Not Just Hot Air

Add to the list of electrifying problems the one of metallic party balloons filled with helium that drift into power lines, especially in Santa Monica, and cause power outages.

They’re not as dangerous a New Year’s diversion as celebrating with your gun, maybe, but Southern California Edison blames those balloons for 11 outages over the New Year weekend. They ended up cutting off power to 13,700 customers for up to two hours. Most of the weekend outages were in Santa Monica.

It seems the metallic material used in the balloons is a conductor of electricity. When they get tangled up in overhead power lines, they create a short-circuit that can melt the wires. Total cost to Edison--and thus to its customers--for 1987 will exceed $500,000.

So hang on to your balloon.

Inflation to Smile About

The tooth fairy paid an average of $1 in 1987 for a lost tooth, up from an average of 85 cents in 1983, the American Academy of Dentistry reports.

The tooth fairy, who retrieves lost baby teeth from under pillows and replaces them with money, is an age-old American tradition, the origins of which are uncertain, according to a report from the academy.

Records show children received, on average, 12 cents from the tooth fairy in the year 1900, according to the report, based on surveys conducted by Rosemary Wells, a former professor of dental health at Northwestern University. Despite inflation, most children still receive their $1 in coins instead of paper currency.

Advertising in a Fog

The skies are not very friendly in the San Francisco Bay Area these days. In a bid for more business, San Jose International Airport has launched a radio and billboard ad campaign that harshly criticizes San Francisco International, its much larger rival.

In the radio ad, a crucial corporate meeting is delayed while executives wait for a fellow named Dorfman. When the boss asks where Dorfman is, he is told: “San Francisco Airport, sir. Fogged in, sir.”

Not fair, says Ron Wilson, director of corporate affairs at San Francisco airport. “It’s very unusual to get fog problems at San Francisco airport,” he said. “Fog only closes us down three or four times a year--and when it does, it usually lifts by noon.”

Uncaging the Almonds

For 77 years, the California Almond Growers Exchange has been around--growing, roasting, blanching, smoking and flavoring almonds. They’ve been putting these nuts in breakfast cereals, almond butter, cosmetics, and lately ice cream.

But now the world’s largest almond cooperative admits that its acronym CAGE “means nothing to the consumer.” So it will take the name of its best known product and become Blue Diamond Growers.

Card-Carrying Fans

Disappointed that the Rams and Raiders missed the National Football League playoffs? No need to wait until next season to show your team spirit.

Citibank, the nation’s biggest bank and the leading issuer of MasterCard and Visa, has introduced a silver and black Visa card bearing a Raiders helmet as well as a blue, gold and white model carrying a Rams helmet.

These are two of 27 new Citibank cards with the helmets and colors of different NFL teams, and purchases with the cards result in a contribution to NFL Charities by Citibank. Given the tepid seasons of the Los Angeles organizations, one wonders whether the gimmick might fare better in cities where teams are still battling along the Super Bowl road to San Diego.