Reviews and More

I’m still looking for a new cell phone to replace this two-year-old Qualcomm that I have. I’ve been stopping by the kiosks at the mall whenever I’m there and I’ve been checking some comparison shopping websites, but haven’t found the right phone yet. Today I came across an article listing the top 10 cell phones of 2006 as chosen by Wirefly, and am hoping to get some inspiration from it.

Motorola obviously had a good year, as they placed in the top 10 several times, including No.1. I guess that means I should start looking more closely at Motorola from now on! I actually do like the RAZR because it’s so thin and compact, but I can’t decide if I want to go that way with my phone of if I want to go in the opposite direction and purchase a smartphone.

Another interesting article I read dealt with 5 cell trends expected to become even more popular in 2006. I guess the info might be a bit dated now, but it was still cool to read what the experts thought would happen in the industry and to see how their predictions actually panned out.

Well, I’m definitely going to keep searching because this old phone of mine has got to go!

I’m a huge sports fan, so the WSCR 670 radio station, known as The Score in Chicagoland, is very familiar to me. It’s hard to believe the station has been around for 15 years already, but it’s true! And in order to celebrate the occasion, The Score is poised to make radio history: they’re going to offer the very first live video webcast of a radio show in the Windy City.

This event will take place on January 25, so jot that date down right now. The webcast, which is made possible through WSCR’s partnership with Nology Interactive - Web Design, Hosting & IT services, will be accessible at www.670thescore.com, and will feature familiar names such as Mike North, Doug Buffone, Mike Murphy, and Terry Boers. Plus, there will be a lot of special guests, so be sure to check it out. I know I’ll be tuning in on the 25th!

Because of the mini-24 marathon Sunday and Monday, I didn’t have a chance to watch Desperate Housewives until today. Episode 3×12 was called “Not While I’m Around,” and here’s a quick rundown of what happened:

Gabby/Carlos These two characters remain the highlight of the show for me. I just love the way they interact with each other, and they clearly still have a lot of chemistry. Gabby was freaked out because her secret admirerer seemed to be upping the stakes by leaving expensive presents inside her home. She calls Carlos over to spend the night on the couch just so she would feel safer. They later find out that the secret admirer is none other than Zack Young, looking even more hideous than before thanks to that mop he calls a hairstyle. I can’t wait until this ’70s hair craze is over. I think it’s gross.

Susan/Julie/Austin/Edie There was no sign of Ian this week, which makes Susan so much more likable, IMO. She discovers that Julie and Austin are sleeping together, and that Julie lied to her face about it. What’s more, Susan finds out that Edie posed as Julie’s mother in order to get birth control pills for her. Then, when Susan goes over to Edie’s house to confront Edie about the pills, the two of them walk in on Austin and Danielle getting it on.

Lynette/Tom The grand opening for the pizza parlor is just a couple weeks away, but Tom doesn’t want to let Lynette anywhere near the place. He thinks Lynette will just criticize everything and force Tom to make changes. Lynette can’t stay away, though, so she goes there when she knows Tom is gone. She discovers that he can’t get his liquor license, which is a huge problem for a restaurant, so she takes matters into her own hands and gets it done.

Bree/Alma/Orson Who knows where this storyline is going. Wherever it’s headed, it’s kind of boring. Bree wants Orson to tell Alma to leave the neighborhood, Alma says she knows that Orson ran over Mike, blah, blah, blah. Then Bree goes over to Alma’s house and finds a bag of teeth hidden under the floorboards in the pantry. Must be Monique’s. Not interested, though.

Mike/Paul Young I couldn’t possibly care less what’s going on with these two.

Overall, I thought this was another decent episode. As I said, I’m not interested in what’s happening with Bree or Mike, but the other storylines were pretty good this week.

During the course of the average day, I have a lot of electronic texts that I have to read. Whether these are emails from colleagues, friends, and families, reports that I have to review for clients, or even web pages that I come across while surfing the ‘net, I do a ton of reading. Unfortunately, I can’t really do anything else when I’m reading these texts because I have to have my eyes focused on the screen and I have to pay attention to the information that I’m taking in. That’s why I’m interested in trying a text to speech reader.

Text readers are computer programs that convert electronic texts to recognizable audio. In other words, my computer would actually read these texts for me! Depending on the type of software I get, I’d probably be able to choose from a range of different “voices” until I find one that I enjoy listening to. For example, take a listen to all the different speakers featured on the NextUp website. I wouldn’t really have to do anything else to get this type of software to work; I’d just install it and enjoy the benefits.

And there are definitely a number of benefits that come along with having my computer read texts aloud to me. First of all, it would be much easier for me to multitask if I had a program like this up and running. I’d be able to take notes while listening to a report, and that would save me from having to toggle back and forth between windows on my computer screen.

Second, a software program that can read texts aloud would help reduce eyestrain and tension headaches. Right now, I sit in front of a monitor nearly 10 hours per day, and most of that time is spent reading. If I can cut back on the amount of text I have to read for myself, that would give my eyes a break and maybe even eliminate these problems.

All in all, I think I could really benefit from a speech reader that recognizes electronic texts. If this is something you’re interested in, I encourage you to check out audioforbooks.com for more information.

I probably shouldn’t admit this, but I love reading about celebrities. I used to buy tabloids like People, US, Star, and even the Enquirer all the time, but have stopped since I discovered TMZ.com. TMZ is a website devoted entirely to celebrity gossip and paparazzi photos. They even publish stuff that probably wouldn’t make it into traditional magazines, so that’s a plus in my book. TMZ is updated frequently and is entirely free, which are even more reasons to check it out. Go now!!

My husband and I are completely addicted to electronic gadgets of all kinds. From iPods to LCD televisions and home stereo systems, we’ve always got to have the latest products out there. We spend more of our entertainment money on electronics each year than on anything else, so we’ve learned how to spot bargains and take advantage of sales and discounts to stretch our dollars. For example, we buy from auctions or online retailers whenever we can because the prices are much cheaper than what we’d find in a traditional store.

I recently came across a site called Your Electronic Warehouse and I have to admit that I was very impressed by what I saw. The first thing I look for on website like this is contact information. Reputable businesses have nothing to hide, and that’s exactly what Your Electronic Warehouse is. The contact page is easy to find and gives email addresses, phone numbers, a mailing address, fax number, and also lists business hours. Perfect!

Beyond that, Your Electronic Warehouse has a huge selection of name-brand electronics at very competitive prices. I’ve already seen several things that I want to buy, and as soon as I save up enough money for them, I’m going right back to that site.

All in all, Your Electronic Warehouse looks like a fantastic resource for electronics lovers everywhere. But then again, I wouldn’t expect anything less from Monster Cable’s E-Commerce Retailer of the Year!

I watched two more episodes of “24″ last night, and I have to say that I wasn’t overly impressed by what I saw. As I mentioned in my review of eps 6×01 and 6×02, I just feel that I’ve seen all of this before. Don’t get me wrong: “24″ is one of my favorite TV shows, so I’m really trying to get excited about it, but I can’t. The anticipation was much more rewarding than actually seeing the episodes.

Here’s what I thought of 6×03 and 6×04. Spoilers throughout, so don’t read if you don’t want to know details!

I had heard that there was supposed to be an amazing finish to 6×04, so I was eagerly awaiting that. Unfortunately, the “surprises” weren’t that shocking. First, Jack had to shoot Curtis in order to protect Asad. Curtis was acting weird in both episodes, so I kind of had a feeling that something was going to happen to him. Yes, it was a bit unexpected that Jack shot him, but it wasn’t a new concept. Remember when Jack executed Ryan Chappelle on a terrorist’s orders in Season Three?

Maybe the shock was supposed to be the fact that the nuclear device the terrorists had was detonated right there in Valencia. But again, it seems that we’ve had this before. Remember the nuclear reactor that melted down last year? Perhaps that’s not exactly on the same level, but it’s nuclear destruction, right?

Anyway, I can’t say that I’m feeling the “24″ love thus far. I’m still going to watch it of course, but I hope the writers can find something fresh in their bag of tricks because the stuff they’ve put on the screen in the first four eps has been pretty stale.