TwitWipe: An App that Deletes ALL of Your Tweets

Mischief.  Trouble.  Mayhem.  These three words can accompany a questionable decision you’ve made, a night of unwanted remembrance or a tweet that you regretted as soon as it left your tech savvy fingers.  We’ve all made questionable decisions in our time, that’s obvious.  With the emergence of social media, it’s easier to broadcast your debauchery via tweet, text, message or photo...in an instant.  It’s an immediate blast to the online world, forever etched in the Internet’s repertoire. 

Have you ever posted something you later regretted?  In most cases, you can delete a post fast enough to avoid detection.  However, once you push ENTER and one person sees the post before you delete it, they can share it with their friends in an instant.   I.e.  Anthony Weiner, the disgraced Congressman who infamously tweeted a private picture, was the center of a huge scandal.  It’s also hard to forget the tweet by Ashton Kutcher, regarding the Sandusky scandal that read: “How do you fire Jo Pa? #insult #noclass as a Hawkeye fan I find it in poor taste.” Before he knew about the scandal…the list goes on. 

For the impulsive Twitter junkie, there’s hope. A new app called TwitWipe is able to delete ALL of your tweets in one go.   This might be a little drastic for most Twitter users, but if you regret most of the things you’ve said on Twitter, this is definitely the ideal road to travel.  Utilizing TwitWipe will let you start fresh on Twitter without losing your followers, the people you follow or your favorites.  It’s more beneficial than deleting your account because you still hold on to your followers, who you follow etc…   

There is a downside, however.  TwitWipe takes time to perform deletion and once done, there’s no turning back.  If TwitWipe is the right thing for you, click: http://twitwipe.com/login.php

#

Automotive Advertising

Finding a Fresh Christmas Tree

It’s days weeks before Christmas and you’re running around frantically.  The gifts are unwrapped, the food is unprepared and your Santa hat is nowhere to be found.  Stop.  Take a deep breathe and relax, we’re here to help.  Though we won’t be able to cook your holiday dinner, (we can make a mean roast, by the way) we will be able to help you with one of your dilemmas: finding the perfect Christmas tree. 

Finding the perfect tree starts with one simple rule: look for the green! According to Elwood Christmas Tree Farm owner Lee Itzler, the best way to test the health of an evergreen is to grab a branch of your Christmas tree-to-be and lightly scratch the stem. "If you see green, the tree will keep its needles longer."

Trees between 6 and 8 feet are always in high demand, taking between 8 and 10 years to grow 6 feet tall.  Once you pick out your tree, it’s best to put it inside of your car as opposed to on top.  Why? Itzer says: "Strapped on the roof, the trees get really beat up, wind burned, and desiccated. If you're a local delivery it really doesn't make a difference, but if you're going on the highway, then it should go in the car."  If you do have to put it on the roof, put the trunk facing into the wind.

Once your tree is home safe and sound, it’s time to get a good stand with heavy water retention.  The tree will soak up a lot of water over the course of the next couple days, so make sure to keep the stand full.  Viola! Your tree skills have improved this year! 

How do you retain your tree over the holiday season?  Let us know below!

#

Automotive Advertising

App of the Week: Carticipate

Social media has continued to bring us closer together.  Through an emerging channel of information, we’re able to provide each other with a constant feed into our daily lives.  Carticipate, an experimental app that takes social transportation to a new plateau, has taken advantage of our constant need to always be connected. 

Carticipates purpose is to bring commuters together in a large social network, helping them save money on fuel as well as contributing to the environment by emitting fewer fumes.  It allows users to search for ride locations near their cities, near business travel, and even outside of the US. You’re also able to coordinate driving plans by indicating where you are going, when, and post your ride.  

Carticipate will match you up to local carticipants going your way.
The new scheduler feature allows you to create and manage multiple trips where you define the "From" and "To" locations.
Carticipate comes with a list of pre-loaded default destinations, which you can edit, delete, or add your own custom locations.  The choice is yours!  Check it out here: www.carticipate.com/

#

Automotive Advertising

The Text & Drive Debate

 

When cell phones were introduced more than a decade ago, no one knew the scope of influence they would have on modern society.  Now, in 2011, the cellphone has morphed into an extension of our person. Need sport scores on the go? Got it.  Need to update your Facebook or Twitter? Got that too.  What about the temperature for the upcoming week? Yup! 

Having a small item that performs so many tasks at you fingertips, it’s difficult to not want to pick it up any time during the day and be spoon-fed a plethora of information. Even if that means you’re behind the wheel.   Texting and driving is the worst possible thing you can do while driving.  It slows your reaction time and attentiveness to a halt.  Below you’ll find some disturbing statistics…PLEASE drive safely:

• Distraction from cell phone use while driving (hand held or hands free) extends a driver's reaction as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent. (University of Utah)
• The No.1 source of driver inattention is use of a wireless device. (Virginia Tech/NHTSA)
• Drivers that use cell phones are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves. (NHTSA, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
• 10 percent of drivers aged 16 to 24 years old are on their phone at any one time.
• Driving while distracted is a factor in 25 percent of police reported crashes.
• Driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37 percent  (Carnegie Mellon) 

 #

Automotive Advertising

Consumer Tips For Staying “Green”

   

    As 2011 comes to a close, we’re taking a moment to look back on the year.  For the auto industry, it was a tad rocky, but we’ve managed to bounce back.  In other aspects, it was a great year for hope and prosperity, instilling a feeling of pride for what we do as a whole.  As Americans, we have been able to navigate a recession and emerge victorious.  One aspect that should be addressed is the environment.  As individuals, we have a responsibility for the vegetation surrounding us and in today’s blog; we delve into options for staying “green” in our current economy.  Feel free to add your own in the comments section below!

According to Compatible Green Energy: 

1. Use cloth instead of paper: Try trading in your paper napkins, paper towels, paper plates and paper shopping bags, in exchange for more earth-friendly materials. Save the trees! People have been using cloth napkins, rags and shopping bags for centuries, not to mention that reusable, washable plates date back to the beginning of eating.

2. Grow something green: Plants use up CO₂ and release oxygen. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas. Oxygen is good – plain and simple. You can’t get much greener than that.

3. Make a compost pile: Instead of tossing your left over food in the trash, or sending it down the garbage disposal, make a compost pile. Anything that once came from a plant can be composted – fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, etc. Decomposed plant matter contains nutrients that make it a great natural fertilizer.

4. Trade your wheels: It’s no secret that cars produce pollution. In the name of health, try biking or walking instead of driving. Even using public transportation such as buses or trains is better for the environment than driving your personal car everywhere.

5. Recycle: Ancient civilizations recycled their metals and we’ve been recycling ever since. Now, with a modern twist, we can recycle metals, plastics, glass and paper. Recycled materials are broken down and then processed into new products, such as high-grade paper being deinked, pulped and then repressed into more paper.

6. Reuse: Before you recycle, look for ways to reuse empty bottles, old newspapers or plastic containers. You can use empty containers to store food, cleaning supplies or household materials. Not only is it good for the world to reuse your old materials, it might save you some money too.

#

Automotive Advertising

The Kookiest Auto Races…EVER

We love speed.  The exhilaration we feel when we’re driving with the top down and the landscape is whizzing by is an American pastime, almost a tradition in our culture.  We pack Nascar Speedways to watch speed demons circle a track, drive fast in the HOV lane, and mount up a ridiculous amount of speeding violations on a daily basis.  We’re a speed-based country bent on getting to the next objective…quickly.  As fans of the racing dynamic and the sense of adrenaline we get from it, I’ve decided to pull 3 crazy races into a list (Courtesy of HowStuffWorks.com) on our Blog.  Check them out below:

Red Bull Soapbox Race

It’s all about gravity with this one.  The objective is to create a makeshift vessel that can be propelled with only standard wheels.  The vehicle is engineless, and zooming downhill in this derby and winning could warrant a prize.  The derby oozes creativity, with past entrants being in the shape of a piano, a giant corn on the cob, and…the Golden Gate Bridge.  Now that’s awesome!

24 Hours of LeMons

According to HowStuffWorks.com “While the actual 24 Hours of LeMans sports car race, held annually in the eponymous French city, features real racing cars that have been tuned and engineered within an inch of their lives, the 24 Hours of LeMons race features real, well, lemons.”  If you paid more than $500 for your car, including modifications you won’t be allowed on the track.  Our first car out of high school would have worked perfectly.

Gumball 3000

The Gumball 3000 is a high-end car rally that runs annually between locations since 1999.  The tradition began in London, making its way through Europe, ending in New York City.  Other Gumballs have gone from New York to the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles and from the Eiffel Tower in Paris to the Cannes Film Festival in the south of France -- not a very long trip until you consider that the route crossed the Mediterranean and passed through North Africa on its way to the finish line.  Have any you would like to add?

#

AutomotiveAdvertising

Car People Who Know Grub: Quick Thanksgiving Recipes

Everyone is huddled around a long table, the soft scent of cranberry fused with smoked turkey emanates from the small area.  Your plate is already full to the brim with Turkey, doused in gravy and soaked up by a monstrous pile of stuffing.  You look down at your plate and smile.  Yes, this is perfection.  Thanksgiving is the best time of the year.  It’s a celebratory holiday for family, friends and an ice-cold brewski.  In other words, it’s AWESOME.  In today’s blog, we’re showing you that us car people can cook, too!  For those of you on your last minute cooking binge, pay attention!  We’ve got a couple of quick recipes courtesy of the Food Network for you:

Worlds Simplest Thanksgiving Turkey

Time: 3 Hours

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Pull the neck and giblets out of the cavity; ditch the liver and save the rest of the giblets for gravy. Dry the turkey with paper towels, then season inside and out with salt and pepper. Fill the turkey with aromatics like chopped onions, carrots, apples and herbs, then place breast-side up in a roasting pan and brush with melted butter. Tent with foil and roast for 2 hours (for a 10- to 12-pound turkey; add an extra 15 minutes per pound for larger birds). Remove the foil, baste with more melted butter and crank the oven to 425 degrees F. Roast for another hour or until the meat at the thigh registers 165 degrees F. Let rest while you make the gravy.

Pumpkin Pie

Time: 1 Hour 35 min

Ingredients

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups canned pumpkin, mashed
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg plus 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, optional
• 1 piece pre-made pie dough
• Whipped cream, for topping

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place 1 piece of pre-made pie dough down into a (9-inch) pie pan and press down along the bottom and all sides. Pinch and crimp the edges together to make a pretty pattern. Put the pie shell back into the freezer for 1 hour to firm up. Fit a piece of aluminum foil to cover the inside of the shell completely. Fill the shell up to the edges with pie weights or dried beans (about 2 pounds) and place it in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weights and bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is dried out and beginning to color.

For the filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Add the pumpkin and beat until combined. Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined. Add the eggs mixed with the yolks, half-and-half, and melted butter, and beat until combined. Finally, add the vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger, if using, and beat until incorporated.

Pour the filling into the warm prepared pie crust and bake for 50 minutes, or until the center is set. Place the pie on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Cut into slices and top each piece with a generous amount of whipped cream. 

Enjoy!! Happy Thanksgiving!

#

Automotive Advertising