architecture :: booked parking

The coolest parking garage for what else ? A library! Located in Kansas City -

JUST COOL!

via contentinacottage via flickr

architecture :: its a buddha-full building

This bodacious Buddha, built in the 1960's is actually a building measuring 86 feet tall and located on top of a small hill in Chang Hua China. Visitors can descend the inside of the big Buddha and view the surrounding scenery through windows that go up his back and vents in his ears.

How buddhaful is that? It's JUST COOL!

via travelpod

travel :: time to get away

Ready for some fun? If you and your family are in the market for a great Holiday getaway then check out Branson Missouri. Pack up your bags and the kids and jet or drive to the Midwest's entertainment capital where two luxurious Hilton Hotels await!There's a lot to do and see in Branson, from the beautiful scenery of the majestic Ozark Mountains to nonstop world class entertainment from fine dining,  light displays, shows ,parades and more. The Hilton has two great destinations to stay at, Hilton Promenade at Branson Landing and the Hilton Branson Convention Center Hotel.  Both of the Hilton Hotels are just minutes away from the area's 49 theatres, outlet malls, golf courses, Table Rock Lake, Silver Dollar City, Celebration City and numerous attractions andoffer unsurpassed luxury in their well appointed hotel rooms, where you can unwind and relax at the end of an action packed day. Right now they are offering fabulous exclusive holiday packages  too. You can select from these four themed packages: The Thanksgiving Package, It’s a Wonderful Life Package, Santa’s Coming to Town Package or the New Years’ Eve Package where spa treatments, family style dinners, and visits from Santa and Mrs. Claus themselves are just a taste of what these hotels have to offer. I've never vacationed in Branson Missouri before, but these great getaways are a wonderful excuse to. So check out the website and what Branson and these exclusive Hilton getaways have to offer. Vacationing couldn't be more JUST COOL! 

Pets :: shoplifting dog on the lam

Last week a skin and bones pooch got away with a five finger (er..paw) discount at Smith's Food and Drug. The furry canine who looks to be a husky mix or akita is now on the lam. 

Awww...give the dog the bone. It's Christmas! 

But I wonder why he didn't hit up his local Petsmart instead ?????

green :: LED in NYC

I'm impressed. The Big Apple is now adding LED streetlamps to it's green bag of tricks. In 2009 it will be testing this new street lighting technology in designated areas to see how workable it is. With only six experimental installations, I don't know if you'll even notice them though. The good news about these new LED lamps is of course the energy savings and low carbon footprint. Hey, maybe they should make them solar too! I wonder if that is possible.

But as planned, they will use majorly less energy as well as reduce the city’s power usage by 25- 30 percent when and if the whole city goes LED street lit. And that's not the only perk. These lamps are expected to last 50,000-70,000 hours as compared to the high-pressure sodium lights that they will be replacing - the ones that last a measly 24,000 hours. As a result, maintenance and energy costs will be reduced and the expected ROI on each lamp is 2-3 years. Impressive, huh?

So look for an LED street lamp coming to a corner near you. LED street lighting - Now that's JUST COOL!

via inhabitat

gifts :: merry belated christmas!

If you're like me, you still have a short list of people on your long Christmas list still awaiting their presents. I'm sure that I'm not the only one scurrying around this last week of the year, purchasing those gifts for family and friends that I will be seeing after Christmas. Well scurry no more, people!  Because you can get all those great last minute gifts from Kmart and for under 25 dollars too. Kmart has been saving people money for over 100 years now. And since it's just after your big Christmas shopping binge, I'm sure your pockets are just about empty. I know mine are. So Kmart has come up with a huge list of great items that you can pick up for everyone on your list. Items like all these  items:

• As seen on TV Doggy Steps 

• Martha Stewart Everyday tall nickel pillar candleholders 

• High School Musical Sticker Art Studio

• Joe Boxer men’s and women’s two- and three-piece cozy sleep sets 

• Jaclyn Smith Today Willow Bath Accessory Collection

• LeapFrog Leapster Learning Games, various titles

Their complete collection suggests over 25,000 (thats right!) items for under $25 and you can find it in all the Kmart stores. So you have no excuses but to check them out. If you sign up online right now at Kmart.com you will receive the latest Kmart updates on in-store deals and online-only sales sent directly to your email inbox and as an added bonus they'll email you two $5 dollar coupons just for signing up!  Kmart for last minute gifts - it's JUST COOL!

video :: the black hole

The Black Hole - When a sleep-deprived office worker accidentally discovers a black hole, greed gets the better of him. Love the twilightzone-ness of this one! now watch ...

creepily JUST COOL!

green :: woodland chair

a chair befitting any woodland elf ...

by Viola Kup

I wonder if it's scratchy - but it smells good and it's def JUST COOL!

via ifitshipitshere

art :: typewriter robots

Who said typewriters have become obsolete? Not Jeremy Mayer. His typewriter sculptures are pure genius! Made entirely of typewriter parts, they bring all the intricate typewriter dodads from typewriter keys to carriages and platens to print wheels to typewriter ribbons to life!  His ingenius type-robotics are full of character, whimsy and personality, don't you think? They aren't soldered, glued or welded together either but assembled organically so that all the pieces fit together and hold it together.

Fascinating! And JUST COOL!

via technobob

Holiday giving :: a dollar that goes a long way

Have you heard about Sears Heroes at Home Wish Registry? Sears established this great program to provide support to the thousands of military service members, veterans and their families through joint efforts with various non-profit organizations. This year Sears is extending its benevolent efforts and  enabling all of us Americans to give thanks and support the military and the sacrifices they are making by fullfilling their wishes through generous donations that will buy Sears gift cards. While donations are not tax deductible, they will purchase gift cards that will be evenly distributed to all the registered military  families. Imagine the happiness you can spread with even the smallest donation! The top items on these families wish lists are just basic needs like shoes, sweaters and pajamas.  So far Sears has taken in over 1.3 million dollars in contributions and helped over 30,000 military families wishes come true for these items that they would have otherwise gone without. Donations can be as little as 1.00 and the families can each receive up to $550.00. Sears will donate any overage to the USO to support other military programs. What a great program this is and at the most giving time of year too! Check out the full details and read what you can do to help at Sears heroes at home info page, and watch this informative video. The Heroes at Home Wish Registry is definitely JUST COOL!

food :: it makes me cry

I don't care what anyone says - this always makes me cry...

unless wearing goggles. JUST COOL Typography!

entertaining :: appetizing cutlery

How's this for an appetizing design? Belgian Designer Nedda El-Asmar was inspired by the distinctive forms of the tea plant for this distinctive silverware! With that 2009 New Years bash not far around the corner (five days to be exact) this would make a modern statement wouldn't it? Use it for everyday meals or as a sleek accompaniment to your holiday entertaining.

The minimalist look in cutlery - JUST COOL!

via dailyicon

software :: speak don't type

I've been reading alot about this cool software called "Dragon Naturally Speaking" lately, but never really checked it out until now. A speech recognition program that turns your voice into text, it gives you the convenience of creating documents, reports, e-mails - even doing searches and surfing the web three times faster than manual typing and  with up to 99% accuracy. Plus unlike we humans, it never makes a spelling mistake! I like it because it's like having your very own personal assistant whenever you're on your computer and you can dictate and edit in most Windows based applications including Microsoft Word, Excel and Corel WordPerfect.  Imagine the time you can save! With your simple voice commands, it will insert blocks of text or bitmaps—such as your name, title, and signature and with it's feature called  Quick Voice Formatting™ you can easily format or delete text faster than ever. 

 Right now Dragon Naturally Speaking has some great offers, but you have to act quickly because they expire on 12/31/08. Take advantage of these because buying now will not only save you money but you can write your purchase off on your 08 taxes too. I always like those "kill two birds with one stone" buys! ;) So check them out and remember, these offers expire soon!

• $50 Coupon Code- DNSMSBG -Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 Preferred


• $25 Coupon Code- DNSMSBG -Dragon Naturally Speaking 10 Standard


• $25 Coupon Code- DNSMSBG -MacSpeech Dictate

Dragon Naturally Speaking - it's JUST COOL!

science ::future body design

Corpus 2.0 by Designer Marcia Nolte foresees  how our bodies may evolve in the future . Her study is a set of  seven portraits illustrating how the human body would adapt itself to different products. And why not? Our history of evolution shows how our bodies changed according to needs for survival so it's understandable that these changes could manifest to accomodate all todays "necessities" too. Her portraits include body adaptations like a hole in the lips for smokers, and a highheel foot for the shoe-aholic.Sure - we all need these. The lovely nose ridge modification shown above, will keep out eyeglasses in place and the extended shoulder we may grow someday will easily accomodate all our handbags and mobile electronic gear.

It's an interesting proposal but sans the shoulder holder and highheel foot, the others will never happen because soon we will all have super vision and who the heck will be smoking?

Her ideas are JUST COOL though!

via dezeen

debt :: getting out of it

With the failing economy, people losing their jobs as well as their life savings and spending beyond their means it seems near impossible to Avoid Bankruptcy these days! You read the news and watch TV and foreclosures and bankruptcy are not as rare as they were in the past. But how to avoid bankruptcy is a question on a lot of  peoples minds because the implications of bankruptcy are life changing. Clear Debt is a website that provides help to  hundreds of thousands of these people in England & Wales who are deeply in debt. Some people don’t even realize the seriousness of their situation, while others think there is nothing they can do about it. Many are frightened about  losing their home and livelihood. Clear Debt's website is full of resources to help you understand your situation, cut your household expenses and make a plan that will successfully get you out of debt, without going bankrupt. Although they do provide bankruptcy advice, they offer a debt management program that takes the heavy burden of failing finances off of your shoulders. 

Imagine a life free of debt and financial worry. That would be nice, wouldn't it? Through a debt management plan called an IVA or Individual Voluntary Arrangement, Clear Debt will make arrangements with your creditors for a consolidated monthly payment plan. With the help of a licensed insolvency practitioner, you work out what you can realistically afford to pay back over a period of time - often 3-5 years. Sounds good, doesn't it? Check out their website for more information on this plan. It definitely is a better solution then bankruptcy and will have you back on  solid financial ground sooner than your think!

cool product :: lightning lighting

Whoever would have thought up  this enlightening idea? Designer Sang-Kyub did. His clever umbrella called "LightDrops" looks ordinary enough but it's whats inside its unusual fabric covering that is extraordinary.  As rain pours over the surface of the umbrella, energy from the raindrops beating on the conductive membrane called PDVF transform into electrical energy powering embedded LEDs, filling the canopy with light.  When the rain comes down harder, the light inside your umbrella gets brighter, lighting your way through the storm.

I always liked rainstorms and this JUST COOL concept makes them even more fun!

via lightingtrends via yankodesign

Advertising :: Oh Christmas Tree!

Oh Christmas Tree

Oh fattening Christmas Tree...

via

pets :: i can has cheezburger too!

cats aren't the only ones that can has cheezburger boots ...

William Hundley, Chihuahua on Cheeseburgers © 2008

art :: the sandman etcheth

This amazing Sand Artist, Jim Denevan, makes gargantuous freehand drawings in the sand with no measuring apparatus or aids whatsoever! At low tide he searches his wide sandy beach canvas for the proper stick tossed up from the sea. After composing himself and making the right mental calculations, he scratches through the sand, laboring up to 7 hours and walking as many as 30 miles to create his beautiful geometric designs. The sand etchings are just temporary though - and like sand castles are washed away with the tide.

I always loved building sandcastles and playing in the sand at the beach! Jim Denevan's beach etchings are JUST COOL!

furniture :: Santa DIY project

Santa gets the strangest requests!

a young designer in the making! but cute...and JUST COOL!

via content in a cottage

paper dolls :: I remember Betsy

For those old fogeys who read my blog, you may remember the advent of Betsy McCall - The paper doll that McCalls offered in it's monthly publication beginning with it's May 1951 issue. No, I'm not that old yet, but almost ;)  I remember Betsy  - and the excitement that my sister and I felt when Mom's subscription of McCalls arrived  in the mail. We'd fight over who got which dress to cut and who dressed her and she never had enough clothes to keep us at peace with each other. We would eagerly snip and cut and dress our paper doll with the current months fashions.  Today when the focus for kids is on realistic vinyl dolls that do everything from grow teeth to spike fevers with glowing cheeks,  the primitive paper doll is just a memory. I wish my kids and grandkids had the fun of creating and playing with paper dolls. So ... when I was looking for an online paper doll that I could print and add my granddaughter Calla's face to, was I delighted when I found this! The Bleu Door has many of the Betsy McCall pages from the McCalls issues beginning from the 1950's and you can actually print them out in PDF version.  Yaaaaaaaay!!! Just glue Betsy onto cardstock and then cut out her many cute, stylish groovy and keen outfits from those periods. It's VERY COOL to see what the style trends were for those years .

Paper dolls are still - JUST COOL with me!

art :: migraine madness

Being smack dab in the middle of the crazy Christmas holiday season is a great excuse for a migraine to rear it's ugly head. If you've ever had one, then you know how debilitating and maddening a migraine headache can be. It can easily put a crimp in your Holiday cheer. But to some artists it makes for good painting fodder. Check out all this lovely migraine art!

Migraines - JUST not COOL!

via lifeinthefastlane

pets :: puppy car cuteness

Buy my Chihuahua Print here

furniture :: geek + seat = strap on chair

Its about time someone came up with this DIY movable seating. The Strap on Chair is not at the manufacturing stage yet (in fact you can make your own at home if you're strapped for seating at your next shin-dig) - the concept is only an exhibit. I like the multi purpose kneeling one - it doubles as transportation too!

JUST COOL! What will the geeks think up next?

via cribcandy

fashion :: phonebook couture

When is the last time you used your phone book? Yup, I'm talking about that annoying, heavy 10,000 page reference book of telephone numbers that arrives on your doorstep each year. I just threw out a bunch of mine today. Outdated, ripped, scribbled on - a five year stack of them . I bet they'll soon be obsolete , don't you?

Then I saw this...

For Kelly Murray's Creative Processes class at Herron School of Art & Design, she concocted a paper dress made entirely of, you guessed it, phonebook paper. She pleated it, snipped it, sewed it and glued it all by hand. What she came up with was this stylish, chicly fashionable and soooo JUST COOL phonebook couture!

architecture :: coolest refridgerated beach

Where else but in Dubai will we see the first refrigerated Beach! For the super rich , sun worshipping will become a more comfortable experience as building gets underway for the first cool strip of sunbathing paradise. This revolutionary new beach will include a system of heat absorbing pipes built under the sand that will suck out the intense heat and giant fans designed to keep tourists cool as cucumbers in the usual 40 - 50C Dubai weather. This cool beach will keep their pedicured tootsies from burning in the normally hot scalding sand and will border the new Palazzo Versace Hotel.

The hotel, which is due to open late next year or early 2010, will be controlled by thermostats linked up to computers and feature a cooled swimming pool also. While the plans have been criticized by green groups who are infuriated by the potential impact on climate change, money speaks and when these richos demand a luxury lifestyle, they get what they want - even if its at the expense of the earths environment.

Still, a refrigerated beach? I think the concept is JUST COOL!

via dailymail

advertising :: sharp christmas trees

Still haven't gotten the tree up yet. Maybe we don't need to get a live balsam this year. I'm game for these pencil varieties.

They're sharp, aren't they? And JUST COOL!

via abduzeedo

food :: campfire keyboard

S'more keyboard-

yum...I love this campfire cuisine...it's JUST COOL!

gifts :: sparkling crystal memories

At Christmas time the Big Apple is bustling with excitement and a magical place to be with all its displays, lights and everything that New York is known for during this festive season. If you've ever been there at this time and have friends or family who have joined you, then here is a great little item to add you your list of holiday gift ideas. Crystal World crystal figurines has created a miniature New York City skyline (pre 9/11) that replicates every memorable building in exquisite detail. In short, this crystal gift idea is an awe-inspiring architectural marvel, sure to prompt fond memories from native New Yorkers and visitors alike. It is made of high quality full-cut faceted crystal and makes a treasured gift that will last a lifetime. Crystal World was founded in the United States in 1983 as producers of high quality, collectible figurines, and since its inception, has been led by its talented founder and lead artist, Rudy Nakai. Rudy and his staff of designers, including Tom Suzuki and Roy Takii, continue to amaze and delight the public with their creative artistry, as well as their mastery of intricate detail. One of my favorites in they're Holiday collection is "I'm Cool!" an exquisitely cut crystal snowman. I have alot of snowman collectors on my list so this pick would be ideal! In fact I wouldn't mind splurging and getting this cute guy for myself! This one is an ARTISTA™ crystal sculpture that utilizes a fascinating new colorization technique enhancing the beauty of crystal light refraction. Each crystal collectible features separate prisms, each individually hand cut, ground and polished. No wonder they are pricey! And beautiful ...and of course...JUST COOL!