Things I want to Share

The best day to thank your dad for everything is Father’s Day. Apart from giving gifts, the other thing you can do, is to dine out since the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Now it’s decided that you will dine out but what kind of dining surprise do you have in mind? Well, you can entertain your dad in 5 different ways.

1. The first one is to dine in the home garden. Set up a barbecue and relish tasty dishes piping hot. Invite his friends, colleagues and all relatives and loved ones to leave a lasting smile on your dad’s face.

2. Dining on the terrace is a superb idea. On top of that if you set up a camp fire then it’s all the more exciting. Just bring home some of his friends and listen to him as he takes a trip down memory lane.

3. Your dad will truly love a picnic with his loved ones to a place he likes the most. It will make him feel special if the picnic spot selected is the one which he likes the most but never got a chance to visit. Also, you can carry packed lunches to add to the fun.

4. There is nobody who wouldn’t enjoy a home cooked meal on the usual dinner table. The icing on the cake would be if the menu selected contains exotic dishes of his taste.

5. The next best idea is to take him to a restaurant. But if you are tired of the usual restaurants and want to choose one that offers good service, good food, and good ambience don’t break your head; just search for restaurant recommendations and select a restaurant that suits the occasion.

So gear up to make the D-day a memorable one especially for your father.

National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the largest sanctioning body for one of North America's premier sports, Stock car racing. Formed in the year 1948, NASCAR will celebrate its 60th B'day this year, 2008.

Rated as the second-most popular professional sport in terms of television ratings inside the U.S., NASCAR attracts auto enthusiasts from all over the world. NASCAR consists of three national series (the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series), four regional series, and one local grassroots series, as well as two international series.

With its headquarters housed in Daytona Beach, Florida, NASCAR has its regional offices in New York, Los Angeles, Charlotte (N.C.), Concord (N.C.), Conover (N.C.), Bentonville (Ark.) while its international offices are located in Mexico City and Toronto.

2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the top racing series, championship standings are headed by Kyle Busch of Toyota with Jeff Burton (Chevrolet) and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (Chevrolet) trailing behind him. Check out some of the car videos.

Father's Day is coming up soon. The best time to tell him how much you love him. Each year, it's a hard time choosing unique gifts for your dad. For the sports fan, TV-watching dad here’s some TV and sports related gadget recommendations.

Universal Remote Control
If your household is like most multimedia-enabled homes you probably have a basket-full of remote controls. This year you can make everyone's life simpler and give your Dad a cool present at the same time with a universal remote that can consolidate all or most of your remotes. The Logitech Harmony 880 will set you back about $200. It has a color LCD screen and gets good ratings from users who say it can control all their devices. The Logitech Harmony 1000 is a bit pricey at $400 but it’s like having a small computer with large color touch screen in your hand. Users say it’s easy to program and fun to use.

Blu-ray DVD Player
It might still be a little too soon to buy a Blu-ray DVD player. While we wait for Profile 2.0 to appear in stand-alone players you could easily rationalize getting Dad a PlayStation 3 that already includes a Profile 2.0 Blu-ray player and is a pretty good deal at around $300. Just think of the cool simulation and sports games many of which support 1080P high definition resolutions. NBA 2K8 gets high marks for realistic graphics as does MLB 08 and Madden NFL 08.

HDTV Sets
Okay, before you say, "I can't afford to buy my father an HDTV set," maybe you can be creative and get the family to pool some money and buy a reasonably priced HDTV set. For example, the Vizio VU42LF is a 42 inch LCD TV that supports 1080P and can be purchased for under $800. The Toshiba 42LX196 is another 42 inch, 1080P LCD TV that costs a little over $1000. The Olevia 242T doesn't do 1080P but only costs a little over $700. For a little under $500 you can get a 23 inch Samsung LN-T2342H that does 720P.

Following the Games Away From Home
If your father is a huge sports fan and doesn't already have a Slingbox then maybe you should consider getting him one of these devices that will let him watch whatever is on the TV at home on his computer at work or wherever he is. You can get a Slingbox AV for around $100 or move up to the Slingbox Pro version which supports HD for under $200. For a more portable gadget that gets Dad instant sports scores away from home, check out the Wireless Sportscast that pulls in sports scores to a handheld device.