1) Cubicle with a view

After the dust settled from newsroom renovations, I found myself in a new spot, my back facing a window, an outdoor view so close and yet so far. A mirror on my workstation wall would reflect the view, but the challenge was finding one to complement an office setting. After combing Ross and home improvement stores with no luck, Pictures Plus Home at Kahala Mall had the answer. There you can buy a standard frame, any size, and they’ll outfit it with a mirror for a few dollars more. A 5-by-7-inch mirror costs $1.97, 8-by-10 about $4. Now I enjoy a view — and laughs with colleagues who stop by to check out their looks. — Ruby Mata-Viti

2) A little dab will do ya

Given Hawaii’s high humidity and my thick hapa-haole hair, I’m always on the lookout for the latest defrissant. Right now, I’m loving Phyto 9 Daily Ultra Nourishing Botanical Cream. Since you only need a tiny pea-sized drop for each post-shower application, the 1.7-fluid-ounce bottle lasts a really long time. Hello, good hair days. It’s $26 at Sephora. — Donica Kaneshiro

3) Comfort food, done local style

If long-ago memories of school lunch have left you with a deep-seated aversion to meatloaf, cheap and delicious therapy can be found at the deli department in your neighborhood Foodland or Sack N Save. That’s where I discovered Portuguese Sausage and Kahuku Corn Meatloaf , a tasty entree-to-go created by the grocery chain’s corporate chef, Keoni Chang. The hearty dish caters to local tastes with familiar ingredients like Hoisin barbecue sauce and Portuguese sausage. It’s tangy and a little bit sweet, and one generous slab can feed two modest appetites. It’s on special for only $2.49 per piece through Tuesday (with Maika’i card). — Christie Wilson

4) Website chronicles wonders of tiger blood

It’s a total car wreck, this ongoing craziness of actor Charlie Sheen. It’s horrifying and fascinating. The good news, though, is that Sheen has become a kind of Jedi master of self-referential pomposity, a Beat Poet of chest-beating. Consider, for the record:

» "Can’t is the cancer of happen."
» "I’m just going to sail across the winds of the universe with my goddesses."
» "Resentments are the rocket fuel that lives in the tip of my saber."
» "Your face will melt off and your children will weep over your exploded body."

Can’t get enough Sheenisms? They’re being collected on the website livethesheendream.com and you should check it out while they’re still amusing. — Burl Burlingame

5) DVD magazine is an indie gem

I’m a magazine fiend, and one of the best on my subscription list is a quarterly mixed-media endeavor from the erudite folks at McSweeney’s books called Wholphin. The compact, finely laid-out DVD magazine never fails to captivate with its curated selection of short indie films and documentaries, combined with essays and interviews with the filmmakers. For example, the latest issue contains such fascinating fare as the Oscar-nominated Australian short "Miracle Fish," a documentary on the underground punk wrestling scene in Southern California, and a poignant short about a young man who falls in love with his cousin during a picturesque jaunt through Scotland.

Even the videos that run behind the menu are worth watching. After the titles disappear, they continue to play out, and the latest Wholphin has three abstract "time-slice" videos by artist Daniel Crooks. A year’s subscription is $50; go to www.wholphindvd.com. — Gary Chun