Through an incredible stroke of (totally deserved, let me assure you) luck, I got an iPhone soon after the shiny little Apple world domination tool cellphone-slash-toy hit the market, but I’ve never really bothered with the myriad third-party apps, hacks, and unlocks that follow the phone around like a stormcloud (of convenience!). That is, until I saw this:

OneTrip Shopping List, a handy little web-based application that lets you compile a shopping list–and check off things as you grab them–on your iPhone. Since I’m so damned absentminded I virtually always end up leaving my list in the kitchen (or don’t even bother to write one), this is a great tool for me, and it’s formatted to perfectly suit the iPhone’s touch interface. Cool stuff!

Of course, Recipe4Living kinda got there first, since its Shopping List function lets you check off specific recipes and automatically compile all the necessary ingredients into one printable MegaList. But if I ever forget said MegaList, now I can whip out my cellphone.

-Jim’s still waiting for Mobile IM, though, c’mon Apple what the eff

Cue that “Ascent of Man” theme from the beginning of 2001.

That, my friends, is a soda cooling comfortably atop a CoolIT USB Beverage Chiller. a fun little doodad that plugs into your computer’s USB port and quickly uses a (mildly annoying) fan to cool a metal plate, upon which you rest the beverage of your choice. Lest you think I’m nerdy enough to buy something like this, I will note that while I probably am it was “re-gifted” to me by a friend just before he moved away, perhaps so whenever I sipped a soda during a 3 AM Halo game I’d think of him.

It seems to work, in a limited capacity, because the bottom of my Diet Coke was colder than the rest of it. Unfortunately the same could not be said for my cup of water (not pictured), but maybe styrofoam doesn’t take to the cooling plate quite so well as aluminum. Of course, my data’s all flawed since I bought the Diet Coke cold from a vending machine, but this only means more experimentation and an excuse to drink even more soft drinks! Perhaps I’ll turn it into a Weekly Libation project and cool some beer or vodka, too.

Geekery has never been so delicious. Now if only that fan hummed instead of buzzed…

Technology is so fun. I can’t wait til there’s a USB-powered hotplate to keep my bagel bites warm while I write the next Great American Novel.

-Jim worked out last night!

I went to Once Upon A Grill today to pick up my usual – chicken matzo ball soup and an egg bagel – and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. No, it wasn’t the food that had me surprised, the food is already good enough: it was more the fact that they had a hand sanitizer next to the door on the way in!

Maybe I’m oblivious and they’ve had it there all this time, but if so, I’ve never noticed it before. And if you know the germophobe in me who constantly carries around a miniature bottle of Purell (or whatever generic brand is on hand, I’m not picky) you’d know how much I appreciate something like this! But, I have to say that most of my mysophobic characteristics come from touching door handles, so, if it were my restaurant, I’d move the sanitizer inside the doors. What’s the point of sanitizing your hands if you’re going to touch the door handle right afterwards? Just a thought…

Has anyone else ever seen hand sanitizers in restaurant entrances before? This was my first sighting, and it was a glorious moment. Funny thing is, not a single person I saw walk in or out used it, not even me (I took my food to the office and used my own hand sanitizer before eating it there.) Will they keep it around? I wonder…

-Hillary, excited to go out to dinner with her brother for his 30th! Happy Birthday Stuart!
Editor, Recipe4Living

I have a confession to make. Most of my adult life I’ve been addicted to fatty and salty foods. Cakes, cookies and candy were not on my radar. But something happened after I started having children. I started to crave chocolate on a daily basis. Of course, recent research has found that chocolate in small quantities is actually good for your heart and helps lift your mood.

Health benefits aside though, I really love a good cookie, especially the kind that comes straight from my oven and contains chocolate chips. And being somewhat of a control freak, I’ve spent years and tons of time trying to get every cookie the perfect shape.

Then one day, a miracle happened. I was given the Crate & Barrel Cookie Dough Scoop. This modern metal marvel is basically a smaller version of the good old fashioned ice cream scoop. But instead of the average ½ cup measurement of the ice cream scoop, this little baby makes perfect cookies in ½ to 1 tablespoon sizes. Now all my cookies are perfectly shaped and baked to perfection. What more could a Cookie Monster want, except some really great cookie recipes? Not all of them require a cookie scoop, but all of them are delicious.