So I got a new job. in Ohio… yep thats right… Ohio.
I’ll be working for Abercrombie and Fitch. I’ll be saying goodbye to my home state and good buddies sometime in mid november. crazy times!
for your viewing pleasure heres a series of old time photos with Superheros superimposed into them. Surreal in a really good way.
Last night I went to see the Dolly Parton concert at Chastain Park. Being a student i had little choice but to get the cheapest tickets. I migh thave been closer if I’d just stayed at home…and dryer too…as it was raining. Luckily Domenic remembered to bring his “opera glass” which were really just binoculars. We were bobbing away to the small blond blob in the misty distance when this man approached Monica and asked her if she liked Dolly Parton…she, of course, said yes. He told us that he has season tickets at Chastain Park and that usually his wife and some friends or family would come with him to the concerts but that night he was by himself and he wanted to know if we wanted to sit a little closer. We were estatic…so he handed us three tickets and we started to follow him down the stairs. I was thinking we’d be lucky to get into the ampitheatre and away from the grass seating around the rim were the tickets we’d purchased had allocated us…but we just kept walking. We passed the stadium seating…we passed the tables and we kept walking. Thats when i looked at my ticket…Row A seat 2. Best seats i could have imagined. The concert was a lot of fun and Dolly Parton is a hoot. I never got to ask the name of the man who gave us the tickets but I wanted to send my thank you out into the world on the off chance that he might see it. He managed to make 3 stressed out and wet students very happy.
So in honor of the mystery man heres a video clip of my favorite Dolly Parton song…9 to 5
Before you read the rest of this post let me first give you a little introduction. Studio week is always a strange time at Portfolio Center. Tempers flair, people cry as the daunting day of their end-of-quarter critique grows ever closer. Life here is never what you would call normal…or lacking in interest and this week was no exception. Yesterday, when i woke up at 6, to start working, I noticed that my email inbox had 27 new hits. Considering I always check it right before bed, which that night was around 12:30, I was impressed with the amount of new mail. Instead of going into more detail, I’ve decided to share a few of those emails with names removed to protect both the innocent and the not so innocent. Many of the emails do contain some hard language so if you are squeamish to that, perhaps this isn’t the best blog post for you to read. If you simply don’t have time to read it all you should at least check out the awesome song clip by Cassey Walters at the end. He’s amazing and the song is too.
—————-THE EMAIL——————-
Subject: Shocking info about Obama and his stand on
abortion
This video has set in stone my opinion of Obama.
I found it quite disturbing, but worth watching.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIdbYjmbFzo
————–THE RESPONSE—————
My own stance on politics aside, how can you say “politics aside” when the
video and host website are all about politics and are biased against a
political candidate?
Too many politics behind it all to put them aside.
—
On a side note,
Ninjas are awesome.
This is fact.
http://www.realultimatepower.net/
—
Maybe you could send another link regarding this? I saw “FOX news” in
the first 30 seconds & had to turn it off…
Or maybe just send the link sans commentary.
Just a thought.
—
you need to make sure that my email address is not on the list the
next time you decide to be
informative about matters of this nature.
—
Looking into the creators of the site it turns outs they hate gays too. I ‘m pretty sure they are a religious group out of NC. Here is more of their stuff if your into it.
http://www.illuminatipictures.com/illuminatitv/
http://www.wearethinking.com/main.swf
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/5/17/204538/024/27/517636
http://nohussein.org/
http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en-us&q=4900+Nc+HWY+55+STE+160-117+Durham+NC+27713&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
—
Another font request, sorry guys & gals
I need right wing ultra condensed
Its a very old typeface that my great, great, great, great
grandparents used when they used to say whatever that wanted without
the thought of repercussion
Thanks
—
Hi,
Interesting video, but completely one sided and inaccurate. I did a bit of
research and found that the group behind the video “illuminatitv,” is
actually a religious lobby group who gives money to McCain is attempting
make Obama look bad by using the sensational and sensitive issue of
abortion.
If you are interested in the truth about Obama’s relatively moderate
stance on abortion you can see it here.
http://www.ontheissues.org/Barack_Obama.htm
I think as designers and citizens of the United States we need to go
beyond the sensational sources often found on youtube or Fox news and seek
non-editorialized sources of information.
Have a nice evening.
—
yikes . . . I think most of us can spot a goose in the hen house . . . .
let’s share information that’s educational, not sensational.
and then maybe collect a list of under-used colloquialisms.
—
Info. like this is better suited for the xenophobic, racist, closet-case
Baptist nut jobs who have tried their damnedest to ruin this country and
send us back to 1950. You neo-con-artists trip me out; just because you
don’t like something doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Until you’ve adopted
and/or helped place a few hundred unwanted babies then you should probably
shut the fuck up about things you have no idea about. Why don’t you try
for once to be optimistic and come to the table with ideas and solutions
instead of your very Nazi-like fear tactics and misinformation?
A woman’s body is 100% hers, end of story. If you don’t want an abortion
then DON’T FUCKING HAVE ONE.
And keep this ill-informed sensationalist bullshit out of my inbox please.
If you have facts with sources that have been triple-checked then I would
love to discuss all of our great nations many problems and successes as
I’m sure most students at the school would. But lay off the soundbyte,
propaganda horseshit. It’s unsettling, rude, and extremely un-American.
—
Hey Everyone,
Politics aside, how can anyone support someone who hates Wookies? This is
something we as Americans need to hear/see for ourselves!! Check it out…
—
i usually don’t get involved in the poli game, i’m very much down the
middle…i guess like the swiss? i like to draw pictures and strum my six
string and sing songs of peace, life, frustrations, certainly ninjas…and
yes, even love ballads about wookies…
(key of d…like all good love songs)
oh lookie
oh lookie
at length did cross
a wookie
a wookie
a smile so sweet
a coiffure complete
need i say more?
it took me
it took me
we laughed
we played
as if a parade
we danced to
Sookie Sookie
i knew it was real
our love had congealed
the day
it made me cookies
and then one day
it ran away
it left me
for its bookie
i cursed the air
but i not care
i did it
for the nookie
oh lookie
oh lookie
at length did cross
a wookie
a wookie
alright…i attached a pdf that simply informs. don’t poop politics on
me…ok?
—
Well, what a ride! This is the most entertaining PC inbox I’ve had since
that time there was a picture of Hank in a red beret. And seriously that
stuff isn’t funny, my uncle is a wookie. But on a serious note:
http://www.theonion.com/content/video/supreme_court_rules_death_penalty
Caution: this is real.
—
hey. remember me? the swiss songwriter guy?
please “keep this ill-informed sensationalist bullshit out of my inbox” as
well please.
it’s hard swallowing one compare this to the atrocities of the nazi regime.
can’t we just keep this server to type requests?
respectfully,
—
i swear…this is the last you’ll hear from me. i just couldn’t resist
“laying down some tracks” over the
wookie love poem. enjoy the tune amidst the chaos that is PC.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO “the wookie love ballad”
I somewhat recently went to the Atlanta Zoo in the heat of the Georgia summer. Heres some of the cool things I saw…see if you can notice the trend. It was really hot.
this guy was doing everything he could to not be sleepy. His friends were doing freaky lemur activities and he wanted in but couldn’t muster the energy
The Panda exhibit was AWESOME. The female was napping as shown in the picture but the male was playing the crowd. He would run around his cage in circles doing summersaults then he would climb his tree take a dump and then go back to running circles and doing somersaults.
The Zoo can be a sleepy place.
Fantastic article this morning from the New York Times that touches a lot of important topics…one in particular that I’ve been trying to convert into a blog post since I saw the film Wall-E last weekend. Besides being one of my top two animated films of all-time the movie is amazingly timely in message and approach. I’ve linked to the article Wall-E for President because the NYT’s says it way better than I could. I’d very much recommend not only going to see this movie but also to take someone with you. It’s a very poignant film that triggers discussion in all the right places. Don’t believe me check out the often harsh RottenTomato.com that gave the film an unheard of 96% approval rating. Thats amazing and so is this film.
Op-Ed ColumnistWall-E for PresidentSO much for a July Fourth week spent in idyllic celebration of our country’s birthday. This year’s festivities were marked instead by a debate — childish, not constitutional — over who is and isn’t patriotic. The fireworks were sparked by a verbally maladroit retired general, fueled by two increasingly fatuous presidential campaigns, and heated to a boil by a 24/7 news culture that inflates any passing tit for tat into a war of the worlds.
if (acm.rc) acm.rc.write();Let oil soar above $140 a barrel. Let layoffs and foreclosures proliferate like California’s fires. Let someone else worry about the stock market’s steepest June drop since the Great Depression. In our political culture, only one question mattered: What was Wesley Clark saying about John McCain and how loudly would every politician and bloviator in the land react?
Unable to take another minute of this din, I did what any sensible person might do and fled to the movies. More specifically, to an animated movie in the middle of a weekday afternoon. What escape could be more complete?
Among its other attributes, this particular G-rated film, “Wall-E,” is a rare economic bright spot. Its enormous box-office gross last weekend swelled a total Hollywood take that was up 20 percent from a year ago. (You know America’s economy is cooked when everyone flocks to the movies.) The “Wall-E” crowds were primed by the track record of its creator, Pixar Animation Studios, and the ecstatic reviews. But if anything, this movie may exceed its audience’s expectations. It did mine.
As it happened, “Wall-E” opened the same summer weekend as the hot-button movie of the 2004 campaign year, Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11.” Ah, the good old days. Oil was $38 a barrel, our fatalities in Iraq had not hit 900, and only 57 percent of Americans thought their country was on the wrong track. (Now more than 80 percent do.) “Wall-E,” a fictional film playing to a far larger audience, may touch a more universal chord in this far gloomier time.
What a awesome morning. I’m starting to get used to the pungent pikes place brew that starbucks has been pushing in recent..I even sort of enjoyed it today. But the big news is that Neil Cicierega (a hero of mine) posted a new episode of the ever popular Potter Puppet Pals…which I will share below. Hope it brings you as much joy as it brought me.
In honor of this video I’ve even started a new category. Now all HP entries can be viewed together with a simple click. thrilling!
The balmy summer weather has dropped like a wet hammer bringing with it flip flops, extra strength deodorant, mojitos, mosquitoes, bored school children and the return of Atlanta’s street life. 2nd year approaches and to commemorate where I’ve been and where I’m going I declare the prelude song of summer 2009. Not usually a Jason Mraz fan but here we go
Yeah…I know…don’t judge me. Just sign my yearbook and have a nice summer.
So i’ve been putting off this post all day. How do I describe the events of yesterdays Sagmiester extravaganza? It needs to be said that he FAR exceeded my expectations in many ways and gave me a whole new light into why he is as popular as he is. Tomorrow, perhaps when it isn’t still so freshly awesome in my mind, I’m going to write a play by play of the seminar and the events that followed and preceded. I will, however, say that what most impressedme about stefan sagmeister (stephan sagmeister…this spelling gets me more hits on google) was that instead of giving his life to design and letting it be something that controls his happiness and his stress level he has managed to meld it into a framework that he uses to maintain an optimistic, thought provoking and adventurous lifestyle. I even spent WAY to much money on his book…and got it signed. So I’m going to post the link to the books website not because I am promoting it but because it is a really cool Web site that is an extension of the idea behind the book. As to whether you should buy it or not…I think you need to decide for yourself if you are ready to join the ranks of Sag Hags everywhere. Don’t take my work…see for yourself…it will be better that way.
http://thingsihavelearnedinmylife.com/buy-book
So finally the day has arrived. Stefan Sagmeister is only a few hours away and the excitement is building. Honestly, it is sort of like going to a rock concert. Everyone is charging their camera batteries, planning carpools and planning what pair of panties they want to throw up on stage. I’m excited to finally have a chance to witness for myself the “wonderment” that is this design school icon. And seriously, he’s been using his notoriety to have giant, albino, blow-up monkeys produced for the betterment of mankind. Giant monkey’s are a easy way into my heart.
Oh, and if you are interested in some really striking poster designs you should check out The Small Stakes, most people will probably have seen some of the work before but I really appreciate the simplicity and boldness of the work. Here are a few of my favorites. Jason Munn the designer, has a really good skill at storytelling. he can squeeze intricate and dramatic stories into simple minimalistic illustrations. I’m also a huge fan of his use of type. Seems so effortless but I can only imagine the level of work that goes into producing just one of these prints.
Yesterday, Domenic and I finally made a trek out to the newly opened Coca Cola museum in downtown Atlanta. (Specifically to see the Andy Warhol exhibit, which was small but awesome) Having lived in Georgia for many years I’d been to the old museum a fair few times. The new museum is really an updated, more streamlined version of the old museum in a more centralized and up-and-coming location (directly next to the new (super cool) aquarium). As a whole the attractions are all still the same. You get a “look back” into the history of both Coke as a product and Coke as a cultural entity. Then you walk through a sample coke production line and finally you pop out into the tasting center where you can sample Coke products from around the world (most notably Beverly, a foul beverage from Italy that facinated me as a kid and from what I saw yesterday still remains a favorite of hyper active, pre-teen field trippers.) What has changed is the perspective with which the museum now displays the influencial span of Coke history. The focus is finely tuned to reflect a few key themes. It seems like Coke is no longer concerned with finding clever ways to weave itself into the fabric of americana but is instead directing itself towards the individual. Perhaps this reflects the times…or the ever growing international scope of the Coca Cola empire but the days of “I’d like to buy the world a Coke” seems to be quaint little feathers in the cap of Cokes past. The new Coke campaign and the underlying theme of the new coke museum is based on the following commercial.
Brilliantly produced and creatively imagined the new campaign is called “the happiness factory.” The spot is definatly up to par for the one of the greatest and most respected marketing histories in the world, but it certainly represents a shift for the company (and a clever shift at that.) With this new commercial Coke has created a new and mysterious universe that is quite apart from our own. No longer playing a force of world unision the company has set up a new realm where the magical, happy forces of coke now reside distict and seperated from our world. I think it is intersting that Coke is no longer represented as a seamless part of our worlds “magic” but instead as a dissperate entity that works together to then influence our world in magical ways. Coke is no longer a classic peice of what defines us a civilization but instead as a place apart from ours that merits our persuit. The commecial takes Coke away from being aligned with what makes us happy people and redefines the product as being above us, a magical entity that works independantly to bring us happiness if we seek it. The commecial seems to say that if you put some coins into the machines then a whole universe of happiness will unite to bring you a product that represents the unification of their love, joy and admiration. Which in itself is also an intersting shift towards individualistic fulfillment over group unification. I noticed this at the museum as well when i sat in on the new 3D cinamatic adventure to find the “secret ingredient” of Coke. The ride takes you on a journey around the world to find what it is that makes coke the perfect balance of flavour only to drop you right back where you started to excitedly anounce that what makes Coke great is, indeed, you the individual consumer. What an interesting approach. Set up an incredible new world of “wonder, magic and happiness” (a world that most people would find appealing) and then put that world at the consumers fingertips (only a buck away) and position that world as if all of its wonderment can only be realized if the consumer acts accourdingly. This is why Coke is such a powerful company. This is really clever stuff.
So in conclusion here is a follow up film to the Happiness Factory via Youtube
And if you are reminecent of the old days here are a few of my favorite Coke commercials from the old perspective.
