I just got home after being away for the holidays and was greeted by a nice little care package from my friends at Selectism. Jeff included a note that said “thanks for all the help & support in 2009.” All I could think about was that the fact of the matter is, I didn’t pull my weight in the past year.
Well, I figure now is as good a time as any to start up again, and in fact I have a few more resolutions I’ll share with you…
Learn to sing Auld Lang Syne
I was at a New Year’s Eve party and drunkingly someone tried to lead the group in singing this traditional song. We got as far as “Should old acquaintance be forgot” and no one knew what came next. It was sad and depressing. According to Wikipedia there are a few different sets of lyrics, but I am going to stick with the English translation (minimalist).
Buy new underwear
I did laundry recently and realized my current batch was in pretty poor shape. In the past I’ve bought all my underwear at once, but that also means they all wear out at the same time, so I need to buy a lot at once and the cycle repeats. I need to work out a better system. That can wait until next year though.
Post more on Selectism
I start a new job tomorrow which will have me doing more research into menswear and lifestyle things. That, along with the fact I’ll be near a computer much more often, should make having material to post about and time to do it a non-issue.
Start jogging
After five years of vegetarianism, I started eating meat again on Thanksgiving. I’m really loving it. But it’s a give and take; if I’m going to be a carnivore, I need to get some more physical activity in my life. I’m sure as shit not going to a gym, and in the past I ran 3-4 times a week. I just need to get back in the habit.
Work hard
I mentioned above I start a new job tomorrow. I’m really excited for it and have high hopes. It’s a new type of position for me, but is what all my other jobs since I left teaching have been leading up to, so I really want to do well and make my mark.
Happy 2010 everyone.
- Kyle
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Tonight I went down to the deli to buy a 40 of Olde English because, well, it’s Saturday night and I’m home doing laundry. It might as well be a party, right? As I entered the store I noticed a group of young people buying beer. I made a bee line to the back to grab my 40, as usual, and it wasn’t until I approached the front that I really took a look at these kids at the register. I won’t go into the gory details, all I want to tell you about is the one dude.
He was dressed like Zorro, fucking Zorro…
Okay, so there was no hat, cape, or rapier…but he was dressed in black, wearing a mask and had the little, pointy John Watersesque mustache. Like he was ready to do battle with Sgt. Garcia (I had to Wikipedia that shit).
I thought to myself:
“Is it Halloween?”
“No, that’s next week.’
“Maybe they are going to a Halloween party. Sometimes people throw them the weekend before.”
“Sometimes, but not when Halloween falls on a Saturday. Dumb ass.”
So that means, this dude was wearing a mask because it was Saturday night and he had to dress to impress. Call me old fashioned, or maybe I’m getting old, but he looked like a jerk. First, the mask was cut from a piece of cloth and the edges were fraying. I live near Pratt, I assume these are Pratt students (my block is essentially off campus housing), and they offer Fashion Design at Pratt. Surely, he must know someone who could of hemmed the edges of his mask for him. I’m honestly not sure what I’m most off put by, the fact he was wearing a mask or the fact it was poorly done.
Whatever, my sheets are done. I’ve gotta make my bed.
- Kyle
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Last week, there was an article in the Times about the fact that every train leaving New York City leaves a minute later than the posted departure time. It’s a quaint tradition dating back to before anyone remembers, and I found it oddly comforting.
The irony of it is, as reporter Michael M. Grynbaum writes, “The railroad industry literally helped invent the concept of standard time, and time zones were established in the United States in the 1880s, 35 years before they were written into law.” Which reminded me of “Railroad Approved” watches.
In 1891, a passenger train and a freight train collided just outside of Kipton, Ohio. The accident caused 8 deaths and was caused by on of the engineer’s watches being 4 minutes slow. After this event, railroad officials hired Webster C. Ball as their Chief Time Inspector. Ball was a watchmaker at the time and the first to use time signals from the U.S. Naval Observatory to bring accurate time to Cleveland. Webb developed a set of standards for a watch to be “Railroad Approved.” These included specifications about how a watch was made, layout of the dial, power reserve, resistance to magnetism, as well as strict record keeping of service and calibration of the watch.
When Ball developed these standards, no one was making a watch that conformed to them. So what Ball did, in a moment of capitalistic brilliance, was start the Ball Watch Company which bought movements from other big watchmakers of the day and customized them to meet the standards. The standards he had put in place.
From this point on Ball was in like Flynn with the railroads, and made an member of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers in 1907. The Ball Watch Company is still around today, and was owned by the Ball family until sometime in the 1990s, when it was sold to a Swiss company.
Even though the company has changed hands, the watches they produce are still of the highest quality and maintain a beautiful classic aesthetic true to their roots. And, with a history as deeply rooted in the American railroad system, an innovation that shaped the country it’s hard not to give these watches a second look.
I’ve been really dying for a Moon Phase watch lately…
- Kyle
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I ended up at the L.L. Bean Signature launch party last night. It was a great time. They were serving Geary’s, my favorite Maine beer, and I got to catch up with some people. I’d love to show you pictures of the amazing collection I saw, but I left my camera in Maine after my sister’s wedding last weekend. So I have nothing.
Here’s a couple of photographs, from WWD (via We Are the Market)…
- Kyle
P.S. These guys were there too, maybe they’ll have more to contribute…
A Continuous Lean, A Restless Transplant, All Plaidout, Kempt, Mister Mort, Secret Forts, Urban Daddy
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Postseason starts in a couple hours…
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I’m a little late on last weeks post, I know, I know. I won’t make it a habit. Last week was crazy for me though. I had my apartment painted and it sort of turned into an ordeal. I also spent a day helping some friends move, so I didn’t really have a whole lot of time to sit in front of a computer. I have this week off of work though, and last night I flew up to Maine for my sister’s wedding this weekend. Thursday night is the bachelor party (my first!) and the start of all the nuptial festivities. Until then I have nothing to do but ride my bike around, hang out at my brother’s coffee shop, and do some internetting.
Last night, on my way to JFK, I picked up the Fall issue of Esquire’s Big Black Book. Back when I subscribed to magazines, Esquire was always my favorite. They covered fashion, culture, occassionally had short fiction, and had a sense of humor about it all. Anyway, the Black Book had a lot of pages and I figured it would be a good read for the duration of the flight (a quick up and down that takes barely an hour). As it turns out a lot of pages translates to a lot of ads, and a lot of photo spreads and, what I really found frustrating, a lot of contridiction from one page to another.
In his introduction, editor David Granger writes, “In this issue, even more so than the previous four, we concentrate on things and ideas that survive and endure. That’s always been our thing: We like stuff that matters and stuff that lasts.” The very first product that is featured after that (in “The Essentials” no less) is a Hermès Pea Coat. A Pea Coat is timeless yes, and with Hermès it will last you a lifetime, but the jacket they chose is a very unconventional green. It looks wonderful now, but will it “endure”? Or, will it look dated in 2-3 years? And for five grand? Call me old fashioned, but I’ll take my pea coat in Dark Navy and made to Military Spec.*
Then there are the watches. A lot of ink was spent discussing watches in this issue and understandably so, A watch, more so than any other item a man wears every day, is a lasting investment. In the past I’ve made it pretty clear I prefer a simple watch, something with a day-date feature is enough for me. Apparently, someone at Esquire shares this viewpoint writing saying “Enough.” to big, complicated, status symbol watches. The magazine then goes on to explain many of the various complication you can find in various high end watches.
Not that any magazine is the end all be all of style, but I personally feel each publication would benefit from a unified voice. That being said, the editors seem to have taken the stance pocket squares are no longer cool, and I’ll be damned if there wasn’t a single pocket square in the suits featured.
Another positive of the magazine, the bed making instructions on page 135 are fantastic. I don’t know if it is still standard procedure, but one thing I appreciate about the U.S. Military is the emphasis they put on a well made bed. Ya’know, bounce a dime of the sheets type thing. It’s a skill I feel I never truly learned. I can’t wait to get back to NY to remake my bed.
- Kyle
*Note: In Esquire’s defense, later in the magazine they recommend a black Brooks Brother’s pea coat, that is pretty great.
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Sometimes when I get bored I read the news on my phone. I have Verizon and their homepage always has the most bizarre top stories, like Same Name Couple to Marry. This one particular time last month the headline was about a family feud in Marion, AL. Nearly 100 people from two families began brawling. Instantly, the Hatfield & McCoy feud came to mind.
I first heard about this famous quarrel while reading The Bonfire of the Vanities. The protagonist’s surname is McCoy, and there is reference to it being a hillbilly name. Naturally, my next move was to Wikipedia it. I could regurgitate that for you here, but you can read about it on Wikipedia for yourself. Instead here all the coolest things I learned from it.
1. The two families were led by Randolph “Ole Ran’l” McCoy and William Anderson “Devil Anse” Hatfield. Two bad ass nicknames. Devil Anse actually led a guerrilla unit for the Confederacy during the Civil War called The Logan Wildcats (even though that sounds more like a high school football team).
2. These are the Hatfields:
Even the kids are packing heat. Devil Anse is the grizzly looking guy in the front row (second from the left).
3. Over the 11 years the feud took place (11 years!), more than a dozen people died, including women and children. These dudes were not fucking around. One of the first victims was Stanton Hatfield, who was part of both families.
4. My favorite part. In 1946, Disney produced a cartoon short inspired by the feud titled The Martins and the Coys. Here it is via YouTube:
Enjoy.
- Kyle
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I’ve been a little M.I.A. lately, but there’s a reason for that. It’s been summer. I don’t know about any of you, but during the beautiful summer months, I would much rather be outside riding my bike, or sitting in the park, or swimming in the ocean than digging through the depths of the internet to try and find some cool shit.
Anyway, Fall is upon us and I’ve made an Autumn Resolution to post at last one blog a week. Something that I spend some time on, not like one of the last few I’ve done with an image and a link. No more of that from me. Promise.
With that in mind, I’m going to try and post on Friday. The first coming this Friday, because it is quarter to one and I’m tired and I have a meeting in the morning. Until then please enjoy this image and a link.
I’ve lusted after this bike for some time, the Light Roadster from A.N.T. Bikes in Holliston, Massachusetts…
- Kyle
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from The New York Times
This has been a genuine concern of mine for quite some time.
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My friend Sean Sullivan (aka Sean Bones) has a new record coming out next week. The video for the first single, Dancehall, has been making it’s way around the internet.
It was shot by another friend, Lance Edmands, on 8mm. I helped out by driving the car for the skateboarding scene with the reel-to-reel tape and was an extra if the party scene at the end.
You can listen to other Sean Bones track on his MySpace page. I like “Easy Streets” the best I think.
- Kyle
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