My 10 Essentials

A well-known magazine does a periodic feature called 10 Essentials in which people of interest name 10 things they can't live without. I thought about it for a few minutes.  Then I thought about my 10s of thousands...10s of hundreds...10s of 10s of readers and knew you guys were curious as to what mine are.  Well, let's start the insanity!

MacBook- I do everything with it. Write this blog, everything associated w/internet, music, movies.  It's a complete extension of me.  And, more importantly, it does it with style.  The design and the program graphics, like all things Mac, are slick.  It's ironic, considering Steve Jobs is always in a black turtleneck and mom-jeans.

iPhone- It's like my mobile MacBook.  I think it's honestly one of the most important inventions of the 21st century.  People will look back on it and think, "Damn, how could a nerd in a black turtleneck and mom-jeans invent something so great."

Keurig Coffee Machine- I need coffee in the morning. Stat! As fast as possible. This does it for me. Sadly, I brew a pot while drinking the 1st K-Cup, shocking myself into coherence in the morning.

Hardcover Books- Preferably leather bound, and that smell of a rich mahogany.  Seriously though, as much as I love technology, there is no substitute for a nice hardcover edition of a book you like.  I've bought hardcover editions of books after reading the paperback because I know I'm going to look back through them.  Some of my favorites: The Tender Bar by JR Moehringer, In Cold Blood by Capote, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald, The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferris, The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway, The Autobiography of Mark Twain: Volume 1, and Chronicles: Volume One by Bob Dylan.  That's a short list, btw.

Titleist Golf Gear- I love golf. Slightly obsessed, actually. It's a game I could write about ad nauseam. In short, there's a lot of technology out there, so when it comes to blending what works with what looks good, you get Titleist golf.  I don't like stuff that looks futuristic, so a lot of the things Titleist put out look pretty classic. And the material they use is incredible if you're a low to mid handicap and notice that stuff.

Pandora.com- I actually canceled my Sirius/XM subscription because I listen to Pandora so much. I have the app on the iPhone and plug it into my car.  I listen to it through headphones a lot too. I scaled down from 10 stations to 3, and I give 1 constant feedback so one day I won't ever have to hit "skip" or "thumbs down".  That's my goal! Maybe I'll post the link to it on here....

Monogrammed Desk Caddy, Flask, & Swiss Army Knife- Two of them were gifts for being in some very cool people's weddings! The desk caddy keeps my life organized every time I'm coming or going. The flask helps me become unorganized and sloppy, and the knife helps me protect myself when I get too drunk or find myself in strange territory and need to survive overnight (because I lost my way from from what ever was in the flask).  Having your initials on these things looks very classy because the monogram is subtle,not like the LL Bean backpack you wore in middle-school.

J.Crew [type] clothes- Orson Welles said, "Create your own visual style...let it be unique for yourself and yet identifiable for others."  I can't do that with just one brand, and I'm not advocating it whatsoever.  However, my personal style has been compared to that of a J.Crew catalogue.  I grew up on Cape Cod. I'm proud of that shit.

Alcohol- Like I said, I grew up on Cape Cod. What the hell do you think people did when it wasn't the Summer? Oh, and when it is Summer, it's even more ridiculous.  And in case you haven't noticed, this blog is called The Leisure Study. I'm also a bartender who has a golf problem.  I'd say booze is an integral part of my life.  And right now my friends are nodding, laughing, and probably saying, "and everything that goes along with it!"  Fuck all of you ;)

Martin Acoustic Guitar- I love music. I respect great live music as much as anything in the world. I try to play guitar. Nothing sounds better than a Martin, preferably the D-28. The guitar is one of those things you can enjoy by yourself or with other people, kind of like sex...drinking...golf. And you don't have to be good at them to enjoy them ;)