I realize that advertising represents (and sometimes causes) many of the ills of our society, but I can’t help it — as something of a pop culture aesthete, I love me a good commercial. I think this is because I appreciate good design, clever concepts and creativity in any form. For better or worse — whether subsidizing theater companies and museums or hiring the best illustrators, writers and cinematographers — corporations have become the new patrons of the arts. I’m often astonished at how compelling the commercials for Volkswagon, Apple and Coca-Cola are.
And so, having said that, I sheepishly admit to admiring the recent Kaiser Permanent "Thrive" television commercial, which shows a montage of what modern society could look like in a utopian future:
- A man in a diner reads a newspaper with the headline "Remembering Obesity: A Look Back."
- A teenager in a museum of antiquities looks inquisitively at packs of cigarettes in display cases.
- A vending machine is filled with a variety of organic apples.
- A man pulls his car up to the drive-through window of a restaurant that serves neatly packaged "Mini-Size Me" fast food.
- An intimidating bouncer guards the velvet rope in front of a hot nightclub, above which the marquee displays "Yoga Nite."
- A young woman sits on the grand stairs of a large building, reading a book. Above the front entrance is a sign that says "Public Library," and above that is a neon sign that says "Open 24 Hours."
- An overhead view of bicyclists pans out to show a rush hour of nothing but bicycles on the freeway.
- The final scene is narrated with the slogan "Change — and the world changes with you."
One irony, of course, is that some people apparently feel that Kaiser has done the exact opposite of helping its customers "thrive." (In fairness, though, other Kaiser customers seem to have no problems — at least not yet.) Another irony is that the future may more likely look like this.
Still, though, good commercials generally do what they’re supposed to do: make me feel warm and fuzzy (or, more specifically, optimistic and connected) for thirty seconds.
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Posted March 22, 2006 by Mariva in arts, business, entertainment, health, innovations, movies
When you’re away from home — whether spending a lot of time at the office or going on a picnic or a trip — you’ll appreciate Minimus. Here you can stock up on a plethora of individual- and travel-size products, including food and beverages, laundry supplies, personal care and over-the-counter medicines. You can also purchase preassembled kits and care packages of snacks, mini-meals, personal supplies and medical kits — some specifically for men, women, college students, air travelers, campers and even cold and flu sufferers. Many kits make ideal care packages for military personnel. And speaking of the military, the preassembled package called the "military field kit" — comprising an emergency blanket, a small flashlight and a rain poncho — is something you may want to keep in your car or home storage area.
Posted January 24, 2006 by Mariva in edibles, gifts, health, home, resources, travel
Even if you don’t believe that the average person is chronically dehydrated, it’s generally a good idea to drink fresh, clean water as often as you’d like. I seem to be thirsty all the time, so I never go anywhere without a water bottle. Because of its durable and unbreakable nature, my container of choice is the Nalgene bottle, which never compromises the taste of water. It’s the perfect companion to the Thermos food jar.
There’s no question that Nalgene makes bottles extremely well. The company’s founder was an innovative chemist who developed unbreakable laboratory instruments and containers. Today, Nalgene is known in the scientific world for its wide assortment of Nalgene Labware, in addition to its consumer products for outdoors enthusiasts and travelers.
I have a variety of narrow-mouth bottles; my current favorite is the "Pretty Pink" 32-ounce bottle, although I like the "Sage Green," "Sapphire Blue" and "Vibrant Violet" translucent shades as well. A MiniGrip bottle fitted with an Easy Sipper (with a flexible straw threaded through the drinking hole) is perfect for staying hydrated during a long road trip.
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Posted January 17, 2006 by Mariva in health, innovations, kitchen, resources, travel
Archie Bunker once mused, “You got your Thermos here, see? You can put coffee in it and it stays hot, or you can put beer in it and it stays cold, right? So my question is, how does it know?" Clearly, Archie never grasped the concept of insulation; nonetheless, Thermos products — three decades ago — worked so well that they seemed like magic.
Thermos has been updating its line of products, including its signature beverage bottles. The container featured here ain’t your parents’ Thermos. This lightweight, double-wall vacuum-insulated Food Jar with Folding Spoon comes with a stainless steel folding spoon that fits neatly into a storage compartment, which, by the way, has enough room to hold condiments and other small items. The Food Jar keeps your meal hot or cold, just the way you (and Archie) like it — and it looks cool to boot.
Posted January 13, 2006 by Mariva in gadgets, gifts, health, home, innovations, kitchen, travel
Congratulations to my acquaintance and email buddy Farai Chideya for completing the AIDS Marathon in Dublin, Ireland. I love her renditions of ’80s pop tunes, sung exhaustedly at around mile twenty. I’ve always thought she was beautiful, and I’m sure she looks fantastic now after all that training.
Posted January 4, 2006 by Mariva in community, health, news
I belong to a small, privately owned gym in my neighborhood. Although I like the atmosphere (I’ve made friends there and the current owner is genuinely interested in his customers’ fitness), I’ve been thinking about switching to a larger gym with more equipment. I tried out the local 24 Hour Fitness for a day and was impressed with the facilities, which seemed immense by comparison. But I’ve delayed joining because of the fee structure; unlike my current gym, which charges a monthly fee in a no-nonsense manner (a small discount applies when paying for six months or a year in advance), 24 Hour Fitness piles on seemingly arbitrary fees (an "enrollment" fee, a "processing" fee) in addition to the regular subscription fee. The company runs various promotions throughout the year — and options for one-gym or all-gym membership, etc. — but it’s impossible to get the price for what you want over the phone.
The object is to get you to come in to the facility in person so that you can be intimidated by various high-pressure sales tactics — like, for example, leading a young woman through a dark labyrinth of hallways into a windowless room so that the sales representative (the "good cop") and his obnoxious manager (the "bad cop") could badger her, waste her time and ask her a series of personal questions that have nothing to do with joining a gym. (This happened to me in another city about twelve years ago.) I thought it might be time to give 24 Hour Fitness another chance — until I Googled this, this, and most frightening of all, this. Yikes! Forget it; I’m sticking with my nice little gym for now.
Although I no longer believe in New Year’s resolutions, I realize that this is the biggest week of the year for renewed interest in exercise and diet plans. So here’s what’s available:
- Discovery Health Channel Body Challenge 2006: Sign up to get a free eight-week membership to Bally Total Fitness, a customized online meal plan, a personalized weight and activity tracker, expert info on weight loss and healthy lifestyle (for all ages), and over one hundred recipes.
- SparkPeople: Free membership includes support and motivation, a personalized diet plan, a daily nutrition guide, a customized fitness plan and expert assistance. If there’s a catch, I don’t know what it is.
- Diet.com also has a 2006 Challenge, this one specifically to lose 25 pounds by spring. (Take the free “Diet Personality Test” to get started.)
- eDiets.com: The sheer volume of solid information and support here is impressive, making it one of the most comprehensive online weight-loss resources available. You can get a free Total Body Makeover profile from Bob Greene, personal trainer to Oprah Winfrey. If you decide to join the Total Body Makeover program — or another of the various plans available (high-fiber, kids’ program, vegetarian, etc.) — it’s about $16 per month.
- Total Body Makeover: Bob Greene’s own site, complete with helpful articles on emotional eating.
Other resources:
- Fitness Jumpsite: An activity calorie counter and fitness library, which includes information on physical activity, fitness equipment, weight management and nutrition.
- FitnessOnline.com includes fitness calculators for weight-loss potential, body mass index, ideal weight, calories burned, sleep deprivation and pregnancy due date.
- Oprah’s new year weight loss: Chock full of information on exercise and nutrition, plus Oprah’s ambitious "Boot Camp" program, weight-related articles and healthy recipes.
- "Home Workouts: No Lines, Fees or Strangers": A New York Times article on how to exercise at home — and along those lines:
- Collage Video: The best collection of exercise videos and accessories. My favorite strength training video is Tamilee Webb’s highly rated Science of Fitness: I Want That Body! (silly name, I know, but the exercises are fantastic).
- answers to common excuses not to exercise, presented by Woman’s Day magazine.
- NBC’s The Biggest Loser weight-loss reality TV show.
- Dr. Phil’s weight loss advice.
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Posted January 3, 2006 by Mariva in health, resources
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When I was conducting research for my post on scented paper, I came across some interesting smell-related sites: |
- Better Living with Essential Oils: information about and uses for essential oils for body and home care. #24 is instructions on infusing scents into paper, although I would suggest adding the drops of essential oils to a cotton pad rather than directly onto the paper.
Posted December 29, 2005 by Mariva in bath & spa, beauty, education, health, home, resources
A cup of tea, the big newspaper (or a good book) and feet soaking in warm bubbling water — can you imagine a better way to spend Sunday mornings in winter? The only challenge to this cozy scenario is how to keep the water warm in the foot bath. I grew frustrated with having to get up to refill the foot bath in the middle of a relaxing soak because the water had become tepid. Unlike other foot spa baths, the HoMedics JetSpa Ultra Jet Action Pedicure Footbath not only actually keeps the water warm (even hot!), it can heat up cold water via its own safe heating mechanism. The bubbles and jet action are nice, too. It comes with a brush and pumice stone pedicure attachments, but I never use them. The system is great for softening toenails for a spa-quality pedicure. So no more annoying refill interruptions — you can keep your feet in this thing until your soles wrinkle and you’ve gotten through the entire paper.
Available for under $60 here and here.
Posted December 26, 2005 by Mariva in bath & spa, beauty, gifts, health, home
Every October, I find the closest flu shot clinic via Maxim Health Systems and schedule the 15-minute, $25 vaccine. This year, while waiting for the nurse to jab me (I don’t think I’ll ever stop hating needles), I asked her, rather naively, "Now, this won’t prevent avian flu, will it?"
"No," she said emphatically. "In fact, we currently have nothing for avian flu, which is why the threat is so devastating." I told her that I should probably know more, but I’ve been avoiding the news about it because it seems so hopeless.
"Don’t think about it," she advised. "There’s nothing you can do about it anyway, so just don’t think about it."
Don’t think about a white bear.
While you’re not thinking about it, here is some info:
U.S. government Pandemic Flu site
Dr. Dean Edell, who said in a news interview that the U.S. government’s response to the avian flu threat is "a too little, too late."
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
World Health Organization (WHO)
Avian Flu blog
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Posted November 1, 2005 by Mariva in health, news, resources
