Even though I recommend that kids be at least 6 years old before they participate in a wedding my son Marcus has been a ring bearer twice before he was even 5 years old. The first time he was only 2. It turned out well but I still don’t recommend it. Our experience with being in a wedding helped this time with Mia.

Originally Mia did not want to do it. Just refused and I thought she would never agree to do it since she can be so stubborn. Eventually she warmed up to the idea as she saw the dress and she could not say know to Teacher Lawrence. Still you never no and it would come down to a “game time” decision.

Well she had a few “Diva” moments before the wedding. She refused to wear a wreath on her head because “I DO NOT wear things on my head”. She also did not toss the flower petals as she walked down the aisle and she certainly did not smile much. The important thing is she made it down the aisle without incident and that’s good enough for me. Here are some pictures.

Al is……posting on his blog.

If you have ever spent anytime on Facebook you are familiar with such exciting updates on the lives of your friends and acquaintances. In the past I have found Facebook mildly amusing but now have been officially hooked on Facebook. Not hooked like I am an active participant but more of being on as a lurker. I still don’t think anyone would be interested in what I am doing right this moment such as doing laundry or standing in line at the bank. So I don’t post my status often.  Obviously others do not feel that way with hourly updates on what they are doing or feeling. You don’t even have to be at a computer to send the world updates. You can send updates and photos from your mobile phone. So you can always keep your friends posted on your “status” even to let us know you are standing in line at the bank. Good thing because I was worried that I did not a status from you for a few hours. I was relieved to hear you “just got back from the dentist” and nothing happened to you.

Facebook is like a big party with all your old and current friends. Facebook is a social network or an online interaction but it is funny how closely it is to real life. All the active Facebook participants are naturally the most sociable people. They love the interaction of being together on Facebook. These people take advantage of all the features Facebook has to offer such as joining every group they can, giving out virtual gifts, and playing all the online games with their friends. These people are the most active status posters and love to interact with their friends.  They love parties and Facebook is a party that never seems to end. It is 24-7.

Other less socially adept people such as myself enjoy being at the party but don’t really want to draw attention to ourselves. We are content to hang out against the wall with a drink and just observe. We rarely post a status, play a game or interact too much. Still we enjoy people watching.  We are hooked on Facebook too but as a lurker and an observer.

Facebook is also a forum for the “thinkers” to share their deep or random thoughts.  Kind of like thinking out loud.  Sometimes its good and interesting.  Other times not so much.  There is always someone at a party that dominates the conversations and makes everyone else a little uncomfortable with their odd conversation. You try to excuse yourself but he just goes on and on.  They are on Facebook too.  The same windbags in real life who love to talk to hear hear their own voice are the same people who are always talking on Facebook. They are constantly offering their opinions to a somewhat captive audience. They are always interjecting their opinions in every conversation. The good thing about Facebook is that you can easily avoid them by not engaging them in conversation, unlike real life. Facebook is perfect for this group of people because it gives them a platform to do what they like to do most….talk. Their spouses and friends have tuned them out long ago but with Facebook there is always someone to offer your opinions to…sort of.

The best thing about Facebook is not reconnecting with old friends we lost touch with long ago.  That is great, but the best thing to me is that we are connected in some way through Facebook.  We live busy lives.  Even with all the tools of modern communication such as text messages and email, I rarely communicate or spend time with my close friends as I used to.  Even more so with my friends and relatives who live far away.  With Facebook I actually connected with them when I see their status update or photos.  When my friend in Minnesota updates me that they are doing laundry and its 5 degrees below zero outside I think of them and feel that our lives are still connected in some way.  It does not replace human interaction but in a small way a connection from far away nonetheless.  Even though we are sepaated by great distances Facebook allows us to connect and at least keep each other in mind.  If I am not your Facebook friend yet, hit me up.  I’m always looking to add more Facebook friends but I think I have just about reached my limit of people I can reasonably call “friends”.

Before turning off the TV and salvaging the rest of the afternoon, I flipped to a few other channels to see what else was on. First thing to catch my attention was ice skating. Not just regular ice skating but ice skating to the the live musical performance of Frankie Vali and the Four Seasons. It was kind of like dancing with the stars on ice. Not something I would normally watch but it was definitely more interesting than the Raiders game.

Continuing my channel surfing I came across what I thought was basketball, but I did not recognize the team and the court was odd looking. Turns out it is Slamball, a variation of basketball. In just a few minutes I was hooked. Slamball is basket played on a smaller court with only 4 players. There are areas of the court which have a trampoline area which gives your extra hops. The other main difference is that there are no fouls. You can grab and tackle the opposing players. In short slamball is combination of basketball, wrestling, slam dunk contest, and American Gladiator. See for yourself here. Raiders football has not been as entertaining for a long time.

Slamball on YouTube

In these tough economic times dining out is certainly a luxury that many people can no longer afford. Still with some planning you can still find a good reasonably priced meal that won’t break your budget. One of the best bargains around for dining is Restaurant.com. Here you can find discounted gift certificates that you can use not only on local restaurants but in restaurants nationwide. We often buy gift certificates before going on vacations to be used at our travel destination. It certainly keeps the food costs down while on vacation. There is a good variety of restaurants to choose from and most are moderately priced even before the discount.

Last week Christine and I used a $25 certificate which we purchased for only $2 at a Filipino restaurant. The meal was a little over $40 before applying our dining certificate so it was a very inexpensive meal. This week there is a special in which you can buy a $25 gift certificate for 80% off. You only have to pay $2 for a $25 certificate. You can use it for your holiday dining, for gifts, or to just to have a night out with your spouse. Use the link below to get your dining certificates.

80% off Savings on $25 Gift Certificates. $2 when you use code TREAT.Valid only 10/27/08 thru 10/31/08.

He ended up throwing up most of the night and ended up back at the hospital emergency room in the middle of the night.  Again thankfully it turned out to be only a 24 hour virus and he was back on his feet soon.  Unfortunately the stomach virus continued on to the rest of the family.  It hit me on Friday and made its way to Mia on Sunday.  It was not a pretty weekend but we recovered.  It has not hit Christine yet but she has been battling a cold no doubt caused by lack of sleep and stress.

No parent enjoys seeing their child in pain and hospitals are not fun.  I hope you and your family continue to experience good health, but if you have young kids chances are you will end up facing medical issues at least once or twice.  As we enter October I hope our medical adventures are over.  We have had enough hospital, emergency room, and doctor visits for awhile.  Being in a hospital setting has given me a new appreciation for our health which we often take for granted.  Thankfully our time in the hospital was short, but many of the kids there spend much of their youth in the hospital which must be hard for them and their families.

Take a moment to appreciate and enjoy the good health you and your family have.  Don’t take it for granted. It will put the all the disturbing financial news into its proper perspective.  Just a few deep thoughts today.  I’ll be returning to blogging about Facebook and fantasy football shortly.

1. They are cheap and will under tip at any restaurant.
2. Because they can get away with it at a Chinese restaurant.

I have a friend who always tips below the standard 15% at Chinese restaurants. He does so because of a combination of the above reasons. I on the other had always try to be as generous as possible when tipping at a Chinese restaurant typically in the 20%+ range. I do so not because I am normally a generous tipper. I believe you should tip according to service and if the service is sub par I will not hesitate to tip accordingly. Still, I try to tip as much as possible at a Chinese restaurant. I do so for the following reasons:

• It is Fair: If a waiter works at a popular high end restaurant where meals can cost anywhere from several hundred dollars to even thousands with a big party and wine a waiter can make a very good living on tips alone. Even at a more moderately price but popular restaurants waiters can still make out very well. A waiter at a Chinese restaurant will work just as hard but will only receive pennies in tips in comparison to a waiter at a high end restaurant. Not only that a waiter in a Chinese restaurant will work under much worse conditions such as no heat or air conditioning for pennies in wages and tips.
• Good Karma: A lunch at a Chinese restaurant will typically cost you $5 or $6 dollars. Spend $15 dollars and you can have a feast. Its a cheap and filling meal. A sandwich, chips and drink at Subway will cost you $8 or more. The difference between tipping 10% or 20% is only about 50 cents. Not a significant amount for most of us and your meal would still cost less than you would have paid for a cold sandwich, chips and drink at Subways. However to a waiter making minimum wage or less with no health benefits an extra 50 cents from each customer would be a significant boost to their income so why not create some good karma?
• These are my own people: Not only is tipping well at a Chinese restaurant the fair thing to do, creates good positive energy and makes a financial difference in a waiter’s income, I am also taking care of my own people. Most waiters and waitresses at Chinese restaurants are Chinese like myself. I know of many people in my family who is working or has worked at Chinese restaurants in the past. I know of the low wages, hard work and poor working conditions. Conditions have improved in recent years but labor laws mean very little in Chinatown. So why would I stiff my own people over 50 cents?

Under tipping is the accepted norm in Chinese restaurants. If you tip 10% or less you won’t be faced with indignation from the waiter or questions of “Was the service okay?” in oder to guilt you into tipping more. A waiter at a Chinese restaurant will accept whatever you tip without question. However just because you can does not mean you should or it is fair. Consider this next time you eat at a Chinese restaurant. An extra 50 cents won’t kill you.

Whenever possible I try to take assignments that I know at least a little about to minimize the amount of research required.  Obviously I would like to be able to do the least amount of research as possible so I can complete my assignment quickly and take another one job.  My writing jobs pays decently but only if I am able to do it fairly quickly.  If I have to spend a lot of time on research before writing its not worth my time.

I have written nearly 200 articles on the website Ehow on a wide range of subjects, some I know a bit about and others not so much.  Here are two articles I recently wrote that I seemingly know nothing about.

• How to Approach Beautiful Women

• How to Be Irresistible To Women

On the surface I certainly would be unqualified to write on such subjects, let alone have someone pay me to offer advice on these topics.   Yet with a little Internet research anyone can be an expert on anything in a short time.  As they say those who can’t do teach.  Drawing upon my personal experiences I already know what not to do.  With help from Google I have an idea of what to do and I am now an expert on the subject.  Not only an expert but a published expert.  If you search Google for the term “How to Be Irresistible To Women” my article is on the first page.

I was invited to join a league this year, but I declined because of the time demands of being in a fantasy football league.  Instead I joined a Survivor football pool.  Survivor pool also called a Knock out pool is a very simple football pool.  All you have to do is pick the winner of one game per week.  Straight up with point spreads.  If you win you survive and move on.  If your team loses you are eliminated.  You can only pick a team once.  After you pick a team you cannot pick them again.  Sounds easy but it is harder than it seems.  I am in a pool f 400 entries and about a third was eliminated in the first week.  It will get harder as the season goes on if I survive since there will fewer good teams to pick from.  It is a good alternative to fantasy football.

I enjoy watching all live sporting events whenever I can. There is nothing like watching a game in person. Braving the elements and seeing your team up close while sharing the joys and disappointment with your fellow fans. Experiencing the tension and flow of the game collectively with 70,000 other fans can not be duplicated at home, even in High Definition.

While I enjoy watching all sporting events I particularly enjoy watching college football. Unlike other sports fans of college football share a stronger bond through their affiliation of attending the same school at one time. So on certain Saturdays in the Fall fans of all ages come together and join in cheering on their alma mater. College football also has the a rich history of traditions unique to each team.

I enjoy walking through the campus each Saturday with my son on the way to the game reminiscing about my glory days of college. Its also fun to run into old friends and renew acquaintances at the game. I used to have season tickets to the Raider games until the demands of fatherhood made it impossible to go to football games all weekend. So I choose to continue to watch college football games with my son instead. Its a much more family friendly environment and kids can also have a good time. I started going to the Cal games with my son when he was only 3 and now he has come to enjoy the games and our time together.

Last week we went to our first game of the year against Michigan State. It was a 5 o’ clock game so we had time to make our way leisurely to our seat and soak in the ambiance of the campus. With a new season comes excitement and hope in the air. The Bears started off the season right with a 38-31 victory. While its great to be 1-0, our enthusiasm is tempered by the fact we started well last year too before things fell apart. Still it is a new year and I look forward toward to Saturdays at Berkeley this fall.