I do not own an iPad, and have no desire to obtain one. My beatup MacBook serves me fine on the go – and I prefer a full computer to work remotely and move my and edit my photos.

My friend, a college student, received an iPad for his birthday. Of course every iPad owner should have a good stand to facilitate easy viewing, and of course show off Apple’s best toy next to the PC, on the end table, or in the kitchen if you’re using your iPad as a futuristic recipe card and cooking guide. (Epcot never predicted that.)

After some hunting I found the site of Heckler Designers, maker of the @Rest. This stand is a heavy duty solid steel one piece design, for use in portrait or landscape. It’s primarily designed for static use at home or office, and is offered in four colors including crisp bright red.

It sells for a very reasonable price of $59 which includes shipping. (Even the sale is simple.) Adding to the good design is great communication: After ordering I sent them an email asking if it could be sent next day, since I wanted it to arrive on the same day as my friend’s birthday. They happily did so, and I paid the additional shipping via Paypal after it was sent out.

Heckler Designs is run by Dean Heckler our of Phoenix, and also makes the “One Less” line of minimal office furniture.

http://hecklerdesign.com/atrest/

I’m selling an Amazon gift card for $40. Don’t tell the person that gave it to me. I actually found the nice photo frames I wanted at Michael’s so I bought them there and decided to recoup the cost by selling the card on eBay. Even Steven.

I scanned a few similar bids before putting it up, expecting to start my bid at $30 and probably sell for around $35, giving free shipping as it’s just an envelope.

I was shocked to see this $20 bid winding down before my eyes at $43! What the hell?

This $200 card has nine minutes to go as of this writing, and selling at $202.

For some reason this Best Buy $50 card is bidding at $51

Although no bids yet, the person selling this $500 card expects at least $539 based on his “Buy it Now” offer.

This $25 card has six days left, and a “Buy it Now price” of $28.

And finally, my $40 Amazon card, after being put up yesterday with six days left is at an even $40. The face value of the card.

Is this a bidding war gone mad? Are people getting emotional when they get outbid? “Outbid me huh? I’ll show you who the winner is…”

Why would somone bother dealing with shipping and eBay fees to save one or two dollars? Or offer MORE for that matter? Especially when you can visit any grocery store and just buy one off the shelf. I think it’s a great idea to buy a card for a few bucks off someone trying to unload it that wouldn’t make use of it. But I’m baffled at paying face value or higher. To my knowledge these don’t offer any extra value or offers, and are no different than a store bought card or just plunking down cash at the register.

This isn’t new either. A few years back I received a $100 American Airlines gift card. Since I usually fly United I put that one eBay, and was shocked when it won in the neighborhood of $98.

It there’s something completely obvious I’m missing I’d love to know, and would probably remove this post in embarrassment. But as of now I’m lost, and ready to start a part time hobby of buying $100 gift cards in bulk and selling them for $130.

I set out to find a new one, and being a beautiful Saturday I skipped the online search and did it the old fashion way: I went to three brick and mortar stores comparing products and prices. Yup, just like when my parents needed a new appliance and we’d spend all day Saturday touring West Michigan superstores with newspaper ads in one hand and consumer reports in the other.

Performance Bikes on Colorado only had fancy schmancy touring panniers. Too complicated for grocery runs and transporting bulky items. Turin Bikes stock tons of hip messenger bags, some permanent wire racks and baskets, but not the “clip on clip off” pannier I wanted for shopping and transporting bulky wares by bike.

I found the Detours Toocan Pannier at REI, for $45. Now high quality reputable panniers generally start at $100, so I wondered if this would be the same crummy quality as my old one. I bought it and planned to return it should it fail to transport the goods to my liking.

Surprisingly I loved it from day one. On the way home I stocked up to make a tray of lasagna, adding a half gallon of milk and two liter of soda. It weighed about 25 pounds and handled excellent. The bottom is solid rubber, which adds a bit to the weight but makes it sturdier. The hooks are deep so if you hit a bump or bounce it won’t fall off. There’s no bottom hook, but the design is wide rather than deep, so the sides don’t chafe against the wheel.

It also makes an excellent commuter’s bag, protecting folded shirts and pants with a zip up top. There are two side pockets and it even comes with a yellow rain cover. I can fit more in here than I ever have before, and no longer find myself dangling bags of bananas and onions over the handlebars when I can’t stuff them in.

The negative? I don’t really care for the diamond style design and stitching. When off the bike I think it looks like a big bag for women, especially with the pleated upper corners and more so if using the padded shoulder strap. But while I don’t care for the form I’m keeping it for the function. The design is perfect, and at this price it’s one of the best and most solid urban panniers I’ve seen.

I highly recommended this product for the urban cyclist, and I don’t believe it’s that feminine looking to be carried around the supermarket or office.

More photos and designs at REI.com

Every Sunday in Buenos Aires you can visit “Paseo de Recoleta,” at the large park near the Recoleta Cemetary and Señora del Pilar Church.

My travel mate Lou and I were wandering around here on a sunny October Sunday, taking in the live music in between perusing belts, jackets and other leather goods, while appreciating the relaxed atmosphere. Everyone was having a great time strolling the booths or picnicking on the green listening to live music.    These were exactly the type of crafts and souvenirs my friend wanted to find. He reminded me this again, the first time a week earlier when chiding me for purchasing an “Evita” coffee mug at a Florida Street crap shack.

I bought a few shirts for my niece Lili, a belt, and when I saw a stylish single fold leather wallet I immediately knew it was a perfect replacement for my current wallet of 10 years.  It was soft suede leather with a sharp emblem on the side.  The gentlemen selling them made them all, and I knew it would be an excellent personal investment.  More so than an Evita coffee mug.

Back home I transferred over my contents and showed off the craftsmanship to friends and coworkers.  The weeks after my return were busy training and getting to know C.J., a three year old special needs rescue chihuahua that had mysteriously found his way to our door from the Adams County animal shelter.

A month later I found my wallet on the floor next to a chair I never sit in. “Strange,” I thought. I assumed that it had fallen from my messenger bag. I don’t lose things, and that should have been a red flag that something was up.  A few days later I came downstairs to find C.J. entertaining himself on the couch by holding my wallet down while picking and tearing at the seams. He had stuck his little snout into my messenger bag, grabbed my treasured wallet, and entertained himself all Friday evening gnawing it apart.

My heart sank. I was furious that a special momento and something I valued was now a soggy chew toy. Why couldn’t he had found the stone I had heisted from Calle Laprida?

I reprimanded him in the best manner I was able and gave him a long time out while drying the wallet and the two slobber soaked 20 dollar bills.  The wallet was torn and ruined.   I’m not a professional dog trainer, but I know the window of discipline for dogs is short.  I went to bed without speaking to C.J., but we made up the next day and I could tell by his bulging brown eyes he knew he had done wrong.  Or maybe he just wanted to go for a walk in the park.

That weekend I looked through my little pile of stuff still in my travel bag. I save things like city guides, club flyers and art programs.  I had a small paper bag with the name and insignia of Luis Tinti – the gentleman who handcrafted his leather goods and ran his booth.  Even better, his email was clearly marked on the bag.

I snapped a few photos of the destroyed wallet, and sent him an email in Spanish explaining what had happened, and how much I appreciated the wallet. I asked him if he had an identical one he could mail, and sent him the locations of a Fed-Ex. He wrote back, very appreciate of my note and commiserated C.J.’s behavior. He said he was in the process of producing more with my favored design, and sending it Correo Argentino would be more economical.  I told him to take his time, and he insisted I not pay until it arrived.

A few weeks later a perfect wallet showed up.  I wired him some money (first time ever using Western Union) and send him some extra for his time and consideration.  Although I love C.J. I don’t trust yet that he won’t smell the new leather from three rooms away and do the same, so I’ve continued using the original ripped wallet while saving my new one for a special occasion – like my return to South America.

I suppose the down side to acquiring goods that have special meaning and significance, is that you can really get blue when they are lost are destroyed.  Fortunately in this case it worked out, and I thank Luis for that.   If visiting the Paseo de Recoleta I highly recommend tracking him down.   Just keep your good leather away from C.J. I also purchased a pair of leather shoes by Oggi, which I only keep at work.

I do use my cheesy “Evita” mug daily – it’s a perfect scoop size for C.J.’s dog food.

I chose the Eagle Creek Twist 22. This commenter had good things to say about the Eagle Creek Switchback, and Eagle Creek line in general.

I checked out the Switchback at Colorado Baggage, but found it too big. However they make a smaller version called the “Twist.” I found the Twist 22 and 25 at REI later that evening. The Twist 22 fit my price, size, and style. REI had more of a selection than I expected, so I compared it against a few others: I was wowed at the Swiss Army E-Motion 360, which straight out of a James Bond movie was a razor sharp red and contained a slick detachable man purse inside – but the $300 plus price was more than I wanted to spend. I justified it by saying “I’ll look TOO nice and don’t want to draw attention to myself on the road.” So that was out.  REI manufactures a unit called the “Stratocruise,” for $189, but it’s heavier than the Twist, and not quite as stylish. (I had a bland REI backpack for years, so want a little color and style.)

Being a fan of Timbuk2 I also checked out the Timbuk2 “Checkpoint,” in person. (This is actually a regular roller suitcase, not a backpack.) This was much heavier than expected, and although more pliable than a suitcase it doesn’t collapse as much as I wanted. Important seeing as how I’m always in boarding group “4″ with limited overhead space. I didn’t see this being as flexible as I wanted. That retails for around $260.

One selling point of the Eagle Creek line was the “backpack,” portion of the bag. Some “wheeled backpacks,” have stowable clumsy shoulder straps, which technically fits the title of “wheeled backpack,” but when I tried them on they felt boxy and uncomfortable. The Twist 22′s straps are wide and padded, and have waist straps for even weight distribution. (Pictured left)

REI’s price for the Eagle Creek “Twist 22″ was $240. I found it online at LuggageBase.com for the same price, with a 35% Eagle Creek discount, and they were including a free “Pack It” folder. (I’m not really sure what this is for.)  But wait there was more! They are having a free shipping special, so my total cost was $203. My apologies to the REI store and city of Denver for not funding our local tax base, but 60 bucks saved is important.

Hopefully this will this to serve me well for years to come, from Breckenridge to Buenos Aires. The good news is I’ll have a chance to dirty it up in Florida next month, so it won’t look too fancy and new when tooling around Argentina this fall.

A note on LuggageBase. There are hundreds of sites online that will sell you luggage. It’s quite overwhelming.  Luggage Base’s website doesn’t look fancy, and I had never heard of them.  The “new customer” form was not loading completely, so I called the 800 number on the home page and spoke with someone first ring, without holding or being transferred. The rep verified the minor site problem on her end, requested I try back in an hour, and when I did it worked perfectly. Knowing someone is available in an actual office rockets their reputation forward in my opinion.  They also have a physical store in Nipomo California.  That’s just north of Santa Maria, which is north of Santa Barbara if you’re planning a trip to the Michael Jackson Neverland Ranch Memorial Gardens.  LuggageBase.com shipped this product same day, (I’ll receive Tuesday,) and they also offers free returns, so if this doesn’t work out I’m not stuck.   Five stars to LuggageBase.

If this post/reviews have been helpful in your quest for wheeled backpack feel free to let me know!

Original post: Wheeled Backpacks

I was enjoying lunch at the Paradise Cafe at about 11am, sitting near the Crocs store/kiosk. For 15 minutes I didn’t witness a single person manning the kiosk or checking up on the place – not a SOLE in sight. Thank you. Thank you.

I’ve never worn Crocs, nor do I have anything against them. Just thought it was interesting given their business stories over the past year.

For years I’ve had two bags, both of which I use as carry ons. I hate checking luggage, (mostly because I don’t care to wait at baggage claims,) plus I travel light. For weekend trips I have my Timbuk2 messenger bag, and for longer stays I add my medium size REI backpack. The backpack goes in the overhead bin. My messenger bag, with books, snacks, and HP Mini laptop goes under the seat.

This has worked out great for the past seven years, until Memorial Day weekend when I arrived at the airport extremely early in attempts to catch a standby flight to Chicago. Unfortunately due to a single canceled flight there was no availability on the other 10 flights, (yes 10 – thought I had a chance,) so I wound up leaving at 3pm as originally planned. That made for nine hours of gate hopping between reading, napping, and watching these birds, stuck inside Concourse B like myself, drink out of this water fountain. And nine hours of schlepping around my heavy backpack. Denver isn’t the worst airport to wait around in. The upper level in the center of concourse B is uncrowded with comfy chairs and some free semi-private cubicles to plug into to surf or work. But still, I was bored and because I was traveling solo couldn’t go anywhere without my gear.

Everyone on the planet has wheeled suitcases. I even see professionals walking down city streets diligently towing them like a pokey child. But these are usually firm and have a hard frame. Thus I’ve seen way too many people fruitlessly trying to cram them into overhead bins while rearranging and shoveling around other peoples’ stuff. Plus, when you step out of the airport and into the world of cobbled sidewalks, curbs, and streets – they aren’t that functional.

I thought “Wouldn’t it be great if there was a wheeled suitcase that was also collapsible, like a backpack?” Or if it was pliable and not limited the the restraints of overhead bins, taxi cab trunks, etc.

Turns out they make wheeled backpacks. I had no idea these existed until I was at the Apple store in Cherry Creek and noticed a Samsonite store across the way. I explained this is to the salesman and he showed me the Samsonite “Wander” – for about $85. It’s everything I want, AND – you can use it as a regular backpack too. It’s pictured left. I searched online and also found the Timbuk2 “Checkpoint,” (right,) which retails for around $250. This however does not have backpack straps. Also on my list is the Jansport “Driver 8,” which is not as aesthetically pleasing but looks functional nonetheless.

So – has anyone used these or have recommendations for similar styles and designs? Love to hear.

edit – 6.14 Here’s a photo of the backpacks two of my regular and appreciated commenters suggest:

Anil of FoxNomad.com suggests the “Swiss Army E-Motion” – pictured left. Right is the “Switchback” by Eagle Creek, personally recommended by 2Wheels3Speeds.

I posted the rear photo of the “Switchback,” as it has the lumber strap found in most regular backpacks. It appears the “E-Motion has this too. The Samsonsite “Wander” did not have that, making it feel a bit clunky when transitioning to a regular backpack. My thanks to both suggestions. I’m going to try and track them both down here in Denver to try on and check the size in person.

Update: Wheeled backpack winner

by Caleb Cross and James Van Dellen

I decided to follow their lead and start stocking up.  (Minus the firearms and gas masks.) I don’t have a Costco membership, but accompanied by a guest I visited the Park Meadows location. I usually shop at Safeway or Kroger, but on occasion I visit Super Target for the cheap prices. They’re a tad higher than Wal-Mart but I don’t feel as guilty going to Super Target as I do Wal-Mart.

I can’t seem to find anything at Costco fit to a human scale.   This vat of coffee claims to make 380 cups.  I only make coffee on the weekends, and with three cups a day times two days a week it would take me years to get through it.

Most products are bundled together so even though the price per unit is cheaper the overall cost is more. For example I buy peanut butter at King Soopers for $1.50 or so on sale. Costco charges $4.99 for two bucket size containers. I guess it’s good for the Duggers, but it creates quite a challenge to consume this much, plus shovel around space in the cupboards.

I didn’t take as many photo as other retail adventures, but here are a couple more shots.

Related:
Christmas at Target
Personal Fitness Roundup

Above: Enough Mazola to power the cooking oil powered car that I don’t own.

Below: I usually buy one or two pounds of ground turkey per trip. Here’s four packaged together.



Below is my cart. It doesn’t appear that I bought that much, however the cart is enormous. The boxes are also huge.

And a big drum of Skippy.

Many bike commuters can be stifled by storage logistics, and it can be unweildy to transport bikes on crowded public transport if biking is only part of a commute.

The SwissBike TX folds into a nifty little square, making it easy to throw into a trunk, carry around, or lock up securly.  If you do need to bring it inside somewhere, (business, office, etc.) you’ll probably find fewer objections than you would if carting around a full size bike.  According to Alternative Consumer is retails for $699.

I wonder if I could carry this on my back somehow… Swissbike.com

Most agree that AFTER Thanksgiving should be the start of the CHRISTMAS season, but this idea has been lost on retail for a long, long time.

I spotted this wrapping paper at Walgreens, and although its on the unreachable top shelf and probably just overflow from the stock room, I definitely think it qualifies.

For comparison here is a photo of the Chevy HHR’s windshield along with the windshield of the space shuttle Discovery, which you’d expect have LESS visibility to the outside.

Photo from airlineworld.

CNN reports that the Smartcar received high marks for front and side collisions, and except for less than standard whiplash protection was considered a very safe vehicle overall.

Being far from a crash test authority I take issue with the line “bigger and heavier is always better.”  You may feel safer driving a school bus or garbage truck, but how many SUVs flip over on freeways and superarterials each year?   Big and heavy without the experience and knowledge to manage such a vehicle cancels out any safety factor you gain by driving it.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The ultra-tiny Smart ForTwo earned top marks in side and front crash tests, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said Wednesday. The two-seat car did not earn the Institute’s Top Safety Pick designation, however, because it didn’t earn top marks for whiplash protection.

The ForTwo is the smallest car the IIHS has ever tested. “All things being equal in safety, bigger and heavier is always better,” said institute president Adrian Lund in an statement. “But among the smallest cars, the engineers at Smart did their homework and designed a high level of safety into a very small package.”

Full article and video here.

The “Smart” of Smart Car is an acronym taken from “Swatch Mercedes ART” – as the original project was originated by the Swatch company.  I’ve admired these on the streets of Europe and have seen a few out in California the past year.  Now they’re an occasional sight around Denver thanks to this new dealership.

Unfortunately this elegantly compact beauty still sparks stereotypical comments of too small, too unsafe, and effeminate. (But similar emasculating insults are lofted at guys who show off expensive cars too.)  Most myths are dispelled after experiencing a test ride.   The seats sit quite high – higher than most compacts actually.   The interior width space appears deceiving due to the front to rear bumper measurements, but inside its quite comfortable.   The entire car is built around a reinforced steel shell.  As described in blogs.cars.com “it’s like being encased in a walnut shell.”   And I sometimes do need the jaws of life when opening walnuts.

At 47 miles per gallon and a prices ranging from $11,000 to $16,000 I have a feeling these guys will become more common on our streets.  The photos are of the Cabriolet, which is the highest end model and features dual automatic/manual transmission with steering wheel mounted paddle shifters, heated seats, and a tinted sunroof.  An ample cargo compartment is found in the bag, big enough to store golf clubs and other bulky gear.  (Ski rack still required though.)

The smart center Denver is at 2855 South Broadway in Englewood, just south of Yale.   And since its Earth Day go ahead and read up on their ecology.  

I’m a true fan.   I love the gas mileage, clean design, and small footprint.   Here’s a clip from a Boston TV station which shows the interior and a test drive:  

Tooling around in San Diego over Christmas I found a couple shops selling Affiliate Clothing.  And it turns out after returning to Denver two friends received them as gifts. Affliction makes originally designed t-shirts, and jeans which stand out and carry their own style. Their sister company 925 Jewelry makes biker style ring, dogtags, and pendants. And for the ladies they design under the name Sinful.

I find their the long sleeve t-shirts to be the most well designed, or maybe I’m partial to them during the winter months…  They’re carried at the retail store Metropark. More stores and catalog at Afflictionclothing.com

p.s. To Affliction:  What’s wrong with showing some heads in your photos?  I think these long sleeve Ts make guys and girls look hot.  Let’s see them…

Their store is spacious, uncluttered, and laid out well.  Two also stock two brands whose designs I love:  Affliction and Ed Hardy Designs.

I put this on my “to post about” list, and as always first looked for an official site for more details. However their listed site britishinvasionusa.com  is marked expired as of December 6th.

Here’s a couple reviews from Yelp.  In the meantime British Invasion re-register your site so people can find you and your gear.