Apples and cranberries.

This fruit-themed stream of consciousness has been going through my head all day.

An Apple a day Every Two Years

Apple announced that the next generation of the iPhone is due out later this month.  It's twice as fast as the current version, works as a modem, has voice recognition capability, and all sorts of other cool things.  On top of it all, the prices are less than the current generation of phones.

 

A and I already talked this morning and giving each other one as birthday presents.  But no, AT&T has other ideas. 

The great prices are only for new users, or people who qualified for a phone upgrade or whose contracts have expired.  None of those apply to me.

In the past couple of years, I've become a real Apple-head.  So hooked am I that I would run out and get the phone as soon as it is available.  But if I do, it will cost me in excess of $500.  They penalize the current iPhone users.

WTF is up with that?  They're cutting off good business from loyal customers (I write this on my MacBook while listening to music on my iPod that I downloaded on iTunes), who are sensible with their money.

I [heart] the Big Apple

Yet another reason to love New York City: the new High Line Park opened today.  Located on Manhattan's West Side, this new urban oasis is on an elevated train track that was abandoned in 1980 (it formerly carried cattle into the city's Meatpacking District). 

The High Line was built in the 1930s, as part of a massive public-private infrastructure project called the West Side Improvement. It lifted freight traffic 30 feet in the air, removing dangerous trains from the streets of Manhattan's largest industrial district.

Friends of the High Line, a community-based non-profit group, formed in 1999 when the historic structure was under threat of demolition. Friends of the High Line works in partnership with the City of New York to preserve and maintain the structure as an elevated public park.

I've been captivated by this project for sometime and really can't wait to get to the Big Apple to see it firsthand.

Salad Toppers

I just finished eating a salad for dinner (in my never-ending quest to lose some weight).  Over the past couple of months, I've become obsessed with dried cranberries.

I can't seem to have a salad without them. They also really tasty in my Cinnamon Apple Squares, which I bake for my fall-themed parties.

I Can't Think of a Fruit Analogy Here

Here's where the fruit theme falls apart.  My friend Kathy sent me an email this morning.

"Don't you think you look like a cross between Kiefer Sutherland and Glenn Beck?"

Well, no, I don't think so.  But then again, I've never really considered it.  After thinking about it, I'm not sure I agree.  Yeah, I'm blond like them, but that's about it.  I'm two years older than Beck and four years Sutherland's senior.  And Beck is a right-winger, but don't get me started about that.  [Wait, maybe I just found the fruit analogy -- right wingers are fruit cakes.  I knew I could do it!]