Brilliant 2006

Newyear-2006 May all of you enjoy the most brilliant and squinchy year possible (for a humanoid). We here at Birdhouse certainly intend to! Thanks to everyone for continuing to read despite my frequent lapses and misfires. You guys make it fun.

Pictured: Variant of this year’s holiday card. Technological marvel: We shot the image, photoshopped it in, uploaded to Snapfish, selected a “frame,” and had our cards ready for pickup at a local Walgreen’s an hour later. Soup to nuts. And for cheap.

Another techno marvel: In interminable checkout line for a small purchase at the Apple store yesterday. Attractive techno-hippy employee walks up with what appears to be a souped-up Newton and asks if anyone is paying by credit. I am. Dude uses the device (wireless) to scan my item, charge my card, and record my email address. Says my receipt is waiting in my inbox and “Good day, sir.” I walk out, dodging the rest of the line. Life is good.

Except that the cosmonaut pictured above is very, very sick right now, and it’s been a sad and fretful couple of days. Here’s to most-excellent Miles getting his health back very soon. Miles minus vital energy isn’t very fun.

Music: Rachel’s :: The Mysterious Disappearance Of Louis LePrince

3 Replies to “Brilliant 2006”

  1. These wireless card swipers have been used all over norway for some years now. They use them at restaurants so you will swipe the card yourself at your table. I’m amazed it took so lonk to get them here, but have seen them in the apple store on the east coast too. Great card BTW! Happy New Year to all!

  2. Bestbuy was doing wireless checkout here in the states for a Christmas season or two but didn’t bother to encrypt the wireless signals. I think they got butchered in the press when wardriving took off and people started saying I can get CC #’s! The thing I read on Apple a few days ago says they have corrected that part of their setup.

    Here’s the article from bidness week.

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