Three Things That Don't Suck

Life is a box of chocolates, or a nice watch

I’m hardly a fashion plate. I’m not even a fashion saucer. But thanks to my Mother – she of the Daphne Farago Wing of The Rhode Island School of Design Museum – I know a thing about name-dropping. I mean, quality. Here are five TTDS (Things That Don’t Suck).

1. Miniature Bull Terrier - $1k to $2k

I start this TTDS list with Crash Bandicoot and his ilk so you don’t think I’m a hopeless materialist. There are pleasures in life that money just can’t buy. Luckily, bull terriers aren’t one of them.

As indicated above, a healthy miniature bull terrier from a reputable breeder will run ya somewhere around one to two grand.

Life is grand with a bull terrier. Sure they could rip your face off; the breed comes complete with a 235 to 300 PSI bite force. Properly loved and trained, all that means is a LOT of tug-of-war – that your terrier will never lose.

The downside: passersby can’t pass by a bull terrier without interrupting your puppy’s peregrination with a Target dog or Spuds MacKenzie reference.

Little known fact: the Bud Light mascot foreshadowed the Dylan Mulvaney controversy, when “he” was revealed as a “she.” Spuds, that is. The more you know…

2. T-fal Clipso Stainless Steel Pressure Cooker 6.3 Quart Induction Cookware - $74

The French know a thing or two about cooking. The Germans focus more on the elimination part of the program. Which kinda sorta explains their love for the pressure cooker, which cooks foods ohne oils or fats.

Pressure cookers offer rapid cooking times, with little to no loss of nutrients and superior flavor. Mashed potatoes cooked in a pressure cooker actually taste like a potato, even after French food lovers lavish the spuds (not MacKenzie) with tons of farm fresh butter, naturellement.

The pressure cooker’s major disadvantage: the nagging thought that it’s going to explode, scalding and/or killing you.

The T-fal Clipso eases your mind with a press-to-seal and press-to-release lid. Which only releases when the pressure’s safely dissipated. Unlike a rabid Rottweiler.

3. Sinn 556 I on H-Link Bracelet - $1590

When I’m not tap dancing on these keys for my 56 Substack subs and itinerant visitors, I write for my equally unremunerative site called The Truth About Watches.

Out of the hundreds of watches I’ve seen and reviewed, the Sinn 556 I is my go-to daily timepiece (reviewed here). It’s as tough as a Rolex Submariner in a foul mood, but far more wardrobe-friendly. (Note: a Rolex is nothing to die for.)

The Sinn 556’s ETA movement is nothing special – especially for the price. But the watch’s stainless steel band doesn’t suck and the 556 i with a black dial is more legible than a roadside billboard. It’s a minimalist Meisterstück.

Yeah I’m going to say it: let he without Sinn buy one of their watches.