Need FREE Business Leads??

Wow... FREE Business leads and FREE Advertising???

Visit Orange Leads. Tim is constantly putting new leads in to the system and coming up with new ways of helping people make money. Too much to list here. I created a newsletter page to show people how to use the system and to learn about Orange Leads.

Newsletter

Or you can go sign up for free and explore...

Orange Leads.com

The Ultimate Caricature

I found this site today. You send them a picture and they create a mini statue. Here is one of the examples... So many to choose from...









Take a Look at it here

Guitar Lessons - "F" This !!!

When I started guitar lessons last week, my instructor and I were talking about the F Chord.

This week, I will be working the F Chord up and down the neck along with some new fingering patterns. Also, learned the basics of "Little Wing" by Hendrix.

Take Care,

Maxx

---

~ Changing Lives One Card At A Time ~

Click here to take a peek!

Guitar Practice - Starting From Scratch

It is amazing how just changing a few of the "mechanics" can make a world of difference. Since last Thursday, I managed to find at least a half hour or more to do the assigned warm-ups (alternate picking all the way up the neck and back down again) and then work on some chord changes. At first it was like starting all over again.

The hardest thing right now is trying to keep the thumb where it belongs. After a little while, the forearm starts to burn. It training the muscles in a different way. I'm getting better at not holding the pick so far out but as I get going, the pick starts to come out and the thumb starts to wrap towards the top of the neck...

Web Development

This as a great program if you want to make virtual eCovers. My first intention was to use for some of my dowloadable software. As I started putting some of them together, it came to me that is would be nice to make a greaphic of a greeting card... There were none in the software so I used the DVD cover and made some adjustments.




Go Here to get it. You can use the trial version to get a feel for it. I have spoken with the developer a few times on the phone. I had tons of questions and he took the time to answer them.

Pat Ross (Drag) Racing

This is my Uncle Pat. Different last names I know. Long story short, he is the brother of my step-father of 30+ years...

Carving The Sun

Was going thru some old pictures and ran across some carvings I had done a few years back.

This was from a scroll saw book that had patterns for Intarsia. It was my first attempt at Intarsia and it was a disaster. Not because it didn't turn out but because when I was half way thru, I decided to take it from my workshop in to the house. My dog jumped up and all of the pieces scattered... Some got lost in the yard, the dog gnawed on a few and some were damaged. During the second attempt, I had the outline cut and decided to take a break... When I came back about a YEAR later, I decided to try my hand at carving...



This one was sort of intarsia with some carving involved. It was made for my grand daughter when she was a big fan of Sponge Bob...


These next ones were my attempts at carving facial features. All of them were carves with scraps that came from the left over pieces when I cut the outline of the sun. All of the pieces are small. There is a fifty cent piece to give an idea of the size.

My New Tee-Shirt

Showing off my new tee shirt for my card business. I made it with a stencil and my airbrush.
This picture was taken moments after it was made. As you can see there are a few smudges here and there some spots are wet from wiping off the overspray. Those all came out in the wash!

At first I thought it would end up as a rag but it turned out nice...

It really wasn't that hard, it just took a lot of patience.

Guitar Lessons

I had my first guitar lesson today. No, that's not me in the video (ha-ha). My instructor has been playing for thirty years. I've been around guitars for many years, even tried playing them years ago but didn't have the patience... In June of 07, I was on travel with a Rite Aid Project in Richmond VA. One of my co-workers had an electric guitar with him that he had made.

I got the idea that if I was going to be on the road for the following year, why not pick one up and play it in my room instead of wasting my time playing video games or watching TV? My next stop was Egg Harbor Township, NJ.

I jumped on the web and found the nearest Guitar Center. Two of the my co-workers wanted to tag along. I found out as we were driving that they really didn't want to go to the Guitar Center, they just wanted a free ride to go and get something to eat. We ate and then I dropped by the Guitar Center just to see where it was.

The next day, I headed there straight from work. The same two guys wanted to go along with me again but I wouldn't let them. I wanted to be able to take my time and look around. I picked up a kit that had a Strat, an amp along with a book and a learning CD.

When I got home that weekend, I picked up my little device that I had from year before that allows you to plug it into the guitar and wear headphones. You could also plug in your music and listen to that at the same time.

It started becoming a pain because I would no sooner get all wired up and there would be a knock at the door, or the phone would ring, or my Blackberry would start to chime. Being a District Manager and on the road seemed to mean I was on call 24/7.

The next time I was home, I dug out an old guitar that someone had given me year before when I was in the Navy and stationed at Wallops Island. I dusted it off, took it to the local music store and had them look it over. Then bought some steel strings, took it back home, strung it up, played for about ten minutes and thought the tips of my fingers were going to bleed.

I knew at that point that calluses needed to form but something just didn't seem right. Then I looked at the package and realized they were heavy gauge. The next day, it was time for another trip to the music store, this time for some thin gauged steel strings. You live and learn.




From then on, that old guitar and I were inseparable. After about three months or so, it was time to take it up a notch. I went back to the same music store time and time again to see what new guitars they had in stock. During my travels, every music store and pawn shop within a 50 mile radius or more would get a visit.

One day, I walked in to the same music store where the two sets of strings came from and sat in their acoustic room. Every guitar in that room was picked up and played. One in particular got played and put back, eventually played again and again. Finally the one that kept calling me was purchased. A Martin DX1R. Certainly not a top of the line Martin but a very good guitar indeed.

That was one year ago. That guitar has been played regularly and when I go on the road it goes with me. Sometimes as it was played, I had to wonder who was playing it. After awhile, I figured out that the guitar was possesed because that certainly wasn't me making it sound that good. Seriously, it sounds incredible. My freind dropped by one day. He has played for years but I never heard him play. He loved that guitar. Believe it or not, it has never been tuned by me since it was purchased one year ago. Even the instructor was amazed.

Anyhow, after our introductions to one another, and both of our goals were, he said, "Ok, let's hear something so I can evaluate your mechanics."

As for my instructor, we went over basic theory and he wants me to get back to the basics. One thing that was pointed out on my "mechanics" was the pick should be held a litte closer to the fingertips for more control. Mine was flappin' in the breeze. It was something learned from a learning DVD. Hold it closer with a litte tip exposed gives it a harder sound, a thinner pick extended give a softer sound. Either way, it's probably not intended to be out as far as it was.

Without a doubt, the person on the DVD was correct but my instructor showed me how to achieve that with less pick exposed. Hey, that's why I went to the guy... To LEARN! As he had me play, he noticed that the left thumb was not staying positions on the back of the neck but was slowly creeping up and around the top of the neck.

While this is fine in some instances, it's not fine for cleaner sound. The more the thumb rises, the more the fingers tend to flatten and you're not playing with the tips of the fingers... I knew this and it something that I've been working on.

It seems that getting an instructor was a good idea. There is a lot to learn. With time and patience, it could have all been learned thru my current method of reading books, surfing the web, watching DVD's but it can be difficult to get your questions answered.

What about the old acoustic? I turned that over to a young lady that works for me named Katie. She said to me one day, I want to be in an all girl band and I want to be a rock star. I told here that if she could play that guitar, she could play anything. It's been two months and Katie knows two chords. I think the world is going to have to wait a little while for Katie.

There are a few songs I'm working on. They are simple with only a few chords. The problem is, the guitar has to be on auto-pilot in order to be able to sing along with it. Sort of like tapping your head and rubbing your belly at the same time. It takes thought and coordination. The first time I tried to play and sing it was like a train wreck. Either the voice went with the same strumming and chord pattern or the other way around.

All three songs are from the same artist...

A "little" about me

With twenty years of hands on computer experience, I decided it was time to own and operate a small computer service and repair business, from my home in Ocean Pines Maryland. After landing an awesome contract with Rockwell Automation, in Cleveland Ohio. My dreams were coming true. Those dreams were shattered when I was laid off.

When I got back to Ocean Pines in February of 2002, It was difficult to match the income I had working with Rockwell.

A friend let me work with him as a landscaper until I re-built my computer business. After working all summer long, losing forty-five pounds, building muscle and getting one hell of a tan, I realized this was the life for me.

In July of '05 I started Maxxscape Landscaping. In June of '06, my nephew moved from Ohio and started E&J Landscaping. We worked closely together on all sorts of projects.

I know all of this sounds like a drastic career change, but after watching my slightly older brother go through a triple bypass at the age of forty-one, it seemed obvious. He was a high level computer executive at Rockwell.

During the landscaping venture, I had two hernia surgeries which put an end to that career.

My cousin was doing some work in Merchandising and introduced me to it. These companies go around from store to store and change things around, put up displays, do full store resets. It seemed like pretty easy work but the pay wasn't that great. One thing led to another and I started with a comany called Storecast. I had enough experience at that point to be hired as a team lead.

At the time, Walgreen's had just bought out a small chain of drug stores called Happy Harry's. We did the conversion.

In July of 07, we got involved in the conversion after Rite Aid bought out Eckerds. At that time, I was promoted to District Manager. In May 0f '08, that project was starting to come to a close so they transferred me to another department. On November 5th 0f '08 I got laid off once again!

On September 18th, 2008, a person who used to work on one of my merchandising teams called and introduced me to SendOutCards. What an amazing concept!!

I signed up that following Sunday because I had realized that my sister and my son-in-law's birthdays had passed without acknowledgement.

With this system, I was able to put in all of their contact information (including their birthday and anniversary) and the system will prompt me enough in advance to send them a custom greeting card. All I have to do is take a few minutes to pick a "stock" card, or create a custom card and click "send".

The company prints out a high quality greeting card, puts it in an envelope, stamps it and sends it to them via snail mail.

The system even allows you to upload your own pictures, use your own handwriting font, add a gift and much more. So far, I have sent people cards with Home Depot, Wal-Mart and American Express gift cards, brownies and cookies.

It's so much fun!!

Driveline decided to lay off about 43 "middle managers" and I happened to be one of them. I decided it was time upgrade and turn my new found SendOutCards program in to a full fledged business.

---

Retired Navy... My former life - Fire Controlman Chief Petty Officer with twenty years of service in the United States Navy. For five years after retirement, I maintained the National Chief Petty Officer Association and the USS Elokomin Websites.

---

- My most profitable civilian command - May 2001 - Feb 2002, Rockwell Automation in Mayfield Heights Ohio. This is near Cleveland. Contracted Computer Consultant; Operations Specialist For Rockwell Automation. Systems Administration for Windows NT, Windows 2000 and Novell Local and Wide Area Networks. General Administration and help desk support for Forge and People Soft in European and Asian arenas.

- Former Military commands -

Served aboard the USS Ramage (DDG-61)as the Combat Systems Maintenance Manager (CSMM). My basic function was to resolve maintenance conflicts between the maintenance and tactical worlds of the Combat Systems. Also served as the Leading Chief and AEGIS SPY 1-D Technician and as the Automated Data
Processing Security Officer and Systems Administrator for a Novell 4.1 Network.

Served as a Close In Weapon System (CIWS) Technician (Block 1 and Block 0) onboard the USS David R. Ray (DD-971), USS Rentz (FFG-46) and a CIWS instructor at Naval Guided Missiles School in Damneck Virginia. Also served as the Leading Chief and AEGIS SPY 1-B Technician aboard the USS Princeton (CG-59). All of which were stationed on the west coast. I was on the Princeton during the first Gulf War when she ran over a bottom moored mine. I guess you can say I had a blast.

Also served as the Automated Data Processing Security Officer and Systems Administrator for a Novell 4.1 Network in Wallops Island, Va. They changed operating systems to Windows NT 4.0 and used Microsoft Exchange as the mail server just before I transferred... What an experience.

Places Visited during my Naval career - Australia, Acapulco Mexico, Panama, Korea, Japan, Philippines, Thailand, Hong Kong, Hawaii, Canada, United Arab Emerites and various other ports in the Persian Gulf, Ibiza Spain, Civitavechia Italy, Villa De France, Valletta Malta, Venice Italy, Antalya Turkey, Limassol Cyprus, Ashdod Isreal, Agusta Bay Sicily, La Madalena Sardenia, Rhodes Greece, Marmaris Turkey, Trieste Italy, Portugal, Vancouver B.C...

Personal - Currently living in Delaware, Married with two children, two grandchildren and four dogs.

The two children are now adults living in South Carolina and Georgia. Between the two, they have provided us with three grandchildren.

View some pictures