Internet

Penguin Cam from SeaWorld San Diego

Penguins As caretakers of the earth, we’re responsible for our family and so much more. The choices we make and the things we do, can have far reaching effects. Chemicals we use in our homes. Pesticides that are sprayed on our fruits and vegetables. Hormones and antibiotics that are in our meats and dairy products. They all go somewhere. And they end up in the soil, the rivers, lakes and oceans. We can make a difference by keeping the chemicals out of our environment.

Here’s a site we don’t often get to see. Penguins being penguins.
Keep them safe. Use non-toxic cleaning products.

Frozen Planet airs tonight at 8:00 pm on Discovery Channel.

To switch views, click the “Multiview” button in the gray bar above.
Watch the penguins on land or in the water.
This is live streaming video from SeaWorld San Diego
This video cam is available March and April 2012.

WARNING: Penguin Cam can be addicting!

Do you watch other animal cams? What’s your favorite?
Add a comment with the link and let me know.

Digital Catalog
The products are always safe, always green and always work. Guaranteed.

Comcast Catastrophe

Jan 9th, 2012

by Marilyn.

4 comments

Angry Woman
Early on Friday afternoon, construction workers severed our Comcast cable connection. If you want to know how dependent – and hooked – you are on your cable service, just unplug it for a while. This wasn’t our fault. And it wasn’t Comcast’s fault. The maintenence workers who cut the line were trying to fix a water problem in the neighborhood. But, they just packed it in for the weekend and went home to their cable TV, movies on demand, surfing the web and V O I P phones. The first appointment we could get was Sunday morning. No contact with the outside world for 2 days.

Sunday morning came and went without the cable guy. According to Comcast, there was no Sunday appointment scheduled. But, he could see one on Monday. So, we wait some more. We watched a movie on DVD. We played a game. We even took down the Christmas tree. I was out of patience. I went to McDonald’s to try to get my email. I could send but not receive with their WiFi. So, that was a wasted trip.

But, there was no appointment on Monday either. Now, the appointment is Friday. FRIDAY! That’s a whole week without service. And who keeps changing the appointment? Must be Comcast.

We called and tried to reason with Comcast.

It’s a cleanly cut line.
It’ll only take 5 minutes to splice it back together.
We have disabled people in the house.
They have no way to call for help if needed.

But, Comcast wouldn’t make an exception. Time to call in the reserves. We called Mike, who’s in charge of maintenance for the community. Mike offered to call Comcast on our behalf. And Mike got results. Comcast would send someone out today to splice the cable – TODAY!

The cable guy was the nicest, most polite and friendliest technician I’ve met in a long time. He was a far cry from the Comcast customer service reps we’d been dealing with for 3 days. It didn’t take him long and we were back online. He even checked each TV, computer and phone to be sure we were completely online before he left. We owe him and Mike a big thank you for understanding our situation and taking action.

I learned an important lesson from this. Be polite, but be persistent. Be assertive, but not aggressive. And if you can’t resolve the issue, enlist help. There’s always a solution. Sometimes you just have to be creative.

How do you solve problems? Share your experience in a comment.

Marilyn Kvasnok

Good Bye to 2011

Dec 27th, 2011

by Marilyn.

2 comments

Post a comment with your favorite and worst moments of 2011.

Marilyn Kvasnok

Motel New Yorker

Nov 14th, 2011

by Marilyn.

2 comments

I’m from Ohio. I call it home and always will. But, there were three years in the mid 60’s that took me to Miami, Florida. Dad decided we should pack up all our worldly possessions and drive 1,100 miles south, right behind hurricane Cleo.

1961 Chrysler Newport We had a big, old Chrysler and a station wagon, pulling a trailer. This was actually our second trip. The first time, we drove down the Treasure Coast to Miami to find a motel to buy. Mom and dad had pretty much decided on one along US 1 in Miami. When we stopped for gas, dad asked the guy pumping the gas if he knew a good place to stay. (Remember when the gas station attendant pumped the gas?) His answer: “The Motel New Yorker.” That was the motel they were about to buy! That stretch of Biscayne Boulevard was one motel after another. Why did he pick that one? There must have been something special about it. That sealed the deal for dad.

Sure they were making the right choice, they bought the motel. We moved into the manager’s apartment behind the office, plus the next 2 motel rooms. It was crowded, but it was temporary. After a year, we moved to a home in North Miami.

The motel did well, especially during “the season.” Those were the winter months. Vacationers stayed for several days or a week. But, some people stayed all winter. Dad said they were business owners. Either they were retired or they were able to leave their business in the hands of their employees.

Originally, the motel looked like this in 1953 when it was built:

Motel New Yorker

I got to thinking about the motel and all the changes thru the years. The neighborhood was good when we were there in the 60’s. The motel was named the New Yorker to attract visitors from New York. Miami was a popular destination for them. After mom and dad sold it, the neighborhood deteriorated and so did the motel. There were a couple of name changes that I’m aware of. The Motel New Yorker became the Motel Quebec. I’m guessing demographics changed and more visitors were coming from Canada. Or maybe the motel was bought by Canadians. And it was also called Davis Motel for a while.

But, I heard there was a restoration project along Biscayne Boulevard. Curiosity got the best of me and I googled MOTEL NEW YORKER MIAMI. To my surprise, the Motel New Yorker has been renovated and there is even a website to explore: www.HotelNewYorkerMiami.com . The owners, Walter and Shirley Figueroa, have done a great job restoring the motel with a retro look. Visit their site for more information and a photo gallery.

Today, the Motel New Yorker looks like this:

Photos compliments of www.TheBorrowedAbode.com

If you’ve ever stayed at the Motel New Yorker in Miami – Or if you know the area and have seen the transformation, add a comment with your memories.

Marilyn Kvasnok

Fall Foliage 2011 – Part 2

Oct 26th, 2011

by Marilyn.

8 comments

I’ve been watching the Fall Foliage map. Northeast Ohio is near peak and quickly approaching the peak. Draped around Cleveland is the Cleveland Metroparks, also known as the Emerald Necklace. You can drive slowly – mostly 25 and 30 MPH – thru the park for hours. The southernmost part of the park is where I chose to take my pictures.