While I always perceived WeatherBug on the PC to be a gateway for unwanted applications and/or adware, the iPad version isn’t hampered with any of these concerns. (And, to be fair, my impression of the PC version of WeatherBug is based upon a version from several years ago. That software may have changed its ways.)

Not only is WeatherBug able to show my current weather conditions, but it can also show the weather conditions of other locations. So, whether I’m traveling, or want to see the weather where some one else is traveling, or am just curious about the current weather conditions in, say, Sydney, Australia, I can find out!

However, I’ve discovered a few things that make me feel like a VIP. If you’d like to feel like a VIP, too, check these out.

• The I-Pass electronic toll collection device: this small and inexpensive device gives you VIP treatment on many tollways in neighboring states to our east. For more details, see this article: i-pass makes the nice list.
• Holiday Inn Priority Club Membership: one of our favorite hotels to use while traveling is Holiday Inn Express. The rooms are consistent, clean and quiet and the hotels tend to be newer and in good condition. Holiday Inn provides a free rewards club called the Priority Club. Many individual hotels provide amenities specifically for Priority Club Members. For instance, express check-in, free or discounted parking, and so forth. At one check-in, we were even surprised by a small fruit basket. Most hotel chains offer similar programs. If you travel at all, take advantage of these free services to feel like a VIP.
• Amazon.com Prime: this annual, fee-based membership with amazon.com provides free two-day shipping on all orders from this online retailer. By not only removing additional shipping charges, but also providing expedited delivery, amazon cleverly breaks down barriers to placing orders. Since I no longer have to worry about individual shipping charges, I don’t need to “pool” my orders together. I can take advantage of the savings of a particular item without needing to add a shipping rate, making price comparisons easier. The fee is rather high, but if you place many orders with amazon.com, you’ll come out ahead. Plus, if you break even financially, you’ll get the added benefit of feeling like a VIP when your orders arrive two days later.

Maybe you have other suggestions to add to this list. If so, leave a comment and let me know!

The I-Pass is an electronic toll collection service provided by the Illinois Tollway and compatible with Indiana’s I-Zoom and the EZ-Pass system used by many eastern states, such as Ohio and Pennsylvania. Setup an account with a valid credit card, put the transponder on your front window or dash, and be prepared to speed through toll-collecting booths, leaving the downtrodden masses to wait in line while you get on with life. Bwa-ha-ha-ha.

Oops. Sorry. The power momentarily went to my head.

Seriously, this is a great. Open an account with a $40 deposit, get a transponder for a refundable $10 deposit, and be treated as a VIP. While others are waiting in line to get a ticket or find the correct change, the I-Pass user gets right through without the headache and less wait. Some states have full-speed I-Pass lanes; others have I-Pass dedicated lanes, which always have the shortest lines. For instance, I recently exited the Ohio Turnpike to find two lines of 10 cars each waiting to pay the toll, while the EZ-Pass lane was empty. I just drove up, waited a moment for the red light to turn green, and was on my way.

In addition to the time savings, there are often toll discounts as well.

I don’t know why more people don’t take advantage of this. A refundable deposit of $10 provides both time and monetary savings. What’s not to like about that?

How many donuts do you plan to have?

Instant replay, had it been available, would have corrected the error, the out would have been declared, and the perfect game would have been recorded. This unfortunate incident will likely result in a renewed call to add more instant replay to MLB baseball games.

I’m here to tell you that it shouldn’t. “Just Say No” to instant replay in MLB.

Yes, it appears clear that an actual out wasn’t recorded and that the rare perfect game was unjustly erased because of an umpire’s mistake on the final out of the game. However, how many other umpire mistakes were made during the course of the game? How many strikes could have just as easily been called balls? How many other close plays at first base could have gone the other way? How many foul balls could have been called fair? How often was a batter or pitcher given extra time, rather than being urged to stop adjusting batting gloves, scratching, and spitting, and to play ball?

Baseball is a game of judgment that involves everyone in the drama: players, managers, umpires. Each make hundreds, perhaps thousands, of decisions during the game that affect the outcome. Some decisions are small and apparently irrelevant. Others (such a this wrong call) are more obvious. However, I suggest that some judgment calls were made early in the game that impacted the outcome as much as the judgment that being declared safe when he should have been out. It’s just that that mistake was both obvious and dramatic, and thus gets more attention, than other mistakes made earlier in the game that may have changed the outcome of the game as well.

Boil it all down, and baseball is a delightfully imperfect game. Embrace the imperfection, bemoan with your friends the unjustice of a call (1985 World Series, anyone?), and remember, it’s just a game.

Now, if you want to discuss allowing the official scorer to declare an error on the umpire, thus turning the hit that broke up the perfect game into an unrecorded out due to (umpire) error, resulting in a no-hitter, but not a perfect game, …

Various dried fruits are available at our local Hy Vee grocery.

“… I’m almost in heaven.”
— Gaijin

“I can honestly say it’s awesome–it has already changed (and improved!) the way I do my own Bible study.”
— Jen

“I’m feeling completely justified for having based my iPad purchase on this app… maybe not sanctified, but indeed justified.”
— J.Sam

“This is one of, if not the finest app in the App store. It is everything you said it would be and more. This is by far the best Bible software available for the iPad, and makes my iPad into the “study friendly” device I had hoped for.”
— Steve K.

“This is by far the best Bible software I have ever used.”
— Phil

“Woo-hoo! It is awesome. This is the best app for my iPad! Really!”
— Brian

“Loaded on my Ipad last night. All I can say is that it is stunning and incredible.”
— John C.

“The first app in the App Store to cry out for 6 stars!”
— NNR

“Beautiful iPad app!!! Love it. This update made my week.”
— Carolyn

“The iPad version is truly the killer-app. Just knowing it was coming had me drooling, and the release didn’t disappoint.”
— Aardwolf

“Verily, I am thankful unto God for leading me to this application … Like the skillful work done by Bezalel and Aholiab, I commend your work. Well done.”
—gomo

“If the AppStore gave out awards for the best app, this would win it hands down. It has the cleanest and easiest to use UI of any app I’ve used on my iPad. If I could I would give it 10 stars not just 5.”
— RS.C

“I’ve been using Laridian products since they were founded and consider them the absolute best of the mobile Bible apps. This latest is no exception and is already my preferred app for the iPad. It’s fast, has a great user interface and tons of resources. It has earned a place on my dock.”
— naapitb

Because we’re fair and balanced, we offer an opposing viewpoint, offered by the user of another Bible product.

“The interface for this app is confusing. Make a wrong move on the touch screen and you can really get yourself lost within the program.”
— Quaczar

PocketBible for iPad now available in the App Store