Manilow TV

I will be the first to say I was VERY skeptical of this new service. Why do this, and do this now when people are so strapped for cash that they can't go and see Barry perform live in Vegas (or another venue)?

Then I realized this might be for those who can't afford it, but could afford $20 per month.

Unfortunately, there are some who still cannot afford this service, and some who are getting together with friends to join so the cost can be shared and the videos can be watched as a group.

Even though I'm skeptical, I thought I'd give it a shot. Besides, I'm home sick with some kind of bug, at least this will be one party I can go to without getting everyone else sick! LOL. Those who signed up before Sept. 29th got an early start to view the first video.

The countdown began...



Are you ready? (Insert drums and intro music here)

***Interruption***

Mom just called and wanted to know if I needed groceries - yes, but I'll call you back on that, okay? - Mom: Are you going to watch Dancing With The Stars? - Me: No, I'm going to be watching Manilow TV! - Mom: Manilow TV? What is that? Are you watching more videos of Woodstock (her favorite endearment towards Barry) - Me: Yes! - Mom: Okay, call me later.

***Interruption Ended***

Okay, we're in the final minutes:

Cookies? Check.
Water? Check.
Cough drops? Check.

Not much longer now...



Here we go.....



And the first selection is...



Did you catch that? Not one show, but two shows put together! It's 147 minutes, almost 2 1/2 hours long!



Daybreak: I do have to say, I LOVE that Barry's singing most of the songs in this concert in their entirety. I know Barry does the medley's in Vegas due to time constraints, but I really enjoy each of the songs on their own as well.



Hmm. I never thought of Mandy as being a suicide inducing song. :o)



I love how the piano spins so everyone can watch Barry play, I wish they'd do that in Vegas.



I loved the William Tell Overture. Too funny!

I write the songs that make the whole world sing...



This one's for you...



Come sail into my arms, the harbor of my heart...



If we only have love, then Jerusalem stands... why isn't Barry performing this now? It's such a wonderful message, that people really could use right now.

Let's hang on, to what we've got...



Sweet heaven I'm in love again...



These are only a few of the songs he performed on the videos between the two shows.

Were there a few glitches? Yes. I have to say, though, I'm impressed. They have a 24/7 chat where you can contact them for help and the glitch on my account was fixed immediately.

The only really sad part of this is there aren't more videos per month. This was the reason I wasn't going to subscribe to this. I'm glad I did subscribe to it, though, because it turns out the show I had a ticket for in November has been cancelled so the August 1st show I saw is probably the only one I'll be at this year. We'll see what next year holds for both Barry and for myself. In the meantime, I can enjoy watching him perform on Manilow TV.

Early retirements strain Social Security system

This is only the beginning. The data from the U.S. Dept. of Statistics indicated last year that this would be a growing problem as more and more baby boomers retire. There are not enough people working to pick up the slack, and the people who are working are not making the money the baby boomers made. It will require people to work more for less, and pay more in taxes to pay for baby boomer's retirements.

Early retirements strain Social Security system

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What You Won't Hear On Glenn Beck

This video is from the Bill Moyers Journal, dated 9/18/09.

How Does Not Teaching Civics Affect Society?

What Does One Have To Do With The Other?

Here's the picture taken from the home page of CNN.com:



Do you see two stories that seem to say it all?

The first one is a record setting score on Guitar Hero, the other is about children not knowing who the First U.S. President was. I'll give them a hint, if they've seen a $1 bill lately, his picture is on it.

Mad Man: Is Glenn Beck Bad for America?

Finally, someone whose reporting I can agree with!

Mad Man: Is Glenn Beck Bad for America?

Power corridor amps Mesa's economy

This is fantastic, I just hope it provides the impetus to spread through the rest of the Valley.

Power corridor amps Mesa's economy

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Advertising

I posted my blog post on Please Don't Smoke on the MMN and got blasted for "invading" Barry's privacy. What they didn't understand was the message wasn't just for Barry, it was for anyone, fan or not, who read the blog post.

What's the big deal? Apparently warning someone of lung cancer is invading your privacy. In fact, one of the fans even posted a lengthy note of how WE wouldn't want someone telling us how to live our lives. Yeah. Right.

Then these same people tune in to see Barry on a television show in Britain talking about his store and the water and B-strings they sell there. But it's okay, because he's not telling us we have to buy them or wear them, right? And when he advertises his shop that's at the Hilton (The M Store), they aren't really pushing drinking alcohol just simply because an entire wall is lined with displays of Barry's wine, while another wall is lined with wine goblets and champagne flutes. Because that would be getting too personal.

So what's a person to do? If you go for a walk in the park, chances are there's someone lurking somewhere trying to tell you how to live your life.

If you go for a drive, there's the billboards, not to mention the ads on the radios.

Go to a movie? The hero of the movie is shown smoking in the movie!

Watch tv? If you don't smoke or drink, don't watch Sex In The City, CSI, NCIS or just about any other show where the characters are portrayed smoking or drinking.

What? You mean they're advertising smoking and drinking on television?

Let me put it this way. At the end of the Smirnoff Vodka commercials, you are not told what can happen if you drink too much, they simply give the nice little legal disclaimer of "Please Drink Responsibly".

Here's an article for those who still don't believe me:

The Top Five Celebrity Smokers

Cheating

Yesterday I caught two girls at the school cheating on a test I was administering. The sad part of this was, the test they were cheating on isn't a test that is used to determine what grades they get in school, but is rather a tool for teachers to see what they are learning and what they need help with. So why would they cheat on a test that doesn't grade them? So they can get into the right "group" together. It all boils down to "cliques".

I thought about this last night and wondered at how people cheat, or try to cheat, in life?

Is being in the right "clique" that important to you?

Who do you think is really losing when you cheat?

I'm asking myself the same questions, so when I say "you", I'm also meaning myself on this.

Here's another question: Are some of the trials in our lives simply a measuring tool by God to see how well we are progressing in life? Are we becoming the kind of person He knows we can be?

Please Don't Smoke

I saw this picture linked on one of the message boards for Barry Manilow:



For those who don't know, my father died from lung cancer, after having survived cancer of the tongue. Yes, that's right, tongue. Just 4 months after Decker died, my father was diagnosed with cancer of the tongue. The modern miracles of medicine saved him from what would have been a very grizzly death. They surgically removed a large part of his tongue and used chest muscle to recreate a tongue. His speech was slurred for the remainder of his life.

A few years later, after the surgery and subsequent radiation treatments made him cancer free, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. It was in an area that was inoperable, which is basically a death sentence. They did their best to prolong his life with chemo, which did give him an extra year to live.









My father was already a frail man, having been thin pretty much all of his life. We tried everything to fatten him up, even the neighbors brought brownies over to make him gain weight, but the only area that eventually gained weight was his gut.

His frail body fought as long as it could, but eventually the cancer ate a hole in his lung and his lung collapsed. The low oxygen count that the other lung had left (after years of smoking) was not enough to sustain him and my father passed away on December 13, 2006.



From Roberts Review: A view of a lung with cancer after years of smoking.

Guess Which Country...

Is actually experiencing financial growth? Would you believe Rwanda?

Watch this program from NOW on PBS to see how treating malnutrition and disease in Rwanda with old fashioned care is spurring growth and productivity in an impoverished nation.



Could this same treatment towards the poor work in the U.S.?

Lessons From 9/11

A Few Recent News Stories

First, view the opulence many of us will never live to see...

The Montauk House

The Palm Beach House

The Manhattan Penthouse

The Luxury Boats

Now, for a view of reality for the rest of us:

The Level of Poverty In U.S. Is Rising


Watch CBS Videos Online

Health care's ills cost everyone

Health care's ills cost everyone

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