Star Trek: Scents. I’m not kidding.

I would say “I’ve seen it all now” but I’m totally not going down that road. Still, this one made me laugh. I was bumbling around this morning, looking at this and that, first cup of coffee, have to Get Moving in a Minute, and stumbled on this: Star Trek: the perfumes...really
Star Trek: perfumes. Really.

And they have one named “Red Shirt”. They have named a perfume after all the poor suckers who died! I mean, it’s funny and all, but… please explain the marketing strategy to me. Why would some committee somewhere think that is a winning strategy?

I got a chuckle out of this whole thing, mostly, but… Red Shirts? Maybe I’m just missing the point?

Artificial Intelligence, Part 2

I just saw a revised mention of the article I talked about earlier. Now it says that the university (in Amsterdam I think? I’m hurrying so not sure right now) – anyway, the people who developed the “intelligent programs” have a robot working with their programs.

They named the robot Adam. And they have already made a second robot. Named Eve.

Insert Twilight Zone music here.

Artificial Intelligence – Robots that can reason?

Wow. Just saw an article from Reuters that says some scientists are developing “robots (computers anyway) that can think”.

Of course that’s an oversimplification designed to get headlines, but it does say that programs have been developed that can reason and create hypotheses, determine and then check results. It’s on a baby scale so far but still… wow.

Old Univac Computer
Talk about a double-edged sword. The article talks about how these programs could “take over much of the routine work in research laboratories”. This would be terrific for efficiency (and probably cost-savings). It could also lead to, well, all those computers-take-over-the-world-scenarios that SF has loved for years.

“Terminator”, anyone?

Being Green and Still Manly and Check Out Rare Bird Finds!

Oh I think you are going to love this! Rare Bird Finds is one of my fave online sites. The ladies at Rare Bird have an absolute knack at finding fun, funky, and special goodies. I saw one this morning that made me smile. An eco-friendly shopping bag that GUYS can use too – without feeling weird about it!
Eco friendly shopping bag - that guys can use
Is that not great?
Honestly, you should put Rare Bird in your Favorites. There’s tons of, well, great finds there!

Pet Bird Toys

We have two wonderful pet birds – or they have us. Willy is a Quaker Parrot, opinionated and fussy and egotistical and very smart. Zini is a Sun Conure, the baby of the family (though she’ll be five this year) and the most adorable (charming, spoiled, and did I mention egotistical?) person in the house. Here they are after a bath:

Zini and Willy and their bath

So my question / problem is… toys. They are both smart and active and when I’m nearby, their cage is open so they can wander around at will (on top of the cage, not through the house!) And we need more toys for them. Toys they can interact with, puzzles to solve, things to take apart – Zini especially thinks the very best toys are ones she can destroy. This is fine with me, but it’s so hard to know what’s safe.

Many commercial bird toys are too big for them – or uninteresting. (A series of alphabet blocks in safe finishes? Fun to look at but they don’t DO anything.) Leather strips? Fun to chew on – but potentially dangerous.

P.S. I should add, the very best toy we’ve found so far, is a peanut (with shell) wrapped in a square of plain white paper. Wrap the peanut in the paper, twist the ends, and they have to work to extract the peanut from the paper. They both love these. Willy likes to eat the peanuts, and Zini could care less about eating them – she just wants to destroy them. And they make a very satisfying CRUNCH while she’s at it.

I’m always on the search for fun safe toys. If anybody has a suggestion, I’d love to hear it.

Gemstone Turquoise – Real or Fake?

Turquoise is one of my favorite gemstones and I’ll bet money (Monopoly money anyway!) that it’s one of yours too. It’s gorgeous, it’s flattering, it’s not hard to find, it looks good all year round and with all skin tones…. you know what I mean!

And sometimes it’s hard to know if you’re looking at the real deal, or a pretty fake. Of course if it’s pretty enough you might not care – unless you paid for Sleeping Beauty Turquoise and got assembled crap instead. (And if you paid for Sleeping Beauty Turquoise, believe me, you’ll care).

This post just gives a few examples of the good and the (not as) good. Take a look below – here’s a couple examples of real versus not:

Turquoise Magnesite Genuine Arizona Turquoise Teardrops
and
Turquoise Howlite Beads Turquoise Howlite

Only one of these examples is real turquoise – the teardrops at upper right. I know they’re genuine because (1) I bought them in Arizona in person, and (2) I do this for a living and after a while you can tell.

The other pics show very attractive beads – they’re just not real turquoise. Upper left is ‘turquoise magnesite’, a much easier to find stone and it fools a lot of people. Lower left is dyed howlite. Once again, easy to find, and it’s pretty – but not turquoise. The lower right is what I think of as “felt” in the stone world – it’s stone dust (probably howlite again), dye, and glue, and all pressed together. Pretty. Not turquoise.

Tricky, ain’t it?

Cool Tee – Organic and Eco Friendly

Gotta love this. I was peeking around and found this majorly good-looking tee…. it’s casual but with a little extra spiff 🙂 That’s my kind of style…

Then I read a little about it and saw it’s made with organic cotton and water-based inks (solvent free) which is very high on my list of “this is how clothes should be made”.

There are plenty of reasons why you should buy secondhand clothing, many of which actually benefit you personally, no matter your lifestyle, you can sell in Flyp!! go check it out !

Buying secondhand clothes also benefits the environment in a big way, making it a win-win.

Whether you’re unsure if buying secondhand clothes is for you, or maybe you just want to educate yourself of the perks, this post will open your mind to the idea of shopping secondhand clothing.

It might even make you excited to get to your nearest thrift store.

Eco Friendly Tee - Yummy Colors

It’s from Harrilu and no she didn’t bribe me to mention it – I just think her work is cool 🙂

You’ll never pay anywhere near full price, and this is great for when you find high-quality clothing from brand names that you know and trust.

The amount of savings will of course depend on the thrift stores near you – they’re all different.

So explore the secondhand shops in your area to see who has the best clothes/deals, or find other spots in your area to get secondhand items.

Buying Jewelry for Investment and Source of Emergency Fund

Is it a good idea to invest in jewelry? How about using them as a source of your emergency fund?

Some people think so. Particularly because the value of gold and precious gems can appreciate through the years. So it follows that it is a good investment, right?

Well, that’s not necessarily true.

Jewelry as Investment
Jewelry prices can be quite subjective. And the value of precious metals and gems, such as gold, silver, and diamonds, are incredibly volatile. If you’re looking for a trustworthy place that has decades of experience in buying and selling gold, silver, and other jewelry made of other precious metals. Their experts will be sure to help you out and give you the best price for your jewelry.

In fact, their prices go up and fall down at a greater pace and magnitude than the stock market. This makes it relatively a more risky investment that stocks.

Here’s the 100-year historical US Dollar price of Gold. Notice how there’s no significant trend to the price, or at the very least, it’s just a sideways movement.

And here’s the 100-year historical price of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which is like the Philippine Stock Exchange Composite Index. While the price fluctuates, it nevertheless shows an upward trend.

Both charts are inflation adjusted, and thus accurately shows how investing in gold is more nerve-wracking and panic-inducing, especially for long-term investors.

Additionally, as I’ve observed from those who like buying jewelry, most of them actually have no plans of selling them for profit, especially when gold prices are up.

If that’s your mindset, then whenever you buy jewelry — you’re simply acquiring an asset and not an investment. Because an investment should make you money.

In fact, the only time they’d consider selling their jewelry is when they really need cash. Which brings us to the second reason why people foolishly buy them — as a source of emergency funds.

Jewelry as Emergency Fund
When you need money, you can pawn your jewelries to get cash. But is that a smart money move? Apparently not.

Pawnshops will only give you up to 70% of the value of the jewelry as cash. And you need to pay the interest if you want to get it back.

So wouldn’t it be better to just put cash in the bank as your emergency fund? This way, when you need money, you can get 100% value and there’s no interest fees to pay. If you need intant cash try selling gold jewellery Adelaide

Of course, there’s also the option of selling them.

But there’s a financial emergency and time is of the essence. This means you’ll most likely sell them at a discounted price, that is if you can find a buyer at all, which is another challenge in itself.

In the end, having cold, hard cash saved in the bank or tucked away in a low-risk investment is still the best option for an emergency fund — not jewelry — and similarly, not designer bags, not luxury watches, not antiques, not artwork.

In Summary
There’s nothing wrong with buying jewelry. Go ahead and buy them if you’re fond of wearing them, or as a gift for your loved ones. One of the most recognisable luxury watch brands, Breitling has been making exquisite watches since 1884. With a talent for precision chronographs, Breitling soon established itself as an industry leader with a reputation for innovative and beautiful watches. If you want more inflammation look it out Breitling guide on NanaDC.

Here at La Gold Buyer Exchange we buy your coin silver gold any year and any condition we are number one at los angeles California for coin buyer near me.

But never buy jewelry if your mindset is to have it as an investment or a source of emergency funds. It’s better to just invest your money in paper assets or keep your cash handy in a savings account.

Organic Gardening – at the White House!

I was so tickled to learn that the Obamas (or somebody on their team, I guess) have decided that it’s a good idea to do some organic gardening at their new house 🙂 This is the kind of thing that’s only a symbol, I suppose, but it’s a pretty terrific symbol.

Together with a bunch of school kids (I know, I know, what a photo op) Mrs. Obama’s going to start an organic garden at the White House. Read more about it here and here.
Humor is always of the good - Obama, gardening at the White House
And somebody’s got a sense of humor about it (photo mock-up courtesy of Eat The View).

Touching your tomatoes

I saw a very interesting post today about growing tomatoes from seeds – I’m going to include a link below. The author is Margaret Roach. Among her many interesting comments, she noted:

“Brush the tops of the seedlings daily with your hand to provide the “mechanical conditioning” that creates sturdy, not spindly seedlings. Not just once, but gently for a half-minute or minute. (Yes, go ahead, talk to them while you do it. I probably do without even realizing it.)”

Talk about “hands on” gardening! But she said a lot of things that make sense. Here’s the link to the full article:

Makes me want to get started myself – it’s past time to start the seeds in flats I can bring inside.