Licenses Get New Look

California appears to be going to great lengths to foil the fake ID suppliers in the state. The various elements designed into the California ID and Driver License cards should keep the counterfeiters at bay. Of course, a UV light source might be a bit pricey to obtain.

How smart to have the vertical orientation for provisional and under-21 card holders. No one presenting this ID is going to be purchasing alcohol (unless it is only rubbing alcohol).

Team of students at CCAD redesigned vehicle tags and Ohio driver’s license at request of governor.

This is a pretty cool re-design of the Ohio license tag. The news site offered no image of a newly designed Ohio driver license. Likely it will include anti-counterfeiting elements.

California has redone its license plate design a couple times after the original black plate with orange characters.

I wonder which state has the most interesting design.

In Positive Economic Sign…

…Walmart Customers Killing Each Other

to Buy Shit

Pepper Spraying, Homicide Bullish Indicators, Economists Say

MINNEAPOLIS (The Borowitz Report) – In what economists are hailing as a clear sign of economic recovery, Walmart customers across the USA jammed into stores on Black Friday, sometimes killing each other to buy useless shit.

“We have been looking for evidence that the economy is on the mend,” said Davis Logsdon, chairman of the economics department at the University of Minnesota.  “When people resort to homicide to buy a Blu-ray player, that is very, very good news indeed.”

Mr. Logsdon said he was “impressed” by the lengths to which some Walmart customers were going to grab coveted sale items: “They’re using tactics we usually associate with the UC-Davis police.”

With many customers using pepper spray and other weapons to get a shopping advantage, however, Mr. Logsdon advised Americans not to enter a Walmart unarmed.

“If you want to get your hands on a doorbuster, you’d better have a firearm,” he said.  “Fortunately, Walmart is offering several great doorbusters on firearms.”

Walmart and other retailers’ decision to commence their Black Friday sales a day early carries with it an added benefit for consumers, he noted: “Now, Americans will be able to declare bankruptcy one day earlier.”

All in all, Dr. Logsdon said that the increased violence and mayhem at retail outlets across the country was “a testament to the greatness of the American consumer.”

“Egyptians risk their lives for new government,” he said.  “Americans bravely do the same for new flat screens.”

Black Friday Preparations…

Spending The Night

 Standing By For Event

iReport — "I'm at Wal-Mart in Brea and noticed this long row of pallets shrinked wrapped in black for the Friday after Thanksgiving. What is sad is that there is only a pallet of each item, which will be easily sold out in less than 5 minutes."


The comment above easily captures my belief that everything, everywhere, will be sold to the first 100 of hundreds who hit the stores for Black Friday deals. Our daughter-in-law noted that the line jumpers were out in force and the masses in the store were like starving animals at the feeding trough.


I cannot bring myself to do the Black Friday events. I choose to avoid the insanity.

New Side-by-Side

Ice Dispensed Through The Door

The refrigerator being replaced still works; however, its ice maker is a little slow on production. As well, the cubes are collected in a deep tray inside. Ice cubes will now dispense through the door.

New front access design accommodates the water filter for easy change-out. What will those engineers dream up next?

James and Stephanie will take the old unit and put it in their garage. They will not need ice cubes from that appliance.

We picked out our new refrigerator yesterday and it will be delivered in the morning between 10:45 and 12:45 a.m.

The Mount

Steady Goes The Camera

The Mount

The Cam

A smooth, hard plastic disk adheres to my dashboard. It functions to attach my Garmin Nuvi's suction mount. I Googled "suction cup camera mount" today and ordered the first-pictured item above. It should arrive by a week from tomorrow, maybe sooner.

Yes… I have intended to get one for some time now. My Sony video cam is not that large and bulky thanks to miniaturization technology in today's circuitry.

There have been times when I wish I had my camera to capture snow-capped mountains, attractive settings, and other interesting moments. A dashboard cam seems like the right idea.

Extra Hour Of Sleep, Or…

…Some Will Work An Additional Hour Tonight

Will we go to bed early enough to catch that extra sleep when we fall back an hour at 2:00 a.m.? I have blown that opportunity in the past by staying up into the wee small hours.


Do you have any clocks that automatically adjust to the beginning and end of Daylight Saving Time? Our computers will do that. My bedside alarm clock works that way. However, the kitchen clock (analog face) and the microwave oven time (digital) display must be changed manually.


I feel for those who work at night and will put in an extra hour for their shifts. Some will be paid for that additional hour. Others will not. Some companies claim that on the other end, those who go home an hour earlier when we spring ahead are still paid for their full shift and that compensates for not covering the extra hour.

Anyone scheduled to work a day shift on Sunday might show up an hour early when they forget about the time change.

I wish the world would move to a year-round "daylight saving" model.

The Awesome Potato

Enjoy it with Greek Yogurt topping.

Baked potato in the regular oven will be a choice during winter months. It is nutritionally on par with brown rice. The potato has more potassium and vitamin E to offer, as well as vitamin C which rice does not. Both baked potato and brown rice have complex carbohydrate, making them superior to simple starchy foods. As well, both provide protein.

And the topper is the topping. Skip the butter and/or sour cream and go with Greek yogurt. This type of yogurt has twice the protein as regular yogurt. The consistency and flavor are terrific. A zesty lemon and pepper salt or salt-free garlic and herb sprinkled over the potato before topping make for interesting flavor enhancements.

One-half large potato equals 2 carbohydrate servings. Lunch and dinner plans allow one more carb serving, which makes one fruit serving a desirable choice.

Long Grain Brown Rice

Gluten Free

[click image to enlarge]

Brown rice is higher in nutrients that are largely diminished among the white rice varieties. One cup of brown rice provides 45 grams carbohydrate and 5 grams protein. It adds 216 calories to your diet. Brown rice provides calcium and iron; albeit, a relatively low percentage of daily requirement.

A smart way of managing carbohydrate intake is to avoid anything white. This includes bread, potatoes, rice, etc. The one white item that is safe is cauliflower.

With my new re-focus on diet and diabetes management I am more often including brown rice as a cereal choice.