Going To California

Wow, how nice! Their red carpet for the Meatsweats was very different than in Denver:


And look who I ran into at DIA. I guess the governent got to him too because he looks not too enthused at this whole Meatsweats-me thing:



Be that as it might, I get there.


At 11:30PM. I knew that I was flying back at 8:00PM tomorrow after the competition was over at about 1:00. I went by the Frontier desk to see if there were any earlier flights. Sweet, there is one at 4:15PM. No problem. Eat. Get back. Be on the way at 4:15PM. Yeah, remember that.

Got the car. Got a little lost trying to find the hotel. For the third time, another shout out to The Hangman. Free stay at the Days Inn. Make that, free stay at the Days Inn in a King mini-suite. Thanks, Hangman! That's good stuff!

Saturday morning. Didn't have any idea who'd be at the contest. Rich, sure. Maybe Toro. Maybe Kevin Ross. Maybe Erb. Badlands performing, no? Maybe Joey would make an appearance since he lives nearby? Castellano? Nerz?

Turns out - yes, no, no, yes, no, yes, no, yes.

Ryan Nerz working the crowd.

Not too many people there in the beginning, but Ryan worked it very well and the crowd of 200 or so got into the scene and had a good time. Here's a short video of him on stage. Joey showing up:


Ryan brought him up on stage for a few words:


The entrants list was full, but the eater turnout was something less than expected. Rich, Erbivore, me. Kevin Ross and Toro were on the list but not there. Most local guys did not show up either. But two did: Bert Chi and Jake True. Readers of eatfeats.com might know Jake as "Jake from SF". It's good to put a face to the name. Hopefully both guys will enter more competitions - good guys.



Slated to eat: Rich, Erb, me, Bert, Jake. One guy volunteers. And then Ryan gets another guy. So 7. That's weird, but it worked.

On to the eating. Many of you might have heard of the dogs. The IFOCE termed them "jumbo dogs". And they were:



Here's a shot of my plates before the eating.


The dogs were skinless, definitely fatter than the "normal" Nathan's contest dogs. But also a little shorter. I've heard "5 of these are like 8 of the other" and "3.2 ounces" and some other things, but whatever. But I do know that on GO I took a bite of 1/3 of the dog and tried to swallow it without chewing as I do with the normal Nathan's. Big mistake.

It lodges. I swig some water to get it down. Yeah, that's no help as I cough the water back up since it can't go down. I turn, cough out the dog, Ryan asks if I'm alright, I make the mental note to chew more, and on it goes. Chew more? Shit.


Aren't I past this? I had not chomped my tongue since the Nathan's qualifiers last year. Here we go again!


These photos were after the contest. When it happened I felt it for sure. It wasn't the pain but the thought of eating hot dogs with some special ketchup that got me. Ketchup on hot dogs? No! But it was quite delicious actually.

The eating continued and at the end:

1. Rich LeFevre, 21 jumbo dogs (equivalent to 34 HDB)
2. Jason "Erbivore" Erb 9 jumbo dogs (equivalent to 16 HDB)
3. Andrew "Skinnyboy" Lane, 8 jumbo dogs (equivalent to 14 HDB)

IFOCE.com reported these results.

After the contest I tended to the tongue:



These photos were taken at the airport a couple hours later so the blood stains looked much less impressive than they were right after the eating.

On the way back to San Jose I was going to stop at La Costena and get one of their legendary burritos, but with the tongue flappage I knew salsa and heat would just KILL, so I got soft-serve:


Had to get to the airport for that 4:15 flight, right? I failed to see the "MON. WED. FRI." part. So I returned the car and was at the airport WAAAYYYY too early. And that sucked because to a tech guy I am in our Mecca right now. Silicon Valley. Ebay. Apple. HP. Would have been much to see. Time to kill at the airport:




Doh, I have the pack on...


Anyway,

Daly City Money

Daly City Results

Rich 21
Erb 9
Me 8
Ross
Toro
Jake 6
Bert 7
Wong 5
Another 5

Daly City

Oops...They got the wrong dogs..

Bacon Cheeseburger, Really!

I saw this on ahamburgertoday. You like burgers? You like bacon even more? Follow along..

CreditCardSearchEngine.com

Is anyone looking for some Credit Cards? If you are, great! If you are not, why not! Get some more credit cards and run up your credit card debt! It is the American thing to do! Check out CreditCardSearchEngine.com, by far the best site to compare cards and apply for cards. Any kind: low interest credit cards, airline miles credit cards, business credit cards, walnut nuts, peanut nuts, anything!

There are a dizzying array of cards out there and available to anyone so anyone looking for a credit card should compare the choices. That is where the website comes in. You can choose the category, view the cards available, compare them, and even submit credit card applications right there in one spot. Cool. And the site offers something for everyone. If you have good credit, then take your pick of the choices. If you have bad credit, then the site offers cards that can help you rebuild your credit.

I am looking around for a good card for balance transfers. I can go to the site, make my selection, and see the many optimal balance transfer cards available to me. Quick! Easy! You should check it out to see what it can do for you!

Nathan's Finals

So the line up for the Nathan's finals on July 4th is just about set. It is looking really strong and maybe one of the best competitions in the history of these contests. Be sure to tune in to ESPN on 7/4 at 10am mountain time. Of course the big story is Kobayashi and Joey, but there are 18 other eaters!

Check It: Krillion

Summer is here. You just might need to go buy a new refrigerator. When it is hot most refrigerators can go bad because they have to work so much harder to keep food cold. The compressor can go out just like in air conditioners. And for many people the cost to repair the compressor is high enough to just buy a new one. If you are like most consumers you will do the bulk of your reseach online but buy from a local retailer. Trying to find a local retailer who can match what is found on the web can be tough.

But no matter what you need – some Amana Refrigerators, a Hotpoint stove, a GE microwave – you can find the best deal with Krillion. Check them out before you go!

The Police Are Back!

You may know The Police got back together this year for a reunion world tour. Obviously it is for the money, but let me tell you that we saw them on night two of their tour stop in Denver and they sounded phenomenal. They played a super main set. Then they came back for an encore. Then another. Then another. Then another. We were blown away! Great show!

Their web presence is spectacular. They have an Eyewonder banner that looks just great. And it is fun! But also their website is great: videos, jukebox, tour notes, contests, send to friend functions, and ringtones. Those are a lot of features. And it is all on their site so have a look.

The Police put out a new CD on June 5th. It is great! On this Police Cd are the best songs they put out. They were not together that long really, but what a legacy! And this CD captures it all! You should give it a listen and think about buying it! Most albums are mostly good songs and a few great ones. And The Police were the same way. But they also had some albums that had mostly great ones and a few good ones. This CD is their best, so you know you will not be disappointed. See their site. Buy the CD.

Please click on this to go and view an awesome banner where you can watch The Police's videos, listen to tracks from The Police's new 2 cd hits collection, enter to win a trip to NYC to see The Police in concert and even view details about their current world tour.

Cha-ching?

So I have a deal with an artist friend that I maintain his web presence in exchange for art kick-backs. Quid pro quo. Yes or no? [pause] Yes or no, Clarice? Anyway, his name is Paul Potts. We bought paulpotts.com a year or so ago. Some of you may have heard about the guy in England who won their talent contest reality show. His name? Paul Potts. So for a few days we've been fielding unsolicited offers to buy paulpotts.com! Sure, you can get variations but paulpotts.com is the one that's in demand! And it's ours! But being the whores we are, maybe we'll put it on eBay...

Moving?

Are you relocating and in need of a Cheap Moving Company? Look no further than Service Network because they have compiled a very reputable and thorough list of member movers who will move you quickly, affordably, and meeting the highest standards. You no doubt know how hard it can be to find good movers. Some movers are here one day and gone the next. The application process for the movers is not easy so you can be sure the movers on the list are of the highest quality. They have assisted over 50,000 people this year alone so you know the must be good! So check out what they can do for you.

Electrical

Hey people, when you have to troubleshoot an electrical problem please make sure you turn off the power to the circuit. Not with a switch if it is on one but turn it off at the main circuit box. Believe me. Do not find out the hard way like I did, jeez.

Handy

So right now I am troubleshooting an electrical problem. This outlet is acting funny. The top half is dead, so that is that. But the bottom half seems OK with some things but dead with others. Hmm. Are our garbage disposal and dishwasher shorted out? Hmmm. What can it be? I will keep you informed.

360 Feedback

There are many facets to finding the right people for a certain job. Businesses have it tough because they need to find many people. An employee is much more than someone who can answer some questions and take tests. More important is how they interact with other staff and customers. It can be tough for employers to spend all the time they need to spend to find quality people. That is were Appraisal360 comes in. Not only do they help find employees, they can also gather information on current employees. From the 360 degree feedback system everybody involved can learn so much about them and be better employees and better candidates. Check it out.

RATM

I am in the process of downloading the Rage Against the Machine show from the Coachella Festival earlier this spring in California. There is some point when Zack goes off on the current administration. Some comparison to war criminals or something. Hang on and I will let you know what I find.

Pancakes Update

I have been able to find out some more info about the all-you-can-eat pancakes. It is going down at Village Inn through the end of July! That is a lot of time to get on this. Once. Twice. More. More later but until then get your pancake eating belly ready! Later on.

Check It: Travel Insurance

Have you been searching for good Travel Insurance? You do not need to look any further than travelsafe.com! They have over 35 years of experience that cannot be beat. They are one of the nation's largest providers of travel insurance. And they are one of the most respected. Did I mention they are family-owned and operated? Each day they insure thousands of travelers. Innovative describes them: they have many policy options including "Cancel For Any Reason". Coverage for hurricane warnings, worldwide medical protection, pre-existing medical conditions – they have it all. They are simply unbeatable! See what their comprehensive coverage can do for you. Get a piece of their experience!

AYCE Pancakes?

I have heard a rumor that there is a really sweet deal at a restaurant. Village Inn. All you can eat pancakes. I will try to find out more. You will know what I know as soon as I know it. If someone finds out something before me then let me know! Stay tuned!

Score More!

Looking for a terrific summer program for your child? Keep him or her sharp because the very day we switched from Sylvan Learning Centers to Score! we saw immediate and dramatic progress with Bobby. When kids love to learn, they will learn. At Sylvan, it is so much more of a "mill" feeling than at Score! And Score! has everything covered: math tutors, Reading Tutors, writing tutors, and much more. We do not need to worry about his learning as we worried in the past. Bobby is flourishing at Score with his mom in Texas so that is all that matters!

No matter what the subject matter, Score can handle it and get your kid learning too! They have the normal subjects you would expect. But they also offer study skills courses. It sometimes is how your child is studying. So I urge you to see what Score can do!

directoryofschools.com

If you want to search for and find the best online school you have to go to directoryofschools.com. The name says it all: you will find the most comprehensive list of online educators where you can get any number of online degrees. You will find over 9200 degrees and over 1350 schools. All the schools on the site are pre-screened and verified so you know the schools are accredited and meet tough vocational standards. There is the list of schools, but also a great homework helper and so many other valuable resources for career-minded people. So check out what they can do for you! You will not be sorry!

SupersizedApparel

Billy at SupersizedMeals.com has opened the store! Right now there are two kinds of shirts and one kind of boxer shorts. The stuff looks hot! I think his logo is one of the best I've ever seen! It's easy gift-giving any time because what eater wouldn't love it!!

Review: He Shoots..

Right away when we switched from Sylvan Learning Centers to Score! we saw immediate progress with Bobby. When kids love to learn, they will learn. At Sylvan, it is so much more of a "mill" feeling than at Score learning, a very Innovative Tutor! We do not worry about finding out why that is but it is what it is. Bobby is flourishing at Score with his mom in Texas so that is all that matters!

No matter what the subject matter, Score can handle it and get your kid learning too! They have the normal math, reading, and writing. But they also offer study skills courses. It sometimes is how your child is studying. So I urge you to see what Score can do for you and your kids!

More iPhone Stuff!

HA! Take that! See another iPhone Review and Video here!

BH - The Move Is Done

On the drive down to Florence, T-scone caught this picture of me and the truck from behind (by the way, she did THE BEST job staying behind me and blocking when I had to get over and whatnot!).


What.. Under the 'P'.. White thing..


Meatsweats, byotch!

Here's me. Much earlier in the day, and happily unaware of the beast awaiting...





Another before the day really began. Naively anticipating the fun! How bad could this be?!?


At the rest stop. Me and the truck, then T, then her mom.

I had to go into the weigh station. I had never done that before. Very exciting.

For the record, the truck is 1800 pounds when empty. We were 3790. That's a lot of shit. I think the friggin' armoire and the one-heavy-bitch treadmill together were the ton.

And here I am. Spent.

No more. 14 or 15 hours. Loaded some stuff in Aurora. Up to Evergreen. Loaded EVERYTHING else. Down to Florence. Unloaded. I'm getting too old for this kinda crap.

Oh, and here's a bonus one...


Nice car and everything, right? Yeah, the old guy driving with his wife in the passenger seat must be doing alright. Living in Denver, cruising around, but he's driving and trying to dial his cell phone. No wait. That's not a phone he's concentrating on. What is he doing? He's trying to turn something on. AWWWW, NO WAY! OLD GUY! IT'S AN EAR HAIR TRIMMER! He's flying up I-25, wife in the co-pilot, and he's digging for gold with his EAR HAIR TRIMMER!

Here It Comes

You gotta check out this video! Soon the iPhone from Apple is hitting the market. For promotion they created this witty iPhone Review and Video. They also made three other videos, but this one rocks! Check out the video and then hop on the iPhone when it comes out at the end of this month.

BH - The Move

Big House! We're moving stuff down there this weekend. Picked up the truck, loaded some stuff we have here, we'll motor up to Evergreen tomorrow to get lots of shit, then bust a move to the Big House. Mongo, kick ass in MN!

Did You Hear...

If you are in to the celebrity gossip as much as I am, you have to check out this site for celebrity news, celebrity rumors, and much more! You can read it and then vote on it and then you can know what other people are reading! With all the news about Paris lately, what with her going to jail then going home then going back to jail. There are bound to be many rumors and innuendo about the whole situation. Make sense of it all by going here to find the best stories and the ones people are actually reading. One stop shopping for the latest skinny on the beautiful people! Check it out!

New Photos

I ran across these recently. These are some photos from the 2006 Nathan's qualifier at the Mall of America in Minnesota. The MoA put up a site for the 2007 qualifier and these were on the 'photos from last year' section..










Chip won with 38.

Spy Time

There is a really good new series coming up soon on USA Network. It drops on the 28th of June and it looks hot. It is called Burn Notice and it is about a CIA operative. Yeah USA Network's Burn Notice is about a spy so maybe it will be more James Bondsy than MacGyverish but maybe it will takes parts of both guys and bring the best of both worlds. He will probably be using disguises and stuff like that, but will he use the best disguise ever? What is that, you ask? The Groucho glasses! Hands down! Big plastic frames, a fake discolored nose, and the moustache! That is the best disguise and it is virtually impossible to tell who is wearing it! Well, we will just have to wait and see if Michael Weston employs that technique. But even if not the technique is still a winner! Along with the Groucho glasses, every spy worth anything has got to have a paper clip, a piece of gum, and some used dental floss. Hey, if MacGyver can do it, Weston can too! Anyway, set your Tivo now or just plan to watch the debut episode on June 28. You will not be sorry!

OH YEAH!

Wow, the IFOCE contest on June 23rd, the pigs' feet, just keeps getting BETTER and BETTER! The eaters in that competition not only will enjoy PIGS FEET but also PIGS KNUCKLES... Yowza!

Wha?

During the Republican debate on Tuesday, Congressman Tom Tancredo (R) Colorado, said definitively: We "...must STOP all LEGAL immigration...". I did not see the Republican debate because I could not listen to their "if we don't get 'em there they will get us here" crap. But thanks to Jon Stewart the Republican debate - 2 hours of the spew - was summed up nicely into a 20 second or so clip. Read more about Tancredo and his end-to-legal-immigration here.

Review: Score!

When we switched from Sylvan Learning Centers to Score! we saw immediate progress with Bobby. When kids love to learn, they will learn. At Sylvan, it is so much more of a "mill" feeling than at Score learning. We do not worry about finding out why that is but it is what it is. Bobby is flourishing at Score with his mom in Texas so that is all that matters!

No matter what the subject matter, Score can handle it with great Math Tutors, Reading Tutors, and Writing Tutors. But they also offer study skills courses. It sometimes is how your child is studying. So I urge you to see what Score can do! Get your kid learning too!

Make the Connection

This post is sponsored by Loversplanet.com. If you are still reading this then you might want to check them out.

There is a site on the web called Loversplanet.com that offers Russian dating services. You can browse profiles of beautiful Russian brides seeking men for online dating and marriage. According to Lovers Planet most of their female members are marriage-minded and wish to find someone for a serious, long-term relationship.

It is stated on the website that each year millions of men from US, Canada, Australia and other countries travel to Russia to meet, date and marry beautiful women from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and other countries of Eastern Europe. Many couples have created successful families and raised wonderful kids. To find many beautiful russian brides visit www.loversplanet.com!

PPP In The House!

Check out this press release!
-----------------------------
The PayPerPost Revolution Accelerates, Sponsored
Blogging Marketplace Secures $7 Million Series B

Draper Fisher Jurvetson leads round and joins Board of Directors

ORLANDO, FL – (June 12, 2007) – PayPerPost, the leading marketplace for advertisers to reach bloggers and other consumer content creators, today announced it has completed a $7 million second round investment led by Draper Fisher Jurvetson, an investor in the company's Series A and one of the world’s leading high-technology venture capital firms. The financing brings the total amount of capital raised by PayPerPost to over $10 million, giving the company considerable resources for further development as the industry’s leading Consumer Generated Advertising marketplace. Additional participants in the round include existing investors Inflexion Partners and Village Ventures as well as new investor DFJ Gotham. With this investment, DFJ Managing Director Josh Stein also joins PayPerPost’s Board of Directors.

"PayPerPost created this exciting new advertising space and has established itself as the industry leader," said Ted Murphy, chief executive officer of PayPerPost. "Although we’ve only used a portion of our first round capital, this added support from investors unlocks significant growth potential. Our content creator and advertiser ROI metrics clearly demonstrate the upside for PayPerPost's model. We intend to use this capital to build the infrastructure, visibility and professional expertise necessary to reach and retain a greater network of advertisers and content creators than ever before."

Since its founding in June of 2006, PayPerPost has signed more than 6,500 advertisers to its groundbreaking service, which has enabled Consumer Content Creators to be compensated for their efforts discussing specific companies, products or services via blogs, videos or other media. The content creators are required to disclose relationships with advertisers on their blog, providing transparency for the end reader. Over 125,000 Internet postings, most in the form of blogs, have already earned money for their creators through PayPerPost's innovative marketplace. PayPerPost recently released PayPerPost Direct, a disruptive new service that allows advertisers to contract and negotiate directly with individual bloggers they identify through a safe, managed system.

"PayPerPost has laid a strong foundation for the future," noted Tim Draper, founder and managing director of Draper Fisher Jurvetson. "It continues to attract a critical mass of participants from both the advertising and blogging communities. Analogous to Overture's sponsored search model, we believe PayPerPost's business model holds disruptive potential and will enable the company to thrive in the evolving paid-content arena."

To mark the $7 million dollar funding, PayPerPost has launched a new website detailing the company's service offering at http://www.payperpost.com. Bloggers and advertisers can easily sign up at the site and begin leveraging the self service marketplace.
-----------------------------
Man, that is such great news! Who would not get behind this model that PayPerPost created. Sure, there are some other services out there who do the same thing – get bloggers to write about advertisers – but PayPerPost really has a slick website and they make it so easy for bloggers, for advertisers, and for everyone involved so it really is a no brainer type deal! What is PPP going to do with the new money? They have done so much already it is really hard to imagine the service getting better. Something I hope they dump actually is their implementation of segmentation and drive even more blog outreach. Through it higher-ranked blogs get better opportunities than lower-ranked blogs because advertisers will pay more to get on higher-ranked pages. It makes sense, it really does. But I think it is taking away good opportunities from me. But that is just me. Of course I think I should get the big paying opportunities but it does not always work that way! Oh well, it is what it is! But it is really great that PPP has secured some more money! One thing is for sure. The ride up until now has been fun, and it will only get more intense and more fun. Get on board now, people!