I realized a couple days ago that I buy a lot of stuff from Amazon and iTunes. Here’s a peek inside what has captured my interest (and credit card number) recently.

Apathy and Other Small Victories
I forget where I first heard about this book, but it was sitting in my Amazon shopping cart since late May, so when I read THW’s recent entry, I figured it was a sign to finally buy it. I’m looking forward to it.

Kingmax 1GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive
I wrote about this tiny portable flash drive before. I’ve been living on OmniGroup’s OmniFocus application to help me get things done, using two different files (one on my work computer, one personal laptop) and I’m considering combining them. I figure a tiny drive would be a good place for the files.

Test Kitchen Favorites: The 2007 Companion Cookbook
Despite their annoying marketing tactics I’ve mentioned before, I do like their recipes. I returned the unordered copy of the book they sent me, and bought it from Amazon, saving about $5 in the process. You can have my money, but this fiver is mine!

Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain, Volume 3
I have Volumes 1 and 2 already of two of my favorite cartoons ever, and I’m a bit of a completist. There’s no doubt that these cartoons have shaped my humor.

American Gods and Anansi Boys
Recommended to me by Anton many months ago, I finally picked them up. I’ve long been a fan of Neil Gaiman ever since Sandman (which Anton introduced me to fifteen years ago). American Gods modernizes the Greek/Roman Norse and other god mythology and the first chapter has been quite enjoyable, but I’m particularly looking forward to its sequel, Anansi Boys, based in part on Anansi the Spider, the African trickster god from stories of my youth.

Managing Humans
The author is a decent fellow and the book had me laughing (in that “ain’t that the truth?” fashion) when I flipped through it. Plus, the book’s website is brilliant, and the author’s website has been a tiny bit of a inspiration for some minor redesigns on this site.

The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich
I wrote briefly about this book before, and I’ll have a more detailed commentary in the near future. It’s all about freeing yourself to do what you like when and where you like. I found it interesting, and am looking at ways of implementing some of its suggestions.

The Producers (2005 Movie Soundtrack)
Several years ago I saw the original movie with Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder, and a making-of the Broadway play’s soundtrack special on PBS, and just had to see Broderick and Lane on stage. Alas, it never happened. I did finally catch the movie remake a few months thanks to Netflix, and just had to grab the movie soundtrack. Totally worth it. I debated getting the Original Broadway Cast version, but I just really, really wanted to hear Will Ferrell’s hilarious turn as Franz Liebkind. If you’ve never seen the movie (either one), I recommend both wholeheartedly. (I also debated getting it from iTunes and I forget why I didn’t. Turns out it’s not available there anymore anyway. Weird.)

Cardo Scala 700 – Bluetooth Headset
The best of the (many) Bluetooth headsets I’ve tried. Fits comfortably, is lightweight and, best feature of all, it can switch between two phones with a button press. It’ll probably continue being my primary headset when I get my iPhone, unless Apple’s Bluetooth headset is vastly superior.

The Smiths, Hatful of Hollow
I’ve always enjoyed the sarcastically humorous lyrics and musicality of The Smiths, and this album is filled with original versions that illustrate why.

Modern English, After the Snow
OK, so I bought this for I Melt With You, but the entire album is enjoyable.

Naughty by Nature, 19 Naughty III
C’mon, it’s Naughty by Nature, one of the coolest hip-hop groups of the 90s. Like you haven’t bounced to Hip Hop Hooray. A worthy—if not as deliciously infectious—followup to their first album (remember O.P.P.? Of course you do).

Gorillaz, Demon Days
Yeah, I first heard ’em on an iTunes commercial, what’s your point? Head-boppingly, body-movingly fun, no question.

Soca Gold 2006, Various Artists
The best of ’06s soca. Trinidadian party music. Grab a Carib or a shandy, wave yer hand and shake yer ass.

Matisyahu, Live at Stubb’s, Youth.
A serendipitous find I have fallen in love with. Almost every track on these two albums (but especially on Live at Stubb’s) generates joy, invigorates me. While King Without A Crown is his signature piece, I’m partial to his single Jerusalem (Out of Darkness Comes Light). Matisyahu is coming to town soon, and I think I need to see him live.

Midnite, Vijan
I honestly have no idea why I bought this album. I think I heard one of the cuts on, of all things, a MySpace page and decided I didn’t have enough roots reggae in my collection.

Rocker-T, If Yu Luv Luv Show Ya Luv
I’ve dug Rocker-T since he was the front-man for Skadanks back in New York during the late 80s-early 90s, when I spent the more-than-occasional weekend at Wetlands.

CSS, Music Is My Hot, Hot Sex
In what must be one of the great ironies, a Microsoft Zune commercial led me to buy a song of iTunes. The commercials are plain weird, but the one with the lion and zebra had this catchy song, and I had to buy it. I love the driving electronic guitar. Nothing else on the album spoke to me. Ain’t it great being able to buy individual songs? Oh yeah.

Deep Dish, Junk Science
Another album that I can’t remember why I bought it. It’s probably a combination of it having The Future of the Future, a track from Everything But The Girl’s Temperamental album and Deep Dish’s Valio – Rapture mix on Ibiza Annual Summer 2001, and I decided to give the entire album a chance.

Billy Miles, Billy Miles
C’mon, it’s Billy Miles. One listen to that smooth, sultry huskiness and you’re hooked.

Colin Hay, Man @ Work
Admit it: You listened to Men At Work. You wanted to go to a land Down Under, where woman glow and men plunder. You wondered Who Can It Be Now, admitted It’s a Mistake, and probably think this whole thing is Overkill. If you found yourself humming any of those songs, you’re gonna love Man @ Work, from the group’s lead singer and songwriter. You’ll find great originals and acoustic remakes of classic Men At Work tracks. If you’re a Scrubs fan, you’ll also recognize a couple songs from the show.

Lewis Black, The Carnegie Hall Performance
Oh my god this man cracks me up. His appearances on The Daily Show are bubble-gum lightness compared to his well-directed vitriol in his stage performances, and this recording has Lewis at his crackling best.

Christopher Titus, The 5th Annual End of the World Tour
I first learned of Christopher Titus from his too-short-lived Fox TV show Titus. I then saw Norman Rockwell is Bleeding, a scathingly funny romp through Titus’ darkly dysfunctional family. One minute you’re Stop-I-Can’t-Breath! laughing, the next you’re mumbling “oh shit, that’s fucked up man”. Fifth Annual continues the tradition, with Laugh-Out-Loud-In-Public funny followed “did he just say that?!” reality. The funny comes from a dark, dark place, but it’s so good, I walked 4 1/2 miles listening to it, yes, laughing out loud in public.

(While writing the above, I decided to buy the Titus TV show DVDs (the Seasons 1 & 2 Boxed Set, and the standalone Season 3. I’m very much looking forward to seeing the show again.)

It’s All Too Much
If you find yourself uttering variations of “hey, I may need that someday!” or “aww, memories!”, clutter probably dominates your life as it does mine. I have stuff from 20 years ago. Why? Who knows?! This book is supposed to break me of the habit and help me de-clutter. Let’s hope it doesn’t end up on a pile of junk.

Giraffe 21306 – Light Bulb Changing System Combo Kit
My ceiling lights in my 20-foot-high living room blew out a while ago. OK, six months ago. I bought a ladder, but it didn’t quite reach. I finally broke down and bought this extender. I almost paid $90 for it at ImprovementsCatalog.com (instead of the $40 Amazon charges), but Improvements Catalog’s site was delaying order processing for a couple of days. It pays to shop around!

Technorati Tags: amazon, America’s Test Kitchen, Animaniacs, books, consumerism, iTunes, Music, Neil Gaiman, Omni Group, OmniFocus, Pinky and the Brain, Sandman