Well, the DOW is up 393 points so things are looking up. Even if the economy is down, there’s so much to be happy about. There’s been legislation that’s gone through these past couple of weeks that have been huge, but pale in comparison to the media onslaught of the economy.

Physician Payments Sunshine Act:

To me this is one of the greatest pieces of legislation to ever be introduced in healthcare. The bill was introduced in March, and so far there hasn’t been word of it. Here’s a summary of the PPSA, “H.R. 5605 would amend title XI of the Social Security Act to provide for transparency in the relationship between physicians and manufacturers of drugs, devices, or medical supplies for which payment is made under Medicare, Medicaid, or SCHIP.”

Solar Tax Credit Is Renewed:

For those who are trying to implement solar power into your homes, this is great news.

The Senate has proven atleast once that it can get over itself to pass useful litigation. It’s staggering to see how many bills or proposals are axed because of disagreement on the Senate floor. With so many interest groups, pushing and pulling different senators, it’s amazing that anything is able to get passed.

The solar tax credit was expiring at the end of they year, and for awhile it was looking like it wasn’t going to be renewed. The old tax credit gave residential solar users a cap of $2,000 for tax breaks; while commercial endeavours saw no cap but were compensated back for a percentage of their expenses. With the new tax credit, residential projects no longer have a cap.

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You always know the songs that transcend time, class, and ethnicity; they’re generally the ones on the radio. One of those songs is Loverboy’s ‘Working For The Weekend’. Yes, it’s rather overplayed and contrived in the sense that it’s trying to reach everyone. The song does speak truths though, because during the week it is essentially what we’re doing.

The idea of ‘Working For The Weekend’ isn’t as readily apparent as when Friday peaks its head up at the end of the week. The clock seems to move slower, there’s always that one person that needs help when you’re running for the door. Once your out; ahhhhh, it’s the weekend. I figured I would share with you some plans I have for this weekend, and I’d like to hear back.

University of Kentucky vs. Western Kentucky

There’s very few things quite as American as football, except perhaps baseball. Of course the NFL has become a juggernaut, over how much money the MLB rakes in. My college team will always be the UK Wildcats. I’ve been a fan since the early 90’s when winning 5 games was considered a decent season. Now there’s so much pressure put on them, it’s hard to imagine being a UK football player. That’s UK fans though, they can smell greatness, and then they demand perfection.

I know that most who are reading this could care less about the Wildcats, so let me hear about some of your fav teams.

Miracle at St. Anna

I love War epics, especially when there’s an interesting story and hopefully twist. The moment I saw the trailer for Miracle At St. Anna I was intrigued. In the past I haven’t been a huge Spike Lee fan, but I really liked his last movie Inside Man.

Here’s a synopsis for the movie from RottenTomatoes: “Miracle at St. Anna chronicles the story of four black American soldiers who are members of the US Army as part of the all-black 92nd “Buffalo Soldier” Division stationed in Tuscany, Italy during World War II. “

So far the movie has been received as ‘mixed’ and that’s being generous. The RT meter is hanging at 32%, with most critics saying that the movie is too long, and drawn out. I’ve liked movies that score low on the RT meter, so who knows it might be what I’m looking for.

I want to hear back from you all. What are your plans for the weekend. Or will you be the unlucky ones who don’t work for the weekend, because you’ll be working anyway?

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There’s nothing quite as satisfying as pulling off a prank on someone. When the plan goes through without a hitch, the satisfaction of successfully pranking someone always brings a smile to the face. If there’s one place that a smile is needed, it’s at the office. Sometime the hum drum atmosphere of the office needs to be broken; and a prank is a perfect way to accomplish that.

When pranking someone at the office, there are a few guidelines to follow. First, make sure you aren’t offending anyone with your prank. The objective is to alleviate tension in an office, and offending someone isn’t going to help. Also, be sure to keep it simple. More than likely, you’ll be under time constraints for executing a prank. The more simple you keep it, the more likely you are to see it pull through successfully.

Here are a few ideas to get you started…

1. The Phantom Keystroker is such an amazing device, and is one of the most simple pranks. It does cost money, but the outcome is so worth it. The device slides into an extra USB port on a computer. It’s unassuming, and can cause much frustration. The Phantom Keystroker will input random keystrokes at various times throughout the day. If you sit near the person you’re pranking, watch as they aimlessly try to fix the problem.

2. This next prank is credited to the show; The Office. I’ve seen this pulled off and it’s nothing short of amazing. You take your victim’s office supplies, and put them in the snack machine. It’s again a simple gag, with the hardest part finding a way inside the machine. You can befriend the person that stocks the machines, and have him let you put the supplies in. Or if you have a key to the machines, that works as well. Be sure to leave him a roll of quarters, or nickels as he shouldn’t have to pay his own money to get his stuff back.

Do you all have pranks that you’ve successfully pulled off in the past? If so please share them.

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It’s funny to think back on the early days of the internet. I remember first getting our 56k connection at home; getting so excited that my internet speed was going to double. When Napster first came along, I thought it was the coolest thing since sliced bread. I remember downloading a Snoop Dogg song, and it taking around a hour and a half to finish. I was in heaven.

Now in 2008, if someone told me I would have to revert back to 56k, I’d laugh. Or punch them in the face, depending on the validity of the statement. I bring up this topic, because due to bandwidth issues with our ISP, the office I work in is running at about 56k speeds. It’s enough to make you want to throw a chair out the window.

Now that I’ve had to deal with the problem all day, I’ve had time to reflect. Thinking about it; it’s scary to imagine how much we truly rely on the stability of the internet. I would be out of a job, if the internet just one day didn’t work anymore. I’d be in an unemployment line, or working construction.

Today, I’ve truly felt like the man in this video:

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