You are currently browsing the monthly archive for July 2008.
After months of deliberations, the FCC has finally Ok’d the merger between the only two satellite based radio operators; Sirius and XM. Supposedly was held up in part by Republican Deborah Tate whom refused to vote for the merge until the companies paid the U.S. Treasury $19.7 million for fines regarding radio receivers and ground based signal repeaters. Sirius will be purchasing its only competitor for $3.3 billion dollars. I have mixed feelings over this merge. While I believe that monopolies are created by combining all companies within a certain market, that particular market would have to be providing a necessity to the public. Something that we all could/should not live without. Not something that is optional. And as we are all aware, satellite radio is completely optional. We still have free broadcasting from radio waves.
However, knowing that there will be only 1 provider now does make me feel like the price will increase. There will be more stations and even though Sirius may be taking on XM’s listeners, they will have to pay for this extra addition – not to mention they must make up for that $3.3 billion paid to XM! I’ve heard talk of Sirius charging for just the stations you would like to listen to or you could choose to have them all for a set price. This does not sound like a bad idea. Between my MP3 player and the local radio stations, I probably only listen to 5 channels on Sirius now; Alt Nation, The Spa channel, Howard Stern, Shade 45 and CNN. So I would love to be paying for just those 5 channels, maybe a few others to mix things up every once in awhile.
The overall idea of Sirius is brilliant. And the fact that it is uncensored is the best. I will definitely be a subscriber for years to come but I hope that this industry continues to expand and new satellite companies will form. How does that proper little saying go? “Fuck the FCC!” The have taken away our rights to the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. That includes freedom of speech, able to speak without censorship. Switch to Satellite and do not give them the satisfaction of taking away our freedom. Or at least until they find a way to censor that as well…
Please visit http://www.sirius.com
I don’t know about the rest of the world… but my husband and I will be visiting the theatre this weekend to see the new Batman movie; Dark Knight. As a child, I grew up adoring the cartoons, movies, action figures, etc. so I’m really looking forward to this new edition. Michael Keaton and Val Kilmer were always my favorite Batmen. To me those two encased everything that was Batman; both in great shape, humble personalities and good looks. Although I think Kilmer was better as Doc Holiday in Tombstone, simply amazing. He encompassed the drunken, gun slinging, dentist from Griffin, GA wonderfully – just a few minutes from my hometown. Has anyone seen him lately?! BOY has he changed in the looks department… but to me he will always be my Batman and even now that he’s in his 50’s and has what appears to be a beer belly, I would SO leave my husband for him. There are only 2 men out there that have this effect on me… Val & Johnny Depp. Sorry Brian!
Who’s your favorite Batman?
( polls)
I know a lot of moviegoers are eager to see Heath Ledger’s role in the film. With all the hype around his psychotic role and the strange circumstances surrounding his death, people can’t help but to be naturally curious. A momentary look into his mental status and the impact this part may have left on him. Do I think this movie would be getting as much media attention if Ledger had not died? I honestly do not think it would have. The “comic book” heroin movies have been doing wonderful in theatres recently and I do think this movie would have gone over nicely. However, since 1966 there have been about 13 Batman movies and the public may not be as interested as it once was. I still can’t wait to see it and hope that it lives up to the name.
Have a wonderful Saturday,
Lindsey
**Update 7/20/08**
WARNING; DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU HAVE NOT WATCHED THE MOVIE, I do not want to spoil it for you!
Dark Knight is now on my top 3 list of favorite Batman movies ever! Never mind the brilliant cast of characters, this comic book remake was different than most of the other “hero” movies that’s been out lately. The Joker gives you a peek into his childhood and allows you to recreate the madman that loved to cut with a knife and savor every moment of it; as he confessed so gleefully. “Who so serious?” Batman reveals moments of weakness and for once, looks to someone else as the cities new hero, whom horribly lets him down. The stunning damsel (Maggie Gyllenhaal), Bruce’s longtime friend and secret love does not have an agreeable fate and for what seems like the first time in these D.C. remakes, the girl dies. Batman actually chooses the guy over the girl, bro’s before ho’s? The entire movie kept me on the edge of my seat and commanded my attention. I would love to purchase this on Blu-Ray when it comes out and I officially give this movie 2 thumbs up! Excellent job Mr. Nolan. An unconventional statement was presented, “you either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become a villain.” What do you think?
On that note, buona notte.
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Behold the exquisiteness of future architecture. This amazing tower will revolve around a pillar of concrete allowing owners to rotate a full 360 degrees on power generated from (get this)… wind turbines. They will be built into each unit so that the floors can be controlled with the flick of a remote control. So much power that engineers believe they can generate enough extra to pump back into the city.
If you’ve ever visited Atlanta’s own spinning restaurant and bar; Sun Dial, I am sure it will be similar to this – just on a much larger scale. One would think, after a couple of glasses of wine this may not be the most ideal location. It will take each floor approximately 1-3 hours to complete a full rotation. So I don’t think a dose of Dramamine would be necessary. Each unit ranges in price from $4-37 million dollars and I’m sure the view will make it worth every penny. Imagine waking up over the Persian Gulf with a slightly different view each morning. Below is a short clip demonstrating how the structure can be choreographed to create a beautiful work of art in motion. Hopefully by 2010 I’ll have my $4 million deposit. 
Now I can sleep tight with visions of Dubai dancing through my head…
Good night,
Lindsey
July 11, 1804 Aaron Burr; vice president, shoots Alexander Hamilton in a duel outside of Weehawken, New Jersey. Hamilton died the next day. There’s varying stories that lean in favor to each party (Hamilton’s people proclaimed he decided he did not want to duel and shot a round into the air but Burr’s witnesses claimed he was just a bad aim; he actually shot at Burr but missed. The fact of the matter was, Burr shot Hamilton in the stomach and the bullet lodged near his spine. *Ouch* Thus resulting in a tragic ending to a brilliant political career. How’s that for politics? And we dare complain about a blowjob in the oval office.
**Gallery Update** I have added a couple of new galleries to my website. You can find them here:
http://lindseydawnsphotography.com/Galleries/Galleries.html
Brian and I ended up visiting Helen, GA for the 4th of July due to last minute planning but it was a gorgeous day and the veal sausage, German beer, & sauerkraut were excellent. We swung by Mall of GA for fireworks and headed to mi casa. If you live in N. GA, it’s a cute city to visit. I wouldn’t stay longer than a day, you will run out of things to do! Make sure you bring a bikini (men get our your speedos) and hiking shoes.
Have a terrific weekend!
Lindsey
Recently a a painting by famed artist Claude Monet was auctioned off at Christie’s, London for a little over $80 million dollars ranking it the highest paid ever for a Monet work. Click below to view her.
http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?from=searchresults&intObjectID=5100003
How I would love to have this beauty hanging above my mantle! French spoken “Le Bassin aux Nymphéas” means “The Basin with the Nympheas.” It almost sounds pornographic but “Nymphea” translates to Water lilly. A beautiful work of art that can be appreciated for generations to come.
Congratulations to the lucky owner. Les félicitations et prennent bien soin de elle.
Good night,
Lindsey
With fuel prices on the rise, it’s very apparent that there is a steady decline of those massive gas guzzlers us Americans love to haul the 2.5 kids around in. So this is an ode to the big beasts…
In a typical day around the Metro Atlanta area, 4 out of 10 vehicles will probably be an SUV and chances are, you will find an 85 lb, just able to view over the wheel, tiny lady driving these things. What a sight! As these 5,000 lb vehicles are rushing by you down I-85 you can’t help but wonder or pray; that she’s not putting on make-up or chatting it up on the cell. Not to mention these over-sized vehicles aren’t the best for the environment and eating away at your bank account as you constantly keep the hungry animal fed.
But what will be the next great fix for Americans? We love to “go along with the pack” per say. It seems that the next trendy vehicles will be Hybrids. They are sold out at virtually every dealership and people are on waiting lists that extend months. Not to mention that these cars retail value do not run cheap and they’re still reliable on gas. We need an alternative fuel source, other than gas. A renewable resource that we could produce at a relatively cheap price and that would be good for our environment. Easier said than done huh?
So far there are a couple of “ok” choices. There’s electric, ethanol, natural gas, hydrogen (extremely expensive and rare), biofuels, air engines, solar and more. I can’t wait to see what we have on our market 20 years from now. It will be an exciting time and maybe the price hike in gas prices will not be such a bad thing. It will force us to come up with new ideas and challenge our minds to focus on something better for our World.
I do not consider myself to be the “greenest” individual but I like to think that I am aware of my impact and how fragile life can be. We must take care of our planet so that our children may enjoy it; they’re children…and so on. It’s not just about our time. Man kind has accomplished harrowing feats and to think that this little problem will slow us down is humorous.
So, ode to the SUV. RIP.
Oh yes, the below pic is a murdered out Brabus Bullit, just for giggles. 720 hp, V-12, C-Class, insanely tricked out Benz that will rocket you from 0-60 in 3.9 seconds and set you back a cool $400k. There’s only one word for this ride – BAD. And there goes my green talk right out the window! Until next time.
Linds
