ONEBIGSWEDE

Carter's First Haircut

2011-11-11T11:28:00.001-06:00

PIC_6662, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Carter was so good for his first haircut. He didn't cry or complain at all! Great job big boy!

Carter has fall fun.

2011-11-04T14:34:00.001-05:00

PIC_6495, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

100 Frugal Christmas Gifts

2011-11-04T14:33:00.001-05:00

Christmas time is coming - and it's an expensive time of year. Why not cut back on expenses and be a bit more frugal with your gift giving this year?

100 Frugal Christmas Gifts

How To Become A Millionaire

2011-09-23T13:22:00.004-05:00

Ever wondered what it would take to become a millionaire - at your age? This post might have the answer:

How To Become A Millionaire

Carter In The Sun

2011-08-31T16:31:00.001-05:00

IMG_8206_tonemapped, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Bible Verses About Strength

2011-08-11T08:20:00.003-05:00

During the last few years we've seen our share of hardship and tough times due to the economy and stock market roller coaster. When things like this happen it's important to keep in mind just where our strength comes from... God.

Here's a post I found that gives a wide variety of bible verses about strength.

Bible Verses About Money

2011-08-05T15:48:00.003-05:00

Have you ever wondered what the bible has to say about financial situations that you've found yourself in? I just found this resource that lists hundreds of scripture verses talking about money.

Proverbs 11:28 He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous shall flourish as the green leaf.

Luke 8:14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature.

Ecclesiastes 5:10 Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless.

Proverbs 11:4 Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.

Bible Verses On Money

Messy Eater

2011-06-14T08:38:00.001-05:00

IMG_6117, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

IMG_5898

2011-04-30T23:46:00.001-05:00

IMG_5898, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Carter With His Shark Hat

2011-04-07T20:02:00.001-05:00

PIC_4006, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Investing Should Be Easy

2011-04-07T19:58:00.002-05:00

One thing a lot of people never do is invest, because it just seems so difficult, and it's intimidating. Now there's a site that will allow you to invest, and it's super simple. It's called Betterment.com, and while it's new, it looks pretty promising.

Check out this Betterment review for further details.

Carter With His Uncles

2011-03-06T14:31:00.001-06:00

IMG_5591, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

How Much Should I Save?

2011-03-06T14:21:00.002-06:00

One thing that often comes up when talking about saving for retirement is the question of how much we should be saving for retirement. Here's a post that looks at it in depth.

How much should i save for retirement?

How Much Does Netflix Cost You Per Movie?

2011-02-24T16:07:00.001-06:00

My wife and I have had Netflix for almost 3 years now, and in that time we've watched a considerable number of movies. But have you ever wondered how much your Netflix subscription costs you - per movie? Does it end up being cheaper than some alternatives?

This post talks about this, and how you can figure out what you're really paying - per movie.

How Much Netflix Costs

We're On The Weight Loss Bandwagon!

2011-02-07T11:35:00.002-06:00

Maria and I have started attending Weight Watchers meetings, and are both starting to see some results. Read my review of the program here:

Weight Watchers Review

Dubrovnik, Croatia - Shopping Tilt-shift

2011-02-03T11:05:00.001-06:00

Dubrovnik, Croatia - Shopping, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Why Are Some People Seeing Increased Federal Taxes?

2011-02-03T11:01:00.001-06:00

I've been hearing from some friends that their federal tax withholding has increased in their 2011 paychecks - despite the tax rates being extended for 2 years. Here's why:

2011 Federal Tax Increase

Positano, Italy - Tiltshift

2011-01-15T18:00:00.001-06:00

amalfi2-tiltshift, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Kinect Sports Fitness Workout

2011-01-15T17:57:00.002-06:00

We recently bought a Kinect for Xbox 360, and what I've realized that most games for the Kinect will get you up off the couch, and get you moving. For example, Kinect Sports. While it's not really a fitness game per se, it will get you moving and sweating. Here's a look at the game, and the workout you can get:

Kinect Sports Fitness

Dubrovnik, Croatia - Old City Cistern

2011-01-10T14:37:00.001-06:00

Dubrovnik, Croatia - Old City Cistern, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

2011 Federal Income Tax Increase

2011-01-10T14:33:00.001-06:00

Apparently, despite the fact that the current tax rates have been extended in Congress, some people could see a 2011 federal income tax increase. Thankfully, I'm not one of them.

Carter's First Halloween

2010-11-12T10:32:00.001-06:00

IMG_5164, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

A Frugal Christmas

2010-11-12T10:29:00.002-06:00

It's been a tough year for a lot of people, but as the Christmas season dawns, a lot of people still want to be able to give some nice gifts to their friends and family - despite being a bit short on cash. Here are some ideas for frugal christmas gifts this year.

New Fitness Games For Xbox 360 Kinect

2010-10-29T16:17:00.002-05:00

If you're like me and are intrigued by the Xbox 360 Kinect peripheral, and it's possibilities in a wide range of applications, you may be interested in this application. Using the Kinect for fitness video games, giving you a more immersive workout.

Xbox Kinect Fitness Games

Carter - Mr. Enthusiastic

2010-10-27T10:50:00.002-05:00

IMG_5081, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Best Place To Open A Roth IRA

2010-10-27T10:46:00.001-05:00

If you're thinking about starting investing, I just wrote a post about where I think the best place to open a Roth IRA is.

Carter Taking A Nap

2010-07-29T00:04:00.001-05:00

IMG_4515, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Baby Carter!

2010-07-20T21:59:00.001-05:00

IMG_4340, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

The Brooklyn Bridge

2010-07-20T21:53:00.001-05:00

IMG_3567, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Need A Custom Builder And Home Remodeler In Minnesota?

2010-05-27T17:16:00.002-05:00

Need a custom builder or a home remodeler for your building project in Minnesota? Check out my in-laws at Knob Hill Homes. They're good at what they do!

Target Field Panorama

2010-05-25T15:06:00.001-05:00

Target Field Panorama, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

Carter 3D Ultrasound

2010-05-17T10:06:00.001-05:00

Carter 3D Ultrasound, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

New Personal Finance Blog

2010-05-12T19:18:00.001-05:00

Check out this personal finance blog my friend just put up a few days ago. Looks to have some good content coming down the pipe!

Smart On Money.

Tax Day Tea Party Rally 2010

2010-04-15T22:46:00.002-05:00

I attended the Tax Day Tea Party today at the state capitol in St. Paul, Minnesota. Here's a few pictures of the day's events.

2010 Roth IRA Conversion Rules

2010-01-25T12:29:00.000-06:00

2010 Roth IRA Conversion Rules: "2010 marks one of the few times high income individuals will be able to take advantage of a Roth IRA by converting their traditional IRA accounts in this one time Roth IRA conversion event."

Peter and Marcus

2010-01-15T10:16:00.001-06:00

Christmas 2009, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

my little nephew Marcus - he sure is growing up fast!

Minnesota Wild - Quick Pass

2010-01-15T10:15:00.001-06:00

Minnesota Wild - Quick Pass, originally uploaded by Peter.Anderson.

I took a bunch of pictures a couple of weeks back at a Wild game I attended with my neighbor. Lots of fun - especially because we won!

2009 Federal Income Tax Brackets: Official IRS Marginal Tax

2010-01-15T10:12:00.000-06:00

2009 Federal Income Tax Brackets: "a look at the 2009 official marginal tax rates"

Blueprint For How To Make Money With A Blog: Creating Content

2010-01-05T10:58:00.001-06:00

Blueprint For How To Make Money With A Blog: Creating Content, Optimizing SEO And Promoting Your Site: One of the keys to making money with a blog is creating great content. Once you do, you'll need to optimize SEO, promote your posts and generate traffic.

How To Make Money With A Blog

2010-01-04T08:40:00.000-06:00

How To Make Money With A Blog: "I wrote the “How To Make Money From A Blog” series in order to show others how I was able to turn my small insignificant site into a highly monetized profit center for my family."

Pisa, Italy - Leaning Tower

2009-01-20T09:49:00.001-06:00

Pisa, Italy, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Skil Saw Giveaway On One Project Closer!

2009-01-16T10:42:00.006-06:00

I was reading one of my favorite home improvement blogs the other day, when they announced that they were doing another great giveaway (they do that sort of thing all the time!) What were they giving away this time? A Skil Cordless Lithium Ion Power Cutter!

One of the ways you could enter the contest was to write a post about it on your own blog, telling what you would do with the power cutter, and agree to review it if you won. So... here is what I would do if I won the Skil Cordless Lithium Ion Power Cutter:

Use it to open packages: I get a lot of packages from Amazon, from authors wanting me to review books on my other blog, etc. The power cutter would be perfect for opening these types of packages.
Use it to trim branches: We live in a neighborhood with an association, so we don't do a lot of yardwork, but occasionally we want to trim a branch here or there. This would do the job nicely.
Use it to trim PVC Piping: I've been building things like a small photo light box with PVC piping lately. This would be great to cut the pipe to length.
Scrapbooking: My wife can use it to cut things to length for her scrapbooking sessions with friends!

Ok so there are just a few of the myriad of uses I could find for this great product! Now, i just hope I win! Enter yourself here!

Rialto Bridge, Venice, Italy

2009-01-02T16:16:00.001-06:00

Rialto Bridge, Venice, Italy, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Parthenon, Athens, Greece

2008-11-19T08:40:00.001-06:00

Parthenon, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Body at Pompeii

2008-11-13T09:04:00.001-06:00

Body at Pompeii, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Sunset over Barcelona

2008-11-07T16:43:00.001-06:00

Sunset over Barcelona, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Trevi Fountain, Rome, Italy

2008-11-07T10:38:00.001-06:00

IMG_1087, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

The Baptistry, Florence, Italy

2008-11-02T21:27:00.001-06:00

The Baptistry, Florence, Italy, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Ponte Vecchio

2008-10-31T14:40:00.001-05:00

Ponte Vecchio, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

The Duomo, Florence, Italy

2008-10-24T08:33:00.001-05:00

The Duomo, Florence, Italy, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

The Duomo, Florence Italy

2008-10-22T22:45:00.001-05:00

The Duomo, Florence Italy, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Villefranche, France

2008-10-21T18:26:00.001-05:00

Villefranche, France, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Eze, France

2008-10-20T13:15:00.001-05:00

Eze, France, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Magic Fountain, Mont Juic, Barcelona, Spain

2008-10-17T13:20:00.001-05:00

Magic Fountain, Mont Juic, Barcelona, Spain
Originally uploaded by onebigswede

Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain

2008-10-16T10:04:00.001-05:00

Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Tilt Shift Chicago - Chicago in Miniature

2008-10-15T13:07:00.002-05:00

Who caused the current crisis?

2008-09-26T21:56:00.000-05:00

Panorama of Benson Great Hall

2008-07-21T09:23:00.001-05:00

Panorama of Benson Great Hall, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Our church, evergreen communtiy church had a 20th anniversary celebration this weekend at Bethel University. We all had a great time!

Sunset on Cross Lake

2008-07-16T13:12:00.001-05:00

IMG_0019, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Lombard Street - HDR

2008-04-04T10:35:00.001-05:00

Lombard Street - HDR, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Here's a composite of two bracketed photos.. Turned out pretty good I think:

Lomard Street - San Francisco

2008-03-31T13:41:00.001-05:00

Lomard Street - San Francisco, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Vacation Photo: Transamerica Pyramid

2008-03-31T13:09:00.000-05:00

Photo by onebigswede

My King

2008-03-24T10:58:00.001-05:00

Weather Channel Founder Blasts Network; Claims It Is 'Telling Us What to Think'

2008-03-03T21:28:00.001-06:00

The Weather Channel has lost its way, according to John Coleman, who founded the channel in 1982.

Coleman told an audience at the 2008 International Conference on Climate Change on March 3 in New York that he is highly critical of global warming alarmism.

“The Weather Channel had great promise, and that’s all gone now because they’ve made every mistake in the book on what they’ve done and how they’ve done it and it’s very sad,” Coleman said. “It’s now for sale and there’s a new owner of The Weather Channel will be announced – several billion dollars having changed hands in the near future. Let’s hope the new owners can recapture the vision and stop reporting the traffic, telling us what to think and start giving us useful weather information.”

The Weather Channel has been an outlet for global warming alarmism. In December 2006, The Weather Channel’s Heidi Cullen argued on her blog that weathercasters who had doubts about human influence on global warming should be punished with decertification by the American Meteorological Society.

Coleman also told the audience his strategy for exposing what he called “the fraud of global warming.” He advocated suing those who sell carbon credits, which would force global warming alarmists to give a more honest account of the policies they propose.

“[I] have a feeling this is the opening,” Coleman said. “If the lawyers will take the case – sue the people who sell carbon credits. That includes Al Gore. That lawsuit would get so much publicity, so much media attention. And as the experts went to the media stand to testify, I feel like that could become the vehicle to finally put some light on the fraud of global warming.”

Earlier at the conference Lord Christopher Monckton, a policy adviser to former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, told an audience that the science will eventually prevail and the “scare” of global warming will go away. He also said the courts were a good avenue to show the science.

Free Stuff: Revolution Money Exchange $25 signup bonus

2008-02-27T08:40:00.000-06:00

UPDATE: This offer has been extended until March 31st. Email me now to get your referral link!

This past week I signed up for a new money transfer service, Revolution Money Exchange. Revolution Money Exchange is a money tranfer service along the lines of a PayPal.com which allows you to send and receive funds online instantly to other registered users. The service is easy to use, and unlike PayPal it doesn't cost a dime to send or receive funds.

From now until March 31st, if you sign up for a new account for Revolution Money Exchange, you'll also get a $25 sign up bonus. If you send me your email address I'll also get a $10 referral bonus when you sign up with that address. (If you don't want to do that, that's fine, but I would appreciate it!)

To get your signup link just leave your email in the comments or email me at peter at biblemoneymatters.com. I'll send you a link to signup for the account and the $25 bonus.

I signed up for and received my $25 bonus almost instantly. I transferred it directly to my local checking account. Free money - can't beat that!

LINKS:
Revolution Money Exchange

Back on the exercise bandwagon!

2008-02-27T08:30:00.004-06:00

Well it's that time of year again - winter has been here for a few months now, and I've gone into hibernation. I put on my winter 10 lbs, and now its time to get motivated and take it back off!

Last year my wife and I both got serious about losing weight. I had gotten to my heaviest weight ever (250 pounds), and I knew I had to change things. I lost about 40 lbs last year through a combination of exercise and healthy eating. My wife got on an exercise program as well, and lost an equally impressive amount.

Well, since last October I took a leave of absence from exercising and surprise, surprise - I gained about 10 lbs back.

Last night we went and bought a replacement treadmill for our exercise room so that we can both get back on the exercise bandwagon. The treadmill we decided upon was a Fuel Fitness FT94 Treadmill. It's a nice looking treadmill that is essentially a house brand over at Dick's Sporting Goods made at the same factory as Sole Treadmills. Sole makes some of the best treadmills on the market, and this Fuel treadmill has gotten some pretty good reviews.

So tonight I start the exercise again by running intervals on the new treadmill. Once we've been using it for a while I'll try to post a review to let everyone know how it's working out for us. Now, to go eat something healthy..

San Francisco Homeless

2008-02-15T11:27:00.003-06:00

I just got back from a trip to San Francisco on Wednesday. While we were there we encountered quite a large number of homeless people living on the street. Most of the ones we met walked the streets with a tin can (for your spare change) and a cardboard plaque detailing their problems and a plea for your cash. I gave money to a couple of people, but a couple of the cardboard signs gave me more of a chuckle than the others.

One homeless man in a wheelchair had a sign that won points with me for its creativity. It read:

Family kidnapped by ninjas. Need money for Karate lessons.

Another one was more upfront about what the money would be used for:

Need cash for weed.

In trying to find a photo for this post I realized that these guys weren't as creative as I thought - it turns out these same signs pop up all over the place - there seems to be quite the industry in creating these begging signs. The photos shown in the post above are of OTHER street people using the same signs. Go figure.

One man was more creative about how he got his money instead of just using a pre-made sign. Instead of just holding a cardboard sign, he got two large branches from a tree or bush, and then sat on a busy street, hiding behind the branches. When someone walked by he would jump out and scare them. It was like watching candid camera in person. The crowds loved it, and everyone was howling with laughter. The man, who was called the "Bushman", would run around with his tin can after a few successful scares, and collect his ransom. Seems he is a bit famous - read more about him at the link above. Funny stuff.

The tiger and the pig

2008-01-31T08:28:00.000-06:00

While I know that the title makes it sound like this is a fairy tale, or a parable, this is actually a true story.

Over at Five Blones.comThe World is Amazing | FiveBlondes today they post about a tiger that has lost its litter of baby tigers. When the zookeepers realized that the tiger was declining in health because of losing its babies, they brought in some surrogates. Baby Pigs! The mother tiger took right to them. Check out their site for more!

Bible Money Matters

2008-01-29T10:45:00.000-06:00

Check out my new personal finance blog at http://www.biblemoneymatters.com

Bible Money Matters is a daily blog about personal finance and money from a biblical perspective with daily verses, commentary and advice. Check it out today!

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day!

2008-01-21T08:47:00.001-06:00

From MLK's "Letter from a Birmingham Jail":

I guess it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, "Wait." But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate filled policemen curse, kick, brutalize and even kill your black brothers and sisters with impunity; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society; when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six-year-old daughter why she can't go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children, and see the depressing clouds of inferiority begin to form in her little mental sky, and see her begin to distort her little personality by unconsciously developing a bitterness toward white people; when you have to concoct an answer for a five-year-old son asking in agonizing pathos: "Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?"; when you take a cross-country drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night in the uncomfortable corners of your automobile because no motel will accept you; when you are humiliated day in and day out by nagging signs reading "white" and "colored"; when your first name becomes "nigger," your middle name becomes "boy" (however old you are) and your last name becomes "John," and your wife and mother are never given the respected title "Mrs."; when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tip-toe stance never quite knowing what to expect next, and plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of "nobodiness"; then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be plunged into an abyss of despair. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience.

Read it here

1080p Does Matter - Here's When (Screen Size vs. Viewing Distance vs. Resolution)

2008-01-03T11:13:00.000-06:00

Over the weekend some buddies and I were talking about HDTVs, and what is the optimal viewing distance for what size TV along with what resolution would work best. Today i found a discussion of this exact subjet with some in depth analysis and reasonings for optimal screen sizes vs. distances.

1080p Does Matter - Here's When (Screen Size vs. Viewing Distance vs. Resolution) @ CarltonBale.com

click on the image below to view Carlton's optimal viewing distances chart.

Pakistan's Bhutto assassinated at rally - Yahoo! News

2007-12-27T09:48:00.000-06:00

Bad news from Pakistan today - Benazir Bhutto, Pakistani opposition leader was assassinated at a rally. Scary things happening in a country with Nukes:

Pakistan's Bhutto assassinated at rally - Yahoo! News

Caption: Seconds after this picture was taken, Pakistan opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was shot dead by a suicide bomber today.

Roundup of reactions here.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-21T15:39:00.000-06:00

The 300 MPG Hybrid?

2007-12-21T15:14:00.000-06:00

Here's something that will be pretty cool if it actually comes to production in 2008 as they're stating - it's an affordable 120 mile range electric vehicle! And in 2009 they have a hybrid that is slated for production that has a range of 300mpg.

Aptera Electric Typ-1 e - Video Test Drive - First Look Details and Slideshow - 300 MPG - Popular Mechanics

Grand night for Gaborik: 5 goals

2007-12-21T08:15:00.000-06:00

Last night Marion Gaborik had a game to be remembered, a 5 goal game.

Grand night for Gaborik: 5 goals: In a game for the ages, the Wild's star scored five goals -- the most by any NHL player in 11 years -- to ignite a thrilling victory over the Rangers.

About the only thing Marian Gaborik didn't offer the 18,568 paying customers were free tickets to Saturday's game.

With the Broadway Blueshirts in town, the Wild star winger was the only player on center stage Thursday night during the Wild's 6-3 trouncing over the Rangers at Xcel Energy Center.

Showing signs of boiling over in recent weeks, Gaborik finally erupted like the Arenal Volcano. During one of those rare magical, historic evenings, Gaborik opened his big bag of tricks and came up with the NHL's greatest scoring game in almost 11 years and undeniably the greatest performance in Wild history.

Gaborik registered the franchise's first five-goal game and became the first NHLer to light the lamp five times since Detroit's Sergei Fedorov against Washington in an overtime game on Dec. 26, 1996.

"Shades of Pavel Bure," said Wild forward Mark Parrish, a former teammate of Bure's with Florida. "It was just like watching Bure in the day. I mean, Gabby was banking them in out of the air, scoring on breakaways, skating through everybody, making highlight-film goals.

"My God, he was doing it every which way tonight."

READ MORE

$42 million later, 'Triple Espresso' franchise still the ticket

2007-12-20T09:04:00.000-06:00

One of my favorite Twin Cities shows, 'Triple Espresso', will be ending next year. If you haven't already seen this comedy and variety show, do yourself a favor and buy yourself and a loved one a ticket now! You won't regret it!

After a Twin Cities run of a mere 12 years, "Triple Espresso" is closing in 2008, probably within the next few months. But Triple Espresso Inc., the parent company, will continue to operate.

You couldn't write a more improbable theater success story. Back in 1996, three local entertainers decided to cobble together a show for a performance in the fellowship hall of a suburban Presbyterian church. Each contributed some shtick.

Michael Pearce Donley could do a dead-on impersonation of an unctuous lounge-act pianist. Bill Arnold had a magic act where he was deliberately inept and deadpan defensive about it. Bob Stromberg could do a madcap vaudeville clown in the grand tradition of Red Skelton.

LINK TO ARTICLE

Review: Insignia NS-LCD32 32" LCD TV

2007-12-11T16:21:00.002-06:00

A few weeks ago we noticed that our 9 year old Sony television in our living room was starting to have problems. When we were watching the TV we would see the picture start to become wavy, and the resulting image was very distorted. This happened for a week or two until one day it finally just flipped off on its own for good.

We decided it was time to get a new TV for the living room, hopefully something just as big or bigger. We did have space restrictions, however since we were placing the unit in the existing entertainment center. That meant that the biggest we could go for an LCD screen was 32 inches.

After doing our research, we decided to go with a lower end house brand, sold at Best Buy - an Insignia NS-LCD32 32" LCD TV.

When buying expensive electronics I am almost always wary of the house brands sold at the major electronics stores as they will often have quality problems and are almost always cheaply made by some factory in China. After reading up on the Insignia brand, they didn't seem to be much different. However when I looked deeper at some of the reviews I realized that the models made by the company in previous years hadn't been very good, but in the past year or so their quality seems to have gone up. The reviewers tended to be more positive. (I should have paid attention to the problems others had - i am having the same problems now 3 months along).

After viewing the Insignia TVs in the store I was impressed with the picture quality that I saw in the store wall-mounted units. Granted, this isn't always the best place to judge quality of a picture, but nonetheless, it looked good. The picture was even better than some more expensive units. Also, the unit does look nice in my opinion - the bezel around the LCD Panel is a glossy piano black, as is the TV stand. Maybe a little too much gloss, but still very nice.

After comparing a few more of the TVs to this one, we decided that for the price we would pay (about $500) for the unit, we were getting a pretty good deal on a TV with enough options for use as a 2nd TV in our living room.

So what type of inputs does this TV have? Here they are:

2 HDMI
2 Component
2 Composite
1 S Video
1 VGA

Right now we're using the 1 component and 2 composite inputs, and everything seems to look pretty good. The DVD player hooked up to the composite input obviously doesn't look amazing, but i'm sure it will be better once we hook it up using component cables. Our media player hooked up to the component hookup looks great at 480p.

So far the only HDTV signal we've been able to watch on the TV is the digital TV channels that we pick up. This past weekend I watched some football and some primetime TV shows in HD, and they looked amazing.

The sound on the TV is pretty good for TV speakers, but not mind blowing. The TV does have optical audio out as well if you want to hook it up to your receiver. I'm sure you'll get much better sound that way.

All in all I feel like we've gotten our money's worth on this TV, and we would probably buy it again. Hopefully we'll still feel that way in a few months. If not, we'll post an update with any problems that we've had.

UPDATE:

Well, unfortunately I have to post an update about this TV as it is having all sorts of issues only 3 months after buying it. Right now the biggest problem we're having is that the TV just randomly turns itself off several times every time we watch it. When the picture is on - it works great. But it is a pain to have to deal with these random resets where it turns itself off and then back on. Buyer Beware of this TV.

Other reviews:

Benchmark Reviews - 8.95 out of 10

Official Thread at AVSFORUM.com

Your View Electronics Review - 8/10 stars

Encouraging News from Iraq

2007-11-16T09:37:00.000-06:00

Michael Yon's latest report from Bagdhad, Come Home, has encouraging news:

I can't remember my last shootout: it's been months. The nightmare is ending. Al Qaeda is being crushed. The Sunni tribes are awakening all across Iraq and foreswearing violence for negotiation. Many of the Shia are ready to stop the fighting that undermines their ability to forge and manage a new government. This is a complex and still delicate denouement, and the war may not be over yet. But the Muslims are saying it's time to come home. And the Christians are saying it's time to come home. They are weary, and there is much work to be done.

LINK

Why are tax cuts a good thing?

2007-11-13T08:34:00.000-06:00

From Townhall.com:

Wealthy Americans are becoming increasingly interested in donating to global causes. Since 1997, the rate of global giving has increased steadily at an average of 12.5 percent each year. According to a recent Financial Times story, JPMorgan Private Bank has “noted a rise of about 20 percent over the last year in client interest in overseas donations, with high-net-worth individuals looking to support education, health and economic expansion projects in developing countries.”

And they aren’t alone. Financial planners and international banks have seen similar upswings. It all begs the question—why?

What does this increased giving tells us about Americans?

First, it speaks to the sort of Main Street conservatism that permeates the culture, despite the popular media-driven assumption that conservative values are old-fashioned or even backward. With increasing frequency, Americans are educating themselves about global issues and working to fix the problems they see in concert with private organizations. In so doing, Americans breed a culture of self-reliance by acknowledging that government cannot fix every problem plaguing the modern world.

Second, it proves once again the power of tax cuts. Federal income tax rates decreased significantly between 2000 and 2007, and this has undoubtedly contributed to the rise in charitable giving. You say no way, but we do know from the experience in Western Europe, that as taxes went up, giving went down. Why? Because the state was going to solve the problem – not individuals. This leads some to contend that tax cuts hurt those in need. The truth is though, that when Americans keep more of their money they will often use it to help those in need—sans any governmental mandate to do so. Moreover, private citizens will consistently make more efficient use of their resources than government would because private giving creates partnerships between individuals and organizations and fosters accountability.

Shakopee Sunrise

2007-11-13T08:05:00.001-06:00

Shakopee Sunrise, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

This is the beautiful view I saw down my alley this morning.

Dunn Brothers, 1987

2007-10-19T08:19:00.001-05:00

Dunn Brothers, 1987, originally uploaded by loudguineapig.

Here's a picture of my favorite coffee shop and their original location circa 1987. Their dark roast coffee is one of the best around, and I'll take it over any other chain or local branded coffee. MMMmmmm..

Square Dance!

2007-10-11T12:53:00.001-05:00

With special guests petemonkey and nalaewok.

La Cucaracha Anderson

2007-10-11T12:48:00.001-05:00

9/11 6 Years Later

2007-09-11T11:04:00.001-05:00

When the first plane hit 6 years ago today i was driving on my way to work, it was a beautiful morning - blue skies all around.

When the first reports came in they were talking about an "accident" that had happened in New York City with a small plane crashing into the World Trade Cetner. They were saying that it was probably lost in the fog, having a medical issue or something along those lines.

I pulled into work and didn't give it a second thought. A short while later people in my office started talking about ANOTHER plane hitting the other World Trade Tower.

We were all in disbelief. We all crowded into the conference room, and watched as reports came in about another Airliner (not a small plane!) crashing into the pentagon. Other reports filed in of other possibly missing planes that could be crashing into other buildings at any time. I remember people saying things like "we're at war", and "What are they going to hit next?".
We all audibly gasped and watched in horror as the towers fell, one by one. All any of us could talk about was - how many people could be in one of those towers at any given time? 10,000? 30,000? I don't think anyone really got much work done that day.

I stayed home from work the next day and sat watching fox news all day, wondering what our world was coming to.

Go to Captain's Quarters for more 9/11 recollections.

Midway Lights & Fireworks

2007-09-01T13:35:00.001-05:00

Midway Fireworks, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

A grand way to end the evening at the fair.

This photo won Minnesota Public Radio's State Fair photo of the day contest. view it here

Pete and Maria - 6 Years Later

2007-08-19T23:57:00.001-05:00

Pete and Maria - 6 Years Later, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Here we are at the spot where I asked Maria to marry me, but 6 Years later - 8/11/07. We got engaged on - 8/11/01. We always find it easy to remember the day we got engaged because it was exactly one month before 9/11.

35W Collapse Site - 8/5/07

2007-08-06T11:19:00.001-05:00

35W Collapse Site - 8/5/07, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

We visited the site of the 35W bridge collapse last night. They had a several square block area blocked off near the bridge, and only on Sunday afternoon had they re-opened the Stone Arch Bridge. We viewed the collapse site as best we could from a mile upstream. We listened as some people on the Stone Arch Bridge sang hymns, and became startled as a young muslim youth walked slowly through the throngs of people screaming "Do we fear Allah?" at the top of his lungs.

35W Bridge Disaster - Collapse

2007-08-02T09:39:00.001-05:00

On August 1st, 2007 the 35w highway bridge over the Mississippi River Collapsed, injuring scores of people, and killing many others.

Anyone who lives in the Twin Cities area has traveled over this bridge countless times, and it really strikes home to see this bridge collapsed, lying in the water.

Click on the photo above to see a before and after of the bridge.

a call for a fast from complaining

2007-07-19T10:24:00.001-05:00

a call for a fast from complaining
by pastor brent knox

This past weekend, I casually referred to a church that made a commitment with one another to refrain from all forms of complaining for thirty days. Evidently, the self-imposed discipline of not allowing negative words seep from mouths changed the atmosphere of family life and church life. Families and church meetings became more attractive places to be.

Paul writes this in Philippians, “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe…” (Philippians 2:14-15 NIV)

Complaining is one of America’s favorite pastimes. Everyone complains, nitpicks, nags, gripes and moans. Why is complaining so popular? Because we don’t like what’s happening to us. And we just want to get it out. It feels better when we talk about. It’s like having a sour stomach, and we feel better when we throw up. So we verbally throw up on the people around us. This fleshly indulgence of complaining makes us feel better.

Complaining is so prevalent and such a deep habit, that most Christians don’t even think of it as sin. The verse is a command—not a nice option. The proper response to complaining is repentance coupled with a serious commitment to “I will not leak out a word of complaint again.” Of course, there is a time and a place to bring church concerns, work concerns, family concerns to the right people. However, there is a big difference between sour-stomach, self-pity complaining and constructive talk leading to positive solutions. Complaining is usually negative talk with the wrong heart aimed at the wrong people to arouse self-centered pity.

According to the verse above, shutting our complaining mouth is one of the easiest ways we can stand out as Christians. Even though everyone else argues and complains, as believers, we are not to do so. And if we can just keep our mouths shut, we will stand out like a star in the black sky.

By the way, this character area is an essential training piece for our children. As parents, we ought to model a thankful spirit and insist that our children do everything without complaining or arguing.

At work, what is your office atmosphere like? At home, what is your dinner time talk like? At church, what is your Growth Group conversation like? Please resist going down complaining paths and bring a thankful spirit to every place you are. How can we complain if God is working everything out for our good?

Steeple Building in Bishop Hill, Illinois

2007-07-12T13:56:00.001-05:00

Steeple Building in Bishop Hill, Illinois, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

One of the very distinctive buildings in the small Swedish settlement of Bishop Hill, Illinois, the Steeple Building is a three-story Greek Revival edifice is of handmade brick covered with plaster. The clock, in its wooden steeple, was designed with only one hand.

Lake Geneva, Wisconsin

2007-06-25T08:20:00.000-05:00

Here's a picture of a few of the "small" lake homes that we saw this past weekend on our anniversary trip to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.:

New stairs

2007-06-18T08:47:00.001-05:00

IMG_0009-2.JPG, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

We hired a carpenter over the weekend to build and install some stairs onto our house leading from our patio sliding door to our brick patio. He did a great job - finishing the job in about 5 hours.

After he finished building the stairs we stained the stairs with some "black walnut" colored stain to match the stairs to the new patio set and patio a little better.

Finally we bought a new fire pit and had our first fire on our new patio. A busy and eventful weekend!

Weight Loss

2007-06-08T12:40:00.001-05:00

At the beginning of the year i realized that I was at my heaviest weight ever, and that I really needed to lose some weight. I had lost weight before, dropping about 25-30 pounds the previous time using the workout plans in the "Body For Life" book and at Bodyforlife.com.

When I started working out on February 1st I weighed in at about 252 pounds. I've been working out for about 4 solid months now, and I'm now weighing in at 218 pounds. I'd like to lose another 10-20 pounds before I'm done.

People are now beginning to ask me how I lost all the weight, and what they can do to achieve the same results. I tell them that it is all pretty simple.

1. Eat less, but more often. (i eat 5-6 small meals a day)
2. Exercise more. (I exercise 6 days a week. 3 days of weights, 3 days of aerobic exercise)
3. Be consistent.

There is no easy way to do it, you just have to start doing it, and keep with it. It isn't a diet so much as a lifestyle change. Once you've been doing it for a month or two it becomes habit, and your body starts to crave the exercise.

beforeafter.jpg, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Some resources I've used in my weight loss journey:

http://www.traineo.com: a fitness website that allows you to keep track of your weight loss and fitness over time.
Bodyforlife.com: Good information and healthy recipes.
Body for Life: The book that has really helped me understand fitness and losing weight.

Sunset in Shakopee

2007-06-08T09:37:00.000-05:00

Do you have a leak in your sprinkler line?

2007-06-01T09:09:00.001-05:00

leaky sprinkler line?, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

My wife and I just put in a new patio. In the process we now have discovered that there was a leaky sprinkler line in our yard (see picture). In case anyone needs to fix their own sprinkler line - here are some instructions i found online:

http://homegarden.expertvillage.com/videos/pvc-pipe-repair.htm

Sometimes you'll have PVC that's broken under the ground, especially in an irrigation system. And it's very simple to fix - it's very cheap, too.

What you need to do is identify where the break is - we're going to imagine there's a break somewhere in the line. You cut off both ends on either side of the break with your hacksaw. And then once you cut through it - it's very easy to cut - once you cut through it, you want to clean and sand the cut ends because you don't want any of what we call burrs to corrupt the seal.

What you'll then do is get a coupler, which is simply a tube which on both ends will slip over the PVC. And you want to make sure it fits properly first, what we call a dry fit. And then when it does, you're going to use some of the purple primer, which will ensure a good seal. And you simply dab this or swab it around the cut end as well as inside the coupler. And that just takes a moment to dry, but you want to make sure that it is dry before you proceed. And then you coat each part with PVC cement. And a good, liberal coating is best. Doesn't have to be neat; no one's ever going to see this. And if you miss a spot, you're right back where you started because you will have a leak. And while it's still wet, you want to join the two parts, and you will wipe off any excess. And you're done, and it will be sealed good as new.

Climate Momentum Shifting: Prominent Scientists Reverse Belief in Man-made Global Warming - Now Skeptics

2007-05-16T08:31:00.000-05:00

An interesting review of scientists who were once proponents of man-made global warming, who are now skeptics: (link)

The media's climate fear factor seemingly grows louder even as the latest science grows less and less alarming by the day. (See Der Spiegel May 7, 2007 article: Not the End of the World as We Know It ) It is also worth noting that the proponents of climate fears are increasingly attempting to suppress dissent by skeptics. (See UPI May 10, 2007 article: U.N. official says it's 'completely immoral' to doubt global warming fears )

Hockey Fight - Wild/Ducks - Burns wins

2007-04-18T00:18:00.001-05:00

Hockey Fight - Wild/Ducks - Burns wins, originally uploaded by onebigswede.

My wife and I went to the Wild Playoff Game tonight - Game 4 versus the Anaheim Ducks. The Wild won the game, and Burns won this fight. Go Wild - time for a miracle comeback!

Artists Rendition of the new Twins Stadium

2007-04-12T14:59:00.001-05:00

Artists Rendition of the new Twins Stadium
Originally uploaded by onebigswede.

Science or Faith? Or Both?

2007-04-05T10:01:00.000-05:00

A debate that constantly rages is the one relating to science versus faith, and whether one can believe in one and the other at the same time.

Many skeptics will say that there is nothing rational or concrete about faith, and to have faith is to have no foundation in science. Others say that Faith and Science are completely compatible, and should be seen to work hand in hand.

I read an essay today exploring these ideas, and it is quite an interesting read.

click here

Here's another discussion of this subject, by Dr. Francis Collins, director of the Human Genome Project.

click here

Trip to call attention to global warming was scuttled by cold temperatures

2007-03-13T10:07:00.000-05:00

This is funny:

MINNEAPOLIS - A North Pole expedition meant to bring attention to global warming was called off after one of the explorers got frostbite.
The explorers, Ann Bancroft and Liv Arnesen, on Saturday called off what was intended to be a 530-mile trek across the Arctic Ocean after Arnesen suffered frostbite in three of her toes, and extreme cold temperatures drained the batteries in some of their electronic equipment.
Then there was the cold - quite a bit colder, Atwood said, then Bancroft and Arnesen had expected. One night they measured the temperature inside their tent at 58 degrees below zero, and outside temperatures were exceeding 100 below zero at times, Atwood said.
The explorers had planned to call in regular updates to school groups by satellite phone, and had planned online posts with photographic evidence of global warming. In contrast to Bancroft’s 1986 trek across the Arctic with fellow Minnesota explorer Will Steger, this time she and Arnesen were prepared to don body suits and swim through areas where polar ice has melted.
Atwood said there was some irony that a trip to call attention to global warming was scuttled in part by extreme cold temperatures.
“They were experiencing temperatures that weren’t expected with global warming,” Atwood said. “But one of the things we see with global warming is unpredictability.”