In honor of Style Week, and the fact that spring is right around the corner, this post describes a unique line of high-fashion attire inspired by swimming pools.  Moschino is an Italian luxury fashion design company, specializing in everything from clothing and accessories to luggage and perfume.  Founded in 1983 by Franco Moschino, it continues to reside among the companies producing cutting edge, high-fashion creations.  In addition to their ready-to-wear collections, the fashion house has also designed the outfits for the Opening Ceremonies at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, and for celebrities such as Lady Gaga, among others.  Known for innovative, colorful, and sometimes eccentric vibe, it's not surprising that Moschino would channel vintage poolside glam in it's latest summer collection.  Although the pieces are high-fashion in price as well, it provides good food for thought while examining your closet in anticipation for the upcoming summer season.  The colors are bright (without being too loud), and feminine, with a cool retro glam, '80's-inspired vibe, and features conversation-piece accessories.  They should definitely provide inspiration for your poolside wardrobe this summer!  The line is called Moschino Pool Party, and is available on http://www.polyvore.com/

    A new craze is sweeping the NHL.  It's not hockey fights, memorabilia, or a new kind of endorsement.  It's puppies!  The "Puppy Challenge" certainly has tongues - and tails - wagging. In January, Cole Jansen went watch his Ottawa Senators play the New York Rangers.  The game had special meaning for him; if Bobby Ryan scored a goal, his parents agreed to get a dog for him and his brother.  He decided to take a proactive approach, holding up a sign that read, "Bobby, Dad said if you score we get a puppy!"  With 20 seconds left in the second period, Bobby Ryan granted his wish.  His parents kept up their end of the deal, and the family brought home a pomsky, appropriately named Bobby.  Ryan, pleased to be able to score the puppy for Cole and his brother, arranged to meet them, and his namesake, for some one-on-one time at the rink!  Check out the adorable video here:  http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/gotta-see-it-bobby-ryan-meets-puppy-he-won-for-kids/
    Also in January, Maddie Wright made a similar deal with her parents, and took the same approach.  On her birthday, she attended a Blue Jackets game, holding a sign that said "Dad says if 13 scores on my Birthday we get a dog.”  Number 13 is Cam Atkinson, who was happy to oblige.  He didn't just score one goal, he got a hat trick!  Soon after, the family welcomed their newest addition into their home, a female black lab mix, a rescue dog from the Delaware County Humane Society, fittingly named Cam.  Since the NHL star is a dog lover himself, he invited the family, dog included, to the rink so he could meet them.  Both the family and the hockey player enjoyed a day of spending time together, and getting a behind-the-scenes tour of an NHL hockey arena.  
    This displays the sport of professional hockey at its finest.  It may not be as glamorous as football or baseball, but it is just as thrilling, and its players continuously display a willingness to interact with the fans on a personal level.  It is so refreshing, in this day and age, where everyone seems to be rushing around, that NHL hockey players would go to such lengths to bring happiness to even the youngest of their fans.  Taking the extra time to meet the families is truly special, and sets a great example. We all know professional athletes don't always act as such.  Through their actions, these hockey players teach what it means to have heart.  It's not just about money or wins to them (and the NHL); it's about the fans, too.  That's a huge score in our book.  Meanwhile, the Puppy Challenge is far from over.  It appears as though NHL players will continue to score goals and melt hearts, and we look forward to many more heartwarming "tails"!  

In honor of Valentine's Day and the President's Day holiday weekend, we would like to stoke everyone's warm and fuzzy thoughts with a post about images capturing the exuberance of dogs from a different perspective: underwater!  Who said that pools were just for swimming?  In this case, a pool served as a ground-breaking backdrop to showcase the inherent playfulness in man's best friend, in a new and exciting way.  According to sethcasteel.com, the first underwater photo happened as a pure afterthought.  In 2010, photographer Seth Casteel was taking pictures of Buster, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, in his California backyard.  Although the photo shoot was intended to be on dry land, Buster, proving to be a difficult muse, insisted on playing in the pool instead.  As he watched the dog carry on, happily chasing his tennis ball in and out of the water, Casteel began to wonder, "What does he look like under there?"  So he quickly left the shoot, bought a point-and-shoot underwater camera, and joined the dog's pool party.  Those photos sparked the beginning of his now world-famous Underwater Dog portfolio.  While his friends told him to take the easy road and become a wedding photographer, Casteel followed his two passions: dogs and photography, and spent the last remaining credit on his credit card on underwater housing for his camera, so that he could continue the work he stumbled upon in his backyard photo shoot with Buster.  Within a few months, his photos became a worldwide sensation, and he had a book deal, and photography opportunities with organizations such as National Geographic and the New York Times.  He uses his platform to inform people about dogs and water safety, as well as dog rescue and adoptions.  Even before is meteoric rise, he photographed pictures of homeless dogs and helped countless pups find forever homes.  He even adopted one himself!  Check out some of his famous images below, and learn more about his amazing work at his website: http://www.sethcasteel.com/#!/home 

Even though our beloved Patriots are not in Super Bowl 50 tomorrow, most of us will still tune in to watch the Panthers play the Broncos.  And since the Pats aren't playing, we find our attention to the game is a lot less intense.  Instead of analyzing key match ups, we're discussing more light-hearted football topics, such as Cam Newton's famous "dab."  Here's another one to add to your game day discussion: the Jacksonville Jaguars have pools in their stadium.  That's right, pools.  In their stadium.   According to Aqua Magazine, the Jags game attendance had stagnated to the point that in 2012, stadium crew placed tarps across 10,000 seats. Game interest was so low that Jaguar home games were blacked out on local television.  But that all changed when team owners commissioned a stadium makeover.  The most prominent revision was to install pools (technically, extremely large spas) and cabana lounges in the upper deck.  The pools feature clear panels, providing the ultimate infinity edge for swimmers, and showcasing them as unique centerpieces of the stadium.  As a result, attendance soared, and people began enjoying the one-of-a-kind experience of watching pigskin from a poolside perspective.   At this stadium, football and flip-flops go hand-in-hand!