Holiday Gift Guide: USB gifts

Great for the cubicle dweller, the young myspacer/facebooker, or the constant websurfer- these gifts take advantage of of the power source at your fingertips.

USB cup warmer and chiller
If you need a gift for someone who spends way too much time in their cubicle or office and are not blessed to have their own coffee-fetcher or are just too far from the communal kitchen, then this USB powered device will solve all beverage problems. Great gift that I would have loved in my corporate days. Keeps cold things cold and hot things hot. Chills and warms.

$24.99 at Thinkgeek

USB Basketball hoop



A present for basketball lovers when they need a break from the small screen. Plug into the USB port and play. A gift for the basketball fan or athlete.

$24.99 at perpetualkid

USB George Foreman igrill


For the snacking websurfer, this George Foreman igrill can cook up hamburgers or steaks without a trip to the kitchen. A gag gift for the overworked, perpetually hungry, or just plain lazy computer user.

$99 at thinkgeek

USB Heated slippers

These heated slippers provide cold feet comfort for drafty offices, cold bedrooms, and the winter blues. The perfect gift for the perpetually cold. Gloves are also available.

$25 at usbgeek

USB Desktop Aquarium

Adds a little (in)human touch to the workspace or the desk of an always connected student or teen, the USB Desktop Aquarium is the perfect gift for a coworker, friend, child, or parent.

$9.95 at x-treme geek

Layover in Philadelphia? What to do....

I have very little tolerance for long layovers. It seems that I hardly ever have to stop over in an interesting place and if I do, I don't have long enough to make the long trek from the airport to the good stuff.

Philadelphia is the perfect city to enjoy a long layover. It's vibrant, interesting, fun, and accessible. The airport is extremely close to the downtown area and the grid is easy to navigate. There's something for everyone in Philly.

Still life bowl

You no longer have to be an artist to create a still life for your room. A bit tongue-in-cheek, the still life bowl designed by Barnaby Barford and Andre Klauser frames your fruit and other produce into an immediate work of art.

$79 at generate

Saggy balls

Catchy blog titles aside, these ceramic bowls look like deflated basketball and soccer balls in need of a good pump. Ahem. Fruitballs are a great buy for the sports lover in need of a new chip bowl or for cubicle dwellers in need of a catchall for their desk.

$59.95 at firebox

5 best weekend brunch spots in Greenwich Village and eating tours in NYC

I've been writing NYC guidebook copy for a long time, so I've never had the chance to take an official tour of Manhattan. I'm used to seeing the double-decker tour buses around town, and have always wanted to take a ride. But I'm constantly pounding the pavement for the real deal, so it has always seemed a little too time-consuming and ridiculous to pay for the bus ride.

But I have purchased this Big Onion multi-ethnic eating and walking tour before as a gift, because an eating tour sounds like the best way to do it. The tour is done on the Lower east side, which is where I often find myself these days, as it's now 'the neighborhood'. But alongside the newest restaurants and shops, this neighborhood is still home to some of the best food from Italy, China, Eastern Europe, and the Dominican Republic.

If you want to hit the pavement yourself and you find yourself in need of sustenance (solid and liquid), then here are my picks for the 5 best weekend brunch spots in Greenwich Village.

kapoosh UNIVERSAL knife block

Thousands of rods shift and rearrange to make room for your knives and other big utensils, whatever their dimensions or brands. I'm guessing that the counter-space-stealing-slot-based knife blocks will soon be a thing of the past.

$49.99 on amazon

Girl Scout cookie ice cream

I don't know how to get my hands on Girl Scout cookies since I left my old company and I can't buy through the children of co-workers.

So I was excited when I heard about Edy's Girl Scout cookie ice cream. Only available during the "season" (January - April), Edy's makes Samoa, Tagalong, and Thin Mint flavors. Check your local supermarket for the limited edition tubs, because the only thing better than frozen Thin Mints is frozen Thin Mint chunks in ice cream.