Climb Pittsburgh!

This past weekend I agreed to participate in the First Climb Pittsburgh Event at Oxford Centre. It was a fantastic event, but let’s just say, I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

The American Lung Association held the event, which raised money for lung heath issue related to asthma, lung cancer and emphysema.

When I agreed to climb, Michelle Wright said it was 1,000 steps. At the time, I thought, sure I can do that, no problem. When I arrived Saturday morning, I was informed that it was a 45-flight climb! I guess I was thinking 100 steps; somehow I misplaced that third zero in my head. I went from confident to feeling like passing out! Especially when I found out people had been training for this climb for months. Talk about being unprepared!

When my time finally came to enter the stairwell, I entered with my iPod and JT playlist in hand and just as I anticipated I got to about the 10th floor and knew I was in BIG trouble. Then, to dampen my spirits even more, Andrew Stockey and my assistant news director, Roberta both passed me! Of course, they had to act like it was such a breeze. Honestly, I just wanted to trip them (childish, I know)!

Needless to say, I finished! It was a great event and I plan on participating again next year, but the competition is on!!!! You hear that Andrew and Roberta! I’m taking the training course in order to kick butt next year. Here I was thinking I’m in pretty good shape, only to be smacked across the face with reality. Talk about motivation!

You can get more information about Climb Pittsburgh and check out additional pictures just click here.

International Travel Sites

You know you only live once! So if your vacations seem to be sticking to US soil, maybe it’s time you take a global adventure. Grab that passport and book an international vacation using these $$$ saving sites.

For international travel, turn to Mobissimo.com This site searches 140 different travel agencies, travel consolidators, major airlines and low-cost carriers to come up with one pretty long list of results. Mobissimo’s mission is to improve the way people seek and discover travel information.
LateRooms.com emphasizes last-minute bargains at hotels abroad. The site provides more than 500,000 hotel deals across the UK and Worldwide.

CheapInternationalFlights.net has discount airfares from major US and international airline carriers to popular destinations worldwide. Their mission is to offer the cheapest international airfares available online. The “Open Jaw” option lets you book multiple stops… or fly into one city and return from another with ground transportation in between.

AirBrokers.com is an international travel site that sells discount tickets to individuals and travel agencies, whether it’s for business, vacation or adventure.

And when traveling internationally consider an alternative to hotels. HomeAway.com is the world’s most complete marketplace of vacation rental properties, with over 60,000 vacation rental homes, condos, guesthouses, cottages, and cabins in over 45 different countries spanning the globe! Obviously, before venturing out into the world, you’ll need a passport!

For me, I love international travel. I am fascinated with other cultures, landscapes and people. But when I talk about international travel, I’m not talking about going to the Bahamas for an all-inclusive week vacation. Go global, visit Asia, Africa, South America, Australia and Europe. Life is too short to stick to the U.S.!

Talking Translator

Anyone who has traveled internationally knows that the language barrier can be a major headache at times. Well, for your next trip, why not pick up this pocket-size talking translator?

It’s capable of translating 27,000 useful phrases and 240,000 words into 12 different languages including: English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, Hebrew, Greek, Russian, Japanese, Chinese and Korean.

Using the device, you can search by words or phrases. You can see the translations on screen and the device will also speak the word or phrase in the language of your choice. I think this is an incredible little gadget to have with you on your next international trip. I love the fact that you can see the different language on the screen. If worst comes to worst and you can’t pronounce something, just show the device to the person you’re asking so they can read it and answer your question. I would have loved to have the Lingo gadget on my Semester at Sea trip. I traveled to many different countries where the language barrier was, at times, very difficult. I can’t tell you how having this device in my pocket would have made my life so much easier.

The only downside is that the audio isn’t the best.
You’ll find the Lingo Voyager II talking translator at HammacherSchlemmer.com for $200.

Kid-Friendly All-In-One Portable Device

This handheld device isn’t your average portable DVD player. It also lets you jam out to your favorite CDs. But the best part about this portable device is that it comes with 12 built-in classic Sega video games.

You can choose from games like Sonic Triple Trouble, Sonic Blast, Super Columns and Astro Warriors, just to name a few.

This portable device has two stereo speakers and comes with headphones. You’ll also get a remote control, AC adapter, DC car adapter, plus AV cables in order to connect to your TV.

The only problem I found with this device is that the battery pack at times is difficult to click on and can come unattached easily.

The Coby V-zon will cost you $160 and you can purchase it at Hammacher Schlemmer.com. I think this is a great portable media center for kids. I forgot how addicting those Sega Sonic games can be!!!! Love it….

Get Paid for Blogging

Attention bloggers!

Some of you avid bloggers out there may already know this, but for those of you that are still in the dark, did you know you can make money off that blog you’re writing?

One of those sites is PayPerPost.com. On this site you’ll find lists of companies that offer money to talk about their products or services in a blog. Just create an account in order to search the site’s virtual bulletin board of advertisers. Some companies are looking for bloggers to review their website and others are just looking for shout outs. PayPerPost.com advertisers will usually shell out $5-$50 per post, but your blog must meet the ads requirements.

ReviewMe.com works a little differently. On this site advertisers pick the blogs they want their products to be reviewed on and will pay anywhere between $30-$250.

You won’t get rich using these sites. But if you are an avid blogger, it may just add a little weight to your wallet, and who couldn’t use a little extra cash?

YouTube Goes Political

The 2008 presidential election is already heating up and the competition is on! Political campaign trails are going to be bypassing traditional media outlets more and more, and heading straight for the wonderful thing we call the Internet.

YouTube has jumped on the political bandwagon early. In fact, the video sharing site has launched a channel dedicated to political videos.

Now political candidates can showcase their own videos to educate voters. The 2008 presidential candidates are all on board already.

With the explosion of online video, candidates are going to have to be aware of their every move. Anyone could be recording them, by camera or cell phone. That means YouTube can show candidates at their best…and sometimes their worst.

What is great about YouTube is that instead of spending millions of dollars on TV ads, YouTube is free! Plus, it’s reaching a new audience of young adults.

MP3 Players Under $50

Looking for a decent pocket size MP3 player, but don’t want it to dig into that back pocket? Well, believe it or not there are some pretty decent MP3 players out there for under $50! They are certainly good enough for someone leaping into the digital audio world.

The SanDisk Sansa m230 includes FM tuner and voice recorder, plus on-the-go playlists. It’s also compatible with audiobooks and subscription-based music.
You’ll get up to19 hours of continuous playback using just one AAA Battery.
$49.99.

The Sony Walkman Bean NW-E305 has a built in retractable USB connector plus an FM tuner. The problem with this player is you can only use this device with the Sony Connect music store.
$49.99.

The iRock 930 MP3ez is the cheapest. It’ll run you just $20!
This player only supports MP3 files and you won’t find any special features, but what do you expect for only $20? This MP3 player is a perfect way to launch your kid into the digital audio world.

You’ll find more information on each of these MP3 players, plus a list of others, at Cnet.com.

Become an M&M

If you could be an M&M, which color would you be?
Well, now instead of snacking on those M&Ms, you can actually become one at becomeanmm.com
Using the site you can create an M being in your own likeness.
Choose the body type, color, arms and legs, eyes, eyebrows and mouth.
You can even choose the hair style and color and pick out your shoes.
Finally, make your M being reflect you through the accessories section.
If you’ve got a couple minutes to kill or are looking for something to do with the kids, becoming an M&M couldn’t be more fun! Check out my video story!

What’s For Dinner?

It’s a question most of us face each and every day of our lives. Cookbooks work great, but you always end up with odds and ends in your fridge, cupboard or pantry.

That’s where Snacksby.com comes into play. Just tell the site what ingredients you’ve got and it’ll act like a matchmaker to try and tell you what you can make!

In a snap, you have a list of meals to choose from that will utilize what you have in your kitchen.

If you like a recipe, save it to your recipe box or print it! You can even make a shopping list and store all the items you currently have in your pantry.

Another similar site is RecipeMatcher.com. This is a user generated recipe site. It pretty much works the same way. Just enter what you have in your kitchen and it will suggest recipes.

RecipeMatcher.com will even go as far as to suggest close matches to your list and tell you what
else you need for a complete meal. Just add what you’ll need to a printable grocery list.