Let’s take a look in the “oh oh oh! gimme gimme, I neeeeed it, I’m sure” category. Here we are: A $30,000 humongous three dimensional spherical labyrinth aptly titled “The Superplexus”. Check it out.

It’s large, 36 inches in diameter, and holds a hand made wooden track longer than a football field if laid out flat. The object, like other labyrinths, is to roll the marble from one end of the track to the other without falling off the track. I particularly admire the “complex network of chicanes, multi-planar hairpin turns, spirals, and staircases–even a vortex.” Wow a vortex! I’m stoked already!

More importantly I saw a tie-in with autistic/spectrum kids when I read ” … [this] challenges the limits of your manual dexterity and spatial understanding …” from Hammacher. This relates to how Google has found that “people with autism tend to be visually and spatially gifted” from their SketchUp 3D software.

How’s that for awesome? I say let’s all buy one right now!
Plus Free Shipping on orders over $99 at Hammacher Schlemmer with Code: FEBSHIPS – Limited Time Offer What are you waiting for?

Did you know there is no “right way” to meditate? Anything that allows you to become relaxed and centered is the “right way” for you. Maybe that’s a walk around the block, singing along with an uplifting album, or sitting in your favorite chair and just breathing deeply. Yet no matter what meditation methods you prefer, our bodies respond in the same ways when we enter a relaxed and centered state. It’s called coherence: a highly efficient psychological state where all the systems of the body work together in harmony. Thanks to biofeedback machines we can actually measure how “coherent” our bodies are. Wild Divine offers 2 products that allow the user to instantly measure their coherence level, and even better, to learn to bring their body to coherence at any given time.

Both of Wild Divine’s products combine biofeedback data with an enlightening interactive format. Their flagship product, Healing Rhythms is described as a “guided training program” and is better suited for adults and teens. The Passage: Journey to Wild Divine is presented as a beautiful interactive game and is adventurous fun for all ages. (There is another game – Wisdom Quest – that can also be used with The Passage.) Here’s a video clip of The Passage:

Even if you have never meditated before, the very act of watching your biofeedback levels will begin to bring you into a state of calm. Playing with the games will bring anyone into a deeper state of inner peace. The manufacturers don’t talk about the health benefits much, but that’s the part I find especially amazing. The biofeedback unit measures the Heart Rate Variability, and HRV is the best predictor of future mortality and morbidity than any of the standard risk factors (cholesterol, smoking, exercise levels, etc). That means using a Wild Divine product helps us learn to be relax while transforming our health, too. Now that’s holistic health care.

Besides the game versus training format of the two systems, my research shows one other consideration. The Passage game system does not come with detailed graphing abilities, but separate Grapher Expansion software is available. This is the package I will be purchasing, because I want the flexibility of lots of game play but still have the option to just quietly watch my body’s rhythms. Plus, I can add the Wisdom Quest game later if I want.

This certainly isn’t the only way how to meditate, but it is an innovative new tool that promises to open humanity’s understanding about the body-mind connection. Have you tried any of the Wild Divine biofeedback products? We would love to hear your feedback!

Image courtesy of Hector Landaeta.

Guess what we’ve been doing lately? Just like every September and October, our brains and lives get totally into Halloween mode while we work on our Halloween Costume section and our Halloween website. After a ton of research and harnessing our Halloween Super Senses, we’ve completed our Hot Halloween Costumes List for 2008! It’s full of the best, most popular costume ideas for everyone in the family;

• Girls Costumes
• Boys Costumes
• Women Costumes
• Children Costumes

Whether you need an awesome costume idea or are just curious about what the trends will be like this Halloween, check out our list! If you’re a big Halloween fan like us, be sure to visit our other site 365 Halloween and subscribe to the RSS feed. When October rolls around we don’t do much else besides keep 365Halloween.com updated every day, so it’s always lively over there!

Image (c) roboppy

A couple months ago a friend emailed to tell me about a berry that I “might be interested in”. She pointed me to the now infamous NY Times article about the “Miracle Fruit“, and I proceeded to flip out. For those of you who haven’t been introduced to this truly magical berry, it makes sour things taste sweet and food in general just tastes better. How exciting is that? It contains a substance called “miraculin” that binds with your taste buds for up to 2 hours of “everything tastes like heaven” fun. Wow, talk about a natural sweetener. Sign me up!

But there’s just one problem: availability. Wikipedia says Miracle Fruit was documented way back in 1725, yet it only gained popularity in America in 2008, thanks largely to the “flavor trippers” referenced in the NY Times article. Without a solid growing infrastructure in place, it’s been really difficult to obtain the berries or the packaged tablets. Most retailers run out of stock for months at a time! I tried to find some seeds so I could grow my own, but at the time nobody had any stock available.

This morning I opened up an email from my homies at Think Geek and almost fell out of my chair when I saw they are now selling Miracle Fruit tablets! The date on the email said it arrived yesterday, but by the time I arrived at their site they were already sold out and taking backorders. Noooo! But since Think Geek is located in the USA (unlike most retailers) and has amazing customer service, I’m just going to backorder a couple packs now. What can I say, I have an insatiable sweet tooth and the idea of sucking on a lemon and having it taste like candy is too novel to resist.

Every story I’ve heard about Miracle Fruit has been funny and amazing. If you’ve tried this miraculous berry, please share your story in the comments. I’ll report back when my shipment arrives

PS- I predict that this berry is going to be so instrumental in getting people to eat healthy. We’ll start by eating a miracle berry before a big leafy green salad – you know, so even the most picky tastebuds can “tolerate” real food. Then we’ll only need a half berry as our bodies become used to eating well. Then one day we’ll realize that we don’t even need to “flavor trip” anymore. Did this idea occur to anyone else?

We’re barely a week into summer and now feels like a great time to try something new. In an effort to inspire ourselves and create an entirely eco-fashion friendly wardrobe, we’ve decided to take the Wardrobe Refashion Pledge:

We, Mables.com, pledge that we shall abstain from the purchase of “new” manufactured items of clothing, for the period of 4 months. We pledge that we shall refashion, renovate, recycle preloved items for ourselves with our own hands in fabric, yarn or other medium for the term of my contract. We pledge that we will share the love and post a photo of our refashioned, renovated, recycled, crafted or created item of clothing on the Wardrobe Refashion blog, so that others may share the joy that thy thriftyness brings! Signed Lauren & Sean

So from July 1st – October 1st we’ll be sharing our adventures with creating, living in, and loving our “preloved” wardrobes. Honestly, being huge fans of vintage and reconstructed clothing, this won’t be a big stretch from what we’re already doing. We like the idea of making a commitment to it though, and sharing our journey with others. We look forward to trying out new refashioning techniques, scouring vintage clothing stores on eBay and better connecting with the sources of our clothes.

Are you interested in taking the Wardrobe Refashion pledge with us? You can sign up for 2, 4, or 6 month period and rest assured you will be in great company. This is the 3rd year and participation gets bigger each time. There are currently over 400 members in the Flickr pool! Whether or not you’ll be joining us in this DIY fashion adventure, what do you think of the idea? Could you avoid buying new clothes for a few months?

It’s been a long day on teh Interwebz. I’ve been glued to my laptop most of the day doing nerdy behind-the-scenes work for Mable’s and our Halloween website. Kinda fun, but rather tedious work.

But you know what makes it all better? Perpetual Kid is having a Spring Cleaning Warehouse Sale. A bunch of their items are marked down 20% – 70% off. Now would be a good time to stock up on Dead body Towels for company and replace that busted travel hula hoop of yours. Sheesh, why am I still writing this, I could be securing a lifetime supply of Cocktail Monkey necklaces right now.

Even better is their newest item: novelty ice cubes in the shape of… wait for it… dentures. (If this is your first visit and you weren’t sure what to expect from a “Unique Gifts Blog”, you now know just what you’re in for.) It’s official: these chompy cool treats are going to be the official ice cube at Mable’s HQ this summer.

Hammacher Schlemmer just released their new product catalog for Spring 2008 and it’s got lots of people in a tizzy due to it’s sheer awesomeness. For those of us no longer using outdated technology like a printed catalog need to visit their site out for the sweet items.

Inside the catalog, i-Sobot stands out from the crowd since being recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as “The smallest humanoid robot in production” and Hammacher has it at the lowest price available online. Watch the video on their site to get a taste of the robot’s impressive skills like a 200 word vocabulary, 180 programmed movements, and witty responses to verbal commands.

On the more extravagant side of the spectrum is a – perfect for summer – Single-seat Water Cycle, priced at a whopping $2,999. Basically it is a recumbent bicycle strapped to a funky kayak that can go up to 7 MPH (as fast as an Olympic swimmer, and faster than most paddle boats), as well as a lifetime guarantee from Hammacher. Get yourself in a tizzy.

Spring is here, and the sales are sprouting up everywhere. Right now you can get an extra 25% off of already reduced prices for the Spring Cleaning Sale at BuyCostumes. More than just a costume shop, BuyCostumes is also a party supply store with great prices on party accessories for all types of party themes. They also carry awesome decor items, wigs, hats, makeup and accessories.

COUPON: Get an extra 25% off by using Coupon Code SPRING25 during checkout.

Can’t think of what you need to get? How about some Luau decorations for that backyard party this summer, or that graduation party that’s so fast approaching. Perhaps a costume for little Susy’s school project, or maybe even get a head start on your Halloween costume? Just keep your mind open and hurry up and save!

Many of us think of everyday items like a car, clothes, electrical devices, etc. when we think of a green gift. Mable’s wants to expand your thinking to notice the things that are eco-friendly without the added manufacturing and marketing.

This blog post we are featuring Back to Basics Toys because, they carry a vast amount of wooden toys and games that aren’t just fun, but also educational and award winning. But, how is a wood toy more green?

Reasons why Wood is Good: Longevity of items (say no to planned obsolescence) , Perfect for your child’s development, Non toxic material, and many are American made, which avoids the need for shipping overseas.

Mable’s wants to remind you that everyday is Earth day and every decision we make has an effect, so let’s do the best we can everyday.

It was only a few days ago we were saying how cool it would be if Threadless reprinted the Staby McKnife design so we could get one. They must have read our minds, because we soon received their newsletter with another opportunity to purchase this friendly knife. W00t for reprints!

Also just announced is the 2007 Bestee Award Winners where you can view the designs of the year, best collaboration designs, groundbreaking design of the year, best use of one color, and more.

Although our friend Staby McKnife didn’t win any awards, another reprint did win Slogan of the Year. Get it while it’s hot.