I have yet to take down the Christmas tree. After all, Christmas only ended formally on January 6th. However, I have already begun thinking about Valentine's Day -- only because I've been receiving emails reminding me that the next major gift-giving holiday is a little more than a month away.

For your consideration:

Italian underwear, outerwear, beachwear, eyewear, legwear, shoe and perfume maker, La Perla has introduced a limited-edition retro-style luxurious satin jewel bra.

The cost?

$428.

Joaillerie-lingerie, a seductive liaison that La Perla has created between underwear and preciousness. A few, exclusively made garments where the craftsmanship dimension distinctly plays the leading role. A heart-thumping date each time. In this season, a positively retro satin bra that shows off, on the decollete, a set of antique-looking metal balls and beads alternated with brilliant crystals. A new desire to astonish is born from a surprise dialogue between the language of intimacy and that of a more glamorous appearance.

The unmistakable La Perla style with an added special and unrepeatable allure, all brought together in a series of jewel garments made with exclusive techniques and produced in a limited series.

Exceptional features: the precious quality of the lace and the sophisticated lightness of pleated tulle.

On Saturday, November 26th, 2005 I laid eyes on one of the most beautiful airplanes I've ever seen: a CIRRUS SR22-G2. Timothy Charles and our ten year-old daughter, Jessica had the privilege of riding in N45OAP from San Carlos down to Monterey for lunch and back. Our friend Randy Dilena, the pilot and owner of the plane, gave me "a tour" of his plane, while Randy's daughter gave Jessica a tour of San Carlos' "SQL" Airport. (The airport is located off the same parkway as Oracle Corporation.)

Cirrus is the world's second largest manufacturer of single-engine, piston-powered aircraft.

The SR22 uses a Teledyne Continental Motors' 310-horsepower IO-550.

The interior is BMW-inspired.

Tim thought the body of the Cirrus is reminiscent of one of the most beautiful cars in the world, Ralph Lauren's 1938 Bugatti 57SC Atlantic. This summer, we got to see Lauren's Bugatti Atlantic at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts Museum. The exhibit, which has now left the MFA, was called Speed, Style, and Beauty Exhibit: Cars from the Ralph Lauren Collection.

The book alone was worth the price of admission.

Aside from the interior and exterior beauty of the Cirrus SR22, the most unique feature is that it comes with a rocket-propelled parachute system that can support the entire plane. Randy calls it "The Spousal Support Feature".

Cirrus calls it the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System or "CAPS".