Attention Dudes: AXE Cares About Your Face
AXE has been making dudes smell better for years now, but the Unilever brand is now branching out into other men’s care products that’ll help you fix your face, man. A few weeks back, AXE sent the MANjr team a huge bag of AXE Face Care goodies, and after testing the stuff out, we’re ready to report our findings.
I should start by saying that I’m a sensitive guy. I like heartwarming films, I have a soft spot for Enya and razor burn is a problem for me and my sweet manchild babyface. Okay, glad I got that out of the way.
So needless to say, I gravitated towards the sensitive skin line of the AXE Men Face Care products. And this stuff is awesome. The AXE Shield Shave Gel for sensitive, ultra-smooth skin is fantastic. It’s a gel, but it’s not some fluorescent neon color that comes out smelling like a tropical lady drink that you’d order in the Caribbean. It’s a gel that foams up like there’s no tomorrow and actually feels and smells like men’s shaving cream. What a novel idea!
AXE has partnered with Schick and Norelco for a co-branded line of razors and electric shavers. I’ve used both shaving tools before and I have no complaints there. I probably lean more toward the Schick Hydro, but that’s just me.
So after the Schick and sensitive shave gel routine, I moved on to the sensitive AXE Shield Face Hydrator & Post-Shave Lotion. Stuff worked like a dream. Seriously, I usually have some level of post-shave irritation on my baby-soft face skin. It either happens right away or shows up in the evening or the following morning. But not with this stuff. The lotion left me non-irritable and good-smelling. That’s what it’s supposed to do, right?
Before you can get your shave on though, you need to clean up that face of yours, dude. Being a sensitive fella, I’m not opposed to a little exfoliation every now and then. I usually reach for some St. Ives apricot scrub (or a generic equivalent), but I still like face wash that foams up and leaves your skin oil-free without being too dry and harsh. This is what AXE Controil Oily Skin Face Scrub can do for you. Foamy, a little bit of exfoliation action and a nice, smooth, non-dry skin finish. Go get some.
There’s a bunch of other AXE Face flavors available. Check out AXEFacescore.com to learn more about the product line and vote on user uploaded photos using Facescore.
Mar 12th
Heineken – Déjà Vu
You gotta love these high production value Heineken spots. This one was directed by Rubert Sanders. It showcases the brand’s newly designed Star Bottle, a sleeker, taller take on the traditional green glass Heineken house that we’re all used to. Here’s the video:
Mar 12th
T-Shirts That Deserve a Double Take
As guys we tend to rock many different T-Shirts. There are the ones that support your favorite sports team, have a famous line from a film, or pays respect to iconic figure like Pac-Man. Then there are the shirts make people squint as they try to read or comprehend what your shirt means. For me I love these types of shirts. I have a stack of sweet T-Shirts that take a bit of thought to unscramble the message. Here is a list of shirts you can rock that will turn some heads.
One of these tees that I own gained popularity from the hit comedy show, “The Big Bang Theory.” It is the Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock shirt. Even though the show made the shirt famous the game was not invented by Sheldon Cooper and company, but two guys named Sam Kass with Karen Bryla. To me a shirt with only three hand signals is so 2000’s, but a shirt with five of them well now you are talking. Another good reason to own this shirt is that if you are bored well now you and a friend can play Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock and have the rules of the game guide on your shirt. It’s a win, win unless you lose to rock, or lizard, or…..
Going along with the geek theme is the Superhero Periodic Table T-Shirt. If you are into chemistry and comics well you might have to pick up this shirt at ThinkGeek.com. Just be prepared for people to have their eyes fixed at your chest trying to figure out if Batman is really the symbol for helium.
Another shirt you should have in your wardrobe is the Lannister/Lannister 2012 shirt. You can show your love for “Game of Thrones” by donning this political campaign style shirt. What is cool about this one is that people will wonder if the Lannisters were really on the 2102 ticket and if you are democrat, republican, or independent. I bet you the political junkies will check online to see who these political candidates are are affiliated with once they catch a glimpse of your shirt. 
Mar 10th
Showtek Returning to Orange County Before WMC 2013
Dutch brothers Wouter and Sjoerd Jannsen, better known as Showtek, return to Orange County March 13 at the Yost Theater in Santa Ana. The brothers will make a few more stops before arriving in Miami for Winter Music Conference 2013 where they are scheduled for a boatload of performances.
Last summer, Showtek tore it up down under with a sold-out Australia tour.
MANjr had the privilege of meeting up with hardstyle masters Showtek for an exclusive interview before their sold-out performance in Orange County awhile back.
Showtek rocked the house at the Grove of Anaheim in front of raucous legion of fans that came early for a meet and greet with the Dutch hardstyle masters. The pride of Eindhoven, Wouter and Sjoerd hail from a musically gifted family, and have exploded on the electronic dance music scene with their relentless energy and bangin beats.
After a mind-blowing morning set at the inaugural EDC Las Vegas, Showtek embarked on a European tour followed by a U.S. tour that culminated with their epic show in Anaheim. MANjr was granted exclusive access and got to hang with the brothers before, during and after the show.
As we entered the duos hotel suite, we were greeted with Jack & Cokes and smiles, which was pretty impressive considering the jetlag they were feeling from their long Glasgow flight.
The interview covered a gamut of topics including their EDC Las Vegas set, their musical influences and their aspirations to be professional basketball players like their homie the Dunkin’ Dutchman Rik Smits.
After we wrapped up the interview, the party moved to the Grove of Anaheim where thousands of loyal fans were ready to greet their favorite DJ’s. The boys took the time to chat up, take pictures and mingle with everybody.
Once the pleasantries were complete, the brothers Jannsen were ready to take the stage and throw it down. Showtek pumped up the crowd from start to finish, playing a wide range of their hardstyle hits like Here We Fucking Go! and World is Mine. Wielding an ice gun and striking willing fans with blasts of cold air, Sjoerd is the MC and crowd handler while his bro Wouter controls the pace from the ones and twos.
When the lights came on, Showtek stuck around to thank their fans and sign all sorts of stuff ranging from posters, pictures, phones and even a Mohawk. Since then, Showtek has continued to tour the globe and spread their sound.
Showtek’s combination of upbeat energetic beats mixed with a genuine love for their fans should serve them well moving forward.
Mar 8th
Hines Ward Interview
Hines Ward is a lot of things. He’s a first ballot Hall of Famer whose ferocious blocking skills redefined what it meant to play wide receiver in the NFL. Always camera-ready, Ward is a man of a thousand smiles. He just seems to have fun doing whatever it is he’s doing. Since retiring from football in 2011, Hines has made appearances on The Walking Dead, Dancing with the Stars, The Dark Knight Rises and Football Night in America. Dude knows how to stay busy.
Now Hines is looking to add one more title to his already impressive list of accomplishments: IRONMAN. Ward has partnered up with REFUEL | got chocolate milk? and has been training to prepare for the 2013 IRONMAN® World Championship triathlon that will take place in Hawaii this October. But Hines isn’t doing all this by himself. He’s taking three everyday athletes with him.
The journey will be featured in a new documentary web series called BECOME ONE, which will air on www.gotchocolatemilk.com. The three everyday athletes who will accompany Hines were announced at the 21st Annual Endurance LIVE awards gala presented by REFUEL | got chocolate milk?:
- Captain Eric McElvenny is a 29 year old marine from San Diego
- Joshua Kalb is a 24 year old medical student from Denver
- Chrisann Dalton is a 39 year old stay-at-home mom from Bedford, New Hampshire
Ward and company will be training with an elite group of athletes, sports dietitians and coaches, including eight-time IRONMAN triathlon champ Paula Newby-Fraser. After their strenuous workouts, they’ll be refueling by drinking low fat chocolate milk.
You know, I have to admit, that the first time I heard that chocolate milk was a good post-workout recovery beverage for triathlon-level athletes, I was a bit surprised. I mean, I love chocolate milk and all, but I have absolutely zero plans of training for the IRONMAN World Championship, a 140.6 mile triathlon that includes a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile marathon.
But there’s science behind it, man. Low fat chocolate milk is a natural source of protein that can help exhausted muscles recover while also providing essential fluids, electrolytes and calcium, potassium and magnesium. Who knew?!
I met up with Hines Ward at Club Nokia in LA just before the 21st Annual Endurance LIVE awards gala. We talked about the refueling properties of chocolate milk, his training schedule, the current state of leadership in the Pittsburgh Steelers locker room, athletic QBs, player safety, Ward’s Hollywood and political aspirations and a whole lot more. Here’s the interview:
And here’s the trailer for the upcoming BECOME ONE documentary series:
Mar 7th
The Amazing Spider-Man Gets The Bad Lip Reading Treatment
If you have not seen the Bad Lip Reading video collection do yourself a favor and check out their YouTube channel. Recently they had a huge success with their NFL video. I still am quoting lines from that one. Earlier this week the guys from Bad Lip Reading just released their take on the “Amazing Spider-Man” film. Here all the great and romantic love scenes between Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy are turning upside down in a good way. Enough talk….check out the video!
Mar 7th
MANjr Crown Royal XR Happy Hour Recap
The MANjr team closed out the month of February in fine fashion with a little help from our friends at Crown Royal. During the holidays, we participated in a blogger gift exchange program called Pass the Crown. Having experienced the thrill of Pass the Crown the previous year, we knew what we were getting into, and we knew what we wanted to get out of it.
25 bloggers participated in Pass the Crown this time around and there were some pretty sweet gifts in the rotation. Everything from iPad Minis to cameras, guitars, Kindle Fires, watches, it was a pretty strong set of gifts this holiday season.
The first time we participated in Pass the Crown, we scored a Crown Royal Happy Hour and it was a really fun event. Good times with good booze and good people. So when it came time for us to open our purple bag this year (or choose to steal a previously opened gift), we knew what decision had to be made.
This was the purple gift bag that we had to ponder this time around:
We decided to pass. And instead, we targeted another Crown Royal Happy Hour as the gift that we want to steal. Having experienced a kick ass sponsored happy hour and having tried XR on multiple occasions, there was really one choice. So we liberated the Crown Royal XR Happy Hour from the poor fellas over at The Roosevelts (who ended up with two pairs of TOM sunglasses). We scored a bottle of XR for ourselves and one for you, our lucky readers.
The happy hour was a hit. With the Oscars on in the background, MANjr friends and colleagues enjoyed sips of the good stuff at Q’s on Wilshire. Not surprisingly, the XR went quick. That’s what happens when you invite too many Australians. If you haven’t tried this batch of Crown Royal XR yet, get on that. It’s really silky smooth stuff, not too spicy, not too stiff. Just full of subtle aromas and palate-pleasing sweetness.
Thanks again to Crown Royal for setting us up with such a great event. During the gift exchange, Crown sent out a purple gift bag of goodies to our troops for every tweet that included the hashtag #PassTheCrown. Over 1400 gift bags were sent out as part of the Crown Royal Heroes Project. So all good fun for a good cause. Can’t wait to swipe another happy hour next time around!
Mar 7th
Toyota’s i-Road Concept Car
At the 2013 Geneva Motor Show Toyota revealed the i-Road concept car. The three wheeled vehicle stands out on the look alone, but Toyota is looking make a car that is eco and urban friendly. The battery powered electric car runs on a lithium-ion battery. The battery powers up a pair of 2 kilowatt electric motors that drives the two front wheels.
The battery needs three hours to fully charge and you can use a regular power outlet. The i-Road has a feature called “Active Lean” which is a self leaning system intended to automatically balance the car when it turning or riding over some bumpy terrain.
According to Toyota’s website, “the system features a lean actuator motor and gearing mounted above the front suspension member, linked via a yoke to the right and left front wheels. An ECU calculates the required lean based on steering angle, gyro-sensor and vehicle speed information. And the system automatically moves the wheels up and down in opposite directions, applying lean angle to counteract the centrifugal force of cornering.”
The i-Road measures at 7.7 feet long, 4.7 high, 2.8 feet wide, and weighs a little over 660 pounds. This vehicle is looking to car that you can navigate through a busy city with ease. They also dubbed it as a Personal Mobility Vehicle (PMV) and it looks to provide a safe, intuitive and enjoyable, helmet-free driving experience for one or two people.
The Smart Car has bit of a following and if the concept car makes it out to the public you might see one driving near you. Some might think of it is an enclosed motorcycle while others see it as a way help the environment. With a top driving distance of 30 miles per charge you wonder how many of these cars will be sold.
Mar 4th
The Mowgli’s Shine at The Satellite
The best things in life are free. This was certainly the case Monday night at The Satellite in Silverlake where the up and coming band, The Mowgli’s, rocked out the fourth and final leg of their residency in a front of a raucous capacity crowd.
The Mowgli’s musical style personifies the diversity of California as their songs incorporate several genres that project a message of universal love and peace. The joy and harmony displayed on stage by the 8-piece collective is infectious and permeates through the audience making for one helluva good time.
The Mowgli’s formulation is vintage California. Five childhood friends from the San Fernando Valley jamming out making music linked up with three mid-westerners in search of greener pastures to forge a perfect union of rock ‘n roll and good vibes.
The opening performance of the evening featured a unique collaboration of gifted musicians. The amazing Lisa Donnelly shared the stage with the talented Aaron Glass and his folk love group Papa Bear and the Easy Love. The sense of togetherness and unity was a prevailing theme as members of The Mowgli’s performed alongside their friends and got the night rolling in style.
Next up on the slate was the funky sound of rock ‘n’ soul band The Diamond Light. The local blues rock group jammed out from the get go and provided the perfect segue to The Mowgli’s set.
Closing out the night after The Mowgli’s delightful performance was Los Angeles native Zak Waters and his group. Waters style of pop music infused with funky dance beats meshed well with the more inebriated crowd looking to dance it up after midnight.
Special thanks to Michael Vincze of The Mowgli’s and my fellow UC Santa Cruz alum Aaron Glass for their graciousness and willingness to chat it up after the show. It was a great night of music from beginning to end. Everyone in attendance could definitely feel the love.
Photo and Video Credit: Ju Park
Feb 28th
Know Your Beer – Blue Point Brewery
In this edition of Know Your Beer, we look at Blue Point Brewing Company. They are a microbrewery in Patchogue, New York. Founded in 1998 by Peter Cotter and Mark Burford, the two friends started out gathering brewing equipment and began to start crafting some fine beers. They built a brewery in a 1970s Penguin Ice Factory and never looked back. In 2011 Blue Point was ranked 34th in the Top 50 Craft Breweries in the Unites States. Their Toasted Lager won a World Beer Cup Gold medal in 2006.
Blue Point started their construction of beer in a traditional 25-Barrel Brew House. Scorching hot flames from a unique direct-fire brick Brew Kettle imparts a lightly toasted and complex flavor to their brews. Blue Point always uses natural fresh ingredients and is never pasteurized. They use quality hops from all over the world in places like Germany, United Kingdom, Belgium, New Zealand and here in the United States.
If you are in the New York area you should make it a point to go out to Long Island in the town of Patchogue for a beer in their tasting room or for their annual Cask Ales Festival. I was there in 2010 and 2011 for the Cask Ales Fest and had a blast tasting the craft beers from over 20 breweries. Their tasting room is located at the brewery and you can sample 12 different types beer every Thursday and Friday from 3-7pm and Saturdays from noon to 7pm. Not only do you get taste some great beer, but the staff is well educated on pairing food and beer.
Blue Point staples are the Toasted Lager, Blueberry Ale and Hoptical Illusion and all three are available all year round. Some of their seasonal beers are Spring Fling Copper Ale, Summer Ale, Oktoberfest and Winter Ale that are sold in a variety 12-pack. Other notables are Old Howling Bastard, Double Blonde, Golden Ale, Oatmeal Stout, Sour Cherry Imperial Stout, 10th Anniversary IPA and No Apologies Imperial IPA. For more info on how you can find their beer in your area go to their website.
Feb 26th
