My Thoughts on Technology and Jamaica

Sunday, April 5, 2015

Apple Watch Appointment Fittings coming Friday April 10th 2015 - Why Apple Appointments sets trend for How to sell a Wearable

It's official, Apple Fans!


Apple will start selling the Apple Watch on Friday April 24th 2015. That is, once you’ve made the following considerations for the size of your wrist and are willing to make an appointment as noted in the article “The complete guide to preordering the Apple Watch”, published April 3, 2015 by Sharon Profis, CNET News.

However, there is a catch; you have to pre-order the Apple Watch at 12:01 a.m. PT on Friday April 10th 2015 and set an appointment on that day to get a fitting as stated in the article “Apple Watch launch: Plan ahead -- it's by appointment only”, published April 3, 2015 11:20 AM PDT by Shara Tibken, CNET News.

Also, you cannot walk out with your purchase; it’ll be delivered to your door by Apple, clearly for personal safety and security reasons.


The Apple Watch will be launching in Apple stores, both Brick-and-mortar and online and Select Luxury Boutique partners in the following countries as reported in the article “Apple Watch to be sold at Apple retail stores and boutiques” published March 9, 2015 by Dara Kerr and Shara Tibken, CNET News:

1.      The United States
2.      The United Kingdom
3.      Australia
4.      China

Only the Swiss, one of Apple's potential competitors, might not get the Apple Watch before year end, due to patents filed in that country that forbid Apple from using the word “Apple” and the Apple Logo as noted in the article “Apple Watch's Swiss debut delayed by patent snag”, published April 4, 2015 7:57 AM PDT by Roger Cheng, CNET News.

Despite this, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster is projecting sales of 1 million Apple Watch over the Friday April 10th 2015 weekend as stated in the article “Apple Watch sales to hit 1M in first weekend, analyst predicts”, published April 1, 2015 by Don Reisinger, CNET News.

So what are the Options for purchasing an Apple Watch?

Apple Watch pre-order and Fitting - European Luxury being introduced to Barbarians Americans


The Apple Watch comes in two (2) sizes:

1.      42mm
2.      38mm

The Apple Watch further entices the senses with three (3) Designs made for three (3) distinct types of customer:

1.      US$349 Apple Watch Sport made with Aluminium
2.      US$549 Apple Watch made with Stainless Steel
3.      US$10,000 Apple Watch Edition made with 18-karat-gold

Each watch has a particular set of colour options:

1.      Apple Watch Sport comes in Silver or Space Gray
2.      Apple Watch comes in Stainless Steel of Space black
3.      Apple Watch Edition comes in 18-karat yellow gold or 18-karat rose gold

There are also a variety of bands to choose from:

1.      Milanese loop of metal mesh with magnets
2.      Leather band that auto-attaches
3.      Segmented metal link band
4.      Classic leather watchband
5.      Leather loop band
6.      Plasticized sport band in bright colors

With this many choices, its marks out this product as the most choice-conscious product and hence in my mind justifies the need for a fitting as noted in the article “Apple Confirms: No Walk-In Purchasing for Apple Watch”, published APRIL 4, 2015 BY DAVID MURPHY, PC Magazine.

In fact, to make sure American are properly acquainted with the Apple Watch, on Apple’s YouTube Channel, Apple has launched a series of four (4) videos to explain what the Apple Watch is and why you should buy one.









Also, this is how most luxury wristwatches are sold in Europe; by appointment. Americans, being barbarians, are used to standing in line in the freezing cold as if at a WalMarts on Black Friday, will have to get used to a taste of European Luxury, one appointment at a time.

This is evident from the fact that there is an option to purchase an Apple Watch at one of the select boutique partners with Apple, where they'll also have to make appointments and undergoes a fitting:

1.      Galeries Lafayette in Paris
2.      Isetan in Tokyo
3.      Selfridges in London

Unlike their other “one size fits all” products, a fitting is necessary to ensure that the right wristwatch is sold to a satisfied customer as emphasized in the article “Apple Watch Demo Videos Put Potential Buyers Behind The Wheel”, published 04.04.2015 by Matthew Panzarino, TechCrunch.




Plus it reduces Gold thefts, as some customers may want to scratch or blowtorch off the gold and come back to the store claiming that they've been ripped off by Apple. Or worse, get robbed the minute they step out of the door wearing their shiny new Apple Watch.

To this end, Apple has not only installed Safes to store the Apple Watches but also Scales to weight the gold on the Apple Watches as noted in the article “Apple Stores may get special safes for gold Apple Watches”, published February 2, 2015 9:53 AM PST by Amanda Kooser, CNET News and “Apple Stores Will Implement Jewelry Store Practices To Help Sell The Apple Watch”, published February 2, 2015 by Darrell Etherington, Techcrunch

This is a Jewellery store practice and is really being implemented in order to check the weight of the Apple Watch before and after a Fitting, sales and returns, to ensure that they purchases didn't try to remove some of the Gold. Removal or Damage to Luxury Jewellery diminishes their value and makes it harder for Apple to compete against high-end Fashion Swiss Wristwatch makers.

After all, with that much precious metals used to make the Apple Watch, they are more luxury Jewellery items than anything else.

Apple Watch Fittings coming Friday April 10th 2015 - What went down at the Apple Spring Forward

The Apple Watch was revealed at Apple's Spring Forward Event on Monday March 9th 2015 which I’d rightly predicted was about the Apple Watch as stated on my blog article entitled “Apple Event to Spring Forward on Monday March 9th 2015 - US$349 for Apple Watch Sport after DayLight Saving Time”.



Interestingly, it was not just the Apple Watch that made its debut during Apple's Spring Forward Event as summarized nicely in the article “Apple Watch pricing, the lightest MacBook ever and ResearchKit: Everything that Apple just announced”, published March 9, 2015 1:01 PM PDT by Lori Grunin, CNET News and “Apple Watch and new MacBook announcement: all the news from Apple’s ‘Spring Forward’ event”, published March 9, 2015 By Verge Staff, The Verge.

Apple also unveiled the US$1,299 Apple Macbook 2015, which is cross between an Apple Macbook Pro and an Apple Macbook Air but a lot thinner and with Retina Display.

Available by Friday April 10th 2015, its unique feature is that it has Force Touch, a Haptic Feedback system that turns sections of the Touchpad into physical buttons. It also sports only one port, a USB-C connector a brand new standard that makes older USB 2.0 obsolete as noted in the article “USB Type-C: One cable to connect them all”, published March 9, 2015 by Dong Ngo, CNET News.

I'll probably do a review on that product later when it becomes relevant, but the Apple Watch stole the show. If all predictions are on point, this product will set the standard for how Wearables are viewed and sold, as Apple's Appointment System might be the way forward.

Competition from Google, Intel and Tag Heuer - Apple Appointments sets the trend for selling Wearables

Already on Thursday March 19th 2015, Google has announced a partnership with Intel and one hundred and fifty (150) year old TAG Heuer to make luxury Android Wear Mechanical smartwatches as noted in the article “TAG Heuer teams up with Intel, Google on smartwatch”, published March 19, 2015 by Ben Fox Rubin, CNET News and “Google, Intel, and TAG Heuer Team Up on Luxury Smartwatch”, published March 19, 2015 by Stephen Pulvirent Corinne Gretler, Bloomberg.  


No details on pricing, availability or how on earth a Mechanical watch will incorporate Google Android Wear, but expect this by the end of 2015. This indicates that Google is a bit scared. The deadline suggests that they're a little upset with the pace of Android Wear smartwatch sales and are eager to make their own before Apple dominates the Wearables market.

Like the Google Nexus, Google is partnering with experience partners like TAG Heuer and Intel, who have already made a luxury item, the US$1000 MICA Bracelet as described in my blog article entitled “Intel’s US$1000 MICA Stylish Bracelet – Pret-a-porter Alert Bracelet for the Nouveau Fashionistas” opting to make their own product to set the standard for other Wearables Manufacturers in a rushed bid to beat Apple Watch.

Good to note that the Apple Watch not only has Force Touch like the Apple Macbook 2015 but also Apple Pay, which is now coming to a JetBlue Airline and possibly other Airlines in the Summer of 2015 as stated in my blog article entitled “Apple Pay accepted by JetBlue Airlines - How to use Bitcoins on Apple Pay as Apple Watch coming in April 2015”.

The Apple Watch is coming. Americans, have you made an Appointment to be custom-fitted?

Here’s the Link:



Saturday, April 4, 2015

How to make Glow-In-The-Dark Cadbury Chocolate @CadburyUK Creme Egg with Cream Fondant

You may have read about the row by some Chocolate fanciers who've complained about Cadbury switching to standard, traditional Cadbury Milk Chocolate and not Dairy Milk for their Cadbury Creme Egg as reported in the article “Cadbury's Creme Egg Chocolate controversy”, published 13 January 2015, BBC News


Of course, many chocolate purists, mostly British peeps, were outraged as Cadbury chose to come clean on the switcheroo.


Cadbury made good to point out that the product name never explicitly mentioned that it used Dairy Milk in its Chocolate as noted in the article “Shellshock! Cadbury comes clean on Creme Egg Chocolate change” published Monday 12 January 2015 by Adam Gabbatt, The UK Guardian.

Still, as a Jamaican who also loves Chocolate, the solution is clear; make your own.

How to Edible Glow-In-the-Dark Easter Eggs – Eggs are not an option in Jamaica due to Egg Shortage

I've already done an article on making Glow-in-the-Dark Etched Russian Easter Eggs as detailed in my blog article entitled “How to make Glow-in-the-Dark Etched Easter Eggs - Russian Tradition with a Modern Jamaican Twist makes Katy Perry Roar”.



More recently, on my spankin' new MICO Wars Blog, I also detailed how to make Glow-in-the-Dark Easter Eggs as detailed in my MICO Wars Blog article entitled “How to Dye Bright Glow-in-the-Dark Easter Eggs to go with your Easter Bun”.

Good to note that if you want to be able to EAT the Glow-in-the-Dark Easter Eggs, use concentrated Kool Aid instead of Vinegar and Food Colouring. But remember to mix in a little Schweppes Tonic Water to make them glow in the dark, as explained in the video below.



This may not be an option for most Jamaicans, as we’re slowly running out of Eggs as noted in my blog article entitled “CPJ's Liquid Eggs Limited Jamaican Egg Shortage - How Imported Eggs from Hampton Creek Foods may alleviate Egg Shortage in December 2014”, especially now that Egg imports are banned along with the Chickens.

More on that by Christmas 2015

How to make Cadbury Chocolate Cadbury Creme Egg with Cream Fondant - Glow-in-the-Dark Chocolate as an extra surprise

Duplicating the Cadbury Creme Egg with the gooey Cream Fondant inside required some special skills I don't have. 




But I remembered the article I did on making Chocolate Bowls for Ice Cream as detailed in my blog article entitled “How to Make Edible Chocolate Bowls for Ice Cream – Satisfy My Bowl that’s Sweet to Eat” and I realized I just have to think a little ...bigger.

It’s simple really, as there are two (2) ways to do it after I watched this factory video on how Cadbury makes their Cadbury Creme Egg.



The first method to make the Cadbury Creme Egg was to make the Chocolate Easter Eggs, only this time purely out of Chocolate, using actual Egg shells as molds and a spacer to hold the space for the filling. Then inject the filling, whatever it was, using a cake injector with a needle.

The alternative method involved making Fondant, basically crystallized syrup sugar and mixing it with Invertase, an enzyme used to soften up the centers of candies to a gooey consistency.

Then the Fondant is dipped into molten Chocolate, with the Invertase sugar going to work to make the inside sweets and googey as detailed in the article “Replicate the Cadbury Creme Egg? Crazy, you say. Try it.”, published April 2 2015 By NOELLE CARTER, LA Times seems simple enough.

But I like my method better, as no need to have Invertase and it’s mostly physics, really. Here’s my DIY for duplicating the Cadbury Creme Egg:

1.      12 oz of Dark Chocolate
2.      2 Measuring Cups
3.      2 Stainless Steel Pots
4.      Candle Wax
5.      Candlewax
6.      Egg shells
7.      Glow-in-the-Dark Chocolate Syrup
8.      Knife
9.      Large, round Lollipop
10.  Plastic Pastry Brush
11.  Square 4” by 4” Metal container
12.  Transparent plastic bag with the long icing tip
13.  Wooden Mixing Spoon

The video below is the exact idea I have in mind, but I don’t like the use of the plastic mold as shown, as that makes the Easter Eggs very thin.

I want my Cadbury Creme Egg shells a lot thicker!


The Instructions I’ve devised are simple, really:

1.      Boil a single Egg until hard. Make sure to check for cracks
2.      Melt the 1 cup of candlewax into the Stainless Steel pot, stirring occasionally to keep it clear
3.      Melt the 12 oz of Dark Chocolate in another Stainless Steel pot
4.      Set the 12 oz of Dark Chocolate in the Stainless Steel pot to a low flame
5.      Add 1/2 of a cup of Schweppes Tonic Water and boil until thick again
6.      Place the Egg in the Square 4” by 4” Metal container on its side
7.      Mark the half-way point for the Egg with a market
8.      Pour the molten candle wax into the Square 4” by 4” Metal container, allowing it to fill to about halfway the height of the egg
9.      Let it cool until hardened. This will act as your mold
10.  Remove the Egg from the mold
11.  Cut a channel in the Wax Egg mold using the knife to fit the stem of the lollipop
12.  Take the Lollipop and set it so that the head is inside of the middle of the Egg shaped mold
13.  Pour the molten Chocolate into the mold until it’s filed up the halfway mark
14.  Once it dries to hardness after about twenty (20) minutes, turn the mold upside down and firmly but gently shake the Chocolate Egg loose
15.  Repeat this process from 12 to 14 to make the other half of the Egg
16.  Finally, unite the two halves by slathering a little molten Chocolate on the two halves with the Plastic Pastry Brush
17.  Press the two (2) halves together and set into the mold until the Chocolate hardens
18.  Place the finished Easter Eggs in the refrigerator to cool
19.  Pour the Glow-in-the-Dark Chocolate Syrup into the transparent plastic bag with the long icing tip attached
20.  Squeeze the Glow-in-the-Dark Chocolate Syrup inside of the now hardened Chocolate Easter Eggs
21.  Finally seal the Chocolate Easter Eggs with some of the Dark Chocolate melted in the Stainless Steel pot

Good to note that in this example, I used Glow-in-the-Dark Chocolate Syrup from my previous blog article entitled “How to make Chocolate Syrup that Glows-in-the-Dark, the ultimate Ice Cream Party Treat” .

You can use any filling that comes to mind, as you don't have to imitate Cadbury Creme Egg precisely; be creative and let your imagination flow!

You can actually make the very same Fondant as described in the article “Replicate the Cadbury Creme Egg? Crazy, you say. Try it.”, published April 2 2015 By NOELLE CARTER, LA Times, but my method guarantees perfectly rounded Easter Eggs that look EXACTLY like Cadbury Creme Egg.

Best of all, you can reuse the wax mold for other projects. When these Eggs are cracked open, they'll not only be gooey or hard inside, depending on the filing, but they'll Glow-In-The-Dark under a UV Light.

Have fun this Easter making the Glow-In-The-Dark Cadbury Chocolate Creme Egg with Cream Fondant!

Here’s the link:
Cadbury Twitter Feed: @CadburyUK



Cooking at Easter at MICO - How to make a Kidney Egg Carrot Cheese Sandwich and Frozen Gum Bear Bag Juice

It’s now Easter Break at the MICO University College and I STILL have tons of homework to catch up on over the holidays.

MICO University College is basically closed, except for the Library to facilitate work during the almost two (2) week holiday, which lasts from Friday April 2nd 2015 to Monday April 13th 2015.

That means surviving on basic foods like Pepper Steak and Drinks mix with frozen Bag Juice as ice as described in my blog article entitled “Cooking Restart at MICO - How to Cook a Meal in under 30 minutes and make Drinks with Bag Juice” as I study for my Professional Diploma in Teaching.

To be honest, with the price of Chicken going up due to the H5N2 aka avian influenza outbreak in the US of A and Canada as explained in my blog article entitled “Ministry of Agriculture bans US, Canadian Chicken Products - Why H5N2 Avian Flu is Shadows of 2014 Chicken Shortage during Easter 2015”and Pepper Steak following suit, I’ve begun to switch to other types of meat as alternatives.

On such I’m trying during Easter is seasoned Kidneys. It’s rich in Iron and I’m hoping it’ll help with by B12 and Iron deficiencies, as I’ve been feeling restless of late. I’m also looking into eating more mangoes and carrots to boost my Vitamin A and especially Vitamin C.

Vitamin C boosts the Immune System and for me is especially important as part of my continued recovery from being infected with the Chikungunya Virus  as explained in my blog article entitled “Vitamin C and the Chikungunya Virus - How to increase your Vitamin C Intake, Glutathione and Interferon by White Blood Cells”.

To that end, I’ve been dabbleing with some alternative recipes that I hope will hit the spot. I hope you’ll like them too.

How to make a Kidney Egg Carrot Cheese Sandwich – Creative cuts in Brown Bread

Not that I have a non-Stick Pot, I’ve been doing experiments with some snack idea I’ve found online. One of them involves making a sandwich that’s the equivalent of a grilled cheese sandwich using bread but with a frying pan as shown below.



As the image above shows, you cut out a nice square in a slice of brown bread. Then you fry the bread (yes you can do that; it taste like butter!) in the non-stick pot. While doing that, drop an egg in the middle allowing it to fry as well.

Even before that’s done, you can add your favorite meat or toping aside from salami as I’m not a fan of Pork, no matter how easy it get to cook as noted in my blog article entitled “CPJ introduces Ready to Cook Pork – Why Jamaicans don’t like Pork solved by making Pork ready under 30 Minutes”.

In my case I pre-cook some kidney and baked beans and use it to slather that egg right and proper. Then add some gratered carrot and finally stuff the whole thing with some cheese spread, as I can’t afford Cheese slices (who buy that in Hi-Lo Supermarket anyway?).

The whole she-bang is then covered with that missing slice of bread and sealed shut with more cheese spread. Flip it to properly grill it and its really delicious fifteen (15) minute meal.

Ok, on to my next meal snack idea.

How to make Frozen Gum Bear Bag Juice pops – Great Gummy Berry Juice flavor the kids might like

Yes, the Kids might like this, but it might creep them out that they’re also munching on tiny Gummy Worms as they become unfrozen from their prison inside of the Bag Juice being used as Ice.

First though, you’ll have to whip up a batch of your own gummy bears as explained in my blog article entitled “How to make Glow-in-The-Dark Gummy Bears and Gummy Worms – No Artificial Sweetener or Animal Cartilage Required”, as I’m NOT eating dead animal cartilage!



You don’t need to have the fancy-schamcy ice-pop maker as show above. You can mix your drink and pour them into cleaned ice trays, adding the Gummy Worms to freeze within.

Alternately, you can be like me and simply slit open the tops of the bag juice and then slip the Gummy Worms inside.

Then reseal them with cellophane tape and a pair of plastic clothespins, making sure to prop them upright in the freezer. A little spillage of bag Juice might be necessary, as the Gummy Worms will displace some of the liquid (Eureka!) so make sure to just capture that for your drinks mix.

When frozen, snip them open and set them in the drinks. As they melt, the Gummy Worms will slither out into your drinks and actually make your drinks glow-in-the-dark as they swirl about in the darkness.

Just make sure that you have plenty on hand, as with the Schweppes in  the Gummy Worms, it also makes a great chaser for a bottle of homemade Sorrel wine as described in my blog article entitled “How to make Jamaican Sorrel Wine – JA$2500 for 5 1 Liter Bottles of Sorrel Wine goes well with Chocolate Christmas Cake”.

More exciting budget friend recipes as I sojourn through the MICO University College and Do it with Thy Might!



JMA, @NASA and @NOAA say 2014 Hottest Year on Record - How Wageningen University revealed Humans causing Climate Change

“The new global temperature record announced today completely exposes the myth that global warming has stopped There is mounting evidence all around the world that the Earth is warming and the climate is changing in response to rising levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere”

Director of policy and communications at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change at the London School of Economics, Bob Ward, commenting on the findings of NASA, NOAA and JMA as it relates to climate change

2014 was the hottest year on record according to the JMA (Japan Meteorological Agency) based on their recent findings released Monday January 5th 2015 as stated in the article “2014 Officially Hottest Year on Record”, published January 5, 2015 by Brian Kahn, Scientific American.

According to the JMA report in the article “November in Books; 2014 On Pace for Hottest Year” Published December 15th, 2014 by Andrea Thompson, Climate Central, the average temperature was 1.1°F above the 20th century average, edging out 1998 and the year human Greenhouse gas emission really began having an effect on the climate by about 0.1°F.

NASA and NOAA Results confirm JMA – Jamaica and small island nation to feel effect of Global Warming

NASA and NOAA have since backed them up with similar figures as noted in the article “2014 warmest year on record, say US researchers”, published 16th January 2015 By Mark Kinver, BBC News. The graph below clearly illustrates this upward trend in temperatures over the decades.




These figures suggest that 2014 was one of fourteen (14) years of the highest global temperatures since the 21st Century as per their study published on Friday January 16th 2015 entitled “GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMP)”. 





2015 has ALREADY been a year of record snow in the USA and around the world and an ongoing mega drought in California that looks set to spread to the rest of the US of A come the summer of 2015 as noted in the article “US 'at risk of mega-drought future'”, published 13 February 2015 By Jonathan Amos, BBC News.

But it’s not the Americans alone who may be feeling the effects of Climate Change or Global Warming, depending on if you see the glass as half empty of half full. 



Small Island countries like Jamaica may soon start experiencing more sever Hurricanes not to mention sections of our island slowly disappearing beneath the rising sea water as pointed out in the video above. It will definitely have a profound impact on Jamaica’s Biodiversity according to research done by Dr. Dale Webber of the University of the West Indies in his paper entitled “Climate Change Impacts on Jamaican Biodiversity”.

JMA, NASA and NOAA say 2014 hottest year on Record - How the WMO Calculates the Global Average Temperature

Good to note here before the climate change hounds attack these findings that the JMA is one of four (4) major climatology research groups dedicated to tracking the Earth's weather using both ground measurements and satellites to compute the planet’s average temperature. Those fantastic four (4) are:

1.      NASA in the USA
2.      NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) in the USA
3.      Hadley Center in the U.K
4.      JMA (Japan Meteorological Agency) in Japan

Their temperature tracking gear differs, but they agree on one thing; the sky isn't falling, but it's not your imagination that it's getting hotter. The long-term global average temperature from the NASA and NOAA is calculated data collected between 1951 and 1980 and then compared to the present day.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) collects data from all of them and then uses it to determine the Global Average Temperature. So it bears repeating that 2014 is among the hottest years on record over the past 135 years since records began.


Based on their collective research the hottest years are in the 21st Century as can be seen in  the interactive graphic in the article “2014 Was the Hottest Year on Record”, published January 16, 2015 By Tom Randall  and Blacki Migliozzi, Bloomberg.

So, to summarize with some quick facts:

1.      2014 is the hottest year on record
2.      1891 is the year Human activity i.e. Greenhouse gases began influencing Global Temperature
3.      1998 was the year that had the highest Global Average Temperature
4.      10 of the hottest years have come since 1998

Good to note that in  2014 they had no El Niño effect, even working to prevent Hurricane formation that years as described in my blog article entitled “2014 Atlantic Hurricane Season looking Fairly Quiet - How Hurricanes are formed as Hurricane making Landfall equals Disaster”.
However, it is connected to warmer temperatures and was what made 1998 such a hot year.

Humans are causing Climate Change – Wageningen University Researcher demonstrate Statistical causality

Recent research from the an international team led by Dr. Egbert van Nes of Wageningen University using a mathematical analysis method to detect causality in complex systems developed by George Sugihara has proven that Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emission by humans is causing climate change as stated in the article “Research Confirms That Carbon Dioxide Led To Higher Temperatures In The Past”, published 3/30/2015 by Alex Knapp, Forbes.

Armed with that information recent bit of information and the results from the research by the WMO, it's now a little harder for Climate Change Detractors and the General public to say that Humans aren't causing Climate Change or Global Warming, whichever is to your political liking.


So dear reader, do you STILL think Global warming has stopped? If this doesn’t convince you, wait until later this year when the 2015 Hurricane Season starts anew.....

Here’s the link: