If you want to have any idea about the eating habbits of the average American, I urge you to view the movie Supersize me. This is a link to the documentary/movie. It is unbelievable at first sight, it seems out of this world but we have been here for almost 3 months and we can only confirm what is in the movie. Story: 1 person tries a diet of only Mac Donalds for 30 days. During the movie they add a lot of extra health information and they add interviews. Hilarious!
On Friday my parents sent me a package using the Belgian postal service. I received that package on Wednesday, WaaW that's fast.
As you notice, cars are not allowed to be parked on the street at any time. 
The rent ratio is now around 27, it has always been around 14-18, so a price drop of 40% would be a return to the mean.
Lisa and Shanti before their jeep ride:
The Sonoran desert, view from a mountain we climbed with a jeep
We did this with that jeep, UP and DOWN the very steep mountain...
Naomi on a ATV/Quad part 01
Naomi on a ATV/Quad part 02
David shooting
Kids playing
the war in Iraq is "a nightmare with no end in sight". It is top news in Europe, and of course the objective part of the story is nowhere to be found in the US news media. He also said: that the US political leaders are "incompetent", "inept" and "derelict in the performance of their duty". 
We don't want to pay $62 for tv channels we hardly ever use. The Us media is really opinionated, so there is no point in looking at subjective news. We'll use the internet for our daily news information.
It will also benefit our family life and it forces Naomi to do something more educational.
In a poll of hiring managers a few weeks ago, Accountemps (www.accountemps.com), a worldwide accounting-and-finance staffing firm based in Menlo Park, Calif., asked them, "What is the wackiest or most unusual pitch you've heard from a job seeker about why he or she should get the job?"
Here are the top ten:
The job hunter...
1. "...told me to hire him because he was allergic to unemployment."
2. "... said that we should hire him because he would make a great addition to our softball team."
3. "...said he should get the job because he had already applied three times and he felt that it was now his turn to be hired."
4. "...said we had nice benefits, which was good because he was going to have to take a lot of leave in the coming year."
5. "... drafted a press release announcing that we had hired him."
6. "... explained that he had no relevant experience for the job he was interviewing for, but his friend did."
7. "... delivered his entire cover letter in the form of a rap song."
8. "...told me she wanted the position because she wanted to get away from working with people."
9. "...brought his mother to the interview and let her do all the talking."
10. "...when our company moved to Texas, gave us his resume in a ten-gallon hat."
What's the biggest mistake you ever saw someone make - or (gulp) maybe even made yourself - in a job interview? Post your thoughts on the Ask Annie blog!
source Yahoo!
"I find television very educational. Every time someone turns it on, I go in the other room and read a book." Groucho Marx
Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love. How on earth can you explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love? Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute. That's relativity.
Albert Einstein
“In the Central Valley community of Manteca, police have a new job: patrolling hundreds of foreclosed houses left empty and abandoned. They are half million dollar houses, often bought with nothing down, turned into suburban blight. Developers built more than 30,000 new homes in the last six years. But with the spike in adjustable mortgage rates the flood of buyers turned into a flood of defaults, 11,000 in the county in the past 18 months.”
But once again, no one is interested in the truth.
Monday the 8th of October I finally went to the local table tennis club: Phoenix TTC. I forgot my camera so I don't have any pics or video files.
I didn't have a t-shirt or appropriate shoes ... had to leave a lot of things in Belgium. I brought my trainer of TTC Temse with an advertisement of a local cultured stone company. I figured I could get a decent commission % from any sale to the phoenix area.
Monday and Wednesday are training days, from 7 pm - 10:20 pm.
It is a 50 mile drive, 45 minutes drive. Phoenix plays table tennis in a sports arena. I arrived at 7:30, there are 16 tables and about 40 players.
It works like this: everybody has a name card, when you want to play, you challenge a table. You put your card on the side of the table and you play the winner of that table. When there are a lot of people waiting, you have to leave the table after 2 straight wins. There is one "kings" table, the "leave after 2 winning games" doesn't apply there.
There is a diversity of players in the club, pleople from: China, Bulgaria, Roemenia, India, Iraq, ...
I played against an older player first, result 3-1 (+/- E0). It was 6 months since I played.
I got challenged right away, "everyone wants to play against the new guy". A player from Roemenia, (+/- D6) 3-1 and 3-1. I wanted to get some drinks, but I got stopped on the way out. Another challenge. It was a young talented player (+/-D0), later I found out on the website he is number 55 on the Arizona rankings. Result 3-1, live and let live, I am not going to win or insult players with a 3-0 the first day I am in a new club.. I saw 2 Chinese players on the "kings" table... auch, definitely B0-B2 or higher. After those games, I was totally tired and wanted to go home, but I ran into the perfect John/Hugo clone/clown LOL. He (+/- E2)stopped me and wanted to play me, he had tattoo's and looked like a SWAT or NAVY seal... I agreed. Result 3-1, but he wanted to play some more... oh my, result 1-3. We were the only ones left playing. No possibility to take a shower, so I drove back to my family. Home at 11 pm.
The one year membership is 160 dollars, I will try to go once every week. They already invited me to go to the Nationals in Las Vegas, go figure.
Dreamlot with Lake view:
Dreamlot, view from the water edge:
"I decided I won't wear that pin on my chest."
BARACK OBAMA
who says he doesn't wear an American flag on his lapel because it has become a substitute for "true patriotism" since Sept. 11
I talked to a realtor and thse sign spinners earn between $16-25 an hour. Most people just whiggle with the signs, but some are real artists.
This is a link to our dreamhome: Hacienda Renaissance, click on virtual tour on the left hand side below home plans. The "family room" is out of the ordinary with +5m vaulted ceilings.
It is very likely those steep price drops, reversions to the mean, will be seen in all other inflated real estate markets: Europe (especially Spain, UK), Turkey, Russia and China.
Trichet says US commitment to strong dollar is meaningful
Ron Paul questions Ben Bernanke
Ignorance is bliss sometimes.
Well, a picture of the reading material next to my bed that needs some reviewing. Naomi will go on camp during that week. She will be going to a YMCA facility (large swimming pool, grass fields, rock climbing, ...) in Ahwatukee. We' ll bring her in the morning and pick her up at about 5:00 pm. 
Oh my, the weather is wonderful here. We eat breakfast(6:45) and dinner(17:45) on our patio with a pool view. The weather was really incredible hot until the last week of September. The Summer, with +100 Fahrenheit days, is totally insane hot. There are no words to explain the feeling, you have to be here to understand 45 degrees Celsius in the shade and 10% humidity (vochtigheidsgraad) Temperature has now dropped to 90 Fahrenheit which is very nice. We have one more (work)day tomorrow and then we'll have a well deserved holiday period. An American employee only has about 2 weeks paid leave and a few extra days (president's day, ...)
This is too funny:
These lock boxes are used by realtors to show appartments. Looks like there are a lot of appartments for sale...
First one WITH English subtitles, second is the best thing he ever made (no subtitles, Dutch only)
SPY stock index chart
