Nanny, Nanny Boo-Boo!

Are nannies good for kids? I've always wondered that. I don't know anyone (personally) who had a nanny in his/her life, so the concept is completely foreign to me.

But, is it good to have someone else raise your kid because you're too occupied to do so yourself?

As far as my upbringing goes, I came up in a two parent household and they were the predominant authoratative figures in my life. My dad worked days and my mom worked nights. So, one of them was always around to make sure I received the "home training" I needed to be a responsible adult. The closest I had to a nanny was my grandmother. She would babysit me when my mom had to go into work early for overtime. Although she wasn't a parent, she was still a relative. Someone who would always be in my life.

Nannies aren't always permanent. Sure, you have some familes who treat their nanny as part of the family, but how often does that happen? How often are nannies fired for stealing, sleeping with the husband/wife or for just being bad at the job?

What happens when the child gets attached to the nanny and she quits or gets fired?

What is the child's relationship with the nanny? Do they view her as a mother or as an older relative?

Some richer people have a nanny for each child, so how do those relationships work?

"Girl, so I told Angelina and Brad that I need a raise!"

I'm not really stating an opinion on this because I know so little about the subject, but I see so many red flags. So, maybe someone who has experienced it, knows someone who has or just has their own opinion on it can explain it to me.

Please provide feedback below. Thanks!

Hurricanes Bring The Ruckus

"Q, you have to try some of this cake!"

So, I've been watching The Weather Channel for a week now and it's fascinating. Not just because of Stephanie Abrams, but because I am learning tons of facts about hurricanes. I thought I'd seen enough broadcasts to know all there is to know about these storms, but it appears that I learn something new each season. I'm also seeing interesting people on TV as well. Hurricane Irene is coming to town with clenched fists and she's bringing the ruckus.

My question is: what makes a person stay during a hurricane?

Hurricanes are fun!

Now, when Hurricane Katrina hit six years ago, despite the fact that I'm located 175 miles from the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, I had to endure 100 mph wind gusts and torrential rains. 175 miles away and Katrina still ran me from my home! I can't imagine what the people who didn't evacuate that area had to endure, but I spent Labor Day weekend in Dallas while my power was out.

So, when I hear some nut being interviewed on The Weather Channel saying that he's going to "ride the storm out" only five miles from the beach, I scratch my head. Do they not watch TV? Do they not see the seriousness involved in their decision when the police department asks you to sign a waiver and list your next of kin? They can't come get you if something goes wrong because they're going to a shelter. I'm watching interviews with surfers who are talking about how cool the nine foot waves are instead of packing up and heading as far west as their wallets can take them. There have already been fatalities, including a person killed when a tree fell on their truck.

There's no such thing as "just a hurricane!" Category 1 or not, it's still a hurricane! Besides, a Category 1 storm can have winds between 74-95 mph on top of being capable of spawning multiple tornadoes and surges that causes extreme flooding. I know that The Weather Channel loves to sensationalize things and make every storm, "a storm we've never seen before," but at some point you have to rely on your own common sense and make a judgement.

They see me rollin'...  They hatin'....

So, do like these people above and get the heck out of town! Irene isn't playing! And when she's done bringing the pain to your property, the oil companies will bring the pain to the gas pumps! Believe that!

Coming to a gas station near you on Labor Day Weekend '11

Animal Planet Has Turned Into VH1

When I turned on my DirecTV receiver for the very first time in '97, one of my favorite channels was The Animal Planet. This channel took me back to my childhood and the days of "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom" and its host, Marlin Perkins. Mr. Perkins' show aired weekly and gave an up-close and personal look at animals. A lot of those close looks came via camera zoom which was completely understandable! He was the original Steve Irwin to my generation. His show not only taught you lessons on different animals, but he also would catch many of them to give you a better look. He did so while rarely putting himself or his assistants in danger.

Marlin Perkins

Fast-forward to 2011 and like everything else in the world, animal shows have gone extreme. They don't just teach about animals any more, they take the most dangerous, yet exciting approach to catching these animals. "Rattlesnake Republic," "Swamp Wars," "Dragon Catcher" to name a few. Okay, I made the last one up, but trust me, if dragons existed, some dude in a t-shirt, Umbro shorts and Crocs would catch one bare-handed.

These shows feature people who hunt dangerous animals for a living. Now, that doesn't sound so bad, but there's one thing to keep in mind: these people rarely use any special equipment to protect themselves from these animals! The late Steve Irwin used to run through the wilderness in khaki shorts looking for poisonous snakes. During Shark Week, some fool decided to take a swim (with no cage) with tiger sharks... at night. As if doing it during the day wasn't dangerous enough! And every 15 minutes, I see a commercial of some idiots sticking their hand into underwater logs and caves trying to pull out giant catfish.

"What do you do if you feel a diamond-shaped head and fangs?"

When will it stop? When someone gets eaten? If so, will they air it? I'm all for learning about animals and getting a closer look, but there's a reason they're called "wild animals:" they're unpredictable and potentially dangerous. So, when some 200 lb. catfish drowns one of those hand fishers or some moose, who has his mating session interrupted, decides to kick some trespasser to sleep, then don't say no one told you so.

Memo to extreme animal catchers: the next time you see a cheetah on the Serengeti and decide that you want a closer look, just stop and ask yourself, "What would Marlin Perkins do?"

He'd break out the zoom lens on his camera, that's what he'd do.

Get Fit With Bry Jensen!

Listen to internet radio with ThankQ on Blog Talk Radio

I was honored with the opportunity to interview the lovely Bry Jensen!  Bry is a freelance fitness model who is blowing up on the web!  She and I will discuss fitness tips and ways to stay motivated to achieve the body you dream to have!

http://www.facebook.com/Bry.Jensen.Fitness

Do Pageants Matter Any More?

Local pageants are better. (Jackson Hooters, 2006)

A few weeks ago, I was watching the 2011 Hooters Swimsuit Pageant (for blog research of course) and I just couldn't get with it. Let me explain what I mean and please keep in mind that this is from a "typical man's perspective:"

Seeing a woman in a bikini isn't that big of a deal any more. Especially when all of them look identical. In this day and age, why even waste time airing a show with women walking a runway in bikinis any more?

When I was growing up in the 80's, pageants were kind of cool. Back then, it was impossible to see a woman in a swimsuit unless you lived on the beach. Now, there is (insert bikini website name here).com to see all of the bikinis that you want. In fact, there are e-mail services that offer 'Bikini of the Day' e-mails to provide you with cleavage to start your day. Is there more to pageants than just swimsuits? Well... I guess there is. But, then again, I was watching the Hooters Pageant and I did tell you that this is a "typical man's perspective."

So, is there so much exposure to flesh on the internet that we're numb to it now? After all, the internet has become a personal body viewing device for those who choose that hobby. Or are there so many pageants that they don't mean anything any more? Hooters, Miss America, Mrs. America, Miss Teen Universe, Miss Universe, Miss World, Miss Hawaiian Tropic, etc.

I mean, I'm watching this pageant of women walking down the runway and it's not a big deal. Nothing new or impressive going on at all. Fake boobs, deep tans and hair weaves galore. There's no individuality any more. Each woman wants to be that big-boobed bronze doll with long hair and it's pretty boring. It's like watching the same woman walk down the aisle in a different outfit. The only time I really take notice is when I see a woman who actually didn't pay for her breasts.

Aside from race or hair color, do they really look different?

And for the love of God, please don't let any of them speak! Who's idea was it to ask a question to someone whose bra size is higher than her IQ? Okay, maybe that's hitting a bit below the belt, but let's be honest, not too many nuclear physicists are deep frying themselves in a tanning bed and then hopping out in four inch heels to solve an equation. I'm just saying.

Now, don't get me wrong. No man is going to turn one of these ladies down, but from the perspective of the pageant, it can't be easy to judge a competition where everyone looks the same. Well, everyone except the girl whose breasts are so far apart that you can place a book between them. I hope she kept the receipt for her surgery.

I guess the point I'm trying to make is: for me, it's been there, done that. It doesn't mean much any more to even want to tune in to one of these pageants unless your internet services are down. Here's another option for women watchers: the Lingerie Football League. It's a win-win! No question/answer session and no watching the same ol' ladies walk down a boring runway. It's football and females! 'Nuff said. There's even a new lingerie basketball league that recently started in L.A. if hoops are your thing.

Touchdown!

Hey, it's about time something replaced these boring pageants. Aside from the Miss Fitness USA pageant, that actually offers something different, there's just not a need to watch pageants any more... unless you can personally guarantee that I'll see something like this.

Do You Not Know Where You Are?

The Mrs. and I went to a restaurant tonight and despite viewing poor customer service and business mismanagement, we came across an very unusual sighting.

Well, let me rephrase: a very unusual sighting for August in Mississippi.

Behold! A sweater in August! (Click to zoom)

Dude, do you not know where you are? This is Mississippi! The humidity is always 95%+ and the temps are scorching even in the shade! The temperature at the time this photo was taken was roughly 92 degrees, so luckily for Mr. Sweater, it wasn't one of those 115 degree heat index days.

Still, to bust out in that sweater, with a shirt underneath, almost seems suicidal. His "pay date," as I heard someone refer to the lady with him, was wearing a skirt and was a complete contrast to Mr. Sweater.

I only wish I had the guts to ask the guy what he was thinking as I exited the restaurant.

Would You Go to Jail for Football Tickets?

Remember a few weeks ago when I asked you "Would You Go to Jail for a Hamburger?" Well, that was a true story about me avoiding the wrong place at the wrong time. The people in the above video didn't avoid their situation and it landed them in jail. At least a dozen of them, owing up to $75,000 in child support, were taken into custody after the sting. One of the arrested guys had several hundred dollars in his possession. Another asked after the arrest if he was still getting the tickets. LOL!

Serves them right! Whatever it takes to bring deadbeats to justice, I'm all for it. Kids don't ask to be here, but some "parents" treat them like accessories. There are too many people who wish they had kids or wish they had custody of their kids, yet these losers choose to not even try.

So, if it takes telling them they won tickets to the Super Bowl, front row seats to the Grammys or a private viewing session with Jenna Jameson of one of her movies, then so be it. Something needs to be done.



"Try on these not-so-kinky handcuffs."



Ew.

Okay, so I'm at my favorite local Mexican restaurant on yesterday. I love going to El Cazadores because the food is good and it helps me brush up on my Spanish. I took three years of Spanish and I was pretty good at one time, but now I'm reduced to reading the closed caption on Univision. To hear it spoken requires a lot of concentration on my part now which usually results in me replying, "Que?"

Anyhoo. I decided after arriving to step to the restroom to wash my hands. I excused myself from the table and told The Mrs. I'd return shortly. I get to the restroom and there are three people inside: one is a teen in one of the stalls, an employee is washing his hands and the other is a guy using the urinal. The restroom is so small, that I'd prefer to refer to it as a "restcloset."

So, after the employee finished washing his hands, I stepped to the sink. The man, who was done at the urinal, was waiting on me to finish washing my hands. The teen comes out of the stall and never even looked towards the sink. He bolted straight to the door as the guy and I stood in disbelief.

What is it with people who use the restroom and do not wash their hands? That is one of the nastiest things a person can do if you ask me. Just because your "particulars" are yours doesn't mean that they are clean. Besides that, you touched the door coming in, the stall door and the toilet handle yet you're germ-free?

So, of course, once I was done washing my hands, I left the restcloset and proceeded to walk to my table. As I'm walking to my table, my eyes are darting back and forth trying to locate Teen (raised by a) Wolf. Then I see him with his hands wrist-deep into a bowl of chips. His only concern at the time wasn't his filthy hands, but locating the salsa in which to dip his newly contaminated chips.

To quote Nicki Minaj: "Ew."

That's the only word that came to my mind. Did his family know that his hands were just a few minutes removed from his genitals and the handle he used to flush the toilet? If so, would they have cared? After all, they could all be a family of Neanderthals.

I don't know what goes through a person's mind when they avoid the simplest of tasks at the risk of being offensive. If you don't care about the germs you ingest yourself, then at least care about the people around you who may come in contact with you with a handshake. If I'm offending you, then good. Because it's about time the favor is returned to those too nasty to understand that washing your hands after visiting a restroom is expected, not optional.

C'mon, lady! Use then wash.

The Elite Tweet

I've been more into Twitter than Facebook over the past couple of months. Twitter is short, sweet and complete and gets right to the point. I like that. Now, I follow roughly 60 people and quite a few of them are bloggers. Some of them are very entertaining and even cause me to laugh out loud in public while reading their tweets. Others have very enlightening tweets that make you think. Give these eight a try and tell me what you think!

This award goes to the following people:

@jillsmo, @TheKrayze1, @ManWifeDog, @ALollipopWorld, @EmDottie, @BeauTAILful7, @maneatersblog and @meetjuliet!

Feel free to add this to your blog sites!

Follow them! You will not be disappointed!