Raining in LA

It's been raining non-stop for the past two weeks here in Los Angeles. The LA river is usually completely dry near my house, but now it's about as active as I've ever seen it.

If you are visiting from Italy, you should say hello :)

Dyson DC23

I'm not a vacuum enthusiast, but I am an enthusiast of well made and well designed products. And that's exactly what the Dyson DC23 is.

The DC23 Animal is designed specifically homes with pets and hardwood floors. Two things we have.


Just look at this thing. It means serious business. It looks like something out of Halo.


These tubes are what create the Cyclone vacuum, it's what gives the vacuum so much suction.


I've never had a canister vacuum before. Apparently they all come with a cord retract button. I'm not ashamed to admit that I spent a good 15 minutes playing with this.


It might sounds silly, but the power button is great. It's big. It's easy to find. It's low to the ground. And all those things make it easy to hit with your foot.


The canister is easy to remove, and so is the filter. Which supposidly lasts forever, it just needs to be washed every 3 months. Awesome!



Here's a video of the Cyclone in action.

Apple Mac Mini

There's been a lot of talk about Google TV lately. But as with all HTPC dedicated boxes, there's always one thing missing. iTunes and youtube seem good enough, but sometimes you just want to download a movie or tv show the old fashion way. About a year ago I canceled my cable and replaced it all with a Mac Mini...and it's been awesome.

Typical with Apple. It's minimal and beautiful.


Brushed aluminum unibody with a mirrored Apple logo.


The under neath is a tapered stand that gives the Mini the appearance that it's floating.


The biggest change to this current Mac Mini was including an HDMI port. I had a Mini before this, and I had to jerry rig a displayport to HDMI adapter.


On the botton is the stand, but also the access to the inside.


Just turn the white dot to the circle.


And it opens up revealing easy access to the RAM. Unfortunately no easy access to the HDD. The inside is almost as pretty as the outside :)


It fits perfectly next to the TV. And the best part, no matter how or where a movie, tv show, or music shoes up. I can find it. I don't have to wait for Just netflix, or just hulu, or just itunes. I can go anywhere.

Suzuki DP-1000 Duality Digital Piano

Last year, Tracey's Family, Friends, and I all chipped in to get her a new piano. I search high and low for the perfect one considering price and quality. I really think I found it.

For starters it has a Dark Rosewood finish that matches our place. Obviously important in a piano :)


The keys are perfectly weighted to feel like the keys on a grand piano.


It has a ton of features including the ability to plug into your computer to record your playing.


It even has an ipod doc so you can play along with your music.


And my favorite part. It folds up to look like a normal side table.

Meridian Coffee Table

I love my Coffee table. It may not look all that special right now, but believe me. It's the coolest coffee table you'll ever see.


For starters, it's made from solid hardwood. Not particle board you get at IKEA (Nothing against IKEA. My imagination goes crazy in that store).


Nice little details.


Even imperfections in the wood, gives it character. But the best part is...


It transforms!


It has a spring loaded mechanism that lifts the top up to create a table at your couch.


It even has little compartments to store all of your remotes. Which, as you can see I have a lot of.

Various Souvenirs

Here are a few of the Souvenirs we have displayed in our house. I plan to get more. The first two are from The Wild Animal Park in San Diego. I highly recommend going, WAY better than a zoo.


A little wooden frog biting a stick.


You can use the stick to play the scales on it's back.


Etched Dried Gourd.


This guy is from Bali, Indonesia.


He sure is happy :)