Move Over, Reindeer! Santa’s Got a New Sled

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Maria Langer

I take the honorable Mr. Claus by helicopter to meet his adoring fans.

Yesterday, I had an unusual gig: I had to fly Santa Claus for an appearance at the Deer Valley Airport Restaurant in north Phoenix.

Santa asked me to take the door off. He has a thing about waving to his fans as the helicopter approaches. It also makes it easier for him to get out.

Let’s face it: Santa is a big guy. I bet he eats like it’s Christmas all year ’round at his place. But surprisingly, those inches didn’t translate to pounds. He weighed in at 180; it was almost as if that big belly of his was as light as a feather pillow.

Anyway, here are two shots from the flight. My husband was on the restaurant’s rooftop patio and recorded our approach and landing.

Santa's New Sled

Santa's Departure

Interesting Links, November 30, 2011

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Maria Langer

Here are links I found interesting on November 30, 2011:

Imagine If It Were Apple – Well said.
The 5 Best Toys of All Time – This works for me. Best of all, they're all completely affordable.
New publisher of computer books embraces e-books and authors, not DRM – Well, it's about freaking time.
Feed Expanders On Rise, End Short RSS Advantage – Not what I wanted to read. I switched to summary RSS feeds when I got fed up with feedscraping. Now Jonathan is saying that there are plenty of ways around this. What is the answer? Damned if I know.
8 Million Americans Found Their Current Job On Twitter – Yes, people are using social media to find jobs.
Holiday gifts for, and from, wine lovers … but better not delay – Flying M Air was mentioned in this article.
Holiday gifts for, from wine lovers – Flying M Air was mentioned in this article.
Content Controls – An under-the-hood feature available in Word 2010 for Windows.
Facebook’s Phone Revealed! – This pretty much covers it.

Interesting Links, April 28, 2011

Posted on April 28, 2011 by Maria Langer

Comment

Here are links I found interesting on April 28, 2011:

10 deadly myths about childhood vaccines – Don't be fooled by stupid myths. Vaccinate your kids!

Interesting Links, April 8, 2011

Posted on April 8, 2011 by Maria Langer

Here are links I found interesting on April 8, 2011:

YouTube – Burnistoun S1E1 – Voice Recognition Elevator – ELEVEN! – Funny.
Whooping cough outbreak in Floyd County blamed on lax vaccinations – Don't be an idiot. Vaccinate your children!
5 Copyright Facts Every Blogger Should Know – Here are the basics of copyright for anyone who publishes (or republishes) content on the Web or elsewhere. Simple, brief, and easy to understand. Stop copying content. Read this.
Corporate governance: The shareholder awakens – "Companies’ owners are slowly beginning to hold bosses to account, starting with closer scrutiny of their pay." It's about freaking time. Read more in The Economist.
Notes from the Field: Measles Outbreak – "Measles was declared eliminated from the United States in 2000. However, importations of measles from other countries still occur, and low vaccination coverage associated with parental concerns regarding the MMR vaccine puts persons and communities at risk for measles. Public health and health-care providers should work with parents and community leaders to address concerns about the MMR vaccine to ensure high vaccination coverage and prevent measles." In this case, one unvaccinated child gave measles to 12 others.
Make the Wealthy Pay their Fair Share – "With or without a government shutdown, Republicans have already won the debate on our nation's budget. Why? Because the corporate media is on their side." Read more on ThomHartmann.com.
It’s Not Really About Spending – The GOP is attempting to hold the country hostage, doing huge harm to the economy, just so they can get their way on a few ideological issues.
Why Pay Congress? – "If we careen over a cliff on Friday and the American government shuts down, hard-working federal workers will stop getting paychecks, but the members of Congress responsible for the shutdown are expected to be paid as usual." Can you believe this bullshit?
Shutdown: The budget fight just gets dumber – "Lawmakers are behaving in ways that would earn them a time-out if they were in kindergarten." Ya think?

Interesting Links, March 23, 2011

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Maria Langer

Comment

Here are links I found interesting on March 23, 2011:

Exodus International’s ‘Gay Cure’ App Failed to Turn Me Straight – Apple rights a wrong. But why did it allow the wrong in the first place?
Nuclear Accidents and All, Coal Is By Far the Deadliest Energy Source – Facts are facts. Let's make decisions based on facts, not emotions.
11 cheap gifts guaranteed to impress science geeks – These ARE fun. I'd like about half of them. Can you guess which ones?
Why Groupon is bad for your business (and mine) – "Groupon, the so-called social buying site (even though there is very little social going on outside of the manipulation of basic human behaviors like their reaction to a situation where there is sense of scarcity) and the fastest growing company in history, is bad for your business." Read why on EmergenceMarketing.com.
Groupon Reviews: Worst Marketing For Your Local Business – "Just because millions of merchants have fallen under the spell of Groupon, a PR juggernaut, and their like, it doesn’t mean you should. It’s a killer alright, a profit-killer." Read a real case study on RetailDoc.com.
Opposed to vaccination? Let’s make that sting – "The 2008 San Diego measles outbreak was triggered by a pocket of parents who believed the MMR vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella) was worse than the diseases it prevents." Stupidity doesn't just breed fear. It also breeds disease and KILLS people. Great story about vaccinations in the Star Tribune.
Gingrich Criticized Obama For Not Intervening In Libya, But Now Criticizes Him For Intervening In Libya – As the 2012 election season (which, for some reason, apparently lasts almost a full 2 years) begins to warm up, we see so much evidence of hypocrisy among wanna-be maybe candidates. Newt takes the cake.
Groupon’s big discounts: how its coupon business could eventually cripple the merchants that rely on it – The author of this piece almost gets it. "The logic is simple: Merchants are encouraged to use the deals to attract new customers, who in theory will return at full price. But, in what seems to be an increasing number of cases, customers come for the deals and then leave for deals offered by other merchants through Groupon. So the number of "new" customers attracted by cheap prices increases, and the number of loyal customers decreases as shoppers prefer to become "new" again for whomever offers the best deal." Read more on Slate.
Digital Subscription Prices Visualized (aka The New York Times Is Delusional) – And this is one of the reasons I think the NYTimes pay wall model will fail. It's just too damn expensive for digital content.

An Eclectic Mind

Web site and blog for Maria Langer, freelance writer, commercial helicopter pilot, and serious amateur photographer.

Tag Archives: children

Move Over, Reindeer! Santa’s Got a New Sled

Interesting Links, November 30, 2011

Interesting Links, April 28, 2011

Interesting Links, April 8, 2011

Interesting Links, March 23, 2011