Around the Internet

Retirements Spark Air Traffic Controller Shortage - In 1981, Ronald Reagan fired the air traffic controllers who went on strike. Guess what. That whole fleet of new controllers is now approaching retirement (25 years). And guess what the overworked and unhappy controllers are doing!

Netflix costs the post office way more than they bargained for. $21 million more, to be exact. Why? Because the envelopes, which are designed to allow the post office to sort them with machines, get snagged on their back back from customers because of frayed edges.

Game for a Cause: Free Rice

Game for the Halibut: Face Off via the Island Life - If you think you know your celebs, prepare to get served.

13 Thoughts About the U.S. Dollar and the Economy

I'm no economist, but I read a few things here and there that catch my attention. With the writers' strike in effect, I look to the stumbling economy for entertainment. Here are 13 thoughts about the U.S. dollar, finance, and the economy.


DOLLAR VALUE

1. Tourists from Canada, South America, etc. are traveling to the U.S. for bargain basement deals, despite the travel hassles. I've never known the U.S. dollar to be at par with its Canadian counterpart, so this was a real testament to the current state of the economy.
   
   
2. Foreign tourists will no longer be able to pay the entrance fee at the Taj Mahal in dollars. Apparently, the 22% decline in the dollar impacted India's tourism revenue.
   
   
3. As the dollar decreases in value compared to the Euro (a/o today,$1.47 buys 1.00 Euro), dollar holders have less spending power because imports are more expensive. As Americans buy less, European exporters sales decrease, thereby impacting their economy.
   
   
4. In 2005, the Chinese Yuan was revalued so that it would no longer be tied to a fixed rate against the U.S. currency. As the Chinese economy gets stronger and the U.S. dollar weakens, I'm curious to know if this has impacted our Chinese imports. I haven't seen an analysis of it, though.
   
   
5. Oil is purchased in dollars. What does that mean?
   

   "Oil producers sell their products in dollars. These dollars are used to purchase other goods in international markets. As the dollar lost its value starting in 2002, oil producers could afford to buy less in international markets with their dollars. To compensate for this loss of buying power, they may have raised the dollar price for oil."

   MONEY & THE ECONOMY
   
   
6. Rapper Jay-Z and other celebs are touting the Euro, not the dollar. And just when I figured out what cheese is.
   
   
7. Another possible rate cut, brought to you by the Fed. Bernanke's feeling the strain on the economy caused by the housing and mortgage mess, higher gas prices, tighter credit conditions, and stock declines, which means he's open to another drop in the fed rate.
   
   
8. Banks Pay the Price for Risky Mortgage Bets - Financial institutions have been making a mint by employing a complex system where they bundle mortgages into one item and sell it to other major financial institutions. Some bundles are riskier than others. Back and forth, back and forth these bundles went until the real estate market started to soften. The backup plan on handling all high-risk loans was based on the theory that real estate goes up, not down; a borrower facing default could sell the property and pay off the loan. Once property values started dropping, selling the property was no longer viable. An obvious factor in the billions being written of at financial institutions this year. I'd like to know their profits on these transactions prior to this year, though.
   
   
9. Reading Pays- Especially When It Comes to Credit Card Updates - Here's an interesting tip that I didn't know about. In the tiny text of the mind-numbing amendments to your credit card agreement, you might find an option to reject changes such as APR increases by writing a letter. That's worth skimming it over a bit closer going forward, methinks.
   
   
10. Be Careful When Police and Firefighters Ask for Money - In general, I don't make donations to any organizations that contact me. I have a few organizations that I routinely donate to, and if I'm considering a donation outside of that circle, I research their efforts at Just Give.
    
    
11. Plonkee addresses the reasons why people don't donate to charities, and knocks them off one by one. My take on it is that if you have money to spend on gifts for others, then you have enough money to donate to those who need your help. 'Tis the season to give 'til it hurts, people ;-)
    
    
12. In the excitement of buying a home, first time home owners don't always think about the non-mortgage related costs, which can be significant. The biggest, for us, is property taxes, which in California increases about 1% annually. Other states property taxes are fixed to the market value of the property (see tips here for contesting property assessment), which seems to me as a frustrating liability. I like knowing what I owe and not having it tied to a vague estimate of market values.
    
    
13. Speaking of housing, it looks like prices are still falling, for a net 13% from this time last year. I can tell you that although the median sales price for a new home is now $217,800, it's closer to half a million in Los Angeles. Since this is the median, a substantial number of homes here are in the million dollar range, which means that for the past few years, first-time home buyers had the choice of opting for a questionable loan (e.g., no interest, zero money down), or continuing to rent

Stuffed

Ah, memories.

This is what I felt like after Thanksgiving...mmm...cranberry sauce

Around the Internet

Winds of Change Blow into Roscoe, Texas - A small town gets a new lease on life with wind farms.

Google Goes Green - They're trying to make up for all of the electricity they use by masterminding some innovative power generating methods. A google of them, if you will.

Finally, a proposal to get seat belts in school buses. Yay!

Whimsy Cards - Mmm...greeting cards.

NBC Turns to Tivo Data - Finally, maybe Tivo will make a dollar. Though it sounds like viewer's preferences will be part of that new revenue source. Doh!

Mind the Gap

Nooooooooo!! Emma Clark? Fired?!? Say it ain't so!!

OK, I didn't really know her name before this article, but I knew the voice. And if you've been to London and riden the Underground, you do too. She's the voice that you hear saying "mind the gap" as the doors close.

Did she get canned due to her proclamation that "she no longer used the Tube because it was 'dreadful'." Or was it because of a little slagging on her own website. Hey, what's so bad about a little humor? (e.g., "We would like to remind our American tourist friends that you are almost certainly talking too loud.")

He said, she said. We may never know the truth.

Note: "Mind the Gap" is not to be confused with "Mind the GAAP." If you're an accountant, you're groaning in pain right now.

Shark Infested Upgrades

I love technology, but I don't like maintaining it. And I love that MetaDaddy loves technology enough to go to the pains to maintain it.

That said, this cartoon is ridiculously close to home. Not that we ever have a plethora of non-working stuff...I'm just saying...



Note to MetaDaddy: No, this isn't you! You're fabulous with techie stuff. I'm just saying, remember that Mac? Totally not your fault, obviously, but remember it? Ya, I thought so.

Dinner These Days

This reminds me of dinner these days. Can you relate?

A Beach, A Book, and A Pie

A day filled with interesting novelties for us.

• Went for a walk on the beach and actually walked on sand. It was too cold for us to get in the water, though that didn't stop local surfers from taking the challenge. Instead, we scurried up and down the sand with our camera. Once MetaBaby got used to walking on the wettish sand, he was running and giggling like a pro.
  
  
• I'm in the groove of my bookclub book, Middlesex. After having it on our "maybe" list for years, we finally gave in. It's a great read, and I'm at that stage where it's hard to put it down. In another lifetime, I'd be staying up until the crack of dawn to finish it.
  
  
• We made Nigella Lawson's Chicken Pot Pie. It wasn't quite express as far as I'm concerned, but it was really tasty. In terms of prep, we only had to chop the bacon, mushrooms, chicken, and coat the chicken in a flour & thyme mixture. Honestly, the hardest part was managing to get the puff pastry on the ready dish.

Don't you love weekends?

Fun in Downtown Santa Monica

All sorts of fun stuff happening in Downtown Santa Monica. From a man-made ice skating rink, to a snow hill, it looks like the city's trying to bring everyone here for a good time. No, seriously...everyone!

Sure, it sounds like fun, but get there early to avoid traffic, as it's usually intense without this fanfare. You've got restaurants, movies, shopping, and the beach all within blocks. And now, snow in 70 degree weather. What more could you ask for?

Note: While this all sounds like fun, I will not say I'm proud of Santa Monica's efforts. Some events, like the ice rink, all seem like a significant and unnecessary drain on energy and resources. For a city that proclaims itself to be green and eco-friendly, I don't see how these actions fit with that model.

Oh, and it's brought to you by Starbucks.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Over the years, I've ruined my fair share of meals. The most riveting of which was probably the one where I made pork chops with scalloped potatoes for my in-laws, only to find out that the pork chops I got were far thicker than the usual ones, and our oven was on the fritz. The meal, which took hours instead of 40 minutes (or so it felt) had to be saved by a few sneaky tricks, none of which came from my obviously limited arsenal of know-how.

Some thrive on stress. I am not one of those some.

Hence, I've learned a couple of things about me and the kitchen.

• I am not to make a meal or any portion thereof for the first time in a stressful situation.
  
• I am not to over-complicate the menu. One complicated thing maybe, but no more.
  
• I am not to over-commit myself to cooking more than I can handle without stressing out MetaDaddy.
  
• If I'm not enjoying my kitchen labor to some degree, everyone will suffer.

So, as Thanksgiving comes to a close, I would like to say I did none of that. Mostly because we ate out with some friends. It was stressful on other levels. MetaBaby, who napped and ate well, is still but a toddler, and as such, short on patience. MetaDaddy took the brunt of the force by holding and walking with him a lot. It turns out, he ate lots of turkey when he got a moment, but forgot to savor in any vegetables. Don't worry...the feast was grand, so he got plenty. He just didn't get as much of the green beans and mashed potato as he would have liked. *le sigh*

On the bright side, we got to take home some leftovers, so we're having turkey sandwiches tomorrow. Yet, we don't have 15 pounds of leftover turkey in the fridge. Whew!! And I didn't go nuts arranging the whole thing. That said, if we had done it at home, I would have ordered part of the meal so the ordeal would have been kept to a minimum. As a compromise, that's probably what we'll do next year. After all, we might have some turkey left over, but no cranberry sauce or pumpkin pie. And that's just sad.

And now for something completely different: A Psychedelic Thanksgiving

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday, and good luck with all of your Black Friday endeavors ;-)

Around the Internet

George Clooney Tells Off Paparazzi - Anyone who's a danger on the streets deserves to be corrected. Good for Clooney for stopping to remind the photographer of his irresponsible behavior. Unfortunately, said photographer obviously went on the sell the footage...ugh.

101 thoughts on losing 100 pounds via Chief Family Officer - I'm generally not allowed to put my two cents in on weight matters because I don't "appear" to have any weight issues. Every now and then, I feel like I could lose a couple of pounds, but it's not something I would say to most people because they'd just get annoyed and laugh at me. Whatever. When I see great tips and reminders on how to maintain a healthy diet that will impact your waistline, I get excited. Food is not the enemy!

Holiday Express Lane for Flyers - Delays and traveler woes were nowhere near as bad as everyone feared. The additional "express lanes" helped, I'm sure.

Rotten Neighbor - What to do if your neighbor's lame. Grr.

Airlines Scramble for Fresh Options for Travelers - Scott McCartney from the Wall Street Journal breaks down the new flight options out there for air travel this year, from no-frills airlines, to all business class models. Now if they could all just depart on time, we'd all be set.

Incidentally, Scott McCartney writes a column for the Wall Street Journal. While most of the site is still subscription based, that's going to change. Rupert Murdoch wants to make the Wall Street Journal Online free, possibly as soon as his purchase of Dow Jones is completed next month. I'll keep you posted ;-)

L.A. is Huge!

If you ever wondered why the City of Los Angeles is so complicated and hard to manage, take a look at this map. The colored area of this map is the city, not county of Los Angeles, which includes the light gray area. It's HUGE! Los Angeles is comprised of a ridiculous number of communities, many of which represent our unique melting pot, such as Korea Town and China Town. There are a few wealthier cities that have seceded from Los Angeles, such as Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, and Burbank. Those cities tend to function a bit better because money stays local and the city has the flexibility to move slealthily to resolve problems. Some argue that the loss of revenue to the city of L.A. negatively impacts the remaining low income residents.

Like I said, complicated and hard to manage.

And just to give you a bit of perspective on the size of the city versus the metro system, here's another map. It's what commuters here call "a joke."

Campari and Wine

MetaDaddy likes Campari, so I thought of him when I read this article on the Bicyclette, a drink made of nearly equal parts Campari and white wine created by Fergus Henderson. He's an oddball chef (odd to me, not to Tony Bourdain) who has made a living on “nose to tail eating,” which essentially means he eats what most don't. Snouts? Trotters? Brain? He's got a recipe for those. And if you stop by his restaurant in London, St. John, you might even be lucky enough to find his braised squirrel.

Oy, and I thought I didn't like Campari.

Via Becks and Posh

L.A. Auto Show and SUVs

The L.A. Auto Show is this weekend (video clip here). We're not going this year because there isn't enough to entertain MetaBaby. That said, if we really wanted to go, we probably could. We just don't care that much. It's interesting to see all of the new models and prototypes, though. And this year like in all other industries, the green models are getting all of the hype.

Update:
Later that day, Toyota got stumped (via Emerald City). Personally, I don't understand hybrid SUVs. The SUV is really just an unfortunate compromise between having a reasonable car, and an useful minivan. We have a Volkswagon Jetta, which is agile and has spectacular trunk space. We have never come short of space, including a drive up to the mountains when we took luggage, a playpen, stroller, food, and other baby essentials. In speaking to some friends, they've actually said how small the interior to their SUVs are. One said that his high end SUV that can't even accommodate his rear-facing infant car seat in any position except the middle back seat.

If you think you really need a larger car, make sure you're making the right choice. A well proportioned 4 door sedan can be spacious, easier to drive, cheaper to operate (especially with soaring gas prices), and easier to park than an SUV. A minivan will offer you more seats, as wells as a more spacious and flexible interior. But an SUV costs more to operate, isn't as spacious as a minivan, and is harder to drive and park (e.g., no compact spots).

I'm just saying.

Random Quote: Mark Twain

"A baby is an inestimable blessing and bother."
-- Mark Twain

A Funny Commercial

I saw this commercial and nearly hypreventilated. It's the last bit that made me want to watch it again and again and again...

Around the Internet

Why now might not be the time to invest in a mutual fund - An easily forgotten bit of information, in case you're looking to invest right now.

8 secret credit scores you don't know about and Beyond your FICO (via Chief Family Officer) - A couple of posts on Liz Pulliam Weston's article about the nuances to your credit rating. It's not just enough to watch your credit score because that's not the only information lenders have access to. Good information to keep in mind when evaluating your credit image with lenders

Trading in old electronics - Costco will pay you for your old consumer electronics, which might or might not be worth it. Whatever you do, make sure you dispose of your electronics responsibly (e.g., donate or take it to the dump).

Biodegradable Diapers via Sustainable Works - Really biodegradable, made with a corn based material. This also means they're breathable, less bulky, and soft to the touch. They are, however, pretty pricey ($15.99 per package or $59.95 per box of 4 packages), and they're hard to find. If the trend catches on, availability and pricing should adjust accordingly. Stuff to ponder. Do you want to lead or be led?

Contact lens case - Sure you can get free ones, but this one's plain clever. If you travel, or you misplace your case often, this might be your ticket to peace of mind.

Funny stuff on Craigs List via David Lebovitz - Examples (I could list dozens, but I'll keep it brief in an attempt to keep you on my good side):

• Clean Out My Mini-Fridge for $25
  
• Now with even lower standards!
  
• DICTIONARY FOR DECODING WOMEN'S PERSONAL ADS (e.g., 40-ish = 49...Free Spirit = Former Junkie...Outgoing = Loud & Embarrassing...Wants Soul Mate = Stalker...)
  
• I don't want to go out tonight
  
• ********ASS KICKING MACHINE*******

Oxford’s Word of the Year: Locavore

Locavore is Oxford's word of the year.

"The past year saw the popularization of a trend in using locally grown ingredients, taking advantage of seasonally available foodstuffs that can be bought and prepared without the need for extra preservatives."

Other runners-up include:

• mumblecore - an independent film movement featuring low-budget production, non-professional actors, and largely improvised dialogue.
  
  
• colony collapse disorder - a still-unexplained phenomenon resulting in the widespread disappearance of honeybees from beehives, first observed in late 2006.
  
  
• upcycling - the transformation of waste materials into something more useful or valuable.
  
  and my favorite
  
  
• cougar - an older woman who romantically pursues younger men.

Rrrrrreeow

13 Gift Ideas for Kids

The number of toys that have been recalled for one reason or another is atrocious. It's really got me thinking that I don't want just anything for MetaBaby because you don't know the integrity of the item. This goes double if you haven't had the opportunity to vet the item in question. That said, what do you do when Christmas or birthdays come around? People want to give your son gifts because they care about you and him, and they want to see that little face light up (his, not yours). So it's hard to say "please don't give my child a gift." It's not fair to the giver or to the kid.

I'm also torn because of my aforementioned resistance to buying too many toys.

Well, there are always ways to compromise. There are good, safe toys that MetaBaby could benefit from, so I made a wishlist for him at Amazon. It includes items like books, music (that I wouldn't hate), and a few safe toys. Of course, there are always other things, but those would involve conversations. For example, MetaNana got MetaBaby one of the cutest little wooden trikes I've ever seen, and it was perfect because he didn't have one. He uses it all the time, and it allows him to express his dangerous side (i.e., standing on the seat!!).

That said, I figured I'd compile a list of 13 other gift ideas to give or be given that:

• don't break the bank
  
• are useful to parents and kids
  
• potentially good learning experiences
  
• are not plastic, over-packaged, blinking things made in China

This is just a start, so feel free to add on with more ideas :-)

1. Get something small to keep the little one happy, and make the real gift a deposit into a 529 account.
   
2. Homemade "coupon" for something fun with you, like a day at the zoo or museum.
   
3. Give homemade sweets (e.g., cookies, chocolates).
   
4. Take a cooking or baking class together. Or a "class" where you teach the little one how to cook or bake.
   
5. A few seeds and other relevant items to plant something (e.g., flowers, herbs, tomatoes).
   
6. Tickets to a favorite event.
   
7. A class or series of classes (e.g., dance, art, something at a local museum).
   
8. Pick a favorite non-profit organization to donate to (e.g., cute of Oxfam).
   
9. Perhaps the instructions, tools, and help in building something (e.g., soapbox car, or check out The Dangerous Book for Boys or The Daring Book for Girls from the library for more ideas).
   
   From New Dream:
   
10. The makings for hand puppets: Brown lunch bags, googly eyes, stray buttons, scissors, markers, etc.
    
11. Box of dress up clothes: Old dresses, high heel shoes, cowboy boots, collared shorts, and millions of other fun outfit ideas can all be found at thrift or second-hand stores have great selections.
    
    From Suite 101:
    
12. Gift certificates to a local movie theatre.
    
13. Art supplies (e.g., construction paper, paints, crayons) to replenish the back-to-school box.

Side Note: This is not a cheap gift, but it's an interesting one. Between November 12 and November 26 only, the One Laptop per Child program has made available their revolutionary XO computer.

For a donation of $399, one XO laptop will be sent to empower a child in a developing nation and one will be sent to the child in your life in recognition of your contribution. $200 of your donation is tax-deductible (your $399 donation minus the fair market value of the XO laptop you will be receiving).

Perhaps it sounds crazy to give a destructive toddler a computer, but consider the following per David Pogue, guru to the geeks:

• Spillproof
  
• Rainproof
  
• Dustproof
  
• Drop-proof
  
• Fanless
  
• Silent
  
• Powered by a solar panel (6 hours, or 24 if reading) (2,000 recharge cyles, 4 times more than the average laptop)
  
• Weighs 3.2 lbs.
  
• Built-in video camera, microphone, memory-card slot, graphics tablet, game-pad controllers and a screen that rotates into a tablet configuration.
  
• Runs on Linux (only geeks care about this one ;-)

Amazon's Customers Vote

If you like deals, check out Amazon's "Customers Vote", which started today.

How This Works

The products that get the most votes in each of six rounds will be offered at ridiculous winning prices, and the runners-up will also be sold at slightly smaller discounts. (But they'll still be sweet deals.)

Step 1: Vote. Browse our six rounds of great products, and vote for the ones you’d like to buy at an amazing discount.
Step 2: Check back. Come back on each round's buying day to see if you were randomly selected to get a deal on the product you voted for in that round.

Keep in mind:

• You're only eligible to be offered a deal on the products that you vote for.
  
• You may vote in all six rounds on the same day if you like.
  
• You cannot change your vote.
  
• You must return to this page on the buying day for each round to find out whether you were randomly selected to be offered a deal on the product you voted for.
  
• If you're offered a deal, be sure to check out soon, as the offer is good for a limited time only.