These are a few of my favourite things....

These are few of my favourite things...
 A lunch-time lap of Dry Creek now that Danzig is pretty mucky.

Podcasts
Ideal for when you are doing a long ride (yeah right), or gardening, or painting the house.

This is one of my favourites, with US Legend Steve Larson, who passed away unexpectedly last year at the tender age of 39. He is pretty much the Forrest Gump of cycling and has achieved in all disciplines from Road, MTB, Xterra, Ironman. Its a great interview. http://competitorradio.competitor.com/?s=larsen . Competitor radio has masses of inteviews with all sorts of Endurance athletes from Rod Dixon and Lance Armstrong to Dave Scott.

This one is from The American Life. An amazing place for stories about things, some everyday, some completely out there, like this one about how before the US stock market crash, the company Magnetar brought up "toxic" debt and on-sold it, at the same time betting on its imminent failure. All completely legal, if morally corrupt.  http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/405/inside-job .

In this one, the Police install a new system for measuring crime stats, and before long they are "reclassifying" their crime to make it look like they are achieving new goals and meeting quota, something which is illegal. A cop disagrees with it, and wears a hidden microphone, right up to the point where they come into his house and have him "committed" to a mental hospital. The whole thing is recorded. http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/414/right-to-remain-silent

You can download these for free via itunes, or stream them on the web.

Socks, a top and a multi-tool.
Everyone used to hate it when they got socks for birthdays as kids right? I know I did. I got these socks for the Kiwi Brevet and they are still going strong, I dont think they were cheap, but they are comfy and showing no signs of wear. Lorpen XBTC Multisport is the name.
You dont always have to pay top dollar to get a good product. This Kathmandu multi-tool has everything, including chainbreaker, a torxc and 4 spoke spanners. This Kathmandu "Altica" top is the best Poly-pro I have ever had, it doesn't get smelly, it doesn't get wet and it doesn't get too hot, once again, like the multi-tool, brought and used in the Kiwibrevet. We used the Multi-tool to re-true Sepps busted wheel during the Ride to Erewhon 155km event the other week.

Cupcakes.
Hmmm cup-cakes. Arent they lovely? Good enough to eat. My youngest daughter made these.

Look at thoses jugs!
The Kettle on the right in this picture has the name that was always associated with quality - when I was a youngster. If you had a Russel Hobbs, you were to be envied. They turned themselves off automatically, and they lasted for ever. Shiney steel with an important looking red button. The one on the right in this photo lasted about a week before the "lid activator" broke off. We got a new one. It broke off too. I think we put up with it for another two years, pouring the water in down the spout, then the "start" button broke off, so I managed to whittle down a close peg to do the job.... then it started leaking water all over the electrical parts.... It also made a noise like a 1989 3.7 litre Toyota Land Cruiser idling with the choke out. You had to turn up the TV 2 notches and shut the two doors between the lounge and the kitchen just so you could hear the telly.
And then, after at least two years of putting up with this monstrosity my wife brought home a new one... the one in the left on this picture. A Sunbeam. Well.... she wont tell me what it cost, but I dont' care, you can listen to the radio in the same room ! Right now that Sunbeam kettle is up there with my favourite things.

What should be done with the man that designed my previous kettle