How well does your dog behave? Did you know that dogs really do prefer structure in their lives? Although they may try  to play the alpha role, it really is best if they know that you are the master.

By enrolling your dog in dog obedience training you are helping to instill behavior that will keep your dog safe, happy as well as create a bond between the two of you.

Working with your dog during training gives you one-on-one time with your dog and they thrive on that. Training to them is playtime, they get to run and play as they learn. Just like a child often hears the word "NO" when attempting to do something that could harm them, teaching your dog to come when he is called can save him from becoming hurt or possibly even save his life.

When you take in a dog you are making a commitment to take care of him… dog obedience training  could very well be one of the best things you can do to strengthen your bond and keep your dog safe.

I went in search of information on my local police department’s web site. Evidently they had a recent site redesign and boy is it pretty….too bad it’s completely useless!

One would think that a government entity’s web site’s primary purpose would be to provide information.  Oh, not in the case of Dekalb County Georgia’s Police Department.  In fact, I needed information specifically from their Animal Control division….and the link  I found by searching on Google (http://dekalbpolice.com/ac/) is a dead link…so I began my hunt on their main page. (Using the search feature only produced a results page and every link on it was broken, page not found)

Time to dig deeper…

Look at all of the pretty pictures of our acting police chief and police officers!  I can watch videos and even apply to the police academy.  I clicked on "Departments" then scrolled down through the listing of departments…finally finding a link to "Program Operations"….the description: "Click here to find information about the Animal Control Division, Personnel, Supply, Grants & Planning, Financial Services."….and click I did.

What did I see you might ask? A pretty picture of the Commander of Programs Operations, with a link to the names of all of his "Key Staff". Not a single bit of information.

Annoyed, I decide I want to use their "Feedback" button and tell them exactly what I think of their site. Guess what?!  The "Feedback" button only leads to one of those bogus web pages that contains absolutely nothing more than Google Adsense links. 

Extremely frustrated I visit the site designers web site, since a link was put at the bottom of the page of the site.  BAM! My browser was forcibly opened to its maximum size, which is one of my absolute major pet peeves! How dare a web site designer tell me how big my browser window should be, let alone forcibly reset my browser!

What pissed me off even more was that the design of the site did not need the full width of my browser, evidently the designer just likes the power of controlling my online experience.

But, alas…I think I have finally found what I was looking for!  Predominantly displayed on the front page of the site was a promo for a site redesign done back in June for….the NEW site for "Dekalb County Animal Service & Enforcement".  I’m on the edge of my seat with excitement as I get ready to click the link that was to take me to the site I originally was looking for….I hold my breath….low and behold, I get a site not found error! UGH!

I guess the next step is to see how well their phone system works… 

You’ve seen these buttons on web sites all over the web, but what the heck is The Google Pack?

Well, Google has some awesome software for your PC…and the best part is that it’s FREE!  The Google Pack even comes with a free six month subscription to Norton Anti-Virus 2005 Special Edition!

You’ll also get  Picasa, a very cool photo organizing and editing tool. You can easily keep track of the photos on your PC, as well as edit them (even red-eye reduction!), make screensavers and share your photos online.  Do you have a blog? With Picasa you can post your photos quickly and easily to your blog from your desktop.

Google Desktop gives you personalized info in your browser sidebar, and provides you with a way to organize your email, files and web history.

Google Earth - 3D Earth browser that allows you to visually zoom from space to street level — tour the world. Find maps, driving directions, hotels, restaurants, and more

These are just a few of the software applications included in the Google Pack, and you get to add or remove any of the product..so check it out if you get a chance. You’ve got nothing to lose by trying this software package, it’s free! You can decide which of the various applications you want to download and you can uninstall anything you don’t like.

What are you waiting for? Download it now and give it a spin!

With the holiday season coming up, I thought it would be useful to post some of my favorite online sites and some of my favorite things. Although I won’t be able to hand out all of my favorite things to hundreds of people, ala Oprah, maybe you’ll find something that may be of use.

I will feature one web site daily, and I’ll keep a running list of some of my favorite things and post them to the site as well.

Feel free to send me any links to sites that I may not have featured, and I’ll check them out and consider them as a featured site.

I came across this deal and it really is too good to pass up, so I thought I’d pass it along.

Every new customer to eMusic can download up to 25 MP3s over 14 days free of charge. There are no strings attached*…and what’s even better is that the MP3s are not copy protected, so you can play them on any MP3 player, including iPods. The MP3s can be downloaded to unlimited computers and there is no limit to the number of times they can be burned to CD.

eMusic claims to be the #1 source on the net for Independent Music, being a supporter of Indie artists, it’s important to me that I have access to more than todays top 40.  Not only do you get a FREE trial membership, check out eMusic’s FREE Daily Download! What a great way to get turned on to new music.

But, don’t just take my word or their word for it…here’s what USA Today had to say about eMusic:

"eMusic is the only major online music store that offers songs in pure MP3 format, with no restrictions on how many times they can be copied, burned or transferred. While the songs at the other Web stores can be played only on a portable player that supports Windows Media, songs from eMusic can be stored on almost any portable." — USA Today

eMusic is a legal download site that pays artists and songwriters.

Their basic membership  is $9.99 per month after your Free 14-day trial, and you can download 40 MP3s per month. That’s only 25¢ per song!  They also offer two other plans if 40 downloads a month isn’t enough. If you download music and are sick of iTunes, this is definitely a viable alternative.

This site has such a great assortment of toys! Everything from Urban Vinyl (Critterbox, Baseman, Jarvis & UNKL) to CoolRockets and even wooden toys.

But, that’s not all!  They even sell tin toys, cool modern day versions of yesteryear. Robots, cars and even a tin Roy Rogers horse. They have die-cast models of vintage cars (remember the old Woody?), a Coca-cola delivery truck, an AirStream trailer and more.

I don’t think I’ve come across another site on the web that has such a diverse assortment of toys. Books, like Dogzilla and CatKong…building sets, I could go on and on!

If you collect toys or know a toy collector, it’s worth a visit to Mad Cat Toys.

Who doesn’t like free stuff?  What’s even better is free Dale and Thomas’ Gourmet popcorn!

I’ve reviewed this stuff before, it’s awesome! It’s even one of the items on Oprah’s "Favorite Things" list. For a limited time, you can get free popcorn just by requesting it…although they do charge a shipping and handling fee. Believe me, the fee is worth it!

It really is a great gift and with the holidays right around the corner, why not treat yourself…just in case no one else thinks to send you some?

Free Popcorn from Dale and Thomas Popcorn

Did you know that books by Walt Whitman, Anne Frank, Toni Morrison and Mark Twain have been banned at some point in time?

Banned Books

I think it’s interesting to read why people thought a book should be banned, and each of the books listed has the explanation for why it was banned. An Alabama text book committee banned The Diary of Anne Frank because it was "a real downer".

Funko is at it again!  Here’s their newest Spastik Plastik release, and she is HOT!  Funko creates most of my favorite collectible items and all of their stuff is high quality and the artwork of the boxes equals if not exceeds the coolness of the products themselves.

If you’re not familiar with Funko…what rock have you been under???

Devil Girl Spastik Plastik Vinyl Figure She has devilish good looks! With a tight black dress, red horns, and looks to die for, this little lady from the seventh circle is ready to take up residence on your bookshelf. She stands ready to ward off those pesky good spirits around the office, and will show the world what a playful little devil you really are. Be sure to add this piece to your collection before she’s banished from this dimension forever!

Skeleton Cowboy Spastik Plastik Vinyl Figure Eat up, or you’ll be skin and bones! (And hats and guns!) The Skeleton Cowboy is an original entry in the popular line of Spastik Plastik collectible figures, which include original concepts like this and amazing classic characters like Duck Dodgers. This figure is made of plastic, and comes packaged ready to look awesome on your desk, or be gifted to a fan of all things cowboy. Or skeleton. It fits well for both groups!

Have you tried this stuff?  Dale & Thomas’ Gourmet popcorn ROCKS! 

I will admit I’m a bit of a purist when it comes to my popcorn. Maybe a little caramel, maybe some cheese…other than that just give me plain old salted popcorn.

That was until I tried Dale & Thomas popcorn. The one I tried was chocolate covered and it was absolutely incredible!  I know this is one thing on my list of what to get friends and family for the holidays.

But, they don’t just have chocolate covered popcorn, they have just about any flavor you can imagine. Do you love buffalo wings? They’ve got a popcorn that is buffalo and blue cheese flavored.  Like sweets? How about sun-drenched Strawberry or really really raspberry flavored popcorn?

This is one of those things that you may not buy for yourself on a regular basis…but it sure does make an awesome gift! 

Check out the "Dale & Thomas 6.5-gallon Gift Tin - Hall of Fame KettleCorn, Chocolate Chunk N’Caramel and Dale’s Caramel Combo " pictured above.  Wouldn’t that be great to have around the office during the holiday season?

 

I love finding new and interesting gifts and I hope that someone out there finds this tip useful as well.

Now I’m hungry for popcorn!

10% OFF until September 30th!

Through September, every size and every scrumptious flavor is 10% off! Coupon Code: AX9X1P1T. Offer expires September 30.

Visit the Dale and Thomas web site to see all of the flavors available