Month: July 2010

We write like Stephen King. Who do you write like?

Post author By web gangsta
Post date July 23, 2010

Stephen King - A Memoir on the Craft of Writing
On Writing – A Memoir of the Craft, by Stephen King

Writing Web Watch is not often easy.

It’s not the finding cool stuff to write about. Web Watch has a stack of things in our To Do pile to address at some point, and the Internet is always growing. We’ll never have a topic shortage here.

No, it’s the actual writing that can be problematic. Finding the right words to say, putting them into their proper order. Making sure words are formed into phrases, that timing and spacing is correct. Whoever said that writing wasn’t work was lying. (Yes, we’re looking at you… every English teacher who ever taught.)

So when Web Watch stumbled upon the site I WRITE LIKE, we jumped at the chance to see if all the effort we poured into Web Watch was paying off.

Tags Book, website

Funny Websites

My Fault, I’m Female – it’s like FML, but for women

Post author By web gangsta
Post date July 22, 2010

I am Woman

Remember F***MY LIFE (aka “FML”) that Web Watch told you about last year?

That’s the website where people bitch and complain about how their life sucks more than yours, and everyone gets to vote on their favorite F-ups?

Apparently, that site wasn’t catering directly enough to women.

Tags Blog, website

10 Things Internet News

Consumers have spoken: Facebook is worse than the IRS

Post author By web gangsta
Post date July 21, 2010

Computer Smurf

With all the hype surrounding using social websites like Facebook or Twitter, and traditional websites trying to become more timely by jumping onto the social bandwagon, it appears that this may be one of those times when people are going social for the wrong reasons.

According to the 2010 AMERICAN CUSTOMER SATISFACTION INDEX (done by ACSI with ForeSee Results), consumers ranked social networking website FACEBOOK as being worse than the IRS. When ranked on a 100-point scale, Facebook was ranked at a 64.

64. Where Web Watch went to school, this would be a D… if we were lucky. Some teachers would have given that score an F.

Tags 10 Things, facebook, Internet, News, survey, twitter

10 Things food Travel

Claim the FATTY 50 VICTORY in the Fifty Phenomenal Fattiest Foods Challenge

Post author By web gangsta
Post date July 20, 2010

The Fattest Man in America

Deep-fried Oreo cookies and deep-fried Twinkies are not just a delight to be had at state fairs across the South.

No, unusual deep-fried foods have become a tasty treat that has spread – literally and figuratively – across the country like a delicious fungus, to be treasured. (Mushrooms, by the way, are also a tasty fungus. See how clever we are? No? Oh well, moving on…)

HEALTH.COM has decided to embrace the fact that sometimes people want to eat food that tastes good, regardless of whether those foods are actually good for you or not. So they went out and compiled this list of THE FATTEST FOODS IN THE COUNTRY, one menu item for each of the 50 states.

No, we’re not passing judgement on anyone who wants to eat these meals. Web Watch will be one of the first to join in with you, just to be able to say that we did it. The question that we pose to you, our faithful Web Watch family – who will be the first amongst us to claim the FATTY 50 VICTORY – eating one of each of the following fat-filled items first?

Remember, photos – or it didn’t happen. So step to it, Web Watch readers! Hit the road, and chow down on one of these fifty phenomenally fatty foods:

Tags 10 Things, bacon, food, Travel

Games sports Video

Why an Athletes’ Creed? Because 81% of athletes surveyed said it’s better to win than play fair

Post author By web gangsta
Post date July 19, 2010

Good Sport

When it comes to sports – and more importantly, how athletes present themselves both on and off the field – times have changed a lot over the past few years.

With Soccer Parents getting into fights with coaches over why their kids aren’t getting enough field time, fighting-enducing trash-talking during a game, athletes climbing into the stands to punch out hecklers, or even some sports where the scoreboard is being taken away entirely “because kids don’t want the pressure to have to win” — the reason for sports to exist in the first place are slowly falling down by the wayside as the “spirit of competition” gives way to “winning at all costs”.

Tags facebook, game, sports, survey, video games

10 Things News

Want to raise your metabolic rate? Try butchering animals.

Post author By web gangsta
Post date July 18, 2010

The Resting Metabolic Rate Debate

Do you know what your METABOLIC RATE is when doing various activities around the house?

Better yet – do you know which day-to-day functions offer the best (or worst) exercise based on the amount of metabolic activity they provide?

A number of doctors and researchers have updated the COMPENDIUM OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES that lists and allows you to compare the MET of each activity you select, and it’s been published in the Official Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine. The MET is a standard “metabolic intensity level” metric that allows different studies that look at health-related data to all be based on the same overall measurement standard.

In other words, two different studies on running can use the same MET value associated with running when working out their math.

If it helps, 1 MET is the standard intensity level when a person is resting and just sitting down, relaxing. Sleeping offers the lowest MET of 0.9. The highest MET is 18, and can be obtained by running 10.9 MPH.

Now that we know what the range is, here is a list of MET intensity levels for doing various other activities:

Tags 10 Things, exercise, medical, science

10 Things How To

Why is there ice in the urinal? (and other bathroom sanitation ideas)

Post author By web gangsta
Post date July 17, 2010
1 Comment on Why is there ice in the urinal? (and other bathroom sanitation ideas)

Toilet Time Targets for Potty Training

Female Web Watch readers should seldom have reason to enter the men’s room in public places (Jimmy Buffet concerts being a notable exception, where even Ally McBeal’s co-ed bathroom seems quaint in comparison).

But it they did happen to wander into the men’s room in their favorite watering hole – no pun intended – they may see that some businesses feel that it is important to dump a few bags of ice into the urinals for the evening.

All of which brings up the inevitable question as the ladies return from their trip: WHY IS THERE ICE IN THE URINALS? Heck, even the vertible New York Times decided to get in on the action by writing about ICE-FILLED URINALS in a travel article a while back.

Tags 10 Things, bathroom, How To, Party Talk, Relationships

How To Music sports TV Websites

Got at least $12,000? Book THE DAN BAND for your next party. GREEN DAY will cost you a little more

Post author By web gangsta
Post date July 16, 2010

More Gigs Now: Concert Booking Secrets of Successful Musicians

Web Watch last covered how much money it would take to book an artist for a private party many years ago.

Since then, the list of available artists has changed… as have the prices that they’ve charged.

So we felt that now was just as good a time as any to revisit the topic and present a selection of booking information we’ve found that can help you BUDGET AN ARTIST BOOKING FOR A PRIVATE EVENT.

Here is a sampling of approximate costs that you can expect to pay at a minimum if you decide to throw an exclusive private party and want a big-name artist or speaker to come and perform for you and your drunk friends at your house:

Tags How To, Music, sports, website