From Rumors to Reality

So, the sum-up from today's geekfest is that the pre-Apple-keynote rumor mills are getting more and more accurate! There were basically some updates to the iPhone (yea for the ability to text more than one person at a time!), iTunes (yea for movie rentals!) and AppleTV (which we *gasp* don't own and *gasp* don't intend to purchase ... mostly because we have a Mac Mini hooked up to our TV, and it works the same way, only it has a hard drive).

Anyway, the big announcement from Apple today was the coolest inter-office envelope contents ever, the MacBook Air. This thing looks incredibly sweet! Hopefully Phil can get some hands-on time (and maybe even pictures?) when he's there tomorrow. Meanwhile, check out the guided tour of this skinny bad boy.

Festivus for the Rest of Us

This is a special day for us nerds: it's time for Apple head-honcho Steve Jobs' MacWorld keynote speech (10 MST)! I'm not sure what will follow last year's industry-transforming, my-life-changing announcement...

...but, I'm sure it will be cool and innovative, whatever it is. Predictions and rumors are flying. The wait is almost over!

I sent my Phil off to San Francisco this week to enjoy the nerd-fest with his fun friends. He opted to not pay the money to wait outside all night to actually go into Steve's keynote presentation, but he says the atmosphere in general in San Francisco is electric. It's like St. Pat's Day in Ireland ... only it's just MacWorld week in San Francisco. Ha! Hmm ... I wonder how many people in Colorado Springs actually even know the big day is today? :o) Phil and his friends are going to visit the exhibits on Wednesday, so they'll still get to see all of the new stuff, whatever it may be.

Christmas Breeds Addictions

So, I used to tease about the things my mom put in our stockings for Christmas: a deck of cards, a pack of gum, a pancho, travel-sized hand sanitizers, a pack of travel-sized tissues, chap stick and an apple. Looking back on it, I can't complain about the contents of our Christmas stockings, because in most cases they're things I wouldn't have purchased for myself, but I've used them up over the years, so it seems pretty good afterall (except for a pile of unopened decks of cards -- those don't need to be replaced yearly at our house -- I can play solitaire online).

Well, this year was different: my mom pulled out all the stops! We had the usual practical goodies from above, plus a few things I'm completely addicted to now that I just have to share:

Williams-Sonoma Pop-Up Sponges

These little suckers are ridiculously cool and handy. they come in this flat, wafer-like format, then you run water over them and they turn into full-sized, ultra-absorbent sponges. And they're only $12/pack of 12, so it's not so bad to use one until it stinks then pitch it and get the next one. Get 'em.

Bath & Body Works Anti-Bacterial Moisturizing Hand Soap

I'm no stranger to products from Bath & Body Works. With the exception of a short boycott I conducted in 1999 because of the discontinuation of their Vanilla Bean fragrance, I've used their Signature Collection lotion since middle school. I've since moved on and accepted the transition to Warm Vanilla Sugar, but it was brutal there for a while. Anyway, I do know they've been selling this hand soap stuff for years, but I had never looked at it very closely because I always assumed it was going to be extremely expensive and not practical (because of the fragrance) for bathrooms or whatever. However, I stand corrected on both fronts! It's 3 for $10, which is comparable to Dial or whatever. And, they have less-girly frangrances like Coconut Lime Verbena (which Phil now uses and likes) and Kitchen Lemon (which we now use in the kitchen).

Car Coasters

I wish I could say Mom got us these exact car coasters, but we got a set that had one ladybug and one bee. Maybe I need to order a set of these with the eaglez on them just because they're awesome. But, anyway, these are a GREAT idea and I wish I'd known about them sooner.

And, a few things that weren't in my stocking that I got addicted to nonetheless over Christmastime:

Sequence Game

Anne Perry Novels

"The Killers" Music