BEST IN SHOW
Like a bull in a china shop, the next exhibition at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Wash., is bound to make a lot of noise. “Best in Show: Works by David Gilhooly, William Wegman, and Karen Willenbrink-Johnsen” will examine the artists’ use of dogs as muse, metaphor, and model. Funk sculptor Gilhooly combines a repeated silhouette of his dog Spot with cleverly positioned kitsch; Wegman’s Weimaraners will appear as always in classic costume; and Willenbrink-Johnsen has sculpted hot glass to create vignettes of dogs performing circus tricks and square dancing at a country hoedown, among other things. The hounds will be released March 25 through Oct. 9. www.museumofglass.org

TRICK RIDER
The crowd-pleasing trick horse rider of the 1940s, Mary Ann Mayfield Stephen, won the title of Rodeo Queen at the Colburn Bowl (the largest rodeo arena in Texas, made famous by Gene Autry) and is now winning the hearts of Americans all over again. Robert More, president of Red Horseshoe Paper in Palo Alto, Calif., says the nostalgic “Rodeo Queen” notebook featuring the saddled Mayfield Stephen is his bestseller, and to his surprise, particularly in the electoral Blue States. Instructions for East and West Coasters on how to read cow and horse brands are on the back. Other didactic designs are available as pocket notebooks, stickers, mailing labels, and mousepads. www.redhorseshoe.com

SOLAR SACK
It doesn’t provide the lift-off capability of a jetpack, but the Voltaic Systems solar-powered backpack allows one to travel around town while charging a laptop, phone, and other electronic devices that need to be fully juiced when on the go. Under direct sunlight, a cell phone will charge in five minutes, a digital camera or iPod in seven. The 3½-lb. black backpack is so handsomely designed that passersby won’t notice the oblique solar panels or wires running inside the bag and pockets, or not at first. It’s fashion and function for environmentally conscientious gadget geeks. www.voltaicsystems.com