“Every day, 56 Californians move to Washington state.” However, that’s down from the 1995-2000 statistics of 2,600 every month. I think it’d ease the lines at the licensing bureaus if they swapped California drivers’ licenses for Washington’s without question and accepted California vehicle smog check certificates. In return, we all promise to disconnect our car horns.

In California our homeowner’s insurance policy had lengthy earthquake exclusions. It seemed like anything breakable (crockery, glass) wasn’t actually covered and there was much fine print to read through. Here in Washington we instead have definitions regarding “Volcanic Actions.” For example, they will pay for the removal of “the initial deposit of ash, dust or particulate matter” but not for any subsequent deposits that may occur from wind or “other means.” Also, any number of volcanic eruptions during a 72-hour period counts as one eruption. In related news, Mount Rainier has been called “A monumental threat” by a USGS scientist, albeit in a 500 year timeframe.

I am astounded that LifeSavers is retiring all the citrus flavors from their five-flavor roll. Orange, lemon and lime are gone in a little splash of publicity. I could understand perhaps lemon or lime, but both? The roll now consists of cherry, pineapple, watermelon, raspberry, and blackberry. The only remaining citrus is tangerine, available in the “Five Tangy Flavors” roll and the Tropical Fruits roll. Considering that the public supposedly voted for the new five-flavor lineup, I’m not sure what clamor is necessary to bring back the classic five, but I would certainly put my vote in for an all-citrus roll: orange, lemon, lime, tangerine, and how about pink grapefruit?

Astronomy Picture of the Day covers the NYC blackout. Scroll right to see the full effect of a skyline gone dark.

I didn’t want to register for access to the Financial Times article on IKEA catalog distribution, but the statistics quoted in two weblogs are eye opening: The catalog is the biggest free publication in the world with 130 million copies distributed this year. Stacked, that’s 1,300 kilometers. IKEA headquarters claims the world’s largest indoor photo studio. Almost every household in Sweden gets a copy, and various delivery considerations need to be made for areas without mailboxes and for harsh climates. (via penmachine and seattlepi Buzzworthy)

Adding some smidgen of hope to my attempt to grow lemons and limes in the Northwest, a Seattle Times gardening writer yearns for the Meyer Lemons and Bearss Limes of her mother’s Palo Alto home. These are the exact same varieties that are currently enjoying the warmth of a Pacific Northwest summer in our front yard. Both have taken well to the uncharacteristic heat and are producing flowers and, as I refer to them, “limelets” and “lemonlets.” When the weather turns, I will bring them indoors and all three of us will sit under “gro-lites” to tough out our first Seattle winter. Hopefully none of us will droop.

For one of my address change phone calls (most of which I could do online, thank technology), I obviously reached one of those fabled call centers in India. The woman I spoke to was unable to understand questions outside of her limited repertoire. I was reminded of a recent article making the rounds about the high burn-out rate at Indian call centers. It seems that new hires arrive with high expectations for advancement. Instead they are faced with working bad hours (since demand is high during U.S. daytime) and having to assume false names and accents. Fifty percent turnover is common. The increasing market and awareness of the job’s realities may force employers to address these issues.

This year’s Kennedy Center Honorees have been announced: musician James Brown, actress Carol Burnett, singer Loretta Lynn, director Mike Nichols, and violinist Itzhak Perlman. That combo should make for a rousing awards show in December.

People cleverer than I am have checked craigslist and the help wanted classifieds for clues to the Renton Fry’s opening date. Sept 1 is the rumored target day. On our last drive-by, we noticed that signs were going up inside, so they are definitely close.

The Help Wanted ad

“Room to rent” ad by a Fry’s employee who says “need a room to rent by Mid August.”

(No, we are not obsessed, we are just geeks.)

A N.Y. Times article on the new designer duds for budget airline Song (part of Delta) reveals some of the requirements for flight attendant uniform design. The designers, Kate and Andy Spade had to choose fire-retardant fabrics and closed-toe, closed-back shoes (they ended up with Mary Janes). The NTSB’s report on the 1995 ValuJet accident (PDF format) includes a short statement on the attire of the flight attendant who received burns. She was wearing shorts and a short sleeved shirt and the Safety Board recommended that the FAA advise airlines to make their attendants aware of the passenger clothing guidelines in their “Fly Smart” brochure. According to an Aviation Today article, there are no regulations regarding the flammability flight crew uniforms although there were recommendations and a proposal process for them in 1975-1978 which were dropped in 1981.

Thus, airlines have varying degrees of compliance with the recommendation of the Association of Flight Attendants which states:

4. Uniforms
All flight attendant uniforms, and any part thereof, should be flame retardant and fire resistant, in line with the current state-of-the-art.

a. Those uniform materials known to be highly flammable shall be brought to the attention of the air carrier and it shall be requested that they be discontinued and replaced. A listing of such flammable materials is available and can be obtained by the air carrier or flight attendant from any Regional FAA office or the AFA Air Safety, Health and Security Department. (BOD 2002)

b. Flight attendant uniforms should be distinctly different from the traveling public, convey authority and avoid features that create personal security threats. (BOD 2002)

Bonus link: A CBS Early Show story on the history of Delta’s uniforms. Link from the past: One man’s “stewardess uniform collection“.