How many times have you been in this situation? You’ve just taken what seems like a 92-hour flight to the Australian mainland, hailed a taxi to the beach, plunked yourself down in the sand and said, “now what?” Please don’t answer, it’s a rhetorical device to help us talk about Two Birds One Stone, a new online lifestyle mag that focuses on not just partying, art, and fashion down under, but really anywhere you can run around in a tiny swimsuit. You have to register to participate, but as part of their launch, TB1S wants to give you a chance to win either a trip to Queenstown, NZ to indulge in board sports and casual sex, or Barcelona, Spain to see Jack Johnson and eat in some swank restaurants. So, that seems like a fair incentive to sign up. Which leads us to our next rhetorical question: when is a banana hammock not appropriate?

Taiwan resident Clark MacLeod’s personal posts on Pop Wuping (we’re saying that three times fast in our mind) fall into the category of blogging we really appreciate. You’d expect a guy who lives in a manufacturing epicenter to have the inside scoop…and you’d be right. Right now his blog is a scattered, but well edited, round up of all-things travel related. Messenger bags and laptop cases seem to be the soup de jour over there, but MacLeod also puts up the occasional travel tip like Don’t eat street meat. Sounds like solid advice to us.

The forward-thinking folks at LAX know as well as anyone how much of a hassle airline travel can be; weather delays, unforeseen luggage mishaps, and plenty of other aviation-related issues can always put a damper on your departure. While many of these annoyances are far beyond our control, you could at least use a decent heads up on your flight's situation. Rather than rolling the dice, hoping your flight is on time or resorting to using a confusing automated call system offered by your carrier of choice, Los Angeles Airport's new website takes the burden of flight updates off of the of your individual carrier's wings, and makes it their own problem. LAX's site eases your terminal headaches by providing up to the minute flight status updates on both arrivals and departures, while also giving you a chance to reserve your own parking space prior to making the trip to the landing strip. If only the site could tell you if you'll be sitting next to a screaming infant.

After Monday’s Federer versus Sampras exhibition at MSG, we were all set to play winner. The striped socks were half way up when we realized: we suck at tennis. Luckily Lane, Steve, and their Wii-equipped Wiinnebago are coming to your town and ready to take on even the least athletic of us. Last year the guys set up a tournament at Barcade in Brooklyn, inviting 128 competitors to square off in Wii Tennis madness. This year they need your help. As they make their way to San Francisco in June, they need places to play, places to play, and gamers to best. To make it from coast to coast they’ll take parking lots, couches, back rooms, and maybe even an alley or two to set up the tournaments. Hell, they’ll even shill your product. The final tournament will take place in San Francisco on June 21st, location TBD. So, help these guys. All they want is a little friendly competition.

Way back in October we told you about Airbed & Breakfest, Joe Gebbia and Brian Chesky's alternative to expensive San Francisco hotel stays for designers in need of shelter during last year's IDSA conference. Well, we're more than pleased to tell you that their coverage is expanding beyond the Bay area. The site that aims at connecting visitors in need of sleeping arrangements with like-minded inhabitants of their town of tourist fancy is now available anywhere anyone feels like putting someone up for a night, as long as that someone doesn't mind sleeping on an airbed and not receiving turndown service. Instead of sitting a hotel room alone checking their email all day, Airbed users get first hand knowledge of wherever they're staying from those willing to put up with their crap for a few days. Who knows, maybe a few people using the site will make a new friend, or even manage to turn an Airbed situation to a ’share bed’ situation (wink, wink.)

It’s that time of the year again, when I pop out to San Francisco and the Bay Area for a few days before going to the incredible TED conference in Monterey, California. This years speaker lineup aims to answer questions like “Who are we?” “What is art?” “What is love?” and “What is evil” in, as they describe, unexpected ways. The whole lineup can be read on the site now, and I’m jazzed as ever to see folks like friend and site mainstay Kaki King, Chris Jordan, Bob Geldof, and Al Gore (again), as they all take the stage and blow the room away, for 18 minutes each. I’ll surely be covering highlights on the blog as it happens. I can’t wait! Stay tuned.

Related: TED 2007 Highlights

After several hours of planes, trains, and automobiles I arrived late last night into the snowed in über famous town of Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum. Boy is it gorgeous and hectic here. The air is cold, security is tight, bullet proof Mercedes are plentiful, and the opening parties so far, quite good. I’m kicking off my day today bright and early with a CNBC debate entitled “Who’s in Charge?” moderated by Maria Baritromo with panelists like Ibrahim Dabdoub, the CEO of the National Bank of Kuwait, Nandan M Nilekani from Infosys, and the famed (and apparently very nice) George Soros, who just walked past me as I write this!
I’ll be doing my best to live blog throughout the day, but in the mean time feel free to follow me on Twitter. Note to self, Swiss outlets are not European outlets. Must find charger asap!

I’ve landed in London (warm, rainy, safe) and am here for a quick weekend on my way to Davos, Switzerland for the 2008 World Economic Forum. This year’s annual meeting explores the power of collaborative innovation – five days filled with more than 2,500 invited participants from 88 countries. This includes 27 heads of state and government, religious leaders, media leaders, and pretty much leaders of, well, big deal companies. The forum has between 40 and 80 sessions everyday including everything from sessions like Myths and Realities of Private Equity, Japan: A Forgotten Power, Turkey’s Challenges, and many, many more. The whole gist of the week is obviously to get global leaders on the same page about everything from climate change to the global economy. I’ll be joining a panel on the power of social media with the International Media Council — and have no idea what to expect except for pure inspiration. I’m very humbled having been invited to such an incredible event. I’ll be updating throughout the week about my experience on Twitter, and of course, here on this blog. Any readers going (or folks who want to chat in London), drop me a line!

Knock Knock Pack This! Pad: Read JS Review | Buy It ($6.99, shown as 1)
Spazzy packers like me need this to ensure that one end of the ocean is as comfortable as the next. Additionally, it keeps that nasty “Oh no, I feel like I forgot something super important” sensation pleasantly out of your gut.

Mimobot: Read JS Review | Buy It ($49.95 - $109.95, shown as 2)
There is no worse place to deal with computer problems than half way across the Atlantic, so we like to travel with our most important info safely backed up on a flash drive… and for some reason, having that flash drive in the form of a three-eyed teddy bear helps us feel even safer.

Comer-Calder Laptop Cases: Read JS Review | Buy It (2090 - 2240 pounds, shown as 7)
Speaking of computer problems, they’re a lot less likely to happen if you keep your baby safe and sound in one of Comer-Calder’s leather and carbon fiber computer cases. Elegant, buttery soft, and, okay, totally expensive, these cases will keep your laptop in pristine condition.

BOOQ Folee Bag: Read JS Review | Buy It ($199 - $204, shown as 4)
Mike Luce and readers alike swooned over this do-it-all briefcase. Easy access, portability, functionality, sleek lines - the Folee bag has it all.

WANT Les Essentiels de la Vie iPod Case: Read JS Review | Buy It ($175-$225, shown as 5)
Premium leather covers the hard shell interior of the WANT Essentials iPod case, keeping your music pumping, your electronics safe, and your vanity appeased.

The most asked/texted/emailed question of the past week has naturally been, ‘So, what was Necker Island like?,’ followed by the obvious, ‘So, OMG, did you meet Richard Branson?’ The answer to the first question is surprisingly simple. Necker Island was like heaven on earth and is easily one of the most insane lifestyles I’ve ever been privy to. Sailing, snorkeling, wake boarding, kite boarding, tennis (pro on staff), gourmet food — the island had it all. One afternoon lunch was served not at the pool, but in the pool, two ice-filled kayaks floated around one of the pools covered in sushi; the only way to eat it was, well, dive in.

I did manage to spend some time one on one with the man himself, and have nothing but great things to say. He was authentic, fun, and an incredibly gracious host — even when he did try to push me off the sailboat. The story of his original acquisition of the island is a great one, buying it for basically chump change when he was 24. Originally the island was covered in cactus and infested with snakes. 30 years later, they’ve planted more than 200,000 trees, and created an eco-paradise.

It’s $46,000 per night for up to 28 guests (you have to rent out the whole island at once), and a minimum of 5 nights is required. If you need this kind of privacy and throw money around by the million, I guess the cost is worth it. And to those who wont stop asking, yes, my stay was pretty much exactly like the cribs episode.

I’d share more pictures, but I’m forever sworn to secrecy…

I’m headed down to Richard Branson’s Necker Island for the week, starting Sunday. A few months back after my Google Zeitgeist speech, a fellow from Virgin approached me to speak at a CEO summit on a private island. Perhaps the perfect storm (pray for no storms), I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to do two things I truly love: speak to large groups about major trends, and build sand castles.

I’ve been to a lot of places around the world, but none that I’ve been this excited to see in a very long time — seeing that I’d never throw down the money to go here on my own, this seems like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (unless they invite me back). I’ll do my best to do some in-depth posts about the island experience with pictures and the like; word on the street is Richard has the whole place WiFi-ed so I can geek out. Gotta go pack my sunscreen!

Last July, we were like, whoa, wejetset is coming. And since then, it came, and… it is excellent. Exactly like it promised to be, wejetset is “the store and voice of modern travel,” dedicated to “carrying the highest quality products, while its print and online publications keep travelers inspired and informed.” What this means, post-launch, is that this online travel store has exactly everything you could want when sailing off to uncharted lands. Brilliantly awesome luggage, check; the badass-est city guides, check; headphones, compact umbrellas, notebooks (guess who’s stocking Behance action pads?), and everything else you needed but never knew was in production, check. In short, wejetset is everything we hoped it would be and more - it even makes fourteen hour flights look sorta fun. Check it out before your next adventure here.

I had a blast last weekend walking around the Sunday (Up)Market in London, and all the surrounding shops and going-ons around The Old Truman Brewery. The market is a must stop for anyone interested in emerging fashion, interesting art, crafts and a good ‘rough around the edges’ shopping experience. It was such a nice change from the prim and proper London fashion scene you see in Central London — word on the street is several high street designers cut their teeth selling in booths out of this one-day-a-week, rented-out parking garage. If you find yourself in London on a Sunday afternoon and don’t mind crowds, pop by and enjoy!

Alex and Chloe, our favorite line of un-boring jewelry, just released their latest collection of individualist-friendly neckwear. Sharply geometric and modern (in its mod-est sense), Black Diamonds features bold shapes in Alex and Chloe’s signature lucite, again incorporating elements like classic typefaces and minimalistic shapes to create something best described as “significantly badass.” Unlike seasons past, Black Diamonds currently offers none of the 14k gold goodness I get drool-y over — but, on a positive note, the gold from a few months ago is complacently timeless (14k Can Tab; I would have worn it in 6th grade, I would wear it today, and (depending on how awesome I wind up in my later years) I like to think I’ll rock it at Bingo matches to come). My personal favorites this time around are: Love is Dead, Alex’s Zero Carat Diamond in Black, and Bauhaus Paris (pictured), all of which are available in Alex and Chloe’s online shop.

One thing is for sure, I’ve been spending way too much time in Airplanes, but, alas, I’m back in London for a couple of weeks again on a bit of a speaking and consulting power-run.

First thing tomorrow, I am the keynote speaker at the 2007 IAB Engage conference (I’ve got big shoes to fill, last year’s keynote was Terry Semel; the year before, Bill Gates). I’m humbled to be kicking off such an incredible day alongside some amazing folks from Google, MySpace, Yahoo!, Digitas, Facebook and many other hugely influential companies (check out the program). If you’re not going to be in the crowd tomorrow making funny faces at me, feel free to tune in online for a live feed of the full day event tomorrow. I’m doing a bit of an interactive experiment, so even people not attending in person will be able to take part. My presentation is called “Born Digital: They’re not listening”, and it’s basically a blown out, more powerful version of my Google Zeitgeist presentation. Wish me luck!