After a day like yesterday, I need some Balla!

When the market has you beat,
And you are suffering from the heat,
Don't declare defeat,
Rub some Balla on your meat!

Balla Powder: Scented Scrotum Talc for Men - 3.5oz 

Amazon Description:   

"Balla Powder for Men is the ideal anti-chafing and anti-wetness solution for clammy sacks. Guaranteed to prevent the dreaded "bat wing" syndrome, Balla Powder for Men is lightly scented with a masculine fragrance, for anyone else who plans to work in your close quarters. Can be sprinkled into your fudgies for all-day-long comfort and dryness. A fabulous post-workout treatment, Balla Powder for Men can also be used between your cheeks, as well as on fetid feet and aromatic armpits."

Yes, thats the real name and description from amazon -- tho I imagine its an sloppy translation . . . the reviews are hysterical.

Of all the many things I have applied to my testicles over the years -- and that includes everything from chilled jello to fresh squid (don't ask) -- there is simply nothing finer than Balla Ball Powder.

Its refreshing! It tingles! And guys -- the ladies go wild for the fresh clean scent of Balla!

Accept no substitutes -- the original scrotal powder and the finest in testicle talc . . .

via boingboing

See also:

Posted at 07:17 AM in Humor, Shopping | Permalink

Click for ginormous map:

Courtesy of NYT

>

Source:
Record Stores Fight to Be Long-Playing
BEN SISARIO
NYT, April 18, 2008   
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/18/arts/music/18reco.html

Posted at 06:40 AM in Music, NYC, Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Click for ginormous map:

Courtesy of NYT

>

Source:
Record Stores Fight to Be Long-Playing
BEN SISARIO
NYT, April 18, 2008   
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/18/arts/music/18reco.html

Posted at 06:42 AM in Music, NYC, Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

via boingboing

Posted at 06:09 AM in Humor, Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

I was recently given a Davek Duet Umbrella as a gift. These are the Rolls Royces of umbrellas, and if you ever need to give a rather lavish corporate gift, they for you.

The frame is "Carbon WindFlex" -- made of a flexible carbon polymer ligaments to prevent breakage or rib distortion in strong winds. Handles are finely stitched, with a black and silver zinc alloy material and polished silver clip.

The umbrellas are extremely well made, very strong, and made with what appears to be high-end materials. They come with an unconditional lifetime replacement guarantee.  Break it, you get a new one. Lose it, and the company allows you to replace it at half price.

The Davek Solo model, with a 43 inch canopy, currently retails for $99. The Davek Duet, with a golf-sized 55 inch canopy, retails for $149. They are carried at high end luxe stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale’s, and Takashimaya.

Posted at 06:22 AM in Shopping | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Tom Toles via Yahoo

Posted at 04:00 PM in Finance, Idiot!, Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Exactly one year ago, a Mark Cuban declared Why he doesn't wear a suit -- and can't figure out why anyone does !.   

It festered for a while, and then I forgot about it. A recent event made me revisit it.

I understand why Mark don't want to wear a suit -- he doesn't have to, having achieved that magic number of dollars that lets you say fuck you to the rest of the world without consequence.

What I can't figure out is why he does not understand why so many other people have to. Perhaps all that lovely lucre obscures one memory of life in the real world.

Suits (in a modern sense of the word) have been worn ever since Louis XIV of France and Charles II, king of Great Britain, so decreed to members of Court in the 17th Century that they must wear them.

Why did the kings so declare?  BECAUSE THEY COULD. Like an alpha dog establishing dominance over the rest of the pack, so too, the monarchs established their dominance over their domains and their subjects. Their lessers all competed for survival, significant others, and standard of living. It was, and still is, very Darwinian in nature.

Ever since then, the wearing of a suit has been a social sign of conformity and stature. It is shorthand for your place in the pecking order -- corporate, academic, fraternal or otherwise. Some discussions of this explicitly recognize this (see the book The Suit: A Machiavellian Approach to Men's Style).   

Henry David Thoreau once noted "It is an interesting question how far men would retain their relative rank if they were divested of their clothes."

You wear a suit because you must in order to earn a paycheck, join the team, win a contract, sell a product or service. It is a uniform that can at times declare "I am of lower significance than you, and I humbly wear this suit as a sign of respect and deference, so I may win favor from you, or a contract, a vote, or a raise, and please won't you buy some whole life insurance from me."

Back in the day, IBM was infamous for the blue suits their employees wore, as a sign of total subjugation to the corporate entity over the individual identity. Is it any surprise the mainframe manufacturer failed to adapt well to the era of personal PCs? It was an anathema to them. 

Those of independent financial means (like Mark)  have little need to subjugate themselves for financial purposes, and thus don't HAVE to wear suits all that often.

Even without the suit, there are ways to judge our betters and lessers by other status cues -- cars, spouses, homes, watches, shoes, etc.  Ever see two guys meet, and one flips back the others neck tie to see the label/designer? That's called (I love this expression) "The Lehman Handshake" -- and its little more than a status confirmation.

If you study a little sartorial history, as well as understand how Human Societies have functioned over the past 5 centuries, the Suit makes more and more sense.

Many expressions we hear reflect this: Clothes make the man, time to suit up, put on your Sunday best.

Now about those ugly rep ties . . .

Posted at 06:03 AM in Shopping | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBack

I love the Elitest Music T-Shirt:

The Commonly Accepted Path of Robot Evolution

This is my IM away message

And this is all too true . . .

Posted at 06:20 AM in Shopping | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

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Posted at 08:41 AM in Current Affairs, Humor, Idiot!, Politics, Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Interesting graphic:

Source:
The Everyman Who Exposed Tainted Toothpaste
WALT BOGDANICH
NYT, October 1, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/01/world/americas/01panama.html

Posted at 10:38 AM in Current Affairs, Food and Drink, Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack