The Santa Claus at Stanford Shopping Center has been our staple Santa over the years. The only other time we saw Santa Claus elsewhere was in Hawaii. This year we waited until the weekend before Christmas to visit Santa. It seemed like a lot of other people had the same idea, given the long line we encountered early that Saturday morning.

But the girls were very patient waiting. And when it was their turn to sit on the jolly old fellow’s lap, the girls were well-behaved - for the most part. I think Graecyn is going through a little stranger danger/separation issue right now. But Mia was all in awe of Santa. Mia even spent several moments after the photo session talking to Santa about her gift ideas.

Mia tells Santa her wishes for this year.

Graecyn waits for Mia.

Fan comic take on Batman and the Joker’s last dance. A bit bloody and violent, but it’s worth a quick read if you are a Batman fan.

Decent article on Ars Technica about what I’m doing now - an iPhone user using a Nexus 5. I hope to write a few words about this in the weeks to come. But the (pain) points about the process are well covered in the linked article.

Of 381 college admissions officers who answered a Kaplan telephone questionnaire this year, 31 percent said they had visited an applicant’s Facebook or other personal social media page to learn more about them — a five-percentage-point increase from last year. More crucially for those trying to get into college, 30 percent of the admissions officers said they had discovered information online that had negatively affected an applicant’s prospects.

You never know how your social media accounts will bleed into your real life.

It’s always tough getting the girls ready in the morning. Sometimes they place nice, like this morning. This gives mom and dad the opportunity to actually get ready for work instead of rushing to work.

It must be a slow news day. But seriously, why would you eat at either of these places since you have other burger joint choices? Though the fries and Mighty Wings are pretty good at McDonald’s.

Excellent service, but now it is (will) be gone. I did pay for the year, so I was supporting the product and service. It makes me wonder, will Loom be OK?

As the owner of a 65-inch plasma television, this is bad news. But newer technology will arise that will displace LCDs as well.

The new X-Men trailer is something to see. It looks like a good movie, but trailers can be deceiving. I hope they don’t mess up this great comic book storyline when translating it for the big screen.

Entertainment Weekly does a nice breakdown on the trailer as well.

The San Francisco Giants placed 6th on this Bloomberg chart. Not bad. Of course, the Yankees are 1st.

Sherlock will return to PBS Masterpiece on Jan. 19 at 10 p.m. That means the show will air back-to-back for the first time with that other hugely popular and influential Brit import, Downton Abbey (which returns Jan. 5).

Great!

But there’s a big difference between not eating GMOs and not getting a vaccine. If I don’t eat a corn chip at my local taqueria because I have doubts about the lack of research on GMOs and believe it’s because science and the government are in Monsanto’s pocket, I’m not going to put my dining companions at risk of disease. But if I decide not to vaccinate my kid, I make him a potential carrier. He may be able to fight off measles, mumps, rubella, and other illnesses — but what if he spreads a disease to somebody who, for whatever reason, isn’t so lucky?

I stand on the side of getting your child vaccinated. But it is a personal choice. Try to make an informed decision, OK?

Funny clip about why Wolverine is no longer an X-Men.

In the 530-plus years since he painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, the Renaissance artist’s famous frescoes have been dealt a fair share of abuse. They’re dusty, they’re dirty, and they’re constantly being damaged by humidity, carbon dioxide and other pollutants.

Now, the head of the Vatican Museums, Antonio Paolucci, is warning that, if new air conditioning and air purifying systems that are being installed at the facility don’t significantly cut the pollution levels in the chapel, he will have no choice but to limit the number of tourists who visit the site.

Seeing the Sistine Chapel is on my bucket list. I hope I have a chance to see it someday.

Photos have been posted on BBC’s website from the upcoming special. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

I love the time Farrah and I spent in Bath, London, and Paris. This video covers areas in Bath. It makes me want to go back again. Click the image to play the video.

Bath in Motion - A Hyperlapse of Bath from Jack Fisher on Vimeo.

Photo exclusive on MercuryNews.com. The last photo of the model gives the campus some scale against Highway 280, which I think is toward the front. All I have to say is wow!

Another setting disabled. Seriously considering deactivating my Facebook account again.

It seems the setting to disable autoplay of videos, which I enabled immediately when videos started posting on Instagram, is no longer there. This is not cool.

Trying to calm Graecyn down, who is sitting in the back seat, with the iPhone camera. Of course I’m recording it.

Add this to the list of things to put in the house. It looks like a smart addition, especially if you use several of them to determine where in the house danger may be.

The Samsung Galaxy Gear watch looks like a stinker. At least the first version of it. I’m sure when - and if - Apple comes out with a wearable device, the Samsung version will suddenly change in concept and execution, making it more like whatever Apple makes.

Apple came up with a tips page on how to use the features in iOS 7 and iPhone 5s. Take a good quick scan for some tips!

Interesting short film concept of Wonder Woman. Nicely made, though no dialog, and more action sort of like 300. I don’t know if Wonder Woman will make it onto the big screen in one form or another. Perhaps she should simply have a cameo appearance in a Superman or Batman movie to gauge interest.

I’m the one in the family who is asked, “Which Apple product should I get?” I am also asked, “Should I get AppleCare?”

David Sparks has a good short article about AppleCare. I agree with him on all points. You might want to give it a quick read.