How To Set A Table

If there’s one thing most guys never bother to learn, it’s the complicated rules of formal dining. To this day, most of us couldn’t tell you why on earth anyone would need to use two forks at one meal. Well the folks over at Curbly have done us all a favor and written up a short article on how to (properly) set a dinner table. Better yet, they give some good advice if you should ever happen to catch yourself at a formal party and have no idea what to do with all those utencils, “Work your way from the outside-in.”

Forza Motorsport 2

While those of you with PS3’s still eagerly away Gran Turismo HD, the XBOX 360 crowd gets to have their fun playing Forza Motorsport 2 ($55), the sequel to the award-winning original that came out a few years back for the original XBOX. Everything people loved about the original is still there, ultra-realistic simulation (including body damage), hundreds of cars to tune and customize till your thumbs bleed, real world tracks, and the graphics (naturally) take a big leap on the next gen system. If you’re into racing sim games, this is one you can’t miss.

Pan’s Labyrinth (Two-Disc Platinum Edition)

Pan’s Labyrinth ($22), arguably one of the best films of 2006, was recently released on DVD and now the two-disc platinum edition makes its way into stores. The movie, set in 1944 and directed by Mexico-born Guillermo del Toro, centers around 10-year-old Ofelia and does a masterful job of mixing imaginative fantasy and harsh reality. The fact that non-Spanish speakers will have to deal with subtitles is the only thing that detracts from the film, but don’t let that stop you from catching this award-winner if you missed it in theaters.

Fossil Anadigi Watch

In this day and age, when everyone carries around a cell phone and/or an iPod, it may seem like watches are becoming obsolete. That shouldn’t stop you from wearing one as a stylish accessory, if not for its functionality. The Fossil Anadigi ($75) does you one better, it allows you to get the exact time at a glance thanks to its digital display, while still maintaining a more traditional analog display right along side. Its mixture of warm browns and stainless steel ensure it will go with just about any outfit.

Scarface (1932)

Most guys have seen the version made famous by Al Pacino, hell, some poor saps still quote lines from the movie like it just came out. There is, however, a Scarface ($11) movie that came out long before that one, shot in 1932, it’s a classic by any measure. The original Scarface lends a lot of its core story to the Al Pacino remake, but it’s got a charm all its own. It has finally found its way onto DVD as of May 22nd and is definitely worth a peek.

Stampage Wallet

The Stampage Wallet ($55) from db clay is completely hand made from gaffers tape and thread, and comes in a minimalist black on black print that goes with anything, you probably won’t find anything remotely as nice at some shop in your local mall. They’ve got a good collection of wild looking wallets, if you would prefer something a little more fancy, and you can check out the process by which they make these pieces of art on their site as well.

Helio Ocean

As is standard around here, as soon as we added a Cingular 8525 to our cell phone arsenal here at Bachleorchic (and signed our lives away for the next two years), something much sleeker dropped from Helio. By now, you’ve probably heard about the Helio Ocean ($415), it makes T-Mobile’s sidekick look dated in comparison. This is all thanks, in no small part, to its dual sliding design which allows the Ocean to slide out a full QWERTY keyboard or just a standard numbers pad. It also packs what is quite possibly, the best implementation of various messaging and email clients and a speedy full HTML web browser courtesy of 3G compliance. The only drawback is that it’s a CDMA phone, not a GSM, which may be a problem for some users.

Min Media Wall

If you live in an apartment, like most of us, and also happen to have a flat panel television, then the Min Media Wall (Reg: $1,398, Sale: $1,099) from Design Within Reach may be your best bet to get that thing “wall mounted” without having to actually drill into your wall, which most leases prohibit. Constructed from smooth, powder-coated aluminum, it’s capable of mounting any flat panel up to 47″ wide and up to 185 lbs. The whole thing is crafted in Italy, so you can be sure about the craftsmanship.

Optimus Maximus Keyboard

Well it was literally years in the making, so long that a lot of people thought it was just vaporware and would never actually be sold. Art. Lebedev Studio, however, seems to actually be on the verge of delivering on their promise of giving consumers a keyboard with OLED screens built into every key, which essentially allows the user to not only define what every key does, but also what it looks like. The Optimus Maximus Keyboard ($1565 Preorder) is certainly flexible but is it worth the hefty price tag? It is also commonly believed that OLED screens have a short life span before they start to fade, maybe as little as a few years, but it’s hard not to admit that it’s a very intriguing toy.

Creative Zen Stone

There are times when you need a fully featured iPod, such as on a long commute or a trip to outer space. Then on the other hand, there are times when you need something smaller and more manageable, for those times, maybe you’re better off with the economical Creative Zen Stone ($40). Granted, it doesn’t have the built in clip of the iPod Shuffle, but it is half the price for the same 1GB of music. It’s just as slick and simplified as the shuffle too, so if you’re looking for a player you wouldn’t feel terrible about losing on your next drunken commute home after a night of socializing, this might be it.