Laguna Beach beckons and never disappoints

This Fine Art Print by John Comer is available at www.art.com

NEW SKYSCRAPER TO GATHER ENERGY FROM THE WIND AND THE SUN

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP have won an international competition for construction of one of the world's most sustainable skyscrapers in China. SOM in collaboration with Guangzhou Pearl River Engineering Construction Supervision Corp. and with the support of Guangzhou Design Institute, are to design the Pearl River Tower, headquarters of the CNTC Guangdong Company. The 69 storey building will be built in Guangzhou, a city of more than 6 million people 182 kilometres from Hong Kong. "This project represents our commitment to sustainable design,' says Thomas Kerwin of SOM. 'It also represents our commitment and spirit of mutual collaboration with China's design professionals, government and industry in pushing sustainable design best-practices."

The "skyscraper for a new age", as it has been called, is designed to produce more energy than it consumes. The Pearl River Tower gathers energy from the wind and the sun: it uses wind power for ventilation and air conditioning, solar power for heating and electricity. (www.som.com/)

LOUIS RUKEYSER (1933-2006)

It's been a long time since you shared with us those pearls of wisdom with a dash of humor and wit on Wall Street Week. Friday nights will never be the same. We miss you Lou.

SOMEWHERE IN WEST VIRGINIA THERE'S A VERY TALENTED PHOTOGRAPHER CLICKING AWAY . . .

I don't know who took this spectacular shot of the New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia but they produced a breathtaking image!

WITCH'S LAIR: THE SPADENA HOUSE

This witch's lair of fairy-tale proportions, concocted in 1921 from a brew straight out of the Brothers Grimm, may be a cliché by now, yet it still dares to say what is often kept quiet.

With its raked plaster and river rock, aversion to straight lines, a shingle roof with ski-slope severity, mullioned windows and off-kilter shutters, it is the "Rocky Horror" of domestic architecture, "Gods and Monsters" come home to roost. Designed by Harry Oliver in 1921 as movie set, it became an office, and then a home, and it's what real estate is all about — fantasy.

But taking exaggerated leaps is a dying art. Our homes are either quiet and respectable or self-important and self-conscious. Few try to have it both ways and succeed. Located in Beverly Hills, CA.

How many times have you passed this fountain ??

At night, the Electric Fountain in Beverly Gardens Park is lit by an ever-changing display of colored lights, allowing for 60 different effects every 8 minutes. The fountain was built in 1931 by artist Merrel Gage, with funds raised by the mother of actor Harold Lloyd. (where Santa Monica Blvd. meets Wilshire Blvd. in Beverly Hills, CA)

Remembering . . . what Venice once was

Step into a hand-painted postcard from Venice beach, circa 1910, and you'll be wandering inside California's first theme park. The idea that someone would dig canals and raise arched bridges so that you could wave over a gondolier proves that the dreamers of Southern California went a little too far — and were proud of it.

Mailed to some Eastern city, on a winter day, not long before the sinking of the Titanic, you can hear the postcard landing in an empty mail slot. Outside, snow is falling. Elm trees cast skeletal shadows against distant brownstones, and in your hands is something unbelievable. The image is small, and the lighting reminds you of the Mediterranean. You saw it once on a trip to Italy, where there never seem to be shadows, even in the brightest sunlight. Here is a gondola, crowded with well-dressed men and women, being sculled on a canal that looks like nothing in Venice — or at least the Venice that you know. Alongside are two young boys, modern-day Tom Sawyers, in a wooden canoe, and in the distance, there's a high, arching bridge and a few homes painted red on a green spit of land set against this powder blue sky.

You rub your eyes. Imagine living there, you think. "Boating on the Canal, Venice, California," the caption reads. Abbot Kinney, the mastermind of the dream, would have wanted it this way.

YOU CAN GET A JUMP ON THE TRAFFIC IF YOU DARE

Every commuter knows that the current system of driving alone to and from work in heavy traffic is crazy, yet there hasn't been any real alternative. Until Commuter Cars came along, no one could buy their way out of a traffic jam without climbing on a motorcycle. We're changing all that with the introduction of the two-seat Tango.

The Tango is a glimpse into the future of commuting. Lane doubling, lane splitting, and perpendicular parking will become commonplace. Traffic-induced headaches and lost time will fade into the past. No more worries about safety as you're ballasted for flat-out cornering stability and protected by a racing-certified roll cage designed to protect you and your passenger. Park in places you wouldn't even dream of in a Mini Cooper. Emission-free and exciting, the electric Tango T600 is designed to beat most sports cars in the quarter mile with acceleration from 0 to 60 mph in just 4 seconds and a top speed of 150 mph!

Prices start at around $18,700 up to $108,000.

THE LADY WAITS

In the Emmy competition, Angela Lansbury, above, is the biggest loser among individuals (if you can call this class act a loser): 18 defeats, no wins, thus tying Susan Lucci at the daytime Emmys. Lucci won on her 19th try.

STUDENTS LEARN ABOUT THE BEAUTY OF YOSEMITE VALLEY

The core of The Haggin Museum's 300-piece art collection was assembled by three generations of the Haggin family. The paintings come primarily from the 19th century, and the artists include: Albert Bierstadt: (1830-1902), Childe Hassam: (1859-1935) and Thomas Moran: (1837-1926). The image above of the students viewing some Yosemite art is so beautiful it's a work of art itself.

ZERO TO 60 IN JUST FOUR SECONDS AND NO GAS TO BUY

Tesla, the upstart auto company based in Silicon Valley, unveiled its all-electric Roadster at a swank affair in Santa Monica last week. To appreciate the Tesla, it helps to compare it to the much-lamented EV1, GM's purpose-built electric car that was, in the mid-1990s, the most advanced vehicle of its kind. The Tesla Roadster has a range of 250 miles, says the company. The EV1, with the best nickel metal hydride batteries, could go about 150 miles under ideal conditions. A full charge of the EV1 could take eight hours. The Tesla's lithium-ion batteries can be raised from the dead to a full charge in 3 1/2 hours and, unlike the EV1, the Tesla will come with its own portable charging pack so it won't be range-tethered to its home charging station.

Big brakes, racy suspension, optional leather and navigation system, air conditioning, heated seats. There's even room for golf clubs. With the Tesla, the electric car seems poised to move past its groovy-granola beginnings. Tesla isn't the only bolt of battery-powered lightning out there. A Monaco-based company called Venturi has a production-ready electric sports car, the Fetish, which is nearly identical to the Tesla in size, weight, power, range and performance. The big difference is price: Compared with the $600,000-plus Venturi, the production Tesla ( about $85,000, due on sale in late 2007) might as well be sold at Best Buy.

The Wrightspeed X1 prototype, the work of another Silicon Valley startup, is based on the lattice-frame, open-wheel Ariel Atom built in England. It's even quicker: 0 to 60 mph in three seconds, with a quarter-mile time of 11.5 seconds. There's also the Tango commuter car, an oddly shaped four-wheel electric car-cum-motorcycle (sold as a kit car) whose most famous owner certainly is actor George Clooney. With its two motors serving up more than 1,000 pound-feet of combined torque, the Tango's acceleration is "like getting shot out of a cannon," says Tango president Rick Woodbury. During a summer when a popular documentary asks, "Who Killed the Electric Car?," the electric car seems to be contrarily alive and well and going like a bat out of hell. (excerpts from the article by Dan Neil in the Los Angeles Times)

ITALIAN ELAN WITH GOOD SWEDISH BONES

Two cars in one: Push a button and the roof of the Volvo C70 T5 disassembles itself into three pieces,
which arrange themselves in a stack before descending into the trunk space, after which the deck lid clamshells shut on top. All in 30 seconds.
Here's the spiffy finished product--Base price: $38,710 with 218 Horsepower and EPA fuel economy of 21 miles per gallon city and 29 mpg highway.

MAGNIFICENCE: SOUTH AMERICAN STYLE

Observe the awe factor in South America: Devil's Throat is the largest of almost 300 waterfalls that constitute Iguazú Falls in Iguazú National Park, on the border of Argentina and Brazil. Taller than Niagara Falls and four times as wide, Iguazú spans almost 3 miles. Kari Williams of San Francisco took this photo of Devil’s Throat.

MOOD LIGHTING

"It captures the essence of Amsterdam at night," says Robert Perry, who took this photo last year at the Prinsengracht Canal. He strapped his camera to a bridge, used a slow shutter speed and set the timer, so he didn't have to press any buttons and risk blurring the warm city lights or the 17th century Westerkerk tower rising in the distance.

Is there anything more beautiful than a butterfly ??

This photo was taken in Vancouver's Butterfly Gardens.

Mystical and Beautiful

Grouse Mountain near Vancouver, Canada

SIDEKICKS RULE

Jackie Gleason never won an Emmy, but his costar Art Carney (above with Gleason and Jayne Meadows), won five for "The Honeymooners" and "The Jackie Gleason Show." Andy Griffith, below with costar Don Knotts, shared Gleason's luck, never having won for his comedy series, but Knotts won five times.

IF SAND CASTLES ARE YOUR FANTASY . . .

Here are some entries from the Harrisand World Championship Sand Sculpture in Harrison Hot Springs near Vancouver, Canada.
Click to enlarge. Many more images can be found at: http://harrisand.org

How many triangles can you count ??

Somebody counted 72, another said 92, and the answer is supposed to be 97.

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT ??

This is a creation done for the "Worth a Thousand Words" contest: (http://www.worth1000.com/)
Here's another one: It's a Tiger Wabbit.