A great all round stroller.

It’s getting closer to that time when your new baby is about to arrive and you are sitting back on a Sunday night, about to venture into some pretty intense research on strollers.  So let us take a load off and help you out with the research for the best possible pram for your new bundle of joy.

Now we have decided to approach this a bit differently as we have spoken to many a new mum and dad who all have the same comment; “four wheel strollers are rubbish”.  Therefore as most of us will only have the budget for one stroller suitable for every occasion, we thought we would focus on the most practical and well rounded three wheeled versions on the market today.

This top 10 list of baby strollers has been compiled by looking at all the practical features that are going to make your day’s out that much easier.

Phil Teds C7KIT3 – High quality stroller with an exceedingly versatile travel system and our absolute favorite.

Baby Trend Expedition ELX – In terms of value for money and versatility this is one of the best strollers we have seen.

Phil and Teds C7KIT4 – Stop off at your friends house or your local cafe and use the great little bassinet that comes with it.

BOB Revolution SE – If you are looking to take bubs across some serious terrain then this pram is for you.

Phil TedsVibe 2 Buggy – Another great stroller from Phil Teds and the most premium in this list.

Bumbleride Indie Stroller - Not only is this a great buggie in it’s own right but it has a plethora of great accessories.

Baby Jogger Summit XC – A great all round and thoroughly trusted pram and like the Bob Evolution, great for off roading.

Valco Baby Tri-Mode EX - This stroller grows with your family with it’s versatile additions and also has great storage.

EasyWalker Single SKY BASE – The most lightweight stroller in the list.

Mountain Buggy Urban Elite – A basic but luxury pram made in New Zealand.

The Razor 300

When we have a feeling a certain product is going to be big, we get together and find out which ones are going to be the best.  Now this time we may have gone a step too far and focused on a kids (and probably for adults to) toy. The electric scooter.  BUT if you are a parent looking to focus all your efforts on the coolest birthday or Christmas present for your kids then you are going to need to look at this.

The scooter has taken the world by storm with many a little person taking to the footpaths of this world and tearing it up.  Now the only way this could get better for them is if you strapped a tiny electric motor to it and let them go crazy.  Annnnnd that is exactly what they have done, making this one of the biggest potential toys this Christmas (sure they have been around for a little while but this year they are truly going to take off!).

So which ones are the best out there in the market?

Razor E100 Electric Scooter

Currie Technologies e-Zip E750

Currie E Zip Nano

Super Turbo 800watt Elite 36v

Razor E200

eZip 500 Electric Scooter

X-Treme X-140 Foldable Stand Up Scooter

Go-Ped ESR750EX

Razor E300

Razor E125

Showing the meat love.

Pizza is one of the most popular meals being consumed around the world, so much so that a whopping 350 slices of pizza are eaten every second in the US alone (source: Pizza – The Fun Facts About That Great Dish).  That is crazy stats considering the humble beginnings of the modern pizza in which cheese was added to in 1889, taking it from the basic Neopolitan pie to the beginnings of this food phenomenon.

As Pizza has expanded across the globe and been exposed to the differing tastes of nations it’s got a little out of hand with it’s evolution of toppings, crusts and even move into the realms of desert pizza’s.  So we are going to cut through the rubbish recipes and present to you the very best pizza recipes that will not only impress your tastes buds but also those of your friends lucky enough to try some.

Remember we are not showing any loyalty to thin or thick crust here but if you do really want a good base then we do highly recommend Mama Leone’s Pizza Crust Mix With Rosemary & Basil.

Meat lovers Pizza: Don’t skimp on the quality of meat when pulling this adopted and evolved classic – Recipe

Margherita Pizza – The tomato base is crucial in creating the best Margherita so get your hands on Carmelina ‘e San Marzano for best results – Recipe

Italian Sausage and Pepper Pizza: Find your closest Italian deli and spare no expense – Recipe

Hawaiian Pizza: To get the best possible pizza don’t overload the pineapple so it get’s watery and go organic with Native Forest Organic Pineapple Chunks – Recipe

BBQ Chicken and Bacon Pizza: This is about Italian as sushi but oh so good,  just remember to use roast chicken and Dinosaur BBQ Sauce – Recipe

Marinara Pizza: Two essential things here: quality garlic and great cheese. Without it and the pizza will fall flat. – Recipe

White Pizza: Get the choices of cheese’s right or don’t bother with this tomato free Pizza. – Recipe

Prosciutto e Funghi Pizza: The original calls for champignon mushrooms but mix it up with portebello mushrooms – Recipe

La Napoletana Pizza: This one is more for the Pizza traditionalist with the topping essentials of anchovies and capers – Recipe

Seafood Pizza: Don’t over complicate or over power this pizza with seafood, fresh shrimp and crab meat will be enough – Recipe

The ultimate 'Man Cave'

Every man has surely dreamed of having their very own ‘man cave’ where they can watch sport or play games uninterrupted for hours on end? And surely nothing screams ‘man cave’ more than a; robust, small and easy to reach beer fridge!

It’s very rare that such a boring appliance can evoke such raw, manly emotion from the leagues of men that roam this earth looking for the perfect cooling device to nurture their fizzy amber nectar.  That’s right, your beer should be nurtured and cared for as if he was one of your own, that’s why we have put some serious thought into this top 10 list.

So next time your mates, pals, leeches come round for a few quiets for the big game you can impress them with the very best of beer fridges.  But what are they?

Perlick Refrigerator – The ultimate beer fridge!

Nostalgia Electrics KRS-2150 Kegorator – We think one of the all round best Keg fridge’s on the market.

Haier 150 Can Beverage Center – Simple and can handle any small gathering.

Perlick Dual Tap Kegerator / Refrigerator – If it wasn’t for the price it would be at number 2.

Summit 36″ Beverage Center – It’s meant for commercial purposes but we think this bad boy is perfect!

Summit S 15 Built-in Beverage Center – Another Summit masterpiece for the men that love beer from bottles.

Avanti BCA31SS – Great value and quality for money.

Whynter BR-125SD – Super slick in stainless steel.

Vinotemp VT-ODSBREF Great quality for the small man caves.

Avanti BCA193G – For the ultra small man cave’s you might find in Manhattan.

This is the life!

Are you trying to plan the ultimate luxury escape for a: honeymoon, anniversary, birthday, or you’ve simply been working to hard and need some RnR?  Well just like a cheesy TV commercial “Look no further” because we have found some of the most amazing vacation spots around the world just for you.

Sure we could show you the most opulent travel Escapes around the world but what’s the point in that when it’s out of reach for many of us?  Therefore we have compiled a top 10 list from around the globe, that has all the luxury and opulence you will ever need but without the price tag to match it.   Obviously these holiday’s will still require you to ferret away a bit of cash but not the mountains required by some of the places.

Eco Beach – Broome, Australia: Rooms starting at $270 USD per night

Casa Velas Boutique Hotel - Puerto Vallarta, Mexico: Rooms starting at $270 USD per night

Fusion Maia Resort – Da Nang, Vietnam: Rooms starting at $320 USD per night

Te Manava Luxury Villas & Spa - Rarotonga: Rooms starting at $450 USD per night

Hotel Santa Teresa  - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Rooms starting at $320 USD per night

Emirates Palace – Abu Dhabi: Rooms starting at $460 USD per night

Baron Resort – Sharm El Sheikh, Eygpt: Rooms starting at  $100 USD per night

Bucuti & Tara Beach Resorts – Aruba, Caribbean: Rooms starting at $460 USD per night

Cloud 9 - Russel, New Zealand: Rooms sleeping up to 4 people starting at $580 USD per night

Dreams Luxury Suites – Santorini, Greece: Suites starting at $415 USD per night

NYSE

For all of you non-finance people out there an IPO (Initial Public Offering) is when a privately owned company begins to sell stock in it’s business to the public.  There are numerous reasons for a business to become a publicly listed company such as: allowing for new acquisitions to help facilitate expansion, provides greater liquidity to original equity holders for paying off debt or improving cash flow and sometimes even for the additional PR brought about by going public.

But what companies have risen above the rest to work with their investment banking firm (and clandestine PR firms) to “correctly” assess the value of their shares and generate some of the largest IPOs ever? Well with the increase media focus on more mainstream,  fast growing and tech focused companies like: Google, Facebook (soon to be) and GroupOn you would think that these IPOs were some of the largest .  However you would be wrong
What are the largest IPOs? See below in US$MM.

ABC Bank:  July 2010 – $19,228  www.theabcbank.com

ICBC Bank: October 2006 – $19,092 www.icbc.com.cn

NTT Mobile: October 1998 – $18,099 www.nttdocomo.com

 Visa: March 2008 – $17,864 www.visa.com

AIA: October 2010 – $17,816 www.aia.com

ENEL SpA: November 1999 – $16,452 www.enel.com

General Motors:  November 2011 – $15,774 www.gm.com

Nippon Tel: February 1987 - $15,301 www.ntt.co.jp

Deutsche Telekom: November 1996 - $13,034 www.telekom.com

Bank of China: May 2006 - $11,186 www.boc.cn

1984 Summer Olypics

The Summer Olympics are one of the greatest sporting events that takes place every 4 years.  From it’s humble beginnings back in 1896 with a mere 241 athletes competing, to it’s now Goliath competitor numbers of 10,000 plus, there have been some amazing moments.

Some of these moments have not all been on the field or in the pool.  With events like: the Great Depression reducing numbers to an all time low, or the 1972 Munich Massacre where Palestinian terrorists used the Olympics popularity to make a truly shocking statement.

But we are not here to focus on the darker moments of the Olympic Games, we are here to bring you the top 10 greatest athletes from the past hundred or so years.  This list has not only come down to share number of medals, it’s also based on athletes that have polarized nations and shown immense adversity in the face of great obstacles.  

Jesse Owen – 4 Golds in Berlin 1936.  Set a long jump record which lasted a record 25 years but more importantly polarized the world and disgraced  Hitler’s woeful theories of Aryan race superiority at the Berlin games.

Michael Phelps – USA:14 Gold and 2 bronze in Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008. There are no words to describe how one athlete can dominate the swimming world across two Olympic games .

Larisa Latynina - Ukraine (Soviet): 9 Gold, 5 Silver and 4 Bronze in Melbourne 1956, Rome 1960, and Tokyo 1964.  Larisa is the holder of the most Olympic medals, standing at a total of 18.

Mark Spitz – USA: 9 Gold a Silver and Bronze  in Mexico City 1968 and Munich 1972.  One of the greatest athletes of all time and one of the first to to only embrace his celebrity as a pin up.

Carl Lewis – USA:9 Gold and 1 Silver in Los Angeles 1984, Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996.  A great all round track and field star who brought Athletics to the fore front of the Olympics with his numerous rivalries.

Usain Bolt – Jamaica: 3 Gold in Beijing 2008.  Touted as having the perfect running form with still more records to give.  Usain has managed to excite and reignite the 100m and 200m running world like never before.

Jackie Joyner-Kersee – USA: 3 Gold, 1 Silver and 2 Bronze in Los Angeles 1984, Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996. One of the greatest track and field athletes whose skill and long jeopardy at top level was second to none.

Jenny Thompson – USA: 8 Gold, 3 Silver and 1 Bronze in Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.  The greatest female swimmer of all time with 12 medals, spanning 4 Olympic games.

Bob Beamon – USA: 1 Gold in Mexico City.  Bob get’s into this list due to the share brilliance in which he won his gold by smashing the long jump record by 0.6 m with his ‘perfect jump’ of  8.90 m (29 ft. 2½ in.). A record which stood for 23 years.

Paavo Nurmi – Finland: 9 Gold and 3 Silver in Antwerp 1920, Paris 1924 and Amsterdam 1928.  One of the flying Finns, Paavo dominated middle distant running.  He even won a gold medal in the 1500 m, then followed up 26mins later with a second gold in the 5000 m.

The closest you will come to flying.

The term ‘Bucket List’ has been derived from a list of  things to do before you ‘kick the bucket’ or inevitably pass away (unless you are a Hindu and re-birth is an option in your eyes…..even if it is as a mouse).  Some save this for the latter part of their lives but we think the sooner you start the more exciting your life is going to become.

Now we are not recommending you quit your job, leave your family and start taking on all manner of death defying feats to cross off your list. No.  We would prefer if you work your way into, get a feel for knocking a few lower ideas of the list.   Maybe warm up by: learning how to make sushi, running a half marathon, writing a blog or even something simple like walking to the shops backwards.

Once you have built up your confidence (and a bit of spare cash) then start easing into the top 10 below.   But don’t feel like you have to follow the ten to the letter, oh no, mix it up if you wish and add a bit of your own personality.

This list is meant to inspire, not dictate. So good luck and if you do manage to get all these done then be sure to let us know!

Wingsuit Flying – The closest we can possibly come to flying without a machine. So don’t just sky dive, slip on a wingsuit and feel the freedom.

The Big 7 – Visit all seven natural wonders of the world.  You can take your time on this one as this will require a bit of cash but will be oh so worth it: Grand Canyon, Great Barrier Reef, Harbor of Rio de Janeiro, Mount Everest, Aurora, Parícutin volcano, and Victoria Falls

Kayak down the Amazon - Take an 8 to 10 day journey down one of the worlds largest rivers and experience some of the most surreal scenery and wildlife.

Write a Movie Script – Sure it might not be technically sound when you first write it but it’s a creative outlet that you can do in your own time no matter where you are.

Bike across China – You could do this across any large continent but as long as the landscapes are vast, tourist attractions a plenty and it’s physically challenging.  Plus you will need an ass made of granite.

Roll the dice – A play on ‘The Dice Man’ (less sinister) but go on an overseas trip where the following (picked from a list of 6) are decided by a roll of the dice: destination, duration, accommodation, food every night, and the countries top extreme activities.  If you really want to mix it up let you friend pick each of the 6 choices.

Experience Weightlessness – Going into space might soon become a reality for people with a spare million.  But you can get your weightlessness thrills by other means such as Zero G who are bringing this thrill to the public.

Drive a ’57 in Cuba – Rent and drive a 1957 Pontiac or similar around Cuba before these cars are lost not only to rust but the evolving economy post-Castro.

Stand-up in New York – Write your own stand-up comedy act, go to New York.  Then perform it live to an audience of more than 50 people at an open-mic night.

Visit New Zealand – Check out the home of hobbits and bungy jumping in one one of the worlds most diverse landscapes pack into a small area  for.  The best month to travel is March.

Pure New Zealand

New Zealand is known for it’s; lush green pastures, rugged snow capped mountains, pure rivers & lakes and all round beautifully diverse landscape.  All these great assets combine in the clean environment to produce some of the finest natural products in the world.

From Manuka honey packed with anti-bacterial properties to the purest milk powder money can buy.  New Zealand has been carving a place in the export market for many years and it’s only getting stronger as demand in countries like China and the United States grows.

Now seemingly there are a plethora of top natural products coming through so how do you decipher the best kind of products to get your health conscious hands on.  Well not only will we give you a top ten guide to the best type of products but we will also recommend some of the most trusted brands producing them.

Manuka Honey – Our favorite honey product is the UMF Manuka honey from Comvita.

Sauvignon Blanc – There is simply no better Savignon Blanc in the world then New Zealand’s Cloudy Bay.

Organic Infant Formula (Milk Powder) – The most trusted brand is Karicare by Nutricia.

Propolis –  Due to their extensive experience in bee products, Comvita get our vote here again.

Merino Wool – For a range of fashionable and practical merino products you can’t go past Icebreaker.

Lamb – Just remember to always look out for the quality mark when buying New Zealand lamb.

Kiwifruit – You can’t go past the largest exporter Zespri for quality Kiwifruit.

Bottled Water – For the finest New Zealand water at your next dinner party, check out Antipodes.

Thermal Mud – There are a few options but we have found this product the best thermal mud option.

Colostrum – One of our stranger exports but renowned in China for it’s health benefits.

Seamless music sweetness

Johnny 5 had it right all those years ago with the antics he got up to in without the pesky restriction of wires! He could: beat up bad guys,  make cocktails, and even drive cars.  So dam it, let’s do the same thing with our music and take it mobile in seamless style.

Let’s face it, nobody likes wires or the incompatibility of some docking stations (don’t get me started on the iOS upgrades that render some systems useless) when it comes to choosing the right mobile speaker systems.   That’s why the wireless speaker systems that connect to your iPhone, Android phone, tablet, laptop or other Bluetooth enabled device and so fricking awesome.

Now, because these music making machines are so awesome we have truly taken our time to find the very best systems for you.   They not only offer a great mobile music option for: holidays, impromptu parties or just hanging outside in the summer but they deliver brilliant sound quality.

Bose® SoundLink® Wireless Mobile speaker

Jawbone JAMBOX

Soundfreaq SFQ-01W Sound Platform

Creative ZiiSound D5

Soundfreaq SFQ-01R Sound Platform

XtremeMac Tango TRX 2.1

Beats by Dr. Dre Beatbox

Audyssey South of Market

Altec Lansing iMW725

Monster ClarityHD Precision Micro