10 Reasons Why Life is Going Well

The economy may be on the fritz these days and life might be throwing you a few obstacles but today I'll give you ten reasons why life truly is beautiful.

1. Finally, the writer's strike is over. The strike wasn't pretty but at least it's over.

2. Tipsters are saying that the iPhone and iPod Touch prices are due to drop about $100. This sucks for anyone who just bought their gear, but for prospective buyers, enjoy the extra Benjamin in your pocket.

3. I read in Time Magazine that the number of death's in Iraq has dropped significantly since August of 2005. Regardless of party affiliation or ideals, this is undoubtedly a good thing.

4. Artists like Tristan Prettyman and Kelley Stoltz are investing time and money in energy credits and other greener strategies.

5. David Anderegg wrote a tribute Nerds entitled Nerds: Who We Are and Why We Need More of Them. It's been praised by many media outlets, so if you're a Nerd this is your limelight.

6. If you've been upset that 2000 didn't bring flying cars, at least you now have a reason to rejoice with the Swiss. They recently invented an underwater car called the Squba.

7. Heidi Klum says she will open up her home and do whatever she can to help Britney Spears. Maybe Britney will finally get the friend she needs, and Chris Crocker can create a new, happier YouTube video.

8. Even though our world is heating up, some coral reefs are naturally protected from global warming with the ocean's natural thermostat system.

9. A recent study in the Archives of Internal Medicine showed that reaching 100 is easier than most would think, largely due to a new trend of doctors who treat older people the same as they would younger individuals.

10. When all else fails there's always music.

I dare not leave you without a music recommendation. If you're into the cutting edge rock, dance pop I've been recommending The Teenagers are a sure hipster winner. They're a bit more dissonant than you usually hear on the radio, but the group's debut Reality Check has gotten them lots of attention.

The Teenager's song below is called "Homecoming." If you we're a young teen who doted over "Unemployed Boyfriend" from Everclear's Wonderful album then you'll appreciate the dumb sounding satire of this track.

Hot Sneaker Brand

I never was one for combing my hair or dolling up my physical appearance but when I saw my first boutique sneaker shop I fell in love with fashion and style. For the first time I had entered a store that customized its products exactly to my lifestyle and shopping was revolutionized. Buying a product felt like buying an extension of my identity and that felt nice.

In a world where nearly anything can be customized I think the demand for buying products that feel like an extension of who we are will become increasingly important. People want to customize exactly what feeds they receive through RSS and customized clothing made by tailors is a growing business. As a result, I think boutiques will grow in popularity. Of course these places won't replace Wal Mart or Macy's, but the marketplace for boutiques like the ones pictured below will grow.

That being said, I recently found a one of a kind sneaker brand called Creative Recreation. I fell in love with a shoe and can't seem to find it anywhere. So if you can find a place where I can buy a pair of size 7.5 Creative Recreation Cesario Lo Platinums in black and gold like the item pictured below I will pay you ten of my own hard earned dollars. The shoes can't be inordinately priced ($120 is the most expensive I've ever seen them even though they're out of stock) and I have to be able to ship them to my home in the United States for a reasonable cost. I'll pay you via PayPal, cash, or whatever. Just call me or send me an email at Lproctor@student.umass.edu


Before I leave to pine over my dream sneakers I'll fill you in on my new musical affinity. The laid back Kelley Stoltz combines intricate weavings with genuine acoustic show tunes style to create a unique and beautiful sound. Best of all, his new album Circular Sounds is set for a February 5th release on Sub Pop Records. You can't go wrong with "Morning Sun," which you'll find on his myspace page jukebox.

My Crush on Steve Jobs

My heart races every time I see the MacBook Air. I've watched and re-watched the new ad on the computer more than is healthy, and now I can't stop belting out "I'm a young soul, in this very strange world, hoping I could learn a bit about what is true and fake."

Apple's stock may be off but Steve Jobs is right on for me. He knows exactly what I want, and as soon as the innovative MacBook air comes out with a bit more heft I'm ready to invest.

Speaking of Jobs, I have officially installed Apple iPhone Update 1.1.3 and it makes me doubly proud to own an iPhone. You can now send text messages to multiple recipients and move around and customize the home screen as if it were a normal computer. Best of all, the iPhone will now tell me wherever I am and allow me to map step by step directions to where I should be. For the directionally challenged this is not only beautiful but it's lifesaving. On a lighter note, Apple now made it possible for me to rent movies for road trips. The iPhone was wonderful when I got it but now it's even better. And what's more amazing than a phone that just keeps on improving?

If Jobs and his secretive team listened to me I would request that the following additional fixes are added to Update number 1.1.4.

• The iPhone doesn't allow users to send or automatically view picture text messages. Instead we have to go to a site with a hard to remember username and password (which is separate for each picture) and log in. Half the time the site doesn't even work so viewing something a friend snapped in the cell phone view finder for convenience is laborious and hardly worth it.
• No cell phone offers better browser viewing than the iPhone. But if Apple can do anything then I look forward to the day when we can view Flash.
• I'm used to the keyboard and have come to appreciate the silent satisfaction of pressing buttons. The self correct is effective but if there was a way to turn the keyboard sideways like in the internet browser then it would make my thick fingers much happier.
• Just add instant messenger already and give away a ringtone here or there. And while we're at it, don't constrict email and text message alerts to three measly tones. We want variety and beauty, much like the iPhone itself.

Jobs knows how to do it right, but if he wants me to review that MacBook Air I'd be happy to do so.

In honor of Steve Jobs and the wonderful musical taste of his employees I'm going to recommend some Yael Naim. The French musician usually plays slow ballads with David Donatien, and her music is amazing in a Cat Power sort of way. The song in the ad is even better in the video below:

iGot One

Hello friends,

I hope 2008 finds each and every one of you happy and healthy. I celebrated the New Year quietly and the year has treated me well so far. I haven't read as much as I anticipated over the holiday, but I saw Juno and Charlie Wilson's War, and also spent the day perusing Roman and Greek artifacts in the Getty Villa. I've got 40 more hours to bask in the La Jolla warmth and then I'm back to the beloved East Coast.

Beyond that the only other significant news flash is that after months of drooling over what Time Magazine called 2007's best invention, I got an iPhone. It's beautiful. Rather than discuss its value to me I've decided to add some of my favorite iPhone related user generated videos.

If you're a sap-geek like me you'll enjoy this one.

This one is also beautiful.



And because I do offer a music recommendation before closing every blog, I'd like to honor the artist that was actually featured in the video above.

It's called "Young Folks" and it's by Peter Bjorn and John, whom I absolutely adore.

Goodnight my friends, and best of luck to you in 2008. May you accomplish everything you dreamed of and more.

Because Time is Ticking

A few years ago affordable watches used to be all about Fossil. Now it's all about Nixon. If you want to be cutting edge these days it's time to fork up a little more money to show you have style.

My old Fossil has served me well but it's time to upgrade. And since I'm not in the realm of Rolex at this point in my life, I've been obsessively searching for semi-affordable sturdy watches. In my search I stumbled upon Nixon's green and white Rayna, the blingy Player, and the first class Banks. Nixon helps me believe it: time is beautiful.

Of course my search hasn't been limited to Nixon. I've always had an affinity for LED lights so when Thinkgeek emerged with their own LED watches I about fainted. Not only that, but a friend emerged with a Dakota Hybrid watch which isn't too shabby either.

But while we're onto this LED light stuff, let's talk about this new gadget worth drooling over. It's called the Ibiza, and it's hot in an extremely weird and geeky way. Below is a customer action shot. The caption reads, "I asked for the time, not a light show."



To top it off the bottom of Thinkgeek's shopping section reads:

"Never offend people with style when you can offend them with substance."
--Sam Brown

It lights up my life, these watches.

Now I think it's time (no pun intended) for a little music talk. I'm currently listening to "My Best Friend" by Hello Saferide.

The Accumulation of Notebooks

Office supplies, they do it to me every time. Give me a whiff of plastic sheet protectors and I'm delighted, show me the ink flow on a new pen and I'll covet it until the ink runs out, or bring me a notebook and I'll feel compelled to buy it. Regardless of how hard I try to resist, office supplies are the weakness in me (as well as technology and a number of other things but that will come up later).

My affinity for office supplies has resulted in two things. The first is rationed trips to office supply stores. The other is the horrible accumulation of notebooks. "Oh, this one is the perfect size," I'll say about one as soon as I see it. Or "Wow, look at the way the pages fold as a result of the smooth three ring spiral redesign," I'll say about another. Then the justification comes in. I think of every reason why I absolutely need this notebook, and usually if it's only a couple bucks I splurge.

When I first acquire a notebook it becomes my best friend. I carry it along with me everywhere (in addition to a couple magazines) and write various notes, story ideas, or compelling metaphors inside. After awhile I gradually withdraw from the notebook. Maybe I feel like my writing kick is too off topic to go in the notebook I've been carrying around so I switch, other times I just get tired of lugging the same thing around all the time and I let my notebook stay in one place. As a result, I have a collection of half filled (optimism intended) notebooks.

Sometimes I look back at notebooks, and when I needed something for my overnight interview with The Donut Man I sifted through the pages of a few to find something suitable for interview notes (as well as splatters of donut fixings). One notebook was a small black covered book, and in it I found a quote from Theodore Roosevelt that I love. It reads:

"It's not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again...who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly."

With jewels like that, small reminders of what impacts me greatly at any given time in my life, I suppose my obsession with notebooks isn't all that bad. Maybe I'll head to the office supply store. After all I do need more printer ink. And what better reason to purchase another notebook than quotes like Roosevelt's?


Current music infatuation: Girlyman

You Know Your Mom is Kewler Than You When...

It's official, my parents are kewler than I am. Almost every time I call they're swamped, and it's usually not with work. Whether they're attending some sort of dinner party or preparing to go to a friend's house, they have a more vivacious social life than I do. As a college student, this seems weird.

At first I was in denial. "Ah, even though I'm staying in tonight and listening to Van Morrison while my parents are out on the town I still have a lot of friends," I'd think. It's true, I do have amazing friends. But let's rewind to the part where I'm staying in to listen to Van Morrison. Really, I should go out more.

I've officially accepted my lack of social suavity in comparison to my immediate ancestors. In fact I've begun to embrace it. I like that most people have never heard of the bands on my ipod.

Just the other day I took a break from research to check my email. My mom had sent me a link to www.SweetskinZ.com. The site, which features great web design and cutting edge artistic bike tires that reflects at night, is really amazing. Here's a screen shot of the site's intro.



See, that's pretty awesome. But what I really want to know is how my mom found such a cool site and company. Who knows, while I'm reading The New Yorker every week with a 49 year old mean demographic she's probably taken on BMXing. My parents really could do anything, but that doesn't erase my perplexed awe.


While I'm pondering exactly how my parents passed their college aged daughter on the coolness scale, I'm listening to John Doe and Kathleen Edwards' beautiful duo "Golden State."

Actually, even though this guy is awesome he's not all that cool, but that's all right with me. If you're looking for cool you know who to seek out. There's something to be said for not being as kewl as your mom. Plus, I can replace the famous, "Your mom goes to college!" with "But my mom is kewler than yours," and I wouldn't have it any other way.