Impressive landing

If you have ever flown in a single or twin engine plane, I have, I think you will find this video impressive. I used to fly into Binghamton New York for business and the first time I saw the runway that they landed a Bowing jet on my jaw dropped. Lets just say that when you got stopped at the end of the runway there wasn't much runway left to run on. So I really appreciated what this pilot is doing.

Landing at Courchevel Airport France

Have you tried Google yet?

If you are reading this you are obviously using a computer and if you use a computer on a regular basis this sounds like an awfully silly question. Who doesn't use Google? I'm not talking about the search engine however. The little search engine that could has mushroomed into a multi billion dollar software business and not everyone has noticed.

First the good points.

The first thing that came along was Google Mail. Being involved in the computer business I acquired a Google mail address early in the game when you had to get and "invite" from someone to get an account. After having that account for several years now I have started to actively use it and it is rapidly becoming my primary email account / client of preference.

After using Google Mail for a while I started looking at other "Google applications" that I knew existed but hadn't paid much attention too much as I had ignored Google Mail for so long. Google now has the equivalent of an office suite like Microsoft Office available on line. It includes a word processor, a spread sheet, a calendar and a graphical presentation program. To get the calendar functions in Microsoft Office you have to be using their Outlook mail client for your email, oh and I almost forgot you have to pay Microsoft a boatload of money for the software. With Google if you want the calendar but choose some other email program it still works just fine.

So the next thing I did with my Google account was set up a Google Calendar. It gives me a central place to keep my dates and activities but best of all I can send an "invitation" to friends and family members to "share" my calendar. They set up their own Google calendar and then by simply checking a box they see my entries and events along with their own. It also has the ability to create an "event" and have it repeat on a regular basis like monthly meetings or anything that has a fixed schedule.

Then I moved on to Google Docs. I didn't really think I would find a lot of use for an on line word processor but that has turned out not too be the case. Once again I discovered that some of the things I "write down" on electronic paper have an advantage to being on line. First of all I no longer have to worry about "now where on this 160 gigabyte hard drive did I save that file?" or for that matter on which of my many computers did I save the file. Google documents also gives me the ability to save the same document in different formats. I'm writing this blog entry on a Linux based system and the office suite I use with my Linux machines is Open Office. Open Office also has the ability too read and write several different formats but it defaults to ODT which is the "open source" standard for files that is free for anyone to use as they please.

Microsoft's .DOC format on the other hand is proprietary and subject to change without notice as many people have found out when Microsoft releases a new updated version of Office only to find that they now can't open all of the documents that were created with the older version unless run through some type of conversion program or in some cases not at all which means printing them out in hard copy and retyping them again. This typically doesn't happen with a single version upgrade but many who have stuck with Microsoft Office for long periods of time have found themselves in that situation when finally moving up to the current revision of the application.

Finally as with my calendar I have the ability to share my documents with others. This is something that I didn't really feel that I would have a use for but I'm finding many advantages for sharing my work with family and friends. I'm going to write a similar blog entry for my amateur radio and Linux blog and point out how members of a club could share thoughts on projects and save the combined wisdom of all on a particular topic. Do you have a hobby or organization where it would help if everyone could share ideas on "paper" but you would like something a little more formal than email? One such hobby that comes to mind is genealogy, imagine being able to share what you have learned about your family history with the rest of the clan no matter if they are down the street or in another country. You may give family and friends the ability to simply read your works or to edit and update them. The possibilities as they say are limited only by your imagination.

Of course you also have the normal functions that you would expect from a word processor in terms of formatting text, search and replace and the ability to print your documents. There may be other things that I have not yet explored but I will continue to learn as I use them.

I have never been a heavy user of spread sheets. I started long ago with Louts 123 and then migrated to Microsoft Excel when the corporate world dictated it. At I was using them extensively at work on a project at one time in place of a database but in my normal day to day work I don't manipulate much data with them. Having said that, part of the Google applications include a spread sheet which they haven't, at least at this time, come up with a clever name for. Spread sheets let you enter data into an electronic ledger sheet consisting of rows and columns. Each place a row and column intersect is a cell into which you can place information. In addition to numbers you can put text in the cells to make the sheet more readable. The real power though comes from the fact that you can write a formula into a cell that will take the contents of other cells and perform math operations on them. I'm not going into great detail here as it would be far beyond the scope of a simple blog entry but let's just say that if you have the need to manipulate numbers this is your tool. It has many uses beyond simply being a fancy programmable calculator but you will have to do some reading to find all the potential.

Last but not least is a graphics presentation program. If you are familiar with Microsoft Power Point then I need say no more. If not I will tell you that it allows you to put information together in the form of text, graphics and photos arranged in frames called "slides" which can then be displayed either on a computer screen, on a big screen with a projector or printed on paper as hand outs for a presentation. As with other computer programs this one is just a tool and limited only by your abilities to work with it and your creativity putting it's functions to use.

Not really mentioned with the office suite is Google Photos. It is still under the Google umbrella and will work with the office programs as well as their blog publishing software that produced the entry you are reading now. Again it is free as long as you don't exceed a specified amount of disk space and if you do you can purchase additional space for a fee. It is a great way to share photos between family and friends and again with groups that you may belong too. In addition to sharing you have the option to order prints of your pictures something I haven't tried yet. I normally use Walmart or Wallgreens to get my digital photos printed just because it is convenient to pick up the prints at local locations.

Now the not so good.

Now that I sound like I'm a marketing person for Google let me tell you that all is not perfect in the world of Google applications. I would have to say that the biggest problem with all of the above is that it makes the "network" the computer. If you lose Internet connectivity you are essentially dead in the water. You have no access to your email or your files. For some of us that is not a problem that very often occurs.

I have digital subscriber line service (DSL) at home which means that my computer is connected to the Internet anytime it is turned on. At work I'm even better connected being hooked to the corporate network which in turn gives access to the Internet and the World Wide Web. If on the other hand you use a dial up connection for your Internet access this becomes an entirely different matter. This is yet another good reason to download and install the open source free office suite Open Office. The user interface is somewhat different than Microsoft Office but not enough that you couldn't pick it up in a very short period of time.

This can be somewhat offset by saving your documents, spread sheets and presentations on your local hard drive but that opens yet another can of worms in the form of making sure both sets of files stay in sync. In any case it is something you have to consider in your particular situation.

The next thing to consider is that Microsoft Office has become the de facto standard in the business world and while both Open Office and Google Documents can read and write those formats if you are a power user that wrings every last feature out of Office in your work you may find some things that don't translate. The only place where I have every had a real problem with this so far is where a document includes "macros" or small programs that are based on Microsoft's Visual BASIC language. The only people that I have ever transitioned from Microsoft Word to Open Office Writer that have had any complaints have been heavy duty users in legal offices. I have also heard complaints from heavy spread sheet users that write a lot of macros into their sheets. For the average user I have never seen any problems.

As for the presentation program I haven't used it enough to really render a valid opinion. I'm sure the Microsoft version, Power Point, comes with many more predefined templates which make doing something from scratch easier if you are a novice.

Another thing that you will find is that because Microsoft is the 800 pound gorilla in the computer desktop arena that when you go looking for after market support like books that you are going to have a far greater range of choice in books on Office 2007 than on Open Office. Likewise if you call friends or coworkers looking for help it is far more likely that they will be familiar with Microsoft products than free Open Source software like Open Office. I checked Amazon and there are a number of books on Open Office available to help you along if you need them. Much to my surprise I also searched for "Google apps" on Amazon and there are a number of manuals and books available for the on line suite. Based on that alone I guess I have fallen behind the times in the tech world.

So if you have stuck with me this far I'm sure you are asking what is the point of all this. I just want share the knowledge of what I lean with others. I know that I'm very appreciative when someone "turns me on" to some new widget that either make me more productive and makes life just a little more enjoyable. Many people have invested time and effort to produce Open Source software like Open Office and despite what a behemoth Google has become they are still a very friendly company that tries to do the right thing in the corporate sense. There are some who would refute that argument but that is for another posting at another time. So give it a whirl and see if it works for you and meets your needs.

The Top 10 List

If you have access to email on the Internet you probably receive a number of items every week sent by friends and family of a humors nature like jokes and funny pictures. Sometime they are slide shows of breathtaking pictures or messages with a religious or inspirational theme. Many involve a list of "Top 10" items of one category or another. I have my own list that I forward things like this when I get them and deem them worth the bandwidth to pass them on. This blog entry did not come from one of those emails although I wish it had.

As many of you know every so often a story pops up in the media about a fight over the Ten Commandments. Nonbelievers in the one true God along with groups who either just don't care or feel the need to "pick a bone" with anyone who speaks of religion have tried to propagate the myth that the founding fathers of our country wanted separation of church and state. The problem is they have tried to mutate statements about "separation OF church and state" into "separation of church FROM state". This my friends is just not historically accurate.

In the past I have had very little use to some of the people who habitat the airwaves espousing their version of the Gospel to the masses. Many I feel distort God's word some for financial gain and others for their own personal uses. They are not all bad and I actually enjoy listening to some of them preach. One of my favorites is Dr. David Jeremiah and his "Turning Point Ministry".
I get a daily email from his web site and today's message was about the Ten Commandments.


The message included a verse from The McGuffey Reader. If you know what the McGuffey Reader is you are dating yourself take my word for it. And the next time someone tells you that you can't post or display the Ten Commandments tell them that you are displaying a piece of English literature and give them the following.

Above all else love God alone;
Bow down to neither wood nor stone.
God's name refuse to take in vain;
The Sabbath rest with care maintain.
Respect your parents all your days;
Hold sacred human life always.
Be loyal to your chosen mate;
Steal nothing, neither small nor great.
Report, with truth, your neighbor's deed;
And rid your mind of selfish greed.
—McGuffey Reader


Good words to live by I would say.

Memory Lane

For some of you out there this will be a really nice trip down memory lane. For others it will be a reminder of where we went off on the wrong path. And for some it will be a combination of both. Which group do you fall into.

Follow this link to find out.

Take Me Back To The 60's



Enjoy.

I just heard the news

Typically when I get up in the morning I take a few minutes to get myself awake never having been a "morning person" before I jump into the shower and get my day started. Most of the time I have the radio on listening to either WDSY, Linda's favorite or KQV an all news station which is my preference. This morning I happened to be the first up and hence switched the radio in the bathroom over to the AM side and listened to some news while getting ready for work.

As I was leaving the bed room headed for the radio room to check my email I head the announcer say that it had been reported that Bobby Fischer had passed away during the night. I have always had an interest in the game of chess as do most people who have computers as a hobby.

Back in the early days of micro computers they were more of an end to a means rather than the useful tool that they are today. If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me "But what are you going to do with it?" about my early computers I could have retired a long time ago.
I finally gave up trying to justify it for what it could do and just said that I enjoyed tinkering with them and was trying to learn as much as I could.

Now I was never much of a chess player even to this day. About the only players I could best in a game where those that had no clue as to how the game was played. That is why I will never become a great programmer, I am not "wired" with the logic that makes a good chess player. Be that as it may I was saddened to hear of Bobby Fischer's passing. I consider people like him to be of genius stature in line with the likes of Albert Einstein. If you click on Fischer's name in this post it will take you to the entry about him in Wikipedi where you can learn more about his life.

From the bookshelf...........

Brave New Ballot: The Battle to Safeguard Democracy in the Age of Electronic Voting

Over the holidays I managed to digest a few books which to me is very relaxing and helps me to unwind. I have a rather large "to be read" stack which I didn't even make a dent in but that is a topic for another time.

I work with computers every day to make a living in addition to enjoying them as a hobby. I also have more than just a passing interest in politics trying to make sure that I cast an informed vote in every election in which I am eligible. With these two factors in mind I have followed a number of stories in the press and on the Internet about electronic voting since it's inception.

I had been a big proponent of electronic voting even before it had been implemented. My "geek side" looked at the subject and saw no reason why this fundamental process in American government should not be brought into the twentieth century. As I grew older and wiser however I started to see electronic voting through a different set of lenses. As I studied the subject I became aware of just how hard it would be to implement a system that would allow citizens to vote with what were in the end just computers without creating a system that could be manipulated for nefarious purposes.

When I heard about Avi D. Rubin's book on the subject I had to have it. I can't remember exactly how long it has been sitting in that "to be read" pile but I made sure it floated to the top over the holidays. Almost as soon as I started reading it I was at once fascinated and horrified. This book confirmed some of my worst suspicions about how fragile and open to subversion an electronic voting system could be.

Avi David Rubin is a professor of computer science at John Hopkins University and this book tells the story of how he became involved in a nation wide debate on the use and security of electronic voting machines in general and the DieBold system in particular. The book never explains, probably because it wasn't known, how the source code to the DieBold machines came to be posted on DieBold's corporate web site. It may have been a simple error on someones part or it may have been a disgruntled or worried employee intentionally wanting to expose the systems flaws. Whatever the reason once it was found and downloaded it spread across the Internet like wild fire, being brought to Rubin's attention by one of his colleagues.

Source code is human readable set of instructions that the computer follows to carry out its tasks written by programmers. If you have the source code for a system you can see exactly how the machine functions and what safeguards have been put in place to avoid tampering. What made the DieBold code so interesting was that Rubin shared it with his class and first year students who immediately pointed out glaring faults in the codes logic. It became a case study of how not to create a secure system for voting.

Knowing that his home state had committed to buy and use DieBold machines in upcoming primary and general elections Rubin brought his concerns to both local and state officials. Those of you old enough to remember, the reason that Ralph Nader name is in the public eye today is a book he wrote in 1965 exposing the auto industries efforts to cover up design flaws related to safety most notably on the Chevrolet Corvair. I think history will portray Rubin as the "Nader" of the electronic voting age. Much like General Motors tried to smear Nader DieBold mounted a campaign to ruin Rubin both personally and professionally. Like GM's efforts against Nader DieBold's efforts against Rubin failed. The strange thing to me at least is that the bulk of DieBold's business is building, selling and servicing automatic teller machines. (ATM's) To the best of my knowledge ATM's are well designed and secure. At least until someone hooks a tow chain around one and drives off with it! I might add that after Rubin's exposure of the systems flaws that DieBold spun off it's voting machine operations as a separate business now called Premier Election Solutions.

One of the reasons this book is so important is that Rubin has the rare quality to take a highly technical subject and put it in layman's terms that the average person can understand and do it without "talking down" to his reader. In addition he as taken this chain of events and presented it as a very readable story. So much so that is sounds like a plot to a thriller or a movie script at times.

If you have any interest in this subject at all you will find the book fascinating. If it is not something that piques you interest I suggest that you pick up the book and read it anyway because the subject can have such a profound effect on the country that you live in. In either case I think you will enjoy the story. I have put links in this posting to web sites where you can find additional information. Enjoy!

The Electronic Frontier Foundation

Brave New Ballot

Wikipedia on Aviel D. Rubin

Answers to last weeks quiz

Last week I posted a quiz and said I would follow up latter with the answers so here they are.

Now if you haven't taken the quiz yet don't cheat! Follow this link POP QUIZ and see if you can get the answers on your own before you look at them here.


Answers To Quiz:


*
1. The one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends . .
*Boxing


2. North American landmark constantly moving backward . *Niagara Falls* (The rim is worn down about two and a half feet each year because of the millions of gallons of water that rush over it every minute.)

3. Only two vegetables that can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons .
.. *Asparagus and rhubarb*.

4. The fruit with its seeds
on the outside .. .
*Strawberry.
*

5. How did the pear get inside the brandy bottle? It grew inside the bottle.
*(The bottles are placed over pear buds when they are small, and
are wired in place on the tree. The bottle is left in place for the entire growing season. When the pears are ripe, they are snipped off at the stems.)
*

6. Three English words beginning with dw
*Dwarf, dwell and dwindle*.

7. Fourteen punctuation marks in English grammar . .
*Period , comma, colon, semicolon, dash, hyphen, apostrophe, question mark, exclamation point, quotation marks, brackets, parenthesis, braces, and ellipses.
*

8. The only vegetable or fruit never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked, or in any other form but fresh
*Lettuce.
*
9.
Six or more things you can wear on your feet beginning with 'S'
*Shoes, socks, sandals, sneakers, slippers, skis, skates, snowshoes, stockings, stilts.


PLEASE DO YOUR PART.....
Today is National Mental Health Day. You can do your part by remembering to send an e-mail to or write a blog post for at least one unstable person.


Well, my job's done!

From the music shelf

While I'm not very musically inclined my Mother instilled a love of music in me from a very early age. The staple in my house was country and western, blue grass and with what we would now call folk music mixed with a good dose of rock and roll as it came of age. Even so I was never dissuaded from listening to any type of music that I liked including some classical. My Dad while not as enthusiastic about the subject as my mother introduced me at an early age to Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, Benny Goodman and others from the big bands of the 1940's.

So like many my age I grew up with sex, drugs and rock roll. Somehow though I managed to miss the sex and drugs. I guess God was just watching over me. I came of age listening to "The Mo Town" sound along with Elvis, the Beatles, the Stones and the rest of the British invasion. My Mother tolerated it while my Dad thought it was going to rot my brain as many parents do when their children start to adopt music that the don't quite understand. I found this to be true as my boys turned into teenagers.

All of this brings me to my purchase over the weekend of a new two CD set. Long Road Out Of Eden by the Eagles was released last month and I kept meaning to pick up a copy but never managed to remember when it was available, more on that latter.

Let me tell you that the Eagles still have the magic after all these years. Unlike some of the groups that have made a comeback to cash in on the nostalgia of the baby boomer's these guys still have the voices and the talent that fans have come to know and love. There are twenty tracks in this two CD set and while some wonder off the beaten path in style that we have become accustomed too most are pure Eagles. Glen Fry and Don Henley don't disappoint either writing or singing. If you go to their web site, click on the blue word Eagles in this posting to take you there you can hear samples from the album.

The Eagles are the first major main stream band that I know of that has told the recording industry to take a hike. Long Road Out Of Eden will be available for the first year only from the group's web site or through and exclusive deal with WalMart and Sam's Club. With the advent of digital music and the Internet the recording studios have decided to fight any change to their business model and in the process created a great deal of problems and inconvenience for the listening public. Through the Recording Industry Association of America they have employed heavy handed gestapo type tactics in an effort to make sure that if you think about a song in your head they find a way to add to their coffers while doing all they can to make sure that the artists that create the music never receive the full fruits of their labors. If you are an Eagles fan I encourage you to buy this album over the Internet or from Walmart if for no other reason than to send a message that the times are indeed changing.

Well I'll stop down off my soap box now and add that despite my rant my reason for recommending this album is because I really enjoyed the music. I hope you do also.

The Drink Tax Song

As you know Allegheny County has passed yet another new tax on its citizens. While I don't indulge in beverages containing alcohol I hate having my wallet tapped again! Check out what one of the local residents did in response to this new tax.

The Drink Tax Song

I couldn't agree more!

Pop quiz

A friend sent me these and they are pretty good. I got a few of them but a few escaped me. See how well you do. I will post the answers latter.

This is a quiz for people who know everything! I found out in a hurry that I didn't.

These are not trick questions.

They are straight questions with straight answers.

1. Name the one sport in which neither the spectators nor the
participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends.


2. What famous North American landmark is constantly moving backward?



3. Of all vegetables, only two can live to produce on their own for
several growing seasons. All other vegetables must be replanted every
year. What are the only two perennial vegetables?

4. What fruit has its seeds on
the outside?

5. In many liquor stores, you can buy pear brandy, with a real pear
inside the bottle. The pear is whole and ripe, and the bottle is
genuine; it hasn't been cut in any way. How did the pear get inside the
bottle?


6. Only three words in standard English begin with the letters 'dw' and
they are all common words. Name two of them.

7. There are 14 punctuation marks in English grammar. Can you name at least half of them?

8. Name the only vegetable or fruit that is never sold frozen, canned,
processed, cooked, or in any other form except fresh.

9. Name 6 or more things that you can wear on your feet beginning with
the letter 'S.'

A tribute to our heros

This was sent to me by my friend Henry who writes a blog, Our Boys Over There, for our troops where ever they may be as they watch over us so that we can be free.

If you are on dial up it may take a little while to load but trust me it is worth the wait. Watch and then bow your head and say a prayer for our men and women in uniform.

Heros

Click the link above.

Thanks for the memories

Don't ask me what I'm doing up at almost one in the morning because I don't know. Still wound up from watching the playoff game I suppose. One could play "would have, could have, should have" all night long but the bottom line is that the Steelers were beaten by a better team tonight.

This brings me back to one of my great laments. I would have preferred that the home town team would have won this evening and I was on the edge of my seat rooting for them until the very end. When however the game was over, it was over. I left the television on to catch some local news since I had not had it on all day and the first fifteen minuted was ALL about the game. I'm sure that anyone still tuned into WPXI coming up on midnight was there because they had been watching the game. It never ceases to amaze me how this town lives and dies by the outcome of a Steelers game.

I like the Steelers and enjoy watching them play. Even more so when they win! I have to wonder though with all of the problems that the City of Pittsburgh and our region face why we can't get that many people that fired up about matters that really affect their lives. I guess I'm just not wired like a real true honest to gosh Pittsburgh Steelers fan.

So I want to say "thanks for the memories" boys and a season well played. I will be back to root for you next year. Perhaps if any of you happen to read this you can use your considerable influence with the people of this town and region to improve it during the off season. It would be a refreshing change.

New book worth a look

I know that members of our congregation read my blog from time to time so I thought this message that I got from a mailing would be of interest. If you are one like myself that likes to read you may want to check out this book just for fun.

Greetings,

I've recently started reading a little book called "The Wit of Martin
Luther" by Eric W. Gritsch that looks at Luther's humor, something
that's overlooked in other studies. I'm about a third of the way into
it & have found it very enjoyable.


Mark

Here is a link to the book on Amazon.

The Wit of Martin Luther

And now things get interesting

I realize that the Iowa Caucuses are only the first small step in a campaign that has been brewing for what seems like forever, but I think now the public is actually starting to pay attention. I will leave it to the political pundits to decipher the intricacies of what the wins of Gov. Mike Huckabee and Sen. Sen. Barack Obama mean in the upcoming races for the White House. Not to mention the ramifications of a third place loss for Sen Hillary Clinton. If the stories of Hillary's temper are to be believed, and I do think many of the stories are true, I would not want to be around the woman this night.

I currently don't have a favorite in the race. What I'm really look for is a person with a combination of ideas and policies of the Republican candidates with the leadership qualities and charisma of a Barack Obama. Since no such candidate has been proffered by either party I'm waiting to make my choice until I know for sure where each stands on issues that are important to my country myself and my family.

I hope in the next few days to write about some of the books that I have been reading while on vacation one of which is of extreme importance in relation to the upcoming elections in the fall of this year. I realize that the first week of January is not yet completed but I hope that all of you will start thinking about the political races ahead this coming year so that you will not only be informed but that you will participate. Here are some places that you might want to visit in the blogosphere.

Crosswalk.com

Real Clear Politics

Hugh Hewitt

Jerry Bowyer

Power Line

Captain's Quarters

Getting a jump start on the new year

I am told that one of the most popular New Years resolutions made at this time each year is to lose weight. I know I have uttered syllables to that effect myself on a number of occasions over the years, alas only to find that I am no better at keeping them than the rest of the population. I don't need to tell you about the ill effects of being over weight as they are well known by now much as are the dangers of smoking. Fortunately for me that is a habit that I never acquired otherwise there is a good chance that I would not be at the keyboard writing this now.

So this year I decided to get a jump start on the process with the help of my lovely wife Linda. Linda joined Weight Watchers about a year ago and has done exceedingly well with it. For folks like us it truly does take a change in life style and let me tell you that is not an easy change to make.

We have just passed though a time of the year when we Americans celebrate much about our heritage. Starting with Thanksgiving and on through Christmas many of our celebrations involve consuming large quantities of food with friends and relatives as we gather together and give thanks for the abundance that we have been blessed with.

Not too surprisingly a lot of us manage to gain more than a few pounds each year at this time only too find that those pounds gained so quickly come off every so slowly if at all. Then one day you discover that advancing in age makes the process all that more difficult. So this year I decided to get a jump start on my new year and joined with Linda's group just before Thanksgiving. So far I have managed to make it through Thanksgiving and Christmas and lose weight. Now when you are my size that is not a particularly great accomplishment but it is a head start on the new year. Perhaps after I lose some additional pounds I will get brave enough to post my progress here no the blog. If you are engaged in a similar endeavor I wish you well.

Ken & Linda @ the movies

P.S. I Love You

Well Linda and I have started the new year off with a great day. We slept in, well I did I think Linda was up at the crack of dawn, and then watched the annual Rose Parade with a good cup of hot chocolate. We weren't quite sure what to do with the rest of the day and discussed various options including just vegging out on the couch and watching television.

We haven't been to the movies in months and despite the fact that the weather prognosticators were calling for snow and high winds we decided to take in a new movie. So we headed up to Pittsburgh Mills and the Galleria Theaters to see "P.S. I Love You".

The Internet Movie Database categorizes this film as romantic /comedy / drama but I feel it is a pure romance story. It is about a young couple that fall in love, get married and pursue their hopes and dreams together. Like most couples their life is far from perfect but as the husband points out in an early on in the movie that if his beloved was looking for perfection that she should have married into another species.

You don't get very far into the film until you realize that you have now jumped slightly ahead in time and that you are at a gathering to celebrate a wake for the husband. What remains of the movie tells their story in flash backs and how knowing that he was going to die how he planned to help her though the time of grief and to move on with her life. There are funny moments in the film especially in some of the flash back scenes and more than a few dramatic moments that I consider not written as well as they could have been but still good none the less.

The movie stars Hillary Swank probably best known for her Oscar winning role in "Million Dollar Baby", Kathy Bates and actress of great talent and Lia Kudrow who has transitioned well from the small screen to the large. Gerald Butler plays her husband and while I have never heard of him if his performance is any indication of his abilities I think you will be seeing more of him in the future. Jeffery Dean Morgan and Harry Connick Jr make up the other know names in the cast and turn in good performances. Regular watchers of the ABC television series "Grays Anatomy" will recognize Jeffery Dean Morgan as the character Denny who died affecting all of the shows other characters last season.

The movie is filmed on location in New York City and Ireland with the photography being excellent. I have thought for a long time that if I were going to visit anywhere outside of the United States that Ireland would be one of my first picks and this movie doesn't do anything to dissuade those thoughts. I won't tell you how the movie ends but I will tell you that it will warm your heart and make you appreciate the love of your life even more. If you are taking your wife or girlfriend to this picture I suggest that you keep some Kleenex handy to slip in her hand if needed.

On a scaler of one to ten I give "P. S. I Love You" six acorns. I would have rated it higher but I felt that the writing needed to be better and that Harry Connick Jr's talents were poorly used as a result of it. There is also a full length nude scene of the back of Jeffery Dean Morgan that really didn't need to be there to hold up the plot. At least that is the way I saw it, those of the other gender may disagree. You want to be in your seat when the lights go down as a good deal of the plot unfolds before the title and opening credits start to appear on the screen. Linda and I both agreed that this one was well worth the price of admission.