Waiting

Well, it's been quite some time since I experienced a good old MBTA clusterfuck, so I suppose I was due. Today we were having a monthly staff meeting at work, so I wanted to make an effort to be on time. The bus was more or less on time, and I got to Wellington just before 8:20, only to find a full inbound platform and announcements that a "power problem" had knocked out service on the southern part of the Orange Line, but trains were still running.

Each time an inbound train rolled into the station, only a few people were able to squeeze on. Having had more than a lifetime's share of sardine-packed T rides, in such situations I tend to step back and let others subject themselves to squishing. But because part of the line had been cut off, there were fewer trains available than during a typical morning rush hour.

There was a lot of grumbling and eye rolling. I looked at my watch and saw that nearly 30 minutes had passed since I'd arrived. I was also getting cold, but not terribly so. Since we've been having this in-between weather for a while, I've been opting not to layer up because it's too easy to become overheated. Instead I've been wearing my usual layers of shirt and undershirt, and adding a scarf and a medium-weight coat.

Eventually the trains grew less crowded, but by the time I was able to board I'd been waiting on the platform for almost an hour, and the train was still pretty full. Then we rolled into Sullivan. I'd completely forgotten that things would be worse down the line. I sympathize with folks who have to board the Orange Line at Sullivan every day, because the trains are almost always packed after picking up passengers at Wellington, but people were just forcing themselves into the car.

I know I shouldn't really have been surprised at this, but I still was. I know, you need to get to work; everyone on that train has somewhere they need to be, and nobody likes to wait, and nobody likes to be stuck outside when it's cold. But I'm still taken aback at times by the overwhelming selfishness that has become the norm these days. I only needed to go three stops so I could switch to the Green Line, but I waited because I figured there were people who needed to get where they were going more urgently than I did.

I ended up missing about 90% of the meeting. Oh, well; stuff happens.

Addendum: Looking at the comments about this morning's incident on Universal Hub, I now realize that I should have taken an outbound train one stop to Malden, where I could have gotten on an inbound commuter rail train. But as the commenter points out, none of the PA announcements mentioned this option.

More Candy

After I wrote about some of favorite holiday candy treats the other day, I realized that, while deserving, all the attention didn't need to be focused on See's.

Each year I eagerly anticipate the arrival (and subsequent discounting) of dark chocolate sea-salt caramels, nestled in their metal tins at Crate & Barrel. The price has climbed a couple of dollars since last year, but if you can score a tin or two after they've been marked down, they are well worth it.

New this year, and similar but just different enough, are dark chocolate covered peanut butter "bites," also sprinkled with sea salt. These come in a much smaller package (7 ounces, vs. a pound for the caramels) but they also cost less. As it turns out, both are already marked down, but if you can wait they'll go lower.

This Week in Awesome (12/10/11)

With the Mrs. a full-time student, it's been tougher for me to get computer time on the weekends, but I'm doing my best for you guys...

Crazy-ass clip from a Bollywood cop movie. (Jalopnik)

Language nerds: this one's for us. (Chronicle of Higher Education)

The story of this viral video, and how it led to a music video, is pretty interesting. (Gawker)

And finally this week, a brief drawing lesson. (The Daily What)

Fun Friday Read

Leave it to the British to come up with this one: the annual Bad Sex in Fiction award was bestowed earlier this week, chosen from among a dozen nominees.

Want Some Candy?

Speaking of imminent holidays and sweet treats, the seasonal See's Candies pop-up stores are back. See's is a California-based chain beloved by the Mrs. since childhood. There are no permanent See's stores in our corner of the world, but for the better part of the past decade they have been operating temporary stores during the holiday season, and a (very) small selection of their offerings is available year-round at Lord & Taylor stores.

Among our favorites: the vanilla and butterscotch lollypops; the individually-wrapped bars in two varieties; the dark chocolate nuts-and-chews assortment; and what is quite possibly the best peanut brittle to be found anywhere (it's certainly the best I've tasted).

Any of their candy choices would make an excellent gift. In the Boston area, the temporary stores are in the Northshore, Natick, and Chestnut Hill malls, and in the Derby Street shops in Hingham. And they're always giving out free samples, as if you needed another enticement. To see if there's a pop-up near you, check the store locator page. If not, you can always order online.

Noggin'

I do love that time each year when the egg nog finally shows up in the supermarket (though it seems like it gets earlier each year). I try to restrain myself, buying a quart and stretching it out for a couple of weeks. My current favorite is anything with vanilla flavor added; it's less eggy than the regular kind, and is more or less like drinking a vanilla milk shake.

The folks at Huffington Post's Kitchen Daily did a taste test of 17 varieties of egg nog. The results are quite interesting, I think, though I will say that I am entirely not surprised that the soy variations finished near the bottom of the list. I guess I need to try some of Trader Joe's version.

Customized

Right around the time I ordered my iPhone, I saw a picture on a style blog of one that had its glass back swapped out for a metal one. I liked it, thought about it for a bit, and decided to order one for myself. It looks like this:

The back is held on by two extremely tiny screws in the bottom edge. They require a special star-pointed screwdriver, which you can get for a couple of bucks on eBay (that's what I did). The back came from a place in Hong Kong, and took about a week and a half to arrive. I got a weird-looking tracking number that is actually for the US Postal Service, and for a couple of days nothing came up when I entered it, then it showed up and became trackable.

The back panel couldn't be easier to replace: undo the screws (have a plastic cap or something around that you can put them in, since they're so small they would be easily lost), slide the back up a few millimeters, and lift it off the phone. The screws are a little hard to handle when reattaching, but it only took a minute or so.

There are a couple of different styles to choose from. One has a beveled edge, and another is described as "diamond cut" which, best I've been able to discern from the pictures, means the edge is metal-finished like the back, whereas the style I chose has a black edge, so if you look at the phone from the side, it looks just like the edge of the glass back. They're also available in some different colors, if that's your thing.

I thought swapping the back would make the phone lighter, but that doesn't seem to be the case. I have not noticed any difference in phone reception or data speed.

This Week in Awesome (12/3/11)

Okay, I sort of stalled on this week's installment because I don't have as much as usual, but we'll just press on regardless.

This will remind you of any time you've had to deal with an obnoxious salesperson in a store. (Vimeo via Racked)

An imaginative (and rather downer) exploration of what happens to the people in catalog photos when no one's looking at them. (The Hairpin)

A collection of unseen TV characters. (The Daily What via Videogum)

Retro Video Unit (12/2/11)

This was supposed to be Friday's post...things have been busier than usual. TWiA will be up later today.

I wasn't looking for this particular video, but it's a nice artifact from early in the New Wave era:

Gray Suede Shoes

I wasn't intending to talk about shoes two days in a row, but things happen... Over a year ago, I found suede bucks on Nordstrom's web site in an array of colors, including gray. I ordered a pair, and when they arrived I was dismayed to find that the toes were "burnished," which is apparently something that's fashionable to do to shoes to make them look lived-in. I exchanged them for dark khaki bucks that hadn't been messed with in any way.

Not long after that, I came across some nice-looking gray bucks made in Pennsylvania by Walk-Over, a company that's been around for a couple hundred years. They weren't cheap, but they were exactly what I wanted. I ended up convincing myself that I didn't need them, since I'd just gotten the other bucks. But one day back in the spring, I was shopping and saw the shoes (in other colors, but not the gray) and decided to try them on, to see how they fit and felt, with the idea that if I did decide at some point to order them, I would know what size to get.

Earlier this week, I came across a link to a sale on the Steven Alan web site. Even though most of their clothing is made in the USA, I never bother looking at their stuff because the prices are pretty high, their shirts are cut way too slim for me, and they make them with this horrible little detail (use the zoom feature and you'll be able to see what I mean) where the placket is twisted around, on purpose, between the collar and the second button.

Anyway, I decided to look at the sale just because I hadn't looked at their site in a long time. They also carry some things made by other companies, and in the sale section I found the gray Walk-Over bucks, marked down almost 30% off their usual price. They aren't carried by many places to begin with, and they don't tend to be on sale, so I decided to go ahead and get them. They're still on sale, if you are so inclined.

Purchases from the sale section are final, and if I hadn't tried on the shoes several months ago I wouldn't have been sure which size to get. They arrived today, and I'm very pleased. They have a 360-degree welt which makes them resoleable if necessary, and a full leather lining. Are they better than Nordstrom's bucks, which are made in Brazil? Not necessarily. The Nordstrom shoes have thicker cushioning in the soles, but they couldn't come up with a gray shoe that was unblemished.

Penny Picks

I just received a comment on my post from a month or so ago from someone else who is dissatisfied with Bass's penny loafers (though for a different reason):

Yah, man. Bass is dead! They have traded quality workmanship in favor of trademarks. I have gone through 2 pairs in less than a year; the soles wear down too easily and the stitching tends to give way around the front upper. Decided I'll go with a look alike if I can. Thanks for the AE recommendation, BTW. Nice shop. 

This made me think about what other choices are available for someone who wants a pair of penny loafers but doesn't want them to be Bass. There are several options, depending on how much you care to spend. There are shoes that cost less than $100, like the Florsheim Cabot and Berkley, but they are made in China and will almost certainly be more of a disappointment than the Bass Weejuns.

All prices quoted below are "list" unless otherwise specified; try searching online for lower "street" pricing. And since the holiday shopping season is upon us, you might want to watch for discounts and deals at sites like Amazon, Endless, Piperlime, Shoebuy, or direct from the companies' own sites (Cole Haan was offering 30% off this past Monday, and they may well do so again before Christmas). If you don't have the option of going to a store and trying on shoes in person, I suggest buying from a site that offers free returns.

At the lower end, Sebago offers a traditional beefroll penny, in six colors and a wide range of sizes and widths, for $140. The bulk of Sebago's shoes are made in the Dominican Republic. I have a pair (not penny loafers), and they are decently made for what they cost. They used to offer a strap-style penny called the Cayman, which seems to have been discontinued but may still be available if you look around.

At the same price, you might consider the Lorenzo from David Spencer. These are available in narrow, medium, or wide, and are made in Mexico. (There's also a tassel version, but we don't talk about those.)

Cole Haan's Pinch Air penny ($168) looks traditional on the outside, but inside it's packed with Nike Air comfort technology and nicely padded footbeds. I've owned a pair of these for a year or so, and they are among my most comfortable shoes. Choice of widths, as you would expect. Made in India. Couple of things worth mentioning: the soles are leather with rubber inserts, which might matter to some people (most of the others mentioned here have all-leather soles and rubber heels); the leather is noticeably glossy, which can look a little odd if you are wearing them with more casual clothing; and there is also a version (older, I think) that does not have the Nike Air. It runs $20 less, but I can't imagine why someone wouldn't opt for the added comfort.

Brooks Brothers has a penny loafer ($188), but I don't know where they are made, I have not seen them in person or tried them on, and they are only available in medium width. If there's a BB near you, it might be worth a visit.

Passing the $200 barrier gets us to the Allen Edmonds Walden ($235). Made in USA, and available in the generous range of sizes and widths typical of the brand, these are the shoes I chose instead of Weejuns (though I found mine on eBay for far less). They also offer a similar style, the Montecito ($199), which has a lower vamp that may be more comfortable for those with higher insteps. (Why the price difference? I have no idea.) One advantage to spending more up front is that shoes like these can be resoled.

AE has a big sale once a year, but unfortunately it's already happened for this year. Sites like Shoebuy tend to exclude AE from their frequent discounts, but a week or two ago they did offer 10% off without restrictions, and on Monday Amazon and Endless were offering variable discounts depending on how much you spent, so getting these shoes for less than list can be done, but may take some extra effort.

Epaulet is a store in New York (locations in Brooklyn and Manhattan) offering a wide selection of house-brand clothing and footwear, much of it made in USA. They have a beautiful penny loafer that's made in Maine using Horween Chromexcel leather with a distinctive and subtle matte finish. It's only available in medium widths, and only in black, and at $295 it's a bit on the steep side, but this is most assuredly a quality shoe. They also have a few styles of beefroll loafers in the same general price range, done up in more casual-looking leathers.

If you're the sort of person who thinks of shoes as a lifetime investment, you should probably just go ahead and get a pair of Alden LHS ("leisure handsewn") loafers. They run about $450 a pair, but if you take good enough care of them, you'll be able to pass them on to your son a few decades from now.

Enjoying the Warmth

It's a little odd walking around outside without a jacket at the end of November, while looking at all the houses in my neighborhood decorated for the season. But I don't mind. Once we got beyond the days with highs in the mid-70s, I was able to enjoy the much warmer than average temperatures we've had for the past six weeks or so.

I know colder weather is coming, but I'd like to think that these warm November days are a sign that we're going to have a mild winter. I haven't checked the Farmer's Almanac or anything, so I don't know what's been predicted; I'm just choosing to be optimistic.

Hardware

Yesterday I needed a couple of home hardware items, but I didn't feel like spending half an hour wandering around inside a Lowe's or Home Depot trying to find stuff, so I had the thought to go to an Ace Hardware store nearby. Even though I don't consider myself particularly handy, I've always enjoyed poking around in stores like this.

Your local hardware store isn't going to be anywhere near the size of a big-box store, but that's actually a benefit. The store was of manageable size, and I was able to locate the items I needed without having to ask for assistance. I did have a couple of questions, though, and shortly after entering the store I spotted a guy who was clearly an employee, so I tracked him down and got polite, thorough answers. It was evident that he had worked in the store for a while, and knew his way around the products.

There are things about Home Depot and Lowe's that I do like, but service isn't one of them. You can probably find a person to point you toward what you need, but more involved questions may be met with answers, or with a blank stare; in my personal experience, the odds are about equal. That isn't necessarily the fault of an employee; working in such a huge store, it must be difficult to have product knowledge for even a fraction of what's sold there.

Smaller stores have had to figure out how to survive in a superstore age, and I guess service is one way to distinguish oneself. It's something to keep in mind next time you need a household item.

This Week in Awesome (11/26/11)

I hope everyone had a good holiday. Now for the leftovers...

It's like doodling with your mouse, only instead of drawing, you get... well, I don't want to spoil it; just try it for yourself. (Videogum)

Huge, mind-blowing, amazingly comprehensive chart about money. There are plus and minus size controls in the upper-left corner; you'll need them. (xkcd via Consumerist)

The folks at Vulture analyzed decades of Saturday Night Live episodes to determine, among other things, which seasons had the highest incidence of repetition of characters. (Vulture via Kempt)

And finally this week, this will only be funny if you've seen Drive. Sorry, that's just how it is sometimes. (Funny or Die)

Black Friday Online Deal

I have a Black Friday deal that you can take advantage of right from home: these corduroy sportcoats are on sale today for $40 at JCPenney. It's a store brand, but I have seen them in person and they are decently made, nice plush 100% cotton with a full interior lining. There are six colors to choose from, and at this price you might want to get two.

As a bonus, JCP is doing one of its frequent tiered extra discounts: spend at least $50, get $10 off; spend $75, get $15 off; spend $100, get $20 off. Use the code WITHGLEE at checkout.

Watch Wednesday Thursday (11/24/11)

I wasn't at work yesterday, but it was still kind of a busy day, with my stint at a Community Servings pie pick-up location. This was my third year, and I'm fortunate enough to have been at the same location with the same person each time. I look forward to being there again next year.

Meanwhile, this quarter's watch has... a metal bracelet? What's going on?

This is another Alpha, like the one I posted recently with the new strap. These Alpha watches are fairly blatant copies of Rolex models, but technically they can't be called knockoffs because they don't say Rolex. This is a version of the Rolex Submariner, which is probably the best-known Rolex model.

Sometimes you see a Sub on one of those one-piece military-style straps, but most often you see them on a steel bracelet like this. I was thinking that I might like to have one watch on a bracelet, and I figured if there was one watch I would wear with a metal bracelet, it would be this style. Then this watch popped up on eBay, and I was able to grab it for a very good price.

It was used, but you'd be hard pressed to tell. It also came with the felt pouch and papers it was originally sold with. It's an automatic movement, and the bezel rotates in only one direction. It has a nice heft on the wrist, but because the metal surface is brushed, it's not too flashy.

Proportion

I was thinking about getting one of those Timex Weekender watches that I mentioned a while back. They're cheap and nice-looking, and I guess I was buying into the idea of "low cost, but also fashionable." Over the weekend I got a close look at several different styles in a store, and I decided I'm not going to bother buying one.

The main reason: there are three or four different case sizes, but they all take 18 mm straps. The largest style, the one I was thinking about getting, is about 39 mm in diameter. When I saw it right in front of me, I realized that the strap looked disproportionately narrow relative to the size of the watch's case size. It's not egregiously noticeable, like a World War I-era trench watch, but it just doesn't look quite right.

A watch's strap should be at least half as wide as the diameter of the case, if not slightly larger than half. Even the Timex I got several months back is 38 mm on an 18 mm strap. After I'd had it and been wearing it a while, I realized that its case should have been made to take a 20 mm strap. It's a small thing, but it's one of those small things that I tend to notice.

Too Many Vowels

I'm playing Scrabble on my iPhone with an old friend who lives in Texas. It's a close game, and at the moment my rack holds six vowels, two each of three different letters. My word options are thus rather limited.

Study Buddy

Since I wasn't broadcasting at full strength last week, I thought I'd throw out a weekend bonus: here's the dog "helping" the Mrs. study.

This Week in Awesome (11/19/11)

My deadline week is over; my reward is a short, easy week and a food-filled holiday.

You don't want a boring computer voice giving you your GPS directions; you want a couple of characters like these. (Neatorama via Videogum)

I stumbled across a site with lots of interesting info about the city.

Canada's getting plastic money. Cool. Why can't we have that? (Consumerist)

Ooh, time-lapse time: Dubai, a 24-hour period. (Gizmodo)

And finally this week, as a young adult in the 1980s, I had a lot of fun, and I didn't think there was anything particularly strange or odd about the time. But looking back now, there was some weird shit going on. (First one: The Trad via VideoJug; second one: Jalopnik)

Seasonal Thoughts

I make an effort to avoid repeating myself in here, but I'm still in the midst of a deadline week, so it seemed like a good idea to revisit a few semi-connected, seasonally relevant thoughts from years past:

Thanksgiving Comes First: credit to Jim Sullivan for starting this one. I offered my thoughts on it a few years back, and Lisa weighed in more recently. There are some houses in my neighborhood that even have Thanksgiving decorations in their yards, which I really appreciate. (I ought to go for a walk and take some pictures, huh?) And let's remember to give props to Nordstrom for their ongoing policy of waiting until after Thanksgiving to roll out the holiday decorations.

Black Friday Blackout: again, something I've shared my feelings about in the past. There's no justification for putting yourself at risk of bodily harm by venturing out to a mall or big-box store the day after Thanksgiving. I like a good deal as much as anyone, but shopping online is so much easier, and I bet you could accomplish at least 75% of your list that way.

I would also suggest you consider visiting a neighborhood shopping district near where you live: check out what's available right in your community, and help support a small, local business instead of contributing to the bottom line of a huge corporation that doesn't really need it.

Buy Some Pie: I neglected to mention Pie in the Sky last year. Community Servings is a Boston-based nonprofit that provides nutritious meals to hundreds of residents in the area who are ill and unable to take care of themselves. Each year they sell Thanksgiving pies to benefit their programs. I've been ordering pies from them for years, and volunteering for a few as well. You can order pies right here.

Live from 1980

I'm in the midst of a busy week, so I'm going to suggest something to occupy your time: concert archive site Wolfgang's Vault has recently added several sets from the Heatwave Festival (sometimes described as the "New Wave Woodstock"), which took place in Ontario, Canada on August 23, 1980. (The easiest way to get to these shows is to go to the site and search for "heatwave.")

Bands appearing at this festival included the B-52's, Pretenders, Rockpile, Elvis Costello and the Attractions, and Talking Heads. If you are a member of the WV site (which is free, and takes just a moment to sign up) you can listen to these concerts by streaming them on your computer.

I've listened to the Pretenders and Talking Heads sets, and both are excellent. Talking Heads' performance is particularly notable, as the band are just in the process of debuting the expanded lineup that accompanied the Remain In Light tour and became famous through the Stop Making Sense live album and concert movie, and a couple of the songs performed here sound like works that are still in progress as far as the arrangements are concerned.

Cool stuff—enjoy.

The Inevitable

It's a law of the universe, or something: new shirt, worn first time = splash-back from salad bar. A Tide To Go stick in the desk drawer is a necessity, and of course I'll blast it with OxiClean when I get home. (That stuff is seriously amazing; someday we'll find out it's given us all cancer, or it is cancer.)

This Week in Awesome (11/12/11)

Nice weekend... hope you're enjoying it.

Ever wish you were agile enough to do parkour? This guy found his inner... parkourer? (The Daily What)

My wish for a collection of old Boston photos has been answered, by the city itself. (Flickr via Old Boston)

Chevrolet is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Here's a great story of two brothers who spent years tracking down their father's beloved 1965 Impala SS, which he was forced to sell in the 1980s, so they could return it to him. Sure, it's a commercial, but one with some actual resonance behind it. There's also a longer clip explaining more of the background of the story. ((Jalopnik and Hemmings Auto Blog)

And finally this week, it's been 25 years since the release of David Lynch's Blue Velvet, which was somewhat controversial at the time. To mark the anniversary it's been released on Blu-Ray with nearly an hour of additional footage that didn't make it into the final theatrical cut. (Numerous spoilers, so if you'd rather just watch it without knowing what's in those scenes, I suggest not following the link.) (Slate via The Awl)

Retro Video Unit (11/11/11)

All right, let's move back to what I tend to think of as the beginning of the music video era: 1981. The Tubes were always an odd band, but when they gave in to their poppier instincts they got some great results. Their 1981 album The Completion Backward Principle was their first for a new label, and they were matched up with David Foster, a producer who understood how to make the most of their songs.

Sometimes I choose these clips because I think the videos themselves are significant or outstanding in some way; other times I just choose clips because I like the songs. This one, for the single "Talk To Ya Later," is one of the latter: the video is nothing special (again, looking back from the vantage point of 30 years later, it's easy to see that a production like this would not have cost much), but I've just always thought this is a great song and the video doesn't get in its way.

Denim, Revisited

Denim is a touchy subject for a lot of people. Women work out and starve themselves in order to fit into their "skinny jeans." Guys who care about style and clothes often favor pricey selvedge denim jeans from obscure labels. People get mocked for wearing "mom" or "dad" jeans.

I've had my own ups and down with jeans over the years. I realized that I was wearing jeans with legs that were too narrow, both because they were getting caught on some of my boots, and also because the legs were not wide enough in proportion to my taller-than-average frame. I found that I didn't like wearing relaxed-fit jeans because they looked bad on me in the opposite way. Trying to find a decent compromise takes effort and can be difficult.

Over the past three years or so, I've tried a number of different brands and fits, in an ongoing effort to find what works best for me. I have no interest in selvedge, because it tends to stretch out with wearing and because it's expensive. Another tricky issue with jeans: an awful lot of the stuff looks like it's been dragged behind a truck for 50 miles. I'm a middle-aged guy, and I don't want to be seen in jeans like that, even on weekends.

Also potentially embarrassing: wearing jeans that are cut too low. It's probably obvious to say this, but slimmer jeans also tend to have a lower rise. Depending on how you are built, a lower-rise jean can make sense. It elongates the torso, so it might work better for a shorter guy, but taller guys have to be careful that their shirts are long enough to stay tucked in and that they don't end up looking out of proportion. Beyond that, I've found that sitting all day in lower-rise jeans tends to cause my shirt to come untucked in the back more quickly.

I had bought some jeans from Lands' End Canvas because they were marked down to around $15, but after wearing them for a while I decided that they were cut too low and too slim, and didn't look right on me. Finding a reasonable mid-point is not easy. The Levi's 501 and 505 fits represent the lower limit for me in terms of rise and slimness. J. Crew's "slim straight" cut fits me very well and is comfortable, but their "484 slim" is too far in both rise and leg width. So while going through all my clothing for donations, I made some decisions about what was staying and what wasn't, which left me with a slight jean shortage in the "jeans nice enough to wear to work" category.

Not long ago Target started selling a brand of jeans called Denizen, which is a really stupid name, but what are you gonna do? They are free of external branding except for a back waist patch, which is easily removed. They come from Levi's discount-store sub-brand Levi Strauss Signature, and seem to have replace that brand in Target stores. There are maybe half a dozen different fit styles, and after looking them over and eliminating the ones aimed at younger guys, I bought two pair in a fit that's called, appropriately enough, "regular."

They come in a dark blue and a medium blue, both of which are of a consistent finish without any whiskering or other distressing. I can wear either one to work and feel confident that they look appropriate. Both go nicely with my various shoes and boots. They aren't as slim as the J. Crew and Levi's jeans I have, but they aren't big enough to be considered relaxed either. (They do offer a looser "relaxed" fit, for those who prefer it, as well as other fits.) Perhaps best of all, they're only $23 a pair. I suspect they were originally meant to be priced at $20 a pair before the cotton supply problems; they have been on sale at least once for $20, and probably will be again in the run-up to the holidays.

Conundrum

The grinder in my coffee maker really doesn't like oily beans, but unless you buy beans from a bulk container, you have no idea whether they're oily or not.

Case Closed

After some deliberation, I've chosen a case for my iPhone. As much as I liked the idea of the book-like case from Twelve South, I didn't need the wallet part of it, and the brown exterior of the "book cover" turned me off somewhat. I'd love to see this company offer more options down the road, though.

After I saw the Moleskine case, I contacted them to see if I could get an explanation about why they hadn't updated it for the iPhone 4, never mind the 4S. That was two weeks ago, and I haven't heard a word from them. You let me down, Moleskine.

Then I had the idea to look on Etsy, thinking there might be someone making something similar to either of these designs. Almost immediately I found the storefront for PadandQuill, makers of device cases for the iPhone and iPod Touch, MacBook Air, iPad, Kindle, and Nook. They had exactly what I had in mind, and at a lower cost than either of the other options I'd considered.

The cover is bonded leather, lined with book-bindery cloth:

That's a ribbon sticking out at the bottom, to help you remove the phone. One other cool thing about it is there's a cutout on the back so you can take pictures while the phone is in the case:

The tray that holds the phone is made of birch, lacquered in a satin finish. It's lightweight, and the inner corners are lined with thin strips of rubber to help grip the phone, but the overall fit is really sung and precise:

The case is slightly smaller in height and width than the Moleskine calendar book I use. Obviously this is not the most streamlined option, but that isn't what I was after. When I'm at home or at work, I remove the phone from the case; that's what I always did with my previous smartphone. I wanted to ensure the phone was protected when it's in my bag, or when I'm carrying it in a pocket.

After I received the case, I realized that it would be cool to have my initials stamped into the spine, like the logo on the back cover. I'd like to find someone who can do that for me. Ideas?

(Sorry for the shaky pictures; my camera needed to be recharged, the older one doesn't have image stabilization, and I've never been very good at keeping it still through the entire shot.)

Store Credit

Last week I ordered some stuff from Drugstore. I've found that their prices on a lot of everyday items like toothpaste are about the same as Target or CVS; sometimes that's true only if you buy two and average the price, but I'm fine with that. They also lowered their free-shipping threshold to $25, and I've never had an order from them take longer than two days to arrive, plus they give you a small percentage of your purchase in the form of a credit to use on a future order. So if you can plan ahead and order things before you've run out of them, and order enough at one time to get free shipping, it's a nice deal.

In this particular order I got some tea-tree shampoo. The site listed it as a 500 ml bottle, and given how little hair I have, that's enough to last me quite a long time. But when the order arrived, the bottle was only 400 ml. I emailed customer service before going to bed, and by the next morning I'd received an email saying that they had credited me half the price of the shampoo. The one catch is that the credit was applied to my Drugstore account, basically like store credit. But as long as I order something again, it's not a problem, so I'll probably just get a second bottle of the shampoo.

This Week in Awesome (11/5/11)

I thought about posting these last night before going to sleep, but I was just worn out.

Did you watch the annual "Treehouse of Horror" episode of The Simpsons? I though this year's vignettes were just okay. If you're feeling obsessive about it, Splitsider has gone and ranked all of them.

Do you remember Robert De Niro's crazy '70s outfits in Casino? Would you like to see them collected in the form of a poster? You can even buy it, if you like. (Welcome to Obsession via Kempt)

The folks at Late Night With Jimmy Fallon keep cooking up delightful zaniness, this time in the form of "found" video from a dating service that they claim occupied their studio in 30 Rock back in the '80s. (But what about Letterman?)

When I followed this link I thought it was for another time-lapse video. It's not, but you should watch it anyway: it's just a really nicely done compilation of everyday life in New York City. (Uproxx via The Daily What)

And finally this week, a series of alleged IM conversations between a man at work and his cat, whom he's taught to use IM, at home. It helps if you can suspend your disbelief, but even if not they're still hilarious. (The Hairpin)

Pearl Snaps

I have a tendency to get lodged in my brain the idea that I want or need a particular item (usually an item of clothing), and then spend weeks or months trying to find it.

Recently I was noticing and thinking about how popular Western-style shirts have been for the past several years, and how I've never felt comfortable with the idea of wearing one, mostly because of the association with cowboys and rodeos and horses and things that have nothing to do with my life up here in New England.

I thought to myself that it would be nice to find a denim shirt that had snaps instead of buttons, but without the Western yokes, which are the thing about Western shirts that I dislike the most. I looked in many, many places online, including reasonably well-known retailers like Sheplers that specialize in Western wear.

I found nothing even remotely close, and had basically decided to give up on the idea, when I was somehow reminded of the Denver Western-wear emporium Rockmount Ranchwear. It's a store that's popular with a lot of musicians, and looking through the clothing on the site it's easy to see why. They have a whole page on their site just for denim shirts, with about 15 variations. Near the bottom of the page I found what I'd been looking for.

Funny thing, though: when I finally found what I'd been looking for, I was somewhat surprised to realize that (a) I didn't think it would look especially good on me, and (b) I was no longer interested in it. The time I'd spent searching had actually helped me figure this out, and thus saved me from making a $75 mistake.

[Side note: who remembers Walker's Western Wear on Boylston Street? That was a cool store. I had some nice Justin boots I got there, and some gloves, and probably a few other things...]

We Are Experiencing Delays

My morning commutes have been horrendous since Labor Day. In years past there has been a definite change when people come back from summer vacations and kids go back to school, but this year it has been noticeably worse.

It typically takes a few cycles of the traffic lights for the bus to get through Wellington Circle, but on many days the traffic is snarled across route 28 and onward toward the river. On a good day the bus ride into Wellington takes 10 minutes, but for the past two months it has taken closer to 20 on most days. I have no idea why this is happening, and there isn't anything I can do about it. Fortunately, no one notices or cares what time I get to work.

In the mornings I check NextBus to track my bus's progress, but lately I've also been opening Google Maps to see how bad the traffic is. The buses are supposed to run every 20 minutes, but with the delays I can sometimes catch the "earlier" bus, which isn't really early anymore, if you know what I mean. If I don't catch that bus, I'm faced with what often turns out to be a 30- or 40-minute wait for the next one.

If the weather is agreeable, rather than wait around I'll walk the 10 minutes to where two other routes converge with the one I normally take, thereby increasing the odds that I won't have to wait long for a bus. I still need the bus to get through the circle (there's no way I'm crossing all those roads on foot) and into Wellington, but a brisk walk in the morning is kind of nice: it helps clear my head, and it's good for me. I don't mind walking when it gets cold, but as soon as it gets snowy or icy, I can't do it. Maybe by then this delay will have sorted itself out?

Empty Basement

Perhaps by now you've seen/read/heard the news that Filene's Basement is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, for the third time in a decade or so. But this time it's permanent; all stores will close by January 2012, and parent company Syms will be shutting down along with the Basement.

This is sad to hear for anyone who has spent time searching for treasure in the Basement (and by that I of course mean the real one, the original Downtown Crossing store) over the years, especially for people who are, say, at least 40. When I arrived here 30 years ago to start college, I was already familiar with the ways and wonders of the Basement, including the famous automatic markdown plan. My mother used to take a bus to Boston for shopping day trips with a friend, and eventually I got to go along. I don't remember if I ended up buying anything or not, but by the time I got here as a college freshman, I knew the Basement was a key source for great deals.

I have great memories of hopping on the subway and heading downtown to shop at the Basement, both alone and with friends. Back when I was a student in the first half of the 1980s, I used to get stuff like Brooks Brothers shirts, Italian-made corduroy pants from Louis Boston, and Shetland wool sweaters from England. And the suit department was a joy to behold: the suits came from the best stores and were made of the best fabrics. I bought suits from the Basement to attend at least a couple of weddings.

Finding an item that had survived long enough to hit the Basement's 50% markdown was a point of pride, and of course that 50% was off the original Basement price, which was already significantly less than what it had sold for (or at least had been priced at) farther back in its history. At one point in my post-college years, I scored a $500 suit (which would be at least a $1000 suit today) for $125. It still had its price tag from Saks attached.

Back then, there was hardly any competition in the off-price corner of the retail business, but that soon began to change. Along with stores like Marshalls, there were changes in manufacturing patterns, and even higher-end stores had more of their merchandise made in the Far East. Now there are more sources than ever for low-price clothing, yet the merchandise that's available just isn't as good, and the divide between the mass-market stuff and the really good stuff has grown even wider.

When the Downtown Crossing Basement closed in 2007, that was essentially the end, though we didn't want to think so at the time. But even before it shut down, all you had to do was walk through the store to realize its era had passed. In the later years the stuff the Basement was selling was mainly just past-season overstock from mainstream mall chains and department stores, nothing like what you could get back in the good old days, if you were willing to do a little digging and, occasionally, successfully hide something in an out-of-the-way corner until its next markdown day arrived.

Data Blindness

My lack of foresight has come back on me.

Earlier this year, I was looking over the account info for my cell phone plan. I was paying $30 a month for data service for my smartphone, but I wasn't using all that much data. In the time since I'd gotten the phone, Verizon had added the option of paying $15 a month for a smaller data allowance.

I thought about it and, even though paying the cell phone bill was not a hardship, I figured saving that $15 a month would still be nice. I looked at my data usage patterns and saw that I had not exceeded the amount being offered at the lower price, so I made the switch. I figured if I went over, I could switch back.

I did go over my data cap (150 megabytes) in July when we went to New York, because I was using the phone's map capability a lot, plus looking up other assorted info on the web and checking traffic on the drive down. But worse, now I have an iPhone, which means I'm using data on the network a lot more, to do stuff like play Scrabble with a friend in Texas.

But there was one aspect of the data plan I did not take into account. When I had signed up for the smartphone data plan, Verizon was still offering unlimited data at that $30 a month. At some point after I'd switched to the lower amount of data, the unlimited option had gone away, but customers who still had it were grandfathered and allowed to keep it, at the same rate.

When I made the decision to downgrade my data plan, I already knew at that point that I was going to bail on that phone as soon as I was able, but I still didn't take the long view of my future wants and needs. Had I just left the plan alone, I would now have an iPhone with unlimited data access for $30 a month. Arrrrgh...

Today I checked my usage for the two-plus weeks since I got the iPhone, and I could already see that I was going to pass the cap before the end of the billing period, so I switched back to the $30/month plan, but for that I now get 2 gigabytes of data. It seems unlikely that I would exceed that, but it wouldn't have mattered—I could have streamed Spotify or Pandora 24/7 without caring about my data usage. That stings.

Variable Conditions

My reaction to this weekend's freak snowstorm, on getting up Sunday morning and going out to get the paper, was, "That's it?" But this was highly variable depending on where you happened to be. When I saw on the news that an area around the Massachusetts/Vermont border got 30" of snow, and a wider area around that got 20", I realized how much it must suck to live out in the boonies. Even Worcester got a pretty serious hit, and an informal survey of people in my office who live between 128 and 495 found that four to six inches was the average.

But in closer to Boston, it was much more of a whimper than a bang. We heard on Saturday night that the peak of the storm would pass over our area between 2 and 6 am, and as a bonus I got a firsthand look at what was going on at 4 am, courtesy of the dog. When she wakes one of us in the middle of the night, it can mean only one thing.

[This is not the first time she's done this during a storm. There seems to be some correlation between severe weather and nocturnal stirring. It may be a moon influence, or possibly an atmospheric vibe she feels, or something else entirely, but it is real.]

Since I didn't yet have any winter outerwear handy (still in storage in the basement), I layered up under a raincoat and added a scarf and a waterproof hat. But when we got outside, it was more rain than snow that was falling, and the sidewalks, driveways, and streets were covered in maybe an inch of slush. That's what I found several hours later, plus the sun was out, and it stayed out all day, so the slush melted away within a few hours. That's definitely one good thing about off-season storms: the weather tends to move back to more or less normal quickly.

Maybe it wasn't so bad earlier in the month, when it was warmer than normal.

This Week in Awesome (10/29/11)

Let me make one thing clear: I said I wanted fall, not winter. This is not at all what I had in mind...

Regardless of the weather, Monday is still Halloween. But if you live in certain parts of Brooklyn, you might be more used to seeing people playing dress-up year-round. (The Awl)

Time compiled a list of their choices for the top 100 pop songs since they began publishing in 1923. (Gilt MANual)

Stop-motion video is right up there with time-lapse video. This one's a collaboration between Spike Jonze and a French textile artist. FYI: meant for mature audiences. (Atlantic Wire via Kempt)

Check out a preview of this cool new book full of lots of interesting facts presented in artful graphics. (Boing Boing via The Hairpin)

And finally this week, back in February Jalopnik posted a trailer for a miniature (1/32 scale, to be precise) recreation of the centerpiece chase from the movie Bullitt. Now there's a new trailer, and a release date of February '12.

Retro Video Unit (10/28/11)

I'm jumping ahead of the usual time frame for these selections, to 1991. As Nirvana roared to prominence and Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and others followed, there were people like me who weren't all that interested in that particular sound. And there were bands like Chicago's Material Issue who understood, and offered a power-pop antidote to grunge.

This video, for the song "Diane," is not anything special (arriving a decade into the MTV era, you could argue that all the good ideas for music videos had already been used, plus it was obviously made on the cheap), but it serves the song well, and the song is what's key here. Bright, bouncy, and infectious, with just a hint of darker emotion lurking around the edges, "Diane" encapsulates everything that was great about these guys.

Shopping Locally

On Sunday I visited the fourth installment of the semiannual Top Shelf Flea Market. At around 1 pm the VFW was absolutely teeming with people, which hopefully translated into big sales for the vendors. I've been to all of them, and this was the busiest I've seen it. There was even a greyhound tied up outside the entrance, waiting patiently for its people to finish shopping. I got a vintage made-in-England tweed jacket from Giuseppe, but his booth was so busy I didn't have a chance to chat with him.

Later on I headed down the street to Porter Square Books, because I needed to pick up a 2012 Moleskine calendar notebook. I've been carrying one of these for several years now. The version I like is arranged with a week down the left-hand pages, and blank, lined right-hand pages. There are other layouts, but this one works best for me. Since I pay all my bills online, I use the notebook to (among other things) make notes for when I make the payments and how much, in case I need to refer back.

The bookstore was also quite busy, which was great. It's a well-run store, and I always like to see local, independent businesses thriving, especially a bookstore at a time when all bookstores are threatened by online giants, warehouse clubs, and the growth of ebook readers. PSB filled a void in the area, and has become established enough to attract a busy slate of author appearances and support two book clubs (one for adults, one for kids). It also has a very good coffee bar.

Navigating the parking lot and environs of the Porter Square Shopping Center can be tricky, especially on weekends, but that's to be expected when a suburban-style strip mall is located in the midst of a densely-packed urban area. Don't let that deter you—just pay attention when you're walking in the lot.

Today's Outfit

I've never gone in for any of the "what I'm wearing today" stuff, because it just isn't my thing, but today things came together nicely, so why not? Don't expect it to become a regular thing, though; for one thing, I'd have to manage better pictures...

Jacket: olive green herringbone with red and mustard windowpanes. I got this from Lord & Taylor maybe five or six years ago; it's from their old house brand Grant Thomas, which they discontinued several years back in favor of the generally unappealing and poorly made Black Brown stuff (if you've seen any of it in person, you know what I'm talking about). This was originally a 3-button jacket, but I re-pressed the lapels to roll to the middle button. Lots of nice little details: traditional leather buttons, side vents, ticket pocket, suede elbow patches. A good find.

Shirt: Martin + Osa, in a red, olive, and cream plaid. This is about the only shirt I have that goes well with pants in the olive-to-brown range. If you want to get wonky about it, the colors in the shirt also tie in nicely with the colors in the jacket.

Pants: not sure what you'd call this color—medium brown? Five-pocket corduroys from JCPenney's house brand St. John's Bay. Cheap, obviously. I bought four pairs of these last year and get lots of wear out of them.

Shoes: these are those boots from Lands' End Canvas. They're plain-toe lace-ups in a very nice dark brown with a bit of burgundy to it. Still breaking them in, but they are more comfortable than I expected. Also available in black, and currently on sale for 1/3 off the original price. If you're interested, I recommend going up a half size from your usual dress shoe size.*

I'm also wearing a cheapo (like, less than $10) Michael Kors belt that I found several years ago at Building #19. It happens to match fairly well with these boots, and with some other shoes I have.

If I do this again, I'll definitely take a better picture...

*Ooh, you can get an extra 20% off the sale price of these boots with the code WOW20OFF and PIN 3737, but this offer expires tonight.

Banana Memories

Consider this an addendum to the weekend's TWiA if you like: back in the 1980s, before it was acquired by Gap, Banana Republic was a small, quirky company that sold "travel and safari clothing" from a catalog that featured illustrations rather than photos. Most of it was pretty interesting, and some of it was quite cool.

There's a fairly robust secondary market for vintage BR stuff, and sites like Abandoned Republic that share their interest with the rest of us. I had one of these bags, which I bought at the first BR store that opened in this area, on the ground floor of the then-new Charles Hotel in Harvard Square, and carried for several years.

But before that, I had made purchases from the catalog. I remember as a senior in college doing a group order with several of the people with whom I shared a brownstone dorm on Bay State Road. I bought a khaki-colored poplin shirt with flap pockets and epaulets that I wore for a long time.

Source: Put This On via Archival Clothing

This Week in Awesome (10/22/11)

This week ended up having a nostalgia theme, quite coincidentally:

There are many places to spot older cars on the street, and you can get a good daily dose of them at Curbside Classic. But New York City is not a place you'd expect to see old iron in use, so this blog is documenting such instances. (Hemmings Auto Blog)

The first ten minutes of the first ever broadcast of Monday Night Football from 1970. Fascinating to see, old ads included. (YouTube via Esquire)

A nice piece, with accompanying video, looking back on the days when the stretch of Comm. Ave. between Kenmore Square and Packard's Corner was known as "Automobile Row." (BU Today via Universal Hub)

Who knew our currency used to look this cool? (Boing Boing via Kempt)

And finally this week, an amazing set of photos documenting the life and times of a Saks Fifth Avenue mannequin in the 1930s who had her own newspaper column and radio show. I am 100% not making this up. (How To Be a Retronaut via The Hairpin)

A Shoe Solution

Not sure where yesterday got to... it's not like I was exactly maxed out at work. Anyway, I just wanted to briefly mention that the universe stepped in and helped me solve the black-loafer problem.

The same day I sent back those Bass loafers that weren't wide enough, I found an eBay auction for a pair of black Allen Edmonds Walden penny loafers in 10.5 wide. I've been checking the AE listings on eBay for months, and the only black loafers I'd seen in wide were in a condition that I didn't think was worth bidding on.

The AE shoes are made in USA, which is always preferable; I've also searched for older Bass loafers from back when they still made their shoes in USA, and one pair did come up a couple of months back, but I lost that auction. This time I had the Buy It Now option, and I took it. These shoes have been worn (it's evident from the soles and heels) but the uppers still look nearly new, so clearly they have been cared for, which benefits both the seller and me.

The best part is that I ended up spending significantly less than even the $90 sale price of the Bass shoes, and got arguably better-made shoes in the process.

It may also be worth mentioning here that about a year ago, a salesman at the AE store downtown on Devonshire Street tried to tell me that with a pair of their Walden loafers I would not need to wear wide, because the shoes would stretch. I didn't try them on at the time, but I knew in my gut that he was wrong. As I mentioned the other day, there is no guarantee that a pair of shoes will stretch simply from wearing them, and if you do that, then you probably can't return them.

Sometimes shoes can be stretched by shoe repair professionals, but your mileage will certainly vary. You know your own feet better than anyone else, so don't be talked into something just because you think you want it or it looks good.

Casing the iPhone

Now that I have an iPhone, I think I need a case for it. But I can't stand those neoprene "bumper" things, which do nothing to protect the glass anyway. I'm having a tough time figuring out what to do, because I have not seen much out there that isn't crap.

The iPhone is thinner than my Palm Pre, but it's also about half an inch taller. The Pre also had rounded edges on every side, making carrying it in my pants pocket easier, even in its case. I guess what I want is a protective case for when the phone is in my bag or pocket, but one that it's also easy to remove the phone from for when I want to use it.

I have seen a couple of things that fit these general parameters. Twelve South makes cool cases that look like antique books, for iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks. Their iPhone case also serves as a wallet, a feature I would be unlikely to use but could be handy. Overall I like the idea of this, and Twelve South's cases are made in the USA, but it might be a little too precious.

I found something similar in the guise of a Moleskine notebook, which would work nicely, but the product page says it's for the iPhone 3 and 3GS, which suggests that either they are a bit behind in development, or they decided not to proceed with making a version to fit the iPhone 4, in which case I would be out of luck.

Orvis has a rather rugged-looking leather case that's sort of like a pocket notepad with a slot large enough to slide an iPhone into. At $70 it's more expensive than either of the others, but it's distinctive (a quality I always consider when making a decision such as this one) and it's also made in the USA.

If anyone has suggestions, please send them along.

Paying a Premium

Today's my monthly deadline, thus my absence yesterday. In order to meet the deadline, I have to ensure certain things are complete the day before and are uploaded into one particular database, which then syncs with another database overnight, so I can do some other stuff and then make a bunch of content live on our web site on the 19th of each month. So I guess you could say my deadline has a deadline. (And I think I've just demonstrated why there's really no reason for me to talk about my work here...)

Anyway, now that those things have been accomplished, I had a bit of time to poke around the internets. I've been looking for a certain style of tweed sportcoat (not that the temps are cool enough to wear one yet, argh), which I believe I'm most likely to find through eBay or Style Forum, but just to be thorough I decided to take a quick glance at Park & Bond, which is the full-price cousin of flash-sale site Gilt Man.

[Edit: I'd forgotten about the Top Shelf Flea this weekend; maybe Giuseppe can hook me up.]

First strange thing: Park & Bond is selling J. Crew. stuff. I find that very odd; why would someone purchase from P&B instead of from J. Crew directly? And they are offering just a very small selection of J. Crew items. Maybe it has something to do with which countries the sites do or don't ship to?

Second strange thing: the same sportcoat is available through both sites at very different prices. Here it is on P&B, for $450, and here it is on J. Crew, in an additional color, for $278. Plus, it's out of stock on P&B anyway, so even if you were stubbornly insistent about paying 60% more for the same item, you couldn't. But why would you? Not to mention that things do go on sale at J. Crew from time to time, they offer occasional discounts to their credit card holders, etc.

I hope this is nothing more than some sort of data-entry error, but does the fact that it's out of stock mean that P&B has actually sold some of these (presumably to some extremely gullible shoppers)?

Pricing discrepancy aside, I'd think that Park & Bond would want to cultivate its niche on the web as a place to get items that aren't so easy to come by in other places, but their offerings aren't impressing me.

The Return of Shoe Misery

Until I went looking for those penny loafers last week, I hadn't thought about shoes that much, because I had been more focused on sneakers for the summer months, and also because I had been trying to stay away from buying "regular" shoes since they tend to cost more than sneakers. In the interim, I had kind of forgotten about the problems I often have when trying to buy shoes.

Those Bass loafers arrived on Friday, and while the leather had a nice matte finish and the unfinished leather edges did not look as bad as I had thought (I still would have wanted to have them darkened), the shoes themselves did not fit. This is because this particular style is only available in medium width, and I usually need wide. I didn't think it would be enough of a difference to matter, but after struggling to stuff my feet into the shoes, I knew I wouldn't be able to wear them.

Sometimes this style of loafers will stretch with wearing, but there's no guarantee of that, and I was afraid I would spend two months suffering each time I wore them without getting any resulta. So back they've gone.

This Week in Awesome (10/15/11)

So yes, my iPhone did arrive on Friday, before noon in fact (standard UPS deliveries typically arrive at my office around 1:30 pm, so I think the iPhone was sent via overnight). I figured out how to copy the photos off my outgoing phone into my computer, but (somewhat mind-blowingly for 2011) I still had to re-enter my contacts into the new phone manually, because Verizon's "backup assistant" thing doesn't work with pretty much any of the smartphones they sell. Anyway...

Those of you who remember MTV's animation show Liquid Television may be pleased to know that the show's various cartoons have been archived online. (Videogum)

Any type geeks in the house? Anyone see Helvetica? You'll want to check out this online type kerning game. (The Awl)

Here you'll find quite a comprehensive collection of photos representing the diversity of restroom signage, and some discussion thereof. (The Society Pages via The Awl)

Have you ever heard the expression "spite house"? This will explain everything. Interestingly, two of the houses featured are in greater Boston. (Twisted Sifter via The Hairpin)

And finally this week, you knew it was coming: Shit That Siri Says. (The Daily What)

Retro Video Unit (10/14/11)

As I mentioned in an earlier edition of this feature, Saturday Night Live was the gateway to my exposure to alternative music in the 1970s, but Talking Heads were not the first instance. Shortly before I saw their performances, my true musical awakening occurred in the person of Elvis Costello, when he appeared on the show and performed "Radio Radio" from his second album, This Year's Model.

And it seems there is an official music video for this song, which surprised me a bit given when it was released. But it exists regardless, so enjoy...

Grand Opening

If you've read my accounts of our trips to New York, you know how I feel about Japanese clothing retailer Uniqlo and its Soho store. Uniqlo's presence in Manhattan is about to get much more significant: tomorrow they open a colossal new store (89,000 square feet) on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 53rd Street. (It's approximately 2.5 times the space of the Soho store.) A week from tomorrow they're opening a third store, also rather large, on 34th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, just down the street from Herald Square.

Earlier this week various media and bloggers were invited to tour the Fifth Avenue store. Here's coverage from GQ, Racked NY, and The Shophound. The photos will give you some idea of just how large this store is. I can't wait to see it in person. For those of you who live in the New York area, or who may be planning on visiting the city in the next couple of weeks, Uniqlo is offering special grand-opening deals on various products, like men's cashmere sweaters for $60 (check their site for details).

I may need to plan another day trip. PB, you in?

In Transit

I want to believe Verizon (naturally) when they tell me my iPhone has shipped and I will definitely receive it tomorrow, but the tracking number gives me only an error message, so it's making me a tiny bit nervous.

But I choose to remain optimistic. Then again, the address got mutated again. More and more lately, shippers are taking it upon themselves to alter the address I provide for shipments to my workplace. The address they're changing to is only slightly different, but it's enough to cause delivery problems. Looks like I will need to be extra-vigilant tomorrow.

Not Suitable

I had another look at the cotton suit last night, and it isn't going to work, because I'd forgotten that the sleeves are too long and need to be altered. I wasn't 100% certain when I bought it whether I was going to keep it or not, so I never took it to the tailor. And anyway, I imagine it's going to cool down as soon as the sun sets Friday, and it's supposed to be raining, which just adds to the fun. Time to have a look at my other suits and see what fits.

Loafing

I've realized that those of you who stop by to see what I have to say about clothes and stuff have quite possibly been a little bored lately, what with all my going on about my impending iPhone, griping about nice weather, etc. Fair enough...

I have days when I just can't decide which shoes to wear. This happens at least once a week, and it usually coincides with being in a hurry to finish getting dressed. Since the shoes one chooses to wear on a given day tend to determine the belt one wears, and to some extent what outerwear (this may just be my own neurosis, but I can't leave the house wearing sneakers if I'm also wearing a hip-length coat), the choice of shoes is fairly important.

On such indecisive days, I tend to fall back on penny loafers, of which I have several pairs. This is partly due to the fact that they slip on quickly and easily, with no bending and tying. Also, they go well with most of the stuff I wear, which makes the other decisions easier.

The term "penny loafer" tends to apply to a few different styles of shoe. It typically has a strap with a cutout; back in the late 1950s, when my parents were in high school, people actually put pennies in the slots, but that's best left to the kids. The strap may be attached to the sides of the shoe, it may extend all the way to the bottom of the upper on both sides (sometimes called a "full-strap"), or there may be stitched rolls of leather at either end (called a "beefroll"). A loafer with no strap is called a Venetian.

I find Venetians too plain-looking, like they're unfinished. I don't like beefrolls either. A full-strap loafer can be all right, but I prefer the classic flat-strap penny. (I'm not going to discuss tassel loafers, because I happen to believe that tassels do not belong on a man's shoes. If you like them, fine; I can't abide them.)

Bass Weejuns are the iconic penny loafers. "Weejuns" is a contraction of "Norwegians" because G.H. Bass had seen Norwegian farmers wearing similar shoes and borrowed the design from them. I own one pair of Weejuns at the moment, the "Logan" in tan leather with cream contrast stitching. My other penny loafers are other brands, because the leather on the Logan in black or burgundy is too glossy.

But Bass has other styles of Weejuns now, in different leathers. The "Longwood" is a standard flat-strap penny very much like the Logan, but made in a matte calf leather. (It's also available in black, but I guess Zappos isn't carrying it.) This is good, because I've been looking to replace my black penny loafers, which are Sebagos and never quite worked on my feet, though I've been pretending otherwise for two years. One issue with the Longwood is that the edges of the leather are unfinished, and to me the natural leather clashes with the black of the rest of the shoe. I suspect this may be rectified with either the application of some shoe polish, or a visit to a cobbler.

One other Weejun of note is the 75th anniversary "Linwood" model. The leather on these has a nice luster without the fake-looking gloss of the Logan. These are described as exclusive to Opening Ceremony, a hipster store in New York, but I found them at ShoeBuy and Piperlime. They're already marked down at Piperlime, and ShoeBuy offers discount codes all the time. One unusual thing about the Linwood is that it's available in navy as well as burgundy. I also can't abide navy shoes, but if that's your thing, this might be a good shoe for you.

By the way, I opted not to go with American-made shoes like the Walden from Allen Edmonds mainly because of cost. A pair of Waldens is $235, versus $100 to $120 for Weejuns, depending on style, plus if you put in a small amount of effort you can almost certainly get the Weejuns of your choice at a decent discount. I ended up ordering the Longwoods from Piperlime for $90, which is 25% off their regular price. And Weejuns are manufactured in El Salvador, which is at least in this hemisphere.

Indian Summer

I want to feel happy about this weather. I really do. I understand why people dread winter; as I get older, it gets more challenging to deal with. But sitting in the living room this evening, we had to turn on the AC to be comfortable watching TV. It's mainly the TV's fault; it's plasma, and they throw a lot of heat. I didn't know this when I was shopping for a TV four years ago; I never saw it mentioned in any of the reviews I read. Had I known, I might have reconsidered getting an LCD.

I just want some fall. Is that too much to ask? Everybody likes fall, right?

We're going to a dress-up event this Friday evening, and for a couple of weeks now I've been assembling potential outfits in my head. Now the forecast says it's supposed to be 70 on Friday, and I'm thinking I might need to wear the beige cotton suit I bought this summer. I'm not certain if that's a fashion "don't" or not, but it might be a necessity for comfort.

This Week in Awesome (10/8/11)

Got busy at work again yesterday afternoon (what's up with these busy Fridays; that's when I'm supposed to be able to slip out early), guess I didn't have anything useful to say anyway. I did preorder my iPhone yesterday morning (through Verizon, so I could get my upgrade discount) and if everything goes according to plan I will receive it next Friday, the same day they go on sale.

Here's a tumblr site that chronicles the colorful and unusual outfits and people seen on subways. (Thrillist via Racked NY)

Ever think your barista is a snob? Watch this. (Funny or Die via Eater)

Imaginary Playboy covers featuring the ladies of Mad Men. What, no Peggy? Sure, she's not as sexy as Joan (who could be?), but come on. (BuzzFeed via Videogum)

A time-lapse video that's not of a city. Disclaimer: I did not think this was as awesome as the Gizmodo poster did, but maybe that's just me.

And finally this week, many, many tributes to Steve Jobs appeared online, and you probably saw many of them. I decided to feature just a couple of them: Stephen Colbert (video) and Stephen Fry (text). (Hat tip to DC)

Thanks, Steve

Well, I guess I really have to get an iPhone now...

I always thought Steve would be around, fostering innovation at Apple for decades to come. Even when he resigned in August, I didn't want to believe he could really be so gravely ill.

Personally, Apple's products have meant a lot to me. Macs are the only computers I've owned. I bought my first, a Mac Plus, in 1992 from someone I worked with, who had bought it from someone else we worked with (who was the original owner). I still have it down in the basement, though I doubt it would work at this point. In fact, I still have four of the five Macs I've owned, including the one I'm using to write this. (Seeing that written down makes me realize that perhaps I might have some issues around holding onto stuff longer than necessary.)

Back in the '90s, it wasn't easy to be a Mac partisan. Software was less available, and typically more expensive. I knew that making a conscious choice to be a Mac user at least in part because it was a sort of identification: I am different because I choose to do this. Even before I bought my first Mac, I always felt like that was the group I belonged with.

I'm also lucky enough to use a Mac at work, and at other jobs I've had as well. When my mother asks me questions about how to do something in Windows, I usually don't know the answer. (The Mrs. has helped out with some of those.) I've had a couple of iPods, so it seems only right that I should be moving on to an iPhone.

My boss showed up today wearing jeans and a black mock turtleneck, to honor Steve. (He's a guy not generally given to that sort of expression.) But it made me realize that there's a bit of Steve in all of us Mac users, and in our computers, music players, phones, and tablets.

Thank you, Steve. You gave us so much. I hope you felt like you got something from us in return.

It's Time

Like many other people, I spent my lunch yesterday refreshing my browser page on a tech blog as the information about the latest iPhone unspooled across the web. We knew what to expect, and yet we didn't, because so much (sometimes conflicting) information had been swirling around in recent weeks.

As I've mentioned before, I like my Palm Pre, but the lack of app development has made it a somewhat disappointing smartphone experience. My other area of reluctance was the iPhone's virtual keyboard, but to be honest, the keyboard on the Pre is kinda terrible, so I don't see how tapping virtual keys on glass could be worse.

As someone who's been an Apple adherent for 20 years, I knew I should have an iPhone, but in January 2010 when I got this current phone, there was still no iPhone for Verizon. When that appeared this past winter, it was too soon for me to make the switch without it costing more than I could justify. I decided to wait until my upgrade discount came up.

As of last week I am eligible for a discounted phone upgrade. (It seems early, but when I sign into my Verizon account, that's what it tells me.) And here we are with the iPhone 4S about to go on sale. Do I need to replace my phone right this minute? Not really, but I would have gone ahead and upgraded to a new phone some time in the next couple of months anyway, and I've gone without iPhone goodness for four years now, so why should I wait any longer? It's time.

Preorders start this Friday, which seems like a smarter way to go than standing in line a week from Friday, when the new iPhone goes on sale. This should be interesting, and it will probably give me something to write about.

Fall TV Check-In

So it's a couple of weeks into the new TV season, and I have sampled a few new shows. Even with the aid of a DVR, there's only so much time a person can spend watching TV, and I already have a roster of shows I watch regularly, so I tend to be picky about adding new shows.

There are a bunch of new comedies this fall, and comedy seems to be having something of a resurgence in general. It's easier to add a comedy or two to my regular viewing because of they're shorter. The Mrs. and I both like The New Girl on Fox, and we were already watching Raising Hope, which comes on right after New Girl on the same channel, so this one was an easy choice.

We're also watching Up All Night on NBC, about a couple coping with being new parents. It's a bit ironic that we like this one, since we are not parents, but the cast appealed to us (Christina Applegate, Will Arnett, and Maya Rudolph) and so far it's been pretty funny.

A show that looked promising but has not lived up to the anticipation is 2 Broke Girls on CBS. The premise: spoiled rich girl finds herself penniless when her disgraced Madoffesque father's assets are frozen, must resort to taking waitress job in Brooklyn diner with acerbic coworker and moving in with same. The show comes from Sex and the City creator Michael Patrick King and stand-up comedian Whitney Cummings, and it's... just not very good. It's disappointing, and somewhat bewildering, to see a talented group of writers and performers produce something so mediocre, but the worst part of it is the hints and glimmers of a better show that are peeking in around the edges. It might end up there, but I don't think I'm going to keep watching and waiting for something that may not happen.

On the drama side, I've added a couple of shows to the rotation. Person of Interest is not quite sci-fi, though it comes from J.J. Abrams (Lost, Fringe, Alias) and Jonathan Nolan (writer of the screenplays for The Dark Knight and The Prestige). A very rich man was asked by the government to build a machine that can predict crimes. He built himself a way to access the machine, but the information he receives does not reveal whether the person is to be a victim or a perpetrator. He enlists an ex-CIA operative to help him investigate and prevent these crimes from occurring. So far it's a nice bit of diversion with some action thrown in. This is the kind of thing I watch when I don't want to think.

NBC is airing an American version of the British classic Prime Suspect. While not nearly as meaty or thought-provoking as the original, it is character-driven, and while Maria Bello isn't going to make anyone forget Helen Mirren's Jane Tennison, she is a good choice to play the American Jane (Timoney). I haven't made up my mind on this one yet, but I'm leaning toward sticking with it.

Tomorrow night brings the premiere of the soapy gothic drama American Horror Story on FX, from Nip/Tuck and Glee creator Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. If you watched Nip/Tuck, you know how insanely baroque it got, and that makes me hesitant. If it were solely my decision I would be inclined to skip this one, but the Mrs. says she's interested in it, so we're going to sample it and see how it goes.

Several critics have called Showtime's Homeland the best new show of the fall. An American soldier is released after years in captivity in Iraq, and a CIA analyst thinks he may have been turned by his captors, but she may not be of particularly sound mind herself. Unfortunately I don't get Showtime, so I'll have to follow my Dexter pattern of waiting until the season comes out on DVD next summer.

Weather or Not

My favorite month has finally arrived, though it sure seems like it took its time getting here. October in New England is just beautiful, and if you have not had the opportunity to experience it, I hope you get to at some point.

The weather doesn't quite seem to know yet what month it's supposed to be. Just before I took the dog out this morning it started raining, and by the time we were halfway around the block it was really pouring, which made the dog reluctant to do her thing. Eventually she gave in, but it took her much longer than it usually does. The poor thing doesn't seem to realize that she's making it more difficult for herself than it needs to be. An hour or so later, as I was walking into work, the sun was out at full strength.

It was still a bit too warm today for me to wear a jacket, but over the weekend I decided that, regardless of what the weather brings, I am going to dress for the calendar, so I'm done wearing shorts for this year, at least to work. I'm going back to my regular shirts, pants, and shoes. But my shoes occupy the space under the bed, and I have more shoes than I have space, so I have to rotate the sneakers out and down into the basement, and get at least some of the loafers and lace-ups back in place; the boots can probably wait another couple of weeks.

I have a suspicion it's going to get warm one more time, so I need to be mentally prepared for that.

Retro Video Unit (10/2/11)

Okay, here's a video to make up for me forgetting on Friday. It's just a lip-synch performance clip on a soundstage (thus cheaper to make), so it's not as interesting as the "Brass In Pocket" video, but this has always been one of my favorite Pretenders songs. I don't remember ever seeing this video, so I have to assume it did not get shown much.

Pretenders, "Talk of the Town"

This Week in Awesome (10/1/11)

Sorry for the unexpected lapse in posting... there was supposed to be a retro music video on Friday afternoon, and for once I was so absorbed in my work that I lost track of time. At home, I now have to share the computer more with the Mrs., who has a fair amount of school work these days.

Watch these people build a full-size model of a car out of LEGO blocks. (Jalopnik)

Borders employees get a few things off their chests about the customers in their store's final days. (HappyPlace via Consumerist) Sonewhat related: clever juxtapositions of books in store displays.

This site makes impressive poster art of graphical representations of historical stuff. One specific example: this chart showing the history of the airline industry. (Kempt)

And finally this week, one of these dogs is in trouble. See if you can figure out which one. (The Daily What)