WHOWANTSCAKE?

I can only imagine this is one of the more difficult ways of playing with oneself…

(via Etsy Shop – Boxnmor)

Caption reads: “I AM A FANCYBOY!” he screamed into the car. “I AM A FANCYBOY!” No one listened, because a child was breakdancing for money.

I’ve been in London for almost a year and a half now and one thing I’ve noticed is that Halloween or not, Londoners love their fancy dress (costumes, for my Yank friends). Doesn’t matter what time of year it is, whether it’s a birthday or hen party, you can find Super Mario Bros. or slutty nurse dropping into an offy for drinks on the way to somewhere fun.

Back in Williamsburg, my neighbours favoured costumes, too. The primary distinction however is that these “outfits” are their everyday wear. Thanks to Ming for sending over the link to Halloween or Williamsburg? Have fun!

Halloween or Williamsburg?

First, I have to say that I love my iPhone 4S. After two years with an original iPhone stuck on iOS 3, I’m so excited to finally use all the amazing apps and features I’d been missing since my 3G kicked the bucket.

Cards, one of the less talked about apps (Siri, did you hear that?), recently put a big smile on my face. A free app from Apple, it’s an innovative way of incorporating on-demand printing as an extension of our increasingly more digital lifestyle. Exhibit 1, below: a good friend sent us a card using Cards (reason for the smile).

Make a note all you kids out there, no more excuses for not sending your grandma a thank you card. Hop on your iPhone and make it happen.

My friend Mei Lai and I are looking to update MintyPython.com (proudly powered by WordPress) and I was hoping some of you savvy surfers, devs, and designers might have a lead on a sweet template for us to use. And, as I’m always quick to point out, “while I love design, I’m not a designer”, so we could use a little help refreshing the logo once our WP theme is sorted. Recs and other leads in the comments, please.

If you’ve got some free time and want to pitch in, all the better! Drop me line…

While Jeremy (On the Silk Road Blog) was in town back in March, we got up to a bit of exploring and visited Prufrock Coffee upon the recommendation of a friend to see what all the fuss was about. The L-shaped bar houses two lines: espresso machine and alternative brewing methods. As I had previously had one of their exceptional espressos with milk at Present, we chose to try both the filter coffee and the siphon method. As a special treat, they even let us try their awesome cold brew experiment that wasn’t for sale. It’s a far cry from Starbucks and Costa as the coffees are much more subtle and complex, due to the brewing methods and roasting process for their beans. The baristas were all super nice and patient with all of our questions, too. If you love coffee and gadgets, swing by for a visit, you won’t be disappointed.

Prufrock Coffee
23-25 Leather Lane, EC1N 7TE

Read more…

Once again, I’m considering getting a new pair of Nike IDs. Always a fun process and with my Fred Flintstone feet, I’m stoked that the Free Runs come in wide, too! When talking to a friend recently about my colorway ideas, he told me the story of the Nike Swoosh, which I totally DIDN’T KNOW. $35, what a deal!

“The Nike “swoosh’” is a design created in 1971 by Carolyn Davidson, a graphic design student atPortland State University. She met Phil Knight while he was teaching accounting classes and she started doing some freelance work for his company, Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS).

For seven years after its founding in 1964, BRS imported Onitsuka Tiger brand running shoes. In 1971, BRS decided to launch its own brand, which would first appear on a soccer cleat called the Nike, manufactured in Mexico. Knight approached Davidson for design ideas for this new brand, and she agreed to provide them, charging a rate of US$2 per hour.

In the spring of 1971, Davidson presented a number of design options to Knight and other BRS executives, and they ultimately selected the mark now known globally as the Swoosh. “I don’t love it,” Knight told her, “but I think it will grow on me.” Davidson submitted a bill for US$35 for her work.^[3] (In 1983, Knight gave Davidson a diamond Swoosh ring and an envelope filled with Nike stock to express his gratitude.)

In June 1972, the first running shoes bearing the Swoosh were introduced at the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon. Nike continues to use the brand today.”

Did you know? (always via Wikipedia)

In the 90s, I had scrap paper. In the 00s, I had post-its and notebooks and eventually my iPhone notepad and emails to myself. After a trial run with Our Groceries (too simple and ugly) and Evernote (more than I need) as possible contenders for shared mobile lists, I am happy to have found Wunderlist! Now I can track simple task lists with due dates, shared grocery lists, even share lists of my favorite burger joints around the world in one slick and simple to use app on my iPhone (also accessible via browsers). If you’re looking to manage and share lists, give it a try, it’s free.

(via Wunderlist)

A friend of mine, who happens to also be a half-Filipino/a American ex-pat living in London, passed along the Burnt Lumpia Blog which has me all kinds of excited. When I last visited home before moving to London, I took my Flip camera (hah! just realised the humour in this) to film some of my favourite recipes as cooked by my grandmother. It was a blast. My mom and sister got involved and we spent a few days cooking up some of my childhood favourites. It was also great to see how happy the project made my grandmother. Now, I just need to get off my butt and finish editing those clips.

Anyhow, back to the Burnt Lumpia Blog. Marvin, like myself only more advanced, is “finding identity through food”. Just as he jokes, my grandparents totally had the big wooden spoon and fork, mounted to the side of the relief picture of The Last Supper. After having lived in NYC for several years I was happy to find Little Manilla in Woodside, Queens, and there was born my Pork Four Ways Crew, friends that would join me for Filipino meals where we ordered a minimun of four different pork dishes, not including any vegetables that had pork in them. So, do yourself a favor, check out the blog and cook up some of the good stuff!

“Marvin was born and raised on the gritty streets of Los Angeles to Filipino parents. Despite the graces of his mother’s home cooking, the ill-effects of Western assimilation retarded Marvin’s appreciation of Filipino food – wreaking havoc on his palate from a young age on until adulthood.

Now married to a non-Filipino, Marvin continues to hone his kitchen skills by expanding his culinary repertoire and learning to cook the food of his culture that he once ignored, even if it means burning a few lumpias along the way.

Marvin does indeed have a wooden fork and spoon hanging on his dining room wall. The wooden fork and spoon is a decoration found on many a dining room wall of Filipino old-timers. Its perceived “tackiness” has lead to its status as an inside joke among many Pinoys today.”

(via Burnt Lumpia Blog) -Congrats on the book deal!

If you’ve ever wanted to suggest a Page to all your friends, but like me you’re too lazy to click on everyone’s icon, this little trick is just for you!

(via Tim Linden Blog)

Dan Machold, www.danmacholdphoto.com/

“A neti pot is a device used for irrigating the nasal passages. Typically it has a spout attached near the bottom, sometimes with a handle on the opposite side.”

Towards the beginning of every spring, and most every winter, I find myself the victim of sinus issues (pressure, irritation, post-nasal drip). Since today marks the beginning of Sinus Issues–Spring 2011, I’ve decided to mark the occasion by posting about the neti pot and popping a couple Musinex-D. Many friends have recommended them to me over the years, but I have yet to actually track one down and “irrigate my nasal passages.” Perhaps Heather will get me one for my birthday tomorrow *hint hint*?

Did you know? (always via Wikipedia)

My friend (and PhD candidate) Jeremy Pine is documenting his travels across central Asia while he completes his dissertation research into the “grey market trade network.” Filled with interesting stories and thoughtful cultural insights, it’s definitely worth a read if the Borat movie is your only reference point for the region.

For those of you who don’t already know:

“The Silk Road was a complex system of trade routes that connected China in the east with the Mediterranean in the West. The trade routes were active for hundreds of years, beginning around 200 BCE and continuing through the 7th century CE. During this time, merchants and traders traveled the long distances, on foot and in camel caravans, carrying valuable goods to trade or sell to local inhabitants or other travelers. The good traded varied from fine textiles, such as silks and brocades, to precious metals and stones, medicine, glass, and paper. Not merely a conduit for material goods; ideas, inventions and religions also traveled and spread via the Silk Road.”

On the Silk Road

Combing fashion and content, “News Knitter is a data visualization project which focuses on knitted garments as an alternative medium to visualize large scale data.” Casual wear in navy blue and red, what’s not to like? My only fear is it’s one step away from wearable infographics about one’s self. Would you wear these, or are you a hold out until they can update dynamically?

(via Casual Data)

Thanks to the Internet, more specifically Wikipedia, I will never again have to look up the origin or history of any person/place/thing in my family’s 1950s era leather bound encyclopedia set. So, in a sort of tribute to my friend Wikipedia, I have decided to embark on a regular series I’m going to call DID YOU KNOW?. Basically, whenever the mood strikes me to look something up in Wikipedia, I’ll take all the interesting bits and post them here for your consumption. To kick things off, I’ve chosen Manakish (also manaqish, manaeesh or manakeesh).

“MANAKISH is a popular Levantine food consisting of dough topped with thyme, cheese, or ground meat. Similar to a pizza, it can be sliced or folded, and it can either be served for breakfast or lunch. The word manaqish is the plural of the Arabic word manqūshah (from the root verb naqasha ‘to sculpt, carve out’), meaning that after the dough has been rolled flat, it is pressed by the fingertips to create little dips for the topping to lie in.

Traditionally, Levantine women would bake dough in a communal oven in the morning, to provide their family with their daily bread needs, and would prepare smaller portions of dough with different toppings for breakfast at this time.”

My favourite topping is zataar and cheese, which I can easily get from Bake and Cake on Edgware Road.

Nick Saum, www.nicksaumphotography.com

Did you know? (always via Wikipedia)