MyNorthwest Opinion

A dramatic picture of an 84-year-old woman pepper sprayed by police as part of Tuesday night's Occupy Seattle protest march has gone global . But after blocking traffic during rush hour on a busy downtown Seattle street, the little old lady and the other protestors are getting little sympathy.

It it seems like Christmas came even earlier this year, you're not imagining it . But as retailers start the holiday shopping season before the leaves have even turned, a backlash is building in an effort to save Thanksgiving and "respect the bird.

There's nothing worse than trying to get out of a busy restaurant and waiting forever just to get your check, or forgetting your credit card in a crowded bar.

Now, there's an app for that.

Tabbed Out is a free iPhone and Android app that lets you open a tab with your phone, view it in real time and pay at any time.

Poquitos on Capitol Hill in Seattle is among the first in the city to put Tabbed Out into action. And managing partner Rich Fox says it's been a hit.

"At lunch, it's nice for people on a tight schedule. They know they can still come in have a sit down lunch and still get up and leave whenever they choose. They can close out the tab while they're still there, walking down the street or even when they get back to the office."

And he says it's already cut down on the number of people who open a tab at the bar then forget their credit card at the end of the night.

The app is easy to use. Just sign up for the service with your credit card and you're good to go. Nearly 20 Seattle restaurants are on board for the initial launch.

And Fox says rather than cutting down on the interaction with customers, it's actually allowed servers to develop a more personalized level of service and intimacy.

Tabbed Out also makes it easy to figure out how much to leave with a built in tip calculator. And you can't stiff your server. The establishment can set a minimum gratuity.

Josh Kerns/97.3 KIRO FM

It's the most controversial measure on the ballot anywhere in the nation this year . A proposed Mississippi law that would define a fertilized egg as a person with full legal rights, meaning not only would abortion be outlawed, so would some forms of birth control that destroy fertilized eggs like birth control pills.

Seattle restaurant insiders might think pretty highly of their skills, but the cut throat reality TV world of Top Chef isn't impressed . All three of the contestants sent home in the show's season premier were from Emerald City kitchens.

Election day is upon us, and liquor and tolls are the most contentious issues on this year's ballots . Your ballot must be in the mail and postmarked by Tuesday, or you can drop it off at one a number of ballot boxes in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties.

We've all got them . . . the embarrassing old pictures that make us cringe . Whether it's the matching sweaters, outdated hairdoes or ridiculous staging, it turns out millions of people couldn't resist sharing their own awkward family photos.

Zombies seem to be everywhere these days, so it's little wonder they'll be one of the most popular costumes this Halloween . And even though times are tough, you don't have to give up an arm or a leg (pun intended) to join the ranks of the walking dead.