The Station is still a cool tavern to hang out in and it is also kid and pet friendly. We were there just after it opened at noon, but the place filled up and there were several families with young kids and couples with their dogs outside on the patio. Worth checking out if you like eating outdoors and having a nice cold beer on a sunny weekend.

Read more about the Station Tavern & Burgers at Yelp!

Recently a friend of mine told me to check out this new one that launched recently called efusjon and so far it’s getting a lot of attention. The interesting thing about this one to start with, is that it has 2 versions, one that is just the natural Acai berry raw and one that is the Acai berry with a boost of caffeine. There are a couple more varieties on the way as well.

I decided to try it out. The founder who came up with the revenue algorithm is a former Microsoft VP and they have decided to tap into social media to aid in the marketing and promotion of the drink. They are launching the drink using Facebook and Twitter so instead of your old school “tupperwear” style in-person parties, it’s word of mouth offline and online using technology. I’m still learning how this part works.

Anyway, I signed up for the auto-ship each month. I drink Acai drinks all the time anyway and I’m always on the hunt for new brands. This independent distributor model is much simpler and a lot more attractive then the others I’ve researched. With this product, you only need to recruit 3 additional people to get the matrix filled in.

This is really taking off from those I talk to, so if anyone is interested in learning more about it and testing it out with me then just email me  at joe [@] jpatrickm.com, or just visit https://www.myefusjon.com/jpatrickm

Here are some links to videos that explain the cool 3-matrix that makes this club model different.

The Matrix in action: http://www.efusjonenergyclub.com/flv/matrixtraining.html

Your Personal Economic Stimulus: http://www.efusjonenergyclub.com/flv/stimulus.html

Here is a really tacky & annoying website but the video explanation is much better:
http://yourfuturelink.com/

I’ll keep you posted on how my research goes!

I’ve been waiting for this update for years… literally. The biggest feature I’ve been looking for is the audio A2DP bluetooth stereo profile that is included. The A2DP bluetooth stereo profile is what allows you to stream audio from your iPhone to other bluetooth enabled devices. The technology has been on the market for years and most cars now come with this built in but Apple chose not to include it when they released the first few versions of the iPhone. Up until now, if you wanted to play music from your iPhone or any other non-A2DP enable device, you had to have one of the cigarette lighter adapter cradles or plugs that you connected your iPhone to, and that would stream the music through your car speakers. If your car is already A2DP enabled, then you just have to jump in your car and your phone automatically pairs with your car so if you get a call or want to make a call, you don’t even need to take your phone out of your pocket, the bluetooth connection takes care of everything. Even most GPS devices out there include the A2DP bluetooth profile so that you can stream music and data from your MP3 player or phone directly to the GPS and then to your car.

My car doesn’t have the bluetooth A2DP built in, but I do already have a bluetooth speakerphone from Motorola that I’ve been using for a while. The speakerphone has an FM transmitter so I can listen to phone calls over my car speakers. Cellular calls, however are not transmitted in stereo and do not use the A2DP bluetooth profile. So, until now, if I wanted to use my iPhone as an iPod, then I had to plug my stupid cradle into the cigarette lighter and play music that way.

So tonight after upgrading, I couldn’t resist running out to my car to test it (I know, I’m a geek). I turned on the Motorola speakerphone, which was already tuned to my car stereo from a previous phone call. I clicked on the iPhone & iPod program and selected a song. Without warning, the song started blasting through my car stereo speakers with perfect sound. I mean the sound is the clearest I’ve ever heard from my iPhone.

I am really blown away at the quality of the sound and the quick and simple connection. I didn’t have to configure a thing, my iPhone just detected that I was in my car and paired with the appropriate bluetooth connection on its own. Now I can listen to my iPhone/iPod for songs and audiobooks while driving and when I receive a phone call, it automatically pauses and switches to the phone call. I don’t need to do a thing on my iPhone.

A few other cool features are a new audio voice memos app, which is really handy when you want to make a note of something but are driving and can’t type. The copy and paste feature and the landscape keyboard are also really nice. But one new feature I just stumbled on and hadn’t read about yet, was in the Safari browser settings. There is now a switch to auto-complete forms and passwords so when you are browsing you can automatically fill in any personal information like name and address in online forms and you can also save login and password information for accessing sites with just one click. This is a huge bonus that I wasn’t aware was coming out.

There are a ton of other features included that I haven’t even used yet. Someone posted on twitter earlier tonight, “this is like having a new phone all over again!”. And it’s true. Nice work Apple.

I was in the Army for 4 years and every Memorial Day, I can’t help but think of the love I had for the military while at the same time struggling to figure out who I was in a society that didn’t accept me. I chose a long time ago that I wanted to be an officer in the military more then I wanted to be gay so I just kept it buried deep inside, but over time that silence takes a toll on us. I’m happier now then I’ve ever been, a supportive family that accepts me and loves me and an awesome boyfriend. It isn’t this way for everyone out there and we still have a fight to fight.

On this Tuesday the California Supreme Court announces their decision on the long contested Proposition 8 and the fight over CA gay marriage. I hope that they decide to be on the right side of history.

Some may grumble that Memorial Day is about honoring the veterans and I shouldn’t be turning this into a gay rights issue. I can appreciate that but I will say that I am a veteran and I am gay, and I am unable to separate the two any more then a black person can chose to ignore their skin color in the face of discrimination. If you have served your country, I commend you, if you have not, then don’t tell me what I can and can’t do with this holiday. Those who fought before us, did so, in the hopes that we would not have to…  but we still do. Freedom and equality is not an opinion or a belief, it is an absolute, independent of religion or politics.

As a society, we either live with complete equality everyday or we live without any equality at all. There is no in-between.