Several months ago, I signed at Twitter as vtgirl, and them more recently, Ken and I have been building a little personal site, so we got lauraandken just for fun. No problem right? But here’s the thing. . .friends are starting to follow me and I haven’t ever put up any messages.  Honestly, none.  Just the infamous “this is a test.”

Now I have to start coming up with witty 140 character observations of the world.  I’m setting myself up for failure here. . .

Glad to hear, I am not alone in my guilt, ask Steven Levy of Wired Magazine

Here are my three favorite vacation planning finds:

• Download Lonely Planet Chapters: Since we are only making three stops in the Virgin Islands it is silly to pay $24.95 for a guide book, but in the lonely planet online shop you can download certain chapters of their larger and fantastic travel books. So for $6.95, I was able to go into their guide books — search for my particular ports and print just that chapter for $1.95-$3.95.  So I printed them and threw them into a binder and now I have a personalized guide book that outlines exactly where Ken and I are going without having to bypass a lot of other information.
• TripAdvisor:  I’ve used trip advisor in the past occasionally, but as I’m trying to find out real details about locations — which whale watching company should we use in Samana?  Where is the best fresh seafood in Tortola?  The reviews and advice on trip advisor is great.  I’m going to make sure to add all my details from my trips when I get back because their advice has helped me so much.
• Virtual Tourist:  I didn’t actually end up using this site, but if you are headed on a trip and don’t have the luxury of your own blog to update everyone back home, Virtual Tourist lets you create your own travel blog, design maps of your travels, post photos, etc.  It is a great for the non-techy traveler who wants to share their adventures online easily.

So after I found these gems of travel ease I found an article about women and men’s packing style.  In fact, Ken and I just had a talk about the quantity of stuff we are bringing last night.  We are trying to coordinate outfits, working to keep luggage to two large suitcases, but I’m finding it almost impossible.  I guess this artice from the Mail Online is why. . ..

However, a leading psychologist today said that the ‘over-packing’ should not be seen as a fault as it demonstrates women’s ability to plan for every eventuality.

Cary Cooper, professor of organizational psychology at Lancaster University, said that women only packed too many clothes because they had greater foresight than men. “Women are planners and they look at every eventuality. They are also likely to think ‘better to be safe than sorry’. This is why they pack so many clothes when they go on holiday. And what’s wrong with packing too much? It’s better than packing too little which is what men are likely to be guilty of” he said.

To follow our adventure check out lauraandken.com for our calendar.  Bon Voyage!

Ken and I have had two days of Valentine celebrations.  It started yesterday with a nice lunch at Farestart, a community group that owns a great restaurant in downtown Seattle.  Then to Banya 5, a spa/turkish bath.  We had full body salt scrubs, massages, and lounged in hot tubs all afternoon.  Then home for spaghetti and meatballs and a romantic movie — Wanted (which was neither romantic or fun for that matter). Then this morning a little brunch of coffee cake, fruit, and screwdrivers.

But above and beyond all the sweetness, my partner Ken got me the best little pink laptop.  A new netbook, so I won’t have to drag my giant mac book pro to interviews and meetings.  Not to mention that it also has a bunch of games I love.  I couldn’t be happier.  What a love I have.

My interest in this subject comes from a memory – a trip to the beach in Edmonds, Washington. One Saturday, my tall and lanky father took me with him to collect gallons of sea water. He was working for Honeywell, the Microsoft of Bellevue during the 70’s. The huge green army containers made my father huff and pant, lugging them to the car across a beach empty of swimmers, the afternoon cool, gray and sprinkling rain.

He was collecting the sea water to help his team. He was one of a group of men who had designed the enclosure for the original ‘Black Box’. That was what my father was good at: designing successful enclosures.

Here’s the link to the site: BLACK BOX

Go get em boys!!!

I wasn’t having fun with it until I found a new Jabber server to link up to (xochat.org).

Now, I have a community! We’re all hippy gadget freaks!

The computer is supposed to last for 5 years. Originally, it was supposed to have a crank on the side to juice the device up. That proved problematic and so a battery was installed instead.

It’s very easy to use, and comes with a built in camera, a microphone.

Here are a few links to what it’s all about

• The OLPC Wiki
• Info about the GREEN MACHINE
• The processor designer and 50×15 supporter: AMD

Stay tuned for more…

The mountain has been summited and a company is now selling energy efficient solar cells at inexpensive pricing and high output. This means there are more efficient and less expensive version to come, using a solar cell ‘printing’ technology developed by NanoSolar of California.

Watch the vid!!!

However, if we are going to be a video game household, at least we can use it to get fit!

Or Even better. . .I can just make fun of it at WiiHealthy

http://ibnlive.com/news/indian-doc-develops-enzyme-that-can-destroy-hiv/48654-17.html

Read up and spread the good word…

But I had to come out of my informal retirement to write 5 little, but important words. . .

THE NEW IPOD IS HERE!

And the world is right again.