In my last house I was the lightbulb buyer, by a default that everyone else forgot. Or perhaps I was the only person inclined to have more than one way of lighting a room. But finally, lots of 75pences later and I’ve finally invested in a decent energy efficient bulb I’ve finally bought this.

There’s something wonderful about the pooling curves on the Plumen Blub, and I really like how simple it is. It’s lovely, and I’m surprised it’s taken me a year to get round to buying one. (There’s also some brilliant shots of the bulbs hanging in a cafe on the site, and they look pretty good with the ongoing trend of exposed hanging cables.)

Then, the day after the Plumen came in the post, these popped up on Twitter: the next stage in over the top, wonderful gloopy lighting bulbs, all by a good chap called Pieke Bergman. They are delightfully silly, and I adore the one on the right. I like the soft glow they give off.

In summary, a thrilling week of lightbulbs has been had.

I love lecool and things like it. When you’re in a big city for the first time they’re a lifesaver, and when you’re old and jaded they help you find new things. In my spare time I edit what is essentially a Brighton version, but it seems a much easier task because in what’s still a madly busy little city there’s still less of an obscene choice of things going on. In London, I almost don’t know where to start. (Probably because I’ve lived in one for four years, and one for one month.) It’s nice to feel that someone’s doing the research for me. So yesterday we picked three things of the lecool list and went out on an adventure. At the moment I feel like there’s so much to take it, see and digest and like it all needs eating quickly and immediately. I may become at risk of indigestion. If you’ve got anything you’d recommend seeing or doing let me know.

1. Carousel Art & Craft
2. Angelheaded Hipsters Exhibition at the National Theatre (best Snowball cocktails)
3. Hunter S Thompson at the Friends Films. (We scrapped this exciting sounding venture for a poke around the tiny Curve Exhibition at the Barbican)

Mason and Taylor has reaffirmed my mostly jaded view of East London pubs in one easy go. I’m on a mission to find comfortable, wonderful, homely places that redefine my associations of London (I’ve spent too much time in wetherspoons filled with jostling men in suits, or places that are just a bit run of the mill). This is one of the places that make me realise London has so many ordinary but brilliant spots.

We popped down to the art and craft event downstairs – they hung fabric bunting across the stairs and I was a bit smitten. I may have squeaked in excitement (the craft could have been crap, and I’d still have been happy). It was lovely to poke around. It’s a small but nice space with a mix of knitted bits, feathery things and art, and was lovely to poke around. There were tables of people knitting and chatting whilst people look around their tables. The wrapping paper prints hanging from the ceiling on coat hangers decorated with small people, mixing bowls, and forests made me want to go home and find out how to make my own.

We scrapped the Hunter S Thompson ‘One for the Doctor’ event run by the People’s Picturehouse: a ‘secretive squatty cinema type event’ celebrating Hunter S Thompson, which promised themed cocktails, friendly faces, and a back-to-back projection of a Gonzo Journalist documentary and Fear and Loathing because it went past our bedtime and we’re old like that.

Instead we went to the Barbican which was holding Beat the Champ by Cory Archangel at The Curve Exhibition, a tiny commission which takes you on a journey through different gaming consoles. Essentially it’s loops of bowling games in which the player fails to score, displayed down a giant wall. Surrounded by Nintendo and Atari beeps, it’s nice but feels as though it should be part of a bigger exhibition.

And finally we headed to the official #2 on the list. I can count the number of times I’ve walked along the Southbank on one hand, and the same with the number of people I’ve done it with. I always remember Elika saying it’s one of her favourite spots and I wonder if the blue and white fairy light-lit trees and old Victorian-esque lights will feel any less special when I have walked there more than my hands and feet can count. I hope not.

The Angelheaded Hipsters exhibition has been taking place at the National Gallery. I’ve never been to the National Gallery before. There’s a lot of places I’ve never been, but it’s a lovely building – not so much in the design but in the mood inside. It’s tranquil and kind, and we discovered some of the nicest Snowball cocktails – and after leaving we dashed to a supermarket to buy Avokaat, so I’ll be making those tonight).

Allen Ginsberg’s photos of his friends, ranging from William Burroughs Patti Smith to Andy Warhol (described as ‘hipster Andy Warhol’ it took a second to remember that Warhol wasn’t always a modern art chap) is a step into stories of the past. There’s lots to look at but the younger photos resonate more, and involve you in their stories more. Perhaps because I’m the same age now, but the detail in the descriptions of each person seemed more loving, and the poses of people leaning back from tall buildings or bundled onto a sofa for a quick group shot seemed more natural and somehow, I couldn’t put my finger on, more affectionate. Perhaps because I’m the same age, or perhaps because they were the first photos we came across, but something was lovely about them. Something carefree and young and with so much to happen. And that’s a bit how I feel at the moment.

I wrote about Quora. Less about whether it’s a Twitter killer (yawn) and more about banal chatter vs expert opinion and debate. First though, it’s very important you watch these crows.

Read it over on Bitchbuzz Tech.

Oh this is awesome. Six riders have taken this camera down a slope – “Each rider is doing their own awesome tricks, none of which you can see with just the one camera angle so you have to keep re-watching it,” says Tom. The camera’s atop a giant triangular frame (you can see the shadow if you scroll around – it looks wonderfully silly).

The technology to view and control complete panoramas has been flitting about over the last year, taken around festivals over the summer. Dancing people in fields was all well and fine but it’s so much better taken up a mountain doing something I love (technically I’m a skier – I’ve tried boarding twice and both love and hate it). Crunching about in big boots in the snow this weekend was already making me yearn to be hurling myself down a mountain. This has made it x10. Watch/play with it.

This is a pretty sweet concept, building on apps like Zombie Escape which, in a mix of fitness meets zombies, lets you run around the real world chased by location-following zombies on your iPhone. Despite angry geeks reviewing the red dots indicating zombies as “not zombie-ish enough (sic)” it’s a pretty awesome concept – a sort of new geeky accidental fitness game that never really exploded.

Coke’s building on the legacy that is Tron, with a new app letting you play a branded variation of the simple zombies battling real people, rather than imaginary red dots. LiveCycle by CP+B lets players “move around to create their Light path” taking the concept of Tron into the real world. Stake out areas, gain points, and unlock achievements is the gist, with a nice twist for those travelling too fast (i.e. car) having their power zapped. (So, if you’re looking to cheat, the key message is opt for bike over car.)

LiveCycle’s toted to not only reflect the movie but also “actually help blow it up,” says VP Dave Sciff at CP+B, and he’ll be right if it’s taken up by a significant number. Unfortunately it’s only available on iPhones, and only on IOS 4 at that, so I’ve been unable to have a play. As an Android user I actively borrowed an iPhone solely to test the app out and was disappointed.

It’s the second big brand attempt in as many months that prompts people to run about whilst trying to focus on their iPhone (a pretty mean feat), and both Coke and the Mini Getaway Stockholm effort – “stay at least 50 metres away from everybody else in Stockholm city between October 31st and November 7th 2010. If you succeed, you win the new MINI Countryman” – have been pretty swish in their production.

As Alex Burnard of CP+B says: “To date, nearly 95% of the marketing executions that involve location-based technology are built on existing platforms. Foursquare deals etc. So in many ways, the location based marketing boom hasn’t really started yet.”

So, whilst this and the Mini Getaway are cool ideas, will this end up being a showy but ineffective way of promoting a brand through a Youtube video of what could have been? Whilst winter’s not exactly the best season for it, are Tron geeks (and curious game-player types like me) going be spotted leaping about your local streets fretting about being derezzed?

It’s a case of ‘will this go viral?’ or perhaps ‘are we ready for it?’ Regardless, it’s a joyful example of brands not just bumbling onto platforms for the sake of platforms but trying to do something a little bit cool and hopefully it’ll be paving the way for more engaging apps that take things outside.

This appears over on Bitchbuzz Tech.