My sister, Staci, asked me to help her look for a service to publish her blog as a book. Coincidentally, I have been interested for some time in having a hard copy backup of the blogs I maintain (for when WWIII breaks out and we are back gathering berries for our food).

Staci uses Blogger. I use Wordpress. I figured that blog publishing services would be a sort of one-size-fits-all proposition. Turns out, not so much.

Below are the services I found:

1.  Blurb is supposedly the gold standard for converting blogs to books. When I visited the site, however, the "slurping" algorithms are broken for Blogger and Wordpress.  It still works for other blog platforms, such as TypePad and LiveJournal. To create a book, you have to install their BookSmart client to install on your computer. Because I run Wordpress blogs, however, I was unable to see functionality and comment on layouts, etc.

This site is good for most run-of-the-mill bloggers who are not computer geniuses, the lack of Blogger/Wordpress functionality is problematic because most run-of-the-mill bloggers use either Blogger or Wordpress. They say this will eventually be fixed. It better be if they want to stay in business.

2.  A good option for Blogger, however, is SharedBook . All you have to do is put your blog address into the form on the main SharedBook webpage, tell it whether you want the whole blog or a certain time period. It then creates a book for you and tells you how much dough you need to cough up to get the book. Three limitations I saw are (1) it will not print a book with an excess of 350 pictures 500 pictures, which means that picture blogs will need to be broken up into smaller periods of time;  (2) it forces comments to be printed; (3) there are no options for formatting to make the book really snazzy like the other sites. That said, the default layout was great and I appreciated the simplicity of the site. You literally will have your book ready to preview and order in two minutes.

SharedBook didn’t work for my Wordpress blogs.

Update

Carolyn from SharedBook weighed in. Because I don’t really solicit comments on this blog, which means readers are unlikely to see her comment, I copy her comment below.

Hi. Just wanted you to know that SharedBook has lifted the 350 picture max and expanded to 500 the number of photos that can automatically be loaded. Also, you can remove all or some portion of the comments by personalizing your Blog2Print book (you can also add more photos).

It looks like that in addition to super ease of use of SharedBook and great default layout, you are also likely to have a hands on experience with the operators if any issues need to be resolved. Sometimes that alone is worth using a service.

3. Lulu . This is for real die-hards. It really isn’t a blog book printing site, but has an amazing array of utilities for printing books from cookbooks, to comic books, to wedding books, to text books. If you want to sell your content, this is place to do it, but creation of a book here will take some elbow grease because there is no automated feature for blogs. I.e., there will be a lot of copying, pasting, and uploading. Pictures are uploaded using their slick Lulu Studio that is able to import from Flickr or Photobucket. Lulu is an ideal site for aspiring professional photographers to make proof books or demo books.

Subject: The Best Christmas of my Life
Author Unknown

Pa never had much compassion for the lazy or those who squandered their means and then never had enough for the necessities. But for those who were genuinely in need, his heart was as big as all outdoors. It was from him that I learned the greatest joy in life comes from giving, not from receiving.

It was Christmas Eve 1921. I was fifteen years old and feeling like the world had caved in on me because there just hadn’t been enough money to buy me the rifle that I’d wanted so bad that year for Christmas. We did the chores early that night for some reason. I just figured Pa wanted a little extra time so we could read in the Bible. I was still feeling sorry for myself and, to be honest, I wasn’t in much of a mood to read scriptures. But Pa didn’t get the Bible, instead he bundled up and went outside. Soon Pa came back in. It was a cold clear night out and there was ice in his beard.

"Come on, Matt," he said. "Bundle up good, it’s cold out tonight." I was really upset then. Not only wasn’t I getting the rifle for Christmas, now Pa was dragging me out in the cold, and for no earthly reason that I could see. I knew Pa was not very patient at one dragging one’s feet when he’d told them to do something, so I got up and put my boots back on and got my cap, coat, and mittens. Ma gave me a mysterious smile as I opened the door to leave the house. Something was up, but I didn’t know what. Outside, I became even more dismayed. There in front of the house was the work team, already hitched to the big sled. Whatever it was we were going to do wasn’t going to be a short, quick little job. I could tell. We never hitched up the big sled unless we were going to haul a big load. Pa was already up on the seat, reins in hand. I reluctantly climbed up beside him.
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A few weeks ago, we had a lesson in church about managing personal finances for an economic downturn. At lot of what we do is based on where we are in our lives. Obviously, some of these points are focused to Latter-Day Saint culture, but they should be applicable across the board to people of all faiths and lacks-of-faiths.

My personal belief is that the six months to one year time table grossly underestimates what we are going to go through over the next eight to ten years, although I believe we are going to see some improvements in the markets in six months to a year, followed by a major slow down in the stock market (perhaps down to ~5,000 for the Dow). I am a follower of demographic forecaster Harry Dent — see his site for more information.)

The bottom line, irrespective of what happens in the future, is to be prepared. The following are the tips given at church with my own comments in parens.

For every age plan–

1. Make tithes and offerings; (obviously for the Latter-Day Saints — irrespective of the economy, our first obligation in to our Heavenly Father; Blessings don’t come until after the trial of faith.)
2. Live within a budget; (this is a tough one, but applicable to all income levels.)
3. Keep some liquidity: (a) cash at home for emergencies; (b) cash in bank for immediate access; (here in California, we are encouraged to have cash on hand — if and when the need arises, we can’t expect the banks to be restocking ATM’s with cash, which may be necessary to buy necessities.)
4. Think through plan for what next, where, and how while remaining flexible;
5. Reduce or restructure debt (pay down, even pay off your mortgage); and
6. Save regularly (a) for the next big expense–house, braces, college, retirement; and (b) the maximum allowed for retirement in IRA and 401k. (Saving is the key to preparation — save for retirement, save for expenses.)
   

Some “now” thoughts–

1. Inflation—not for a while; deflation is likely for next six months; keep eyes open for “buys ” (car, house, TV, etc.); (during down economic times, there are bargains to be found if you have the cash set aside; house prices are likely to fall by 1/2 their 2005 values by 2010-2011.)
2. Jobs—going to get tougher next six months; examine options for alternative employers or job types; discretely float "feelers ;" (the best way to deal with being laid-off is to have a job offer in your back pocket.)
3. Cash—build reserves so that you have at least 6 month cash out flow saved (the minimum time to find another job); shop CD’s online; (be wary of online CD’s to buy only from reputable sources; nevertheless, online will save costs.)
4. Stock market—Off 35+% has happened before; if not yet sold, probably best to stay put; but diversify , <10% any company/industry; US only; (not sure I agree in principle with this as I think the market is going to get much worse in the years to come; that said diversification in both industry and holdings is important–everybody who got killed by bank stocks thought they were safe. Lesson: there is no safe enough to stock right now to have all the eggs in one basket.)
5. Interest rates—down for next year; look at longer maturities for yield (5-8 years); if higher tax bracket, look at tax exempt bonds ;
6. Housing prices—down for next 9 months; probably not return to prior levels for four plus (4+) years; if not yet sold, probably best to stay put ; (I think this prediction is wrong. I think house prices in California are going to drop at least another 20%-30%, and thereafter will slowly appreciate slightly ahead of inflation. In other words, the bubble is over. Get used to lower house values.)
7. Mortgage—if you have 30 yr fixed below 5.25%, hold;  if adjustable or fixed above 5.5%, keep eye open to refinance if you have 20+% equity; if under water, push-push for workout ; (as was stressed, if you are under water on your mortgage, call up your lender and ask to renegotiate. If you strike out with the first person you talk to, talk to somebody else until somebody works with you.)
8. Investments–balance stocks and fixed income so that fixed income equals age ; invest in stocks only what you can earn back;
9. Credit quality—there are no guarantees but keep in investment grade or higher level stock ratings range;  any investment promising returns over 3% above ten year treasuries should be carefully examined; and
10. Self—invest in your self through expansion or improved productivity of business or more training/education.

Use resources–

1. Read newspapers’ financial page and magazines, especially Money Magazine;
2. Visit web sites (a) http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/rates/index.html ; (b) http://www.providentliving.org/channel/1,11677,1709-1,00.htm ;
3. Ask advice and opinions of those who are ahead of you on the age profile.

The bottom line when all is said and done is not to panic, but prepare for hard times.

This came as an email forward, but pretty much sums up my feelings regarding lights on the house.

His wife had been on his case to get the Christmas lights up for a couple of weeks.

They are up now and for some reason she will not talk to him – go figure.

Prop. 8, just won’t go away. I had to post this quote because I find it funny every time nonreligious people try to speak religious-speak.

"The campaign they funded was one of lies and deceit, clearly in violation of the religious tenet of “thou shalt not lie. ”

Oh yes, the eleventh commandment. Probably related to "thou shalt not bear false witness."

One of the many drafts that for some reason never got published (I think because I needed to go back and find the goldfish link). I am glad the election is over, but post election thoughts still linger.

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Today, I read yet another article on the registration of fraudulent voters. This time, the registrant was a dead goldfish in Illinois. Which begs the question, how and why did the goldfish get registered.

Originally, the only people eligible to vote in the United States were land owners. In other words, you got to vote if you could show title to a parcel of land. Then blacks got the right to vote, followed by woman’s suffrage, which are both positive societal advances.

Voting is a privilege that every citizen of our country enjoys. But why do we need groups running around registering everybody? If a person wants to vote, they ought to figure out how to get themselves registered and do it of their own volition?

Critics might argue that certain segments of the population don’t feel comfortable dealing with the government and feel they will be discriminated against. Fair enough, but I can’t alter how these people feel when dealing with the government. (Shoot, I don’t know anybody who enjoys dealing with the DMV.) Perhaps there are other similar arguments.

Nonetheless, if a person wants to vote, that person should take the initiative to get themselves registered. Period. No ACORN. No other groups reaching out to register these folks. One vote per person, and each person takes it upon themselves to vote.

Moreover, each person, in registering to vote, should have to show some sort of identification. Again, critics might argue that some people don’t have identification and don’t feel comfortable going to get it. To which I answer: then that person shouldn’t be allowed to vote. Period.

Our system must have safeguards built into it to ensure that each person get one and only one vote. So far, this election cycle shows that the absence of safeguards is fertile soil for gross abuse and voter fraud. On balance, what is worse: allowing hundreds of thousands of false registrations or requiring a extremely small portion of the population, who don’t have picture identification, to get identification before they vote?

If ACORN et al. wants to be useful, I propose that rather than register people to vote, which obviously they cannot do ethically, they help these people get their picture identification and then give them detailed instructions on how to get themselves registered to vote. The so-called "disinfranchised" then get their ID’s and get to cast their ballots.

The only people who lose in this situation are Mickey Mouse, dead goldfish, and the Dallas Cowboys.

A buddy and I rode Santiago Oaks for the first time since my accident there four months ago. I must admit I had a little fear after climbing the B’s and starting the decent, which translated into an endo (up and over the handle bar) on a sandy slope thanks to much too much front break. Sometimes when mountain biking, you have to let it roll and hit the breaks in a safe location. Steep, sandy slopes don’t qualify.

In the sections of drops where I wrecked, I rolled them (meaning I carried no speed into them and rolled down them weight back and front tire always on the ground) rather than dropping them with speed. It was nice to get through the section. Weirdly, when I hit the last drop where I am sure I wrecked (still have post concussion amnesia), I was absolutely certain it was the place like a tickling of a memory once remembered, but now forgotten.

In an effort to avoid further wrecks, it was my first ride with my All Mountain Post (AMP) seat dropper. Getting one’s seat out of the way makes a huge difference in getting one’s weight back and avoiding endos. Especially on XC bikes.  Some pics of my new seat dropper (the dark in the top right and lower left are thanks to not getting the shutter cover fully open.)

Above: Full upright position. The hardware is relative small (where the wire goes into the seatpost). I used white trash zip ties to affix to my frame, but will replace with wire mounts once I am sure I like where it is located. I really need an extra six inches of wire.

Above: Down 1"

Above: all the way down (down 4").

Above: closeup of down all four inches.

Above: Closeup of it down of it fully up.

The seatpost is actuated with the blurry level over my shifters on the top of the bar.

Closeup version from the other angle of the actuating lever. The only problem with the lever, the wire blocks the mount point for my left side light. Not a big deal in the summer, but during the dark months I need those lights for night riding…

So far, it works pretty well. Time will tell whether I really like or mostly like it.

I just can’t stop reading about the response of the opponents of Prop. 8. And I find a certain amount of amusement with the picketing, white substances, and all the other stunts these opponents are pulling against the Mormons and other religions that supported Proposition 8.

Don’t these people have jobs?

From the LA Times :

Jim Key, a spokesman for the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center, said barbs by gay marriage activists were directed at church leadership, not individual Mormons.

"We’re making a statement that no one’s religious beliefs should be used to deny fundamental rights to others," he said.

My response to this comment:

1. Since when is gay marriage a fundamental right? (Which, by the way, is a semantics trick on the part of gay rights advocates to imply that gay marriages is a type of right that gets the highest form of legal scrutiny when faced with a statute that tends to restrain the right–a compelling state interest. In practice, meeting the compelling state interest standard is nearly impossible.) As of today, gay marriage isn’t even a right, let alone a fundamental right.

2. What about a person’s fundamental right to practice their religion (actually, if I remember correctly, free exercise of religion is not a fundamental right any longer thanks the the U.S. Supreme Court)? Where were the "fundamental rights" police when doctors were being threatened with revocation of their licenses because their religious beliefs don’t accommodate artificial insemination of lesbians?

Those in favor of prop. 8 should counter to stalemate: "We’re making a statement that no one’s sexual orientation should be used to deny fundamental rights to others."

Religious freedom, unlike gay marriage, is actually a right granted to the people in the Bill of Rights. How does gay marriage, which isn’t a legal right at all, therefore trump free exercise of religion?

3. A person’s religious beliefs forms part of their value set, which they have every right to voice in a democratic process. Just like the anti-religious values gay rights advocates vote for. What makes their values better than my values? Why should only their values be voiced in the democratic process?

Because gay rights advocates don’t agree with religion?

This is yet another example of elitism at its finest. The "dumb" people shouldn’t be allowed to vote (i.e., they shouldn’t cast a vote reflecting their religious values). Yet again the attitude of "you’re too stupid to vote" rears its ugly head. Even worse, stupid is defined by whether you agree or disagree with Mr. Key’s point of view.

I was initially surprised that nobody in the gay community seemed concerned about judges overturning the voice of the people. But as I have watched the campaign unfold, I see now that gay rights activists have no interest in democracy, which is why they continue to protest and act like buffoons.

They are for an autocracy, where they are in charge. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that they are all for court intervention once again, even now that the people have spoken twice.

Law school warps your mind in to an endless debate about where to draw lines. So I put this out to the gay community:

• Would gay rights advocates support a minority of murderers who believe they have a "fundamental right to kill people" and are therefore being discriminated against by people whose morals dictate that murder is wrong?
• Would it be wrong for those who believe murder is immoral to seek passage of laws to outlaw murder in their society if they believe it to be wrong?
• Would seeking passage of anti-murder laws amount to "hate" of murderers?

I can see the counter argument: murder affects the rights of another person, whereas gay marriage does not affect the rights of anybody but the gay couple.

In actual practice, however, gay marriage has been shown to affect the rights of parents to dictate the values their children are taught in school, the rights of doctors to refuse to artificially inseminate lesbian couples based on contrary religious values, and the rights of religious based adoption agencies to refuse adopting to homosexual parents based on the church’s religiously based opposition to homosexuality.

The end result is the same. Murder impinges on the right of the killed. Gay marriage impinges on the free exercise of religion and on the right of parents to choose what values their children are taught.

These are important rights to religious folks and parents, and must be part of the equation.

** Aside: I can’t help but wonder if gay marriage would come out differently if (1) gays would agree with notification to parents of all gay rights materials distributed and taught in schools and allow parents to remove their children when objectionable values were discussed (or at least be notified and have the opportunity to instill different values to their children, (2) leave small children out of the equation and, if gay rights must be discussed, do it at an age-appropriate level where a child is mature enough to have the sexuality discussion, and (3) allow for religious based values to be respected when those with religious values and gay rights come into direct conflict.

It has been telling to watch the aftermath of the passage of prop. 8 in California. Rather than revel in the democratic process, the prop. 8 opponents are having a cow. Well, not really. They can’t have progeny, even cows. In the aftermath of prop. 8, gay rights advocates have shown their poker hand when they should have folded and tucked their cards back into the deck to fight again another day.

I mentioned in a previous post that I thought the real motivation of gay-rights was, in part, anti-religion sentiment on the part of gays. It turns out I am correct. Aside from targeting the Mormon temples (which so far as I can tell has produced as collective "ehh!" from the church) and Catholic churches, this story of an attack of a cross bearing elderly lady in Palm Springs caught my eye.

What was planned as a peaceful candlelight service in front of City Hall took a hostile turn when the crowd began pushing and a cross was torn from Burgess’ arms. The cross ended up in pieces on the ground. [After being trampled by angry gay-rights activists)

Somebody apparently caught it on video as well, which shows the gay rights advocates a pitchfork and torch away from burning a church down.

After the election, the LA Times produced a photo essay of the protest at the Mormon temple in Westwood. Many of the signs in the pictures had some sort of "Hate" ("H8") message, as if people in favor of prop. 8 hate them. (My favorite: "Mormon Hate Out of My State.")

The attacks on religion cause me to ask, who is hating whom?

Most of the prop. 8 supporters were very clear to communicate that the issue to them was one of morality and ideology rather than hatred. There is a difference. People can have a set of values, and even disapprove of choices made, and still offer love and support to the same person making the choices. This isn’t hate — it is using the democratic process to mold society in an image of what majority considers mainstream and right. This is precisely the reason for having democracy, so that no one person (e.g., a king or judge) or a minority group can dictate to the majority the morals of their society. The majority of Californians decided (twice) that gay marriage should not be recognized. Prop. 8 supporters articulated a number of reasons for their support, most of which focused on the ancillary effects of gay marriage for children and free practice of religion, and none of which that were based on hatred of gays as people.

The only haters in all of this are the gays. They are free to disagree, assemble outside churches and temples (provided they do not interfere with the free exercise of worship), but attacks on religious people and tearing crosses, listing those who donated to prop. 8 and encouraging gay rights supporters to do what is in their power to make life difficult for there donors, causing people to be fired from their jobs, staging loud and obnoxious demonstrations during worship services, and the general vitriol observed in these protests against Mormons (this one is really classy ), Catholics, and other supporters of prop. 8. This is hatred. Hatred of religion, morality, and more generally the people themselves that share in these values.

Hate? In a prior post I mentioned that I have a gay colleague. Over the last two months, he has gone from friendly to not talking to me. As our path’s don’t often cross, I didn’t read too much into it, even when friendly greetings from me to the gay colleague were ignored as recently as two weeks ago. That is until another Mormon colleague of mine who works more closely with him came into my office yesterday and made the same observation.

Hatred? By who?