Also, click here to view other pics from my afternoon at the museum/park.

Margie Clayman is a little person. As in, she’s shorter than most people. Why do we have to refer to her as a little person? Why can’t she just be person? We’re so used to “normal” that it’s somehow become ok to hire dwarfs as entertainment at parties – just because they’re short. Margie is often looked over in lines at restaurants – because people think she’s a child. They never looked at her.

That doesn’t just say something about society’s view of little people. It also says something about society’s view of children.

Kids who struggle in school are told that they are lazy. The truth is that human beings have learning differences. Education emphasizes reading with our eyes above all else, but many people learn best through hearing words instead of seeing them. Why is seeing words so much more important than hearing them?

Oh that’s right. Because blindness isn’t normal. Blind people are ignored all the time. Name all the places you go that offer braille signage. Very few. Hell, even as I write this, I realize I’ve never considered how blind people could ever hear my blog.

And while I loved that Wimpy South Africa recently reached out to blind people by using sesame seeds to create braille messages on hamburger buns, why was the idea of marketing to blind people such a novel concept?

Thankfully technology thrives on the ability to reach people where “normal” so far has not.

• Audible.com exists for people who love to read with their ears.
• KhanAcademy.org uses videos to break down information into chunks and allows students to learn and progress at their own pace.
• Interactive books, an emerging medium, are perfect for those who need tactile learning experiences.
• Dictation apps help people who struggle with the physical and mental acts of writing (their brain processes information differently than for those of us who are natural writers).

Technology is an equalizer. For most, innovation can’t come fast enough.

In the meantime, normal is a term reserved for an elite group of people (that apparently does not include those with a low IQ). But not everyone wants a membership to the club…

Apps have finally surpassed browsers in mobile content usage, according to comScore data for November 2011. It’s only 0.5% difference, which is not really even statistically significant. Apps can barely declare victory here.

Here’s a look at the historical data:

Source: comScore MobiLens

In the immediate future, the trend should hold with apps enjoying more popularity than browsers. And lest this data should be used in an attempt to win the mobile site vs. app debate, it’s more of a reminder that a holistic marketing strategy is best (Read my free white paper on holistic mobile marketing here [PDF]). Despite the popularity of apps, browser use is still growing too.

This isn’t the first shift we’ve seen in mobile content usage. Back in September 2010, social networking overtook gaming in popularity.

Source: comScore MobiLens

While both have continued to grow, social networking continues its dominance over gaming. Meanwhile, mobile gaming’s growth has still been able to shake things up in the larger gaming industry.

It was a gamble to drive all that way. Of course non-Hot Light Krispy Kreme doughnuts are delicious. But your smile is just not as bright while eating them.

Thankfully, Krispy Kreme konsumers don’t have to take chances with their precious time and money. A new mobile app from Krispy Kreme will let you know if your local store’s Hot Light is on.

And yes, there are push notifications. Because you need to know when you can stuff your face with 190 more calories (for 1 original glazed doughnut) as soon as possible.

Not only that, but Krispy Kreme teases you with advertisements for their often overlooked other doughnuts. Yes, there are other delicious hanging out waiting to be devoured.

Such as the red velvet cake doughnut.

If Krispy Kreme wanted to add any additional content, I would recommend wallpapers that people can use on their phone. Then everytime they used their phone, their mouths would salivate like Pavlov’s dogs.

Download the Hot Light app for free from the iPhone App Store or Android Market.

Even though it’s the very last minute, you can still put some thought into the gift. For example, there are some gaming suggestions below, but not all gamers are alike.

As economist Dan Ariely notes in his recent article on gift-giving “Instead of picking a book from your sister’s Amazon wish list, or giving her what you think she should read, go to a bookstore and try to think like her.”

With that in mind, here’s a list of truly last minute gifts:

LivingSocial deals

LivingSocial doesn’t just have one local deal a day. It also has a bunch of deals for many cities as well as travel deals, etc. Simply browse the gifts page, choose one and buy it. LivingSocial will email it to your gift recipient.

KangoGift

KangoGift allows you to purchase a gift with your cell phone and the recipient gets the gift through text or email. Gifts include things like a cupcake, fitness sessions, or simply a price amount such as $10 or $25. The giftee goes to the store to redeem the gift. Merchants include Lush, Cow & Crumb, BudiBar and Fandango.

Ancestry.com gift membership

The holidays are really about connection with family. For family members interested in genealogy, a gift membership to Ancestry.com is perfect.

Explore US roots

6 months – $89
12 months – $159

Explore world roots

6 months – $169
12 months – 299

RedBox gift card

Gift cards are available for $5 each and can be delivered via email and Facebook.

Individual Kindle books and Amazonmp3.com music

You can gift specific books and Amazonmp3.com songs and albums. Just look for the gift button option under the “Add to Cart” button on the product’s page.

Amazon gift card – works for Kindle, Amazonmp3.com and Amazon’s Android Appstore

A gift card allows the user to choose what they want to buy. And thankfully, Amazon’s digital content can be consumed on a wide variety of devices (aka think outside the Kindle). Kindle books can be read on Kindle apps for computers, mobile phones and tablets – and of course the Kindle itself. Mp3 songs can be listened to on mp3 players as well as most smartphones. And there’s an Android Appstore.

An Amazon gift card allows you to gift any of these digital content immediately. (Of course, the recipient can use it to buy stuff to be shipped to them, too.)

Find Amazon gift cards here.

iTunes apps, music, tv shows and movies

Individual digital content items such as apps, music, tv shows, and movies can be gifted from the comfort of your computer screen. Heck, you could probably even buy the gift while sitting around with the family watching cheesy Christmas movies and football tonight.

If you want to gift an app, make sure the recipient has the proper device to use the app, such as an iPod Touch, iPhone, or an iPad. However, movies and tv shows can be watched on any computer that can run iTunes, including Windows computers. Also, while audiobooks are available for gifting, regular books are not.

If you’re not sure which specific piece of media to get then…

iTunes Gift Card

Available for purchase are $10, $20, $30, $40 and $50 amounts and can be sent through email. The recipient then, of course, gets to decide what they want to buy, which is sometimes a safer bet.

Audible.com gift subscriptions and audiobooks

For those who prefer to “read” their books by listening to them, a gift subscription to Audible.com is ideal. Options include:

3 months – $45
6 months – $90
12 months – $150

Also, Audible.com allows you to gift audiobooks as digital media files. The gift recipient can then listen to the book on most mp3 players, smartphones and the Kindle.

Lynda.com subscription

A great site for anyone who wants to improve their computer skills. Everything from basic computer skills to programming to art and animation. Courses are taught via a series of video lessons. Users can learn at their own pace, including pausing and rewinding when necessary.

1 month – $25.00
3 months – $75.00
6 months – $150.00
12 months – $250.00
12 months premium – includes exercise files – $375.00

Safari Books Online Subscription

A subscription to over 18,000 technology, creative and business titles.

1 month – $42.99
3 months – $109.50
6 months – $219.00
12 months – $438.00

Gift cards

Tons of sites offer gift cards that can be delivered through email. Best Buy, Newegg, O.co (aka Overstock.com), Zappos.com,ThinkGeek.com, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Crate & Barrel, Williams Sonoma, Game Stop and many many more can help you out last minute. Just think of what your gift recipient likes and find a store to match.

Netflix subscription

Netflix offers gift subscriptions for its streaming-only service. You can give 1 month for $7.99, 2 months for $15.98, 3 months for 23.97, 6 months for $47.94, or 1 year for $95.58.

Hulu Plus subscription

Similar to Netflix’s streaming service, with the excellent exception of being able to watch many current seasons. However, Hulu doesn’t have nearly the catalogue that Netflix has. The two compliment each other well, actually. So gifting both is a possibility without being redundant.

Gift Hulu Plus here.

GameFly subscription

This is like Netflix’s DVD service except with Video Games. Considering video games, even pre-owned ones, are very expensive, this is a great way for gamers to play games or try out games at a reduced cost.

Subscription options include 1 game at a time and 2 games at a time. For one game/one month, it’s $15.95 and $22.95 for two games/one month. Compare that with titles such as Batman: Arkham City and The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, which run $59 for PlayStation to own.

OnLive.com Games and Game Subscriptions

This is similar to Netflix’s streaming service, except again with video games. The games can be played on the computer (great if your giftee doesn’t have a console but does have a laptop), and internet-connected mobile devices. The catalogue isn’t quite as good as GameFly, but it’s still a cool gift for gamers.

There are two options for last minute gifting:

Give a Game

1 game from New Releases $49.99
1 game from Family-Friendly titles – $19.99

PlayPack Subscriptions

1 month – $9.99
3 months – $27.99
6 months – $52.99
12 months – $99.99

Steam

Steam allows gamers to play a ton of games, including console games, on their computer (as opposed to an XBox or PlayStation).

To gift a game, add to cart and then there will be an option to give the purchase as a gift. Steam is having a huge sale, so your last minute butt will get a good deal.

Minecraft

One of the hottest games of 2011 makes a great last minute gift. The is a downloadable game, just make sure your recipient’s computer has the technical requirements to handle the game (found on Minecraft’s website).

To purchase the game as a gift, you’ll need to register to the site, but the store does offer gift codes.

Flickr Pro

Flickr offers subscriptions that give users unlimited storage for their photo uploads, ad-free browsing and hd playback for videos. $24.95 for a one-year membership or $47.99 for a two-year membership.

Last.fm subscription

For $3 a month, a Last.fm subscription includes ad-free internet radio that can be played on a mobile app and XBox Live.

1 month, 3 month, 6 month, and 12 month subscriptions are available.

Pandora membership

Another internet radio site, a $36 membership to Pandora One gives the giftee a 1 year subscription to Pandora, which means they can listen to the Internet radio site ad-free. Additionally, the quality of the audio is higher.

Comixology (Digital Comics)

I hesitate to put this on the list. Most comic book fans still love getting print versions of their favorite comics.

There are two scenarios (off the top of my head) in which digital comics could be an option:

1. Hard to find comics. These are usually more expensive in print and fly off the shelves quickly at the local comic store. A digital version can at least offer good reading or continuity of story while the comic fan continues to hunt down the title.

2. Titles that look kinda, sorta interesting. Everyone’s budgets are limited and sometimes comic book fans have series that they want to check out but aren’t sure they want to pull the trigger on because they’d rather save the funds for their favorites.

Don’t be offended if later the giftee does buy the comic in print form. Think of it as a compliment – that you helped the recipient discover a comic they love.

To gift a comic on Comixology, you’ll need to become a registered user.

New York Times Digital Subscription

Give full access to the New York Times.

12 Weeks

NYTimes.com and Smartphone Apps – $30
NYTimes.com and Tablet App – $40
All Digital Access – $70

26 Weeks

NYTimes.com and Smartphone Apps – $65
NYTimes.com and Tablet App – $85
All Digital Access – $150

This week, I took Felix Jones and once again he’s injured. I had Roy Helu on the bench (in case Jones didn’t work out) and now he’s listed as questionable.

I got Adrian Peterson back, but, as with most players returning from injury, his performance was a bit stunted, fantasy-wise. Certainly his prospects against the Redskins this week are much better than against the Saints last week.

Steven Jackson has been looking better the past two weeks, making me regret dropping him. But the Rams will (probably) have a hard time against Pittsburgh this week, so I’m not sure about picking him back up.

Instead, CJ Spiller looks like a much better option. I’m eating crow on this one because I thought there was no way that Spiller was a viable alternative to Fred Jackson on a quickly disintegrating Bills team. But Spiller has outperformed other replacement choices I made, such as Benjarvus Green-Ellis.

All of this doesn’t matter too much b/c at this point in fantasy playoffs I’m only playing for third place. But I love fantasy football so I want to make the most of it before the season is over.

That’s right, it’s Christmas and for sci fi nerds that means a brand new Doctor Who special. We might seem eager to rip open gifts early on Christmas, but that’s only because the Series 6 marathon starts at 8am on 12/25 and yes, we must watch it again. For the 11th time.

And if we seem a little cranky, please forgive us, because we didn’t get much sleep in between the Christmas Eve programs featuring the 10th and 11th Doctors and waking up on Christmas morn. You see, ’twas the night before Christmas and even the mice wanted to watch David Tennant on The Nerdist at 9pm and Matt Smith ham it up with Graham Norton at 10pm.

The best gift you can give us is Silence at 9pm on Christmas day. That’s when the Christmas special airs on BBC America. If this all seems a bit obsessive, please just let it be. Resistance is futile, because the Christmas special is a fixed point in time. It can’t be changed and it must be watched.

Christmas Eve

12:00am The End of Time (2009 Christmas Special, 2010 New Year’s Day Special) – The end of the 10th Doctor, introduction of the 11th Doctor

3:00am The Next Doctor (2008 Christmas Special) – A mysterious alternate Time Lord shows up calling himself The Doctor

4:00am Voyage of the Damned (2007 Christmas Special) – The TARDIS collides with a spaceship called the Titanic. Kylie Minogue guest stars as a waitress named Astrid, who is the Doctor’s companion for the special.

5:00am The Christmas Invasion (2005 Christmas Special) – Introduction of David Tennant as the 10th Doctor, who lies in a coma-like state while the earth is threatened by the Sycorax

6:00am The Next Doctor (2008 Christmas Special) - A mysterious alternate Time Lord shows up calling himself The Doctor

7:00am The End of Time (2009 Christmas Special, 2010 New Year’s Day Special) - The end of the 10th Doctor, introduction of the 11th Doctor

10:00am Doctor Who at the Proms – Special live performance of Doctor Who score music featuring the London Philharmonic Choir, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, conductor Ben Foster, conductor Grant Llewellyn. Matt Smith, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill host.

1:00pm Best of the Companions – Clip show featuring comedians and celebrities talking about their favorite Doctor Who companions and moments.

2:00pm Best of the Monsters – Clip show about the evil villains the Doctor has fought

3:00pm Best of the Doctor – Clip show featuring the best moments of you know Who

4:00pm The End of Time (2009 Christmas Special, 2010 New Year’s Day Special) - The end of the 10th Doctor, introduction of the 11th Doctor

7:00pm A Christmas Carol (2010 Christmas Special) – Christmases of past, present and future are visited time-travel style a la Doctor Who

8:00pm Best of the Christmas Specials – Clip show about, well, you can pretty much guess at this point, right?

9:00pm The Nerdist: Year in Review – David Tennant makes an appearance on the holiday edition of the talk show hosted by Whovian Chris Hardwick

10:00pm The Graham Norton Show: Christmas Special – Matt Smith is a guest

Christmas Day

12:30am Best of the Christmas specials - Clip show of great Doctor Who Christmas special moments

1:30am The Nerdist: Year in Review – David Tennant is a guest

2:30am The Graham Norton Show: Christmas Special – Matt Smith is a guest

4:00am Best of the Christmas specials – Clip show of great Doctor Who Christmas special moments

5:00am A Christmas Carol (2010 Christmas Special) - Christmases of past, present and future are visited time-travel style a la Doctor Who

6:00am The Christmas Invasion (2005 Christmas Special) – Introduction of David Tennant as the 10th Doctor, who lies in a coma-like state while the earth is threatened by the Sycorax

7:00am The Runaway Bride (2006 Christmas Special) – Introduction of Donna Noble, who is mysteriously transported to the TARDIS on her wedding day.

——-SERIES 6 MARATHON BEGINS——

8:00am The Impossible Astronaut and Day of the Moon Series 6, Episodes 1 & 2

10:00am Curse of the Black Spot Series 6, Episode 3

11:00am The Doctor’s Wife Series 6, Episode 4

12noon Rebel Flesh and The Almost People Series 6, Episodes 5&6

2:00pm A Good Man Goes to War Series 6, Episode 7

3:00pm Let’s Kill Hitler Series 6, Episode 8

4:00pm Night Terrors Series 6, Episode 9

5:00pm The Girl Who Waited Series 6, Episode 10

6:00pm The God Complex Series 6, Episode 11

7:00pm Closing Time Series 6, Episode 12

8:00pm The Wedding of River Song Series 6, Episode 13

——–END OF SERIES 6 MARATHON——-

9:00pm NEW: The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (2011 Christmas Special) – Doctor Who’s take on the C.S. Lewis classic, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

10:20pm Best of the Christmas Specials - Clip show of great Doctor Who Christmas special moments

11:20pm The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (2011 Christmas Special) – Doctor Who’s take on the C.S. Lewis classic, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Monday, December 26, 2011

12:40am The Nerdist: Year in Review – David Tennant is a guest

1:40pm The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (2011 Christmas Special) – Christmases of past, present and future are visited time-travel style a la Doctor Who

3:00am Best of the Christmas Specials - Clip show of great Doctor Who Christmas special moments

4:00am A Christmas Special (2010 Christmas Special) - Christmases of past, present and future are visited time-travel style a la Doctor Who

5:00am The Christmas Invasion (2005 Christmas Special) - Introduction of David Tennant as the 10th Doctor, who lies in a coma-like state while the earth is threatened by the Sycorax

Check out my guide to watching Doctor Who (both old and new series) in order on Netflix.

“Bethesda’s commitment to and understanding of the PC as a gaming platform shows in the great review scores, spectacular launch, and continued high player numbers that Skyrim has received,” said Jason Holtman, Director of Business Development at Valve Corporation.

In fact, Skyrim has garnered over 200 perfect scores by reviewers worldwide, including: USA Today, G4TV, The New York Times, GameSpy, Wired, Eurogamer, Destructoid, GamePro, Official Xbox Magazine, Joystiq, The Guardian, Famitsu and GamesRadar.

Naturally, that led to superlatives offered up by some of the industry’s biggest media outlets. Skyrim was also named Game of the Year by G4TV, Official Xbox Magazine and Machinima.com. In all, Skyrim was named Game of the Year by over two dozen major outlets. Additionally, Raptr named Skyrim as the Most Played Game of 2011.

“We are gratified that Skyrim continues to garner high review scores and accolades around the world,” said Robert Altman, Chairman and CEO of ZeniMax Media, owner of Bethesda Softworks.

Meanwhile, Bethesda Game Studios won Studio of the Year at the Video Game Awards. Bethesda has experienced a lot of success at the VGAs including Game of the Year for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion in 2006 and the Game of the Year for Fallout® 3 in 2008.

“We are most grateful to our fans for their support and enthusiasm for the game, and their love of the hundreds of hours of gameplay it offers,” added Altman.

“We continue to strive to deliver the highest quality entertainment experience for everyone. 2012 will be another huge year for our fans, with the release of the Creation Kit, as well as exciting DLC which will add to the richness of this epic adventure,” concluded Altman.