I’ve always been fascinated with the Guiness Book of World Records, and all the crazy records you find in there and here about in general. 

  One such record was set just two years ago on March 31 in Japan: for the longest nonstop concert.  Hundreds of musicians between the ages of six and 96 gathered in Omi on the night of March 23.  They each took turns performing over 2000 tunes in 182 hours. 

  As if that weren’t enough, an earthquake shook the city during a piano piece from one of the musicians. 

  The previous world record was set in 2001 in Canada, with 181 hours. 

  Talk about perseverance! 

  Enjoy the music!

These words of wisdom are from Julie Tilsner a blogger and reposted on Walletpop.com.  It not only sums up her feelings about motherhood and social networking, but it works even if you’re not a mom and not just talking about the site Twitter.

 Forgive me for sounding like a three-year-old, but…why? So moms can connect? That’s what parks and cafes are there for. Yes, moms have a lot to commiserate about. They’re also busier than your average CEO and operating on half as much sleep. Plus there are usually no assistants. I don’t know how anyone has time to tweet, much less anyone wrangling babies or small children.

My kids aren’t babies anymore, but I dimly remember those days. Baby finally goes down for her morning nap and I can choose to use my now rare free moments to take a shower, do the dishes, pay some bills, straighten the living room, start a load of laundry, check my email, return phones calls, make some coffee or stare dully into the middle distance. When you add a second baby, you don’t even have that small window anymore. Getting two to nap at the same time is like the planets aligning; a rare and mysterious occurrence. The pressure to tweet would become just another chore.

 Being in Media there is an unspoken need to not only know and understand online social networking, but to use it. 

But there are so many, and what are they all about?  Here are a couple of the bigger ones and what they are about:

There’s MySpace.com – MySpace is an interactive social networking website consisting of personal profiles, blogs, groups, photos, music and videos. It’s currently the biggest social networking site out there, and while it might not be the most advanced one, the users seem to love its simplicity.

Facebook.com – Facebook() is a social networking phenomenon connection people with their friends, family and other users with similar interests.

Linkedin – LinkedIn is a professional social networking website for business users, one of the most popular such sites out there. Some aspects of it are free, but many are paid.

CafeMom – CafeMom is a social networking site for mothers to connect and share thoughts with each other.

Family 2.0 – Family 2.0 helps you create your own family social network, you can add family members, send personalized emails and create event alerts.

43 Things - A tagging based social networking site. Users create accounts and list a number of goals or hopes and these are parsed based on similarity to goals of other users.

myTripbook.com - myTripbook.com is a place for people who want to share their travel experiences through photos, videos and blogging with others.

Photobucket() – one of the most popular image hosting services around, favorite amongst MySpace users. Makes it very easy to post your images to social networking sites; gives you 25 GB of monthly traffic and 1 GB of storage with images themselves being up to 1 MB in size.

Flickr() – The most popular photo sharing site. Upload photos, create sets and join one of the greatest communities of professional and unprofessional photographers.

Digg.com – Synonymous with social bookmarking: you Digg a story, others Digg it, the more popular it gets the better chance it has of hitting the first page.

Twitter. Communicate and stay connected through the exchange of short status messages.

Good luck out there in the world of online social networking, and of course, this is just a few of the more popular sites of the 1000’s that are out there.   

I totally missed the hail storm last night. 

I’m in the car with the kids without a clue, the weather is fine and my wife calls me in a panic.   She said it was the worst hailstorm she had ever seen. 

“Why aren’t you here?”

“I’m at HEB picking up the stuff you asked me to.”

“How can you be at HEB!!”

“What?  Should I be at Randall’s?”

“No!  Take cover!”

“Cover?  Why?  Are we under attack?”

“The storm.  The hail is pounding the house.  It’s the size of golfballs, no wait, make that tennis balls.  You and the kids should be here!”

Traffic was at a standstill on 2222 near 620, but I made it home with just a little rain.  I didn’t see any hail until I got a block away from home.  We were one of the lucky ones, little to no damage.  Even got a beautiful rainbow afterwards.

Scary time, thanks to Jim Spencer from KXAN and Stephen Micheal Kerr on Majic for all the great storm coverage.

Let me first say that getting in shape is tough work at any age, but after 40 mental is just as important as physical!  I know of where I speak because since just before Thanksgiving I have been on a quest to get my groove back and that has included losing weight!  I have been very successful in this endeavor so far, but the closer I get to my goal , the harder it is mentally.  Well today I saw something that gave me a renewed hope that is helping me kick it into high gear and push to the finish line…the cover of  this weeks people magazine!!  If you have not yet seen it I have posted it here…Valerie Bertinelli…soon to be 49…in a bikini!!  

I think it is just fantastic!!  I soon will be posting my before and after pictures for you…not sure about a bikini…yet!!

  I’ve had many people ask me over the years who my favorite singer is.  I’ve certainly played the songs of many in my 25-plus years of radio, but when the question is asked I don’t hesitate in my answer: Elton John. 

  It just so happens that John (whose real name is Reginald Kenneth Dwight) turned 62 this week.  He was born March 25, 1947, in Pinner, Middlesex, England. 

  One of the reasons Elton John stands out above the rest for me is his versatility.  Not only is he a singer, but a songwriter as well, and he has proven himself capable of performing pop, disco, soul, progressive rock, even country.  Perhaps that is why he landed a song on the top 40 chart every single year from 1970 to 1996. 

  John is the son of a Royal Air Force trumpeter.  He took up playing the piano at the age of four, and won a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music when he was 11.  He began his stint in the music business with Bluesology in the mid 1960’s. 

  Believe it or not, he failed several lead vocalist auditions with such groups as Gentle Giant and King Crimson.  Even though he also failed an audition with Liberty Records, he was given lyrics left with the label by Bernie Taupin.  John began writing songs from Taupin’s lyrics, and the two eventually formed what would become one of the most successful tandems in music history.  In 1997, his remake of his own “Candle In The Wind” became the biggest-selling single of all time, as he paid tribute to his good friend Princess Diana shortly after her tragic death. 

  Enjoy the music! 

Healthy Habits That Aren’t

from msn.com

Using antibacterial soap
You may be tempted to take a biological jackhammer to every microbe that dare touch your family, but the fact is there’s a lot we don’t know about the long-term effects of common, household use of antibacterials. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these chemicals have been shown, in the lab, to kill off only weak bacteria—leaving the tougher ones to reproduce. That’s led many medical experts to worry that anti-bacterial soaps might be contributing to the rise of stronger bacteria, capable of fighting off our attempts to kill it. So far, this theory hasn’t been proved in a real-life setting. What has been proved, however, is that washing your hands with anti-bacterial soap isn’t anymore effective at preventing disease than hand washing with regular soap

Sitting up straight
According to a study presented in 2006 at the annual conference for the Radiological Society of North America, so-called “perfect” posture might actually be contributing to back pain. Go ahead, call your mom and gloat. But make sure you get your facts right. When this story first came out last November, many newspapers incorrectly reported that slouching was the better way to sit. The problem turned out to be a “slanguage” barrier. In England, where the story was first reported, “slouching” refers to reclining backward, which is, according to the study, a great way to relieve pressure on your lower back. Translated into American slang, however, the news reports gave many people the impression that hunching forward was healthy, when, in fact, it’s actually worse than sitting up straight.

Trusting your eyesight to carrots
If you think these vegetables will improve your vision, think again. While carrots do contain vitamin A, which is a major player in keeping your eyes working properly, you really only need a small amount of it—and no matter how much vitamin A you consume, it’s not going to magically eliminate your need for glasses. In fact, if you eat too much vitamin A, you can end up with a toxic—although not usually fatal—reaction. The idea that more carrots means better vision might actually be a relic of a World War II-era military disinformation campaign. According to the online World Carrot Museum, British intelligence began spreading the myth during the blitz as a plausible explanation for why their fighter pilots were suddenly able to spot Nazi planes at night. In reality, the British had simply developed a better radar system and didn’t want the enemy to find out about it.

Drinking eight glasses of water a day
Admit it, this is one healthy habit that’s a royal pain. Luckily, it’s also completely unnecessary. For some people, eight glasses a day might actually be far too much, leading to sodium deficiencies and potentially life-threatening water intoxication, caused by kidneys not being able to keep up the intake of liquids. In 2002, a kidney specialist tried, in vain, to find any scientific evidence supporting the eight-glasses-a-day myth. His report, published in the American Journal of Physiology, concluded that this standard health advice was complete and utter bunk that, like many urban legends, stemmed from a tiny grain of truth. Apparently, the dietary guidelines provided by the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council do say that humans need 1 milliliter of water for each calorie of food—adding up to about 10 cups a day. However, the same guidelines also say that we get most of this liquid from the water in solid food. There’s no need to drink more

Healthy Habits That Aren’t

from msn.com

Using antibacterial soap
You may be tempted to take a biological jackhammer to every microbe that dare touch your family, but the fact is there’s a lot we don’t know about the long-term effects of common, household use of antibacterials. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these chemicals have been shown, in the lab, to kill off only weak bacteria—leaving the tougher ones to reproduce. That’s led many medical experts to worry that anti-bacterial soaps might be contributing to the rise of stronger bacteria, capable of fighting off our attempts to kill it. So far, this theory hasn’t been proved in a real-life setting. What has been proved, however, is that washing your hands with anti-bacterial soap isn’t anymore effective at preventing disease than hand washing with regular soap

Sitting up straight
According to a study presented in 2006 at the annual conference for the Radiological Society of North America, so-called “perfect” posture might actually be contributing to back pain. Go ahead, call your mom and gloat. But make sure you get your facts right. When this story first came out last November, many newspapers incorrectly reported that slouching was the better way to sit. The problem turned out to be a “slanguage” barrier. In England, where the story was first reported, “slouching” refers to reclining backward, which is, according to the study, a great way to relieve pressure on your lower back. Translated into American slang, however, the news reports gave many people the impression that hunching forward was healthy, when, in fact, it’s actually worse than sitting up straight.

Trusting your eyesight to carrots
If you think these vegetables will improve your vision, think again. While carrots do contain vitamin A, which is a major player in keeping your eyes working properly, you really only need a small amount of it—and no matter how much vitamin A you consume, it’s not going to magically eliminate your need for glasses. In fact, if you eat too much vitamin A, you can end up with a toxic—although not usually fatal—reaction. The idea that more carrots means better vision might actually be a relic of a World War II-era military disinformation campaign. According to the online World Carrot Museum, British intelligence began spreading the myth during the blitz as a plausible explanation for why their fighter pilots were suddenly able to spot Nazi planes at night. In reality, the British had simply developed a better radar system and didn’t want the enemy to find out about it.

Drinking eight glasses of water a day
Admit it, this is one healthy habit that’s a royal pain. Luckily, it’s also completely unnecessary. For some people, eight glasses a day might actually be far too much, leading to sodium deficiencies and potentially life-threatening water intoxication, caused by kidneys not being able to keep up the intake of liquids. In 2002, a kidney specialist tried, in vain, to find any scientific evidence supporting the eight-glasses-a-day myth. His report, published in the American Journal of Physiology, concluded that this standard health advice was complete and utter bunk that, like many urban legends, stemmed from a tiny grain of truth. Apparently, the dietary guidelines provided by the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council do say that humans need 1 milliliter of water for each calorie of food—adding up to about 10 cups a day. However, the same guidelines also say that we get most of this liquid from the water in solid food. There’s no need to drink more

NO CALORIE NOODLES The low-carb craze really broke some hearts in this world because, honestly, who doesn’t love pasta?Hearing that pasta goes straight to your waistline turned something fun and delicious into just another thing to feel guilty about.How great would it be if you could eat all the pasta you wanted — and not gain a pound? It might be possible, if the claims of the makers of the “Miracle Noodle” are true.

  I don’t know how Elvis Presley felt about St. Patrick’s Day, but he spent one particular St. Patty’s Day purchasing what would eventually become one of the most-visited places in the world. 

  March 17, 1957, was the day the King bought the Graceland Mansion.  It was named after Grace Toof, the daughter of the mansion’s builder. 

  The original structure had been a place of worship by the Graceland Christian Church.  When Elvis bought the residence from Ruth Brown-Moore for $102,500, it was on 13.8 acres, and boasted 23 rooms and 10,000 square feet.  Several weeks before he moved in, however, the mansion was expanded to 17,552 square feet of living space. 

  I often wonder if Elvis knew then how popular Graceland would become as a tourist attraction, or how wealthy his estate would be as a result, even well after his death.  I would tend to doubt it. 

  Enjoy the music!