Annals Of Wretched Excess

By Val Castronovo, Matthew Cooper, Daren Fonda, Daniel S. Levy, Benjamin Nugent, Julie Rawe, Sora Song and Josh Tyrangiel

POD SQUAD Forget scooters. The prestige gift this holiday season will be less mobile and much more expensive. If you want one, give Santa plenty of warning so he can start saving now.

RUSSIAN SPACE CAPSULE (USED) Snug three-seater logged seven months at Mir. Delivery included $2.2 million at thespacestore.com

AQUATIC POD SUITE Semisubmersible cabana with king-size bed, minibar, shower and deck $91,100 at Hammacher Schlemmer

MEDIA MIXER Souped-up cement mixer with 12 TV monitors, DVD and PlayStation 2 $70,000 at Neiman Marcus