Just over four bucks!  That’s what I have in my checking account right now.  This seems to be a recurring trend at the end of the month.  As Brooks & Dunn have mentioned in a few of their songs “too much month at the end of the money!”

It’s crazy!  I make a pretty good living and don’t waste money.  Between the 15th and the end of the month, I buy groceries and gas, and pay my electric bill, parking and my mortgage.  That’s just under $2,200!  Jesse was asking what each of us was going to do with our stimulus check.  I may have to use mine as a cushion in the ol’ checking account.

Ramen noodles for everyone til payday!  Everyone is feeling the pinch these days.  What are you doing differently to save money?

I created a Facebook page a month or so ago and I have to admit that I’m relatively clueless about it.  I filled out all the information, reached out to some friends, even added photos and videos.  Then the wierdness started.

I was poked by several people, even super-poked a couple times!  People started throwing things at me like chairs, cupcakes, and even the occasional sheep!  Writing on my wall!  Making comments about my pictures!  Mass hysteria!  And that’s not even the worst of it!  Everytime I log in, I find people have sent me new quizzes or games.  This is kinda cool I guess, but it forces me to add new applications each time - not cool!  So be forewarned that if you send me a smurf… I may not see it.

I guess I thought it would be more like MySpace with people emailing and chatting, but it seems to be more of a place to waste time playing random games.  Am I doing something wrong?

If you are a long-time listener to our show, you may remember Jesse and I going to a sponsored chiropractor for an adjustment and the doctor asking me if I’d ever been in a serious car accident - which I haven’t.  He also asked if I’d ever had a bad shoulder injury - which I haven’t - and told me my clavicle was dropping.  Mr. Good News.  So admittedly, I’m a physical mess.  LOL.

Due probably to my 36 years of inactivity, I have a unique talent of being able to, without really doing anything to trigger it, mess up my shoulder or lower back.  I had a different chiropractor tell me it has something to do with a nerve at the top of my neck. 

The shoulder gives me trouble the most often and it’s usually triggered by sleeping wrong.  Conscious of this, I’ve been on the lookout for a contour pillow.  They’ve always been WAY too expensive, but last weekend I found one at Sam’s Club for a price I could live with.  I was very excited to try it out that night.  The next morning I woke up… and couldn’t move my head.  Neck pain, shoulder pain, the works.  Terrific! 

It’s been a rough week.  Those of you who’ve dealt with this before know all you can do is wait it out.  Usually it takes a day or two for the pain to go away, but luckily for me… it’s lasted all week. 

Ouch! I’m going to the gym today either way.

I made the mistake of saying this on the air one day and Jesse ripped me a new one.  It’s an interesting paradox on our show how my partner can pull stuff out of his ass every day making half of it up and that’s fine, but if I bring something up and don’t have an encyclopedia of facts to back it up… I’m the idiot.  LOL!

Well, with StarFest going on this weekend, I thought it was a good time to bring this up again with the necessary documentation.  I remember reading an article some years ago that many of the engineers at places like MIT, grew up watching Star Trek and seeing the “technology” of the future.  These same engineers tried to duplicate this technology for the real world.  It’s no coincidence that your flip-top cell phone looks just like a communicator from Star Trek TOS.

Here’s an article from Network World. (Click to read the full article) In the past few months a number of technologies and products that invoke the Star Trek name have been rolled out. MIT was the latest with a tractor beam-like device, but all manner of other new stuff from Star Trek funeral products to healthcare items are also out there. We’ve gathered up some of the more recent products so you can have a quick look-see.

The History Channel also recently did a special called “How William Shatner Changed the World,” Synopsis: Yes, it’s really true, Capt. James T. Kirk of the Enterprise is responsible for many of the gadgets and technology we know and love today. How so? Well, this utterly disarming and even hilarious special shows how the “Star Trek” fans of the ’60s and beyond were often inspired by the outer space show to create in real life the gadgets and gizmos they saw on their TV screens. That cell phone of yours? Marty Cooper, former chief engineer for Motorola, talks about how he wanted nothing more than to make a cool “Star Trek” communicator. Other inventors, scientists and computer-world types talk about how “Trek” influenced the careers they chose and the cool stuff they invented as a result of being obsessed with all things Spock and Kirk.

This is not your average, dry cable documentary; host Shatner, a delightful ham at heart, has a huge amount of fun narrating this special, and the science stuff is doled out with a hearty sense of humor (one that uses vintage “Trek” clips to their full absurdist potential). Even fans without a lingering affection for all things “Trek” will probably get a kick out of this special, which has an interesting point underneath all the fun: Science fiction often directly influences science fact. [from The History Channel]

Legions of faithful trekkies are working right now on marvelous things that will one day be part of our everyday lives.  Thank you Gene Roddenberry, for making our lives better.

“Computer. Tea. Earl Grey, hot!”

I’m going to Starfest this weekend and it should be a lot of fun!  I’ve never been to a Sci-Fi convention before, and the line-up looks great.  There are sessions on practically everything.  Whether your into Star Wars, Star Trek, Harry Potter, Pirates of the Carribean, or even one of those Fangora horror weirdos, there’s something for everyone.  Great guests, too.  I know he was on Battlestar Gallactica or something, but I want to talk to Adam Baldwin about playing John Casey on Chuck on NBC.  I LOVE THAT SHOW!

Check out the line-up at www.starland.com.

Star Wars: I’m most excited about the People vs. George Lucas session, where we’ll all get to spout off about what a lousy job he did on the first three prequels.  I had high hopes going to each movie and was disappointed everytime.  Jedi Clue looks like fun, although I don’t know how it’ll be playing in a room full of people.

Star Trek: Actual Star Trek Academy classes!  How cool.  I also want to go and watch the Klingon battle.  Though I’d never actually get “involved” in a battle, it should be a blast to watch.  I know Jesse thinks its dumb, but those bat’leths are nothing to mess with.

Bat’leth

I’m looking forward to seeing everyone in their costumes and maybe drinking a little Romulan Ale!

Live Long and Prosper!

As you’ve probably heard by now, we are giving you a crack at $10,000 five times every weekday on the WOLF.  Although I can’t win (which stinks), I’ve been thinking about what I’d do with a free ten grand.

The responsible side of me thinks I’d should use it knock down some debt.  Between my HELC and credit cards, ten grand would cut my debt in half.  I could also put it into an IRA towards my kids college education. That would be the right and responsible thing to do.

The slightly less responsible thing to do would be to use it for home improvements.  After I got screwed over by the basement guys last year, I still need to get my basement finished.  Ten grand would go a long ways towards getting that done.  My house could also use new windows and a new roof in the next five years, so those projects should be kept in mind.

The real me would BLOW IT!  Here’s how…
Big screen plasma TV - $ 1,500
Home Theater System - $ 200
Mexico Vacation for the family - $ 3,600
Playstation 3 - $ 400
Rock Star for PS3 - $ 150
Bikini Top for my Jeep - $ 60
Lift kit - $ 700
Off Road Tires - $600

All that, I could still toss a grand in each of the girls college funds, get some dry wall and paint for the basement, and still have a little left over for bets with Jesse.

I can’t win… but YOU can!  Good luck!

With Spring Break in full swing this week, my house is overrun with little girls.  My daughters (7 and 11yrs old) have been playing host to all the neighborhood girls this week.  Whether it’s riding bikes, putting on fashion shows, or playing SingStar on the PS2 and singing the same three songs over and over, there is much giggling and screaming in the Shannon house these days.

 My wife is a saint, dealing with all the drama and solving the occasional skirmishes.  That was until yesterday, when she had to run a few errands and let me at the mercy of these little ladies.  My girls have trouble standing up for themselves when it comes to people using their stuff.  Amy and I have talked to them several times about it, and it doesn’t seem to get through.  So, the first thing I did after Amy left was stop in the girl’s rooms and make it clear to the guests that when my girls ask them to not play with something, that they need to listen.  Then I left them to have fun.

It didn’t take long before they were all tracking me down.  I was cleaning scrapes, wiping tears, and reminding everyone to be nice to their sisters.  My favorite part is that none of them know my name.  Instead of getting “Mr. Shannon” as I expected, it was “Gillian’s Dad”.  Gillian’s Dad, I hurt my knee… Gillian’s Dad, they’re being mean to me… Gillian’s Dad, can I have a snack?  Very cute.  It made me chuckle every time.

I bought my wife flowers.