AltWeeklies Wire
The Insensitive Man's Holiday Gift Guidenew

Alas, the holidays are a time when you're supposed to be thankful and thoughtful, reaching out to loved ones with tenderness and affection. In other words, you can't behave like a man. Which presents a rather daunting challenge when it comes to gift buying.
Nashville Scene |
Pete Kotz |
11-21-2008 |
Shopping
Test Driving the Smart Car, a Tiny Automotive Marvelnew
What caused smirks and giggles when it was first unveiled last year has become much more than the latest fad. With its estimated 44 miles per gallon on the highway and 33 in the city, the Smart Car is the most fuel-efficient gas-powered car in the United States, and at a starting price of $11,990, it's also one of the cheapest.
Las Vegas Weekly |
Ken Miller |
10-24-2008 |
Shopping
The Way of the Scalpernew
Risk and reward inside South Philly's stealth economy.
Philadelphia City Paper |
E. James Beale |
10-06-2008 |
Shopping
Car-Buying on eBay: Yikes!new
If you're looking for something completely different in a set of wheels, eBay's the place to go. In a matter of a few minutes I stumbled across these gems.
Serena Brooke's Surf Stronger Fitness Video Gets to the Corenew

In the universe defined by Roxy board shorts and Dakine flip-flops, surfers are the ultimate paradigm of fitness.
L.A. Weekly |
Gendy Alimurung |
08-29-2008 |
Shopping
Master of Markets: Expert Scavenger Ron Slattery Shares (Some of) His Secretsnew

Slattery makes his living by scouring Chicago-area flea markets and reselling his purchases, directly or online, to prop companies, auction houses, and collectors.
Chicago Reader |
Anne Ford |
08-04-2008 |
Shopping
Tags: shopping, vintage, Chicago, auctions, junk, eBay, antiques, estate sales, flea markets, garage sales, Ron Slattery
Do You Have Any Treasures In Your Attic?new
If you've got old books, you might not win the library lottery, but you might have something worth a few hundred dollars.
Portland Phoenix |
Deirdre Fulton |
07-03-2008 |
Shopping
Green Sex Toys: A Veritable Whole Foods of Fuckingnew

I may be a rookie when it comes to the ball-stretching world of L.A. erotica, but really, the sheer volume of environmentally sound substitutes available to so-called sexual deviants (so-called by my grandmother, anyway) boggles the mind.
Los Angeles CityBeat |
Coco Tanaka |
06-27-2008 |
Shopping
Shlock Value: Dem Gear for Salenew
Democratic National Convention souvenirs are now on sale, where the enthusiastic blue-stater can score everything from a $48 Denver 2008 hoodie to a $9 keychain to a $3 recycled (gag) green Frisbee. But if you're looking for something a little different, there are alternatives.
Creative Ideas for Moms on Their Special Daynew
Choose these food-themed alternatives to the hackneyed flowers, facials
and restaurant dinners to truly show her that out of all of her positive character traits, creativity was the one you channeled most.
Orlando Weekly |
Holly Kapherr |
05-08-2008 |
Shopping
Goodwill Huntingnew
Welcome to Southeast Portland's Goodwill Outlet, a.k.a. "The Bins." One of the region's most unusual shopping meccas, the Bins attracts a cast of international characters all here to dig through giant mountains of what some call treasures and others consider trash.
Willamette Week |
Byron Beck |
04-16-2008 |
Shopping
Che Guevara Who?new
Cubans get pissed, an artist gets even, and the supreme prosecutor of the Cuban revolution gets booted from the mall.
Miami New Times |
Chuck Strouse |
04-07-2008 |
Shopping
Tags: shopping, Che Guevara
Home For Bookwormsnew
The popular myth is that Borders is stomping on the indie bookseller. Then why are new bookstores still opening? Boise booksellers say it ain't easy, but it ain't impossible either.
Boise Weekly |
Rachael Daigle |
04-03-2008 |
Shopping
Tags: shopping
A Cleveland Cure for the Sneakerhead Cultnew
Welcome to Cleveland's Got Sole. Billed as a "shoe summit and showcase," it aims to court an obsessive cult: people who have taken their devotion to athletic shoes to scholarly heights.
Cleveland Scene |
Gus Garcia-Roberts |
03-21-2008 |
Shopping
Tags: shopping
Scrubya: Lather Liberallynew
With each sale of the recycled-paper-wrapped soaps, proceeds go to charitable organizations that are "cleaning up after Dubya & Co." including donations to the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Physicians for Human Rights' Campaign Against Torture.
Dig Boston |
Christine Liu |
03-20-2008 |
Shopping
Tags: shopping