This giant book Atlas of Human Anatomy and Surgery is 714 pages of body parts as envisioned by Taschen, one of the finest publishers of books on art, graphic design, architecture, pop culture and other quirkery. If you are an anatomy nut, you will find the gorgeous detail of the book’s intricate full color plates very satisfying indeed. The atlas, published in 8 volumes in the mid-1800s, was  two decades in the making, a collaboration between surgeon Jean Baptiste Marc Bourgery and illustrator Nicolas Henri Jacob. Just look at the veins on that brain! And so that’s what a cross-section of the spine would look like! Also interesting in Taschen’s catalog: Aesthetic Surgery, all about, well, trying to improve on what nature gave ya. It’s out of stock, but you can still look at the fascinating and sometimes grotesque pictures. You can even send this mouth image as an e-card.

Disco Bear gets a heart transplant following a breakfast of deep-fried butter in Happy Tree Friends ultra-disturbing episode “Change of Heart.” What we learned: don’t eat deep-friend butter.

The idea of going to a kidney celebration may sound odd to some, but to the Northwest Kidney Center in Seattle, WA, it’s business as usual. The center provides screening and support to African Americans, who are disproportionately affected by kidney disease. You needn’t be black to attend and take advantage of the kidney-centric festival, featuring educational programs, free health screenings and a recipe contest. And while I’m sure most people would like to walk away from the event’s raffle with an iPod or an Xbox, we hope someone will be happy to take home one of the Kidney Gutsy Gift Packs we donated to this year’s event.

Be sure to check out Nova’s Doctors’ Diaries, it is an incredible in-depth look into what it’s like to become a doctor, from what it took to get through medical school, how they dealt with cadaver lab, how they survived residencies, and eventually how they became practicing doctors — or not. The filmmakers began by filming students at Harvard Medical School in 1987, and continued to follow these people throughout their careers today (that’s Dr. Luanda Grazette, pictured, she’s a cardiologist). Really, really interesting program and you can watch it online.

We’ve had the good fortune of working with some really great stores during the past few years, and I wanted to spend some time on this blog highlighting some of our favorite shops. Ruck Rover General Store is an adorable lil’ shop down in Perth, Western Australia, the sisters who run it, Claire and Isabelle Trolio are super sweet, have a taste for independent design (Princess Tina, Supermaggie, Heavy Rotation), and have amassed a collection of cuteness (is that a polka-dotted stuffed mushroom on the sofa? Why yes, it is!).  They just launched an online store, so check out their goods or if you’re in the area, go visit!