The story of Eric Volz is scary, heart wrenching, and unfortunately, very real– it has gained national attention with a front page story in the Wall Street Journal last week, and the viral exposure it’s sure to get with this YouTube video will surely make it a huge and widely recognized piece of national (and international) news. I will let you learn the details by watching this video– as it does such a great job of explaining the story– but the basics are that American Eric Volz was living a great life in Nicaragua as a publisher for El Puente Magazine, a travel lifestyle magazine focusing on eco-tourism in Nicaragua. Upon the mysterious death of an ex-girlfriend, law enforcement came after him despite a solid alibi, locked him up for 84 days, and then a judge convicted him of the murder without following any concrete evidence– he was basically tried in the press. Violations of Eric’s rights to due process run rampant throughout this story, and it’s sure to elicit a surprised and sickened reaction from you all. After watching this short film, head here to donate to Eric’s cause, and here to become a friend on Myspace– and write your politicians a letter on his behalf.

Peeled Snacks has introduced their latest snack mix, Plu-what?– a delicious mixture of plums, white peaches, cashews and pluots. Pluots are somewhat new to the mainstream produce consumer, and happen to be one of the tastiest hybrids around. This sweet mixture of plums and apricots result in a fun, wacky fruit that comes in varieties with names like “dinosaur eggs,” “flavorella,” and “candy stripe.” Go on a new fruit adventure with the pluot starring in Plu-what? or grab a fresh pluot at your local grocery store.

The buzz is quickly growing around Nau– the worlds first good looking environmentally sustainable brand. I’ve been field testing a few items throughout my travels over the past month and I’m in love with the Profile Fleece Jacket ($170 shown here). It’s become a staple in my travel wardrobe for a number of reasons: It blends a motorcycle jacket style with fleece comfort– you can stay warm and not look like you just stepped out of an expedition or headed to the ski slope. It looks sharp, smart and sophisticated while still remaining incredibly functional– I wore it through all sorts of weather patterns in London and Amsterdam– a DWR finish repelled light precipitation, the seams are placed strategically to avoid chafing– and it’s environmentally friendly made of 87% recycled polyester. Check out their online shop as well as one of the stores opening up across the country– these first ‘web fronts’ will be in Boulder, Chicago, Portland and Bellvue, Washington. This is going to be an exciting brand to watch as it gains traction and popularity, grows, and spreads its positive message of not just eco-fashion, but great looking, functional fashion.

When I first heard Incorporated, the newest from The Legion of Doom, I thought to myself: “you’ve got to be kidding me.” There are mash ups out there that I’ve really enjoyed listening to, but it didn’t make sense to me right off the bat that The Legion of Doom was mixing together punk, hardcore, emo, and scream-o songs. But after giving the entire 14 tracks a shot, I developed an appreciation for the job Chad Blinman and Trevor Keith (formerly of one of my favorite punk whilst in highschool, Face to Face) did with these tracks. The first thing I noticed was that it isn’t even really a mash up, at least compared to the mash ups I’ve heard thus far– rather, each track pins one band against another in a battle of sorts. For instance, ‘The Quiet Screaming’ begins with Dashboard Confessional in the foreground with some hints of a Brand New track in the background. Toward the middle of the song, the Brand New track becomes more prevalent, and eventually replaces the Dashboard track, leaving only remnants of Chris Carrabba’s whine. Other combos I enjoyed: Saves the Day vs. Funeral For A Friend, Underoath vs. Mewithoutyou, and The Get Up Kids vs. Thursday. You can buy Incorporated for $10 here or stream it for free here.

I’m really excited to get my hands on a copy of One to One, a new book by Tanja Backe that may well be the ticket. Literally actually– the book is an international collection of tickets (over 1,600 of them) from the past 20 or so years. It covers all the bases– planes, trains, ferries, buses, museums, theaters, circuses, operas, zoos, concerts, ballets… It is organized by color, and displays the tickets in their actual sizes, guiding the reader through the unique identity of each, transforming these everyday objects into products of “high design and ingenuity.” The book itself is small; I think it would make a perfect travel companion. It’s available through Actar Publishing for $38 USD.