As shot by The Selby of the Libra Leather shop, which supplies buttery soft goods for the likes of Alexander Wang, The Row and Vena Cava.

When we were there there were piles of the old floorboards in the ballroom, with evidence of other renovation work in the back rooms and up in the loft — but that was months ago; maybe I should head back up there and see what they were up to.

Anyway, here is I, looking shockingly demure, considering what an asshole I really am:

He’s posting the rest of the series on his Flickr account, and there are some other ones on his online portfolio.

Poul Jensen for Selig Z chair

In 30 days.

Rayman’s Rabid Rabbids: This game is so awesome. If you are amused by the following:

• shooting toilet plungers at rabid, wild-eyed bunnies
• dancing a la Dance Dance Revolution to a bunny-sung rendition of such classics as “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” “Rapper’s Delight,” and “La Bamba”
• frantically milk cows
• racing a giant spotted warthog around an abandoned ocean island
• playing dentist by pulling worms from the rotten teeth of a rabbit, or
• listening to fart noises

…then you will probably like this game.

Basically, if you’re as schizophrenically-interested in video games as I am, have my (i.e. a five year old’s) level of maturity, or have a sick twisted sense of humour (e.g. me), there’s no way you will ever have to spend $70 on another Wii game.

I also like Danone’s Silhouette “spring water-based beverage” made with “natural flavours” and is “sugar free”. It’s kinda wack that a yogurt company is bottling water, and I can only assume by the label, which indicates it’s bottled by “DNW,” that it probably means Dasani (a.k.a. Coke’s successful campaign to sell a de-ionized version of our own tap water back to us for ridiculous mark-up) is behind it, so the morality is kinda sketch. But, it’s addictive. I can’t vouch for any flavour other than the Pink Grapefruit Green Tea, but my god, finally a drink that isn’t sickly-sweet. For $1.29 you get one litre of delicious, 0 calorie, subtle deliciousness.

Still, so many questions: how can it be naturally-flavoured green tea with no green hue? Is there any actual juice in it? Does Danone actually think anyone is going to implement a full Silhouette-approved diet lifestyle and subsist entirely on unappetizing, saccharine, fat-free yogurt and “water beverage”?

These questions are yet to be answered.

Speaking of horrible cliches, here are some
Things I Don’t Like

Token Journalism-Related Rant: I hate newscasters, especially sportscasters with a horrifyingly low regard for journalistic worth, using the following phrases:

• remains to be seen
• has yet to answer
• the question remains
• it’s still unclear whether

The Dollar: As if I didn’t need another reason to hate Bush and his insane economically-driven-plundering-of-the-Middle-East-disguised-as-democratic-zeal, my paycheques are now worth approximately 60% of what they used to be when I started last July (then, $1 USD = $1.4 CDN; now, we are beyond parity… two cents over, to be exact). I work for a San-Francisco-based small press company. Thus, I am paid in American dollars. When I was hired on, I was being paid the equivalent of $14 an hour as a publishing intern, an unheard-of rate in an industry as rampantly cheap as book publishing. Now, almost 16 months later, I’m making less than I did as a shopgirl at H&M. Thanks a lot, asshole.

The worst part of this is, not a single business has adjusted their consumer product prices to match the dollars’ values. Until this stops, I’m not buying anything that is a) not on American eBay, or b) has more than a 5% difference in MSRP. Here’s a guy that agrees with me.

	Le Corbusier’s Barcelona chair What do you even say about this thing? It’s marvellous and perfect and unattainably great. No wonder the dude went insane on hubris and renamed himself ‘the Crow’.
	Boogie’s It’s All Good coffee table book One of my favourite contemporary photographers. This version, sold by TinyVices.com, is autographed.
	Chris Stiles’ salt and pepper bone shakers This is everything industrial design should be – aesthetically pleasing, cheap, universally recognizable for its purpose, embarassingly fun to use, and eminently original.
	e15’s Tafel table-bench I fucking love Scandinavians.
	Gus’ Emma sofa I must have some thing about tufted furniture. Freudian analysis might say I am cold, rigid, and uncomfortable, just like modern furniture. And pay intense detail to everything, like upholstery buttons.
	EQ3’s Milo cocktail table The great thing about EQ3 is that it’s just like Ikea, only not in the middle of nowhere, nor cheaply constructed. But it is just as cheap.
	‘We are happy to serve you’ ceramic coffee cup What better memento of my time in New York than the ubiquitous Greek coffee cup. This one is immortalized in all its brash, urban, ceramic, permanent glory. I want like, ten of these in my cupboards.
	Alberto Mantilla’s Hug salt and pepper shakers I saw these at the MoMA Living Design store last summer, and every time I see these, I coo. I mean, doesn’t your heart just melt into two harmonious, racially-diverse blobs of gelatin?
	Jason Miller’s ceramic antler chandelier Mike says I’m creepy for wanting this, but like any true urbanite, I like a bit of rustic charm. As long as it’s not actually organic.
	Roost Design’s reclaimed wood shelves These are colonial-era railroad stakes from a northern Indian province. They’d probably add a nice touch to the otherwise cold, rigid and uncomfortable decor I plan to have.
	Scrapile’s table and bench This is on the same environmentally sustainable and renewed materials tip. This company makes furniture from wood scraps in Brooklyn, and every piece is unique.

Now, start your Google engines, and buy me housewarming gifts! In lieu of such things, you may accompany me on my weekly couch-shopping trips, in which I hum and haw endlessly over a million couches that look the same.

I don’t really get excited about shoes anymore (cough SB Bear Pack cough) but these 25th anniversary editions have unleashed the floodgates of nostalgia. I had a pair of Reebok Freestyle Hi’s when I was a lil beb, about 8 years old. They were white, with pink striping on the midsole, pink laces, logos and straps; paired with my purple tapered sweatpants and leggings, I was the queen of the schoolyard. I pretty much credit those shoes (along with the Uptempos, Pennys, and L.A. Gears I lusted after and would eventually own) with planting that little seed of sneakerfreakerism in me.

So on your 25th anniversary, dear Freestyle, I salute you!

P.S. I also had some really fly Converse One Stars in every colour imaginable. At the time, putting little craft beads on a safety pin and sticking it on your laces like a lace-lock was the coolest thing you can do. I thank my sister for passing on that 1999 knowledge.

Lafayette and 8th, after buying this: