Monthly Archives: March 2015

This One Is For The Ladies In The House

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I’m trying to figure out a tech hook for this blog post but nothing is coming to mind. I wanted to share this story about designer bags vs fake ones because it’s always a topic of interest among my female audience.

I just read a piece in Racked,com that actually spells out how you can tell the difference. I don’t know if I believe everything outlined here. I wanted your opinion. Racked.com is a fashion site.

I own 10 Louis Vuittons, two of them are fake. I bought my LV’s over the last 40 years. They used to sell the fake ones across the street from Bloomingdales in New York City. I had to buy two of same model for $20 each because they both had defects. Combining the strap from one, with the hardware and material from the other, made one perfect bag. 

I truly don’t think anyone can tell the difference between the phony and the non-phonies. Fashionistas used to tell me the so-called fakes were really real. There were many theories on how and why they were marketed as imitation.

In any case, my LV’s never go out of style and they last forever.  

13 things to know about the Apple Watch

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The $10,000 Gold Apple Watch Edition. 





The headline I used for today’s post comes directly from CNN. I ripped it off because I really feel it will prompt you to read the story. It precisely lists all of the benefits that new Apple watch offers. 

My brother emailed the story to me. I’m grateful because, for some reason, I have not paid attention to all of the hoopla. Now that I have read all about it, I definitely want one. There is not a feature on the Apple watch that I need, but it will certainly be fun to have people gather around me to see first hand what the noise is all about, 

I did that to a friend’s friend who was one of first to own the Pebble watch. It was like watching Star Trek. The guy was so popular at the party, he never got to eat. Let’s face it, we are all fascinated by innovation. Most of the time we are disappointed by new introductions because they don’t really make our lives that much better.

In this case, I’m going to be thrilled that I am wearing a watch that is going to tell me my heart beats per minute and how many steps I made that day. I find it utterly fascinating that we live in a time when all this is possible.


The Next Generation Of Headphones

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The world of headphones is about to change now that the Buhel SG05 Soundglasses are having a very successful Kickstarter campaign. For the first time ever, a pair of eyeglasses is doubling as headphones thanks to the use of bone-conductive technology.  

Wikipedia explains Bone conduction as the “conduction of sound to the inner ear through the bones of the skull. Bone conduction transmission can be used with individuals with normal or impaired hearing.” Bone conductive technology can be used for music, GPS instructions, and phone calls.  

According to the Kickstarter campaign, the Buhel SG05 Soundglasses are capable of: 

*Making and receiving phone calls via Bluetooth. 

*Listening to music without earphones or earbuds. 

*Activating SIRI / CORTANA / GOOGLE NOW with a touch of a button. 

*Communicating with GPS Systems .

The Buhel SG05 Soundglasses retail at $260. If you donate to the Kickstarter campaign, you can get them for $160.  Hurry, you only have a few more days.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Future Of Emails 

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Believe it or not, the use of email is dwindling. 

The younger generation sends an average of 181 texts a day, according to Mobile Marketer. They want instant gratification. Email takes too long. Texting is quicker.

Communication today comes in many different forms. We talk to each other on social channels, message apps, business software, and yes, email. 

No more three paragraph emails. Today everything has to be short and quick. I don’t know what people are so busy with but they sure don’t want to spend time writing out long compositions. 

That’s why people don’t leave voice mails anymore. Active folks said they don’t have the patience to listen to messages. They can see incoming calls on the “recent”‘ file on their cells. That’s good enough. They just don’t want to listen to the same content twice. 

Twitter started the 140-character tweet and everyone learned to communicate in small sound bites. We are definitely living in the world of “just the facts folks, just the facts.” 



The Tallest Roller Coaster

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I hate roller coasters, I always did. I get dizzy talking about them but many people in the tech industry are gabbing about the new giga coaster that is debuting later this month. 

Located in Fort Mill, S.C., this is supposed to be the world’s tallest and fastest roller coaster ever. Some of my friends say there are others just as tall.  This one is as tall as the Effel Tower. The 325-foot tall roller coaster is in the Carowinds amusement park.

Video cameras were the first to experience the climb to the top of the hill, a 81-degree drop and speeds of up to 95 miles an hour. I lose my balance just thinking about it. 

Watch the video if you want see what the drop is all about. It’s almost as good as being there. This is about as close as I want get to that technological wonder. 

The Real Larry David

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Can you guess which one is Larry David?

My girl friend Marilyn’s brother, Charles, went to the University of Maryland with Larry. They belonged to the same fraternity, TEP, along with their friend Ben. Marilyn showed me this picture tonight at dinner. 

Second row, left to right: Charles, Ben and Larry. 



Eliot, Marilyn, Marilyn’s cousin Camille, and me. 

Now for today’s feature. 

Samsung’s Dream Dog House 



Samsung was a sponsor of the world’s largest dog show in the UK recently. Being an innovation leader, they designed “the dog kennel of the future.” The two-room doghouse features a treadmill with fake grass, a hydrotherapy pool, and an automatic feed dispenser. 

Cost for the pooch palace? $35,000. Don’t despair. It’s not for sale. Watch the video. This could be the future. 

Photos Worth Noting 

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My friend Rene Alberto Rodriguez Bellucci spotted this Drone while walking his dog, SoBe, the other day in Miami Beach. He quickly snapped photos. Get used to this sight. You are going to see a lot more of them.

I can’t believe I took this selfie.

The sign of the times. My Tauck tour leader had his GoPro taping most of the trip. We may be the stars of a new reality TV show.



I Need Your Help

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I know this is self -serving but I need the help of all of your grandchildren who are six to 12 years old. I am working with Waterpik and the America’s ToothFairy Foundation on a “Kids Teach Me How To Floss” Campaign. I need as many kids to enter the contest as possible.

 

Children Everywhere Can Win A Waterpik® Water Flosser By Submitting Their Best “Teach Me How To Floss” Photo, Video, Or Drawing On Twitter orInstagram

 

All Entries Must Mention @waterpik and include the hashtag #TeachMeToFloss in all comments

 

Here are some facts that you probably didn’t know:


1-More than 25 million children in the U.S. suffer from tooth decay.


2-More than 40 percent of all children have dental cavities by the time they reach kindergarten.


3-More than 27 percent of children have an acute oral health need.


4-Pediatric dental disease is nearly 100% preventable, but greater awareness is needed to break the cycle of this disease and rescue children from needless pain and suffering. 


5-Dental disease can have serious consequences for children’s health including malnourishment, life-threatening infections, anemia, emergency surgery and even death.”

 



Click on this link to enter. http://www.waterpik.com/oral-health/lp/giveaway. 


Waterpik® and America’s ToothFairy want to reach children everywhere to help them understand that they can achieve good oral health with simple, healthy habits. To help foster good oral health, 50 Waterpik® Water Flossers for Kids are being given away, one for each of their 50 favorite entries. All entries will receive a $5 rebate on the purchase of a Waterpik® Water Flosser For Kids!

 

The Waterpik® Water Flosser For Kids is a custom model made for children ages 6 to 12 years of age, featuring a compact, simplified design that makes water flossing easy, even for small children. It’s perfect for kids who wear braces or have trouble flossing, and fun to use every day. Twenty (20) removable cling decals let kids personalize their Water Flosser to their own tastes.

 

Thank you so much for your help.

La Paz Waterfall Gardens

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We had a true Costa Rican experience yesterday. We visited a cloud and rainforest in the mountains that featured waterfalls, toucans, hummingbirds, newly hatched butterflies, a jaguar, snakes, orchids, and a red-eyed leaf frog. This city lady felt right a home as we walked for a few hours.

I could have stayed there for days, weeks, years. Now, that doesn’t sound like the typical urban me.  However, there was one big draw that made this place easy to get used to, Internet everywhere. I could Tweet, Facebook, and Instagram everything I saw, instantly. I loved it.

All was going well until we got to the waterfalls. Some of the walkways and flights of stairs were suspended on the side of the mountain. I could see two or three hundred feet straight down. I went into a quasi panic mode.  I don’t like heights.

I had to turn around and make my way back alone. Everyone was way ahead of me so there was no way I was catching up to discuss my delimma. I just turn around and got the heck out of there. Unfortunately, I made a wrong turn and had to climb 26 flights back to the starting point. I was sweating from nerves and exhaustion. Every once-in-while, I passed someone and asked them how much higher I had to climb. I was exasperated as their estimates got longer and longer.  I finally made it to the top and waited for the leaders to find me.

i explained what happened to the group leader and she summoned a van to take me to the place where everyone was supposed to meet up after the nature walk. As I climbed into the vehicle, she said she had a little surprise for me. Without asking, the driver took me for a very curvy drive down the mountain again till we got to the bottom. Then before me, was the last waterfall that I would have missed. He snapped a pictures of me showing that I made it and then drove me back up.

I decided to commemorate my very own personal experience by treating myself to a mask made by the Boruca Indians to ward off the Spanish conquistadors.


Everytime I will look at the mask, I will remember my heart-beating adventure.

The Other Larry David

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I was listening to an interview with Larry David on Audible (the February issue of Vanity Fair) at the airport in Costa Rica on Sunday afternoon, when I spotted his evil twin. If you think Larry David is self-absorbed, then think again. He has a double that I wanted to slap silly after my plane ride home with him while he was prancing around continuously through the single aisle.

I first spotted the Larry David twin LDT, sashaying around our gate as if he was a runway model. He was looking for something but it was never clear what it was. Then he was on line right in front of me as we boarded the plane. In typical Larry David style, LDT started complaining out loud about how long and slow the line was to get on board. 

Then, surprise, surprise, LDT thinks he was on his own private plane. He stops at row 8, blocks the aisle and so no one can get by, and then proceeds to take his sweet time storing his carry-on in the overheard. After he finally gets his luggage in place, he removes it again to look for his earphones and snacks. Two minutes go by and I finally tell him he is holding up the line. He gives me a dirty look. The line behind me is out the door.

The flight attendant is asking everyone to move quickly on the public address system but he is in his own world. He could care less. He continues to rummage though his stuff which is directly above my seat. I finally sneak under him and maneuver into my chair.  Eventually he takes his seat two rows ahead of me. As we are taxiing, he gets up again to grab something out of the overhead above me. I can’t believe this dude is standing next to me during this crucial period.

Other passengers yell out that he should sit down so he walks away leaving the overhead above me open. The guy behind quickly stands up to close it. He saved me from having everything fall on my head during takeoff. LDT got up three more times during the flight to retrieve objects from the overhead. He also made about five trips to the bathroom in the first class section. 

The flight attendants kept asking him to use the bathrooms in the rear but he paid no attention to them. Then he decided to move his overhead stuff on top of my seat,  to over his, because it would be more convenient for him when we exited. He arbitrarily moved other people’s belongings around to make way for his. No one said a word. He just took over. 

LDT just couldn’t sit still. He was out of his seat more than he was in it. When we finally landed, he climbed over others to get off faster. I saw him again at the luggage carousel. He was the first one to get his luggage. He grabbed his bags and sprinted out of there. I was tempted to go to Tom’s Restaurant on the upper west side later that day to see if that character was hanging out there. Then I realized I landed in Miami.

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