Might as Well Buy 3
Wow, water filters for refrigerators are expensive. If gotta buy one, might as well buy three of them for a slight discount.
Sole Collector Presents the Best Air Jordan of Every Year
Air Jordan, Air Jordan, Air Jordan. Money, money, it’s gotta be the shoes. Michael Jordan is the still the Greatest of All Time as a basketball player, a shoe brand, and even in the war of emoji. Years after hanging up his Air Jordans on court, the brand still dominates the kicks market with new models, retro-ed old models, and fresh colorways. But of all of these, which are the best Air Jordans released in that year? Yes, the best from all the Jordans released within the 365-day calendar year.
How do you decide? How do you pick from the colorways? Luckily for you and me, the kicks diehards over at Sole Collector took it to the rack and delivered this slam identifying the Best Air Jordan of Every Year. Let’s take a look…
1985 Air Jordan 1 “Bred”
These began the legend. No doubt.
1986 Air Jordan 1 KO “Chicago”
What??? I’m ashamed to say I’d never heard of the canvas AJ1 KO. Quick misdirection. Did I ever mention my pair of all white AJ1s were stolen?
1987 Air Jordan 2 White/Black
Sorry, I’ve never been a fan of the 2’s. Yeah, Nike tried to be different with the sophomore model but these just didn’t and still don’t appeal to me.
1988 Air Jordan 3 “Black Cement”
All is forgiven with the release of the AJ3, especially the Black Cement model. When these are re-retroed in the future, I’ll give it a shot and see if I can find a pair.
1989 Air Jordan 4 “White Cement”
I also had the AJ4…in a whopping size 10.5. This is back in the day when I wore 9.5. I guess I wasn’t about to be denied by a whole size difference. Sadly, that back tab made the shoe really uncomfortable, digging into the back of my heel. The leatherized tab on the AJ4 Retro Legend Blue is a welcomed change.
1990 Air Jordan 5 “Grape”
Oddly, I remembering seeing (and coveting) these kicks years later in 1994 or 1995 while in college. A fellow student wore’em while I woo’ed’em (the shoes, not the student).
1991 Air Jordan 6 “Infrared”
I never owned a pair of AJ6. I didn’t dislike them, but they just didn’t call to me. However, if I came across a pair of the revamped AJ6 Low, I won’t have the willpower to resist.
1992 Air Jordan 7 “Olympic”
The Dream Team indeed lived up to expectations, but the AJ7 Olympic makeup didn’t meet my expectations.
1993 Air Jordan 8 “Aqua”
I owned the black, white, and grey colorway, finding a pair at Foot Locker right before touring Italy and Greece. Yeah, that was me rocking the AJ8 in the Colosseum (and next to a Smart Car).
1994 Air Jordan 10 “Steel”
I still can’t make up my mind on the AJ10. I like them; I don’t like them; I just don’t know. Kinda basic except for the alternating colors.
1995 Air Jordan 11 “Concord”
These Jordans are the GOAT. Greatest.of.all.time. The Concords started it all. I was so, so fortunate to nab a pair online when Nike retroed them in 2012.
1996 Air Jordan 12 “Taxi”
When I missed out on the OG run of the AJ11, I felt compelled to get the AJ12. But I didn’t. The 12’s were definitely popular, but I just didn’t dig them. Although this is the first Jordan I really recall seeing on the feet of female kicks collectors.
1997 Air Jordan 12 “Flu Game”
Yup, this red and black colorway of the AJ12 was what I remember being popular with the ladies.
1998 Air Jordan 13 “Bred”
I prefer the lightness of the original AJ13 colorway, and I remember running the courts in Aiea in the AJ13.
1999 Air Jordan 14 “Last Shot”
Um no, just no.
2000 Air Jordan 11 Retro “Space Jam”
Just stop at Air Jordan 11. Any colorway, any time, instant sellout.
2001 Air Jordan 11 Retro “Cool Grey”
Such memories of UH basketball standout Carl English dominating in these.
2002 Air Jordan 17 “College Blue”
Heh, I would be hard pressed to identify the AJ17 as an authentic Air Jordan, thinking these might be some sort of Jumpman instead.
2003 Air Jordan 3 Retro “White Cement”
Lesson here is to never pass up a chance to purchase an AJ3.
2004 Air Jordan 7 Retro “Olympic”
The AJ7 Olympic makes the list for a second time, and for a second time, I don’t go for these.
2005 Air Jordan 13 Retro “Altitude”
A non-Jordanesque green makes an appearance.
2006 Air Jordan 6 & 11 Retro “Defining Moments”
Here begins the two-shoe packs. The gold highlight looks better on the 6 than the 11 in my opinion.
2007 Air Jordan 8 Retro “Aqua”
The 8 in aqua makes a reappearance, and I still own my black, white, and grey colorway. Yes, really.
2008 Air Jordan XX3 “Titanium”
The environmental Air Jordan in the Titanium colorway wasn’t available in Hawaii.
2009 Air Jordan 11 Retro “Space Jam”
I still covet the AJ11 Space Jam, and so do you.
2010 Air Jordan 9 Retro Premio “Bin23”
Were these the Warren Sapp models? I don’t remember these premium Jordans.
2011 Air Jordan 1 Retro High “Banned”
The genesis AJ1 keeps on going.
2012 Air Jordan 11 Retro “Bred”
The AJ11 Bred are nasty on and off the court.
2013 Air Jordan 3 Retro ’88 “White Cement”
Harken back to 1998 as His Airness (in the AJ3) went up against the Human Highlight Film in the Slam Dunk contest.
2014 fragment x Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG
I don’t understand the craziness over this collaboration with fragment. Yeah, the AJ1 looks cool in blue, and that’s all I’ll say.
2015 Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG “Chicago”
At mid-2015, we’ve come full circle with the Air Jordan 1 making yet another popular appearance.
And there it is. Thirty years of Air Jordans. Thirty years. Money, money, it’s gotta be the shoes. Does it feel like the Jordan brand is slowing down? Not at all. In fact, with new models, retros, and collaborations, it’s hard to keep up with the Jordan lineup. Luckily, SoleCollector tracks all the releases of Jordans so you know when and where you can get your fix.
A special shout out to Aleks for tuning me into SoleCollector’s The Best Air Jordan of Every Year.
What Does Origami from Starbucks Look Like?
Of course origami from Starbucks is not going to be your typical folding paper. Instead, origami from Starbucks looks like this.
Starbucks Origami is a personal drip, single serve coffee in a foldout packet. Assemble the packet above a cup, pour in hot water, and get fresh brewed coffee. Convenient, fast, easy cleanup, kinda fun, but just average tasting for me anyways. The Veranda light roast is a little too light, and I should have used hotter water. One Origami packet filled half the pictured mug. Still though, this setup feels more authentic than using instant coffee crystals.
I picked these up in Hong Kong, but they were originally released in Japan back in 2010. I haven’t seen Starbucks Origami in any American stores, and I don’t think I will with the availability of Starbucks VIA Instant.
More pictures of the Starbucks Origami.
What’s a Sun Shower and “Pineapple Juice”
Wait, what? Spoon University says that a “Pineapple Juice” is Hawaiian slang for a “sun shower.” I sorta guessed what a sun shower is which is pretty much any day in Hawaii where you could see sunshine while still being rained on. But pineapple juice? I’ve never ever heard that phrase around here as related to weather. I would have guessed that a “Pineapple Juice Sun Shower” was a Bath and Body shower gel.
I do know that adding pineapple to any food item does make it magically Hawaiian though.
Make Linkmoji!
Emoji is not just to sway NBA free agents or to remind everyone that you’re the Greatest of All Time. You can now emoji-fy links using linkmoji. Like this is www.pulpconnection.net in emoji form.
http://????????.ws/?????????????????????????????
Unfortunately pasting the linkmoji into a blog post doesn’t work. The above link should look like this.
Amazon Prime Day in Less than a Week
Next week Wednesday, July 15, 2015, is Amazon Prime Day supposedly with more deals than Black Friday. Open only to Prime members, you are obliged to check it out just in case you do spot a spectacular bargain. I have low expectations of finding anything that I really need but you just never know. If you’re not a Amazon Prime member, it’s not too late to sign up.
A Dew is a Dew
Seemingly, no matter where you go a Dew is a Dew is a Dew. Even in China, I knew this drink was a Mountain Dew (even with the hyper-neon bottle).
Nike Kicks with Khakis?
Hmmm, will Nike tackle the business casual market, making sneakers match the fashion of khaki pants?
Emoji War in NBA Free Agency
Personally, I think NBA free agent DeAndre Jordan is committed to joining the Mavs although not yet signed to a contract. In the meantime, NBA players are having an emoji war to sway Jordan, and it’s downright fun.
Although not relevant to DeAndre’s decision, the Jordan Brand got with the emoji motif, reminding everyone that Michael Jordan is the Greatest of All Time (GOAT).
?
— Jordan (@Jumpman23) July 8, 2015
Run Run Hoka One One
Took my new, discounted Hoka One One Mafate Speed for a test run where I learned a thing or two about this running shoe. Like I mentioned before, I only recently learned of the Hoka line and its super cushioned ride. I began to see this brand more in the mainstream, even sold at Nordstrom but finding some pairs at Ross was a surprise.
Anyways, while the Hokas are tall, they look much taller than they feel. I’m thinking I’m six feet tall running in the Hokas but truthfully, when you’re running, you don’t really feel the Hoka height. You do feel the rocking motion of curved sole however. This is kinda irritating while standing around, so I guess the point is run, don’t stand while wearing these.
The Mafate Speed looks heavy but is comparable to other running shoes from Asics and Nike. The speed lacing system is cool. It’s so easy to pull the laces then lock them in. The soles of the Mafate Speed are designed for the outdoor terrain so running on sidewalks was noisy as the soles tried to dig in to the surface.
All in all, the ride itself was well cushioned, sacrificing some “street feel,” but for me, reducing the wear and tear on my body is paramount. There was some discomfort to my toes due to the shoe’s slenderness especially in the toebox area. The shoe looks narrow, maybe a little more bulbous in the forefoot – something used for starfish splitting. But then again, I didn’t allow for any break-in time, instead opting for a short run. Well worth a $50 investment.
July 2015 Starbucks Price Increase
Starting on Tuesday, July 7, 2015, Starbucks is raising its prices on select drinks. Not sure which drinks are impacted other than brewed coffee.
There’s no better way of celebrating the American tradition of Independence Day with good old American capitalism.
Fireworks Safety is Serious
Watching a fireworks show is fun and all but you do need to exercise caution while around fireworks. Check out this gruesome safety video showing mannequins getting maimed due to unsafe fireworks practices.
Never look down the launch tube of an aerial device. Better just leave it to the pros if you want to put on a show.