From the Inside Out

Do you ever find yourself channel surfing but not finding anything to watch on TV?  Do you ever wish you could go back and watch some classic 80s shows like Remington Steele, Knight Rider, or the A-Team?  C’mon, who doesn’t love a good episode of the A-Team?  Maybe you missed an episode of The Office or Friday Night Lights, and you want to get caught up on the show.  If so, then go online and check out Hulu.com. 

Hulu.com offers a cool, easy way to watch shows on demand.  The selection is decent today, and their Website boasts that they hope to provide watchers with the web’s most comprehensive selection from more than 50 content providers including FOX, NBC, MGM, Sony Pictures Television, Warner Bros., and Lionsgate.  You can watch full-length episodes of current primetime TV shows such as The Simpsons and The Office the morning after they air, classics like Miami Vice and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and clips from Saturday Night Live.  Hulu also offers a good variety of full-length feature films. 

The best news is that it’s all available for free!  You don’t even have to register or sign-up for anything.  You just click and watch.  Three views are available — Web, pop-up, or full screen.  The down side is that the shows are ad supported, so you do have to put up with a few commercials, but it’s not overwhelming.  Hulu shows one-quarter as many ads - two minutes for every 22 minutes of content, as opposed to eight on TV.

Gary will be happy to know that there are high res offerings (480p Hi Res) today, and they are working on streaming high-definition video in 720p.  Check out the HD Gallery.  

The site offers some additional features like embedding and emailing of clips.  It also will link you to Amazon Unbox if you want to purchase a movie or a TV show.  Of course, I’m not sure why you’d want to purchase shows when you can watch them for free online.  I guess if you’re going to be on a plane or in some obscure location that doesn’t provide Internet access, it makes sense, but I still prefer to purchase my movies/shows on iTunes.  It’s annoying that Amazon Unbox can’t support iPods, but I digress.

Hulu.com makes it simple to watch your favorite shows and movies anytime, for free.  So, what are you waiting for?  Check it out and enjoy.

As a frequent flyer, the Black Diamond Project is an effort that I applaud.  In the Salt Lake City airport, they are currently trialing a new security screening process to make lines shorter and faster.  The security checkpoint lanes are modeled after ski icons - green for beginners, blue for intermediate and black diamond for experts.  Pretty cool, huh?

After surveying passengers, the TSA learned that many had similar concerns and frustrations associated with the security screening process.  Passengers with kids, who need extra time, didn’t want to be in the same line as frequent travelers.  Business travelers who know the rules and don’t need to be told to take their shoes off or remove their laptop from the bag want to move through the security checkpoint quickly with minimal delays. 

Business travelers tend to travel lighter and are more efficient when going through security checkpoints.  This new process could help save them from being slowed down by infrequent travelers.  For people like me, it promises a nice reprieve from the frustration of being stuck behind clueless people who don’t know what they are doing or who take forever to go through the checkpoint.

If you are familiar with how ski runs are labeled, the system is the same.  According to Earl Morris, who heads up TSA’s airport security operations in Salt Lake City, “The Green lanes are used primarily by families, who often feel stressed in the traditional lane trying to get through with their kids, strollers and other stuff. Often these folks haven’t gotten the proper level of attention they deserve. People who don’t travel much and groups also select this lane.

The Blue lanes are for casual travelers who understand TSA procedures to a degree but may not travel all that frequently so they take a little more time. The black diamond lanes are for expert travelers who understand the system by the nature of traveling a lot and are totally prepared for the checkpoint. The goal is to ensure that TSA provides the proper level of service with customized needs of the traveler in mind. Security is improved by improving the process, taking the pressure off in the lines, eliminating the hassle factor and calming down the passenger.”

Kudos to the TSA security operations in Salt Lake City!  I hope this pilot is successful.  I’d love to see it rolled out in other airports across the country.  I believe Denver is also trialing a similar program. 

Now if I could get the airlines to consider a “business traveler” section on airplanes, life would be sweet.  I know…I know…that’s unlikely to happen, but a girl can dream, can’t she?

On July 12th at 7:00 pm, three fabulous Christian artists will take the stage together at the Eisemann Center in Richardson.  For one evening only, Russ Taff will perform with special guests Mickey Mangun and Jonathan Moore.  It’ll be a night of gospel music that won’t disappoint. 

I’ve been a fan of Russ Taff’s music since I was a teenager.  Throughout the years, he has managed to stay relevant and touch people’s hearts with a message of truth.  He has won a total of five Grammy awards and nine Gospel Music Association Dove awards. He has been hailed by Billboard Magazine as “the single most electrifying voice in Christian music.”

Mickey Mangun may not be a household name, but her voice is amazing.  The woman sings with such passion that you cannot help but be drawn to her music — it’s soul stirring.  She’s one of the few people who can bring goose bumps to my arms when she sings (and I mean that in a good way). 

Tickets range from $10 - $25.  Get more info at www.alcplano.org and reserve tickets at www.eisemanncenter.com.

Hope to see you there!

I’m happy to report that I survived my first “two-service” Sunday, and my voice is still intact.  It was tiring, though.  

Since I got in bed at 1:45 am, the alarm clock went off way too early for my liking this morning.  It was 6:40 am when I first hit the snooze button…ugh.  I finally rolled out of bed around 7 am.  I hate getting up when it’s still dark outside; it’s wrong on so many different levels.

We made it to church on time, and I was mostly awake when we practiced the songs for the morning services.  Although, I did put 8/23 as the date on the sign-in sheet so I must have been mildly disoriented when I arrived.  Haha! 

Surprisingly enough, a decent crowd showed up for the 9 am service.  Everything went well, and we ended on time, which is critically important since the 2nd service starts shortly after the first.  During the break, they had snacks for the musicians and singers, so we were able to get refreshed briefly before heading out to sing for the 2nd service.

 The 11:15 am crowd was much larger and energetic than the first — go figure.  I’m sure that group was well rested and probably had a good breakfast before venturing out to church.  It felt a little strange to do everything twice — the same songs, same jokes, same drama sketch , same sermon — but at the end of the day, I got to participate in two great services.  And, I had two opportunities to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, my Lord, my Saviour.  There’s nothing else I’d rather do.  He is amazing, and He is ALIVE.

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.  He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.”   ~Matthew 28:5-6~

“The day the Lord created hope was probably the same day he created Spring.” ~Bern Williams

I absolutely LOVE Spring.  The weather was fabulous today, and it beckoned us outside to enjoy God’s beautiful creation.  First, we basked in the glorious warmth of the sun while relaxing by the pool.  The water was still too cold to do anything other than wading, although Gary did manage to jump in — once. 

Afterwards, we decided to get some exercise and jumped on our bikes for a quick ride.  We went twice as far as last week — 12 miles round trip.  I told Gary if I could double the miles every week, I’d be ready for the Tour of Dallas on April 5th.  It’s only a few weeks away, and I’ve only been on my bike twice.  I guess I could wimp out and do the 8 mile ride, but I’d prefer to ride the 20 mile course instead.  Hopefully next weekend will be nice so I can eek out a 20 mile trip.  If so, I’ll feel more comfortable doing it for the Tour of Dallas.

A funny thing happened on our ride today.  We passed one of the community pools in Plano and witnessed an interesting sight.  Instead of hanging out in the nature preserve or the creek, we found a group of ducks hanging out at the pool — only in Plano!

Tonight, we finally attended the “Black and White” party that we previously thought was scheduled on February 22nd (see blog).  We donned our best B&W outfits, ate some great food, sang happy birthday to Chris, and fellowshipped with some friends.  It was a good night.

Well, I need to wrap up today’s blog entry quickly.  We kick-off our first two-service Sunday tomorrow morning at Abundant Life Church, and the day is going to start really early.  I have to be there at 8 am for practice.  The first service starts at 9 am, and the second is 11:15 am.  I’m on the praise team tomorrow, so I’ve got to be there for both services which means I need to get a good night’s sleep.  Ah, I hate mornings!