Linkwad (updated).

“Gifts for nerds” edition:

1. Update: Fourth Amendment underwear (via Dave Weigel).
2. Update: An awesome micro-cassette lamp. Too bad it’s $1,200 (via Giz).
3. The Icon notebook.
4. A cool and clever coffee and espresso maker from the inventor of the Aerobie (via BB).
5. Update: For Android users, DoubleTwist and AirSync. Syncs your media with your Android painlessly over WiFi (video might take a while, though it’s worth it for Breaking Bad in 720p). DoubleTwist is free, and right now, AirSync only costs $.99. I gave up on DoubleTwist before, but it’s much less buggy now.
6. A Nexus S, complete with Android 2.3 Gingerbread and credit card-replacing near-field communication chip.
7. OR an iPad.
8. F-stop bracelets.
9. A Bluetooth boombox (via PSFK).
10. An unpowered iPhone amplifier in white phonograph (via Giz) or wood (via Giz, again).
11. A 2TB external hard drive (via Steve).

Glasses.

Morrison or Digby? (click through for pics)

Vote away!

Linkwad.

I often hold onto links I intend to blog about, but there are always a few that I don’t get to and are a bit stale.

1. Most Political Action Committees, or PACs, spend over 60% of the money they raise to party with lobbyists and raise more money.
2. People don’t mind being unemployed as much if they have unemployed friends (This isn’t surprising–you see it with obesity, too). However, this makes them less likely to look for another job (or attempt to lose weight).
3. John McIntyre, whom I perpetually confuse with John McEnroe, is back at the Sun: “‘My father,’ she said, looking me up and down, ‘wore a seersucker suit and a boater in the summertime too.’ [Pause.] ‘Of course, he was born in 1898.’”
4. I just started re-watching Breaking Bad, with hopes of getting caught up before the season ends, so here’s an interview with series creator Vince Gilligan. On main character Walter White: “A guy who would…become a criminal—perhaps has more on his mind than simply making money for his family.”
5. A theory of why it’s good to be a single man in DC.

Sprezzatura.

I don’t blog much about my sartorial choices and obsessions, mostly because a) I don’t really dress up much anymore, and b) this isn’t that kind of blog. However, this Dress a Day post is more or less what goes through my head when considering an item of clothing (with some gendered substitutions):

Fabric. Is there some in my stash or lurking somewhere on the internet that I simply can’t live without? Have I been obsessing about a particular event for which a stunt dress is necessary? Have I been thinking about a particular theme, like stripes or eyelet or giant florals? Do I have a new cardigan in a weird color (yes, I’m looking at you, Land’s End) that needs a mate?

Visualization. Where will I wear this dress? Who will be there? Will I wear it once, or over and over again? Will I blog it?

Shoes. Which ones? Do I already own them? Would this dress require shoes that do not, in fact, actually exist? (E.g., every pair of boots I’ve ever wanted.) Do I have a pair of shoes in a weird color that I need to make a dress to match? Am I looking for an excuse to buy a new pair of shoes in a weird color? (Lather, rinse, repeat for “Coat” and “Bag”.)

Style blogs like the Sartorialist extol a personal kind of style, but time and thought goes into creating an apparently effortless, unique-snowflake look.

HT: Kottke

Brighter news.

I liked this throwaway line from a Uniqlo feature in NYMag: “Kaizen is often invoked in business schools when describing Toyota, though less so recently.” I like Uniqlo, and have been meaning to hit their NYC store.

However, as a guy with a fairly set personal style and a tendency to wear things until they fall apart, it’s still weird to read lines like: “The average Zara customer doesn’t expect to wear what she buys more than about ten times.” I’ve read similar things about H&M.