I’m making a mental note to remind myself that it’s nearly impossible to stay on a diet when visiting with old friends. Especially when one of them makes the best butterhorn pastries from scratch. I only had one bite but I’m pretty sure I could have downed a dozen. Maybe it’s good there’s a bit of distance between homes for this very reason.

Just like last year, I’m using Shutterfly to design, print and mail our Christmas cards this year. They just make it too easy to use anything else. They cost more than using Wal-Mart or Target but the quality is substantially better. They keep a list of addresses I used last year so I don’t have to go back through and enter many this year. You can even import addresses from Outlook or your Palm. They have given a lot of thought to the process so you never feel lost and know exactly how many steps until completion. In my book, it’s well worth the extra cost for the quality and convenience.

A few months ago I decided to get one of these flash drives from New Egg. I had no idea I’d find so many uses for it. Instead of burning DVDs, I just move large files back and forth on this flash drive. I’m able to fit both Windows Vista and Office 2007 bits on it which still amazes me. If you’re still lugging around an external hard drive or are tired of burning DVDs/CDs, grab yourself a larger capacity flash drive. You can find 4GB for under $80 now online.

As I got off the train this morning I decided I’d leave my iPod in my bag and see how it felt going into work listening to just the sounds of the city. As I walked down to 1st Avenue I heard the rustling of leaves and paper. I heard the splash of a few cars hitting water puddles in the street. I heard the occasional noisy motorcycle. I heard the smacking of shoes against the pavement as a group of joggers jogged past me near Elliot Bay Bookstore. I was surprised to hear few people talking except one or two chatting loudly on cell phones.

I boarded the #18 bus in Pioneer Square and took it eight blocks or so up near Pike Place Market. It started to rain and I could hear the pitter patter of rain hitting umbrellas. I crossed the street and heard the sound of bells and turned around in time to see a lady walking her dog with a large collar and bells attached. I continued walking down 1st Avenue in the direction of Bell Town. I noticed a large delivery truck parked outside of Frontier BBQ. Two men were lifting an oven out of a large cardboard box, preparing it for installation. I could hear ripping and tearing sounds as they swiped a blade over the boxes in order to reduce their size. I walked past a group of men looking for work, all speaking Spanish. They paused shortly as I walked made my way through them to the next block where made a left turn down Wall Street. I got a few steps down when I heard the sounds of a siren blaring. I walked another twenty yards to our offices. As I grabbed for my keys to let myself in, an older man came through the alley and asked, “Hey mister, can you spare some change?”

I made myself two snowflakes this weekend. First I made a 3-D snowflake with my daughter who helped cut and tape it together. It was a lot of fun and took about 30 minutes to complete. I followed the instructions you can find at WikiHow.

Tonight I heard Kim playing what I thought was a flash game but she was really just cutting out a flash based snowflake. Hers looked a lot cooler than mine but here’s a picture of my best shot. Give it a try here.

One thing about this site did make me laugh. At the bottom of the page is the following: “Please help us keep the snowflakes clean. Report offensive snowflakes when you click the snowflake”. You must be pretty bored and/or creative to come up with some offensive snowflakes. I can promise that I won’t be hanging any offensive snowflakes around my house this holiday season.

I’m a sucker for children’s books. I can’t go into a Barnes and Noble without buying at least one but usually more books for the kids. Today I bought a Christmas book called Snowmen at Night that I read to our kids this evening. The illustrations are fantastic and the artist has hidden little pictures throughout which makes it even more magical for the kids as they try to find the hidden Santa face, rabbit, or cat. Highly recommended for all ages.

My favorite book as a kid was Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. When I lived in Germany I met a women who worked at a bookstore that specialized in kids books. I don’t recall the occasion but she gave me the German version of that book called “Wo die Wilden Kerle Wohnen” which is even more enjoyable and contains my favorite passage from the book when Max yells out: “Machen wir Krach!” You’ll have to know German in order to appreciate it, but it’s pure genius and still makes me smile.

We had dinner at Chili’s tonight. Kim and I both like their caeser salad topped with lime and chili shrimp. At a chain restaurant like this I just expect adequate service but nothing very memorable. But tonight that changed. When our server brought the check I asked him if I could have a refill of my Diet Coke. He said “Sure, would you like me to put it in a to-go cup?” He quickly returned with 2 large Diet Cokes that we could take with us.

It’s a small convenience. It cost Chili’s very little to send us home with two drinks, but it made a very good last impression of the visit to their restaurant. When you’re eating out with three small children anyone who makes your life just a little less stressful, a little more convenient is much appreciated. The tip I left him was strongly influenced by that one small gesture.

Do your customers leave with a good last impression of your product or service?

One thing I noticed while going through the list was how many SNES and Nintendo 64 games made the list. My all-time favorite game is #2 on the list. The only other game I played more was probably Dark Age of Camelot which doesn’t make the list. If you haven’t played Ocarina, track down a friend with the game and play through it. I think you’ll be amazed even by today’s standards.

-As seen on Boing Boing

Tired of nagging at your kids? Well, for $29.95 you can outsource the nagging to queen of naggers by giving them the Dr. Laura action figure. Slipping this in their sock will provide hours of joy and ensure they will require years of counseling down the road. Easily, the scariest toy I’ve seen all year, yet any toy with a tagline of “Listen to her preach, teach and nag” can’t be all bad, can it?

The octopus is pretty dang amazing. Watch it take down a shark.

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