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July
2003 -Innovations Newsletter
Summer Travel and Tom Bodett I got the idea for this months article while I was driving home from the library. I’d just borrowed several sets of audio tapes and was looking forward to hearing them as I drove around Atlanta. The first tape I popped in was one of Tom’s. You’ve probably heard Tom doing Motel 6 commercials with his famous “We’ll leave the light on for you” comment at the end of each commercial. A few years ago, while I was up very late doing a long drive, I ran across Tom, on the radio, telling a story about one of his relatives (or friends) who took a very large motor home into a New York City suburb and the destruction and chaos that followed his arrival. I laughed my head off hearing the story. I don’t remember much of it, I just remember that my long night’s drive flew by as I listened to him tell his story. For parents, his stories are funny and down to earth. Especially the ones about life in Alaska. My favorite was about when they traveled to Florida to get their brand new fire engine and what happened when they drove it back. So, what has Tom Bodett got to do with parents and little kids? If you’ve never listened to a book on tape, go to the library and pick out one or two. Pop one in your car stereo and prepare yourself for an enjoyable trip. No wall-to-wall commercials, no scanning channels and fade free reception. Last year, I spent ten hours driving from Nebraska to Michigan, listening to the first Harry Potter book. I got so engrossed in the story that I almost ran out of gas twice! Luckily, I was near a gas station, both times, when the out of gas alarm sounded. The same thing happens when I’m listening to Star Trek tapes. A few years ago I worked in a summer camp. I used to read stories to the little ones at night to get them to sleep. The second year I bought a set of old time radio tapes and played them for the older children. They loved them. TV and movies are fine, but they take away all the mystery and leave little to the imagination. A well done radio drama or book on tape lets you use your imagination and gets you involved in the story. The next time you pack the youngsters in the car, pop in a story tape and watch what happens. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Most children love to listen to stories on tape and it’s good for their minds and imaginations as well. If you’re curious about Tom Bodett, check out his website: http://www.tombodett.com/ And Now for this months Web Sites Children’s Parties Looking for a place to hold a party? Here’s a site that specializes in helping you find just the right place for your party. They also have information on other party related topics. http://www.childrenparty.com Military Scrapbooks “ORF Enterprises, Inc. is a company that offers high-quality scrapbooks/photo albums for Military Folks. Lt. Col. R.F. Holliker Jr., USAF/Ret., founded the company in 1991 …” If someone in your family is retired, check out this site. Looks like nice products to commemorate his (or her) service to his country. http://www.orfenterprises.com Writing World Most everyone, sometime in his or her life, thinks about becoming a writer. Here’s a site dedicated to helping you achieve that dream. http://writing-world.com/ The Dabbling Mum Website Here’s an interesting web site devoted to busy parents. Looks like it has a little of everything including recommendations for age appropriate gifts for the little ones. Check it out at: http://www.thedabblingmum.com/ One Way to Check Out a Website Last October I invested a considerable amount of advertising money in an on-line shopping mall. I was up and running for a few days and then I couldn’t access my merchant console. The company wasn’t answering their phones either. I got worried! So, I checked them out on a website you’ve probably never heard of. I found over a dozen complaints from others who had also been burned and learned they had taken our money and filed for Chapter 11! (Thanks to the information on the Alexa site, I was able to cancel my payment and got my money back.) Here’s how you can check out a website. Go to http://www.alexa.com Enter the url of the website you want to check out. One caveat to keep in mind, take the ratings with a grain of salt. One bad rating among many good or excellent ratings shouldn’t turn you against a site. These are just opinions given by visitors to that web site. But, it’s a good starting point. Alexa will also tell you how popular (among Alexa users) the web site is, and who owns the web site. That’s it for this month. Hope everyone has a wonderful summer. CU in August Ron Nixon RWR Innovations Issue: 07/01/2003 ISSN #: 1543-9275 Note: The websites in this newsletter are listed because I find them interesting and have value to parents and children. They have not paid money or given me anything to be mentioned. RWR Innovations Personalized Books make great fund raisers. Personalized Children's Books P.O. Box 460939 Papillion NE 68046-0939 402-592-9199 Webmaster: Ron Nixon wa8zde@bellsouth.net 3807 Shadowood Parkway SE Atlanta GA 30339-2301 770-850-1400 Site Map 7/4/2003 |