Odds ‘n Sods:

Ferd was the first of several readers to mention a news article that illustrates both the current over-reliance on GPS and the need to keep outdoor survival gear packed in your car: Couple stranded three days after GPS leads them astray.

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Our friend Tamara (the editor of the very entertaining View From The Porch blog), suggested this piece about weather whiners. OBTW, Tamara refers to the new Avatar movie as “White Guilt in 3-D. aka Dances with Aliens.”

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Best Prices Storable Foods (aka The Internet Grocer) has announced an End-of-Year Blowout Clearance Sale, with the following discounts:

15% off Canned Dehydrated Foods (*excluding* Milk, Morning Moo and Wheat). Code is DEC15.
15% off Mountain House on any order. Free shipping (48 states) on orders over $150. Code is MH15.
15% off Canned Meats, full cases (including Mixed Cases, but not Sample Cases). Code is MEAT15.
15% off Life Sprouts. Code is SPR15.

NOTE: Their shopping cart will accept only one discount code. They will know to apply the other codes if you qualify for them. Sale items for sprouts, meats and Mountain House is limited to the items in stock (Ground Beef–both sizes–is out-of-stock until January). If you qualify for free shipping, don’t panic when the cart “charges” shipping. They remove those charges manually before your card is charged. They a are offering (48 continental US states) for year units only. If you’ve been toying with the idea of getting a Year’s Supply
for 1, 2 or 4 (or a 3 Month Supply for 1), they’ve adjusted pricing for them to allow for free shipping in the continental US

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Reader M.P. mentioned this Scientific American article: Bugs Inside: What Happens When the Microbes That Keep Us Healthy Disappear? The human body has more microbial than human cells, but this rich diversity of micro-helpers that has evolved along with us is undergoing a rapid shift–one that may have very macro health consequences