Cold Seattle Dusk – December 2009 Photo by MS(R)MHi again and yep, from the ramparts of the Bastion on the Puget Sound, it’s been another interesting week.
It’s also been a real fun time for some international travelers again, hasn’t it? Sigh. On the other hand, it was not an especially good day for Al Qaeda, thanks to the passengers of Northwest Flight 253. According to Scott Shane and Eric Lipton of The New York Times, about the time this particular terrorist decided to execute his mission:
Jasper Schuringa, a Dutch film director seated in the same row as Mr. Abdulmutallab but on the other side of the aircraft, saw what looked like an object on fire in the suspect’s lap and “freaked,” he told CNN.
“Without any hesitation, I just jumped over all the seats,” Mr. Schuringa said, in an account that other passengers confirmed. “I was thinking, Oh, he’s trying to blow up the plane. I was trying to search his body for any explosive. I took some kind of object that was already melting and smoking, and I tried to put out the fire and when I did that I was also restraining the suspect.”
So now, corrective action is being taken and at some inconvenience to airline travel. I spoke with a security consultant in the UK who reminded me that technology ~ across the board ~ evolves and that, like an arms race, there simply is no way to guarantee security this way.
He did not say that all reasonable measures should not be taken. He was addressing realistic expectations. He noted, however, the heroism of Mr. Schuringa and observed that as long as passengers were inclined to act on their own behalf, no terrorist could be assured the success of their enterprise.
We are, unfortunately, nations at war with an enemy as desperate to gain its ends as we were to become, preserve and protect the independent nations we are now. If we measure their potential for sacrifice by our own history and what we continue to do now, I’m sorry but with all due respect, none of this should come as front page news.
War generally isn’t a real fun experience. This one does not, so far, appear to be much of an exception.
Moving right along then, eh?
Well, being a weekly publication and not nearly in the same league as those from whom we draw our sources for this commentary, there are two venerable traditions which I respect but which Northstar Journal does not observe.
The first is a prediction of things to come. To me, that’s a fun intellectual exercise but I just don’t happen to believe that the script’s already been written and that there is nothing we can do ~ good, bad or indifferent ~ to change that. I respect those who do subscribe to that philosophy however and I’m not denying they might be right. It just doesn’t work for me.
I’ve seen too many miracles, maybe? I believe in what John F. Kennedy said about the problems we make, as a species, we’re capable of solving, and I also live in Seattle, a city on seven hills and with eight microclimates within the city limits.
Maybe it’s just me, but I think it’s up to us how things turn out. Not nature, not the gods nor any lesser deities. I live across the lake (Lake Washington) from Bill and Melinda Gates and I don’t figure I’ll ever meet either one of them. But I’m not awed by them and I’m not jealous, either. I’m a working stiff and I’ve been one all my life. If it weren’t for folks like me and most of you, there’d be no Bill and Melinda Gates.
The second venerated journalistic tradition respected but not observed here is this decade round-up of newsworthy events. In the first place, that’s way too much information for me right now. Second, I have my own memories of what was newsworthy, with all due respect. And third, being mathematically challenged, I have a problem with the numbers involved. This is 2009 and I start counting with one, not zero. So maybe next year.
That having been said, I ran across this delightful review of things that have changed over the last ten years. It’s by Associated Press writer Jocelyn Noveck and here’s a sample:
AIRPORTS: Remember when you didn't have to take your shoes off before getting on a plane? Remember when you could bring a bottled drink on board? Terrorism changed all that.
ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE: From acupuncture to herbal supplements to alternative ways of treating cancer, alternative medicine became more mainstream than ever.
APPS: There's an app for that! The phrase comes from Apple iPhone advertising, but could apply to the entire decade's gadget explosion, from laptops to GPS systems (want your car to give you directions to Mom's house in Chinese, or by a Frenchwoman named Virginie? There was an app for that.)
AARP cards ... for boomers! Some prominent Americans turned 50 this decade: Madonna. Prince. Ellen DeGeneres. The Smurfs. Michael Jackson - who also died at 50. And some prominent "early boomers" turned 60: Bruce Springsteen and Meryl Streep, for example.
AGING: Nobody seemed to look their age anymore: Clothes for 50-year-old women started looking more like clothes for 18-year-olds, tweens looked more like teens, long hair was popular for all ages, and in many ways women's fashion seemed to morph into one single age group.
BLOG: I blog, you blog, he blogs ... How did we spend our time before blogging? There are more than 100 million of these Web logs out there in cyberspace.
Yep, for more on this one, please go here.
SURVIVING HARD TIMES
I’m learning more and more that surviving hard times is not just the practical aspects of it. It’s also about what we experience through books, films, television, etc. I’m a firm believer in changing the channel before I throw the boot and that a consumer driven media responds to the choices we make.
I’m also real safe on this one. Over the holidays, my best friend and this publication’s associate editor gave me Susan Boyle’s “I Dream A Dream” CD. A review of it follows.
Well, if ever there was a good time for this one, it is surely now, when it seems as though the whole world could use some hope, some inspiration and an example of how a complicated soul simply expressed can make a difference. I was a professional dance and show combo leader with time in grade at 18 and I know what it takes to move an audience.
It’s a lot more than just being able to sing well. To sing for working class people, who don’t really believe anybody who hasn’t been where they have, it takes being able to get inside the song and become that song.
Check out the selections on her CD. They include: Wild Horses; I Dreamed A Dream; Cry Me A River; How Great Thou Art; You’ll See; Daydream Believer; Up To The Mountain; Amazing Grace; Who I Was Born To Be; Proud; The End of the World; and Silent Night.
Susan does that with each and every one of them. Getting into the song and becoming the song. Like most folks, I suspect, I wanted to hear I Dream A Dream first. That was the same stellar experience the first time I watched her totally wow a panel of British judges and then do it all over again in the Colonies as it were.
As I listened, though, to the other songs, I totally forgot about Susan, the one who did that one. Like she did, I became the soul of those for whom these songs are written and for whom she sings them. It wasn’t hard because I am one of those.
And as haunted as hard times make all of us, including me, she took me to a place where people experience it about as deep as it cuts and yet survive to grow and find a better life. She made me feel a little less lonely and a lot more connected.
I was brought up to believe that whatever a person did in this life, they should never forget who they are as a person. Ms. Boyle has done that both by personal example and in her art. I expect me and mine will be in her debt for some while.
Thank you, Susan, Lass. We are honoured by your society.
To purchase this online, we invite you to go here.
Well, here’s one I should have seen coming but didn’t because I’m not into mountain climbing, washing windows of skyscrapers, scraping rust off suspension bridges, going over the side to red lead big ships, or having anything else, professionally, avocationally or weirdly to do with ropes. But apparently there are a lot of folks who make their living in the woods, inspecting dams and doing this stuff for fun. Thanks to the boon in such green industries as wind generators, apparently there’s a resurgence in the hiring of such unreconstructed daredevils. Yep, this one’s sliding into that other category of You Guys Think I Make This Stuff Up, so check it out, ye of little flipping faith, eh?
MORE GOOD NEWS
For those with the means to downsize their present living accommodations or the faith that things will get better and that they will again be able to afford their own home, here’s one to savor. Small houses are in and there’s a growing market for them. That should be of some good news, as well, to carpenters, roofers, electricians and others of the building trades. This one sounds like another of those, “if they can do it there, maybe we can do it here” stories so for more on this one, please go here.
New York City seems to be a lot safer. The homicide rate in 2009 is the lowest it has been since the NYPD began keeping records in 1963. For more on this one, please go here.
Well, Seattle has regained the title “Most Literate City in America,” according to Central Connecticut State University, which has been making these assessments since 2003. Last year we shared the honor with Minneapolis but apparently now we’re the only tushie on the throne, as it were. Yep, that works for me on a couple three levels. To see how your city ranks and how CCSU made their decision, please go here.
Well, here’s another one that should not surprise us all. But it apparently made headlines in Los Angeles when a recent study determined that poverty can take years off one’s life and that it generally isn’t very healthy. The folks who conducted this study work for the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) so it looks like tax dollars went to confirming what should be obvious to the estimated 47-million Americans living below the poverty line. To experience this stupidness in all its glory, yep, go here.
Our thanks to a reader in Gulfport for sending us this one about Mississippi being ranked by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life the most religious state in the Union. The New England region (New Hampshire and Vermont) was considered the land of the most heathens. The Pacific Northwest didn’t do much better; Washington’s 36th in its respect for religion and Oregon’s fortieth. That’s about where we’ve ranked for over two decades economically, as well. I’m thinking there might be a connection here.
And maybe the fact that devout human beings have never lived on the land accounts for why the weather’s so weird and why there are still active volcanoes, earthquakes and mountain lions and bear and eagles who have absolutely no respect for “western” civilization. And it’s been like this since time immemorial.
So it’s occurred to me that maybe the Conestogas came west to Christianize the land itself. Maybe if we built enough churches and got enough people going to them, the weather would get the counseling it needs and prosperity would indeed come to this land. To see how your state came in, please go here.
CRITTER STUFF
This one’s not especially good news but it’s best to put the warning out any way. The first case of swine flu in a pet dog was reported by veterinarians in White Plains, New York. The animal recovered. Authorities report that other animals, including at least three ferrets, several cats and pigs, and a cheetah named Gijima at a wildlife preserve in Santa Rosa, California also came down with it. Two felines didn’t make it but most of the others did. So just to be on the safe side, please go here.
It’s also been a real fun time for some international travelers again, hasn’t it? Sigh. On the other hand, it was not an especially good day for Al Qaeda, thanks to the passengers of Northwest Flight 253. According to Scott Shane and Eric Lipton of The New York Times, about the time this particular terrorist decided to execute his mission:
Jasper Schuringa, a Dutch film director seated in the same row as Mr. Abdulmutallab but on the other side of the aircraft, saw what looked like an object on fire in the suspect’s lap and “freaked,” he told CNN.
“Without any hesitation, I just jumped over all the seats,” Mr. Schuringa said, in an account that other passengers confirmed. “I was thinking, Oh, he’s trying to blow up the plane. I was trying to search his body for any explosive. I took some kind of object that was already melting and smoking, and I tried to put out the fire and when I did that I was also restraining the suspect.”
So now, corrective action is being taken and at some inconvenience to airline travel. I spoke with a security consultant in the UK who reminded me that technology ~ across the board ~ evolves and that, like an arms race, there simply is no way to guarantee security this way.
He did not say that all reasonable measures should not be taken. He was addressing realistic expectations. He noted, however, the heroism of Mr. Schuringa and observed that as long as passengers were inclined to act on their own behalf, no terrorist could be assured the success of their enterprise.
We are, unfortunately, nations at war with an enemy as desperate to gain its ends as we were to become, preserve and protect the independent nations we are now. If we measure their potential for sacrifice by our own history and what we continue to do now, I’m sorry but with all due respect, none of this should come as front page news.
War generally isn’t a real fun experience. This one does not, so far, appear to be much of an exception.
Moving right along then, eh?
Well, being a weekly publication and not nearly in the same league as those from whom we draw our sources for this commentary, there are two venerable traditions which I respect but which Northstar Journal does not observe.
The first is a prediction of things to come. To me, that’s a fun intellectual exercise but I just don’t happen to believe that the script’s already been written and that there is nothing we can do ~ good, bad or indifferent ~ to change that. I respect those who do subscribe to that philosophy however and I’m not denying they might be right. It just doesn’t work for me.
I’ve seen too many miracles, maybe? I believe in what John F. Kennedy said about the problems we make, as a species, we’re capable of solving, and I also live in Seattle, a city on seven hills and with eight microclimates within the city limits.
Maybe it’s just me, but I think it’s up to us how things turn out. Not nature, not the gods nor any lesser deities. I live across the lake (Lake Washington) from Bill and Melinda Gates and I don’t figure I’ll ever meet either one of them. But I’m not awed by them and I’m not jealous, either. I’m a working stiff and I’ve been one all my life. If it weren’t for folks like me and most of you, there’d be no Bill and Melinda Gates.
The second venerated journalistic tradition respected but not observed here is this decade round-up of newsworthy events. In the first place, that’s way too much information for me right now. Second, I have my own memories of what was newsworthy, with all due respect. And third, being mathematically challenged, I have a problem with the numbers involved. This is 2009 and I start counting with one, not zero. So maybe next year.
That having been said, I ran across this delightful review of things that have changed over the last ten years. It’s by Associated Press writer Jocelyn Noveck and here’s a sample:
AIRPORTS: Remember when you didn't have to take your shoes off before getting on a plane? Remember when you could bring a bottled drink on board? Terrorism changed all that.
ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE: From acupuncture to herbal supplements to alternative ways of treating cancer, alternative medicine became more mainstream than ever.
APPS: There's an app for that! The phrase comes from Apple iPhone advertising, but could apply to the entire decade's gadget explosion, from laptops to GPS systems (want your car to give you directions to Mom's house in Chinese, or by a Frenchwoman named Virginie? There was an app for that.)
AARP cards ... for boomers! Some prominent Americans turned 50 this decade: Madonna. Prince. Ellen DeGeneres. The Smurfs. Michael Jackson - who also died at 50. And some prominent "early boomers" turned 60: Bruce Springsteen and Meryl Streep, for example.
AGING: Nobody seemed to look their age anymore: Clothes for 50-year-old women started looking more like clothes for 18-year-olds, tweens looked more like teens, long hair was popular for all ages, and in many ways women's fashion seemed to morph into one single age group.
BLOG: I blog, you blog, he blogs ... How did we spend our time before blogging? There are more than 100 million of these Web logs out there in cyberspace.
Yep, for more on this one, please go here.
SURVIVING HARD TIMES
I’m learning more and more that surviving hard times is not just the practical aspects of it. It’s also about what we experience through books, films, television, etc. I’m a firm believer in changing the channel before I throw the boot and that a consumer driven media responds to the choices we make.
I’m also real safe on this one. Over the holidays, my best friend and this publication’s associate editor gave me Susan Boyle’s “I Dream A Dream” CD. A review of it follows.
Well, if ever there was a good time for this one, it is surely now, when it seems as though the whole world could use some hope, some inspiration and an example of how a complicated soul simply expressed can make a difference. I was a professional dance and show combo leader with time in grade at 18 and I know what it takes to move an audience.
It’s a lot more than just being able to sing well. To sing for working class people, who don’t really believe anybody who hasn’t been where they have, it takes being able to get inside the song and become that song.
Check out the selections on her CD. They include: Wild Horses; I Dreamed A Dream; Cry Me A River; How Great Thou Art; You’ll See; Daydream Believer; Up To The Mountain; Amazing Grace; Who I Was Born To Be; Proud; The End of the World; and Silent Night.
Susan does that with each and every one of them. Getting into the song and becoming the song. Like most folks, I suspect, I wanted to hear I Dream A Dream first. That was the same stellar experience the first time I watched her totally wow a panel of British judges and then do it all over again in the Colonies as it were.
As I listened, though, to the other songs, I totally forgot about Susan, the one who did that one. Like she did, I became the soul of those for whom these songs are written and for whom she sings them. It wasn’t hard because I am one of those.
And as haunted as hard times make all of us, including me, she took me to a place where people experience it about as deep as it cuts and yet survive to grow and find a better life. She made me feel a little less lonely and a lot more connected.
I was brought up to believe that whatever a person did in this life, they should never forget who they are as a person. Ms. Boyle has done that both by personal example and in her art. I expect me and mine will be in her debt for some while.
Thank you, Susan, Lass. We are honoured by your society.
To purchase this online, we invite you to go here.
Well, here’s one I should have seen coming but didn’t because I’m not into mountain climbing, washing windows of skyscrapers, scraping rust off suspension bridges, going over the side to red lead big ships, or having anything else, professionally, avocationally or weirdly to do with ropes. But apparently there are a lot of folks who make their living in the woods, inspecting dams and doing this stuff for fun. Thanks to the boon in such green industries as wind generators, apparently there’s a resurgence in the hiring of such unreconstructed daredevils. Yep, this one’s sliding into that other category of You Guys Think I Make This Stuff Up, so check it out, ye of little flipping faith, eh?
MORE GOOD NEWS
For those with the means to downsize their present living accommodations or the faith that things will get better and that they will again be able to afford their own home, here’s one to savor. Small houses are in and there’s a growing market for them. That should be of some good news, as well, to carpenters, roofers, electricians and others of the building trades. This one sounds like another of those, “if they can do it there, maybe we can do it here” stories so for more on this one, please go here.
New York City seems to be a lot safer. The homicide rate in 2009 is the lowest it has been since the NYPD began keeping records in 1963. For more on this one, please go here.
Well, Seattle has regained the title “Most Literate City in America,” according to Central Connecticut State University, which has been making these assessments since 2003. Last year we shared the honor with Minneapolis but apparently now we’re the only tushie on the throne, as it were. Yep, that works for me on a couple three levels. To see how your city ranks and how CCSU made their decision, please go here.
Well, here’s another one that should not surprise us all. But it apparently made headlines in Los Angeles when a recent study determined that poverty can take years off one’s life and that it generally isn’t very healthy. The folks who conducted this study work for the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) so it looks like tax dollars went to confirming what should be obvious to the estimated 47-million Americans living below the poverty line. To experience this stupidness in all its glory, yep, go here.
Our thanks to a reader in Gulfport for sending us this one about Mississippi being ranked by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life the most religious state in the Union. The New England region (New Hampshire and Vermont) was considered the land of the most heathens. The Pacific Northwest didn’t do much better; Washington’s 36th in its respect for religion and Oregon’s fortieth. That’s about where we’ve ranked for over two decades economically, as well. I’m thinking there might be a connection here.
And maybe the fact that devout human beings have never lived on the land accounts for why the weather’s so weird and why there are still active volcanoes, earthquakes and mountain lions and bear and eagles who have absolutely no respect for “western” civilization. And it’s been like this since time immemorial.
So it’s occurred to me that maybe the Conestogas came west to Christianize the land itself. Maybe if we built enough churches and got enough people going to them, the weather would get the counseling it needs and prosperity would indeed come to this land. To see how your state came in, please go here.
CRITTER STUFF
This one’s not especially good news but it’s best to put the warning out any way. The first case of swine flu in a pet dog was reported by veterinarians in White Plains, New York. The animal recovered. Authorities report that other animals, including at least three ferrets, several cats and pigs, and a cheetah named Gijima at a wildlife preserve in Santa Rosa, California also came down with it. Two felines didn’t make it but most of the others did. So just to be on the safe side, please go here.
FROM YOU GUYS FOR YOU GUYS
This one came to us from several of you and we’ve chosen the sentiments which I think best speak for all.
Please take a moment to say "thank you" to our troops abroad, for the upcoming holidays.
If you go to this website, you can pick out a thank you card. Xerox will print it and it will be sent to a soldier that is currently serving in Iraq. You cannot choose who gets it, but it will go to a member of the American armed services
Whether you are for or against the war, our soldiers over there need to know we are behind them. This takes just 10 seconds and it's a wonderful way to say thank you. Please take the time and please take the time to pass it on for others to do. We can never say enough thank yous.
The Northstar Journal could not agree more.
Well, the next time we come to you, it will be the New Year, so I’d like to close with a personal wish I have for all of us. Yep, I wrote this.
Please take a moment to say "thank you" to our troops abroad, for the upcoming holidays.
If you go to this website, you can pick out a thank you card. Xerox will print it and it will be sent to a soldier that is currently serving in Iraq. You cannot choose who gets it, but it will go to a member of the American armed services
Whether you are for or against the war, our soldiers over there need to know we are behind them. This takes just 10 seconds and it's a wonderful way to say thank you. Please take the time and please take the time to pass it on for others to do. We can never say enough thank yous.
The Northstar Journal could not agree more.
Well, the next time we come to you, it will be the New Year, so I’d like to close with a personal wish I have for all of us. Yep, I wrote this.
STARDUST AND DREAMS
What I would give for a world of stardust and dreams,
tethered nightmares and galactic slipstreams.
Of Love sought by instinct and loyalties green,
what I would give for a world of stardust and dreams.
What I would give for a world of sadness and rain,
chill memories and truth brought to blame.
Of love sought by needing and loyalties strained,
what I would give for a world of sadness and rain.
What I would give for a world of lyric and song,
late night cafes and Dylan gone wrong.
Of love sought by compass and loyalties long,
what I would give for a world of lyric and song.
What I would give for a world of deer park and blue,
dewy fresh dawns and fried eggs to chew.
Of love sought by woodsmoke and loyalties true,
what I would give for a world of deer park and blue.
What I would give for a world of peace and of crown,
plowshares beat blunt and swords rusting brown.
Of love sought for love and loyalty round,
what I would give for a world of peace and of crown.
Measure for measure, and for too long denied,
this is the life for which He surely once died.
Of love sought for all and by all sorely tried,
let Humility rein and the Cosmos abide.
That’s it for this week. We’ve got some cool stuff down below you might want to check out. Stay the course, gang. We’re getting there and we’re going to make it. And thanks once again for the ear. And stuff.
Mick
NORTHSTAR RECOMMENDS
FUN STUFF
How about a trip to Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo to watch a couple of grizzly bears in their Northwest setting? Yep, click here and thanks to our friends at Puget Sound NBC affiliate KING 5.
If you’re into a real interesting and visual escape, we certainly recommend The Art In LA website. It’s a virtual art gallery created by a real gentle, occasionally obnoxious but totally good-hearted soul with standards as fine as those of any engineer I’ve ever met. It’s also a good place for healthy meditation. If you’re lucky, you might just run into the artist herself. Her name is Colleen and she’s a trip, trust me. Yep, she was born under the fourth flag on our masthead.
For those into words that resonate, there are fewer finer contemporary craftsman I know than a man named Mike Browne, professionally known as Tomatoman Mike and the publisher of The Tomato Man Times. He’s as Northern Californian as John Steinbeck, albeit with a dash of Sam Clemmons, Bret Harte and Robert W. Service in him. He’s a romp to read, trust me.
FOR YOUR ONLINE SHOPPING CONVENIENCE
Mick
NORTHSTAR RECOMMENDS
FUN STUFF
How about a trip to Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo to watch a couple of grizzly bears in their Northwest setting? Yep, click here and thanks to our friends at Puget Sound NBC affiliate KING 5.
If you’re into a real interesting and visual escape, we certainly recommend The Art In LA website. It’s a virtual art gallery created by a real gentle, occasionally obnoxious but totally good-hearted soul with standards as fine as those of any engineer I’ve ever met. It’s also a good place for healthy meditation. If you’re lucky, you might just run into the artist herself. Her name is Colleen and she’s a trip, trust me. Yep, she was born under the fourth flag on our masthead.
For those into words that resonate, there are fewer finer contemporary craftsman I know than a man named Mike Browne, professionally known as Tomatoman Mike and the publisher of The Tomato Man Times. He’s as Northern Californian as John Steinbeck, albeit with a dash of Sam Clemmons, Bret Harte and Robert W. Service in him. He’s a romp to read, trust me.
FOR YOUR ONLINE SHOPPING CONVENIENCE
We invite you to do all your amazon.com shopping through the following link. The Northstar Journal receives a 15% commission on whatever you purchase through this link.
SURVIVING HARD TIMES
I made chowder, you made pickles. Let’s trade
I so love it when my “home and native land” proves yet again that they have something to teach the International Community about surviving hard times. You’ll love this one, gang. With thanks to the Toronto Globe & Mail.
And lest we think this is limited to country folk, consider this one, headlined, Bootstrapping taken to new extremes in tech industry
Or how about a seasonable application regarding Christmas trees? (This will be a real stretch for those of you in Toronto, New York, Dublin, London and Paris) Ever imagine having one delivered to your home by bicycle? Real close to the category of You Guys Think I Make This Stuff Up so by all means, go here ye yahoos of little faith
HEALTH
Ten foods that really do help prevent cancer.
If you’d like to know whether your eating habits are either adding years to your life or taking them off, take this RealAge quiz. It will not only score your real age against your health age but give you a program for improvement. I’ve been working this one for about a month now and yep, I feel a lot better.
Want to know how to live to be 100? Try this one.
Ever had trouble getting behind eating a lot of fruits and vegetables despite how good they are for you? Ever had trouble selling that one to your kids and grandkids? Ever been totally sold on the idea then gone to the market and been totally tasered by the price of good health in some places? If your answer is yes to any or all of the above, you really need to check this site out. Fruits and veggies: more matters.
ONLINE TOOLS FOR THE KIT
WorldStart.com - The best source of computer information, tips, education, entertainment, industry news, graphics and useful websites.
PC World – This is the best source we’ve found yet for totally free, useful, reliable and secure (no viruses) downloads ranging from games through utilities and with a nice selection of screen savers, etc. What I particularly appreciate about it is how easy the site is to navigate. They also have a daily letter featuring two “daily downloads.”
CCleaner - Free software downloads and software reviews - CNET Download.com
The home of Spybot-S&D! “For the past few years I've been using two free programs to remove the tracking cookies we accumulate every time we visit a site. Both have proven safe and reliable. Try them. You'll be surprised at the amount of binary barnacles your pore little hard accumulates as it sails the cyber seas. Sorry, but neither program eliminates alliterative purple patch prose. Like mine.”
Mike Browne, Sacramento, CA
Free People Search – This is an American online White Pages that I found really simple, quick and user friendly. I looked for myself under the several versions of my name and it found them all. It’s also free and doesn’t involve anything to download.
Know Thy Elected Officials - Just type in your zip code and this site will supply you with the names and contact information for your legislators from the state level up. This is a two click site with a host of other relevant features.
MEDIA
Overview
For those interested in what’s going on in the world of magazines and newspapers in general, we highly recommend Woodenhorsepub.com. They publish a weekly online newsletter for media professionals and for readers simply interested in the future of the publications they enjoy and an advance on new ones they might. Their website is located here.
Entertainment
U Got Style is a monthly ezine dedicated to independent films. Fully illustrated, it features hard news, interviews, reviews and a wide variety of other information. It’s also fun to read.
Vinyl Cafe with Stuart McLean – Live from the smallest record store in North America. Canadian humor, entertainment and commentary at its maple leaf best. Popular on National Public Radio in the States.
BBC Knowledge Magazine – designed to give the American magazine National Geographic the proverbial run for its money,
News
BBC – Best source of international news.
The New York Times – Best source of American news.
The Vancouver Sun -- outstanding source for Canadian national, provincial, and world news.
Reuters – Best source of an international perspective on American headlines.
Sightline Daily (formerly Tidepool) – Best source of Pacific Northwest regional news. Delivered daily by email, it covers Alaska, British Columbia, California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. They also put out an excellent weekly environmental edition.
KING 5 News – Best source of video news of Seattle and the Greater Puget Sound.
Talent For Hire
Rusty Miller, Freelance Photojournalist – Whether it’s a one time press release, book or product review, difficult business correspondence, resume or classified ad composition you need, take a look at the services offered menu on my writer-for-hire homepage and we’ll get together on it.
Are you a travel editor looking for color shots of Seattle? Are you an art dealer looking for new work to carry on consignment? You might enjoy checking out a gallery of my work for sale
I made chowder, you made pickles. Let’s trade
I so love it when my “home and native land” proves yet again that they have something to teach the International Community about surviving hard times. You’ll love this one, gang. With thanks to the Toronto Globe & Mail.
And lest we think this is limited to country folk, consider this one, headlined, Bootstrapping taken to new extremes in tech industry
Or how about a seasonable application regarding Christmas trees? (This will be a real stretch for those of you in Toronto, New York, Dublin, London and Paris) Ever imagine having one delivered to your home by bicycle? Real close to the category of You Guys Think I Make This Stuff Up so by all means, go here ye yahoos of little faith
HEALTH
Ten foods that really do help prevent cancer.
If you’d like to know whether your eating habits are either adding years to your life or taking them off, take this RealAge quiz. It will not only score your real age against your health age but give you a program for improvement. I’ve been working this one for about a month now and yep, I feel a lot better.
Want to know how to live to be 100? Try this one.
Ever had trouble getting behind eating a lot of fruits and vegetables despite how good they are for you? Ever had trouble selling that one to your kids and grandkids? Ever been totally sold on the idea then gone to the market and been totally tasered by the price of good health in some places? If your answer is yes to any or all of the above, you really need to check this site out. Fruits and veggies: more matters.
ONLINE TOOLS FOR THE KIT
WorldStart.com - The best source of computer information, tips, education, entertainment, industry news, graphics and useful websites.
PC World – This is the best source we’ve found yet for totally free, useful, reliable and secure (no viruses) downloads ranging from games through utilities and with a nice selection of screen savers, etc. What I particularly appreciate about it is how easy the site is to navigate. They also have a daily letter featuring two “daily downloads.”
CCleaner - Free software downloads and software reviews - CNET Download.com
The home of Spybot-S&D! “For the past few years I've been using two free programs to remove the tracking cookies we accumulate every time we visit a site. Both have proven safe and reliable. Try them. You'll be surprised at the amount of binary barnacles your pore little hard accumulates as it sails the cyber seas. Sorry, but neither program eliminates alliterative purple patch prose. Like mine.”
Mike Browne, Sacramento, CA
Free People Search – This is an American online White Pages that I found really simple, quick and user friendly. I looked for myself under the several versions of my name and it found them all. It’s also free and doesn’t involve anything to download.
Know Thy Elected Officials - Just type in your zip code and this site will supply you with the names and contact information for your legislators from the state level up. This is a two click site with a host of other relevant features.
MEDIA
Overview
For those interested in what’s going on in the world of magazines and newspapers in general, we highly recommend Woodenhorsepub.com. They publish a weekly online newsletter for media professionals and for readers simply interested in the future of the publications they enjoy and an advance on new ones they might. Their website is located here.
Entertainment
U Got Style is a monthly ezine dedicated to independent films. Fully illustrated, it features hard news, interviews, reviews and a wide variety of other information. It’s also fun to read.
Vinyl Cafe with Stuart McLean – Live from the smallest record store in North America. Canadian humor, entertainment and commentary at its maple leaf best. Popular on National Public Radio in the States.
BBC Knowledge Magazine – designed to give the American magazine National Geographic the proverbial run for its money,
News
BBC – Best source of international news.
The New York Times – Best source of American news.
The Vancouver Sun -- outstanding source for Canadian national, provincial, and world news.
Reuters – Best source of an international perspective on American headlines.
Sightline Daily (formerly Tidepool) – Best source of Pacific Northwest regional news. Delivered daily by email, it covers Alaska, British Columbia, California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. They also put out an excellent weekly environmental edition.
KING 5 News – Best source of video news of Seattle and the Greater Puget Sound.
Talent For Hire
Rusty Miller, Freelance Photojournalist – Whether it’s a one time press release, book or product review, difficult business correspondence, resume or classified ad composition you need, take a look at the services offered menu on my writer-for-hire homepage and we’ll get together on it.
Are you a travel editor looking for color shots of Seattle? Are you an art dealer looking for new work to carry on consignment? You might enjoy checking out a gallery of my work for sale
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