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This broken branch from a tree in Muir Woods, California looks pretty Rough to me, hence I’m using as this weeks PhotoFriday challenge.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Beauty.” I am entry number 261.

My first reaction was why would I want to take a picture that reminds me of work? Then I remembered this image that I took in Alcatraz. My desk at work tends not to have hand-cuffs. Actually, I tend to have so much paper littering the place that you can’t see the surface. Anyway, I thought this fit the theme of “The Office.”

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Spiral.” I’m entry 162.

I’m not entirely sure what this is — a spinning wheel thingy used in some form of textiles — but it’s certainly a tool and, therefore, not a bad candidate for this weeks PhotoFriday challenge. It was taken in San Carlos Borroméo de Carmelo Mission, California.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Minimalism.” I am entry number 231.

• 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…

It’s still early here in the UK so I’m not sure that you wanted to see a whole pig being roasted on a fire! Hence for this weeks PhotoFriday theme, “Fire,” I have this picture of a New York City fire engine.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Professional.” I’m entry 158.

• An elephant never forgets? George W. Bush's lost e-mails - "The administration has chafed at external oversight and shown a tendency to come up with dubious legal justifications for ignoring laws it doesn't agree with." Just what is Mr Bush trying to hide?
• WordPress 2.5.1 - I just upgraded to the newest version of Wordpress. Looks good as far as I can see but let me know if you spot anything untoward.
• Madonna, Hard Candy - "It's about grooves rather than memorable songs, and Madonna just doesn't make for a convincing soul diva [as she] sings them with the emotional engagement of a sat-nav suggesting a right turn onto the A23."