Iowans who are buying gifts for themselves or others on this Cyber Monday are being reminded how to avoid having their holiday packages ripped off after they arrive at your door in a few days. Postal Inspector Dave Margritz, in the Omaha-Council Bluffs office, says you shouldn’t leave packages sitting outside for too long.

“If you know a package is coming, if you have a trusted neighbor, have them grab it or have it directed to them,” Margritz says. “If your workplace allows it, a lot of times people have packages sent to their workplace.” The goal, he says, is to minimize the attractiveness of your package, in case someone’s driving through the neighborhood, “eyeballing front porches.”

Margritz suggests you leave a small note on your door, directing the carrier to leave the package out of sight or with a neighbor.  “A small note wouldn’t be visible from the street, so it’s not like a potential thief would see the note and go up and read it,” he says. “You can have a conversation with your carrier or call your delivery supervisor at the station that delivers your mail to let them know where you want packages left.”

Margritz says some Iowans have invested in small home security cameras which are a big help in the investigation of package thefts. “A lot of times, those are really clear videos and we might know the person if they’re a recidivist or we can help identify them,” he says. “If you have the ability and wherewithal to buy a camera system and install it, and have it pointed at your porch or front door or wherever a package may be left, that’s an incredible investigative lead, if something bad does happen.”

He says holding all your mail while you’re away from home is another option. Learn more at usps.com.

(Radio Iowa)

NORTH POLE — Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus — and the U.S. Postal Service can help you prove it when Santa replies to your child’s letter — complete with a North Pole postmark.

Here are the steps for your child to get a letter back from Santa:

• Have your child write a letter to Santa and place it in an envelope addressed to: Santa Claus, North Pole.
• Later, when alone, open the envelope and write a personalized response.
• Insert the response letter into an envelope and address it to the child.
• Add the return address: SANTA, NORTH POLE, to the envelope.
• Affix a First-Class Mail stamp, such as a new Holiday Windows stamp, to the envelope.
• Place the complete envelope into a larger envelope — preferably a Priority Mail Flat Rate envelope — with appropriate postage and address it to:

North Pole Postmark
Postmaster
4141 Postmark Drive
Anchorage, AK 99530-9998

“Letters from Santa” must be received by the Anchorage, AK, postmaster no later than Dec. 15. Santa’s helpers at the Postal Service will take care of the rest. Be sure to share the experience on social media using #LettersFromSanta.

Tips:

• To save paper, write Santa’s response on the back of your child’s letter. If you keep them together, your child will also be able to recall what he or she wrote.
• When responding as Santa, make the response as personal as possible by highlighting your child’s accomplishments over the past year, for example, helping around the house, receiving good grades in a particular subject at school or participating in community service activities.
• This is a great activity to do at Thanksgiving that the whole family can enjoy, including parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and other caregivers.
• The Letters from Santa program adds to the excitement of Christmas and is ideal for interesting youngsters in letter writing, stamps and penmanship.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

A Sioux City man who has captured national and local history with his camera for years is telling his story and showing off some of the pictures in his newly released autobiography called “Clix”.  George Linblade says people have been bugging him to write his autobiography and he finally decided to do it. “So we started digging through all the old newspaper clippings and things like that and  old photographs we have quite a history of material. Of course there’s a lot of stuff I don’t have anymore —  but we figured it out that we had enough stuff that would make a book that would be remotely interesting,” Linblade says.

Linblade has been Frank Sinatra’s personal photography, taken photos for Playboy as well as clicked off photos of several presidents, popes and other leaders and entertainers.  There’s also been an element of danger in many of the things he’s covered.”The Watts riots, a prison riot in Illinois, and few things like that. And you wonder when you look back at it, wow would I do that today?   And commons sense says ‘  no don’t do that you could get hurt,'” he says.  “We’ve always had the attitude if we don’t do it, who will? Let’s go do it.”

Linblade is the official photographer for Sioux City Fire and Rescue and has also helped develop ad campaigns for companies like I-B-P and Gateway computers. He was part of the development of Gateway’s iconic cow spots logo. He says the sale of computers were cyclical and they were trying to figure out how to get people to buy more.  “We jokingly said maybe if you put them in a cowhide box people would be more apt to buy them year round,” Linblade says.

He says they developed a box that looked like a jersey cow with spots and it caught on and is still used by the current manufacturer of the computers.   Linblade says writing the book made him reflect on his future. “It’s kind of like doing your own obituary,” Linblade explains, “there are moments where you are very up and at ’em  and then other ones you think this is pretty much finality here. So, at the end of our book we said ‘to be continued’ to  kind of take some of the pressure off.”

(Radio Iowa)

**You can find a copy of “Clix” at Sioux City Gifts at 1922 Pierce Street, on the store website and on Facebook.

Creston Police received reports of vandalism and theft over the weekend. Early Saturday morning, a woman residing in the 200 block of N. Maple Street, told authorities someone keyed a vehicle belonging to her, while it was parked near her home. The incident, which happened sometime during early Saturday morning, resulted in about $1,000 damage to the driver’s and passenger’s side of the car.

And, a Creston resident reported to Police that someone this month, someone stole a Honda Power Washer on a two-wheeled cart. The machine was taken from a garage on a property the man owns in the 1200 block of Lake Street. The loss was estimated at $350.

The Creston Police Department reports several arrests took place over the past week. Sunday night, 20-year old Dakota Early, of Creston, was arrested for Simple Assault. She was being held in the Ringgold County Jail on $300 bond. Sunday afternoon, 47-year old Randy Overholtzer, of Creston, was arrested on a Union County warrant for Failure to Appear in court on an original charge of Driving While Revoked. He was being held in the Union County Jail on $1,000 bond.

Early Saturday morning, 23-year old Bradley Nauman, of Creston, was arrested for Public Intoxication. He was released on a Promise to Appear later, in court. Saturday night, 24-year old Joseph Cosenza-Weaver, of Lenox, was arrested in Creston on charges of Theft in the 5th Degree and Possession of a Controlled Substance/1st offense. He was later released from custody on $1,000 bond.

Friday afternoon, 23-year old Evin Scadden, of Creston, was arrested on a Union County warrant for a probation violation associated with an original charge of Assault with intent to Commit Sexual Abuse (Without injury). Scadden was being held in the Union County Jail without bond, pending a court date.

Wednesday afternoon, Creston Police arrested Jacob Davis, of Creston, on a Union County warrant for Failure to Appear in court on an original charge of Driving While License Under Suspension. He was later released on a $300 bond. 23-year old Dustin Michael Hallett, and 23-year old Rebecca Adeline Holbrook, both of Creston, were arrested Wednesday afternoon, for allegedly violating a protective order. Hallett was released from custody on his own recognizance. Holbrook was later released on $300 bond. Wednesday night, 51-year old Kyle Duane Grindstaff, of Clearfield, was arrested in Creston for OWI/2nd offense. He was later released on $2,000 bond.

And, on Nov. 21st, 39-year old Jeremy Gordon King, of Creston, was served at the Union County Jail with a warrant, related to a charge of Dominion/Control of a Firearm/offense weapon by a Felon. King was being held in the jail on $5,000 bond.