A prototype for a new type of zero-energy-consuming house is on display in Los Angeles, and of course it’s very impressive. But you know what I love about it? It’s poofy!

Blah blah blah zero footprint, yadda yadda solar energy. Did I mention it’s poofy?

They also modified an X-Box Kinect so that all you have to do is wave at lights to turn them on and off. It’s like the clapper, but silent.

It’s an award-winning design from students at the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) and California Institute of Technology (Caltech), and it’s actually an amazing design that I wish I could implement today. Here, let me show you around.

I was looking for sheets at Bed, Bath and Beyonce when I came across a line of home decor products called K by Keaton, designed by Oscar-winning actress Diane Keaton. How did I not hear of this before? Everyone talks about Paltrow and Remodelista and Courteney Cox. When it comes to style, I thought I might be more partial to the real-girl glamour of Ms Keaton. So I took a look.

Keaton was a style icon in the '70s, her Annie Hall days: adorable, boyish, casual, chic. Unfortch, she spawned a generation of women who thought throwing a floppy hat on over a horrible outfit = style. And her own choices were often less than perfect -- see her infamous Oscar outfit. Blech.
 
So is she great or horrible? She’s both! Just last year she appeared simultaneously in a Vogue article (photographed by Annie Leibovitz!) and ads for that apex of sparkly-granny non-style, Chico’s. Great! Horrible!
 
So what’s the verdict? Great? Horrible? Annie Hall ... or Mama’s Boy?

You never know what kind of treasures you'll find at Goodwill. I've found a lab coat, once. But check out what one Midwest City, Oklahoma Goodwill employee found hidden in some donated clothing: A LOT OF CA$H MONEY. How much money? I don't know! They won't say -- they're using the exact amount to identify the owner. But it was enough to make the employee stop and think, Hey, maybe I shouldn't just pocket this for the laundromat.

A spokesperson for Goodwill was impressed with how the worker reacted to finding the cash: "From what I understand, it was very surprising but she reacted very calmly." Another clue -- it was so much money, the worker should have been dashing all over the store with her eyes popping out like Wile E. Coyote. I don't know about you, but I'm seeing two takeaways from this story.

Any time a company says there is something wrong with a product, it's scary. But the massive Ford recall of nearly half a million minivans and SUVS is absolutely terrifying for parents today. These are the kinds of cars that they drive every day! This is the way they drive their kids to daycare or maneuver the carpool to school!

The cars being called off the road and into service shops run the risk of fire or a loss of power. But before you panic, here's what you have to know:

Dog Rescue How far would you go to save your beloved pet? Ivan Salas, 19, recently proved that he would do whatever it takes. He and his father were hiking in the mountains in California when the dad tossed a bottle of water off the cliff.
 
The family dog, Lola, accustomed to being helpful in every way, leaped to "fetch' the bottle ended up sliding 100 feet down the steep cliff. Seeing his beloved dog in peril, the son did some quick thinking. Or, I should say, he didn’t think at all: He just leaped off the cliff after the dog.
 
What happened next? It's a cliffhanger. Literally.

I love hand-me-downs. I shop at consignment stores, and when I’m done with my found treasures, I donate them to local charities. But it would never occur to me to do this with my home.

Yet, for some homeowners, especially ones in foreclosure, donating a house to charity may be the only way out of an awful situation -- and it seems like it could even be a path back to financial well-being. It's becoming quite popular, in fact, because it not only allows the homeowner who can't sell her/his house a way out, but also the donated homes -- many of which are renovated and resold -- add new value to the neighborhood. Here’s how it works:

I just can't get into shows like Hoarders and How Clean Is Your House? They terrify me and stress me out. But I understand how some people like to watch them in the same way they can't help looking at a car accident as they drive by. The disastrous images on that show are enough to invoke fear in the hearts of anyone even remotely organized. 

In what appears to be a commentary on a "hoarder's life," artist Carrie Becker recently used her commercial photography skills to shoot 1/6 scale miniatures to create a project called "Barbie Trashes Her Dreamhouse." Being that Barbie has been around since the '50s and worked hundreds of jobs and collected tons of clothes, makeup, hair accessories, it wouldn't be a total shock if her home looked like this.

Did you ever go to a doctor that seemed a little distant and remote? Well, in England, doctors are about to get a lot more remote. Literally.

They’re unveiling a pilot plan that allows patients to take certain medical tests at home and upload the results so doctors can remotely monitor their patients. Awesome, right? No more waiting for busses, looking for parking, and spending an hour and a half in the waiting room so you can do a five-minute test. Instead, you can do it all in the comfort of their own home.

Except they haven’t taken one thing into account: Often the homes of most busy moms are no where near as clean and organized as a hospital or doctor's office. In fact, if my doctor monitored me in my home, she’d either call 911 or have me committed.