Funkengroovin Wednesday - Little Red Wagons

Next week we celebrate Valentine's Day. So today, VB paints the scene red. These are cars, mostly from the past, that VB has not posted yet. Also, under the news section, is an area for finding just the right gift for your VW lovin' honey.


(Below): Red Bug, which VB always sees in the drive at this apartment complex. She has not had the nerve to go into the driveway to capture a front shot, out of fear of being chased down by a crazy, mad boab.


(Below): Another red Bug, as seen when it drove past VB.



(Below): If VB hits the road where Spectra is, at just the right time, she usually catches a Bus delivering food to the restaurant. Today, she only got the front of the bus, but if you enlarge the photo, you might be able to see a panther on the side. VB's been waiting for this Bus to come back around, for quite some time, to no avail.

The Roastery, which is a restaurant above the Spectra (in the basement), was closed for about a year and a half, while it was being renovated. It's open again, carrying the same menu, but one that looks more like the old Spectra menu. The interior is classier, has two levels (one ground and another on the second floor) and most likely made to garner the same crowd as the Spectra - youngish. They serve no alcohol. The food is so-so. VB liked it better when it was a more causal place. Rumor has it a Chinese restaurant is opening on the second level, above La Cassetta. These are all restaurants located in the Resident Hotel on Road 18, Maadi.



(Below 2 photos): More red Bugs.

NEWS:

Bungee jumper? No, a VW Beetle

Gay friendly cars

The six best sledges in the world!

"Volkswagen Snow Flyer Herbie
Ah, this is more like it. See, Volkswagen? You don’t have to go fast to enjoy the slopes. The Snow Flyer Herbie is modelled on the lunatic Beetle of the same name, features dual skis and steering control, a brake, footrest, backrest and non-slip seat. Still, we bet you won’t look like Lindsay Lohan driving it."

Porsche’s new museum in Stuttgart - a ‘must’ visit!

A new arrival

"The Galactic Wizard is a bus (VW bus) mounted on top of a bus (a school bus). Talk about a blast from the hippy past!"

(Photo album available here.)

If you're in to skateboards, here's a cool one: Surf One VW Micro Bus Complete Deck

Interview With Rory MacLean: ‘Magic Bus’ on the Hippie Trail

"For most Intrepids, the trip was the journey of their life—the experience of their life. Just consider how they traveled. A few flew directly to India, but the majority drove east from Europe. War-surplus Jeeps, retired Royal Mail vans, fried-out VW campers, rainbow-colored London double deckers, clapped-out Turkish coaches. I even heard of a Scotsman who drove a Messerschmidt bubble car to India. It was the weirdest procession of unroadworthy vehicles ever to roll and rock across the face of the earth."

More info and loads of photos (not necessarily containg VWs here, at www.magicbus.info

Valentine's Day Gifts:

VW Beetle 1975 Cabriolet Valentine´s Day

VW Valentines Cards

cheap Valentine VW , bug key chain. Price: $6 total !

Chocolate Covered VW Bug for Valentine’s

Valentine’s Day Launch For Air-cooled VW Podcast

"Taking love as her launch theme, very appropriate for the 14th Feb, Lucie takes a quirky look at how to create a VW themed wedding. She’s pulled off some really entertaining interviews including with a minister in Arizona who helps VW fans hold VW themed wedding ceremonies in a converted VW chapel. The passion for all things VW is evident throughout, not just from Lucie, but from many of the enthusiasts she interviews. Love and podcasting - a powerful combination!

Lucie’s also come up with a nice 2 minute YouTube video as a trailer for the audio podcast. An innovative promotional idea and very well done.

Do go over and check out the podcast. Over time I can see this doing for VW garages what Heather Gorringe has done for natural gardening."

NEW VW Bus Tin and '70s Favorite Candies

New Beetle Valentine

"Vw sweden asked decorater Maja Braune to give the new beetle a new look for Valentine's day."

DubMonkeys (many gift ideas)

thepillarbox.co.uk

Dairy Free Chocolate Decadence Volkswagen

They sell numerous wall stickers at Urban Outfitters, but none, so far, of VWs. The ones below are from a Britain.
VW Beatle Wall Sticker, VW Camper Van Wall Sticker





Closing the Gap- Won't You Ride in My Little Red Wagon

Funkengroovin Wednesday - That's The Word

Are you as obsessed with this object (below) as VB? Yes, you are. Admit it. That's obvious from VB's statistics at Google Analytics. The graphs, and statistics say, most of VB's recent readers, found her through a search for "Pier 1 Beetle Ornament" or a variation thereof.



As a result, VB decided to do some research and searching herself. She called all the Pier 1 shops listed for her zip code.

Here's the responses:
Enfield, CT: No longer in stock. Sold out. They did mention having another call before VB's that morning.
Manchester, CT: Ditto
Holyoke, MA: Ditto
Avon, CT: They actually checked and said, "they're all gone."
W. Hartford, CT: "Last week they had it in Cheshire."
Bristol, CT: "Everyone's sold out. That's the word."
Glastonbury, CT: Never answered the phone.

So, then VB decided to "contact" (e-mail) Pier 1.

VB:
"I've been looking for the Beetle car ornament and have called all the stores in my area. I do not see it available online either. Do you plan on supplying more of these for your stores, or online?"

Pier 1's reply:
"Thank you for your interest in our merchandise.

Wow, you and thousands of our customers thought the Glass Car Ornament (Item #2262865) was so cute they wanted to take it home. We knew it was adorable, cute and irresistible, but we under estimated how many of our customers would feel this way as well.

Our buyers huddled, they crunched numbers, they really tried to estimate how many we would need, and they just didn’t last through the season! We know you’re disappointed, and we truly wish we could find one for you. Since this is a seasonal item, no additional quantities will be received.

You can be sure we’ve kept our buyers informed; “our customers loved it, but you didn’t buy enough!” When another find comes along, they’ll review this information so everybody can take one home.We regret our stores are the only source for purchasing merchandise since we ended our ecommerce online ordering.

Thank you again for thinking of Pier 1 for your holiday shopping and we hope you’ll visit a store to browse through our other finds.

Sincerely,

Catherine T.
Customer Relations Representative
Pier 1 Imports"

VB thinks to herself, "and you guys are all crying because sales have gone down! Maybe it's because you don't have the goods."

So, then VB decides that there must be more VW gifts out there than what she found last week.

Here's the results of the newer search: (Rip-Offs)
A seller on ebay, sold one of the Pier 1 ornaments for $102.50! That's for an ornament that originally cost $12.00 retail.

Here's a listing of all Pier 1 Beetle Ornament auctions as of now.

For all those still wishing to have a funky holiday, here are a few more (not so rip-offy) ideas:

First, VB does not want to exclude her Jewish readers. How about the Wheeling Groovy Menorah shown below?




More:
USA:
VW Bus Ceramic Ornament

A variety of VW prints are available at imagekind. VB's favorite - here.

Karmann Ghia Parts and Restoration offers gift items, many oriented towards the Ghia fanatic.

Airhead Parts offers clothing and DVDs.

Etsy has several gifts that are different from anything else VB has seen (although many of the items VB has listed can be categorized as somewhat weird.) They offer:
Set of 6 VW Volkswagon Bottlecap Magnets Beetle Bus Ghia,

SALE 3 FUN Slide Frame Magnets For One Low Price (including one with just Buses.) And, you can do a search on ETSY for VW and find page after page of assorted items, though some are a bit tacky.


UK:
Calamity Creations offers cards, calendars, mugs, and original prints of Buses and Beetles.

centralcrafts.com offers mugs with Beetle or Bus handles (quite unique.)

dubmonkeysworld offers a multitude of gifts for the VW obsessed. VB's favorites are the plates and tableware items. Prices are quoted in both pounds and dollars.

Caketoppers offers cool VW Bus cakes, but they're not cheap.


Or you could just buy the Kobalt 53-inch Tool Chest, for $1,700.00, for your favorite tool guy/gal.
"Kobalt's ultimate shop locker stores provisions even more critical to tinkering than wrenches: beer and music...Pop the lid to expose speakers and LED lights perfect for late-night "work" sessions. A side-mounted power strip feeds your angle grinder (or blender), while four flip-out hooks hold your collection of Nascar jackets. You can put tools in it, too!"

Last, but not least, The New York Times has a list of favorite auto related books, On the Road, Without Leaving Home, described as, "...some gift book possibilities on a range of transportation topics, from tiny trailers to pioneers in the auto industry."



Worst comes to worst, you can go to dumpr.net and make a few cards of your own VWs, pets, or other indulgences to send off to friends. (Those are VB's van and bug in the photos below.)



Created with dumpr.net - photo fun




Created with dumpr.net - photo fun



Boots of Spanish Leather - Nanci Griffith

Funkengroovin Wednesday - How Many Days 'Til Christmas?

When VB was in "The City" she and her family decided to poke their heads into FAO Schwarz. That was the Friday before Thanksgiving, and VB didn't want to do a post on Christmas shopping that early. Well, time has a way of moving quickly during the holiday season, and before she knew it, it was time for VB to start doing some shopping herself. She accumulated quite a few links for VW gifts, and they have been a real bitch to organize - thus the late posting.

Let's start with toys. Below four photos were taken at FAO Schwarz. Unfortunately, if you go onto their web site, you will have one hell of a time trying to find some of the replicas available in the store. The first three photos represent the Schuco line. Schuco USA has pages and pages of models available, starting here. You can whittle down your search by checking the model specific list to the left of the page. They also carry other brands, such as Johnny Lightning.

Diecast Models has a few VWs for sale, as well, at the link.

A very funky VW Beetle Recycled Tin Can Car, is available from the UK.

LEGO has a VW Beetle kit available for $119.99!

Toys are also available on ebay, which VB is listing under the miscellaneous section, as they also have accessories, ephemera, and other items all listed on the same page.










(Below): These Automoblox cars look like the New Beetles, but they're actually not. Check out the link for the various models available.


Pier 1 and Barney's Department Store have decided to take advantage of Beetle love, whether it be the original or the new. Here's a shot from the Pier 1 ad. Pier 1 is not selling anything VW, although last year they sold a small Beetle ornament, nothing as nice as the one in their ads.

(Below): VB couldn't find this ornament at her local store, nor online, but it's in the Pier 1 TV commercial.


(Below): The Pier 1 brochure cover.


VB walked her ass off in "The City" tromping from midtown Manhattan to the Upper East Side just to catch a glimpse of the painted New Beetle, which Barney's is raffling off. She went from one floor to another, back down, then back up to customer service. Not only were they basically unaware about the car, it was nowhere to be found. Generally, if you're raffling off something as special as that, you put it on display for all to see. Needless, to say, VB was very disappointed. The photo below is as close as she got to seeing the real thing - a photo of the window display featuring the New Beetle (yeah, behind all that other crap.)


The article below, from the New York Times, has a slide show, which displays a VW Bus ornament for sale at the Barney's Store. You'll have to click on the slide show link to get to a photo of the Bus ornament.
SHOPPING WITH ERIC COHLER AND JENNIFER COHLER MASON
Sparkle and Glow
"...But it wasn’t until the two plunged into the hippie holiday scene at Barneys New York that they really connected with the universal message of peace on Earth. Flower-painted Volkswagens, polka-dotted mushrooms and tie-dye-pattern balls would be fun for the tree, they thought, and a large wreath of pastel balls in the shape of a peace sign could jazz up a door or wall for Christmas — or any time, for “the all-purpose holiday,” as Mr. Cohler put it."

How can VB put this without being insulting. There isn't a way, so watch the video. It's all about the hippy-dippy Beetle raffle. She's (VB) just going to bite her tongue on this one. Simon Doonan, the creative director, who is featured in the video, is just soooo over-the-top. VB actually paid more attention to him, than she did to what he was saying.

GIVE GOOD GIFT



(Below): Two videos showing how the Beetle was painted, for all you curious types, who (if you're like VB) dream of one day getting an old Beetle and having your way with it. VB would personally like to decoupage an old Beetle, but that's pretty much a dream. The second video shows very nice shots of the finished product.

Unique TV: Volkswagen x Barneys x Unique Edition PT.1

Unique TV: Volkswagen x Barneys x Unique Edition PT.2

More Gifts for the VW obsessed:

From the UK:
Hedgepig has an assortment of VW related gifts.

VW Magnetic Bottle Opener

VW Van Miniature Clock

VW Memory Sticks, bags, wallets, and more.

Personalised VW Camper Van Money Box, New Baby VW Camper Van Money Box, Build Your Own VW Camper Van, Build Your Own Volkswagen Beetle

Yellow Vw Beetle Ceramic Money Box - they also offer one in black. If you're in the USA though, you might want to check in at your local Michael's, where Awesome Daughter and VB found white VW Beetle banks ready for painting, for about $6.00.

From the Pillarbox a page full of VW "collectables".

From the Woodsprites Trading Company:
Christmas VW Split Bus - Wrapping Paper, Christmas VW Bay - Devon Camper - Wrapping Paper, Christmas VW Bug - Standard - Wrapping Paper, Christmas VW Bug - Custom - Wrapping Paper


USA:
(Miscellanea)
Lots of accessories here at Flowers-Up for your VWs, including leis for your dashboard, bud vases, and more stuff to make your vehicle even funkier looking.

ebay - a multitude of available items.

(Holiday items)
bombki little cars ornaments. Prices quoted in Pounds. (Also available in the UK)

VW CHRISTMAS LOVE BUG COOKIE (Green), also available in Red, and Pink.

CHRISTMAS----VW TRIKE - $10997

Related: Cool photo of a Bus with a wreath on the front.

VW Christmas Cartoons



NEWS: Just One piece this week.
From Wired.com. We fly in through Logan International, and subsequently through the Big Dig tunnels, so VB found this to be interesting. Fortunately, we head west when we leave, with our E-ZPASS. E-ZPASS is a must on the east coast. And, BTW, we heard on NPR (that day) that Massachusetts will be doubling toll fees the coming year. For us, "The plan also calls to double the tolls at the Sumner and Ted Williams tunnels to $7." And, everyone knows, you can't leave the airport without hitting one of these two tunnels, but "Fast Lane users would pay $1.50 at Weston and Allston-Brighton and $6 in the tunnels."

Traffic is pretty smooth until about five miles from the I-84 entrance ramp, where traffic gets backed up, and crawls at a snail's pace, due to the bottleneck at the entrance. Otherwise, going westbound it's really not that bad.

(Below): The entrance to I-84. Right two lanes are queuing up, while the left lane is the only lane available for continuing westbound traffic.



Big Dig Has Bostonians Battling Bigger Bottlenecks
"Despite being a national embarrassment, advocates say the Big Dig has alleviated traffic, and to a large degree they're right. Getting across town on the Central Artery could take as long as 15 minutes; these days you can do it in three minutes or less. Back in the day the Artery might be bumper-to-bumper for 14 hours. Nowadays, the Dig is a breeze.

But get out of downtown and things don't look so rosy. The Globe examined reams of state highway records and concluded that congestion has gotten worse north and south of the city - in some cases a lot worse. One 11-mile stretch of highway just north of Boston saw commute times double from 12 minutes to 25. Similar delays were seen on other highways leading to the tunnels."

(Below): Going through the tunnel after dropping The Boss Man off at Logan International, for his ride back to Cairo.




(Below 2 photos): Oooo - A Eurovan. We meet up at the entrance to the toll booth, leaving Boston proper.







(Below): Currently, VB's favorite song.
The Submarines - You, Me, and the Bourgeoisie (iPhone 3G ad song)