1. Set up an account on Feed43.

2. Create a new feed.

3. Under “Step 1. Specify source page address (URL)” type:

http://www.amazon.com/shops/YOUR_USERNAME

Then click on the “reload” button.

4. Under “Step 2. Define extraction rules” and in the “Global Search Pattern:” field copy and paste:

Feedback Rating

{%}

In the “Item (repeatable) Search Pattern” field copy and paste:

{%}{*}{%}{*}{%}

Then click on the “extract” button.

5. Scroll to “Step 3. Define output format” and give your feed a title like “My Amazon Feedback” use the URL from step one as your “Feed Link” and add a description to our feed. Under “RSS item properties” for the item title template use something like:
Current feedback
Item content template should be:

{%3} ratings giving {%4}% positive feedback or {%2} stars.

Check the box to merge and then click the “preview” button.

6. At the bottom is a link to your feed URL. Mine is here. Under “Optional features” further down the page you can rename your feed to something a little more user friendly.

7. Use in your favorite feed reader. Continue with these instructions to add your feed to your Google homepage.

8. Go to iGoogle.com and log in. Then click on “Add stuff” near the top right of the page.

9. Do a search for gadgets using “customrss” as the search term. Click on the “Add it now” button for the CustomRSS gadget.

10. Click on “Back to iGoogle home” near the top left.

11. Select “Edit Settings” from the drop down list when you click on the triangle at the top of the CustomRSS gadget.

12. Change the “FEED URL” to the URL from step 6.

13. Rename the “Custom Gadget Title” as you see fit.

14. Change the “# of items” to 1.

15. “Link Action” should be set to “Show description.”

16. Uncheck “show date” and feel free to mess with any other settings. Then click the “Save” button.

17. Enjoy your new gadget that shows you your Amazon feedback!

Mike needs to learn from Earl and I how to look cool when having your picture taken on bikes though.

Using my little netbook i have a few more typos than usual.  And i keep hitting the caps lock key when i just want to hit shift.  Since i don’t touchtype it is sometimes quite a few words before i notice.

Thankfully someone has written registry editors that will remap your caps lock key to a shift key.

Just download the one you want, activate it, reboot and enjoy!  Thank you John Haller!

Last night I had a dream with Madonna in it. I was playing doubles tennis against her. It was Madonna from the late 80s.

Then today the song "Cherish" came on while I was waiting for stores to open at the South Center Mall. That Madonna song is from 1989.

Then I went to lunch with Dan and Karna. There was an ad for modern art portraits in the menu of the Cheesecake Factory we went to.

Today was my day of Madonna.

But we have a cup with detergent in it that we keep putting back in the cupboard above the washer.  With my old clothes washer i would just rinse the measuring cup with the water that was filling the machine.  But the new one is front loading.  And you can’t rinse it every time – so we end up with laundry soap running down the side of the cup.  And that runs over the base of the cabinet.

So i started to wipe the outside of the cup with a piece of clothing that was going into the load of wash anyway.  That helped a lot.

But we were still leaving a circle of drying detergent in the cupboard.  So then i used the lid from a can of pringles as a coaster of sorts for the detergent measuring cup.  Worked great!  Until one day the “coaster” stuck to the bottom and let go just in time to fall behind the washing machine.  So i replaced it. And it happened again.  After the third time i decided that we neede to figure something else out.

Today i applied a large square of adhesive foam to the Pringles lid and stuck it to the cupboard base.

Silly to spend a half an hour taking pictures and writing about something like this.  Consider it an extension of my anal retentiveness.

1. No more worries about going over your limit. On a recent trip to Canada my phone malfunctioned and i could only communicate with texts or my data connection.  Each text was 50 cents and they added up fast.  It made me realize that staying within my contracted limts was very desirable.  Because the phone was under warranty i had the unexpected overages refunded (thank you AT&T!) but i learned the value of the “unlimited” terms.
2. Perk programs. I have used my phone to enter Coke points into my account.  I no longer end up with bottle caps or pieces of cardboard in my pocket waiting for me to get close to a computer.  As a bonus, the website that is used to enter points takes an awfully long time to use even with a fast internet connection (damn Flash programmers).  It also requires multiple clicks.  The downside of texting in codes is that it bounces back with a message telling you how many points you earned – with unlimited texts that’s fine.  But sometimes the reply comes back long after you sent it.
3. Contests. This year i used my phone to text in codes from the McDonald’s Monopoly contest.  I didn’t have to fill my wallet with the game pieces.  I input the codes and the return text told me if i collected a piece, won a prize, or just advanced on the board.
4. Twitter.  You can send a text to a number that will be forwarded to anyone that subscribes to your updates. Twitter is a way to micro-blog.  You write posts that are less than 140 characters.  Mine is set up to also update my Facebook status with my tweet.  So i can update friends while walking to my car, filling my water bottle, or any other time that can use another task to make me feel uber-busy.
5. Coupons.  Yes, coupons.  I signed up for coupons from the Seattle Ikea.  It was originally a contest entry but they sent promotions eventually. Do i want junkmail in my cell phone SMS inbox?  Not really.  As soon at the Viagra ads and Nigerian spams sneak through i’ll be pissed.  But tell me when i can get 20% off on a piece of furniture with the character Ä in it and i might be pleased.
6. Google stuff.  I don’t use it enough but this might be even faster than logging onto the web with a phone.  Check out Google’s SMS tools.  Easily check the weather, definitions, airport conditions and delays, calculator, translations and flight status.  Seriously, this might be the most underused text tool ever.
7. Track your finances.  If you use Mint you can keep on top of your balances by sending text messages.
8. Follow any RSS feeds using notify.me.  You can get a text message when new blog posts, comments or deals on your favorite website are posted.  I set up one to send me a text when someone posts a new comment on zieak.com.  And i also added the feed from my Facebook notifications.

But it got me to thinking about when i need to replace my car. Don’t worry, i’m not quite ready for a bmw m5or anything like that – but i’m pretty sure that i want an electric truck. Something capable of highway speeds, hauling stuff, and that i won’t have to ever gas up.I use my little SUV as a truck too much.  The back carpet is dirty and oil stained, i’m strapping things to the roof and even have scratches on the hood from moving soccer goals around with it.  Since i really only drive short distances an electric vehicle would be great.  But the 45 MPH speed limit for most of the 3 mile commute i have is my final criteria.  I could care less about battery life – i need the thing to reach about 50 MPH or it is a deal breaker.

Nothing really meets those needs on the market now.  So i guess i’ll gladly continue to drive my fully paid off rig instead.  Even though i don’t like putting gas in it.  Even at the lower prices we’re having now.

Cena and i broke up a few months ago.  She really wants to have children and despite some major soul searching i could not commit.  We have had a number of serious conversations over the past year about it.  Our breakup was certain unless i wanted to raise a family with her.

I don’t know for certain where my reluctance to becoming a father comes from.  I think it is reinforced daily as i have to deal with kids who are troublesome but it goes further back than that.  I remember in a high school class we had to list 50 goals for our life.  I listed “have two children” on there.  That was my senior year – 1992.  When i went through pre-marital counseling the pastor asked how many children we planned on having and i said none.  That was 1996.  I had a philosophical and religious argument with him about it.  And perhaps i subconsciously decided to show him i meant it.

So for the last 13 years i guess i just carried on not really thinking much about having kids.

Recently there has been a huge surge in connections on Facebook with old classmates.  Some that i never really associated with in school.  But i have my yearbook sitting near and can connect their profile today with the photo of them from 1992.  So many have kids.

Last week hit me the hardest though.  I was mentioned in Andy Mathisen’s obituary.  Andy donated $100,000 and a significant chunk of beachfront property to the City for the creation of a fishing park.  He had done much in his lifetime and was inspirational in his achievements and his outspokenness.  I was mentioned because of his donation and because he had worked with me on the concepts for the facility.  Heck, he even had me write the check in his dining room.  He had said to me a number of times that i should marry Cena.  It makes me cry thinking about it.

Two days ago i decided that i did want to father Cena’s children and be her husband.  I asked her if it would ever be possible but her silence told me no.

Cena has taken such good care of me.  She is intelligent, hard working, fun, and gorgeous.  She will make a fantastic mother with her attention to detail, planning, compassion, and ample love.

So i regret every time i hurt her.  More so now than when i apologized then.

I regret not realizing until now that being part of a family – especially with her – would be the greatest joy in my life.

I thought that i needed time to be single before i married again.  I went from my marriage into a multi-year relationship and then into my relationship with Cena without any time.  No time to think about life without love.

I guess i did need that time.  I realized – once it was gone – that Cena is the perfect woman. I regret not knowing just how wonderful she was.  I couldn’t see it when it was so close.

I had three months to realize that i get the greatest joy from working around the house that we’ve created together.  That without her in it i feel alone and cold and i don’t want anyone else to fill the void.

I don’t want to die alone with my cats.

I want Cena to be at home raising our kids.  I want her dabbling in some home-based business while i provide enough income to keep us comfortable.  I want to travel with her, watch movies, and pick what color paint to put in the bathroom.

And i can’t have it.  My indecision and lack of foresight cost me it.

I can tell already that i will regret this for the rest of my life.

I had a wonderful thing and thoughtlessly let it slip away.

I miss you Cena.  I hope you find what you’re looking for.

Subj:  FROM SGT DAVE GODWIN.
Date:  Monday, December 29, 2008 9:17 AM
From:  dave.godwin1@gmail.com
—————————————————————-
From Sgt Dave Godwin.

Good Day,

I found your contact particulars in an E-mail address guide that was
provided to us here, as I desperately needed an urgent help to do this deal.
I am seeking your kind assistance to move the sum of $15m Fifteen Million
U.S Dollars only to you; as far as I can be assured that my share will be
safe in your care until I complete my service here.

SOURCE OF FUND: A lot of money in various currencies were discovered in
barrels at a farmhouse near one of saddams old palaces in Tikrit in Iraq
during an operation Conquest in Fallujah north of Baghdad, and it was agreed
by Staff Sgt. Kenneth Buff and I that some part of this money be shared
among both of us before informing anybody about it since both of us saw the
money first. This is quite an illegal thing to do, but well tell you what?
no compensation can make up for the risk we have taken with our lives in
this hell hole, of which my brother in-law was killed by a road side bomb
last time.

The above figure was given to me as my share, and to conceal this kind of
money became a problem for me, so with the help of a British Contact working
here, at Southern Basra British fortified green zone, whose office enjoys
some immunity, I was able to get the package out to a safe location entirely
out of trouble spot. He does not know the real contents of the package, and
believes that it belongs to a British/American medical doctor who died in a
raid here in Baghdad, and before giving up, trusted me to hand over the
package to his family in United States. I have now found a much secured way
of getting the package out of Iraq to you, for you to pick it up, and I will
discuss this with you when I am sure that you are willing to assist me, and
I believe that my money will be well secured in your hand because you have
fear of God.

I want you to tell me how much you will take from this money for the
assistance you will give me. One passionate appeal I will make to you is not
to discuss this matter with anybody, should you have reasons to reject this
offer, please and please destroy this message as any leakage of this
information will be too bad and catastrophe for soldiers here in Iraq. I do
not know how long we will remain here, but I hope to have a shift very soon
for me to return back to the States. I have been shot and wounded twice and
I have survived two terrible suicides bomb attacks just by special grace of
God, this and other reasons I will mention later has prompted me to reach
out for help, I will honestly want this matter be resolved immediately.

I thank you so much for everything and anticipate that you will be
trustworthy and handle this transaction to the best of your ability to
benefit both of us.

God Bless you and your family.

Yours Sgt. Dave Godwin.