The last time we went to Disney World was two years ago. My son was 3 at the time, and even though he enjoyed the experience while we were there, he doesn’t remember too much about it now. But whenever he glances through our photo albums and sees all the snapshots we took at Disney, he starts clamoring about taking another trip there. This has been happening for the past two weeks now, with no letup in sight.

So Jerry and I had a bit of a discussion about vacations tonight, and while we don’t have any money for a big trip in the near future, we could probably do something good next year (provided we save enough). We’ve always wanted to go on a Disney cruise, so that’s what we’re shooting for. Hopefully if we find some good cruise deals out there, we’ll be able to have the best family vacation ever next summer!

Oh, and of course we’ll have to stop by the theme park for at least one day. I can’t pass up a chance to go on Space Mountain or Pirates of the Caribbean!

Remember disgraced American cyclist Floyd Landis? He ostensibly won the 2006 Tour de France, but was stripped of his title shortly after the conclusion of the race when a French lab said that he tested positive for banned substance (i.e. performance enhancing drugs).

Well, Landis swore up and down that the lab results were faulty, and the case went to court (or arbitration), where Landis lost. He then appealed with the Court of Arbitration for Sport, a process that took more than three months from beginning to end.

Today, the Associated Press reports that Landis lost his appeal, as the three-person panel decided to uphold the original decision.

There is still one appeal avenue left to Landis — the Swiss Federal Court — but it’s unclear if he’ll exercise that option.

I don’t follow cycling all that much, but in nearly every mainstream article I read, there are talks of the widespread use of PEDs. Was Landis guilty of using illegal substances? I have no idea, of course, but it certainly seems as though these appeals are getting him nowhere. His reputation is basically ruined and he’s lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees, endorsement opportunities, and salary (he’s banned for 2 years, remember?).

On the one hand, I feel like he should give up. It might be a European vs. American bias (ask any European if they think Lance Armstrong doped up during his Tour days) or it could be that Landis really was guilty. Either way, it doesn’t look like he’ll get a ruling in his favor. So why go to the extra time and expense of another appeal?

On the other hand, leaving things as they are would disgrace Landis for life and ruin what bit of a career he might have left. This is the “nothing left to lose” approach, which obviously could backfire if the Swiss Federal Court finds the lab tests valid as well.

If Landis was guilty of doping, he’s probably wishing he had just ‘fessed up on the spot and not gone through the last two agonizing years of arbitration and legal wrangling. Yikes.

Since I work from home most of the time, I of course need to have a bit of office space for my computer, reference books, and files. We don’t have a spare room to accommodate these things, and even if we did, I probably wouldn’t use it since I don’t want to completely isolate myself from my family. So the best compromise we could come up with was to section off the back part of the living room and set up my stuff there.

This arrangement has worked tolerably well for the past two years, though there are definitely times when I wish I had a fourth wall and a door to shut out the traffic and noise. Heck, I’d even settle for a couple of pieces of velvet theater rope to keep my son and his friends from letting their games of tag or hide-and-seek spill over into my office!

On the whole, however, I do like my current setup. I’ve got everything I need within reach of my desk, plus a nice big window right next to me, which lets in all the sunlight and fresh air I could want. Plus, if I swivel 180 degrees in my chair, I can watch the ballgame on our big 37-inch LCD screen or check out the playroom to see what my son is up to. This sure beats a corporate cubicle any day!

I’ve been on a real reading tear (well, for me anyway) in 2008. After the first six months of the year, I’ve already read 30 books! I usually don’t keep track like this, but since I have to write up the reviews for Reviews and More, it’s easy to see where I stand.

In looking over the list of titles I’ve finished this year, I see that most of the stuff I’ve read fall into the mystery/detective/crime thriller genre (Agatha Christie, Michael Connelly). I also have more “modern” novels (written in the past 10-15 years or so) than I usually read, but very few classics (only Walden and Sybil).

I’d definitely like to keep up this pace for the next six months, and don’t foresee any problems with achieving this mark. However, I’m going to make much more of an effort to insert more classics into my list instead of sticking with the easy stuff. One a month should do, beginning with something from Dickens. Both The Pickwick Papers and Martin Chuzzlewit are available as free audiobooks at Librivox, so I’ll likely go with one of those.

It’s official: I’m completely clueless when it comes to interior design. I don’t know the first thing about how to dress up a room or how to make a certain area more functional. I don’t know how to arrange furniture in an attractive way, nor do I know how to add flair with the right accessories. And I certainly don’t know the differences between the top brand names and manufacturers of appliances, faucets, or furnishings.

Is Kenmore better than Amana? Where does Whirlpool fit in? Are Danze faucets as good as everyone says? Should I go ahead and pay more for Ethan Allen furniture? Heck, I have no idea!

That’s why I’m going to bite the bullet and have an professional come in to help me out. Jerry and I want to start entertaining more, so we’ve been talking about redoing our home for a long time now. Since he’s do a performance bonus at work next month, this seems like a good time to get the ball rolling.

I’d love to begin either in the kitchen or the living room, but really, every room needs an overhaul, so we can’t go wrong wherever we decide to start!

Houston Astros pitcher Shawn Chacon was placed on waivers today, following a well publicized incident in which he grabbed the team’s GM Ed Wade around the neck and threw him to the ground. According to Chacon, this happened after Wade started yelling and cursing at the player in public (in the team’s cafeteria or something). Apparently, Wade got in Chacon’s face and wouldn’t back down even after Chacon repeatedly asked him to stop.

Nevertheless, there’s absolutely zero excuse for what Chacon did, and I’m glad to see the team take this kind of action. Hopefully no one else will claim this piece of trash off the wire by Monday, at which point the Astros will be free to terminate his contract without pay.

The sooner Chacon is out of the league, the better.

If you read my shopping blog at all, then you know that Jerry and I are both gadget freaks. We love buying and using all the latest tech toys, from MP3 players to digital WiFi hotspotters and more. So when I heard that Today’s Gizmos is hosting a giveaway for a FREE digital photo keychain, I decided to enter.

I’ve actually wanted a digital photo keychain for a long time now, but haven’t quite gotten around to buying one yet. Hopefully I won’t have to if I’m one of the three lucky winners randomly selected to receive a prize!

The digital photo keychains were made available courtesy of WholesaleKeychain.com. I went over to their website to take a look at some of the products they have to offer, and really liked what I saw — especially the black 1.5 inch digital photo keychain pictured above.

This item features a 4.8MB internal memory, making it capable of storing around 72 photos. You can set up a slideshow so your pictures scroll continuously, or you can switch the display to manual and keep your favorite photo up all the time. When you’re not showing off photos, you can simply choose to display the date and time.

This particular keychain also comes with software that automatically crops photos to fit in the display, making it even easier to show off your best snapshots. Plus, it has a rechargeable battery so you never have to worry about buying replacements!

At any rate, I’m crossing my fingers and waiting anxiously to hear who the winners of this giveaway are! If you’d like to enter, you better hurry up and get your posts done by tomorrow, because that’s when the drawing will be. Check out TodaysGizmos.com for further details!