the goode life

The White House Party Crashers are everywhere!

These famewh*res truly do not represent anything this blog is about, and I am filing this under Not Goode; this photo was too funny to pass up:

The Most Expensive iPhone

Most iPhones already come complete with so many bells and whistles (not to mention all the apps you can download) what more could you possibly want?  How about gold and diamonds?

This iPhone is worth about $3.2million dollars; for that you get 271 grams of 22-karat gold and 136 flawless diamonds.  Other than that it's still a regular iPhone.  Who would want such a phone and why?  Because I don't know anyone who hasn't lost a cellphone at least once :).  My brother-in-law used to work for the airlines, he had a box at work full of cellphones, PDAs, iPods, Blackberries, etc....that people would leave on the planes.  Can you imagine accidentally leaving this one!!

I foresee cellphones following in the footsteps of cameras. They are going to become faster, better, and cheaper much like our disposable digital cameras you can get in a cardboard box.  Not that throwaway cameras are goode......

I'm gonna file this one under not goode

(Source: NY Daily News)

Faux Fur not so Fake!

If you are a friend to animals especially dogs you may not want to read the story below.  In Texas, and I would imagine other places as well, they have discovered retailers selling what they think to be faux fur, is really the fur of cats and dogs! 

  Although dog and cat fur were banned seven years ago, the HSUS (Humane Society of the United States) recently purchased either online or in person 25 coats with fur trim from 17 retailers – two of them based in Texas, Neiman Marcus and JC Penney – and some of the testing came back domesticated dog. (Khou.com)

For the complete story click here.

Technorati Tags dog fur Texas animals faux fur HSUS

Private Jets: Goode or Bad?

We oftentimes like to fall into the trap that celebrities are like demi-gods with supernatural powers that surpass mere mortals.  I'm one who never quite understood the fascination with people who are so engulfed in their own well being they could give a damn about how the consequences of their own actions affect others, [and in fairness I will point out not only celebrities fit this description, there are a lot of regular folks whose actions are like nails on a chalkboard to me, but I've digressed....] I give you this list I found on the Guardian.com, a UK website which has listed the top 10 celebrity eco-sinners.  It's titled the Private Jet Set .

Some names I'm not surprised to find on the list - Versace; I love Donatella's clothes but as the article states "green is not an environmental statement just a color palette", in fact I would expect no less from the fashion maven or anyone in the fashion industry.  Some names did surprise me like John Travolta -although the article is fair in pointing out he did use his jet to send aid to victims of hurricane Katrina.

This story really caught my eye as I will honestly admit that owning my own jet is next on my to do list ;)!  I hate commercials flights just as much as I hate the bus!  I always figured I could offset the emissions like I do with my truck, secretly I do feel guilty as if that's not enough but hey it's not like I plan on flying my groceries home like Tom Cruise either!  And who knows maybe by the time I am able to realistically purchase my jet they will have come out with a hybrid!   

But I wonder and grant it I know I'm reaching a bit but one could pose the argument that private jets for the most part are more eco-friendly than commercial airplanes.  Airplanes take longer to take-off and sometimes land than a jet.  Anyone whose flown commercial is quite familiar with how long it takes to taxi down a runway only to have to stop and wait for the control tower to give you the okay to take-off.  Pilots aren't turning off the engine as they are sitting there idle.  Think about it!  Private jets have access to more airports that are closer to your actual destination than commercial planes which have to land at big airports which are way out of the city, THEN you must take a car or taxi to your destination.  Think about it!  A Private jet you fly direct, no stopping and starting at this and that airport all over the place.  Think about it!

Now I'm well aware that the above arguments are quite the stretch but luckily someone else out there thinks like me and realizes that private jets for the business class traveler can be a more economical way to go.  Thank You!  The automaker (amongst many other things) Honda has come out with the Hondajet and has already started taking orders.  The big deal about this aircraft seems to be the over-the wing engine mount (OTWEM) configuration.  This reduces aerodynamic drag at high speeds, and its Natural Laminar flow (NLF) wing and fuselage nose which also reduces drag.  What does this all mean?  Well basically it is more fuel efficient by 30-35% compared to other aircrafts in its class!  And this is just the beginning, I'm sure over time greater and better improvements will be made. 

You see you don't have to give up the good life in order to live The Goode Life!

Technorati Tags Hondajet private jets celebrities fuel-efficient environment airplanes

Call Starbuck's Day

Tuesday, December 5th is National Call-In Starbucks day!  We are asking them to hold the hormones in the milk that they use for their specialty drinks.  Call them at 1.800.235.2883 (Mon-Fri 5am to 6 pm PST) to let them know you don't want artificial growth hormones (rBGH) in your morning latte!  This has been banned in every industrial country except the United States!  What gives - damn it, why do we have to be the lab monkeys for everything!

This should take just a few minutes of your time!  Please help send the message, and to take further action go here - send a letter online to Jim Donald the CEO of Starbucks.  Even better use their own store comment cards to let them know this is unacceptable; especially this time of the year when all the holiday shoppers will be looking for that mid-day fix to keep them going and able to stand in all those long check-out lines. 

Check out the Organic Consumers Association for even more information on this campaign, and while you're at it sign for their great newsletter to stay apprised of environment and health issues.

Technorati Tags: Starbucks artificial growth hormones coffee Organic Consumers Association

Toyota Prius

I had to create a new category for this one called Not Goode!  I found on the daily Lime newsletter I receive, that there is an ugly side to the pretty Prius many of us are so fond of.....

It appears that Toyota gets its metal from a Canadian company that spews such poisonous fumes into the air, it has ruined the once green landscaping around it.  The article further goes on to explain that NASA practiced driving moon buggies on it's landscape because it's the closet thing on earth to the rocky lunar landscape!  Read the full article here.

The Prius may not be so eco-friendly after all, we'll have to wait and see how this pans out!

Technorati Tags: Toyota Prius hybrid Lime