I do use a variety of statistical data to review the websites I administer — and while I will monitor and review the others very often, I review FredPosner.com about twice a year… and with that long winded introduction, I present… 2011: The Year That Was at FredPosner.com.

The Top 3 Most Viewed Pages of 2011

1. No, You Cannot Scan My ID (aka the Target rant)
2. The Ben Franklin Effect
3. Meet Cartoon Fred (an oldie, yet apparently popular topic)

The Top 3 Key Words/Phrases of 2011

1. benjamin franklin
2. what is a hero
3. fred posner

The Top 3 Referring Sites of 2011

1. google
2. facebook
3. qxork.com

The Top 3 Web Browsers Visiting during 2011

1. Firefox
2. Internet Explorer
3. Chrome

Thank You!

In 2011, over 10,000 unique visitors from 114 different countries checked out FredPosner.com. For a personal site, this is an amazing honor. Compared to the traffic we get at Dream Day Cakes®, the traffic here is nothing… but again, this site has pictures of bears holding hands, my annual Thanksgiving message, rants about Target, Rubio, Politics, and occasional photos of my odometer.

Trivial for you… my favorite post last year was the What is a Hero? rant. Yeni’s was (you guessed it)… the two bears holding hands.

Thank you again!

This is our dream house. I love her smile.

I love you, baby.

Happy Halloween!

I really want to write more often. I really want to exercise. I really want to do a lot of things. Right now, my limitations on completing my wants are limited by time. There’s only 24 hours in a day… some days I don’t even spend 3 of those sleeping. But this isn’t a pitty post. This is a wake up call.

When Yeni and I started Dream Day Cakes, we did so out of passion. My wife has some mad skills. She’s amazing at what she does– and she does it very well. This is not my first business, but this is my first one with significant overhead. Running a bakery in Gainesville sure is a lot more work than I had initially expected. It’s more time. A LOT MORE TIME. But, as the Mondoshawans said in The Fifth Element, “Time not important. Only life important.”

As usual, I digress.

Today was a good day. Last night, Yeni and I went  to bed at 7:30pm. 7 freaking 30. We did so because we were simply exhausted. We slept for 14 hours and woke up tired. But again, this isn’t a pity party. This is a call to action and today was a good day.

What did I do today? I caught up.

The lawn needed work. Actually it needed work in May. Today it needed major work. It got it. Laundry? Done. Publix? Went there. Grandma? Called her and shot the shit. You can never shoot enough shit with grandma.

But now, it’s time to get back to the business. And business isn’t just the actual business. Business is also my wife. Business is also me.

And today, we make Fred and Yeni time a bigger focus of our business. =)

Gainesville Wedding Cakes and More

In case you haven’t realized, Yeni and I have opened a bakery in Gainesville, FL. We’ve named it Dream Day Cakes and, well, you MUST COME BY! First, let me tell you a little story.

Once upon a time, in the land of North Central Florida, there lived a boy named Fred Posner. Fred, a large, rotund, bald boy, loved eating, riding motorcycles, and living la vida loca. Not so much listening to La Vida Loca but actually living it. One day, while attending a wedding in Southern Michigan, Fred spotted a princess– a small, petite brown eyed princess. “One day she will be mine,” Fred thought to himself as he danced the sprinkler with other wedding guests. (Ironically, dancing the sprinkler at a wedding usually works to repel a princess)

After devouring the wedding cake, and drinking many alcoholic beverages, Fred summoned the strength to approach his princess and talk with her. He failed. Words were not his friend, but this was ok. English was not the princess’ friend, and it would take many years for the gods to make the star crossed lovers find their path. Six years to be exact.

Six years later, while not attending a wedding (or eating wedding cake)… Fred takes his stallion (a green Harley Davidson) and rides to the princess. The princess joins Fred and they ride off to the sunset, the petite princess secured behind the wall of a prince.

After getting married and returning to Gainesville, the princess decides it’s time to follow another dream and starts baking cakes. Her cakes are fantastic. Fred actually is moved to eat cake over cannoli. It’s a sign from the gods.

Fast Forward to now and you have…. Dream Day Cakes. A family owned cake bakery in Gainesville, FL proudly serving Ocala, Gainesville, High Springs, Lake City, and all of North Central Florida. From Wedding Cakes to custom sculpted masterpieces, Cakes do come true at Dream Day Cakes.

Visit us at http://www.dreamdaycakes.com.

My beautiful bride

Saturday, Yeni and I will be celebrating our first wedding Anniversary. Of course, we could think of no better place to go than Disney World – after all, we go there quite a bit (Florida Annual Pass has it’s privileges). Anyway…

Yeni’s always been fascinated by these beautiful cakes that have become popular. She watches Food Network non-stop and just loves that cakes can be very custom and yet very beautiful. When we got married in May, she had made a stuffed mini-cake, as our wedding was very small and we wanted to keep costs down (plus she didn’t know I had a surprise Courtney Clark cake waiting for us ).

Luckily, around Christmas time, Yeni decided to try and make these cakes on her own. The good news? She’s amazing. I know I’m biased, but it is awesome to see her make these cakes. The bad news? The cakes don’t just look good, they taste REALLY good. And of course, this means that it’s been even harder to lose this big ol’ gut I’m carrying around. Ugh. Plus the house always smells incredible, so I’m consistently hungry… but I digress.

This year, it was my wife’s turn to surprise me. You see, I love that little cake she made for our wedding. I love it so much I thought she should actually go in business making replica wedding cakes for Brides. I mean, seriously… look at that picture… the cake is just awesome (yes, we’ve already established my bias).

So, what was my surprise?

This year, Yeni reproduced our mini-replica in real cake!

Score!

Ah, married life is good.

(If you want to see more of Yeni’s cakes, look at just a few of the ones she has made this month. Crazy)

Makes it harder to lose weight– but it’s gooooooood.

While working away, managed to post some quick words:

• VoIP Tech Chat: Blackberry desperate? RIM announces FREE Blackberry Enterprise Server Express
• Team Forrest: SIP Response Codes (just for a quick reference)
• Fat Freddy Says: Updated Review for Nick’s Original House of Pancakes, Ann Arbor

Yeni in her studio.

Lately, thanks to our newly purchased Kitchen-Aid mixer, I have been eating well — very well. Although I guess that depends on your definition of what “eating well” means. If it means eating low calorie, very healthy meals, then no. If it means eating delicious cakes and desserts that make your mouth water, then YES — I have been eating very well.

Yeni loves those cake shows and well, I truly think she’s a natural. Not only are the cakes great looking, they also taste out of this world. Add this to the homemade cannoli and well, simply put, I’m a lucky man. Lucky man.

For more pictures of the cake (you have to see the little fondant bear), check out the album posted on my picasa account.

My girl (with my grandmas rolling pin)

It’s that time of the year again… the time where Fred decides to:

1. Talk about himself in the third person
2. Change the website design
3. Look forward to Thanksgiving
4. Digress

Well, we all know that #3 and #4 happen all year long. Man I love some Thanksgiving. (uh oh, looks like I’m talking in the first person again)

So what’s been happening?

We recently purchased a Kitchen-Aid mixer; sadly, something Yeni and I always wanted. Well, maybe not so sad I guess. I mean we both love to cook and she’s been cooking up a storm. We’re talking homemade cannoli, homemade cakes with fondant, and did I mention everything is 100% homemade from scratch? I’ve only used the mixer a couple of times to make bread, but it really does keep with our theme: Dreams come true. Even the small dream of owning a Kitchen Aid mixer can come true. (pictures)

Of course, all of these homemade amazing yummies isn’t helping me lose weight, but did I mention homemade cannoli? I mean Yeni is my dream girl already, but who knew she could make homemade cannoli?? November 1st also marked our 6 month anniversary. It really seems like we’ve been married longer.

Thanksgiving

I’ve said it a thousand times: Thanksgiving is Fred’s favorite holiday.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve loved Thanksgiving. Growing up in New York, autumn was amazing — the trees changing color, the air gets cooler, people seem happier, and the food flows. Coming from a large family, our Thanksgiving’s were huge events filled with Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Grandmothers, and more. Family everywhere you looked. And after the meal, the race to get a good piece of couch was only topped by the race back to the table for dessert.

This year, the Thanksgiving table will be a little smaller. With my sister’s wedding, my wedding, and other family events, it’s made it a little difficult to bring everyone down to Florida… again. Apparently some of my family do not share my belief that Florida is just a fantastic State where one should go and go often. That being said, Yeni and I (and her mom) will be driving down to Florida with stops in Kentucky (my second favorite State), Tennessee, Gainesville, and Fort Lauderdale. Knowing Yeni, we’ll also be stopping at many cracker barrels along the way.

Website Design

Sometimes you just want a change. I’ve been in a minimalist mood lately (also in a country music mood for some reason), and just wanted a clean, simple design for the site. I also changed the Team Forrest site a little bit ago for the same reason. If you like the site, great! If you don’t, well… too bad. But don’t worry, I’m sure it will change again soon enough.

On the 16th, Yeni and I headed to the Glendale Harley-Davidson with David Duffett, and rented a couple of bikes. We headed north through some amazing country that well, I’d only seen in pictures. We saw cactus, we drove by mountains that looked like Big Thunder, and had a great meal at a dive off the beaten path. More importantly, we got to ride with David, who although it was the first time I had ridden with him, felt like we’d been riding together for years.

Here’s a few movies…

Fred Posner @ Astricon 2009

It’s October and that means I’m going to Phoenix!

Astricon, the meet-up of Asterisk users / developers / fans / etc, starts October 13th, and this year I received the honor of presenting. My talk, Asterisk Applications: Unexpected Hurdles, showcases the Ann Arbor Parking “Smackdown” earlier this year.

As an added benefit… my Wife will be joining me

I miss my friend.

Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends And in no random order…

qxork.com

So, you ever give out an email address and the person questions the spelling, asks you to repeat the work, or just in someway makes it a non-pleasurable experience? Of course you have… Well, after explaining that it was “m like mary” and “2 r’s in Forrest” for the last time, I decided to get a really small domain with letters that don’t sound like other letters (ie no m, n, c, d, e, t, etc.).

Since there weren’t many 3 or 4 letter domains to be found, the new domain is… q x o r k. “Hi, I’m Fred. Send it to Fred at q x o r k dot com.” Yes, it doesn’t pronounce. Yes it doesn’t mean anything… but also… Yes, it’s easy to say clearly on the first time. There’s not much to the site… think of it as a Fred Posner gateway if you will… with links to my sites and contact information. Check it out at www.qxork.com.

INS

Ah, nothing brings a sense of wonder to me than the effectiveness of our Federal Government. Yeni and I arrived at the immigration center for our Interview, and promptly made our way to the waiting room. After an hour and half wait for our “scheduled” interview (I couldn’t help think how great it won’t be if health care is run by the Feds), we were met by the officer, sworn, and interviewed.

I have to say, it started out pretty aggressively with us being question on why Yeni didn’t move to Florida (which I kind of found sexist, but anyway…) and questioning me with topics such as Yeni’s parent’s names, etc. Again, I would describe the tone as pretty aggressive. Then the questioning started centering around my business activities and I said something about the person working as a 10-99 vs a W2. The officer asked me what a 10-99 was and I kind of started to lose it. I was stating (in my Fred way) that a 10-99 was a basic tax form that anyone should now, let alone a government employee questioning me about business, when I received a “little” kick. Yes, Yeni gave me a subtle little kick and I calmed down a little.

Well, I think the fact that Yeni kicked me and I calmed down kind of proved that we were really husband and wife… or at least I have to say the interview went completely different. All the aggression was gone and long story short… everything is very good.

Cedar Point

My next tattoo

Yeni’s parents came in last Friday and on Sunday (before Labor Day), we joined a great friend from college and headed to Cedar Point. I had never been there and truly looked forward to riding some roller coasters with the wife and in-laws. The crowds were a little large (being labor day weekend and all), but the park was nice. Clearly it’s no Disney, but there’s lots of roller coasters including some very tall and very fast rides.

As we waited in line for the Millennium Force, I became excited. This roller coaster dwarfs others. Besides speeds of 93 mph, 80 degree angles, and a 310 foot climb, the coaster just simple looks amazing. An hour later, we got to the coaster, I sat down, and low and behold… not going to happen. The seat belt simply wouldn’t close. The staff came by during the check, asked me to leave, and I did the walk of shame out.

In hind sight, reading the “exceptional size” notice of Cedar Point may have made the day better. Since I’m a 42″ waist, over 225 pounds, and have a decent sized chest (> 52″), looks like I won’t be going back there for some time. The weight will come down, but not sure how to handle the chest… anyway…

Traveling Man

The Fred Posner America Gives Back Tour is coming your way… with stops in Orlando, New Jersey, Phoenix, and many areas in-between. Come one, come all… details and photos of upcoming travel to follow.

The Tiger’s beat the Indians and we all had a great time. It was fireworks night at the stadium, so we were treated to a nice (and loud) show after the game. The nice thing about being this north is that at 9pm or so, you the sun starts to set and makes a great looking sky. Combined with the Tiger’s having the same orange and blue colors as a certain college team I love, the game made for a great night.

Blue! Orange!

The trip to Albany was amazing and covered parts of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. Cities included Toledo, Cleveland, Erie, Buffalo, Syracuse, and Albany. Normally, when traveling on the Interstate, you really don’t get to see much, and with this trip, we set that as our expectation. Gladly, we were wrong. I had never been West of Albany (yes, I’m one of those type of New Yorker’s) and the scenery simply amazed us. From the rolling hills and mountains to the lakes and rivers, the trip east absolutely provided some great views of the country.

While in Albany, Yeni and I enjoyed great food, great company, and a great time. The weather was slightly more wet than we had hoped, but being surrounded by family is like having a sunny day regardless of weather.

The trip home allowed Yeni to experience riding the Harley through some heavy rain. When we hit the Cleveland area, the sun came out and we enjoyed great weather until we reached the Ohio turnpike — where a very strong wind decided to throw us around until we made it home. Despite the rain and heavy wind, the ride was great and we’re looking forward to the next one.

Total miles: 1302

More pics...

Yeni and I just got back from a quick trip to Chicago… visiting her brother as well as celebrating our first month of married life.

It was a short drive (few hours) from Michigan to Chicago, and figuring the parking in Chicago would be interesting, we chose to take the Versa instead of the Expedition. Although, if we hadn’t have needed the trunk space, taking the Harley would have been much more fun. The more highway driving I do, the less I love Michigan roads. It’s funny too, as the second we hit Indiana, the road just smoothed out and we just smiled. Then, when you hit Chicago, well… welcome back “holes in the floor.”

Coming up this week… some Twitter coding, more Asterisk work, and if all goes well, a motorcycle ride up the east coast of Michigan with the wife (We have a new bluetooth headset to test as well as a trip to Albany to prepare for)

Anyway, this last weekend I:

• Celebrated mom’s birthday with my family (including my sister and our spouses)
• Had an AMAZING meal at Joe’s Stone Crabs (but, when do you not?)
• Celebrated Mother’s day with the family
• Worked a little in Boca Raton, FL
• Enjoyed a nice afternoon on the beach with my wife.
• Read some hilarious comments on the Gandy Dancer review

I’m looking forward to the drive up on Wednesday… love those Mountains.

• Got married (blogged @ yenifred.com)
• Reviewed the Gandy Dancer at Fat Freddy Says.com
• Had an AMAZING cake from Cake Nouveau (review coming)

And those are the biggies I guess.