So, I’m not really saying goodbye to the blog but I’m pretty sure a new format/layout/design that incorporates my ‘shorter’ thoughts is coming.  I have no idea what that means but I’m thinking thru it.

Created by: Online Schools

So it was that simple.  My first day working I walked 5.5 miles over the course of the day.  As a matter of fact I’m typing this while walking.

A couple of notes.  It’s not hard.  I put it on about 2mph to get started.  If I have a skype call or just get a little sweaty I drop it down to 1mph.  Typing is surprisingly easy too-  not too many mistakes yet.

If you have some cash to blow and enough space you can get a really nice Treadmill Desk.  I don’t have the room!

Here’s hoping to kick the 4-Hour Body into overdrive!

Merry Christmas!

“They just don’t do it like they used too…” I’m talking about music.  Music in general.  The recording, the band, the sound, the writing, the live show, the professionalism…  Bands these days are trying hard to stand out for 5 minutes.  Many have a gimic or are trying to think about that one thing that can launch them to stardom.  Now I don’t blame the bands.  Currently we have access to hundreds of thousands of bands online.  We also have access to their fans telling us to listen to this one and that one.  Again, not knocking the band or the fans-  I’m guilty.  I try to share good music and artists that may otherwise go undiscovered by my friends.

The process of writing great songs,  being in a band, building a following and working your ass off to get noticed has moved to sitting at a computer, recording pieces/ideas (not days in a basement rehearsing) of a song, finding followers on one of the many social media networks, uploading a song to sell THEN start thinking about how do i play a live show and we should probably learn these songs as a band soon…   Yes, I know that is a bit of an exaggeration, but if you’re in a band you probably know what I’m talking about.

Wait! What does this have to do with Tom Petty???  I’m getting there I promise.  I’ve been to a ton of shows in this short life of mine (a way of saying I’m still young).  My first show was Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young in the early 80′s at Starwood Amphitheater right outside of Nashville.  I remember it vividly.  It was awesome.  Crosby Stills & Nash actually opened up for Tom Petty last night… so it came full circle for me.

So… Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. I’ve been a fan for a long time.  I own most all his albums.  Last night I saw him live and it just hit me-  ’They just don’t do it like they used too…”.  Petty has written hit after hit after hit and continues to put on an amazing show to back up those hits.  He’s the total package-  he doesn’t have a gimic, he doesn’t change his sound every album to match what is out currently and he just does what he does.  Rock.

I’m not saying that Tom Petty is the only guy who has this figured out.  There are a lot of great artists and bands out there doing this.  This is just something that stood out to me last night.

Here’s a question.  Do bands like Tom Petty, U2, Rolling Stones, Metallica and other ‘supergroups’ have an advantage since they went through the old school music system?  They had heavy radio and video play back in the day when that was one of the only ways to discover new music.  Has the internet and new media outlets changed the music game that much?  I say, yes.  I’m not complaining-  it’s a fine line.  I love these outlets and discover great music that I’d otherwise not find but sometimes I just want great music that is consistent, real and a true reflection of who the artist/band is.

What do you think?

I have many friends who have no problems with their iphones or AT&T.  I’m glad they don’t and I’m not here to bash the iphone or AT&T.  I do want to share some factors that brought me to this decision.

First reason, OPTIONS.  For a while, there were no real options for me.  I was in a contract with AT&T and I dug my iphone.  It was light years beyond other ‘smart’ phones.  Times have changed.  There are many options now including the Google Android platform… which is really cool.

Second, COVERAGE.  Yes, AT&T claims to have the best coverage.  And they may-  however that includes their Edge network which is not data coverage for me-  meaning, it’s not fast enough to be traveling and use.  I travel a lot.  I want 3G coverage everywhere.  Our new service has lined the interstates (where I travel most) with 3G coverage.  I now have fast data and phone service in the majority of places I travel.

Third, the $$$AVINGS.  With our new service, we will be saving over $50 a month AND we have more features, all that I will use.  This is where I can break it down and say this was a common sense move for me.

Our base plan on AT&T was the Family 1400 which was $80-
The second phone was $9.99
Data plans for both of these phones is $60
Text Messaging for each phone (basic 200) was $10
Data tethering for the iPhone  $20

That total plan is $179.99 –  That does not include tax and services.  We hit $200 pretty easy.

The new plan with Sprint and the HTC Evo 4G is base @ $139.00  (that is for two phones.  Unlimited data, unlimited texting, mobile 2 mobile calling on any network)

I added the Hotspot option for $30.  This lets me turn my phone into a wireless router so that up to 8 devices can get on the internet at any time.  No need to ‘tether’ one device anymore.

This brings our new phone plan to $169.00.  We are saving $10!  Wait, actually because of my business we were offered a corporate discount of 23%.  We just saved another $40…  In the end we save $50 a month AND have increased our data usage and eliminated our overages on texting… which happened a lot!

One other bonus is the 4G network that is rolling out this year.  The download speeds for data will be close to cable modem speeds.  Pretty fast for mobile computing!

For us, it was easy to make the decision.  I’ll keep my old iPhone-  it’s now an iPhone touch.  :)  I’m still a lover of Apple products.  Always have been and always will be.  My iPad will keep me happy no doubt.

So here I am asking you to sign up and be apart of this little project-  who do you influence online?  You may be surprised at how many people actually care you ate at McDonald’s this morning!

Give it a try-  you may even end up in the Fast Company magazine this fall.

Click Here To Sign Up…  Thanks for playing!

Many groups are starting pledges to help users quit Facebook. The two most popular have about a 1,000-2,500 members. Even if these groups grow to 5,000 ‘strong‘ that wouldn’t even be .01% of the 400,000,000 current Facebook users.

Well, I don’t want to quit Facebook but I also want to control my privacy. Wait, you can’t do that! Yes, you can. This NY Times article graphic maps out the 50 different settings with over 170 options… it’s meant to overwhelm and complain about the privacy settings. It’s one of those situations where Facebook can’t win. With too few options we can’t control everything. With too many options we get to control (almost) everything but it’s too confusing. I like all the options.

What do I do? First off check out reclaimprivacy.org – they have a great app that once you login to Facebook it will tell you how your privacy settings are set. It let’s you know what you are or are not sharing. What’s the best privacy settings? It will vary by user. For me- I prefer it all to be private and for only my friends (my Facebook friends) to be able to partcipate in my Facebook life.

ReclaimPrivacy.org scans the following settings:

• Instant Personalization Feature:  For me, this was the main privacy setting I wanted turned ON, meaning block it all.  This feature can feed your information to other sites so that it can better match up your likes and dislikes.  Sounds interesting now with three ‘trusted’ beta sites but what about when it’s opened up to developers?  Just about any site will be able to pull your data-  yes, hackers, id theft punks, scammers, spammers and the such.
• Personal Information: This one is up to you.  I don’t mind my friends having my information.  My Friends.  Not the rest of the internet.  This section will let you adjust how your personal information is shared.
• Contact Information: Just like above.  it’s up to you who you want to see your contact information.  Mine, again, is set to Friends Only.
• Friends, Tags and Connections:  I respect my friends so I don’t let others outside of my network see my friends even when I tag them or how I’m connected to them.  Again, it’s up to you… to a point.  See the next option.
• Friends Sharing: This lets you decide what your friends can share about you on their Facebook pages.  Sometimes they may ‘accidentally’ share your information…  at least you get to pull back on those strings.
• Applications: Many applications pull and share your data as well.  This will let you know what applications are allowed to share and not share.  I do not let any applications pull or share my data.  Applications aren’t my true friends.  :)

There is no need to quit Facebook.  We all just have to stay informed and know our options.  This won’t be the last time Facebook changes their privacy policies.  Go ahead and give reclaimprivacy.org a try and I’ll see you on Facebook… maybe, if you aren’t blocking me.