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kgb_ Special Agents are tireless and relentless in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on new age lifestyles:

What’s the caveman lifestyle?

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A small subculture of New York City folks are aspiring cavemen.  With good health as the goal, cavemen are setting up meat lockers in their homes to serve as a resting place for organ meat and deer ribs.

The caveman lifestyle focuses on the consumption of vast quantities of meat coupled with a period of fasting between meals.  (Vacillating between pigging out and fasting mimics Paleolithic man’s eating patterns between hunts.)

Followers of the caveman lifestyle consume fruits and vegetables but avoid bread (it wasn’t around back then.) They see the human form as specifically designed for hunting and gathering and, as a result, participate in exercises activities that involve sprinting and jumping.  (Act like you’re avoiding a mastodon.)

The group of followers of the caveman lifestyle took it up after researching health concerns online.  They read about the merits of paleolithic diets and evolutionary fitness routines like leaping between boulders and playing catch with stones.

The few women involved in the movement prefer the term “hunter-gatherer” over caveman and some cavemen-types prefer the term “paleo man.”

One of the most interesting features of the caveman lifestyle is the promotion of donating blood frequently.  Why?  The idea is that the hardships of caveman life probably left humans short a pint of blood from time to time.

Take a look at the paleo group in New York and you’ll see lean, muscular people with glowing skin.  Some report they no longer get sick.  But don’t ask a paleo man to eat a tomato.  They’re part of the nightshade family and weren’t around in caveman times.

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Source:   The New Age Cavemen and the City

kgb_ Special Agents are tireless and relentless in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on the products of infomercials:

Is any of the stuff sold on infomercials any good?

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Historically speaking, the infomercial dates back to the 1960s when Ron Popeil pioneered the Ronco Veg-o-Matic and marketed it to America.

Today, marketing experts suggest that television and film editing can, frankly, make anything look good.  Statistics suggest that about half of infomercial products deliver what they promise.  30 percent deliver, but do it expensively, and the rest of the products are, well, junk.

Consumer Reports (CR) has plenty to share about infomercial products and here is a sampling:

Slap Chop

Pitchman Vince Shlomi suggests that “You’re going to have an exciting life now” with the gadget that can “dice, chop, and mince in seconds” and remove skins from onions and garlic.

CR found it to chop unevenly and some foods get stuck in the blades.  The splash guard frequently becomes misaligned and hands can get sore from the ergonomics of the product.

Magic Jack

Magic Jack, a VoIP (voice over Internet protocol) phone device and service, “makes your monthly phone bill disappear,” an online ad says. “Save hundreds, even thousands, of dollars” and get “no more poor reception.” You plug Magic Jack into a computer’s USB port, plug the line cord of your own phone into the other end of the USB adapter, and Magic Jack uses the Internet to make and receive calls.

CR actually likes this product.  Calls connect, voice quality is clear, though not a clear as a quality corded phone on a regular line.  A few minor limitations but less expensive than Vonage and Skype.

PedEgg

This foot file removes calluses and dead skin to “make your feet feel smooth and healthy with NO MESS!” Powdery filings collect in a little compartment.

CR suggests you crack open a PedEgg as it does a very good job of removing callouses and dry skin – better than a pumice stone.  It is suggested that the PedEgg be used over a wastebasket as some filings escape.

Ab Circle Pro

Makers claim it will “firm and flatten your stomach in just weeks” and “takes just three minutes a day.” It comes with a nutrition plan and a workout DVD.

CR suggests that three minutes as day won’t do much and the device burns no more calories than brisk walking.  The nutrition plan is so strict that most will lose weight on that alone, sans the device.  Only three panelists out of a panel of thirteen reviewers would consider purchasing it.

10 Worst Infomercials

Have a favorite infomercial?

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Source:   Should you ‘Buy This Now!’?

kgb_ Special Agents are tireless and relentless in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on what’s in and out for 2010:

What’s on the “in” list for 2010?

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Here are some of the highlights of the Washington Post’s What’s In and Out for 2010:

The Jonas Brothers are out and Justin Bieber is in

Justin Bieber is the Canadian pop singer who began his career on YouTube.  His first album was released in November 2009.  Bieber is the only solo artist in Billboard history to have four singles from a debut album chart in the Top 40 of the Hot 100 before the album’s release.

Justin Bieber – One Time

Click here to view the embedded video.

Leggings are out and Pantslessness is in

What is pantslessness?  Think Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) Beyonce video costumes.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Interval Training is out and Muscle Confusion is in

The muscle confusion training principle centers on ensuring that there is a wide variety in the workout.  Muscles grow because sets, reps, exercises and rest periods change to maximize effectiveness.

Fraud is out and Adultery is in

It is estimated that roughly 30 to 60% of all married individuals (in the United States) will engage in infidelity at some point during their marriage.  The internet, e-mail, and chat rooms are making it easier for people to engage in infidelity.

D-List is out and Defriend is in

The New Oxford American Dictionary ignited a debate among Facebook users when it chose “unfriend” as the word of the year for 2009. The word, according to the dictionary, is a verb meaning “to remove someone as a ‘friend’ on a social networking site such as Facebook.” Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes and his friends use the term “defriend” instead.

Small-Batch Bourbon is out and Sweet Tea Vodka is in

Jeremiah Sweet Tea Vodka is a flavored vodka the borders on a liquer due to its extreme sweetness.  It tastes like Southern sweet tea with the medium texture of vodka.

The Summer Scarf is out and the Circle Scarf is in

The unisex circle scarf is a seamless tubular design that comes in a wide variety of fabrics and can be worn many ways.

Rooftop Swimming Pools are out and Dumpster Swimming Pools are in

The “newish” garbage containers aka “dumpsters” are cleaned and lined in plastic, and a filtration system is installed, as on a regular above-ground pool.

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Source:  The List – What’s In and Out for 2010 – The Washington Post

kgb_ Special Agents are voracious and absorbed in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on leisure time reading in America:

Do people really read e-books?

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The book world is changing.

Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com, recently reported that more shoppers bought Kindle e-books than physical books on Christmas Day and Kindle sales set a new Amazon sales record (see video below.)

Writer Nicholas Carr, a lifelong book reader, describes his impatience when he sits down with a book these past few years.  After a few paragraphs he’s thinking about hyperlinks, email and online interaction.  He suggests that the internet is training Americans to read in a “distracted and disjointed way.”

Some suggest that writers will be changing the way they write in order to attract an attention-challenged audience, accustomed to scanning, extracting, and moving on.

Not enough time to curl up with a good e-book?  Novelist Rick Moody recently wrote a story using the Twitter platform.  140-character Twitter posts upon posts upon posts make up the story in its entirety. He compares it to writing haiku.

While many believe that Twitter books won’t have any staying power, some suggest that cell phone novels might have some promise.  Cell phone books are already popular in Japan and have attention-grabbing themes like sex and violence.

The popularity of the Kindle is challenging authors to create text that inspires the reader to scroll, scroll, scroll rather than turn a page.  Satisfying e-books have narrative that is fast -  without slow lingerings around language.

Literary experts say the next decade will tell us whether e-books will push traditional books away from popular culture.

Kindle Sets Amazon Sales Record

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Source:  How E-Books Will Change Reading And Writing

kgb_ Special Agents are forward-thinking and optimistic in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on a newer holiday tradition:

What is Good Riddance Day?

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December 28 brought New Yorkers the third annual Good Riddance Day in Times Square.  The premise is simple:  Bring your unwanted memories of 2009 on paper and let a paper shredder end your misery and give you a cleaner slate for 2010. ( A dumpster and sledge hammer are also provided as needed.)

Folks shred bad relationships, financial woes and even their favorite sports team’s losses in hopes of a better season next year.

In the interest of self improvement, some creative folks bring their own unwanted character traits to shred like procrastination and fear.

New Yorkers who participate describe the experience as “powerful” and “satisfying.”  Staff of the Times Square Alliance, which sponsors the annual event, call it a healthy experience in the spirit of “out with the bad and in with the new” and a cleansing to get ready for the new year.

What would you shred?

Good Riddance Day 2009

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Source:  New Yorkers celebrate ‘Good Riddance Day’ in Times Square by shredding their stuff

kgb_ Special Agents are tireless and relentless in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on a maligned holiday confection, fruitcake:

So what’s actually in fruitcake anyway?

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Millions of Americans dread the thought of receiving it…until perhaps they receive a good one.  Historically, fruitcake in the United States has tasted, well, unsatisfying.   However, today’s fruitcake bakers say it’s the media’s fault.

Johnny Carson once said “I have a theory for many years that there’s only one fruitcake in the entire world, and it keeps getting passed on.”  Each year in Manitou Springs, Colorado, there is an annual fruitcake toss.  The 15th Annual Fruitcake Toss will be January 9, 2010.

The Woullet Bakery in Minnesota sells about 1000 pounds of fruitcake to folks willing to lend a deaf ear to the bad rap and give fruitcake a chance.

What makes the Wuollet fruitcake desirable?  Pecans, cherries, pineapple, dates and a dollop of butter cake batter combine with rum and that’s pretty much it.  The fruit is glazed and candied and the dates are rolled in sugar.  They bake it in 25-pound sheets and then cut it up to avoid crispy edges.

The big secret of the Woullet’s success however is the fact that they tossed a primary ingredient of traditional fruitcake…citron (candied fruit peels.) They just never liked it and decided to make a new kind of  fruitcake.

Fruitcake folklore from the Fruitcake Page

“The First Recorded Fruitcake was in Roman Times, and some believe the fruitcake to be the cause of the fall of the Roman Empire.”

“A little publicized method of determining whether a woman was a witch during the Salem Witch Trials was to offer the suspect a piece of fruitcake. If she ate it and lived, it was considered proof that she was, in fact, a witch.”

Making Christmas Fruitcake

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Source:    Good Question: What’s The Story About Fruitcake?

The Fruitcake Page

kgb_ Special Agents are tireless and relentless in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on reading in 2010:

Any good books coming out in 2010?

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Here’s what’s looking hot for 2010…

Angels.  Angelology by Danielle Trussoni  will be out in 2010.  This follows Trussoni’s memoir, Falling Through The Earth, published in 2006 to great acclaim.

Look for Grave Secret by Charlaine Harris.  Harris tells the story of Harper Connelly who is struck by lightning at 15, leaving her with a red spider’s web all over her body. This is coupled with a unique talent for finding dead folks.

A la Twilight…look for Fallen by Lauren Kate which tells the tale of teenager Lucinda who falls in love with Daniel, a fallen angel who is smart and, of course, drop-dead gorgeous. (Oh that’s right, he already is dead).

Ian McEwan will have a new book out called Solar which will focus on climate change.

Martin Amis will offer up The Pregnant Widow.  Peter Carey serves up Parrot and Olivier In America about a surprise friendship between an aristocrat and a servant.

We’ll be seeing autobiographies of Denise Welch, Carol McGiffin and Lynda Bellingham.  Look for wrestler Hulk Hogan, Aerosmith frontman Steve Tyler and Corrie’s Bev Callard.

The buzz on children’s literature is starting to surround The Death Cloud, the first in a new series by Andrew Lane featuring a young Sherlock Holmes. The iconic detective is reinvented as a brilliant yet troubled teenager.

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Source:  Merry Christmas and a happy new read

kgb_ Special Agents are tireless and relentless in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on dogs with physical challenges:

Can a two-legged dog walk like a human?

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Faith Stringfellow is a lab-chow mix who walks around on two legs like a human.  Faith and her owner, Jude Stringfellow tour the country inspiring folks with disabilities with their “Faith Walks” campaign.

Born to a junkyard dog, rejected, abused and having two shriveled front legs, Faith was rescued by Jude’s son Reuben.  He brought the puppy home to his mother and asked “Can we fix her?”

In the beginning, the family carried Faith around to keep her off her chest and chin.  Then they started using peanut butter as a reward to get her up and moving on her back two legs.  With plenty of Peter Pan and practice, Faith learned to walk on her two hind legs and has become a brisk, steady walker. She runs, hops, skips, and trips less than most humans.  Fortified with vitamins and joint supplements, she’s as healthy as a horse.

Faith and Jude have been on the talk show circuit since 2003 and Faith’s spirit has inspired two books. The pair get more than 200 letters and emails a day from folks inspired by the upright walking dog.  They write about Faith’s powerful message of overcoming adversity.

Faith’s Story

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Source:  Two-legged dog gives hope to disabled Army vets

kgb_ Special Agents are tireless and relentless in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on kindness at holiday time:

What happened at the diner in Philadelphia?

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The Aramingo Diner is a fixture in the Port Richmond section of Philidelphia, PA.  Last Saturday, a couple came in for breakfast, ate their meal, and then paid their check.  Then they did something else…they paid the tab for another table of folks at the restaurant.

The warm and fuzzy part is there is no evidence that they knew the folks they paid for, they just did it.

The wait staff at the diner report that something crazy and wonderful happened after that – for the next several hours, patron after patron after patron, dozens in total, kept it going and picked up someone else’s check.

There were no mentions of concern about the price – tabs ranged from $12 to $30 dollars – they were just quietly paid (including the tip).

All the patrons simply passed the kindness forward.  Like magic.

Diners spread good will by picking up tab

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Source:   Mystery pair at diner spark cascade of giving

kgb_ Special Agents are pointed and relentless in their search for the answers to America’s questions.  And what does America want to know, you ask?  Well, today’s buzz centers on the “bed of nails”:

What is a nail mat?

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Inspired by the classic “bed of nails” famously used by ancient Hindu yogis, the new take on the bed of nails is the Shakti Mat (nail mat).  Touted as a cure-all, the mat is sold to facilitate mental and physical renewel and has taken Europe and the United States by storm.

Over 300,000 of the modern version of the bed of nails have been sold.  Recently, approximately 3,000 people gathered in Sweden to lay on their mats and chant.

Prices range from $50-$115 for a mat containing 4,000-8,000 spikes.  Claims are being made that the nail mats can help decrease pain and inflammation, reduce stress, increase metabolism, improve the complexion, induce relaxation and release tension, and lower blood pressure.

Further claims suggest that the mat can strengthen the immune system, and alleviate headaches, fatigue, depression and insomnia.  The list goes on to include claims that the mat can treat spinal problems, eliminate illness and disease and so on.

With its home base in Sweden, the manufacturers of the Shakti Mat state that the bed of nails is a “well-tested tool” citing the thousands of years it has been in use.  It has a lengthy history of healing the body and improving the mind.

Creation of the Shakti Mats includes rituals and mantras in the temple-factory where they are built.  If you purchase a Shakti mat, it is recommended that you store it hung up in the northeastern corner of your home to insure prosperity, harmony, and accident protection.

For best results, use the bed of nails daily for sessions of 20-40 minutes.  There is a milder version of the product for beginners and those with sensitive skin.  There’s even a “green” version of the nail mat with environment-friendly spikes!

Simon Borg-Oliver on the Shakti Mat

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Source:  “Bed of nails” fad, patterned on ritual of ancient Hindu yogis, engulfs Europe & USA