Trusted Tours & Attractions

The last time I visited Chicago on vacation, I went out and explored the Loop.
Those of you who are not familiar with what the Loop is, it is a section of downtown Chicago that is filled with the most wonderful shopping experience ever, in the day and the best fun-filled bar hopping experiences at night--if you are young-at-heart.

Now, even if you don’t inbibe, there are plenty of other things to do in Chicago.
Chicago nightlife is filled with live bands--the city is known for it’s Blues bands--and delicious regional food outlets.

However, had I looked at the Trusted Tours & Attractions web site and newsletter before staying in Chicago, I would have learned that Chicago offers a lot more.

I could have visited Lego Land Discovery Center for less than $20 bucks! The 30,000-square-foot attraction combines two floors of hands-on LEGO fun! (who doesn’t still like playing with Legos?)
I at least should have checked Trusted Tours & Attraction’s online travel guides.
I could have visited the Metropolitan museum of art where people who are in the know go to see is the world’s best and most up-to-date collections of art.

I could have taken a scenic tour of Chicago's lake front & downtown area aboard Trolley and New Upper Decker Buses. The Hop On-Hop Off Tour gives you unlimited access to the Trolleys and any of the designated stops over it's 13 mile route in order to visit famous city attractions.

I could have bought a CityPass. The nine-day pass allows you to enjoy five unforgettable attractions in Chicago: The Hancock Observatory, The Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, Adler Planetarium and Museum of Science and Industry plus OMNIMAX--the best of the Windy City!

Well, at least I’ll be prepared when I visit Florida.
The next time I go on vacation, I’m going to plan it by looking for things to do in Orlando with Trusted Tours & Attractions.

Thus far, I already know I’m going to spend the first day visiting Universal Studios. It is so much fun and there are lots of things to do for the whole family.

Planning your next vacation? Looking for ideas on what to do? Sign up for the Trusted Travels eNewsletter and enter to win a $150 iTunes gift card. Offer ends July 31st, 2008.

It is a special promotion they are having where a person can win a $150 iTunes Gift Card by signing up for the newsletter.

Bennigan's is closing

Can you believe it? Bennigans is closing!
That's where everyone would go for quick cheap eats and good drinks.
The news casters said it had been in business for 32 years and was operating in 32 states.
It was a great place to meet with good seating, decent food and great drinks.
People showing up for work had no idea and were turned away. 972-588-9000 is the corporate number if anyone wants to know.
A lot of people say they will miss Bennigans.
On the news it was speculated that the high price of food, combined with the high price of gas--for transporting said food--brought the good-time restaurant to a close.

Webhostinggeeks.com

Whether you have a business web site or a personal site, no one wants unecessary downtime. So many people go with the cheapest web hosting site but is it really the best?

Well, one way to avoid the hunt and peck when choosing a cheap web hosting service is to go to a review site.

Webhostinggeeks.com takes some of the guess work out of choosing a reasonalbly priced web hosting service. Feel free to go to the site and look at customer reviews way down at the bottom of the page.

There you will find real life discussions on which service is the best or the worst. Then, you will be in the position to make an informed decision instead of choosing in the dark.

The Chronicle, U.S.A.

Well, it has been a week or so since the launch of my newest web site, The Chronicle, U.S.A.
It is just a mock-up site of the eventual online newspaper I would like to publish.
The Associated Press feeds will be expensive but are truly necessary. The advertising fees are supposed to cover those expenses. However, right now, I don't have any advertisers.
Boo hoo.
Really, though if anyone out there has any suggestions on how I should go about marketing this site, please e-mail me.

Barack Obama at Unity 08

Growing up American

As arguments against the positive points of Presidential Candidate Barack Obama's Overseas tour pile up, it only stands to prove the point of the Ugly American moniker US citizens want to dissipate.
Many of the naysayers have no insight of how they sound to the rest of the world. They sound bitter and hateful.
Obama is doing little wrong. He is not providing fodder for late-night talk show monologues and comedians that would stand to make him look doddering and foolish and out-of-step with the country.
However, my country and its future is no joke to me.
Obama is in-step with the country and is a front-runner.
Some in the world refuse to reward excellence and wonder why the youth of today are confused. Adults blame MTV, music videos and the underground urban culture.
I blame so-called adults who appear to be children, themselves, emotionally.
I know no one likes to be one-upped but on the same turn, no one likes unsportsman-like behavior. Or whining.
By the way, kudos to the Black French people's resurgence of the black consciousness movement in France.
I found out when CNN reporter Christian Amanpour asked about it during a press conference with Obama and Nicholas Sarkozy, President of France. She said the resurgence was due to Obama's barrier breaking progress in the U.S. election process.
Obama spoke of strengthening French - American relations and European relations on a whole.

The Winds of Change blow through Barack Obama

Kismet. His speech was so good. It was if he were making beautiful, sweet love to the audience--it was strong and passionate. It was like the purity and softness of a mother feeding her baby and singing it a comforting song of gratitude. The gentility of it was like sunshine on a bright afternoon. Barack's speech in Germany Thursday held thoughts of a bright future.
It was as simple a concept as a parent raising a child. His words expressed love for his nation and the world. It was like a man, caring and yearning for his lover, wanting her to run away with him.
"Baby, it'll be alright, we're going to make it," is all he had to say but we, being his audience--all Barack Obama lovers-- were as timid as virgins.
He gave us reassurance until we yielded unto him and matched his want, his need.
Barack stirs up the yearn for freedom.
You too, know that yearning...know the dream of freedom.
The speech went on. Barack talked of war and rumors of war and warriors and survivors and how when strengthened we would see light on the other end of our universal struggle.
However, his speeches are much more than details repeated back when asked, "what did he say?"
It is a feeling and a concept of love. The love that binds the human spirit to this world. Barack's words are edifying.
He talked of no more nukes, then talked of a strong European Union rejecting the cold war of the past.
He spoke of of his father and grandfather and how they used the idea of the American Dream as a backdrop in making a better life for themselves and their future generations.
We watched every gesture, pause and intonation Barack made that day. We watched for flickers of emotion which would show in his eyes.
We felt the rise and fall of each breath of his speech, for as he is ever hopeful, so too are we, right along with him.
God lives in all of us through his spirit. Much of God's spirit was with Barack that day, during that speech.

Barack Obama's Great Uncle shares liberation memory

Obama's great-uncle recalls liberating Nazi camp from Associated Press

Hot dogs, sausage and bacon

Sodium nitrite, with chemical formula NaNO2, is used as a color fixative and preservative in meats and fish.
As a food additive, it serves a dual purpose in the food industry since it both alters the color of preserved fish and meats and also prevents growth of Clostridium botulinum, the bacteria which causes botulism. In the European Union it may be used only as a mixture with salt containing at most 0.6% sodium nitrite. It has the E number E250. Potassium nitrite (E249) is used in the same way.

While this chemical will prevent the growth of bacteria, it can be toxic for mammals. (LD50 in rats is 180 mg/kg.) For this reason, sodium nitrite sold as a food additive is dyed bright pink to avoid mistaking it for something else. Cooks and makers of charcuterie often simply refer to sodium nitrite as "pink salt".

Various dangers of using this as a food additive have been suggested and researched by scientists. A principal concern is the formation of carcinogenic N-nitrosamines by the reaction of sodium nitrite with amino acids in the presence of heat in an acidic environment. Sodium nitrite has also been linked to triggering migraines.[1]

Recent studies have found a link between high processed meat consumption and colon cancer, possibly due to preservatives such as sodium nitrite.[2][3]

Recent studies have also found a link between frequent ingestion of meats cured with nitrites and the COPD form of lung disease.[4]
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