CONTENTS
Editorial: After St Valentine's Day
Travel: Snowman World Glass Resort lets you enjoy the Northern Lights
Technology: Anti Ordinary A1: helmets do not have to look and feel like helmets
Stationery: Your desk top
Gadgets and Gear: SticKnife
Books and Writing: The Tiny Type Museum and Time Capsule
Miscellaneous: Sleep Appreciation Society
PD: Store is under renovation and is currently unavailable
Contact Prowling Dog at prowlingdog@protonmail.com
EDITORIAL: After St Valentine's Day
St Valentine's Day came and went. You bought roses for the love of your life and took her out to dinner. Now what?
Love is something that should never be taken for granted. Treat your partner like your whole life has many extra St Valentine's Days in it.
TECHNOLOGY: Anti Ordinary A1: helmets do not have to look and feel like helmets
Do helmets have to look and feel like helmets? Robert William Joseph thinks not and has set out to prove the point, and a lot of people agree with him, judging by the response to his Anti Ordinary A1.
And no, he did not just stick a beanie on a helmet. The helmet is made out of Polyanswer non-Newtonian material. This material is soft but becomes hard on impact and soft again after the impact.
Initially made for snowboarding, these helmets exceed safety standards for helmets used in these types of activities.
The helmets come in a choice of colours.
The creators are looking at having these certified for cycling.
Check it out here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/267784424/anti-ordinary-a1-a-beanie-thats-as-safe-as-a-helme/description
TRAVEL: Snowman World Glass Resort lets you enjoy the Northern Lights
If you enjoyed last week's snow maze in Zakopane, Poland, head further north this week to the Snowman World Glass Resort in Santa Claus Village, Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland to enjoy the Northern Lights.
The recently opened resort has cabins with glass walls and rooves. The cabins are angled so that you can enjoy the Northern Lights even from your bed. What could be more romantic?
And you don't have to catch your own food, with the Glass Resort Reastaurant at hand.
Book here:
http://snowmanworld.fi/en/glass-resort#
TECHNOLOGY:
STATIONERY: Your desk top
[Above: Hiram Cox, A Looto Serre, 1821, New York Public Library]
Walk into enough studies and offices and you will note that there is a huge difference in people's desk tops. Some are cluttered while others are truly minimalist.
While clutter may look like you are working, it is distracting. On your desk top you should have only the stuff that you are currently working on. Put everything else away.
If you are working on multiple projects, put the material for each project into a separate box and store them on a shelf. Only pull out the box with the project that you are working on at the moment. Your productivity should increase.
GADGETS AND GEAR: SticKnife
We all know that knives are handy bits of EDC. You may need to cut a string, open a bag or parcel, or slice a piece of fruit. With many countries now banning knives as EDC items you need something discreet. The SticKnife fits the bill. Small and not looking like a knife, it will fit on your keyring.
Simply unscrew the top, turn the knob to let out the retractable blade and you have a handy tool.
The body of the knife is made from aircraft grade aluminium and is available in a natural or an anodised black finish.
The blade is made from high grade stainless steel, with an option of a Damascus blade (above), and is available with either a round or rectangular tip. The blade length is 45 mm.
You even have a choice for the colour of the ring (white, red or black, depending on how stealthy you want to be).
Head over here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1082427765/sticknife-discret-elegant-and-original-pocket-knif/description
BOOKS AND WRITING: The Tiny Type Museum and Time Capsule
The history of writing and printing is fascinating. In fact PD ran a series on the history of the book that covered these things (issues 145-147, 149, 150 and 152).
The Tiny Type Museum and Time Capsule is a wooden cabinet with historical items including wooden and metal type together with a specially produced book, "Six Centuries of Type and Printing", which is printed for the museums. Because the items are genuine, each of the 100 museums will be a little different.
For those interested in the history but not wanting the actual museum pieces you can get a PDF of the book. The museum should be great for collectors and as a source of material for teaching.
Check it out here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/glennf/the-tiny-type-museum-and-time-capsule/description
MISCELLANEOUS: Sleep Appreciation Society
We all know that we function best when we are rested after a good night's sleep. Well, here are some cute enamel pins to inspire you to get some well deserved sleep:
You can get your own pins here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1069667431/sleep-appreciation-enamel-pins?ref=discovery_category