I finally took the bait with the free offer and tried out NetFlix, the online DVD movie service. I’m pleased to tell you that so far, so good. Their DVD’s arrive quickly in the mail, and you can get them right from your mailbox because there’s no extra packaging; just the disc itself inside a cover sleeve.

Plus the company is working on online delivery. I haven’t tried their online movie viewer yet, but they say it’s just a download player with a license that comes with your membership. I went with their 3-at-a-time unlimited plan for $17.99 a month, which allows me to rotate out any three DVD’s at a time.

The return envelope is included with pre-paid postage, so when you’re done watching that movie, just pop it into the mail. In a couple of days, you have your next movie; the company just pulls the next one from your queue list. There’s all kinds of ways to browse titles too…the system builds recommendations based on the titles you select.

Another cool feature is a message system so you can trade comments with friends who also subscribe to NetFlix. My sister and I have started to write back and forth on our common love of movies, and I’ve invited other family members to join in too.

What a great way to keep in touch with all the various movie and DVD titles flooding today’s market. And I never have to step inside a Blockbuster store again!

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

The 30th Anniversary of the Dallas International Guitar Festival happened last weekend at Dallas Market Hall, and the show was awesome as always! There were acoustic and electric guitars, all kinds of amps, vintage gear, showcase and custom shop models, and lots of cool bass guitars.

Some really great players were there too! I saw Eric Johnson and Rocky Athas play last Saturday and they were both great.

Source: National Weather Service Radar image Dallas/Fort Worth
7:01 PM CDT Friday April 13, 2007 A tornado was reported in Ft. Worth and traveled through the metroplex along with this fast moving storm system. In Plano, it was raining sideways so hard I couldn’t see the road. I had to follow the curb to turn into my driveway. Cold rain and hail were coming down hard, but I parked under the carport, and waded through the flooded parking lot to the safety of home. We lost cable TV but at least the power stayed on and the internet connection stayed up. Ahh, spring in North Texas!

Source: WFAA-TV: NASCAR fans at Texas Motor Speedway were advised to move to safety as the storm forced the cancellation of NASCAR Nextel Cup qualifying races at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. Storms also canceled a Cheap Trick concert, and a series of promotional appearances by race car drivers in downtown Fort Worth.

Officer D. York of the Richland Hills PD snapped this cell phone photo of a funnel cloud in Richland Hills. The storm killed one and injured five others, and caused significant damage to buildings in and around Fort Worth. East Dallas was also hit by high winds and heavy rain, and more than 20,000 homes were without power.
Source: WFAA-TV

Cartoonist Johnny Hart, whose award-winning “B.C.” comic strip appeared in more than 1,300 newspapers worldwide, died last Saturday while working at his home in Endicott, New York. He was 76.

“B.C.,” launched in 1958 and eventually appeared in more than 1,300 newspapers with an audience of 100 million, according to Creators Syndicate Inc., which distributes it. I like Hart’s unique understated humor and the subtle way he worked Christian themes into the comic strip.

BC @ comics.com

BC @ creators.com

At first, the cat & dog food recalls were scary. We trust these big companies to provide a safe and healthy product for our pets, and it’s unnerving to think their quality control has broken down to the point where poisons go undetected. As the list of affected companies and contaminated brand name pet foods grow, so does our unease about what we’re feeding our pets.

Now the latest news adds dog biscuits made by an Alabama company and sold by Wal-Mart under the Ol’Roy brand, to the contaminated list. The Food and Drug Administration said the manufacturer, Sunshine Mills Inc., is recalling dog biscuits made with imported Chinese wheat gluten. Testing has revealed the wheat gluten, a protein source, was contaminated with melamine, used to make plastics and other industrial products.

Also Thursday, the FDA warned consumers not to give American Bullie A.B. Bull Pizzle Puppy Chews and Dog Chews to their pets. The FDA said salmonella could contaminate the dog treats, made and distributed by T.W. Enterprises of Ferndale, Wash.

Sunshine Mills said it would post a complete list of the recalled dog biscuits on its Web site, www.sunshinemills.com.

A list of the cat food and dog food products involved in the recall is online at www.menufoods.com/recall.

FDA pet food recall: www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/petfood.html