I appreciate creativity in anything. Restaurants and food are no exception. I recently came across a new experience in dining when a buddy and I went to Kansas City for a weekend. Walking through the Plaza looking for something kind of different but manly enough to satisfy two pretty good-sized, meat-eating males, we happened upon Fogo de Chao, an all-you-can-eat Brazilian steakhouse. Perfect! I went in with some pretty high expectations, considering the asking price was $42.00 a person. It didn't disappoint. It's a different but simple eating concept. First off they encourage you to start with a trip to their salad bar. I said, "Sure, no problem." Wrong! Probably the best freaking salad bar I've ever laid eyes on. I did my best to hold back. After finishing the salad I was ready for the meat, and they weren't @*%#ing around. Each of us had a two-sided disc next to his plate. One side is red, the other green. When the red side was up they left you alone. When the green side was revealed they came at you with skewers of 15 different meats ranging from lamb chops to filet mignon to their specialty, Parmesan-encrusted pork loins. You pretty much tell them how much you want and how well done you prefer. I got to control the speed at which they would bring food over by flipping my personal two-sided disc from red to green...and that was pretty freakin' cool. All said and done, I managed to taste nine of the 15 tasty skewers. There were side dishes and desserts involved too, but I wanted to make sure I got the full meat experience, so I passed. It was so good I resisted leaving, figuring I could find some room in my aching stomach after a bit. No such luck. I left very satisfied, not just from the great food but also from the great new eating experience. Way to go, Fogo de Chao!

I was in the post office the other day (yes, I was waiting in line) and I ran across something cool.  You can buy large prints of certain stamps framed as artwork. I went online to USPS.com and found some fun images. Good for gifts or if you just want something unique.  Check these out.

City Dream No. 6 h: 18 x  w: 19 x  d: 18 in There's nothing better than walking through an art gallery and coming upon a piece that you instantly look at and you just know you've got to have. It happened to me a few weeks ago as I was walking through the Byron C. Cohen Gallery in Kansas City. I was browsing the walls of paintings and decided to check the back area for the more obscure stuff. I ran into this little gem from Chinese artist Gao Xiaowu. It instantly struck me. Just looking at it put me in a great mood. I decided I had to have it. I inquired about the price of the piece with my fingers crossed (please be under $2,000, please be under $2,000). "That piece runs $7,000," the gallery worker replied. "OK," I replied, thinking to myself, "Damn, can I afford $7,000? Of course you can't, you idiot! What are you thinking!" And with that I left the gallery. Maybe someday I will scrape up the funds to actually buy the piece. For now it will just hang inside my head, and that will have to do.

I was paging through my latest edition of Food Network Magazine (great magazine, by the way) and ran across these little gems. Green deviled eggs made with fresh herbs and bacon. Whoa, I bet I could eat about 20 of these! Too bad I'll have to go to the ChurchKey restaurant in Washington, D.C., to get them. The magazine didn't print the recipe. I saw that the book just turned 50 last month. Dr. Seuss still rocks!

It was 1977. I remember walking into the Casbah (a quaint little head shop that just so happened to sell albums) down in the Old Market and picking up the brand-new album from Steely Dan. "Hmmm, interesting," I thought, "a black album cover with a funky red and white stripe and a simple type treatment. That's pretty cool."  Then I saw it ... that subtle hint of a nose up in the left corner ... and it all came together. "GENIUS," I cried inside my head as I quickly pointed it out to my buddies. It's been my favorite album cover ever since ... the album is no slouch either!

If you happen to get out to Las Vegas in the near future make sure you check out the Gallery at CityCenter. Dale Chihuly has a very nice show that goes until the end of December. His glasswork is phenomenal as usual, but what really caught my eye were his "basket" paintings. If they weren't $65,000 apiece I would have definitely considered purchasing. Here are some examples.

Broccoli Forest Salmon Sea I was thumbing through the October issue of Food Network Magazine and ran across an intriguing article on food landscapes. I had seen a competition on the Food Network a few months ago and was awed by the precision and detail. The article featured images from master food landscaper Carl Warner. Warner buys carts of food and spends days with a team of food stylists and model makers to create totally edible landscapes. Come to find out there is a book that just came out in October featuring 25 of his works...it's titled Food Landscapes. Check these out...amazing. I want that job!

21-piece collection sells for $40.00 Christopher Elbow Artisanal Chocolates make a unique gift for the holidays. They not only taste fantastic, but every single piece is a work of art. With flavors like Bananas Foster, Orange Pekoe Tea and Balsamic Caramel, how can you go wrong? You can find gift boxes from four-piece to 42-piece as well as luxury boxes that have a variety of items like coffee, chocolate bars and toffee. Order online at http://www.elbowchocolates.com. Try not to drool!

"The Dog," a new $3 scratch game from the Nebraska Lottery, will be featured on the side of five trucks as they drive throughout the Omaha area. The new creative, which was developed by SKAR, features three different dogs who are getting their heads scratched, along with the headline "Scratch the Dog." Look for them around town beginning the last week of November and running through the holidays.

For me there's nothing better than finding a cool and unique gift. If you know someone who loves food, here are a few ideas, compliments of Food Network Magazine (have I ever told you I love that magazine?).

I made some neat displays for my fellow co-workers and thought I would pass them on in case you know someone who is a big Grinch fan. You can make the display in three easy steps: 1. Buy a Grinch (Kohl's sells them for $5!) and put a Santa hat on top. 2. Wrap a box with a brick design, put some fake snow on top and place Grinch inside. 3. Make a Santa bag and stuff with presents. Add additional snow around the base to finish it off. EASY!

Most people probably don't know that the Nebraska Lottery has given a total of $395,605,807 to its beneficiaries since the Nebraska Lottery began operation on September 11, 1993. In order to give people a better understanding of the good the Nebraska Lottery does, SKAR has designed a series of ads to highlight the three main categories of funding: environment, education  and the Nebraska State Fair. Here are a couple of the ads in the series. Look for a detailed beneficiary list on nelottery.com.

The 14th Annual  Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation gala will be Feb. 26, and as usual it will be a big night. Every year JDRF wraps the event around a theme and carries it through with the invitation and throughout the evening at the fundraiser. I've been helping with the graphics for the past several years, and I'm excited to show you this year's look. The theme, "Big Dreams...Big Hearts, A Real Hope for a Cure," is based on the fact that children with juvenile diabetes can have the same dream as any other kid and become anything they want to be. With the thousands of dollars raised annually  at this event, a real hope for a cure could be more than just a dream. For more information on the event call 402-397-2873 or e-mail omaha@jdrf.org.

A buddy and I stopped into the Lewis Art Gallery here in Omaha last week with no intention to buy but just to take a look around. The two-story gallery had hundreds of pieces displayed on the walls and floor with all kinds of price ranges. After taking a look at all the pieces on the first floor we took the elevator up to the second floor. The doors opened and up high on the facing wall was this 12" x 12" acrylic painting surrounded by all these other large pieces. For some reason it caught both of our eyes and we both went immediately to it. "Hmmm. A red cow. Interesting," I thought. We looked around the second floor for a while and saw quite a few nice piece. Eventually we decided to leave so we headed to the elevator. There it was, staring me in the face ... that little red cow painting! With perfect timing, as if he knew I was interested, the gallery owner approached us and asked if we had any questions. "What the heck," I thought, and then proceeded to ask him the cost of the little red cow. It was in my price range!  And with a little coaxing from my buddy I took the damn thing. I wasn't expecting to buy anything, I wasn't really in the market for a little red cow painting, but every time I see it in my kitchen it brings a smile to my face ... just what good artwork is supposed to do.

SKAR is: Todd Sanning: Guitar Joleen David: Lead vocals Trish Haniszewski: Keyboards and background vocals Mike Duman: Bass guitar and background vocals Mark "Sticks" Carpenter: Drums

SKAR has designed a new ad to promote the  Nebraska Lottery's lotto game Mega Millions ®. The creative was inspired by an old postcard we ran across that shows a tractor hauling a giant ear of corn. We thought the concept would convey the idea of the mega jackpots you could win by playing the game. Look for the ad in the April issue of Huskers Illustrated.

The colors of Nebraska's birds were the focus of SKAR's latest ad for the Nebraska Lottery's Environmental Trust Fund. These funds are  used to improve and preserve the natural habitats of hundreds of bird species throughout the state. After researching different species we were able to find every color in the spectrum. Birds such as the Scarlet Tanager, the Common Yellowthroat and the Purple Martin inspired us. Look for the ad to run in the April issue of Prairie Fire newspaper.