When Mike and I found out that Deal or No Deal auditions were coming to the Sacramento area we knew exactly what we had to do. So, I believe, for the first time in our adult life, we dressed alike (just like twins do) and headed up the Folsom.

After nearly seven hours in live, we finally got our 15 seconds to sell ourselves. We did enough to get past the second round, which afforded us the opportunity to wait for another hour or so for a second round of interviews - again another 15 seconds to shine. Although our presentation was pretty good, our audition ended there with a "don't call us, we'll call you".

Our sister was also there and was give three interviews. She already promised us that we'd get to be her supporters if she gets on the show. Good luck Missy!

At least we got to round two!



Click here for the pictures.

I should clarify. I find humor in signs that display grammatical or spelling errors. I'm no Mignon Fogarty but I do recognize errors when they are blatant. So, today, while walking down the Miracle Mile, I got quite the chuckle when I saw a sign in the window of a salon that had this word in it.



What exactly did the sign say? Click here to check out the rest of the picture on Flickr. While you're there, or should I say, while your their, check out the rest of the pictures posted in the Grammar Girl pool.

In our house, American Idol is a big deal. Every year, we watch it as a family but rarely agree on who we think will win the competition. This season, we all have our own favorites but can all agree on one thing: Amanda Overmyer is the long lost daughter of W.A.S.P. front man Blackie Lawless.

Look at the evidence and decide for yourself.



Oh, and in case you're interested, my pick for the top four are David Cook, Chikezie, Carly Smithson and Brooke White.

I like The Simpsons. Ok, I really like The Simpsons. I've watched the show since the very beginning, I own a couple of seasons on DVD and, of course, I own The Simpsons Movie. I also drive a Ford Five Hundred. I like my car. Ok, I really like my car. It has been perfectly dependable during its first 100,000 miles. I like the name Five Hundred and even like the fact that they re-named the car to Taurus - which is all a bit confusing if you ask me.




So what do the Simpsons have to do with my car? Well, during a recent speech, Ford's head of global product development Derrick Kuzak likened the Five Hundred to Homer Simpson. Not Homer's car, but Homer himself. The Five Hundred was called a failure and an updated model was promised for the future.

A failure? Homer Simpson a failure? I don't think so! I'm proud to drive a Homer Simpson.

Drum roll, please.

Merriam-Webster gave the honor to 'w00t'. American Dialect Society gave it to 'subprime'. Locavore earned the dubious honor from Oxford.

Not one to shy away from popular fads on the internet, I wanted to play along. After careful consideration and some deliberation with Dawn, I have chosen the mattbeckwith.com word of the year: podcast.



Ok, so some of you might catch me on the technicality here. Oxford named 'podcast' their word of the year in 2005. I started listening to podcasts in 2005 and in the time since I have all but given up terrestial radio. Driving nearly three hours a day, I used to be an NPR junky. Nowadays, I might just need to pull out the owner's manual for my car stereo to figure out how to turn on the radio.

I subscribe, and listen, to 67 podcasts. Most are weekly, some are daily, some are between monthly and weekly. I listen to shows on technology, news, management and couple-casts, among others. So, is 'podcast' the word of the year because I spend so much time listening? There must be more to it than that, right?

Of course. 2007 brought so many great podcast moments. Some highlights:

September - Podcast and New Media Expo
May - Pizza Go Here is born
April - Beckwith Family Podcast is launched
April - Manager Tools conference
April - My Mostly Trivial "appearance"
February - Tour of California
January - Macworld / Mac podcast meet-up
January - I started writing for Typical Mac User

Through podcasting, we have met some great people, in the real-world and in the podosphere. I've had the chance to spend some time with some of the brightest, most interesting people I have ever met, way too many to list. We are grateful for the amazing people all over the world that have allowed us into their amazing lives.

Podcast.

If you have a computer and a pulse, there is a podcast for you. You don't need an iPod. Download iTunes, go to the podcast directory and take a look. While you're there, check out our show, Pizza Go Here.


Me and Victor, one of the kings of podcasting.

Podcast.

Welcome to California... we have earthquakes. Tonight, as we were sitting in the family room I felt some shaking. I actually thought it was Sashi (our dog) bumping my chair. I was the only one in the house that felt it but we got calls from Dawn's mom and Mike saying they both felt it.



Check out the USGS site or the local news story.

Halloween is almost here... so what better time to cut into the gourds!

Mike, Shauna, Rachel and Chris joined in the fun and brought their pumpkins over to carve as well. Any guesses which one is mine?



Want to see last year's pumpkins? Check them out here.

Check out the pics here.

Happy Anniversary to us! Lucky #13... yippee! Last night, Dawn and I went to downtown Stockton to have dinner and catch a movie. Recently, the city of Stockton put out the call for street performers. I wasn't sure how that would work until last night when we saw a great mime performance. This guy was very talented and got a lot of attention. The downtown plaza is a cool place and having performers like that really enhances the environment.

Check out Mime Video 1 | Mime Video 2



We also watched a local punk-turned-bluegrass band, Lonesome Valley Shiners, perform a couple of songs as participants in the Music in the Square. They started late, a little after 7:30, which made for some not so happy people in the audience. Right before they went on, a volunteer downtown guide gave the band 5 minutes to start playing or they'd have to leave. The music was great; I can't wait to see what other acts are playing for the rest of the summer. Hey, I've got an idea, get The Grape down there!

After the entertainment we saw I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry... very, very funny!

Check out pics here.

So, do you have some time to kill? If you're like us (well, most of us) and love the Simpsons, then you have to check out the Simpsonizeme site. Then, rush out and go watch the Simpsons Movie!

Here we are, Simpsonized.


Check out the rest of our Simpsons pictures here.

Emily and Makenzy enjoyed their last day of school today. While Mak will be attending the same school next year, Emily and her friends said goodbye to junior high school and began the countdown to high school. Dawn and I officially feel old!



Check out pics here.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

1:16 a.m. PDT, May 13, 2007

STOCKTON, California (AP) - The Beckwith Family - Matt, Dawn, Emily and Makenzy, have announced the grand opening of their newest website, Pizza Go Here - a family podcast.  Nearly 10 years after they started sharing family news and pictures on the world wide web they have jumped on the podcast bandwagon.

"We are so excited to be podcasters" said 8 year old Makenzy.  A sentiment that was echoed by her older sister Emily.   

Matt said, "The name, Pizza Go Here, came from a famous slip-up my Mom uttered years ago so we thought it fitting to make our announcement on Mother's Day."

Pizza Go Here has already received praise from the handful of select friends, family and other podcasters that were given a recent sneak preview.

The show will feature Emily's joke and video of the week, Mak's Mac tip as well as other random thoughts.  The podcast will also feature their "Would You Rather" question.  

"We hope that all our friends and family subscribe to the podcast and we hope to get some new listeners as well" said Dawn. 

For years you've had MattBeckwith.com and BeckwithWeb.com.  Pizza Go Here is a new way to experience this whacky family from California's heartland.  "It's like pizza for your ears!" proclaimed Matt.

Visit Pizza Go Here online at pizzagohere.com.  If you have no idea what a podcast is or need help subscribing, send an e-mail to help@pizzagohere.com or call the Pizza Go Here listener line at 206-309-1631.

Download the show promo here.

I arrived at my hotel in Dulles, Virginia a little while ago. I am here this week attending the Manager Tools Effective Manager Conference. I have been listening to M-T for a year and a half or so and am very excited to be here for this event.



If you are a manager (or hope to be one soon) I highly recommend listening to Manager Tools. Putting their teachings into practice will absolutely have a tremendously positive effect on your career (as well as those on your team).


4/20/07 update



What a great two days. Without question, the most valuable conference I have ever attended. Mark and Mike, along with Michael, Cathy, Travis and Laura perfectly planned every detail of this entire event. Mark and Mike took us through the details of the management trinity and spent countless hours allowing the 100 attendees to pick their brains.

I met a lot of other managers from a vast array of industries and from all over the world. It was great to see that no matter what the background, industry or continent, management is management is management.

Before heading back out to Texas, JR, Megan, Wynter and Audrey came over and hung out with us, Mike & Shauna and Shawn.


JR and Mike... showin' the love!

Check out our pics here.

I am a self-professed podcast junky. One of my favorite podcasts is Mostly Trivial, with your host Johnee Bee. After doing some research on the penny-farthing bike I bought recently, I decided to pitch some trivia questions to the show. I was driving home from work, listening to podcasts, and Mostly Trivial started to play. I was blown away when Johnee Bee introduced the category as 'bicycles'. I'm practically famous! Finally, I knew all of the questions.

If you haven't listened to Mostly Trivial, give it a try. It is a short, very well produced weekly show.

Check out the episode I contributed to here.

Click here for Mostly Trivial on iTunes.

Well, Naughty Nicks closed with little fanfare (see Times, they are a changin' and Recordnet article). Mike and I never made it for a ceremonial game of snooker but when we heard they would be auctioning everything away on February 24th we knew we had to be there.



We got there early in the morning, registered, got our bidder numbers and made it in to the building to inspect the hundreds of items that would be sold before heading back outside to wait for the auctioneer to begin. Pool tables, video games, pinball machines and tons of little nick knacks (no pun intended) were tightly packed in to the back half of the building. On my list was a couple of the Ms. Pac Man cabaret and cocktail table games, the famous table #9 - the 6x12 snooker table where we learned to play the game, and of course two very specific items: that crazy old-fashioned bike and the big wall clock.

The videos games went quickly and were very overpriced. The pool tables started to go dirt cheap so I called Dawn to tell her I might be bringing home a snooker table. I ended up losing table #9 but had a couple of bids that forced the winner to pay a hefty premium for it.

Then, as the weather worsened, everyone moved inside and we got closer and closer to the two remaining items I was hoping to take home. I could live without a game or a pool table but I really wanted that bike and that clock. There didn't seem to be that much interest for the bike but a lot of people were looking to bring that clock home.

The pictures below tell the rest of the story. I got the bike and the clock! Sure, I could have found a replica boneshaker / penny-farthing bike at any number of places and I'm sure that 42" wall clocks are easy to come by, but I wanted these particular ones.

After getting the handle bar reattached (thanks Fred) I have tried to ride the bike but have not been able to reach the pedals. I'm still looking for a taller volunteer to take it on a test ride. Ron said it is ridable... not sure about that though.



It took us some time to find a place in the living room to hang the clock and then to get the right hardware to do it safely. Finally, this past weekend, we did it. I can't get over the fact that the Naughty Nicks clock is hanging up in my living room.



I was lamenting with a good friend recently (one with whom I spent a lot of time with at Naughty Nicks) and he reminded me, "...the memories of the past places that I hung out as a teen are not nearly as precious and memorable or valuable as the people that graced my time and being then...". I agree! And I'm still a sentimental ol' sap and think of the great friends I had and have every time I see the Naughty Nicks clock.

Well, the Deckos are on the move (most of them anyway). While Cwissy stays back to settle things in Stockton, Twon and the kids have busted out of dodge in favor of the gorgeous, wide-open land up north. There goes the neighborhood... as the Deckos start moving in to "The Property"... just wait for the first brotherhood party... we can't wait!







reeeeeb

Wow! Talk about a chilly winter... it's even snowin' in Fort Worth, Texas... check out the great pictures Megan sent!

Stay warm you guys... and drive safe!

I made a mistake with the comments and accidently deleted a lot of them. If you've commented on our site lately and your comment is gone, sorry about that. Please feel free to comment now, I promise not to delete them.

and never brought to mind? Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and auld lang syne?

Happy New Year! We all rang in the new year at Fred & Flower's (although not as much confetti as the last couple of years). As we always do when we celebrate at the Hagele's, we did a shrimp-boil (with crab, too). And by "we" I mean a lot of people except for me ate the shrimp and crab; I picked around it to the saugages, potatoes and pearl onions. Santa brought Fred a new drum set so I brought the guitar and bass and everyone took turns rockin' out.



Pictures are up, check 'em out.

When we were young, growing up in north Stockton meant a lot of time at Tower Records, Hammer Skate and Naughty Nicks. I bought my last album (Animalize by KISS) and my first cassette tape (Not of this Earth by Joe Satriani) at Tower Records... we spent many a Friday and Saturday nights at Hammer Skate and there's no telling how much money we wasted playing 9-ball and snooker at Naughty Nicks... and now they are no more.

Hammer Skate announced its closure earlier this year and now sits vacant waiting for (I assume) it's demolition before it becomes a new Walgreens (no word on if the Walgreens that sits one mile down Hammer Lane will close in favor of this location or if Walgreens is employing the Stabucks, put-one-on-every-corner, method). No three words strike up old memories quite like "all-night skate"... more than two decades later and that subject still comes up every now and then. I guess our kids will not know how much fun a skating rink can be... ok, maybe this is a good thing.





Across the street from it's current location, Naughty Nick's was originally Tiptons, which sat in a little shop. When we were young we would go in and try to hustle the younger kids in to playing pool for their arcade money. When they opened up Nick's across the street it quickly became the place to be on Friday and Saturday nights. We all learned to play 9-ball and snooker and learned how to really talk smack. Naughty Nick's will close it's doors soon in favor of The Cameo Club. Again, out with the old and in the with the new. The draw (no pun intended) of poker and the popularity of hold-em was so great that Stockton could not justify a billiard place that size. Everyone knew they made more money on parties than renting out pool tables but even that business seems to have slowed down lately.




I guess iPods, iTunes and Napster finally won... not to mention the $19 they were charging for a CD! Even though it's sad to see Tower go, I must admit that I haven't bought anything there since 11/18/03 when I made our first iTunes purchase - "Remember When" by Alan Jackson.




So, times are sure changing. Is there anyway to say that without sounding (or feeling) old? But with our kids getting older by the day I wonder where it will be that they will hang out on weekends. Hell, even Golfland is gone!

Recently, we received an e-mail from an anonymous web surfer.

Your Name: A random web surfer
Your Email: anonymous
Subject: Photos of Emo

Message: Hello Matt! Just thought you might be interested to know--the word, "Emo" in pop-culture slang refers to a genre of music somewhere between punk-rock and emotionally charged alternative music, as well as a life style and look centered around dark clothes and excessive teen angst. Many teenagers embrace this, but just as many hate it, mock them, and spread phrases such as the very well known, "cry emo, cry!" along with malicious pictures mocking their subculture throughout the internet. Why am I telling you this? Because a Yahoo image search on the word, "Emo" which I can guess thousands of kids do everyday, evidently brings up numerous pictures of what I assume is your daughter on the first dozen pages of links. I would like to point out that the Internet has a history of taking things which are innocent or random, and photoshopping them or otherwise transforming them into something meant to be funny and famous, but ultimately is simply hurtful to the person it's focussed on. There's also just the point that this is potentially a very easy way for people who know your daughter as well as a large number of people you don't know simply finding their way to these photos and your blog, which, if it were me, would be rather troubling. I would guess Yahoo should be able to remove them from their search results if you were to ask, but if not, I would suggest at the very least changing the names to the images.

Aloha and happy holidays!
A friendly web surfer



Well, Web Surfer, let me say this. Yours is not the first comment like this we have received, and it surely won't be last. Actually, yours was the most friendly as most say things like, "I was searching for 'emo haircut' and got your site, you suck". We first discovered this genre a few years ago when we were searching the 'net for clothes that said "emo" on them. Since then, the term seems to have crept up more and more in pop-culture. That doesn't change the fact our daughter is also Emo. We shared your comments with Emo and asked what she would like us to do. She said, in her normal spirit, "I'm Emo and I'm not changing the nickname I've been called since the day I was born" (it was her uncle Ken that awarded her the nickname when he first saw her at the hospital).

That got us thinking, what else does Emo mean?

A gas station! A brand of binoculars! Some place in Italy! In fact there are even other people that go by Emo and let's not forget about the one that most consider the original Emo... Emo Philips!

A search on Yahoo! images for "emo" returned over 300,000 items... and only a few hundred or so are from my sites.

So, to all of you worried kids, thank you for your concern but, if you happen across our site looking for other emo stuff, sorry to have diverted your attention.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone out there (well, except this unlucky bird).

Check out the pics here.

Thanks to Larry Johnson and the Chiefs... even though I only got to watch the last 2 minutes on TV... it was a great game... now we're tied for second place... bring on the playoffs!

Pew Internet & American Life Project released it's study on podcast downloading today, 12% of internet users have downloaded a podcast, but only 1% do so on a typical day (check out the study results here).

I am part of that 1%. Lately, I spend more time listening to my favorite podcasts than I do the radio. Nearly everyone I know uses the internet; all but a few friends or family members have an active e-mail address and some, like me, have personal web pages. But podcasts? Nope. Besides my twin brother Mike, I don't know anyone who even knows what a podcast is. I have a feeling that the number is actually lower than 1%.

So, who's downloading podcasts? I have a theory. First, let's assume there are two types of podcasts. There are those that are produced professionally (or excerpted from radio shows) and then there are the rest: the mutlitude of 'casts that are done in living rooms and basements in Anytown, USA. This population, the Mom and Pops of podcasting, are the very ones most likely to regularly subscribe to and download podcasts. That's the great thing about podcasting: anyone can do it, and so many actually are. So who's downloading podcasts? Podcasters, and me.

I openly admit that I am a self-professed podcast junkie. I like podcasts because anyone with a computer and a microphone can publish a show. I enjoy podcasts because they are a welcome break from mainstream, overly politically correct, radio. I enjoy podcasts because, given that the audiences are so small, regular people can actually participate with the shows. It's the intimacy of the format that is the cause of it's growing popularity, and the reason that it's mostly podcasters that are downloading podcasts.

Some of my favorite podcasts:

Diggnation
Chicken Fried Radio
Manager Tools
NPR: Sunday Puzzle
NPR: Motley Fool Profiles
Mostly Trivial
For What It's Worth
Productive Talk on 43 Folders
The Typical Mac User Podcast
MacCast
Mac Attack
Mac Tips Daily
iTunes New Music Tuesday
One Minute Tip
Business Week Cover Stories
Technorama
Mac OS Ken

OJ's guilty and he is finally bold enough to admit it... or close enough to it. How in the world this guy can go on like he has, without butting a bullet in his head is beyond me. Perhaps his new book, "If I Did It", and interview are his way of getting on with his life. Either way... I'm not interested!


visit dontpayoj.com

Man you're old!



check out the pictures here

The best part about Caesars Palace in Las Vegas? The Elton John store!



After donating some cash Caesars and the Bellagio... I figured it would be best if I just spent some time in the Elton John store... well some time... and some more cash!

What does Faith Hill have in common with Kayne West or John Kerry? Well, if you were watching the CMA Award show last night it was apparent that she has stolen the playbook of one of them.

As we watched the announcement of the female vocalist of the year (I already knew it was Carrie Underwood because I cheated and looked online) it was very clear that Faith Hill blew up when her name wasn't called for the award.

Now, in the aftermath, her manager is saying that it was all a joke. A joke? Like Kerry's recent blunder about "getting stuck in Iraq", she should leave the jokes to the professionals (just as MarkDayComedy said in a recent YouTube spot).

So, was she really ticked about Carrie winning? If so, I would have liked to see a good ol' fashioned cat fight on TV... at least then there wouldn't be a debate about how she really felt.

If you've not seen the clip from last night's show, check out these videos and give me your verdict.

video#1 (the best view)
video#2
video#3

Can you guess who did which pumpkin?

Check out the pics.

Due to overwhelming fan outcry, I have finally posted the video for Hopes & Prayers on YouTube (check it out here). Ok, so there are really no fans... but I thought I'd post it anyway. The song was recorded in early 2003 in The Outback. Jason wrote the song, played all of the instruments and sang lead vocals; Rich and Tish sang background vocals and I got to put the whole thing together. I have always thought this was the coolest song I ever worked on... in fact, it is so cool, it needed a video. Enjoy!

You can also view the full quality version of the video here.

I got a chance to visit with Bubba and Megan and the girls last week... what a blast. Check out the pics here. I also took a few videos... check them out here.

We finally started copying some old videos to DVD for Grace. Here are a couple of highlights from the first tape.

Now, this is a total coincidence that I happened across this shot but the next time someone asks the bros where we learned to do the crazy things we do we can say we learned it from Ma.

Picture 1 - from the top: Hope, Ma, KW, KW's dad (I believe)
Picture 2 - from the top: Kenny Jr., Emily, Me, KW


Another observation... Hope (Jo Jo) was always dancing!

Click here for a quick video of the Jo Jo dance.


The quality on these old home movies isn't all that great but wow... how cool is it to see Papa, Mimi, Ma, Grace, Hope and KW from 45 years ago!

I remember the day well... back in 1989... I got a beep on my pager, yes, I said pager, from KW saying that the baby was finally on her way. By the time I arrived at the hospital my first niece was born. 17 years later... I feel old!



What better way to say Happy Birthday then to head to the Havens house to go swimming! And you know what that means.... pictures! Click here to see the pics.

In case you didn't notice, we are busy adding archives from the past several years. Some of our entries from mattbeckwith.com, pizzagohere.com, familyisforever.com and even our old AOL webpages might show up. Some of the links may not be working (especially those to picture pages which have moved). We are trying to clean them up but aren't making any promises.

Thanks for stopping by... stay a while... enjoy your visit... drop us a line.

With the start of Emily's and Makenzy's soccer season set to begin in less than 6 hours I have finally got most of the recent pics posted. I used a couple of different formats... let me know which you prefer. Good night!

We ran into Mike and the kids at Target looking for Mentos... you know the ones, the Fresh-Maker! He said that if you put some in a two liter bottle of diet coke you will get a soda rocket! I didn't believe him... until I saw it for myself. Shauna took that great picture and I took the video (check it out on Mike's YouTube).

Wrong, wrong and wrong. I can't believe how lame I was... I left the original alt text on that file!

That picture was taken in Arlington, Texas in December 2001.

What is there to do now that 24 is over and that AI will picks it winner (Taylor) on Wednesday? Well, hopefully, we can finish converting all of our old home movies from VHS, 8MM and even some old film format, to DV. This one has a little of everyone, Ma, Mike, Jerry, Joe, Hope, Mimi, Rene, Grace, Chris, Bob and Dale. I did have to size it down to keep it reasonable for most. Coming soon... Christopher, Christopher and more Christopher.



Check out the video here (click to play or right click and save).

I have read a few stories online about how my iPod earbuds can cause me to lose my hearing. Sorry, I didn't hear you. Somewhere I came across 20-30 minutes per day as an acceptable amount of time to use earbuds, 3-4 days per week. Well, that just aint gonna work for me! I need another solution...
Thank goodness for Bose!

These bad boys rock!

Goodbye Party for Frank & Lee / Dinner & Swimming at the Costa's - pics here 
 





So, when Mike asked if I wanted to catch a 6 am flight to Salt Lake City and then help him drive a UHaul back to Stockton I couldn't pass it up! Well, I didn't realize it was a 30 foot, diesel, manual transmission, POS truck! 

 

Driving through the salt flats of Utah we drove past this.... what the heck is this??!?!?!? 

 



Merry Christmas from the Beckwith Family

Sashi Noir

Well... the girls saw this dog at the adoption event and fell in love.  When they took me to see her I told them that I would just look but that we wouldn't be getting a puppy that day.  Well... I fell in love, too!