You’re entering the vicinity of an area adjacent to a location. The kind of place where there might be a monster or some sort of weird mirror. These are just examples. It could also be something much better. Prepare to enter The Scary Door.

This past week has been quite odd. Not sure what to make of it, but I feel like something is about to happen. It’s weird but my senses are all on alert for some reason. Anyone else ever get like that?

I got a new chariot. I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t help myself. I’ve never heard of the bike before - Carabela - and it looked great in the photos. I’ve got plans for her and plenty of time. The problem is that I don’t have a whole lot of money. Hit me with your freelance work so I can fund this rebuild project!

I realize I haven’t mentioned anything car related in a while. It is fitting that I should make this the article where I do so. Porsche recently unveiled its ultra sleek “Porsche Design Edition 1” Cayman S.

Porsche has done very little to stray from the visual identity of their cars. Their forte is performance first with a sexy body second. Most often, Porsche automotive designers and engineers modestly improve on the look of the cars. But this year, it will be different…Porsche Design has been handed the torch.

This is the first time that the Porsche Design division has been involved in bringing the sophisticated look of their consumer branded products to the actual automobile. And it comes at the 35th anniversary of Ferdinand Alexander Porsche who first introduced the Chronograph 1s.

Porsche Design certainly left no stone uncovered as the instrument cluster, interior, exterior, wheels and vehicle height have been finessed. The result is a gorgeous black on black example of minimalist form and function.

To sweeten the package each owner will receive a personal briefcase which will include items designed by Porsche Design such as a chronograph, pen, sunglasses, knife, and keyring…all matching the car.

Only 777 variants will be made and European markets get first dibs when the car goes on sale this November.

If you’ve been holding out on purchasing something with that bonus you received, your moment has arrived.

Every so often I come across a bike that makes me say, “Ah, that’s nice.” Recently I had the privilege of seeing a bike that completely struck me with cycle envy.

For the second weekend in a row, I passed a young lady on a shiny, all steel, fully lugged, yellow stallion. Discreetly emblazoned on the down tube was the name Ebisu. The first time I saw the bike I enthusiastically yelled to her, “Nice bike” as I rode past. This past weekend a simple nod and thumbs up did the trick. Each time, riders with bikes costing thousands of dollars and color schemse that can cause seizures would scoff. Quietly this woman - and I - knew that she had something more special than they could imagine.

Ebisu bikes are the loving creations of Hiroshi Iimura. Originally an industrial designer who helped develop the first general Honda Civic, Mr. Iimura soon transfered that talent to bicycle frame building.

The slap in the face to the “lycra jockies” is that while their bikes have blades, wings, carbon fiber and colors taken from episodes of Rainbow Brite, each of Mr. Iimura’s bikes are handbuilt. His frames represent timeless, classic builds using traditional methods for assembling frames (instead of welding, he uses lugs and brazes the tubes together). This labor of love means that each Ebisu bike has the glorious tag “hand made”, rather than grossly manufactured. And, if you are so inclined, Mr. Iimura will build you a fully custom, uber exclusive frame that is suited to only you.

The young woman and I are not the only ones that “get it” either. The NYTimes ran a short article detailing Mr. Iimura’s shop and his philosophy on bike building.

If you are in the California area or plan to visit, make sure one of your stops is to Berkley to check out Jitensha Studio.

I’m not naturally inclined to watch war dramas as they can be quite depressing and require a certain “mood”. Naturally, Letters from Iwo Jima is one of those movies that I was hesitant to watch. Flipping through Movies on Demand I saw the title and figured, what the heck. We had just ordered sushi and the kids were asleep for the evening, what better time to watch the film?

Two hours and change later, we sat back in the bed - quiet - thinking about what we just saw. Letters from Iwo Jima is a beautiful, historically accurate (minus one character) film that documents the struggle of the 22,000 Japanese soldiers sent to defend the volcanic island from the invading American army. I use the term “defend” lightly. By all accounts, the “defensive” was merely a giant “honorable suicide” mission. Japan knew that holding Iwo Jima with so few men was impossible, but strict adherence to Bushido (the samurai code of honor) meant fighting to the death in a hopeless battle to protect Japan and more importantly, the emperor’s honor. When the futility of the situation becomes all to clear, many commit suicide - another honorable act - for “disgracing” Japan.

The actors were perfectly cast as the performances from everyone was top notch. The class structure and old aspects of feudal Japan that compounded the mounting frustrations for General Tadamichi Kuribayashi was portrayed exceptionally well. While trying to build up what moral was left within his command, he tried to make it clear that, dying for your country was one thing, walking into a slaughter was another. Kuribayashi did everything he could to strategically level the odds and moreover, extend his mens chances of enduring just a bit longer (the massive underground tunnels is a great example).

Visually I had imagined the movie would try to play on the Saving Private Ryan/Band of Brothers cinematic style. Thankfully, while the lighting, music and sound effects are all somewhat gritty, there is a certain polished, vintage feel to the cinematography.

Letters from Iwo Jima should be on your weekend list of movies to watch.

Apparently the good folk over at Hasbro didn’t think this one through all the way. The Oozinator has a super secret surprise, it shoots sticky, oozy alien cum all over your unsuspecting friend! Awesome! Even the product description is funny:

Shoot out globs of gooey bio-ooze and then drench ‘em with water![..]With the OOZINATOR blaster you don’t just get soaked, you get drenched!

This reminds me of the Harry Potter Vibrating Broom that young boys and girls could straddle and get “the ride of their life”. Remember some of the reviews for that thing:

My daughter is a huge Harry Potter fan, and simply adores Quiddich, but I was a bit reluctant to buy her this toy broom as she’s nearly fifteen and I was afraid she would think it was a bit childish, but she just loves it! Even my daughter’s older friend, who’s seventeen, enjoys playing with her new Harry Potter broom. Now there’s never less than a dozen squealing kids locked in my daughter’s bedroom playing together for hours with that thing!

I have never laughed so hard my friends. Seriously, the Oozinator is awesome. Let your kids experience the joys of “the money shot” with Hasbro’s latest timeless piece. Also be sure to check out the remix and a home video demonstration.

I’ve been real tired lately. Being a new dad (again), balancing work, maintaining a healthy marriage and juggling finances have all but taken their toll. Let’s not forget trying to keep my friends around and still have time to enjoy my new favorite hobby, cycling. It’s a miracle I’m still somewhat sane. It is beginning to show outwardly and I’m trying my best to keep it all together.

More recently adding to my “stress levels”, my wife and I have been talking about “possibly” moving - as in leaving New York.

I have this on-again-off-again relationship with NYC. At times I am ecstatic that I live in such a great city. There is seemingly no limit to what can be done here. From entertainment, to museums, to hole-in-the-wall establishments, I can’t get enough of this town. Alternatively, the bane of my existence is housing. Recently our rent was reduced a bit, which was great. We pay next to nothing for a fairly large, 2 bedroom apartment in the city. Granted, we’re in east harlem, so it’s no picnic. The problem is finding something like what we have closer in-town; we’ve been looking but no cigar. It seems virtually impossible for us to find something that isn’t a 500sq ft 2 bedroom being advertised as “huge” and a “steal” for only $3500.

The more we look at the cost of what some people call “two-bedrooms” - a bedroom with a closet converted to a room - we could have something fairly nice in the mid-west or southeast. By “nice” I mean a house…with a yard…and grass…lots of green, green grass! Not only that, but the cost of living is substantially cheaper in some areas. North Carolina is looking mighty tempting. But what of the creative industry in NC? I enjoy my job now and would hate to leave this opportunity here, but now with two kids, I am thinking more and more about the experiences I would like them to have.  One thing I loved growing up was riding my bike everywhere, playing football across the street  in Richards backyard or Slip N’ Slide in our backyard.  Heck we even had a tetherball court!

Culture, culture, culture is what NYC offers and I want children to experience this as well. But can we afford it? Raising children in NYC is tough and unethically expensive for an average family.

Time will tell what our next move will be but finding a hometown that offers up similar amenities as NYC will be tough.