What is it about weather?

What is it about weather that is so fascinating.  The eerie images from Hurricane Isaac the past few days have consumed us all, glued to the television for hours, watching and waiting for that next destructive image.  So sad and heartbreaking but at the time so fascinated that you simply cannot pull away from it. 

 I will admit that I am consumed by significant weather events and I can't state a rational reason why I find it so exciting.  I cringe at the loss of damage and property, yet I am so fueled by the images and having the chance to be part of it.  Last year I responded as part of my job to Hurricane Irene in New York.  It was an amazing experience.  A few years earlier again I found myself working in the snow blizzard that affected Pittsburgh and the surrounding counties.  Again so heart pounding and exciting.  But what is it about weather that makes ordinary people infatuated with mother natures wrath? 

 These images are amazing.  Not amazing that I think they are cool and that I would wallpaper them all over my computer or iPhone, but amazing in the sense that this can happen anytime, anywhere to all of us.  And at the core we all realize how small of a world we live in and how these weather disasters will effect us for many years to come.  Let this be the great wake up call and call to action for all us to get prepared, prepared for the very worst that life can send our way.  I sincerely hope that all effected by this storm will overcome the great hurdles that lay in their way.

Images from www.weather.com

PurifiCup Product Review

A few months ago I was surfing my Twitter feed and I first saw a RT (Re-Tweet) pop up mentioning a Twitter user named @purificup.  Because I follow so many survival, preparedness, disaster preparedness twitter users, I was curious and I clicked on the tweet. It took me to the companies web page www.purificup.com.  I was in love instantly with this product.  A small, lightweight, compact water filtration/purification system that kills 99.99999% of everything nasty that can be found in rivers, streams, tap water, etc.  I watched their videos and read some of their scientific reports and knew I had to get my hands on one of these to add to my survival and Search & Rescue kits.

I Immediately started following @purificup on twitter and soon after, they began following me.  I finally sent them a direct message stating who I was and that I was looking to purchase a PurifiCup to test out for Search & Rescue and for Disaster Preparedness.  The response blew me away....A gentleman named Robert Kao tweets me right back informing me he will be in Pittsburgh in 48 hours to demo the unit to a major sporing goods company and if I can meet him in the lobby of his hotel he will give me a unit to try out.  HOLY CRAP!!!!!! Do you know how many companies I have written to for outdoor products to test out?  Do you know how many of them have ever sent anything to be tested out?  Well friends, the answer is very few, and there was always some corny catch to it.  God forbid you would want to put your product in someones hand who could potentially help spread the word for you.  Not PurifiCup.  Their response was immediate and I couldn't be more excited to meet with them.

The day arrived and I met with Mr. Kao in Pittsburgh. We sat in the lobby of his hotel and he dazzled me with all of the science that PurifiCup rightfully can brag about.  They have accomplished something that no one else has been able to in such a lightweight, portable design.  Now, I could copy and paste all the facts and science and this could quickly look like everyone else's blog and review, but that's not me.  I got the science and I understood it, but I wanted the taste test.

He brought me back a glass of bathroom tap water and that's exactly what it tasted like.  That nasty, non-refreshing metallic taste that we all have experienced...the kind of water I would only allow in my mouth to rinse and spit with after I brushed my teeth.  He assembled the PurifiCup in about 5 seconds.  It's only 3 pieces (Large cup, small cup and a filter).  He poured the same tap water in the large cup and the magic immediately began.  The water started a small drizzle through the middle filter and into the drinking cup.  I was amazed that I could IMMEDIATELY see a clarity change in the water.  The taste was absolutely astonishing....I know..I know..It's just water, but until you experience this, you simply have no idea.  I was presented with my own PurifiCup and I was ready to take it into the field for it's test.

About a month later I finally was able to head out to Ohiopyle State Park in The Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvania for my field test.  With 100% confidence I submerged the large cup into the moving waters and I was ready for action.  The cup assembled with ease, the filtration took about 90 seconds for a full cup and within minutes I was enjoying the cleanest, purest, most  refreshing glass of mountain water I have ever tasted.  I have tried out other filter and purification products...you know the ones with hoses, pumps, batteries, lights, chemicals, etc.  And although they were ok, the PurifiCup delivered to me something better than I have ever experienced without the hoses, batteries, chemicals and lights.  The more people hat watched me submerge and filter, the more that became curious and asked what I was doing.  A few samples were handed out to onlookers and I could tell they were having the same moment I was having.

PurifiCup makes two models.  A natural water unit that does 150 filtrations and a tap water unit that does 300 filtrations.  So if you are a frequent traveler and you don't want to pay $4 for a bottle of water, then this model is for you.  The shelf life is 4-5 years for the unopened filter, so preppers everywhere can have confidence that this can sit unopened on a shelf and be ready for use when they need it.  One of the coolest features about the filter unit is that it will mate to the drinking cup it comes with, a wide mouth Nalgene type bottle or a standard 3 ring water bottle.  The 3 white rings you see in the photo below are a unique counter mechanism to keep track of each filtration process.  At just $59.95 PurifiCup is a must have for your backpack, home, carry on etc.  Achieving safe drinking water anywhere has never been easier.  To see my full video review of this product please visit www.youtube.com/thepfav and look under the product review play list.  Thank you PurifiCup!!!!

NASA Triumphs once again

I have been a NASA junkie since I was a small boy. I can remember my dad taking me to see STS-2 and STS-4 and that was the beginning of the passion for everything space. I was the coolest kid on the block when I had the old refrigerator box converted into my own make shift Space Shuttle in my mom's backyard.

I was lucky enough to get to meet Joe Engle, Richard Truly, Sandy Magnus and Chris Ferguson. Last year I won a twitter contest and got to participate in a NASA Tweetup at NASA HQ in Washington DC. So it's safe to say I have had many "space" moments in my life.














But I have to tell you, there was something very magical watching Curiosity land on Mars this morning. There was a very real, unscripted reaction watching the celebration at mission control when they received confirmation of touchdown that gave me goosebumps on top of goosebumps.

For my generation it was our "That's one small step for man" moment. A moment I will cherish forever.

Congratulations to everyone at NASA who made this possible. I hope in the years to come they can receive the funding they need to keep the exploration and the dream alive. Space is our future. There are many more small boys and girls who deserve their "space" moments too.

The Attention of Chick-fil-a

Like so many of you, I am sick and tired of hearing about Chick-fil-a in the news.  The only time I want to think about this restaurant is when I am craving something from their menu.  Regardless of what their President said about his position on marriage, do you realize what all of the new attention is doing for Chick-fil-a?  Read the news.  "Record profits, all time sales...." Seriously if you are offended by what was said, then find a new way to protest. If you think you are hurting them, then think again.  They are laughing all the way to the bank.

What are these judges thinking?

It doesn't matter if it's the UFC, HBO Boxing or Olympic Boxing, there is a clear problem that is happening universally with the way that judges are scoring fights.  Today in the Olympics, I watched two matches and just walked away shaking my head at the decision; not because who I wanted to win lost (I had no idea who any of these fighters were) but because to the TV viewer it was so painfully obvious who won the fight, only to see the judges give it to the other guy.  Did anyone catch the NBC announcer who said "This is why boxing has become a joke".  Imagine the fighters and what they go through for a minute.  The training camps, the injuries, the time and commitment, the life style that they have to live, only to see their dreams destroyed by poor some judging & refereeing.  What exactly they are looking at and how they are scoring it is just mind blowing to me, and it's a shame that Olympic Boxing is prone to this as well.  It's just sad.......




****Follow Up****
The boxing referee in one of the above mentioned bouts was just expelled from the Olympic Games and sent home.  The fight was overturned on appeal and the Japanese boxer was awarded the bout.  That's great and some justice has been served, but at the end of the day his initial Olympic moment was taken from him by some biased referee.

What is a Champion?

19 Olympic medals? Being on a winning sports team? How do the common define champion? For me, my gold medal has always been being in control of my own destiny, both professionally and personally. Most of us reading this will never know the glory of standing on any kind of podium or receiving that big sponsor payday. No matter what we do or where we work, in our own minds we can never forgot that we are champions to those close to us and perhaps to people not so close to us. For that reason alone, I stand on my own podium in my heart holding my gold medal close to me.

Congratulations to Team USA for all that you have accomplished. For those that may not win a medal during these games always remember...you don't need a medal to be a champion. Just getting there is champion enough.