Aaron Ewer

Forgive me for bragging a little bit, but I have always been so proud of my son for his work as a DJ. Our family has always been involved in the music business. My grandfather was a piano player for the silent movies back in the 1920’s and played the piano for thousands of events, like variety shows, beauty pageants, juke joints, and all kinds of dance jobs from weddings to sweet 16 birthday parties. My father played every instrument out there until he damaged his fingers on his left hand and couldn’t hold down the chords on a guitar anymore. So he played mostly piano and put together an orchestra aka the Ricky Ricardo Orchestra of the 1950′2. Later on, he managed several bands and handled the entertainment for a large pizza chain.

I took piano lessons for years but worked as a DJ for years for extra money. When possible, I would take along my son to help tote the gear into the venue and if it was an event for kids, I would let him choose the music, cue up the tapes, and eventually do some work on the microphone. When he got older, he started his own DJ company and has been thriving ever since. So that makes 4 generations of music in our family so far.

My son pays a lot more attention to the mechanics of music than I do. He actually mixes his own CDs and does editing, voice overs, and other technical things using the computer. He’s a big fan of a new software called MOV that lets him convert video files to MP3 format and lots of other features. It works with video, CDs and DVDs.

The mov converter does other cool things, like video editing, 30+ special effects and color adjustment operations. If you are into these technical things with video and audio, you should probably get this converter or at the very least check out their site. Even with the little bit that I know about this, I was impressed.

Now that gas has hit $3.89 per gallon, a lot of the guys in the warehouse are having a tough time covering that extra expense and making ends meet. I feel for them, as it just cost me $92.00 to fill up the Tahoe yesterday, and that won’t get me back and forth to work all week.

A lot of people have trouble keeping money in their pocket for the whole pay period, as we get paid every other Friday and sometimes there is a lot of week left with no money. One of the things the guys are doing is getting Payday Loan so they can have money in their pocket until payday when they pay the loan back.

I heard the guys talking about it in the breakroom when I went over this morning for a planning meeting with the warehouse manager. Alden was explaining how he went online and found a website to apply for a Cash Advance and that he had the approval really fast. They didn’t run a credit check and they processed his application immediately. At least now he won’t be paying the bank extra fees for bounced checks. And if the customer orders pick up a little I hope to get them a little extra money in their paychecks, too.

With all the new cartoons on cable, I think it’s remarkable that the one cartoon my 6 year old will actually sit down and watch is the classic Tom & Jerry. He says he likes others, but I was watching him this morning, and with the others on he still runs about and plays with toys. But when Tom and Jerry comes one, he stops and sits on the couch to watch the whole thing.

He has watched Spongebob Squarepants, which I detest, and he’s outgrown the Dora the Explorer ones. There is a new series based on the Transformers, which he adores, but he still seems to lose interest in those after a while.

The one cartoon that I miss is the old Road Runner cartoon. I don’t know what is the fascination with the Road Runner versus the Coyote and all the portrayed violence - or intended violence, but to me that is the classic cartoon of my childhood that I remember most fondly.

It must be incredibly hard for an entire country to overcome a very negative image in the world’s minds of what their country is all about and what it has to offer. If it had not been for the war in the 1960’s in Vietnam, this country would most likely be a top tourist destination spot. Vietnam actually has a lot to offer people who want an exotic but completely affordable overseas holiday or vacation.

Vietnam now has as wonderful assortment of high quality hotels at very reasonable rates. I used a website to search for something with ultra modern rooms and services, with gourmet dining and a spa on the premises. I also want to see some of the local cultural landmarks outside of the ware and those horrible memories. There are beautiful temples, beaches, and river excursions for any tourist with an open mind and a sense of adventure.

If an exotic vacation is on your bucket list, check out the website for Hue Hotels and scroll through the many hotel property listings. I found a beautiful property in Pilgrimage Village for only $36 per night. The rooms are gorgeous and the property is in a quiet countryside setting rather the noisy downtown areas. It is close to the Forbidden Citadel and three famous tombs. After a weekend there I found another hotel to offer a more urban settings for the excitement of a few nights downtown dining and dancing. We want to experience as many different things as possible.

If you’ve been to Vietnam, I’d appreciate a comment of some places you’d recommend we visit while there. We are looking forward to going in late September, so we have plenty of time to learn more about the country and the opportunities for a new learning experience.

Stopped for gas (ouch ouch ouch) and the station had a Subway Sandwich shop inside, so I decided to get a sub for lunch. It’s a nice change from a burger.

My favorite sub shop around here is actually Jersey Mikes Subs. They slice the meat fresh in front of you and the subs are full of meat, not just bread. They have an easy way to order up the fixings you want on the sub - just order it “Mike’s Way” and there’s no more discussion or decisions. They fix it right and out the door you go.

Subway is OK but if they slice the meats any thinner they will become transparent. I like the bigger variety of toppings they have and the variety of dressings. But it’s a lot of bread and not much meat. And their new pizzas? Fuggetaboutit.