And with that, another week comes to an end. After seven days spent scouring the globe for the latest in products, culture and style, the Man of Many team is easing into a well-earned break. Perhaps we’ll indulge in a dram of Starward? Or maybe we’ll just some shut-eye on an Eight Sleep wonder bed? The possibilities are endless, but our Staff Favourites are not. So, with that in mind, eat them up while they’re here!
IKEA Bally Bookcase
Nick Hall – Editor-in-Chief
No big surprise here, but I’ve got entirely too many books for my humble abode to properly contain. For the past few months, my wife and I have been struggling to stack novels sideways, upwards and in any possible arrange to maximise space, but it hasn’t been working. Finally, and after much deliberation, we bit the bullet and bought two new Bally Bookcases from IKEA. The house has never looked better. For once, we can actually walk from one side of the living room to the other without tripping on a copy of Susan Sontag or stumbling over a Dostoevsky. Praise be the Swedish design lords!
Favourite Article of the Week: Pat Cummins is Doing Things His Way
Scott Purcell – Co-Founder
I’ve been known to kill a few wasted minutes, if not hours, on the toilet playing really crappy (excuse the pun) mobile games. In an effort to do something more productive with my time, beyond answering work emails, I decided to give Chess a try. So I got to downloading Chess.com, the biggest chess app and tournament in the world. What did I find out? That I absolutely suck at chess. But the good news is it comes with a whole bunch of training, match replays so you can see where you went wrong and short three-minute blitz games so you can quickly battle it out with Rando’s online for chess glory. Think of it as an AI chess master in your pocket. Will keep you posted if I get any better in the next couple of weeks!
Favourite Article of the Week: Eight Sleep Pod 4 Ultra Review: Getting Into Bed with the Viral Sleep Tracker
LEGO Ultimate Collector Series: Jabba’s Sail Barge
Marcus Hurley – Sales and Partnerships Manager
Say what you like about retail therapy: The perceived negative feelings associated with the thrill of walking into a store, double checking your bank balance, questioning your life decisions, and wondering, “Is that person looking at me? Stop looking at me. Please stop looking at me”. These feelings are quickly washed away by the adrenaline of walking out of said store with an oversized LEGO bag holding a brand-new set that is the embodiment of your youth.
I placed the oversized LEGO bag on my kitchen table and awkwardly slid Jabba’s Sail Barge – the newest addition to the Star Wars Ultimate Collector Series – from the bag and stared at it for a long time. It is a thing of beauty… and a thing of heft. I looked from the box to my bookshelf (currently holding my other Ultimate Collector Series models) and panicked. Where on earth is this going to go? But really, does that matter? You make room for these things.
As a lifelong Star Wars and LEGO fan, this impressive 3,942-piece, $799.99 AUD set is going to be a mammoth journey with detailed areas like the cockpit, prison cell, armoury, and Jabba’s throne room. The sheer length of this thing comes in at over 77 cm of fun, adding to the wow factor, and adding to the “how in the world is this going to fit on my shelf?” factor. The minifig lineup is exceptional (11 in total), featuring characters like Princess Leia, C-3PO, Jabba and some random guy called Wooof.
So do yourself a favour and embrace your inner retail therapist. If you need an excuse, Jabba’s Sail Barge is the perfect Christmas present… for yourself.
Favourite Article of the Week: ‘America’s Supercar’: All-New Corvette E-Ray Joins Stingray and Z06 Models in Australia
Mr Clutch Tacos
Alex Martinez – Media Sales and Brand Partnerships
Taco and NBA fans rejoice. In a very happy surprise to me, an NBA-themed Taco Restaurant has opened up in St Leonards. I saw some social ads promoting the grand opening, which boasted free tacos and free entries into an NBA merchandise giveaway. I told my wife, I told my Dad and it was on. A wholesome family trip to what seemed like a new restaurant purpose-built for me was underway.
We arrived and immediately had massive smiles on our faces checking out the atmosphere. Heavy rap music, a big neon light taco dunking a basketball as the logo, the US Olympic Team playing on the big screen and walls covered in signed jerseys and NBA memorabilia. We then proceeded to order which included a free taco each and entry into the giveaway.
The tacos were delicious and super juicy. The menu is a fusion of both Mexican and Asian flavours so you can’t really go wrong. To cap the whole thing off, my Dad ended up winning a signed poster of Shaq. If you are into tacos, basketball or good times in general, you must check it out.
Favourite Article of the Week: Revolutionise Your Day: NVIDIA’s AI Brings Next-Level Power to Work and Play
FUJIFILM ‘Foodtography Tours’
Beatrix Boon – Social Video Producer
FUJIFILM has partnered with Local Sauce Tours to create a food and photography tour in Sydney to celebrate the launch of its latest X-series model, and I recently had the chance to check it out. The tour consisted of five consecutive visits to some of the best restaurants the Inner West has to offer. Our guide, Justin, was a particular highlight. He was extremely knowledgeable and passionate, as well as very patient with our large and rowdy group. FUJIFILM representative Charlie Blevins was able to answer all our questions about the X-M5 so we could get the best content out of our night… And at the end, we were able to download all our photos from the SD card straight onto our phones.
All in all, it was a good night with some excellent food. I recommend this tour to those seeking a diverse and in-depth look into Newtown’s culinary scene and street art. They’re only running this particular tour in November, but if you find yourself in search of other experiences like this one, check out localsaucetours.com.au. They’ve got a bunch more all year round.
Favourite Article of the Week: I tried LG’s Tiny 120” 4K Projector, and I’m Not Quite Ready to Give Up my TV
