The Rent is 2 Damn High (party)

This year’s campaign for Governor of New York has been electrified by a single-issue candidate who doesn't mess around: Jimmy McMillan, founder and 'CEO' of the Rent is 2Damn High Party.
McMillan's bizarre penchant for wearing black gloves (not in an N.Anelka way) is almost as cool as his straight, hard talk on the issues that matter:
On gay marriage: “The Rent is 2 Damn High Party feels if you want to marry a shoe. I’ll marry you.”
On negative campaigning: “As a karate expert, I will not talk about anyone up here.”

Via The Periscope Post

Awesome cat

Micspawn

Not everyone in France wants to retire at 60. This guy says he'll stick to his profession until he's lying flat in a wood box. His beatboxing is undeniably dope but I bet the Chilean miners were dead relieved he wasn't down there with them. I imagine his tomfoolery would begin to grate after a few days?

Burmese born on a Tuesday instructed to tear down the old flag.

After 'Hermit Kingdom' North Korea, Burma has to be the most secretive state in the world. Their military junta rule with a iron fist.
In the build-up to the country's first election in 20 years (which most forecast will be a total sham), the rulers have been at their eccentric best. According to a leading editorial in today's Washington Post, they've just replaced the national flag and national anthem. It goes without saying that they didn't bother passing this by the populace. While the measures are pretty startling, check out the nutty but kinda neat way they are the implementing the far-reaching policy:
"WITHOUT WARNING, Burma's rulers last week bestowed upon their country a new flag, a new seal and a new anthem. A surprised government official told Reuters that the junta's instructions specified that the old flags should be lowered by people born on a Tuesday and the new flags should be raised by people born on a Wednesday. Then all the old flags were to be burned.
The order, accompanied by no explanation and probably informed by astrologers, was typical of the generals who govern this Southeast Asian nation of 50 million people from their isolated and recently constructed capital of Naypyidaw."

Pendleton winter gloves

On a recent trip to Nu York, ever-so-kind HanPicked kindly snapped up a pair of Pendleton gloves for Mr ArchBlog. Native American prints are always a winner and these are the mutt's nuts for cycling into town from Bush HQ.
Available from Opening Ceremony

Coat watch

All these coats are dead nice. Bar one. See if you can work out which one ...

ArchBlog has got your back

UPDATE: Just added this beaut from Epperson Mountaineering (available @ Garbstore)

Holla if you like one of these so much you want further deets.

0/10

In the past, ArchBlog has excitedly flagged up inventive (mostly Icelandic) goal celebrations. But you'd be wrong to think AB is a sucker for a celebration just because it is wacky and new.
Take this naff piece of twattish stadium theatre. I couldn't care less if it is his new car or a sponsors. Either way, it is an ugly prop in a deeply embarrassing show. Just check out how bang out of ideas he is when he actually gets to the motor. I'd like to have seen the air bag explode in his face. His accomplices are equally lame. They are either riding bitch or passionately neck-kissing their special goal-scoring friend. I'm surprised one of them didn't pull an air freshener out of his neatly-ironed jockstrap. Or don some filthy leather knuckle-less driving gloves.

Monitaly wool overshirt

This is definitely wool overshirt weather. There's a bite in the air but it still not quite cold enough to bust out a proper winter coat; step on the tube in a Canada Goose or somesuch and you'll be sweating like a rapist.
Back to wool overshirts. This one - from Monitaly - is sweet. Herringbone is always a winner with ArchBlog and the sleeve accents are a nice touch.

Via Selectism

(Chelsea scummer) Mark Long is a genius!

Let's get the regrettable character flaws out of the way straight off the bat: Mark Long is a Chelsea fan. I know, I know. In his defence his allegiance does stretch back to the pre-Abramovich days of tangerine graphite.
Now to the meat. Mark Long is the best illustrator QPR-affiliated ArchBlog knows. By a stretch. No, more than that: By a country mile. His illustrations smash it out of the ballpark because they are witty, satirical and beautifully crafted. Take that for a treble Fergie!
Why am I telling you this? Because Long has a book of his illustrations just out which ArchBlog warmly suggests you snap up. Now. It's only £3.50. That's less than one of those a 'trend-setting' sarnies I peeped the other day in London's leafy Notting Hill.
If you don't believe me, below are a selection of my fave Long illustrations. I've even bothered to copy and paste the captions in:

BRIBERY:
Full page illustration accompanying an article about 'whistle-blowers' in business, for Accounting and Business magazine.

SQUARE MEAL:
Full page illustration accompanying an article about unpleasantly noisy restuarants for 'Square Meal' magazine.

TWITTER:
This man is actually updating his facebook status, to let everyone know how much fun he is having at the gig.

SHOREDITCH TRENDY:
Cruising down brick lane on his way to 'Jaguar Shoes'. He's got a fixed gear bike, and a copy of Vice magazine in his pocket

And here are a few illustrations from the Long book in question, "Who Ate All The Pies?" As you can see it's footy-related:

Check out Long's website here and snap up the tome 'ere

Stay tuned for an ArchBlog x Long poetry collabo in late '10/early '11

(Awesome) bike (maybe) for sale!

I am mulling the possibility of selling my Fahrrad Manufactur T100 bike. It's a beautiful and classic sit-up-and-beg style city bike ...

Here's the description from Bikefix, the Lamb's Conduit Street shop I got it from.
This is our best selling conventional bike and you have probably seen them all over London in various states of neglect.
The T100 is a well made city bike, complete with everything you could need for commuting: mudguards, propstand, chainguard, a rear luggage rack with parcel spring, and now fitted with a Shimano hub dynamo with an electronic standlight that keeps the rear light on when you stop. Braking is from Shimano ‘V’ brakes, and gearing is a Shimano Nexus 8 speed hub gear. Classic 'sit-up-and-beg' style, but with lots of room to fine tune your position, thanks to the adjustable handlebar stem.
There's lots more info if you click here.

It's had a fair bit opf use but is in great nick. It's recently been serviced so everything works like a dream. Pleased get in touch ASAP if you might be interested. Cheers, Arch archiecharlesthomas@googlemail.com

Mankind - Joseph Israel

If you need to be told that this guy's daughters will definitely grow up to be hard-nosed hedge fund managers living in a loft apartment in Manhattan then ArchBlog would like to congratulate you on your birth yesterday.
Bringing up children on raw food and Rastafari teachings is one of the best recipes ever for hippie backlash kid.

Via Oliver

UPDATE:
It turns out Mr Israel is not the only white dude making major waves in the reggae game. Props to Mr Bank for bringing Tenor Blue to the attn. of ArchBlog. This Tenor cat might not have Israel's lionesque dreads but boy can he ride da riddim. Blessed Love!

So urban

If you've always secretly fantasised about not being able to sleep, going for a lonely walk and then being chased by a band of mean-faced, knife-wielding muggers (nope, me neither!) then check out this Ben Drury vid for Nike. It's your Graceland ...

Air 180 ACGs

Truth be told, I've kind of gone off trainers and am mulling a massive clear out of my deadstock Nikes (get in contact if you're flush & UK9!) but I do like these size? x Nike Lunar Air 180 ACGs. The colorway is lifted from the 1991 Air Terra ACG (which I own).
Limited to only 250 pairs, the shoes will go on sale November 5th, 2010, exclusively through size? stores.

Via Hypebeast

The Corner

Now this is what I call really repping your corner:

Via Milo's wizard blog.

Dikshit

I didn't really have Nu Zillanders down as massive racists until bruvva Reub fired me this clip of Kiwi TV presenter having a one minute giggle at the silly name he made up for an Asian lady. The 'mucky' comment is particularly outrageous. I love how embarrassed his co-workers are.

The Pumpple: Pie cake

I like cakes. When I used to work in Holborn, I had a minor addiction to Konditor & Cook's Boston Brownies.
Sometimes I like pies. The beef and oyster one they do at Hix is a real treat.
But while I do like pies and cakes, I've never imagined a fusion of my interests. Perhaps it's because I figure that would be a touch too greedy.
Into my failure of imagination steps The Flying Monkey Patisserie in Philadelphia. According to Gawker, they have just unveiled The Pumpple. It consists of apple and pumpkin pies baked inside layers of chocolate and vanilla cake. Yup, it's pies inside cakes. Go Philly! Go America! Here's the skinny from the baker:
It's taller than it is in diameter and every inch is packed with love. We make the pie crust from scratch with only real butter, peel and prep the apples and mix up the pumpkin with sugar and spices. Our signature chocolate and vanilla cakes bake up around the pies making each layer one cohesive unit of awesome.

Get The Hog Outta Texas (run piggy, run!)

Americans finally have something to actually do with their bedroom arsenals of blue steel. That's because October has been declared to be 'Hog Out' month in Texas. Now 'Hog Out' may very well sound like a month-long BBQ where obese Houstonians eat their own body weight in pulled pork, but I'm afraid to inform you it is something way sicker. Way darker.
'Hog Out' is a state-sanctioned initiative to remove (ie exterminate) the estimated four million feral hawgs roaming the Lone Star State. They've even turned it into a sport; the county with the most removals wins!
If I was a feral hog, I'd be rounding up my close friends and fam, packing my stuff (straw mostly) and getting the hell out of Dodge. I'd be hot-hoofing it to a way blu-er state. And I'd be hurrying. Texan country politicians are salivating at the prospect of gunning down some piggie:

Via Gawker

Mattie Burrows, the Glentoran magician.

I'm not a huge fan of Oirish footy, but I have to give it up to Glentoran hitman Mattie Burrows for this quite sensational backheeler lob volley. I know what Sky poster boy Andy Gray would say ... 'take a bow, son'

Heritage Research Watch Hat

Fleckaholic ArchBlog has just put the first ting on his Christmas list:

Via Dearlove. Available from End Clothing for £50.

Vogue yardies park up in Bush

Here's one for my SheBu massif: This saturday, there's a yard sale taking place on Boscombe Road in the Golden Triangle which nestles between the Goldhawk & Uxbridge Roads.
According to HanPicked, this yard sale will be of a higher grade than its kin because it's the brainchild of Lucinda Chambers, Fashion Editor of Vogue. Phewy! Yard sales are usually stocked with junk (I'm looking at you VHS "Ghost") not even Freeglers would poke of the pier with a barge pole.
I'm digging the shabby chic e-invite.

Not mine guv, I swear

Sometimes a news story hits my intray that requires no further embellishment to enhance its outrageous ridiculousness. Like this pearler just in from The Village Voice via Mr Milo Napoleon:

Florida Man Says Cocaine In His Butt Isn’t His

The search of a 25-year-old Florida man following a traffic stop Wednesday morning revealed a bag of marijuana and a bag of cocaine in the driver’s buttocks, according to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office. The driver said only the marijuana belonged to him.

Kwoffee break beats

I pretty much approve of everything Diplo & Switch creation Major Lazer puts out. This latest vid is strangely hypnotic and a nice mini-holiday from the Monday morning grind. I particularly like when - on 2.15 - the titular Lazer character explodes from the fag packet, all guns blazin'. Per the Jamaican Observer, Diplo is now holed up at Jamaica's Geejam studios in Portland recording another ML album. Can't wait to hear it.

Via Diplo's Twitter

Sniffing lava porridge

It doesn't really bear thinking about but the world is basically a boiling basketball of molten lava and we live precariously on the thin crust. Any little hairline fracture in our stomping ground and up spurts liquid fire.
But not everyone is as concerned by the fact that there's hellfire bubbling underfoot as nervous nellie ArchBlog is. Some dudes actually want to get closer to the red hot action.
These thrill-seekers meet up on the weekends, get into their (cool) cool suits and head straight for the flames. Here's recent footage shot by the South Pacific island of Ambrym branch of the Hellfire Kru.

Via Gawker

Cannibal chic

Are horror movies getting sicker and sicker or is it just me? I admit I'm no horror fanatic. The last one I saw ("Wolf Creek") scared me so much I had to watch most of it through my hands.
But they do seem to be raising the bar further and further. Who actaully wants to see three hostages sewed together (mouth-to-arsehole) to form the titular 'character' in "The Human Cenipede"?
Here's my question: how many of you want to see Jorge Michel Grau's upcoming "We Are What We Are"? Never heard of it? Worry not, here's the charming synopsis sent me by the distributor ...

A middle-aged man dies in the street, leaving his widow and three children destitute. The devastated family is confronted not only with his loss but with a terrible challenge - how to survive. For they are cannibals. They have always existed on a diet of human flesh consumed in bloody ritual ceremonies... and the victims have always been provided by the father. Now that he is gone, who will hunt? Who will lead them? How will they sate their horrific hunger? The task falls to the eldest son, Alfredo, a teenage misfit who seems far from ready to accept the challenge... But without human meat the family will die. Shocking, bloody and deeply moving, WE ARE WHAT WE ARE is a remarkable reinvention of the horror genre - a visceral and powerfully emotional portrait of a family bound by a terrible secret and driven by monstrous appetites.

I hate to come over all Mary Whitehouse but ... boycott terror porn, I say.

Lingerie fumble

ArchBlog is a big fan of emerging niche sports. Like the rapidly-expanding Lingerie Football League recently brought to my attention by NFL nut Reuben Owen Thomas (his email subject? - I love you USA).
Basically, it's like Speedball on the Megadrive with scantily-clad cheerleaders taking the big hits. And they really do nail each other - I mean check out the power hit at 1.32.
I'm sure the almost one million views this LFL vid has received are due to growing interest in the complexities of the game of LFL, rather than a result of perves Winehousin' for footage of under-dressed ladies hurting each other.
I'm not so sure this game will catch on in Taliban-controlled areas of Afghanistan.