Hours of remote controlled indoor fun?

Raise your hand if you’ve ever heard of an Air Swimmer. Hear that? No? Well of course you don’t, because no one has. Except my mother, of course.

I was at my mom’s house for dinner the other night enjoying a lovely meal when she suddenly became very excited and told me about an email she had received earlier that day showcasing a wonderful new thing called an Air Swimmer. I kid you not, the woman was giddy with excitement. She went to great lengths describing said Air Swimmer, repeatedly saying how much she wants one and how much fun she would have with it. I didn’t quite get the jist of what the hell this thing was but something in my gut told me it was nothing to pee your pants over.

So despite my best attempts to avoid the conversation altogether, I somehow got wrangled into the office to see the infamous Air Swimmer email. My common sense had clearly escaped me as I thought it was going to be some type of interactive pool toy. Um, no. An Air Swimmer is exactly that – an AIR. SWIMMER. A cheap, plastic, sea-creature toy with a fan on the bottom of it that swims through the air via remote control. If you haven’t already watched the video above, do so. It is beyond ridiculous and way better than I could ever describe in words.

Now, if you were buying this for an 8-year-old, I would say, “Hey, great gift idea. Very unique.” But for an adult? Seriously? Perhaps one that has agoraphobia and was last seen on an episode of My Strange Addiction. But not my mother.

Mom (because I know you’re reading) … NO. Get a real hobby. Go swimming – IN A POOL. Get outside. This is NOT AN ACCEPTABLE HOBBY for a woman your age.

Oh my word.

We’re back in stationary land today with some more fabulous cards I picked up at my local Target the other day. The line is called Oh My Word and is from recovering ad writer, Leslie Kolk, whom I believe, might just be my sister from another mister. Here is her mantra, some of which sounds just like mine and is why I am instantly smitten with her:

I am fascinated with death.
I laugh when people fall.
I get a kick out of watching bad dancers. Who doesn’t?
I think people should say what they are thinking.
Even if it hurts. Especially if it hurts.
I think cards should speak like we do.
Or at least, like I do.

Leslie’s cards are witty, biting, ironic, self deprecating and pretty much say what you wish you could say. Which is exactly what I want in a card! I like to keep a stock of birthday cards on hand so I’m always prepared. These are the ones I picked up from the collection. See more of the collection at Jack Cards.

Please excuse my shitty iPhone photos :)

Swear Bear

This is totally the gift to get someone with a young child. Especially if that child’s name is Damien. Though he appears cute and cuddly with an enticing, “Hug Me,” embroidered on his fuzzy little chest, mark my words – this bear is not your friend! Give him a squeeze and he’ll show you his true colors. I’m guessing he’s either a sailor or a truck driver in disguise.

via Incredible Things

Ain’t too proud to beg.

Check out all those new and nifty little social media icons over there on the right. That’s right folks, I am now “officially” ass end into this whole social media thing. Although I would be exaggerating if I said it all made sense just yet. Long ways to go on that.

However, you can now follow me lots of places, not just on this here blog. You can follow me on Twitter. You can follow me on Facebook. You can follow me on Pinterest. So if you like me, won’t you Like Me, Like Me? Do it. Like Me!

P.S. I only need a few more “Likes” to get a real Facebook url. Currently I’m stuck with some janickty numbered one and that just won’t do. So get over to Facebook and Like Me already!

P.P.S. Please?

Carbohydrate Friday: Corn Cakes!

This week’s recipe almost looks too pretty to eat. Notice I said almost. Not sure anything could stop me from eating… Also notice it’s a) fried and b) served with ranch, two things I pretty much cannot live without!

Stripped down

We have been up to our eyeballs in diy home improvement this summer. Last weekend I was pretty sure I had died and gone to Ikea furniture hell as I was buried in a room full of stuff requiring assembly with a piece of shut allen wrench. Needless to say, I probably stripped at least half the screws I put in, which is always good later if you ever need to take them out.

That was sarcasm just in case you didn’t recognize it…

Anyhow, thanks to this months edition of Good Housekeeping, husband can’t get mad at me for stopped screws. GH says simply to use a rubber band between the screwdriver an the screw if it’s been stripped. Use the small ones that come on produce bundles (although lifehacker says to use the wide bands) and you’ll get a good grip just like if you hadn’t jacked it all up!
Thanks, Good Housekeeping (and lifehacker)!

Historic pictograms

Creative station, H-57, embarked on a recent project creating historical figures out of pictograms. Amazing how they’ve managed to interject such wit into such minimalistic design. Michael Jackson is my favorite.

via Ignant

Basic utilities

It’s no secret that I love greeting cards. Like, love them! But sometimes finding just the right card is harder than you’d expect. You know who it’s for and you know their sense of humor but sifting through rows and rows of ridiculously cheesy cards, that some woman and her three unruly children are inevitably standing in front of, makes you want to stick needles in your eyes. Ok, maybe it’s not that bad but you know what I’m saying.

Well it appears help has arrived. The Utility Card uses a word search puzzle to hide over 100 classic well wishes. Simply circle the sentiment you want to communicate and the card is ready for any occasion. Blank space for writing an actual message is provided on the back. And as if it wasn’t already the perfect card, it gets better in that it’s letterpressed on extra thick tree-free paper that uses cotton fiber waste from textile manufacturing. AND for the ultra lazy, it even comes with a cheat-sheet* to help you find the right words. Genius!

iPhone obsessed

I finally broke down and got myself and husband iPhones this past week. It doubled as renewing our 2-yr contract and husband’s birthday present. It’s always nice when you receive a present on someone else’s birthday. Those are my favorite. However, now I’m like a kid with ADHD in a candy store. I want EVERYTHING iPhone! I want to stay home from work so I can sit around in my pajamas and play with it all day. It’s bad, people. Baaaaad.

I’ve already outfitted both phones with totally cheap, totally functional cases made out of boring, design-less silicone. But these are just that – boooooring! What I’d really like is to have a collection of iPhone cases, rivalling only my shoe collection, and have enough that I can change them out daily. And I’d like to start with these.

Wood Camera iPhone Cases from Photojojo

Carbohydrate Friday: Bacon Jalapeno Poppers!

More bacon, more bread, more cheese. And some jalapenos. Not like you haven’t seen any of those here before. Probably every Friday if I’m being true to myself. But that’s why you love me, right?

Yup. Thought so.

BACON, CREAM CHEESE JALAPENO POPPERS
via Aisle to Aloha