What Scott Rogowsky of HQ Can’t Live Without

I have pretty bad vision and wear contacts most of the time, but I actually now wearglassesmore and more. When I was a kid, I got bullied and called four-eyes, and now it’s cool? It’s annoying because people who don’t even need them wear glasses to look stylish now, and it’s like, screw you! I got these Haskells because I never had clear frames before, and then I saw them and thought they were kind of cool and trendy. I’m feeling it.

I went to the dentist and felt like, “If the dentist is using electric tools on me and anelectric toothbrushthemselves, then I should use one, too.” I bought myself a midrangeSonicare, and it’s good. It really gets in there. I wouldn’t say it’s life-changing, but it’s certainly teeth-changing. It’s certainly getting my whites whiter. I actually noticed how much I love my Sonicare because my friend got me aQuip, which I’ll take with me when I’m traveling, but is not as great a toothbrush. I notice it. The only thing with the Sonicare is that I’m used to keeping my mouth open when I brush my teeth, and this thing spins so fast, thetoothpastesprays all over the mirror. My mirror is filthy now, so I have to close my mouth when I’m brushing.

I’m not, uh, exactly blessed in the crotch department, and when I first became sexually active and started using condoms, I found the standard issue to be a little … baggy. But then I discovered this “snugger fit” brand. Have you heard of these? They manage to hold on for even the bumpiest of rides. Total game changer, like going from JNCOs to skinnyjeans.

I am a verybad sleeper. There are lots of times when I’m trying to fall asleep at someone’s place, and if they don’t have blackout curtains, I am waking up with any amount of sunlight. So I’ve tried a lot ofsleep masksover the years, and they’re hard to get right. So many are uncomfortable or slide off. Someone gave me this one as a gift recently, and it’s great. It keeps the light out, but doesn’t feel like a rubber band around your head. I’d buy it with my own money if I had to.

I was trying to think really hard about what I loved in my life, and this was near the top. I had an entry-level guitar in high school, and maybe 12 years ago incollege, I thought I should get more serious about it (or as serious as you can be without being a professionalmusician) and went to Guitar Center to get a new one. I saw this hanging on the wall, which didn’t look like any of the other ones. It’s a Dobro, which means it’s a guitar with this metal hybrid resonator, so it sounds slightly different. You can also plug it in electrically, so I’ll play it whenever I can in my apartment. I’m screwing around and have never even been in a band, but I like it.

Well, T.J.’s is a game changer. I grew up as a Food Emporium and Waldbaum’s and A&P kid, and Trader Joe’s came with their own line of products that all seem healthy, even though they probably aren’t. That said, I do love the dried fruit because it’s made without the sulfates and the sulfur dioxides and preservatives and is totally delicious. I love thedried baby bananas, but the one that really got me, though, was the dried persimmons because I love persimmons, but they’re so hard to eat fresh. Apparently, there are only two varieties of persimmons — one kind is completely bitter until it’s totally ripe, and the other bruises too easily. These dried persimmons are dried at the peak of freshness, and I will go through a bag in a single sitting. This is what I spend money on, dried fruit. I’m calling you right now from CES, and I couldn’t give a shit about this stuff. I don’t wantdronesorHDTVs. I want dried fruit.

I was working at this vegan convention maybe four years ago because I was working the booth of some chia-seed company. It was some easy money, and I was walking around the convention and came upon theVitamixbooth. They sort of give you the whole demo and tell you how you can make peanut butter and smoothies andice cream, and I was feeling good about making my money working the booth and bought the floor model. I thought I’d be making all of my money back because it’d be a lifelong investment. Well, I’ve had it for four years now, and it still works, but I just wish I used it more. I really should buy more fruit.

Thisunderwearis from a company called Shinesty out in Boulder, Colorado, and they make these ridiculous printed suits and boxers and swim trunks (theHanukkah blazerI wore on HQ was a Shinesty). I like that the boxer briefs are sort of silly — I have them inBuffalo plaidand dinosaur print, and then there’s one with acamel facewhere the crotch is. What I really like is the fit. I’ve been wearing boxer briefs for 20 years probably, and these fit soft and snug in the right places, and has a pouch for some room. It’s strange to talk about boxers!