write keyword rich posts on as many of these as you can, or combine a couple related keywords into one post. Trust me – you will get some good google traffic from this.

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I’d like to just take a moment and offer up a Happy Halloween, it’s always sad to see Halloween end, its my favorite holiday. We had like 5 trick or treaters come by tonight, kinda pathetic, lol.

Anyone got plans for the Halloween weekend?

I’m goin to a church trunk or treat (trick or treat out of church members’ trunks), combined with a Chili cook-off and pumpkin carving contest. Then I’m coming home and watching Ghost Hunter’s special live Halloween episode. I’m pretty stoked about this show – it’s gonna be pretty cool.

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Everyone would love to work from home. In a troubled economy, many may even be forced to find a way to earn a living on their own terms.

Here’s a list of 26 great home business ideas to start.

1. Tutoring. Tutoring is a good recession proof home based business. Men, women, and children will always be going to school, and many need help to bring their grades up. You can advertise your tutoring business at schools, ymca’s, recreation centers, libraries, etc. If you have children – you can network with teachers in your area to build your business.
2. Yoga instructor. If you love yoga, you can make a decent living teaching yoga to the community. There are a number of great resources online depending upon which school of yoga you would like to teach. The Yoga Alliance web site is a great place to get started finding out about yoga schools, certification, insurance, etc…
3. Home Inspection. Get paid decent money to inspect homes. Find out more about getting certified as a home inspector at the National Association of Certified Home Inspectors.
4. Remodeling. If you know your way around a tool-box, and are a good carpenter or contractor, then remodeling may be the business for you. The SBA provides loans to experienced contractors looking to renovate homes in order to sell them.
5. Interior Design. Have an eye for design? Perhaps this is the perfect career for you.The American SOciety of Interior Designers provides resources for those aspiring to become interor designers, including state requirements.
6. Horse Riding School. If you have the barn, land, and horses this is a great business to start. Equisearch.com is a great starting point with resources and articles on Horse Riding Schools.
7. Cleaning Service. Professional cleaners are always in need, especially for offices and small businesses. Two good cleaning franchises to look up are: CleanNet-USA and JaniKing.
8. Computer repair. If you’re the one people call when they have a computer problem, then this is a great business for you. Two great franchise opportunities include Geeks on Call America, and Rescuecom.
9. Personal Shopper. If you have a flair for shopping, and an eye for people’s personal styles you can offer your services to those less inclined. You may also provide a gift shopping service for those too busy to shop themselves.
10. Personal Trainer. This is a great job that pays very well for those who are fitness minded, there is a certification process for this job, to find out more check out the National Federation of Professional Trainers.
11. Medical and legal transcription. If you have the skills and equipment, you can easily work from home for a variety of transcription companies. Check local colleges for transcription training courses.
12. Web Design. If you’re good with graphics and building web sites, you might want to give a shot at going professional.
14. Medical Claims Billing. This is industry is a huge work-from-home business.
15. Accounting. There are many opportunities and franchise possibilities for certified public accountants. If you’re interested in becoming certified take a look at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants for information on state requirements.
16. Business Coach. Have experience with management, or business development, or another specialized business skill? Share it by becoming a business coach. Feel free to check out the International Coach Federation provides certification and a referral service for it’s members.
17. Consulting. Are you a self-proclaimed expert? Why not start a consulting business?
18. Desktop Publishing. Are brochures, flyers, and newsletters your thing? You can offer your own desktop publishing services to small businesses in your area.
19. Photography. If you are photographically inclined, or gifted with a camera – you can open your own photography studio. You will need to have space enough to shoot the pictures, as well as really good equipment and photo processing software.
20. Catering or Personal Chef. If you love to cook this is a great business. You can also set yourself apart from the competition by focusing on a style like low-carb cooking, or vegetarianism. Catering does require a ‘food establishment’ license, and a commercially equipped kitchen that meets all state and federal health requirements.
21. Gift Baskets. Gift basket building and delivery is a great home business to start, you can sell your services to individuals and businesses.
22. Wedding Planner. If you’re skilled at organizing events, and designing parties. Wedding planning may be a great opportunity for you. Having a Rolodex full of contacts will make you even more successful in this field. There are numerous online certification courses including one from Weddings Beautiful.
23. Concierge. This is a great high energy business for those who are great multi-taskers.
24. Custom Jeweler. Designing custom jewelry can be a lot of fun,and extremely lucrative. Make sure to always wear your own creations to gain new business.
25. Carpet cleaning service. There are many great franchises that allow you to start your own carpet cleaning business. ServiceMaster Clean, and ChemDry are two of the biggest.
26. Home Child-care service. If you love children, and are good handling children this is a great popular home based business.

These are some of the best traditional home-based businesses, but one that I left out is Network Marketing, which is still a very viable method of earning money. If you’d like to try an easy, affordable home based business why not give MyWorldPlus a shot. I Highly recommend it! Read my blog post about it: “8 Reasons why MyWorldPlus is the perfect business in a down economy..”

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MyworldPlus – The perfect recession-proof business.

Fact: More and more people are losing their jobs. American express announced today that they are going to be cutting 7,000 jobs.

With this economic climate it’s scary. People are afraid – you may think your job is secure, but find out next week that you were wrong.

Of course I hope Barack Obama can fix things when he gets in, but that won’t be till January – and the whole next year may be worse than it is now.

Why did I start my network marketing business (MyWorldPlus)? I’ve been researching an opportunity for quite awhile, I’ve looked at several.

5 major reasons why I joined MyWorldPlus:

Reason #1: The product. The product is a card that saves you money at hundreds of thousands of stores, restaurants, entertainment venues, etc… you also can receive cash back on purchases at over 600 online stores. These are stores that you would be shopping at anyway like target, sears, etc..

Reason #2: The cost: The monthly cost of running this business is less than $20. That’s less than the cost of a nice dinner out with my wife. However, when you add the savings from the discount card, it practically pays for itself.

Reason #3: The easy system: Their system is as easy as pie. You can give it a try before you buy so to speak.  I was already in profit before I joined the company thanks to their powerline structure. I had 134 paid members below me – before I even joined! The system is easily duplicated.

Reason #4: The upline support: The upline members are top-notch. They hold weekly trainings, and really know how to build this business. I can pick my sponsor’s brain anytime I want to, and that’s what I like about this business.

Reason #5: Easy qualification for big money: Myworldplus has an easy plan to promote. All you need to receive the first pool is 3 personally enrolled active members – which I can easily help you with, and teach you how to do.

I highly recommend you giving the plan a try – it’s free to try out the system. I’m absolutely positive you will like what you see.

3 reasons why this business is perfect in a slowing economy:

1. People are hurting for money – helping them save money is like putting more money in their pocket.

2. Building a home business is a recession proof way to build job security. Wouldn’t it be nice to be earning just an extra $1000 per month every month – that could weather the storm if you did lose your job?

3. Many people are living lives of desperation right now. This could be their salvation. You could help a single mom get back on her feet by offering this business to them, you could help one of the million plus people who’ve lost their jobs this year.

I’m not saying this just to get you to join my team – I know that things are hard, they are hard at my home too, I’ve lost a job back in May, and know what it’s like.

Give MyWorldPlus a shot, I’m positive you won’t regret it!

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… C: wait… SD: wait…

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Ok, it’s time for another new theme – I’m hard to please, and I still haven’t found the perfect theme.

Today I’ve installed the True Elegance theme. I must say i really like it – but I’d sure like some other opinions – please feel free to drop a line and let me know what you think as well!

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Barack Obama’s 30 Minute Infomercial – He hit a homerun on this one!

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Wednesday October 29th Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack Obama aired a multi-network television ad, lasting a full 30 minutes.

In this ad he asked the American people for their votes in the last days of this most historical presidential election campaign.

The ad was extremely well produced, and very emotional. He said he wouldn’t be a “perfect” president, but he promised “I will always tell you what I think and where I stand.”

The ad featured interviews with real citizens hit hard by the economic crisis – such as an automotive factory worker, and retirees losing their health care coverage.

The ad also spoke of Barack Obama’s relationship with his parents, wife, and children.

At the end of the 30 minute obama commercial, Obama appeared live, making an appeal to florida voters.

Personally I think the video was very well done, and definitely heart warming and emotion pulling. It was definitely a good video and will bode well for his campaign.

View the full length obama Commercials below.

Barack Obama 30 Min Infomercial Part 1:

Barack Obama 30 Min Infomercial Part 2:

Barack Obama 30 Min Infomercial Part 3:

Barack Obama 30 Min Infomercial Part 4:

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Don’t break the bank this Christmas – Shop Smart!

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The holidays are fast approaching, and more and more people are losing jobs. The fact is things are looking bleak.

More and more Americans are feeling the pinching claws of debt. The holidays are a joyous season.

I think of beautiful holiday music, dazzling holiday light shows, spending time with family and friends, gathering around the Christmas tree, the look on a child’s face when they get that special toy they’ve been dreaming about. Yes Christmas and the holiday season is a magical time.

The holidays can be scary too… If you don’t plan accordingly – it is very easy to go into debt fast. Most people fail to plan ahead and instead buy all the presents at the last minute, paying with a credit card.

In this financial climate, when there’s no such thing as a ’secure job’, when it’s getting harder and harder to even get credit cards, we need to make an active stride towards planning our holiday spending.

As the old adage goes – if you fail to plan, then you plan to fail.

It is better to skip Christmas, than to go broke trying to make everyone in your family happy. Especially this year, of all years.

Here are some tips that will alleviate the stress of the holiday shopping season, and will alleviate the undue burden placed on your pocketbook as well.

1. Set a Holiday Spending Budget. One of the biggest problems people get themselves in is not setting a limit to their spending. Fact: When people have no limits they tend to go overboard. Like lemmings on a cliff.Another false thinking is that the more costly a gift, the more that person will enjoy it, or the more meaningful it will be. We all want to be loved, and accepted, especially by our friends and family – but it’s not the cost that matters – it’s the time and thought that went into a gift. If those around you are the few where price is an issue then you should definitely seek new friends who won’t bring you down.You must set a budget, and not exceed this budget. There are two parts to this – first create a list of people who you think need gifts, and prioritize these people. Not everybody you know needs a gift from you – a simple card will suffice for many. There are two ways to stick to a budget if you find your shopping list out-pacing your budget.First you need to set a price on each person, the closer they are to you the higher your price, second you may need to decide to cut percentages, or remove some people altogether and opt for the greeting card instead.If it makes you feel guilty for not getting a gift – think of it like this, if you knew that your gift someone went out of their way to buy you, was going to put them in debt, even make them in danger of losing their home, or not being able to put food on the table – would you still want the gift?To be successful and frugal in this down economy we are going to have to swallow our pride and let people know that we are having some hard times and if you let them know you’re thinking about them, and are genuinely sorry that you can’t do more than a card, they will be understanding.
2. Begin saving for the Holidays as early as possible.
   It may be late to be saying this as I’m writing this so close to the season. But there’s still almost 2 months till Christmas if you save a little bit per paycheck even that should make things easier.

   Here’s a great method of starting saving early. First decide how much you will need for next Christmas, for travel, gifts, food, etc. Divide that amount by 11 – the number of months until November. Then set up an automatic deposit into a savings account just for the holidays. You absolutely must be disciplined, this is not money that you can spend, otherwise you may end up ruining Christmas so to speak.

3. Chop up those Credit Cards Now! This may sound bleak and disturbing, but if you want to be debt free, then you need to live on cash purchases. Credit card debt only amounts to losing thousands of dollars in interest fees. Don’t get caught in this trap, it can destroy your life.The worst part of using credit cards – is making bad choices. If you must keep the card – then put it somewhere safe like a block of ice in the freezer, or in a safety deposit box. This will make you seriously consider each and every purchase, and you will find many purchases aren’t absolute needs, and you will be less likely to spend frivolously.
4. Be like Santa: Check your list, and check it twice – see who’s Naughty or Nice. You only have two months left this year, and if you don’t have everything saved up, you may just need to cut some people off your list this year. This sounds harsh, but now that you know how to have a frugal christmas – next year you can spend double to make up for it.Whatever you do don’t go into debt. It’s better to not spend any money than to go into debt – make that your mantra.

Last and not least if you are still having troubles getting out of debt, or it seems nearly impossible – you may need to seek help. Debt Match is a great program for debt reduction, they help you negotiate lower debts, and workout payment plans with your credit card companies. I highly recommend giving them a try: Legally Erase Your Credit Card Debt Today!

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PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… C: wait… SD: wait…

First, my top money maker is Market Leverage.

I absolutely love this program. They have some very easily converting programs. My advice to get the most from this program is to write blog posts on their products.

Example – I wrote a sponsored blog post on a pay-per-action debt product called ‘debt clear’. The post can be found here: “Legally get rid of credit card debt – Forever!”

I wrote this post on August 29th. To date I’ve made $56 in September and $16 this month off that one blog post. This is just one example.

My second top money maker is find-it quick. This program actually pays you per impression, and also per click. The more clicks the more you make, but you are guaranteed to make at least $1.00 per 1000 unique hits.

Both programs also offer great referral programs where you get paid for people you refer to the program as well. I highly recommend taking a moment and checking both sites out. Of course I would also appreciate your signing up and giving them a try through my affiliate link.

Also – if you have experience with Market Leverage or Find-it Quick two souces of income – pro or con – please let me know via comments on this post.

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Obama said about being called a socialist “Next thing he’s gonna do is call me communist for sharing my toys in Kindergarten”

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I think this is hillarious – Mccain trying to bring up a sixty year old argument. It just shows how old he is. Communism / Socialism was an issue back in the 50’s that people kept bringing up and using in politics.

Socialism has nothing to do with Barack Obama’s economic plan. Fact is taking money from corporations where ceo’s get paid millions of dollars more than they are worth and giving it to those who buy their products, or work for minimal wages is more than fair.

I don’t think anyone is worth 20,000,000 +, if I were making that much I would give 20% or more just to charity – and I wouldn’t mind paying higher taxes to help the poor and middle class who are struggling to get by.

I think all Mccain has left is petty attacks. Personally – I think the only people who should get the 95% of tax cuts are those who voted for them – screw the rest of ya… It’s a fact from independant agencies that more regular Americans benefit under Obama’s plan, vs Mccain’s plan where only big corporations benefit.

If you vote for big corps to get the money then you shouldn’t receive a dime. A vote for Mccain is a vote for no Tax cuts for the middle class.

As for me, I cast my vote for Obama – on the very first day of early voting here in Ohio. I had just moved a few weeks before so I registered to vote, and voted on the same trip. It was extremely easy, straight-forward. I feel good about my choice, and decision and it has been a weight off my chest. I don’t have to worry about long lines on election day either.

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Livingto100.com – Life Expectancy Calculator – what is your life expectancy?

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This is a pretty interesting website I just came across. You answer a slew of questions and they give you your life expectancy.

My livingto100.com life expectancy is 77, which isn’t great but could be worse, I’m sure. I definitely need to drop a few pounds, to raise that number.

Go ahead and give it a try.  The website is: Livingto100.com.

Apparently people with a lot of friends have higher life expectancies, which I thought was pretty odd. I guess it makes sense, though – it’s said that babies die without human contact – and many did back in the early days of hospitals in this country.

My question though is do I really want to live to 100 – if it means having dementia, alzheimers, wearing depends, or taking 15 different drugs per day just to stay alive – you can count me out. I’d rather die peacefully, without trying to make my body trudge on longer than it’s meant to.

Go to Livingto100.com and report back here – I’m interested in starting a conversation on this – tell me what your life expectancy is, and what that means to you.

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… C: wait… SD: wait…

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Blogging Talent NEEDED – Earn some good Money!

This blog is taking off in leaps and bounds. Right now, I am looking for some talent to keep new posts coming.

Payment will be based on shares. Each post will be worth .25 shares per 250 words (max 1.5 shares per post). Posts with less than 250 words won’t count towards shares. Each blogger will receive a link on the sidebar to an onsite profile, and an offsite website.

Posts don’t have to be great, but they do have to be keyword rich and informative. There will be bonuses at my discretion based on quality of posts. Posts that bring in a large amount of traffic by their own merits will receive extra credits.

At the end of the month we will send out an email to all of our bloggers with our total monthly income report. 80% of our total monthly income will be divided up based on points.

For instance say we have 3 bloggers: Erik, Sandra, and Joe the Plumber. Joe the plumber has 1 share. Sandra has 5 shares. Erik has 10 shares. Lets say for the sake of easy math that the bloggers’ cut for the month is $100. We would divide $100 by 16 – the total number of shares. We get $6.25 as the value per share. Which would mean Joe the plumber gets $6.25, Sandra gets 31.25, and Erik gets $62.50.

Trust me when I say that the bloggers accepted will make decent money – if they apply themselves. As I am just trying this out I can only accept a limited number of bloggers. Right now that number is 5.

If you’re interested please drop me an email at patrickwcurl AT GMAIL.COM and tell me why you should be accepted. Please include links to blogs you currently write for, or articles you’ve written. Also please tell me the topics you are most interested in – please look at our categories list for a detailed look at the topics this blog is most interested in.

TRAFFIC STATS: This blog currently has roughly 40,000+ hits per month. 5,000+ of those are generally unique hits. Please refer to the visual below for further details.

Image via Wikipedia

This is just scary, the biggest threat that we as Americans have is ourselves. American extremists.

What causes people to hate so much that they stoop to these levels? I can’t imagine a Mccain administration. Right now I have tremendous hope that change is around the corner, I believe in Barack Obama. But it could be taken away so easy.

Apparently the ATF found plans by two neo-nazi skin-heads planning to Assinating Barack Obama. They had planned to rob a gun store, go into an African American high school, and have a shopping spree, then go and assassinate Barack Obama.

This is frightening news, especially following the ugly racist, and hate-mongering attacks by the Mccain campaign. As someone on msnbc said – you don’t incite hatred and fear in a country known for assassinations.

I’m glad the culprits have been detained, and were not able to carry out their sinister deeds. It just scares me that there could be others out there who may take their opportunity.

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Black Friday 2008 – the Ultimate Shopper’s Holiday.

Image of Black Friday

Love it or hate it, the holidays are around the corner, which means black friday is upon our doorstep as well. Personally I find black friday to be a headache, but my wife loves it. What can I say? I’m just not a big shopper, but if I must go shopping, I do love to find a good deal – who doesn’t?

Black friday 2008 ads won’t be out officially until Thanksgiving, but there are some websites that are giving sneak previews of black friday 2008 ads.

Some of the top sites with black friday 2008 ads include:

1. TheBlackFriday.com – This site is filled with the latest deals for black friday 2008. It also contains archives of previous Black Friday ad releases. The site also encourages it’s visitors to submit deals alerting other bargain hunters about black friday 2008 specials in their area. Black friday 2008 retailers listed here include: Costco, Kmart, Walmart, H&M, Target, and Sears.
2. BFads.net – This is one of the web’s leading black friday sites featuring scans of black friday 2008 flyers. This site is full of information on black friday 2008 ads, and has released a sears black friday scan with 48 pages of listing. They have also released the Toys R Us big book advertisement listing that contains deals that end the Saturday before Black Friday 2008.
3. iBlackFriday – This site is dedicated to finding and posting the latest Black Friday 2008 ads. iBlackFriday.com has also released  black friday 2008 information from Sears, Toys R US, Harbor Freight, with plans to release black friday 2008 ads from Home depot, Ikea, Circuit City, Buy.com and Amazon.

Bloggers and website owners of Black Friday 2008 sites are notorious for leaking information that retailers are trying to keep under wraps until Thanksgiving. But is it illegal to post Black Friday 2008 ads?

Some retailers like Walmart have threatened to press legal charges against sites that post Black Friday 2008 ads, before their approval. Employees who are caught providing information to black friday websites could be liable for breaching confidentiality agreements.

Poll: The economy is in shambles, what do you think will happen this year on Black Friday – will the deals be the best ever? Will there be record low, or record high sales? Let me know what you think!

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I’m no expert on pumpkin carving…so check this out!

Image by Joe Crawford (artlung) via Flickr

Instead of recapping what other’s are posting about pumpkin carving, I’m going to provide some really awesome links and resources for coming up with pumpkin carving ideas.

Here are a couple of my favorite pumpkin carving sites:

Extreme Pumpkins – These are sick, and disturbed people, but their pumpkin designs are awesome!

Pumpkin Carving 101 – This is a good site devoted to everything about pumpkin carving.

The Pumpkin Lady – Over a decade of providing top-notch patterns, tips, and tricks on how to carve pumpkins.

Zombie Pumpkins – has over 182 terrifying pumpkin patterns available, also features contests, pictures, downloads, etc…

Below are pumpkin related sites by type.

Pumpkin Carving Artists:

• Grumpkins – Massive fruit sculptures.
• Pumpkin Way – Pumpkins with attitude.
• Pumpkin Rot – A celebration of the dark rites of Halloween.
• Villafane Studios – Extreme 3-D Pumpkin Sculptures by Ray Villafane.
• Bumpkin Pumpkins – An UK Charity based on pumpkin carving.
• Steve’s Pumpkin Art – Professional Pumpkin Carver.
• The Pumpkin Gutter – online gallery of pumpkin carving.
• Killer Pumpkins – Scary pumpkins and chilling ghost stories.
• The Pumpkin Guy – the picasso, or van gogh of pumpkins.

Pumpkin Carving Products and Info:

• Pumpkin Fresh – Make your pumpkins last longer.
• Walt’s pumpkin carving secrets – Secrets that the pros use to carve better pumpkins.
• Pumpkin Surface Carver – Unique ways to carve.
• Funkins – Artificial carvable pumpkins.
• Pumpkins and more – History, recipe, facts.
• Home Logic Halloween – Tools, Lights, Stencils, & Accessories.

Pumpkin carving Patterns:

• Masterpiece pumpkins – custom pumpkins, patterns, and tutorials.
• Spookmaster – pumpkin carving patterns online.
• Custom Pumpkin Carving – Specializing in awesome pumpkin patterns.
• Jammin Pumpkins – Taking pumpkin carving to a whole new level.
• Stoneykins – where pumpkins become alive.
• Pumpkin Crazy – for those who are crazy about pumpkins.
• The Pumpkin Wizard – Devoted to shading techniques and pumpkin carving.
• Pumpkin Glow – Home of Un-Halloween pumpkin patterns.

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Image via Wikipedia

Pumpkins have become the symbol for Halloween, but it wasn’t always so…

The lowly pumpkin, or jack-o-lantern has become the mascot for Halloween. Pumpkins are the most recognizable symbol of the hallowed holiday.

Most people know the holiday as Halloween, but in olden days it was actually a celtic holiday called “Samhain” (pronounced “sow wan”), which generally means “summer’s end”.

Halloween was the end of the celtic year, and the beginning of the new year. It lasted from sundown on October 31st until sundown on November 1st.

It began as a night to honor and remember those who have passed, and it was widely believed that, on the night of the 31st the veil between the world of the living, and the world of the dead is at it’s thinnest.

Halloween has been celebrated for centuries by celts, witches, and many other nature based faiths;  for them it is the most magical night of the year. Following in the tradition of the celts, it was adopted as the Witches’ New Year. The religious significance has long since passed out of the minds of mankind, but it is still a magical night.

On this magical night glowing jack-o-lanterns dot neighborhoods across the world. These were originally carved from turnips, or gourds.

The pumpkin being a native of the America, wasn’t used until European settlers arrived in America. They found the pumpkin to be larger, easier to carve, and seemed to be the perfect gourd for jack-o-lanterns.

Jack-o-lanterns were originally set on porches and in windows to welcome deceased loved ones, and as a protection against malevolent forces and spirits. Burning coals were first used to light the jack-o-lantern, and later replaced by candles.

Pumpkins, being indigenous to the western hemisphere were completely unknown of back in Europe. In 1584 a french explorer named Jaques Cartier reportedly found ‘gros melons’, which was translated into english as ‘ponpions’, which became pumpkin over time.

Pumpkins have been grown in America by natives for over 5,000 years. Native Americans called pumpkins ‘isquotersquash’.

Another interesting tidbit is the fact that pumpkins are not vegetables, but actually fruits.

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Image by WordRidden via Flickr

I’ve always loved Halloween, and it just isn’t Halloween without roasted pumpkin seeds. There are many different ways to cook pumpkin seeds.

My favorite, and probably the easiest way is via microwave.

Pumpkin Seed Preparation:

Clean the pumpkin seeds by running them under water for about 10-15 seconds.

If you like your pumpkin seeds to have a stronger saltier flavor, it is best to boil the pumpkin seeds in salted water, and let simmer for 10 minutes.

If you want to eat pumpkin seeds shell and all, Simply Recipes recommends using sugar pumpkins, instead of the larger carving pumpkins.

Pumpkin Seed Cooking Methods:

Oven roasted pumpkin seeds:

1. Pre-heat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Toss the pumpkin seeds in a bowl with olive oil, butter, or margin. For a low-fat version, skip the oil and butter, and just use cooking spray on the baking pan.
3. Place pumpkin seeds in a single layer on an oven safe dish or baking pan.
4. Lightly sprinkle salt over the pumpkin seeds.
5. Bake pumpkin seeds for 30-40 minutes, or until they begin to turn brown. Stir every 10 minutes or so.

Variations:

There are many ways to change it up, and add some additional flavor to your pumpkin seeds. One pumpkin seed recipe calls for Worcestershire sauce and garlic salt. Another pumpkin seed recipe calls for cumen, ginger, sugar, and cayenne pepper. Yet another pumpkin seed recipe calls for Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and hot pepper sauce.

You can also make your own recipe by adding: Maple syrup, curry powder, cinnamon, honey, cinnamon and sugar, nutmeg, tabasco sauce, or any other number of variations.

Skillet Toasted Pumpkin Seeds:

1. Heat 1-2 tablespoons of butter, or cooking oil in a skillet, or frying pan on medium heat.
2. As oil becomes hot stir in cleansed pumpkin seeds.
3. Stir and flip as the pumpkin seeds cook, pumpkin seeds shouldn’t be cooked longer than 5 minutes.
4. When the seeds are nicely toasted and browned, remove them from the skillet. Place them on a paper towel to drain the oil.
5. Season or flavor your pumpkin seeds as desired.
6. Let cool for 5-10 minutes, and enjoy.

Microwaved Pumpkin Seeds:

1. Melt two tablespoons of butter in a microwave safe bowl(about 30 seconds).
2. Place a cup and a half of pumpkin seeds into the bowl, make sure they’re in a single layer.
3. Sprinkle pumpkin seeds with seasoning or flavoring as desired.
4. Set your microwave for 8 minutes.
5. Check pumpkin seeds every 2 minutes. Also stir every two minutes.
6. Keep an eye on the seeds, and when they are a golden brown remove them from the microwave, lay them out on a paper towel, or some wax paper.
7. Let cool for 5 minutes, and enjoy your delicious pumpkin treat.

Pumpkin seeds will generally keep for roughly a week or so. So you can enjoy them as a snack for a whole week. As a side note this is a good healthy frugal snack to make. You’re going to carve a pumpkin anyways, right? Why not use the seeds, and save some on your food and snack bill?

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Shooting at UCA Kills 2, Injures 1!

Image via Wikipedia

Hours ago there was a shooting at UCA. So far there are two dead and one injured from the shooting at the University of Central Arkansas. One person died at the scene, with the other dieing at Conway Regional Medical Center.

The injured person was treated and released.

UCA campus police said the shots were fired at approximately 9:50pm, Sun October 26. The shooting happened near Snow Fine Arts center at UCA. UCA area police are searching for three more suspects.

So far police have apprehended one suspect in the UCA shooting. University of Central Arkansas has cancelled all classes for Monday, Oct 27th.

Currently the UCA campus is on lockdown, following the shooting. Students who are housed inside the UCA campus have been asked to stay inside their dorms for the time being.

Here is the email sent out to students living on campus:

UCA Police Department
to information

show details 10:20 PM (48 minutes ago)

The UCA Police Department is investigating a shooting that occurred on campus. At present there are four suspects. One suspect is in custody.

THE CAMPUS IS CLOSED. ALL HOUSING FACILITIES ARE RESTRICTED TO RESIDENTS ONLY.

Lieutenant Jeremy Crabb
Commander, Support Services Division
University of Central Arkansas Police Department

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Pumpkin Carving and Successful Blogging?

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First off it’s almost Halloween. I’ve love Halloween since I was a child age 6, and made my own haunted house at a friend’s house, albeit a simple, not as scary as planned haunted house.

In my imagination of course the haunted house was more scarier though, I guess when you’re six that’s all that really counts, right?

Pumpkin Carving is a hot topic right now, and I’m expecting it to be a very hot topic for the next few days, and of course fizzling out by the end of the day on Friday.

If you look at google trends there’s 2 mentions of pumpkin carving, 1 of pumpkin patterns, and 1 of how to cook pumpkin seeds.

A blog’s life-line is traffic. If you give readers what they want, you will get traffic in return. Again I can’t reiterate the power of google trends enough.

Today I wrote a blog post about the daylight savings time change, so far I’ve gotten 4,000 hits today just from people looking for information about daylight savings time. For those interested daylight savings schedule starts next sunday November 2nd.

If you’re here visiting for the first time – and you’ve come here looking for pumpkin carving information, don’t worry – I will be devoting the next few blog posts on the subject. Stay tuned, and if you want to help me out – subscribe to my blog, I would love ya forever.

With that said, keep an eye open for some good resourceful posts on pumpkin carving, how to cook pumpkin seeds, where to find the best pumpkin carving patterns, and maybe a few other halloween targeted articles.

One thought in closing – another great thing about seasonal trends, is that when you blog about pumpkin carving, you’re not only going to get a huge influx of visitors this Halloween season, but EVERY halloween season. In fact, if you provide enough good tips you may even be the first site they goto when the Halloween rolls around next year.

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Daylight Savings Time 2008 – November 2nd, 2008.

Image via Wikipedia

I myself was worried about today being Daylight Savings Time 2008. I googled it of course and found out that DayLight Savings Time 2008 changes on Sunday November 2nd.

So if you were looking forward to sleeping in, you’re gonna have to wait one more week, sorry.

I thought it would be nice to share this info, because I noticed that it’s the 2nd highest trend on Google right now.

Remember Daylight Savings Time 2008 begins Next Week!

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Get your Google Pro Kit for Free – Find out how a work from home mom is making a six figure income from home!

My friend Michelle Valdez is making thousands monthly via her Google Pro system. She is a stay at home mom, who used the internet to make $107,389 in six months, by filling out forms and doing searches on yahoo and google.

I’ve gotten my hands on a copy of this program, and I have to say it works. It works well, and It can work for you.

If you can only spare a couple of hours per week, you can make more than most people do working full time.  It’s simple, and easy, and for a little while.. you can actually get it for free!

Face it – times are hard right now. It seems that layoffs are happening everyday. Nobody’s job is certain anymore. Job security is more of a myth than an actuality.

Imagine being on top of the game, take it from me, Michelle is living the life many of us only dream of. She is making things happen. It’s exciting to see where she started, and how far she has come, and nobody deserves it more.

I know that you deserve it to. The awesome thing is – the Google Pro kit is totally free – you just have to pay shipping and handling!

The only down-side is that you need to hurry, there’s only a limited number that she’s going to be giving away, once this limited offer is over, you’ll have to pay the full-price, which is still a great deal at $197.00 – but why not get it for free?!

Don’t wait get your Google Pro System for free today!