Netanyahu's Christmas Greeting 2012

Via Linkmaster Smith:

No Room for Seconds

Everything turned out just perfect, via Twitter.

I think we have some pumpkin pie in the fridge, but that's going to wait until later tonight, way later.

Science Gifts

At the New York Times, "Gifts That Keep Giving (if Not Exploding)":

Ask scientists of a certain age about their childhood memories, and odds are they’ll start yarning about the stink bombs and gunpowder they concocted with their chemistry sets. Dangerous? Yes, but fun.

“Admittedly, I have blown some things up in my time,” said William L. Whittaker, 64, a robotics professor at Carnegie Mellon University who unearthed his first chemistry set, an A. C. Gilbert, in a junkyard around age 8. By 16, he was dabbling in advanced explosives. “There’s no question that I burned some skin off my face,” he recalled.

Under today’s Christmas tree, girls and boys will unwrap science toys of a very different ilk: slime-making kits and perfume labs, vials of a fluff-making polymer called Insta-Snow, “no-chem” chemistry sets (chemical free!), plus a dazzling array of modern telescopes, microscopes and D.I.Y. volcanoes. Nothing in these gifts will set the curtains on fire.

“Basically, you have to be able to eat everything in the science kit,” said Jim Becker, president of SmartLab Toys, who recalled learning the names of chemicals from his childhood chemistry set, which contained substances that have long since been banned from toys.

Some scientists lament the passing of the trial-and-error days that inspired so many careers. “Science kits are a lot less open-ended these days,” said Kimberly Gerson, a science blogger who lives outside Toronto. “Everything is packaged. It’s either ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ If you don’t get the right result, you’ve done it wrong and you’re out of chemicals.”

Others, though, say the new crop of science toys — even with their cartoonish packaging and heavy emphasis on neon goo — actually represent progress. More entertaining, educational and accessible than earlier products, which relied heavily on a child’s inner motivation, these toys may actually help democratize the learning of science and introduce children to scientific methods and concepts at an earlier age.

“I grew up in the 1960s, and a lot of the chemistry sets were kind of boring,” said William Gurstelle, a science and technology writer. “You’d go through the book, and at the end of the experiment you’d get some light precipitate at the bottom of the beaker. Maybe at most it changes color or something.”

Mr. Gurstelle’s books, which include “Whoosh Boom Splat” and “Backyard Ballistics,” teach people how to make dangerous projectiles, like a potato cannon that uses hair spray as launching fluid. But he had high praise for commercial science kits, which show children (among other things) how to make slime.

“Well, that’s a pretty cool thing to have when you’re done,” Mr. Gurstelle said. “You’re not going to really learn to be a chemist from a chemistry set when you’re in seventh grade; you’re just going to be inspired. The point is that new chemistry sets and new toys are just better, because the manufacturers have figured out how to make them more fun.”

More at that top link.

Christmas Visits

I just got back from my aunt's house in Mission Viejo. My sister Chris was visiting. (Recall the last time I blogged about my sister here.) It was a nice visit. Chris is 53 now. She's living in Sherman Oaks and is a human resource executive with Kelly Services. In other news, we're getting ready shortly to start fixing dinner. We've had the beef slow-cooking all day but we've got the lobsters and potatoes to prepare. I'll be blogging and enjoying food and wine throughout the evening. Merry Christmas!

'The Joy of Hate'

My wife gave me Greg Gutfeld's new book, The Joy of Hate: How to Triumph over Whiners in the Age of Phony Outrage.

An Apple Christmas

An interesting post from Gabe Rivera, "Techmeme's top 20 headline terms of 2012, and what they signify":

Several things stand out from this list:

- Yeah, Apple is #1. It's no surprise that tech's largest company by revenue, market cap, and influence is also the biggest newsmaker, appearing in over 11.45% of Techmeme's headlines.

Continue reading.

It's going to be an Apple Christmas morning around my household. I'll post some photos later...

Shopping for Christmas Dinner

Last night, at Costco Tustin:

We picked up a bottle of wine* and some of those lobsters pictured, plus some beef tri-tip roast. Mmm, it's going to be tasty!

* Louis M. Martini, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma County 2010 (about $11.00 at Costco, a little more at Amazon).

Spider-Man for Christmas

Pretty cool:

Merry Christmas 2012

My family's presents under the tree, via Twitter.

And from Thomas Sowell, at National Review, "Christmas-Tree Totalitarians":

Some people seem to think that, if life is not fair, then the answer is to turn more of the nation’s resources over to politicians — who will, of course, then spend these resources in ways that increase the politicians’ chances of getting reelected.

The annual outbursts of intolerance toward any display of traditional Christmas scenes, or even daring to call a Christmas tree by its name, show that today’s liberals are by no means liberal. Behind the mist of their lofty words, the totalitarian mindset shows through....

If someone wrote a novel about a man who was raised from childhood to resent the successful and despise the basic values of America — and who then went on to become president of the United States — that novel would be considered too unbelievable, even for a work of fiction. Yet that is what has happened in real life.

Merry Christmas.

'Blue Christmas'

This song's been playing at The Sound L.A.

Can't miss:

'Hanging on the Telephone'

Via Killian and Kurt Loder, "Taking punk platinum: How #Blondie’s “Parallel Lines” was made" (on Twitter).

One number for which she didn't have to put pen to paper was Parallel Lines' dynamic opening track, 'Hanging On The Telephone', which was also the opener on a 1976 EP by guitarist Jack Lee's short-lived LA power pop trio, the Nerves. Blondie had shared a bill with the Nerves on one of their first visits to the West Coast, and they had already worked on the song by the time they introduced it to Mike Chapman.

"That track was magic from the beginning," he says. "Unlike some of the others, it was an easy one to cut because it was more like Blondie's normal, frantic sort of style, and I also vibed it up a lot. Initially, they didn't know quite how much to put into it, but I told them, 'Look, this is more like the stuff on your first two records. Let's give it that sort of punk/new wave attitude.' I knew that the energy level on that track would make or break it. If we didn't have that energy we'd miss the point, because the musical structure of the song is very tense — it sits you on the end of your chair, and we had to have a track that did the same thing.

"They were all very much into giving it that full-on energy, and of course this was Clem's favourite way of playing. If he really liked something, that in itself added extra energy. So, I think we did four takes and I then took the best one to work on and fix things. If there was a guitar mistake or a bass mistake, we'd punch in and out. In those days, I didn't cut the tape a lot like I'd do later on."

While Burke's sharp drumming and Nigel Harrison's pumping bass are punctuated by Frank Infante's electrifying, punk-edged guitar lines, 'Hanging On The Telephone' is nevertheless powered right from the start by Deborah Harry's energetic, in-your-face vocals as she spits out the song's staccato-style opening lines with machine-gun rapidity: "I'm in the phone booth, it's the one across the hall. If you don't answer, I'll just ring it off the wall. I know he's there, but I just had to call..."

"Debbie always got it right away whenever I tried to describe what to do, but a lot of the phrasing was totally down to her," Chapman states. "She has a strange way of delivering certain phrases, and I found myself accepting things from her that I never would have accepted from anyone else. I would have had other people change it, whereas with her I'd think, 'No, no, no, I've got to leave it like that,' or else it just wouldn't be her. For instance, in 'Hanging On The Telephone', the lines 'I heard your mother now she's going out the door. Did she go to work or just go to the store?' — I remember listening to those and thinking, 'This is the dumbest lyric I've ever heard.' However, it was so dumb, it was beautiful, it was brilliant, and when Debbie then sang it in her inimitable way it suddenly sounded even funnier. It just sounded like the weirdest, most bizarre thing I'd ever heard."

It's a long piece, but fascinating.

It's about Mike Chapman as much as it is about Blondie (one band I never did see back in the day).

Christmas Eve Roundup of the Roundups

I should probably do this more often.

We could just save readers some time by linking to all the good stuff.

Maggie's Farm always has great links, for example, "My Christmas Eve post," and "Monday morning links."

And at Director Blue, "Larwyn's Linx: The Perfect Prison."

The Other McCain usually has the "Live at Five" roundup posted, but Wombat must be taking the day off. So here's this, "Memo From the National Affairs Desk: Chains Rattling, and Who’s That Ghost?" And, "FLASHBACK: December 2010 - Christmas Cheesecake."

Plus, more at Theo Spark's, "Pic Dump," and "News..."

You know Instapundit's the place to go, and this one's really worth it, "LARRY CORREIA: An Opinion On Gun Control. (Reposted)."

And from The Never-Saw-It-Coming Department at Weasel Zippers, "Socialists Blame Capitalism For Newtown Massacre…"

Now, over at Right Wing News, you can get your fill, "Monday, December 24, 2012. Plus, "The Journal News Doxes (possible) NY Handgun Owners.

Check Pirate's Cove as well, "Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup," and "If All You See…is an flooded world, you might just be a Warmist."

Also at Ninety Miles From Nowhere, "If Gun Free Zones Are Good Enough For Our Children...."

And at Astute Bloggers, "GUN CONTROL IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF ILLOGICAL LIBERAL POLICY-MAIKNG."

I'll have more blogging this afternoon. My wife and I are heading over to Costco in a bit to get some beef tri-tip and lobster for tomorrow's Christmas dinner.

Drop your links in the comments to be added. And have a Merry Christmas Eve.

Grinch UPS Delivery Man Steals iPad Off Front Porch Days Before Christmas

Well, so much for that yuletide spirit.

At the Los Angeles Times, "UPS guy steals homeowner's FedEx package -- on video":

Getting holiday packages swiped from outside your door is an unfortunate risk of online shopping. Unless you’re Al Alverson, a Texas homeowner with a security camera.

When he returned home one recent day to discover that the FedEx package he was expecting was missing, he turned to his footage and discovered the culprit.

And it wasn’t the milkman.

“I said, 'Oh my God, it’s the UPS guy,'” Alverson told KHOU 11 News.

In a video that’s now posted on YouTube and circulating around Reddit, the Grinch in a brown uniform drops off a parcel at Alverson’s door and then soon returns to nab the FedEx package.

The box contained an iPad mini for Alverson’s daughter.

At first, Alverston told the news station, UPS was less than helpful when he called to complain. But once he posted the damning footage, the shipping company promised to send him a replacement tablet, he said.

The delivery man was a temporary holiday worker for UPS, not a driver, spokeswoman Natalie Godwin said. He was fired and arrested, though he has since been released from custody, she said.

Continue reading.

Pre-Christmas Blizzard Batters the Midwest

An ABC News report:

And at the New York Times, "A Reminder of What Midwest Winters Are About."

Well, it's a white Christmas at least. I'm sending a prayer out to all those who're traveling.

If You're Doing Any Last Minute Shopping

There's still some holiday specials all day today, at Amazon.

Christmas Shopping

I was out with my wife this afternoon, Christmas shopping, but not for a new Cadillac ATS.

The company's been doing major promotions at the Irvine Spectrum, and pictured are a silver and red 2013 ATS. Folks might remember how Cadillac was running a major ad campaign during the Olympics, seen here. And the Los Angeles Times had a very favorable review back in October, which I've been meaning to post, "Car review: Cadillac makes a right turn with 2013 ATS":

This single, lonely aspect of the ATS is all that matters to trunkfuls of self-proclaimed automotive cognoscenti gathering in car clubs and Internet chat rooms across the country. Their amusement will overflow at the latest challenger to BMW's decades-long hold on the sports-sedan scepter.

Not so fast. Despite its flaws, the thrill of the ATS' drive is an impressive feat, and the car itself is a massive step in the right direction. Which is good, because frankly, it has to be.

This is Cadillac's first post-bankruptcy baby, a look at what General Motors' luxury division can do when it starts with a clean sheet of paper to design a car with global ambitions. It may come with an American accent, but it needs to speak to buyers in China and Europe as well. Much of Cadillac's image and future hinges on how well the ATS, which starts at $34,885, resonates at home and abroad.

So it's a good thing that this car's two strongest suits, its handling and its design, translate into every language.

More at the link.

And for the record, my wife and I had lunch at the Cheesecake Factory, shopped at the Apple Store, and bought some See's candy.

I'll have more Christmas blogging later. My grading's all done, although I have a few more presents to buy. Then I can enjoy the holiday and chill well into January.

Annual Company Christmas Party

My older sister sent me this chain email, and it was forwarded to her from some Democrat friends of the family. Must be hitting close to home:

Company Memo

FROM: Patty Lewis, Human Resources Director
TO: All Employees
DATE: October 1, 2012
RE: Gala Christmas Party

I'm happy to inform you that the company Christmas Party will take place on December 23rd, starting at noon in the private function room at the Grill House. There will be a cash bar and plenty of drinks! We'll have a small band playing traditional carols... feel free to sing along. And don't be surprised if our CEO shows up dressed as Santa Claus! A Christmas tree will be lit at 1:00 PM. Exchanges of gifts among employees can be done at that time; however, no gift should be over $10.00 to make the giving of gifts easy for everyone's pockets. This gathering is only for employees!

Our CEO will make a special announcement at that time!

Merry Christmas to you and your family,
Patty

*****

Company Memo

FROM: Patty Lewis, Human Resources Director
TO: All Employees
DATE: October 2, 2012
RE: Gala Holiday Party

In no way was yesterday's memo intended to exclude our Jewish employees. We recognize that Hanukkah is an important holiday, which often coincides with Christmas, though unfortunately not this year. However, from now on, we're calling it our "Holiday Party." The same policy applies to any other employees who are not Christians and to those still celebrating Reconciliation Day. There will be no Christmas tree and no Christmas carols will be sung. We will have other types of music for your enjoyment.

Happy now?

Happy Holidays to you and your family,
Patty

*****

Company Memo

FROM: Patty Lewis, Human Resources Director
TO: All Employees
DATE: October 3, 2012
RE: Holiday Party

Regarding the note I received from a member of Alcoholics Anonymous requesting a non-drinking table, you didn't sign your name. I'm happy to accommodate this request, but if I put a sign on a table that reads, "AA Only", you wouldn't be anonymous anymore. How am I supposed to handle this?
Somebody?

And sorry, but forget about the gift exchange, no gifts are allowed since the union members feel that $10.00 is too much money and the executives believe $10.00 is a little chintzy.

REMEMBER: NO GIFTS EXCHANGE WILL BE ALLOWED.

*****

Company Memo

FROM: Patty Lewis, Human Resources Director
To: All Employees DATE: October 4, 2012
RE: Generic Holiday Party

What a diverse group we are! I had no idea that December 20th begins the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which forbids eating and drinking during daylight hours. There goes the party! Seriously, we can appreciate how a luncheon at this time of year does not accommodate our Muslim employees' beliefs. Perhaps the Grill House can hold off on serving your meal until the end of the party or else package everything for you to take it home in little foil doggy baggy. Will that work?

Meanwhile, I've arranged for members of Weight Watchers to sit farthest from the dessert buffet, and pregnant women will get the table closest to the restrooms.

Gays are allowed to sit with each other. Lesbians do not have to sit with Gay men, each group will have their own table.

Yes, there will be flower arrangement for the Gay men's table.

To the person asking permission to cross dress, the Grill House asks that no cross-dressing be allowed, apparently because of concerns about confusion in the restrooms. Sorry.

We will have booster seats for short people.

Low-fat food will be available for those on a diet.

I am sorry to report that we cannot control the amount of salt used in the food . The Grill House suggests that people with high blood pressure taste a bite first.

There will be fresh "low sugar" fruits as dessert for diabetics, but the restaurant cannot supply "no sugar" desserts. Sorry!

Did I miss anything?!?!?
Patty

*****

Company Memo

FROM: Patty Lewis, Human Resources Director
TO: All Fucking Employees
DATE: October 5, 2012
RE: The Fucking Holiday Party

I've had it with you vegetarian pricks!!! We're going to keep this party at the Grill House whether you like it or not, so you can sit quietly at the table furthest from the "grill of death," as you so quaintly put it, and you'll get your fucking salad bar, including organic tomatoes. But you know, tomatoes have feelings, too. They scream when you slice them. I've heard them scream. I'm hearing them scream right NOW!
The rest of you fucking wierdos can kiss my ass. I hope you all have a rotten holiday!

Drive drunk and die,
The Bitch from Hell!!!

*****

Company Memo

FROM: Joan Bishop, Acting Human Resources Director
DATE: October 6, 2012
RE: Patty Lewis and Holiday Party

I'm sure I speak for all of us in wishing Patty Lewis a speedy recovery and I'll continue to forward your cards to her. In the meantime, management has decided to cancel our Holiday Party and give everyone the afternoon of the 23rd off with full pay.

Happy Holidays!
Joan

One Million Moms Mad at Ellen DeGeneres

It's not the first time the group's gone after J.C. Penney for hiring the lesbian comedienne.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Ellen DeGeneres commercial for J. C. Penney angers Christian group."

'Gangnam Style' Christmas Lights

Via Theo Spark:

Scary Snowman

Pretty scary: