• US imposes 72 hour pre-reg for Visa waiver travellers – And this is going to help how?!
• ID Cards: Scandalous as Well as Idiotic – More on ID cards and the lengths that the government is going to in order to make sure that we all get them, like it or not. Very sneaky.
• Want to buy Jacqui Smith’s ID? – “Four people have been arrested after the BBC bought a driving licence and utility bills in the name of Home Secretary Jacqui Smith.” Yet the government insists that this is a good reason for having a national ID card? They still don’t understand…

My Little Secret is this, the best coffee shop in Reykjavik, Iceland — it was always half-empty even though they had great drinks and even better cakes.

That’s also this weeks PhotoFriday theme. I found it a tricky subject¹ and I’m not entirely happy with this pictures connection to the topic, but I do think I captured the lighting and the atmosphere of the cafe well.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Electricity.” I’m entry number 225.

It’s funny how it’s the places nearest you that you never quite get around to visiting. It was only a couple of years ago that I first went to Paris (and a couple of years before that when I went to France). This time the unvisited destination is only an hour away from home; so close that I have colleagues that commute from nearby. Brighton. Happening south-coast destination, home of a famous pier and Norman Cook. But was it worth the wait?

This weeks PhotoFriday theme is “Cold.” Here is my entry. Having spent nearly ten months working and living in Norway I had a number of good options here, but I think this image of Tromsø is a good indication of the cold, dark winters they get 400km north of the Arctic Circle. This picture was taken at about 3pm.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Fragile.” I’m entry number 222.

This young tea leaf looks pretty fragile and hence makes a good candidate for this weeks PhotoFriday challenge. I took this picture in Sri Lanka.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Far From Home.” I’m entry number 143.

[](http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephendarlington/10817487986/ ““No Camels & Horses” sign, Dahab, Egypt by stephendarlington, on Flickr”)

When you first step foot abroad everything seems fascinating and new. After a while you manage to acclimatise to most of the sights, sounds and smells, yet occasionally something still makes you feel “Far from home.” (Which is this weeks PhotoFriday theme.) In this case, a seemingly normal sign on a beach in Egypt stands out when you note that camels are banned from enjoying the surf.

I like this picture of a local child I took in Hoi An, Vietnam. Obviously a little nervous, approaching me with some trepidation, but happy and smiling. I think this mixture of emotions works for this weeks PhotoFriday challenge.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Found Objects.” I’m entry number 275.

“The Good Life” is this weeks PhotoFriday theme but also conjures up an image of an idyllic, simpler life-style. I thought this pastoral scene, actually taken in Oslo‘s Folk Museum in Bygdøy, fitted the bill quite nicely.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Surreal.” I’m entry number 210.

This weeks PhotoFriday theme is “Fuzzy.” Here is my entry. Here I’m using the misty, hazy and indistinct definition of “fuzzy.” This image was taken in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Art.” I’m number 130.

• Behind the Scenes at the Bay Bridge Construction Site – I saw the construction going on a few times last year, but from a distance while driving past. Interesting to see what they’re doing in more detail.
• Hand-wringing About American Culture – Are Americans Hostile to Knowledge? – “Not only are citizens ignorant about essential scientific, civic and cultural knowledge, she said, but they also don’t think it matters.” The article concentrates on the US but I don’t think it’s limited to North America.
• America – more hassle than it’s worth? – Next week they’ll announce that all travelers need to wear orange overalls, the next that all flights go straight to Guantanamo… and then they’ll announce that it’s all an elaborate joke and that they just wanted to see how far we’d go before complainin