You can count down to watch the ball drop — or count down with oracles and fortunes for a peek at the New Year! Here are my picks for the top 10 online prediction sites:
Bella Ball: a twist on the copyrighted Magic Less-than-nine, More-than-seven ball
Buddha Oracle: concentrate then pick a dot, whic will transform into a lotus with a cryptic reading
Dragon Predictions: toss a real coin and let Dragon interpret the results
This is one of my favorite Christmas Eve activities. Each year NORAD (the North American Aerospace Defense Command) allows visitors to log on to their web site as they track Santa on his journey to deliver gifts to girls and boys around the world. This is fun for kids and grown-ups alike, and NORAD is careful not to break the mystery and wonder that is Santa.
The tracking begins at 2 a.m. (Mountain Time) on December 24. Click here to check Santa’s progress!
The skies are gray, weeks of piled-up snow has begin to turn black and gritty. We need a happy infusion. It’s definitely time for cartoons! I thought of posting a cartoon Thursday Thirteen Things, but that was going to be a LOT of video! Herewith, then, just two of my favorites (but worth at LEAST 13 laughs): the Dali-esque “Porky in Wackyland” (Dir.: Robert Clampett, 1938, 7:22 min). And Bugs Bunny and Hoboken Penguin in “8 Ball Bunny” (Dir.: Chuck Jones, 1950, 7:08 min.). and Enjoy!
I’ve been down on CNN ever since they fired Aaron Brown. But a special that’s re-airing frequently this weekend has brought the network back into my good graces. CNN Heroes brings together an awe-inspiring group of “everyday superheroes.” Here’s a link to the companion web site, which profiles these amazing (and I don’t use that adjective lightly) men and women — most of whom view themselves as just average folks — who have done stunning things for their fellow humans over the past year. I can’t recommend this program enough.
And to make a good night even better: Sheryl Crow’s gripping rendition of Shine Babylon. I also like the music video version of the song, featured on her web site, which I’m including below.
In the spirit of Thirteen Thursdays, and the holiday month, here are 13 terrific ways to give back, for free, on the web. (For a 14th, check out Free Rice in an earlier post.):
Nineteen years and counting. That’s how long I’ve been car-free. Living in New York City — no need. And now in grad school — no afford! With excellent public transportation and our favorite community car-sharing service, a car is an easy expense to do without.And yet . . . the new Smart Car piques my interest, just because it’s so darn cute. Probably not practical, and I worry it would cry when confronted by a big bully of a SUV. But you’'ve gotta give it style points.
Equally intriguing, Time magazine’s Best Inventions of 2007 article, which includes a CitiCar prototype from MIT. Intended to work like bike sharing in European countries: pick up one of these space-saving “stackable cards” at an airport or train station, drop it off at an approved location in town. Will this change the face of car ownership in the U.S.? Will manufacturers of the cute SmartCars realize that a lower price tag might be even cuter?
You can count down to watch the ball drop — or count down with oracles and fortunes for a peek at the New Year! Here are my picks for the top 10 online prediction sites:
