October 05, 2005
Rancilio Silvia Espresso Machine
The Rancilio Silvia expresso machine costs $500, but considering I drink at least two double espressos per day, this thing will pay for itself in a year. It took me a month to learn how to pull a rich, creamy espresso, but now that I've got the hang of it, I think I do a better job than the barristas at Peet's and Starbucks.
This is one gorgeous, solidly-built machine. I spent a lot of time looking around the espresso geeks' websites, and most seem to agree that this is the one to get. I couldn't be happier with it.
Link
October 03, 2005
Double Wall Espresso Glasses
My morning espresso-making ritual is the highlight of my day, and these beautiful, tiny (2 ounce) espresso glasses make the moment even brighter. Mouth blown from laboratory quality borosilicate to form a double wall of glass with a pocket of air trapped inside, the glasses keep the espresso piping hot and my fingers cool.
The visual effect of my daily double-shot of espresso "floating" in the vessel pleases me to no end.
Link
September 22, 2005
Caffé Vincente Espresso Blend
In August I posted an entry on Boing Boing about my new espresso machine and the trouble I was having getting it to make crema, that delicious light colored foam on the top of a well-shot cup of espresso.
The fine folks at Caffé Pronto felt sorry for me, and sent me a bag of Caffé Vincente Espresso Blend, advertised to have "rich crema, and a long smooth finish."
Doubtful, I ground some up and turned on the machine. My mouth watered at the sight of the tawny crema emanating from the portafilter. And it's delicious to boot. I like the kind of espresso that numbs my tongue, and Caffé Vincente is loaded with whatever alkaloid does that. Time to buy more. Link
September 13, 2005
Spanish With Michel Thomas (Eight audio CDs)
I like this eight-CD Spanish language instruction program because I'm not required to consciously memorize words or do drills or exercises.
The instructor, a German guy named Michel Thomas has developed a teaching method that gets you started speaking Spanish from the very first lesson. On the CDs, he sits with two students, a male and a female, neither of which has ever learned a lick of Spanish before.
The Amazon reviews for Thomas's teaching method read like testimonials from religious converts. Count me in his Cult.
Each lesson is just five or six minutes long, making one easy to fit into your day. I have all eight CDs on my iPod, so whenever I have a few spare minutes, I take a lesson. Link
September 09, 2005
Fob - Countdown timer for OS X
I put a lot of items on my to do list every day. I only get about 25% of them crossed off. This was getting to be demoralizing, so I recently started using a timer to force me to do at least a little bit of every thing on my list.
For example, I have a bunch of Quicken housekeeping to do -- hours and hours of it. I dread it, but it has to be done, for tax purposes. I don't want to blow an entire day doing it, so I've started attacking it in 15 minute chunks each day, which is much more bearable. I use a free OS X program called Fob, from Leaky Puppy Software, as a countdown timer.
Fob lets you set up and store a list of timers that you can use whenever you want. I have a timer that I can activate that gives me 30 minutes to research a book I'm working on. I have another timer that lets me work on a painting for 20 minutes (in this case, I use this as a timer to force me to stop doing something fun, as opposed to the Quicken timer, which I use to encourage me to do something I hate).
Merlin Mann of 43 Folders has written some great stuff about using timers to beat procrastination. Just today I noticed that he reviewed another Mac-based timer called Minuteur. It looks nice, but I haven't tried it yet. Link
August 22, 2005
Radtech BT500 tiny bluetooth mouse
I try to use the touchpad on my notebook computer as little as possible. It's uncomfortable and harder to control than a mouse. When I travel, I always bring along my Radtech BT500 bluetooth mouse. It's optical and works well on most surfaces. Battery life seems to be a few full days of use. At $45, it's not cheap, but it's save me ten times that amount in increased productivity and decreased frustration.
Link
August 12, 2005
Password Plus
Password Plus is a database for storing passwords, software registration codes, credit card numbers, and other personal information. I use it at least once a day. It's the simplest way I know of to make this kind of information both secure and easy to access. I even use it to store my wife's shoe size so I can remember it when it's time to shop for presents.
To use it, you launch the program and enter a master password. That gives you access to all the records. I use it all the time to get my credit card numbers to make online purchases.
One great feature is the way it syncs the data back and forth between my Palm OS and my home computer. Earlier this week I went to a Chinese restaurant to pick up some food I'd ordered on the phone and I forgot my wallet. But I talked them into selling me the meal by reading my credit card number from my PDA. Link
August 04, 2005
Moleskine notebooks
A couple of years ago my friend David gave me a Moleskine notebook as a gift. It was from Italy and had a black cloth binding and thick paper. It was so beautiful I was afraid to write in it. I didn't think my notes and sketches were worthy to go into it.
After a couple of weeks, I decided to go ahead and just start using it. And I became hooked. The pocket sized version cost around $12 and lasted several months. It was silly not to use it as my regular note taking book.
The books are also very rugged. Last week, I left one of my Moleskines outside for a week. The sprinkers hit it every day. It was waterlogged when I found it. The pages with ink pen note were kind of smeared, but still legible. The penciled notes were fine. I fanned the book open and left it to dry in the 100-degree heat of our porch for a few days. The pages are kind of warped, making it look swollen, but the cover and binding are in excellent shape. I like it even better this way -- less precious looking.
I've incorporated Moleskines into my daily life. I keep a blank art paper sketchbook (80 pages, 5.25" x 8.25") for sketching, a ruled notebook (240 pages, 5.25" x 8.25") for taking notes, and a pocket ruled notebook (192 pages, 3½" x 5½") for my to-do list.
The company has started making a less-expensive line of notebooks, called the Cahier line, but I'm sticking with the sturdy orginals.
August 01, 2005
Amazing Bug Zapper
We don't have screen doors on our house, but ever since I got the Bug Zapper, I no longer care. In fact, I like it when flies come in. The drone of a dumb horsefly bumping against lampshades is my signal to run to the broom closet and pull out the Bug Zapper, a red and yellow $10 flying insect killer that looks like toy tennis racket. By simultaneously pressing two buttons on the handle, the rows of wires strung across the head become electrified, and a red LED in the handle illuminates to confirm that the Zapper is set to kill.
My hunting method is primitive but effective: I swing wildly in the general direction of the tiny winged vermin. The heavy, stupid flies are almost too easy to zap; I prefer the smaller, quieter flies that tease me by alighting on an armchair or counter, only to flit away in the nick of time. But no matter what kind of fly I’m after, the end game never changes — The wires touch the fly; there’s a tiny spark and a crackle, and the fly drops to the ground, inert. Haematopota pluvialis: prepare to meet thy doom. Link
July 28, 2005
The Week
The Week is the only magazine I devour the instant I get it in the mail. It's a news weekly that summarizes what all the other news magazines and papers around the world have covered that week. What a fantastic idea. It's like having a friend who reads everything, from the New Republic to the National Review to the Beijing Times, and then tells you about it in a way that holds your interest. After reading it, I really feel as if I have a handle on world events. Best of all, it's actually fun to read. I consider it my one must-read magazine. Link
June 03, 2004
Seonna Hong print from sixspace gallery
Yesterday I wrote about Tim Biskup's book "100 Paintings." Today, I bought "Indiand Princess," a wonderful lithograph of a painting done by Biskup's wife, Seonna Hong. Seonna shares her husband's admiration of Disney artist Mary Blair (if you've been to Disneyland's "It's a Small World After All" ride then you know here work). Link 
Sixspace also offers a canvas giclee print of a much more recent Hong painting, called "Runaway," on its site here.
April 21, 2004
99-cent coupon for Blockbuster rental
Print this out and get a 99-cent rental coupon at Blockbuster. Link
March 31, 2004
Sony Cybershot-U digital camera
Two things happened that turned me into a shutterbug. Cameras became digital, which made it fun to take and process photographs, and they got small, which made them easy to carry at all times. I don't go anywhere without my $200 Sony Cybershot-U, a two-Megapixel camera that's as long as a credit card, and about 3/4 the width. It was great to have when I was in the South Pacific last year.
There's nothing fancy about this camera - no zoom, no microphone, no firewire, no MP3 player, but the pictures turn out nice and it's easy to use. I use iPhoto, and it has no problem recognizing and importing photos from the camera.
March 12, 2004
Illustration Magazine
I like magazine, book, and ephemera illustrations from the 1920s - 1960s. The artists really had their technical chops down, and had wonderful imaginations as well. Illustration Magazine is the best place to read about these illustrators and see their work showcased in a lovingly-produced format. A few issues back, they profiled Frank Frazetta, as well as Norm Saunders, the guy who painted the lurid Mar Attacks bubblegum cards. 
(You can buy most back issues, including the one featuring Norm Saunders and Frank Frazetta, from the magazine.)
February 26, 2004
Cure for the common cold
I used to dread the feeling of a cold coming on, because it meant a week of snot-nosed misery. But a few years ago I discovered Zicam, and now I almost don't care. Now my cold lasts 24 hours, and the symptoms are very mild. The trick is to take it at the first sign of a cold. I carry it with me at all times.
This stuff, which is comes in the form of a gel that you either squirt into your nose or rub into your nostrils with a Q-Tip, contains a form of zinc that attaches to cold viruses in your nose, and makes it very hard for them to bind with the cells in your nostril. And if a virus can't bind with a cell, it can't replicate. According to independent research, cold sufferers who took a placebo reported cold symtoms for 10 days, but patients who took Zicam reported symptoms for a day-and-a-half. I consider it a cure for the common cold.
Here's a recent news article about a possible link between Zicam use and losing your sense of smell permanently. (Thanks, John!)
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RECENT ENTRIES
Rancilio Silvia Espresso Machine
Double Wall Espresso Glasses
Caffé Vincente Espresso Blend
Spanish With Michel Thomas (Eight audio CDs)
Fob - Countdown timer for OS X
Radtech BT500 tiny bluetooth mouse
Password Plus
Moleskine notebooks
Amazing Bug Zapper
The Week
