The Rundown – Feb. ’13

1. BUY PUNK ROCK FAMILY CAR STICKERS

You’re stuck in traffic. There’s nowhere else to look but at the back of the giant minivan in front of you with their whole family—in stick figure form—plastered across the back window. Mom. Dad. Two kids. Cat. Dog. Do we care? Not really. But hey, congratulations on your ability to reproduce. If you must let the world know every member of your family, at least give us something fun to look at. For 10 bucks, StickerPunx on Etsy will outfit your car with your family members—in punk rock form—all the way down to your badass fish.

2. TIVO CHOPPED

A new season of Food Network’s Chopped is underway and on Feb. 24 at 8 p.m. and Feb. 26 at 10 p.m., former New Yorker Maureen Sanchez will compete and talk about her sister, Judith Erin O’Donnell, the subject of the 2011 Press cover story, “Still Looking for Judy.” Judy has been missing for more than 30 years and Maureen has been waiting for more than a year for DNA analysis to be completed to determine if an unidentified murder victim found in a block of concrete in NYC in 2003 is her sister.

3. GET A $1 REUSABLE STARBUCKS CUP

In an attempt to curb trash—and inevitably boost profits—Starbucks has debuted a reusable plastic cup, a replica of the paper one, for only $1. Each time the cup is used the coffee giant will give you a 10-cent discount. So after 10 refills, the cup pays for itself. Sweet.

4. DOWNLOAD LUMOSITY’S BRAIN TRAINER APP

Designed by the neuroscientists at Lumosity, Brain Trainer has eight exercises targeted at improving your brain’s health, performance and overall intelligence. Match the dots, figure out which way the bird is flying and flex your mental muscles. It’s fun and only takes a few minutes per day.

5. GOOGLE “GIANT YELLOW DUCK”

Sydney’s famous harbor was turned into a giant bathtub during January’s Sydney Festival, a month-long arts and music celebration, for a five-story, yellow duck created by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman, who said his PVC creation, titled “Rubber Duck,” has healing properties. We’re not sure about healing, but watching this thing move slowly down the harbor is pretty awesome.

6. VISIT CUPS FRO-YO

With its first Long Island location recently opened in Carle Place and two more coming to Commack and Huntington, Cups brings its insane line of low-fat frozen yogurts to our shores. Run by quirky “cast members” with club music pumping and a lounge-type design, Cups serves up heavenly creations like their Low-Fat Chocolate Chip Cheesecake frozen yogurt.

7. GIVE A DAMMIT DOLL

The 12-inch Dammit Doll (DammitDolls.com) is so sturdily sewn that it stands up to an onslaught of slams on tables, desks, floors and walls while its owner attempts to ease life’s stressful moments. Keep one in the glove compartment for annoying occasions like traffic jams on the Long Island Expressway—the Dammit Doll offers a surprisingly satisfying catharsis when banged on the dashboard (not while driving, of course).

8. JOIN SOUPER BOWL VI

For those of us whose most anticipated part of Super Bowl Sunday is Beyonce’s half-time performance, and the Puppy Bowl, here’s something else to get you in the mood. In Port Washington, the United Methodist Church hosts a delicious football alternative on Feb. 2nd, from noon-3 p.m. where local restaurants vie for the chance to be voted the 2013 SOUPer Bowl Champ. Everyone is invited to buy a spoon and become a taster.

9. PLAY LLAMA OR DUCK

This smartphone game seems like a joke, but once you start playing it’s not only addicting, but pretty damn hard. You literally have a split second to decide if the creature on your screen is a llama or duck. Sounds simple, but…give it a try.