Did you hear about the White House Press Secretary’s reaction to April Ryan of American Urban Radio’s questions?  If not, take a look:

There you have it.  So what do you think?  You have the pressing, demands for answers on one side and the hesitant responder on the other.  Or is that it?  Who did you sympathize with while watching the video?  Is this a typical case of a reporter asking a potentially embarrassing question and the press secretary trying to find a way around answering it?

Personally, although I’m not a fan of the current White House residents or their associates my sympathies went directly out to the secretary Robert Gibbs.  Now that has got to be a difficult job.  You know how it is when you’re under pressure right under the public eye and you have to constantly remind yourself that people are watching and your response and reactions are critical?  Yeah, that’s this guy’s entire occupation.

If it were my job, I would likely blatantly refuse to answer questions that I considered to be personal or irrelevant.  I’d probably go down in history for the most frequent usage of the phrases “No comment.”  and “Next question, please”.  And I’m not sure I’d be able to keep my temper with some reporters, like April Ryan.

On the other hand, in many ways the President’s business is our business, isn’t it?  Didn’t he apply to work for the people?  And got the job?  So what he does at the white house  becomes our business, including the parties thrown there.  Doesn’t that mean that we have a right to ask difficult questions like those posed by April Ryan?

As far as the controversy over any sexism or racism implied by Robert Gibbs’ response to Ms. Ryan’s questions Let me tell you what I think about that.  LAME.  With a capital L (and a, m and e).  There is really nothing to suggest that at all, except the fact that she wasn’t a white male, and it’s ridiculous for American’s to call racism or sexism every chance they get.

Even Gibbs’ suggesting that the Urban Radio Reporter calm down and take a deep breath shouldn’t be seen as offensive.  Maybe he wasn’t calling her a child, but telling her that this is his advice that he gives to people he likes and respects.  Maybe.

Whoever you side with, we should all keep in mind that reporters and even politicians are people just like you and me, and sometimes it’s best to just calm down, take a deep breath and give them a break.

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Let me prove it. What do you say to people who ask: “Did you really go to the premier of New Moon?” Most likely your response was something like this: “Yeah, my wife really wanted me to go.”, or “I know, it’s crazy, but my girlfriend would never forgive me for not going.” If you that’s the case – you are a pansy! Scoring points by watching a chick flick?  Where are your principles!  Be a man!

But I will give you the benefit of the doubt. I’ll assume your answers were not completely sincere, because you actually love Stephenie Meyer and her Twilight series. If so, why don’t you just admit it? C’mon, just say it: “I took my sister’s New Moon book and didn’t put it down until I finished it.” or “I’ve seen Twilight 12 times.  I just can’t get enough of that Bella Swan!” If you can’t do that – you’re a wuss!

Or maybe you don’t even try to hide your crush on Kristen Stewart, but if that’s the case you’re probably either single or divorced. You went to see New Moon by yourself?  Oh dear.  What does that make you?

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I find my dance-illiterate self watching enthralled, critiquing performance after performance.  I even criticize the judges’ comments, as if I knew better than they did.  It’s crazy, I tell you.

So I’ve been watching with bated breath, week after week until FINALLY the finale!  Did you watch it?  Of course you did!  All of America was watching the Dancing with the Stars finale!  You probably had your favorite picked, just like me (and the rest of America).

So you must know that Donny Osmond Dancing with the Stars winner came away with the trophy.  And good for him, I say.  His tango was awesome he has been entertaining, besides being a good dancer throughout the season.  Watching him has been fun, especially after having followed his sister Marie Osmond in Dancing with the Stars in a previous season.

Not everyone agrees, I know.  Mya was favored to win in many circles.  It’s true, she has been a fabulous dancer throughout the entire show!  There’s no question about that.  Maybe if it were only about talent, which many argue it is, or should be, then Mya would have won.  Unfortunately, voting isn’t only left to the professionals, and thus enters another dimension:  popularity.

Kelly Osbourne had popularity behind her, too, but unfortunately her dancing maybe let her down.  Still, with their strengths and weaknesses, these three were great to have in the finale.  Of course everyone wants to win, but there is a lot to be said for making it to the finals, not to mention the adventures on the road leading there.

I say kudos to good old Donny!  He deserved this highlight in his career of ups and downs, as he put it himself.  Overall it was a fantastic finale, and what a way to go out: fires on the stage, microphones not working, technical difficulties, plus excellent dancing, fun and a deserving winner.  What more could you want?  Now it’s time for the rest of us to gear up for whatever lies ahead in season 10!

Helping push Osmond over the top was his performance Tuesday: an Argentine tango, performed with his professional dancing partner, Kym Johnson. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba hailed it as “artistry in motion.” It earned the top score of the final performances Tuesday.

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Don’t get me wrong; I have nothing but respect for overweight, happy old men who wear red coats.  How could you not?  But it’s when the guy doesn’t actually exist that I lose the ability to love and revere. If this shocks you, I apologize.

My personal feelings aside, most people really do love the guy and anticipating his advent every Christmas Eve is truly the highlight of many children’s (and some adult’s) year.  Preparations are made to greet him with cookies and milk, but even further in advance, many children write letters telling how good they’ve been and what they’d like to find under the tree on Christmas morning.

Of course, Santa lives at the North Pole, so that’s where these letters are sent.  In the past the sheer volume of letters was so great that there was no way Santa could answer them all personally.

In the 1950’s the US Postal Service devised a plan for helping the dear old man.  Hundreds of volunteers were selected to read and respond to children’s wish lists in post offices across the country.  This was a great solution and thousands of children over the years have cherished their letter from Santa, stamped with a North Pole address.

That is, until recently.  On the East coast, a sex offender somehow found his way into one of these post office volunteer groups.  Of course the last place we want this type of person is in a position that relates in any way to children, most especially where they have access to the kids’ names and addresses.  But there he was.

For a while the only course of action seemed to be to shut down the system.  Soon, though, a better solution was found. Tighter restrictions were set, requiring volunteers to show identification.  They also discontinued allowing them access to children’s information.  Instead, a code was used to replace the address, the volunteer responded to the letter, and then the post office translated the code back to the address.

Of course the North Pole is the ultimate destination of so many of these letters.  Because the address belongs to Santa North Pole post offices have a lot of mail to answer.  Unfortunately it appeared for a time that they would not be able to implement this coded address system.  At that point they announced that they would not be responding to letters this year.

Many people make North Pole Trips and North Pole travel usually has as its main attraction the chance to visit Santa’s hometown.  The thought of this important location being unable to respond to Christmas letters seemed absurd.

Fortunately, the story has a happy ending. The North Pole Postal service has announced that they will be responding to children’s letters after all!  Good thing, too!  The holiday is just around the corner, and volunteers are at the ready to spread a little Christmas cheer; the kind that comes with a stamp from the North Pole.

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Now this dream is slowly becoming a reality. Perhaps not on the personal/metabolic level just yet, but it’s the first step. Here is what I am talking about:

When sugar juice is extracted from sugar cane, what’s left is a fiber called bagasse. Every 10 tons of sugar cane leaves 3 tons of the stuff. Until recently it was simply waste, but scientists realized that sugar cane bagasse can be used to produce energy; for example, energy used for sugar production. Get it? You take sugar cane and, with minimal overhead expenditure, you turn it into sugar.

Ok, so I am no scientist and I admit that I don’t really get exactly how this works.  Still, I figure that if it is possible to cheaply produce something valuable without leaving any waste, then it is just a matter of time before some clever person comes up with a candy bar which can be enjoyed without leaving any waste, nothing that can be turned into fat. What if, instead of being stored under your chin or around your waist, the energy from your candy bar was somehow used to produce another candy bar (that you could also eat without gaining weight)? Now that’s the world I want to live in!

Before I explain how energy is produced by bagasse, let’s take our minds off the analogy of human metabolism. Here’s why: It works this way; bagasse is turned into little brown pellets which, when heated, turn into gas (I warned you!).

The cool thing about this kind of gasification technology is that, even though bagasse does emit some CO2, it is absolutely greenhouse gas neutral. But how can it be neutral if it produces harmful CO2? Here’s how:  As sugar cane grows in the field, it absorbs CO2.  When the bagasse is used as fuel, it emits the same amount of the gas as the plant absorbed while it was growing. Talk about ecological balance. What a perfect, clean coal!

There are other reasons why ecologists love bagasse. In India and South America 20% of paper is produced out of bagasse. No deforestation, less bleaching chemical used for refining bagasse than wood and sugar cane grows faster than trees! Bagasse is also used as material for the production of disposable dishes. Imagine going to a picnic and not seeing any Styrofoam ready to be absorbed by the soil in 40 or 50 years!

Take a look at how bagasse can change the world we live in:

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Obviously if your work involves using a computer, chances are you’re taking advantage of the information age. But what if your job consists of a graveyard shift of hamburger flipping? Believe it or not, computer software and the Internet can totally change the way you work.

HotSchedules is a web based system which neatly organizes shift patters. It’s a scheduling system that connects restaurant managers and employees. It makes it easier and less frustrating to change plans, find a substitute, count work hours for each employee, etc.

From the employee’s perspective it’s a great solution. All you need is a cell phone, preferably an iPhone with a special HotSchedules application called “iSchedule” (costs under $5) and a few minutes for training. You still need a patient and understanding boss if you tend to change your plans at the last minute often, but making sure your night shift is covered makes you much more responsible and trustworthy than calling your boss and forcing out a fake cough.

Every restaurant manager or owner knows the headache of rostering, juggling shiftwork and trying to keep everyone happy while making sure every shift is covered.  It’s no wonder most people who go into this business don’t last past the first year!  It’s hard work and if you’re not careful, it can start to feel out of control.  Using HotSchedules is an excellent solution and a great tool to help you get everything under control again and make communicating and scheduling a much simpler process.

Remember, even in the old fashioned food industry, whether you manage wait or flip the burgers, you can take advantage of the same fast and modern means of communication that you use when you’re not on the job, namely the Internet! Hotschedules takes the headache out of restaurant rostering, making everyone’s lives easier.  Those who use it love it!  Some even write songs about it. Here are some examples:

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