Just Stay at Home

Curse the holidays and all their delicious treats! I've been in a food induced coma for what feels like weeks now. Has it been weeks? It may be; I do not know for certain.

Now, tomorrow is comic book day so I think I'm going to mention a few things about the comics that come out tomorrow. Keep in mind that this post will be mercilessly short; I've got deadlines coming up for the end of the semester and I need my sleep.

Action Comics Annual #13. As far as I'm concerned this is the book that's coming out tomorrow. Have you been reading Paul Cornell's Lex Luthor opus in the pages of Action? You should be; it's fantastically entertaining stuff and is the best of the best of what super-hero comics can be.

The Action Comics Annual should follow in the same tradition. We'll be seeing a Luthor (in this case a young Luthor) going up against some of the DCU's most famous villains. In this case, serious heavy-hitters who have opposed Batman and Superman.

Lex vs. Darkseid and Lex vs. Ra's al Ghul. I mean, what else is there to say? How could that not be tremendously entertaining? These are villains that are supposed to be some of the cream of the crop of their respective enemies' rogues' galleries. But really, are Darkseid and Ra's al Ghul really all that impressive as villains? Perhaps it is necessary to see how they go up against the greatest enemy of the world's greatest super-hero.

In some ways, I pity Darkseid and Ra's. We know that both of them will be unimpressed; they'll think Luthor a mere mortal and beneath their notice (keep in mind that this is before either of them has met Batman or Superman). Perhaps their encounters with Lex Luthor will teach them something they otherwise won't experience until they encounter their arch-enemies.

Darkseid and Ra's al Ghul are going to lose. And if everything goes as I expect it they'll lose bad. What could be more fitting?

Science and Sons releases PH III, the third in their series of ceramic amplifiers or loudspeakers for the iPhone.

FIRST BATCH RELEASE - 50 PIECES

Science and Sons is pleased to present the newest member of the family, the Phonofone III.

The Phonofone III is an elegantly designed passive amplifier crafted from ceramic and designed explicitly for iPhone. This clever device amplifies the volume emitted from an iPhone internal speaker roughly 4x (approx. 60 decibels).




The first edition of 50 serial numbered pieces are available for order here, with more to follow soon.

iPhone Compatibility.....Gen 1, 3G, 4G
Weight........................800g (1.75 lbs)
Height...........................27cm (10.6in)
Width............................29cm (11.5in)
Depth............................22cm (8.75in)
Price $195 CAD
Handmade in Canada, 13% harmonized sales tax apply to all Canadian orders.

Phonofone I and Phonofone II

Both are still available. For more info, please contact Science and Sons.

Of Cabbages and Kings and UK designer Stuart Gardiner have collaborated to make this super fun and functional oven mitt.






It is a single double-sided mitt oven mitt printed in 4 color inks with a metallic gold bracelet. 'Love' on the right hand side, 'Hate' on the reverse left hand side.


Made in the UK.

Buy it here at CultureLabel
Every purchase from CultureLabel helps to support the arts.
or buy it here from Of Cabbages & Kings
or buy it from Stuart Gardiner here.

Fun and functional, this porcelain tableware is a collaboration between Seletti's Selab and Allessandro Zambelli.

When not in use the modular dinner plates, salad plates, soup bowls and smaller bowls stack up to create buildings, complete with roofs. Take them apart and they are six table settings of square dishes perfectly suited for eating upon.








* Size (individual dishes--all dishes are square):
* Dinner Plate: 8.6" dia x 1" t
* Small Plate: 6" dia x .8" t
* Soup Bowl: 7" dia x 1.6" t
* Small Bowl: 4.3" dia x 2" t
* Salt+Pepper 5" dia x 2.5" t

Buy them here

above: the Renovo R4 Pursuit model made with FSC-certified CollinsWood.

The Collins Companies has just announced that it has commissioned the first 100% FSC-certified bicycle in the nation. In case you were wondering, FSC stands for Forest Stewardship Council.

The bike, manufactured by Renovo Hardwood Bicycles, is an “R4 Pursuit” model that features a stiff, powerful and lightweight frame. All of Renovo’s bikes are custom-made – adjusting the stiffness and ride quality to the customer’s individual riding style and weight.

Renovo is one of the few companies in the world that manufactures wood bicycles (but not the only one, be sure to see Woody Bicycles ) and the only one making them with hollow frames.

Here's a few of Renovo's beautiful wood bikes and frames made with Black Cherry, Hard Maple, Birch, Hickory, Padauk, Sapele, Laminated Bamboo and exotic woods like Purple Heart, Bubinga and Wenge:








“I am proud to have used 100% FSC-certified wood on this particular bike,” stated Ken Wheeler, owner, Renovo Hardwood Bicycles. “We utilized a species combination of CollinsWood® from the Collins Pennsylvania Forest including; Black Cherry, Hard Maple, and Birch.”






Collins had this bike commissioned for one of their employees, to demonstrate their continued commitment to this mission. “Although wood bicycles are still in their infancy, we are constantly exploring new ways to have CollinsWood incorporated into everyday products and we want our customers to explore new uses,” said Cameron Waner, marketing coordinator for The Collins Companies. Waner continues, “Specifying FSC-certified wood in their projects is one of the most powerful things our customers can do to change the way wood products are harvested and sold around the world.”

The bike made its worldwide debut at the Greenbuild International Conference in Chicago, on November 17-19, 2010.

Renovo Bikes