WOW.

Click on the last image, and be amazed and awed by the sheer majesty and beauty of just one tiny part of one tiny planet of one [tiny?] solar system of one [average-sized?] galaxy of God's immeasurably immense creation.
Sure makes a person feel small, but hugely blessed and grateful.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Google+ team
Date: Sun, Apr 29, 2012 at 1:47 AM

Hi Michael! Here's the week's top content.
Recent posts from your circles	View all recent posts
NASA's Earth Observatory Flooding on the Arabian Peninsula : Image of the Day Acquired April 18 and April 9, 2012, these images compare conditions in the southeastern Arabian Peninsula, which experienced flooding in mid- to late April. 1 share View or comment on this post »
The most popular content on Google+	View what's hot
Chris Cho Oh man. I want to ride this.  {i, michael, DO NOT.} Named Insano, here's the world's highest water slide in the beach park of Brazil. 41 meters height or 14 storeyed building, it is a very thrilling experience to slide from that height in the water track at 105 Kilometers/ hour speed. . +1306 - 500 comments - 600 shares View or comment on this post » Earth Ash and Lightning Above Eyjafjallajökull Volcano, Iceland April 17, 2010 Image Credit & Copyright: Marco Fulle +2850 - 500 comments - 931 shares View or comment on this post »

--
- - -

"He must increase, but I must decrease."
-John 3:30

you may find this amusing

Those of you with private insurance have undoubtedly experienced some hassles and headaches.
Rest assured, public insurance (BadgerCare/Medicaid in my case) can be every bit as bad.
I paid the annual fee of $60 online 3/21, and immediately received a confirmation email.
My online bank statement confirmed this confirmation. . .it was all very confirming.

But then a couple weeks later i received notification from the state that my renewal was DENIED;
the reason given was that i had failed to pay said annual fee.  So i called up the toll-free number,
and after waiting a while (forced to listen to the same instrumental song over and over) i got to
speak to a human being.  First he requested the aforementioned confirmation number, which i was
able to provide with all due haste.  Then i waited for a minute or so while he did something at his
computer.  Then he said i would need to send in a copy of my bank statement, showing the $60
charge.  Wanting to just get off the phone and get this %$#@ taken care of, i didn't bother to question
why on Earth this would be needed, i politely bade him farewell and complied with the request.
I believe that was Wednesday, April 11th.  Of course, my anti-depressant prescription was due to be
picked up at the pharmacy a couple days later, and i had only enough to get through Saturday or Sunday.
(And the regular price for the script is in the neighborhood of $250 -- about $4 per 150mg Effexor.)

So Monday i went to the pharmacy drive-thru with improbable and unmerited optimism; naturally,
The State had not yet received/processed/whatever the copy of my bank statement i'd sent in.
So i came home and called them up again, then got on Walgreens' website pharmacy chat. . .

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <noreply@walgreens.com>
Date: Mon, Apr 16, 2012 at 4:08 PM
Subject: Your Transcript
To: 1corinth1 at gmail dot com

Hi! My name is Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician. How may I help you?
Customer: Hi. I was just at the drive-through a few minutes ago. My name is Michael A Schmidt.
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: I'm happy to assist you.
Customer: My Rx was coming up at regular price because my insurance was denied/expired: BadgerCare.
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: I'll be happy to check on it for you. May I have the prescription number?
Customer: I'm on the phone with the people @ BadgerCare and they're telling me it should be active and functional.
Customer: 0819054-04556
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: Thank you.
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: Please hold for one moment while I research the information to assist you.
Customer: Of course. Thank you.
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: I apologize but I just resubmitted the prescription to Badger and we are still receiving a rejection.
Customer: Ack. OK, they said it may take 24 hours for their system to update or whatever. In the meantime, because I took the last of my pills yesterday, could I stop in for an emergency supply?
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: You could purchase some out of pocket but you may want to check with Badger first to see if they would reimburse you for the cost.
Customer: I'm pretty sure they wouldn't -- or if they did, considering how long their renewal process is taking (I paid them online 3/21), they would probably cut a check to my grandchildren. And I don't even have a child yet! :)
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: I apologize for that. How many would you like to pick up?
Customer: I'm sure 4 would suffice, that would get me through tomorrow. Then if they STILL haven't got their system updated, I'll call my congresspeople and every other public servant I can get a hold of!
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: Ok, I will make a note for the pharmacist and expect that will be ready in about an hour. Also we will continue to attempt billing.
Customer: I thank my Lord and Saviour for the patience and pacifism with which he's blessed me...these days it's no wonder when somebody goes bonkers and shoots up a gov't agency or some such.
Customer: That's excellent, I'll be there in about an hour then.
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: You're welcome and be well. Thank you for chatting with us and have a great day!
Customer: Is there any way you could email me or give an automated call if/when the insurance does go through as it should?
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: Yes, you will also most likely get a call in the next couple of hours letting you know that it has been delayed since I just resubmitted it.
Customer: OK, great. Thank you so much for your assistance.
Ashley C., Pharmacy Technician: You're welcome and have a good day.
Thank you for using InstantService. You may now close this window.

[i actually typed some more stuff, which i'm sure was witty and quite unlike anything those Pharm. Techs ever see in chat, but once they close it out on their end that stuff just vanishes.  posterity's loss, i s'pose.]

It gets even worse, because not only did i have to pay $16+ for those 4 pills, but when i called The State 24 hours later (when their system was to have been updated), i spoke to a different representative who apparently knew a bit more about the system, telling me it actually takes "up to 72 hours" to update!

Just when the entire situation appeared to have reached the absolute worst point, this rep called back to tell me that he was very sorry because he'd forgotten it was possible to go into the system and manually change the date of service renewal (to a past date, for instance a day or two prior), and he did just that while on the phone.

In all my years, this was the only instance i can recall of things TRULY being "darkest just before the dawn."  I'm a man who has been awake and near a window MANY TIMES in the hours and minutes leading up to the dawn, and NEVER has that period of time been NEARLY as dark as the hours and minutes directly opposite the dawn (when the sun is directly opposite the point on Earth where i am located, i.e. the middle of the night).  Maybe Southeastern Wisconsin is one of those places on the planet which is somehow an exception to the stupid expression.  But i suspect it's more likely that some fool created that phrase in an effort to make people feel better when they are suffering.  It has never provided me with an iota of comfort, but always provided me with an immeasurable quantity of annoyance, given its obvious vacancy of reason.

(Little surprise then, that i chose this email address and the following signature:)

--
Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.  For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 
But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;  And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:  That no flesh should glory in his presence.

1 Corinthians 1:25-29 (KJV)

$100 off Garmin nüvi 1390T includes FREE lifetime traffic

I normally don't care for ads being sent to me -- and i don't recall CNET ever doing such a thing in the past -- but this is a great deal on what i bet is a great GPS!  I've already got a 1200 or 1300, and i'm STILL tempted to jump on this offer (mine doesn't have Bluetooth or lifetime traffic).

If you or somebody you know is currently in the market for such a device, you/they could do a lot worse.
But you/they gotta act fast!  "Offer ends 4/25/2012 11:59pm PST"
And a CNET (free) membership is necessary...if you/they create one and have trouble ordering, let me know and we'll work out some way to get this thing done.
:)


Thy Kingdom come.
Thy Will be done...

-Matthew 6:10

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: CNET Exclusives <newsletters@cnet.online.com>
Date: Tue, Apr 24, 2012 at 10:02 AM
Subject: $100 off Garmin nüvi 1390T includes FREE lifetime traffic
To: a.better.computer.mke@gmail.com

Add newsletters@cnet.online.com to your address book | View online   Exclusives       Share on Facebook  |  Share on Twitter April 23, 2012 Exclusive offer for a.better.computer.mke@gmail.com Find your way easily with the Garmin nuvi 1390T with free lifetime traffic!     This thin navigator features Lifetime Traffic so you'll avoid traffic jams and keep moving when your nüvi alerts you and offers detours. With bluetooth hands free calling capability using Bluetooth® wireless technology the Garmin nüvi 1390T keeps both hands on the wheel. Know the Lane Before It's Too Late lane assist with junction view guides you to the correct lane for an approaching turn or exit, making unfamiliar intersections and exits easy to navigate. EXCLUSIVE MEMBER PRICE $89.99 Includes free shipping MSRP: $189.99 Savings: $100     Offer ends 4/25/2012 11:59pm PST     SHARE THIS OFFER:     Promo code: CNET20       About this offer   Garmin nüvi 1390T also features • Enhanced pedestrian navigation capabilities   • ecoRoute™ — a green feature that calculates a more fuel-efficient route and tracks fuel usage   • "Where Am I?" emergency locator — get your exact latitude and longitude coordinates, the nearest address and intersection, and the closest hospitals, police stations, and fuel stations   • Anti-theft feature Garmin Lock™     Turn-by-turn Directions- nüvi 1390T has an intuitive interface that greets you with 2 simple questions: "Where To?" and "View Map." Touch the color screen to easily look up addresses and services and get voice-prompted, turn-by-turn directions that speak street names to your destination.

Connect with us on:            Copyright 2012 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. CBS Interactive, 235 Second Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, U.S.A.

Advanced SystemCare 5 Pro

Use it on 3 PCs (possibly 4 or 5!)
$12.97 (This seems to be their usual sale offer, for a single PC license.)
One year license...if you don't renew, pretty sure it just reverts to the free version.

The program is much more beneficial on XP machines, as you would probably expect.
But even if you just have one of those, you can still play with it on a couple Win7 systems too!  :)
(Or give somebody a year of ASC Pro as a gift.)

Here's some reviews:
http://download.cnet.com/Advanced-SystemCare-Free/3000-2086_4-10407614.html
http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/System-Tweak/Advanced-WindowsCare.shtml
http://betanews.com/2011/12/02/review-iobit-advanced-systemcare-pro-5/
http://advanced-systemcare.soft32.com/
http://www.pcworld.com/article/247171/optimize_your_pc_with_advanced_systemcare_5_free.html
http://www.ghacks.net/2011/12/15/advanced-systemcare-pro-5-review-giveaway/

I can't vouch for any of the sites/reviewers, but the program has done right by me;
I leave it running all the time on my XP machine, and run it occasionally on the Win7 one.
Be sure to disable the Toolbar and don't let it change your home page or default search engine!


Thy Kingdom come.
Thy Will be done...

-Matthew 6:10

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: IObit <newsletter@iobit.com>
Date: Mon, Apr 16, 2012 at 3:58 AM
Subject: Post Easter Offer - Smash Eggs to Win Free Gifts!
To: a.better.computer.mke@gmail.com

Share

If you cannot view this email, click here to view it online. Dear Users, Easter Day has just passed. Whether you are worshiper who seeks spiritual harmony by attending traditional church events, or just spent the holiday with family and friends with some non-denominational celebration, this is a holiday of relaxing for both body and mind. With care as always, we are continuing the holiday cheer in this Easter season. Now Fantastic gifts are offered to get your PC into top shape and also let you share this benefit with your family and friends! Buy Advanced SystemCare 5 Pro with ONLY $12.97, and you'll get additional support for EXTRA 2 PCs, 3 PCs or 4 PCs! Click here to join This is a 100% winning opportunity that you cannot miss! ACT NOW! Tips: Don't forget to forward this letter to your friends to let them benefit! Stay OptimizedAdvanced SystemCare is an award-winning product produced by IObit Information Technology with over 180 million PCs repaired and optimized. Use Advanced SystemCare to speed up your PC and keep it safe. Need Help?Welcome to using our Online Support. Only paid users can get free premium support from us. Follow on Facebook Follow on Twitter You received this email because you are a valued customer of IObit Information Technology, makers of Advanced SystemCare, the world's top system tool for superior PC performance with over 180 million downloads. Learn more at www.iobit.com © 2005 - 2012 IObit Information Technology. All Rights Reserved.

665 3rd Street, Suite 150 San Francisco, California 95138 United States

This has been up since March 25th...

. . .but when do you think the MainStreamMedia will start to notice ANY of it???

http://www.wagist.com/2012/dan-linehan/was-trayvon-martin-a-drug-dealer

Be sure to read to the end, just before the comments, and click on that there map.

I'm not saying everything in this piece is absolutely correct -- f'rinstance, if a couple tats make somebody a criminal, imagine how many people on Harleys need to be rounded up! -- but how much FURTHER from the truth could it be than what the MSM is pushing (doctor those 911 calls much, NBC)?
Obama must be very proud of how his gangsta (or at the very least gangsta-pose), gold-toothed, self-proclaimed "NIGGA" son looks in these pics...
And if George Zimmerman is white, i guess i'm an albino!