- Finnish police detain Lambert after bar brawl - Boston.com
Finnish police say they detained Adam Lambert after he assaulted people who tried to break up a fight between the former "American Idol" star and his boyfriend in downtown Helsinki. - BBC News - Finland 'finds Patriot missiles' on China-bound ship
The Finnish authorities have impounded an Isle of Man-flagged ship bound for China with undeclared missiles and explosives, officials say.
More from the Helsingin Sanomat: Missiles and explosives found in ship in Kotka
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Finnish police contain two threats to world peace
We'll let you decide which posed the greater danger:
Stop and Shop app stops shopping
Stop and Shop has managed to make a difficult process unbearable. They've done so by taking it mobile.
Let's start with their apps. They have three.
The first one you search for and find is not the one you want. The first one tells you a few things that you almost want to know, such as coupons and specials that are available for you as a prized Stop and Shop online customer.
You see signs around the store about deals that are available with the Stop and Shop shopping app. You see the info everywhere except in this Stop and Shop app. There's a link in the app to Peapod Mobile so you can shop on the go. ("Peapod in your pocket" is their clever, if a bit creepy slogan.") That's the second app. That's not the one you want, either.
Besides, you're in the back of the store where cell phone reception is one bar at best. There is a WiFi network available, but you can't connect to it because it's only available through the app that you need to install, the Stop & Shop ScanIt! Mobile app.
You go back toward the front of store where radio waves can make it through the produce section and download this helpful little doggie. You scan your Stop and Shop card to register the app. The app then connects to the WiFi and you're ready to shop.
Slowly. It's slow because you have to scan the barcode of each item. You're standing in the aisle, twisting the can of pumpkin to align the barcode to your phone's camera, and waiting for the little ping that says you've been successful. On to the dairy section to find heavy cream. (In case you're wondering, Sandra's making a pumpkin chiffon pie for Christmas dessert.)
People are tangled up in the aisles, looking for unfamiliar ingredients for a special holiday meal and you've got your phone next to an upside-down box of corn bread mix. Can you imagine Balthazar fumbling with his phone and a bag of frankincense so his app could record the purchase?
When you're done disrupting the movement of shoppers through the store, it's on to the checkout. Hold your phone up to the bar code near the register. Yay, we get the ping. Now, scan your frickin' Stop and Shop card at the register! Your order appears on the screen. Scan the things that you couldn't scan with the app, such as the oranges because they don't have a barcode to scan.
Press the Finish and Pay button. Press Credit. On the handy PIN pad, tell it (again) that you're using a credit card. Sign your name on the display and press the unreadable Done button when you're, um, done.
To complete the experience, wait for the coupon for deodorant because Stop and Shop thinks that you smell bad.
Let's start with their apps. They have three.
The first one you search for and find is not the one you want. The first one tells you a few things that you almost want to know, such as coupons and specials that are available for you as a prized Stop and Shop online customer.You see signs around the store about deals that are available with the Stop and Shop shopping app. You see the info everywhere except in this Stop and Shop app. There's a link in the app to Peapod Mobile so you can shop on the go. ("Peapod in your pocket" is their clever, if a bit creepy slogan.") That's the second app. That's not the one you want, either.
Besides, you're in the back of the store where cell phone reception is one bar at best. There is a WiFi network available, but you can't connect to it because it's only available through the app that you need to install, the Stop & Shop ScanIt! Mobile app.
You go back toward the front of store where radio waves can make it through the produce section and download this helpful little doggie. You scan your Stop and Shop card to register the app. The app then connects to the WiFi and you're ready to shop.
Slowly. It's slow because you have to scan the barcode of each item. You're standing in the aisle, twisting the can of pumpkin to align the barcode to your phone's camera, and waiting for the little ping that says you've been successful. On to the dairy section to find heavy cream. (In case you're wondering, Sandra's making a pumpkin chiffon pie for Christmas dessert.)
People are tangled up in the aisles, looking for unfamiliar ingredients for a special holiday meal and you've got your phone next to an upside-down box of corn bread mix. Can you imagine Balthazar fumbling with his phone and a bag of frankincense so his app could record the purchase?
When you're done disrupting the movement of shoppers through the store, it's on to the checkout. Hold your phone up to the bar code near the register. Yay, we get the ping. Now, scan your frickin' Stop and Shop card at the register! Your order appears on the screen. Scan the things that you couldn't scan with the app, such as the oranges because they don't have a barcode to scan.
Press the Finish and Pay button. Press Credit. On the handy PIN pad, tell it (again) that you're using a credit card. Sign your name on the display and press the unreadable Done button when you're, um, done.
To complete the experience, wait for the coupon for deodorant because Stop and Shop thinks that you smell bad.
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Whose Christmas is it, anyway?
Before I get started on my stuff, I want to give props to Katie C's series on Making Peace with Christmas. She's raised and dealt with hard issues of this most perplexing time of the year.
I don't think that anyone above the age of seven should try to make sense of Christmas. There's too much to pick apart, too many triggers for irrational exuberance, self-doubt, anger (righteous and otherwise), sad reflections, and misremembered joys. If you try to keep it simple, your heart is likely to be broken by a people who trample one another for a waffle iron. If you try to declare your own war on the war on Christmas, you'll have little joy and create even less. It'sSanta may try to explain why he does what he does, but the explanations don't explain much.
There are plenty of things in life that aren't improved by thinking about them. You start off with a thought, pull it apart like a Sunday chicken, and all you have left is pieces and greasy fingers. Christmas is one of those things. Read Katie's blog posts, think for a while, and get on with your day. It'll be Boxing Day before you know it.
I don't think that anyone above the age of seven should try to make sense of Christmas. There's too much to pick apart, too many triggers for irrational exuberance, self-doubt, anger (righteous and otherwise), sad reflections, and misremembered joys. If you try to keep it simple, your heart is likely to be broken by a people who trample one another for a waffle iron. If you try to declare your own war on the war on Christmas, you'll have little joy and create even less. It'sSanta may try to explain why he does what he does, but the explanations don't explain much.
There are plenty of things in life that aren't improved by thinking about them. You start off with a thought, pull it apart like a Sunday chicken, and all you have left is pieces and greasy fingers. Christmas is one of those things. Read Katie's blog posts, think for a while, and get on with your day. It'll be Boxing Day before you know it.
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