This month’s Karen’s Kudos is an unusual assortment of finds — from an exhibit of internationally famous artist and designer Michele Oka Doner at PAMM, and unlimited classes for honing computer skills and troubleshooting for $149 for the year,to cut rate home delivery services for household and grocery items and — get this, gas.
Michele Oka Doner exhibit at PAMM — You may know of the work of Miami native, internationally famous artist and designer Michele Oka Doner from the floors of the Miami International Airport, inlays inspired by local flora and marine life. Or if you’re a subscriber to the Miami City Ballet you may have seen the outstanding costumes and sets for A Midsummer Night’s Dream which recently premiered here before performances in New York City. Regardless, do not miss the current show at of the work of this multi-disciplinary artist now through September 11 at the Perez Art Museum. Featured are examples of the artist’s works from the 1960s up through the present, including functional designs, works on paper, and ceramics inspired by natural forms.
Want to learn about some of the software issues that plague us all ? If you’re like me, you want someone to sit down next to you and have a give and take, showing you in real time. None of this remote instruction with screenshots. The answer to my tech prayers — Microsoft has what they call their Assure program.They’ll give you personal training sessions for a year with their products, everything from powerpoint and excel to skype, windows phone, outlook and more, on their own operating system and also on the Apple operating system. You sit in a quiet, private area and are offered water or coffee, and get an hour of instruction with a session. The best part is that you can go for as many sessions as you want for $149 for the year! The price also includes in store unlimited data recovery services and support over the phone and online. There’s a Microsoft store in Dadeland Mall, Aventura, North Lauderdale and Boca Raton. The other thing I like about it is that, unlike the Apple stores, there aren’t the hordes of people. Best to go in the morning when the mall itself is quiet.
Products and service finds.…..here’s a tip from opening a mailer from American Express (don’t usually do that, but fortunately did this time). It’s www.boxed.com, a new service that will deliver groceries and household products, many of which you can’t do without, but are boring to shop for — like paper towels, toilet paper, laundry detergent, hand soap, garbage bags and cereal. But then there are some others as well — like snacks, pharmacy items, and even tennis balls. Delivery is free if you spend over $50. Products are in volume packs — 12 rolls of Bounty, 30 toilet paper rolls. They’re discounted too, from 3% up to 80% off retail. Looks like they’re out to capture the Costco market. Another boring task made easier is getting gas thanks to www.gasninjas.com. They’ll come to your apartment, house ,office, or the street, and fill up your gas tank (even while you sleep). They say their prices are competitive with local branded gas stations and offer unleaded 87 regular and unleaded 93 premium. There’s no cash exchanged — you give them your credit card as you do with Lyft or Uber.
