Simple Randomness

Movie Review: Seven Pounds

I guess you have to be careful seeing a movie when you’ve really never heard much about it. I thought that I had heard someone tell me that it was a good movie, but now I’m wondering who said that cause I have to disagree!

So the basic idea behind the site is that Will Smith’s character has obviously gone through something tramatic, but they don’t say what of course until the very end.  You do get pretty obvious hints here and there though.  So he has been doing all sorts of nice things for people, but you can also tell that he hates himself and is suicidal.

I guess what bothers me most was the whole premise…it’s just kinda weird.  So he causes a tragedy, and to make up for it kills himself to donate organs?  Yeah, not really the uplifting movie I might have been hoping for!

So unless you want to be depressed, I don’t recommend this one.

Movie Review: Bedtime Stories

Last night my wife and I watched the movie Bedtime Stories starring Adam Sandler.  If you’ve never heard of it, it’s about a guy that tells his niece and nephew bedtimes stories, but whatever they add to the story actually comes true in real life.

Cute show!  It would have been better without some of the unnecessary ‘Adam Sandler humor’, but overall it was a really cute show.

I do have to wonder though, what was up with the guinea pig?  The big eyes thing was pretty freaky, and I always find it annoying when they have animals making non-human sounds.

Anyway, a few things that were kinda dumb about it, but it’s a kids story so what do you expect?  Cute show if you want to check it out.

Pearls for Christmas?

Does anyone else think that pearls are just cool?  I mean diamonds are nice and all, but when you think about the way pearls look and how they’re made, you have to admit that they are pretty unique.  A few years ago we bought my wife a pearl ring and she wears it all of the time!

So when you’re thinking of gifts to buy for your wife or girlfriend, what about pearls?  They’re unique, and they make a great Christmas present!  Especially black pearls!

If you’re into pearls or want to consider them for a Christmas gift, you should check out the site ThePearlOutlet.com.  They have a very large selection of all sorts of pearl products including Tahitian pearls, freshwater pearls, pearl necklaces, pearl earrings, and more!

They also have a lot of really interesting information about the differences between the different types of pearls, how the pearls are farmed, and other interesting stuff. Read more on their Pearl Basics page.

Overall I have to say that I’m really impressed with this site.  They give a lot of good information about pearls and have some really beautiful settings for them.  You can even choose from different clasps!

So get your wife or girlfriend something really unique this Christmas…a quality piece of pearl jewelry from ThePearlOutlet.com!

WALL-E is a Great Movie!

This weekend my wife and I finally got to see the Disney/Pixar movie WALL-E.  Honestly, I loved it!  This is one of the few movies in a long time that after seeing it I really just wanted to own it.

So what is it about this movie that’s so great?  It’s just a cute cute show!  Seriously, they did a really great job on this one.  It’s really cute, it’s just a clever as anything else that Pixar has done, and will have you laughing.

The other great thing about it is that the dialogue is simple enough that kids can follow it and basically get what’s going on.

Seriously, if you haven’t seen this movie I highly highly recommend it.  As far as Pixar movies, it definitely falls into the top 3.  I can’t decide yet if I like it better than The Incredibles, but it’s pretty darn close!

You Really Do Need to Have a Good Host!

I know I’ve blogged about this before, but in the last week or two I’ve really had it confirmed that you really really need to have a good web host!

I have a client that I was working with that signed up for hosting with a company I won’t name right now.  This was the most confusing hosting platform that I’ve ever seen!  All I was trying to do was help her to set up a blog, and there was no easy way to do it!  In the end the only way we found was to use their own version of WordPress, which had limited functionality!  Talk about messed up!

I immediately had her switch hosts, and things are starting to work out a whole lot better since then.

So seriously, make sure you check out the different hosts out there before you just sign up for somebody.  Unfortunately, I think that’s what this lady did.  She just picked one because they had a good domain name deal.

This is just one example of why it’s good to check out sites with web hosting reviews before you just go sign up because of a good domain name price. There is so much more to it than just a domain name!

So check out these guys, WebHostingGeeks.com and see if the host you have is one of the most recommended web hosts. They even have it broken down by best for different purposes. For example, they have a different recommendation for just a website host than they do for a blog host.

So check it out!

More Inexpensive Glasses

Personally, I’m a contacts wearer.  But I’ve also gone through my time of wearing regular glasses as well.  Actually, to be completely honest, I tend to go through phases every couple of years where I prefer one or the other.  Right now though I’m on a contacts kick.

Anyway, I was at the eye doctor’s office a week or two ago picking up my contacts, and this lady came in to pay for her glasses.  Guess how much she had to pay?  $400!!!  Now, I’m not sure how many frames she got or any other details, but they get expensive!

That’s why it’s great to have companies like ZenniOptical.com that sell quality glasses really cheap.  They just recently introduced a couple of new styles as well, so their offerings just keep on growing.

And they’re getting talked about all over the place!  I guess they’ve been featured on Fox News, and The Clark Howard Show.  Not bad for a company that just sells inexpensive eyeglasses.

So if you need some new glasses, this is one site you’re going to want to check out.  They have a really good selection of eyeglasses for men and women.  You can get metal ones, stainless steel, or plenty of other choices as well.

Awesome Voice Recognition Software

Every now and then a product comes out that has the possibility of really helping out a lot of people. Well I came across one today that I think has the possibility of changing the lives of a lot of people.

Dragon Naturally Speaking is a voice recognition software. So all you have to do is talk into the microphone and it will type on the screen what you say. You can also use it to pull up different applications, send emails, and lots of other things as well.

Here’s a video that will show this product in action:

I know of a friend of mine that could really take advantage of a product like this. He’s a guy that had juvenile arthritis that has really limited his mobility and other things. And to make things worse, he was in a car accident a few years ago that left him in a powerchair. He still get’s online and stuff, but I can only imagine how hard it is for him to type and other things that I take for granted. This could change his life, I should let him know about it for sure.

So if you know someone that could benefit for this type of voice recognition software, be friend and let them know. If you have any doubts about the product, you can check out the Dragon reviews or take Dragon’s typing speed test!. Awesome idea, thanks Dragon!

Check Your Credit!

A few years ago I used to work for a company that would help people to repair their credit reports.  Basically all sorts of things can happen to your credit report that you might not even know about, and then make it harder for you to get a loan.

For example, if too many companies check your credit that can affect your credit rating.  Or, if you paid a bill on time but for some reason the company reported it as late anyway, that can cause you problems.

This is was it’s a good idea to check credit report details every now and then.  You can get a free report at least once a year, but  you usually have to pay to find out what your score is.  Even then, you can still at least review your report and make sure there is nothing on there that shouldn’t be.

One thing to note though is that if the information on your credit report is accurate, there really isn’t much you can do about it.  But if it is inaccurate and you can prove it, then they have to take it off.

So if you do happen to have poor credit, you should do all you can to increase your credit.  One way to do this is to get a new credit card or something and then just make sure you keep the record on it very clean.  Then, as time goes on you will have a cleaner record because the old stuff will fall off.

There are lots of companies that can help you find credit cards for people with fair credit.  One such site is UnionCreditReport.com.  If you’re in this position, you might want to check them out.

August Rush - Great Movie!

So last night my wife and I rented August Rush.  I had heard a lot of really good things about it, and it definitely didn’t disappoint.  This was a really good show!

Lately whenever I’ve seen Robin Williams in a movie I’ve found him kind of annoying, but in this movie I thought he actuallly did a really good job!  And the kid that plays the main role is always really good (you may remember him from the new Willy Wonka andFinding Neverland).  He’s growing well, so hopefully he won’t be one of these kids that once they get older can’t get a movie.

Anyway, great movie with a lot of really cool music.  Seriously, you could watch this movie just for the music and really like it.  Especially all the guitar slapping they do!

I Bought a Joe Satriani Album and Love It!

So for the last couple of weeks I’ve been listening to a Pandora station that I set up that only does instrumental rock.  And I have to say that it’s actually very refreshing to not listen to words for a while.

A little history: back when I was about 16 or so, about all I listened to was instrumental jazz.  Then I got into rock music and never went back.  Well, for the last year or so I’ve been listening to instrumental rock off and on, and lately I’ve really gotten into it.  I’m especially liking stuff by Steve Vai and Joe Satriani.

So just a few days ago I had a little extra cash, so I decided to splurge and get a new album.  I went with Joe Satriani’s Crystal Planet. It’s sweet, and I’m loving it so far. My favorite tracks: Psycho Monkey, House of Bullets, and Ceremony. So if you’re at all into instrumental rock, check it out!