December 2008 Archives

Amazon Kindle

By
Big Money Tony
on December 28, 2008 10:46 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
41mLdDed4ML._SL160_.jpg As a holiday gift to myself, I got the Amazon Kindle .  If you have not heard, the Kindle is an electronic "book".  After just a week of working with it, I'm very satisfied.  In the past, I was an avid reader, staying up until the wee hours of the morning reading magazines or books.  In recent years, that has changed for many reasons.  I have gotten older.  I have not visited the library in quite awhile.  While I can afford to buy books, I find it tough to justify buying many titles.  There are simply many books I want to read, but only once.

The Kindle seems to solve the last problem.  Paperbacks, mostly of the mystery or horror genres, are books I have no need to buy.  The stories may be good, but I don't see why I need to re-read some of them.  For example, The Bone Collector by Jeffrey Deaver.  I read the book years ago and have not picked it up since.  I may read it again some day.  With the Kindle, I can do so without taking up space on a shelf or a box.

Not only books, but the Kindle will also provide content from some magazines and newspapers.  I have not tried a magazine, but for newspapers, I find that the real thing works better than the Kindle.  Or I go to their website.  The Kindle is lightweight.  To me, about the same as a paperback, but the dimensions are bigger.  It takes some getting used to holding it, but after a day or so, I think it worked out.

About the only drawback is that there are no illustrations.  Or rather, there are crude ones but just for the cover of the book.  A limitation of the black and white Kindle, which may be addressed in later versions.  For now, though, any avid reader should consider one.  It may not work for all, but I think it's worth a tryout.  Try to find a friend who has one to see theirs.

BMT's Vegas Vacation: Day 1

By
Big Money Tony
on December 17, 2008 9:16 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
I am on a holiday vacation/mini-family reunion out in Las Vegas.  Not exactly the smartest move for an Asian American family, since many of our kind have degenerate gambling problems, but luckily not my family.  The week is still young..

After weather problems in Charlotte, delaying the first leg of my flight, I ended up arriving on time in Vegas.  At least the delays got me the rare free beverage since we were on the runway for 2 hours.  However, in Vegas, just a couple of quick observations.
  • Despite this being my second stay at the Luxor, I'm still lost as to where to go.
  • Vegas is really dead in December.  Ain't no-one around.
  • Got propositioned while on the casino floor.  Hot African-American woman, but unlike Gov Blagojevich, I don't approve of "Pay to Play".  What's interesting is that she came up to me at the slots.
  • Won $200 on nickel slots, then promptly lost $50 of it on $1 slots, but learned my lesson and pocketed the remainder.  It could have been the hooker too (see above).  No I am not 80 years old.

The Kindness of Baltimore

By
Big Money Tony
on December 12, 2008 6:18 AM | | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)
Baltimore, the neighboring city north of Washington, DC, sometimes gets a bad rap.  Whether it be drugs, crime, or Peter Angelos, nearly everyone can find something to pick on.

This morning however, I have a new appreciation for this city.  Yesterday, I was on business in New Jersey.  As I was driving down I-95 through the tunnel, and past the exit for Morgan State in my pickup truck (yes, I know...but I can't afford a new car...sue me), I ran into some trouble.  I heard a "pop" then my 65 mph became 45.  45 became a maximum of 35.  Pulling over, I turned off the engine and let it sit for 5 minutes, you know, like computers, reboot and all goes well.  Not my truck.  Still couldn't go past 35 mph.  It was a Nissan, not an American car, so the Big 3 don't take another hit.

Luckily, I have AAA.  After calling them, I was thinking about how hard it was going to be to find a couple of thousand to cover repairs.  My stocks are down 40%, the economy sucks, Christmas is just around the corner.

The tow truck driver arrives.  After asking the standard questions, he hooks me up and off we go to the nearest garage.  As we are going, he asks about what I was doing on the road in the lousy heavy rain, if I had dinner already, and just some small talk.  Getting to the garage, he got out, grabbed the overnight paperwork for my vehicle and brought it back to me so I could fill it out in his truck while he got my vehicle down.  Halfway through the process, he came back to me and told me he was 95% sure what the problem was.  Given the heavy rain, I was unfortunate to get a lot of water in my engine.  Told me to run my engine for 10 minutes, then try it out again.  The rain had tampered down to a drizzle, so I should be able to dry it out.

This man made my night.  After he got my truck down, I handed him a crisp $20 bill.  Heck, for the kindness he showed me, it was worth it even if his theory didn't pan out.  But 15 minutes later, I was back on the road.  I should have listened to my late mother who wanted all her children to learn about everything mechanical.  I'm an accountant by trade, and the closest thing to an engine I've seen is the inside of a computer.  But always, mother knows best.  So of course, Mom, you were right.  And thank you kind stranger.  You made an awful night a bit better.

Leno to Primetime

By
Big Money Tony
on December 10, 2008 4:09 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In what has to be one of the dumbest moves in entertainment history, NBC signs Jay Leno to do a nightly show at 10 PM Eastern, once his Tonight Show run is over.  I've never really understood the ratings that Leno gets.  I am a David Letterman kind of guy.  He is far more talented.  I do understand that Leno has his audience, I'm just not part of it.  But to move him to primetime on a broadcast network?

I would understand if they were putting him on one of the cable arms NBC-Universal owns.  But to eat up the 10 PM hour on NBC seems to be shooting themselves in the foot.  Or should I say leg for Plaxico Burress?  That hour is valuable airtime.  What happens to the various incarnations of Law & Order?  L&O mothership and SVU are currently occupying the 10 PM slot.  For good reason too, as some of their topics are a bit gory or racy for earlier timeslots.

A Leno "Daily Show" at 10PM would work if he was a little more serious.  Many people say Stewart, Colbert, and Letterman are excellent interviewers when it comes to the serious stuff.  I think there is only so much Will Smith and Angelina Jolie we can take.  To watch every weeknight would be horrible.

« November 2008 | Main Index | Archives | January 2009 »

Follow Me...

    BMT on Twitter

    I Also Blog Here

    My Daily Fixes


    Add to Technorati Favorites
    Visit PickensPlan

    About this Archive

    This page is an archive of entries from December 2008 listed from newest to oldest.

    November 2008 is the previous archive.

    January 2009 is the next archive.

    Find recent content on the main index or look in the archives to find all content.

    Search