by Roberta Murphy Peering into the future, it is nice to imagine a home that is smart in every sense–and inviting to all. Sunset Magazine and Popular Science recently team-conceived the Idea House, the House of Innovation , in Alamo, California. This intelligent $5 + million smart home provides a trajectory of design and technologies that will end up in homes of tomorrow. It is loaded with sustainable materials and…
by Roberta Murphy Science Daily reports today that a consumer test kit may soon be available that will quickly reveal whether you are approaching spoiled food that is safe to eat. Researchers at the University of South Carolina report that their dipstick test has a 90 percent accuracy rate and could help prevent many of the illnesses and deaths caused by food poisoning. These food-borne ailments sicken several million people…
by Roberta Murphy Well, sort of. Web 2.0 and interconnectivity has drilled down to a new level of local, with the online premier of Street Advisor this week. This fun site allows residents to rate and write about the streets on which they live. The reviewer can rate the livability of the street, the neighbors, convenience to shopping, medical care, schools and restaurants and more. But is it really gossip?…
by Roberta Murphy I have staked out early mornings as time for myself and dedicated it to yoga at the Chopra Center in Carlsbad. No real estate clients, no family, no phones, no intrusions. That slice of time belongs to me. Six mornings a week, in the cool, quiet hours before dawn, I arise, shower and head down the hill to the La Costa Resort and Spa for an hour…
by Roberta Murphy Alzheimers disease haunts our family. Could it have been prevented? I sometimes stray from luxury homes and products under the guise of writing about quality of life. And one of the elements key to quality of life is the ability to recognize it when you have it. We buried my mother last June, but we had lost her at least two years earlier. You see, my mother…
by Roberta Murphy I have always justified my preference for fine bed linens by considering the percentage of ones life spent between them. And though I have never slept on D. Porthaults sheets, they remain on my list of wanna-trys. And who wouldnt want to luxuriate on fine, hand-finished sheets that start at around $1100 for a king set with two shams? Celebrities, royalty and business barons happily shell out…
by Roberta Murphy Several years ago I graduated from Feng Shui training as a certified practitioner. My own home and those of understanding friends and real estate clients became laboratories for element and furnishing rearrangements. Entire bookshelves in my home accumulated the Feng Shui works of Lillian Too, Kartar Diamond, Karen Kingston, Jon Robertson, Suzan Hilton and other wise teachers. Because there is so much to share, this will probably…
by Roberta Murphy This is a short-notice deal, and reservations must be made by March 24, 2007, but what a great opportunity to steal away to Puerto Vallarta for a weeklong tropical vacation. According to Forbes Traveler, this all-inclusive package runs $999 and includes both airfare (from a number of West and Midwest airports) as well as accommodations and meals at the four-and-a-half star beachfront Marival Resort and Suites. Ideal…
by Roberta Murphy While going through a luxury home in Del Mar recently, our client was surprised to discover a snoring room off the opulent master suite. It measured perhaps 8 by 10 feet, and was furnished with a simple twin bed, a lamp and an easy chair. The room bore no resemblance to the larger bedroom, and at first glance might have been perceived as the proverbial dog house…
by Roberta Murphy As dementia cases are on the rise nationwide, we find ourselves looking for causes and ways to possibly prevent this horrid disease. Could it be diet, a vasectomy, alcohol abuse or even cycicism? Forgive me, but weekend mornings allow time to look over news and tidbits of interest. And sometimes these findings have absolutely nothing to do with real estate and luxury homes, but may have much…
