timwheatley.org

I think they were referring to whether she prefers shaven or unshaven men, but the man in me can’t accept that.

Photo taken outside Macy’s on Michigan Avenue, 2nd floor. It made me laugh.

I was sat on the toilet today reading the back of a Shampoo bottle when I starting wondering why when a “new and improved” version of something goes on sale, they continue to sell the “less new and not improved” version.

In the UK I remember mentioning this to my mother when we were shopping once, as she bought a “new and improved” bottle of bleach that “kills 99.9% of all known germs.”

There was another bottle, the same shape, size and brand that also “kills 99.9% of all known germs” but wasn’t decorated with the “new and improved” text. So I have to ask, why do companies sell inferior products, usually renaming them, rather than upgrading the original? Perhaps more importantly, why do people still buy them?

I can understand why something like Coca-Cola will never change now and they can’t change the original, because I guess people need the choice. But with bleach, where one does the same as another, I don’t understand…

Two videos filmed by Sheila’s brother, Billy, are now available below. Hope you like them! There is also a photo gallery available, click photos in the menu above. To find out more about the Zoo, visit lpzoo.org - It is the oldest Zoo in America and one of the few that is still free to enter…

Part One:

Part Two:

I’m getting married, so here’s some short notice (but a bit of advance notice for next year). Last year I met a fellow photographer (my hobby also, incase any of you didn’t know) and after a bit of a whirlwind of a time, here I am, getting married! You can find Sheila’s Web site here and you can find out a little about who she is (including a photo) on the “info & contact” page there. I have attached another photo of us both together, too.

Many of you are far away (my family in the UK, her family in the U.S., my friends across the whole world!), so we’re planning on getting married this year and having a wedding on the same date (11th April, we hope) next year. Because we’ve obviously lost a lot of belongings (due to a move of country for me) we’ve decided to go ahead with a Bridal Shower this year so we can get a few things to help us setup home. I know some of you might want to contribute (but don’t worry if you don’t), so we are registered for the Bridal Shower (which happens on 31st March with just Sheila’s family, but gifts can be purchased at any time within the next year) at the following locations: Bed, Bath & Beyond, Target and Kohls.

If you need our postal address in the U.S. please email me.

I’d like to thank our parents for their support (on both sides of the Atlantic) and those who helped to make sure everything was made possible for us to be together, they should know who they are. Life has most certainly had it’s ups and downs but it really does seem that in the end, everything works out. Thanks for reading and if you want to reply, please do.

In Cook County, Illinois, they are debating whether teens caught drinking should have their drivers license taken away (even if they were not driving). I think this is an excellent idea, because if a kid is irresponsible enough to be drinking underage (legal age in this state is 21), they are just as likely to drink and drive as it’s not that big a step to take.

I simply cannot believe how powerful some of the entries in this blog are. It is an extremely educational look at life in the Middle East.

Most of what is said, I do have to agree with, it seems the writer has well balanced views and expresses them with intelligence.

Going from that blog, I found myself at the American Islamic Congress before clicking a link to this speech transcript.

I think it is very important that people (of every faith) read that speech, but it is a little worrying as this is obviously a Muslim who tells how things really are within a Mosque, that the Mosque leaders wish to give the Muslim children no other avenue but that which Iran wants.

It’s amusing to me that Iran recently commented that the movie “300″ was an attack on their history… Why is it that Iran seem to be wanting to use Islam to do their present day attacking?

Installation:
Fairly straightforward and easy but a bit too complicated for some users with choices of Typical, Full or Custom. Hard drives are not small enough anymore to need this many options for a game that installs (with “full” option) to take up just 280MB, are they?

After the installation routine, you click the icon to start playing and are presented with a video/graphics setup window. The first thing I noticed was how many options there were in the resolution dropdown (once you click the “display all available modes” checkbox). My widescreen monitor resolution of 1920×1200 is supported.

	Above: Resolution options for the game are limited. Left: Most modern PC’s can easily handle the additional graphics options made available when you click “advanced”.

Gameplay
Well for an adult, this game isn’t too interesting. It’s easy to win and it’s annoyingly easy to get stuck…

Getting stuck behind objects is just one of the annoyances to this title…

For kids, this is a fun game with quite a few options heading into a race. There really is nothing more to be said - and that’s not good!

Graphics
One of the first things I noticed was that in the menu system, some text runs off the page. This is probably due to my use of a widescreen monitor, I wouldn’t expect to see this issue on a 4:3 ratio. Overall the graphics are really nice, they are sharp, the models are good and the tracks are well represented.

Controllers
You are able to setup an interface device (like a steering wheel or joystick) to play the game, but I feel for this kind of game there is no advantage in terms of enjoyment or control in doing that. The keyboard controls function very well and are easily reached even by the smallest hands.

Sound
The audio is good enough, nothing more. It’s hard to see that this title is so new, because frankly it sounds about 10 years old… Music is pretty much what you would expect from this friendly arcade racer but I can’t help feeling like I am walking around a fashionable high street clothing store while I listen to it? The only adjustments available for the sound is the volume of the music and sound effects, this is done via the in-game menu.

Features: Saving the game
The game comes with a fantastic save game archive. There is plenty of room to save your games and those of all your friends and family. A nice touch is the autosave features, meaning even small children are able to race without worrying or even really needing to know how to save their progress.

Pros
Licensed Mini Cooper race cars.
Very nice graphics.
Multiple save areas along with automatic game saves, ideal for family play.

Mixed
Gameplay can go up or down with this one…

Cons
Not really that interesting.
The sound… Oh god, the sound…
Minor Issue: Text runs off the page on some menu areas when played using a widescreen monitor.

Official Screenshots

The Grand Canyon Skywalk is something I saw on the BBC Web site the other day. I really was amazed to see that the Canyon is over twice as deep as the Sears Tower is tall! What a massive, massive thing of beauty…

Here is a great video of the Skywalk under construction: