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)

Walking "The City" - A Walk On The Wild Side

VB's not sure what's going on along 5th Avenue in "The City" these days, but it looks like one wild and crazy Christmas. Most of the photos are self explanatory - don't ask VB she has no idea what was going on in the mind of the window designers this year (possibly visions of the newest TeeVee political sensation, Sarah Palin?) Whatever drove them to this, it makes for outrageous photo ops with the tourists, as they pose in front of all the windows.

Also, views of the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree in the process of being trimmed. VB's only seen the decorated tree a few times in the past herself, so watching the process is pretty interesting. It helps answer the question: How did they do that?

You might want to click on the window photos to enlarge them. The reflection from the street interferes with the view.

(Below): Bergdorf Goodman

(Below): Bergdorf Goodman

(Below): Cartier? (VB's not sure.)

(Belwo): Bergdorf Goodman

(Below): Bergdorf Goodman

(Below): Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree in the works. Can you believe they use scaffolding to trim this tree? All we need is a measly step-stool to put the tinfoil covered cardboard star we made long ago, up on the top.

(Below): A closer view.

(Below): At night.

BTW, anyone know what happened at Lulu's Bay?

Walking "The City" - The Apple Store

One person who saw VB's Apple Store photo a few posts ago, exclaimed, "But...but....the Apple store looks EMPTY!!!" Yes indeed it does, but that's just the entrance. Usually, the entrance itself is backed up, like a bottleneck traffic jam. But, it was so cold when we visited, and not really the "official holiday shopping season" yet, that it was probably not as busy as it will be in the coming weeks. The actual store is below ground - a subterranean Mac vault, filled with the most recently released, and luscious colored gizmos on the planet. Listening and play stations abound. Accessories, and software face off at either end of the computer play-station area. Here's a tour.

(Below): The exterior - a glassed in entrance, above ground.


(Below): A MacBook station, for checking out the new laptops. There are about four long tables at the store, with around 10 laptops on each one, just for the MacBook area alone. Check out "The Geniuses" in the light blue shirts.



(Below): A view of the entry and a MacBook Table.



(Below): The entry - another view. Some dick walked right in front of VB's camera.



(Below): A view from the cash out end of the store. They also carry printers, and accessories.


(Below): A lot of people sit around the base of the entry, waiting for their Apple addicted loved ones to get another dose of Apple love, (or they're possibly avoiding the cold weather outside.)



(Below): The entry steps.



(Below): The elevator.


(Below): A listening station for one of the various iPods. There are quite a few of these, as well, for each different flavor - Nano, iTouch, Shuffle, Classic, as well as an area for the iPhone.




(Below): A closer up view.


(Below): Most of the iPods and iPhones are located under that colorful wall sign.




(Below): The desktop area.




(Below): A view of "The Genius Bar." Just a guess, but the guys at "The Genius Bar" have dark blue Tees on - does that mean they're bigger, and better geniuses? Doubtful, (if you've ever had an experience with an Apple genius, then you know.) VB avoids them like the plague (unless she's actually buying something - then it's unavoidable.)


(Below): When you leave The Apple Store, to your right you will see Central Park. Go to the corner. There, you can look up to Columbus Circle (the two towers) where the new CNN headquarters are located. The building connecting the two towers holds a small shopping mall. If you choose to walk there, via Central Park South (the traffic jammed street in the photo), you will pass The Jumeirah Essex House (previously known as The Essex House.) Across the street from Columbus Circle, is a Starbucks, just in case you need a lift. Then you can (turn around and head south to) begin your trek down Broadway.





Feist - 1 2 3 4 (Song from an iPod Ad.)




The actual iPod commercial can be found here.

Funkengroovin Wednesday - Rear Window

Last week VB wrote about "The Roof" of our '65 VW Beetle, that we are restoring. At that point, the rear window was not installed. The rubber that holds it in had been burned. The Boss Man ordered a new rubber and delivered it to the upholsterer. He said, it took 4 guys to put the window back in. He came back the next morning, to find it shattered all over his shop. He then ordered a new window, and a new rubber frame. He then set the new window in with the old rubber. When we left, on Saturday, we had two new rubbers, and a newer window in place. He suggested we visit a glass installation center to have the glass installed with the new rubber.

The upholsterer was doubtful that we would be able to get the metal trim back in, as well.

VB would like to add, that she heard there were rumors going around about her Beetle. She wants to set the record straight: The original engine matched the body, when we bought it in 1994. The only non-original piece was a rear fender. Now the only non-original pieces, besides the fender, are: the engine, the new front seats which we just purchased, the rear window, roof and liner. The rear window, new roof, liner, and engine all had to be replaced as a result of the fire (well, the rear window because the original exploded in the upholstery shop). Since we wanted to restore it, and the Beetle was no longer original, we decided to get the new front seats and tracks to make it safer (it's got seatbelts now too). This is not some car that has been "cobbled together" from other Beetle parts. So for those of you "know-it-alls" out there, VB wants the rumors about her baby to stop! You don't know WTF you're talkin' about. Just sayin'.

Living in a retro VW community is almost as bad as living in a gossipy expat community. Don't these people have better things to do?


(Below): Old, original rear window. Photos were taken after the fire.


(Below): Close up.



(Below): New window, with old rubber. As you can see, the new window can be wired to defrost, but then that would defeat the purpose of driving a VW Beetle in the wintertime. Half the fun, is wiping down the windows manually to defog them.


(Below): The original window, before the fire, circa 1995. This photo was taken back in Shaker Heights, Ohio where we lived when we purchased it. You can see the metal trim around the rear top roof, where the roof meets the body, and around the window. All missing now. That metal trim is apparently a real bitch to deal with.





A few Beetles we passed in Cairo.

(Below): Maadi, Digla.


(Below): Old red ragtop.



(Below): Nice old orange Beetle.



(Below): At Ramses Train Station parking lot, in Cairo.




(Below): Another crashed car parked in Maadi. Some of these sights make you wonder WTF happened. This thing is so mangled, it's hard to imagine anyone surviving.




NEWS:

You Tell Us: How Are You Avoiding Traffic This Holiday?
"Is it the awesome horsepower of a mother’s guilt, an unconscious inability to spend two consecutive weekdays days off at home or just the purely compulsive nature of traditional culture? Whatever it is that jams up nearly every out-bound lane on every metropolitan freeway in America on the Wednesday afternoon before Turkey Day probably isn’t going away." (Yes, it is "the awesome horsepower of a mother's guilt." VB can testify to that - she uses it quite regularly.)


Nov. 24, 1903: Starting Your Car Gets a Bit Easier

Autonomous VW says, "Look, Ma - No Hands"

And the Green Car of the Year Is...
"LOS ANGELES -- The 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI was named Green Car of the Year Thursday, the first time a diesel has won the award presented each year at the L.A. Auto Show."

Toyota Demands Site Remove Fan-Submitted Photos

(Great Photos)
Vintage Iron Rules the L.A. Auto Show
"For the two people on the planet who don't know what this is, the original Beetle is both the most popular and most recognizable car in history. VW sold 21.5 million of the dome-shaped, bug-eyed cars between 1934 and 2003, when the last one clattered off an assembly line in Mexico. Every single one of them was loud, slow and, to be honest, not terribly comfortable. But we love 'em just the same."

You Drive Me Crazy
"Ten of the most annoying driving habits."

(OMG! You don't say.)
Are Men More Dangerous at the Wheel?
"A new study conducted by Quality Planning, an auto insurance analytics firm, has concluded that male drivers cause more havoc on the road than their female counterparts."

Losermobiles on Film, and Up for Bids

For Yugo, a Place of Eternal Rust, er, Rest

Road trip: RV manufacturers scramble to stretch their mpgs
"Owners of Volkswagen’s popular pop-top Eurovan, discontinued in North America in 2003, reportedly can sell their vans for what they paid for them new, even if they have high mileage, due to surging demand and lack of supply."

The VW Beetle - an Austrian Identity Created by German Craftsmanship?

the VW beetle

(Video & Photos - go to "Photo Galleries" on the right, below the photo of the mangled Beetle, hanging in the air)
Volkswagen Beetle pulled from Beargrass Creek
"The steering wheel from a Volkswagen Beetle that's been stuck in the muck of Beargrass Creek for nearly 30 years will be fashioned into an environmental award"

(Nice story - No Pics)
MOORE 11/23: No air conditioner, no radio, no clock, just a lawn mower engine on steroids

(From Jalopnik, with great photos, as usual)
1965 Volkswagen Transporter Walk-Thru Panel Van

(Another article about the Verdier Van)
The future of ecoconscious camping

(New Zealand)
Naming the Beast: North Island by Campervan
"I grew up in a family that names its vehicles. Before I was born there was Henrietta, the baby blue van. After her came Dippy, the racy red Anglia whose license plate began with ‘DP’, then Goldbug the sparkling gold Holden Kingswood station wagon. I’m sad to say I didn’t continue this tradition when I started driving. That is until I spent a week alone in the North Island driving a 6.6 metre long campervan complete with shower, toilet and microwave oven. A vehicle of this stature, I decided, needs a name."


CORRECTION: Last week VB said that Opels were probably the only GM cars she ever owned. Incorrect. She owned a Chevy Malibu (how could she forget?) It was her first car, and it cost (so much money) $350.00 (back in 1974.) She sold the Malibu for an Opel 1900, which she proceeded to crash into a bridge abutment, one icy morning, in Cleveland, Ohio, 1979. The bicycle, a Champagne Raleigh International, which she bought in 1975-6, cost almost as much, at a whopping, $300.00. She still has the bike.


With the Detroit car companies begging for a bailout and Black Friday coming upon us, VB thought today's video was apropos.

This article points out the problem, and BTW, if you're refinancing your house to buy a vintage car, then you are truly crazy!
A Rough Ride in Collectible Cars
"Or maybe they just ran out of money. Amid the broad economic deterioration of recent months, spending on extravagances like antique cars has slowed. In many cases, people can no longer afford even to keep their collections, says David Gooding, president of Gooding & Co., a Los Angeles car auction house.

In the past year, many collectors who used home-equity loans or other credit to buy the vintage convertible or muscle car of their dreams have had to sell as the housing and credit markets have declined. The same factors have kept new collectors from entering the market. As a result, many staple collector cars like 1957 Chevrolets, 1940 Fords and 1960s Pontiac GTOs are selling for half what they commanded two or three years ago."

"For some collectors, the downturn could be a good time to amass a long-coveted vehicle or two -- not just because prices are often lower, but because cars that weren't for sale before are suddenly available. John McCue of Half Moon Bay, Calif., bought a 1958 Mercury Park Lane last summer for $39,000. The 61-year-old retired software executive says it probably cost him about 5% less than the car's value a year earlier. But since he has pursued the car for years, he knows the former owner wouldn't have sold it then.

"There are those cars that you think will never be for sale, the ones the owners will take to their graves," he says. "Well, now a lot of those cars are changing hands."

While many in the collecting business say there will always be enough wealthy people who want vintage cars, others fear the market could be headed for a repeat of its last crash in 1989, when speculators who had no particular interest in vintage cars drove a steep, if fleeting, run-up in prices. Today, more of the buyers are car lovers, but speculation underpins their motives as well.

"The love of cars never outweighs the love of money," Mr. Gooding says."




(Check out the green and white Beetle [Mexican taxi cab?] near the beginning.)
Shania Twain - Ka-Ching

Eating "The City" - Cupcakes

The Boss Man and VB took the train to "The City" last Wednesday. Friday, Awesome Daughter and Number One Son drove down to fetch us. Regardless of why we go, we always end up at the Apple Store (below).



Since it was freezing, and the windchill made window shopping almost impossible, we decided to depart a few hours earlier than planned. On our way to the parking garage, we passed Radio City Music Hall, all decked out in it's holiday splendor (below,) with a line wrapped around the corner for the show.



VB spotted a new Magnolia Bakery one block down from the theatre, and Awesome Daughter declares, "I need cupcakes!" (below). You can see how packed it is, from across the street.


(Below): A sign at the bakery.


(Below): Decorating cakes.


(Below): Rush hour in cupcakeland.


Awesome Daughter bought six. The one on the front right photo below, is a Red Velvet cupcake. She got the last one.



(Below): A shot taken by Number One Son of the scene. The order line has now dwindled, as we wait in line to pay.


(Below): Two cakes.


And, as everyone knows, VB is a huge fan of 30 Rock, so for a tie-in:
A scene from 30 Rock about cupcakes: Liz Lemon Knows Her Cupcakes

And a response: Did Liz Lemon Leave a Misleading Trail of Cupcake Crumbs?

A few articles - mostly old, but the first is the most recent:
The Washington Post conducted a "cupcake war" to determine the best within the beltway: Sweet Victory and, the winning recipe Georgetown Cupcake's Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes

New York cupcake rationing averted

New York's Cupcakes: Fueling the Fire

Cupcake makers at war over dot-in-circle trademark

Sweet and Vicious

Cupcake wars (or: how 'Sex and the City' ruined my neighbourhood)


(Below): Where VB did not get to eat.




Muffin Top, From 30 Rock (funny)