Saturday, March 9th, 2019 (
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Have you ever wanted to give a thoughtful gift, but couldn't think of a good one? Ever told someone in your family how much you love something only for them to surprise you with… the wrong one? What if you snagged the perfect gift ever for your spouse, but so did your Grandma? Ever had someone ask you what you wanted, but you couldn't think of anything? With a gift registry:
- It's easy to add things you like on a list through the year as you think about it. Then, when someone asks what you want, just show them the list. They can pick from there or use it for ideas.
- Friends and family can "claim" things on your list so others don't buy the same thing — all keeping it secret from you so the surprise isn't spoiled.
My family has used this site for 12 years in various forms and it's been a huge help. If you're not already using a gift registry in your family, now's a good time to try!
Tags:
Birthday,
Christmas,
Families,
Gift Registry,
Gifts,
My Stuff,
Sites
Thursday, April 28th, 2011 (
3 comments)
So…
Wait.
What now?
A Yahoo article says that because women's cloths sizing is hard, they're going to nude scan them to figure out what they can wear. Seriously!?
Ms. Shaw, the entrepreneur, is chief executive of a company called MyBestFit that addresses the problem. It is setting up kiosks in malls to offer a free 20-second full-body scan — a lot like the airport, minus the pat-down alternative that T.S.A. agents offer.
Lauren VanBrackle, 20, a student in Philadelphia, tried MyBestFit when she was shopping last weekend.
“I can be anywhere from a 0 at Ann Taylor to a 6 at American Eagle,” she said. “It obviously makes it difficult to shop.” This time, the scanner suggested that at American Eagle, she should try a 4 in one style and a 6 in another. Ms. VanBrackle said she tried the jeans on and was impressed: “That machine, in a 30-second scan, it tells you what to do.”
That's cute. A strip search in the name of getting something to wear? So instead of wasting millions on this disrobing plan, why not standardize women's clothing and use inch measurements like men's clothes? How's that for an idea?
How long until someone hacks these poorly protected machines to record copies of all women scanned and the photos show up on the Internet? Will you put your teenage daughters in them?
This is so, so stupid, I can't believe it's actually true. I really hope this doesn't catch on because if it does, my faith in humanity will suffer yet again.
Tags:
4th Amendment,
Backscatter Xray,
Big Business,
Families,
Parenting,
Police,
Utter Failure
Thursday, March 21st, 2019 (
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Here's a bunch of neat tricks I found today how to hack your laundry:
- Use a small ball of tin foil instead of dryer sheets to eliminate static
- Toss a ball or yarn or a tennis ball into the dryer for baster drying times
- Avoid dryer sheets entirely because they leave a film on your lint catcher that can blow out your dryer.
Be sure to read the comments and check out some of the links there to see other related tips and tricks.
Tags: Families, Laundry, Parents, Tin Foil
Monday, March 25th, 2019 (
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It seems that online predators are getting tired of savvy kids that know better than to be lured (or they're just getting lazy/impatient). Either way, one police group is warning that predators are shifting to a strategy of blackmail instead.
As always, be aware of what your kids are doing online and know who their friends are. Make sure they know what to do when threatened by someone online.
Tags:
Families,
Internet,
Kids,
Police
Wednesday, March 27th, 2019 (
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Privacy nuts like me have been warning people for years that tracking and tagging of all people will start with the kids. It's easy to teach people to accept personal tracking devices by giving it to them when they're young. But how do you do that? Use parents' practically fanatical protective instinct to protect their kids against a largely imaginary threat.
Companies that use scare tactics, especially when inflaming peoples fears of extreme and rare issues, are complete and utter scum.
Tags:
Families,
Kids,
Market Lies,
Scare Tactics
Wednesday, April 10th, 2019 (
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Even if you did everything right to keep you private photos and information private, a Facebook security flaw allows people to access it anyway.
This isn't the first time something like this has happened and I'd bet that it's far from being the last.
Tags:
Facebook,
Families,
Social Networking
Sunday, April 7th, 2019 (
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Currently they're planning to add children to the DNA database:
Home Office officials said plans to include primary school children on the DNA record would be kept 'under review'. The DNA database includes 4.5 million samples of genetic material, many taken from people who have been arrested but never charged with a crime.
By next year, it is expected that 1.5 million of the samples will be from youngsters aged between ten and 18.
Bloody hell.
Tags:
DNA Mugging,
Families,
Kids
Tuesday, April 16th, 2019 (
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Congress sticks their noses into a lot of things they shouldn't and not where they should. They are corrupt, inept, and won't do much to protect Americans unless it will make a positive affect on their careers or bank accounts.
Now they're looking at cyberbullying and it's hard to say if that's a good thing or not. Given their history, chances are that it's not.
Tags:
Congress,
Cyberbullying,
Families
Wednesday, April 17th, 2019 (
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The New York Times is running an article about Facebook's data retention issues. If you post to Facebook, even if you delete your account later, they keep the data available for public viewing.
It took Mr. Das about two months and several e-mail exchanges with Facebook’s customer service representatives to erase most of his information from the site, which finally occurred after he sent an e-mail threatening legal action. But even after that, a reporter was able to find Mr. Das’s empty profile on Facebook and successfully sent him an e-mail message through the network.
Tags:
Facebook,
Families,
Police
Thursday, April 18th, 2019 (
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There are already plenty of cases of adults or college students who have lost jobs and dropped out of school due to MMO gaming obsessions. Now we're going to unleash this on our kids?
If you're thinking of letting you kid play an MMO, be very careful about what game you choose and be sure to set limits on how and when they play.
Tags:
Families,
Gaming,
MMO